2,410

Dramabeans 5-Year Anniversary Giveaway #1

javabeans: Happy New Year! Another year has zoomed by — time flies when you’re watching dramas, don’tcha know — and 2012 marks an extra-special moment for us at Dramabeans, because the site turns 5 this month.

girlfriday: Happy birthday Dramabeans! You’re finally old enough to go to kindergarten!

javabeans: Or advanced into middle age, if we’re talking cat years. And as we know, the internet = cats.

girlfriday: Well that explains where all the time from the fourth dimension went to, ‘cause I certainly don’t FEEL five.

javabeans: I can’t believe I’ve been doing this for half a decade. K-dramas have sucked away my youth! How is this site still going? To think, when I started in January 2007, my primary mode of thought was, “I wonder how many people would stumble onto this place randomly.” Because then that would be a measure of how many people were interested in dramas in the English-speaking world. As it turns out, a whole damn lot.

girlfriday: I find that most of life’s truths can be found in quotes from Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.”

javabeans: Also “This is my corn. You people are guests in my corn.” And “I have just created something totally illogical.”

girlfriday: See? Maybe internet also = baseball.

javabeans: In any case, we decided The Big 5 called for some celebratin’, and how better to celebrate than to give tons of stuff away? It’s a month-long Anniversary Giveaway Extravaganza!

girlfriday: We’ll be raining down presents during the entire month of January, because if you’re part of the Dramabeans community, it’s your birthday too, and birthdays call for presents!

javabeans: You might want to mark Sundays on your calendar, because every Sunday (or Monday, if you’re ahead of us in the States) we’ll be giving away something super-duper-fantastico exciting. Wait, am I overselling this?

girlfriday: Only if you’re a grinch who hates presents. Every week we’ll be asking you a question, and all you have to do is leave a comment with your answer and email address, and you’ll be entered in that week’s drawing.

javabeans: We’ll select winners by random draw. Check back a week later, and see if you’ve won! If you haven’t, fear not, because we’ll be announcing the next round as well. More prizes!

girlfriday: And they get better each week!

Giveaway #1

Question: What was your Drama First Love? Tell us about the first drama you fell in love with, that brought you over to the dark side. Don’t forget to leave a valid email address so we can contact you if you win.

Prizes:

  • You’re Beautiful Director’s Cut DVD set
  • one $25 Gift Certificate to Yesasia.com
  • one more $25 Gift Certificate to Yesasia.com

Winners announced: Sunday, January 8th, at 8pm, Pacific Standard Time.* This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for entering!

 
*Or, 10pm in Mexico City, 11pm in NYC, 1 am in Buenos Aires, 4am in London, 5am in Paris, noon in Singapore and Manila, 1pm in Seoul and Tokyo, or 3pm in Sydney and Vladivostok. Okay, you get the point. (You can refer to this handy Time and Date converter to find out what this is in your time zone.)

Tags: ,

2,410

Required fields are marked *

My First K-Drama that brought me over to the dark side was Princess Hours/Goong and I've never looked back since. In fact I''m going to Korea this month simply because I've fallen in love with everything Korean.
Now I've gotten my mum addicted to K-Dramas

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Goong/Princess Hours (& then came my addiction to Kim Jeong Hoon)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The first drama I ever falled in love with was You're Beautiful. It made me not talk to anyone until I finished the series. I kept babbling about it to my friends afterwards, and downloaded the soundtrack, and listened to 'Still' about 656 times :D

