You Who Came from the Stars (2013)

The storyline was okay and cute. The only that I didn't wrap my head around is that he kept disappearing in the last episode. I mean I wished the writer with the producers would make that last-minute where he didn't leave anymore. It kind of left me empty when he disappeared. I don't know if that was what the writers were trying to get their audience to feel. Not a good feeling. I guess I was just so into the storyline. Kim Soo Hyun who played Do Min Joon was great! Would love to see more of him. Jun Ji Hyun who played Cheon Song Yi wow, did her thing in the character she played. She didn't overdo the celebrity nonsense that I see all the time in America in the character she played. Thank you for that!

Leggi di Più

Okay. So I originally dropped this drama months and months ago because the first episode was just too over-the-top for me, which didn't appeal to me. Song Yi in the first couple of episodes was pretty intolerable because she was so arrogant and such an airhead, but as the story progressed, her character changed in realistic ways and she was likable by the end.
The story's plot really thickens around episodes 4-6 and that's when I finally got hooked and wanted to binge watch it as much as I could. Aside from the twisted plot that intrigued me, I also liked how Min Jun reminded me of Superman in many ways. I also felt that Jae Kyung and Min Jun were pretty well matched foes and so watching them struggling against each other had me on the edge of my seat.

I did almost, for a split second, have second lead syndrome because Hui Kyung was just so sweet and tender with Song Yi, so I was swayed during a couple of scenarios. But then I remembered and was reminded how Song Yi and Min Jun needed to be together, sooooooo yeah, I stayed on my ship XP

The most heart wrenching things for me were Hui Kyung and his family discovering the truth behind his older brother's death. I truly cried for Hui Kyung and his father.

I think the ending was pretty good, but I kinda wanted an even better ending; the ending is truly happy, but I just wanted a more "happily ever after" ending (you'll understand when you watch). For me, Song Yi and Min Jun went through so much hardship together, I just wanted things to end *perfectly* with no caveats.

This was my first drama with Kim Soo Hyun and I thoroughly enjoyed his acting. His little outbursts when Song Yi was just getting on his last nerve were so adorable. His crying was pretty well done too. I think I preferred Jun Ji Hyun in Legend of the Blue Sea, especially since I think her crying scenes were better in LotBS than in YWCftS, but that's just my personal opinion.
Park Hae Jin was probably my favorite actor in this entire drama because he portrayed Hui Kyung in such a raw manner that I couldn't help but love him and cry for him.

The soundtrack was well placed and appropriate, but not anything that I'm dying to relisten to.

Overall, I'm glad I decided to pick this back up because I really did love it. It's not one of my top favorites, but it's definitely something I would recommend to others, especially to those who enjoy Superman (he's my favorite superhero personally :)).

***As a complete side note that didn't impact my rating, but just something I noticed being in the medical field --- every time someone had a surgery or some kind of extreme injury, they recovered or healed or bounced back way to quickly in unrealistic ways. For example, Song Yi has at least 2 major abdominal surgeries in the entire drama and within days they show her sitting up on her own without wincing or crying out, implying that she feels no pain from the very recent surgery incision....which simply wouldn't happen because she literally had SURGERY - it wasn't just a scratch! I think to make the screen writing a bit more flawless, having more care with those scenes would have made it an even better drama.

Leggi di Più

This review appears on: https://frommelbtoseoul.wordpress.com/2020/04/12/you-from-another-star-2013/

I didn’t think I would enjoy this as much as I actually did. It was a very easy and entertaining watch, but had a solid plot line so that I wasn’t left feeling unsatisfied.

Breaking away from typical modern-day dramas, You From Another Star ventures into a sci-fi area, by introducing the existence of aliens. It’s definitely not the first but, I think it is the first I’ve watched with said element. I’m surprised the drama was able to introduce and explain the supernatural aspect quite well. I wasn’t really left with any confusions, which is a plus because sometimes that can detract from watching the drama in general.

I’ve mentioned that the plot was solid. It was easy to follow through and fast paced enough to not get bored of. The cliffhangers were so epic for every single episode, which kept me hooked. Underlying the romance that was to occur, was actually a mystery that needed to be solved. That was probably the “main” plot following the two protagonists. Whilst I felt like it was very exaggerated – I mean the villain was evil to the point where it felt ridiculous – in a world where aliens exist, I guess it wasn’t too crazy. To be honest I wasn’t invested in that part of the drama until it threatened to break down both the protagonists, and that’s when it grabbed my entire attention.

