2011...in drama-speak
WOW. It's already the end of the year! Where did January to November go to??? Maybe I was being too much of a 'happening prawn' to appreciate much of this year, or maybe my head was wrapped up too tightly in notes and textbooks to notice the year fly by. Either way, it's that time of the year where I usually write reviews! This year is going to be a little different though - I'll be doing drama reviews instead of a review of my life in 2011. For one, I can't really remember doing anything very memorable this year. xP Fine, I admit, it's more because I don't feel like recalling events/feelings and writing them down. Hahaha...in a nutshell, that would sound something like "Mug in the library and practice clinical examinations till exams in late May, go back home for summer break, take a couple of weeks to go to Malaysia, HK or Taiwan, then return back to school in September and mug till December". BORINGGGGGG...
Instead, I'll talk about the dramas I caught this year since there are so few of them. As many other recappers have commented, the 'drama gods' have not viewed 2011 favourably, so there have been less 'high quality' shows than usual. All the better for this medic who should really be studying and not watching dramas! =D In total, I watched 11 shows this year! In chronological order, they are: Momo Love (
桃花小妹), Skip Beat (anime), Kimi Wa Petto, Secret Garden, 49days, Heartstrings (You've Fallen for Me), Hayate the Combat Butler (both the anime and taiwanese live action adaptation -
旋风管家), Unstoppable High Kick, Ouran High (Live action) and Flower Boy Ramyun Shop. I'll try to talk about each of them though I really only finished 7 out of the 11 shows I started watching...an all time low! This drama queen has really been too busy this year, resorting to reading recaps on the bus/train or during mealtimes and saving up dramas to watch during the holidays. Which reminds me...I NEED to watch City Hunter during Easter holidays, or summer holidays. That's the 1 drama I ran out of time to watch during summer holidays. Of course, I still caught my usual variety shows: We Got Married (till yongseo ended), 1 Night 2 Days and the occasional episode of Happy Together, Gag Concert,
娱乐百分百 and
康熙来了 (mostly in Taiwan).
Art really imitates life after a while...2011 drama-wise is quite similar to my own life - too much of the same with a couple of highs and lows. ANYWAYS...Bringing you the reviews without further ado!
And major MAJOR thanks to all the wonderful people I've taken the pictures from.
Momo love (桃花小妹)
The premise is simple:
桃花(Cyndi Wang) is the youngest in the family with 5 brothers who shower her with waaaaaaay too much love and affection as their parents go jet-setting across the world. She meets and falls in love with
史朗 (Jiro Wang), but her 4 over-protective brothers go to extremes to try break them apart, even enlisting the help of a 3rd party,
薛志強(Calvin Chen), who is actually in love with
桃花 too. Luckily for her, she's got her 5th brother,
餘一 (Huang Jinglun) to help her escape from the clutches of her 4 brothers.
The plot is so typical of rom-com idol dramas. The type that usually leaves the audience wanting more cute scenes of the main OTP (one true pairing), but something seems to have gone wrong with it in this show. I honestly couldn't care less about Taohua and Shilang, fast-forwarding almost all of their scenes together...they were such a boring and forgettable couple. In fact, I almost forgot that I watched this show during winter holidays at the start of 2011!
Also, this drama committed one of the biggest drama crimes in my book - Having an annoying, whiny and occasionally screechy female lead. It's a miracle I finished this show despite Cyndi Wang since I rarely finish such shows (e.g. Personal Taste)...though I DID consider reaching into my computer screen to smack her, just as I did for Gu Hye Sun's Geum Jandi in Boys Over Flowers.
The thing that made me finish this show was the 5 brothers.
They were absolutely HILARIOUS. From their secret 'headquarters' in the house, they planned and commited the most outrageous things ever to keep the OTP apart, using
餘一 as their pawn/slave/blame-taker/spy/sacrificial-lamb. Poor dude. I felt more sympathy for him than anyone else. I know the 4 over-protective brothers are suppose to be desireable bachelors and
餘一 is the normal plain brother, but seriously...ken chu? Has been idol from F4 as the 'attractive' oldest brother?
