I'm watching two shows I actually want to drop every episode... but... then they do something right or interesting... and I still keep watching. Like mentioning The Double Life of Veronique in Spring, my favourite movie during my college years by Polish director Krzysztof Kieślowski; he also did Three Colours and a very interesting Blind Chance... and thoughts provoking movies A Short Film About Love and A Short Film About Killing.

And although the villains are a biiiit cartoonish and the scenes often over the top, I keep watching Devil Judge because of all that manipulation with the public opinion (and with our / Gaon's perception... what is the truth?)... the chilling variety show aspect... and the law/moral talks between dark and jaded Yohan and pure (or not?) and naïve Gaon.

(Last days I'm also squeeing over the cdrama You Are My Glory 😊 ... and Yang Yang somehow resembles Lee Min Ho(t) 😀 And perhaps because I already passed the 30th (and even 40th 🙈) milestone, I also appreciate the contemplative parts... a genius who may have reached his dream job, but realizes it doesn't pay enough...)

CRICKET - England Vs. India test matches within few weeks. excited

USA T20 tournament started with winner getting 250k. good
female Cricket looks like more thriving in news compared to male cricket. Ukraine got new funds too. if cricket goes into Olympics then we can expect direct competition between 2 world sports - Cricket Vs. Football.

OLYMPICS - ohh Nozomi Okuhara. Nozomi is the only celebrity that i check out time to time on social media.
Badminton quarterfinal and semifinals matches demanded more action. Look at table tennis - fire all around. Hope Badminton final will be much more competitive and exciting.

Racket Boys (Episode 15) - Mood: A-
The amount of character development we got this week was so much that it’s impossible to squeal about all of them! It was amazing to see how the writer used deceptively simple conversations from the past to bring out a cathartic climax when the show needed it. I also loved the twist that Choi Mi Ja wasn’t Grandma Ome’s real name, though I wonder how the city husband found the time to take civil servant exams (please be a fakeout: that’s the comedy we deserve, writer) while living in the village. I question the decision to let Hae Kang play: an eye injury isn’t anything to scoff at, In Sol had thrown his match against Hae Kang which indicates that he’s capable and it would have been epic if Haenam won with Hae Kang watching from the benches of all things. Regardless, I’m looking forward to a really long finale: 90 minutes+?

You Are My Spring (Episode 7-8) - Mood: B-
With regards to the white rose, I think that it’s placed there by the person who’s tailing Ian to try and bait a reaction out of him so that it could be determined whether the twins had indeed swapped places somehow (Da Jung only told Chae Jun about it): poor Da Jung just happened to get caught in the crossfire. On the romance-side of the story, it isn’t quite fantastic (so many misunderstandings and I yawned when Young Do’s shirt got ripped) but it’s decent. I do wonder why Ga Young is a main character when her arc is easily comparable to the TV show for instance: maybe there’s more to it?

The Devil Judge (Episode 7-8) - Mood: D+
So Jin Joo’s character is literally there because we needed a spy for the villain: what an awful writing. Soo Hyun is also another female character who is making questionable decisions: does she expect to quell a crowd with only one gun? It looks super bleak no matter how you see it if all the show can offer is excess theatricality without any substance at all?

Also watching but not really:
- The Witch’s Diner and Nevertheless: Because Chae Jong Hyeop. Yup.

- Blue Birthday: Plot reminds me of Nine Times Time Travel with more romance focus … for now.
- The Great Shaman Ga Doo Shim: Nam Da Reum in a lead role! But why is it so short? :(

ONGOING
Racket Boys - Waiting for Ep. 16.

You Are My Spring - I love the lead couple SO MUCH. Haven't felt so warm and comforted in a while by a k-drama. Haven't laughed so much in a while either. The long explanatory texts after the shirt ripping were SO relatable 🤣

Monthly Magazine Home - Well I watched Ep 12-14 together which at least helped me FF through the noble idiocy nonsense at one go and made it seem marginally less annoying. In fact there were even parts that were amusing. Ui-joo/Sang-soon were always going to happen but I wish they had happened just a little earlier.

Hospital Playlist S2 - No Ep. 7 😑

STARTED
The Great Shaman Ga Doo-shim - Nice enough for a web drama but not bringing anything new to the table.

