2007 was a rich year for drama-land. There was something for everyone, whether your tastes ran toward dark thrillers (Devil), intense dramas (White Tower), heart-warmers (Thank You), off-the-wall eccentrics (Mixed-up Investigative Agency), trendy fare (Coffee Prince), romantic comedies (Dal Ja’s Spring), and so on.

2008, on the other hand… not so much.

Every drama has its good and bad points, but it’s a lot easier to decide how you feel about one when those qualities are expressed in the extreme — i.e., very good, or very bad. When everything is a muddle in the middle, though, it’s harder to draw the lines.

That’s why in contrast to last year’s “Best” and “The Rest” designations, this year I don’t really distinguish “good” versus “bad” — or even “favorites” and “hated dramas” — and can only grade on a spectrum. I call that spectrum “MEH” with the extreme poles representing “generally watchable” and “generally unwatchable.” It’s just been that kind of year.

SONG OF THE DAY

Painter of the Wind OST – “색” (Color) by JOO [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Finding Merit in the Mediocre [Year in Review, Part 4] (4,967 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 75 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: A Star's Lover, Beethoven Virus, Bulhandang/Robbers, East of Eden, Gourmet, Hong Gil Dong, I Love You, Iljimae, Love & Marriage, On Air, One Mom, Rivals, Strongest Chil Woo, Tazza, The Last Scandal of My Life, The World They Live In, Three Dads, When Night Comes, Who Are You?, year in review

How should one convey bad news in writing? By creating a buffer first. Avoid traumatizing your audience with the bad news all at once, but instead cushion the blow so that you can maintain goodwill. That textbook approach (business communication, by the way) would be dandy if the crop of 2008 dramas I watched was anything like the stellar quality of 2007. But no, this was a harvest to make one downright grumpy.

This time last year, eight dramas vied to be in my Top 3. Even the ones that disappointed weren’t half bad and at least I finished them. Not this year. I picked up around twenty dramas and dropped at least fifteen. “Dropped” is putting it mildly. I ran from some of them like a kid fleeing an apparition: hands in the air and hair standing on end. As the year wore on, my patience wore thin and my grumpiness increased.

So, no, I can’t use the buffer approach when reviewing this year’s dramas. Hedging doesn’t work for this grumpy cookie. I will present to you the worst dramas first, followed by the so-so ones, and then the few gems of 2008. Even though the year was overcast and gloomy, the sun broke through the clouds occasionally and when it did the effect was glorious. Let’s get the bad news out of the way and we can enjoy the good stuff, shall we?

SONG OF THE DAY

Jin Yi-han – “This is the Moment” which he sang (live!) in Episode 3 of Who Are You. [ Download ]

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Read the rest of A Grump Reviews 2008 [Year in Review, Part 2] (4,881 words)

© thunderbolt for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 89 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Beethoven Virus, Bulhandang/Robbers, Conspiracy in the Court, East of Eden, Gourmet, Hong Gil Dong, I Love You, Kingdom of Wind, La Dolce Vita, On Air, One Mom, Rivals, Strongest Chil Woo, The Last Scandal of My Life, The Painter of Wind, The World They Live In, Three Dads, Who Are You?, year in review

Perhaps as a corollary to this discussion of why ratings are important, for better or for worse (usually for worse), here’s an article that discusses one such ramification: actors who come attached with high price tags that the drama then is unable to recoup when a drama flops in the ratings.

(One thing to note: Despite the high numbers listed, Korean actors find most of their paychecks going to management companies, as actress Choi Jin-shil recently gained attention for mentioning. In the U.S., agents are only allowed to take 10% — though more fees get siphoned off to managers, publicists, lawyers, and the like — but that percentage is much higher for Korean celebs.)

Even if a drama flops, stars’ asking prices continue to soar. It’s not as though market theory applies, and those prices keep rising, defying logic. Even when a drama meets with crushing failure, hurting the production company behind it, a star’s fee still climbs.

This year saw many dramas that failed to draw in good results or produce high ratings, such as the dramas Single Papa in Love, Bad Love, Rivals, Three Dads, One Mom, Who Are You?, Spotlight, I Love You, Robbers, and many others. …

SONG OF THE DAY

Rivals OST – “지켜줄게” (I’ll protect you) by Lee Shin-sung [ Download ]

 
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Read the rest of Failed dramas still result in high star price tags (735 words)

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Post tags: Bad Love, Bulhandang/Robbers, drama production, drama ratings, Park Shin-yang, War of Money

I was thinking how I’ve been watching lots of first episodes of dramas these days, but haven’t found anything to dive into since the end of Who Are You? It’s starting to feel like going on a string of disappointing first dates — measuring up expectations versus performance, anticipation versus letdown, etc.

You know, there’s that date you’re really looking forward to, so you get dressed up and put on your heels and makeup and count down the hours, and he turns out to be a total dud. Or the date you agreed to because it was easier to give the guy your number than to try to invent an excuse not to because those excuses always come out embarrassingly half-assed — like you say you don’t have a phone and then it rings, or something — but then you end up having a good time.

