Review: King The Land

THE SHORT VERDICT:

On the upside, Show is very pretty to look at, has a great-looking OTP that shares excellent chemistry, and it isn’t shy about serving up lots of OTP squee moments.

On top of that, Show’s got a very enjoyable OST scoring it all, so that it all feels like a worry-free, very pretty escape from Real Life.

On the downside, Show is so low-angst that the narrative tension it serves up is very low-stakes and therefore not very gripping. While this is in keeping with Show wanting to be a happy place, unfortunately, this also means that for some viewers, this could become pretty boring, pretty fast. 😅

Ultimately, your mileage will vary, depending on just how much of an appetite you have, for light, cotton-candy, pretty fluff.

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Flash Review: Homme Fatale [Movie]

As many of you know, because of my deep affection for Junho, I’ve been on a mission to check out his various projects.

I’d been meaning to watch this movie and write it a review (this was my third attempt – more on that in a bit), so what better time to do that, than the weekend that Junho wins Best Actor, at the Baeksang Awards?? Ahhh!!! 🤩

For the record, I’m so, SO happy for him, and so proud of him, and having him on my screen for an hour and 50 minutes this weekend, felt like a perfect way to celebrate his (well-deserved) win. 😍

Psst: Links to watch are at the end of the review! ❤️

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Review: Confession

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Confession might look like a standard crime thriller sort of show, but as it turns out, it’s more heartfelt and more melodramatic, than one might first expect.

With your expectations tweaked (very important, and more on that in a bit), Show works out to be a solid watch that’s both interesting and absorbing.

Junho and Yoo Jae Myung anchor this story, and they are excellent, both individually and together. Their enemies-to-partners journey was one of my favorite arcs in this show; I just loved the idea of them putting their talents together, and working towards a shared goal. 🤩

Plus, the music in this show is a force to be reckoned with; I loved the atmospheric, dramatic nature of it all, and how precisely it’s all applied.

An underrated drama that deserves more love than it gets.

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Flash Review: A Rose And A Tulip [Japan] [Movie]

As you guys very likely know, I now have pretty serious heart-eyes for Junho, and so, of course I had to poke around his filmography, to see what else he’s done, that I might like to see.

When I saw that he starred in this Japanese movie as a pair of doppelgängers, I just had to check it out. I mean, it would be unreasonable of me to turn down a movie that offers two Junhos for the price of one, yes? 😉

Psst: Link to watch is at the end of the review! ❤️

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Reaction Post: Radio Star E756 [The Red Sleeve Special Part 2]

As promised, here I am with my Reaction Post to Part 2 of the Radio Star special episode on The Red Sleeve. (Spoiler: I liked it as much as I liked Part 1. 😉)

If you haven’t checked out my Reaction Post to Part 1 of the special, you can find that here!

PS: Link to watch is at the end of the post!

PPS: I also have a Reaction Post to The Red Sleeve Talk Show Special, which you can check out here. And if you haven’t yet checked out my monster review of The Red Sleeve, you can find that here.

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Reaction Post: Radio Star E755 [The Red Sleeve Special Part 1]

Thanks to everyone who enjoyed my inaugural Reaction Post, for The Red Sleeve Talk Show Special!

I’m back with my second Reaction Post, and yes, it’s still about The Red Sleeve, because, well, I really, really loved that show (monster review is here!), and I’m just really happy to finally be able to watch all the spoilery specials in the drama’s honor.

It really turned out to be a very special drama, and if you haven’t seen it yet, I do recommend it! 🤩

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Reaction Post: The Red Sleeve Talk Show Special

So I’m trying something new today, you guys (yay..?).

Now that I’ve finally finished watching The Red Sleeve, and have written an appropriately  hearts-in-eyes monstrous review for it, I am finally in a position to watch the various spoilery specials that are out there, in its honor.

I mean, I’ve seen lots of snippets floating about, to be sure (you just can’t avoid them completely, can you?), but it just makes me happy that I’m now able to watch the special in full.

And I thought, why not make a post out of it – just because I can? 😁

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All About Love Stories: By JJ!

In case you missed it, we have yet another guest post series to enjoy, this month!

Unlike our previous guest post series, this one was kind of an accident, almost. I have Ele to thank for this one, because it was her innocent question about something, that made me casually talk about the off-the-top-of-my-head, hypothetical possibility of a guest post series on love, in the month of February, in honor of Valentine’s Day.

So many folks on Patreon responded enthusiastically to this idea, that I felt that it would be remiss of me, not to actually make it happen, come February.

And so, here we are. This month, we will enjoy a total of nine guest posts from patrons on Patreon, on the topic of love stories. The brief is pretty flexible, in that, each writer is free to go deep, or go wide, on anything around the topic of love stories in Dramaland.

You can check out our earlier posts in the series as follows: UyenJaco_4950Kate, Ele & Sean.

Today’s post is brought to you by JJ, whom you probably know by now, is a ball of chaotic positive energy, and how has a particular penchant for rainbows, unicorns and puppies. Today, JJ shows us a slightly (just slightly!) more serious side, as she talks about a show that’s very close to her heart. Thank you for sharing, JJ!

I hope you guys enjoy!

KFG ❤️

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Dear kfangurl: How has your fangirling changed over the years?

Leslie writes:

Hi, KFG. I just finished Dinner Mate, a B movie that was easy to watch with some good heart-string pulls, but was about 3-4 episodes too long.

Most of all it was a vehicle for a mature Song Seung Hun who is as beautiful (at least) and charming as ever. I say this even though it’s the first SSH drama I’ve seen! But I checked and, sure enough, he was your first entry in Pure Pretty, so I almost feel like I knew him when. 😆 Nice photos. 😅 Thank you for your delightful “reference” material, which stands the test of time.

The movie and my, ahem, research prompted me to take a stab at a question I’ve been percolating for a while, but haven’t been able to get to the heart of. The simple question is, has your fangirling changed over the years? Some details follow.

I notice that both of your KLoves and Pure Pretty features were first posted about 7 years ago, and there have not been many new entries for a while (although there continue to be new comments, so, still relevant!)

Are any original entries gaining or waning in your affection? Would you add any new KLove and Pure Pretty interests to the list, and have your criteria for the same changed over time? What role does fangirling play in your enjoyment of kdrama today? And not to complicate a good ogle, but does consent culture impact how you think about fangirling at all? It’s a lot. 😬

So, seriously, KFG. I know you’re super busy these days with all the right priorities for the blog, so please answer at your pleasure and your leisure. I’m rather satisfied with just being able to articulate my curiosity and interest. Thanks!

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Officially Smitten With: Lee Junho

Listen. I know that you guys have been urging me – for literal years now! – to revive my fangirling posts, whether by way of a k-love post or a Pure Pretty post. And for years, I’ve just been saying vaguely that I’d think about it.

The truth is, I just wasn’t feeling inspired to do any fangirling posts. You just can’t do one of these things properly, if you’re not feeling properly inspired, y’know?

Honestly, I’d kind of thought that perhaps I’d outgrown my fangirling phase. After all, I’d been concentrating on putting out all this other more “serious” content, like reviewing shows, and answering Dear kfangurl questions, sometimes on controversial topics, even. I thought, maybe I had just become.. immune to intense fangirling..? HA.

I WAS SO WRONG, y’all. Several weeks ago, out of the blue, almost, I found myself joining the rest of the world in falling for Lee Junho’s charms. I feel like I blinked, and suddenly here I am, knee-deep in spazz.

It’s official, y’all. I am utterly and completely smitten with this man. 😍

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