Beanie level: Rooftop room dweller

2024 Roundup: 4- Your 2024 crush

One actor wins this award as my 2024 crush: 🏆Uhm Tae-gu as Seo Ji-hwan🏆 in My Sweet Mobster. What a man!! With a voice like a raspy purr, your tough exterior was (barely) hiding a sweet, shy guy who tried to be thoughtful and respectful to everyone, both in his words and actions. A ML with both character and heart, he is the Emperor Penguin who swept me off my feet 🐧❤️🦌 *Sign my petition for more romcoms for Uhm Tae-gu!!!* (jk, but wouldn’t that be great???)

Shoutout to Lee Yi-kyung as Bong Cheol-hee in Marry You (*I’m seeing you in a whole new swoony light, 였빠!!* 🤩) and to Chae Jong-hyeop in Serendipity’s Embrace (*I may not have liked your drama, but I’ll always like you, BB!!* 🥹❤️)

*I’m borrowing @miso2019‘s Uhm Tae-gu collage because it’s so good! Thanks Miso!!*

16
7

2024 Roundup: 3- Choose a Male lead.
Jang Dong-yeon’s performance as Baek-du in Like Flowers in Sand was magnificent. He became his character, right down to his walk, mannerisms, and gaze. Baek-du was completely sincere and genuine. Watching his character, sportsmanship, and skill shine through his ssireum matches was a joy, as was seeing him realize that it is not selfish for him to use his skill to seize wins from his opponents.
Close second:
Sun-jae-ya~~~!! Another ML of my heart this year is sweet Sun-jae, who loved his lady across every timeline, until he got his well-deserved happy ending. I was OBSESSED with him (and Lovely Runner) while it was airing.

20
8

    Agree with every word about Jang Dong-yeon.

    5
    1

      It was like seeing a totally different person in this role! He was outstanding.

      4
      1

        Believe it or not, it was my first time seeing him. I was blown away. I don’t know if I can watch him in any other role now! 😄

        3
        1

          WOW what a great first performance to see of him! I feel like it was his performance of a lifetime… I like him as an actor, but nothing else compares to Baek-du. My other favorite role of his is in The Tale of Nokdu, which shows a completely different side of him!

          3
          1

            WOW what a great first performance to see of him! I feel like it was his performance of a lifetime…

            Exactly what I felt while watching! But I hope he goes on surpassing himself every time!

            3
            0

    I assumed you (and probably many others) would choose the fantastic Baek-du, so even though he is my ML of the year too, I went with another that I figured would get less love. Thanks for waxing poetic about him in my place!

    3
    1

    That promotional poster with his back to the camera and the red trailing cloth was nothing short of iconic. I’m glad the drama was too!! 🥰👌🏻👏🏻

    1
    0

2024 Roundup: 1-Your favorite drama
Does Like Flowers in Sand count as a 2024 drama? If so, that\’s the one. In many ways, this was a drama about (late) blooming and renewal: renewing your strength to follow your dreams, renewing the bonds of friendship (and tentatively beginning a new romance), and renewing trust by getting to the root of an old tragedy. And what a lovely, lovely ending – one of my favorite final episodes I\’ve ever seen.
Close second: Family By Choice. The warm family melo of 2024, about love and hurt, but mostly about unconditional love. I love our dads and their kids and all the warmth and love!
Bonus:
Favorite Rom-Com: My Sweet Mobster
Favorite Rom-Melo: Welcome to Samdalri
Favorite Comedy: Seoul Busters
Favorite Mystery: Flex x Cop

16
8

Soon to debut in my What We’re Watching (Lol) is ATEEZ’s new music video!!! Ice On My Teeth is a BANGER 🔥😎

3
2

Me watching the (actually very hilarious) autopsy scene in ep. 2 of Seoul Busters 😂

3
0

The music in Romance in the House has been so good, and I love the OST by SHAUN, one of my favorite singers!!!

3
0

#NoGainNoLove
So Prime subs are weird, but whoever writes the (spoilery) episode summaries should get a medal – they\’re hilarious 😂 👍🏅

9
6

Gaho is back with a new single with his band KAVE!!

8
4

    Just a note to say that I am enjoying some SERIOUS second villain syndrome here in episode 7 of Secret Royal Inspector and Joy!!! This dunder-headed “real” brother is simply amazing as a character. I don’t know that I’ve seen his like, certainly not in a sageuk. His downfall seems assured, but every time he shows up on the screen I perk the heck up!!

    It is of course also nice to have my 2PM trifecta for this week: Junho in Chief Kim, Chansung in Bitter Sweet Hell and Taec in the above (he’s such a GOOF).

    1
    1

      Ahhhh!!!! So glad you’re enjoying Inspector and Joy, @attiton!!!! Taec is in his goofy element in this one, and the villains are a TREAT, especially hot/misguided Bead Boy (the DB moniker for him, I think courtesy of Sicarius?), and then his unhinged, spoiled brother… I remember just eating up this drama!!! I’m catching up on DB after being away at a retreat this weekend. It was slightly closer to camping than I would have preferred (Lol we were in a lodge at least!!), but it was a great experience.

