COMPLETED
Secret Romantic Guesthouse - The last scene of Ep. 17 was really good. This was a good use of an ensemble cast but Kang Hoon definitely stood out. I'm glad everything ended well for the characters I cared about.

Stealer - I'm going to come back to this show every time I need a laugh.

ONGOING
Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938 - Baby-protection squad is cute. This is basically a buddy comedy masquerading as fantasy.

My Perfect Stranger - The mystery is intriguing. Right now I still think the brother-sister duo are sus but I guess we'll know more as we go along.

Bo-ra! Deborah - Episode 12 might be my favourite of the show so far. Our leads had some really lovely conversations.

The Good Bad Mother - The culling of the pigs felt so brutal without even being shown 🙈. While I don't agree with a lot of Young-soon's choices, it's hard not to feel for the life she's had. Anyway I'm all ready to embrace the flowery vest and lettuce leaf life 😂.

STARTED
I tried out Oh! Youngshim but found it low-effort and pretty much unwatchable. Dropped.

C-DRAMAS
Was all excited about starting Story of Kunning Palace yesterday and then it got postponed due to "technical issues" 😔.

DR. CHA (Ep. 9-10): Cha’s mother gives her an important lesson on the difference between a husband and a father and why a woman in her generation stays to have her children have a father. Cha is in a transitional generation: brought up in conservative society but living in changing times. Seo knows he is a jerk but does nothing about it. Choi knows he is a coward but she continues to let him back in. The volunteer weekend again showcased the lack of common sense for doctors to drink themselves under the table to be useless in case of an emergency. Cha’s compassion for her work is leading to confidence but her family issues continue to drag her down. The cake scene was merely a band-aid covering up a serious tumor. The props get some props too: the upside down heart for Jeon and Jung-Min first real fight. In the park, Cha sitting on an angel’s chair while Seo is on a black bat wing devil’s chair. I really do not like Dr. Kim pressing her to make decision that is her’s alone to make; she has clearly friend-zoned him but he will not accept it. Eun-seo has convinced her mother to move on, but she cannot when she confronts I-Rang. She deserved what she got, but Cha does not know the context: she feels her daughter has now become a dreaded bully that could ruin her life. Jeon is my favorite character because she knows who she is: competent, independent, self-reliant. But learning a little compassion could make her a complete person. There is a lot going on because this show is really a compressed weekender.

BLACK KNIGHT (Ep. 2- 6) POSSIBLE SPOILERS (since this was a bundle drop) Our Mad Max UPS Delivery Man second episode falls into the category of “tell but not show direction.” We get a snippet of information but not the complete answer. It can be a frustrating way to hide major plot points instead of allowing us to deal with the fallout alongside the main characters. We only get random puzzle pieces: kidnappings, human experiments, possible deadly disease caused by oxygenation, and genetic mutants from radioactive mines that hold a key to the elite class survival. There are a lot of superhero genres being sewed together but this looks more like a classic Clint Eastwood spaghetti western than a complex sci-fi drama. Ep 3 finally gives us 5-8’s background as a refugee fighter who finds his plan to become embedded in the forces that are trying to destroy the refugees. He uses his inside role to help supply the Fringe people and arm a resistance movement against the Core elite. We also learn that he is a mutant; with great strength and regeneration processes. Sa-Wol’s refugee journey must mirror 5-8 in a Luke Skywalker way. Ep 4 gives 5-8 access to the CEO’s evil plan but it is not enough to stop a refugee slaughter. The fight gives the CEO something he did not expect: Sa-Wol has the mutant regeneration needed for his vaccine. The rebel deliverymen put their final plan to stop CEO; but was the pollution trucks the real trick or the refugee...

The Real Has Come
It's now clearer why Grandma insists on having Sejin as her secretary... and it is a reason I totally didn't think about, but which makes complete sense. I somehow wish Sejin tries to use it to her advantage and fool Grandma who in the meantime overcomes this shortcoming without Sejin's knowledge (with the help of Yeondoo's Mom, of course 🙂) and this opens Grandma's eyes and she finally sees what a snake Sejin is.

Kim Sabu (only E05)
EJ's Father couldn't be more wrong - our Kim Sabu is not trying to make new minions, but to make new doctors, with the idealistic original meaning, of course 🙂, with the focus on saving the patients (and fighting the hirearchy and social climbing). But... I have never seen Father as a villain. (I think the show may be setting as the antagonist the grieving Assemblywoman).

Bora Deborah
Finally an odd episode I didn't want to drop. 😁 Scenes of Bora and Soohyuk together are still the highlight for me.

Dr. Cha
Seunghee is tragic, but I'm glad she is finally getting out of her unrealistic dream, calls Inho a coward and starts planning her independent future. I hope she will stick to it.
Inho is still selfish and making Jungsook's life difficult... so seeing him facing the cake was sooo satisfactory 😁 (especially when it wasn't a fake scene, but a reality!).
Jungsook finally glimpses the whole truth and it is crushing. I expected Dr. Swoony to run to her in all the kdrama fashion, but the show did so much better and that drive with Sora was everything! ❤️

BEEF
Yeah I’m gonna keep talking about this show. After watching this literally everything else seems like trash to me. Nothing has come close to how much I enjoyed it this year.

INTEREST OF LOVE perhaps, but even with that I’ve had issues with its ending. The drama touched upon class disparity but we get Su-yeong living her best life after she quit her horrible job at the bank. It seemed a little too neat and unrealistic for an otherwise pragmatic and somewhat bleak show. I guess I’m sensing a theme here, I want more messy and flawed protagonists and a realistic depiction of life.

