Just finished watching Bad Family. I really, really like it. :)

And I am SO GLAD that it's the looooong weekend already!

OMG! I finally remember to make a comment under open thread friday.....on a FRIDAY! yay!

Wishing everyone a happy weekend of drama's! Waiting with bated breath for next installment of "Story of a Man".........Enjoyed first episode re-cap of 'Accidental Couple'...its on my list...which is steadily getting longer and longer the more i read these blogs!

LOving the blog! Thanks so much dramabeans for being here! Can't wait to see/read what todays topic will be!

And if i happen to be first......OMG Miracle!

It's been so slow for me. It's definitely been dragging. TGIF.

T.G.I.F!!! I have been looking forward to this day all week.

Time for me to catch up on a few dramas: Story of a Man, That Fool aka Six Months, Return of Iljimae and maybe catch the first episode of Cinderella Man (with heavy emphasis on maybe) and City Hall.

Question to all the Korea natives or people who've been to Korea:

I have a phone interview on Monday with an ESL school and they are asking me what location I'd like to teach English in.

I honestly HAVE NO CLUE. I know Seoul. That's about it. I'd like to live in a city area (as I'm used to NYC and love that atmosphere) but I heard cost of living in Seoul is a little high.

So to all you experts, what's a good location to be in?

I want something close to bars/lounges/clubs but also has a nice neighborhood-y feel to it. If it's not in Seoul, I'd like it to be a convenient metro ride away (like 20-30 minutes maybe?).

Help?

ugh! should have known! and whose having a 'long' weekend? certainly not us here in sydney! ugh!

On the drama side of things:

I'm so tired of dramas in which we know what happens in the end! I think I'm going to take a break from romantic dramas. I started watching Story Of A Man (thanks javabeans!) and this is more my thing, where I don't know the ending!

Argh. I think that's one reason why I miss US television. Because of the fact that it has many seasons, partnerships could change and people don't always end up with who you think they'll end up with. Two good examples? Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Everyone thought she'd end up with Angel, that was her OTP. Nope, more like Spike (holla, I was a total Spuffy fan!). Dawsons Creek. Hell, the show is NAMED after the main character, and he still didn't get the girl (and I'm so happy he didn't he was a whiny little asshat).

So K-drama, surprise me once in a while, why don't you. Stop making the OTP so DAMN OBVIOUS. Give me a reason to keep watching, please?

I'm definitely with you on that one. So glad it's the weekend, but so sad that time's flying by! Time to get a new jobbbbbbbbb.. blah. Enjoy the weekend! I've gotta learn how to stop eating out.. gah!

ahh well, i have to work tomorrow, but its ok i still have Monday off.
i think this week went fast becasue of all the scandal stuff

i hope next week is slooooooow

i will blog tomorrow when i'm at work i think - have some bones to pick kekeke

have a super weekend ^^

Flowers For My Life is my current drama. I'm loving it so far! Thanks to those who said it's worth the buy. :)

boohoo we don't have long weekend here... TT
hope this weekend i could at least finished a drama or sumthin...
my sister send me a movie by KMM, Return... i haven't watched it yet, but from the summary i think it's going to be intense...
happy weekend everyone...

@1, QueenBee:

What did you like about Bad Family? Btw, did you see MNIKSS? If you did, I was wondering who you thought was cuter:

a. Mi Joo (http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Suh_Ji_Hee)
b. Na Rim (http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Lee_Young_Yoo).

@5, Mishane:

Whatever city you end up in, I recommend finding a school that is near at least one university though, because you will get more of a younger feel.

@7, Mishane:

I'm not sure what you mean when you say US television. 90% of what is on television (other than "reality shows") is pretty much exactly the same from week to week. Take any episode of House or CSI, or whatever, and usually within 10 minutes I can tell you what will happen. And as for the interactions of the main characters, generally speaking, the good shows are good up til about season 3, and then they start going downhill and "jump the shark." And that term, "jumping the shark" is an American television term, right? meaning that the show is now doing the typical desperate attempt to keep the show fresh and in so doing, is completely unoriginal and predictable.

Whether you watch US television or K-dramas, you will find good shows and bad shows, original programming and hackneyed stuff.

