KDrama to Miss: Because This Is My First Life (2017)

Because This Is My First Life (2017)

Grade: D+

16 Episodes, 1 Hr each

Viewing Platform: Netflix

Yoon Ji-ho is a struggling assistant drama writer, and when she is almost sexually assaulted by a coworker, she decides to quit writing altogether. Then her younger freeloading brother gets his girlfriend pregnant and Ji-ho's father kicks her out of their city apartment she'd been making payments on for the past 5 years. A mutual friend finds her a room in someone else's apartment though, and a solid week goes by before Ji-ho meets the owner: the socially withdrawn computer programmer, Nam Se-hee. (Each had assumed the other was their same gender.) Ji-ho and Se-hee have simliar fastidious, clean habits however; also, Ji-ho just wants somewhere safe to live while Se-hee wants everyone to stop nagging him to marry – so they end up getting married (in name only) to meet both their needs. But what happens when Ji-ho starts to develop feelings for the taciturn older man she's married to? Will Se-hee be able to confess why he's given up on love for himself? And what about their friends' relationships?

*This is NOT a rom-com but a dreadfully tedious commentary on society. Sure, there are a couple funny moments, but the romance is not the focus. Rather, it's an exploration of adult life of a particular generation (1980s babies) and a criticism of traditional Korean values & societal roles. All the main characters have sex out of wedlock (at least, I think 2 of them are divorced when they get together – it was hard to follow at that point); marriage is looked down on; and there are several uncomfortable instances of workplace sexual harassment (towards/against women – which, if it needs to be said, then fine, but I don't like watching it when I'm trying to be entertained). It's not a fun show and I wouldn't be surprised if Netflix removing it from their platform is because it didn't do well ratings-wise. Wouldn't recommend and won't watch again.*

KDrama to Maybe Watch: Heartbeat (2023)

Heartbeat (2023)

Grade: C+

16 Episodes
Viewing Platform: Amazon Prime

Joo In-hae is a young school nurse, trying to make ends meet ever since her father abandoned their family and her mother died. She loses her apartment and deposit as her “landlord” runs off on demolition day and is about to lose her job because she cut a student's hair. (It was an attempt to draw attention to the girl being bullied.) Then In-hae receives word that her father has been declared legally dead, and she receives a spooky mansion as an inheritance. While exploring the large old house, she discovers a coffin with a BODY INSIDE. Turns out she interrupted vampire Seon Woo-hyul's hundred-year sleep – one day short of his goal to turn human because he wants to experience “heart-pounding” love! Will Woo-hyul be able to complete his transformation into a human and find his reincarnated lost love? Will In-hae's successful old college friend (who is actually a vampire hunter descendant) succeed in drinking a half-vampire's blood to cure his early, inherited death sentence? And what will Woo-hyul's vampire rival do in response to Woo-hyul's return?

*The first 6 episodes of this drama were SO GOOD! I always love a supernatural element to a kdrama, and the intro music and animation are the PERFECT backdrop for a story like this. There are several funny and romantic tension scenes, which I love – but then the pacing drops off and a bunch of sad dialogue and moody “staring off into the distance” shots take over. Honestly, it would have been SO much better if they had chosen to make this an action-romance-comedy instead of a romance-tragedy. The writers portray Woo-hyul like a terminal patient instead of a supernatural creature, and (SPOILER alert) they just let him die! I don't want to see a normal, believable ending when there are characters who are unbelievable; give me a fantastic ending to match the fantasy start! I enjoyed parts of this show, but overall I won't watch it again.*

Photo By Naver, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73858975

KDrama to Miss: Twenty-Five Twenty-One (2022)

Twenty-Five Twenty-One (2022)

Grade: C-

16 Episodes, about 75 min each

Viewing Platform: Netflix

Na Hee-do is an aspiring teenage fencer in the 1990s, with only one dream: to be the rival of talented, Olympic champion Ko Yu-rim. Hee-do convinces her famous news anchor mother to let her transfer to Yu-rim's school, and in the meantime, she meets an alumnus of that school, Baek Yi-jin – a young man who is down on his luck ever since his rich father's lawbreaking was discovered and the huge financial crisis hit South Korea. Will Yu-rim accept Hee-do as a worthy opponent? What happens when Yi-jin has to go live near the sea with his uncle because he isn't a college grad and can't find a job anywhere else? And what will Hee-do's aspiring ballerina daughter, looking back on her mother's adolescence, think of all this?

*This kdrama felt SO LONG and sad and drawn out! I don't like when a show decides to cover several years of time with its characters (not including the flashbacks). This is definitely a “coming of age” story with a heavy dose of nostalgia (a particular flavor of which I don't relate to as an American). It is also NOT a lovely, exciting romance, but rather a *spoiler alert* bittersweet, slow-death tale of an ill-fated first love. Seriously, I don't understand the drive to choose career over love in modern storytelling; it's so depressing and too much like real-life, when all I want to do is escape reality with my precious downtime. I understand that Yi-jin had MUCH fewer options because he wasn't able to continue his education, but it just wasn't romantic for him to pick his job over his girlfriend. Won't watch again.*

KDrama to Miss: Beauty Inside (2018)

The Beauty Inside (2018)

Grade: D

16 Episodes, 1 Hr each

Viewing Platform: Netflix

The talented actress Han Se-gye has a strange secret: once a month, she mystically transforms into an entirely different person! Her transformation mimics that of a woman's monthly cycle, in that it is mostly predictable and lasts a few days to a week at a time – but it differs in that she can become young or old, male or female, as well as any race or nationality. She can recognize the signs of it coming, which has earned her the reputation of a runaway of sorts, but the saddest part is not even her friends or family recognize her when she is wearing a different face. What happens when the face-blind chaebol Seo Do-jae runs into Han Se-gye and still recognizes who she is, despite her other forms? Will she be able to keep her secret? Will Do-jae ever recover from his malady?

