Kmuse's End of Year Countdown - The Worst of 2014

I am officially calling 2014 the year of the "blah" drama.  So many of them were not necessarily bad, but they were not really good either.  Pretty much I finished them out of a sense of obligation for my Facebook discussion groups.  So if a drama actually made it onto my "sucks" list, it was pretty gosh darn terrible. 

Top 5 Kdrama Countdown - April Week 2

Scary birds, serial killers, hormonal angst, and the cast of  running man discovering new uses for a water bottle, are all in this weeks top 5 kdrama countdown.  Come and join us as we discuss this weeks best moments as well as some newly airing dramas.

#5 So Many Unexplained Birds

Hotel King debuted this week and surprisingly made our #5 spot on the countdown.  I say surprisingly due to the fact that I did not particularly love this drama (at least so far).  But the closing scene in ep. 2 really left a lasting impression so onto the list it goes.  Ah Mo-Ne (Lee Da Hae - Iris 2, My Girl), the pampered heiress is in mid fight with her nemesis sexy Cha Jae Wan (Lee Dong Wook- My Girl, Scent of a Woman), when she stomps off across the courtyard.  We hear a ear piercing scream when she sees a couple pigeons on the ground.

Expectation From Scream Level

Reality

Now this might seem like a random scene to enjoy, but it leads us to the closing scene where some unknown intruder leaves  a little warning (a pigeon corpse) on her bed.  This sends her into a catatonic state and also allows our cold lead to see her vulnerable and needy.  It was a great scene because not only does it bring our OTP closer together but also brings up the question "Why is she so freaked out over birds?"  Did one poop on her designer shoes?  Peck at her crazy hats?  Cant wait to find out the answer and that alone will keep me watching this drama despite the lead girl's horrible acting.

#4 Teenage Hormones and Angst

Wild Chives and Soy Bean Soup has remained in my top favorite dramas several weeks running (seriously, I can't get enough of this drama).  The sparks and plot heated up this week as our two young leads find themselves alone in the house  watching soccer, and drinking a huge amount of champagne.   It is no surprise when the extreme touching and hugging due to the soccer game turns into something more and our two cute teens take their skinship to the next level.  However due to misunderstandings, insecurities, and just plain teenage angst, their morning after is not the thing of dreams.  I love how this drama truly sucks you into their emotional state.  It makes me truly thankful that I will never have to experience my teenage years again.

Soccer Romance Clip

#3 A Terrifying Smile

I personally am just barely figuring out who MBLAQ is so this is my first experience really noticing the idol turned actor Lee Joon.  Friends who are a lot more obsessive in their fandom then I, began posting stills and teasers for this drama featuring him and I was instantly hooked.  This guys creepy smile is spectacular and now I can't help just thinking he is a psychopath anytime I see his photo.  But it was his ability to instantly go from normal guy to crazy killer by a twist of facial muscles that really brought this character to life.  

An inmate in the psych ward (we currently don't know for what) he makes even other inmates nervous and he always seems to be wherever there is Gap Dong drama going down.  His pointed interest in our leading man is sinister from the get go and when he interacts with the doctor I get shivers.  I predict that he is going to be visiting my countdown again soon.

#2 The Death of Saet Byeol: Take 2

We have made it all the way from the first death of our little girl Saet Byeol to the unfolding of the same events a second time.  For those of you who don't know the premise of Gods Gift - 14 Days I will provide a brief synopsis.  

Kim Soo Hyun's daughter is murdered by a serial killer.  For some unknown reason she is given a second chance and must relive the past 14 days in an attempt to find the killer and save her daughter. 

This drama is truly brilliant.  The writing is so extremely tight and intricate that you can rewatch from episode 1 and see layers upon layers of clues that are just playing out in the last few episodes.  We are finally back to the beginning where Saet Byeol is kidnapped, but thanks to the efforts of Soo Hyun events progress slightly differently leaving clues that will eventually lead to the truth and hopefully save our mini heroine.   It is fascinating to watch the same thing happen, yet see the differences.  Can't wait to find out what the drama brings us this week.

