Finished

I was going to start Matchmakers but then my mum wanted to watch Kidnapping Day so we binged that instead. Totally understand why Beanies watching last year were like 🥰 🥰 🥰 🥰 about it, because we liked it a lot too! Myeong-jun and Ro-hee were the heart of the show, but I also really liked how layered the bad guys were and the fact that there were multiple players in the game, each with their own agenda.

We then watched the movie Broker which has been on my list for ages. Really loved it, I was worried because K-movies have been hit or miss for me, but this one met my expectations for sure. It’s such a quietly unassuming movie, where you don’t actually realise just how attached you’ve become to characters until the credits roll. I really liked how minimalist and muted the script was, because it very naturally provided societal commentary without the use of extensive exposition or excessive dialogue. This was one of those films where the artful ‘gaps’ and silences spoke volumes, and brilliant acting meant that a lot more was conveyed through body language, expressions and what wasn’t said - defs left a deep imprint post watch.

Also flew through the last three episodes of Gyeongseong Creature and found it much better than the ‘first part’. Especially episode 10, which was solid and the best ep in the entire ‘first’ (??) season imo. A shame though because mostly every supporting cast felt painfully under-utilised and also why did they waste the potential of the first seven eps then 😭 Even the barely developed and somewhat rushed romance found its footing and felt more compelling in the last three eps - imagine what could’ve been if they’d tightened up the writing and pacing.

Watching

Sat twiddling my thumbs for the better part of two weeks because of the annoying KBS and SBS schedule break BUT YAY we’re back and it’s a bittersweet affair because it’s the last week of PMC and third last week of My Demon 😭

Perfect & Casual (C-drama) I’ve heard good things about this one so giving it a go!

The Dog Show - to the dozen or so beanies who are left standing still (I think? based on recap numbers), we’re almost there! The bean is in sight!

The site I was using to watch Stealer ran into issues this week so wasn’t able to stream more eps, but hoping to catch up over the weekend to continue along with the fanwall live watch gang.

Tell Me That You Love Me looks like we’re heading into slightly choppy waters next week but in a way that’s going to be cathartic I think because it’ll address some of the tension that’s been slowly building.

Between Him & Her this has become the drama version of ‘friend who sends you 30 minute long voice messages with tea about someone else’s relationship’. Enjoying watching but I’m not super attached to either lead - we’ll see how this fares with the one ep per week...

Park's Marriage Contract: Looking forward to finishing it this weekend! Sad to see those dimples leave my screen 😢

The Matchmakers (eps 5-7)
🦆♥️🦆 Long version: here's what I loved: Soon-deok telling Jung-woo "I will be your shield" and the soft look he gave her; Jung-woo's smile every time Soon-deok says something complimentary; Soon-gu being visibly enchanted seeing Sam-soon in lady's clothing and having her house fixed after she mentioned it; Jung-woo carefully working on a painting of Soon-deok; Soon-deok's empathic insightfulness and compassion; Jung-woo tutoring Soon-deok's son and every time Soon-deok talks to her son; Soon-deok's conversation with her MIL at the gravesite (*I cried*); Jung-woo passing notes to Soon-deok while they were transcribing (*poor baby has 0% experience but he's doing his very best at flirting*); Sam-soon asking Soon-gu if he's married (*same, girl*); Jung-woo putting his hand under Soon-deok's for the cheer (*I audibly squeeked*); Jung-woo carefully saving the one sentence she wrote as Soon-deok burned his letter (*I cried*); "I must know about you as well" - "Like what?" - "All of it;" and "I think I already made up my mind then that I should marry Yeojudaek." 🥹♥️
TLDR: here's what I loved: every visual, every conversation, every interaction, every background sound (birds and music). Perfection.

C-dramas
I Am Nobody (eps 1-22) (*Free on YouTube through Youku*) This drama is crazy!! It's really weird and really wild in a wonderful way. It's a modern wuxia with an off-the-wall sense of humor and some really fun fight scenes. I mean, along with the usual, there's even a fight in high heels where they're also used as a weapon. Essentially, every sect and family manifests their internal qi force as different superpowers. The tone and plot may seem flippant and like it's only an action comedy at first (I mean, there's a fight sequence at a theme park in the opening episodes that is BONKERS), but it gets more intense and dark as *things* are revealed. The ML is fascinating and reminds me a bit of the ML from Sword Snow Stride. Even when it gets darker, it retains its weirdness and fun-ness. I highly recommend it!!! But don't look up spoilers!!!

