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boysplanetrecaps · 2 years ago

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Group Mission 1 (Ep 3-4) Main Recap

Boys Planet Episode 3-4 Recap / Master Post

This post will cover the second half of episode 3 and all of episode 4 of Boys Planet, with the in depth discussion of performances and teams covered in separate posts that will be linked below. I think it’ll make sense as we go! :) So let’s get started.

This recap covers episode 3 from 54:50 on, and all of episode 4.

Each practice group is experiencing a specific “drama,” which is either real or manufactured by the MNET editing. Remember at all times that this show has been edited so much that it’s almost fiction at this point -- keep that in mind before you get angry at a trainee.

What I'm going to do here is sort of recap the whole portion from second half of episode 3 all the way through episode 4, and as we go along you can click on a link to go to the full in depth review of that performance.

First, we visit with the Kill This Love teams, who get 8 minutes of screen time. The gist of the drama for G-group is that they all want the Killing Part, though they’re actually very reasonable and mature about the situation. Also, Matthew ends up with sub-vocal 2, which he’s a little sad about, but he’s just on such a talented team.

The gist of the drama for K-group is that Gunwook is the real leader, not Hwanhee -- which isn’t really drama so much as just, something that is happening. Also, because they’re nervous that they’ll lose to the very talented G-group team, they decide to do very big, manly movements in their dancing.

At 1:02:51, we visit with the Very Nice teams, who get 4 minutes of screen time. The K-team doesn’t have much drama -- just that they choose Mun Junghyeon, a rapper, to have an important subvocal part with a lot of high notes. Wonder why the editing is focusing on that?

On the G-side, the drama is that they’re having a hard time choosing a leader structure, a debate that is further hampered by communication problems. They eventually choose Ouju as leader. Each group gives the killing part to their most popular member, and K-group seems to choose parts without too much problem. But G-group’s squabbling continues.

At 1:06:55 we head over to the Danger teams, who get 4 minutes of screen time. The K-team doesn’t have drama, but it does have a weird power imbalance -- the 0 star but popular Lee Da Eul chose the K team, and his generally older and better ranked (star-wise) but less popular teammates have to just live in Da Eul’s world. They flatter him and say he’d make a good leader, but that’s too much work, so he happily hands over the leadership reins to Lee Seung Hwan.

The G-team is the leftovers team, and they’re pretty miserable. Chen Yu Geng is the only one willing to be leader, and he tries his best. The only one who can even kind of sing is Yang Jun, from Hot, and it’s… not good.

At 1:10:49, we visit with the Back Door teams, who get 7.5 minutes of screen time.

More than 4 minutes of that time is given the K-team. We see that the team has chosen Mr. Sexy BL Kim Ji Woong leader, at least in part because he chose the team, and he immediately says that he is just the mediator (“okay!”) and has no power (“okay!”) and that he’s just a listener (“okay!”) and that their opinions are more valuable than his (“congratulations!”). The drama is over who will get center; Han Yu Jin really wants it, but YuJin’s confidence has completely tanked, and Yoon Jong Woo gets it instead.

Meanwhile, the G-team isn’t doing as well, and MNET devotes a full 3.5 minutes to just their squabbling. Six of the members speak Chinese; one member, their leader Na Kamden, does not. The Chinese members, apparently led by Krystian (but beware the MNET edit) begin talking to each other in Chinese, and Kamden is left in the dark. It’s not great.

At 1:18:12, we visit with the Burn It Up teams, who get almost 4 minutes of screen time. G-group is getting along great, joking around about who has abs and smiling a lot. They’re all 2 and 1 stars but they seem to have high spirits. K-group is the leftovers team, and as you’d expect, their morale is low. The drama seems to be about whether little Choi Seung Hun will find his confidence, but I’m not sure that I care.

At 1:22:00, we visit with the Hot Sauce teams, who get almost 3 minutes of screen time! Lucky ducks. On the K-side, the two oldest members duke it out for leader, but blue-haired Park Hanbin, the only all star on the team and leader at his own agency, wins unanimously.

Meanwhile, over on the G-team, the drama is that the leader, Osuke, is the shortest one on the team at 5'5, so he keeps disappearing from view. MNET lets us know that this is very funny with their choice of background music.

At 1:25:00, we visit with the Love Me Right teams, who get 5.5 minutes of screen time.

These are the two first-chosen, powerhouse teams.

K-team has picked Hui as its leader and picks Lee Ye Dam to do its killing part. Naturally, Hui will be their main vocal -- that’s just common sense.

G-team picks Wumuti to be their leader, and were going to give the killing part to Jay and the main vocal to Wumuti, but the latter gets intimidated by Hui and asks Jay if they can switch. Jay agrees, and then Jay is the main vocal while Wumuti gets the killing part.

So far, there doesn’t seem to be any real drama on these teams.

We see a brief montage as the days fly by and the trainees rehearse, eat, sleep, and rehearse more.

Show Day

At 1:30:50 in, it’s show day! There are crowds around the block trying to get in to the filming, which is cool to see. The editing shows us a ton of non-Asian faces, as well as some Chinese and Japanese audience members, although we have no way to know what the audience break down actually was.

The boys get dressed in their stage clothes and makeup, and feel like idols for the first time. Then they get to walk in through the crowd, and the crowd --which is almost entirely female -- goes pretty crazy for them, which had to feel pretty good. Jung Se Yun, who is on team Burn it up, interviews, “I guess this is why everyone wants to be an idol.”

Then Hwan Min Hyun comes out, and the audience loses their mind again. Minhyun explains the rules to the audience, while the judges watch from some safe distance, in a pure white room, that I assume is on Min Hyun’s space station.

Are they sitting on folding chairs? Could the show not get them some more comfortable seating, and maybe a table? Did the staff spend the whole budget on those pajamas?

At 1:34:30, the Very Nice teams come out.

At 1:35:34 there’s a lengthy bit about how the boys did arm wrestling to decide who goes first, and weirdly, K-group wins every time, leading me to wonder if the arm-wrestling stage thingy was rigged somehow.

And then back to Team Very Nice.

We start with the G-group, who struggled learning the dance, until one of the psycho dance teacher’s malicious, hurtful, critique of them somehow helps them be better dancers. You’d think teaching them would work better, but apparently, no, vindictive spiteful abuse it is! They put on a cute performance though, with great vocals from Cong.

At 1:50:20 the K-group comes back out and we head into flashback mode shortly thereafter. The drama is that Jung Min Gyu has taken on the difficult role of Subvocal 1, with all the high notes, and he’s running his throat raw. No one else can do it, so he’s stuck with it, and has to do his best. In the performance, his voice breaks a few times, but he sticks with it, and the whole team does a good job, with great vocals from Yoo Seung Eon.

At 2:01:30, both teams come out and it’s time for the voting. Yoo Seung Eon earns 248 votes, which is a lot -- it's the third highest votes that any single trainee will earn tonight. K-team takes it by a landslide. 530: 243.

At 2:04:21, Team Kill This Love goes up.

Minhyun introduces the song by saying it “rewrote the history of K-pop girl groups,” and I don’t know if that’s quite true, but yeah, Blackpink is obviously a force of nature in Kpop.

We see the introductions for most members of both teams, and then see the rehearsal for the K-group.

As you recall, the drama is about whether General Gunwook’s plan can possibly defeat Keita’s incredibly strong team.

Keita’s team goes up first, and they’re fantastic. Dance, vocals, rap, they’re great. They even do some harmony and it sounds really good. I mean, you know. You already know. They do a thing where they had some red lipstick on their hands somewhere, and during the outro they smear it on their faces, giving the appearance that they were tearing their skin open. Kind of dumb, yet it works.

The judges are just like

Meanwhile, K-team is backstage, feeling nervous. They’re also good, but they know they’re facing an uphill battle.

They come out and they do really well, and if they’d been up against almost any other G-team I think they would have won. But some of their vocals are shaky, and Lee Hwanhee’s Hail Mary of an adlib doesn’t sound that great. You know that I love Hwanhee, and all these boys, but I think they were scared and tired.

G-team wins, and by a big margin. Congrats to them! They did so well and made it look easy! The score is 586 to 356.

And someone, please buy all these boys some Throat Comfort tea and tell them to stop singing when their throats are tired. More singing won’t make it better.

I love this stuff. I talk for my job so I need this to survive.

At 2:27:48, Minhyun says, “This group opened the door to Korean albums selling a million,” and the audience yells “EXO!” I’m an EXO-L and I don’t know if I would have gotten it from that hint, but whatever. Yay! EXO! That means we get to listen to Love Me Right! It also means the Love Me Right teams will perform! This is all well and good, but also, there are only 16 minutes to go in this episode, and we’re going to need at least 3 minutes set aside for instant replays and reactions alone, so we know that there is no way we’re going to see both teams perform.

The teams come out, though, and seem ready to start.

We get to see the G-team perform, and as you might imagine, Jay’s vocals are fantastic, though the rest of the team seemed a bit shakier to me. Still, overall the performance was very good.

At 2:41:40 the K-group comes out, but you and I know they’re not going to perform right this minute! Not a chance. They get a few notes in and that’s that. So we’ll have to wait until Episode 4 to find out what happens.

Then they give the live voting results, but only those ranked 40-60, so I’m not going to bother to record it here. Throughout the recaps for these episodes, I’ll continue to use the rankings from the end of Episode 2 because otherwise I’d go insane. I’m already going insane. They do give away that the top three is the same top 3 it’s been -- Sung Han Bin, Kim Ji Woong, and Han Yujin.

The majority of the preview for next episode is about whether or not Hui can hit the high note.

Feel free to skip to Episode 4!

If you’re happy to skip past the preview and promise not to cheat, go to 1:39.

We open with some “boys being cute” stuff that I’m not going to recap, but it is cute! It’s a joke about how much they love their i-pads, which help them so much, but it’s also about how hard they’re working and how much they love their dreams.

To skip past the voting instructions, go to 4:07. It’s still performance night! Who is up next? Announcing it makes MinHyun nostalgic, because it’s the Wanna One song, and the audience cheers “Wanna One! Wanna One!” until he gives in and does like 5 seconds of the choreo. Aw.

It looks really weird in that double breasted suit of his.

After that, it’s time for the Burn It Up teams to come up. And it’s time for the audience at home to get out a box of tissues, because these are the two teams that had the saddest time, as far as I can tell.

Let me just say that these segments are exploitive; MNET sets people up to fail, and then films them failing, and then wrings out every emotion from them. It ends up being good television, but also it’s awful. But it’s kind of what I’m watching the show for, at a certain level.

I guess that…

you can call me monster?

Anyway.

As you might recall, the drama with both teams is that they were full of low ranked members; the G-team was the second to last formed, and the K-team was the leftovers.

The drama for G is that one member can’t quite do a particular dance move, while another member can’t quite sing a certain vocal run. They both practice a lot; in the end, during the performance, Xuan Hao manages to sing the vocal run, but Chen Ren Yu can’t quite do the dance move. Overall though they do fine, which is a relief.

