Rants and Weekly Raves #49 (RAWR)
kakashi: I'm still on holidays. I wouldn't mind staying for another month or two, because it will be hell when I get back. Also: An Ant-Colony bit me in the bum, there are 18 bites. It itches like HELL. And finally: Blogger and Disqus are having a quarrel, hence, all our comments made on Disqus were not showing in the comment count. All the posts since July 27 read "no comments". Because that's a mean lie, I switched off the Blogger comment count entirely. Be sure to check the posts and scroll all the way down - that's the only way you'll see the comments (unless you properly log into Disqus and have them tell you about comments and who answers you etc.)
JoAnne: I thought it was odd that no one was saying ANYTHING. I'm sorry about your bum but you now have independent confirmation from a panel of experts that you have one sweet ass.
Nabi: Hahaha, sweet ass! ㅋㅋㅋㅋ!! I noticed the lack of comments also, and wondered if it were a programming glitch. Now I'm worried someone said something to me and I haven't even seen it. I'm not very good about remembering to check comments already…
I thoroughly enjoyed this drama until the last two weeks, when my interest started to wane a bit. I'm still disappointed by the cop-out resolution to storyline about Min-woo's mother, mainly because it's so obvious that they pushed it aside for Suk-hoon's evil machinations only to remember it again at the last moment. Not. Buying it. Show. That said, our OTP was lovable and cute beyond my expectations for a melodrama, and I would honestly like to see Ju Ji-hoon and Soo Ae do another drama together. Preferably a rom-com.
I haven't even finished episode 2, sorry. I love them both but my 'press start' finger is just so TIRED these days.
Everyone now and then someone posts a picture of Kim Bum in tight slacks, always taken from the side. His butt acting is strong, I guess.
JoAnne: I thought it was odd that no one was saying ANYTHING. I'm sorry about your bum but you now have independent confirmation from a panel of experts that you have one sweet ass.
Nabi: Hahaha, sweet ass! ㅋㅋㅋㅋ!! I noticed the lack of comments also, and wondered if it were a programming glitch. Now I'm worried someone said something to me and I haven't even seen it. I'm not very good about remembering to check comments already…
High Society (Finale)
JoAnne: Hmm, what to say? This drama is the epitome of spotty: they did a fantastic job of working through the younger relationships (ok, Yoon Ha was not well written, and I'm going to venture that the subtlety of JoongKi's behavior is lost on many) and gave us the second lead OTP of the century in ChangSoo and Yi Ji, but they never bothered to explain Yoon Ha's mother's hatred for her in the first place, and then there's the sudden turn around with no real 'awakening' either; they had a middle sister who was a COMPLETE waste of space, they didn't do much to give us anything beyond the barest of reasons for why the brother ran away and then just breezed back in, and the older sister was pretty much a waste, too. Of course she wanted the job, of course she resented being pushed aside by a younger sibling simply because he was male; of course she'd view people with suspicion in business, especially her father. And yet that very suspicion was used as the reason why she wasn't enough for the job...by the very man who bred it into her and bled it from his own pores. I give points to JoongKi and his family, ChangSoo and his mom, and Yi Ji - YOU GUYS were a great story. Yoon Ha gets half points. Everyone else, go away. The problem here was mixing two stories together and really, giving them equal weight. The story was about the four kids. Anything else was extraneous. I forgive you because of Chang Soo and Yi Ji, writer-nim, but you were lucky.
My Beautiful Bride
I want to talk about this some more ... SOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOD! There's no way we can know where this is going, right? But I don't believe Kim Do-Hyeong will die anymore. I think he will become Top Banker of the year 2016 and will be happily married to Joo-Young's 3rd or 4th identity. In anticipation of episode 13's recap, this is my present to you:
Oh my holy god. How can he do that and why can't I stop watching him?!?! Sorry, stupid question. But I repeat, oh my holy god!
Delicious.
becca: I am bumping this up a couple more slots on my to-watch list. For, uh… reasons.
