#ha wan seung

[jareckiworld]

Seung Wan Ha — Cyborg Hydra (oil on canvas, 2023)

[jyuubin]

OUR DATING SIM (2023) // Gi Tae & Lee Wan ↳ casual act of kindness...?

{ID is in the ALT}

— ©jyuubin

[stuff-diary]

The Frog

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2024

The Frog (2024, South Korea)

Director: Mo Wan Il

Writer: Son Ho Young

Mini-review:

Wow, I didn't think I would enjoy The Frog so much. I guess I was in the mood for a dark, propulsive thriller. I've seen some people say it's 'slow', but like... where? This kept me glued to the screen from the very first episode, and it got more and more intense throughout the next ones. It even ventures into psychological horror territory from time to time, which made it even more fun to me. The writing isn't perfect (some of the characters aren't as well developed as they should), but the directing and the acting more than make up for it. Go Min Si turns in a particularly strong performance, and it's clear she gave it her all. I'm not gonna say this is the best thriller k-drama I've seen, but it was definitely enjoyable as hell.

[anemoiawithatouchofobsession]

Ancestors of K-beauty - 8090s edition

The 5 beauty trend queens :

- of the 80s :

Oh Hyun-kyung - the fact that shes the most prolific Miss Korea winner - 1989 - says it all. Plus that lip commercial? Iconic. The MiKos were the beauty trendsetters of the 80s and the industry literally set the "Jin" as the standard of make up the next few years.

Hwang Shin-hye - homegirl ain't called Computer Beauty for nothing! The only person who actually embodied both the 80s and 90s at the same time. She had naturally arched eyebrows and those heart shaped lips that later became a thing.

Lee Ji-yeon - the originator of the innocent concept and image in the pop music industry, which is the entire k-beauty aesthetic now. Give her the credit. See through bangs, no makeup makeup, thick straight eyebrows, skincare, thin lips.

Kim Wan-sun - when people talk about a 80s diva, they mean her.

Jang Yoon-jeong - Miss Universe contestant in 1988 and a big part of the 80s look - plump lips and cheeks, an obnoxious curl in the forehead, big hair, red lipstick, purple eyeshadow...

Honourable mentions : Lee Mi-yeon for being the absolute innocent cutiepieeee

1990s :

Lee Young-ae : Her 1992 Mamonde Lip commercial literally turned the beauty world upside down. She was the embodiment of the strong, city, career woman that was the image women wanted to be , in those few seconds. Dark red lipstick, short shoulder length hair, pant suit, iconic. Literally influenced the industry for the next 7 years or so.

Kim Hye-soo : She embodied the "career woman" image since the beginning and always had a more mature persona, and especially her dark and matte eye looks as well as her super arched eyebrows were to die for.

Kim Hee-sun : Trendy hairstyle queen - she got the strand highlights, the low ponytail, the hairband and so many other big trends out there. Plus her lips were always dark and we love it.

Ha Soo-bin : the k-manhwa aesthetic in one human, was super popular despite the strong career unnie image being prevalent. It was her shocking popularity that the above trend faded and more natural, innocent makeup following Soobin's appearance became the aesthetic.

Lee Seung-yeon : Miss Korea second runner up, had a pretty illustrious career plus super iconic Smokey eye look. Alao popularised perma curls and headbands after her role in "Cinderella"

[namjhyun]

MOVIE REVIEW | Dream (2023)

In this film about broken dreams and second chances, a professional football player finds himself in a difficult position due to a mix of bad decisions and bad luck. He also has no real support system in his mother (who is on the run for scamming people) and his agency wants him to quit the sport to become a celebrity.

Is in this moment of his life that to rehabilitate his image he is forced to become the coach of a football team conformed by homeless men that will compete on a charity tournament.

Reluctantly, he learns the reasons why these men found themselves living in the streets. Addiction, bad decisions, abandonment, grief, among other motives. What they all have in common is that through this tournament they are looking to become a better version of themselves.

To record every moment of their journey, a documentary director (deep in student debt and stress) needs to find the right angle to have this film be a success for her and them.

It’s through teamwork and sharing their problems, that this team of odd men out find -perhaps for the first time in their lives- a real support system and even a family.

Dream is a solid comedy with really touching moments that brought some tears to my eyes. The film tries to shed some light on current social issues in South Korea through the housing problem these men are going through.

Park Seo Joon gives a good performance going from disheartened to finding a new dream and people to fight for. His chemistry with IU is hilarious to watch as they play entirely platonic teammates throwing jabs at each other, even long after they start to get along.

IU’s character as the documentary director who is forced to believe in herself into success is both fun and oh, so real.

The heart of the film, however, is Heo Joon Seok, whose character never lost hope and fought from beginning to end so the team could achieve their dream. The rest of the actors bring some emotions though the respective stories that makes the comedy more grounded.

Overall, I enjoyed this film.

