Here’s an update on the four dramas I had on my Watch list last month:
- “Brewing Love,” which I dropped after 30 minutes of Ep 1, because it was slow. I’ll give it a second chance once all 12 episodes are out. That way I can skip the boring parts. Besides, I can’t resist the visuals of these two actors Kim SeJeong (“A Business Proposal”) and Lee Jong Won (“Knight Flower”).
source: aousboom’s tumblr
- “Mr. Plankton,” which I killed d after I took a sneak peak of the final episode. It’s a good thing all episodes dropped on the same day.
- “Marry You,” which I couldn’t find on Netflix USA. Apparently, it’s only shown on Netflix South Korea. Phooey! Since Dramacool is gone, I can’t be bothered searching for it elsewhere. Netflix USA will most likely release the drama after all 10 (or 12??) episodes are out. I don’t know who came up with that idea, but treating their international kdrama viewers like second citizens is a losing strategy.
- “When the Phone Rings,” which I’m currently reviewing.
I’m also watching the romcom “Love Your Enemy” on Viki. If you like something light and funny, try this one.
What else caught my eye this month?
1. Check In Hanyang
Three guys and one girl masquerading as a guy work at a Joseon Era version of Four Seasons Hotel. This reminds me of “Sungkyunkwan Scandal” (2010) so I’ll check it out.
Cast: Bae In Hyuk (the cutiepie in “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract) and Kim Ji Eun (the bestie in “Love Next Door”)
Episodes: 16
Start Date: Saturday, December 21
Airs on Saturdays and Sundays
Where to Watch it: Viki
Network: ??
2. Hallmark movies, lol
Just because it’s Christmas time, I’ll watch a couple of sappy Hallmark romcoms and compare them with kdramas.
What about you? What are you watching this month?
Howdy!
I did finished Mr. Plankton and I enjoyed WDH. 🙂
There’s also The Trunk, Gong Yoo and Seo Hyun Jin. It’s on Netflix so maybe I will pick up on that too.
I only really have WTPR. I thought I might start on Brewing Love but you said it’s slow so not sure about this one.
Apparently there will be no When The Phone Rings (WTPR) on December 14 and 20. Bummer!
I’m not watching any cdramas so maybe I will pick one during the Christmas break.
Thank you!!!
Dear Friends, how have you been?
Can recommend “Brush Up Life” (Japan – 2023), also called “Rebooting” and seemingly available through Netflix.
Ms. Kondo Asami has a reunion with her two lifetime friends, then after leaving them for a walk finds herself in the afterlife after a rendezvous with Truck-kun. There she learns that she can become a Guatemalan ant-eater or relive her life from birth with all the knowledge from her previous life.
Regrettably for her, that will not be the last of her iterations.
Show is about what is important to us, lost and found friends, and doing the right thing even for people we don’t like. You will find some of her decisions really baffling but nevertheless having a touch of wisdom. In every iteration she streamlines her “missions” more and more. You will have a good laugh with some of her predicaments and how the solutions she gives evolves through time.
It is a clever watch. One of her iterations is as a Drama Producer, and while I appreciated the peek behind the scenes, I enjoyed even more the irony of a Drama based on her experiences as a Rebooter taken out of proportions by overeager writers.
There is a lot to love about this Show, if someone wants to chime in, I think it would be a lovely watch. It is incredibly wholesome.
I am watching When The Phone Rings and Iron Family. I am interested in The Tale Of Lady OK, which was supposed to be on Netflix, but now it is not there.
And dear @GB, this is for you.
My way to pray for your proper recovery (aside wishing you well) is to offer you deliverance from boredom within my means.
Hope to read from you all!!!
Aish. I’m late on everything. Didn’t even have time to watch “when the phone rings”, my only on-air drama. Didn’t have time to continue a transcript and at a stop at 5 minutes. So, maybe I won’t have time for much.
I’m actually testing Grok AI. Can be useful for my job. I’m testing its ability about screenplay feedback. And it’s sometimes really awesome and a bit scary. The AI was able to understand complex resolution from indirect hints in an episode. But sometimes it misses it. It’s becoming close of a commentary that a human could make on some points. I don’t use it for writing, as it makes no sens.
I started with generality, like structure and thematics. That’s nice because I always focus more on the story than themes, as I know that anyway, good story only produce good themes. And it’s funny to see the AI finding them, when I was maybe too lazy to analyze it myself.
