So here's what I'm watching this week! Of course the list is split by country and the amount of 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 reviews, click here and if you want to see a list of my Favorite Asian OTPs and Ships, click here!
KDRAMA
FINISHED Flower Boy Next Door (16/16): This is a drama about a girl, Go Dok Mi who is a shut-in Miss Lonelyhearts type, who spends her days spying on the man living in next building. She is caught spying by her other neighbor, Enrique Geum. Meanwhile, Oh Jin Rok is the man who notices her from long ago, and knows everything about her and will fall in love with her. Go Dok Mi is a ′city Rapunzel′ who never ventures outdoors, yet has her own set of charms that makes men go weak. Oh Jin Rok is a scruffy manhwa artist. Enrique Geum is a genius creative director, who is good-looking, stylish and bohemian and can′t get enough of soccer. He will form a love line with Go Dok Mi.
I was honestly really excited to check this drama out cause I heard it was Yoon Shi Yoon's breakout drama not to mention the fact that Park Shin Hye was the female lead but honestly I went through a rollercoaster of emotions while watching this in that I couldn't decide whether I loved this show or whether it exasperated me. This is pretty much entirely cause of Dok Mi and her character. Now don't get me wrong Shin Hye did a fantastic job at portraying her every emotion but Dok Mi herself was such an exhausting character to watch. I completely understand why she was so scared to be out in the world and why she kept pushing Enrique away but at some point I was sitting here like if this wasn't a drama Enrique would have left ages ago! He literally bent over backwards over and over and over and all Dok Mi kept doing was push him away. I truly don't know what he could have seen in her cause it's not like she was bursting with personality literally ever. Enrique on the other hand was probably the one reason I adored this show as much as I did and seriously Shi Yoon shines in roles like this. He was so cute and swoony and I liked that he was another side of the same coin as Dok Mi in that he hid himself away from the world too but in a more metaphorical sense by hiding behind smiles and cheer. I really did dislike Jin Rok as the second male lead cause I hate characters who are like I was here first so obviously I deserve the girl and how he kept acting like he knew Dok Mi better when he was actually just superimposing his own thoughts onto her. The year skip at the end of the drama was low key ridiculous but I suppose I enjoyed the happily ever after our characters got. Overall I'd give this drama a 9 / 10 cause there was so much I liked despite the negative.
Itaewon Class (6/16): On the first day of attending his new high school, Park Sae Ro Yi punches his classmate Jang Geun Won, who was bullying another classmate. The bully is the son of CEO Jang Dae Hee. The bully's father runs restaurant business Jangga where Park Sae Ro Yi’s own father works. CEO Jang Dae Hee demands to Park Sae Ro Yi that he apologizes to his son, but Park Sae Ro Yi refuses. Because of his refusal, Park Sae Ro Yi gets expelled from school and his father gets fired from his job. Soon, an accident takes place. Park Sae Ro Yi’s father dies in a motorcycle accident caused by his ex-classmate Jang Geun Won. Burning with anger, Park Sae Ro Yi viciously beats Jang Geun Won. He is soon arrested and receives prison time for violent assault. Park Sae Ro Yi decides to destroy the Jangga company and take revenge upon CEO Jang Dae Hee and his son Jang Geun Won. Once Park Sae Ro Yi is released from prison, he opens a restaurant in Itaewon, Seoul. Jo Yi Seo, who is popular on social media, joins Park Sae Ro Yi’s restaurant and works there as a manager. She has feelings for Park Sae Ro Yi.
