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Personal: I collected 200 dollars for the website polyglit.com. I made the press release, etc. Trying to get a donor list, get 1,000 dollars and then hit up various places with my press release.
Dramas
The Korean dramas airing right now aren't catching my interest.
Witch's Romance: Not a fan of remakes.
Big Man: Another drama about OMG the poor adopted people portrayed badly. NOOO.
Then you have the "affair" dramas/movies, and no. Least favorite theme ever. Kinda wish I knew what social movement caused this sudden surge, though.
The TW dramas aren't inspiring me either, since they aren't pushing the envelope and one scenario looks a ton like the others.
This leaves me with J-dramas. Of which I think Alice no Toge is the best of the lot. Revenge and though I've seen the premise tons of times, it's the stellar actors that draws me in.
Shinigami-kun also ranks up there for me.
Watching Smoking Gun as well.
Also, silent poor.
Of those, I would probably recommend Shingami-kun and maybe Alice no Toge. (I separate what I like and what I recommend.
This drought of dramas, though, I'm taking it really hard. I'm starting to have dreams and fantasies of the perfect K-drama with all the trappings I want. And my Korean is sliding away. And no Running Man to tide me over. andwaeeee. And then I had a momentary lapse where I forgot that Chinese movies end sadly. Can someone mop me up off the floor?
Mildly interested in Anticipate Marriage. And also Discovery of Dating. Still waiting for the next Hong Sisters' drama. I like my rom coms and delusions of Jaebeol. (And the people in my Korean language class know it with the sentences I come up with.)
Korean language note
Learned how to be sarcastic in Korean. Only used with close friends.
닌는다 (고하) 든지 form in Korean.
It's a kinda "Whatever" type of brush off.
So example:
내남동생 든지 잘 해둔지 못하든지 나는 정말 관심 없어요.
"I have no interest in Whether my younger brother does well or does badly."
Whether or no form. You wouldn't say this kind of thing to elders though.
The vocab should be easy, so you get a sense of how it's used.
I usually tend to avoid Japanese revenge dramas but I watched the first episode just to try it out and I was hooked.Juri Ueno was so good!!! It was hard to believe this is the girl who played the role of Nodame Cantabile.
The stories in Shinigami Kun are really heartfelt and soulful.
You should see Ueno-san in Ueno Juri to Itsutsu no Kaban--it shows her acting range. But in this, she's really showing she has acting chops. There are subtleties to her performance that shows she really deserves the role. I think if not for the actors, I probably wouldn't watch Alice no Toge
Skip Beat! The drama... I think she would make a perfect Kyouko... she has the acting range--she can play lovey dovey, and then cold and dark and revengey. (I have fantasies of a Japanese version of Skip Beat). She's definitely near the top of the list.
oh dear, re read the comment about skip beat. yes, I feel sad now thought it already existed... I really want a remake, wonder how a korean version of it would be like....
Right now I miss the wacky Rom com, wacky does not mean "illogical" though. As in the plot makes no frickin' sense. Wacky as in the humor can run on many levels, and might seem overblown, but is undercut by heartfelt moments and timed realizations that give sweeping feelings. They might make you think as a secondary, but it's not the main function. (KES tends to run towards the main function is to make you think) Hong Sister's dramas tend to run this way. I do like layered experiences and ones that challenge drama norms, especially love subversion and meta. (Like the potato in Greatest Love... the poor potato!!!)
I believe if I understand correctly, this is one of Javabeans favorite genres too.
Shinigami-kun is really good. It plays on your expectations, deals with death, but has humor to it. And since it's Japanese style of death, there is more about understanding the person rather than dead people are diseased and troubled look from the West.
Ohno is also perfect for the role. He plays a deadpan character, but has impeccable comedic timing too. There are moments where I laughed out loud even though he wasn't *trying* to be funny as a character--straight man playing is difficult, and he does it so well (In addition to the deadpan). The series also runs warm and fuzzy so far with some good humor about death that don''t turn towards dark humor.
I like the general theming-- but there is only one episode out. From the subtle directing, the good writing (non live shoot system), I'm pretty sure it'll have a solid landing for an ending. (J-dramas you have to be careful about romances, but this one isn't one. So the tone should be consistent throughout.)
I get what you mean. I do miss having a wacky (though as you say not illogical) fun show to watch, rom-com or not.
Shinigami-kun is definitively on my list now. I've seen some of Ohno's other shows and the guy have a knack for playing straight in roles that otherwise would have come across a lot different.
Funny, I was just trying to watch ep 2 of Shinigami-kun but it was slow downloading so I came here for a while. Personally I like it. It is whacky but has heart.
This drought is giving me the chance to catch up on older dramas I never watched or finished. It's even better because I don't have to suffer waiting a week, just have to suffer waiting a few seconds!
Watching: it would be easier to say what I'm NOT watching...which so far...is there something I'm not watching?
Totally in love with Park Seo Joon and Aaron Yan right now. Also Lee Seo Jin, also Kang Ha Neul, also Kim Myung Min...it's ridiculous. My ovaries are begging for a break.
I was only listing my loves from currently airing dramas...I'm sure I missed some. But you're right, Kim Myung Min isn't a puppy at all. He's a growly lion, isn't he. Man, I love his voice.
He is the young lead in Angel Eyes, so he's in the 1st two episodes, and then he's in flashbacks in later episodes. And it was an INCREDIBLY sweet 'first-love' story. Even if she doesn't watch the drama, she should watch the 1st two episodes.
Manin, Have you seen the 4 Hangul lessons by Hongki and they FT Island boys? It's calld Hangul Live with FT Island. Supposedly there is a year's worth of lessons coming, but the first month's lessons youtube links are on my website for your Hongki viewing pleasure :) They are really adorable 4 minute lessons.
Happy new month everybody,how have you all being? I can't believe I've not posted in the OT for over a month I've so busy with school work especially on fridays,hope you all have being well.currently watching SLA:that drama is just so awesome,I get scared for them all the time esp when they are together but still I want them together all the time and I keep wishing the husband would stop sneaking around trying to catch his wife in the act,my moral compass keeps poking me whenever I'm enjoying this drama even though I try so hard to tamp it down,and I have every intention of sticking to the drama through to the end. King of baking,Tak gu:I went into this drama for yoon shi yoon(I hope I got that right) I got tired by ep 5 and just ended up fast forwarding the rest,I don't understand how the drama got such high ratings,for some weird reason I don't just like Joo Won(I've seen him in on L7CS and KOB) he looks like he's scowling all the time and just can't bring myself to like him and eugene was just annoying my soul all through the drama.I just have to say I prefer Me too flower to this annoying KOB. Moon embracing the Sun:watched this a while back and had not gotten the chance to rant about it.the kid actors were amazing,I absolutely loved the younger yeon woo(the actress is so good and had this elegance about her,though I refer to her as 'gumiho girl' cos the first drama I ever saw her in was a gumiho drama) and the child actors were amazing then switching to the older counterparts,to me woo na(the bodyguard) had the smoothest transmission(I absolutely love his quiet ways and he looked really good whenever his hair was pulled back)the most annoying was Han Ga in,imo she reduced the awesomeness of the drama because most times I didn't know the expression she was trying to pass along cos she just had this annoying wide eyed look all the time(a la Cha Eun sang) but KSH was amazing(as usual)though he looked like an errant Screaming king at times and I absolutely loved young sun(I'm sure I missed that spelling lol) METS is my first sageuk(I don't know if faith is counted as one) and I find it difficult to watch other ones especially if the king is not as good looking and everyone being elegant in hanbok as they all were in METS and if the cinematography is not as pretty,I'll just skip it.
Dramas I'm looking forward to:You are all surrounded,doctor stranger,cunning single lady(yupp I've not watched though I've read the recaps) and I just might try God's gift though I'm not sure yet. Its not easy balancing 9 university courses,1 mini project,Korean dramas,reading a manga(Hana Kimi) and reading a novel(the davinci code) all within 24 hours.I'm trying to balance it all,though most I end up sleeping off before 11pm because I'm so tired. Lastly my heart goes out to all the ferry disaster victims and the families involved,I hope they find peace and they find all the...
So, um, yes.
Another escape to the South. Viljandi, mon amour.
Todays´ kdrama topic – and real life topic – is the word I actually heard first, well, I learned that there is a word like that at all – RBF. Or Resting Bitch Face. Seriously? It was talked about in connection with seo Hye Rim casted in Endless Love- topic. And then I come across this Buzzfeed compilation or whatever about RBF.... well, I would say I suffer from it occasionally but mostly it is the opposite. I am always grinning or giggling or humming or chuckling.... or pouring tears as a result of my wild imaginations daytrips to sorryland. I guess RBF means Resident Bipolar Fox in my case.
And on to curious letter combinations in general. You know, it is getting out of hand. Example from Tara (please don´t hold this against me!): „OB was the first drama I’d seen with him in it…so I had no idea that he played villains so well until IHYV and EK (although in EK, he was part of the TQ crew–not a singular villain as in IHYV).” Uhhh....
Every time someone talks about a drama, they don´t name it, but give you a letter combination for guessing. From GG – ok, Gods´ Gift, that´s easy – to TW – Two Weeks, though the immediate connection is slowly fading. But then who could guess R3 is actually INR3 and there are like 6 different forms for You From Another Star. MFTS – Man from the star. MLFAT. My LOVE from another star. YWCFTS. You who came from the stars. Or YFTS. You from the star. Ok, „Y” is a giveaway. But all those... AM? Well, thats Arang [and the, conveniently erased] Magistrate. 3D or TD. HD is not High Definition, but Horse Doctor. But it can also be HH – Horse Healer. Then they add letter combinations for all the actors in the dramas... JSW + LBY. CSL: AW (???) and then they replace themselves with a letter combination. And the one they are speaking to. Oh man. Soon our talk here will consist of: O, WYBSK 2 TM W Y(A)AS IS2 start? < desipher this.
This might just be my problem but my brain isn´t catching up to what all those letter combinations mean. There was a meme about a mom who thought LOL means Lots Of Love, which she posted when sending her condolences about a relative dieing: Aunt Jess died, LOL. I sometimes feel like the slang-dumb iPhone people.... I thought YOLO was one of the penguins in the Soviet cartoon Lolo the Penguin. And how the heck did they come up with lbs???? Etc., etc. (Etymologically Traceable Curiosities?) P.S. – „pregnant Santa”? I dont read it like that of course but this is how it feels when I see dramas just being letters and I HAVE NO EFFIN IDEA what drama anyone means.
Just tell me, what odd things have you ever taken some letter combination for? Had trouble guessing what it means ? Just any funny situations with either drama name letter codes or something else?
In the case of internet memes, if context cues don't work, I Google stuff I don't understand.
In case of drama acronyms, I just ask the person to make it clear. No need to stress too much about the different acronyms. :)
Then again, I always make cringe-worthy language mistakes, as JoAnne can attest to, so maybe my method isn't really a good one... I hope you understand if I don't share my mistakes here. For some reason my word choices are VERY DIRTY. *crying*
I think it's a problem of us non-native speakers being friends with native language speakers online. They see lots of double meaning in what we say. (I'm also half-convinced that all English words have a dirty alternate meaning now.........)
mary, you might be right about all english words with dirty meanings, especially when with friends whose minds go that way. i can't hear the word headlight, melon, or large tracts of LAND without blushing. 2 of any object said by a young man with intonation and hand gestures means bre*sts.
for drama abbreviation, i stick to full name first time with abbrev. in ( ) before using in post. but i am old school. abbrev. leak from my brain quick.
I soo get you on the names (both for people and dramas) that are just the first letters! I know I'm guilty of doing it myself sometimes (mostly because I can't remember the spelling of a name and just goes JGS) But it is really confusing!
If the full name and title is mentioned at least once, and then you get the shortend version its more okay because at least you have something to go by. But when it's just a lot of (semingly) random capital letters out of no where you just feel lost.
Hey redfox,
Why would I hold that against you? I actually feel "honored" that you'd mention a "quote" from a post of mine...haha ;)
That being said...I didn't use to write my posts the way I do now. I used to write out the whole name of dramas and actors/actresses...then my posts kept getting longer and longer -- and I write a lot. To write it in a more shorthand way, I started using initials. (But alas, my posts continue to get longer and longer still! haha)
I've only started leaving comments since about mid-last year. Prior to that, I was a full-time lurker...and I got confused by postings with initials too. I always had Google and Dramawiki handy, so I'd get what they were talking about.
Now, the initial-ing has become second nature to me...so my bad if it's confusing/difficult to read my posts with so many initials :P I suppose I can tone it down a bit, but now that it's become a habit...argh, I'll try my best anyway :) Sorry for the confusion!
hey Tara, that was just a friendly example and I was actually trying to show I feel like a total dummy that I can´t follow the "code names". I am trying and trying to catch up. take it as a joke please!
Honestly, I didn't take it seriously...I know you just used it as an example. But I do know I'm not making it easy for people to read my posts, which I can understand. That's why I explained my thought process.
You know what's funny though...as I typed and posted that bit, the thought crossed my mind that all those initials was going a tad bit overboard. So you can imagine I laughed at myself when I was skimming through OT and saw that bit used as an example...
Plus, the intro bit to my reply was a bit self-deprecating on my part. I'm open to any sort of critique, good or bad :)
I was watching the pacifier(Vin diesel) again yesterday and I heard the most cringeworthy korean,here I was thinking one couldn't go wrong while speaking korean,I mean there's engrish all right but kongrish??! I couldn't decide whose korean was worse,Vin diesel's or the so called Korean neighbours
Jim Carey didn't do so badly in Yes Man, though he exaggerated it a bit, but then my previous Korean teacher was helping him and showed up in the movie--if you want an example of Korean spoken decently by someone white.
I thought I was weird for noticing things like that and getting annoyed with hearing such butchered so-called Korean! (Plus, that "Korean" couple isn't even Korean at all...) But to answer your question, I would have to say neither.
And don't even get me started on Kongrish...! ;P
I also recently noticed the Progressive auto insurance commercial with Flo...when she's helping out an Asian couple running their food truck, the closed captioning says "speaking Japanese" when the husband is saying "hurry up and bring that" in Korean! And that was not fluent Korean either...argh :/
Just started watching " A New Leaf", so far so good! The show really starts out painting Kim Myung Min's character as irredeemable. Seriously, who takes up cases for Japanese firms trying to avoid compensating elderly Koreans for their forced labour during the colonial period???
I love Kim Myung Min so far and am really excited how the amnesia story is going to play out. I usually hate amnesia stories in K-dramas, but using it as the main plot hasn't actually been so common.
I don't love Park Min-Young yet, but I like what I see so far. I hope Jin Yi-Han has a decent role in this drama as I have fallen in love after seeing him as Taltal in Empress Ki.
I am also watching Hotel King which I do like. However, I have no idea where the plot will take us to. Lee Da Hae and Lee Dong Wook's chemistry is great as expected. And wowza, those abs at the ending of episode 6!!! I rewatched that scene a couple of times.
The thing I dislike about Hotel King is its lack of subtlety. It''s so angsty all the time, and did Lee Dong Wook's acting regress or is he being requested to make crazy/angry faces all the time?
I'm liking New Leaf too. So many talented actors/actresses in this so far. Jin Yi Han is going to be in this more than just a cameo right? Kim Seo-Hyung too.
I hope to watch them this week. I love KMM, and the premise sounds interesting enough. I noticed I'm watching a lot more drama/melo than usual, so it will be just one more...
I can kind of understand Mo Nae's bipolarity as a public sphere/private sphere thing. Jae Wan I don't get. He was so bent on revenge for 2 decades, then his long lost sister comes and he turns into a big puddle of goo?
I like Im Seulong here. He definitely has charisma. However, I do hope his acting improves and the makeup artists really have to go easy on Seulong's lipstick! I stopped reading the subs a couple of times because his bright pink lips were so eye catching!
First episode was great, very solid. The law/politics aspects had tension, but the episode was still lightened by some comedy. I like PMY more than I thought I would. She cracks me up constantly, and I like that she's portraying a smart character (albeit one prone to getting herself in awkward situations).
And KMM plays his role with relish, as usual.
Overall, interactions are realistic and not over the top. Evil and corruption are shown as banal. Complicity with those in power is a fact of life. None of the lawyers so far seem like terrible people: they've just sold their souls like everyone else, for money and prestige.
I'm looking forward to episode 2. I hope it shapes up to be good.
Oh yeah, I also watch A New Leaf. So far so good and funny. Actually I'm not expect it to be that funny. The drunk scene is hillarious.
Kim Myung Min is awesome as usual and Park Min Young is pretty good. Doesn't hurt too when it has Jin Yi Han. My withdrawal from EK makes me want to watch anything EK cast works. LOL
drama fever awards ceremony a big disappointment. VIP tickets that I expected would be a sit down dinner turned into standing up in the stairwell peering thru safety glass and railing and light fixtures trying to hear over the complaints of all the rest of us VIPs in heels and gowns standing so far away while $20 General Admission tickets were down on the floor near the stage. boo hiss. Drama Fever has permanently lost my support.
Another Spring day and I hope you are all doing well. ........ The weather has been absolutely awful here! Windy and super hot! ..... M-e-l-t-i-n-g!!
Watched this week:
God's Gift - After watching eps 9 and 10, I can kind of see why this drama had that ending. ....... On another note, great fight scene on the roof!
Three Days - Glad the pace picked up a while back. ....... Really liking it so far. ....... Great fight scene in the elevator!
Time Between Dog and Wolf - Finally finished it! ....... With the little narration in the last 2 minutes or so, it was kind of uneventful, but what are you going to do, right?
Golden Cross - Checked out parts of the first 2 episodes. ....... It wasn't super awful or anything, but I think I'm going to put this on the backburner for now and check it out at a later time.
Cunning Single Lady/Sly and Single - Checked out the first 2 episodes of this also. ....... After so much melo in the last couple of months, it was certainly a different change of pace. ....... Still undecided on this one. I may need to watch a couple of more eps before I decide whether to commit to this one or not. We'll see.
Missing You - Surprisingly, this started a couple weeks ago on broadcast tv, really late at night. ....... I think it's up to ep 7 or 8, I'm not sure but it's after the childhood portion. ...... I started re-watching this. ...... I know many people didn't like it but I liked it when it first aired. ........ Reminded again that Yoo Seung-ho is so very good in this role.
Mr. Selfridge (season 2) - Nothing good could ever come from associating closely with Mr. Loxley and, uh-oh, Mr. Selfridge might find that out in the next ep. ....... Miss Towler marrying the restaurant guy? I don't know why but I'm not really sure they'd work out together as a married couple.
That's about it for now. ....... Everyone take care and have a great Friday!
I don't regret watching God's Gift - 14 Days. The awesome and heart-wrenching performances of Jo Seung Woo and Lee Bo Young made it worthwhile.
Likewise, I have no qualms about watching Three (3) Days. The acting of Park Yoo-Chun, Son Hyun-Joo, and Park Ha-Sun really anchored the drama and made it better than it would have been otherwise. All the interactions and scenes with Han Tae-Kyung and Yoon Bo-Won were definitely highlights in the drama.
You might find the following Time Between Dog & Wolf reviews an interesting read:
Currently I am watching and enjoying Golden Cross. Each episode is getting better and better.
I watched all 21 episodes of I Miss You. The drama tackled the sensitve subject matter of rape and it was far from perfect. Yet, the childhood cast of Yeo Jin-Goo, and Kim So-Hyun did a wonderful job acting wise with their characters as well as the adult cast of Park Yoo-Chun, Yoon Eun-Hye, and Yoo Seung-Ho.
Thank you for the links. ....... It was interesting to read that other viewers asked themselves some of the same questions I did while watching Time Between D&W. ...... Sure, there were little issues here and there, but nothing that was so awful as to make the whole drama unwatchable or anything like that.
With Three Days, I'm currently fascinated by the Chairman Kim character ....... I think it's more the actor playing this role. It's amazing that it's the same actor who was the nice dad in Heirs and the wacky ex-husband in 100 Year Inheritance (yes, I watched a couple of eps of that and only then it was to see the comical antics of his Chol-gyu character!!)
God's Gift, I'm in it until the end, even though I know how it ends. ...... I just love the whole puzzle/multiple-moving-parts aspect to it ....... and honestly, I want to see how they get to that ending and what other truths are uncovered.
Like you, I also watched I Miss You in its entirety when it first aired and I liked it then and now. ....... Sure, it's a bucket of tears for the characters and understandably so, given what happened but the acting is fantastic. ....... Watching Yoo Seung-ho in this role is certainly something special.
Hi guys, first time commenting on OT. Started watching kdramas last DEC but now, they are all i watch!! Am so addicted. lol. Cant tell you how much i am anticipating You're Surrounded. CSW is like my best actor (SO HOT, My God) while i have slowly but surely come to love Lee Seung-Gi with a fierceness that takes my breath away. Maybe its because i love my heroes to get redemption in their dramas which is what happened in Brilliant Legacy and MGIAG. And also in Best Love with CSW!
Love to my fellow beanies
I LOVED Best Love!! It was my crack drama. i was initially on the Pil Line in the earliest episodes but by little around the halfway mark, i had completely fallen for Dokko Jin :). That was the drama that cemented my love for kdramas.
I also really liked Master's Sun and am now eagerly awaiting the next Hong sisters drama.
Also i have 2 questions, can anyone recommend a good romcom for me to watch? It doesnt matter if they are oldies as long as they are goodies. Right now, the new shoes are all melo or thrillers which arent really my cup o ftea.
Secondly, between Dramafever and Viki, which do you recommend? I currently subscribe to DF so i can watch without adds on my phone etc but am starting to think viki might be a better option. Help pls
Have you seen I Need Romance 3? Also, Pasta is older, but fun with Gong Hyo-jin and Le Sun-kyun. It was one of my first kdramas and i watched it a dozen times because I didn't realize there were so many others to choose from! I also rewatch Personal Taste. The db ratings list is a good reference, too.
Fighting!
I saw INR2 and didnt really love it though i loved the male lead in NINE. I will try and watch INR3 then.
Pasta is on my need to watch list but for some reason i keep hesitating because i read some reviews that it was quite boring. I guess i have to watch it and find out for myself eh.
Thanks am having a great time on the OT. Its so amazing being able to converse with so many people from different and diverse backgrounds about our love for kdramas :)
Welcome to OT. You'll enjoy the interactions for sure.
Viki / DF debate. I for one only go to DF if I absolutely have to. Their subs are sub-par in a lot of cases. Case in point: they had exclusive rights to BOTC, so the subs were coming out 3~4 days post-airing. Viki? In the majority of the cases, subtitles are out within a few hours for the popular shows, and around a single day for the less popular KDramas. Plus, they have an awesome selection of other countries.
So Boo DF and Yay Viki! lol
- As for recommendations, it you like fluff and music, I liked MNet's Monstar and it's' high school hijinks.
- And if you are not adverse to other countries, I'm seriously on the bandwagon for the currently-running Taiwanese drama Fall In Love With Me, and recently concluded recapping the Thai version of Full House. Both get double thumbs up for me.
Welcome to Open Thread. It's nice to have another fan of kdramas.
Likewise, I really enjoyed Best Love (aka The Greatest Love and My Girlfriend is a Gumiho (aka My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox).
Totally in agreement with the recommendations of I Need Romance 3 and Monstar!
I recommend adding the following Romantic Comedies to your list:
Dalja's Spring
My Girl
Bride of the Century
Queen Inhyun's Man (aka Queen and I)
My Princess
Flower Boy Next Door
Let's Eat
Prosecutor Princess
The King of Dramas (aka The Lord of the Drama)
Can Love Become Money?
