7th Grade Civil Servant

7th Grade Civil Servant (Korean: 7급 공무원; Hanja: 七級 公務員; RR: 7geup Gongmuwon; MR: 7kŭp Kongmuwŏn) is a 2013 South Korean television series starring Choi Kang-hee and Joo Won as rookie spies who trained together, and later become NIS agents who must hide their real identities from each other even as they fall in love.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]} It aired on MBC from January 23 to March 28, 2013, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 (KST) for 20 episodes.^[7]

7th Grade Civil Servant
Promotional poster for 7th Grade Civil Servant
Also known as	Level 7 Civil Servant Class 7 Civil Servant
Hangul	7급 공무원
Hanja	七級 公務員
Revised Romanization	7geup Gongmuwon
McCune–Reischauer	7kŭp Kongmuwŏn
Genre	Romantic comedy Action
Based on	My Girlfriend Is an Agent by Chun Sung-il
Written by	Chun Sung-il
Directed by	Kim Sang-hyup Oh Hyun-jong
Starring	Choi Kang-hee Joo Won
Composer	Park Se-jun
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language	Korean
No. of episodes	20
Production
Executive producer	Park Hong-gyun
Producer	Kim Jung-hwan
Production locations	South Korea Pattaya, Thailand
Cinematography	Hong Sung-wook Yoon Kwon-soo
Editor	Lee Taek-joo
Running time	60 minutes
Production companies	Appletree Pictures Curtain Call Production
Release
Original network	MBC TV
Original release	January 23 (2013-01-23) – March 28, 2013 (2013-03-28)
Related
My Girlfriend Is an Agent (2009)

The series is a remake of the 2009 film My Girlfriend Is An Agent.^[8] Early working titles were "Secret Agent War" and "The Secret Lovers".^[9][10]

Plot

Love and espionage collide in this drama of the National Intelligence Service's rookie agents. Han Gil-ro (Joo Won) realizes his dream of becoming an international man of mystery, after a childhood spent poring over James Bond films. Kim Seo-won (Choi Kang-hee) spices things up as a goofy, yet determined agent, but it's not all 007 glamor. Both Gil-ro and Seo-won must learn what it takes to uphold their sworn duty, even at the sacrifice of their happiness — and lives.

Cast

• Choi Kang-hee as Kim Seo-won / Kim Kyung-ja^[11]
• Joo Won as Han Gil-ro / Han Pil-hoon^{[12][13][14][15][16][17]}
• Hwang Chan-sung as Gong Do-ha^[18][19]
• Kim Min-seo as Shin Sun-mi
• Ahn Nae-sang as Kim Won-seok
• Jang Young-nam as Jang Young-soon
• Kim Soo-hyun as Kim Mi-rae
• Lim Yoon-ho as JJ / Choi Woo-jin
• Dokgo Young-jae as Han Joo-man, Gil-ro's father
• Im Ye-jin as Go Soo-ja, Gil-ro's mother
• Lee Han-wi as Kim Pan-seok, Seo-won's father
• Kim Mi-kyung as Oh Mak-nae, Seo-won's mother
• Noh Young-hak as Kim Min-ho, Seo-won's younger brother
• Choi Jong-hwan as Oh Kwang-jae
• Ha Shi-eun as Jin-joo
• Son Jin-young as Kim Poong-eon
• Lee El as Park Soo-young
• Jung In-gi as Kim Sung-joon
• Seo Seung-man as IT&TI manager
• Lee Hye-eun as Won-seok's wife
• Uhm Tae-woong as Choi Woo-hyuk (guest appearance, Ep. 1–4)

Reception

Episode #	Original broadcast date	Average audience share
		TNmS Ratings (%)^[20]		AGB Nielsen (%)^[21]
		Nationwide	Seoul National Capital Area	Nationwide	Seoul National Capital Area
1	January 23, 2013	12.8%	15.6%	12.7%	14.6%
2	January 24, 2013	14.0%	16.0%	14.5%	16.9%
3	January 30, 2013	16.0%	18.1%	15.9%	18.1%
4	January 31, 2013	15.8%	18.8%	15.2%	17.2%
5	February 6, 2013	17.1%	20.1%	16.0%	17.7%
6	February 7, 2013	14.9%	16.8%	14.3%	16.0%
7	February 13, 2013	13.3%	14.0%	12.7%	13.3%
8	February 14, 2013	13.8%	15.1%	12.1%	13.2%
9	February 20, 2013	12.6%	12.9%	12.5%	13.8%
10	February 21, 2013	12.4%	13.1%	11.4%	12.5%
11	February 27, 2013	11.8%	13.2%	10.0%	10.7%
12	February 28, 2013	11.0%	11.8%	10.6%	11.8%
13	March 6, 2013	10.0%	10.6%	9.2%	10.8%
14	March 7, 2013	9.9%	11.3%	9.9%	10.8%
15	March 13, 2013	8.8%	9.3%	7.9%	8.8%
16	March 14, 2013	9.0%	8.8%	8.5%	9.1%
17	March 20, 2013	9.3%	10.9%	9.8%	10.9%
18	March 21, 2013	9.5%	10.8%	8.4%	9.0%
19	March 27, 2013	7.9%	8.4%	7.5%	7.7%
20	March 28, 2013	9.0%	9.4%	8.4%	8.6%
Average		12.0%	13.2%	11.4%	12.6%

Original soundtrack

7th Grade Civil Servant OST
Soundtrack album by Various Artists
Released	March 6, 2013 (2013-03-06)
Genre	Pop, K-pop, soundtrack, R&B
Label	Pony Canyon Korea

