#kdramas underrated part 1

[gizkasparadise]

What are your top five xianxia cdramas? And, on the other end, what are your top five historical kdramas (any time period - I'm not well versed in this to know the various types names yet xD)? Oh, and lastly, your top five drama recs that are the most (generally) underrated? Thanks!

nice!

TOP FIVE XIANXIA (& I'M ALSO GONNA INCLUDE XUANHUAN)

love and redemption. girl meets boy. boy's part of a cursed theatre troupe and part of masochism tango of reincarnation with girl that lasts 10 life times. girl is actually kind of the god of war. crack, gender reversal, gender fuckery at large, feminist and queer friendly. incredible OST. just all-around one of my favorite dramas ever.

lost you forever (part 1). a xuanhuan vs. xianxia, but im not passionate enough about 5 xianxia for this list lol. another drama with gender fuckery. a fantastic FL and beautiful relationship building (and unbuilding) and character-driven story. dont even need the second part for this to be a favorite!!

love between fairy and devil. all those tropes you fucking loved when you were like 13 on ff.net given a lot of heart and near-perfect execution (aside from that ending). awesome characters, beautiful costumes and art direction. super addicting and bingeable

the legends. bai lu playing a powerhungry demoness and acquiring a dysfunctional harem in the process. xu kai looking like a sad blue-haired puppy. a monk that creates an entire demon because he has 1 boner. sismance. i had a lot of fun with this one and pointedly did not watch the last 5 or so eps lol

till the end of the moon. there's parts i genuinely hate and would not watch ever again. there's parts that are fucking incredible. sort of like the main couple, i have a love/hate relationship with this drama but when it hits it really hits

honorable mention: eternal love/10 miles of peach blossoms (xianxia fuckery at its finest weighed down somewhat by tedious side plots and one of the most infuriating 2nd FLs of all time)

TOP FIVE HISTORICAL KDRAMAS

gaksital/bridal mask. set in the 1930s. inverse character arcs between the hero and villain. dysfunctional romance amped up to the nth level. high stakes, high consequences, and a cast full of well-developed and written characters. bring tissues

empress ki. girl crushing and girl bossing her way through two kingdoms, one of the best FLs of all time. with her is a besotted baby enemy emperor and a Noble Good besotted powerless king as she goes from slave to smuggler to concubine to empress. chef's kiss

the princess' man. you want feral wrecks for your male leads? female leads ready to throw down in a parking lot? if you like lovers to enemy (?) lovers and star-crossed romances this one is a must

the king loves. this one's also on my underrated list. the first 4ish eps are a chore, but if you get past them you have the love triangle to end all love triangles, interesting palace politics with a fascinating "evil" empress, and im siwan getting to go a lil unhinged as a treat. it's the definition of an idol drama but gd did i love this and i binged the hell out of it no regrets

mr sunshine. le cinema!!! an interesting time in history (1870s-1880s) with a wide range of flawed but compelling characters centered around one of the most badass FLs of all time. winner of the #1 second lead syndrome contest for me with dong mae. only downfall to this one is i felt negative chemistry with the endgame ship but the show is good enough without it

honorable mention: chicago typewriter isnt on this list because it's only kind of half a historical drama BUT OMG WATCH IT. it's in my top 3 kdrama and while it has a slow build once it kicks off it fucking goes off

TOP FIVE UNDERRATED DRAMAS

the king loves as mentioned above. i think why it has a lower rating is the first handful of eps are kind of a snoozefest and there's a bit of an upset with the romance (which i was 900% for). but it's a fucking fun ride and full of awesome goryeo palace drama adventures

kairos. not underrated, since it has decent scores on reviewer sites, but underhyped? not enough people have seen this one and it's an incredible time-travel thriller that i found way more interesting than other popular dramas of its type like signal

cheese in the trap. the ending's a hot mess, but compared to how some 2020-onward dramas are ending it's poetry. a solid adaptation of a really great webtoon, awesome cinematography, and one of the few dramas ive seen that actually capture the campus/college life experience right

discovery of romance. the emotional cheating element causes a lot of folks to hate it/jump ship, but i love this one (and gd BOTH the fl and ml emotionally cheat ftr he's not innocent in this hot mess). jung yumi + eric mun are one of my favorite kdrama duos and they kill it, and kim seulgi plays an incredible second female lead

when a man falls in love. man people HATED this one but i think it's a blast when you're in the mood for mess + gangsters. if you're into watching fucked up romances with severe power imbalances and the dysfunction that follows, this one's for you. it's not perfect but definitely not deserving of its 6.8 MDL rating (gd!)

[dangermousie]

Let's meet my favorite kdrama cursed prince - Muhyul as portrayed by Song Il Gook in The Kingdom of the Winds

Or more specifically, this very long-ass post is my attempt to convince people to watch this ridiculously underrated 2008 sageuk.

Why? Is it politics? Complicated families, cursed destinies, battles, or more hurt/comfort than you can want? Nope, none of these. I have my priorities straight and it's official. Muhyul/Yeon is one of my favorite period OTPs.

Take one Cursed Prince (who does not know he is one, and is brought up as a slave), add in one capable Enemy Princess who saves his life, add in ninjas (yes I know ninjas are Japanese but I have no idea what the Korean equivalent term is and I am too lazy to type in secret assassins every time), poisonings, intrigues, and a lot of hurt/comfort and we are set!

Once upon a time, there lived a man named Muhyul. He was only a slave but what he did not know was that he was actually a Prince who was given away by his family at birth because he was cursed to kill his whole family, people he loved, and to top it off, to destroy his country. Despite it all, he was still super-hot.

In the enemy nation of Buyeo, there lived a Princess named Yeon, who was ladylike, kind, a skilled healer....also a deadly ninja.

Point 1: Heal captured slaves from torture. One day they might be the Crown Prince.

Muhyul first sees Yeon after he has been horrendously tortured by Buyeo troops. He opens his eyes to see a heavenly vision quite competently stitching him up, so to speak. It is love at first sight for Muhyul. And who could blame him. He knows that with the director's troubling penchant for h/c, he will need a hottie healer around.

Point 2: "Heal a hottie and he is yours for life"

Muhyul spends some free time drawing her portrait. Without knowing who she is or if he will see her again. If the whole slave/assassin/king thing doesn't work out, he can always make money as an artist.

Point 3: "It's not stalking when he's hot!"

Muhyul is on an undercover mission in the enemy country but he forgets everything when he sees Yeon walking by (btw, he assumes she is just a commoner doctor). I love how he sort of stops thinking of anything else at all.

And then he thinks of her at night...

And lo and behond, their paths cross again when she heals a slave in the house he is staying in.

And he introduces himself to her and she is totally mesmerized. Who can blame her, it's freaking Song Il Gook!

And "rescues" her from evil Byueo soldiers. Only, oooops, they were sent by her family as escort and she is piiiiiiiiissed!

"Why did she slap me, whyyyyyy?"

Still, be happy, boy! Despite it all, she bailed you out of jail for assaulting the Royal Guards :)

Awwww, Muhyul doesn't want to leave...

Point 4: You know what makes anything better? Torture and homicidal angst

Did I mention the part where Yeon's Dad runs an Evil Assassin camp where they experiment on slaves with poisons and torture them? You see where this is going? If you do, then you have the mindset of both the writer of this drama and myself.

Muhyul gets captured by them (after losing the only person he ever regarded as family, but that would drag us into plot and this post is about the shippy):

And tortured for a solid year. If he ever marries Yeon, that might make for an awkward family Thanksgiving. "So, how are you, son?" "Well, I almost regained the use of my arms!"

Anyway, Yeon is visiting Daddy and sees some slave being taken out, after they have tried poisons on him. It's Muhyul, so it's Yeon to the rescue! Man, no wonder he loves her - it's self-preservation on his part!

(this shot here is for troubling reasons)

And then Muhyul is drafted by evil assassins (long plotty reason) with the only alternative more torture. The training is psychotic and gets Muhyul near-broken utterly but as a side benefit, makes him even more hot. If now mildly psychotic. As you can probably figure out by the end of the drama he's so hot he's a supernova

Also, as I posted earlier, gorgeous armored men on their knees looking up at their OTP who is teaching them foreign language (because Yeon is an Evil Assassin trainer for daddy) and thinking of the fact that they are a slave and she is a Princess (which is something he found out only in the ninja camp) is pretty high on the list of my favorite things.

Plus, Yeon takes him out for fresh air and exercise that doesn't involve being hung upside down and being ordered to off oneself. Score! She even makes him smile.

This is hitting the cap limit for continuing in part 2 shortly...