-Samsooki

If we're going to continue the discourse on "mine"-able-ness, are the men going to chime with their take on actresses? Perhaps, it's just my own preconceptions, but I think men view their stars with a different set of filters. o_O

To reiterate: an actor's "mine"-able-ness entails great acting, intensity, charisma, and an emotional connection.

I, for one, view them differently, based on what I've seen them in. An actor can be good-looking (on a purely physical basis) but doesn't hit my "smexy" list until they've delivered a performance warranting that title.

Case in point - Oh Ji Ho -> Greek-god-like good-looking man....but he does nothing for me. ;) While Choi Chul Ho isn't someone I'd consider good-looking (relative to other celebrities), but his performances definitely put him on my smexy list (though, not quite on my "mine" list yet).

And I'm with Muffin -> Gu Jun Pyo. check. LMH. meh.
Jung Il Woo, on the other hand, brings out my inner cougar. keke.

Take Daniel Henney and Dennis Oh, on physical level, I'd take DH,
but on "mine"-able-ness scale....oh, wait....I'd take neither.
Sorry, bad example.

Where's my coffee???

@ 12 Samsooki

Ooh good idea about the university. I didn't think about that. I'm going to have to google colleges in S. Korea.

Re: the drama, I'm talking about the more 'romantic-based' shows, not the ones that are procedural shows (is that the right phrase? By procedural I mean, CSI, L&O, House, etc).
And when I say US, I'm more talking about how their seasons are open ended (unlike the majority of Korean programming, which have a set episode list). With the open ended seasons, you kind of don't really know what the pairings are or how anything is really going to end up. I mean, you get the general idea of who the main characters are (the top billed actor/actress) but they don't necessarily end up with other.

Unlike Korean dramas (which have yet to surprise me with the ending, at least on the ROMANCE BASED ones) where we know who the main actor/actress is, therefore we know who the OTP is, therefore there's really no mystery on who ends up together. I went into My Girl, MNIKSS, Delightful Girl Choon-Hyang, Full House, etc., KNOWING that the two were going to end up together. So, it's only a matter of the director/producer/writer, etc., writing in a way to keep it fresh.

Anyways, the whole point of my ramblings is that, with the new drama Accidental Couple/That Fool coming out, I hope they do it well. I mean, it's already a given that the two are going to end up, it's just how they get there that is going to keep me interested (hence why I said I miss the open-ended/surprises that some US tv show gives me).

P.S. - I'm currently watching the j-drama Love Shuffle, which I'm enjoying because you DON'T know who is going to end up. It's an ensemble cast and everyone keeps switching partners, so it's an interesting watch to see who has more chemistry and who the OTP is, if there's even an OTP.

P.P.S. - Sometimes I want someone to recommend a drama to me where the OTP isn't who we think it is, but at the same time I want to be surprised so someone rec'cing one to me, well, it won't really surprise me will it? :( A catch 22.

WOW THAT WAS LONG. GOOD THING I'M AT WORK AND HAVE NOTHING TO DO.

I have to bring up Temptation of Wife.

If there is a reality where people live and interact and behave as they do in Temptation of Wife, I would not survive for a day. I would go insane immediately. That said, I am so addicted to this series. There is nothing like it.

I only get to watch maybe 3 short episodes per night, and I started watching maybe 60 episodes into the series (so I totally missed the background story), but I am hooked. This is nothing like what I've seen on any television anywhere at anytime.

I am now getting 2 hours less sleep per night, because I have to watch it, but it doesnt air until around midnight on Cablevsion (and the the tv guide says it's "SBS News" or "Paid Programming" and the titles change randomly so I can't DVR it).

Just crazy crazy crazy plot points. Non-stop betrayal. Non-stop lies and "omg you didn't" action. Non-stop lying. Non-stop revenge. Non-stop heroine Eun Jae being a good person. And then, now, it's Eun Jae revenge-time and the Eun Jae revenge is oh so sweet, so tasty, so juicy. I nod grimly, approvingly and I have no pity for those who gnash their teeth at double or triple betrayals. Reap what you sow, bitches! But no way, omg wow, the evil tools are fighting back! And now it's back and forth, who's going to win?!? Oh please please please let the good guys win this time....Eun Jae has been through so much... Oh no...wait, is my heart slowly turning and starting to understand the evil people? Am I starting to like Ae Ri? I cannot betray Eun Jae, I will NOT. Hmm, Ae Ri wasn't always always like that? Oh my, is she redeemable?? Say it ain't so, I can't forgive her! I won't forgive her! Noooooo....

