Well Intended Love

Inner Workings: Practical Factors That Affect Onscreen Chemistry

| kfangurl

I’m so, SO excited to announce this guest post, everyone! 😀

Today, our very own Jesse is taking the stage (page?), and he’ll be shedding light on some of the nuts and bolts of the workings of our beloved dramas. 

This post was born of a comment that Jesse had written in response to Beez, breaking down some of the practical variables that contribute to (or detract from) the chemistry that we see on our screens.

I loved what he wrote, and asked if he’d be willing to expand that into a post for us, and he graciously said yes!

Granted, Jesse’s exposure has been in the US film industry and not in Korea, but from what I understand, the processes that he describes are also practiced in Korea, if not down to the minutiae, then in large part.

I personally found his post illuminating and very educational, so I hope you’ll enjoy it too!

THANKY, JESSE!

~kfangurl

Continue reading →

Dear kfangurl: What are some OTPs that didn’t work for you?

| kfangurl

So many of you asked for this after my last post on some of my favorite OTPs, so here goes – my attempt to answer the question:

Dear kfangurl,

What are some of your worst OTPs?

..Which I paraphrase to mean, OTPs that didn’t work for me / are not my favorite / are kinda blah. Coz worst is a strong word, heh.

Shout-out to Beez, for being the first to ask for this list!

Note: I fully expect that some of the OTPs that didn’t work for me, might be your actual favorite OTPs, and that’s perfectly fine, since this is all subjective anyway. But if you’d prefer to look away now, I won’t be offended, I promise. 😉

Continue reading →

Year In Review: 2019

| kfangurl

It’s that time of the year again, my friends. 2020 is upon us, and 2019 is just about done and dusted. Time to take stock of the year, celebrate the highs, brush off the lows, and get ready to usher in the new year.

Can you believe that this is my 8th year-in-review post?? Imma be honest with you guys; every time I sit down to do one of these, I get visited by a touch of blogger existential crisis.

Essentially, I ask myself, “Where am I going with this? How long will I do this? Is there still.. a point to doing this?”

..And I gotta tell ya, I still don’t know the answer to those questions. What I can say, though, is, I’m still enjoying my dramas reasonably well, and I’m still game to write about ’em, and I’m grateful that you guys are still here on this journey with me. Thanks for sticking it out with me, y’all.  ❤️

And now, let me attempt to break down my 2019 drama year for ya.

Continue reading →

Flash Review: Go Go Squid! [China]

| kfangurl

So, I have good news and bad news, my friends.

The bad news is, this is one of those highly raved C-dramas that I ended up checking out based on the buzz alone, and once again, I didn’t end up loving it as much as everyone else seems to.

The good news is, unlike shows like Well Intended Love and Where The Lost Ones Go, where I not only failed to understand the shows’ appeal, but ended up strongly disliking both shows, I feel like I can understand why people like Go Go Squid. And, I even ended up enjoying it, albeit in a more muted fashion than most.

That’s progress, right?

Continue reading →

Dropped: My Absolute Boyfriend [Korea]

| kfangurl

If you’ve been around the blog for a bit, you might know that I like to give shows a chance to win me over, and I often give shows more time than they might deserve, while trying to adjust my lens to find a winning setting that allows me to enjoy the show in question as best as is possible.

However, given the current drama landscape where more shows are popping out than ever before (I can hardly keep track of ’em all!), drama quality is more patchy than ever (some wonderful gems, but also, so many duds!), and everyone’s drama tastes are just so varied, I’ve been burned more than a few times, trying to love dramas that I never ended up loving after all.

Case in point, my recent foibles with Chinese drama Well Intended Love, which lots of folks loved, but which never ended up working for me (spoiler: I actually legit hated it).

Now, I don’t hate Absolute Boyfriend, but, I do think it’s time that I learn how to quit while I’m ahead. That’s why I’m dropping Absolute Boyfriend, just 10 episodes in.

Continue reading →

Review: Put Your Head On My Shoulder [China]

| kfangurl

THE SHORT VERDICT:

Coming from the writer of A Love So Beautiful, Put Your Head On My Shoulder is a cheerful campus romance that at once feels similar-but-different, when compared with its elder sibling ALSB.

Easygoing and cheerful, Show never gets overly angsty, preferring to serve up cuteness, kittens and rainbows via the burgeoning feelings and blossoming romance between an unlikely pair lovebirds.

He’s a handsome science genius and she’s a bubbly warm accounting major with advertising dreams, which, yes, sounds totally tropey, but Show’s treatment of the pairing brings enough freshness to the table, to make this story feel far from tired.

Show does have its fair share of flaws, but overall, manages to be a shiny, happy, easy little watch.

Continue reading →

Flash Review: Well Intended Love [China]

| kfangurl

Remember when LOTTTS of folks loved Where The Lost Ones Go, and I watched the whole thing, and still wondered what the fuss was about?

Er, I think I went and did it again, you guys.

For the record, lots of people love – like, really love – this show. This was recommended to me more than once, and came with descriptors like tropey, fun, but fresh. Now that I’ve watched all 20 episodes of this one, I’m gonna hafta say.. I think I just don’t get it. 😛

Like I said though, lots of people loved this one, so just because I didn’t love it, doesn’t mean that you necessarily won’t either?

Continue reading →