The drama for K is that the two youngest members -- a 14 year old and a young seeming 15 year old -- are not holding up well under the pressure. The group’s leader, Park Min Seok, struggles with leading them without scolding them too much, and ends up being really rather sweet and lovely. In the end, the performance is actually perfectly fine, and Park Gwan Young’s singing was the major surprise for me. Came out of nowhere!

K-team wins, 518 to 326.

At 28:09, the teams performing Danger by BTS come out.

Almost immediately, we go into the backstory for G-team, who are the leftovers of the Global Trainees. Their leader Chen Yu Geng is trying to have a meeting with his demoralized team, but it devolves into an argument with main vocal Yang Jen. It’s really just miserable squabbling between two stressed out people who both are sort of wrong, but also totally relatable. That makes it not the most FUN watch, though it is kind of engrossing. In the end, they tearfully admit that they’re both just so stressed out and completely without hope, and they apologize.

It is sort of interesting that Takuto didn’t get a story focus here, and I almost was wondering if MNET had forgotten about him when he popped up to give the final statement before the performance.

The performance starts at 34:40 or so, and they do a surprisingly good job. I don’t know if I would have picked this one out as the leftovers’ specifically if I’d just watched it on Youtube without knowing the backstory. That’s meant to be a compliment.

When they’re done, everyone’s so relieved, especially Team G themselves.

Then at 38:54 we go into flashback mode for the K-team.

Their drama is that at that big mid-way checkup, when all the trainees give each other feedback, Lee Da Eul doesn’t know his part and really the whole team is doing terribly. Most of their feedback forms contain no compliments. The team makes some changes -- the leader, Seung Hwan, gives his own main vocal part to Jung I Chan, who nonchalantly says the high notes are easy for him. They try to talk Da Eul into giving up his big rapping part, and he won’t budge, and implies that since he is the one who picked everyone for this team, they should let him keep the part. And they feel like they have to let him, since he’s the highest ranked. It’s really gross. They’re still doing poorly at dress rehearsal, and they all get a serious dressing down from the judges, especially Da Eul.

On performance day, the judges are worried, and rightly so. Most of the team pulls it together and puts in a decent performance -- I’ll put in a plug for Jeon Wooseok, who I think does a great job -- and Lee Da Eul does well enough that people can pretend it’s good. But Jung I-Chan, who also was on I-land as Jaebeom, just completely flops. It’s not just the bad singing -- it’s how he lets it show on his face, and does most of the performance looking like this.

When the results come back, the K-team wins; we don't get the full voting results here, but later on find out the score was 486 to 286.

At 54:50, it’s time for Back Door, and everyone is excited. It seem like even a lot of members of G-team are just honestly excited to see the performance, and from context, it’s clear that it’s really K-team they want to see.

K-team’s drama is that Han Yujin is having some trouble with the choreo and needs to practice more, and then he does, and does great. That’s about it. Also, Kim Tae Rae should have been the main vocal instead of Ji Yun Seo, but it seems like even the team doesn’t know that, and it’s not a source of drama.

They do fucking fantastic. Best performance of the whole mission. Kim Ji Woong lifts his shirt up high enough to expose his nipples and the audience goes batshit crazy. It’s obvious they’re going to win.

The G-group has a ton of drama. They have to switch the killing part from Krystian to Ricky, and Krystian isn’t happy about it. Kamden is having trouble as a leader, and there’s just sort of ill feelings all around. The team ends up talking it through and getting to a better place, and they put on a perfectly good performance of Back Door, with the possible exception of the shaky high notes from Feng Jun Lan, their main vocalist.

There was nothing they could have done to win. Kim Ji Woong gets 259 votes all by himself, which would have already have been enough to beat the entire G team.

Final score, 551 to 204.

At 1:21:37, it’s time for Hot Sauce.

We flashback to G-team’s rehearsal. They had a hard time getting started, because leader Osuke not only is short, which is an important plot point ya’ll, but also is not great as teaching choreo. Luckily, Ollie, who really shouldn’t be a 0 star, steps forward and ends up low key saving the whole team. They don’t really have a main vocalist, but they are doing the dancing as well as they can.

At the performance, both Ollie and Osuke shine, and in my opinion, Nice wins the most improved award. Poor Toui can’t quite hit the notes, but does his best. The judges' assessment is mostly kind.

At 1:29:55, it’s time for K team’s flashback.

This team has an excellent leader in blue-haired Park Hanbin, who is firm but respectful, driving his team to excel by showing them the correct movements and not insulting them or belittling them. There’s no drama here at all, so there’s nothing for MNET to wallow in. They don’t even make a big deal out of losing a member and having to recalibrate the performance for 6 instead of 7. They just make it work.

Their performance is overall really great. Their main vocalist isn’t quite up to the task, but their dancing is exceptional, and their energy is infectious. Plus, the crowd loves it when Hanbin lifts up his shirt to show his abs. He ends up getting 253 votes, second only to Kim Ji Woong, and the K-team absolutely routs G-team, 618 to 233.

At 1:40:45, it’s time to return to the Love Me Right team.

In the flashback, we focus on how Lee Yedam gave the killing part to Seung Hanbin, and then focus on how Seung Hanbin originally wanted to be an elementary school teacher (was this man created in a lab to be a Kpop idol?). Then they focus on how Hui’s voice isn’t in top condeeshon. Oh no!! Will he mess up his performance?

Of course not. The performance is exceptional. Everyone does really well. Hui sounds fantastic. Everyone sounds and looks great. Arguably the best performance of the night, though I'd be hard pressed to choose between it and Back Door. When they’re done, the judges just drop their clipboards and say, “That was perfect.”

The voting reflects this, of course. K-team wins easily, K team wins, 557 to 206. Three members of the K group break 100 votes -- Gyuvin, Hanbin, and Hui -- and no one on G surpasses Jay’s 66.

Then there's nothing left to do but count. It's already obvious which teams won, and it's of course also obvious that K group got the benefit. They also reveal that Back Door got the most audience votes, so they'll be headed to M-Countdown. That's all that really happens, so you can feel ok about skipping the last few minutes of the episode.

Hope you enjoyed the recap(s) -- there's a lot more "meat" in the individual recaps linked at the top.

#boys planet 999 #boys planet recap #boys planet #boysplanet

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livinglifeonpause · 2 months ago

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BP before the 3rd One

okay, I anticipate most of this episode will be voting bs. I only know like 5, so I'm really not invested at all. Not like The Unit where you knew half of them in advance.

okay, real talk, SUNG HAN BIN (23, 5'10")/P/P/F/P, i LOVE anyone who snorts when they laugh

when JAY CHANG (23, 5'9")/P/P/P/P made that face at around 4 min in, I LIVED.

"sentimental hip hop"??? naurrrrr. "Super charger, super charger, super...." No serious, GTFO with that "sentimental"

ohhhh, contestant song plea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6KNd0d2ps4

.............................................................................................................................. ELIMINATIONS

I dont love this hair color on Minhyuk. like at all.

28 bitches left.

EWwwwww those 3 for spot 28? Save CHA WOONG KI (22, 5'8")/F/F/F/Fi! 100% oh wait. that's MUN JUNG HYUN (19, 6'0")/F/P/F/P and not the loud JUNG MIN GYU (24, 6'1")/F/F/F/F MY BAD.

Yo, for 12, you could read Jay's face like a fucking book. Also, him squinting cause he can't read the fucking # on the chairs got me good.

Remember back when I couldn't decide if JAY CHANG (23, 5'9") was cute?? HAAA!

Yo, what is KIM JI WOONG (25, 5'10) spacing about about after Wang Zi Hao gets called??

omg, PARK GUN WOOK (19, 6'0")'ie's expression change when they called Hui. Omg, Keita's too!

.............................................................................................................................. FIELD DAY

I fucking Love CHA WOONG KI (22, 5'8") and his gaggle of gays!

OMFGGGGG I just realized MNet dubbed that one kid saying Yeppuda to Gunwookie. LOOOVE.

PARK JI HOO (18, 5'9")/F/F/F/F "I wont protect her" hahaha!

NA KAMDEN (23, 6'0")/F/P/F/P - bitch out here LITERALLY snatching wigs!

I fucking hate the one legged game. It looks so painful TT

youtube.com/watch?v=Uv9LdgTYmHw

watch?v=1C5u5kODKCc -- how did i literally miss this game?

hahaha! "Why Wumuti?" "I have no idea!"

(fr, why not gunwook though?? Or Matthew??)

omgfg, Jiwoong straight picks that kid up

thats so funny of him pulling Jay!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ youtube.com/watch?v=s2MsWMiEeCA Oh, CHEN JIAN YU (26, 5'10")/P/?/F/F has some gorgeous hair here!

Also SEOK MATTHEW (22 5'7") straight baby girl cuddling with YOON JONG WOO (24, 5'9") here.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Okay episode 9 BS before the show

okay, but how DID JAY CHANG (23, 5'9")/P/P/P/P catch 11 of them?? Like damn bro, you practice this before. "RICKY!!"

HAAAAAAAAAA! KUM JUN HYEON (22, 5'11")/F/P/P/F mom goes "why is he like that?"

I wanna see them all hug their parents and cry and shit. They aren't gonna show that???

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

why tf is KIM GYU VIN (20, 6'0") laying BETWEEN the beds? I feel you bro, i feel.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

okay, if CHA WOONG KI (22, 5'8")/F/F/F/F doesn't gag for Jo Kwon I'm gonna be pissed.

what a weird fucking thing to have them do a musical? and THAT one? I hate it. And they have to watch a bazillion other teams?

YOO SEUNG EON (20, 5'10") goes "welll... I'm Sorry" and the way he laaaaughs! passing him just for that shit!

now, why does KIM GYU VIN (20, 6'0") get All-Star even for this?? Boy must have some amazing BDE or something.

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#BP7 #Boys Planet #Episode 8 #_boysplanet #Episode 9 #_bp

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wascherin · 3 months ago

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Kyunghyang Newspaper, Tuesday, January 1, 1957

Survey I

By The Editorial Writer

(1) What did you gain and what did you lose through two and a half years of your parliamentary career?

(2) What do you want to do the most for the rest of your term?

(3) What is the thing you are most proud of that you have done throughout your term?

Kwak Sang-hoon (Democratic Party)

(1) If I have to answer something, I will say I gained Democratic Party. What I lost is Mr. Shin Ik-hee, one of my democratic fighters comrades.

(2) My political wish from the Constituent National Assembly to this day is to amend the constitution into a cabinet system.

(3) I want to say the fact that I contributed to the founding of Democratic Party.

Yoon Je-sul (Democratic Party)

(1) I gained the fleeting fame and lost my childlike innocence.

(2) I hope I can at least amend the general election law.

(3) It is hard to say I have achieved something.

Soh Seon-gyu (Democratic Party)

(1) I have tasted a lot of bitter taste as a politician for the past two years and several months, and I think it became a fertilizer for personality training to me. What I lost was my valuable time wasted without political achievement.

(2) I would like to revise the election law to secure the exercise of the people's right to vote and to ensure fairness in counting the votes.

