K-Drama in its true form

Yes, I am very late to this fest. Yes, I loved it. Descendants of the Sun served pretty much everything that made me watch K-Dramas in the first place: An emotional OST, cheesy slow-mo scenes, swoon-worthy characters and an over-dramatic plot.

I am aware that the plot was over-dramatic - one or two fewer disasters would’ve been fine. But then again I think the drama is very self-aware, which was made obvious with the last scene, where they wanted to enjoy a nice wedding dinner and then ANOTHER huge catastrophe happened. The ending was super fun and tongue-in-cheek, I loved it.

Yoo Si Jin made my knees weak. While a uniform makes every man immediately more handsome and desirable, it was his easy confidence and bluntness that made his character so incredibly attractive. He was not playing games or beating around the bush. But I found Seo Dae Yong just as attractive and lovable. If I was a character in the drama, I would’ve probably gone for him, not gonna lie.

Onew’s role was super annoying, I hated him and his plot line and it was one of the reasons I didn’t give this a 10/10. It was such unnecessary drama. If he didn’t have a pregnant wife back home, I would’ve thought there was gonna be a romantic side-plot with him and the patient he abandoned - why else would they be so dramatic about each other? Plus, they had insane chemistry. But since that wasn’t gonna happen, the plot line was super pointless and overly dramatic. Props to Onew though, he’s a good actor and managed to make me hate his character.

I wish there were subtitles for the English parts because I basically couldn’t understand anyone except David McInnis. And I’m not just talking about the Korean actors - most of the white actors were just as bad. And even if someone’s pronunciation was ok, by the time my brain realized it had to switch to English, I'd already missed what they were saying.

Serious props to David McInnis, though. I think he is the only good non-Korean actor I’ve ever seen in K-Dramas. (I realize he has Korean heritage but he grew up in the US.)

Most actors who play non-Korean characters in K-Dramas are white dudes (and dudettes) who emigrated to Korea because their acting was too bad to land a role in the West. It’s honestly my biggest pet peeve about K-Dramas and it is still happening today (cough Squid Game cough). Even if it’s just a guest role, please hire actual actors with some talent and not just the next best white dude you can find in Korea - thanks.
Anyway, David McInnis actually is a talented actor and contributed to the drama. The same can’t be said about the other non-Korean actors in this.

(Shoutout to Anupan Tripathi though, I loved seeing him for a moment as „man who gives the shoe to Dr. Kang“ lol.)

Anyway, Descendants of the Sun has some flaws, such as bad actors in guest roles, an annoying side-plot and hard-to-understand English, but it gave me all the feels and made me both squeal and cry. K-Drama cheesiness at its best.

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Moving, binge-worthy and a brilliant performance from Lee Do Hyun

They took an ok movie and turned it into an amazing drama. 17 again is a fun little film, but despite the seemingly deep story it tells, it is mostly just fun. With a lot more backstories for the characters, several more side-plots, a gorgeous OST and superb actors, 18 again is deeply moving.

Lee Do Hyun's performance is outstanding and he made me cry several times. My two favorite scenes being when his son hugs 18yo him for the first time and when his father comes to watch his basketball game and he communicates with him in sign language. He is a brilliant actor and completely had me believe that he is a 40yo man in a 18yo body.

It's overall a great drama with a talented cast and good writing but Lee Do Hyun and the OST are what make it outstanding. It also has well-chosen ending scenes that will make you click "next episode" immediately.

The only reason I didn't give this a ten is that there were one or two unnecessary side-plots that went nowhere (like the stalker).

I want to write a longer review but I haven't really sorted out all my feelings yet.

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Real, beautiful, atmospheric, a little slow

This drama seems to trigger a lot of negative emotions in people. Specifically, the character of Jae Eon seems to be people's canvas to project all their negative feelings towards past dates on, which makes them dislike the drama as a whole.

