Musings of the Obsessive Kind

So, finally, I could no longer contain myself.

This year, two dramas about noble (character-wise), Robin-Hood-type rebels in Medieval Korea came out, one (loosely) based on the first Korean-language novel, and one (loosely) based on a very famous early comic. They did (and are doing) well and are full of handsome men, pretty women, politics, fighting, and some rather odd hats.

They are Hong Gil Dong, written by the Hong Sisters (My Girl, Delightful Girl Chun-Hyang etc) and starring Kang Ji Hwan and Sung Yuri and Iljimae, starring Lee Jun Ki, Park Shi Ho, and Han Hyo Joo. So I thought it would be fun to compare.

( Categories and illustrations. Not spoilery )

So very often I post about kdrama actors in a gushy (and photo-friendly) fashion. 'OMG Bae Yong Joon is so hot with long hair!' or 'Kang Ji Hwan has the cutest smile EEEEE' or 'Lee Seo Jin can glower at me any day' or whatever.

All well and good.

But...

BUT.

I realized I have been neglecting kdrama actresses, and the reason I adore kdramas so is at least as much, if not more, the women in them. They are glamorous or plain-Jane, funny and quirky or deeply angsty, old-fashioned or tomboyish, powerful or meek. Any type of a heroine you like, you will find in a kdrama. And unlike heroines of Taiwanese dramas, where half the time you might get an awesome heroine and the other half an actress who can't act, or Japanese dramas where occasionally, for me, the heroines try for quirky but end up unappealingly insane, Kdrama actresses I've seen almost always have enough acting chops and/or charisma to carry off their roles. In a typical kdrama, I am more likely to be invested in and siding with the heroine than with the hero, which, seeing that I am usually hero-centric in stories, is quite a feat.

Anyway, behind the cut are my Top 10 Kdrama Actresses, in no order.

( List and pics behind cut )

And these are just my Top 10. I adore many many more.

So very often I post about kdrama actors in a gushy (and photo-friendly) fashion. 'OMG Bae Yong Joon is so hot with long hair!' or 'Kang Ji Hwan has the cutest smile EEEEE' or 'Lee Seo Jin can glower at me any day' or whatever.

All well and good.

But...

BUT.

I realized I have been neglecting kdrama actresses, and the reason I adore kdramas so is at least as much, if not more, the women in them. They are glamorous or plain-Jane, funny and quirky or deeply angsty, old-fashioned or tomboyish, powerful or meek. Any type of a heroine you like, you will find in a kdrama. And unlike heroines of Taiwanese dramas, where half the time you might get an awesome heroine and the other half an actress who can't act, or Japanese dramas where occasionally, for me, the heroines try for quirky but end up unappealingly insane, Kdrama actresses I've seen almost always have enough acting chops and/or charisma to carry off their roles. In a typical kdrama, I am more likely to be invested in and siding with the heroine than with the hero, which, seeing that I am usually hero-centric in stories, is quite a feat.

Anyway, behind the cut are my Top 10 Kdrama Actresses, in no order.

( List and pics behind cut )

And these are just my Top 10. I adore many many more.

Because I’ve been talking about doramas so much lately, I’ve decided to make a list of all the doramas I’ve seen, I am watching, or am going to be watching shortly, with a short reason why, plot synopsis and photo. For those who don't know, doramas are Asian (Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, Singaporean etc) miniseries, anywhere from a few to 30+ eps long, which tell a unitary story. Basically like very long miniseries. And they are addictive. Like crack.

( Dorama write-up, alphabetical order )

ETA: More Doramas

( Behind the Cut )

Being a list-obsessed person, I am making a list of my Top Dozen episodes. Put them in chronological order, as I couldn't rank them, except that TEotW is my favorite ep.

1 Blind Date (s1): Liz is set up on a date and Max gets drunk and actually pours out his feelings. One of the most romantic Roswell eps ever.

2 Independence Day (s1): Michael angst. It's just a really good ep, period, but it's on the list especially for the scene where the falling apart Michael stands outside Maria's window and she lets him in and dries him and he cries and she comforts him.

3 Sexual Healing (s1): Max and Liz all over each other, so young and in love and crazy. This ep comes closest to making me blush. Maria and Michael's "experiments" and the tag with Michael telling Maria he saw inside her is just the icing on the cake.

( Click for the Rest and also the Least Fave ep )

Being a list-obsessed person, I am making a list of my Top Dozen episodes. Put them in chronological order, as I couldn't rank them, except that TEotW is my favorite ep.

1 Blind Date (s1): Liz is set up on a date and Max gets drunk and actually pours out his feelings. One of the most romantic Roswell eps ever.

2 Independence Day (s1): Michael angst. It's just a really good ep, period, but it's on the list especially for the scene where the falling apart Michael stands outside Maria's window and she lets him in and dries him and he cries and she comforts him.

3 Sexual Healing (s1): Max and Liz all over each other, so young and in love and crazy. This ep comes closest to making me blush. Maria and Michael's "experiments" and the tag with Michael telling Maria he saw inside her is just the icing on the cake.

( Click for the Rest and also the Least Fave ep )