Errrr....I'd take plain old 5th brother Huang Jinglun (below) over him any day. Adorkable...hehe
Skip Beat (anime)
I admit, I do not remember much of how this went since I watched it during the winter holidays over 2 days. I don't even think the manga is finished so the anime ending was very open-ended...
Anyway, it's about a girl (Kyoko) who follows her childhood friend (Sho) to Tokyo and effectively becomes his slave as he chases his 'idol' dreams. However, after realising she was cheated by Sho, she vows to get even with him by joining the entertainment business and be more famous than him. Of course, she meets and overcomes all sorts of problems along the way as she works her way in Sho's rival entertainment company. And of course, there's a love triangle between Sho, Kyoko and Ren (Sho's rival in showbiz). Aren't these key elements in shojo mangas?
Sorry fans of Skip Beat!!! Pardon me for saying this but I only remembered 3 things from it:
1. Kyoko playing badminton in a chicken outfit. Or just doing things in said outfit.
2. Sho is a jerk...what does Kyoko even see in him???
3. Ren is cool but quirky.
As such, I'm not really compelled to watch the live action version that is currently showing. That's in spite of them casting Suju's Donghae as Sho and Siwon as Ren (which suits their image to the tee by the way). My view of this show may change after I've read many favourable reviews/recaps or many people recommend it to me, but for now...I'll give the live action version a miss.
Kimi Wa Petto
An accomplished but lonely office lady adopting a boy as her pet? Absurb and slightly disturbing, but that's exactly what this show is about. Granted, it is a Japanese drama based on a comic, so leave common sense and logic at the door before watching this.
Despite this being an old show (broadcasted in 2003, i.e. 8 years ago), I was hooked! Maybe it found its way onto my drama-radar at the right time, just when I wanted to shred my anatomy, physiology and medicine books into pieces in sheer frustration and eat the bits to remember medical facts. Just joking! That would not improve memory in any way, just get digested by the gut. LOL.
Anyway, I loved the cute but budding love between the 'owner' Iwaya Sumire (Koyuki) and her 'pet Momo' Takeshi (Matsumoto Jun). Yes, it is creepy to adopt a boy even if he is hurt and ran away from home but the drama focuses on how everyone needs a home to go to, one where love, comfort and unconditional acceptance is found. It also addresses the problems Iwaya Sumire faces by adopting Takeshi and how he eventually finds his purpose in life again, so I can look pass the premise of this drama.
Actually, a pleading look from Matsumoto Jun would send me swooning....enough to forget how senseless it is to bring him home as a pet.
Now I see why Iwaya did that...^^
Secret Garden
After hearing all the buzz about this and enjoying the dramabeans recaps, I chose this as the first kdrama to watch during the summer holidays. It can't be that bad if everyone is telling me to find time to watch it and it has spawned so many parody videos....right? While I enjoyed the drama very much, it felt like it was missing that little 2% to make it the best drama of this year for me. It could well be the fact that I had some difficulties feeling the connection between main couple that stopped me from enjoying it more....I just don't see the sparks. *sighs*
In this whimsical fantasy-romcom, Hyun Bin acts as Kim Joo Won, an eccentric CEO of a shopping mall who falls in love with stuntwoman Gil Ra-im (Ha Jiwon) after their chance encounter.
They end up switching bodies after drinking some mystical wine they got while they were lost in Jeju Island with hilarious results, though it brings them closer. Of course, they meet opposition from Joo Won's mum (who literally has her nose up in the air half the time....lololol) and there are 3rd parties interfering with the relationship on both sides. Ra-im has her stunt team leader, Director Im (Lee Philip), having a massive crush on her; while Joo Won is being chased by Yoon Seul (Kim Sarang) who he met on an arranged date and just so happens to be an ex-girlfriend of his half-brother and 'Hallyu star' Oska (Yoon Sang Hyun).
