Sweet Stranger and Me (The Man Living in Our House) #review

Woorijibe Saneun Namja / 우리집에 사는 남자

Released -  Oct - Dec, 2016
Episodes -  16
Network - KBS2
Writer -  Kim Eun jung, Yoo Hyun sook (webtune),
Genre -  Family, Comedy, Romance
Original -  Based on 2015 webtoon (same name)

CAST

SYNOPSIS

Hong Na ri, a flight attendant, returns to her hometown to visit her mother's grave. There, she sees a young man. Go Nan gil introduces himself as her father. He now lives in Na ri's house and runs her mother's small dumpling restaurant.

REVIEW

This did NOT start out great and I was tempted to drop it after the first two episodes.

Jo Bo ah's Do Yeo joo and Kim Ji hoon's Jo Dong jin made me angry and had me thinking this would be another melodrama about infidelity and how simple it is for vacuous bitches to steal someone's lacking-character man.

It was also really eerie to keep seeing little Lee Eun sul all grown up as Soo Ae!

Lee Eun sul                                                                                    Soo Ae                               

Also, the annoying recaps seemed to go on and on and on . . . at the start of almost every episode, and then in the middle when one of the characters 'remembers' something...

Annoying and pointless.

Imagine trying to read a novel written this way (and yes, I've read a few, actually) where the author rewrites a scene you've just read, or that you've read a few chapters back again and again until you want to throw the book at a wall or stop reading the story or delete it from your Kindle.

The director also chose to chop up the story, which makes no sense and throws off the viewer who is trying to understand what is going on.

Wouldn't it be better to give the viewer a REASON for jumping around instead of just skipping 2 or 4 incidentals and then going back to cover them 3/4 of the way through an episode?

A lot of why are we here when we were there just a minute ago? type directing that I'm not fond of and will never grow to like or understand.

THEN they threw the creepy stepfather/daughter thing into the mix and I was like no, just... no.

And, AGAIN, this is another KDo that stars super-sexy, sexy, syrupy-voiced Lee Soo hyuk NOT as the leading man but as another second.

Another second who didn't manage to give me a moment of 2nd Lead Syndrome.

Lee Soo hyuk as Kwon Duk bong

However!

The reason I rated this as high as I did is for one reason only.

Despite all of these issues, as the story of a jilted lover who returns home to find peace and answers but instead discovers her ultimate fate, the plot became more interesting.

I stopped constantly comparing Soo Ae to little Eun sul, and the infrequent clashes between Soo Ae's Hong Na ri and her unfaithful Jo Dong jin weren't as in-your-face as I had anticipated.

The stepfather/daughter thing, though? That took some time to get over and try to ignore.

It became interesting to watch Na ri and Go Nan gil get to know one another better and slowly become drawn to one another.

I especially liked how the writer handled the infidelity issue.

Little Miss Special wasn't rewarded for her bad behavior, and Mr. Thinks-He's-Hot-Stuff ended up in a pile of remorse and regret instead of being able to strut his stuff in the hurtful aftermath.

But, that wasn't the gist of this story and it ended up being dropped entirely after only a few episodes in.

What really mattered was the little Dumpling Shop currently being run by Nan gil, a boy who grew up in an orphanage who befriended Na ri's mother and was always secretly in love with Na ri.

This is the second KDo I've watched where single men are permitted (somehow) to 'adopt' children, which is highly disturbing for an American to try and grapple.

This guy adopts tons of young boys and raises them to be gangpae for his debt collection company fronting as a lender while dipping into all kinds of illegal activities.

After Nan gil ends up behind bars, he's a changed man upon release and runs back to his 'mom', Na ri's mother, to help at the Dumpling Shack.

I can't really say anymore without giving away too much, but there is a ton of intrigue, plot development, and a very slow but strangely fulfilling romance between Nan gil and Na ri.

And like most every KDo I've ever watched, there are a ton of aside characters with their own stories and problems, and extended family members who aren't all worth bragging about and who manage to ruin things for their children.