Live Watches
My Demon: Gu-won with his powers intact AND in love is just hilarious. Did the dramatic end of ep 10 turn the tide for both of our second leads? I still can’t decide if I want Seok-hoon to be a villain mastermind of if I want them to develop this bromance more. Or both?

Gyeongseong Creature: I’m up to ep 5 so far (watching somewhat slowly with my partner) and am thoroughly entertained. The creature gives off strong Stranger Things vibes, the action is great, and I’m honestly buying the romance so far.

Death’s Game: There is not a single moment to be bored here! I am having so much fun watching all my favorite people parade across my screen but it almost makes me want longer with each of them. At the end of ep 1 I looked back and was totally amazed how much they had managed to fit into less than an hour.

Older Dramas
Soundtrack #1: I’ve never been happier to disagree with folks on here. What a lovely little gem of a drama. Sure, if it had been 10 episodes long or something, they would have needed more ~drama~ but a tight little four? That’s basically a longish movie. I could absolutely feel the conflict in Seon-u’s whole body every time I looked at him, and the fear in Eun-su’s. My favorite moments were when we got to see their already deep and fantastic relationship, like when they brought apology gifts to each other and when they talked about how he would listen to her songs on loop so she could get more royalties. Definitely one I’ll revisit when I need a palate cleanser!

Stealer: The Treasure Keeper: I know from the weecaps and lots of Beanies that they don’t end up going the romance route in this, but that just means I’ll have to imagine the rest of their story once we get to the end. They are certainly doing their very best to fake us out. I could watch loads of this drama at once, it’s so fun, but im holding back to be in line with the community watch. 🫰And I’m not mad about having so many dramas on my screen with Jo Han-chul lately.

Tell me you love me: Ahhh insecurity and what a shame. I get it you can’t compete with history, but you can make your relationship better with communication. Jin Woo is always willing to listen, even if it takes time. The man learned patience while in his 7-year hermitage. Mo Eun just needs to talk to him and it will be okay.

Marry My Husband: It was fine. I didn’t love it from the beginning, but it has some sparks that hopefully turn into flame. PMY can have chemistry with anyone, so I am not worried about that. I am worried NIW won’t give me what I need. The Clark Kent comparisons don’t land for me because he lacks the charm of Superman, so here is hoping episodes 3-4 get us there.

Between Him and Her: A mess. Lack of communication the underlying theme of any kdrama breakup. Talk about it, folks, talk about it.

Like Flowers in the Sand: To anyone who sees them together Baek Du, that sweet sweet man is clearly in love with his soul mate. Du Shik is getting there. The affection they both have for each other is really sweet. Baek Du’s innocence and naivete are useful in that it makes him infinitely likeable, but also a weakness because he has to be pushed to fight for himself. In comes Du Shik, lol.

A Good Day to be a Dog: A misunderstanding. This was stupid and a waste of time. This should have been a short 8–10-episode drama about two people falling in love, where one happens to turn into a dog. Instead, we got 3 episodes of waste our time filler. Episode 14 better be filled with Yul, kisses, and cuteness.

Death’s Game: It ended as expected. I enjoyed it and I love PSD in this. All the actors did a great job and I enjoyed it. That is all I can ask for.

My man is Cupid: Lol, back to the mountain. This drama is so ridiculous and the characters so very dumb, but I still watch. Plus, the little boy God is ADORABLE.

My Demon: We are back and now we must delve into the past. Ahhh yes, our resident demon was terrible in a past life, Surprise (SIGH). Well the question is, will it be more tragic or less tragic than Destined with you or Heartbeat, or that other one I can’t remember. Who knows, stay tuned, lol

The story of Park’s Marriage Contract: Awwww man what a sweet episode. Just so much loving and moments. I am going into the finale with high hopes and joy.

