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odanurr87 · 4 years

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Flash Review: Witch’s Love

Hyun Woo as Ma Sung-Tae, and Yoon So-Hee as Kang Cho-Hong.

Release Date: July 25 - August 30, 2018

Episodes: 12

Available on: Viki

Summary: Kang Cho-Hong is a young witch living with her grandmas, running a restaurant by day and performing magic rituals by night, who soon finds herself losing her powers. Ma Sung-Tae is a wealthy businessman trying to solve a traumatic puzzle from his childhood who buys the building where the trio of witches live and operate, effectively becoming their landlord overnight. Initially keen on getting rid of this rude individual who intruded on their lives, the witches soon change their tune when they learn he might be the key to restoring Cho-Hong’s powers. But there is more to Sung-Tae’s story than meets the eye...

WARNING! I’m gonna spoil the living shit out of this show. Proceed at your own risk.

What works:

Yoon So-Hee as Kang Cho-Hong. She was really the only reason I decided to watch this kdrama in the first place as I really liked her in One More Time and felt she had the acting chops for another main role. I feel she was the standout here again, delivering the more interesting performance, or at the very least trying to show more emotional range than her co-stars. She was feisty, happy, confused, sad, angry, in love, pretty much what you’d expect from a woman who finds herself falling in love for a guy who starts off (and some would argue largely remains) as a jerk. You can’t help but fall in love with her, what’s kinda the point and the reason why I watched all 12 episodes of this show.

The concept... kinda. I’ll admit the idea of witches living in 21st century Korea as restaurant owners intrigued me, and the thought of seeing a reenactment of a mortal falling for Bewitched’s Samantha had its charm, although the show never makes the most of this premise. The grandmas that care for Cho-Hong can be pretty funny when they choose to be and their meddling works more often than not, certainly when they’re trying to play cupid, but it is less welcome when you realize they have prevented Cho-Hong from having any real, meaningful, lasting relationship with anyone throughout her entire life and remain intent on doing so. Why? Because one of them got burnt for it, though not literally like Joan of Arc. Incidentally, I feel the show never fully embraced the idea of making the grannies appear to be serial murderers hiding their business behind a restaurant facade, though admittedly that would have perhaps required a radical transformation of the character of Sung-Tae to make it work. It’s a shame because that one scene where they’re shown “getting rid of the body” was hilarious.

What doesn’t work:

The male leads. I’m sorry but they really don’t. On the one hand we have Hwang Jae-Wook (played by Lee Hong-Bin), a webtoon artist and apparently Cho-Hong’s childhood friend. I say “apparently” because as far as I could tell she doesn’t remember him. He’s the kind friend (and should’ve remained so) who, naturally, is nursing a crush for Cho-Hong that she clearly doesn’t reciprocate, what is all the better given they have zero chemistry, but the show still tries to showcase him as a potential love interest. Then we have Sung-Tae, a character who didn’t have a bad start but soon showed himself to be a jerk (it fluctuates throughout the series) and rather too possessive for my tastes. He’s also fairly consistent in his stiff and one-note performance, only loosening up when allowed to act cute with Cho-Hong a couple of times. Was the script to blame, the direction, or maybe he just wasn’t into it? He has some good scenes, but I feel like they were few and far between, and usually more of a credit to So-Hee’s character. I was left with the sensation that, if there was any more chemistry between Cho-Hong and Sung-Tae than between Cho-Hong and Jae-Wook, it was probably because the former had more screen time than the latter and that can’t be good. For all I know, the male actors are good actors, as this is the first time I’ve seen them, but they just don’t make it work here.

Missing plot threads. This is probably the only show I’ve watched in recent memory that completely forgets about a plot thread and character. Early on we’re introduced to Sung-Tae’s friend, an actress who’s struggling in her career and may have romantic feelings for the male lead. The show was definitely setting them up as a media couple, and also incidentally ensured she cross path with Cho-Hong. In a later episode, there is a scene where Cho-Hong sees a magazine featuring Sung-Tae that was clearly devised for her to find out about this fake relationship, become jealous, demand explanations, that sort of thing. It’s possible this actress friend would’ve become the love interest for the second male lead, but she just disappears. Why this much build up for a character who just vanishes? If I were to give the writers the benefit of the doubt and assume they didn’t just forget about her, then I can only surmise this show was supposed to (or hoped to) have more than 12 episodes, but when that wasn’t the case the writers started making some deep cuts. Another possibly missing plot thread is related to the purpose of the CCTV camera installed in Sung-Tae’s bedroom... and promptly forgotten. It is never used meaningfully in the show when there is at least one event for which it seems tailored-fit.

