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Like opening a lot of time capsules from 20 years of their lives
This is hard to rate because it really depends on what you want from it. I wanted nothing in particular as I knew nothing but who the leads were from the poster… I loved my couple of hours with them because it really fit my wandering/daydreamy mind that was fine just quietly observing while curled up with a ball of fluff.This is a slice of life… we are getting a moving image selection of time capsules of these characters’ lives, and where they are and who they are with in that moment is all you are getting, not some huge plot of what ifs, just a beautiful depiction of how the choices of each person at every stage made them grow, change, and all the same keep looking back and letting their hearts linger at a time long past. The child actress was an astonishingly good match, something I didn’t realize until I kept seeing them back and forth. She was also just plain good at connecting to this story in that quiet, nuanced way I see depicted in a lot of Japanese art. Minimalist in some ways, sure, but more like precision, a lack of clutter in what is shown so you see precisely what you should.
What you see? Beautiful cinematography, truly. The parts that are a bit more raw like the early months working in a cheese factory for the ML feel entirely intentional. When things are more harmonious, it is very clearly meant to convey the state of mind/level of comfort and peace in that singular moment. Everywhere is thoughtfully decorated, and this one warm older woman kept giving me Kim Hye Ja feels and I wanted her to feed me, too. Even the food, while only a few moments of it were shown, was really tender…
It is, from my viewing, about finding your home (your soul’s home in particular) and healing from things that made you run from even your happiest moments. The connections are not some pretty, perfect picture. They are realistic. The leads are understated in their expressions much of the time, her more than him, but their faces show pretty clearly how they are processing their emotions… you could probably turn off subs for 80% of this and still get 90% of what is said… ah, the music is also truly good, well-fitting for this film (which is actually “adapted from a song” which sure isn’t a tag I will see much, is it?). There is a bit of a shortcoming in the story itself a few places, mostly approaching the end, and I don’t love time skip endings in general (well, I particularly don’t like these barely there time skip endings… like why not show more between the ferry fireworks end of era capsule and the final one? I feel slightly, well, slighted there. Sure, it definitely works this way, but some things, even done well, make you ask “coulllldn’t you? We would be soooo happy to see this process after so many others were shown in such detail!” Alas, they jumped ahead in a way that felt a little disjointed and peculiar after the rest was so detailed in making sure the moments would linger…
I really found myself appreciating the hair and makeup stylists here!! They found the right ways to make time pass and make them seem definitely older, and that really helped in times when things were not going as desired. It was convincing, and they carried themselves in a way that matched the visuals the team crafted through makeup and hairstyles. The supporting cast were all just excellent, too.
So that is the spoiler free (slice of life doesn’t really have a ton of spoilers) reaction for this thread of fate being entwined, tangled, snapping, tied back together, etc. for every person in this whole film… the emotions are not loudly expressed very often, but they are palpable. Just know it feels a bit like an art film that is more about impressions left than any particular plot being carried out (almost 20 years of time are covered, so lots of small plot moments make the impressions, but they don’t directly connect in a linear fashion; rather, they culminate). It is reflective and has some flashbacks that some may not love. I would not want to watch this if my mind was busy/distracted. It is something to just immerse your eyes in and soak up, to feel as you observe… I didn’t find myself thinking about any what ifs at all. I just rode its wave which was gentle enough to sweep me here and there without making me drown in any place or lose my balance. The simple words “Are you okay?” becoming a grounding force for someone in a bit of a bad place is one of its most lovely details… those tiny words can make someone feel able to breathe again, able to smile. Okay, doesn’t hurt if the other is adorable and adoring.
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If you like Doctor X, especially if you are waiting for Season 6 or 7 or 8 to be subbed depending on when you see this, you'll probably thoroughly enjoy the shenanigans of this one. It's a little more racy (only a little, though), and more focused on comedy than all else though it does present an interesting couple of medical cases amidst the clamor.
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This review may contain spoilers
Brilliant cast executing a fun, oftentimes hilarious showing of girl power
Two words: GIRL POWER! Okay, so onto a review of sorts which I think probably seems more like a rabid fan name dropping idols they have crushes on-oh well, so be it!I have been waiting to see this since eons ago when they first cast Ra Mi Ran (a personal superhero to me, brilliant, funny, able to make me cry with joy and anguish and anger and from laughing too hard, great no matter the role, always genuine and with expressions that show how invested she is in every role, a superb mentor to her younger starlets in training, a lovely warm and sweet human who especially brings out the importance of family, biological and more than that the chosen family you make as adults or even in youth, in roles no matter her job, social status, etc in the role... she is such a team player that I seriously haven't seen ANYONE she has poor chemistry with! She's just so beautiful everyone loves her with great reason!). I am so happy I finally got to watch it. She is so badass here whether sporting a leather jacket or Hawaiian shirt or denim. The hacker ace role really was, somewhat surprisingly, well-suited for Sooyoung, much moreso than others I've seen her in. I also liked seeing Lee Sung Kyung in a role that has no reliance, momentary time at a club for folks under 30 aside, on beauty which she has plenty of. I would ADORE having a drama series made from this. 16-24 hours of badass ladies supported by guys? YES PLEASE! ALWAYS YES! It doesn't hurt that one of my favorite ahjussis finally came in albeit for such a brief moment to stand behind his true cop kiddo! <3 Sung Dong Il always rocks, even when he plays characters I momentarily want to castrate! Thankfully, this brief cameo did not kick in that feeling at all!
