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Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Tomorrow With You ~ Can a Time Traveler Change the Future?

“Tomorrow With You” is a 2017 drama series, with 16 episodes, and can be categorized as Time Travel, Romance, Comedy (Rom-Com) and Fantasy or Supernatural.

  • SUMMARY: Suppose you meet someone on one day and that chance meeting saved your life. Then on another day you see your lifeless body being a carried away and the lifeless body of the woman who saved your life is also being carried away. Since you have the ability to time travel, maybe you can go back and sever the relationship you have with her. That should be fix everything. Right? That might work IF ... the ability to travel through time also gives you the ability to change the future. But if it doesn't ...


Life is Shorter Than You Think

Yoo So-joon is a handsome, young and wealthy CEO. You could say he has it all. What more could he ask for? Love? Well, that's obvious. But what else? How about the ability to travel through time? That wasn't exactly something that Yoo So-joon had on his wish list. But one day while riding the subway train, he felt a terrible pain in his head. The next thing he knew he was in a different time period. As soon as he got off the train he met another time traveler. The time traveler told him he'll have to get used to going back and forth between past, present, and future. But the most important rule is to never be in the same time period with yourself. He can't be with his present self and his future self at the same time. That's bad!

OK! Important safety tip! But guess what happened? Yoo So-joon saw his dead body being carried away on a stretcher. There was also a woman who had died and her name was Song Ma-Rin. Yoo So-joon wondered if it was possible to change the outcome of this tragic event. He time traveled again and it turns out he and Song Ma-Rin were married. In another time period, he and Song Ma-Rin were both on the same train. They got into an argument with each other and got off the train. While they were still arguing, the train blew up! Yoo So-joon had intended to stay on the train that day. If he had, he would have died.

Somehow the timelines of their lives were intertwined. In one period, she saved his life. In another, they both died together.

Song Ma-Rin is unaware that Yoo So-joon has already seen her future. She is barely managing to live in the present because her past keeps getting in the way. Song Ma-Rin used to be a child star but when she grew up she did not pursue an acting career. The problem is reporters keep writing articles about how she has not accomplished anything since her fame as a child actress and this gets in the way of her moving forward. When she met Yoo So-Joon he gave her this advice: "Life is shorter than you think. You shouldn't be hung up on the past.” He could say that, since Yoo So-joon already knew her future.

Yoo So-joon decided to traveled back in time to see if he could break their connection. If he could somehow sever their relationship, they wouldn't be together, they wouldn't fall in love and get married, and they probably would not die in a terrible accident. But does having the ability to time-travel also give you the ability to change your future?

Main Characters:


** Shin Min-A is a Korean actress who popped up on my radar in “Arang and the Magistrate ”. She stars in several Korean dramas that are still on my watch list: “Diva”, “Chief of Staff 1 and 2”, “Oh My Venus” (award-winning), and “Hometown Cha Cha Cha”. Have you watched any of these?


Viewership and Ratings:

  • IMDb Rating: 7.4 out of 10 stars

  • My Drama List: 8 out of 10 stars

  • Dramabeans: 8.3 out of 10 stars

  • Letterboxd: 3.6 out of 5 stars

  • Google users public rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars

My personal rating is the same as My Drama List.

This Kdrama series had mixed reviews. Some did not give high marks for the acting or the script. Others said it was underrated and thought the chemistry between the couple was great.

I am always interested in how a scriptwriter will spin a time travel fantasy / love story. In “Tomorrow With You”:

  • The female lead had a difficult time trying to get away from her past, so that she could live productively in the present.

  • The male lead was trying to get away from his grim future that had her in it.

He felt should she could easily fix her problem if she just wasn't hung up on her past. Whereas the best way to fix his problem was to get her out of his life, because she is the problem!

I had to see how this was going to work out.


LINKS OF INTEREST:

Tomorrow With You | Korean Drama Review (“A beautiful, languidly romantic time traveling story,...”)

Twelve (12) of the Best Time Travel K Dramas And Where To Watch Them | TODAY

Lee Je Hoon: An Actor Review | Drama Homebody



WATCH TRAILER:

Ani-Hongo. “TOMORROW, with YOU (2017) - TRAILER.” YouTube Video. YouTube, March 28, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=824cd8uXz8Y.


