Day 30: Your Favourite Drama Moments

It’s the small moments that make up a drama for us. They are the things that stay with us long after the drama is over and the reason why we are addicts in the first place. The small moments are the things that make us gush and fan girl our way through this blog. Without them there wouldn’t be an obsession and there certainly wouldn’t be a blog.

Despite this 30 day challenge taking far longer than we anticipated, we have thoroughly enjoyed completing it. We’re so glad that we finally made it to the last post without throwing in the towel. Yay.

We hope you’ve enjoyed reading our challenge posts as much as we’ve enjoyed writing them and hopefully in the process you’ve found a couple dramas worth checking out…or avoiding.

 Here is a quick rundown of some of our favourite drama moments:

The moment our expectations of true love went up:

Coffee Prince’s Choi Han-Gyul played by the lovely Gong Yoo has ruined us for any guy in real life. His love confession in this drama is still a standout even after all these years.

He didn’t care what she was; all he knew was that he loved her. Sigh*

The moment we knew that Hana Yori Dango would be one of favourite dramas of all time:

There are so many awesome moments like; watching Makino fly kicking her OTP, their first date, their break up in the rain but the moment that sealed the deal for us will always be the phone scene.

You know what we’re talking about. We’ve gushed about it on a number of occasions so forgive us if we’re on repeat but we just love that scene!  The scene was just drowning in angst and longing and we adored it so much. It was the scene that made us realise how much we love this OTP and despite all the crap that came their way, we were more than happy to watch it all just to witness their HEA.

The moment where we knew that we would love Jang Geun Suk for life:

You’re beautiful – watching him dancing around a field while a wild animal is charging at him was the funniest moment in You’re Beautiful but it was also the moment that made us JGS fan girls for life. It’s an irrational feeling; we try not to think about it too much.

The moment we wished we had our very own stalker:

Who wouldn’t want Park Shi Woo as your very own stalker? Yes, yes, he had sinister, vengeful motives but still…look at him, he’s so cute.  

How funny was the fishing rod scene in Prosecutor Princess? We love that scene.

The moment a trailer made us want to tune in:

Que, Sera, Sera – OMFG was exactly what we thought after we watched that trailer. It was the first and only time where we watched a trailer and had to immediately watch the drama because it was just sooooo intense and…wrong. We loved it and are so glad that our bad Youtube habits led us to one of our favourite Kdramas.

The moment we realized that Kim Hyun Joong still hadn’t found a decent acting coach:

Like fools we didn’t learn our lesson and we once again gave Kim Hyun Joong a chance even though we knew it was a mistake. Who thought it was a good idea to give him a leading man role in Playful Kiss? Seriously, did they not watch Boys before Flowers?

A moment that broke our hearts:

Scent of a Woman nearly destroyed our tear ducts with the amount of crying we did while watching that drama. However it was one particular moment that nearly did us in completely. The moment we’re talking about is where; Chae Eun Suk aka Doctor Poopie pant’s patient died and he totally lost it and broke down in front of Yeon Jae. Our hearts ached for him soooooo much as we watched the weight of his responsibility finally hit home and he realized that the woman he’s always loved may die regardless of how hard he works to save her. His desperate begging for her to live was so intense and hard to watch that it feels like it’s engrained in our memory as one of those moments that will always stay with you. Uhm Ki Joon was so brilliant as the love rival in this drama, he totally stole the show.

A moment we laughed so hard we almost peed ourselves:

Pretty much the whole first episode of Wild Romance made us laugh from start to finish. If you’re ever feeling down, watch it, you will feel so much better.

There are far too many moments to ramble about, so we’ll stop while we’re ahead!

Day 21: A drama you have watched more than once

Having seen our fair share of dramas over the years now, we love nothing better than to sit down and rewatch a classic drama from our back catalogue. Well, that is when we’re not obsessing over a currently airing drama or dealing with real life. When the mood strikes, we are more than happy to sit down and revisit a drama that takes us back to a time when we were obsessive fan girls and reminds us exactly why we adore watching dramas so much.

Dramas we have re-watched just because they are pure awesome:

Hana Yori Dango/ Boys before Flowers, Secret garden, City Hall, Pride, Que Sera, Sera, Soulmate, My Country Calls… okay this list could go on and on!

Our silly/ sweet pick – Nodame Cantabile

 

We’ve re-watched this drama so many times over the years, it’s a classic. This is one of our favourite Jdramas and is up there on our list of all-time favourites- that’s how much we love it. The drama is funny, silly and has plenty of heart. The musicality is fantastic and the OTP are adorable. If you haven’t watched this drama before, watch it and then rewatch it because it’s that good!

 A drama we rewatch but have no clue why – Pasta

We adore the OTP, the easy breezy tone of the drama and the fact that absolutely nothing much happens other than the OTP making goo goo eyes at each other for 20 episodes. This is the epitome of a ‘fluffy drama’ and despite its flaws, we could happily watch this drama again and again because once in a while it’s nice to see a OTP that just love each other with zero problems in their lives and when they’ re this cute, how are we to resist?