Mask (Finale)
Ah, Mask! Your crazy is over now, and so is your cute. We got a happy ending, more or less, for our lovebirds, and both Mi-Yeon and Suk-Hoon got punished, one way or another. So, yay? I can't help but remember that the last time we saw Min-Woo's naked torso was in Episode 7, and aside from my obvious disappointment at the loss of that eye candy, I think the change in disrobing habits heralded a more serious shift in coherence and quality overall. And that makes me sad. Because those first seven episodes were pretty delicious, and I don't just mean Ju Ji-Hoon's chest. Sigh.I thoroughly enjoyed this drama until the last two weeks, when my interest started to wane a bit. I'm still disappointed by the cop-out resolution to storyline about Min-woo's mother, mainly because it's so obvious that they pushed it aside for Suk-hoon's evil machinations only to remember it again at the last moment. Not. Buying it. Show. That said, our OTP was lovable and cute beyond my expectations for a melodrama, and I would honestly like to see Ju Ji-hoon and Soo Ae do another drama together. Preferably a rom-com.
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| Going back to grab this screenshot forced me to re-watch the "previously on Mask" scenes from Episode 7, and it was like an homage to everything that was so crazy/awesome about the first 1/3 of this show (and practically non-existant in the last 2/3). Also, it turns out that this mostly obscured chest shot appears only in flashback in Episode 7, so the actual disrobing stopped after Episode 6. Double sigh.
But his face looks like he's that boy in 8th grade who has the unexpected boner and gets asked to stand up and recite something in front of the class.
I TOLD you he has a dumb face! And yet, they were so adorable together, I have (mostly) forgiven their collective blank stares. |
Oh My Ghostess
Jaehyus: The only one I watched on vacay, so still engaging, funny and good. Wondering what Elf Cop's deal is.
This drama makes me smile all the time. Chep is A D O R A B L E: All of him and all the time. The reverse dynamic is fun again, seeing how they're together now and he goes all conservative - but not because he does not want to sleep with her, but because he is a thoroughly good guy with ideals. I know some people were wondering whom he likes: Ghosty or the real Bong Sun, but it's quite obvious he likes both and it's also quite obvious they're becoming more alike as they share a body. And the more Ghosty falls in love with him and she gets to experience those wonderful butterfly feelings, the less she wants to leave - the less she is in a rush to sleep with him. That's quite clever and makes watching them together a treat.
Sous-Chef is a hoot and the rest of the chefs ... awwww. And all of them together: Awwwwwwwwwww. My least favorite part is still the "murder mystery"/Evil Spirit part. Let us just have a romcom for once, Kdrama, please. At least we haven't been punished by noble idiocy (yet?) or any other of the 2nd half hurdles.
I guess I'm one of the people worrying about the whole Soon-Ae vs. Bong-Sun question, but mostly because I'm afraid it is going to be a big deal for Cheppu-nim very soon. This week took us from him admitting he likes her to him suddenly ready to hop into bed with her, and we only just finished episode 10. I doubt they'll spend all of the next six episodes just solving ghosty's murder and settling Bong & Cheppu comfortably into coupled bliss, so does that mean some serious angst is headed our way? Personally, I would prefer if we focused more on the murder mystery if it meant we could avoid wallowing in the "But who do I love and how could you lie to me?" agony I now sense peeking over the horizon of adorableness. On a more glass-half-full note, I nearly fainted in the train station when Cheppu brought her hand down from his cheek and kissed her fingers. Rawr!!
They're adorable and I remain curious how this whole thing gets resolved: it's icky to think of her body being used to have sex with an unsuspecting man. Even if they both want it, she's in there somewhere passed out, and he has no idea who he's sleeping with. I know it's not going to happen, but I'm not sure how they plan to see us out of this dilemma. Also, this very low key way they having of reminding you periodically that LimCop is actually possessed by a bad spirit and has been since his youth is just very weird and anticlimactic. But otherwise, OMG THE CUTE.
