I was almost going to say the one from Bloodhounds, because I found it so endearing how instantaneous their friendship was and how they wouldn’t let anyone tell them they weren’t close just because they hadn’t known each other for long. But then I remembered that Alchemy of Souls part 2 is technically a drama from this year (kind of) and then I obviously had to go with CP Won and Jang Uk, both of whom still have my heart at the end of this long year of dramas. At the beginning of the drama I thought Won would end up an antagonist and Uk would have to vie for the throne or something, but I’ve never been happier to be wrong, and their weird, halting, reluctant respect for each other was truly a thing of beauty. I know Uk will eventually break down and go back to the capitol to be Won’s magical advisor and the bromance will live on and probably be recorded in a cryptic poem for future generations. As it should be.
Ooooh Won was such a little ball of grumpy cuteness. I’m still surprised that given both his parents and their glaringly obvious weaknesses, our Crown Prince turned out so well.
I was happy too that he turned out the way he did which was nothing short of magical. It might be because of good influence he got from being close to the Turtle of Goodness..
I get my BL fix from Taiwanese dramas. They have made it an entire genre. There are some Korean dramas too. Most are of course small web series – don’t think there’s anything by mainstream channels / actors.
I’m glad other Asian countries are now making dramas that tell legit LGBTQ+ stories, and I know Korea is slowly (very slowly) moving in that direction. It would be nice to see it become, as you say, a normal mainstream thing, as I get tired of watching shows filled with queer-coded characters and relationships that everyone is terrified to actually openly acknowledge (25-21, cough, cough).
What I like no actually love about the Taiwanese dramas is that they treat it just like another story – there is no awkwardness or self-consciousness. That is the real power imo of these dramas.
2023 Drama Roundup
13 – Show how you learned from your mistakes: let’s talk about drops
I only dropped Oh! Young-shim (boring) and Destined with You (annoying) this year and I don’t really want to dump on them any more than I already have. There were also a few dramas that, looking back, I should probably have dropped. The Bad Mother was not really worth my time and I wish I had recognized it sooner. And I really wanted to like Crash Course in Romance, but ended up liking it less and less as it went along. I was so incensed after watching episode 15 that I didn’t finish it right away, but went and read the weecap first. Then I decided that I wanted to get a bean from it so that I could give it to someone more deserving. Spite finish! But I do think I did a decent job of not starting dramas that I strongly suspected I wouldn’t love, regardless of Beanie enthusiasm. There were some that I was interested in based on promos, but something about them gave me pause, and in the end I saved myself a lot of time. Some examples are: The Heavenly Idol, Kkokdu’s Season, Oasis, Behind Your Touch, and The Interest of Love. I had a lot of fun reading the weecaps, but didn’t feel like I was missing anything. Here’s to guarding my free time even more jealously in the new year!
I hear you on Crash Course – I spite-finished (great phrase) that as well as Castaway Diva, and to some extent Destined With You. Learning what not to start is an important skill!
Ok, so obviously Gu Won in King the Land is top of this list. Evidence abounds. @midnight , humanitarian that they are, has covered it thoroughly. BUT there is another character who is nearly equal in suit-wearing skill that has something else that I’m a sucker for, and that’s a makeover scene. So congratulations Lee Rang from Tot9T1938, I’m giving this award to you this year. He also gets points for variety, both in color and style, and for the fact that his initial issues with a necktie turned into a meet-cute. He’ll pretend not to care that he’s my pick here, but we all know he’s secretly elated.
2023 Drama Roundup
11 – Nam Da Reum prize: best child actor
In contrast to the last category for me, this was a tough competition! There were so many great kiddos doing great work this year, and I really loved the teens from Castaway Diva and the kids from See You in My 19th Life. But there can only be one, and y’all know it is definitely Yu-na in The Kidnapping Day. Please, someone, just give her an official award already!
There is no competition here: Park Hyung-sik. I was intrigued by him at the beginning of the year, having heard tons of good things, but I hadn’t seen him in anything until Our Blooming Youth. I was totally enchanted right away by his character and honestly by him. He brought so much nuance to Crown Prince Hwan, and I was obsessed with that show despite its flaws. Later I watched him in Strong Woman Do Bong-soon and absolutely adored his take on a chaebol entrepreneur which was totally different than any I’d ever seen. I know I still have lots of his shows to watch, but I couldn’t be more excited to get to it all.
It is on my list I promise! The dramas coming out have just been relentless lately, so it’s been hard to find the time. Plus, that’s one I have semi-convinced my partner to watch with me, so I’m also waiting for him to be freed up a little. I’m sure you’ll hear me raving when I finally get there!
You have to watch Happiness, of course. And if you only have half an hour to watch something, Two Lights: Relumino (a mini mini drama. In fact, it’s an advert).
2023 Drama Roundup
9 – Your non k-drama recommendation
I’ve loved Makoto Shinkai’s work ever since I first saw Your Name years ago (it remains one of my favorite movies). I then ravenously watched everything else of his that I could get my hands on, and Weathering with You was the last thing I saw in a movie theater right before the pandemic hit. So I was watching with impatient anticipation for Suzume to come out in the US this year, and when it finally did, I was not disappointed. A lot of Shinkai’s work explores how people deal with the emotional aftermath of catastrophic disasters, but this one was more explicitly about the tsunami in 2011. We get to follow a girl who meets a mysterious man – who then turns into a chair! – and ends up trying to stop earthquakes from happening before they start by closing doors in abandoned places around Japan. Meanwhile she meets amazing people in every new place she travels to, we explore the complicated but loving relationship she has with her aunt, and eventually join her as she faces her hometown that was destroyed by the tsunami 12 years ago. The animation is gorgeous, the story is fresh and interesting, and the soundtrack makes me feel all the things. I can’t wait to watch it again.
This movie was my comeback to the a cinema after three years.
I liked it a lot, but I still prefer “Your name”.
I have not watched “Weathering with you” yet, but I’m obsessed with its OST.
