Love Rain (Kdrama)

I better comment about this drama before I see episode 5 tomorrow...the start of seeing scenes in the 2012 setting.

First I would like to praise this drama for making me love the 70's. That setting was so surreal. You know, I even felt that I should have been born on that era. Well..I only felt that but I'm happy being alive in this era. It was so cool in the eyes, and since they filmed that part in autumn, the colors were just fantastic. The university (which was in Daegu from what I read) setting made me want to study there. SIGH.

Jang Geun Seuk's 70's role is an art student. Mahn, I wish I was an art student. Okay, but I didn't like his hair. So old school. LOL It was old school anyway. But his character made me want to punch him or slap him. Yeah, he's super fine but HELLO...I am kind of tired of the plot about characters being martyrs of love just because of a friend. If I made this review last week I may have exploded with more hate sentiments about Seo Ihna. Now since I got to see the other episodes, well all I have is empathy for him. I did fell for him at one point. I dunno about his 2012 character. Hmmm...

Yoona...I really liked her in the drama "You Are My Destiny", and I thought she deserved to be the mascot of SNSD because she exemplifies beauty in simplicity. But don't blame me if I hated her because Seunggi said she  was his ideal woman, ARGH! But no matter how I remember that, I can't help but adore her meekness in this drama. She really belonged to the 70's.

Can't forget to note that Donguk was cute too! Teehee!

Oh well, what's left to know is what happened in between...Ihna went to military and Yunhui went to America to get treated...after that we move on to 2012. So what's left is the middle, I'm sure we'll get the details as the drama progresses. But it's a given, Ihna and Yunhui did not end up with each other. Now it's up to their children. Ahhhh...destiny. So is this another "You Are My Destiny"? LOL

So far I loved the drama even if it made me angry and sad. Let's see how it will develop from here on.

Bring back the 70's!!!!!!

Man From the Equator (적도의 남자) (Kdrama)

A.k.a. The Equator Man.

I've skipped again for the nth time some dramas I needed to review and decided to post about this recent drama that got my attention. I wouldn't blog about it right away if it did not make me interested with it.

It has a huge competition with The King 2 Hearts airing on MBC and The Rooftop Prince on SBS topbilled by Hallyu stars Lee Seunggi and Park Yoochun respectively. You'll really say that the drama Man From the Equator can lose to the ratings battle since the previous actors mentioned have a young and large fanbase. Who do we have in this drama I'm reviewing? We have Uhm Taewoong, Lee Jun-hyuk, Lee Bo-yeong and Lim Jeong-eun.

For a young viewer like me who is a Kpop fan, I'm not really familiar with the actors here except for Taewoong-oppa who I regularly see on my most fave show 1박2일. This is the first time I'll really see him act in a serious drama. Have heard bits of pieces about him before about his role as General Yooshin in Queen Seondeok from my friend, but no more about his acting.

I was really watching The King 2 Hearts online via iMBC and I was happy at first. It has no subs but the video was clear. But the lagging was always there. I was happy to be able to watch Seunggi's new drama. But since the episode wherein he'll marry Ha Ji Won's character was aired when it lagged big time...I did not sulk. Because I don't wanna sulk while watching the said event. LOL I decided to give up watching it online and try watching it some other time with subs. I still need to get ready. LOL

So I decided to give this drama a try since it going to be aired on KBSWorld, my #1 Kdrama source. I am not really happy watching via streaming so it's a good thing to have KBSWorld on our TV. I also wanted to see some serious Uhm Taewoong acting.

So episode 1. We see some conflict already on the beginning and then POOF...flashback 15 years ago. Wee see younger version of Taewoong and Junhyuk played by Lee Hyun Woo and Siwan of ZEA respectively. Ohhhhhh....Lee Hyun Woo looked familiar at first...I thought he looked like Donghae of SuJu. Then I looked him up and realized he's Hong Changdu from God of Study! A drama I loved too! Gaaahhh!

It's supeeeeer dramatic! I've just watched the first 2 episodes and my heart aches for Seonwu's character. Lee Hyun Woo has captured are hearts. he's so good in this drama! This boy has a bright acting future ahead of him after this. Next week we'll see the older characters already so we'll have to say goodbye to the young characters soon. Huhu!

