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 ]

O, the mediocrity >>

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by javabeans - 74 Comments →

MBC hosted its awards ceremony for the 2008 Acting Awards on December 30. Let me first reiterate that I think these end-of-year broadcast-station awards are mostly meaningless. That said, this year’s Daesangs were TOTAL WEAKSAUCE, MBC. Top honor (the “Daesang” grand prize) went to…

Oh, you mean it was split this year? Between Beethoven Virus’s much-lauded epitome of awesomeness, Kim Myung-min, and East of Eden’s overblown and overrated Song Seung-heon?? I mean, I could understand going for the sentimental vote and awarding deceased Choi Jin-shil (she got a lifetime achievement instead), but Song Seung-heon winning acting awards is in itself a joke.

[Read more →]

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 144 Comments →

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 ]

[Read more →]

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews, Oh snap by thunderbolt - 87 Comments →

MBC won’t be awarding its end-of-year winners until December 30, but it has revealed its acting award nominees, and the name of deceased actress Choi Jin-shil has been included as a candidate for the acting Daesang, or Grand Prize.

Essentially, these year-end fetes are just a way for stations to hand out trophies to all their actors, to keep them feeling special. Of all the awards ceremonies, I feel that these broadcast station awards mean the least, since practically any lead actor in a drama will be given one that year. Like a mere token. One look at the full list (posted below) should show you that most of these are a joke. (I mean, General Hospital JUST started airing, what, a week ago?)

Still, the Daesang probably carries a tiny bit more weight, since it’s the one that’s singled out as the top honor. And while Choi may not have had the meatiest role of her career in 2008 (that title goes to her 2005 tearjerker A Rosy Life), there’s a chance she may end up with the Daesang as a sort of posthumous tribute.

Other Daesang nominees who are having big years include East of Eden’s Song Seung-heon in his comeback drama and Kim Myung-min as the House-esque insult-slinging maestro in Beethoven Virus.

Check out the full Daesang nominee list and other nominations >>

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

Almost-38-year-old actor (39 by Korean standards) Jung Jun-ho had announced his wedding plans following the successful finish of his last drama, the romantic comedy series The Last Scandal of My Life.

Well, the whirlwind romance is over and the wedding is off.

The couple had initially intended to marry this year, but had pushed back plans once already due to Jung’s filming schedule. At the time, he’d explained that the date would be set for early next year, because of his work schedule and also because of the health of his father, who had recently undergone surgery for stomach cancer.

His management company rep didn’t have any further information regarding the cancellation of the engagement, saying, “As this is a private matter, we at the management company are also waiting for his official statement.”

Meanwhile, plans for the second season of The Last Scandal of My Life are still on, with a projected November airdate.

Via My Daily

RELATED POSTS

• So, I guess it wasn’t the LAST scandal of his life
• Wedding bells (almost, kinda) for Jung Jun-ho
• The Last Scandal of My Life: Episodes 1-4

Filed under: Celebrity News by javabeans - 10 Comments →