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Team Dramabeans: What we’re watching

So, what are we all watching this week?

What kept you reaching for more (or agonizing when there was no more), and what made you want to throw your remote through the screen? Time to weigh in…

 

stroopwafel

A Moment at Eighteen: All the ships! The friendships, the relationships made the drama for me this week. While I’m hoping for the best for my OTP (Oh-je and and his crush Soo-bin and Joon-woo) it was the friendships that really touched me. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the budding friendship between Soo-bin and Joon-woo’s moms, it was a friendship I didn’t even know I wanted to see. And on the friendships front, though Ro-mi is one of my least favorite characters, I was happy to see the other girls rally around her. And Joon-woo, he’s come so far since the first episodes! The old Joon-woo was content to be a spectator to his own life. But now he’s reaching out to his classmates, to his love, and just being an actual participant in life. The biggest surprise of the week was Sang-hoon. I think it’s a credit to the actor and the writer that Sang-hoon as a character is somehow awful and relatable all at once. I understand his desire for revenge on Hwi-young (and half-hope he gets succeeds), but I worry he’ll end up destroying himself along with Hwi-young.

Rookie Historian Gu Hae-ryung: I wish the plot would progress a tiny bit faster, as there are so many question marks for me on different plotlines. Sometimes it seems like we get more fluff than story, but oh the fluff! What beautiful, fun, entertaining fluff. Highlights this week were Shin Se-kyung, the enduring friendship between the lady historians, and the development of some genuine solidarity among the trainees and sunbae historians in the face of a royal abuse of power. Speaking of royals, the more we get to see Prince Jin being sweet, kind, and living according to his moral compass, the more I worry the show will end up killing him off. I have to say, I don’t quite know where the show is taking us with Prince Jin and Sa-hee. It now seems clear there is a mutual interest, but I want more for her than to just be a royal concubine, enmeshed in political intrigue and at the mercy of political forces outside of her control.

 

mary

Love Alarm: Not knowing the source webtoon, I was curious what a K-drama would do with the idea of a phone app that pings when someone who likes you is within 10 meters. It’s not the tech that interests me but the social implications of it. (Isn’t that what really matters nowadays?) I’m pleasantly surprised that Love Alarm so far is showing the problems that arise when addictive apps cross over from something “fun” to something that people rely on a liiittle bit too much. Just four weeks after the app’s launch, we see students already making relationship decisions based on the app alone, letting it do the confirmation/confession for them instead of, y’know, talking about their real feelings. Which makes it sooo good (storywise) when our heroine Jojo refuses to install it. Despite knowing her school, boyfriend, family, and financial situation, her actual feelings remain an enigma. I’m left wanting to know more of what she really feels. Especially after that jaw-dropping cliffhanger in episode 1. It’s even cool in a meta sort of way, because now I want her to install the app so I can see how she feels. Which means I’m starting to rely on that danged Joalarm too–an app that only exists in this fictional Love Alarm universe. (P.S. I know Netflix released the whole season in one go and there’s also a webtoon out there, but please please please don’t tag me to explain future episodes/events if you’re gonna discuss the show below. I want to continue watching without spoilers.)

Designated Survivor: 60 Days: I just finished the 14th episode and I swear this reaction isn’t inspired by what happened to Minister Oh, but I’m so sick of the spy stuff already (except when Agent Han is being a badass). I just want more meetings! I want to see how every argument, every decision, and every compromise affects the rest of the country because I don’t know the right answers either. This show is at its best when it’s breaking my moral compass, making me agonize along with President Park whether to stay good but ineffective, or be slightly evil in exchange for the power to do more good. We’ve always met dramaland characters already past that line of “I swear I’m just doing this so I can change the world” but Park Mu-jin is just toeing that line every episode. Turns out, when you know the full picture, it’s hard to pick which side you want him to end up in. Same goes for the show itself. I don’t know if I want the ending to be more realistic/sad or optimistic/hopeful. I’m just glad I’m not president of anything, because I’d panic about all that responsibility and spend the 60 days in a bunker, watching K-dramas to escape.

Be Melodramatic: That bit after Jin-joo and Bum-soo woke up in bed until they parted ways is the longest, most awkward, most hilarious scene in dramaland. EVER. It’s funny because they seem like actual people you know, but put together, they’re just crazy and petty and immature enough that they prolonged their own agony with the, “I’m good, I’m not awkward” “We just slept together, no biggie” “Let’s eat breakfast together to prove we’re cool.” LOL I don’t even know if I ship them at the moment. They won’t last five minutes as a couple, but they sure make for an entertaining watch. I savor every second of this show, not just the scenes with Jin-joo and Bum-soo. I’m concerned about Eun-jung’s coping mechanism and what it does to her friends and brother. I wish for her to move on but also feel sad when she finally loses that connection with Hong-dae. I worry about Han-joo having her heart broken again. Even the whiny actress with the (obviously) in love manager has me rooting for her happiness. I just luff everyone because the show takes time to make me love them. I’m trying not to just put a dozen hearts in this review but that’s really how I feel about Be Melodramatic. So let me end it with at least one. ♥

 
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Can a show really be this good that it manages to make me laugh and cry at the same time? In Melo Suits Me's case, yes. Episodes 4 and 5 was a mix of fun and sad told in a hilarious way. Relationships are delved in an interesting way that shows how the characters are intertwined. Little details such as So-min being friends (?) with Han-joo and Eun-jung back in episode 1 and with Jin-joo on episode 5 were fun to spot on.

It is ALWAYS the guitar scene where the writer and director’s creative minds go into. Jin-joo’s song and guitar number out of nowhere on episode 5 was hilarious. It was also a delight to see Director Son liking Jin-joo first. Jin-joo and her ex were cute on episode 5 but I laughed so hard when Jin-joo told her ex on episode 4 that she was happy for 2 years in their 7-year relationship because he was in the army back then.

We now know that Jin-joo's script is about 3 crude women (who might be our trio) in their 30's WHO DOESN'T HAVE A PRINCE CHARMING (I like the emphasis). The evil executives belittling women and telling Jin-joo and Director Son that no one will watch a female-centric show actually shows how hard it is for shows like Melo Suits Me to be aired (and that's why female-centric shows are rare). It might be mirroring how this show had to experience the same thing but I love the playfulness in this meta-filled show.

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After seeing my sister, my Mom decided to watch Hotel Del Luna. It feels weird because she never even tried to watch ongoing kdramas before (she only live watches GoT, Supernatural, and TWD before). She's really enjoying the show and it was really funny to see her get shocked by the ghosts, just like how she always got shocked while watching The Master's Sun before. This show reminds her of The Master's Sun minus a hottie lead (she really liked So Ji-sub) and she loves IU here just like she loved her in My Mister.

Why I never encouraged her to watch ongoing kdramas? It's because she will always ask where the next episode is every. minute. of. the. day. She's only on episode 4 now but I think she'll catch up on the latest episodes soon...

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Once again I'm with your mom in her evaluation of Hotel del Luna and the Master's Sun's male leads. After the My Absolute Boyfriend fiasco I really needed time off from Yeon Jin Gu and as the first two episodes of Hotel del Luna didn't grab me strongly that was the last show that made me want to hit play in my 6 week-long travels. I even caught up with my weekender before this and watched a few episodes of my oldies. I have been reading that it got better and I know the ratings are really good. As the show is about to end to catch up with it is now on my agenda for next week. I should watch it at least for my love of IU if for nothing else.

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We all shouldn’t have watched Absolute Boyfriend. Nobody should have watched Absolute Boyfriend. Why did he film Absolute Boyfriend?🤦🏻‍♀️

If we all just came from Crowned Clown, the bias wouldn’t exist. His acting is much better in HDL. I would say great after watching episode 12,13 and I now understand why just a famous pretty boy won’t work as Chan Sung because he goes deep into melo in the later half of the drama. IU too 😭

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I agree that Absolute Boyfriend should have never been made.

