I rewatched The Master's Sun. This is a Hong Sisters' show starring the Queen of RomCom Gong Hyo JIn as Tae Gong Shil, a woman who has been able to see ghosts since she woke up from a coma, and the wonderfully arrogant So Ji Sub as Joo Joong Won, the president of Kingdom Group, who has the unexpected ability to shield Gong Shil from the ghosts that haunt her. Supporting cast includes Seo In Guk as Kang Woo, a highly skilled bodyguard/security guard, and Kim Yoo Ri as Tae Yi Ryung, a somewhat high strung top star who has a serious inferiority complex with Gong Shil (who was much more popular than her in school). There is never a moment in this drama where I don't want Gong Shil to be with Joong Won and yet I still have second lead syndrome here because Kang Woo is so sweet. Some of the ghost scenes in this are pretty darn creepy (South Korean excels at creepy ghost makeup) and there's some good ghostly suspense/tension in several episodes, but it's not really "scary." And watching So Ji Sub and Gong Hyo Jin together is a treat worth the tricks.

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Healer. Wow. This drama has been on my "To be watched" list for a long time, and it kept just being something I didn't want to start. Then I started watching The K2, which also stars the ridiculously charming (no, seriously, it's criminal how charming this man is) Ji Chang Wook. Unfortunately, just about every single character I encountered in six episodes I've seen so far of The K2 has been despicable. Which is not to say that it isn't a fine show, just that I can only take so many doses before I have to walk away for a while. Contrary to that, Healer is filled with delightful characters that really inspired me to care about what was happening to them. Did I mention that Ji Chang Wook is inhumanly charming? He embodies the character of Healer, a "night courier" who does shady work for high pay. It also has Park Min Young as the spunky girl reporter with a mysterious past (well, to be fair, most everyone in this show has a mysterious past) with whom he falls in love. This one is a lot of action, a lot of political drama, some family drama, and a bit of lovely romance thrown in to season it all with hope. Ji Chang Wook is a joy to watch in action scenes. And non actions scenes. And gratuitous shirt-less scenes. And cute falling in love scenes. And hot kissing scenes. And outraged black-hat-turns-white-hat (though really he was always more of a grey hat than a black hat) scenes. And devastating emotional loss scenes. He'd probably be a joy to watch in reading the phone book out loud scenes, truthfully. Throw into the mix Yoo Ji Tae as the intrepid, famous, successful investigative reporter and add some truly outstanding supporting cast members, such as the ever versatile Kim Mi Kyung as Healer's hacker ahjumma, and the outcome is a very engaging race to the finish line.

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Hwarang. Wow, what a satisfying ending. I looked forward to this show so much and I'm very glad that I watched it. It did struggle a bit at the beginning to find its footing, but once it did, it ran like gang busters. It also didn't help that the release was delayed and that it came up against Goblin and, to a lesser extent, Legend of the Blue Sea so that it suffered a little bit in comparison to those behemoths. The chemistry of the cast was absolutely wonderful and while the love story is central to the plot, it is not actually the main focus of the show. There's personal drama, political drama, and a good amount of good-natured humor along the way.

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I actually watched this one third (started with Reply 1988 and then watched Reply 1997) and I think it suffered somewhat in comparison to the other two series, even though this one is the one with characters actually born around when I was born. :) I liked the cast a lot and thought that they had good chemistry all together. I was bitterly disappointed by the husband reveal, since I was firmly hoping for the opposite outcome even though I was pretty sure it wouldn't happen. The suspense that was found in 1997 was lacking in this one. It was a genuinely warm and touching show, like the others, and well worth watching. The parents were, as always, delightful.

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I'm glad I discovered this well into my k-drama watching experience, so that I had enough knowledge in Korean history to not spend the vast majority of the drama going 'uh. Am I supposed to know him?' This was a sweet little story, though the web drama nature of it limits the development of the characters. I love Kim Seul-Gi in every role I've ever seen her play and this one is no exception. She plays a high school senior who is overwhelmed by her upcoming CSATs and yearns to escape. Yoon Doo-Joon plays the king of Joseon and is adorable. This is a time travel drama, where a modern girl is transported back to Joseon and high jinks ensue. The web drama, as mentioned, limits character development because episodes average about 15 minutes a pop. That said, the short episodes make this an easy to consume, pop-corn-esque drama. It was rewarding and I'd recommend it especially if you're looking for something quick.

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I finished watching Legend of the Blue Sea last night. This was a solid little drama, really. It stars Lee Min Ho (from Boys Over Flowers and Heirs, among many other shows) as Heo Joon Jae, a modern day conman with a troubled family past, and the amazingly lovely Jun Ji Hyun (best known for My Love From Another Star - which was very good, you should check it out) as Shim Chung, a mermaid who has come to dry land to find her love and live her life as a human. It comes complete with evil stepmothers and weird serial killers and quirky friendships. The supporting cast is just as amazing as the lead couple. I could listen to Lee Min Ho read the phone book, really. Jun Ji Hyun is not afraid of physical comedy and it was a delight to watch her as Shim Chung. The drama moves back and forth between modern day and historical with some reincarnation storylines. Got7's Park Jinyoung does a lovely job as the soulful young Kim Dam Ryung in the Joseon era bits. There were things about the plot that kept me guessing until the end, which was nice, and it kept up pretty well with the pacing. It's a lovely story.