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Goong! It was the total underdog story because Chaekyung was totally awkward, but so adorable. The entire time I was screaming and her and Shin to get together and do it already because their chemistry was killing me and they needed to be together. I was shocked to find out that Song Jihyo played Hyorin because I hated her so much. Now I love Jihyo though!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I was channel surfing and happened on Boys over Flowers which got me hooked and haven't stopped since. Dramabeans became my goto site of Korean dramas when I googled Boys over Flowers and discovered this fantastic site.
Keep up the good work!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first drama love was My Lovely Sam-Soon, or MNIKSS, which was six years ago . I was in a new school and one of my classmates asked if I wanted to watch a Korean drama with her. I'm not Korean so I was a little hesitant and looked at her strangely, but arranged to watch the first episode of MNIKSS with her later that night. Well, who would have thought that that would be the beginning of a blossoming friendship that is still going strong and an addiction to dramas. I eventually branched out to Taiwanese, China, and Japanese dramas as well. What can I say.... I'm happy I met her :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hmmm, I think my very first kdrama love was All About Eve. I think it was my very first kdrama... and I remember just how much I hated Kim So Yeon's character. I watched it with Chinese dubbs xD i didn't know that kdramas were subbed yet. Mind you, this was way back in 2003 or 2004? I think what brought me over to the dark side is the devotion that Jang Dong Gun's character had for Chae Rim's character (i forgot the characters names :() and I couldn't believe that the other guy would believe Kim So Yeon's lies. After All About Eve, I watched Dae Jang Geum with my parents, so so so so sooooo addicting! I still can't believe I watched all 70+ episodes. I think this addiction will continue forever~

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first drama, the one that made me take dramas more seriously, the one that I watched all the way through was Prosecutor Princess

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hah! Ironically, You're Beautiful hooked me.
I started with Boys Over Flowers, realized that there had to be a show somewhere that fixed all of the problems it presented, and stumbled into half a dozen other dramas. You're Beautiful was the first one that took away sleep and interrupted homework.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first and favorite korean drama is definitely My Girl! Love the Hon Sisters!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

the hon sisters! spoookyyyy!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

my drama first love was goong: princess hours. my first kdramas were actually winter sonata and stairway to heaven which got me intrigued, but goong was the first kdrama romcom i watched, and i was hooked ever since.

happy birthday to dramabeans, and happy new year!! such a wonderful website :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

green rose! ko soo! green rose! ko soo!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

You're Beautiful! It kept me up at night anticipating each new episodes and fuelled my obsession for Jang Guen Suk and Korean dramas :D

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

If we're talking strictly kdramas, then it would be My Name Is Kim Samsoon/My Lovely Samsoon. Though the path that led me to kdramas started out when a friend introduced me to a Taiwanese drama called My Queen, which launched me into the full Asian drama craze.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The first drama I ever watched with interest was the first installment of the Season series, Autumn in My Heart. I was merely 7 years old, yet very addicted. I was still in Korea, then I moved to Canada after the series was finished. When I came here, I begged my parents to borrow the VHS of Winter Sonata so I can watch it ;)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

awww how cute!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I feel old seeing as everyone is mentioning dramas that I don't really care to watch...lol..and I KNOW that I'm not that old. At least I don't think so...ha ha...ha?

Anyway, the first drama that I watched that didn't really get me hooked and become a kdrama addict, but got me interested was 1999 "Tomato" with Kim Hee Sun and Kim Seok Hoon. And then after it got me watching "Glass Slippers", "Autumn Love Story" and "Beautiful Days" with the handsome Ryu Shi Won. My first crush...kekeke XD

Email - bebethao05@gmail.com

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Not to mention the awesome Lee Byung Hun too...and the awesome OST. Actually it was "Beautiful Days" that got me slightly hooked but not crazy...it wasn't until recently that I started to watch kdramas or dramas on a regular basis..

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Lovers in Paris was the first k-drama i watched. Kim Sam Soon was the one that really got me into the "dark side".

Happy anniversary!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Happy birthday DB!