[cultfaction]

Squid Game: Season 2 teaser released

Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 gave up going to the states and comes back with a new resolution in his mind. Gi-hun once again dives into the mysterious survival game, starting another life-or-death game with new participants gathered to win the prize of 45.6 billion won. Director Hwang Dong-hyuk, who made history at the 74th Primetime Emmys® becoming the first Asian to win…

[jcbmcdrmtt]

I watched a Korean musical called Life is Beautiful at the movie theater today. It was a last-minute find and I went in without knowing anything about the plot…. Fuck. I cried so hard 😭 Literally holding back sobs. It definitely had its happy moments, the main character was so full of life. But the ending hit me so hard in a way I was not prepared for. Highly, highly recommended.

Content warnings are below the cut for those interested

Content warnings:

Death

Cancer

Troubled marriage

[junkobato]

Upcoming Kdrama October 2023 💖

6/10: the perfect deal with Yoo Seung Ho, Kim Dong Hwi. 8 episodes; thriller, crime. Trailer

7/10: strong girl nam soon with Lee Yu Mi, Ong Seung Wu, Byun Woo Seok. 16 episodes; supernatural, action, rom-com. Trailer

11/10: a good day to be a dog with Cha Eun Woo, Park Gyu Young, Lee Hyun Woo. 14 episodes; fantasy, rom-com. Trailer

13/10: my dearest part 2 with Nam Goong Min, Ahn Eun Jin, Lee Hak Joo. 10 episodes; historical, romance.

14/10: evilive with Shin Ha Kyun, Kim Young Kwang, Shin Jae Ha. 10 episodes; thriller, mystery. Trailer

20/10: doona! with Bae Suzy, Yang Se Jong, Park Se Wan, Lee Jin Wook. 9 episodes; rom-com. Trailer

23/10: high cookie with Nam Ji Hyun, Jung Da Bin, Choi Hyun Wook. 20 episodes; fantasy, mystery, thriller. Trailer

28/10: castaway diva with Park Eun Bin, Chae Jong Hyeop, Cha Hak Yeon, Kim Joo Heon. 12 episodes; music, rom-com. Trailer

30/10: the matchmakers with Ro Woon, Jo Yi Hyun. 16 episodes; historical, rom-com. Trailer

If only I had the time to watch all these shows... 😮‍💨

[quack-quack-snacks]

Time Will Tell - Chapter 22

My Time Will Tell Masterlist

My Cha Hyun-su Masterlist

My Navigation and Masterlist

The Time Will Tell Glossary

Warnings: Kim Seok-hyeon's death tehe. Word Count: 1,879 Author's Note: I couldn't find a gif for today's chapter :(

prev | current | next

The rest of the day as well as the morning and afternoon of the next passed by quickly. You’d mostly played with your siblings, finally starting to feel better after that much-needed crying session on Hyun-su’s shoulder. You visited Hyun-su during both the morning and afternoon, just to check up on him and make sure he was doing okay. You also saw him when he stopped by to ask if you needed anything on his next trip up. Like always, you shook your head and refused, thanking him for the offer and wishing him safe travels. 

What you were doing right now, though, was sitting in the apartment complex’s alcohol room with your two siblings sitting beside you. You were helping along with some other residents empty beer bottles and then filling them with water. The sun outside had already faded away behind the horizon, leaving the stars glinting in the black sky. Your injured hand still hurt with every movement but you made a point to not complain and just keep doing your part in the work. 

“When do you think Hyun-su will be back?” Seung-wan asked after there was a lull in the previous conversation about Byeong-il drinking the beer. 

Your hands stilled above the bottle you were holding and you looked down. 

“I don’t know. He’s late today,” Hye-in replied nonchalantly. “Do you think something happened to him?

You hadn’t even realized how much time had gone by but it had been a while since he left indeed. It scared you a little bit, wondering if he was safe and well. 

“You know he doesn’t die,” Jae-hwan answered with a condescending voice. “Even if he gets hurt, he gets better after a nap.”

“And that’s an excuse as to why we shouldn’t worry about him?” You asked him, fixing your cold glare on him. He shifted in his seat and looked away. 

Just as he was about to respond, the whistle signaling a monster sounded through the propped-open door. It continued to blow frantically, like the person was hyperventilating while blowing into it. 

Everyone shot up from their seated positions and ran out the door, ready to take on whatever it was that was in their safe zone. 

Everyone was screaming and shouting, panicking over the slow-moving monster that looked like a human-mop hybrid. 

Sang-wook walked forward, ready to fight it off when Seon-yeong put a hand on his arm to hold him back. “That’s my husband. Stay back.”

She walked forward, ignoring everyone's calls for her to get away. “Don’t go near it Seon-yeong!”

She paused a few feet in front of him. “Pull yourself together, Kim Seok-hyeon,” she demanded. He growled and took another step forward, his hands breaking through the mess of hair surrounding his body. “Kim Seok-hyeon. Pull yourself together!” She raised the pipe in her hand up like a baseball bat before swinging it down on him. 

You looked around for your siblings and saw them standing beside Mr. Han. You ran over, grabbing both of their hands and leading them away from the scene. You heard screams and sobs echoing behind you as you led the two into the nursery. Jin-ok wasn’t far behind you when you sat them down and told them to ignore it. 

