Imagine trying to not only dictate how much of a fan of Scream someone is if they declare they boycotting Scream 7, but on top of that, trying to make it out like people are boycotting Scream 7 because their favorite actress is not in when in reality, its because Spyglass fired Melissa Barrera over her supporting Palestine and tried to ruin her via spreading lies about her being antiemetic and even when they did get into talks with her, they basically demanded she apologize for calling out a genocide.

Review: The Devil Judge

Year: 2021 Country: Korea Platform: Netflix Ji Sung has been one of my perennial favs since Secret and Protect the Boss (though I dropped the latter bc Choi Kang Hee annoyed me to no end) so this show was on my radar for a while. Then I saw some behind the scenes clips and sold my little queer heart to the devil and started live-watching (which I so rarely do as an act of self-care). Waiting each week was as exquisite an agony as Jinyoung Ga On being choked by Kang Yo Han.

The show is another entry in drama-land’s field of revenge dramas with a tortured, anti-hero judge, Kang Yo Han, played to delectable perfection by Ji Sung, pursuing his vigilante justice in a near-future dystopia. Part of his plan is the seduction, intellectual and … otherwise…, of Jinyoung’s Kim Ga On, a fresh-faced, newly minted Judge with wrongs in his own past he wants righted.

The show wrestles with concepts of justice played out in a modern world steeped in social-media, drawing parallels that show that, for all our claims to civility, we are not far removed from a past we try to delineate as barbaric and other, with its tortures and public executions. It also confronts the topics of corruption, the ability to discern truth in an age of Fake News, and what true justice actually looks like.

It actually engages with all these issues thoughtfully and meaningfully; reams of meta and analysis can be made on these points that provide unique insight into our modern world. I don’t want to discount the importance of that, and have engaged on these topics in various group chats since the show began airing. However, I’ll be honest, the thing that rotted my brain from the inside out was our leads. The writer of the show is on record as striving for queerness with his story in as much as he was able within Korea’s social landscape.

The show was written casting Jinyoung’s character in the role Kdramas usually reserve for our female lead and it is so damned gay I was forced to write out nearly 30,000 words of gay fanfiction in just over two weeks like a woman possessed, it was all just too much. This show and these two characters have fundamentally broken me in some way and I will never be the same. Do the sum of all these parts, rationally, add up to this impact in me? No, not really, but that is just the power of a fangirl brain.

The show wasn’t absolutely perfect, so I don’t quite give it a perfect score. The secondary female lead is underwhelming in many ways, both as I feel the actress felt short, and as she was written (which, actually I don’t think was a failing of the writing but of the tropes embedded in this genre). She served her plot purposed well enough but was mostly frustrating to watch, which is actually fairly reminiscent of secondary male leads in this type of show.

The other weakness is that this show was originally mapped out to be more episodes then was truncated, I believe, and the writing for the plot reveals this. The last few episodes resolve themselves a bit too easily/ quickly and could have benefited from being expanded a bit so the plot flowed a bit better. It’s a minor quibble as the central emotional relationship was what I really cared about.

Before I wrap this up, though, I have to highlight a few other elements of the show. Number one is to give a shout out to Kim Min Jung who is so wonderfully unhinged, she stepped all over my bisexual heart and left me wanting more. There is one scene, set in a barber shop, between her and Yo Han that is so intense I had to pause and walk away for a while to take it all in.

All in all, despite its flaws, this may be my absolute favorite drama of the year. The gift that keeps on giving as I look at my To Write list.

My Top 10 K-Dramas of 2019 - What’s Yours?

2019 is ending soon and K-Dramaland has once again brought us so many goodies this year. As per our blog’s tradition [For 2018 faves click here], below are my Top 10 favs of the year (my faves in alphabetical order so it might not be yours so please don’t judge). (For our blog’s 2019 music ratings, click here!)

My only specific criteria usually is that the show must have had started in 2019 to be considered a 2019 series but this year I have made an exception for dramas that started very late in 2018 and it required watching well into 2019 for to be sure it was a great drama.

Without further ado, check the list below!

Doctor Prisoner (KBS2)

If you are looking for a thriller with insanely good acting, I would highly recommend Doctor Prisoner. Set in a prison clinic with Namkoong Min’s disgraced doctor as the lead plotting to right the wrongs society has done to him, the drama blurs the lines between good and bad. The medical director of the prison played by Kim Byungcheol seems like the perfect evil archetype for the audience to hate on but over time the plot and the acting allow us to soften up to his character and worry about his well-being. The drama also thrived in the current political climate in South Korea with its nuanced look into corruption and class issues. It was also a delight to see Namkoong Min’s rise in the past years from a rom-com lead to a seasoned leading man able to take on many diverse roles. If you love a drama that discusses the conflict between humanity and greed with stellar acting, you would love Doctor Prisoner!

Extraordinary You (MBC)

I actually struggled with whether to put Extraordinary You in the Top 10 due to the poor writing in the last few episodes of the show but caved in due to the spectacular quality of the earlier episodes and the consistently amazing acting of the main cast. Based on the popular webtoon “July Found By Chance”, the drama is about a girl called Eun Danoh who discovers she is in a shojo manga and not even the female lead - just an extra there to drive the love line between the male and female lead and stuck with a one-sided love to the biggest f*ckboi in school. Danoh decides to fight against fate (the writer’s plot) and try to change the storyline with her friends who start to also gain consciousness as well as the male lead Haru, a nameless background character who seems to have a mysterious connection to Danoh and an ability to switch characters in and out of scenes. The first half of the drama is pure K-Drama gold and consistently makes self-aware jabs at K-Drama tropes. Also, the quality acting of Kim Hyeyoon really breathed life into the character of Danoh, whose many monologues during her self-aware moments would fall flat without good delivery. While playing Haru was SF9’s Rowoon’s first major lead role, he carried the part well and was able to show the changes in Haru as he went from brainless NPC to an increasingly aware player in the plot to take down the comic book writer. Lee Jaewook, April’s Naeun, Jung Gunjoo, Kim Youngdae and Lee Taeri also all excelled in their respective roles. If you would like a drama where you can discover lots of young talent, Extraordinary You is the drama for you!

He is Psychometric (tvN)

While using the common K-Drama trope of male lead has a peculiar and uncommon superpower, and teams up with a female lead with secrets and some investigators to solve crimes, He is a Pyschometric excels in how it used these tropes well. I mean it is a tvN production and they own the supernatural mystery/romance genre these days. The male lead has the power to know about people’s past by touching their skin so of course we know plenty of skinship shenanigans and questions about human nature and trauma would be explored in this drama. After providing backstory and building up the personality of the main characters in the first few episodes, the series was consistently intense and the chemistry of the characters is great. GOT7’s Jinyoung has proven that he is ready for lead roles in more dramas, while Shin Yeeun showed that she is ready to take on the television screen after her quick rise to fame as a web drama actress in the record-breaking web series “A-TEEN”. SISTAR’s Dasom has also continued to grow as an actress, as seen in her role as police investigator in this series. If you are a fan of supernatural and mystery based K-Dramas, He is Psychometric is definitely one of the best dramas this year for you!

