CRICKET - watching old macthes highlights. no sport for upcoming n number of months.

The Test - on amazon prime. 8 episodes of quality cricket preview of Australian cricket after one of the biggest cricket scandal.

JAPAN -

Boku Dake ga 17-Sai no Sekai de - 6.5/10 4 episodes watched. Timepass. That song episode 3.

Love Lasts Forever - 5/10 i don't like fluff. Shift of audience as there isn't much fluff nonsense virus in K+CN media.

Ship of Theasues - As said few days ago - Hero is a crybaby. he has shed enough tears to sail a ship. 1 litre of tears had not so many of glycerin tears scenes like this show has.

Shonan Junai Gumi - panty shots. bikini babes fun old Japanese media times. Japanese tv used to quite raunchy and risque earlier. Now it has become more like monk in practice. High school nonsense years of Onizuka. Niche fun and bad acting.

Movies - Pending - mostly Japanese movies.

Little Women - Better watch its anime .

Also watching: I'll Find You on a Beautiful Day / Memorist / Find Me in Your Memory

Hospital Playlist (Episode 2)
Watching this show feels like watching a weekend show or a daily sometimes: there’s just so many characters and info to digest as we swap from one scene to another. But then again, I love it so much and am rewatching quite the number of times before next week’s episode so I’m pretty sure I’ll get all those names down. This week’s episode featured Song Hwa as she navigated through hospital politics (I’m still confused as to why she brought up Seok Min’s thesis in the OR and will need the recap for that) and romance. May we all survive the shipping games that will begin in the comments!

Nobody Knows (Episode 5-6)
If Eun Ho was pretending to be asleep, it really opens up a lot of possibilities aside from the one where he is implicated in the church’s crimes. How much does he know, more importantly, how much does he think he knows about the whole truth? If all of his info comes from Ki Ho, there is a risk that he may be fed with biased info. After that cliffhanger, Sang Ho is certainly not on the good side in any way: the most sympathetic view is that he’s using Eun Go for some revenge. I’m glad to see Seo Young Joo again: I suspect he’s the student that slipped past Sun Woo’s radar in the past.

Hi Bye, Mama! (Episode 7-8)
My main criticism of the show so far after watching its first half is that the writing is very inefficient: there are so many ghosts for usage but we ended up having side arcs (ghost boy, chairman and driver) which wasted crucial screen time
that could have gone towards Yu Ri’s family or Dr Jang, characters which are more important to the story. In fact, I will say that the only ghosts required were the Jang family, since the Pil Seung arc mirrors that of Seo Woo with the theme of family. Also, we love some Yu Ri-Min Jung friendship but I’m worried about Min Jung’s reaction when the truth is out.

Itaewon Class (Episode 13-14)
Using a terminal illness to speed up the revenge plot was already one big screenwriting sin, but wait there’s more: both Geun brothers having inexplicable personality changes as well as kidnapping and sacrificial tropes. Geun Soo’s turning dark was one thing but him suddenly being worried about Sae Ro after that confession? Geun Won’s guilt over the past was clear but he’s the one who orders a hit? Why did the gang boss agree to this? (Come on, he knows Yi Seo from the live videos as Sae Ro’s partner) Meanwhile, Soo Ah & Yi Seo are still the same after a terribly placed 4 year time jump?

Nobody Knows I'm really very late in this drama. Person of Interest is taking me a lot of time.

I'll Find You on a Beautiful Day I was so happy to have some episodes this week! We learnt a lot about Hae Won, now I need more informations about Eun Seob.

Find Me in Your Memory Kim Dong Wook is not handsome but when he smiles is very charming. I liked the both cameos in the first episode. I like Kim Seul Gi but I always feel like she's playing the same kind of role...

Memorist It's very hectic... Not sure about the procedure. But it's nice for once that the hero doesn't hide his power.

Hospital Playlist I'm not very good with names. So when there are a lot of characters, I need time to learn who is who. But in the second episode, the first half was about more characters! They want to drown me into all those names... I would like they focus on the squad.

