Even though I'm not in the mood to blog tonight, I finished watching the 22-episode drama, and I had to say something about it before I go to bed.
This was cute!
I must admit, after seeing only bits & pieces of "East of Eden" and "Kingdom of the Wind", I felt leery about watching another Korean drama.
Online episodes from this country are entirely too unreliable anymore.
With the exception of one, minor glitch around episode 18, MSN's Soapbox managed to deliver quality goods, and with reasonably satisfactory subtitles!
Konglish doesn't bother me as much as bad grammar, and though the subbers at WITHS2 aren't brilliant, I couldn't complain TOO much about their efforts.
Before I begin, let's look at some pictures, shall we?
This is the cast of Dal Ja's Spring
Chae Rim as Oh Dal Ja, Lee Min Ki as Kang Tae Bong, Lee Hyun Woo as Uhm Gi Joong, Lee Hye Young as Wee Seon Joo, and Gong Hyeong Jin as Shin Sae Do.
The extended cast were all terrific, especially ...
FUNNY!
"Oh ... Dal ... Ja ... Shi"
I can attest to having worked with Gargamel-like co-workers in the past, and yes, I've always dreaded having to see their stern, if not frightening faces on a daily basis.
Still, I always wished to be able to crack them as easily and effectively as Oh Dal Ja had managed in this drama.
Life goes on.
Another co-star that peaked my interest, and for entirely lusty reasons, was this guy ...
Damn, huh?
Korean guys are HOTTT, no doubt about it.
Anyway, the reason I chose to watch this 2007 release was because it stars another HOTTT dude ...
His blue-black hair, soulful brown eyes, his height, and especially his brooding expression all help to turn me on and make me think naughty thoughts.
He's got a lisp, too, and it's aDORable!
And, THANK YOU for this scene ...
Most of you already know that DJS is about a young, wealthy man that leaves home & career to "find" himself.
SHE comes from humble stock, and at age thirty-three has a good career but is inexperienced in the ways of romance.
Lee's character behaved suave from the start, so I knew that he had to come from a wealthy, if not educated home.
At the beginning of the drama, however, he portrayed a Gigilo that pimped himself to Oh Dal Ja the very first time that they met.
Thugs chased after him for a majority of the first-half of the drama, but early on, I figured out why, and I was right.
Our sexy Gigilo turned out to be a top-notch Lawyer who ran from life after a botched case hurt him mentally and spiritually.
Lee Oppa did not portray the bumbling, comical character I've come to know, and there were times when I expected him to break out in something ridiculous, but it never happened.
He remained stoic, thoughtful, and cool throughout, and it took me by surprise.
Oh Dal Ja has a wonderful laugh, and every time that she smiled, I was reminded of a young Valerie Bertanelli.
I know that she wasn't supposed to have a sense of style, and I'm naturally curly myself, but that hairstyle drove me NUTS, and I kept brushing aside my own hair because her's was usually dangling in front of her face.
And, that she wore it back in a pony tail a majority of the time didn't help to draw me to her, either.
Oh Dal Ja first thinks that she's in love with a co-worker.
The Pillsbury Doughboy (Gong Hyeong Jin as Shin Sae Do) portrayed a Playa who, after eight years, decides to try his luck with the spinster Oh Dal Ja.
She behaves like a naive high school girl, and so he loses interest rather quickly, knowing that she isn't going to give it up.
Immediately after she discovers that he's messing around with their stylish, sexy co-worker, Lee Hye Young as Wee Seon Joo, Oh Dal Ja runs into (or is knocked down by) Kang Tae Bong.
He breaks her cell phone, so she chases after him, and they end up in a deserted alley.
He propositions her with his Gigilo lines, and because she's been jilted by her very first love, she takes up Kang's offer to be her imaginary boyfriend at $3,000 for one month.
Shortly after their encounter & deal, Oh Dal Ja meets the sophisticated and supposedly handsome Lee Hyun Woo as Uhm Gi Joong.
He thinks that Kong has bad intent, so he orders our Lee Min-ki to let go of Oh Dal Ja.
She is enamored of him almost instantly, and the chase is on.
Several episodes later, and after Kang Tae Bong has pushed his way into Oh Dal Ja's life, she realizes that Mr. Uhm isn't all he's cracked up to be.
He reminded me of the Korean version of Mr. Monk, and though Asian dramas are not known for their continuity, Mr. Ohm's ex-wife first appeared as a psycho who later mellowed out.
To say anything else would give away the ending, so I'll end my review here.
At the beginning of every episode, they showed pastel drawings that attracted me, so I print-screened them for your viewing pleasure.
Dal Ja's Spring was worth the watch, but the soundtrack left something to be desired, and though I doubt that I'd ever watch it again, it's still, worth recommending to friends!
