COMPLETED
The Witch - Is it weird that I found our last-minute second couple way more compelling together than our leads? If you removed the flashbacks, this show would be 8 episodes, maybe even 6. If they wanted to fill time I'd have liked a deeper dive into Joong-hyuk's life. Still I couldn't look away while watching this and I can't say that about too many shows nowadays.

ONGOING
Buried Hearts - At this point I almost understand Il-do and Jang-seon's frustration with our ML-who-refuses-to-die. How many times has it been now?! Eun-nam is also singularly useless as a character.

Undercover High School - The plot tends to be really silly (heist movie shenanigans just to play a piano, creating a site to showcase your evil plans and sharing the link through business cards 🤣) so it's hard to take the traitor-in-NIS thing too seriously. But how refreshing that he just up and told her they were childhood friends!

The Potato Lab - Almost dropped it at Ep. 5 - the whole ghost thing from the FL was just insufferable. But I pushed play on Ep. 6 and once again the even numbered episode was better, esp. the ending 🔥.

The Art of Negotiation - The mechanics of the M&A work continue to be pretty straightforward, even predictable (IIRC Legally Romance had a similar game plagiarism and easter eggs plot) but the interplay between characters is great. Also, Soon-young is awesome. Side-note - the newbie's lack of confidentiality drives me nuts - it's so basic that even someone who's never done M&A before should know.

My Dearest Nemesis - Nice to see Ju-yeon get some family time with the FIL/BIL. Was funny when they called out the second leads for getting together while trying to break them up 😂. As for Grandma…sigh…I don't understand why they made her so irredeemably awful.

WATCHLIST
Still When Life Gives You Tangerines 😅😅😅…

C-DRAMAS
Completed
Si Jin - What a strange mish-mash they made of the original story. Managed to finish since the pace never lagged at least.

Still watching
Northward (up to Ep. 30) - Me when the brain tumor storyline started (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻

Ski into Love (up to Ep. 10) - Way behind on this but it's still fine as a relaxing background watch.

Managed to skim through the first few episodes of The Glory and while I appreciate the neo-gothic vibes of it, I'm gonna give it a pass. The excessive almost indulgent violence is really not for me. Plus it has barely any correlation with the book other than character names lol.

Eagle Brothers: That fall 🤣🤣🤣. At least he stood up with steeze 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣.

How Am I Going to Kill Dong-joo This Week: At this point, this drama is a ridiculous back and forth. Suddenly, Il-do is threatening everyone with secrets back and forth. Does no one have anything on him cause I know they have a lot. Unless they want to tell me only Dong-joo and Chairman Haraboji had brains in the entire family.

Shogun Ep 5: Ok. I struggled to watch episode 5. It wasn't as gripping as the first 4 episodes. My attention was brought back with the earthquake so I'll see what episode 6 has to offer.

The Art of Negotiation: I am loving this one.
I kinda like the dynamic of this one. The CEO isn't a fan of the protagonist nor was he the person who brought him in for the assignment. Infact, he is wary of him. I like that. It is different.
CEO Ha though. Isn't it tiring?🤣🤣🤣.
I am seeing another Grumpy Cat understudy but this one is a better fit than The Auditors.

Hyper Knife: 6 minutes into episode one and the simultaneous happenings have me confused a bit as to which surgical procedure is currently unfolding in my screen. To drilling burr holes and scalpels.

Live watches

When life gives you tangerines
This show is really bittersweet but always has a laugh out loud element to prevent it being too sad. The way the grandmother was treated by the son she lived with on the surface he looked like he was doing the decent thing but actually couldn’t be bothered to do the bare minimum. I am loving how they mixed the timelines so we get to see Bogummy consistently and I love that IU plays the mum and daughter because some kids really are ‘mini me’s’ of their parents. I have to say this is hard watch but it really is a classic show.

History of losers
Follows 4 really good friends at university and their ventures into relationships. It is a coming of age that has the usual funny parts mixed in the upsets and misunderstandings of first love. I really enjoyed it.

The art of negotiation
I don’t know why I am enjoying this show so much but I do love that they find a way to keep everyone sweet.

Potato lab
This show is my silly watch, angst free and funny just what is needed.

My dearest nemesis
I can’t enjoy this show as a light watch as the tragedy is too much but it’s not deep enough to be a serious watch either.

The Hot spot - J drama
Watching this to get my monies worth out of the Netflix subscription. Thanks to the beanie who mentioned this as similar to Brush up life. It really is ridiculously funny.
The only thing that is annoying is the usual gripe I have with dramas and meal scenes; the actors having to eat and deliver lines so end up talking with their mouth full. I don’t get why they can’t talk then take a small mouthful so they have time to chew and swallow before the next line, surely that is more realistic.

Kururi - who is in love with me J drama
Low energy watch woman has short term memory loss and has to work out who she is and which of the three men in her life was her true love.

Book corner
Clay walls - Ronyoung Kim
Covering the story of a Korean born couple who emigrate to the US during the period of the Japanese occupation of Korea. It explores the challenges of immigration on family life, work, the disagreements within the Korean community and raising American born children.

Breasts and eggs - Mieko Kawakami
The story of an author, her older sister and niece. It goes in all directions re poverty, family secrets, artificial insemination, motherhood, self image, friendship, death of parents. I am half way through and not really sure where it is going.