Every week I'm more and more stunned with how amazing this show is and this week I was super impressed with how this drama didn't back away from representation. I knew that there was going to be a black guy in the cast cause of the poster but I was really shocked to find out that Hyun Yi was transgender and not just a woman dressing up as a man like most drama. The entire arc with her was absolute perfection and I loved the way everyone reacted to the news with how accepting they were despite a few hiccups at the start. I also really loved how Yi Seo refused to allow her mother to control her life and left cause though I agree with Yi Seo about how every person has to live their own life by their own terms, most drama leads will take the continuous abuse or anger from their parents cause they have to due to filial piety which is why Yi Seo being like 79% percent a sociopath doesn't care enough to do things that society says is right when she wants something else. As I expected she's killing it as a manager so far and I was also right in assuming that Geun Soo would work at pub too. I really enjoyed the small look at Geun Soo's backstory and it just made me love him more though I'm so curious why Jang treats him the way he does cause he lets Geun Soo leave and be on his own but at the same time keeps tabs on him. Though I'm not interested in Janggo as a whole (you know me and chaebol poltiics yawn) I was oddly refreshed by Jang being like yeah Sae Ro Yi owns a pub and yeah it's doing well but damn I run a food empire so why the hell would I care what he's doing cause in most dramas he would be like I must destroy any happiness or hope he has for no reason. It wasn't until Sae Ro Yi became a stockholder that he became important. Tbh I know nothing about stocks but it seems like he owns 0.95% of Janggo which feels like nothing compared to Jang's 30% but I suppose it is enough to make Sae Ro Yi have a say in the future chairman election and that's what I'm assuming Jang is pissed about.
I'm not always into time travel shows cause they always tend to have the most tragic ends but I kept hearing that this one was really good and it starred Jo Yoon Hee who I loved in Pied Piper so I was like why not check it out and I have to say this might be my second favorite time travel kdrama I've watched! Honestly the time travel rules don't make the most sense and there were things I wished that were different but overall I had a blast watching it. Lee Jin Wook absolutely smolders as Sun Woo and seriously I might have found a new man crush! His chemistry with Min Young is everything and I loved the way their relationship played out but Sun Woo's friendship with Young Hoon was even more incredible and I was screaming about them just as much as I was about the main couple! I do wish the time travel had been done with more intent rather than all willy-nilly like the way it was cause you would think that by only having a few incense sticks Sun Woo would have planned things out better and I wish that he had spent more time with past Sun Woo who was just as smart as the current one cause I would have thought they could work well together! A lot of the show was spent on the angst of Min Young going from Sun Woo's wife to niece and like don't get me wrong I was all about that angst but it did stall the story for a while only to rush to finish it at the end. Personally I had no problem with the way things played out with current Sun Woo dying in the past and past Sun Woo replacing him cause we saw that in this world the future is rewritten by the past. I was also high key thrilled that the final episode was mostly filled with Min Young and Sun Woo's love story cause those crazy kids deserved to be happy after everything! Like I said I really enjoyed this drama and I'd give it a 9.5 / 10 for sure!
Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim Season 2 (14/16): “Romantic Doctor Kim” is a “real doctor” story set in a small, humble hospital called Doldam Hospital. It is a story about people who meet Kim Sa Bu (Han Suk Kyu), a genius doctor, and discover “real romance.” Kim Sa Bu once gained fame as a top surgeon at a huge hospital. One day, he left the industry, and now he is a chief surgeon at Doldam Hospital in the countryside. After he conducted a successful operation on Chairman Shin, he gets to improve the hospital under reliable support. But then Chairman Shin passes away. New people appear and his students had to leave the hospital. Furthermore, his wrist, which was injured three years ago, starts to act weird. After all, he goes to a huge hospital himself to solve the manpower shortage at Doldam Hospital, where he finds two people who resemble his former students but who seem much more lacking. Seo Woo Jin would do anything for money, and Cha Eun Jae runs out every time she goes into a surgery room. Will Kim Sa Bu be able to run Doldam Hospital with these two?