Hotel del Luna (tvN)

Another fantasy series coming from tvN, Hotel del Luna was definitely one of the most talked-about dramas of the year and rightly so. Set in a hotel that caters to ghosts, e.g. the dead with grievances and unable to “move on” to the world of the dead, you know you are in for episodic adventures involving the lives of many guests. We are also provided with the interesting relationship between IU’s Jang Manwol (her name literally means full moon) who is the ghost hotel owner for over 1000 years as a punishment for her sins and Yeo Jingoo’s Koo Chansung (his name literally means bright star) that the deities believe is the key to Manwol’s emancipation from ghost hotel running duties. In a way, it is like a gender-swapped version of the Goblin relationship going on but due to additional plotlines and character relationships, it is honestly a lot more and I will leave it to you guys to find out when you watch the show yourself. If you enjoy a fantasy drama involving ancient supernatural beings, Korean folklore and diverse stories, you would enjoy Hotel del Luna!

Kingdom (Netflix)

Netflix Korea continues to churn out amazing dramas and Kingdom is definitely one of the best this year. Adapted from the Korean webtoon series “The Kingdom of Gods”, the drama is set in Joseon Korean (in the 16th century) where a crown prince already dealing with court intrigues and trying to make it out alive is thrown another deadly problem - zombies. Given the stellar performance of Netflix’s earlier Korean period drama Mr. Sunshine and the amazing global box-office results of Korean zombie movie Train to Busan, this concept itself already sounds like a perfect cocktail for success. And the drama was received very positively, with a second season renewed for 2020. Besides the ridiculously addictive plot, the acting is also superb. The crown prince is played by none other than Ju Jihoon, who has long been popular in South Korea and among K-Drama fans for his dark and brooding demeanour perfect for an apocalyptic series. Bae Doona, who has found great success in Korea and in Hollywood for her roles in K-Dramas and movies such as Cloud Atlas and Netflix series Sense8, expertly takes the female lead role of the physician uncovering the zombie epidemic. If you love period dramas, zombie movies or both, this is the drama for you!

Sky Castle (JTBC)

Widely lauded as the best K-Drama of the year, Sky Castle is arguably one of the best K-Dramas of this decade because of the amazing acting, the unpredictable plot and its inclusion of many societal issues in South Korea. The show set the record for the most-viewed cable drama in South Korean history. Set in the opulent neighbourhood called Sky Castle, the story revolves around the “real” housewives of the neighbourhood who are all trying to get their kids into the top three universities in South Korea (SNU, Korea U and Yonsei - often also abbreviated as SKY universities). This concept of looking at the competitive education environment of East Asian countries is not new but the series set itself apart but including a mystery element, where deaths, secrets and intrigue involving members of the neighbourhood also shed light to class issues spanning across generations, gender issues, work culture, as well as familial relations in the conservative Korean society. The show also employed an extremely talented but underrated cast of actors who either spent many years honing their craft as side characters of many shows or are star film school students. The show also gave many opportunities to the cast afterwards, as seen in Kim Byungcheol’s lead role opportunity in Prison Doctor and Kim Hyeyoon’s lead role in Extraordinary You that are both discussed above. If you love a socially aware drama full of intrigue and mystery with great acting and cinematography, you would love Sky Castle!

The Fiery Priest (SBS)

The highest-rated miniseries of 2019, The Fiery Priest is really a unique show unlike any other. The story follows an investigation into the death of an elderly priest, with the Scooby-Doo crew made up of a young priest, a detective, and a prosecutor. While the crime-solving trio dynamic in the synopsis would definitely give “The Guest” flashbacks, this drama is completely opposite to OCN’s 2018 gritty horror extravaganza and is instead heartfelt and utterly hilarious. The priest clearly has anger management issues, the detective sucks at his job and the prosecutor has questionable moral standards. And Kim Namgil, Kim Sungkyun and Honey Lee all played these roles ridiculously well. Like other great dramas this year, The Fiery Priest looks at social issues in South Korea but instead of extremely serious commentary, touches of them in a humorous and sarcastic manner. This allowed the show to get away with more than you would expect on Korean non-cable TV. One thing the show did do which was similar to the much more serious “The Guest” was not having a romance plotline shoved down our throats like many K-Dramas. If you love a good comedy-mystery drama, you should check out The Fiery Priest!

The Tale of Nokdu (KBS2)

Another drama based on a webtoon, The Tale of Nokdu received average national ratings but was massively successful among the Gen Z of Korea and overseas fans. The reason may be the premise of the series. We have seen a good amount of girl masquerades as guy romcoms in the late 2000s and early 2010s such as the legendary dramas “Coffee Prince”, “You Are Beautiful”, “Sungkyunkwan Scandal” and “To The Beautiful You” but HAVE WE SEEN A REVERSED VERSION? Well look no further as The Tale of Nokdu is exactly that. Set in the Joseon Dynasty, the male lead has to hunt down a female assassin who has taken refuge in a women-only widow’s village and he must pretend to be a woman to live in the village to catch the assassin. Jang Dongyoon and Kim Sohyun delivered quality acting but probably what really made the show so popular with the Gen Z audience is seeing the male lead coming to realise the struggles of women in ancient times, with some struggles still existing today, as he lived in the widow’s village and the fierce and strong personality of the female lead who keeps saving the male lead’s ass. While there are some expected period drama tropes with royal court politics and will-they-won’t-they in face of the greater good, The Tale of Nokdu is one of the standout dramas this year for its fresh take on the cross-dressing K-Drama trope. If you have enjoyed previous cross-dressing K-Dramas, you should give The Tale of Nokdu a try!

Vagabond (Netflix/SBS)

Lee Seunggi and Suzy reunites in Vagabond for the first time since Gu Family Book in 2013 and this was definitely a great reunion. With a backdrop involving government corruption and terrorist attacks, Lee Seunggi dons the role of a retired stuntman turned vagabond to avenge the death of his nephew and uncover the truth. Suzy joins Lee Seunggi as a rookie special agent who gets pulled into the investigations after being in the wrong place during the wrong time (or the right place in the right time depending on how you view the investigations). This action-packed series was filmed across many countries such as Portugal and Morocco and would give you a huge adrenaline rush as the main cast faces new obstacles and betrayals in every episode. The current ending of the series suggests a possible Season 2. If you are a fan of spy and action-type thrillers like City Hunter and IRIS, you would love Vagabond!