The inconsistent de-powering rule. At the start of the show, Cho-Hong has her heart broken by her then boyfriend cheating on her. It was a good riddance, since the guy was only after her because he thought she had money, but this betrayal leaves her depressed and saddened, causing her to lose her witch powers. Thus, the show has established that the source of a witch’s powers is apparently tied to her emotional state, and experiencing a shock of this magnitude will result in a witch losing her powers, leading to her losing her youth, beauty, and mind, living a tragic, homeless life in the streets. Not particularly keen on this future, Cho-Hong takes it into her hands to consult a recluse witch who practices black magic for a solution. The witch hands her an “artifact” and tells her she needs to use it to find her fated man, saying she need only “capture his heart” in order to avoid her fate. In order words, if she finds her “one true love,” she will be able to reverse the loss, what seems to be consistent with the earlier rule of a witch’s power being tied to her emotional state. Fast forward a fair bit. Cho-Hong having regained her powers, her grandmas now decide to wipe Sung-Tae’s memories. I’ll explain the why later. Cho-Hong is dead set against this, as she loves him, but the grandmas carry out the procedure anyway, leaving a broken and despondent Cho-Hong in the process. How is it then that Cho-Hong doesn’t lose her powers? We established that the source of a witch’s powers is tied to her emotional state, and Cho-Hong gave the impression of being even more distraught by this act than by his former boyfriend’s cheating, so how come there are no consequences this time around? Did the writers miss this? As if the show hadn’t forgotten enough things, it is stated at one point that one of the grandmas had once lost her powers in a similar situation but managed to avoid her tragic fate. Um, hello, mind sharing how you did that so you can save your adopted granddaughter? Nope, it never occurs to her to share this crucial information, pushing Cho-Hong to continue to seek the dark witch’s counsel, something both grandmas clearly disapprove. Sigh.

The confusing “fated man” plot and the dark witch’s agenda. I’ve never been more confused by a villain’s agenda in a kdrama before, for twice in this show the villain actually helps the protagonists. Surely this must be part of some dastardly plot of hers, right? Sure. Probably. Maybe. I guess? The show is as confused as I am. Apparently, the dark witch wants to ruin Cho-Hong because of some beef she had with her mother or something. I suppose she could’ve just let her meet her fate but she wants to harvest her magical power first (the show is never clear on how this is done). Going by facts alone, we know that: 1) the dark witch helped seal Sung-Tae’s death when he was young, but she didn’t stop it so he’s bound to die sooner or later; 2) she gave an artifact to Cho-Hong so she could find her “one true love” and regain her powers, both of which she did; 3) the dark witch appears confused, saying the man Cho-Hong is in love with is not her fated man; 4) the dark witch is convinced Cho-Hong will come to her to prevent the death of her loved one (what she does), something she intends to capitalize on, probably by harvesting her magical power. If the dark witch had somehow foreseen this situation 25 years ago, deciding to help save Sung-Tae then in order to use him to get Cho-Hong’s power later, that would make more sense. However, the dark witch didn’t know Cho-Hong existed at the time, and, for all we know, Cho-Hong was never supposed to fall for Sung-Tae. Was she supposed to fall for Jae-Wook instead? The show certainly does its best to muddle the issue but, if so, there are no traces left in the plot as to how the dark witch was going to use Jae-Wook to harvest Cho-Hong’s power, as the former certainly isn’t dying. And why would the dark witch be concerned about Cho-Hong falling in love with someone else so long as she gets her powers back? It’s not like she’s supposed to be looking out for her, right? In fact, Cho-Hong falling in love with Sung-Tae is surprisingly convenient for the dark witch’s “agenda.” Nothing about this plot makes sense.

A witch’s fate and the harvesting of magic. Talk about things that don’t make sense. The dark witch has apparently been harvesting witches’ magic for a while, yet the fact no one seems to be aware of it until the end, when one of the grandmas and Cho-Hong had been to her shop multiple times previously, strikes me as oddly convenient. Cho-Hong actually says at one point in the show, “I can’t believe no one ever thought of doing this” before proceeding to smash the flasks containing the harvested magical power, almost as if the writers were letting us know the plot had got the better of them. Even the dark witch appears confused, as if thinking, “This is not what’s supposed to happen.” And what happens when the flasks are destroyed? Well, all those homeless witches we had seen previously suddenly regain their powers and minds (but not their youth and good looks) in perhaps the most laughably bad scene in the show. What irks me is that this came entirely out of the left field, there was absolutely no setup whatsoever that there was a relationship between these women and the dark witch’s flasks. It just happened. Would it have killed the writers to show us some witch, or a police officer, or a journalist, investigating this sudden increase in homeless people and slowly tie it back to the dark witch to find their life promptly terminated at worst, or their memories erased at best? In fact, you could’ve made that person one of the secondary leads (the second male lead probably, given his interest in witches) so that the main leads are invested in finding out what happened to him/her. I guess not.