Welcome to Sam dal Ri: Ahhhh she picked up a camera for people again. I loved her story of how she came to be a one shot photographer. Finally, Yong Pil and Sam Dal are having the conversation they have been fighting, mostly her, in a sober manner. It is time to have the convo of love gone astray.

My Happy Endings: The title is awful. It seems the drama is hinting at Jae Won having psychological issues in the past. Soo Young’s twin seems to be exploiting that. Yoon Jin is dating the twin and instead of just saying so, she is hiding it. Jae won has had a stalker for years, but is the only chaebol that refuses to get a body guard or hire private security to get him...

LIVE WATCHES
Marry My Husband
On track to be my favorite show airing right now...handily. I like how the "magic" has relatively interesting rules, and I'm in a place in my life where I could really do with some petty revennnnngggge.

Welcome to Samdal-ri
Continue to love me some Korean Hallmark. They're really delivering. With luck, we're now entering into the "Sisters" portion of the drama, because the set-up has been a long time coming.

The Story of Park's Marriage Contract
Tae-min for CEO!! Who's with me? Also, when can I "contract" euphoria? PLZ. ALSO, PPL for a board game?? This show just stole my family's heart. The rest of it, including a household, ceiling-mounted slideshow for the not-quite-departed has me a little creeped out.

My Demon
Harrumph.

FROM THE RESERVES
Stealer: The Treasure Keeper
Everyone said that it starts funnier than it goes on, and I see that, but I am enjoying the antics. There are shows that are really great at FF speed, no judgment, ya know? Also, don't tell anyone, but if you really enjoyed Stealer, you'd also really enjoy Brain Works. Srsly try it.

My Liberation Notes
I've posted about my disappointment on the Fan Wall. This show was quite clearly set up to be about the quintessential tension between suffering and enlightenment, and you don't engage in serious thought about that fundamental human conflict with some deus ex machina behavior that asserts that everything's fine!! That's insulting to the human condition. I'm pretty angry.

ON DECK
Bad Prosecutor
Sure, it's mainly for Ha Joon, but also...um...D.O.? Can it be not about the human condition tho? K thx bi.

Tell Me That You Love Me - The experience Seo-kyung faced were freaking relatable. We saw how it broke her. I felt it. And it's not easy that Mo-eun is facing the same issue Seo-kyung was passing through. All in all, I want Mo-eun to remember Ki-hyun and So-hee as she makes her decisions.
Annoying Kwon guy should be in jail for his actions, not having a fledging career as an artist.
Mo-eun's parents are so much fun.
It was surprising to me that Bead Boy Johan has held a torch for Mo-eun for as long as Tell Me That You Love Me has been on and Mo-eun isn't aware yet.I like how Tell Me That You Love Me burdened us with the information but has kept it from Mo-eun. I wished Welcome to Samdalri did same with Sang-do.

Maestra EP 6 - I like how Se-eum deals with Pil: turn the aces in his arsenal into weak cards.
I'm so glad Lee Mu-saeng is not the bad guy here. The character intros in the teasers had me worried for nothing.

My Happy Ending EP 1 - I needed qqqayer to know that her IT guy q a. The Q qaqaaaaaaaqqq saw him I knew.. a aa he expected Seo-won to be unnerved by the attack...the effontery.

Marry My Husband - I.enjoyed.it. It was perfect.

LIKE FLOWERS IN THE SAND—(ep 6) I am in love with this drama. That’s it.
Also, the comments section in the recaps is a lovely place to be right now.

THE HOPE(CH)—@bongsun, THANK YOU for recommending this drama. It is extraordinary. ZRY is in top form, which is my drama happy place. This is not your typical youth drama and even though it is a hard watch at times, it is important to tell these stories.The way each character’s story is woven and interwoven is excellent execution. I couldn’t root harder for Class 11 if I tried. At this point as much as I want them to get into Qingbei for the sake of the drama, I know these students have been changed and they will carve their paths wherever they want to go.
I am curious to watch the other adaptations and read the manga now, but this version may have spoiled me.

