What Dramas Am I Watching This Week?

Here's what I'm watching this week! Of course the list is split by country and episodes I've seen so far are written below! There will be spoilers from now on so if you aren't caught to the episode number I list, you might want to go watch that episode and then come back! If you're interested in previous lists, click here and if you want to see a list of my favorite asian OTPs and ships, click here!

KDRAMA

Devilish Joy (10/16): Gong Ma Sung is a successor to the Sunwoo company. Life seems to be going well until he gets into a car accident while trying to help a woman. Since then, he suffers from memory loss where his memory lasts only a day. Every night before bed, he writes notes about what happened to him that day and the next morning he memorizes everything that happened. Gong Ma Sung then meets Joo Gi Beum, a formerly well-known actress, and falls in love.

It was a bit ambivalent as to whether or not Gi Beum actually knows all of the truth or just some of it because they didn't really show us but I'm going off on the assumption that she knows everything about his memory loss now but not the whole dying soon part. If that is the case, all the props to both this show and Gi Beum for not going now the noble sacrifice root and leaving him (though there is plenty of time left in this show for that to happen so I really hope we don't.) I love that she told him that she loves him and that she will stay with him as long as he remembers her and it was such a beautiful confession. I adore their height different cause there's something just so adorable about how much taller he is and how he basically lifts her around cause sometimes you just want a man to pick you up. Director Kim is such an asshole and honestly he's leading to his own downfall cause straight up if he left everyone alone he would have been fine but the more he tries to manipulate others, the more obvious it is that something isn't right and will lead to Ma Sung searching for the truth especially now that he remembers everything including what happened right up to the accident. I'm also starting to understand the terminal illness now by describing it as similar to Alzheimer's but I'm still expecting a magical solution at the end based on Gi Beum's love for him and his love for her. Ma Sung's aunt is the worst but I was actually pretty disappointed in Gi Beum's sister who knew what was happening but still was like our pride means nothing for a bag of makeup. Also I'm still loving the awkward courtship of Ha Im and Ki Joon and how exasperated they make their managers! It's everything that she's basically accepted that she likes him but he still refuses to believe so.

The Beauty Inside (2/16): Han Se Kye is a top actress, also known as a troublemaker, with many rumors around her. To others her life appears as a mystery, when in fact she is faced with a strange occurrence where she must change into a different body and new identity every once a month for a week. She encounters Seo Do Jae, a brilliant man who is an executive at an airline company. He seems to have it all, a perfect appearance, knowledge and a good job, but he has a secret too. He suffers from Prosopagnosia, the inability to recognize faces. However, he manages to hide this from the world and every day, makes an effort to remember people by their personalities. Seo Do Jae's life begins to change when he meets Han Se Kye. She is the only person whose face he can recognize. But with Han Se Kye's constant disappearance and change, how long can she keep her secret?

I was interested in this show cause the synopsis sounded super interesting and so far I'm enjoying what I'm seeing between our main couple but I'm curious cause there doesn't seem to be enough plot in this show for 16 episodes unless we double down on the corporation politics which I have a pretty solid feeling we'll be doing cause what even is a kdrama without a rich cold man? Honestly it's gotten to the point where I'm wondering if that's the only type of man Koreans find sexy. Sometimes I like it but most of the time I like my men with personality and I swear if I have to watch one more drama where the rich family hates the girlfriend, I will lose it. Despite all that I really like the concept of this show and I loved how within one episode the main couple apologized to each other and were on semi-polite terms (cause again what's a kdrama without the enemies to lovers trope.) I also love the idea of Do Jae being unable to recognize faces and it's so romantic that he can tell who she is even when she changes on the outside. I anticipate a lot of comedic moments from this in the future. I'm also loving the side characters and I'm hoping some of them get some storylines too! I wasn't really expecting much from this show but I'm pretty interested in what I saw so far (which I think has to do more with low expectations than anything else) so I'm going to keep checking this one out.

The Ghost Detective (18/32): Lee Da Il is a private investigator. Jung Yeo Wool becomes his assistant to solve a mystery related to her younger sibling’s death. They work together to solve other mysterious crimes.