I started late, so it's 49 days for me >.< but it soon led me to so many others! Glad for the exposure.

candycow @ gmail . com

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I've watched a few dramas before but the one that got me all crazy is My girlfriend is a Gumiho. I fell in love with Shin MInah and espeically Lee SEUNG GI!!!! XD

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first K-drama love was My Girl. I grew up watching TVB (Cantonese) dramas with my mom and then we stopped. Then I ventured out a bit on my own and discovered TW dramas and got hooked. However, Korean dramas came into my life and took over. First Korean drama I saw was Full House but the style of Korean dramas didn't quite fit my taste at the time. Other K-dramas that followed were Coffee Prince, Kim Sam Soon, and Goong. They helped me get used to the style of Korean dramas and brought me deeper into this world of K-dramas, but none of them truly hooked me...until I saw My Girl. That drama was THE ONE. It's the only drama I'm willing to re-watch again and again and again...because it was SO GOOD. And it's the drama that got me on this roller coaster ride..and to this day, it's still the only drama that I'm willing to re-watch.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The first drama that I saw from beginning to end was Grand Chef aka Gourmet starring Kim Rae Won. That drama is so very different .. to me ... from other dramas and the music accompanying it makes it top notch. After watching that and introducing that drama to a seasoned kdrama friend, she promptly gave me a list of dramas that she thought I should watch. Even though Grand Chef will always have a special place in my heart, from that list my all time favorite drama is My Lovely Kim Sam Soon. I thought it was well written and witty. Her character was "real" and strong while not letting others beat up on her like other dramas. If you slap her she'll more than likely slap you right back! I thought it was the most amazing, memorable drama. It's one of the view that I can revisit many times .. like visiting an old friend that makes you comfortable and sooo relaxed. It's like coming home.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Shining Inheritance.

Puppy+Evil Mom instantly made me fall in love with this drama.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Happy 5th birthday, Dramabeans!!! And thank you for all the effort and love you are continuously pouring onto this site, Javabeans and Girlfriday! So many years of providing us insights and awesome commentaries regarding dramas: I hope you never tire writing them 'cause we surely won't tire reading them!

Now, on to the question ('cause I love prizes. lol): I think the first Kdrama I fell in love with is Endless Love (Autumn Tale). To be honest, I didn't really like SSH in there (I pretty much prefer Won Bin). Nonetheless, the story is so heart-wrenching, and SYK is such a goddess.

I cried my eyes out so many times while watching it that one would think I wouldn't ever watch a similar drama. However, while I tend to like lighter dramas, I still end up watching a handful of these melo, because even if we admit it or not, letting out our tears actually feel good. It does not matter if you are feeling joyful or gloomy, letting your emotions burst through tears actually helps relieve stress..

Whew! One long post this is... XD

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Boys Over Flower... When I was younger and had tons of time I used to watch all different dramas... but after much laps BOF made me come back to Kdrama again. And since now I have real responsibilities like family I have to make sacrafices... so i only watch Kdrama and have cut our regular TV... thank goodness for internet and early bedtimes for the kiddies! =)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My very first k-drama I watched was back in 2005--Delightful Girl Choon Hyang. I have loved Jae Hee ever since and now I'm watching Color of Woman and he's so handsome *U*

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thank you so much for doing this, JB and GF. I could not believe I read your site for almost five years too since I found the site during the Coffee Prince season. It has been a wild, fun ride.

My Drama First love is dated back to 1996 when I saw K-drama for the first time. It was 느낌 (Feelings), my first Korean crush. It was like a coup de foudre. I was totally sucked into the world of K-drama and never get out since. The story was just bright, fun, and lovely. The interaction between the brothers was cute with all the bickering and fights. I love Kim Min Jong's character, who is just too nerdy to not love. Lee Jung Jae was the adorkable youngest brother, who gave the drama a fresh breeze of humor and a lot of lighthearted moments. It was just perfect.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Goong :) <3

