Every show I completed this week (k-dramas and c-dramas) left me vaguely or completely dissatisfied with the ending. I think that's practically the theme of the year for dramas in 2024 - we need better endings!

COMPLETED
Jeongnyeon: The Star is Born - For me, rather than the climactic performance, the highlight of finale week was the farewell between Joo-ran and Jeong-nyeon. I legit sobbed for all that Joo-ran was losing. Wish we'd gotten more at the end than just the voiceover about them continuing to be artists in different ways.

A Virtuous Business - How do you call your show 정숙한 세일즈, end the show on the opening of a 정숙한 세일즈 store, but not show us how we got there 😭😭. Agree with the comments on the recap - 4 years was way too long a gap and not showing us the process but just the result was a total copout.

ONGOING
Family by Choice - These episodes were so cute - from the hilarious ramen fantasy to the "hyungnimmmm" to Dal's scream/confession. Glad Hae-jun's family is coming together for him finally. Ju-won's response to San-ha's mom was gold.

Brewing Love - Min-joo turned out unexpectedly flirty! The dark room scene had me like 😁. I'm surprised his dad kept in touch with Yong-ju and that we got the saviour reveal already.

Face Me - The cop trying to hide the fact that Jin-seok was the one tailing Jeong-woo was so pointless. How did she expect to end up anywhere other than where she did?

The Fiery Priest S2 - The tonal whiplash from all the comedy to Busan Fire Eel's death (RIP) had me reeling. I think this might be leaning a little too much into the jokes such that the bigger moments lose impact.

STARTED
Marry You - What surprised me most was how maturely the FL handled her ex being her new boss coz she seemed very wishy-washy earlier. I think this is cute enough to continue.

WATCHLIST
Love on a Single Log Bridge! Ju Ji-hoon! Enough said.

C-DRAMAS
Completed Love Game in Eastern Fantasy. I'm conflicted about this one. On the one hand, I appreciate them trying to build a detailed explanation for what happened in the novel and the real world (within the confines of censorship). On the other hand, the off-screen voiceover ending annoys me to death.

Also dragged myself over the line with The Story of Pearl Girl. The plot felt messy and over-complicated and I eventually lost interest. Once again, Liu Yu-ning-stay-alive-at-end-of-drama challenge failed.

Brewing Love: I spy some angst on the horizon but what’s a little kdrama without some angst? Hopefully it stays like the other conflicts and gets resolved through honest conversations and sincere acts of kindness. I’m interested to see how Ju-Ju will handle the reveal of her being the one to save him, and can’t wait to see Ah-reum unwillingly fall harder for our cheesy, toasty, ex-special forces member!

A Virtuous Business: (finished!) I’m glad I read the weecap ahead of time so that the fall of the last episode was broken a bit before I saw it. I can deal with all the birth secret stuff and even the short noble idiocy, but when they introduced a conflict in the last 25 minutes, I knew we were headed for wreckage. BUT I’m busy erasing that from my memory and replacing it with: Do-hyun has his emotional goodbye with his bio-mom and Jeong-suk, and then we cut to 1 year in the future. The mail-order part of the business is thriving! Our ladies still do in-home sales, but mostly to stay sharp and for special events and things, as the majority of the income comes from filling orders. It turns out people really want these products but they don’t always want their neighbors judging them for buying. Baby steps. This is great for Young-bok, who can take her youngest to work with her while her husband looks after the others and works part time at the pharmacy to replace Dae-geum. Together they are able to afford an old junky car that they fix up together and then *take out for a spin* to celebrate their newfound stability. Jeong-suk is about to be promoted to a position in Seoul, and she’s sad to leave her beloved colleagues, but excited to bring her ideas to a wider world. Her sadness is also tempered by the fact that she’ll reunite with Do-hyun, who she has been seeing regularly (if not as much as they both want) throughout the past year and who has a ring burning a hole in his pocket. Their interactions are easy and flirty, and we don’t get anything explicit but there is mutual teasing about *testing* a new product they just got in. You know, for research. Dae-geum and Ju-ri are also doing well, DG is in photography school and when Ju-ri goes to visit him, he uses all the technical terms he knows to flirt with her because he knows how much she loves it. DH has been growing steadily closer with Geum-hee, eating the banchan she sends him home with and staying with her when he comes to town to visit. When he finally proposes she gently ribs him for taking so long to make Jeong-suk her daughter-in-law. We end on the four ladies doing what they do best: breaking barriers, making sales, kicking butt. They prepare for JS’s departure and YB’s takeover of her role, laugh about how far they’ve come, and thank each other for being there through the tough beginning of the virtuous business. Fin.

Brewing love: OOOOh, What will Min Joo do now? His savior is the woman he has a crush on. Well, we are in the back half now, so let the romance commence. I’m rooting for our second leads too.

Parole Lee: I tried and gave up halfway through. Go Soo just isn’t for me.

Family by Choice: We are at the end. I don’t think the apa’s will protest too much. They might be a bit weirded out, but I think we will get through it. I’m looking forward to Hae Joon finally seeing Dal for the beautiful, smart, and fabulous woman that she is.

Marry You: I liked the first couple of episodes. I really like that they seem to be friends and true friends first.

When the Phone Rings: I am so excited for this, work got in the way of watching the first episode, but I will just watch both today.

Love your Enemy: This could be really fun or boring. I hope it is fun.

Gangnam B-side: I did not expect that death. However, I almost understand it. She was tired, but she has Gilho to get revenge for her.

Marry YOU: 💍 I was on the fence about the first episode, but I LOVED the second episode. Lee Yi-kyung is going to hold this drama together like Flex Seal™️! The FL is nice but bland, but she sparkles when she's with the ML - he brings out the best in her. The twins are ADORABLE. And I am utterly CHARMED by Lee Yi-kyung being derpy and hot and absolutely lovely!

When the Phone Rings: ☎️ (ep. 1) It's very stylish and slick in that Netflix-y way, but I never felt tense, and I never felt surprised... hmm.