Thanks all!!!!
I definitely think i will cancel my DF subscription and go with Viki.
And thanks August for the recommendations, i have seen My Girl (watched most of Hong Sisters dramas except Hong Dil...,Odd Couple and Big) and i liked it.
And i LOVED QIHM. Infact, let me go rewatch it now
Welcome. Nim! I really enjoyed Protect the Boss for a rom com, and also RoofTop Prince was pretty hilarious. Both kind of faltered at the end, but that's not too unusual, I'm afraid.
Have you watched Single Cunning Lady or Emergency Couple? Both were cute romances (once you got past the first episode or two.)
Gotta say that some dramas are quite literally making me battle stress and I might have to just read recaps instead of watching them.
The first: Angel's Revenge:So now the baby is missing? Oh my heavens! Bad enough I was stressing about Dal Nyeo porbably being JisEok's mother and who the heck was first gonna see the picture of Little "JeonWu" with his mother that Grandma has hidden in the drawer. Ah me! And HyeonSu's probably gonna go the way of all blackmailers after Taejeong's had his fill of him. I'm also worrying for Gijin.
Then I started stressing about whether our adulterous heroine in Secret Love Affair is pregnant. I keep envisioning the end where she's on a beach, a regular mom with her little child beside her, after having idiotically nobly ditching young lover. And the end of the last episode. Aaargh.
Golden Cross is my new crack. Oh my gosh!I'm generally indifferent to villains but wow, I was so glad when our hero Do Yun clocked the bank villain. I love everything about that show. It's fast-moving, and I can actually follow the plot. Didn't think prosecutor would come face to face with that evidence so soon. Love Michael and love his secretary. Ah, if Shark had been so good!
Big Man is fun so far. So it's my second crack. It's got two of my fave actors and actress in the lead so yeah.
Am waiting for Gap Dong out of loyalty to my love, Yoon Sang Hyun. Watching Wonderful Days but really liking the non main characters love stories.
New Leaf is okay. I might drop it. Too many dramas on my plate already.
Million Seller: I loved the first song, Step by Step, best.
Loving the kbs specials and the Love & War series as always.
Have a great weekend, all.
I checked out the first 2 eps of Golden Cross. ...... I remembered that a couple of weeks ago you mentioned the "needy villain".
Oh my goodness, he certainly is a little "off", isn't he? ....... One minute he's the upstanding executive, the next he's wielding a murderous golf club and the next he's huddled in some floor corner looking like a scared child who just broke his new toy!
Unfortunately, due to time concerns, I'm going to have to put this drama off until a later time. ....... But you were right, that's one unstable character!
For the first two episodes of Golden Cross, I actually forgot I was watching it and wandered off.
Later, when I was in bed, and ep 3 came out, I kind of went, what the heck, let's see what happened. Now, I'm hooked.
Although, once again, I'm disgusted by the lack of legal ethics shown even by our "righteous" prosecutor heroine in her all-women office (yeah, right).
And there's something weird about her Daddy issues. I'm looking forward to the scales falling from her eyes, and her seeing what a horrible person Daddy Dearest really is.
yeah, i found myself wondering if there is a kind of Korean version of the Hays Code. Will the lovers be excused and forgiven by the audience? Passionate immoral love= punishment? Don't know.
Oh, there WILL be a bright spot.
The writers are not the audience. They have tried to tell us over and over how not important staying badly married is to happiness.
Golden Cross is the drama that I look forward to the most each week. Each episode gets better and better.
Big Man seems to be a combination of all things - comedy, drama, or melo. Loving the chemistry between Kang Ji-Hwan and Jung So-Min. I wish the writer (Choi Jin-Won) would let their characters Kim Ji-Hyeok and Kang Jin-Ah end up as the OTP. From what little I've seen of Daniel Choi and Lee Da-Hee together as the characters Kang Dong-Seok and So Mi-Ra, it seems like they make a nice couple.
You know, I have still yet to figure out whether if all the adults know if DH = aunt's bio son. Been stuck at ep14 for the past few days, but I hope to catch up on it soon.
And you're absolutely right...I'm more interested in the other couples than DS/HW. They seem so lifeless and jaded...not really main couple worthy of screentime!
I haven't watched a revenge drama since forever. I think BG was the last, especially since I hate being burned by the ending. So I didn't even think to put GC on my to-watch list. Reading your comments on it is peaking my interest to try and check it out.
I got to commend you for keeping up with a daily...the daily that I had began to watch went all crazy on me, and the over-the-top craziness was definitely stressing me out. So I dropped it like a hot potato...and I've been nearly stress-free since! ;P haha. HW's mom in WD continues to up herself on the annoying meter, but I put the volume on mute whenever she's on screen :)
Started this drama with very low expectation since i'm allergic to GHS, LSW i've no opinion of. Up to ep 6, im literally blowned away by both Kang Ha Neul & Nam Ji Hyun, even after the transition to adulthood they still show up so that's kinda nice/sad (mostly sad for me). If you're an easy crier, prepare lots of tissue. I stopped watching it during lunch break cos i've used the flu excuse twice to explain the splotchy eyes & nose. It reminds me of the old melos.
You have to get through the initial tragedy (a matter of minutes into the first episode) which looks like nothing so much as a badly done '70s disaster movie, but from then on in?
Smooth sailing, with strongly decent to seriously excellent representation by all parties, a lovely OST, and a really nice 'look' to the drama.
Watching it and loving it too. I wasnt a fan of Gu Hye Sun and Lee Sang Yoon either but it is a nice surprise. It gets me emotionally invested in the characters. The chemistry between the 2 leads is just amazing.
It's great but I'm wondering how this will stretch out to 50 episodes. Aside from Lee Sangyoon's dimples, I love the fact that the writer made his romantic rival a really good guy, so far (as of ep 4) lacking in nothing. Making the rivalry so much more interesting.
The end of ep 4 when Dong Joo cries, holy cow that was heartbreaking. Great workplace banter and chemistry both at the hospital and the Firehouse/EMS center.
I made it through 32 episodes of the staggeringly boring Goddess of Fire because of those dimples, and maybe this is my reward.
Logan5, I suppose the attraction is to a handsome face and dimples are just a bonus. Dimples alone wouldn't cut it. Lee Sangyoon would be good-looking without the dimples. But they sure don't hurt!
Have to say Eps 1 & 2 remain my clear favourites so far, but by Ep 6, the plot is definitely ramping up!
I'm surprising myself, but I really like Gu Hye Sun's performance in this show so far. Jury's still out on Lee Sang Yoon...
I'm just getting confused trying to figure out the pieces of the puzzle, and who knows what, who wants what, and who's hiding what! It's a tangled web, for sure!
Ooh I wanna try listing what I watched the past week too!
- Nail Shop Paris Episode 5 (for recapping)
- Big Man Trailer (trying to spot Song Jae Rim)
- 2NE1's Go Away MV (to take screenshots of Song Jae Rim)
- Nail Shop Paris Episode 5 (for taking Song Jae Rim screenshots and making gifs)
- Big Man Episode 1, first three minutes (to watch Kang Ji Hwan beat up Mo Il Hwa and take screenshots)
Manin!!! I'm glad you're glad! :D I miss squeeing with people. Hope I can stick to a sched without getting sick again. :(
I've found a new appreciation for The Minions and recappers in other blogs. O__O So many questions.
How do they finish things in just one day?
How do they decide which details to keep in and leave out without compromising the story?
How do they stop themselves from staring at Oppa all day instead of writing words?
How are they not distracted by the urge to Google random things like "Oppa height", "Oppa girlfriend", "Oppa photoshoot with apples", "Oppa photoshoot blue shirt white stripes"???
Aww, we missed you too! Be careful and take care of yourself, getting sick is no good. ("Drink more water!" as the chinese would say)
Haha I guess that's what makes the difference between a squeecap and a recap? ;) However I do have a lot of respect for recappers, especially at this site and similar places that gives you objective recaps.
It must take so much time and effort and even though details will always be left out you still feel that the recap tells you what you need to know from the episode (at the same time, lets you enjoy the full epsiode as well).
I've read some very terrible recaps and it just makes the good sites like DB stand out even more.
Yes, sites like DB and KP are very helpful in explaining things that are lost in subtitles and pointing out meta jokes that aren't obvious to new kdrama fans. :)
Hey guys, it's been a while. Hope you're all well! I actually haven't been watching anything now that God's Gift is finished. Just waiting for Doctor Stranger and You're All Surrounded to premiere!
By the way, I felt like watching something sad today so I gave 'Always' starring So Ji Sub and Han Hyo Joo a try. And wow it was actually really good! I mean it still has those elements of a classic romance/dramatic/tragic Korean romance movie but I think the strong performance by the leads and the chemistry (omg the chemistry) between them was so great that I was really pulled into their story. It was very heartwarming and made me teary for a bit. I would recommend :)
Yes the chemistry between Han Hyo Joo and So Ji Sub was amazing! And their 2 characters - such broken people, seeking love in this lonely world. Their chemistry was so good that there were rumours that they were dating. LOL.
How are you all? Tempratures is reaching close to 30 degrees and sunny yesterday and today. Today was spend in a park and even sunblock factor 50 (for kid!) did not saving me from getting a tan/sunburned. Summer will be interesting.
Also the 7th season of Big Bang Theory has gotten the program banned in China (as of end of last week I think). Wonder what it did, because apparently its been deemed "damaging to the people" or something like that.
Dramaland:
Heartless City: stuck on ep 14, but getting there.
Ghost-seeing detective: Wish it was a little bit longer. And the end part seemed like the main characters had a personality swap out of no where. Still I enjoyed the drama and although a lot of things doesn't really get explained it did not bother me to much.
Bu Bu jing qing: finally found someone subbing it! Hurray! Its different from what I was expected (also hello there handy selective memory loss to get away from the ban on time travel themes). Still it seems good, though I am fully expecting it to become more of an office drama +company take over taking center stage.
1n2d: started watching season 1 on the KBS youtube channel. It's strange seeing the old old old cast but also nice to see the beginning of it all (although, the episodes doesn't start at the very beginning). Also Seungri looks so much like a puppy!
How are you? ...... It's totally sunny and hot here too! The thing is, there have been dry winds. ....... It's been absolutely miserable going outside! ........ Definitely use the sunblock!
Regarding Big Bang Theory, I haven't heard or read anything here so I have no idea why the decision was made to ban it. ........ I'm so sorry you'll be missing the show. ......... I've never watched it, but I have heard that it is funny.
Korfan-
I'm not to bad (thank god for after sun that my dad brought me. Also that's something that's really hard to find here!) Had a panicy wednesday having the parents come to the kindergarten to listen to the lessons.
Oh that weather sounds bad. It's been pretty hot and sunny here this week. A little bit of wind, but that's only provided a nice cooling movement of air.
I have watched it but more sporadically. Was going to watch it with a friend when we noticed we couldn't access it last week. Then today she told me that it had been banned and that's why we couldn't see it. No Idea as to why it was banned. I just find it a little funny.
It's not about the show per se, it's about controlling the power of online TV streaming sites which stream shows like BBT, and redirecting viewership to state TV stations.
Thanks for the link! I have no idea why it was actually banned. The reason I was given was just what my friend told me.
Weather its about directing people to the state TV channel or not I'm not sure. Even the state shows are often found through streaming sites. Think I saw the spring festival gala (as mentioned in the article) through the PPT stream rather than through the TV in my friends home.
The article seems to suggest that it is also about a show of power by the state, that even though at the moment these streaming sites are safe from interference because they are showing 'neutral' Western shows, they will be subject to interference if they try and cross the boundaries set by the state.
Yeah, I do also know that the same rules apply for the local and state channels as for the streaming sites. For instance the ban on time travel effect not only western shows (No doctor who in China for those into that) but also Chinese shows themselves goes through cuts and rewritings to get around that aspect (Bu bu jing qing being an example here as a follow up to an earlier show which involved time travel but was made and shown before the ban).
I think its more aspects to it than just being a show of power, although that is an interesting point. Whoever I also know that I don't have enough knowledge on the subject.
There have been a lot of comments on Weibo about the stupidity of it all. For example, they are still showing game of thrones, but one commenter said "they cut out all the plot and just left the killing and sex in.."
Has the air quality cleared up? I always wonder how you are doing with that hanging over your head. I still miss your Korean Drama Toddler Style, so I keep hoping they switch your classroom again. :-D
Is there ever a 'monsoon' season there, with daily rain and such?
How's you?
Yeah smog has cleared up for the moment, just in time for it being to warm to sleep with the window closed. Hoping it stays this way.
Haha yes, the new schedule and classes leaves little time for observing the kdrama toddlers. teaching 3 lessons in different classes means moving around and spending less time with them. It's a shame really. Not only for kdrama toddlers stories, but also for me not feeling like I can spend enough time with them to get to know the new kids the same way.
Not noticed any monsoon season where I am. This city is pretty dry all year around. When I went to Xi'an with my dad we had the most rain we have had for a couple of months in that it was rainy almost every day (but I put that down to my dad's traveling curse also not close to any form of monsoon rain).
Shuk- It really is! Whenever my dad goes on a holiday (or tries to paint the house) it will rain or be cloudy for the most of the journey. Might be sunny days, but the number of bad weather days always out number them. Only exception so far has been when he went to Dubai like 20 years ago :p
Been re-watching some of my favorite scenes from Dal-Ja's Spring and wondering where the hell Chae Rim is....I mean where has she been since Dal-Ja's Spring?!!!!!
That is a good question! fI can't remember seeing her in anything else than Dal-Ja's spring. Which also makes me think that this show is overdue a rewatch..
The last thing I saw her in was Oh My Lady with Siwon, but that was several years ago. I haven't heard of anything recently.
She's probably been pushed out of roles to make way for singer/idol actors. I don't think there is a lot of work for SK entertainers who just act, unless you're in the parent/grandparent role.
Actually is American. It was on HBO. I watched it on Shush.se.
Stars Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. It's well worth it if you like that sort of thing. Watched it on a dark, rainy night, lol, for full effect.
shame is not something i think about much. i was raised on christian guilt. but shame seems to be a part of korean culture. it is the discussion topic of a meetup of language exchange folks this week. in a culture where shame in public is a big deal, how do you create a safe place to discuss shame?
what examples of shame in dramas most surprised you?
students being hit or made to do squats or other physical torture i still find disturbing. Also mothers-in-law humilating DIL.
is shame or guilt the main motivator in your culture, or is it something else?
That MIL/DIL dynamic makes me wonder why anyone would want to marry, urgh.
I think a little shame is not a bad thing because people need internal checks against being assholes. E.g. I wonder at some of the statements on tumblr, like "[So&so kpop artist] is so pretty, I wanna punch his face, break his nose and gouge his eyes out." Whoever that is needs to step back from pulling the wings off flies, and get to a high security mental hospital.
Or learn some shame over stupid, nasty statements like that.
Totally agree that shame is needful in life. It does get warped a bit by culture but I for one would never want to have a friend who could not feel either shame or regret.
Korean culture's main cornerstone is actually something like "han" en.wikipedia[.]org/wiki/Han_%28cultural%29. Which isn't shame, but unresolved suffering. Kinda reminds me of how Irish joke about themselves. It's the same "Han" used in "Hangook" and "Hangook saram"
I've cracked jokes about it before. Han is the principle that changed the title from Les Miserables to "Jean" Valjeans". No one, absolutely no one is allowed to be more miserable than Koreans. =P (Also why melodramas are more popular in Korea)
While shaming is part of Korean culture, I think most of it comes from Confucian ideals. If you want deeper cultural roots, Buddhism and Muism will serve you better, which will tell you far more about food culture, and thoughts about how one interacts with their fellow human being. Confucian ideals came late. Buddhism came in around 400 CE. Muism predates the formation of Korean nations, as speculated by archaeologists.
I think in this case, putting it through the lens of relativism *does* help. Corporeal punishment was allowed in the US in the 1950's. MILs are painted terrible all the time in American TV. (Electra Complex--some would argue. A major feature of Western fairytales-- defeating a mother figure.)
Koreans believe by making someone do something physical, it'll focus their mind and put them in better shape. Kinda under the ideal of better body, more focused mind. (Not saying that's right or wrong), but I will say that's marginally better than spanking someone. Also the way it's done is kinda more social rather than individualistic.
When you find something odd, look to your own culture's history and recent history. Sometimes the thing that you found odd is in your own history. And if you know enough and study enough it won't come off as odd--and understanding does not mean you have to personally agree either.
Not sure..but wasn't corporal punishment allowed in Korean until just recently?
Fairytales are of the past. Dramas are of the present. And Korean dramas are full of mean MILs. I suspect there are more in k-dramas than in western dramas. The idea of defeating mother figures in fairytales pretty much is limited to false mother figures such as step-mothers, etc. In western fairytales, biological mothers are often missing. Probably because maternal deaths in childbirth was so common back in olden days and because the loss of a mother is a common fear and a common trope. Cinderella, Snow White et al...all battled step mothers or adoptive mothers, not their bio-mothers.
One western term for prison is "penitentiary" and it came from the Victorian idea that prison is where one goes to repent and learn how to live a good life. Thus, western prisons are full of all kinds of job training. Not sure if Korean prisons are like that. Probably. But am not sure those prisons are called penitentiaris. And although the life of an ex-prisoner in the US is bad, the shame goes after a while if the former prisoner goes on the good path.
Western fairytales, most of the fairytales the Brothers Grimm replaced purposefully biological mothers with the step mothers, in order to soften the blow. It's fairly well documented in that case. Wikipedia even has a page to it, admitting it. Also, stories tend to get eliminated when they no longer resonate with a population (I have sources to back this). I'm betting the MIL stories would not survive so neatly as other tales, but since the story still gets told, it's probable that there are older stories of that nature too.
In any case, the idea that one country will automatically modernize at the same rate for the same ideas and that one is "more advanced" and "above" it when it's in your own country's history is a kind of ethnocentrism, which is what I'm pointing to. Anthropology would say to suspend your judgment and figure out *why* it functions that way instead of going into the "correct" and "wrong" mode first. History will often give you the pattern and reason why.
The common ground here, is mother figure gets overthrown--which one is more cultural, but considering that the market for this format of drama is mostly women, and married women, it's not that difficult to figure out why it's MILs. If the market was for younger women, who aren't looking to get married, I think it would be mothers. I also suspect with a heavier male audience more Oedipus themes would show up as well (which is true in the US as well-- Star Wars??)
Before judging a country, I think finding what's *common* in what you think is "exotic" and "strange" is more important rather than focusing solely on the differences. Because that common thing will often give you the answer to why or give you a nice tangential/related why.
Electra Complex mixed with Confucianism is probably your best bet for explanation. Though I kinda see Neo-Confucianism as trying to solidify justification for agricultural attitudes. Agricultural attitudes might make the MIL situation more pronounced since Koreans still aren't completely neolocal and people live with their extended families. Which shows why media like Japan, China, and India (Northern) also have stories about overthrowing MIL in pop, but not traditional culture. When you make the switch from agriculture to industrial, you are literally getting rid of your MIL...
Or summed up: switching to industrial mode as main sustenance from agricultural is painful and long. Korea is doing it triple time which means tons of upsets. But it's not that different from the West's own history of the switch either or other countries going through it today. (which is not to say one mode is "more advanced" over the other.) MIL overthrowing is popular when you are switching sustenance modes from agricultural to industrial.
I often get a bit peeved when folks talk about the Asian idea of "face" or the Asian idea of shame. I really think all cultures have shame and I remember seething when I was told that black folks don't feel shame like Asian folks do. I thought, "Really? It could be that we Black folks have been made to bear shame for so long and to be vessels and symbols of shame that we have had to push through life in spite of feeling shame."
I think folks in the west generally counteract shame by speaking about it and not hiding themselves. They feel the same shame but the shame is entirely personal and doesn't reflect on the family so much and western culture provides for forgiving/excusing someone who comes out and apologizes and faces his shamers head on. So in the west there is a kind of respite or chance at restoration of "face" if one doesn't hide one's wrong-doing. Then one becomes a kind of healing redeemed healing force. Like Moses or Paul after they murdered people. The antidote for shame is not hiding. Hiding and not being honest in the face of public shame/guilt is far worse. If the shamed one says nothing, people lose all respect for them.
I suspect this is a bit like the honte/tatamae thing. Peacefulness and harmony are more prized than troublesome stressing truths. So the shame is a terrible thing because it brings truths out in the open and hints at disharmony. In the east, one hides the shame/sin/guilt and there is a kind of hypocrisy that declares (falsely) that all is well in the world. In the west, honesty is more prized than the aura of peacefulness. So if one has an affair in the east, i suspect generally speaking that even if the wife knows she will not rock the boat. If the mother-in-law is a bitch, the wife will not shame her. In the west, though...a bit different.
As for guilt or shame, it depends on who has knowledge of the guilty action and who is judging the guilty action and the perceived punishment. Legal punishment aside, hell and heaven aside, if we're talking about mere cultural guilt and cultural shame...I've always thought that shame is more powerful at keeping people in line.
Re;'I’ve always thought that shame is more powerful at keeping people in line.'
absolutely right.
Re:So if one has an affair in the east, i suspect generally speaking that even if the wife knows she will not rock the boat.
That is also right but I think that is partly because once she divorces, she would have a lower settlement. so being fed by her husband thus continue their marriage is better even she is humiliated by her husband's action. As for an affair, I know someone in Japan who discovered her husband's cheating. Instead of confronting her husband or his lover, she went directly to his lover's parents and ask them to stop the affair. It was very effective.However I thought this woman's action is quite cruel and calculating because she put the shame into parents of her husband's lover.
I think the deep Dickensian sense of shame is not as prevalent as it once was in the US and I'm not sure that is a bad thing.
I am appalled when people seem to lack conscience or the ability to be embarrassed by their bad behavior.
But historically shame is often off-target. Often people feel ashamed of things they have no power over and take that the humiliation onto themselves.
I'm thinking particularly about victims of abuse who instead of placing the responsibility on the perpetrator, internalize the offense and feel ashamed.
There used to be a cottage industry of shaming women who were victims of sexual assault for being victims. Where in the sense in that?
Shame is the emotion of the powerless; of folks who don't have enough social capital to avoide being stepped on.
In k-drama when mother-in-law or second leads slap and do their water toss, the shame never lands on the perpetrator of such grotesque behavior, instead the person who lacked the power to threaten consequence get drenched with shame.
That is why I don't put much stake in shame, and would prefer that someone's conscience or sense of embarrassment control their behavior.
Shame is also a part of Japanese culture.... so that might be rooted in Confucius belief. Though Japanese religion is Buddhism and Shintoism, old Japanese learned Confucius belief to their core. Parents are good at making their children feel very guilty but I guess that is world wide symptom.
I can't talk about Asia, but I can think about me.
It is a carrot to be motivated to do well so your behavior reflects well on the family. I like that. Sadly, my kids have never ever ever wanted to do well for me, however. No matter how much I tell them they should. Did I want to do well so it reflected well on my family? Yes, as one of seven kids, I wanted everyone to think I was one of the smart ones.
It is a stick to be motivated to avoid doing bad or poorly and cause the family name to be sullied. I don't like this one. The family name? My family's name? Do I feel shame if something I do hurts this? I guess I should in all my Catholic upbringing, but it doesn't worry me. It is neutral.
So what is it with dead birds in kdramas these days? Is there significance other than a warning? Something more specific? (Both Hotel King and Witch’s Romance have a dead bird delivered to someone.)