Anyway, that's like a single 30 minute episode.

-Samsooki

oh dear. 2 ap exams next week... this has quite possibly been the first time that i have not wanted the week to end. oh well :]

@5 mishane: hmm, 'seoul' encompasses a whole lot of area. some bits are super expensive but other places are okay. but somewhere [like Samsooki said] near a university would be good; i'd recommend around hongdae [all the good clubs, although i shouldn't know this] and sinchon, which is close to yonsei uni and idae women's uni. it's fun there. incheon is also oookay but kinda more like a toned-down version of seoul, a little more 시골 or countrified. and it takes like 40 min to an hour to go to seoul by subway, more depending on where in seoul... yeah. x]

by the way, does anyone know where i can download "that fool"? or if there's a clubbox that has it, raws or otherwise? the torrent from d-addicts is currently stuck at less than 10%. mrarrgh! ㅠㅠ

i wish i could be at work AND have nothing to do too! ;-)

@ 16 heejung

Thank you so much! At least I have names that I can google now. I'll definitely google Hongdae, Sinchon and Incheon.

Incheon doesn't sound bad. And neither does Hongdae. I don't mind doing a 40 minute subway ride. As long as Incheon isn't total country, with dirt roads and cows. I used to live somewhere like that but I'm a city girl at heart and can't go back to that.

Hmm, I'm getting so excited. I'm leaving for there in August. Getting so bored here in the States, everyone is the same. :( I need a cultural shock to liven up my life.

(Question, are motorbikes expensive there? Also, is there a lot of bike riding? Like, could I bike to the school or is that just a ridiculous concept?)

Check this out....thought you might get a kick out of it.
" 100 days of Obama’s Facebook news feed: Barack Obama Sent Somali Pirates a Trio of Snipers"
http://www.slate.com/id/2217225/

@ 17 Orchid

I'm lucky because I'm the only one in my department and I'm kind of in charge of myself. :) Which is why I love open threads because I keep Mozilla open in another window and in between projects, pop in and see what's up!

(I'm also looking up plane tickets to Spain for this month. *sigh* Everything is so expensive)

:(

I'm glad it's Friday...AND the week has sped by...but I have an online final to finish by 5pm, so I guess it won't be truly Friday until then.

Oh and I finished Soulmate this week (I was intrigued b/c I saw a fanmade MV on youtube and because of your wonderful recommendation JB!). I LOVED it! The music was great (I d/led the OST immediately after finishing the drama and probably will buy it) and I thought the first 7-8 episodes were awesome. But it felt a bit rushed and a tad too melodramatic towards the later episodes. They probably could have expanded the ending into at least another 2-3 episodes so that the relationship between Dong Wook and Su Yeong could've been developed better. But the ending was great and I'm glad that's how they ended the series and I highly recommend the series.

Hmm, so what should I watch next? I still need to get around watching Story of a Man...but I'm thinking either to start Thank You or Dae Jang Geum (it would be my first historical drama since Hong Gil Dong, though Return of Iljimae is on my watch next list too).

@ 16 heejung - Aja-Aja probably has it. I think JB has a link to it in her sidebar.

@ mishane - Haha, I'm seeing you everywhere! Hello from LJ! :P

Is it really Friday already? I totally thought it was Thursday. :/

Grades came out.. I am officially awesome: 3 A's and a B, during the semester when I was much more of a slacker than usual. And these were all hard 300-level classes (with the exception of 100-level Chinese, but whatever).

I'm seriously considering doing Honors Research next year. The only problem is, what exactly could I research? Is there a way to combine my drama obsession with my research? Because then, whenever anybody asks why I'm watching dramas, I can tell them it's because I have to do it for my research.. *dreams*

My roommate and I are FINALLY on the home stretch of How To Meet A Perfect Neighbour (she's a graduating senior, so she's been really busy). We can't decide which pair is more OTP--the Yoon-hee and Joon-seok (secretary/boss) or Yoon-hee and Soo-chan (friend/ex-playboy). Soo-chan is first in the billing, so it looks like he should get the girl, but Yoon-hee and Joon-seok are engaged and ridiculously in love, and Joon-seok stole my heart way back in episode 5. All I know right now is (a) Hye-mi is a bitch and needs to go die, and (b) either something drastic will happen in the next episode or two, or the current couples are set in stone.