Parole Examiner Lee👨‍⚖️ (1-2) More fun than I expected! Subtlety is not in this drama's dictionary, though 😂

●31% done with Cheat On Me If You Can WHAT FUN! The twists and turns are beautifully unfurling... great writing!!!
●In other news... Mom really enjoyed A Virtuous Business for the camaraderie of the women and the depth of their stories. She followed that up with What Comes After Love, which she enjoyed and appreciated for its realism and the hopeful ending.

Finished
Cafe Minamdang: I loved this quirky, zany, romp!! The cast was mostly fabulous and the director had a sharp eye on humor. Seo In-guk plays a genius profiler who uses his talents as a sham shaman, with his right-hand man, hacker sister, and inventor/barista maknae rounding out his team. Essentially, they're a grown-up Scooby gang (*and I love it so much*). They're on the trail of a serial killer responsible for the death of the ML's best friend, which forms the basis for the overarching plot. The ML uses humor to mask his intelligence and sharp insights (see also: Shawn Spencer; Lord Peter Wimsey), which is one of my FAVORITE character archetypes. His dynamic with his team is an utter delight, and seeing their chaotic chemistry is a screwball comedy joy. The characters are definitely a strength of this drama, making up for some holes in the writing. What/when characters know certain facts, when they met in the past, and how OLD everyone is in relation to each other, does not necessarily have any connection to reality. The actors and director do their best to make sense of the timeline, but it's definitely a weak point. I do want to note that a few things I thought were lazy writing actually turned out to be clever bait-and-switches, so 미안해 writer-nim!

Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born (11-12): This show wasn't without flaws, and really could've used some additional episodes to flesh things out more, but it was also magical. The entire cast was excellent, and I certainly hope they win awards, because they all deserve it. Ju-ran's ending will probably always rub me the wrong way though.

Face Me (5-6): Wasn't expecting our mystery stalker/ presumed killer to be Min-hyung's brother, so that was an interesting twist, though I don't think he actually killed anybody. Also, I can understand why Jung-woo is upset that Min-hyung didn't tell him the truth, but I don't think she did anything wrong, and I don't think she was under any obligation to tell him either. Anyway, while I don't think the show is particularly great, I'm really enjoying it. And adding to that, those cliffhangers are enough to make me look forward to the next episode. I'm hoping Hyo Ju survives, even if it's not looking good right now.

Summer Strike (3-5): This show really is a great reminder that no matter where you go, there are awful people everywhere, so you should probably surround yourself with the few good ones. And obviously that you should find a cute puppy, because they make everything better.

Iron Family
I'm still loving this, a good family weekender with humour that is totally my cup of tea. This week we saw the first contact of Aunt and Bom's Appa and what a gentleman he is. 😍

Family by Choice
I have always loved the two Dads together, quarrelling, sharing their troubles, discussing the kids, sharing a pint of beer... but this week I finally also enjoyed both young couples - the growing connection between Dal and Haejun and how supportive and gentle they can be with each other (I just wish it were Haejun who (finally!) realised his feelings and confessed)... and I like how natural and at ease Joowon and Sanha looked as a couple (that cuddle on a sofa 😊).
I'm also sooooo glad that Sanha decided to stop being with the person who hurts him and lives now with people who love him. And he is so basking in Joowon's presence (and loves watching her eating 🙂). Joowon also seems to be able to handle Psycho Mom, I cheered when she claimed Sanha back.

Virtuous Business
I really enjoyed the first half, but I lost my interest towards the end. It became too simplistic and I missed the quartet together. (I also admit that the omitting of the adopted parents and their love irritated me). I liked Pharmacist enjoying the full house. He looked really happy. 🙂

Face Me, ep.5
I watch mainly for Han Jihyun.

Smexy Yoo Yeonseok and Secretly Steely (and Daring) Chae Soobin
Omo, I think I have my new crack!
A thrilling romance. Literally. I can't wait for episode 2. 😊

Jeong-Nyeon: The Star is Born: 9.0 Nailed the ending, including the closing credits.
- Why was Jeong-Nyeon's mom so opposed to her singing? Why not encourage/train her but also warn her not to overdo it and trash her voice???? But then things would have been too simple.
- So the characters in the most unconventional show I've seen this year were worried that their new production might be too unconventional. Watch out for these writers.
- One good thing about having only 12 episodes was they didn't waste an hour on predictable happy-ever-aftering.
- Asianwiki thinks several of the background performers had very few TV or movie credits. I think 2 had none. So they were picked because they had training in traditional opera (??)
- The cynics in me wonder how much of the impressive singing was purely the cast and how much was due to heroic efforts by a horde of sound techs... then all they had to do when Jeong-Nyeon ruined her voice was give those guys some time off (???).
- And I still want to know what auditions for the show sounded like. How many people tried out and how many of them were horrible?

Fiery Priest s2: 6.5

A Virtuous Business: 7.0 Why couldn't they skip the whole ML adoption/mommy arc and fill in the 4-year gap when the business recovered? 😠

Marry You: 6.5

Parole Examiner Lee: 5.5 As the Holiday Season approaches, I'm feeling charitable on the scoring.

Face Me: 6.5

When The Phone Rings: 7.0

With shows like Jeong-Nyeon, Dog Knows & Judge over and gone... No, I'm not in a drama slump, Kdramaland is.

A VIRTUOUS BUSINESS (Ep 11-12) The chemistry of the four leading ladies was the highlight of this show. I understand that each of the four ladies needed to have a personal event that humbles them, hurts them and sets them up for future success by perseverance. The show was moving along until the end. The ending failed to stick the landing with the 4 year time skip. There are too many open questions on every relationship especially when just before the time skip, all the characters were in deep quicksand. We dislike when a show “tells” us instead of “showing” us what happens, but in this finale, it does neither. Disappointing. The series probably needed two more episodes or less time in side arcs (such as the detective's mystery birth case) to see how the ladies navigated their losses, balanced their lives, and got back on their feet. The four female leads were strong in acting and their chemistry. Their collective story was a good ride that ended in a non-exciting fashion.

