Welcome, 2015! K-drama Resolutions for the New Year

You can do it!

It's a new year, and that means it's time to make a whole bunch of promises you have no intention of keeping! It's only January 5, but I'm pretty sure I have already broken some of my resolutions. It's not too late to make some more, though!

Instead of setting goals for ourselves, this time around Coco and I decided to brainstorm some resolutions for K-drama writers. C'mon, writers! We're just trying to help you be the best you! Aren't we so nice and motivational? This idea was partly inspired by Amanda from Outside Seoul and her Christmas wish list of last year. (Hi Amanda! We miss your blog posts.) So, without further ado, here are some resolutions for the K-drama writers of 2015. Let's make this the best K-drama year yet, shall we?

Resolution 1: More realistic female characters

Yeah, you are, but most people are sometimes.

This resolution is brought to you by Discovery of Romance.

I was kind of taken aback by the massive hatred that came down on the female lead of that series. Most of the commentary on the show went something like "She's such a terrible person! What do these hot, wonderful guys see in her???" Yeah, I found Yeo Reum selfish and infuriating for much of the series, but I didn't really think that she was worse than anyone else on the show—wasn't that kind of the point?  I mean, her boyfriend kept running around with his not-really-sister behind her back, so he wasn't exactly a saint.

My point here isn't that you should run out and watch Discovery of Romance because it wasn't a great show overall. My point is that in the real world, women—like men—have flaws. We get so used to watching sweet, innocent, pure-hearted young ladies running around helping old ladies cross the street all day that it's shocking to see female characters with genuine character flaws aside from "too nice" or "too poor." Many female leads grow, but only in predictable, safe ways. They become more confident. They get better hair. You get the picture.

Personally, I would love to see more female leads with a Han Yeo Reum streak. Yes, you can take it too far and make viewers hate all of the characters (and Discovery of Romance definitely pushed that boundary in the first half), but I'm tired of granny-helping sweethearts. Let's get some more complex women addressing complex problems.

Resolution 2: No more amnesia. Period.

You know what I want to forget? This entire part of the series.

Dear Drama Writers, 

If, at any point in the upcoming year, you run out of ideas and think amnesia might be the answer, trust me. It isn't. Put down your pen and walk away from the script. Everyone who watched Trot Lovers will thank you.

Resolution 3: Cast actual high schoolers in high school dramas.

Actual teenager
Via

Obviously not teenagers.
Via

We don't really need to see 27-year-olds running around, pretending to be 16. I'm sure you can find someone who is an actual teenager to squeeze into that school uniform. Too hard? Fine. We'll even let a 20-year-old slide. But if they're pushing 30, we're not buying it.

Resolution 4: Give the second female lead a chance

Second female leads deserve love too!

Second male syndrome is a pretty well-established fact in Dramaland, but what about the second female leads? I hear through the grapevine that Doctor Stranger was a rare unicorn of a case where people were rooting for the second female lead, but that's the only example I have ever heard.  Why not write a script where instead of arguing the merits of the two men, viewers are torn between two fantastic women instead? 

Did your brain just explode at the possibility of this idea?

Heck, while we're dreaming big, why not let the second female lead get the guy sometime? At least it would be memorable!

Resolution 5: Give our villains depth

This face. I MUST KNOW WHAT IT MEANS!

If you could probably compile all of your villain's lines from a montage of other shows, it might be time to rethink things. Do we really need more cookie cutter businessmen and women furrowing their brows and growling "I will destroy them!" as the camera zooms in on their clenched fists? Do you even know for sure which specific drama I'm referencing right now? I rest my case.

Let's look at two illustrative dramas: You Are All Surrounded and Pride and Prejudice. In YAAS, you have the Birkin bag lady and her easily shocked and very villainous dad, played by the same actor who is easily shocked and very villainous in both Heirs and Nine. On the other hand, though, you have Chief Kang. For most of the series, we couldn't be quite sure if she was a hero or a villain, and that made us sit up and pay attention every time she was on the screen.