Time to go get delicious Chinese buffet! Mmmmm~

This is all so confusing, why is there a divide between what men think in terms of male hotness and what women think?

From my perspective: the hotter the woman (or man), the greater the "lust" aspect. However, for me, there are three things I look at:

1. Can I be friends with her or him? (emotional connection).
2. How hot is the person? (no emotional connection needed).
3. How talented is the person?

All three factor into how much I respect and like a certain Korean actor or actress. BUT, in terms of how purely "hot" a person is (the non-emotional connection), this is my question for women:

Please tell me who is "hot" for a korean guy, and tell me why you think he is hotter than Hyun Bin, since Hyun Bin seems to me to be the best looking guy out there right now (overall, not just body), and nobody seems to agree with me.

I think I can be fairly objective. I can divorce myself from personal feelings. And I am fairly certain that Hyun Bin is pretty damn good looking. But he didn't even make JB's list, and that's a little unsettling to me.

-Samsooki

I have a very short "mine" list: Gong Yoo and Shin Dong Wook, dazzit! So please hand them over to me, thank you very much! Oh and if I may add a j-popper - Matsujun is on my list too.

ok...this has nothing to do with kdramas...anywho...im stuck here doing nothing but read for my history term paper which is due this tuesday...i have to read 54 articles which i jus started...it has to be at least 10-15 pages....

oh and i have my english research paper that is due on wednesday...about 5 page....

then i have to study for my last math midterm which is this tuesday...a poster due on thursday...(wtf! a math poster)

arg!!!!!!! then BAM!!!!!! FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! kill me please..i hate college....

oh on the side note..i am watching black&white..i know..i know..its not a kdrama but its an ok tdrama

@samsooki,
i think Hyun Bin falls in the Pretty category, along with Kang Dong Won, from my list, but for 'HOT' category, i don't think only good looks will suffice...
i have to think hard for this HOT category... Won Bin? LOL... excuse me from having a temporary amnesia for all Korean Actors i've watched... darn it...

as for Mine List : YKS, for now, the other (LSK, KJH, JIW, etc) are still on waiting list :P

I have no "mine" list. But I do admire KimBum and all his maturity and acting skills (yeah, his acting did slide down alittle in BBF, but he was awesome in East of Eden.)
But still, no "MINE" list...

@ mishane: I have so much envy. I'd love to move to Korea~ except I would probably walk around thinking everyone and everything would be like a kdrama. That would be bad. But I'd die to go there, and try out surviving on my own and everything. Alas, south east asian parents = no chance at a life. I'm turning 20 on Sunday, and I feel like I've wasted so much of my life, just sitting at home and not doing anything. Yenniway. As to the wanting an unpredictable OTP - it is too predictable with dramas, but at the same time, still generally prefer it to Western shows and soaps; soaps especially, these people have these intense relationships, us against the world, often hurting the people around them, having affairs etc etc etc - and then they break up and move on to some other friend or whatever. I despise that. I know they do it to keep things interesting, but I have major issues with people IRL being incapable of staying in love/faithful/together, so it really pisses me off. /rant.

@ java: I don't know a lot of the actresses you mentioned~ but Ahn Sun Young is the shits. <3 She's so brilliant, haven't seen What's up Fox, but I wanted to see more of her in Who Are You. Oh, and I have an insane crush on Im Su Jeong. She seriously tickles me pink.

I need to study but I was wilting without dramas so I picked a jdrama, Majo No Jouken, thinking jdramas were low maintenance. Totally bitchslapped me on that one; so hard my cheek is still raw. A female teacher falling in love with her male student - intense and gorgeous. And with Utada Hikaru's First Love as the theme song, which has always made me wet myself with how pretty it is.

javabeans, I agree with you on the 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder'.

Also, men and women will always (and I hate using aboslutes) have differing views on hot vs not and what qualifies hot and what doesn't. My male friends have had countless, COUNTLESS discussions on this and we basically talked ourselves in circles on the subject.