My problem with YJG is that the love most hold for him like he can do no wong was never there in me to begin with. I haven't seen him in his child roles, nor the adult shows he is most loved in, Crowned Clown and Circle (this is in my watch with hubby file). I thankfully had skipped Reunited Worlds but liked the second leads better than him in both Orange Marmalade and Potato Star. Now Absolute Boyfriend is added to that list.

Let's see if he can make me like him...

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She thinks Yeo jin-goo is too young and can pass as his son so she can't feel the romance yet. I understand her because she's like 30+ years older than him. HAHA

I haven't seen My Absolute Boyfriend but seeing comments from Beanies made me stay away from it for good. Phew.

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That's part of my problem with YJG. He looks so young, innocent and naive that I can't take him seriously in romantic roles (and he hasn't delivered in them so far in my opinion). This is not necessarily due to his age. I haven't had this problem with actors younger than him (cough Lee Jae Wook cough).

Good for you avoiding Absolute Boyfriend. Wish I was so lucky. I guess at least I got to admire Hong Jong Hyun's fashion?

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I am in my fifties so I could have this problem with pretty much every drama, but I mostly just think of the leads as potential sons-in-law and then I'm good.
I am having trouble with YJG because he looks a *lot* like our second youngest, a foster son/godson, who is just 15 and went back home last month. They even have similar expressions, and my foster son can be something of a scaredy cat and it's just weird watching this kid deal with ghosts or get all romantic when he looks just like the boy I still debone fish for with my fingers for dinner or kiss goodnight.
I liked YJG more before my kid hit puberty and started to look like him.

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Got bores with Absolute Boyfriend on the first ep or I thought maybe I am just not ready for it and that I'll save it for the rainy days, haha..guess not..
What is the problem with YJG?
It's always Noonas. From Orange Marmalade, Reunited Worlds, The Crowned Clown to Absolute Boyfriend and now Hotel Del Luna. Can't they cast him in some light hearted romcom with girls his age his age. Like why the hell not, right?!
And he can't work his chemistry with any of them except maybe in Crowned Clown but it's a sageuk so maybe that helped a lil bit. The rest, nada.. And not only are they Noonas but taller than him, too (OM/ RW and Circle). So I thought maybe he can work it out with the petite and super cute IU but nooo, then in came historical hottie ChungMyung, here I am wishing they should've switched places. It would have been better and I bet we can have some sizzling chemistry between IU and Lee Dohyun. Gosh, the eye contact is so intense between the two.
YJG is a good actor but he needs depth and life experiences maybe. He needs to take a break and just live a little. And again do a drama with people his age.

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I totally understand the less demand for female centric shows and am glad that it is changing. I hope Be Melodramatic's ratings improved because they weren't as good as the show deserves and maybe that's what pulls the channels apart from such format. I will stay have to say kudos to JTBC because they have kept airing female centric shows despite less ratings . Age of Youth had low ratings but it stll secured a second season and if I'm not wrong the owner(or someone in the higher ups) praised it themselves in an interview. Also others like Woman of Dignity and now Be Melodramatic. I think WWW was infact a misfit for TVN but that instead is a sign that other channels are now openeing up to make female centric shows.

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I really hope Dramaland opens up to making more female-centric shows (as it should). JTBC is really a network that produces quality female-centric dramas! (can I count Sky Castle as a female-centric drama because it had powerful women in it) I also thought WWW was a misfit for tvN but then I remembered that the same station produced Avengers Social Club which is another great female-centric show (and if it fits the female-centric category, Because This Life is My First is also great).

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Avengers Social Club! What a wonderful show. There's a special place in heaven for the subbing club (and their ilk) who worked so hard produce high-quality subs for the rest of us!

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I wonder how online buzz for this drama is. WWW haven't the best ratings but comments on article were of high numbers and the show often trended online. Targeted demographic for this kind of shows (20-49) mostly prefer streaming now.

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WWW was always trending in KR back when it was still airing but I'm not sure about Melo Suits Me (since I don't follow the fan pages of these actors, maybe I should start now). And I agree that streaming is more accessible for this show's target demographic so ratings tend to be lower. I just hope this show doesn't get cut or something because they have Extreme Job's Writer/Director in the show. Even Age of Youth, a show that doesn't have the most outstanding ratings despite being sooo good, had a second season so we can still be positive for this show, right?

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It takes two to tango. Writer Heroine did gave hard time to her boyfriend. Both surely loved each other. Long comment can be written about their relationship. One relationship gone but soon another guy pops into heroine's life. Now that's cliche. All normal kdramas actually are female centered dramas. They aim for female audience aka potential customers.

This is one funny take on kdramas -

Kdrama are literally just Shoujo shit or medical shit or mystery bait, they are all garbage only enjoyed by teen girls, housewives and Homos. Also the reason people are getting into korean is because of kpop not kdramas.

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Showing your most lovable side today, huh Catocat?

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I agree, most kdramas are Shoujos... badly written Shoujo shit... HAHA

My take on female-centric dramas: something that showcases females as humans and not some Candy BS where the heroine is a poor but kind female who needs to be saved by her Prince Charming.

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Good written shoujo mangas are rare.

In kdramaland females have no Individuality. They are just facepainted caricatures promoting Alcohol brands.Writer is conveniently mocking other writers when he/she is using the same tools. But at the same time in the show director talks about deceiving the audience, it looked like writer was intentionally poking him/herself.
SELF-DEPRECIATION is what i like most. That's why i'm giving high score to this show.

I have no -ve views on candy girl because i believe every human to some extent somewhere in their life were like Candy-Girls/boys(attributes, personality traits and actions).

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But not all females are badly written. It's already 2019 and even last year's heroines in Dramaland are really great.

Is the writer and director we re talking about here the one on the show? Or are we on different topic now because I'm lost

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I’m neither a teen, housewife, or homosexual. But even if I were, what is so bad about the form of entertainment they like?

(Unless y’all are discussing the latest episodes I haven’t seen, and that statement was taken from the show as satire, not a hurtful generalization towards certain people..? In which case, I’m sorry for butting in!)

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Oh sweet Mary, please don’t waste your time talking to this fool.

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Mary, that jibe is just a mild joke. I didn't took it seriously. I'm sure that someone just used it to tease others. Its just goes pretty well with the Insult missiles of the show and many others are enjoying.

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Thank you, @mary. You are the voice of reason and the best bot bopper in the world.
I am neither a teen nor a housewife nor am I homosexual. I couldn't disagree more with that last paragraph.
Oh, and identifying as straight or LGBT or whatever is neither here nor there. Why do I bother answering hatred which is merely thrown out like a grenade to create a fuss? I'll tell you why. Because this kind of meanness about any particular group (except that jerk chef, @noobita) is never justified.
End of rant.

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It's alright to butt in! It is not the tastes of other people that should be criticized but badly written dramas instead. I don't see anything wrong with anyone liking dramas as long as they have fun with it.

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like marvel avengers end game.. where amzingly in midst of the battle, all women warriors are on one side catwalking against the b'ful black sky

This feminism at times is so gimmicky
and the whole cultural diversity
you don't see whites fighting why asian movies or african movies don't cast whites as main leads

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That scene in Endgame was really cool. I wish the awesomeness was longer and had Black Widow in it.

Feminism is great because it advocates women to be treated equally as men and but we rarely see this topic being showcased in movies/tv shows up until this year (there are some and I hope there will be more).

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Melo Suits Me is so consistently well written. So I am 100% with you on this.

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It was really well written that I am trying to find a flaw (so that I can be mentally ready to accept it if someone criticizes this gem) but I can't... I can't really hate the characters and the story and dialogues are all interesting and fun.

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It is very well written. The writer (wrote Extreme Job) is the main reason I gave it a try. I expected it to be funny but was surprised by the balance to tear-jerking.

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The balance in this show is really great!

