March and April 2024 Drama Reviews May 1, 2024

March and April 2024 Drama Reviews

Wedding Impossible

This drama is about A-Jeong (Jun Jong-Seo) who has been working as a extra in dramas and movies for many years and has been waiting for her big break without much success. She has a friend Lee Do-Han (Kim Do-Wan) who she has known since high school and he is a son of the LJ Group and his grandfather wants him to take over the company and to get married. Lee Do-Han doesn’t want to get married and asks his friend A-Jeong to take on the role of his wife and help disrupt his grandfather’s plans. The one problem is Do-Han’s brother Lee Ji-Han who wants his brother to take over the company so she tries to disrupt the marriage between his brother and A-Jeong.

I didn’t like this drama and found it to feel illogical and boring most of the time. The only parts of the drama that were entertaining and interesting was when A-Jeong was working as a extra on different sets and was using her special skills to do the roles. It was just weird Lee Do-Han has this big secret that he doesn’t want anyone to know and because of this he doesn’t to take over the company and really all he had to do was tell his secret to his grandfather and it would have solved the problem. It felt like most of the plot was unnecessary and superfluous and it wasn’t fun or exciting either. I did not find the love story to be interesting or compelling and I didn’t really feel the chemistry between the characters either. They would just randomly follow each other around and even the characters motivation and thoughts didn’t really feel like they made sense or felt right.

I feel like just because a webtoon does well doesn’t mean that if they decide to make it into a drama will automatically mean success especially if they aren’t following the webtoon closely. They seem to think as long as they have the support from the webtoon they can just do whatever they want and people will watch it. I haven’t read the webtoon but I am assuming they didn’t follow the webtoon closely. I feel like even though dramas will have the same type of tropes like the rich guy/poor girl story lines for example it was still enjoyable to watch. This somehow couldn’t even bring met the simple joys of watching fun tv tropes. The script was bad and the acting was much better so I wouldn’t recommend this drama.

Branding in Seongsu

It is about a woman who is a marketing team leader and is a cold woman that excels in her job and after an incident she clashes with her intern who is the opposite of her and they end up switching bodies. I had to quit this drama after a few episodes it was just too much for me when they started working on s*x toys. They really were trying to be liberal with this drama and that might be because it is a online streaming service but it was gross to me. I can have tolerance for cheesy acting or storylines but when it gets perverted I am going to drop the drama. Also the story line was really boring like they have so much to work with and funny scenarios of switching bodies and for some reason they made it so bland. I didn’t like anything in this drama from the few episodes that I watched. I do not recommend!

Don’t Dare to Dream/ Jealousy Incarnate

I watched this drama even though it was an older drama from 2016. It stars Pyo Na-Ri (Kong Hyo-Jin) who is a weather caster that wants to take her last chance of becoming an anchor and she runs into her old crush Lee Hwa-Shin (Cho Jung-Seok) who has come back from abroad and will be back at the station again. They meet in the hospital and she helps him through his health crisis and in the process she meets his rich and caring friend Ko Jung-Won (Ko Kyoung-Pyo) who she starts to date. Even though this is an older drama it was so entertaining and interesting that it is still worth watching. It felt like a refreshing drama to watch since it has an interesting love triangle that is full of comedy and interesting characters. I never got bored with this drama even though it had 24 episodes.

The only thing that is a bit hard was Lee Hwa-Shin’s character is very much a jerk at the beginning of the drama and it is a bit hard to understand his character and I have hard time rooting for his character. I feel like he could have matured a bit more in this drama but he does mature somewhat throughout this drama. I also love the friendship between Hwa-Shin and Jung-Won and how the immaturity between each other also leads to growth by the end of the drama. The love triangle felt a bit fresh then most dramas and how they dealt with it and I found it entertaining.

I think it is important to note that people can grow but that doesn’t always mean that they can completely change into what you want. I think growth and helping someone to grow isn’t the same as trying to change someone into someone that you need. I really loved the comedy in this drama it is hard to find good romantic comedies that are actually funny. All the characters are interesting and add a lot to the drama. I would highly recommend this drama and I don’t really have anything bad to say about this drama.

My Dearest 1 and 2

This drama is about the Qing invasion during Joseon period that happened in 1637. It stars Yoo Gil-Chae (Ahn Eun-Jin) who is a carefree young noblewoman that has all the confidence in the world and even though all the men in the village think she is beautiful the one man she wants she cannot have as he is engaged to her friend. She meets Lee Jang-Hyun (Namkoong Min) a unique man that comes to their village and wants to settle down here for a while. Soon enough the invasion starts happening and Jang-Hyun may be the only man that Gil-Chae is able to rely on to get her through this tumultuous period.

The first episode or so I was not getting why this drama was so popular as the characters seemed somewhat obnoxious to me but I realized this drama is going to be about growth. They had to start somewhere with the characters so we can realize how they are going to change. Also there was talk about how the drama was somewhat based on Gone with the Wind. So the drama starts off with the typical type of drama but when the invasion happens the drama takes a sharp turn and they have to deal with terrible circumstances and everything starts to feel more meaningful and interesting. Emotions and feelings become heightened and this is where we start to see growth and leadership and it gets interesting.

This is an epic type of drama that has many twists and turns throughout and has many exciting and touching moments and many heart breaking ones. I think this is one of best dramas that I have seen in a long time. I think though the ending felt a bit drawn out I think they could have just given us a happy ending sooner. I can’t say I really have much for complaints I think it was a great drama that I would highly recommend.

Three Dads

This is a Japanese drama that seems to be based on 3 men and a baby. It is about three men that live together as roommates and one day someone leaves a baby and a note saying to take care of him that he is the father. None of them know who the father could be so they decide to just take care of the baby in the meantime hoping the Mother will come back. It is a simple and silly drama that is more light hearted and cute with only 10 episodes. Honestly it doesn’t really make sense that they don’t do a paternity test immediately because I think in reality you would have done it right away. Also they do a weird documentary style with this drama which doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense but you can tell they aren’t taking it super seriously. I mean there are some serious moments within the drama and the baby is adorable. The ending is pretty decent and I was still surprised with how it all ends so it a interesting, easy going type of drama. Not really the best drama but it was somewhat entertaining.

My Boss

This is a Chinese drama about Cheng Yao who is a new lawyer and gets an amazing job at a top lawyer firm and when she moves into her new apartment she finds out that the apartment has also been rented out to her new boss Qian Heng. She is trying her hardest at work and then has to come home and deal with a stubborn and hard to deal boss at home. I typically don’t really love modern Chinese dramas because they aren’t that well done but this one had some charm that made me want to keep watching. It is a typical love story that doesn’t really have anything that different or new but I guess I enjoyed watching the two leads. I have to say the character Cheng Yao I felt was somewhat annoying especially I found it hard to believe that she was professional lawyer most of the time. I wish they could have portrayed her as a more intelligent and professional because it felt like she seemed too childish at times. I think it a nice fluffy type of drama but I also wasn’t expecting much from this drama and thought it was decent for a Chinese modern style of drama.