Let's just call it 'typical' and leave it at that.

The romance was believable, but Na ri tended to behave manipulative and a little too bossy for someone her age, which was a minor let-down.

However, she did manage to possess just enough redeeming quality in her character to make me want to root for her and Nan gil.

Nan gil's badass performances were sexy, thrilling, and poetically sad, which helped to draw me to him and make me want to see him end up happy.

Lee Soo hyuk did a marvelous job portraying a high-fashion attorney against his family's fortune and bad habits who starts out wanting one thing from Na ri and then another before ending up in an altogether different place at the end.

The ending was about 30 minutes worth of recap and pregnant pauses but still managed to work itself out -- as did all of the minor characters and their issues.

I watched this in two days, which says something about the dynamic content of the story, so I think you'll find it just as interesting if you give it a chance to prove itself.

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Heart to Heart #review

하트 투 하트

Genre -  Romance, Comedy, Psychology
Writer -  Lee Jung-A
Network -  tvN
Episodes -  16
Released -  2015, Jan - Feb

CAST

SYNOPSIS

Cha Hong do suffers from social phobia and has a problem with severe blushing. She does have has a strong sense of curiosity and learns from books and the internet. One day, her grandmother, her only contact in the outside world, dies. Cha Hong do then begins doing housework as a maid, but disguises herself as an elderly woman. Through an incident, she meets a psychiatrist, Ko Yi seok.  ~AsianWiki (w/edits)

REVIEW

Yes, it deserves the 5-star rating.

No, it didn't start out that way.

Yes, this is as Cinderella as it gets, but the last few episodes made up for it.

In spades.

The trouble was in taking so very, VERY long to reach the whole point of the story, which was to discover why Hong do had to suffer, had a social phobia, and blushed in excess under stress.

She's lost her only social contact and lives like a hermit in a run-down apartment filled with books that she reads to learn since she dropped out of school early due to her anti-social behavior.

She needs income to survive, though, so decides on becoming a maid by disguising herself as an elderly woman.

It isn't a maid the wealthy old man needs, though. He already has one who cooks and cleans his mansion.

He's a bike shop founder (though I still find it incredibly hard to believe someone in that line of work can become wealthy, much less successful) who is anxious to tell his life story and needs someone who not only understands his antiquated lingo but can 'feel' the era in which he has to go back to in order to tell the story of his humble beginnings.

There are two hot guys in pursuit of the ugly mouse.

I know what you're thinking: another lame Cinderella story and it got a 5-star review?

Like I said, it started out as a 3, moved up to a 3.5, and then the last few episodes made it shoot up to a 5, no room for doubt.

It was Cinderella to the core, but this time the writer chose to do some in depth character development sorely lacking in most Korean dramas.

We're allowed to watch these people evolve, grow, regress, experience their light bulb moment, and learn from the past.

Each has their own issues, their own short-comings, and their own mountain to climb, and the viewer is permitted to get to know them as they proceed up said mountains.

Hong do has had a long-time crush on her Cop neighbor, sexy Jang Doo soo, who had helped her after someone had broken into her apartment.

Lee Jae yoon

For years, she secretly leaves home-cooked meals at his doorstep and then hides in the bushes to watch him read the notes she leaves with the food.

Now that she's been forced to go out into the world via this job, she starts to bump into Doo soo but has also bumped into another man, Psychiatrist Ko Yi seok.

Chun Jung myung

He's the exact opposite of sweet, lovable Doo soo, with his crass nature, short temper, and seemingly ill-mannered tendencies.

He's also very impatient and suffers from another form of social anxiety in that he's become 'allergic' to his patients.

Hong do visits Yi seok's office to finally get help for her condition when she witnesses him hovering over a patient who has stabbed himself with the doctor's pen.

It looks bad from Hong do's perspective, but Yi seok quickly realizes that when he is near Hong do, his anxiety fades and he's able to sit through patient sessions without losing control.