BREWING LOVE (Ep 5-6) Episode 5 was like a student music video without a soundtrack. The ML’s “condition” is a real drag on the show. And just as you are about to doze off, there are disconnected FL superhero moments. A comic book page montage did not help. Put his one on hold for . . .

MARRY YOU (Ep 1-2) Episode 1 gave a complete backstory to the FL’s single by choice decision. The foreshadowing is heavy with her retirement dreams. Perhaps, unsaid but noteworthy, is the fact she may just be bad at the marriage game (her cheating ex and failed matchmaking job). We ping pong between her dead end civil servant job and the horrible promotion assignment to marry off an island bumpkin. It is a true rom-com but it relies heavily on past story lines, weird rural characters, and smarter-than-adult cute kids. At light speed, the end finds our FL trying to fool her ex with a failed fake marriage proposal with islander Bong. It is a promising start but it may fall into an uninteresting pile of average shows.

Episode 2 follows the stereotypical pattern of current rom-coms: the ex is her boss; the islander is a fish-out-of-water in big city dating; ML teddy bear personality hits with rich heiress. It ends with a projection of a love rectangle of future entanglements and past regrets. At this point, I don’t think Jo Soo-Min as enough screen personality to carry the show. Her part seems to have been written for Park Eun-Bin.

Brewing Love (Episode 5-6) - Mood: D+
I was hoping against hope that it wasn’t going to be that cliche with the forgotten saviour trope but then again, I’m sure we will see the dramatic backstory soon. I don’t particularly fancy this whole ‘do I like him/her’ stuff as far as narratives go but it’s not like the story was aiming for substance anyway with all of those corporate machinations. Just switch off your brain!

Hi Beanies! Enjoy the weekend!

What I'm watching:

_ Marry You (2/12). Even though the first episode didn't have a good start (it was giving me Cinderella at 2am's bad vibes), it got better. The second episode was very enjoyable and I have spent the whole week looking forward to the next episodes.
Lee Yi Kyung is the main reason I'm watching it, but the drama is entertaining and light, like old rom-coms.

_ Grand Prince (13/20). As @midnight said last week, there are shows that are intense for the sake of it. This is one of them. Lots of crying, lots of suffering (not me, but the characters), no time of peace for the good ones... Definitely, this is not a funny and light fussion sageuk. However, the (very scarce) comedy moments work well, so I wish there were more.

_ C-drama The Bond (20/36). One of the best slice-of-life shows I have ever watched, Asian or not.

What I have finished:

_ KBS Special Anyone, Anywhere (2023). It's about bullying and it's well done. Schools and highschools should show this movie.

_ KBS Special Overlap Knife Knife (2023). This is about second chances to change things (magically, time traveling), which is an interesting theme, but I didn't understand the message or moral.

_ C-drama The Story of the Pearl Girl. It seems I'm one of the few beanies, if not the only one, who has liked and enjoyed this drama. I admit the first half was better, imo. I was excited thinking this would be a show about adventures in different exotic places. But the second half of the story was the usual costume C-drama about commerce, with all the characters living in the same city and doing business/fighting the bad ones. And the ending was quite rushed. But I think it has been an interesting experience, and Liu Yuning and Zhao Lu Si are simply awesome (even more when they are together).

Sadly, I watched way too much of the batsh*t reality show airing this side of the Pacific. But hey, at least one of em is off the island. #IYKYK

Thankfully, for a good long while after the final performance in Jeongnyeon, I completely forgot where I was, who I was, so completely was I immersed in the world of gukgeuk. Yes, it was an imperfect show, and I would do a dozen things differently. But nonetheless, it was also a fantastic drama for me. And rather than dissect it, I'll just sit with that glorious feeling you get at the end of a grand finale.

(Now, who's ready for a Wicked weekend? We could really use some witches right about now.)

I'm watching most of the currently airing shows, and while they're fine, sometimes even good, but I'm much more excited by the upcoming ones this week with some of my faves: Yoo Yeon-seok, Joo Ji-hoon and Gong Yoo? It's the Oppacalypse! Woo-hoo!

Brewing Love I usually like the actors but in this one, I found them pretty bland like the rest of the drama.

Parole Examiner Lee I thought the ML was the guy who helps with the reintegration of the ex-cons but he's a lawyer. My bad.

Family by Choice The main couple doesn't work for me. The family theme is the best part.

Face Me The ML woke up from his coma state and now the story is interesting.

Marry YOU It feels more like a webdrama : the story, the acting, the direction...

When the Phone Rings I have so many questions! But it looks exciting!

Love Your Enemy I'm ready for it!

Gangnam B-Side I don't think the detective was responsible, she went for her friend and it was her own decision. But I hoped she will get a better life.

Wow, for once in time for the WWW thread, woohooo! 👏

I’m still happily watching BREWING LOVE, no questions asked. It’s pretty, soothing, full of good vibes and dancy villagers. I don’t ask for much more these days! Oh, and surprisingly little coma-drinking. Who would have thought?

Finished A VIRTUOUS BUSINESS, and absolutely loved the - uhh…. - womance. Our four main ladies aced it! The ending could have been tighter, and I agree with some of the criticism stated in the recap discussion, but overall I’m happy that I watched it. The styling was *chef’s kiss*

I also finished MR PLANKTON and enjoyed the ride. I thought the depiction of the main couple’s relationship felt very natural and realistic. Flawed people making flawed decisions. It was a nice detour into a slightly different genre that I usually watch. Absolutely refreshing!

Very much looking forward to start watching LOVE YOUR ENEMY tonight 👏🥳💖

LIVE WATCHES:

1. FAMILY BY CHOICE - This drama is coming along nicely. The main couple's ship has sailed. One of the absentee mothers redeemed herself somewhat and there's so much love just radiating from the family.

2. BREWING LOVE - I continue to find this a nice relaxing watch and the main couple is just lovely.

COMPLETED:

1. A VIRTUOUS BUSINESS - This was a nice feminist watch that pulled no punches with issues that affect women ranging from domestic violence to single motherhood.