My Dearest Nemesis: We passed one annoying stage to go to an even more annpying stage. Leave the Chairwoman in the dust. If she holds her company is more important than her grandbaby who lost his parents, then let her die bitter and angry. She could have loved and grieved with him, instead she decided evil, conniving, biatch was the way. The inevitable forgiveness of her BS will piss me off so much. UGHAFEHEIWA

Hyper Knife: Sociopath v. Psychopath. This was really well done. Sometimes when kdrama writers write psychopaths, they go the completely unhinged route. However, both of them are awful, relatively functioning human beings. PEB is really nailing the sociopath role. I have only ever seen SKG be a character with gravitas, but he is also playing a great psychopath. Google search gives a simple and to the point explainer about the difference. “Sociopaths are often seen as more impulsive and erratic, while psychopaths are more calculated and manipulative. “

When life gives you Tangerines: These episodes still had bits of sadness, but were more lighthearted than last weeks. I am so glad GM stood up for herself. That harridan got exactly what she deserved. I did feel bad for YB, but sometimes you have to cut out toxic people from your life. Also, to say I did not recognize KSH initially is an understatement, when I realized it was him, I pointed at my computer like the Leo DiCaprio meme. I like where they are going with that storyline.

Buried Hearts: Well, all the storylines are coming together. All that is life is the secret love child to find out his origins, and Dong Ju to find out his origins, plus the once again childhood connection. I wonder if we will get amnesia again. Also, it is looking more and more like Eunnam’s mother killed her father. That particular unhinged scene with her sister was interesting.

Undercover Highschool: I always watch the two episodes together. I am excited, but it is coming to an end sadly. Hopefully we can more scenes of their intimacy. They have so many great intimate moments. My favorite being the one in the teacher’s lounge, but I also like the one where they are in his house and they both watched each other sleep. It happens a lot in dramas, but this one seemed more natural.

The Potato Lab: Will we get a kiss. A proper kiss? He better cross the line and she better let him. I also really want to see Ong Ju’s reaction to it all.

Live Watches
Undercover High School: Su-a’s face at the end of the post-credits scene when she is trying to keep a straight face but actually giggling like a fool is how I acted every time our OTP was on screen. I’m glad the grade-fixing has been exposed and stopped (that was efficient!) but also glad our deliciously bad chairwoman hasn’t been completely defeated yet. Bring on the desperation moves! But mostly I’m just relieved that Hae-seong and his Uncle have made up - they are so sweet together and I would have been heartbroken if this had gone the other way.

Buried Hearts/Treasure Island: (Through episode 6.5) I’m sooooo behind (*shakes fist at hulu*) so we’ll just call this one a pause until I catch up.

When Life Gives You Tangerines: (Almost done with ep 6) I don’t care who you are, if Park Bo-gum is crying and you are not, you should get that checked out. I’m loving this drama way more than I expected to and there are so many great moments, but I just want to shout out the old couple who grumbled about our young parents all the time but secretly refill their rice jar and bring them octopus.

Older Dramas
My Ajusshi: (rewatch, 7 episodes in) I’m watching this with my partner this time around, and loving it just as much.

K-action Movie of the Week
Veteran II: Since this has a really similar premise to The Killing Vote, imagine my surprise when Seo Young-joo showed up briefly! This movie was still funny and fun, but I was relieved that they actually addressed police violence and especially the questionable practices of our lead detective. That said, he’s not really that good of a fighter, which is kind of a nice change! He has to rely on ingenuity and his team, and it makes for satisfying endings. I do wish they’d done more with the son character (like give him lines?) but maybe they’re saving that for the third movie.

Undercover High School: 8.5 The two NIS agents in the security office!

Witch: 7.5 Like I said last week, DON'T LEAVE!

Potato Lab: 7.0 2FL's story continues to be more fun than the main plot. The new-ish uninhibited 3FL(?) is also more fun to watch than the leads. Without them score would be maybe 5.0, or __ (drop)

My Dearest Nemesis: 6.0

Hyper Knife: 8.0 FL is a murderer on a Disney+ show. Somehow the Disney name doesn't mean what it did when I was a kid. Also, Dexter, much?

Newtopia: 8.0 Just the show to watch while trying to survive the DOGEpocalypse.

BTW - Lord Cobol only does snark. He does not do "Squee", weekly or otherwise.

Undercover High School: (7-8x2) 🥸🏫 He caught feelings first!! The self defense lesson subverted the trope (*one of my favorites!!*) in such a fun way!! And then the DANCE FIGHT!!! Aww he's so proud of her when she flips dudes. I loved how he revealed they were friends in elementary school. All their conversations are lovely; they're so genuine and they say such supportive things to each other. When they had that conversation about why she's pursuing the corruption, and she said "it's my job to protect my students," that encapsulates what I love about her character. And he seems to love that too. And then their data analysis date (and the first time he called her Su-a-ya)🥰 It's only March, but I think she's my favorite FL of the year, and they're WELL on their way to being my favorite OTP of the year. I've also been enjoying the background music a lot.

My Dearest Nemesis On pause. The writing of the FL has not been for me. I've found her so unlikeable (and not saved through acting or directing), that I don't care if she gets her cliche happy ending. Sorry! 🙈 It's a shame, because the ML is so sweet. Choi Hyun-wook has a lot of potential to keep growing as a romantic lead. He's truly charming and funny.

The Potato Lab It's fine. I'm enjoying this more than Nemesis, but far less than Undercover High School (nothing can touch my enjoyment [*obsession*] of that one atm). Kang Tae-oh is still dreamy. I wonder if I would be more on board with the (quick, uneven) relationship progression of the OTP in this one (and even in Nemesis) if Undercover High School weren't doing such an excellent job with OTP pacing, communication, and mutual support/attraction? Sometimes, dramas suffer by comparison for me... 😬

C-dramas
●70% done with Love of the Divine Tree: oooh I'm obsessed!! For the past few episodes, I was thinking, "they just need to get stuck in a cave and yell their feelings at each other for a while and then kiss for a while and that will solve 90% of their problems," and then I got my wish! 😆 I love the ML; he's so wonderfully conflicted, and would 100% burn the world down if she asked him to. I'm calling it - this is my favorite xianxia of the year! (maybe... ever??)

