by Cheer, August 4, 2015
24

Good day MDL’ers!

Even though family dramas aren’t the main focus of Dramaland but they’re certainly are a constant presence in every season. For this edition, MDL staff will introduce their favourite family dramas.

rosefae72 (Editor) recommends:

Wakamono Tachi

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I think I picked this same drama for another genre. But I really don't watch a lot of family dramas and of the few I have seen, this is my favorite so I'll recommend it again. It's very well done. It's a story about 5 orphaned siblings where the oldest brother takes over as head of the family. Can you imagine your life as you graduate from high school only to find out that the responsibility of taking care of your younger siblings is thrust upon you? That is a major sacrifice to be sure. Rather than have his family torn apart he takes on this major onus and strives to do the best he can. All the siblings pull together and work to keep their home and family together. But the thing I liked most about this drama is that all of the siblings have major flaws; this makes their story seem more realistic. They are normal, every day people who make mistakes and must deal with the consequences. There is no easy way out for them as they learn that they must face their challenges head on.

I loved this story which provided some heart-wrenching moments, but also provided me with some happy tears as well as sad tears. Family dramas where a family is broken are definitely the most intense and it is wonderful when the stories, like this one, provide hope amongst all the difficulties faced.


Sleepninja (Forums Moderator) recommends:

Stars Falling From the Sky

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Pal Kang Jin has a lot of sibling, five to be exact. With the sudden, tragic death of her parents, she has no other option but to take responsibility for these children. Unfortunately, she can barely take care of herself. She can't hold down a job, she has no place to live, how can she possible afford to feed six people? She decides the solution is to become a live-in maid. Ahh, but no employer will hire someone with five children, so she smuggles them in.

As you can expect, five children are very difficult to hide in a house that is owned by a cranky lawyer. They are noisy and run all over the place!

What I love about this drama is that it successfully combine humor, romance, and family themes without wearing out its welcome. I never once was bored. Nor did this drama hit that seemingly inevitable drag to the storyline that other family dramas reach. The adult actors did a decent job portraying their roles, but of course the little kids stole the show! I was always eager for more scenes with the children and their antics. 


Cheer (Approval Moderator and Editor) recommends:

Wonderful Mama

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Family dramas are certainly not my thing. I only watched three or four of them. My favourite family drama of all times is definitely Wakamono Tachi already recommended by rosefae above.

If I had to pick a second then it would be Wonderful Mama.  Let’s get things straight from the beginning, drama isn’t spectacular by any mean. It’s one of those long (almost daily) dramas present in the three main Korean channels. But somehow, the theme was able to make me stay.

The drama is about a rich woman who built her fortune from scratch. She found out that she suffers from dementia.  Before she completely loses her memories, she decided to announce fake bankruptcy in order to make her three spoiled children learn responsibility.

The pushes and pulls of this family drama were actually entertaining. The growing of the characters was noticeable throughout. But there was also some lame old themes like the overdone birth secrets, the evil girl and many others. But through and throughout, it’s worth the shot. Especially for those who like family dramas.


Those would be our picks for this month. Feel free to share your thoughts and your own favourite family dramas.