After him playing the angsty but awkward and tender/sensitive design artist in Romance is a Bonus Book (and his roles in Matrimonial Chaos alongside Bae Doona, Jung Hae In's pal turned bro in law in Pretty Noona etc), Wi Ha Joon kind of startled me-well, REALLY startled me. Oof, those punches and kicks just aren't so like his image elsewhere-movies let them really go to other worlds, and his cursing was so natural!! Yikes! :) O_O After he was the American named Michelin chef with the injured hand in Best Chicken, I came to like the guy who plays chemical wizard for illicit drugs Philip, too (though I didn't realize he was quite this tall or lean-he's 6'2" apparently, same height as Jang Ki Yong). I also spotted a fellow costar from Miracle We Met and more recently the cute Song___ (not sure his full name-the Thai guy) in Fiery Priest! From Class of Lies we have the Lee Tae Seok fellow even looking for fame and status here, tisk tisk, but this one comes around and at least helps do real work if minimally lol! The maknae on that squad was a twin in Sky Castle, is in Arthdal Chronicles, and played the young version of the prosecutor bro in Psychometric and I think the young Jang Hyuk, too, in Money Flower, though I'm not sure and don't know his name off hand-there's no shortage of cuteness here, weird as it is to say about cops and drug dealers! Anyone watching Moment of 18 (M-T adorable first love high school drama w/Hyangi) will recognize the well-humored though somewhat taunting math wizard and track star oughttabe character Sang Hoon, too, as one of the four drug dealers, the one I think coordinating the distribution of illegally acquired sex tapes, and last but not, not ever, least... OUR GRIM REAPER from Hotel Del Luna! I was all kinds of sentimental even though he is quite a louse in this one!
All to say I was totally in love if only because it was like the stars aligned so brilliantly and brought together all sorts of people I have enjoyed recently (even if some like the status seeking cop/Lee Tae Seok one I enjoy disliking!)-to see such a cast is a total feast for my eyes, even if only briefly. Can't forget Yoon Sang Hyun, of course, not after Shopping King Louis, Miss Perfect, OSKA in Secret Garden, I Hear Your Voice, and even Gap Dong and Mrs Temper from a while back-he's a bit typecast for these dopey roles, but he's definitely good at them! Still, his roles in Shopping King Louis and Secret Garden are my faves for him.
Admittedly, this might not have much rewatch value since it's not especially complex or anything-you can watch casually and grasp everything the first time around, so it's not a mental maze to navigate by any shot (nor is it trying to be), but it is super fun. If I feel really stressed and feel like I need to throw or hit something, I can just replay the showcase of girl power in this and let them further damage the already lacking brain function of their brother-husband who gets a bit battered in his efforts to be useful! Prepare to laugh and smile A LOT. It is quite the riot and such a welcome respite for a weary day.
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Easy watch that questions “what is the best thing for…” a few ways
This is going to have spoilers, so I recommend you just dive in and watch a few episodes instead of reading my rambling thoughts here if you haven’t already seen this.This was quite heartwarming and a little crushing, too. Seeing kids develop obsessive compulsive behaviors, have panic attacks, and endure way more strain than their developing bodies can handle is hard, even in fictional settings. It is a bit predictable (because family dramas almost always are), but the characters that are developed are solid while the background ones are sort of just there. They chose fantastic cast members who delivered reliably even when the characters themselves didn’t have enough time on the screen to be deeply developed.
They had the characters and plot for 12 episodes but trimmed it to 8. It worked both in its favor and against it at the same time-some things were shallow and felt like filler simply because they weren’t fleshed out but delivered like bullet points in a presentation you list off and move past. Seo Yun’s father was supposed to be one of the main characters but had less presence than the grandmother of SY’s best friend. I’m sure the actor doesn’t mind since he is pretty content with all levels of roles, but he was really just there, his scenes kind of feeling out of sorts like a quota they needed to meet since two single moms of one daughter back to back in a family would bring quite a different dynamic, the crypto mess really truly feeling unnecessary, like odd 3-line filler that goes nowhere (I find it hard to believe that they “just need a little more” and instead of a loan and family support or just WORKING SOMEWHERE since his building doesn’t need him on site, they… um… write a plot line of gambling away what I think was ₩300M. Still, even with some odd moments, the actual human connection was warm and tender, resilience and priorities and “what is best for them” really central. Jung Jin Young was a big reason I watched along with Jeon Hye Jin, and I especially enjoyed his role. JHJ’s first drama after losing her husband so cruelly made me feel more intensely than perhaps I should have initially, but I quickly forgot she was anyone but the character once the dynamics were established.