This drama makes me smile all the time. Chep is A D O R A B L E: All of him and all the time. The reverse dynamic is fun again, seeing how they're together now and he goes all conservative - but not because he does not want to sleep with her, but because he is a thoroughly good guy with ideals. I know some people were wondering whom he likes: Ghosty or the real Bong Sun, but it's quite obvious he likes both and it's also quite obvious they're becoming more alike as they share a body. And the more Ghosty falls in love with him and she gets to experience those wonderful butterfly feelings, the less she wants to leave - the less she is in a rush to sleep with him. That's quite clever and makes watching them together a treat.
I guess I'm one of the people worrying about the whole Soon-Ae vs. Bong-Sun question, but mostly because I'm afraid it is going to be a big deal for Cheppu-nim very soon. This week took us from him admitting he likes her to him suddenly ready to hop into bed with her, and we only just finished episode 10. I doubt they'll spend all of the next six episodes just solving ghosty's murder and settling Bong & Cheppu comfortably into coupled bliss, so does that mean some serious angst is headed our way? Personally, I would prefer if we focused more on the murder mystery if it meant we could avoid wallowing in the "But who do I love and how could you lie to me?" agony I now sense peeking over the horizon of adorableness. On a more glass-half-full note, I nearly fainted in the train station when Cheppu brought her hand down from his cheek and kissed her fingers. Rawr!!
They're adorable and I remain curious how this whole thing gets resolved: it's icky to think of her body being used to have sex with an unsuspecting man. Even if they both want it, she's in there somewhere passed out, and he has no idea who he's sleeping with. I know it's not going to happen, but I'm not sure how they plan to see us out of this dilemma. Also, this very low key way they having of reminding you periodically that LimCop is actually possessed by a bad spirit and has been since his youth is just very weird and anticlimactic. But otherwise, OMG THE CUTE.
I Remember You
Who?
I don't get it? (I guess it's about "who" it is that he/she remembers? [Yes. :-)]) Anyway, this show surprises me by not keeping secrets and yet still leaving me with questions. Seo In Guk is doing a great job, so is Bogummy, so is Heir Daddy. I like, I like. Especially the sweet little band of cops, but I do think that one guy is suspicious. No, not Chunderella. He's just a muffin in love with Cha Ji An. The other guy, the orphan one.
Is he? In love with Ji An, I mean? Admittedly, I'm a couple of episodes behind, but I don't see it quite that way. I think he (hilariously, adorably) just wants to be loved by the whole team. He gets that same puppy-dog look with all of them, like he's just dying to be included and really be part of the group. I love it.
I don't get it? (I guess it's about "who" it is that he/she remembers? [Yes. :-)]) Anyway, this show surprises me by not keeping secrets and yet still leaving me with questions. Seo In Guk is doing a great job, so is Bogummy, so is Heir Daddy. I like, I like. Especially the sweet little band of cops, but I do think that one guy is suspicious. No, not Chunderella. He's just a muffin in love with Cha Ji An. The other guy, the orphan one.
Is he? In love with Ji An, I mean? Admittedly, I'm a couple of episodes behind, but I don't see it quite that way. I think he (hilariously, adorably) just wants to be loved by the whole team. He gets that same puppy-dog look with all of them, like he's just dying to be included and really be part of the group. I love it.
The Time We Were Not in Love
Since last week's RAWR, I managed to catch up on this show, but then I fell behind again over the weekend. In the meantime, I also finally went back and read all the recaps I had been skipping over at dramabeans. While I'm not quite as frustrated with this show as HeadsNo2 clearly is, going all the way back to the beginning did make me realize just how long ago I first asked some of the burning questions that still haven't been answered, and reading the recaps all more-or-less at once really served to highlight just how haphazard most of the characters are. Worst of all, I like Ha Ji-Won best when she is strong and fearless, and now it's impossible for me to continue pretending that's anything even remotely close to the woman she's depicting in The Time We Were Not In Love. Such a bummer.I haven't even finished episode 2, sorry. I love them both but my 'press start' finger is just so TIRED these days.