Beautiful Love, Wonderful Life I'm pretty sure I will be disapointed by the end.

Itaewon Class The relationship between Sae Ro Yi and his father is the most beautiful in this drama.

1. Hyena: Eps 7-8 This is the drama I watch as soon as both the episodes come out. I am enjoying it a lot.
2. I'll find you on a beautiful day: Ep 4 I like it but haven't been able to watch past this. Haven't had time or been in the mood. Maybe I should keep this for later.

Hi Beanies, hope you're all coping well with the varying social distancing measures across the globe and that you're all in good health. We are all together in this, fighting!

So, this week I had a Joo Jihoo combo: Kingdom season 2 and Hyena. Jihoo caught my eye on Kingdom's first season - which was my first kdrama - and he is good in the second season, but he is totally kicking the ball out of the park with his acting in Hyena. His eye acting and his body language are amazing, so much stuff going on in each of his scenes!

This said, I have to admit that on both shows it is the female leads' awesomeness that's running away with my heart. Their characters are kickass and smart, Bae Donna and Kim Hyesoo are my new queens.

Besides that, been watching Welcome to Waikiki with my kids. Approaching episode 20 today, and looking for another funny easy show to share with them.
Also, yesterday realized that all aired episodes of When the weather is... (or whatever, this show has too many long names) are available on Viki! As soon as I finish Hyena episode 9, that's what I'm going to watch!

The Virus is taking over our normal lives. Everything is closed... and feels so surreal... And there are worries about our health... and family members... and the economical future...
Despite all that, I realized that there are also positive things, like the Nature taking a fresh breath, less pollution... or families spending more time together... or the huge wave of solidarity all over the World with helping each other (being it home-sewing of mouth masks or Scouts delivering necessities to the elderly people)... or the many creative ways how to live in isolation and how to still be together. It's nice to have Dramabeans in these times, something from the "normal" times and what is also perfect for a social-distant contact 🙂💕 Hugs to all and stay safe and healthy! 😘

***

Weather - one of my favourite current dramas. Slow...and yet full of hidden drama. Are there 2 fathers? Why did Eun Seob miss some years? 😯 And preview, I don't like you! 😠 Don't dare to pull some sad drama trope on us!
(There was a reappearance of NAM-JU (Kim Yeong-dae)! 😍 Be still my heart ❤🙂)

Hospital - Also my current favourite drama. I actually like the somehow scattered and meandering storytelling and enjoy every second of the show. Perhaps also because I'm around the age of the main characters. I like how the focus is on people (and not for example on hospital politics) and I love the main quintet and their interactions. I also like the old generation friendship between Mom and New Chairman... and I generally wouldn't mind if this time the series was more about friends than lovers (though, cough, I think I secretly ship Songhwa and Joonwan 😆🙈)

Find Me in Your Memory - I didn't plan to to check this, I was not in the mood for a melo and the description felt meh... but I somehow ended up watching the first episode and I had so much fun, especially with Moon Gayoung as a ditzy actress. 🙂
So far for me better than Memorist (which is still stuck on the first 10 minutes and I doubt I will ever come back unless I hear some ravishing reviews from Beanies, sorry Yoo Seungho).

Behind with Hi Bye Mama, though planning to come back.

Japanese fluff:

Koi wa Tsuzuku - having a vibe of Itazura na Kiss... but with a lot less frustrating heroine (and hero 😀).

Kono Otoko - loosing its spark.

Extraordinary You: It's funny miss victrix mentioned the cameo, because I just finished this. It had a great premise, with interesting existential questions that could've been addressed. But alas, these strengths were sidelined by an over-emphasis on the love triangle and the "it's fate" trope.

The show would've been perfect if it had chosen to focus on what it means to not be in control of your own life. I felt it could have made better use of wonderful secondary characters (Kyung, Ju-da, Do-hwa, Dried Squid Elf and his lover Su-hyang) too. Though all self-aware, they responded to their knowledge differently.