A drama we watch when we’re depressed – Mars

 

When we’re depressed we like nothing more than to wallow in that misery and well Mars does the trick perfectly.

It’s dark, twisted and there are multiple scenes that will make your heart ache with pain in the best way possible. It’s hard to think of a drama that tops this one in regards to how dark and angsty it is and that is the reason why it’s scattered all over our 30 day challenge posts.

An episode of a drama we have watched multiple times – Yukan Club: episode 8

 

This is our random pick… really random. Let’s call it what it really is: A guilty pleasure.

If you have seen this episode you will know what we’re talking about, if you haven’t – you will probably wonder what is wrong with us. Hahaha.

Overall, this series was just okay but we remember watching this episode the first time around and we thought it was soooooo funny. We laughed nonstop for 45 minutes and by the end of it, we had the biggest, goofiest grins on our faces. The actual episode is beyond ridiculous but it was so silly and over the top that we were charmed from start to finish.

It has all of the following: A vengeful heartbroken gay villain, a seriously bad case of diarrhea, a bomb and plenty of cross dressing. What more can you ask for?

  

Why does he look so good as a woman!?

We watched it again a few times over the years and still we laughed at how outrageous it all was and despite knowing we shouldn’t love it… we still do.

Some dramas stay with you more than others. Elements like; your mood, when you watch it and how much time you have to dedicate to it, all factor in on how much you will love a drama. For us, the dramas listed above have made us very happy over the years and they are the reason why we continue to tune in because we hope to add to that list of dramas that make us fangirls that forsake sleep and real life to obsess religiously over a drama…well that is until you find the next one anyway!  

Day 4: Your Best Couple

This topic is too ambiguous for our liking. What does ‘best’ mean anyway? As rabid OTP shippers this question is hard. We could be here for hours, rambling endlessly about OTPs that we love. As a result we decided that we’d discuss a OTP that is unlikely to win any ‘best’ categories but nevertheless they were a couple that had us hooked from start to finish and never have we wished for a HEA for any OTP as much as we did for them.

Their love was haunting, intense and utterly fascinating to watch. After completing this drama, our expectations for what we classify as a ‘good’ OTP changed drastically. We had seen firsthand what a OTP’s chemistry should be like, how they should look and feel for each other during the good times and most importantly the bad times.  After finishing this drama, we reflected back on earlier dramas and their OTPs and we laughed at how pathetic they were in comparison.

Who are we talking about you ask?

Que Sera, Sera’s Tae Joo and Eun Soo

 Their relationship was damaged, angsty and heartbreakingly compelling. We adored it.

In reflection, this OTP were apart more than they were together but maybe that is why we liked them so much. The writing and acting involved made it easy for us to believe this OTP’s feelings for each other. Therefore watching their longing and angst as they tried to move forward as individuals with other people was completely engrossing because we knew that sooner or later they would just explode and yield to their feelings and boy was that moment GOOOOOOOOOD! If you have seen the scene we’re talking about you know exactly what we mean. If you haven’t, you need to watch this drama ASAP. It’s so worth it.

OH.THE.ANGST!

For us, the couple were connected more on a primal level than anything else. They were completely different from one another but their chemistry was undeniable. She was an innocent and he was a bastard that did whatever he had to for money. However, through the course of the drama she changed him for the better. Don’t get us wrong, it wasn’t a cheesy, miraculous change. He made plenty of mistakes along the way but his feelings for her made him a better man by the end of it.

The way these characters evolved throughout the drama was brilliant, it felt completely authentic.  The issue of character development and changing at the right pace is something that a lot of dramas fail to do successfully. More often than not it feels contrived and rushed, however QSS did a great job in ensuring that they stayed true to the essence of the drama as well as the OTP.

A lot of viewers hated the way the drama handled the OTP’s relationship in the end but we thought it was not only symbolic but also practical. They were far too screwed up and damaged to have worked straight away and frankly we wouldn’t have brought their reunion.

This couple is a standout for us because their feelings were genuine and realistic. They were far from perfect and that is something we can relate to. Also their insane chemistry helped!

If you love a good OTP – this is the drama for you.

Favourite Quote from Que Sera, Sera:

‘Even if we die and rot away, I don’t think my feelings for you will ever change.’

Eun Soo to Tae Joo

Other couples worth mentioning include:

Hana Yori Dango’s Makino and Domyoji, Pasta’s Chep and Yoo Kyung, Mar’s Ling and Qui Luo, Nodame Cantabile’s Nodame and Chaiki, You’re Beautiful’s Tae Kyung and Mi Nam, Coffee Prince’s Eun Chan and Han Kyul, Pride’s Halu and Aki…

2010 ~ End of Year Review

We watched far too many dramas this year…it’s a disease, so don’t judge us too much!

