COMPLETED
Café Minamdang - FIN

STARTED
Good Job - I was prepared to be amused and thankfully I WAS. It was cute and fun - other than the violent-misogynist-chaebol-at-club scene. Can we please have less of those and more of Jung Il-woo…being Jung Il-woo?

ONGOING
Poong, the Joseon Psychiatrist - The discovery of the antidote flower was so dramatic with the wind and the petals lol. The birth-secret 'reveal' was pretty funny though. The main villain is boring. I'd rather just watch our ragtag bunch.

Adamas - The drama and tension is great - the car chase, the trailer scene, even the slightly strange terrorist plot - but the assassin is ruining the show for me. Anyway at the end was that Soo-hyun at the party?

Big Mouth - There is no logic to this show (truth serum?!) but I'm still enjoying it. I don't even know why. Probably LJS's face!

Today's Webtoon - I think I'm jaded by corporate life because Ma-eum seemed very unprofessional to me last week when she gossiped about Gang-nam's potential exit to the point where it reached the CEO.

The Good Detective S2 - Oof that ending. Poor Tae-ho. The hospital scene cracked me up right along with the detectives. It's stuff like that that this show does best. The Oh Jung-se cameo was too short - I'm wondering if we'll see more.

Alchemy of Souls - Going to watch all 4 episodes tomorrow.

Alchemy of Souls: I didn’t enjoy this week’s episodes that much. I liked the Crown Prince’s scenes and that’s about it. The kiss was better than the first, but I still don’t buy the romance. Episode 18 just reinforced that I really don’t like Nak-su or how Jung So Min plays her. I’m interested in seeing if my feelings about the character change when Go Yoon Jung takes over. It’s ridiculous that Nak-su hasn’t figured out the body she is inhibiting is Bu-yeon’s. Bu-yeon is the ultimate plot device. It’s annoying.

Adamas: This drama has me on the edge of my seat each week. So many twists and turns. I have to suspend disbelief for some of it, but this drama has such good direction, it’s easy to forgive any dumb stuff. I liked the fake Adamas reveal. I love Ji Sung with his hair up, in a suit.

Good Job: I wasn’t impressed with the first episode, but Episode 2 was entertaining. It helped a lot to have Yuri’s character join the team. She’s a candy but with a superpower that makes her useful. I like the lawyer. I have this thing where I only like Jung Il Woo in sageuks and while this drama hasn’t changed my mind, I do like his chemistry with Yuri.

Today’s Webtoon: Jun-young is starting to be invested in the Webtoon Team, which is nice to see. His little crush on Ma-eum is cute. Shin Dae-ryuk makes me anxious. I just want him to get some help, some therapy. I don’t want anything bad to happen to him, Ma-eum hiding the incident at the police station coming back to bite them.

Wild Boar Hunting: This drama was really depressing, but really good. The wild boars weren’t the danger to the community but instead the selfish and immoral residents. The funeral parlor scene was so good, but it was fitting that the four men burned in the end. I really wonder about the original fire that killed Hyun-min’s parents. The one cop said it was an accident and the Grandma’s accusations were because of the Alzheimer’s but the community certainly proved themselves capable of heinous acts. It’s sad if it all started because Grandma was confused and it’s sad if the residents really did play a part.

Seoul Vibe: I don’t think any movie needs to be over 90 minutes, two hours at the most. I know I’m in the minority, but I’ve never gotten Yoo Ah-in’s appeal. This was pretty silly, and for the run time, it didn’t seem like they did much with it. The characters were pretty thinly drawn but the 80’s vibes made it more tolerable.

Witch is Alive: The three husbands in the holes did make me laugh but this drama kind of depresses me despite the zaniness. I like Hee-soo the best, and she’s had such a sad life. I don’t want her to die. The other two just need to get divorces and neither have any business having a baby.

Wild Boar Hunting (Series review)
Let me start off with the bad first: I don’t find it very realistic that the friends made up at the funeral given that one had attempted to murder the other, but what made it worse was how they all somehow nonchalantly waved away the death of Joo Hyub (isn’t he their friend too?). On the other hand, I very much enjoyed how we never got to the truth of the fire in the past or Hyun Min’s death in the present: the drama does imply that Ok Soon’s accusations are fact, but the irony is how they snowballed into the gunshot that caused her to lose yet another family member. Acting was brilliant for me.

Cafe Minamdang (Series review) - Mood progression: D+ / D+ / D+ / D / D / D / D- / D- / D-
One really has to wonder: what went through Seo In Guk’s mind when he was reading the script? Did he realise that his previous drama was a writing flop and that this wasn’t going to be any different? To be fair, it did look like 1 big package deal for his acting agency to have both main leads and the villain snatched up so maybe he didn’t have much choice. I do feel for Kwak Si Yang and Kwon Soo Hyun who seem to be stuck in that limbo of playing a role that’s a lead and not a lead at the same time: all this show did was further typecast them and not letting them act.