2023 Drama Roundup
8 – The character who most screams for mental health care
Literally everyone from The Killing Vote. But honestly, I think it’s Syaon from My Lovely Liar for me. She was someone who struggled with intense body image issues, with feelings of inadequacy in her career, with desperate fears of rejection from the man she liked, and with the conviction that she was nothing without his help. There are many other characters in dramaland who could use mental health care, but she is the one who screamed for it just about every time she was on screen. She literally has a scene where she pretends to have a suicide attempt so that the ML will come and find her, save her, and take her home. And afterward all she can think of is the fact that the woman driving the car had seen him without his mask on and he behaved familiarly with her. Girl, get you some help. Part of me couldn’t stand Syaon, part of me just felt sorry for her, but all of me wished she would get the care she desperately needed.
For sure, she could have used some compassionate professional help too. I thought about her but decided that I’d give it to Syaon because she seemed like she was just waiting for anyone to recognize her actions as a cry for help.
2023 Drama Roundup
7 – The drama Beanies convinced you to watch and you can’t be grateful enough
With slow and slow and slow-burn dramas, I really want to know how it ends before I’m ready to commit. I need to know that the longing and angst is going somewhere, and that it’s going to be worth it to me, so I knew I’d be relying on this community to give me an idea of what to expect in Call it Love. Hearing almost nothing but good things, I took the plunge shortly after it ended, and I’m so glad I did. I ended up loving the flawed and deeply damaged characters, and watching them figure out how to live with and relate to each other as siblings, children of flawed parents, friends, and lovers. It was a beautiful drama, and I’m thankful to all the Beanies who had a hand in vetting it for me.
2023 Drama Roundup
6 – The character that deserves a kimchi slap
There are so many! I thought about giving this dubious award to the restaurant tattle-tail dad from Castaway Diva, but his was such a minor part so in the end I think my kimchi slap goes to Oh Ha-ra (FL) from Strangers Again. I honestly had a lot of fun watching this drama, due almost entirely to the Beanie conversations. We supported different exes, shook our heads at people not picking up on their own biology, and ranted about people not communicating. Type 2 fun at its finest! But honestly there is very little to redeem this character for me after the fact. She was so pushy, and selfish, and she couldn’t imagine that anyone might have a different perspective from hers. There were times when she was almost sympathetic for me, and then she would steamroll someone else’s opinion/whole life and I would be shocked back to reality. But maybe if I kimchi slapped her *real hard* it would knock her off-kilter just enough to think about someone else for once. And with any luck, it would ruin a pair of those horrifying suit shorts she wears to the office.
Good candidate to pick. 👍
I have never understood this suit shorts trend and as officewear. 🤦♀️ Didn’t the FL in Destined With You also commit this fashion crime.
I’ve been trying to think of female candidates for the upcoming “Best Suit Wearer” category of the Round-up, but hallucinatory images of those dreadful shorts suits keep getting in the way. The FL and some of the side characters in Destined were repeat offenders. That’s a trend that should die and be buried in an unmarked grave with the official record reading “No known family survivors.”
@jls943, 100% on the FL in Strangers Again. That point late in the show when she tries to make a deal with her MIL to give her husband a building in exchange for his agreement to have the baby he *does not want* was when I realized she’s irredeemable. So gross.
2023 Drama Roundup
5 – OTP you didn’t think you would adore
Most of the time, I’m pretty confident I will love an OTP, so this one was trickier for me. In the end though, I think it’s Kang-ho and Mi-joo from The Bad Mother. Because I didn’t realize their relationship would play such a large role, it caught me off guard, and the scenes when we saw them dating in flashback were the best of the drama for sure. While everyone else was being terrible, annoying, or forgettable, I was hanging on for the moments of sweetness and ache between them.
Exactly! And drama-makers know all the things to do to try to make sure the OTP works, from the writing to the soundtrack, so it’s always more surprising to me when I feel “meh” about one!
2023 Drama Roundup
4 – The drama you loved and Beanies hated
King. The. Land. This show got so much shade for “not having a plot” and “being too focused on Junho” but to that I say: Psh. As far as I’m concerned, this romcom had everything we asked for: beautiful leads, great chemistry, fun enemies-to-lovers hijinks, 0 serial killers in sight, a wonderfully hateable older half sister to fight with, fun side characters, very little whif of love triangle, a physically affectionate OTP, and Lee Junho. We got to watch Won become the chaebol boss I would most want to work for, and Sarang figure out what she wanted her dreams to look like and then go for them. Plus, just as a bonus, we got one of the best halmonis in all of dramaland who was just as sweet as she was withering. It was just fun, and never took itself too seriously. Not to repeat myself too much, but this was the last line from my review and I stand by it, “I laughed, I swooned, I giggled, I squeed, I appreciated Won’s 100% commitment to wearing white pants while on vacation.”
I love your review. All very valid points. Even though you need only one word – Junho. The drama indeed got a lot of shade, it had become a tumbleweed by the end. 🤷♀️ To that there is perhaps only one response.
Yes! I knew you loved it too, so I was hoping you would see this!
Beanies say they don’t want serial killers in their romcoms, but when they actually get what they want, they are bored! I don’t get it. I had so much fun.
With King the Land the criticisms started from the very beginning with the teaser, the poster, everything. It felt like people were determined to be skeptical unless proven otherwise.
I had so much fun too 🥰
2023 Drama Roundup
3 – Side character that stole the drama
Like so many side characters who fail to save a sinking ship of a bad drama *coughjohnandjiwancough* my picks for side characters who stole the drama are the high school kiddos in Crash Course in Romance. The drama itself was disappointingly plagued by annoying characters, random serial killers, loopy logic, tired repeated scandals, and (imo) a total lack of chemistry between the leads. But I was never not cheering for these kids. I wanted them to do well, to have non-traumatizing relationships with their often terrible parents, to figure out their own complicated love lives, and just to succeed in general. Su-a was terrible but I was even glad that she was in a much healthier place by the end, and I just can’t say enough good things about Hae-ee, Seon-jae, Geon-hu, and Dan-ji. I’d be happy forgetting that most of this drama ever happened, but these characters made it slightly more worth it.