OTHER WATCHES:

1. TAXI DRIVER 2 - The villain of season 2 is absolutely despicable and the entire cast just nails it.

2. TOKYO OVERRIDE - This just dropped on Netflix and it's a pretty good animation series for teens. The FL is a street-savvy tech genius who ends up running with a do-gooding rebel motorcycle gang in a futuristic Tokyo.

Iron Family - Crosswalk is paying more than he did and I don't like it at all. The talk he had with Ji at the sauna wasn't smoothing things either. He's (Crosswalk) still withdrawn from him as a result of the whole saga and Ji's reaction to it.
I'm disappointed that Cha Rim's first thought was to attempt to do Crosswalk's design when it the truckload of weight pulls in the team was unveiled. For someone who complained about someone stealing her work, she sure has no problem doing something on the same vein and even higher magnitude to someone who has never eyed her pieces.

Chairman Ji remains the king of memes in Iron Family. I'd like to give this week's award to Crosswalk.

His mom on the other hand, I'm guessing Kim Hye-eun saw something in this character to make her sign up for this. So far she's handling the spoilt child part so well. It is well characterized.
Another person I'll make the same comment about is Jo Bok-rae. I'm now seeing that it is time for him to get into the story proper and the one liners will be getting limited.

Doubt 1-4 - I undertook a 13-hour road journey and thought to watch the four downloaded episodes that have been living rent-free on my phone.

I love the conflict. But, there's one thing I'll be glad this drama does - let the daughter be the culprit. It won't be an unpredictable one from me if it turns out so. But, it'll be different from the many dramas of this sort that has been released.

Truly, his daughter has been innocent of the previous crimes. But someone, she's not innocent in this one thanks to her father always presuming she's the suspect whenever something goes wrong.
It'll provide a flip to the popular saying that no one believes a lier when (she) is saying the truth. The one moment when he decides to believe his daughter and not find her guilty until proven innocent, she's actually guilty.

Gangnam B-Side 1&2 - Why am I still watching this? The action. I almost dropped this at mid-episode 1 but something told me to continue. I've not connected to this yet but I am enjoying the action here. The law part isn't living up to the prosecuting to my taste yet but I believe there is something more coming up. The corrupt police guy though😤😤😤.
Ji Chang-wook, I sight you.

Virtuous Business: it was a fun ride and it did get a happy ending BUT the ending was also rushed and not quite satisfying. I'm typically not opposed to time-skips, but it used a time-skip (4 years) as a magic wand to fix a crisis that could have yielded a lot of interesting material (didn't even try to montage it!). This should have been a 14-episoder at the very least.

Fiery Priest 2: Love the wackiness and how it gets me breaking into smiles. LOL every time our priest and prosecutor have their clandestine meetups. I'm excited for the entire team to get together in Busan.

Love Like the Galaxy (cdrama, episodes 27-28): Slow-watching this now. I am continually amazed at how the drama can make slow scenes and montages interesting -even if it's just in the emotional sense- to watch. I feel less put-out with the ML after he offered the FL some snacking bread. When in doubt, the stomach is the way to the heart.

Smile Code (cdrama, up to ep 11): played it while doing chores. Nothing really happens from episode to episode so I'm barely paying attention, but I really dig the vibes. It takes place in current times, but it feels like it can take place in any of the last 3 decades? Shen Yue can make me tolerant of any emotionally-stunted ML.

Will catch up on Iron Family this weekend.

YYS in 3-piece suit has be 😍

Still watching ‘Face Me’ - nothing to talk about but an easy mid week watch.

Brewing Love: it’s slow but pretty. Very pretty.

Love Game in Eastern Fantasy - Ep 10. Feels too silly at times. Ryan and Esther are lovely though. Will watch some more for their scenes together but I highly doubt I will finish it.

Eagerly waiting for Joppa today!!

Jeongnyeon: It was glorious to watch a show about theatre created by people who clearly love and understand theatre. Often shows about theatre use the actual performances as colorful window dressing, but this one put them front and center and showed why gukgeuk captivated 1950's audiences by captivating 2020's audiences. The drama also features the best ensemble cast I've seen all year, and the fact that all of them are women is the icing on the cake. The plot structure could be clunky at times and I wish it had just charged ahead and included the (offstage) kiss scenes that were clearly meant to be there, but it's still hands down my favorite k-drama I've watched this year.

A Virtuous Business: This had such a promising first half, but the second half decided to take an unconventional, quirky story and dump a salt-shaker's worth of k-tropes on top of it, and by the time we'd gone through hit and runs and birth secrets and arrived at "I have to disappear for several years and will be inexplicably unable to use a phone while I'm gone" I was done. Also, are you really going to create a protagonist who becomes an evangelist for sexy stuff and never once show her enjoying using a single thing that she sells with another human being? Because when you do, I question your commitment to the idea that women embracing sexual pleasure is nothing to be ashamed of.

Happy Saturday, Beanies!

MERMAID AND SHARK INSPIRATIONAL TALE THE STORY OF PEARL GIRL: I was wrong about this drama – it's truly one of a kind! Rich, deep, enlightening in its message of hard work and suffering bringing just reward (of even more suffering and losses – so Buddhist! see, it even has an additional cultural value!), while selfish petty villainy makes you rich, your enemies (aka good guys) pleasantly dead and, in case if you're a lady, all your misdeeds easily forgiven, because it's always men at fault, never you. Ditch them asap, don't forget to accept their fortune from their dying hands, and you're good, queen! The way writer could've just post “men are trash” on her Weibo and be done with it, but chose to write a whole ass 40 episodes drama to stress the same point for our sake – how generous! It's not every day I see someone with a word vomit syndrome far worse than mine, wow! *claps*

Of course, we cannot ignore technical merits of the show either: the erratic pace that would leave a mating rabbit proud, the cuts so sharp you can never blink too slowly in fear of losing narrative's trace for good (what a brilliant idea! surely the promise of Yuning baring his tits in 4K would never glue me and millions of other perv... I mean, people to the screen regardless!), the hammering preachy speeches thinly veiled as uplifting messages (“don't let anyone hold you back”, says he before conveniently expiring exiting stage left to emancipate her from the dreadful fate of happy loving marriage with him), the tonal deafness of inserting BGM where it shouldn't be – like romantic ballad when characters writhe in agony, the heartwarming, cathartic and vagueness-free brave ending that 100% adds that rarely found in cdramas nowadays rewatch value... I could go on and on about other virtues of this production, but see for yourselves, don't wait for silly things like OTP-only fanmade cut or fix-it fanfics, it's a story totally worth ~40 hours of your life!