Pride and Prejudice has a similar character in Moon Hee Man. I'm a couple of episodes behind (so if you spoil it for me, I'll turn into the Birkin bag lady and beat you with a handbag), but I'm almost to the end of the series, and I'm still never sure what to think of his character.

Perhaps the answer to the common second-half drama slump is to give some nuance to our baddies and keep us coming back for more.

Conclusions

See? That's only five resolutions! So reasonable! Now come back next December and let us know how you did.

What resolutions would you like to give to the K-drama writers this year?

The Best K-dramas of 2014 (And the worst. And all the rest too.)

Another amazing year full of K-drama magic has flown by, so before we dive into 2015, let's take a look at our favorite (and least favorite) 2014 K-drama moments!


Favorite drama of the year


Vivi: Let’s be honest: The dramas that are the “best” aren’t always the ones that end up being our favorites, but this year, I really enjoyed some dramas that seemed to be pretty good overall. For favorite drama, I’m going with Marriage, Not Dating. It was like summery crack, and it was the first romantic comedy I’ve seen in a long time that remembered it was a comedy through the whole show. At the same time, though, the emotions felt real and earned. Most people don't actually face crazy heiress mothers-in-law who throw water on your face, but the passive-aggressive scene in the wedding dress just about had me in tears with how real it felt. Han Groo was an absolute revelation.

Coco: I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have impeccable taste and the ones I love are the best.

V: You are still watching Greatest Marriage. Everything you say is invalid.

C: True, and it is definitely of questionable quality, but I’m not picking it as my favorite! I’m making the claim that It’s Okay, That’s Love was not only my favorite drama of the year, but is also objectively the best drama of the year!





V: How are we judging "best" here? Does it mean that the most people said it was the best? OR does it mean that it was a drama that no one really wanted to watch, but they felt smart watching it, kind of like the Oscars?

C: It just means that I said it was the best.

V: Oh, well then, It’s Okay, That’s Love wins then! Actually, that’s one that’s on my list to watch for later. The whole mental illness plot hit really close to home when it aired, but I still want to see it.

C: You will love it. So stop pretending you are going to watch it and just do it! And I’m not the only one who says it was the best this year. It was very popular all around. And I think it’s saying a lot that the drama debuted without a lot of hype but steadily increased popularity as it aired.

V: I now know what my New Year’s resolution is! New Year’s is all about realistic goals, right? Forget going to the gym; I will feel accomplished as I sit on my couch eating bonbons and watching this show. Where does one find bonbons? Because they are an integral part of my resolution.

C: I don’t know. I just know that’s what housewives eat when they watch soap operas all day, and I want them too.


Biggest Guilty Pleasure

V: So let’s skip to the other end of the quality spectrum. What was your guilty pleasure of the year? The one you were embarrassed to admit you enjoyed? Mine is probably a toss-up between You’re All Surrounded and After School: Lucky or Not Season 2. I'm not saying that I really love After School or anything, but there are so many poop jokes per capita that I feel embarrassed watching at all. Why am I watching? Because it’s short? I don’t know. You Are All Surrounded was okay quality with silly villains and bad writing, but I was obsessed with it to an unreasonable degree. It was the explosions. I’m an easy girl to please, okay?

You had me at hello.

C: And it was also Lee Seung Gi. You LOVE him.

V: I met him! And by "met," I of course mean "snapped photos from far, far away at KCON." We're basically besties.

C: I’ll go ahead and admit here that I do really love The Greatest Marriage. And hate it. Because it makes me laugh at the absurdity of the plot and cry at the over-the-top melodramatic scenes. I’ve never watched a drama so close to what I would consider an outlandish soap opera, and I hated every character, but it redeemed itself by exploring interesting and relevant gender themes.

V: But did they reeeeeeally explore them? Because I watched a couple of episodes, and it just looked like the crazy train.

C: It was the crazy train! But it’s Korea’s culture of suppressing women that makes everyone so crazy.

V: So like Emergency Couple. But with a less cute child than Baby Gook.

C: And a less likable second male lead, or first male lead, or even first female lead. Really there aren’t that many redeeming qualities. That’s why it’s my guilty pleasure!

V: But fewer poop jokes than After School Lucky or Not, so that’s definitely classier than me!


