Today i received a shocking news from my parents. The dam located near my house, broke down and making huge volumes of dam water to sweep over residential areas. Apparently, 72 people were killed. I am so sad. Hope all of them rest in peace:(

i got into college! haha. i didn't really have any non-immediate-family type people to share this with, so i share it with everyone here(:

For anyone looking to purchase DVD's, I would recommend watching at least the first 2-3 episodes of a drama online that you are considering buying before actually making the purchase. There are a lot of sites out there that have streaming dramas. A few of my favorites are: DramaFever, aznv.tv, and MySoju. I live in Hawaii, so I usually buy my DVD's from Costco, Beauty Touch in Don Quiote, WalMart, or Toys N Joys (their copies are not the originals...but there's nothing wrong with them).

Here is a list of dramas/movies that I have seen and actually purchased (or still looking to purchase) after watching them:

-My Lovely Samsoon
-Snow Queen
-9 Ends 2 Outs
-Boys Before Flowers
-A Love to Kill
-Ddaeryuh (Punch)
-Que Sera Sera
-All In
-Fashion 70's
-Shoot for the Stars
-Hotelier
-200 Pounds Beauty
-100 Days With Mr. Arrogant
-Love So Divine
-A Millionaire's First Love

And a list of dramas that I've seen, but wouldn't necessarily add to my collection:

-Coffee Prince
-My Girl
-Goong (Palace)
-Delightful Girl Chun-Hyang
-Full House
Thank You
-What Happened in Bali

Then there's those that I just couldn't seem to finish:

-Soulmate
-World's Within
-Star's Lover
-The Vineyard Man
-Summer Scent
-Queen of the Game

I've realized that my taste in dramas is not the usual favorites of Coffee Prince, My Girl, etc. So anyone who can recommend me some other good dramas would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance. ^_^

i have just finished watching the movie of Kimura Takuya "hero" ,i watch the drama then the SP and after this movie , it is very funny i advice to watch it the drama and the movie because it is very good , there my list for this actor :
pride
hero (drama+movie)
a million star falling from the sky
a sleeping forest
CHANGE
GOOD LUCK
long vacation
love generation
so for who still not watch thes dramas , i say to him hurry up and go to watch them especially " pride" i give this drama 10/10 ALSO HERO , all his drama is good ( except a sleeping forest i don't like it very much )
so good bye until i found another drama , my project now is " ENGINE " and "Karei naru Ichizoku"
when i like a actor i must watching all his drama to feed up with him and then i look for another actor .

hey javabeans and everyone!

Map the Soul is out today. Are your copies on the way?

@Samsookie

Sorry. If you do get the Korean dvds and your dvd player doesn't work with that region, you could install anydvd -or a similar program- on your computer thus making your machine all-region http://www.slysoft.com/en/anydvd.html It does work. ;)

@ mariouma,

And to add to the Ultimate Kimura Experience:

He was moving as a swordsman in jidaeki "Love and Honor"

For the ultimate in meta-idol, he romances Faye Wong (SQQQUEEEEEEE!!!!!) in 2046 inside the pages of Little Tony's lonely, cad mind.

And be sure to check out his bits as P-chan on SMAP's variety show. In one clip
(which you can find on Youtube), P-chan puts the move on Inoue Mao and you can kinda tell Mao-chan's THIS close to going into full SQUEEE mode.

I already have a line up of dramas to watch after BOF wraps up. But I need to add in a Jdorama or 2. Any suggestions?

@ belleza ,
thanks and of course , i decided to watch his movie 2046 but until i finish his drama

@24 Kender, I KNOW! I watched their BOF parody, and before I knew it, I was watching episode after episode of IC. I had to practice some very well needed self-control to stop myself from spending my entire day on it, and 1 Night 2 Days as well. JunJin is hilarious though, in IC, although I do love MC Yoo, and his sense of humor as well as good nature.

Another week has gone by...classes are ending soon! YES!
Which means finals are coming up...booo =P
On the bright side, summer is almost here in Toronto...too bad I won't be able to stay here for it =P

Earth hour! Play 'Sardines'! Don't fall!