Hands down, Cheon Song Yi is the best female heroine in drama land. She is sassy, flawed and (deep, very deep down inside) caring. I loved that she didn’t lose her personality as soon as Do Min Joon stepped into her life. Song Yi was strong-headed and hilariously stupid, but she had such a caring and loving personality you couldn’t hate her for it. I loved that she was confident and wasn’t afraid to show it. It was refreshing to see the female protagonist take the lead most of the time, and didn’t cave into the male’s will power. More than that though, she was genuinely a decent person and had everyone’s best interest at heart, even if she didn’t show it well enough. One of my favourite female characters ever.

I also loved Min Joon as well, but in the way that any viewer would admire the hero. He was every bit intelligent, strong and charismatic, very much a typical but desired character. I felt like the drama did a great job of representing that humanity is in everyone, no matter who or where you are, and that emotions can override almost anything. It was also a great exploration of how to define where the “home” is, and mind vs heart. Another plus was the casting of Kim Soo Hyun because he was easy on the eyes not only because he’s gorgeous, but because he’s such a talented actor as well.

The minor characters all had their silly quirks and it was hard not to pay them attention as well. Not a lot of them were irrelevant so it didn’t distract from the plot.

The chemistry between Kim Soo Hyun and Jun Ji Hyun was actually quite good. It was definitely steamy in some moments and I squealed so much. The progression of their relationship was very thought out and made sense. I could see why Song Yi would’ve fallen for Min Joon, and why Min Joon would go out of his way to see her happy/safe. It wasn’t insta-love like most times.

Overall, You From Another Star was a great watch that drove many emotions and thoughts. It wasn’t hard to get immersed and I liked that there were some sci-fi elements, because it added to the excitement. It’s not an amazing drama but it’s solid enough to be good. If you haven’t checked out then give it a go, you might like it. A minor issue was it’s predictable ending, but not one that was frustrating, so I overlooked that.

Leggi di Più

Fun to watch a spoiled starlet meet her match

9/10 is my rating. This is a 2013/2014 South Korean Drama Spanning 21 episodes (~60 minutes/episode). Jun Ji-Hyun plays the female lead, Cheon Song-Yi, a top Korean starlet who is used to having every guy fall at her feet and generally getting her own way.  She moves in next to a guy, Do Min-Joon (played by Kim Soo-Hyun), who, if anything, finds Cheon Song-Yi annoying in her behavior.  Which naturally drives her crazy and makes her determined to win him over. 

Spoiler 🚨 I was a little reluctant on this one.  An Alien I thought.  What like ET?  No, more like Superman.  This has romance, of course, but it also has that supernatural element, along with a love triangle, a mystery and even a serial killer.  I found this SO interesting and entertaining.  22 episodes is more than some but I was so entertained that it didn’t seem like many.  I loved the two leads they looked so beautiful together.  And you could really see how each offset the other.  There was even an ET joke so a nod at that movie.  I can see why it consistently rates high.  It isn’t silly because of the alien element – just intriguing.  I liked it a lot I wish it had ended a bit different but would still have watched it and would recommend it because it ended okay and was so enjoyable to watch.

Leggi di Più

best korean classic ever

i will not waste time telling the plot. without doubt these is the best drama to watch if you need laugh , some crying and second lead syndrome. kim soo hyun and jun ji hyun with their naturally acting touch our hearts.and the remaining cast is also perfect. my destiny that song just give the romantic kind of vibe . i finished it so fast as i can if you believe love and destiny i can assure you will enjoy this drama as i did. everything is perfect . in the few last ep jun ji hyun just killed it by crying over and saying i want to see him i feel like i am going to die , i was heartbreaking to see her crying like. this maybe seems like cliche but is not

Leggi di Più

The Korean Superman Story

A super-powered handsome alien from another planet falls in love with a woman on Earth.

Hang on wait a minute, haven't I seen that kind of story before?

✔ Looks exactly like a young attractive human male, is actually from a far-away planet and is an immortal god
✔ Has superpowers like massively enhanced strength, reflexes, speed, senses, and resilience
✔ Tries to blend in with human society, mostly succeeds
✔ Falls for a human girl and wants to protect her

So I guess Korea finally made their Superman adaptation? But in the form of a kdrama! No wonder it was popular. Superman stories are always popular.

So yeah, this Korean Superman has a massive crush on Jun Ji-hyun (his Lois Lane, except she's insanely famous) for reasons he can't explain, the ONLY girl he's ever crushed on in his 400 years of existence on our planet.

Well, get in line brother!

It wins you over with a great and expressive performance by Jun Ji-hyun who essentially plays a much more famous version of her character in MY SASSY GIRL, which is always a delight. Since she was the most famous and highest-paid actress in Korea by the time this show came out, I guess she's basically playing herself? Method acting!

I can think of so many ways they could have slightly altered the script to fix most of the glaring issues (not making him an alien who speaks Korean as soon as he arrives on Earth would be one), but hey, to be fair, Superman doesn't make any lick of sense either and nobody seems to care.