BAD MOTHER (Ep 7-8)
I refuse to put GOOD in the title because Young-soon has never been ‘good’. I honestly don’t know why they casted Choi Moo-sung in this, he barely gets any screen time and while he tries his best to be a compelling villain, the show doesn’t know how to use him or are they too scared?

I’m actually really interested in Chairman Song’s and Kang-ho’s relationship. Both had no illusions who each other were. And yet despite this there seems to some complex feelings and affection at play. Alas I don’t think the show is good enough to be this nuanced. I should just rewatch Heartless City honestly.

That said, a big gripe I’ve had with this year’s crop of dramas, is that there seems to be no complex, compelling or even campy villains. I love a good villain, it makes a story far more engaging and interesting. 2023 I’m begging you to give me a good fucking villain for once!

FAMILY (Ep 1-3)
I’m honestly astounded that a play featuring children from grade one, has a budget for all those props and lighting? Damn how much does Do-hoon make for being a spy? Literally just watching this for Jang Hyuk (and his crazy laugh) and Jang Na-ra.

A question about Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938. All those promos, gifs and screenshots make the cast look hella sexy. And for the first time in a while and as her fan I’m finally interested in a drama starring my queen Kim So-yeon. So do I have to watch its predecessor to understand this season?

Bora!/True to Love: Fake dating is always such a fun trope and I love that this show gave us back-to-back instances of it this week! It’s been so fun to watch these two dance around each other.

The Good Bad Mother: There are things I love and things I don’t love and I’m figuring out how to exist with both of those things at the same time. Love: Mi-joo, Ye-jin’s crush on Kang-ho, Kang-ho’s gaining slightly in maturity, the farming thugs. Don’t love: Young-soon’s repeated abuse, the crappy singer, Sam-shik. We’ll see what happens.

Taxi Driver: Spoilers! Well, I ripped through this and it was pretty fantastic. I think I would have been uncomfortable if they had gone the whole series without some kind of reckoning about their questionable choice to lock up the bad people in a “private prison”, so I was happy to see that growth. I also think it would have been nice for Go-eun to be the one to shoot that sexual predator in the crotch with a nail gun, but it was satisfying nonetheless. Other than that, this was really awesome, and I loved seeing Lee Je-hoon be all the ridiculous characters - that gangster in the furs was iconic.

Fruits Basket (2019) Season 3🍙🐈(5/13): As we near the ending, the pace is picking up. Suddenly bonds are breaking when you least expect it, and it is always a zodiac member you did not pay enough attention to. There has not yet been an official reveal about the counter curse, but there is a pattern among the freed zodiac members that gives it away. This counter curse is very hard to pull off, but there could not exist a better way to break the curse, which makes it all very beautiful and bittersweet.

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse🛖👑👑👑❓(18/18): Yup, Kang Hoon is winning 2023 Crush and Scene Stealer in the 2023Roundup!🤭 Oh, and the show itself was great too, of course!😅 I anticipated fluff, became worried when the promotion got dark, pressed play anyway, felt proud about figuring it all out, screamed when the show put me back in my place again and again…🤣I am already missing our beloved inn and its original inhabitants. Third Bean earned!

Joseon Attorney 15/16 gotta see this one through to the end, to see how it lands, despite the wheels falling off with last weeks episodes. Episode 15 was one of the better ones though!

Falling Into Your Smile 2/31 (C-drama) my celebrity crush of the week is Xu Kai & saw a few beanies mention this show so….

Love Between Fairy and Devil 2/36) my first and favourite C-drama! Was due for a rewatch.

XO Kitty 1/10 Rationing this one with a friend so it’ll be an especially slow watch. I grew up on Jenny Han books and the To All The Boys trilogy were/are my guilty pleasure Netflix watch, so I’m excited 😍

Race (1/12) I was initially planning to wait to binge this once it finished airing but the mention of a possible office romance in the DB recaps convinced me to cave.

Crazy Little Thing Called Love (Thai Movie) yet another ‘introduced and convinced by Youtube edit’ moment hahaha! I’m half way through and it’s so sweet. A good pick it seems for my first Thai language watch. My watch plate is becoming more and more diverse, which is a blessing and a curse because YAY more content and also OH NO more content and only 24 hours in a day 😂

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse (Series review) - Mood progression: D+ / D+ / D+ / D+ / C- / D+ / D+ / D / D+
Si Yeol getting a happy ending, woohoo! Ok, the show has managed to wring one point out of me. I’m glad to have watched Kang Hoon’s performance through this show, and he’s certainly moved up a tier or tiers on my favourite actors list.

Black Knight (Series review) - Mood: D+
The only plus the show had was the chemistry between Kim Woo Bin and Kang You Seok and nothing else.

Stealer: The Treasure Keeper (Series review) - Mood progression: D+ / D+ / D / D+ / D / D-
This shouldn’t have been 12 episodes: a movie would’ve been much better. But the show was a skit that was devoid of logic and coasted on the cast ability’s to pretend like they were filming a blockbuster so I wouldn’t recommend that movie either.

Oh! Young-shim (Episode 1-2) - Mood: D
Watching this show is a test of my recently blossomed love for Lee Min Jae: he has to overcome obstacles such as being an original character that wasn’t in the source material, having to embody the cliche 2ML character archetype who’s in unrequited love with the FL and having to babysit certain particular actors. The plot is as expected: I have no comments.