“I’ll come back in a bit when everything has settled down, okay?” You told them and they nodded. Jin-ok nodded as well, thankful you were there to protect their innocence for as long as possible. 

You ran back to the lobby when you suddenly heard the buzzing noise of the door to the stairs ringing. You walked up quickly and opened it, not at all surprised to see Hyun-su standing there. 

What you were a little surprised about were the endless voids that stared back at you in the place of his eyes. You would probably never say it but you thought those black eyes were one of the most beautiful things you’d ever see.

But they would always remain in second place to the brown eyes that lie underneath those voids. 

He was leaning against the wall and breathing heavily. When he pushed off the wall to start walking in and stumbled, you rushed forward to grab him, standing unnecessarily close to him. You looked up at him only to find him staring back at you, his black eyes fading as soon as your eyes met his. 

The sobs from Seon-yeong interrupted your moment and you remembered where you were. 

You looked away first, not letting go of him yet as you asked, “Can you walk on your own?”

He didn’t answer for a second until he nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay, I’m going to let go of you then,” you warned him, though your grip didn’t loosen at all for a long moment. You gave him a small smile that his own lips didn’t respond to, but you could see it in his eyes how much he wanted to return it. 

When the two of you reached the bottom of the stairs, Seon-yeong had just delivered the final blow to her husband. Blood was scattered all over her face and neck, a pool of it flooding the area where Seok-hyeon’s body laid. 

You could see the horror on Hyun-su’s face as he scanned the scene in front of him, and the way he actively avoided looking at it as he started heading toward the arcade room. He stopped halfway there and looked at the pool of blood reflecting his own face, standing there for a minute before dropping the bag of stupid supplies and continuing to the room designated to him and his ‘infection’. 

You started to follow him but you were stopped by Eun-hyuk grabbing your arm and shaking his head. So, with a few hesitant looks between Eun-hyuk and the direction Hyun-su went, you started heading to the nursery to check up on the three people in there.

You sat in the nursery with the rest of the residents, candles lit all across the room since the power went out. Yeong-su sat in your lap and you rubbed his back while he cried. He was never good with the dark, always picturing monsters lurking in the shadows.

It didn’t help that now his fears were rational. 

“Let’s wait a little, Ji-eun,” Seung-wan said consolingly to your left. “It’ll be okay.”

Hye-in scoffed lightly when she sat down. “How do you know? It’s obviously not okay.”

“What’s gonna happen now? I hear we’re about to run out of food,” Jae-hwan said worriedly as he snuggled up against Hye-in. 

“The water will be cut off soon,” Ji-eun said, her voice shaking. “I’m really scared.”

“Noona, are we gonna die?” Yeong-su asked. Tears had already streamed down his face despite you trying your best to comfort him. You couldn’t say anything in fear of it being a lie, so you just held him closer in your lap, squeezing him reassuringly. 

Everyone was silent for a moment as they thought about the boy’s words. It was only broken when Byeong-il broke and spilled his fears. “Yeah, it’s over. We’re all totally fucked!” He yelled.

“Hey!” You yelled at him, using a leg to kick him harshly on the thigh. He groaned in pain but you didn’t care because the whimper of fear from Yeong-su and Su-yeong caught your attention more. You whispered words of care and love into their ears as you wrapped an arm around Su-yeong as well and pulled her into the hug. 

“I really hope I go to Heaven when I die,” Byeong-il continued, yelping and groaning when you kicked him again in the same spot. 

“So what?” Eun-yu asked. “So what? Who cares? Do you want us all to drink the fucking Kool-Aid and just give up or something?” She yelled at him before standing up. “Stop whining, asshole! Whining won’t change anything. Trust me,” she finished and walked out while you still held your crying siblings close. 

“Okay,” you decided. “It’s time for bed, yeah? Get comfy and I’ll read you a story, okay?” 

They nodded, excitement momentarily taking over their fear. They always loved when you told them stories since you did the funny voices and had a great way of painting a picture in their minds.

You told them the story until they fell asleep, cuddled up against each other with tear stained cheeks and puffy eyes. You smiled at them with loving eyes before standing up. The rest of the people in the room were also quietly getting ready for bed so you weren’t worried about them waking the tykes up while you went to go check on Hyun-su. 

You grabbed your book, a flashlight that was sitting next to the door, and the first-aid kit you grabbed from your apartment before you set off towards the arcade room. You hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Hyun-su since he stumbled through the door after you opened it. It really looked like he had a bad encounter during his trip upstairs and it scared you. You hadn’t seen any visible signs of injury on him but the way he limped and couldn’t seem to catch his balance was enough to show you he probably had some sort of concussion and/or a leg injury. It would probably be healed by morning but it was still scary to think about. 