Now, I’m testing scene-by-scene analys. I asked Grok AI to rate my scenes on my Ep3 of “bookstore where you rent my heart”. And it was stunning to see the AI rated as best scenes the ones I estimate myself to be best ones. Next I’ll check AI ability on more precise works, like single scene analyse line-by-line.
What’s nice, the AI can take into account the whole context (several episodes), so it’s a less dumb than my previous tests with ChatGPT 3.5. There is however a limit of quantity of content the AI can keep in mind, but it will be better in next version. Maybe ChatGPT 4 improved too, but I stopped testing, as it’s a woke biased AI, the worst thing for anything human related. I still use it a bit for technical solutions for products made by microsoft. Let’s say, if you don’t know how to do something with Excel, it will be accurate about that.
@FGB and @WE many thanks for thinking of me and offering something to allay boredom. If I can get access to those shows I’d gladly watch.
@WE interesting information on the Grok AI. At least it judges your work the same way you do.
May it help you refine your scripts with less tedious manual checking!
@GB, Hi, I hope you are well.
I’ve done now a line-by-line use of Grok AI but it’s disappointing. I doesn’t understand well enough intention. So it would be like my tests with ChatGPT, asking several propositions for a line. It can help me with english, or on rare occasion seeing a room for a more concise line. But the time it takes to evaluate is too long for being effective. Then I don’t think I can use AI for improving lines.
– When I ask it to be concise (screenplay style), it deletes intention.
– When I let it do alone, it generates too flowery lines where I don’t want them.
It’s fun to see AI analyses a script, but there is not much to do out of it. I continue to test, for finding a potential way to use it. I think it’s worth it to play with it a bit on version 2.0, and see what will be able to do next version 3.0.
Dear @GB, if you find a way to watch I will surely rewatch it with you 😉
Did the right thing and downloaded “Brush Ip Life” complete with its 10 episodes around 45 minutes each.
Dear Bro @WE, interesting how sophisticated can AI become. At the beginning of this year my eldest sister composed a poem with AI and it made sense in an eerie way. My story is almost touching the 100 page mark, and as it is a solo endeavour, if it were available here it would very interesting if it is able to find plot weaknesses, offer possible resolutions, and act as a personal editor. I sorely need feedback!
BTW, Always happy to read you! 😀
Well @WE, as long as you’re having fun with that AI. You may indeed find some use for it.
At the same time, it’s good to know that a human brain and its creavity cannot be replaced by AI (yet!!). I prefer my dramas written by human beings who can experience what is written and know that they and I can relate to the tale.
Hello dear @FGB, I managed to watch the first episode of Brush Up Your Life. I was amused.
The conversations were informative. What is really important? The correct mode of greeting? Whether we give the wrong impression to strangers? Whether we from hindsight should have stopped something from happening (as in stopping their ex-classmate from taking up music).
In the reboot, I wonder if she’s trying too hard while jumping to the wrong conclusions.
The child actor was a cutie.
SPOILER FOR BRUSH UP LIFE (2023)!!!
Dear @GB, watching 4 year old Asami doing what for all accounts is a Stealth Mission is one of the oh so many joys ahead!
To be real honest found the conversation on social cues more amusing than it should. Japanese people are very indirect, so in some ways by dissecting that indirectness is in itself an act of closeness.
That part where she knows the couple will be a disaster yet she decides to cheer him was an interesting decision. Her friends will lose precious time of their lives entangled in a mistake, but that baby will be born.
Remember that in the afterworld she discovers how hard it is to be born as a Human, so it is an indirect way to show respect for the merits of the incoming baby.
As a sidenote, believe me when I say you that this is a Drama that it is good now but will get even better as it progresses.
Just finished Mr. plankton and must say that the first six episodes were excellent. Quirky, different, and I was engaged. The next few were less so…somewhat repetitive, frustrating. The final episode brings the threads/themes together in emotional and fitting way.
Mr.P is great in depicting truly toxic and damaged characters and the painful annd uneven experiences they endure to achieve personal growth.
It hits on modern world issues such as IV and premature menopause and consequences related to these issues in ways that other Kdramas have not.
Importance of and what constitutes family, life itself.
I felt like screenwriter was addressing the fatalistic vibe that pervades today…eschewing commitment, childbearing , the lie flat culture, losing one’s bearings, drifting through life with no purpose, etc.
Quite a few good acting performances as well along with too much crying from FL.
@WE, did you finish Nokdu Flower?
@LL, I need to finish Mr. P., but When the Phone Rings took me by surprise and has not let go.
Any word on The Trunk?