The kids who have to endure, as preschoolers, this sort of imbalance are just being set up for mental breakdowns. Adults in rat race workplaces shouldn’t inflict that same kind of atmosphere and pace on developing brains and the bodies controlled by them. That much stress causes destruction from underdeveloped body systems (especially gastrointestinal, another reason stress leads to more accidents with little kids’ bladder development getting delayed on top of stress making the nervous system derail) to self-destruction. The nail biting and stealing, trying that hard to control a situation impossible to control as a tiny kid, turn into far bigger problems down the line. That intense level of denial for so long when she knows first hand the triggers for it is crushing. Looking straight ahead at the other moms when your child is by your waist makes me loathe them. Neglect is a form of abuse, and I am glad they showcased different ways of harming your child (ones that don’t require physical contact or that can, to outsiders, seem like compassion even when cruelty is displayed) clearly without ambiguity.
I don’t know how I feel about the accident in the last episode, but at least everyone was okay. They had no time to traumatize the whole cast, so it isn’t as if there was a decent alternative once they decided to have a car pull out (really, though, why not do like train tracks and have bars stop people from walking into these exits for underground lots where they can only see people if they take the time to look in the mirrors on the garage walls which most don’t do?)… The kids were realistic-most are resilient so long as their parents are stable, honestly, even if it is partly because actually stable parents don’t tend to forget their kids are kids and turn them into trophies because of social pressures stable parents can actually talk through and decide the level of engagement with.
SY could’ve (not should’ve but could’ve) handled Class A (how dumb to rank kids not even in grade school yet, though, oof!) if they’d just let her have room to breathe, run a bit which is necessary at that age (what is with expecting the brains of preschoolers to be able to focus for 2 hours on reading material, and I’m sorry, but what 5-year old SK school kid is learning comma rules for English in an academy, and… whyyyy?—some of it is nuts and hopefully exaggerated since most of it I caught was *native language* 2nd grade material they were doing in their academy). They made me so glad for my own time of art, music, math through tactile learning (objects in front of you), reading fun material (certainly not the king’s speech or anything like it lol), swim lessons and observing nature and comparing leaves and bugs from outside to what is in books, growing our own little plants, incubating bird eggs, and other basic “learn how to learn” techniques and motor skill development! In this case, SY would’ve been okay if her mom hadn’t upended her own life and been showing intense stress around the clock and being so intensely anxious the whole time they were looking into Class A mess. Your tiny mirror, the cute little monkey that sees and does, is gonna reflect that stress right back, dear parents.
I am happy the elders got their cute late in life love story. That is probably my favorite part, 3 grandparents with one being the wingwoman for both of the others. All in all, I enjoyed it. The title is quite apt. It really is about a mom, her mom, and her experience being a mom herself, complete with another grandmother-mother-daughter pack of pals.
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A tender, delicately crafted story of healing through found family
This drama has so few reviews I decided to copy my feed post from a month ago to the page as a review; other reviews give you the story details, so I feel okay just gushing in my stream of consciousness fashion here. :) (It is a given that not many titles are still at the forefront of my brain a month later for being so wonderful-only the wretched titles tend to lurk that long!)The short summary: This is a highly emotional slice of life with performances that are a balance of charming, funny, and naturally sad at times as 9 people who’ve lost the people they love most in the world are faced with a world that doesn’t understand what they are dealing with and makes them want to be further isolated as no amount of “stay strong”isms will do any good… Those people come together and find a place they can breathe, people they don’t have to pretend to be okay around and eventually get okay around. Tearjerker moments paired with gentle humor, character growth and the best example of a true “found family” story I’ve seen… that is what you are signing up for if you watch this drama which I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
The lengthy version (my brain splatting out its thoughts without censorship-pardon the mess):
I hovered between 9.5 and 10 for the rating here, but I really can’t find fault in it, especially since I had to naturally watch some pretty compressed video (it was uploaded long before the era of full HD gigabyte plus episode files being common) that lost a lot of the color in it but still found myself crying a bit, smiling, and crying again for all the pain and happiness alike… yeah, this deserves a 10. It is a heavily character-centered slice of life about found family (admittedly a weakness of mine that will warm my heart more than almost every other trope when it is done well, and man, this is your platinum star for that!), so instead of plot twists and turns or intense feuds of family dramas that have scheming at the forefront, this is bringing together people who are as different as you will find but who share one crucial thing: they all just lost the most important people to them because of the same tragic accident.