      1
      1

        LOL!! I’m with you–ending up surprised in a situation “slightly closer to camping” that you expected sounds like a NOT good situation 😆

        I’m in the midst of my own vacation weeks, but did feel a burning compulsion to make the following two gifs, anyway. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!!!

        ep03-love-Me-Too
         
        ep04-bat-Flight

        1
        1

          Ooh I hope your vacation time is relaxing and rejuvenating!!! Haha yes, I think I can confirm that I’m not the camping type… but it was a great weekend with nice people!

          OMO OMO OMO thank you for the gifs – you’re AWESOME!!!! 🤗❤️ I love them both – I’m currently giggling right now 😂 They’re downloaded and ready to go in my texts!!! 😆👍

          1
          0

The Auditors ep. 4
The drama: 🛗
Me: \”yesss elevator YEAH!\”

3
16

    Double dump trucks!!! 😱 🚚🚚

    3
    1

      Hahahaha!!! I was about to say: β€žFor me it was the revival of the Evil Trucks of CLOYβ€œ 😂🤣😂👏

      2
      1

        Lol I gasped and then my dog checked on me 😂 I love the twists and surprises!! Just saw the scene with Han-soo taking a photo with shutter click – him “I’m sorry it was my fault” Me: yes it was 😑 He’s annoying but everyone else is awesome. Dae-ung is FASCINATING and I can’t get enough! That exec complimenting his nice nice hair though 😂👌

        2
        3

          Oh my gosh Han-soo is acting like Robin again “if I fall please call 911” 😂 🦸‍♂️

          2
          1

          😂😂😂 Rookie mistake, that shutter click! However, considering his improvement in wall climbing – maybe he’s not Robin but rather Spider-Man to-be?!

          Very satisfying to know that the mane of glory isn’t only appreciated by drama watchers, but drama characters as well 💯🔥👏

          2
          7

            Lol yes – Spiderman is more apt 🕷 🤣

            Absolutely – that hair needs appreciation!!!

            Have you finished ep 4? I don’t want to spoil you if not

            2
            0

            Just finished! What a fun ride. 👏 Loved that Seo Jin played a more active role in this! (Kinda only wished she stopped the baddie in the show down in the end, idk, maybe by throwing something in the right moment? Well, can’t have everything at once I guess!)

            Convenient how they seem to serve up one case per 2 episodes, too. Doesn’t feel too rushed, leaves room for adequate amounts of action scenes. 💥🦇

            I’m still waiting for explosions though!

            2
            0

            Ok I just finished too, @sonai!! Wow what a ride!!! 👏👏👏 By the end, Han-soo was annoying me less, so good job 😂👍 I LOVE Seo-jin! She’s competent and thinks before acting or speaking. I’m curious to learn more about her loyalties. So Dae-ung is not her dad????? Is he her uncle (“samchun”), or did he just look after her and her mom??? This drama is so good with reveals and reversals.

            2
            0

            @hopefulromantic That reveal in the end took me by surprise as well! So they don’t live together… I also suspect he’s her uncle then? 🤔 But they seem super close, even though she’s already starting to emancipate herself. Those scenes where she took his calls or called him, I always thought β€œNooo! Don’t do it! He will meddle in the worst way!” – and so it happened. 🙄🤣

            Good stuff indeed!

            2
            0

            @sonai yes agreed!! I wonder how far he will influence her, or will she influence him? Or is he playing a long game and acting the villain in some places in order to goad people into doing what he REALLY wants??? I’m fascinated. Also fascinated every time the drama showed him doing Normal Dad Stuff (*like fixing her door*) 🤣 Also, at the rate this drama is going, I bet we’ll get pyrotechnics at some point!!!

            2
            0

            He is adorable with her! She means a lot to him, that’s for certain. I guess we will get a very late redemption arc for him, where she will guide him to the light etc. 🤓😂👏 (I suspect a Chief Kim Seo Yul situation!) And together, they’ll take down the CEO. He was too suspiciously happy about this case’s round up, and asking if β€œthe vice president is really needed”… so suspicious. 🧐🧐🧐

            This β€œalmost live watch” was fun!!! 🫰🍿👏 😃

            🔥💥🔥

            2
            0

            I hope you’re right, @sonai, I would love that direction for the plot! And yes, CEO is very sus 👀

            Yay this was fun!! 🤗❤️ I’m glad our watches lined up today!!

            2
            0

          I think he is her dad who may have come into her life in a supportive way later. A single mother situation initially. Hence the housing upgrade. But his house looks pretty fancy.

          3
          2

            I like your theory! The two houses thing was a surprise, because I had assumed they lived together in the apartment. I’m intrigued by how ambiguous the drama is leaving things!

            1
            0

            Ambiguous is the word! Years of kdrama training mean I usually peg characters pretty quickly. (Admittedly it’s not hard… ) But I have nobody sorted yet. I’m liking the twists.