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| Won being inscrutable and Hana being the opposite of fearless...again. |
The Scholar Who Walks the Night
Drooling over Lee SooHyuk's Nose. It does things to me that make me want to do more things. ::FansSelf::
Why, yes, I do have a thing for noses.
Lee JunKi seems to have practiced poses: Handsome To The Left,
Handsome Straight Ahead...
Thanks, now what's stuck in my head is this: Handsome to the right of me, handsome to the left of me, here I am, stuck in the middle with you.
Actually, I'm finding this whole drama a very appealing fantasy, and I don't even like vampires because, yuck, they're just disgusting zombies. It could be because of Lee Soohyuk's Nose, or it could be because everyone and everything is really pretty in it. Plus, lately, I haven't been able to pay attention to anything serious, so it works out. It's the fluff I need.
It's not bad. It's overwrought and no where near bad enough* to be campy, so where it fails it just fails - but I do like the OTP. * Aside from the plot, I mean, which is badly, uh, plotted.
I'm still enjoying this! I love all of Jun-Ki's looks (nice screencaps, Jaehyus!(Thanks <3)), except when he's pretending to be unconscious and near death with a full face of lipstick and guyliner -- that was a bit distracting -- and I am enjoying the sexual tension more now than I was before. True, the story isn't paced very well at times, but it's interesting enough in general, for now, for me to be patient, and I quite like our slightly cross-eyed cross-dressing heroine. My only real complaint this week is that they have now given her severalperfect glaringly obvious setups to discover our Night Scholar's secret identity, but seem to prefer her to be almost deliberately obtuse instead. Which is particularly irritating in characters who are supposed to be as bright as Yang-Sun is. Sigh.
I am tempted, briefly, from time to time because of Joongi. But those temptations are very brief and my days are short enough as they are.
Yes, I am rather handsome at this angle.
Handsome To The Right,
Mr. DeMille, there's no wrong side.
Handsome Straight Ahead...
Rosebud lips, y'all, on a guy.
Thanks, now what's stuck in my head is this: Handsome to the right of me, handsome to the left of me, here I am, stuck in the middle with you.
Actually, I'm finding this whole drama a very appealing fantasy, and I don't even like vampires because, yuck, they're just disgusting zombies. It could be because of Lee Soohyuk's Nose, or it could be because everyone and everything is really pretty in it. Plus, lately, I haven't been able to pay attention to anything serious, so it works out. It's the fluff I need.
It's not bad. It's overwrought and no where near bad enough* to be campy, so where it fails it just fails - but I do like the OTP. * Aside from the plot, I mean, which is badly, uh, plotted.
I'm still enjoying this! I love all of Jun-Ki's looks (nice screencaps, Jaehyus!(Thanks <3)), except when he's pretending to be unconscious and near death with a full face of lipstick and guyliner -- that was a bit distracting -- and I am enjoying the sexual tension more now than I was before. True, the story isn't paced very well at times, but it's interesting enough in general, for now, for me to be patient, and I quite like our slightly cross-eyed cross-dressing heroine. My only real complaint this week is that they have now given her several
I am tempted, briefly, from time to time because of Joongi. But those temptations are very brief and my days are short enough as they are.
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| "Cross-Eyes cradles Guyliner" |
Hidden Identity
What, this is still on?!Everyone now and then someone posts a picture of Kim Bum in tight slacks, always taken from the side. His butt acting is strong, I guess.
Last
I got bored by middle of second ep. If I'm walking away from an ipad, then that doesn't bode well. But I don't know why I don't like it since there's plenty of actors I like and a story that moves along well. Maybe because I know and see a lot of homeless each way to the office, even helped a couple of them at legal clinics, and so it just looks like another gangster show rather than someone getting out of homelessness and taking down gangsters and chaebols as I originally thought.
I don't think I will watch this after all. I have episode 1 and 2 on my harddrive, but since nobody is raving about it, I don't feel like starting it. *presses delete*
I watched the first episode and thoroughly enjoyed it. Lots of funny bits, especially the former Idol Manager. Basically, if Fagin were part of a larger operation, this would be the operation. It'll be interesting to see Yoon Kye Sang go through the ranks.
