Tag: confessions of a drama addict

Which networks do you enjoy watching dramas from?

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I seem to generally prefer the cable channels over the network channels.

Typically there will always be at least one tvN show on my “currently watching” list with perhaps another one from JTBC or OCN. I’ve also enjoyed all of Mnet’s original dramas and would probably watch everything from them if they decided to create more.

I don’t have specific loyalties to any of the three network channels and will watch anything from them that interests me. It just so happens that tvN/JTBC/OCN generally have shows that are more appealing to my tastes.

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Catching up on Pied Piper at the expense of Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul Ho.

Apparently I just can’t juggle more than five dramas at a time. Four-and-a-half, really, since one of the joys of Vampire Detective is that it’s only one episode a week. Totally manageable. Totally.

I have a feeling I’ll be doing this leap-frog catch-up for the indiscernible future so long as Dramaland keeps giving me such good dramas.

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Updating MDL and I’m realizing I really need to finish up Neighborhood Hero just so I can get it off the list. I have all the eps waiting for me on my computer, but lookit all the new shiny stuff that premiered yesterday/today!

image

I’m leaving SFD there to shame me into finishing it sometime.

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I’ve resigned myself to the fact I’m not gonna finish SFD before the end of the month (new goal: before the end of the year). I’ve switched the goalposts to finishing Neighborhood Hero, which ends this weekend and which I’m currently five (maybe six? I think I watched ep 9, but I’d have to go back and make sure). episodes behind.

As long as I finish by the 27th/28th, I think I’ll be okay. Because that’s when Vampire Detective, Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul Ho, and Monster premiere. That’s gonna be a wild week as I try to sort out my priorities, because I want to watch allllll of them as soon as they air.

It’s good that you’re doing good with drama’s right now. I’m still struggling to watch the ones I’ve been trying to watch. I haven’t gotten past ep 2 of Neighborhood Hero, or ep 3 of OMHE.

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OMHE definitely isn’t what it could have been, so you’re not really missing out. I’m just too involved with the characters by now and want to see how they end up (especially my girl Dong Mi <3<3<3<3<3).

Neighborhood Hero is definitely a different vibe and I can totally understand someone not being into it, but it’s the kind of languid show with low-key interesting characters that seem to hit a sweet spot with me. It vaguely reminds me of Midnight Diner or Yoona’s Street in that way. Yeah, there’s this whole “spy who burned me” plot, but that’s not really why I’m watching. I like seeing the neighborhood come together to try and defeat the developers. The spy stuff is just there to give me interesting characters and situations (I mean a bar for retired/fired spies is pretty much a delightful conceit to me, especially when the most earnest puppy and worst spy ever is assigned to follow them. So ridiculous yet adorable).

Also I’ve heard rumbles from other people who have been disappointed in this year’s offerings, so you’re not alone if that’s the case for you. But you know what they say: one drama fan’s trash is another drama fan’s treasure. Or something like that. :p

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I’m so giddy over the fact there are so many good dramas right now (and potentially in the near future)…

…but because it’s been so long that I’ve been so blessed, I forgot about that vital problem when it comes to being a drama addict: time.

I have the vague idea of finishing SFD before tackling the 50-episode Monster. But that only leaves me two weeks to accomplish that goal.

Two weeks when I want to finish up Signal, Neighborhood Hero, and OMHE (which I’m now four eps behind). Two weeks when I want to continue watching Come Back Ahjussi and Pied Piper. Two weeks before Monster, Vampire Detective, and Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul Ho air (all in the same week *sob*).

I… I don’t even… I mean… there is no way this is possible, yet I’m pretty sure I’m gonna try anyway. Something will have to fall, but I can’t figure out what that is yet.

Dramaland Forecast: March 2016

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Previously: Jan – Feb

While I didn’t get this posted on the first of the month, I at least wanted to get it up before the new premieres.

Completed:

  • Remember
  • Splash Splash Love – yeah, I’m late to the party, but at least I watched it! Super cute, although I was bizarrely content with just the first half and felt the second half was somewhat unnecessary.

Currently Watching:

  • Signal – I haven’t watched this week’s episodes yet, but I’m already sad that it’ll be ending next weekend. By far my favorite drama of the year (and a tough one to beat).
  • Neighborhood Hero – still really enjoying this show, even though I understand it won’t be to everyone’s taste in terms of pacing and/or personal reasons.
  • One More Happy Ending – this has dropped to my lowest priority, but I still plan to see it through. It’s not what it could have been, or what it was in the beginning, but I still find it reasonably enjoyable, although I’ll likely forget it existed once it’s over.
  • Come Back Ahjussi – a delightful surprise! It wasn’t high on my must-watch list although I knew I’d check it out for Rain, yet the show has impressed me with how engaging it is, and all the actors are giving a marvelous performance. If it stays as good as the first four eps, it will end up high on my list of favorite dramas this year.

Currently watching, kinda, I swear I’ll get caught up eventually:

  • Six Flying Dragons – I’m up through ep 26. Over halfway! I’m gonna make it until the end, hopefully before next year.