@Snikki

What kind of jdorama do you want to watch? A comedy? A rom com? a crime show? And have you ever watched any before?

to @ snikki
look for the list of @ 54 .
BESIDES :
1 )hana kimi ( i love this drama it is adorable , funny ) and be sure that you will be enjoyed 9,5/ 10
2)Kurosagi : if you want mysteries and suspense , it is good i give her 7/10
3)Kimi wa Petto : romance and comedy
but i advise for the list of ( @ 54 especially pride) and i am sure that you don't regret .
( PS: this rating is by me , maybe you liked like me and maybe not , everyone have his own choice)

which korean actors/actresses are bilingual?

For snikki

Guys, how come you haven't mentioned
Nobuta Wo Produce
Hana Yori Dango (eh, but if you've watched BBF, wait a little)
Zettai Kareshi

just to name 3? One of my fave this season was Akai Ito. Mei-chan no Shitsuji is silly, but entertaining. It all depends from what you want to watch.

Also? If you want to watch a drama with Yamapi, then choose Nobuta wo produce over Kurosagi, which is good, but not as much as Nobuta, imho. Plus, Horikita Maki + Kamenashi Kazuya + Yamashita Tomohisa = love!

I would love to collect all my fave korean kdramas in dvds!here in US, eastcoast, it's very difficult to buy korean dvds with eng subs! I relay on sansasian and yesasia if i wana buy dvds.
@ SAMSOOKI: LOL! I DEFINITELY AM VERY CAREFUL WHEN I BUY KOREAN DVDS. I HAVE TO MAKE SURE IT IS NOT SUBBED BY CHINESE SUBBERS! LAST TIME I DID BUY, I WAS LAUGHING MY BUTT OFF WHILE WATCHING A HEAVY DRAMA SERIES! GOSH, THE TRANSLATIONS WERE FAAARRRRR OFFFF AND TOTALLY "????" ^-^

well, this week started off with a great start. i loved victory concert saturday so much fun. then monday, wednesday, and friday i had midterms, so that sucked. plus the game on monday didn't help that much, i wanted korea to win against japan so bad. i was yelling at home my sister must have wanted to hurt me. the only thing that helped this week was that it got confirmed for hollywood bowl that all 5 members of SS501 are coming and that's what's been helping me go on. and also next week is my spring break, FINALLY!!!!!! i can finally catch up on all the sleep i missed this week. and i have a root canal to look forward to tomorrow. YUCK!! :(

how's everyone else doing?

I'm just wondering if there are any news about Full House 2. I see that DramaWiki already has a page for it, and it says it's coming out on Augest of 2009. I'm hoping that Goo Hye Sun get the main female lead.

"i wanted korea to win against japan so bad. i was yelling at home my sister must have wanted to hurt me."

Especially brutal was that it was Ichiro Suzuki (who made some interesting comments about South Korea some years back) who killed South Korea. (And let's face it. The manager knew better, but he let his pride get in the way.) And, apparently, a few obnoxious Japanese fans (just a few) pulled out the Japanese Imperial Flag in front of the Korea fans (saw that on TV too.) There's "oh no you didn't"; there's "wanna die!"; then there's pulling out the Imperial Flag in front of your former colony and then your Japanese friends calling your Korean friends and going "we still own you LOL" My friends so suck. :D

However, we're done yet. NO. The boys had their fun; now the housewives of Korea and Japan will wage battle when the two best figure skaters in the world, Korea's Yuna Kim and Japan's Mao Asada, head off in the City of Los Scandalous. It's the Passion of Yuna-unni vs. the Elegance of Mao-chan toNIGHT!!!

"If you want to watch a drama with Yamapi, then choose Nobuta wo produce over Kurosagi"

The Official YamaPi Watch List (in order of priority)

1. Nobuta wo Produce. (Nobuta Powa!! *makes v sign*) Also, look for his single with Kame, "Seishun Amigo", the biggest single of 2005.