It's a sweet story with lots of twists and turns about the lengths you're ready to go for love. The show starts off really strong with a killer first set of episodes, then meanders quite a bit before getting to the end, but it gets there. And also add a random psychopathic villain stealing the show every now and then. Male lead was kind of… too indecisive though. It became a bit annoying at some point. Even though it's kind of the point of his character, I thought he was mostly expressionless and lacked the charisma and magnetism of his co-lead.

Comfortably inserts itself in the My Sassy Girl Spiritual Sequels Universe (joining Windstruck).

It would seem Jun Ji-hyun can do no wrong.

Leggi di Più

Rating Justification:
Story: 9/10 - Personally I thoroughly enjoyed this drama and its story. It was innovative and different, considering most alien-human love stories tend to explore and portray alien as abnormal and slightly on the creepy side creatures, which this drama did not do at all. It was also entertaining to see the life of an actress, and a difficult one at that, and it's glamour and downfalls.
Acting/Cast: 10/10 - The cast of this drama is possibly one of my favourite casts of all time. As I write this, I have had the pleasure of watching them act in various other dramas, and many of the actors/actresses still remain my favourite till this day. The interactions between characters, main and supporting, were always a delight to watch. They made the story all the more compelling and fascinating to watch.
Music: 10/10 - The music in this drama still moves me till this day. My Destiny, I Love you and Goodbye had me close to tears everytime!! Still one of the best soundtracks out there.
Rewatch Value: 8/10 - This criteria is a bit hard to judge for me, seeing as I am a person that doesn't enjoy rewatching things that much, so I have decided to judge this based on how much I predict I would enjoy it in case I did rewatch this drama. In my opinion it would go down in rating because I would probably judge the characters a little more, but it would definitely still be a high mark anyway.
Overall: 10/10 - This drama is definitely a classic for me. Besides the quick pace and never ending comical moments, I think it did a brilliant job on portraying not only the life of a superstar/actress but also a vulnerable and scared character. It would have been easy, in my opinion, to take Jun Ji Hyun's character too far, and either emphasising too much on her flaws or overdoing on her vulnerable moments. I think it was the perfect blend of fantasy, comedy and romance.

Leggi di Più

It took me a while to finish this show because I didn't want it to end. This drama had every thing that I look for. It had a fun plot, great acting, beautiful special effects and cinematography, and a nice love story.

Min Jun was not nice to Song Yi when they first met. Although he had his reasons, his cold and at times rude behavior towards her was annoying. And I felt like the writers let this go on for too many episodes. That's the only reason this is a 9.5 instead of 10 star drama.

Jun Ji Hyun is one of my favorite actresses because she has such an expressive face and she's always willing to do what it takes to get a laugh. Her kind of athletic, physical comedy is always funny, and she did a great job making Song Yi appear to be sweet but strong, shy but outgoing, and confident but vulnerable. Sometimes when Min Jun was being particularly cold I wanted her to walk away and refuse to put up with it, but because she was so confident when it came to most things in her life, I knew she was only putting up with so much. She would have walked away when it became too much.

Luckily she didn't walk away because once Min Jun loved her, he loved her more than anything. Kim Soo Hyun is a great actor too. Because Min Jun was so emotionless in the beginning, I mistook that for a lack of personality. As soon as Min Jun cried for the first time, I cried, and I cried right along with him everytime after that. Kim Soo Hyun's portrayal of Min Jun was subtle but perfect. His calm personality was a great companion to Song Yi's feisty and open personality. She brought the fire out in him and he gave her peace.

Leggi di Più

Hands down, best kdrama I've ever seen. 10/10

The acting, despite the age difference, is absolutely amazing. The lead actors seem to have the perfect expressions in each scene; exactly right. The most refreshing thing about the show is that the female lead character is extremely realistic. Most kdramas usually have the peppy, but afraid-to-speak-their-mind type character; but this character speaks her mind and doesn't hide what she is feeling. She is has imperfections and is pretty quirky. The male lead portrayed emotions really well. His character has pretty emotionless expressions most of the time; it was surprising that he managed to express any feelings without too much of a strong expression.

The OST really gives you vibes; the singing is clear and the music is beautiful. Each song feels perfectly placed. I really liked how the volume of the music varies a little at parts to fit.

The plot-line is usually unexpected, with few cliches. (It does have a few sci-fi cliches, ex. the flying saucers.) The resolution of each problem is refreshingly realistic as well. It doesn't have perfect all-round type solutions. Honestly speaking, I really didn't expect the way the show ended. But, it was so much more in depth than I was expecting.

I was so impressed with the show that I encouraged my family (who have never seen a korean drama in their life) and they were in awe. I've re-watched 3 times so far.

Leggi di Più