2023 Drama Roundup 2 – Male lead you will never forget: for better
I have two that I felt torn between, so I’ll do the other on one of the freestyle days later. My first one goes to Lee Hwan from Our Blooming Youth. This was my first Park Hyung-sik drama and to say that it launched me as a fan is to put it mildly indeed. I was absolutely taken with this reluctant crown prince from his first scene. He was cold and closed off and terrified, and we got to see him open himself up and tentatively learn to trust the people around him. He slowly let Jae-yi into his secret space (both literally and figuratively) that he used to hide from the world, he managed to show the people of a village that had been severely wronged that he was sincere about wanting to make reparations, and he had difficult conversations about blame and guilt and forgiveness. It was such an incredible journey to be on with him.
This was also my first Park Hyung-sik drama, too!!! New fan here as well ❤️🙋♀️ I love your analysis of his character!!!! I loved the emotional journey his character went on. Even though it was uneven, I really really enjoyed this drama.
This is on my list for when the day comes I return to Kdramas, and Park Hyung Sik is the sole reason. I don’t know how he does it, but he just grips the viewer so easily no matter the role— silly (like SWDBS) or serious (like Hwarang)— and he has a pair of really beautiful eyes that just sucks one in and he’s able to do this THING with said eyes that makes one melt and truly feel that he really does love his FL
Although this was my second PHS drama, and I was already sort of kind of sold on him, I didn’t expect the impact he and his character would have on me. I was already many dramas old by then, but could only identify Park Seo Joon, Lee Jong Suk, Lee Min Ho, Hyun Bin and Kang Tae Oh by name and face, this man pretty much upended the lens with which I watched kdramas. And I have not budged from the front row seat since haha!
I think this one for me is Han Jun-hee from A Time Called You. Having never seen the original, I didn’t have any preconceptions or expectations going into this drama, and I was absolutely taken with this character and the way Jeon Yeo-been played her (both parts, really). I felt with her in her grief, was equal parts hopeful and conflicted with her when she arrived in the past, and fell in love with Nam Si-heon with her over and over again. It was a beautiful drama, and it was in large part to this fantastic, empathetic, fallible character we got to follow around.
Walking to the bus stop after work (at my still fresh job) on a sunny Friday afternoon, listening to this song on the way. It’s giving me big Main Character energy. Uri Kyungsoo is just the best.
Ooh, hard to say. I was obsessed with they released “I Do” early, but now I think it depends on the day. Yesterday was “Wonder” but I’ve been cycling through them in terms of favorites. You?
A year ago today I sat down to watch the first episode of a show called Crash Landing on You that I knew very little about, but that was casually recommended to me. I thought, “I’ll just watch part of this while I eat lunch, and finish the episode tonight.” When I came to, 71 minutes later, my lunch was still uneaten (subtitles take focus, it turns out), I felt like I was coming up for air in the best way, and I was beginning to have a feeling that I had stumbled upon something big.
I had no idea how big.
It was only later, when I was on my third drama, that I started to articulate what it was that I found so captivating about them, especially compared to US-based tv. Yes, I loved that they told a complete story, instead of being dependent on the season-system and yes, I loved the episodes that didn’t seem to depend on commercial breaks to build suspense. But I also loved that they just felt like more. They were unapologetically more dramatic, or sweet, or cute, or tense than other shows, in a way that felt unselfconscious, but at the same time aware of what they were doing. And I loved learning about all the nuances in dramas as I watched more and read more, and eventually started learning more about the language.
I think they really came to me at just the right time in my life. I had just finished a really stressful graduate degree a couple of months earlier, and was still having trouble dealing with the burnout from the years I had spent working on it. I started watching K-dramas because they were good and I loved them, but as I kept going, I started to notice myself doing things that I hadn’t done in years. Like reading deeply about a topic just for fun. Or picking up a hobby that was challenging and took practice. I just hadn’t had the headspace to do anything like that in a really long time. I’d kind of forgotten that I used to enjoy those things. I’m sure that some of the improvement was just distance from the degree itself, but I also think that dramas gave me something to focus on that didn’t require me to be skilled – didn’t ask anything of me – and that felt important, and refreshing.
Nowadays, I’m pretty happily hooked, and really loving the community of other drama-lovers here on Dramabeans. It’s been so much fun participating in and learning more about this wide, wonderful, and sometimes weird universe, so thanks everyone! I’ll see you in the comments.
What you describe so elegantly is exactly how I became hooked on kdramas as well. It came at the right time as I needed something to clear my head as well. I started playing piano again; something I’d not done in 15 years. I’m playing violin and singing (will be doing the Bach double this weekend with my daughter). Again things I’ve not done in decades. It’s been so good for me. I’ve exercised more under the guise of watching dramas while doing so. I’ve been here in this community since 2016! A baby by many standards—well, maybe preschooler. Welcome!!!
Wow! Learning new things about you all the time, violin is one of the harder instruments to learn surely? Well done you. I hope that the weekend event goes well with your daughter💪.
I catching all you guys up. The “Do you like Brahms!” Recaps had several musical beanies offering analysis, and so most people found that little fact out about me the then.
Thanks for sharing your story lovely to get to know you. It sounds like post degree get your life back rehab was helped a lot by the joy of K dramaland. I wish I had known about it back when I was studying.
Hope that you continue to enjoy your journey and having fun in DB world this community is great so pleased to have you here.
Seriously though, I don’t think I could do another. When it was good, it was really great. But often it was not, and then it was just awful. I’m still glad that I did it, and that I finished, but it’s hard for me to even recommend graduate school to anyone anymore. I at least want to be sure they have a realistic picture of what it can be before they dive in.
Do you think it was partly because of the pandemic and online learning? You said you just finished your study months ago, so I assumed you spent the past part of your study studying online. As far as I’m concerned, that’s also draining.