Amidst a Snowstorm of Love

This is another Chinese drama that was getting quite a bit of hype so I thought I would also check out another modern drama. It is about Yin Guo who is a professional billiards player that decided to join a tournament in Hel and goes with her brother. In the middle of snowstorm she meets Lin Yi Yang who lives there helps them get a taxi and they make a connection with each other. As they spend more time with each other it is discovered that Lin Yi Yang has a deep history with billiards and is considered a genius in the sport.

This drama has a totally different feel then the typical modern Chinese drama and I think this is why it was getting a lot of attention. I think this drama at times is more about what is not being said between the characters and focuses more on the chemistry of the characters. I think that is what keeps the mystery and intrigue of the characters because they don’t talk much and it feels mysterious. You have to pay attention to the looks and body language and picking up silent cues. I mean at times I was so frustrated watching them on the screen because I’m like just say something to him. He will ask her if she has any questions and she never asks them and I am screaming like just ask him anything. Please just even ask what he is studying in college. So I found it somewhat unrealistic because it is hard to have a relationship if you don’t talk and the awkwardness would just kill me.

I also really wished they would have explained the different rules of the billiards games. I don’t know anything about billiards and I found it confusing at times when watching the matches. Also the show is definitely slow going and the amount of naps that they have are actually crazy, they really should have cut down on episodes if they were just going to nap alone or together every episode. Yin Guo’s character also made me frustrated at times especially when they are dating and he tries to be affectionate with her and always turns her head when he tries to kiss her. I like how they tried to do something different but I think it could have definitely been improved upon with the script but I think it is worth checking out.

Upcoming Dramas

Lovely Runner

This drama is about a woman who goes back in time after her favorite kpop star has committed suicide. She goes back to when they were still in school and wants to do her best to help make sure that the accidents don’t happen and she wants to be able to change the future.

Missing Crown Prince

This drama is a historical drama about the crown prince that gets kidnapped by his future wife. They have to go on the run and they do so together and love will blossom between each other.

Hide

This drama is about a lawyer who’s husband goes missing and she is left with many questions in his stead and has to pick up the pieces that he left behind. She starts to question every aspect of her life that she shared with her husband.

August and September 2023 Reviews October 1, 2023

August and September 2023 Reviews

Miraculous Brothers

This drama is about a writer Yook Dong-Ju (Jung-Woo) who has a talent for writing but can’t seem to make a living out of it. Things change for him when a teenager Lee Kang San (Bae Hyun-Sung) suddenly appears in front of his car causing an accident. When Kang San wakes up he doesn’t remember who he is and seemed to develop a mysterious ability where he can feel other people’s pain and be able to communicate other people’s hearts. Jung-Woo steps in as his caregiver and the two of them go on and try to figure out where Kang San came from and the mysteries that are following him.

I thought this drama was going to be more focused on the relationship that Kang-San was going to make and helping people but instead it seemed overly focused on this mysterious deaths that the police are following. I found myself losing a lot of focus watching this drama at times especially with all the cold case stuff and I couldn’t even keep the stories straight of how or why they have died. I did understand the basic plot but I didn’t follow some of the nitty gritty stuff with the deaths. I wanted to like the drama but found the main character Dong-Ju annoying his acting default when he got emotional was basically shouting and I didn’t really enjoy his character at all. I also didn’t enjoy his last work in Mental Coach Jegal so that might be why I still having the negative lingering feelings towards him.

I was also disappointed with the ending, I just feel like more should have happened with Kang San and his ability which totally gets pushed aside about half way through the drama. There was so much more that they could have done with his story line but they pretty much let it fall flat. I don’t know if living in the present would have been the best way to end this drama? I feel like he should have been able to go back where he came from or something. Also the whole older woman being his classmate felt somewhat creepy and unnerving to some degree, I think they should have gone with a male classmate rather than someone having romantic feelings for one another. The drama does not have any romance or love lines so it was kinda odd. I think this drama had a lot of potential and it started off with some excitement but half way through it was starting to fall flat for me, it had exciting moments throughout so I could make it to the end nevertheless it many boring moments.

What I did like about this drama was the friendship between the Dong-Ju and Kang-San and sometimes just friendship stories makes you feel good. They both are connected to each other and in the end become attached and have built a good relationship to each other, it is an interesting dynamic to watch. The mystery is interesting at times and you have to try and piece together what happened, it is a bit slow but it does make you think.

I would recommend if you like crime dramas mixed with some fantasy!

Longing For You

This drama is about Detective Oh Jin-Sung (Na In-Woo) who lives in the city of Woojin and experiences a murder that is apart of a serial case. He joins the investigation team in Seoul and then finds his brother Oh Jin Woo (Ren) is found to be a suspect and works tirelessly to prove his brother’s innocence. The team including his childhood friend prosecutor Go Young-Joo (Kim Ji-Eun) finds the killer and his brother is proven innocent but not long after his brother is killed and Jin-Sung has to work to find out who the killer truly is and why he would kill his innocent brother.

This again was a drama really focused on the police investigation mystery and less of the personal lives of the characters that was the focus of the drama. I was really annoyed with the main character Jin-Sung as he was so hot-headed and reacted in every situation with yelling and violence. His character really started grating on my nerves especially with his violence there is no way with the things that he did to people that he wouldn’t have been fired. It was so unprofessional and I couldn’t understand how he wasn’t reprimanded and fired with the way he acted. I didn’t really care for his acting but it may have been how the director wanted him to act as I have not seem him in any other drama. Also the romance/love lines were again strange in this drama, I couldn’t figure out if they were trying to have romance or not? Even in the ending they had focused so little on their personal feeling and love lines that it was just strange to throw it in at the end.

I get that they are trying to do a serious drama with crime and mystery but you still have to build characters and focus on their feelings and thoughts or else the audience feels very disconnected to the characters. The female lead Young-Joo had no presence in my mind, she was kinda of a blah character and even at the end when she was presenting the case in court, it should have been more exciting and thrilling but it just kinda fell flat and nothing really stayed with me. I think I enjoyed the character dynamic between Ki-Young and Young-Woon the most in the drama as there was true emotion and personality with their story. Some of the logic at the end like setting up Jin Woo to go to jail to keep him safe was just absurd as anyone would know that jail is more dangerous and this logic actually made me mad. I also really hated the old people romance in the drama with the doctor and the mothers, eww like what in the world where they thinking with promoting poly amorous it was disturbing and they really committed to it even to the ending. Not sure what was the point of doing that at all but I would just skip over their parts.

It did have some interesting mystery aspects of this drama that was entertaining but again I was disappointed with this drama.