Part 1

Released on January 23, 2013 (2013-01-23)

No.	Title	Artist	Length
1.	"너에게 가는 길" (My Way to You)	Junho featuring Taecyeon	3:25
2.	"너에게 가는 길" (Inst.)	Junho featuring Taecyeon	3:25
Total length:			6:50

Part 2

Released on February 6, 2013 (2013-02-06)

No.	Title	Artist	Length
3.	"꽃이 핀다" (Flowers Bloom)	Park Ji-heon of V.O.S	4:09
4.	"Stranger"	Big Baby Driver	2:34
5.	"꽃이 핀다" (Inst.)	Park Ji-heon of V.O.S	4:09
6.	"Stranger" (Inst.)	Big Baby Driver	2:34
Total length:			13:26

Part 3

Released on February 14, 2013 (2013-02-14)

No.	Title	Artist	Length
7.	"I'll Be There for You"	Hanbyul (Led Apple)	4:14
8.	"말하지 그랬어" (You Should've Told Me)	SpinEL (스피넬)	4:50
9.	"I'll Be There for You" (Inst.)	Hanbyul (Led Apple)	4:14
10.	"말하지 그랬어" (Inst.)	SpinEL (스피넬)	4:50
Total length:			18:08

Part 4

Released on February 20, 2013 (2013-02-20)

No.	Title	Artist	Length
8.	"어떡해" (What To Do?)	Melody Day	3:48
9.	"사랑할 줄 몰라서" (Don't Know How to Love)	Ash Gray	2:52
10.	"어떡해" (Inst.)	Melody Day	3:48
11.	"사랑할 줄 몰라서" (Inst.)	Ash Gray	2:52
Total length:			13:20

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Recipient	Result
2013	Baeksang Arts Awards	Most Popular Actor (TV)	Hwang Chan-sung	Nominated
		Most Popular Actress (TV)	Choi Kang-hee	Nominated
	MBC Drama Awards^[22]^[unreliable source?]	Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries	Choi Kang-hee	Nominated
		Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries	Joo Won	Won

International broadcast

• Japan: Aired on KNTV beginning March 30, 2013.^[23]
• Indonesia: Aired on B-Channel beginning April 3, 2013.^{[citation needed]}
• Malaysia: Aired on TV9 beginning October 9, 2013.
• Thailand: Aired on Workpoint TV beginning December 18, 2013.
• Philippines: Aired on Net 25 beginning February 3, 2014.
• Singapore: Aired on VV Drama beginning June 20, 2015. Also aired on Channel U beginning April 9, 2016.

References

1. Ho, Stewart (November 20, 2012). . enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on November 21, 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
2. Lee, Hye-jin (November 20, 2012). "Joo Won, 2PM Chansung Attend 1st Reading of New Drama". 10Asia. Retrieved January 19, 2013.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. "Joo Won begins filming for 7th Level Civil Servant". Korea Star Daily via Yahoo!. November 28, 2012. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
4. "7th Level Civil Servant releases stills of Choi Kang Hee meeting Joo Won for the first time". Korea Star Daily via Yahoo!. December 11, 2012. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
5. Ho, Stewart (December 13, 2012). "Joo Won, Choi Kang Hee Film Their First Scene for 7th Grade Civil Servant". enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
6. "Choi Kang Hee gives Joo Won a beat down on Level 7 Civil Servant". Korea Star Daily via Yahoo!. January 16, 2013. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
7. Kim, Hyun Rok (February 21, 2013). . Star News. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 24, 2013.
8. Oh, Jean (February 3, 2013). . The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on February 6, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
9. Lee, Hye-ji (October 23, 2012). "Choi Kang-hee, Joo Won Readying for Battle of Love". 10Asia. Retrieved January 19, 2013.^{[permanent dead link]}
10. Sunwoo, Carla (May 25, 2012). "Lee Dong-gun to return to K-dramas". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
11. An, So-hyoun (January 22, 2013). "Choi Kang Hee Says She was Shocked by Joo Won′s Looks". enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2013.
12. "Actor Joo Won confirmed for MBC TV drama Secret Battle of Man and Woman". Korea Star Daily via Yahoo!. October 1, 2012. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
13. "Joo Won praises his Level 7 Civil Servant co-star Choi Kang Hee". Korea Star Daily via Yahoo!. January 16, 2013. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
14. An, So-hyoun (January 22, 2013). "Joo Won and Choi Kang Hee Are Close Despite Age Gap". enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2013.
15. "JOO Won's Interview". MBC Global Media. February 15, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
16. Ko, Hong-ju (April 10, 2013). . enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on June 12, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
17. Ko, Hong-ju (April 21, 2013). . enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on May 10, 2013. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
18. Ho, Stewart (October 31, 2012). . enewsWorld. CJ E&M. Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
19. Lee, Hye-ji (December 6, 2012). "2PM Chansung to Go Wild in New TV Series' Thailand Set". 10Asia. Retrieved January 19, 2013.^{[permanent dead link]}
20. "TNMS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNMS Ratings (in Korean). Retrieved January 23, 2013.
21. . Nielsen Korea (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 26, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2013.
22. "Live Updates: Winners of the 2013 MBC Drama Awards". Soompi. December 30, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
23. Lee, Sun-min (March 13, 2013). "MBC drama to air in Japan". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved July 19, 2013.

External links

• 7th Grade Civil Servant official MBC website (in Korean)
• 7th Grade Civil Servant at HanCinema
• 7th Grade Civil Servant at IMDb
• Level 7 Civil Servant at MBC Global Media