Unnie's WWU {When Plot Devices Go Bad!}

Not too long ago I did a post about the little things that I love so much in my K-Dramas.  Those plot devices that make me happy, the "wrist grab, the "piggy back" etc...  But on the flip side of the devices I love so much are the devices that drive me batty.  Now, we all love our K-Dramas.  And we're always trying to find ways to get our friends & family to love them as much as we do, but one of the hardest parts of loving K Dramas is trying to decide which K-Drama is best as a recommendation to a newbie so that we don't scare them off w a melodrama or make them laugh at our addiKtion even harder, as they walk away from the sheer stupidity of bad writing or acting, that can also a part of  K-Drama.

"GASP!  But Unnie our K-Dramas are perfect!!  Everyone should watch K-Dramas!" O.O

And you're right AddiKts.  Our K-Dramas are awesome, excellent fun & most of them earn a happy & enthusiastic 2 thumbs up from me.  But you & I both know, that sometimes, our K Dramas aren't always perfect.  Sometimes the writers make us either, scratch our heads, puzzled at the sudden shift in direction from the originally awesome story line, or just as frustrating, they employ outdated or overly used plot devices that make us want to scream.

If you've read Dongsaeng's MMT this week then you know she too has her issues when our wonderful K-Dramas go bad.

I blame the plot devices for driving me crazy.  Ones, that the first time I saw them, I admit, they tickled my fancy or made me feel for the characters but now they just irritate me.  I've been watching K-Dramas for 2 years this month.  How time does fly!  What I once loved about K-Dramas can sometimes make me cringe now.  You know because 2 whole years of K-Drama watching makes me an "expert".  No, no it doesn't.  I am being wildly sarcastic.  But that doesn't always come across in writing.  Someone please invent a sarcasm font!!!

I went on a rampage, okay it wasn't like a crazed lunatic type rampage but more of a; Ugh this is SO getting on my nerves temper tantrum, this weekend w a group of friends, as I watched the latest episode from Level 7 Civil Servant.  Oh Joo Won how I adore you BUT how I hate some of the incredibly trite plot devices your latest K-Drama has employed.

The Best of the Worst K-Drama Plot Devices:

Parents.  In K-Dramas there are 3 kinds of parents.  There are the regular normal K-Drama parents who love & support their kids & offer sage advice & acceptance & sometimes well applied & performed comic relief.

I loved Gong Ah Jung's dad in Lie To Me.  He was funny & supportive & bent over backwards for his daughter, even sacrificing his happiness for hers, for years.  Good daddy.  Another good daddy.... Gil Ra Im's dad in Secret Garden, yes technically he was dead BUT even that didn't stop him from helping his daughter find true love & protect her.  In Greatest Love Goo Ae Jung's dad & older brother lived with her & supported her.  Rarely interfering in her personal life or getting in the way of her career.  In Heartstrings Lee Gyu Won's dad, while he did not live with her loved & supported his daughter, even her grandfather who was raising her, while strict, was caring & supportive too....after a lot of persuading, even Lee Shin's mom was a supportive & loving parent, this was a rarity, both sets of K-Drama parents being good parents.  The list goes on but this list is small in comparison to the other groups.

K-Drama Parents in Group #2 The EVIL parents.  The ones that are out to control their children's lives whether their children's happiness matters or not.  This is the group that includes the Dragon Mothers.  You know with moms like Kim Joo Won's from Secret Garden or Go Jun Pyo's from Boys Over Flowers.  It also contains the evil parents who lie, steal, cheat, &/or murder.  For those parents you can check out the following K-Dramas...  City Hunter, Nice Guy, I Miss You, Goong & Can You Hear My Heart.  This list goes on & on.  And makes me want to scream.  I've been doing that a lot lately if you've been reading my I Miss You reviews.  OH MY GOSH!!!  The evil parents in this drama make me want to pull out my own hair!!

And the last group of K-Drama parents are the leftovers, mostly the poor, uneducated, lackadaisical parents who are constantly becoming burdens to their children & standing in their way in the selfish lack of understanding of their children.  Level 2, Protect the Boss, Coffee Prince & Goong have/had these sub par parents.  Sacrificing their children's happiness, for their own personal gain.  Sometimes, they become redeemable, as is the case w Yoon Eun Hye's parents in Goong.

And usually each main character has a set of parent(s) from the different lists.  With Secret Garden it was List 1 & 2.  Goong & Level 7 has one each, from list 2 & 3.  And it is this plot device I take exception to the most.  I cannot stand the parents for Kang Choi Hee's character.  With their constantly interfering, bragging about their daughters success etc...  Especially since they have never done anything to help her & were in fact nothing but more trouble for her.  Although, I did enjoy watching their faces when they walked in on the hot wrestling match between JW & KCH.  (ONLY scene in the entire episode that has me wanting to keep watching next week) And when the other guy fell out of the closet???  OMO!!  I actually LOL'd!