My Lovely Liar

This drama stars Mok Sol-Hee (Kim So-Hyun) who has a special ability that she can hear when people are lying and has created a whole career getting paid to detect lies in people undercover. She struggles with relationships as she can detects every time people lie to her and finds it hard to trust other people until she meets Kim Do-Ha (Minhyun) and finds him to a person that doesn’t lie but then finds out he is a murder suspect and has to decide for herself if she is going to trust him.

This is a cute drama and I think it is because Do-Ha is such a wholesome and honest and cute character and really compliments Sol-Hee in this drama. I think this drama did a good job of building a relationship and also having a murder mystery in the midst of it. It has light moments and then it has darker moments and definite shocker moments. Overall I think it was a well-paced drama that is engaging and keep you interested until the end.

I didn’t care for all the tarot card stuff but I realize it was just a cover for her ability. I also kinda thought they could have done more story line with her ability. I think she could have worked for the police as a lie detector technician and be able to read if the suspect is lying despite what the machine would be saying. Especially because she does get somewhat involved with the murder case. I really think they could have done more with her ability and I feel like they let that part kinda fall flat with the possibilities they could have taken it. I for some reason also felt a lacking in their chemistry, like I don’t exactly buy them as a couple they didn’t really seem to have any passion for each other but it was still very cute. The shocker at the end for the motive just was weird and really unnecessary, I really wish they wouldn’t go there.

Overall it was decent drama and kept me engaged and interested.

Cheer Up

This drama is about Do Hae-Yi (Han Ji-Hyun) is a poor university student at Yonhee University. She is always trying to make money because of her family’s financial problems and doesn’t have time to date or have fun like a normal student. She get offered money to join Theia the university cheering squad and she accepts and starts to really enjoy it despite her difficulties. It also stars Park Jung Woo (Bae In-Hyuk) who is the Captain of the cheering squad and is very strict and upright and Hae-Yi and him butt heads from the get-go. It also stars Jin Sun-Ho (Kim Hyun-Jin) who starts to have a crush on Hae-Yi and follows her into the cheering squad.

I had never heard of cheering squads so it was really interesting me to watch their routines and all the things that go with it. I really enjoyed Do Hae-Yi’s character and how bright and funny she is, she was just enjoyable to watch. I know lots of people got second lead syndrome in this drama but I don’t mind the push and pull because it keeps it interesting and it is not always so obvious of who is going to end up with who. I also feel like I would have preferred the different lead that ends up with Hae-Yi because I feel like they had more chemistry between each other but that could just be because he was vulnerable with Hae-Yi and you feel bad for him and his situation. Realistically in real life I feel like Hae-Yi is with the person that compliments her and makes sense for her and how she needs someone like that in her life. I also thought the mystery within the drama was interesting and kept us interested and had lots of highs and lows. I thought it was a pretty good drama about young love and just the young university type of love and discovering what you should be doing. I feel like I could connect with the characters and even just the problems you have between friends and making decisions.

What I didn’t like about the drama was I guess the characters could be immature at times but I mean it makes sense because they are in university so I didn’t really bother me but other seemed to be upset with the drama. I thought it was a decent drama that kept me entertained without frustrating me that much!

I would recommend if you like the young love, confusing times of growing up type drama!

Upcoming Dramas

Ceo-Dol Mart

This drama is about a retired K-pop group called Thunder Boys that quit before they became famous. They end up getting a struggling supermarket and they decide that they will take on the challenge on managing the shop.

Battle For Happiness

This drama is about wealthy mother’s that are social influencers that appear to be friends but after a murder it is clear that they are anything but friends. They use everything around husbands, kids, money, and status to compete with each other.

Twinkling Watermelon

It is about a high school student that goes back into time and meets his Father and finds him having a crush on a girl that isn’t his Mother and has to find a way to bring his future parents back together.

February, March and April Drama Reviews April 13, 2023

February, March, and April Drama Reviews 2023

Strangers Again

This drama is about Oh Ha-Ra (Kang So-Ra) who is a divorce lawyer but is also divorced herself. Her ex-husband Ku Eun-Beom (Jang Seung-Jo) wants to come and work at her law firm even though he was the one that cheated on her and why they got divorced. They are forced to work together and work through their past whether they want to or not. Things get very heated and also between the other lawyers in the office.

I think this drama had good acting and chemistry between the actors and I think the plot was interesting and the cases they work on are definitely unique. I think this drama had a lot of shock value and the problems they get themselves into was a fun ride to watch. I really liked watching the relationships and characters and just watch them work things out. I think it was a fun drama to watch and it felt somewhat different then the typical meet cute, fall in love scenario. Things are messy and emotions are conflicted and it just felt there was a lot that could have been done with growth of the characters. I feel like it had a realistic vibe where the characters have damage/trauma that they can’t really get over with the power of love. It also delved into the topics of having kids and what do you need to be fulfilled in this life. I think the drama had a lot of potential to be a really good one.

Unfortunately the biggest problem with the drama is the ending. I would say it is not a happy ending and feels somewhat rushed compared to the rest of the drama. I know that a lot of people were upset about the ending and it erred on the too realistic to how relationships end up. I just decided that I was going to leave it with an open ending and that they will likely end up together eventually but that was how I going to leave it in my mind. I didn’t find myself being as upset as other people as I still enjoyed the drama despite the ending. I think they should have had Eun-Beom get help earlier then he did in the drama and have them work through their problems instead of doing that easy way out ending. Other than the ending, I don’t really have anything that I disliked about it, it was entertaining and it felt a bit more unique vibe with their cases and themes in the drama. I really did enjoy it and would say check it out if you are interested but don’t be expecting too much out of the ending!

Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist 2

This drama is a sequel to Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist and I think it would be hard to watch the second series without having watched the first season. So it is the continuation of the story of Yoo Se-Poong (Kim Min Jae) who is a royal physician who can’t do acupuncture because of a traumatic experience he had and he continues to fix people especially those that need help with their heart and mind. It starts off with an unusual case in the royal palace and Poong has to fight against the royal physicians to figure out the case. Eun-Woo has been separated from the clinic living with her parents but she has continued to write letters to everyone and is going to come back to visit. They continue to solve cases and struggle with their feelings for each other as she is a widow and because of social customs it makes it hard for them to be together.

I think it was enjoyable drama even though it seemed to lack a bit of story with the main characters. The drama also doesn’t really explain why a widow isn’t allowed to marry and it would get frustrating because they focused a lot of time and energy on this problem in this drama. They just take turns self-sacrificing for each other trope. I didn’t mind the new and different cases that were done but it didn’t feel justified to do a second season. I really find it strange since there are many dramas that people have longed to have a second season for but I doubt anyone would have really demanded a second season of this show.

It was a decent heart warming tale but I didn’t really feel or were touched with some heart fluttering moments. I just didn’t feel the love between the two of the leads and it just felt somewhat forced. I found the side stories more interesting and the people that they met and their mysteries to be the reason to keep watching this drama. It is a decent drama with a happy ending that will leave you satisfied. There were interesting elements in this drama but as a whole it still felt like there was something missing.

