You may not have noticed that I took a hiatus but I took a hiatus. For two whole months even. But now I’m back and have picked up an airing drama and am watching an old one or two as well.

Graceful Family: What happens if you take a standard old-school makjang and put an awesome, badass female lead and an adorable and delightful beta male in it? CRACK. Pure, unadulterated cracky goodness. And with an OST that embodies makjang in musical form, it’s no surprise half of DB is now addicted.

Is it perfect? No. Is it, possibly, a little too sexist? Yes. But we don’t even really care.

Oh and yeah, we’re SHIPPPPPINNNNNG!!

We’re all on the ship, writers of Graceful Fish Cult. SET SAIL ALREADY.

Class of Lies: I do kind of wish I’d watched this while it was live airing. I could have gotten sucked into all the speculation and analysis and been blazingly, spectacularly wrong in real time. However, I had to go to the Arctic instead. Bummer?

Anyway, I finally got around to watching this and thought it was a good, solid crime thriller. It’s kind of a shame it aired in the same year as SKY Castle. Any brutal analysis of education corruption and the tyranny of an elite above the law is going to be compared to that brilliant and almost-perfect piece of satire - and come up short.

Flower Boy Next Door: I have now finished the Flower Boy series and can rank them in level of ‘Meh’: Shut up Flower Boy Band, Flower Boy Next Door and then the unwatchable Flower boy Ramen Shop.

Dream High (because Netflix made me, although I’m only a few episodes in): Suzy should make a Taecyeon/KSH sandwich. That’s all I got.

I have been appointed Official Shitposter for Salted Caramel Ji Chang Wook, the new romcom from the writer of Strong Woman Do Bong Soon. I haven’t yet decided the form of these shitposts but will have to come up with something soon since the first episode airs tomorrow.

JAPAN

WHEATHERING WITH YOU - Yup watched. spent money. Quality media demands respect.
Makoto Shinkai likes to play with audience. Tries to make you emotional to generate profit. Visuals that amaze you. Story you connect to. Still you feel the BUT.

AND, LIVE - Wait for 2 hour tv movie with added scenes. Hope we get raw and Translation

In Love With Eyes of an Ugly Girl - 4/10 Well, everyone has their own standard of beauty. I just don't know from what angle she's ugly. Chubby or Fat for sure but ugly? below avg. shoujo story. dropped

Waiting for 4-Punkan no Marigold - Brother love for sister. ahem and troupe of Illness. Sota Fukushi in so time for more tears.
Shinmai Shimai no Futari Gohan - I'm expecting Sister-in-laws living together manga gets live-action too.

Ore no Hanashi wa Nagai - You and I on the G-String

Neet Bro-Sis as well as Shopaholic Bro-sis demands live-action too. So many good Slice-of-Life Choices and i'm sure they will be able to get the cost easily.

This Japanese Season is so good.

Flower Crew: Dropped at episode 3. I just don't feel the story. I can't get attached to the characters, except Kim Soo, and I don't have the time to add a new drama.

- Completed -

Rookie Historian Gu Hae-ryung: The finale was satisfying and the Crown Prince stayed good (will Park Ki Woong keep playing nice characters after that?). I just hoped more time was spent with some characters, as it felt like the show wanted to quickly go back to its lighter mood (which I loved btw!). The cast, the directing, the music and of course the writer did a good job with this sageuk!

When The Devil Calls Your Name: For me, this drama's strength was the music part. So, I was glad to see the duo at the end and how they keep making music after everything happened.

- Currently watching -

Graceful Family: Caught up. Mo Seok Hee ♥️♥️♥️ She's on fire~ She's on fire~ I love the opening scenes for each episode when they tell a character's "backstory". My favourite one is the actress's because that was too hilarious but at the same time, I felt sad for the eldest brother. He's the most decent sibling (the youngest son too) and I'm sure he can do more that he shows. About the second son's secret, something was off with the studio and wow! I didn't expect that! Nothing should shock me since the fish funeral but damn it, show!

The Great Show: I feel like every week a new obstacle blocks Wi Dae Han's way to politics. I don't want him to go to the "dark force" because the children will be so disappointed.

Melo Suits Me: ep 15. I'm making up my mind and telling myself it's time to let them go.

Natsuzora (Summer Sky): Week 13. Natsu's friend joined the theater troupe to pursue his dream. I thought Natsu would be supportive from the start but it looks like she thought first of his parents. There's nothing in both thinking differently but the outcome was good as he got to do what he wants.

