Currently Watching
Serendipity's Embrace: 🤗 On pause - saving this as something sweet for some stressful upcoming weeks.

My Sweet Mobster: (13-16)🍭🦞 Love love LOVE!!! Yay - there wasn't a coma-time-skip and they used the best possible way to be woken up (good job, Jae-soo 😂). And the ending was so SWEET, with one of the sweetest proposals, too!!!!! This was such a sweet and funny drama, all the way to the end. The angst was both reasonable and expected given the setup and Ji-hwan's background. I loved our dear little deer family, and Ji-hwan and Eun-ha were sooooooo cute. I'll miss this lovely drama!!! This is going on my list of dramas with the best endings and on my list of favorite rom-coms ❤️

The Auditors: 🏗📈 I'm kind of losing interest... Jin Goo and Shin Ha-kyun (and Jo A-ram) are the best parts, but they're not in nearly enough scenes. I've also started FF-ing through some of Lee Jung-ha's "He/she isn't the kind of person who would do that!," and "why don't you trust me!" scenes. And ugh of course they're going to drag the COMPETENT female employee through the mud now. Ughhhhhhh. She's good at her job, and unrecognized for it, and now this...

C-drama
Snow Fall: (1-9) okaaayyy so it's almost ludicrously violent, and it's almost surely going to end in tears and blood, but it's such campy, gothic fun!! Vampires and mobsters and a blind heiress locked in her room like Cinderella - what more could you want in a dark, gothic, vampire romance?? Hmm did you say NINJAS??? Yup, they just showed up too! So fun. (Also, censors might say vampires are verboten so he has a "mysterious illness" *eyeroll,* but he wears a bat lapel pin, you guys, and the camera has lingered on a two-fanged bite-mark scar on his neck. You can't tell me they're not having fun 😂)

In other news... Mom is watching (and enjoying) Go Ahead. My Sweet Mobster is up next for her. My Friend is going to do her first live watch and do a buddy-watch with me of Love Next Door (or whatever it's being called) - we're both excited!!

Didn't get around to posting last week so this is two weeks' worth of watching!

COMPLETED
Red Swan - Sad when the cheating husband is the best thing about a show. He had so much more character growth than our leads, who were unbelievably boring. At the end of the day, this wasn't even as good (bad?) as K2 but at least it ended quickly.

My Sweet Mobster - Weighed down by 16 episodes and some questionable storylines but when this was good, it was very, very good. Will remember the Deerlings fondly. But most of all Uhm Tae-goo 🥰😍🤩.

ONGOING
Good Partner - I find the 'trash-bucket husband of successful woman' story far less interesting than the legal mentoring between Eun-kyung and Yu-ri in each case-of-the-week. Jang Na-ra's performance is quite riveting.

The Auditors - I cackle at the nonsense this 'audit' team gets up to each week. The tumbler chase scene was just hilarious. At least Shin Jae-ha seemed to have fun hamming it up.

Miss Night and Day - Haven't felt like watching this the last two weeks, which means I'm either dropping it or watching 6 episodes tomorrow 😅.

STARTED
Serendipity's Embrace - This started so sweetly that I was kinda taken aback by the idiotic, clingy ex. Fast-forwarding through his parts for the rest of the cute. The PE Teacher and Uncle Wook are adorable.

C-DRAMAS
Tried out most of the newer c-dramas but nothing stuck mostly because I don't seem to be in the right mood for anything. Will finally start Dashing Youth over the weekend. Also waiting for Hidden Charm, which they have renamed into something generic.

The Auditors - Honestly, Han-soo as a character is terribly miscast and written. Amongst the two interns, Seo-jin is who I love the most. I especially like how she does so much with so little screentime and words.

I will be team VP this week. And, most importantly, I don't know what the work culture is around here? Should she, because of her being acquainted with a chaebol, not work at a particular company? This nepo-baby drama this week is really a joke.

Find Me In Your Memory - Kim Dong-wook smiled☺️☺️☺️.

But... what is a serial killer doing in here. And the same serial killer that caused the death of his first love too.

