Man to Man

Man to Man

4/10

Man to Man

Genre:                                 Episodes: 16                          Year: 2017

Romance

Comedy

Mystery

Synopsis:

Kim Seol Woo is an undercover agent for Korea. His most recent mission leads him to take on a bodyguard identity where he must guard Yeo Woon Gwang, one of Korea’s best action stars. 

Cast:

Park Hae Jin (Kim Seol Woo/K)

Park Sung Woong (Yeo Woon Kwang)

Kim Min Jung (Cha Do Ha)

Yeo Jung Hoon (Mo Sung Jae)

Chae Jung Ahn (Song Mi Eun)

Jung Man Shik (Lee Dong Hyun)

Jang Hyun Sung (Jang Tae Ho)

Chun Ho Jin (Baek In Soo)

General Thoughts:

This drama frustrated me on so many levels. It totally should have been good, and then just wasn’t. Like, it had this awesome premise and a pretty solid cast backing it up and then just…did nothing with it.

I guess making a secret spy show boring is a skill in its own way...

The show’s biggest stumbling block (at least for me) is that it didn’t blend its genres well at all. Not in the slightest. Sometimes it was a hard action/mystery, sometimes it was a comedy, and sometimes it was a romance. And none too convincingly. It was genre whiplash. There were no moments where a scene had one major tone that was undercut by a different emotion it was just HUMOUR-ACTION-ROMANCE-ACTION-ROMANCE-HUMOUR etc.

It's kinda awkward

It made the series feel like it had a whole bunch of people working on it and each one wanted to take the drama in a different direction, so in the end they just ended up ripping the show apart. Sure, there were some pretty cool action sequences and some pretty funny moments, but they just never jelled together to form one cohesive, harmonious story. And the romance was just never really that convincing. I was expecting a love-line more like ‘Healer’, so it was really disappointing when the romance tanked so bad. Park Hae Jin was cool and swoony when called for, but I never felt the romance from Kim Min Jung. It didn’t help that Do Ha was just a straight up annoying heroine- the scene where Seol Woo was ripping her to pieces during their breakup didn’t actually make me feel bad for her at all…I was just like yep, that’s exactly what you’re like and it totally gives me the sh*ts, why would this dude be interested in you? Which of course meant I didn’t really get it when Seol Woo did become interested in her. It just felt so forced. Early on the show was dropping such heavy hints that Seol Woo was going to fall for Do Ha. He’d get all confused as to why he was feeling a certain way about her, but I was just as confused. I completely failed to see what was so different and/or captivating about Do Ha that this secret agent would want to totally change up his life for her. It really felt like Seol Woo was only interested in Do Ha because the script called for it.

About as thrilling as this romance got

On the other hand, the relationship between Do Ha and Woon Kwang was so delightfully natural. I loved that the show didn’t try to force any romantic feelings between the two of them, and that they could simply be two people who had come to support and rely on one another. Woon Kwang really was just like a well-meaning, adorable big brother. Platonic male-female relationships don’t often come around in K-Drama- even less than the rare female friendships, so I enjoyed that the show gave Do Ha and Woon Kwang a relaxed and uncomplicated friendship.

This I'm totally on board with

Beyond our main trio there weren’t actually a lot of characters that got much screen time or development. The villains were remarkably shallow and poorly written, and even some of the characters on Team K were rather underdeveloped. And the side characters were basically of no importance whatsoever.

Why oh why didn't they introduce you earlier?

When the show brought in Dong Hyun’s wife after his accident, I was actually kind of annoyed that she wasn’t brought in sooner. Her character and her relationship with Dong Hyun and those around him actually added a whole lot of humour and heart to the show. Like, this woman has known all along that Dong Hyun was still getting involved in dangerous activities for the good of country, but pretends she doesn’t know because she’s well aware that it’s part of what makes her husband him. It would have been so interesting and fun to have her make more appearances throughout the series rather than just at the end. I also didn’t really see the importance of Sharon at all. It was hinted at the the baddies were going to use her to manipulate Tae Ho, but that never really happened, and her character just disappeared for a while instead. Mi Eun was quite an intriguing character, and probably one of the most well developed on the show. Her motivations were unclear, and you could never be quite sure which team she was batting for. However, by the end of the show, her progression made complete sense and all her actions were understandable. I do wish that the writers had spent a bit more effort on the relationship between Mi Eun and Sung Jae though. While it was understandable why she chose to stay married to him, it could have been a much more emotional moment if we’d witnessed how the two had grown closer together over the course of her mission.