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This is the only show that i'm invested in right now. AFter wasting a whole day on love alarm I'm so pissed that the webtoon took a 180 degree turn and doing something that I don't like lol.
Melo suits me is a crazy, lovely, hilarious, heartwarming drama. I love the three girls and their bonding, and the main lead girl ( and the actress playing it) is so wonderful, I wish I met her in real life haha. I just love her. We need carefree people like her around us, to be just happy. Hehe.

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I haven't seen Love Alarm (I know I should). Their friendship is amazing and everything is likeable in this show even the annoying characters! HAHA. If I met someone like Jin-joo in real life, I'll gladly be friends with her!

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I know right? I saw some comments in instagram about the webtoon so I (despite knowing better) checked it out. I got so disappointed in Love Alarm after I found out about the crazy twist. Doesn't matter how hard I have fallen for Song Kang, I don't think I can bear watching the second season if thet decided to make it later. I'm so broken.

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Hotel of the Moon / IU Fashion Show: A/A: Well! Day 11 wasn't filler. Day 12: IU actually went 3 scenes without changing her costume - they must really be running out :)

Doctor John: B+/C: I'm watching too many shows. They feature a terminal patient here and I'm waiting for the touching reunion at IU's hotel.

Welcome 2 Life: C/B-: Murders and flashbacks to murders from years ago, and I expect the whole crowd to show up at you-know-which hotel. HDL makes me view other shows thru IU-colored lenses. Aside from the universe-hopping, it's a bog-standard mediocre crime show -- rich ruthless big bad, old frame-ups, etc, like I've seen 800,000 times before. Except the little kid - she's cool.

Designated Survivor: A-/A-: Season 2? Other season-2s I've seen lately have been disappointing, so I wish they would just wrap things up completely instead of leaving an opening. Anyway, you can't cast the abusive stepfather from Mother and the serial killer from Come and Hug Me and not have one of them be a baddie.

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung: B+/B+: Ha! Joseon work slowdowns :)

When the Devil Calls Your Name: B+/B: All the hate & intolerance got old fast in day 7; then day 8 got good.

Doctor Detective: B/B+: Highly relevant but not much fun. An epilogue takes on Samsung.

Moment of 18: F-/B-: Came back after a couple weeks (because Kim Hyang-gi had been so good in other shows) but rage-quit in the middle of day 5. I fully expect them to have a feel-good redemption arc for the entitled manipulative bully, but that will be harder to believe than alternate universes or hotels for dead people. In my experience evil entitled bully teens never get caught and never repent, but grow up to be evil entitled adults. Where else do you think evil adults come from? It's even worse for me because I use mediocre kdramas as a sleep aid but this show makes me want to get up and smash things. What? Bitter? Who, me?
If you want to watch Kim Hyang-gi in a school drama done right, attend Queen's Classroom.

Love Alarm: B+/B: Guys in love with Kim So-hyun. Surprise, surprise. Meanwhile, how long till Facebook buys the app and starts monetizing your data? Privacy & data mining aside, Love Alarm (the app, not necessarily the show) seems to be a major cause of unhappiness. So the ultimate moral of the story is: be careful what crapps you install.

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I really wish the dead people from the crime shows would start crossing over into HdL. The body count is pretty high in Welcome 2 Life so the hotel might need to expand. You're right, the little girl makes the show (and Rain's voice).

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... this show makes me want to get up and smash things.

I've been dreaming of taking on a personal data visualization project for K-dramas. Your comment suggest I should include a chart graphing the tipping point from "hate-watching" to "rage-quitting."

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Yes, what a shock that guys are in love with Kim So-hyun. I remember that when we watched her in BRING IT ON, GHOST my wife turned to me and said "can we get someone like her for our son?" I had to admit that it seemed like a good idea.

I agree that the story so far (I have only watched two episodes) could be considered a cautionary tale about apps in general. It could be at least partly a fable about the general effects of people being fixated on their phones and not seeing what is around them. As Mary noted, there is an element of addiction involved. There is a reason why I have limited myself to having only a Stupid Phone. While it does have some internet capability I do not use that.

It is nice to see that the Hong sister's have their mo-jo back- not only is the story in Hotel Del Luna not sagging in the middle but episode 12 was the best yet- real heart-wrenching moments and, in some ways the best love confessions ever, in part because they were not stated or intended as love confessions.

As for the IU fashion show- I am all for it. IU is a beautiful woman- why not play that up and add even more to a great show. But this effect is not just because of IU or the fabulous clothing- it is also because the cinematography is outstanding.
This is how you do a show right.

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Designated Survivor
"... . Anyway, you can't cast the abusive stepfather from Mother and the serial killer from Come and Hug Me and not have one of them be a baddie."

LIKE SERIOUSLY.. you wrote everything that is inside my brain. Been my thoughts since Day1. Gave him a benifet of the doubt at first. LoL

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Benefit. LoL Sorry.

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Laughed out loud, LC. HDL affecting me the same way! Great post!

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CRICKET - ashes 3rd test - Ohh England. ahaha.

Butterflies in heart. So happy today. Media that awesome, amazing and delcious. NIRVANA for the body, mind and heart. Super.

NICKELODEON for September - Yup watching all favourite shows an cartoons of childhood since May 2019.
Idle so watching everything an anything( with new skipping-fastforward rules in place)

JAPAN

I don't love you yet - 7.5 out of 10. frustrating week. Moving from Best friends to lovers is quite difficult. A single love confession can change whole of the dynamics and this usually happens in real life.

Watashi teiji de Kaerimasu - 8 out of 10 - If episode 07 was for those who have salty marriages then episode 06 is testing family life with workplace. Ofcourse its a TV DRAMA. Its enough real to make an impact and enough fiction to enjoy it.

And, Live - 7.5 out of 10 - Writer looks like a fan of Formula 1 races. Each episode is eventful. Miscarriage is a cliche so i wasn't much surprised but the way writer went ahead and did Philippines was pretty good. People have complaint that writer is leaving all subjects in between and then moves to next subject. Well, that is true for episode 03 Bombing but not for 1st 02 episodes.

DAUGter - 7/10 - wahh Ohh cute old Kyoko Fukada.
No Side Game - 7/10 - Its better.

Denei Shoujo 2019 - I saw recent episode an the is looking decent. Yeah. I'm surprised. Rating In September.

Fake Affair - its still in my pending list after 1st episode. 6.5/10
1 page no koi - thankfully its not too long 7/10

Dakara watashi wa Oshimashita - Its good. Shiraishi Sei is good competition

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Hamabe Minami has made a point to be ahead of all other Young actresses. New movie with Kamiki Ryunosuke -

Shiraishi Sei is comfortably doing ahem scenes.

KOREAN -

Be Melodramatic - 8 out of 10 - Yes. it not 8/10. The writer has sharp tongue and witty. Each and every interaction is Biggest proof of it. This is the drama to go after. Among most of trash korean and chinese dramas this one shines. This is one big @#$%^&* show. yes. Meaningful life quotes to cruz missiles of insults thrown nonchalantly.

I want to hear your song - 7/10. still quite enjoyable. It works.
Cliche but works.

Devil calls your name - 7.5/10 Episode 07 and 08 and enough to show some idiots why i gave this one 7.5.
School Porn is for you. Devil is too complicated for simpletons

Alarm - trash. 3/10 dropped
Issue Makers -7/10 just 15minutes. This is what kdramaland needs.
Hotel - 4/10 1hour 23minutes for an episode. really? This one secures its place in trash category. This week was too slow, too dramatic. Nonsense piling up.

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FriendZone - 6/10 - Rom-com but where is the Comedy? Heck, where is some good romance? At start i gave it 7 and out of my generosity i give i 6 but it doesn't deserve more than 4. Cliches and troupes expected but comedy was mishandled.
2 reviews
Male- more logical - i completely agree - https://sg.style.yahoo.com/review-thai-rom-com-friend-zone-deserves-ghosted-024723104.html
Female - as usual https://yp.scmp.com/entertainment/movies/article/112973/%E2%80%98friend-zone%E2%80%99-movie-review-thai-romantic-comedy-almost-little

Read Both Reviews in June.

