Musings of the Obsessive Kind

Before I get to anything, comment notifications are still spotty - I get some, but others, even though comments were left 12 hrs ago, are still to show up in my inbox. So if you left me a comment and are waiting for a reply, chances are I've replied, it just hasn't shown up in your email yet.

1. Every time I see Mike He with that kid in Sunny Happiness, I melt into a puddle of goo. I also loved that despite his initial angry "I am going to fight you for custody" to the ex, he realizes the kid would be happiest with the mother who raised him and so doesn't do so - he'll visit him and be in his life, but he won't try to tear the son away from the mother. I love it when drama heroes aren't bastards.

2. I was thinking what it is that appeals to me so much in Jade Palace Lock Heart (in addition to the obvious) and realized, that for me, it comes down to three things: (1) the reversal of the usual main guy-main girl-secondary guy dynamics (2) pursuing the idea of actions having consequences (3) realizing that strong women can make or break the drama.

( More more more )

3. Much as I blabber about the awesome Yang siblings, especially my love, Four:



Mama Yang and Papa Yang are an amazing OTP. Doubly amazing if you consider they've survived decades of marriage, eight kids, and some really rough patches. This scene in ep 27 nearly made me cry:

( Why are you so wonderful, oh Mama and Papa Yang? )

Before I get to anything, comment notifications are still spotty - I get some, but others, even though comments were left 12 hrs ago, are still to show up in my inbox. So if you left me a comment and are waiting for a reply, chances are I've replied, it just hasn't shown up in your email yet.

1. Every time I see Mike He with that kid in Sunny Happiness, I melt into a puddle of goo. I also loved that despite his initial angry "I am going to fight you for custody" to the ex, he realizes the kid would be happiest with the mother who raised him and so doesn't do so - he'll visit him and be in his life, but he won't try to tear the son away from the mother. I love it when drama heroes aren't bastards.

2. I was thinking what it is that appeals to me so much in Jade Palace Lock Heart (in addition to the obvious) and realized, that for me, it comes down to three things: (1) the reversal of the usual main guy-main girl-secondary guy dynamics (2) pursuing the idea of actions having consequences (3) realizing that strong women can make or break the drama.

( More more more )

3. Much as I blabber about the awesome Yang siblings, especially my love, Four:



Mama Yang and Papa Yang are an amazing OTP. Doubly amazing if you consider they've survived decades of marriage, eight kids, and some really rough patches. This scene in ep 27 nearly made me cry:

( Why are you so wonderful, oh Mama and Papa Yang? )

You all know the switch I am talking about - the one which transforms a drama (or book or movie or...) that you are enjoying into something you simply can't be without and must see more of, all the while being emotionally invested like a lunatic. All of a sudden, they cease to be characters to you and become people, people you love and care and worry for. When that happens, there is no way back - you are hooked, you must continue, and you will love it to the bitter end. Many (most) dramas don't get there, but the ones that do - that is why I watch dramas, after all.

And, you guys, the switch just flipped on for my with Sunny Happiness! Six episodes in, it just went from 'entertaining and well-made, I don't mind watching more' to 'must must must must watch more I love them so much want want want'. I can pinpoint the exact scene it happened, actually - when Yun Jie and Yong Yong (that's Mike He and Janine Chang's characters' names btw - you know it's bad when I learn names) went drinking after YJ met his son. The scene with them talking in the bar, quietly, with Yun Jie having his reserve slowly broken by the double whammy of emotional overload and wine, and thus actually opening up and pouring his heart out about his life and what he hopes for and thinks to Yong Yong in a scene that felt so very real, just - it got me. There is no other way to explain. Suddenly the drama went from fun to loved.

And then the scene with her having to drag him to her home, as the normally control-freak YJ gets to be the funniest, most inconvenient, adorable drunk ever - it's like the cherry on top of the sundae. I giggled my way through that scene. But in a happy, adoring, loving way. Because SH finally got my heart and it is not giving it up any time soon.

If I combine watching this with Young Warriors of the Yang Clan - that's a hell of a twofer.

Um, whut?

Secondary lady in Sunny Happiness (who btw has one of the most bird-like, cold, unattractive faces I've ever seen) is Mike's ex-wife who didn't want family to interfere with her career? Fair enough (though I fail to see how being married to a chaebol would do that - he doesn't seem the type to demand wifey stays home - in fact, from flashbacks we see he explicitly told her so). But shouldn't she have decided that before she accepted and married him? WTF?