When the Camellia Blooms (KBS2)

The highest-rated mini-series this year after The Fiery Priest, When the Camellia Blooms is a slightly more light-hearted slice of life series set in the fictional matriarchal town of Ongsan. The series stars Gong Hyojin as a single mother who moves to the town to raise his son and run a bar called “Camellia”. The story revolves around Kang Haneul’s small town cop (and lowkey village idiot with a heart of gold) who has a crush on Gong Hyojin and her baseball star ex-boyfriend and the boy’s father played by Kim Jiseok trying to win her back. What makes this series so well-loved is that besides the love triangle shenanigans set in the small-town community, the endless line of useless pushover men, and the community drama between store owners and neighbours, there is also a mystery involving a serial killer who holds a grudge against the female lead. But ultimately it is a quirky drama where the slice-of-life really dominates over the mystery aspect of the series and we learn a lot about the characters and their backstories as the series progresses. If you like a more slow-paced, slice-of-life series, When the Camellia Blooms is the series for you!

Honourable Mentions:

Dazzling/The Light In Your Eyes (JTBC): The story about a young woman who suddenly became 70 years old but with the ability to manipulate time. The series received critical acclaim for its portrayals of the struggles of everyday folk in South Korea and for its surprising twists.

The Secret Life of My Secretary (SBS): The male lead is a childish company director who lost the ability to recognise faces and must enlist the help of his secretary to maintain the pretence of normalcy. Rainbow’s Jaekyung was a complete scene-stealer for her role as the over-the-top CEO Veronica Park. 

The Last Empress (SBS): Set in the alternate reality where South Korea is a constitutional monarchy, this is a melodrama involving a bodyguard who wants to seek revenge on the King’s mistress and a Queen who discovers her fairy tale marriage was just a PR ploy by the royal family. Basically, peak quality makjang.

What’s your Top 10 K-Dramas of the Year? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below and may the drama sharing begin (and the road to more excuse for holiday procrastination!)

Also, if you want to check out underrated K-Pop songs of 2019, here are the lists for idol songs and artist songs. We have also made a list for the Top 20 most underrated K-Pop songs of the decade!

Dino Watches Anime (Oct 26)

Recently Completed!

Tokyo Godfathers

Score: 10/10

There’s a reason why I gave this such a rare high rating. When I was watching it, I was internally like, “*excitement noises* I have not been this excited over an anime in such a long time, let alone for an anime movie. EVERYONE SHUT UP SO I CAN WATCH THIS EVEN IF I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY’RE SAYING.”

It’s not often that you come across really good movies, let alone masterpieces like this movie. The art is so good, the story made me feel like it was Christmas in October, and the characters really made me connect. 

I know the subtitles used a whole lot of gay slurs and things like that, but Hana (the trans character in this tale) is treated well if we get past that huge hurdle. She truly owns up to herself. She doesn’t care what she’s called. She gets mad at people who misgender her. She gets mad if she’s forced to go to a men’s facility. She wants people to call her “an old hag” rather than “an old coot”. She just wants to be a mother even if she isn’t “biologically a woman” who can bear children. So when she comes across this kid, she thinks, “I will finally be a mother!” These are issues that real people face. These are issues that cisgendered people take for granted.

Madhouse really knocked it out of the park. Satoshi Kon is one of the biggest creators and directors in anime history. He’s known for horror and psychological works like Perfect Blue, Paprika, and Millennium Actress. I never expected him to be this good at making a movie that could move my soul like this. The characters were so far from perfect, yet I wanted the best for each of them. The way it handled everything was masterful. The dialogue worked so well and was witty, the voice actors (despite the main three not being in anything else for the most part) were so good at giving life to their characters, and the art blew me away in 2019 even though this was released in 2003. The only thing I didn’t quite like as much was the score during some parts of the movie, but it was subjectively good and just wasn’t to my taste (the Noragami soundtrack wasn’t a fav of mine either). 

Just... watch the movie. If you can watch it around Christmas. It’s good for you.

Saiunkoku Monogatari

Score: 7.4/10 

Yes, I binge-watched all 39 episodes in two days, what’s it to ya?! In reality, I just boosted the speed of the video.

Me throughout this show: Why do you all have triangle heads? What’s with that?

Okay, it’s the art style, and a lot of shoujo anime go with the concept that it looks good. Once you get over the art hurdle making me believe this was created in the early 2000s despite it being 3 years younger than Tokyo Godfathers, this turns out to be a really nice show. I just can’t believe they’re BOTH from Madhouse. 

Remember Snow White with the Red Hair? Remember Akatsuki no Yona? If you liked those shows, you’re going to like this one... except it relies more on the political plot. It’s mostly about a woman wanting to pursue her dreams of being a politician in a male-dominated world. She’s entasked with helping this mess of a king to get his act together, and as much as I can try to prove that it’s surprisingly progressive (given the art and genre), I think that’d be spoiling it a little. The only character that actually bothered me was the prince who was voiced by Tomokazu Seki who honestly was a bit annoying and sounded so fake for me. However, this anime made me appreciate Hikaru Midorikawa’s voice as well as Houko Kuwashima who I’ve only heard voicing dead moms and only a few good characters here and there. Seriously, both of their voices are great. Toshiyuki Morikawa sounds good too, but we already knew that. I don’t like the OP or ED (or a whole lot of the music), but that’s the case for a lot of these 2005-era anime. Just like a lot of the anime on MAL, I do think this is an underrated show, but it does have its pitfalls if you’re just craving for a quick shoujo without any politics.

Full Metal Panic: Second Raid

Score: 7/10

I binge-watched this entire season while my parents were out for dinner and something else. It only took me a couple of hours because I boosted the speed.

I wanted to get a gif specifically from this season, so this one will have to do. So much wasted potential will this character (who’s one of two twins). I know they were trying to play the whole “twincest” thing, but I’m personally not a fan. They provided some cool fight scenes even at a certain cringe cost. The fact that Kyoto Animation animated this bumped the art from a 3 to an 8. It’s crazy how much the quality jumped after a new studio took over. Unfortunately, they didn’t take care of the next season. I know the main ship in the series is pretty clear, but this season made it closer to canon (too bad it took around 13 years to make the next season).

Kara no Kyoukai (movies: 5, 6, 7)

Score:  Part Five: 7.5/10 Part Six: 5.8/10 Part Seven: 8.2/10

Not gonna lie, I watched the first four movies over a year ago and retained nothing. I had to read the Wikia to assist me and to begin with, I watched this to get into the “Type-Moon” universe (which consists of this and the Fate nonsense stuff), Yuki Kajiura’s score, and Maaya Sakamoto and Kenichi Suzumura voicing a couple. The score would probably change if I’d watched them regularly, but I digress because I watched movies 5-7 in one afternoon. Ufotable was pretty good at animating this and the voice acting worked really well. Yuki Kajiura’s music didn’t hit well at first when I was first watching the first few movies over a year ago because it wasn’t what I envisioned the score being, but once you get into the mood and mindset, it adds so much to the story. Although, I still really didn’t like part six. I thought it was a complete flop because I just want to get rid of anyone who believes i*cest is an okay thing. This isn’t Alabama. Go home. Not else to say here because this took so much commitment that I doubt anyone would watch it.