Marathon - 3/10 trash movie. complete time waste. Sato takeu and Komatsu Nana wasted. Nana seriously needs to sit and read scripts properly.

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"I Don't Love You Yet" would be "In Time With You" VIKI naming convention. I've been watching the show religiously since episode 3.

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A Moment at Eighteen: Jun Woo's mom is too precious. Soo Bin's mom needs a friend like her! I wish SB was more active regarding JW. However, I like that she asked Hwi Young about what his feelings for her. Did I hear a wake up call? Also, Sang Hoon is back 😍 That's the beginning of the end for HW. Something Oh Je doesn't certainly want. I'm convinced he has a crush on him now. Poor OJ, why did it have to be HW? An other doomed crush is incoming. Is Chan Yeol starting to have a crush on Teacher Oh? Haha he's getting popular~

And, Live: Hmm I'm not sure how to feel about the FL's story arc. It seems like frustration is the main feeling she provokes in me. Her father's condition will most likely deteriorate next episode and I don't know what to think of it. During this time, the ML has a lot in mind after what happened in the Philippines. The Philippines scenes, the bond with the child and the following traumatic experience were really well done.

Class of Lies: If Hwi Young was put in this drama, he would be an angel compared to Beom Jin haha. I don't think Beom Jin is the culprit. I'll bet on his father because I don't see for who he's willing to go that far. The teacher gives too much information. It seems like a way to be honest and install faith with the other party but not when your students are Satan's paws.

Go Princess Go: ep 17. They put the "Oppa eotteokhae" line and a reference to Victoria's Secret in the same episode. I can't with this drama anymore 🤣🤣

Love in The Afternoon: I haven't seen hot Ahjussi Jo Dong Hyuk for a while and he is the main reason I started it. I'm glad I caught up for the finale because some parts were frustrating. The artist (Jo Dong Hyuk's character) didn't have to still be legally married to create more drama. There's enough of it with the spouses and children.

Melo Suits Me: ep 5. Ir was nice to Jin Joo's relationship with her ex boyfriend. Their lovey dovey period didn't last long and their relationship looked exhausting. Eun Jung's dead boyfriend disappeared at one point during the club scene. Does that mean she's slowly letting him go? The actress is often annoying but she can be interesting to watch. I'm like Eun Jung getting curiously interested with her. I expected to see Han Joo's ex in this episode but it was more on the newbie's problems with his girlfriend. I don't remember how long they're together and I think he's used to her and have a hard time to break up because of that.

Mr Fighting: ep 8. First of all, Ma Sandra ♥️♥️♥️ It's my introduction to Deng Lu (only saw him in GIFs and drama posters) and I'm pleased with his performance and the whole cast's. My favourite part is the bond they're forming to bring the has-been actor back to the screen.

Natsuzora (Summer Sky): Week 7. Natsu's life in Tokyo began with a rocky start as she reunited with her big brother who misunderstood her...

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who misunderstood her adopted family. It's nice to see he got his own family during their separation too. I don't know if they're going to look for their sister soon, so it will be interesting to know how their sibling grew up.

Rookie Historian Gu Hae-ryung: I didn't expect this week's episodes to be light hearted. The king finally recognized historians worth and that they are not his enemies. I don't know what Hot Breaded Prince will do about the spy. I thought he was going to find a hint about Sa Hee when they spent time alone but it was a simple day out. She's getting closer to other characters lately, is it supposed to give other historians and Hot Breaded Prince a shocking reveal when her spy activities will be out?

When The Devil Calls Your Name: ep 7. I didn't expect so many reveals. Yi Kyung's brother is the cop, so where was he when the stepfather was hit? Did he live far away by himself? Was he serving in the army like a Beanie suggested? Also, what is the coffee manager's mission/agenda? What about Kang Ha? The short snippets of his memory we got seem to suggest something terrible happened to him.

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Hot Ahjussi and Hot Bearded Prince are worthy Pinterest collections.

Mr. Tsutsuloo will occasionally ask me who's who while I'm watching a drama and he invariably comments on the Hot Detective/Hot Doctor/Hot Ahjussi/Hot Grim Reaper/Hot CEO being "absurdly good looking."

I reply with studied insouciance, "Yes. He's ... very symmetrical. That's why we call him Hot Bearded Prince."

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Thanks for clarifying that he's Hot, Bearded and not Hot, Breaded. I truly wondered for a moment why people were calling him "Breaded" 🤣

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😂😂😂

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Automatic correction should be banned for me 😂😂

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Your comment about Hwi Young is spot on, lol. I actually thought the same thing to myself while watching.

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Haha great minds meet each other ;)

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DESIGNATED SURVIVOR: Maybe they should skip the "who's Mr. Big" guessing game if they can't deliver in the end. "I did it because this miserable country didn't deserve a good president"? This one will be remembered though for a couple of standout cast members I never saw before.

WATCHER: Gloomy underlighting meets gloomy overwriting. Needlessly complex. I can't understand anything of the plot or characters so I'm just watching for the cast.

PARASITE: The movie sucks you in, you think you know where it's going, then it goes macabre. There's a whole other movie in there somewhere.

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Seriously, Parasite took a turn. I think you're right on a whole other movie being in there. A horror movie. A thriller, at least. I was so not expecting that.

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Actually I was expecting a complete takeover by the "interlopers" (deeds to the property, etc.) and I wanted to see how they'd accomplish it. But of course it's all rudely disrupted by the discovery of something nobody knew was there. (Hard to discuss without spoilers.)

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Currently watching Hotel del Luna. I do believe Chan-seong will have a difficult time sending Man-weol away.
Also watching Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung. Like @stroopwafel, I have a lot of questions like why does the queen dowager like Lee Rim much more than the crown prince (who incidentally lived in the palace before he became crown prince) and what does Sa-hee want to do with him that she so openly shows him she likes him? Agh, such slow pace.
Just started Love Alarm (yeah, I have Netflix, but don't worry, I won't be giving out spoilers) and am into episode 1 for now. A little confusing with the character introductions but I'll give it more time for now.

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I'm only watching two as of the moment:
Rookie Historian Gu Hae-ryung - I would have to say that I am still enjoying watching it despite me finding it a bit slow for my taste. I am fascinated with the life of historians. As an avid sageuk fan, I've noticed historians in the background but never really thought as to why they were important. Watching this drama made me realize that history is as it is because of people like them. The recent eps were kind of enjoyable with the head historian being admirable (if only for a moment). As usual, Hae-ryung made a mess and she isn't aware of it. haha. I find the plotline concerning the prince more and more blurry. He has been a bit absent in the past eps and I am starting to wonder if the write has forgotten his importance in the story. I wish he was included in the story more but let's see if the next eps would do his character justice.

Hotel Del Luna - I could not say enough how much I love this drama. Everything about it is excellent (nevermind the small plotholes as they are still tolerable). Its intricate world for a lack of a better word drew me in like a moth to a candle. It's episodic but does not lose the general story line which I love. I find it even more intriguing as I watch. Also, I love all of IU's clothes so much!

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@pilta—You've touched on some of the elements that make Rookie Historian Gu Gae-ryung a slightly frustrating watch for me. I love Hae-ryung's intelligence, grit and wit while the show is oozing with chemistry in every direction. Overall, the show is a skillful blend of comical and poignant moments. But that's also it's problem—I get swept up in the "moments" without having a sense of forward momentum.

Sure, I'm curious about the mysteries behind Yi Rim's "real" father, why the Crown Prince won't consummate his marriage, Mo Hwa's connection to the Dowager Queen and Hae-ryung's brother, why Counselor Min is the world's worst father, etc.

