namopanik

Young dancer and his romances - that's so not what this is about. First, it's narrated by a girl, but she's not a main character. Even Liu Feng and Xiao Ping are just one of many members of the troupe. This movie is a coming of age, slice of life period piece aiming to evoke a feeling of epicness (yes, it somehow mingles here). It starts in the 1970s to reach modern day (or at least mid-90s and narrate the rest offscreen). If I was to compare it to something, it'd be Ditto and the way it conveyed a feeling of a lost generation. Underneath the breezy surface and endearing scenes of people gushing over Hong Kong-imported fashion and tapes something much more sinister lingers. Some of the members are there as a part of the re-education, waiting to be permitted to enter the university. Some are bullied because they come from the wrong social class. Romances are happening, but we're talking about complety different sensibility and social standards, so nothing is easy. And then, since it's a military troupe, things are bound to take a dramatic (and gory) turn.

lmao, they really didn't waste time for coming up with characters' names, did they.

forget Chunhyangga, this is 'how many Korean folktales can you spot' and then a Western romcom parody on top of it!

in case you wondered, the book In Ho hides the pictures in ep 22 is The Brothers Karamazov.

/make sure not to miss on epilogues ]


Things I never knew I needed in my life until they came unexpectedly: Jae Hee, straight from 3-Iron into a corny, angsty rom-com driven on misunderstandings and meddlings of the pestiest 2nd leads I've ever beheld. Mid 2000s in its prime. Unapologetically lame, zany and oh so energetic. Witty and context-heavy, as expected from Hong sisters, but the source material is very faintly present. I don't know why it's not getting more buzz. Maybe it's going downhill in the second half? Maybe the ludicrousness of the setup (forced marriage in HS) was too much to swallow?
Bonus points: heroine has a spunk (despite all the noble idiocy roaming). Everyone else is doing their best to bring the main pair together. Father in law is the most precious thing ever, enough to counterbalance the frustration created by the 2nd leads who just cannot let go. Ugh, I want to grab them and bang their heads together.

/they sure run a lot.
/I have 5 episodes left. I know What, I'm mildly interested in How and To What Extent, but it's a chore to get through it. Without 2nd leads it could wrap itself in 4, maybe 6 eps in total without losing much.

You're right about fastdrama. I'm planning to stick to the ones you mention in the future. Thanks for solving out the confusion about Ming and the warlords.

I'm sure post-military Lee Seung Gi can secure a fair share of 10s on his own.

everyone is hanging on that baby, but wasn't it baby!Sun Mi and not their hypothetical future kid? Sure, White Heron or the Monkey said something cryptic, but for me it was clear it was Sun Mi herself and Heron brought her straight from the time of the disease. She was wearing baby clothes from the 1980s, with the logo of that particular country hospital. I imagine the design would change in 30+ years and why would they even go back to that place to have her give birth to her child? Too warped. I think Heron's remark about bringing the child out of its time is misinterpreted (to the future from the 1980s, not from the future). The part about it looking like the Monkey was just people teasing him that he was fooling around with other women, since the baby just appeared out of the blue.
So no baby for them. But that's just me.
(Speaking of which, why couldn't she just drop a hint years ago that Sun Mi is a saviour, not a cursed child and let her grow up proudly...)

I saw a bit and it's a typical weekend drama quality- and tone-wise. I guess they just come in different lenghts.

I'm sure it'll become clearer with time (or as you say, won't be that important here) :)

Of course he was. As if Hong sisters would kill off their precious male character.
You saw the blue flames situation? There's no more danger for him from now on.

-- is it me or the synopsis doesn't fit? Maybe I blinked at the beginning or skipped too much not wanting to get spoiled by the opening song, but I'm confused as to When and Where and Who. So it's a Republican Era drama. From the Nationalists perspective, I guess. Do they mean https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Chen_Cheng by Cheng army? Are those historical figures? Li Chong Nian turns nothing. (S army = blue, N army = plum). The subs say Ming citizens, but that can't be. What's going on?

1. Bu Ja - yes. We don't even get to know when exactly. In ep 20 the Priestess who possessed her body asks the Pig to burn her and tells him that Buja is no longer with her, that she's already vanished and only a shell remains (maybe she only wanted to calm him down and proceed without qualms?). She never comes back fully, but the Priestess shows a glimpses of her, maybe through a sheer proximity.
2. Dragon Prince - dead as well (ep 19). In order to save the Pig from the flames she wrapped herself around him (because she -- wait, it's he -- is from the Water Realm, so can fight fire). He evaporates into foam bubbles. Alice wakes up later and remembers nothing.
3. Amnesia - the Monkey lost memory after Sang Mi's death and they spent a better part of ep 20 to make him regain it with her help (and generous use of flashbacks)(she was brought back for 1 day to do this).

Short version: the world is saved, the girl dies (as close to in vain as it gets), the Monkey gets amnesia and despairs, so she's brought up for a one day to enliven his mood. She finally learns he truly loved her. They separate. As he drives off towards the setting sun in a PPL car, we're lead to believe that he will go to the Netherworld to fetch her. [The foreshadowing of the constellation they were watching together (Orpheus) hints that it'll be a futile trip.] He promises to recognise her no matter how she'll change, so the reincarnation route isn't out of the question.
Tell me if you want to know about anyone specifically.

I'm not sure, but it's sounds more mature than him and he isn't even moving his lips, only strolls through a library or sits there as the voiceover goes. So it's more like a visual cameo.

Frankly, I prefer one big case. I saw too many procedurals to care anymore. One big case has a bigger chance to flop (drag and/or require dumbing down the protagonists in order to fill 16 eps), but when done right, it can be more satisfying than a string or more or less random cases.
Anyway, it doesn't look like anyone picked it up to sub yet.

amnesia, really! just stay in 2012, you dinosaurs.

I don't regret watching it, but I wish it was better. *back to sorting out my feelings*

you can't say we weren't prepared for it, with all those lousy ghosts and monsters, red eyes, blue flames, foam bubbles etc. The bar was set from the very beginning.
But hey, to make up for it, weren't locations nice? At least that they didn't botch up.

I'm trying to figure out that format, too, and I think it may be the opposite. Since it's a weekend drama, maybe rather than watered down standard 16 episodes it's tightened 50 episode type of drama? (Like Money Flower for example - planned as 50 ep makjang, eventually 24 eps.)

Life isn't very fair to anyone in this this drama. What happened to her is terrible, but 1. she drank awfully lot for someone who supposedly waited years to get pregnant, 2. it's possible she only approached Kevin in a first place because of his relationships with Hye Ra. In a sense she brought it on herself.