Bubblegum ~ Asian Drama Queen

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Bubblegum

Romanization: Poongsungeom
Hangul: 풍선껌
Genre: Romance, Melodrama
Network: tvN
Episodes: 16
Release Date: 2015, Oct to Dec

Cast

plus a whole lot more

Plot

This is about two people who grow up together, go through a lot of issues together, and end up back together later in life.
He's never forgotten his feelings for her, and she's changed dramatically over time and due to the course of events that affected her and those around her.
Ri hwan's mother was secretly in love with Haeng ah's father (both widowed) but were never able to consummate that relationship when he dies, leaving her empty and broken.
The mother (Bae Jong ok as Park Sun young) takes her loss out on Haeng ah, which causes a strain in their relationship and the friendship between her and Ri hwan.
As adults, Ri hwan is an Eastern Philosophy doctor with his own practice, and Haeng ah works at a local radio station.
Ri hwan is determined to get what he's always wanted, and Haeng ah is just as determined to live her own life separate from the one she left in the past. ~~me

Review

I'll begin by giving a shout-out to Dramafever for the timely uploads and flawless subs

DramaFever

I know some of you aren't all that crazy about Lee Dong wook, but I'm not one of you.

Since Hotel King and Room Mates, I've grown more fond of the man and his work.

Lee Dong wook

I'm not saying he's hot or even all that; just mellow to the eyes, easy to get hooked on, and talented with his wide range of character portrayals that tend to nab me every time.

He's a like-able fellow and I'm glad I got to get to know him better through the brief but interesting series, Room Mates.

Anyone got their own theory as to why that show ended so abruptly? It started out good and had potential, but . . . low ratings did it in.

Popular with us foreigners but not so much with the locals, I presume.

Okay, so this is one of those back & forth dramas that vacillates between the past and the present, but it was never done in a completely confusing or distracting way.

That being said, this was also a drama that tended to rehash those past incidences in order for us, the viewers, to stay on track, and I find that to be a little annoying as well as insulting.

And yet, a majority of it was actually necessary so that we eventually figured out just what it was that made Haeng ah behave, think, and do as she did.

She (Jung Ryeo won) is so pretty!

The chemistry between her and Dong wook was fabulous, too.

At the start of this one, she's been dating a top DJ at the radio station, Kang Suk joon (Lee Jong hyuk) but dumps him when she's finally had enough of his distant, cold attitude towards her and just about everything else in life.

Secretly, she's always been attached to Ri hwan but because of what his mother said and did in the past, she's determined not to let herself get involved and risk losing what little sense of self she has left.

Haeng ah's got a good job and good friends who take good care of her, so it isn't as if she needs a man in her life, but we all know how impossible that can be sometimes -- especially when the heart tends to control the mind on occasion.

We all need to at least feel loved at some point in our lives, and I think this drama touched base with that issue and in more ways than just one, too.

There were plenty of aside characters with their own love troubles, but none of it overshadowed the real story or took up too much air time to make it seem distracting.

Lee Dong hyuk

Haeng ah & Suk joon break up

Her best friend at the radio station is pursuing an older man at the station, who is trying hard to keep that from happening because he's still in love with his ex-wife who lives in Migu with their two children.

Ri hwan works with a good buddy of his at the Eastern Medicine hospital, and that guy is filled with regret after tossing aside the love he'd once had with Haeng ah's best friend.

Then we have the two adults we learn more about both in the past and in the present.

All of it was good, some of it was funny, and most of it was engrossing until about 3/4 of the way through, when Ri hwan's mother ends up with a terminal illness and the whole plot/story line shifted to that central issue.

Things got bogged down, depressing, and then irritating when it seemed as if nothing was going to be accomplished after all those episodes of watching, hoping, and anticipating one thing when another started to unfold.

While the chemistry between these two was palpable, the action in the romance aspect of things remained something to be desired.

His parts always call for chivalry and the gentleman's way, and he nails it every time, adding to his natural charm, but there was something lacking here that I can't quite put my finger on other than to say there wasn't enough of anything to get me excited for their relationship.

I wanted more and didn't get enough kiss, touch, feel, play, swoon.

This actually does have a happy ending if you're willing to stick it out for the duration and plod your way through a lot of angst, misery, and melodrama.

A third romance occurred with the female antagonist: the chubby (or homely) daughter of a chaebol who works as a dentist, and she meets Ri hwan on a blind date arranged by their mothers.

She's instantly crazy about him but he only has eyes for Haeng ah.

It took up a majority of the episodes to get her out of the way, and she did end up meeting another guy whom I hope she ended up with, because he was good for her and her flagging self esteem.