C-DRAMAS
Still watching Unforgettable Love and Broker. Started Song of Youth, You Are My Glory and First Love Again. For now, First Love Again is definitely the pick of the bunch with some interesting time travel dynamics.

What we’re NOT watching: On the Verge of Insanity, cos MBC has reverted to 2 weeks’ pre-emption for the show. Arrrrrgh!

I tried a few episodes of The Uncanny Counter, but thought it was a bit all flash and no substance. At times it was also weirdly reminiscent of those terribly, terribly earnest J-dramas whose characters are always earnestly encouraging one another, or making vein-throbbingly earnest speeches. Except with added violence and gore. There are some exceptionally good things, though, like So Moon’s two friends, most of the comic moments and Moon Sook being convincingly otherworldly.

The Devil Judge: Sun-ah probably shouldn’t be booked on a speaking tour for teenage girls. Yo-han manipulated Ga-on onto his side, but I can’t help but feel like it was more trouble than it was worth.

Nevertheless: Not sure how I feel about the last episode. I can’t help but wish they’d left Jae-un’s feelings more ambiguous. They aren’t selling me on there being more than a strong sexual attraction between the two, I guess.

Racket Boys: I kind of wish they’d started the Kang Tae-seon storyline sooner, as I really like it and Kang Seung-yoon. Go city husband! Love all thee villagers.

Love (Ft. Marriage & Divorce): Why do these mistresses think the wives want to be friends with them? I really need the doctor to marry A-mi and be stuck with his crazy, childish bride battling his crazy stepmom for the rest of his life. Perfect punishment for all of them. I can’t stand the saintly pregnant mistress. This drama better not end with any of the wives taking their husbands back, but I sensed some foreshadowing.

The Witch’s Diner: If they wanted even a hint of romance between the male lead and Nam Ji-hyun’s character, why make him an high schooler.

Monthly Magazine - Ep1 -13 - This only had a plot until ep 10 and everything after that is just a filler without much logic. As romantically inexperienced as the grumpy ML was, he was still too considerate to deal with FL as an object so his behavior in ep 13 was equally irrational. The SangSoon character is supposed to be funny but it's a detestable creepy caricature, there was a single fact known about him and he exchanged an obsession over one woman for another.

Light on Me I like the main idea but the acting is a bit weird, people walk and talk in slow motion and don't seem like real teenage boys. It's nice that eps became longer and I wish we knew about the boys's families, instead we get Crazy Girl as plot device.

Nevertheless - This week it took a nosedive, the scheming playboy became another guy with mommy issues, which probably explains why he avoided close romantic relationships in this drama and put him up to be saved by the true love of a proper female. Boring and a bad idea. The possible playboy's girlfriend turned out to be a liar who only wanted to upset FL out of crazy jealousy and the lead's mothers messed up their minds as children which is why they dare to make unconventional choices in their romantic lives. Everyone else is well adjusted and simply follows the nice rules of Society. Again, some very bad ideas.

Voice 4 : so, so, good. I’ve been a fan since season 1 and this time around the show delivered too. The final episode is tonight and I am kinda sad to let this amazing show go, but I’ll be waiting for the next season if there’s any. Please have another season!

You Are My Spring : I didn’t really pay attention to the crime part but it was lovely to see the leads opening up to each other. Love the soundtracks. Their friends are hilarious.

MSG Wannabe from Hangout With Yoo : awww..the final concert brings tears to my eyes. It was a lovely and heart tugging series. All of the members were genuinely sincere and was grateful for the opportunity. And it was nice to hear new songs from SG Wannabe again. I was such a fan when they were active.

WITCH’S DINER (Ep 3): I don’t mind an episodic series so long as it moves the main characters’ stories along. This series seems more like Jin’s story. This episode did not accomplish any traction for Witch Hee-Ra’s back story or motivations. It just repeated the image of a young Jin being recruited as a young girl to be a medium or new witch. But then, it could be flashbacks on how Hee-Ra became a witch. (Do you have to recruit your successor?) The questions are beginning to pile up.