The Good Bad Mother (Episode 7-8) - Mood: C
Since we’re already more than halfway through the show, I’m inclined to believe that Kang Ho regained his memories and is just playing along. I still don’t understand why Sam Sik is apparently billed as a lead here: he could be taken out of the plot and it wouldn’t have changed much? Anyway, it looks like things are only going to ramp up here as the cancer marches on?

Doctor Cha (Episode 9-10) - Mood: D+
Yeah, when even Roy Kim is unable to make me like this week’s episodes, something has gone awfully wrong. As a result of Dr Cha’s children not confessing, she ends up sacrificing herself for them when honestly she didn’t need to. The cliffhanger this week is identical to last week and the writer’s now baiting us into thinking she’ll divorce for real now, but will she really?

Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938 (Episode 3-4) - Mood: D+
If Lee Yeon wanted to find someone who could accompany Lee Rang when he has to eventually return to his own time, isn’t the baby a much better candidate than some random girl who’s written into the plot solely for the romance? I wish it wasn’t as obvious as the Japanese general being the final villain but Moo Young’s arc is similar to Lee Rang’s from the 1st season?

All That We Loved (Episode 3-4) - Mood: D
We’re already halfway through the show and I still don’t know why both boys are so enamoured with the girl nor am I rather interested in finding out. The duo surviving the surgery isn’t a guarantee that both survived to 2023 but it seems otherwise.

My Perfect Stranger (Episode 5-6) - Mood: C-
Bora! Deborah (Episode 11-12) - Mood: D-

Stealer: The Treasure Keeper -- This was delightful!! Quirky caper comedy with truly likable characters. Wish it were longer, but the format worked well. With fewer episodes, it never had to get too deep or dark to flesh things out, and it was at its best when it stayed light.

Secret Romantic Guesthouse -- Finished. It was fine. I think I would have liked it more if I had watched it when I was new to dramas. I was annoyed by a lot of things in episodes 11-17, but episode 18 was pretty satisfying. Kang Hoon was great throughout, and at the end, the best man for the job earned the throne! Yay!

Joseon Attorney -- I'll finish the last two episodes next week. I've thought it was really good, and Woo Do Hwan is PHENOMENAL. But so much heartache. How much pain can one man (and one viewer) take, writers?? Surely he's earned a happy ending???

My Perfect Stranger -- This is getting really good. I'm fascinated by the dynamic between the ML/FL and the ramifications of the evolving events (butterfly effect?). Now I'm wondering if there are actual spies involved in the incidents somewhere, or at least if there's more to do with political protesters and corrupt officers?

Slowly watching Call it Love to savor it longer, along with Sh**ting Stars as a palate cleanser after Joseon Attorney.

C-dramas -- Finished The Starry Love, which I really enjoyed and would recommend (also loved the OST!). Recently finished My Uncanny Destiny, which was short (24/30min eps), funny, and had a fairly tight and quick-moving plot thanks to a smart and capable FL. This is another I'd recommend. Started Back From the Brink, which seems fun so far. Looking forward to trying The Ingenious One when it releases on Viki.

Oh Young ShiM: She is incredibly annoying and not in a cute way. Her dislike and treatment of him is very weird after almost 20 years. It is like she stopped aging at 13, it is very weird. Him, I understand more.

My Perfect Stranger: I am really liking this drama. I like that are leads are understanding that they are in it together. So they need to work together, she brings an outsiders perspective, he brings insider knowledge.

Bora!Deborah: I loved these last two episodes. Out OTP is flirting and getting to know each other. I like the slow seduction happening. This is fun, why couldn't it be this fun from the beggining.

The Good Bad Mother: A beanie, I think Misoo, said the Korean title is just A bad Mother and for some reason the English title is different, that makes far more sense to me. She sucks. I am hoping if they are going to bring his memory back, they bring it back quickly, though, so they can all fight together.

Stealer: It ended on a fun note and I really enjoyed the ride.

Joseon Attorney: We made it to the end. I won't say it has been a fun ride, but it has been a Woo Do Hwan ride and sometimes that is enough.

Kim Sabu: What lessons will we learn this week? Something fun I hope.!!!

Race: Really enjoy the plot of the drama, so I will stick with it despite the acting. Also rooting for Moon So Ri to appear more.

STEALER had a good finale and a very good message at the end: how people fool themselves by attributing special powers such as eternal life to an artefact. Evil boss Young-soo was the biggest fool of all and is now in the eternal afterlife. Loved the humour in the drama and did not miss a romance, I preferred watching Skunk and Ae-ri bickering over who has to drive.

GOOD BAD MOTHER is getting more and more shocking. The abuse, murder suicide and suicide attempt are just terrible to watch. It is really worrying that the mother's actions are shown as understandable and deliver a positive result. I do not agree with that, so why am I still watching? Because Lee Do-Hyun and Ra mi-ran are soo good. The kids are amazing, too. The culling of the pigs because of FMD was an interesting and very realistic storyline, but the villagers are getting more and more annoying. Mask lady, please, go see a psychologist.

The office politics in RACE are well done. I am still not keen on the FL, but the drama is worth watching.

OH! Young-shim is too noisy for me, I gave up during the first episode.

The romance in BORA is now on track and I think there will be a happy ending. Will the married couple sort out their marriage hell? I hope so, but am not optimistic.

Dr Cha is my favourite drama just now, writing and comedy are great. Kim Byung-Chul and his wonderful range of expressions are a real treat. The cake scene is one of the best scenes I have seen in a drama in a long time!

JOSEON ATTORNEY has taken an unexpected turn. I was not impressed with the execution of the sister and the king's behaviour - I really think he should be deposed now!