Witch’s Romance: I am in love with Park Seo Joon (Dong Ha) and I love him with Ji Yeon. Fish bar couple is pretty cute, too. Between laughing and recoiling in repulsion over the herbal doctor’s call to grandma I nearly threw up. Doesn’t it figure that Je Yeon would get a blind date with him? Dong Ha’s hours of waiting – squeeee!
Big Man – I am waiting for the punch that makes me want to get into this kdrama and keep watching.
A New Leaf
Anthony and Kim Na-na.
Lawyers and amnesia (I don’t recall that I didn’t recall).
I like it.
(Anthony's looking awflly thin~)
(Not so) Secret Love Affair – Could one possibly wring any more pain out of Hye won and Sun jae’s passion? I don’t see anything but a lose-lose-lose (throw in any third party combination) scenario.
I'm enjoying New Leaf. Great cast. I like how PMY isn't just a pretty face.
Secret Love Affair: Kim Hee-Ae's wardrobe! She's always so well dressed, as you'd expect of someone of her position, but I just had to make mention of it.
Not sure about dead birds in kdramas or korea specifically but know they they are generally seen as a bad omen. The sighting of certain birds have always been connected to something bad happening, for example crows and other bird that would tend to be drawn to a battlefield (thus being associated with death or something bad happening/evil).
Dead birds as a warning also goes back to mining. If you've heard the saying about "a canary in a mine" that is linked to this. Birds, especially canaries, are more sensitive to high carbondioksy and gass than humans. So they were taken into mines to serves as a warning. If the bird fainted/died its was pretty much time to back off and get the hell out of there.
Thus dead birds are warnings that you are stepping to far and are in risk of injury, and also a death threat. Not sure if any of this actually gives you an answer though.
Yes there are a lot of superstition involved. Also types of birds and number of birds in question. Know there is an old english nursery rhyme that touches upon that when it comes to mocking birds. And my grandma always used to say "It's better with a bird in your hand than ten on the roof".
I don't remember all the superstition side to it though :p
I'm also feeling a dearth in good Kdramas! I felt the first two episodes of Angel Eyes was heartfelt (though the amount of coincidences is a bit dense, still the characters had great chemistry and draw). I'm really enjoying Kang Haneul. And I wanted to like the next episodes. I want to like Ku Hye-Sun. I kind of felt like she was the underdog actress on Boys Over Flowers. Like all the pretty boys caught the limelight and she got shafted. But after watching her on Angel Eyes, I don't know. It's like she acts at a higher volume than works. There's not enough subtlety. It's a range that maybe works better for some of the Chinese dramas or a more slapstick Japanese style drama, but has too much energy to blend in a Korean drama (which are more adept at handling emotion, I think). Kind of like a soloist voice who hasn't learned to blend into a choir? Kind of like Ok Tacyeon too, come to think of it. What would happen if they starred in a drama together? Their style would be a good match, and maybe it would work, since they both act on high volume...
I do not know much about Ku Hye- Sun and Lee San Yoon. I have watched privious dramas, Godness of Fire and My daughter Seo Young that he was in. He did not have a good chemistry with the main actress in two dramas. At one point with My daughter Seo Young, I thought Lee Bo Young had more chemistry with Park Hae Jin who played her twin bro so I stopped watching the drama( and I did not like how she treats her dad). With my limited exposure with Lee San yoon, Ku Hye Sun is the first actress who has some chemistry with him, as far as I know. But again, I started watching it because of Kim Ji Suk who is a rival of Lee San Yoon. Sorry I only talk about their appearance.
I agree that Kang Haneul stole the show.
I see what Arashi means with GHS's acting. It's not perfect because sometimes you can just see her as GHS herself and not Soo Wan the character. But I do think Lee Sang Yoon and her got great chemistry together in Angel Eyes. It's so intense. And Lee Sang Yoon is doing a much better job in Angel Eyes than in other shows I think. There's more subtlety and more repressed emotions. (He's so hot too, hahahaha). The show isnt perfect but it's decent.
So, my news: I added to the tech collection: I felt like I could not take the weight of my iPad 2 anymore although I used it during some of my worst joint pain and fever ever. But the thought of traveling with it for the weekend just made everything ache. So, I bought an iPad Air.
Because it's easy on my hands, elbows and neck, I feel no guilt, just a weird confusion at my sudden determination to go get it. I even ordered a case in advance!
From someone lugging a several-kilo laptop everywhere she goes, I applaud you. I need a more robust platform for my work, and when I travel, my fingers itch for a real keyboard.
My backpack was bought specially for my laptop. :-)
I was thinking about my low pain tolerance recently: am I running out of patience or is that, since it's less intense and less often, I notice it more?
Not much has caught my attention since bride of the century ended. I wish they would do a bride of the century goes to (insert foreign country) episode just like Japanese dramas like to do with their popular shows.
Found out about a Japanese drama called Border but the translated episodes are slow to come, but I really like that show.
I am also watching my second Chinese dramas ever. I think c-dramas are by in large unwatchable, but a couple days ago I stumbled on jade palace which ironically is very similar to my first c-drama bu bu xing jing. Girl gets transported to the past ends up meeting 4th prince and 8th prince. What are the odds.
If you want to watch a outstanding C drama, I can't recommend The Legend of Zhen Huan highly enough. Viki has it. Don't let the length of the series put you off.
What kind of C dramas is it? I have become a fan C modern rom coms but havent good a historical dramas by them yet. I was looking for action, adventure,romantic ones and not political historical dramas.
I think that the Border is currently airing and they only broadcast one ep per week so it seems slow for the translation. I think Oguri Shun is a great actor, he is quite versatile for his roles. His role is so different from 'Bimbo Danshi( poor man)'. The Border so far has not got higher view rating but i like it.
C-dramas, T-dramas, HK-dramas - I find nearly all of them unwatchable for me.
Most C-dramas seem devoid of any real content, with the exception of a couple of the older historical ones. I assume that party censorship is the main reason why mainland Chinese dramas are so lifeless and bland and devoid of various subjects.
But T and HK dramas to me just nearly all seem aimed not offending anyone for any reason. Most (esp. T) seem pretty childish - never any real conflict, angst, emotion. Kind of like they were all written for Sesame Street audiences.
Depends on which ones you watch and i mean after having seen only T dramas of the chinese ones. In a Good Way, Devil Beside You type can be too cute, innocent but My Queen was bold, modern, realistic rom com more like korean dramas like Kim Sam Soon.
My Queen was better rom com than many korean rom coms in recent years. Which i dont watch Witch Romance remake when the original is so good.
Im having the same trouble and finding it hard to find a TW drama with the same strong lead actors, female lead character, mature storytelling. They have too many teen like dramas with idol like actors like Bullfighting, Devil Beside etc
I will try Material Queen written by the same writer who wrote the great My Queen. The same thing i do with Korean dramas, i follow good screenwriters.
Oh Devil Beside You was my first Taiwanese drama that I had watched and I liked it, well tbh I liked Mike He more than the drama, because of him I watched 'Calling For Love' which was okay but 'Express Boy' was very good, anyway I only watch Taiwanese dramas that has Mike He in it, I tried others dramas with different actors but couldn't get into any, anyway for me Jdramas and Kdramas are a lot better than TW dramas, HK and Chinese dramas are worse than TW dramas.
Aaaaah Snooker! The World Championship is under way and I am a nervous wreck again :D My favourite player is still in the tournament with a good chance for reaching the final =) Today and tomorrow will tell if I can watch the final relaxed (as in he’s out and I don’t care who wins) or I can barely watch out of nervousness :D Yeah I am weird but when it comes to sports I get pretty passionate sometimes xD
On to the dramas of this week:
WR: It’s back =) And I LOVE the show so much! UJW + PSJ have some great chemistry going on and I can’t wait for more!
Big Man: Already rooting for Ji Hyuk and this one looks like a keeper. The first two episodes were pretty solid and I am already anticipating next week’s episodes.
TD: Well.. at least they didn’t pull a God’s Gift on us! I actually thought they would kill of Mr president as well and then I would’ve been mighty pissed bc of all the people who died (especially in ep. 15) for him. So yay for a living president (and TK) but boo for no kiss! I mean… Girl would’ve deserved that but then given how awkwardly shy TK is around BW it would’ve been out of character for him. But the hinting on a future relationship is quite satisfying! It wasn’t as gripping as other dramas of the same genre but somehow I kept watching so it must’ve done something right :D
New Leaf: Just seen one ep but I am so in =) KMM + KSJ = YES, more please!
GD: Enjoying it though it could be creepier! I want it creepier! I am all for the creepy :D I roll my eyes at the police in this drama but when have I not in a K-Drama^^
I love to hate CG and I just hope he’ll change a bit.
Movies:
More Jo Seung Woo (not many of his movies left for me to watch^^):
H: Not much of him but nevertheless a great movie. A bit gory in the beginning but I loved the ending!
Perfect Game: Urgh sports movies…. They ALWAYS make me cry :P It was a really great watch with a very touching ending. It’s just the perfect feel good sports movie the way I like it with two great actors in the form of JSW and Yang Dong Geun. It was also pretty funny to see so many familiar faces of actors that are or quite recently were in dramas I’ve watched^^
Tazza: With nearly 2hrs 20min runtime a pretty long watch great actors here as well though ;)
Finally caught up on all my variety shows and god I LOVE it when the moms are on Superman Returns =) I love Tablo + KHJ and Haru so much they are just too adorable <3
I am also happy that RM is back as of this weekend. I really missed the show though I respect the decision of cancelling variety shows in the wake of the ferry incident. Reading that it’ll probably take another week to recover the missing bodies is just…urgh… It’s bad enough for the people to know they won’t get their loved ones back alive but to have no closure for so long =(
I found it on watch32 . com! You can either find it when typing in Tazza or Jo/Cho Seung Woo. You can't DL it but you can watch it there :) I just couldn't wait until I can order the DVD^^
Big Man surprised me a lot with the lead hero guy.
For once we don't have some naïve idiot falling for every chaebol trick because he is some clueless idiot. Our hero in this drama caught on almost right away to the fact that it was all a fake setup by a bunch of evil bastards and he is not buying it. He just does not know yet HOW evil they really are.
Im glad that he is smart enough to realized that but maybe he could be more subtle about it. Who knows what tricks they have up their sleeves. What scares me the most is the chaebol father - such an actor, changing his script in a blink. Even the mother. If this is how chaebols really are, i think im better off being a regular salaryman daughter.
Our drama heroes are NEVER subtle. It is some kind of rule that they have to barge into places or confront people and then tell them everything they are going to do next, and of course wave all and any evidence that he has in front of them so they don't have to look for it.
I am really loving A NEW LEAF out of all the dramas airing rn. A New Leaf hwaiting! (Kim Myung-min & Park Min-young have bursting chemistry felt beyond the small screen)
While waiting for new dramas to come out, I watched oldies "When It's at Night" (with Lee Dong Gun from "Marry Him if You Dare" and "Sweet Eighteen") and "Secret Agent, Miss Oh," and kept thinking, "I know this actress..." She was on "Let's Eat," the only drama from 2014 so far that's really stuck with me.
I'm still waiting for a 2014 "Master's Sun" or "I Can Hear Your Voice." Somehow "My Love From Another Star" didn't charm me like it seems to have charmed others... I'm turning to Taiwanese dramas to fill the gap. "Fall In Love With Me" is interesting in that she's getting set up to fall in love with the same guy in two alter-egoes. There's a lot of accidentally falling into each other's arms though...subtle it is not, but enjoyable like a bon-bon.
Let's Eat is my favorite so far as well. I actually really do love You From Another Star, as many things about it were very fun and the leads were great. However, I totally get what you mean. For some reason, despite the fact that I enjoyed it immensely and my head kept telling myself how great it was, it just didn't get me in the heart for some reason or at least not as much as I expected it to. I'd actually say I like it as much as I Hear Your Voice, but that's only because I'm still waiting for a drama to rival QIHM and Arang and the Magistrate. Master's Sun came close to doing that, but didn't quite make the cut for me. If I were to pick one that did, I'd probably pick Nine. The dramas slated to come up this summer are interesting though so I'm hopeful that we'll both find more dramas to rival our ones to beat!
Dont mistake the popularity for flower boy actor like Kim So Hyun for many people thinking My Love From Another Star was really good. Its highly overrated and high rating dont mean good show.
Jeon Ji Hyun was great in it as the female lead, her comic timing, her dramatic acting was the only really highlight of the drama. Also it was a pretty visually drama. The male lead actor was really weak in comparison to Jeon Ji Hyun, the writing was not really even when it came to romantic story, the SF story.
Long away from the chemistry, the great OTPs of Master Sun and I Can Hear Your Voice.
The first two episodes of Angel Eyes was adorable and sad - but the last four have fallen back to mostly conventional k-drama stuff. Still watching, but at this point I rate ep1-2 at 5/5, ep3-6 at 3/5. Hoping it picks up again, but looks like it is falling into the usuall MIL + love triangle thing.
Hi beanies. Happy weekend and I wish you all a lovely May.
Really loving A Witch's Romance. It's a lovely follow-up to Let's Eat. Fun and silly and odd and charming. I'm so glad I'm enjoying UJH's new show and it's definitely put Park Seo Joon on my radar. HE IS ADORABLE with his hilar expressions and sleepy eyes.
I've also started the Taiwanese drama, Fall In Love With Me. It's crazy unrealistic (as all alter ego/secret identity dramas tend to be) and I'm not too keen on the fated romance/we met when we were kids plotline BUT it IS really funny and it actually has me laughing out loud which is usually rare for me with any dramas. I usually am not too keen on Taiwanese dramas but I might stick with this one. The leads are cute together and I like the side characters. It was also a nice surprise to hear G.Na singing in the theme song.
Thanks for that suggestion! This actually has to do with both the dramas you mentioned ironically. I also don't watch Taiwanese dramas, but after enjoying the first 2 eps of Witch's Romance and hearing all about how great My Queen was, I checked it out and really liked it. That led me to wondering if there were any other good ones I could try, but I haven't been able to find one that interests me yet. I guess I'll give this one a try! Sounds like fun :)
You're welcome. The only other Taiwanese dramas I've managed to get into (but not finish, I'll admit) were Office Girls and The Fierce Wife. I thought The Fierce Wife was a really good drama and did a wonderful job of showing all the ways in which adultery affects a family and the various involved parties including 'the other woman'. Office Girls is the typical rich guy falls in love with poor girl while they learn lessons storyline but I found it pretty funny. I kind of want to check out My Queen myself now but I don't think I'd be able to fully appreciate it since I'm already watching (and loving) the K-version. Maybe I'll check it out sometime later. I hope you enjoy them though. :)
Oh, also Love and Patisserie (or The Cafe With No Name) is a cute, light, funny T-drama but I haven't found it fully subbed anywhere. Good drama.net has it but only up to episode 7.
So there are a fair number of contract marriage dramas - in which the main characters are a couple publicly but are very separate privately (until the end, at least).
Are there any dramas that do the opposite - have a secret relationship? So they would probably pretend to hate each other publicly.
Well in Smile You Lee Min Jung (ha! again!) and Jung Kyung Ho have a secret relationship and they act like that for a few episodes. It's hilarious because they'll start out "fighting", but will always end up getting angry at each other for real by the end of the fake fight. Aw I love them. Now I feel like rewatching lol :)
Ok so who else is watching SLA with me?
That drama just keeps toying with my moral compass
The chemistry is just....*dead*
Thank goodness I'm not married,otherwise I would have torn out my hair out of guilty conscience for enjoying drama
SLA is easily the best drama airing in Korea right now. It makes the other dramas i have seen in recent month look like silly dramatic angst feast.
The tension, the story, the characters, the music feels so real.
Im not worried about the affair, the morality issues of being married and having an affair. Its not like her marriege is anything about a status one for both of them.
A real husband would get angry, jealous, sad if his beloved wife was having an affair. The one in SLA gets more jealous, angry the fact she might steal his genius piano player from him as she is his real teacher, master musically.
Has anyone watched SNL Korea? cause i went down a youtube rabbit hole and i'm now obsessed!
The Drama parodies are often great (SLA and YFAS part 2 were my favs from what I saw) and this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeKsFuTnAr4
take on GTA and video games is perfection.
Hello everyone! Sorry I'm late to the party, but hopefully there's still some good stuff left [munches pretzels]
Thanks to a very close friend in the hospital, my graveyard shift, and my blackout curtains, it's hard to remember what day it is. Luckily, my lovely lovely dramas are available at my fingertips 24/7!
- I started squeecapping the Taiwanese drama Fall In Love With Both Of Me. I have to confess, I really focused on Jiro Wang of our Fahrenheit boys, but Aaron Yan! Aaron Yan [sigh]. I did you a grave disservice! He has such a mobile face and eyebrows that act independently of each other. I love it. The two characters he plays are not like BOTC; you can see Tian Xing in both of them, it's just everyone is oblivious. And I want to take PD Leo home with me...
- Angel Eyes: Things I love about this:
- - The prehospital and E/D behaviour is believable, if not exactly accurate. Still, one of the closest I've seen in many many a show, from a medical point of view.
- - Dr. Dylan's dimples. Ohhhh yeah.
- - Yoon Soo-won as the vulnerable but tough woman. Ku Hye-son is doing a terrific job on that score, both showing the physicality of the profession as well as how her past affects her relationships now.
- - Teddy Seo / Seungri and the flips between English and Hangeul.
- - The entire gang at the fire station. When you work with people for a 12- or 24-hour stretch, it does become a family, with bickering, teasing, and heartfelt moments.
- Secret Love Affair: Love the music. I think YAH is doing the best acting he's ever done, even if his mouth hangs open most of the time. I haven't seen the last two episodes, so I'm a bit behind, but I'm surprised OH Hye-won hasn't exploded before now, from the pressure of juggling all these ugly ugly people and their ugly ugly machinations.
The real-life ferry tragedy is shedding light on the criminal scheming that goes on under the table, making the Seo family's behavior even more real. Ugh.
- A Witch's Romance: There is a surfeit of characters called "puppy", so I won't use that appellation here, but that boy/man is completely adorable and hot and perfect, I'd love to put a leach on him and take him home. Ban Ji-yeon is really a marshmallow who thinks that being a hardass is the only way to be successful. Go get him girl! Have fun!
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I hope everyone stays safe and healthy this week!
Have you watched his earlier films, like Boys of Tomorrow, Shim's Family and Wandeuki?
His best acting is still in films, not in TV. SLA is definitely the best TV work in his resume, but he had great acting even from the ridiculous bad drama "Strongest Chil-Woo." He stole the show basically.
This is kind of a rant, but I am a bit disturbed that the whole Sewol ferry disaster is looking more and more like some badly written over-the-top k-drama filled with bad guys. What has transpired over the past 10 days or so:
1. All 15 crew members having anything to do with the navigation or running of the ship have been arrested. It is likely that a lot of them will spend a LOT of time in prison.
3. The Korean Coast Guard is being investigated for poor response, inaction, and favoritism. What started this was the fact that the captain of the ferry was the 2nd person off of the ship (right behind another crew member), was apparently drunk, and the Coast Guard at the time knew full well who he was.
3a. Contrast this with the response of the Italian Coast Guard to the cruise ship disaster captain when that happened. Just a hint, this is one line from the Italian Coast Guard transcript: "
"you might have saved yourself, but i'll make you fucking pay for this"...!. For the full recording, see here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX_08zcCmx8&list=LLrgNB_F1vp8GShh5fPwSRvg&index=3
4. Even while the ferry was still sinking, there were calls to the main office from a crewmember that it appeared to be a cargo shift that had caused the ferry to capsize. The conversation apparently went on for some 50 minutes, but there was zero talk of rescue efforts or saving the passengers, it was mostly talk of how to alter the records and how to cover up the fact that the cargo was overloaded and not properly tied down (which is why it shifted).
5. And straight out of k-dramaland: "Prosecutors have summoned the son of Yoo Byung-eon, the de facto owner of Chonghaejin, as well as two other executives at affiliates. But the three individuals, who are overseas, failed to return to Korea by Thursday. Prosecutors now plan to freeze their bank accounts and cancel their passports."
6. There were actually a couple of real heroes, but the one I am focused on is Park Ji-young. She was a young 22 year old cafeteria worker on the ferry, and is credited with saving about 50 lives, at the expense of her own. She had quit college because her father died of cancer and she had to support her family, so she took a job with the ferry company as a cafeteria worker.
6a. While nearly all the other crewmembers, including the captain rushed to get off the ship, she stayed behind to help passengers. Now, can someone please tell me WHY IN THE FUCK did some 22 year old girl have to die saving passengers while all those great brave men scuttled off like rats?
7. There is mounting evidence that many safety rules were violated, and that there were payoffs to inspectors. The agencies in charge of maritime safety are now also being investigated. It has also just been discovered that the ballast tanks were not filled properly, to allow more cargo to be carried. That made the ship extremely top heavy.
8. It was not the ferry crew that made the first distress call - it was a student from a cell phone. The Coast Guard were not the first responders - local fisherman were. The Coast Guard made no effort to get on the ship to help passengers (this is shown in video released 3 days ago). There is also evidence that many of the drills that the Coast Guard said were done, were in fact NOT done, but were just paper entries.
So overall, this is playing out like some k-drama, only worse because so many young kids died all because of greed and cowardice.
I am hoping that if nothing else this sends a wakeup call to someone that there are serious holes in the system.
Thanks for laying this horrible tragedy out in such a clear and concise fashion. When the news first broke, I thought there might be a rush to judgement on the part of the media and citizens because things can go very wrong very quickly at sea. I naively thought that Korean standards regarding ferry safety were much the same as in my country. But it turns out that it was not a rush to judgement at all but a realistic assessment by people who have some idea of what is actually going on.
I recently took a ferry with my sons and the first 20 minutes of the voyage were spent reviewing emergency procedures and protocol. There was a crew member at each muster station ready to answer passengers' questions and concerns while this was occurring. I, again naively, thought it would be the same on Korean ferries. Wow was I wrong!
The big problem with a society where such corrupt practices are common and from the top down is that people look at their superiors and say to themselves, "well, if they don't care, why should I? I'm going to look out for myself." This leads directly to the shameful actions of the captain and a crew member being the first and second people off the ferry and the coast guard not boarding the ferry to aid in evacuation.
But then you get people like the 22 year old cafeteria worker who took responsibility, did her duty and saved lives at the cost of her own. This young woman is a shining example of what people should do in such situations and all too often don't. I hope she gets the highest award Korea gives for her service to her fellow citizens and her heroism isn't ignored because it makes other, more powerful people look so cowardly and dishonourable by comparison.
Agreed. I'd add a number of examples of things that have come to light which make this feel a lot like "some badly written over-the-top k-drama filled with bad guys", but I'm to the point where I'm literally nauseated by it all. I don't know how those who lost someone in this tragedy are coping. Losing a loved one, especially a child, is one of the most challenging things a person can go through— but to find out that it happened due to seriously unbelievable levels of greed, corruption, callousness, and cowardice just makes it all the more devastating. I'm glad that the widespread system of corruption and nepotism is being highlighted in the media~ I just hope that it leads to some major reforms (beyond just the shipping industry and Coast Guard.)
It just keeps getting worse and worse. It seems like every time they move a rock, more bugs crawl out. Makes you wonder just how corrupt things really are in Korea - here is one small company, yet the stuff they have been pulling is worthy of a chaebol drama.
But now other questions are coming up in Korea - if they are finding all this stuff now, why didn't they ever notice it before - why does it always take a major disaster to uncover such corruption?
I used to think that the TV dramas were exaggerating about how corrupt some companies are in Korea, but now I am starting to wonder if they are under-emphasizing it.
