Under the Skin – First Impressions

Don’t you just love it when you come across a show you didn’t even know existed and end up enjoying the heck out of it? Some of them are real hidden gems, others just ones that people may well be watching but not writing/talking about. I don’t really know which category I’d put Under the Skin in but I did come across it only because Karie the Magne @ Dramas with a Side of Kimchi posted her first impressions of it. I was intrigued enough to check it out myself. Yup, loved it. Enough to go through all 10 episodes available @ Viki so far. 😀

Grid – First Impressions

I do feel a bit apprehensive to be writing a first impression post after just one episode as the whole thing can go to pot later on *cough*The Veil*cough*. But… Grid is written by Lee Soo Yeon, who penned Stranger/Forest of Secrets, so one can be somewhat assured that Drama will stay on course.

Black Sun (aka The Veil) – First Impressions

I don’t watch all that many Korean action/spy shows and I’m especially hesitant to watch any while they are airing. So many have gone wonky at some point, one way or the other. There’s just often too much of The Stupid in them. Yes, most action shows tend to be the same world over. Plenty of explosions, car chases, violence that tends to lean on the gratuitous side and so forth, pretty basic stuff. To make any show stand out in a sea of similar content, is the writing, execution and actors. I know there are plenty of people who are happy with just “thrills per minute” but I get bored if there is nothing else to latch onto. I want a good , engaging story no matter what the genre is!

First Impressions

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these. It’s just that whenever I plan to, I can never find the time till I’m more or less done with the dramas in question. 😀

Chicago Typewriter – first impressions

Now this is how you meld together different genres so that they form a cohesive whole! And without making you feel like it’s made of half a dozen different shows that have nothing in common. I’m hooked.

First Impressions

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon
I came to the end of Ep 3 and suddenly realised what had been bothering me all the way through – I don’t particularly like this show. Well, there are parts I was ok with. Some of the comedic moments managed to get a guaff out of me and I like our male lead, who is a bit strange in a fun way but that’s about it. Not feeling any of the other characters, though I guess the gangsters will turn out to be more significant than just passing comic relief. I also think that Bong Soon is rather annoying, too cutsey and dim. I don’t see any real depth in her. I don’t think Park Bo Young is at fault here but rather it’s the way the character has been written. Gook Doo is supposed to be rather stoic and by the book but unfortunately he just comes off stiff and sort of ‘beige’. A better actor would probably have been able to infuse some life in the character.

I was pretty much on the fence already after the first 2 episodes as I felt the plot to be a bit too ‘busy’. There’s already someone targeting Min Hyuk, so adding a creepy killer/abductor into the mix seems like an overkill. I could understand if they played the crime part for laughs but this isn’t the case here. Kdramas seldom manage to mix genres in a satifying way, especially if the said genres are at opposite ends of the spectrum. I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I was watching two different shows.
Dropped

Father is Strange
I haven’t watched a weekend family drama in ages but I like what I’ve seen of this one so far. It’s rather funny with surprisingly poinganant moments here and there. And it isn’t just the father who is strange but the whole main cast of characters is a bit zany, ha. There also doesn’t seem to be any makjangy baddies, the only antagonistic char is more to be pitied than despised. The plot is rather predictable but oddly comforting at the same time. In a typical kdrama way the drama’s world is also sort of condensed. Everyone is connected in some way. We skipped the birth secret this time but there is a false indentity thingy going on instead.

It’s a 50 epi drama so the first fiew episodes have been mostly set up and character introductions. I’m looking forward to Lee Joon’s char inserting himself into the family and the highjinks that’ll ensure. Joong Hee is a hoot. A former idol turned (bad) actor with an overblown ego, underlaying insecurites and a bad temper. It’s a character that could easily be very one note but fortunately there seems to be more to him than meets the eye at first glance.

It’s early days yet so no guarantees I’ll stick with this till the end. The start was promising though.
On the roster – for now

First Impressons: The “Two Moons”

First Impressions: Vampire Detective

I like a good mystery and I also like supernatural stories, so a genre mashup of seluthing + supernatural is like something made especially for me. 😉 Despite of there having been a plethora of vampire shows in the recent past, I don’t think that particular combination is one that’s been done to death. A lot hinges on the script of course and how much new ‘blood’, pardon the pun, TPTB are able to insert into the story.

First Impressions… of bunch of dramas

Now that I’ve finally managed to get The Epic Re-watch done, I’ve had some time to spare for the new kids on the block. 🙂 There’s been a gaggle of new dramas starting this month and I’ve given some of them my best school try.

A Village, Flying Dragons and Sassy Cheerleaders