Funniest K-drama

C: Speaking of funny moments (that aren’t poop jokes), what K-drama made you laugh the most this year?

V: There is only one show that literally made me laugh out loud, and that was Mr. Baek. Watching Shin Ha Kyun make old man faces was amazing. Also, for some reason, I feel like if my husband were a 70-year-old man who turned 30, he would make those same faces.

C: I laughed so hard at Fated to Love You. Lee Gun's maniacal laughter is so funny and gets me every time! He really nails comedy with his physical presence.


Also this was a new drama that returned to much of the same old K-drama tropes but managed to make them fresh and enjoyable all over again.

V: Interestingly enough, Jang Na Ra is the female lead in both dramas, but I don't find her particularly funny. Unless you find downtrodden sweetness funny.


Biggest WTF moment

V: The ending scene of Prime Minister and I. Uggggggggggggggggggggh. Do I complain about this drama every chance I get? Yes, yes I do. And I don't feel sorry.

C: I am so on board with the ending of Prime Minister and I! That was the worst.

V: Never before have I felt so cheated over a handshake. I feel personally offended by the writers. I thought we were friends!

C: Also, I’ll add pretty much everything that No Min Woo’s character does in The Greatest Marriage, including his WTF outfits. But they kind of make me love him even more because he can be so cute sometimes.





V: I personally have no idea what you’re talking about. I think that wearing a shirt emblazoned with the word “LONELY” is a perfectly reasonable fashion choice for a date.

C: And the crazy things the second female lead does! Kidnapping your husband’s secret half child so that you can raise it as your own and win your rich in-laws’ love is never a good idea.

V: Speaking of odd dating behaviors in second female leads, I want to add the second female lead from Marriage Not Dating to my WTF list. She might even be at the top. I mean, she tried to blackmail a guy for his sperm. (???!!?!) Please tell me that this is not a real thing that reasonable people do. No, seriously. I need reassurance.

C: One thing I will give the K-dramas this year is that they had the most punch-worthy female second leads ever.


Character you wish you could punch in the face the most

V: Ok, I need to think about this. I only get one punch for the ENTIRE year? I need to use it wisely, or I’ll regret it for all of 2015.

C: Ooo, I know who I pick! The evil mom from Pinocchio. What a *itch! I mean, the lady completely ignores her child for 12 years and then after finally seeing her and having her hug her and tell her that she misses and loves her, she says she hasn’t even thought about her once because she has been too busy and then walks away after tearing all her career dreams down. Not to mention the fact that she’s responsible for destroying the male lead's family with her crazy and dishonest ambition as a news reporter. She’s so evil!

V: Ok, that’s pretty deserving, but I think we should do this by Hammurabi’s code. An eye for an eye. Because I think the person who actually hit other people the most in a drama was the Birkin bag villain in You Are All Surrounded, so getting punched in return seems really fair. Punched with a fake designer bag. Smells like justice.

C: Only as long as you hand the designer bag back to me afterwards so I can fill it with bricks and hit the Pinocchio lady over the head!

V: We might have to invest in a real designer bag in that case. You know, so the handles don’t fall off while we’re delivering high-class justice.

C: I like the sound of that!

V: Let’s move on to the people we don’t want to hit over the head with a bag o’ bricks, shall we?


Favorite couple

C: We all know that this is usually the real reason we stick around for an entire K-drama. Who was your favorite couple of the year, Vivi?


V: Birth of a Beauty. Birth of a Beauty. BIRTH OF A BEAUTY!!!!!!! Best couple ever in the entire universe. Period. Times ten million.

C: Oh wow! Now I must go back to watching it!

V: The plot is absolute nonsense half of the time and the villains might as well be cardboard cutouts, but WOW, the leads make up for it. I just love how they do normal things together, like shopping or cooking or whatever, and it’s the best thing ever. And they’re really supportive of each other and have actual conversations about things and apologize when they fight like normal adults, and I luff them.

C: My favorite couple is It’s Okay, That’s Love all the way! Their chemistry was off the charts and they were just all-around a really believable couple.