And it just keeps getting worse - This just got posted, and is related to the cult link of the ferry owner posted in 33.2.2:
"..The director of the intelligence and investigation bureau of the Korean Coast Guard leading the probe into irregular practices of Chonghaejin Marine Company, the operator of the ill-fated Sewol ferry, was removed from his post yesterday after reports surfaced he had ties with the now-defunct Semo Group, the Chonghaejin Marine Company’s predecessor..."
It seems that the lead investigator was a former(?) member of that same cult.
Thank you for the all the information on this tragedy, windsun33...seriously, you're right on about finding all the creepy-crawlies once the rock is overturned. Ugh. This makes me so angry and sick...all the innocent lives of teens lost over the greed and corruption of those involved. Tsk tsk. I, too, wonder how far-reaching this'll all end up to be...and the revelations now about being involved in a cult? Sickening...
Hi OT ... how have you been my dear friends?
well I'm always late to OT I was busy today .....I'm not following any drama these days but I manage to catch up some episodes of the return of Superman and I'm loving all the kids and there relationships with there daddies it's too cute ^_^....
mmm I have a question to all :
Have you ever had crazy dreams where you imagined yourself having a relationship with your favorite kdrama actor/actress and you as the lead guy/girl ?? it's like making up your own kdrama with all that craziness *LoL xD
Hope it's been a good week...it's finally spring again here, after all this torrential rain for 3+ days! But what pollen the rain washed away, it's come back with a vengeance x/
I'm with the others on here who are looking for their crack drama...nothing's really grabbing my attention since GG (although the ending kinda wiped the good feels out, minus JSW's awesomeness). I'm also itching for a good comedy, something that'll have me laughing. I'm keeping my eyes peeled so I can hopefully find one soon...it's been a dull drama-watching week for me.
EK: So it has finally ended. I definitely commend those who've stuck with this rollercoaster the whole way through, because I sure as hell didn't (think I skipped like 10-15 episodes in the middle). It did satisfy a part of my "yay the baddies got their due" feels, but a part of me feels let down with the ending.
[spoiler] Glad that she rose to power and got rid of her opponents (although ED's death was far too lenient). But wth, TH? You just had to kill WY anyway to get rid of your inferiority complex to him...and you find out later that GT was the one behind all the fake love letters? Tsk tsk.
Was it just me or was TT's death just announced, with no actual reappearance of him in the epilogue? And was the dream sequence of SN, WY and TH effectively meaning that SN died as well?
GD: This drama makes me think that the writer seriously thinks the police are that freakin' incompetent. Well, CG in particular...his severe bull-headedness and "MY is GD" mindset is getting pretty old. Open your eyes a little bit more and see the evidence for what it is...not with your bias-tinted shades, man! Jeez. MY is not doing him any favors by basically playing along, although I think he's got a plan...but he's seemingly digging himself a deeper hole.
Someone mentioned last week that they wanted crime-themed kdramas to be stylized more like U.S. shows (CSI, L&O, etc.)...which I totally agree! I do watch a lot of the crime shows, so I'm definitely a fan of the crime procedural style and organization to the plot that crime-themed kdramas seem to lack.
WD: Still at ep14, will likely to get to more this weekend.
Planning to start watching a few eps of: WR, AE (from all the good chatter I've read on here).
Yes, I'm also feeling the drought. The only current show I'm watching is Witch's Romance. I am enjoying it, though I did have difficulty with the less than 24 hr turnaround time on the DNA results. Sure wish that happened in real life! (As do a number of prisoners, I'm sure,) And only on the power of having attended medical school! Still, if I try to suspend my critical mind, it's quite enjoyable.
I'm filling in the down time with Couple or Trouble. How have I missed Oh Ji Ho before? Mmmmm. Yummy. And plenty of fan service scenes to behold. Not as good as later Hong sisters' work, but solid. Rewatches in the last few weeks were Coffee Prince and Best Love. Even better the second time around.
I too have been transfixed by all the drama behind the ferry disaster. Rotten from the top down, that company. Hope something good comes out of all this
Actually they didn't get the DNA results -they only pretended to. When they're getting in the car for Dong Ha to take Jiyeon to her blind date, she scolds him about not being able to get the DNA results even though he 'boasted' about being a med student. And he replies that only family is allowed to do the test so it's not his fault. It happens quickly though so that might be why you missed it.
I have never posted anything on Open Thread but I think now I have to because of several reasons below :
Starting with God's Gift 14 Days. *sighs* yes I'm still suffering from its withdrawal even though it's been a week since I watched its last episode. Granted, the special episode and fanfiction kinda helped me forget the nightmare of its ending but I still can't move on to many dramas yet. I have Jo Seung-woo's Love Phobia just in case LOL
I'm watching Gap Dong tho, because it's still quite related to God's Gift in suspense-thriller thing. But Gap Dong is surprisingly easier to watch than a few first eps of GG. Even though I hate most of the cops there and Chul-gon on top of that.
A New Leaf is one of new dramas that I most looking forward to watching so I think I might watch it this weekend. And when I peeked into it earlier I spotted Oppa from Mirae's Choice!! Yay glad to see you again Oppa :D
- And there's Three Days that I have to watch later, Park Yoo-chun and Park Ha-sun is my favourite couple after GG ended.
- And in regard to a few dramas that is coming I'm preparing myself with Nodame Cantabile, God's Quiz Season 1, Sunny. Haha so many dramas to watch, so little free time to watch them too.
As for variety shows I enjoy watching Return of Superman now that Running Man is on hiatus. And re-watching a few episodes from Shinhwa Broadcast everytime I need a good laugh.
Oh and I dreamt about EXO's Lay last night even though I'm not EXO's stan. This might be not related to dramaland at all but now I kinda think that dream came after I read Witch's Romance's recap yesterday.
Phew so that's that. Now I know why we all need this OT, it feels great after writing here hehe I might be coming back in the next OT :> Have a nice weekend folks!
I actually think that Park Seo Joon (Dong Ha from A Witch's Romance) looks a bit like Lay - same sleepy eyes, something else about their features is similar but I can't pinpoint what. Maybe you unconsciously noticed the similarity too.
Heol! I do think that something is similar but I thought that was only the age-gap thing in which I'm older than Lay by 4 years. Thanks for telling me your opinion ^^ Yes maybe it's their sleepy eyes and also their tall? I don't quite remember Lay's figure but i imagine he has the same tall and thin body as Park Seo-joon.
Aw man. i wanted to post this comment early on so that people might actually see it and help me! After Ryu Seung Soo began appearing in my life again, I began rewatching Mixed-up Investigative Agency/Evasive Inquiry Agency, one of my all-time favorites, and there is this one instrumental piece that plays during heartfelt moments that I ADORE. I want it so badly. I've actually wanted it ever since 2007 ,but it's not on the OST and it's driving me crazy. Anyway, I doubt anyone will know, but if anyone does, please let me know. The song plays at the very end of episode 10 (I believe javabeans even points out how gorgeous it is in her ep 10 recap).
I sometimes have luck using the Shazam app on my phone. It picks up a lot of mainstream SK music used as BGM if you can get a sample (not overshot with dialogue).
Hello, everyone. It's been a while since I posted on an open thread.
I was wondering if anyone could recommend any good Japanese or Korean fantasy novels (high fantasy, science fiction, speculative fiction, etc.) that are in print and translated into English? I'm not really interested in purchasing e-Books. I like to have a physical book in my hands :).
Hi, Mohammed. Thank you for the suggestion. I actually came across this title. I've been searching on Amazon and have to admit that I've been disappointed. So many titles are not available. There are Kindle versions for some; I guess I might go that route if I really can't find anything.
Speaking about K-pop,idols i have listened alot this week to Smile 2003 album by Baek Ji Young.
The Queen of ballad songs is also very good in more fast paced pop, R&B like songs. She just became my first Korean artist that i call a favourite that i follow now. I respected, liked only some of her songs because of the drama OSTs before. Bad Person from Hwang Yi Jing from example is wonderful.
Only Korean, Japanese artist i loved listening to before and follow avidly has been Namie Amuro for the last 10 years before i even saw any K-drama or J-drama. I love Namie Amuro songs to bits. She is even more perfect in her R&B, more hip hop like albums. Namie i adore she is a world level Pop Icon to me :)
I am not much of a k-pop fan, though I do keep up a little bit with the happenings. Most of the idols and idol groups just seem to be way too "manufactured" for my tastes. Most of them all have the same looks and dances. I occasionally come across an individual song that I like, but I don't really follow most of it.
About the only ones I am paying any attention to right now are Lee Hi and AKMU.
I love A New Leaf! I would really love to read recaps here! :D yes, there are few moments where people might be confused with all the law related scenes, but Park Min Young's character balances them. I didn't expect to laugh while watching this drama. HAHA.
Does anyone here notice that Kim Myung Min and Kim Sang Joong have the same intonation when speaking? I find it really cute. And Myung Min's deep voice... whew.
I'm so excited to see his softie side. Especially with the preview when he shouted "Excuse me" in the hospital with a playful tone. :"> gaah~
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On the other hand, I finished watching Three Days. So heart warming and nice. But a bit lacking (of romance I guess? haha)
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I tried to watch Episode 2 of Golden Cross, but stopped with few minutes after. Maybe next time. When my LDS (last drama syndrome) subside. haha. A New Leaf feels.
Hey everyone. Sorry but I'm desperate. I need drama recommendations ASAP please. This is my only night off until next weekend and I want something new (never mind the countless dramas I have on-going :/). I want something rom/com ish, doesn't matter if it's more rom or com as long as no lead characters die. The list of dramas I have already watched or am watching is quite long so I won't bore you with it. Basically something fun but not overly fluffy. I need this, I've had the week from hell :)
How new is something new to you? How much have you seen? I think the best korean rom coms was up to 2012. The best ones i have seen are from 2005-2007 or 2009-2012.
Of the new ones Secret Love Affair is more serious romantic drama but a great one.
King 2 Hearts , Haeundae Lovers i would say are fun but they might be old news to you.
After asking about books above, I now would like to know if anyone could recommend reputable sellers of Japanese films. There are so many films I would love to see, but I've been unable to locate them. Thanks again :)
Here's another trope for your next book, Beans & Girl - tire squeals. This drives me nuts, especially in parking ramps. Have you ever tried to make screeching tire sounds in a parking ramp? Trust me, it can't be done. This is why I stopped watching Iris part-way through. Ok, tire screeches during chases through the streets, that's kind of ok, although not terribly realistic, but please, not in a parking garage. I have a cousin who has built and driven race cars, and it takes more than what you see in K-drama car chases to make tires screech like that. Although it helps if you've not checked the pressure and let them get low - in which case your handling will be crappy.
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1 Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 6:22 AM
Personal: I collected 200 dollars for the website polyglit.com. I made the press release, etc. Trying to get a donor list, get 1,000 dollars and then hit up various places with my press release.
Dramas
The Korean dramas airing right now aren't catching my interest.
Witch's Romance: Not a fan of remakes.
Big Man: Another drama about OMG the poor adopted people portrayed badly. NOOO.
Then you have the "affair" dramas/movies, and no. Least favorite theme ever. Kinda wish I knew what social movement caused this sudden surge, though.
The TW dramas aren't inspiring me either, since they aren't pushing the envelope and one scenario looks a ton like the others.
This leaves me with J-dramas. Of which I think Alice no Toge is the best of the lot. Revenge and though I've seen the premise tons of times, it's the stellar actors that draws me in.
Shinigami-kun also ranks up there for me.
Watching Smoking Gun as well.
Also, silent poor.
Of those, I would probably recommend Shingami-kun and maybe Alice no Toge. (I separate what I like and what I recommend.
This drought of dramas, though, I'm taking it really hard. I'm starting to have dreams and fantasies of the perfect K-drama with all the trappings I want. And my Korean is sliding away. And no Running Man to tide me over. andwaeeee. And then I had a momentary lapse where I forgot that Chinese movies end sadly. Can someone mop me up off the floor?
Mildly interested in Anticipate Marriage. And also Discovery of Dating. Still waiting for the next Hong Sisters' drama. I like my rom coms and delusions of Jaebeol. (And the people in my Korean language class know it with the sentences I come up with.)
Korean language note
Learned how to be sarcastic in Korean. Only used with close friends.
닌는다 (고하) 든지 form in Korean.
It's a kinda "Whatever" type of brush off.
So example:
내남동생 든지 잘 해둔지 못하든지 나는 정말 관심 없어요.
"I have no interest in Whether my younger brother does well or does badly."
Whether or no form. You wouldn't say this kind of thing to elders though.
The vocab should be easy, so you get a sense of how it's used.
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julia the berkshire beanie
May 2, 2014 at 6:51 AM
my resolution this week ... only korean shows. no more english. i too fear losing my korean listening skills if i don't find time to watch dramas.
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Narina
May 2, 2014 at 7:04 AM
I usually tend to avoid Japanese revenge dramas but I watched the first episode just to try it out and I was hooked.Juri Ueno was so good!!! It was hard to believe this is the girl who played the role of Nodame Cantabile.
The stories in Shinigami Kun are really heartfelt and soulful.
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 8:12 AM
You should see Ueno-san in Ueno Juri to Itsutsu no Kaban--it shows her acting range. But in this, she's really showing she has acting chops. There are subtleties to her performance that shows she really deserves the role. I think if not for the actors, I probably wouldn't watch Alice no Toge
Skip Beat! The drama... I think she would make a perfect Kyouko... she has the acting range--she can play lovey dovey, and then cold and dark and revengey. (I have fantasies of a Japanese version of Skip Beat). She's definitely near the top of the list.
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Narina
May 2, 2014 at 8:39 AM
Same here.I wouldn't stick to Alice no Toge if weren't for her.I will watch Ueno Juri to Itsutsu no Kaban.Thanks for recommending.
Japanese version of Skip Beat starring Ueno Juri ! Ah it really sounds tempting!
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therowanphoenix
May 3, 2014 at 3:34 PM
what? what? japanese version of skip beat? and i didnt know? for real? i have to check it out!!!
therowanphoenix
May 3, 2014 at 3:41 PM
oh dear, re read the comment about skip beat. yes, I feel sad now thought it already existed... I really want a remake, wonder how a korean version of it would be like....
Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:17 AM
I was thinking about starting Shinigami-kun but not seen any reactions to it yet (also lagging behind on drama watching atm).
Just out of curiosity; what would be your perfect kdrama?
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 8:03 AM
Right now I miss the wacky Rom com, wacky does not mean "illogical" though. As in the plot makes no frickin' sense. Wacky as in the humor can run on many levels, and might seem overblown, but is undercut by heartfelt moments and timed realizations that give sweeping feelings. They might make you think as a secondary, but it's not the main function. (KES tends to run towards the main function is to make you think) Hong Sister's dramas tend to run this way. I do like layered experiences and ones that challenge drama norms, especially love subversion and meta. (Like the potato in Greatest Love... the poor potato!!!)
I believe if I understand correctly, this is one of Javabeans favorite genres too.
Shinigami-kun is really good. It plays on your expectations, deals with death, but has humor to it. And since it's Japanese style of death, there is more about understanding the person rather than dead people are diseased and troubled look from the West.
Ohno is also perfect for the role. He plays a deadpan character, but has impeccable comedic timing too. There are moments where I laughed out loud even though he wasn't *trying* to be funny as a character--straight man playing is difficult, and he does it so well (In addition to the deadpan). The series also runs warm and fuzzy so far with some good humor about death that don''t turn towards dark humor.
I like the general theming-- but there is only one episode out. From the subtle directing, the good writing (non live shoot system), I'm pretty sure it'll have a solid landing for an ending. (J-dramas you have to be careful about romances, but this one isn't one. So the tone should be consistent throughout.)
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 10:52 AM
I get what you mean. I do miss having a wacky (though as you say not illogical) fun show to watch, rom-com or not.
Shinigami-kun is definitively on my list now. I've seen some of Ohno's other shows and the guy have a knack for playing straight in roles that otherwise would have come across a lot different.
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Sue
May 2, 2014 at 4:44 PM
Funny, I was just trying to watch ep 2 of Shinigami-kun but it was slow downloading so I came here for a while. Personally I like it. It is whacky but has heart.
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iamdeb
May 3, 2014 at 11:24 AM
This drought is giving me the chance to catch up on older dramas I never watched or finished. It's even better because I don't have to suffer waiting a week, just have to suffer waiting a few seconds!
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2 Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 6:24 AM
Hi HI Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii My Wondrous Beans!
Too many puppies in my life right now!
Watching: it would be easier to say what I'm NOT watching...which so far...is there something I'm not watching?
Totally in love with Park Seo Joon and Aaron Yan right now. Also Lee Seo Jin, also Kang Ha Neul, also Kim Myung Min...it's ridiculous. My ovaries are begging for a break.
Nah.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 6:40 AM
Don't forget your Luscious, Seo Kang Joon.
And Kim Myung Min is NOT a puppy, JoAnne. He's more of a hamster, the way his cheek is bulging and seems to be hiding a nut or two...
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Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 6:59 AM
I was only listing my loves from currently airing dramas...I'm sure I missed some. But you're right, Kim Myung Min isn't a puppy at all. He's a growly lion, isn't he. Man, I love his voice.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 7:04 AM
Wait, where are you watching Kang Ha Neul right now?!
My little sis loves him. Maybe if I show her another KHN drama, I can pry her away from the tight grip that EXO has on her heart...
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Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 7:26 AM
He is the young lead in Angel Eyes, so he's in the 1st two episodes, and then he's in flashbacks in later episodes. And it was an INCREDIBLY sweet 'first-love' story. Even if she doesn't watch the drama, she should watch the 1st two episodes.
mary
May 2, 2014 at 7:34 AM
Ok. Will get her to watch it. Thanks Jo. :D
Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 8:04 AM
Joanne, your Kang Ha Neul description is getting me excited!
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 8:05 AM
Oh, you were talking about someone else. Never mind.
Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:20 AM
Puppies everywhere! (and one small kitten prince in Hongki although that's sadly ended).
I just started watching the older episodes of 1n2d on youtube and wow, I really really get why Seungri got the puppy nickname..
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 7:43 AM
Manin, Have you seen the 4 Hangul lessons by Hongki and they FT Island boys? It's calld Hangul Live with FT Island. Supposedly there is a year's worth of lessons coming, but the first month's lessons youtube links are on my website for your Hongki viewing pleasure :) They are really adorable 4 minute lessons.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 8:10 AM
Oooh~ now THAT is a very smart idea! :D
Getting a dose of your bias/idol/Oppa AND learning Hangeul at the same time!
(I'm surprised SM did not come up with this idea haha)
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:13 AM
Owl - Oh i haven't heard about this! I really like FTIsland So gonna try and check this out. Thanks for the heads up!
(though I should be spending more time improving my chinese over korean...)
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Sue
May 2, 2014 at 4:46 PM
Ha! Kitten prince describes Hongki perfectly.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 6:51 PM
It does! Think it was JoAnne or Shuk (someone from the squeecap gang anyway) that started using the nickname and it just instantly stuck for me.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:31 AM
I like Aaron Yan a lot too. So, so cute.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 8:11 AM
I didn't even notice he was the cameo guy I crushed on in They Kiss Again (ISWAK 2) until JoAnne mentioned it in Shuk's squeecap. :D
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:29 AM
Mary -
Sad to say I didn't either. Happy to say I intend to track down those ISAK episodes and watch them again.
:-)
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 10:48 AM
Wait.. He appears in They Kiss Again? where? I've seen Aaron Yan in another show and never clicked that he was from there!
shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 11:02 AM
That's what I said, when JoAnne mentioned it!
Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 12:52 PM
It Started With a Kiss
he's apparently the rich kid boyfriend of one of her two buddies.
3 laden
May 2, 2014 at 6:26 AM
Happy new month everybody,how have you all being? I can't believe I've not posted in the OT for over a month I've so busy with school work especially on fridays,hope you all have being well.currently watching SLA:that drama is just so awesome,I get scared for them all the time esp when they are together but still I want them together all the time and I keep wishing the husband would stop sneaking around trying to catch his wife in the act,my moral compass keeps poking me whenever I'm enjoying this drama even though I try so hard to tamp it down,and I have every intention of sticking to the drama through to the end. King of baking,Tak gu:I went into this drama for yoon shi yoon(I hope I got that right) I got tired by ep 5 and just ended up fast forwarding the rest,I don't understand how the drama got such high ratings,for some weird reason I don't just like Joo Won(I've seen him in on L7CS and KOB) he looks like he's scowling all the time and just can't bring myself to like him and eugene was just annoying my soul all through the drama.I just have to say I prefer Me too flower to this annoying KOB. Moon embracing the Sun:watched this a while back and had not gotten the chance to rant about it.the kid actors were amazing,I absolutely loved the younger yeon woo(the actress is so good and had this elegance about her,though I refer to her as 'gumiho girl' cos the first drama I ever saw her in was a gumiho drama) and the child actors were amazing then switching to the older counterparts,to me woo na(the bodyguard) had the smoothest transmission(I absolutely love his quiet ways and he looked really good whenever his hair was pulled back)the most annoying was Han Ga in,imo she reduced the awesomeness of the drama because most times I didn't know the expression she was trying to pass along cos she just had this annoying wide eyed look all the time(a la Cha Eun sang) but KSH was amazing(as usual)though he looked like an errant Screaming king at times and I absolutely loved young sun(I'm sure I missed that spelling lol) METS is my first sageuk(I don't know if faith is counted as one) and I find it difficult to watch other ones especially if the king is not as good looking and everyone being elegant in hanbok as they all were in METS and if the cinematography is not as pretty,I'll just skip it.
Dramas I'm looking forward to:You are all surrounded,doctor stranger,cunning single lady(yupp I've not watched though I've read the recaps) and I just might try God's gift though I'm not sure yet. Its not easy balancing 9 university courses,1 mini project,Korean dramas,reading a manga(Hana Kimi) and reading a novel(the davinci code) all within 24 hours.I'm trying to balance it all,though most I end up sleeping off before 11pm because I'm so tired. Lastly my heart goes out to all the ferry disaster victims and the families involved,I hope they find peace and they find all the...
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Gaelle Rn
May 4, 2014 at 5:54 AM
It's such a waste that you've only seen joo won worst projects. What about gaksital or good doctor? Sorry, as a
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Gaelle Rn
May 4, 2014 at 5:58 AM
fangirl of JW I can't let this go.
Watching Fall in love with, cliché but strangely addictive for me. I think it's because of Aaron (kyahh!!)
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4 redfox
May 2, 2014 at 6:26 AM
So, um, yes.
Another escape to the South. Viljandi, mon amour.
Todays´ kdrama topic – and real life topic – is the word I actually heard first, well, I learned that there is a word like that at all – RBF. Or Resting Bitch Face. Seriously? It was talked about in connection with seo Hye Rim casted in Endless Love- topic. And then I come across this Buzzfeed compilation or whatever about RBF.... well, I would say I suffer from it occasionally but mostly it is the opposite. I am always grinning or giggling or humming or chuckling.... or pouring tears as a result of my wild imaginations daytrips to sorryland. I guess RBF means Resident Bipolar Fox in my case.
And on to curious letter combinations in general. You know, it is getting out of hand. Example from Tara (please don´t hold this against me!): „OB was the first drama I’d seen with him in it…so I had no idea that he played villains so well until IHYV and EK (although in EK, he was part of the TQ crew–not a singular villain as in IHYV).” Uhhh....