When you got to the room, you entered quietly, not wanting to wake him up in case he was asleep. It was a good thing, too, because he was out cold on a little bench next to a pillar. You tiptoed over to the chair placed next to his head and sat down, setting the first-aid kit under your chair. Before you opened your book to start reading, you folded the jacket wrapped around your waist and gently lifted his sleeping head to place it underneath. After you finished, satisfied with how he looked at least a little more comfortable, you opened the book and started to read, balancing the flashlight you brought in the crook of the chair’s headrest and body so you could see the words on the pages. 

It must have been at least an hour or two before Hyun-su started to stir. You thought nothing of it at first until it happened again. He let out a small sound you almost didn’t hear but from the way he was moving and groaning you knew it must have been a dream that wasn’t all that dream-like. 

You placed your hand on his forehead to feel his temperature and it seemed like an instant change in his behavior. His groans quieted and he stopped moving, save for the occasional twitch. You lifted your hand, satisfied that he was calmer and returned to your book. It was only a few minutes later that his thrashing and mumbling and groaning returned, this time seeming worse and more intense. You hesitated but placed your hand on his forehead again, experimenting and seeing if what you thought might happen would happen.

Sure enough, he calmed down almost instantly and you sighed again. Moving your hand, you brought it down to his bicep instead of his head, leaving it resting there while you used your other hand to continue reading your book.

[brian-in-finance]

Caitríona Balfe attends the "Ford v Ferrari" press conference during the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival at TIFF Bell Lightbox on 10 September 2019 in Toronto, Canada.

Image: Roxstar Entertainment

Collider Media Studio Returns To TIFF With Some of the Biggest Names in Hollywood

With the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) just around the corner, we’re thrilled to announce that Collider Media Studio will be returning to the Toronto International for another round of exciting interviews with support from Range Rover Canada. This year we have one of our bigger line-ups ever with scheduled talks with the top talent of the festival including Bobby Carnavale, Tom Hiddleston, Karen Gilian, Cobie Smulders, Ben Foster, Olympic Gold Medal Boxer Claressa Shields, Chloë Sevigny, Henry Golding, Beatrice Grannò, David Gordon Green, Pamela Anderson, Max Minghella, Orlando Bloom, John Turturro, Caitríona Balfe, Soul Rasheed, Brett Goldstein, Imogen Poots, Jee Young Han, Dakota Johnson, Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Alicia Vikander, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Paul Rudd, Kate Mara, Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Ron Howard, Ana De Armas, Isabella Rosellini, Ed Burns, Shamier Anderson, Minnie Driver, Brenda Song, Kiernan Shipka, Ryoo Seung-wan, Sandra Oh, Haley Joel Osment, and Gretchen Mol to name a few.

The program is produced by Leading Hollywood Events and Communications group, Roxstar Entertainment and their successful hospitality platform, the Cinema Center. Our sponsor partner Range Rover will help get the talent to our media studio with the 2024 Ranger Rover Sport, the official luxury vehicle partner of the Cinema Center and Collider Studio. Celebrities can enjoy the latest Range Rover Sport’s blend of sportiness, refinement, and connected convenience, ensuring they arrive at their red-carpet events in style and comfort.

Additional supporting sponsors include poppi soda, the better for you soda brand made with ingredients you love, like fruit juice and apple cider vinegar that create a mouthwatering soda with only 5 grams of sugar and 25 calories. Beloved by celebrities like Post Malone, Hailey Bieber, Kylie Jenner, Billie Eilish, Russell Westbrook, and Olivia Munn, poppi is revolutionizing soda for the next generation. poppi is now available at major retailers across Canada, including Loblaws, Real Canadian Superstore, Metro, Save on Foods, Maxi, Safeway, and Costco and key ecommerce retailers amazon.ca, instacart.ca and well.ca.

In addition, the Cinema Center will be serving up a themed cocktail menu featuring the ultra-premium Tequila Don Julio, as well as Ketel One Vodka, Tanqueray Gin, and Bulleit Bourbon. Don Julio’s luxury tequila is renowned for its use of only the highest caliber, fully matured and ripened Blue Agave that has been hand-selected from the rich, clay soils of the Los Altos region of the state of Jalisco.

Other partners include Canada’s new premium spring water brand, Legend Water co. and Peoples Group financial services will all be engaging our talent and guests with product offerings and special brand experiences onsite.

Check out the poster below and stay tuned to our socials for updates on this year’s Collider Media Studio at TIFF.

Collider

Caitríona Balfe attends the "Ford v Ferrari" press conference during the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival at TIFF Bell Lightbox on 10 September 2019 in Toronto, Canada.

Remember the return to TIFF?

[jinhogae]

AL'S DRAMA RECS VOL.1: these recs will solely focus on the writing of the shows, which to me comes down to two things: how well does the plot accomplish what it set out to do in the beginning? and how compelling are the characters written, no matter if their character arc means they become better or worse through the story or even remain who they are? my favourite dramas usually succeed in giving us a satisfying answer to both questions and these are the ones you will see on this list!

