Tag: tvn live

Dramaland Forecast: May 2018

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Previously: Jan – Feb – Mar – Apr

Completed:

  • None

Currently Watching:

  • April was an odd month for me, thanks to an unpremeditated hiatus from dramas. I’m not sure what to put here because I really should go back and finish the shows that I listed as “currently watching” on last month’s forecast, but I also have a tendency to keep moving on and never looking back at the scattered, unfinished dramas in my wake. So… who knows?

Dropping/Skipping:

  • Despite what I said above, I’m not quite ready to admit defeat on the dramas I was watching (Should We Kiss First? and Live), so for now I’m not adding them to this list.
  • I do intend to give Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food a fair chance but the licensing hullaballoo sorta sucked the anticipation out of me. I also have to be in the right mood for a cute romance, and currently I’m not in that mood.
  • I downloaded the first two episodes of The Miracle That We Met and then never watched them, so I guess this drama is technically skipped just because when I do get back into a drama-watching rhythm, it’ll be for the two I put on hold (or for a brand spankin’ new one).

Upcoming dramas of interest:

  • Greasy Melo/Wok of Love – I’m still gung-ho about this drama because it has all the elements that I love (cast! writer! plot! FOOD!), and if anything it’ll be the one to draw me back from my mini-hiatus.
  • Lawless Lawyer – I think I’m one of the few people who aren’t automatically compelled to watch everything Lee Joon Ki is in. I’m also pretty iffy on legal shows. This writer’s drama debut was Remember, which I liked well enough, but I don’t know if I want to be put through the legal wringer any time soon.
  • Investigation Couple – This is a pretty solid cast and I enjoy mysteries, but the writers are unknown and the basic plot (a warm-hearted prosecutor and a forensic scientist with a bad personality solve crimes) sounds so cookie-cutter cliche. For one wild and delirious moment, I though the forensic scientist would be Jung Yumi and the prosecutor would be Jung Jae Young, which I thought would be fun in a Bones kind of way. But no, of course the “warm-hearted prosecutor” is the woman and the “gruff forensic scientist” is the man. This could be good – there are too many unknowns to make a firm decision – but I think I’m already too disappointed by the predictable casting to give it a chance.
  • Come and Hug Me – I don’t know if it’s a season of terrible plot synopsis but honestly there’s nothing appealing about a melodrama about a detective and a popular actress who are somehow connected due to a murder case from their past. I’m all for giving rookie writers a chance, but these vague plots are doing nobody any justice. The cast are a bunch of actors I don’t know (other than Jin Ki Joo) because I haven’t watched anything else they’ve been in, and I don’t know that I will get to know them because unless everyone in Dramaland keeps telling me this is the best thing ever, I’ll likely end up skipping it.
  • Why Secretary Kim – I don’t know anything about the novel or webtoon (also based on the novel), but the brief synopsis sounds like the classic asshole chaebol and spunky Candy set-up. Not that it’s a bad thing necessarily (it’s a classic for a reason), but I don’t know what the hook is. I do really like Park Seo Joon and Lee Tae Hwan, though, so it could be worth it just for the eye-candy.
  • Handsome Guy and Jung Eum – I’m not completely cranky about the ridiculous and vague plot synopses this month, because I totally want to give this one a chance. My cynical heart wants to be warmed by the idea of two people who’ve given up on love/don’t care about love, but who have “theories” about love, putting those theories to the test and falling in love, anyway. I just hope Hwang Jung Eum isn’t too shrieky.
  • About Time – “A woman has the special ability to see the lifespan clocks of other people and meets a man who can stop her time, and he falls in love with her.” Now this is a synopsis, people! I’m already intrigued, not the least because there’s some sci-fi/fantasy element going on. Plus I need to know if the reason she can tell that he stops her clock is because he’ll somehow end up being the death of her (probably not, this is Dramaland after all, but hey it means I’m already hooked). Also Lee Sang Yoon owes me a good drama after making me sit through the entirety of Whisper and his endless eyebrows acting.
  • Miss Hammurabi – About the only thing that will get me to watch this is a wave of nostalgia where I pretend that Reply 1994′s Na Jung and her father are cosplaying as judges (because what else am I going to think of when you have Go Ara and Sung Dong Il in the same drama together?). As much as I declare myself an Inspirit, I just don’t feel that L can carry a drama as a lead (he’s fine as supporting cast, don’t @ me). This director is also seriously hit-or-miss with me. He can do some things really well, and other things absolutely terribly, and often both extremes can be found in the same drama.

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.

Dramaland Forecast: April 2018

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Previously: Jan – Feb – Mar

Completed:

  • Misty – I know there was a lot of grumbling about the ending but I genuinely loved this drama, warts and all. But it will probably go down in my memory as me falling in love with Hye-ran’s outfits and all the messages that Mary and I sent each other. It’s so easy for me to watch shows in my teeny, selfish bubble that I forgot that experiencing it others can be fun, too.

