Epic Time Travel Romcom

Guys, how to say goodbye to Sun Jae and Im Sol, who I fell so hard for these past weeks. It's like the writer and PD said, how do we make the most fun hopelessly romantic kdrama and drive our viewers crazy with giddiness and agony each episode?

Name another drama where the OTP's faces are always a few inches, staring longingly at each other. This might be too much on another show, but in Lovely Runner, we craaave for it lol. Where umbrella holding for the other, is not some trite cheap kdrama move, but signifies how Sun Jae/Sol will just do anything to shield the other from pain and harm.

Let's admit, the biggest pull of this show is how dreamy (and a doofus) Ryu Sun Jae is as a whole (equipped with Byeon Woo Seok's outrageously good looks). That cast and their chemistry are gold! It's so easy to make this another typical high school drama where the girl chases the arrogant popular guy who will slowly fall for the girl. But he is such a dork, charming our socks off with his awkward confession mishaps, and all that selfless pining! And his devotion to Sol, omg, like can we clone him for the better of mankind?

Sol, is no slouch too, traversing time and space to save him. As he has always saved her, she sacrificed so much for him too. Some are getting annoyed by all the noble idiocy, but the weighty circumstances in the show warrant it, and makes such good angst!

Spoilers:
Others are maybe bothered about the latest time reset, erasing all what has happened before. But him getting intrigued by her again as strangers, tearing up from unknowingly reading his OWN tragic love story, reading the lost love song he wrote for her, falling for her again and again despite the odds. Choosing her again and again in spite of the morbid consequences. OMG, simply swoony romance at its finest.

The conclusion did feel like there was a lot of drama magic for them to get together again, but I can't complain when it gives these two the happy ending they earned, darn it. The time capsule watch does feels like a deus ex machina, but at the same time it's kind of fitting too.

Undoubtedly one of the best epic romances, kdrama has to offer. THIS is why regardless of the language barrier, we love kdramas, they know how to do romance right. How I wish I can borrow Sun Jae's time travel watch and experience this for the first time all over again. Falling for these two yet again and again.

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Crossdressing ajumma fusion sageuk The Tale of Nokdu...and the Crazy King (a more apt title), is a solid spiritual successor of my fave Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, this is a rare show where the intertwined plot threads paid off, and one of the more satisfying endings I've seen in awhile.

The world building itself is fascinating as there's a village of widows coexisting beside a gisaeng house, who are composed of all female assassins involved in a mysterious plot? Yes, count me in!

Jang Dong Yoon impresses as he transitions seamlessly from boyish Nokdu to widow Lady Kim. He has good comedic timing and has kind of baby Kim Soo Hyun vibe (from Producers) about him, I'm curious to see his continued growth as an actor. The OTP pairing might not have reached magical squee levels for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed their easygoing chemistry and relationship that slowly developed through solid friendship.

My breakout star of the drama is undoubtedly Kang Tae Oh, with his fascinating turn as Lord Yul Mu. From his head turns, to his smirk and strut, he wholly embraced the complicated facets of his character. I won't be surprised if I see him in a lead role soon.

This is a drama where the characters are well drawn out and multi faceted. Even those guys we love to despise, the drama took time to show their perspective and make us understand their human flaws. Not to mention all those beloved side characters, esp. the women, who are badass.

The first half of Nokdu about crossdressing and light moments, differed a lot from the second half which was more court politics and heartbreak as Nokdu searched for his identity. On the surface, the crossdressing might seem a gimmick for laughs, but through this, the show uplifts women with its portrayal of female empowerment, and uplifts the soul through its message of freeing oneself with thoughts of hatred and revenge, as it can consume and destroy you.

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Signal x Nine crossover show

Kairos is the baby drama when Signal x Nine has a crossover. Honestly, I'm half tuned out from the show, maybe it's the holiday buzz and I realized I'm not in a mood right now for a suspense drama. Or I'm just the hopeless romantic that needs a good romance to anchor me to a non-romance show (like Nine). But even through that, Kairos is a solid show and they did something different from the usual 'whodunit' drama.

