KDrama to Watch: The Sound of Your Heart (2016

The Sound of Your Heart (2016)

Grade: B-

10 episodes, about 30 minutes each
Viewing Platform: Netflix

Jo Seok is an aged, famous webtoon artist, and he tells the story of how he found his way into the business. At the time he started - set in the present day - he lived at home with his mom, dad and brother. His dad owned an unsuccessful fried chicken shop, supplementing with odd jobs, his brother worked an office job, and his mom ran the household while Jo Seok struggled with creating an appealing webtoon, since he lacked talent and ambition in every other field. (His drawing style is unappealing to most – but these days that isn't always an indication of failure.) Each episode tells two short stories about Jo Seok's life with his family and with his then-girlfriend Ae-bong.

*This is the first Korean sitcom I've watched, and it really did have a variety show type feel to it, as each episode had a different theme or style. One episode had the dad and Jo Seok acting as if they were in the mafia, while another episode looked like a romance between Jo Seok and Ae-bong, for example. A few episodes really had me laughing out loud, just at the plain absurdity of the situations, but the other episodes I didn't appreciate quite as much. I'm not sure if that was cultural or just my taste. Definitely lots of bathroom humor, and more cursing than usual Kdrama shows. It is based off the very popular, longest-running web comic in South Korea, “The Sound of Heart.” It was a very interesting diversion from my normal drama fare. I might watch those few episodes I liked again.*

TDrama to Watch: Refresh Man (2016)

Refresh Man (2016)

Grade: B+

28 episodes, 40 minutes each
Viewing Platform: Netflix

In high school, Zhong Yu-tang was the top of her class, and everyone thought she would go far. Ten years later, and she's slated to become the company's next head secretary. Then the new CEO shows up – the kid with the lowest grades in school she used to be friends with – and he quickly demotes her to sales. Yu-tang is determined to prove to the new CEO, Ji Wen Kai, that she has what it takes to prove her worth in the work world, despite being relegated to the “garbage disposal” sales team 3. Will Yu-tang prove Wen Kai wrong, or will the “refresh man” coast along with the other slackers? How will Wen Kai react once the head secretary from the company they are collaborating with starts making moves on Yu-tang?

*Aaron Yan is a super cute actor. This series has a lot of fun flashbacks, slowly filling in the pieces to their connections in the past. I also really enjoyed the chemistry between Wen Kai and Yu-tang – there was plenty of buildup without feeling too slow. Near the last few episodes I started getting bored, but that's typical with these longer dramas. I also appreciated how Wen Kai and Yu-tang treated each other like adults – at least *spoiler alert* once they confessed their feelings. It's still a little sad that the two had to spend ten years apart because Wen Kai needed to “improve” himself – why couldn't he have done that with Yu-tang by his side? They would have had that much more time to love each other. The antagonist was written in an interesting way – not evil, just ambitious, but with enough conflict to keep the story (mostly) interesting. I'd watch this again.*

InFilm to Maybe Watch: Dilwale (2015)

Dilwale (2015)

Viewing Platform: Netflix

Raj's rascally younger brother Veer goes to great lengths to woo a beautiful girl he happens upon, even going so far as telling lies about being the sole owner of his brother's successful car detailing shop and about Veer receiving regular beatings from his brother. While trying to impress Ishita, Veer steps in when some drug dealers try to coerce the local bar owner to sell drugs. The drug dealer's leader, King, later sends his men to beat up Veer for interfering. A mysterious figure then shows up at King's warehouse, beats his men, and sets everything on fire – including millions of dollars worth of drugs. King is determined to find the man who calls himself Kaali and seek revenge, not realizing his new “car guy,” the mild-mannered Raj, is none other than his enemy. Will defending his brother bring back bad memories from Raj's former lifestyle? What happens once Raj discovers the identity of Ishita's sister? And how will a misunderstanding fifteen years in the past resolve itself as the two young lovers struggle to reconcile their families' differences?