★★★★★ dramas (aka the greatest hits):

SECRET FOREST / STRANGER (2017-2021): the pinnacle of all dramas. follows the duo of no-nonsense prosecutor hwang si-mok (the acting star turn of he century by cho seung-woo) and police detective han yeo-jin (the ever-exceptional bae doo-na) investigating a murder case that blows open several scandals in the prosecution. season 2 follows several cases leading to an internal investigation on police bribery. it just does not get better than this and i fear it won't ever will. this drama has the understated styling of nordic noir, the classic shenanigans of an unlikely leading kdrama duo, and one of the tightest scripts ever seen in any tv show ever. | genre: thriller, melodrama, crime procedural

MY LIBERATION NOTES (2022): following the yeom family's three siblings living in the small town of sanpo on the outskirts of seoul, and the stranger moving into the house next door to theirs, this story navigates questions of sibling-hood and family, the purpose of life, as well as the sacrifices we make for the relationships in our life as well as our own happiness. this show earned its hype from the central love story between mr. gu and yeom mi-jeong (son seok-ku and kim ji-won acting the house down) but every one of the three main storylines is well-paced, gives the main actors moments to shine and grow, and ties neatly into the overarching plot to render you either moved or comforted, or even both. | genre: slice of life, melodrama

VINCENZO (2020): at this point are there still followers on this blog who haven't at least seen me talk about vincenzo? the writing of this show is maybe the peak of genre-blending done in kdrama, a culmination of years refining this skill to sharp perfection in a biting black comedy. vincenzo cassano (song joong-ki), consiglieri of a mafia clan he got adopted into, goes back to south korea to recover a frankly unholy amount of gold and fights a gigantic conglomerate (babel) to get there. if you watch past episode four, you will finish this drama, because everything ensuing from then on is just one iconic story beat after another. | genre: black comedy / satire, crime, romance

HOSPITAL PLAYLIST (2020-2022): a medical drama beyond reproach. this show is on this list for the way it wrote its characters and achieved the most satisfying character arcs in any kdrama, maybe, ever. a group of five friends in their fourties all working at the same hospital and navigating their professional and private lives, this drama doesn't shy away from eclectic backstories (and the leads all playing music together in a band) as well as truly heart-tearing moments of friendship and romance. never have i seen character growth done as well as i have seen it in the characters of yang seok-hyeong and kim-jun-wan. | genre: medical, slice of life, rom-com

D.P. / DESERTER PURSUIT (2021-2023): d.p. to me is a no-notes kind of show. it depicts the work of the military police pursuing army deserters through freshly enlisted ahn jun-ho (jung hae-in playing years below his age and leagues above many his actual age) who ends up empathizing and working to help and save the deserters he and his team partner han ho-yeol (an exceptional koo kyo-hwan) are meant to bring back to the army instead of incriminating them further. d.p. is much better for its tone, its writing and the risks it takes in its no-nonsense approach than some of the drivel revered solely for being more flashy and showy in this genre. | genre: military drama, action

★★★★☆ dramas (aka near-perfection):

PRISON PLAYBOOK (2017): the perfect prototype of the bromance as romance formula and one of the best found family dramas that really focuses on that. star baseball player kim je-hyuk (park hae-soo in his career-defining role) loses his career and lands in prison after he assaults the ex-boyfriend of his younger sister to protect her. the show centers on je-hyuk's time in prison, where he reunites with his childhood best-friend-now-prison-guard lee jun-ho (a supreme jung kyung-ho) and assimilates himself with the people he meets in his cell. this show hits all the beats so well from a stellar supporting cast to a great comeback kid narrative for je-hyuk from his time in prison to being released. glaring flaw: the age-gap / childhood friends romance, the conclusion of hanyang's story arc, who gets the short end of the stick while being the one out gay character in the show. | genre: black comedy, found family, slice of life

GOBLIN: THE LONELY AND GREAT GOD (2017): the defining kdrama for many. it may be the one drama that really delivers in answering its plot's defining question twice over and then some. goblin kim shin (gong yoo), cursed to immortality, gets his life upended once a grim reaper (lee dong-wook as wang yeo, a performance never to be seen or repeated again since) and the young woman (kim go-eun as ji eun-tak) who turns out to be his fated bride enter his life. an immortal man resigned on life finds purpose while knowing he will fatally die once the woman he falls in love with cures him of his curse. glaring flaw: the age gap romance between eun-tak and kim shin. could she have not been in college at least? | genre: melodrama, romance, fantasy

CRASH LANDING ON YOU (2019): the romance drama that could, and did. based on a real life incident, ceo yoon se-ri (son ye-jin, an acting veteran near beyond reproach imo) accidentally crash lands in north korea after a paragliding flight gone wrong. there she meets active duty soldier captain ri jeong-hyeok (hyun bin, thank you for your service) and has to stay with him and his military company. the fated love story starts there, but neither of them know they have met before, and already changed the courses of each other's lives before doing so again. minor flaw: is this drama romanticising the military? or is depicting of that on screen just that and nothing more? that is up to you to decide. | genre: melodrama, romance