Sunday, August 11, 2024

Angel's Last Mission: Love (2019); An Award-Winning Korean Drama

"Angel’s Last Mission: Love"

Kim Dan is an angel who knows the rules of the heavenly realm. He must never touch a human. If he does, he'll disappear, as in “cease to exist”. He doesn't want that. He wants to go to heaven. But even though he knew the rules, the female was badly injured and pleading for someone to save her. Lee Seul-hwa was blind but she could hear that someone was there at the accident and they were close enough to help her. She used to be a prima ballerina, but while performing on stage one night there was a terrible accident which resulted in her losing her eyesight. People are afraid to be around her because she is an angry, bitter, cold-hearted former ballet dancer who takes out her frustration on everyone else, as if it's their fault. What is even worse is that the Fantasia Ballet Company that her parents built for her to inherit has almost been stolen from her by greedy relatives.


So many times Lee Seul-hwa had wanted to die. But now that she might actually die, she's begging to live. Her pitiful pleas were too much for Kim Dan and he yielded to temptation. He broke the rules and touched a human to save her life. When Lee Seul-hwa woke up in the hospital she could see! Meanwhile Kim Dan was getting ready to receive his punishment. But wait! He didn't disappear! Why does he still exist? It's true, he does exist, but no longer as an angel. Now he is a human who is being given a chance to re-earn his wings. This will be his last mission. If he fails he can forget about a heavenly reward. What's the mission? LOVE. He must find true love for Lee Seul-hwa. Even though she is no longer blind, she is still disgruntled, angry and a terrifying person to be in the same room with.

Lee Seul-hwa has so many emotional scars. She is afraid to love because all of the people she loved have died. Loving someone is too painful so she avoids becoming vulnerable. Kim Dan starts trying to play matchmaker, but starts to develop genuine feelings for her and unintentionally creates a love triangle. This wasn't supposed to happen. Aren't angels only supposed to love God? Will he be punished for loving Lee Seul-hwa?


  • Genre: Romance and Fantasy or Supernatural
  • IMDb Rating: 7.7 out of 10 stars
  • My Drama List: 8.4 out of 10 stars
  • Viki viewers rated this series 9.5 out of 10 stars
  • AWARDS: This delightful Korean drama won several awards at the 2019 KBS Drama Awards ceremony. Shin Hae-Sun won Top Excellence Award, Actress. Kim Myung-Soo won Best New Actor and K-Drama Hallyu Star. Together they won Best Couple Award.

    Main Characters:


    LINKS OF INTEREST:

    4 Heart-Fluttering Fantasy K-Dramas To Enjoy During The Fall | Soompi

    9 Entertaining K-Dramas That Involve Multiple Worlds |Soompit

    Winners Of 2019 KBS Drama Awards | Soompi


    WATCH TRAILER:

    Viu Singapore. “Angel’s Last Mission: Love , 하나의 사랑 TRAILER | INFINITE’S L, SHIN HYE SUN.” YouTube Video. YouTube, May 23, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TSA7zVmmx0.



    Tuesday, February 6, 2024

    Chuno (The Slave Hunters) (2010), 24 episodes

    Fans of Jang Hyuk will enjoy this intense action-packed historical period Korean drama series.

    Lee Dae-gil (played by Jang Hyuk) is the son of a noble family, who fell in love with Kim Hye-Won (played by Lee Da-Hae), a slave. Her brother destroyed his master and everything he owned. He thought he had killed Lee Dae-gil. The brother destroyed the slave ownership papers and created a new life for himself and his sister.

    Since Lee Dae-gil had lost his family's wealth, he became a slave hunter. Mainly, because he was searching for the woman he loved, assuming that she was still a slave on the run. He would capture slaves, collect the reward, and then help them escape again but this time to freedom. Lee Dae-gil is also hunting for Song Tae-Ha (played by Oh Ji-Ho). He has been labeled as a slave but he is a brave and noble warrior who will one day reclaim his honor.

    To continue establishing his reputation and wealth, Hye-Won's brother arranges a marriage for her. On the day of the wedding, she runs away. She is about to be attacked by bandits but Tae-Ha rescues her. Their relationship grows into romance, all the while she believes her first love, Lee Dae-gil, has died. Eventually, Lee Dae-gil finds her but realizes that she in now in a loving relationship with the man, the slave, he has been hunting. From there …. (NO SPOILERS!)



    Source: Historical K-Dramas That Slipped Under the Radar (Pt 1 of 5)

    Saturday, December 30, 2023

    Perfect Marriage Revenge: 2023 VIKI Original Korean Drama Series

    Perfect Marriage Revenge Could Easily Be Turned Into a Korean Soap Opera That Could Go On and On and On and …


    Perfect Marriage Revenge is a 2023 VIKI Original Korean Drama Series with 16 episodes. The scriptwriters should consider stretching it out to 160 episodes. Loaded with hostile family drama where the relatives dream up ways to plot evil against each other, and then spend their waking hours making their dreams a harsh reality. You pity the children born into their homes because they are raised to carry on with the family traditions of performing acts of malice. Without a doubt, Perfect Marriage Revenge could be the best Kdrama soap opera ever!

