Surplus Princess

Surplus Princess

5.5/10

Surplus Princess

Genre:                            Episodes: 10                        Year: 2014

Fantasy

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

Mermaid Princess Ha Ni has an obsession with Kwon Shi Kyung, a famous, human celebrity chef. Believing Shi Kyung is her true love, Ha Ni becomes a human in order to be with him. She lives at ‘Surplus House’, a share-home where job-seekers live. Ha Ni has 100 days to find true love, if she succeeds she will become a human permanently, but if she fails she will disappear forever.

Cast:

Jo Bo Ah (Kim Ha Ni)

On Joo Wan (Lee Hyun Myung)

Song Jae Rim (Kwon Shi Kyung)

Park Ji Soo (Yoon Jin Ah)

Kim Seul Gi (An Hye Young)

Kim Min Kyo (Do Ji Yong)

Nam Joo Hyuk (Big)

Ahn Kil Kang (Ahn Ma Nyeo)

General Thoughts:

The cast is what makes the drama so enjoyable. Without the cast this series is nothing. We’ve all heard the mermaid story so many darn times before that you’d really be pushing yourself to come up with a new spin on the old tale, so it’s a good move to focus on the cast and characters rather than the plot. Because, you know, we all know what’s coming.

Adorable little babies

Our female lead was probably the weakest link in the casting, and that’s more of a praise to our support characters than a criticism of Jo Bo Ah. But as far as actresses go, Kim Seul Gi really steals the show. No surprises there. She always does, and likely always will.

Kim Seul Gi is dynamite. Forever. Always.

She gives such a dynamic yet endearing punch to every character she plays, and can deliver wackiness in the best possible way. I don’t think I could ever be dissatisfied with Kim Seul Gi’s performance. She’s just a total ace. Whenever I see Nam Joo Hyuk in anything, I just become increasingly more frustrated with ‘School 2015- Who Are You?’. Because his character was so sucky in ‘School 2015’ that I totally wrote him off as one of those model-turned-actors who can’t really act. But he continues to surprise me whenever I see him. He’s adorable as the surplus maknae, and the Noona Romance with Kim Seul Gi sure doesn’t hurt either. And Kim Min Kyo is just adorable and hilarious. He just is. Our two main boys are beautifully cast. And beautiful. Sure, they don’t have the most different or dynamic male characters ever seen, but On Joo Wan and Song Jae Rim give enough individuality to the characters that it doesn’t feel like we have our typical K-Drama heroes with new faces stuck on. Jo Bo Ah is sweet and quirky (because it’s a K-Drama, of course she’s sweet and quirky) and didn’t seem afraid to embarrass herself in the least.

He is indeed

While she did a fair enough job as the lead, unfortunately she does lack that certain sparkle and allure that the best actress emanate. But two thumbs-up for spending so much shooting time in water. Regarding the plot- well…it’s nothing new. It’s another retelling of the classic mermaid tale.

It's okay unemployed bums- Australian youth feel you all too well

So it was relieving when the writers chose to focus a little more attention on the job-hunting with the romance coming in second to being employed. It gave an interesting look into current youth, and how many young people have to give up on their dreams because they need a job. Any job. It was an idea that set this drama apart from other K-Dramas. As an audience we’re used to seeing downtrodden, overlooked characters with dreams of their own. And that’s what our characters in ‘Surplus Princess’ were like. But where they differ is that brutal punch of reality. Hyun Myung doesn’t make it as a famous artist. Ji Yong doesn’t become a respected judge. Both these men have to give up what they initially wanted for their lives in order to actually make a living for themselves. It’s sad, yet true to life, and does make it more heartwarming when we see how well our characters are getting along even after they’ve given up their initial dream-life.

What Was Great:

Great Ensemble:

Like I said earlier, it’s magic. It’s what holds the whole show together. Because this series could have quite easily been awkward and gimmicky, but instead remained light-hearted and fun, and most of that credit has to go to the cast.

We even get Gal Pals- how exciting is that!

The actors weren’t too afraid to embarrass themselves- particularly Kim Min Kyo, who ended up having some of the funniest scenes in the whole series (along with Kim Seul Gi). Everyone who participated in the show took it seriously, but not too seriously, allowing us viewers to enjoy the humour of the show without finding it cringe-inducing or lacking in plot.

Love Triangle:

One of the better aspects of the drama is that our two main male characters were able to develop easily along side one another, with neither getting shafted for a period in order to allow the other to grow.