The suspense does not come from identifying twist after twist of who the baddies are, But from how the protagonists go about trying to pass every hurdle and change a tragic happening in the past or the future. I like Lee Se Yeong's dual role in Hwayugi and she doesn't disappoint here. All actors are commendable, but Winner guy Kang Seung Yoon really stood out to me.

One quibble I have is how calm Shin Sung Rok's character accepted his wife's 'extracurricular' activities. Lastly this is the rare drama that stuck to its own rules until the end, even if they have to keep the suspense going.

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Solid Romance melodrama

Even though there were one too many stalkers in this show, I enjoyed the romance and relationships in this low-key drama. There is almost always romance in kdramas, but lately it's hard to find romance that is given proper depth, to be all about the two, and all the cute, messy feelings, and angst to go with it.

Oh Anchor-nim. Though Kim Dong Wook may not have the classic looks of a leading man, he is a good actor, and I find myself more and more enamored with his Anchor-nim. Yes, he was such a grouch at first, but when he committed in his relationship, he was so patient and understanding, just waiting for her.

Moon Ga Young's Ha Jin is so pure and precious, and the heart of the show. It's hard not to fall for her charms. I don't know how Anchor-nim resisted for so long, I fell for her immediately. MGY made her so likable, and I'll definitely look out for her future works.

I do have a weakness for heroine chasing the hero trope, in her own cute adorable way. And you slowly see the walls around the grouchy hero's heart melt. Then before he even realizes it, he's already bending backwards for her.

The side relationships are also heartwarming, from Anchor-nim's bff dr, coworkers, Ha jin's manager, to the sisters' relationship. Kim Seul Gi killing it as always. Ha Kyung is the runaway best character. Lee Jin Hyuk impressed me with his good comic timing.

Spoilers:
I don't like all the stalker stuff in this drama though, and the father psychiatrist plotline obsessed with Anchor-nim's condition kind of doesn't feel right too. Despite that, this is a solid drama to sink into, I initially got invested through the heroine's charms, but by the end, it's Anchor-nim who I'll remember it by.

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Fun and creative

I'm so glad I finished this after putting it on hold for years! This has to be one of the most creative Hong sisters drama in years. I want to pick up cdramas for some time now because they always have dramas about deities, monsters, and immortal love, while you find this rare in kdramas where it's usually supernatural- lite.

There's even a scene where it looks like it came from a xianxia (cdrama) and I wanted to watch that show! I've heard of the tale of Chinese odyssey for a long time, and I'm amazed by how the Hong sisters made that story into a modern Korean twist complete with a memorable love story.

They made me like and appreciate each of the characters. I'm first also iffy about the love potion aspect of the geumganggo, but in the end it was executed in a satisfying manner. (Slight spoilers:) What is not satisfying is that ending , but oh well kdrama writers do not want us to have nice things. I'm not as mad as others, maybe because I'm already spoiled by it, I hated how they executed the death, but I'm ok with the ending overall.

I wished Lee Seung Gi and Oh Yeon Seo have more of a sizzling chemistry, but they portrayed their characters well, esp. LSG he embodied Son Oh Gong's cranky, playful monkey really well, a twist on the bad boy falling for the good girl trope.

LSG and Cha Seung Won as Ma Wang have great chemistry tho, no wonder this is their 2nd drama. Their love hate bromance is so comical and cannot be missed. Lee Se Yeong playing as dual character really shone here.

The drama does go on a bit too long, but I don't mind hanging out with this special ragtag group of monsters. It was so much fun. When you leave the drama missing all the characters from adorable Oh Jeong to capricious Pal Gye, you know the drama has done its job well.

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Black is a good grim reaper crime drama! At first, I was put off in the first ep by that (too long) slapstick hospital gown scene of Song Seung Heon (Black), and Go Ara's (Haram) hysterical plane scene. But after that things picked up, and it became a substantial riveting watch. (Warning, this drama contain triggering content like rape, suicide, and child prostitution, among others.)