            1
            0

Oddly Specific Tropes

Yesterday\’s episode of My Sweet Mobster with its rendition of the trapped in a freezer and must stay warm trope got me thinking: what are the oddly specific tropes we all love? Specific to dramaland and often rare, they\’re a delight when they pop up unexpectedly. I\’ll start off with three of my favorites:

1. Yes, it\’s trapped in a freezer and must keep warm (most recently seen in My Sweet Mobster; previous favorite appearance in Wok of Love). Self explanatory.
2. Washing the ML/FL\’s hair (Most recently seen in Frankly Speaking, also appearing in Do Do Sol Sol and Cinderella and Four Knights). Often prompted by the ML/FL having an injury and the other helping them to wash their hair with *romantic subtext.*
3. Surprisingly Bad Art. (All kinds of dramas! Favorite instance was in Sh**ting Stars). Usually we see a character doing their very best to draw someone, and when the drawing is revealed, it is Very Bad. Variations include Surprisingly Good Art (Psychopath Diary) and Surprisingly Unexpected Art (Kokdu Season of Deity). Hinges on the element of subverted expectations.

Beanies, what are your favorite oddly specific tropes?

@attiton @elinor @seeker @isaGC @claire2009 @jls943 @Reply1988 @sonai @enriquequierecagar

13
95

    Wow!! Hopeful what a wonder prompt. Thank you!

    3
    2

    One of my favorite tropes is a meaningful piece of jewelry or item.

    – Like the rabbit in the moon key chain of the FL in Still 17.

    – The star constellation necklace of Robin (Hyun Bin) in Hyde Jekyll, Me.

    – The Yin Yang ☯️ Jade charms of the OTP in Alchemy of Souls.

    6
    4

      Ooh this is such a cool one, Cera!! I feel like it’s something I might think about during the drama, but not think about as a connecting trope across dramas. Thank you for sharing these examples!!! 😊♥️

      6
      0

      The necklace Shancai was desperately looking for in the water in Meteor Garden.

      3
      0

      The connecting Jewelry is international; apart from family jewels and wedding rings, it was actually common to give a broken coin together with the child when children where placed in orphanages and maybe weren’t entirely orphaned; their mum would just lose her job as a maid if she was found out to have a child, and also couldn’t care for the child while upholding her job.
      Sometimes it was a broken pendant in a necklace, but obviously the mothers of those children mostly didn’t have that kind of money, or they would have kept their child.

      1
      0

       
      Hopeful this is the pendant Gu Jun Pyo designed for Geum Jan-di.

       

       
      The rabbit in the moon key chain.
       

       
      Robin’s necklace.
       

       
      The Yin YangΒ ☯️ Jade charms.
       

      1
      1

    my favorite trope is when they go to the countryside and end up doing dirty work together

    8
    2

      That’s a good one!! Especially fun if one of them is a chaebol who’s never gotten his hands dirty before haha!

      6
      1

        Hahahaha oh yes, such a classic!!!

        6
        2

          Oh my god! Is this from Cinderella??🥹🥹 My patience is now right at the last millimeter of its threshold!! Next week come quick!

          3
          2

            I was having a hard time placing the clip… I was thinking it was Park Seo-joon?

            I’m so ready for the Cinderella/Freaking Fairytale show… the only things holding me back are the seven other shows I’m currently watching (yikes), and the inconvenience of accessing it 😂

            3
            0

            Oooh, yes it’s PSJ: it’s actually from good old WHAT’S WRONG WITH SECRETARY KIM. She went with her sisters to the coast, and they collected clams or something. 🤔 Of course he had to join in – it was the only β€œlet’s work in the countryside and get a chaebol muddy” gif I had at hand! 😂

            Sadly, I wasn’t able to watch Cinderella yet either ☹️

            7
            0

          Ooh I thought he was Jun! Now I feel ridiculously relieved!! 😂

          3
          0

      Yes this is one that never gets old.

      1
      0

    Thank you for tagging me in this intersting post, HopefulRomantic <3

    Some of my favourite tropes (They are my fav because I think they help the story move forward):

    – The female and male character sharing un umbrella in the rain and one side of the male character getting rained on because the umbrella cannot cover them fully (I believe many dramas have this, but one I can think of right now is All about Eve).

    – When the ML getting a panic attack or something similar and the FL taking care of him (Taxi Driver – Kim Do Gi got a panic attack when seeing a frozen corpse, See you in my 19th life – Seo Ha got a panic attack seeing the approaching truck, Forest of Secrets 2 – Hwang Si Mok got a headache during a meeting and Yeo Jin covered for him and bought him a coke).

    7
    2

      Thank you for sharing some of your favorite tropes, Claire!! ♥️ The umbrella is always a good one, but when the ML tips it over to cover the FL is a lovely one. I hadn’t thought about that part (getting rained on while covering the other) specifically, so I’m so glad you mentioned that!! I think that recently, the MLs in My Sweet Mobster and Dare to Love Me have both done this. I also love the comforting during a panic attack trope. Thank you for sharing!! 😊

      5
      0

      “One side of the male character getting rained on because the umbrella cannot cover them fully”.

      I have recently seen it in the Drama Special A moment of romance.

      5
      2

        We saw it in Mobster too! In ep 5 I think.