This year’s lot of dramas were disappointing to say the least- We think that’s the general consensus amongst most drama viewers- there were far too many dramas that started off so well and got you completely hooked from the start and then quickly descended into stupidity or frankly crap. That’s got to be the most annoying thing about it all…you get all excited and invest yourself in the drama only to be disappointed even more than you would have if it was rubbish from the start.
So here is a rundown of all of the dramas we managed to watch during 2010 with our general thoughts and feelings as well as our marks out of 10.

2010 Dramas that we completed:
Prosecutor Princess– The most unexpected drama love of 2010. We started it thinking it was going to be completely stereotypical, fluffy and possible annoying but we were so wrong. We completely and utterly fell for the characters- especially the leading lady who could have been so 2D but instead conveyed such sincerity and warmth that you can’t help but root for her. The story was also well structured, so compelling and by the end of it you will be sad to see it finish. Plus the relationship between the OTP was at once sticky, angst ridden and so sweet.

Definitely a must watch:

How much we liked it: 9/10- How good it was technically: 9/10

My Country Calls– Loved this drama so much!!! We hadn’t really seen a K-drama that we could label ‘comedy’ but we definitely found one in the form of this drama. Every episode will have you laugh at something; the script is what really stands out- solid, well written and so very funny.

Who knew that Ryu Jin could be so funny? He has to be the best thing about this drama, he stole every scene he was in.

Why don’t more people know about this gem of a drama? It’s definitely worth watching.

How much we liked it: 10/10- How good it was technically: 9/10

Cinderella Unni– Oh dear where do we start with this one… First 3/4 episodes were drama gold. So well written, acted and we were utterly hooked. Then they had a time leak and we went from mild disappointment to anger as the weeks past- WTF? Has to be the only response by the time you finish this drama. Don’t watch it; it’s a waste of time- life’s too short to watch multiple crying scenes and pathetic siblings fighting over nothing.

How much we liked it: 4/10- How good it was technically: 2/10

I am Legend– Don’t watch it! Don’t be fooled by the first couple episodes being reasonable good, the majority of it is really rubbish. The drama had elements that could have been really good; like a potentially hot OTP- completed wasted and not even resolved at the end. Really good friendship dynamics ruined by long winded court cases and a repulsive ex husband that gets redeemed. It’s angering just reflecting on it.

Only good thing about it is the OST.

How much we liked it: 2/10- How good it was technically: 3/10

Pasta– Sure nothing ever happened and it had to be the fluffiest drama of 2010 but still… we really liked it. It was the OTP that did it for us. We loved them as a couple- so much chemistry, charm and it was lovely watching them do nothing for far too many episodes. (Don’t judge us too much).

How much we liked it: 8/10- How good it was technically: 3/10

Pick the stars– This was a drama that we didn’t expect to enjoy but we found ourselves recapping weekly and most importantly finishing it. We really liked the leading lady, the kids and eventually the leading man (we hated him for the first few episodes!). However the drama was messy, had irrational love rivals and by the end of it we found ourselves glad that it had finished.

How much we liked it: 4/10- How good it was technically: 4/10

Mary stayed out all night– The most disappointing drama of 2010?? Well it certainly sounds like it from the forums, blogs and ratings. It’s a shame it could have been really good but instead it just missed the mark. We think we were more forgiving than most… we actually liked the lead OTP, fell hard for the pitiful LR and just went with the silliness that was the drama but yes, we too have to agree it really wasn’t that great.

How much we liked it: 6/10- How good it was technically: 2/10

Baker King-We gobbled this drama up like the greedy drama lovers that we are- obsessed, hooked and emotionally invested right to the end. We loved the leading man Tak Gu so much- such a lovely character to root for- strong, lovable and he sure tugged at our hearts. We confess we cried during both reunions between Tak Gu and his mother and father. The drama managed to have the perfect mix of drama, angst and warmth and we were completely satisfied by the end.

This is a prime example of how the classic K-drama scenarios can be done well and even though you’ve seen it all before- trust us, you will still be hooked.

Definitely worth the crazy high ratings!

How much we liked it: 10/10- How good it was technically: 8/10

Down with Love (T)- Oh dear- we know this is a fan favourite and yes it started off cute, funny and very watchable but honestly it could have been resolved in half the number of episodes and it really didn’t need so many flash back scenes from the same flipping episodes.

Pros- Jerry is hot. Neg- every thing else.

How much we liked it: 3/10- How good it was technically: 1/10

PS Man (T)-  We really loved every episode up until around episode 10 and then we suddenly got really annoyed at this stupid OTP- they had no reason not to be together!!! It was infuriating to watch. Plus when you’ve got the most perfect love rival waiting in the wings, it just makes it all the more annoying.

Best thing about it: If you’re looking for a good laugh- check out Blue Lan’s crazy hair and leopard print trousers he would wear on a regular basis. 

