i haven't seen it so i can't say for sure. but if the drama is heavy on romance, people would have added/mass…
Well, now you know. I've been on this site for 8 yrs so I know how things go down around here. Moreover, I didn't post a spoiler so I don't know what you're afraid of.
It's not about what could 'satisfy' me. Thank YOU. I really could care less about some list, but what I find ironic is you insisting to me about the genre of a show that you have not seen it, but I have. Yes, I know that people labeling it as having no romance could be confusing for you, but that's why I thought I'd give you a heads up that they're wrong.
On this site, if a show isn't purely romcom then people seem to classify it as non-romance, which is very misleading when romance is just as prominent as all the other genres. That's all I'm saying. No need to get all up in your feelings. I'm not trying to pick a fight.
Prison Playbook is a great drama, but a lot of people who need romance to enjoy a show will miss out on this great drama because they'll think there's no romance. It happened to me & I think that's unfortunate. I would have never watched Prison Playbook if the 2019 Watch Challenge hadn't forced me to. When I realized that there was romance in it, I was so pleasantly surprised. It made the drama so much better! I just don't want others to be misled like how I was misled. That is all.
One night stand leads to love ...? For him, maybe, but not for her. She's on the rebound, that's why she never volunteered to stay. Come to think of it, he never asked her to stay either so maybe it wasn't love for him either, just loneliness after a long period of sobriety & trying to stay away from vices.
i haven't seen it so i can't say for sure. but if the drama is heavy on romance, people would have added/mass…
LOL, girl, how are you going to tell me what's in a drama that I've actually seen? Most people who update the drama pages have not seen the drama so a lot of their tagging & genre labeling is pure guesswork. MDL has never been known to be particularly quality assuring when it comes to people assigning genres/tags to things. Moreover, it seems like people think that just because this show isn't ONLY romance-focused, it shouldn't be labeled as romance. But if romance is featured just as prominently as the other genres then it should be mentioned.
Plus, Krystal is *not* a supporting character. She is the main female lead & love interest for the ML (who is on the cover). She's his long time girlfriend who dedicatedly stood by his side from before he went to prison til he got out. We are shown multiple scenes of their romance & how it evolved over time. Jung Kyung Ho's character starts a relationship with the ML's sister during the course of the drama. Their romance is less prominent, but is definitely there. Does that sound like NO romance to you?
Thank you for sharing your experience on the matter. You're right, everyone is different. But I still stand for…
You're right, I do know myself best ... and quite well, esp being that I've lived quite a few more years than you. Crying does not make me feel better. The only tears I like to shed are happy tears. If I watch sad stuff when I'm feeling depressed, I only feel more depressed, not relieved or comforted. It just reminds me how my life sucks in that moment. What makes me feel relieved and comforted is laughter, love/romance with happy ending and action/adventure/thriller where the good guys win. However, I do know there is a portion of the population for whom crying is cleansing and therapeutic. I'm just not among them and there are actually many people like me too.
It doesn't matter, though. My point in mentioning this was not to start a debate, just to point out that crying isn't therapeutic for everybody; it can actually have the opposite effect. What's important is that we all find what's right for us.
As for the death penalty, like I said, I don't agree with death penalty for every crime & only when the evidence is indisputable. But yeah, let's agree to disagree on that. I am not interested in having a political argument.
Very nice article. It's not easy talking about one's struggles in front of an audience. Well done. We all go through hardships, and indeed dramas and movies can provide a much needed escape. I've seen and enjoyed several of these titles. Absolutely loved To Each His Own. This movie was such an uplifting and beautiful experience. Highly recommend anyone having a tough time to give this one a go because it was like medicine for me, even though at the time I watched it, I wasn't particularly going through any bad times.
I don't suffer from any particular mental illness, at least not chronically like so many other people who live with mental illness each and every day. I have my moments when adulting and the disappointments of life depress me and put me down, but when those times pass, I'm usually good again.
I've often heard people say watching sad dramas that make them bawl out their worries is highly therapeutic. I don't think this is the case for me personally. I don't find it therapeutic to cry. Actually, when I'm feeling down and a drama/movie makes me cry because of a bad ending, it makes me feel worst. When the blues strike, I need to watch stuff that's thrilling, makes me laugh or makes my heart flutter. That way I get so immersed in that world that I forget my own sadness. When I watched the Japanese version of The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, Strangers From Hell, Better Days & Forgotten, I was quite chill about the endings because I wasn't going through any rough spots at the time. Had I watched them when I was feeling down, though, I probably would have only felt worst. It's truly interesting how differently we all respond to stimuli.