TELL ME THAT YOU LOVE ME (ep 8)—Has there been a more beautifully crafted and executed romance in recent memory?

BE REBORN (CH)—A cat and mouse story with art theft and mystery at the center. It is on par with RESET and UNDER THE SKIN so far: a well-crafted thriller with fascinating characters. And the acting!

AN ANCIENT LOVE SONG (CH)—first episode and I am drawn in. The execution is beautiful and complete. I heard that this was essentially not promoted and had little budget to begin with. It basically flew under the radar until viewers began loving it.

Not a lot to watch last week. Welcome to Samdal-ri and Like Flowers in Sand are going along fine. A Good Day to Be a Dog is just…going along 😒. There was a bout of "too dumb to live" by the FL in My Man is Cupid but plot armour kicked in as usual. A normal week in dramaland 😅.

I've been away from dramaland for a few weeks. It's been nice to catch up with Beanies, but unfortunately, not so much with the many airing shows. Absence did not make my heart grow fonder. I've either put a bunch on hold or half-heartedly finishing the rest.

I thought it finally time to catch up on Unlock Your Boss, Paper Moon, and the many other shows I've missed, but—🥁 🥁 🥁—new shows to the rescue! First up, the charming Like Flowers in Sand, the slice-of-life-small-town-murder-mystery-sports-coming-of-age rom-com I did not know I needed, and of course, Baek-du! Still to fully catch up—it's one to savor, not rush—but the show seems in steady hands.

And second, Marry My Husband, which I know has been divisive, but sure beat my admittedly very low expectations. NGL, I expect it to head south, but am really hoping it stays the course. I need at least one time-traveling-betrayed-wife-revenge drama under my belt.

Oh, I also peeked into Love Song. I'm not sure if it'll be worth a watch. But Beanie commentary? Priceless. 😂

WELCOME TO SAMDAL-RI (Ep 9-10) Except for Han-yul who acts more adult than a child, it is very wearing that most of the characters are juvenile, gossipy and unable to directly communicate to each other. I still don’t like the idea that Sam-dal has to “find herself” by reverting back to being a teenager (including getting back with her ex-BF, Yong -Pil). The drawn drawn out re-confession may be finally over but it is not really uplifting or a story bolt of lightning in a bottle. San-do is out of the box, again. But the most compelling thing we learned this week is that Jeju has single women!!! Single bars!!! In their 30s looking for jobs and love!!!! Yet, the singles in the old friend group have never been to one in 8 years?

TELL ME THAT YOU LOVE ME (Ep 11-12) Subtle and complex writing in these episodes. Secrecy and insecurity are intertwined with transparency and painful feelings. People think memories are good time capsules of the past but they can be dangerous land mines in the present.

The show continues to hit on all cylinders: writing, acting, pace and direction. Themes that are layered over several concurrent character plot arcs have been done really well.

A GOOD DAY TO BE A DOG (Ep. 13) One of the worst, pointless, mostly clip show I have ever seen. It is not even anti-climatic because the one reveal (everyone knew Cho Young killed herself with the sword) just proves that the almighty Mountain Spirit knew or should have know this all along. For no apparent reason, the show ran away from its cute, rom-com premise. After this episode, I wanted to put up a LOST DOG poster in the neighborhood because this series lost its way.

LIVE YOUR OWN LIFE (Ep. 28-29) Overall, this week was a whiny, self-indulgent tar pit of denial for those who kept HS in emotional and financial bondage. Still don’t like HS not being left alone to figure out her own life before other people, including TH, tell her how to live it.

Provoke
A revengy historical c-webdrama set about 100 years ago. Very pretty and provided a distraction I needed. I enjoyed the sets, cars, trains, costumes... and chemistry between the leads. (I also liked the ditzy wife and her maid.)

