Korean Drama: Watched 2016

The following are the dramas I have watched this year and am about to make reviews when I have the time. Those highlighted are my favorites and in bright pink are recommended and those in lighter pink are still my faves, the rest are still worth watching.

Oh My Venus - So Ji Sub and Shin Min Ah
Moorim School - Lee Hyun Woo  and Seo Ye Ji
Baek Hee Has Returned - Kang Ye Won
Beautiful Mind - Jang Hyuk  and Park So Dam
Moonlight Drawn by Clouds - Park Bo Gum and Kim Yoo Jung (ongoing
Descendants of the Sun - Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo
Uncontrollably Fond - Kim Woo Bin and Bae Suzy
Page Turner -  Kim So Hyun (girl) and Ji Soo
One More Happy Ending - Jang Na Ra and Jung Kyung Ho
Lucky Romance - Hwang Jung Eum  and Ryu Joon Yul, Lee Soo Hyuk
W - Lee Jong Suk and Han Hyo Joo
Marriage Contract - Lee Seo Jin and Uee
Imaginary Cat - Yoo Seung Ho
Jackpot - Jang Geun Suk and Yeo Jin Goo
Doctors - Kim Rae Won and Park Shin Hye
Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo  -  Lee Joon Ki and IU (upcoming)
Remember - Yoo Seung Ho and Park Min Young
Please Come Back, Mister - Rain and Kim In Kwon
Beautiful Gong Shim - Nam Goong Min and Bang Min Ah
Cheese in the Trap - Park Hae Jin and Kim Go Eun
Another Oh Hae Young -  Eric and Seo Hyun Jin
Let's Fight Ghost - Ok Taecyeon and Kim So Hyun (girl)
Signal - Lee Je Hoon and Kim Hye Soo
Cinderella and the Four Knights - Jung Il Woo , Park So Dam and Ahn Jae Hyun
Madame Antoine - Han Ye Seul and Sung Joon
Mirror of the Witch -Yoon Shi Yoon and Kim Sae Ron
Age of Youth - Han Ye Ri, Han Seung Yeon , Park Eun Bin, Ryu Hwa Young and Park Hye Soo

Hmm... When will I be able to do some write ups for these? I wonder. 

jalgayeo!

Korean Drama: Descendants of the Sun 2016

Descendants of the Sun is Soong Joong Ki's comeback drama after his military service. It had a blockbuster rating from the first episode till the end. It became very popular in Asia that most of the products endorsed and used by the leads in the drama had a surge in their sales. Subway, Hyundai, Laneige, Dal.Komm Coffee, KGC Cheong Kwan Jang Korean Red Ginseng to name a few.

Drama: Descendants of the Sun (English & literal title)
Revised romanization: Taeyangui Hooye
Hangul: 태양의 후예
Director: Lee Eung-Bok
Writer: Kim Eun-Sook, Kim Won-Suk
Network: KBS2
Episodes: 16
Release Date: February 24 - April 14, 2016
Runtime: Weds. & Thurs. 22:00
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Song Joong-ki as Captain Yoo Si-jin (aka Big Boss)
Song Hye-kyo as Doctor Kang Mo-yeon (aka Beauty)
Kim Ji-won as First Lieutenant Yoon Myeong-joo
Jin Goo as Sergeant Major Seo Dae-young (aka Wolf)

I'd rather not post a summary or synopsis of this drama. I am afraid it would be a very long one if I make one. There are a lot of websites out there discussing or having a summary about this, check out Wiki for a general summary.

Korean Drama: Jackpot 2016

ALRIGHT! Another Jang Geun Suk entry to add after so many years! :)

After Bel Ami (Pretty Boy) 2013 comes Jang Geun Suk's latest Korean Drama, Jackpot. I missed watching him act rather than sing. His acting skills will be put to the test in this new series because this is not his typical drama where his character is always on the cool side. Because Jackpot is a period drama, this has a more serious tone than any of his previous dramas.