(3) Participating in the public speeches and the debate on alternative constitutional amendments at the time of the 1954 constitutional amendment and engaging in the July 27 parliamentary demonstration last year will be unforgettable memories not only during my parliamentary life but also during my lifetime.

Son Kwon-bae (Democratic Party)

(1) What I have gained is that I have cleared up all my long-established political woes and carved out a new course by joining Democratic Party, and what I have lost is my hope that is gradually disappearing as the dignity of our people is damaged.

(2) Revision of the election law

(3) I participated in the democratic front for the struggle to protect civil rights beyond the boundaries of Liberal Party, the group of pro-government, money, and illegality.

Jo Soon (Liberal Party)

(1) Naked we come into the world, and naked we leave it, so what benefits and losses can there be for me? When I started working as a lawmaker seven years ago, I had ambition and passion to change the world, but they were weathered and worn out in the storm of reality, leaving only a lot of wrinkles on my face.

(2) How about I build a new capitol building that serves our country for more than a millennium in the middle of Seoul.

(3) Even though I have been misunderstood by the opposition parties as a core of the party in power and by the ruling party as a person with opposition color, I have been tried to strike a balance between both sides.

Kim Dong-wook (Association for the Constitution and Politics)

(1) I got debt and lost time.

(2) I would like to visit Southeast Asia to broaden my horizons someday.

(3) The movement for national sovereignty

Lee In (Independent)

(1) All I gained is disillusionment. And I lost my ego.

(2) I want to put this country on a high-level democratic track by working on the people's political enlightenment.

(3) I occasionally said things that were jarring to both ruling and opposition parties, but the result may have been medicine for all of us.

Kim Ji-joon (Liberal Party)

(1) I lost my spirit, and gained a venomous tongue.

(2) I would like to strive to have strong legislation to prevent the smuggling of luxury imports.

(3) I tried to get the good policies of the ruling and opposition parties to set sail, but……

Lee Cheol-seung (Democratic Party)

(1) If I have to say that I have gained something, I will say that I have qualified as a soldier of the front lines of the democratization movement. In other words, it means that I participated in the formation of Democratic Party, an organization of the angry people. What I have lost is immeasurable. My portrait as a politician that I had been drawing was shattered and I only had a bitter taste left. Moreover, I have completely lost my privacy.

(2) It is my firm belief that what must be done not only for the rest of my term but also throughout my life is to fight injustice in order to protect the sovereignty of the people.

(3) I am proud that I am fighting boldly in the ranks of the democratic front. I am confident that I have fought with all my heart and soul against dictatorship and corruption that are unfolding in the current political situation. When the late Deputy Speaker Choi Soon-ju tried to pass a rejected constitutional amendment by forcibly applying "Rounding off," I resisted by pulling him from the podium, which can be cited as an example.

Jang Taek-sang (Independent)

(1) What I got is the blame from the people and what I lost is my pride.

(2) I want to shout that this government is not walking on the democratic line, but on the dictatorial line.

(3) One was that during last year I said on behalf of the opposition parties, "Punish the lawmakers for forgery of official documents." The other was that I read the declaration defending the people's sovereignty in the July 27 parliamentary demonstration.

Yang Il-dong (Association for the Constitution and Politics)

(1) We lost our hard-won democracy and faced the dictatorship force. I can say these are what we have now.

(2) The realization of democracy. I want to find true democracy in this country by establishing a cabinet system.

(3) I opposed the constitutional amendment bill that caused the dictatorship and also refused to attend the National Assembly at the time. In doing so, I made my stand clear in front of the whole nation.

Kim Yung-seon (Democratic Party)

(1) I gained the political party, fighting spirit for democracy, and national blueprint. What I lost is the freedom and civil rights of the people.

(2) Implementation of the economic policies by Democratic Party

(3) Efforts to exclude special interests and inflationary gains

Yoon Chi-young (Independent)

(1) What I gained is justice. And I certainly lost several things in terms of living.

(2) Getting the people out of the current situation

(3) I have tried to lay the right tracks in the National Assembly.

*To be continued*

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randomobsessionsofa30something · 1 year ago

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My top 10 korean OSTs of 2023

It's time to countdown my favorite music from korean dramas. As per usual I only chose one per dramas from dramas that started in 2023.

H.M. New Jeans-Beautiful Restriction. I actually didn't watch A time called you. I just never got around to it but I found this song and it reminded me of those typical OSTs from like ten years ago so this song felt nostalgic somehow.

10. WINTER- With you. My demon is my favorite drama right now. I've always been a sucker for rom coms with a supernatural twist. It feels like every OST from this drama is gonna be great. New Jean's Our Night is more beautiful than your day is probably the most played in the drama but it's Winter's beautiful vocals that won me over. No surprise there since she is my favorite Aespa vocalist. Still Whenever Wherever by Roy Kim and Dawn's Even if we disappear are so good.

9. Melomance-The secret between us. Melomance are one of my favorite interpeters of OSTs and this song is sweet with a playful chorus, which goes perfectly with the fun romcom A good day to be a dog. Sunday Latte by Junggigo and Jea is also worth a listen.

8. Kim Sejeong-Once Again. Kim Sejeong sang two OSTs for the second season of The Uncanny Counter and they're both a really good listen. However the way Sejeong's voice soars in Once Again just gives it a bit of an edge. By the way if you haven't watched the Uncanny Counter it's a fun fantasy drama to binge. Cravity's Ready Set Go and Dvwn's No problem are also really good.

7. Lee Chang Sub- Love from a real heart. Honestly I felt too old to watch Beginning is from the first kiss but the OSTs are power ballads that are definitely worth listening. From Lee A Young's Even Silently Cry to Heaven by Lim Jae Hyun they all get you in the feels. BTOB's Changsub however just has that extra something in his voice that makes you pay attention.

6. Noel-That's you. Lyn made some beautiful soundtracks for Destined with you (I'll always be with you and We love each other) that you should check out but the chorus of That's you by Noel is so catchy that I had no choice but to choose this song in my list. The vocals are full of emotion.

5. Jeon Seowoon-Fall in love. Having SNSD's Yoona and 2PM's Junho as the leads of this drama was somehow exactly what I didn't know I wanted. I love Jeon Seowoon's tone for OSTs and he released a few this year but for me this was the best one. It's just painfully sweet. This drama had other pretty songs but Punch's Keep me busy, and Minseo's Perhaps love are also standouts.

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4. Solar-EXIT. This song for the drama The Escape of the Seven sounds so epic. It has a lot of verses in English. And Solar's power vocals shine through.

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3. Doyoung-Here with me. NCT's Doyoung keeps delivering beautiful OSTs. And my favorite this year is the one he did for See you in my 19th life which happens to be one of my favorite romcoms of the year. Colde's Star is also a stand out song for this drama.

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2. Baekhyun-Hello. The third season of Dr. Romantic was my least favorite of the series but it had great OSTs. EXO's Baekhyun sang the first one and it has such a beautiful melody. The vocals are of course on point. Gummy's I will stay with you, Doyoung's Beautiful Day, Seukwang's Still you and Lia's One Hundred Love are worth listening too.

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1. Kang Seung Yoon-Half&Half. The drama True to love was crazy funny. This song by WINNER's Kang Seung Yoon is so great and definitely my most played OST of the year. iKON's JU-NE also sang a beautiful song for this drama called Accidental love.

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idolskpop · 1 year ago

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‘Moving’ Episode 19: Ryu Seung Ryong, Kim Sung Kyun’s Emotional Father-Son Reunion

The penultimate episode of ‘Moving’, the hit Disney+ original series, delivered an intense and emotional showdown between the former agents and the North Korean army. Ryu Seung Ryong, Kim Sung Kyun, and Han Hyo Joo were on the brink of losing but promised to save their children.

‘Moving’ Episode 19: The Final Battle at Jeongwon High School

(Photo : Disney+) The episode began with the continuation of the fierce battle between the former agents and the North Korean army. The North Koreans were determined to complete their mission and bring the file back to their country, while the former agents were willing to do anything to protect their children. Lee Kang Hoon (Kim Do Hoon) was brutally beaten by Park Chan Il (Jo Bok Rae), who had super-strength powers. Kang Hoon was inexperienced and overpowered by his opponent. Their guidance counselor, Cho Il Hwan (Kim Hee Won), tried to stop Park Chan Il, but he failed. Luckily, Lee Jae Man (Kim Sung Kyun) arrived in time and saved Kang Hoon from the North Korean soldier. Their father-son relationship touched the viewers as Jae Man apologized for coming late. Jang Joo Won (Ryu Seung Ryong) was able to defeat Kwon Young Deuk (Park Gwang Jae), who had the same powers as him. Joo Won used his healing abilities and superhuman strength to overpower his enemy. However, the situation turned worse when Kim Deok Yoon (Park Hee Soon) called for backup from their strongest soldier, Lim Jae Seok (Lee Suk Hyeong). Lim Jae Seok had the ability to crush anything with a clap, but he was sensitive to light and could not stand seeing it. Lim Jae Seok unleashed his destructive power and demolished half of Jeongwon High School, causing chaos and panic among the students and teachers. Joo Won had to save Jae Man again from the collapsing building, but he got trapped under the rubble with a metal rod piercing his chest. Joo Won’s eyes were severely damaged by Lim Jae Seok’s attack, and he decided to remove them himself. He told Jae Man to take care of his daughter, Jang Hui Soo (Go Youn Jung), and said his final words: “I love you.” Jae Man managed to escape from the building with Kang Hoon and others before it was too late. He carried Joo Won’s body with him and mourned his death.

The Heartbreaking Reunion of Ryu Seung Ryong and Go Youn Jung

(Photo : Disney+) Meanwhile, Kim Bong Seok (Lee Jung Ha) and Hui Soo were hiding in a classroom with Frank (Ryoo Seung Bum), who had betrayed the CIA and decided to help them. Frank used his healing abilities to treat Bong Seok’s wounds and told him that he was his uncle. Frank revealed that he was Kim Doo Sik’s (Zo In Sung) younger brother, who was kidnapped by the CIA when he was a child. He said that he never forgot his brother and wanted to see him again. He also said that he was sorry for what he had done and asked for Bong Seok’s forgiveness. Bong Seok accepted Frank’s apology and hugged him. He said that he was glad to have an uncle like him. Frank smiled and said that he was proud of his nephew. Hui Soo was worried about her father, Joo Won, who had not contacted her for a long time. She tried to call him, but there was no answer. She asked Frank to help her find him, but Frank said that it was too dangerous. Hui Soo insisted on going out, saying that she could not just sit there and do nothing. She said that she loved her father more than anything and wanted to see him alive. She ran out of the classroom, followed by Bong Seok. They encountered Lim Jae Seok, who was still rampaging outside. Hui Soo tried to fight him, but she was no match for his power. Lim Jae Seok grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up. Bong Seok used his flying abilities to rescue her, but he was also caught by Lim Jae Seok. He squeezed them both until they lost consciousness. At that moment, Joo Won’s voice echoed in Hui Soo’s mind. He told her that he loved her more than anything and that he was sorry for not being a good father. He said that he was proud of her and that she should live happily. Hui Soo regained her strength and broke free from Lim Jae Seok’s grip. She used her healing abilities to heal Bong Seok’s wounds and helped him fly away from Lim Jae Seok. They landed near a truck where Jae Man was waiting for them. He told them to get in quickly and drove away from the school. On the way, Hui Soo saw her father’s body lying on the back seat. She was shocked and devastated. She cried out his name and hugged him, hoping that he would wake up. She asked Jae Man what had happened to him, but Jae Man could not answer. He was also in tears and grief. Hui Soo blamed herself for her father’s death. She said that she should have stayed with him and helped him. She said that she was sorry for not being a good daughter. Bong Seok tried to comfort her, saying that it was not her fault. He said that her father loved her very much and that he sacrificed himself to save them. He said that they should be grateful for his life and honor his memory. Hui Soo sobbed and said that she loved her father very much and that she missed him. She said that she wanted to see him again and hear his voice. Bong Seok hugged her and said that he was there for her. He said that they were not alone and that they had each other. He said that they would get through this together. The episode ended with a heartbreaking scene of Hui Soo and Bong Seok mourning their father’s death, while Jae Man drove them to safety.