Big Mouth (Episode 7-8) - Mood: C-
Thankfully we had a brief confirmation in the preview that [SPOILER], otherwise, I would’ve totally sworn at the show for fridging Kwak Dong Yeon of all people? But anyway, this week’s episodes brought about the orphanage the male lead used to be in, which sadly adds credence to the theory that maybe there is some traumatic past behind that bumbling persona. It does seem likely that Big Mouse’s network involves people from there, though that doesn’t add up with how Chang Ho seemed surprised that the police guard waved him through. Show’s kinda dragging the reveal now.

Today’s Webtoon (Episode 7-8) - Mood: D+
Oh great, we needed more corporate drama in the form of Youngtoon to move the plot along: why couldn’t that conflict been about Gang Nam’s desire to end a known moneymaker to chase after his passion and thus affecting the webtoon team’s profits? I think that would’ve kept the annoying characters to a minimum if the show really wanted material that would advance the scheming director arc (the only plus of that is Ha Do Kwon visiting Running Man to have fun). After the 1st half, my impression of the plot is that it’s very messy: show needs to focus on one arc at a time!

Also watching: Adamas / Good Job

Good Job is shamelessly stuffed with tropes and cliches: Cold genius chaebol hero! Warm-hearted heroine with a “bright personality”! Trauma from childhood event! Guys unable to spot the obvious bombshell till she puts on an expensive dress! Etc etc. And if the necklace doesn’t end up on Se-ra’s neck on a more permanent basis, I’ll eat all the lanyards I own.

Still, it’s an easy, rollicking watch, and I quite like how they seem to be tackling other issues in the course of the main investigation. I also like Se-ra’s super-vision, which is rather implausible but kind of cool, especially when Kwon Yu-ri slices through the casino with her laser beam eyes and impeccable poise.

Btw, Grilled Anchovy Head from The Good Detective also plays a cop in Good Job.

Too busy week, I watched only The Good Job... and I was bored during the opening... until Jung Ilwoo and Yuri started sharing the screen - they have crackling chemistry and I'm having fun with their bickering. The show's logic is a biiiiiit wonky, but I don't care much - I would even say that the laps of logic actually add to the fun 😁. I'm here for the comedy, even if it is as simple as calling Sunwo garbage when he is being driven away spread among the garbage in the garbage truck 😁 ...And... I also fell in love with Jinmo, he is handsome 😊 and competent (I loved Sera's appreciative look when Jinmo was showing his computer skills 😁😁).

Planning to marathon the second half of Alchemy next week (and then hopefully join the discussion next weekend).

Alchemy of Souls: 9.0 The cynic in me says they needed the week off to prepare those two 16.1 & 16.2 "episodes". Either that or they were so used to 16-episode series that they just kinda stopped out of habit after 16.

Today's Webtoon PPL: 7.0 Day 8 was candy and spycams?. Day 9 was cologne?

Big Mouth: 6.9 👄🤐 🐭🐁🖱

Cafe Minamdang: 6.0 Typical kdrama Non-Noble Idiocy in the finale - one goodie chases after a baddie who runs away, while the other 3 goodies just stand there instead of watching the baddie on the ground with a gun next to him. Also, terrible overacting by enough characters so I have to blame the director.

Poong the Joseon Psychiatrist: 4.0 A generally lame show, although they did something cool with a birth secret in day 7. When they needle someone, I keep thinking of Voodoo dolls... When they have a plague I think of covid & monkeypox and think this show is not the kind of escapist entertainment I want this year decade century. Also, seem to be in for a lot of palace politics and not much of the promised psychiatry.

Good Job: 7.5 Rather unambitious compared to shows like Extraordinary or Alchemy, but it delivers nicely at what it tries to do. So, good job I guess.

Unicorn: __ Seems ok-ish, but I'm only a little bit in, and the fact that I' rather get some sleep than finish today's episodes may be an omen?

Alchemy of Souls – I won’t be able to watch until TOMORROW and I may not make it. I’m ready to find the finale satisfying (cause I think if you’re ready to be let down then you absolutely will be) and really really really hoping they wrap up at least some of the story even though this is just part 1. When I started this journey, I was expecting this to be fun and interesting, but here I am, desperately invested. Let’s gooooo finale week!

Cafe Minamdang – Well, it’s over. I loved the Minamdang schemes and SIG was pretty fantastic. Let’s not dwell on the rest of it, haha!

Crash Landing on You – I was not expecting the last few episodes to hit me exactly as hard as they did the first time through, but dang, this drama knows how to make you feel things. I’ll just be over here daydreaming the continuation of the story, fueled by HB’s and SYJ’s real life photos and pregnancy announcement.

CRICKET - 1st test one sided but good start from south africa

2nd test - one sided England almost winning it. South Africa did the mistake from the toss itself. Test cricket allows you to control your mistakes but test cricket is where once you get behind, making a come back not turns into a favourable outcome.

3rd test gonna be pretty fun. I'm all into Test Cricket.
T20 feels more of a not so delicious, costly, overhyped fast food. Taste good but not nutritious at all. Test Cricket is where quality is.

Not so in recent years. There are strong teams - but no dominant team - That has actually caused so many beautiful test matches to appear within few years.

