The King’s Affection

Review: Bloody Heart

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

When Show is at its best, it’s pretty darn excellent.

We have gorgeous cinematography, lots of dramatic tension between deliciously gray characters, plot twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat, and excellent deliveries by our cast, to anchor it all.

When Show isn’t at its best, however, it can be rather perplexing and underwhelming.

Stuff doesn’t feel organic, some threads feel dropped, and sometimes, stuff doesn’t actually make sense.

Overall, I’d say that Show is still more solid than not, and more worthwhile than not. But oh, the could’ve beens. 🫤

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Dear kfangurl: Can you talk about the different types of sageuks?

| kfangurl

T writes:

Thanks again for writing an article for my last blog post idea about archetypes (post is here)! I loved it and shared it with some of my friends who watch kdramas too.

I had another question for you. I did a quick search of your site, but didn’t find anything.

Can you give us a quick explanation of sageuks? I have seen a few, but I’d like to understand more about them.

The different types: fusion sageuk, etc., recommendations in each category, how they are produced (if you have any insight), why they seem to be longer than other dramas, etc.

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Review: Twenty-Five, Twenty-One

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Nostalgic, fresh, and so full of feels, Twenty-Five, Twenty-One is the show that I didn’t know I needed, in my life.

The writing is thoughtful and tender, and combined with great casting and excellent delivery, our characters pop with so much life and heart, their relationships feel so raw and real, and their journeys feel so familiar and relatable, that I couldn’t get enough of it all.

To top it all off, the music is pitch perfect and excellently applied, making the already great feels land with extra oomph and amplification.

Some lens adjustments are necessary (and so important!) – which I’ll talk more about shortly.

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Review: The King’s Affection

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Part gauzy rom-com and part serious palace intrigue, Show does have some pacing and tonal issues, and, in my opinion, also works out to be a little bloated, at 20 episodes.

However, if you can put aside the pacing and tonal issues, there are stretches in this show which are genuinely enjoyable. The central romance didn’t tilt my world, but was pretty great at serving up cute, reverse rom-com tropes, in Show’s lighter stretch. My interest wavered in Show’s last quarter, but importantly, I found the ending satisfying, and worth hanging in there for.

Not bad, overall.

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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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This Month On Patreon: February 2022

| kfangurl

Hi everyone! HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR!!! 🥳🥳 I can hardly believe January is over! I honestly feel like 2022 has just started – but here we are, on the first day of the Lunar New Year! May this Lunar New Year bring you lots of good health, good times, good food – and good dramas! 😋🥰

This is my monthly post on:

1. What’s happening on Patreon in a given month,

2. Exactly when you can expect to see various Patreon-related reviews in the month,

3. What shows I’m considering for coverage on Patreon, to replace shows that have completed their cycles, and

4. What you can expect, as a patron.

I hope you guys find this helpful &/or informative, and I hope you’ll consider supporting me on Patreon! ❤️

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2021 Year End Awards: POLL RESULTS!!

| kfangurl

Thanks to everyone who took the time to vote on The Poll!

The results are in, and, as promised, I’m here to announce the winners – and also, tell you where my votes would have gone, if I’d voted.

Come see? 😃

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This Month On Patreon: January 2022

| kfangurl

Hi everyone! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 🥳🥳 It’s amazing that we’re already here, in 2022! How surreal. May this year bring us all lots of good things – including happy drama things! 😉🥰

This is my monthly post on:

1. What’s happening on Patreon in a given month,

2. Exactly when you can expect to see various Patreon-related reviews in the month,

3. What shows I’m considering for coverage on Patreon, to replace shows that have completed their cycles, and

4. What you can expect, as a patron.

I hope you guys find this helpful &/or informative, and I hope you’ll consider supporting me on Patreon! ❤️

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Year In Review: 2021

| kfangurl

Where has 2021 gone, seriously? This was a strange year, in that it felt like time was passing really fast, but it also felt like we were stuck and frozen in time – or is that just me? 😅

I think it’s safe to say that it’s been a tough year for us all. For hanging in there; for continuing to put one foot in front of the other; for continuing to look for and appreciate the good in your world: You’ve done well, my friends. ❤️

Even though things in Dramaland have continued to evolve, there’s one thing that remains constant, and that is, our dramas are always there for us, ready to whisk us away into another world, at least for a little while; ready to introduce us to new friends, as we meet new characters; ready to offer us vicarious experiences, even if we’re in the thick of a lockdown and can’t leave our homes.

Just like it was last year, dramas helped to make life a little brighter and sweeter for me, and I hope they’ve done the same for you too. ❤️

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Patreon Year End Awards: Martina’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. You can also find JJ‘s post here, Trent’s post here, and Sean’s post here!

After today’s post, there will be two 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! 🤩

Today’s post is brought to you by Martina, who is a psychologist by training, and is based in Italy. As a result, some of her insights are extra informed, like when it comes to how characters behave, and also, whether Song Joong Ki‘s spoken Italian in Vincenzo, is up to scratch. 😁

Speaking of Song Joong Ki, he happens to have been the first k-male lead to have stolen Martina’s heart, so I thought this screenshot was quite a perfect accompaniment to this post, heh.

I hope you guys enjoy!

~ KFG ❤️

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