I’m sure it was partly that. The last year and a half of the degree, I was working completely remotely. I wasn’t taking classes at that point, just doing research, so I was lucky to be able to make the transition pretty seamlessly and continue with my work. And I am quite happy working from home most of the time, but the stress of living with the pandemic looming overhead constantly was a factor, I’m confident. Also, I was working with two advisors who were both dealing with their own challenges that were exacerbated by the pandemic, and that made it more difficult. But it was also plenty stressful pre-March 2020, so I know the burnout wasn’t entirely a result of covid.
I see. First of all, congratulations. Your effort and everything have paid out and you should be extremely proud of yourself. I see having 2 advisors have it’s negative sides to it, too. And I agree that graduate school isn’t for everyone. I wouldn’t have been in one if I hadn’t had reasons for completing it.
I can absolutely relate, I got into K-dramas last year because of Crash Landing on You as well! I wasn’t sure at first because the pacing is so different to what I was used to but I think I finished it all in a weekend. I rarely watch anything but K-dramas now.
So glad you found them, and it’s lovely to read about the impact they’ve had. I’ve really enjoyed your contributions!
You are so eloquent. You mirrored my k-drama journey in words I could not put together.
but as I kept going, I started to notice myself doing things that I hadn’t done in years. Like reading deeply about a topic just for fun. Or picking up a hobby that was challenging and took practice. I just hadn’t had the headspace to do anything like that in a really long time. I’d kind of forgotten that I used to enjoy those things.
This.
To say k-drama has changed my life – my relationships with everyone around me, and has made me more aware of everything around me, figure out my priorities – is putting it mildly. It has connected me to people who mattered. It gave me topics to discuss with close one when none existed. It brought my husband and me closer like never before. Still a newbie, I know I will be here for a long long time.
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Unaspirated
December 14, 2023 at 5:00 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
14 – Best bromance / womance
I was almost going to say the one from Bloodhounds, because I found it so endearing how instantaneous their friendship was and how they wouldn’t let anyone tell them they weren’t close just because they hadn’t known each other for long. But then I remembered that Alchemy of Souls part 2 is technically a drama from this year (kind of) and then I obviously had to go with CP Won and Jang Uk, both of whom still have my heart at the end of this long year of dramas. At the beginning of the drama I thought Won would end up an antagonist and Uk would have to vie for the throne or something, but I’ve never been happier to be wrong, and their weird, halting, reluctant respect for each other was truly a thing of beauty. I know Uk will eventually break down and go back to the capitol to be Won’s magical advisor and the bromance will live on and probably be recorded in a cryptic poem for future generations. As it should be.
wonhwa
December 14, 2023 at 6:09 AM
I’d also like to cast a vote for the Crown Prince and his turtle.
mmmmm
December 14, 2023 at 9:56 AM
An unbreakable bond.
miso
December 14, 2023 at 7:05 AM
I had them on my list last year. They were hilarious together.
zindigo
December 14, 2023 at 7:19 AM
This was the one I was going to go with! These two were great together, in both parts of the series.
Cecee
December 14, 2023 at 8:59 AM
Ooooh Won was such a little ball of grumpy cuteness. I’m still surprised that given both his parents and their glaringly obvious weaknesses, our Crown Prince turned out so well.
mmmmm
December 14, 2023 at 9:57 AM
I was happy too that he turned out the way he did which was nothing short of magical. It might be because of good influence he got from being close to the Turtle of Goodness..
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 14, 2023 at 10:57 AM
My vote for OTP sorry bromance goes to them too. 🥳 🎊 🎉
wonhwa
December 14, 2023 at 12:23 PM
Maybe one day in drama land . . .
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 15, 2023 at 5:23 AM
I get my BL fix from Taiwanese dramas. They have made it an entire genre. There are some Korean dramas too. Most are of course small web series – don’t think there’s anything by mainstream channels / actors.
wonhwa
December 15, 2023 at 6:04 AM
I’m glad other Asian countries are now making dramas that tell legit LGBTQ+ stories, and I know Korea is slowly (very slowly) moving in that direction. It would be nice to see it become, as you say, a normal mainstream thing, as I get tired of watching shows filled with queer-coded characters and relationships that everyone is terrified to actually openly acknowledge (25-21, cough, cough).
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 15, 2023 at 8:28 AM
What I like no actually love about the Taiwanese dramas is that they treat it just like another story – there is no awkwardness or self-consciousness. That is the real power imo of these dramas.
wonhwa
December 15, 2023 at 9:20 AM
I love when shows do that too, but it’s still rarer than I’d like (and not just in Asia).
Unaspirated
December 13, 2023 at 4:45 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
13 – Show how you learned from your mistakes: let’s talk about drops
I only dropped Oh! Young-shim (boring) and Destined with You (annoying) this year and I don’t really want to dump on them any more than I already have. There were also a few dramas that, looking back, I should probably have dropped. The Bad Mother was not really worth my time and I wish I had recognized it sooner. And I really wanted to like Crash Course in Romance, but ended up liking it less and less as it went along. I was so incensed after watching episode 15 that I didn’t finish it right away, but went and read the weecap first. Then I decided that I wanted to get a bean from it so that I could give it to someone more deserving. Spite finish! But I do think I did a decent job of not starting dramas that I strongly suspected I wouldn’t love, regardless of Beanie enthusiasm. There were some that I was interested in based on promos, but something about them gave me pause, and in the end I saved myself a lot of time. Some examples are: The Heavenly Idol, Kkokdu’s Season, Oasis, Behind Your Touch, and The Interest of Love. I had a lot of fun reading the weecaps, but didn’t feel like I was missing anything. Here’s to guarding my free time even more jealously in the new year!
zindigo
December 13, 2023 at 7:13 AM
Spite finish — hahaha! I’m going to remember that one.
Elinor is trapped in the timeslip
December 13, 2023 at 8:33 AM
I hear you on Crash Course – I spite-finished (great phrase) that as well as Castaway Diva, and to some extent Destined With You. Learning what not to start is an important skill!