*This is the best version of a forbidden Romeo-Juliet type love story I've ever watched. However, it is much more violent than I typically enjoy (beating up bad guys with half a dozen repeated punches to the face, versus just one punch to knock someone out – there was a lot of hatred represented in the repetition that made me like the good guys less). The serious, deadly confrontations mixed in with the silly, comical moments was a strange juxtaposition as well. I did love the vivid colors in this film, though, and several of the musical numbers were fun. The ending was a bit too abrupt, and some might find the flashbacks a bit confusing (I kept track by noticing if Raj had a beard or not: beard = present day, no beard = flashback.) It's fun for a first watch, so I can recommend it for that, but I probably won't watch it again.*

InFilm to Miss: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001)

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001)

Viewing Platform: Netflix

The affluent, successful business owner Yash Raichand and his wife Nandini are unable to have children of their own. One day Yash brings home an orphan and adopts him, and their family feels complete. Eight years later, Rahul becomes a big brother, much to everyone's surprise. Rohan is loved, adored and considered a miracle baby, but he still knows his mother loves his older brother best, a brother he grows up thinking is a blood relation. It isn't until ten years after his brother suddenly leaves home that Rohan overhears the truth. Will Rohan succeed in bringing his brother home and reunite his broken family? Or will their father's pride continue to prevent reconciliation?

*There was so much sadness in this family, not even the incredibly hokey early 2000s dance numbers and ridiculous fashion could lighten the heaviness in this film. Who separates a mother from her child for a decade just because the father doesn't agree with the child's choice in mate? What wife says nothing to the man who is responsible for tearing their happy family apart? Perhaps there were cultural elements to this story that I could just not understand, including a son that is so “obedient” as to never challenge a parent's incorrect judgment. Sure, everyone cries (spoiler alert) and is repentant at the end, but it doesn't justify the fact this man stole a decade of love from his own family all because of something he said in anger that no one dared to correct because he was the “god” of the house. Plus it had that high pitched, nasally female voice I dislike from that period and several provocative dance numbers with scantily clad women. I won't watch this again.*

TDrama to Miss: Bromance (2015)

Bromance (2015)

Grade: C-

20 episodes, 40 minutes each
Viewing Platform: Dramafever

Pi Yanuo has been leading a double life since she was born: she must live her life as a boy until her 26^th birthday, in order to avoid the terrible fate a local fortune teller predicted for her parents. Yanuo learned martial arts, has a boyish haircut, and only wears clothes made for boys in order to trick her destiny and keep herself safe. But 100 days before her 26^th birthday, when she can lead her life as a woman, she helps Du Zi Feng fend off an attack, not realizing the man she helped was the general manager of the amusement park, as well as a triad gang leader. What happens when Zi Feng asks Yanuo to become his “sworn brother” and work for him? Will Yanuo be able to ward off Zi Feng's sister's advances? How will strife within the triad impact their relationship? And what happens when an old elementary school friend arrives on the scene to steal Yanuo's affections?

*I had a hard time finishing this drama. It's half gang story and half gay love story, what with murder over drug trafficking and Yanuo's secret about her being a girl – both subjects which I do not enjoy as entertainment. It was also difficult to have that “suspension of disbelief” for these two virtual strangers to go so far as to swear fealty for each other, then immediately put themselves in risky situations for the other person over and over. It's not justified in their relationship to do something crazy like that so soon after meeting, nor does it make sense for their characters – the viewer doesn't know them well enough to judge if the risky behavior is typical for those characters or not. Then there was way too much kissing throughout – it ruins all the buildup if the two lovers are kissing every other episode, or several times an episode. Additionally, I did not find the two main actors attractive (Yanuo is a pretty woman, but an ugly man), and like I've said before, when I am spending hours watching actors, I have to at least find them a little attractive in order to fully enjoy the show. I really did not enjoy this drama, and I won't watch it again.*