This week was really anxiety-filled and only because my baby Woo Jin was put through the wringer. My blood was boiling when his ex-mentor joined forces with his loan sharks to force him into leaving Doldam by blackmailing him with hurting Kim. Woo Jin has been the happiest he's been since this show started this week so I was relieved when it got resolved with his mentor realizing just how much Woo Jin respected him and Bae who is still such an enigma! We never did get an answer about why he was so interested in Woo Jin's backstory and now we find out that he must have a super important father that he's hiding from who was able to scare Woo Jin's loan sharks into leaving him alone. I was also really worried when Woo Jin joined Park's VIP surgery at the last minute cause I knew that kid was going to die cause Park kept trying to rush the surgery so I was afraid that Park might somehow shift the blame to Woo Jin but now I'm worried that he'll blame Shim even though she was the one person trying to stop him. We also got In Bum finally appearing and he's the son of the man who's trying to destroy Doldam but I wonder if he'll end up being what saves them in the end. Like what if he takes over the hospital and his father can no longer destroy it cause his son is there? I'm also really curious about what his relationship is with Ah Reum cause she's been calling him "oppa" and not "sunbae" so he can't just be her senior doctor but they also have different last names so he can't be her brother. I wondered a few episodes ago if he'd maybe end up being a cause for jealously in Ah Reum and Eun Tak's relationship but with only two episodes left I'm not so sure. Ah Reum seemed a bit worried this week that Eun Tak might not be all that serious about her cause he pulled away from her when Eun Jae walked into the room but girl you have nothing to be worried about!
FINISHED Stove League (16/16): Baek Seung Soo is the newly appointed general manager of professional baseball team Dreams. The team ranks bottom of the league. Lee Se Young is the operations manager of the team and also a big fan of the baseball team. She has so much love for Dreams and she never gives up on the team. Han Jae Hee, an energetic man, who is the grandson of a furniture maker. Kim Young Chae, who is a softball player turned sports announcer. Yoo Min Ho, a pitcher, who is crazy about baseball.
The finale for Stove League aired this week and I'm honestly so sad that we won't be getting any more of this amazing show! I'm not a sports person but I find myself being so into shows about sports cause I love watching a team of underdogs rise to the top and though we never actually saw Dreams play during the league, I imagine that after everything they probably will make it to the top and I believe that they won the championship this year. Part of me can't help but feel like PF's sudden appearance and ability to buy Dreams and save everyone is a little like a deus ex machina especially given that the CEO is a good man and bent to all of Seung Soo's requests but at the same time there was no reason for PF to appear before this so I can let it go. It also helps that we didn't get everything we wanted with Seung Soo being let go of being General Manager but I'm not that upset about it cause I have a feeling that by the way this show ended that there's a possibility that we might get another season of this show with Seung Soo trying to reform another failing sports team. It also helps that he never really had any attachment to Dreams so it's not like he's losing much other than some friends. I'm also a little sad that Seung Soo and Se Young never became a thing but that was always just an afterthought for me cause I went into this show knowing there would be no romance. Overall I'd give this show a 10 / 10 and it definitely will be going up there on my list of favorite dramas of the year cause it was just so well written, well acted and well done!
Tell Me What You Saw (6/16): "Tell Me What You Saw" is a suspense thriller about a genius profiler named Oh Hyun Jae who has lost everything, and a detective with photographic memory named Cha Soo Young who work together to track down a serial killer. Other members include, team leader Hwang Ha Young who sets the plan, ambitious investigation team member Choi Hyung Pil, and veteran detective Yang Man Soo.
This week was full of surprises that I totally should have seen coming but didn't which is how you know a show is doing their plot twists right! In hindsight it was obvious! I mean I assumed that since the Peppermint Guy was the one to kill Hyun Jae's wife that this show would be about hunting him down with an arc tossed in that related to Soo Young and her mother's death but now I'm thinking that maybe the person who killed her mother or the child who was in the car are probs the Big Bad who's also behind the Peppermint Guy. That was another reveal I was shocked about though I totally should have seen it coming cause duh there's always a guy behind the guy but in this case it seems like this guy is directing killers on who to kill and one of those requests was Hyun Jae's wife. I'll be really curious to know why she was killed cause it seems like she was a musician and unless it was just to mess with Hyun Jae, I'm not sure why someone would want her dead. Speaking of Hyun Jae is totally fine in terms of being able to walk and see but I just assumed that he was fine in the posters and trailers and stuff just to hide his trauma but in fact the trauma was the hidden card after all. I also really want to give a shout out to Soo Young for being one of the smartest female cops on one of these shows cause I really and truly expected her to be like most cops on these shows where they have no brain and the lead sort of steers them along but Soo Young was able to discover something was off in her room, find out who the Peppermint Guy was, and realize what he was after all due to her notebook being shifted, a pair of shoes, and some pencil lead.