It made me kind of obsessively wish they were together in real life and I got really excited when it came out that both of them had recently broken up with their real significant others.

V: Sooooo, what you’re saying is that you’re a homewrecker at heart.

C: Isn’t every K-drama fan? I mean, pretty much every K-drama female lead is a homewrecker. Or at least the male lead. I’m not at the part where he breaks up with the second female lead in Fated to Love You yet, but based on what I’ve seen so far, I think it’s going to be really sad. This doesn’t stop me from wanting him to end up with the female lead, though.

V: Nope, I’m still judging you. Even if you’re right.

C: Fine, then I judge you for liking poop jokes. Moving on!


Best and worst kiss

C: I would consider my pick to be the best and the worst kiss at the same time. The “toast kiss” in Pinocchio looked absolutely ridiculous and seemed like another excuse for Park Shin Hye to never have to actually kiss anyone, but the scene itself was so funny and oddly was kind of sexy.



V: Yeah, the Pinocchio toast kiss was just weird and awkward. SO MANY CORNERS! At least choose a food that isn’t so pointy. But actually the worst kiss for me was in Pride and Prejudice when he was like “Want proof I’m not a murderer?” *KISS* Not sexy. Just terrible.

 The best one was probably Miss Korea just because he was trying to do the whole noble idiocy thing and she was like, “Nice try, buddy!” and then they kissed. I cheered at my screen for that one. Actually, there were a lot of things about Miss Korea that were pleasantly surprising. If I had to nominate the most underrated drama of the year, it would be that one for sure.

My Love from Another Star also had some massively romantic kissing, obviously. That’s part of the reason everyone is so obsessed with it.


Favorite side character

C: My favorite side character has to be Kwang Soo’s character in It’s Okay That’s Love. Kwang Soo is always funny in everything he does, but he’s turned out to also be a really talented actor who brings depth to his characters. In It’s Okay, That’s Love he manages to play someone with turrets syndrome who isn’t just a trope, but is a charming person with realistic responses to life.

Also, I have to mention Baby Gook from Emergency Couple. Let’s be real; he’s actually my favorite character of all time!

V: Well, I was going to say Kim Seul Gi in both Surplus Princess and Discovery of Romance, especially since she made Discovery of Romance watchable, but now that you had to go and bring up Baby Gook, it’s a no-brainer. If I could meet one Korean celebrity, it would be Baby Gook. And I would squish his little cheeks. And I shall call him squishy and he shall be mine.

C: No, he’s mine! I challenge you to a hand bag duel!

V: I was gonna suggest joint custody, but if we’re jumping straight to duels, so be it!


Best Eye Candy

V: I always feel kind of creepy being like “Ooooh, look at this man all alone in his shower!”

C: I don’t! Sorry, not sorry.

V: That being said, I recognize eye candy as a major part of the drama-watching experience. (Can you hear me trying to make this category legit?) My most swoony moment wasn’t even chocolate abs-related. It was Lee Joon Ki’s sweet ninja outfit in Joseon Gunman. I just did a high school girl sigh just thinking about it.

C: Despite My Lovable Girl being the biggest disappointment of the year for me, Rain sure does look good in it!

Sigh…


V: While we’re sighing, can I nominate the best ear candy of the year? Because I could listen to Choi Jin Hyuk or Lee Sun Gyun talk alllllll day.

C: I second that emotion!


Worst Second Lead Syndrome of the year

V: Can you guess who I’m going to say for second lead syndrome?

C: YES! And I agree with you! Poor, poor Chief Gook in Emergency Couple.

V: SIGH. (But not Lee Joon Ki in a ninja outfit sigh. Clutching my heart because I’m sad sigh.)

C: DOUBLE SIGH. Oh the agony of his puppy dog eyes and wistful, heartbroken glances.

V: Let’s stop talking about it. My heart can’t take it! Second place goes to Lee Joon in Mr. Baek. Talk about the surprise of the year! I had no idea he could act like that, and his character ended up being way more nuanced than I thought. But does coming in second place in the second lead contest just make him the saddest loser of the year?