In addition to dramas, I love watching true crime shows too because when I listen to some of the cases of horrific crimes people commit, I'm so shocked beyond belief that I forget why I was sad in the first place. However, I avoid those shows where the crime is never solved because the satisfaction for me (the dopamine boost) is when the culprit is caught and brought to justice. If the evidence is 100% solid, I'm glad when they get the death penalty. I know a lot of people are against the death penalty. I'm not for it in every case, but there are some truly horrendous crimes that I feel the only punishment that can atone for such heinous act is death.
Anyway, I can only watch sad ending shows and not have it affect me in any way, IF I am in a good place mentally. Otherwise, I have to avoid them because it will mess me up. You gave a very wise piece of advice to another poster who experiences the same as me - it's the journey that matters, not the end. And while that's true in general, it can't be so in my entertainment. Entertainment is an escape for me, so when it comes to endings, it often has to be the opposite of real life. After all, we live real life every day, with all its F'ed up sh*t, why should we seek out more of the same in our entertainment?
Anyway, this is just another perspective, as different therapies work for different people. The important thing is that we all find our happy place, regardless how one does it. Be well, OP.
I love meloromance! One of my all time favourite is Lovers, an oldie but a goodie (to me anyway). I'm not saying it was a perfect drama, but it was a gem in the rough & only a few people really got into the narrative & saw it for the gem it was.
Too bad I'm not into noona romances. There are few on your list that I won't watch because of that. I started watching One Spring Night and had to put it on hold. I'm not much of a fan of the actress playing the FL. Somehow, she made the character unlikable for me. If another actress was playing her, I probably could have tolerated her more. I wanted to watch A Piece Of Your Mind, but I'm put off by 1) Chæ Soo Bin & 2) the fact that it was cut down to 12 eps. That can only mean a rushed mess! I was really looking forward to Jung Hæ In playing a romance role with a female lead in his own age range, though! Too bad that opportunity is gone now.
I wasn't immediately drawn to Just Between Lovers because I'm shallow when it comes to my drama kisses and it doesn't appear as though there are any good ones here. Anyway, I've heard some good things from other sources as well. I'm becoming much better at dropping shows that don't work for me so no harm in giving it a look see.
Pretty cool that you're fluent in Korean and Japanese. Are you self-taught from watching Asian TV & cinema?
Oh, that's amazing! A true polyglot. I'm learning Korean, also self-taught ... it's a slooooow process, but I'm making progress. I need to study & practice more diligently but I haven't been making the time. I try not to go a day without some practice, at least 15 - 20 mins, though. My vocabulary now lies around 500 words. I read somewhere that you need about 5000 words to be considered 'fluent'. Pretty long way to go, but I'm up for the challenge.
Slightly longer version, I grew up watching those horribly dubbed Kung Fu movies like most Western kids born in the 80s, but my first Asian drama is probably the Japanase asadora, Oshin. I distinctly remember watching episodes of that drama with my mom & loving the the lead character, Oshin. She was such a hardworking, intrepid woman! And her romance with husband Buzo or Luzo (can't remember exactly) was pretty down to earth & cute. After that I didn't watch anything Asian until years later when my foray into the film industry started. This led me to worldwide film festivals where amazing, quality cinema from all over the world, including Asia, were screened. 2012 was my breakout year, the year I got 'hooked', so to speak. I remember watching a Korean gangster movie called Nameless Gangster & I seriously fell in love with the lead actor Ha Jung Woo because he was so dapper! I went looking for other stuff of his, which led to other movies, classics such as A Moment to Remember where I fell for the lead actor there, Jung Woo Sung, too! lol I went looking for more of his work, which led to my first official k-drama, Padam Padam. And the rest, as they say, is history. Here I am, almost 8 yrs later, a little less enamoured than I was previously, but still liking certain aspects of this wholly different TV drama world.
i haven't seen it so i can't say for sure. but if the drama is heavy on romance, people would have added/mass…
Well, I've seen it. It has equal amounts of all the genres it features. It is not solely about romance, no, but the romance is featured prominently in there. There's even a secondary romance line in addition to the main one. Since I like romance I avoided watching this drama for a long time because people led me to believe there was no romance at all, which is totally incorrect and misleading. If it should be on any list then it should probably be on a combo-genre list, not a purely romance list or a purely non-romance list.