P.S. Tits were good tho. For real. Chinese Sean Bean in the making is SO ready for more daring scenes – physique-wise at least, despite all his coquettish denial. TPOB, where art thou?

For those in the mood for VERY dark humor – stats time!
https://x.com/the_missnanette/status/1859077849317335479

I’m coming off a more than 2 year drama slump. I’ve watched serendipity’s embrace, my sweet mobster and doctor slump. I’ve picked up brewing love which I like so far and will be watching Marry You. There’s all these gorgeous slick dramas being produced which I seem to have no inclination to watch. Instead I’m all for childhood loves, past connections, found family, rural setting, and full of sunshine Candy FLs.It’s like my brain has regressed to drama land circa 2015-16.

Parole Examiner Lee. The characters haven't completely hooked me yet, but I began get to more interested as hints of the revenge plot were revealed.

Face Me. I keep saying how very bad this is, but it's low-stakes (because I'm not deeply invested in the characters), and it's entertaining. And I can't stop watching.

Marry You. I enjoyed the first two episodes. From the promo material, I was expecting this to be painful and heavy-handed and full of stock characters. But the writing is actually quite light touch so far, and the male lead really likable.

When the Phone Rings. Very stylish and Netflixy first episode. At first I thought we were going to have one of those helpless deer-caught-in-the-headlights female leads, and that this wouldn't be my thing. But then the plot veered off somewhere else entirely. I'm interested to see where this goes.

Dong-jae, The Good or The Bastard ep 9/10

This. Show. Is. PERFECT! No other comment needed!

Iron Family ep 11/36

I'm glad that the focus on Taewoong has shifted from Darim having a crush on him to his bio dad. Poor Gang Joo.

Brewing Love: FL is a better person than me because I would not be able to tolerate her workplace mistreatment with such equanimity. Those managers seem like good examples of trained incompetence. Is she really superwoman, or are all those coworkers waiting for her to rescue them so incapable? I do like the OTP's quieter moments together, though. And it would be nice to see the FL put down her many burdens for once.

Iron Family: So entertaining, and really so well written. The characters are beautifully flawed and human. They might drive you nuts, but you also understand where they're coming from. Can't believe I'm saying this but -- are there enough episodes to do all the storylines justice?

Face Me: Solid midweek procedural, although some of the OR shots aren't necessary. If I wanted liposuction close-ups, I'd watch "Doctor 90210."

Love Game in Eastern Fantasy: Awww ... wasn't expecting such wholesome lessons about personal growth in a fantasy costume drama.

Smile Code: I've fast-forwarded at times but just want to say: the FL's mom ranks up there with the very best mothers of dramaland. She is hands-down wonderful -- warm, funny, wise, loving and respectful of her daughter's choices. There would be a lot less drama-trauma if there were more mothers like her.

Story of Pearl Girl: Just getting started because of the Netflix release schedule. Wow, the opening credits and production value are simply gorgeous. I can see it's not going to be an easy watch, but hopefully it'll be a rewarding one.

IRON FAMILY: This is my first weekender (knowingly). I like the cast. It is a real pleasure to see Shin Hyun Joon who I absolutely loved in Stairway to Heaven. I'm just 7 episodes in trying to play catch up. I have mixed feelings so far. I'm not liking the sort of silly music sound effects or the immature child-like adult characters. But, I'm loving grandma and grandpa. Looking forward to more! Can't they just start a Go Fund Me page????????

Jeungnyeon: The Star Is Born This was just a fantastic show and I only have very few complaints and many more thanks to give. For drama, for new knowledge, for beautiful performances, for retro-progressivity, … For the many characters worth knowing.
It also made me think of the inspiration for Brecht for a lot of the things he made. In the literature about Brecht I have not seen a lot of thoughts about the Asian (mainly Chinese) inspiration for his work, but it’s there, and this drama made me imagine more things, also about the inspiration for Hanns Eisler. I could easily imagine some of his melodies for Brecht’s lyrics as being his European early 20th century rendering of an art similar to panso. Thinking that makes it more beautiful, more interesting, and a little awkward at the same time – the art of imperfect imitation.
Virtuous Business: That was a fine show, though no one masters the art of watering out the ending with beyond-reasonably-sensible time skips and making it less interesting than K-dramawriters.
Also, or on the other hand, depending on how you see it, the last few minutes was so extremely symbolic that it was almost like idk, agit-prop, or something like that “Okay, these people represent progress, and these represent bigotry, and notice where this person stands … etc.
Iron Family: Though a lot of the characters are remarkably mean to each other, I love this. The ML is super cute, also in spite of not being kind to his ehm, …, rather-disconnected-through-the-same-father brother-by-another-mother.
Encounter: This is one to see solely to see Park Bo Gum be super cute all the time. And also, that chauffeur, Ko Chang-seok. Kim Joo-hyun does well here, too, and for once does not have that creepy feel I have seen him perform so well before.
Brewing love: Someone says ”too cartoonish” and I make a screeching U-turn and to find it on Viki. I’m gonna see this!
Mr. Plankton Very beautiful. Tragic, but not nauseatingly ugly-tragic like I had feared.
Not a K-drama:
The Promotion Record of Crown Princess (Web Novel) The origin behind Mr. Queen, before the Chinese youtube series. It has it’s charms, some things I like, while in other matters I very much prefer the filmed stories. When I heard that this story 1) existed and 2) ended much more like my fan version (that I make in my head at every rewatch of Mr. Queen), I just had to read this. One important difference is that the protagonist knows that he cannot go back to his old life and doesn’t try to. Another thing is that the soul that used to be inside the queen-to-be actually gets to swap to his former body, even if we (I am at chapter 51) hitherto have only had one glimpse of a few seconds of her lively life there.
The language in some places is so strange that it seems like an imperfectly edited machine translation. Reading it feels like skimming. I also miss out on some...

