#kdramaredit

[mashisoyo]

My best Kdramas so far

Kdramas...how should I describe them? The ones that give me all the feels!

1. Misaeng (2014)

Misaeng takes the cake when it comes to how much it has affected me. And that’s what matters I guess? Misaeng is one of those really rare dramas few can compete with. Who knew the corporate life could be so intense? But also so real at the same time. You don’t need a mermaid or a goblin for a good story. 

This drama makes me sad, because it doesn’t go the way I want to. Miracles don’t happen. Because, life. An incomplete life. Jang Geu-rae isn’t all that special, and he isn’t all that different from us. His hopes were crushed, over and over again. But eventually, hope will always be around. 

Don’t get me started on Sales Team 3. Misaeng is as much Jang Geu-rae as it is for Oh Sang-shik. The cast is perfect. And also a huge shout out to Han Seok-yool for pulling off such a complex and easily disliked role. 

Sometimes I still cry as I listen to their OST. True story. It might just be one of those that has changed my life. 

2. Liar Game (2014)

Best ending ever award goes to Liar Game. Note to self: Do not watch it at 3am in the middle of the night. It’s so intense, I literally feared for my own life. And I guess that’s the beauty of tv and films. The level of immersion is off the charts. It also happens to be really well-made, and gets you on an emotional ride as we reflect our own faith in humanity. 

3. Jealousy Incarnate (2016)

So fun to watch, so easy to love. The chemistry between the two leads is sizzling hot. Jealousy Incarnate questions masculinity, which is an especially brave choice for the writer to make, considering how much South Korea is still deeply rooted in patriarchy. Respect. Go, Pyo Na-Ri!

It started out slow, but proved itself worthy. I’ve said this but I’ll say it again, the cinematography is amazing. So is their OST!

Jo Jung-Suk is the star of this show, he sings and dances, and does it so well. I wish there’re more scenes of them though. Maybe he should start his own show?? And like many others, I think there’s no better person to play Lee Hwa-Shin.

4. Master’s Sun (2013)

It’s one of the few dramas I have watched twice, and guess what? I still cried the second time I watched it, in all the places I’ve already cried at before. Gong Hyo-Jin, who happens to be my favourite actress is Tae Gong-Shil, a quirky girl who can sees ghosts, but is afraid of them.

So Ji-Sub plays Joo Joong-Won, a CEO of a company who is stingy and haughty. They start crossing paths when Gong-Shil realises that she can’t see ghosts whenever she has physical contact with Joong-Won. Cute! Also one of the two dramas that got me on the Hong Sisters bandwagon. The other is The Greatest Love (2011), which is also very fun to watch.

5. Dear My Friends (2016)

Dear My Friends is a very special drama revolving around ahjumas and ajusshis, and it will always have a special place in my heart. Heartfelt and sincere, with incredibly well-portrayed characters, the most tender moments hit you at places you least expect. We are all stumbling through life, no matter how old we are. And we aren’t that different. I only hope that when I am 60 years old, I’ll have friends like them.

Honorary Mention:  W Two Worlds (2016), Signal (2016)

Surprise! Coffee Prince isn’t here, but it’ll be on my Top 5 I-can’t-bring-myself-to-finish Kdramas. I guess it’s probably because I haven’t actually seen Coffee Prince when it first came out, and now that I’m too used to the formats of Kdramas nowadays, it gets pretty hard to watch older dramas. They seem a little slow in story progression and have questionable plot points, although it’s not like there aren’t any in dramas these days. 

And the Reply Me series??? It was...okay. Though I’ve only watched the first one, ha. 

What are your favourite kdramas? 

[mashisoyo]

What went wrong, Missing 9?

^Cute guy Jo and my genuine feelings about Missing 9

What can I say? Throughout episodes 15 and 16... my expression was a -_-

It was so bad. And I think everyone feels the same way about it.

Yo Missing 9, why you do this??

1. Tae-Ho

Since the middle of this series, it was already well-established that Tae-Ho is ruthless and would threaten and kill anyone who gets into his way.

So a few words from Joon-Oh (whose blood looked really fake by the way), Tae-Ho succumbs, all the while still insisting that if not for CEO Jang, he wouldn’t have turned out the way he is, i.e. serial killer. Remember that.

This redemption might be more effective if it happens a few episodes earlier, when Tae-Ho realizes that he didn’t actually kill Jae-Hyun. Then it would make more sense.

But not when it’s already the last episode and when he’s in the middle of trying to kill off yet another person. And you expect the audience to forgive him just like that?

2. CEO Jang

CEO Jang went from being a mob gangster head to a coward, just because he got jailed. In the drama world, don’t villains always have some kind of connection that would help him get out of tough situations? It just feels very strange that now he is all powerless, and that he actually trusted Tae-Ho to get him out of jail.

3. Questionable wardrobe choices

^Allllll the fans be like ya right.

Firstly, why are they wearing white when they know they’re going to paint a wall?

Secondly, why is Tae-Ho with them? Why isn’t he jailed or anything??? Are they really painting too good a picture? This scene just makes no sense, and exists only for its aesthetics.

Thirdly, they still didn’t address why all the characters were wearing beige and nude colors during their flashbacks, like the 3000 other things they hinted at and failed to answer. How exactly did Chairwoman Jo intervene after getting a lecture from Bong-Hee? 

It’s a real shame that Missing 9 turned out the way it is. I remember myself being really excited about it before it was aired, because of all the possibilities! They have a great cast as well, but the story itself really doesn’t add up to anything. Not to mention its characters doing illogical actions. Especially the bad guys and their random redemption arcs. 

The ending was predictable, and also dragged out for far too long that its episodes became very uneventful.

Eventually, it’s the same old story just that this time a plane crashed. I mean, since they already crashed a plane, they might as well go even bigger right?

Still, I have to give it to them for being consistent in their visual style, and quirky edits. I love how they use jump cuts unashamedly, because jump cuts are just so fun. Also, the surprisingly uplifting choice of music that accompanied all the more somber scenes.

I won’t say I wasted my time watching it, but it just makes me sad whenever I think about how it could have been.

To all my fellow comrades who stayed with this show till the end, good job. It has been a long ride. Let’s all cross our fingers that the next one will be better.