The word "toxic" gets thrown around a lot when people talk about Jae Eon. I don't see him as toxic, though. Na Bi knew from the beginning that he doesn't want a relationship. She knew what she was getting into and then caught feelings. Yes, he was acting pretty stupid, once he started catching feelings, too. But I guess that's understandable in some way, when you promised yourself not to catch feelings for someone and then don't know how to handle them. He should've communicated more and better and I don't get why he never clarified that Sol Ah isn't his current girlfriend, but I wouldn't call him toxic.

I absolutely loved the first episode. The camera work was brillitant - it made the viewer feel like we are getting seduced at the same time as Na Bi. The chemistry between Song Kang and Han So Hee was tangible and the tension continued throughout the whole drama. I think it portrayed falling for someone very well - the glances and stares, the back and forth between being happy and unsure whether the other person feels the same, the unjustified jealousy, when they talk to someone else, when you're not even dating,...

The story being set in the art department made for a beautiful picture and great metaphors - although sometimes the butterfly metaphors were a bit too on the nose. Everyone was talking about how great the OST is though, so I was kind of disappointed by how mediocre it was - none of the songs stood out to me or made me feel anything.

In the middle, there were a few episodes that dragged a bit too much. It is definitely a slow, atmospheric drama. But all the quirky side characters made up for when the main story was moving too slow. The only character I disliked was Do Hyuk. I don't understand why everyone likes potato boy so much. It must be that they simply hate Jae Eon so much, that they like ANY alternative for Na Bi. Because honestly, Do Hyuk must be the most boring character I've ever seen. I usually root for the second lead and am heartbroken when he doesn't get the girl. But to be honest, I just wanted to never see his boring sorry self again.

So all in all, it was beautiful and atmospheric, real and raw - but a little draggy, with a boring second lead and not a good OST.

(Also, I'm not really a Song Kang girl but damn, his shoulders are broad. Like, how??)

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The Tragedy of the Gifted Child ft. Corruption Makjang

Seung Yoo's tale was relatable for me in some ways. The drama portrayed the tragedy of the gifted child beautifully. I may not be quite the genius Sung Yoo is, but I was labeled a "gifted child" and even went to a private school for gifted children. Being a gifted child is not always a positive. For some it's adults pushing you too far, when you just want to have a normal childhood. For others it's the world telling you, you need to do something extraordinary and not waste your talent, when in fact you might just want a simple job and live a normal life. For some it's a thin line between genius and madness and it not being worth to immerse yourself in your genius until you figure out how to do so safely. All of these points were beautifully shown in Melancholia.

I was completely submerged in this drama's world for two days. I could not stop watching and was glued to my screen. The OST, cinematography, set design and color grading are gorgeous and the mathematical formulas and geometric shapes added to show how Seung Yoo sees the world were a really nice touch. I just wish they had continued with that because it's not like he looks at the world differently after four years. Quite the opposite: he is fully into math again, so it would've made sense to keep showing that in a creative way.

As someone who was bothered by the age difference in Goblin, it didn't bother me here. And that is not because the genders were swapped but because of the reason for the characters' attraction to each other. Seung Yoo and Yoon Soo are drawn to each other because they see the world the same way. For Yoon Soo that is a completely platonic fascination at first. They are simply both happy to have found another human who shares their unique worldview. Seung Yoo, being an immature teenager developed a crush from that feeling, probably not knowing how else to interpret it. Yoon Soo always draws a line and rejects him. Only years into the future, do her feelings change. And yes, the latter can also be said about Goblin, but just the general vibe of their relationship and the reason they were drawn to each other was different. (The way the fl in Goblin acted like a 5-year old was just super icky, okay.) The math metaphors were really nice, especially when they used them to clumsily express their feelings to other characters.

The cast did a great job. Lee Do Hyun's acting is always a pleasure to watch and Im Soo Jung was the perfect fit for her role. The whole ensemble of side characters was amazing but I especially enjoyed Woo Da Bi's performance.

