KBS’s current Monday-Tuesday show, Princess Has Returned [공주가 돌아왔다], has been pretty unremarkable (in ratings and in response) and ends on a similarly quiet note this week. On the other hand, I’m looking at the show to take over its slot next week with some interest — Invincible Lee Pyeong-gang [천하무적 이평강] seems to have come together rather under the radar, but now it’s got me perked up in interest.

The drama blends together sageuk elements with the contemporary in its reimagining of the classic folktale of Princess Pyeong-gang and the Fool On-dal. The fusion drama stars Nam Sang-mi (Time of Dog and Wolf) and Ji Hyun-woo (My Sweet Seoul).

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Post tags: Cha Ye-ryun, Choi Myung-gil, fusion dramas, Invincible Lee Pyeong-gang, Ji Hyun-woo, Kim Heung-soo, Nam Sang-mi, Park Ki-woong, Seo Do-young, Yeon Mi-joo

Let’s get this out of the way: The first fifteen minutes or so are crap. They’re silly, questionably acted, and a little embarrassing with all the rough English (although the scenes are necessary in a strictly plot-related way). But the rest of the episode (once the story moves to Korea) has its charm, and is actually quite cute, at times laugh-out-loud funny.

I haven’t read the manhwa on which this drama is based, but I’m guessing that most of the key elements have been preserved, and I think the two leads — Im Joo-hwan and Seo Woo — are well-matched.

Granted, one can’t take Tamra the Island too seriously. That would be an exercise in futility, and would probably suck all the fun out of it, anyway. It’s meant to be fun and campy and comic book-y, and you might enjoy it on those terms — just as long as you don’t expect it to be an accurate historical reflection or dramatic piece of art, naturally.

(I notice that the website uses the spelling “Tamra” despite its hangul spelling [탐나], so for the sake of consistency I’ll use Tamra too.)

SONG OF THE DAY

Yoon Sang – “소심한 물고기들” (Timid fish) [ Download ]

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Post tags: episode recaps, fusion dramas, Hwang Chan-bin, Im Joo-hwan, Lee Sun-ho, Seo Woo, Tamra the Island

Ah, another final episode, another drama wrapped.

Let’s be honest: Strongest Chil Woo isn’t a great show. It’s probably not even a good one. But it has been often entertaining and despite its recent darker turns, I was holding out hope that the finale would see a return to lighter, goofier times. In that, I’m pretty satisfied. The resolution we’re given is hopeful without being too cartoony, and as far as last episodes go, it did the job.

But let’s get on with the show…

SONG OF THE DAY

Strongest Chil Woo OST – “내가 달려갈께” (I’ll run) by Lazybone [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Strongest Chil Woo: Episode 20 (Final) (3,101 words)

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Post tags: episode recaps, Eric, fusion dramas, Gu Hye-sun, Kim Byul, sageuk dramas, Strongest Chil Woo, Yoo Ah-in

If I had to rate the recent episodes, I’d say the previous several haven’t been very good — and that’s by Chil Woo standards, so we’re talking pretty low stuff. Not awful, just boring. But today’s picked up considerably, and even managed a shocker — which I guess is to be expected since we end tomorrow.

SONG OF THE DAY

Strongest Chil Woo OST – “언젠가” (Someday) by Hye Na [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Strongest Chil Woo: Episode 19 (2,494 words)

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Post tags: episode recaps, Eric, fusion dramas, Gu Hye-sun, sageuk dramas, Strongest Chil Woo

There’s something about this image I really like. The set may look artificial and the background may be too fakely blue, but it’s a nice, homey family scene that carries added meaning as a happy moment of calm before the storm.

As for the drama’s audience, the pre-empting of Gourmet’s Episode 18 today probably accounts for the jump in Chil Woo’s ratings. The numbers have held steady in the 10%-11% range (AGB numbers; TNS is typically about 1% lower) for much of its run, and jumped suddenly today to 14.5%.

Things wrap up for Chil Woo next week, so we start to feel the story setting itself up for its grand finale.

SONG OF THE DAY

Star Love Fish – “지워진 날들” (erased days) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Strongest Chil Woo: Episode 18 (2,444 words)

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Post tags: episode recaps, Eric, fusion dramas, Gu Hye-sun, sageuk dramas, Strongest Chil Woo

They should create a spinoff with Orroz and Chul Seok, because these two are the only ones pulling their acting weight these days. Both are strong in today’s episode, in a way that transcends the cheese factor of the drama’s storytelling (the drama plot itself isn’t so cheesy these days, but it’s all in the execution). Although I’d accept some Kim Byul (Yeon Doo) thrown in for some comic relief, too.

Eric is actually not doing a BAD job, but in contrast, his performance isn’t able to break through that Barrier of Cheese. I’m not quite sure why, but when watching his more emotive moments, I keep getting the sense that it’s too bad since his acting might be effective in the hands of a competent director.

SONG OF THE DAY

Oriental Lucy – “Lorina Homestay” (Their song is listed as “Rorina Homestay” on various portal sites, but “Lorina Homestay” on their own.) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Strongest Chil Woo: Episode 17 (2,293 words)

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Post tags: episode recaps, Eric, fusion dramas, Gu Hye-sun, sageuk dramas, Strongest Chil Woo

Summer is the season for chilly gothic and horror entertainment, so KBS takes the post-Women in the Sun time slot to launch its new horror series, Hometown of Legends, as its Wednesday-Thursday programming for the month of August.

Or, should I say, new OLD series. There was an earlier version that aired in the late ’90s, which had approximately 70 episodes. (I think there may have been another version in the 1980s, but I don’t know that for sure.) The stories spanned different topics (with some overlaps) but was based on the same conceit. A film of the same name — albeit translated into English as The Evil Twin — was also released in 2007 and featured Park Shin-hye and Jae Hee, the latter of whom also appears in this new series.

What sets this drama apart from others is in the episodic, anthology nature of the storytelling. Each episode is written and directed by a different team, and stars different actors in its installments. Think of it as fusion sageuk meets the Twilight Zone, or a collection of old ghost tales.

Hometown of Legends kicks off with the first episode today, “Nine-tailed Fox,” followed by others bearing titles like “Curse of the Sajin Sword” and “Demon’s Story.”

SONG OF THE DAY

Green Cheese – “Black Bird Dies” [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Hometown of Legends / Legendary Hometown (1,525 words)

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Post tags: Choi Su-jong, fusion dramas, Hometown of Legends, Jae Hee, Lee Jin, Lee Jung, Park Min-young, Sa Kang