PrettyCarEye

Coffee, dear, Padam Padam is indeed wonderful. It's one of Jung Woo-sung's soundest roles. I loved him in this! And while it broke my heart I couldn't imagine a more worthy introduction to the world of Korean dramas. The show has a solid script, stellar acting and above average production standards. I sincerely hope it will be to your liking, if not become one of your favourites! :)

What's happenin' Rosie Rose!
WHO is the hotness on your profile?!
Please tell me so I can add all his dramas!!!

Wow, this sounds good! Onto the list you go!

Never heard of Remote, but I'll be sure to avoid it.

If I had to choose the lesser of 2 evils - the aegyo idiot or the super bitch, I'd choose the former. Bitchy heroines piss me off. I don't want to see them in my entertainment. I hate really jerk male leads too, but I've only met a few that were irredeemable while I have met far too many female leads who grate on my last nerve.

I am more tolerant of pretty much any type of ending in a movie. Movies are shorter & require less emotional investment. With dramas you spend hours of your life getting to know the characters. For me they become almost like friends. When things go south for them it upsets my enjoyment of the show, esp if it's a romance we're talking about. I know that's totally irrational, but it is what it is! :) I would never & could never watch 1 Litre of Tears! I don't care how life affirming it is. The worst thing I know is watching another human being suffer until they're dead! ::shudder::

There's just no way IHYV could have anything on OD so you made the right choice! :) Sæ is wonderful. She's sassy & spunky, but at the same time sweet & vulnerable. She found the perfect guy in Kai!

QIHM ... oh my god! Don't even get me started on that drama! Where that show is concerned, hype led me astray. So it ended up on my dropped list. #smdh

As for scripts ... yes, I write some from time to time! :) Mostly about topics that interest me. I wrote & directed a short back in 2011, but have produced many short films before & since. Producing is what I do on a daily basis, but I also want to write (more) & direct. My most recent script is about a female pedophile who was recently released from prison & is now trying to reconnect with her family. If I get my way it'll be a film next spring, but who knows ...

Nothing of the sort. Ok, I take back 'ma'am'. How about young lady?

As for producers and writers I can say a little about this since I'm a producer by profession. Now I'm a producer of independent films. I've never worked in TV so don't really know exactly how things go down there, but what I do know is that while TV tends to be more secure & stable, it gives much less creative flexibility to writers than film & esp indie film.

On TV productions writers do get a lot of pressure from producers / station execs to change things from how the writer originally imagined it ... unless you're some big name writer / series creator like Aaron Sorkin or Shonda Rhimes. Even then you still have to compromise. I don't know how things are done in Asia, but I wouldn't be surprised if the atmosphere is similar. Maybe even a little more extreme, esp for & toward women.

Ironically though, Asia, in particular S. Korea, offers far more opportunities in TV & film to female creatives than here in the West.
Interesting, isn't it?

Have you seen Orange Days? If you haven't then you should indeed get cracking! :)

It's a beautiful story about friendship, courage & love. If you're a fan of dramas where romance is the central theme then this is one of the best. A hidden gem. An oldie (from 2004) but totally a goodie. Even folks who are not a fan of romance as a genre love Orange Days.

You should consider giving Aishiteiru a chance too. Based on what I've said about it so far it might sound like it's not worth it, but at least the first 8 eps deserve to be seen. They're that wonderful, trust me. Moreover, I get the impression that you're a far more dispassionate viewer than I am so maybe the ending won't bother you as much (if you decide to watch it all the way).

I tend to get very attached to the characters as if they're real people & want the best for them. When things don't work out it's like something bad happened to one of my friends. And yes, the more mature elements I mentioned earlier are quite normalized in both OD & Aishiteiru. I don't want to say more about it to avoid spoiling you, but let's just say both shows present a very realistic portrayal of young couples very much in love.

So in terms of levels of maturity, from the highest to the least:

Aishiteiru to Ikketure (there's an age gap here but this show felt generally more adult than both OD & Tatta combined)
Orange Days (college students/young adults in their mid 20s)
Tatta Hitotsu no Koi (protagonists are around 20 yrs old)

Haha, nooo, I can't drop things. Must finish everything I start. That's why I'm very careful with what I choose to watch. I have to be at least 85% sure I'll like the drama before I start watching.
In my experience hyped up dramas aren't worth their salt so I don't think nothing's wrong with you, dongsæng!

Ha, now I get you! Well, yes, I think it is a drama I can like too. That's why I'm watching it. However, these first eps are a bit tedious like I said. I want the story to move out of the past & into present time where the protagonists are adults. That's where the real story starts I imagine. But anyway I'm going to tough it out & see where I'm led. Hopefully it's someplace good.

You've only watched the first 3 eps. Since both you and I don't really care for them I think our tastes in this regard are very on par. As for the rest of the drama, you can't say that for sure since you didn't finish it. Maybe you'd have liked it if you stuck with it.

LOL, I'm a little distracted so I can't concentrate on work. That's why I'm answering you so fast! :)

LOL, nor mine, but it has completed airing now so we're good to go! :)

LOL, your posts are confusing me!

Yes, I started it 2 days ago. I'm about to start ep 4. What were you saying last time about maybe it can be for me ... or not? I don't understand what you were trying to say.

And am I replying to you faster than usual?

I hear there are a number of Koreans in your country. Ever bumped into any cute ones? I see a few Koreans from time to time in my town, but they're always women! :/

LOL, I hear you!