The Game: Towards Zero (20/32): It tells the story of a prophet who sees the moments right before the death of someone and a homicide detective who got dragged into a series of mysterious murders and end up digging up hidden secrets. Kim Tae Pyung, a prophet who can see death, 27 years old. He has the special ability to see the moments right before the death of someone by looking into their eyes. Instead of suffering from this mysterious ability linked to the death of people, he thinks that it is a special ability of his own. He is rich, handsome and has a sexy brain. However, he cannot see the death of Joon Young and that started to scare him. Joon Young, a homicide detective who is working with Tae Pyung to solve cases. 30 years old. She has good insight and intuition. Her father who was a police officer was her hero and her whole life, however, he passed away 20 years ago. That was a huge shock for her. She was only depending on herself and no one else. However, when Tae Pyung appeared, she started to change. She wants to heal his and her wounds. Ku Do Kyung, a forensic expert, 33 years old. Tae Pyung gave him the nickname of “4 weeks left” because he gives the result 4 weeks later. He is a smart and talented employee of the National Forensic Service. He always seems relaxed. In front of Joon Young, he acts differently. He can’t stop laughing when he is with her and lets his image of a cool and cold man away.
After I watched this week's episodes I have to say I'm such a wishy-washy bitch honestly. Last week I complained about how I don't ship Tae Pyung and Joon Young and how their romance felt like it moved too fast but this week I was sitting here squealing when the two finally kissed. I mean it's probs Ok Taec Yeon's charisma but I was all for that moment when Joon Young talked about how she struggled to trust others and how she's always watching him and wondering what he's thinking and how difficult everything must be for him and then he told her to just focus on the present and let him worry about the future. It does look like Tae Pyung finally figured out why Joon Young's death is on him though once again I feel like it's simplifying things too much. If Do Kyung kills Joon Young cause he's pissed and jealous that she loves Tae Pyung, how is that his fault? On that note I was thrilled when the police leaked everything to the press cause it was getting beyond ridiculous that he was running around so free and relaxed and murdering left and right without any consequences. I still don't have any pity for him and I still don't understand what Do Kyung's motivation for all this is. He keeps claiming that Tae Pyung and his mentor are giving out prophecies that he has to follow but it's like dude murder is a choice, a choice you're making over and over. It's also really freaking weird that Tae Pyung keeps keeping things to himself. If he saw that the reporter is going to be sent to the police as a human bomb by Do Kyung and then he finds out that the reporter is off the grid idk maybe tell the cops to look for him and maybe we'll find some evidence that Do Kyung left behind?? The more time you wait the more you'll lose any leads!
Touch (14/16): A popular make-up artist, known for his never-ending quest for perfection, Cha Jung Hyeok was at the top of his game. But destiny, it seemed, wouldn’t let him stay there for long. Now unemployed and drowning in debt, Jung Hyeok is desperate to find a way out of this most miserable of slumps; but he’s not the only one. An idol trainee for the past ten years, Han Soo Yeon is desperate to finally get her big break. Deciding it’s now or never, she agrees to participate in an idol audition program, but fails to make the cut. Booted from the program, Soo Yeon finds herself wondering if this is really the path she’s meant to take in life. Desperation and destiny come together in unexpected ways when Jung Hyeok and Soo Yeon cross paths. After finally landing a much-needed job as a make-up artist, Jung Hyeok agrees to take Soo Yeon under his wing. Noticing that his new assistant shows an incredible aptitude for the art, Jung Hyeok is happy to teach her everything he knows. As the two grow closer, they slowly learn to let go of the broken dreams of the past as they steadily walk towards a future full of bright new dreams, together.