Paranoia Agent

Score: 8.6/10

With spoopy month coming to a close (already?!) I watched this anime earlier this month, but I forgot to write about it. That’s partly because there’s so much to unpack here. This was a thriller, psychological, horror anime by Satoshi Kon. That’s right, the first anime above was also done with him in the director’s seat. This anime was smart. There’s a reason why Robin Williams likes it! It was scary in the best of ways. It revealed a part of society that we see all the time but don’t talk about (especially in Japanese society where emotions are better kept concealed). Just the opening alone made me feel uneasy. The OP and ED were simplistic yet worked. I binge-watched the whole series because it was that gripping. 

It was a little confusing at times, but that’s also because that’s just a common thing with horror anime. That suspense keeps us going. It keeps us on the edge of our seats. Who’s going to be the next victim of Shounen Bat? Episode 8 came out of nowhere for me, and I liked it. There were several scenes that sent shivers down my spine in the best way possible. It isn’t always “scary”, but it gives suspense.

Aoi Bungaku

This one is going to be reviewed a little differently. Since it has specific arcs, I’m going to review them as such!

Ningen Shikkaku: 8.2/10

We start off with a bang. Osamu Dazai was a man of suffering. This story really shows that. In this story, we see a man who’s desperate to know what makes him human. We see this through the eyes of a fictional character, but I personally view this as a semi-autobiography.

The art was chilling. The voice acting from Masato Sakai was surprisingly good. A lot of the time, voice acting from live-action actors just aren’t that great. Every time you think this character will get back on his feet, he falls deeper and deeper. It truly did make me wonder what made me human.

Sakura no Mori no Mankai no Shita: 3.9/10

That moment when the only thing that saves this arc is Nana Mizuki’s singing. Seriously, her jazz songs were awesome. Can’t say that about the rest. I mean, the art is good, but it’s Madhouse so most of their stuff is already good. The story wasn’t that original. Mind you, this was probably during a period where foreign influence was strong, and I haven’t read the original story, but... this is basically Salome (the opera) with some differences. Both have a crazy woman with a fixation over lifeless decapitated heads. Both have men that are captivated with her beauty so they give her what she wants because of that reason alone, they both murder religious people (monk/shrine maiden and a prophet), and both eventually realize that women can be crazy when they demand a lifeless head because you know, that’s just a red flag. Above all, it suffers from tonal shifts. You can’t have a woman turning moe then demand you bring her another head to play with. You can’t have Masato Sakai playing another main character that doesn’t fit him! Seriously, he doesn’t have the voice of a brute and just couldn’t do it. Overall, this arc was a mess, and I’m glad it was one of the shorter ones.

Kokoro: 7.6/10

This looked like a masterpiece compared to the last arc. I haven’t read Kokoro, but this made me go, “Huh, I don’t remember this happening.” That’s because they chose a certain part of the book (near the end apparently) and just went off that and created its own anime-original episode. Despite that, it was pretty good! There were some screaming discrepancies which did hurt its impression (because it made it feel out of place to the point where even I, as an uneducated anime viewer, could clearly see).

(I think this is from Kokoro but I might be wrong)

Hashire, Melos!: 8.9/10

Would you look at that? It’s the best arc of the series. Hashire, Melos was great. It had me going from beginning to end, and it’s the only arc that doesn’t have Masato Sakai playing the lead character. The art, the pacing, the storytelling, the story, the sound, the voice acting, and the art direction complemented each other so well. It made me far more interested in the original. 

The Spider’s Thread: 6.6/10

If you look really close, you’ll notice that the creator of Bleach took over character design for this! It was okay. I found that it was a little cliche and lacklustre. Mamo is around so much that you probably have to do more than that to keep my attention, and this had the art going for it too. It just wasn’t that interesting. A heartless murderer is sent to hell after being executed. Moral of the story: Don’t be an asshole. Alright. Nice. I do understand that Ryuunosuke Akutagawa was one of the main establishers of the whole “Japanese Short Story” thing, but after seeing it so many times, I just didn’t get that same chill.

Hell Screen: 6.9/10 

Another Akutagawa short story! This one had far more of an impact because this one hit closer to Akutagawa’s heart. Knowing the history of this piece of writing, you can see his desperation to stay relevant and true to his craft. It’s about a painter who wants to paint the town but finds out the city isn’t the bright light he sees in his mind. Everything goes ablaze. The art for this is stunning. I probably would’ve enjoyed this story more if it was placed in the middle of the series run rather than being the last story. 

Recently Started

Africa no Salaryman

The animation for this is terrible. There is no way around it. However, at least it’s funny. Still, close to being on the chopping block. It has the papa lion who’s played by Akio Ohtsuka, the straight-man middle lizard played by Kenjirou Tsuda, and the scumbag toucan played by Hiro Shimono. Yes, they all play Hero Academia villains. The jokes are pretty good for me.

Given

Oh, would you look at that? It’s a music anime. *inhales* Music anime is a double-edged sword for me. I like having music interpreted and portrayed through one of my favourite mediums, but I don’t like them playing off music as some sort of easy gimmick and a joke. It’s like a shonen montage. “Let’s just have this guy train for two minutes and become a demigod”. But when you put an instrument into someone’s hand and demand the same, it sends me to another plane of angriness.  So far, the romance is kind of cute... but Mafuyu kind of annoys me since his role in the BL dynamic is so clear just by his voice. Same with Uchida. You can only play so many thugs a season. Kyou? Good. Chika? Good. This guy? Good, but don’t do them all back-to-back! I don’t like the BL dynamic being so basic. However, my mind can be changed if done right.

Shinsekai Yori

Very interesting premise, their eyes are cute, and I’m a sucker for these so I’m gonna stick with it.

Jane Eyre - 1996 - 2/5

what even is acting. what even is a script.

wasn't gonna do this one but fuck it's aunt petunia and rogue. here we go.