Unaspirated
December 12, 2023 at 4:31 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
12 – Best suit wearer
Ok, so obviously Gu Won in King the Land is top of this list. Evidence abounds. @midnight , humanitarian that they are, has covered it thoroughly. BUT there is another character who is nearly equal in suit-wearing skill that has something else that I’m a sucker for, and that’s a makeover scene. So congratulations Lee Rang from Tot9T1938, I’m giving this award to you this year. He also gets points for variety, both in color and style, and for the fact that his initial issues with a necktie turned into a meet-cute. He’ll pretend not to care that he’s my pick here, but we all know he’s secretly elated.
Linarrick
December 12, 2023 at 5:57 AM
Rang would definitely be smirking, especially as he’s being chosen over his brother for best suit wearer 😂
zindigo
December 12, 2023 at 7:09 AM
Great choice! He also really rocked that haircut.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 12, 2023 at 8:25 AM
Your comment on this reaction is so spot on.
Unaspirated
December 11, 2023 at 6:17 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
11 – Nam Da Reum prize: best child actor
In contrast to the last category for me, this was a tough competition! There were so many great kiddos doing great work this year, and I really loved the teens from Castaway Diva and the kids from See You in My 19th Life. But there can only be one, and y’all know it is definitely Yu-na in The Kidnapping Day. Please, someone, just give her an official award already!
Eazal
December 11, 2023 at 9:54 AM
I can only agree, she was the absolute best in this drama, which I really loved.
Unaspirated
December 10, 2023 at 5:57 PM
2023 Drama Roundup
10 – Your 2023 crush
There is no competition here: Park Hyung-sik. I was intrigued by him at the beginning of the year, having heard tons of good things, but I hadn’t seen him in anything until Our Blooming Youth. I was totally enchanted right away by his character and honestly by him. He brought so much nuance to Crown Prince Hwan, and I was obsessed with that show despite its flaws. Later I watched him in Strong Woman Do Bong-soon and absolutely adored his take on a chaebol entrepreneur which was totally different than any I’d ever seen. I know I still have lots of his shows to watch, but I couldn’t be more excited to get to it all.
loveblossom🌸
December 10, 2023 at 8:26 PM
Oohh have you seen him in Happiness?! Totally recommend it!
Unaspirated
December 11, 2023 at 5:43 AM
It is on my list I promise! The dramas coming out have just been relentless lately, so it’s been hard to find the time. Plus, that’s one I have semi-convinced my partner to watch with me, so I’m also waiting for him to be freed up a little. I’m sure you’ll hear me raving when I finally get there!
loveblossom🌸
December 14, 2023 at 9:16 PM
@jls943 Sorry for the late reply! I think this drama is definitely a good one for non-kdrama watchers too. ^^
Midnight
December 10, 2023 at 9:48 PM
The best Park Hyung Shik drama for me has been Nine. He was perfect in that show.
He was also the only best thing in Heirs but not worth the try 😁
Unaspirated
December 11, 2023 at 5:44 AM
Yeah, as much as I love him, Heirs in not high on the list. Maybe a youtube compilation of all his scenes though?
Isa is always time travelling
December 11, 2023 at 12:58 AM
You have to watch Happiness, of course. And if you only have half an hour to watch something, Two Lights: Relumino (a mini mini drama. In fact, it’s an advert).
Unaspirated
December 11, 2023 at 5:44 AM
I have heard about this! Do you know where I could find it?
Isa is always time travelling
December 11, 2023 at 5:53 AM
I found it on YouTube 😊
Unaspirated
December 9, 2023 at 6:12 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
9 – Your non k-drama recommendation
I’ve loved Makoto Shinkai’s work ever since I first saw Your Name years ago (it remains one of my favorite movies). I then ravenously watched everything else of his that I could get my hands on, and Weathering with You was the last thing I saw in a movie theater right before the pandemic hit. So I was watching with impatient anticipation for Suzume to come out in the US this year, and when it finally did, I was not disappointed. A lot of Shinkai’s work explores how people deal with the emotional aftermath of catastrophic disasters, but this one was more explicitly about the tsunami in 2011. We get to follow a girl who meets a mysterious man – who then turns into a chair! – and ends up trying to stop earthquakes from happening before they start by closing doors in abandoned places around Japan. Meanwhile she meets amazing people in every new place she travels to, we explore the complicated but loving relationship she has with her aunt, and eventually join her as she faces her hometown that was destroyed by the tsunami 12 years ago. The animation is gorgeous, the story is fresh and interesting, and the soundtrack makes me feel all the things. I can’t wait to watch it again.
Isa is always time travelling
December 10, 2023 at 12:05 PM
This movie was my comeback to the a cinema after three years.
I liked it a lot, but I still prefer “Your name”.
I have not watched “Weathering with you” yet, but I’m obsessed with its OST.
Unaspirated
December 10, 2023 at 4:17 PM
I still like Your Name the best too, but Suzume is a close second, and then Weathering with You, which I still loved, but shy of the others.
Unaspirated
December 8, 2023 at 5:20 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
8 – The character who most screams for mental health care
Literally everyone from The Killing Vote. But honestly, I think it’s Syaon from My Lovely Liar for me. She was someone who struggled with intense body image issues, with feelings of inadequacy in her career, with desperate fears of rejection from the man she liked, and with the conviction that she was nothing without his help. There are many other characters in dramaland who could use mental health care, but she is the one who screamed for it just about every time she was on screen. She literally has a scene where she pretends to have a suicide attempt so that the ML will come and find her, save her, and take her home. And afterward all she can think of is the fact that the woman driving the car had seen him without his mask on and he behaved familiarly with her. Girl, get you some help. Part of me couldn’t stand Syaon, part of me just felt sorry for her, but all of me wished she would get the care she desperately needed.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 8, 2023 at 5:30 AM
I had really hoped that she would NOT get together with the FL’s bodyguard who was her fan. 🙄
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 8, 2023 at 5:31 AM
I sympathized with the character but she was also clearly manipulative.
