Live Watches
Doctor Slump: I swerve between finding it so real and relatable and finding it cute/unrealistic/adorable/ridiculous, but I’m not mad about any of it. To paraphrase Mr. Knightly: If I loved it less I could talk about it more.

Older Dramas
Perfect Marriage Revenge: Finished! This drama did just what I wanted, which was provide me with tons of fun throughout. Is it in my top 10 dramas of 2023? Nah. But I had a great time and I’ll remember my first makjang fondly. The truck of doom in episode 12 wins the award for least threatening ToD of all time. Moving that slowly and with that many lanes to swerve into, there was no way it could have hit them unless it was trying (which, to be fair, is not that unlikely) and I laughed long and uproariously. The only baddie I felt slightly bad for was Se-hyeok, who seemed like he had finally come to his senses regarding Yu-ra, only to find himself saddled with her for life. Ah well, sucks to suck I guess!

Sungkyungkwan Scandal: (up to episode 3) My latest oldie. I like Song Joong-ki best when he is steeped in snark and so this is shaping up to be my fav character I’ve watched of his yet. The ML and FL are slightly bland, but if they keep trading favors like this I can see myself becoming charmed pretty soon. I’m already at a loss as to how we can possibly have a happy ending, but that’s half the fun! Our king is also delightfully ambiguous at this stage.

LIVE WATCHES
Marry My Husband
As did many, I loved the villains most. I would almost certainly recommend this drama to others, maybe even folks who've never seen a k-drama before.
FxC
I simply joyously watch this every week. That hero walk at the end of last weekend's episodes was everything!!
Queen of Divorce
I continue to find joy in the ways this show is switching up "which character is supposed to be behaving in what way." 2ML-as-ML, FL-as-ML, Villain-as-2ML…
Dr. Slump
This show continues to present traditional tropes with a wink, and then subverting them within that very same scene. It's started to become like a little game for me to spot the next trope they'll play with.
LYOL
Writernim has pulled me back in for the gripping finale!!
ON DECK
Bad Prosecutor and Sell Your Haunted House

Completed
Killer Paradox : Enjoyed every minute of SSK on screen!! Overall, a well directed stylish show but derailed a bit after ep 4. The show ended with a possibility for Season 2, but not sure if there is content for that.

Knight Flower : Enjoyed the drama overall and there was not one bad episode. The show kept the script tight with 12 episodes. One of the most fun and entertaining dramas this year, so far. Lee Jong Won has a new fan!

Marry my husband : I would have been ok to drop this earlier, but I stayed to know the ending. I usually like PMY in dramas, but for some reason I thought she was miscast here. Her acting did not vibe with the show and she often stood out for the wrong reasons. The villains were the ones who held the show together and Su Min was such a complex character and the actor did a great job bringing the character alive.

Ongoing

Doctor Slump : The angst hit us sooner. But I liked how they arrived at this point. Both leads need time to heal and grow before they can date. Ha-Neul is a wonderfully written character and PSH is going a great job here - be it comedy or emotional scenes.

Shop for Killers : On Ep 4.

Queen of divorce I am here for On Min Seok and Kim Sun-young.

Ready, Set, Love (Thai) I enjoyed the first 2 episodes. It was fun. At Ep 5 now, and it is a bit draggy and predictable now. But I do appreciate all the representation in the show and so far it is shown respectfully and not for jokes.

First welcome back Javabeans, HUZZZAH.

Marry My Husband: It came, it began, and it ended badly. The blandest couple to have ever blanded, and that is a shock because PMY has chemistry with everyone. I didn’t believe them at all. The best parts were Song Ha Yoon and Lee Yi Kyung, They both brought it and were must better as antagonists than the protagonists were as protagonist. PMY brought her best acting when acting against both of them. I got my bean, but SIGH.

Flex x Cop: I loved the cameo this episode. She was great, lol. This show continues to be great fun, but I see that coming to an end soon with his memory coming back, meh. I feel the anst and I am sorry it going to ruin such a fun show.

Captivating the King: Speaking of angst. Here is the King ,if you will, of ANGST. Here we go.

Doctor Slump: Oh look more angst, lol, but this one makes far more sense than the other one.