But does the series need 21 hrs to tell this story? (On Netflix, each ep. is about 63 min.) I admit that I'm not yet accustomed to the pacing; we've only just crossed the series' midpoint! (Note: I do love C-dramas with 40+ episodes. Pacing is my issue, not the episode count.)

Lastly, your description of the young prince's presence feeling blurry is quite apt. It was exciting to see him embrace leadership during the smallpox episodes. And it's charming to see him take care of Hae-ryung. I'm looking forward to more growth and action from the young prince—and everyone else!

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Hotel Del Luna Episodes 11 and 12 - Man Wol unable to exterminate the serial killer’s soul because the hateful comments from the blog fed it did not make sense to me. Then again, I’m not watching this show to analyze logic, so I’ll accept that as is.

The captain turning into a firefly - I guess he deserved it, but wow. I actually do not like the idea that he is getting a redemption arc through this. Man Wol knows he is coming one way or another, but finding out that he’s been with her for a thousand years?! This is not very nice, Ma Go.

Moment at Eighteen Episodes 9 and 10 - I am beyond smitten with this show. ☺️☺️ Highschool romance is one of my favourite genres because of how innocent young love is. Jun Woo’s mom talk about first love – “It’s like having emotions pounce on you. You’re not the same person you were before anymore. The person you were before you met that person” – is totally relatable. Now, I don’t want to go back to that time, and first love =/= last love for me, but young love does bring all the feels back and that is why I’m fond of this trope.

Also, Ong♥️😍🥰😻

Love Alarm Episodes 1 to 8 - Another high school romance I binged in one night. It was addicting at first then a little past halfway of the series - when that thing happened on Jeju island and angst began - my interest dipped. It is full of K-drama highschool romance tropes and the frustrating is that I might have jumped on to the wrong ship. And I hate being on the wrong ship, dammit 😭

I warmed up to the idea of love alarm. I still think this app is concerning if used in the real world, but it feels reassuring whenever Jojo’s love alarm goes off because that means Sun Oh is around. When he told her not to ever turn off her app cuz he wanted to show her that overtime it would not ring because of him, that was heartbreaking. I felt Sun On’s pain.

Also that scene - When Jojo realized that it was actually Sun Oh who rang her alarm in the crosswalk, and not Hye Yeong, eeepss! Spazz moment.

Sun Oh isn’t perfect, and I know his heart breaking into pieces is his karma for going after the girl that his best friend liked first, but he’s really good for Jojo. 😭 I loved those moments whenever Jojo is at her lowest points, he magically appears before her, giving her his best and sweetest smiles and suddenly, all her miseries and pains gone in a flash. He is the pretty in her ugly unruly life.

Rookie Historian Goo Hye Ryung Episodes 1 and 10 - haven’t seen this week’s episodes yet because of Love Alarm….. but I like this drama. Binged episodes 2-10 last weekend. It makes me wonder though - if Rim was played by another actor, would he be more swoon worthy? I loved Cha Eun Woo in My ID is Gangnam Beauty, but I am not as swooned by him in this drama. I get it when people say his acting is lacklustre. It was hard to watch him in the first few episodes. Then I guess I got used to seeing his awkward wide-eyed...

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reaction that I think he’s sort of okay now, but I don’t know. I’m not entirely convinced and haven’t fallen deep with Rim yet even though he’s an incredibly nice prince. Shin Se Kyung is awesome and pretty! Office Min totally wrecked me with tragic family story. I’m glad he decided to stick it out.

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Initially he really bothered me. His acting felt stiff. But some scenes he was really good. When the king bans him from writing.
I do think he was much better in gangnam ID. He does have expressive eyes. He just needs to loosen up his facial muscles.
But Prince Rim is just adorable. With his total dedication to GHR.

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Yes! That was my main gripe about him. His facial muscles just feel off and scream “hey, watch me, I’m acting” instead of genuinely doing it. He was doing this bit great in My ID is Gangnam Beauty, so what happened Eun Woo? 🙁

Acting aside - I do enjoy Hye Ryung and Rim’s moments. My favourite is their time in that city that had a smallpox outbreak. The beach scene was gorgeous. Heartbreaking that this prince hasn’t been really anywhere outside the palace, but I’m glad he’s slowly getting out of his comfort zone with Hye Ryung around. The mundane life of getting to work and having to do something for the rest of the day excites him is a little sad

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I agree with his inconsistency in acting; he was fine in some scenes but I wish he loosened up a bit more in some others, but nonetheless I still like his character and enjoy his scenes with Hae Ryung and Sambo.

My personal favourite is him as Clerk Yi following Hae Ryung around, being the innocent & adorable puppy prince that he is (his puppy eyes when HR shoved the yakgwa into his mouth gets me every time!), he looks comfortable acting in those scenes.
But he seems much more comfortable acting in modern setting dramas. I don't wanna be too hard on him since he's still young & inexperienced, and acting may not be his natural-born talent but hopefully it will come with more practices and experiences.

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@cherrycrumble
He does cute and puppy eyes very well :)
In a way am glad this show doesn’t rely on him solely. The entire ensemble is great and makes this drama enjoyable. I think he picked a good script where he can slowly learn and prep for bigger roles.
His flaws are not hindering the enjoyment of the drama which is a a great thing!

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His flaws are not hindering the enjoyment of the drama which is a a great thing!

@mayhemf I read K-netz comments every time I finish an episode and the comments used to be flooded with Eun Woo’s stiff acting but overtime they turned into “Prince Rim is so heart fluttering” “Great episode today” which put on a smile to my face because it is a great show and I’m glad that Rookie Historian is liked in Korea too and left with mostly positive comments talking about the events in the episode.

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I must agree about this actor playing the young prince. In fact, in My ID is Gangnam Beauty, was where I initially was bothered by his facial muscles (lack of expression in that one). I, unlike most people, really disliked that drama due to the two main actors and their expressionless faces. It really got to me. Here, the actor is less annoying, but still I can't seem to warm up to him. Even the sound of his voice I find to be wimpy and juvenile. Yesterday when I watched one of the newer episodes, it almost seemed like the scenes with that actor in it were from a comedy and the scenes with other actors were not comedy. He just did not fit in with the scenario in a way that was smooth and unified. I'll admit though, part of my problem with this actor in the show is simply because I didn't like him in the last drama I saw with him in it. I wish I could just completely forget prior dramas and start fresh with new ones.

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Lol. There is nothing, absolutely nothing I don’t love about My ID :) me and @13infamyss were crazy about this show when it aired.

Yes, it’s hard to shake off bad memories of actors. I do have some actors who I just cannot watch. It just doesn’t click. So, I hear what you are saying.

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@mayhemf yes, and this is likely why I needed to express my disappointment in him in Rookie Historian because I used to love everything about him. My heart used to heavily spazz on him! What happened? 😭 And I didn’t want to say he’s the weakest link in this show, but I guess I just did. Oh wells, I guess there will always be that drama that we won’t like about certain actors.

And I agree with you @cherrycrumble I’m hoping over time he’ll improve his acting. I used to be weirded out with Lee Seung Gi’s acting, but You’re All Surrounded and Hwayugi were his shows and I loved his characters there. Same case with L. I cringed hard when I first saw him in Shut Up Boy Flower Band, but he was a better actor in Angel’s Last Mission: Love.

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@13infamyss oh my! I've only seen Lee Seung Gi in about 5 dramas but I thoroughly enjoyed all of them. Never once did his acting skills seem below what they should be. He was always entertaining, strong and confident. He is in a whole different class of actors from this one in Rookie Historian and from L. Yes, he's got some haters, I see (I googled it after I read your post and was surprised). The rest of your post felt similar to my own feelings, but the part about Lee Seung Gi was just plain surprising to me since I'd not read other people's opinions about him before.