Granted, you need to WANT something that explores grief, loss, and pain from MANY perspectives and showcases a really complex set of character dynamics as they cope with trauma, loneliness (to extremes), survivor guilt (a couple of them weren’t there at the scene of the accident at all, but their guilt, while a little different, is no less intense, and their isolation and alienation no less saddening).
Stunning performances across the board. This managed, in 9 hours, to let me see deeper into the stories of the characters (despite there being several to peer into, some more deeply than others) than most dramas can in 20 hours, but unlike many (most) quick works that aim for the same “tell a lot with little time” result, it never felt like they were just gluing together tiny skits. It flowed exceptionally well, and I ended up deeply loving the characters thanks to how thoughtful I found both the writing and portrayal of them.
Emotional train wreckage, yep, and it is beautifully handled. I feel both amazing warmth and a tiny bit of exhaustion from so much emotion pulled from me as I couldn’t stop watching after a point. I didn’t want to let go of them, any of them. They really managed to end it pretty perfectly while leaving a big part of me wanting to forget much I’d just seen so I could watch it for the first time again even though it is not throwing a thrilling twist-filled plot that justifies forgetting before rewatching. I want to see their initial encounters and growth from the start with no knowledge of it. I want to watch them grow together and heal together in this gentle haven. The blend of heart, humor, pain, and characters who grow to trust and feel truly comfortable like family, real lasting family, with one another is worth anyone watching who wants to throw their hearts into something. (I am really glad I watched it far in advance of the Korean adaptation coming out-the Kdrama has only cast 3 potential house members, and I am excited for it, but I think it’ll be very different… still, what a fantastic title to remake in HD, hopefully with all the charm of the house this one features which really is just a perfect setting for this story!)
This is certainly not for people primarily looking for pretty faces and sharp cinematography. It is 20 years old this year and what is online, fan subbed, is compressed to under 1/5 the file size it would be if released now. I didn’t actually find it detracted too much after a brief adjustment for my eyes since I was there for the characters’ story, story, and more story and it fully delivered. The OST, while the start and end are consistent, has some fitting songs. In particular, a couple of instrumental numbers threw my brain back to an album I had, might still have, that I think was the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra. At least that is the cover that is in my head (it is not at all a weird song of theirs-they have lots that are non-traditional-just one that I remember the flute player’s sound from and think this might be that same player). No huge wow factor anywhere… but that is why it shines. It is delicately handled, full of tiny details (both through setting/cast/prop visuals and in character traits and dynamics), and nuanced, and it feels deeply honest, authentic, in terms of the emotions of every character.
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Didn't expect to watch Armageddon's Korean sequel
I feel like I'm on a streak of posting 8-8.5's and this was all set to be another 8* option, but... in the end had too many weak points to give it that (it's still fine for single-viewing mindless entertainment, just not exactly for grading it from a story and casting POV or my own preference since I'm not really a mindless watch stuff get blown up sort of viewer-I do generally prefer my brain to need to at least be alert-here, it's like I could put it in hibernate and recreate the whole thing-it's just a bit too basic, too common and overdone a storyline, and predictable overall).This one is a bit hard to rate because the acting and production are totally A-grade and I appreciate that they don't have the actors in the "control towers" (military commanders, the President and his staff, etc) being over the top-everyone was precise and acted their parts out quite well... but for a script that is totally average. This is a bit like Armageddon, South Korea style, but not so cringe-inducing, not trying to drag tears out of you by punching you repeatedly with saccharin blech (there's a very very short bit of it, though it's forgivable, I guess), this had, for me, what would make a really weird high/low points graph. It starts off kind of mediocre which honestly almost made me click out, but it got much better and better... only to have an ending that felt like dozens of other action movies and brought back to mind Armageddon references when I never in my whole life want to remember that film with... isn't it Steven Tyler singing its anthem? Yeah, pretty sure... that song still feels like a trauma in my life somehow.
At least this lacks an OST to speak of-it's too busy with immense sound effects. THAT is a definite strength, but it's Dexter Studios (Dexter the Eye etc) with CJ Group-of course the visuals and sound engineering will be solid. The ACTING is also solid. This is Lee Byung Hun's perfect sort of role IMO. I don't like him in anything where he's supposed to be "sexy" or in any romances except only-half-romance historical Mr. Sunshine, but this... yes, this is the right role for him... tough, sly, a bit hard to put up with, cocky, all the things his face exudes if I'm honest. Physiognomy isn't my jam, but maybe all those face reading sageuks made me see his face and project... or the Marlboro Man vibe just feels off-putting... okay, and Mr. Sunshine aside, I'll never root for his romance bc he took Ji Sung's woman in 2003. Yup. Bitterness eternal here.
