#park sang joon

[chronophotographic-gun]

Memories of Murder (2003)

[whumpypepsigal]

Whumptober 2024 | Day 5

Alt. prompt: Shivering

Gyeongseong Creature s02e05: “…I feel really cold.”

[cutterpillow92]

Gyeongseong Creature, S1E2: Mother (2023) Between longing and anguish.

@giftober 2024 | day 27: Blue

[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.

[smittenskitten]

Prince Mu Ahn who recently became a teen dad, also known for his skill of being able to read his mother's mind from the movements of her eyebrows alone

[weak-hero]

kdrama au where the boxing idiots are on some reckon mission for Mr. Cho but as you expect they kinda messed it up

and the only reason they got away from police? its because the cops that were patrolling at that area are these dumb dynamic duo:

[danmeigirl]

[whumpetywhump]

Bad And Crazy - Ep. 12

[imsailorpluto]

So I've finally finished Bloodhounds (+ ahjussi collection)

...and I have no idea where to start and what to say and how to feel.

No, wait, please hear me out.

It was b l o o d y and at parts a very difficult watch, as it has lots of explicit fighting scenes, which look extremely realistic and cruel. So cruel that I had to close my eyes and not watch, I even skipped many & i'm not sorry. However, there are also parts so heartwarming that it makes you forget about all the crimes and gore for a moment. So, it's up to you to decide if it's worth the struggle. Since the violence could be a bit too much for many, let's just say I do and don't recommend this one at the same time. Personally, one of things I greatly enjoyed is the subtle comic tone of Gun-woo's and Woo-jin's interactions with each other and their characters which represent people doing sports professionally so well, the purity of their hearts and lack of malice in everything they do, since they truly do live for the sports. Then there are two absolutely powerful and skillful young women, Hyeong-ju and Da-min, playing such important roles in the entire series, each of them individually contributing so much to the entire plan of bringing the bad guys down and saving what could still be saved. And also, one of the most enjoyable parts were definitely the bonds that came out of these newly formed friendships. Younger acting crew did an amazing job. In comparison to the older and experienced ahjussi crew (I'll get to them in a bit), they've got some serious talent. It must have been a huge undertake for both Woo Do-hwan and Lee Sang-yi to live up to the expectations of the entire team behind this drama. And they did it. They absolutelly slayed.

If you still haven't watched this drama, trust me when I say these two cinnamon rolls will instantly win your heart right at the beginning of the first episode. They're like the most perfect two besties you'd want to be besties with too. And yeah, you'll suffer thru all the horrors just to see them win the biggest battle of their lives. Gosh, every time I tried typing something coherent about them it just ended up being lots of crying shaking throwing up. They're the best, ok? And this is best I can do. ╥﹏╥

And while our marine boys scratched so many itches around this platform, I have to mention the absolute gentlemen that starred in this series and swept me off my feet *deepest sigh ever*

So many great actors took part in Bloodhounds, it's hard to believe my own eyes at times. Whoever was in charge of the casting did a killer job. I couldn't even take the bad guys seriously because they're freakishly handsome. Well, at least not until Kim Myung-gil brutally ended my favourite ahjussi trio damn you ep 6

What started as an obsession over two young marine guys and their bromance ended up as a hole in my heart over downfall of three middle aged criminals men and a will to trade all the money and gold bars for their lives. And more importantly, a huge appreciation for Korean actors over the age of 40.

No, let's be real. They're handsome and talented and great at their job and deserve all the love and support. With that in mind... here's a tiny screenshot dump because it would be a shame not to post it:

And I want to be normal about them and move on in peace but *internal screams* I've already mentioned Lee Hae-young in one of my earlier posts, addressing my obsession with the character he portrays, the sushi restaurant owner Hwang Yang-jung. And I know many people are obsessed with him too. But no one is speaking up. Which is silly. And tbh I really thought there would be more gifs of him and other men but...there's close to none? Can we talk about how fine this man is? How fine this whole ahjussi crew is? Can we... can we just acknowledge they sliced us all in tiniest pieces possible and burned us all till we turned into charcoal? Can we make a mess of kdrama side of tumblr by excessively posting about them? Pretty please?

