*sidles in through a side door, gives a short wave from the shadows*
Hey chingu, Coco here ~ my drama slump has been so utterly complete that I’ve barely even checked DB in a great while. I’ve just laid despondently on my rooftop wondering when another drama will come along and interest me… I’ve turned on the first five minutes of several currently airing ones only to get distracted and never turn them on again… I thought this slump was the end of my drama relationship.
But I just spent the weekend binge watching 10 episodes of a drama. And I wanted to squee about it, so here I am, buckle in your seatbelts for “Village: Secret of Achiara”
Okay, I’ll have to check it out! I’ve stayed away from that one because of the themes… I’ll try it, but I often can’t handle realistic abuse storylines. Village is such a melo that so far I’ve not been bothered by any of the crimes characters have committed.
VSOA is a mystery show centered on Moon Geun Young, a young woman raised by her grandmother in Canada after all her family, except her, died in a car crash in Korea. After her grandmother’s death, she discovers a letter postmarked “Achiara” containing a newspaper clipping that falsely claims she also died in that car crash. She becomes convinced that she has family still living in Achiara, and gets a job as the English teacher at the village school.
Everyone is friendly enough to the new teacher, but she soon realizes that the villagers are full of secrets and distrust for outsiders. Especially when she discovers a corpse in the woods…
Okay, now that you have a gist of the plot, here are the things I love:
In the first episode alone we get hair pulling, blackmail, hints of incest, foreboding dreams, crazy fortune tellers, and so much more!
I’ve not watched a melo in a while, usually sticking to romcoms and sageuks, so the serious drama here has actually been refreshing for me ~ I’d forgotten how enjoyable a good water thrown in the face could be
I love Moon Geun Young, she is maybe the first Korean actress whose name I memorized, and, whatever else you can say about her dramas, I always find her characters enjoyable and relatable.
Also her style is always flawless (except maybe in Cheomdangdong Alice). JUST LOOK AT HER CARDIGANS
Excuse me while I update my wardrobe to reflect her sympathetic yet stubbornly determined English teacher. (Really though, at first I thought the character would be a bit of a wimp, running and crying at the first possible run in with a serial killer (again, this happened in the first couple of episodes), but underneath her sensitivity is a backbone of steel, and she will not back down from discovering the truth, no matter how many characters threaten or undermine her).
I was just thinking the same thing about being in a drama slump and not being able to get out of it! I will have to try and watch VoSA, missed it the first time around…🙄 thanks for the recommendation.
Gahh the slumps are the worst ~ the first couple of episodes were hard to work through, but after that I sort of just sat down on my day off and let it keep playing. Fighting chingu!
She’s obsessed with having a son to take over the big company, despite having the complete loyalty of her stepson and a clairvoyant daughter (who is a rebellious artist of an eleven year old).
She’s known to be too-pretty-for-her-age, and might have killed a woman. Who knows. I’ve not finished the drama yet. But her hair pulling skills are just as adept in this show ~
No, sadly not. She just has bloody ghosts clawing at the window of her car, a clairvoyant daughter, a femme fatale pharmacist sister, a comatose mother, and a weirdly seductive way with her stepson.
There are, of course, two male leads to assist Moon Geun Young in her quest ~
Reluctantly, the aforementioned son of the Dowager Empress, forced to recently return from the US and take over the CEO position (and sadly cut off his bleached hair)
The other male lead is the maknae of the local police department, who dreams of being a detective. He’s played by Yook Sung Jae, of BTOB and Goblin fame, and whom I am surprised to find just as charming an actor here as he was as the nephew turned god in Goblin.
He’s smitten with Moon Geun Young from the beginning, and does his best to assist her in finding her family, pestering his colleagues at other police departments to get him the needed information. He is a bit too young for her though, in my opinion, but love lines (happily in my opinion) are utterly secondary to MGY’s character and the plot in general.
Too bad he’s really just a clumsy kid, but the bromance with his police hyung (who is a smart and competent policeman, despite being content with his place as a smalltown cop) is perhaps the best relationship in the show.
My mom giggles whenever Yook Sung Jae is on screen with his antics, and we both ship him with the school administrative assistant who keeps tricking him into buying her KFC. I think I need to introduce her to BTOB after this show.