        5
        0

        In Kotaro Live Alone that I saw before seeing it in K-drama, he specifically explained that for a man to hold an umbrella correctly for a woman, his shoulder must get wet.
        So I accepted it as a total fact of “how to” and I notice that they always zoom in on that shoulder (or sometimes, their back).
        I giffed it in Reply 1988 as part of a discussion once …
        I was going to put the gif here, but you’ll have to make do with a link:
        https://imgur.com/D7KrZ6d

        6
        1

          It’s been very “optimalized” so I just need to say that in the original, you very clearly see the rain falling on him – maybe even cats and dogs, eller “skomagerdrenge”, shoemaker boys, as we say in Danish.
          Even if the close-up of the shoulder is provided by me, with the original quality it was very clear that showing him being rained on was an important testament to the nobility of his soul.

          2
          0

    Some of my favorite tropes (there are so many!):

    _ Sharing earphones and listening to the same song. Usually on the bus, but not necessarily.

    _ Eating boiled eggs during train or bus travels. It seems it’s a tradition in Korea.

    _ Sending the wrong message, emoji, sticker or image. It was hilarious in My secret Terrius.

    _ Having to wash or change their clothes in their love interest’s house. As in Yumi’s cells.

    _ One of the main leads leaves notes (post-its, notes in books, audios…) or other things in order to be remembered. Imo the cutest was a board game the ML created for the FL in Flower Boy Next Door.

    7
    4

      Wow these are great, Isa!! ♥️ The sending the wrong message/emoji one is SO FUN when it happens!! 😆 And I hadn’t thought about the “having to wash or change clothes in their love interest’s house” – I feel like that’s one of the more rare ones, but always spices things up 😂 And that board game YSY left for the FL in Flower Boy Next Door was so sweet. Thank you for sharing, Isa!! 😊

      6
      0

      Oh my, β€žone of them leaving notesβ€œ: most heartbreaking one on CLOY (😭), most fun β€žchat conversation onesβ€œ in TOUCH YOUR HEART. I really like those, too, Isa! (Even better, if the addressee takes the note and puts it somewhere for safekeeping… *cries in THE MATCHMAKERS*)

      5
      3

      I also love the shared earphones trope, my most favorite one being this one:

      5
      1

      I love all these tropes too!

      4
      0

    Even though it rests on the medically inaccurate assumption that getting wet or cold outdoors automatically leads to you getting a virus, I have a huge soft spot for the fever trope. As in, FL gets cold and/or wet in the rain and gets a high fever and the concerned ML catches her as she’s about to pass out and tends to her until she’s better, all the while realizing that he has deeper feelings for her than he realized.

    10
    1

      Oh my gosh, I not-so-secretly loooooove this one, too!!! 🥰 Lol I’m always slightly disappointed if they get rained on and DON’T catch a cold that requires romantic caretaking 😆 Thank you for sharing, LaurenSophie!!

      6
      0

    Hmm. Oddly specific tropes? I’ll think about it over the course of today.

    I can name a few more examples of your tropes though, if that’s of interest!?

    Freezer: Brain Works
    Hair Washing: We don’t get to see it, sadly, but there was hair washing in Mobster too!!
    Bad Art: I remember someone drawing surprisingly bad sand art recently…do you remember what that was??

    6
    3

      IT WAS HEARTBEAT! Right? In the last episode or so?

      2
      1

        Thank you for these examples!! 🫶 And omo I think you’re right about the bad sand art in HeartBeat!! I guess I still try not to think about that one 😂 And hmph I feel robbed not getting to see the hair washing in Lovely Mobster 😤

        3
        0

      Hair Washing: Wok of Love

      5
      1

      I thought of two, Hopeful!

      1. I like it when someone thinks that someone else is a dream and talks to them honestly….but PSYCH they’re not a dream!! Like the end of BTLIOF.
      2. I love it when folks are roaming around outside, thinking about someone else, and their feet takes them to where they need to be…and when they look up, they realize what they needed to know.

      1
      1

        Thank you Seon-ha!!! 🤗♥️ I love these!!! “Dream but not a dream” can be so romantic when done right. And the serendipity of winding up where you need to be is always nice… there’s just a lot more time spent outside in the average Kdrama, which is magical in itself. Thank you for sharing!!😊

        1
        0

    I am not sure if it’s only for tagged folks.

    I am leaving out the big ones like ML falls first.

    1) The ML somehow ends up shirtless. FL somehow ends up seeing him naked. And somehow they fall on top of each other. I don’t care how ridiculous it is, but I love it.

    2) The ML takes a sip of the drink from the same glass/bottle/cup. Can be intentional or an accident. But the implied β€˜indirect kiss’ meaning is something I learnt from kdramas. I especially love it when it’s done intentionally.

    3) The hand touches just before hand holding. I love the little brushing of hands. The hesitant yet wanting feeling of hands being so close. I love it!!! It can be poetic when done well.

    5
    2

    Such a fun prompt – and so many good tropes mentioned already!!!