This is, overall, kinda, hmm... entertaining because the acting is slick and some dialogue is, while not too unique, really well-delivered (and thank goodness their American cast members were actually good speakers, whew... SO often their "Americans" end up just absolutely sucking!)... Ma Dong Seok was playing a super smart Princeton professor, a geologist of sorts who had predicted the mountain explosions that are the basis of this and gets involved, and his big ol' teddy bear personality was on screen as authentic as imaginable here. He's so dang endearing.
Now for a gripe, though: Suzy's role was small and honestly forgettable and seemed pretty out of place (she looks 20 years younger than her "husband" Ha Jung Woo plays here, like 40 vs 20 even if they're supposed to be 30... mismatched for me and they ARE 17 yeara apart). While she's great in her role, Jeon Hye Jin, actually a couple years older than him, easily passes for child-bearing age in this movie, so she would've paired better, as would have Ok Ja Yeon who's 10 years younger. Either of those would've made Ha Jung Woo seem younger than his 44 years, but Suzy's SO far off age and appearance-wise it makes him look like his character would have friends whose children were in her class. Oh well... not that important, just not loved by me and a bit annoying in the very few moments they were in the same scene... it's super weird to see Ma Dong Seok look like a better spouse for Suzy than the one assigned! He cleans up nicely here, though. :P
Anyway, it's not amazing stuff, no, but for a couple of hours of explosions and action and me wishing more about the science would've been explored and worked through on-screen (and even the political end since it was just thrown on screen in an "everyone knows this bit" way that made it lack longevity for sure), it was entertaining. Not a screenwriter I'll be desperate to seek everything out from, though. To go to Armageddon's awful theme song to close this out, I WON'T miss a thing... about this movie, Ma Dong Seok the expert Princeton scientist with his ever-golden care bear heart aside.
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If Mr. Bean and a horribly corrupt idealist got into a fight... in a bank?
Is my headline confusing? So is this show. I don't feel like I can devote a ton of energy to making this organized if I'm honest; I just noticed this weird show somehow has a totally respectable rating thus far but no one is bothering to say what they like about it or dislike, so I'm going to basically rant a little til I feel better.It starts off seeming okay. You have a bank merger with one of the two having far more political pull/influence and this weirdly corrupt idealist (see, told ya it's confusing) pushing the board of directors who are all in for profit at the cost of the bank itself, even. Corrupt idealist exec is going through this shutdown of all the less powerful bank's branches and transferring their accounts to the others, fine okay, but he's bribing people left and right, talking about giving control to overseas companies, even, to "save the bank?" There's his idealism in a big vision: banks ruled by AI, minimal human knowledge or involvement, computers the superior means for all things monetary in his mind.
I struggled to give this a rating at all because it COULD be genuinely good, really, except good freaking lord, what was this writer thinking when deciding to basically make the lead character a sort of comical Mr. Bean figure always bowing, smiling, everyone robotically following militant sorts of motions that don't EVEN seem like human bodies are moving half the time. Some solid sentimental connection is formed, and I really do like a couple of the actors in this, the ones more subtle in behavior, more... banker-like? Kagawa Teruyuki is by far the best of them in this respect. Some of those banker behaviors are instilled, the whole morning hazaa sorts of let's get em tiger fight the good fight work hard comrades teamwork chants, but he looks human and real. Ah, so does Takahashi Kazuya (who has some of the Mr. Bean but without being so annoyingly non-humanlike). With that said, because there ARE some really sweet behaviors, some sentimental attachments, and while of course a bit on the forced side there are some stories of customers that are delivered in touching and normal ways, I kept watching. Would I watch a second season? My rating speaks for itself. I'd certainly watch the aforementioned actors (along with the youngster Kamiki Ryunosuke) again, but assuming this is not the normal sort of behavior/acting job for the lead, for Kote Shinya who is basically a mobster in a bank office, and for bully with the approval stamp Sakou Yoshi, assuming more aptly they don't make these grotesque over the top facial expressions that sometimes look like someone having a seizure in 'anger' or 'defiance' and other times just look RIDICULOUS... The lead Fukuyama Masaharu seemed to think he was in a comedy. Maybe it is? When he would become 'sentimental' it was a bit like a tiny child cuddling a doll; when Mikami Hiroshi, our corrupt bribery using idealist trying to save the bank through machines, to fire everyone then say it was for their institution that now the experienced bankers will make a valiant sacrifice and bag groceries for the rest of their work years, when he got pissy, it was so much like a spoiled little kid not getting his robot the day it was released it really WAS comical. The problem with that? The content was serious.
