Yesterday’s Go Soo post had me looking closer at his new movie, The Front Line, a high-budget blockbuster war film that’s expected to do big business this summer.

The plot caught my attention with its suspenseful, uneasy premise, and the creds aren’t so bad, either: Director Jang Hoon steered thrillers Rough Cut and Secret Reunion to box-office success. The screenplay is written by Park Sang-yeon, who wrote scripts for Queen Seon-deok and the upcoming Tree With Deep Roots, as well as the original novels for Joint Security Area and May 18, which were turned into films.

The movie is set in the very last months of the Korean War, and depicts the horrors of war as experienced by its young soldiers. Shin Ha-kyun plays an officer in the counterespionage division, Eun-pyo, who is sent to the volatile eastern front to investigate a suspicious series of events, beginning with the death of a soldier, shot by one of his own, as well as the delivery of a letter from the North Korean Army via the South Korean post. Illicit correspondence can only mean fraternizing with the enemy.

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Read the rest of Summer blockbuster The Front Line opens to high expectations (406 words)

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Post tags: Go Chang-seok, Go Soo, Lee Je-hoon, Ryu Seung-soo, Shin Ha-kyun

Aaaack, this drama is so sadistic – I feel like a yo-yo. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I’m just watching super passively, because there’s nothing that happens that’s unexpected or new. We just keep circling one plot point over and over again, in slightly different iterations. But then one thing happens to jerk me back in, and I’m Kang-Ji-hwan-toast. A total goner. Gah.

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Read the rest of Lie To Me: Episode 6 (2,822 words)

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Post tags: featured, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

The lie’s in full effect now, and with it come the shenanigans of perpetrating the farce, with a few teeny signs hinting at the budding attraction despite/because of the lie. Frankly I thought the lie-induced hilarity would be more, well, hilarious, but I hope that the things set up in this episode will play out to a more amusing payoff in tomorrow’s. *fingers crossed*

SONG OF THE DAY

Standing Egg – “사랑한대” (He Says He Loves Me) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Lie To Me: Episode 5 (2,942 words)

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Post tags: featured, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

Yay, the brothers meet! And it’s not only cute, but I’m finally getting emotionally invested. It’s actually the brothers’ relationship that ends up pulling me in, go figure. Glad they didn’t go melodrama-on-melodrama with them, despite the tragic love triangle setup. It’s not without some melodramatic flair, but it’s kept realistic in its core relationship, which is something I can groove with. Now I finally have an in with this drama, and can feel the characters becoming people rather than just cardboard cutouts.

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Read the rest of Lie To Me: Episode 4 (3,171 words)

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Post tags: featured, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

Week 2 of Lie To Me brings us an extension of the lie, and although it doesn’t bring a whole lot of surprises, it’s the chemistry of the cast that has me coming back for more. Ah-jung is sure to have more crackling chemistry with Ki-joon in future episodes when their lovelines really get tangled up, but for now it’s the adorable, easy-breezy vibe with Sang-hee that I’m digging. It’s not very romantic, but that’s what I like about it — the casual friendship that is somehow turning into a more substantial connection as she starts to see him more as confidante. Cute cute cute. Can’t wait when the brotherly relationship is unveiled.

SONG OF THE DAY

Lie To Me OST – “뻔뻔한 거짓말” (Bold Lie) by Heo Ga-yoon [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Lie To Me: Episode 3 (3,652 words)

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Post tags: featured, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

I suppose there are worse things in the world than a hottie on either arm. Amiright? The chemistry is great. Problem is, it’s there with BOTH brothers… setting us up for a world of pain down the road. We’re still in paint-by-numbers territory with this drama, and it’s possible that Show will just take up residence there, but hopefully once the setup is in place, we’ll get to more interesting things, plotwise. But it’s zippy and fun, and ‘sides, what’s a little fake marriage between perfect strangers?

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Read the rest of Lie to Me: Episode 2 (2,867 words)

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Post tags: featured, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

And yet another May trendy premieres! Today’s new offering is Lie To Me, which is, in a nutshell, a cute story with a familiar setup buoyed by two appealing actors. But we knew that even before the drama started, didn’t we? Trendies so often employ the same conflicts and character types that the success of one is all about the execution. I’d say the execution in this one is decent — not really an out-of-the-gates spitfire, but comfortably entertaining.

Also: Tag-team relay recap! We’re both covering this first episode this time, so I’ll be handing the baton over at the midway point so girlfriday can get her say. ‘Cause, why not?

SONG OF THE DAY

Biuret – “거짓말” (Lie) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Lie To Me: Episode 1 (3,641 words)

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Post tags: featured, first episodes, Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

Promo posters are out for Lie To Me, which are cute despite displaying a noted resemblance to the Sungkyunkwan Scandal poster. (Though, really, it’s hardly a novel concept anywhere.) But no matter, since Kang Ji-hwan and Yoon Eun-hye are both charismatic and easy on the eyes, with the added bonus of having a history of good chemistry with their partners.

The posters reflect the drama’s marriage motif, with both dressed in formal wedding duds. (I love Yoon’s flirty gown, which I suppose you could call her little white minidress. But I’m a fan of short wedding dresses in general, just as long as they’re not the type favored by the quickie weddings of all-night, Elvis-run chapels. Isn’t all that polyester a fire hazard?)

And while the fake marriage is a common trope in dramas, I have faith (or maybe it’s delusion-fueled hope) that this drama will handle it much better than, say, the sadly plotted Mary Stayed Out All Night (which failed not once, but twice with both fake marriages. Sigh. All right, let that one go now…). One added source of dramatic conflict in this drama is Kang Ji-hwan’s high profile as (sigh) a chaebol, and while I am fast tiring of the prevalence of the media-as-problem-causer and -solver setup, you can’t deny that in a celeb-, image-, and internet-obsessed society like Korea, it makes sense.

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Read the rest of Lie To Me releases posters, new stills (257 words)

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Post tags: Hong Soo-hyun, Kang Ji-hwan, Lie To Me, Ryu Seung-soo, Yoon Eun-hye

Last episode is here!

To be honest, I kinda dragged my feet on this one, not just because episode recaps take much more time than anything else, but because I didn’t want to face the blankness of having nothing to watch for the immediate future (and don’tcha know, avoidance always solves problems!). Plus, I feel that final episodes deserve a little more time and effort to give (good) series their proper send-offs. (Bad series can just suck it.)

SONG OF THE DAY

Oldfish – “Way to Home.” I LOVE Oldfish. [ zShare download ]

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Read the rest of Mixed-up Investigative Agency: Case 16 (Final) (2,966 words)

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Post tags: Lee Eun-sung, Lee Min-ki, Mixed-up Investigative Agency, Ryu Seung-soo, Yeh Ji-won

What an excellent episode. By far the best to date. Episode 15 had everything — adventure, mystery, suspense, emotion, depth, and yet another well-done cliffhanger ending.

In fact, it rather felt like a mini-movie more than an episode of television because of the way it skillfully brought the tension to a head; and yet, there were still those trademark Mixed-up small moments of goofiness and wit. It wasn’t till the episode finished that I realized I’d spent the hour all tensed up in anxiety. With just one more episode to go, do our fearless friends finally find the treasure??!?

SONG OF THE DAY

Rumble Fish – “그곳으로” (To That Place) [ zShare download ]

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Read the rest of Mixed-up Investigative Agency: Case 15 (2,309 words)

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Post tags: Lee Eun-sung, Lee Min-ki, Mixed-up Investigative Agency, Ryu Seung-soo, Yeh Ji-won