Who watches Korean dramas? The shows' fan demographics vary from country to country.

In South Korea, while the TV dramas' multiple story lines appeal to a wide age group, teenage girls are the biggest K-drama addicts.

When I was in Pusan, South Korea's second-largest city, for its film festival last month, I noticed the movie audiences were made up largely of female teens. I asked a film-industry executive where the boys were and he replied, "They are all at home playing video games."

When people see Korean-drama stars around town, it's not a big deal, no mad rush for autographs. Only young female pre-teens will mob actors for an autograph or, more likely, take photographs with their 5-megapixel cell phone cameras.
So why are Korean women over the age of 18 not screaming "Lee Byung Hun!"? Culture is part of the explanation.
Confucian values are still a big part of Korean society. It is not common for an older person to approach a younger person for favors such as an autograph.

The second reason is, simply, that women are too shy to approach their favorite star.

Recently, Korean drama and music star Bi, aka Rain, of "Full House," visited China, attracting 40,000 raving teenage girls. Hallyu, or Korean wave, is getting its second wind in China, after taking Japan by storm. There are many joint film and TV ventures that pair Korean actors with Chinese female stars. As in Korea, Chinese fans skew younger and female.

In Japan and Hawai'i, many of the fans are our mothers, aunts and cousins. During last month's Louis Vuitton Hawaii International Film Festival, Korean directors and actor Lee Byung Hun all remarked to me how surprised they were at the diverse age group that attended films here.

Although the K-drama fan base in Japan and Hawai'i is diverse, the die-hard fans are clearly females over the age of 25. When Bae Yong Jun, who stars in "Winter Ballad," visited Japan, 10,000 female fans brought traffic to a stop at the airport. When Lee Byung Hun visited Hawai'i last month, people waited more than four hours in the rain at Hawaii Theatre for the sold-out screening of "Bittersweet Life." (One of them fainted while waiting for Lee.)

Two weeks ago, I reported on South Korea's largest TV network, KBS, covering Lee Byung Hun's appearance at LVHIFF for its weekly entertainment program, "Yeun Ae Ga Joong Gae." You can see the episode on KBFD on Dec. 14 at 7 p.m.

THIS WEEK ON 'PRAGUE,' A MARRIAGE PROPOSAL

'A FAREWELL TO TEARS'

EPISODES 23 AND 24

Tonight at 7: Jung-woo tells Seo-young's mom he'll try to become the man she'd be happy with. Hae-sun pays off Sung-min's debt, but Sung-min can't quite trust her yet. Seo-young and her father find out the mother told Jung-woo not to see her again.

Tonight at 8: Sun-ok tells Hae-sun the truth about Jung-woo. Hae-sun is heartbroken that she couldn't recognize her son. Sung-jae tells Jung-woo to drop by Hae-sun's office. But Hae-sun faints when she sees Jung-woo. Il-ho, afraid his secret would be revealed when his mother's condition worsens, plans to send Yeo-jin away.

'SECRET LOVERS'

EPISODES 13 AND 14

Tomorrow at 7:50 p.m.: Joon-woo finds out that the lady Young-jee went to meet turned out not to be her mother. He changes his mind about taking Young-jee to his get-together with friends and invites Ah-mi instead. Young-jee sees them together when she goes back to Ah-mi's place to pick up a book she had left behind.

Tuesday at 7:50 p.m.: Young-jee tells Ah-mi that she will quit working for her. She also overhears Ah-mi and the matchmaker talking about Ah-mi and Joon-woo's marriage. Joon-woo, feeling guilty about not taking Young-jee to a get-together with his friends, builds a desk and brings it by Young-jee's place. Young-jee kicks him out.

'REBIRTH'

EPISODES 21 AND 22

Wednesday at 7:50 p.m.: Eun-ha sees Shin-young with the bracelet he gave Ha-eun, and is convinced Shin-hyeok is Ha-eun. She confronts Ha-eun, who denies it. Dong-chan blackmails Sang-guk and Tae-jun with a recording of incriminating evidence.

Thursday at 7:50 p.m.: Afraid for Ha-eun, Eun-ha asks Ha-eun to forget everything and go back to the way they were in the past, but Ha-eun asks her to wait for him. Sang-guk and Tae-jun are overcome with fear when they receive letters and pictures from an unknown source.

'LOVERS IN PRAGUE'

EPISODES 9 AND 10

Friday at 7:50 p.m.: Jae-hee sends Sang-hyun to Hae-joo. But when Sang-hyun goes after Hae-joo, she's already gone. Young-woo shows Jae-hee the furniture he's been making and asks her to marry him. Sang-hyun burns Hae-joo's pictures and the T-shirt she'd given him.

Saturday at 7:50 p.m.: Sang-hyun tells Jae-hee that she doesn't look like a farmer's daughter, and Jae-hee is scared he might've found out about her father. Young-woo tells Sang-hyun he'd never give up on Jae-hee, and Sang-hyun tells him he'll never lose Jae-hee.