Dramaland Forecast: December 2016

Previously: JanFebMarAprMayJuneJulyAugSept – Nov

Can you believe the year is nearly over? It’s actually been a good year for me, drama-wise – definitely better than 2015. But let’s have a look what’s in store for the last few weeks and the start of 2017.

Completed:

  • Squad 38 – I finally finished it! Yay! Ma Dong Seok is my beloved teddy bear ahjussi and I feel like I could watch him in anything, but I really enjoyed how he was able to keep true to his bumbling, earnest, everyday man yet still become a slick con-artist (thanks to the begrudgingly-family-like team).

Currently Watching:

  • Legend of the Blue Sea – I love it! It’s the drama highlight of the week for me. Jeon Ji Hyun shows off her star power and I swear I would watch an hour of her eating and be utterly delighted. Thankfully the show lives up the director’s knack for style (it’s so preeeeeeety!) and the assorted characters are interesting, too. There’s a lot of questions I have about the plot but it seems like we’re gradually getting answers about how the Joseon mermaid and the modern mermaid are connected.
  • Night Light – we’re all angry at Netflix, I know, but I’m so eager to watch this show that I’m happy to watch it raw. Fyi, Darksmurfsubs has picked it up in the meantime (yay!), but it takes a while for them to have decently edited subs, and I’m not exactly a patient person.
  • Romantic Teacher Doctor Kim – this isn’t quite the show I was expecting, but I’m still enjoying it. I’m a sucker for quirky misfits coming together to make a family/learn life lessons/be humbled so it’s hitting all those buttons. I just get bored by the medical stuff really easily.

Skipping/Dropping:

  • Sweet Stranger and Me/The Man Living in Our House my interest fizzled around episode 8 and I struggled through ep 10 before realizing I didn’t care about anyone or their outcome. 
  • Entourage – in my head I’m like “yeah this is still on the watch list!” until I remember I haven’t watched past episode 2 despite continuing to download episodes. Maybe one day I’ll go back to it. But probably not.

Upcoming dramas of interest:

  • Hwarang – I’m unironically looking forward to this and hope it’s ridiculous as the second teaser made it out to be because that’s just the kind of fun I could use right now. Even though it’s on KBS, it’s from the Oh! Boy production team so I’m faintly hoping it will actually live up to my expectations of absurdity.
  • Goblin – I don’t think I have anything to add except that my chronic internal debate is still the same. I don’t trust this writer but I love this cast.
  • Missing 9 – the vague synopsis I’ve found for this doesn’t explain much, but I’m hoping, just based on the production team, it’ll be more intense and stylish than just some washed-up ex-idol being stranded on a deserted. Even though I never watched Lost, my brain wants to go there – at least we should get an interest array of characters with (presumably) back-stories that will somehow all intertwine.
  • Defendant – tentatively intrigued by this – mostly due to the cast (Uhm Ki Joon!) and the fact it’s coming from the City Hunter writer.
  • Voice – honestly I’ll only be checking this out for Kim Jae Wook’s cameo because a starved fangirl needs all the crumbs she can get.
  • Tomorrow With You – the writer and concept makes me a little nervous, but I trust the director and Shin Min Ah.
  • Sensitive Boss – a shy CEO of a PR office? That’s a quirky show that could be super appealing for me, especially since I’ve generally enjoyed tvN’s office dramas in the past.
  • Solomon’s Perjury – I haven’t watched (or read) the original Japanese movies (or book), but it’s giving me a White Christmas vibe so of course I’m eager to check it out.
  • Woman of Dignity – Kim Sun Ah and Kim Hee Sun starring in a drama together? Yes, please!
  • Strong Woman Do Bong Soon – this is same writer as Woman of Dignity, and while I haven’t seen her other work (My Love Eun Dong), if she keeps writing about awesome women she might turn out to be one of my favorite writers. I just hope the vague synopsis (”stories about women with Do Bong Soon as the central character”) lives up to my gurl power expectations. It can’t hurt that it’ll star the adorable and talented Park Bo Young. While I know idol actors are controversial, Park Hyung Sik is one of my favorites, and there’s everyone’s favorite noona killer Ji Soo, so I’m not complaining – provided it doesn’t get bogged down by the boys and lives up to its premise.

As always, any drama not listed means I have nothing new to add since the last mention and/or it’s not something I care about enough to add to the list.

  • Joseon mermaid gets to have legs too!
  • I’m all in for the Joseon story though like I’d take an entire drama just around those characters
  • like let there be a mystery first about someone stealing clothes and leaving pearls, then gradually revealing the backstory as LMH’s character gets flashes of memories until he finally remembers the mermaid from growing up and then sets out to find her with the lanterns, not realizing she’s been in the town the whole time using her legs
  • think Arang and the Magistrate but instead Mermaid and the Town Leader (c’mon that’d be awesome)
  • this writer’s romance bores me but omg I love her villains, they are over-the-top and eeeeevil, I am excite for all the Sung Dong Il
  • awwww, cutie Lee Ji Hoon! I still like him even if I haven’t really watched his dramas since School 2013 (where he was my fave)
  • dayum stepmom getting into it, too (like I said, fun villains!)
  • the music still needs to chill tho like geez drama much
  • ngl I love all his conman accoutrement and how he’s seemingly prepared for everything like you go and be the best conman evar dude
  • he’s like “why are you in this picture” and she’s like “OMG HOW AM I IN THERE BUT ALSO OUT HERE???” pfffft I love her
  • OMG CHA TAE HYUN CAMEO OMG OMG OMG My Sassy Girl shout-out
  • I can’t stop giggling CTH why can’t you find a decent role worthy of your comedy, something light and fun (yes writer-nim I’m snidely referring to your previous work)
  • HAHAHA she tackles him to protect him from the “gun” have I mentioned I love her?
  • “because I can remember it” sure dude as she smiles knowingly because SHE WIPED YOUR MEMORY
  • I like his mother (and is it ironic she’s a housekeeper for some awful rich people?)
  • I swear I know the actor for the younger version of his father but I’m drawing a blank and even the Korean wiki is no help
  • I’m amused that every time he thinks he’s doing her a favor by rescuing her she’s actually somehow saving him
  • CRASH!!!! haha j/k but dude he stared at her a long time while he was driving
  • I’ve been wondering about that vase too, like, yeah, are there going to be time-travel shenanigans because I don’t understand how something we’ve seen happen in Spain ended up on a Joseon vase and tbh it’s been driving me a little crazy
  • hahaha nvm I think I can piece the vase thing together now – whenever I’m like ‘wait how does that work’ I apparently just need to ask my question and then wait a few minutes (the mermaid totally drew it on a vase she found with the zillion of other antique vases in her seahouse amirite although I’m okay being proved wrong I’m just happy to make up some kind of rational explanation)
  • if JJH had a meokbang I would totally watch it
  • I can’t wait for the makeover scene only because I want to see how they manage make JJH even more beautiful although tbh I’m kinda digging her beggar woman look I mean her hair is just *heart eyes emoji*
  • don’t worry mermaid that’s totally the best way to eat cake
  • okay that secret loft is the COOLEST no lie
  • precious mermaid learning the cruel tricks of drama cliffhangers
  • I do love that she’s totally into dramas though like it’s not even fake it’s real for her
  • HAHAHA the mothers have Joseon counterparts too and apparently the reincarnation is legit y’all