Will it be the understated hero...

It made for a much more convincing love dilemma for our heroine, because we’ve witnessed her relationships with these two different men growing and developing simultaneously. It also makes it more interesting for the audience to watch, because it’s less clear which man our Princess will end up choosing. Hyun Myung is set up in our traditional hero way- what with his overlooked talents, unending determination, and b*tchy girlfriend who dumps him early on. So that’s where we expect our heroine’s heart to head after an appropriate amount of confusion for the sexy chef she became human for. Only, our heroine then spends a lot of time developing an unexpectedly in depth relationship with Chef Shi Kyung which progresses quite smoothly. And given the unexpected time constraints, it’s hard to peg whether the writers would go with the initial hidden hero love, or the newly sparked shallow love which grew unexpected depth.

...or the gorgeous Prince Charming?

Antagonising Antagonist:

Jin Ah sucked. She was a really dislikable character, given her manipulative nature and sense of entitlement. It’s kind of nice every now and then to stumble across a drama that has an antagonist you’re allowed to just flat-out dislike.

No redemption arc for you.

So many dramas lean towards mean, but not downright nasty antagonists, and then opt for the redemption arc. Not ‘Surplus Princess’. Jin Ah is dislikable to start with and dislikable at the end, and an all round great opposition for our heroine. Jin Ah is the perfect counter for our bouncy, if not mildly (or very) self-centred Princess. As both girls are aiming for the same guy, it gives us a reason to cheer for Ha Ni. Who initially comes across as selfish and dim-witted. But selfish and dim-witted beats b*tchy and manipulative, so I’m on Team Ha Ni for this one.

What Wasn’t:

Episode Cutback:

The episode cutback for this drama is pretty brutal. Most often I can understand the choice to cut-back a series’ episodes (when the plot is floundering and struggling to go forward), but ‘Surplus Princess’ seemed to be hitting it’s stride when the network chose to axe its airtime. The team behind ‘Surplus Princess’ were given the news that the series would be cut from 14 episodes down to 10 after the 9th episode had already begun filming. Meaning they were left with a single episode to tie everything up nicely. Eep. While the writers managed to do a praise-worthy job of bringing the series to a close in a satisfactory way, I still would have preferred that the show was allowed to run for its full length.

It all felt a tad rushed

While the plot did make sense, sadly it was our main pairing’s love-line that was rushed due to the cutback. The writers opted to go with their initial plan to have the final pairing be Ha Ni and Hyun Myung, which meant a lot of their relationship was played in fast forward in the last episode. And I was all for seeing 4 more episodes of Ha Ni and Hyun Myung realising their growing attraction and watching that develop. Ah well. We can’t have it all. Thanks for being a butt, tvN.

Confusing Ending:

I have no doubt that the confusion in that last episode was due to the episode cutback. While most of the story was handled nicely, we did have some aspects of the series that were left a little unpolished. Mainly being Ha Ni disappearing into bubbles. Yeeeaaahhhhh.

Sorry, what now?

What happened there? So she didn’t find true love with Hyun Myung? But then she appears a year later. Um, why? Where’s the logic in that? And what up with trying to tie off Chef Charming with Jin Ah? That was just some straight up bullish*t right there. It was a little alarming to have a series that had followed its own logic so well suddenly throw all the rules out the window. Rather than Ha Ni and Hyun Myung being happy after the 100th day passed and knowing they had found true love, we have Ha Ni vanish (presumably dead) before returning a year later, and the whole series ends on Ha Ni’s face with the caption ‘I’ll be back’. It felt like the whole ending sequence was basically a giant middle finger to tvN, saying that they had so many ideas planned that would now never be seen on TV because the network axed them. It was a giant middle finger disguised as art. I kind of like the guts it took for them to send their middle finger to the network, but at the same time the first and foremost responsibly of the team behind ‘Surplus Princess’ is to their viewers, who stuck with them through the low ratings.

Basically what the writers gave to tvN

So yes, it was amusing to watch and know that the writers were sending a message to tvN, but I also would have enjoyed an ending that made logical sense and didn’t open up enormous plot holes.

Re-watch?

Nah. It’s cute, it’s fluffy, it’s a one-time watch.

Right before she 'dies'

Love Frequency 37.2

Love Frequency 37.2

3/10

Love Frequency 37.2

Genre:                          Episodes: 6                            Year: 2014

Romance

Melodrama

Synopsis:

A pirate radio station broadcasts stories from its listeners. DJ Captain shares various love stories and and offers advice and consultation.   