I then checked Hidden Marriage with the same lead actor and realised (a) it is snippets from a webnovel I once read (b) which are used to promote some skin care products (c) and are very cringey and baaad (d) but I'm still watching anyway. 🙈

Live Your Own Life
I'm cautiously optimistic and preparing my popcorn for this weekend to watch the moochers being shaken by Hyoshim's independence and maybe finally taking some responsibility and starting Living Their Own Lives. I also wouldn't mind hearing more of Rubi's sharp family analyses. 🍿😎

Samdal-ri
That love triangle has to go. It is getting tedious and I don't get Sangdo at all. He saw them KISSING and he is still pursuing Samdal?? 🤦‍♀️
I wish they spent his drama-time on the sisters' stories, we still know very little about the youngest one. (I also want to love the dolphin guy moooore, but he is often so cringey.) I'm enjoying all the Jeju shots and Shin Hyesun and Ji Changwook together, even if it is probably more as actors than characters (that scene when Samdal was taking wedding photos and getting all professional and Yongpil was proudly watching her was nice though).

Tell Me That You Love Me
I don't know why but I thought it was a 12 episodes drama. 😅
I like exploring the joys and difficulties of Moeun and Jinwoo's relationship... I like less the past coming to front and Seokyung not able to let go, she was awesome till recently, sigh.

Marry My Husband
This was supposed to be a qick check and a fast drop... but I found the first two episodes much better and interesting than I expected. I also found them much darker than I expected (and oh is Lee Yikyung good at portraying the abusive boyfriend, shivers). If Perfect Marriage Revenge was a popcorn watch, with a lot of funny lines and clearly NOT REAL, this... this is sometimes way TOO REAL in depicting bullying, misogyny, domestic violence, abuse and gaslighting. I sort of like this, but I'm not sure I want to watch it. What I do want to watch is all (petty) fate switching à la curry lunch 😁🍿 and Jiwon making new friends, getting confidence and starting Living Her Own Life. 🙂 (*cough* There is also Na Inho putting his glasses down *cough* )

I'm looking forward to Demon and Contract Marriage being back. ☺️

Healer. So this is why JCW was synonomous with action and the black clothes? The first drama I'd ever seen of his was The K2 but before that I had seen him in some short called 7 kisses (or something like that). I didn't know who he was at the time but in the short, his character is similar to Healer, as in the clothes and seeming like he's on a misson. Anywho, it was cool seeing the basis of that. I liked Healer but I was also left with questions that made me want more. Is he really no longer a night courier? Is he an unofficial photographer? Can he no longer use his real name? What happened with Hacker Ajumma? They were such a good team. I liked the action, comedy, and relationships.
If they did a Healer: next generation thing, I don't think I would hate it haha. Like it would be about the girl or a new Healer. Not a full series, just a short thing, maybe online. I know it's probably best to just leave it be but I just enjoyed that type of show.

Melting Me Softly. I watched a recap of this show months ago but that definitely did not compare to actually watching it. The recap really didn't capture the ridiculousness or fun that was this show. While I was watching the earlier episodes, I thought it was probably what people wanted Castaway Diva to be like; the whole getting readjusted to the modern world part. (Honestly I draw a blank on the significant changes for the Castaway Diva timeframe aside from cell phones evolving and the different social media platforms. I really do live under a rock). Also with the beginning episodes, when it was emotional, you kinda want those moments to last longer but then they get hit with the comedy. It's weird but that's part of the ridiculousness to me. One thing that stood out to me after finishing the drama was never finding out who exposed Mi Ran. That is irking me so much. I feel like the writer wanted it to be her friend but then chose not to but had no other options so they just dropped it, never to be solved and written off as unimportant (and if they *did* say who it was, I genuinely do not remember). I liked the comedy and I liked the look at the behind the scenes of variety show production. The most heartwarming part in the entire series (to me) was Mi Ran reuniting with her brother.

Death's Game. I think I'm gonna be so repetitive when the final weecap is posted because I just really thought this was a good show and I'm glad I decided to watch it. Episode 6 might just be one of the most satisfying things I've seen in a long time. I would watch a reaction video of episode 6.

Mr. Queen. I'm not into the political intrigue, just the gender/body swap, time slip aspect so I've been kinda zoning in and out. God, palace/court life SUCKS. Everyone is ALWAYS at someone else's mercy and is expendable.

Goryeo Kitan War: 6.5 At least the subs are back to being grammatical this week.

Good Day to Be a Dog: 6.5 Wow. Mountain spirit is the God of Not Paying Attention So Jumping to Conclusions. Also an idiot.