There's so much story here that just got ignored

As it was, it was kind of hard to forget what a prick he was to her at the start of the series- I mean, he threatened to take her child away from her for goodness sake! And while we had a whole bunch of characters getting basically no screen time or development, we also had Do Ha’s Dad getting about as much screen time as the three leads.

For reals tho- get off my TV 

He’s the only side character that really gets that much screen time and he is literally the WORST character in the whole show. Seriously, he’s so annoying. He’s a terrible father and basically just a terrible human being. Was there any scene where he was an enjoyable character? No, not really, there were just moments when he wasn’t painfully infuriating. Just goes to show how shoddy the division of screen time was. Acting-wise there were a few who really nailed their roles and a few who…didn’t. Park Hae Jin was excellent as the cold hero who could do whatever was needed for the country before disappearing completely, but he could also show Seol Woo’s insecurities well. The gradual softening of Seol Woo towards Do Ha and Woon Kwang was done remarkably well and Park Hae Jin made it easy to understand and cheer for our hero. Park Sung Woong was excellent next to Park Hae Jin, and there really wasn’t a single moment I didn’t enjoy his performance. He was dorky and fun, but also gave off the sense that he could get dangerously protective of those he cared about. He was just delightful all-round.

More like the BEST there is

Chae Jung Ahn acted the ambiguity of her character with subtle nuance. She was excellent at keeping her allegiance a mystery until the show revealed it, and then it became clear which face was her real one, and which was her ghost agent persona. On the not-so-good side of the acting we had our heroine.

He looks chronically tired and not the least bit villainous

It’s not that I believe Kim Min Jung is a particularly bad actress, I just don’t think her and the character fit together all that well. Kim Min Jung was never able to make me really like Do Ha, and her reactions never came across as all that genuine. She felt cheesy and kind of fake, and I wasn’t really ever onboard with the emotions she was trying to convey. And then there’s poor Yeon Jung Hoon, who I’m sure did his best with the worst villain ever written. Sung Jae was a big ol’ nothing. He did nothing. He was nothing. All he ever really seemed to do was give money to people in a secret room. And that’s not very scary. Yeon Jung Hoon didn’t really give off a very threatening vibe, even in scenes he was supposed to be frightening in. He just sort of seemed like a bumbling fool who had no idea how to accomplish his goals. The character was bland on paper and Yeon Jung Hoon wasn’t exactly all that successful in breathing any life into him.

What Was Great:

Men:

Hands down the best part of the series was Seol Woo and Woon Kwang. No competition. They were adorable and hilarious all in one.

Why did we even need a romance?

It was fun in the period of time before Woon Kwang liked Seol Woo as the show kind of ran with a mock romantic vibe between them with long looks and slow-mo moments. It was like Seol Woo was doing all the swoony things heroes usually do to heroines, only Woon Kwang was the recipient. So of course all of that was hilarious. Then after Woon Kwang warmed to his bodyguard a lot of heart was added. I felt Woon Kwang was more responsible for breaking down Seol Woo’s walls than Do Ha was. Woon Kwang’s complete acceptance and firm desire to remain friends with Seol Woo was really sweet to watch. It was clear that Seol Woo had never really experienced that kind of unconditional love before, and it was immensely enjoyable to watch Seol Woo come to accept, and even rely on that love.

My OTP for sure

Sure, his romance with Do Ha was supposed to be the main point (and actually caused Woon Kwang to get less and less screen time as the plot progressed), but it was moments between the two men that I found funniest, mose touching, and most enjoyable.