Prison Playbook being on this list is misleading. It may not be centred around *only* romance, but there is romance ... so should it really be classified as a 'non-romance'?
Why does *every* romance have to be a slow burn one, tho? There's such a thing as insta-love a.k.a love at first sight. It happens in real life so why can't it happen in a drama? 10 out 10 k-dramas we watch in any given month is likely to have a slow burn romance ... so how about a bit of variety every once in a while? Just sit back and enjoy the show and stop complaining about something that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme things. :)
Oooo, finally Seo Hi Jye has a leading role (she always plays the 2nd lead)! And her mr. love is none other than the dashing Song Seung Hun ... I'm here for ALLLLL of this! Please, please, please Drama Goddesses, make it good! Chebæl!
They were long term partners and were already discussing marriage before she found out she was pregnant, as explained…
I see reading comprehension is not one of your strong suits. Perhaps the English language is your not native language. Whatever the case, I won't engage any further with someone who is so easily triggered by someone else's comments.
They were long term partners and were already discussing marriage before she found out she was pregnant, as explained…
Celebrities don't always tell the truth in their public statements tho ... In fact, many of them often lie or at the very least, decorate the truth. Not necessarily saying he's done that, but it's not outside the realm of possibility. It wouldn't be the first time or the last. I don't understand why someone has to hide or lie about getting married and starting a family, but I get that that's the weird nature of the Korean (Asian) entertainment world.
1 
It's not about what could 'satisfy' me. Thank YOU. I really could care less about some list, but what I find ironic is you insisting to me about the genre of a show that you have not seen it, but I have. Yes, I know that people labeling it as having no romance could be confusing for you, but that's why I thought I'd give you a heads up that they're wrong.
On this site, if a show isn't purely romcom then people seem to classify it as non-romance, which is very misleading when romance is just as prominent as all the other genres. That's all I'm saying. No need to get all up in your feelings. I'm not trying to pick a fight.
Prison Playbook is a great drama, but a lot of people who need romance to enjoy a show will miss out on this great drama because they'll think there's no romance. It happened to me & I think that's unfortunate. I would have never watched Prison Playbook if the 2019 Watch Challenge hadn't forced me to. When I realized that there was romance in it, I was so pleasantly surprised. It made the drama so much better! I just don't want others to be misled like how I was misled. That is all.
She's on the rebound, that's why she never volunteered to stay. Come to think of it, he never asked her to stay either so maybe it wasn't love for him either, just loneliness after a long period of sobriety & trying to stay away from vices.
Plus, Krystal is *not* a supporting character. She is the main female lead & love interest for the ML (who is on the cover). She's his long time girlfriend who dedicatedly stood by his side from before he went to prison til he got out. We are shown multiple scenes of their romance & how it evolved over time. Jung Kyung Ho's character starts a relationship with the ML's sister during the course of the drama. Their romance is less prominent, but is definitely there. Does that sound like NO romance to you?
It doesn't matter, though. My point in mentioning this was not to start a debate, just to point out that crying isn't therapeutic for everybody; it can actually have the opposite effect. What's important is that we all find what's right for us.
As for the death penalty, like I said, I don't agree with death penalty for every crime & only when the evidence is indisputable. But yeah, let's agree to disagree on that. I am not interested in having a political argument.
We all go through hardships, and indeed dramas and movies can provide a much needed escape. I've seen and enjoyed several of these titles. Absolutely loved To Each His Own. This movie was such an uplifting and beautiful experience. Highly recommend anyone having a tough time to give this one a go because it was like medicine for me, even though at the time I watched it, I wasn't particularly going through any bad times.
I don't suffer from any particular mental illness, at least not chronically like so many other people who live with mental illness each and every day. I have my moments when adulting and the disappointments of life depress me and put me down, but when those times pass, I'm usually good again.