My Demon: 7.5

Gyeongseong Creature: 7.0 (ep 8)

Park's Marriage Contract: 7.0 So Miss Noble Idiot thinks she has to leave or else Mr. Idiot's heart will stop beating? Just stick a transplant into him and get on with the happy-ever-aftering. Or just plan on being a rich widow.

Marry My Husband: __ So kdramaland is awash with shows about women who need a 2nd chance at life to get revenge on a cheating husband.
- Why? Because the writers are channeling their own issues with their husbands and in-laws?
- And the women need some supernatural help because without it there is no way in this life for them to get their revenge????
- How would people react if the genders were reversed?
No, I'm not even watching this show. A few minutes of MIL obnoxiousness drove me away.

Good to see you back Mary🥰

Live watches:
Tell me that you love me.
What a lovely drama really enjoying the pace. Just got last weeks epsiodes to finish and then I can live watch from next week.

Maybe it’s me being too conscientious but if your job is to be an interpreter for a student and it gets you free tuition then you need to be doing your job to the best of your abilities. Seokyung turning up late for lectures and chatting rubbish when Jinwoo was trying to lip read a lecture was very annoying for me. Her break up approach was unnecessarily hurtful too. I don’t think even when we get the information on her reasoning for behaving in that way that I will be happy with the second female lead part being included in such a sweet drama. Just as I loved the teens in Twinkling Watermelon, the students in Jinwoo’s class are such a joy to watch and their initial attempts to help the newbie integrate into the class was funny and sweet as it showed how it is for well meaning people trying to manage different needs.

I can’t get over the curse of the quiet bar, how is Kihyun supporting himself, let alone the family, when we rarely see anyone other than the main and supporting cast in there? Even bus and street scenes have extras to make them realistic why don’t dramas ever think about having quiet customers in the friend’s venues as standard? We only ever seem to see customers when they are making a scene. This week was the first time I remember seeing people in the background in the bar.

Between him and her
The once a week drop is frustrating as it’s hard to keep a hold of the side characters but so far I am still enjoying the show. I am beginning to suspect a potential unrequited love lurking but will keep looking out for the clues.

Welcome to Samdalri
Looking forward to seeing how this one goes this week I hope annoying dad learns his lesson that bitterness is not going to bring his wife back or help him live a life that honours her memory, reflects the quality of their marriage or makes him be the type of dad she would want him to be. I want the story line dealt with as dad and the second male lead are spoiling the mood.

It’s a good day to be a dog
Struggled to get past the why would you do that scene when Uncle turned up at the school. He was an adult when he became a dog so not sure why he does not act like one. I will try to finish it by binge watching the rest of this week’s episode when the next one drops.

Fermat’s cuisine - Japanese
I will finish the last episode of the first 5 when the last five drop on Tuesday. I hope we see our sweet main lead remember who he is and stop acting out.

Binge watch corner -
…

Webtoon corner:
Please come back Second lead syndrome.

Book club:
The leftover woman - Jean Kwon
Overseas adoption, the one child policy, illegal immigration and the tale of two mothers at opposite ends of privilege. Similar to The leavers by Lisa Ko it shows the struggles of settling into a new...

Dropped: Between Him and Her

Death’s Game (Series review)
Ambivalent is the word I would use to describe my feelings having finished the show: on one hand, it was so well acted with emotions running high, on the other hand, Yi Jae’s own arc was pretty much sacrificed to maintain the tension until the end where the writer piled on the deus ex machina. And beneath the excessive gore, is an interesting perspective about suicide.

Like Flowers in Sand (Episode 5-6) - Mood: C+
Delightfully, it appears that the show is focusing on its characters instead of the murders: I seriously wished that there was a plot twist where both deaths were accidental and that the match fixing was a big coincidence designed to be red herring, but with Du Sik’s past now also involving a murder that’s pretty much impossible. Surprisingly, even though Baek Du is very easy to root for as a protagonist with his earnestness, I’m finding myself more intrigued by Seok Hui’s skepticism regarding the murders: lots of dramatic irony in everyone brushing him off and lots of worry knowing he might end up dead as he’s an unseasoned investigator, also, Baek Du’s character archetype is quite standard, with his motivation being driven by Du Sik.