I am rewatching SECRET ROYAL INSPECTOR AND JOYI,
Probably dropped THE GOOD DETECTIVE because I don't seem to have any inclination to click play,
Thinking about starting THE DARK HOLE but feel scared.

Tale of The Nine Tailed - I did not expect to love this one to the extent that I'm enjoying it. It's just so on point.

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse - I have gotten another reason to look forward to Kang Hoon's next project.
Everything ended just where I wanted - Yoo-ha becoming King, Shi-yeol surviving, Shi-yeol and Hong-joo remaining an item, Kang San passing the throne over to Yoo-ha, San and Dan-oh going off into merry land.

My Perfect Stranger - I'm surprised they acted the way they did. For someone who's trying to find out the killer I'm surprised they didn't allow history run it's course until the very last minute of which they interrupt the process. But then, that means the story ends so...

Dr. Cha - I really feel for Jung-seok's conflict from within with regards to how she moves forward. I hope she puts herself first and foremost in whatever decision she makes.

Oh Youngshim - Positively, I hope it gets better.

I'm on a trip to completing unfinished projects so I picked up Pandora from ep 13. All I have is one question. What the hell is that ending? Did they kill Kyo-jin to save him and then save him from the explosion to kill him off again? Did they forget that Jae-hyun shot himself straight to the head? While I enjoyed the ride...and comeuppances, especially the ones directed at Jae-hyun and Bong Tae-kyu's character, that ending ruined everything.
Next on my unfisnhed projects is At A Distance, Spring is Green episodes 11&12. The many references here to it and the feel good feeling I had while watching it then just drew me right back in for real this time.

On-going:

1. JOSEON LAWYER: I sort of dropped this one after episode 12, meaning I fast-forwarded ep 13 - 15, so I didn't have to sit through Woo Do Hwan's character's sister's death. Even WDH could not save this show.

2. DR. ROMANTIC 3: Finished ep 7 yesterday, waiting for ep 8. I found the plot too dramatic, which I didn't sign up for. It is excessive, to the point that it made me lose interest. And what happened to Lim Won Hee's character? Can he please talk like a normal person for once?

Tale of The Nine Tailed - I did not expect to love this one to the extent that I'm enjoying it. It's just so on point.

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse - I have gotten another reason to look forward to Kang Hoon's next project.
Everything ended just where I wanted - Yoo-ha becoming King, Shi-yeol surviving, Shi-yeol and Hong-joo remaining an item, Kang San passing the throne over to Yoo-ha, San and Dan-oh going off into merry land.

My Perfect Stranger - I'm surprised they acted the way they did. For someone who's trying to find out the killer I'm surprised they didn't allow history run it's course until the very last minute of which they interrupt the process. But then, that means the story ends so...

Dr. Cha - I really feel for Jung-seok's conflict from within with regards to how she moves forward. I hope she puts herself first and foremost in whatever decision she makes.

Oh Youngshim - Positively, I hope it gets better.

I'm on a trip to completing unfinished projects so I picked up Pandora from ep 13. All I have is one question. What the hell is that ending? Did they kill Kyo-jin to save him and then save him from the explosion to kill him off again? Did they forget that Jae-hyun shot himself straight to the head? While I enjoyed the ride...and comeuppances, especially the ones directed at Jae-hyun and Bong Tae-kyu's character, that ending ruined everything.

And then there is The Secret Royal Inspector and Jo-yi (Ep 10-11). I stopped this at ep 9 when it was airing officially. I don't really have much to say about this one except that I'm enjoying watching Taec-yeon and Kim Hye-yoon again. And the secondary protagonist characters are quite solid. And I'm itching to see how they marry the story from Jo-yi's mom's side to the palace politics. And of course Bae Jong-Ok's character arc. Such a fierce woman to be reckoned with a lot of great tact and cutthroat business acumen.

Next to be added on my unfisnhed projects is At A Distance, Spring is Green episodes 11&12. The many references here to it and the feel good feeling I had while watching it then just drew me right back in for real this time.

The Good Bad Mother is the only show that I actually look forward to each week. It does often feel like there's the main story and then there's these tangentially connected side stories that join in (such as the evil lawyer turned presidential hopeful and the corporation CEO). I know they are big factors in the show but whenever they're back onscreen, there's a complete tonal shift (to me) which makes it seem like 3 or 4 stories exist in this show. I don't necessarily mind it but it's something I notice.

I tried to start Princess Hours because it was on the Netflix Kdrama classics list and I'm having a hard time getting into it. I don't know if I've even got 30 minutes in. I think it would be the oldest thing I watched so far but I can't even get into it. Maybe I'll try again later.

Oh! Young-shim After the 2 first episodes, it's hard to judge. They just set up the characters.

My Perfect Stranger I really like this one. The mystery is interesting, the main characters are smart and nice, the FL with her parents is hilarious.

The Secret Romantic Guesthouse It was a good drama. I was far more invested by the Watchman's story than the leads but the every character had a nice arc even if the FL could have been given a stronger part in the storty.

Bora! Deborah The main 2 characters are the best. The other stories are making marriage looking very bad 😅

Joseon Attorney I didn't watch the last episode yet... not very interested by the story anymore.

Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim 3 The stories repeat themselves too much with the other seasons.

Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938 I don't care about the story at all but it's very pretty and fun.

Race The FL was too naive for her own good.

Finland Papa I liked the idea of the plot but not its execution.

XO Kitty It was fun to see a mix of US show and a KDrama. I was very happy to see familiar faces in the Korean actors like Chaerin of Cherry Bullet as Lulu, Han Chae-Young as Min-Ho's mother, Lee Sung-Wook as Dae's father, etc. The actor who played Min-Ho looked like mix of Park Seo-Joon and Lee Jun-Ho. It's funny that his sister was playing Yuri.

Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938: 8.0 I didn't like day 3, but 4 was much better. Speaking of which... a magic ruler that can revive the dead, which disappeared during the Japanese occupation? Any guesses on who Yeon will want to use it on after he brings it forward to modern times?

Joseon Attorney: A Morality: 6.0 Between lead's sister here and Secret Romantic dude's mon, life expectancy of female relatives in sageuks is not looking great lately.

Doctor Romantic 3: 7.0 Day 7 - watching a med show with graphic/messy surgeries and doctors freezing/choking just a few days after I had a surgery.... Well, might have been worse if I had watched it the day before.
- One of the comic-relief doctors (a very important specialty much neglected in med schools) has terrible digestive issues after eating just one burger at his favorite place -- is it still his favorite place now?

Secret Romantic Guesthouse: 6.5

My Perfect Stranger: 8.5 Not "Stranger" and not "perfect", but strange and pretty good.

Oh! Young-Sim: __ I had other things going on and wandered away before I had time to form any real impression.

Bora! Deborah / True to Love: 7.0

Stealer: The Treasure Keeper: 5.5 Chief baddie was an unwatchable caricature.

My perfect stranger (ep.6). I’m glad that our leads have finally learned they need to work together, specially now that past (and thus present) is changed.

Bora! Deborah (ep. 12). I can’t remember when was the last time I spent to much time in a drama with our leads just talking about the little and big things in life, it was really enjoyable, and I hope drama doesn’t decide to go yo anguish and stupid separation in the last week.

Good bad mother (ep.7). Dropped. When that woman threw his son into the river, I just said it was enough. I was holding on to the drama because LDH is just adorable as a 7 yo KangHo, but I refuse to watch a drama in which the cruel parenting technics of a bad mother are validated by the drama. I hate the idea that she will get a redemption arc.

Tale of the nine tailed: 1938 (ep.4). I’m on love with our foxes, and now that HongJoo knows there are two Yeongs around, I wonder what her next step will be. I’m really liking her.

Doctor Romantic 3. (Ep. 4). On hold.

Doctor Cha (ep.10). I’m a bit amazed I’m liking this drama so much, but I guess that it’s the fact that I can only love a drama that is about a 50yo woman trying to find her place in life, living like a woman and not like a mum, a wife or a maid. I love how Dr. Cha tries to solve things on her own and that she has understood that he way to her happiness can only be found on herself. I can live with all the makjangish as long as she keeps growing so much.

Race (ep.4). So far I really like it. Love the transitions, the funny comments out of nowhere. I also wonder how YoonJo and JaeMin friend can survive when the only customers in her bar are his friends, something that usually happens to every bar/restaurant owner who happens to be best friend with a lead in dramaland.

Continue to watch Beat Coin and Fantasy Boys out of love to Wooyoung.

DR. CHA - That scene when she smashed In-ho’s face in the cake was one of the most satisfying scenes I’ve ever seen in a drama. I showed it to my mom after explaining the back story and she said, “Well, he wanted his cake and eat it too with his wife and mistress, so he got it.” 😂
MY PERFECT STRANGER - Glad our leads are finally working together. It’ll be interesting to see how their actions affect future events.
CONFESSION (movie) - Y’all know if it’s a So Ji Sub project, it’s a must for me. It’s a good Did He or Didn’t He movie with a twist. And of course, there’s So Ji Sub.

Joseon Attorney : The main reason I keep watching is because of the acting and especially shout out for WDH. Guy knows how to make you cry alongside with him. His sadness of losing his sister after years of longing or proper hello and goodbye when they met again just so heart breaking. It’s so rare I could shed a tear when someone is acting crying especially male actors, but his portrayal is so raw as if he experienced it in real life and bring the memories back ond the screen. I also could see a lot of authenticity in his acting. The directing also kinda saving the show from the storytelling that I’m not impressed of.

Dr. Cha : It kinda irks me that people keep commenting how the show shouldn’t make a joke out of her husband’s affair. I mean the genre of the show is clear from the beginning is comedy. And dark comedy is one of kind of comedy. Called dark because it supposed to made fun of something that is bitter and inappropriate. Why bother to watch and complaining about the shows if you couldn’t even bother to read and understand it’s packaging.

I also disagree with people who says CJS should have divorce her husband once she found out about the cheating and view her as weak and stupid for staying in the marriage for her children, that her happiness is a better option than to sacrifice. I believe the vow couple take “till death do us apart” don’t entail sentence like “as long as it meet my conditions”. Especially with children involved, chosing to stay and put her children first isn’t weakness, that is the heroism of motherhood that unfortunately nowadays society deemed as idiotic instead of noble. I’m not saying she should stay silent and keep everything inside, it’ll become poisonous. But she can talk about it, confront her husband and have discussions how to sort things out and how they can move forward from the disaster her husband caused. But divorce isn’t the only wise option and I think most of the time it is never the wise option especially when your children are involved. Don’t take your marriage easily folks, but even with problem within, don’t stay for the sake of it and become bitter. You can fix and forgive things even though it’s effing difficult, but maybe it is actually the best bet.

The Good Bad Mother (6) : LDH is never chose and easy character, huh? I think this is one of few from his projects that I quite like, at least so far. It’s pretty interesting to see that the story is portraying his accident as punishment but also gift of chance for redemption to him and his mother. And debate me, but the best part of this show are those twins with their mischievousness and accent. Where I can find them? In special shop? I really like to have a pair at home.