He hires Hong do for that purpose and pays her back with psychiatric help.

Doo soo begins to notice Hong do at this point, creating the ubiquitous love triangle between the two hot guys and the undeserving wench.

And this is where the 5-star rating comes in.

For once, the ugly chick actually deserves her moment in the sun, and I had little doubt as to why both men found her so attractive.

It takes a long time to get to the point of the story, as I already mentioned, but the wait happens to be worth the effort.

Everyone is somehow connected, the two male leads slowly change before coming into their own, and Hong do eventually understands why it is she behaves the way she does.

But, we must give partial credit to the impatient psychiatrist whose methods are questionable at best because despite their being harsh, they work to help Hong do break out of her shell.

I highly recommend you stick this one out because the beginning is a little rough, and trust me when I say Lee Jae yoon's being in this one isn't enough to keep coming back for more.

It is the plot that does that for you if you give it a chance to unfold.

A memorable story with memorable characters and a plausible romance that will give you a chance to think.

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Mr. Nietzsche in the Convenience Store #review

Niche Sensei /  ニーチェ先生

Writer -  Koma Matsu (manga), Hashimoto (manga), Yuichi Fukuda
Network -  NTV / YTV
Episodes -  10
Released -  2016, Jan - Mar
Genre -  Comedy

CAST

SYNOPSIS

Mr. Nietzsche in the Convenience Store is a Japanese shōjo comedy manga series turned live action. Follows the lives of a few 777 employees on the graveyard shift and a few of the oddball people who enter the convenience store.

REVIEW

If you saw Clerks, you'll relate to this one.

Not entirely the same thing, but the story does center around a few of the employees who work the overnight shift at a 777 Convenience store in an area of Tokyo that doesn't receive a large amount of foot traffic.

This translates to their having lots of time on their hands to ponder life's mysteries, zone out, and plot get-rich-quick schemes.

Each episode is less than 30 minutes long, and I watched the whole thing via YouTube in one sitting.

Shotaro Mamiya and Kenji Urai

Tomoharu Nii is compared to Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, a German philosopher, and his ultimate goal is to become a Buddhist monk in three years.

He's robotic in movement and thought as well as being stone-faced under all circumstances.

Except for the few times when his Tenchou appears

Sato Jiro makes the cast laugh

I've always thought Sato Jiro was a funny guy, with his random outbursts and tendency to accent the wrong syllable for effect.

This is wacky stuff acted out by wacky characters and well worth the minimal time it takes to watch all ten episodes.

Highly recommended, especially if you're feeling stressed or blue and need a quick pick-me-up.

Niche Sensei

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Let's Eat - Season 2 #review

식샤를 합시다 2

Romanization -  Shiksyareul Habshida 2
Genre -   Romance, Comedy, Food, Suspense
Writer -  Lim Soo mi
Network -  tvN
Episodes -  18
Released -  2015, Apr - Jun

   

CAST

SYNOPSIS

Koo Dae young (Yoon Doo joon), an insurance salesman, moves to another city and meets his new neighbors, Baek Soo ji (Seo Hyun jin), a freelance writer who eats once a day, and Lee Sang woo (Kwon Yool), a public officer admired by women. ~AsianWiki (w/edits)

REVIEW

Found this quite by accident and had to watch because it involved FOOD.

Weird thing about that, though, is that while I do tend to enjoy a drama that depicts native fare on a frequent basis, and most of the meals do look delicious, it also has the opposite effect depending on what is being served.

octopus head with black ink oozing out into the soup

I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I have to wonder how long after the production ended that Yoon Doo joon got his taste buds back.

EVERY freaking menu item he shoved into his mouth was piping hot with steam curling upward, and he barely took the time to let it cool down before eating.

More than half the close-up shots of him eating showed just how hot the food was, and with him fighting hard to hide his pain.

I'm probably alone in this, but eating anything that hot ruins the whole experience for me.

My teeth and tongue go numb after just one hot bite and it takes hours for the feeling (and my taste buds) to return, so I've always eaten everything at or near room temperature as a result.