And she didn't want to have a baby for the same reason and so demanded an abortion? Um, I know it's a radical notion, woman but (a) birth control! Use it! or take the morning-after pill (b) more importantly, kids or no kids is a huge deal-breaker in a marriage. Shouldn't it have been something you mentioned to him as a big no-no for you since default is assuming the other wants kids?

So, Mike signed abortion papers (I guess you need husband's consent wherever they were) even though he desperately wanted a kid, gave her her freedom and divorce, and left.

OK, that doesn't make her the most likeable person on the planet but I could sort of see a scenario where someone thought they wanted one thing but realized they wanted another and did what she did - it's selfish because another person, i.e. her husband, is involved, but there's worse things.

BUT apparently she decided to have the child afterwards and never told Mike about it, is currently in fact lying to him it's a child from her subsequent (nonexistent) marriage, and is lying to the kid his father is dead and wtf wtf wtf wtf wtf I do not have enough wtf for this. Who the hell does that? What kind of nasty-minded lunatic? Seriously.

I thought it was kinda low of her not to tell him about their son when I thought he was a product of a relationship they had and she bailed before Mike or she knew she was pregnant but under the circumstances, that's totally sick!

Ugh.

Well, on the plus side, I can't see Mike's character or anyone with half their braincells falling for someone like that again, so maybe less chance of a love rival?

As you can tell by the above, I've been marathonning Sunny Happiness and am currently on ep 5. Usually I struggle to get through one ep of a romcom but here I am enjoying my binge. It's pretty low-stakes compared to my recent period cdrama run, which I find relaxing. I am not madly invested (though give me a few more eps...) but I do like the characters and find the story interesting. It makes for a nice break from Three Kingdoms and Yang Clan (though I plan to coninue with the latter asap - want to see Four get married)

I do find it amusing how she's basically his cleaning lady and he's the picky CEO and he totally lets her run around and rant. LOL. Too funny. Oh, how I love their interactions. She softens his don't-touch-me demeanor and he brings out her strength and temper. Also, one of the things I really like the most about this drama is that both characters feel like real people, not shoujo cartoons. And both are mature and grown-up, at that.

Um, whut?

Secondary lady in Sunny Happiness (who btw has one of the most bird-like, cold, unattractive faces I've ever seen) is Mike's ex-wife who didn't want family to interfere with her career? Fair enough (though I fail to see how being married to a chaebol would do that - he doesn't seem the type to demand wifey stays home - in fact, from flashbacks we see he explicitly told her so). But shouldn't she have decided that before she accepted and married him? WTF?

And she didn't want to have a baby for the same reason and so demanded an abortion? Um, I know it's a radical notion, woman but (a) birth control! Use it! or take the morning-after pill (b) more importantly, kids or no kids is a huge deal-breaker in a marriage. Shouldn't it have been something you mentioned to him as a big no-no for you since default is assuming the other wants kids?

So, Mike signed abortion papers (I guess you need husband's consent wherever they were) even though he desperately wanted a kid, gave her her freedom and divorce, and left.

OK, that doesn't make her the most likeable person on the planet but I could sort of see a scenario where someone thought they wanted one thing but realized they wanted another and did what she did - it's selfish because another person, i.e. her husband, is involved, but there's worse things.

BUT apparently she decided to have the child afterwards and never told Mike about it, is currently in fact lying to him it's a child from her subsequent (nonexistent) marriage, and is lying to the kid his father is dead and wtf wtf wtf wtf wtf I do not have enough wtf for this. Who the hell does that? What kind of nasty-minded lunatic? Seriously.

I thought it was kinda low of her not to tell him about their son when I thought he was a product of a relationship they had and she bailed before Mike or she knew she was pregnant but under the circumstances, that's totally sick!

Ugh.

Well, on the plus side, I can't see Mike's character or anyone with half their braincells falling for someone like that again, so maybe less chance of a love rival?

