What Dramas Am I Watching This Week?

So 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 on 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

Best Chicken (6/12): A man works for a big company although his dream is to run a chicken restaurant. A woman who lives at a bathhouse that her late grandfather left behind, only leaves her home when she absolutely has to. She wants to become a webtoon writer. These two meet and grow with each other.

I'm sort of really into this show. It's super weird and very slice of life but I'm living for how Bo-Ah thinks she's going to ruin Choi-Go's business but then he shows her just how kind and generous he is and suddenly she can't help but want to help him! I don't know how anyone can hate someone as sweet as Choi-Go who just wants to live his dream and also tries so hard to care for Bo-Ah with protecting her at the mall to buying her a new tablet to making her porridge when she's sick. It's interesting that the girl is going to fall before the guy in this drama and in the brooding guy way too where she tries to hide it for reasons cause I can see that Bo-Ah is into him but I can't really see much on his part. Although if a handsome guy is so nice and constantly telling you how you are the only one on his side, I don't know how you can't fall for him. I loved getting a bit more backstory on Bo-Ah and why she is so bitter at the world. It looks like she had some sort of webtoon partner before and he stole her ideas and presented them as his so her career was ruined and cause of that she distrusts men and doesn't believe in dreams anymore. It's weird though cause she's clearly super talented so she should be able to get back into webtoons with something new later anyone cause it's not like the other guy is still in a position to steal her work. Andrew's also interesting and I love how Bo-Ah and Choi-Go keep getting his name wrong cause of how exasperated he gets. I do wonder if he's the second male lead here cause I could see him falling for her but she's into Choi-Go. I love their little family already and it's kinda hilarious how Bo-Ah's terrible flyer is actually the reason the restaurant is doing so well.

Dae Jang Geum is Watching (14/16): This food-oriented drama imagines how the descendants of the famous Joseon woman doctor and alleged culinary genius Jang Geum (the subject of the famous sageuk Dae Jang Geum) might live today if they inherited some of her talents. San Hae has been gifted with an excellent sense of taste which has mad him a huge fan and connoisseur of food. His younger sister Jin Mi has been gifted with an exceptional sense of smell, and their younger brother Jung Shik has such excellent cooking skills he has his own Youtube vlog channel. The story follows San Hae at his work and his relationship with a rookie employee at his company, a woman named Bok Seung Ah.

This week was hard to watch cause most of it was spent with San Hae pining after Seung Ah who's decided to move on from him after he broke her heart into pieces last week. It was hard cause I'm totally on San Hae's side over Jung Shik but I still think San Hae is a moron. He's liked Seung Ah for weeks and weeks now but waited until the last minute to actually step forward and admit his feelings. I wish that the show would have played this better with like maybe Seung Ah finding out a week or two ago that San Hae knew that Jung Shik likes her and that's why he backed off from liking her too cause it makes San Hae seem like less of an asshole. I don't really know what changed his mind this week but I'm assuming it's a mix of realizing how much he can't be without her and also realizing that kissing her doesn't affect him. I hope it's more of the first and less of the second cause Seung Ah deserves better than this mess. Jung Shik is a little annoying too cause he's known from the start that Seung Ah isn't into him like that but he's constantly pressuring her and it's like dude nothing you've done has affected her like you want so maybe you should back off especially now that you know that the guy Seung Ah was into was your brother. On Jin Mi's side, she was spiraling after finding out that Min Hyuk was the CEO's nephew and she did that thing that I hate when people are in fights where she refused to listen to the other side of the story. If she did then she would have known that he pulled some strings but getting hired was on her. It did lead to a bunch of funny scenes though where she got really drunk but it was super sweet that Min Hyuk basically followed her to keep her safe and got beat up for her and ruined his debut because he loves Jin Mi more.

DROPPED Fate And Furies (24/40): Even though Goo Hae Ra is smart and beautiful, she is in a miserable situation because of her family. Her older sister attempted suicide and her father passed away. The only way she can escape her situation is with money. She approaches Tae In Joon. He is the second son of a shoe company owner. Tae In Joon falls in love with Goo Hae Ra.