I think everyone who watched this is a bit baffled by how different episodes 7-16 are from the first six episodes. The first six episodes were slower, mostly focusing on Seung Yoo and Yoon Soo and felt very tender - with lots of long shots, beautiful pictures, math metaphors etc. After the time-jump it turned into a tense tale of corruption with a hint of Makjang. While I was completely obsessed with it nonetheless, the change bothered me a bit at first. Just because it didn't feel very cohesive. But on second thought, it actually makes sense. In the first few episodes the world was mostly ok. Sure, there was already corruption and cheating, but the characters' lives were still fine.
Seung Yoo was a teenager, still not knowing much about the workings of the corrupt upper class and we see the world mostly through his eyes. We see him falling in love - with math and with Yoon Soo - and we see him heal from his trauma. The allegations changed everybody's lives, though. And for the rest of the drama we watch them deal with the aftermath. And boy, is it a ride.
The way the unraveling of their lives and secrets is told through masterful editing is incredibly thrilling. The tension is constantly rising, the editors keeping the viewers on their toes and the cliffhangers always made me immediately click on "next episode".

There's really just two small things that bothered me:
- He was already a genius before he met Yoon Soo. He was literally at MIT at 10 years old. It kind of bothered me, that he always said he wasn't that smart, it was only because of Yoon Soo. Yes, she made him fall in love with math again after his traumatic past, but she didn't really teach him much about math, let's be honest. His genius was already there.
- Dear writers everywhere in the world: No German man under the age of like 77 would ever be called Adolf. Please take note. Now, this character called Adolf Müller might be 85, they never said how old he is. But if you have to name ONE German character, you should not call him Adolf.

But anyway, Melancholia is both beautiful and thrilling. I loved it!

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Might not be for you if you suffer from second-hand embarrassment

This is a difficult one to rate. I enjoyed it but it took me a long time to finish it because I was always dreading the second-hand embarrassment Moo Hak was giving me. It was honestly a bit much at times. Just like Da Li's naivety was also too much at times.

The first episode was laugh-out-oud funny, then it dragged a bit but it turned around in the second half and became more bingeable. The second half was actually really good because the murder mystery became a bigger part. I also really liked the artsy editing but wasn't the biggest fan of the OST.

All in all it's cute with some hilarious moments, but also quite a bit of cringe and in the long term probably not particularly memorable.

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Quality Swoon-worthy entertainment

This drama seriously deserves a better rating. I would've binged it in one day, had I not had to get up early the next day. So instead I binged it in two days and it is definitely going to be a comfort drama for me in the future.

Of course it didn't hurt that I already liked both leads before this. Secret was one of my favorite 2nd gen girl groups, so I adore Song Ji Eun. And Sung Hoon I've had a crush on ever since Oh My Venus. But it wasn't just the actors that made this so enjoyable. The story was exactly what I'd been looking for: a cute romance, but not in a boring way, with lots of funny moments and swoon-worthy scenes. Despite basically being "only" a love story with barely any side plots, it always kept me engaged and immediately clicking "next episode". Their chemistry is great, the side characters are very funny and lovable and I also really liked the OST.

The only points of criticism I have, are that the last few episodes had way too many flashbacks and that the intro was always spoiling the episode. I liked the drawings in the intro but couldn't they have chosen scenes from previous episodes instead of the upcoming one? Kind of a strange choice. (Also, this drama had the fakest fake snow I've ever seen and I didn't quite get the ending tbh). But honestly, I loved this a lot and I'm definitely going to rewatch it.

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Mixed feelings - Do not eat while watching

I know this is a beloved classic, but for me this is very hard to rate because I have very mixed feelings about it.

My first impression was: gross! I'm sorry, but so many scenes in this drama are seriously off-putting. And it already begins gross in the first scene with Eun Chan having a super gross eating contest against Min Yeop. It actually made me physically sick. And these off-putting scenes continue throughout the whole drama. Eun Chan always eats like a pig - even eating tofu from the floor, and smearing food all over her face, people cleaning their feet WHILE at the table with other people (and then using the same washcloth to wash their face), sucking toes, eating used gum that was stuck to the window, shaking out socks over food, talking about earwax, etc. I honestly don't understand why this drama had to be so gross. I learned the hard way, that you should NOT be eating while watching this drama because you will loose your appetite.