2. Kurosagi. (Is it just me, or is YamaKi the most overrated coupling in J-dorama fangirlism?) Look for "Daite Senorita"

3. Dragon Zakura (underrated and hard-headed anecdote to GTO/Gokusen-school dramas)

4. PROPOSAL DAISAKUSEN (Hallelujah Chance!! ProDai is really Yamapi's coming-of-age drama to full leading man status (i.e. Johnny boys are not allowed to kiss their female leads until they've "graduated.") There's a lot of references to his other shows, and the casting itself is similar to Dragon Zakura. ProDai is also meta in that it was about Yamapi hyped as the next Kimura Takuya and Masami hyped as the next Matsushima Nanako.) ProDai also has FUJIKI NAOHITO (SQUEEE!!!) and has the great thespian Mikami Hiroshi (one of the truly great leads of the 90s Golden Era of J-drama) playing the angel with no name.

5. Code Blue. (Toda Erika and Arakawa Yui as interns? Yamapi as a late-20 something doctor? Really Japan? RLY? )

I'm actually not very happy to see this post. An Open Thread means that it's a Friday which means that spring break is over, and I haven't started on any of my massive amounts of homework yet.

I wish it was summer already :(

You probably have already been told and I don't know if you'd ever read this but....

http://www.mapthesoul.com/themap.html

I really need to ask my mom if I can buy it! I think this endeavor of theirs is such an amazing thing. <3

Oh you totally know. xDD I am so slow with everything. ;___;

Wow, so many to choose from. I'll google everything you guys have listed, then pick the ones that interest me.

@Sere - I've only seen the Japanese HYD and Hana Kimi. I like romcoms, but what really matters to me is some good script, may it be action, comedy, or fantasy. And a little eye candy also helps. =D

Thanks guys!

@Belleza

I LOOOOOOOOOOVE Nobuta. Love it. Akira is probably my fave Jdorama character. Yamapi outdid himself in it. So awesome

To tell you the truth I had to force myself to finish ProDai and Kurosagi (it's probably a BAD thing to watch one or more eps a day. They both got quite repetitive after a while imho). I honestely expected a lot more romance in Kurosagi (ACK, are we never going to get a Yamaki romance?), but I was satisfied with the end, which was totally RUINEd in the movie. OMG! Whenever I think of Kurosagi, I think it stopped right after the drama. Meh. Also? The ProDai special was soo silly (Yeah, I have a problems with most Jdoramas specials. I know, it's only me).

Gurl, you've gotta watch the Hana Yori Dango movie. When I spotted Fujiki Naohito I squeed, "FUJIKI NAOHITOOOOOOO!" aloud. He was awesome in that. A small role, but heeeeeeeeeeeee, so hot!

as for Code Blue, I have yet to watch it. I've been in a hospital for way too long and it's kind of a touchy topic for me. Although if I had had a doctor like Pi, I probably woulnd't have never slept. LOL (I had a nurse like that though, kekeke)

@ Snikki

then add Mei-chan and Zettai Kareshi to your list. They are both rom coms. In Mei-chan there're LOTs of guys: I don't know if it is labelled Ikemen, but I totally considered so. Plus Mizushima Hiro. Need I say more? In Zettai, again with Hiro, you also get lots of gratutious shots of shirtless Hayami Mokomichi. Just sayin'

I think I said before I had a bad habit with having to finish shows that I start watching. Well I am starting to hate this bad habit now that I am 165 episodes into You Are My Destiny. And I thought the male lead was a giant twat before this episode.... Gah.

On top of that I had to start a really sad attempt at a horror series from Taiwan.... gah X 2.

Stuck between two bad shows that will bug me if i don't finish it... the only upsides in my current viewing choices are We Got Married, Cain and Abel and about 5 animes.

I'm wondering if anyone else has thought this.

But you know how in so many series the rich guy will give the poor girl a cellphone?

I've always wondered... who pays for the phone bill? I mean, oftentimes it's not the cellphone that's expensive, but rather the monthly subscription.

Unless of course cellphone plans are super-cheap in Korea? Or do they use the pay-what-you-use method?

Anyway, yeah, I think about that sometimes...