C: Not as sad as the one who gets third place: L’s character in My Lovable Girl. It made it so much worse because it was such an obviously better match. Krystal with Rain, who by the way plays her much older dead sister’s ex-boyfriend. Weird and wrong. And L is also a K-pop boy who is shaping up to be a decent actor.

V: We’re using the term “decent” kind of loosely here, right? But yes, L’s character seemed like a much, much better fit.

C: Yes, by decent I mean entertaining and surprisingly tolerable, but mostly just cute.

V: But what’s worse? Dating your dead sister’s ex, or dating a high school student who your little sister loves (King of High School)? Because if this year taught me anything, it’s that love conquers all kinds of slightly awkward obstacles!

C: Fighting!

Thanks for spending another great year with us! What were your favorite drama moments?

-Coco and Vivi

KCON, Here We Come!

Guess who's going to KCON this week?


The obvious answer is a lot of people, but that's not what we're going for here. The more precise answer (and the one that should be obvious if you read the post title) is that WE ARE GOING TO KCON!

That's right. I'm so excited about about it that I resorted to shouty capslock writing to tell you about it. Last year, KCON was a blast, but this year, it's going to be even better because they have amped up the K-drama side of things quite a bit.

As part of that general amping up of K-drama activities, Coco and I will be panelists this year, which is pretty exciting! Should you happen to be going to KCON and want to stop by and say hi (or heckle us, or whatever), here are our panels:

1.Women in K-dramas:

Chunkeemonkeeato made this awesome poster for our panel. Isn't it great?

Description: The one thing that probably makes K-Drama stand out from all other TV genres are its portrayal of women characters. Top K-Drama bloggers and vloggers discuss the many faces of women in K-Drama. (That's from KCON's website. If I wrote that about my own panel, it would be weird.)

Time: Saturday, August 9 at 11:30 a.m. in Panel Tent 2

Participants: Chunkeemonkeeato, Koala, Crazy for Kdrama, Hallyu Tanya, and us 

2. Second Leads and Love Triangles

I don't have a poster for this one, but I DO have a sad Ji Hoo crying in the rain. Does that make up for it?

Description: Bond with your fellow K-Drama fans over the most heartbreaking second lead relationships. Just what is it that makes us suffer from acute second lead syndrome? Why does it seem like the “good guy” never wins? Let’s tackle the K-Drama second lead types and share our favorites in this must-see panel!

Time: Sunday, August 10 at 11:00 a.m. in Panel Tent 2

Participants: The Crazy Ahjummas, Zombie Momma, and us

I've heard that a lot of bloggers will be heading to KCON this year. We should all chat and be nerdy about K-dramas together! Or just wave to each other on our way to the port-a-potties or something.

New Dramas: King of High School, Joseon Gunman, and Trot Lovers

I had a chance to spend last Saturday hanging out with a bunch of other K-drama lovers/bloggers who happen to live in my area! Eating delicious Korean food and chatting about K-dramas was delightful. I had no idea that the people I read on the internet actually live near me in real life. Dewaanifordrama did a little write-up about our meeting here. I just have to say how much I enjoy the K-drama community. Whether it's the K-drama lovers I meet in real life or those of you who chat about dramas on the internet, you all make watching dramas worthwhile. Thank you. You're the best drama friends a girl could have.

Now that I've gotten my sentimentality out of the way for the day, it's new drama time! Last drama cycle was kind of a bust for us. Out of all of the options, I was only interested in You Are All Surrounded, and then I picked up Witch's Romance towards the end of its run. Coco and I are more interested in the shows this time around. Here's what we're watching:

King of High School/ High School King of Savvy

This poster. I hate it. But I love the show.
Image via

What it's about: Lee Min Suk (Seo In Guk) is a hotshot high school hockey player. When his hotshot businessman brother disappears the day he's supposed to start a new job, he asks Min Suk to act as his double. Min Suk juggles the stresses of high school and business as hijinks (and, I assume, a noona romance with Lee Ha Na) ensue.

First impressions (episodes 1-4): First of all, can we just agree that High School King of Savvy has got to be one of the least appealing show titles of all time? It sounds simultaneously smarmy and childish. I'm glad that I didn't let the title deter me because I went into episode 1 with reeeeeeeeally low expectations, and I was pleasantly surprised.