    I’ll add:
    * FL having a β€œsecret second life”, that the ML somehow stumbles across without her realizing, and he might even secretly support her in that (Knight Flower, Alchemy of Souls, Her Private Life, The Matchmakers)
    * not a romance trope, but I just love it when the FL’s (somehow it’s never the ML?!) best friend owns a bar/cafΓ©/restaurant, so everyone naturally hangs out there – and in the end, it’s not only the original friends, but more people attached to their group (Into The Ring, Her Private Life, Our Beloved Summer, Search WWW if I’m not mistaken, …)
    * a hot blooded secondary couple 🔥🫠🔥 (Lovely Lobster, Business Proposal)
    * and the last is super specific: FL’s halmeoni being super proud and showing off her grandchild’s love interest in the whole neighborhood, and in the end even getting him a savings account (KTL) 😂 That was grand!

    LOL, the bad art!!! I can only think of the tiger drawing in Knight Flower, and still can’t get over it! 😂🤣😂

    👏🫰👏

    9
    4

      These are awesome Sonai, thank you!!! ♥️ Secret second life is such a fun one when done right… I think Her Private Life was the first time I saw this! Such a fun one! Neighborhood hangout spots are the best 👍 And aww proud Halmeonis are awesome 🥰 I didn’t finish Knight Flower, but I DID get to see *the tiger* – such an excellent example!!! 😂 😂 😂 Thank you for sharing, Sonai!!

      6
      0

      All of these are wonderful tropes!!
      The bestie owner is always great. 👌

      5
      0

      KTL saving account was so sweet

      2
      0

      You could almost say that Koreans Grandmother Kim Young-Ok- grandma you were referring to- is a toupe in her own right! If she shows up it’s definitely a mark on your bingo card. 24 movies, over 95 dramas-as counted on Asianwiki

      2
      1

        True! But every time she shows up, I’m in agony if the writers will let her live…! 🫣🫣🫣

        She got all the love in KTL though, and rightly so. Up to the birthday queen look 👏😃🫰

        2
        0

    I started watching K-drama after a long bout of Brooklyn 99, and Boyle repeatedly says that “Washing each other’s hair – it’s the most romantic thing that exists!”
    And so, when I started K-dramaing, I met it so much, in my head calling it “A Boyle Moment”.
    I think Bong-Soon washes Min-min’s hair, too.

    5
    2

    Talking about weirdly specific, that a Truck of Doom seems to have to be white, that is weirdly specific, isn’t it?

    3
    1

      Interesting… I think a lot of that type of commercial truck may just be white as the default color, but also visually, they stand out better for the drama viewer against the flow of other vehicles in traffic. But yes, our popular character seems to come in only one color!

      2
      0

    A trope that I am liking less every time I see it is women and girls who are in love and yet turn their face downwards when a kiss is approaching even though they want to kiss. As if it wasn’t hard enough for the ML to get to the mouth, since the FL is often less than two thirds of his height.
    I have one gif about it on my wall relating to Sh**ting Stars and another gif waiting for the right occasion in my stash.
    Another one, which I don’t know if I can call “weirdly specific” but having the FL be extra small and the ML extra tall is, for me, a strange and unsettling preference. Unless it’s a special point about struggling against prejudice, (like in Hello My Twenties or a joke based on differences like in “Jaws”and his girfriend from the Bond franchise ( https://i.pinimg.com/736x/96/50/22/965022d31cde6a9cb8f50aa58e266f48–richard-kiel-bond-girls.jpg ), I find it much more romantic to have the OTP be of harmonic heights, him being like, half a head taller than her.

    4
    1

    As with art, so with food – when Reply1988 and Seonha was brainstorming with me about K-drama bingo, someone making really bad food was suggested and made it to the bingo card.
    Apropos bingo card:
    – Jumping the Palace wall
    – ML tearing the FL in to his arms, saving her from a passing motor vehicle
    – ML catching falling FL in a dramatic tango-like position.
    Speaking incredibly … s l o w … l y . Especially towards the end.
    And also – but I don’t know if it is really “weirdly specific” but midst all the “pretending to not like each other” and noble idiocy etc., couples need to keep in touch via unintended communication, and that means mostly one of these things:
    – getting super drunk and spilling the beans
    – thinking they are dreaming and hence spilling the beans (e.g. Destined With You)
    – talking to themselves or someone else and being overheard
    – – which includes talking on the phone, and the one they talk to is overheard. (Dr. Slump, all the f**king time).

    These communication things happen to other combinations than the OTP, too, like e.g., in Dr. Slump FL heard The Villain say to others that she wasn’t fit for cooperation.

    6
    1

    Idk how specific this is but:

    β€”I love fight scenes between (“fake”)couples where one of them doesn’t know what’s going on or how to feel about the fight, but at the end all those weird feelings mean that they’re deeply in love and they just didn’t know (Flower of Evil’s dishwashing scene is THE perfect example).
    This trope is like a child of the “I didn’t know I was (still) in love with my wife/husband/β€”friend” trope.

    β€”Second leads thinking they’re in love with one of the leads, but they’re actually not so instead of ruining the ship they end up with another person or living their best single life (Ho Gu’s Love, Protect the Boss).