* * *

@ Samsooki

Oooh, Goodbye Solo is really good :)

Another really good one is Biscuit Teacher and Star Candy.

There's this one scene where Gong Yoo is screaming how much he loves her and he's SO intense in there. OMG...I was floored... simply amazing.

That scene (along with Coffee Prince) convinced me he's probably one of the best actors I've ever seen.

Also if you and your wife have the time, you should try some of the longer k-dramas.

Like,

- Dear Heaven (wiki.d-addicts.com/Dear_Heaven) - When this aired in Taiwan it was so popular. It's 85 episodes though but the story is really, really good.

- Lotus Flower Fairy (wiki.d-addicts.com/Lotus_Flower_Fairy) - This is a pretty interesting story because it deals with mystical/spiritual stuff.

- Miss Mermaid (wiki.d-addicts.com/Miss_Mermaid) - Ok, this series is extremely long and it did start to drag near the end--in fact I particularly disliked the ending because it dragged so much. However the first 2/3s is really good.

- Famous Princesses (wiki.d-addicts.com/Famous_Princesses) - A good family-type series. Though one of the sisters is very annoying.

From your previous posts I assume both you and your wife can understand Korean, because I don't think these series have English subs.

However, they might have been dubbed into other Asian languages because I watched all them in Mandarin.

* * *

RE: Proposal Daisakusen

I loved and hated that series...mainly because of the ending, but the special did make up for it.

But there were some moments I wanted to slap both of them and yell, "Can't you see how much you two love each other!!!"

I would love to see more of this genre. The only ones I can think of is the k-movie, Project Makeover and the c-drama A Step into the Past...but I guess that's more of a general time travel thingy, but still good, mainly because of Louis Koo :)

Samsooki if you're not a fan of sad dramas you might want to remove Snow Queen from your 'To Watch" list. I have not seen it myself but from what I've heard it'll make you cry 1 litre of tears!

@belleza

"Soulmate tells its story out of order, and it has the ultimate hipster (LCD Soundsystem?!?) soundtrack. It might very well be the best songlist in the history of television."

Couldn't agree more! Some of the scenes with Lasse Lindh's Cmon Through still gives me goosebumps :)

@ Jessica

Good one! I thought that too. I always assumed the guy did (assuming this is him going by himself), cus you can't go about signing under a woman's name. The way I see it he puts it under his name, gives to girl, and he just pays.

I mean, to sign her up so she can pay the bill, she'd have to be there and give her ID & proof of residency (like a pay stub or month old bill).

So I guess you can chalk it up to these signs:

1) he's alone when he buys it so that's probably him paying the bill

or

2) She's there when he buys it, so it's under her name, so she can pay the bill

or

3) he bought the phone, not the plan, so she just has to call her provider/go to her provider's store, and activate the phone

@ belleza

Yay! I'm not the only one here interested in figure skating.

Kim Yeon Ah brought down the house tonight!!! She set another freaking world record! This is twice now this season she's broken the record. I may have biased eyes, but it is so painfully obvious the difference tonight between Kim Yeon Ah and the rest. I don't mean to sound snotty with that comment. There is no other way of putting it. Her lead is gigantic and it would take a freaky, unimaginable disaster in the FS for her to not win. Korea is sooo going to put the pressure on her to break the 200 mark tomorrow. Poor girl. Let her relish for a teeny moment in this huge accomplishment she's achieved.

Everyone, go watch her SP. It's a sublime performance. Youtube vids are probably up already. Ah, Korea, the mecca of high-speed internet.

LOL! I don't think it'll be option 3, that's just so unromantic. Here, have this phone but err....go and find a provider for yourself and pay your own bills (when the girl clearly has no money).

Most likely will be option 1 because if I was the heir to a large conglomerate that's what I would do too :)

anybody see the Love Shuffle finale? I thought it was TOO SOON but I can honestly say it was one of my very favorite if not my favorite Asian drama. Everything tied up nicely, albeit a little predictably. But the writing and acting in this show were absolutely top notch and I recommended it to anyone who likes fun (but mature) rom-coms like Dal Ja's Spring or Kimi wa Petto. :DD

@ Toya

Good to know there's someone else who likes to think about these weird, practical matters in a rom-com :)

You bring up a great point, there's no way he could sign her up for a plan without her ID and like Kobe mentioned, that would be very unromantic.

