Pegasus Market (Episode 4)
Suk Goo’s brand of social bluntness really stood out in this episode, whether it be impressing Mi Ran with his loyalty or stunning Mr. Kwon with his logic or even weirding out the congressman with his headstand. I do find that arc a little bit contrived for creating some sort of conflict for the market since the episodic content we’ve gotten so far seems tied so far with neighbourhood folk problems and issues which has kept it breezy and light, but I trust that Bok Dong will come back and resolve this mess in a hilarious way: he is a good guy at heart even if he outmatches Suk Goo in being weird!

Extraordinary You
Subjectively speaking, the reveal that Baek Kyung had been self-aware for some time made me sympathise him less: a more gracious person would have apologised to Dan Oh for being so rude, instead, he continued bullying Ha Roo. From an objective perspective, Baek Kyung’s crude personality even in self-awareness (he should know now that his mother died in a overly contrived manner for the tropes, hence no stressful family environment excuse anymore) might have to do with character consistency. Him and Do Hwa have similar personalities in Shadow and Stage, whereas Dan Oh and Ha Roo have different ones: I wonder if this is indicative of Dan Oh and Ha Roo actually belonging to a different comic.

Tale of Nokdu
When Aengdoo appeared in the episode, I was already dreading the eventual expose of Nok Du’s disguise since she is a character added by the writer to inorganically speed up the plot, which culminated in that cliffhanger. I find myself at odds with the show at times since the politics are a bore (like I care about what grand plan the ministers have or whom the king wants killed) and there’s no doubt that dark cloud will develop more. For now however, I’m worried about what Yul Moo will do: he’s got the power, the jealousy and the knowledge. Will he be the archetypical k-drama second lead?

Melting Me Softly
There’s a lot in this show that is hilariously bad to watch: the two minions and the kidnapping (don’t get me started on how ridiculous that was), the evil CEO and secretary planning to kill people as per the villain manual (chair rocking and overacting notwithstanding), the overdramatic and shameless Byung Shim (the poor actor is getting typecast though), the non-apologetic Ha Young who doesn’t see how the train has already left the love station (let’s pray for no jealousy arc) and the flailing variety directors with zero character depth. I do like the moments between the main leads though!

Extraordinary You
extraordinary You Rewatch
Extraordinary You BTS
Extraordinary You Insta tags :))

Camellia - show is still awesome and love it. Yong shik 💗

Graceful Family - done. Bitter sweet ending. Glad I watched this show.

Background watch Untamed at Episode 20!!

Melt Me is a disappointment. Not because of the ridiculousness and crazy humour (that bbq promotion of Na's family 😂)... but because of the general writing directions (and some directional choices of the PD). It didn't went where I wanted it to go... and went where I didn't want it to go... (And someone should explain to the PD / writer that the couple scenes in the freezer... or exchanges of the iced water are better romantic scenes than those completely random ones with sudden proximity and long stares).... And yet I'm still watching... because time to time I can feel the tragedy of lost 20 years... and lost love which can't be saved. (And yes, there is also Byung Shim (Shim Hyung Tak!!!) and his wife 😁 ).

Camellia isn't a show I'm rushing to watch (that's Extraordinary 😆)... but when I watch, it's such a pleasure. There is no weak actor and I savour every minute, even if it means watching Yong Shik worried about Joker being someone he knows... or Dong Baek braking down and wanting to leave the town. And... attorney Ja Young is slowly becoming one of my favourite characters.

Extraordinary is still extraordinarily good and still number one for me. (And Kim Hye Yoon's energy often reminds me of Jung Eun Ji (Reply 1997, Sassy Go Go)).

- Completed -

Graceful Family: There were flaws in the writing department, well for Wang Joo's character, but that aside I loved Suk Hee, her partner Heo, the fish funeral, the secret birth and more clichés tropes. Earlier in the drama I thought the less predictable, Wan Soo, would be the murderer but I liked him so much I brushed this idea. That's a makjang I won't forget for sure!