lots of credits fairo. more credits. damn fukin eh - i hear you're a wicked child! lol hi. now we're talking about hell and where bad people go. 'keep well and not die' ahaha m8. fkn reed putting seed in that she's a liar. teach her at her prospects, don't let her come back, she's a lying little shit take her away from here. he's appropriately scary oh shit she's saying this in front of the priest. damn tear that lady a new one. unruly, obstinate, wicked, deceitful, man these people hate kids who act out. walks in and damn she's on teh stool already - IS THAT THE LADY FROM PERSUASION. damn she just got here and he's telling everyone to not trust her, she doesn't get to eat and has to stand - she's just done hours of travelling fuckin assholes. IT IS THE LADY FROM PERSUASION. shes got dark hair and dark eyes and shes like glaring at everyone like shes onna kill him in their sleep. lol enjoy helen while she's alive. eatin bread and cheese in bed like she's not gonna get crumbs. omg telling these kids how to stand properly what why this lady hate her she's gonna cane her for not washing her hands. bish doesn't even flinch go helen. 'cleanliness is next to godliness' alright crazy. this school is a lot more chill than most of the others - they're laughing and doing what they want as well as learning and playing games. making jane out to be a pro artist. oh no ol mate saw her with her hair out. no dont cut it. 'vanity?' shes out here with naturally long, red and curly hair and he's out here calling her vain? because he recognises it as lovely she must be vain about it? what a fkn dickhole get off your high horse sexist moron pig anus head. what. he's saying her naturally  iwgh what i don't even understand his shit - it isn't offending him thats the issue its her naturally occuring sin and vanity (because her hair exists?) that is the issue??  what. lol go Jane. NO. oh fuck go Jane go. this guyyyy. don't do it Jane. chin held high she only does it when Helen nods at her to. DAAAAAAAAMN. took of her own bonnet. if Helen's hair goes so does Janes. they stood together looked at each other and flipped their heads over for him to go snip snip, bish looked shock and actually stepped back in horror. What a bae. Helen's fkn dying send help. fuck this lady should not be working with children considering how much she hates children. o shit where's helen. her beds all rolled up. can hear her hacking away in the distance. yikes that sounds bad. jane be creepin. oh fuck she's a terrible actress even as a kid. who honestly thinks its a good idea to hire her. she lying in her dying friend's bed and she's breathing all over her. isn't anna paquin australian? no? ah new zealand fairo. oh fuck Helen's daed. she's trying to squeeze out tears ahah oh no. she can't manage it. anna go back to new zealand you suck at acting who hired you ever. Riparoonies helen. that was actually the greatest jane and helen moment i've seen tbh. oh damn cool transition as she walked from helen's grave - she went from kid to adult. whats this part down the midde all of them got. Miss Temple fam, persuasion lady, fantastic lady, crying as Jane leaves like her mumma. this jane is long-flat-faced with a long protruding jaw, and very tall and skinny. thornfield looks like its already burned down ahaha. straight up castle here. she's got her drawing stuff as well as her bag. nice friendly ol mate meets her and opens the gates - big ass square this is some game of thrones shit yearh this place is like medieval more than victorian. the middle parted hair and the curled twists behind her head they're pretty much exactly the same in most Janes. all chillin and chatting about this together rather than completely separate. adele actually legit sounds french rather than just pretending? noice. dreary, cold, dark halls. her room is bright and airy with a four-poster bed and bay windows and lots of very nice furniture. river runs beside it; enormous tapestries; main gallery with lots of furniture and paintings and sculpures all covered in sheets with windows open to let in light; the doors are very large and heavy. Janes got a very long neck she looks legit like a fkn swan lmao. ooh a rochester backstory. well-travelled, intelliegent, can't tell if he's talking in jest or in earnest, or if he is pleased or irritated, not a happy man. they're just walking about in his rooms. the sun shines bright but cannot reach them through the thick mist. they're very soft-spoken. god her head is so far forward she's like the alien - long ass neck stretching forward and then her chin and jaw stretching wayyyy forward. wack wack anatomy.  it's very dark and dreary. she's off for a walk leaving adele to do like 5 sums. oh she's been here five minutes and they're already meeting. the music is like ... not appropriately intense? he just sorta looked at her, the horse tripped over and then he was on the floor and she's like whoops uh you alright bro. he's outright lying and pretending that he's not rochester his hair is grotty he's got like no hair on top they've just tries to scraggle it. this is so stunted and awkward. i hope it gets better. he's very gentle and she's pretty nonexistent to far. my god very gentle man. what. is he even rochester? that's a german shepherd. noice. playin chess by himself by the fire lol. this movie would be made infinitely better by an actual soundtrack. they're all chilling together again it's interesting - adele and fairfax and rochester and jane. wait she's been here 4 months. it literally didn't show anything about her chilling here. she talked back and now he's grumpy lol. what a terrible start compared to like... every other first convo. isn't she supposed to be not great at piano and yet she's teaching adele -- wait now we're at another convo between the duo. this convo is the other half of --- wait now we're talking sketches? jesus she hmm what are they talking about she's being forward and fuck her chin twists forward as she speaks she kinda looks like the wicked witch of the west. he's judging her drawings like he can do better. this is a mess? the best part about this so far is adele.  there's no sense of time. adele is gorgeous honestly. she's pale and gaunt with bags beneath her eyes. wait here's the next part of the conversation. blunt and brusque replies from her. god they're so obviously acting its painful. they have no chemistry because the CONVERSATION IS ALL OVER THE PLACE. they've done it on pruspose to try stretch things out a bit but like plz EY why he scrunch up the drawing wtf. 'and remember the shadows are as important as the light'. dudes. these are private conversations? it would be alright to try it more naturally but they're just not the kind of things you casually say. it's impersonal and there's no intimacy. sit there and watch a kid dance to the sound of a music box. he's so grumpy looking. now snapping at the kid. he's annoying. like a violent dude he feels more like a nice guy quick to snap - definitely kinda unhinged. and now drunk. hmm i don't like it. she told him not to be mean to adele and he rages about her mother, 'you've made adele feel unwanted and unloved' damn this Jane goes for the throat. she's too good for him I can see it now m8. he's a psycho run. red flag red flag. don't like it. lol he wake up like huh.... oh look beds on fire... huh... well suppose i should sort it out... huh... fuck they're barely acting huh. do they even want to be here. how much are these guys getting paid. he's literally a drunk. and has she had a drink in her life? she just went for it? omg so impersonal - isn't he supposed to be already half in love with her by this point? camera angle just flicks forward and back as the conversation goes on and when theres action it just pans back to the widest shot ever lol just show the entire scene why give any emphasis or focus to anything who needs reaction shots and feelings of being in it rather than observing it. fkn ey. he's literally just an angry blitering brooding drunk yikes. he's staring at her tits? these conversations man... he definitely just said jade instead of jane. m8 don't tell me he didn't. there's more intimacy between all the servants and jane and feeling more like an actual squad living together than there is any feeling between rochester and jane. adeles got a frog lol cute. 'you're a fool,' jane tells her reflection. this music is so shit it's bringing everything down. rochester, who's been an unfeeling ass the whole time, holds her hand once and now she's got a big crush on him. she's very spirited - to the point where she could too easily be cruel. like it's not just a repressed forcefulness it's like a hidden rage. can see her going mad and chopping someone up with icy rage and poised pleasure. wonder if i'm in a mood and interpreting this wrong? but honestly. dancing rochester now? instead of singing. adele is glaring at Mrs Ingram who just insulted jane lolol go kid she's definitely the best part. the background people actually make this place feel alive and natural, completely unlike their FUCKING AWFUL conversations. jesus what. god could you have two people less interested in each other? i think this fairfax knows about bertha. there's a 'tapestry bedroom'? lol what does that mean. they're dancing, playing cards, piano, the lot. oh the walls are literally covered in tapestries, that's creepy af. theres so much blood my dude would be dead yo. will hurt like doesn't know how to act. wwait theyve skipped my 'fav scene'?? theyre shaking hands again, wtf is this. wait what shes just met stjohn n he;s the one telling her all about the reeds? petunias dying 'love me then or hate me as you will - you have my full and free forgiveness' - i cant forgive any version that misses that out: its so powerful as part of her character. stalking her while he smokes in the dark what a creeper. 'how cuold you be so stupid!' lol fight him Jane i dont even know how we got to kissing likr the movie is almost 2 hours and yet it feels SO rushed. literally took away all the secret courting and his sneaky declarations. shes a modern woman trapped in an old age.  she is so skinny. and with entirely stiff expressions. ew he makes me so uncomfortable. theyre not even trying lol. acting ey acting have u heard of it. just left jane at the altar like bye bitch.shes just in a giant empty ugly room. bertha is a very young and frightened girl but also very sick in the typical long white dress and long dark hair. god this guy is a whingebum. bertha understands everything he's saying. oh yikes lol she just whipped a log from the fire and went after Jane and Jane just put her veil back down with like a sigh turned and yeeted slowly away long ass veil over a white bonnet, silk cape thing in a dark hallway walking all miserable. she's outies lol he's just let her walk out? i love u and i love u. bye. bertha's taken another log from the fire and lit the wedding dress on fire along with the house ahaha. wait he let her leave the house then ran after her on horseback but had to stop after bertha lit the place on fire it started burning and we're actually seeing it happen? interesting. the house is burning, pepople are running, bertha's on the battlements and rochester is going up there to --oh fuck grace poole got yeeted over by bertha oh she's flying ahahaha jumped down to where she threw grace poole. rochesters in the fire. jane's off and racing. it's all happened at once. she went to stjohns, didn't even get dumped in teh marshes but down she goes after chilling in a coach for 3 days. shes been there a month. her jaw is so long and forward its creepy. again one fo the few telling her that she's wealthy from inheritance from her uncle. more backstory. she was deeply loved by her parents, now she's wealthy, lifes looking up but she's all upset after than asshole lol move on and be happy. she's hearing his voice on the wind like please chill. damn 6months. what. um. he's very awkwardly trying to propose? but its like the last half of the conversation with the first bit just cut out. so weird. she looks normal face-on. oh she decides after the proposal to go back - none of that chasing after voices nonsense. whoops that shit burned downnn. doggoooo is still alive. what a good boy. fuck me there's like no anticipation, no intensity, no build-up, no chemistry, it's so dry and cold and heartless. christ acting. act. acting. act. please. act. what is happening. act. she has the neck of a swan ol mate. fucking gross. their words are stilted, and not romantic in the slightest and especially not in their delivery. theyre walking with no kids but the dog but they're talking about the kids. oh my god. that was pretty fkn awful. like seriously not good.