#1 How to Properly Use a Water Bottle

I about died from laughing so hard during this last episode of  the popular variety program Running Man and it is all thanks to one hilarious guest.  Ryu Seung Soo (Wonderful Days) was teamed up with Jae Suk  to complete various games/contests and advance in the competition.  It just so happens that one of those games involved a construction cone going up one's booty.  Between the two men they had to sit on this construction cone for a total of 3 minutes.  Sounds easy in theory, however the reality of a pointy object inserted near one's bum is nothing to scoff at.  After failing once they again have to attempt the quest and Ryu Seung Soo gets on the cone and totally goes into a zen induced zone.  He achieves the needed time but trips as he is getting off the painful object.  Unfortunately for him, it is discovered that he had cheated by putting a water bottle down his pants to protect his most sensitive area.  This is truly not only winning this weeks coveted #1 spot, but also going on my list of favorite Running Man moments of all time.  Let's just say that if Ryu Seung Soo ever decides to do variety, I will be an avid viewer of anything he is on.

 Running Man Clip (scene starts at 5:45)

Thanks for joining me for another week of kdrama goodness.  I am hoping that Dramafever will finally put out the subs for Golden Cross tomorrow.  Also Witch's Romance is making is debut and I hope to have my recaps for that drama up ASAP.  If anyone has any questions about where various dramas are being subbed, or really any other inquiries/comments, feel free to leave a note in the comments section or on our Facebook page.

Sincerely,
Kmuse

Dramas that I am currently watching:
Potato Star 2013QR23
Ruby's Ring (counting it as a currently airing drama since it had never been subbed til now)
A Well Raised Daughter
Bride of the Century
Sly and Cunning Lady
Hotel King
Fall In Love With Me (Tdrama)
Witch's Romance
Gap Dong
A Secret Love Affair
Empress Ki
Beyond the Clouds/Full Sun
Wonderful Days 
Cubic - Thailand Drama
God's Gift: 14 Days
Wild Chives and Soy Bean Soup: 12 Years Reunion
Sweet Sweet Bodyguard (Tdrama)
Golden Cross

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Top 5 Kdrama Countdown - April Week 1: Khottie Edition

This weeks countdown is being dedicated to something that makes kdramas so engaging, addicting, and worth watching.  Of course I am talking about the massive amount of hot guys that are cast as the leading men.  There is nothing better then being able to fawn over a good actor and his amazing looks at the same time.  Now I know that I am watching a huge amount of dramas, and there are an insane amount of khotties within all those dramas.  That said, I tried to pick the one's that have actually engaged me with their performances and not just the fact that they are attractive.  If your favorite is not on my list, feel free to let us know who he is in the comment section.  I only have time to pick out five today, but I know there is an infinite amount of khotties to choose from.

Song of The Week

CNBLUE - Truth

We have a whole band full of Khotties in our musician of the week since when you think of hot musicians CNBLUE should be at the top of the list.  They came out with their 2nd song off their current album and I personally like this one a lot better then their first one.  I like CNBLUE the best when they have that peppy fast beat and an MV with lots of close ups and it just so happens that this MV delivered the hot closeups in spades.  It is even enough to distract me from their Engrish in the chorus.

#5Yoo Joon Soo (Lee Won Geum - Moon Embracing the Sun, Passionate Love)

This kids smile is infectious and I can honestly say that I have never seen a khottie who's smile literally lights up his face.  His character in Wild Chives and Soy Bean Soup is the perfect package, handsome, smart, kind, and all around happy with (at least so far) no huge emotional issues.  He also shows signs of being adept in more serious scenes so I am kind of excited to see him deal with the romantic fallout that we know is coming.  If you like family dramas then I would highly suggest starting this one since it is well paced and has a superb cast.