Marry My Husband (Episode 1-2) - Mood: D+
It’s not dumb or boring but it’s quite mindless when it comes to the setup or the characterisation or even the plot while also lacking any explosiveness in either the pacing or execution as is expected of a revenge show (doesn’t help that Perfect Marriage Revenge swung out of the gates during its premiere). And I’m pretty bummed about the obvious love triangle.

Welcome to Samdal-ri (Episode 9-10) - Mood: D-
What’s there to comment when the writer doesn’t understand how to write organic developments or nuanced characters? It is so frustrating to see the show try and build some tension over who saw the kiss (which is terrible in itself regardless), yet go with the worse outcome possible by developing an astronomically pointless love triangle, followed by a terrible epilogue.

My Man Is Cupid (Episode 9-10) - Mood: D
I grimaced when Baek Ryeon proceeded to damsel herself knowing that she’s under witness protection, but then again, the whole nonsense was for her to finally remember the past that the audience had known all along since like Episode 4. I don’t understand why the two deities seem to have different plans for her but honestly at this point I couldn’t really care about it.

A Good Day to Be a Dog (Episode 13) - Mood: D-
So, it seems like the show can’t stop itself from inserting unnecessary angst into its final episode even after we’re over with this stupid misunderstanding. At this point, even an episode of pure fluff without any narrative substance would be better if it means that we’ll be served with superficial happiness. Oh well, I can pretend Park Gyu Young is in a music video.

Tell Me That You Love Me Release the opening song!

Love Song for Illusion It was too many things in the same time and neither of them was good.

Marry My Husband Very cliché characters I don't care about.

Between Him and Her So many flashbacks... I don't care they were happy in the past, it's the present I'm interested in.

Like Flowers in Sand I'm still not interested in the investigation and still think it was a bad idea to put murders in this story because the best part is the ML's journey.

A Good Day to Be a Dog 13 episodes to see what everybody already guessed, the mountain god is stupid.

Welcome to Samdal-ri I pass every day alongside the WMO by train and I like imagining that JCW could be there if the story wasn't so dramatic...

The Story of Park's Marriage Contract I didn't watch the last episode yet. But I'm not really interested in the story...

My Demon The second part lost its momentum... But the couple is cute.

Death's Game Part 2 What was the point of this story? Nothing made sense... I'm just thankful for Jang Seung-jo's cameo!

My Man is Cupid aka The drama that Dramabeans won't never aknowledge The story is still meh and didn't need so many episodes because nothing is happening...

I missed The Matchmakers characters!

@unit, I had to go look up character names to find your easter egg and the name of the singer. Since I know nothing about the drama, I am guessing here. Kim Feel?! Oh boy, can we be friends? I admire your taste in singers. I will always be grateful for Reply 1988 for introducing me to his soul-stirring voice.

CURRENTLY WATCHING:

1. ROMANCE IS A BONUS BOOK - This is a great Noona romance which has a really sweet ML and an FL whose story will resonate with every woman who has ever tried re-entering the workforce after being away for many years to raise their family! Love it, love it, love it! It's a great lunchtime watch.

2. LIKE FLOWERS IN SAND - Baek-Du is an absolute treasure of a Cinnamon Roll ML. I'm not a fan of the sport of wrestling but I am following this series because of Jang Dong-Yoon's most excellent portrayal of this sweet-natured and big-hearted character.

3. THE BROTHERS SUN - This is better than I thought it would be. Michelle Yeoh is excellent as always.

And that's sadly it for me at the moment while I am buried under work. I'll catch up with GYEONGSEONG CEATURE and get started on DR SLUMP once the current batch of work deadlines are over.