The only myth change was that the wish price is now somehow captured in glass jars to be used for future wishes. (In the past, it seemed the witch absorbed body parts, possibly a spiritual essence is needed to move to the next realm?) This episode did not resolve the guest’s wish which was odd. Also, not a big fan of epilogues explaining major facts. I would like the scripts to have more cohesion to move the story along.

Variety:
All my normal shows were pre-empted or Covid lock downed.

My YouTube feed is suddenly overwhelmed by Korean celebrity golf videos.

You are my spring: I still getting whiplash from merging of dark serial killer mystery and a rom -com. It’s cute and sweet in moment and then we are thrust into violence and trauma into next.
The acting performance are solid and even secondary characters are quite fun to watch. I just hoped I would come in terms of watching two dramas at once.
The Great Shaman: I am excited about leads but this drama does not bring anything new to table. Its short run time does not help. There is no world building, no explanation of rules and no sense of urgency about fate of Go Doo Shim.
Monthly Magazine Home: Have not recovered from whole noble idiocy thing to enjoy the drama.
I am reluctant to press play on Devil Judge , I will probably marathon it later. I don’t know what possessed me to press on Love featuring marriage and divorces , this show is still a garbage. I plead temporary insanity.

Racket Boys: We are almost at the end. I am going to miss this drama when it is gone.

You are my Spring: These were my absolute favorite episodes of this drama. They were heartbreaking and heartfelt. They showed intimacy in the best way possible. I understood why he just wanted to be friends with her because anything more could literally and figuratively break his heart. I also loved that they established a friendship first, because part of a lasting romantic relationship is friendship. Also I am now curious as to who the third person in this murder relationship is.

The witch's diner: The way that man lost his fingers was ridiculous. The knife had to be the sharpest knife in all of the universe. I am still enjoying the drama though.

Nevertheless: Is there really a love triangle if the third player is liked back? I don't think so.

The Devil Judge: So Ga on is now on his side, what is Soo hyun going to think. As for Sun ah what is she up to???

Racket Boys I'm really excited to watch the last episode and sad in the same time.

You Are My SpringI like this couple so much! All their conversations are super interesting or fun.

On the Verge of Insanity I missed it.

Monthly Magazine Home It's the last week and I feel like the story will begin sometimes...

Hospital Playlist 2 Surprisingly, I didn't miss it so much.

Nevertheless It's disapointing that the production decided to remove some Kim Min Gwi's scenes, he didn't break the law. It's not really fair for the actress neither.

Love S2 (13): I felt bad for HR in this episode. She might be self centered but when she shared the news of divorce to her mom I really felt bad. She knew that pregnancy would be the last chance to save her marriage and it's just sad that she couldn't be pregnant when she actually want it. And I felt even more bad that neither her husband nor her in laws tried to know the actual reason. They doesn't even seem to care much that she gave up all of a sudden. The doctor and the family are equally crazy. The stepmother dreams about romancing the step son now that he is divorced while the mistress asks the ex wife the permission to move with the doctor and offer to look after if the ex wife ever gets sick. This is so out of logic. There is no news on the professor yet and judging from the preview something is going bad between them. The preview looks even crazier. I have no idea how they are gonna end all this fairly and I hope they dont go for another season.

You are my spring (5): The leads are dull. Watching it only for Yoon Park.

Devil Judge (1): I am so behind this. So the first episode started slowly and it took me a while to clear the initial confusion. Ji sung's character is interesting and verdict of the trial was a clever trick. Park Jin young and KMJ are also delightful to watch. So many seasoned great actors in one frame !!! I interest hiked towards the last part of episode and I am all in for it, slowly making through the 90 min episode.

OLDER
Kingdom (5-6): watching this super slow because of the increasing workload and decreasing free time. Still hooked, still interested hopefully will finish the next season and the special episode in the coming week.

Sell your haunted house (5-16): I loved it. They managed to tie almost all the loose ends and its satisfying when a drama leaves you content and happy after its last episode. Jang Nara of course is the core of this show. She carried her character gracefully all throughout the show. Another actor worth mentioning is JYH. He did full justice to the role with maturity. I wish the for the writers to develop a second season. There are enough plots that can be used. I wonder why the show never mentioned about Jiah's father. Or did I miss it?. Overall I loved the show and can see myself rewatching this in future.
PS : I loved the truck of doom in this drama when the stalker guy was hit. Felt so satisfying....😈😈😈

As much as I despise the noble idiocy trope, I liked how Monthly Magazine Home’s OTP dealt with their feelings with the support of their friends colleagues. I also like watching Kim Ji-suk how curls his head down to envelop Jung So-min in his arms. I love a good onscreen hug.