Unaspirated
December 8, 2023 at 5:43 AM
All the more reason for some solid therapy.
Seon-ha
December 8, 2023 at 5:51 AM
Yup. Yup. Also…the ML’s first love, yes? She could have really used professional help.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 8, 2023 at 6:48 AM
I was half convinced that she was alive and was secretly living apart from her father and brother. It was sad she never got to “know better”.
Unaspirated
December 8, 2023 at 11:07 AM
For sure, she could have used some compassionate professional help too. I thought about her but decided that I’d give it to Syaon because she seemed like she was just waiting for anyone to recognize her actions as a cry for help.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 8, 2023 at 5:54 PM
Good choice. It would make many peoples lives bearable and she was a good singer. 😀
Unaspirated
December 7, 2023 at 3:48 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
7 – The drama Beanies convinced you to watch and you can’t be grateful enough
With slow and slow and slow-burn dramas, I really want to know how it ends before I’m ready to commit. I need to know that the longing and angst is going somewhere, and that it’s going to be worth it to me, so I knew I’d be relying on this community to give me an idea of what to expect in Call it Love. Hearing almost nothing but good things, I took the plunge shortly after it ended, and I’m so glad I did. I ended up loving the flawed and deeply damaged characters, and watching them figure out how to live with and relate to each other as siblings, children of flawed parents, friends, and lovers. It was a beautiful drama, and I’m thankful to all the Beanies who had a hand in vetting it for me.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 7, 2023 at 10:46 AM
Good you waited to binge. It was difficult to wait for the episodes during live watch.
The picture you have chosen is perfect. 😀
Unaspirated
December 6, 2023 at 4:41 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
6 – The character that deserves a kimchi slap
There are so many! I thought about giving this dubious award to the restaurant tattle-tail dad from Castaway Diva, but his was such a minor part so in the end I think my kimchi slap goes to Oh Ha-ra (FL) from Strangers Again. I honestly had a lot of fun watching this drama, due almost entirely to the Beanie conversations. We supported different exes, shook our heads at people not picking up on their own biology, and ranted about people not communicating. Type 2 fun at its finest! But honestly there is very little to redeem this character for me after the fact. She was so pushy, and selfish, and she couldn’t imagine that anyone might have a different perspective from hers. There were times when she was almost sympathetic for me, and then she would steamroll someone else’s opinion/whole life and I would be shocked back to reality. But maybe if I kimchi slapped her *real hard* it would knock her off-kilter just enough to think about someone else for once. And with any luck, it would ruin a pair of those horrifying suit shorts she wears to the office.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 6, 2023 at 5:53 AM
Good candidate to pick. 👍
I have never understood this suit shorts trend and as officewear. 🤦♀️ Didn’t the FL in Destined With You also commit this fashion crime.
Unaspirated
December 6, 2023 at 6:36 AM
I certainly wouldn’t put it past her.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 6, 2023 at 6:55 AM
How come these fashion terrorists never get called out – the real criminals – the costumers.
Elinor is trapped in the timeslip
December 6, 2023 at 10:38 AM
I’ve been trying to think of female candidates for the upcoming “Best Suit Wearer” category of the Round-up, but hallucinatory images of those dreadful shorts suits keep getting in the way. The FL and some of the side characters in Destined were repeat offenders. That’s a trend that should die and be buried in an unmarked grave with the official record reading “No known family survivors.”
@jls943, 100% on the FL in Strangers Again. That point late in the show when she tries to make a deal with her MIL to give her husband a building in exchange for his agreement to have the baby he *does not want* was when I realized she’s irredeemable. So gross.
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 6, 2023 at 11:02 AM
Ugh … creepy feeling just with the mention of the Destined “sides”.
Unaspirated
December 5, 2023 at 4:57 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
5 – OTP you didn’t think you would adore
Most of the time, I’m pretty confident I will love an OTP, so this one was trickier for me. In the end though, I think it’s Kang-ho and Mi-joo from The Bad Mother. Because I didn’t realize their relationship would play such a large role, it caught me off guard, and the scenes when we saw them dating in flashback were the best of the drama for sure. While everyone else was being terrible, annoying, or forgettable, I was hanging on for the moments of sweetness and ache between them.
Cecee
December 5, 2023 at 5:18 AM
100% true.
I would add that their relationship was probably the only relationship worth adoring in the drama.
I am mentally kimchi-slapping his mother for my own sanity.
zindigo
December 5, 2023 at 6:17 AM
Completely agree on your first point. In fact, it’s more surprising when an OTP falls flat!
Unaspirated
December 5, 2023 at 8:42 AM
Exactly! And drama-makers know all the things to do to try to make sure the OTP works, from the writing to the soundtrack, so it’s always more surprising to me when I feel “meh” about one!
Unaspirated
December 4, 2023 at 10:15 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
4 – The drama you loved and Beanies hated
King. The. Land. This show got so much shade for “not having a plot” and “being too focused on Junho” but to that I say: Psh. As far as I’m concerned, this romcom had everything we asked for: beautiful leads, great chemistry, fun enemies-to-lovers hijinks, 0 serial killers in sight, a wonderfully hateable older half sister to fight with, fun side characters, very little whif of love triangle, a physically affectionate OTP, and Lee Junho. We got to watch Won become the chaebol boss I would most want to work for, and Sarang figure out what she wanted her dreams to look like and then go for them. Plus, just as a bonus, we got one of the best halmonis in all of dramaland who was just as sweet as she was withering. It was just fun, and never took itself too seriously. Not to repeat myself too much, but this was the last line from my review and I stand by it, “I laughed, I swooned, I giggled, I squeed, I appreciated Won’s 100% commitment to wearing white pants while on vacation.”
🌸 Cera (@Seeker) 🌸
December 4, 2023 at 10:34 AM
I love your review. All very valid points. Even though you need only one word – Junho. The drama indeed got a lot of shade, it had become a tumbleweed by the end. 🤷♀️ To that there is perhaps only one response.