ETA: part 2 here:

(99+) Musings of the Obsessive Kind on Tumblr

And part 3:

(99+) Musings of the Obsessive Kind on Tumblr

[ashuuuuuuu]

I recently read seizing dreams/ doumeng and since it's so underrated i wanted to do a review of it so more people read this masterpiece so here's 10 reasons why you should read Seizing dreams :

1) Money is a recurring theme in it

Rarely do I see romance novels or any novels that talk so much deeply and sincerely about money. Both of our protagonists are from the opposite spectrum of economical status. Yu Hao , our MC is an orphan from the start of the novel and he has no one else but himself to depend on for money whereas Zhou Sheng, or ML is only son and future heir of his millionaire father's company. I know it sounds like a very kdrama cliche type of story with this setting but the way they handle and portray the struggles of both people from the opposite spectrum is beautiful. We see Yu Hao struggling with part time work when he's in college, we see him struggling with finding a job, we see him struggling working with minimum wage after college to follow his passion. Whereas we see Zhou Sheng struggling to understand what he wants to do in the future. Struggling to understand whether he wants to be the heir or not. Struggling to live like a middle class person with Yu Hao cuz he's never lived like that. There's an arc where both the main characters are struggling with internship and it's shown so realistically that yes internship makes you work the most with the minimum wage in exchange of "teaching" you. There's also a character struggling with a start up. The novel also depicts Pyramid schemes and you name it. Ofc the novel has ideologies about money too and the characters constantly discuss their ideal way of using money. Most of the time i see in romance novels characters just fall in love and live together and how they are making money is never mentioned that much. So i very much appreciated when this novel shows how big of a struggle it is to earn money in a third world country with a psychology degree for someone who doesn't have rich parents. I just love this aspect of the novel the most.

2) The main couple knows how to communicate well

Like I said above, they come from different worlds so they have different views on a lot of topics. Usually, if it was a kdrama maybe the girl would've went " we can't be together because we are from different worlds" but not our Yu Hao . He wants to do his best to be together with him especially because they come from different upbringings. Because of their differences , they clash sometimes and fight especially with money matters but those fights are always peaceful and there are no misunderstandings and both of them communicate well and it's just so beautiful to see a couple who KNOWS what communication is haha

3) Both leads are super complex

Like it's rare to see such complexity even in danmei for me. Both of the characters are so well written and just …they act like actual human beings. So they might annoy you a bit but their growth is super amazing. Both of them fight their inner demons throughout the story and their journey of becoming better humans both individually and as a couple is such an immaculate experience. At first, Yu Hao may come across is this goody-shoes kind of boy who doesn't know how to step up for himself but later we see him become more mature, witty and having more self confidence. Zhou Sheng also comes across as this clown kind of person who's very annoying and possessive but this behaviour of him manifests from his insecurities. He just has a different way of hiding his insecurities. When You Hao shuts himself from the world so he won't get hurt by people, Zhou Sheng makes their clown persona so people won't hurt the real him. Both of them are struggling in their own way and when we slowly get to see them peel off their masks and be proud of their own skin. It's just ahhh so beautiful.

4) The side characters are well written too

The side characters are just as complex as the main characters and i think that's such a feat. I don't wanna reveal too much since it'll be spoilers but the side characters are of all kinds of sexuality, gender and stories. They feel like real humans and just arghh it's all so beautiful

5) The genres are mixed very well

so the main genres of this would be slice of life and adventure cuz like they go to other people's dreams and it's pretty adventurous but the slice of life aspect of it is also very much present and both of these genres are mixed so well. Like I'm a slice of life gal so i don't like adventure stuff that much but here I loved the dreamscapes so yeah it's blended very well.

6) The CP

The yearning the main characters have for each other in the beginning, the pinning, the fluff when they do get together.

7) Friendship

The story gives very big importance to the friendships the characters have and i feel like friendships are rarely celebrated this well so it's always a treat when a story does this.

8) Psychology

The main character studies psychology in his college so there's a lot of discussions around that and even outside of it, the novel is filled with the psychology of self and so much more . If you love psychology like me, it's a must. If you are a psychology student like me and Yu Hao, it's more of a must!

9) The smut

Tiref of reading censored and faded out sex scenes danmei ? Worry not! Cuz this novel has explicit sex scenes and they are written super well and with full detail. I know a lot of people get turned of by this so this is also a warning ? But you can always skip those chapters of you're uncomfortable. Anyways, i love some good smut in novels so if you're like me, you're gonna love this!

10) Because i said so

what more reason do you need ? Go read it now!

Carrd link : https://seizingdreams-info.carrd.co/

[nocturneworld6]

Comfort films, in no particular order:

1. The Green Mile (1999): My obsession for Stephen King runs deep with this one. Pretty sure almost everyone's watched this.

2. Legally Blonde (2001): Weighed down by patriarchy and catty women? This movie restores your faith in humanity.

3. Tumbbad (2018): Hindi language, it's a pretty good horror and the actors are phenomenal. If I recc something I'd recc this.

4. Howl's Moving Castle (2004): For that comforting feeling of being at home, away from home.

5. Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992): Gary Oldman as Dracula, Winona Ryder as Wilhemina and Keanu Reeves as Jonathan? I'm sold. Also, a childhood favourite, even though I probably wasn't allowed to watch such media back then.

6. Pride and Prejudice (2005): I like this version better for nostalgia reasons. Also, Keira Knightley.

7. Gangs of Wasseypur (2012): One of my favorites. Rustic, unabashedly violent, and filled with vengeance. Pretty long though, so beware.

Doesn't hurt to add the kdrama/cdrama list as well:

1. Moon lovers (Scarlet Heart Ryeo)(2016): Tortured ML, check. Time travel, check. Political intrigue, check. Heart wrenching ending, check. The fluff scenes are tooth rottingly sweet.

2. W: Two Worlds (2016): Parallel worlds, check. Doctor as a protagonist, check. Hot ML, check. Weird plot points, check. Also my first kdrama.

3. Hotel del Luna (2019): IU and Yeo Jingoo should work together again, they're so cute (⁠｡⁠ﾉ⁠ω⁠＼⁠｡⁠)

4. Till the End of the moon (2023): I want to suffer at this point. Nuf said.

5. Forever Love (2023): I watch this for comfort. The comfort being Dai Gao Zheng. (Point at me and laugh, idc 乁⁠|⁠ ⁠･⁠ ⁠〰⁠ ⁠･⁠ ⁠|⁠ㄏ)

6. Law School (2021): Toxic study shit. Makes me want to better myself and I'll keep watching Kang Sol A work hard till she has a nosebleed so many times that I'll have a nosebleed myself.

7. Again My Life (2022): Lee Joong Ki as a lawyer, also toxic study motivation. Don't blame me, I'm a doc, I need to be toxic for a major part of my job. Also pretty cool with the action sequences, kinda underrated.

Bonus: Asur (Welcome to your dark side) (2020): Hindi language, crime thriller, with a healthy dose of Indian mythology and forensic science. Also has Arshad Warsi, my favourite actor ヾ⁠(⁠･⁠ω⁠･⁠*⁠)⁠ﾉ

Sorry if I don't have older movies and dramas, I was way too obsessed with anime and didn't have time. Okay tags! @deng-yi-deng @mirageofadesert @hellofavillain @xiaolanhua (really want you guys to reccme your comfort watches tbh)

thanks @spurious and @colonelshepparrrrd for the tag!

List 7 comfort films and tag 7 people:

1. Iron Giant

2. Ferngully: The Last Rainforest

3. Hunger Games

4. Easy A

5. Mean Girls

6. uhhhhhhhhhh idk i don't watch movies 😅

7. not a movie but Stargate Atlantis bc it's my Ultimate Comfort Media

uhhh idk who has been tagged so sorry if you've already been tagged @frostysfrenzy @the-mushroom-faerie @lightthewaybackhome @books-space-things @stinalotte and anyone else who wants to do it!!!

[myfavoriteskdramas]

So guys, I've wanted to do this kind of list since a lot of time ago, of the kdramas that from my point of view are underrated, and I think more people who loves kdramas should give them a chance and watch them, so here is the first part:

1. Hogu's love aka Fool's love.

Ho Goo has a twin sister Ho Gyeong. He has tried to pass the civil service examination, but has failed for 7 years. He also has never dated in his life. One day, he meets Do Hee. She was the most popular girl back in his high school days. She is a member of the national swimming team and has a burning desire to win. She also talks like one of the guys. They spend the night together, but the next morning he finds a baby next next to him and Do Hee is gone. After Ho Goo meets Do Hee again, he becomes involved in a complicated romantic relationship and a dangerous friendship.

Link where you can watch it: https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/hogoos-love

2. The tale of nokdu aka Mung bean chronicles (one of my faves).

Jeon Nok Du is a man with extraordinary ambition to experience the big, wide world. With looks, brains, and athletic abilities, he is the epitome of perfection. After being swept up in an incident, he disguises himself as a woman to join a mysterious all-woman community and meets Dong Dong Joo.