Drama: The Royal Gambler (English title) / Jackpot (literal title)
Revised romanization: Daebak
Hangul: 대박
Director: Nam Gun
Writer: Kwon Soon-Gyu
Network: SBS
Episodes: 24
Release Date: March 28 - June 14, 2016
Runtime: Monday & Tuesday 22:00
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Jang Keun-suk as Baek Dae-gil[1]
Yeo Jin-goo as Yeon Ying-gun (King Yeongjo)
Jun Kwang-ryul as Lee In-jwa (ko)
Choi Min-soo as King Sukjong
Yoon Jin-seo as Suk-bin Choe
Lim Ji-yeon as Dam-seo

Korean Drama: Cheese in the Trap 2016

Cheese in the Trap is based on a webtoon of the same title. As I was waiting for new episodes every week, I read some parts of the webtoon and found it a little confusing because some scenes in the webtoon and the drama were different and I believe the webtoon is still an ongoing project. I guess the writers of the drama had to create the rest of the story.

This is a Park Hae Jin drama. Yeah!! Though the female lead, Kim Go Eun, I am not so familiar with, she portrayed her character Hong Seol very well. As always, I am watching the drama because of Hae Jin-sshi. He looks so tall and skinny here whereas in My Love from the Stars, he didn't really shine then. I Loved his dark and mysterious character in this drama. Though, I believe he had also played a dark character in another drama before (I haven't watched it yet) but this one, he shined although his character is dark. You know what I mean?

Drama: Cheese in the Trap
Revised romanization: Cheese in the Trap
Hangul: 치즈 인 더 트랩
Director: Lee Yoon-Jung
Writer: Soon Ggi (original comic), Kim Nam-Hee
Network: tvN
Episodes: 16
Release Date: January 4 - March 1, 2016
Runtime: Mondays & Tuesdays 23:00
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Park Hae-jin as Yoo Jung
Kim Go-eun as Hong Seol
Seo Kang-joon as Baek In-ho
Lee Sung-kyung as Baek In-ha
Park Min-ji as Jang Bo-ra
Nam Joo-hyuk as Kwon Eun-taek

Synopsis:
This drama series shows the delicate relationship between a female university student Hong Seol (Kim Go-eun) and her senior Yoo Jung (Park Hae-jin). Hong Seol does part-time jobs since her household is poor, while Yoo Jung is perfect with good academics and athletics, plus he is kind. However, Yoo Jung also seems to have a dark side with some people holding grudges against him. (AsianWiki)

K-Drama: Pinocchio 2014

I know this Drama is almost finished by now. I watched it as soon as it was aired but stopped somewhere in the middle because of other priorities, Modern Farmer. Hahaha I go for a not so serious type of drama.

Drama: Pinocchio
Revised romanization: Pinokio
Hangul: 피노키오
Director: Jo Soo-Won
Writer: Park Hye-Ryun
Network: SBS
Episodes: 20
Release Date: November 12 - January 15, 2015
Runtime: Wed. & Thu. 21:55
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Synopsis:
As a child, Ha-Myeong (Lee Jong-Suk) grew up in a family with his firefighter father, mother and older brother. Ha-Myeong and his older brother (Yoon Gyun-Sang) both possess higher than normal intellect and are proud of their father. A fire at a waste facility though destroys his family. His mother dies a short time later and Ha-Myeong ends up being scooped out of the ocean by an unknown man (Byun Hee-Bong). The man that pulls Ha-Myeong out of the ocean is the grandfather of In-Ha (Park Shin-Hye). In-Ha's grandfather believes Ha-Myeong is his eldest son Dal-Po, who died 30 years ago. Ha-Myeong is then adopted by In-Ha's grandfather and his name is changed to Dal-Po. In-Ha and Dal-Po now live together as uncle and niece, although they are in the same age range. In-Ha has a Pinocchio Syndrome. Whenever she lies she gets the hiccups. In-Ha and Dal-Po get along well until Dal-Po learns that In-Ha's mother (Jin Kyung) is the reporter that covered the waste facility fire that destroyed his family. Dal-Po tries to distance himself from In-Ha, but he also develops feelings for her.

Korean Drama: Modern Farmer 2014

My my it is Hong Ki! It is the second drama of Hong Ki this year after Bride of the Century. Unlike, his latter drama, this is a musical drama. YEAH! He can showcase his singing again in this drama which is hat I love about him. He has a strong, powerful voice.