As for female cricket - I was supporting it from australian ODI world cup. Male market of sports is too saturated so you need to find other audience too. That's what football is doing right now. Cricket again is playing a catchup game. Business is business.

Heyer Book Club:
Arabella - sweet, though sometimes a bit dull.
A Civil Contract - I understand the message... and it's not that the story is badly written... but... I was bored most of the time 🙈 (and no, I'm not interested in Napoleon and his lost battle at Waterloo in my romantic novels, at least not in this way).
I think, for me, Sylvester did better with the Young Unspoiled Heroine charming the Rich Hero... and Frederica did better with the Calm Love Born From Mutual Respect.
Oh well, time to reread the last chapter of The Grand Sophy 😁😁

Having watched ep 2-6 of The Good Detective 2 I’m left prepping myself for Tae-ho’s most definite demise. Why did I read the recaps. I wouldn’t have hesitated to catch up if I had no idea of what’s in store. Could he have survived that ghastly accident cause I really want him to. Seoul Investigation Team gets on my nerves.

Just when I was warming up to the only sweet guy on the SIH, Adamas took out Mr. Baek. Good things don’t last long in Adamas, do they? Everyone clearly has an agenda different from what they’ve told the twins, and I don’t know who I find more annoying. The SIH or Team A or Hyunjo?
I’m loving Hye-soo, and Seo Ji-hye here a lot; and Ji Sung too. I thought with the ending that was episode 10 that this was a 12-episode drama, seems like I still have 3 weeks of suspense to sit through. And sweet guard Kim is gone too. That’ll make it two deaths to have to sit through before next week.

Soojung doing the thing that is right for the kids and everyone is general. I guess this is one of the reasons why Grandpa didn’t address the marriage issue until she defined what their relationship would be going forward. I also liked that she drew insight from Mi-rae’s attitude and disposition towards the entire situation. Soojung repaid Mi-rae for her understanding. Same with Grandpa acknowledging Kyung-ae for her understanding towards him even though it hurt her deeply. Managing 4-5 boys ain’t no easy task when the men decide to be boys.
Our Dolt Couple is pregnant 👏🏻. Yay!
Dang! It’s 42 episodes already.

Good Job is the happy pill I’ll be using to weather the storms the other dramas bring. I had a lot of fun with the premiere episodes.
I should pick up Today’s Webtoon from episode 3. It’s hard to catch up to a drama once a week is missed, and now it will be 4 weeks missed.

Wild Boar Hunting - The title had me thinking this was a drama about animal hunting so I was skeptical about how it’ll be received in terms of backlash by animal conservators. It is a different hunting experience, a very harrowing one, and a satisfying watch. Park Ho-san, Ye Soo-jung and Kim Soo-jin owned their roles. That ending with the Ok-soon vs Boar face-off? Whatever interpretation suits you.

Would Alchemy of Souls have delivered better if the one week hiatus didn’t happen? That’s the question bugging my mind and still bugging when I first finished episode 18. Only after a re-watch did the feeling change from strong unsatisfactory to less unsatisfactory + some good score points I missed during the first watch. I do hope the finales live up to the expectations. And please, it’s the finale. Little or no fillers please.
I didn’t expect to be over SLS Yul so soon. Once it seemed like AoS stopped pushing it frontally to the screen, the syndrome just fizzed out I didn’t even bother with feeling SLS when she had her ice stone session with Yul. But CP Won's? This one gave me a new temporary SLS. Just be over show...

Good Job: They put these two leads together because of the sizzle from their last drama so I hope between the fun and games, we get some of that as well.

Poong: I really like this and the drama does a good job of dealing with the medical cases and still moving the story along. I hate that they even have to deal eventually with what happened in the palace in the first 30 minutes of the show. I don't care about the palace.

Today's Webtoon: It's an easy enough watch.

Love Like the Galazy (C-drama): I stopped watching so I could finish up the last 20ish episodes without waiting and then I got busy with life and haven't had time. Goshdarnit. This will be my weekend watching. When I get frustrated with the gal in some of the earlier parts, I remember she's supposed to be like 15 or something.

Alchemy and Atty Woo: I've stalled on both but hope to jump back into.

In books, I am reading The Church of Baseball about the making of Bull Durham, often considered the best baseball movie ever even over Field of Dreams. This is probably because the screenwriter/director played the minor leagues. He wrote the book about the process of writing a screenplay and trying to get a film made in Hollywood. He went on to do White Men Can't Jump and Tin Cup as well. Interesting to see the behind the scenes process and a shock that anyone can get anything made.

Cafe Minamdang: Look Ma, we made it. My love for SIG never waned. He was really good in this. Unfortunately the writing just wasn't there and too much miscasting. That being said I earned that bean.

Poong: The episodes on this are still too long. There are long stretches when it is even a little boring. That being said I still enjoy the leads and the little family.

Good Job: I really liked this one. I hope it continues to be mostly lighthearted fun!!!

If you wish upon me: So his dad is in the room. Why not just tell him? What a weird thing to do. Also I cried so much in that revenge episode. I felt so bad for that little girl, imagine watching your dad do that. I am so glad he confessed, talk about trauma.