Also, all the times when the guy gives the girl the phone, it's already active since he has her number and enters in his own number as well. So it would make sense that he set everything up.

Besides, if the phone is in his name, he can just check the phone bill to see who she's calling... kekeke... I wonder if they'll ever work that into a storyline.

@ 22 Hello Samsooki

Just wandering you are buying DVDs of Korean Dramas because you want a copy ( for a collection) or just to watch it? Reason I asked is because I watch mine via http://www.mysoju.com. However, there is a catch of course, sometimes the eng sub are ok sometimes not. Sometimes the quality is ok sometimes not. Well beggars can't be choosy since I get it for free. Anyway, if you want to check out a drama before buying a DVD this is the best alternative. ENJOY.

@54 mariouma

Hero is one of those dramas I can watch over and over again without getting tired. But A Million Stars Falling from the Sky AND Karei Naru Ichizoku are my all-time #1 favorites. I cannot pick between the two. I do love em, but it's too hard to re-watch it. Those titles sucks you into their world, especially if you do a jdrama-thon. The emotions I got from watching both titles didn't linger for a day or two.. probably at least a week. Maybe I tend to savor those emotions, because I end up not watching as much drama as usual. I just follow the weekly releases but refuse to move on to a new drama.

Between the two, I think Kimura was at his best in Karei Naru Ichizoku. It was through this drama that made me respect him not as an idol, but as an actor in the truest sense of the word. Just like what belleza said before, "Kimura held his own agaisnt the acting god in Kitaoji." In most of his drama, I don't see his character, I see KimuTaku... but not in Karei.. It's a shame to miss such great piece.

@41 "Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has seen Nine-Tailed Fox? ...

I loved Kumiho (Nine-Tailed Fox aka Forbidden Love, 2004) but it is not to everyone's taste. It has many supernatural elements, creatures who move between the human and animal worlds. So if you can suspend disbelief and can enjoy the ride, it's quite unlike any other K-drama I've ever seen. Great OST.

Good cast. Eom Tae Woong and Jo Hyun Jae are in it -- how bad can it be? ;)

It was a beautiful day in NYC today around 59 degrees. It is interesting to me see how many people from all parts of the world log in and read your blog.

The kmovies I really enjoyed in the past are

..Ing
Sympathy for lady vengeance
Family Ties
The Quiet Family
Untold Scandal (acting by the two lead women are amazing)
Joint Security Area
Shiri
A Tale of Two Sisters
Hi, Dharma

Anyone have recommendations for me outside of Kdrama or korean movies that are inline with my taste? I am especially interested to see Japanese dramas. In terms of kdrama's I like Resurrection, Devil, White Tower, Sandglass and Thank You.

Okay, I will be going through BOF with drawls. Anyone know a good show to watch. Have a great weekend!

"lead is gigantic and it would take a freaky, unimaginable disaster in the FS for her to not win. "

Ahhhh I'm going to disagree there. With how the new scoring system works, if Kim Yuna falls tomorrow and Rochette skates out of her mind, she can be passed. The new scoring system is DESIGNED for improbably comebacks. Even Mao Asada still have a shot. (Uhh Mao-Chan, what's happened to you?!? What happened to your technical precision and edge work and precise lines? Your choice in programs?!?) Uhhh, you still have a year left but you've fallen back over the past year!!) A slim one, but still.

Now, having said that . . .

Tomorrow is more or less going to be the coronation ceremony establishing Kim Yuna as the best skater in the world. I know in previous posts, I've talked about Kim Yuna being a little overrated on her technical skating and a little overdramatic. And I stll believe that. But, the truth is, Kim Yuna has become a RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE for a huge group of figure skating following. People are moved to tears when she skates out there. She's the total package. Jumper, emotionally expressive, and her veins are colder than ice.