Every time someone talks about a drama, they don´t name it, but give you a letter combination for guessing. From GG – ok, Gods´ Gift, that´s easy – to TW – Two Weeks, though the immediate connection is slowly fading. But then who could guess R3 is actually INR3 and there are like 6 different forms for You From Another Star. MFTS – Man from the star. MLFAT. My LOVE from another star. YWCFTS. You who came from the stars. Or YFTS. You from the star. Ok, „Y” is a giveaway. But all those... AM? Well, thats Arang [and the, conveniently erased] Magistrate. 3D or TD. HD is not High Definition, but Horse Doctor. But it can also be HH – Horse Healer. Then they add letter combinations for all the actors in the dramas... JSW + LBY. CSL: AW (???) and then they replace themselves with a letter combination. And the one they are speaking to. Oh man. Soon our talk here will consist of: O, WYBSK 2 TM W Y(A)AS IS2 start? < desipher this.
This might just be my problem but my brain isn´t catching up to what all those letter combinations mean. There was a meme about a mom who thought LOL means Lots Of Love, which she posted when sending her condolences about a relative dieing: Aunt Jess died, LOL. I sometimes feel like the slang-dumb iPhone people.... I thought YOLO was one of the penguins in the Soviet cartoon Lolo the Penguin. And how the heck did they come up with lbs???? Etc., etc. (Etymologically Traceable Curiosities?) P.S. – „pregnant Santa”? I dont read it like that of course but this is how it feels when I see dramas just being letters and I HAVE NO EFFIN IDEA what drama anyone means.
Just tell me, what odd things have you ever taken some letter combination for? Had trouble guessing what it means ? Just any funny situations with either drama name letter codes or something else?
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 6:54 AM
In the case of internet memes, if context cues don't work, I Google stuff I don't understand.
In case of drama acronyms, I just ask the person to make it clear. No need to stress too much about the different acronyms. :)
Then again, I always make cringe-worthy language mistakes, as JoAnne can attest to, so maybe my method isn't really a good one... I hope you understand if I don't share my mistakes here. For some reason my word choices are VERY DIRTY. *crying*
I think it's a problem of us non-native speakers being friends with native language speakers online. They see lots of double meaning in what we say. (I'm also half-convinced that all English words have a dirty alternate meaning now.........)
Oh, and your Resident Bipolar Fox story reminded me of this Tom Hiddleston meme: http://www.lolbrary.com/Funny/Tom-Hiddleston-is-the-real-Two-Face/45860
Taking "Bipolar Face" to a new level. Haha!
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julia the berkshire beanie
May 2, 2014 at 8:24 AM
mary, you might be right about all english words with dirty meanings, especially when with friends whose minds go that way. i can't hear the word headlight, melon, or large tracts of LAND without blushing. 2 of any object said by a young man with intonation and hand gestures means bre*sts.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 8:36 AM
LOL I only knew about the (water)melons. Because they have the same double meaning in Filipino.
It's a landmine. O__O English is a landmine for non-native speakers!
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julia the berkshire beanie
May 2, 2014 at 6:57 AM
for drama abbreviation, i stick to full name first time with abbrev. in ( ) before using in post. but i am old school. abbrev. leak from my brain quick.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:26 AM
I soo get you on the names (both for people and dramas) that are just the first letters! I know I'm guilty of doing it myself sometimes (mostly because I can't remember the spelling of a name and just goes JGS) But it is really confusing!
If the full name and title is mentioned at least once, and then you get the shortend version its more okay because at least you have something to go by. But when it's just a lot of (semingly) random capital letters out of no where you just feel lost.
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Tara
May 2, 2014 at 8:03 PM
Hey redfox,
Why would I hold that against you? I actually feel "honored" that you'd mention a "quote" from a post of mine...haha ;)
That being said...I didn't use to write my posts the way I do now. I used to write out the whole name of dramas and actors/actresses...then my posts kept getting longer and longer -- and I write a lot. To write it in a more shorthand way, I started using initials. (But alas, my posts continue to get longer and longer still! haha)
I've only started leaving comments since about mid-last year. Prior to that, I was a full-time lurker...and I got confused by postings with initials too. I always had Google and Dramawiki handy, so I'd get what they were talking about.
Now, the initial-ing has become second nature to me...so my bad if it's confusing/difficult to read my posts with so many initials :P I suppose I can tone it down a bit, but now that it's become a habit...argh, I'll try my best anyway :) Sorry for the confusion!
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redfox
May 2, 2014 at 9:29 PM
hey Tara, that was just a friendly example and I was actually trying to show I feel like a total dummy that I can´t follow the "code names". I am trying and trying to catch up. take it as a joke please!
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Tara
May 3, 2014 at 12:20 PM
Honestly, I didn't take it seriously...I know you just used it as an example. But I do know I'm not making it easy for people to read my posts, which I can understand. That's why I explained my thought process.
You know what's funny though...as I typed and posted that bit, the thought crossed my mind that all those initials was going a tad bit overboard. So you can imagine I laughed at myself when I was skimming through OT and saw that bit used as an example...
Plus, the intro bit to my reply was a bit self-deprecating on my part. I'm open to any sort of critique, good or bad :)
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5 MO
May 2, 2014 at 6:29 AM
Waiting for You're All Surrounded right now. Nuff' said.
But not waiting a lot for Gapdongi or Witch's Romance. Gapdongi kinda slow down my expectations, while Witch's Romance is not my cup of tea.
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RenaLoh
May 2, 2014 at 6:05 PM
try watching A New Leaf! I don't really like Gap Dong either, Witch's Romance is okay but what I'm looking forward most is A New Leaf :)
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6 laden
May 2, 2014 at 6:38 AM
I was watching the pacifier(Vin diesel) again yesterday and I heard the most cringeworthy korean,here I was thinking one couldn't go wrong while speaking korean,I mean there's engrish all right but kongrish??! I couldn't decide whose korean was worse,Vin diesel's or the so called Korean neighbours
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 6:56 AM
Konglish is usually English flubbed by Koreans...
Jim Carey didn't do so badly in Yes Man, though he exaggerated it a bit, but then my previous Korean teacher was helping him and showed up in the movie--if you want an example of Korean spoken decently by someone white.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 8:03 AM
I really like the sound of Korean. I think this is why I can leave a drama running for background noise.
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Tara
May 2, 2014 at 8:11 PM
I thought I was weird for noticing things like that and getting annoyed with hearing such butchered so-called Korean! (Plus, that "Korean" couple isn't even Korean at all...) But to answer your question, I would have to say neither.
And don't even get me started on Kongrish...! ;P
I also recently noticed the Progressive auto insurance commercial with Flo...when she's helping out an Asian couple running their food truck, the closed captioning says "speaking Japanese" when the husband is saying "hurry up and bring that" in Korean! And that was not fluent Korean either...argh :/
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7 Emmy
May 2, 2014 at 6:44 AM
Just started watching " A New Leaf", so far so good! The show really starts out painting Kim Myung Min's character as irredeemable. Seriously, who takes up cases for Japanese firms trying to avoid compensating elderly Koreans for their forced labour during the colonial period???
I love Kim Myung Min so far and am really excited how the amnesia story is going to play out. I usually hate amnesia stories in K-dramas, but using it as the main plot hasn't actually been so common.
I don't love Park Min-Young yet, but I like what I see so far. I hope Jin Yi-Han has a decent role in this drama as I have fallen in love after seeing him as Taltal in Empress Ki.
I am also watching Hotel King which I do like. However, I have no idea where the plot will take us to. Lee Da Hae and Lee Dong Wook's chemistry is great as expected. And wowza, those abs at the ending of episode 6!!! I rewatched that scene a couple of times.
The thing I dislike about Hotel King is its lack of subtlety. It''s so angsty all the time, and did Lee Dong Wook's acting regress or is he being requested to make crazy/angry faces all the time?
Also following SLA.
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john
May 2, 2014 at 7:09 AM
Emmy ~
I'm liking New Leaf too. So many talented actors/actresses in this so far. Jin Yi Han is going to be in this more than just a cameo right? Kim Seo-Hyung too.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:40 AM
I'm saving A New Leaf for the bus ride up to New York tomorrow. Me thinks I will need it.
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:31 AM
I hope to watch them this week. I love KMM, and the premise sounds interesting enough. I noticed I'm watching a lot more drama/melo than usual, so it will be just one more...
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:39 AM
Hotel King is bipolar. Much like it's villain, come to think of it.
[And Prince is the worst guard dog ever, that big old softy-poo. He even ran away when his master was getting beaten.]
However, I've fallen for Im Seulong and thus can't stop watching.
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Emmy
May 2, 2014 at 9:02 AM
I can kind of understand Mo Nae's bipolarity as a public sphere/private sphere thing. Jae Wan I don't get. He was so bent on revenge for 2 decades, then his long lost sister comes and he turns into a big puddle of goo?
I like Im Seulong here. He definitely has charisma. However, I do hope his acting improves and the makeup artists really have to go easy on Seulong's lipstick! I stopped reading the subs a couple of times because his bright pink lips were so eye catching!
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:05 AM
lol at the bright pink lipstick. Yet, don't know what it is, but I totally fell for him.
And I can tell you as a sister of a brother, they do not turn into puddles of goo around us.
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Sunandmoon
May 2, 2014 at 4:39 PM
Loving "A New Leaf" as well!
First episode was great, very solid. The law/politics aspects had tension, but the episode was still lightened by some comedy. I like PMY more than I thought I would. She cracks me up constantly, and I like that she's portraying a smart character (albeit one prone to getting herself in awkward situations).
And KMM plays his role with relish, as usual.
Overall, interactions are realistic and not over the top. Evil and corruption are shown as banal. Complicity with those in power is a fact of life. None of the lawyers so far seem like terrible people: they've just sold their souls like everyone else, for money and prestige.
I'm looking forward to episode 2. I hope it shapes up to be good.
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kanz
May 2, 2014 at 5:58 PM
Oh yeah, I also watch A New Leaf. So far so good and funny. Actually I'm not expect it to be that funny. The drunk scene is hillarious.
Kim Myung Min is awesome as usual and Park Min Young is pretty good. Doesn't hurt too when it has Jin Yi Han. My withdrawal from EK makes me want to watch anything EK cast works. LOL
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8 julia the berkshire beanie
May 2, 2014 at 6:46 AM
drama fever awards ceremony a big disappointment. VIP tickets that I expected would be a sit down dinner turned into standing up in the stairwell peering thru safety glass and railing and light fixtures trying to hear over the complaints of all the rest of us VIPs in heels and gowns standing so far away while $20 General Admission tickets were down on the floor near the stage. boo hiss. Drama Fever has permanently lost my support.
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Coolrepublica
May 2, 2014 at 7:41 AM
You are such a VIP that they were protecting you behind glass. They did not want you want to mix with the little people.
You see how I turned your disappointment into a glass half full story.lol
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9 korfan
May 2, 2014 at 6:52 AM
Hi Everybody!
Another Spring day and I hope you are all doing well. ........ The weather has been absolutely awful here! Windy and super hot! ..... M-e-l-t-i-n-g!!
Watched this week:
God's Gift - After watching eps 9 and 10, I can kind of see why this drama had that ending. ....... On another note, great fight scene on the roof!
Three Days - Glad the pace picked up a while back. ....... Really liking it so far. ....... Great fight scene in the elevator!
Time Between Dog and Wolf - Finally finished it! ....... With the little narration in the last 2 minutes or so, it was kind of uneventful, but what are you going to do, right?
Golden Cross - Checked out parts of the first 2 episodes. ....... It wasn't super awful or anything, but I think I'm going to put this on the backburner for now and check it out at a later time.
Cunning Single Lady/Sly and Single - Checked out the first 2 episodes of this also. ....... After so much melo in the last couple of months, it was certainly a different change of pace. ....... Still undecided on this one. I may need to watch a couple of more eps before I decide whether to commit to this one or not. We'll see.
Missing You - Surprisingly, this started a couple weeks ago on broadcast tv, really late at night. ....... I think it's up to ep 7 or 8, I'm not sure but it's after the childhood portion. ...... I started re-watching this. ...... I know many people didn't like it but I liked it when it first aired. ........ Reminded again that Yoo Seung-ho is so very good in this role.
Mr. Selfridge (season 2) - Nothing good could ever come from associating closely with Mr. Loxley and, uh-oh, Mr. Selfridge might find that out in the next ep. ....... Miss Towler marrying the restaurant guy? I don't know why but I'm not really sure they'd work out together as a married couple.
That's about it for now. ....... Everyone take care and have a great Friday!
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August
May 2, 2014 at 2:59 PM
Hi korfan,
I don't regret watching God's Gift - 14 Days. The awesome and heart-wrenching performances of Jo Seung Woo and Lee Bo Young made it worthwhile.
Likewise, I have no qualms about watching Three (3) Days. The acting of Park Yoo-Chun, Son Hyun-Joo, and Park Ha-Sun really anchored the drama and made it better than it would have been otherwise. All the interactions and scenes with Han Tae-Kyung and Yoon Bo-Won were definitely highlights in the drama.
You might find the following Time Between Dog & Wolf reviews an interesting read:
http://www.dramabeans.com/2012/11/time-between-dog-and-wolf-a-review/#comments
http://thundiesprattle.com/2010/04/18/time-between-dog-and-wolf/
http://popsmission.blogspot.com/2013/06/time-between-dog-and-wolf-review.html
Currently I am watching and enjoying Golden Cross. Each episode is getting better and better.
I watched all 21 episodes of I Miss You. The drama tackled the sensitve subject matter of rape and it was far from perfect. Yet, the childhood cast of Yeo Jin-Goo, and Kim So-Hyun did a wonderful job acting wise with their characters as well as the adult cast of Park Yoo-Chun, Yoon Eun-Hye, and Yoo Seung-Ho.
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korfan
May 2, 2014 at 11:42 PM
Hi August ...... hope you're doing well today!
Thank you for the links. ....... It was interesting to read that other viewers asked themselves some of the same questions I did while watching Time Between D&W. ...... Sure, there were little issues here and there, but nothing that was so awful as to make the whole drama unwatchable or anything like that.
With Three Days, I'm currently fascinated by the Chairman Kim character ....... I think it's more the actor playing this role. It's amazing that it's the same actor who was the nice dad in Heirs and the wacky ex-husband in 100 Year Inheritance (yes, I watched a couple of eps of that and only then it was to see the comical antics of his Chol-gyu character!!)
God's Gift, I'm in it until the end, even though I know how it ends. ...... I just love the whole puzzle/multiple-moving-parts aspect to it ....... and honestly, I want to see how they get to that ending and what other truths are uncovered.
Like you, I also watched I Miss You in its entirety when it first aired and I liked it then and now. ....... Sure, it's a bucket of tears for the characters and understandably so, given what happened but the acting is fantastic. ....... Watching Yoo Seung-ho in this role is certainly something special.
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10 dpanda
May 2, 2014 at 6:58 AM
Hi guys, first time commenting on OT. Started watching kdramas last DEC but now, they are all i watch!! Am so addicted. lol. Cant tell you how much i am anticipating You're Surrounded. CSW is like my best actor (SO HOT, My God) while i have slowly but surely come to love Lee Seung-Gi with a fierceness that takes my breath away. Maybe its because i love my heroes to get redemption in their dramas which is what happened in Brilliant Legacy and MGIAG. And also in Best Love with CSW!
Love to my fellow beanies
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korfan
May 2, 2014 at 7:06 AM
Nim -
Welcome to OT! Glad you could join us!
Best Love was good , wasn't it? ....... I've seen it a couple of times and it's always fantastic. ...... Glad you liked it.
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dpanda
May 2, 2014 at 7:32 AM
Thanks Korfan.
I LOVED Best Love!! It was my crack drama. i was initially on the Pil Line in the earliest episodes but by little around the halfway mark, i had completely fallen for Dokko Jin :). That was the drama that cemented my love for kdramas.
I also really liked Master's Sun and am now eagerly awaiting the next Hong sisters drama.
Also i have 2 questions, can anyone recommend a good romcom for me to watch? It doesnt matter if they are oldies as long as they are goodies. Right now, the new shoes are all melo or thrillers which arent really my cup o ftea.
Secondly, between Dramafever and Viki, which do you recommend? I currently subscribe to DF so i can watch without adds on my phone etc but am starting to think viki might be a better option. Help pls
Thanks!
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korfan
May 2, 2014 at 7:51 AM
Nim -
Ah, yes, the Pil Line!! ........ Pil-joo was great.
Yoon Kye-sang was wonderful in this role, it suited him quite well.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 8:00 AM
Welcome, Nim!
Have you seen I Need Romance 3? Also, Pasta is older, but fun with Gong Hyo-jin and Le Sun-kyun. It was one of my first kdramas and i watched it a dozen times because I didn't realize there were so many others to choose from! I also rewatch Personal Taste. The db ratings list is a good reference, too.
Fighting!
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dpanda
May 2, 2014 at 8:34 AM
Thanks Owl!
I saw INR2 and didnt really love it though i loved the male lead in NINE. I will try and watch INR3 then.
Pasta is on my need to watch list but for some reason i keep hesitating because i read some reviews that it was quite boring. I guess i have to watch it and find out for myself eh.
I will definitely check out db ratings list.
Thanks a lot!!!
Fighting!!!
Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:31 AM
Nim - Welcome to the OT! Hope you have a good time here.
Best love is a good one. And I enjoyed Briliant Legacy, but must admit that it was a one time watch only for me.
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dpanda
May 2, 2014 at 8:37 AM
Hey Manin,
Thanks am having a great time on the OT. Its so amazing being able to converse with so many people from different and diverse backgrounds about our love for kdramas :)
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 10:54 AM
Yeah the OT is quite a fun mixing ground of people. Seems scary at first but then you realize that its all friendly and nothing to be afraid off =)
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:39 AM
Nim -
Welcome to OT. You'll enjoy the interactions for sure.
Viki / DF debate. I for one only go to DF if I absolutely have to. Their subs are sub-par in a lot of cases. Case in point: they had exclusive rights to BOTC, so the subs were coming out 3~4 days post-airing. Viki? In the majority of the cases, subtitles are out within a few hours for the popular shows, and around a single day for the less popular KDramas. Plus, they have an awesome selection of other countries.
So Boo DF and Yay Viki! lol
- As for recommendations, it you like fluff and music, I liked MNet's Monstar and it's' high school hijinks.
- And if you are not adverse to other countries, I'm seriously on the bandwagon for the currently-running Taiwanese drama Fall In Love With Me, and recently concluded recapping the Thai version of Full House. Both get double thumbs up for me.
Happy viewing!
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August
May 2, 2014 at 3:59 PM
Hi Nim,
Welcome to Open Thread. It's nice to have another fan of kdramas.
Likewise, I really enjoyed Best Love (aka The Greatest Love and My Girlfriend is a Gumiho (aka My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox).
Totally in agreement with the recommendations of I Need Romance 3 and Monstar!
I recommend adding the following Romantic Comedies to your list:
Dalja's Spring
My Girl
Bride of the Century
Queen Inhyun's Man (aka Queen and I)
My Princess
Flower Boy Next Door
Let's Eat
Prosecutor Princess
The King of Dramas (aka The Lord of the Drama)
Can Love Become Money?
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dpanda
May 2, 2014 at 5:23 PM
Thanks all!!!!
I definitely think i will cancel my DF subscription and go with Viki.
And thanks August for the recommendations, i have seen My Girl (watched most of Hong Sisters dramas except Hong Dil...,Odd Couple and Big) and i liked it.
And i LOVED QIHM. Infact, let me go rewatch it now
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korazylady
May 2, 2014 at 7:45 PM
Welcome. Nim! I really enjoyed Protect the Boss for a rom com, and also RoofTop Prince was pretty hilarious. Both kind of faltered at the end, but that's not too unusual, I'm afraid.
Have you watched Single Cunning Lady or Emergency Couple? Both were cute romances (once you got past the first episode or two.)
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11 CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 7:00 AM
Hi all:
Gotta say that some dramas are quite literally making me battle stress and I might have to just read recaps instead of watching them.
The first: Angel's Revenge:So now the baby is missing? Oh my heavens! Bad enough I was stressing about Dal Nyeo porbably being JisEok's mother and who the heck was first gonna see the picture of Little "JeonWu" with his mother that Grandma has hidden in the drawer. Ah me! And HyeonSu's probably gonna go the way of all blackmailers after Taejeong's had his fill of him. I'm also worrying for Gijin.
Then I started stressing about whether our adulterous heroine in Secret Love Affair is pregnant. I keep envisioning the end where she's on a beach, a regular mom with her little child beside her, after having idiotically nobly ditching young lover. And the end of the last episode. Aaargh.
Golden Cross is my new crack. Oh my gosh!I'm generally indifferent to villains but wow, I was so glad when our hero Do Yun clocked the bank villain. I love everything about that show. It's fast-moving, and I can actually follow the plot. Didn't think prosecutor would come face to face with that evidence so soon. Love Michael and love his secretary. Ah, if Shark had been so good!
Big Man is fun so far. So it's my second crack. It's got two of my fave actors and actress in the lead so yeah.
Am waiting for Gap Dong out of loyalty to my love, Yoon Sang Hyun. Watching Wonderful Days but really liking the non main characters love stories.
New Leaf is okay. I might drop it. Too many dramas on my plate already.
Million Seller: I loved the first song, Step by Step, best.
Loving the kbs specials and the Love & War series as always.
Have a great weekend, all.
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korfan
May 2, 2014 at 7:25 AM
Carole -
I checked out the first 2 eps of Golden Cross. ...... I remembered that a couple of weeks ago you mentioned the "needy villain".
Oh my goodness, he certainly is a little "off", isn't he? ....... One minute he's the upstanding executive, the next he's wielding a murderous golf club and the next he's huddled in some floor corner looking like a scared child who just broke his new toy!
Unfortunately, due to time concerns, I'm going to have to put this drama off until a later time. ....... But you were right, that's one unstable character!
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 7:40 AM
yeah.. sometimes you have to put something off. It might be good to marathon in one sitting
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 8:00 AM
For the first two episodes of Golden Cross, I actually forgot I was watching it and wandered off.
Later, when I was in bed, and ep 3 came out, I kind of went, what the heck, let's see what happened. Now, I'm hooked.
Although, once again, I'm disgusted by the lack of legal ethics shown even by our "righteous" prosecutor heroine in her all-women office (yeah, right).
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 8:28 AM
Yeah, i know she loves her father but dang!!!! She tells everyone EVERYTHING
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:34 AM
And there's something weird about her Daddy issues. I'm looking forward to the scales falling from her eyes, and her seeing what a horrible person Daddy Dearest really is.
CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 7:39 AM
PS..okay..now the second episode of New Leaf has gotten me sold. Am hooked on this as well. Strong female character.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 8:11 AM
Hi Carole ~
I am glad Million Seller was only 2 eps so it is watchable and moves along. It was fun and emotional.
I don't know what to think about Gap Dong. I'm caught up, but I'm holding out for the doctor's connection and story.
SLA - I don't see a bright spot for anyone, maybe there shouldn't be one?
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 8:27 AM
yeah, i found myself wondering if there is a kind of Korean version of the Hays Code. Will the lovers be excused and forgiven by the audience? Passionate immoral love= punishment? Don't know.
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jomo143
May 2, 2014 at 9:56 AM
Oh, there WILL be a bright spot.
The writers are not the audience. They have tried to tell us over and over how not important staying badly married is to happiness.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 11:26 AM
...and badly employed, especially when it is all intertwined.
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August
May 2, 2014 at 3:35 PM
Hi Carole,
Golden Cross is the drama that I look forward to the most each week. Each episode gets better and better.