Brewing Love (6/12) - so far, it's been a very cozy and healing watch, at least to me. Love watching this after work, it helps me unwind bc so far it's just attractive people chilling and being cute & kind, with no real antagonists or high stakes problems on the horizon.

My Dress Up Darling (7/10) - I am one of the 5 people who actually likes this drama, for the same reasons as Brewing Love. I think the characters are charming and very kind. I love all the feel good messages, its low stakes plot and overall coziness.... Everyone else HATES it, from fans of the original manga and anime, both overseas and in Japan, to the mangaka themself (!!). So I assume we're not getting another season :(

A Sweet Marriage with an Overprotective Young Heir (COMPLETED, 6/6) - You will love this drama if you like absurdly long titles, hot people doing cute stuff, married couple doing married couple stuff (intense makeout sessions & PG-13 bed scenes), and traditional gender roles. If you like dramas with an actual plot, excitement or good acting, you should pass. There's a reason it took me like 3 months to get through this.

Dropped in on PAROLE EXAMINER LEE, because Go Soo. I've seen just one of his previous performances, the light movie LOVE 911 (2012), and I really like this actor. He's got a slightly too handsome everyman quality about him, and he's capable and authentic.

Up to date on IRON FAMILY, and my happy watch of the week goes to Choi Tae Joon and Park Ji Young for their moving scene in ep. 16. I love the way this mother rounds on her "found" son for excluding her from the misery he's experienced. And I love the way Choi Tae Joon bares his misery to his "found" mother. What a lovely performance by these two.

Six episodes in to NUMBERS (2023) and while I respect the premise, I'm over my head with the convoluted accounting storylines. Even with DB recaps, I'm confused. It's a good show, but boy is it dense.

Caught the first episode of WHEN THE PHONE RINGS on Netflix. I pretty much adored Yoo Yeon Seok in the HOSPITAL PLAYLIST series. But I might not stick with this. This may be equivalent to the ugly GONE GIRL (2014), where both leads are unredeemable.

Regretfully, I completed JOY OF LIFE (2019) season 1, because now I can't watch season 1 again for the first time. You know a show is extra special when the demise of a crack villain (Xiao En/Yu Rong Guang) moves you to tears. Going to be some foot dragging as I digest all this before heading into season 2.

Upcoming, I'm going to head back to complete MY JOURNEY TO YOU, THE SIDE STORY OF FOX VOLANT, and maybe NOTHING GOLD CAN STAY. Not ready yet for angsty dramas with destructive endings. DB contributors -- I'm looking for recommendations on good historical dramas that can help build my knowledge of Korean and Chinese history. With thanks in advance...

Gangnam B-Side: Ah yes, the curse of the 8 ep drama... I get the sense that the writer wrote a 16 episode season and was forced to fit it into 8. I still think it's worth watching because the acting is amazing and it's a great story, despite the pacing. I hope we get a 2nd season with more freedom for writer-nnim.

Love Between Fairy and Devil: Definitely one of the most angsty shows I've watched.
But...Dylan Wang smolders*
Me: 10/10!

Fiery Priest S2: This is turning into a comedy dumpster fire. Can we have less slapstick and better writing please?

Dandadan: I'm surprised at how good this is. Pretty sure every anime fan ugly cried during EP. 7.

Thinking of watching Dongjae The Good or The Bastard...

THE PHONE: At first, the splashy, predictable opening almost lost me; I truly cannot anymore with kdrama scenes where everyone comments on how handsome the ML is. I have eyes that can clock that even without glasses, thanks! But once we cut to the FL and the whole middle finger mountain scene, I was hooked. I love the pace, the unexpected intrigue and power of a mute FL who is not powerless, and a ML who is obviously more than he appears.

MR. PLANKTON: Finally finished this last weekend, and the obvious tragic denouement aside, I surprisingly loved the ending. Having the last shot be a wandering car was so fitting to the series, which championed the joyous and healing discoveries that come with continuing forward even when you're not certain where you're going. This was a well written and original drama in the way it never shied from its own vision, and didn't try to make everything ok in the end (namely, a death sentence remained a death sentence). At the same time, it was so hopeful and often very funny, with a couple at the center who were cute, sexy, frustrating, and obviously made for each other. I'm not sure I buy the reveal that Dad basically maintained a shrine to his lost son (a parent capable of coldly shutting out his child for years and who had that son's contact info but didn't reach out later is unlikely to show such love and devotion in this way), and it was weird that moms were pretty much erased from the narrative entirely (with the exception of the unconventional mom figure of Bong suk, but this one will still be in my Top Five of the Year.

IRON FAMILY: I am still loving this, but Tae Oong and Cha Rim got all my eye rolls this week. If the writer is going for a story of how familiar attraction fades in the light of adult reality, and that both end up with partners for whom they are more suited, that's great. But I suspect I'm supposed to see true love here, and it's just not clicking for me yet. I've emphasized with Cha Rim's insistence that her future husband be ambitious and financially secure, but her dismissive text to Tae Oong while she was on the blind date, and her subsequent lack of remorse (until she found out he was rich and then just assumed he'd immediately be thrilled to be her boyfriend) certainly didn't convince me that she really cares for him. And his petulance and secret keeping don't bespeak deep adoration for her, either. Our leads, however, are progressing in a sweeter, more believable way, with a real foundation of friendship. I hope there will be payoff relatively soon, though. In other news, I didn't care for grandma hitting the Aunt for divorcing her sleaze of a husband, but I am glad we're now at the beginning of a new romantic start for her and Bom's dad.

VIRTUOUS BUSINESS: I ended up dropping this when it was clear that the theme of sexual health and liberation for women wasn't going to truly extend to our FL, and the continual struggles and tragedies got to be too much...