Was it to show how "manly" Eun Chan is? I don't understand why "manly" has to be gross. You shouldn't make the viewers feel disgusted. Talking about Eun Chan, she was super obnoxious and over the top. Always yelling and being offended, being gross and unreasonable. I don't think anyone would fall in love with a person like that, if she was real. I seriously hated her for the first 8 episodes. Kudos to Yoon Eun Hye, though, she really didn't shy away from anything for this role.

I barely enjoyed anything about the first 8 episodes and had to force myself over the span of several months to continue watching. But then episodes 9 - 12 were absolutely brilliant. Mostly because of Gong Yoo. His acting was superb and the way he portrayed his character questioning his sexuality and finally admitting it to himself and Eun Chan, only to then be crushed by betrayal and being confused by his feelings all over again, was outstanding. I've watched a bunch of cross-dressing dramas that follow a similar trope and so far, his portayal was by far the best.

I'll admit it, I fell deeply in love with Gong Yoo in this drama. Before this, he was just another somewhat cool actor that I'd seen in a few dramas but now? I am a fan!!

After episode 12 it then sadly lost some of the magic again and was very predictable and fluffy. But at this point, I had fallen so deeply for Gong Yoo, that I didn't really care and was content with just admiring him (and sometimes pausing the drama to stare at him for longer).

So, what should I conclude... Gong Yoo was brilliant, four episodes were brilliant, but I was grossed out a lot and hated the female lead.

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I absolutely loved this. I think this is the best mini drama I've seen, so far. It was so good, that it didn't actually feel like a mini drama. Of course it's still gonna be a bit rushed, cause that's the curse of mini dramas, but pacing and production-wise this is the best mini drama I've seen.
It was also the best Korean BL chemistry I've seen. Kim Ji Woong and Yoon Seo Bin had great chemistry and portrayed their characters very convincingly. Even the kiss scenes were more convincing than in other Korean BL mini dramas because they didn't shy away from anything and gave it their all.

Also, can I just say, wow, Kim Ji Woong, what a gorgeous human!

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Uhm...i don't even know how to rate this. I have...questions.

Having a new love interest was a weird decision, considering the plot of the first season. But I do have to admit that acting-wise Hyuk was an upgrade. His character was really sweet, too. Definitely the highlight of this season.

The plot had some interesting ideas but of course not enough time or budget to really flesh it out.

But my most pressing question is:
How and when did Se Hyun break all these bones? He got hit in the back once, then his head was bleeding(?) and suddenly when he woke up all his bones were broken despite all villains already having been defeated before he passed out? Huh?

Also, the kiss scenes...come on. I'm not even sure their lips were touching for the first "kiss" lol. The camera panned so far away. It's funny how BL kisses in kdramas seem to be at where hetero kisses were 15 years ago. Don't you dare move your lips!

Also: Is seeing color really worth killing people and undergoing dangerous surgery? Idk I feel like it's not that deep.

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Meh

Maybe I should just stop watching mini dramas. 99% of them are just not done well. This story was too ambitious to be told in a mini drama and therefore felt very flat. The characters and the world didn't feel real.

It's kinda sad that Korean BL is mostly only seen in mini dramas because it robs us of the opportunity to watch an ACTUALLY well-written, complex gay love story.

Jun's acting was ok but to be fair, it wasn't a very challenging role. It'll be interesting to see what kind of roles he takes on in the future.

In defense of this mini drama it should be said that right before starting this, I'd binged The King's Affection, so of course its storyline and production value are going to look very poor in comparison.

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Perfection!

Please don’t listen to the reviews saying it’s dragging and too slow-paced. I am very glad I didn’t look at any reviews before I started watching because I might’ve passed on a drama that is now one of my absolute favorites.

It wasn’t too slow or too long at all! I was glued to the screen for every second of these 20 episodes and binged the whole thing in two days, with only one break for a few hours of sleep.