What Wasn’t:

What is Happening?:

Seriously though, what the hell is even happening in this drama. Nothing makes sense. This is quite possibly the most poorly written action drama I’ve come across (so far). So Seol Woo is a secret agent. Cool. Does this ever really get explained properly?

I don't think I've ever met a hero with less backstory 

No, not really. Beyond the opening of the first episode where we see Seol Woo getting recruited we never resist why he acme a secret agent. I don't think we ever even learned his real name- wasn't the name Kim Seol Woo just a cover? Also, where’s his family at? What led to this man wanting to become someone who doesn’t exist? Well, we’ll never know because it seems the writers couldn’t be bothered going that far into the main character's background. He’s just a secret agent. He just is. And why is Sung Jae a villain? He just is. On that note, why the hell does Korea’s secret service really care so much about this company’s slush fund anyway? The writers never really grasped the whole idea of set-up and pay-off. We’re thrust into the middle of this mission that has already been going on for quite some time because Mi Eun married the guy and has a child with him so that quite a few years there. Then Agent Y gets killed off and we spend the whole series gathering information that Agent Y already had. Which seems real stupid. The idea of a traitor in the NIS only really got brought in towards the second half of the series so it made little sense as to why Y didn’t just give all his information to the NIS. And even if he knew  there was a traitor, why didn’t he give all his information to Mi Eun who he trusted and was a mentor for? The whole premise really made very little sense.

I have no idea why anyone did anything

The plot was so poorly constructed that I really just couldn’t bring myself to care about the company or the slush fund or the tapes. The missions to actually acquire the wood carvings were pretty fun, but didn’t last very long. And each mission had a buttload of sitting around talking and planning leading up to the mission that was really quite boring. Then after aaaaaaaaaall this time getting the first two wood carvings and Sung Jae basically being a bumbling fool and messing up beating Team K,

Poor Sung Jae...we never get to see you be competent 

suddenly somehow he just has the third carving. The only time our villain actually pulls something off and we don’t get to see it on screen. Then after all this Tae Ho seems to jump teams but doesn’t really (the whole thing was rather confusing and not at all convincing), and then the NIS leader is the traitor. It’s kind of lame to have the idea of a traitor then only introduce the character who IS the traitor like an episode before he’s revealed as the traitor. That’s some cruddy storytelling right there. And while all this is going on we are also subjected to the WORST ROMANCE OF ALL TIME. Okay, possibly an exaggeration, but the romance did suck. The leads were on and off and then lovers tactic (wtf) and then Do Ha’s totally not putting her life on hold and waiting for K while he’s off doing missions except that she totally is. There were very few moments where the leads connected to each other on an emotional level, and because the writers essentially gave K no past, there’s no opportunity for the two to have D and Ms and really get to know each other. They just kind of hang about each other saying how they kinda like each other and that Do Ha is K’s weakness. Ugggghhhhhh so lame. So super duper lame. I would very nearly prefer to watch Park Hae Jin romance a rock.

I just don't caaaaareeeee

The series as a whole just didn’t seem very well planned out. It’s like the writers went in with a very basic idea of what was going to happen and then just had no idea how to fill the 16 episodes required. Events just seemed so random and poorly thought out and made the whole drama seem sloppy.

Recommend?

Nope. This show really doesn’t do anything quite well enough so it kind of doesn’t really earn a recommendation from any point of view- romance, mystery or comedy.

The men were about the only thing the show got right

Bad Guys

Bad Guys

7/10

Bad Guys

Genre: Episodes: 11 Year: 2014

Mystery

Thriller

Synopsis:

After a criminal murders his son, the Police Commissioner forms a specially selected team of criminals whose task is to track down and capture the criminals that the police cannot find. The team is made up of Park Woong Chul- a mob boss, Jung Tae Soo- a contract killer, Lee Jung Moon- a psychopathic serial killer, and is lead by Oh Goo Tak- a police officer who was suspended from the force after the murder of his daughter made him lose control. Inspector Yoo Mi Young is tasked with keeping the team under control.