Dong Dong Joo is a prickly gisaeng trainee. Along with her fiery personality, she is clumsy, has absolutely no sense of rhythm, and is tone-deaf, which makes all of her peers look after her. However, she is skilled with her hands as she can make anything if given the right tools. Unable to stand injustice, she speaks her mind.

Due to this fact, Jeon Nok Du ends up saving Dong Dong Joo from a dangerous situation. After that, she suddenly becomes Jeon Nok Du’s adopted daughter and he decides to live in the widow village for 1 year.

Link where you can watch it:

Is on Viki but you can watch it in this link too https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/mung-bean-chronicles

3. Clean with passion for now.

Jang Sun Gyeol has wealth and good looks but suffers from severe mysophobia. He is obsessed with cleaning and even owns his own cleaning company. However, he meets a carefree and untidy girl named Gil Oh Sol after she enters his company as a new employee.

Oh Sol has worked all sorts of part-time jobs while striving for a full-time job and does not have the luxury to date or be clean. She gave up on being neat after facing the tough reality of the world and is known for always wearing her trademark tracksuit. But she has a bright personality and does not mind getting dirty. With the help of Oh Sol, Sun Gyeol faces his mysophobia and also falls in love with her.

Link where you can watch it: https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/clean-with-passion-for-now

4. Live up to your name aka Deserving of the name.

Heo Im, who is born in a concubine family in Joseon era and has very outstanding medical skill, is frustrated about his career as he fails to climb to higher positions in the government because of his background. By accident, he travels through time to modern Seoul 400 years later and meets modern doctor Yeon Gyung. Thinking that Heo Im is weird, she hopes to get rid of Heo Im but instead, they travel back to Joseon together again.

Link where you can watch it:

Is on netflix, but you can watch it too in this link https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/deserving-of-the-name

5. Live On (Just finished one or two weeks ago) if you want to watch a short kdrama, this one it only has 8 episodes.

Live On” is set to be a romance story that follows the lives of Baek Ho Rang (Jung Da Bin), who is at the top of food chain at her high school where being trendy and popular brings higher social status, and Go Eun Taek (Minhyun), a perfectionist who is the head of the broadcasting club. Baek Ho Rang joins the broadcasting club in order get help from Go Eun Taek in uncovering the identity of a mysterious figure who is trying to bring to light parts of her past she wants to keep hidden.Baek Ho Rang immediately shot up to social media star status because of her beautiful looks and is one of the most popular girls at Seo Hyun High School. Despite being at the top of the social pyramid, she only has one true friend as she believes she is the center of the universe and looks down on others. Meanwhile, Go Eun Taek is in charge of the school’s broadcasting club and is someone who is sensitive, detail oriented, can sometimes be irritable, and plans everything out perfectly. Though he is strict and inflexible when it comes to his leadership, he never shies away from any task that is given to him and is loved by his fellow students.

Link where you can watch it:

Is on Viki but also you can watch it in this link

https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/live-on-2020

6. Dinner Mate.

This drama is about a young woman going through a rough breakup with a longtime boyfriend she’s still in love with, and a young man who’s a serial dater and kind of tired of relationships. They both like to eat out but dislike having to go to nice restaurants alone, and they happen to meet while waiting to be seated at a restaurant, each of them alone. The hostess mistakes them for a couple and offers them a couple special, which prompts them to sit together and end up having dinner together. After their first unexpected meeting, they meet and have dinner together weekly. That’s how they strike up an unusual friendship where they get together just to eat out, and over multiple dinners, they open up to each other about their relationship troubles and grow closer.

Link where you can watch it:

https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/dinner-mate

7. Oh my venus.

This is a drama about two Childhood friends meet again in their adulthood and find themselves making a bet on a “diet challenge”. The story focuses on their journey of searching for love and health.

Kang Joo Eun meets Kim Yeong Ho, who agrees to be her personal trainer to help her get healthier. As they work on her physical transformation, they both discover they have feelings for each other. As they grow closer, they heal each other's emotional wounds and fall in love.

Link where you can watch it:

Is on Viki but here's the link too

https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/oh-my-venus

8. Cheat on me if you can ( Is still on emission, there's only two episodes left).

For her work, best-selling crime author Yeo Joo researches how to make a murder look like an accidental death. Next to her is her younger husband, Woo Sung, who is a family man and works as a divorce lawyer. Woo Sung still thinks he's a sexy, attractive partner, and lives on with his wonderful marriage life. However, lately, Yeo Joo, who would rather be a widow than a divorcee, starts finding some of his behavior suspicious. Could he be cheating on her? Could Woo Sung possibly be enjoying a thrilling affair behind her back? Yeo Joo tells it straight: If he cheats, he will die.

Link where you can watch it:

Is on Viki but also here's the link https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/if-you-cheat-you-die

9. The beauty inside (one of my faves).

Han Se Kye is a top actress, also known as a troublemaker, with many rumors around her. To others, her life appears as a mystery, when in fact she is faced with a strange occurrence where she must change into a different body and new identity for one week a month. She encounters Seo Do Jae, a brilliant man who is an executive at an airline company. He seems to have it all: a perfect appearance, knowledge, and a good job; but he has a secret too. He suffers from Prosopagnosia, the inability to recognize faces. However, he manages to hide this from the world, every day he makes an effort to remember people by their personalities.

Seo Do Jae's life begins to change when he meets Han Se Kye. She is the only person whose face he can recognize. But with Han Se Kye's constant disappearance and change how long can she keep her secret?.

Link where you can watch it:

https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/the-beauty-inside-korean-drama

10. Royal secret inspector aka Secret royal agent (is on emission now, there's a few episodes left).

Set towards the end of the Joseon era, Sung Yi-Gyeom placed first in the state examination and he now works at the Hongmungwan (administrative and research department). He doesn't have a goal or ambition for his life. One day, Sung Yi-Gyeom is caught gambling. As punishment, he is assigned to work as a secret royal inspector. His job is to eradicate illegal acts and corruption by public officers. He carries out his new job with the help of Hong Da-In and Park Chun-Sam. Hong Da-In is a female inspector and solves cases with Sung Yi-Gyeom. Park Chun-Sam is Sung Yi-Gyeom’s servant. Park Chun-Sam is talkative, affectionate, and tearful.

Meanwhile, Sung Yi-Beom is Sung Yi-Gyeom’s younger stepbrother. His father is a nobleman, but his mother is a slave. Due to his mother's low social status, his father does not accept him as his real son and he is barred from having certain opportunities. He opposes his older stepbrother Sung Yi-Gyeom.

Link where you can watch it:

https://dramacool.so/drama-detail/new-secret-royal-inspector

[mgsapphire]

My K-drama recommendation master list Part 2

You can find part 1 here

Look, you gave us relatively new recommendations, what about ones older than 10 years? I'll give you my top 5

Princess Hours (2006) Is a modern Cinderella story. It's 24 episodes long. Available on Viki.

Personal Taste (2010) Honestly, problematic plot if you put your mind into it, but entertaining nonetheless. It's 16 episodes long, each one lasting a little over an hour, available on Viki.

Cinderella's Sister (2010) You hate every character, but there's still something that makes you watch it. Available on Viki.

Thank You (2007) was ahead of its time, it's about a single mother with a daughter who has an HIV+ diagnosis. 16 episodes long, each one lasting a little over an hour. Available on Viki.

Stairway to Heaven (2003) for a good melodrama.

What about romantic fantasies involving fantastic beings?

Guardian: The lonely and Great God(2016) A classic of the genre. It tells the story of a God who was once a man, and is being punished by immortality, unless he meets his bride, who just so happens to be a high schooler centuries later. Available on viki. 16 episodes long with 3 specials, all lasting about 75 minutes.

Hotel Del Luna (2019) it would be unfair to talk about Goblin, without talking about this other masterpiece about a being cursed into immortality and granted special availabilities along with it, but a curse is still a curse, and she must run a hotel meant for ghosts, where after centuries of being, meets a young man who is alive. Availability on Viki, 16 episodes long and each one lastz about 75 minutes.

Tale of the Nine Tailed (2020) You get to see Lee Dong Wook as another mystical being, and Kim Bum is his half brother. 16 episodes long and one special, each one lasting about 65 minutes. Available on Viki.

My roommate is a Gumiho (2021) what's up with gumihos? It's still airing. The title is self explanatory. Available on Viki and Qiyi.

Angel's last mission: Love (2019) is a cute and sad story about an angel who is about to ascend and a ballerina who has a cynical view of the world. Available on Viki. Each episode averages 30 minutes, with 32 episodes.

Doom at your service (2021) About to finish airing. It tells the story of a dying woman who wishes doom upon the world, and the doom who answers her plea. Available on viki, 16 episodes long, each one lasting about an hour.

