Kim Min Jae

Flash Review: Dr. Romantic 2

| kfangurl

Just three years ago, if you’d told me that I’d be spending precious drama hours binging a medical show – for fun – I wouldn’t have believed you.

Medical shows have just never been my thing, y’know? 😅

But then, a couple of years back, you guys voted for Dr. Romantic as a group watch (Open Threads listed here), and that’s how I ended up watching – and very much enjoying – Season 1 of this show.

Some of you guys then told me that Season 2 was arguably more enjoyable than Season 1, and so I had vague good intentions of checking out Season 2, but that never happened, because of all the other shows always clamoring for my attention – until now.

Why now, you may ask? Well, it’s because Season 3 is finally here, I want to check out Season 3, along with everyone else.

(And once again, this means that it’s basically FOMO to the rescue, ha. 😅)

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Dropped: Dali And The Cocky Prince

| kfangurl

I really, really wanted to like this one, you guys.

I mean, Park Gyu Young in her first lead role? Yes, please! And, Kim Min Jae, as a romantic leading man again, after a wonderful turn as romantic leading man in Do You Like Brahms? Also yes, please!

The thing is, though, after 4 episodes, I’m just not feeling this one, to be brutally honest. 😝

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Review: Do You Like Brahms?

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

A restrained, loving study of music, characters, and their relationships, Do You Like Brahms? boasts characters that are carefully and tenderly drawn, relationships that feel patiently and organically grown, and a narrative filled with music-related touches that demonstrate an understanding of and empathy for musicians.

Our cast is very solid all-around, with each actor bringing their character to life in a way that feels real and believable.

I loved extra, our sweet, bashful, very well-matched OTP, played by Kim Min Jae and Park Eun Bin.

Not only is their romance handled thoughtfully, their individual journeys as musicians and as people, are teased out carefully too.

A very enjoyable ride, particularly if you identify as an introvert &/or a musician.

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Dropped: The Great Seducer

| kfangurl

You know, for a hot second, I thought I might actually like this show.

Right off the bat, it kinda-sorta felt like an off-shoot of Heirs, but better done and more interesting.

Similar to Heirs, Seducer’s drama world is also centered around a bunch of rich kids, with one pair of them sparking off each other, his sexy rebel cool to her prickly pouty petulance.

All that spark, whether acknowledged or not, is blocked – or would that be amplified? – by their parents getting hitched to each other. Oh, plus there’s also an innocent, not-rich girl in the center of it all.

Unlike Heirs, there is no Kim Tan character, which I counted as a huge plus, since I hated Kim Tan, with a passion.

…Too bad my cautiously positive first impression didn’t last very long at all. I lasted 10 half-hour episodes of this one, dragging my feet through the last few of those 10 episodes, and have had zero desire to go back to this one.

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Flash Review: The Best Hit

| kfangurl

Y’know, I will always think fondly of the year 2012.

It was a pretty great drama year, serving up a good number of shows that I truly enjoyed, like Arang and the Magistrate, The King 2 Hearts, Gaksital, and Padam Padam, among many others.

On top of that, 2012 was also the year I decided to try my hand at the whole drama blogging thing – and hey, look at where we are now, eh?

But. There is one thing that I kinda hold against 2012.. coz 2012 is the year that time travel took over the dramaverse.

Suddenly, it felt like time travel was everywhere. Queen In-hyun’s Man, Rooftop Prince, Faith, Dr. Jin, and even Operation Proposal all got in on the time travel action in 2012, with varying degrees of success.

Let me just say that there’s nothing inherently wrong with using time travel as a concept, but honestly, it now kinda feels like time travel has become the Trend That Will Not Die.

For the record, I’m not hating on The Best Hit. In fact, I even rather enjoyed this show.

It’s just that the whole time travel thing here feels particularly gratuitous – almost pointless, even. I personally feel that this show didn’t need the time travel conceit, to tell the slice-of-life, found-family story it wanted to tell.

In fact, Show might’ve been better off just picking one time period and staying there. A pretty novel concept these days, I know. 😉

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Flash Review: Because It’s The First Time

| kfangurl

I really liked this, guys. Like, in a I’m-sorry-to-see-it-end, I’d-love-to-catch-up-with-these-characters-again sort of way.

In a drama landscape where a lot of the lighter fare can feel tropey and sort of tired (from overuse of all the predictable tropes), Because It’s The First Time manages to achieve a lovely balance between showcasing a more realistic take on the growing up experience, while maintaining a sense of lightness and fun, through it all.

At just 8 episodes, this turned out to be quite the charming little drama snack. Yum.

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Review: Twenty Again

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

An understated, quiet creature compared to its other prime-time cousins, Twenty Again manages to prove its worth while bucking quite a few drama trends.

Despite having a central romance, Twenty Again’s main focus is consistently about one woman’s journey of discovery – discovery of truth, discovery of self, re-discovery of her self-worth – and everything else, including the romance, fits around that in a satisfyingly organic, uplifting way.

Wonderful performances by our leads bring that journey to life, and make it completely worthwhile.

Far from flashy, but winsome and inspiring in all the best ways.

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