Jung Yong Hwa

Dear kfangurl: What do you think of idol actors?

| kfangurl

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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Year In Review: 2014

| kfangurl

If there’s one thing that everyone seems to be able to agree on, it’s that time is flying. Like, seriously. Where has 2014 gone?

I can hardly believe that 2015 is almost here, promising/threatening gifts of dramas chock-full of vampires, multiple personalities, and other psychological disorders goodies.

Before 2014 makes her exit, though, I wanted to come out and give credit where it’s due. Coz as much as so many of my friends in dramaland have been talking about a meh drama year, I feel like I had a pretty good drama year, actually.

I know. How did that happen, right?

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Review: The Three Musketeers

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

More often brisk and breezy than not, more often engaging and fun than not, and more often interesting and entertaining than not, The Three Musketeers is more than your average fusion sageuk.

This drama is a pretty bold attempt to adapt an age-old tale across mediums (novel to drama) and across cultures (French to Korean), while doing its best to retain the optimum crack ingredients that would appeal to a kdrama-loving audience.

Possibly due to its ambition, pacing across the show can be a little uneven, and logic gets sacrificed on more occasions than one might expect. Put on some generous Logic Blinders, though, and there are likely to be enough goodies in this one to make it worth your while.

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Dear kfangurl: Is shipping kdrama co-stars normal?

| kfangurl

You know, one of the things that I really enjoy about this blog, is how you guys inspire new types of posts, often when I least expect it. With your suggestions, this blog has taken on more breadth than I ever intended, and I think that’s cool.

First, it was the Dream Dramas post inspired by Lady G, and then it was the Pure Pretty series inspired by asotss.

Today, I’m kicking off yet another type of post on the blog, and it’s the Dear kfangurl.. post? Series? I don’t really know yet whether this will turn into an actual series, since that really depends on whether people have questions that they’d like to ask.

Basically, it’s sorta like an agony aunt sort of thing, except it’s more specific to dramas and fangirling (it’s my screen-name, isn’t it? It makes me seem like a fangirling expert, eh?).

I do have a nephew, so I’m technically an aunt, but I prefer to think of this as an agony unni column instead of an agony aunt one, heh.

I may not have all the answers that you’re looking for, but I can promise a listening ear and sharing of my thoughts and experiences, much like how a friend might listen and chat with you over tea.

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What Makes Drama Crack Stay Fresh / Turn Stale?

| kfangurl

DC1So today Stephanie posted on her blog Crazy for Kdrama a post titled Second-hand Crack. In it, she describes her experience re-watching Smile Dong Hae, and finding that it just wasn’t as cracktastic the second time around.

That really resonated with me, coz as some of you may know, I’ve been marathoning Beautiful Days for review, and that review’s been taking a while to actually get written.

The reason is pretty much the same as Stephanie’s experience with Smile Dong Hae. I’d loved Beautiful Days on my first watch, and had devoured it pretty quickly.

Fast forward several years, and now that I’m watching it for the second time, I still find it pretty engaging, but it’s just not as cracktastic as I had first found it.

Which begs the question: What exactly makes drama crack stay fresh / turn stale?

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Review: A Gentleman’s Dignity

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

A light-as-air rom-com that rides more on atmosphere than plot. The ensemble cast has a collectively impressive resume, but don’t expect too much or you are likely to be disappointed.

This drama is likely to disintegrate under too much scrutiny, but if you’re in the mood to space out a little with something that doesn’t require much thinking, this might be your cup of tea.

I started out bemused, but ended up enjoying this more than I expected to.