The Scholar Who walks the night (2015) another Lee Joon Gi entry, but I swear all of his works are great, it's a period drama that tells the story of a scholar who is a vampire and the young bookseller he meets. It's 20 episodes long, each one lasting about an hour. Available on viki. Also, if you've liked Lee Soo Hyuk in Doom at Your Service, I advise you check this one out.

Tale of Arang (2012) two Lee Joon Gi entries in a row? Girl, you have to stop. Anyways, this one is another period piece of a magistrate who can see ghosts and the ghost of a young woman who doesn't remember her life, nor the cause of her death. Available on viki, it's 20 episodes long, each one lasting a little over an hour.

Look, those are fine or whatever, but I started as a K-pop fan, where can I see some idol dramas? Don't worry, I came prepared

Full House (2004) with Rain as the main character is the og idol drama in my opinion. Available on Viki. 16 episodes long, each one lasting about 73 minutes.

Imitation (2021) is currently airing, and it's literally an idol drama about idols. You can find a looot of idols too: Jeong Yun Ho and Park Seong Hwa from Ateez, Chani and Hwi Young from SF9, Park Ji Yeon from T-ara, Lim Na Young from I.O.I and Pristin, and although Jeong Ji So is not an idol, she is the main lead, and I absolutely love her, she's also in Doom at your service. Available on Viki.

Miss Panda and Mr. Hedgehog (2012) features Donghae from Super Junior, and if I'm going to recommend a Super Junior drama, I would rather recommend one featuring him over Siwon.

At a Distance the Spring is Green (2021) is currently airing too, and only has four released episodes, but I've liked it so far. Featuring Park Ji Hoon, and Kwon Dun Bin. Also, I have a lot of opinions about this show. Available on Viki.

I was going to put an IU drama but, all her dramas are good, so go and watch them all, the woman has range.

Dream High (2011) is the king of idol dramas, in my opinion. It talksa about a high school for people who want to be idols. Another one with a long line up of idols, so let me start: Suzy, IU, Taecyeon, Nichkhun and Wooyoung from 2PM, Ham Eun Jung from T-ara. Leeteuk (SuJu and Chansung (2PM) make cameos. Similarly to Imitation, Kim Soo Hyun is not an idol, but he's the main lead. It's 16 episodes long, each one lasting about 65 minutes. Available on Viki.

Wow, quite a few, but they all seem rather popular, do you have some underrated gems? I'm going to have to go down memory lane, but I do

The Queen's Classroom (2013) This one feels like a fever dream, because I'm aware it exists, I watched it back when it first aired, but I can't find it anywhere now. It's based on a Japanese drama of the same name. It's about a strict but warm hearted teacher and her students' lives and struggles. 16 episodes long. DM me if you find anywhere to watch it.

1% of Something (2016) is a really cute drama, the chemistry is off the charts, and if you're looking for skinship, this one is the one for you, underrated arranged marriage kdrama, I'm telling you. It's 16 episodes long, averaging 45 minutes, and it's on Viki.

I'm not a Robot (2017) has a really cute plot, not underrated per se, but not hyped enough. It's 32 episodes long, each one averaging 30 minutes. Available on Viki.

Do you like Brahms? (2020) is a music themed kdrama, really cute and wholesome. If you like 2setviolin and watched their critique on their YouTube channel, let me tell you, the cast actually knows how to play violin and stuff, and there's an actual child prodigy in there. It got so much hate bc of that one yt video. It's 16 episode long, each one lasting about an hour. Available on Viki.

Solomon's Perjury (2016) a good reflection on youth and the pressure society has. 12 episodes long, lasting about 63 minutes each. Available on Viki.

The Greatest Love (2011) is a super entertaining TV show, and just supper funny and cute. 16 episodes long, each one lasting around 65 minutes. Available on Viki.

Two Cops (2017) if you like Kim Seon Ho, I think this was his TV acting debut. It's a hilarious action comedy TV show. 32 episodes long, lasting around 30 minutes. Available on viki.

Do you have any recommendations where time traveling or time is central to the story?

Alice (2020) look, I can't give you a full explanation because it's too mind bending. Let's leave it at detective meets his mother. Available on Viki.

Signal (2016) The premise is similar to that of the movie Frequency (2000) in which there's communication between the past and the present via technology. The plot is based on the real Hwaseong serial murders. Really interesting. Available on Netflix. If you like the premise of communicating with the past via technology Call (2020) is a Korean thriller movie available on Netflix.

Chicago Typewriter (2017) this one is about reincarnation but we get to see both timelines. Available on Netflix.

Tomorrow with you (2017) Time-traveling but make it ✨depressing ✨. The story of a man who time travels, and how that ability messes with his marriage. Available on Netflix.

What about historical dramas? I don't really watch those, but here are some I liked

The Moon Embracing the Sun (2012) is one of the few I've finished. It's really good, it follows the love story of a king. Available on viki. 20 episodes long, each one lasting about an hour.

Gunman in Joseon (2014) Am I recommending you this one because of Lee Joon Gi? Maybe. It has 22 episodes, each one lasting about an hour. Available on Viki.

The Crowned Clown (2019) a story of the Prince and the Pauper if I must give you a description that is relatable, but if you know the book titled Skogland, it's closer to that. It's 16 episodes long, each one lasting about 80 minutes. Available on Viki.

I'm a little ashamed to say this, but do you have any BL? I do, I do

To My Star (2021) is a story about an actor and a chef, and how they learn to cohabit after the actor is forced into hiding. You can watch either the movie version or the drama version, both available on viki.

Color Rush (2020) is a modern romance fantasy about people called Monos who can't see any color unless they meet their Probes, however this may turn dangerous as the Monos may experience obsessive behavior, so what happens when a young high schooler meets his probe?. You can either watch it on its drama or movie version. Both available on viki. By the way, if you're a long time deobi and was wandering what happened to Hwall, he's one of the main leads.

You Make Me Dance (2021) follows the story of a university dancer who is in debt and his debt collector. Available on viki in both versions. The movie is 107 minutes long.

Just Friends (2009) is a short film, but ahead of its time, if you can't tell by the year it was released on. It's a cute story about a man who visits his boyfriend in the military. I found it in dramacool.

That's all from me, if you have any specific genre or them you felt I didn't add in, do feel free to tell me.

[kalena-henden]

It’s time for a mid-year report on all the tv I’ve been watching since my last update in March. In a surprising turn, I was sucked into the kdrama vortex in March thanks to the first kdrama I’ve ever watched, Sisyphus the Myth. Then I needed more Cho Seung Woo content which then led to perusing Netflix to fill up my queue and watching more kdramas that were currently airing (Doom At Your Service being a fave). I love that kdramas have all the tropes and mashed-up genres and so far none have gone to the terrible grimdark place of no hope. I’ve finished 13 kdramas so far and counting. (*kdramas noted)

finished or caught up with: 

Sisyphus the Myth* - Loved it and I have a completely different take on the ending. Cho Seung Woo and Park Shin Hye kicked ass.

Debris - I enjoyed it, especially the two-part au episodes, but not heartbroken it was cancelled.

Stranger/Secret Forest* - My #1 kdrama so far! Murder mystery/political thriller ftw. Cho Seung Woo and Bae Doona are everything.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier - They did a great job with Bucky and Sam but why did all the women have to get shafted for that to happen.

Shadow and Bone - A fun, fast-paced season. Loved everyone but surprised how much I loved Helnik cause I’m not a big fan of them in the books.

Life* - My third Cho Seung Woo drama about a messy battle between a hospital and it’s new parent company. CSW x dogs ftw.

Cinderella and the Four Knights* - My first kdrama romcom. A little cheesy but I had a good time. Park So Dam from Parasite is a great heroine.

My Holo Love* - An interesting love triangle between a woman with face-blindness, an AI hologram, and the hologram’s creator. This is underrated.

Doom At Your Service* - This show is fantastic! My #3 kdrama. A woman with terminal cancer calls for doom and is surprised when Doom shows up on her doorstep. It’s got romance, comedy, drama, fantasy, symbolism, and philosophy. It also subverts several tropes--first love, love triangle, second lead syndrome--in interesting ways. I watched this live and was living for the metas and gifs. It has my favorite steamy kdrama kiss (in the rain no less)!

So I Married the Anti Fan* - An enemies to lovers very loosely based on Pride and Prejudice, where a reporter gets fired due to a misunderstanding with a kpop idol only to end up on a reality show together to save both their reputations. The first half was a bit cringey on how mean they were to each other but, once they overcame their differences, they had one of the most genuine and unshakeable relationships.

Tunnel* - A time-travel murder mystery that was well paced and interesting. The last five minutes didn’t make sense in their effort for a happy ending but I enjoyed the ride.

