Seriously i saw similar comments in some recent actress getting married article also. seriously whts ya all problem…
Yes, I noticed the similarity with the Go Won Hee story too - almost exactly the same words used by both commenters. Ignorant petty-minded and jealous trolling, clearly are making up stories in their own minds out of of bitterness
I notice you did not mention her lead role in "My Bossy Girl" - a very positive film, unsentimental upbeat. She did a great job as the central character
Great article, even if I dropped after reading the "pros" :D - there are no cons imo to dropping, only pros. Dramas are supposed to be entertainment, if they don't entertain, they've failed and deserve to be dropped. I normally drop quickly now, 2-4 eps max. The only time I drop near the end is if something utterly outrageous happens that pushes my rage buttons. If I think that a drop might be because I'm not in the right mood for a Drama at that time, I might try it again later. I've had a couple of outstanding "rescues" that way, but with Dramas (and books), my motto is "pass! Next please"
A very interesting list, and I salute the STAGGERING amount of work involved in compiling all the data and presenting it all so effectively, well done! Of all the movies listed above, only one is in my favourites: Sunny, which I scored 9/10. I was not surprised to find that one of my other faves ( not simply a favourite K movie, but one of my favourite movies from anywhere) was not on the list. Castaway on the Moon is an amazing movie, not to everyone's taste, but truly fine cinema
A very well-constructed article, thanks for an interesting read!
My take on the elements: 1. The title - this is not too important to me especially because the English titl;es used on MDL are often utterly pointless and hollow. A case in point, the OUTSTANDING "Forest of Secrets" has a title says EVERYTHING about what the Drama is all about, but here it's called "Stranger", which says nothing.
2. The Cast - this one can make a difference, often persuading me to try a Drama I otherwise wouldn't. Although more often than not I regret my loyalty :)
3. The synopsis. I've been fooled too often to trust these any more.
4. The genres. REALLY important, but more for deciding what NOT to watch, as mentioned in my profile.
5. The length. I actually have watched A LOT of very long Dramas, with episode counts from 72-125, and basically without exception they were less fun than pulling out my own teeth. I've also learned that my life is far too precious to waste on any C-Drama over 30 episodes because 28 of them will be filled with rage-inducing chauvinism and misogyny. The other problem with long episode counts is that they are basically filler. J doramas tell stories in 9-11 episodes that C and K Dramas take 16-45 episodes to tell, ugh.
6. Reviews. These are very important ESPECIALLY the longer, thoughtfully composed reviews with scores in the 5-7 range. Such reviews show that the viewer neither wrote it off instantly nor watched uncritically for their Oppa, but actually THOUGHT about what they were watching.
And finally I want to reiterate one that I was REALLY impressed you included - the Mood. Well done for highlighting how important that is. Trying to watch a Drama that doesn't fit one's current mood is a recipe for a drop that may well prove avoidable if watched when one is feeling differently.
I used to occasionally hate-watch and it can be fun if the Drama is just the right kind of bad. But as I get older, the truth of that "waste of time" point overrides the limited fun hate-watching gives. There are too Dramas to watch, too many books to read, etc, I'll never get through them before shuffling off this mortal coil so I gave up hate watching.
As for the "scare people off" risk, I used to not to bother about that either. Free speech should mean that people can say what they like about a Drama, but the reality of a site like MDL is that the overwhelming majority of its users fit a very specific demographic that shows a remarkable fragility and inability to process and accept differing opinions, especially negative ones. So now I don't bother with that either. Ill praise a Drama I like because I couldn't give a fetid dingo's kidney for what others think of it, but stating my negative and/or mocking response is no longer worth the aggravation from dealing with the outraged whines and howls of those upset that dissing a Drama apparently means I hate their Oppa and/or am just an irredeemably evil person to the core of black heart. 🤣
What a BEAUTIFUL article! A work of art in its own right. I can barely imagine how long it took to construct and put together, brava! I'm sure that many will find the "date" of their dreams in this magnificent article, although sadly the date type that appealed to me (1), offered no options that clicked with me.