Guys the romance in this show is so damn weird and I don't mean just cause I'm not a fan! Next week is the finale for this show and yet our main couple hasn't even kissed yet and I'm starting to wonder if maybe it's a behind the scenes kind of thing which is weird cause if the actors weren't okay with it then they wouldn't have taken the roles they did so maybe it was a writer. But beyond that there just seems to be a weird childishness to the whole romance. Jung Hyeok is 37 and he should be past the phase of awkward jealously and hiding his feelings. If he likes Soo Yeon he should have told her a long time ago! On another note I really loved the episodes we got this week with Window deciding to throw Do Jin away after he told the truth by pretending like the whole thing was Do Jin's fault only for Soo Yeon and the Director to step up and reveal their side of the story and the truth which was everything though it's totally sad that Do Jin is still not getting roles. He did see Jung Hyeok and Soo Yeon hugging at the end and all I could think was the poor baby. I did wonder for a bit if Ji Yoon would end up helping Do Jin and his career cause in an interesting twist she decided to take Jung Hyeok's disinterest in her as a fact and tried to help just to be a good person. I wonder what her revenge scheme against Kang Ho will end up being but I'm assuming that she'll take the help a rival sibling take over the company route cause we did see Kang Ho's sister at one point and that's always the best way to destroy a chaebol.
XX (8/10): It tells the story of the best bartender of the industry who is working in a speakeasy bar. She solves the problems of the couples and is overcoming her past love wounds.
Though I said last week that I don't forgive Roo Mi for what she did in the past, I couldn't help but want Roo Mi and Na Na to make up this week. Sue me I'm wishy-washy! I mean I can't help it! I always want girls to be friends over enemies and there's something so bitter about Tae Hyun walking around proud about how he ruined two girls that I want him to roll into XX and see Roo Mi and Na Na got over his stupid ass and are happy. Unfortunately he is popping up really early in the story which of course gives us the most drama but puts him right in the beginnings of both a possible reconciliation between the girls and Na Na moving onto a new relationship with Dan Hee. I loved watching Roo Mi cut Gyu Min into pieces and basically toss him to the secretary like here's my garbage have fun. On the other hand Dan Hee and Na Na were so adorable this week and I love how nervous and happy they are around each other. He was so smooth when he asked her out and took her on that fun date and confessed and I'm low key excited to see how jealous/protective he gets next week. Na Na is into him too but she's definitely afraid to jump into another relationship after Tae Hyun and the cheating but she should know that Dan Hee is an entirely different person, an angel even, so she should give him a shot!
CDRAMA
Eternal Love Of Dreams/Three Lives, Three Worlds, The Pillow Book (30/56): Two thousand years of enduring love and obsession between the female monarch of Qing Qiu and the ancient god of the Heavenly Kingdom.When Feng Jiu was practicing immortal cultivation alone in the wilderness, she was attacked by a beast and rescued by Dong Hua Di Jun of the Heavenly Kingdom. The encounter becomes deeply ingrained in Feng Jiu's heart and to repay her debts, she decides to follow Dong Hua into battle. She soon realizes that her good feelings towards him have evolved into love, but Dong Hua is a god who has forgotten what love means. In order to protect Feng Jiu, Dong Hua sends her to the human realm which results in the death of a friend. Feng Jiu enters the Winged Tribe Princess Ah Lan Ruo's dream sequence in search of a sacred fruit that can bring the dead back to life but gets trapped to relive Ah Lan Ruo's life for eternity. Dong Hua finds a way to save Feng Jiu and realizes that he already reciprocates her love for him, but another hurdle crosses their path.
Can you hear me screaming into the heavens about how adorable Dong Hua and Feng Jiu are??? I think the human arc just didn't work for me cause of my bias against those types of storylines and also cause I didn't see the King as Dong Hua so it felt more like a second or third male lead in my mind. It's fascinating how quickly Dong Hua is into Feng Jiu tbh and it makes me wonder if he's somehow still retaining his human realm feelings without knowing it cause I know Feng Jiu is adorable but like having lived as many years as he has you would think that it would be harder to catch his attention and yet from almost their second real meeting he was so fascinated! Either way it's the most precious thing to see her trying to run away from him cause it finally gives him a chance to chase her and it's clear now that he's definitely in love with Feng Jiu while in the Sky Palace he was just curious about her especially with how jealous he got at the thought of Yan which makes me wonder what he'll think when he finds out the real reason Feng Jiu is after the pimpon fruit. I want to see more of Dong Hua being jealous cause poor Feng Jiu has had enough jealously for a whole lifetime and it's time for the show to be on the other foot! Speaking of, I didn't realize that Ji Heng was actually in love with Dong Hua now and I really expected her to be with Yan cause Yan is actually a really good guy but now I think he low key deserves better. Cheng Yu and Lian Song are also super precious and I wish we could see more of them falling in love too!
