bloomingtide

https://kisskh.at/699445-showtime-from-now-on

One of my most favorite kdramas of the year/all time fave now, and probably one of the most overlooked in 2022 too, alas.

Action, horror, comedy, mystery, supernatural/ghost shenanigans, high chaotic energy of the leads/supporting crew, past lives, satisfying slow burn romance and character development in a well-balanced genre mix. The humor is on point and imo on a lvl with mr. queen. This underappreciated drama has everything and deserves more love <3

trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHs_7sWA-TE
chaotic leads are chaotic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXOZ4-Toey0

Well it *was* comedic, especially with Jiho scoffing about how over the top it was and how a proposal should happen privately, while he continued eating 🤣Everything this man does/did in this drama was more or less unintentional comedy gold tbh.

You being bored by Suho doesn't surprise me because he is played by Cha Eun Woo after all who has the range of mildewed toast as an actor and is more wooden than a whole forest. (Tho tbh that is unfair to mildewed toast since this at least is growing with time🤣) Typical case of acting bc he looks pretty and is famous as idol but not due to talent/being good at it, lmao. I feel with quiet and more unassuming characters, which does not correlate with emotionless btw, it comes down to the writing and the actor's ability to give his character depth and facets, and ideally how GPK has done it with Jiho, also charm and quirks. It is definitely harder to pull off than the in your face popular, suave and successful/badass/super-capable archtype of ML we already have in like three billion other kdramas.

And i am pretty bored of the latter by now tbh, thus i appreciate the recent trend of humanizing them more in making the ML more down to earth with flaws and all (outside a tragic past/childhood i mean) Still it seems far and wide in between, particularly such types as Jiho who are not bursting with self-confidence at the seam, and have to work through things holding them back that is however more relatable than dark, secret childhood trauma haha. But yeah as said more of such character archtypes as MLs aka the introverted/quieter but not stoic/emotionless type would definitely help to mix things up a little.

I think she is there so Tae Hee can make peace with his past and her. It is needed too so he can move on from it. But i really hope they leave it at that and give her a separate love line, if any, instead to fall into the shitty evil ex/ex returns wants him back- trope. Let them be buddies at best, with each having and enjoying their life as it is now.

haha, those in kdramaland do, for sure. And given the stigma that follows this line of work i have the feeling there are not many Job candidates that are lining up to fill in the vacancy she left there, tbh.

She could have also argued when returning that seeing the corpse of a child/boy was too much on her first day to handle or something like that.

I'm so amused by the writers dialing the met by chance trope up to eleven. It could have been annoying but they did it in such a charming self-aware way that I cackle each time those two run into each other 🤣

Because she was smattered with bad luck and accidents which she concluded was due to her ignoring the boy and thus her ignore it tactic no longer worked. Never underestimate the power of ignorance is bliss tho so I'm not surprised she kept that up for over a year.

That is what i gathered as well yeah. Because she started working there in 2020, since the boy died in october 2020 (checked the paper they showed, there is a date) and had her supernatural encounter which made her run away from it. There is a scene in the early episode that show her studying and the boy appears accusing her of leaving him alone, so i guess she went back to studying for perhaps a year or so. Then ofc her ignoring to help the dead brought her a phase of bad luck and injuries (which she recounts in the first episode) and eventually her back to her job. Hence why this being her third paycheck only is not out of the possible when she had returned to in order to pay her due and end her bad luck.

Consequently this means ML really went to military service for about a year, something the former doctor friend (?) of his also mentions. Hence around 2 years have passed in between the events with the boy and ML/FL meeting and him developing feelings for her. So it is not like a timespan of 2 months where he does it after breaking up with his ex, lmao.

She lived rent-free in his head from the start, got under his skin. Even as they argued he continued to be worked up and thinking about her/the situation later on, and this annoyance slowly shifted into curiosity about "that weird woman" he always ran into. Like... early on in the drama, he saw her sitting alone and bummed in that cafe and did a dance in full bear costume for her to cheer her up and this despite their big fight earlier. You don't do this for people you hate, and even if it wasn't romantic at that point, he was drawn to her. Also of course due to their repeated encounters, good and bad. After all, it is hard to remain strangers and indifferent when you keep seeing the other person again and again.

It is kinda like the cop said in episode 6, "it needs expectations, love, interest to argue with each other", and with them it was sort of the classic dislike/hate being the sibling of like/love at the start. Thus ML went down the road of annoyance to curiosity to (romantic) interest, especially because he saw her at a low point in that cafe and she didn't turned out to be the bad person he imagined her to be in his head. Chaotic for sure, popping always up where he least expected it and leaving an impression good and bad. Which in turn made her very unforgettable too and that brings us back to her living rent-free in his head haha. (He even met her dad several times and got to know more about her through proxy)

I mean he spent the whole episode 5 thinking about their fallout and of ways how to reach her to apologize. Guilt is sometimes the best motivator, but it was not the only one. As soon he realized she said the truth instead of being a looney bin, it all gave way for real interest/crushing on her. And I love how he became so very whipped so quickly and is just slowly realizing it, while also not knowing what to do with it. It is adorable and so is the natural progression from dislike/strangers to easy companionship/care in their dynamic.