COMPLETED
Knight Flower - Everyone's already said everything that was great about this show - good story, great performances, lots of humour 💕. It's interesting that nearly all my recent favourites have been 12-episode dramas 🤔.

ONGOING
Queen of Divorce - Kang Ki-young and Kim Sun-young together were fun.

The Chaebol-Cop Show - Good set of episodes. Had a random thought that the Butler Ahjussi might be sus 🧐.

Sejak - The show's fatal flaw is Hee-soo as a character - I don't understand her revenge logic and just can't root for her. Everything she does is just 🤦‍♀️.

Doctor Slump - I was pleasantly surprised they resolved the court case so soon but all the happiness had me waiting for the other shoe to drop. Which it did 😔.

C-DRAMAS
Completed Amidst a Snowstorm of Love. Low-stakes sweet romance.

Also completed Judge Dee's Mystery. ZRY's guest role was definitely the highlight. I think they could have ended on the Heiyan case with some more details of the epilogue/ scenes from Season 2.

Paused Always on the Move. A bit too melodramatic for me right now. Might try out White Cat Legend, which is gaining some praise from viewers.

Current watches
Dr slump

Queen of divorce
This week’s episode should have been called fair weather friends as every one of the villains was dropping their friends like hot potatoes when they felt like it. This week had the best of the Scooby-Doo gang’s comedy capers.

Between Him & Her
Key word to sum up my experience of this week’s episode: Confused.com

Our love triangle - webdrama
It would have been good as a quick binge watch. It’s not as good as Love Playlist, A-teen or Best Mistake which all had multiple seasons to improve. Hoping the crew and actors get more opportunities to grow.

Eye love you
Half way point misunderstandings on both sides.

Completed
Extraordinary you rewatch

Book club:
Peach Blossom Spring - Melissa Fu
An epic tale of a widow and her young son as they travel the country trying to stay alive during the second world war and later the internal conflicts in China. They have few items that remain constant apart from an ancient scroll which holds valuable life lessons represented by the traditional scenes it depicts.

LIVE YOUR OWN LIFE (Ep 42-43) The sudden changes in script direction continue with poor execution. The writer has written herself into many corners. This week there was some attempted clarity but it is difficult to see through the months of pond scum. All the mothers continue to be horrible human beings. Their children are oscillating emotional wrecks. The surprise plot twists have fallen flat. This week I am also seeing more overacting by the cast.

HOUSE ON WHEELS 4 (2022) (Ep. 1-2) I forgot about this series. Season 4 was the last one. Seong Dong Il, Kim Hee Won, and Kim Ro Woon were the hosts. The guest was Kim A Joong who had previously worked with Dong Il and Hee Won. The setting was the West Coast on Wonsan Island, a place that I had heard about since it recently opened its isolation from the mainland by a bridge and tunnel system. It still only has 4,000 residents and it is basically a seafaring/fishing place. After visiting the seafood market, A Joong suggests a fisherman’s snack: sashimi and cup noodles. For the rest of the time, it was a seafood feast of various dishes. It was a relaxing series to watch; luxury camping experience with strong elements of nature.

OMG @Javabeans! Welcome back!!! This is amazing!

What We’re Watching
Current/recent:
Marry My Husband: I enjoyed this whole illogical mess from start to finish, especially the villains, the chef/little sister couple, the janky tattoo, and the cat. Although I have a few quibbles with which characters they chose to focus on, this is how you do an extended ending: plenty of time for the main characters’ happy and unhappy fates as earned, a bit of a reality check with baby-related exhaustion, only one unnecessary redemption arc, and lots of snowflakes and flower petals. I bet Ji-won and Ji-hyuk make a point never to have a glass coffee table in any of their houses, though.

I do have practical questions about kdrama proposals: so often the ML pops a ring box out of nowhere and says something like, “I’ve been waiting to give you this.” Have you, sir? For how long? Wouldn’t a box that big make a noticeable bulge? Wouldn’t people notice if a guy carried something the size of half a brick in his pants every day? Do Korean men’s trousers have built-in hidden ring-box pockets? Where? 🤔

Dr. Slump: I might drop this. The tonal whiplash is hurting my neck. I constantly want to punch the little brother and the FL’s so-called friend, and that can’t be good for my blood pressure.