I didn’t exactly intend to go off on an extended metaphor, but when I thought about all the recent dramas I’ve caught, they all seemed to fit (more or less).

SONG OF THE DAY

G.O.D. – “Falling” [ Download ]

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Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Coffee Prince, Hong Gil Dong, I Love You, Iljimae, La Dolce Vita, On Air, ranty/ravey, Rivals, Spotlight, The Last Scandal of My Life, Tokyo Showers, Who Are You?, Why Did You Come To Our House, Yi San

Hong Gil Dong is performing decently well in the ratings — it’s not soaring, but holding steady in its initial 15% range against the hit medical drama New Heart, which has risen with its latest episode to break the 30% mark. (Their third rival barely compares; Bulhandang [Con Man] is struggling, having sunk to nearly half its initial viewership of 9.8% to 5.5%. In fact, most press refers to the Wednesday-Thursday ratings battle as a two-way competition, leaving Bulhandang out of the equation.)

15% ratings doesn’t make the series a runaway hit, but it’s respectable, given that the numbers have stayed relatively constant throughout its run. New Heart (MBC) has the added benefit of having premiered a few weeks prior to the other two series; Hong Gil Dong (KBS2) and Bulhandang (SBS) began their runs on the same day.

Newsen reports that Hong Gil Dong is further winning audiences through its repeat broadcasts; the latest ratings numbers released by TNS Media Korea show Hong Gil Dong recording as high as 7.6% for its latest (the 14th) episode rerun. Naturally, the other series are also airing repeats, but TNS points out that Bulhandang trails there also, by a solid 2% margin.

New Heart, Bulhandang

Via Newsen, IS Plus

SONG OF THE DAY

New Heart OST – “Monologue” by Monday Kiz [ zShare download ]

RELATED POSTS

• Hong Gil Dong: Episode 14
• Hong Gil Dong: Episode 13
• Jang Hyuk’s busy new year
• Robbers aka Con Man aka Bulhandang
• Pictures speak louder than words

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 19 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Hong Gil Dong, New Heart

Congrats to new dad Jang Hyuk.

The actor’s year is already plenty busy just one and a half months into 2008, and it’s about to get busier. He’d announced his marriage plans at the end of December, and is currently starring in the SBS drama Bulhandang (Con Man). In the series, which is earning middling response amid poor ratings (it airs opposite more popular shows New Heart and Hong Gil Dong), he plays an unscrupulous wastrel opposite Lee Da Hae‘s widowed young single mom.

Then, just a few days ago on February 8, he became the proud father to a baby boy. In order to properly record his newborn son in the family register, however, the couple will be registering their marriage first, then hold the wedding ceremony in June.

Via Newsen

SONG OF THE DAY

I.F. (Infinite Flow) – “연애편지” (love letter) [ zShare download ]

RELATED POST:

• Robbers, aka Con Man, aka Bulhandang 불한당

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Jang Hyuk, weddings

Anyone’s who’s been watching kdramas for a number of years has probably, at some point, noted the same thing as the following article. Early Hallyu kicked off the hallmarks of The Korean Melodrama (And Boy Do I Mean Drama!), and I think more recent offerings are unfortunately still colored (dare I say tainted?) by the tropes established in the early stuff. For instance, the impoverished but virtuous female, the Prince Charming who rescues her, the evil and jealous second female lead who’d do anything to sabotage the main romance, the second male lead who never had a shot, the cancer, the tears, the angst. Consider: Autumn Fairy Tale, Winter Sonata, Stairway to Heaven, Star In My Heart, Glass Slippers, All About Eve…

Judging from those early dramas alone, I wouldn’t blame people outside the culture for thinking, “Boy those Koreans sure have a lot of young rich studs and poor beautiful damsels in distress. Imagine how productive the country would be if everyone stopped trying to futz around with each other’s love lives and just got their act together.”

Anyway, many dramas these days still play on the old stereotypes, but the tenor has changed. The stage is gradually shifting, perhaps most notably in the female roles:

Female Characters, Boundless Transformations

Where’s the end to actresses’ transformations? Nowadays, female characters in every kind of drama and film are evolving. In particular, with the success of projects depending less on plot than character, actresses are taking “meaningful risks” in going for a different image or acting that evokes audience sympathy.

TV miniseries in the ’80s and ’90s employed the “Cinderella story” formula in search of success, and brought about a general trend following the “Candy”-esque [the manhwa] philosophy: “Though I’m loney, though I’m sad, I don’t cry.”

In these stories, a kind and obedient female would overcome all sorts of adversities to realize her success in the form of love with a successful man. As a result, popular actresses cultivated innocent images that would elicit a protective instinct. Typical examples include Shin Aera of Love In Your Arms [Sarang eul gudae eui poom ahn ae] and Choi Jin Shil of Star in My Heart.