Excellent Souls "EXO" is a popular rock band omposed of 4 members lead by Lee Min Ki  which suddenly disbanded after one of their member betrayed the group. After 7 years, the band members had let go of music and had lived their life normally, or s it seems. One has been a temporary employee for years now, another is studying for an exam to be a government employee which he constantly failed more than twice. The one who betrayed them is an intern at a hospital that they owned but never once has received his father's recognition. Lee Min Ki is jobless, full of debt, but he never forgotten about his passion for music, and did I forget he is broke?

Min Ki is the only one full of hope that the band can get their fame back, but how, he has no money and he has to pay the loan sharks in three months. Suddenly, he inherited a huge chunk of land from his late grandmother with which he decided to plant cabbage to improve his life as well as his bandmates. This is where their adventure as city boys turned to farmers become. Clueless bout country living and farming, how will they survive?

Korean Drama: Blade Man 2014

Blade Man is Lee Dong Wook's 2nd drama for this year after Hotel King.

Joo Hong-bin is a wealthy man with a prickly demeanor who develops a supernatural ability, his anger and mental pain manifest as knives sprouting from his body. He meets Son Se-dong, a warm-hearted girl who becomes intangled into his life, and as they fall in love she slowly heals his heart and he learns to deal with his inner pain and new found power. (Source: Wiki)

Drama: Blade Man (English title) / Iron Man (Korean title)
Revised romanization: Aieonmaen
Hangul: 아이언맨
Director: Kim Yong-Soo
Writer: Kim Kyu-Wan
Network: KBS2
Episodes: 20
Release Date: September 10 - November 19, 2014
Runtime: Wed. & Thu. 21:55
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Lee Dong-wook as Joo Hong-bin
Shin Se-kyung as Son Se-dong
Kim Kap-soo as Joo Jang-won
Han Eun-jung as Kim Tae-hee

The spikes appearing on Hong Bin's body is a symbol of his anger towards everything. He cannot find news about his lover who disappeared from him. He only discovered that his father sent her away and died after a few years when Chang was brought back to Korea.  Chang was Hong Bin's child from his lover. Se Dong is an enthusiastic girl full of hope and very different from Hong Bin. They have know each other as an employee and a boss. The soon get closer since Se Dong is the only one that Chang talks to and listens to. She became his nanny while Hong Bin cannot get close to Chang at all.

I know that the series is almost ending and I have just created a page for it. It's late as always, I just started watching it over the weekend. The spikes and Hong Bin's anger is kind of unrealistic but it is one way to show what man can do when provoked. What am I saying? Does any of this makes sense? If you ask me he just needs some Anger Management Sessions and he will be okay. LOL

Korean Drama: Cantabile Tomorrow 2014

Based from the popular Japanese manga series Nodame Cantabile, Cantabile Tomorrow is a South Korean Drama starring Joo Won ad Shim Eun Kyung.

Drama: Naeil's Cantabile (English title)
Revised romanization: Naeildo Kantabilre
Hangul: 내일도 칸타빌레
Director: Han Sang-Woo
Writer: Tomoko Ninomiya (manga), Shin Jae-Won
Network: KBS2
Episodes: 16
Release Date: October 13 - December 2, 2014
Runtime: Mon & Tue 21:55
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Synopsis:
Yoo-Jin (Joo Won) is a university student majoring in piano. He has a world famous pianist father, exceptional music talent and attractive appearance, but his one weakness is that he can't ride in an airplane or boat due to a childhood trauma. Because of his phobia, Yoo-Jin is unable to travel to Europe to learn conducting even though he badly wants to become a conductor.

Korean Drama: Mama 2014

Mama is an SBS drama that occupied the slot of Hotel King. I am not at all familiar with the leads but because it is new, might as well have a go with it.

It is a story of how a single mother, Han Seung Hee, raised her son, Geu Roo. She is suffering from terminal cancer and has no relatives at all. With the little time she has to live (less than a year), she finds a legal guardian to look after her child once she dies and the best person to do that is the child's father who was also her ex lover. Unfortunately, the child's father already has a family of his own. But because of a series of events, Han Seung Hee became best friends first with her ex's wife, Ji Eun. This became a way for her to introduce her son to Ji Eun's family who will be Geu Roo's future family later.