As you can tell by the above, I've been marathonning Sunny Happiness and am currently on ep 5. Usually I struggle to get through one ep of a romcom but here I am enjoying my binge. It's pretty low-stakes compared to my recent period cdrama run, which I find relaxing. I am not madly invested (though give me a few more eps...) but I do like the characters and find the story interesting. It makes for a nice break from Three Kingdoms and Yang Clan (though I plan to coninue with the latter asap - want to see Four get married)

I do find it amusing how she's basically his cleaning lady and he's the picky CEO and he totally lets her run around and rant. LOL. Too funny. Oh, how I love their interactions. She softens his don't-touch-me demeanor and he brings out her strength and temper. Also, one of the things I really like the most about this drama is that both characters feel like real people, not shoujo cartoons. And both are mature and grown-up, at that.

Mike He's character in Sunny Happiness is such a brusque superior unreasonable thing - if he was my boss, I'd strangle him - but as a character, he's entertaining as all get-out and I love his interactions and chemistry with Janine.

Secondary guy is cute but I swear, he looks twelve. Forget romancing the heroine, I don't think he looks old enough to drive!

This is so so so so good. It's funny how kdrama romcoms never work for me any more but Taiwanese ones make me so giddy.

ETA: Please tell me the arrogant, overly self-confident superior hero gets to suffer. Please. I don't care if it's over Janine, the ex' and his kid, or whatever, but something. Because I want to smack that satisfied smirk off his face.

is as follows:

alternating Happiness is like a Sunny Day and Young Warriors of the Yang Clan because both make me happy (yes, I know Yang Clan ends up in horrible tragedy, but it's happy for most of its run and I know when to stop).

With some New Tales of the Gisaeng (am so behind), The Holy Pearl and Jade Palace Lock heart thrown in.

That should cheer me right up :P

is as follows:

alternating Happiness is like a Sunny Day and Young Warriors of the Yang Clan because both make me happy (yes, I know Yang Clan ends up in horrible tragedy, but it's happy for most of its run and I know when to stop).

With some New Tales of the Gisaeng (am so behind), The Holy Pearl and Jade Palace Lock heart thrown in.

That should cheer me right up :P

We are less than a minute into the first episode and we see the hero and the heroine do this:








That's more action than kdramas get all year, all put together.

This is pretty tame compared to ( enter for youtube goodness from other twdramas )

But still. I've been watching too many kdramas and thus found my eyes get o_O.

Anyway, pervy fun aside, the first ep is adorable. It's cute and funny and shippy. I liked Janine Chang in Black & White and I am a huge fan of Mike He - he's not the world's greatest actor, but he's good-looking, charismatic, and has scorching chemistry with his leading ladies. Fun fun fun.

As of now, I am actively watching 7 dramas - this, 3 Kingdoms, Jade Palace Lock Heart, The Holy Pearl, Endless Love, Young Warriors of the Yang Clan, and New Tales of the Gisaeng. Only one of these is non-Chinese/Taiwanese. It makes me feel like old times - Taiwanese dramas were my gateway drug after all.

In case you haven't noticed, I've been less and less invested in Dream High and after today, I am forced to conclude I am done with it.

It's not a bitter break-up, more of a "it's not you, it's me/we have grown apart/I will always remember you fondly" school.

There are two main reasons. The first is simply unfortunate timing - in the middle of DH I discovered Jade Palace and Three Kingdoms and rediscovered my love of period cdramas and thus went of the deep end on them. And due to my innate preferences, it was hard for me to feel particularly invested in a bunch of modern teenagers, when contrasted with the adrenaline and sacrifice and stakes of period epics. I am honestly surprised DH lasted as long as it did with me - I always prefer epic, period and angsty over modern, light, and teenager-centric. I was never too invested in it emotionally because it is not the kind of drama I go emotionally insane over. So sooner or later, something was going to come up to supercede it.

The second reason does have to do with DH's direction. Starting with ep 11, the drama started focusing a lot more on Sam Dong and I have never found SD particularly interesting or compelling. The more they dwelled on his amazingness (which is made even more confusing by the fact that KSH cannot sing or dance as well as his idol costars and the drama's insistence that he can was really beginning to bug me). In fact, the near-universal fangirling for him mystifies me (it looks like he will end up with Hyemi and I really think it's due to fan love - the earlier parts of the story were clearly setting up Jin Gook and Hyemi as the OTP). In fact, the more people fangirl him, the more he irritates me. So the Sam Dong show was losing me as well.

On the plus side, this gives me time to check out Mike He and Janine Chang's Happiness is like a Sunny Day so it's all good.

Goodbye, drama! It's been fun!