Currently Watching:

  • Should We Kiss First – I am a week behind and I’m assuming there’s gonna be new ways to add tragedy to the story, yet somehow I never feel truly weighed down by the melodrama. There’s enough comedy to keep me interested, and I think I just genuinely love the novelty of an older couple falling in love and learning to live together. (And I adore some of the minor characters, like the match-making couple. <3)
  • Live – I’ve only made it up to episode 3 because there’s a bleakness to this show that I find exhausting, but in the good way. Like it’s a little too real, when apparently what I want right now is some escapism. I do really enjoy the “slice-of-life” story and the cast of familiars from Noh Hee Kyung’s other dramas. It’s just not one I can binge, apparently.
  • Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food – Okay, technically this is more of a “plan to watch” once Netflix drops the subs. At least, I assume Netflix has it, because it’s *crickets* everywhere else. We’ll find out in a few days, I suppose. (And yes, unfortunately that’ll be non-US Netflix, but I, ah, have my ways…)

Dropping/Skipping:

  • My Husband Oh Jak Doo – I think I gave this four episodes before dropping it. I was enjoying it as a kind of background noise since the plot was super-predictable so I didn’t have to give it my full attention. Until I realized I was no longer giving it any attention, so why even bother. I still enjoyed what I saw, though.
  • My Ahjussi – I adore this director but until someone convinces me that this isn’t about a 40-something man finding himself thanks to a woman half his age, I just can’t bring myself to give it a chance.
  • A Poem a Day – I love slice-of-life shows and this cast is pretty great, but I just find it impossible to get into medical dramas.

Upcoming dramas of interest:

  • The Miracle That We Met – This writer is so polarizingly hit-or-miss with me (I adored Woman of Dignity and I hated Strong Woman Do Bong Soon) that I don’t know what to expect from this, but the cast is great, even if the director is iffy. So I’m split on whether I’ll devote time to this drama. I won’t be rushing to check it out (because I’m already behind on shows I like), but I’ll probably check it out, at least for an episode or two.
  • Suits – I’ve watched the first 1.5 seasons of the original, which I vaguely enjoyed (enough to get me to start watching another season, which is saying a lot). So I’m also vaguely interested in checking it out, but it’s not high on my list.
  • Mistress – I haven’t watched the original version but I’m all about strong, interesting women, so this definitely has my interest.
  • Greasy Melo – I love this writer and this cast, so this is probably my most anticipated April premiere. Plus I’m hoping for lots of delicious food porn!

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.

Dramaland Forecast: March 2018

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Previously: Jan – Feb

Completed:

  • None since last month

Currently Watching:

  • Misty – I feel like it says something about how much I love a drama when Mary wishes there was a hangout or something, and I’m like “game on.”
  • Should We Kiss First – there’s a cringe-level to some bits of humor but it also reminds me of Kim Sun Ah’s earlier rom-coms, so I’m fully enjoying it, especially since it seems like we’re settling into a comfortable balance of humor and seriousness and bittersweet sadness.

Dropping/Skipping:

  • Cross – I really have no desire to watch tons of painfully detailed surgeries, no matter what sort of revenge I’m eventually promised
  • Laughter in Waikiki – not my cup of humor tea.
  • Children of a Lesser God – this director is on my blacklist, plus after the hours I spent analyzing Black, I’m not ready to jump back into an OCN supernatural thriller.
  • The Great Seducer – I don’t understand how this is supposed to be a remake of Dangerous Liaisons yet not be on cable, but whatever. “Loosely based” makes me wonder just how loose. If this had a more seasoned cast, I might consider it, but nothing about the production appeals to me so it’s an easy skip.
  • That Man Oh Soo – OCN keeps trying to break into the romance genre (and apparently cast as many idols while doing it), but I’m just not buying it.
  • Switch – I keep trying to write something vaguely upbeat about this but honestly the last thing I liked Jang Geun Suk in was Mary Stayed Out All Night. I don’t know enough about this production team to make an educated decision, but this legal drama is probably one I’ll skip.

Upcoming dramas of interest:

  • Live – this is my most anticipated drama of the year because it’s Noh Hee-kyung’s latest drama, and she’s paired up with her fave director (Padam, Padam…; That Winter, The Wind Blows; It’s Okay, That’s Love) so you know it’ll be visually gorgeous. I’m also looking forward to a different take on police officers. It’ll be interesting to see them portrayed in a more human-interest focused story, where they’re just people living their lives as best they can and not merely there to solve the case of the day. Plus it’s Lee Kwang Soo’s first major drama starring role so I gotta support my twin, the giraffe.
  • Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food – I’m a sucker for a good noona romance, and I trust this director (Secret Love Affair; A Wife’s Credentials; Heard it Through the Grapevine) to make a show that’s more than just a cheesy rom-com. Part of me is secretly wishing it’ll be like a What’s Up Fox? remake, though (okay, maybe not a remake, but I’d really love to revisit that emotional journey).
  • My Husband Oh Jak Doo – even though I like the cast line-up, I’m a bit iffy on this, and it’ll probably take me watching the first few eps to decide if it’s worth it. But hey, contract marriages are generally a drama winner, right?
  • Let’s Watch the Sunset – this one is on the “maybe” pile, although I fear it’ll be too tear-jerking for my taste and will easily go into the “dropped” pile. But I like the cast and I at least want to support all the female directors I can.
  • My Ahjussi– I really love this director but I’m still skeeved out that this sounds like some manic-pixie-dream-girl in her twenties helps a 40-something man find meaning in his life. Maybe if they surprise me and she turns out to be his long-lost daughter and he has to figure out what it means to be a dad, I’ll be all-in, but right now I’m just, ehhhhhhh…
  • Life on Mars – I’ve mostly focused on March premieres, but the tentative cast for this remake has me excited. Jung Kyung Ho as the Sam character, Park Sung Woong as the Gene character, and Go Ah Sung as the Annie character seem pretty ideal to me. It helps that this would be airing on OCN, which not only has a proven track record for crime procedurals with a twist, but has also shown us through Tunnel that they can handle “time travel” as well. I know the default is to be suspicious and wary of remakes, but I think this could be excellent, especially since the PD in charge was the one who also did The Good Wife, which is perhaps one of my favorite remakes – there was respect for the original yet it incorporated elements that fit the culture.

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.