Netizens’ Reactions

(Photo : Disney+) The 19th episode of ‘Moving’ received rave reviews from the viewers, who praised the actors’ performances and the director’s skills. They expressed their emotions and opinions on various online platforms. Here are some of the comments from netizens: - “This episode was so sad and touching. I cried so much for Joo Won and Hui Soo. Ryu Seung Ryong and Go Youn Jung are amazing actors. They made me feel their pain and love.” - “Kim Sung Kyun deserves an award for his role as Jae Man. He showed so many emotions in this episode. He was angry, scared, sad, and brave. He was a hero and a father.” - “I can’t believe Joo Won is dead. He was my favorite character in this show. He was so funny, kind, and cool. He had such a great chemistry with everyone. I will miss him so much.” - “The action scenes were so epic and realistic. The special effects were impressive. The director did a great job of creating tension and suspense. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.” - “I’m glad Frank turned out to be a good guy. He redeemed himself by helping Bong Seok and Hui Soo. I hope he reunites with his brother, Doo Sik, soon.” - “I’m worried about what will happen in the final episode. Will Doo Sik and Mi Hyun survive? Will Bong Seok and Hui Soo be happy? Will Frank escape from the CIA? I can’t wait to find out.”

Conclusion

(Photo : Disney+) ‘Moving’ is a captivating series that combines action, fantasy, romance, and family drama in a unique way. It is based on a popular webtoon by Kang Full, who also wrote the screenplay for the series. The series features a stellar cast of veteran and rising actors, such as Ryu Seung Ryong, Han Hyo Joo, Zo In Sung, Cha Tae Hyun, Ryoo Seung Bum, Kim Sung Kyun, Lee Jung Ha, Go Youn Jung, and Kim Do Hoon. The series has received positive reviews from critics and viewers alike, who praised its plot, characters, cinematography, music, and production value. It has also achieved high ratings on various platforms, such as Disney+, Hulu, IMDb, MyDramaList, and Naver. The series will air its 20th and final episode on September 20th, 2023. It is expected to deliver a satisfying conclusion to the story of the superpowered families. If you enjoyed this article, feel free to share it with your friends and leave a comment below. Subscribe to IDOLS KPOP for exclusive updates and captivating content. Read the full article

#KimSungKyun #Moving #RyuSeungRyong

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thesecrettimes · 1 year ago

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Blockchain Firm Raises Millions From Andreessen Horowitz, Paris Hilton to Help Monetize AI Mashups

Investors Pledge $54 Million to Support Story Protocol’s Plan to Help Copyright Holders in AI Age

U.S. blockchain company Story Protocol has won the support of a group of investors led by American venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz for its plan to help content creators track and monetize their work in the times of generative AI, Bloomberg reported. Against the backdrop of low investor interest in crypto startups, the San Francisco-based tech firm managed to raise $54 million. Among those who offered funding for its project are also Hashed, Endeavor, Samsung Next, TPG Capital founder David Bonderman, and Paris Hilton’s 11:11 media. Besides receiving equity in Story, whose valuation was not disclosed, Andreessen has also obtained the right to buy digital tokens, if the company decides to issue such, although co-founder Jason Zhao indicated that it does not currently intend to do so. The launch of Openai’s Chatgpt and other platforms utilizing artificial intelligence attracted millions of users to AI tools which led to a spike in remixes and mashups online, the report notes. Lawsuits filed by copyright holders have also surged in number. In response to this trend, Story Protocol is building a blockchain-based repository of intellectual property for various types of content, including prose, images and audio, that an author would be able to register their work with and then use connected apps to sell licensing rights. “In a year or two the level of remixed content through GenAI is going to be so much higher,” remarked Story’s other co-founder, Seung-Yoon Lee. He gave an example with a song featuring AI-generated versions of the voices of artists Drake and the Weeknd which became viral before it was shut down by Universal Music Group. At the same time, Lee also pointed out: You can’t go and cease and desist everything. The investment will allow Story Protocol to launch its blockchain technology in the first half of 2024, Jason Zhao noted. It comes despite a venture capital drought in the crypto space with funding for startups declining since prices of digital assets dropped last year and amid an ongoing regulatory crackdown on the industry. Do you think crypto companies should develop more products with AI applications to attract investment? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below. Read the full article

#andreessen #artificial #blockchain #company #Copyright #Crypto #GenAI #hilton #horowitz #Millions #monetize #paris #Protocol’s #TPG #work

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ailtrahq · 1 year ago

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The new blockchain-based IP ownership network Story Protocol News/home/20230905638262/en/Story-Protocol-Launches-With-Over-54M-in-Funding-Led-by-Andreessen-Horowitz" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">closed a $54 million funding round on Sept. 7, which included investments from big names like Paris Hilton’s 11:11 Media, and Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z. The platform uses Blockchain Technology to help content creators oversee and monetize their content in the face of fakes generated by artificial intelligence (AI). It plans to serve as a blockchain-based IP ownership repository for all types of content including text, image and audio. If artists eventually register with the protocol they can use connected services to sell the licensing rights for various other uses. The other co-founder of the project Seung-Yoon Lee estimated that in “in a year or two the level of remixed content through GenAI is going to be so much higher.”“In a world of total abundance catalyzed by generative AI, blockchain technology presents the perfect solution for transparent provenance tracking and fair attribution.”The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, who also received equity in the company and the right to buy Digital Tokens if issued by Story Protocol, according to a spokesperson from the company. Story Protocol also received backing from Hashed, Endeavor, David Bonderman - the founder of TPG Capital- and Samsung Next.The company’s co-founder Jashon Zhao said the funds will go towards the launch in the first half of 2024. The battle against deep fakes and copyright-infringing content at the hands of generative AI has been of major concern for the entertainment industry. Universal Music Group (UMG) has been campaigning for streaming platforms such as Spotify to be vigilant about removing content that misuses copyrighted work. Shortly after UMG’s email was dispersed, Spotify announced it would be increasing its policing across the platform and actively began to remove content in violation of copyright rules. Most recently, it was revealed that UMG and Google were in negotiations over how to manage deep fakes, along with how to best license melodies and vocal tracks that can be used in AI-generated songs.

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smylealong · 3 years ago

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Year End Drama Recap

This was a year that tested me in more ways than one. I have had highs and lows unlike any I had experienced before. I lost much, spent a long time in throes of anxiety and depression. I also managed to beat something that was making my life miserable. A decision I took has led to a happier, healthier me. I made lifestyle changes that have yielded fantastic results. Overall, this was one heck of a roller-coaster year. Amidst all these upheavals, dramas grounded me and provided with some much-needed distraction. In fact, I managed to watch quite a few dramas, both Korean and Chinese. This post is a recap of the dramas I watched/abandoned or am currently watching. Since this will be a long post, I will put it under “keep reading”.

K-Dramas

That Winter the Wind Blows- (Abandoned) -This drama had been on my to-be-watched list for a very long time, primarily because of Kim Bum. I love that guy and I wanted to like this drama. Alas, this drama was much too strange for me. That the central romance goes down the whole “fake-cest” route, with one party actively defrauding the other was too icky for me to continue. The cinematography was excellent, but the dull grey tones were too dreary for me.

Black- (Abandoned)- The concept of this series was fantastic. It even had Jo Jae Yoon (Cheetah for Mad Dog/ Perm job from Save Me), someone I love to bits. I absolutely adored the character played by Kim Dong Jun (Oh Man Soo), and enjoyed the male lead, Han Moo Gang, played by Song Seung Hoon. The story was interesting, and the acting was great. Why then did I stop watching it? Because this series has the unfortunate tendency to use bodily fluids as a crutch for humor, which grossed me out thoroughly. I can’t stand that brand of humor. I had to stop.

Goblin- (Completed)- Loved this drama. Enjoyed every second of it. The bromance between the Goblin and the Reaper was the cherry on top of this fantastic sundae. Also…. Lee Dong Wook! *fans self*

The Guest- (Completed)- One of the best horror series I have seen in a while. I liked that this series did not go the gore/jump scares route. Instead, it went the environmental and situational horror. Led by capable, strong, and decisive leads. Supported by able side characters and a tight plot, The Guest kept me glued to the screen. Also… Kim Jae Wook! *fans self*

Strangers From Hell- (Completed)- This was such a disappointment. It started off brilliantly – a naïve, young protagonist stuck in a claustrophobic, ready to explode situation. And then, it turned into a torture-porn with believability diminishing with every episode, this was an arduous watch. The caricatursih portrayal of the villains only exacerbated my frustrations. I only held on because of Lee Dong Wook. But it was an uphill task.

Hotel Del Luna- (Completed)- This was one heck of a ride. I loved the quirky and deliciously evil Jang Man Wol played by the competent IU. The male lead, Gu Chan Sung played by the incredible Yeo Jin Goo, was delightful to watch. A perfect supernatural romantic comedy that warmed my heart. Worth the hype.

Crowned Clown- (Watching) – This Korean take on The Prince and The Pauper has Yeo Jin Goo in a brilliant double role. The guest appearance of Jang Hyuk makes that series that much better.

C-Drama

The Wolf- (Abandoned) – I began watching this drama for Xiao Zhan. I love that guy and I had to watch it. The drama had the added benefit of Li Qin and Xin Zhilei, so I was looking forward to it. But then, the drama was chopped by the censors and the end result was one hot, incoherent mess. It did not help that the main couple, Bo Wang (Darren Wang) and Ma Zhai Xing (Li Qin), were one toxic mess. Xiao Zhan’s Ji Chong was the only good thing about the drama but even he could not salvage it for me.

Dance of the Phoenix- (Abandoned)- Started watching this drama for Wang Hao Xuan. But the male lead, Jun Lin Yuan (played by Xu Kai Cheng), had all of half an expression on his face throughout the drama. It did not help that the drama went down the whole, “Black is ugly, fair is beautiful” route. I was disgusted.