    β€”Friend group where someone is treated like the cute baby the other (or at least one of the) members have to protect (Reply 88, Fight For My Way).

    7
    2

      These are awesome!! Thank you Tabong!! 😊 👍👍 The “fights revealing real feelings” is such a good one.

      4
      1

      I love that protecting the one member of the group example as a weirdly specific trope. In Don’t dare to love/Jealousy incarnate the two bright boys protecting the less academically able girl who lived in their building was an example of that. Sometimes it is a love interest and sometimes it’s just friends together. I feel like I have seen it a lot but can’t think of other examples.

      2
      1

        Prison Playbook is another good example! Oh My Ghostess too.

        To me it doesn’t really counts between love interests, but it works between family members (usually siblings).

        I kinda felt it in Cinderella. The three sisters are protective of their mom. And between them, the two sisters-roomates act more delicate and attentive with their big unnie.

        2
        1

          Prison Playbook is the perfect example as they did it with two characters it was such a great drama. The drug addicted character was the gift that kept on giving and I loved how everyone thought the main lead was stupid yet he was spot on when it came to reading every situation.

          2
          1

            Yes!

            My favorite example is Reply because in that case it wasn’t only Taek’s friends, but the entire neighborhood taking care of him.
            But Prison Playbook is a great example too.

            I think this trope is a thing with this PD. Hospital Playlist probably had it too but I don’t remember.

            2
            0

    I am totally gatecrashing this party because it’s an awesome post. Tropes! My favourite part of experiencing K-dramas ❤️

    * When one of them finds an old connection to the other through drawing/photos/books/paper etc – as in Our Beloved Summer; Just Between Lovers

    * An animation that defines the drama for posterity – Yumi’s cells, Business Proposal, Lovely Runner

    * The wrapping of a jacket around the FL’s shoulders – as in every single modern drama. This one thing brought a flood of emotions the first time I watched it.

    * The halmeoni – Oh the grandmothers in K-dramas….I wish I could steal them from the screens.

    8
    1

      All are welcome!! Thank you for sharing, Minnie!! 🤗♥️ I love the tropes in dramas, too – it’s like a little scavenger hunt to see and appreciate where they pop up. These are such good ones!!! Omo I loooove the “wrapping a jacket around the FL” – it’s such a caring and romantic gesture!

      4
      0

    Hmm, so many fun ones have already been mentioned!

    One that I love for its ridiculousness is we are about to get caught somewhere we shouldn’t be and the only way out of the situation is to make out trope. It gets made fun of in Crash Landing on You and then used legitimately!
    I also love when a character is criticizing someone for being too flighty or having an outlandish idea and they say something like, β€œYou watch too many dramas”. That little meta nod to the audience makes me smile every time!

    6
    2

    Thank you for mentioning the bad drawing. I can’t remember which drama had it but it had me crying with laughter because it was so bad and I am sure it was about trying to draw someone they needed to find urgently and the supposed artist had implied they were good at drawing so got everyone’s hopes up🤣

    1
    1

    This is such a great post I can’t believe I came late to the party and all the good ones have gone. The one I was thinking about recently was the use of the β€˜Asian squat’ in the middle of the pavement to show someone is so overwhelmed/upset they need to stop walking and drop low. I noticed it first because I was jealous of the ability to do the position with feet flat to the ground and maintain it for periods of time. It is usually combined with slow walking in distress or being too drunk to walk.

    2
    1

      Thank you Reply!!! 🤗♥️ It’s been so fun to get to hear about the tropes that bring us those little joys when we see them in a drama! That’s such a good example… I wish I could do that squat, too, but I haven’t developed either the right muscles or the right balance to be able to do it with flat feet 😞 Thank you for sharing!! 😊

      1
      2

*SORT-OF SPOILERS FOR MISS NIGHT AND DAY and a rant*

I tried, but I\’m out. It\’s not a bad drama by any means; it\’s just not for me. After episode 4, the cons outweigh the pros for me. Even if I love both iterations of the FL, the SML, and the rest of the cast, this drama\’s chief failing for me is that I don\’t like the ML after week 2.

Cons: (1) I don\’t like the ML, (2) kidnappings/missing women, (3) the FL being set up by the narrative to be in grave bodily danger, (4) the FL PROBABLY being in the body of her PROBABLY deceased aunt, (5) mama-trauma of the NOT garden variety, (6) I already find myself not caring about the mystery, (7) murders and dismemberment, (8) dismemberment. I mean I have typed \’\’dismemberment\’\’ more times in the last couple of days than I ever wanted to.

@attiton

11
13

    Seriously, I didn’t think I could come to actually not want to see Choi Jin-hyuk’s face, but after the “get us dinner stunt” and the clear glee those two had in it…I think I’m out too.

    You know what I’m going to miss most? The songs that are just that woman meowing melodiously.