I generally love the crossdressing trope but I think it is only done right, when the other characters don’t find out for a long time, which this drama did perfectly. I have seen a few shows where the love interest found out way too soon, which takes away the whole thrill of the trope. The King’s Affection does an amazing job at keeping up the thrill and only slowly revealing parts of the truth. The characters are all well-written and three-dimensional and make you care for them and worry about their fate, so no scene feels like a bore or filler. Even with the length of 20 episodes, it never felt like it dragged on for too long. It was exactly the right amount of time needed to tell this beautiful story.

Park Eun Bin did an exceptionally great job, portraying the Crown Prince. I love that the writers made Dami become a fierce, badass Prince instead of a damsel-in-distress trying to pose as a man. The way she acted and held herself made her the most believable man I’ve seen in a crossdressing drama or movie. I’ve seen some people say she looks way too feminine to pass as a man, which I find funny cause I could list at least 6 idols who could pass as a woman and fool everyone, so why is it so unbelievable that a man could have her features? Effeminate men exist.

I really fell in love with the whole cast, but especially Nam Yoon Su, who played Hyun - his fate was the one I was most anxious about because he was just so charming.
And of course, the child actors also did an amazing job, especially Choi Myung Bin in her double role.

There are quite a few parallels to Sungkyunkwan Scandal but it didn’t bother me. Both dramas are amazing.

Seriously, please give this a watch, it’s amazing.

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My favorite Zombie show ever

Yes, there are some little plot holes - I'll get to those later - but overall, this was amazing. There were episodes where I was completely glued to the screen and did not dare to move. I've watched many zombie shows and movies but this is now by far my favorite. The drama starts out good, then becomes really amazing and fast-paced, then there's one episode that is slower and less plot-driven, but it is a nice breather before the final few action-filled episodes.

The young actors all did amazing jobs bringing these characters to life. The good characters, as well as the bad, that viewers really really hate. I found On Jo kind of annoying but I guess that's part of her character. I loved that there was no plot armor and anyone could die at any time - major characters included.

I guess the only questions I had are the following:
- Does anyone who gets bitten by Gwinam only turn into a "Hambie"? The characters assume this, because both Gwinam and Namra, who was bitten by him, are Hambies. And Soohyeok even says to Namra "If you bite me, I will only turn into what you are." But then why did Nayeon, who was also bitten by Gwinam, turn into a full zombie??
- If you have Namra in your group, who is immune to the Zombies, why not just let her bite everyone in the group in order to get out of the school? Kind of like a vaccine?
- Did all her friends forget that On Jo got bitten by that first girl who got bitten by the hamster? Shouldn't she have turned into either a Hambie or a Zombie, or be immune to everything? Maybe the second season will reveal that she's got like super-immunity, but why did none of her friends stop and think "hey, didn't you get bitten?"

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Betrayal, Revenge and a Badass FL

Wow! Where do I even begin?! My mind is blown and my heart is broken.

I binged this within a single night and was unable to look away from the screen for even a second.

It has been a while since a drama - or any series in general - was able to capture me so completely. It is kinda rare that a story serves so many of my favorite tropes:

- Main character having to go through some rigorous physical training
- Revenge plot
- Secret identity
- Good main character goes dark
- Scene where main character looses all humanity and descends into darkness
- Love interest discovers secret identity
- Badass FL
- People changing sides

Seriously, give me any of these and I’m a fan. Give me ALL OF THESE?!? and I’m obsessed.

On top of that, Han So Hee’s brilliant acting catapulted this drama into untouchable greatness.

I agree that many times, writers force unnecessary love side-plots on us. But among all these cases, it seems viewers now cry „unnecessary love story“ way too soon, without considering the nuances this side plot brings to the story.
In this case, the love story made total sense - besides, I’m not even sure you can call it a love story. We watched two characters connect through their shared pain and seek comfort and warmth from each other. Pildo showed Jiwoo that it is not worth losing herself in the darkness and throwing her life away for revenge - but at the same time his death ended up being her breaking point and the final push she needed to complete her transformation.

The chemistry between Jiwoo and Pildo was tangible and the progression of their connection done masterfully.

I don’t think I will ever be over this. But I will definitely rewatch it and hurt myself all over again. Immediate addition to my top-10.

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