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first korean drama ever was 2005's "Wonderful life" by MBC.. it was dubbed in our country while I was on vacation (2006) and somehow got hooked along with my cousins. At first I was intrigued, since I found the guy really cute (Kim Jae Won's irresistible smile won me over hehe) then I found the story really interesting. I tried to keep up with the episodes on tv, scheduling my vacation according to the drama schedule, but that eventually failed. Then my cousin informed me that they have episodes subbed on this thing called "youtube" and was psyched to have finally found a source. I ended up taking daily trips to the internet cafe to find time watching the drama and as soon as I was back home (like the night off) I spent the night (instead of sleeping, resting or unpacking) finishing the drama. The next day I woke up with red puffy eyes from crying and lack of sleep and was unable to get rid of jetlag for more than a week since by then I started another drama haha this time "She is Nineteen" with Kim Jaewon.. haha and the rest is history. almost 6 years of drama watching that resulted with cramming, lack of sleep and fan girl delusions but I'm happy to have found something I enjoy =)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

but I gotta add, that even though Wonderful life was my first drama, my first favourite drama was "My Girl"... had a crush on lee dong wook for the longest time =) haha It also brought me and my current best friends together since we bonded while watching the drama..

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Autumn Fairy Tale. I will forever blame you, Won Bin.

To be fair, I did watch All About Eve (Arg, Jang Dong Gun!) and Sandglass (Humona, Lee Jung Jae...) after so it may not be ENTIRELY your fault, Ajusshi.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

If you're talking about dramas of any language, it would definitely have to be Princess Returning Pearl. I think I watched that back in 2000! xD

If we stick to strictly Korean dramas, I think the one that I truly fell in loved was Dae Jang Geum. It was so long ago, I don't even remember how I watched it. It must have either been on tapes rented from the Korean shop or on the multicultural channel. I loved it so much, my family bought the boxed set in great quality :D

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ugh I lied. How could I forget Autumn Fairy Tale and Winter Sonata! I watched those waaaaaaaaaaay back and although I loved them at the time, I am very happy we don't have to see such over the top cliches in dramas nowadays (for the most part).

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first kdrama ever ( and the one that lured me to the dark side) was Boys Before Flowers! This was my gateway to this crazy kdrama world...but my first kdrama love is You're Beautiful! I even bought the dvd! Lol

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

my girlfriend is a gumiho!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

congratulations!

first k-drama love? 'winter sonata.' (does that date me?) i've been watching k-dramas since i was young because of the parents, but 'winter sonata' was the first one i loved and reminded the parents to rent every week! (oh, the days of vhs rental stores in korean markets!!!)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gong (Princess Hours), which bought on my obsession with YEH, which bought on endless X-Man episodes marathon, and then Coffee Prince, which bought on Gong Yoo obsession, and so on and so forth.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The one that made me a drama addict was Coffee Prince.
wyllaya1@hotmail.com

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Definitely Goong. Addicting crack on steroids that drama was. and fulfilled my whole "I can be a princess" fantasy at the same time. Thank ye gods (and internet) for english subtitles, because without it, I would never have wasted months of my life watching dramas like Goong. (wait....is that a good or bad thing??)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first drama love was Boys Over Flowers. How did I arrive at the darkside? Well I am a teen librarian and read the entire manga to get a better grasp on my teen manga collection. I then saw that their was different live action movies made about the series. I was intrigued. I saw that many people liked the South Korean drama out of the dramas out their. I remember watching and thinking where has this been all my life. It was silly, but strangely ridiculously funny and I found myself watching BOF before I went to work, on my lunch hour, and at home. I also run a teen book club at the library and a couple of months ago after our book discussion I asked them if I could show them my latest movie obsession. I showed them the first episode of BOF and now after each book group we will watch an episode. They really like watching it. In fact, I tried to cvhang it up and shwo them Dream High thinking they would like that more, but they requested Boys Over Flowers for the next month episode. I think I created mini-drama monsters. I think I'm on my 30th drama by now. My parents even came up with a code word for when I'm busy watching a drama. They saw that I'm "in Korea". For instance... "Alicia can't hear you right now because she is in Korea." I will always have a soft spot for BOF. I know that it is not the best plot or best acting,but to me it will always be my favorite and one of the few dramas that I can watch over and over again.