Flex x Cop (ep. 3): I constantly want to punch Ahn Bo-hyun’s obnoxious chaebol character, so he’s doing everything right. Park Ji-hyun’s eyerolling, cynical-yet-still-idealistic sunbae is all of us. Much more fun than I expected/feared.

Older shows:
Jealousy Incarnate/Don’t Dare to Dream (ep. 19 0f 24): I still don’t like the FL, or maybe I just don’t much like Gong Hyo-jin, but Jo Jung-seok is just so damned mesmerizing (even when he’s being punchable) that he’s keeping me in it. The plot is starting to go in circles, though, and the show seems totally unaware of what a great job it’s doing demonstrating why workplace romances are so often a terrible idea. I sense a strategic late drop approaching.

@javabeans 💙💙 So good to see you here!! . Seeing your name I almost thought it was side effects not having caffeine yet!!

Knight Flower (Series review) - Mood progression: C- / C- / D+ / D+ / D+ / D+
Was it fun to watch? Yeah, I don’t hate it, but it’s tough to like it either. Was it also incredibly overwrought with an incredibly cliche historical plot? Also yes. The show spent so much time on the pointless tragic backstories and political machinations that I couldn’t really buy into any of the romances that the show teased for that happily ever after. It should’ve been a deep dive into the discrimination that widows faced (or in general, the societal roles or titles for women) or how class differences can hinder love (or in general, social mobility). But then of course missing oppa! I survived the murder of my parents! Yawn.

Marry My Husband (Series review) - Mood progression: D+ / D+ / D+ / D+ / C- / D / D / D
Despite sharing significant similarities with another revenge show involving time travel, I wasn’t really under any impression that this show would be a brainless makjang (the other show admitted to it outright). But unfortunately the 3rd quarter was a writing disaster that the story could never recover from. I didn’t really enjoy anything in the show despite the good acting.

Flex X Cop (Episode 5-6) - Mood: D+
I’ll take a win when I see one: 1) no love triangle (yet) and the consolation prize has already been prepared, 2) a slight hope that the OTP might be able to win over their adversaries in the reporter and the other team leader, 3) an arc about FL’s dad finding his passion once again. The problem’s the political drama and family history for the OTP: that keeps my hope down.

Doctor Slump (Episode 7-8) - Mood: D
I was so close to jumping in joy when the writer resolved the setup but of course we had to have the Kyung Min reveal since we can’t go without lame external drama. The show’s spending way too much time on filler scenes and it’s very absurd that Jeong Woo got to overhear Ha Neul’s private therapy session. And there’s more to Kyung Min regarding Jeong Woo, I think.

Branding in Seongsu (Episode 9-12) - Mood: D
With the show already halfway done, it really needed to have resolved the whodunit by this week if it wanted any chance of developing the fantasy side of things. Instead, they turned the body swap shenanigans into more uninteresting cliffhangers because well both kisses would be highly manipulative. There was hope about characterisation last week which dissipated.

Just for kicks, I decided to review my current dramas for their memorable male characters after doing the same for the ladies last week. No surprise, I'll start with Lee Jong-won and Jo Jung-suk, who play romantic leads of completely opposite natures. In Knight Flower, LJW won the fandom with his upright and adorable soldier who places his lady love on a pedestal—and who can blame him? Whereas in Captivating the King, JJS plays our eponymous king, a man of complex and tragic circumstances who might murder his leading lady as much as worship her—and, also, who can blame him?

Speaking of murderous men, Lee Yi-kyung in Marry My Husband came to a fitting end. But for much of the series, he was a delicious villain who made me laugh (with/at him) as much as shiver in distaste—those close-ups of long, narrow and glistening teeth...all the better to eat us with!

A shout-out to Ahn Bo-hyun in Flex x Cop, who's doing a marvelous job of playing our fun, flamboyant chaebol lead with a sweet but deeply traumatized inner child. (Is there any other kind in dramas?) And I'm warming up to Park Hyung-sik in Doctor Slump, the more we see his contemplative, earnest side.

I can't help but give another shout-out to the leading men of Live Your Own Life. While I dropped the drama a long time ago, it's been fun reading the passionate claims of TeamTae-min vs. TeamTae-ho on the weecaps. As for whom I'd choose for our leading lady, I'd say get the heck out of chaebol city and live your own life!