EAGLE BROS (Ep 13-14) Our main couple continues to provide the light comedic elements while the other Bro story lines are nearing the edge of dark turns.

VILLAINS EVERYWHERE (Ep 1-2) Going into this series, I was worried about the high octane expectations of this comedy style. But the producers were smart in making each episode a thirty minute sit-com. It also helps that the four main leads can do comedy/slapstick well. Two unfiltered, over-the-top sisters live next door and spend their waking hours controlling their weak, henpecked husbands. Episode 1 was a vignette about Hyun-Chul’s chaotic home and work life. Episode 2 was an examination of the husbands’ inability to face the lion’s den that is their wives’ domain. Their children’s “drunk alert” scares the bleep out of them as their wives are troublesome sisters who are totally insane when they are drunk. The episodes were more heavy on physical comedy which may not be everyone’s cup of spilled tea. I liked the first two episodes.

TO MY LONELY SISTER (2024 Drama Special): Drama specials are the purest form of Korean drama story telling. Very simple premise, very simple plot, done very well. Oh Ye-Ju won best short drama actress award playing the younger sister who is taking care of her shut-in older sister who was severely traumatized by school bullies. The tension in their heart strings is clearly apparent as Oh tries to navigate the burden of being the sole caregiver, a school student and growing to be a young woman. Even the simple ending was appropriate for this well done special.

Undercover High School Our OTP is 🩷✨️ They've had a lot of comical interactions, but there are these simple moments too, even just a sweet smile, that bring on the squees or swoons. Along with the laughs, an entertaining mystery, and the delightfully evil villain, this continues to be a winner
Extraordinary Attorney Woo Started extraordinary, ended ordinary with the sudden delivery of tropes. But, it built up enough good will from the Spring Sunshine scene alone to be a fav. Also quite possibly my fav Kang Ki-young role, and the OTP was the absolute cutest 🩵🐋

And that ridiculously adorable hand touch scene reminded me of Pushing Daisies, so I'm watching that on the non-kdrama side of things 🌼🥧 While The Hot Spot has been on hold 🗻⭐️

After DAFENG, I somehow felt cdrama schooled-up enough to (once again) tackle THE UNTAMED. Up to ep. 21, and I now know more than I ever need to know about "golden core". Can I just ask, is that marvelous DAFENG vaudeville "boat trip" scene a put-on of the UNTAMED "skiing on swords in the clouds" scene? UNTAMED is really trippy. In a way, the MLs fame from this drama has really undone them, making casting them in subsequent dramas difficult. I am enjoying the youthful Xiao Zhan in this production, but have to say his regal turn in JOL is far better.

UNDERCOVER HIGH SCHOOL is still hard to beat as a great watch, as I squirrel it away for weekend enjoyment. Also on tap this weekend, MOON LOVERS: SCARLET HEART RYEO ep. 6-10 (yay!).

Picked up the cdrama THE GLORY. Actually, I rather like this one mostly because the leads are not rookies. Chen Du Ling is overcoming her vividly standout role in TTEOTM as a hideous villain, which speaks to her talent, and she is well-paired with a very capable ML in Xin Yun Lai.

My happy watch of the week goes to KILL ME, LOVE ME (2024), which is a stunning visual/artistic treat and my first drama with Wu Jin Yan that I may be able to finish. Both leads are not dubbed, and that's a big plus because Liu Xue Yi has a great voice.

Finally, if you want to see Cheng Lei exercise his comedic chops, check out THE QUEEN OF ATTACK (1 & 2) on Viki. Cheng Lei is really all in on the physical comedy in this short form drama. What a trooper.

Hi Beanies!

What I am watching:

_ Undercover High School (8 out of 12). The couple(s) and the action scenes are funny. I liked the sequence when the students were singing Bravo my life and when the FL was dancing and singing alone (Jin Ki Joo is lovely).
I hope the "uncle" has nothing to do with the villain (such a hateful character!).

_ The Art of Negotiation (4 out of 12). I really enjoyed the fourth episode. It was very good and interesting. I can't believe I'm loving a drama by Ahn Pan Seok 😅 (ok, I only have watched One Spring Night, but that was enough for three years).

_ C-drama The Longest Day in Chang'an (2019). 19 out of 48. I continue to be amazed by this series in every way: characters, settings, sound, action sequences, intrigue, cinematography...

What I have finished:

_ Jin 2 (2011). Hmmm I'm not totally satisfied with some explanations which were given in the last episode. I think there is a big plot hole if we accept certain theory. But apart from that, this is a very good drama with some endearing characters and beautiful reflections.

_ Suspicious Partner (2017). 20 episodes maybe were too much, but I enjoyed the "thriller" plot thanks to Dong Ha's great performance. The comedy worked well too. At last I have watched a Ji Chang Wook drama! He is very good at painful and/or puppy glances.

Hyper Knife (1-2): Surprising absolutely nobody, Park Eun-bin is fantastic here. Se-ok is twisted, messed up, weirdly funny, and also a total sociopath. And I kinda love her? I'm here for a twisted rollercoaster ride, so let's hope the drama keeps delivering.

Undercover High School (8-9): Yeah, I saw that episode 9 ending coming. It wasn't gonna be that easy especially considering there are 3 episodes left. Aside from the adorable epilogue, I think the highlight for me in episode 9 was Soo-ah delivering a convincing speech in front of the students, and then all the students coming together to clean the school. Seeing different people come together like that is always great. Also, pleasantly surprised at how quick Ye-na got over her one-sided crush on Hae-seong. Never thought I'd say this, but maybe we do need more people like her.

