Adventures in Asia

Do I have time to watch a Korean drama? No. Do I have slightly more time recently than usual? Yes. Was this one worth it? YES. I had a few reservations about “I Am Not a Robot” (2017) at the beginning. First, I wasn’t a fan of the shorter episodes (30 minutes each) and didn’t recognize the channel, and thus thought it might be a cable show – which didn’t seem promising. Second, it was clearly a rich-guy-falls-for-poor-girl story, which is a bland trope in dramaland. However, it was recommended as “cute” by a friend and ranked highly online, so I decided to give it a shot. I quickly discovered that though the episodes are shorter, there are 32 of them, which allows for 16 hours of drama, which is a normal season. Also, the acting was excellent and overall quality of the drama certainly wasn’t lacking. As for the trope, I’ll dive in to that later. The story is something like this… Kim Min Kyu is a wealthy, successful chairman of a financial company with ...

Ah, I haven’t reviewed a Korean drama in ages! It’s good to be back to watching the best genre of TV in the world. I’ve been sick recently, so I’ve had plenty of time to watch, and chose the well-reviewed “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds,” also translated “Love in the Moonlight.” “Moonlight” is a historical drama set in the Joseon era, in which a girl disguised as a man is recruited as a eunuch in the palace, the Crown Prince hopes to teach his little sister’s secret admirer a lesson, and the King is constantly manipulated by the sly nobles of the court. The Prince’s only friend is his cool, butt-kicking bodyguard, though he quickly becomes entangled with his new “eunuch.” The grandson of the most conniving noble family also finds himself attracted to the effeminate eunuch, who only has eyes for the Prince. And behind it all is a foggy back-story of a failed rebellion. This drama aired in 2016 and has eighteen episodes, plus a nineteenth behind-the-scenes-and-highlights episode....

There are a select few Korean TV shows that I consider in my All Time Favorites, those dramas which warmed my soul with realistic romance, pulled at my feels with heart-wrenching sacrifice, kept me from sleep with unpredictable plotlines – those dramas that I feel confident recommending to my non-drama-watching friends, knowing it’s only matter of time before they also become addicted. Among such glorious kdramas, I listed Lee Min Ho’s “ CityHunter ,” the only non-cop-show I’d seen that combined action and romance. But then I watched “Healer,” wrecking my rankings and superseding my beloved “City Hunter” in a flurry of kick-butt action, compelling back story, passionate kisses, and good-guy criminals. I love this drama. Not sure why this image has "skip" on it, but skipping this drama is not something you want to do. “Healer” depicts two worlds. One, the life of a night courier, code name Healer, the best in his field at delivering top secret documents, esc...

Wow! Hard to believe it’s the ONE YEAR anniversary of me posting my random thoughts about Korean TV and living life in Asia on this blog! I was to say a huge THANK YOU for taking the time to read my sporadic posts! In celebration of One Year, let’s play a game: Name That Korean Celebrity! Below are some of the famous faces I see on a regular basis while I’m picking up groceries, eating out or shopping. Can you identify them?? (See answers at the end of the post.) 1. Some dastardly handsome cardboard cutouts at KFC, who happen to have magical powers. 2. You know you want this adorable stuffed animal from Caffee Bene. 3. Nothing like a Chinese Pizza Hut. 4. Happy Lunar New Year! 5. Stylin' with some potato chips! 6. Chocolate... Ooh ooh... 7. More chips! This time, tomato flavor! 8. I scream, you scream, we all scream for Oppa! 9. I'm starting to see a chip trend here... ...

Keeping with my music kdrama theme, the next drama I watched was “Shut Up Flower Boy Band” (also translated “Shut Up and Let’s Go”)! Which I went into with really low expectations! I mean, flower boy is in the title… Which is a clear warning that this pretty boy, high school drama might be just as scarring as “Boys Over Flowers” or “ Flower Boy Ramen Shop .” However, I was caught off guard and quickly fell hard for this drama! My feels are still reeling. “Shut Up Flower Boy Band” (SUFBB) follows a gangle of guy friends in a band together, bad boys who regularly get in fights, book illegal gigs, and are constantly on the verge of getting suspended. Difficult families and financial situations make them fiercely loyal to one another. When their jank school closes down, they get transferred to the fancy, rich-kid school, where they don’t fit in and quickly make rivals. A sudden tragedy and then a chance to make it big set them on a new path to stardom, though fame and fortune migh...

“My Lovable Girl,” “My Lovely Girl,” “She’s So Lovable,” “You Are Cute for Me”… Whatever this drama is called. Rain’s new drama. That one. Yeah, I watched it. For the noobs that may be reading this, I’ll give a brief explanation on Rain. Rain is pretty much the first South Korean actor/singer to gain huge international success. He debuted in the kpop world in 2002, and since then has used his stage name Rain as a pun in as many album/song titles as possible. His most famous music video has got to be “Love Song,” which involved him body rolling shirtless. The album, Rainism, was deemed inappropriate for listeners under the age of 19 for being so shmexy. The term “chocolate abs” became rabid among kpop fans around this time. Rain has released a lot of music and done multiple dramas and movies, but the only other Rain drama I’ve seen is “Full House” (2004), which I unfortunately decided to marathon when I was sick last spring. Unless you actually like soap operas, I don’t recomm...

Wow, it’s been a few months! Holiday season, finishing the term and moving to a new city put my drama-watching on hold for a while. But I’m back to blogging now! And I just finished an excellent drama! Two of the actors from my favorite drama ever, “Secret Garden,” returned to my screen (and my heart) in “I Hear Your Voice”: Oska (Yoon Sang Hyun) and that musician kid who had a crush on Oska (Lee Jong Suk). This time they play the two male leads (both straight) and deliver some amaaaaazing acting. In “I Hear Your Voice” (also called “I Can Hear Your Voice”), female lead Jang Hye Sung is a bored lawyer intent to become a Public Defender for the money. Also in the running for the position is hard working, idealistic Lawyer Cha (that is, Oska!). Meanwhile, senior in high school Park Soo Ha has the uncanny ability to hear others’ thoughts, which he’s been able to do ever since he was injured in the car “accident” that killed his father. Jang Hye Sung happened to witness that i...