Also a love rival that got viewers so excited that there was even a public vote to get the writers to change the end. Love fan power.

How much we liked it:  (up to episode 10: 9/10) the rest of the drama 4/10- How good it was technically: 3/10

Autumn’s Concerto (T)- We were completely hooked with this drama, it had everything that we can’t resist: an OTP who shared amazing chemistry and a drama that loved to bring in as much angst that was physically possible per episode! The sad thing with this drama is that it was so good up to about episode 6 and then that dreaded time leap occurred and ruined it! From episode 6 onwards the drama slowed down and cut the hot angst, which is a total shame because it was sooo good at the start. That said- do we regret watching it? No way- definitely one of the better T-dramas of the year.

How much we liked it: 7/10- How good it was technically: 7/10

 

Previous year’s dramas that we completed this year:

Que Sera, Sera– LOVED IT!!! It was all about the OTP- so intense, angsty and addictive. Watch it.

How much we liked it: 10/10- How good it was technically: 9/10

Loving you a thousand Times– We were hooked from the start. Melodrama at its best. We avoid melodramas like the plague but this was done so well- Such a tight script, well acted and intense. We cried so much- our feelings for characters were so turbulent we went from hate to like in literally half an episodes- now that’s good writing.

How much we liked it: 9/10- How good it was technically: 8/10

Save the last dance for me– One of the older dramas we watched this year but it was really good. Although the drama had many predicable elements- we fell hard for the OTP- they were so sweet together and when you’ve got a OTP that you like enough- you can get past ridiculous memory loss scenarios and the fact that the end was pretty a complete rip off of the Hollywood movie- An Affair to remember.

How much we liked it: 8/10- How good it was technically: 7/10

Thank You– We cried so much! We were emotionally invested from the start- the story was so compelling and pulled at our heart strings so much. Not your standard K-drama- it’s got so much more depth, heart and it was steeped in reality.

How much we liked it: 10/10- How good it was technically: 9/10

Lawyers of Korea- It’s a nice way to past the time. It was funny, romantic and had a very sticky love square.

How much we liked it: 7/10- How good it was technically: 7/10

How to meet a perfect neighbour– We enjoyed it while we watched it- if you’re looking for a dramatic OTP (concubine bracelet *shudder), cunning Love rivals and greedy evil people- look no further, my friends.

How much we liked it: 6/10- How good it was technically: 8/10

Smile, You– Curse you greedy drama makers- you ruined this drama by adding a 15 episode extension! Seriously, we really enjoyed this drama with its adorable trouble free OTP, annoying but funny love rivals and entertaining family dynamics.

How much we liked it: 7/10- How good it was technically: 6/10

Pride (J) – We loved everything- that’s right everything! From the music, the bromance and the lovely OTP. For a 12 episode drama- they managed to get so much packed in.

Definitely a much watch J-drama.

How much we liked it: 10/10- How good it was technically: 10/10

  

2010 dramas we shelved for various reasons:

Sungkyunkwan Scandal– We definitely plan to finish this drama- we got to episode 12 and we still loved pretty everything about it. Then Baker King entered our lives and every other drama became a distant memory.

Queen of Reversals– We shelved Queen of Reversals because we didn’t like Tae Hee’s husband, we thought he was a complete idiot that didn’t really love his wife and the idea of watching this OTP was far too off putting BUT….news of an extension and Park Shi Hoo as a love interest, we may just need to tune in again. *giggles.

PSH must be a leading man’s nightmare- they must fear it every time he’s added to a drama list because seriously the guy managed to make himself a lead with sheer screen presence- man he’s good. We realised that Jung Joon Ho and Kim Seung Woowho was the leading man in How to meet the perfect neighbour are best friends in real life and if PSH gets upgraded to leading man (again) – that would mean that this set of best friends would both have been pushed aside from leading man because they can’t compete with the charms of PSH. How unlucky!

The woman who still wants to marry– We really enjoyed watching this drama when we were tuned in. It was hilarious at times, depicted great friendships and made us laugh out loud multiple times. However even though it was all of the above, it just didn’t hold our attention enough to complete.

 

2010 really was the year that could have been. So many dramas that had so much potential to be amazing but failed to deliver the goods! It wasn’t all bad we found dramas that were unexpected loves that have a special place in our drama viewing hearts. Here’s hoping that 2011 will be filled with more tear jerkers, angst filled, laugh out loud funny dramas.

Happy New Year! Love the MustHaveSubs Girls XxX

Drama memo: A drama everyone should watch

Asian dramas are one of those things that people are very particular about, no doubt people may have read comments on our blog and thought: are these girls insane that drama was so much crap and here they are gushing about it? We know we sure have, but isn’t that the best thing about dramas- how  it manages to invoke such strong feelings in people regardless of whether it’s pure frustration or utter love at first viewing.

Here are a few of our selected dramas that we think everyone should watch at one stage of their drama viewing experience.