My Heroic Husband- (Abandoned)- Half the cast of Joy of Life meant this automatically became a drama I would watch. Guo Qi Lin is a delight to watch, and Song Yi was competent. I was enjoying myself watching this drama, until I wasn’t. Guo Qi Lin’s Ning Yi was a little too much of a Mary Sue for me. This just wasn’t my cup of tea.

The Rebel Princess- (Completed)- Rarely has a drama elicited such a polarizing response from me. Even though I was not entirely sold on Zhang Zi Yi playing a teenaged A’Wu, I pushed through, primarily because of Liu Duan Duan’s Song Huai’en. But slowly, I was sucked into the complicated palace drama. It was thrilling, entertaining and fun. I loved it right up to the point where Purba Rgyal’s character, Ma Zilu, died. From that point on, the drama meandered. It went into a lala land and when both Song Huai’en and Jia Yi Ping’s Wang Su went rotten, I was ready to give up. But at @terribleteej’s behest, I continued. In the end, I loved some bits, liked some bits, got annoyed with some things and downright hated some of it. In the end, I did end up writing some fanfics. So yeah… there is that.

Hope All Is Well With Us- (Completed)- Watched it for Liu Duan Duan. Not worth the time spent, can be skipped.

The Long Ballad- (Completed)- Unpopular opinion perhaps, but I really enjoyed this drama. I watched this drama when I was in a really bad place mentally, and it gave me exactly the distraction I was seeking. I wanted something that did not need me to think too much. I went in with zero expectations and enjoyed myself. I liked all four leads, and fell in love with Liu Yu Ning’s singing.

Love Me if You Dare- (Completed)- When I watched Mindhunter, I became interested in understanding the mind of a serial killer. Since a character in one of my original stories is a serial killer, I needed to study more about them. One thing that I learned during my studies is that most TV series get the portrayals wrong. I have seen interviews of real killers and trust me, they are far more chilling than any actors I have seen. Love Me if You Dare also fell in the trap of a wildly gesticulating, weird face contorting, and monologuing serial killer instead of how they can be. The real ones don’t need all of those bells and whistles to chill you to the bone, they can unnerve you with one casual, throwaway remark. That said, I did enjoy looking at the beautiful faces of Wallace Huo, Sandra Ma and Wang Kai.

Nirvana in Fire- (Completed)- Well, well, well. What do I say about this fantastic political drama? Intelligent characters, glorious sets, gorgeous costumes and a taut script. I enjoyed this drama fully. Mei Chang Su reminded me of Chanakya with his cold, precise, and calculative political maneuvers. It was even better with competent and useful female characters and some fantastic battle choreography. I would highly recommend this drama to anyone who wants a smart political thriller.

Longest Day in Chang’an- (Watching)- This is a show that requires 110% of my mind and attention. This is a thrilling and complex series that doesn’t believe in spoon feeding the audience. It needs a certain state of mind, and I will admit that it is taking me forever to watch the show but finish this show I will because I like what I see.

Sword Snow Stride- (???)- Am I still watching this show? Am I abandoning this? What does this show want to do? What exactly is happening? Do I like this show? I don’t know yet. This show confuses me.

Feng Qi Luoyang- (Watching)- I am loving this drama and enjoying everything that this drama has to offer. Just three more episodes to go, and if this drama ends the way it has been going, this would be one of the best things of 2021. Also… Liu Duan Duan *fans self*

Hindi/English

House of Secrets - (Completed)- I would also use this space to talk about a documentary I watched on Netflix that had me thinking for a very long time. This three-part documentary seeks answers to a horrifying and bizarre incident that took place the Burari area of New Delhi, India, in 2018. A family of 11 were found hanging, with their mouths gagged, eyes blindfolded, hands tied and cotton stuffed into their ears. The documentary chronicles the police investigation that took place amidst mounting political pressure and the media circus. The documentary seeks answers to some difficult questions. And the answers that do come forth are even more bizarre than the incident itself. This is definitely a documentary I would recommend highly. However, be warned, this is very disturbing and is likely to give you some sleepless nights.

#drama recap #k drama #c drama #netflix documentary

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asena-queenslayer · 4 years ago

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Yoon Seri is the rich aunt that takes you shopping 'til you drop. She'll give you a complete makeover and pay for it all despite your protests

"no, I'm not hearing another word about this, you're getting these twenty brand new custom fit outfits whether you like it or not"

And then you go to a trendy coffee shop and exchange the latest gossip as you people-watch and judge them over the most expensive gold-leaf-sprinkled espresso (of course it's good, it's Aunt Seri).

She'll give you the best advice on everything...and I mean everything. It might be a little questionable, but it’s good.

Seo Dan isn't the type to spoil you; she acts super cold, but you know you can come to her with anything. Someone break your heart? She's ready to break theirs. In fact you gotta physically pull her away from the door.

"Dan it's not that bad I'm going to be fine, stop you're going to do something illegal"

"ILLEGAL??? They broke your heart and you're worried about illegal?? What they did is illegal! How dare they break my niece/nephew's heart!"

She finally stomps away from the door with a huff and plops down on the couch next to you.

You don't get anything else done that night, but the next day on your doorstep you find a huge basket brimming with chocolates, loaded gift cards to all the top designer stores, and a beautifully elaborate, very pointy hairpin underneath it all. The note: "since you won't let me do it, you do it yourself. Aunt Dan has your back. Go break their heart."

You grin, and with that reassurance you head out to do just that.

Ri Jeong Hyeok is the clueless dad. Or, that's what he says. He's an amazing cook, pianist, and captain, but uh...dad? He tries his very best though, and you haven't told him yet, but you know he's already doing a better job than many dads out there. He would rather be there for you all the time, but he knows that's not possible, and that it's not healthy either. He teaches you everything he knows, how to diffuse a fight, and if worst comes to worst, how to finish it; how to play the piano (he teaches you all his favorite pieces); and how to cook and make the tastiest noodles from scratch. He cares about your mental health, he listens very carefully, and does his best to support you with it. He comes to all your activities, and maybe he's not jumping up and down and cheering at the top of his lungs, but you can look over at any time and he'll be beaming proudly at you. He knows you down to your favorite brand of toothpaste, and maybe it drives you crazy that he remembers everything you say, because some of it you'd rather he forget

"is that the person you like?"

"SHH DAD NOT ANYMORE"

but at the end of the day he's really the best dad you could ask for, and you love him anyway

Gu Seung Jung is that uncle that half the family doesn't know exists and the other half thought he came from the other side of the fam. Regardless, you can count on him to be at all your activities, cheering you on, and just being your top fan. He's the charmer, he knows what compliments you like and which ones you don't, and he'll pile all the ones you love on you until you have to tell him to stop (he'll pout about it for a while until Dan slaps him out of it). He also tries to cook for you, but ends up horribly burning the instant ramen (that one time with Dan was his only successful one and that was because she was watching him the entire time) so you have to go out for ramen instead. He's got your back, in the nonviolent way (don't tell Dan), and if you want it, just get him and Aunt Seri to unleash a scathing roast of your enemies. It's very entertaining.

#kdrama #crash landing on you #imagine #kdrama imagine #AND YES I'M AWARE THAT SERI AND RI SHOULD BE TOGETHER #IT'S JUST THAT SERI FITS RICH AUNT BETTER THAN RICH MOM AND RI DOESN’T FIT UNCLE AT ALL #the queenslayer writes

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thereishopeinchoices · 5 years ago

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IF THE ROYAL ROMANCE WERE A KDRAMA

As a fan of Korean dramas, I have always wondered if I were a director, who would I cast for The Royal Romance?

After much thought, I was able to make a list of Korean celebrities whom in my opinion can match the personalities of TRR characters. Similarity in looks are just a bonus though.

@playchoices

THE ROYAL ROMANCE | KDRAMA VERSION

MAIN CAST:

Daniel Henney as Prince Liam

The “Crown Prince” of Cordonia. He fell in love at first sight with Riley during his Bachelorette Party in New York.

Hyun Bin as Drake Walker

Prince Liam’s best friend. Son of the King’s Guard. A commoner.

His father died in the line of duty, protecting The Royal Family.

Has hidden feelings for Riley.

Nana as Riley

The main protagonist. A waitress in New York.

Han Hyo Joo as Hana Lee

Became best friends with Riley. They met during The Royal Masquerade Ball.

One of Prince Liam’s suitors.

Choi Siwoon as Maxwell Beaumont

The youngest member of The House of Beaumont.

A close friend of Prince Liam.

Sponsors Riley’s flight to Cordonia for a chance to compete for the hand of the Crown Prince.

SUPPORTING CAST:

Song Seung-heon as Bertrand Beaumont

The Duke of Ramsford. Head of The House of Beaumont. Maxwell’s older brother.

Has feelings for Savannah Walker (Drake Walker’s sister)

Krystal Jung as Olivia Nevrakis

The Duchess of Lythikos

Prince Liam’s childhood friend and one of his suitors who will compete for him.

Lee Da Hee as Madeleine

Countess Madeleine of Fydelia.

One of Prince Liam’s suitors.

Ex-fiancee of the Former Crown Prince Leo (Liam’s older brother)

Nam Kyung-eup as King Constantine

The King of Cordonia. Prince Leo and Prince Liam’s father.

Jung Ae-ri as Queen Regina

The Queen of Cordonia. Prince Leo and Prince Liam’s step mother.

Kim Min-joon as Bastien

Prince Leo and Prince Liam’s bodyguard.

Jung Woo-sung as Prince Leo

Former Crown Prince of Cordonia. Abdicated the throne to marry a woman he met in a cruise ship in Athens.

Park Shin Hye as Kiara

Heir to Duchy Castelsarreillan.

One of Prince Liam’s suitors.

Became best friend’s with Penelope at court.

Has a crush on Drake Walker.

Yoo In Na as Penelope

Lady Penelope of Portavira.

One of Prince Liam’s suitors.

Obsessed with dogs.

Kim Hee-sun as Savannah Walker

Drake Walker’s sister.

Has feelings for Bertrand Beaumont.

Park Hyung-soo as Anton Severus

Main antagonist. Disguised as a public relations officer of Riley.

Cha Seung-won as Tariq

One of Prince Liam’s friends.

Involved in a conspiracy against Riley.

Lee Hye Young as Lucretia Nevrakis

Aunt of Olivia Nevrakis

One of the antagonist.

Chun Ho Jin as Godfrey

Duke of Karlington. Madeleine’s father. Husband of Adelaide.

Kim Sung-ryung as Adelaide

Duchess of Krona. Wife of Godfrey. Madeleine’s mother.

Cousin of Queen Regina.

Kim Chang-wan as Xinghai Lee

A businessman. Father of Hana Lee. Husband of Lorelai.

Na Young-hee as Lorelai Lee

A member of a Cordonian minor noble house. Wife of Xinghai Lee. Mother of Hana Lee.

Um Hyo-sup as Landon

Duke of Portavira. Father of Penelope. Husband of Emmeline.

Kim Mi-sook as Emmeline

Duchess of Portavira. Mother of Penelope. Wife of Landon.