Newtopia (8): Glad to see that all the characters I liked actually made it out alive (aside from those we lost earlier in the season, RIP), even if Arron Park is destined to keep drinking to prevent himself from turning. Long live alcoholism! Also had a good laugh when the kill count came up at the end and it turned out Young-joo killed like 50 more zombies than Jae-yoon (who didn't even hit double digits). Anyway, this was a very enjoyable and entertaining watch. I came for the comedy and the zombie action, and I got both, so you won't hear me complaining.

The Potato Lab (5-6): Pretty sure the leads will get together this week, so I hope that Mi-kyung gets her job back before that happens, and the drama doesn't ignore the big elephant in the room.

Rebel: Thief Who Stole The People (13-30): Flawed yet highly entertaining. This drama usually excelled at key moments, even if the road to those moments could often be messy and inconsistent. I liked the themes of social order etc, even if I don't think the drama went as far as it could with it. I really liked our Hong family, and they get plenty of moments to shine. The female characters are all very interesting, but never really reach their full potential (except maybe Nok-soo, but even she ultimately stagnates). Ga-ryung is incredibly likeable (thanks to Chae Soo-bin's energetic performance), but always feels confined to the love-interest role, and even her subplot in the last 10 episodes accomplishes very little (except some great moments where CSB gets to show her acting skills). And Eorini is... literally a plot device to be kept apart from her brothers for as long as possible. Gil-dong is a good protagonist, even if I struggled to really get a good read on him (this also affected the romance, where it felt like he went from seeing her as a sister to seeing her as a woman in a span of 5 minutes). But throughout it all, this drama was constantly thrilling and engaging, and I'm very glad I watched it.

Filter: This is hands-down the funniest Asian drama I've ever watched. It's a delight from beginning to end, and it seemed like the entire production team was having a blast creating it. Part of why it works so well is that the characters always feel like real, messy humans behaving in rational ways even when surrounded by kung fu alpacas. The show is also remarkably clear eyed about how society punishes women who don't fit narrow norms of beauty and behavior, and how power dynamics, especially between a boss and an employee, can make "grand romantic gestures" and declarations of love feel coercive, not endearing. Remarkable and refreshing, in a world where so many dramas feel like cookie-cutter clones.

Winter Begonia (through episode 13): So far, the characters in this are turning out to be much more nuanced, and nuanced in surprising ways, than I expected them to be from the initial episodes, and my theatre- history-loving heart is enjoying the deep dive into Beijing opera troupes in the 1930's.

My Dearest Nemesis At this point, it's just for the Bean.

Undercover High School They're wasting their chemistry! They built such a good relationship based on communication!

Buried Hearts I heard PHS was very well payed for this drama... maybe they should motivate the writers with money...

The Potato Lab The ML is hot, the FL is childish...

Hyper Knife I would have thought underground practice of medecine was not so easy to find...

When Life Gives You Tangerines More than 30 years in 12 episodes is a fast rythm for the characters and the historic elements to adress. But I like the idea. I was happy to see Kim Seon-ho.

Chunhwa Love Story The place of the woman in Joseon was an interesting theme, sadly it wasn't well adress. I didn't feel bad for the Princess because she was always strolling everywhere alone, buying things, disguising herself in man, etc. It didn't feel she was actually living in a cage. And I didn't understand why they presented like there were 3 suitors, the ML was the only one who actually had a chance.

Solo Leveling Excited for the tonight episode!

Happy Saturday, Beanies! And happy drama rant day for me because I'm about to dissect a bunch of shows while they're fruitlessly scream for mercy or at least some anesthesia prior^^ Diving said rants and news segment into 2 sub-threads for easier reading.

LOSER ASSASSINS CLUB BURIED HEARTS: The only one having a good time here is Chairman, rapidly progressing dementia notwithstanding. I like the illegitimate son, he's a good egg – way too good for this freak show of a family, I'm very much NOT on board with DJ dragging him into viper nest for his own selfish reasons. At least DJ's trademark refuse-of-dying trolling keeps serving, even if I'm pretty bored with plot overall now. This drama is like spiders in the jar – intense and toxic and darkly entertaining, but going nowhere.

THE DOUBLE, LEVEL HARDCORE THE GLORY (cdrama): This is an adaptation of (in)famous THE DOUBLE novel writer that somehow achieves an impossible – almost completely discards book's plot, yet still retains trademark spirit and tropes (revenge! worst parents ever! scheming concubines! spoiled half-siblings! slapping for all!) of its maker's penmanship (down to some heavy “inspirations” from her other works). Only this drama takes itself deadly seriously, which you decide for yourselves if that's hit or miss for you. Performance-wise, FL is still the same stabby bitch in frail swan's feathers as she's been everywhere since TTEOTM (but here it works, ngl), ML cannot act his way out of paper bag (not that 2D role requires much from him, but I'd prefer even minimal variety of expression, tyvm) and Mommy Satan is chewing the scenery for all of them combined (actress seems to be tricked to think this is an occult horror).

Visuals and camerawork are gorgeous though: lightning alone is nothing short of exquisite, and that thing with characters being full of vibrant colors while background is almost fully black and white lifeless – gray walls, winter trees, endless snow - giving it shadow puppet show or, perhaps, gothic cemetery feel. Action scenes got style to them too. Back to the plot, how is FL so brilliantly shrewd and elegant as neglected and abused since diapers country bumpkin? Ask rebirth trope removed by censors! Also, no way the frostbite this bad wouldn't end up with her losing at least some limbs via amputation, but she just coughs it off, what a legend! Crack factor is still debatable and I CANNOT with propaganda insert of Mommy Satan's eventual unearned redemption, so let's wait and see, not that there are better options currently...