    Perfect Marriage Revenge” is a romance/drama that tells the story of Han Yi-Joo, a young girl who was adopted into a rich family but never accepted as a part of the family. Meanwhile, her little sister is showered with love and spoiled rotten. Yi-Joo is constantly reminded by her “mother” who adopted her that she is “fake” and her little sister is “real”. Meaning that she should be thankful she was adopted and never try to receive all the wealth and property that should go directly to her little sister. Growing up in that home was hellish for Han Yi-Joo! Someone even tried to poison her, but they failed.

    Han Yi-Joo was a gifted artist. No doubt she could use her God-given talent and create her own wealth. Instead, her mother convinced her to “copy” the originals of famous artists. Her mother told her the copied paintings would be donated to orphanages as a charitable donation. However, she sold them as “originals” to make money. 

    One day her mother's fraud was exposed. She told Yi-Joo to submit a false confession and go to jail. Yi-Joo was so upset she jumped in her car and drove off. Sadly she got into a car accident and almost died. While hanging between life and death, she prayed for a second chance. If she could only relive her life she would not make the same ignorant and foolish mistakes.

    Her prayer was answered. Instead of waking up in a hospital bed, she woke up in her own bed. When she checked the time she realized that she had gone back one year in the past. She had been given a second chance and now had the opportunity to change her past. But she only had one year to accomplish this.  She overheard her little sister say that she wanted to get married to Seo Do-Kook, a man who was one of the heirs to Taeja Group, a Korean conglomerate. Han Yi-Joo made up her mind that getting Seo Do-Kook to marry her would be the perfect marriage revenge.


    MAIN CHARACTERS:

    • Han Yi-Joo (played by Jung Yoo-Min)

    • Seo Do-Kook (played by Sung Hoon)

    This Viki Original Korean drama series is based on the webcomic “Wanbyeokhan Gyeolhonui Jungseok”. But in my opinion, it was the best soap opera ever!


    LINKS OF INTEREST:




    Sunday, November 12, 2023

    K-Drama Series: King the Land (2023)

    King the Land is a modernized Korean version of Cinderella, a fairy tale written by Charles Perrault and published in 1697.

    • Cinderella is Cheon Sa-Rang (played by Im Yoon-ah)

    • Prince Charming is Gu Won (played by Lee Jun-ho)


    Revisions to the Old Cinderella Fairy Tale

    • Instead of Cinderella having 2 wicked stepsisters, she had 2 BFFs (best friends forever) who always had her back. It was Prince Charming who had a wicked half-sister.

    • Instead of a fairy godmother, Cinderella has a wise, industrious, and generous grandmother who teaches her valuable work and life skills, raises her to be independent, gives her good advice, and supports her endeavors.

    • It turns out that Cinderella and her 2 best friends all work for businesses owned by the King Group. The supervisors where the friends work, don't do anything to help them achieve success. Each supervisor acts like a wicked stepmother.

    • Initially, Cinderella has a jerk for a boyfriend, but Prince Charming replaces him.

    These changes or revisions do not make the love story of this Cinderella and her Prince Charmin any less enchanting.

    My personal rating for this K-drama series is 8.4 out of 10 stars.





    Tuesday, October 24, 2023

    Café Minamdang | Comedy Korean Drama Netflix Series

    Café Minamdang is a K-drama series based on the web novel titled Minamdang: Case Note, written by Jung Jae-ha. This series is 18 episodes, released in 2022, and currently streaming on Netflix.


    Nam Han-joon (played by Seo In-guk) worked in law enforcement as a criminal profiler but was framed for a crime he did not commit. After being released from prison since he could not return to his old job, he decides to become a shaman.  

    • Nam Hye-joon (played by Kang Mi-na) - Nam Han-joon's sister, who is a former NIS ace (NIS=National Intelligence Service). When it comes to electronic technology, she knows everything!

    • Gong Soo-cheol (played by Kwak Si-yang) works as a barista during the day at Café Minamdang and at night he's a homicide detective. He is also is Nam Han-joon's best friend.

    • Jo Na-Dan (played by Baek Seo-Hoo) is a part-time employee and every once in a while he gets recruited to work with the shaman on “special jobs”.