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@zzthorn I saw him in four dramas and didn’t really like his performance in Brilliant Legacy and My Girlfriend is a Gumiho. He wasn’t bad, but his acting just felt weird and not so genuine to me. I didn’t connect with his characters well. Brilliant Legacy was Han Hyo Joo’s show. I saw My Girlfriend is a Gumiho because it was a Hong sister drama (their dramas are must watch for me), but it wasn’t my favourite. Everyone was gushing over Lee Seung Gi’s acting, but I was in the minority at that time. I didn’t see the hype for him.

When I saw him again in You’re All Surrounded, I was worried starting it, but I immediately connected with his character well and he owned that show. When he headlined Hwayugi, I was confident that I’d like him in that and he didn’t disappoint.

These are the actors I avoid: Oh Ji Ho, Lee Jin Wook, Kim Hyung Joon. I’m trying to think if there are actresses I avoid drama, but I think I have more tolerance with actresses than actors. Suzy, Hyeri, Lee Yeon Hee, Go Ara to name a few have been criticized for their acting, but I don’t mind them. I can still watch their dramas if plot is interesting. Lee Yeon Hee is really bad tho, sorry, just needed to say this 😐

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Oh @13infamyss I see some of our experiences and tastes are similar. I saw Lee Seung Gi in You're All Surrounded, Kin 2 Hearts, Gu Family Book My Girlfriend is a Gumiho and Hwayugi.
I also don't like Kim Hyung Joon but the first time I saw Oh Ji Ho was The Slave Hunters and I was impressed with him in that one. I haven't really cared for anything else he has done, but I did like that one a lot. I used to really dislike Suzy and felt her acting was annoying, but the last couple things I saw her in she didn't do poorly. I still can't tolerate Go Ara though. There are some female actresses that I really dislike in addition to Go Ara and one is the main lead of Gangnam ID. As for male actors I don't like so well, L definitely makes the list as does Yoon Kyun Sang and the tall skinny guy who was the male lead in Blood. But truthfully, I am always open to change my mind on my likes and dislikes. In fact, at one time, I didn't like Lee Jun Ki at all but then saw him in 2 Weeks and changed my opinion entirely and rating that drama really high.
Thanks so much for sharing your likes and dislikes as it's fun to hear what other people think. :-)

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The Missing Half Episodes 1 to 16 Why am I sticking it out with frustrating shows? 😩 This is an ongoing Taiwanese drama about a trip down the memory lane. The scene opens with main leads already a couple and are preparing for their wedding ceremony. Female lead, Su Yan, got into a car accident and is in coma. Before the accident happened, she sent out password-protected emails to the people who matter to her, 5 of them including her husband, telling them her feelings that she couldn’t say out loud.

I am not a big fan of nonlinear narrative plots and that’s why I found the first 4 episodes confusing because the story goes back and forth between the past and present time. What is worse is the past also gets a past flashback that I would forget what year I was actually watching!

Episode 5 was when I started warming up to the show. I love that male lead, Lu Jin Yu, took an interest in her at first meet and he is incredibly nice to her from day 1. He reminds me of Gu Wei Yi from Put Your Head on My Shoulder. He goes through great lengths to help her and I like that he admitted he was into her when people asked how he felt about her.

Female lead’s brother, Su Minyang, is no where near Guanchao-gege of Le Coup de Foudre, but I love him! He looks after Su Yan in his own way. When the girl he likes, Juanjuan, bullies his sister, he says out loud that he’s not happy with it. My favourite line from him was when he was talking to JuanJuan, a Taekwondo athlete about his sister during their Taekwondo fight – “Why did you hit her head too hard? Weren’t you a little too harsh on her? What are we gonna do if she got brain damaged? Who’s gonna marry her? I don’t want to look after her forever” 😂😂 He loves her this way, okay.

Juanjuan – strong dislike for this girl right here, but she’s smiling a lot with Sun Minyang now and just like that I forgive her. She used to hate Minyang’s gut but in the present time, her face lights up whenever she sees him. Awww

Sun Yan – Episode 16 and I’m very frustrated with her character. I understand she didn’t come from good family background and everyday is a struggle for her, but I honestly don’t remember now what Lu Jin Yu saw in her because she’s just not good for him. She always pushes him away because Juanjuan says so and it’s breaking frustrating me more. She looks in love and comfortable with him in the present time, but I cannot stand that she’s being like this in the past – giving him cold shoulder, taking him for granted.

The flashbacks are very heavy in this series; it’s enough to drive me up the wall. But I’m still watching. 😪

In Time With You (Taiwanese Version) - I checked this series out because I am currently watching the Japanese version. Another frustrating series, but the heart of this show is simply Ariel Lin and Bolin Chen. ♥️ I fell for their chemistry that I chose to finish the show and was heavily rewarded with a much stronger chemistry at the...

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Thank you for taking about "the missing half". I found out of the blue a couple of videos full of scenes and I thought I would want to watch it, just because I wanted to know what happened after the TOD, but now I don't want to. Also, it is for me impossible to believe you would put yourself in front of a main street and not listen to a car that is coming, and the car's driver also don't see you and just run you over, come on!!! The truck of doom is so absurd most of the time they use it!!!🤦🏻‍♀

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Yeah no, it’s not really worth sticking around, but I’m still watching cuz I’m far past into half way of the series, and I’m still kind of interested to see these odd relationships she has with these 5 individuals she sent the emails to.

TOD is one of the, if not the most ludicrous insert to get a plot going. 🤦‍♀️

By ep 16 she’s still in coma, husband tries to decipher the passwords to unlock her emails and they are still not together in the past.

Watching this series on YT is annoying because opening and ending songs are muted because of copyright! Also the music inserts in the scenes are muted too so the feels are not there during the quite moments. 😡 How can its own production team have their OSTs censored by YT is mind boggling.

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woohoo to watching in time with you (tw) in 2019. i adored it when it came out and often rewatch it. i completely agree about ariel lin and bolin chen's chemistry; it really did carry the series. i've come to dislike ariel lin's character though because she's a taker and li da ren is so giving...i think it was generally well written. definitely one of my favorite tw dramas. the pain and suffering is well worth it when you to the end.

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Huehehe I am 8 years late, but I’m glad to have finally seen this!

You Qing is interesting to me because she is never shy to show her vulnerability to Da Ren. She tells him everything that she is. Her best and worst, Da Ren knows. We are also privy to her inner thoughts which made me feel a little closer to her than Da Ren because listening to her dilemmas was maddening yet totally relatable.

She’s given Da Ren a chance to explain himself what he meant by he “would never love her” back in high school, but he chickened out and worse got interrupted by a phone call. He never brought up the topic again.

Her getting back with her ex was frustrating, but I understand where she was coming from - first, she didn’t get a closure with him, second, she likes the feeling of being in love and her ex provided her that.

Anyways, one of the many cutest scenes was when Da Ren came down with a flu and she went to see him. She sort of bragged that she’d prepare her household’s soup for him. Da Ren listened in when she gave a ring to her mom asking for help with the soup. Lol. Oh, You Qing, you’re cute.

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end! I loved it so much when they finally got together. Li Da Ren’s song that he wrote for Chen You Qing is beautiful. I need to download that song and listen to it many times more.

I had tears in this scene as You Qing listens to his song https://youtu.be/VWal2FqbO9Y


🎵 I think I probably, probably won't love you.
I tried, tried hard not to fall for you.
That's why I let myself like you so.
That way you won't have the heart to stay away from me.

I think I hate, hate the arrogant you.
Also, the beautiful, beautiful you.
That's why I want to pretend to hate you.
So that you can't bear to leave me.
I must say, I really won't love you 🎵

This song reminded me of its Japanese version’s title and Ren’s chant to himself whenever his feelings are conflicted – “I don’t love you yet”.