I've only seen the first few minutes of Episode 1 so far, but I am impressed with Yoon Kye-Sang's stroke. In the pool, I mean. It looks like he's an actual swimmer, which isn't always the case in dramaland. *cough, Boys Over Flowers, cough, cough, gag*
I don't think I will watch this after all. I have episode 1 and 2 on my harddrive, but since nobody is raving about it, I don't feel like starting it. *presses delete*
I watched the first episode and thoroughly enjoyed it. Lots of funny bits, especially the former Idol Manager. Basically, if Fagin were part of a larger operation, this would be the operation. It'll be interesting to see Yoon Kye Sang go through the ranks.
I've only seen the first few minutes of Episode 1 so far, but I am impressed with Yoon Kye-Sang's stroke. In the pool, I mean. It looks like he's an actual swimmer, which isn't always the case in dramaland. *cough, Boys Over Flowers, cough, cough, gag*
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| Yoon Kye-Sang executing a genuinely decent flip-turn. |
Hwajung
Hwajung has been stressing me out because the table-thumping has gotten old, and everyone seems to repeat a statement three times at a minimum and then flashback to the exact same thing. I don't like that. However, I skipped ep 27 and went to ep 28 and it got better. People stopped repeating themselves, and I just skipped the war scenes and the big emotional second lead monologue. Maybe they fired the lazy writer and got a not-so-lazy one. Ooh, and Kim JaeWon as Crazy King Injo is awesome!!!
Late Night Restaurant
Despite actual love for this that darned 'press start' finger really isn't working correctly.Other
I've been watching Falling Skies. I have no idea why. I'm moderately entertained addicted so I keep going. Also started season 3 of Hannibal. The music is discordant and too loud and I recognize that this is meant to reflect Will's state of mind, but I cannot bear to hear it. Everything grates on me right now. It could have something to do with 3 solid weeks of...well, nothing solid. In OR out. That would irritate anyone, right?
I've fallen into the world of lakorns again. This time it's Game Rai Game Rak with the most adorable OTP… which is quickly headed into angstville as separation and amnesia kick in. I'm in, though, because they've won my heart with their early-episodes-cuteness.
I've fallen into the world of lakorns again. This time it's Game Rai Game Rak with the most adorable OTP… which is quickly headed into angstville as separation and amnesia kick in. I'm in, though, because they've won my heart with their early-episodes-cuteness.
Looking Forward to...
Two webdramas: The Noble You with Sung Hoon, Jaekyung, and Jaekyung's dog, Macaron, and What The Heck Is Going On with Jaehyo and some other people. They air end of August, and I might even recap!
This week I can't drum up interest in anything. Except that Chinese movie we're all waiting for, of course. I was thinking about rewatching Autumn Concerto, though.
What Chinese movie?
The one Mary pimps so hard you'd think Rim was writing, producing, directing, starring, AND delivering to her doorstep :) I cannot wait to see it, it looks adorable.
For some reason I have started re-watching The Moon Embracing The Sun!
I don't even know what is on the menu. Ergo: not looking forward to anything :)
Just wait. When The Noble You starts, I'm going to delight everyone with Macaron pictures, so please anticipate.
I could go for a macaron.
Macaron. That's a kind of food, right? I'm in. Bring on the macaron!
This week I can't drum up interest in anything. Except that Chinese movie we're all waiting for, of course. I was thinking about rewatching Autumn Concerto, though.
What Chinese movie?
The one Mary pimps so hard you'd think Rim was writing, producing, directing, starring, AND delivering to her doorstep :) I cannot wait to see it, it looks adorable.
For some reason I have started re-watching The Moon Embracing The Sun!
I don't even know what is on the menu. Ergo: not looking forward to anything :)
Just wait. When The Noble You starts, I'm going to delight everyone with Macaron pictures, so please anticipate.
I could go for a macaron.
Macaron. That's a kind of food, right? I'm in. Bring on the macaron!