Vincenzo* - My #2 kdrama! A lawyer for the Italian mob returns to his home country of Korea. This is such a crazy ride! There’s over-the-top comedy but there’s also great fight scenes and murder. It’s got found family, action, revenge, romance, a gold heist, great villains, stylish fashions, and all the slo-mo your heart desires. lol In more ways than one, this is ‘art’. *wink*

Run On* - This romantic drama on a professional runner and his translator snuck up on me. Very relatable as it’s about people at personal and professional crossroads. 

Boys Over Flowers* - Okay, I completely get the hype over Lee Min Ho now. I LOVE the characters in this but it’s a 100% a soapy soap and I was so mad at everyone for constantly making terrible decisions. With the time jump at the halfway mark, the show slowed down the constant drama a bit which helped. I have a real love/hate with this one but I think it’s definitely worth watching.

The Heirs* - Don’t hate me but I enjoyed this show; it has all the tropes. I’m on Lee Min Ho and Park Shin Hye kick. (Though why was PSH’s character so mopey.) This show was also unintentionally funny for me because I’ve lived in LA for the past 16 years and their filming locations to actual geography was completely off. The “Malibu” pier where they go surfing is actually the Huntington Beach pier in Orange County. When they get chased from his Malibu home, the next scene is them running down Vine (near Capitol Records) which is an hour drive from Malibu; then after they run through Hollywood and Highland mall, they don’t go next door to the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theater; instead they go a theater in San Diego!!! is which a four-hour drive away. I was dying with laughter, I had to pause the show.

Never Have I Ever - This show continues to be awesome. Thoroughly enjoyed the disaster of Devi trying to date both boys. And I have picked an endgame: Team Ben. Though I’m cool with Devi dating Paxton in the meantime.

Her Private Life* - A museum curator falls for her new boss while she tries to hide her secret life as a kpop idol-obsessed fangirl. They do a great job respecting the fandom life but aren’t afraid to let us laugh with the characters and there are some steamy makeout scenes. Also, super pretty as it’s about ‘art’ and life.

currently watching: 

Outer Banks - A Goonies-like treasure hunt, rich vs. poor classicism, romance, and teen shenanigans. Binging in time for S2 later this week.

Crash Landing On You* - Yes, I have finally started the romcom kdrama everyone has been raving about. Enjoying so far.

The Witch’s Diner* - A drama about a witch who makes wishes come true for a price.

currently rewatching: Star Trek: Voyager; Never Have I Ever; Vincenzo*

on hold:  

Sen Çal Kapımı - I watched the first 11 episodes of this Turkish romcom and loved it but needed a break.

Lucifer - I got to that the Dan episode and couldn’t make it through. Does this season feel slow to anyone else?

Queen of the South - I started the final season but it got put on the back burner for now. At least, I know it’s a happy ending.

Legends of Tomorrow - I started watching the new season live but kdramas are still my jam.

[reachexceedinggrasp]

Not the same themes anon but i was so interested in your response and would LOVE to know what you find the best examples/executions of those themes! Thank you!

Ever After is one of my all-time favourite pieces of vindication porn. Right up there with the Henriad. Wonder and empathy are also major themes and it remains undefeated as the best fairy tale adaptation of its kind ever. A rare and stunning romanticism.

Speaking of which. The Hollow Crown BBC adaptation of the Henraid (Henry IV parts 1&2 and Henry V). It's not the best version as an adaptation of the text but it has the best character work for Hal and amazing thematic consistency, and the acting is absolutely godtier ridiculous it's so good. Hiddles looks extremely hot throughout also.

Les Misérables. The whole book is entirely about compassion and it’s very, very beautiful. You'll laugh, you'll cry, it'll change your life. Unironically. lmao

Quo Vadis. forgiveness, redemption, compassion

Crime and Punishment. hope, redemption

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Terry Gilliam 1988 fantasy/adventure film. THE TRIUMPH OF IDEALISM OVER CYNICS I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH HOW HEALING IT IS TO WATCH. Jonathan Pryce’s spiritual villain is basically Chris Terrio and it is cathartic to see imagination and sentiment conquer him. wonder, romanticism, indefatigable optimism

The original Final Fantasy VII (you can play it on the switch, you can run an emulator, you can acquire the original PC version, or the PS1 disc will work on PS2 or PS3, make sure to use a guide so you don’t miss any of the optional story because there is some very important flashbacks and whole major characters you can completely bypass without realising) compassion, healing, romanticism, hope. Not sure how old I was when I first played it, but pretty little and I think cleris was my first ship ever. I will still cry every time I listen to Aeris' theme.

(FFIX is into those areas as well, though less so than VII.)

Series 9 of New Who is the most uncompromising and demanding statement about compassion in mainstream media for decades, though you really need the anniversary special and series 8 for context (and series 8 requires a little forbearance before it makes its point). Classic Who is also HUGE on this, but that is a massive can of worms. Big on wonder and hope as well.

The anime Twelve Kingdoms. This is a criminally underrated masterpiece with my other all-time favourite female character (near-tied with Clarice Starling). It’s a sprawling high fantasy epic, but it’s intensely character-driven and Youko’s arc is just… just the best. Compassion, wonder, vindication.

The manga Rurouni Kenshin, it’s the post-redemption living and struggle for atonement you never get to see. Also: happy ending!!

The anime Trigun runs on hope (Vash is the poster child for radical idealism), Fruits Basket (romanticism and compassion, monster romance narrative my beloved~~), the kdrama Money Flower (it is darker than a lot of things recced here but it is ultimately about vindication and hope and it is SO GOOD)

Star Trek, particularly TNG and TOS.

Some movies: The Fall (2006), Metropolis, The Fisher King, The Spirits Within, You Can’t Take it With You, Mirrormask, Benny and Joon, California Solo, Don Juan de Marco (WONDER! and romanticism!! I am jdskjfdlsk about this film because it just speaks to me on a deep spiritual level), Labyrinth, Legend (the director's cut- the theatrical cut really butchered it), Hellboy, I Am Dragon, Jane Eyre (1943), Howl's Moving Castle

With the essential caveat that you must stop watching halfway through episode 11, the kdrama Robber is a full-on, balls out redemption romance which is not kidding about making its protagonist a very grounded and realistic asshole who genuinely needs redemption, and it doesn’t apologise for its optimism about human nature and the power of love at all. The female lead’s story centres on her recovery from trauma and there is a lot of forgiveness and a lot of humanising of characters who would be flat villains in most shows.

[misscrawfords]

6, 10 and 22 for the TV questions thing.

6. which shows do you think are underrated and need more love?

In general, kdramas, because I'm so over American shows. And kdramas beyond the ones that get famous like Squid Game and CLOY. Things like Her Private Life and Romance is a Bonus Book and even Vincenzo are really fabulous.

Also those period dramas that got cancelled like Indian Summers and The Halcyon. They were doing interesting things with race and sexuality respectively and got cancelled and yet absolute trash and period dramas that are much less interesting, original, and adventurous get continuously renewed.

10. what’s one show you thought you’d love but turned out to really hate?

Wasn't expecting to love Outlander but I really disliked it more than I was expecting. I semi-hate watched one and a half seasons of Once Upon a Time waiting for it to get good and justify my mutuals on tumblr who were really into it. I had really high hopes of Beecham House but it was absolutely terribly written. Perhaps the biggest one is The Office (US). I've watched about 5 episodes and haven't laughed once. It is boring, staid, and its jokes are deeply unfunny and borderline offensive. I don't get why everyone treats it as the greatest thing on TV ever. Are we even watching the same show!? Perhaps it's just aged very, very badly.

22. if you could write your own TV show, what would it be like?

Oh BOY, where to start?

1) A Cambridge research lab accidentally opens up a portal through time to the early 19th century and out comes a pair of Regency vicar's daughters into the 21st century, trapped when the portal closes. S01 deals with them fitting into modern life and trying to find a way back. Penny the eldest hates it and wants to get back to her fiance, Pearl the younger likes it a little too much. After a cliffhanger at the end of S01 in which they reopen the portal David, the grumpy and mysterious lead Cambridge researcher gets trapped in the Regency period, S02 sees Penny come into her own in the 21st century while David tries to investigate what's going wrong in the 19th. The end of S02 reveals that The Powers That Be are doing something really evil and the final season is spent with people in the 19th and 21st centuries working together to defeat whatever it is.

2) Trojan War series with three seasons: Before, During, Aftermath. Prioritises the narratives of Penelope and Helen as contrasting and parallel heroines and deals with multiple stories, including that of the Aeneid and the return of heroes beyond Odysseus.

3) A kind of Kingsmen meets Miss Fisher meets The Mummy meets Indiana Jones meets Marple meets Agent Carter style show about an organisation of fabulous women adventuresses (and the men (and women)) who love them in the early part of the 20th century. I definitely want to write a series of novels on this theme one day.