I really debated whether I wanted to drop this show or not cause it started out so very strong but it lost it's steam a few episodes ago and I struggled to get through the episodes this week and eventually ended up fast forwarding through most of it. Not only can't I help but feel horrid for In Joon the longer this goes on since the poor man is head over heels in love with a woman who's been playing him and now thinks that he's the reason her sister is in a coma, I'm still sure that In Joon had nothing to do with her sister at all and probs wasn't even in the country then but his asshole brother with the help of his asshole parents tried to kill the sister cause she wasn't rich enough to marry the asshole brother and they tried to frame In Joon for it. It sucked super hard cause Hae Ra thought she was getting revenge for her sister but in fact she was ruining the life of the only person in that family who was innocent of the crime and actually helped build up the asshole brother into power. I was over Hae Ra and In Joon as a couple as well cause I really haven't seen much chemistry between them which sucked and I'm over here like low-key shipping Hae Ra with that loan shark dude. I also kept hoping the daughter-in-law overheard a lot of this conversation cause I wanted her to get her revenge but also clue Hae Ra in cause she's such a moron right now but she seemed to just wander around sadly and that was annoying too. All this combined I was pretty bored and indifferent to what I was experiencing and like I said before, when my American shows come back, I have less time to devote to asian dramas and if I'm not super attached, I will drop it like this one.

Memories of the Alhambra (14/16): Strong spirited Yoo Jin Woo is the CEO of an investment company with a degree in engineering and a knack for developing video games. He has an adventurous and competitive spirit. Suffering after his best friend betrays him, he takes a business trip to Granada, Spain in search of the mysterious inventor of an innovative augmented-reality video game. He ends up at a hostel that Jung Hee Joo owns. Hee Joo is a former classical guitarist who came to Spain to further her studies. After the death of her parents, she takes on various jobs to support herself, including running the old hostel. They are both drawn into a series of strange and unexpected events.

I kind of love how this show does one storyline in the first episode they air each week making you think one thing before rewinding back and showing us what happened at the same time before in the second one. I was sitting here after episode 13 thinking that Professor Cha was the worst cause even though he literally got proof this week that everything Jin Woo was saying was real and he believed it and was terrified of it, it was not enough to stop the dumbass investigation. As it turns out he couldn't stop the investigation cause the second actress ex-wife fanned the flames by lying repeatedly to the police. It's going to be really hard to end this investigation cause there's no hard evidence he killed Mr Cha and everything is based on hearsay which makes it harder to battle charges. I do really like that all the main characters are now pretty much on board and believe him especially Hee Joo who's now playing the game but mostly just to talk to Emma cause Jin Woo doesn't want her involved cause she might get hurt which is sweet. I loved their kiss this week and how much they worry about each other and I was living for when CEO Park met up with Hee Joo and was like I want to say congrats on your new relationship but why the hell would you date that moron. Se Joo is also back now cause Jin Woo managed to finish the quest though I'm not sure why now they can't turn off the servers so that everyone can get back to the real world now! I kind of hope the next two episodes are mostly set in the real world so we can wrap up everything next week and that we end on a happy note cause I have a weird feeling that Jin Woo might end up dying and I don't want that!

The Last Empress (34/52): Set in an alternate universe, in which Korea is a constitutional monarchy in 2018, Oh Sunny is a bright and vivacious musical actress who marries the emperor. She becomes involved in the palace power struggle and a mysterious murder that sets off events that threaten the monarchy itself, while searching for true love and happiness. But, she ends up falling in love with Na Wang Sik who works as a bodyguard for the imperial family. He started working in the palace to take revenge on the person responsible for his mother’s death.

We only got two episodes this week compared to the four we normally get which was super sad cause I love this show. As I expected last week the Woo Bin's confession was played off by Sunny and the moronic Emperor believed it which is really the worst. I super don't understand the Emperor cause he's such an utter moron and a terrible flirt but I guess that makes sense cause why would he need game if women are just throwing themselves at him cause they want power. Then again I will never truly understand that cause I'm always of the mind that rather than being King or Queen, I'd rather be a Prince or Princess cause you get all the benefits of being in power (dolla dolla bills ya'll) without the heavy workload. I also really hope that Sunny doesn't fall for the Emperor's shtick no matter how sweet or charming he gets cause I still can't forget the horrid things he's done and I'd like to believe that neither can she but because Woo Bin is worried (or jealous), it makes me worried. The Emperor also learned that his first wife actually wasn't cheating on him and that the Empress Dowager faked the whole thing and it looks like maybe the necklace that Sunny has is a replica which might explain who the body is that we find at the start of this show. I'm curious as to what the plan is now cause it seems like maybe they want to expose the previous Empress's death but I don't know if they have enough proof yet without the guard getting his memory back. I want him to be okay cause I still want him to interact with Yu Ra just to see if she really did love him and how she ended up where she is now.