TANGERINES: As others have said, it's very reminiscent of the Reply series in terms of the spot-on hilariotragic (new word!) tone and central theme of how love in all its form is worth the sacrifice and pain it demands. I absolutely love PBG here and think this is the perfect role for him. But as someone who knows the basics of modern Korean history but never lived any of it directly or indirectly, I find the seamless reminders of the state of the world at various points in the story to be incredibly compelling. This show is so good and satisfying of a watch for me that I ironically find it hard to talk about it. That is a compliment.

THE WITCH: I skipped a few episodes to watch the last one and I thought it was a beautiful resolution. I'm not sure I'd say it was worth sitting through a lot of the slow and repetitious early episodes to get there, but it is a show that nailed the ending.

NEWTOPIA: Ditto what I said above, although I did watch all the episodes in this case.

POTATO LAB: I continue to love this one even when the humor doesn't work (that whole ghost thing). This show is chaotic in the best way, but it's also convincing me that both couples belong together. Even when things don't quite make sense--like when the leads went out to check the potatoes in the dark--we get a scene where the FL had to move the ML's face in order to shine the headlamp on the appropriate crops and I'm both laughing and swooning. And that final scene was both hot and heartfelt because the ML a) looks like Kang Tae-oh and b) is so utterly sincere.

UNDERCOVER HS: I continue to not love this one as much as everyone else does. I keep trying because I want to see what others do, but why am I so bored most of the time? The main couple has moments of cuteness, and as I said before, SKJ is the main draw here, but I find the plot and humor to be clunky overall. I guess I'll just be out of sync with most Beanies in liking Potato way better than this one.

Non K-Drama:

I cannot recommend "Adolescence" on Netflix enough. It's amazing. Yes, it's very dark, dealing as it does with the way on-line misogyny can poison vulnerable young men, and the single-take episodes (literally shot all in one go) make for a visceral and emotionally exhausting viewing experience. But it's incredibly well done from start to finish. The acting, writing, and directing are all a cut above, especially the woman who plays the psychiatrist, the man who plays the father (and that actor also co-wrote the script), and the young boy who plays the lead. Just phenomenal. But I am glad I watched this now that my son is no longer a teen.

Watching K drama Tangerines

I watched Gene Hackman inThe Conversation (1974)
This movie made me sad as San Francisco is no longer the vibrant city that it was when this film was made. 😟

Hackman is an uptight surveillance expert hired by “the Director”, to surveil the Director’s wife , played by Cindy Williams, as she is having an affair.

Cast also includes Harrison Ford, Teri Garr and John Cazale .
The Director , (think evil chaebol ceo 😂) is played by Robert Duval in a cameo.

I also watched the film Rush to Judgement (1967) , based on Mark Lane’s book which questions the Warren Commission’s findings regarding the JFK assassination. Lots of eye witness interviews , their accounts differ from the *cough* “official” findings.

Trivia note : The term “conspiracy theorist” was coined in response to the book and film, in an effort to discredit Lane.

I watched the first episode of Scarlet Heart (2011) , just watching the intro brought back the feels. 😢

The Potato Lab: As I have written everywhere, I felt a lot about those last seconds of ep. 6, because (SPOILER) he has just deemed her work not important enough to uphold a salary, i.e. hurt her in the core of her self-worth as is, and at the same time, she is in love with him, and he makes a move. She is only feebly resisting, and he breaks that.
I know, I know, it’s mutual and he doesn’t want to and can’t help it either. I just think it’s a very wrong situation for her and hurtful. Powerless, humiliated, … and sex? (or whatever people do in dramaland)? Not a good combi.
When Life gives you Tanguerines: On hold while I gather courage for more “bittersweetness”.
Under Cover High School: Still loving it, even if I am longing for more comedy. But I love how the girls are coming into play – I hope Ye-na will get a chance to be important, too. I am not sure when or how our ML decided his suspect weren’t the leak. But it feels better, having to suspect people close to you is horrible.
My Dearest Nemesis: My favourite hope for this is that our boy will get grandma voted out of business for having taken decisions that were very bad for the company, based purely on her personal emotions.
Funny that she who advocates complete emotional lifelessness is the one to fire the two most important core people in a pivotal moment of a department going through important change!
The Art of Negotiation : Binged first episodes yesterday. Love it, in spite of being a work drama which often does not interest me. But this is exiting, somehow.
Is it me, or is LJH’s face extremely AI’ed in the production? It seems weirdly smooth.
***
Not a K-drama:
C-drama Filter: Quite funny! I liked the earlier episodes better, of course. There was one moment, though, that touched me deeply towards the end, (SPOILER ALERT) and it was the fragile situation of the 2ML wanting the 2FL to have her baby, and trying not to say it, but she says it out loud. From there, I felt how fragile the situation was – them being in love, wanting to stay together. But staying pregnant or not is such an important question, that a disagreement could ruin their relationship even if none of them wanted that. There was a long silence (like 20 sec) of sorrow and fear while it had not been said yet what would happen.
Of course, it was ruined right after by falling into banality not just with the expected decision but also the way they talked about it. But let’s remember that moment. Gif link in comment.
People dancing like birds: There are quite a few on Youtube, and the best of them are hilarious. The black bird with a natural white tutu! That green bird dancing by the sink! The hens!
That Savage Rose Concert: I spoke for lengths about in the open thread, and translated a very popular song “Til Ungdommen”/”Kringsatt av Fiender” (Norwegian, but super popular in Denmark,...

UNDERCOVER HIGHSCHOOL just does almost everything right. The tongue-in-cheek comedy, the riddles, the feisty, but not too overly heroic FL, the excellent villain and the other agents. The uncle is suspicious and likely connected to the mystery of the father's disappearance. How did he get his clever and mature-beyond her age daughter into this school?

