Kim Sun Ah as Samsoon

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 ]

My, how dramas have changed >>

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

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 24 Comments →

[And now for Dahee Fanel's comprehensive take on the past year! --javabeans]

First of all, I’d like to bow my head in deep gratitude to Javabeans, the highly esteemed writer of this blog, for inviting me to post a few thoughts here. I hope she won’t regret her decision after reading what I have to say, hehe.

2007 was an interesting year, at least for me, particularly when it comes to Korean dramas. I’ve watched dramas on a regular basis since I was old enough to walk and talk (I am, after all, Korean), but I’ve never undergone such a transformation in terms of how I approach dramas as I have in the past couple of years…although I suppose you could argue that it’s turned me into nothing but a picky bitch. (But weren’t you always a picky bitch, Dahee?)

Still, despite my pickiness, I managed to watch quite a handful of dramas this year, although I certainly didn’t manage to finish them all (blame school and the crappy work that some PDs and writers dish out, putting off viewers like me). In fact, I watched so many, I can’t possibly talk about them all here. So I’ll just pick a few notables and dish out some kudos, as well as one or two boos. Because boos are just as fun as kudos, if not as well-received.

DAHEE’S SONG OF THE DAY

Jo Kwan Woo - “천년애” (chun nyun ae), from the soundtrack of the drama The King & I. [ zShare download ]

In which I am embarrassingly long-winded

Tags: Coffee Prince, Dae Jang Geum, Dal Ja's Spring, Devil, guest bloggers, Insoon Is Pretty, King and I, Legend, Madam Ah Hyun Dong, Mixed-up Investigative Agency, My Man's Woman, Surgeon Bong Dal Hee, Taereung National Village, Thank You, Time of Dog and Wolf, White Tower, year in review, Yi San

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by Dahee_Fanel - 43 Comments →

[And now, please give your warm welcome to guest blogger Thunderbolt, who shares with us her year-end review! --javabeans]

Has this happened to you? You’re reading a book on the bus or train and all of a sudden you burst out laughing. Everyone’s staring but you can’t stop grinning. And all because that line you just read was so unexpectedly funny.

Here’s another scenario. You’re watching one of the hit kdramas of 2006 and after being entertained for the first eighteen episodes or so, you’re down to the last few episodes. And though you had been warned that it was going to be draggy from here, you had no idea how draggy. So now you’re climbing the walls. Your mood’s so foul from the plot shenanigans you want to hurl two cartons of rotten tomatoes at your TV screen.

That was my 2007. A year where I laughed and cried my way through dramas so good they made me even more of an addict. A year where I watched stuff that people were raving about and I shook my head and said, “Something’s seriously amiss with me because I. JUST. DON’T. GET. THE. HYPE.” I raved, I ranted, and just like that, a year has gone by. Here’s my “hits and misses” (how original a title, right?^^) roundup for 2007.

THUNDERBOLT’S SONG OF THE DAY

Uhm Tae Woong - “사랑하지 말아줘” (Don’t love me) from the OST of Devil. Singing must run in the family. (Older sis is the “Korean Madonna” Uhm Jung Hwa.) [ zShare download ]

And it comes with a video! Live performance by actor/singer Uhm Tae Woong:

Thunderbolts gems and head-scratchers >>

Tags: Dal Ja's Spring, Devil, guest bloggers, Legend, Mixed-up Investigative Agency, Surgeon Bong Dal Hee, Thank You, Time of Dog and Wolf, White Tower, year in review

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by thunderbolt - 55 Comments →

Yoo Seung Ho, Shim Eun Kyung (both from “Legend”)

 
Longtime kdrama lovers have noted for a while now that Korea’s got some serious talent in the child-acting department. Ever since young Moon Geun Young stole the show in Autumn Love Story, perhaps even eclipsing her adult counterpart Song Hye Gyo (one of Korea’s most famous natural beauties, but never noted for her acting skills), lots of child actors have gained notice not just as props in a series but as legitimate, moving characters.

There’s been a boom lately, too, one of the reasons being the recent crowd of sageuk dramas, which tend to span more of a character’s life, often including his/her childhood.

According to Star News:

Child actors’ contributions to dramas are growing larger, to the extent that some say they influence one’s success or failure. The actors portraying the childhood roles of the adult actors in dramas like MBC’s Legend, SBS’s King and I, MBC’s Yi San etc. are garnering attention with their roles. …

(Random) SONG OF THE DAY

Maybee - “Day dream” [ zShare download ]

Continue reading >>

Tags: Legend, Shin Eun-kyung, Thank You, Yi San

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 15 Comments →

Since last week was the week of many finales, that makes this week the (very busy) week of many premieres. Help me, I’m drowning in dramas! This week alone, we have the premieres of: Que Sera Sera, Hello! Miss, Witch Amusement, Thank You, Devil (Mawang), H.I.T… Seriously, I don’t know where I’ll get the time. I’ll make the time somehow. Maybe most of the shows will suck so I don’t have to feel bad about dropping them.

There was no new episode of Que Sera Sera today (boo for televised sporting events!), but I do have ONE related goody for you (much thanks to yeohweping and ay_link!):

(Theme) SONG OF THE DAY

W & Whale - “Moonlight” (”월광,” weol gwang): Main theme song to Que Sera Sera. Can’t you just picture Eric strutting down the street to this song? He’s not at all my type, but I can’t deny he IS one sexy man. [ zShare download ]

[Read more →]

Tags: Devil, Go Hyun-jung, Hello! Miss, HIT, Joo Ji-hoon, Lee Da-hae, Lee Ji-hoon, Shin Mina, Thank You, Uhm Tae-woong

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by javabeans - 51 Comments →