SONG OF THE DAY

My Name Is Kim Sam Soon OST – “She Is” by Clazziquai. This song makes me totally nostalgic every time I hear it. [ zShare download ]

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Read the rest of Drama leading ladies, oh how you’ve changed (1,066 words)

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Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Gong Hyo-jin, Kim Sun-ah, Lee Da-hae, My Name Is Kim Samsoon, old-school, Thank You

Okay, okay, last name switch, I swear. I wouldn’t normally bother to change the translation for a series title as widely known as “Robbers” if I didn’t feel the term(s) misrepresented the actual title. It’s nobody’s fault, of course, since you can’t always be sure what a title refers to until the series airs, and by then people have become used to the working title. But “Robbers” is misleading (who else conjured up images of a rollicking Bonnie & Clyde-esque duo?) in that it’s plural, and the title only refers to Jang Hyuk, who plays a scoundrel and con man. (Of course, you’re all welcome to keep using the title you’re used to.)

I make the disclaimer up front that this is not a full episode recap, nor am I certain I’ll take on the entire series. The reason I’m wary of Bulhandang is that for some reason, it makes me think of 2006′s Lovers — prime candidate as kdrama bait-and-switch material. That series sparkled in its first few episodes, funny and light-hearted and promising lots of romantic-comedy foibles between its main pairing of Kim Jung Eun and Lee Seo Jin. And then it went all tragic and overblown and hysterically emotional. I should also note that my opinions on Lovers fall in the vast minority — most tend to rave about the series, its intensity, and its chemistry — and I’m cool with that. But I found it odd and jarring that Lovers, which treated gangsters and crime bosses with humor and jokey fun, should then shift to making them so life-threateningly dangerous. The mixed tone unbalanced the drama, thought I, which is why I could never get into the dark, somber, angst-ridden second half of the series.

Bulhandang is a far cry from Lovers, but my Spidey sense is tingling, and for that I am wary. After suffering through Lovers, I give fair warning that I’m ready to jump ship at the first indication that Bulhandang is heading into tragic melodrama.

That said, Bulhandang‘s first two episodes were cute.

SONG OF THE DAY

Star Love Fish – “거짓말” (Lie) [ zShare download ]

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Read the rest of Robbers, aka Con Man, aka Bulhandang (불한당) (2,511 words)

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Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, first episodes, Jang Hyuk, Lee Da-hae

 
I’m really, really looking forward to Hong Gil Dong. More than any other series in recent memory. If it sucks, I think I will cry. Or break something. (Or exaggerate.)

As Hong Gil Dong premieres on the same day (next week) with Bulhandang (Robbers), both shows have just held their obligatory pre-premiere press conferences.

The ratings battle begins next week (although doesn’t one just SEEM so much more fun just based on the pics? Or is that just my bias showing?). Check out the loads of pics below the cut.

SONG OF THE DAY

Lena Park – “달아요” (dal-a-yo). Lena Park is fairly underrated. (Also known by her Korean name, Park Jung Hyun.) She’s been around for years, and although her stuff is generally listed as R&B (R&B in the way that As One can be called R&B), she does a bit of genre-hopping. This song is jazzier and mellow, while some of her other stuff is more ballad-y. There’s something different about her sound than the typical pop ballads, though; their dramatic melodies remind me of Broadway musicals in their theatricality. In any case, she might be a “pop singer” but she’s recognized for being a strong vocalist.
[ zShare download ]

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Read the rest of Pictures speak louder than words… (235 words)

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Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Hong Gil Dong

Some early Bulhandang/Robbers pics of Lee Da Hae‘s character “Dallae” in bygone days in her wedding dress. The character loses her husband (judging from the dress, either sometime in the ’70s or in a frump-disco-era time-warp zone), and now lives with her daughter and mother-in-law after her husband dies.

I wonder if the title should more accurately be “Con Man” in the singular tense, since it seems to refer to Jang Hyuk’s scoundrel character… Apparently her love turns him into a new man or something. Erm. Not really feeling it.

(I’ve been hard on Lee Da Hae lately, but it’s just because she’s been so blah. She was good in what I’ve seen of Green Rose; I loved her in My Girl even though I agree with complaints that she was too over-acty. Still, I found her cute and I loved the story and the humor. She was over-acty in Hello Miss (disregarding the mediocre story) even though she was great when she WASN’T trying to act cute. Unfortunately, she tries to act cute almost all the freaking time. She really doesn’t need to. You know how some people are cool because they don’t care about being cool? She’s like the opposite of that. If she were able to let go of her vanity just a little (okay, a whole lot), she could be a really great actor.)

Via Sports Khan

SONG OF THE DAY

Bulldog Mansion – “잘가라 사랑아” (goodbye, my love) [ zShare download ]

RELATED POST

• Bulhandang premiere delayed

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2007. | Permalink | 24 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bulhandang/Robbers, Lee Da-hae