Hyena Episodes 2-8 - I'll just list it instead.
The chemistry between Ju Ji-hoon and Kim Hyesoo is 👌🏽🔥.
Jung Guem-ja, I don't like the character.
Yoon Hee-jae, I don't like the obsession with winning Guem-ja.
I skipped episode 1 because I didn't want to watch the merry times and be further annoyed to see it become a lie. But, the flashbacks to it tells me that I'd really love the time they spent together.
Kim Hyesoo and Ju Ji-hoon have great comedic timing too.
Hwang Bo-ra, the perfect cocktail that was needed to ease my anger at the events on the screen. Her entries were all so timely. I hope there is still more of her.

Alienoid 2 - 2 hours of wacky fun, in the funnest way imaginable. My braincells sure benefitted from the rest and let my eyes feast instead.

Live Watches
Miss Night and Day: I get why everyone thinks the FL is an idiot but if my beloved dad had been kidnapped I wouldn’t have been thinking super clearly either, so I’m giving her a pass. I liked the reveal of the real killer, and very much hoping Mi-jin has a chance to come clean about everything. (Y’all don’t think Ji-ung will just never find out, do you? That would be disappointing…)

감사합니다: The reveal of the company spies was a little much, but Cha-il cracked half of a smile and I’m on board with this new drama that’s been revealed! I’m glad we’ll have to deal with Seo-jin’s relationship to Dae-ung with plenty of episodes to spare rather than shoved in last minute - they are both interesting and I’m ready to see their respective reactions.

Is it fate?: I’m in the 😊 camp for this show for sure. Our two ships are off to adorable and promising starts, Eunuch So (as he will forever be known to me) is perfect in his cluelessness and support, and the all-knowing all-seeing Sang-pil is standing by with cooking tips! Interested to see if the ep 4 kiss was real or the FL’s fantasy again. It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve been seriously faked out!

Recent Dramas:
Welcome to Samdalri: (2 episodes in) I always meant to watch this one but didn’t have time as it aired and it just kind of got lost in the shuffle - but no more! The sister relationships are shaping up to be super fun, Sam-dal seems infinitely cheer-for-able, and it’s hard not to find Yong-pil super endearing. Into it so far!

THE AUDITORS (Ep 7-8) The glaring plot holes are as wide as the ocean horizon. The plots are getting weaker as the comic action gets bigger. There is a lack of common sense in this fantasy world where the Auditors are the Avengers. For example, a multi-million dollar computer program has no secured back-up copies?! Having bulldozed through construction safety, subcontracting, food service, R&D departments, the next is HR with unfair hiring practices which again has nothing to do with financial auditing.

COWBOY BEBOP THE MOVIE (2001): Classic anime with a self contained, well written story about our bounty hunters getting caught up in eco-terrorism plot. After two decades, it is not dated in style or action.

WOLVERINE (2013): Not a big Marvel-DC movie fan, but this popped up on cable during beginning of Olympic coverage. In reality, this was less a big screen tent-pole theater movie but more a regular Japanese kung fu movie from the 1970s.

BAUMGARTNER RESTORATION (You Tube) A fine art restorer tackles a unique project, “Restoring the Faceless Painting,” an old, very damaged, Baroque style canvas with many prior bad repairs, rips and severe cracking. It was a three part episode on the amount of work and detail required to restore old paintings. It was an interesting introduction into this kind of work

Serendipity’s Embrace: I really enjoy the slow burn of this drama. I like that it is 8 episodes and she doesn’t realize she kind of likes him. She is getting closer first and then she can move on.

My Sweet Mobster: All is well that ends well. It was a sweet ending to a sweet show.

Red Swan: This was bad, but it had Rain. If Rain is enough for you with some slight melodrama, you will enjoy this. Lol

No Way Out – The Roulette: The first episode was a little slow for me. However, episode 2 picked up and I am in it. I am glad it isn’t just a case of a police officer breaking bad.

Miss Night & Day: 6.5 Sorry, after weeks of liking the show, I just didn't like ep 14.

Serendipity's Embrace: 8.0

No Way Out: The Roulette: 5.0 Ep 1 seemed like a decent example of a genre I don't much love, so I found a way out.

My Sweet Mobster: 6.5 Taking the "drama" out of "kdrama" and replacing it with just more "k". The 2ML gets injured trying to protect the FL, the ML gets injured trying to protect his father, but the ML is the ML so he wins anyway? The baddie just stabs once and then stops (because of k-baddie guild rules?). Then at the hospital they wait until all the ML's friends arrive so they can help wheel him into surgery. As if that isn't kdrama enough they pull the old "he might not wake up because he lost too much blood" routine for the 800,002 time I've seen in kdramas. Did they mean the blood he lost while they were wating for everyone to show up? At least the ML got to sleep thru some of this silliness.

Now the deerlings can go back to being, idunno, fawns?

Bad Memory Eraser: 7.0 The airplane acrobatics early in day one were embarrassingly bad, but it got better more tolerable later. Jin Se-yeon seems a lot better here than what I remember of Doctor Stranger. I know I've seen the ML before, but I don't remember much -- gee, wonder why?

FWIW, back when I watched them, Blood and Doctor Stranger were the two most offensively bad kdramas I had watched to completion. There may have been worse shows that I dropped quickly enough to avoid lasting trauma, and there are more recent contenders (Arsedal), but those two will always have a special place in my heart lower intestine.

XKCD's Youtube channel: 9.5 They are all short, and there's not very many, so you can binge them all in about an hour. I especially liked the ending of "What if you threw a baseball at nearly light speed?"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EI08o-IGYk

Live watches

Serendipity’s embrace
This is my kind of drama and I am so glad we are getting more dramas like this one.

Bad memory eraser
I think it had a good start yesterday. I wonder how the brothers will be now that the hierarchy is back in place as the male lead is no longer burdened.

The Auditors
Proper Scooby-Doo explanation of the crime showing the little clues and chase scene they just needed the line: ‘And I would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for those pesky Auditors.’

My Name is Gabriel
Finished the first batch of celebrities now waiting for its return after the Olympics Wookie seems to be the pull for the last batch of celebrities as they are taking their time introducing his episodes.

Tiger with wings - Japanese
Still waiting for this week’s episodes to drop hoping the delay is not going to be extended by a couple more weeks due to the Olympics😞

Completed

My Sweet Mobster
It ended well. Not sure why they turned the two Ajusshis into losers on a date just for laughs when they would have struggled in the dating game due to age and stage of life anyway.

Binge watch corner

The Preparation - Korean film
Mother realises she will need to help her autistic adult child gain independence skills in record time when she discovers that she is terminally ill.

My annoying brother- Korean film
Two estranged half brothers end up living together again during a time of adversity.

Bad Memory Eraser (1): Well, that was weird, though I did kind of enjoy it, I guess. But I'm not sure if I enjoyed it enough for it to keep my attention. Also, the mouse deserved better.

One Spring Night (6-12): Where's a truck of doom when you need one? Seriously, every guy in this show is trash, with the exception of the ML, his dad & kid, and his two friends. The women are all fantastic though. This show has been great so far, so I need it to not go off the rails in the last 4 episodes.

Come and Hug Me (10-19): Jang Ki-yong & Jin Ki-joo are so good in this (and so are the kid actors for that matter). Both leads deserve only happiness, and I really hope they manage to get it. Also, at this point that annoying reporter is just setting herself up to be killed. But, well, that's her own fault, and I certainly won't miss her if and when that happens.

Encounter (3): Despite this being a slow-paced drama, I'm surprised at how quick the pacing of the overall story seems to be. I certainly hope they have enough of it to fill 16 episodes.

MYSTERIOUS LOTUS CASEBOOK — Besides Chen Yi, I think the standout aspect of this drama was that it could have been a revenge drama and instead the hero, Li Lianhua, becomes self-aware and the journey is one of self-reflection and healing. In a dreamland saturated with revenge dramas this is a refreshing alternative. Plus, the mystery solving is really a lot of fun.