Ask me about TV shows!

[kdramaspace]

MEMBER OF THE MONTH   ↳ Congrats biniBningPunkista! @asiandramastoke​

💌 NOTES FROM THE ADMINS

Layla: first of all going through your blog and seeing all your content have been nice seeing you grow as a content maker have been really great, and seeing all the edits for different kdramas from the big ones to the small ones, you have a nice style, and when you make capspam i love the caps you choose! so thank you for being an active content maker and for all your contributions to the kdrama community and being a member of the kdramaspace family, always looking forward to your new content and pretty edits 💛. ↳ favorite works: [ 1, 2, 3 ]

Sam: layla mentioned it already, but I’ve enjoyed seeing you and your blog grow and you grow more confident in your works and try different things. and i can tell you’re definitely starting to find your own style ❤︎ not only that, but you always provide with a variety of content from different shows  you’ve got gifs, caps, reviews, the works! it’s wonderful to have you be a part of our little drama community here on tumblr.  i look forwards to seeing more of you and your blog’s growth and thank you for all your contributions! we are happy to have you as a member of our network ^^ ↳ favorite works: [ 1, 2, 3 ]

Alexa: to echo layla and sam’s sentiment, seeing your blog grow has been wonderful!! you’ve curated a really creative style to your edits, screencaps, and headers! i also appreciate that you make headers and icons and such that everyone can use - it’s super rare to find people who make kdrama headers for public use so i’m sure many people in the fandom appreciate it! you always have such a great variety of shows on your blog - you’ve made content for a lot of my underrated faves and that always makes me happy to see! you’ve been a staple member of our network for some time now and we’re so grateful to have your support and beautiful content to put on our blog! congrats on a well-deserved motm crown <3 ↳ favorite works: [ 1, 2, 3 ]

[sunlightwoo]

☼ favorite works tag

rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 (or so) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want so we can spread the love and link each other awesome works.

tagged by: @hannie-dul-set​ and @gamerwoo hehe thank you ily queens and i am tagging whoever sees this to do it!!

I decided to post this whenever i posted my parts of @timextoxhajima​‘s collab with other deobi writers for reasons heheh buT HERE WE GOO

FIRST THINGS FIRST!!!

6.) second life (hi bye mama inspired au for jeon wonwoo)  i don’t even know where to start with this one... i think that because at the time wonshua were my ults that i managed to hurt myself alot with the angst in that one. i really liked how the outcomes of that fic came out and i have really high expectations these days for all the fics that i have coming up tbh cause im like nothing can top that... 

5.) starlight (hotel del luna inspired au for jeong yunho) this is one of my favorite underrated fics that i’ve posted on here. i really loved watching the kdrama itself and listening to the soundtrack and other songs really made me feel as though i wrote it nicely as i thought about possibly writing a spin-off to it. but i personally loved this because even though not a lot of people have read it, it’s like a hidden treasure in a way ya know?

4.) five day confessions (christmas collab w dana for eric sohn) one of the reasons that i chose this as one of my top five is because although i had just posted this, i really liked the process that it took to write out this idea. i’m usually not one for really long oneshots to write and would rather write a whole series on it, but i’m really proud of myself for sitting down and actually spending days writing this specific piece hehe.

3.) eyes on us / sunrise (tct summer collab) okay so there’s a reason why i chose both of these and it’s because they were my first svt oneshots that were as long as they were (4k wc) and i was amazed with myself in the summer that i was able to do it. tct has been a warm home to me since may and when we were able to do this collab, i was really excited and i have yet (still) to read everyones cause of how busy i been these days but i WILL READ EVERYONES I PROMISEUHFAEOFA but this collab was one of my favorites from this year and was truly a fun and happy experience :))

2.) feverish lips & louder than bombs (mafia!svt au series) i cheated a little bit since feverish lips was posted christmas eve of 2019... but a good majority was still in 2020 and so was it’s sequel!! the reason why it’s up here is because it was my first sm au/svt au that kinda blew up?? like i know the moonlust series was up first before it but feverish lips really blew up when it did in 2020??? and i was really proud of the sequel that i made for it too heheh. definitely takes the cake for second favorite. i thank everyone endlessly for always sending little notes for the two fics and hopefully the svt sm au series i’m working on now kinda tops it?? lol shameless promo, follow the money talks series :)

1.) fated by the stars (soulmate au for joshua/jeonghan collab) this takes the cake as my all time favorite work of the year. i think that its known that fated by the stars was one of my favorite collabs cause i did it with my best friend ( @viastro in case you didn’t know :) ) and i had a lot of fun writing this with her! i think that when we made this up at 3/4am nights and created our collab blog ( @haokyeom​ ) it was like, a good time to do it since we really had a lot of free time to do it (even though i did like a small hiatus and worked). the collab is like our little baby and i’m really happy with how it came out along with some of the results that came from it!!

[dangermousie]

OMGGGGG!!!!

This is my most anticipated kdrama of 2021, sorry, the rest of them!

Bossam: Stealing Fate stars Jung Il Woo and Kwon Yu Ri in a sageuk that is not about the royal family for once! In fact, JIW’s character is dirt poor. (But still hot.)

Basically, JIW’s character appears from a noble family but was framed for conspiracy when young and barely escaped with his life. Now he lives in poverty and connects widows with new husbands. (Hey, it’s a living!) He accidentally kidnaps a princess (how?!), our heroine.

So, I am excited because:

1. Jung Il Woo has a spotty track record for picking modern dramas, to say the least. But if there is one thing the man is excellent at, it’s sageuk roles. The man was born for sageuk. (Side note - Return of Iljimae is the most underrated sageuk in history, fight me!)

2. And he looks damn good here. Damn good!

3. You know what’s rarer than a pre-Joseon sageuk? A sageuk not set around royal or noble (or at least merchant) families. I can only think of a few that largely deal with poor people - Chuno, Nokdu Flower (which I need to watch hmmm - next binge?), Rebel The Thief Who Stole the People, Hong Gil Dong, Maids and Return of Iljimae are outweighed by a gazillion of the noble/royal ones. Nothing wrong with that, but I like something different now and then.

4. Many people love the Cinderella fantasy or rich guy x plucky poor girl. As for me, I prefer its inverse - aka reverse slumming - upper class woman x lower class man. THANK YOU, BOSSAM!!!!

5. SAGEUK SAGEUK SAGEUK!!!!

6. The description explicitly says “It will be a story of life and love that touches upon the oppression experienced by women and the impoverished.” Gimme!!!

7. See (6) - it’s a romance-centric sageuk.

8. Kwon Seok Jang directed some dramas I really like (Pasta, Miss Korea, What’s Up Fox.)

9. Not familiar with Kwon Yu Ri but she looks the part.

10. Reject the tyranny of making Top 10 lists, say I!

[strawberry1212]

Age of Youth - Song & Sungmin - Favorite Kdrama Relationships

(spoilers for Seasons 1 and 2 ahead!)

I know I am late to the party. Age of Youth started in 2016 and the second and last (but hopefully not last T_T) season ended in 2017. As much as I love Kdramas, it is so hard to find a show that doesn't glorify toxic relationships and men, and it is so hard to find media (Korean or otherwise), that focuses on the friendships and lives of women, that when I started Age of Youth, it quickly claimed a very special place in my heart.

I am extremely saddened to think that makers won't see the potential and the demand (even without Son Seung Won of course) for a Season 3. Of course I want more stories of sisterhood--I could never get enough of the various friendships and trials of Belle Epoque, but I have to admit (as much as I believe friendship is underrated and romance is overrated in media), that the most unresolved part of the show that I would like to see a Season 3 for, is the Song x Sungmin couple. (thoughts and speculations on the continuation of the show here)

Song and Sungmin were a revolutionary couple for me because for once, I understood why they liked each other. Usually in Kdramas everything is left up to "fate." Fate throws a good looking man and a good looking woman (there's always the assumption of heteronormativity, which is a whole other conversation), they happen to live together, or they bump into each other everywhere (seriously, the leads always manage to accidentally see each other in extremely big cities like Seoul?), or they get into some awkward situation that leads to romantic tension and bam! They go from hating each other to suddenly risking their lives for each other.

But with Song and Sungmin there was none of that lazy deux ex machina writing. We don't even see how they met each other, and we get to skip the whole destiny meet-cute which I see as a really harmful narrative in society on creating unrealistic expectations. They are friends through working at the same newspaper club at university (a shared interest!). They work well together and always have stuff to talk about. Their personalities compliment each other and they seem to have fun when they spend time together, and not just in the superficial couples montage way that I see in dramas a lot where the couple just goes to an amusement park and they try on silly sunglasses together. I always wonder in those scenes, what are the leads even talking about? They usually don't even have any shared interests? These two genuinely seem to  have fun talking and being with the other in a more fundamental way than that. There's also no weird power dynamic at play (boss and secretary/employee which is SO common), they are colleagues and students. Song can confide in him, and he doesn't attempt to lead or aggressively become the knight in shining armor for her, he just supports her when she needs it. The healthiness of their relationship is unparalleled, except perhaps by Miss Hammurabi, my favorite Kdrama of all time, and now, when I am watching Run On.