Drama: Mama
Revised romanization: Mama
Hangul: 마마
Director: Kim Sang-Hyub
Writer: Yoo Yoon-Kyung
Network: MBC
Episodes: 24
Release Date: August 2 - October 19, 2014
Runtime: Saturdays & Sundays 21:45
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Song Yun-ah as Han Seung-hee
Hong Jong-hyun as Gu Ji-sub
Jung Joon-ho as Moon Tae-joo
Moon Jung-hee as Seo Ji-eun
Yoon Chan-young as Han Geu-roo

It is really hard to live alone especially if you have health issues and a child. This drama is a family oriented drama that can make you think of what you can do for your child regardless if you have a lot of time in the world or not. As a mother myself, all I want is for my child to feel loved and to have a bright future ahead of her. The same thing as Han Seung Hee. The sad thing about this drama is that her relationship as a mother to her son is not very good. They always fight about almost everything and she does not want Geu Roo to know her condition making him assume a lot of things.

As for the drama itself, its a little dragging and somehow tiring to see them hide emotions and feelings. I have a feeling that she won't die as she find a reason to fight her illness, Geu Roo and Koo Ji Sub.  I hope Han Seun Hee and Ji Sub would develop in the end. The way he approaches her is really cute. I just don't want it to end sad.

Korean Drama: Discovery of Romance 2014

I was on the hunt for new K-drama to watch and I came across Discovery of Romance. I am not familiar with the actors and actresses but since its a chick flick drama, why not.

Han Yeo-reum (Jung Yu-mi) is a furniture designer who owns a workshop space that she shares with other designers. For the past three years, she's been dating Nam Ha-jin (Sung Joon), a plastic surgeon with a sweet and gentle personality. But Yeo-reum's peaceful existence is shaken when her ex-boyfriend Kang Tae-ha (Eric Mun) suddenly reappears in her life. The CEO of an interior design company, Tae-ha is a smart, confident man with a strong competitive edge who always gets what he wants. Meanwhile, Ha-jin's childhood friend Ahn Ah-rim (Yoon Jin-yi) has secretly been carrying a torch for him all these years. As she begins working with Tae-ha, Yeo-reum is forced to re-evaluate her romantic history, which sets her off on a search for true love. See Wiki 

Drama: Discovery of Love (English title)
Revised romanization: Yeonaeui Balgyeon
Hangul: 연애의 발견
Director: Kim Sung-Yoon
Writer: Jung Hyun-Jung
Network: KBS2
Episodes: 16
Release Date: August 18 - October 7, 2014
Runtime: Mon & Tue 21:55
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast: Jung Yu-mi as Han Yeo-reum
Eric Mun as Kang Tae-ha
Sung Joon as Nam Ha-jin
Yoon Jin-yi as Ahn Ah-rim
Yoon Hyun-min as Do Joon-ho
Kim Seul-gie as Yoon Sol
Kim Hye-ok as Shin Yoon-hee
Ahn Suk-hwan as Bae Min-soo

The drama revolves around two people who once had a sweet relationship 10 years ago, ended into a bitter breakup. Years passed and they have moved on with thier lives and have found a new partner. But because of a faith or destiny, as others call it, they meet again in a not so convenient reunion.

It just basically show the reason why exe's cannot become friends again. It's something that can make you think of what you have done in your relationship. But I guess how they portrayed the relationship of exe's is unrealistic. It is very difficult to be friends with your ex. But I wonder what would become of our leads.

Korean Drama: The Three Musketeers 2014

The Three Musketeers is Jung Yong Hwa's latest drama. I'm not really a big fan of Yong Hwa's acting. He seems lifeless as ever. Hopefully this drama will change his acting because of the action scenes.