How one of the year’s best video game romances flew under the radar

Longing looks. Pet names. Dodging sketchy villains with god complexes. Putting their lives on the line for each other time and time again. While at first blush, you might think the game I was describing was Life is Strange: Before the Storm, but it’s not. (Don’t get me wrong, LiS:BtS is gut-wrenchingly intense and touching, AmberPrice forever.) The game I’m talking about managed to deliver a solidly written, action packed, and stunningly beautiful story with a happy ending. That game is Uncharted: Lost Legacy. Yes, I know, I’m late to the party as the game came out this fall. Thing is, while I love gaming, I have two jobs, wife and a needy dog, so I don’t get to play as much as I would like. I actually picked up Lost Legacy on a whim after seeing fans rave about the relationship between its two leads, Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross. It was the most satisfying game I’ve played in a long time. But before I go into why this gem of a game is so underrated, let me give you a little back story. Uncharted is Nathan Drake’s series. Nathan is a treasure hunter who has led this series since 2007. The final game starring Nathan and his brother Sam, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, came out in 2016. Nathan’s an anti-hero of sorts, and all and all, a lot of fun to play. However, what makes Uncharted the franchise it is, is its supporting cast, which includes Lost Legacy stars Nadine and Chloe. Chloe Frazer is the PC (playable character) in Lost Legacy. She’s a badass treasure hunter (just like Nathan, and was his love interest a few games back) with an Indian-Australian background, and she’s on a mission to find the one treasure that alluded her long dead father. Joining her on her quest in India, is Nadine Ross, a South African mercenary who is trying to win back control of her family’s paramilitary organization, Shoreline. Right from the start, the chemistry between the two women crackles, thanks to some impressive voice acting and motion capture technology. Eyes flicker, cheeks blush, and you almost forget you are playing a video game. Besides being one of the most visually stunning games I’ve ever seen, Chloe and Nadine go one an emotional journey together. Between the climbing and fighting, puzzles and power plays, we get to watch two people develop a serious affection for one another. The subtext is so close to maintext, that even Naughty Dog, the studio behind the Uncharted series, knows these two are meant to be. See their Christmas greeting. From our Naughty Dog family to yours, happy holidays and Happy Hanukkah! pic.twitter.com/aXI3gEvayW — Naughty Dog (@Naughty_Dog) December 13, 2017 I mean, come on! They are so down. Ok, so there’s no kissing, but there is a romantic elephant ride, and both women realize that they are better people because of their experience with each other. These normally closed off women somehow manage to crack each other open. These aren’t gal pals. They are two people building something important together, and it’s a palpable experience for the player. Doesn’t it just make your heart soar a little bit? So why isn’t this game on eveyone’s lips? Well, it could be a couple reasons. It wasn’t a full release, meaning it was more like a DLC and shorter than a full game (although more thoughtful and fun than many full length games). The marketing behind it wasn’t the juggernaut that the Nathan Drake backed games. Queer audiences weren’t exactly courted at first either, but as it happens many times, queer fans took this potential love story and ran with it, making it one of their own. Naughty Dog went along with the fans, and for the most part, it feels genuine and not baitey. I also do want to address that this game and Uncharted 4, are not without their issues. The casting of Laura Bailey, a Caucasian American actress as a Black South African character caused understandable controversy and raised serious questions about casting, whitewashing and the lack of opportunities for actors of color. Bailey is a talented and experienced voice actress, and was supposedly cast before the character of Nadine was finalized,  but it’s an issue that wasn’t handled in a satisfactory way for many fans. We can be critical of the things we love. In fact, we have to be. For fans looking for a happy ending, where both their favs end up alive and well, Lost Legacy has the goods and then-some. While this is probably the last chapter in the Uncharted series, maybe the power of queer fandom can convince Naughty Dog or Sony to give us another chapter of Chlodine, because having two brilliant and powerful women searching the world over for hidden treasure and falling in love, is exactly my kind of game. Uncharted: Lost Legacy is available now for PS4.   http://dlvr.it/Q8jln0

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‘Game of Thrones’ Women: What’s Next?