The Great Show: The drama ended on happiness found in little but precious things like family. O6 wished it focused more on Dae Han and the kids, rather than have so many people not directly involved with family hijinks. The romance with Soo Hyun was unnecessary because she and Da Jung could have developed the same bound and SH would have almost the same character treatment.

Kinou Nani Tabeta? (What Did You Eat Yesterday?): Loved the recipes in each episode and the growth of Shiro as a closeted gay (outside of his family) and his boyfriend, the ever flamboyant Kenji. It was sweet to see Kenji trying his best to please Shiro and learn to have opened discussions, even with some burst of jealousy. Shiro becoming more comfortable going out in public and introducing him to his parents were the best achievement ever (the last episode!!). I liked this show a lot with food and warm feelings.

Saka no Tochu no Ie (A House On the Slope): I liked the ending with the final judgment. A person's environment can put so much pressure and doubts on one self that it's easy to just do something horrible at one moment when it was not something to do if friends, family, people really close didn't create so much confusion. I understand why a lot people talked about it.

- Currently watching -

Beautiful Love, Wonderful Life: They added coma not for one but two people just to make things messier. At least, they stopped an affair I guess? The wife meets the mistress' oppa and just go crazy because she doesn't have a child to secure her place in the family. The other party involved is a friend of the wife's little sister who's hated by everyone and works for her exam. The big brother and her meet and they bicker. Oh and the dad in Graceful Family plays a sweet dad here I was shocked haha. At this rate, I'm going to count every trop used in each episode.

Extraordinary You: Could Fairy be some kind of guardian? He said he was an extra but we can't be sure. What if he had to guard the green hole to keep everything in order in the manhwa. He doesn't have power himself but can notify someone (the writer) that something is wrong. (Just adding that I liked Dan Oh's reference to Italy, pronounced Lee Tae Ri, the actor's name lol) Back to the actual episodes content, I started to get attached to Haru as he was showing more of his personality and expressions. Good move to make him disappear because I'm now curious to know what happened and if an other character could have the same faith. Was Haru sent back to the manhwa Flower...

JAPAN -

BOUKYAKU NO SACHIKO - 8.5 out of 10. still. yes. 1st time i saw sachiko at manga magazine cover. As soon as i saw her eating food i knew she was something special and within 3 pages Shingo ran away. Manga has a very different appeal from the Live-action. Part is because of direction and part is because of Actor and acting. Art style and how dialogues are written makes is Quality media to cherish. So i do get the feel that Live-Action is more original than taking story from manga.

If Talking Paid - Ore no Hanashi wa Nagai - 8.5 out of 10. Must read Nippon Tv Description of show. Its far more strict and blunt. Really enjoyed the 1st episode. It was so refreshing. Maybe its because i'm coming across so much trash that even an above average show looks like decent. A possibility. Ikuta as brother and Koike Eiko as elder sister are perfect choice for the heir respective characters. Yasuda Ken as meta hsuband of Koike gems well. I say every actor looked comfortable and natural or maybe the characters are drawn so well that actor not much job to do. Niece-Mitsuru as pair is up there for action in their life. Don't assume anything naughty. I'm talking about progression of their growth. They aren't exactly a foil of each other but daughter-mother pair is ready to pinpong near future of Mitsuru.

New jdramas, new schedule.
If talking paid - seems the kind of warm family drama I missed.
Cheat- boring. next.
This is not a business expense - I love it, although the details are a bit too much 😅
Boukyaku no Sachiko- it's calm and nice. a good healing drama.
Starting.
Ouroboros. - The cast.
Nippon Noir- it has subs so...
Motokare mania - curious about the story.
Sherlock- I hope it doesn't bore me.
History 3, make our days count - I'll see what happens.

EXTRAORDINARY YOU (Ep. 8): #obsessed. Whatever happens, don’t hurt Do-hwa show! He’s the most precious cheeky violin-playing second lead ever. Kyung needs a seaweed slap.

MY COUNTRY (Ep.4): Sun-ho’s descent into the fiery pits of villain hell seemed a bit sudden to me, but I haven’t quite digested this episode. Thank goodness for recaps and discussing with other beanies. This drama is character-driven so there is a lot to analyse yay!