Based on the original novel of the same title written by Alexandre Dumas, The Three Musketeers will be re-produced by setting Joseon dynasty as the background. It will put together the story of Prince So Hyun of Joseon dynasty from the 17th century with the story of The Three Musketeers, which sets 17th century France as the background. This three seasons drama is a fushion sageuk about the story of Park Dal Hyang and the Three Musketeers (Crown Prince So Hyun, Heo Seung Po, and Ahn Min Seo) who travel through China during the Joseon era. (Source: D-addict)

Drama: The Three Musketeers
Revised romanization: Samchongsa
Hangul: 삼총사
Director: Kim Byung-Soo
Writer: Song Jae-Jung
Network: tvN
Episodes: 12
Release Date: August 17 - November 2, 2014
Runtime: Sundays 21:00
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Park Dal Hyang's Home
   Jung Yong Hwa as Park Dal Hyang
   Lee Kyun as Pan Soi
The Three Musketeers
    Lee Jin Wook as Crown Prince So Hyun
   Yang Dong Geun as Heo Seung Po
   Jung Hae In as Ahn Min Seo
Royal Palace
   Seo Hyun Jin as Kang Bin
   Kim Myung Soo as King In Jo

I am not very impressed with the first episode. Yong Hwa's facial expression is the same throughout the episode. I know he wants to look cool but it will not work in this drama. I'm not sure if this is a comedy, romance or action but it was at least entertaining.

Korean Drama: Fated to Love You Episode 17 Summary and Review

Alright, so we are now nearing the end of Mi Young and Gun's suffering. We all know that they will still end up together, but what they are going through to get there is too much.

I have never cried so hard while watching a drama episode, maybe for a movie but not a mere episode, my bad, make it two episodes: Episode 12 and 17. I was so anxious to watch episode 17 that I even watched the raw unsubbed version but I still cried, even more after the subs have been released. 

Its been a while since I wrote  an episode summary/review, so I will try my best to put important details into it. Like I said I will write one for dramas/episodes that I liked and loved. This one is on the top along with Episode 12. 

Before we go to episode 17, let me just have a brief recap of what happened since episode 12. If you can remember in Episode 12, Gun decided to end their relationship without telling Mi Young the real reason behind it.  This made Mi Young hate and avoid him even when they had to work together for the company. Episode 12 was probably the most important episode of the drama since it was then that we can see that Gun really loved her but does not want to hurt her when the time comes he die because of his disease. It's a selfish stupid thing to do and all throughout the following episodes we see both of them suffering and trying to sort out or hide their feelings for each other.

Korean Drama: Love Rain 2012

Love Rain is a 2012 Korean drama starring Jang Geun Suk and Im Yoona. 

    Drama: Love Rain
    Revised romanization: Sarangbi
    Hangul: 사랑비
    Director: Yoon Seok-Ho
    Writer: Oh Soo-Yun
    Network: KBS2
    Episodes: 20
    Release Date: March 26, 2012 - May, 29 2012
    Runtime: Mon & Tue 21:55
    Genre: Romance / Youth
    Language: Korean
    Country: South Korea

 Cast
1970s
    Jang Geun Suk as Seo In Ha
    Im Yoon Ah as Kim Yoon Hee
    Kim Si Hoo as Lee Dong Wook
    Son Eun Seo as Baek Hye Jung
    Seo In Guk as Kim Chang Mo
    Hwang Bo Ra as Na In Sook

2012
    Jang Geun Suk as Seo Joon (In Ha's son)
    Im Yoon Ah as Jung Ha Na (Yoon Hee's daughter)
    Kim Si Hoo as Lee Sun Ho (Dong Wook's son)
    Jung Jin Young Seo In Ha (Seo Joon's dad)
    Lee Mi Sook as Kim Yoon Hee (Ha Na's mom)
    Kim Young Kwang as Han Tae Sung


You will see two parts or generations of the story. One where the drama takes you to 1970's where the story of  Soo In-Ha and Kim Yoon Hee have developed. Here you would see how they loved each other but ended up parting ways. But that love has always been there even if they already have their own families. From there it takes us to the present time where the children of our previous couple, Joon and Ha Na, have been destined to meet to continue the love that their parents have or so it seems?