    2
    1

      Oh man that meowing music is so perfectly unhinged – I love it too! The music has been excellent. I’ll listen to the OST when it’s released and try not to think about the things that frustrated me 😅

      1
      0

    I don’t know why I even bothered to tune into this week’s episodes. I’m just so disappointed that the cast is so good and the script is so ordinary. The actors are hard-carrying a script that doesn’t know if it wants to be a thriller or a super silly romp. I long for the stupid “hijinks” to stop and then I get serial killers and third rate drug panic. Weirdly, the only plotline I care about is the PTSD idol who just likes his cleaner ahjumma.

    4
    1

      Your whole comment is exactly how I feel!!! YES – the cast is so good and the script is kind of… meh. ☹️ The serial killer and drug stuff is supposed to be gripping, but isn’t. The murders are far too dark and grim. I watched episodes 3 and 4 on two consecutive days and had already forgotten why he was investigating the drugs. The idol was my favorite part of this week, but even for him, I can’t stick around. 😢

      3
      0

    I’m not watching this show , and probably won’t now, but boy this I love a good rant! 10/10 Gifs too. It is refreshing to see you expressing your feelings bad or…bad. I have a hard time because I sometimes want to rant but feel I can’t for the betterment of DB. Thanks for showing me the right way

    1
    1

      Haha thank you 23!! 🤗 I don’t do this often, but sometimes it’s a relief to be able to express your frustrations with a drama. If I do a rant, I try to label it clearly, so that if anyone is avoiding spoilers or avoiding rants they can skip it. I also try to stay respectful and stick to the facts of the drama as much as possible. 😊

      1
      1

    Hopeful, I really won’t come down on the CJH-LJH fake-competition thing that hard…but Kurama set me up SO NICELY I couldn’t help myself. I promise you can expect to be able to say that he’s adorable and all the things sometimes (even MOST times) without me being a silly Beanie… Just wanted to let you know 😘

    1
    1

    “Øv”, as we say where I come from, an excalamation expressive of disappointment.
    TBH, I love the idea so much of that shift, and am already fanficcing the ML’s elation to ajummah-FL, so if I was smart, I would drop it like a dead mouse right away.
    I can’t help hoping something fun will come out of it, but experience Strong girl Bong Soon should tell me to stop right away.
    I would prefer the story without any murders – just the confusion, the pride & prejudice and the opportunities held out – and I am disappointed with the way the ML treats ajummah. If he had just looked a little disappointed, that would be an OK marker of him preferring an attractive secretary. The harassment was so over the top.
    What is there left to watch? Am I still hoping something fun will happen?
    I mean, at least ML panicked and fought his way in to save FL even if he thought she would be an ajummah. That was nice, right?

    1
    1

      You expressed this so well, Cecilie. Yes, there’s more than enough story and themes to tease out with the setting and the dual-character FL without the murderer who kills in an incredibly brutal and sadistic way. And the ML seems to have been directed to play his character as realistically unkind/officious, rather than as caricatured or cartoonish… it’s off putting to say the least. Although, even with all my other complaints, I think I would have stayed watching longer without the murderer.

      1
      0

    Quick question: Do you watch Korean BL at all? If so, I have both a recommendation and a request for a song identification/translation. If not, no big deal at all.

    1
    1

Ji-hwan: \”I got home fk\”
😂 😂 😂

13
6

It’s going to be a HOT summer day, so let’s listen to That Summer by one of my faves, SHAUN!

7
4

This morning I’m listening to the new album Hymns from the Dragon Lake by the Yangbans. They’ve been around since 2016, but I only just discovered them! They describe their alt-rock sound as Wind & Flow, coming from a “Korean spiritual tradition that celebrates the harmony of nature through music.” The album is a great listen for a slow summer morning!

7
1

Is anyone else excited for the variety show Agents of Mystery? It looks like a cross between two of my favorites – Busted! and The Great Escape – and with the PD of The Great Escape and a Netflix budget, I’m really looking forward to the scenarios they’ll put this cast through!

5
7

    This feels very much like a Chinese variety show named β€œThe Truth” (which I initially said has elements of β€œGreat Escape”, which China bought rights to remake its own version). So now the 2 countries have done a switcheroo and it’s S.Korea’s time to buy the rights to remake their own version of a C-variety? 🤭🤭

    If this new show ^ really is based off of China’s β€œThe Truth, I’m hoping this trend of trading ideas keeps up, and hopefully it’ll then slowly turn to improving the relationship between the 2 countries… Am I being too optimistic and hopeful?

    4
    1

      Ooh I’ve seen you mention The Truth and it sounds fun! I really love whatever this genre of variety shows is (mystery? immersive epic-scale escape rooms??), and hope that more like this are made! I think that trading shows back and forth is a cool way of cultural sharing, and it can certainly help viewers to know and appreciate another culture/country better. I love your optimism and hope for this!

