Dear kfangurl: What do you think of idol actors?

Bubblebathdaisies writes:

Dear kfangurl,

(This is a long intro, so skip it if you wish) Hello! I’ve been a silent reader of your blog for a really long time, since I was thirteen and I just made this account to comment!

I’m sixteen now, and I feel like I’ve grown up with your blog- you introduced me to dramas and k-pop, and I still read your older articles when I feel down, it’s like comfort food for me. So thank you for that!

The question I have is: What do you think of idol actors? I don’t know if it’s just me, but it feels like a lot more idols are starring in dramas nowadays, and they may not always be good at acting. The general consensus among some of my other drama-watching friends is that idol actors take away jobs from better-trained rookie actors, and some think it’s unfair that they get to use a drama as an acting class.

Personally, I think it’s a bit of a gray area, since there’s plenty of perfectly well-trained and decently popular actors who can’t reeeallly act that well, but also it kind of ruins the drama for me if the lead cannot act well (fourteen year old me wasn’t that bothered about acting skills so much as ~swoon~ factor and watched The Great Seducer on repeat, but I watched it last week and had to skip a big big chunk of the scenes because the acting was…not the greatest) What do you think?

(But I think we all know idols are going to keep getting casted anyways, lol. They’re far too popular to miss out on for profit-related purposes, and some of them are really really good!)

Annie writes:

Would be interesting to read your thoughts on idols turned actors/actresses.

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Review: Oh Hae Young Again [Another Oh Hae Young]

THE SHORT VERDICT:

More than – and therefore possibly mis-marketed as – a typical rom-com, this show possesses a sensitive, thoughtful core that tends to lean melancholic.

Empathetic writing, tender directing, and some outstandingly dig-deep acting come together to bring out the beauty inherent in the melancholy, and it’s quite remarkable to behold.

A deft comic hand to manage the broad comedic elements, a solid supporting cast, and a gorgeous OST round out this show’s appeal.

Not perfect, to be sure, but so worth the watch.

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Pure Pretty: Eric

Blame my previous indifference to Eric on the facts that:

(a) I’m technically still a complete kpop noob and know next to nothing about Shinhwa, the legendary group of which Eric is leader and rapper; and

(b) I’d never seen him in anything of significance, since I’d bailed early on Myung Wol The Spy (2011), and hadn’t been terribly impressed by his outing as second lead in Phoenix (2004). Fine.

That last bit was also coz I’d been so completely distracted by Lee Seo Jin at the time, who was basically the only reason I even decided to watch that show, heh.

Now, blame my current state of spazz-puddle on Eric’s wonderful performance in Discovery of Love (2014). I mean, just, where had this manly man, oh-so-sexy version of Eric been hiding, all this while??

I likey. I likey very much.

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