Midnight
December 4, 2023 at 11:23 AM
THANK YOU for this 🥹🥹 I LOVED King the Land, and loved it even more on rewatch.
Unaspirated
December 4, 2023 at 11:57 AM
Yes! I knew you loved it too, so I was hoping you would see this!
Beanies say they don’t want serial killers in their romcoms, but when they actually get what they want, they are bored! I don’t get it. I had so much fun.
Midnight
December 4, 2023 at 7:57 PM
With King the Land the criticisms started from the very beginning with the teaser, the poster, everything. It felt like people were determined to be skeptical unless proven otherwise.
I had so much fun too 🥰
Unaspirated
December 3, 2023 at 11:10 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
3 – Side character that stole the drama
Like so many side characters who fail to save a sinking ship of a bad drama *coughjohnandjiwancough* my picks for side characters who stole the drama are the high school kiddos in Crash Course in Romance. The drama itself was disappointingly plagued by annoying characters, random serial killers, loopy logic, tired repeated scandals, and (imo) a total lack of chemistry between the leads. But I was never not cheering for these kids. I wanted them to do well, to have non-traumatizing relationships with their often terrible parents, to figure out their own complicated love lives, and just to succeed in general. Su-a was terrible but I was even glad that she was in a much healthier place by the end, and I just can’t say enough good things about Hae-ee, Seon-jae, Geon-hu, and Dan-ji. I’d be happy forgetting that most of this drama ever happened, but these characters made it slightly more worth it.
Seon-ha
December 3, 2023 at 11:37 AM
EXCELLENT CHOICE! Omo. So good. These three were so amazing.
Jellybn
December 3, 2023 at 7:00 PM
Yessss, great pick! I would totally watch a drama about them!
lapislazulii
December 3, 2023 at 8:46 PM
Yes!!! Great choice, they were the reason I started watching and they high-key did steal the show for me!!
Unaspirated
December 2, 2023 at 7:17 AM
2023 Drama Roundup
2 – Male lead you will never forget: for better
I have two that I felt torn between, so I’ll do the other on one of the freestyle days later. My first one goes to Lee Hwan from Our Blooming Youth. This was my first Park Hyung-sik drama and to say that it launched me as a fan is to put it mildly indeed. I was absolutely taken with this reluctant crown prince from his first scene. He was cold and closed off and terrified, and we got to see him open himself up and tentatively learn to trust the people around him. He slowly let Jae-yi into his secret space (both literally and figuratively) that he used to hide from the world, he managed to show the people of a village that had been severely wronged that he was sincere about wanting to make reparations, and he had difficult conversations about blame and guilt and forgiveness. It was such an incredible journey to be on with him.
HopefulRomantic 🦋 Tigermoth 🦆❤️🦆
December 2, 2023 at 9:56 AM
This was also my first Park Hyung-sik drama, too!!! New fan here as well ❤️🙋♀️ I love your analysis of his character!!!! I loved the emotional journey his character went on. Even though it was uneven, I really really enjoyed this drama.
Bebe | Nessa❣️
December 2, 2023 at 10:16 AM
This is on my list for when the day comes I return to Kdramas, and Park Hyung Sik is the sole reason. I don’t know how he does it, but he just grips the viewer so easily no matter the role— silly (like SWDBS) or serious (like Hwarang)— and he has a pair of really beautiful eyes that just sucks one in and he’s able to do this THING with said eyes that makes one melt and truly feel that he really does love his FL
Minnie🫘👩🏻🚀Pioneer and Teacher 👩🏻🏫🌱🏹
March 29, 2024 at 12:00 PM
Although this was my second PHS drama, and I was already sort of kind of sold on him, I didn’t expect the impact he and his character would have on me. I was already many dramas old by then, but could only identify Park Seo Joon, Lee Jong Suk, Lee Min Ho, Hyun Bin and Kang Tae Oh by name and face, this man pretty much upended the lens with which I watched kdramas. And I have not budged from the front row seat since haha!
Unaspirated
December 1, 2023 at 6:40 AM
1- Female lead you will never forget: for better
I think this one for me is Han Jun-hee from A Time Called You. Having never seen the original, I didn’t have any preconceptions or expectations going into this drama, and I was absolutely taken with this character and the way Jeon Yeo-been played her (both parts, really). I felt with her in her grief, was equal parts hopeful and conflicted with her when she arrived in the past, and fell in love with Nam Si-heon with her over and over again. It was a beautiful drama, and it was in large part to this fantastic, empathetic, fallible character we got to follow around.
Unaspirated
December 22, 2023 at 6:09 AM
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Unaspirated
December 22, 2023 at 6:18 AM
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Unaspirated
September 22, 2023 at 1:36 PM
Walking to the bus stop after work (at my still fresh job) on a sunny Friday afternoon, listening to this song on the way. It’s giving me big Main Character energy. Uri Kyungsoo is just the best.
Cay_sbtgoG
September 23, 2023 at 12:41 AM
Right?!?! I had to stop myself from posting. I just love the whole album. What’s your fave, btw?
Unaspirated
September 23, 2023 at 5:03 AM
Ooh, hard to say. I was obsessed with they released “I Do” early, but now I think it depends on the day. Yesterday was “Wonder” but I’ve been cycling through them in terms of favorites. You?
Cay_sbtgoG
September 23, 2023 at 5:16 AM
We’re similar in that case! If I had to pick one, think I could play Ordinary Day on loop; I love the raw feeling it brings.
Unaspirated
August 26, 2022 at 6:41 PM
A year ago today I sat down to watch the first episode of a show called Crash Landing on You that I knew very little about, but that was casually recommended to me. I thought, “I’ll just watch part of this while I eat lunch, and finish the episode tonight.” When I came to, 71 minutes later, my lunch was still uneaten (subtitles take focus, it turns out), I felt like I was coming up for air in the best way, and I was beginning to have a feeling that I had stumbled upon something big.
I had no idea how big.