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm curious if you have ever seen the Japanese version? I honestly really like that version the best.. its different for everyone though hehe like my cousin argues that meteor garden is the best version..

at least your parents know its a korean thing.. my parents cant distinguish between japanese, korean, chinese so they call everything "chinese" *sigh* even though I correct them a million times..

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

You know I haven't watched it..but I haven't ruled it out. I'm either afraid that I won;t like it as much or perhaps I will be surprised and like it more than BOF. How shocking would that be!! Maybe I am waiting for the right time to try the other verisons. It took a few months of me telling them "It's Korea, not China/Japan etc." They just call everything Korean now. It's kinda cute. I told my mom if I had a kid I'd name him Cha Chi Soo and she starting laughing at me.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm an academic librarian but I used to work for a public library.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I worked as a student worker for an academic library in college but been at public library for almost 6 years. I love working with the teens because at times I have the maturity of a 16 year old. We have a lot of fun and I can say that I really enjoy my job.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first K-drama was "Personal Taste" it made me wonder who that beautiful actress was..Son ye jin. I first discover this drama on Hulu. I thought it would be some politically incorrect foreign TV show that I would laugh at. Well, I did laugh and cry and get mad and yelled at the computer and that was just the beginning. I then discovered Dramabean and I was able to enjoy "Personal Taste" all over again but even better because there was someone else who felt the same way as I do but said better and with more snarky comments. I love your site and insights. Please never leave me! Wishing you many more years of recaps!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Stairway to Heaven! It was long and terribly melodramatic, but I was at an age where I was just beginning to appreciate the romance in a tragedy, so it was the perfect match for me. I bawled my eyes out at the finale, and still cry whenever I watch that last scene!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first is My Name is Kim Sam Soon and is still one of my favorites. I don't think I've liked a drama this much before. It's definitely not overrated and it's definitely a lot better than most romantic comedies nowadays. Come back from the army soon Hyun Bin!!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first kdrama was Worlds Within. So obviously it was Hyun Bin that made me fall in love with kdramas. But the drama that made me obsessively want for more was Boys Over Flowers. Now that I look back on it though (after watching a LOT more dramas) there are only a few scenes that I like from it and the rest was just unnecessary drama. Still I love it for keeping me hooked to the kworld =)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Full House!
Watched it on the couch with the fam... w/ really bad chinese dubs hahaha. :/
... but it was still addicting!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I started out watching Japanese dramas (loved 1 Litre of Tears), but quickly switched to mostly Korean dramas. The first one I loved was 18 vs. 29, but my first obsession was, of course, Coffee Prince.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm an old lady so I guess ill be the only one who will choose winter sonata and bae yoon jung that got me hook to korean dramas and until I'm still an addict I even watch all the series in kbs world and arirang channel coz I don't have mbs and sbs here in manila. I'm a mom and grandmom of six tks happy new year. also I love reading dramabeans I'm ur fan so with my eldest daughter we also love to analyze kdrama.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My kdrama first love is winter sonata..after fall in love with that drama I always search for another kdrama and addicted with it...huffs(take my breats...)..thanks for recaping, I always read it for refference..happy anniversary..

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

the first drama i fell in love with was
biscuit teacher and star candy.
gong yoo!~ <3 need i say more?
his puppy love was so cuteee~~~

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Full House! Not necessarily my first drama, but it was full house which made me mad, over rain and song hye gyo, the drama's ost and the house! And been dreaming of korea trip:D

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

My first drama and love was Save the Last Dance for Me starring Eugene and cutie Ji Sung. I actually watched this for the first time in Cantonese on HK cable. Lol then, I watched it again in Korean with English subs cuz my Cantonese isn't very good. Needless to say, I can watch it probably a billion times and not get sick of it, and that's a lot to say for someone who REALLY dislikes to rewatch, reread, or redo anything!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Woo! Love birthdays and giveaways hehe :D

My first ever drama was Hana Yori Dango (JP), and then soon after I switched to the dark side (aka k-dramas) with My Girl! So much fun :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *