I\’m still on board with \”Hammurabi\”, but unlike \”Secretary Kim\”, I\’m not on my toes to watch it right away and save it for weekends. I love it but I don\’t always feel like watching it. Anyone else?
same here… and its not that MH is bad than SK but its other way round for me.
Al other drama m watching are light fluff and i can watch them on the go… but MH has lots of information, emotions, feelings to share and to grasp so i need some time all alone, empty brain to comprehend….so i just wait till weekend to start it.
Yes exactly!!! I always feel like I need to prepare myself to sit down and watch Miss Hammurabi. And the emotions, which can be a lot to watch during the week after work. Hence, weekends. LOL. I do really love MH though.
But Secretary Kim is easy to watch and frankly, addicting. And it one of those dramas you can just get into right away and is perfect for watching while you’re knitting or something.
What\’s Wrong With Secretary Kim is only drama I\’ve been consistently tuning into every week since it\’s premiere. There\’s so much to love (except the thing with the brother is frustrating).
I’m highly addicted to WWSK but I can’t help feeling that I would have been more satisfied watching this in a binge after completion or with 2 weeks left.
Really enjoyed the premiere week of “What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim?” and I’m looking forward to more episodes. The leads are so cute, funny, and endearing!
Miss Hammurabi, hitting us with the relevant issues. I liked how they pointed out the victim\’s pain vs the loss of the head of family–this makes the drama more meaningful rather than just preachy
About Miss Hammurabi…I wasn’t sure about it given Go Ara and L aren’t always the most natural or consistent actors but I enjoyed it so far. It focuses on mundane ordinary cases in a poignant way.
I disliked Go Ara so much in Black that I cannot even dare to click and play MH! And L looks like a 18 yr old even in that suits… I might be 100% wrong this time, but they made such a bad memories in my mind that’s hard to erase 😑
Work is still crazy, barely caught up with Suits over the weekend, but that didn’t stop me from starting Ms Hammurabi yesterday. I’m still behind on Greasy Melo though. What is sleep…
Work has been crazy, so I’m episodes behind on everything but so many new dramas are now starting!? Work will be busy until July -insert self-pity- …at least Brooklyn Nine-Nine was renewed. Noice!
I\’ve been finishing about one older drama every couple months alongside whatever I\’m live-watching. I\’ve watched \”Descendants of the Sun\”, \”Healer\”, & \”Kill Me, Heal Me\” so far this year. What next?
I do the same thing. I’m almost done with Let’s Eat 2 and I’m Sorry I Love You. This year I’ve rewatched It’s Okay That’s Love, Scarlet Heart: Ryeo (which I’ve watched at least six times), and Heartless City. It’s fun, isn’t it!
Yes, it’s really fun watching all these great dramas I’ve missed. I can only live-watch so many and sometimes currently airing dramas are just plain mediocre. I do sometimes re-watch as well, especially when I can’t decide which drama to start. I recently re-watched Strong Woman Do Bong-soon, in anticipation of seeing Park Hyung-sik again in Suits.
Oh! and Heartless City is very high on my list to watch next. But I think I’ll try to fit in a classic like Coffee Prince first.
I actually haven’t seen either of those, surprisingly. Both of them have been on my radar at some point in time as drama classics to watch, but I had totally forgotten. Thanks for the reminder! I might just make Coffee Prince my next watch…
I’ve seen Misaeng (amazing!), but I haven’t seen Goong yet. Which is weird because I’ve actually read majority of the manhwa. I don’t know how I never got around to watching the drama in all these years (I am suddenly very aware of how long its been). Time slips by, I guess. Thanks for the suggestion!
It does! There’s a lot I’ve missed since I usually only watch 1 live (max. 2) because I just don’t have time. Especially from Fall-Spring when US TV shows typically air their seasons. But usually I catch up on all the good ones and all the other ones…well, people tell me I’m not missing much.
8.5/10 – I enjoyed this drama, but I didn’t quite love it as much as I thought I would.
I came into this drama with very high expectations due to all the praise it gets. A good 3.5 years after it’s release, Healer continues to have so much fan-love, and it’s easy to see why. It has great pacing, solid cast, interesting characters, swoon-worthy romance, cool action scenes, and consistency in quality and story throughout the whole thing. I imagine it would have been a great drama to live-watch week by week.
The story and characters were interesting. I think there are many elements in Healer that on paper might seem like more of the same storylines and tropes–your superhero-esque leading man, plucky and quirky damsel, family secrets, evil politicians/ business men, etc. But what this drama manages to do is make those ideas fresh again. I really liked the way everything was woven together. The supporting characters and our young illegal radio show friends were all done well.
I think I would have liked to have seen a lot more development overall. It felt like we saw lots of different piece of the puzzle with the past and present intertwined, but I think some areas could have been more fully realized. However, I realize it would have been difficult to flesh out everything fully without while keeping the pacing and the 20 episodes. On a related note, I think the ending was perhaps most lacking in this regard. I would have liked to have seen more done in terms of greater social/political impacts, and also with the birth mom. It was all kind of vague?
Also, at the beginning I found it weird how quickly our main couple fell for one another. Maybe I’m missed something. I suppose for her there was the Superman/ Lois Lane dynamic. But he also did scare the crap out of her and cut off her fingernails… After getting over my confusion about that, I loved the couple. It was easy to root for them and our actors have great chemistry.
Similarly, another thing that kind of bothered me that I got over was the violence. I’m not squeamish by any means, but there were some scenes where Healer beats people up and I felt like “was that really the only way you could have dealt with that?” For example, when he knocks out the hospital staff because they happen to be in the way. That seemed unnecessarily to me. Healer is supposed to be a smart dude, so why does he sometimes act with all brawn no brain.
And I can’t have been the only person who wasn’t the fan of that “Eternal Love” song. The fact that I actually understand the cheesy English lyrics while watching was quite distracting.
The ending is actually the only episode that disappointed me! It definitely left me with a bittersweet aftertaste, and still today everytime I read/see something about Healer, I keep going back to the what ifs!
Yeah, it felt a bit incomplete. Healer did well in so many other ways with such consistently good episodes until the end where it feels like there should almost be another episode. It wasn’t the worst ending, we got our happy end and all, but it left something to be desired.
The ending was at first, and probably still is my main gripe with this show, although given that I’ve watched it 3 times it can’t have been much of a gripe haha. The ending was very open though, almost would’ve been great as 25 episode drama, especially since for me at least, 20 episodes felt like 16.
I was thankfully not tainted by the Healer hype and I didn’t watch it live, so while I watched it because of its high DB rating, I was able to enjoy it all on my own without realising till later how big it was.
I wasn’t bothered by the quickness of the relationship as such, because they obviously had this weird unspoken bond, although it did, and still bothers me that she slept with him and didn’t even know his name hahaha like? isn’t that awkward?
It still remains my favourite drama though, and I think that’s just because I felt the writing to be overall super tight, and well executed and JCW is probably his best has the Healer character.
I agree about 25 episodes. The 20 episodes went by faster than it does for most shows. The pacing was just really good. Most dramas usually have those few episodes that drag on forever part way through, but Healer did a really good job with keeping up my interest. Its probably because of the layers to the story.
I think it was because of their unspoken bond thing I was able to continue watching and move on from my critical gripes about the quickness of it all. Other dramas, I might have been stuck on that for far longer, thinking “well, that’s dumb.” But I think with the chemistry between the actors made it easy to let it go and say, “oh well, I guess its fate.” And that connection they had amid all the mystery was part of what made their romance so swoon-worthy. That hand-hold in the dark and all. Squeeee
I definitely see myself rewatching Healer later on. It does have that re-watchable quality 😀
Yes, yes so true. Dramas often drag in the last quarter, but for Healer it almost never slowed down. The pacing was very well done.
Same. Any other drama it would’ve botched it to be honest. And the fact that they had that past connection as well as this two sided present connection made it a lot easier to just latch onto the “Fate” thing. Although it’s never mentioned as fate, which is probably part of the reason again why it worked.
*omgosh that hand hold* *One of my favourite hand holds ever in dramaland tbh*
I’m not much of a rewatcher- only rewatched two shows ever, so for me it’s kinda big deal!!! But yes, I agree!
Finally got around to watching Healer and I’m almost halfway through! I know a lot of people who love this drama so I’m excited to finally be on this amazing bandwagon.
I love Healer, it was probably the first K-drama I truly fell head-over-heels in love with. It was also, I believe, my first live-watching experience.
It deserves a rewatch because I think all the great dramas I’ve watched since then have kind of overshadowed it in my heart. I need to remind myself of how great it is!
I usually watch most dramas as they air, so as you can imagine I have a long list of dramas that I didn’t get around to watching when they were airing. Especially since I usually only can handle keeping up with one drama at a time, maximum two.
Now that I’m watching Healer, I question why didn’t I put it higher on my list!? I should have watched it sooner!
That’s always the danger of hyped-up dramas! I still haven’t seen Forest of Secrets or Signal because I want to make sure I’m in the mood to appreciate them to their fullest. I’m scared I won’t see what others see, especially because I’m not huge into crime dramas in the first place.
I feel the same! I haven’t started Signal for the same reason. Also because I’m always worried that I’ll get busy part way through my viewing of the drama and then never go back to finish—guilty of this many times. I want to enjoy the whole thing through, if that makes sense?
WOOO welcome to the club! I was worried too because its such a hyped drama and very well loved. I thought maybe it wouldn’t meet those high expectations others were creating for me. But I’m enjoying it so far.
(Granted even though I had heard it was so good, I didn’t actually know much about what it was about so I think that really helped me watch it with fresh eyes.)
I liked last weeks Suits, but had uncertainties due the more serious/gloomy tone vs the original. I’m happy to see Suits starting to make strides as it’s own show and has picked up some levity
I don’t blame you. I started skipping through every episode at some point because just I want to know what happens but I don’t have the patience to actually watch everything.
I didn’t care about the parents, I thought WDH, MGY, and KMJ were all great, but their characters were so frustrating. I just ff my way through each episode and then watch the preview to see what happened, now..
Great Seducer ep 29 yet again highlights Joy\’s acting in contrast with Woo Do-hwan. For someone who is upset and angry, she was quite expressionless and he was just sorry and heartbroken.
I’m excited for the Great Seducer to finally be over–it’s so irritatingly frustrating w/ all their angst and drama yet I can’t stop watching. I just want to reach the end of this rollercoaster ride.
Just started ‘Pretty Noona’ and its so lovely! There’s plenty of cute but also an injection of realism. I love how the show zooms on these small things that work together to drive the romance forward.
Thank you beanies who gave me suggestions on recent dramas on my other post. Work craziness is dying down and my usual rotation of American TV shows ending their seasons soon so….KDRAMA TIME!
Having watched 5 seasons of the original, here is my verdict on Suits ep1,2: A good attempt but not amazing.
Will leave my reasons in the comments below. Meanwhile, a GIF of the cutest Park HyungSik.
Yes! I like it but I guess the original set my expectations to high. I’m still going to continue tho cause it’s pretty good so far.
I feel like the kdrama just dumped us in wherein the original took us along a smart ass journey straight from the intro. Jessica and Rachel’s kdrama counterparts are not as fiery, self-assured and assertive as the original.
YES, I agree. As I posted below, just that I wrote so much you were too fast for me! Definitely missing some fire and sass. I did notice how the pacing is quite different and they did skim over some parts that was in the original’s pilot episode. This is definitely due to format differences I expect, but I haven’t decided if thats a bad thing yet.
I’ll try not to be too critical as this drama has yet to really develop any backstory and we’re only on week one. My thoughts:
1. The stories and scenes are similar but have been adapted in a culturally conscious way. I think original feels in many senses very culturally American in its corporate legal environment. This adaption has been great in balancing the culture differences, while maintaining it’s identity as “Suits”. From little things, like swapping out Harvey’s signed basketballs with signed baseball gloves and the Korean toast, to subtle changes in character interaction that reflect on work environments, culture, and relationships is quite different in Korea.
2. There’s a lot that is similar, yet I get a very different vibe from this adaptation. The original had this over smart yet cocky and slick vibe, filled with quips and humor among the drama and legal jargon. However, I found this adaptation to be more brooding and serious. This could be my interpretation as an American. But our two leads don’t joke with each other as much. I was expecting more smirks, quips, and witty jokes. Go Yeon-woo does not come off as self-assured or smirky has Mike Ross, who makes jokes and doesn’t always seem to take things seriously as a result. His arrogance about his own genius sometimes gets the best of him when he realizes coming into the job that he doesn’t actually know how to be a lawyer—both in serious ways and in humorous ones. Go Yeon-woo seems to have less of that problem and seems more clueless and broody. Not that Park Hyung-sik is doing a bad job (I love him actually though), just that it’s not what I expected. PHS delivers all his more technically lines very impressively. He has that kind and boyish feel that we need in the character. And sometimes we see some of that “I’m a genius” cockiness. But he’s a lot less playful and more mopey? Hopefully I’ll get used this new version of the character….And don’t even get my started on Louis Litt…
3. We need more sass from our ladies. All of them.
4. Everything looks beautiful. The actors, the outfits, and the sets.
5. Ultimately I think Suits Korea did a good job of making it’s own version of the story that feels similar yet new. I love the detail that was clearly put into adapting the story. Admittedly I found these 2 episodes less engaging than I hoped. I remember watching the first episode of Suits USA and immediately watched the next one. While I still want to continue with this drama, I’m decidedly less on the edge of my seat to watch more—I don’t care about the characters as much perhaps? Which is surprising as I expected to love them as I love these actors and the original TV show (before it started dragging on forever and ever). Humor is the one thing I think we could have more of.
Still looking forward to next week. Suits Korea fighting!
Ugh Louis. I don’t mind PHS as Mike Ross as much as the Korean Harvey. There’s this noticeable lack of cockiness. I don’t know how to explain it but the new Harvey is more reliable and grounded as compared to the care-free, smart ass confident aura the original Harvey had. He doesn’t have enough of the smexy “I’m-the-king-of-it-all” attitude, the one he uses to outsmart others and wiggle out of tough situations. The new Jessica too, doesn’t give off this confident, assured, “queen-of-chess” attitude (which I fell for) but instead seems like a regular, ice-queen ceo.
Yes I didn’t mention Harvey but I agree with everything you said. In the original, Harvey hired Mike with almost this sense of amusement, as if its a game and he’s playing because it’s fun. Reliable and grounded is a good way to put it. Choi Kang-Seok does seem this way, even has he takes risks. His character does things that to break rules but he feels somehow by the book and its an odd contrast. And this likely has to do with the overall tone of Suits Korea with its decidedly less colorful, broodier, more serious approach to the story.
I was expecting more smirks, quips, and witty jokes. Go Yeon-woo does not come off as self-assured or smirky has Mike Ross, who makes jokes and doesn’t always seem to take things seriously as a result.
Yes. Oh goodness. This point! They’re turning the show into this dark, deep, brooding theme and I’m not sure I like that. I want more witty banters and idk the two male leads’ own version of throwing famous movie lines at each other.
dooleygongshil
July 12, 2018 at 10:51 PM
SecretaryKim is just adorable. Wrist-grabbing I can get behind…
Sunflowerdiva
July 13, 2018 at 4:20 PM
I still firmly believe in hand-holding over anything else, but I thought this was an acceptable (and maaaaaybe squee inducing) moment. 🙂
dooleygongshil
July 4, 2018 at 11:33 PM
That closet kiss scene *SWOOON* #SecretaryKim
dooleygongshil
June 28, 2018 at 11:32 PM
I\’m still on board with \”Hammurabi\”, but unlike \”Secretary Kim\”, I\’m not on my toes to watch it right away and save it for weekends. I love it but I don\’t always feel like watching it. Anyone else?
🧛♂️ 💔💔 but 👧💔💔💔💔
June 29, 2018 at 12:44 AM
same here… and its not that MH is bad than SK but its other way round for me.
Al other drama m watching are light fluff and i can watch them on the go… but MH has lots of information, emotions, feelings to share and to grasp so i need some time all alone, empty brain to comprehend….so i just wait till weekend to start it.
dooleygongshil
June 29, 2018 at 1:01 PM
Yes exactly!!! I always feel like I need to prepare myself to sit down and watch Miss Hammurabi. And the emotions, which can be a lot to watch during the week after work. Hence, weekends. LOL. I do really love MH though.
But Secretary Kim is easy to watch and frankly, addicting. And it one of those dramas you can just get into right away and is perfect for watching while you’re knitting or something.
dooleygongshil
June 28, 2018 at 11:29 PM
What\’s Wrong With Secretary Kim is only drama I\’ve been consistently tuning into every week since it\’s premiere. There\’s so much to love (except the thing with the brother is frustrating).
LookieLooWho
June 29, 2018 at 12:39 AM
I’m highly addicted to WWSK but I can’t help feeling that I would have been more satisfied watching this in a binge after completion or with 2 weeks left.
dooleygongshil
June 7, 2018 at 11:42 PM
Really enjoyed the premiere week of “What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim?” and I’m looking forward to more episodes. The leads are so cute, funny, and endearing!
transient
June 7, 2018 at 11:53 PM
I so look forward for him being brought back to earth
dooleygongshil
May 28, 2018 at 9:56 PM
Miss Hammurabi, hitting us with the relevant issues. I liked how they pointed out the victim\’s pain vs the loss of the head of family–this makes the drama more meaningful rather than just preachy
dooleygongshil
May 24, 2018 at 8:39 PM
Woooooah, just noticed that I leveled up to Eunuch in drag. It’s been almost a year since I became a Noble Idiot, so this is a surprise.
bam 🐢🐌💖~
May 24, 2018 at 8:42 PM
Congratulations!!!
RaOnAh loves Jay B 💚
May 24, 2018 at 8:44 PM
Congrats!!! 🎉🎉🎉
delphy
May 24, 2018 at 9:35 PM
Congrats! 🎈
Jenmole🍊
May 24, 2018 at 10:18 PM
Congratulations!
korfan
May 24, 2018 at 10:29 PM
Yay! Congratulations!
kaybee
May 25, 2018 at 1:21 AM
Congrats! ^^
Eries be the Light
May 25, 2018 at 1:30 AM
Waah congratulations!!!
Waadmay
May 25, 2018 at 3:10 AM
Congrats 🎊🎊🎊🎊🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
Shek
May 25, 2018 at 7:45 AM
Woot!!
dooleygongshil
May 23, 2018 at 9:13 AM
About Miss Hammurabi…I wasn’t sure about it given Go Ara and L aren’t always the most natural or consistent actors but I enjoyed it so far. It focuses on mundane ordinary cases in a poignant way.
🧛♂️ 💔💔 but 👧💔💔💔💔
May 23, 2018 at 9:33 AM
yeah more beanies are onboard to Hammurabi’s ride… glad to know that
persianrose❤️战哥
May 23, 2018 at 12:50 PM
I disliked Go Ara so much in Black that I cannot even dare to click and play MH! And L looks like a 18 yr old even in that suits… I might be 100% wrong this time, but they made such a bad memories in my mind that’s hard to erase 😑
purplesheesh
May 23, 2018 at 4:02 PM
Same here but still gabe it a try. So far, so good. 👍🏻
Broken is Bidulgi OTP trash all the way 🕊 🕊 🕊
May 24, 2018 at 2:57 AM
i hope under sung dong il eyes, they can improve a bit with their acting.
dooleygongshil
May 23, 2018 at 9:05 AM
Work is still crazy, barely caught up with Suits over the weekend, but that didn’t stop me from starting Ms Hammurabi yesterday. I’m still behind on Greasy Melo though. What is sleep…
lazygeisha was modernflapper
May 23, 2018 at 11:58 AM
Sleep is for the weak.
dooleygongshil
May 17, 2018 at 9:01 PM
Work has been crazy, so I’m episodes behind on everything but so many new dramas are now starting!? Work will be busy until July -insert self-pity- …at least Brooklyn Nine-Nine was renewed. Noice!
daydee
May 17, 2018 at 9:04 PM
Now I want to watch the Swing MV 😀
dooleygongshil
May 17, 2018 at 10:34 PM
I went and watched it right after I posted that GIF. And then a bunch of other SJ MVs. There’s so many its like a black hole hahahah
Shek
May 17, 2018 at 9:15 PM
So happy Brooklyn 99 was picked up by NBC. I was so upset when I heard it was cancelled. Such a good show!
IamPilgrim
May 18, 2018 at 1:48 AM
Comment was deleted
dooleygongshil
May 9, 2018 at 8:30 PM
I\’ve been finishing about one older drama every couple months alongside whatever I\’m live-watching. I\’ve watched \”Descendants of the Sun\”, \”Healer\”, & \”Kill Me, Heal Me\” so far this year. What next?
owl 🦉 🫰
May 9, 2018 at 8:34 PM
I do the same thing. I’m almost done with Let’s Eat 2 and I’m Sorry I Love You. This year I’ve rewatched It’s Okay That’s Love, Scarlet Heart: Ryeo (which I’ve watched at least six times), and Heartless City. It’s fun, isn’t it!
dooleygongshil
May 9, 2018 at 10:33 PM
Yes, it’s really fun watching all these great dramas I’ve missed. I can only live-watch so many and sometimes currently airing dramas are just plain mediocre. I do sometimes re-watch as well, especially when I can’t decide which drama to start. I recently re-watched Strong Woman Do Bong-soon, in anticipation of seeing Park Hyung-sik again in Suits.
Oh! and Heartless City is very high on my list to watch next. But I think I’ll try to fit in a classic like Coffee Prince first.
RaOnAh loves Jay B 💚
May 9, 2018 at 8:45 PM
Have you seen Coffee Prince or My Name is Kim Sam Soon? Those are classics.
dooleygongshil
May 9, 2018 at 10:23 PM
I actually haven’t seen either of those, surprisingly. Both of them have been on my radar at some point in time as drama classics to watch, but I had totally forgotten. Thanks for the reminder! I might just make Coffee Prince my next watch…
RaOnAh loves Jay B 💚
May 9, 2018 at 10:51 PM
I hope you like it 🙂
bam 🐢🐌💖~
May 9, 2018 at 9:21 PM
Hmm… Have you seen Misaeng or Goong?
neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
May 9, 2018 at 10:17 PM
Was gonna recommend Misaeng too!
dooleygongshil
May 9, 2018 at 10:27 PM
Its so good!!
neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
May 9, 2018 at 10:43 PM
Nice! Try Forest of Secrets then! xD
bam 🐢🐌💖~
May 9, 2018 at 10:49 PM
Good taste, nee! 😉
dooleygongshil
May 9, 2018 at 10:26 PM
I’ve seen Misaeng (amazing!), but I haven’t seen Goong yet. Which is weird because I’ve actually read majority of the manhwa. I don’t know how I never got around to watching the drama in all these years (I am suddenly very aware of how long its been). Time slips by, I guess. Thanks for the suggestion!
bam 🐢🐌💖~
May 9, 2018 at 10:50 PM
It’s interesting. Definitely an old classic, though the hero could be a frustrating ol’ jerk.
neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
May 9, 2018 at 11:08 PM
The OST to Goong has been a favorite 😉
bam 🐢🐌💖~
May 10, 2018 at 6:56 AM
Yes!
wakimary
May 9, 2018 at 11:42 PM
I’ve been at this “only 3 live watch and 1 re-watch” mantra for about 2-3 years now..makes up for missing some good,or bad depends, dramas.
dooleygongshil
May 10, 2018 at 10:27 PM
It does! There’s a lot I’ve missed since I usually only watch 1 live (max. 2) because I just don’t have time. Especially from Fall-Spring when US TV shows typically air their seasons. But usually I catch up on all the good ones and all the other ones…well, people tell me I’m not missing much.
dooleygongshil
May 8, 2018 at 9:05 PM
Finished watching Healer for the first time! See my thoughts in the comments below. Your (differing) thoughts/opinions are very welcome.
May contain spoilers.
dooleygongshil
May 8, 2018 at 9:05 PM
8.5/10 – I enjoyed this drama, but I didn’t quite love it as much as I thought I would.
I came into this drama with very high expectations due to all the praise it gets. A good 3.5 years after it’s release, Healer continues to have so much fan-love, and it’s easy to see why. It has great pacing, solid cast, interesting characters, swoon-worthy romance, cool action scenes, and consistency in quality and story throughout the whole thing. I imagine it would have been a great drama to live-watch week by week.
The story and characters were interesting. I think there are many elements in Healer that on paper might seem like more of the same storylines and tropes–your superhero-esque leading man, plucky and quirky damsel, family secrets, evil politicians/ business men, etc. But what this drama manages to do is make those ideas fresh again. I really liked the way everything was woven together. The supporting characters and our young illegal radio show friends were all done well.
I think I would have liked to have seen a lot more development overall. It felt like we saw lots of different piece of the puzzle with the past and present intertwined, but I think some areas could have been more fully realized. However, I realize it would have been difficult to flesh out everything fully without while keeping the pacing and the 20 episodes. On a related note, I think the ending was perhaps most lacking in this regard. I would have liked to have seen more done in terms of greater social/political impacts, and also with the birth mom. It was all kind of vague?
Also, at the beginning I found it weird how quickly our main couple fell for one another. Maybe I’m missed something. I suppose for her there was the Superman/ Lois Lane dynamic. But he also did scare the crap out of her and cut off her fingernails… After getting over my confusion about that, I loved the couple. It was easy to root for them and our actors have great chemistry.
Similarly, another thing that kind of bothered me that I got over was the violence. I’m not squeamish by any means, but there were some scenes where Healer beats people up and I felt like “was that really the only way you could have dealt with that?” For example, when he knocks out the hospital staff because they happen to be in the way. That seemed unnecessarily to me. Healer is supposed to be a smart dude, so why does he sometimes act with all brawn no brain.
And I can’t have been the only person who wasn’t the fan of that “Eternal Love” song. The fact that I actually understand the cheesy English lyrics while watching was quite distracting.
natzillagorilla
May 8, 2018 at 10:07 PM
The ending is actually the only episode that disappointed me! It definitely left me with a bittersweet aftertaste, and still today everytime I read/see something about Healer, I keep going back to the what ifs!
dooleygongshil
May 8, 2018 at 11:08 PM
Yeah, it felt a bit incomplete. Healer did well in so many other ways with such consistently good episodes until the end where it feels like there should almost be another episode. It wasn’t the worst ending, we got our happy end and all, but it left something to be desired.
💜🍍☠ Sicarius The Queen of Melonia ☠🍍💜
May 8, 2018 at 10:51 PM
Yay! You finished it! Thanks for the review! 🙂
The ending was at first, and probably still is my main gripe with this show, although given that I’ve watched it 3 times it can’t have been much of a gripe haha. The ending was very open though, almost would’ve been great as 25 episode drama, especially since for me at least, 20 episodes felt like 16.
I was thankfully not tainted by the Healer hype and I didn’t watch it live, so while I watched it because of its high DB rating, I was able to enjoy it all on my own without realising till later how big it was.
I wasn’t bothered by the quickness of the relationship as such, because they obviously had this weird unspoken bond, although it did, and still bothers me that she slept with him and didn’t even know his name hahaha like? isn’t that awkward?
It still remains my favourite drama though, and I think that’s just because I felt the writing to be overall super tight, and well executed and JCW is probably his best has the Healer character.
dooleygongshil
May 8, 2018 at 11:04 PM
I agree about 25 episodes. The 20 episodes went by faster than it does for most shows. The pacing was just really good. Most dramas usually have those few episodes that drag on forever part way through, but Healer did a really good job with keeping up my interest. Its probably because of the layers to the story.
I think it was because of their unspoken bond thing I was able to continue watching and move on from my critical gripes about the quickness of it all. Other dramas, I might have been stuck on that for far longer, thinking “well, that’s dumb.” But I think with the chemistry between the actors made it easy to let it go and say, “oh well, I guess its fate.” And that connection they had amid all the mystery was part of what made their romance so swoon-worthy. That hand-hold in the dark and all. Squeeee
I definitely see myself rewatching Healer later on. It does have that re-watchable quality 😀
💜🍍☠ Sicarius The Queen of Melonia ☠🍍💜
May 8, 2018 at 11:39 PM
Yes, yes so true. Dramas often drag in the last quarter, but for Healer it almost never slowed down. The pacing was very well done.
Same. Any other drama it would’ve botched it to be honest. And the fact that they had that past connection as well as this two sided present connection made it a lot easier to just latch onto the “Fate” thing. Although it’s never mentioned as fate, which is probably part of the reason again why it worked.
*omgosh that hand hold* *One of my favourite hand holds ever in dramaland tbh*
I’m not much of a rewatcher- only rewatched two shows ever, so for me it’s kinda big deal!!! But yes, I agree!
dooleygongshil
May 6, 2018 at 1:49 PM
Finally got around to watching Healer and I’m almost halfway through! I know a lot of people who love this drama so I’m excited to finally be on this amazing bandwagon.
lazygeisha was modernflapper
May 6, 2018 at 1:52 PM
There’s fanfiction, too. 🙂
Cori
May 6, 2018 at 2:01 PM
Healer is SO GOOD! This is my favorite scene 😀
mindy
May 6, 2018 at 2:15 PM
I love Healer, it was probably the first K-drama I truly fell head-over-heels in love with. It was also, I believe, my first live-watching experience.
It deserves a rewatch because I think all the great dramas I’ve watched since then have kind of overshadowed it in my heart. I need to remind myself of how great it is!
dooleygongshil
May 6, 2018 at 3:43 PM
I usually watch most dramas as they air, so as you can imagine I have a long list of dramas that I didn’t get around to watching when they were airing. Especially since I usually only can handle keeping up with one drama at a time, maximum two.
Now that I’m watching Healer, I question why didn’t I put it higher on my list!? I should have watched it sooner!
Shek
May 6, 2018 at 3:30 PM
I’m planning to start it this month. I’m excited, but nervous I won’t love it as much as others.
mindy
May 6, 2018 at 3:48 PM
That’s always the danger of hyped-up dramas! I still haven’t seen Forest of Secrets or Signal because I want to make sure I’m in the mood to appreciate them to their fullest. I’m scared I won’t see what others see, especially because I’m not huge into crime dramas in the first place.
dooleygongshil
May 6, 2018 at 3:52 PM
I feel the same! I haven’t started Signal for the same reason. Also because I’m always worried that I’ll get busy part way through my viewing of the drama and then never go back to finish—guilty of this many times. I want to enjoy the whole thing through, if that makes sense?
Shek
May 6, 2018 at 4:20 PM
I started Forest of Secrets, but it’s on hold because I wasn’t loving it. 🙈🙈🙈
dooleygongshil
May 6, 2018 at 3:48 PM
WOOO welcome to the club! I was worried too because its such a hyped drama and very well loved. I thought maybe it wouldn’t meet those high expectations others were creating for me. But I’m enjoying it so far.
(Granted even though I had heard it was so good, I didn’t actually know much about what it was about so I think that really helped me watch it with fresh eyes.)
💜🍍☠ Sicarius The Queen of Melonia ☠🍍💜
May 6, 2018 at 5:56 PM
Yasssss
korfan
May 6, 2018 at 11:38 PM
Yay!
Enjoy the rest of the show! 🙂
dooleygongshil
May 3, 2018 at 9:10 PM
I liked last weeks Suits, but had uncertainties due the more serious/gloomy tone vs the original. I’m happy to see Suits starting to make strides as it’s own show and has picked up some levity
dooleygongshil
April 30, 2018 at 8:36 PM
In case you didn’t figure it out, Woo Do-hwan is one of the reasons I’ve stuck with the Great Seducer. I mean look at this beautiful man.
mindy
April 30, 2018 at 8:45 PM
He’s the only reason I made it as far as I did.
Sadly, it appears I don’t like him enough to stick with a mediocre drama just for him.
dooleygongshil
April 30, 2018 at 8:54 PM
I don’t blame you. I started skipping through every episode at some point because just I want to know what happens but I don’t have the patience to actually watch everything.
bam 🐢🐌💖~
April 30, 2018 at 8:55 PM
Love him. But I love my sanity and vertebra better. Dear goodness, the whiplash that show gave me. I was either bored to tears or annoyed to tears.
dooleygongshil
April 30, 2018 at 9:00 PM
HAHAHA I totally get the whiplash. There is so much about the show that has irritated me to no end.
bam 🐢🐌💖~
April 30, 2018 at 9:04 PM
I didn’t care about the parents, I thought WDH, MGY, and KMJ were all great, but their characters were so frustrating. I just ff my way through each episode and then watch the preview to see what happened, now..
dooleygongshil
April 30, 2018 at 8:35 PM
Great Seducer ep 29 yet again highlights Joy\’s acting in contrast with Woo Do-hwan. For someone who is upset and angry, she was quite expressionless and he was just sorry and heartbroken.
dooleygongshil
April 30, 2018 at 8:28 PM
I’m excited for the Great Seducer to finally be over–it’s so irritatingly frustrating w/ all their angst and drama yet I can’t stop watching. I just want to reach the end of this rollercoaster ride.
dooleygongshil
April 28, 2018 at 7:26 PM
Just started ‘Pretty Noona’ and its so lovely! There’s plenty of cute but also an injection of realism. I love how the show zooms on these small things that work together to drive the romance forward.
lolita
April 28, 2018 at 8:44 PM
Welcome to the club! 🙂
dooleygongshil
April 27, 2018 at 9:52 PM
Thank you beanies who gave me suggestions on recent dramas on my other post. Work craziness is dying down and my usual rotation of American TV shows ending their seasons soon so….KDRAMA TIME!
dooleygongshil
June 9, 2018 at 10:23 AM
Comment was deleted
dooleygongshil
April 26, 2018 at 11:15 PM
Having watched 5 seasons of the original, here is my verdict on Suits ep1,2: A good attempt but not amazing.
Will leave my reasons in the comments below. Meanwhile, a GIF of the cutest Park HyungSik.
fencejumper
April 26, 2018 at 11:39 PM
Yes! I like it but I guess the original set my expectations to high. I’m still going to continue tho cause it’s pretty good so far.
I feel like the kdrama just dumped us in wherein the original took us along a smart ass journey straight from the intro. Jessica and Rachel’s kdrama counterparts are not as fiery, self-assured and assertive as the original.
dooleygongshil
April 27, 2018 at 12:09 AM
YES, I agree. As I posted below, just that I wrote so much you were too fast for me! Definitely missing some fire and sass. I did notice how the pacing is quite different and they did skim over some parts that was in the original’s pilot episode. This is definitely due to format differences I expect, but I haven’t decided if thats a bad thing yet.
fencejumper
April 27, 2018 at 12:14 AM
You’ve written a lot let me read it and I agree maybe it’s cause of the format change😊
dooleygongshil
April 27, 2018 at 12:04 AM
I’ll try not to be too critical as this drama has yet to really develop any backstory and we’re only on week one. My thoughts:
1. The stories and scenes are similar but have been adapted in a culturally conscious way. I think original feels in many senses very culturally American in its corporate legal environment. This adaption has been great in balancing the culture differences, while maintaining it’s identity as “Suits”. From little things, like swapping out Harvey’s signed basketballs with signed baseball gloves and the Korean toast, to subtle changes in character interaction that reflect on work environments, culture, and relationships is quite different in Korea.
2. There’s a lot that is similar, yet I get a very different vibe from this adaptation. The original had this over smart yet cocky and slick vibe, filled with quips and humor among the drama and legal jargon. However, I found this adaptation to be more brooding and serious. This could be my interpretation as an American. But our two leads don’t joke with each other as much. I was expecting more smirks, quips, and witty jokes. Go Yeon-woo does not come off as self-assured or smirky has Mike Ross, who makes jokes and doesn’t always seem to take things seriously as a result. His arrogance about his own genius sometimes gets the best of him when he realizes coming into the job that he doesn’t actually know how to be a lawyer—both in serious ways and in humorous ones. Go Yeon-woo seems to have less of that problem and seems more clueless and broody. Not that Park Hyung-sik is doing a bad job (I love him actually though), just that it’s not what I expected. PHS delivers all his more technically lines very impressively. He has that kind and boyish feel that we need in the character. And sometimes we see some of that “I’m a genius” cockiness. But he’s a lot less playful and more mopey? Hopefully I’ll get used this new version of the character….And don’t even get my started on Louis Litt…
3. We need more sass from our ladies. All of them.
4. Everything looks beautiful. The actors, the outfits, and the sets.
5. Ultimately I think Suits Korea did a good job of making it’s own version of the story that feels similar yet new. I love the detail that was clearly put into adapting the story. Admittedly I found these 2 episodes less engaging than I hoped. I remember watching the first episode of Suits USA and immediately watched the next one. While I still want to continue with this drama, I’m decidedly less on the edge of my seat to watch more—I don’t care about the characters as much perhaps? Which is surprising as I expected to love them as I love these actors and the original TV show (before it started dragging on forever and ever). Humor is the one thing I think we could have more of.
Still looking forward to next week. Suits Korea fighting!
fencejumper
April 27, 2018 at 12:33 AM
Everything 👏👏🙌
Ugh Louis. I don’t mind PHS as Mike Ross as much as the Korean Harvey. There’s this noticeable lack of cockiness. I don’t know how to explain it but the new Harvey is more reliable and grounded as compared to the care-free, smart ass confident aura the original Harvey had. He doesn’t have enough of the smexy “I’m-the-king-of-it-all” attitude, the one he uses to outsmart others and wiggle out of tough situations. The new Jessica too, doesn’t give off this confident, assured, “queen-of-chess” attitude (which I fell for) but instead seems like a regular, ice-queen ceo.
dooleygongshil
April 27, 2018 at 9:30 PM
Yes I didn’t mention Harvey but I agree with everything you said. In the original, Harvey hired Mike with almost this sense of amusement, as if its a game and he’s playing because it’s fun. Reliable and grounded is a good way to put it. Choi Kang-Seok does seem this way, even has he takes risks. His character does things that to break rules but he feels somehow by the book and its an odd contrast. And this likely has to do with the overall tone of Suits Korea with its decidedly less colorful, broodier, more serious approach to the story.
neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
April 27, 2018 at 1:18 AM
I wasn’t able to finish the original. But I agree to every word! I suddenly miss Rachel, Donna and Jessica. I need more sass.
And oh Louis. Nvm.
lotus
April 27, 2018 at 12:22 PM
Yes. Oh goodness. This point! They’re turning the show into this dark, deep, brooding theme and I’m not sure I like that. I want more witty banters and idk the two male leads’ own version of throwing famous movie lines at each other.
dooleygongshil
April 27, 2018 at 9:31 PM
Yes I want my fast talking quips and witty banter!