Aww thanks, back at you, friend <3 I always enjoy your insight as well. And you are right, they do use the tropes (Popcorn bucket, piggyback ride, falling asleep together) but it feels different and fresh and i think it is due to their effortless and companionable chemistry and dynamic. They keep it light but not only skin-deep if that makes sense, lol. (as in you feel the connection between them and i reeeeeeeally look forward to see if there is more to their story/past than meets the eye. No childhood connection at least and thank the creators for that lol)

Tbh, the only drama i liked with PMY is "when the weather... " her other dramas all were quite mediocre and bored me in the end (Healer is a bit different from office doll too but i have yet to fully watch it, bc there is too much cheese and cringe involved in this oldie, haha) It is time she branches out and takes some risks in order to progress, it is no wonder she stagnates with taking up the samey roles every time.

Btw, Im Soo Hyang is another one of that category who has one expression and emotion throughout her acting. i am so annoyed that she is the FL in the new upcoming drama with Kim Jung Hyun. He will have to carry it on his own then and normally needs an acting partner who can keep up with him and his range (such as Shin Haesun in mr.queen, they played off so well of each other *chefkiss*) which she definitely is not able to. I will still watch for KJH, but in everything i have seen her she was subpar *sigh*

The look of horror and the complete face journey Jiho made when he realized *he* was called forth after badmouthing the whole thing cracked me up to point of wheezing, ngl. Even if it turned out to be sweet in the end, there is honestly nothing worse for an introvert than to be put on the spot like that with everyone looking at you, tbh xD

I feel it is similar to that awkward moment when people sing you a happy birthday song and you just want to dissolve into thin air because you don't know what to do with yourself during that. These are the wooooorst few minutes that feel like hours. I think it was similar for Jiho... at least until he could zoom in on his wifey, that is😂

I am really gonna miss this dork and i would love to see more unconventional ML's in other kdramas instead of the super-cool/badass and suave perfectly put together guy only. It is way more human and endearing this way.

Hehe, as i was saying "May I Help You" is my favorite airing drama atm and if you liked Mystic Pop Up Bar you will feel right at home with this comedy/sad moments mix. I for my part will now camp in that comment section haha. I also plan to start Cheer Up since i don't really have many airing dramas to watch as the most of them didn't interest or disappointed me (Love Is For Suckers I am looking at you) Started Curtain Call but it has yet to grab me so idk if i continue that drama bc it also has an old family makjang feel to it which is so not my thing, whoops.

Depends if you like your romcoms with a supernatural twist but the leads in May I Help You are cute as heck together and generally the story is well done/executed. It has become my favorite airing drama by now 🥰

More like two years. He was in the military after that for 18 months at least. And the boy died in 2020 not 2022, which is the current date/timeline for the drama as well.

I love CT, bingewatched it in two days and bawled like a baby. Regret now that i didn't give GKP there the attention he deserves, tho. And yes, now where LIC is over, I gotta honor my roots (as in one of my first kdramas watched :D) And of course my still all time fave kdrama and chaotic royal power couple 😂

That being said, i truly enjoy May I Help You more and more bc it sends me on a spectrum of emotional rides during an episode the way only FNOS has done this year. And the leads are stinking cuuuute after they started on several wrong feet haha. Soooo if this keeps up i may have another fave to add to the collection, and for now i will make a home in that comment section😁 In case you ask where i am, that is, haha

Yeeeees, Last time i have been thrown into such a range of emotional ride was in From Now On Showtime. So needless to say this drama has now my rapt and undivided attention because what it does, it does so so excellently (thus far)

This is slowly but surely becoming my currently favorite airing kdrama and my weekly dose of serotonin due to the cute af leads' budding romance and easy friendship (and this after starting off on the wrongest foot haha.) They are so stinking adorable and give me all the butterflies 🦋

Generally i love the drama more and more, the whole structure of the narrative is well done, the tonal shifts never jarring and yay for onion plot technique. Aka, peeling back layer for layer of the characters' stories and motivations to give context to prior shown scenes. Or:

https://miro.medium.com/max/500/1*mQqMRFICHEZKbs00JuouHQ.gif (😉)

I think part of it is Tae Hee being so observant, like he notices every little shift in DJ and adjusts to meet her halfway. Gotta love me an emotionally savvy ML recognizing what FL needs without being too pushy. His cheekiness and casual humor brings ease into situations that otherwise could have been awkward and uncomfortable. Like at the movie theater.... he managed to make her feel comfortable to watch the movie w/ him in taking out the seriousness of it all ... Which isn't all altruistic of course as interested as he is in her by now. Or rather he has crushed on her haaaaaard and is slowly realizing it, haha. (Also thanks to PD nim for the hands touching by accident when they both reached for the popcorn bucket trope. I cheered at that)

It is not one-sided, of course as Doong Joo shares a lot about herself with him and asks about him too. There is an effortless bond between them already, kind of a delicious in between on the cusp of something more. And i love the symbolism too. Rain was something negative for both of them for different, painful reasons and reminder of loss, but then in the end they ran through the downpour together, smiling and laughing, and turned it into something... better (that dialogue was so cute) Overall their dynamic and slow yet fast progress is just so well done/written and acted. The actors' comfortableness with each other translates 1:1 onscreen.

Okay i stop my over-analysis here, because i already think too much about these two dorks lol. Prayer circle for the ex not to mess this up (too much) now though as drama writers *love* to do 🙏😬

Yeeees. Oh the irony of them all having their dirty little secrets and Tae Hee knowing them all hahaaha. My man looked ready to play "anywhere but here" during the lunch scene 😂

Also he is basically already accepted as son in law, given how much her dad likes him 🤭

Aww good to know, thanks. I got the gist of it when watching w/o subs but it is better to watch with subs still for me haha.