#4 Red Headed Hottie from Empress Ki, also known as Tal Tal (Jin Lee Han)

I am embarrassed to admit that I seriously did not know the characters name until I was forced to look it up for this blog post.  To me and my friends whom I discuss this drama with, he has always been the redhead hottie who wears black.  He is also a balm to my poor soul, as politics and just the crazy behavior of royalty, make the two leading men more and more "eh" for me.  You know he is a good character when you kind of wish the leading lady would ditch both of the other men and hook up with the supporting character.  (I know his hair looks brown, but when he is not in a dark set it has really red tints hence the nickname.)

#3 Kang Dong Hee (TaecYeon - Who Are You, Dream High)

I am just going to come out and say it, TaecYeon is not really a great actor.  The poor boy has his limits.  That said I will clarify that although he can't emote, he still is a very entertaining actor and sometimes that is what a drama needs.  His character Kang Dong Hee (Wonderful Days) is the family black sheep/thug who always is getting into trouble with his quick temper and inferiority issues.  But I can't help but love him despite his serious character flaws.  This week we see him get angry (AGAIN) and he stomps off like a five year old, running away from home..... All the way to the end of the street where he sets up a tent to live in protest.  I love how his first night "away from home" he keeps staring at his phone and wondering why no one is calling.  "Don't they realize I am gone?" he says to the silent phone.  HAHAHA  And as an added bonus of his being cast, we get wonderful scenes like this one in the sauna.  Thank goodness for Khotties and their need to have the perfect abs.

#2 The Men of Inspiring Generation

So I am dedicating my #2 spot to the whole male cast of Inspiring Generation, because lets just all admit that they are the sexiest thing to come to historical kdramas in a long long time.  Seriously there are so many khotties in this show that it is almost impossible to choose a favorite (although Mo Il Hwa pulls slightly ahead on my bias list).  So I am weepy eyed and saying a sad farewell to this drama and its insanely hot cast.  You will be missed and most likely rewatched many times in the future.

Mo Il-Hwa & Jung Jae Hwa bromance fight clip.  (I about died when Jung Jae Hwa winked in the middle of his fight.)

#1 Ki Dong Chan (Jo Seung Woo - Horse Doctor)

When I decided to do a Khottie theme for this weeks countdown, there really was no question as to who my #1 pick was going to be.  Jo Seung Woo is AMAZING.  His acting is effortless and he drags you into his character Dong Chan (Gods Gift - 14 Days) so quickly, that before you know it you are actively praying for the leading ladies marriage to dissolve so he can step in.  He has a lot of baggage but he plays this complex character (ex-cop, brother of a serial killer, disappointing son, and white knight) to the 9th degree.  He outdid himself this week as he serenaded (YES HE CAN SING TOO!) the little girl at the lakeside.  It was a beautiful scene and probably one of the prettiest cinematic moments to be released recently.  And then in a complete switch we also had an amazing fight scene on a rickety roof top in the rain.  If you are not already watching Gods Gift 14 Days then start ASAP since he is definitely worth watching.

Lakeside Serenade Clip

Rooftop Fight Scene (starts about 2 min in)

And this concludes my tribute to the Khottie.  I hope they are bringing as much enjoyment to you as they are for me.  Also be sure to check in next week as we have a lot of new dramas airing (Hotel King, Fall In Love With Me) and hopefully making it onto my countdown.  I will also be adding new recaps (Witch's Romance & Gap Dong) this week if the dramas end up being as good as they look.  Have a great week and as usual if you have any questions about any of the dramas I watch (where you can find subs, times, etc.) be sure to ask in the comments.  I always love hearing feedback from my readers.