Big Man seems to be a combination of all things - comedy, drama, or melo. Loving the chemistry between Kang Ji-Hwan and Jung So-Min. I wish the writer (Choi Jin-Won) would let their characters Kim Ji-Hyeok and Kang Jin-Ah end up as the OTP. From what little I've seen of Daniel Choi and Lee Da-Hee together as the characters Kang Dong-Seok and So Mi-Ra, it seems like they make a nice couple.
I intend to watch New Leaf over the weekend.
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 4, 2014 at 8:46 AM
In GC: it'll be interesting to see the heroine change her attention to the hero. Childhood love is so hard to overturn in kdrama
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Tara
May 2, 2014 at 8:35 PM
Hey Carole,
You know, I have still yet to figure out whether if all the adults know if DH = aunt's bio son. Been stuck at ep14 for the past few days, but I hope to catch up on it soon.
And you're absolutely right...I'm more interested in the other couples than DS/HW. They seem so lifeless and jaded...not really main couple worthy of screentime!
I haven't watched a revenge drama since forever. I think BG was the last, especially since I hate being burned by the ending. So I didn't even think to put GC on my to-watch list. Reading your comments on it is peaking my interest to try and check it out.
I got to commend you for keeping up with a daily...the daily that I had began to watch went all crazy on me, and the over-the-top craziness was definitely stressing me out. So I dropped it like a hot potato...and I've been nearly stress-free since! ;P haha. HW's mom in WD continues to up herself on the annoying meter, but I put the volume on mute whenever she's on screen :)
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 4, 2014 at 8:43 AM
GC is really just getting better and better.
Too much angst with our main WD couple.
Angel's Revenge is my big daily.
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12 Aeroja
May 2, 2014 at 7:01 AM
Anyone watching Angel Eyes? Wasn't a fan of the cast, so I've avoided it. But I am curious to know what people think of it!
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D's handphone
May 2, 2014 at 7:26 AM
Started this drama with very low expectation since i'm allergic to GHS, LSW i've no opinion of. Up to ep 6, im literally blowned away by both Kang Ha Neul & Nam Ji Hyun, even after the transition to adulthood they still show up so that's kinda nice/sad (mostly sad for me). If you're an easy crier, prepare lots of tissue. I stopped watching it during lunch break cos i've used the flu excuse twice to explain the splotchy eyes & nose. It reminds me of the old melos.
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Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 7:34 AM
Love it, actually. Very sweet.
You have to get through the initial tragedy (a matter of minutes into the first episode) which looks like nothing so much as a badly done '70s disaster movie, but from then on in?
Smooth sailing, with strongly decent to seriously excellent representation by all parties, a lovely OST, and a really nice 'look' to the drama.
Seungri is comic relief and kind of funny, even.
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spi
May 2, 2014 at 10:07 AM
Watching it and loving it too. I wasnt a fan of Gu Hye Sun and Lee Sang Yoon either but it is a nice surprise. It gets me emotionally invested in the characters. The chemistry between the 2 leads is just amazing.
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:42 AM
Ditto of JoAnne's sentiments. All the characters are well portrayed and acted (so far). The pacing is nice too, not as slow as SLA.
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ys
May 2, 2014 at 11:28 AM
It's great but I'm wondering how this will stretch out to 50 episodes. Aside from Lee Sangyoon's dimples, I love the fact that the writer made his romantic rival a really good guy, so far (as of ep 4) lacking in nothing. Making the rivalry so much more interesting.
The end of ep 4 when Dong Joo cries, holy cow that was heartbreaking. Great workplace banter and chemistry both at the hospital and the Firehouse/EMS center.
I made it through 32 episodes of the staggeringly boring Goddess of Fire because of those dimples, and maybe this is my reward.
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Logan5
May 2, 2014 at 12:14 PM
will someone please explain to me the attraction to dimples? My wife too finds them "Oh so lovely" ... seriously? Really?
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ys
May 2, 2014 at 4:01 PM
Logan5, I suppose the attraction is to a handsome face and dimples are just a bonus. Dimples alone wouldn't cut it. Lee Sangyoon would be good-looking without the dimples. But they sure don't hurt!
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Bebe | Nessa❣️
May 2, 2014 at 1:49 PM
It's actually only slated for 20 episodes so it won't be too painful =) And yes!!! OMG Lee Sang Yoon's dimples!!!!!!!!! 'Nuff said <3
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ys
May 2, 2014 at 3:52 PM
Whew that's a relief. I guess I assumed wknd shows are 50+. Thanks.
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thursdaynexxt
May 3, 2014 at 9:40 AM
Still liking it!
Have to say Eps 1 & 2 remain my clear favourites so far, but by Ep 6, the plot is definitely ramping up!
I'm surprising myself, but I really like Gu Hye Sun's performance in this show so far. Jury's still out on Lee Sang Yoon...
I'm just getting confused trying to figure out the pieces of the puzzle, and who knows what, who wants what, and who's hiding what! It's a tangled web, for sure!
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13 mary
May 2, 2014 at 7:02 AM
Ooh I wanna try listing what I watched the past week too!
- Nail Shop Paris Episode 5 (for recapping)
- Big Man Trailer (trying to spot Song Jae Rim)
- 2NE1's Go Away MV (to take screenshots of Song Jae Rim)
- Nail Shop Paris Episode 5 (for taking Song Jae Rim screenshots and making gifs)
- Big Man Episode 1, first three minutes (to watch Kang Ji Hwan beat up Mo Il Hwa and take screenshots)
:P
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latteholic
May 2, 2014 at 7:17 AM
Bwahahaha. Yeah, my watching list was all Jo Seung Woo related as well.
I'm telling myself I need to move on but my heart keeps saying "no, not yet"
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 7:58 AM
Yes, why? Why must we move on? Who says we have to? Can't we stay in love with our Oppas forever?
*hops aboard train to denialand*
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:32 AM
Where can I find your Song Jae Rim gifs?
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 7:57 AM
Mine are very crude. Just him blinking or wiggling his eyebrows. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PTwu0t6eleo/U0FGHHbmISI/AAAAAAAAAmI/PvkmPLCSCcc/s1600/nail-shop-paris-kei-wiggling-eyebrows.gif
kakashi makes most of the gifs we use in the Nail Shop Paris squeecaps here: http://dr-myri-blog.blogspot.ch/search/label/Nail%20Shop%20Paris
Uhm. WARNING. The Nail Shop Paris squeecaps are very very dirty. :/
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:07 AM
Thanks!
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:37 AM
I just laughed so much at SongJaeRimJob.
Got to check out the Jang Bori squeecaps too.
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Mama J
May 2, 2014 at 4:19 PM
and I'm kinda losing my mind over the puppy in the Witch's Romance SqueeCaps...not to mention a DORKY Cutie Soo.
shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:45 AM
TS -
Mary is recapping Nail Shop Paris on kakashi's site.
Kakashi just finished recapping Age Of Feeling with plenty of Mo Il Hwa gifs and screenshots galore.
So plenty of SJR to go around! Just go the Problematic Of The Unproblematic website.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:08 AM
I will, indeed! I love SJR, drool.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:40 AM
Mary! That list is pretty much all about oppa :p Don't blame you though. Glad to see the SJR Jeobs beeing back!
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 8:07 AM
Manin!!! I'm glad you're glad! :D I miss squeeing with people. Hope I can stick to a sched without getting sick again. :(
I've found a new appreciation for The Minions and recappers in other blogs. O__O So many questions.
How do they finish things in just one day?
How do they decide which details to keep in and leave out without compromising the story?
How do they stop themselves from staring at Oppa all day instead of writing words?
How are they not distracted by the urge to Google random things like "Oppa height", "Oppa girlfriend", "Oppa photoshoot with apples", "Oppa photoshoot blue shirt white stripes"???
HOW??? It's a secret of the universe.......
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:25 AM
Aww, we missed you too! Be careful and take care of yourself, getting sick is no good. ("Drink more water!" as the chinese would say)
Haha I guess that's what makes the difference between a squeecap and a recap? ;) However I do have a lot of respect for recappers, especially at this site and similar places that gives you objective recaps.
It must take so much time and effort and even though details will always be left out you still feel that the recap tells you what you need to know from the episode (at the same time, lets you enjoy the full epsiode as well).
I've read some very terrible recaps and it just makes the good sites like DB stand out even more.
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mary
May 2, 2014 at 10:04 AM
Yes, sites like DB and KP are very helpful in explaining things that are lost in subtitles and pointing out meta jokes that aren't obvious to new kdrama fans. :)
Manin
May 2, 2014 at 11:06 AM
Yeah that is a very useful aspect to their recaps as well. And how they seperate the recap from their own comments as not to interfere to much.
And then you have the squeecps of fun and snark (and awesome screencaps and giffing)
14 helloharu
May 2, 2014 at 7:05 AM
Hey guys, it's been a while. Hope you're all well! I actually haven't been watching anything now that God's Gift is finished. Just waiting for Doctor Stranger and You're All Surrounded to premiere!
By the way, I felt like watching something sad today so I gave 'Always' starring So Ji Sub and Han Hyo Joo a try. And wow it was actually really good! I mean it still has those elements of a classic romance/dramatic/tragic Korean romance movie but I think the strong performance by the leads and the chemistry (omg the chemistry) between them was so great that I was really pulled into their story. It was very heartwarming and made me teary for a bit. I would recommend :)
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Kristy
May 2, 2014 at 7:54 AM
Always is one of my favorite K movies,though it is the cliched love story the OTP was just amazing,made me a So Ji sub fan.
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Rachel
May 2, 2014 at 8:23 AM
Yes the chemistry between Han Hyo Joo and So Ji Sub was amazing! And their 2 characters - such broken people, seeking love in this lonely world. Their chemistry was so good that there were rumours that they were dating. LOL.
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15 Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:11 AM
Happy Friday and OT people!
How are you all? Tempratures is reaching close to 30 degrees and sunny yesterday and today. Today was spend in a park and even sunblock factor 50 (for kid!) did not saving me from getting a tan/sunburned. Summer will be interesting.
Also the 7th season of Big Bang Theory has gotten the program banned in China (as of end of last week I think). Wonder what it did, because apparently its been deemed "damaging to the people" or something like that.
Dramaland:
Heartless City: stuck on ep 14, but getting there.
Ghost-seeing detective: Wish it was a little bit longer. And the end part seemed like the main characters had a personality swap out of no where. Still I enjoyed the drama and although a lot of things doesn't really get explained it did not bother me to much.
Bu Bu jing qing: finally found someone subbing it! Hurray! Its different from what I was expected (also hello there handy selective memory loss to get away from the ban on time travel themes). Still it seems good, though I am fully expecting it to become more of an office drama +company take over taking center stage.
1n2d: started watching season 1 on the KBS youtube channel. It's strange seeing the old old old cast but also nice to see the beginning of it all (although, the episodes doesn't start at the very beginning). Also Seungri looks so much like a puppy!
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korfan
May 2, 2014 at 7:39 AM
Manin -
How are you? ...... It's totally sunny and hot here too! The thing is, there have been dry winds. ....... It's been absolutely miserable going outside! ........ Definitely use the sunblock!
Regarding Big Bang Theory, I haven't heard or read anything here so I have no idea why the decision was made to ban it. ........ I'm so sorry you'll be missing the show. ......... I've never watched it, but I have heard that it is funny.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:58 AM
Korfan-
I'm not to bad (thank god for after sun that my dad brought me. Also that's something that's really hard to find here!) Had a panicy wednesday having the parents come to the kindergarten to listen to the lessons.
Oh that weather sounds bad. It's been pretty hot and sunny here this week. A little bit of wind, but that's only provided a nice cooling movement of air.
I have watched it but more sporadically. Was going to watch it with a friend when we noticed we couldn't access it last week. Then today she told me that it had been banned and that's why we couldn't see it. No Idea as to why it was banned. I just find it a little funny.
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Rachel
May 2, 2014 at 8:27 AM
I read about the BBT ban from this article - pretty helpful: http://qz.com/203919/why-china-is-censoring-the-big-bang-theory-but-not-game-of-thrones/
It's not about the show per se, it's about controlling the power of online TV streaming sites which stream shows like BBT, and redirecting viewership to state TV stations.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:41 AM
Thanks for the link! I have no idea why it was actually banned. The reason I was given was just what my friend told me.
Weather its about directing people to the state TV channel or not I'm not sure. Even the state shows are often found through streaming sites. Think I saw the spring festival gala (as mentioned in the article) through the PPT stream rather than through the TV in my friends home.
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Rachel
May 2, 2014 at 9:48 AM
The article seems to suggest that it is also about a show of power by the state, that even though at the moment these streaming sites are safe from interference because they are showing 'neutral' Western shows, they will be subject to interference if they try and cross the boundaries set by the state.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 10:46 AM
Yeah, I do also know that the same rules apply for the local and state channels as for the streaming sites. For instance the ban on time travel effect not only western shows (No doctor who in China for those into that) but also Chinese shows themselves goes through cuts and rewritings to get around that aspect (Bu bu jing qing being an example here as a follow up to an earlier show which involved time travel but was made and shown before the ban).
I think its more aspects to it than just being a show of power, although that is an interesting point. Whoever I also know that I don't have enough knowledge on the subject.
windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 11:48 AM
There have been a lot of comments on Weibo about the stupidity of it all. For example, they are still showing game of thrones, but one commenter said "they cut out all the plot and just left the killing and sex in.."
CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 9:09 AM
Oh my! you had me trying to figure out Centigrade vs fahrenheit.
I hope the pollution doesn't come back. Keep well.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 11:16 AM
HAha, yeah I suppose 30 degrees fahrenheit is a lot colder than what celsius is :p
Pollution seems to be mostly gone at the moment which is nice. Also since it's too warm to sleep with the window closed atm!
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:49 AM
Hi Manin!
Has the air quality cleared up? I always wonder how you are doing with that hanging over your head. I still miss your Korean Drama Toddler Style, so I keep hoping they switch your classroom again. :-D
Is there ever a 'monsoon' season there, with daily rain and such?
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 11:22 AM
Hi Shuk!
How's you?
Yeah smog has cleared up for the moment, just in time for it being to warm to sleep with the window closed. Hoping it stays this way.
Haha yes, the new schedule and classes leaves little time for observing the kdrama toddlers. teaching 3 lessons in different classes means moving around and spending less time with them. It's a shame really. Not only for kdrama toddlers stories, but also for me not feeling like I can spend enough time with them to get to know the new kids the same way.
Not noticed any monsoon season where I am. This city is pretty dry all year around. When I went to Xi'an with my dad we had the most rain we have had for a couple of months in that it was rainy almost every day (but I put that down to my dad's traveling curse also not close to any form of monsoon rain).
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 12:02 PM
LOL - Dad's travelung curse.
Glad you are well and healthy!
:-)
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 6:56 PM
Shuk- It really is! Whenever my dad goes on a holiday (or tries to paint the house) it will rain or be cloudy for the most of the journey. Might be sunny days, but the number of bad weather days always out number them. Only exception so far has been when he went to Dubai like 20 years ago :p
16 sartorius
May 2, 2014 at 7:16 AM
Hello everyone!
Been re-watching some of my favorite scenes from Dal-Ja's Spring and wondering where the hell Chae Rim is....I mean where has she been since Dal-Ja's Spring?!!!!!
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 7:50 AM
That is a good question! fI can't remember seeing her in anything else than Dal-Ja's spring. Which also makes me think that this show is overdue a rewatch..
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:52 AM
OMG -
The last thing I saw her in was Oh My Lady with Siwon, but that was several years ago. I haven't heard of anything recently.
She's probably been pushed out of roles to make way for singer/idol actors. I don't think there is a lot of work for SK entertainers who just act, unless you're in the parent/grandparent role.
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August
May 2, 2014 at 6:06 PM
I miss seeing Chae Rim in dramas also. The following links are the most recent articles about what she's been up to these days:
http://www.soompi.com/2014/03/29/actress-chae-rim-gives-a-status-update-from-china/#.U2RAGYFdWa8
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/culture/2014/04/386_154252.html
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17 john
May 2, 2014 at 7:28 AM
Beautiful weather in store today. It has been soggy.
Finished : Empress Ki. Going to miss the gang.
Out of all the new shows, I'm enjoying New Leaf the most.
Watched True Detective. Now there's a drama about a serial killer.
Watching that show prompted me to start reading The King In Yellow.
We made a trellis out of bamboo for our cucumbers. Saw a woodpecker in the backyard. Other bird couples, (Robins, Cardinals), making nests.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:36 AM
True Detective is J or K?
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john
May 2, 2014 at 7:49 AM
TS ~
Actually is American. It was on HBO. I watched it on Shush.se.
Stars Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. It's well worth it if you like that sort of thing. Watched it on a dark, rainy night, lol, for full effect.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:58 AM
I realized after I googled the book you mentioned. :-)
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DJMuenchen
May 2, 2014 at 10:12 AM
Been meaning to finish True Detective, but since time is a flat circle we'll see when it happens
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MoniRosa
May 2, 2014 at 1:35 PM
I am also going to miss Empress Ki. I have never watched such a long drama as it was airing before. Overall it was very good.
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kanz
May 2, 2014 at 6:01 PM
It was very good and has bittersweet ending that makes me cry a bucket
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18 julia the berkshire beanie
May 2, 2014 at 7:32 AM
shame is not something i think about much. i was raised on christian guilt. but shame seems to be a part of korean culture. it is the discussion topic of a meetup of language exchange folks this week. in a culture where shame in public is a big deal, how do you create a safe place to discuss shame?
what examples of shame in dramas most surprised you?
students being hit or made to do squats or other physical torture i still find disturbing. Also mothers-in-law humilating DIL.
is shame or guilt the main motivator in your culture, or is it something else?
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:35 AM
That MIL/DIL dynamic makes me wonder why anyone would want to marry, urgh.
I think a little shame is not a bad thing because people need internal checks against being assholes. E.g. I wonder at some of the statements on tumblr, like "[So&so kpop artist] is so pretty, I wanna punch his face, break his nose and gouge his eyes out." Whoever that is needs to step back from pulling the wings off flies, and get to a high security mental hospital.
Or learn some shame over stupid, nasty statements like that.
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 8:34 AM
Totally agree that shame is needful in life. It does get warped a bit by culture but I for one would never want to have a friend who could not feel either shame or regret.
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 7:51 AM
Korean culture's main cornerstone is actually something like "han" en.wikipedia[.]org/wiki/Han_%28cultural%29. Which isn't shame, but unresolved suffering. Kinda reminds me of how Irish joke about themselves. It's the same "Han" used in "Hangook" and "Hangook saram"
I've cracked jokes about it before. Han is the principle that changed the title from Les Miserables to "Jean" Valjeans". No one, absolutely no one is allowed to be more miserable than Koreans. =P (Also why melodramas are more popular in Korea)
While shaming is part of Korean culture, I think most of it comes from Confucian ideals. If you want deeper cultural roots, Buddhism and Muism will serve you better, which will tell you far more about food culture, and thoughts about how one interacts with their fellow human being. Confucian ideals came late. Buddhism came in around 400 CE. Muism predates the formation of Korean nations, as speculated by archaeologists.
I think in this case, putting it through the lens of relativism *does* help. Corporeal punishment was allowed in the US in the 1950's. MILs are painted terrible all the time in American TV. (Electra Complex--some would argue. A major feature of Western fairytales-- defeating a mother figure.)
Koreans believe by making someone do something physical, it'll focus their mind and put them in better shape. Kinda under the ideal of better body, more focused mind. (Not saying that's right or wrong), but I will say that's marginally better than spanking someone. Also the way it's done is kinda more social rather than individualistic.
When you find something odd, look to your own culture's history and recent history. Sometimes the thing that you found odd is in your own history. And if you know enough and study enough it won't come off as odd--and understanding does not mean you have to personally agree either.
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 9:00 AM
Not sure..but wasn't corporal punishment allowed in Korean until just recently?
Fairytales are of the past. Dramas are of the present. And Korean dramas are full of mean MILs. I suspect there are more in k-dramas than in western dramas. The idea of defeating mother figures in fairytales pretty much is limited to false mother figures such as step-mothers, etc. In western fairytales, biological mothers are often missing. Probably because maternal deaths in childbirth was so common back in olden days and because the loss of a mother is a common fear and a common trope. Cinderella, Snow White et al...all battled step mothers or adoptive mothers, not their bio-mothers.
One western term for prison is "penitentiary" and it came from the Victorian idea that prison is where one goes to repent and learn how to live a good life. Thus, western prisons are full of all kinds of job training. Not sure if Korean prisons are like that. Probably. But am not sure those prisons are called penitentiaris. And although the life of an ex-prisoner in the US is bad, the shame goes after a while if the former prisoner goes on the good path.
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 11:17 AM
Western fairytales, most of the fairytales the Brothers Grimm replaced purposefully biological mothers with the step mothers, in order to soften the blow. It's fairly well documented in that case. Wikipedia even has a page to it, admitting it. Also, stories tend to get eliminated when they no longer resonate with a population (I have sources to back this). I'm betting the MIL stories would not survive so neatly as other tales, but since the story still gets told, it's probable that there are older stories of that nature too.
In any case, the idea that one country will automatically modernize at the same rate for the same ideas and that one is "more advanced" and "above" it when it's in your own country's history is a kind of ethnocentrism, which is what I'm pointing to. Anthropology would say to suspend your judgment and figure out *why* it functions that way instead of going into the "correct" and "wrong" mode first. History will often give you the pattern and reason why.
The common ground here, is mother figure gets overthrown--which one is more cultural, but considering that the market for this format of drama is mostly women, and married women, it's not that difficult to figure out why it's MILs. If the market was for younger women, who aren't looking to get married, I think it would be mothers. I also suspect with a heavier male audience more Oedipus themes would show up as well (which is true in the US as well-- Star Wars??)
Before judging a country, I think finding what's *common* in what you think is "exotic" and "strange" is more important rather than focusing solely on the differences. Because that common thing will often give you the answer to why or give you a nice tangential/related why.
Electra Complex mixed with Confucianism is probably your best bet for explanation. Though I kinda see Neo-Confucianism as trying to solidify justification for agricultural attitudes. Agricultural attitudes might make the MIL situation more pronounced since Koreans still aren't completely neolocal and people live with their extended families. Which shows why media like Japan, China, and India (Northern) also have stories about overthrowing MIL in pop, but not traditional culture. When you make the switch from agriculture to industrial, you are literally getting rid of your MIL...
Or summed up: switching to industrial mode as main sustenance from agricultural is painful and long. Korea is doing it triple time which means tons of upsets. But it's not that different from the West's own history of the switch either or other countries going through it today. (which is not to say one mode is "more advanced" over the other.) MIL overthrowing is popular when you are switching sustenance modes from agricultural to industrial.
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CaroleMcDonnell
May 2, 2014 at 8:50 AM
I often get a bit peeved when folks talk about the Asian idea of "face" or the Asian idea of shame. I really think all cultures have shame and I remember seething when I was told that black folks don't feel shame like Asian folks do. I thought, "Really? It could be that we Black folks have been made to bear shame for so long and to be vessels and symbols of shame that we have had to push through life in spite of feeling shame."
I think folks in the west generally counteract shame by speaking about it and not hiding themselves. They feel the same shame but the shame is entirely personal and doesn't reflect on the family so much and western culture provides for forgiving/excusing someone who comes out and apologizes and faces his shamers head on. So in the west there is a kind of respite or chance at restoration of "face" if one doesn't hide one's wrong-doing. Then one becomes a kind of healing redeemed healing force. Like Moses or Paul after they murdered people. The antidote for shame is not hiding. Hiding and not being honest in the face of public shame/guilt is far worse. If the shamed one says nothing, people lose all respect for them.