I only have a female list (for Asian dramas at least). Number one on that list is Shin Min Ah, I think she's amazingly beautiful. She's number two on my most beautiful women list, only second to Natalie Portman. Her acting may not be the greatest (she's decent) but she will bring me to a movie. The other 2 are Im Su Jung and Moon Geung Yu (sp??). Those two actresses I don't consider to be amazingly beautiful but their talent more than makes up for it.

And @ 23, Kender. You know me from LJ? Cool!

@ Samsooki: LOLOL, Hyunbin makes my hot list! Him and his character in Snow Queen = most beautiful main guy ever. <3 Other than that, Kang Ji Hwannn~ but he owned me with his acting. If we're talking actors, well, if you only see a picture, someone may have generally good pictures or generally bad pictures, but when you see them in motion, and when you see them acting well, that's a totally different thing. Hotness does end up having a lot to do with personality~ I watched 3 eps of Worlds Within and found Hyunbin pretty goodlooking but nothing so great - why, because of his hair, his clothes, his character, his acting? In Snow Queen, again, hair, clothes, character, acting?

@23 Kender: thank you very much! and i just discovered a new kdrama resource. yay :]

@18 mishane: There are a lot of people on motorbikes and stuff, and I wouldn't think that they're expensive, but that's just my guess. And if you're thinking about bicycles, there popular here too. But scope out where you're going to live first; there can be some hilly bits and the drivers here are CRAZAY!

Hey,

I have a point. Guys want to know. What makes a guy hot. Then, there is definite and value and practical application to such information. Let's stop mincing words. Spill the beans! I need names!

Ok, so we finally got an admission out of JB. Daniel Henney, eh? Kiki. I'd like to say, "I KNEW IT!!!" but that's not true, I always figured JB would be more of a Lee Byung Heon kind of gal. But......alright, I can see that. Daniel Henney. Tall, muscular but not muscle bound, chiseled face, soft eyes, nice jaw, doesn't wear his hair like a wild Lee Jun Ki or Seo Taiji. Plus, Daniel has got some sort of exotic, I'm not exactly sure but I think he might be half-asian kind of look going for him. No arguments from me...

Tit for tat. Hottest k-star that I've ever seen is Lee Hyori. But I don't like her that much because there is no emotional connection. I was never a huge fan of FINKL or any of her other stuff.

Hottest k-actress - probably Jun Ji heon. Mix of tom-boy, vulnerability, ripped body and slightly different face than the normal ull-jang's with the waif elf-like features.

-Samsooki

I've wanted to say this for a looong time now...but I don't know how this is going to sound. Anyway. Whenever I read the posts, I'm always, always surprised to see that many guys watch kdramas, that actively look for info about them and wow, even participate in the discussions! I love it! I mean, I'm not used to that. the guys I know -apparently all the wrong ones- would rather be shot than sit through an ep of a "sappy" (their words, not mine) kdrama let alone the whole drama. The way I see it, they'd do it once in a while to uh maybe seek forgiveness for something they've done or to "win the girl", but for fun? Pfft, never seen that happening before I came here. I don't know if it's a guy thing or if it's a "genre" thing in that kdramas are seen like an over-the-top series...like this kind of thing doesn't even deserve to be watched (much like Belleza said Japanese people consider their dramas).

I don't know...I thought about this a lot and I'm used to be mocked for my tastes (me? BIG scifi geek. Now big K/J drama fan) and I'm always a bit reluctant to talk about them with random strangers because where I live? Some things are labelled as silly and the stigma of that label and people associated with it never goes away. My point is, I'm glad there are guys who share their POVs here. I like reading everybody's comments, of course, but when a guy comment I tend to pay more attention? Sort of? Partially cos this whole thing seems so new, partially cos I'm still surprised you guys don't run away screaming when a fictional character cries his out out and most importantly you make me see things I'd totally miss otherwise (me being a particularly slow female. LOL)

@6 Marres
Here here *raises hand* National holiday FTW! *g*

@14 mishane Re: Love shuffle

I know what you mean. I liked it, but it didn't end on my fave dramas list. At all. I've had a bunch of doubts about the ending and...well, ok, I don't know how many eps you've watched so I can't really say anything (don't want to spoil you). Anyway, the fact that the characters keep switching partners is most interesting. Everything else? Meh. *re-reads* Ok, that sounds a bit harsh.