Pegasus Market: Episode 2 not subbed yet.

The Running Mates: This week's episodes were less cheeky than last episodes. I still can't figure out what HRC's function is supposed to be in the show. Are they investigating only cases related to work? Since they dealed with sexual harassment in a workplace and work abuse (there's more to it but let's say that's the core problem).

Secret Boutique: It's the first time I'm still happy even if my ship sank very fast! The show fooled me but I'm glad as it means both of them have a legitimate reason to do what they're doing. I wonder how they will deal with this revelation next episode. Now about Hyun Ji, I like seeing her and Jenny forming a partnership. I can't wait to see them kicking butts!

Walk Into Your Memory: I knew they were going to separate them but I'm confident enough that the main couple will get back together. Come on, it's supposed to be a fun, silly and light show!

When The Camellia...

What a great delightful show Rookie Historian was!!

Graceful Family : Yup, still watching it and glad more beanies are picking it up.
Just so much fun it would be a sin to not watch it :))

Great show: I hope we see some growth for male lead because I want to punch him way too often.

Camellia: One word. Kang Ha Neul

Waiting for Extraordinary You / who is picking this up in the US????
Waiting for My Country. Jang Hyuk!!
Want to start Untamed.
Tentative on Melting Me.

Vagabond: spy extravaganza? I don't know. I'm watching for Ki Tae Woong aka Royal Hotness aka SSR ☕😎.

I completed two dramas this week. Two more beans! 💪🏻💪🏻

1. ROOKIE HISTORIAN GOO HAE RYUNG: A cute rose-coloured jellybean with a juicy filling. A good snack for historians.

2. ARTHDAL CHRONICLES: A shrivelled twisted bean that grew with difficulty in the murky marshlands and was tossed into the desert and left to die.

Since Rookie Historian ended this week I wanted to give my farewell to the drama. I started with little to no expectations but it ended up being one of my favorite dramas ever. This was essentially a contemporary drama set in saeguk but the fusion was done well. The modern values which I'm sure were misplaced in the era made it an alternate universe retelling of what could have been if female historians were allowed to exist at that time. The relationship between the female historians was endearing to watch and while I did wish their individual characters had been explored in more detail it didn't stop me from rooting for them. The romance was sweet and the gender reversed tropes not only made it more interesting but also covered up some of the gaps in acting. I came away from this series completely satisfied but at the same time am sad to say goodbye to it.

I checked Pegasus Market and I don't know... I somehow expected more fun? 😆 (Though it could be that the Beanies' comments put my expectations too high...). It is funny, no arguing here... but... I actually laugh more with Camellia's Yong Shik. Kang Haneul is soooo good here! I enjoy every second of his performance 😍 (And Yong Shik's earnestness, straightforwardness and good heart reminds me a lot of Carrot Ironfoundersson, the captain of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch 😀 ).

My favourite show still remains Be Melodramatic and Son Seok Ko is again stealing my heart... his character is so quirky 😀 And I love how he is able to get to Eun Jung.

Recently I'm "watching" dramas from fanwall and comments. I don't have enough time to waste, I'm quite happy as it is. But I checked briefly When The Camelia Blooms because I love the cast.

Actually I find some time to watch while making dishes or cooking I Live Alone, Begin Again 3 and 3 Meals a Day in Mountains. It's great to watch these shows without any stress possible to occur and learn something new as well.

I love Jackson's Wang new video so much, that I have to watch it at least once per day. 😂

I watched again The Peanut Butter Solutions and I loved it, it could be remade by Benicio Del Toro and it would be perfect. I found out that one of the writers is a czech director and I know now why it's so good and surreal. I remembered it only very briefly and when I found it I was one of the most happy people on earth.

Let Me Hear Your Song It's finaly over! Ten episodes would have been better because the plot was pretty thin.

Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency I'm happy to see Kim Min Jae in a main role but this sageuk is too modern. I like light and fluffy sageuk but it must remain a sageuk.

When the Camellia Blooms It's very intriguing mixing investigation, creepy murderer and rom-com.

Rookie Historian Gu Hae-ryung It's sad they felt obliged to add a birth secret in the story. The plot about female historians was very good and office sageuk would have been perfect for me. The all plot with Prince Dowon was useless, like the Prince...

Secret Boutique I like it! The villain is a little bit too a caricature. But the actors are great.

Vagabond The action is good, I have some doubts about the plot.