Be Melodramatic: I'm on episode 3, and loving how slice of life this is. Hyo-bong might just be my favourite character at the moment, with the way he gives great advice while strumming background music to his sister's friends' dramatic tales. I wish there were more scenes with Han-ju and Jae-hoon, because they're so flipping adorable hustling together.

But they are all so handsome and pretty, how can they not date each other? 😏🤷‍♀️
I hate it when medical drama makes it seem so eazy to become a doctor and how cool doctor's life is, ha ha ha I mean...... 😏 shiroo some doctors just have a boring life watching k drama and do nothing in particular

Kingdom Season 2
- as amazing as the first season. Even more scarier now that the zombies were awake all day. I usually skipped the intro while watching dramas but the intro of Kingdom was very well done and beautiful. Don’t skip it guys.

Hyena
- I could never get enough of this drama! I’ve been rewatching the episodes on loops while waiting for new episodes to air.

Itaewon Class
- It’s the final week. Honestly I don’t enjoy it as much as the earlier episodes anymore. I’m still gonna watch it till the end anyway for the sake of finishing the series.

Hospital Playlist - I like it so far. The only complaint is the looooong hour each episode. Sigh. I could not sit through 1 episode in 1 sitting.

Searching for new dramas to binge watch but none of it sticks with me so far. I’ve tried When The Weather Is Fine but it just make me sleepy 💤

I suggest you don't read recaps for Chocolate before watching the eps. There may be weeping but it's not always because of heavy drama. Sometimes it's how the show delivers a message of hope in the midst of grief..or joy despite difficult circumstances. It's empowering. Every episode leaves a sweet taste in your mouth and warmth in your heart.

When the weather is fine. I love everything on it so much is hard to wait a whole week to watch the next episode. SEKJ portrayal of EunSeob is so wonderful... awwwwwwwww my sweet puppy!!!

Memorist. Just began with episode 3. Viki is getting on my nerves with subs. I enjoyed so much the first two episodes... I'll tell you when I've watched them.

Hi Bye, Mama. I've already written about this in the recaps. I hope now the cat is out of the bag, YuRi can began to heal the wounds with her family and friends and we'll see where it leads. I was expecting from the beginning that she would leave. Nothing has changed so far.

Tell me what you saw. I had left it on episode 6 but yesterday I binged 4 episodes. I'm liking it. Yes. Still don't know where we are going, but I'm having great fun watching it, cliches aside.

I'm several episodes behind Nobody Knows, and I want to begin Hospital Playlist but damn Netflix in my area will not release it until it's over in Korea. Grrrrrrrrrrr.

Nobody Knows: Continues to be heart pumping. I am now starting to question whether Eun Ho jumped. I am not sure who could have pushed him otherwise. hmmmmm

I'll find you on a beautiful Day: This drama is perfectly paced. Everything is just as it should be. I am so happy it has found its stride.😊

The Memorist: It has found its stride. These episodes were much more interesting than the last one.

Hospital Playlist: I haven't seen the most recent episode.

Itaewon Class: Wow, I ff through most of the episode. I kept repeating to myself this is so stupid. Wow, just, NO. I am so disappointed.

Tell Me What you Saw: This is still fine, but there was a lot of stupid in this past episode too. What a waste.

Hi Bye Mama: It was excellent. I cried buckets!!

Kingdom Season 2: 8.5 Why did it take them a whole year to film 6 episodes? Because of all the time they needed to catch their breath after all the running scenes :)

Hospital Playlist: 7.5 I watch a surgery and wonder how many precious surgical masks they wasted used.

Tell Me What You Saw: 7.9 Somehow I doubt that people who are being strangled can talk that well.

Hi Bye Mama: 7.0 I'm out of sync with most of you. Parts are good, I find it much of it slow and/or depressing. And if Mom has such bad knees, maybe she should cut back on the bicycling (?)