And more than that, Kim Yuna -- who is a very tall/gangly 5"6 -- may possibly save figure skating from the brainless "blade jumping" of 4"11 pixies that's dominated the sport for the last 10 years (Michelle Kwan notwithstanding.) A vote for Kim Yuna is a vote for the full bodied, serious, expressive artistry of your Katerina Witts and Dorothy Hamills. Of women who don't look like an old man's concept of a petite skater.

Above all, Kim Yuna is on the fast track to becoming the first true superstar of this era's new scoring system. She's bilingual; the Canadians love her; she rocks every house on the year-long tour.

You'll either take or not take to the Kim Yuna Experience. I find myself fighting it, because it's so expressive, it's almost sloppy. I don't want to give in to her emottonalism. But it's powerful. It's compelling. It's divisive. It, again, is a kind of evangelicism on ice, Yuna Kim's work is. it rivals Michelle Kwan (though Michelle was less adolescent in her performances and cleaner.) In a way, it is like little else we've seen in a generation.

Never mind the hallyu wave. Yuna Kima could be the U2 of figure skating. :D

@Samsooki

Your list means you have to spend so much on buying the boxsets. Anyway, are you from the States? You might want to sign up with Dramafever. They have a growing number of dramas available in their video library. You have to watch all the vids online, though.

@Funniebones

I sure hope we can trade places. My rhinitis is killing me in this very hot weather. LOL.

@nycgrl,

"I am especially interested to see Japanese dramas. In terms of kdrama’s I like Resurrection, Devil, White Tower, Sandglass and Thank You."

Just FYI -- White Tower was a remake of Shiroi Kyoto (which has been made again and again); Maou was a remake of Devil. Shiroi Kyoto is a medical drama, yes, but it's technically a "business novel." Business novels are extremely popular in Japan, detailing power struggles, egos at work, and intricate social ecologies within each workspace. Another seminal business novel is "Karei Naru Ichizoku", which was written by the same author as Shiroi Kyoto, fictionalizing the power struggles of banks during the heady 60s and 70s. The novel focuses on the love/hate relationship between father and son related to both Japanese bank and steeling; it's enthralling. Bboth the film and original film focused from the perspective of the elder; the recent drama adaptation focused on the younger, played by Kimura Takuya. The drama is also kind of a belated love letter to an era of the Kansai region, the spirit of Nipon that rebuilt the country out of war.

Some:
Pandora's Box (fascinating medical sciene speculation)
Ashita no Kita Yoshio (kind of a fable about a man severely in debt and having lost everything who contemplates suicide)
Hanken no Hinkakau (this one is about temps, but its evocation about the increasing marginalization of the family-like Japanese corporate life mirrors the effect of outsourcing in our industries)
Kaze No Garden (touching drama about a man in late stages of cancer trying to reconnect with his abandoned/enstranged children)
14 Sai No Hana (human drama about a 14-year old mother-to-be and how her family and school friends change)
1 Litre of Tears (true story about Ikeuchi Aya who lives with spinocerebellar degeneration)
Bara no nai Hanaya (this one is a romance, but this was hands down my favorite drama of 2008)

@ Jessica

Yeah I always wonder about that stuff.

@ belleza

I agree with you on that one, Bara no nai Hanaya was the best! I downloaded the whole thing. I love how she always called him Mr. Florist. <3

I felt something resonate in me during "Bara no nai Hanaya " that I hadn't felt since watching American Beauty. The slow motion scene where they're rescuing the boy and you're watching his eyes behind the mask . . . oh wow. Something speechless in me cried.

Like literally, there would be episodes where I had to pick up my jaw off the floor. Each plot twist made you rethink what you thought you knew before. About him. About them. About how hard all of these people loved each other (the father wanting revenge broke my heart) and how desperately they were fumbling in their demons for answers. None of the twists seem arbitrary or like a game; it demonstrated a mastery of story planning that transforms the absurd and whimsical into this heartbreakingly human depiction of lost people and then finally transforming into a Hawthornesque expression of moral self-laceration. GOD I LOVED THE SHOW.

