Kdrama to Miss: Dodosolsollalasol (2020)

Dodosolsollalasol (2020)

Grade: D+

16 episodes, 60 minutes each

Viewing platform: Netflix

Gu Ra-ra wasn't originally a musically gifted student, but with her father's encouragement and money (for hiring the best instructor in the country), she becomes a concert-level pianist. Tragedy strikes when her father suddenly has a heart-attack and dies on her wedding day, plunging his business into chaos and scaring off her fiance. What happens when Ra-ra travels to the sleepy seaside town Eunpo and breaks her arms swerving to miss a young man on a bicycle? Will the now penniless, naive young woman be able to provide for herself, or will she keep having to rely on the kindness of Sunwoo Jun, the guy she hit? And what happens when Jun's identity is revealed?

*Slow, sweet, sad - and STUPID! Good cinematography, decent music, a small mystery to solve, but absolutely ridiculous use of the “selfless breakup” trope (where 1 part of the couple pretends to be a jerk to "save" the other person from having to suffer with them) AND the “time skip” trope (where a drama skips ahead 1-5 years in its timeline). There is no couple in the WORLD who can survive that much time apart; you're almost an entirely new person by that point! And I hate the idea of nobly suffering alone – that's what loved ones are FOR: to lean on and grow closer! I definitely won't watch this again. I guess it's nice Ra-ra finds a community & friends to help her out in life, but it's not anywhere NEAR enough to redeem this drama. Unforgivable use of these two tropes!*

JDrama to Watch: An Incurable Case of Love (2020)

 Jdrama: An Incurable Case of Love (2020)

Grade: B

10 Episodes, 1 Hour each

Viewing Platform: Viki

Nanase Sakura is about to graduate high school and she doesn't know what to do next, but one morning an old woman collapses in front of her. Nanase shouts for help – and the handsome doctor Kairi Tendo, who just happens to be out for a morning jog, hears her. Nanase then decides she must pursue nursing, to be worthy of the handsome doctor, and five years later, Nanase starts working at Kairi's hospital. What happens when Kairi turns out to be a bad-tempered “devil” instead of the knight in shining armor that Nanase had always imagined?

*This Jdrama is based on the Japanese manga, so there are some extra cheesy/unrealistic moments throughout. There are also plenty of “cringe” scenes (secondhand embarrassment for the childish Nanase), but she does seem to show some character development, which makes this show a bit better. I don't love the age gap between the main leads (Nanase is 23 and Kairi is 31), and the cold-hearted male lead trope almost goes too far in these instances – as in it almost feels a bit toxic/unhealthy. Takeru Satoh does an amazing job in the steamy romance moments though – I'd watch this again just for his scenes! Fun music, too. I might watch again.*