OTP: With Sung-Tae acting like a jerk most of the time, very rarely showing any vulnerability or tenderness around Cho-Hong, it was quite difficult to find any chemistry between the main leads. I suppose this gets a little better when they start dating, but barely, and it’s ironic that some of the better scenes between the two occur when they are pretending their relationship never took place. It’s really a shame they didn’t drop the hardass Sung-Tae act sooner and gave some time to exploring what their relationship would look like once Sung-Tae learned Cho-Hong’s a witch (it was a poor decision to take away his memories after the revelation). Imagine seeing Cho-Hong using her powers to help out her boyfriend in some capacity, like Do Bong-Soon in Strong Woman Do Bong-Soon, or abusing her powers in a fit of jealousy upon learning of his (fake) relationship with his actress friend. Sigh, so many untapped comedic possibilities.

One of the few cute scenes in the show. Easier to find water in Arrakis. You’re welcome.

Verdict: There is very little that works for me in this kdrama, but I suppose one could argue there is something at least. Where other, better, shows like Goblin and Hotel del Luna fully capitalize on the mythology they set up, Witch’s Love never fully exploits the fact that there are witches living among humans in 21st century Korea, opting to tell a smaller story centered around a family of three witches, what could’ve worked if the execution of the plot hadn’t been so haphazard and the male leads had delivered more interesting performances. Ultimately, that’s what this show amounts to: a source of untapped potential and missed opportunities wrapped up in uneven storytelling. However, a second season would not be outside the realm of possibility, were the show to embrace its similarities with Bewitched and explore what Cho-Hong and Sung-Tae’s relationship now looks like. Doubt that will ever happen though.

Rewatch meter: Low to Medium

PS: Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention the show suffers from audio issues in some episodes, as the characters’ words are sometimes drown by the music or the volume is simply lowered to oblivion. Shrugs.

#kdrama #kdramas #yoon so hee #witch's love #hyun woo #lee hong bin #review

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graphicpolicy · 6 years

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LINE Webtoon has announced the upcoming release of nine new titles and a new season for popular Katie Cook series Nothing Special. The rollout includes new series from creators Thom Zahler, Marvel Zombies scribe Fred Van Lente, Monica Gallagher, three-time Eisner-winner Paul Tobin, and others, ranging in a variety of genres from comedy and action to romance and horror.

These new titles will release alongside the previously announced line-up of Outrage, by Deadpool co-creator Fabian Nicieza and artist Reilly Brown; Finality, by Warren Ellis and four-time Eisner-winner Colleen Doran; Backchannel, by Stan Lee, Tom Akel, and Andie Tong; and Caster, by Austin Harrison, Mike Raitch, Zah Howard, and Jason Masters, with original music by Common; as well as the highly anticipated return of Sanford Greene’s 1000 and 2018 Eisner-nominee Brothers Bond by Ryan Benjamin and Kevin Grevioux.

The new releases include:

Eat Fighter by Fred Van Lente (Marvel Zombies, Big Trouble in Little China), Crystal Skillman, and Fernando Pinto – launching this summer.

Eat Fighter is a competitive eating, zombie murder epic that follows Miss, a thirty-something fitness nut who throws away her kale and step-counting ways to become a superstar on the competitive eating circuit. Following the lifestyle of her late brother, who was a champion competitive eater himself, she embarks on a quest to Seoul to become the World Champion Eat Fighter. But eating barrels of barbecue and acres of apple pie doesn’t come without a price—so what’s Miss’s secret as to why she can eat as much as she wants and never gain a pound?

BOO! It’s Sex by Danielle Corsetto (Girls With Slingshots) and Monica Gallagher (Assassin Roommate) – launching this summer.

High school classmates Denise, Christine, Lindsey, and Kim, move into a former sorority house for their first year of college, and immediately discover the ghost of a dead sorority girl stuck in a discarded bottle of tequila. While the freshwomen are settling into college life, Tara settles herself into the center of their personal lives, acting as a seasoned mentor for their transition from girls to ladies. Being dead for a while (she never has the same answer for when or how) has given Tara a perplexingly thorough knowledge of sex, relationships, body stuff, and even friendship.