This drama has the makings of a drama Filipinos would really love. The lost son, the rise from the poor, the love triangles (or square), the lies hidden for long and rivalry between two friends etc etc. Well, I still want to give this a try even though the plot sounds cliche. It might have a good twist by the middle.

Whew! Seonwu fighting!!!!!

The King 2 Hearts (Kdrama)

I...super...can't...WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!! I've skipped so many reviews on dramas I needed to finish and ended up posting this even before its broadcast. My gosh I didn't expect Seunggi's drama to be in this scale. I thought it would just be a romantic comedy or drama like his previous hit dramas. But wow...we might see Seunggi-ah in action! Huwaaaaaahhhhhh!!! This is definitely a first. I might try to watch it even without subs. Oh well...hope I get access to it. And another thing..Ha Ji Won doesn't look like an actress that I would hate. I've seen her in a movie before (the something 100 Days I think movie) and she was good. I have yet to see her in Secret Garden (keep delaying my watching session with it).

Oh well...Seunggi-ah I will miss you on 1박2일 but this drama might ease the pain. Should I change the main header of this blog now? Teehee! *hides from Matsujun*

Gokusen (and how it affected my point of view in life)

I was re-organizing an old blog of mine when I came across this entry I made almost 6 years ago!!!! (November 19, 2006) I also realized I didn't get to post a proper review of Gokusen here. To think it was the dorama of Matsujun that launched my craziness. Haha! Here goes:




Thanks to the oh-so-kawaii Matsujun aka Sawada Shin in the live action series...I learned a lot of things from Yamaguchi-sensei aka Yankumi.


1st - You have to find your God-given job...and stick to it. As of now I haven't found it...but I am desperately seeking for it. But I do hope to have the kind of passion she has in teaching.

2nd - If you fall...you must stand up by yourself. Don't you ever depend on others always. Life is about getting through the obstacles.

3rd - Everybody has problems. It just varies from one person to another. But still, we all are struggling to have a good life.

Actually there are lots more that I learned from her. But these are the most important ones for me now.



And the song FEEL YOUR BREEZE by V6 has a very hopeful msg too...very suitable for my situation now...here's the translation (and a fanmade MV I saw):



I say, feel your breeze,
Never stop walking now oh
The number of wound that won't vanish are increasing
It's like the wind is piercing me
Those little worries you keep to yourself
I'm sure everyone has some now...
Of course the night is long and you sink down deeply
When the sun rises up in the morning
Yes, it'll be gleaming
Someday the future you dreamed of
And now will be a little bit different
The tears shed for dreams
Keep shining without fading
Your heart will always watch you
With the feelings that tear your heart apart
Feel all of your dreams eternally
Overflowing like those summer clouds



Another thing...Matsumoto Jun is so kawaii!!! Aaaccckkk another Jap actor that I should hunt for! Hahahaha!!!!!!

To think after almost 6 years I still have the same problem! Oh dear...Matsujun must help me again! By way of Lucky 7! FIGHT-OH

Cinderella's Stepsister (Kdrama)

The very first thing that made me want to watch this drama is because of Yesung-oppa's song IT HAS TO BE YOU. Yes, the song was my main motivation to watch this drama. My friend from whom I got to borrow the dvd told me that Yesung-oppa's song is used usually on heavy scenes. Huwaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!!! And it really did...huwaaaaaahhh!!! Yesung-oppa's voice is heavenly and at the same time makes my heart ache so much. Huhuhuhuhu!!!!!

To tell you again (and again), I shouldn't have watched this drama because it starred Moon Geun Young!Yes, her again...I keep watching her dramas eventhough it hurts to know she is the ideal woman of Yesung-oppa. Huhuhuhuhu!!! Well, it can't be helped. She has talent. I acknowledge she really is good. Imagine her switching roles from the very stern Goo Eun Jo in this drama and then to the very cute Mary in Mary Stayed Out All Night. You can really tell she can take any role. That's what a good actress is all about. I concede defeat. I can never be an actress. Huhuhuhu!!!! *hides under a rock*

Okay I'll go on with the drama itself. From the the title alone, you'll have an idea of the story. It definitely resembles the story of Cinderella but in a more heartwarming way. This drama also focuses on the oh so-called "evil stepsister". Moon Geun Young is the "evil" stepsister. She is evil, well not a heartless evil stepsister though. She has her reasons for being such a wicked person. Although I could feel how hard it is to always be like that. It makes the viewer feel the burden of her actions.