@FGB, you could publish your book on a website like ArchiveOfYourOwn, or any place where people can post comments about it?
Is there really plot weaknesses in your novel? About AI offering possible resolutions, I tried, but it’s quite bad at creating something. I made test about twisting scene, and propositions are bad. I’ll test it more and ask 10 propositions. A way to do that maybe, I could spot one with potential. But even there, I don’t trust a lot this method. I think what the writer create come from an intuition making it fits to the story, and it’s not a random proposition.
Grok AI can provide you analys, and maybe it can be useful. Let’s say for example, you develop a thematic but are not fully aware of it. Then, you may ponder if it’s worth it or not to develop it more.
I classify what I do in 3 categories:
1 – What I did on purpose, with 100% intention.
2 – What I create from intuition, and I understand after self-analys why I made it.
3 – What I create from intuition, with a meaning I don’t know yet.
I’ll give an example about category #3.
I had a character going to hospital for some time. Then when he’s free and going out, I gave him a crutch, so he walk with difficulty. It’s a point, I realize now, I had no clear reason to use. Just it flashed in my mind, yeah, give him a crutch. There was no valid reason, as the character had an accident, but nothing specific to a broken leg. Strange, isn’t it?
Here what said the AI when analysing a scene:
His approach with his crutch is both a sign of his physical state and a metaphor for his emotional state—limping forward with unresolved issues.
Oh damn yeah! AI did the “self-analys” I often do but didn’t for that. Revelation! It’s exactly that! This guy is mentaly unstable to an extreme degree. Then what I do with that? Well, nothing. ahahaha. Just I’m happy I found by myself exactly what the character needed.
@SF, Nope, I’m at episode 20.
It’s my drama on binge but didn’t have lot of time to continue.
I’d maybe interested by Love your Enemy.
Trunk too, and Gangnam B-side, and maybe others.
Hey! There are a lot of kdramas I find attractive this month.
@Packmule3, does it count as what I’m watching in December of I say my waistline? Nah! Hand me that plate of Christmas cookies, please!
In November I watched, and loved, Family by Choice. I appreciated seeing veteran actors and relative newcomers playing off each other in meaty scenes. As soon as I finished it, Viki suggested the Jdorama Where Does the Sea Begin. I’m glad I took the bait. I wrote notes as I watched the first six episodes; I’ll try to compile them and post them here.
Hey! Why are you still awake, @Welmaris? It’s almost 2 in the morning in your neck of the woods.
You reminded me. I should watch my waistline, too. Between my husband and me, we have quite a number of year-end parties to attend and I easily lose count of the canapés I end up munching. But then again, when my mouth is stuffed with prawn cocktail or pork belly popper, I can avoid speaking with people I prefer to distance myself from. 😂😂
Ok. If you’re ready with your notes, just tell me. I’ll open a separate thread for “Where Does the Sea Begin” and you can post there. Remember to use lots of emojis so your post stands out and I can spot it.
Dear Bro @WE, I have to inform myself on several things. The problem is, if everything goes OK my dream is to be able to publish the novel to earn money… that is, my golden plan is to become a novelist 😉
My eldest sister has published on WhattPad as she does it more for catharsis than anything else. She sees it as giving away free samples before embarking in published work, I see it as giving away her Intellectual Property.
I don’t see plots in my novel so far. It does not have to have an overall plot as it is simply a person surviving in today’s Venezuela and watching the friends he loves the most emigrate in different conditions, die in accidents or simply changing so much that even if he still loves them, there are few connections left.
Slice of life.
Interesting tool and thank you for taking your time explaining what it does and what it doesn’t. I don’t know if I can acquire Grok AI both from a monetary perspective or as a dweller of an “Axix of Evil” country.
On the other hand, as you are a fan of “W: Two Worlds” you might find “Brush Up Life” interesting 😀
@Welmaris, will search for your recommendation! “Where does the Sea Begin” could be an interesting watch!
Dear @PackMule3, my December celebrations will be far more humble than yours, so I don’t think I will have to watch my waistline so much.
Dear @SnowFlower, about the “Tale of Lady Ok”… I have an… ATCHOOO!!! *COUGH* kiissasian(punto)pl … Hope I don’t get a virus…
BTW dear @PackMule3, please feel free to edit this comment if necessary 😉
BTW Dear @Welmaris, thanks for them both! I have read that while “Family by Choice” is considered great, the original “Go Ahead” (China – 2020) seems to be the better one. Personally I find Chinese Dramas daunting in their extension, so be aware of that.