The Cursed: 7.2 For the next two weeks can we have less dancing and yelling and more plot, please? Oh, wait! It was only 12 episodes.

Memorist: 7.0 Good suspense in day 2 & 3. Then lots of typical lame office politics / corruption / abuse of power. Boo. Cult leader is -- whoops WAS -- the kind of baddie that I don't like to watch. Is it open season on cult leaders now? And can our "touchy" lead function in a world where everyone has to stay 6 feet apart?

Nobody Knows: 6.5 Drags. Baddie not impressive or fun.

Find Me In Your Memory: 8.2 With only one (possible) murder so far, it's a pleasant and relatively light-hearted change from all the serial killer shows I'm watching. And Kim Seul-gi doesn't hurt :)

So a lot of ppl are complaining about the introductions of so many characters in Hospital Playlist. They want the drama to focus on the main group. Not gonna lie, while watching the first half of the second epsiode, I did think the same. But then I remembered that this drama is from the same writer/director duo as the Reply series and Prison Playbook and they too had a lot of secondary characters. These previous works too took time in introducing all the characters and it seemed very confusing and a little haphazard initially however once they were done with the introductions they used each of the characters beautifully. Remember Reply 88? There were so many ahjummas and ajusshis but there stories were heartwarming. Similarly in prison playbook all the secondary characters had wonderful arcs and added greatly to the overall show. I so remember the many wholesome moment the show had. These dramas would not have been the same without the secondary characters. Thus, I'm ready to wait for the creators to familiarise the characters and then to tug at our hearts with their stories.
Also a point to note. Eventhough the Premier epsiodes were a little confusing initially, by the end of the epsiode there was always something that tugged at you, in prison playbook and hospital playlist. That made you want to tune in for the next episode until you were completely, irrevocably in love.

Also watching and loving "I'll go to you when the weather is nice". Also Hi/Bye Mama is great. Itaewon class--well i couldn't care less for it!

Finished watching Chief Kim and I really enjoyed it. It takes a few episodes to settle in the tone of the show but it's incredibly enjoyable.
Hyena: I love this show so damn much. I feel like it isn't getting the attention it deserves. I love Joo Ji Hoon in this and Kim Hye Soo is magnificent. This is her first drama that I have watched. I'm loving her. Also Kevin Woo, you're adorable

I'll Find You On A Beautiful Day
Hospital Playlist
Itaewon Class
*Just finished watching Because This Is My First Life

@missvictrix with regard to chocolate: I don’t know about tears but you are in for a beautiful ride. It will meander, it will be slow, it will follow what people in the chocolate world want to follow as characters and people and it will be beautiful.
I didn’t like the 16th episode but some people loved it. Some found episode 9 and 10 different (not in a nice way according to the comments) but I liked them. Once u finish up or maybe when u feel like being immersed in chocolate take time to read some comments in the reviews. Two people specially enriched my experience of it. I loved their take of it and interpretations of small actions.
Also, I couldn’t help but be a ML fan girl, his acting and his eyes! Maybe I said too much... happy to discuss more if you just want to step away from the real world and escape into the chocolate world of references and storytelling. It is not perfect but worth the ride.

When The Weather is fine ought to be renamed Seo Kang Joon is fine, because he totally is.

Hospital Playlist is an ensemble drama like the Reply Series and I am loving it. It reminds me of a novel, Doctors, by Eric Segal.

Looking forward to finishing Itaewon Class this weekend and picking up Scarlet Heart Ryeo. Hoping the tragedy in that drama makes the news seem better, OR, it may just set me up for a crying mode all week. Let’s see.

Oh looking forward to Jung Hae In’s drama and L’s cat drama, too. Maybe I won’t be crying. Hahaha!

I just want to say, am so thrilled to see Ju Ji-joon's face as the image for this weeks WWW!!

Loved him in Kingdom2 and Hyena!!

Also, enjoying Hospital Playlist.

