Money Flower

Guest post: How well do kdrama CEOs stack up in real life?

| kfangurl

Surprise, everyone! We have another guest post today! 🥳

Today, we have Sean sharing with us his various insights into how well the CEOs in our beloved dramas stack up – when compared to real life.

As many of you might know, Sean’s had a lot of experience in both the CEO life, and the drama life (we have no idea how he’s managing such a full existence on both planes; he must be existing in multiple dimensions – but that’s another story for hopefully another day! 😁).

And therefore, Sean’s probably one of the best positioned people on the planet, to comment on such a comparison.

This post was first published on Sean’s own blog, where he regularly writes about leadership. You can check out his blog here, and the original post here.

Thank you phl1rxd, for suggesting this, and thank you so much Sean, for allowing me to share your fabulous post in this space!

I hope you all enjoy this very special post!

KFG ❤️

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Dear kfangurl: What makes a drama cracky?

| kfangurl

LaurenSophie writes:

Hello,

I’m a longtime lurker and have never posted, but I love your “Dear kfangurl” column and think I finally have a question you haven’t already covered.

My question is: what makes a kdrama “cracky?”

Not just good or fun to watch or a classic, but really, truly so addictive that you either binge watch it in just a day or two if it’s an older drama or feel like you’re suffering from withdrawal if you have to wait for new episodes to air?

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Dear kfangurl: How do I deal with drama fatigue?

| kfangurl
So. Tired. 💤

So, full disclosure, you guys. This wasn’t actually submitted as a Dear kfangurl question.

What happened was, I had written very enthusiastic episode notes for episode 1 of Twenty Five, Twenty One, over on Patreon, and Natalia had commented in response:

“Oh no. Such a great recap but it only makes even clearer what I have suspected for a while: I suffer from KDrama fatigue! I don’t feel like watching anything? Is it serious, doctor??”

..Which made me think, Hey, that would make a pretty good topic for a Dear kfangurl post!

And so, here we are. If you, or people you know, are suffering from drama fatigue, I hope this post will be at least a little bit helpful. ❤️

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All About Love Stories: By Ele!

| kfangurl

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. I feel like we have a lot to look forward to, this month! 🥰

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Stories from the community: Sean’s story!

| kfangurl

If you didn’t already know, we’ve got an unexpected special series to kick off the new year! Guests posts, by patrons on Patreon, sharing their personal drama stories, mostly around the topic of “How did you get into dramas?” and “What does your first drama mean to you?” – with flexibility to go off on personal tangents, of course. 😁 Feel free to share your stories too, in the comments!

This guest series is MC‘s brainchild (thanks MC! 😘), and you can read more details, and check out her inaugural post, here.

After today’s post, there will be seven more guest posts by mystery guest writers, whose identities will be revealed when their various posts go live. Woot! 🥳

Today’s post is brought to you by Sean, whom, as you might remember from his year-end post, manages to watch an absolutely incredible number of dramas – particularly for someone who manages to live as full a life, outside of drama-watching, as he does. Sean is a true time-bending marvel. 🤩

You might also like to check out Sean’s blog, where he writes about management and leadership!

I hope you guys enjoy!

~ KFG ❤️

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Dear kfangurl: What are some archetypes in kdramas?

| kfangurl

T writes:

Hi kfangurl,

What are some of the archetypes you see in Kdrama characters? Could you recommend other dramas with those types of characters?

For example:

Romance is A Bonus Book’s Kang Dan-i is strong, sensitive, but oblivious to Eun-ho’s love for her. Eun-ho is petty, cocky, but really protective and compassionate toward his loved ones.

Another example:

Strong Girl Bong Soon’s rich heir Ahn Min-hyuk is the hardcore, serious, charming type, but completely caught off-guard and smitten with Do Bong-soon, which makes him fall to pieces. Bong-soon is the epitome of aegyo, but hesitant to embrace her full potential (another type).

What other dramas use these archetypes in similar ways or mix and match them in surprising or refreshing ways?

Thanks.

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Patreon Year End Awards: Trent’s Year In Dramas!

| kfangurl

In case you missed it, we’re doing something special and different to end off the drama year this year! Guests posts, by patrons on Patreon!

You can read more details, and check out Shahz’s inaugural post, here, and JJ‘s post here!

After today’s post, there will be three more guest posts by mystery guest writers, whose identities will be revealed when their various posts go live. And then we’ll cap everything off with a poll, where you’ll be able to pick YOUR favorites for the year, from among the gems identified in these posts. How exciting! 🤩

..But, wait! Didn’t I already say, last time, that there would be three more..? Heh. Very sharp spotting there! Basically, one more mystery guest writer has volunteered to share their picks for 2021, woot! 🥳

Today’s post is brought to you by Trent, who manages to watch way more drama than I do! While I don’t think that Trent’s taste in dramas is identical to mine, we’ve had similar reactions to so many shows (most recently, Dali and the Cocky Prince 😉), that I tend to take a little extra notice when he recommends a show, coz the chances are pretty good, that I might like it too.

Trent’s got soo many nominees in all the various categories today, that I thought this image, of a sea of awards, fit this post quite perfectly.. I imagine that if Trent could, he’d give out many more awards than he’s given out today, heh. 😁 Thanks lots, Trent, for sharing your drama year with us!!

You might also like to check out Trent’s blog, where he writes more drama thoughts!

I hope you guys enjoy!

~ KFG ❤️

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Review: My Name

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Slick, gritty, and with more than a dash of blood and violence, Show isn’t your typical nor traditional Korean drama, that’s for sure.

I think what Show does well, is tell its story in a manner that’s equal parts twisty, action-packed and emotionally compelling. In that sense, I feel like Show is quite well-rounded and perhaps therefore more able to reach a wider audience.

For example, you might not be into fight scenes per se, but you might be emotionally invested enough in our protagonist’s journey, to see it through anyway.

Very solid, and very bingeable, if you’re in the mood for a revenge tale with its fair share of grit.

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Review: Vincenzo

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Show is a lot of things, and attempts a lot of things (some with more success than others), but one thing I can say for certain, is that Show is bold, and dares to try new things.

When the things that Show try don’t go so well, Show can come across as rather uneven, but when Show is at its best, it is a wild, absurd and completely absorbing ride of the best kind.

Our story world and our characters lean dark, yet this is all served up with strong lashings of screwball comedy. It sounds weird, but when Show makes it work, it’s glorious.

Our cast is very solid, but hands down, the one who shines the brightest, is Song Joong Ki, as our titular antihero. So much matter-of-fact, cool badassery, served up with a side of comedy; I just couldn’t look away.

Sometimes Show got uncomfortably dark for my taste, but Show gets brownie points, for unabashedly daring to be its own thing, for better or for worse.

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Open Thread: Money Flower Episodes 23 & 24

| kfangurl

Welcome to the Open Thread, everyone! Can you believe that we are already at the end of the epic journey that Money Flower’s taken us on? 😱 I feel as wistful as Pil Joo looks, in this screenshot. Thanks for sticking with me through this one, you guys. ❤️

Just a couple of things, before we begin:

1. If you’d like to visit my Money Flower review, you can find it here.

2. The Nirvana In Fire group watch begins next Wednesday, 26 May 2021, and the My Girlfriend is a Gumiho group watch begins next Saturday, 29 May 2021. See you guys there!

Without further ado, here are my reactions to this final pair of episodes; have fun in the Open Thread, everyone! ❤️

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