Flex x Cop: 7.5 Not great, but entertaining.

Dr. Slump: 6.5 They were doing well until the Noble Idiocy at the end of day 8 cost them a couple points. Park Shin-hye is totally nailing some parts of the show. When she is happy I'm happy, when she's freaking out I'm laughing, but when she is sad I'm bored.

Captivating the King: 6.5

Knight Flower: 7.5

Goryeo Kitan War: 4.0 Who needs Khitans this week when Goryeo has Goryeo?

Queen of Divorce: 7.5

Love Song for Illusion: 5.0 I'm a few weeks late saying this, but next time you see a king who wants to marry a woman who already has a son, tell him to accept the kid as a stepson, NOT as his illegitimate bio-son. It would save a lot of trouble for his real son, plus sparing us this silly Bean Watch.

It's been a week of grim and determined Bean Watches (Captivating / Goryeo-Khitan / Illusion), but I've been spending some time on other things, including:
-
A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry - https://acoup.blog/author/aimedtact/
a blog mostly about Greek/Hellenistic/Roman history. I especially enjoyed his playlist about how lame Sparta was.
-
Adorea Olomouc, a Youtube channel that shows swordfighting done right, or at least far better than sageuks or Hollywood. If you five minutes to spare... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwHNzL9-zpg
-
income taxes

What... what.. what????
I think I need a minute... refresh... my reading glasses... refresh again... it seems to be true... JAVABEANS IS BAAAACK!!!
Wecome back @javabeans ! 😘❤️

****

Slump
I'm happy I was wrong and we closed the Macau case so fast. I was also surprised by the direction of the show and although I don't like much the exposition fairy psychiatrist here (and some stuff around), I like that the show is not glossing over the deep problems our protagonists have. I didn’t expect to go from rainbows and unicorns to rain so quickly, but it brought depth I missed before. Plus Park Shinhye rocks, I think I have never enjoyed her performance this much - from the shower head fight when I giggled to the broken loneliness in pojangmacha when I wanted to hug Haneul.

Queen of Divorce
It is rather weak and I was bored to death with the cult case (and Kim Sunyoung is wasted here), but the interactions between the team keep me in... and then Oh Minseok. I mean I like Kang Kiyoung and I like his Prosecutor here... but... there is so much more chemistry between Sara and her ex-husband... and I'm torn. (And the writers maybe as well... are they rewriting the history of the events with the latest reveal?? 😁)

Chaebol becoming a team member, up to ep.6
I'm really enjoying this, the colors, the music and the humor included. Chaebol's use of power like calls to a bank, a shop or a travel agency (plus all the polite assistance) never gets old 😄. And although the shows are totally different, my enjoyment is similar to when I was watching Knives Out.

I also finished Marry My Husband, watched Kang brothers bonding in sauna in Live Your Own Life and I'm terribly behind with Unpredictable Family.

@Javabeans
So... ehm... you also noticed that Na Inwoo kisses like he means it. 😁😊

Dr. Slump and Knight flower. Usually I don’t seek out romcom but these 2 shows I’m currently watching are so fun, so entertaining with no cringy or OTT situations. When the humour is done right, it’s so addictive. Lee Jongwon may be one of a few actors who look more handsome in sageuk costumes. He’s sooo attractive here.

@javabeans welcome back 🥳🥰 I was scrolling down getting ready to post and wondered how come the DB staff drama watch list was so long this week so I was very surprised and very happy to see your name in the list. I hope your next batch of watches are more consistent in delivery. Are you part of the crew counting the sleeps to Queen of Tears?

Koisuru Keigo 24-ji (5/10): I take back everything I said, this is a really good romcom/mystery drama! The FL really mellowed out and we’re getting the backstory on the ML, the mystery/suspense aspects are super interesting. First episode was rough, but I binged the rest, they’re so good.

Doctor Slump (8/10): I came here to have a good time and I feel so attacked rn. Can only console myself by saying that at least Ha-Neul can start working on herself.

Living no Matsunaga-san (7/10): what kind of teacher tells her high school student to pursue an adult man cause YOLO or something? But anyways, this is still a decent romcom if you ignore all the problematic stuff. Which is 90% of the premise.