I digress . . .

This is about more than just a handsome salesman wanting to be top-dog again in the world of Life Insurance.

Dae young gets into trouble in Seoul and is transferred to another branch in a smaller town a few hours south of Seoul.

There, and after renting a small apartment owned by Kim Mi ran, he meets his across-the-hall neighbor, Baek Soo ji.

She recognizes him instantly and is startled to see him again, but it takes a bit longer for Dae young to figure out who she is and why she's behaving so mean.

Soo ji is a freelance writer currently working with the city government on Food aspects of the city and country, where she's hired to put together brochures for the travel industry.

Her boss, Lee Sang woo, is quiet, diligent, and work-absorbed but Soo ji is smitten and can't stop thinking about him.

Hong In ah is his assistant and starts out rather crass, always sneering at and insulting Soo ji while making every attempt to hook up her younger sister with Sang woo.

When Dae young arrives on the scene, Soo ji begins to waver but still has enough resentment inside her to keep her budding feelings at bay.

She enlists Dae young's help in getting Sang woo to notice her, and it takes about half of the 18 episodes for this plan to succeed.

Sang woo eventually falls for Soo ji and they begin dating, but Dae young is also responsible for getting Sang woo to open up, express himself honestly, and let go of some of the stuffy, uppity brainwash he's been practicing since passing the civil service exams.

Aside characters and a suspense plot twist were included in this drama that really revolved around food.

Lee Joo seung is a young runaway pretending to be 30 who falls hard and fast for Hwang Hye rim, a drug store clerk who uses and abuses guys at about the same rate that they use her.

Joo seung is on the run from more than just his parents and is very angry, which equates to his being overly aggressive, and his age equals immaturity to make him a caustic, brooding soul in much need to a good confession.

Lee Jeom yi is the downstairs halmeoni who befriends Joo seung and treats him like her own since she lost her first-born and never fully recovered.

Im Taek soo works with Dae young and is a Father Goose on the verge of losing his family to divorce, so he drinks a lot, broods a lot, and clings to Dae young a lot for solace.

Out of all these characters, though, only one managed to scene-steal.

Happy the Pomeranian

I started out by watching Season 1 but didn't get into it so walked away only to discover this Season 2 version (which seemed the same) just a week later and ended up watching beginning to end without stopping.

As for its being Comedic...

Yes, this had its moments of laughter and I think the whole cast worked well together, were in sync, and gave the impression of not only being relate-able in that setting but also liking one another both on and off-screen.

It became an easy-going romp about a young woman who was fat as a child and therefore lonely and oppressed, afraid to make the first move and still living in the shadow of her former, heavy self.

Dae young treated her kindly back then, until she discovered he was only using her to help his mother make money selling tteokbokki.

But, was there a

SECOND LEAD SYNDROME

Kwon Yool                            Seo Hyun jin                              Yoon Doo joon           

Yes, believe it or not, and no.

Not at first, because I rooted for Soo ji to get with Dae young from the beginning.

However, as Soo ji began to get over the past and start to realize how foolish she'd behaved, I was suddenly pouting at the screen feeling very sorry and anxious for our poor Sang woo.

I like Kwon Yool and think he's a promising young actor who will likely come into his own in about ten years, when he'll be dynamite as the ajusshi in gangster and sinister chaebol dramas.

I just don't LIKE like him the way I so easily do with other, more hunky male stars of the Korean drama ilk.

Even more strange -- there wasn't a whole ton of chemistry going on between Soo ji and Sang woo any more than there was a ton of it going on between her and Dae young.

I just felt that Soo ji and Dae young made the better couple.

THE HEA

It was cute and worth waiting 18 episodes to find out if everything would go as I had hoped.

It was a quiet, slow lead-in to a natural and believable romance, so kudos to the writer for making it that way.

No eye-pop kisses here, folks!