Sincerely,
Kmuse


Dramas that I am currently watching:
Potato Star 2013QR23
Ruby's Ring (counting it as a currently airing drama since it had never been subbed til now)
A Well Raised Daughter
Bride of the Century
Sly and Cunning Lady
Hotel King
Angel Eyes (maybe going to watch)
Fall In Love With Me (Tdrama)
Witch's Romance
Gap Dong
A Secret Love Affair
Empress Ki
Inspiring Generation (last episodes)
Emergency Couple (last episodes)
Beyond the Clouds/Full Sun
Ghost Seeing Detective CheoYong
Wonderful Days 
Three Days (have put on hold, just not grabbing me)
Cubic - Thailand Drama
God's Gift: 14 Days
Wild Chives and Soy Bean Soup: 12 Years Reunion
Sweet Sweet Bodyguard (Tdrama)

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Top 5 Kdrama Countdown - March Week 4

This week has actually been a very subtle week when it has come to kdramas.  A few started, a few ended, and one baby has stolen my heart (not that I would ever want another baby, even one with epic Elvis hair).  Come on in and check out the best of the week and reminisce about the scenes and babies that stole our hearts.

Song of the Week

MBLAQ - Be A Man

 I have slowly become a huge MBLAQ fan over the past year (don't know why it took me so long to try listening to their songs).  This first song from their new album has a mature slow R&B vibe and showcases their great vocals and smooth choreography.  Also I personally, am a huge fan of Thunder's new hair color, his pink phase was never my favorite.

#5 Father/Son Relationship in Bride of the Century.

We all know the stereotype of the rich Korean parent.  90% of the time they are greedy, mean, and anti anything that could provide their children with happiness. So it is a refreshing change to see such a different dynamic in Bride of the Century.  Choi Kang-Joo and his father have a relationship where they actually "talk" to each other.  I KNOW! Talking about important issues, what an odd thing to see in a kdrama.  I also love how supportive the dad is to his son following his heart regardless of where it leads him.  It just makes me saw AWWWWWW and earns the #5 spot on this weeks countdown.

#4 Celebration & Sadness

 We have a new drama debuting this week!  Wild Chives and Soybean Soup snuck into the currently airing kdramas without me knowing anything about it (those of you who have followed me for a while know that is rare).  But luckily I was able to slip the first two episodes in this week and I actually enjoyed them (although with 50 episodes there is still a lot of time for this drama to turn stale).  The scene that stood out for me was actually the opening segment of episode one.  It is 2002 (and for those of you who are new to kdramas, all that you need to know about 2002 is that it was soccer fan chaos in S. Korea because of the World Cup.)  All you saw was a sea of red and cheering Koreans, except in the hospital where Jang Kook's father had just passed away from a hit and run.  It was fascinating how the director accentuated the loneliness and sadness of our heroine among the loud cheering and excitement from everyone else around her.

#3 Jealous Ex-Husband Hijinks & 2nd Lead Pianist

 I have actually heard a lot of mixed feelings about episode 9 of Cunning and Single Lady.  I am actually one of those that is in the "I LOVE IT" camp.  But then again, I am always up for some over the top comedic moments.  One of the things that has been the plague of this drama (at least in my opinion) is that it just does not know whether it wants to keep things more realistic or go with the funnier over the top revenge comedy route.  A viewer could get backlash from the amount of times this show has jumped back and forth in its styles.  However, I thoroughly appreciated seeing Jung Woo revert to his geeky past as he totally throws all of his polish out the window and goes full out crazy jealous.  From competing in bonding work games to faking an injury to keep Ae Ra from being confessed to, his over the top actions kept me smiling through the whole episode.

Tied for #3 is another scene from the same episode (I know I know, but they both were so good I could not choose one and not the other).  Our second lead Kook Seung Hyun , who I am really starting to love, takes out Ae Ra on a work "date".  There he lets his confidence shine as he goes up to play the piano and does a fake out followed by Yiruma’s “River Flows In You.”(one of my favorite songs by the way).  I don't know about Ae Ra, but he totally won this ahjumma's heart and a substantial part of me would totally be ok with him getting the girl in the end.