Ao Haru (6/8): still can’t relate to all the high school relationship drama, but I’m having fun. The budget for this drama must be insanely high tho, every scene looks gorgeous.

Captivating the King - The stakes have been raised once again with the signing of Lee In's death warrant by Hee-soo.
Lee In rightly guessing there was an assassin inside there was spot-on. He's captivated by Mong-woo no doubt, but I can't help but be enthralled at how well he figured her out with respect to the ending of episode 12.

Live Your Own Life - Madam Jang needs to take a break. I'm surprised Tae-hee didn't already know about Mr. Yeom.

Knight Flower - I was a bit sad Lady Yoo didn't partake in doling out Lord Seok's punishment, especially after hearing everything at the King's tea party. But at least she's okay, and has her son with her now.

Marry My Husband - My weakest Park Min-young drama. Song Ha-yoon all the way. Despite how valid her reasons were, she was the architect of her downfall. And being stuck in a delusion instead of repenting over time was a realistic.

Queen of Divorce - I think following with the recaps will do here. Sorry Kang Ki-young. Sorry Oh Mun-seong. Sorry Seo Hye-won.

My Mr. Queen w,rewatch is going on just well. Episode 8's sword tango dance was just laughs all the way.

What a surprising comeback!😊

Love Song for Illusion I didn't watch the last 2 episodes yet.

Marry My Husband This drama didn't make sense at all. They couldn't follow their own plot, 10 years was too big a jump. I didn't like how they made the FL being a completely new person at the end like she was the one who needed to become a better person.

Queen of Divorce The title is misleading. It's just another revenge drama.

Between Him and Her I would like that the friend gets selfesteem and stops being friend with someone who calls him fatty and just interested by free food.

Doctor Slump This drama is trying to be too many things in the same time and it doesn't work for me even if I enjoy to watch the leads together.

Flex x Cop This drama is true to its plot and characters and it's really fun.

Captivating the King JJS is saving this drama. It's such a joy to watch him.

Branding in Seongsu What's the plot? Because the FL is just interested in herself and trying to find who tried to kill her and being in the body of a cute boy doesn't change the fact she's awful.

Omo @jillian look who’s here!!! Our wish the other day!!

What I am watching:

_ My Happy Ending (14/16). This week's episodes had some scenes which were really hard to watch. Fortunately, the show is coming to an end. It's not a bad drama but I'm exhausted.

_ Love song for illusion (14/16). These episodes have been better and less boring than the previous ones. I keep saying this drama has a beautiful OST. All the songs are so good.

_ Captivating the King (2/16). First impressions: high production values and very good actors. But I have big issues regarding the main couple. I love both actors, I have watched them in other shows (in fact I think SSK is the actress I have seen the most so far), but I'm having a hard time watching them as a romantic couple in this show. I like them separately, but I don't like their scenes together and maybe it's because I can't understand the ML truly believes she is a man. Just can't. I don't blame the actress... I blame the screenwriter or the PD or whoever is in charge of make-up decisions, because she looks a hundred per cent like a woman 😅 I'm sure my watching experience would be better if the FL was another actress who could disguise as a man in a more believable way. I know this issue has already been discussed in the recaps.
The rest of the show is good and interesting, so I'll keep watching it, at least for the politics. And I hope the main couple can grow on me.

_ C-drama The Forbidden flower (2/24). I don't know what to do with this drama. I didn't like it so far, but maybe it gets better later.

What I have finished:

_ C-drama My marvellous fable. I have enjoyed this drama which mixes reality and fables, treating several themes. Sometimes it's a comedy, sometimes it's dramatic, sometimes it is a thriller, sometimes it's romantic... The visuals are always amazing.

_ Korean movie "A Birth". I feel very lucky because I never thought I would get to watch this movie in the cinema. It's starred by Yoon Shi Yoon, who plays the first Korean catholic priest (and saint). It's a long movie, two hours and a half, but it could have been better as a short drama (about six hours) because all the plot and events would have been better explained. But I liked the movie and the experience. I can't believe I have watched my dear Shi Yoon on the big screen in Spain, in a movie theater full of people. The only bad thing: the movie is dubbed. But at least I could hear Shi Yoon's voice when he spoke in Latin or in French.

Western Shows:

_ All the creatures great and small Season 2.