      4
      1

        Same!! I love this genre of show, too, but I think it has to be done right. I tried another mystery solving C-variety show named β€œWho’s the Murderer?” and I just count get into it, that one seemed to scripted. On the other hand, I absolutely love love love the Chinese version of β€œGreat Escape”, and it’s too bad I discovered it first before I found out it’s actually a remake of the original Korean, which I then tried but just couldn’t get into 😅
        I haven’t seen full episodes of β€œThe Truth” from either seasons (currently, Season 2 is airing), but I have seen clips and whatnot and like what I’ve seen. You’re correct in saying that it’s definitely more immersive than the shows simply about escape rooms, and I think the 2 also differs in that β€œGreat Escape” China always ends their β€œcase” or the particular escape room theme with a positive message (e.g. gently telling parents to take a chill pill and not be so hard and so strict on their children), but I think β€œThe Truth” is actually more about case solving and the mystery behind each of the cases. I should probably start watching β€œThe Truth” to see haha 😆

        I’m hopeful 🥰🥰🥰

        4
        1

          Lol from that description the C-variety Great Escape sounds so much like the recent Apartment 404 K-variety show, complete with a message at the end of each episode! The Truth sounds really fun, though!! I just loved both Busted! and The Great Escape and loved seeing the entertainers struggling and succeeding to solve puzzles, and also getting freaked out by the scenarios (Lol 😂), so I’m really hopeful that Agents of Mystery will be similarly fun!! And regardless, it has Hyeri, who is super funny 😄 Hopefully more of these continue to get made!

          3
          0

    I just now found out about it and came to DB to see if anyone was talking about it! Looks like a lot of laughs!

    3
    2

      Yayyyy!!! I’m hoping for plenty of comedy – with Hyeri, it’s bound to be fun! The cast mix is pretty interesting… I think they’re mostly variety newbies? The concept definitely looks like it will create funny scenarios! If you haven’t watched Busted! yet, I highly recommend it… if nothing else, it’s absolutely STACKED with star cameos!

      2
      0

      P.S. I also looooove The Great Escape, but it’s a lot harder to find… the only legit place I’ve found for it is the CJ ENM subscription channel on Apple TV. The first episode is very boring and can be skipped, but the rest is very fun! It came as a huge surprise to me, but the episodes where they’re trying to evade zombies are my favorites! (They get very freaked out and it’s HILARIOUS)

      3
      0

My boys are back!!! 😍✨️ ATEEZ just released their latest EP, GOLDEN HOUR: Part 1, and it’s awesome 😎❤️‍🔥

I love that their music is such fun. This release definitely has the most dance tracks of any of their recent releases! If “WORK” isn’t quite your style, “Blind” has a salsa/bachata beat, “Empty Box” has a summery mellow-pop sound, and “Shaboom” has a calypso/EDM sound. “Golden Hour” is also my favorite of all their era intros. Excited for their new sound for their Golden Hour era!!! 🌅☀️🌻✨️

@lapislazulii also shared their “WORK” MV earlier 🤗❤️

6
5

Jongho, the main vocalist for ATEEZ (my favorite Kpop group!!!), just released this video of his track A Day for the Lovely Runner OST!!! 😍😍😍

7
7

🎶 Started from the bottom now I\’m here 🎶 I\’m trading in my scooter for a room with a view! 🌇 Everyone is invited for a Rooftop BBQ party!! 🥳

25
51

I’m so happy I could cry – I’m going to get to see my boys perform live this summer!!! 😭❤️😍😆🫠🎊✨️(*Their MV for Bouncy might be my favorite!*)

8
13

    …I forgot to say – I’m bringing my mom along too!!😁❤️

    3
    3

      Super-awesome!! 😍😍♥️♥️
      Have loads of fun. Make many many happy memories. 🙌

      1
      1

      I am so happy for you…and your mom!!! I can only hope she’s as excited as you are!!!

      1
      1

      Comment was deleted

      1
      1

        Thank you Zindigo!!!🤗 Oh wow that’s quite the spread!! It’s really been cool to have Kdramas/Kpop as a shared interest with my mom. My mom is a late baby boomer and I’m a late millennial, but we tend to have similar taste in things – I’ve been trying to introduce her to more Kpop artists, but she’s not so much a fan of ATEEZ (*yet*) 😂 But I know she’ll still have fun!! I hope you’ll get to have similar experiences with your kids! It sounds like they would be game to try things together! And there’s always more 5th/6th gen Kpop groups debuting that they may be into!

        0
        1

          Comment was deleted

          1
          1

            Wow that’s so cool that you have such a deep connection to music in your family! I love listening across genres and discovering new music and artists, but Kpop has really become my music love language (but I also love opera and classic rock!). 70s/80s music is awesome – so cool that you and your kids can share that interest together!!!

            1
            0

    Awww. I’m so happy for you! Enjoy it!! ☺️
    And I really like this song!

    1
    1

    Sorry to jump in on a random post I just wanted to congratulate you on finally making it to your rooftop🥳 I hope you will have a wonderful time at the BBQ party.
    Sorry if this was mentioned elsewhere.

    1
    1

      Whoa, I had no idea!!!! 😮 Thank you for telling me and for the congratulations, Reply1988!!! 🤗❤️ The timing is cool, since I joined the site a year ago… I’ve so enjoyed getting involved in the site and meeting kind people like you. Thank you for the warmth and kindness you welcome new Beans with and how you interact with us across the site!!😊❤️

      0
      0

It\’s Carry Sun-jae and Run day!!! 🏃‍♂️‍➡️❤️

12
2