I would say it is very similar to the first season and if you enjoyed that, I would definitely watch the second season.

Our Blooming Youth

Warning this may contain spoilers

This drama is about Min Jae-Yi (Jeon So-Nee) who is framed for the murders of her entire family and she finds her way to Crown Prince Lee Hwan (Park Hyung-Sik) who has been sent a ghost letter cursing him. Jae-Yi begs him to help her and he agrees after she tells him that she will help him with the mysterious letter as she is very smart and helps him solve some suspicious things going on around him.

I did enjoy this drama but I think I had high hopes for this drama and was a bit disappointed with the drama. It had a lot of episodes so I was also kinda sad the way that they wrapped up the ending so quickly, they had plenty of time they could have given us more than crumbs for the ending. I also am unhappy with how they just skipped over the whole Jae-Yi’s family murders and didn’t really flesh out well the reason for the murders. I don’t know if I am just confused about it, but the whole gravestone being such a great clue seemed silly to me. A gravestone of some names doesn’t really seem worthy of killing an entire family over, first of all people can change their names and how are you going to really prove it. Secondly, why not just get rid of the evidence instead of killing a whole family, I feel that will draw more attention to this problem then anything. So overall I found the reasons somewhat confusing and the ending felt rushed and things or rules just change so suddenly. Also they try to explain all the supernatural things but the whole hair turning white overnight because they got hypnotized was just so bizarre and the weird fish was a little bit over the top in ridiculousness. Of course with all palace dramas the old men trying to steal power from the king trope is been done to death in dramas.

I enjoyed the drama and characters and enjoyed the effort into trying to make a more interesting political palace drama. I found the romance to be cute and I wish there would have been more of love triangle with the Sargent and that he would have found her earlier but overall it was good. I also appreciate a happy ending and it was satisfying to win against evil. Overall it was a decent drama but I don’t feel it as anything really new or exciting that would make it an unique drama. It also really gave me love in the moonlight vibes with the Jae-Yi dressing as a eunuch for most of the drama. It felt like a mish mash of different historical type dramas but nothing really stand out for me. People also felt like it was a very slow-moving drama which I don’t always mind but it did seem slow at times. I still did enjoy it even if there was problems.

It was a decent drama and I would recommend if you love historical dramas!

Fanletter, Please

This drama is a short drama with only 4 episodes, I would say it felt more like a movie. It stars Han Gang-Hee (Sooyoung) who is a an actress and is facing a crisis because of rumors and her image plummets. It also stars Bang Jung-Seok (Yoon Park) who has a daughter who has cancer and is a huge fan of Gang-Hee and sends her a fan letter and it ends up helping Gang-Hee.

This is a cute drama and I can appreciate it more because it was fast-paced and they get right to the point because of time. The acting is good, the kids are cute and it was pretty decent for such a short drama. I enjoyed it, it was interesting and was a fun watch. The one complaint is they never explain what happened to the mother of the child. I don’t know why they don’t make it clear because I thought we would get an explanation at the end but it was never explained. The drama doesn’t go really that deep and kinda skim over the trauma that the characters face but I understand they don’t have time.

It was a cute short drama that is easy to watch!

Bad Prosecutor

I also decided to watch this drama it stars Jin Jung (Do Kyung-Soo) who has a strong sense of justice and has no problems doing what he thinks is right to solve the case as a prosecutor. This drama felt unique and felt somewhat refreshing for a law drama as I felt like there have been many in the last while. I liked how Jin Jung approached things differently and just tackled them head on even though it may not always the best method but he really got things done and was decisive. I thought I may get bored with the subject matter but yet the cases were always interesting and was always action packed. I was pretty impressed with this drama, I loved the twists and turns and shocking reveals. It really feels like it needs a second season but there has been no news released about that. I liked the side characters as well and how they get into trouble for Jin Jung.

At times it felt really unrealistic like Jin Jung being blamed for the murders and evading capture and then the next day it could all just disappear and the way he beat up people. I don’t think you have the authority for that even if you are a prosecutor. There isn’t any romance in this drama, not that it is needed but there was a bit of flirtation so that felt like a loose end. I think overall though this is a fun ride and pretty entertaining to watch Jin Jung go after the bad guys!

I would recommend this drama for anyone that loves the unconventional hero !

Catch Up My Prince

I watched this Chinese drama about Lu Ran Ran who is an intern doctor and is told to join this game by one of her patients and she gets trapped in the game. She has to finish one of the routes to be able to leave the game and her life could be in jeopardy if anything happens to her in the game. She is a laundry maid and has to find a way for one of the main characters which are princes to fall in love with her. She falls for one of the princes but can’t seem to get his love score up.

I thought it was a fun drama with many characters and just the rules of the game really made it interesting if she has to finish a different quest and it just felt more unique than a typical love story. I have to say it really sucked me into the story at times and found it to be refreshing and interesting way to approach a drama.

I did find the ending to be kinda of a let down since they don’t spend much time in the real life and how to move past the game. Also the reason for things going wrong is due to the “bad guy” and his reasoning is a bit silly and his motives are kinda convoluted. I think they could have a done a better job of building up the story and given it a stronger base and ending.

Overall it was a fun drama that was easy to watch and one I didn’t take too seriously.

Upcoming Dramas

Oasis

During the 1980’s in the Jeolla Province Lee doo Hak and Choi Cheol Woong are friends in high school that are looking for fun when they meet Oh Jung Shin who recently transferred and they both have a crush on her. A death causes the world to change for Doo-Hak and Cheol Woong and one of them is sent to prison.

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse

It is about a young woman running a guesthouse and she and the other renters try and figure out where a missing royal has been so she can save her home!

June, July, August 2021 Korean Drama Reviews August 11, 2021

The first drama that I watched was Youth Of May. This drama is based on true events the Gwangju Uprising in May 1980. It was a democratic movement that began with an assassination of the president in 1979 and when the next president Choi Kyu-Hah stepped in he had no dominant control over the government and military. The South Korean Army major general Chun Doo-Hwan seized military power through Coup d’etat of December Twelfth and tried to intervene in domestic issues. Students started creating democratization movements and protests of martial law. The Gwangju uprising was when Chonnam University Students were demonstrating against the martial law government were fired upon, raped, beaten, and killed by government troops and the citizens took up arms against the troops and around 600 people were killed.

So this is the backdrop of the story about Hee-Tae (Lee Do-Hyun) who is a medical student and has a lot of baggage and trauma but yet is still an optimist and believes in the good of people. Myung-Hee (Go Min-Si) is a nurse and had dreams of going abroad to go and study to be a doctor, she doesn’t want to get involved in a relationship before she leaves but she promises her friend to go on a blind date for her to get money for the plane ride.