Date that is not a date but really was a date clip:

#2 Cyber Anonymity

I was actually wondering how they were going to hook up the two leads in this drama.   But no worries because they introduced sexual tension and awareness in a brilliant fashion.  My husband is always teasing me that you never know who you are talking to online.  He likes to say that my kbestie Angela is some random dude pretending to be a housewife, usually right after he rolls his eyes about something kdrama related.  However, they actually did use that as a plot point in Secret Love Affair.  For those of you watching, Sun Jae and Hye Won had connected online (where Hye Won pretended to be a 25 year old male pianist in order to give him advice) in episode 1.  After his intense practice with Hye Won, Sun Jae gets online to gush to his "hyung" about the woman he met.  He expounds how this woman is impressive, charismatic and elegant and is going to help him get a scholarship.  Realizing that her online buddy is the boy she was just teaching, Hye Won is in the beginning amused and then shocked as the conversation turns more personal.  It seems that our budding genius is also "in lust" with her and he tells his friend that playing with her is the closest thing to sex that he has ever experienced.  Not to mention he now has a growing foot fetish due to her sexy feet.  HAHA  I thought it was a genius move for the writers to create sexual awareness for our older sophisticated lead, without having them constantly in each others presence.  Just a good scene all around.

Cyber Connection Clip:

#1 Fortune Cookies of Reconciliation

I have to admit that I am not one of those people that is "in love" with this drama.  I just don't like medical dramas.  I get so annoyed and frustrated with all the medical made up hoopla crap they throw in (and I am not a doctor but even I know that a lot of what they throw out as their medical jargon is totally dramatized and or made up).  But other then that 60% of the show, I actually enjoy it.  The dynamic between the main couple got much much better after the first 4 episodes and I am actually cheering for them now rather than cringing.  Yes, that secret kdrama magic of making me like someone I despised has happened again.  I also like that the show is seriously delving into what would happen if they did get back together and everything crashes and burns a second time.  They are taking a more mature and less impulsive dip into the relationship pool and I personally can appreciate the character growth that the show has provided.  In episode 18 Jin Hee has decided to give their love a second chance, just as Chang Min starts backpedaling away in order to allow her to meet a "better" man.  In order to get through his thick skull that she is interested she makes him a homemade batch of fortune cookies with cute sayings that related to their current situation.  I personally found that a very touching and unique moment in a show filled with medical cliches.  This drama is always at its best when it focuses on the characters outside of work and that is why this scene won my #1 spot this week.

Fortune Cookies of Love Clip:

Honorable Mention

BABY GOOK!!!!!!!

How flipping adorable is this baby.  It is as if Elvis was just reincarnated into the body of a 6 mth Korean baby boy.  I give props to casting, since the choice of this cutie was total genius.

And baby Gook closes out this weeks top moments in kdrama!  Be sure to check back over the next couple weeks because we have a whole slew of kdrama turnover.  Look forward to Gap Dong, Witch's Romance, Golden Cross, and Big Man all making their way onto the countdown.  I am also hoping that I will have some kind of recap inspiration since I am all rested up mentally and ready to do a weekly recap again.  And if you have not already checked them out, glance over at the new posts from Dongsaeng and Unnie, it is so great to see them back in the blogging world.  I have missed their witty musings. 

Sincerely,
Kmuse


Dramas that I am currently watching:
Potato Star 2013QR23
Ruby's Ring (counting it as a currently airing drama since it had never been subbed til now)
A Well Raised Daughter
Bride of the Century
Sly and Cunning Lady
A Secret Love Affair
Empress Ki
Golden Rainbow
Inspiring Generation
Emergency Couple 
Beyond the Clouds/Full Sun
Ghost Seeing Detective CheoYong
Wonderful Days 
Three Days
Cubic - Thailand Drama
God's Gift: 14 Days
Wild Chives and Soy Bean Soup: 12 Years Reunion
Sweet Sweet Bodyguard

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