Seo In Guk is carrying this whole show, no doubt about it. He's amazingly good at playing up the mannerisms of an 18-year-old boy, and I love that his character, while playful and immature, isn't your typical jerkface male lead. He's caring and friendly from the very beginning, which always scores points in my book. I have to admit, though, that I'm just pretending that he's a college student instead of a high school student. I enjoy a good noona romance, but rooting for an older woman to pick up on a high school kid crosses my pervy boundaries. Can we all just agree to pretend he's closer to Seo In Guk's actual age?

I'm a little split on the female lead. She's endearing, but her awkwardness is so over-the-top that it's kind of a cliche at this point. I also can't look at her without seeing this:

I have faith that she will grow on me over the course of the show.

If you're okay with suspending your disbelief of the absurd premise, I would say this is worth a watch for Seo In Guk's performance. And his grandpa.

Where to watch King of High School:

Kdrama.com

Joseon Gunman

Image via

What it's about: At the end of the Joseon era, a sword fighter's son (Lee Joon Ki) must learn to take up the gun in order to get revenge. (Or so I hear. We aren't at the revenge part yet.) He is joined by a young woman (Nam Sang Mi) who fights for enlightenment ideals.

First impressions (episodes 1-2): I'm a sucker for pretty dramas, and this drama is insanely pretty. I'm also a sucker for Lee Jun Ki, so this started out with a stacked deck in my book. Although it might be odd to compare this to King of High School, they're both similar in that they have male leads who start out as immature, but kind and caring. I think the pacing on this drama is pretty smart, as well. We know that the heavy stuff is coming, but they started with some absurdly cute and romantic scenes to carry us through the inevitable melo. I already feel invested in this couple, and it has only been two episodes. As a bonus we already have a cross-dressing drama and forced cohabitation, which happen to be two of my favorite things!

The female lead is interesting. I don't know if the writers did this on purpose, but she's an interesting mix of traditional and assertive. She wants to be a scholar and she sasses anyone who disagrees with her, but she's also kind of damsel-in-distress-ish. Squealing and crying aren't usually my favorite character traits in female leads, but I'm willing to let it slide here because she encapsulates that interesting era of history so well. She's an embodiment of both traditional Korean women and enlightenment ideals. 

Where to watch Joseon Gunman:

DramaFever

Trot Lovers

Image via

What it's about: A superstar (Ji Hyun Woo) falls on hard luck, and, in order to save his career, he must help a young woman who loves traditional trot music (Jung Eunji) become a singer.

First impressions (episodes 1-4): I love both of the leads (and I also like our second male lead, Shin Sung Rok, now that he isn't murdering people), but I'm a little bit worried about the writing after four episodes. The first two episodes were light and fluffy, episode 3 got pretty dark pretty fast, and then episode 4 went back to light and fluffy. I'm happy that they didn't play sexual harassment or suicidality for laughs, but consistency is also important. The tone has been swinging so wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other that I get the sense that these writers aren't quite sure where this train is headed. Let's just hope they don't steer it off of a cliff! 

Where to watch Trot Lovers:

DramaFever

Viki

What are you guys watching? Thoughts so far?

7 times K-dramas make us act like overly emotional children

For better or worse, watching K-dramas brings out some pretty intense emotions in us. Somehow, they turn otherwise rational and responsible people into impulsive and moody creatures akin to 5-year-olds. If you've ever been around young children, you've seen how kids just can't quite hide or contain their emotions. The secret is that those emotions don't suddenly go away when you're an adult. You still feel like pinching the person next to you when they don't share and throwing a tantrum when you're tired and hungry, socialization has just taught you how to hide it. Well, here are 7 uncontrollable emotions we just can't hold back while watching K-dramas! 

1. The uncontrollable joy that makes you want to dance like a child when they get their first taste of candy.  

2. The extreme frustration that makes you want to throw a tantrum like a 2 year old when things don't go the way they want them to. 

3. The impatience you feel when you have to wait for what you want and are getting very close to having a meltdown because it feels like it will never come.