Kil Yong-woo as Hakim

Duke of Castelsarreillan. A diplomat.

Father of Kiara. Husband of Joelle.

Choi Ji Woo as Joelle

Duchess of Castelsarreillan. An artist.

Mother of Kiara. Wife of Hakim.

Park Sung Woong as Neville Rancour

Future Earl of Cormery Isle

One of Hana Lee’s suitors.

Bullies Drake Walker.

Lee Jae-yoon as Rashad

Heir to Duchy Domvallier. A businessman.

A friend of Neville Rancour.

One of Hana Lee’s suitors.

Lee EI as Ana De Luca

A Fashion Designer.

Journalist of “Trend” Magazine.

Yoon Ji-min as Mara

Riley’s personal bodyguard.

Oh Hyun Kyung as Queen Eleanor

Former Queen of Cordonia. Second wife of King Constantine. Prince Liam’s mother.

Died because of poisoning.

(Featured in The Royal Romance story through flashbacks)

-------------------------

안녕!!

I’ve always been loyal to Prince Liam! But since Hyun Bin is one of my bias wreckers.. casting him as Drake Walker would really cut my heart in half!! 😂 I believe he’s the perfect oppa to act as Drake, after watching his recent kdrama “Crash Landing On You”. OMG!!!

As for finding an actress as Riley, I did thought of having Bae Suzy..

But I prefer Nana because I find her visual more unique...

She has more of the “western” look vibe. She reminds me of Kim Tae-hee!

Also, I prefer the potential I guess.. she isn’t known for romcom roles yet since she’s always casted for badass films.

Also the “chemistry” among the characters especially the love team is something that I’ve also considered. 🤔Nana and Hyun Bin already worked together in a film called “The Swindlers”.. while Daniel and Hyun Bin starred in a 2005 kdrama “Lovely Kim Sam Soon”.

Here’s an old photo of Daniel Henney & Hyun Bin together!

SWEET!!!! 😍😍😍

395 notes · View notes

wascherin · 4 months ago

Text

Daily Chosun, Thursday, April 5, 1956

Republican Party Divides into Two Factions

By The Correspondent

On the 4th, Republican Party was unable to resolve the conflict between pro-Korean National Youth Association(KNYA) faction and anti-KNYA faction within a few days of its foundation, and eventually split. Because both factions were trying to maintain their sign "Republican Party" each other, as things stand, two Republican parties seem to exist. On the 4th, pro-KNYA faction released a statement in the name of chairmen. In response, as an anti-KNYA faction and one of the members of the supreme council, Jang Taek-sang issued a statement retorting this. Anti-KNYA faction within the party reportedly met on the night of the 3rd and decided to expel all of pro-KNYA faction, including Lee Beom-seok, one of the members of the supreme council.

Pro-Korean National Youth Association Faction

On the 4th, they issued a statement explaining the internal dispute in the name of delegates and chairmen of the party central committee. "At the press conferences, Jang Taek-sang insists that the 1st meeting of the party central committee is illegal and a one-sided meeting of one faction. But that meeting was held with about 270 members, more than half of the 442 members, and Lee Beom-seok was nominated with 198 votes as a result of voting for the vice presidential candidate." They also justified their last meeting and criticized their opposition faction. "The party central committee was legally convened when the highest resolution body of the party was delegated by the nation. On the other hand, the guys are ignoring the principle of the party organization by continuing to demand an additional 75 delegates, even though the agenda was rejected at the last meeting. And calling us "Collusion of pro-KNYA faction" is a harmful statement against the same political party."

At the time, there were five temporary chairmen: Yoon Jae-wook, Shin Jung-mok, Jeong Hyeon-mo, Kim Dal-hyeon, and Oh Seong-hwan. The common political view sees Mr. Oh as a pro-Jhang Taek-sang and the other four chairmen as pro-KNYA faction. Mr. Oh said he did not know about this announcement of the statement, and Mr. Kim cannot reportedly any remarks because he is currently staying in his hometown.

Anti-Korean National Youth Association Faction

Anti-KNYA faction within Republican Party met at the downtown restaurant Donghaeru on the night of the last 3rd to write a statement pointing out the illegality of the convocation and resolution of the party central committee by pro-KNYA faction, while deciding to expel the party members including Lee Beom-seok.

In addition, Oh Seong-hwan, Kim Dae-jung, Son Chang-seop, and Yang Sang-geun, who led the meeting, stated that they had received approval and signatures from more than 240 delegates of the party on the agreement. Interestingly, their statement also has a phrase that praises the statement saying, "The Korean National Youth Association divides the nation," issued by President Lee Seung-man on September 29, 1953.

0 notes

dramapic · 4 years ago

Text

MASTERLIST

I update this list everytime I watch and review a show.

Disclaimer: These reviews are subjective and only reflect my opinions. There are no drama on that list that I’ve turned off and all are worthy of a watch.

Recs welcome!

#1 Crash landing on you

(사랑의 불시착)

Grade: A++

Genre: Modern, Star-Crossed lovers

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Son Ye-jin (who plays Yoon Se-ri) and Hyun Bin (Ri Jeong-hyeok) have amazing chemistry and every episode plays out like the chapters of an excellent fanfiction. Classic romantic tropes, humour, angst, action, CLOY has it all. Moreover, if you’ve never watched a Kdrama in your life, CLOY is a great starting point—not only will it introduce you to Korean culture but also to popular tropes and codes of the genre.

#2 Rookie historian Goo Hae-ryung

(신입사관 구해령)

Grade: A++

Genre: Historical, Age gap

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Delightful from end to end, with lots of humour and an engaging story. The romance between Goo Hae-ryung and himbo-prince Dowon will make your heart go soft, especially if you’re into reverse gender dynamics (she’s older and kisses him first *le gasp*)

#3 Memories of the Alhambra

(알함브라 궁전의 추억)

Grade: B+

Genre: Modern; Sci-fi; Fantasy

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: No

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Intriguing premise, great cast and tons of special effects but the romance between Jin-woo (Hyun Bin) and Hee-joo (Park Shin-hye) won't go down in history. On top of that, the ending is a bit wishy-washy in that annoying “maybe there’s more to come” kind of way. Give us a clear cut ending, damnit!

#4 Good doctor

(굿 닥터)

Grade: B-

Genre: Modern, Medical drama

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Good heart but the writing is really clumsy at times and the hospital politics don’t make an awful lot of sense. On the bright side, Joo Won is great in the role of Park Si-on.

Note: I haven’t watched the American remake so can’t compare.

#5 My love from the star/ You from the stars

(별에서 온 그대)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Sci-fi, fantasy, Star-Crossed lovers

Episodes: 21

Happy Ending: Yes-ish

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Jun Ji-hyun is absolutely stellar in the role of Cheon Seong-yi, a ditzy Hallyu* star whose career is going south while Kim Soo-hyun plays the emotionally closed-off alien to perfection. Lots of pinning, a dose of angst mixed with a pinch of wacky humor.

*Hallyu means “Korean wave” in Chinese and refers to the popularity and spreading of Korean pop-culture outside of Korea.

#6 Hwarang The Poet Warrior Youth

(화랑)

Grade: B

Genre: Historical, Coming of age, fake siblings who catch feels

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Cute boys and interesting lore rooted in true facts (the bone rank system and the real Hwarang, the “Flowering Knights” of the Silla kingdom) but the story drags. I guess I expected more bromance and frolicking and less angst. Lastly, the main girl starts off quirky and fun but they quickly transform her into a sobbing mess which becomes real annoying real fast.

#7 Love in the Moonlight / Moonlight Drawn by Clouds (구르미 그린 달빛)

Grade: A

Genre: Historical, Romance, Coming of age, Posing as the opposite sex

Episodes: 18

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

A classic tale of a girl raised as a boy who ends up in a situation where she needs to do her best to not blow her cover while catching feels (As someone raised on Versailles no bara and Ribbon no Kishi, it remains one of my favourite tropes)

Sweet romance and good characters. The fact that Crown prince Lee Yeong doesn't turn emo when he starts developing feelings for Eunuch Ra-on before discovering she's a girl is the cherry on top of the cake.

#8 Something in the rain

(밥 잘 사주는 예쁜 누나)

Grade: C

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes, but it still doesn't make you happy

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Wasted potential!

Great start but the characterization falls apart quickly and you end up wondering why the main characters keep sabotaging their lives. By the end, despite their reunion, you're left with the impression they've learned nothing and that their relationship is doomed to fall apart.

On top of it all, watching Jin-ah fight sexism in the workplace and gaining nothing is depressing af (I don’t need realism in my escapism, thank you very much).

Too bad because Son Ye-jin and Jung Hae-in look really good together and the acting is top-notch. My advice is to watch the first 8 episodes then make up your own ending in your head.

#9 Moon embracing the sun

(해를 품은 달)

Grade: B+

Genre: Historical,Star-Crossed lovers

Episodes: 22

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

A traditional historical drama with all the tropes that go with the genre + a hint of esoterism.

If you love ill-fated relationships, tragic love triangle, evil queens, and amnesia, this is the show for you. Beware, the interrogation/torture scenes are rather brutal.

#10 My sassy girl

(엽기적인 그녀)

Grade: B-

Genre: Historical, Rom-Com

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Cute and lighthearted but easily forgettable. Still worth a watch thanks to Joo Won & Oh Yeon-seo's chemistry.

#11 Coffee Prince

(커피프린스 1호점)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Posing as the opposite sex

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Solid story, great cast but be ready for a lot of bickering.

Yoon Eun-hye is a precious bean who manages to sell the story of Eun-chan, a struggling androgynous working-class girl who mistakenly gets hired by a rich guy to play his boyfriend, then becomes his employee, then falls for him while not correcting his assumptions about her gender. Opposite her, Gong Yoo (from Train to Busan fame) is 🥰🥰🥰

Sidenote: Despite Han-kyul's struggle to accept his feelings for Eun-chan, homosexuality isn't treated as a joke or a shameful thing. The one time he goes seek “medical help”, the doctor is depicted as an old, clueless idiot. And honestly, the story would work too if Eun-chan was a guy.

#12 My girlfriend is a Gumiho/My girlfriend is a Nine-tailed fox

(내 여자친구는 구미호)

Grade: B+

Genre: Modern; Fantasy

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki - Available on Netflix (FR) too

Campy and goofy. It does look a bit dated (it’s from 2010) and the story is a little predictable but Lee Seung-gi as Cha Dae-woong, an aspiring action film actor and Shin Min-ah as “Gu Mi-ho” the nine-tailed fox looking for a mate are super cute. The show is also a good introduction to Korean folklore.

#13 Goblin / Guardian: The Lonely and Great God / The Lonely and Great God – Goblin

(쓸쓸하고 찬란하神 – 도깨비)

Grade: A+

Genre: Modern, Historical, Fantasy, bromance

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes-ish

Watched on: Viki

Unpopular opinion but since I’m not into older guys, I wasn’t invested in the romance between Bride and Goblin until late in the series. I loved everything else though. The show has such a unique tone and atmosphere. It goes from super serious to goofy in no time. The cinematography is gorgeous (especially the historical sets) and you'll cry your eyes out.