Upcoming premieres:

  • Pied Piper – airs tomorrow! I’m still not sure about the details but the premise is intriguing, the teasers were pretty to watch, and Shin Ha Kyun is amazing, so I know it’ll be at least decent if not actually a good drama.
  • Vampire Detective – once again, my expectations were actually fairly low (or at least mild), but all the teasers have got me excited since the premise seems it won’t just be a gritty detective show (which I love!) but will also have some fun with the vampire aspect of it. Plus the cast is gold and if there’s any network I want to host a crime drama about vampires, it’s OCN.
  • Monster – oh man oh man OH MAN. At least I know what show will fill the hole that Signal will leave behind. I’ve gushed enough about this cast (PARK KI WOOOOOOONG!) and the fact it’s helmed by one of my favorite production teams. The only thing that gives me pause is that whole “50 episodes” thing, but doggone it, I’m going to get through it and it will be more than worth it.
  • Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul Ho – I’m generally not a fan of law dramas, but doggone it, this is the first Park Shin Yang drama since Sign and the teasers look kinda… awesome? Plus there’s Kang So Ra, who deserves a good drama after the snooze-fest of Warm and Cozy. Honestly, the entire cast is amazing, and even though it’s usually against my policy to watch a show just for the cast, the production team seems pretty solid, too, so I’m mildly optimistic.

Skipping/dropping:

  • Cheese in the Trap – I bailed on ep 11, but if anyone makes a supercut of all the Bo Na/Eun Tak scenes, please let me know because they’re my new OTP.
  • Memory – I love me some Lee Sung Min, but a lawyer who gets Alzheimers? Thanks, but I’ll pass – I’ve had my share of that already this year. (I’ve actually had my fill of Alzheimers as a plot device in Dramaland just in general, but at least it’s not cancer, I guess.)
  • Ms. Temper and Nam Jung Gi – this is technically more of a “maybe” – I like the cast the premise sounds interesting in kind of a gender-swap take on the typical bossy chaebol v. timid assistant roles, but I haven’t figured out what the plot is beyond that. It’s an unknown writer for me, too, so it’s hard for me to guess what the tone of the drama would be like, and there are too many other dramas that are capturing my interest right now for me to squeeze in a “maybe” on the watch list, but I’ll keep an eye on the buzz about the show and perhaps add it in later if word on the street seems to indicate it’s worth it.
  • Goodbye Mr. Black – I enjoy a good revenge drama, and this is an excellent cast, but for whatever reason, it’s just not appealing to me, so I think I’ll give it a pass but keep an eye on the reaction to it.

Any other premieres in the near distant future either don’t have new information worth noting or I’m still of the same mind on them from the previous months, so nothing new to add.

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femservice:

Here is the secret to fandom:

Give zero fucks about what anyone else is doing.

Seriously.  I mean it.  Because inevitably you will love something that no one else loves.  Or you will love something that everyone loves and people will shit all over it because it’s “so trite and unimaginative and done.” Or you will love something that no one else has ever heard of.  Or you will love something dark and edgy and or obscure and people will roll their eyes and say, “What, do you want people to think you’re dark and edgy and obscure?”

Alternatively, you will not love the thing that everyone else loves, and you will wonder what precisely is wrong with you that the sight of that thing is aggravating the shit out of you now when the whole world sings its praises as one.

People will irritate you.  They’ll irritate you with headcanons that make no sense and misinterpretations of canon.  They will make the same jokes 500 times.  They will overwhelm your corner of fandom with something you either are tired of hearing about or don’t care about.  They will post art that isn’t theirs.  You will meet people who think you are the greatest person ever and bombard you with messages  only to wander off when they find someone new or shinier; you will meet people whom you admire and who do not really seem to notice you exist. 

So give zero fucks about it.  Seriously.  Like what you like, blacklist what you need to blacklist, and ignore everything else.  Be friends, play nice, enjoy it.  And in the meantime, just do you.  Like what you like, love what you love, and to hell with all the rest of it. 

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This is madness for someone who last year was barely able to watch one drama at a time, much less five, and who is excitedly planning to check out three new dramas premiering in March to add to this list.

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Went to update MDL since I finished Remember (and this year I’m gonna keep better track of the dramas I completed so I’m not scrambling at the end of the year, trying to remember – heh – what I watched and what I thought of it). Added CITT too since I’m apparently sticking with it even though anything not revolving around the school doesn’t interest me (nor does the fact that SO MANY people are apparently obsessed with Seol, but whatever, it’s Dramaland, Jake).

Realized I’m watching a crap-ton of dramas this year and I… like them? I mean, some are just okay, but it’s Feb and I’m already watching more dramas than I did halfway through 2015. I guess this is my year?

Not that I’m expecting winners from all my viewing choices, but I’ve only dropped one show this year so far. Just ONE! Madness.

This means I’m now changed my odds to an optimistic 60/40 that Come Back Ahjussi will actually be decent instead of my previous 25/75 which was only that high because I’m a shallow fangirl when it comes to a nekkid Rain.