Yep, I also started skipping second lead scenes, if they have too much screentime in my opinion ðŸ¤
A very interesting read, thanks. It confirmed that I'm not a big fan of complex geometry in my Dramas. :) I too like simple linear love lines, your type 1, but I am quite happy to have two of them in one Drama. Miss Korea and Love, Timeless are examples of Dramas where I enjoyed the OTP but REALLY liked the STP. Neechan No Koibito, Hayako Srnsei, Date, Nigeru Wa Haji and Okitegami Kyouko no Bibouroku are all linear, as are (imo) My Only Love Song, My Queen, Le Coup de Foudre, Bara No Nai Hanaya, Takane No Hana. I guess I only consider them non-linear if any additional component 'shape' is significant in ways other than being an annoying but obviously irrelevant filler.
Wow! VERY impressive! 2021 was primarily a year for tackling my TBR list more than my PTW liast, but I did make reductions in my PTW. I did mostly by coming to the realisation that I'm too old and life is too short to put up with the patronising patriarchal misogyny masquerading as " tsundere romance" in 99.7% of contemporary C-Dramas, making a mass cull very easy.
"What is your idea of a show with quirk?" An interesting question. I have an intense allergy to supernatural and/or horror elements, so don't watch any shows at all with those components, but do enjoy quirky shows. I guess my definition of "quirk" is this one from the OED: " A peculiarity of character or behaviour; an idiosyncrasy, an eccentricity; an oddity; " and for shows of that type, it's hard to go past Japan. Since that's not the definition of quirk being used here, I won't list any, but idiosyncratic, odd and eccentric is absolutely where Japan reigns supreme.
I saw this on her insta yesterday, very happy for her. Ballet remains her first love, thanks to The Swan Club, she reconnected with ballet and now runs a ballet school which is doing quite well in terms of students' results. Hopefully her return to Dramas will be happier than the miserable "bitter second" roles she was stuck with in drek like Hospital Ship.
"Watch dramas on legal sites." Which presupposes this is possible. For many, it's not. Viki, for example, does not let me access their site, even making difficult to access via a vpn - and use of a vpn is deemed a breach of the T&C anyway, therefore illegal. I would amend the advice to "watch on legal sites IF YOU CAN"
An interesting article, thanks. I enjoyed your comments about the impact of shorter lifespans on cultural mores too, a very valid point.
I was less impressed with this "Sometimes people get so stuck in escapism when watching historical and period dramas that they don't enjoy practicality and realism, ***which is the whole point*** of watching nonfiction and fictional dramas about ancient and prehistoric events."
The "whole point of watching" is whatever each viewer decides it is, especially with fictional content. I don't watch historical Dramas, but I respect the right of those who do to watch them for whatever reason they choose. If their reason is escapism, that is just as valid a reason as wishing to "think critically" about the past. You cite "Moon Lovers" as an example of a Drama that had a historically valid ending, but that Drama was built around the concept of time travel. Since the core concept of the Drama is pure fiction (according to current physics), viewers who chose to watch it for an escapist happy ending were not somehow doing the Drama a disservice.
I definitely agree that it's important to try to avoid imposing contemporary values on the motives and actions of past figures, but Dramas are fiction, their content is fiction and that content (including their presentation of history) is VERY heavily influenced by present realities, including the socio-political propaganda inserted either explicitly (PRC) or implicitly (ROK) by the countries in which they're made. Since they are in the end, just entertainment, those viewers who watch them for the purpose of finding escapist entertainment commit no offence, I think.
well I haven't see the drama so I have no idea why it's there ...as for what you are telling me ...I agree to…
That's fine, I posted because it is a remarkable tribute to any actor to have a writer state that they created an entire Drama with that specific actor in mind.
Very, VERY few actors have had that happen for them, but sadly, most users on sites like MDL are so focused on male actors that any time a female role shines, it's considered theft, as in "stole the show" (presumably "stolen" from the ML)
The same mindset can be seen in the planned Korean remake, where all the buzz and focus has been on the casting of the MALE lead in a Drama that was explicitly created to be ABOUT the female lead
Some Day Or One Day should not be in a list of Dramas where the FL "stole" the show, because the writer has explicitly stated that he wrote the Drama specifically with Ko Chia Yen in mind. This means the Drama was created and built around the FL AND the specific actor who played the part. So she didn't "steal" the show, she WAS the show, the reason it existed at all
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My take on the elements:
1. The title - this is not too important to me especially because the English titl;es used on MDL are often utterly pointless and hollow. A case in point, the OUTSTANDING "Forest of Secrets" has a title says EVERYTHING about what the Drama is all about, but here it's called "Stranger", which says nothing.