Sigh. It's also Shota Matsuda's best performance. He may never vy for his older brother's indie cred, but he's done good work since HanaDan.

im sying for the "return of iljimae episode 14" recap!

Yuna Kim's Short Program

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoalKRiF5yI&fmt=18

I love the speed of her skate. Even on TV, she just flies on the ice. I also love the choreography; it's not overly dramatic and it showcases the beauty and speed of her rotations (and her arm positions during holds and rotations are gorgeous. It's not just her length, the detailing in even her hand positions is wonderful!. When she glides across the ice holding her leg, it's peerless.The transitioning of her steps have improved, even though I think it's still a little too casual. Her footwork seems a little heavy, and some of her spins aren't as tight as they should be.

Mao Asada's Short Program

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slX8psaTbIU

I mean, I agree with what everybody says about the choreography. It doesn't really fit the music; it doesn't really play to her strengths (her blade work), and it's so busy on top that it really accentuates how she rushed her through the program. Didn't rotate well on her jumps, looks SO nervous out there and wasn't feeling the music at all.

However, saying that, her blade work, the lightness and angles on the ice and how she floats, jumps like waves on a shore . . . And the complexity of her jumps. The pure quality, lightness of being, in her movements, and the texture of her jumps, there's simply no comparison to any other skater in the world! AISSHHHH if she can only put it all together!!

@ Snikki and anyone other Jdrama dabblers....

I have only seen 4 all the way through but I have liked everyone I have attempted:

First Kiss
Nobuta Wo Produce(still haven't seen the last ep but simply wonderful! I'd love to find it the original book for my friend who is a high school Eng teacher!)
Gokusen (still watching)
Hana Kimi
Hana Yori Dango
Kimi Wa Petto

What I can say about all of these dramas is that I wasn't disappointed because I had no real solid expectations. I thought Hana Kimi was completely hilarious! Honestly its so outrageous that there is nothing else you can do but laugh. I enjoyed the fact that they played up the manga aspect of this show.

First Kiss was sweet and Kimi wa Petto was really good. I think that KWP is a show that is quite interesting concerning love and human relationships(intimacy).

The other shows like Gokusen and HYD are cult classics so for me that speaks for itself.

I have also heard that Bambino is good. Matsumoto Jun is in a show where he's a crippled father. I watched the first ep but decided I wasn't emotionally prepared to finish. If that's something you are interested in you can look that one up too.

My biggest suggestion would be to find dramas that has actors you enjoy. I know that this is self evident but I believe that is half the reason I have enjoyed the shows I have seen is because I was able to compare and contrast the strength and growth of actors like Oguri Shun. I love to watch Shun, Jun as well. To me that is another thing that you get out of drama, watching the progression of an actor.

@92 you've piqued my interest...

"First Kiss" I only made it through half of the show. Originally, they were going to cast Eita opposite Mao, and have Nagase play her older brother. Even though that fell through, that was perhaps the most talented cast in terms of actual acting and comic chops of all the shows during that summer. You had three of the best comic sidemen guys with Sadao, Naoto, and Hitori. You had Yasuko, who's a terrific actess, in her 1st role in 3 years. And you had the director of Nodame paired off Inoue Yumiko, who somehow pulled off 14 No Sai Hai, which I didn't couldn't possibly do well given the subject matter.

"Nobuta Wo Produce." From what people tell me, the novel is much, much darker. And Nobuta is a boy. I feel the more Japanese idol (and school) dramas you've seen, the more the sheer brilliance of Nobuta wo Produce comes out. The story is besides point; it's, really, an idol drama about idols, about how J-drama processes the headiness of adolescence through idoru. It's a Japanese coming-of-age drama as directed by Terry Gilliam; it's one afterschool special after another played as if it was a Hard Day's Night. It's about Horikita Maki riffing off her prior image as a Horror Movie Girl, and Yamapi extending one joke (milkholism FTW!) into an entire series-long character, about Kame as a straight idol to the mad, mad world he lives. It has magical realism; it has racuous bursts of the absurd; it has school bully revenge plots; it has joyous montages of teenagers the middle of Tokyo. It's school drama as New Wave experiment. It's manic; it's homoerotic; it's emo and suicide attempts and silliness and about Cinderellas and Modern Boys.