Hey, so you're a Go Soo fan too are you? I fell in love with him in Love 911. He's half the reason I'm going to start Golden Empire tonight although I'm already watching another drama! :)

Just about the only problem that I have with her dramas is that the vast majority of them seem to have unsatisfying or downright unhappy endings. So I'm going to watch the ones I haven't seen yet, but I'll quit the show the minute I sense disaster. Romances should end happily, that's my policy. Once I see a bad ending, I can't unsee it and I can't forget. That in turn ruins the show for me so I rather not see such endings at all. I don't know how I'm going to fare because I don't drop shows. I guess we'll see.

2 Weeks, I have my eyes on it but I don't know yet. The needle is pointing toward a likely yes, though. What about it didn't work for you?

The show was written by Eriko Kitagawa. She's well known for writing some of the best Japanese romances there is. I've seen 3 of her dramas (Orange Days, Tatta Hitotsu no Koi and Aishiteiru to Ikketure) and they were all great. The thing I love most about her shows is that they're always so simple & relatable to the everyday lives of average people. And best of all they're genuinely sweet & romantic (not cheesy). I also like that she shows the importance of physical intimacy between a couple newly in love. I hate it something fierce when I watch Korean dramas (plus other Japanese dramas) & all the leads who supposedly are sooo madly in love can do is moon and giggle at each other. ::eyeroll::..

I loved, loved Orange Days whilst Tatta was just okay for me. I'm not very big on young love so that one didn't leave as big an impression like OD and Aishiteiru. Actually with a better ending Aishiteiru would have surpassed OD in my book because I felt Kohji & Hiroko's story was more mature, more romantic & more heartfelt. They existed in an adult world that I really liked (none of that silly prudishness I mentioned above). Quite refreshing to see that single motherhood, premarital sex & cohabitation were not stigmatized & frowned upon in Aishiteiru.

I don't know if the actors' age played a role. The male lead in the drama & in real life is quite some years older than the female so I'm not sure how much water that theory holds in this case, but I was shocked because the drama is from 1995. I was expecting things to be more conservative back then. Ironically the opposite seems to be true!

Well you're on your own then. If you're disappointed don't say you weren't warned! :)

It is possible that you might not be as affected by those last eps as I was. After all, I get quite emotionally attached to the characters, esp when they're really good people, and if things don't work out well for them I get angry! lol

Wait, you think it CAN be or CAN NOT be the right drama for me?

I'm finding these establishing episodes a bit tedious as well. I want the actual story, when kids grow up, to begin. But I have a little more patience than you it seems so I'm gonna keep at it. :p

I've been told both the romance and the bromance are quite well done! I'll let you know what's what as it progresses. :)

You're in the Philippines right? Are you going then to the Korean Film Festival meetup this Saturday? You guys are so lucky to have a large community of Asian film & TV lovers in your country. Over here in this country where I live people look at me crazy when I tell them I love watching Asian dramas.

Or like I suggested in my review watch it up to episode 8 and then drop it if you're not in the mood for a bad, inconclusive ending. It is truly a phenomenal show up to that point & I think you'd really like it. It's perfectly possible to wrap it up after ep 8 because there isn't a huge cliffhanger at the end. You can actually take it as though that's the end really.

Not being kind or showering you with unwarranted flattery. Just giving my honest personal opinion, for what it's worth! :)

It's funny, my reviews are normally negatively skewed, but Aishiteiru in its first 8 eps makes the show one of the best of the genre. I mean it does everything you expect a romance should do - it warms your heart, it makes you smile and giggle, it's passionate, sexy ... it's just perfect in those 8 episodes and the wonderful feelings they evoked wouldn't allow me to rate it lower in spite of a highly unsatisfactory third act.

Are you watching Master's Sun? I saw the first ep and wasn't overly compelled to continue. Word among my friends have been mixed. Not much of a Hong sister fan anyway, so it's more than likely that I'll pass.

Though my friend's influence played a role Go Soo was motivation enough to give Golden Empire a shot. lol I've only seen him once before but I like him. He's pure eye candy & I think he may have talent too. What other shows have you seen him in? What's your impression of GE so far?

Haha just did a once over of your profile and noticed that Can You Hear My Heart is on your blacklist! Why?

Ok, it has romance in it, am I told, so that may be one of the reasons, if not THE reason? Does it also contain an actor you don't like or maybe the storyline simply doesn't appeal to you?

By the way, I WILL be coming to your profile to lament about When A Man's in Love! Haha You've been warned so be prepared! :)

Nagaresboshi was a disappointment because it was a romance drama that turned out not to be a romance drama. This is the perfect example of what I mean about not being able to find what I want in Japan. Their romances are generally half-baked & bland.

I still think, though, that you have a lot more options for finding what you like. You can totally avoid romance if you choose to, while I can barely watch a show that gives me a good, solid adult romance! lol It's frustrating as heck.

I've been hearing a lot of buzz about Thai lakorns lately, but they just don't appeal to me. At all. I checked out a few clips on YouTube and my impressions were the same as yours. Plus I don't think I can get used to the language. I don't mind watching Thai movies because they're short & generally good, those that I have seen. But I can't see myself dedicating hours of my time to a series, esp when the quality is below standard.

Can You Hear My Heart is off to a slow start but I'm sticking to it. I plan to start Golden Empire later today after work. My dear chingu, Nina, who I see you've become acquainted with due to your mutual love for the show have totally convinced me to give it a go. I know there's no romance in it, but I'm looking forward to see what has her so excited & to see if it'll affect me the same way! :)