But there are other plot devices that I am sick of seeing.  Now, the first time I saw this next device I admit I had tummy flutters.  But I think it had more to do with Hyun Bin or rather the fact that Hyun Bin leaned in & kissed Ha Ji Won that had me all fluttery in my tummy.  Yes, I am talking about the foam/cream on the lips of the heroine.  When Hyun Bin leaned over the table & ate/licked/kissed the foam from Gil Ra Im's cappuccino off her lips I .... I ....  well I never wanted a cappuccino as much in life!!  And I don't drink coffee at all ever.  Or when Jung Il Woo's Cha Chi Soo, tasted Kimchi off of Lee Chung-Ah's cheek in Flower Boy Ramen Shop, I was as weak in the knees as she was, chincha!   But then I remembered I don't have a Kim Joo Won to lick foam off My lips or a Cha Chi Soo to taste Kimchi off My cheek, so I gave up that dream...or did I?!?!  o.O  Ever since then it's done in so many dramas, & nowhere nearly as well as it was originally, that I cannot stand the device anymore.  All they are doing is making the female lead look like she is incapable of eating with any dignity or grace or cleanliness.  Quite frankly, it grosses me out.  And in Level 7 when KCH's character then rooted around her mouth, with her tongue, rather than using a napkin, I was sickened.  I'd have preferred a napkin.  Heck, at that point, I'd have settled for her sleeve or the back of her hand.  Writers please stop the food on the lips device.  It's just not as sexy as you think it is, I promise.

Another plot device that has me rolling my eyes is the ever popular fall into the kiss.  Where one character falls (either to the floor or the couch or the bed) & the other falls on top & their lips just perfectly match up but they sit there for about 20 minutes doing the *UGH* dreaded squish kiss, w their eyes wide open in shock, before either of them gets up.  And then inevitably one blames the other calling them a pervert.  It was funny the first 4 or 5 times I saw it.  After that it got really old, really fast.  Which means I have to reiterate & beg the writers again....PLEASE stop using the squish kiss!??!?  I can't take it anymore.  Say NO to the Squish Kiss!  It's not realistic or believable!

I cannot forget the bad hairstyles/clothes from the recent crop of K-Dramas.  I thought the hair in Full House 2 was bad.  Kang Choi Hee's hair AND clothes in Level 7 are putting FH2 to shame.  Seriously so bad!  No, I am not talking about the ever sexy, oh so handsome Joo Won!  He is delicious, as always.  But Kang Choi Hee's clothes AND hair is deplorable!  Wae?!?!  What's even worse is her superior(s) got mad at her &  were supposed to be helping her wear better clothes, in an attempt to be more attractive to Joo Won,  Can you say, FAIL?!?! A total face palm moment in that episode!  What the....?!?!?  Who the heck is the wardrobe person/stylist for this drama?  I want that person fired!  Like now!  But they, the K-Drama gods or powers that be, seem to think that our K-Drama leading ladies need to be dressed ugly in order to be more appealing as the "good girl".  What happened to plain clothes but not ugly clothes?  Do the clothes have to be sinfully ugly in order for us to like her?  I beg to differ, in fact, it makes me like her less & makes the writing that she is a spy for the NIS as even less believable!

These are just a few of the most popular plot devices that I wish the writers would stop employing in our K-Dramas.  Of course it may not entirely be the writers faults. For all we know, its actually a "King of Dramas" conspiracy & the production company is requiring the writers to cram this crap into the K-Drama in their attempt to copy/recreate the magic of a K-Drama that used these devices appropriately & successfully.  If that is the case then you poor writers.  And shame on you production company!!  Let your writers write the drama the way they see fit & stop copying other people's ideas!  Be unique not cookie cutter!

I do understand that not all of you are going to agree with me or my opinions.  I understand that what one person sees as a horrible plot device, another person could view as their favorite plot device.  If I have picked a device that you like & not talked about a device that you hate, then please let me know!  Share your favorite devices & your least favorite devices.  Just leave a comment on this post.  Or you can head on over to our TCA FB page, after you "Like" our page, leave your comment in the "WWU" Thread.  Or you can go to my "Jess Unnie" page on FB or Twitter, after you "Follow/Friend" me go ahead & leave me a comment on there.  I would love to hear your opinions.  Just keep them devoid of cussing & respectful or you will face the delete/block buttons.  And did you know I have an Instagram account too?  Want to see how boring, everyday, ordinary & SO not glamorous my life is?  Well, follow me on Instagram, & see for yourself!  I really am very boring, but I love to share pictures of my boring life.  ^_^

And now to make up for the fact that I was a big whiney face in this post & complained & probably irritated everyone here is some yummy eye candy Kpop MVs to soften the blow.  YAY!!!

Both Nu'est AND BAP came out w new MVs.  It was SO nice of them to time their releases, so that I could include them in my WWU, wasn't it?   It's so nice they were thinking of ME!  {{Shhhhhhhh, *whispers* don't disturb my daydreams of cute KPop boy bands who know & think of me & my wants.  Just let me live in my little dream world, k?  Thanks AddiKts.}}

BAP: "One Shot"
   

Nu'est: "Hello"


That covers another fabu WWU!  Now, either you are rolling your eyes at me, Shaking your head & laughing at me or you are agreeing with me.  Doesn't really matter because if you made it to this point it means I fooled you into thinking I can write & got you to read this whole post!  Now who's looking like a dork?  ;)  Have a great week AddiKts!  See you in my reviews!

Saranghabnida,


P.S. As usual NONE of the MVs or Images used were ours!  Found them on the web.  I tried to get screen shots but it was taking too long searching through episode after episode on an incredibly busy day, day before Valentine's for a mom of 4.  Busy day!  So I cheated & used Google Images.  <3 Unnie