#14 Healer

(힐러)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

If you're into toll broody guys and fearless smoll girls, you’ll love Healer. The story is great, the characters are great and the way Jung-hu (played by Ji Chang-wook) and Ji-an (Park Min-young) are horny for each other is peak drama! *chef kiss*

#15 Kangchi the beginning/Gu family book

(구가의 서)

Grade: B-

Genre: Historical, Fantasy

Episodes:

Happy Ending: No

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Engaging coming of age story of a half-human half-gumiho looking for his place in this world. If it wasn't for the wishy-washy ending it could have been the perfect mix of action fantasy and romance.

Special mention for Dam Yeo-wool (played by Suzie Bae) who is a female character who's allowed to be a bit of everything at the same time (strong, kick-ass, funny, cute, romantic)

#16 Queen for seven days

(7일의 왕비)

Grade: A

Genre: Historical, Romance, Villainous crush

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: No

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

With that title don’t expect a HEA but there are plenty of sweet moments along the way to make you appreciate the journey.

Chae-kyung loves the Prince and the Prince loves Chae-kyung but the King wants to kill the Prince and Chae-kyung is loyal to the King but the King is a tyrant and everyone wants the Prince to take his throne. On top of that the King wants Chae-kyung. Big mess. Lots of feels.

The story is (very) loosely based on real-life Queen Dangyeong, which makes it even more poignant. I cried my eyes out at the end because I’m a big softy.

#17 Korean Odyssey

(화유기)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Fantasy

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Kinda

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

The show (very loosely based on Journey to the West) has its faults including the wishy-washy ending and the fact that Jin Seon-mi/Sam-jang starts off as a doormat but I ended up liking the relationship developing between the assholish Monkey god and the naive human girl more than I expected.

The side characters are compelling, and the banter and bickering between the deities work really well. If you grew up with Dragon ball, you’ll have a blast trying to match-up the Japanese and Korean names of everyone without looking up Wikipedia.

Lastly, not something I imagined saying after seeing him in Gumiho and Gu family book but Lee Seung-gi as Son Oh-gong = BDE *fans herself* 🥵

#18 Strong Girl Bong-soon

(힘쎈여자 도봉순)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Super-Heroine

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Trigger warning: Graphic depiction of violence against women

A++ super-heroine story, bad side characters

First, every girl should aspire to find a Min-hyuk in their life. Someone who'll love them because of their strength, and support them unconditionally. Someone who won't ask them to change or pretend to be somebody else.

Second, western media should learn that a super-heroine can HAVE IT ALL—the superpowers AND the love AND the family.

My only complaint with the show (and that's why I gave A- instead of A++) is the inclusion of many cringy side characters/situations that spoiled my overall enjoyment (see the caricatural flamboyant gay co-worker, Bong-soon’s mom hitting her dad, the mobsters...)

#19 The K2

(더 케이투)

Grade: B-

Genre: Modern, Political

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

The romance is bad and the political story far-fetched but Ji Chang-wook is 🔥🔥PEAK HOTTIE🔥🔥

That being said, I didn’t completely dislike the political intrigue and it was interesting to see the good guy working for the villains (sort of).

#20 Weightlifting fairy Kim Bok-joo

(역도요정 김복주)

Grade: A+

Genre: Modern, Coming of age

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Uplifting coming of age story and super sweet romance. Bok-joo (Lee Sung-kyung) & Joon-hyung (Nam Joo-hyuk) are precious children on top of being cutie-patooties. Bok-joo’s insecurities hit hard, especially if you’ve ever been outside the norm of beauty standards.

I liked how the show normalizes therapy and taking care of your mental health.

In one word…

SWAG!

#21 The scholar who walks the night

(밤을 걷는 선비)

Grade: B

Genre: Historical, Fantasy, Vampire, posing as the opposite sex

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Guilty pleasure.

Don’t ask me about the details of the main storyline, I’ve already forgotten most of it. Sometimes all you need is a show where a hundred-something years old good vampire with a sad backstory and the main girl who is thirsty for the good vampire are fighting a sexy evil vampire.

PS: Did I mention the sexy evil vampire?

#22 Romance is a bonus book

(로맨스는 별책부록)

Grade: A+

Genre: Modern, Friends to lovers

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Imagine reading a relaxing book under a cozy blanket while sipping hot cocoa. That’s how that series made me feel.

Everything is sweet and soft from the characters' fluffy jumpers to the soft palette of color used for the sets. People make books and love books. There’s a mystery but no unnecessary angst. If you need a break from everything, jump in that ship.

#23 Hotel Del Luna

(호텔 델루나)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Sorta

Watched on: Viki - Available on Netflix (FR) too

Interesting world-building and a good cast of side characters but the romance lacks a bit of oomph.

On the + side, the hotel sets are gorgeous and Man-wol's wardrobe is to kill for.

#24 Suspicious Partner

(수상한 파트너)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Star-crossed lovers in an office

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Toll serious who hates criminal falls for smoll weirdo falsely accused of murder. A must watch for anyone in search of a quirky romance.

#25 Touch your heart

(진심이 닿다)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

Tooth rotting sweetness. The series is just a pretext to watch two good looking people (Lee Dong-wook and Yoo In-na) being nice and awkward around each other. What do you need more? 0

Note: If you watched Goblin you can also pretend it's a spin-off series about the reincarnations of Grim Reaper and Sunny. 💡

#26 Because this is my first life

(이번 생은 처음이라)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Fake marriage

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

The Fake Marriage AU you’re looking for, mixed with slices of modern, messy, complicated life.

The main storyline revolves around Ji-ho an assistant drama screenwriter who struggles to find her place within the patriarchal structure of Korean society, and Se-hee, a socially incompetent computer designer who only cares for his cat and his mortgage. The way they end up in a fake marriage as well as the development of their relationship feels organic and doesn’t rely too heavily on comedy like it’s often the case with that trope.

The show also follows the stories of Ji-ho’s friends, Su-ji and Ho-rang who have different aspirations in life—Su-ji’s goal is to become CEO while Ho-rang only cares about becoming a housewife. I loved that the show makes a point to not pit women against each other and advocate living your life the way YOU want rather than trying to follow societal expectations of what love, work and marriage should look like.

Also they have the cutest cat.

#27 What's wrong with Secretary Kim?

(김비서가 왜 그럴까 )

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

I wish Secretary Kim had more agency in certain situations but the romance develops well and the horny moments are caliente 🥵🔥

#28 Where your eyes linger

(너의 시선이 머무는 곳에)

Grade: A++

Genre: Modern, BL, Coming of age, Friends to lovers

Episodes: 8

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

Bite-size BL gem to devour in one sitting.

Stellar acting from the two leads and the balance between fluff and angst is just right. There's no graphic violence that sometimes plagues yaoi and BL and the story is believable. I got emo remembering my first love.

#29 Live up to your name

(명불허전)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Historical, Time travel, Star-crossed lovers

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Trigger warning for graphic depiction of violence

Big surprise. I was looking for a cheesy comedy but it was actually a thoughtful story about humanism. I even teared up a little.

Trigger warning for needles. They do some pretty impressive procedures with those acupuncture needles.

#30 W - Two Worlds Apart

(더블유)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Imaginary men > Real men, especially when they're played by Lee Jong-suk. Nuf’ said.

Imaginary men > Real men, especially when they're played by Lee Jong-suk.

The silly premise hides a solid story that keeps you on your toes and I was suprised by the rollercoaster of emotions I went through.

“Option 3″

“That’s 4 fingers”

#31 Life

(라이프)

Grade: C

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Kinda

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Unless you want to learn how fucked up the private health sector is becoming in Korea, there's not much to gain watching this show.

The story starts off well though. The problem is that by the middle of the series the writers have dropped the main mystery (the circumstances surrounding the death of the director) to deliver an exposé on the political machinations of big corporations, and then shoehorn an explanation at the last minute (“it was all but a misunderstanding”). Very underwhelming.

The relationship between the two brothers played by Lee Dong-wook and Lee Kyu-hyung is the only bright spot.

#32 Pinocchio

(피노키오)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Fake family members who catch feels

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

On paper, the story sounds a little crazy but it all comes together nicely.

Lee Jong-suk and Park Shin-hye have great chemistry and deliver a stellar performance as “uncle” and “niece” (not related by blood) who can’t fight the romantic feelings they harbor for one another. The main storyline has enough twists to keep you entertained and surprised.

My only complaint is that it drags a little. 16 episodes would have been enough.

#33 My Holo Love

(나 홀로 그대)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Sci-fi

Episodes: 12

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Fake men > Real men

Imagine a Black Mirror episode about a love triangle between a woman suffering from face blindness, an emotionally supportive AI boyfriend and the disenchanted creator of said AI, minus the nihilism. *chef kiss*

#34 Legend of the blue sea

(푸른 바다의 전설)

Grade: B++

Genre: Modern, Fantasy, Fairy tale, Star-crossed lovers

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

Park Ji-eu (the writer) read the little mermaid and decided to give her a happy ending. Great chemistry between Lee Min-ho and Jun Ji-hyun but the spark is missing for me.

The antics of modern-day mermaid Shim Cheong are a little predictable and Joon-jae needs to be less of a control freak at times but the story remains enjoyable. I was pleasantly surprised to see Shim Cheong’s character grow, making the power imbalance between the clueless mermaid and the con-artist less pronounced by the end of the series.

The side characters are interesting but underused, and I wish Tae-oh was more developed. On the other hand, the Joseon area sets and costumes are absolutely gorgeous (Don’t tell anyone but Joseon!Lee Min-ho is hotter than Modern!Lee Min-ho 🥵)

#35 Tale of Arang / Arang and the Magistrate

(아랑사또전)

Grade: B

Genre: Historical, Fantasy,

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

One word: Campy.

Interesting lore but the pacing is a little off—there’s a lot of back and forth between the characters and the locations and the love triangle doesn't add much.

#36 My ID is Gangnam Beauty / Gangnam Beauty

(내 아이디는 강남미인)

Grade: A+

Genre: Modern, Coming of age

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

If you’ve ever been bullied for your looks, you’re gonna bawl your eyes out.

The show does a great job of calling out the unhealthy beauty standards imposed on Korean women but the topic is universal enough for the story to resonate with everyone. I love that you never see Mi-rae’s old face because it’s not our perception of her lack of beauty that matters but the fact she suffers greatly. Don’t you hate in western shows when they take a beautiful actress, give her a pair of glasses or a fat suit and call her ugly, making sure the audience feels shittier about themselves? Here, the writers concentrate on Mi-rae’s transformation and her coping with the consequences of her decision to do plastic surgery.

It’s also not a revenge fantasy where the ugly duckling suddenly becomes the most popular girl at school. Being a “Gangnam beauty” leads to a new form of suffering.

Romance-wise, it’s the slowest burn of slow burns because Mi-rae and Do Kyung-seok are the most socially awkward beans on the planet. I love them, Your Honor.

