Korean TV series

[skylee]

bhchao, thanks for the link. I have the OST and I prefer the korean version. haha.

Re "Which Man Loved the Deepest Among all the K-Dramas You Have Watched", I would support Song Seung Hyun in Autumn Tale. (The last scene where he is hit by a truck against a blue sky background is hard to forget ...)

But I would also support Ji Jin Hee in Dae Jang Geum.

[Ian_Lee]

I currently watch the drama DVDs that have been shown 2 years ago -- 情定大饭店 (Hotelier) which IMO is much better than its Japanese counterpart.

And after all those love-to-death dramas like "Stairway to Heaven", 情定大饭店 is much more refreshing.

However, it seems 裴帥 or 勇樣 (whatever nickname you prefer) is less handsome in this drama.

But there is an interesting cultural difference I notice in episode 9:

When a hotel guest got into a brawl with a hotel staff, the CEO apolgized to him but the guest insisted to call the police. In the hotel room, other than the guest and the CEO, the general manager and the floor manager are also present.

In this drama (Korean style), the CEO knelt down to beg for forgiveness but the two managers stood still.

But if it is a Japanese drama, I think all would kneel down to beg for forgiveness. The GM might call in another dozen staff to come in to kneel down.

But if it is a Chinese drama, nobody would kneel down.

[Ian_Lee]

I am just re-watching the drama comedy Sweet 18 that was aired two years ago:

http://us.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.aspx/section-kdrama/code-k/version-all/did-10598/pid-1003201688/

The interesting part of this comedy is that the guy (who is a prosecutor) and the girl (18-yr old High School student) first met owing to Zhuge Liang's famous 出師表.

I don't expect in Korea nowadays, a prosecutor would go back to a traditional school to learn 出師表 and a young 18-year old Grade 12 student would know what 出師表 is after she picked up the book the guy left!

[Ian_Lee]

Because of 張東健, I watched the 5-yr old drama 愛上女主播 (All about Eve).

IMO 張東健 is comparable to Andy Lau and even better. He can act as good guy or bad guy, young guy or mature guy.

[bhchao]

I have heard positive comments on the MBC drama Palace, which is currently airing on MBC. It is enjoying high ratings due to a creative twist to the plot, instead of the usual "car-accident", "brother-sister" love you find in the old dramas.

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/culture/200603/kt2006030822063811690.htm

My co-worker is currently renting the videocassettes for Palace (showing the earlier episodes). The drama is about to conclude in Korea, and she cannot wait to buy the DVD.

[skylee]

Thanks bhchao that "palace" seems very interesting. I will try to see if I can get a copy.

Video cassette!!!!

[skylee]

Re the series "Kung", I've bought the DVDs of the first 12 episodes and have watched 10 of them. It is ok and entertaining enough.

The actor who plays the crown prince is not attractive enough IMHO. But the real horror is the appeareance of "Prince William" in like episode 10.

[Ian_Lee]

"Palace" debuts on Wednesday in Hawaii.

[zhenhui]

Princess Lulu is really really good.... some parts might be really unbelivable in the real world but it's really an entertaining series! Alot of nice, witty and heartwarming dialogues

A very funny and romantic series ^_^

PS: There are some similiarities to Lovers in Paris

[bhchao]

This link lists the top ten best and worst Korean dramas of 2005, along with the top ten dramas with the highest viewer ratings. http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/004666.html

Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-shin and Emperor of the Sea, dramas that Ian had first brought up, are on the top ten best list.

zhenhui, Princess Lulu is one of the top ten worst dramas. But hey, who cares what the critics think.

[zhenhui]

yeah i know bhchao, i feel sad for it

alot of it's dialogues are very clever and witty...enjoyable

thus feel really sad for it's bad reviews

so i did a good review for it

Princess Lulu Review

cheers!

[skylee]

I have finished watching the series "Princess hours / Palace 宮". I think it is quite good, nothing sophisticated but entertaining enough. Part of the last episode was shot at Macau, which looks fairly beautiful.

[Ian_Lee]

If you don't want to spend so many sleepless nights to wtach 20-episodes Korean drama, some of their short dramas are quite good too. Recently I watched the 2-hr drama "Hanoi Bride". Almost the whole drama was filmed in Hanoi and the famous karst Vinh Ha Long bay.

[bhchao]

I was browsing last week at a store that sells Korean and Canto-pop culture items, and came across the DVD 12-episode set of Palace. I almost bought it. However it costs $26.99 USD.