That's not to say you can't take serious content and deliver it with a lot of comedy. I finished Special Labor Inspector (Kdrama) not long ago and it was funny, sharp, and also managing serious stuff. Heck, even Doctor Detective has funny moments. This seemed more up the Radiation House alley-something to take very seriously as if the lives of all you serve depend on it. In both a hospital and bank that is entirely true. If your money OR your health disappear, the other is soon to follow, so it's not like we can survive without both being managed well and safeguarded. Had it been approached LIKE Radiation House-some sweetness, sentiment, some brilliance, some dumb moments of despair/shame, and a sharp contrast between the 'do it quick and make money' folks and the 'do it right the first time and follow through thoroughly' ones, it could honestly have been great.
Summary: I don't honestly know if the actors were TOLD to be so unnatural (ie if it's a failed comedy) or if the writer's directions were not clear/precise or if they gave leeway for the actors to interpret it, but the director at the very least BOMBED this because it was like I was watching six different shows, actors who had read six separate scripts thrown together. That'd be fine were they tourists in a hostel all acting wildly different, but not in a bank, especially not in a single branch of a bank. It was just too peculiar to enjoy and I ended up frequently speeding up the ABUNDANCE of dead time, time when a scene could have been done in 2 minutes but took 10. It was just poorly made. I feel sad for the ones who DID work hard because it's clear they didn't gel in the end. Failed comedy, failed business centered semi-serious drama about economic issues of the day, failed study of what ACTUALLY makes a person heroic? Who knows. They clearly wrote for the lead to be persevering the whole way through. The problem is the lack of evolution of that character and-even if it was the intention-how unbelievable it was for someone completely underqualified and not especially skilled, your base level clerk, to suddenly jump up several tiers in order to fail then behave like a basic clerk but everything turn out alright? Eh, perseverance isn't enough and the message gets lost with a guy who can always be outwitted and who ultimately would realistically have been attacked and hospitalized in almost any other drama; they fired and bullied and hurt others, threats left and right, but a guy with a wife and child at home is going to just take the threats and go? Unbelievable is definitely a good word.
Like I said, I like the idea of this grunt worker just running his way around (no transit bankers have enough $ there I suppose?), though he is running apparently 15km a day from how they make it seem, all in dress shoes and a suit, no changing outfits for the sake of not being sweaty for clients (but I guess women don't fart and bankers don't sweat if they're honorable?). I like a lot of its ideas. The problem is I cringed so so much I am angry for how much more my wrinkles set in with a mere 540 minutes. I feel jaded that it took 450 minutes of lousy acting by the ones that were in that comical Bean universe that sometimes felt like I was watching a fight between (The Simpsons) Mr. Burns and Ned Flanders, the lead the obvious Flanders and the paper stamper/approval process slower downer and stopper the Mr. Burns. That leaves Takahashi Kazuya to be Mr. Bean since he has the best resemblance!
Ah, and it's normal, I know, but when a show already makes you grit your teeth, those ads thrown a few places in them really make your fist feel like punching something sometimes. They do serve as times to unclench a jaw that is really sad to see something promising go from drain to sewer to waste treatment plant in 10 hours then just end with a stench you never can quite stop smelling even after it's theoretically 15km away, running alongside our protagonist who somehow turns from a cog they'll use and dispose of to a master who beats them despite knowing almost nothing about what's happening in his own institution. Should've maybe let someone else be the voice of inspiration. This guy just made me want to slap him too often with his fast furious bows and running and loud shouting and other comedy troupe suited behaviors that don't translate well on TV.
Sorry I ranted. I got mad all over again at myself for watching it through, but with 10 episodes, it feels like an insult to not see something through (oh heck, for me there can be 25 hours left and I'll still not be able to stop watching most that I start if I've gotten even 5-6 hours into it). This has been a confession for your holiness to forgive my impudence and all that. I at least can go watch them be cute, handsome, sweet, tender, or villanous elsewhere, hopefully in sync with their fellow cast members next time.
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My overall thought? Over the top in both the intended ways (big CGI effects etc) and also unintended ones (music that was loud and annoying, dorky as I'll explain, acting with facial expressions that made me double check if it was really from Japan-I cringed quite a few times; the voices were also really unnatural sounding, especially the lead who seemed really out of place here) and kind of sloppy in terms of how it started. It was just thrown at us without any real connection between scenes. Too many times it jumped to places that were given no explanation. They were whining at each other or silent when information needed to be delivered one way or another, a way besides 'let em figure it out in a few minutes' ideally.