Kalispera Everyone,
This was not supposed to be my first post for December.
In case you don’t know yet, earlier today President Yoon declared emergency martial law in the country. Then the Parliament voted against it and as it seems it will be a long night tonight in South Korea…
I got pretty worried because one of my friends is in Seoul atm.
*sighs*
Just take care of yourselves chingus…
Dear @Cleo, it is a pleasure to read you, yet it is sad under the circumstances.
Wonder what is truly triggering a state of emergency.
Hopefully it resolves for the best. Wonder what’s happening over there.
@Cleopatra, S.K. President Yoon isn’t even supported by his own party in his declaration of martial law. Three hours after he made his declaration, 190 members of the S.K. parliament unanimously voted against it; by law he is required to immediately lift it. @FGB4877, it sounds like President Yoon made the surprise declaration because he’s unable to control his opponents in the legislature. Even the leader of his own party does not believe an emergency situation exists in South Korea to warrant martial law.
“Marry You” and “The Tale of Lady Ok” are available on Kocowa. You can watch both for free with ads through their Taste24 feature which allows people to watch episodes for free with ads for 24 hours after upload. You do need to register for a free account to take advantage of Taste24 option.
For December. I will be watching When the Phone Rings and catching up on older dramas that I missed. There will not be an episode of When the Phone Rings on Dec. 14 as the network is broadcasting a documentary about Han Kang, who just won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
@FGB4877, I have watched, and enjoyed, the Cdrama Go Ahead. I think the Kdrama Family by Choice was a worthy adaptation. Because the Korean version is shorter–16 episodes instead of 46–some paring of the plot had to happen. I don’t think the story suffered because of the streamlining.
💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤
@Packmule3, I was awake in the wee hours of the morning because I’d slept all day. On Monday I had a medical procedure that required light sedation, and once I got home I slept through the afternoon and dinnertime. I got out of bed around 9:30pm, ate a little, read a bit, then went to bed for the rest of the night.
💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤😴
@Snowflower, yes, watched first episode of The Trunk and will not another. Very slow, little dialogue… very puzzling and not in a good way. What is the intent? What is it even about?. I was looking forward to seeing Gong Woo but not even he made the viewing worthwhile.
Going back to Mr Plankton, the swearing and crude language is indicative of Netflix influence. I appreciate the lack of this in traditional K dramas.
bearable.
@Welmaris, the Executive trying to sequester the Legislative is nothing new. The worst case is whenit scceed in sequestering the Judiciary and through it neuters the Legislative.
I am a reluctanct expert.
Hope everything goes the way it should and that #%$&@ is sacked.
@Table, thanks for the alternative! Right now I am enjoying “AARO (2024)” with Hirose Alice. It is a N-flix series so only the first 5 out of 10 episodes are up. Basically Ms. Alice plays a rookie cop that gets scouted by Japan’s oldest investigation agency, that deals with abnormal events.
It is interesting as a procedural. Since its basic premise is out of the ordinary, its internal logic is baffling… yet oddly consistent. Might recommend for its lore (deals with Japanese Folklore: Kamis and Youkais in modern world) and to get some good old suspense. So far it has been enjoyable but it is not a must see.
@Lynn, how do you do? Hope you find something adapted to your tastes!
@LL, I find Mr. Plankton engaging. I too am upset by the frequent cursing, but I guess that’s how it is with a Netflix-produced dramas. Mr. P. feels like a more upbeat version of the classic (melo)drama “I’m Sorry I Love You” and that’s not a bad thing.
Kalimera @FGB!
It is good to see you online. I am a bit MIA, aren’t I? Things are happening in RL, so I cannot be online as much as I want to or can.
I am not watching Kdramas or any drama for some months now in a row.
I have the c-drama “Fangs of Fortune” on hold at Episode 24. I have started “When the Phone Rings” and I am in the mid of episode 3.
That’s why I am not writing anything anywhere. I cannot commit following a drama and commenting about it, even though I want to.
I do hope you are okay… <3
@Welmaris,
Good morning! How are you feeling today? I have followed the news when the declaration of the “emergency martial law” came out. One of my gr friends is in Seoul at the moment and I got worried, at the same time @Janey was previously there. So, my stress levels were up because we saw tanks out and about and couldn’t find any news about what is happening. When I managed to talk to both of them, I started to relax.
All night their biggest enterprises were in massive meetings for the next day. I have read the news. He made a mess in their economy and it is not a nice thing to see in live news, when we know a bit about their history and turmoil after the arbitrage.