Is an entertaining K-Drama with quirkiness, a bunch of misfits, an impossible man and a dog.
The drama centers around the main character Jo JaeHee, a 40 year old know-it-all Architect, who succeeds in everything but human relationships. We explore the people around him, his unfortunate neighbour, even more unfortunate Doctor, his partner and his competitor.
I totally dig it, it’s fun, not too heavy and most of all, entertaining.
I must admit that the drama does, at times, drag on a little, which makes you go, “please please, just hurry things along”, but what drama doesn’t have those moments?
All the actors were well picked for the role, although I thought Kim SoEun was too young for her role (the character’s meant to be 26 while she’s actually 20), she pulls it off. And my bias on her being a decent actress to look out for in the future (check her out in Empress ChonChu, awesome), doesn’t blind my opinion at all. Although her character isn’t far too demanding.
Uhm JungHwa is as always, on the spot with her portrayals of roles, she picks them well enough to make them go off without a hitch. It’s also quite funny to see her stress so much on marriage in this role, when she seems nonchalant about it in real life. And see her take her sexy down a lot of notches to drab.
And best of all is Ji JinHee who plays Jo JaeHee, the main character. An all round jerk but strangely likable because of his eccentricity. He’s too rude for words, seriously anti-social, a hypochondriac, has a dysfunctional relationship with his mother, and seems to have a baseless vendetta against the world. He is flawless and I commend him in his portrayal.
The drama is based on a Japanese drama of the same name, but has its own Korean slight twist in plot.
Anyone enjoying this as much as I am? Strangely, a lot of my friends are watching the drama without anyone elses’ recommendation, which is of course a happy coincidence.
He’s got a great job, he’s handsome, has an awesome apartment, can cook… So, what’s the problem? Can he not get married, or won’t he?
Gu HyeSun has been officially cast as Makino Tsukushi in Koreas’ version of ‘Hana Yori Dango. You have no idea how surprised I was at the news.
I personally like Gu HyeSun as an actress I’ve seen her in two dramas, both funnily enough on KBS who are also airing this one.
Yet, she doesn’t exude the energy that Makino is meant to have. An official of Group 8 claimed though that “During the casting process HyeSun exhbited how varied her acting skills are. And she also has a history with being a female lead and can carry this drama well.” I hope your right Mr. Official, because you guys have made such a humongous deal out of this that this better be the best RomCom drama of the year.
Wow, Im relieved to hear the news, yet not satisfied. Quite a feeling.
What do you guys think, can pretty and sweet HyeSun make a glorious Fiery and headstrong Makino?
My sincerest apologies again for the lateness of this weeks update. Before we begin I would like to pass on my respects and condolences to Lee Eons’ family for their great loss. Rest In Peace.
This is the update for the past week, Monday 11th to Sunday 17th.
Festival rocks Jamsil to pieces
Two big Concerts took place in two Jamsil stadiums last week, ETPfest and SMTownLive ‘08. There were strange things to pick up in the media about one of them, but clearly they were both marked as successful. ETPfest opened up to a sold out audience opening its doors to over 40,000 spectators within the two days of the festival. The show was undoubtedly awesome and I think we can all be envious to those of which that attended. SMTownLive opened to Jamsil Olympic stadium with a less than enthusiastic response, but still went on to get a lot of positive remarks from the media due to the Big Name performers there.
Big Bang got busy
With Big Bang releasing their mini-album ‘Stand Up‘, it’s no surprise that they would be in the limelight a lot. With the Olympics still going on there is not much attention paid on the Celeb world or Music world since all eyes are on Beijing, yet Big Bang have found their own way to still pop up on the Media Radar.
First it was their crazy concert in Thailand:
Before they started their official promotions of their new mini-album the Big Bang boys held a concert in Thailand, causing many a fan girl to faint. 20 to be exact and it seems YG Entertainment was proud to mention it. “Our boys are studs and can knock you out with a look” is what they said in my head, after mentioning that.
The release of two MVs within a week.
It took a while to get here, “haru haru” of Big Bang that is, yet as soon as they released that MV with actress Park Min Young, we got another surprise with the release of “Oh My Friend” featuring the psychotically entertaining No Brain. I am all for promotion of underrated KRock Artists mainly because the underground K-Music scene is full of awesome talent, but seriously I couldn’t let ‘haru haru’ sink in and then got bombarded with “oh my friend”. Big Bang make it up though with being cute, and well seeing G-Dragon as a mental patient is always nice….