Adamas: We are in the home stretch. Six episodes left. What will we find out. Also, surprisingly good drama. It is nice sometimes to go in without expectations.

Today's Webtoon: THERAPY. Our artist needs THERAPY. Even if we didn't see the flashbacks, the fact that he doesn't like to be touched and follows people creepily should have triggered that. I don't know why no one is trying to get him help or ask why he doesn't like to be touched. Wild.

The good Detective 2: What an ending. So Tae Ho is dead and Na Na probably killed that poor girl. I wonder if it was jealousy or rage. Hmmmm

Alchemy of Souls - Ready to see how the first part is going to end. I keep on getting the feeling that things are going to end with Uk being either heartbroken, devastated or both. On a different note, let's hope Seo Yul doesn't get injured anymore!

Adamas - Fantastic!! Twisty and suspenseful done right!

Good Job I found the first two episodes entertaining. I like the set-up and the leads are likeable. Jung Il Woo's character can be a cold-hearted and bit much on the self praise but he manages to make Eun Woo likeable somehow. While Yuri's bright and hard working character seems like a Candy on paper but she has a strong sense of justice which I like.
If You Wish Upon Me I am a bit behind on this week's episode. I will get to it soon.
Europe Outside Your Tent they are finally in Italy. Those roads headed towards the Italian border looks scary. I would be scared too looking at the cliffs on one side.
the Backpacker Chef the food Chef Baek and crew made this week looks yummy especially that bulgogi rice soup. Thatose fried pork bellys looks really similar to a local dish and I know those are delicious but I took notes on the sauce Fabri made and may recreate it as dipping sauce.
Street Man Fighter there is too much machismo and ego among the male dancers. Also the comments about each group and members can be too much. But what I find offending is a few targeted towards a girlish dancer/group. I am not sure if I will continue to tune in if this continues. I do like the battle and dances but it may not be enough if their behavior continue to deteriorate.
Today's Webtoon I am continuing to love this show. I am fine if there is no romance on this show but ai am getting partial to Ma Eum and Joon Yeong's growing friendship. Plus I want Pomme's stalker caught soon. There is a mystery with this Aeri person that the show is hinting at and looking forward to finding that out.
Alchemy of Souls We are now in the last two episodes. I have yet to see ep19. I am hoping that the writers do not muck it up. I want a happy ending foe my fave characters

Cafe Minamdang I will just forget this show and wait for SIG's next drama.

If You Wish Upon Me This drama doesn't work on me. I'm completely bored and the romance feels so forced.

Today's Webtoon I'm happy that Ma-Reum has found a good author but she really should advice him to get help. How he feels for her is not really healthy...

The Good Detective 2 I'm surprised how the villains have so much screen time. Sometimes, I wonder if the leads are really the cops.

Alchemy of Souls I have no confidence that the end of the first part will make sense.

Seoul Vibe Was it the korean version of Pimp My Ride?

I need to try Good job :)

I’ve been on holiday and didn’t post in the last three weeks, so in the meantime:
Finished Café Minamdang (in the final episodes, I liked Han Ghost was back, she should have been like that in the whole drama! It didn’t need 18 episodes, though…), Extraordinary Attorney Woo (I know it was a really good drama, just not my personal favorite), Miracle (I expected more from the first episodes), Extraordinary You (a great watch with my friend), Forecasting Love and Weather (liked the first four and the last two episodes, in between it was slow, but the meteorology parallels to life were interesting).
Alchemy of Souls
I love it and want it to never end – season 2 announced for December already, yeah!
Today’s Webtoon (Ep. 8)
In Ep. 5 and 6 I wondered what else they would have to show going on, 7 and 8 were really good, and there are several overarching storylines still to clear up, so I’m looking forward to the second half.
Big Mouth (Ep.8)
We’re all still guessing who Big Mouse is, I think the drama is doing really well at that. And I refuse to believe that Jerry is dead!
Just watched Ep. 9 halfway, that ploy with the camera, the truck and Chang Ho revealed in it was just too cool for words!
Tell me Your Wish (Ep. 6)
As others have said, finally JCW found another really good drama to play in. I find it a very good combination of poignant, funny, informing, healing, suspenseful… Park Jin Ju as Se Hee was wonderful, the musical show that was her last wish maybe a bit too sentimental, but it worked on my heart… The SUV of doom in the next episode was horrible to watch, thankfully this one patient didn’t die. And parallel to the episodic stories, our hero has started to change and to open up, but the criminals and the ex-girlfriend/orphanage sister are coming closer…
Good Job
I liked the first two episodes and the genre of a caper comedy, Sherlock Holmes mystery plus supernatural is really fun so far.

I noticed that Adamas is watched and commented a lot by Dramabeanies, so I might have to catch up on that…

On-airing dramas that I am watching -
No.

Currently watching:
1. Hometown Cha*3: loving every second of it. Was so bored I dropped it around ep8 while it was airing, but I’m in the mood now. And I actually consider this show better for binge watching.