Yong Jiu's grocery store: If ypu missed a slice of life show, here is a great one. It is surprising and amusing how every kdrama beyond 60 min becomes tiring but this 90 min per episode Taiwanese drama doesn't even make me realize where all the time goes. It is so so good. But I know it definitely isn't for everyone as it is a slow, calming show watcged best before sleep. But I applaud everthing in it from the writing to the seamless past and present transitions and the beautiful actors and diversity. Most of all I think I love the unique accent they are speaking in.

Extraordinary you: It is good but maybe this weeks episodes were lesser good than the previous one.

Tale of Nokdu: So before episode five I wanted to talk about Jo Soo-hyang and how I've missed her... But damn, this show is HOT. Jang Dong-yoon needs to stop playing perfect, beautiful characters because it's too much for my heart to bear.

When the Camellia Blooms: This drama loves taking a character you liked and throwing them under the bus - I've never once had a consistent thought on Hyang-mi, I just can't figure out whether I like her or not. That applies for the others too. Except Ja-young. She continues to be the heroine I need.

Extraordinary You: Show, I adore you, so I REALLY didn't want to do this, but... you're starting to get on my nerves. Stop taking my heroine and having her dragged around like a rag doll. Why would you even give me such a perfect heroine if you were going to toss all her agency to the magical fate-changing men? I continue to be obsessed with this drama, but the gender politics are starting to make me crazy.

Love That Makes You Cry: @cloggie, I picked this one up for you, and I like it. Not loads, but I like it. Two episodes left, and I think my favourite thing is Ibuki's transformation, from the optimist to the hardened corporate tool. It broke my heart when he didn't remember the old lady he cared for so much in the earlier episodes.

Kemono ni Narenai Watastitachi: @noobita, I can finally give a verdict. Although I don't think it was as good as some of Akiko Nogi's other dramas - Nigeru wa Haji or Unnatural, especially - this drama was a treat. It's one where I didn't understand how much I'd enjoyed it until the end. I loved the immorality of it - not meaning that the characters were bad, they were just different. It's the kind of drama where everyone hardly bats an eye to promiscuity, which was kind of refreshing. The character development is the best I've seen in ages, and the soundtrack was gorgeous.

Extraordinary You: I like this drama a lot but for me Ha Ru is the least interesting character and Dan Oh less interesting around him.

When the Camellia Blooms: I think I'm enjoying this drama the most right now despite finding almost every character annoying. Poor Pil Gu. I knew DB's mom was faking. Hyang-mi is such bad news.

My Country: This might be the first saguek where I find the political maneuvering the most interesting part. Things I dislike: Sun ho, the romance and the twist with Hwi's sister. I get why they did a time jump in Episode 5 but man, time really stood still lol. I did like Hwi's 1392 version of a detective/serial killer wall.

Pegasus Market: Moon Seok-goo is so earnestly foolish it's hilarious that the Daema group guy keeps trying to enlist his services as a spy.

The Lies Within: Lee Yoo Young is so good but the investigation team is so bad.

I love, love Graceful Family. I could list all the things I enjoyed about the show but that may take a while.

I loved how consistent it was even to the end. There were no sudden character reversals. The baddies were baddies to the end, unapologetically so. I wasn't even worried when they couldn't find Ms Han. Running just wasn't her thing.

Pathetic Wan-soo oppa was pathetic to the end. He was never fully evil but never fully good either and that made me feel sorry for him. I would rather be one or the other.

Picasso's dad was useless to the end. He never had any real power and even though he sure thought so and that was his thing till the end. Picasso's mum. Hihi. I'll forever be grateful for her brand of crazy.

I want to be Suk-hee when I grow up. It takes guts to own your crazy the way she owned hers. Her theme song has become my own and I'll definitely be watching what will hopefully be well-written roles in her future.

The hero was a good guy to the end so yay consistency but let's just say I like 'em a little bad. Maybe if they'd put him in a leather jacket once? Oh well.

I will sincerely miss the Fish Family.

My Country: 7.0 (D)amnesia again. I forget everything else.