Writer Choi Ran presents you this big puzzle, giving bits of clues here and there, slowly letting you earn and piece together a few at a time, and get a clearer picture with each episode. Even that early standalone episode about the 2 kids, ugh, I'm still bothered and outraged by it. If I have one hangup, she goes overboard with her twists, it's one too many for me. Twists keep things exciting but should still be reasonable within the story.

I was also initially misled by misconceptions about Song Seung Heon and Go Ara's acting. Yes, SSH may struggle a bit with melo scenes, and Go Ara can go overboard at times, but SSH really suited Black, he is the classic k-hero we love with a supernatural twist and oozing with charm. Black is that standoffish, arrogant, unfeeling Reaper 444, just collecting the souls of humans who just tragically died, without any pity at all.

It was such a delight to see his cold heart gradually melt, and it's not only because of Haram, that turning point when he saw the heartless way the husband and wife (who lost their kid in Mujin Mall collapse) were killed. He tried to keep distant but cannot stay as casual observer anymore. SSH also has good comedic chops, it was a hoot to watch Black trying to resist his growing empathy, and even falling for a measly human he used to look down on.

I wished SSH and Go Ara had more romantic chemistry though (Mr. Director, those are the most awkward kdrama kisses ever!), but I like how the OTP's friendship grew. Go Ara also surprised me, she has quiet crying moments that were heartfelt. But of course, this drama cannot escape that trope of the heroine putting herself in danger for others, and Black will be in trouble because of it. The supporting characters were also mutifaceted, memorable, and tragic.

Supernatural dramas are right up my alley, and I'm happy to say Black satisfied those buttons. Yes, it has less supernatural elements than more big budget grim reaper shows like Along with the Gods or Goblin. But the way Choi Ran presents the best and ugly, very ugly faces of humanity, it will touch and hurt you at the same time. The story and life lessons of Black, Haram, and their world will stay with me for awhile. As they should.

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Jung. Kyung. Ho. Baksa. This is the role of his life. I've fallen for him as a comedic performer in Falling for Innocence, but his badass coolness factor here as Baksa is unparalled. Baksa definitely went up my list of fave tortured heroes.

Cruel City tackles the dark world of druglords and undercover agents. It's crime noir, a genre I'm not usually invested in, but nonetheless Baksa and his tragic story gripped me. He is almost superhero like here, saving his loved ones, fighting 10, 20 men at once, and looking stylishly cool doing so.

That OST Hurt will haunt me, it's so good! You can feel the pain of our protagonist's life in Kim Yong Jin's voice. For the romance with Soo Min, I love the concept, but maybe it's their pairing, or how little scenes they have together, and I was not swept away by it. I was more invested in Baksa's true friendship with Soo, Jin Sook despite all the lies, (I'm mesmerized by her beauty, why isn't she in more dramas) and even his complicated relationship with Safari.

That's what's good about this show, it's always grey, it's never black and white. Are the prosecutors and the police really the good guys? Are their enemies really the bad ones? It's way more complicated than that, and sadly that's life for you.

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Time travel stories can be head scratching fiasco, but Nine kdrama is gold standard that it all lies within exact execution and writing. Nine is a drama that does it all---scifi, bit of magic, romance, melo, suspense, mystery, and it juggles it all well.

Nine has romance that is oh so good yet oh so painful, omg that pining! Samchun sniff. Kdrama male leads need to pine more! Lee Jin Wook's smiling eyes charmed my socks off, and his chemistry with Jo Yoon Hee sizzles. Ok ok Park Sun Woo is a jerk. All writer Song Jae Jung male leads are probably like that. But she loves torturing her heroes to the brink, and in the course of following the tragic sacrifices Sun Woo got into for his loved ones and the heroine, and you find yourself again hopelessly rooting for that jerk.

I appreciate how the story amidst all the angst ended with a positive outlook. Despite trying their best not to, our OTP fell for each other again, even in another time, and they probably will, again and again. Sometimes you keep on trying to change something but the path is already laid out. As Sun Woo said, why concentrate on what awful things happened in the past, or worry about what more godawful things will happen in the future. All one can do is be decent, make good choices and stand by them, love whom we love, pray and live our life without all those excess burdens, hope for the best, and enjoy the ride.