HOMETOWN CHA CHA CHA (2021): the series remake of a korean rom-com film of the early aughts, this remains my favourite romance drama over all. dentist yoon hye-jin (shin min-a blessing our screens) moves to rural gongjin, a seaside village where nothing happens at all, after her professional life in seoul goes up in flames. it's not all sunshine in gongjin either as ye-jin meets hong du-sik (kim seon-ho),a handyman who is called chief hong by everyone and fixes all the big and small fires in the village. the two start as enemies that eventually fall in love. the romance is well-handled and paced and the second lead (lee sang-yi) is the best i have ever seen in a show, especially because of the arc written for him. minor flaw: the plot is not as tight as the respective character arcs, so sometimes sacrifices are made for the sake of a more emotional scenes. | genre: rom-com, slice of life

THE GLORY (2022): when you put the revenge in revenge drama, this is what you can get. song hye-ko returns to small screen brilliance in an incomparable performance as moon dong-eun, a woman who decides to infiltrate the lives of her school bullies and take them down one by one. this show delivers on plot even more than on characters, following through on every step of moon dong-eun's revenge without shying away from how gruesome or painful that path of vengeance can be. dong-eun gets help from plastic surgeon joo yeo-jeong (a delightful lee do-hyun), and the main cast is rounded out by lim ji-yeon and jung sung-il as dong-eun's grown up tormentor and her reluctant husband respectively. minor flaw: the show does spend a big chunk of its time on the group of school bullies and their interpersonal relations, which sometimes takes time away from the main plot. | genre: psychological thriller, revenge drama

♡ more specific genre watches (beware: usually crime):

LIFE (2018): written by the writers of secret forest, life is another thriller with understated direction and a more sombre tone. i would have put it in the greatest hits category, but watching it with other people made me realise how niche it actually is in genre. a corporate hospital thriller, the show revolves around the newly-minted ceo of sangkook university hospital, gu seung-hyo (a once again flawless cho seung-woo) and a dedicated ER doctor (lee dong-wook, stellar as ever) who depict the two sides of the patient care vs. profit conflict in the hospital. i can't even say more about the show because every other plot point is basically a spoiler. sharply directed and written, this is one of the best genre pieces i have ever watched, and is mildly reminiscent of hbo prestige television of the decade before. | genre: medical drama, corporate thriller

THE WORST OF EVIL (2023): are you even surprised? this was the drama of 2023 for me, one of the most stellar scripts i have seen. the worst of evil is very firmly a noir show and you have to treat what you are watching as such. it is heavily entrenched into its genre tropes and arcs, even more than most crime shows i have seen, and that can be off-putting for people unfamiliar with the genre, but if you are up for it, you will not be disappointed. opportune violent crime detective park jun-mo (ji chang wook, korea's finest new gen action actor) infiltrates a drug ring lead by jung gi-cheol ( fantastic and emotional tour de force by wi ha joon) and the lines begin to blur when neither of them knows if what they bargained for is actually what they want. the show lets its main plot dictate the pace, focusing on park jun-mo's descent into crime, and it is all the more better for it. | genre: noir, crime thriller, action

BEYOND EVIL (2020): the story about dejected and grieving small-town detective lee dong-sik (baeksang-awarded veteran actor shin ha-kyun) being partnered with elite detective and spinster seoulite han joo-won (child actor prodigy turned actor to watch du jour) has made its waves online for its very apparent gay subtext, but to reduce beyond evil to this would be a crime in itself. following lee dong-sik and han joo-won as they are tasked to solve a reoccurring serial killer case, the framing plot then fans open the age-old wound of dong-sik losing his twin sister and being blamed for her disappearance with joo-won having taken an obsessive fascination with the case. the two crime cases are exceptionally interwoven and the stories of the people in the small town of manyang, and how they all somehow tie back to dong-sik, is the perfect example of turning the small centrepiece of a plot into the binding force of every thread. | genre: procedural, psychological thriller

OUR BELOVED SUMMER (2021): i put this into the genre-piece category because obl is majorly focused on its main trope. romantic dramas can easily be trite to me, as this obvious list of crime shows doesn't tell you, but our beloved summer is one of the few that did everything right. it plays out the best trope ever done - exes to lovers - and does not back down from embracing the whole shebang to the nth degree. high school / college sweethearts choi woong (known beloved actor on ye-xiu tumblr dot com, choi woo-shik) and kook yeun-soo (the ever great kim da-mi) have to unite to replicate, or rather continue, the viral high school documentary they filmed years ago. the show shimmies its way from one moment of reconnection to another, culminating in the best kdrama kiss to ever be put to screen, and concludes in one of the most satisfying and, yes, romantic endings ever. the things a show can do when it just sticks to its main narrative, huh. | genre: rom-com, coming of age

[bl-bam-beyond]

OUR DATING SIM (2023, SOUTH KOREA)

So Beautiful. Wow, South Korea is killing the BL industry lately with some awesome works. The New Employee was fantastic and now this one. Pure Perfection. Watch out Thailand. Korea is hot on your heels.

Finally after of 7 years of searching. Shin Ki Tae (LEE SEUNG GYU) has nailed down his feelings for the ever fleeing Lee Wan (LEE JONG HYUK) and it was able to say the words he couldn't 7 Years Ago. The words that would have made Lee Wan swoon. I LIKE YOU.