4. The confusion you feel when you have to choose between two great things, like ice-cream or cookies for desert, and you just can't comprehend why you can't have both. 

5. The exhaustion and crankiness you feel the next day when you fought being put to bed all night because you didn't want to miss a moment of fun.

6. The obstinance and stubbornness you feel when you are being made to say you're sorry, but you're really not. 

7. The total inhibition you display that is usually reserved for either the very young, very old, or very drunk about your K-drama obsession.  

Have K-dramas made you feel more "young at heart" (to put it nicely)? Comment below!

Emergency Couple Korean Drama Review

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Warning: This review is pretty spoiler-y. We can't keep our mouths shut. You've been warned!

Vivi: I’m really glad that Coco and I both watched Emergency Couple because I was waaaaay more invested in it than I had any right to be, and I needed someone to text about it in the middle of the night.

Coco: And I needed someone to talk to about how cute baby Gook was! Seriously, was he not the CUTEST baby in the world?

Vivi: YES. But I thought you were going to say you needed to text someone about how cute Chief Gook was. Because that happened too.

Coco: I’m pretty sure that was YOU. Although I do agree that he was very cute, it was you who did most of the second male lead pining.

This happened every week. Multiple times a week.

Vivi: Yeah, I did. I don’t understand how you were able to watch it without rooting for the second male lead. Are you even human? 

I’m serious. Are you a robot?

Coco: A Choi Jin Hyuk-loving robot!!! I admit that I was on on the first male lead’s side the whole time. That largely had to do with the behind the scenes footage I saw of him laughing and joking with Ji Hyo. They were so freakin adorable together (as cute as the Monday Couple comprised of Ji Hyo and Kang Gary on Running Man, I dare say!) So I was patiently waiting for his character to grow up and act like a man and for her character to finally settle into her confident self.

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Vivi: And my love of Chief Gook was mostly tied to his scruff and the fact that he was socially awkward and emotionally constipated. In other words, if I had a Kdrama patronus, it would be him. You’re right about the character growth, though. A lot of people complained about the leads at first, but I appreciated that they had plenty of time for gradual growth.

Coco: Yes, I was pleased with the growth of these characters. It felt natural, and they all became legitimately awesome people.

Vivi: Yeah, everything felt pretty natural, except for the last few episodes. Song Ji Hyo suddenly baking fortune cookies from scratch and throwing herself at the man made me throw up in my mouth. (And if you run up multiple flights of stairs, of course your heart will be beating hard. You're a doctor! Pull it together!) Also, “I hate divorced people?” It’s like they suddenly realized they only had three episodes left and finally noticed that all sane people loved the second lead.

You know what else was a well-developed character? This cat poster. Behold its glory.

Coco: My complaint at the beginning of the drama was that the female lead was too passive and incompetent for me to love her, but she quickly proved herself and developed the self confidence that had been drained out of her after her terrible divorce. The male lead also gradually stood up for her and came to respect and admire her for real reasons, unlike many other Kdrama characters where I continually ask myself, “Why does he/she like him/her?” (Kim Tan and Eun Sang in Heirs, I’m talking to you).

Vivi: Completely agreed about the respect. I was thrilled that she didn’t stand for it when he tried to force himself onto her, and they included a few episodes where he had to learn to take the relationship on her terms. Unlike you, I liked her from the beginning. She wasn’t really incompetent. From the very beginning, she would do things right, but no one else took her seriously. I think the fact that the character was played by Song Ji Hyo also helped. She as a person doesn’t really strike me as a wilting flower, so I was willing to wait for plot development. I don’t watch Running Man, but I might start.

Coco: Running Man is the best btw. But yes, I love that he had to figure out how to have a mature relationship, and it was too bad that she went over the top in trying to convince him that she truly loved him back at the end. It is sad that they kind of threw the “I hate divorced people” at the Chief as a device to make him less of a good match, but I did really like him with Ji Hye. I just loved her from the beginning with her cool and collected demeanor. I was happy that they alluded to them ending up together, although I wish they would have done more with it than the awkward airport scene. I mean, if I were her I’d be like, “That’s it? A ‘come back sometime’ is the best you can muster during a dramatic airport scene?”