But what is up with Cdramas and ambiguous endings?

DASHING YOUTH (5) —I watch it with a smile. It is just too much fun. I have a soft spot for snarky off-beat heroes.

JOY of LIFE 2 (10)— On a rewatch since my parents and I are almost done with the first season (and I am not sure if they want to tackle a second season yet). This is a more relaxed watch for me and for that reason I am enjoying it even more the second time around. The witty dialogue and political dramatics are worth a second round of appreciation.

STORY OF MINGLAN (48)— I understand why this is considered a masterpiece. The feminist commentary and deep look into the systems of power that affected women’s lives are sensitive to the Song period while also reflecting and commenting on our day. Similar to Jane Austin’s works, the past is very present.

NIRVANA IN FIRE (8)— I am finally getting into the story. For a drama almost 10 years old, the quality of writing and acting and directing come through crystal clear.

OTHERWISE

I am in a Kdrama summer drought. I am hopeful for LOVE NEXT DOOR (I love the Korean title too)!

I’m still watching the ongoing shenanigans in THE AUDITORS, though I must admit that the show has lost a bit of steam in the action department. *pouts*
Also, I would really like more screen time for our competent niece rookie, but it looks like we’ll get it this weekend - just maybe not in a good way… 😕

Initially, I was a bit underwhelmed by SERENDIPITY’S EMBRACE, but the last two episodes were a lot better in my book. Glad I gave this another chance, and will continue watching as a no-high-stakes nice romance. For some reason, I really like the flashbacks to their high school time, who would have thought? 🤓

I somehow happened upon watching some CHEESE IN THE TRAP. 👀 It was a nice walk down memory lane watching all the university back stories (the stereotypes - both with students and profs! The group assessments!), but I cannot make up my mind about the ML yet. 🤨 (Really trying hard here to read nothing about it, lest I spoiler myself!) Other than that, I’m quite star struck, too.

Then I finished BITTER SWEET HELL, and what a ride. I liked how we came full circle in the end, both visually and maybe plot-wise… 🤔 I’ll miss our author’s flamboyance, (no, no, no) Dr. Noh’s cat-and-mouse game mastery (she got really good at this in the end!), the focus on the female leads in general. The sprinkles of comedy! (Pardon me, but how long did the police officer need to study to become a police officer? Please repeat. 😂 Plus the corn noodles, where can I eat them again? Thanks!) But last and not least I’ll miss the production’s aesthetic, which was one of the most memorable I’ve seen in a while. 👏💯

I also finished c-drama AS BEAUTIFUL AS YOU, which wasn’t a revelation, but a nice “office/chaebol romance” (that got the teensiest bit off track later maybe) with a lovely main couple and fun ensemble cast. Plus the fluffiest cat.

My Sweet Mobster (Series review) - Mood progression: C- / D+ / D+ / D / D / D / D / D
Most other dramas don’t feature ex-convicts prominently as a main ensemble, so all this show had to do was to develop an interesting narrative around them facing discrimination (if the writer’s brave, talk about rehabilitation and recidivism). Also, it’s not hard to include romance because there’s a good point about whether the ex-convicts could love themselves enough to be loved by others once again. But of course, what we get regarding the discrimination is some awkward OTP meet-cute and Dong Hee’s minor backstory was just used as a cliffhanger fakeout. Don’t get me started on those terrible antagonists.

Serendipity’s Embrace (Episode 3-4) - Mood: D
Lmao, Yoon Ji On basically took on Seo Ji Hoon’s role from his and Kim So Hyun’s last project (My Lovely Liar) together, which to summarise is noble idiocy induced breakup. Well, the character’s definitely less sympathetic because it ain’t cancer this time round and the obsession’s dialled up to the 9th degree. At least there’s a sane adult that’s with us in the room in Hye Ji, tho I don’t know if there’s enough time for the teacher couple as the mother crashes the story.