I had not looked up the history of the uprising until about half way through the drama and realized that the terrible event was going to take place was when I realized that this was not going to be a happy ending for everyone and it turns out I was correct. Warning if you like happy endings then please do not torture yourself and watch this drama. Even though I was so sad at the end and cried more tears than I thought, I believe this was a timely drama to remember past events and how bad things can get. I think with the climate of this year with covid and governments 100% overstepping bounds and calling in emergency orders that are questionable is something to think about how badly things can get if we don’t remember the past. It actually scared me when I watching the shootings happen and that they would even shoot at doctors and nurses, how terrifying would that have been.

It is strange because it was such a sweet love story being told and yet it seemed sweeter due to the horrible things around them. Honestly I tear up just remembering the scenes from this drama, that is how sad the drama made me feel. It does an amazing job of showing the events and it really made me think and imagine how terrible the events that happened. The drama did a great job of showing the past and intertwining a compelling love story which made the events feel alive and real even though we didn’t live through the events.

I didn’t love the ending, I understand why they did the ending that way but it was just so sad. I don’t think I was bothered by much of the drama I thought they did a good job and it was a well-told story.

The second drama that I finished was Mine, it focuses on the main woman that have married into a rich chaebol family that runs the Hyowon Group. It follows Seo Hi-Soo (Lee Bo-Young) who is a retired actress that married the second son and adopted his son as hers. She is confident and tries to do the best for her son. Jung Seo-Hyun (Kim Seo-Hyung) is the main leader since she has married the first son of the Hyowon Group and nothing escapes her, she always knows what is going on and is intelligent and quick witted.

Obviously revenge among the wealthy and who is going to inherit the company seems to be a common theme right now in kdramas and Penthouse has become pretty famous even getting a second season. I have not watched Penthouse but I am assuming Mine is pretty close in the theme and style and probably even a bit of a rip off to a lot of people. I can’t say if that is really true but I can’t say I really love this style of drama and that is probably why I haven’t watched Penthouse either.

I thought it was an okay drama but it seemed to kinda turn boring and predictable half way through. I have to say that the representation of the wealthy family was somewhat disturbing and there was nothing about their lives that made me envious of them and their wealth. If anything I was completely turned off by this whole disturbing family. Basically all the men in this drama are garbage and they don’t deserve the opportunities that have been given to them. The only exception was Han Soo-Hyuk (Cha Hak-Yeon) the oldest grandson of the group, he was a decent person and didn’t want the money the family had. He still had a strange relationship with the maid and they start off exchanging bedrooms to sleep in at night, I can’t say I really was excited about their relationship either. I don’t know the atmosphere of the drama seemed very dark and disturbing.

It was an interesting plot for the first half when you don’t quite get what is happening but halfway through you kinda get what is going to happen and found that the plot just kinda fell flat for me at the end. Some plot twists but overall I found it a somewhat disappointing ending and with the usual who is going to take over the company and to what lengths will they go to accomplish their goals. It had some cliche elements that was predictable to me. Sometimes the secrets that the different characters had were kinda lame and did not really mean that in the overall plot and I thought were kinda lame at times. Also Hi-Soo’s obsession with protecting her son from everything seemed somewhat over the top. Kids aren’t dumb and you lying to them does more harm than just being honest with kids. You can’t just pretend something away, if anything that will drive your kid to not trust you at all if they know you lie to them about huge issues.

I can’t say I really liked this drama it could be partly I don’t really care for this type of drama which is why I haven’t watched many of them like this style but I didn’t think this was a good drama. It was fine but I feel like people have been more loyal and excited about Penthouse and SkyCastle so I would question that this wasn’t as well done as other ones. Lately it has been hard finding more than one kdrama to watch at a time! I thought this was a weird, dark drama and I feel like their are better versions of this type genre. I feel like they are going to continue with this genre for a while since they seem to think if one is good many is better.

The third drama that I finished is Racket Boys which is about Yoon Hyeon-Jong (Kim Sang-Kyung) who is a badminton coach that takes a coaching job in the country. He brings his family and his teenage son Yoon Hae-Kang (Tang Joon-Sang) who is baseball fan and wants to do baseball but gets convinced to join his Dad’s badminton team to help them out because they are lacking players. This is a heartwarming story about friendship and family and badminton. I don’t think I would normally be interested in a sport drama but the writer is Jung Bo-Hoon who also wrote Prison Playbook and I knew that he would write a good drama, so I took the chance and decided to watch the drama and I wasn’t disappointed.

It was a well written drama with a lot of heartwarming and friendship feels! I love these kind of dramas with lots of characters where there is a lot of room for character development. There is nothing I love more in a drama where a character learns something and changes for the better. It is alright to fail because it means you have learned something. Surprisingly I found the badminton scenes actually interesting and was completely invested in the drama. I wouldn’t be surprised if Badminton gets more popular with school kids because of this drama which I hope will be true because it doesn’t get much attention in a worldwide scale. The drama had plenty of comedic scenes and sometimes it was pretty corny but not in a bad way. It also had many serious and sad scenes that could easily make me tear up. It was a fun ride and I wish they would have a second season, I feel like there is more story to be told. I also loved the village people and they added so much hear to the story.

The one thing I found lacking in the drama is the coaching, I feel like the coaches were lacking to me and seemed like they needed more character development as well. I actually felt annoyed by Hyeon-Jong throughout the drama and really felt like the story was lacking a strong parental leader that could lead the kids well and have a truly important role in the drama. I was craving a strong leader and I thought that the Head Coach Bae was going to step up and start to lead and be this really cool character but he kinda disappeared in the drama and didn’t really get the point and felt it could have been better. To me it seemed like the boys were better at leading each other than the adults. Even Ra Yeong-Ja Coach was super disappointing to me in how she acted at times and I get that there was supposed to be some character development even for the adults but I don’t feel like it really got there even for her. I was also super disappointed in how she acted toward Hae-Kang and didn’t even help him out and only looked out for her students and Han Se-Yoon. I think she did get better but wow Hae-Kang’s parents were really unlikable to me for most of the drama!

I would definitely recommend Racket Boys to everyone! It is a lovely drama that is hard not to enjoy and love. This was my favorite drama this time,if you only watch one drama, I would pick Racket Boys!

Upcoming Korean Dramas

You Are My Spring

A psychiatrist moves into a new building where a murder takes place and another tenant is a hotel concierge manager who has become a target to a man that is a CEO of an investment company and she wants to deny him but is swayed by him. They all become tied to the murderer. I am halfway through this drama and I thought at first this was going to be a fluff drama but definitely is grittier and full of plot twists.

Police University

A former detective who loved beating up criminals becomes a professor and has a student who is a genius hacker and another student who is righteous and honest. Seems like a good ensemble cast with friendships and romance.

Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha

It is a remake of a movie Mr. Hong and about a romance between a handyman and dentist in a seaside village.

Lost

It is about people that worked hard to see the spotlight and now realized that nothing has happened and everything is just downhill from there. Sounds like a midlife crisis, will check out but if it is overwhelmingly depressive I might not watch it.