Call me cheap, but I was not prepared to spend that much for only 12 episodes. Also I was concerned that I might waste time on a drama that might not be worth the caliber to spend that amount.

I am very interested though in viewing the traditional Korean hanbok costumes featured in the drama, if any.

[skylee]

I bought the whole set of DVDs of Palace (24 episode) for less than USD10. Quality is high, though the chinese subtitles get very confusing in the last episodes. haha. sometimes you can't expect efficiency to co-exist with quality ...

[bhchao]

KBS recently finished airing 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo), another drama that breaks away from the conventional plot of brother/sister love or Cinderella love stories. Thumbs up from this review: http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/005601.html

The ratings in Korea have been mediocre. (Winter Sonata had mediocre ratings, but when on to become a mega-hit overseas)

Goodbye Solo focuses more on realistic characters with real-life problems. http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/culture/200602/kt2006022417020511690.htm

[bhchao]

I have been listening to the OST for "I'm Sorry I Love You" recently (actually bought the soundtrack). The second track on the soundtrack is emotionally powerful. Has anyone watched the drama? I never watched it despite its popularity.

Based on this review, http://www.spcnet.tv/reviews/review.php?rID=938, the drama does not seem to revolve around pretty faces or love triangles, but revolves around a "low life"'s struggles in life and his coming to terms with his mother and brother despite conditions of adversity.

Seems interesting, but still hesitant May not be the type of drama for those who like comedies or hilarious storylines.

[Antares]

honestly speaking, i find most korean drama repetitive (plot i mean), since i saw a lot of similarities between Goong and Full House (although i like Full House a lot more). And I dislike romantic tragedies, which is what the mostly make...

My favourite korean drama is "All In" (currently watching it, n i kno dat its old), I would say that has the best development of all the ones I watched, although the plot is similar to "Hotelier", it added some factors that made it appeal to a wider range of audiences.

if Kdrama werer to add some creativity to their plots and characterizations, it would be much much better imo

[bhchao]

if Kdrama werer to add some creativity to their plots and characterizations, it would be much much better imo

I agree. To be honest, I have never watched Winter Sonata or Stairway to Heaven. If plots like brother/sister or wicked stepmother Cinderella love stories are used excessively, then there may be a problem of unoriginality.

The last of the "season" series, Spring Waltz, has finished airing in South Korea. It had lousy ratings. Ironically the dramas that Koreans shun, like Winter Sonata or Spring Waltz, often become mega-hits overseas. In other words, the producers of these type of dramas cater to foreign audiences (ex. beautiful faces, spectacular scenery, all without great acting)

Usually the best dramas to watch are the ones with the highest ratings in Korea, although that is not always the case. I watched Emperor of the Sea and liked it a lot. It consistently had high ratings in Korea when it aired. And I became a fan of Su Ae after watching her acting performance in the drama. She is one of the underrated actresses in Korea.

I have not watched Goong yet. It had very high viewer ratings. What aspect of Goong was similar to Full House?

Critics have called Goodbye Solo one of the best dramas of 2006, but don't take my word for it and watch it immediately. I am going to check it out one of these days.

IMO, actresses like Choi Ji Woo and Song Hae Gyo are overrated, especially the former, who is the queen of plastic surgery. Song Hae Gyo is cute and adorable, but I think she is a bit overrated considering her actual acting abilities. Based on what I heard, her acting wasn't that good in her debut film where she starred with Cha Tae Hyun.

Korean films are much better than the dramas. While TV dramas are getting repetitive in terms of plot and originality, Korean films are going the other way. (Feel free to disagree with me)

[Antares]

^ just answering to ur question as in how Goong is similar to Full House

Here r the similarities i found:

Characters: avg crazy girl (Sung Hae Gyo in Full House, Yoon Eun Hye in Goong), super famous dude (the Prince dude in Goong (i dunno his name), Bi/Rain in Full House)

Storyline: avg crazy girl have love hate relationship wit the famous dude (like full house)

o yea, theres also a girl who rejects the famous guy n then start liking him n compete against the female protagonist.... (i cant really spoil it since im only on ep 6.... yes, i takes a long time to watch on youtube)

Setting: Goong - took place in the palace, Full House (well u can tell by the name), all revolves around a residence

Names: Goong = Palace, which is similar to Full House

Anyways i find those two very similar rite now, but i still have to complete the series after my exams so yea....

*the only reason y i find full house better is because it has Han Eun Jeong in it, lol

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off topic here, but i gotta recommend this korean variety show: X Man (no, not X-Men n it has nothing to do wit Marvel)

it is the funniest show eva, n the best korean TV program there is imo.