Vivi: I actually kind of loved that. It was so fitting to his entire personality. If the writers had done more with that relationship earlier, I might have expected more, but if he had run to the airport and suddenly started making out with her, it would have been weird. Like sexytimes CPR weird. Or clown music during a hostage scene weird.

Coco: Sexytimes CPR was one of the most awkward scenes of any Kdrama ever. Especially since it fell on a commercial break so it immediately repeated and made it twice as long. Eww.

Vivi: Seriously. It was like I couldn’t stand to watch it, but I couldn’t look away, either. MAKE IT STOP! Speaking of that scene, this show wins for most fakeouts ever. I’m not happy about it, show! If you show someone moving in for a kiss, you’d better mean it!

Coco: But wouldn’t it have been sadder if he actually did kiss her and then she rejected him? At least their relationship didn’t progress that far. But why did she go visit him at his cabin? That was kind of a mean trick when she already knew she wasn’t done with her ex-husband.

Vivi: That was a big complaint for me. It was like the show wanted to pretend that he never even confessed his feelings. Every time I thought they might let the relationship go, they just kept adding in something heartbreaking like that stupid cabin and stabbing me in the heart. And hello, letting him see them making out at the bus stop???? I hate them.

Coco: Ok, can we talk about the side characters for a minute? I totally love her sister and brother -in-law. Yes, she was a total pain in the butt at first, but the way they kept intervening with their relationship was really funny. And they spawned the cutest, funniest creation on God’s green earth, Gook.

Vivi: I wasn’t crazy about any of the parents, but I did enjoy the sister and her bumbling husband (Except for her terrible advice at the end. "Your body knew you were in love"? Nope. Your body was drunk.), and the other people in the hospital were fine. I mean, I can’t say that I was hanging on to every word Ah Reum said, but it was okay.

Coco: Yeah, I didn’t know what to do with Ah Reum. I hated her smug face so much at the beginning that even though she turned into a good person surprisingly quickly, I could never sincerely wish for her happiness. I’m glad that Yong Gyu ended up getting the girl because he was sooo adorable and sweet, but they’re kind of an odd match.

Vivi: They are a perfect match because Ah Reum’s only job was to look hot and smile, and Yong Gyu just wanted a hot girlfriend. Boom. Match made in heaven.

Coco: That’s true. Plus, she really did show that she was a good person many times over. What about the newly married couple and the pregnancy plotline? Something that did strike me over and over again in this drama was the theme of female empowerment. It was fantastic to see so many strong women in typically male positions in this drama.

Vivi: Absolutely. That storyline felt a little underdeveloped and thrown together, but between that, the double standard for divorce, and Ji Hye as a single working mother, it was a show that largely revolved around the problems women face. And at the end of the day, none of the women had ideal lives, and none of them were pushovers.

Coco: It’s so nice to see a Kdrama, or a show in general, that addresses those issues realistically and doesn’t primarily focus on the issues surrounding modern women and sex and romance like in I Need Romance and Sex and the City. Yes, sex and romance are struggles for modern women, but there’s much more than that in their struggle for equality.

Vivi: I Need Romance 3 also had an unwed pregnancy plotline, which was probably the most interesting part of the whole show (which I still need to review someday). I do like to see the emergence of more nuanced shows, though. Wait, did I just call Emergency Couple nuanced? Scratch that. There were definitely rough patches, too. Some of the tone was bizarre. Some of the plot elements jumped forward at the end. The mother drove me insane. But even with the stuff I didn’t like, I was waiting for each new episode, which is something that hasn’t happened in a while.

Coco: True, is had its struggles, and sometimes it seemed a little slow (mostly because I don’t love medical dramas so I would rather fast forward through those scenes), but I was also waiting for new episodes and sometimes got way too excited and then sad when I realized it was actually Thursday and not Friday like I thought. Overall, I highly recommend this drama for its talented and fun cast and their great chemistry, not only as couples but as an overall ensemble as well.

What did you guys think of this show? Did you stick with it past the rough start? Comment below!

Where to watch Emergency Couple

DramaFever

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