Cast:

Yoon Gun (DJ Captain)

Choi Yoon So

Yoon Jin Wook

Jin Hyun Bin 

Ayoung

General Thoughts:

This is a drama that’s so far under the radar that it’s hard to find information on it at all. I’m totally surprised that I was able to stumble across it, as it’s so unknown, and so are most of it’s actors. The writers try to do something a little different, with each episode telling the story of two different couples and their love.

Love stories everywhere

It’s nice to have a break from the overly tired K-Drama tropes that seem to be spurned out at a rate of knots. And that’s not to say those dramas are bad- there are lots of dramas that reuse ideas but package them in a fresh way for an interesting watch (Healer, The Heirs), but it’s nice to have a change all the same.

Basically my reaction whenever they didn't give me a proper conclusion

That being said, there was a lot that was left behind in the actual execution of the drama. None of the small stories had any sense of continuity, and many of them were actually left feeling unfinished. Perhaps it was a result of having two rather than one story an episode, but it seemed as though the writers would only ever go deep enough to explore what the problem was, but finish the story arc up without actually addressing any of our characters’ problems. By ending so many of the smaller stories in this manner, it gave the drama a sense of pointlessness. If no real solution is being reached, why bother telling us the story at all? The writers also never truly capitalised on having two stories in the one episode by interweaving them. The couple from Part 1 of the episode barely ever made an appearance in Part 2 of the episode. Only once did this occur, in the story of the girl growing nervous because her boyfriend had a close female coworker, and her friend made a throwaway comment about how perfect office relationships could be, gesturing to a couple in their own office. Only, we’d just seen that exact office couple’s story, about how their relationship was a lie, and their marriage was one of convenience. By interweaving the story that way, it gave the sense that our current couple weren’t just out there in the void somewhere, but existing in the same space, time, and culture as the rest of our couples. It also gave added insight into how no one truly knows the relationship between two people except those two people themselves. Definitely a wasted opportunity there.

What's your deal, Mr. DJ?

And our supposed main character DJ Captain is just totally confusing. We are given no information about who he is, or why he runs this pirate broadcast. Seeing as he’s the only continually occurring character it would have been nice to get to know him. It’s hard to tell where the drama was wanting to go, and if the writers had planned to explore Captain’s character further down the track- it's a bit brutal when your drama is cut from 12 episodes back to 6. That aside, the camerawork and cinematography were lovely, and the song choices were spot-on.

What Was Great:

Same Actors:

While new stories were given every episode, we always had the same four actors acting these stories out. Which was quite nice.

Soon Jin Wook is a pretty, pretty princess man

While we didn't have any continuing characters (bar DJ Captain who I’m not counting) it was enjoyable to still have the same cast, and gave the cast an opportunity to take on a few different roles. While I didn’t always love Choi Yoon So, I found Ayoung to be surprisingly entertaining to watch. While she could definitely be cute, she was able to express that cuteness in very different ways for each of her characters. And Yoon Jin Wook and Jin Hyun Bin were just marvellous. Although their acting may not have been the most convincing thing I’ve ever seen, they’re easy on the eyes and delivered some very adorable men.

What Wasn’t:

No Continuity:

Every choice in every drama has its pros and cons. While it was interesting to have new stories every episode, sadly this also meant that characters did not return. As there were two stories every episode, we had 30 minutes to get to know our characters, and at the end of that 30 minutes we would never see them again. Which is great if it’s a story that’s not particularly interesting, but it’s a total bummer when there’s a story you’re drawn to. Having such a short space of time to get to know our characters meant that there was zero character development. The characters came, delivered their short snapshot into their lives, and disappeared. I’m sure these characters had names, but I wouldn’t be able to tell you a single one of them, because they came and went so quickly.

Just look at those characters we'll never see again

Obvious Inexperience:

While it is nice to see some new faces in Dramaland, unfortunately the acting was not quite up to scratch. Sure, it was acceptable enough, but it probably wasn’t quite ‘good’. Just when you thought the actors had settled into the drama, a scene would come along where their acting skills fell just a tad short, and we were reminded once more that the drama was dealing with a very inexperienced cast. But hey, everyone has to start somewhere.

STOP F*UCKING CHEATING ON YOUR SPOUSES. SERIOUSLY.