The visual effects were pretty good. The OST was a bit obnoxious in that it was ripping off John Williams. After such obvious knockoffs of Star Wars' saga's more trumpet-heavy songs with some Indiana Jones/Raiders of the Lost Ark and even some swooning bits like Jurassic Park's most iconic number tossed in a couple of times, etc, I was expecting the signature 5 notes from Close Encounters of the Third Kind to be the final finish. It made watching it distinctly less fun because over the top music paired with some over the top acting and I couldn't bring it higher than the 5 I gave it-and I did that a bit mercifully because this is my first time watching this genre. For anything that isn't a straight up sequel, I firmly believe a work should stand on its own no matter the audience as long as it isn't something too complex for said audience-it shouldn't require me to be entrenched with the kind of show it is in any way. On that, the story does an alright job as basic as it is, the characters only good in the sense that it's 'to be continued' since the things that ARE cool=not explored enough (namely the girl I think was called Haruka-only girl that is there more than a few mins)... The acting went from flat to exaggerated, like zero expression to twitchy, overdone motions face-wise-the girl in it was better but she was supposed to focus and gaze intently, so yeah, not so hard to do. The action was alright, nothing amazing but I do like the girl's psychic power and sword deal. It would be better, I think, as a drama. As a standalone, it's definitely more fluffy than I tend to like (and I like sci-fi and fantasy and futuristic stuff, just not Power Rangers on whatever rare metal is the bot equivalent of steroids which it felt like).
Nothing much to spoil with the plot-can't expect an enormous amount of plot in this quick little installment, but it was an interesting thing that I honestly wouldn't have watched if it hadn't 1) popped up on Kissasian yesterday and 2) been in a category I definitely hadn't marked any 'plan to watch' pages for the 2019 Watch Challenge (https://kisskh.at/discussions/forum-games/37178-2019-watch-challenge )! The challenge served a unique purpose, though, cause wow, yep, I knew this stuff existed (but honestly thought it was more the modern equivalent of Saturday morning cartoons made live action) and saw it on Kissasian often enough, but all the Kamen Rider sorts of shows, probably because anything with a dozen parts is intimidating, couldn't have gotten a total newcomer like me to jump down the rabbit hole. I don't regret it at all. It was an interesting enough watch. Some special effects were over the top (like the whole thing), and I can't figure out for the life of me why it's rated all ages ie a 5 year old doesn't need mom/dad to be there in case the initial scenes of violence are, yknow, upsetting (generally that rating is reserved for Disney Channel and Nickelodeon kid-aimed programs) or the slimier/less human creatures perhaps not what all little kids will be okay watching alone). Mind you, I watched worse in my youth, but it doesn't mean it got rated the same as Ozzie and Harriet/Andy Griffith sorts of family programs or Sesame Street.
I'm sure there are better examples of this category (I've seen some from other countries that are basically higher budget or more classic versions of the basic premise here-heck, some of what Williams composed the scores for was right in line with it), and I think people who already like this kind of storyl will find it a fast-paced light easy watch (kind of welcome after watching stuff that makes ya cry a storm). That said, it wasn't anything new or terribly original. It's a bit like Harlequin romance novels-they take the same general set up options and shuffle details so with 100 different details to pick 20 from, you get a whole lot of "unique" combinations that in cinema need a bit more than some musical chairs and translating other works into every language everywhere. It felt like a grab bag-a handful of show 1, a sprinkle of 2, a big chunk plagiarized from 3 then visually altered a touch, etc. Still, It wasn't terrible, just not anything I'd recommend or watch further installments of. The pilot should be strong, super strong at that, even if it's 90% grabbed from other works, kind of!
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Explore all sorts of music deeply w/a genuine, affable host harmonious w/new&veteran artists alike
Are there no comments and reviews because it's so well-known or the opposite, I wonder?In case someone comes around here and the latter is the case (they don't know anything about this program), well, I'm truly underqualified to review it as I have NOT been watching this decade long piece of music history unfold and have perhaps seen far fewer episodes than others who have thrown their rating up their, even! I can't honestly even SAY how many I've seen because as a show that isn't linear and doesn't require starting at any given point, I arrived the same way as the majority of non-Koreans and maybe younger Koreans alike: I liked a musician/song, looked it up on YT where this show has a prominent presence (yay! I like supporting the shows the legal way so I heart networks when they DO put shows up there!), and a clip from this show happened to be the absolute best OF that song online by a WIDE margin. I loved the interview style, so I then went to the full episode, loved it (the subtitles have been excellent for episodes in the last 5 years or so, at least what I've caught), and periodically go back and watch more. Once in a while when something pops up in my feed the times I AM over on that part of the web, if I have some extra time or am doing light work and want something that doesn't require CONSTANT focus like most dramas I enjoy, well, what better than some music I can watch or just as easily skip past without anyone's feelings being hurt if I'm not feeling like hearing whatever is on (ie if I want to ease my stress, high energy stuff might not be it)?
