Beanie level: Eunuch in drag

Beanies! I’m still here, haunting you! I just bought a new Samsung TV, so I am finally getting back to watching Kdrama again. I’m starting with season 2 of Gyeongseong Creature!

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    Anneyong Ghostly Chingu. I was remembering you, especially on Halloween!! 👻 🎃

    Congratulations on your new TV. Enjoy your dramas. 😊💪🏻

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    Continue to enjoy the kdrama-watching on your new tv! 🙂

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Rarely, I dip my toe in the pool of Kdrama films. Today I watched Shiho (First Love). I was totally enamored by the acting of Shin Eun-kyung. What a talent! (more comments below).

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    Beanies, I assure you, I am a rather prudish ghost, and this film has semi-erotic scenes. However, Shin Eun-kyung does not act in any of them. So if you can handle that (fast forward is always available), prepare yourself of a taught script that explores the boundaries between pseudo-stepmothers and lovers. I managed to successfully suppress my preconceptions about that topic and watched the film open-minded. I was not disappointed. Will you be? I’d like to read your comments here…

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I was so disappointed in Anna that I drifted back to Jdrama. I’m feeling very ghostly so I’m trying Amazon’s My Undead Yokai Girlfriend. I like it (so far)!

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Beanies, Amazon videos hosts Anna, which some of you have said is Suzy’s best performance. I am really excited to begin watching it!

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I finished Will You Have Dinner With Me. It has numerous flaws, but it’s not a train wreck, either. I left a more detailed review on the Discussion tab for the show. @attiton

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The power of the real world will sometimes affect ghosts, and this is what has happened to me lately. Still, I am managing to watch Will You Have Dinner With Me, and really enjoying it.

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Hi Beanies! I’m still here! Current Kdramas are just not appealing to me, but I do highly recommend this
Jdrama Drawing Closer, available now on Netflix. Tissues will be required!

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I have been lax in keeping up with recent events here, but did something happen to DB email notifications? I have not received any in awhile. :-/

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I finished Eye Love You. It felt like a live-action Studio Ghibli story (the OST helped). Chae Jong-hyeop is so good in this, as is the rest of the cast. Highly recommended!

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    Ooh! Happy to hear your good review! I have this on my list – glad I can start without trepidation!

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    Thanks for that comparison – I watched episode 1 and had a little trouble adjusting to the tone. Jdramas generally don’t click with me, but that viewing lens might help.

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      Hi @elinor , The first 5 episodes have a normal kdrama/jdrama trope-filled vibe, but I was so pleasantly surprised how the last 5 episodes took on a different aura. That was when I began to sincerely feel the anime influence, with a strong Miyasaki (Ghibli) vibe. There was quite a bit of instrumental background music very similar to what we hear in a Ghibli film, which certainly added to this feeling.

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Eye Love You is Jdrama but it features Chae Jong-hyeop. Netflix has released the first 5 episodes and the last ones are coming April 14th. Don’t miss this hidden gem!

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    April 14th? Are you kidding me?! I was hoping for March 31. Sigh. 😉 No wonder Netflix doesn’t show the upcoming episodes or release dates yet.

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    Oh, lots of folks have been creeped out by this one, Tim…are you enjoying it? Others have taken issues specifically with the way the lead relationship is being oddly balanced. We all know it’s J-drama…but what are your thoughts there?

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      Creepy? I’m not seeing/feeling it, but perhaps it’s due to my eccentric eyes (remember, I loved Doona too!)

      My take: the FL has serious self-esteem issues that is deflecting the ML’s overtures (and her romantic life in general). In episode 5 we finally see the romantic triangle emerge, since she gets to read the mind of the 2ML (who she has great loyalty/friendship with) and realizes he loves her. And then there is the (yet-to-be revealed) past history trope between her and the ML that only the old professor knows about. It all seems pretty harmless and rather charming to me. It’s obvious that TBS didn’t give the show a huge budget to produce this, and I think they’ve done a remarkable job with what they had. It’s possible the last 5 episodes coming up could torpedo things, but I’m not getting that vibe from this show.

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        Hmm. Well, is the FL similarly self-aware of her own “messed-up-ed-ness” as Doona? If so, I might give this one a go once all the episodes have dropped…

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          @attiton yes, the FL definitely knows she has esteem issues, but she struggles to find the courage to overcome them. There have been many scenes of her friend giving her encouragement in this regard. She is taking steps (albeit little ones) to build romantic confidence. This FL is a sweet person (unlike Doona), and this is made clear by her only using her mind-reading power to protect her company and herself.

          I’ll definitely post my final thoughts/recommendation here after I see the last of the show next month.

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      I like this and don’t find it creepy at all. I think he’s a golden retriever and gives love despite his it’s received. And she does like him, but has a lot of insecurities.

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    I’m so mad we don’t get the rest until next month. I’m really enjoying this one.

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Meet Me After School Apologies, beanies. I have been distracted by binge-watching this Jdrama, which is a very slow moving train wreck. “Like a moth to the flame”, I got hooked on it.

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    Enjoy the ride!
    (I liked the first part, not the rest. But I may be in the minority. 😅)

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      @dorotka The ending insinuates a hopeful outcome, so in fairness I should say this show is only a minor train wreck. Nevertheless, it was excruciating to watch the FL and ML purposely self-distruct their lives for love. I type “love”, not “LOVE”, because this show never convinced me that the love they shared was worth the terribly high price they both paid to finally be together (especially the FL).