O. M. G. Da Il is alive which means that my original prediction about him being in a coma is right although it goes against the rules of what we were told a fetch could do. Even the characters were even like whatever maybe rules aren't that important and tbh it's kind of annoying that there's no reason plot-wise and has really only to do with surprising the audience cause that always feels like lazy writing which to this point I didn't think this show had. Maybe we'll get an answer later... Either way I'm thrilled cause now there's a possibility that our main leads can actually be together in the end! I was living for how she threw herself at him when he reappeared and how she basically told him she loved him. On the other hand he seems to be pulling away a little but I feel like that's just cause he feels like he's dead so she deserves better. I do feel bad for the cop but seriously dude you literally saw a pen write something on paper. If I saw that, I'd be like well shit guess ghosts are real! Besides that we learned that the head of the police is on someone else's side (the woman in red or someone else?) which makes sense and the dad of the girl they rescued seems sketch too. Maybe that's just me though cause this show is making me double guess on everyone. The lawyer seems to be on our side but has a different ultimate goal of which I'm not entirely sure of yet. I was also a little disappointed in Yeo Wool for getting angry at that friend of Yeo Wool's cause it really wasn't his fault that Yeo Wool died and I really felt bad for him but now he's basically possessed so oh well I guess. I wonder if we're going to Da Il back sooner than expected cause it seems like the red woman's mom is keeping his soul trapped in his body so maybe saving him will be the only way to bring him back. Even if Da Il doesn't wake up until the finale, it's still safer to keep his body where they can keep an eye on it. I'm also curious about whether since the red woman is in a human body if she can be killed through human means now (aka anyone can kill her.)

The Player (2/14): A police redemption team consisting of a swindler, a fighter, an elite hacker and a talented driver is asked to take back property hidden away by criminals.

Of all the shows that started airing this week I was the most looking forward to this one cause I freaking love stuff with con artists in it so I was pumped to check this one out. After watching two episodes I'm not sure how I feel cause though the setup seems similar to many other conman shows/movies I've watched before, this one is a little strange. Our main crew seems less like they're skilled and more like they're bumbling around and getting lucky. Like straight up every single time they did anything they were caught and I'd like to believe that's because either these first two episodes were meant to show us how this crew can get out of bad situations (so we can see stuff like picking locks or fighting a huge group of villains) or since this is the first time these four worked together, they need some time to get used to working together. I hope it's one of these options and that we see our crew get more competent in the future cause I live for a team who's extremely badass! I was also a little surprised to find that the female lead in this isn't a good undercover/seductress character like the female leads in con artist shows/movies usually are and at first I was curious about what this change would bring but it seems like it really doesn't add anything to the story since not only is she not physically competent in the field but cause she is out there half the time someone has to drive the getaway car which is weird. Now despite what it sounds like (and all my complaining) I did actually enjoy watching this show and I'm definitely going to keep watching cause this kind of drama is my kryptonite so I have no self control!

The Smile Has Left Your Eyes (2/16): A TV series centered around the unfolding relationship between free and unpredictable yet dangerous Kim Moo Young, who is called a "monster". He is the first assistant in a Korean beer brewery who becomes a suspect when his girlfriend's suicide turns out to be murder. His life begins to change when he meets a kind, warm advertising designer named Yoo Jin Kang, who wishes to be Moo Young's safe haven. She bears as many emotional scars as him. Yoo Jin Kang also has a brother, a homicide detective named Yoo Jin Gook, with 27 years of job experience. He strives to "reveal" who Moo Young really is and attempts to keep his sister, Jin Kang, away from Moo Young, with whom she begins to know.

What a fascinating first two episodes! I was super interested in this show cause my girl Jung So Min was the main female lead and I found myself really enjoying what I saw (mostly cause of Seo In Guk's fantastic acting.) He's so attractive and confident when he smiles and flirts but also so mysterious that it's hard to read him. I can't wait to find out what kind of person he really is cause the show seems to be hinting that he might be the villain but who knows since he's a main male lead so I doubt that he would be a murderer like that. I know this show is a remake of a Japanese drama but I never saw it and I'm trying to avoid spoilers cause right now I'd like to follow along with the show and only know what it tells me cause that's the most interesting way to watch. I wonder if he really is Jin Kang's brother but I hope not cause I'm hardcore shipping this main couple already! Moo Young is really curious about her too and it's fascinating to watch how he can't stop thinking about her while she's pretty much immune to his charms (at least on the surface cause girl was definitely disappointed when she found out he was dating her best friend.) I'm curious about why Jin Gook is treated so poorly at the station (I bet it's cause he was better than his boss and cause of that his boss hates him) and why Moo Young latched onto Seung Ah so quickly cause yeah she's pretty but he doesn't seem to really care about her. At first I thought he might be after her money (working with his bartender friend) but now I don't know cause it seems to be high risk and low reward kind of situation since he has to put a lot of effort in and gaining nothing but problems from the possessive rich guy she's "dating." I also thought maybe she'll be murdered soon and he'll be blamed which is how Jin Gook will focus on him but the show seems to want us to think that Jin Gook finds him sketchy without any evidence. Honestly this show reminds me a bit of Todome no Kiss (with the whole fake dating one girl and falling for another) but maybe I'm getting that vibe cause this show was originally a jdrama... Overall this is definitely my favorite new show that aired this week since I'm really enjoying the main couple's interactions as well as Moo Young as a character and I'm excited to see more!! I kind of want to watch the Japanese version now but I might wait until this one finishes airing to avoid spoilers.