Pegasus Market: 9.5 Day 4 & 5
: watching a bunch of kids being obnoxious is not my idea of fun, but the payoff was LOL. Then I had to look up "muk". And somebody sure knows how to kowtow to modern-day royalty :)

Vagabond: 6.5 Lost a lot of points for an ending to day 9 that was unbelievable even by their standards. Team of assassins with orders to take out 2 targets and anyone who gets in the way doesn't take the chance to take out the targets and the two who are in the way. Sigh.

Leverage: 6.8 Kim Sae-ron has been great in the past, but it's been a while since I saw her in anything I really liked, so... Now *slightly* disappointed.

Melting Me Softly: 6.3 Have gotten tired of the TV executives. Got a big kick out of the current and 20-years-ago ways to study, because even the 20-years-ago was was newfangled for me.

Tale of Nokdu: 8.0 All those assassin widows... Hmmmm, did their assassin skills have anything to do with their becoming widows??? Were their husbands practice? Graduation exam?

When the Camellia Blooms: 6.5 So many people are making "Don't be a joke" comments it's like the Joker is a committee. If it isn't a bunch of them together, show deserves to lose points for being too manipulative with false leads.

Running Investigators: 3.0 Story moves too slowly with filler conversations. Even if you want to cover socially relevant subject you need to do it better. It didn't help that this week's subject has been covered by other kdramas.

Extraordinary You: 6.5 What has less control over the story than a supporting character? A viewer. And instead of scene changes with an odd sound effects and gaps in memory, I wake up to find that the scene has changed and I don't recall what happened while I was asleep.

@laica, you summed all my issues with Camelia and wrote it so much better than I will ever do.
I didn't have much time this week so I didn't catch with new episodes, mostly finished The Fearless and it was very satisfying watch, slow paced but without big dip in quality and really nice acting. Other than that American TV season started and I must admit I'm pretty disappointed by Nancy Drew unnecessary dark, heavy inspired by Veronica Mars, from new shows I'm really liking only Stumptown

Vagabond Bobbybond Hungrybond!!!

Nothing makes sense to me in VB land and I'm just rolling with it. I have no clue what's going on with the politics and plane crash though. I'm too focused on other things. Kekekeke.

My Rock Candy ship has sunk and I'm fine. I hope writernim stop making out of place romcom scenes in the drama and force a love triangle. It is seriously not needed.

I lol-ed that Vagabond is a code name for a chicken shop . That was unexpected and Kim Sun Young as chicken place owner was a good surprise!

Dalgun Monkey King remains undestructible. His resilience is otherworldly. It's amazing. Not amazing for NIS though, they are of less skill and appear not smart. Lol

Graceful Family: I still need to watch the final episode so I’ve been avoiding DB, but @mary I agree that this kind of makjang trend needs to continue. Especially if it keeps giving us kick ass women on both sides of the good/evil spectrum.

I could have done without one poorly written storyline though.

@laica you summed up exactly how I feel about When the Camellia Blooms. While I still find myself watching it every week, I’m still not quite sure where to put my finger on what’s not clicking.

Extraordinary You has been a great watch for someone like me who doesn’t like high school dramas, but I must say that I’m more interested in the questions surrounding the setting and getting less invested in Dan Oh and Haru as individuals at the moment. But all in all, still very excited for the ride!

Tale of Nokdu The little Aeng is so funny! She likes food and handsome men, she's the best :p

Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency I hope the King won't become a villain :(

When the Camellia Blooms I didn't watch it yet.

Extraordinary You My favourite one! I love Dan-Oh! She's so cute with Haru :D

Secret Boutique Only one episode...I hate sports.

Beautiful Love, Wonderful Life The jump time was pretty sudden.

Bye bye Vagabond

My Country: The New Age It gives me the feelings to watch a movie (without end). I like the action, the politics, the humor, the relationships, the dialogues, everything! In Gyo-Jin is unrecognizable.

The Lies Within Lee Min Ki! The only one who seems to know what he's doing.

Melting Me Softly I will watch the next drama of JCW because this one I can't anymore...

Treadstone It looks interesting :)