Thailand got lucky
Well to me, they did. Not only did they get Big Bang but soon after they left, Epik High came for promotions and a showcase for over 1000 fans. “We went there without much expectation, and it turned out we have a lot of fans here in Thailand. We were shocked when they sang along with us during our showcase performances. We have a tight schedule here, we are not feeling tired and is advancing smoothly.” Is what Tablo said on a phone interview about their trip. Any Thai fans out there willing to take me in next time they have Epik High around? Better yet any Thai fans that attended either event of Big Bang and Epik High?
SHINee need mouth to mouth resuscitation.
Noona’s, you wish. Well it’s a play on words to SHINees’ new single “You’re like Oxygen” that they teased us with the week before. The 5 young boys performed it at SMTownLive ‘08 (which was like a promotional tool for the upcoming SM plans to be honest), to a big happy response from fans. I am still waiting on the official MV, but in the forums you can get a listen. I hear only Michael Jackson with this song and as the official release is due tomorrow, wait for that. Although there is some controvercy surrounding the originality of this track, I am still giggling at their attempts to man-up these cute little boys.
lol, Beware of Darth Vader JungHyun….
It’s Wonder JIN?
Mnet is always the place to be for young music pop fans and their events are always fun to keep an eye on. You are bound to get some drama and interesting footage to keep you entertained till the next years version. And Mnet doesn’t want this years Mnet 20’s Choice (last years was the first), to go without some major attention. It’s not enough with their weird awards and choices but they have a strange collab stage going too. Jun Jin of Shinhwa and the Wonder Girls are going to share the stage for something, apparently spectacular. Well that’s what the PD is insisting on (I love how PDs get attention in SK don’t you?), and the PD also claims that after the performance it will by number 1 on search engines…. Ok, we will have our eyes on your project PDnim, but expect our laughter recorded and sent in a package to you if it ends up a joke….
Bae YongJoon forever young
In the heart and soul. The beloved Hallyu star had shoulder surgery recently after his well publicised shoulder ligament injury. After the two injuries Mr. Bae YongJun received after filming his last blockbuster he has been recuperating in the States and now will remain in the hospital for a week. South Korea’s prize smile should keep himself fitter and safer so he can swoon more Ajummas in to the Hallyu Wave…
East of Eden, right down the street
This has gotten tongues wagging for a while now with the uber awesome cast. The cast has a lot of big time names in it that leave your head reeling. Song Seung Hun, Yun Jung Hoon, Park Hae Jin, Lee Da Hae, Lee Yeon Hee, Han Ji Hye, Dennis Oh, Jo Min Ki, Lee Mi Sook, Kim Bum, Shin Eun Jung and many more are set to star in it. The teaser has finally been released and it will be interesting to tune in and see how this drama goes. The plot speaks of revenge, murder and ill-doings, definitely something to watch with a cup of tea and chocolates. Bring it on MBC.
The teaser:
damn, be prepared for drama, drama, drama and needless shedding of tears…
It’s also time for this weeks Music charts thanks to Edward1849 of Soompi
Weekly Music Chart – 3rd Week – August
1. Lee Hyori – U-Go-Girl
2. Davichi – 사랑과 전쟁 (Love and War)
3. Seo In Young – 신데렐라 (Cinderella)
4. Uhm Jung Hwa (feat. T.O.P) – D.I.S.C.O
5. Shinee – 누난 너무 예뻐 (Noona’s Pretty (Replay))
6. Wonder Girls – So Hot
7. Mighty Mouth (feat. Sun Ye) – 에너지 (Energy)
8. Zi-A – 사랑해 미안해 (I Love You, I Am Sorry)
9. Cool – 사랑을 원해 (I Want Love)
10.Brown Eyes – 너 때문에 (Because Of You)
Ok guys, here’s the latest roundup of the news of the past week (Monday 4th to Sunday 10th). Enjoy.
Super Junior-H with not so Happy news
Yesung of Super Junior Happy injured his back last Friday during the Music Bank Rehearsals. He tripped on a Power Cord and fell from the stage, he was sent immediately to the Hospital. The rest of the boys continued the performance like the troopers they are, check out the vid. My favourite of the lot is Ms. Patty (total lol soyboy!).
Get better soon and stay fit and healthy Yesung.
JYP ever the young’un JYPs new album concept, ‘pimp’?