There are a couple of things I like about this drama though...like how JooWon & Ra-im have a certain connection with each other that becomes apparent as the story progresses. Without giving too much of the story away, that connection is vital in understanding Joo Won's claustrophobia and the death of Ra-im's father -- which is why I LOOOOOOOOVE the ending scene despite being unsatisfied with the last episode of Secret Garden.
I also have a soft spot for the Ah-young (Yoo In-na) & Secretary Kim (Kim Sung Oh) couple just because they are sooooooooooooooo cute!!! Ah-young is Ra-im's best friend cum room-mate while Secretary Kim is JooWon's secretary btw.
As for the things that bugged me, it's definitely JooWon's stalking tendencies which eventually lead to Ra-im falling for him. Totally wthhhhh.....so creepy. I think the only time I was excited about the JooWon--Ra-im couple was when JooWon got the director to fly in for Ra-im's audition since she missed it to save him. The other thing that bugged me was the fantasy bit. The resolution was just too convenient and the switcharoo was so random that I wondered why they needed to switch bodies in the first place. *scratches head*
For me, the most memorable part of the drama is the set and camerawork. CAN I STAY AT JOOWON'S HOUSE PLEASE? so. darn. pretty.
Just get rid of
the expensive shiny tracksuit that was made in Italy one stitch at a
time first please!
49days
This is the kdrama I want to recommend to everyone this year! I know it's yet another fantasy rom-com but I promise, it's touching yet quirky, filled with whimsical elements but has the human heart at the core of it. AND...it has Jung Il Woo as the very hawt scheduler! Sorry, Jung Il Woo just happens to be my kdrama obsession at the moment. xD
Basically, Shin Ji Hyun (Nam Gyu Ri) is the girl who has everything - a happy family, close friends, a decent family background - and she's preparing to marry the perfect man, Kang Min ho (Bae Subin). However, she gets into a car crash and becomes comatose, only to be given a second chance at life by the Scheduler (Jung Il Woo). It turns out that she was not 'scheduled' to die then, so he gives her a mission to collect 3 pure drops of tears within 49days, otherwise she would really die physically. As her body is currently lying in hospital, she is allowed to 'borrow' Song Yi Kyung's (Lee Yo Won) body to fulfil her mission, especially since Yi Kyung indirectly caused the car crash. During the next 49days, Ji Hyun finds her life turned upside down as she realises that all is not as it seems -- her fiance is actually cheating on her with her best friend Shin In Jung (Seo Ji Hye) and is plotting to destroy her father's company. Luckily, Ji Hyun has long-time friend Han Kang (Jo Hyun Jae) to help her uncover these secrets and help her as she uses Yi Kyung's body to carry out the mission.
Kudos to Lee Yo Won for protraying 2 characters in 1 show very convincingly and being able to switch between them with a snap of the fingers. One moment, she is the bubbly Ji Hyun and the next minute, she turns into the glum, depressed Yi Kyung. It takes some seriously good acting skills to do that!
Also, I absolutely adore the plot and writing in this drama. It just gets you in the heart and tears at it slowly with its awesome cliff-hangers and plot-twists. If not for the fact that I read the recaps while the show was airing in Korea before watching it, my heart would have stopped beating a couple of times during the show. I did, however, scream "NOOOOOOOOOO..." or "OH NO! HE'S COMINGGGGG" at my computer many times while watching and then clicking the next video just to watch what happened in the end. And I did cry at the end while cursing the writers for springing such a plot-twist at us viewers, after all, I like my happy endings with everything tied up in a neat bow.
The whole theme was really poignant as well, talking about life and death, reality and lies, etc. Like coping with death, or learning about true friendship and who would really miss you and cry pure tears if you died. There is just sooo much in that one drama. Not to mention that they actually had rules about body-borrowing to stick to so that it does not seem haphazard....unlike Secret Garden.