Under The Power (48/55): In the final years of the reign of Jiajing Emperor during the Ming Dynasty, Lu Yi of the Jing Yi Wei is commissioned to investigate the disappearance of funds that have been set aside for river repairs in Yangzhou. He is assisted by Yuan Jin Xia of the Liushanmen. The two accidentally become involved in a conspiracy. The talented female constable Yuan Jin Xia gets into a disagreement with the hot-tempered Jin Yi Wei Lu Yi over a case that they are both involved in. Jin Xia thought that she'd never encounter Lu Yi again in this lifetime, yet fate has its way of bringing two people back together. Government funds have been stolen and Jin Xia receives orders to assist Lu Yi in his investigation. They are unable to get along at first but learn to work together through the hardships. Eventually, they develop feelings for each other to become lovers. However, things go awry when the truth about the past comes to light. Jin Xia is the orphan of the Xia Yan case from many years ago and she bears the burdens of the bloodshed that destroyed her family.
This week was totally tough to get through cause not only was it so politically heavy but it's also the start of our breakup episodes which is rough to sit through! As I expected Jin Xia is the last daughter of the Xia family and literally everyone figured that out this week though the way Yan Shi Fan found out was high key ridiculous. I mean I get Lu Yi finding out cause he's close to Jin Xia and of course Lin Ling would know based on knowing Jin Xia's clothing from when she was young but magically Yan Shi Fan figured it out? Ugh plot connivence. I had been saying for a while that I didn't understand why Yang was so against Jin Xia and Lu Yi when it was the Yan family that destroyed the Xia family but we find out that it was Lu Yi's dad who for fear of retribution from the Yan family plus a little hatred of Xia Ran actually helped by sneaking a letter in jail. I totally get why Lu Yi is acting the way he is now even if it breaks my heart to see Jin Xia sad. Best case scenario for the rest of this show is that the Xia family gets cleared of misdoing, the Yan family is taken down, and Jin Xia and Lu Yi get married now that they're of the same noble level but I don't entirely know how that can happen in seven episodes. I'm also low key worried that the Wu gang will be tossed into the King's anger by others claiming that the wood they sold the Yan family is bad to save themselves.
Well Intended Love Season 2 (5/16): Xia Lin, a third rate actress who works hard for her dream of being a movie queen, meets Ling Yizhou, the president of Lingshi, a multinational group that controls the economic lifeline of Guangdong city. A crisis of public opinion pushes the two to the top of the netizen's wave. Whether it's an encounter of deja vu or an encounter schemed by others, the two happy enemies are still super sweet even in a situation full of accidents.
I actually went into this drama not knowing that it was more of an alternate take on Xia Lin and Yizhou's relationship rather than a direct sequel to the first season but the minute I did, I was totally fascinated cause the best thing about season 1 of this show was the chemistry between the leads so if this version took out the one aspect of the show I hated from before aka the leukemia thing then I would be so on board. I like that this version starts off similarly with Xia Lin and Yizhou meeting two years ago but in this version they meet face-to-face before he has time to switch the medical results so it should be a lot less toxic version of their relationship. It's also really interesting that Xia Lin is a famous actress in this version and that she and Chu Lan are friends though I really don't love that Chu Lan and Yizhou aren't best friends in this cause I adored that about them in the previous version. I also don't love that there seems to be more company politics but I suppose that by making the villain a man from Yizhou's company that it will make the story a little more realistic. So far there doesn't seem to a second female lead which is nice and I'm high key loving how Fei and Wen Li's relationship is moving much faster. I do also miss the cute from Xia Lin and Yizhou being married but the budget for this season is definitely wowing me.
xoxo Allie
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