Beginnings of Repetition:

Even though the show had chosen to take on the format of smaller stories rather than one continuing plot, it did seem that our radio love stories were getting a tad repetitive. Sure, the characters were new and the situation was different, but how many ways are there of spinning cheating and affairs? I wish the writers had chosen to explore a wider variety of topics. I got pretty darn tired of watching a bunch of people choosing to marry people they weren’t 100% sure they liked, and then trying to justify their affair. Sorry drama, but I find it pretty hard to sympathise with cheaters.

Re-watch?

Not a chance. While I liked the two actors, the drama just wasn't good. There were interesting aspects of the series, but I don’t know if I’d go as far as calling the drama ‘enjoyable’.

37.2- a frequency I would probably not tune in to.

Come Back, Ajusshi

Come Back, Ajusshi

7.5/10

Come Back, Ajusshi

Genre:                             Episodes: 16                                 Year: 2016

Comedy

Supernatural

Melodrama

Synopsis:

On the same day, Kim Young Soo and Han Gi Tak die and find themselves in purgatory together. The company responsible for Young Soo’s death is claiming it as a suicide, and Young Soo’s wife, young daughter, and elderly father are suffering. The woman Gi Tak died to protect is in serious trouble as her ex-husband is doing everything he can to make her life miserable. Believing that they still have things they must accomplish, the two men are allowed to return back to earth, but they cannot reveal their true identities. Young Soo returns as an attractive, wealthy young man, while Gi Tak returns with the body of a beautiful young woman.

Cast:

Rain (Lee Hae Joon/Kim Young Soo)

Oh Yeon Seo (Han Hong Nan/Han Gi Tak)

Kim In Kwon (Kim Young Soo)

Kim Soo Ro (Han Gi Tak)

Lee Min Jung (Shin Da Hye)

Lee Ha Nui (Song Yi Yeon)

Choi Won Young (Cha Jae Guk)

Oh Dae Hwan (Na Suk Chul)

Lee Tae Hwan (Choi Seung Jae)

General Thoughts:

The characters and cast are what really hold the show together. While the plot kind of dances around, not quite knowing where to go, this fact is almost completely hidden by the wonderful construction of characters and the actors that played them. Rain is just made for comedy. He’s hilarious in every sense of the word.

Handsomely hilarious 

While he was certainly able to deliver the emotions in heavier scenes, it was his beautiful fit into the comedic aspects of the role where he really dazzled. Oh Yeon Seo was spectacular as a man with a woman’s body.

Behold the perfect comedy duo

She was able to perfectly channel not only the character Han Gi Tak, but also Kim Soo Ro’s interpretation of the character. The two were 100% believable as the two ajusshis, and I imagine that wasn’t an easy feat. The two ajusshi reincarnations and the two ajusshis themselves were what really made the show. As they were dead from episode 1, it was pretty clear that there was going to be some heart-tugging moments along the way- and there were. Young’s Soo’s family and their grief just slayed me. It was gutting and totally believable- especially Young Soo’s daughter. Unlike Young Soo, Gi Tak’s relationships were handled with an air of comedy- what with him being in a female body, his minions finding him hot, and beloved Seung Jae nursing a monster crush. But even those relationships were able to occasionally bypass the laughs for a moment of honesty and sincerity. Tonally, the drama wasn’t always perfect- there were some funny scenes that probably should have been serious, and some serious scenes that might have bettered from a bit of humour, but for the most part the writers were able to nicely interweave humour and heart through the whole story. Thankfully the emotions and the characters were able to mostly distract us from the more unpolished aspects of the drama. Like our central plot.

Just enjoy all the relationships and ignore everything else

It wasn’t the most horrendous drama I’ve ever clapped eyes on, but you definitely don’t want to concentrate on the details too hard lest you see the flaws. And gapping plot holes. However, despite the confusion in the plot line, the drama manages to chug along at an intriguing little pace, with enough events occurring to occupy our array of delightfully magnificent characters.

What Was Great:

Ajusshi Bromance:

Bromances are always fab- always. Even the sh*ttiest of bromances have their upsides. And this bromance is all kinds of awesome. The bromance adds in a wonderful punch of comedy as one of our bros now resides in the body of a stunningly gorgeous woman.

Top stuff

But Young Soo doesn’t see him as a woman, and neither do we- which opens the door for a whole heap of misunderstandings and gender-bender shenanigans. Not only are Kim Soo Ro and Kim In Kwon absolutely adorable in their bromantic moments, but the bromance is actually one of the strongest plot points.