Miss Night and Day (Episode 13-14) - Mood: D
It’s kind of amazing that they managed to drag out the secret into the finale week but wtf? You would think that after being a damsel once, the FL would be more cautious about charging into another dangerous situation, but nope, she’s kidnapped once more. At this point, the only non-horrendous payoff is the secret truly being dragged to the grave, and that’s still bad.

Dreaming of a Freaking Fairytale

I can't believe a drama with ten 42-minute episodes, containing Jun, can bore me to tears.
It was 7 hours, which with all my fast-forwarding probably ended up being 3.5 hours. I only finished it because it was short and because of some of Jun's scenes. Sigh. I wanted to love this so much. But I nearly disliked it, and the sole single scene that I did love ended up being a daydream. Boo.

Jun is so good. Even when I'm not liking the show I am left amazed at how good he is.

King the Land

Rewatch ended ♥️.

Spies Who Loved Me

Rewatch started.

Just Between Lovers

Beanies community watch 👌

Happy Weekend Beanies! 😊🌞🎉

Life on Mars 🌞ep12-13 A lot has happened in these episodes. I thought the race to capture the Hyun Seok is the resolution we need but then they throw another target. With an abduction, murder, invetigation, suspect/s and reassignments, our team is busy in trying to solve these various crimes one after the other. Then a new character comes in to mess them all up. I may just finish this soon finally.

My Sweet Mobster ep15-16 The deerlings provided such a sweet support and the matching trenchcoat was cute. They did gloss over some storylines which I didnt mind as much since the gangster bit was my least favorite. I did miss seeing Ko Yang Hee in his tweed jackets. Also it looks like Man Ho and Jae Soo are bound to be the cool uncles for a little bit longer. They need to find women who would love them as they are. Yun Byul is really cute and its good that Mi Ho and In young got together in the end. Hong Ki and Dong Hee are doing well. I wish them all the best.

The Auditors 🤞ep7-8 I watched ep7 and recognized Royal Consort Ji. He is as sus as ever. I find myself checking out my brain when watching this and just enjoy it for what it is. I still like Cha Il but Han Soo is grating on my nerves. He is supposed to be the likeable one but he is causing trouble left and right. I wanted more of Seo Jin and it looks like I will get it next week. I am looking forward to the fallout of the Seo Jin and Dae Woong's relationship rumor.

Joy of Life SE💕 ep1-10 I am watching the 2024 Special with only 25 episodes since I want to get to S2 much sooner. I got hooked on this show because I like Fan Xian and his story. Its a coming of age story with a healthy dose of intrigues, mystery, court shenanigans and comedy. He is a smart and intriguing hero with a lot of tricks up his sleeve. Its fascinating to discover what he is capable of. I am with him as he investigate his attempted assassination and the dangerous world around him. I can definitely see why this was popular at the time of its original airing. Its great!

Follow Your Heart ep36-40 I made liberal use of ffwd to get through majority of the episodes. Zornia case is boring and glad it was resolved. The best thing for me are the three couples. I also love the Princess and her reactions to her children's troubles. The lady is over the top but her heart is in the right place. Also the wedding ceremony in the end was very fun. I love their wedding attire and the women's head ornaments were gorgeous.

The Princess Royal ep23 - 30 I enjoyed these episodes best so far since the leads are actively working together to protect each other and take offensive actions against their common enemies. Consort Rou is not particularly smart in handling court intrigues and needed the help of an unreliable external force that only wants to control her. SRQ has the advantage of his past knowledge and experiences but only has revenge in mind and...

Serendipity's Embrace It's still cute. Nothing extraordinary but I like the simplicity.

My Sweet Mobster I wondered how they would fill 16 episodes and the answer is they couldn't. I wished they focused on the present instead of the past with the childhood connection and the villain father.

Miss Night and Day This drama mixed too many things and can get anything right.

Bad Memory Eraser The brother looks like the only normal character... One episode and it was already too much.

The Auditors I don't understand how the ML couldn't see it was a bad idea to catch the villain in a public way...

Red Swan This drama was really bad... the writing, the execution and the acting... it was over the top and not in a good way. The FL almost disapeared from the last 2 episodes... it was weird.