Being the crazy fan-girl that I am, the best thing of the show was the Scheduler!!!!!
I totally want a Scheduler ringtone on my phone ok! His back-story was also very interesting but sooo touching. Obviously, I cried again when his whole story of how he came to be a Scheduler was out in the open. AHHHHHH...so sad but so sweet. Even better than the Han Kang moments. =D
As the Scheduler himself said, if people realised how cute he was, they would literaly die to see him. LOL.
Heartstrings (You've Fallen for
Me)
If not for my desire to see Jung Yonghwa and Park Shinhye acting opposite each other, I would have given this drama a miss. I really like the both of them and think they have fabulous chemistry with each other, it's just the writing which was a tad disappointing.
Heartstrings is pretty much your typical kdrama campus romance with a musical twist to it. Jung Yonghwa plays Lee Shin, the 'cool chic city guy' who is the lead vocal and guitarist of his band 'The Stupid' (I'm not kidding..that's really what their band name is). He's really passionate about music, talented and popular among the girls in his school.
He somehow meets Lee Kyu Won (Park Shinhye) who majors in the Gayugeum (a traditional korean string instrument) and their constant bickering and musical battles slowly bring them closer. A large part of the drama also has them preparing for a musical with their friends and teachers, as well as discuss interesting issues between Lee Shin's mum and KyuWon's father.
The plot was pretty meh-ish and I would have appreciated if they cut down on the parts on Lee Shin's crush, the mopey ballet teacher, as well as end with the musical rather than dragging it out with random stuff to keep the couple apart. Honestly, I just watched this to squeal at the cute Lee Shin - Kyuwon moments together as well as random eccentric scenes by the drummer in "The Stupid", Yeo Joon Hee (played by CN Blue's Kang Minhyuk).
The other good thing was the OST. I LOVED the guitar vs traditional music mash-up battle thingy....
And I LOVEEEEE the theme song!
Especially since it was written by Yonghwa! CN Blue hwaiting!!!!
Hayate the Combat Butler (anime and 旋风管家)
Sadly, I did not finish watching either the anime or the taiwanese adaptation so I can't really comment much on the plot. I do remember the anime being really cute and whimsical with the talking pet tiger, but it just didn't translate well to the taiwanese adaptation. It's a pity I don't have enough time to watch about 60h worth of anime at the moment or I would have finished it. As for the Taiwanese adaptation, I just lost interest in it halfway due to certain members of the supporting cast. *sigh*
That said, I really wanted to like this show since Park Shin Hye and George Hu (胡宇崴) were the main leads, playing Nagi (the 'mistress') and Hayate (the butler) respectively. Sadly, it was not to be (and the crazy year 3 started to pick up speed...)
Unstoppable High Kick
Yes...I started watching it to get my Jung Il Woo fix, so please judge me. I'm the obsessed Jung Il Woo fangirl! Unfortunately, finishing it would mean spending 60h on it so I gave up after 10episodes and went back to typing up my lecture notes. SIGHHHH. It's a 30min family sitcom revolving round the Lee family which makes for a quick mindless watch to destress. And I did learn that the sitcom genre in Korea means something more like an amusing family situational drama rather than a BWAHAHAHHA hilarious kind of show. Maybe I'll go back to watching it once I'm free since it really does get you in the heart sometimes and there are some unintentionally funny scenes. ^^
Or to gawk at Jung Il Woo, Kim Bum and Chansung. =D
Ouran High (Live action)
No words can describe how angry and annoyed I am with this drama. They just RUINED one of my favourite animes of all time....*CRIES* I read about the live action adaptation with half anticipation and half apprehension - Omo, they are finally adapting Ouran high into a drama but how would they find people to fit the different characters in Ouran high? Call me superficial, but the cast just didn't make the grade for me.