Then He saved his love from a flying soccer ball. The shock on Lee Wan's face and the sincerity on Shin Ki Tae's made this confession a home run.

[bidokja]

Weak Hero Character Names

For those who don't know, the Weak Hero webtoon anglicized a bunch of the characters' first names from Korean to English. They don't do this for newly introduced characters anymore AFAIK, but all the names they anglicized initially have been kept that way.

Since I've gotten a few people asking about the names, so I decided to compile a list of their original Korean names. You can find amost of these on their character profiles on the Weak Hero fandom page, but I figured people would appreciate having a quick reference that is all in one place. Hopefully this helps people learn/connect their original names.

Remember, this is not a full character list, it's for finding the Korean names of the characters that had their names anglicized.

The format will be:

Anglicized Name -> Korean Name (common alternative romanizations will be in parenthesis)

Eunjang High

Alex Go -> Go Hyeontak (Hyun-tak)

Ben Park -> Park Humin (Hoo-min)

Colton Choi -> Choi Hyoman (Hyo-man)

Eugene Gale -> Seo Juntae (Jun-tae)

Gerard Jin -> Jin Gayul (Ga-yool)

Gray Yeon -> Yeon Sieun (Shi-eun)

Phillip Kim -> Kim Pilyoung (Pil-young)

Rowan Im -> Im Juyang (Ju-yang)

Teddy Jin -> Jin Taeoh (Tae-oh)

Daehyeon High

Dean Kwon -> Kwon Hyeokjin (Hyuk-jin)

Jake Ji -> Ji Hakho (Hak-ho | Hagho)

Timothy Park -> Park Taegi (Tae-gi)*

Ganghak High

Jared Sun -> Seon Jongwon (Sun Jong-Wan)

Toby Kim -> Kim Dosik (Do-sik)

Wolf Keum -> Keum Seongje (Sung-je)

Hyeongshin High

Forrest Lee -> Lee Sehan (Se-han)

Myles Joo -> Joo Seungjin (Seung-jin)

Robin Ha -> Ha Minjo (Min-jo)

Sam "Grape" Lee -> Lee Gongsam (Gong-sam)

Yeo-il High

Donald Na -> Na Baekjin (Baek-jin)

Kingsley Kwan -> Kwan Seokhyeon (Suk-hyun)

Yoosun High

Harper "Helmet" Ha -> Ha Huicheol (Hee-chul)

Hugo Yoon -> Yun Hoyeong (Yoon Ho-young)

Jack Kang -> Kang Jeongyeon (Jung-yun)

Jimmy Bae -> Bae Jihun (Ji-hun)

Other Recurring/Relevant Characters

Bryce Oh -> Oh Beomseok (Beom-sok)

Julia Chae -> Chae Yujin (Yoo-jin)

Kenny Ji -> Ji Gwangseok (Gwang-seok)

Lala Lee -> Lee Minji (Min-ji)

Lily Nam -> Nam Jeongah (Jung-ah)

Oswald Yang -> Yang Seonghun (Sung-hoon)*

Sean Shin -> Shin Jeongseob (Jung-sub)*

Stephen Ahn -> Ahn Suho (Su-ho)

Wesley Song -> Song Baekkyu (Beak-gyu)

(* These names weren't on the wiki, so I looked at raws.)

[salanaii]

Learn Korean with me - Week 12

Day 1: Let’s Speak Korean Ch 6 – At the Airport (26 – 50)

좌석이지정되어있나요? Jwa seog I ji Jeong doe eo iss nay o Are the seats pre-assigned?

제좌석은어디죠? Je joa seog eun eo di jyo Where is my seat?

좌석변경이가능한가요? Joa seog byeon Gyeong I ga neung han ga yo Can I change the seat?

창가쪽/복도쪽/가운데좌석있나요? Chang ga jjog/bog do jjog/ ga un de joa seog iss nay o Do you have a(n) widow/isle/middle seat available?

창가쪽/복도쪽/가운데좌석부탁합니다 Chang ga jjog/bog do jjog/ ga un de joa seog bu tag hab ni da A(n) widow/isle/middle seat, please.

정시에출발하나요? Jeong si e chur bar ha nay o Does it depart at the scheduled time?

동반자가있나요? Dong ban ja ga iss nay o Do you have a companion?

비자가있나요? Bi ja ga iss nay o Do you have a visa?

신분증을보여주세요. Sin bun jeung eur bo yeo ju se yo Show me (your) card, please.

몇시에탑승시작하죠? Myeoch si e tab seung si jag ha jyu At what time does the boarding start?

만석입니다. Man seog ib ni da All seats are filled. = We have a full flight.

탑승권을보여주세요. Tab seung gwan eur bo yei ju se yo Show me (your) boarding pass, please.

한국항공카운터는어디죠? Han gug hang gong ka un teo neun eo di jyo Where is the counter for Hanguk Airline?

짐은어디에서찾나요? Jim eun eo di e seo chaj nay o (From) Where do I find (=pick up) (my) baggage?