The topic of THE ART OF NEGOTIATION is not that exciting, but the execution certainly is. The cast is very good and I even like Lee Je-hoon's hair colour. Luckily, is dorky performance in Finland is slowly fading away from my memory and I can start to believe in his cool and shrewd negotiator persona. Loved the joke about the way programmers think. It also explains why CEO of Cha Cha Games goes into an important negotiation all alone, without a colleague. No business person would do that.

Started FRIENDLY RIVALRY. After ep 4 I understand why it is has an adult rating. The plot so far is pretty good, more like a psychological thriller.

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES is beautifully done. I feels like a novel with great cinematography. I still have to finish the first set.

I am still watching MY DEAREST NEMESIS. Dad is a gem, Grandma a cardboard villain and therefore not interesting. I fear she will miraculously turn into a loving and caring grandmother ad there will be a happy end with her only grandson. The second couple is far more interesting in this drama, they feel like real people.

I missed a couple of episodes of POTATO LAB, but somehow did not feel the need to catch up. I'll read the recaps instead.

- COMPLETED -
Newtopia (2025): This worked better as a zombie story; the horror scenes worked so well, as did the tragic ones, e.g. the little boy on the train or the ghost (?) station attendant eonni who helped the FL. when the drama tried to do comedy, it was less successful.

Goblin (2017): my very controversial opinion - this was a good drama. I thought the middle section was a bit slow and wallowing in gloom, but I think the last episodes really made up for it. the final plot resolutions had me tearing up.

- CURRENTLY WATCHING -
My Dearest Nemesis (10/12): It's just so cute, probably my fav airing drama right now. even with the Evil Grandma shenanigans, it's just so fun, mostly because of the lead couple.

Potato Lab (6/12): Lee Sun-bin is a *gorgeous* human being and Kang Tae-oh is, well, Kang Tae-oh. They deserve a much better plot than whatever this is. That infamous panty dropping line from last week showed what potential there was...

Inheritance Detective (9/12) - this jdrama on Netflix is genuinely fun, with a disgraced lawyer solving inheritance related cases every week with the help of his badass sidekick (seriously, she is so cool!) and a pervy lab tech. good watch if you want to turn off your brain and just relax.

Peacock Dance (8/10) - a really interesting mystery jdrama on Netflix. Lot of depth to this story, revolving around murder, parenthood, and personal principles. the main cast are lovable but so troubled, and there are so many plot lines, no idea how they'll resolve everything in just 2 more episodes...

Happy Spring to the Northern Hemisphere beanies! 🌷 My thoughts on March watches so far:

Seo Kang Joon made the right choice for his first post-military role (I'm absolutely loving Undercover High School). Kang Tae Oh did not (almost dropped The Potato Lab after 4 eps but gave it one more week... and now I'm done).

Black Salt Dragon has been cute-ish but not stellar (I'll get my bean). Seconds leads have been the best part, but their roles have devolved into utter blandness. The one-note grandmother brings the whole thing down.

I have yet to start Tangerines 🍊. I'm sure I'll love it, but I haven't been in the right mood... probably because I started a rewatch of Moon Lovers. Despite the years since I first saw it, the story is still so clear in my memory (this is not a drama you get over quickly). The perfectly imperfect story is sweeping me away again, although the viewing experience is quite different now that I know everything that happens. Also.. admittedly, it's showing its age production-wise. I'm making a point to notice the little things I missed because I was so new to k-dramas the first time I watched. Definitely reveling in the awesome assemblage of actors. And I discovered recently that the original author is Chinese writer Tong Hua, who also wrote the equally perfectly imperfect (and highly memorable) Lost You Forever.

Speaking of c-dramas: I'm liking The Glory with its less famous leads who are well matched to their characters. My favorite line so far is from the ML when he describes his ideal wife as "...clear in grudges and bold in strategy". Not expecting great romance though as this is first and foremost a revenge story. The cinematography is immersive.

I tried Ski Into Love (actually snowboarding into love for the record. It's woefully mistranslated throughout.) While I'm not as bothered as some by Esther Yu's voice, she's clearly capable of stronger roles using her real (aka adult) voice (My Journey to You, hello?!). "Ski" isn't bad, but it's not great either. 3 eps was enough.

Finally... I finished FILTER and thoroughly enjoyed the story, the messaging, and the cast. This drama is produced with lots of heart and it shows. Plus the alpaca episode is hilarious.

Have a great week beanies! 😀

Life over drama: I am now behind on almost everything.

Viki finally dropped the first episodes of MOON LOVERS: SCARLET HEART RYEO and my wife immediately dropped everything to watch it (of course) and then had to wait (impatiently) almost a week for the next episodes.

My wife also loved The Chinese Costume Drama LOVE OF THE DIVINE TREE and all available episodes of the Chinese Costume drama SI JIN, which is a good show.

She has enjoyed the Japanese detective shows INHERITANCE DETECTIVE which has only one episode posted each week, and on Viki USOTOKI RHETORIC. But much of the week she devoted to a course on the film history. She learned a lot. She also found and really liked LOVE SCOUT.

Of course, I continued to watch our weekender FOR FIVE EAGLE BROTHERS. We had some genuinely hilarious moments this last weekend including three “blind dates” deliberately sabotaged by our FL and ended with our ML doing a faceplant at the driving range, to the laughter of our FL. The FL’s brothers-in-law continued to struggle, baby Hani was delightful, and it looks like Maknae’s love story is about to get under way, which is good because that is the story that connects all three families. Perhaps the most charming side romance is the story of our FL’s mom and the man she now calls “Baldy”- proof that love can come later in life.

I am doing something I have never done! I am live watching TWO dramas! And, I am finding that I am not enjoying the watch as much. I love binge watching as I can just lose myself completely in the story and characters.