So, I've been an avid reader of this forum for about 2 years now, and I think now is the perfect time to say hi and thank you all for all your comments, thoughts and ideas. It is such a treat to read and get a new perspective on the dramas.
At the moment I am watching "when the weather is fine" and am loving the atmosphere and stolen glances, not so much the ppl, although it's financially necessary I guess.
Find me in your memory: I am here for Kim Dong Wook. I adored him and his acting in The Guest and would wish this to become a good drama over the next weeks...
And the other show I can't wait for is Hyena. They are on fire and I live for the chemistry. And the acting! All the small facial expressions, it takes double the time to watch it bc I am rewinding so much. Hoping the pacing can keep up and the "jealousy" trope doesn't become shallow.

Hi Beanies, I hope you all are safe and healthy!

I haven't written here for weeks, so I have a lot to say:

WATCHING:
- I'LL GO TO YOU WHEN THE WEATHER IS NICE: I really love it! It's soothing, and I like how straightforward Ae-won is! Lee Jae-wook doesn't have a lot of scenes, but he's great.

- FIND ME IN YOUR MEMORY: I don't expect a masterpiece, but it's nice so far. The FL reminds me of Yoon-seo from Touch your heart, and even some sets seem to have been used before in that drama (her house, TV director's office, the alley).

COMPLETED

- THE GAME: TOWARDS ZERO: 5,5/10 - Mi-jin's arc was good, and the show was an easy watch, but there were lots of plot holes, and after the car explosion there were lots of ridiculous things (are Koreans made of asbestos?). The leads formed a nice couple.
Could anyone tell me how little Tae-pyoung flew from the USA to Korea?

- FIND YOURSELF: 7,5/10 - Thanks to advice on the fan wall, I tried this drama, and it was very good. It was my 3rd Cdrama, and the 1st I binge-watched. 41 episodes and no fillers! I liked the story addressed the way women in their 30's are seen by society and by themselves, and the final FL's choice. I loved her father and how supportive he was of her. I liked the way a family faced a terrible diagnose. It was very healty.

PRETTY NOONA WHO BUYS ME FOOD: 9/10 - A rewatch. I liked it more than the first time. Sure, the mum is still the character I despise the more among all I have met in dramas, and the problem of harassement on the workplace made me get angry again, but the second part wasn't as frustrating as I remembered. I think it's a very good slice of life drama. I liked the chemistry between the leads and loved the flawed Jin-a.

DROPPED
- YOUR FUKUBUKURO: probably I can't say I have dropped this drama, because I stopped it after only 12 minutes. The synopsis was somewhat fascinating, but the first story was a body-swap, not my cup of tea, and then, there was a bathroom scene, and I run away when I see them.

ON THE FENCE
- TURN LEFT, TURN RIGHT: a thai drama. I am drawn to stories about second chances, but the pilot was so-so. Probably I am out of target (it seems more like a teenager drama).

Currently Airing

NOBODY KNOWS: The 2nd episode picked up a bit near the end. Everyone is saying such good things about this drama, I’m probably just going to go ahead and do the $10 Viki membership again. So much for saving money. I only lasted about 3 months of this plan. And for some reason, I had access to all of their shows until last month. (ep. 2)