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        I don’t remember too much from the show now, but I found what I wrote in 2020 about it:

        I did reasonably like the first episodes (but that slap), how they portrayed the first love awakening of Akira and how Hijiri was trying to do her best as a teacher figure… but then the show changed into a makjang and I got frustrated with the overhonest martyr Hajiri… and even more with the Mothers. I think part of my frustration stems from a cultural difference (where I live 18yr-olds are legal adults) and part (a big part) from my beliefs about what is good parenting. Also… why was everyone so interfering?? Anyway, rant short, I personally think they should cut out most of the second part (which was more less a repeat of the beginning) and more concentrate on the inner problems of the couple (and their age difference)… and on showing me why I should root for the couple, why these two are such a good fit and should be together (the poems in the first part was a good start).

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    I remember that I loved it. I think it was really interesting because it was wrong and they didn’t deny it. But the actors had a great chemistry and in a certain way I wanted them to be happy.

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      @kurama good to read your comments on this show. It is 9 years old, but it was just recently released on Netflix NA, so I could watch it now. While the ML never denied his feelings, I struggled because the FL did, in fact, deny her feelings many times. Not until the final few episodes did she fully surrender and openly acknowledge it to everyone – thus triggering her final societal Seppuku. I, too, wanted them to be happy, but the cost just seemed too high. Yet, I realize “the heart wants what the heart wants”.

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        But the FL didn’t really have the choice. A teacher-student relationship is wrong. She loved her job. She had someone in her life too. She was loosing a lot because of her feelings.

        It’s nice that Netflix is adding Jdramas!

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    So funny reading all the takes on jdramas on the beanie fan page right now. 😂

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      @alley-le so I am not the only one? If so, that makes me feel better.

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        They suck people in. As terrible (by popular opinion) as they may be. 😆 I’m a Japanese BL fan. Honestly, find their communication better than in heterosexual shows. And several watching Eye Love You for one very obvious reason and only one, at least the only reason I’m watching it. But one of the second leads looks just like a friend of mine which is weirding me out a bit.

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My Name is Loh Kiwan Beanies, don’t miss this film! Song Joong-ki is so, so good in these salt-of-the-earth roles. Here is some more background on the film. Recommended!

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My Name is Loh Kiwan is being released on March 1st on Netflix. The trailer looks good, and the story location (Belgium) is interesting. I just hope SJK delivers.

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Doctor Slump E4. To my eccentric eyes, this scene of Park Shin-hye’s dexterity with alcohol rivals her scenes with her applique-covered assault rifle in Sisyphus.

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Some of us have noticed the trend of cherry blossoms appearing in kdramas. Something about them speaks to our souls. I took this photo last March, when I saw them blooming in Washington D.C.

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I have not seen Ma Dong-seok (aka Don Lee) in quite a while. He is now starring in Netflix’s Badland Hunters, and once again displaying his tough-yet-gentle hero persona.

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    Just popping in to see how you’re doing as it has been quiet on the western front for a while. Are you lacking dramas you can engage or busy with life or both?

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      Hi @reply1988 ! I have been watching several K and J dramas these last few months, but have also been quite busy lately in real life (oops, that is a misnomer for a ghost!). Thank you for asking. 😊

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        Good to know all is well and you have still found time for dramas! Which J dramas have you seen recently? They have been a bit hit and miss for me. I have loved Dr Storks, Worst to first, and You, me and Bach. Fermat’s cusine, Oh my boss, love not included, On a starry night, and Trillion Game were ok.

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          🙀 …. I found Trillion Game more than ok! 👌 Oh! well maybe not the drama, or the story or whatever random con they were pulling. 😅
          Seriously how can this be just okay.

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            Check out Dr Storks and Silent then we can chat. I liked it at the time, it was great how all the actions were connected and got them to the end goal but it’s just not in the love league like Dr Storks or Worst to first. Have you seen Dr Storks?

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          I stumbled onto Trillion Game because it has the same leads as My Happy Marriage. 😀 J-dramas are extremely deep and impactful and hence not always compatible with my emotional boundaries.  Dr. Storks and Silence are unfortunately not my cuppa. 🤷‍♀️ Mianhaeyo.

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    My partner and I enjoyed the heck out of this movie last weekend, but we did not find it… good. I will never get tired of Ma Dong-seok in roles like this though, and the action sequences were great!

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Geongseong Creature E9. This show is more than it appears to be! Stay the course!

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Welcome to Samdal-ri E7. “That scene” when your heart breaks for the 2nd male lead…. (and yes, your friendly ghost is still here haunting you…)

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    Hello Ghostly Chingu! 👋
    Wish you Merry Christmas full of ghostly treats you enjoy!! 🎄 ☃️ 💕

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Daily Dose of Sunshine E10. Aigoo! Here I go again with an eccentric crush, this time for Gong Min Jung. Her many fantastic supporting roles have accumulated to win my heart.

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Daily Dose of Sunshine E2. @radily is right, this show is the Real Deal. I see a combo of Hospital Playlist and It’s Ok Not to Be Ok. Also: who is this cameo? Suzy?

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