It's true, I came for the boys, but stayed for these men. I'm not even joking when I say kdrama has me in a chokehold again, but this time for a whole new reason. Dropping everything just to watch series and movies these guys took part in sounds like the best idea at the moment. I even forgot about the new releases I started watching, which makes me laugh at myself, but... it is what it is. At some point, a girl just has to obsess over her favourite ahjussi, and that's okay.

[psalm40speakstome]

Gyeongseong Creature. Season Two. Episode Five.

So even in absolute hell Jang Tae Sung adopted a little bean and patted him on the head? That tracks

[hanafarook]

My guy smacked her in the face with a bamboo stick and the next you know he's gone. Head over heels in love.

[shewholovestoread]

GYEONGSEONG CREATURE SEASON 1 PART 2

Part 1 review and character breakdown are here and here respectively.

Wow, this was such a roller-coaster. It was everything I expected it to be and then some. Let’s get into it. As always, beware of spoilers.

To start, let me congratulate myself on guessing correctly that it was indeed Nawol-daek who gave up Tae-sang’s mother’s name. The way it was shot and edited actually made it pretty clear.

I also guessed that the threat would widen but I didn’t anticipate that there would be a massive time-jump between seasons 1 and 2. That actually raises so many questions which we’ll get to later. For now, I am very happy with the way the season ended. The show actually made it very clear just how things would go and in that respect, the foreshadowing was done well.

The pacing of the show is absolutely amazing. Having seen Part 1 when it first came out and then Part 2 just a few minutes ago, I am still not complaining that they decided to split the season. I think it may actually have been a good idea because that division was like the calm before the actual storm and I think that brief respite was necessary. When your characters are in a constant state of peril, it can sometimes make the audience disconnect because it almost becomes monotonous, the stakes no longer matter. Here, they definitely did.

The writing was also super tight with no fluff and this surprised me, once it got dark, it didn’t really try to lighten the mood with levity which a lot of other shows might have done. I think that also ties in with the subject matter and the gravity of just what they were showing. The brutality is ever present and for the perpetrators it was matter of routine which made it all the more horrifying. But when you view the other person as sub-human, it becomes easy to justify your actions irrespective of how heinous they may be.

Part 1’s focus was wider in terms of the number of characters we were introduced to and once Part 2 got going, that focus shrank so it only paid attention to Tae-sang, Chae-ok, her father, General Kato and Yukiko Maeda. The others were still there but they were no longer central to the plot and that was okay.

I admire Tae-sang’s drive to protect the people he cares about. His character went through perhaps most growth, starting from indifference to putting his life on the line multiple times to save Chae-ok. He didn’t have to do that considering he met her not too long ago but he does it anyway. He also doesn’t try to hold her back (as he tried in Part 1) and I liked that he keeps telling her that they both have to live, he gives her hope when there really didn’t seem to be any.

Chae-ok was still an absolute badass. There is a problem that a lot of dramas have where they start off with a kick-ass female character but as you get closer to the climax, she gets de-powered to prop up the male lead. I was so happy that they didn’t do that here. Chae-ok is nothing if not persistent, no matter how many times she gets knocked down, she still gets back up. There is a fire within her that nothing could put out, you could try to intimidate her but it wouldn’t get you very far.

Chae-ok and her father were always going to go back to the hospital, there was no way they would leave Seishin there at the mercy of those psychopaths. It was also always clear that her father would be the one who wouldn’t make it out. I think that when he realised just what they had done to her, he lost something within him. Death would have been better than what she had been subjected to.

The primary focus in the show was always Chae-ok and her mother and the bond between them and it wasn’t random, it all paid off in the end. It was the memories of Chae-ok that reawakened Seishin’s humanity, made her more than a mindless killer. Her final gift to her daughter was the Najin so she could live. In the end, Seishin was finally free from her tormentors, in giving up the Najin, she died but she died knowing that her baby was alive.