*This kdrama had a lot of promise – I love a touch of mysticism or magic in a show (“Secret Garden” comes to mind), but I was greatly disappointed in this drama: there is no explanation for it whatsoever, and it's treated like a background or secondary problem. The other issue is the male lead was not very charming or attractive; it makes sense for a person with face-blindness to have a “dead” look in their eyes, but it made him a lot harder to like. Plus I just don't think he's a good actor. I also didn't like the pro-trans/gay messaging, with Do-jae's character having to love Se-gye no matter her gender. A person's identity is intrinsically tied to their gender, and the modern ideology that one's soul is “beyond” or “outside” of that is false. The drama also moves rather slowly, with far too many sad moments. I wouldn't watch this again or recommend it.*

KDrama to Miss: Vincenzo (2021)

Vincenzo (2021)

Grade: C-

20 Episodes, 80 minutes each

Viewing Platform: Netflix

Vincenzo Cassano, a former South Korean native, is a member of the Italian Mafia. His mother put him into foster care as a child, and a nice Italian couple adopted him – but it wasn't enough to protect him from the darker side of life. Vincenzo's education instead included the most creative ways to manipulate, murder, and even massacre one's enemies, all while sparing any "innocents" and staying one step ahead of the law. But one day Vincenzo's duties as a “concigliere” take him back to his homeland, in order to recover billions of dollars worth of gold hidden under a building set for redevelopment. What happens when this puts the hotheaded, ethically questionable lawyer Hong Cha-young in his path? Will she shy away from Vincenzo's morally murky methods, or will she embrace his help once her father is brutally murdered by the powerful Babel Group conglomerate? And will the team stand a chance against Babel Group's psychopathic chairman as he finally steps out from the shadows?

*Extremely violent, dark, and gory throughout. The ending for the two biggest villains is particularly disturbing (one involves fire, one involves a slow drill). There is also only about 1% of romance in the entire production. The show does have its moments where it is reminiscent of fun heist movies such as “Ocean's 11,” with different players coming across as traitors or double agents – but it grows tiresome since there are so many episodes. Very good production quality, soundtrack, etc., but violence and vengeance are not my cup of tea. I also don't care for the modern trope of morally gray characters; it makes it a lot harder to root for the good guys when they really aren't much better than the bad guys. I definitely won't watch this again and I don't recommend it for the traditional Kdrama fans like myself.*

Chinese Drama to Miss: Love 020 (2016)

Love 020 (2016)

Grade: C

30 Episodes, 1 hour each

Platform: Netflix

Bei Weiwei is a college student studying computer science and is the top in her class. She particularly enjoys the MMORPG “A Chinese Ghost Story," where she has an in-game husband. Meanwhile Weiwei and her roommate are trying to find internships for the summer break, and when Erxi uses one of Weiwei's accounts to look more like a nerd to get picked for an internship, it creates a big misunderstanding. Amid some in-game rivalry, Weiwei's in-game “husband” breaks up with her in order to “marry” another player, at which point the server's best player proposes to her. Unbeknownst to Weiwei, this top player attends her university in real life, and he is about to start his own computer company with his friends. 

What happens when this real-life attraction leads to some unwanted real-life attention from jealous classmates? Will Weiwei be able to navigate this new relationship in her life without losing her friendships? Will Erxi be able to fix the misunderstanding and subsequent gossip?

*This drama was a real slog to get through. There is no character growth, and while everything is technically well-done in terms of cinematography, music, and setting, this Chinese drama lacks the passion and direction of a Korean drama. It's as if someone took incredibly detailed notes while watching a Kdrama but didn't understand it. It's a slow meander through 30 episodes of content where not much actually happens. Then there is the way all the other characters revere the male lead's aloofness (they call him “Lord”) - it's almost as annoying as his lack of development. The scenes of the actors as video game characters were neat, and it reminded me a lot of my WoW (World of Warcraft) days – but that wasn't enough to make the show worth it. The casual references to communism were bizarre, too. I wouldn't watch it again, or really recommend it.*

KDrama to Watch: Cinderella and the Four Knights (2016)

Cinderella and the Four Knights (2016)

Grade: B+

16 episodes, about 1 hour each

Viewing Platform: Netflix

Eun Ha-won is determined to save up enough money for college, just as her mother hoped. Ha-won's step-mother and step-sister do not make it easy for her though, treating her like Cinderella, and Ha-won's dad is rarely around to see the abuse. On top of that, Ha-won finds out her dad has not been paying the crematorium fees for her mother's remains, so Ha-won gives up her tuition to catch up on back rent. Then one night Ha-won makes a delivery for one of her part-time jobs, and a third-generation chaebol catches sight of the fiery young lady. Kang Hyun-min convinces Ha-won to play his date, for a good chunk of change – at his powerful conglomerate CEO grandfather's fifth wedding! What happens when the grandfather sees Ha-won disciplining his grandson for his disrespect at the festivities? How will she handle the grandfather's demands that she bring his grandsons together, in exchange for tuition money?Will the forbidden romantic feelings developing between Ha-won and the grandsons cause her to lose everything?

*Fun premise, good cinematography and music; a solid kdrama overall. Park So-dam doesn't look like the typical kdrama main female lead, but she is still super cute with her pixie cut. There are a few good heated romantic tension moments throughout, but several of the characters engage in the “selfless sacrifice” trope, which is a bit annoying. Still, it has a nice ending that wraps up for almost everyone, including some redemption for the antagonists. Worth watching at least once.*