짐을잃어버렸어요. Jim eur irh eo beo ryeoss eo yo I lost (my) baggage.

면세점은어디죠? Myeon se jeom eun eo di jyo Where is the duty free shop?

애완동물도탑승이가능한가요? Ae wan dong mur do tab seung I ga neung han ga yo (Literal) Can pets come aboard, too? = Can pets fly, too?

환승게이트는어디죠? Hwan seung ge I teu neu neo di jyo Where is the transfer gate?

연착되었나요? Yeon chag doe eoss nay o Is it delayed?

다음비행기편에늦었습니다. Da eum bi haeng gi pyeon e neuj eoss seub ni da (I’m) late to the next flight. = I’m late for (my) connecting flight.

비행기를놓칠것같아요. Bi haeng gi reur noh chir geos gat a yo I think I’m going to miss (my) airplane (=flight).

제가먼저가도될까요? Je ga meon jeo do doer gga yo May I go first?

줄이기네요. Jur I gi ne yo (Literal) The line is long. = It’s a long line.

여행자보험을구입하고싶은데요. Yeo haeng ja bo heom eur gu ib ha go sip eun de yo I’d like to purchase a traveler’s insurance.

면세품을주문하고싶은데요. Myeon se pum eur ju mun ha go sip eun de yo I’d like to order duty free items.

[anemoiawithatouchofobsession]

I HAAAVE BEEN BLESSSSSED mbc just released a compilation of Friendship Stages (Army performances)!

My ultimate world crossover AAAHHHH! I had only seen clips here and there.

Look how pretty my girlies are looking in this thumbnail ^w^ Miss Ha Hee Ra!!! look at youuu!!!! You gorgeous woman!

Kang Susie had just debuted then - can you believe that 66 liner Susie was a fresh rookie, and 69 liner Hee Ra a teen star with 7 years experience at that time?

Ha Soo Bin was also a rookie, plus this was also around Uhm Jung Hwa's debut time, and before Jin Shil did "Jealousy" and "Nambugun". What a time machine video. I am in LOVE.

Also - Hee Ra and Choi Jin Shil BOTH covered a Lee Jiyeon song each - Hee Ra sang "It's Not Too Late" (one of her more underrated songs but I LOVE love Hee Ra's rendition of it, she did so well!) and Jin Shil went for "That Reason Was Pain To Me", our resident sad girl anthem. (may she RIP). Yeom Jung Ah, fresh off the Miss Korea pageant, sang Lee Jae Young's "Temptation".

Other singers that perfromend that are in this video are Noh Sa Yeon, Shin Hyo Beom, Kim Wan Sun, Na Mi, Lee Sun Hee, Shin Seung Hoon, Chuli and Mi Ae, and many more.

[dear-indies]

Hey, how are you? First of all, free palestine!!

Thank you for your beautiful work, I'm always learning more about and spreading the word with my friends. I don't know if I can ask you for this, but I'm looking for korean fcs in their 35~40's or more.

Women:

Amerie (1980) African-American / Korean - is pro Palestine!

Kim So Yeon (1980) Korean.

Ali Ahn (1981) Korean.

Song Hye Kyo (1981) Korean.

Yoo In Na (1982) Korean.

Kim Min Hee (1982) Korean.

Greta Lee (1983) Korean.

Jamie Chung (1983) Korean.

Catherine Haena Kim (1984) Korean.

Seo Ji Hye (1984) Korean.

Lee Da Hee (1985) Korean.

Jung Eun Chae (1986) Korean.

Song Ha Yoon (1986) Korean.

Han Hyo Joo (1987) Korean.

Han Eu Ddeum (1987) Korean.

Song Hae Na (1987) Korean.

Ryu Abel (1988) Korean.

Men:

Gong Yoo (1979) Korean.

Jang Seung Jo (1981) Korean.

Miyavi (1981) Korean / Japanese.

Lee Dong Wook (1981) Korean.

Hyun Bin (1982) Korean.

Son Suk Ku (1983) Korean.

Kim Jae Wook (1983) Korean.

Yoon Jong Hoon (1984) Korean.

Yoon Hyun Min (1985) Korean.

Jake Choi (1985) Korean - is sexually fluid.

Song Joong Ki (1985) Korean.

Yoo Ah In (1986) Korean.

Han Geon Yu (1986) Korean.

Eugene Lee Yang (1986) Korean - is gay - is pro Palestine!

Seo In Guk (1987) Korean.

Joel Kim Booster (1988) Korean - is gay and has bipolar disorder - is pro Palestine!

Jung Hae In (1988) Korean.

Park Seo Joon (1988) Korean.

Lee Shin Ki (1988) Korean.

Yim Si Wan (1988) Korean.

Ok Taec Yeon (1988) Korean.

Ahn Bo Hyun (1988) Korean.

Non-binary:

Charlyne Yi (1986) Yuki, Kapampangan Filipino, Korean, Mexican, Spanish, Irish, French, and German - non-binary (they/them).

Hope this helps, anon!