I had a feeling that Chae-ok would become like a hybrid form of the monster. We saw that with her mother, she was different from the other people who were infected with the Najin. She still had control of herself and if not for the anthrax, I think she would have managed to retain her humanity. Considering how Seishin reacted, it would make sense that Chae-ok would also be more in control than say Myeong-ja for instance. It’s also why Kato was so curious about her and tried to infect her.

Kato took Myeong-ja’s baby and that child is definitely a hybrid. If they have any hope of defeating it, they would a hybrid of their own. But with the time-jump, I don’t know how Maeda and Kato will figure in Season 2 since it seems to take place with a considerable time jump (in the 80s perhaps?). Unless they’ve been experimenting and have figured out a way to live longer. Especially Maeda, considering her burn injuries, I’m curious to see what form she will take in Season 2.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions like - How does the time-jump make sense? - What is the history between Maeda and Seishin? They hinted at it in Part 2 but didn’t give any definitive answers. Did Seishin cause the death of someone close to Maeda, who was it, how did they know each other? - How is Ho-jae related to the Tae-sang? - What is the meaning of the scar on Ho-jae’s back? - What did Chae-ok do all these years? - How do her powers differ from Seishin or even Myeong-ja?

I may get into some of these questions because there are answers we can glean from the show. But I’ll make a separate post about that so that this one doesn’t become obnoxiously long.

This show was an epic ride from start to finish and while it didn’t give us the conventional happy ending some expected, the ending it did give us is excellent. It sets up the next season perfectly while still giving a good closure to season 1. I can’t wait to what season 2 brings us.

[junkobato]

Upcoming Kdrama September 2023 🧡

8/9: a time called you with Ahn Hyo Seop, Jeon Yeo Been, Kang Hoon. 12 episodes; fantasy, mystery, romance. Trailer

9/9: arthdal chronicles: the sword of Aramoon with Jang Dong Geun, Lee Joon Gi, Shin Se Kyung. 12 episodes; historical, fantasy, romance. Trailer

13/9: the day of the kidnapping with Yoon Kye Sang, Park Sung Hoon. 12 episodes; thriller, mystery, comedy. Trailer

15/9: the escape of the 7 with Uhm Ki Joon, Hwang Jung Eum, Lee Joon, Lee Yoo Bi. 17 episodes; mystery, thriller. Trailer

22/9: song of bandits with Kim Nam Gil, Seo Hyun, Lee Hyun Wook. 9 episodes; historical, romance, action. Trailer

25/9: twinkling watermelon with Choi Hyun Wook, Ryeoun, Seol In Ah. 16 episodes; fantasy, romance, youth. Trailer

27/9: the worst of evil with Ji Chang Wook, Wi Ha Joon, Im Se Mi. 12 episodes; action, thriller, crime. Trailer

Summer is over 🥲

At least we have new shows to watch!

[cutterpillow92]

Park Seo Joon as Jang Tae-Sang

Gyeongseong Creature, S1E1: Najin (2023) Between good and evil.

@giftober 2024 | day 19: Purple

[somanykdramas]

BLOODHOUNDS

GENRES: Action, Drama

SUMMARY: The lives of two amateur boxers go terribly awry when they're caught up in a loan shark scam that's larger than either of them imagined.

THIS SHOW HAS EVERYTHING: Binge drinking, chaebols, debt scams, motorcycles, COVID restrictions, loyal friendships, sweaty shirtless workouts, secret philanthropists, facial scars, man mountains, tongue-biting, knife-wielding lieutenants, cargo ships to Vietnam, and a dazzling amount of gold bars.

HOT TAKE: You can tell this is a Netflix joint by the sheer quantity and quality of the non-pixelated knife fights throughout the season. The stunts are amazing, the fight choreography (although unapologetically violent) is like a ballet, and we are graced with DOZENS of scenes of Woo Do Hwan and Lee Sang Yi shirtless.

I wasn't too pleased how the plot was conveniently wrapped up in a nice bow in the last act of the last episode, but what a rollercoaster ride up until that point!

[nofatclips]

Chukje (Festival) - dir. Im Kwon-taek (1996)

Full movie available on Korean Classic Films YouTube channel