💗💗💗

ALCHEMY OF SOULS (Ep.17-18) : Episode 17 was the best of the series. For every plan there is unintended consequences. Jin Mu and Shaman Choi’s plan to consolidate Jinyowon, the mages society with the royal family was derailed by Uk, a wild card variable. We did not get the “Uk, I am your father confession,” but we got a very Star Wars warning about the “evil” side of the ice stone (Force). I was right that Jin Ho-Gyeong was suspicious of So-I as her daughter. I was also right that there were more than one ice stone - - Master Seo Gyeong kept one to revive his long lost love. The reveal that Jin kept the ice stone in its vault begs the question why Ho-Gyeong still claims Songrim “took” something from her and never returned it (Bu-yeon?)

Episode 18 was a confusing disappointment. The dialog was choppy and inconsistent. Three awkward love confessions missed the mark. The BIG stuff still out of reach for the viewers. So is the ice stone its own separate entity? The inference was that three spirits were embodied into Mu-deok. Now that Naksu has her powers back, the guilt trip about using them seems like a waste of time. The ice stone appears to take power from good people and empower evil people. Everyone knows So-I is a fraud but no one calls her out to get critical information from her.

And critical information is still missing from the viewers. The finale is being set up for a huge battle for the ultimate power. But the lack of intensity or urgency leading up to the end of Part 1 is a point of concern.

THE WITCH IS ALIVE (Becoming Witch) (Ep.9) Our three ladies have a hard time killing the men they hate. It was getting near “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World” vibe racing around with shovels. At least the three FLs had a “caper” together.

The Oracle is a darker person than we thought. She went to prison for murder. She freely admits she runs the Death Note website to give people an outlet for their relationship pain. I think she has another connection to pull a twist in this series.

The sudden disappearance of Go-Eun is troublesome. Was she that scared of Ma-Ri’s threat? She seemed stronger and more ambitious to let that get her to flee. It is troublesome because Nak-su is more focused on destroying Ma-Ri than finding Go-Eun. Even the local police are writing off their domestic disputes as “mutual combat” which should not lead to a divorce.

Woo-Bin must have concrete for a brain because he seems like an immortal stone. The gangsters are more investigation worthy that the police and our main characters.

TODAY’S WEBTOON (Ep. 7-8) Double cliffhanger just as our webtoon department is about to turn the corner. Business is ruthless and underhanded. Artists are flighty, insecure and born doubters or self-defeatists. Dong-Hee's story conclusion was realistic. Ten years is a long time working to start your career. It was sad that he realized after quitting that only Shin understood his work. Ironically, they could have become good...

ALCHEMY OF SOULS—this is a ride and I am enjoying every moment of it. I don’t take it too seriously and find it’s the perfect immersive experience for me right now. I am almost caught up for today’s episodes. I can’t believe we have part 2 still. While I would love to spend more time with the characters, I am not looking forward to the angst and strife that’s on the horizon. Nor the break. Four months! Argh.

MIMICUS—Wow, surprisingly I am hooked. The mystery of why this is happening and the sympathetic characters draw me in each episode. What drives the mothers? What happened to make one withdraw and the other create a devastating fantasy? I hope the boys (brothers?) end up working together to end their misery. Also, there are some very interesting moments of visual storytelling. The extreme dutch angle in episode 3, for example.

A PIECE OF YOUR MIND—The mood sits perfectly with me. I am still loving this to bits. The tension from all the pieces of truth about to be revealed is coming to its breaking point I think. The only quibble I have is the ethics of the AI device—all of your innermost parts revealed without you being aware. At least in a therapy session you have the choice to share. But I take it to be a more metaphorical device than reality, and so I can let this go.

LITTLE FOREST—Serotonin boost and laugh out loud watch all at once. I can’t decide if the cast is crazy or admirable to want to babysit 5 very busy (absolutely cute) little kids. But watching them stare off into empty space with the glazed eyes of a child minder cues my empathy and laughter. Pus seeing Lee Seung Gi out of his element and Jun So Min in her element is something of a treat. The best though, is watching the little kids wrap “Mr. Lee” around their little fingers. And so far, no one has actually “gone to incinerator”. Hahaha.

Poong Joseon Psychiatrist Loved the episode with the grieving mother since it touches more on the psychological side. I'm not too fond of the bad guy stuff/palace politics and it looks like we're dovetailing a bit into that with the dansancho flower,

Alchemy of Souls: Yes, the excitement in the last quarter don't quite match the start, but I think that's the case for most kdramas and even American shows. Episode 17 was riveting and I was impressed that even this late in the series, it can still create that makes me feel like I've been holding my breath for the entire time. I'm starting to dread Part/Season 2 though.

Looking forward to Good Job!

The first two episodes of GOOD JOB were enormous fun. If I had the chance, I would have watched the next episodes right away.

ADAMAS continues to keep the tension high and just delivers twists again and again.

IF YOU WISH UPON ME has a good mix of tragedy and humour.

POONG, THE JOSEON PSYCHIATRIST, TODAY'S WEBTOON and ALCHEMY OF SOULS continue to be watched.