In Time With You (Japanese Version) Episodes 11 and 12 - 😪 sadly after the Taiwanese version drained me good, I cannot see anyone playing these roles than Ariel Lin and Bolin Chen! These episodes had angst and frustrations in it, but I found that they lacked those emotions from the Taiwanese version. I could totally feel Da Ren’s secretly pinning for You Qing and all those times he had his mouth shut and did not do anything when she was getting back with her ex, but unfortunately I did not feel anything with Ren to Yo.

For example, that restaurant scene where Ren tells her ex what Yo is to his life felt a little underwhelming to Da Ren’s outburst of verbal attack about how You Qing always felt the need to be the centre of the universe, she was conceited, etc but he ended up taking all what he said back about her afterwards when she left!

I wish the Japanese version had included this bit from the original series – You Qing’s ex is a sore topic to Da Ren and You Qing is aware of this. She walks on eggshell around this topic. She tried to avoid telling him she had received flowers from her ex, but he ended up hearing her say it anyways when she was talking to a friend on the phone. She looked startled and scared seeing his face fell. Augh! Frustrating scenes but the feelings were there and so strong!

Also, having seen the Taiwanese version, I now know that Ren and Yo are most likely gonna get together in the very last episode 🤦‍♀️

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Awww I loved Taiwanese version of ITWY so much! Their chemistry made it one of my all time favorites.

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Yes Kreyon! Agree with you there. With all the frustrating bits of this show, their chemistry made it all worth it. And for that this series gets a high rating from me on MDL! Lol

Right from the start, when they celebrated You Qing’s birthday
at open concert venue, they were oozing with chemistry. You Qing wasn’t into Da Ren yet at that time but I could totally feel his secret love, it was agonizingly good. Don’t even get me started when they do flashbacks of their time in highschool and university.

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Ariel Lin is one of my favorite Taiwanese actresses.

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What a coincidence! This blogger https://thefangirlverdict.com/2019/08/23/flash-review-in-time-with-you-taiwan/ just finished ITWY as well and also loved it. I may have to put it on my list!

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Thanks for the link, Ally! That was a great read. The writer took the words out of my mouth and now the urge to go back and rewatch these scenes is very strong.

I wanted to quote on pretty much everything the writer said and add my two cents on it, but that will take up my entire weekend, so I’ll just quote this one

I freaking love Da Ren as a character, and Chen Bolin brings him to life in such a lovable, endearing, down-to-earth, relatable and just-a-touch goofy way that I can’t help but want to serve my heart up on him on a plate, and squish him into my pocket, all at the same time. ❤

Bolin Chen is like Li Xian of Go Go Squid to me. I didn’t find him attractive at first, but the more I watch him play his character out, the more I find myself swooning and gushing over him. He is an attractive man and I fall more especially when he turns to her with goofy, sort of geeky smile.

While I don’t agree with the writer that he has more brownie points for playing his character than Ariel (I believe they are equally good and I was equally invested in her character), but she had all said everything that was good and bad about this series. I agree too that I would have rate this an A- despite my frustrations. I was frustrated because their struggles felt real that I wanted them to get over it and get together ASAP.

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That was my favorite line in the blog actually! I love how she writes, you can really feel her love (and angst) for the characters!

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I love her writing too! I actually stumbled upon drama beans while reading some comments on this site!!
Till to do date, the best written review for 'Secret Affair' was by FGV. Only someone who felt so passionate about a show can I write that way!

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Will def visit her site more often and I love that she writes novels about a drama! I love reading novel-long reviews. 😆 It makes you want to rewatch.

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Thanks for sharing, @ally-le! That post is nothing short of an exegesis. I love it! Saving the Taiwanese version for later (I have to ration my happy pills.)

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Her reviews are often spot on! I chose a lot of my early Kdrama watches based on what she loved.

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Same here! Her graded list of dramas is an incredible resource.

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Blue, I watched the first episode from Kiss-Asian, @chasingbears recommended the link to me! (BTW many thanks chasingbears this was a great binge! 😍) but I was frustrated by unwanted pop ups and the video quality that I ended up downloading the torrent file in 1080p quality. Viki lost the rights to this one when it expired, so there’s no legal way to see it. 💔

I would also like to add, I think the reason why I said I cannot see anybody else playing these roles anymore but Ariel Lin and Bolin Chen is because they’re better actors. They are able flesh out more the sweet and frustrating bits of their characters because they feel more genuine when they act.

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Thanks.. will google.
I tried watching the Japanese version and did not continue after Ep 6. Somehow, I did not feel it.

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So glad you enjoyed it! (I also find the ads annoying but I try my best to ignore- it is a price to pay for watching it illegally heh)

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Gah! I tried to link the site but DB blocked it as I had expected. So I would suggest to just google in Time With You Kiss Asian and should be the first link.

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I may be the minority. I didn’t board on any ship in Love Alarm.
I think she is very lonely and miserable that she goes to anyone that gives her attention. Am not convinced she likes anyone. She likes the idea of someone liking her. I think she needs fix her life first, forgive herself for the past or find peace. I can’t imagine living in that house. It’s just so toxic.
I do like both the leads but I like the shy one better. May be because I relate to him at age 18/19 and his introverted nature. He needed to grow up before he is able to start expressing.
I have a feeling eventually when her love alarm is going to ring it would be for the wrong person while her heart wants otherwise. Just writing my own fictional season 2.
I hate this app :). But I get it. It’s the same as getting Instagram likes. You get addicted.

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I think she is very lonely and miserable that she goes to anyone that gives her attention

Awwww, blue 😭 This is sad. Thinking back, I understand what you mean. Il Shik, Sun Oh, Hye Yeong did like her first before she’s drawn to each of them.

I have mentioned it in my one of my comments on a fanwall post, I am not okay if this series is going to juggle back and forth between two bestfriends. I get why she may not go back Sun Oh because this relationship with him is taxing on her, but to go to his best friend when there’s so many guys in this world? This is something one can control, you just simply don’t hang out with the best friend, so you don’t have to worry about falling deep for him.

But you mentioned she’s lonely, so I guess in a way, I can see why she ends up hanging out with Hye Yeong. She just needs somebody to have fun with. I agree that she needs to have some self growth first and get out of that hellhole - I can’t believe she’s still living with her aunt and cousin 4 years later!

Huehehhe I don’t have insta but I have twitter for fangirl purposes and fb for personal stuff, so I know the addition. It is addicting to scroll through posts reading other people’s lives. I know why these social media may cause depression to one as they watch people’s lives flash by. The Love Alarm app is even more concerning in real life; I understand why the mass suicide happened.

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but to go to his best friend when there’s so many guys in this world?

yes, I did read the fan wall discussions about this.
Why can't she? Why should she be responsible for maintaining the friendship between the two men. Why are we blaming the woman and not the men? After all, it's the friends who should respect each other and not go after the other man's girl.
From her perspective, she has no idea about the depth of their friendship. Sun Ho never spoke about his friend because he didn't want her to know he likes her too. Even if she knew, I don't see it to be her fault unless she knew both of them personally and was friends with them.

The way season 1 ends with her looking to un-sheild her app looks sad to me. Does she want to tell SunHo she likes him or does she want to know if she still likes him? Both are bad scenarios. If she doesn't know that she likes him and needs an app to confirm it for her it is just terrible. It shows how out of sync she is with her own emotions. If she does want to get back to SunHo, she could tell him 'I was immature I broke up because I was scared I would be alone again. But I still like you'. She needs an app.
Even after SunHo told her 'I have told you all my secrets', she couldn't talk about her parents death to him. I completely get SunHo's love for her, but not her love for him. not yet.

May be that's why I was drawn to Hye Yeong. He was willing to tell her he likes her without the app. And wanted her to think about him and figure out how she feels. Only after talking to her, he installs the alarm to ring her phone. At that point the app is a mere confirmation and not the tool to convey his feeling. It's this aspect of him that makes me like him.