Park Jin Young the coolest Producer on the block doesn’t seem to notice that he can never be sexy. As much as I love this guys talent, I think he should stay away from these crazy photo shoots. JYP please be as great as you are in the recording booth but please put on some clothes and act your age? Just a tip. By the by to the random netizen that said, “He is as sexy as a gorilla. His stomach muscles are like chocolate.” Please be exposed to some more men, thank you, take a look at Kwon SangWoo for instance, and since when were gorillas sexy?
Big Bangs comeback
Well 08.08.08 has come and passed and Big Bang released their newest mini-album. There were some rave reviews by some and not-so-happy reviews by others. No matter what, Big Bang showed us that they are as popular as ever as their album sold an impressive amount in just pre-orders (100k). The album as covered by the staff earlier this week has a wide range of genres and as some people here in the international section are not so keen on it, Big Bang dominates the Cyworld chart as the Top 10 includes every track of the album, even the intro “Stand Up”.
Korean Films rock the movie theatres
One of the main reasons for plenty of people to get in to the Hallyu Wave has got to be their movies. I for one am a huge KMovie fan and finally, the movies are nabbing a nearly 50% market share of the Korean Movie Market, 47.7% if you’re going to nitpick. Awesome movies are out this summer and one of the best picks has to be the Korean western “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”, starring three of the most talented actors Jung WooSung, Lee ByungHun and the ever awesome Song KangHo. Keep watching those Kmovies people.
Kang HyeJung hits the US
Well, kind of. Young actress Kang HyeJung has been cast in ‘American’ movie ‘Wedding Palace’ about two people who meet in L.A and get married. It focuses on their different cultural backgrounds and will be shot mostly in the US with some scenes in Korea. Its produced by Korean American company TU Productions.
Monday Kiz goes solo
After the devastating death of Kim MinSoo of the talented duo Monday Kiz earlier this year, news has reached us that the other half Lee JinSeong will continue. Monday Kiz’s record label gave up finding another partner and wants Mr. Lee to try his luck as a solo singer. We wish him the best of luck in his efforts.
Hana Yori Dango still dangling in the air
It was announced earlier this year that Mr. Hyunjoong of SS501 was going to star as Hanazawa Rui in the Korean adaptation of Hana Yori Dango, and then not too long after that they claimed it was not confirmed. Group 8 who is producing this version seem to be meticulous in their casting project as it has been extended yet again. I know that it’s going to air next year but it’s getting ridiculous as they refuse to tell us who is going to star in the drama. Apparently 80% of the idol stars have auditioned for the drama but no one has particularly stood out yet. They are still deciding on who is going to make them rake in the most money without looking like they sold out.
Maybee wants you to be as inventive as ever
Pretty and talented Songwriter/Singer/DJ Maybee has allowed her fans to produce both her recent single and Music Video. The single was written and produced by 20 high school girls who are avid supporters of Maybee. It was released on the 4th last week as a digital single. Maybee is great to encourage and reward her fans for their own creativity. And its pretty nice that the song is dedicated to her. It’s called “Maybee Praise Song” if you were wondering.
Nell makes their way in to Japan
After a successful comeback earlier this year with their album “Separation Anxiety”, Nell find themselves being invited to the Japanese SummerSonic Rock Festival. Foot traffic reaches highs of 80.000 (concert-goers) and it’s good to think that they will be able to be exposed to the almost-eerie yet ear pleasing music of Seo Taiji discovered Nell. All those hours “researching” in that insane asylum paid off, right guys?
It’s time for this weeks Music chart, credit goes to Mr. Edward1849 as ever, from Soompi.
Weekly Music Chart – 2nd Week – August
1. Lee Hyori – U-Go-Girl
2. Davichi – 사랑과 전쟁 (Love and War)
3. Uhm Jung Hwa (feat. T.O.P) – D.I.S.C.O
4. Shinee – 누난 너무 예뻐 (Noona’s Pretty (Replay))
5. Wonder Girls – So Hot
6. Brown Eyes – 가지마 가지마 (Don’t Leave Don’t Leave)
7. Mighty Mouth (feat. Sun Ye) – 에너지 (Energy)
8. Alex – 그대라면 (If It’s You)
9. Sung Shi Kyung – 안녕 나의 사랑 (Goodbye My Love)
10.Zi-A – 사랑해 미안해 (I Love You, I Am Sorry)