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Cinderella and Four Knights #review

Based on the Novel by -  Baek Myo
Screen Writers -   Min Ji-Eun, Won Young-Sil
Genre -  Romance, Drama, Comedy
Network -  tvN
Episodes -  16
Released -  Aug - Oct, 2016

CAST

Park So dam as Eun Ha won, Jung Il woo as Kang Ji woon, Ahn Jae hyun as Kang Hyun min, Lee Jung shin as Kang Seo woo, Choi Min as Lee Yoon sung, and Son Na eun as Park Hye ji

PLOT

Based on the novel published in 2011, the drama is about a group of passionate young people in their 20s who live together, and is said to be similar to the 2009 TV series Boys Over Flowers. The series was fully produced prior to its release. ~Wikipedia

REVIEW

If everyone thought the BOF hints were real and anticipated a remake, I'll bet they're pretty bummed right now.

Unoriginal is the bottom line.

Done-to-death plot device (Cinderella and multiple wealthy hot dudes all vying for her pathetic ass) written way too soon after BOF aired, which screams "hoping to cash in on something that works" thinking on the part of the writer(s).

Unfortunately (for them and us) it only works its magic once and then the spell is broken.

But Korean producers, writers, and authors continue to bludgeon this story line to pulp and honestly, I don't know why.

And I can't say I hated it even though I can't really say I loved it, either.

What I did love was Park So dam.

Park So dam

I'm glad she isn't interested in the double-lid eye procedure because it is her eyes that not only set her apart from the herd but also what makes her so pretty.

The surgical procedure, by the way, doesn't work and I don't understand why it continues to be so popular.

She's unique and appears that way, which is great!

Very pretty and not at all boy-ish, though she did dress that way for the 4 Knights role.

Of the four Knights -- three, actually, though they included Lee Yoon sung (Choi Min) as the 4th Knight because his duties as 'butler' and their grandfather's assistant meant he was around the others quite a bit -- I liked him best.

Choi Min

I rooted for him start to finish, hoping he'd be the one who ended up with Cindy, but alas, that wasn't the case.

[sad face]

Anyway, the plot actually involves a goofy grandfather (wealthy, of course) with three sons who married and produced sons as well, leaving three grandsons who are obviously cousins.

Their parents all died tragically, leaving the grandfather responsible for them.

The eldest is simply handsome and doesn't actually 'do' anything in life other than pine away for a girl he hung out with as a child, and he can't get past the fact that when her twin brother died, he ran away instead of helping.

The second oldest cousin lived with his discarded mother, who sat around weeping over her loss until she died tragically in an apartment fire.

The third cousin is a Pop star.

The three live together in a (ugly) mansion (which was actually a club house on a golf course somewhere in Korea) but don't get along and never communicate with one another or hang out together.

The grandfather hires Cindy to live with the boys for 3 months in order to teach them how to become a real family.

They're called 'missions', and for each 'mission' that Cindy accomplishes, another year of her college education is paid in full.

She starts out attached to the eldest cousin, but they don't get along.

He's cocky, overly confident, and brash but always secretly pining away for Park Hye ji (Son Na eun), the pretty girl with looks, money, and an interest in fashion design.

This is where the story gets childish, overdone, and boring.

Not to mention Cindy's stepmother and stepsister, who both behave childish and by-the-book Cinderella style. which is just stupid.

Then the youngest cousin starts to crush when Cindy becomes enamored of the 2nd knight, Kang Hyun min (Ahn Jae hyun).

Now, I have to admit that I enjoyed the romance, which started out rocky, cocky, and lopsided (big surprise) then suddenly became elegant, mature, and gutsy -- three things I adore and long for in any Korean drama.

And the surprise near the end about those two and their shared past was just as delightful to watch being uncovered.

I also have to admit to skipping the odd episodes after 10 because it was simply too boring and tedious to want to watch every, single episode night after night.

The OST was okay but not amazing enough to even recall the main theme song.

Ah, yeah -- the croker voice chick whose horrible English somehow sounds cool -- I remember now.