It's been as dry as the Arizona desert in terms of drama watching. There's been very few new ones that have caught my interest, so I started Marry Me Now for the premise of a shoemaker and the promise of a good family drama. The shoemaker isn't great, and the promise of a good family drama broken. On the one hand, there's thankfully no real evil characters or makjang, but it's a frustrating one in terms of poorly addressing mundane life issues in an interesting enough way to spend my free time on it.

I'd almost rather watch a documentary about real people going through similar situations because at least then, real-life underdogs are featured in their shining moments after overcoming obstacles. In this drama, the writing of the circumstances and events are just not that compelling despite the interesting themes and narrative. I was really rooting for this drama to be good so that the important sociocultural issues the drama tries to address can be portrayed in an interesting light, but I just couldn't find the light at the end of this particularly long, albeit non-dangerous tunnel. It's been slow-going, and I'd have dropped it long ago if I weren't a compulsive drama-finisher.

So glad Stealer is finally finished airing! I'm eagerly awaiting the passing of pressing IRL events to finally start this one. Judging by other Beanies' mixed reactions, I'm already intrigued by the unfolding of the interesting narrative premise.

Dr romantic 1
I spent the first few episodes thinking he is neither cool nor romantic. He seems to be just a jerk, I didn’t like the unnecessary demeaning of the juniors. The second half, I started warming up to him and now I loooove him 😂
Dr romantic 2
Half way through this now. Still love Han Suk Kyu but it now has my favorite Ahn Hyo Seop in it. I cry when he cries. Also liking the FL though she was effing annoying the first few episodes. My favorites though are nurse Eun Tak and Yoon Ah Reum.
Dr Cha
I am starting to agree with everyone who says that dr cha shouldn’t get together with dr dreamy. She should ensure that In Ho understands fully all that he has done wrong and repents, Seung Hui does the same, and divorce In Ho.
The bad mother
Agree with the beanie who said there is nothing good about her. Need to FF through some scenes that give me hypertension, but I live for the Kang Ho, Mi Joo, twins family. Like the thugs, can stand the mask lady, and strangely, I don’t mind Sam shik.

Search: WWW: Why yes, I would like to see more shows focused on smart, morally messy middle-aged women who kick ass and take names. But, for the love of all that's holy, would a production company please greenlight the epic lesbian romance that Kwon Do Eun clearly wants to write? Because there's something deeply uncomfortable about watching queer shows tricked out in heteronormative drag, and it makes it hard to care or root for any of the "couples".

Finished Alchemy of Souls 1 & 2 and couldn't move on for a couple of days. I've read comments by people on both sides of the camp - those who prefer season 1 and its actress, and those who prefer season 2 and its actress. I'm in camp 3 - I absolutely loved both seasons and both actresses. If I can accept a reincarnation story where it's the same soul in a different body (and therefore a different person), then I can certainly accept AoS's setup for season 2. Anyways, this is another show that makes me wish that Kdramas had a fanfic world like a lot of anime and manga does. At least I was able to find a few really good FMVs.

In the last stretch of Love Like the Galaxy. Still going slow with this one cause I know there's a separation coming and I'm in avoidance mode lol.

Also in the last stretch of Love is Sweet. Really like this one. The leads' chemistry has tempted me to watch TTEOTM if only for them, but I know how it ends so no thank you.

5 eps to go to finish Your Sensibility, My Destiny. Cute drama, lots of skinship (except kissing). Was really surprised when they actually got married with several eps to go.

Started Back From the Brink. Read the translated novel months ago and loved it. The drama is a bit different but fun, and Neo Hou is both adorable and smoking hot as Tian Yao.

Finished K drama Secret Royal Loveshack . Happy ending
A light happy romance /saeguk without a bunch of ministers pontificating.

Watching K drama Good Bad Mom Give me the story of Mi-joo ,Kang-ho and the twins . The main leads are doing a wonderful job. The acting is fine, as usual, the story is unbalanced ? Confused ? What could be a light and cute tale about a pig farm & Pesticide/nail shop is juxtaposed with suicide attempts, abuse, murder, thugs, political plots and schemes. 🤔

J dramas. Waiting for subs, will try to finish some that were on hold for subs.

C dramas.Lately I get about 1/2 through a drama then stop and pick up another one. Still watching Ingenious One and Under the Skin (Viki) . Viki says that Ingenious One is coming soon, so I slowed down on that until they pick it up.
Under the Skin is ok. Artist hired to help solve cases. Has to be a trauma /drama, so lead detective blames artist for death of his previous partner.

YouTube

Ghost ships, ship disasters, ship salvage videos. The salvage videos are interesting . Massive, custom built tools and rigs to solve issues, either freeing grounded vessels or raising/ salvaging sunken vessels.

So many ship wrecks ! Fires ! Captains sailing into bad weather! Getting into a “lifeboat” was a treacherous undertaking and often a deadly one.

Watched ship watching videos, ships arriving /departing .

Also watched Japanese home renovation videos as well as videos about Japan’s train systems .

GOOD BAD MOTHER: There were a lot of gut punches this week, from suicide/murder attempts to the devastating loss of the pigs, but the worst was the montage of Young-soo abusing her son by nearly drowning him in her effects to get him to walk. The main thing that the show deserves credit for is that every action she makes is carefully set up and explained, and so it's not entirely fair to say the writers are condoning or celebrating her methods--they're just showing that this is what this character will do time and again when life puts her through the ringer. If I look at it that way, I can continue watching, because there are so many other parts of the show that I love (Mi-joo, the twins, the mystery behind Kang-ho's plan, Kang-ho's slow return to a kind of emotional maturity and understanding that might only bring more pain, and the humor). Best moment: Kang-ho's daughter's starry-eyed infatuation with him. So adorable!