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If there was a way to prevent any drama from happening, then why can she not be the one to put a break on it before things get nasty? It’s not about her being a woman that’s causing this. I would have said the same thing if the roles are reversed. If one is persistently pursuing and the other knows the trouble this will bring, one of them should have stopped it. Why let yourself go through dramas and headaches you had a control over it at the beginning before they went spiralling down?

She was aware of Hye Yeong’s feelings for her since highschool. Even though she doesn’t know the depth of Sun Oh’s friendship with Hye Yeong, she knew they were friends. When Hye Yeong finally took that chance to come up and talk to her, follow her around, text her, she should know that the intentions are not because he wants to be purely friends.

I think I was projecting my personal experience on her when same case happened to one of my girlfriends and it was a one nasty drama that eventually didn’t end very well.

Agree I liked it too when Hye Yeong said he’s going to do this pursuing thing the traditional way instead of letting the Love Alarm do the deed. And now that we are discussing this, both Hye Yeong and Jojo didn’t believe in (want) the app at first and were only peer pressured to use it. I guess in the end the show wants to relay that speaking out the truth yourself is still the best affirmation. They all depend on the app to speak their truth when they don’t even know the truth themselves.

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Great idea for season 2. I quite like your take on Jojo. She really is lonely and veers toward someone who likes her back.

I'm so far on Team Hye-yeong. Dude is the classic second male lead in a way, timid and liking the girl from afar and seemingly content with an unrequited love, as compared to Sun-oh who goes after what he wants and is much more upfront about his feelings. I do like the contrast between him and Sun-oh. HY is someone who wants to know Jojo more by asking her a lot of questions. SO on the other hand waits for her to open up to him. HY grew up with a loving parent and seems to be stable emotionally while SO is the type that needs validation given the rejections that he faced growing up.

Pali-pali, Season 2!

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There is no right or wrong. Both guys are good. It only a question of who she needs.
Sometimes two scarred people coming together may be healing while at times it might be a giant mess. So the SO bus can go either way!
With HY there is stability and financial/economic class match. If I had seen SO’s family I would run miles away and not want to get into a relationship.
Yes, season 2 palli before we forget what we watched :)

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I put all the currently airing dramas on hold, other than Be melodramatic I love this show so much that I can fight with anyone who has even the slightest problems with the show (which are definitely there), sorry not sorry, I am like that, totally imperfect and totally in love. (the hearts that @mary was a bit shy(?) to add, here they are: 💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓 ^10000000000000000000000)

And then I started an old but gold drama:
The Forest of Secret aka Stranger
Yes, it is awesome ! Totally awesome. I am on ep 9 and I think I will finish it this week.

I also managed to watch a movie
The Wailing I think this is the first horror movie that I will give a 10/10 rating. And goes into the rarest category of movies to be rewatched. It has the finest ending that i have ever seen for a horror movie and the amount of details and culture and meta they managed to fill in 2 and half hours was amazing. The movie is perfect in meta as a cold unsolved case, where you have evidence and counter evidence for every theory and the lead is cop. Just so awesome.

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I have a problem with Be Melodramatic! The characters drink too much that I pray for their kidneys! HAHAHA. Kidding aside, this show deserves all the love!

💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓

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It seems I need to find time to start Melo 😁

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Sure, go ahead, I think it is going to be the kind of shows that you either really really love or just don't like. I hope you really love it.

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Yessssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

Also @oppafangirl, OMG FOREST OF SECRETS PLEASE MY WEASEL KING give him some heart. (And everyone, really.)

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Hahaha, sure ! I will store a big supply of hearts!
(that sounds like a kdrama plot of supply of hearts, lol!)

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I totally agree with you on The Wailing: It's a 10 for me too and i can't wrap my mind about why it's been so underrated when it's perfectly executed, written so brilliantly and smartly that it make possible many crazy theories and interpretations, all complex and credible while leaving everything open.
It should be a cult films like David Lynch's films are, with the same religious fervour from its fans.
Talking about it totally woke up the urge to rewatch it!

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yes, totally, I feel that this movie needs it own recap on dramabeans for being so complex and having so many intricacies of Korean shaman culture. The so many interpretations are really fun to read and think about.

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A recap on DB would be fantastic but those films reviewson this site are so rare that i think they 'll prefer to pick up something more conventionnaly popular....

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@refresh_daemon used to be our film review guru. I miss those days.

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@kiara
Thank you, Sometimes I am truly amazed at what a wonderful site Dramabeans is! I just wish we can have it forever and with more content.

I did not know about movie reviews, but now i will watch all the movies that have been reviewed! ^^

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Wasn't it well received in Korea? I expected a gory horror movie but there's more to it. The numerous theories and symbolism explanations from fans are so wonderful.

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It was well received in Korea!

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It was critically acclaimed internationally and won Best Film or Director various times.

This has been on my watch list since it was released, but my reluctance in following through is because it's a horror film.

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You should watch it, if one can watch the guest (which had way more gore), one can watch this movie as well. Also it is nowhere like a typical horror movie, it is amazing in what it means and what it wants to show. Such a masterful work! Do watch it.

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Lol thanks for your encouragement. Is it more like The Others and Sixth Sense or 28 Weeks Later? I also really want to watch Kingdom and Train to Busan, but I feel like these two and The Wailing fall into the latter category.

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More like 28 weeks later. And you should really watch Kingdom as well, that one is truly amazing. I have to still watch Train to Busan.

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Indeed well received: it won big time at the Baeksang awards (best actor, best director and best script). The admissions almost reached 7 millions in SK, which is more than decent.
And more generally in all Asia: It was awarded too at the Blue Dragon and Asian Film festivals.

But in in the western world, it's still a film that very few people know, and even the critics specialized in asian films dismissed it: it rarely makes their top 10.
Maybe to belong in a totally assumed way to horror genre undermines the fact it's so much more than an horror film.

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What are the problems with Be Melodramatic? I ask only because I think it is perfection. I 💕 ❤️ every bit of it.

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Some beanies did comment on fan wall on various issues plaguing the show, me thinks the show is really smart and knows what it is doing in a meta way, although in some places it looks like the messages it gives are wrong like the one where the single mom wonders why every guy in her life can't fight and asks her son why he did not hit back the girl who had hit him, felt like they were condoning violence. But somewhere in my heart I believe that she will finally grow up to realize that life is not about fighting back only.
And some issues about PPL in the movies in the drama is not accurate representation just for script sake and so on... but i don't care too much about it at this point ...
I love this show that's all I care about 💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓

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I took that running away very differently. It had nothing to do with violence, IMO, but about men who run from difficulties and responsibilities rather than have guts and courage to stand up and face it.

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Yes, I agree with it, I also took it the way you said, but I can see why it can also mean the other way and then I unsee it. LOL!

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In the show itself it wasn't the boy running away that bothered mom but the boy resembling her no-account father. It wasn't about his actions, it was about the family resemblance.

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@oppafangirl Forest of Secrets
HINT: Avoid all spoilers

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Thank you, yes I am desperately avoiding all spoilers. It is no fun other wise. ^^

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@oppafangirl
If you haven't noticed it yet, some of the camera work is amazing. It's hard to see how the actors are playing to it, but Lee Chang-Joon's working with the camera is the best I have seen.

Also the score, it's magic. Not the usual OST and often un-noticed...but wow.

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When you finish Secret Forest/Stranger, I recommend reading this delicious, spot-on single-chapter fanfic called Nocturne. by @lilybeth84.

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Oh thank you, I will do that, I will save this link. ^^

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Real Live + Drama Slump = I'm current only on Hotel (Sanchez 😭💔) and Timpanist.

I also watched 10 episodes of King's Avatar with my teenaged son. We have fun... and it's a nice bonding moment for us 🙂

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Love Alarm.

I downloaded the app.

Here's hoping someone within 10M will ring my alarm. Better yet, JI CHANG WOOK. RING MY ALARM!!!!!

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How will you get withing 10 M of JCW? :O

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I think you're going to need to move to Seoul.

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