Korean Drama: Joseon Gunman 2014

I love historical dramas especially if it is Lee Jun Ki. I know he plot is serious for most period dramas but this way, you would see how good an actor/actress is. Not only that but you would also see how good looking they really are because of the simplicity of their make-up. Since it is Jun Ki, it is a must watch. LOL


In the time of enlightenment, a battle between a sword and a gun has started.
Based in the time of enlightenment of 19th-century Joseon, this drama tells the story of Joseon's last swordsman named Park Yoon Kang who grabs a gun ditching his sword and grows to become the era's hero. Park Yoon Kang is the illegitimate son of the best swordsman in Joseon. After his father got killed, he trades sword for gun as he embarks on his revenge mission. Source: KBS World

    Title: 조선 총잡이 / Joseon Chongjapi
    Also known as: The Chosun Shooter / The Joseon Gunman / The Joseon Shooter
    Genre: Historical, melodrama, action, romance, suspense
    Episodes: 22
    Broadcast network: KBS2
    Broadcast period: 2014-Jun-25 to 2014-Sep-04
    Air time: Wednesday & Thursday 22:00

Cast:
   Lee Joon Ki as Park Yoon Kang / Hanjo
        Seo Dong Hyun as young Yoon Kang
    Nam Sang Mi as Jung Soo In
    Jun Hye Bin as Choi Hye Won
    Han Joo Wan as Kim Ho Kyung
    Yoo Oh Sung as Choi Won Shin

I have just recently watched this drama and did a marathon from the first episode up to the current episode. It took me only two days to run the whole thing since every episode is was worth watching. I have plans to watch other dramas, however, I was totally hooked into it. One reason was Jun Ki's, Hanjo character.

Korean Drama: High School Love On 2014

The cast of High School Love On are teens. I can't believe that I'm actually watching it. I consider it a teeny-booper drama, not only because of the cast but also the story line.

It revolves about an angel (more like a grim reaper since she guides the souls of the dead) who became a human after saving a high school boy from an accident. After she became human, she named herself Lee Seul-Bi and ended up living with the boy she saved. Although she lost he black book (book of the dead), she still has her powers but feels weak after using it.

Drama: Hi! School - Love On
Revised romanization: Haiseukool - Reobeuon
Hangul: 하이스쿨 - 러브온
Director: Sung Joon-Hae
Writer: Lee Jae-Yeon
Network: KBS2
Episodes: 20
Release Date: July 11, 2014 --
Runtime: Fridays 20:55-
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Kim Sae Ron as Lee Seul Bi
Nam Woo Hyun as Shin Woo Hyun
Lee Sung Yeol as Hwang Sung Yeol
Lee Joo Shil as Kong Mal Sook
Choi Soo Rin as Ahn Ji Hye
Jung Jae Soon

One thing that made me stay with this series are the actors themselves. Yes they are young but, they are good. More importantly, good looking teens. Hahaha They are the next generation of actors. Too bad the drama is only once a week,  I wish it would be twice a week.

Watching it makes me feel like a teenager again. The kids have such innocence which makes you want to see them more. Kim Sae Ron's acting is good for a 13-year old girl. Nicely done.

Korean Drama: Fated to Love You 2014

Oh well, I have been on a long break of watching new Korean Dramas. One reason for the break was I have  pile of dramas that I haven't seen yet and since I don't like the recent lineup of new dramas for the past two months, I took that opportunity to watch those good dramas.

But now I am back and the first drama I watched was Fated to Love  You. This is about Kim Mi-Young (Jang Na-Ra), an ordinary office girl, who meets a successor of a big company Lee Gun (Jang Hyuk) and accidentally sleeps together. Little did they now that the one night they spent actually created a new life and now Kim Mi-Young is carrying the child of the Lee Gun.