    • Lieutenant Han Jae-hui (played by Oh Yeon-seo) aka “Han the Ghost”, is a homicide detective assigned to the Major Crimes Investigation Division Seven as the Team Leader.

    In addition to performing her duties, Han Jae-hui is quietly investigating the death of her brother who served as a prosecutor. She suspects Nam Han-joon of being involved in criminal activities. What she does not realize is that the people responsible for her brother's murder are also the ones who framed Nam Han-joon.

    Initially, she thinks Nam Han-joon's shamanic shenanigans are interfering with her investigative work. But actually, both of them have crime-fighting goals. Eventually, they agree to coordinate and work together on an investigative effort.


    Café Minamdang is 18 episodes, released in 2022, and currently streaming exclusively on Netflix. The IMDb Rating is 7.4 out of 10 stars. I agree.



    Thursday, April 27, 2023

    Our Blooming Youth: Historical Period Korean Drama

    Our Blooming Youth is a historical period Korean drama series, released in 2023. It’s 20 episodes and currently streaming on Rakuten Viki.



    • Crown Prince Lee Hwan is played by Park Hyung Sik. It was rumored that the crown prince murdered his brother so that he could take his place on the throne. Because of this wicked act, he was sent a “ghost letter”. Supposedly a ghost wrote a letter that said he is cursed. The curse has several parts to it. He will never be king, he will be betrayed by those he trusts, he will cause many people to die, and finally, he will die all alone with no wife and no children.
    • Lady Min Jae Yi is played by Jeon So Nee. She is the daughter of a nobleman who is also the master/teacher of the crown prince. In addition, she is engaged to be married to the prince’s best friend. It was rumored that she betrayed her husband-to-be by engaging in an illicit affair, and murdered her entire family in order to run away with her lover. She’s a fugitive on the run, a lady in distress.


    Saturday, February 11, 2023

    Korean Drama TV Series: The King Loves (2017)

    This Viki Original series is binge-worthy: “The King Loves” (or “The King in Love”) (2017). This series is based on the novel of the same name and is set during the Goryeo Dynasty historical period.

    • What's the major theme of this series? Simply put, IF you have to choose between power, friendship and love, which would you choose?

    There are very intricate relationships that were developed in this series: between parents and their child, between BFFs (best friends forever), and between people who fall in love. You know what? It doesn't matter if you're a seriously wicked and evil scheming conniving person, or a ruthless murderous assassin, you still have a heart and there can still be room for somebody in your life that you truly love who can reach your “tender spot”.

    The 3 main characters are:

    ~ Wang Won (played by Im Siwan), the Crown Prince, heir to thr throne and future king;

    ~ Wang Rin (played by Hong Jong Hyun), his BFF since childhood, who is also of royal blood which means he could be chosen as king, instead of the Crown Prince, if the conniving power-monering people who plot and scheme behind the scenes have it their way; and

    ~ So Ha also known as Lady San (played by Yoona), the woman who completes the love triangle.

    Of course, Wang Won and Wang Rin are both fall in love with her.

    Image credit: Soompi

    Crown Prince Wang Won's parents are King Chungnyeol, 25th king of Goryeo (played by Jung Bo-Suk) and Princess/Queen Wonsung (played by Jang Young-Nam). The mother is Chinese and she is the daughter of the Chinese emperor, Kublai Khan. The royal marriage was clearly arranged to form a strong political alliance between the kingdoms of Goryeo and Yuan.

    • (REAL HISTORY NOTE: I had to do research to understand the significance of the royal marriage. Kublai Khan (Born  1215 – Died 1294), was also known by his temple name as Emperor Shizu of Yuan. He was the fifth khagan-emperor of the Mongol Empire, reigning from 1260 to 1294. He founded the Yuan dynasty of China in 1271, and ruled as the first Yuan emperor until his death in 1294. From 1231 - 1273, Goryeo (Koryo) was invaded six times by the Mongols. Goryeo became a tributary of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty ( 元朝) in China. Goryeo was under Mongol Rule but this ended in the 1350s when the Yuan Dynasty itself began to disintegrate and King Gongmin of Goryeo seized the opportunity to begin to reform the Goryeo government by removing pro-Mongol aristocrats and military officers.)

    The Crown Prince's parents make the mistake that most royal parents make. Instead of loving and nurturing their son like any parent should, they use their child as a pawn in a power play. It does not make for a loving parent-child relationship and the very objective they want to accomplish, i.e. raise their child to one day become a great ruler who cares for and protects the people, gets lost in all the vicious palace intrigue and infighting. Interactions between either parent and the child were always INTENSE!!