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Evergreen love is a very laid back easy breezy simple love story. Quite slow-paced, very slice of life, that can be likened to the changing of seasons, and growing of plants, that our characters bond over. Before you pick this up though, you have to get by the weird premise of her adopting him as a roommate when they just met. Now I laugh at all the outrageous theories I have behind Itsuki’s personality (I thought: does he turn into a plant, is this secretly a fantasy genre lol!). The leads look cute and charming together (Iwata Takanori looks like the hot long lost brother of Running Man’s Kim Jong Kook), but the plot didn’t really stretch anybody’s acting muscles. As I was looking forward to seeing more of Takahata Mitsuki’s projects after her excellent turn as Kahoko, so in that aspect I was disappointed. Overall I still appreciated the warm feel of the movie and how it tried to be different in the way it told the usual love story.

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Fun Urban Fantasy

It's been so long since I wanted to binge a kdrama, Island might be tropey or not particularly memorable in the long run, but it sure is having fun wielding its demon slashing blade along the way.

Great chemistry among the cast is a gamechanger for me, yes, it's a waste for Kim Nam Gil to play a badass stoic demon hunter, as he can express his way through anything , but I'm such a sucker for these types of grumpy/sunshine loveline. He's so good at "longing yet irritated" gazes directed to Lee Da Hee.

Cha Eun Woo looks like he's having a blast playing that cool exorcist priest. There might be quite a few Mi Ho being chased around by demons, until Van saves her, but here's hoping it grows into her developing her powers and they can all kickass together. I love this trio, and can anyone blame me? I'm kind of sick of all the doom and gloom in other shows.

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Fun spacy escapism entertainment

Space Sweepers happen when Star Wars crosses over with an adorbs kid. The show is set on a dystopian Earth, and tackles humans inhabiting space, that's looking less and less inevitable.

Good cast, it's great to see Song Joong Ki again, Kim Tae Ri and Jin Seon Kyu stands out. Waste of Yoo Hae Jin though, as only his voice can be recognized, but I watched the dubbed version (which I regret a lot). There are no subs for the foreign English speaking actors, and I don't hear English clearly now, maybe from years of Asian drama watching and reading subs lol.

I was expecting a lot more Korean cast, but it's good the show is ambitious enough to take a step towards pushing k-ent into becoming more global, even if some look awkward. It feels like a Doctor Who space episode. The plot was far from perfect, there were quite a few 'deus ex machina' moments but the movie is a lot of fun, and always remained hopeful and positive. This is just the right escapism entertainment we need at these trying times.

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If Goblin and I are in a facebook relationship, our status will say "it's complicated". I had a lot of fun watching this fantasy world Kim Eun Sook created, and I looked forward to it every week, but felt it lacked the deep emotional hook kdramas are so good at. After the premiere, the pacing was meandering (to pull the sword or not fiasco), Eun Tak felt too needy, and I was unable to connect with Sunny due to her limited screen time.

But the cast was so endearing, it's Gong Yoo's first drama back in so long, his chemistry with Lee Dong Wook was so on point, Shin & Grim Reaper were adorkable beta heroes kdramaland don't always get, and I'm a sucker for fantasy about gods so I stuck on.

It might have started with getting entertained only through Shin's first love squeeing, but gradually per episode, I was feeling more for the OTP. Once Eun Tak admitted her neediness came from a place of fear of being alone, it's truly wondrous to watch her settle down and mature. I've grown to appreciate how good their relationship is, finally not keeping secrets from each other and just a great support system for one another. They chose to fight their destiny together, and not go all noble idiotic on me (or rather noble idiocy I can get behind on).

Once the show finally got over the first pulling of the sword out of the way, the pacing improved and slowly built up. When most of kdramas lose their way at the end, Goblin is part of that 1% that saved the best for last and went out with a bang, leaving me with all the feels and tears that makes it all worth it after all. Faults and all, I'll always treasure the drama for what it has done for the kdrama fantasy romance genre (which I'm craving more of). And like the rest of Goblin fandom, I know I'll forever feel a little bit blue when the rain falls.