CDRAMA

FINISHED Dear Prince (19/19): Crazy fan Sun Xiao Tao’s biggest wish is to go to a concert of her favorite idol Zhou Yi Ran. Furthermore, she wants to fulfill the promise she once made to him. When her dream finally is about to come true, she bumps into Jiang Hao and her ticket for Zhou Yi Ran’s Japan concert gets ripped. From then on, the fates of these two become strangely entangled...

How many ways can I talk about just how good this show was? I really didn't expect to love it as much as I did cause both the synopsis and the first few episodes were just so silly but to my pleasant surprise the show ended up feeling pretty deep. I adored the relationship between Xiao Tao and Jiang Hao from how he automatically assumed that she was in love with him cause he's a celebrity to reluctantly being by her side to falling passionately in love with her. I'm not usually a fan of shows and movies where the female lead changes a male lead into a better person cause girls are more than just a bandaid for man pain but the change here felt real for once. Jiang Hao genuinely wanted to become a better person for Xiao Tao cause she was such a good person. I loved watching him try to fight his feelings while being overpowered with jealously and then despair when he thought he lost her for good. I loved Xiao Tao slowly realizing that he was there for her whenever she needed him and that he taught her how to conquer her fear and dream for something bigger than her while also discovering what love is. Zhi Zhi was the best female friend I've seen in a while and I loved all the side characters growth. The supernatural element was super unexpected but I liked it cause it was like Oh My Ghost/Two Cops where the ghost could possess the main lead but with a romantic twist. I'm glad we got a happy ending to this show but I kind of wish it had been tied off with a better knot. Like at least tell us whether Jiang Hao remembered Xiao Tao or not! Overall I really loved this drama and I'd give it a 8.5 / 10!!

FINISHED Fox's Summer (44/44): Gu Cheng Ze, the adopted son of the Gu family, is the CEO of Gu Mall Corporation. Mrs. Gu wishes for her biological grandson, Gu Jin Yu to take over the company; and Gu Cheng Ze is tasked to guide the rightful heir towards becoming a respectful businessman. During this time, he meets fashion designer Li Yan Shu and discovers that she is Gu Jin Yu's ex-girlfriend. He decides to hire her aboard to motivate Gu Jin Yu, who still harbors feelings for Li Yan Shu. The plan worked when Gu Jin Yu decides to join the company and pursue her. When Mrs. Gu finds out about Gu Jin Yu's feelings for Li Yan Shu, she was livid and tells Gu Cheng Ze to separate the both of them. This creates an opportunity for Gu Cheng Ze and Li Yan Shu to get closer to each other, and they fell in love. With the help of Li Yan Shu, Gu Cheng Ze overcomes many difficult situations. Gu Jin Yu, after undergoing life-changing experiences, also matures and successfully took over his company.

I started this drama cause I adore Seven Tan and though the description didn't sound great to me I wanted to give it a shot anyway and I ended up having a bunch of fun with this one. There was a rough stretch at the start cause though I fell in love with Yan Shu's backbone and elegance, I wasn't a huge fan of the comedy and how cringe-y the lying was like in the cafe where Yan Shu was trying to ruin her blind date. Despite this around episode 8 or 9 when Yan Shu focused on work and Mike found out the truth about her designing skills, I started to enjoy this drama more and more. I thought she was adorable and fun and watching Mike melt for her was everything. I didn't love the weird stretch of episodes where Mike told Yan Shu he loved her but then there was a weird competition of Mike with Jin Yu even though Yan Shu only loved Mike but once they finally got together, I loved that they made such a strong power couple while being so cute. I didn't love the noble sacrifice thing at the end when Yan Shu ran away from Mike cause she found out about her mom hurting his mom but I could have gotten over it if they talked it out like other dramas do. What ticked me off was when she left and then came back at the last minute cause it felt so staged. Despite that it was interesting how I started out hating a lot of the side characters but I ended up liking them all in the end and their arcs to forgiveness actually felt earned for once. I loved that once Jin Yu accepted that Mike and Yan Shu were in love, he did everything he could to keep them together and happy and that Jun Yao slowly thawed towards her stepsister while pretending to hate her all the while and that Yan Shu's mom really loved Jun Yao's dad for more than the money and realized that Yan Shu didn't need money to be happy either and that the grandmother realized she did love Mike like a grandson after all. David and Secretary Gao were awesome friends too and Gao's hilarious romance was icing on the cake. And I want to give a special shoutout to the design team who not only made gorgeous lingerie but dressed Yan Shu to kill with every outfit being even more gorgeous than the last! Overall I'd give this show a 8.5 / 10 cause it was pretty precious!