As Beautiful as You (Cdrama) I didn't like how the FL ran away everytime and how the ML did all the work in their relationship.

Hi beanies! Happy August to everybody :)

What I am watching this week:

_ The Red Sleeve (12/17). This must be a case of "It's not you, show, it's me". Because I'm not enjoying this show as much as I thought I'd do. It starts fluffy and silly as any other rom-com and that took me by surprise and puzzled me. Then suddenly in the eight episode the writer decided it had to be a show about a dark sect. My face: 🤨
I confess I'm struggling to finish it. But I'm glad I didn't drop it because Lee Deok Hwa's performance has been wonderful. I loved all his scenes.
This sageuk was released in 2021, like Bossam. But I largely prefer Bossam, even though The Red Sleeve is more praised and famous. Imo Bossam was more delicate and less "in-your-face". And I guess sometimes you don't know exactly why you like or dislike a drama, or why you connect with it.

_ C-Drama The story of Minglan (26/72). This is a masterpiece in my book. It's slow but so well done. I love this kind of realistic cinematography because it helps to feel like you are inside the show.

_ C-drama You are my secret. First episode. I admit I have started it only for Miles Wei and Karlina Zhang. But I liked the first episode enough to keep watching it. It was very fast paced and I think the main couple has a good chemistry. Let's see how it goes.

What I have finished:

_ My Sweet Mobster. Even though it was cringey and oversweet too many times, there were some great comedy moments here and there (as in the sixth episode). Some secondary characters (the deerlings) stole the show, but I still don't know if I will give this drama a bean at the end of the year.

_ Anime Spy x Family (First Season). It has been so much fun! Looking forward to watching the second season. I'll miss the Forger family. Some of the original songs are great too.

LIVE WATCHES:

1. THE AUDITORS - This week's episodes were okay. I'm still watching but the story needs to be tighter.

2. SERENDIPITY'S EMBRACE: It's okay. I'm currently just watching it as filler (and because Chae Jong-Hyeop is Mr Handsome) while waiting for MOM'S FRIEND'S SON to kick off.

3. MISS NIGHT AND DAY: It's still classified as "okay" in my book. Watchable but nothing to shout about. Choi Jin Hyuk's voice is sublime though...

OTHER STUFF I'M WATCHING:

1. BRING IT ON, GHOST - This is very entertaining and I'm starting to quite like Tacyeon as an actor.

2. BLACK - It's still my lunchtime watch. Good enough to follow while eating my daily salad LOL!

3. THE CURSED - On pause for now. It's very good but my mood has been fluctuating somewhat so this week I'm just not in the headspace for creepiness.

Too many dramas, not enough watching time this week.

Agree with others that the 16-episode format was not kind to MY SWEET MOBSTER, but still when it was good, it was super good. My happy watch of the week goes to the talented supporting cast in this comedy. Kdramas have so, so many great character actors and actresses. In this comedy, and so many others, they add richness and depth to the viewing experience. Grateful!

Completed AS BEAUTIFUL AS YOU. I thought this was terrific. It's hard to hold my interest with an office drama, but this one did and that's wholly because of Xu Kai and Tan Song Yun in the main roles. The screenwriters handed them complex dialog, and they flourished. Kudos to this production.

Currently watching FALL IN LOVE (2021) a cdrama period piece that is set in 1935 Shanghai. Learning some history here, which is great. The production quality is very good, especially the cinematography.

Lagging behind on RED SWAN, but only two episodes to go...

Watched 6 1/2 episodes of A JOURNEY TO LOVE (2023), and decided to shelve this drama because it was going down a tragic path and after NIRVANA, I'm not ready for another heavy heart in 2024. Hoping that Viki or Netflix or somebody! pick up this and other Liu Yuning dramas for easier access.

Finally caught the first six episodes of SNOWFALL. Holy cow, this is one mash up of a drama. Echoes of Hercules Poirot, the SS and Gestapo, STREETS OF NEW YORK, maybe Beauty and the Beast gone vampire? Idk. It's wild but it's super fun! Can't wait to see how this one plays out.