Seo Woo or Hyoseon in the drama is not your typical Cinderella. Well on a sense she is the type to be pretty and good-hearted,but in the middle you get to see she is human after all. She can get angry and has some insecurities. Eun Jo doesn't really like her at first...but they develop understanding as sisters towards the end. And Eun Jo's anger at her is sometimes a lesson. She want's Hyoseon to learn to stand on her own and fight.

Eun Jo's mom is the great pretender and the so called "evil stepmother". You'll be amazed on how great her pretending is. To think someone as kind-hearted as Goo Dae Seong (Hyoseon's very kind father) will fall for someone like her. Eventhough he knew she was just pretending, he still loved her with all his heart. Hyoseon was also very fond of her. Hyoseon wanted a mother badly. Eventhough she got angry at her at one point, she still forgave her. To have such people around you, even the most shameless person would wake-up from his/her shamelessness.

The love team between Geun Young and Jeong Myeong (sorry I forgot his name in the drama, haha!) was hard to watch. Really. Especially for the role of Eun Jo, she kept hiding her feelings while the guy expresses his love for her. Oh what a pain. I was like "why don't you two get together asap if you really love eachother!" Haha!

As for Taecyeon who had the role of Jung Woo-yah...wow I think I really liked his role here compared to his role in Dream High. He was this super loyal guy to Eun Jo who loved her since he was still a fat little kid. Then here he comes after 8 years...tall, dark and handsome! No wonder the stern Eun Jo became soft when around him. Hahahaha! He also had this typical provincial accent. It changed how I viewed Taecyeon.

Lastly I want to comment about the Makgeolli business. It was nice to see how such a homely wine became successful. It was nice to see how hard they tried to develop the product with so much love from the workers. It was nice for the drama to have the wine business as a main background for the "Cinderella" story. It made me want to drink it too. It looks delicious! Mashipda! Okay, I'll go and find one...*searches for Makgeolli in nearby Korean stores"

The drama as a whole was focused more on drama but it also had fun moments. I couldn't believe at first.I heard the whole soundtrack first because of Yesung-oppa (hehe!) and I heard the songs and BGMs and was shocked that there were also some happy songs and happy instrumentals. Hihi! So this drama has its own happy and funny moments. I enjoyed it so much! (^_^)

Paradise Ranch (Kdrama)

It's obvious why I wanted to watch this drama. Super obvious! Hahaha!

Changmin!!!!!!!

But to tell you the truth, it took me a while to really pay attention to this drama. I was able to watch ep 1 thanks to Gods of the East Subbing Squad, but since they didn't have all episodes at once I waited for them to release the next eps. Amidst the long wait I watched MY PRINCESS and after that I finally got all eps for this drama...but I wanted to rest from watching. So weeks have gone by...I even watched Yamato Nadeshiko first because it was shorter. Then finally I tried watching this. Please be quiet, Changmin will surely give me a huge whack on the head if he knew how long it took me to finally watch his drama.

Well, can you blame me? He was partnered with Lee Yeon Hee and I didn't want to see him with any leading lady. It hurts! Hahahahaha! But thank goodness Lee Yeon Hee wasn't hateful at all. Although it still made me want to kick her out of the scenes and replace it with me.

Changmin...Changmin...Changmin. There is something about his acting that isn't right...but he does act good for me. There is just some problem with the espression. I dunno if it was over-acting or being overly expressive. I think he should just control that. I think his forte so far is comedy just like his Banjun dramas with DBSK. His good scenes in this drama were the comedic ones anyway. When he gets angry...that's where the problem arises I think. You also seldom see Changmin smile. It was his smile during his DBSK days that made me love him! Hmph!

There isn't anything to criticize with the other actors/actresses but Lee Yeon Hee's mouth expresson kind of irritates me a bit. I dunno if she is emphasizing how small a mouth she has or what. As for Jin Young in the drama...she look too much older for Changmin's character. I won't mind a noona partner for him, but still. Oh well why should I bother?

If you didn't know that Dong Joo and Daji were the main characters in the drama...you could mistake Seo Yoon Ho as the main lead character. Maybe because he mostly had great scenes? Whatever.