First up is our Taiwanese pick: MARS

We know for a fact that many of you guys will agree with this pick and if you haven’t seen it- what are you waiting for?  This is T-drama gold, simple as that. This drama was an example of love at first viewing, honestly it grabbed us so quickly that we were really sad when it finished because it was that good. Barbie Hsu and Vic Zhou are amazing in this drama and ultimately the reason why you will be glued to your screens. As individuals they are both so broken and damaged but together they make such a romantic OTP that you won’t be able to resist rooting for them until the very end.

Like we said this is a T-drama at its best- it’s got angst, CRAZY drama, a lovely romance and most importantly of all its got depth. It’s about healing, moving forward and falling in love against all the odds.

Watch it, you won’t regret it.  

Our Korean Pick: Que Sera Sera

Granted that this drama is not for everyone but if you get- you will love it. We thought about our Korean pick a lot and of course there are so many dramas to pick from but this drama sticks out for us for so many reasons. This drama is the perfect remedy for those people that are semi new to dramas- what we mean is for those people that have exhausted all the classics and are officially fed up all of the fluffy dramas. The drama is as far away from fluffy as it gets. It’s intense, so very angsty and oh so good! It’s labelled as a drama about the redemption of a bastard to a man- which it is but for us it’s all about the OTP. This drama has just the most haunting relationship between a OTP, their relationship will definitely stick out in your mind for a long after you have finished watching it.

It’s screwed up, the characters are so damaged and it’s just crazy good to watch !

Our Japanese pick: Hana Yori Dango

In contrast to Que Sera Sera this drama is one that everyone should watch, re-watch and watch again because we love it and we know for a fact, we’re not alone on this pick!

Our love for this drama is scattered across our blog and frankly we don’t get bored about gushing about how much we adore this drama. Everyone knows the story- mean/ crazy rich boy falls hard for tough poor girl add multiple issues keeping our OTP apart including; insane love rivals, crazier mothers and add memory loss for good measure.
The J-drama version has a special place in our hearts, in our opinion it’s the best remake out of the lot; it’s brilliantly acted especially by the leads, it’s well written and it has the right combination of laughs, angst and heart.

You will fall hard for this drama regardless of your age or the number of dramas you have watched in the past and if you don’t- there is something wrong with you- there we said it! Muhaha.

Que Sera, Sera- 16-17/ Finale

We’ve got to confess that the last two episodes had to be the weakest from the whole drama, which is a shame because we adore Que Sera, Sera and it has most definitely found a spot in our drama loving hearts.  The last episode felt very choppy, rushed and lacked that emotional punch that has defined this drama.

Things that didn’t work for us:

Personality transplants- This is one element of the drama that we really didn’t like especially with such a strong leading lady. After Tae Joo broke up with Eun Soo; her personality practically disappeared and she suddenly became this submissive wallflower, who just went along with whatever her Ice Robot husband said and hardly spoke her real thoughts or feelings. We get it, she’s so heartbroken and emotional damaged as a result of her break up with Tae Joo that she lost the will to really care about life and love but still…. we missed the kind, slightly naive but honest leading lady we rooted for from the start of the drama. This was particularly apparent when Ji Soo had her heart surgery and Joon Hyuk told her to stay away, as well as suggest that they leave for America even though Ji Soo hadn’t completely recovered. She just went along with what he said, no real arguments, nothing and this is from a girl that  was presented as someone who truly loves her family and spent the majority of her life taking care of them- it just felt wrong and was something we felt she really wouldn’t do.  

 

Joon Hyuk’s Jekyll and Hyde personality with Eun Soo- They really did have a very sweet, innocent relationship at the start of the drama but after their marriage, his behaviour was slightly inconsistent. One episode he was crazy and then he would return to mild mannered in the next, we wish they had made his behaviour more balanced, slowly spreading his jealous, distrustful nature across a few episodes rather than have it explode onto our screens, only for it to disappear immediately, this also adds to that overall rushed feeling at the end of the drama.

Joon Hyuk’s side story- Although this part of the drama had been well developed from the start, the conclusion fell completely flat. It was resolved in a very rushed and slightly predicable fashion. As a character Joon Hyuk was interesting for literally two minutes when he showed some feelings and revealed how betrayed and emotional damaged he was as a result of his father’s death and subsequently his upbringing in the Cha household. For a split second we thought the drama would go down the path of revenge and betrayal and really make Joon Hyuk’s character more original as a love rival but sadly for us that didn’t happen. In many ways this part of the drama was wasted with such a weak conclusion; especially when it had the potential to be very bold and interesting.  

Was it necessary to use a large part of the last episode as recap session of what’s happened over the last 17 episodes? We would have preferred more OTP time than a discussion of what’s already past.

