Signal is not only the best Kdrama I've ever seen (out of 206). Signal is not just the best Kdrama of all time. Signal is a paradigm shift. Signal tells the world loud and clear: South Korea is making TV shows as good as the USA or the UK, as good as anyone. Period. The bar has been raised, South Korea. I expect more from you now. I expect more Signals.

I don't know what else I can add about this drama. It is a perfect 10 in all categories. Heck, even the soundtrack is the best I've ever heard - perfect atmospheric music for every scene.

This drama has no flaws. It is nearly as good as the best American TV I've seen. So, what else can I say?

I guess this. I'm about to take the 205 other Kdramas I've completed and change their ratings down 1/2 point so that Signal can stand alone at 10. No other drama, not even White Christmas, deserves to stand at 10 with Signal.

Read More

What can you say about a drama that got cut? I mean, I cannot rate it based on potential but only on what we got on screen, but what we got was still better than a heck of a lot of other dramas, including some very highly rated ones appearing right now (looking at you a certain other medical drama that is horribly written but got the 6 additional episodes Beautiful Mind deserved and needed).

Anyhow, I am happy that they were able to give us a satisfying ending even if they had to throw logical consistency out the window and drop about 85% of the balls they were trying to juggle. Frankly, I don’t know how this story could have been told properly even in 16 episodes. But the writers did their best as did the cast, and I am thankful.

I will forever remember Beautiful Mind for its gorgeous directing, interesting plot, wonderful cast of secondary characters (Eagle 5, nurse Jang and Dr. Yang – I’m looking at you cuties!), and most of all for forcing me to take Jang Hyuk off my overrated list. He was wonderful in this – wonderful.

Read More

Best romance drama EVER! (I wouldn't call it a romcom, although it has a lot of humor, so I'm just saying romance as its genre.)  This is an absolute must watch drama. Se Hee and Ji Ho are an OTP for the ages, and there is a secondary couple in this drama that gives them a run for their money. The way this drama shows love and writes characters is just refreshing and realistic in all the best ways.  Lee Min Ki and Jung So Min have such wonderful chemistry that at times I felt like I was spying on their lives rather than watching a drama. Ji Ho is a fantastic lead female and Se Hee is the greatest romantic male lead ever!  All those dominant wrist-grabbing types may be sexy in their masculinity, but Se Hee is the man to marry, a partner, not a master.

Speaking of Lee Min Ki, he was my original K-actor crush even before Lee Joon Gi. But unfortunately LMK stopped doing dramas and then did a bunch of movies I just wasn't that interested in and he certainly never fell off my radar but after a while I couldn't remember why I loved him so much.  Then I watched this drama and thought, oh, yep, that was it! Dang I have missed LMK! There are so many talented K-actors, but there is only one Lee Min Ki. He has a quirk about him and a sincerity in his eyes that no one duplicates.  He is absolutely incredible and I hope that we get to see more of him on our screen after this tour de force drama! (I hope he does a sageuk movie or drama some day. Hear me drama gods?)

Read More

I watched this movie because Lee Min Ki was in it. (Disclaimer: I would watch Lee Min Ki reading a phone book or getting a root canal or pretty much the most boring thing you could think of, so I'm a little biased.)

That said, I was pleasantly surprised. I mean, it's nothing special; it's just your everyday light romance. BUT it's a light romance done really well, and with a twist at the end that somehow manages to be both gimmicky (bad) but also entertaining (good).

The best thing about the drama was the acting and the characters. I cared for all of them and was really invested in how the story turned out for them, even when it did lag at times. Overall I would recommend it if you just want to watch a light romance (I'm not saying romcom because it's really only mildly funny, more cute). It's as good as any good American-made light romance + Lee Min Ki = GOOD!

Read More