KDrama to Watch: Miss Panda and Mr. Hedgehog (2012)

Miss Panda and Mr. Hedgehog (2012)

Grade: A-

16 Episodes
Viewing Platform: Netflix

Ex-convict and aspiring young patissier Go Seung-ji decides to find a new job once he realizes his adopted grandfather's generosity could very well run the small bakery out of business. When he finds out the baker's daughter is released from prison, it finalizes Seung-ji's decision to move out and make room for the father and daughter to reunite. However, not many businesses will hire ex-cons. Fortunately for him, Pan Da-yang is out of money and desperate for a talented patissier to save the small bakery Da-yang's parents had left her upon their death. Just as Da-yang has accepted Seung-ji's help, a classmate she hasn't seen since elementary school arrives on the scene: the tall and handsome Choi Won-il, the new CEO of the most famous bakery in Korea, ready to reunite with Da-yang, his first love. Who will Pan Da-yang choose? What happens when Da-yang and Won-il find out about Seung-ji's time served in prison? And will Seung-ji, a.k.a. Dochi, ever conquer the famous bakery that rejected him five years ago?

*Most Kdramas tend to focus on or at least start from the girl's side of the story, but this drama is more about Dochi, and he is a very fun, sweet character to get to know. His whole demeanor is that of an energetic, youthful rascal, an underdog that will defeat his enemies with sheer skill and determination, and you can't help but cheer for his success. I didn't think “hedgehog” was that good of a comparison, though, especially because he is so vociferously and physically demonstrative of his love for those in his life. I didn't think the lead girl really resembled a panda in her demeanor, either. There was a really interesting mystery woven into the love triangle, though, and that made this drama really stand out. There is also a great bromance, an enemy that was truly terrible, and victims that let go of potential hate and anger from their past and were happy. Overall it's a positive-feeling show, and although the lead girl isn't my favorite actress, I'd watch it again.*

TDrama to Watch: Murphy's Law of Love (2015)

Murphy's Law of Love (2015)

Grade: B-

31 Episodes, 40 minutes each
Viewing Platform: Netflix

Psychologist Guan Xiao-tong quits her job at the hospital to become a matchmaking website's “Dr. Love” after her rich boyfriend dumps her for not being from a wealthy background. It's her attempt at shaking Murphy's Law – the curse that “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong” – from ruling her life. Meanwhile, the handsome and aloof entrepreneur Ji Jia-wei opens a divorce firm directly across the street from the matchmaking company, and the two are instant enemies. Their relationship becomes a bit more complicated once one of Jia-wei's employees signs up his boss for the matchmaking service as a joke. Now Xiao-tong must convince Jia-wei to help her since he is the website's most popular new member. Will the love doctor be able to shake the Murphy's Law curse to save her job and enlist the help of the cold businessman? How will Jia-wei's ex-girlfriend impact his budding relationship with the determined doctor of love? And what will the handsome, single chef working events with the matchmaking company have to say about Jia-wei moving in on his longtime, long distance crush?

*A couple plot points felt nearly identical to the Taiwanese drama, “Just You” - mothers abandoning their only child and girlfriends leaving suddenly, scarring the lead man's heart, then both reappearing. This show was a bit more somber than “Just You,” however, with less comedy and fewer lighthearted moments. It felt more realistic yet at the same time less intense – each dramatic plot twist fizzled out because of normal, mature adult reactions from the characters. The first part of the show was fun, but by the last third of episodes, spotting the random, long, single strand of facial hair waving from the middle of Jia-wei's cheek was more exciting than the plot. For whatever reason, I just didn't love the characters, and the idea of celebrating divorce (what Jia-wei's company did) bothered me. There also isn't a strong secondary story line going on, and I felt its absence. The romantic gestures were fun (more than I've ever seen in any one drama), the last episode is sweet, the music/production value seems to be a bit better than “Just You,” and the dog in the show was super cute (a Shiba Inu), so I might watch it again.*