Things we liked:

Tae Joo’s character development remained faithful right to the very end. Aside from the OTP’s love story, we loved the development of Kang Tae Joo from Bastard to human; it was done so well and was portrayed in a very organic and compelling way. We loved how he thanked Eun Soo for being his first love and how he explained he was scared and confused by the experience. We wondered what such an epic OTP would say to each other after two years apart and in our opinion that was perfect, it summed up exactly what this drama was all about and presented this very humbled, changed man.

We loved the desperation and intensity as Tae Joo begged Eun Soo to run away with him. Despite the mess that was their lives, all he wanted was her. The double screen crying shots with her inside the lift and him outside it was brilliant. It couldn’t have been any more apt; they were stuck in two different locations but still feeling exactly the same way. Also we adore Tae Joo’s beautiful man tears; Eric does man pain so well.

We were completely indifferent to Joon Hyuk and Eun Soo’s breakup at the Airport, the guy couldn’t even squeeze out a single tear but we loved Tae Joo and Hae Lin’s break up. It was one of the few scenes in the last episode that actually worked for us. It had plenty of emotion, angst and we really liked his reasoning for breaking up with her, this was the moment that as viewers we were presented with the transformation of Kang Tae Joo. Like he said, if he was the old him, he would have no problems living the rich life based on a lie but he had changed and understood her feelings and more importantly how she would feel if they got married, whereas before other people’s feelings/ opinions really didn’t factor in his mind when it came to fulfilling his needs.

We loved how Tae Joo never wavered from loving Eun Soo. Although he couldn’t quite understand it and at times it made him do stupid stuff, it was a lovely thing to watch this womanizer come to terms with falling in love. His tormented angst and heartbreak was just spot on and really made this drama all the more compelling to watch.

We like how the drama went full circle, ending as it began. We think two years was the right amount of time for a time leap, simply because what this OTP went through together and individually was huge and their relationship had become so damaged that it would be wrong and unrealistic if they were to become a couple, right after breaking up with their perspective others, they needed time to heal and grow. So although we would have preferred more OTP air time in the last two episodes we’re satisfied with their reunion at the end of the drama.  

 

Final thoughts for the overall drama:

Although the last two episodes didn’t quite work for us, we have absolutely no regrets about watching Que Sera, Sera. This great drama had just the more engaging and exciting OTP we’re seen on screen for a very long time; their chemistry was verging on haunting it was that good. The drama had a wonderful combination of writing and directing that allowed for us as viewers to truly experience and understand the characters and their journey. This was also helped with fantastic acting from the whole cast. The main four characters of this drama had incredible chemistry together. Sometimes in dramas the love rival relationships with the leads can be quite tiring to watch simply because they share zero chemistry together but in this drama all of the relationships were incredibly engaging to watch and you understood why they were in their relationships regardless of whether it’s due to physical or emotional security. The drama doesn’t drown in angst or drag at any point as a result it’s easy to remain completely engrossed and emotionally invested. Would we recommend this drama?  HELL YES- Its most definitely worth it.

Favourite top three scenes:

1. Tae Joo declares his love. Hello, this is the scene that made the drama!

2. Tae Joo finds out Eun Soo is pregnant- aka the glass scene. We loved this scene, it was heartbreakingly good.

3. The Lift scene- Tae Joo and Eun Soo’s first kiss. Come on all that chemistry and confusing emotions mixed together to make a very cute scene.

Favourite Quote:

‘Even if we die and rot away, I don’t think my feelings for you will ever change.’

Eun Soo to Tae Joo
 

Que Sera, Sera: 13-15

When we’re hooked on drama we avoid all things spoiler related including M.V, past commentaries – the lot, so you can imagine how excited we are about the last two episodes of Que Sera, Sera! We intend to watch them on Friday night, so for now we’re conspiracies galore with what we think is going to happen, it’s slowly driving us mad!

 

Things that happened over the last few episodes that has fuelled our increasing insanity:

 

Eun Soo married the Ice Robot aka Joon Hyuk! It’s the first time we’ve seen a Korean drama with such an epic OTP, that had one or both of the OTP doing something as drastic as marrying someone else.

 

Not only did she get married but she’s also PREGNANT! AHHHHH.

How great was the scene where Tae Joo found out she was pregnant?! Oh so good. We loved how he dropped his glass and was in such a state of shock that he sat there fumbling around trying to pick up the pieces despite cutting his hand in the process.  The look Tae Joo gave Eun Soo was just so tragically perfect: it was a combination of utter shock, betrayal and heartbreak all rolled into one. There were no words needed what so ever, just a very human response. Thank you drama for being so good to us.

 

Our theories about what’s going to happen now that Eun Soo is pregnant include the following scenarios:

 

1. The dates don’t match up and it can’t possibly be Joon Hyuk’s baby- we would love that!

 

2. Eun Soo loses her baby and it’s somehow Joon Hyuk’s fault. There has to be a realistic reason for leaving him.

 

3. She loses her baby and the grief of it all makes her realise that she can’t keep living in a fantasy.

 

We would be satisfied with any of the above as long as she ends up with Tae Joo. This OTP have to be up there with the best OTPs in dramas because they share just the most electric chemistry together and the way this couple look or talk to each other is just so intimate and intense that they make other drama couples just pathetic in comparison.