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Inspirational Park Saeroyi is worth 16+ hrs of your drama watching time

At first, I was not that into the show, just finished Sweet Home, and here's yet another show where there is nonsense bullying, a corrupt parent enabling their child's evil deeds, turning the child into a mini-version of themself, and the evil cycle continues on. But Park Saeroyi (Park Seo Joon). It's impossible that he will not grow on you. He's just so decent (How to be you?), which is so rare nowadays. Itaewon Class is a great inspirational underdog (revenge) story.

As the world becomes more and more chaotic, it's becoming much harder to be a stickler for the right morals and principles, as people struggle to survive in a 'dog eat dog' world. It's so easy to conform, and take the easy path. Saeyori knows the righteous path is usually the harder path, but he knows no other way.

I appreciate that the writer veered away from the usual 'Candy' heroines, both Soo Ah and Yi Seo (Kim Da Mi) are complex and driven characters, but the romance has to be the weakest part of Itaewon for me. The idea of a Romeo and Juliet type of romance between Soo Ah and Saeroyi felt more drama epic, I wished the writer showed more of Soo Ah's struggles along the way. For Yi Seo, it was hard to understand her very frank ways at first, I'm also not comfortable about the fact that she risked it all for Saeyori. Maybe I'm more forgiving in fantasy dramas than real-life setting lol.

Itaewon has an unforgettable OST that's just perfect for the motivational message of the drama. Good cast, I watched Ahn Bo Hyun in Kairos first, but he's a phenomenal villain here that comes off a little unhinged. All in all, Itaewon is more than a classic revenge story in a modern setting, it also tackles struggles of the youth and life lessons, including timely issues like transgenders, racism, business startup, and that there is no single path to success. Saeroyi is definitely worth 16 hours of your time.

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Solid survival drama, song kang is love

As kdrama-land hypes for this show, please don't mind me here on the side hyping for Song Kang! He has a magnetic presence on screen, and he made me feel for the trials of the conflicted male hero Hyun Su. Even though I find the storytelling pacing a bit off, esp. in the earlier episodes, it does get its stride in the 2nd half.

This is a solid entry in the 'zombie' survival suspense genre in the trend of Train to Busan and Kingdom. For me, it's not that scary per se but be warned there are some scenes that are uncomfortable to watch, and trigerring content like suicide, bullying, child abuse, violence and a lot of gore as the show tackles the dark side of the human soul, and the everyday struggle with ourselves to be better than our darkest desires.
But the show does balance all that with hope, community, sacrifice, and perseverance.

Such a solid cast with a mix of both upcoming and veteran actors, and I love the ladies esp. Lee Shi Young, our badass firefighter. There's a disconcerting feeling watching such a timely dystopian drama, now we're living in a world with covid, while Sweet Home tackles infections, human evolution and survival. What used to be only escapism entertainment before, now hits a little bit closer to home. Unfortunately, as Netflix shows are, this is not a standalone story, there will be a s2, but more Song Kang to love so I can't complain much.

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Good office drama in the world of sports

A breath of fresh air, Stove League is a good choice if you want a change of pace from romcoms, suspense crime thrillers, medical, and supernatural kdramas. Stove league is more about office politics in the world of baseball. It doesn't have a lot of the actual playing baseball scenes to be honest. It's about how a smart and competent manager, who may came off as rude and unfeeling turns around the Dreams team as last place in the stove league.

Payoff is satisfying as you feel as you've been with Manager Baek and his group go through every hurdle and surpass it. Nam Goong Min gave a more controlled but still solid performance as competent manager Baek Soo. What a solid cast, from very familiar faces we've all seen as amazing character actors from other dramas.

I've been wanting to watch Park Eun Bin for a long time, and she doesn't disappoint. Her aura is so endearing and earnest. I really need to see more of her dramas, and hope she will have more main roles in the future. What I'm surprised is Jo Byung Kyoo. He is so charming and entertaining as comical Jae Hee. I can't wait to see him as lead in Uncanny Encounter. He is just so animated on screen, and watching him banter with Park Eun Bin is a delight.

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