Still loving Goblin, which I'm having to crawl through, cos my son has made me promise to not watch without him LOL. This has made me add King Eternal Monarch onto my watchlist too.
And OMG... Yoo Yeon Seok is blindingly hot in the first ep of When The Phone Rings, so I'm going to have to keep my shades firmly on for the next, because I. Am. Hooked! Hoping it stays as good throughout.
Love Your Enemy seems promising, but then I'm only 10 mins into ep 1, so let's see ;}

Looks like watching kdramas piece meal is going to be the norm for the rest of the year.
Iron Family-i usually love even episodes in kdramas as you often get the cycles of conflict or miscommunication resolved then (until 12 when it’s just disconnection to whatever ending you get). Yet with Iron Family , I think the odd number episodes are the best. They are usually the height of comedy and shenanigans while even episodes are where the high drama moments happen. Regardless, it’s so fun! We know where we are likely going and all the fun is how we get there.

Face Me- good acting for a throw away show I can watch enjoyably for the 45 minutes I have and yet doesn’t make me go to bed late

Virtuous Business-I was going to finish this up this weekend, but it looks like the ending isn’t satisfying from the posts here I tried to not see spoilers on. (Can we discuss ending details on show recap pages?)

Mr. Plankton- started last night. It’s well done but I end up feeling dissatisfied rooting for either man after episode 2. Incredibly sexy kidnapper? Boring but touchingly kind fiancé? Passion or stability, seems like a girl can’t have both. But I am very curious where they go from here.
I have started quite a few other shows that I hope to go back to and finish when the mood and holidays strike.
C-drama: Fangs of Fortune- I love the high moments of C fantasies the most, but their angst, self-sacrificial fighting moments are the worst. Not going to watch the last 15 episodes of that.

We were without power for two days this week because of a meteorological event known as a ‘Bomb Cyclone’. Thanks to our wood stove were not only did not freeze but even enjoyed hot tea and other things that can be prepared on a stove top. However, it did put a major kink into our drama watching. I was unable to get to this week’s episodes of FACE ME for example.

However, I did get to watch BREWING LOVE and it is doing OK. Surprise ending: His father kept in touch with our FL after she saved our ML six years ago- maybe the writer figured out that previously showing dad as a caricature of a major general was not smart.

MARRY YOU has the absolutely cutest pair of kids ever- and a pretty good plot. Love squares are much better than love triangles. This show uses a lot of tropes but varies them for their standard presentation. Our 2FL Chaebol Heiress is looking for a man with a heart of gold rather than someone of her social class- which is why she can be a real 2FL in this story. Our Country Bumpkin ML is a country bumpkin but he is also brave, kind and incredibly capable: Lee Yi-kyung was the perfect choice for this character which allows his comic side to shine.

My wife finished the Chinese Costume drama DASHING YOUTH which was been entertaining but not an all-time favorite. She has also started the new Chinese Costume drama REVENGE OF THE REBORN PRINCESS. We are watching LOVE GAME IN EASTERN FANTASY together- but at a slower pace because of my work. Not a great C-drama but fun.

My wife also watched the second season of EMPRESS on Netflix.

My favorite show right now is our weekender IRON FAMILY. It has been a while since I could say that about a weekender. Our romance between Bom’s dad and our FL’s beautiful aunt has begun. Yippee.

Looking forward to LOVE YOUR ENEMY (Love on a Single Log Bridge) which is on my Viki watchlist.

I am on the fence about watching WHEN THE PHONE RINGS but definitely plan on watching THE TRUNK.

This week, after finishing the frothy feelgood feature of family fun that was Doubt, where a mother and father suspected their daughter of murder because she was mildly autistic, destroying themselves in the process, I found more philosophical fare: Brewing Love and Marry You. Now, those of you watching these two issue oriented shows know that they both consider the fate of rural life in a Korea where the birth rate is near zero.

Of course they are different. One has a serious, sensitive male lead who brews; the other has a goofy sensitive male lead who cooks. One has a driven competent female lead who clashes with corporate bureaucracy; the other has a driven competent female lead who clashes with government bureaucracy. One features cute cat cameos; the other features cute kid cameos.

But these obvious differences aside, what is striking is how they both provide a sobering sociological study of a way of life facing extinction—whether its of boisterous brewers in the bucolic backwaters of Busan, or of boating bumpkins by the Briny Blue.

Still, what strikes me in watching these shows is their universal humanity, which all of us—no matter nationality, creed, or color—can relate to. We are all, at heart, brewers. We are all bumpkins. We are brumpkins.

Watching C dramas Rise of Ning

Time traveler See Her Again

Saw a recommendation for J time travel comedy Futekisetsu ni mo Hodo ga Aru! (2024)/Extremely Inappropriate
PE Teacher from 80’s transports to present day .

Currently I am not watching any K-Dramas, while waiting for "Family by choice" to end, so that I can binge it.

Instead I am finally in on C-Drama. For the past months I have been watching several shows in this order (in reserve order)

Are you the one (almost finished and loving it)
The Rise of Ning
Love like the Galaxy
Fireworks of my Heart
Love between Fairy and Devil
Story of Kunning Place
The Legend of ShenLi

Just started my first rewatch of Jealousy Incarnate, and thoroughly enjoying it, maybe even more this time around since I know the plot and can pay attention to more detail.

A Virtuous Business 👙 ep11-12 *finale* the mother and son were cute in their awkwardness. Jeong Suk is smart to have plans to get them close asap. I wish I have seen more of them in the last scenes. But of course the main story is the success of the professional lives of our main friend group. I love this drama so much and I am glad that I watched this. I enjoyed their individiual stories as well and I am happy that each got their own HEA. 😊
The History of Us ✒️👸 Nam Da Reum and Tang Jun Sang were both amazing in this drama special. This has a potential to be a great movie if the story is fleshed out more. I have watched The Throne so I am familiar with King Yeongjo and Crown Prince Sado's story. Crown Prince Yi San understandably has a rough road ahead of him despite his grandfather's backing. I didnt like what he had to resort to to move forward with his reign. History buff in me is baffled that they needed to resort to that. History is written by the winners after all.