#37 Tale of Nokdu

(조선로코-녹두전)

Grade: A

Genre: Historical, Posing as the opposite sex

Episodes: 32 x 30mns

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki - Now available on Netflix (FR)

Fun and lighthearted all the way through.

The story of a guy who puts on a dress to investigate a village of widows could have gone very wrong but it was well handled. It’s refreshing to see the classic trope of posing as the opposite sex reversed and Jang Dong-yoon is never cringy when he’s pretending to be Lady Kim Nok-soon.

#38 Bride of Habaek / Bride of the Water God

(하백의 신부 2017)

Grade: B

Genre: Modern, Fantasy

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Content warning: Crime against fashion

Promising premise and lore (I'm interested in reading the original comics now) but the writing fails to deliver an epic romance and a cathartic ending. Moreover, the sets lack imagination (or money?) and in the end I failed to ever feel immersed in a fantasy world.

The unfortunate consequence of the clumsy writing is that the male characters who are meant to be arrogant/confident Gods (Habaek and By-ryeom) sound like they're negging their love interests more than wooing them, and the relationship between Mu-ra and By-ryeom particularly irked me.

#39 Strangers from Hell / Hell is other people

(타인은 지옥이다)

Grade: A+

Genre: Modern, Psychological Thriller

Episodes: 10

Happy Ending: Spoiler

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Content warning: Violence

What a departure from everything else in that list! Absolutely worth a watch if you enjoy thrillers and shows like Hannibal. If psychological horror isn’t your cup of tea though, you might give it a pass.

The storyline and the characters are a little cliché (it goes with the genre) but the cinematography and photography are fantastic. You can notice how the pension becomes more and more sinister throughout the series via the use of dark greens and browns and pale yellows, as opposed to the mundanity and coldness of the city (greys, and cold blues).

Last but not least, the acting is top-tiers. Im Siwan does a great job at portraying Jong-woo, an aspiring crime novelist who slowly loses his marbles but the true revelation for me is Lee Dong-wook. After seeing him so many times in roles where he plays awkward yet charming men who can barely express emotions, I was intrigued to see him take on the role of a serial killer, and holy cow, he's the perfect mix of sinister and alluring. Towards the end of the series, his character Moon-jo acts like a black-hole whenever he appears in a scene—a towering, dark presence who sucks the light out of the room (If he carries any of that darkness in the upcoming Tale of Gumiho, it’s gonna be *chef kiss*).

#40 Empress Ki

(기황후)

Grade: A

Genre: Historical, posing as the opposite sex

Episodes: 51

Happy Ending: From a certain point of view

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Trigger warning for violence against women (not graphic but implied)

51 episodes.

Fifty.One.Episodes.

That's a lot of episodes considering the story starts with the ending.

Did I enjoy this show? Yes, very much so. Do I think it's for everyone? Nope.

You'll enjoy Empress Ki if you're into old-school historical sagas or you wished Game of thrones had no gratuitous nudity and violence. If you’re looking for an historically accurate biography of the real empress Ki though, then look away because Empress Ki is basically a lengthy fanfiction trying to justify how the Goryeo native Seung-nyang married the wimpy Emperor of the Yuan dynasty whilst trying to portray her as loyal to her motherland and to her first love, the Crown Prince of Goryeo.

Personally, I didn’t care for the love triangle formed by Seung-nyang (Ha Ji-won), Wang-yoo (Joo Jin-mo) and Toghon Temür (Ji Chang-wook) but I liked the politics and the backstabbing. Also, contrary to GoT, the bad guys get their comeuppance at the end so it makes watching the side characters die less painful.

#41 Meow, the secret boy / Welcome

(어서와)

Grade: B-

Genre: Modern, Modern fantasy

Episodes: 24 x 35mns

Happy Ending: I guess

Watched on: Viki

How do I put it? It's not *terribad* but it's not *good* either.

I was super on board with the concept—if Lee Seung-gi can bang a nine-tailed fox in My girlfriend is a gumiho, I have zero issues with Sol ah, our heroine, falling in love with Hong-jo the cat-person after being dumped for no reason by Jae-sun her boyfriend—but it didn’t exactly develop that way, and as soon as they explained why Jae-sun had broken up with Sol-ah, the writers lost me because I like when things happen for a reason.

#42 Clean with a passion for now

(일단 뜨겁게 청소하라!!)

Grade: A-

Genre: Modern, Rom-Com

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Super zany and tropey but that’s why it works so well. The only reason I’m giving it a minus is because it’s trying to be woke but in the end there’s still a lot of unsolicited grabbing and some iffy remarks/pick-up lines said by every male characters (IRL that’s the kind of story that ends up with a restraining order and a lawsuit for sexual harassment).

#43 Mystic pop-up bar

(쌍갑포차)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Fantasy

Episodes: 12

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Trigger warning: Heavy themes (miscarriage, pregnancy, loss of a child, death of loved ones)

You know how the meme goes... Sometimes a family is a hot-tempered bar owner, a cursed kid and an ex-Afterlife-Police officer with a secret past.

It took me a few episodes to get into it, but once the characters were established it became really enjoyable.

The tone of the series leans toward wacky but the core of the story is actually pretty dark if you look into it. Every grudge they solve for their “clients” gives a clue about Wol-joo’s personal story and by the last episode I was crying my eyes out.

Last but not least, Wol-joo’s collection of modernized hanboks is *chef kiss*

#44 My secret Terrius

(내 뒤에 테리우스)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern, Action, Comedy, Bromance

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

An enjoyable action drama to watch with your family or your significant other.

Koreans prove that you can write a story about a black ops agent on the run who becomes a childminder without reeking of toxic masculinity. Contrary to American comedies where the manly-man-hero working undercover is incompetent and believes that working with children is a woman’s job and a waste of his manly-man talents until he has an epiphany of some sorts, Kim Bon (played by So Ji-sub) never once expresses discomfort to the idea of looking after two kids. In spite of his sober demeanor, he’s a caring and attentive person from the start and watching him gradually becoming a part of this spunky family while investigating a national security threat made my heart go awww.

Opposite him, fearless and resourceful mom Go Ae-rin (played Jung In-sun) brings a lot of energy, and the twins are absolutely adorable.

#45 Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo

(달의 연인 - 보보경심 려)

Grade: A--

Genre: Historical

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: No

Watched on: Random streaming site

Don’t get attached—Moon Lovers is the missing link between Empress Ki and Boys over flowers, but with a sad ending.

I did binge watch the series but there are some frustrating aspects to it that prevented me from giving a perfect score, notably the fact that Wang So remains possessive and demanding with Hae Soo throughout the years—for instance “You’re my person” is a romantic statement until it evolves into “You can never leave me.”

The other problem of the series is that Lee Ji-eun (UI) does cute and goofy really well, but she doesn’t have the emotional range needed to portray a character who goes through many heartbreaks and betrayals. As a result, Hae Soo appears a little fickle in her infatuations with the princes.

That being said if you’re a sucker for tragic romance and you believe that power corrupts even the purest of love, you’ll have a blast.

#46 Forest

(포레스트)

Grade: B++

Genre: Modern, Romance

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

UST in the woods (Dat first kiss 🥵🥵🥵)

The characters and the story are a little cliché but who doesn’t love a story where the protagonists are clearly attracted to each other but can’t act on their desires because their moral values are opposite?

*slams fist*

San Hyeok is your typical heartless businessman who refuses to confront his childhood trauma, and Yeong Jae is a surgeon who suffers from panic attacks and cares too much about other people. They’re both good looking and fate brings them to a remote village in the middle of the forest where they have to share a house. Really, I wonder what’s gonna happen?

#47 100 Days My Prince / Hundred days husband

(백일의 낭군님)

Grade: B+

Genre: Historical

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

Trigger warning: Important character death.

Cute and charming but also very annoying at times. Obviously, the story is tropey af (fake marriage doubled with amnesia, you can’t really beat that) but it also includes elements I’ve never seen in any other dramas like the fact that the Crown Princess is pregnant with another man’s child (le gasp!). The things that annoy me the most were the unnecessary flip-flopping of the heroine towards the end of the show for the sake of creating artificial drama (just let them be together FFS!) and the fact that the male characters take a lot of decisions for Yeon Hong-shim.

Romance wise, Do Kyung-soo and Nam Ji-hyun are really cute together but in the end I found myself more interested in the political intrigue and the side characters than the main romance because slow burn has its limit. In essence, it’s the perfect drama to watch with your conservative family because whilst the main couple is living under the same roof and is technically married they don’t get frisky.

#48 I Am Not A Robot (로봇이 아니야)

Grade: A++

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Angsty with a good pay-off.

With a premise like that, things could have gone wrong really quickly but the writers managed to write a story that isn’t a man wanting to fuck a robot because real women are scary so big kudos for them. Seeing Min-kyu celebrating his Roomba’s birthday because he has no other friends will instantly melt your heart and from that point on you’ll cheer for his recovery. The show has the right amount of angst without becoming a mess and they handle the big reveal very well, making sure to show how hurt both Min-kyu and Ji-ah are by the situation, without making you doubt that they can find each other again. The other strong point of the show is that it’s not just about romance, it’s also about friendship and learning to let other people in your life.

The acting is incredible to the point that by the end I wondered if Yoo Seung-ho and Chae Soo-bin were making out in front of my salad or if I was still watching the characters Min-kyu and Ji-ah being lovey dovey.

#49 Sungkyunkwan Scandal (성균관 스캔들)

Grade: A

Genre: Historical, Posing as the opposite gender

Episodes: 20

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Viki

Hana zakari no kimi tachi he with gats.

This show checks so many boxes when it comes to my favourite tropes story-wise and character-wise that I instantly fell in love with it. It might feel a little dated for a younger audience and it definitely suffers from the second male lead syndrome (who wants unseasoned boiled chicken when there are not just one but two juicy rotisserie chickens on the table next to you?!) but it’s still very much enjoyable. Also, they don’t shy away from using the word “homosexuality” and having one of the second lead confessing to having romantic feelings for his friend (I’ll take any scrap of bi-representation, okay?)

#50 It’s Okay to not be okay (사이코지만 괜찮아)

Grade: A

Genre: Modern

Episodes: 16

Happy Ending: Yes

Watched on: Netflix (FR)

Found family.

In spite of one ridiculous plot twist (that I was aware of when I started the show) this show has made me feel all the feelz. The three main actors all did a phenomenal job portraying their characters in all their complexity and fragility and I ended up crying so many cathartic tears in the second to last & the last episodes.The relationship between Sang-tae and Gang-tae is one of the best sibling relationships I’ve seen on-screen in a long time while the romance between Moon-yeong and Gang-tae blends perfectly elements of comedy and melodrama. Mental illness isn’t treated as something to be ashamed of, whilst showing that you can grow and recover from trauma and finding your own happiness.

PSA from my boyfriend, who dropped the show before the end:

The plot twist is so stupid that it takes away from the rest of the series. In my opinion it negated the positive portrayal of mental illness built up until then. They completely lost me.

^ We discussed a lot about it which is why I wanted to share his POV to balance my own review.

#51 coming soon

#k-drama #kdrama

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