I Will Never Let You Go (8/51): The story revolves around a young wanderer with an extraordinary business sense and the masked hero who saves her which ultimately results in them falling in love. When the wanderer is revealed to be the Divine Maiden who will obtain a legendary treasure, various enemies hunt her down. She then lives life on the run and meets her savior who turns out to be the ambitious prince that wants to take the throne.

You know when you start one historical cdrama and then you remember just how much you adore their insaneness and then you want to watch as many as possible? Well that's what happened here! After watching Story of Ming Lan, I decided to check this one out too and it was such a weird transition tbh cause this drama is so much more comedic that Ming Lan is but Vin Zhang is the male lead and so far I've been having fun so I'm going to keep going with this one! I do like that our female lead is smart though a bit silly and that our male lead is serious but kind hearted and not cold. I've said repeatedly when a male lead is cold, it always just feels to me like they don't know how to act and it throws me out of a show. I kind of love how quickly Yu'er is into Bu Qi and I'd like to imagine his interest in her is one of the reasons he's fighting the idea that she might be his half sister cause  otherwise it is super strange how much he's against his father finding her. It's not like a daughter will fight him for power or something and in this era, concubines were really common so he can't really be upset with his father for having Bu Qi when there's literally another concubine living in their house right now. Since we're only a few episodes in, I'm not entirely sure of the plot yet but I think Bu Qi is some sort of magical person who's powers have been passed on through the female generation and Chen Yu's father is hunting her down cause he wants whatever her power is. We do know that she's not actually the duke's daughter cause he talked about wondering who her father was in episode 6 so it might be super fun if Chen Yu and Bu Qi think they're siblings but fall in love and have to fight it only to find out at the last minute that they're not related at all. The weird thing though is that somehow everyone knows what Bu Qi looks like and the only thing I can maybe gather is that they drew her based on her mom and hope that they look alike?

FINISHED My Little Princess (16/16): When you’re trying to win over your Prince Charming, can you find him in an unexpected place? Lin Xing Chen is an heiress of a wealthy family but faces pressure to marry well because of her illegitimate status. Her target? The suave and wealthy Zheng Chu Yao, a fellow student at the elite arts school known as Four Leaf College. But due to a number of misunderstandings, Xing Chen at first mistakes the brooding Jiang Nian Yu as Chu Yao and tries to get his attention. But when Xing Chen realizes she has the wrong man, she keeps running into Nian Yu in the most compromising ways and then learns that Nian Yu is the only person who can teach her to tango to be able to get into Chu Yao’s good graces. But Xing Chen is annoyed when Chu Yao only seems interested in a poor student, Yu Yang Yang, who was admitted to the prestigious school because her father saved the principal’s life. Can Nian Yu teach Xin Chen to tango right into Chu Yao’s heart or will she discover that her destiny is with someone else?

After I watched Dear Prince I really wanted to check this show out cause it was made by the same producers and the main actress was the same. To my pleasure Mike Angelo who I adored in Mr Swimmer was the main lead and suffice to say, I had a fun time though I do think I ended up enjoying Dear Prince better than this one. I loved that our main lead Xing Chen and the second female lead Yang Yang were basically the opposite in most dramas with Xing Chen being rich and elegant and pushed aside for the poor girl though she just as kind as most leads while Yang Yang was poor and not as good looking or elegant as the main lead but just as cunning as most second leads. It was a fun twist on the asian drama trope. The romance between Xing Chen and Nian Yu was super precious with how much he loved and worried and cared for her. They had amazing chemistry and I think Mike is just so so good at gazing lovingly at his female lead that I can't help but fall for those couples. I was actually surprised that Nian Yu wasn't rich too cause for some reason I expected him to be but I liked that she chose him in the end over wealth and that even her stepmother approved. Speaking of, I thought it was super interesting that at first the stepmother didn't seem like a good person but by the end you realized just what a good person she was by putting Xing Chen's happiness first and loving her husband's illegitimate child just cause she loved her husband so much and was happy to have a piece of him left behind. The two mom scenario at the end caring for Xing Chen was everything. I also loved the side characters and the hilarious frenemy situation with Jia Na and Xing Chen. Overall I'd give this show a 7.5 / 10!