It was only later, when I was on my third drama, that I started to articulate what it was that I found so captivating about them, especially compared to US-based tv. Yes, I loved that they told a complete story, instead of being dependent on the season-system and yes, I loved the episodes that didn’t seem to depend on commercial breaks to build suspense. But I also loved that they just felt like more. They were unapologetically more dramatic, or sweet, or cute, or tense than other shows, in a way that felt unselfconscious, but at the same time aware of what they were doing. And I loved learning about all the nuances in dramas as I watched more and read more, and eventually started learning more about the language.
I think they really came to me at just the right time in my life. I had just finished a really stressful graduate degree a couple of months earlier, and was still having trouble dealing with the burnout from the years I had spent working on it. I started watching K-dramas because they were good and I loved them, but as I kept going, I started to notice myself doing things that I hadn’t done in years. Like reading deeply about a topic just for fun. Or picking up a hobby that was challenging and took practice. I just hadn’t had the headspace to do anything like that in a really long time. I’d kind of forgotten that I used to enjoy those things. I’m sure that some of the improvement was just distance from the degree itself, but I also think that dramas gave me something to focus on that didn’t require me to be skilled – didn’t ask anything of me – and that felt important, and refreshing.
Nowadays, I’m pretty happily hooked, and really loving the community of other drama-lovers here on Dramabeans. It’s been so much fun participating in and learning more about this wide, wonderful, and sometimes weird universe, so thanks everyone! I’ll see you in the comments.
Ally
August 26, 2022 at 7:39 PM
What you describe so elegantly is exactly how I became hooked on kdramas as well. It came at the right time as I needed something to clear my head as well. I started playing piano again; something I’d not done in 15 years. I’m playing violin and singing (will be doing the Bach double this weekend with my daughter). Again things I’ve not done in decades. It’s been so good for me. I’ve exercised more under the guise of watching dramas while doing so. I’ve been here in this community since 2016! A baby by many standards—well, maybe preschooler. Welcome!!!
Reply1988 -❣️Mother Bean❣️
August 26, 2022 at 9:59 PM
Wow! Learning new things about you all the time, violin is one of the harder instruments to learn surely? Well done you. I hope that the weekend event goes well with your daughter💪.
Ally
August 27, 2022 at 5:03 AM
I catching all you guys up. The “Do you like Brahms!” Recaps had several musical beanies offering analysis, and so most people found that little fact out about me the then.
Reply1988 -❣️Mother Bean❣️
August 27, 2022 at 5:47 AM
Oh wow will check those weecaps out. Yes because we are the newbies we are late to the party. 😊
Unaspirated
August 29, 2022 at 11:00 AM
Thanks so much, Ally! I’m glad that they were and continue to be a healthy influence in your life too.
Reply1988 -❣️Mother Bean❣️
August 26, 2022 at 10:02 PM
Thanks for sharing your story lovely to get to know you. It sounds like post degree get your life back rehab was helped a lot by the joy of K dramaland. I wish I had known about it back when I was studying.
Hope that you continue to enjoy your journey and having fun in DB world this community is great so pleased to have you here.
Unaspirated
August 29, 2022 at 11:00 AM
Thank you! I’m so happy to be here too.
mmmmm
August 29, 2022 at 10:42 AM
Ermm would you like to do one for me? I think I’d love to get the degree but I don’t wanna do the work!!!
Kidding 🤣🤣🤣🤣
And yes, study burnout is real. All too real.
Unaspirated
August 29, 2022 at 10:58 AM
HAHAHAHA no.
Seriously though, I don’t think I could do another. When it was good, it was really great. But often it was not, and then it was just awful. I’m still glad that I did it, and that I finished, but it’s hard for me to even recommend graduate school to anyone anymore. I at least want to be sure they have a realistic picture of what it can be before they dive in.
mmmmm
August 29, 2022 at 11:42 AM
Do you think it was partly because of the pandemic and online learning? You said you just finished your study months ago, so I assumed you spent the past part of your study studying online. As far as I’m concerned, that’s also draining.
Unaspirated
August 29, 2022 at 12:00 PM
I’m sure it was partly that. The last year and a half of the degree, I was working completely remotely. I wasn’t taking classes at that point, just doing research, so I was lucky to be able to make the transition pretty seamlessly and continue with my work. And I am quite happy working from home most of the time, but the stress of living with the pandemic looming overhead constantly was a factor, I’m confident. Also, I was working with two advisors who were both dealing with their own challenges that were exacerbated by the pandemic, and that made it more difficult. But it was also plenty stressful pre-March 2020, so I know the burnout wasn’t entirely a result of covid.
mmmmm
August 29, 2022 at 11:42 PM
I see. First of all, congratulations. Your effort and everything have paid out and you should be extremely proud of yourself. I see having 2 advisors have it’s negative sides to it, too. And I agree that graduate school isn’t for everyone. I wouldn’t have been in one if I hadn’t had reasons for completing it.
Ghost of Tim (eccentric observations from a male perspective)
October 5, 2022 at 6:40 AM
You had me at “especially compared to US-based tv”. 🙂
SP2022
January 3, 2023 at 3:32 PM
I can absolutely relate, I got into K-dramas last year because of Crash Landing on You as well! I wasn’t sure at first because the pacing is so different to what I was used to but I think I finished it all in a weekend. I rarely watch anything but K-dramas now.
So glad you found them, and it’s lovely to read about the impact they’ve had. I’ve really enjoyed your contributions!
Unaspirated
January 4, 2023 at 5:25 AM
Thanks so much, I enjoy yours too!
Minnie🫘👩🏻🚀Pioneer and Teacher 👩🏻🏫🌱🏹
March 29, 2024 at 11:54 AM
You are so eloquent. You mirrored my k-drama journey in words I could not put together.
This.
To say k-drama has changed my life – my relationships with everyone around me, and has made me more aware of everything around me, figure out my priorities – is putting it mildly. It has connected me to people who mattered. It gave me topics to discuss with close one when none existed. It brought my husband and me closer like never before. Still a newbie, I know I will be here for a long long time.