So, I am watching and loving UNDERCOVER HIGH SCHOOL. We just have to go along with the flow plot wise and enjoy the humor and heart-stopping "squeeee" moments between our leads. SKJ smiles are killer! Holding my breath that the "uncle" is really not in on the crime.

Holding a bit on MY DEAREST NEMESIS to watch the last 2 episodes together, but still enjoying this fun ride. I really didn't think I would like the ML (I have never been a huge fan), but I have grown to love his character. Still not sold on FL, and as we all are, just hating the grandmother. I hope they don't redeem her. She doesn't deserve it!

I am glad to read that many were happy with THE WITCH overall as this is my next watch. I am thinking, based on the comments here it might be best as a binge watch and so glad most feel they nailed the ending

TANGERINES is also on my watch list , but I can't handle two emotional shows together and I am bracing myself to finally watch MOONLOVERS! I REALLY, REALLY want to watch it now that it is finally out. I never watched it because I knew it was so sad, but I can't miss the opportunity now that its here.

Undercover High School Up to ep 9. Gets better with each episode. The OTP is just effortlessly adorable. I wonder if the gold will end up being real gold or something metaphorical. Like the gold is the pure hearts and minds of the hardworking students or something like that.

Potato Lab I like it a lot when it leans into the chaos and love how Hee-jin has come to add some fun chaos. On the romance side, I'm not feeling the ML's getting hot and cold.

Filter cdrama. up to episode 31. On episode left and I don't want to say goodbye. It's drama that made me laugh, cry, and reflect. The last arc was a little serious with addressing residual traumas, but it really made the two female leads/bffs feel like organic human beings instead of characters with a description. I love the positivity mixed with pragmatism. One of my favorite scenes was the one where everyone in the office, in lighthearted way, talk about what makes you pretty/beautiful.

Les Belles cdrama. finished. There were some harrowing moments in the last arc, but I loved how the drama really stayed true to being a rom-com and took the "com" part seriously. No beloved friends/servants/assistants died. No bait-and-switch. They also never really smoothed out the FL's grittiness, and I appreciated that. I only wish they'd give the general prince a love interest too since he's pretty cute.

Currently watching (sort of):

And by watching I mean taking ages to get through due to life, (sometimes) boredom, and my inability to be truly invested in Kdramas these days...

Family Matters - I like this a lot but I've been watching it since early last month, off and on. I'm only on episode three (or is it four? I forget). It's not exactly what I was expecting, but that's okay because it's good

Nevertheless: The Shapes of Love (Jdrama) - I like this one. Although it's the same plotline as the Kdrama version, the execution is a bit different and it feels unmistakably Japanese, if that makes sense. There's a vibe that Jdramas have. I like it a lot

When the Phone Rings - I'm really trying to power through this one but I might have to drop it. I started in January and I'm just on the second episode because I keep starting and stopping. It's a bit boring, which I was not expecting at all. I like Chae Soo-bin but I'm not enjoying her here. She's too much of a shrinking violet. I get that that's the character but it's annoying me a lot. And this is silly, but I don't like how light her brows are here. They're so faint and it's off-putting to me 😭

Gangnam B-Side - Will try to finish this one of these days. It's good

Uncovered - This is the one I'm actively watching at the moment. Liking it so far. On episode six and I really hope I can finish it.

Parole Examiner Lee - I keep starting and stopping, but I like it and will try to continue

Seoul Busters - hilarious. I like it.

When Life Gives You Tangerines - Actively watching this as well, thanks to @Dramaddictally's recap

Undercover high school (ep 9 and 10) I still enjoy this show very much.

On the downside, I felt that this set of episodes (especially ep 9) was a bit over the top, and may I say cartonish, at times, but ep10 overall kind of made up for it. I don't know how the laws operate in Korea so I really wonder if it's that easy to get away with your crimes (chairwoman and principal)? It reminded me of Little women when towards the end the female antagonist managed to commit several crimes including murder over the span of several days until the police came to get her. While it didn't ruin the show for me in UHS as it did in Little women, I still found it weird. Chairwoman really sent a shiver down my spine with her unhingedness.

But on the upside, there are cute and fun moments: uncle is clean (I LOL-ed when he asked what Haeseong apologised for 🤣), Suah made Haeseong smile over a drink, Yena's arc, Haeseong's confession to Suah in front of the kids (and the kids went from calling Haeseong "chingu" to "ajussi" LOL), Suah found out about her mom's past 😂, NIS team half amused half exasperated by Haeseong and Suah's romance, how the third story's clue was solved (but the fact that Suah "accidentally" rotated the bust did feel contrived).

I wasn't sure if the gold bars were there, but when Haeseong made it down there, I at least knew what was waiting for him, and my heart ached for him each step he made towards it 😢

(I'm not sure if WWW can be used to discuss previews? So I'll continue in a reply to this comment, so that it can be deleted later if any).

When Life Gives You Tangerines I wasn't gonna watch it because it seems like it would make me feel alot of feelings but every time I see clips from it, I'm intrigued haha. I think IU and Park Bo Gum are gonna be nominated and/or win awards at the end of the year (I could be wrong). Is this the type of romance that made people say they were given unrealistic ideas about Korean men and relationships?
Cause it doesn't seem *that* unrealistic, though it does seem ideal. To have a partner who genuinely loves, values, and respects you shouldn't be the stuff of fantasy (though I know for some it is). I think the most unrealistic part is when they developed superhuman senses and abilities such as her running as far as fast as she did or him seeing & hearing her from the loud, moving ship.

My Dearest Nemesis. Is it weird that I really liked the scenes when they were crying? Haha. I just felt that it was that release they barely got when they got were younger. Sometimes folks need a good cry or to cry into your pillow.