And the subs? Yeesh.

This time they were legible, but it was SO obvious that the subber wasn't giving us verbatim, which is annoying and condescending on the part of the subber.

There were too many instances where I was thinking, Right. That's so not what he just said!

Anyway, the tweeners probably ate this one up even if the ratings say otherwise.

For me, it was a bit of a yawn but with a surprisingly mature-content romance (once it actually got off the ground, that is).

Cinderellawa Ne Myungui Gisa

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Beautiful Gong Shim

미녀 공심이 , Minyeo Gongsimi

Aka -  Pretty Ugly, Beast's Beauty, Dear Fair Lady Kong Shim
Genre -  Romance, Comedy
Cinderella -  Oh, yeah
Writer - Lee Hee myung
Channel -  SBS
Episodes -  20
Released -  2016, May to July

CAST

Namgung Min                              Minah                                On Joo wan                           Seo Hyo rim

PLOT

Love story of a mouse and two overly eligible men. The older sister has everything including a beautiful appearance, and the younger mouse has a warm heart. One of the men rents her rooftop apartment. The other man is from Chaebol. ~AsianWiki.com (w/edits)

REVIEW

Because this is about as feel good as it gets, I offered a half-star.

To an Asian Drama newcomer, this would be the stuff of got-me-hooked legend, but for a sixteen-year vet like me, it has the opposite effect.

And, twenty episodes seriously pushed the is-it-necessary boundaries to an annoyance level that ruined it for me.

No one in the writing/editing/producing departments bothered to spare an ounce of discretion here.

Every Trope you can think of is used in this drama.

ALL of them.

Intrigue to include a kidnapping that we figured out a lot quicker than 20 episodes.

A Cinderella plot with that edgy, she's pathetic but still able to make it on her own formulaic twist most writers have figured out and latched onto within the past few years.

The lovely older sister with an ugly personality.

A former beauty queen eomeoni married to a troll because he used to be wealthy, but then bankruptcy threw him a curve ball, so now she hates his guts and treats him like dirt.

A suspect chaebol family, complete with the stuck-up wife of a clueless husband, their martyred Prince Charming son, and a bitchy halmeoni whose only care is her kidnapped grandson.

Another Prince Charming, the one who is more deserving because he's the oldest.

And last but not least, we have three ... count them ... THREE hit n runs.

Brain tumor.

Memory Loss.

Alcohol-induced confessions.

Secrets meant to spare but that only make matters worse.

Tons more.

And on top of all this madness, we are forced to endure the Product Placement inclusion and outright intrusive plugging of at least two consumer goods.

Subway plug

Gotta wonder if Subway sales went through the roof as a result.

I'm not stupid and understand that advertising is a huge part of a studio's revenue.

I get that the constant and sometimes even unlikely product placement throughout a show is what helps pay the bills (if not the actor's salary).

However, this is a first for me ...

Nivea plug

... and just about the most embarrassing thing I've ever seen.

But let's stick to the story.

A mouse lives in abject isolation with a Queen Mother, Princess Sister, and the Dolt Male, so she occupies the rooftop apartment above their house, which is above a 7/11 turned 25-Mart.

She's artistic and brooding, ugly but sweet, and itching to set off on her own by saving up money to go to Italy and study art (even though she's pretty good self-taught but hardly what you would call a Michelangelo or Botticelli).

She's dumb, too.

Her poor parents made it impossible for Gong shim to attend college even though her older sister did and went on to pass the Bar to become an attorney.

Along comes a slob named Ahn Dan tae who is interested in renting the Rooftop because it's so cheap.

He and Gong shim don't hit it off and the episodes start with them as unwanted lessor/lessee who forever bump into one another until their feelings begin to mellow and change.

In between this, we have Prince Charming, who just happens to be the grandson of a prestigious chaebol Industry, where Gong shim lands her latest job as secretary to his father.

No one likes her because she's ugly, and the model-like employees gang up on her at regular intervals to act like middle school idiots.