Taking on the afterlife together

While it’s wonderful watching these two men bond due to their similar circumstances and complete desire to protect their loved ones that they left behind, the reveal of their connection from when they were alive added an extra punch to the series. Birth secrets are nothing new in K-Drama (or any drama), but the writers cleverly made the reveal more about our two ajusshis than about Da Hye herself. While it was sad that Da Hye only found her brother after he had died, it was still satisfying for our ajusshis. All along Gi Tak had seen how much Young Soo loved and treasured his wife, so even though both men were gone, Gi Tak was able to know that his little sister had been completely loved by a wonderful man that Gi Tak himself had come to care for deeply. Speaking of birth secrets, Young Soo’s daughter not actually being his daughter was probably one I could have lived without. I could roll with it because that scene in the ferris wheel was unspeakably sad and added new layers to their father-daughter relationship, but the drama kind of killed it right at the end. Is it wrong that I don’t want Han Na to have sort of relationship with Ji Hoon? I don’t care if it is, because Ji Hoon is an ass who covered up Young Soo’s death and was macking on his widow. 

Convincing Characters:

All the characters were brilliant, right down to our side characters. The drama has a wonderful ensemble, and though the writers may not have created the most fluid plot, they absolutely nailed the character relationships and dynamics.

You can't not love these characters

There’s not much else to say. The characters were awesome, as were the actors. Especially Lee Tae Hwan. His misguided crush on his hyung was adorable and hilarious.

Basically how I feel when a 'comedy' drama is actually funny

It’s Funny:

With so many comedy dramas out there it seems strange to praise a series for being funny. But it just was so wonderfully humorous. Many dramas tend to have the comedy fall away towards the end of the series to make a more emotional ending, but ‘Come Back, Ajusshi’ managed to keep a fair amount of humour right to the end. And it was good humour too- it wasn’t just slapstick comedy or pure ridiculousness, but well thought through and well executed comedy.

What Wasn’t:

Where’s Our Main Plot?:

Yeah, it’s kind of all over the place. For a long stretch there the series focuses on Young Soo revealing the truth behind his death and his battle with the department store. Which isn’t the most interesting thing out. His changing dynamics with his wife are what make this portion so entertaining, and his confused relationship with Gi Tak/Hong Nan definitely helped bring the funny. There was a brief point in the middle there where Young Soo was trying to save the department store and Ji Hoon was our villain.

I'm totally on board with that guy being our villain cuz he just plain sucks

Maybe? I don’t know, I’m confused too.Then the drama shifts towards who killed Gi Tak and what they want now. Which definitely raised the stakes.

Lee Tae Hwan- you had my curiosity, but now you have my attention

Having Young Soo’s wife being Gi Tak’s younger sister gave them a common enemy in Na Suk Chul and a common goal- don’t let Suk Chul kill Da Hye. It was all over some funds that were never properly explained and didn’t seem to ever make an appearance. Throughout all the different plot points there was always Hong Nan/Gi Tak’s relationship with Yi Yeon. Which didn’t add much to the drama plot-wise, but was great for character development. Because I won’t lie, Yi Yeon’s plot line of becoming a great actress again was pretty yawn-worthy. But if it gave us more time with Seung Jae I suppose I can live with it.

Gi Tak’s ‘Death’:

I so didn’t appreciate this aspect of the ending at all. While I guess it does sort of make sense- if Gi Tak never existed then Da Hye would never be in danger, but it did feel like a major cop-out. It was almost as though the writers realised too late how complicated they had made this section of the drama and couldn’t think of a satisfactory way to wrap everything up, so they just altered the fabric of reality by removing Gi Tak’s existence. It wasn’t awful, but I’m sure there could have been a better way to close the conflict than erasing Gi Tak. Not to mention that it opens up all kinds of plot-holes. All kinds.

I'm still not sure how I feel about this

The only part I found passable and acceptable about erasing Gi Tak from the world was that final epilogue of young Young Soo in the car while young Da Hye’s picture was taken. It was like the whole point of the series was revealed in the last 2 minutes. Da Hye had been loved all along by her brother and by her husband, and now the two ajusshi’s know that. Goodbye, The End.

Re-watch?

Unlikely. Beautiful as the characters and their relationships were, there’s not a lot going on in the drama at all. Rain and Oh Yeon Seo were fabulous, but the plot was a bit desperate.

It wasn't phenomenal, but it was enjoyable and got the job done