In between I watch PRISON PLAYBOOK, I love it. It makes me laugh and cry at the same time.

Good Job
I just love a heroine that curses so naturally! Lots of fun. And Jung il Woo is one of the few actors that can be sexy funny!

Itaewon Class
Well, it took me a while, but I finally got to this one. I’m enjoying it much more than I expected. Only a few episodes left.

Attorney Woo
Don’t hate me, but I just don’t like this one as other people do. I’m paused at the halfway point and just can’t seem to press play to get to the finish line.

49 Days
After finding a trove of kdramas at a local library (I’ve never seen it available on a legal site), and reading the flashback Friday, I decided to rewatch. How can something I’ve already seen, make me cry the second time!

missvictrix, "Familiar Wife" is definitely worth watching. There are a few little issues here and there, but it's well paced and engrossing. And Ji Sung is great in it. In fact, it may be my favorite role of his.

Please don't date him (rewatch): The dinner scene is iconic. Just thinking about it makes me laugh. These women are hilarious, I love them.

It's Beautiful Now: our leads are back together, yay! And I'm so happy for my favorite couple! so nice they're pregnant. They're going to be lovely parents.
Now I just need Soo Jae cookie and Yu Na back together.

I've been in the midst of a drama dry spell for several weeks now, with only "Alchemy" holding my interest among the currently airing offerings. I started Poong, Today's Webtoon, and If You Wish Upon Me, and although they're perfectly solid dramas with some watchable moments, my heart just hasn't been engaged yet (of the three, I'm only actively watching the last one, although I'm a couple of episodes behind). I think the main issue for me is the episodic mini-arc structure, which seems to be the standard pretty much across the board right now. "Woo" did the "case of the week" thing very well, so I don't want to say this type of storytelling never works for me. But in these other dramas, it's a struggle to become emotionally engaged to the characters when so much of each episode is spent on a secondary story that will begin and end within the space of 1-2 episodes. Even when the acting, directing, and writing are all solid, my mind drifts and my heart remains unmoved.

But then I started "Good Job" and although it's clearly going to follow that same type of general format, I love, love, love the tone and leads together. It's unabashedly gimmicky, silly, and fun, with actors who look like they're enjoying themselves immensely. I'm hopeful this will be the new drama that I can anticipate every week.

@missvictrix I quite liked Familiar wife. You will have to get past the first episode. I really liked Ji Sung and Han Ji Min here. It’s quiet and a bit thoughtful as the drama progresses. They had great chemistry (more subtle not the sexy types).

Extraordinary attorney woo: I did not watch this live, but was convinced by my friend to watch it and I did. And I binged it!! This was a really good one. Park Eun Bin is truly an impressive actress and her Woo Young Woo's character was adorable, endearing... I had the same reaction as other beanies at episode 14-15 especially with So Yeon and Won (like where did that come from ?). But overall, it was a really good story, very warm, very interesting. One of my fave for this year!

Today's webtoon: I am not too sure about this one. I like it but I don't find it interesting. I watch it only just because I really like the FL character. I am kind of fed up of the bits of information we receive without any explanation. It doesn't build up any anticipation. What's the deal with the girl that just appears whenever the second lead is at home? What's the story of the artist and what is it that he sees? I am just confused. Bref.

Remarriage and desires: I binged this yesterday night, but I don't think it was worth it. It was interesting at first, but then it went all kinds of way. The ML did not have any plan for revenge, she just kept making empty threats, the villainess' motives were weird and difficult to follow and it got so makjangy in a bad kind of way. But it was interesting in a bingey kinda way.

We are still enjoying TOAY’S WEBTOON.

While waiting for more episdes of IMMORTAL SAMSARA and LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY my wife also enjoyed the Chinese costume drama THE AUTUMN BALLAD. It is not at quite the same extraordinary level as the other two showss but was quite watcheable. Not every swhow can be as great as LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY has been.

My wife stumbled across the new mystery drama GOOD JOB and is absolutely hooked. She is looking forward to the next episodes. Work kept me from watching with her and now I have to catch up. Did I mention how much she enjoyed CAFE MINAMDANG?

I finally finished the J-drama OH MY BOSS, LOVE NOT INCLUDED which is a ten episode comic re-telling of THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA. Not the greatest J-drama of all time but watcheable.

The birth secret problem on the weekender IT'S BEAUTIFUL NOW was resolved by Mirae’s mom- and for Mirae’s sake. So that marriage took place after all. But we were left with what may be a disturbing cliff-hanger and frankly I hate that. Dear writer- how about focusing more attention on the plight of Yoona and our youngest brother?

We are still enjoying JINXED AT FIRST. Three episodes to go.

I do not enkpy most ‘legal’ shows for the same reasons that most doctors do not enjoy ;medical’ shows. But EXTRAORDINARY ATTORNEY WOO was an extraordinary exception. I know that Dramaddictally was late to the party, but I differ with her in thinking that a second season could make sense assuming that the writer could find enough good cases of the week. I felt that there were plenty of potential story lines that could be continued assuming actor availability. Netflix would definitely pony up the money for it.