Well going onto the story...I personally liked it because it tells you about 2 very young people who rushed into marriage at an early age and eventually had a divorce. It could mirror lots of couples nowadays who try to rush into marriage and don't think so much about the future. But it also shows that there is still a chance after divorce. We actually have 3 couples here to follow with that notion. Dong Joo and Da Ji, Dong Joo's parents and Yoon Ho and his supermodel/designer wife.

I actually liked how Dong Joo's actions towards Da Ji mirrored that of Yoon Ho's actions to his wife. Even though they got separated they had that sense of responsibility for their ex-wives. But that rarely happens to other couples in real life. Do they?

Jin Young's character is the typical understanding girlfriend (but not lead actress) to the main lead. I've already seen this set-up before with Jeon Hye Bin's character in Witch Yoo Hee. They don't burst with anger...they just burst into tears. If it were me, I dunno what to do also. Hehe!

Well, it was also the usual love-hate relationship between the two main leads. That is oh so old already in Kdramas, but still I enjoy watching it. The denial stage between the two was quite long. Dong Joo just revealed his feelings by ep 14 or 15. Well the excitement would wane anyway if he gave in too early. I think Da Ji gave in to Dong Joo by the last ep already.

I just got confused with the agreement about the land. I don't want to go on details anyway since I'm not familiar with construction businesses anyway.

This drama also gave me a strong determination to go to Jeju Island. It's like my dream paradise. I really wish I could go there. I especially like the spot with the tree on a hill. I also love the ranch house. It looks like an ideal and cozy home. Sigh.

It's not really a superb drama but it showed us a new environment. It's important that a drama shows something new, even if some elements are so old already. It also sparked my desire to become a veterinarian again because of the horses. But I don't think I could study again. LOL

If you are a Changmin fan like me...better watch it because no matter how awkward his acting was (well some people said it was) you'll still love him. He really looked like a model! Changmin in different suits was like...*dies*. It made me love Changmin again!

The Fugitive Plan B (Kdrama)

It's been so long since I watched this and I won't be able to react about every detail about it. I wasn't able to understand everything about it anyway. Hahahaha!

Ask me why I watched this and I only have 2 answers, Rain and the Philippines. Yeah, you heard it right, Rain-oppa did shoot a lot of scenes here in my country and in between those shoots he even held a concert. Of course I had to watch it. My first time seeing him live. Hihi!

Moving on to the drama, it was truly action-packed. But there were also comedic scenes especially by Rain that made me laugh so hard. He was your usual genius who seemed a like a dork. Hahahahaha!

I really loved the first episode and I'll never forget it because most scenes were from my country. The part alone made you believe the first scene was in the northern part of the Philippines, but the actual shoot of the beach and pool scene were in Cebu (if I'm not mistaken).

The best chase sequence, which followed the first part was done in Escolta, Manila. Hahaha! Reminiscent of old Filipino action movies...then you see Rain there doing a smashing sequence for this drama. NICE!

There was also a chasing sequence done with Jungjin somewhere near our place! It was at teh Aguinaldo Shrine. I live minutes away from there and I cried when I saw it. If we knew, we could have gone there to watch the scene being shot. But of course they were being discreet about shoots anyway. LOL

Okay going on to the story, it actually revolved around who murderd this annoying girl's adoptive parents. Sorry, I really find Jini, the main leading lady, annoying. She's just annoying maybe because her face looked expresionless for me. But infairness she can do action scenes. There were scenes she didn't have a double.

Well it turns out the murder of Jini's adoptive parents is linked to some ancient treasure during the war. Okay don't ask me the details, I don't understand it much anyway since I failed to keep focused on all episodes. Gold bars suddenly showed up, so I think it was those gold bars. Jungjin's character even went to the Philippines to use up his gold bars.

I got irritated with Daniel Henney too. Wel maybe because he keeps speaking in English. Well he's your typical American-born guiy who speaks in English but gets answered in his native language. I just hated those scenes. But it really happenes in reality. Well his scenes with Sophie, his secretary, were better since Sophie can speak English well. I feel bad for Sophie though. She can't get Daniel Henney's love in the drama.

What's nice is they filmed in other several location lke China, Macau and Japan. It really was a thrilling drama. I super liked it even though I failed to understand a lot of key points. And the ending didn't seem right. It seemed there is so much more needed to be done. Oh well.