Yumi’s Cells

Based on a webcomic and is about an ordinary office worker and the story switches from her real life to inside her mind where cells represents her emotions and will focus on her love cells as they have gone into a coma after a failed relationship. This seems quirky and fun.

December 2018/January 2019 Korean Drama Reviews January 23, 2019

 

The first drama that I finished was Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter/Tale of Gyeryong Fairy. The story line is that Sun Ok-Nam (Moon Chae-Won) is a fairy during the Goryeo period and when she came down the waterfall on earth someone stole her fairy dress with wings and therefore could not go back to the fairy realm. She meets a woodcutter who she suspects stole her dress and they get married and have two kids but he meets an unfortunate end and she is left on earth for 699 years.

 

 

 She thinks she meets her reincarnated husband when professor Jung Yi-Hun (Yoon Hyun-Min) and his assistant Kim Geum (Seo Ji-Hoon) find their coffee cafe on the mountain. She isn’t sure which one is her husband but decides to follow them back to Seoul to find out since both of them have no memories of their past selves. It is based on a webcomic which I have not read so I can’t really comment on how it was different or the same.

 

 

This was a strange drama, the dynamics felt weird with the different age differences. The hypothesized mother, father, and child all seem to be close in age and it feels wrong when she changes to her old person form as fairy. The story is okay I guess, I mean I am so sick of reincarnation being the storyline. I don’t like or believe in reincarnation and I think it is a lazy technique in story telling and been so overdone in Korean dramas. For some reason I don’t particularly like Ok-Nam’s character in this drama, I don’t really know why but I found her kinda annoying with what she would do or act like especially when she can’t figure out who is her husband.

 

 

There is some weird backstory with Jung Yi-Hun that felt kinda forced or didn’t come across the best with what exactly happened with him and his past. The ending was okay but I didn’t feel like it had that strong of an impact. They also had some weird other fairy story line that I didn’t really find the characters enduring or have much comic relief. Instead I found them annoying and the love line between the young guy and older fairy was just uncomfortable to me and I felt like their parts where too long. Also I wished that the fairy had more fun powers but it wasn’t that exciting with her just making coffee and talking to plants all the time. The CGI in the drama was far from the most advanced and well done, I did get used to after a while but I am sure they did not have a big budget for graphics. I mean for the cat they could have probably used a real one!

 

 

What I liked about this drama was Kim Geum, his character was really enduring and sweet. I loved when he interacted with Jeom-Soon and thought it was really sweet. I also hung in their with this drama because I wanted to see what Jeom-Dol was inside his egg. I think that really was the best part of the drama when Jeom-Dol came out of his egg. Honestly I wanted to see more of the fairy realm because I love the fantasy part of the drama but they only showed a little bit. At least there was not too many plot holes or something unfinished except maybe with the whole Jeom-Dol and his part and the ability to go through time or something!? There is no ambiguous ending where you feel empty after watching so many episodes. It was a relatively good drama for trying to accomplish a fantasy genre with a limited budget.

 

 

 

 

The second drama that I finished watching this month was Feel Good To Die/ Happy If You Died. The plot of the drama is Lee Roo-Da (Baek Jin-Hee) works under Baek Jin Sang (Kang Ji-Hwan) the manager of the advertising department. Baek Jin Sang is a terrible boss since he only sees life in black and white and doesn’t have any empathy for his fellow workers. He is rude and mean when he finds fault in others. Lee Roo-Da has a lot of anger against Baek Jin Sang and she wishes he would die and later on he gets hit by a truck and she wakes up realizing that she is reliving the same day over.

 

 

This was an unpredictable drama it went from plot twists to filler episodes that got boring. I never knew if I was going to be bored or enthralled with each episode I watched. I was really disappointed at times when they had a chance to relive their day and use it to change what happened and try a different option. I feel like the characters did not use the time loop as effectively as I would have wanted them to use it, like if something went wrong why did they not try to solve the problem more efficiently by going back to starting the day. It didn’t always make sense to me why they did the things they way they did! The reason for the time loop and all that is a bit of a stretch with why it happened and how it all worked.

 

 

 

Also at the beginning you will probably hate Baek Jin-Sang’s voice it is enough to make you want to stop watching the drama, but as he mellows out his voice also does the same. The whole business end of the drama got boring to me after a while and how to fight a big corporation was a used boring idea to me that felt like it got dragged out. Also the chemistry between the characters was really lacking it felt forced and apparently in the manhwa the love interest is completely different.

 

 

I did find the different plot twists interesting and fun and honestly the character of Baek Jin-Sang was kinda fun and how he kept dying and Roo-Da trying to help him even though he didn’t understand what was happening was pretty entertaining. There was good, touching moments in this drama that felt right.

 

 

 

The third drama that I watched was Coffee, Please Do Me A Favor/ Coffee, Please. This drama is about Hyun-Woo (Yong Joon-Hyung) a romantic webtoon writer without actually having any experience in love. His assistant Seul-Bi who is cute and chubby and is made fun of constantly by others about her appearance. She has a long time secret crush on Hyun-Woo. Seul-Bi gets a chance to drink magical coffee that turns her into the stereotypical beauty and takes Seul-Bi’s job with the name Oh Go-Woon.

 

 

This drama does not have a good message to me, it does not celebrate body diversity and the harmful belief that you need to look a certain way to receive love. Seul-Bi gets a chance to change the way she looks and the man that she is in love with will finally be able to love her now. The funny thing is that I wanted to keep watching even though I knew it was not going to have an ending that I would agree with mentally. I can relate to the character of Seul-Bi and cannot deny that if I was given a chance to look different I would be able to say no and not indulge in that fantasy of having the perfect body. So I guess I wanted to keep watching to see if the drama would be able to redeem themselves and I found that they did not. The drama did get shortened it was originally supposed to have 16 episodes which is confusing because it was filmed in 2017 so I’m not sure how they could just cut out many episodes and still have an ending that made sense.

 

 

What bothered me at the ending was it was a cop out, Seul-Bi “decides” she has to work on herself which is fine but that would be the most important message of the drama and they don’t really show us how miraculously she is supposed to love herself when the whole outside world is treating her like trash. Also it makes me sad that they don’t show her in a healthy, romantic relationship because I think not showing this still makes it feel stigmatized that if you aren’t skinny you can’t get a boyfriend. The more they show women of all types in relationships will bring more change in how people are treated. Another problem was the two different characters of Seul-Bi didn’t seem to match well and they seemed like different people and didn’t feel like they was a smooth continuation of the character between them. I found some of the acting to be over exaggerated but for the most part was fine.

 

 

I have to say it was still an entertaining drama and it wasn’t too long since it was shortened, I did find it entertaining and really hoped that the ending would have been good. I enjoyed seeing Joon-Hyung again I really miss him in “its dangerous beyond the blankets” show. I enjoyed the other actors as well and found it funny and entertaining, there might have been a bit of overacting but it seemed to fit the mood of the drama. So if you can ignore the message of the drama I thought it was a nice fluffy drama.