Unlike other comments on the show, I actually really liked the pace of the Song/Sungmin relationship in Season 2. I didn't feel the need for them to kiss or become overtly romantic in Season 2. Song needed to reckon with the scars of her childhood in witnessing a sexual assault, and Sungmin showed he was a true friend by standing with her every step of the investigation and trial. It showed they had a solid friendship as a foundation for any future relationship. I enjoyed watching them work as a team and doing the whole "will they or won't they? do they like each other?" thing. But to build that up all throughout Season 2, to END Season 2 with an implicit admission from Sungmin that he liked Song romantically, and then to not give us a Season 3?! We have been mocked. To give us such a well-written, deftly directed, and carefully crafted couple like Song and Sungmin and then leave us hanging? We have been disrespected!

I think writing this has been my form of therapy in getting my emotions out over this gem of a Kdrama. Even if we don't get a Season 3 of AOT, hopefully the writer will continue writing incredible dramas with healthy relationships and strong women. Until then I'll just continue rewatching fan edits of Song x Sungmin T_T

[clockworkswans]

1/2?

1. A popular drama you didn’t like?

The Legend of the Blue Sea. Also Mr Sunshine (which is such a shame because i watched a few episodes and it was so beautifully filmed, but it was too slow for me).

2. An unpopular drama that you like?

the criminally underrated, A Piece of Your Mind. I’m still so mad they cut the episodes, ugh. It was absolutely perfect and kept me going through the first part of the pandemic last year tbh. ALSO The Guardians/Lookout. The fact that i’m not super into thriller shows but got hella hooked on that...wow.

send me kdrama asks :)

[perpetual-fall]

Ranking Kdrama I watched in 2020

...because why tf not?

19. The Game: Towards Zero - most boring crime drama I've ever watched.

18. Forest - also very boring.

17. The King: Eternal Monarch - a mess. Unfortunately not a very entertaining mess. It did have some saving graces tho (and the OST is awesome!) Overall, disappointing.

16. Oh My Baby - like so many dramas this year, this started off well enough and then didn't deliver on the refreshing premise. But solid romance nevertheless.

15. Search - doesn't make a lot of sense. Doesn't need to-it's still a nice enough watch.

14. The School Nurse Files - weird. Short. Confusing. But somehow kinda engaging.

13. Tell Me What You Saw -standard OCN thriller with just enough elements that were interesting to me.

12. Mr. Heart -very short, very fluffy BL-webdrama. Feel-good show.

11. It's Okay To Not Be Okay - oh, I had high expectations for this and it somehow managed to become just rly... not that special. But up until the halfway point, it was great!

10. Missing: The Other Side - very touching. The last episode is prob the best of any drama this year. I pretty much cried buckets.

9. Zombie Detective - Came looking for copper but found gold. Genuinely hilarious and even touching at times.

8. When I Was The Most Beautiful - I wanted to punch a chara like every 5 minutes while watching this. But there was some actually good writing there (sometimes). The ending frustrated me to no end tho.

7. Crashlanding On You - I remember hardly anything about CLOY, except that I enjoyed it while it aired and that I didn't like how either of the couples ended up.

6. Where Your Eyes Linger - 2nd BL-webdrama on this list. Enjoyed this more than the other one, prob bc it was more angsty.

5. Tale of the Nine-tailed - the bromance is the best part. The ending sucks. Nevertheless, a fun ride.

4. Kairos - It's rly good. With strong writing throughout and some nice character development.

3. Memorist - loved the charas, the mystery and how dark this got on several occasions. In retrospect, I don't think the writing was that good but it kept me at the edge of my seat week after week. (And there was no unncesseary romance. Tends to annoy me in crime dramas.)

2. Born Again - yes, I'm the one odd person who actually genuinely liked it. Granted, it was an odd drama. One step from being a complete dumpsterfire, but oh so highly enjoyable. (I was so ridiculously invested in this while it was airing, it isn't even funny.)

1. Nobody Knows - criminally underrated. A truly great drama. Def my fav this year. I love all the characters and their (found) families so much!

Dropped:

Flower of Evil

The Cursed

Meow: The Secret Boy

Nothing particularly wrong with those 3 dramas, they just didn't rly grab me.

[bethd0456]

hellooo lovely! i loved reading your response to my last ask - apparently tumblr is messing up my asks bc a lot of them haven’t been going through :( but let’s hope this one does! i’ve been seeing that you watch cherry magic, and it’s one of my favourite shows at the moment!! 💘 who’s your favourite character? mine is kurosawa personally, i relate so much to him and his gayness. also udon chan, the cutest little cat! what did you think of the last ep, wasn’t it so cute!!! (1/2)

i hope you’re doing well!!! i also wanted to ask what your favourite shows and ships are! i already have a vague idea formulating just by browsing through your blog and over our shared love of cherry magic, but i’d looove to hear your thoughts and your favourites!! wishing you the bestest day! 💘 - your secret santa (2/2)

Hiiiii!!!! I hope life is treating you well!

Omg I'm so glad you enjoyed reading it! I hope you're ready for this MASSIVE answer and you don't get too bored reading this one!

CHERRY MAGIC!!!!!! It instantly became a comfort show for me, as it did for many others!

ADACHIADACHIADACHIADACHI. Adachi is 100% my fave. I never fully understood what a comfort character was. I was like, "yeah! I love Tine also!" But. Adachi is the definition of comfort for me. I see so much of myself in him! Everyone sees him and is like "babie. Must protecc." And honestly? Me too. How can one character be so damn CUTE??!?!? One of my favourite moments is him seeing Kurosawa after the almost-kiss. He just like, sees him, and gets so panicked 🥺 the way his arms just flail about makes me smile like an idiot.

But like, on a deeper level, this drama makes me believe I'm worthy of love. The idea that someone like Kurosawa could be THAT infatuated with you, even though you're an awkward virgin lmao. The point of watching these dramas is to get lost in a story, right? See a situation you want so badly but you know will never realistically happen? The entire premise of the show is just really enticing to me. I am Adachi, Adachi is me. Also, the thing he said in ep6 about not having a clear dream in life? Yeah. I felt that. I'm so envious of people who have passions they work so hard for, it gives them a form of purpose. Like Adachi, sometimes I feel like I'm living in a "daze". I feel like I don't really have any specific passions or skills that I want to develop into a career. Sometimes I just wish I had ambition. Adachi makes me feel so seen and like I'm not the only person who feels like this. The kinds of characters that usually make good protagonists are characters with a clear goal/passion. In most shows this obviously really works, but I can never relate to them personally. It's really special for me to see a character who's similar to me in this way.

Kurosawa is such an amazing character too!!!!! His gay little heart 🥺 on another level, he's just so?? Respectful??? 7. YEARS. 7 years of pining and he holds himself back so well!! He's been waiting for this relationship for so long but is so patient, willing to take things slowly for Adachi. He flirts shamelessly (as he should) but never to the point where Adachi was too uncomfortable.

He cares so much about Adachi :(. But also, even before he liked Adachi, he could tell he was uncomfortable with the drinking thing, so he DOWNED the wine lmao. Clearly he's just a lovely person all round who's really socially aware.

As for other characters:

• Udon my baby!!!! The cutest cat ever!! I love animals sm :(((

• Tsuge's chaotic energy is iconic

• Minato a lovely little dance machine :))

• Rokaku deserves the world, my excitable kiss interruptor :(((

• Fujisaki my love! She's so soft and cute!! Also ace coded how iconic

I ADORED ep8!!! I LIVE for established Adasawa! Adachi coming out to Tsuge :((( I'm so proud of Adachi coming to terms with his feelings and being confident enough to share his relationship with his closest friend. Coming out is not easy and he did so well 🥺

Adachi and Tsuge are so useless bless them 😂 Kurosawa really said "well I guess I have to take these two socially awkward disasters under my wing." Adachi and Tsuge are such a chaotic duo, I love that they can communicate just by touching each other, and omg when Kurosawa said his name Tsuge was "wait maybe I know everything about you already" and if that isn't friendship idk what is

Also Kurosawa making up a poem in his head about Adachi???? Peak romance. Also iconic. I'M A SUCKER FOR HAND HOLDING SCENES SO I DIED. "I like him. I like him. I like him!!" HOW CUTE CAN YOU GET FJKHDSHSKSK

I also got another arm flailing moment when Kurosawa almost got the wrong idea about Adachi and Tsuge!! CAN ADACHI STOP BEING SO CUTE MY HEART CAN'T TAKE IT. How on earth his boyfriend is still alive I have no idea.