@Javabeans
I agree with you. I totally understand your madness so that either means we're both mad or neither of us is. ;)

I still have to think of my list of fave atresses. Dude, it's harder than the actor's list for some reason.

@ 30, xiahkixiri

South East Asia? What part?

I'm Filipino, but my dad is American/White, so my household is pretty lax (and I'm an only child so . . .). Also I was sent to boarding school for high school so I think I grew up a little more independent than the usual. I kind of forced that into my parents, that "I AM INDEPENDENT, LET ME BE!" mindset.

Yeah, I'm really excited about Korea. I graduated college a year ago and I've been so bored, thinking, I'm gonna be 23, WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE?!!?

I assume it won't be k-dramaish, lol, but that would be nice. Maybe I'll meet a cute Korean boy though, and go on some fun dates. Eh, I don't know how Koreans view Filipinos. I remember reading an article where it was kind of implied that Filipinos are the "mutt" of the Asian world and I always got the impression that in the Korean culture, they like to stay within their race when it comes to dating (not unlike many other cultures, actually).

@Samsooki:

I find Na Rim much cuter than Mi Joo (though my memory of MNIKSS is a bit hazy, must rewatch it once I feel up to it). But what really drew me in for Bad Family was the whole Mom-Dad (sorry forgot the characters' and actors' names since I'm almost ready to sleep!) side story. Their story was just too cute. I just love the whole "we are family" vibe and believe, I really am NOT into family dramas.

@Marres

We are celebrating Labor Day weekend in my corner of the world :)

@Mishane

Seoul is a really big city. I was there on a business trip for only a few days and I was overwhelmed with how BIG it is. If you want something that's near a few bars/clubs/restos, maybe you should check out Apgu-jung—but it's a totally upscale neighborhood. Myeong-dong might be to your liking, since it's got plenty of shopping, but I'm not so sure about its living conditions (e.g. rent).

>“beauty is in the eye of the beerholder.”

Fixed. ;)

@Samsooki

What is your perception of "hot" anyway? You said that the hotter the man or woman the greater the lust aspect. Does that mean if you were female you would err..."DO" Hyun Bin? And who would you consider hot out of the Korean actresses? Or can't you disclose that information since your wife reads this blog? :P

I see Korean actresses in a totally different light to the way I see American actresses. For eg. Jessica Alba = HOT. Kim So Eun = Cute & Adorable. Who would I rather stare at for 16 hours straight? It's no contest.

So my question is:

How do the ladies here see Korean actors compared to "hot" American actors such as Brad Pitt and Will Smith?

Happy Friday Everybody!

Hyun Bin > Daniel Henney...by a large margin.

I liked Daniel in Seducing Mr. Perfect but Hyun Bin's charisma in A Millionare's First Love is undeniably better.

For some reason I find Choi Si Won adorabale...also Lee Min Ki.

TGIF: I got volunteer duties tomorrow! Anybody here heard about P.E.T (Personal Energy Transportation)? We make hand-cranked wooden wheelchairs that are sent to countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia where handicapped people can't afford a wheelchair.

Watching a great drama and volunteering gives me the same good-happy feeling.

@ Samsooki:

Top of mind, the Korean male actors and singers I find hot are (in no particular order): Hyun Bin, Kwon Sang Woo, Lee Min Ho, Kim Bum, and Kim Hyun Joong to a lesser extent. Unlike my other girlfriends who gush about Daniel Henney, I couldn't care less about him. It's like he KNOWS that he's gorgeous and has a great body, and I generally don't like men with that kind of aura.

Okay now I really better go to sleep! :P

EDIT: Also Lee Jun Ki!

@Kobe
"How do the ladies here see Korean actors compared to “hot” American actors such as Brad Pitt and Will Smith?"

Brad Pitt TOTALLy doesn't make my list of Hot actors. I just...no. Just no. First off, he has the same aura queen bee was speaking of. Secondly...I can't think of a second reason. Of course he can act (I think. I don't watch him too closely), but I wouldn't consider him "hot"

@javabeans
Point!

@ Kobe

If an actor seems approachable and not snobby looking, then I would put them on my "hot" list because I would consider them humble and genuine which makes the HOT. Brad Pitt is actually hot on my list. I hear him do a lot of volunteer activities in New Orleans after he moved there with Angelina.