BO-RA: This week had my favorite episodes, with Bo-ra and Soo-hyuk having the kind of romcom relationship I love to see. They flirt, they tease, they laugh, but they also have numerous conversations that challenge and intrigue them both. It really is as if we've been given the chance throughout the show to watch two people fall in love, which is exactly what should happen in a romantic drama. Of course, this has been hard-earned because of all the other things (drunken humiliation, for one) that we had to watch to get there, but right now it feels worth it. The side stories aren't working, though, and almost make me wish for a serial killer to pop up instead.

OH! YOUNG-SIM: Wish these two had parted as teens and not children, because then their antagonism and lingering feelings would make a lot more sense. The show is also very silly and simple, but I liked it well enough to continue watching at least two more episodes. Lee Jae-min is really stealing the show. I don't typically make "This kid's gonna be a star!" predictions, but if I did, I'd say it about him.

FINLAND PAPA: The ending wasn't quite as cathartic as I'd imagined, maybe because the whole show was buildup so a quick reunion at the end was never going to be enough. But this was a sweet, beautifully filmed show that should have aired in January rather than May.

Finished Romantic Guesthouse
Well the finale went the way we didn’t even dare to hope for, with a happy ending for everyone, and I’m glad about that. However, the way there wasn’t very convincing to me. How was the military alerted and on their side all of a sudden etc.?
Joseon Attorney
I cried so much with Woo Do Hwan over his sister last week… Will his tragic fate and all that loss turn around into a happy ending?
Bo Ra! Deborah
Still mostly watching for the youth’s romance and shenanigans. But I also like how our OTP are talking and spending time together, but holding back on their impulses. And I’m not sure what our married couples’ storyline is supposed to tell us: marriage is crap, but you just have to look at it through rosy lenses?
Doctor Cha
Continue to enjoy this, but please don’t get back with your husband just because the whole hospital knows about the relationship now!
Dr Romantic S3
Last week gave us great medical cases and drama. I like that we moved on from evil hospital politics in the first two seasons to a conflict between romantic = idealistic doctor vs. realistic, impersonal doctor. Also loved the BL fake out !!!
The Good Bad Mother
So we are using the bad mother method again to make Kang Oh learn to walk? I hate it, and it’s also so unrealistic. You can’t get over nerve damage just by motivation.
The pointer for the twin’s dad get even more obvious, but the other candidates were fun, too. And of course the lettuce gangsters!
My Perfect Stranger
This is getting really thrilling and we’re getting more suspects.
Race The work environment is as harsh as expected of marketing/PR, I wonder what our heroine will make of it. Highlight this week: the shots of the taxi drive. 3 people (not coincidentally the ones in a love triangle) in different cars, in the dark, with angled shots, through the window, reflected in a side mirror… beautiful!
Oh! YoungSim
This maybe a great old school drama to some, but it’s not my cup of tea. I had to do the math several times – Oh Young Shim is supposed to be over thirty and still behaves like an obnoxious preteen, even at work? Not funny to me… Question is, will I watch it just for cute Lee Jae Min?
Finished Stranger
A really great drama, but you all know that. This script was certainly finished and revised before shooting started, no plot holes, last minute editing or uncertainties here, as shown in the scenes in the final episode where the start and ending of each storyline come together. We see each protagonist’s motivation, change and future. Also, impeccable acting and directing.
Netflix started S2 right away, but I think I need a break after finishing S1 rather quickly.
Love Revolution
I did get to the BL fake-out with bully Jaewon from Eighth Sense, thanks for the heads-up, it was great fun! I still have several episodes to watch, they make me smile on my lunch break!
KDrama friend...

It already feels like summer, so probably a bit less dramas and more outdoor walks starting from next week. None of the summer shows I'm anticipating is here yet anyway...

TALE OF THE NINE-TAILED 1938: Keeps being as fun and non-serious as a drama can be, and it's great. Let's see how they handle upcoming reveals and escalation of conflicts - I have no tears left in me until now (maybe just a bit reserved for a drama below, but hope I won't need them too soon there), so show's better to keep the angst level low for now. Gimme more campy action instead!

ASHES OF LOVE: 3rd installment in my ongoing LYX craze marathon. Actually I was planning to watch another show of his - the one where he's ML, gets the girl and has an elaborate 100% happy ending - for healing purposes, but then a smirking devil on my left shoulder was like "Nothing can really hurt you after TTEOTM, so why restraining yourself?", and here I am, watching his famous star-making drama. Frankly I can already tell I'm not gonna LOVE this - it's relatively low-budget which is never a good thing for xianxia, epicness is certainly lacking both in plot and execution, there's a whole bingo of my most hated tropes presented (love triangle involving brothers, FL with brains of a toddler AND harem of loyal admirers nonetheless, protagonist-centered morality, crappy parents etc), leads are not exactly likeable so far (heard it stays this way for many viewers), plus my boy is a classical punching bag SML gone dark here, so expecting a lot of stress. And 60 episodes, holy cow! The things we do for love... Still, I've been spoiled the most important thing - he lives in the end (yay! bar is REALLY low in this case lol) - and that was enough for me, anything else doesn't matter. When there's a life, there's a hope too, right? At least he's been given a grand entrance with a cool fight scene - ah, the balm on my soul, this alone can make up for many things! And got the cute magical CGI goat! Is this an easter egg btw? I recall another celestial dude with such pet in a fantasy drama, which makes some spoilery parallels... Maybe this is a trope itself - guess I need to google more about goats' role in chinese mythology. Let's hope goat stays, I want to sincerely root for at least one relationship in this show)))

THE INGENIOUS ONE: on hold - after spoilers about drama losing its comforting calmness midway I'll probably wait until it's completed and decide what to do with it afterwards.