There are so many other shows and ships I love. I feel like I'll probably miss some, but here we go. These aren't rankings at all, just like, lists lol.

Show list:

1. 2gether

This show means so much to me. It was the first time I watched a bl week by week and it made it so much more special?? I valued scenes so much more than when I binge shows and they would like, look at each other and I'd have a heart attack. They made the first part of my quarantine bearable bc I always had something to look forward to every Friday. I actually really enjoyed quarantine overall as an introvert (not to be insensitive about the literal deaths the pandemic has caused), but I really enjoyed constantly thinking about how long it was until Friday. I'm massively emotionally attached to all of the characters in this show you have no idea. Every single one. The found family of it all,, the way all of the characters have relationships. Still2gether did a phenomenal job of showcasing all of the unexpected but very welcome dynamics and relationships, platonic and romantic alike. I could blabber about this show for so long I'll spare u for now

2. YYY

Is it well written? No. Did I enjoy it anyway?? You know it! I told you how much I love the found family trope. UGH. THIS FAMILY. Also, seeing the feminine side of the LGBT+ community represented positively warmed my heart. There needs to be more bls that do that! Celebrate femininity!! There's nothing wrong with being camp as fuck! It's so much fun!!! This show made me so happy :))

3. Start up

I'm currently obsessed. It's my first Kdrama and holy shit this is what the hype is about. The budget!! The acting! Top notch. On a sad note I really wish bls got that much funding behind them. My heart aches for a complicated story with fully developed characters and plotlines, that just happens to have a gay main couple/character. Wishful thinking for now at least. Anyways, I'm massively emotionally attached to Halmeoni and Jipyeong. Team Jipyeong all the way (even tho Dalmi's obviously gonna end up with Dosan, and I'm happy for them!). All I need is a happy ending for my darling Jipyeong. Please give him one. Also, if anything happens to Halmeoni I will WEEP.

4. Cherry magic is obviously here but I've ranted about that enough already 😂

5. 3 will be free

I would never have expected gmm to make a series like this! But they went and did THAT. Wild. It was such a healthy representation of a poly relationship. The themes of feminism were so well handled and powerful, the chemistry was off the CHARTS, I was hooked from start to finish! Time for a rewatch? I think so.

6. Feel good

Not an Asian drama, but still gay as FUCK. It's written by my wife Mae Martin who also stars in it, and I have to say, it blew me away. Story time!! My friend irl recommended it to me without saying it was Mae, so I was like "okay sure I'll put it on my to watch list I guess" without much motivation to watch it. But as soon as I found out it was Mae I watched it and I've never looked back lol. Once I finished I sent my friend a splurge of messages about my feelings. The series touches on issues like addiction, sexuality and gender. "I'm not a boy. I'm not even a girl. I'm like a failed version of both." That shit HURT.

There's a scene near the end which has really stayed with me. So Mae's character is a comedian and she does a set making jokes about the stuff that happened in the series and oh my GOD. The way I CRIED. It made me realise that people who make jokes about their experiences are using humour as a coping mechanism and when people say "Haha I have daddy issues isn't it funny" we have to remember to be respectful. It's never okay to make jokes about someone else's trauma. Don't make a big deal of it but just don't be a dick.

Anyways I could go on but would 100% recommend this series!

7. HIStory 2 crossing the line

My first bl! This series is the reason I'm so obsessed with bl lmao. The main couple are so soft :( this little series will always hold a special place in my heart!

8. Sotus

My first gmm series, we've come a long way. I miss Kong and Arthit :(

9. Dark blue kiss

Such a brilliant series. I trust P'Aof (director) with my life. This series touches on issues that are so important and deserve to be talked about so much more in bls. This is what happens when you let LGBT people tell LGBT stories! They do it with such care and love!! One of my favourite lines is "I may like men, but I'll never like your brother." One of my biggest let peeves is "I don't like men, I only like x." Like, I get the business behind it, they don't want to make the character gay to make them available for girls to fantasise about. Which is disgusting. But Mork really said "no. ❤" and I LOVE IT.

10. The shipper

I could go on and on about how underrated I think this series is. This series took over from 2gether on Fridays, and while I didn't think about this series constantly like I did with 2gether, this series made my quarantine brighter. Fridays meant I was gonna laugh at least once and forget about life just for a short while. The humour in this series is so fucking dumb lmao, but I'm here for it.

I've seen people talk about the shipper as a bl but I disagree. I think it's better described as a series with bl aspects. The main themes are friendship, family, dealing with loss, respecting boundaries of people you admire, and one of the main messages is about making sure the people close to you know how much they mean to you. Don't get me wrong, the majority of the series is over the top humour, but by the end of it I was personally really attached to the characters and their feelings. Overall I really enjoyed this series but I don't see anyone properly talk about it :(

11. Gaya sa pelikula

A series made by gay people for gay people. Shows like this are so important. This show really healed my soul with how brilliant the representation was :(( "remember we talked about microagressions" the way that means Vlad is constantly educating Karl about LGBT stuff, UGH. SO GOOD. Also this show has the most realistic representation of a crush I've ever seen lmao, soft Vlad is the best Vlad.

12. My engineer

My happy little Saturday show :( I miss the shit writing, shit acting and soft story of this series so much. I'm so fond of this series, I watched it after the horrible ep12 of 2gether and it really made me happy. I'm looking forward to season 2, but Ramking's novel goes DOWNHILL from here on. I know tricreation wouldn't allow the final chapter's scenes, but the entire story is so problematic and unenjoyable :(. The only valid scene is King's coming out scene but that's literally it. And the collar scene can stay lmao.

13. Oxygen

Another soft saturday series! I love this series so much, all of the couples are so bloody healthy and it makes me so happy. The communication is amazing!! THIS is how you show healthy relationships!!!

14. The gifted

S1 was so amazing!! I loved all of it! The only part of s2 we'll talk about is timegracethird. Time best boy!! Grace a feminist queen! When future Grace said they would be friends for a long time that made me so happy :(( also pangwave canon

15. Until we meet again

So I talked about the healthy relationships in oxygen. But uwma really showed the healthiest relationship ever. DeanPharm are just the softest little humans :( I would die for Pharm. He's the closest I got to a comfort character before Adachi. I just have to PROTECT HIM. My motherly instincts really kick in when I see him lmao.

The storyline of this series is just breathtaking. And the ending? I don't think I've ever cried that much. At all. It was so fucking beautiful 🥺

16. My gear and your gown

I really liked this show! Honestly I don't think I'll ever rewatch it but I definitely enjoyed it. The way Pai just seemed to breathe freely for the first time when his parents accepted his sexuality :(((( my baby :( also purefolk were brilliant

Ship list:

1. Saratine

These two are the definition of romance. They mean the fucking world to me. The fact that their story is apparently gonna be continued in some form makes me so. So. Happy. I cannot begin to describe it. My bet is on a special episode and ugh I'm so EXCITED.

2. Aini

Thonhonchonlatee in general is enjoyable but I don't like Thon at all. It's such a shame bc I was so excited for Khaotung and Podd to be in a series together :((. BUT. Aini have grabbed my heart. I knew they would bc miketap are brilliant, but wow. They're so gay my little babies :( miketap are just so natural and comfortable to watch. I love their chemistry so muuuuuuch

3. Sunmork

Coffee boyfriends :( I miss them so bloody much

4. Ramking

One of my fave ships. As I mentioned, I'm apprehensive about s2, but s1 ramking is such a beautiful story. It's just about 2 boys falling in love, no complications. Plant boy who's afraid of dogs falls in love with quiet boy who loves dogs but is afraid of children. Iconic. Also chemistry outsold, I THINK ABOUT THE KISS CONSTANTLY. When I mentioned the acting is shit in this series (shit is harsh, I mean awkward), I did not mean Perth and Lay in the slightest. They really nailed their roles and I loved it.

5. Professor Layton x Claire

You 100% won't get this reference but I grew up with the Professor Layton games and holy shit do they hold up. They're so amazingly written with beautiful stories and the most lovable characters in the world. Layton's intellect, loving nature and surprising athleticism are admirable. Adachi is the character I relate to most, but if I was gonna choose a character to comfort me irl, Layton's your man. His voice is so comforting by nature. I'm blabbering at this point but the point is him and Claire are the only het pairing that matters.

These are just the ships that I felt should be separate from their shows. I love all of the ships from the shows I mentioned.

Oof this got horrifically long, I haven't had a proper chance to rant about most of these shows so I really let it out lol. I hope you've watched at least some of these shows and I didn't just rant to u about 12 shows you've never heard of 😂

I hope you have a wonderful day love!!!!