For Korean actors, I seem to like younger actors (Kim Bum, LMH) but for some reason I don't feel the same way for young American actors (i.e. Zac Efron). I find K-actors more humble and I guess pure and genuine over American actors. Recently, that ideal blew up in my face when JJH was caught with drugs..*sigh*

To be honest (and I hope this comes out right), I haven't really been watching k/j/tw-dramas with the intent to find good acting.

I haven't really found amazing male actors in the Asian field. I don't know why. I don't know if it's a language thing.

I started thinking about what I think makes someone a good actor. With an English speaking actor, I think a lot of good acting can be find in the silences and in the dialogue. Where an actor decides to take a pause, for example, in a sentence, it can convey many different meanings and expressions. Or in the inflection. The WAY the actor says the words, the weight there is in the word. I think a lot of people view acting as just emotions on the face (which is yes, obviously, a big part of it, but I think a lot of it is also in how they manipulate the dialogue and words).

It's a little harder to judge this when you don't understand the language (ie Korean). Because I don't know how the language works, I can't tell the inflections, I can't tell how they speak and how the words play out. I can read the words on the screen, but I don't know what point they actually say it and I can't really tell the weight of the words when they say it.

I don't know if that made any sense, but that's an issue or a barrier that makes it harder for me to determine if an Asian actor is better than others. I mean, I think it's fairly simple to cry on cue or be happy (I'm saying this as someone who took theater classes in high school and college/but without the intent to make a career of it) or scream and shout and be emotional. But it's acting in the silences and in the dialogue that I think takes that extra step.

(One reason why I think comedic actors don't get enough credit. Yeah, give the Oscar to the dramatic actresses but I think they overlook comedy. Comedic timing is just as important as dramatic acting, if not harder. You notice how many dramatic actors hardly make the leap into comedy, because they just don't have that special skill, comedic timing!)

Another long post. *sigh* I'm on my lunch break and didn't feel like sitting in the lunch room listening to all the old ladies discuss what happened on American Idol, ugh.

Happy Weekend everyone! Sunny over here Seattle, I hope you all having a nice day!
Thanks JB for recapping That Fool, and I'm hoping you will give City Hall a chance. *winks* I'm actually watching both shows, so I thank the aja-sisters for their MU links for both drama. But this craziness with the ratings war, I honestly think that That Fool should be up there with City Hall, well they're not far from each other. Let me just say that I enjoy watching Sun Ah in CIty Hall and Hwang Jung Min in that Fool, they're just oozing with adorableness!! I'm falling in love with HJM, it's because his ears..I dunno why....haha!
Wish Mi-Rae and Dong-baek should be buddies!! I love both shows, CM is a, how do you say it, meh...

@JB

LOLs on Daniel Henney in X-MEN...

If we're talking about charisma and fog-up-the-screen kind of hot, I'd have to say Hyun Bin. He just does it for me, and if I find out he's acted in something, I'll almost definitely watch it.

But someone mentioned Lee Minki as well, and yes, he's amazing too. Amazingly.. dorky but so adorable :D I even started watching Be Strong Geum Soon because of him! (and found out about Kang Ji Hwan woohoo) And he was sexaaay in Romantic Island (? that movie where he paired up with Eugene).

Snikki;
Matsujun does it for you? HAHA was it because of Kimi Wa Petto? He's pretty cute but I think Nino is so much more intense and cute/sexy. I like! :D

Anyway, am partly glad it's Friday but I've got an exam tomorrow so I'm dreading the weekend. Honestly, why do universities schedule exams on Saturdays!? Though I really shouldn't complain - it gives me more time to study :/

See, for me, Hyun Bin isn't "hot." In my eyes, he's rather plain. I find people who are "non-standard" to be hot. I like my men different, rough hewn, craggily even. More countrified than citified. I like my women to look like craggily men or to be thick and plump with fat behinds. Which explains why there aren't many lead Korean actresses (or American) that raise my hotness meter.

@23 I totally know what you mean about mixing in research and fun!! I'm in a graduate business course and for one of my side projects, I'm doing a marketing plan for k-pop/k-dramas. More specifically 1 pop group(thinking Big Bang or DBSK, my group hasn't made a final decision yet) and one site (dramafever.com - driving non-koreans to the site). Watching dramas for school work is awesome!!!