I suspect this is a bit like the honte/tatamae thing. Peacefulness and harmony are more prized than troublesome stressing truths. So the shame is a terrible thing because it brings truths out in the open and hints at disharmony. In the east, one hides the shame/sin/guilt and there is a kind of hypocrisy that declares (falsely) that all is well in the world. In the west, honesty is more prized than the aura of peacefulness. So if one has an affair in the east, i suspect generally speaking that even if the wife knows she will not rock the boat. If the mother-in-law is a bitch, the wife will not shame her. In the west, though...a bit different.
As for guilt or shame, it depends on who has knowledge of the guilty action and who is judging the guilty action and the perceived punishment. Legal punishment aside, hell and heaven aside, if we're talking about mere cultural guilt and cultural shame...I've always thought that shame is more powerful at keeping people in line.
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atz
May 2, 2014 at 9:55 AM
Re;'I’ve always thought that shame is more powerful at keeping people in line.'
absolutely right.
Re:So if one has an affair in the east, i suspect generally speaking that even if the wife knows she will not rock the boat.
That is also right but I think that is partly because once she divorces, she would have a lower settlement. so being fed by her husband thus continue their marriage is better even she is humiliated by her husband's action. As for an affair, I know someone in Japan who discovered her husband's cheating. Instead of confronting her husband or his lover, she went directly to his lover's parents and ask them to stop the affair. It was very effective.However I thought this woman's action is quite cruel and calculating because she put the shame into parents of her husband's lover.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:11 AM
I agree. Shame and a fear of Hell are both very good at keeping people in line.
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:11 AM
Correction: Shame, and, I would add, a fear of Hell, are both very good at keeping people in line.
[Commas are so important.]
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yumii
May 2, 2014 at 11:33 PM
I think the deep Dickensian sense of shame is not as prevalent as it once was in the US and I'm not sure that is a bad thing.
I am appalled when people seem to lack conscience or the ability to be embarrassed by their bad behavior.
But historically shame is often off-target. Often people feel ashamed of things they have no power over and take that the humiliation onto themselves.
I'm thinking particularly about victims of abuse who instead of placing the responsibility on the perpetrator, internalize the offense and feel ashamed.
There used to be a cottage industry of shaming women who were victims of sexual assault for being victims. Where in the sense in that?
Shame is the emotion of the powerless; of folks who don't have enough social capital to avoide being stepped on.
In k-drama when mother-in-law or second leads slap and do their water toss, the shame never lands on the perpetrator of such grotesque behavior, instead the person who lacked the power to threaten consequence get drenched with shame.
That is why I don't put much stake in shame, and would prefer that someone's conscience or sense of embarrassment control their behavior.
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atz
May 2, 2014 at 9:16 AM
Shame is also a part of Japanese culture.... so that might be rooted in Confucius belief. Though Japanese religion is Buddhism and Shintoism, old Japanese learned Confucius belief to their core. Parents are good at making their children feel very guilty but I guess that is world wide symptom.
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jomo143
May 2, 2014 at 10:15 AM
I can't talk about Asia, but I can think about me.
It is a carrot to be motivated to do well so your behavior reflects well on the family. I like that. Sadly, my kids have never ever ever wanted to do well for me, however. No matter how much I tell them they should. Did I want to do well so it reflected well on my family? Yes, as one of seven kids, I wanted everyone to think I was one of the smart ones.
It is a stick to be motivated to avoid doing bad or poorly and cause the family name to be sullied. I don't like this one. The family name? My family's name? Do I feel shame if something I do hurts this? I guess I should in all my Catholic upbringing, but it doesn't worry me. It is neutral.
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19 owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 7:38 AM
May, yay!
So what is it with dead birds in kdramas these days? Is there significance other than a warning? Something more specific? (Both Hotel King and Witch’s Romance have a dead bird delivered to someone.)
Witch’s Romance: I am in love with Park Seo Joon (Dong Ha) and I love him with Ji Yeon. Fish bar couple is pretty cute, too. Between laughing and recoiling in repulsion over the herbal doctor’s call to grandma I nearly threw up. Doesn’t it figure that Je Yeon would get a blind date with him? Dong Ha’s hours of waiting – squeeee!
Big Man – I am waiting for the punch that makes me want to get into this kdrama and keep watching.
A New Leaf
Anthony and Kim Na-na.
Lawyers and amnesia (I don’t recall that I didn’t recall).
I like it.
(Anthony's looking awflly thin~)
(Not so) Secret Love Affair – Could one possibly wring any more pain out of Hye won and Sun jae’s passion? I don’t see anything but a lose-lose-lose (throw in any third party combination) scenario.
\ /
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john
May 2, 2014 at 8:09 AM
owl ~
I'm enjoying New Leaf. Great cast. I like how PMY isn't just a pretty face.
Secret Love Affair: Kim Hee-Ae's wardrobe! She's always so well dressed, as you'd expect of someone of her position, but I just had to make mention of it.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 12:10 PM
Yea, although I can't help but think of her own description of herself as "elegant slave."
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:09 AM
Not sure about dead birds in kdramas or korea specifically but know they they are generally seen as a bad omen. The sighting of certain birds have always been connected to something bad happening, for example crows and other bird that would tend to be drawn to a battlefield (thus being associated with death or something bad happening/evil).
Dead birds as a warning also goes back to mining. If you've heard the saying about "a canary in a mine" that is linked to this. Birds, especially canaries, are more sensitive to high carbondioksy and gass than humans. So they were taken into mines to serves as a warning. If the bird fainted/died its was pretty much time to back off and get the hell out of there.
Thus dead birds are warnings that you are stepping to far and are in risk of injury, and also a death threat. Not sure if any of this actually gives you an answer though.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 8:16 AM
Thanks, Manin. An omen. It seems so Draconian to serve up a dead bird these days. I suppose there is superstition involved, too.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:32 AM
Yes there are a lot of superstition involved. Also types of birds and number of birds in question. Know there is an old english nursery rhyme that touches upon that when it comes to mocking birds. And my grandma always used to say "It's better with a bird in your hand than ten on the roof".
I don't remember all the superstition side to it though :p
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spazmo
May 2, 2014 at 8:52 AM
last round of dramas, it was the whistles... do they copycat on purpose?
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20 Arashi
May 2, 2014 at 7:40 AM
I'm also feeling a dearth in good Kdramas! I felt the first two episodes of Angel Eyes was heartfelt (though the amount of coincidences is a bit dense, still the characters had great chemistry and draw). I'm really enjoying Kang Haneul. And I wanted to like the next episodes. I want to like Ku Hye-Sun. I kind of felt like she was the underdog actress on Boys Over Flowers. Like all the pretty boys caught the limelight and she got shafted. But after watching her on Angel Eyes, I don't know. It's like she acts at a higher volume than works. There's not enough subtlety. It's a range that maybe works better for some of the Chinese dramas or a more slapstick Japanese style drama, but has too much energy to blend in a Korean drama (which are more adept at handling emotion, I think). Kind of like a soloist voice who hasn't learned to blend into a choir? Kind of like Ok Tacyeon too, come to think of it. What would happen if they starred in a drama together? Their style would be a good match, and maybe it would work, since they both act on high volume...
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atz
May 2, 2014 at 9:38 AM
I do not know much about Ku Hye- Sun and Lee San Yoon. I have watched privious dramas, Godness of Fire and My daughter Seo Young that he was in. He did not have a good chemistry with the main actress in two dramas. At one point with My daughter Seo Young, I thought Lee Bo Young had more chemistry with Park Hae Jin who played her twin bro so I stopped watching the drama( and I did not like how she treats her dad). With my limited exposure with Lee San yoon, Ku Hye Sun is the first actress who has some chemistry with him, as far as I know. But again, I started watching it because of Kim Ji Suk who is a rival of Lee San Yoon. Sorry I only talk about their appearance.
I agree that Kang Haneul stole the show.
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spi
May 2, 2014 at 10:02 AM
I see what Arashi means with GHS's acting. It's not perfect because sometimes you can just see her as GHS herself and not Soo Wan the character. But I do think Lee Sang Yoon and her got great chemistry together in Angel Eyes. It's so intense. And Lee Sang Yoon is doing a much better job in Angel Eyes than in other shows I think. There's more subtlety and more repressed emotions. (He's so hot too, hahahaha). The show isnt perfect but it's decent.
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21 Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 7:42 AM
So, my news: I added to the tech collection: I felt like I could not take the weight of my iPad 2 anymore although I used it during some of my worst joint pain and fever ever. But the thought of traveling with it for the weekend just made everything ache. So, I bought an iPad Air.
Because it's easy on my hands, elbows and neck, I feel no guilt, just a weird confusion at my sudden determination to go get it. I even ordered a case in advance!
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:58 AM
TS -
From someone lugging a several-kilo laptop everywhere she goes, I applaud you. I need a more robust platform for my work, and when I travel, my fingers itch for a real keyboard.
So backpack it is! lol
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:13 AM
My backpack was bought specially for my laptop. :-)
I was thinking about my low pain tolerance recently: am I running out of patience or is that, since it's less intense and less often, I notice it more?
Either way, I'm on an iPad Air now. :-)
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shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 12:07 PM
I'm still waiting for the next-gen of MacBookPro.
The computer geek at the MacStore told me to get the new Air because it was "lighter": 1.35kg Air vs 1.57kg Pro.
I snickered, since my current lappy weighs 2.50kg.
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Tulipsaki
May 7, 2014 at 12:00 PM
I only just bought mine in 2012, and they're so expensive, it seems a shame not to wait until 2017 to upgrade. Mac is awesome, but so, so expensive!
22 Coolrepublica
May 2, 2014 at 7:49 AM
Not much has caught my attention since bride of the century ended. I wish they would do a bride of the century goes to (insert foreign country) episode just like Japanese dramas like to do with their popular shows.
Found out about a Japanese drama called Border but the translated episodes are slow to come, but I really like that show.
I am also watching my second Chinese dramas ever. I think c-dramas are by in large unwatchable, but a couple days ago I stumbled on jade palace which ironically is very similar to my first c-drama bu bu xing jing. Girl gets transported to the past ends up meeting 4th prince and 8th prince. What are the odds.
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john
May 2, 2014 at 7:57 AM
Coolrepublica ~
If you want to watch a outstanding C drama, I can't recommend The Legend of Zhen Huan highly enough. Viki has it. Don't let the length of the series put you off.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 8:44 AM
I've seen that show mentioned before. Good is it? Need another cdrama to watch.
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john
May 2, 2014 at 10:23 AM
Manin -
Well worth watching. A nice recap is available at mydramatea.
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Manin
May 2, 2014 at 11:25 AM
Thank you! I'll have a look :)
Firdhiye
May 2, 2014 at 7:34 PM
What kind of C dramas is it? I have become a fan C modern rom coms but havent good a historical dramas by them yet. I was looking for action, adventure,romantic ones and not political historical dramas.
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atz
May 2, 2014 at 9:42 AM
I think that the Border is currently airing and they only broadcast one ep per week so it seems slow for the translation. I think Oguri Shun is a great actor, he is quite versatile for his roles. His role is so different from 'Bimbo Danshi( poor man)'. The Border so far has not got higher view rating but i like it.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 10:07 AM
C-dramas, T-dramas, HK-dramas - I find nearly all of them unwatchable for me.
Most C-dramas seem devoid of any real content, with the exception of a couple of the older historical ones. I assume that party censorship is the main reason why mainland Chinese dramas are so lifeless and bland and devoid of various subjects.
But T and HK dramas to me just nearly all seem aimed not offending anyone for any reason. Most (esp. T) seem pretty childish - never any real conflict, angst, emotion. Kind of like they were all written for Sesame Street audiences.
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JJK
May 2, 2014 at 5:13 PM
Not a regular T-drama watcher. But IMO one exception is In Time With You.
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Firdhiye
May 2, 2014 at 7:37 PM
Depends on which ones you watch and i mean after having seen only T dramas of the chinese ones. In a Good Way, Devil Beside You type can be too cute, innocent but My Queen was bold, modern, realistic rom com more like korean dramas like Kim Sam Soon.
My Queen was better rom com than many korean rom coms in recent years. Which i dont watch Witch Romance remake when the original is so good.
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Chandler
May 3, 2014 at 12:20 AM
My Queen was wonderful. So wonderful, in fact, that I've been searching for other t-dramas like that one, but I have get to find one I like as much :/
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 1:59 AM
Im having the same trouble and finding it hard to find a TW drama with the same strong lead actors, female lead character, mature storytelling. They have too many teen like dramas with idol like actors like Bullfighting, Devil Beside etc
I will try Material Queen written by the same writer who wrote the great My Queen. The same thing i do with Korean dramas, i follow good screenwriters.
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Megumi
May 3, 2014 at 7:35 PM
Oh Devil Beside You was my first Taiwanese drama that I had watched and I liked it, well tbh I liked Mike He more than the drama, because of him I watched 'Calling For Love' which was okay but 'Express Boy' was very good, anyway I only watch Taiwanese dramas that has Mike He in it, I tried others dramas with different actors but couldn't get into any, anyway for me Jdramas and Kdramas are a lot better than TW dramas, HK and Chinese dramas are worse than TW dramas.
korfan
May 3, 2014 at 12:05 AM
I'm not a regular Cdrama watcher either, but I did manage to watch two recently:
- Beijing Youth
- Beijing Love Story (aka: Love Story in Beijing)
So far, these have been the only two that I couldn't stop watching. ...... They are not historical dramas, but totally modern instead.
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23 zakin89
May 2, 2014 at 7:51 AM
Happy OT
Aaaaah Snooker! The World Championship is under way and I am a nervous wreck again :D My favourite player is still in the tournament with a good chance for reaching the final =) Today and tomorrow will tell if I can watch the final relaxed (as in he’s out and I don’t care who wins) or I can barely watch out of nervousness :D Yeah I am weird but when it comes to sports I get pretty passionate sometimes xD
On to the dramas of this week:
WR: It’s back =) And I LOVE the show so much! UJW + PSJ have some great chemistry going on and I can’t wait for more!
Big Man: Already rooting for Ji Hyuk and this one looks like a keeper. The first two episodes were pretty solid and I am already anticipating next week’s episodes.
TD: Well.. at least they didn’t pull a God’s Gift on us! I actually thought they would kill of Mr president as well and then I would’ve been mighty pissed bc of all the people who died (especially in ep. 15) for him. So yay for a living president (and TK) but boo for no kiss! I mean… Girl would’ve deserved that but then given how awkwardly shy TK is around BW it would’ve been out of character for him. But the hinting on a future relationship is quite satisfying! It wasn’t as gripping as other dramas of the same genre but somehow I kept watching so it must’ve done something right :D
New Leaf: Just seen one ep but I am so in =) KMM + KSJ = YES, more please!
GD: Enjoying it though it could be creepier! I want it creepier! I am all for the creepy :D I roll my eyes at the police in this drama but when have I not in a K-Drama^^
I love to hate CG and I just hope he’ll change a bit.
Movies:
More Jo Seung Woo (not many of his movies left for me to watch^^):
H: Not much of him but nevertheless a great movie. A bit gory in the beginning but I loved the ending!
Perfect Game: Urgh sports movies…. They ALWAYS make me cry :P It was a really great watch with a very touching ending. It’s just the perfect feel good sports movie the way I like it with two great actors in the form of JSW and Yang Dong Geun. It was also pretty funny to see so many familiar faces of actors that are or quite recently were in dramas I’ve watched^^
Tazza: With nearly 2hrs 20min runtime a pretty long watch great actors here as well though ;)
Finally caught up on all my variety shows and god I LOVE it when the moms are on Superman Returns =) I love Tablo + KHJ and Haru so much they are just too adorable <3
I am also happy that RM is back as of this weekend. I really missed the show though I respect the decision of cancelling variety shows in the wake of the ferry incident. Reading that it’ll probably take another week to recover the missing bodies is just…urgh… It’s bad enough for the people to know they won’t get their loved ones back alive but to have no closure for so long =(
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spazmo
May 2, 2014 at 8:56 AM
where did you find Tazza (the movie) - been searching for it to no avail... need more Cho Seung Woo......
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zakin89
May 2, 2014 at 9:16 AM
I found it on watch32 . com! You can either find it when typing in Tazza or Jo/Cho Seung Woo. You can't DL it but you can watch it there :) I just couldn't wait until I can order the DVD^^
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spazmo
May 2, 2014 at 9:39 AM
thanks! ; )
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Tulipsaki
May 2, 2014 at 11:14 AM
I bought it. I haven't watched it yet, but once I do, I'll offer to mail it to anyone in the US who wants to watch it.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 10:38 AM
Big Man surprised me a lot with the lead hero guy.
For once we don't have some naïve idiot falling for every chaebol trick because he is some clueless idiot. Our hero in this drama caught on almost right away to the fact that it was all a fake setup by a bunch of evil bastards and he is not buying it. He just does not know yet HOW evil they really are.
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D's handphone
May 2, 2014 at 5:55 PM
Im glad that he is smart enough to realized that but maybe he could be more subtle about it. Who knows what tricks they have up their sleeves. What scares me the most is the chaebol father - such an actor, changing his script in a blink. Even the mother. If this is how chaebols really are, i think im better off being a regular salaryman daughter.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 7:30 PM
Our drama heroes are NEVER subtle. It is some kind of rule that they have to barge into places or confront people and then tell them everything they are going to do next, and of course wave all and any evidence that he has in front of them so they don't have to look for it.
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24 whitewire
May 2, 2014 at 8:02 AM
I am really loving A NEW LEAF out of all the dramas airing rn. A New Leaf hwaiting! (Kim Myung-min & Park Min-young have bursting chemistry felt beyond the small screen)
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25 Arashi
May 2, 2014 at 8:18 AM
While waiting for new dramas to come out, I watched oldies "When It's at Night" (with Lee Dong Gun from "Marry Him if You Dare" and "Sweet Eighteen") and "Secret Agent, Miss Oh," and kept thinking, "I know this actress..." She was on "Let's Eat," the only drama from 2014 so far that's really stuck with me.
I'm still waiting for a 2014 "Master's Sun" or "I Can Hear Your Voice." Somehow "My Love From Another Star" didn't charm me like it seems to have charmed others... I'm turning to Taiwanese dramas to fill the gap. "Fall In Love With Me" is interesting in that she's getting set up to fall in love with the same guy in two alter-egoes. There's a lot of accidentally falling into each other's arms though...subtle it is not, but enjoyable like a bon-bon.
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Chandler
May 3, 2014 at 12:12 AM
Let's Eat is my favorite so far as well. I actually really do love You From Another Star, as many things about it were very fun and the leads were great. However, I totally get what you mean. For some reason, despite the fact that I enjoyed it immensely and my head kept telling myself how great it was, it just didn't get me in the heart for some reason or at least not as much as I expected it to. I'd actually say I like it as much as I Hear Your Voice, but that's only because I'm still waiting for a drama to rival QIHM and Arang and the Magistrate. Master's Sun came close to doing that, but didn't quite make the cut for me. If I were to pick one that did, I'd probably pick Nine. The dramas slated to come up this summer are interesting though so I'm hopeful that we'll both find more dramas to rival our ones to beat!
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JJK
May 3, 2014 at 12:42 AM
OMG Nine .... I miss Lee Jin Wook so much!!! But don't think I will ever be able to bring myself to re-watch it.
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 2:04 AM
Dont mistake the popularity for flower boy actor like Kim So Hyun for many people thinking My Love From Another Star was really good. Its highly overrated and high rating dont mean good show.
Jeon Ji Hyun was great in it as the female lead, her comic timing, her dramatic acting was the only really highlight of the drama. Also it was a pretty visually drama. The male lead actor was really weak in comparison to Jeon Ji Hyun, the writing was not really even when it came to romantic story, the SF story.
Long away from the chemistry, the great OTPs of Master Sun and I Can Hear Your Voice.
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26 AnOpinion
May 2, 2014 at 8:24 AM
Enjoying A New Leaf/Repentance right now. I gave up on Hotel King and Angel Eyes 'cause the plot was getting boring.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 10:12 AM
The first two episodes of Angel Eyes was adorable and sad - but the last four have fallen back to mostly conventional k-drama stuff. Still watching, but at this point I rate ep1-2 at 5/5, ep3-6 at 3/5. Hoping it picks up again, but looks like it is falling into the usuall MIL + love triangle thing.
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27 soprection
May 2, 2014 at 8:46 AM
Hi beanies. Happy weekend and I wish you all a lovely May.
Really loving A Witch's Romance. It's a lovely follow-up to Let's Eat. Fun and silly and odd and charming. I'm so glad I'm enjoying UJH's new show and it's definitely put Park Seo Joon on my radar. HE IS ADORABLE with his hilar expressions and sleepy eyes.
I've also started the Taiwanese drama, Fall In Love With Me. It's crazy unrealistic (as all alter ego/secret identity dramas tend to be) and I'm not too keen on the fated romance/we met when we were kids plotline BUT it IS really funny and it actually has me laughing out loud which is usually rare for me with any dramas. I usually am not too keen on Taiwanese dramas but I might stick with this one. The leads are cute together and I like the side characters. It was also a nice surprise to hear G.Na singing in the theme song.
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Chandler
May 2, 2014 at 11:48 PM
Thanks for that suggestion! This actually has to do with both the dramas you mentioned ironically. I also don't watch Taiwanese dramas, but after enjoying the first 2 eps of Witch's Romance and hearing all about how great My Queen was, I checked it out and really liked it. That led me to wondering if there were any other good ones I could try, but I haven't been able to find one that interests me yet. I guess I'll give this one a try! Sounds like fun :)
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soprection
May 3, 2014 at 3:13 PM
You're welcome. The only other Taiwanese dramas I've managed to get into (but not finish, I'll admit) were Office Girls and The Fierce Wife. I thought The Fierce Wife was a really good drama and did a wonderful job of showing all the ways in which adultery affects a family and the various involved parties including 'the other woman'. Office Girls is the typical rich guy falls in love with poor girl while they learn lessons storyline but I found it pretty funny. I kind of want to check out My Queen myself now but I don't think I'd be able to fully appreciate it since I'm already watching (and loving) the K-version. Maybe I'll check it out sometime later. I hope you enjoy them though. :)
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soprection
May 3, 2014 at 3:16 PM
Oh, also Love and Patisserie (or The Cafe With No Name) is a cute, light, funny T-drama but I haven't found it fully subbed anywhere. Good drama.net has it but only up to episode 7.
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28 Qwerty
May 2, 2014 at 8:48 AM
So there are a fair number of contract marriage dramas - in which the main characters are a couple publicly but are very separate privately (until the end, at least).
Are there any dramas that do the opposite - have a secret relationship? So they would probably pretend to hate each other publicly.
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TAS-Mania
May 2, 2014 at 12:35 PM
All About My Romance (with Shin Ha Kyun and Lee Min Jung) had this theme - political rivals dating in secret.
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Firdhiye
May 2, 2014 at 7:40 PM
Was it any good? I have soft spot for Lee Min Jung, she is so good at bubbly characters. I stuck with Smile, You just for her.....
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Chandler
May 2, 2014 at 11:54 PM
Well in Smile You Lee Min Jung (ha! again!) and Jung Kyung Ho have a secret relationship and they act like that for a few episodes. It's hilarious because they'll start out "fighting", but will always end up getting angry at each other for real by the end of the fake fight. Aw I love them. Now I feel like rewatching lol :)
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 2:06 AM
I like that part too, they were a funny couple but the drama was too long family melodrama often.
Talk about her dad being useless, annoying one.