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Don’t be pissed at the messenger, but we thought you should know, it’s time to let go of Game of Thrones. HBO’s smash series is about to come to a thundering end, and we suggest that you prepare yourselves. However, this doesn’t mean the ladies of Westeros will vanish from our lives forever. The women of GoT have some fantastic new roles already lined up. Here’s what’s next for the women of Game of Thrones.

Though GoT is inspired by the George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series and is generally beloved globally–the series has notoriously failed its women. During Season 8, Episode 4 –we all looked on in horror as Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel), the only woman of color on the show was beheaded. (Shrugs in spoiler.) This isn’t the first time GoT has had some serious missteps with its female characters. From depictions of sexual violence to is glaring lack of diversity–Game of Thrones has broken many TV barriers while keeping women in a box.

Many women–including actress Jessica Chastain and director Ava DuVernay have slammed the series for its use of sexual violence as a character-building tool. Assessing Sansa’s (Sophie Turner) journey on the series, Chastain recently tweeted, “Rape is not a tool to make a character stronger. A woman doesn’t need to be victimized in order to become a butterfly.” She continued, “The #littlebird was always a Phoenix. Her prevailing strength is sole because of her. And her alone.”

After a near-decade-long journey on the series, for most of its leading ladies –the actresses are ready to embark on new (and hopefully more female-positive) projects. This is where we can find them next.

Image: Shutterstock.

Maisie Williams

Maisie Williams was just a preteen when Season 1 of Game of Thrones began. As Arya Stark, Williams’ character’s arc has been one of the most revolutionary on the series. As a little girl–Arya was a precocious little fighter, more at ease using swords with her brothers than learning to sew or wearing a dress. Over the past eight seasons, we’ve watched Arya blossom (out of necessity) into a bold killer who will do anything for her family. All hail the Night King Slayer!

Williams auditioned for GoT because she wanted the money to buy a new laptop, but it looks like she’s ready to make a career out of acting. X-Men fans can catch Williams in The New Mutants which will debut on Aug. 2. She also just wrapped filming for the ’90s set film adaptation of the comic book series, The Owners. The movie is also set to star  Sylvester McCoy and  Rita Tushingham.

Image: Shuttershock.

Sophie Turner

Like her on-screen sister, Sophie Turner had little acting experience before she stepped into Sansa Stark’s gown. When we first met the auburn-headed Stark–she was an exhausting and annoying little girl who was desperate to win the affections of a prince. Sansa did not live happily ever after. Instead, she was held captive by Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), raped and tortured by Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) and manipulated by Petyr Baelish aka Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen). However, what Sansa did learn from all of her experiences was to play the game of thrones. As she told Littlefinger right before his execution, “I’m a slow learner, it’s true. But I learn.”

Though it’s a wrap for GoT, Turner is about to step into the shoes of another red-headed legend. She will reprise her role as Jean Grey in X-Men: Dark Phoenix which is set to drop June 7. The newlywed first played Jean in 2016’s X-Men Apocalypse. Following Dark Pheonix, Turner will star in Jouri Smit’s Heavy.

Image: Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock.

Gwendoline Christie

So, we’re never going to forgive GoT for leaving Brienne of Tarth aka Brienne the Stallion standing in her housecoat in the biting cold begging Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) to pick her over his evil ass twin sister. It really boils our blood just thinking about it. To beg a man who has THREE (maybe four) kids with his twin sister! The GoT writers tried it. However, that’s neither here nor there.

Before she slayed as Ser Brienne on GoT, Gwendoline Christie was slowly making a name for herself in the entertainment industry. However, she exploded in 2012 after her first appearance on GoT. She’s already starred in the Star Wars franchise and the critically acclaimed mini-series, Top of the Lake. After she lays down Brienne sword, you can catch the 6′ 3″ legend as Jane Murdstone in The Personal History of David Copperfield opposite Tilda Swinton.  She will also appear in 2020’s The Friend with Dakota Johnson and Jason Seagal.

Photo: Getty Images

Emilia Clarke

Are y’all going to crumble when the Mother of Dragons dies? We aren’t. Admittedly we loved Emilia Clarke’s Daenerys Targaryen for the first several seasons of Game of Thrones, but lately, homegirl has been working our last nerve. She’s clearly showing signs that she has some real anger issues and her lust for power certainly isn’t helping. Still–we will give Khalessi credit for her journey to try and take back her family’s throne.

Though her character is no longer our fav, we absolutely adore Emilia Clarke. She’s already delighted us in several franchise films including Terminator Genisys and Solo: A Star Wars Story. She also gave us all the feels in the movie-adaptation of, Me Before You. Up next, Clarke probably won’t be riding any more dragons, but you can catch her in Above Suspicion which tells the story of the first ever conviction for the murder of an FBI agent and the rom-com, Last Christmas opposite Henry Golding and Emma Thompson. Both flicks will debut in Winter 2019.

Image: Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock.

Lena Headey

One way or another, Cersei Lannister is about to hang up her crown on Game of Thrones. Whether she wins the throne or Dany and Jon Snow take her out –Lena Headey who has played the sinister queen since Season 1 is ready to move on. Headey isn’t a stranger to film or TV. Her career stretches back into the ’90s. While filming GoT— the British-born actress did some extensive voice work as well.

Following GoT you can catch Headey in The Flood, Gunpowder Milkshake opposite Angela Bassett and Paul Giamatti, and the movie Crooks. Hopefully, she’ll ditch that tragic blonde cut though. And honestly, we don’t know how we feel about seeing Headey in pedestrian clothing. God forbid her character is courteous and friendly.

Image: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock.

Oh, Missandei, she had the best twist out in Westeros, and she and #BaeWorm were supposed to live out their days on some warm sandy beach somewhere away from the racists of Westeros. Nathalie Emmanuel’s days as Missandei may have come to an unsettling conclusion. However, Nathalie Emmanuel is just getting started. Before snagging a role on GoT back in Season 3–Emmanuel was known for her work on Hollyoaks. Since then she’s been in everything from The Fast and the Furious franchise to Maze Runner: The Death Curse.

Up next the vegan actress is saying farewell to HBO and hello to Hulu and Netflix. She is starring on two different forthcoming original series. You can spot her in Hulu’s Four Weddings and a Funeral written by Mindy Kaling. You can also see her in Netflix’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance which stars Helena Bonham Carter, Outlander’s Caitriona Balfe, Natalie Dormer as well as everyone else and their mama.

Image: Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock.

Carice van Houten

So… no one was that pressed when Melisandre took off her choker and withered away at the end of the Battle of Winterfell. We don’t know about you, but we’ve been ready to pull up on her since she burned Shireen Baratheon alive in Season 5. But we suppose we can’t hold that against Carice van Houten. She spoke to the New York Times about her character’s “timely” demise, “I was actually happy and quite sentimental when I read the script. I thought it could be a beautiful ending to this character.”