 

 

 

The fourth drama that I finished was Children Of Nobody/Red Moon Blue Sun. This drama is about Cha Woo-Kyung (Kim Sun-A) who is a child counsellor at a children’s centre. At the start she is pregnant with her second child and is content with her life. An accident happens and Woo-Kyung is forced to deal with things in her life she doesn’t understand. It also stars Kang Ji-Hun (Lee Yi-Kyung) who is detective and gets put on a case that deals with the death of a famous child abuser. He believes that even if someone is murdering a child abuser they need to be punished by the law. Through his cases he meets Woo-Kyung and coincidentally she keeps popping up in all of his cases.

 

 

This is a dark drama especially because it is dealing with child abuse although I don’t think they really show any of the child abuse happening. It does have graphic scenes but I don’t think they are really with the children. But I don’t think it is overdone or takes away from the story line. First of all I loved watching this drama which is weird to say because it is dark but it was so intriguing and left me wondering all of the time. I was never bored with this drama and I continued to want to keep watching the next episode.

 

 

The acting is so well done in this drama as well, I felt like I believed every character that came on the screen. I feel like it pushed your boundaries on what you think is morally right or wrong. There is good and evil in this drama but at times the lines seem to blur and you start to wonder what you really believe when it comes to suffering. I just love the complicated characters in this drama, everyone is complex and far from boring. There doesn’t seem to have all the usual drama tropes that you see in so many dramas. It felt fresh, exciting and the mystery always had me guessing and wanting more. I also found it interesting that there is no love lines, it feels refreshing and at the back of my mind I wanted to start coupling the characters out of habit but I am glad that they didn’t try to do that, because that was not what the drama is about!

 

 

The problem that arose with this drama was the lighting, man there were many dark scenes that had me trying to adjust my screen so I could see what was happening. I get that it was supposed to be dark but I still want to be able to see the scene, it was somewhat distracting and took you out of the story. The other problem I had was it felt like I needed more time with Kang Ji-Hun the detective, I feel like he had a background story that was never acknowledged or had time to flesh it out. The ending is good but I feel like I needed more closure with the story and the characters. But overall if you like a good mystery/thriller I would suggest you watch this drama. Of all the dramas I watched this month I would definitely pick this one as my favorite!

 

 

 

The last drama that i watched this month was Memories Of The Alhambra. This drama is about Yoo Jin-Woo (Hyun-Bin) who is the CEO of a large and impressive investment company. He seems to be a guy that is often misunderstood and hasn’t had to lean on anybody since he is self sufficient in every way. He gets a call from a video game creator asking him to buy his video game since he doesn’t want Jin-Woo’s rival and former friend to buy the game. Intrigued Jin-Woo hops on the next train to meet the creator in Granada Spain at an old hostel run by Jung Hee-Joo (Park Shin-Hye). Accidents happen and Hee-Joo and Jin-Woo fates get tangled together while Jin-Woo tries to figure out how to solve everything that has gone wrong.

 

 

So when I first started watching I wasn’t totally sold on the story it took a couple of episodes for me to start enjoying this drama. This drama is about playing a video game that in some ways comes to life and stops being pretend and becomes real to the characters. I really liked this drama and thought it built some great momentum and suspense. I enjoyed Hyun Bin of course because he is a great actor and his character was so interesting. I think this drama illustrated some interesting points about mental health. It showed Jin-Woo struggling to keep himself sane inside a lawless and cruel game. I thought it did a great job of portraying struggles that other people may have had a hard time putting to words of how they feel when every one arounds them is telling them they are crazy. Also it does have some beautiful sites since they did go to Spain for the shooting of the drama. This drama felt fresh and exciting and I did enjoy most of it and the ride you go on while watching it.

 

I have some complaints and that would be Jung Hee-Joo her character started to drive me crazy. She has very little purpose in this drama, she feels like a side kick and acts like a clueless, confused crying heroine that needs a man in her life to be complete. I simply did not understand her character she is faced with a crazy guy who everyone believes is crazy and mind you he is quite handsome but she choices to just accept him. She doesn’t even question all the weird things she sees him doing and I felt like come on that would never fly in real life. I would have loved it if she actually started playing the game and become a more interesting part of the story but instead she has to sit at home waiting for the guy to call her. The romance in the drama was utterly a waste of time and useless especially because it goes absolutely nowhere.

 

 

The ending is so disappointing their is no reunion just left open ended. The logic of the game also is very shaky about where Hee-Joo’s brother is the whole time is never properly addressed. I feel like this drama had so much potential to become a well rounded drama if they would have put in a little more effort into story. They wasted a lot of time in the last episodes watching a scenario from one characters view and then re-watching it from another character, which felt wasteful and super unnecessary. The deaths in this drama felt just shocking like I hoped they could come back to life all the time! The writer made an interesting world for the characters and plot but the ending and love line were disappointing way to end this drama.

 

Upcoming Dramas

1. Romance is a Bonus Book : It is about a genius writer and an editor who meets a lying copywriter who gets a job working under him. It sounds like a complete typical romance drama but I am a sucker for Lee Jong Suk!

2. Spring Turns to Spring : It is about two women who do a body swap. This has been done a lot lately so I guess it is a theme this season. Not expecting too much from this but looks okay.

3. The Crowned Clown: This drama is about a King and a commoner who look identical. The King decides to swap themselves because he feels like his life is being threatened. I have watched a few episodes and I didn’t really like the first one but it did get better but I don’t really care for all the politics that come with historical dramas! with who is going to control the King so I hope it will stay interesting!

4. Touch Your Heart: This drama is about a lawyer and his secretary who is a former hallyu star who is in hiding after being in some tabloids but she really wants to get back into movies. We get to see Lee Dong Wook and Yoo In Na reunited from being in the Goblin together. Maybe they will get their happy ending in this drama!

5. What’s Wrong, Poong Sang/ Live Or Die: I watched a few episodes and I have already dropped this drama. This drama feels so depressing and everything felt hopeless for all the characters. I honestly found all the characters unlikable and did not feel curious about their lives at all!

 

August/September Korean Drama Reviews 2018 September 28, 2018

The first korean drama that I finished this summer was ID: Gangnam Beauty/My ID is Gangnam Beauty based on a webtoon with the same name. I have not read the webtoon so I am sure people that have read it will feel differently about the drama. The story is about Kang Mi-Rae (Lim Soo Hyang) gets plastic surgery before entering college and is hoping to create a new and fresh start among her peers. Unexpectedly she meets Do Kyung-Seok (Cha Eun-Woo) who was her classmate in middle school and he recognizes her despite her plastic surgery. She discovers that College is still full of bullies and obstacles despite her pretty looking face.