The Third Charm (3/16): The Third Charm tells the 12-year love story of how two young people with completely different personalities manage to find each other again. From the tender age of 20, to 27 years old, and then to the matured age of 32, will they find love for the third time? At 20 years old, On Joon Young is a nerdy, smart university student who wears plain clothes, plain glasses and doesn't obsess over fashion. He plans everything in his day meticulously, grows frustrated easily, overthinks things and is very sensitive. With the guidance of his friends, he takes part in a blind date where he meets Lee Young Jae. Lee Young Jae is also 20 years old, doesn't attend university and instead works as an assistant hairdresser. Lee Young Jae has had a difficult life and is an orphan who looks up immensely to her brother, Lee Soo Jae, a barista. She is honest, hardworking and somewhat daring and the complete opposite to Oh Joon Young. Her dream is to become rich, though she would rather get there by her own perseverance. One day, her friend takes her to a blind date group with university students. At the meet, she encounters Joon Young, and goes on a date with him. From there, at 20 years old, their love story begins.

So this show actually came out last week but I've been so busy that I didn't have a change to watch it until now. Tbh I'm kind of biased against Seo Kang Joon after being so annoyed/angry with Are You Human Too that I wasn't really looking forward to this show cause of him but the poster looked interesting and I kept hearing that the show was adorable so I finally checked it out and overall it was cute but I'm not the biggest fan of stories where a couple meets and breaks up several times before ending up together in the end cause watching people fall out of love is the saddest thing to see! It does seem as though this show will be focusing on misunderstandings being what separate our main couple over and over but I kind of wish we could skip forward to the third meeting and then flash back to the first two so they're not as big of a deal as the show wants it to be. Other than that, I adore Joon Young and Young Jae's characters so far cause he's an adorable puppy (a fresh taste after me bitching about how all kdrama male leads are cold and rich) and she's feisty and strong. I even love the side characters and how the rich playboy turned out to be an amazing friend (who I'm pretty sure is going to end up with Joon Young's sister.) I'm definitely going to keep watching but fluffy rom coms like this usually aren't my bread and butter so I don't know if this will end up being a favorite of mine when all is said and done...

Terius Behind Me (8/32): Go Ae Rin is a single mother who after unexpectedly losing her husband, gets involved in a spy war. She lives in the apartment in front of Kim Bon. Kim Bon, who's code name is Terius, is a legendary black ops agent for the National Intelligence Service (NIS) who has gone into hiding after disappearing without a trace. 3 years ago in a failed secret operation, he lost the woman he loved. Since then, Kim Bon has hid away in his apartment, next to Go Ae Rin, isolated from the world around him and living in secrecy, trying to uncover the mystery behind what happened back then. When a mysterious incident arises in which Go Ae Rin's husband dies, they both team up to uncover a huge conspiracy which Go Ae Rin's husband had become involved in.Joining them is Jin Young Tae, a former con man who may hold the key to what Go Ae Rin and Kim Bon are searching for, and Yoo Ji Yeon, a fellow NIS agent who appears cold and unfeeling on the outside but harbours feelings towards Kim Bon, who she is kind towards.

I wasn't going to check this show out at first cause I don't like kids in dramas and I wasn't a huge fan of the synopsis of this show but then I saw that Jung In Sun was the leading lady and I got more interested cause I loved Laughter in Waikiki. After watching the first two I was close to dropping this show cause I really really hated the kids in this and I wasn't a fan of how brainless Ae Rin seemed to be but I decided to keep going and now I've found myself enjoying this show a little more. It is a little lighter on the spy drama than I would have loved and we were told that Ae Rin was good with computers so I assumed that she would be the hacker to Bon's agent but none of that has happened yet and her degree in computers seemed to have been forgotten cause she never even once mentions using a computer except for once and she makes it sound like she can only type things up to her boss rather than actually work in IT. I hope that it's only cause we're at the start of the show and that now that she's been kidnapped and will be rescued that Bon will tell her the truth and then she'll actually start working again. I would love if she ended the show working with computers again like in the NIS or something cause it seems like that was her passion once upon a time before she had kids and I'm not a fan of the show telling us that once a woman has kids she can't work anymore. On the other hand the KIS aka the neighborhood watch community is slaying me with how efficient they are. Never underestimate bored housewives! They get more shit done that the actual government! I'm going to keep watching this show in the hopes that the show will improve but so far I'm not bored or hating what I'm seeing.

Where Stars Land/Fox Bride Star (4/40): Lee Soo Yeon and Han Yeo Reum are rookies who works at Incheon Airport. Soo Yeon dreamed of becoming a pilot, but vision in one of his eyes was bad enough that he had to give up on his dream, he joins the general planning department. Yeo Reum begins to work in the CS management department at the airport. She wants to be a perfectionist, but her reality is a little bit different.