Renai the Witch by Keron Grant (Superman, Iron Man) and Ytasha Womack – launching in late 2018.

Renai is convinced that madness follows her every step. After her boyfriend Tory betrays her by falling in love with her best friend Angela, Renai becomes convinced that Angela cast a spell on him. A meeting with her Aunt Kita confirms her suspicions of an underworld of sorcery. In order to save her beloved Tory, she must connect with her inner witch and the light within herself to stand up to the grim forces in her way.

Messenger by three-time Eisner-winner Paul Tobin (Bandette, Plants Vs. Zombies) and Ray Nadine – launching May 2018.

Messenger follows Dare Crilley, a bike messenger who is utterly unsurpassed. She scoffs at bad weather, traffic is barely an obstacle, and she’s never missed a delivery. That’s good, because Dare is about to discover her mysterious new client is literally divine, and that a dispute between the gods means the fate of the universe rests on a series of increasingly more difficult bicycle deliveries. Will Dare fail on any of these fateful missions? Can she assemble all the parts for the Legendary Divine Bicycle? One thing’s for sure, Dare never backs down when it’s time to deliver.

Shadow Pirates by Sean Galloway (Hellboy Animated, The Spectacular Spider-Man) and Ian Hopps – launching in late 2018.

In Shadow Pirates, Mao, leader of The Yakooza Group, is stuck behind bars in Old San Diego following an unfortunate run in with The Shadow Pirates. After convincing a group of teenagers to aid in his escape by promising them a greater power than they can imagine the ultimate burst they are transported to New San Diego where they begin their adventure to unlock the burst in the form of The Four Horseman: war, pestilence, famine, and death.

Divination by Eisner-nominee Val Staples (Criminal, X-Men), Gina Iorio, and Melinda Timpone – launching this fall.

In the gothic thriller Divination, readers will explore the world of death, demons, spirits, and angels, after Ana’s teenage life is thrown into chaos when she begins to see manifestations of the undead. As the mysterious Reapers continue to appear with more intensity, Ana soon finds herself on a path towards an uncertain destiny that will have drastic consequences for both her and the entire world.

Cupid’s Arrows by Thom Zahler (Warning Label, My Little Pony) – launching in late 2018.

Cupid’s Arrows follows Rick and Lora, a team of Arrows who work for Cupid, the god of love, and attempt to execute the wishes of The Book of Love, which gives the details on which couples will get together for a legendary love story. They’ve received their newest mission and must work together to bring about the perfect and memorable moment, assuring a lasting start to their couple’s relationship. However, even after working together for hundreds of years, they banter and bicker like brother and sister to cover the feelings they have for each other–will these Arrows finally realize they are more than just friends?

Nothing Special Season 2 by Katie Cook

In Nothing Special, spirits, gods, and demons wander both their realm and ours. The series follows Callie, a lonely teen who grew up splitting her time between the human and spirit worlds due to her father’s job as an antiques collector in the spirit world. When her father mysteriously vanishes in the spirit realm, Callie is forced to journey further into the world than ever before in an attempt to rescue him. In Season 2, readers can continue to explore Callie’s world filled with adventure, family secrets, and romance.

Heart Wired by Leanne Hannah (Masters of the Universe) and Rod Hannah – launching this summer.

Heart Wired follows 16-year-old Cal Mills, one of the first of seven children born on Mars. Cal has always dreamed of traveling to Earth and experiencing the birthplace of humanity firsthand. However, he is held back by his fragile body, genetically-engineered to tolerate the microgravity environment of Mars. His parents have religious and philosophical issues with the trans-humanist movement, which pushes for total replacement of the organic biological systems of the human body with the synthetic machine. Things change when communication with Earth gets cut off suddenly and it becomes clear that a war of annihilation has taken place. The final act of the automated space-based military forces will be to eliminate all rival extraterrestrial assets.

Metaphorical Her by James Maddox, David Stoll, and Justin Birch – launching this summer.

Humiliated and exiled, a young poet and her friends build an underground following while fighting against the white-collar criminals who threaten their careers. In Metaphorical Her, Eleanor “Laney” Petra makes a social misstep and offends the man who holds the keys to success in her chosen field of work, poetry. Discovering an unlikely audience in the local rock scene, Laney shows that she can build a sizable following of outsiders that will force the poetic scene to recognize her and her work. All the while, Laney must fend off the people who want to cage her, her friends, and hinder their ambition.

LINE Webtoon Announces Slate of Upcoming Releases #comics #webcomics LINE Webtoon has announced the upcoming release of nine new titles and a new season for popular Katie Cook series

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