I think this drama started out strong with the different characters and the obstacles that Mi-Rae was forced to overcome and it really hooked people in. I have to say that people seemed to be a bit triggered by this drama of whether plastic surgery is good or bad. I think society feels like plastic surgery is something shameful and something you don’t talk about openly and yet people will do it because it makes them feel better. It is considered shameful because of the vanity of spending that much money on how you look. This must be a very prevalent topic in South Korea since they even have a name for people who get their faces done. By the end I really couldn’t tell if this drama was saying plastic surgery is good or bad. I think that Hyun Soo-A (Jo Woo-Ri) did a good job in acting out her role and was pulled in and got so mad at her. She played the innocent villain so well that it was frustratingly good.

In the beginning I found it absolutely disgusting how women were being treated in this drama and was hard to watch. It did get better but still it was so wrong and treating women like objects just was unbearable. I found at some point I was getting annoyed at Kang Mi-Rae’s character, she was just so weak and only had a surprised look on her face most of the time. I just felt like her character became so uninspiring and I got bored with her actions and thoughts. I also found Do Kyung-Seok’s character a little boring because he was so cut and dry and facial expressions so stiff. I get that it was probably what he was supposed to act like but I found it odd and somewhat lacking chemistry at times. I also found his character a little unrealistic that he would have preferred her original face, I wish this was true but I just found it unbelievable and maybe because I have a heart of ice and have become a cynical through and through I just didn’t find it believable. The ending was pretty decent but it felt like there did not get to tell the whole story and it felt things were just left without a proper conclusion. This may be because it is originally a webtoon and I am unsure if it has even reached a conclusion.

Overall it was a cute drama that will feel the need of wanting to watch a fun romantic comedy and still covers some intense topics and isn’t just fluff.

The second drama I finished was Thirty But Seventeen/Still 17. The story is about Woo Seo-Ri (Shin Hye-Sun) a 17 year old who gets in a car accident and fall into a coma and wakes up 13 years later and has to adjust to becoming a 30 year old. It also stars Gong Woo-Jin (Yang Se-Jong) who is also 30 years old and has faced a trauma and works as set designer and tries his best not to get involved in other people’s business. The two of them become inter tangled into each other’s life and doesn’t know how to deal his feelings.

I really liked the story line of this drama it felt somewhat fresh dealing with the problem of waking up a lot older and yet still feeling like a seventeen year old. It had a lot of humor and emotional moments that were truly enjoyable. It had a good full cast that really made it fun and interesting. I enjoyed the chemistry and the storyline although I think my favorite character was Seo-Ri she did a really good job in acting and the character was really well developed.

The only thing was that I wished she would have found out about her past quicker instead of in the last episode I think the drama could have focused more on her and what happened to her friends and family instead of the romantic story line. I think the romance was very predictable so I don’t think it needed as much time as her storyline and past. I wish they would have done a love triangle between her doctor friend and Woo-Jin although that would be pretty predictable as well.

Overall I think it was cute and enjoyable drama that had many funny and hilarious moments which was the best!It was a warm drama that made me feel good and satisfied when watching.

The third drama that I finished was Familiar Wife/Wife That I Know. It is about Joo Hyuk (Ji-Sung) who is unhappy in his marriage to Woo-Jin (Han Ji-Min). He is struggling at work and he is unhappy with Woo-Jin who is angered by everything he does and he becomes scared of her. He meets a man on the subway who gives him some coins and that he can go back in time and change his life.

This was an interesting drama and it felt different in the way the story was being told. It feels hard to root for anybody because the characters seem unreliable and you don’t want them to be miserable. Mainly it is Joo-Hyuk that seems to keep making mistakes and you don’t know what he should do, I found it hard to root for him and Woo-Jin. It definitely plays on your feelings and it is confusing because it strays from the norm as the main character is at fault and isn’t blameless but instead is flawed. I guess you could say that it a more realistic version of a character that shows his weak and ugly side such as abandoning his wife and children for someone new. This made me feel very uncomfortable as a viewer. It is harder to see such harsh actions.

I found it compelling even though there are parts I didn’t like but it is interesting watching someone get a second chance or more. I liked that it was different, and made me think a different way. Also being able to revisit the same story line a couple of times was interesting to see what changed or stayed the same. I did like the ending to the drama, I think they did a good job of wrapping it up and showing us how a relationship should work and how to be partners.

I think it takes a couple of episodes to get into and it does away from good to less good, it is not really a romantic comedy. The middle of the drama got a bit slow and a bit redundant but it did pick up again.

Overall it was a pretty interesting drama that seemed to show a unique perspective rarely shown in dramas. I think it was a pretty good ride in the end.

The fourth drama that I watched was Life written by Lee Soo-Yeon who also was the writer for Stranger which was very good. I first thought that this was going to be about doctors and there patients but it really is not. It stars Ye Jin-Woo (Lee Dong-Wook) who is an emergency doctor and has a brother Ye Sun-Woo (Lee Kyu-Hyung) who is a paraplegic and is a doctor but is working in the health insurance evaluation. There are changes happening in the hospital with a company buying the the hospital and a new President Goo Seung-Hyo (Choo Seung-Woo). The new President wants to run the hospital like a business which is complete conflict of how doctors want to treat their patients. The drama focuses on the politics within the hospital. The power struggle is front and centre within this drama.

Normally I wouldn’t find this subject matter very interesting or compelling but the writer brings so much depth to this drama. The bad guy is not just a bad guy he is also a good guy. People are not just bad or good. Sometimes bad guys do good things and sometimes good guys can do bad things. I think it focuses on the human condition and what drives everyone. Characters are not just one note they are treated as complex people that they are and some people may be surprised how interesting this drama can be.

I did enjoy the characters in this drama and found myself being swept away when I would start watching. I sometimes didn’t always understand the fine details of the politics but I did get the gist of what was happening. I was happy that there was some love lines happening although I wasn’t expecting much from this writer. I really enjoyed the cinematography of this drama as well. I think it was well written and acted out wonderfully.

I was a little sad that I didn’t get to see Lee Dong-Wook being more of a doctor and treating patients but I was happy to see him act again! At times it was a bit hard to follow with the paperwork and what the politics were all about. I feel like the problems were not resolved so I’m wondering if they are wanting to donate second season since it seemed like a cliffhanger ending. If there is not a second season I feel like it was a bit of a strange ending.

Overall it was a well written drama with interesting characters and good drama.

The dramas that I am watching next are:

1. 100 days my prince: It is about a Prince that loses his memory and marries a peasant woman.

2. Devilish Joy: Also a memory loss drama with a man that wakes up with no memory of the past day after an accident. He reunites with a woman that he loves and he has no memory of her.

3. The Beauty Inside: It is about a top star woman who lives one week out of the month with a different appearance and a man that is unable to recognize anyone’s face except for hers.

4. Where the stars land: It is about a man that is smart and mysterious working at the Incheon International airport and meets a clumsy woman also working at the airport.

5. Room Number 9: It is a body swap drama, a lawyer changes places with a death row convict.