HI BYE MAMA: In the episode 8 recap, I theorized how the drama could end. I like how Yuri knows her 49 days is a gift and not a new life so she does not want to hurt her family and friends.
BEAUTIFUL LOVE, WONDERFUL LIFE: (Nearing the End rant): I really do not think any of the main male leads should get relationship redemption.
#1. Cheong Ah spent her entire life on a guilt trip. She is now thrown into another one by Joo Hwi’s request that she leaves everything behind to join him in London. It was another rich, selfish request by an heir who is clueless to the feelings, family and career of a woman. Cheong Ah worked hard to get on her career path. She wants to be independent and prove her worth in society. She really does not match at all with Joo Hwi’s immaturity.
She actually matches best with Rim, but he was friend-zoned in hell for a long, long time. She should turn down Joo Hwi’s offer and remain where she is needed, serving the community (and saving that abused high school girl).
#2. Seol Ah never married for love but for status and wealth. She gave up her family for a rich stalker who was obsessed with possessing her. Even after the divorce, Jin Woo continues to pursue the same tactic - - he has to have her so no one else will. Seol Ah is happier back with her family and re-launching her career to go back to an abusive rich family. Though the “everyone will be happy ending” has started, this is a horrible pairing.
Tae Rang is playing the philosophical idiot. He broke off the relationship because his sister had hurt Cheong Ah to the point of suicide. But that abuse pales in comparison to Jin Woo and his family. Tae Rang is too weak for Seol Ah since he avoided fighting Jin Woo for her. At this point, Seol Ah deserves better than Jin Woo or Tae Rang.
Cheong Ah and Seol Ah should follow their mother’s character: a strong, independent woman who is in control of her situation.
The one pair that had a clean chance was Yeon Ah and Pa-Rang, who met at school but that story line fizzled out quickly as Seol Ah’s conflict became the main story line.
Movie: THE CLASSIC (2003): Son Ye Jin's performance was so much better in depth and emotion than the rest of the cast. No wonder she received the title of Queen of Melodramas.
Variety: Still churning out food porn surprises on FUN RESTAURANT.

Itaewon Class: dropped, finally admitting it to myself. I might peek at the end, because I dont think I'll go back to it.

Koi wa Tsuzuku yo Doko Made mo: finished. Not for everyone, but I found it sweet and warm with a likable cast.

2gether series: slightly ridiculous but it makes me smile. Tine is....so dumb but I find i now have a lot of affection for him.

Best Mistake: this is a web series that Viki has. I found it pretty meh, but the ep lengths of around 8 to 10 min were working for me on that day. I'd say even with the length the pacing wasnt bad and it had some cute moments. I just wish they'd given us more of the best friend and the kid that had been arrested.

When the Weather is Nice: on ep 4. I really like it. The pace is actually working for me. Occasionally I do think the could cut down on the shots of people staring out windows. I'm not sure where they are going with the best friend but if they want me to give her a chance she has to stop interrupting the flirting.
The aunt is a trip and yesterday i read a comment about Lee Jae Wook's character and a possible romance and I read the name as the aunt's.....😳. But now I see that it must be the name of the shoe girl.
Love the color palette with all these soft neutrals with these random pops of color. Makes me wish for commentary from the set and wardrobe people for how they decided on it, like little sister running through in her bright pink coat. But those girls need to stop stealing even for a cause.

Next will be to catch up on Hi Bye Mama with maybe a stop at Have a Nice Dessert if I can find it.

I’LL FIND YOU ON A BEAUTIFUL DAY is back, and even better- Missvictrix is right: This may be a prefect show. There are people who claim that Park Min-young cannot act – In my opinion this show is proving them wrong.

HYENA- I have watched three episodes and it is dramatically good- but difficult for me to watch because the conduct of the female lead is utterly unethical- I am actually finding her disgusting- she should be disbarred. I am afraid that I may simply have to drop it because my visceral reaction to the female lead is spoiling my appreciation for the story.

We have continued to watch FOREST but the subtitles are still slow on Viki. The show is still a mess but we are close to the end.

We are also watching the T-drama rom-com THE WONDER WOMAN. It is good but subtitling is still slow on Viki for this one and it is only one episode per week.

We can watch HYENA and many other shows because Linda Palapala pointed out to me that these days Netflix is carrying a large portion of the better shows- and so I have subscribed. This has expanded our choices- there are some shows which I have wanted to see but had no access to until now. But it does have drawbacks: For instance we came up against Netflix’s bad habit of splitting shows into “seasons” while watching the Chinese comedy TRIAD PRINCESS (which is not even that good but we were enjoying it). My wife decided to try the English ‘Dubbing’ feature causing me to discover that I prefer that my Chinese characters actually sound Chinese. Even with these drawbacks I have concluded that Netflix is still worth it simply because it has a lot of shows.