Shall We Fall In Love (7/35): A story filled with hilarious circumstances that leave you not knowing whether to laugh or cry. It follows a young man's journey from nothing into someone who proves himself at work and wins over love and friendship. Jiang Yi Nan is an unemployed youth with limited options due to his lack of credentials, Nevertheless, he is optimistic and cheerful as he waits among the many people in the jobless pool. During a random encounter, Yi Nan saves Chen Xin Yue who has fallen into the water. Encouraged by his attraction to her and Xu Hao Yu's provocations, Yinan applies to work at the same company as Chen Xin Yue. Yi Nan relies on his hard work and quick thinking to not only secure the job but to become the top applicant of ShenYuan Group's open recruitment. Unhappy with Yi Nan's happy-go-lucky attitude, Xu Hao Yu makes life difficult for Yi Nan at every turn. His girlfriend Liang Ding Fei, on the other hand, is full of curiosity towards Yi Nan. As it turns out, Yi Nan's acceptance was a mere mistake by President Jin who tries to cover it up by roping in colleagues to ensure that Yi Nan is pushed out of the company.

Talk about a weird show! I started this cause it popped up on my drama feed and it's definitely more comedy than anything else but I already adore the relationship between Yi Nan and Xin Yue! It's hilarious that their relationship is starting with them having slept together while they were drunk and I can't wait to see where it goes. He's pretty much fallen for her and she's just embarrassed to be around him. As I expected, his upbeat attitude and inability to hide his emotions is slowly winning her over. I adore Yi Nan's character so far cause you know how hot I find guys who aren't afraid to show their emotions and Nichkhun plays him with this adorable charm that I can't help but smile when watching. I also find it super interesting that all the main characters are so intertwined with one another already. Xin Yue's ex Hao Yu broke up with her cause he wanted to date Ding Fei who's rich and better connected but he also is frenemies with Yi Nan who's into Xin Yue. I do hope that there isn't too much office stuff cause that was the least interesting part of these episodes that I saw but based on the synopsis it feels like it'll be more comedic than anything else cause Yi Nan is just constantly struck by this overpowering luck. I'm also really curious if there's something else going on as to why Hao Yu broke up with Xin Yue cause he does seem to still like her but whatever it is I hope she never gives him the time of day again cause an asshole like him who wants to social climb deserves none of her attention.

The Story of Ming Lan (35/73): The Story of Ming Lan, based on the novel written by Guan Xin Ze Luan, follows our heroine through her youth, into her adulthood, and well into her marriage life as well. She’s the 6th child of the Sheng household. Though she is an intelligent and beautiful child, she was not loved by her family (her dad, her sisters, her mom dies early.) She has to hide her intelligence and suffers through the years, hoping to avenge for her mom. During this process she will meet many friends and foes, one of which is our male lead, Gu’s second son, Gu Ting Ye. He has helped and mistreated her before, but also the one to witness her sharp wits and lonely soul. After they get married, they will work together as a power couple, managing the new King’s regime as well as harvesting a world of happiness on their own.

I seriously love this drama which is such a shock cause it's not something I would normally enjoy! I originally started this drama cause I've been in the mood for a historical cdrama and this one had my girl Zanilia Zhao in it so I jumped on board. I didn't realize going in that this show was more of a slice of life story about a family and not just a romance like I expected it to be. At first this really bothered me cause I was hoping for a romance but now I'm like 32 episodes in, the romance has barely started (as in the main leads have probs spent like an hour together across 32 episodes) and I can't believe how much I love everything about it! I love Ming Lan as a character cause she's smart as hell cause she knows how to maneuver around any problem, cunning cause she knows that she needs to hide her brilliance and act submissive around her family but also so kind cause she looks out for those she loves with every fiber of her being. The Sheng family drama is so fascinating and I love watching Ming Lan outwit the others but I even have a soft spot for Chang Bai and Ru Lan who I think has a good heart and does think of Ming Lan as a sister but just is a bit materialistic and believes in rankings like legitimate and illegitimate. I love that the show has such a slow pace cause it allows us to really get to know the characters and the world and watch our heroes grow. I struggled with liking Ting Ye who was the male lead cause he was such a moron for the first quarter of this show and I really didn't see any chemistry between the leads though I think that was the fault of the writing cause up to now, both of our leads have been in love with other people so there's no reason that they would have romantic scenes together. Now I think I really like the idea that both Ming Lan and Ting Ye had to go through heartbreak before finding one another. They're always right there for each other when the other needs it and I can't wait to see their strong friendship will turn into love. Ming Lan needs a strong man who will stand up for her and that's who Ting Ye will be for her when it's time cause he has no problem fighting his family or the world for what he wants.

xoxo Allie