Ahn Dan tae also happens to get a job there as the secretary to the Chief CEO, halmeoni.

He's already an attorney with his own practice, but because he keeps helping the homeless, desolate, and underachievers of the world, he's pretty much broke and doesn't live the upscale lifestyle his career could afford him.

Now, I'll admit that Namgung min did an impressive job of convincing me that he can pull off a comedy and a romance.

Especially since this is his first male lead role.

And while I found myself laughing most of the time, there remained that underlying suspicion about him as a person, or as a believable actor portraying someone else.

Always at some point I expected this guy to pick up a chainsaw and . . .

Namgung min as Ahn Dan tae

Not sure about anyone else, but I kept seeing his Kwon Jae hee (The Girl who Sees Smells) crop up to creep me out and make me wary.

Love the man's manly voice, though, and he's got a terrific bod even if he is on the short
side.

Still, he makes me nervous so I'll have to dig into his profile and watch his earlier work to see if there is something I can use to counter his current negative, disturbing, and psychopath-ish vibe.

I thought these two did really well as a team and a convincing couple, but as for chemistry, no.

She was too sheepish, childish, frumpy, and unlikeable for me to gain anything by her becoming romantically involved with anyone let alone two potential stud muffins of the wealthy Prince variety.

What was more weird, though, was how different she looked in that stupid wig.

The wig reminded me of the porcelain dolls produced in a by-gone era.

Without the wig, Minah is rather stunning in a young, mod kind of way.

She's also kind of top-heavy, too, eh?

And while I can't say the chemistry was there or that Gong shim needed or deserved a romance, it did serve its purpose for this kind of tale.

Personally, if she had hooked up with the dude working at the 7-11 turned Mart-25, it would have been credible and more worth the watch.

So, that brings me to 2nd Lead Syndrome, which didn't occur for me, either.

Nice guy with the cute smile was okay.

On Joo Wan

Love his Ju on name, btw ;-)

His acting is on par with a lot of other 2nd Lead males, so there's that, and he's nice and tall, too.

Unfortunately for cool-name guy, I thought that Shin Soo ho beat him to the punch in every scene he appeared in.

Ahn Dan tae wins

The connection here is that the writer for Beautiful Gong shim is also the writer for Sensory Couple.

Same quirky attitude, and with a few of the same cast, but if you're going to compare the two, this one is a total miss.

The Soundtrack is unmemorable and not invasive, either.

The Hospital Scene Korean Drama Style

Gong shim ends up needing an appendectomy, and following the surgery, she's able to do a host of things anyone else in the same situation wouldn't want or be able to do unless they enjoy pain and suffering.

lies on stomach where sutures are supposedly at

lies on side where sutures are supposedly at

She also sits up as soon as Dan tae enters the room (hiss), is dressed in elastic-waist pants (ouch), and slips out of bed to don a pair of Crocs (ugh).

She sits up in bed with her legs crossed (I'm dying here), and leans forward a few times (Dang! Am I making my stomach hurt).

She's also able to walk at a normal pace and without the need of a wall or railing or a body to cling to while fighting against the agony that is freaking post-op pain!

Which occurs a lot in Korean Drama hospital scenes.

I guess because it is listed as 'minor' surgery, that means it is so minor that the invasion of ones body by incision and resulting flesh probing that is stitches aren't supposed to affect the human body in any way.

And of course, she's there for a few days after being rushed to the hospital via ambulance, but her parents and sister never phone to find out why she's not coming home nor visit once they learn what happened.

Finally, we have the nurse who mosey's on in at random holding her clip board to touch the IV and then ask Gong shim if she's farted yet.

See, until you fart in an Asian drama, you're not allowed to leave the hospital.

Over here, it's taking a dump, and then expressed/written permission from your attending.

Over there, the surgeon never shows up to check on their patient's progress.

Never.

I heard you Fart, Gong shim

wid -- it's gotta mean something, I just don't know what

Dearest Fair Lady

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