Be Melodramatic I love this drama!!! The dialogues are so interesting! The ASMR scene was so funny.

Arthdal Chronicles It's not over... and I don't think it's a good thing...

Melo Suits Me will end tonight and I honestly don't know what to feel after I've watched the finale episode. For the past two months, I've spent my weekend morning watching this gem and I wouldn't know what to do after this show finishes its run.

Eun-jung's road to healing was rough, but it was wonderful to see her get through her pain and loss with the help of her supportive friends and brother and she now have child-loving Son Seok-goo in her life as an icing on top.

I expected the show to have a love triangle between Jin-joo, Beom-soo, and Hwan-dong but thank God show decided not to go that way. But what we've got in this drama was the amusing love triangle between Writer Jung, EP Sung, and CEO So. I don't know who Writer Jung will choose at this point but I am rooting for her and EP Sung. HAHA

Melo's PPL game is also strong since they make use of the fact that the show is technically a workplace drama that deals with how dramas are actually made and the people behind it. The massage chair PPL from episode 14 was brilliant: they just made a scene without any sense because PPLs have usually no context at all they're just needed. When it comes to being creative, it will be really hard to top this show from Day 1.

Mother of Mine: (53-54)

Many of the shows I have been watching are at the end of their run and this was one of them. It wasn’t the best nor the worst weekender. I don’t watch these family shows very often. I had once read Javabeans saying there is some comfort in the familiarity of them. I hadn’t understood her then but somehow when this show started I was in the mood for something low key and this fit the bill. The romance wasn’t endlessly frustrating nor passionate and exciting but overall fulfilling. There weren’t many annoying characters and typical of weekend fare most of them were not so annoying by the end of the show. The pacing wasn't bad with a number of unexpected early reveals so it never got repetitive or boring.

I did like some things about the ending: For example Tae Joo’s dad was not completely forgiven and was not allowed to keep his place nor treat people as he used to (cause they won’t take it anymore). I found it interesting that Ji Sook was repeating history by once again raising a son that wasn’t hers by birth. I had worried about poor Tae Ho who had a very small role but was always a sweet and loving child. I wouldn’t have liked him to be raised by that witch but I did like the fact that Ji Sook whose daughter was separated from her completely did not do the same and allowed Tae Ho to see his mother and uncle.

I really didn’t care about the other two sisters’ story much. I was annoyed by Sun Ja’s terminal illness and but they handled the aftermath quite well.

Well done Hong Jong Hyun. May you return with a miniseries before your military service.

Welcome 2 Life: The ending was a nice conclusion to a rather unremarkable show. I'm just glad Bo Na will be born in the "real" world.

Flower Crew Joseon Marriage Agency: Usually I would dislike this drama. It is generic old school rom com. I don't care I love it, lol. I guess sometimes I just need a cliche ridden show where the conclusion is obvious.

The Great Show: This continues to be heartfelt and thoughtful. The kids were shown less in these pass two episodes though. It is a nice and pleasant show.

Graceful Family: I love this show so much. @leetennant gives a perfect description of the show. So I'll leave that to her.

When the Camellia Blooms: Dropped, I just couldn't get into it. The mumbling I think annoyed me the most.

Secret Boutique: All the players are assembled. Everyone knows their position. One of the secrets is out, I'm here for the revenge fights to begin in earnest. Here we go, also I suspect that the mother is alive somewhere. The Intelligence chief may clean up murders but is probably not one.

Vagabond: This is a 1980's early 1990's Steven Segal movie. I like it. It is just pure fun, the good guys v. the bad guys. Shallow plot and thin premise, but who cares. It should be a fun ride.

Be Melodramatic: DON'T LEAVE MEEEEEE 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 , stay even if the writer has to write more than 600 pages. The nod to a moment at 18 made my heart so happy. The PPL from last week made me laugh so hard. I'm going to miss this show so so much.

Hell is Other People: Dropped, it just wasn't for me.

Pegasus Market: Look forward to episode 2

Melting Me softly: Wooka is BACK, will watch for him, praying this is not another K2, shudder.

gadis is still hopelessly lost in The Untamed world. That's all.

*back to watching Xiao Zhan and Wang YiBo on Happy Camp*
*secretly adding Xiao Zhan's upcoming dramas to my to-watch-list*

Flower Crew: My least favourite of the previews, despite how much respect I have for Gong Seung-yeon's makeup artist - she doesn't look like she's wearing any!