I've often heard people say watching sad dramas that make them bawl out their worries is highly therapeutic. I don't think this is the case for me personally. I don't find it therapeutic to cry. Actually, when I'm feeling down and a drama/movie makes me cry because of a bad ending, it makes me feel worst. When the blues strike, I need to watch stuff that's thrilling, makes me laugh or makes my heart flutter. That way I get so immersed in that world that I forget my own sadness. When I watched the Japanese version of The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, Strangers From Hell, Better Days & Forgotten, I was quite chill about the endings because I wasn't going through any rough spots at the time. Had I watched them when I was feeling down, though, I probably would have only felt worst. It's truly interesting how differently we all respond to stimuli.
In addition to dramas, I love watching true crime shows too because when I listen to some of the cases of horrific crimes people commit, I'm so shocked beyond belief that I forget why I was sad in the first place. However, I avoid those shows where the crime is never solved because the satisfaction for me (the dopamine boost) is when the culprit is caught and brought to justice. If the evidence is 100% solid, I'm glad when they get the death penalty. I know a lot of people are against the death penalty. I'm not for it in every case, but there are some truly horrendous crimes that I feel the only punishment that can atone for such heinous act is death.
Anyway, I can only watch sad ending shows and not have it affect me in any way, IF I am in a good place mentally. Otherwise, I have to avoid them because it will mess me up. You gave a very wise piece of advice to another poster who experiences the same as me - it's the journey that matters, not the end. And while that's true in general, it can't be so in my entertainment. Entertainment is an escape for me, so when it comes to endings, it often has to be the opposite of real life. After all, we live real life every day, with all its F'ed up sh*t, why should we seek out more of the same in our entertainment?
Anyway, this is just another perspective, as different therapies work for different people. The important thing is that we all find our happy place, regardless how one does it. Be well, OP.
Too bad I'm not into noona romances. There are few on your list that I won't watch because of that. I started watching One Spring Night and had to put it on hold. I'm not much of a fan of the actress playing the FL. Somehow, she made the character unlikable for me. If another actress was playing her, I probably could have tolerated her more. I wanted to watch A Piece Of Your Mind, but I'm put off by 1) Chæ Soo Bin & 2) the fact that it was cut down to 12 eps. That can only mean a rushed mess! I was really looking forward to Jung Hæ In playing a romance role with a female lead in his own age range, though! Too bad that opportunity is gone now.
I wasn't immediately drawn to Just Between Lovers because I'm shallow when it comes to my drama kisses and it doesn't appear as though there are any good ones here. Anyway, I've heard some good things from other sources as well. I'm becoming much better at dropping shows that don't work for me so no harm in giving it a look see.
I'm learning Korean, also self-taught ... it's a slooooow process, but I'm making progress. I need to study & practice more diligently but I haven't been making the time. I try not to go a day without some practice, at least 15 - 20 mins, though. My vocabulary now lies around 500 words. I read somewhere that you need about 5000 words to be considered 'fluent'. Pretty long way to go, but I'm up for the challenge.
Slightly longer version, I grew up watching those horribly dubbed Kung Fu movies like most Western kids born in the 80s, but my first Asian drama is probably the Japanase asadora, Oshin. I distinctly remember watching episodes of that drama with my mom & loving the the lead character, Oshin. She was such a hardworking, intrepid woman! And her romance with husband Buzo or Luzo (can't remember exactly) was pretty down to earth & cute. After that I didn't watch anything Asian until years later when my foray into the film industry started. This led me to worldwide film festivals where amazing, quality cinema from all over the world, including Asia, were screened. 2012 was my breakout year, the year I got 'hooked', so to speak. I remember watching a Korean gangster movie called Nameless Gangster & I seriously fell in love with the lead actor Ha Jung Woo because he was so dapper! I went looking for other stuff of his, which led to other movies, classics such as A Moment to Remember where I fell for the lead actor there, Jung Woo Sung, too! lol I went looking for more of his work, which led to my first official k-drama, Padam Padam. And the rest, as they say, is history. Here I am, almost 8 yrs later, a little less enamoured than I was previously, but still liking certain aspects of this wholly different TV drama world.
In fact, many of them often lie or at the very least, decorate the truth. Not necessarily saying he's done that, but it's not outside the realm of possibility. It wouldn't be the first time or the last.
I don't understand why someone has to hide or lie about getting married and starting a family, but I get that that's the weird nature of the Korean (Asian) entertainment world.