I loved Chae Soo Bin in I'm Not A Robot and Strongest Deliveryman so I was excited to check this show out for her and so far I'm interested in the concept but so much annoyed me about what we got this week which I'm hoping will go away soon. The idea of setting this show in an airport is pretty unique so I'm down with that but it's the main characters that haven't won me over yet. My least favorite male character is the cold male lead and my least favorite female character is the naive but confrontational one and this show has both. I really disliked how Yeo Reum acted in the first two episodes with how she pretty much knew nothing but acted like everyone was out to get her so I loved that Soo Yeon called her out on it in the third episode which makes me feel like she'll probs go through an arc in which she learns to relax a little and actually do her job. I do think that her involvement in the drug smuggling case was important cause it was all connected to the bomb threat but I also agreed with Soo Yeon in that she has to do her job. She stalked that guy for so long when she could have reported him and then gone back to work. It was her chasing praise that screwed her in the end. Soo Yeon was less annoying but I'm still not a fan of his type of character though I do like that he's already so into Yeo Reum and at first I thought maybe he has some type of prosthetic arm  which could still be the case cause having a fake arm would mean that he can't feel pain cause I don't think this is a fantasy show so he's not like an alien or something but I'm confused as to why he's keeping it a secret cause it's not like he can be fired for either of those disabilities since he's not like flying a plane or running traffic control. Overall I wasn't the biggest fan of what I saw this week and it was definitely my least favorite newly airing show but I'm still kind of interested in this show so I'm going to keep watching and hope the main leads get better!

CDRAMA

DROPPED Age of Legends (6/47): Chan William plays Liu Zi Guang, 30 years old, representing young men with a burning ardor, persevering to the top despite his humble background, displaying stories of love from all around. With a strong sense of justice and courage, he gathers a group of like-minded men. Due to an incident, he disappears from the world for 8 years, returning to find his dad beat up and admitted to the hospital. After delivering his brand of punishment to the deserved people, the nurses fall for his charms and upon meeting our female lead, the cop in charge of the case, they butt heads immediately. Doesn’t help that she discovers his involvement with a case from 8 years ago and is determined to uncover more dirt about him. 

Honestly guys I didn't even watch a single episode of this show this week and every time I thought about checking it out I couldn't convince myself to do it which means that nothing about this show caught my attention enough to want to watch more. It breaks my heart cause I love William Chan so much but his character doesn't do anything for me here other than seeing his beautiful face every week and I can just rewatch Mystic Nine for that. I've noticed that I've been much more critical of cdramas lately and I'm not sure why that is tbh... I think it has to do with the fact that cdramas have so so many episodes that unless I'm really interested it feels like a bit of a chore for me... Maybe I'll come back and check this show out if I have some free time but as of now I'm going to drop it.

Fights Break Sphere (31/45): Xiao Yan is a genius child who suddenly loses all his powers.In a world governed by strength and power, Xiao Yan’s lack of talent is an embarrassment to his family. At the age of 15, Xiao Yan accidentally summons Yao Chen from his mother’s ring. With the elder’s help, Xiao Yan’s skills improve by leaps and bounds. After his entire family is assassinated, Xiao Yan embarks on a journey to find his family’s killer and return peace to the Jianghu (martial world.)

I feel like we didn't get the usual amount of episodes this week for this show but what we got I really enjoyed mostly cause not only did it finally wrap up the evil Soul Palace trip Xiao Yan was on but also it was moving the Xun'er and Xiao Yan romance along which I was living for cause you know how much I ship these two. It's interesting cause we're almost near the end of the season and I know there's a season 2 but I heard rumors that Xiao Yan might be recast which I would be okay with tbh cause at least on the part of romance, there hasn't really been a progression which means there's no chemistry to match. I loved that he was so blown away by the idea of marrying Xun'er but then got so so jealous when she was like fine I'll date someone else then. I'm always so down for jealously especially since Xiao Yan made Xun'er watch so many girls throw themselves at him. I do hope he's realized his feelings for her now cause he needs to know his jealously wasn't nothing! Over on the action side, I'm still not entirely sure why Xiao Yan needs another personality to fight bandits cause wouldn't it be better for the Xiao family name if their only son was a badass? I did like that he was able to figure out who was targeting the family and fix the problem as well as ridding the Snake Clan of the Mo Family. I mean all in a days work amirite? It makes his bumbling around with Xun'er even more poignant cause she's the only one who makes him nervous like this and the only one he cares so much about. I do want to know what his dad was hiding from him at the end cause it sounded important but I doubt we'll learn about it this season which is a little annoying.

xoxo Allie