2. The Cast - this one can make a difference, often persuading me to try a Drama I otherwise wouldn't. Although more often than not I regret my loyalty :)
3. The synopsis. I've been fooled too often to trust these any more.
4. The genres. REALLY important, but more for deciding what NOT to watch, as mentioned in my profile.
5. The length. I actually have watched A LOT of very long Dramas, with episode counts from 72-125, and basically without exception they were less fun than pulling out my own teeth. I've also learned that my life is far too precious to waste on any C-Drama over 30 episodes because 28 of them will be filled with rage-inducing chauvinism and misogyny. The other problem with long episode counts is that they are basically filler. J doramas tell stories in 9-11 episodes that C and K Dramas take 16-45 episodes to tell, ugh.
6. Reviews. These are very important ESPECIALLY the longer, thoughtfully composed reviews with scores in the 5-7 range. Such reviews show that the viewer neither wrote it off instantly nor watched uncritically for their Oppa, but actually THOUGHT about what they were watching.
And finally I want to reiterate one that I was REALLY impressed you included - the Mood. Well done for highlighting how important that is. Trying to watch a Drama that doesn't fit one's current mood is a recipe for a drop that may well prove avoidable if watched when one is feeling differently.
As for the "scare people off" risk, I used to not to bother about that either. Free speech should mean that people can say what they like about a Drama, but the reality of a site like MDL is that the overwhelming majority of its users fit a very specific demographic that shows a remarkable fragility and inability to process and accept differing opinions, especially negative ones. So now I don't bother with that either. Ill praise a Drama I like because I couldn't give a fetid dingo's kidney for what others think of it, but stating my negative and/or mocking response is no longer worth the aggravation from dealing with the outraged whines and howls of those upset that dissing a Drama apparently means I hate their Oppa and/or am just an irredeemably evil person to the core of black heart. 🤣
" A peculiarity of character or behaviour; an idiosyncrasy, an eccentricity; an oddity; " and for shows of that type, it's hard to go past Japan. Since that's not the definition of quirk being used here, I won't list any, but idiosyncratic, odd and eccentric is absolutely where Japan reigns supreme.
I was less impressed with this
"Sometimes people get so stuck in escapism when watching historical and period dramas that they don't enjoy practicality and realism, ***which is the whole point*** of watching nonfiction and fictional dramas about ancient and prehistoric events."
The "whole point of watching" is whatever each viewer decides it is, especially with fictional content. I don't watch historical Dramas, but I respect the right of those who do to watch them for whatever reason they choose. If their reason is escapism, that is just as valid a reason as wishing to "think critically" about the past. You cite "Moon Lovers" as an example of a Drama that had a historically valid ending, but that Drama was built around the concept of time travel. Since the core concept of the Drama is pure fiction (according to current physics), viewers who chose to watch it for an escapist happy ending were not somehow doing the Drama a disservice.
I definitely agree that it's important to try to avoid imposing contemporary values on the motives and actions of past figures, but Dramas are fiction, their content is fiction and that content (including their presentation of history) is VERY heavily influenced by present realities, including the socio-political propaganda inserted either explicitly (PRC) or implicitly (ROK) by the countries in which they're made. Since they are in the end, just entertainment, those viewers who watch them for the purpose of finding escapist entertainment commit no offence, I think.
Very, VERY few actors have had that happen for them, but sadly, most users on sites like MDL are so focused on male actors that any time a female role shines, it's considered theft, as in "stole the show" (presumably "stolen" from the ML)
The same mindset can be seen in the planned Korean remake, where all the buzz and focus has been on the casting of the MALE lead in a Drama that was explicitly created to be ABOUT the female lead