 

We haven’t seen Eric in anything before this drama but we’ve got to say he’s brilliant. The way he portrays Kang Tae Joo is just the right combination of masculinity with an edge of vulnerability. The thing we love about his character is that he spent his time thinking about how Eun Soo would feel about breaking up with him and how she would cope and totally ignored how he would feel. We love the tortured looks his sends Eun Soo’s way whenever he see her. We love how this lady’s man and possibly the most self assured man in Korea has found himself completely and utterly vulnerable to this very ‘ordinary’ female and regardless of how hard he tries he just can’t move on.

 

Two episodes to go and no matter how it goes, we have absolutely no regrets about watching this incredibly underrated but oh so good drama.

Que Sera, Sera -10 to 12

Post break-up: Is lump in your throat good! Episodes 10 to 12 were just the perfect depiction of heartbreak at its best. The acting and writing was spot on and just when we thought we couldn’t like and root for these characters any more, someone will say or do something that literally made your heart pound a little harder, it’s that good.

The scenes with Eun Soo crying by herself in the dark were so poignant and couldn’t have been better at showing how alone and completely engulfed she was in her heartbreak. The scenes worked so well because it’s a stark contrast to the rest of the time; She is someone who is forced to act strong, someone others depended on, so to see a strong character reduced to her most vulnerable state is very affective and really made us feel for her as a leading lady.

 

Tae Joo, you fool! Sacrificing yourself to save Eun Soo and her family from suffering is a noble thing to do in retrospect but come on man there are other ways to do it! The scenes where he spots Eun Soo at a distance were done so well, it was like he was unable to physically do anything but look at her with just the perfect look of heart ache and guilt, as viewers it’s pain achingly good to watch. The conversations between the OTP are amazing anyway but post break up its reached another level. You can literally cut the atmosphere with a knife, it’s that tense and the fact that Tae Joo is unable to stop himself from prying into her life and finding out how she is, ect, is so good to watch, you also get that added layer of hostile angst as Eun Soo has decided to give him the cold but polite treatment, which is the least he deserves after dumping her AGAIN!

Other mentions:

We wish Joon Hyuk wasn’t so desperate as a character. Eun Soo rejects him so many times but he bounces back and confesses his love, or marriage ect- you hardly know the woman and you love her! His behaviour may be a tad unrealistic in other dramas but in this drama it kind of works simply because he has been presented as such a pitiful character with no allies or love in his life. So here is this woman who is kind and sincere and most importantly says that she’ll be there when you need someone to talk to and in a way, despite its speed you can believe that he’s really fallen for her. We just wish we didn’t have to watch this really sad character get his heart broken again.
We wonder if the drama is going to change his personality and make him the big bad who betrays the mighty World Mall or if the writers will keep him as the loyal but tragic love rival?? We’re hoping for the big bad because we’re tired of feeling sorry for the love rivals in dramas.     

Sweetest quote from Joon Hyuk: ‘Eun Soo, please catch hold of me.’

We still hate Hye Lin, honestly the woman won! She got the guy, but still she’s acting like a pathetic brat. We love how she ‘won’ but is still eaten up with insecurity.

Have we mentioned how much we like the Grey’s Anatomy lift scenes? Those one/two minute lift scenes between the main characters speak volumes compared to a half an hour action sequence in other dramas and half of the lift scenes no one says a word! Now that’s a real testament to the great acting and writing of this drama. We think we’ve moved past the gushing phase, so we’ll stop while we’re ahead.

Que Sera, Sera- 4-10

It’s been a really long time since we’re been so hooked on a drama but we’re loving QSS so much that we spent the majority of Saturday marathoning the drama until we literally had to force ourselves to stop for the day…well until tomorrow anyway  he-he.

There are so many reasons why this drama works for us:

The OTP:

Yes, yes as hopeless romantics it’s a given that we like the OTP in a drama for it to work for us and this drama delivers the goods. As we’re mentioned before the OTP literally ooze chemistry on screen together and although they were a couple for about ten minutes in the drama it’s their relationship when they’re not a couple that makes this drama so compelling. Tae Joo is such an interesting character; he is unashamedly what he is- an arrogant player who uses his charms and looks to any means possible to take care of himself. However the writers have done well in showing that he’s not just a 2 dimensional character. As a character he has been presented as very human; he feels guilty, has shown compassion and can be rather considerate in his gruff manly kind of way, the fact that it doesn’t come naturally makes it all the more entertaining to watch.

It’s fascinating watching such a character come to terms with the fact that he cares for a girl that is the complete opposite of the type of girl that he goes for. This girl is of no use to him- she’s poor and has baggage but he is drawn to her again and again in the drama and the more they interact, the more you’re just waiting for them to jump each other bones because they are that hot for each other!