It feels like it’s been ages since I came to this thread!

I binged SHOOTING STARS which I mostly enjoyed (particularly liked after the story kind of derailed for a few episodes moving away from the office life stuff, and then went back to having meetings and the agency head comments “it feels like we haven’t had a meeting for ages” 😄)

I’ve been enjoying ALCHEMY OF SOULS (and the husband is still watching!) - the romance isn’t really doing it for me but I’m interested in seeing how it all plays out. I don’t imagine I’ll get to see the new episodes till at least Tuesday though so I will very likely get spoiled 🙃

I’ve been watching (with liberal fast forwarding) cdrama CUTE PROGRAMMER which started immensely trope laden fluff that was kind of entertaining but devolved into a poor man’s Fated To Love You. The best part has been having the Viki comments turned on so I can see everyone else yelling “are you an idiot?!”

Remembrance of Things Past For free on YT you can see this extraordinary Chinese show. Look at it and you will be satisfied, trust me.

The Story of Xing Fu I am continuing the vision of this wonderful story of humble and hardworking people. Compelling.

Dear M. Nice and light

To Fly With You Nice fluffy romcom/sport

Heaven's Garden A rural classic with many good feelings. A 2022 remake would be great.

I hope Good Job sticks to me. Today's Webtoon and JCW's IYWUM are slipping my fingers. Not so caught up in it. Hope to finish it to store some beans. Cdramas are the ones I am caught up with. My Way was melo, but gave some insights into scriptmaking, post production publicity and gallery curating. After Love Like the Galaxy, I binged Our Times (same ML as LLtG) - I like stories with true story links (Lenovo) and some flashback of the times. Any suggestions for kdrama along these lines? I enjoyed all Reply series and Eun Kyung-LSW starrer on the Asian financial crisis. Warning for Our Times --not the ending one expects, hinting perhaps of season 2. Now into Love Between Fairy and the Devil.

I was too busy with work and my kids starting school to watch much in August, but finally caught up with the current shows I've been watching.
Finished EXTRAORDINARY ATTORNEY WOO. I was really drawn to the story in the beginning; WYW’s struggles to prove herself in the professional world despite being “different” really resonated with me. As the series went on there seemed to be more focus on the legal cases, which while they were all interesting, went on a parallel track that sometimes but not always intersected with the personal relationships between WYW and her family, friends, and most importantly, Junho. I enjoyed the beginning episodes as well as the Jeju island episodes the most because we got to see more of the lives of her colleagues behind the suits (with her friends GeuRami and the Hairy Chef thankfully tagging along). The last episodes introducing the brother were interesting but the brother-sister relationship that suddenly materialized seemed kind of forced. I also thought it was kind of shitty the way the Hanbada lawyers turned against the Raon CEO in court without notifying him they had evidence against him that could make him criminally prosecuted and that he should seek other legal representation. Park Eun-bin, Kang Tae-Oh, and Jeon Bae-Soo did an amazing job of giving depth to WYW’s relationships with Junho and her father despite what I felt was their relatively little screentime together compared to the courtroom scenes. All in all I enjoyed the series, though it’s not one I would rewatch, at least anytime soon, and am looking forward to Season 2.

I’m caught up on ALCHEMY OF SOULS and am still really enjoying it. I thought the scene in Episode 18 where Jang Uk and Mu-Deok try to out-think one another after Naksu/Mu-Deok regains her powers was brilliant. While Naksu/Mu-Deok mulls over letting everyone (including Jang Uk) die at the hands of the soul-shifter, since she will need to kill them anyways to free herself from Mu-Deok’s body, Jang Uk (realizing that Naksu is the only one who can defeat the soul shifter), sets himself up as bait and basically forces Naksu come to rescue him. At the same time, he was testing the strength of her love for him. To me, his kiss at the end of the episode was less an emotional, passionate kiss and more the seal of a promise – you stuck with me, so I will stick with you even if Master Lee will kill me because I did not kill you after you used your sword. Haha. These two just understand one another, as they did when faced with the prisoner’s dilemma in Episode 15 where they correctly guessed what the other would say about their relationship. I feel sorry for Seo Yul for his unrequited young love for Naksu, but Jang Uk and Naksu/Mu-Deok just seem made for one another. This story is so unpredictable that I have no idea what will happen in the next two episodes but I’m looking forward to them.

Just came here to tell everyone that I’m watching Good Job and everyone else should be as well!

Also- during a trip to Asia earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to see Decision to Leave. I can see why it was a hit at Cannes. It’s beautifully filmed and acted, and its haunting ending stayed in my head long after I left the theater. It reminded me of those moody Italian and French movies from the 1960’s and 70’s that I vaguely remember watching when I was younger and was similarly puzzling plot-wise. Tang Wei has undeniable screen presence whether she’s dressed in scrubs as a nurse aide or in silks and satins as the wife of a rich businessman. I would definitely recommend watching it in a movie theater if you can.