The supporting cast in general is full of familiar faces (even if I’m bad at their names). From Jang So yeon (aunt in Father is Strange, secretary turned fish cult leader extraordinaire in Secret Life of My Secretary), to Jo Han Chul (detective from Healer here playing a… detective. hehe), the supporting characters are nothing to sneeze at.
(though I will say that I was disappointed by the treatment of a cross dressing character. not just by the other characters calling him a pervert, but the way he himself acts, saying that he enjoys dressing as a woman since it scares other women ~ just, I know I shouldn’t expect any better but the creepy cross dresser is a stereotype I would very much love to do without)
Anyways, the plot is cray cray, and I can’t predict what will happen even now at episode 10. There are still so many unanswered questions, and I love it. Let’s just hope Moon Geun Young stay away from a ToD long enough to get them answered.
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 7:52 AM
*sidles in through a side door, gives a short wave from the shadows*
Hey chingu, Coco here ~ my drama slump has been so utterly complete that I’ve barely even checked DB in a great while. I’ve just laid despondently on my rooftop wondering when another drama will come along and interest me… I’ve turned on the first five minutes of several currently airing ones only to get distracted and never turn them on again… I thought this slump was the end of my drama relationship.
But I just spent the weekend binge watching 10 episodes of a drama. And I wanted to squee about it, so here I am, buckle in your seatbelts for “Village: Secret of Achiara”
mango
August 26, 2019 at 7:55 AM
I’d recommend you Children of Nobody/Red Moon Blue Sun from the same writer 🙂
oppafangirl
August 26, 2019 at 10:44 AM
That is even more amazing than Village achiara!
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 11:06 AM
Okay, I’ll have to check it out! I’ve stayed away from that one because of the themes… I’ll try it, but I often can’t handle realistic abuse storylines. Village is such a melo that so far I’ve not been bothered by any of the crimes characters have committed.
mango
August 26, 2019 at 11:01 PM
I liked Children better because Village had too much going on for me. It has a mysterious feel to it that doesn’t completely ground it in reality 🙂
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 7:57 AM
VSOA is a mystery show centered on Moon Geun Young, a young woman raised by her grandmother in Canada after all her family, except her, died in a car crash in Korea. After her grandmother’s death, she discovers a letter postmarked “Achiara” containing a newspaper clipping that falsely claims she also died in that car crash. She becomes convinced that she has family still living in Achiara, and gets a job as the English teacher at the village school.
Everyone is friendly enough to the new teacher, but she soon realizes that the villagers are full of secrets and distrust for outsiders. Especially when she discovers a corpse in the woods…
Okay, now that you have a gist of the plot, here are the things I love:
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 8:00 AM
First off, this show is melo and dramatic at its core
https://66.media.tumblr.com/edc8ac8dc66fbf4c2c67698b03cb9250/tumblr_nvq6vnO6mE1r0nsxwo4_400.gif
In the first episode alone we get hair pulling, blackmail, hints of incest, foreboding dreams, crazy fortune tellers, and so much more!
I’ve not watched a melo in a while, usually sticking to romcoms and sageuks, so the serious drama here has actually been refreshing for me ~ I’d forgotten how enjoyable a good water thrown in the face could be
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 8:05 AM
I love Moon Geun Young, she is maybe the first Korean actress whose name I memorized, and, whatever else you can say about her dramas, I always find her characters enjoyable and relatable.
Also her style is always flawless (except maybe in Cheomdangdong Alice). JUST LOOK AT HER CARDIGANS
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o5SBTEQnupg/VmJypz9RWLI/AAAAAAAAkXc/PbBPCd5kJYI/s1600/TVAS-ep15%2B%25286%2529.jpg
Excuse me while I update my wardrobe to reflect her sympathetic yet stubbornly determined English teacher. (Really though, at first I thought the character would be a bit of a wimp, running and crying at the first possible run in with a serial killer (again, this happened in the first couple of episodes), but underneath her sensitivity is a backbone of steel, and she will not back down from discovering the truth, no matter how many characters threaten or undermine her).
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 8:06 AM
(Excuse I forgot I have a dentist appointment ~ will finish this later)
KeikoAnn
August 26, 2019 at 8:31 AM
I was just thinking the same thing about being in a drama slump and not being able to get out of it! I will have to try and watch VoSA, missed it the first time around…🙄 thanks for the recommendation.
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 11:07 AM
Gahh the slumps are the worst ~ the first couple of episodes were hard to work through, but after that I sort of just sat down on my day off and let it keep playing. Fighting chingu!