Was contemplating whether I'm ready for STORY OF KUNNING PALACE, but cdramagods seem to decide for me in this case. Huh. Let's hope this one manages to overcome whatever mess it's going through.

Current/recent:
Bora! Deborah: At last this has tipped the balance to the fun side.

My Perfect Stranger 1-4: I started this late and am catching up. It got off to an intriguing but uneven start; I want to know more about Hae-joon and have a better balance between his story and Yoon-young's. I laughed at the moment in ep 3 when she said “for now, we are in the same boat" (trapped in 1987) with a rusted-out, grounded wreck of a boat behind them. Ha Hyun-sang’s OST #3 is so good.

Oh! Youngsim: I hoped it might work out if I thought of this whole show as a cartoon (especially with its ultra-low-budget look) and found ep. 1 mildly entertaining through that lens. And then the dating show started in ep. 2 and it was so cheap, clownish, and screechy it made Kingdom of Love from Love Is for Suckers look classy. The excruciating noraebang scene was the last straw. Oh well.

Older stuff:
Stranger (Forest of Secrets) 1: Trying to go slowly to enjoy every minute, but it’s complex enough that I can’t keep track of what’s happening if I wait too long between episodes. I can tell this is going to be an instant rewatch.

Do You Like Brahms?: The moral of this story is: eavesdropping is the best form of communication. Bitchy remarks to no one in particular are also useful. The developing friendship-to-love in the front half was enjoyable but at ep. 11 it descended into endless repetitive heartbreak, so I read the recaps for 11-15, pretending these frustrating characters I was reading about were in another drama altogether, and then watched the final 1.5 episodes for more incandescent Park Eun-bin + Kim Min-jae smiles. In the end I enjoyed the hours I spent down a rabbit-hole listening to all the classical pieces referenced in the show more than the show itself. I also watched short and sweet To.Jenny as a palate cleanser and Kim Sung-chul reset.

Dr. Romantic 3 (Ep 7) - I am a big fan of seasons 1 and 2 and I’m glad that S3 never disappoints. Each of the episodes is greatly done.

The Good Bad Mother (Ep 8) - The mother’s “tough love” 🙄 is so frustrating and triggering. Kang-ho, Mi-joo and the twins are love.

Dr. Cha (Ep 7) - This show is funny and entertaining.

Beef (Ep 4) - Steven Yeun’s acting for his breakdown at the church scene was very impressive. It was so moving I had to fight back tears. The story is great. And the music? Fantastic!

MATRIMONIAL CHAOS (2018) Eps 30 of 32 half-hour.
I like this type of Korean mumblecore, the offbeat indie flavor and frank conversations that challenge the traditional social order. The characters are wonderfully fleshed out and acted. Ordinary unpredictable people just trying to figure it all out and get through the day, and having meltdowns just when you think everything is going to work out. It reminds me a lot of My Liberation Notes and Be Melodramatic, but Matrimonial Chaos leans too far into the characters’ constantly shifting feelings and goes on for too many episodes. 12 would have been great. Quirky guy Son Suk-ku appears in all 3 of those dramas; also Lee El, saw her in MLN as well. I'd like to search out more in this genre; any suggestions?

I am enjoying BORA! DEBORAH even with all its flaws. Episode 12 may have been the best so far.

My wife and I finished the last episode of the Chinese Costume Drama MISS CHUN IS A LITIGATOR- which ended abruptly with the most important loose end not tied up.

THE GOOD BAD MOTHER is a rough ride emotionally, and we may not continue.

My wife and I love DR. CHA. It is fun and often funny.

My wife finished the Chinese Costume fantasy TILL THE END OF THE MOON, which she still considers one of the very best. A number of people have found the ending to be disappointing or inconclusive, but she thought that it was great. I think that she has seen so many Xianxia dramas that she may have a different perspective about them.

She took a break from Chinese costume dramas to enjoy “The Complete Miss Marple” starring the late Joan Hickson who was simply marvelous in the title role.

That is not to say that she has not already lined up her next Chinese Costume drama which will be BACK FROM THE BRINK whose episodes are starting to post on Viki. There is also the STORY OF KUNNING PALACE coming soon to iQIYI, which has been generating a fair amount of buzz.

Last week on THE REAL HAS COME! SD’s mother acquired some wonderful dirt on TK’s Halmeoni- and who knew that Grandma was a good wrestler? But we ended with another cliff hanger as SD’s uncle has clearly heard her say that it is not TK’s baby. It was time for things to change anyway because there was always a massive flaw in their plan to just be together for three months and then split up: That flaw’s name is Jang Se-jin, who is clearly hanging in there, Captain Ahab like, in the expectation that she will finally catch her whale, I mean TK. For all that many people do not like the heavy dose of makjang in this weekender I have to admire the exquisitely logical progression of events which are forcing our central couple into a permanent relationship- step by step they are headed towards that destination and fortunately are coming to care about and depend upon each other more and more. The side stories are progressing, including the tale of our maknae’s where I suspect our cute little daughter will be the central catalyst for what happens. This show has makjang and humor- and in exploring the difficulties of having children may be the most topical weekender ever.

OH! YOUNG-SHIN is old school comedy and I deeply appreciate it.