For me, it was Korean movie night tonight. The 2020 film 'The Woman Who Ran'. Hong Sang-soo is one of those auteur film directors that you're not sure if he's a genius or just incompetent. The static shots with weird zoom-ins, the log stretches of non-exposition dialog, the apparent lack of plot. Its vexing but, still, I find myself hunting down more of his films to watch. I watched this one because I decided its been too long since I've seen Kim Min-hee.

Finished K dramaBoar HuntWhew, what an ending.
K dramasGood Job , easy fun so far , Fiery Priest
C dramas Love Like the Galaxyand mystery Liu Yong Pursues the Case, which I am enjoying, lighter fare than LLTG.
J dramas, many Cinecon e Ikou! , Hirowareta Otoko, Ame ni Kieta Himawari , Kodoku No Gurume, Sleeper Hit, Kateikyoushi no Torako and Kamakura dono no 13 nin

Kamakura continues to surprise and please. Great story , lots of ambitions, cut throat and heart breaking decisions in power struggle.

Youtube Hobo videos, guy riding the rails, learn a lot about trains and rail yards. More train related videos, abandoned subway stations/ train tunnels, old factories & stuff .

SEOUL VIBE:
Didn’t finish, still stuck at the halfway point.
I found it mostly boring and have no motivation to continue.
Such a waste of an EPIC cast
To think I was tempted to watch this over Adamas lol

@missvictrix I enjoyed My Familiar Wife! I was actually thinking about giving it a rewatch recently. I’m a bit fuzzy on the finer details since it has been a few years, but I am remembering it as a pretty fun drama. Definitely will be a nice palate cleanser following Adamas.

Its been a busy week and with my research work entering the final phase and two additional lectures weekly, I have been physically and mentally drained all week to watch all the dramas I wanted to.

Attorney Woo (15-16): Quite a satisfactory ending. I have complains about Min Woo's character arc but then no show is perfect and I am happy with the way all the other parts have been taken care of. Its undoubtedly one of the best drams of the year.

Today's webtoon (7-9): The plot is getting messy and new side stories are getting added up. I thought it as my happy pill but somehow the story is becoming a little bit uninteresting week by week. A lot of plots to explore and I am not sure if the drama will wrap all loose ends in the future episodes.

OLDER
Birth of a beauty (1-21): This has been my background drama for the past two weeks while cooking or cleaning or even at times while preparing lecture notes. The chemistry between the leads were fine but towards the end I got annoyed with the cliches and repeated sequences. I have watched HYS previously only in "will it snow for christmas?" long back and JSW n "kimcheed radish cubes". That particular sequence where the ML hypnotizes himself to see the past version of FL was absolutely horrible and that just the starting of all the ridiculous parts. I wish the series would have been good if they sticked to the normal 16 episodes. Esp after episode 18 it felt too dragged. I finished t off somehow and wont be returning anytime for rewatch.

Cafe Minamdang (Ep15-Finale) - The main villain is really no surprise and I don't see anything special in the story (it's dragging towards the end btw) for it to have 2 extra eps....Anyway one can still enjoy such shows without dissecting the plot and I did enjoy the banter and wackiness between team fake shaman vs team cop :P I do have to say I'm quite impressed with SIG's performance here. I think his comic timing is good and he seems more at ease with this character.

Adamas (Ep7-E10) - The plot thickens with some revelations over the course of the episodes. The reckless actions of both Soo-hyun & Seo-hee which brought abt their unfortunate predicament and Woo-shin not getting the result he wanted by playing mind games with the household loyalist yet kept saying he has it all in his grasp hahaha...I'm surprise with the disclosure of the Adamas though :P...Where's the real deal?

Big Mouth (Ep7-Ep10) - Choi Doha is pretty much the bigger baddie than the rest it seems and is Big Mouse really Jerry? Seems apt for the character name huh? :P Let's see what Chang-ho & co will be up to now. Can he break away from being manipulated by both parties?

Our Blues ep. 14 The ending made me cry. Great writing, real characters. This show deserves all the awards in the world.

I know it had a lot of viewers, but I think it deserved a lot more media attention.

Minamdang: thank goodness it's over
Poong, the Joseon Psychiatrist: it picked up again this week. Prefer the found family story to the Palace intrigue story.
If you wish upon me: was slow to start this one as it sounded a bit miserable, but three episodes in and I'm enjoying it.
Good Job: so far so good. It leans into Batman a bit too much for my liking but hopefully it'll be worth sticking with.
Today's Webtoon: v disappointing episodes this week. It's starting to drag.
Alchemy of Souls: fabulous episodes last week. Looking forward to looking at the final ones tonight. I just hope they're not too heartbreaking.
Live up to Your Name: I saw this had been given a good rating on dramabeans so it's my background show. So far so good.

Finished: Memorials. Loved it. Amazing OTP. I need to see them both in a drama again.

Completed : Love live the galaxy

Still watching : Today's webtoon

Started : Sleeper Hit (Japanese) (On 8th episode and might be done today.

Will start next week : Hopefully a book but I guess it will be Sandman! (I am barely able to stay away from TV and passive entertainment)

reading recaps of familiar wife and one spring night lol