Han Eun Soo:

We really can’t stand dramas which have leading ladies that are good, kind blah blah but happen to be practically incompetent. It’s annoying to watch the same type of female presented over and over but in this drama Eun Soo is not only a dedicated, supportive sister and daughter, she is also presented as highly competent, a person with ideas and common sense. As well as that she’s not afraid to be honest and stand up for what she thinks is right. We totally understand why the leading man and the LR would fall for Eun Soo. Although Tae Joo must have liked something about her at the start of the drama, we love how he falls for her from a distance as he watches her blossom and prove herself to be a smart, capable person.

The love rivals:

When it comes to annoying love rivals; Hye Lin wins the prize for most calculating and revolting character on screen, she is constantly antagonising someone! That said, we’ve got to confess that her chemistry with Tae Joo and her ‘Oppa’ are off the charts HOT! Seriously the dinner scenes between the love square are intense, all those smouldering glares of lust/ hate and unspoken words are brilliant to watch.  

How lovely is the relationship between Eun Soo and Joon Hyuk? Seriously they are adorable, yes he is tad robotic and has issues with crushing on his ‘sister’ but he’s oh so good to Eun Soo. Their tentative and shy relationship was sweet on screen and he was always genuine, he never played with her feelings unlike ahem Tae Joo. Right off the bat we knew that he had no chance with Eun Soo and that his feelings were going to be unrequited- you’d think we’d be immune to feeling sorry for the LR in any type of Asian drama by now, but damn it, we do feel for this guy. He’s a nice guy, who was just trying to move on with his life.   

A touch of realism:

The most refreshing thing about this drama is how very realistic it is…well for a K drama anyway. The drama has very little action instead it’s made up of lots of conversations, which works fine because the drama happens to be written really well with sharp/ witty dialogue. The dialogue isn’t over the top; you can imagine much of the conversations taking place in real life. Up front, honest and at times dark in its comedy- take the toilet incident in the first episode. Outrageously funny to watch but the scene was really serious: with him yelling at her and her on the verge of tears but all that just added another layer to the humour. 

We also like the realistic relationships between the characters in this drama- The OTP shared a real kiss by episode 3 rather than right at the end of a drama like Cinderella Unni. The characters in this drama- date, hold hands, kiss…properly and more importantly act like normal people! How outrageous to have a 21^st century love story where the OTP don’t even hold hands until at least episode 12? We’re said this before, but the K drama industry need to watch some Taiwanese dramas to see how relationships can be portrayed in a more realistic manner.

Where we are:

This drama moves at a fast pace so it’s hard to recap across so many episodes but we currently stand at: Tae Joo’s second break up with Eun Soo after Ji Soo is hospitalized. 

So we’ve already watched Eun Soo get a love confession from Tae Joo with them having literally five minutes of happiness together- how absolutely amazing was THAT SCENE!? You know which one; a forced bed scene, a LR slap, a love confession and a make out session in the rain, all in a matter of 2 minutes! So good.

Anyway, we’ve rambled on far too much already so let’s just conclude that we’re obsessed and in love.

Que Sera, Sera- episodes 1-3

With the dreaded License pending notice for My Country Calls, it looks like we’re going to have to put this drama on the backburner for now, which is an absolute shame for us because we were thoroughly enjoying MCC and found it to be funny and very charming. Naturally being the drama enthusiasts that we are, we got over it quickly and picked something new to watch…of course!

Que Sera, Sera- episodes 1-3

If it wasn’t for the fact that life seemed to get in the way this week, we swear we would have watched a lot more than three episodes of this drama already but there you go. As we’ve mentioned before, this drama was always on the radar, add all the great feedback and very intriguing trailer it was a done deal that this was going to be next on our list.

As of yet nothing has happened that has grabbed us enough to start raving about the drama but we’ve got to admit we’re really enjoying it. The story consists of one of our favourite types of scenarios- the classic transformation of a bastard to human usually at the hands of a good woman – honestly we can never resist this story, especially when it’s done well…. which we’re hoping this drama will do.  

The ‘Bastard’ in this drama is Kang Tae Joo, who is great and is currently our favourite character (at least for now anyway). We’ve got to confess we expected him to be more of a bastard than he has been but we’re glad about this because we really can’t stand when one or both of the leading characters are unlikable or you just can’t relate with them because they are THAT different. Sure he is a player, has a bad temper and is morally ambiguous at times but he is also very human, a quality which seems to appear whenever the leading lady is around.

The OTP are already a couple we’re looking forward to watching, just because they are as different from each other as it gets. She’s a good, innocent girl from the country and well he’s a bastard who dates rich women for the perks but when they are on screen together its exciting because they not only share great banter together but they also have that simmer of chemistry between them which is desperately waiting to explode on the screen.

Oh we can’t wait for her to make him a better man and teach him the errors of him player ways. Giggles*