The Witch’s Diner continues to leave me cold. The genre is really more Twilight Zone-ish horror than anything else. Friday’s episode was grim. Watching people make ill-thought wishes is uncomfortable and depressing.

On the lighter side, I was delighted by The Way of the Househusband, an anime on Netflix based on the Japanese manga Gokushufudo. Daily adventures of an ex-yakuza who is 110% devoted for caring for his wife and cat. It’s really wonderful. Love, love, love how his father-in-law and the neighborhood wives all accept him. There’s also a 10-ep. live action version too led by a very charismatic Tamaki Hiroshi. The drama includes a 10 or 11-year-old daughter. (Yes, he assures his wife that he loves her child like his own blood.)

Given that the Olympics have pre-empted our beloved On the Verge of Insanity, I’m catching snippets of the Olympics via YouTube. Ping pong, women’s weightlifting, archery. Weightlifting isn’t my bag but watching Hidilyn Diaz win Philippines’ first Olympic gold squeezed my heart. Will watch some diving and gymnastics later this weekend.

Racket Boys: 8.0 Giving us the big championship matches we didn't get in Stove League and restoring balance to the sports-kdrama universe. With a ghost.

Voice 4: 3.0

You Are My Spring: 7.0

:The Witch’s Diner: 7.0

Devil Judge: 7.0 If Kim Min-Jung ever says "I need a hug", RUN! Day 7 - the famed kdramaland Stairs of Doom strike again. Kdrama characters are awfully easy to kill that way. Considering how I am with stairs, it's good that I'm not in kdramaland. Day 8 - OMG! The president of imaginary dystopian Korea is a K-maggot.

Racket Boys: So sad it's coming to the end!

The Great Shaman Ga Doo Shim: I like the format 1 episode/20 min.
Ghost/evil spirit stuff is nothing new, but it's so easy to watch just 20 min. Bae Hae Sun, no matter what she plays, she is fantastic.

Please Don't Date Him: I love this little show! Very funny and cute!
I love the same nurse is everywhere and the ex-boyfriend is so pathetic, so funny.

Twelve Nights: I'm still at Ep.4. Still 2010. I like this drama but my mood is wanting more uplifting, light and fun stuff right now, so I paused it for now.

Slow going here since I've been busy.

Completed: It's Okay not to be Okay. Great beginning and FL but disappointing ending and resolution of mental health issues.
Be Melodramatic. I've enjoyed this so much and sorry to see it end. I'll probably re-watch it when I miss the great writing.

Still at it: Beyond Evil. Great writing as well.
Taxi Driver. I like that it's a series of stories.
Flower of Evil. Yes the leads are great but too much head scratching here.

Moon Embracing the Sun: New sageuks are few and far between so finally going back and watching this one. Even though it's very mainstream fusion, I'm always intrigued by Jin Soo Wan's interesting female characters and her use of queer subtext. It always feels like she really, really wants to write a show with openly queer protagonists and I hope she gets the chance someday.

Watching:

1. Hospital Playlist 2:
I liked ep6. This episode is the first episode this ss that made me feel like I am watching one in the first season. All the feelings were there: joy, heartwarming, funny moments, everything. This ep made my heart full. I loved Jun-wan a lot, especially in the scene when he asked Jung-won if he could move in with him and GY when they got married.

2. Nevertheless: I caught up with the most recent episode just a moment ago. I began this show after I had begun reading a book about codependency, and thought the show depicted a codependent woman (in my view: Na-bi) very well since the first ep. So for me, I found the story interesting because I wanted to watch it as something educational. The show surprised me all the way through, though, with its aesthetics and attention to details. In all, I think the show is very aesthetically pleasing and educational at the same time. The music is also nice. I am really liking this one despite some strange dialogues from the aunt and JE's mom in the last ep.

