CHIEF DETECTIVE 1958 (2024)

Oh, Taek! You’re home?

응답하라 REPLY 1988 (2015)

Upcoming Kdrama April 2024 💚

5/4: Parasyte: the Grey with Jeon So Nee, Koo Kyo Hwan. 6 episodes; mystery, horror, sci-fi.

8/4: Lovely Runner with Byun Woo Suk, Kim Hye Yoon. 12 episodes; fantasy, rom-com.

10/4: Blood Free with Han Hyo Joo, Joo Ji Hoon, Lee Hee Joon. 10 episodes; thriller, sci-fi.

13/4: Missing Crown Prince with Soo Ho, Hong Yeji, Kim Min Gyu. 20 episodes; historical, rom-com.

19/4: Chief Detective 1958 with Lee Je Hoon, Lee Dong Hwi, Seo Eun Soo. 10 episodes; action, thriller, comedy.

26/4: Goodbye Earth with Ahn Eun Jin, Yoo Ah In, Jeon Sung Woo. 12 episodes; thriller, sci-fi.

Lee Je Hoon is back!

Lee Dong Hwi for DAZED KOREA Spring Edition 2023 Photography Kim Yeong Jun Fashion Park Tae Il Hair Taehyun at Mizangwon by Taehyun Makeup Hana at Mizangwon by Taehyun

This scene was so funny, had me SCREAMING and LAUGHING lmao

the reaction of their mother 💀

Chief Detective 1958 수사반장 1958 (2024) | Episode 3

글리치 / Glitch (2022) dir. Roh Deok

Episode 1

이동휘

CHIEF DETECTIVE 1958 ( 2024 ) ─ HIT THE ROAD ( HUMOR )

[Article] Chief Inspector 1963 Script Reading Completed -> Filming Begins

Original title: Lee Je-hoon × Lee Dong-hwi For "Chief Inspector" – Script Reading Completed -> Filming Officially Begins

Last week after the script reading for MBC' new drama Chief Inspector 1963 (director Kim Sung-hoon, scenario Kim Young-sin, creator Park Jae-beom) had ended, the filming for the drama has officially begun.

Lee Je-hoon got passed down this role from nation's actor Choi Boor-am and is playing South Korea's representative detective who had received viewers' unconditional love and support – Chief Park, or Park Young-han, in his early days. If Chief Park played by Choi Boor-am was loved for his perfect image of a detective, then the young Park Young-han from Chief Inspector 1963 played by Lee Je-hoon is a detective who starts desperate fights due to him being frustrated over the present reality that miserably tramples on the human dignity.

Lee Je-hoon and Lee Dong-hwi during the process of managing a special investigation team together with the rest of the detectives will bring about unusual fun. Especially since Lee Je-hoon and Lee Dong-hwi are close friends in the entertainment field, it also makes one anticipate what kind of chemistry they will show in Chief Inspector 1963. During the 2nd Blue Dragon Series Awards Lee Dong-hwi, as he accepted the best supporting actor award for Disney+' Big Bet, shared his resolution of "wanting to meet everyone with a new appearance in the drama Chief Inspector".

NEW YEAR BLUES 새해전야 (2021) dir. hong ji young

@dlehdgnl

Remon here,

Spoilers ahead. I know this drama came out on Netflix a while back, but I only just had the opportunity to finish watching it. I had my eyes on it even before it was released, mostly because Nana is in the main cast, but also I’m a sucker for Sci-Fi and Mysteries. Combine them and you have me hooked. Come to think of it, can one exist without the other? But let me give you some information about the drama itself before I begin my… “review”. Give yourself and awkward pause here, because I just gave myself one.

So Glitch is Korean Mystery Sci-Fi drama that came out on Netflix on October 7 (On Screen on October 6 during the Busan International Film Festival), 2022. You may know some of its cast members, such as Park Won Suk from Missing: The other side, Ryu Kyung Soo from The Sound of Magic and Hellbound, or Lee Dong Hwi from Reply 1988. But the main roles go to Yeon Yeo Bin (Vincenzo, Be Melodramatic) who plays Hong Ji Hyo, and Nana (former After School member, Oh! Master) who plays Huh Bo Ra. The show follows Ji Hyo and Bo Ra’s story in two timelines. Past and present. In the past version of events, Ji Hyo is obsessed by aliens and researching stories about them, while Bo Ra is a delinquent who has become an outcast in school. The two develop a deep friendship until a scary misunderstanding causes them to fall out. Years later Ji Hyo’s (ex) boyfriend goes missing, which leads the two girls to meet each other again as adults. At first Ji Hyo doesn’t recognize Bo Ra, but that is due to the fact that she’s nothing like the girl she remembers. From a skeptic, Bo Ra has turned to a passionate YouTuber who has dedicated her life to aliens, holding meetings with her fellow alien enthusiasts. Ji Hyo, on the other hand, has become the skeptic herself. The only thing she believes is hard science facts and aliens are e distant (and painful) topic for her. The present version of events follows their adventure to discovering the truth about what caused them to fall out, where is Ji Hyo’s (ex) boyfriend, and last but not least, are aliens real.

