I was pretty satisfied with this finale. It didn’t feel rushed, but it wasn’t too dragged out either — it wrapped up everything much as you’d expect, but managed to insert enough details to keep it interesting (because I was fearing that the ending would go down too predictably and therefore be lame). Oh, and you know the part that they kept saying would deviate from the Hana Yori Dango original? I LOVED IT.
(First) SONG OF THE DAY
Toy – “Bon Voyage” with Jo Wan-sun of Roller Coaster. [ Download ]
Ooh, I want to see this. MBC is producing a special documentary program highlighting actor Kim Myung-min (Beethoven Virus, White Tower), which promises to reveal hitherto unseen facets of Kim’s work process and personality.
This follows two previous installments whose spotlights focused on two other big stars: there was last year’s special on Jewel in the Palace actress Lee Young-ae (called “I Am Lee Young-ae”) and another on pop star Rain (”Rain’s Coming”).
The Kim Myung-min special takes the title “Kim Myung-min Was Not There” [김명민은 거기 없었다]; a source from the production explains that the documentary follows Kim as he prepares, then films his role as a Lou Gehrig’s disease sufferer in the movie My Love By My Side. The behind-the-scenes portions provide a glimpse into his method acting approach in depicting the gradually worsening illness, and a producer says, “We show him throwing himself into the process of character-building in his intense ‘Kim Myung-min style’ of acting, which is so severe the actor himself calls it a mental disease.”
The acting isn’t all the program promises to show: “Along with that, he also reveals a simple, personal side to himself that we haven’t been able to see thus far, which has been obscured by his fictional characters.”
The MBC documentary airs on April 12; the following week will feature a special on Manchester United soccer star Park Ji-sung.
There were a lot of nice moments in this episode. (Honestly, at several moments I said aloud, “NICE!”)
Naturally, there were other points I thought could have been done better, but we’re so close to the end that at this point I’m just glad when things are working, and proceeding relatively smoothly.
Also, good news for those of you who use the awesome drama streaming site Dramafever.com! They’ve just licensed Boys Before Flowers and will be putting up the first batch of episodes this week! And! They’ll be officially partnering closely with With S2 fansubbers to bring you high-quality translations! And! If you haven’t signed up for the site yet, use the invite code “coolbeans” and register in time for the BBF launch.
SONG OF THE DAY
Sweet Sorrow – “그대에게 하는 말” (Words Said To You) [ Download ]
Actor Kim Rae-won described his latest project, art-themed Insadong Scandal, as a “bold choice” to cap off his twenties at the March 30 production press conference.
With his army enlistment approaching, this will be the last project of his twenties for the 28-year-old Kim, which he’d chosen carefully for that reason. He describes the role of a cool-headed genius art restorer as “a new challenge, as it’s very different from the characters I’d played before.” (This, he explains, contrasts with the rather boisterous characters he’s played previously.)
I have to say that I’ve always found Kim Rae-won immensely appealing, but in the preview (watch below) he comes off smexy as all get-out. After his prior roles, it’s nice to see him playing a mature, confident guy (dare I say sexy bastard?).
By now, I’m sure y’all have heard about Epik High’s newest album — and their new, independent business model by which they’re distributing it.
Namely, they’re opting out of the major-label system and putting out their record themselves, via their spankin’-new website mapthesoul.com and iTunes. The site’s got everything written in Korean and English, is taking overseas orders, and they’ve even got a Twitter account (mapthesoul).
This isn’t the first time a band has done something of the kind — recall Radiohead’s 2007 “In Rainbows” album, which they released online (for free! — they accepted donations but didn’t charge a set fee) — but for a Korean artist or group, it’s a bold step. I don’t think they’ll be changing the kpop landscape single-handedly, because if anything, bands like Radiohead and Epik High have something important that struggling indie newbs don’t, and that is a huge and loyal fanbase from which to draw. Naturally, this makes their jump out of the “system” into self-production easier than, say, had they attempted this as unknowns.
But the buzz and the likely success of their endeavor is promising for the future, and — as the band proclaims on their website — revolution begins with one step.
Below is a new interview from Chosun.com, which talks to Tablo about the album, the business behind the decision, his personal philosophies, and all that other good stuff.
Instead of a “Song of the Day,” here’s Epik High’s newly released “Map the Soul” MV:
