KDrama Addicts Anonymous (part 4)

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the Kdrama-curious. Most of our viewing is drawn from Netflix and Viki, but there other sources, including Dramabus and AmazonPrime.

Previous Threads, with discussion of what we’ve enjoyed and what to avoid:

Thread 1

Thread 2

Thread 3

Some suggestions for shows that we’ve enjoyed - those marked with an asterisk are more uniformly loved or admired:

Because This Is My First Life (Viki)*
Black (Netflix)*
Chicago Typewriter (Viki)*
Don’t Dare to Dream (Netflix, or as Jealousy Incarnate on Viki)*
Fight For My Way (Viki/Drama bus)*
Goblin (Viki)
Healer (Netflix)*
His Master’s Sun (Netflix)
I Hear Your Voice (Netflix /Viki)
Just Between Lovers (Viki)
Last Train to Busan - film (Amazon Prime)
Live (Netflix)
Love from a Star (netflix)*
My Strange Hero (Viki)
Pinocchio (Netflix)
Pride & Prejudice (Netflix)*
Prison Playbook (Netflix)*
Romance is the Bonus Book (Netflix)*
She Was Pretty (Dramabus/Netflix)*
Something in the Rain (Netflix)
Strong Girl Bong Soon (Netflix)
Suspicious Partner (netflix)*
W (Viki & Netflix)*
What’s Up With Secretary Kim (Viki)*
While You Were Sleeping (viki)*
You are my Destiny (Netflix)

We have some lovely occasional posters who have lived in Korea, are Korean or have Korean partners/family members who pop in from time to time to provide the context for some of the more baffling cultural references.

If you want to know your oppas from your unnis try this helpful guide to Korean terms of address and honorifics.

We are generally fans of all things Korean, so equally happy to talk about Korean cookery, film and kpop when the mood takes us. To get to grips with the lingo, try dramaloveaddicts.proboards.com/thread/24/korean-word-day?page=1

We have a few frequently used acronyms:
FL/2FL = female lead/2nd female lead
ML/2ML = male lead/2nd male lead
SLS = Second Lead Syndrome (where the FL/MLis too thick to realise how much better the 2ML/2FL is)

We also abbreviate titles if they’re long, but only after using the full title & acronym together. Some of the regular favourite actors have been abbreviated too for speed/efficiency, although “him off Black” seems to have stuck for Song Seung-Heon. Don’t be afraid to ask for help/clues if we’re not making sense or have descended into acronym soup.

If you want to join us down the kdrama rabbit hole, welcome! Pull up a chair, say goodbye to early nights and get stuck in…

What’s the final verdict on Korean Odyssey?

I enjoyed it. It lapses into daft/silly and slightly ‘80s Dynasty’ schlocky at times, but overall it hangs together really well. There are plenty of twists and turns (no soggy middle) and there are no bad performances. ML/FL story delivers & they have good chemistry. It’s not an all time fave of mine and I think Goblin ploughed the same furrow with more panache, but I’d say its a good intro to the kdrama oevre.

Back to the grindstone now, but I watched ep 5 of I picked a Celebrity up on the street (hereafter Celebrity) this morning. Still thinking the cheapskate neighbour is mega wealthy, as he is now contrasted to the grabby superficiality of the star. I suspect this is a kdrama ‘meditation’ on the nature of social value and contribution, with the spendthrift Hallyu, thrifty (suspected) chaebol and the barely-making-ends-meet FL all representing archetypes and allowing themes to be explored.

Don't ask me how! But I watched first ep of Are You Human Too on YouTube!... And now I'm hooked!... So now I'm scrabbling around on YouTube and dodgy websites trying to watch the rest of it! Arrrrgghh! 😭

FL in Celebrity has a number stored in her mobile as ‘Rude Maknae.’ Here’s the meaning of maknae for our wider learning.

Maknae is the equivalent term of being the youngest member, which is popularly known in the K-Pop world. In many boy groups, maknaes are precious for the hyungs because they are like the baby of the family

So, pop quiz for BTS mad Bea - who is their maknae?

Boatyard! Easy peasy!
Jeon Jongkook... He's actually called... "the golden maknae"... As he's good at EVERYTHING! ❤️😍
don't challenge me on my bts knowledge! 😂😂😂😂

It's quite cute... There seems to be a real importance in order of seniority!... They tease Jin mercilessly as he's the oldest and they don't seem to show him any reverence at all!... Which is understandable as he's sooo childish!... 😂😂😂

DS2, SIL and I spent a couple of hours over Christmas watching BTS videos on YouTube with a spotters guide open on our phones trying to improve/hone our BTS member recognition skills. We were defeated by the rapid cycling through dress styles and hair colours/cuts and the frantic dance routines. We’d get good on one video, but the swaperoo in the next one undid us. DS is the best at it. SIL and I were hopeless.

Bea!! Is there anything you don't know about BTS [grin} I love these random bits of general knowledge

Boatyard, two things to look forward to
Kim Jae Wook in jackets & v-necks
Choin Jin-Hyuk in revenge drama in July

Oh... I love them! Their behind the scenes videos are so funny... They are full of joy! 😂 😂 😂 😂 Sigh! 😍

Aw! Celebrity is shaping up nicely. Good twist in ep 6. Sadly I am all caught up & I’m back to the weekly dripfeed and wait on the subtitlers.

I am very happy to know Kim Jae Wook’s series starts soon. Any idea of the viki time lag?

Oh that's great! Love their dance moves

No it's not on Viki's coming soon list, but it is following "Touch Your Heart^ which is on Viki so fingers crossed

The King 2 Hearts has FL from Secret Garden & Hospital Ship, Betty. On the other hand, it also has Lee Seung Gi. I rest my case

Goodness is that the same guy ? Amazing the difference a haircut makes.
I admit my heart was softened anyway by his vv cute puppy

His dog features heavily on his Instagram feed too. ‘Tis vair cute.

aw lots of cut puppy pics on his instagram page

FL fron Secret Garden Hospital Ship etc etc is better in Empress Gi but still relies a lot on sideways staring as an actorly technique

The second picture in this stream (puppy in a pocket) is shamelessly cute.

cute not cut!!! Damn I blame the soju (plum)

Plum soju?

I WANT A PUPPY IN MY POCKET!!!

My labrador won't fit in my pocket he is taking up the whole up the sofa with one eye on my cutted up apple

Fruit & soju go together really really well No I know why they always pair them up in dramas

Typing has gone to shit though

That’ll be the soju, Betty.