Now I’m going to talk about the show the way I experienced it. The two most accurate (to me) words I can use to describe it, are unsettling and fascinating. No more, no less.

The imagery of the show, the tone the show sets. That slight retro feel it gives off, so reminiscent but also so out of place, it makes you want to press the pause button just to stare into the void for a couple of minutes. Everyone around Ji Hyo is so mundane, everyone is so deaf to their own words, but yet Ji Hyo’s life is bizarre. It’s wrapped in a mystery that she ignores for the longest time, but you’re on the edge of your seat because you need her to go look for it. After her reunion with Bo Ra however, you start feeling the opposite. Like no one is in their right mind except Bo Ra. Bo Ra may come off as crazy and weird, but she’s just actually very honest with herself and everyone around her. But that’s exactly the thing you’ve needed, to get away from the depressing scenes (which I might add makes you depressed without you even realizing it, or is it just me). Everything these two do together is a mess, but it’s a beautiful mess that makes you relieved. I must admit, at the beginning I did think Ji Hyo’s character was a little bland, like you could swap her for any other “good-girl-main-role” heroine and it wouldn’t make a difference. That however is untrue and I do understand why the show wants you to feel like that up until a certain point. By the end of the show I was in love with both character (although I can’t help but favor Bo Ra a little more, she’s the coolest).

The psychological factor adds to it. Actually, I’d call it the main factor. Up until the very, very last episode you go back and forth between “Ókay, the aliens must be all in her head.” And “Okay, the aliens are real then.” I found myself changing my mind several times, and no matter which theory you go by, you won’t be wrong with either, but you also won’t be right. However, the development of the story is not unpredictable at all. In fact, if you’ve ever seen or heard anything about the cases of Jim Jones or Heaven’s Gate (and I do 100% believe this show was inspired by both), then you could most likely predict the ending of the show. However (again), I guarantee you, you will never be able to predict the feelings it will invoke in you and the way you’ll experience the story. Before I recommend it to you though, I should note that if you don’t know much about Korean culture, or if you haven’t seen a lot of kdrama, this show’s humor will probably be mostly incomprehensible to you. It could take away from some key moments where you’re prepared to shed tears and then it hits you with a ridiculous response to the emotional build. To me it was nearly perfect, it made me experience every emotion on the specter. I laughed, I cried, I was frustrated, annoyed, I was excited, happy. And then repeat.

Big SPOILER alert.

Something else I’d like to talk about is the relationship between Ji Hyo and Bo Ra. I know a lot of people who have and will watch this, will be writing fanfictions about them. But I think we saw the ending as it is on purpose. When the drama begins, we have Ji Hyo who feels so pressured by her (ex) boyfriend to finally move in together and eventually get married, that she actually gets drunk (she who must always be sober and in control) and breaks up with him. In my humblest opinion, I think that was something she never, ever wanted out of their relationship, but she didn’t know how to stop it because everyone expected it of her. I almost feel like that’s why she wanted to find him so badly after he got abducted. I’m not saying she didn’t love or care for him, rather I think she needed to find him, make sure he’s safe, so she could then end it with him and move on. As to not have any more regrets before beginning her new life. That’s also why she thanked him when he “broke up with her” at the end of the series. It was difficult for her to bring up after everything that happened, to be the one to say it twice. But that was his way of giving her the okay, you go live your life. And how this relates to Bo Ra exactly? Well, to begin with, Bo Ra was the first meaningful friendship (or so I’ve been led to assume by the show) Ji Hyo ever had. Or at least meaningful enough that it would break her heart when she thinks Bo Ra has betrayed her. The second point is, that when JI Hyo wraps up her past, the first thing she does is go to Bo Ra and ask her if she wants to live together. The very same thing that terrified her when her boyfriend brought it up. She’s now offering it, but to someone else. Obviously, she feels like it’s a big commitment, because it was before. As I said, I think we got that ending on purpose, so we could decide for ourselves. Whether they’re friends or something more, I’ve just accepted that they make each other the happiest and most complete. I don’t want to dwell on this because there haven’t been any other hints. For me personally, that last one was enough.

And to talk some more about Bo Ra, I think Nana did more than amazing in her role. I have no complaints towards anyone’s acting but Nana was really great. Her character was meant to stood out, but with it, her acting also stood out. It was just meant for her. I could probably make a separate post on Bo Ra alone, but that’s a bit obsessive so let’s not do that. Yet. Maybe after my rewatch. Because I can’t not rewatch this. I'm still pondering whether I want this show to have a second season or not, because I think it got the perfect ending and I don't need any more. But also I do. But also I know the experience I got the first time can't be recreated. I don't know. I'd rather just take this as it is and not risk a second season ruining it. Even if hypothetical second season was better, I still wouldn't wanna risk it. I think a continuation is not very likely anyways. But yeah, that's it for now.

(Mind you, I wrote this at like 5am after binge watching all night.)

The cast of Big Bet come together for the final stage greeting 💖