Watching Continued
Welcome to Samdal-ri: I am charmed and also, I really like Shin Hae-sun.
My Demon: I like it. It’s fun, exciting, and the OTP are very beautiful, so easy on the eyes.
Park’s Marriage Contract: Haven’t seen this week’s episodes yet. Sometimes it is a wee bit boring. Also, the story about being a fantastic embroiderer and then having success in the present is stolen from my fan-fictive idea about a second season of Mr. Queen, where the woman’s soul achieves success in the chef’s body. (Not stolen like I actually have written the whole thing. Just – that was my idea).
A Good Day to Be a Dog On hold, maybe forever.
Rewatched and Finished:
Because This Is My First Life: I have about 19 gifs that I am dropping two or three at a time. I am about halfways doing that. I SO enjoyed rewatching it. There was so much to like. If you want to see my gif-o-rama, the permalink is here https://www.dramabeans.com/members/CecilieDK/activity/1515165/
I loved that FL did not accept the classic female task to carry the weight of all emotions and smoothen all conflicts between them, but I also think it was quite brutal to just think it without telling him, and then just up and leave, letting the obviously neurodivergent ML just crash and burn.
The Matchmakers: I didn’t write last week what I watched. I just want to say that I finished this one, and it is going to my top shelf. It will find its place between my absolute favourites, and while some dramas are gritty in ways that make me crave more, this drama does not disappoint at any time from start to finish, as so many dramas do.

Looking forward to binge MY DEMON and PARK’S sometime this weekend.

Last week felt kinda empty without these, so I continued with ROOKIE HISTORIAN, which I find really enjoyable. Like the romance, both FLs (I’m so happy they made these characters supportive of each other, instead of just having them clash all the time. It could have gone both ways. I don’t feel a deep friendship connection between them, but they lift each other up if necessary!), the “mystery”… and am even happy with a not-so-clunky ML, compared to another’s drama he’s currently in. But truth be told, the Crown Prince is stealing the show. 👏👀
I *still/finally* only have Two Episodes left. 😅

I think I’m not watching any other kdrama at the moment. *gasp!* But new shows are popping up on the horizon! Looking forward to what January has to offer.

Marriage Not Dating👰❌👫(16/16): A beautiful end to 2023 on the 31st of December. 🥰 The ending was indeed so them, but I disliked how they doubted each other for a second right at the end. Not enough material to fill an hour, I guess?🤔 Now that I know that he is simply not boyfriend material, I am able to tolerate Yeo-Reum again. He works a lot better when you keep things casual. We knew from the start that Gi-Tae’s dad was not made of husband material either, but the show hid him behind the women in his family. Now that they no longer shield him, we know who the real bad guy was all along.😉

Gyeonseong Creature: If I’m being honest the last 3 episodes were a let down after the buildup to episode 7. I wasn’t completely sold on the romance and felt the show would have been better off without it. A good female male partnership does not need romance (see Stranger part 1). And that ambiguous ending…is that a possible tease for a season 2? I won’t be watching given they couldn’t stick the landing the 1st go round.

My Man is Cupid: this is everything a drama should be…engaging leads with good chemistry, an interesting plot both romance and mystery wise and some funny side characters…special shout out to the police crew.

The only drama I could follow over Christmas was TELL ME THAT YOU LOVE ME. Its quietness was a welcome retreat and the writer is an expert in nuance. The actors follow this lead. There is a little angst now with FL insecurities, but hopefully the writer is not turning this into a tragedy.

Otherwise the new year starts a little disappointing. Scary monster CREATURE, not my thing. LOVE SONGS FOR ILLUSIONS and the split personality prince and sexy dancer-assassin a straight drop. Just watched the latest episode of GOOD DOG DAY. Missing the few previous episodes was not a problem, the plot has not moved on much and has certainly not improved.

I still like WELCOME TO SAMDAL-RI and the boys laughing at Sam-dal's attempts to 'find herself' by walking the overcrowded trail and at her expectation that her 'secret' beauty spots are still a secret from the tourists. Otherwise, I would recommend a dry January for the sisters.

Not sure how well PARKS MARRIAGE will wrap up. Re-births and time travelling stories usually have a problem with that.

Binged DEATH'S GAME and liked it, especially the baby episode - he did not expect such a twist when he thought that money could be the solution for his problem.

Had very low expectations for MARRY MY HUSBAND and liked it more probably because of that. Not a masterpiece, but ok for now.