Nobuta wo Produce is proof that you don't becessaruky need great acting, great story, or great production to make a great drama. You can do it by being slightly mad, and Nobuta wo Produce is mad like Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is mad

"Gokusen" Gokusen is the Law and Order of school drama. At 35 minutes to the hour, a student is trouble. At 42 minutes to the hour, she takes off her glasses. One minute later, all the bad guys have broken ribs. Then at 44:30 mark, the credits role and Yukie Nakama is running around some field with her Johnny boys. These are their stories! Every episode is like this, and it's somehow wonderful.

"Hana Kimi" I felt the Taiwanese version was better. The comic bits felt absolutely flat for me.

"Hana Yori Dango". My favorite part about the HanaDan experience was that, at one point in D-addicts, we almost had as many posts in our thread as the Oguri Shun and Yamashita Tomahisa threads. (This was a frigging big deal yo!!) But after about 500 pages, we just got tired of posting. :D Hana Yori Dango is simultaneously the most popular and most hated J-drama of all time over there. Before that show, there was still some kind of balance between the viewership of the lighter, idol dramas and the more substantial dramas. After HanaDan, it left a path of destruction that the Western-speaking J-dorama world never really recovered from. :D

I read from somewhere that the BOF casts were only given their script for episode 24 one week ago prior to filming that episode. And not only that, I also read that the cast would only be given the ending to the script on the day itself.

So, just out of curiosity.....I was wondering.

Do the cast members of korean dramas usually get their script at the last minute(let's say about a week before filming). I mean, wouldn't it be kind of harsh on the actors and actresses? They will have to memorise/stuff everything in their head in such a short time. What about those who can't memorise well?

I agree with you jessica 'Famous princesses' was a wholesome family oriented and funny series I kept re-watching those episodes with Lee tah ran and Park hae jin in soompi.

Also,try to watch taiwanese series 'Fated to love you' and 'They kissed again' . They are very entertaining it makes your life easier when you watch it if you like light comedy drama.Meteor garden is good as well, like it better compared to HYD and BBF,maybe because it was the first version of the manga I think.

I did finish EOE,oh boy what a sad ending,I spent all my tears in this drama particularly the revelation time but the acting was great with HJH,PHJ,YJH,JMK and I can't remember the rest although a bit draggy in the middle with sabotages of some of the character and not so organized plot. Well what can we expect there's no such thing as perfect drama series,still there are some flaws if not the actors maybe the writer,director,etc.

I luv My girl,Goong,Fullhouse,My name is kim samsoon and Delightful choonyang. Cheers everyone need to sleep I just finished my 4 night shift needs beauty rest ...it's spring time here in london but I am still not used to the weather here after 7 years whaaa...

Shrimp's so down right now... i feel like im the most stupid person on earth! ugh [inserts crying face].

--THE END

@ 97 thisiswhyi'mbehindonmymastersthesis

The drama you mention about the "crippled" (GOD I hate that word SO MUCH! I'm one, btw, so I think I'm entitled a little hate, thank you very much) father is "Myuu no Anyo Papa ni Ageru", which roughy translates into "Myuu will give daddy her legs". MatsuJun was wonderful here. I cried like a baby for the whole duration of the movie cos I could relate so much. I went pretty much through all the procedures and mood swings Hayato went through and yeah, I know what he meant and MatsuJun was absolutely fantastic in portraying all the range of emotions one goes through when such things happen.

As for Bambino, look, as much as I like Jun -and I DO- the drama was...meh. It's repetitive and well, not a keeper, imho. I watched it cos I wanted to see how tptb would butcher my language (I'm Italian) and the foods typical of my country. Surprisingly enough, they didn't, but I had to laugh at all the scenes when an order would come to the kitchen, the head chef would say which foods had to be prapared and everybody would yell "bene" (which beans, "good" or "ok" here) with the same intonation of a japanese "HAI". It cracked me up every single time! LOL