Gangnam B Side 🚔 ep5-6 This two episodes felt like the action was toned down a bit because the two leads were driven into hiding by the enemies. We get to see a bit more on what happens deeper into the criminal underworld and its not pretty. I am upset that we lost a character but it acts like an impetus to the other characters into doing something out of guilt, anger and justice. I feel like things will be tragic but I do not want the bad guys to win in the end.

New Life Begins 🧮 ep10-24 i enjoyed these episodes so much. I like the relationships between the princes and their wives. Maybe not all since I felt bad about a couple of them. I did love the main love story and the secondary love story. I enjoyed the addition of Ying and the restaurant storyline. I like thay Zheng and Wei are honest with each other about their feelings. It took a long time but I am happy they worked it out.

The Story of Pearl Girl 💎🦪 ep1-5 I liked the first five episodes. Its mostly setup for the story of both leads. Bad things happened to them and ML and FL are thrust together in the first part of their journey. A lot has happened that I felt that there will be a lot more of their journey to show us. It looks like a quality drama and the CGi can be polished more if post production was given more time. The FL's journey is not without its hiccups but I like the ML's revenge story more.

Kill Me Love Me 🗡 ep5 this is on pause.

Europe Outside My Tent: Romantic Italy🎒🥾 ep6 I am behind but I will getto this soon.

Buenas tardes Beanies. I am returning from a wonderful sojurn in Mexico: La Paz - the capital of Baja California Sur. So if you look at that strange finger below San Diego you will see a Pacific coast and a Gulf coast, We were on the gulf coast.
From 2 feet of snow here at home, to swimming in warm water - just saying,
I loved watching Eastern Fantasy and not much else.
Can I share how wonderful it was to experience the Mexican Revolution celebration? I was reading a book on a second floor balcony just off the Malecon - a bayside walkway. Up pulls a family with kids in the back of the car. They were my 5th graders crammed into the back seat. I decided to wave. I was returned with 6 waves, Then I shot them a Korean heart, Six hearts came back. When they exploded out of the car I rejoiced, Who can't remember that kind of excitement?
From then on I decided to wave to every family I saw walking to the Malecon. This was the best. So many friendly waves returned.
We must be determined to be to be friendly kind. ALWAYS

LOVE GAME IN EASTERN FANTASY (finished): I know some people don't like the ending but I did. It made sense. However, I don't much fancy the way it was executed. Initially, this drama was wonderful. But at the half-way mark, it began showing issues with pacing and these issues became really, really, glaring towards the end. Just looking at the story, I felt the ending made a lot of things make sense. Some, well all, of the plot lines were overly simplistic and almost cartoonish and finding out the novel was written by a 16 year-old boy was such a lightbulb moment for me. It explained fully well why I sometimes felt I was watching Naruto and why Inuyasha comments were frequently showing up in the corner of my screen at Viki.

ATYPICAL FAMILY (ep 2): I don't know how I feel about this yet but I like the family dynamics of the Bok's way more than any romantic possibility.

LOST YOU FOREVER 2 (ep 15): I came down with a cold this week and while lazily slumbering 15 minutes, the story made a bigger leap than in the previous 5 episodes. I had started to think they were going to skip it altogether. Then all of sudden, we're there, and we're done.

Sigh. I feel 2024 is the year of pacing issues. A lot of both Kdramas and Cdramas I've watched during the year has suffered from this. Case in point Serendipity, Love Next Door, What Comes After Love, Snow Fall...
Not just simple issues, but slow-mo slouching of deep but unproductive dialogue suddenly thrust forward through story mode faster than you can brew yourself a new cup of tea. And you come back to the screen going "Whaaat....just happened".

Iron Family continues to be my current favorite. The fact that numerous Beanies worry the 36-episode count may not do it justice is an indication of what a good drama to be had. It’s like having a warm and smooth hot chocolate (which is inadequate to describe the great writing, character construct, and plot moves as well as the humour.)

Love Your Enemy Ep 1 - not bad, not bad. The youth cast and the unexpected cameos (!) are additional bonus. Joopa doing comedy - what a hoot!

My Plankton - finished and a nice watch. Hope the last few episodes could be tightened. One one hand, I think it should just be 8 episodes but how about completing the dad search as there are two more to go. The main cast all performed well and deserve recognition.

Broker (movie) - this is the watch of the week for me! I regret not watching it earlier. To quote a reviewer, “ This is a strangely beautiful gift from one of the best movie directors” - so very true. It kept me 110% engaged while the film rolled and has kept me thinking since watching it last night. In many ways, it’s very similar to the earlier movie of the director (Hirokazu Kore-eda), Shoplifters. Squarely on the social outcasts and their survival - we get to see the ebb and flow of a found family, plus the inevitable downfall. But it’s not the end of the world in both stories. It’s warm but bittersweet, with perhaps some silver lining despite tragedies. The humility! Superb performance as you’d expect from Song Kang-Ho, Bae Doo-na, Kang Dong-Won, and IU. It’s interesting to read that the Director cast IU after seeing My Ajusshi - an apt decision. Highly recommended if you are looking for a soulful piece.

We have started When the Phone Rings and I am very happy even if now we have to wait for the next episodes. Please stay good show ! Maybe I need to find other thrillers to focus on...

We are coming to the end of Suits and it painfully lacks excitement and the great soundtrack of the original. What is fun is that I have recognised Kim Young Ho, who is in Emperess Ki also fighting for the power. I'm reaching the end of this saga, characters are dying for real. Beakan's "loyalty is more important than competence" was hard to swallow for Taltal and for me as it indicates his despot tendencies.

To soothe our souls, we are also watching the funny no-negativity Love me, love my voice. They spend so much time eating and talking about food ! I was not prepared for the tourist episodes of Yangshuo which are very pretty (and full of food recommendations).

With this mix of dramas, I would have lost a bet since the ML-cooking scene was Yoo Yeon Seok's unexpected breakfast.

where'd all the DB staffers go....