For those who haven't heard of Ouran High, it's about a host club in that school of rich people that 'entertains' the students there. Each member depicts the different types of 'ideal males' from shojo mangas, like how the Host club president,Tamaki, is the 'Princely' type, etc. Yes, it sounds ridiculous, but this is shojo anime! Anyway, the host club gains a new member - scholarship student Haruhi - after she stumbles into the host club's meeting place and accidentally breaks an expensive vase there. Not knowing that she is a girl, the other host club members agree to let her join the club and work to repay her debts incurred from the broken vase. As the series progresses, the host club members bond, working together to deal with the problems they face in their own families and within the host club.
It's such a cute anime just waiting to be adapted to a drama...so I thought. While I appreciate Yusuke Yamamoto's efforts in his portrayal of Tamaki, the whole drama is just waaaay too over the top. I did like Kawaguchi Haruna's Haruhi and Nakamura Masaya's Mori though and really tried my best to let the characters grow on me, but after 2 episodes, I still couldn't get this scene out of my mind....
To me, it just screams "FEED THIS POOR STARVING CHILD!!!!" Even my love for Kyoya sempai and Mori sempai couldn't stop me from saying sayonara...
Flower Boy Ramyun Shop
This is my pick for top mindless drama to watch and squeal over for this year! It is just too cute and funny with the story moving along quickly, throwing you a few sweet surprises here and there. At 45minutes long, it's long enough to leave one satisfied but short enough to not feel so guilty about watching shows instead of doing work. xD
Flower Boy Ramyun Shop is the first show to be produced under TvN's "flower boy" series of shows, the next being Shut Up: Flower Boy Band (which I am soooooooo going to watch if and when I have time). In a nutshell, trainee teacher Yang Eun Bi (Lee Chung Ah) mistakes high schooler Cha Chi Soo (Jung Il Woo) for someone older and accidentally makes a confession to him. To her horror, she finds out that he is her student and heir of the Cha conglomerate company (who happens to own the school she works in). Later on, her father dies and a stranger (Choi Kang Hyuk played by Lee Ki Woo) arrives to take over the ramyun shop owned by her father. Through a series of events, Kang Hyuk manages to employ Eun Bi, Chi Soo, Eun Bi's 'dongseng' Kim Ba Wool (Park Min Woo) and Chi Soo's friend Woo Hyun Woo (Jo Yoon Woo) to run the shop with him.
I really love ALL the characters in this show and it's nearly impossible for me to pick which of the flower boys is my bias. Chi Soo may seem immature and childish, but his motives are mostly genuinely good; whereas Kang 'Pillar' Hyuk is wonderfully caring with endearingly lazy ways but he's so non-assertive that I found it a little difficult to feel sorry for him. Ba wool was my favourite character...and he totally looks like a taller version of Park Jaebum (yes, the ex-2pm member). He's super sweet and devoted to that ballet girl, but a little rash at times. Woo Hyun Woo is a little queer sometimes but he's really nice and has that bromance going on between him and the not-so-willing Ba wool. And Eunbi? SHE HAS ATTITUDE.
I also like the motifs and puns used throughout the whole show, since they actually made sense and felt like that was a lot of thought put into it. Of course, all the cute scenes and JungIlWoo-gawking-time made this show worth watching. Without giving too much away, I would say the ending is one of the more realistic ways of dealing with a noona-dongseng relationship and gave enough closure (for me at least) while not tying everything into a very tight and neat bow.
Oh! Do not watch this drama when you're hungry...you'll end up craving ramyun while watching it. Don't say I didn't warn you about that!
~
AT LAST. I'm finally done. After like...2 months. And yes, I honestly did half of this after exams (as much as I want to be kdrama queen first and medic second...that did not happen) to destress.
Now back to more heart-stopping City Hunter action! Might talk about that more in my next post! =D
Labels: Drama ramblings
POSTED BY mysticmalady AT 7:41 AM |
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