Like Lena Headey–van Houten has been a staple in entertainment since the ’90s. Post-GoT, she’ll be starring in Brian De Palma’s Domino opposite her former Game of Thrones co-star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as well as the thriller, Lost Girls and Love Hotels.

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10 Answers and 10 Questions

Oooh, my first tag ever (Yes, I’m new-ish)! Thanks to @overthinkingkdrama for tagging me.

What’s a drama you hate that everyone else seems to love?

Moonlight Drawn by the Clouds is the unfortunate answer to this question. I adore Park Bo Gum as much as the next person, and this drama looked so fluffy and pretty that I really wanted to love it. But alas, we just weren’t meant to be :( 

Perhaps hate is too strong a word for it, but mostly I found this drama a little bland. I gave up on it when it originally aired and later went back to it thinking that time and distance were what was required. But the more I watched it, the more it reminded me of one of my first and ultimate favs, Sungkyunkwan Scandal, and not in a nice way. While that show gained depth from it’s amazing treatment of its secondary characters Moonlight never quite rose above basic characterisation. Also, it seemed like the drama made a lot of effort to not fall into the trap of using general kdrama relationship conflict tropes, but my personal feeling was that a lot of issues were resolved without much introspection on part of the characters. Finally, I don’t generally have a problem with fluff, but this was a little too saccharine for my taste. I fully understand why people love it so much though. The drama was just so well done. It had a great cast, good direction, amazing production values and cinematography, it just didn’t click for me.

What drama do you love but everyone else seem to hate?

Because I generally decide on dramas to watch based on fandom opinions there are not so many dramas that come to mind in this category, but I do remember really enjoying Blood when it first came out. The show was admittedly not great, and I think if I were to watch it again I wouldn’t enjoy it nearly as much. However, I really liked the world-building aspects of the show. The idea of vampirism as a viral disease with a team of doctors trying to find a cure was cleverly used.

Who is the most unfairly maligned idol actor you would defend to your dying breath?

IU. I really loved her as Cindy, and though a lot went wrong with her character in Scarlet Heart Ryeo, I blame the writers of the show. With the patchy and inconsistent character given to her, IU did the best that can be expected honestly. (Also, I just really love her!)

Honourable mention:  Infinite’s L. I know he sucked in My Lovely Girl, but so did everybody else in that show. He was pretty good in Shut Up! Flower Boy Band, and I have high hopes from Ruler: Master of the Mask.

What’s do you consider the most important fact for your drama watching enjoyment: a unique/interesting premise, good pacing, a satisfying ending? (You can only pick one.)

Because I’m the kind of awful person who reads spoilers on Wikipedia and the ending of books to ensure that the OTP gets together etc etc, I would have expected myself to opt for satisfying ending. But then I was pretty obsessed with Moon Lovers (the very anti-thesis of a satisfying ending) and more recently Ms. Perfect (not a bad ending, but not satisfying). 

What I’ve realised while waiting for a full week for new drama episodes that if the show is not paced well, I lose interest and give up looking for new episodes the next week. Even if the drama is super fluffy and ends happily, if it loses steam midway through, I lose the will to go on as well (eg, Descendants of the Sun [finished it painfully], Oh Hae Young Again [Gave up around episode 12]).

Is there a show you watched toward the beginning of your kdrama career and you opinion has since changed drastically for better or worse since then?

Secret Love Affair. I watched it in the very early days of my kdrama watching journey, in an attempt to watch more ‘serious’ and ‘arty’ dramas [As opposed to Boys over Flowers :P]. While the fact that the show was beautifully shot and acted was not lost to me even then, I failed to grasp a lot of the emotion behind it. It was a rather superficial watch to be perfectly honest.

Since then however, I have watched the show two more times, and like fine wine, it was only gotten better. A lot of my increased enjoyment of the show actually has to do with a better understanding of Korean culture and society, and also language. There a lot of subtle things in the drama watching experience that just get lost in translation. Now nearly one year later, I am able to pick up on them more easily, and not take subtitles so literally. 

Also, I now realise what a (beautiful beautiful) unicorn this is in dramaland. 

When would you say kdramas became a regular part of your life?

About January 2016 I would say, so nearly a year and a half ago. Kdramas came into my life when a lot of things in real life were particularly hard for me. They provided a very safe and welcome escape, something western TV shows with their increasing cynicism and sci-fi focus had utterly failed at . 

Which common kdrama romantic convention have you seen a million times but you still can’t get enough of it? (Tying shoes, drunken piggyback rides, umbrellas, buying medicine for the love interest, first snow kisses/confessions, etc.)

Umbrellas. Give me all the umbrellas!

Is there anything that says I-love-you-and-I-want-to-protect-you-from-all-the-hurt-in-the-world better? Also, it always involves the umbrella-giver getting a tiny bit wet because they’re focused on making sure that the umbrella-taker is all covered up and dry. I live for this kind of bullshit. 

Which common kdrama convention do other people go gaga for but you just don’t get?

Piggyback rides and CPR-is-actually-a-kiss. In that order. 

Which actor do you avoid like the plague?

At the risk of alienating nearly everyone, Lee Jong Suk. None of his dramas interest me particularly really. 

Is there a particular writer’s body of work you find yourself drawn to? Who and why?

I had to think about this for a while. Watching out for drama writers is fairly new to me. Where I’m from (India), it’s directors, much more so that writers, who set the tone of the movies and shows. 

Jung Sung Joo is the writer behind two of my favourite dramas, Secret Love Affair and A Wife’s Credentials. I also really enjoyed what I watched of her latest drama, Heard it Through the Grapevine (didn’t end up finishing it for personal reasons, but I think I’ll take it up again) as it deals many of the same themes as the previous ones that I mentioned.   

Recurrent themes in her work are snobbery, corruption, and the desperation with which the upper-middle class tries to iron out all kinks in their public image, despite heavy turmoil underneath. She has many more dramas to her credit which I haven’t watched, but the reason I chose to mention her over say the writers of Signal or Age of Youth (both beautifully written, well crafted shows) was that I recently read a bit of the script itself, and it proves what I had always felt: the heady atmosphere of these dramas that is at once mysterious melodrama and slice of life emotional exploration is written into the script itself. Every silence is accounted for, every hand gesture is carefully calculated. Those scripts are a thing of beauty. 

 My questions are as follows:

Your most favourite scene in a drama ever?

A drama you could scrub the memory of so that you could watch it again for the first time?

Romantic comedies or Angsty romance?

A terribly typecast actor/actress?

How willing are you to overlook moral/ethical issues in dramas if they are otherwise enjoyable?

An actor/actress you would watch a drama for due to the mere fact of them being in it?

A drama from a genre you don’t ordinarily watch that you loved?

Favourite non-main character in a drama, and why?

Sageuk favourite?

Most over-hyped actor (You can’t say Lee Min Ho!)?

I tag @wyndrider, @achiara and @belladonna2017 if you feel so inclined :)