Drama: Fated To Love You
Revised romanization: Woonmyungcheoreom Neol Saranghae
Hangul: 운명처럼 널 사랑해
Director: Lee Dong-Yoon
Writer: Joo Chan-Ok
Network: MBC
Episodes:
Release Date: July 2, 2014 --
Runtime: Wednesdays & Thursdays 21:55
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Jang Hyuk as Lee Gun
Jang Na-ra as Kim Mi-young
Choi Jin-hyuk as Daniel
Wang Ji-won as Kang Se-ra

At first I watched it because I thought that the male lead is Kim Jae Wok. Jang Hyuk looks like Jae Wok in this hairstyle but only more manly and masculine. Well anyway, I realized it was not Jae Wok as i researched a bit but found Choi Jin Hyuk as one of the cast instead. The presence of a familiar face would surely make me stay with the drama and it was Jang Hyuk and  Choi Jin Hyuk this time.  

So far, for the leads they were great and an excellent pair too. They looked good together. Opposites do attract and the attraction is even stronger. I kind of like the first episode. It was fun and Jang Hyuk is so ___, you know. ^^I just don't like his arrogant smile. Jang Na Ra is also good and looks good with glasses. I wonder what will become of them after their stay in Macau and said that they will never see each other again. Hmm.. of course they will, they are fated to meet as what the title of the drama obviously pints out.  DUH!

Korean Drama: Arang and the Magistrate 2012

This had been on the list for quite a while and I have just finished watching it last month. One of the reason I wanted to watch it was because of Lee Jun Ki. This drama was his first after he served the military in 2010.



Drama: Arang and the Magistrate
Revised romanization: Alangsattojeon
Hangul: 아랑사또전
Director: Kim Sang-Ho, Jung Dae-Yoon
Writer: Jung Yoon-Jung
Network: MBC
Episodes: 20
Release Date: August 15, 2012 - October 18, 2012
Runtime: Wednesdays & Thursdays 21:55
Genre: Period / Romance / Fantasy / Supernatural
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Cast:
Lee Joon-gi - Kim Eun-oh
Shin Min-ah - Arang/Lee Seo-rim
Yeon Woo-jin - Joo-wal
Hwang Bo-ra - Bang-wool, shaman
Kwon Oh-joong - Dol-swe, Eun-oh's manservant
Han Jung-soo - Mu-young, head ghost reaper

Kim Eun Ho has the ability to see ghost and he is an illegitimate son of a noble. He is in a search for his mother who left him. His search lead him to a small town where he met Arang, a female ghost who lost her memory after she died. Arang is trying remember what happened to her before she died and Eun Ho saw the hair pin that he gave to his mother before she left. This was the beginning of their adventure.

Korean Movie: Hope 2013

So-Won, also known as Hope, is a South Korean movie released on October 2013. The movie is based on a true story, the Nayoung case where an 8 year old girl who was sexually abused by an ex-convict. The girl was on her way to school when she was raped, beaten and left to die on a public toilet on a rainy morning. The Na-young case stirred the people of Korea because the offender only get 12 years of imprisonment for the brutal crime he committed. See summary at Wiki

Hangul.......소원
Revised Romanization .......So-won
Directed by ....... Lee Joon-ik
Produced by ....... Byun Bong-hyun, Seong Chang-yeon, Kim Yong-dae
Written by ....... Jo Joong-hoon, Kim Ji-hye
Release dates....... October 2, 2013
Running time ....... 122 minutes

Cast:
Lee Re as Im So-won
Sol Kyung-gu as Im Dong-hoon, So-won's father
Uhm Ji-won as Kim Mi-hee, So-won's mother
Kim Hae-sook as Song Jung-sook, psychiatrist
Kim Sang-ho as Han Gwang-sik, Dong-hoon's best friend
Ra Mi-ran as Young-seok's mother and Gwang-sik's wife
Yang Jin-sung as Do-kyung, police officer
Kim Do-yeob as Han Young-seok

Korean Drama: Secret Love Affair 2014

Who doesn't love a storyline that revolves around a cheating husband or a cheating wife? I do not know anyone who dislike such dramas. These are the type of programs or series where we, as viewers can relate to and the whenever the lead characters do their cheating acts, who doesn't react? I know I can't stop myself from squealing of anger or annoyance. A new Korean drama, Secret Love Affair, would surely make you want to slap the characters on screen. ^_^

The series is about a 40 year old planning director, Oh Hye Won, who had an affair with a 20 year old piano major student, Lee Sun Jae. Hye Won is an elegant and classy woman who has an image to protect as her job deals with a lot of people. Given that Lee Sun Jae is in his 20's, he has strong feelings towards her. The title of the drama says it all. See how their secret love affair would remain a secret to the people around them including Sun Jae's piano mentor which is Hye Won's husband.