Secret Boutique: I just want to gobble this show up, omnomnom~

Camellia: Just stunning! Frequently surprised by the extent to which Yong-shik is written, he's just the most compelling character. Also, I love Oh Jung-se and Kim Sun-young, so basically this show gets a 10/10 for casting.

Be Melodramatic: How will I live when this is over? No seriously! I only get through the week because I know this gem comes at the end of it!

Completed:
Rookie Historian Goo Haeryung: And so it ends! I already wrote in-depth about my thoughts re: the finale on my fanwall, so I guess the only think I really have left to say (one more time) is that I'm going to miss this show. I love fusion sageuks and this was such a lovely one. I'll miss seeing our characters, and I'll miss discussing this one with everyone here. Thank you Rookie Historian, for reminding us to believe in ourselves no matter what! I hope the upcoming Tale of Nokdu is just as fun!

Dropped:
Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency: Nah, I just couldn't do it. Can we get a spin-off for Seo Jihoon's Lee Soo though? I'd happily watch that.

Ongoing:
Where the Camellia Blooms: Kang Haneul as wacky country bumpkin Yongsik is just the best thing. What a goofball. I'm finding the mystery intriguing rather than overbearing (thankfully), and I'm invested to see what happens. Looking forward to next week's episodes!

Miss Lee: Interest piqued. I think Hyeri suits roles like this well. Not 100% sold yet, but I haven't watched episode 2 yet so I can't say for sure yet.

I actually had a really busy week at school this week, so I haven't had the time to watch everything yet.

To watch:
-Be Melodramatic
-Pegasus Market
-Melting Me Softly tomorrow!

How am I going to live without Be melodramatic in my life?

Vagabond: 8.0: Who cares about acting? Story, action, etc are going well. Liked the way the FL investigated sounds. Moderately good eye-candy. BTW, if people are willing to forgive plot holes and inaccuracies (including literal inaccurate shooting) here because it's just supposed to be mindless action/entertainment, then I insist on giving Hotel Del Luna the same slack because it was good mindless IU-fashion-show/entertainment.

Arthdal Carrot Chronicles: -0.00001 Abomination. Netflix wants a 2nd season after THAT ending🤬🙄. In a sane universe only GOOD shows get a season 2. But what does that have to do with this universe? Actually the Momos, Agos & new cast deserve better, but they aren't enough to outweigh the old leads, script, lighting, iron-in-the-bronze-age, lack of conclusion, etc, etc.

Pegasus Market: 7.3 What? WHAT!?

Welcome 2 Life: 5.0 For the final week. Earlier was better.

When the Camellia Blooms: 6.2 The neighborhood ladies are so obnoxious and unpleasant to watch -- can we please just get on with the serial killings?

Miss Lee: 4.0 I hope/expect it to get fun when they turn things around, but the downward-spiral phase is just depressing and not really worth suffering thru unless they make it a LOT better later. (FWIW, I've never seen a Hyeri show I liked, and I've dropped all but one of hers I've started).

Running Investigators: 5.4 Investigation this week was rather slow & plodding, but I've seen worse.

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung: 6.5 Liked it, although not as much as many other Beanies. But more kdramas should have a Greek Chorus like the prince's 2 maids.

Out of new dramas only Secret Boutique truly pulled me in, the set for the story is intriguing, characters interesting and good actors, I like that the most power players are women. I'm on the fence with Camellia Blooms I love Kang Haneul acting in hear, but I don't buy Gong Hyo Jin portrayal of DongBeak and I despise, really despise the neighborhood witches and don't really care about rest of the characters, I checked Miss Lee but it's not something I'm in mood for right now, although I think Hyeri was really decent in opening episodes. Melo waits for me to finish all the Chinese dramas and the rest was pretty meh.
On to Chinese dramas: the real gem that is The Longest Day in Chang'am keep getting better, and action getting faster and faster, I love to finally have plot driven drama! Not that I don't love those more character based, after all I got sucked in Ashes of Love but those are rather guilty pleasures that I would have to think twice or thrice before recommending them to anyone. I started Mr Fighting because of Beanies positive reviews and after watching Sandra Ma in "Soulmate" it low key, slice of life drama, I like main characters from the get go. Taiwanese drama "The Fearless" solid supernatural mystery, small time gangster gets shot in the head, starts seeing ghosts, inherits funeral home and teams with plucky forensic examiner to solve crime, good acting, interesting stories.