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 10:35 AM
Beanies, ( @kimbapnoona & other The Last Empress fans), The Dowager Empress herself is here, and maybe only slightly less crazy than usual
http://i1058.photobucket.com/albums/t413/javabeansdb/drama/2015/village/village2/village15-00062.jpg
She’s obsessed with having a son to take over the big company, despite having the complete loyalty of her stepson and a clairvoyant daughter (who is a rebellious artist of an eleven year old).
She’s known to be too-pretty-for-her-age, and might have killed a woman. Who knows. I’ve not finished the drama yet. But her hair pulling skills are just as adept in this show ~
http://i1058.photobucket.com/albums/t413/javabeansdb/drama/2015/village/village2/village14-00550a.jpg
egads aka Dame Maggie
August 26, 2019 at 12:52 PM
Hmm, is there an island involved? Breast milk baths?
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 1:37 PM
No, sadly not. She just has bloody ghosts clawing at the window of her car, a clairvoyant daughter, a femme fatale pharmacist sister, a comatose mother, and a weirdly seductive way with her stepson.
egads aka Dame Maggie
August 26, 2019 at 1:46 PM
Oh, so nothing special then. Sad.
Her stepson? Pfft. Must have been a practice character for her turn as Royal Hotness’s mom.
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 2:06 PM
Oh well.
I think it’s going to be hard for her to top the RH’s mom. It seems she was building up to that role for a long time…
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 10:40 AM
There are, of course, two male leads to assist Moon Geun Young in her quest ~
Reluctantly, the aforementioned son of the Dowager Empress, forced to recently return from the US and take over the CEO position (and sadly cut off his bleached hair)
https://static1.dienanh.net/upload/2015/10/15/the-village-secret-of-achiara-50959.jpg
His righteous soul is torn between getting justice done, and trying to please the expectations of his idolized stepmother and demanding grandmother.
I’m still attached to the actor from his Beautiful Gong Shim days, so I’m rooting that HE didn’t kill a woman. But again, who knows.
https://www.stellarsisters.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/the-village-achiara-s-secret-16.jpg
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 10:48 AM
The other male lead is the maknae of the local police department, who dreams of being a detective. He’s played by Yook Sung Jae, of BTOB and Goblin fame, and whom I am surprised to find just as charming an actor here as he was as the nephew turned god in Goblin.
He’s smitten with Moon Geun Young from the beginning, and does his best to assist her in finding her family, pestering his colleagues at other police departments to get him the needed information. He is a bit too young for her though, in my opinion, but love lines (happily in my opinion) are utterly secondary to MGY’s character and the plot in general.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/rbVuIziwrbM/maxresdefault.jpg
Too bad he’s really just a clumsy kid, but the bromance with his police hyung (who is a smart and competent policeman, despite being content with his place as a smalltown cop) is perhaps the best relationship in the show.
https://6.viki.io/image/d1066d3262bf4ba685cbba944405568b.jpeg?x=b&s=380×214&q=h&e=t&f=t&cb=1
My mom giggles whenever Yook Sung Jae is on screen with his antics, and we both ship him with the school administrative assistant who keeps tricking him into buying her KFC. I think I need to introduce her to BTOB after this show.
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 11:01 AM
The supporting cast in general is full of familiar faces (even if I’m bad at their names). From Jang So yeon (aunt in Father is Strange, secretary turned fish cult leader extraordinaire in Secret Life of My Secretary), to Jo Han Chul (detective from Healer here playing a… detective. hehe), the supporting characters are nothing to sneeze at.
(though I will say that I was disappointed by the treatment of a cross dressing character. not just by the other characters calling him a pervert, but the way he himself acts, saying that he enjoys dressing as a woman since it scares other women ~ just, I know I shouldn’t expect any better but the creepy cross dresser is a stereotype I would very much love to do without)
Cocoa, The Fake Poet of February
August 26, 2019 at 11:03 AM
Anyways, the plot is cray cray, and I can’t predict what will happen even now at episode 10. There are still so many unanswered questions, and I love it. Let’s just hope Moon Geun Young stay away from a ToD long enough to get them answered.
http://i1058.photobucket.com/albums/t413/javabeansdb/drama/2015/village/village1/village4-00504a.jpg
FlyingTool
September 8, 2019 at 4:07 PM
You have many more twists and turns to go through! I live watched, and enjoyed the heck out of this drama.