    Drama: Secret Love Affair (literal title)
    Revised romanization: Milhwe
    Hangul: 밀회
    Director: An Pan-Seok
    Writer: Jung Sung-Joo
    Network: JTBC
    Episodes:
    Release Date: March 17, 2014 --
    Runtime: Mondays & Tuesdays 21:50
    Language: Korean
    Country: South Korea

Cast:
Kim Hee-ae as Oh Hye-won
Yoo Ah-in as Lee Seon-jae
Park Hyuk-kwon as Kang Joon-hyung
Shim Hye-jin as Han Seong-sook
Kim Hye-eun as Seo Young-woo
Kim Yong-gun as Seo Pil-won
Kyung Soo-jin as Park Da-mi
Choi Tae-hwan as Son Jang-ho
Lee Kan-hee as Myung-hwa
Kim Chang-wan as Min Yong-ki
....... and many others....

Watch Secret Love Affair at GoodDrama. Link here.

I am watching this drama not because of the actors. I honestly do not know any of the actors of the series except for Chancellor Min, who was Lawyer Jang in The Man from the stars. ^_^ The title caught my attention as well as the plot since it involves piano and music. I have heard great music scores from the first few episodes plus Yoo Ah In (Lee Sun Jae) plays the piano well. 

UPDATE: HA! When I said that I do not know the actors here, I take it back. As I was doing a little research, I found out that Yoo Ah In was in Sungkyunkwan Scandal. He played the character of Moon Jae Shin. In fact, Moon Jae Shin was my favorite character in that drama because he was so cool. Hope Yoo Ah In can pull this one.

J-Drama: Bitter Blood 2014

You read it right, it's Japanese. I still love Korean Dramas and will always watch it. This time I am watching a Japanese drama only because of Takeru Sato. Although, I have also watched other J-drama before but that was a long long time ago, Kimi wa petto and Princess Princess. I'd rather watch Japanese Anime than their drama because of the animated way that the actors act.
Since it's Takeru Sato, I'll give it a shot. I loved him in Rurouni Kenshin Live Action Film. I am excited to watch the second movie. It was after watching RK that I discovered that he was also portrayed one of the characters of Princess Princess Live Drama. He looked so gay then.

Sahara Natsuki (Takeru Sato) is a new detective at the Ginza Police Station. Unfortunately, he had to work with his father who abandoned them and had a another family. He does not like his father at all. They are very different since his father is playboy while he is not so good with the ladies. See if this father-son partnership would last.



Drama: Bitter Blood
Romaji: Bita Buraddo
Japanese: ビター・ブラッド
Director: Hiro Kanai, Masaki Tanimura
Writer: Shusuke Shizukui (novel)
Network: Fuji TV
Episodes:
Release Date: April 15, 2014 --
Runtime: Tuesdays 21:00-21:54
Language: Japanese
Country: Japan





Cast:
    Sato Takeru as Sahara Natsuki
    Watabe Atsuro as Shimao Akimura
    Kutsuna Shiori as Maeda Hitomi
    Fukikoshi Mitsuru as Inaki Toshifumi
    Tanaka Tetsushi as Koga Hisashi
    Minagawa Sarutoki as Togashi Kaoru
    KEIJI (ケイジ) as Takano Koji
    Takahashi Katsumi as Kagiyama Kensuke
    Hirose Suzu as Sahara Shinobu
    Kusamura Reiko as Yamamura Machi
    Oikawa Mitsuhiro as Kaiduka Takehisa

Watch Bitter Blood online at GoodDrama. Link here.


As expected of a J-Drama, their expressions are a little exaggerated, just like what you see in anime except that they are real people doing such expressions. The animated acting makes it more fun to watch. First episode show how different the father and the son are. Both show how they disliked each other and their ideas clash. Sahara Natsuki is a very righteous person, one that will not leave things the way it should be which lead him to cause trouble on his first day of duty.