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29 hayd
May 2, 2014 at 9:47 AM
Why is Hotel King not being recapped in DB?
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Rachel
May 2, 2014 at 9:52 AM
It's too long - they usually don't cover those with over 24-25 episodes, because they don't have the manpower to cover such long shows.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 10:15 AM
Not everything is recapped - there is only so much time, but with Hotel King I don't really care anyway, I gave up on it after ep2.
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itsmediji
May 3, 2014 at 6:22 AM
same here! :))
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Kim Yoonmi
May 2, 2014 at 10:45 AM
If you want the recaps on DB, volunteer to recap it? Just be warned that recapping is labor intensive.
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30 Laden
May 2, 2014 at 9:55 AM
Ok so who else is watching SLA with me?
That drama just keeps toying with my moral compass
The chemistry is just....*dead*
Thank goodness I'm not married,otherwise I would have torn out my hair out of guilty conscience for enjoying drama
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 11:32 AM
I am, I am! From cautious encounters to daring, then careless, and >> reckless abandon. All in the name of passionate love.
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Laden
May 2, 2014 at 2:17 PM
Ikr!
And the kisses *_* I cud just die
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 2:09 AM
SLA is easily the best drama airing in Korea right now. It makes the other dramas i have seen in recent month look like silly dramatic angst feast.
The tension, the story, the characters, the music feels so real.
Im not worried about the affair, the morality issues of being married and having an affair. Its not like her marriege is anything about a status one for both of them.
A real husband would get angry, jealous, sad if his beloved wife was having an affair. The one in SLA gets more jealous, angry the fact she might steal his genius piano player from him as she is his real teacher, master musically.
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31 DJMuenchen
May 2, 2014 at 10:10 AM
Has anyone watched SNL Korea? cause i went down a youtube rabbit hole and i'm now obsessed!
The Drama parodies are often great (SLA and YFAS part 2 were my favs from what I saw) and this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeKsFuTnAr4
take on GTA and video games is perfection.
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owl 🦉 🫰
May 2, 2014 at 1:32 PM
GTA and video games - hilarious! Gamers hate to die slow!
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km
May 3, 2014 at 2:11 AM
SNL Korea would be a lot better if they cut out the racist and sexist crap they have in pretty much every skit...
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32 shukmeister
May 2, 2014 at 10:23 AM
Hello everyone! Sorry I'm late to the party, but hopefully there's still some good stuff left [munches pretzels]
Thanks to a very close friend in the hospital, my graveyard shift, and my blackout curtains, it's hard to remember what day it is. Luckily, my lovely lovely dramas are available at my fingertips 24/7!
- I started squeecapping the Taiwanese drama Fall In Love With Both Of Me. I have to confess, I really focused on Jiro Wang of our Fahrenheit boys, but Aaron Yan! Aaron Yan [sigh]. I did you a grave disservice! He has such a mobile face and eyebrows that act independently of each other. I love it. The two characters he plays are not like BOTC; you can see Tian Xing in both of them, it's just everyone is oblivious. And I want to take PD Leo home with me...
- Angel Eyes: Things I love about this:
- - The prehospital and E/D behaviour is believable, if not exactly accurate. Still, one of the closest I've seen in many many a show, from a medical point of view.
- - Dr. Dylan's dimples. Ohhhh yeah.
- - Yoon Soo-won as the vulnerable but tough woman. Ku Hye-son is doing a terrific job on that score, both showing the physicality of the profession as well as how her past affects her relationships now.
- - Teddy Seo / Seungri and the flips between English and Hangeul.
- - The entire gang at the fire station. When you work with people for a 12- or 24-hour stretch, it does become a family, with bickering, teasing, and heartfelt moments.
- Secret Love Affair: Love the music. I think YAH is doing the best acting he's ever done, even if his mouth hangs open most of the time. I haven't seen the last two episodes, so I'm a bit behind, but I'm surprised OH Hye-won hasn't exploded before now, from the pressure of juggling all these ugly ugly people and their ugly ugly machinations.
The real-life ferry tragedy is shedding light on the criminal scheming that goes on under the table, making the Seo family's behavior even more real. Ugh.
- A Witch's Romance: There is a surfeit of characters called "puppy", so I won't use that appellation here, but that boy/man is completely adorable and hot and perfect, I'd love to put a leach on him and take him home. Ban Ji-yeon is really a marshmallow who thinks that being a hardass is the only way to be successful. Go get him girl! Have fun!
---
I hope everyone stays safe and healthy this week!
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Ennui Young
May 4, 2014 at 11:59 PM
You mean Yoo Ah In?
Have you watched his earlier films, like Boys of Tomorrow, Shim's Family and Wandeuki?
His best acting is still in films, not in TV. SLA is definitely the best TV work in his resume, but he had great acting even from the ridiculous bad drama "Strongest Chil-Woo." He stole the show basically.
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shukmeister
May 5, 2014 at 6:33 AM
fandomscape - Yes, I meant YAI. Didn't pay attention to my typing. Thanks.
I've never watched any of his movies though, just his television work.
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33 windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 10:33 AM
Ferry Disaster vs K-Dramaland
This is kind of a rant, but I am a bit disturbed that the whole Sewol ferry disaster is looking more and more like some badly written over-the-top k-drama filled with bad guys. What has transpired over the past 10 days or so:
1. All 15 crew members having anything to do with the navigation or running of the ship have been arrested. It is likely that a lot of them will spend a LOT of time in prison.
2. Offices are being raided left and right - and not just the ferry company. The ferry operator was caught attempting to destroy evidence and alter records showing that the ferry was very overloaded with cargo. See http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2014/05/02/2014050200605.html
3. The Korean Coast Guard is being investigated for poor response, inaction, and favoritism. What started this was the fact that the captain of the ferry was the 2nd person off of the ship (right behind another crew member), was apparently drunk, and the Coast Guard at the time knew full well who he was.
3a. Contrast this with the response of the Italian Coast Guard to the cruise ship disaster captain when that happened. Just a hint, this is one line from the Italian Coast Guard transcript: "
"you might have saved yourself, but i'll make you fucking pay for this"...!. For the full recording, see here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX_08zcCmx8&list=LLrgNB_F1vp8GShh5fPwSRvg&index=3
more...
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 11:01 AM
4. Even while the ferry was still sinking, there were calls to the main office from a crewmember that it appeared to be a cargo shift that had caused the ferry to capsize. The conversation apparently went on for some 50 minutes, but there was zero talk of rescue efforts or saving the passengers, it was mostly talk of how to alter the records and how to cover up the fact that the cargo was overloaded and not properly tied down (which is why it shifted).
5. And straight out of k-dramaland: "Prosecutors have summoned the son of Yoo Byung-eon, the de facto owner of Chonghaejin, as well as two other executives at affiliates. But the three individuals, who are overseas, failed to return to Korea by Thursday. Prosecutors now plan to freeze their bank accounts and cancel their passports."
6. There were actually a couple of real heroes, but the one I am focused on is Park Ji-young. She was a young 22 year old cafeteria worker on the ferry, and is credited with saving about 50 lives, at the expense of her own. She had quit college because her father died of cancer and she had to support her family, so she took a job with the ferry company as a cafeteria worker.
6a. While nearly all the other crewmembers, including the captain rushed to get off the ship, she stayed behind to help passengers. Now, can someone please tell me WHY IN THE FUCK did some 22 year old girl have to die saving passengers while all those great brave men scuttled off like rats?
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 11:12 AM
7. There is mounting evidence that many safety rules were violated, and that there were payoffs to inspectors. The agencies in charge of maritime safety are now also being investigated. It has also just been discovered that the ballast tanks were not filled properly, to allow more cargo to be carried. That made the ship extremely top heavy.
8. It was not the ferry crew that made the first distress call - it was a student from a cell phone. The Coast Guard were not the first responders - local fisherman were. The Coast Guard made no effort to get on the ship to help passengers (this is shown in video released 3 days ago). There is also evidence that many of the drills that the Coast Guard said were done, were in fact NOT done, but were just paper entries.
So overall, this is playing out like some k-drama, only worse because so many young kids died all because of greed and cowardice.
I am hoping that if nothing else this sends a wakeup call to someone that there are serious holes in the system.
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Lindy
May 2, 2014 at 2:56 PM
Thanks for laying this horrible tragedy out in such a clear and concise fashion. When the news first broke, I thought there might be a rush to judgement on the part of the media and citizens because things can go very wrong very quickly at sea. I naively thought that Korean standards regarding ferry safety were much the same as in my country. But it turns out that it was not a rush to judgement at all but a realistic assessment by people who have some idea of what is actually going on.
I recently took a ferry with my sons and the first 20 minutes of the voyage were spent reviewing emergency procedures and protocol. There was a crew member at each muster station ready to answer passengers' questions and concerns while this was occurring. I, again naively, thought it would be the same on Korean ferries. Wow was I wrong!
The big problem with a society where such corrupt practices are common and from the top down is that people look at their superiors and say to themselves, "well, if they don't care, why should I? I'm going to look out for myself." This leads directly to the shameful actions of the captain and a crew member being the first and second people off the ferry and the coast guard not boarding the ferry to aid in evacuation.
But then you get people like the 22 year old cafeteria worker who took responsibility, did her duty and saved lives at the cost of her own. This young woman is a shining example of what people should do in such situations and all too often don't. I hope she gets the highest award Korea gives for her service to her fellow citizens and her heroism isn't ignored because it makes other, more powerful people look so cowardly and dishonourable by comparison.
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anotheraddict
May 2, 2014 at 5:56 PM
Agreed. I'd add a number of examples of things that have come to light which make this feel a lot like "some badly written over-the-top k-drama filled with bad guys", but I'm to the point where I'm literally nauseated by it all. I don't know how those who lost someone in this tragedy are coping. Losing a loved one, especially a child, is one of the most challenging things a person can go through— but to find out that it happened due to seriously unbelievable levels of greed, corruption, callousness, and cowardice just makes it all the more devastating. I'm glad that the widespread system of corruption and nepotism is being highlighted in the media~ I just hope that it leads to some major reforms (beyond just the shipping industry and Coast Guard.)
Here's an article about a Dramaland connection involving actress Jeon Yang Ja: http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=2988738. And another with a little (WTF) background info about the cult connections of the Sewol's owner: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2014/04/113_156136.html.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 7:43 PM
Those links.. WOW.
It just keeps getting worse and worse. It seems like every time they move a rock, more bugs crawl out. Makes you wonder just how corrupt things really are in Korea - here is one small company, yet the stuff they have been pulling is worthy of a chaebol drama.
But now other questions are coming up in Korea - if they are finding all this stuff now, why didn't they ever notice it before - why does it always take a major disaster to uncover such corruption?
I used to think that the TV dramas were exaggerating about how corrupt some companies are in Korea, but now I am starting to wonder if they are under-emphasizing it.
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windsun33
May 2, 2014 at 8:06 PM
And it just keeps getting worse - This just got posted, and is related to the cult link of the ferry owner posted in 33.2.2:
"..The director of the intelligence and investigation bureau of the Korean Coast Guard leading the probe into irregular practices of Chonghaejin Marine Company, the operator of the ill-fated Sewol ferry, was removed from his post yesterday after reports surfaced he had ties with the now-defunct Semo Group, the Chonghaejin Marine Company’s predecessor..."
It seems that the lead investigator was a former(?) member of that same cult.
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Tara
May 3, 2014 at 12:52 PM
Thank you for the all the information on this tragedy, windsun33...seriously, you're right on about finding all the creepy-crawlies once the rock is overturned. Ugh. This makes me so angry and sick...all the innocent lives of teens lost over the greed and corruption of those involved. Tsk tsk. I, too, wonder how far-reaching this'll all end up to be...and the revelations now about being involved in a cult? Sickening...
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34 NahlaJW
May 2, 2014 at 1:30 PM
Hi OT ... how have you been my dear friends?
well I'm always late to OT I was busy today .....I'm not following any drama these days but I manage to catch up some episodes of the return of Superman and I'm loving all the kids and there relationships with there daddies it's too cute ^_^....
mmm I have a question to all :
Have you ever had crazy dreams where you imagined yourself having a relationship with your favorite kdrama actor/actress and you as the lead guy/girl ?? it's like making up your own kdrama with all that craziness *LoL xD
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35 Tara
May 2, 2014 at 2:30 PM
Hey everyone...happy OT!
Hope it's been a good week...it's finally spring again here, after all this torrential rain for 3+ days! But what pollen the rain washed away, it's come back with a vengeance x/
I'm with the others on here who are looking for their crack drama...nothing's really grabbing my attention since GG (although the ending kinda wiped the good feels out, minus JSW's awesomeness). I'm also itching for a good comedy, something that'll have me laughing. I'm keeping my eyes peeled so I can hopefully find one soon...it's been a dull drama-watching week for me.
EK: So it has finally ended. I definitely commend those who've stuck with this rollercoaster the whole way through, because I sure as hell didn't (think I skipped like 10-15 episodes in the middle). It did satisfy a part of my "yay the baddies got their due" feels, but a part of me feels let down with the ending.
[spoiler] Glad that she rose to power and got rid of her opponents (although ED's death was far too lenient). But wth, TH? You just had to kill WY anyway to get rid of your inferiority complex to him...and you find out later that GT was the one behind all the fake love letters? Tsk tsk.
Was it just me or was TT's death just announced, with no actual reappearance of him in the epilogue? And was the dream sequence of SN, WY and TH effectively meaning that SN died as well?
GD: This drama makes me think that the writer seriously thinks the police are that freakin' incompetent. Well, CG in particular...his severe bull-headedness and "MY is GD" mindset is getting pretty old. Open your eyes a little bit more and see the evidence for what it is...not with your bias-tinted shades, man! Jeez. MY is not doing him any favors by basically playing along, although I think he's got a plan...but he's seemingly digging himself a deeper hole.
Someone mentioned last week that they wanted crime-themed kdramas to be stylized more like U.S. shows (CSI, L&O, etc.)...which I totally agree! I do watch a lot of the crime shows, so I'm definitely a fan of the crime procedural style and organization to the plot that crime-themed kdramas seem to lack.
WD: Still at ep14, will likely to get to more this weekend.
Planning to start watching a few eps of: WR, AE (from all the good chatter I've read on here).
Looking forward to: YAS, FGIU.
Have a great weekend, yall! :)
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36 JJK
May 2, 2014 at 5:10 PM
K-drama draught for me at the moment. Btw, is anybody watching Daddy is Back (aka the Chinese version of The Return of Superman)?
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37 newgirl
May 2, 2014 at 9:53 PM
Better late than never, I say.
Yes, I'm also feeling the drought. The only current show I'm watching is Witch's Romance. I am enjoying it, though I did have difficulty with the less than 24 hr turnaround time on the DNA results. Sure wish that happened in real life! (As do a number of prisoners, I'm sure,) And only on the power of having attended medical school! Still, if I try to suspend my critical mind, it's quite enjoyable.
I'm filling in the down time with Couple or Trouble. How have I missed Oh Ji Ho before? Mmmmm. Yummy. And plenty of fan service scenes to behold. Not as good as later Hong sisters' work, but solid. Rewatches in the last few weeks were Coffee Prince and Best Love. Even better the second time around.
I too have been transfixed by all the drama behind the ferry disaster. Rotten from the top down, that company. Hope something good comes out of all this
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soprection
May 3, 2014 at 3:25 PM
Actually they didn't get the DNA results -they only pretended to. When they're getting in the car for Dong Ha to take Jiyeon to her blind date, she scolds him about not being able to get the DNA results even though he 'boasted' about being a med student. And he replies that only family is allowed to do the test so it's not his fault. It happens quickly though so that might be why you missed it.
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38 meliyasha
May 2, 2014 at 10:01 PM
I have never posted anything on Open Thread but I think now I have to because of several reasons below :
Starting with God's Gift 14 Days. *sighs* yes I'm still suffering from its withdrawal even though it's been a week since I watched its last episode. Granted, the special episode and fanfiction kinda helped me forget the nightmare of its ending but I still can't move on to many dramas yet. I have Jo Seung-woo's Love Phobia just in case LOL
I'm watching Gap Dong tho, because it's still quite related to God's Gift in suspense-thriller thing. But Gap Dong is surprisingly easier to watch than a few first eps of GG. Even though I hate most of the cops there and Chul-gon on top of that.
A New Leaf is one of new dramas that I most looking forward to watching so I think I might watch it this weekend. And when I peeked into it earlier I spotted Oppa from Mirae's Choice!! Yay glad to see you again Oppa :D
- And there's Three Days that I have to watch later, Park Yoo-chun and Park Ha-sun is my favourite couple after GG ended.
- And in regard to a few dramas that is coming I'm preparing myself with Nodame Cantabile, God's Quiz Season 1, Sunny. Haha so many dramas to watch, so little free time to watch them too.
As for variety shows I enjoy watching Return of Superman now that Running Man is on hiatus. And re-watching a few episodes from Shinhwa Broadcast everytime I need a good laugh.
Oh and I dreamt about EXO's Lay last night even though I'm not EXO's stan. This might be not related to dramaland at all but now I kinda think that dream came after I read Witch's Romance's recap yesterday.
Phew so that's that. Now I know why we all need this OT, it feels great after writing here hehe I might be coming back in the next OT :> Have a nice weekend folks!
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soprection
May 3, 2014 at 3:21 PM
I actually think that Park Seo Joon (Dong Ha from A Witch's Romance) looks a bit like Lay - same sleepy eyes, something else about their features is similar but I can't pinpoint what. Maybe you unconsciously noticed the similarity too.
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meliyasha
May 4, 2014 at 6:36 PM
Heol! I do think that something is similar but I thought that was only the age-gap thing in which I'm older than Lay by 4 years. Thanks for telling me your opinion ^^ Yes maybe it's their sleepy eyes and also their tall? I don't quite remember Lay's figure but i imagine he has the same tall and thin body as Park Seo-joon.
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39 Chandler
May 2, 2014 at 10:15 PM
Aw man. i wanted to post this comment early on so that people might actually see it and help me! After Ryu Seung Soo began appearing in my life again, I began rewatching Mixed-up Investigative Agency/Evasive Inquiry Agency, one of my all-time favorites, and there is this one instrumental piece that plays during heartfelt moments that I ADORE. I want it so badly. I've actually wanted it ever since 2007 ,but it's not on the OST and it's driving me crazy. Anyway, I doubt anyone will know, but if anyone does, please let me know. The song plays at the very end of episode 10 (I believe javabeans even points out how gorgeous it is in her ep 10 recap).
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shukmeister
May 3, 2014 at 9:56 AM
Chandler -
Unfortunately it's not a show I watch(ed).
I sometimes have luck using the Shazam app on my phone. It picks up a lot of mainstream SK music used as BGM if you can get a sample (not overshot with dialogue).
Good luck.
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40 Peridot
May 3, 2014 at 5:18 AM
Hello, everyone. It's been a while since I posted on an open thread.
I was wondering if anyone could recommend any good Japanese or Korean fantasy novels (high fantasy, science fiction, speculative fiction, etc.) that are in print and translated into English? I'm not really interested in purchasing e-Books. I like to have a physical book in my hands :).
Thank you :).
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 5:41 AM
Good question i have wondered the same. I know some famous Japanese fantasy,horror,SF novels like Vampire Hunter D and recently i learned of this :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_You_Need_Is_Kill
A Japanese Military SF novel apparently. I dont know at all about Korean ones that have been translated.
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Peridot
May 3, 2014 at 6:19 AM
Hi, Mohammed. Thank you for the suggestion. I actually came across this title. I've been searching on Amazon and have to admit that I've been disappointed. So many titles are not available. There are Kindle versions for some; I guess I might go that route if I really can't find anything.
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 6:25 AM
Share the titles if you find english versions of those books. I will look for them too.
I will let you know if i find more titles in some other Off topic thread.
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Peridot
May 3, 2014 at 6:54 AM
Okay. I will. Thank you again.
41 Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 5:37 AM
Speaking about K-pop,idols i have listened alot this week to Smile 2003 album by Baek Ji Young.
The Queen of ballad songs is also very good in more fast paced pop, R&B like songs. She just became my first Korean artist that i call a favourite that i follow now. I respected, liked only some of her songs because of the drama OSTs before. Bad Person from Hwang Yi Jing from example is wonderful.
Only Korean, Japanese artist i loved listening to before and follow avidly has been Namie Amuro for the last 10 years before i even saw any K-drama or J-drama. I love Namie Amuro songs to bits. She is even more perfect in her R&B, more hip hop like albums. Namie i adore she is a world level Pop Icon to me :)
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windsun33
May 4, 2014 at 3:23 PM
I am not much of a k-pop fan, though I do keep up a little bit with the happenings. Most of the idols and idol groups just seem to be way too "manufactured" for my tastes. Most of them all have the same looks and dances. I occasionally come across an individual song that I like, but I don't really follow most of it.
About the only ones I am paying any attention to right now are Lee Hi and AKMU.
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42 itsmediji
May 3, 2014 at 6:18 AM
I love A New Leaf! I would really love to read recaps here! :D yes, there are few moments where people might be confused with all the law related scenes, but Park Min Young's character balances them. I didn't expect to laugh while watching this drama. HAHA.
Does anyone here notice that Kim Myung Min and Kim Sang Joong have the same intonation when speaking? I find it really cute. And Myung Min's deep voice... whew.
I'm so excited to see his softie side. Especially with the preview when he shouted "Excuse me" in the hospital with a playful tone. :"> gaah~
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On the other hand, I finished watching Three Days. So heart warming and nice. But a bit lacking (of romance I guess? haha)
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I tried to watch Episode 2 of Golden Cross, but stopped with few minutes after. Maybe next time. When my LDS (last drama syndrome) subside. haha. A New Leaf feels.
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43 Jen
May 3, 2014 at 12:46 PM
Hey everyone. Sorry but I'm desperate. I need drama recommendations ASAP please. This is my only night off until next weekend and I want something new (never mind the countless dramas I have on-going :/). I want something rom/com ish, doesn't matter if it's more rom or com as long as no lead characters die. The list of dramas I have already watched or am watching is quite long so I won't bore you with it. Basically something fun but not overly fluffy. I need this, I've had the week from hell :)
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Firdhiye
May 3, 2014 at 3:19 PM
How new is something new to you? How much have you seen? I think the best korean rom coms was up to 2012. The best ones i have seen are from 2005-2007 or 2009-2012.
Of the new ones Secret Love Affair is more serious romantic drama but a great one.
King 2 Hearts , Haeundae Lovers i would say are fun but they might be old news to you.
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Jen
May 4, 2014 at 2:56 AM
Thanks. I had completely forgotten about King 2 Hearts, I've been meaning to watch it :)
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44 Peridot
May 3, 2014 at 12:46 PM
After asking about books above, I now would like to know if anyone could recommend reputable sellers of Japanese films. There are so many films I would love to see, but I've been unable to locate them. Thanks again :)
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45 Dan Strickland
May 6, 2014 at 8:32 AM
Here's another trope for your next book, Beans & Girl - tire squeals. This drives me nuts, especially in parking ramps. Have you ever tried to make screeching tire sounds in a parking ramp? Trust me, it can't be done. This is why I stopped watching Iris part-way through. Ok, tire screeches during chases through the streets, that's kind of ok, although not terribly realistic, but please, not in a parking garage. I have a cousin who has built and driven race cars, and it takes more than what you see in K-drama car chases to make tires screech like that. Although it helps if you've not checked the pressure and let them get low - in which case your handling will be crappy.
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46 karen
May 7, 2014 at 9:07 PM
btw.... i don't know if i missed it or not, but how's HeadsNo2?
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