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I re-watched Mary Stayed Out All Night. This is something I watched originally early on in my k-drama watching career, as it stars the Prince of Asia, Jang Geun Suk, who I loved so very much in You're Beautiful that I went on a binge watching everything I could find with him in it. Mary Stayed Out All Night (or sometimes it's known as Marry Me, Mary) has Moon Geun Young as Wi Mae Ri, the daughter of a father who is always on the run from debtors, and Jang Geun Suk as Kang Moo Kyul, an indie rocker who plays with his band in Hongdae. There's also Kim Jae Wook (who was delightful in Coffee Prince and another compelling reason for me to watch this show, though the stiffness that was an asset for his character in Coffee Prince is kind of a hindrance for his character in this show) as Jung In, the son of the chaebol who was childhood friends with Mae Ri's deceased mother. Rounding out (squaring out?) the love square is Kim Hyo Jin as Seo Joon, a temperamental actor and Moo Kyul's ex-girlfriend who's still holding a torch for him.

Mary Stayed Out All Night is a contract marriage drama. Mae Ri fakes a marriage with Moo Kyul in order to try to get out of the arranged marriage that her father and the chaebol arrange between her and Jung In. The pacing is uneven in this show, hitting a period just before the end where it really drags on, but I still find it utterly charming. When watching the early episodes, I really feel like one of Jang Geun Suk's goals was to follow up You're Beautiful with a drama where he smiles his adorable, heart melting smile as often as he made his twisty mouth, bitter pants face in You're Beautiful. Where the drama starts to drag is in the latter episodes, where his character gets much more broody and does a lot less smiling. I will say that this is the drama that showed me that Jang Geun Suk knows how to kiss a woman. :)

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I just finished watching Let's Fight, Ghost, which features 2PM's Ok Taec Yeon as a college student who can see ghosts and Kim So Hyun (who I liked a lot in Who Are You?: School 2015) as the ghost of a high school student (but think 17 or 18, not 15). South Korea does good ghosts. :) It's a cute show, with a fair amount of humor, creepy ghost makeup and visuals, and a satisfyingly creepy bad guy. It's a show from tvN, which is a cable station in Korea, as opposed to a regular broadcast station. A lot of the recent dramas that I've very much enjoyed have been from tvN. The pacing in Let's Fight, Ghost is fairly uneven, though, so I give it 4 out of 5 stars on DramaFever (where I watched it) and 8 out of 10 on MyDramaList (where I track what I've watched.)

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I also recently finished watching Goblin: The Lonely and Great God. This show is also by tvN. It was beautiful, poignant, lyrical (to borrow Christina Bertani's descriptor), and all around wonderful. It stars the always amazing Gong Yoo (who I first loved in my first K-drama, Coffee Prince) as the Goblin cursed with immortality and Kim Go Eun (who did her television debut in 2016 in Cheese in the Trap) as the Goblin's Bride, who can see ghosts and is the only one who can break his curse. It also stars Lee Dong Wook (who, I will be perfectly honest, I feel in love with while watching him on the variety show Roommates and have loved in everything I've seen him in) who plays a Grim Reaper and his love interest is played by the very beautiful Yoo In Na (who I've seen in several shows and I'm very glad she finally gets to play a character who is not an utter bitch). There is no one on this planet who is as good at the wounded, kicked puppy look as Lee Dong Wook. You just want to hug him and carry him around in your pocket. I give this drama 5 out of 5 on DramaFever (where I watched it) and 10 out of 10 on MyDramaLIst. I'd give it 1000 out of 1000, even. The bromance between the Goblin and the Grim Reaper is amazing and would make this drama a joy to watch even if everything else in it sucked. Luckily, nothing in it sucks. Except maybe the age difference between the Goblin and his bride. But given how chaste k-drama romance is, I am easily able to give that a pass. :)

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A while back, I watched Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo. I didn't exactly have a high bar set for it when I started it, but it was a thoroughly delightful series. It was funny and touching. The leads had great chemistry. It was a the kind of school based love story drama that seem to be a common theme. And it was entirely engaging. Lee Sung Kyung as the lead, Kim Bok Joo, was wonderful and poignant and funny in the role. I loved that her character was brash and loud and uniquely herself. And Nam Joo Hyuk as rising star swimmer Jung Joon Hyung was everything I wanted him to be. And he loved her thoroughly as she is and didn't seek to change her. Plus his sub story was heart wrenching. I highly recommend this show.

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This show embraces the tv trope that serial killers are like mice - if you see one, there's another dozen living in the walls of your house that you haven't seen yet. But that device can probably be forgiven thanks to the absolutely chilling and wonderful performances by Park Bo Gum and D.O. in their respective roles. Jang Na Ra and Seo In Guk were also delightful in this series. Very little was as straight forward as it might seem, so the twists were genuinely interesting. There are also some lapses of logic in the scripting that one could drive a homicidal box truck through, but most of those are pretty early on so you get over them and get to move on. :) The ending is an emotional roller coaster.

I definitely now want to see Park Bo Gum in something where he's not flat affect and uber creepy.

I don't know about rewatch value on this. The performances were engaging, but with the plot already laid out and the twists already known, I'm not sure that it would have as much impact the second time around.

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