3. You Are My Spring: I can't really say if I like or dislike this one. Some dialogues can be triggers, but overall one of the top quality dramas out there. The suggestions from our psychiatrist sounded sound, and I like the dynamic between the two leads.

I've been looking forward to You Are My Glory since forever, and it's living up to expectations so far. Dilraba and Yang Yang are the most gorgeous pairing you can ever expect to grace your screen and that in itself is enough for me, not to mention that they are doing decent jobs in this drama (yes, even Yang Yang who cannot act has improved). What more can I ask for? Oh wait, longer episodes and faster updates!

K dramas Nevertheless E4 and Devil Judge
Rewatch C drama Eternal Love ❤️
J drama Kodoku no Gurume S9 E3
Listened to a couple audio books

I've spent most of the week watching this riveting drama out of Japan - the 2021 Olympic Games! So, not as much time for other drama watching. I have snuck some in though...
Nevertheless: I am sad that what has become one of my favorite characters is going to be mostly edited out going forward. I'm glad we got the scene where he lets Jae-eon in on what Na-bi is thinking and feeling based on his own experiences.
Vincenzo: I finally started watching this (11/20 eps in) and it has been a good laugh and so well produced. I love the big cast of characters! Ok Taecyeon has been fantastic! I'm just loving his manic energy. Jeon Yeo-bin is becoming one of my favorites. She's so different in each role she plays and I just completely fall into her acting!
Monthly Magazine Home: I have really enjoyed this one, but I'm using the Olympics as an excuse to not watch the episodes that I'm behind on so that I can watch them all at once and just zip past the late series heartbreak stuff.
Hospital Playlist: I miss you. Please come back to me.

Racket Kids: Loved Han-sol's triumph. I like this show best when it focuses on the kids - their relationships with each other, with themselves, and with their sport. I'll be sorry to say good-bye to this one after next week.

You Are My Spring: I wasn't so sure after the first week, but I was intrigued enough to continue - and I'm glad I did! This week's episodes were the best for me so far. The dynamics of all the relationships are unfolding nicely, and the way the OTP talk to each other is refreshingly non-dramatic and even realistically awkward, as are their reactions. The 'imaginings' of the friends were hilarious as well. Somehow the dark and light balance well for me.

Monthly Magazine Home: I never expected this to be more than a cookie cutter feel-good romcom with all the usual tropes, but, goodness, has it gotten boring. The noble idiocy had me FF eps 11 & 12, and I'm watching the rest at 1.5x. But I like the leads enough to finish this one out - it didn't have to be Oscar-worthy, but it could have been better for their sakes.

Hospital Playlist 2: I enjoy meeting up with our 'friends' every week, but I've so far found this season a bit underwhelming. Literally could not care less about the Winter Garden couple. That is, apparently, all that Jung-won is about, which is just...sad. What did they do to his character?! The Song-hwa/Ik-jun ship is obviously being set up to sail now, but if that gives me more U-ju then I can be okay with that.

In the meantime, I'm ridiculously proud of hometown girl Suni Lee's performance at the Olympics and have overall been enjoying watching many of the events, while still feeling conflicted that they decided to go ahead with them in the midst of the pandemic. Stay well, everyone.

Witch's Diner: The wishers seem to have got such terrible fates..though I'm hoping things would look up for Downtrodden-missing-fingers guy with that epilogue... The theatre actress story was so sad. She gave up her voice for that terrible guy. Like tsutuloo said above, it's more like the Twilight Zone horror. It definitely does not have the warm, satisfying fuzzies of Hotel del luna or Mystic Popup Bar. I'm not sure what the endgame is for Jin and the witch.

C-drama:
Truth or Dare (finished): There was a moment of dread with the star-crossed lovers twist, but that got resolved pretty quick. A fun drama if you're into the youth-oriented costume drama tropes with all those eyerolling, improbable moments. I enjoyed the double-wedding, and I'm glad the maid had the grooms double-check to make sure they're marrying the right brides.

Qing Luo (up to ep 23): A drama where I wish I was the awesome FL and was loved by the equally awesome ML. I like how things get resolved pretty quickly. Nice light drama with low stakes and lovely characters. Saving the last episode. Not ready to say goodbye.

Saving Unforgettable Love fluff for the weekend!