Since music transcends language yet incorporates it very often, it's wonderful that I can tune in or out exactly as much as I wish-I can just hear the voice like a bird or I can listen to the words for their poetry and the story within them. While my Korean vocab is pretty good apart from some dialects tripping me up, lyrics are a WHOLE other ball game since the structure that took me so long to wrap my brain around gets reshuffled so my subjects and objects are all mysterious in songs and poetry because they are fitting things into rhymes and rhythms. Anyway, you don't need to know the language to enjoy the songs, BUT boy it's nice to have the translations for when something gets into your head/heart!
So why THIS music program over all the rest? Hmm, well, the host and the VARIETY are my reasons-I'm not young, so I don't know anything about bands, biases, fandom names, etc beyond Bigbang and two or three others quite vaguely. I do like, for the reason millions (hundreds of millions) do, an inexplicable reason, like Bigbang a lot-G Dragon looks like the friend-family "we're godparents of each other's youngsters" 'soul twin,' so seeing him on screen makes me sentimental for reasons unrelated to him entirely, but it turns out I dig his lyrical style, rapping (and to a lesser extent singing-he's better at the former), and of course catchy endearing dancing... but all the new ones? Lord, if they aren't in a Kdrama, I don't know them AT ALL. If they ARE in a Kdrama, I still don't know them AS a band member unless an aficionado informs me or they just can't act especially well yet despite the adoration in comments! The only exception might be Kang Daniel because he was memorable as a "Dangerous Beyond the Blankets" member, one of maybe 3 Korean 'reality?' shows I have watched start to finish. All to say... this isn't going to be Kpop boy and girl groups unlimited. They only have a few artists on each time and they give them ample time to shine and interact. THAT is its real difference. It's a bit more intimate, deeper, has a less crazy-loud audience (fans are there, for sure, but they aren't wailing and ruining the music too often though occasionally a young lady does, inevitably, melt down, lol!), and just feels WARM. Other shows to me feel like another exhausting performance they are anxious to get through and go home from. They seem to genuinely be really happy on this show, all of them, even the ones who seem prickly and frustrated on other shows from what I've seen here and there.
If you are at all interested in exploring Korean music, this is a brilliant show. If you don't know a thing about any of them, PERFECT. The mega idols and the small new indy duets with only 3 songs are truly treated as equals and you wouldn't know the veterans from the newcomers on here. THAT takes brilliance. The host is ideal for the role-he's sensitive to both music and the creators of it and has a finely tuned ear, so to speak, so as he listens he catches bits of improvisation to songs in the show, he and his team research to know an ample amount about the songs and performers, and of course he knows the instruments and music structure themselves so he starts off at an advantage. Still, somehow, he is not arrogant (in any eps I've watched), is incredibly approachable and affectionate towards his guests in how he speaks, and you can tell he genuinely admires their work, craft, etc. "It takes one to know one." I have heard mentions of the host's PAST experience but have no knowledge of him as a musician beyond his occasional impromptu seeming times playing along WITH guests (possibly very well-rehearsed though they've perfected making it look natural if so!). He's quite a sensitive player with a lot of style and ability to mesh with all sorts, it turns out, and match THEM not the other way around.
Simply put, this host is CREATING HARMONY in every sense-note to note, instrument to instrument, human to human. He's just in tune with the world's more sensitive beings and can create an atmosphere that makes guests WANT to harmonize with him, open up and just have a friendly talk like they've been friends since childhood and are now watching their kids grow up together. Whether the guest is a spritely giggly youngster who gets shy easily or a laid back easygoing middle aged peer, all of them quickly have this "we get you and you get us" sort of instant connection that kind of makes me miss when I was a musician. It was heaven and hell all in one. My hands and head (instrumentalist) said hell sometimes, but hitting the sweet perfect notes that fluttered like a bird sometimes, sounded an alert, or sounded haunting and haunted alike... when the mood and the tone and the general feel of the musician are all aligned, it's brilliant. It seems like his stage has some sort of magical effect that makes people much more able to do it than other places. Maybe it's all because of him or maybe there's someone backstage who is the real maestro, but it's freaking beautiful to see.
If I wasn't so dang addicted to kdramas or could follow the lyrics in their unusual patterns ie if my fluency could go beyond understanding NORMAL conversation and could venture into the land of unique to me symbolic word combinations and Kerouac-like rambling styles, I'd probably watch all 500+ episodes, but alas, when I have to say no to some 24 hours a week of Kdramas I'd love to be watching (and I only do primetime so that's 12 shows I can't see that I'd like to give a try!)... music from a faraway land takes the back burner because I DO know my actors and actresses and I DO have mild addictions to THEIR craft which just happens to be theatrical, not musical (though for some it is both, of course).
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