    So! Here's the PLOT. The Crown Prince is a HALF-BREED!! A child born from the union of a Goryeo king and a Chinese queen. Some of the folks in Goryeo don't like that! There is a clear divide. Those who will be loyal to the monarchy no matter who reigns as long as it's a good person who cares for and protects the people AND those who want a “pure-blood” Goryeo person to be the leader of the nation, as if only a person born without mixed heritage would possibly be the best person to rule the kingdom. Their excuse is that they fear the land of Goryeo will be taken over by a strong foreign power, Yuan, and they will cease to exist as “the true people of Goryeo”. That means they need to get rid of Wang Won, the half-breed. But how do they do that? Can it be done using:

    ~ Plan A: Place a pure-blood king on the throne without incurring the wrath of the Chinese Emperor and causing a bloodbath ... OR ...

    ~ Plan B: If they do make the Emperor angry, can they stand against him with their own military might? There will still be blood … but it will be worth it in The End because it will result in a Goryeo nation free from Chinese domination.

    The series is 20 episodes. Definitely binge-worthy. I agree with the rating of 8.8 out of 10 stars reported by Viki.com viewers. To be honest, even though the king is the main person, if it were not for the character, Wang Rin, the king's BFF (best friend forever), I would not have been interested. From the moment of being introduced to this character, I wanted him to be my best friend forever! I liked him that much! So I had to follow this series through to The End because I needed to know what was going to become of him. Was he going to be killed OR would he survive the power struggle?

    OFFICIAL TRAILER



    What others have to say about “The King Loves”.

    ((WARNING! Some of these content links contain “spoilers”.)




    Monday, December 27, 2021

    Korean Drama TV Series: Lovers of the Red Sky (2021)

    “Lovers of the Red Sky” (2021) is a Viki Original TV series which  stars Kim Joo Jung as Hong Cheong-Gi. Her leading man is played by Ahn Hyo Seop as Ha Ram. This young man is a singer and an actor who was born in Canada. The two of them made a lovely loving couple.

    This series is based on the novel of the same name. It is a Viki Original Series, 17 episodes, and to be perfectly honest, it was sort of lacking. But since I like Kim Joo Jung so much, I was willing to overlook the script’s flaws and shortcomings. Also, Ahn Hyo Seop, who played her love interest, is strikingly handsome; even with red eyes.

    It’s a a historical fantasy romance drama. There is a wicked demon, good spirits who fight against it, shamans who advise the crown princes, and a goblin who happens to have excellent taste in art. He doesn’t kill people. He just steals paintings.

    Hong Cheong-Gi (Kim Joo Jung) and Ha Ram (Ahn Hyo Seop) are caught up in two vicious webs: the human politics and power games AND the eternal power struggle of good versus evil within the supernatural spirit world.

    What will be the fate of these two lovers?

    Two words for this series?  Delightfully entertaining! 

    Originally published at read.cash.






    Friday, December 10, 2021

    Classic Movie ~ Vintage Bette Davis : Jezebel (1938)

    When I was growing up Sunday afternoon were special.  My big sister and I loved to watch movies on TV. We especially both loved Bette Davis; whether she was a bad lady or a good girl, she was a SUPER STAR!! 

    In this particular movie, she was Julie Morrison, a brazen sassy boldacious Southern belle. She dared to be an independent woman with a mind of her own, who challenged society's norms. In the process of her being rebellious, arrogant, and contrary, she caused a rift between her and her future husband. What did she do that was so outrageous and shaemful? Uumm … she showed up to a party in a red dress!

    I was very young at the time and being that red is my favorite color, I didn't get what all the huffing and puffing was about. My older sister explained to me that refined and cultured women in polite society would never wear a red dress. That's the mark of a whore!! A wicked woman!! A she-devil!!

    With that very clear and graphic explanation provided by my big sister, I was able to better understand this scene and this line in the movie; and that also explains the name of the movie.

    “𝙄 𝙥𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙄 𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚.” ~ Bette Davis - JEZEBEL (1938)

    Bette Davis Jezebel 1938

    Bette Davis - "I'm Kneeling To You" from Jezebel (1938)



    Filmsite Movie Review: Jezebel (1938) ~ "The film earned a total of five Academy Award nominations with two major Oscar victories. Bette Davis won her second (and last) Academy Award for her portrayal of the tempestuous, manipulative Southern ante-bellum New Orleans belle for Warner Bros." 


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