Undercover High School. I had to double check the episode count because I thought him catching the chairwoman and that hallmark/after school special moment was happening too neatly but I was still blindsided by not only her but her henchman principal being released. If there was eyewitness testimony of 2 if not 3 victims who were almost crushed to death, how is letting the henchman principal out even remotely just justifiable?

Started a re-watch of Money Flower, because I was curious to contrast it with Buried Hearts. I had forgotten what a masterpiece Money Flower is. Plot, atmosphere, direction, soundtrack, everything. But it is so very, very bleak. Kang Pil-joo destroying that terrible, careless, murderous family, and destroying himself in the process...

Whereas Buried Hearts is all the tropes, done in the silliest, most entertaining way possible. I have to say I'm enjoying Buried Hearts more. Not in the mood for bleak, right now.

The Art of Negotiation. They turned the music down - hurrah! Enjoying how clever and understated this is. I was a bit worried the naive newbie character might prove irritating, but enjoyed how Yoon Ju-no manages to use the newbie's weaknesses to deceive the enemy.

The Glory I don't know why I am watching this. It is the illegitimate love child of pretty much every costume drama made in the past few years. And the male protagonist is little more than a set of clothes, a set of tropes, and a bad wig, being wheeled on and off scene. But, hey, it's undemanding. 😊

An early gloming - how much I love this light.
Finished listening to The Fox Wife by Cho Yangxi. Wonderful novel that involves all the folklore concerning foxes in northern China, Korea and a bit of Japan. I listened to the audio (read by the author) which is typically not optimal. This one is GREAT, go find it on Libby.
For all fans of screwball comedies I heartily recommend Filter. The writing is top notch (Tong Hua) and the casting is pitch perfect. The banter is intelligent and oh so amusing. I have laughed several times and I'm a hard sell. When avenueX said this is the funniest Cdrama this year - she wasn't blowing smoke.
Meanwhile I'm clicking past my one-ep-per-day limit on Scarlet Heart,. Got some powerhouse acting bench on that one.

Always so terribly late to write a WWW post, it get's totally buried.
Live watching:
UHS ep 9: I know there were comments elsewhere about how the pace was off etc. But I found it perfectly fine. There wasn't enough leads' interaction, agreed, so hopefully 10 will make up for it. It's still my favourite show by far.
Negotiators: Waiting to watch both eps together. I caught up last week with all the episodes, and really enjoying it. I wrote a long comment on the recap post about my thoughts.
Buried Hearts: I think I'll pick it up once more. I was waiting for a number of episodes to pass before a binge- catch up.
Rewatched Trunk: Loved it even more the second time around. I'm so enjoying discovering Gong Yoo (I'd re-re-re-dropped Goblin earlier).
Also watching: The Watcher. Started it for SKJ, staying because I'm having fun. The FL lawyer is very cool, and I'm loving the whole team. Han Seok Kyu is playing another version of his usual taciturn self, but I don't really mind it.
Dropped When the Weather is Nice after they got together, and all the trauma backstories took over. Rewatched it again for SKJ. PMY is very good in this. I wish she's take on more roles like this, rather than the now-cliched perfect, coiffed. groomed, sexy office worker roles she seems to always choose.
Watchlist: Silenced with Gong Yoo is lined up, even though it's supposed to be Very Very Very dark.
And also Adolescence. I don't know if I'll be able to stomach it, because I have a son the exact same age, but I've been told it's a must watch for exactly that reason.

Undercover High School and Tangerines but then i started rewatching Our Beloved Summer in the midst of my current watches. Compared to Melo Movie, i feel like OBS just hits the emotional beats way better and it’s left me wanting more dramas with the same vibe..

When Life Gives You Tangerines 🍊ep5-8 😭😭😭 these episodes gave a rollercoaster of emotions. Steelheart broke down and it made me cry so much. Ottoke. Also amidst all thr tears shed, I didnt expect to like WLGYT so much. IU does have more characters to play and I like how differently she portrays each. Not sure if I am as invested in GM story as her parents. But I do enjoy the family dynamics and conflicts portrayed.

Undercover High School 🏫ep7-8 I am still watching this though maybe not as much as invested as the first episodes.

Hyper Knife ⚕️ ep 1-2 I decided to watch it to see PEB play a dofferent role. It was interesting. But I will have to watch the next two episodes to see if this will be a keeper.

This past week I watched:
The Art of Negotiation I'm so intrigued by the characters' backstories! I don't think I've ever enjoyed Lee Jee-hoon so much.
My Dearest Nemesis Oh gosh, their relationship is actually good! I am amazed. I was not taken by surprise that the secretary turned out to be looking out for Black Dragon.
Undercover High School This week, I broke my 24 media fast on this show! It was delightful. The show makes no sense at all, but the actors are still making their relationships with each other work. That's the point, for me!

I'm saving watching When Life Gives You Tangerines for after the test I'm taking on Tuesday. This is a little off topic, but I'm taking a high stakes test on a subject that I didn't study in a course. I have no books on it. I'm just learning from a free online course and the internet. It's not ideal for me and my ability to get distracted, honestly.

Here's something that would be a fun Drama Chat prompt: best scenes of characters studying for high stakes tests.

the tangerines - haven´t seen a single tangerine. I am watching but I cannot vibe with it. too much about marriage and kids. why is she not just concentrating on her own goals? I am just mad at the female characters.
Nemesis - so disappointing. there is zero chemistry for both couples. and even though I dont like computer games it made for an interesting setup and it is too bad that they just dropped it. the drama feels disconnected and unplausible. go to hell with first kiss as if.

in real life, some korean documentary crew is coming here to film wolves and everyone is scared because these animals have gone a bit mad lately. I am worried that these koreans dont know what they are getting into, the wolves have been attacking people walking dogs and eaten the dog... they follow people around in the countryside.