Cast:

Kim Sang Joong (Oh Goo Tak)

Ma Dong Seok (Park Woong Chul)

Jo Dong Hyuk (Jung Tae Soo)

Park Hae Jin (Lee Jung Moon)

Kang Ye Won (Yoo Mi Young)

Jang Shin Il (Nam Goo Hyun)

Kim Tae Hoon (Oh Jae Won)

General Thoughts:

It’s a nice dark drama that’s not too dark. It has all the anger and pain of a much darker story, but manages to balance it well with a sprinkle of humour. I never found myself really and truly falling in love with the drama as a whole, but the characters were enough to snag me.

Everyone loves a bad boy...or three

I expected to love Park Hae Jin as the cold psychopathic murderer (I think he’s fabulous in anything), but I wasn’t expecting to fall so hard for the hitman Tae Soo. Jo Dong Hyuk nailed it as the contact killer with a conscience and I just adored every aspect of his character.

A badass fighter with perfect eyebrows- what more could a girl want?

He felt dark and mysterious (as all bad boys should), but also had a heavy, easily wounded heart and a lady love he’d leave his bad ways behind for (again, as all bad boys should). Tae Soo was slick, skilled and cool, and Jo Dong Hyuk became the character 100%. Similarly, Ma Dong Seok felt like he and his character Woong Chul were one and the same. I adored him in ‘Train to Busan’ as the zombie-punching strongman and I adored him in this as the people-punching gangster. Honestly and truly, no one does likeable tough men quite like Ma Dong Seok. I loved Park Hae Jin more for Park Hae Jin and less for his character, who I always thought could stand to be a bit creepier. Park Hae Jin acted him well, and when he was creepy he was chillingly scary- but there weren’t really enough of those moments. It was as though the writers didn’t want to make it too hard to turn the character around at the end, so they skimped out on Jung Moon’s over-all bad guy vibe. Kim Sang Joon acted the part of the hero (was he though?) Goo Tak to perfection. His expressions, tone and movements were all so in tune with Goo Tak that he felt like a living, breathing being in the way the other bad guys didn’t (they felt more like storybook characters).

As with any origins story, it started with the death of a family member

The writing and acting really came together in the character Goo Tak- he never came across feeling like a made-up hero the way the other boys sometimes did, and Goo Tak’s loss of morality and slip-ups made him feel distinctly flawed and human. Unfortunately, as real as Goo Tak felt, I can’t say that I warmed up to him much.

Tae Soo and Woong Chul's rapport was probably my favourite thing

My heart was stolen by the loveable, much less realistic prison-boys, and that didn’t leave a lot of love for Goo Tak- particularly when he went against the other three. I liked that each of the guys felt different and had their own story to tell. Their differences were always shown well, particularly in fight scenes- Woong Chul just used pure power, Tae Soo used agility and skill, and Jung Moon just kind of made it up as he went. As well as their fighting styles, their personalities all felt unique and distinctive as well. As for the story, I will admit that I didn’t always feel like I was making sense of it in the way that I should have been. I had most of the big issues figured out pretty early, such as Jung Moon not being a murderer (I’ve only seen one drama where a guy who’s killed 15+ people is painted in an even slightly positive light), and Prosecutor Oh being the Big Bad (I’ve just become used to seeing Kim Tae Hoon as a villain, and that character felt way too slimy). While the smaller cases were interesting, sometimes they did feel a bit like filler while we waited until we were deep enough in the story to get the the final villain. I wish that Prosecutor Oh had been a bit more proactive throughout the whole show, as it kind of reduced his scare factor.

I mean, he's creepy and well crazy but I feel like our bad guys can take him without breaking a sweat

Team Bad Guys never felt like it was in any real danger from an external force- it was more likely that they’d kill each other first. Internal struggle can have its merits, but in a show such as this, I do think the overall villain needed to be a bit more…well…villainous. I always prefer conflicts that are solidly based in the present, and let’s be real- dude ain’t murdered anyone in 2 years (until ep 15). In a similar vein, it also meant that I didn’t really feel what the end goal was of this drama. Like, clearly it’s about clearing Jung Moon’s name (cuz he obvs didn’t kill no peeps), but the idea of that is brought in a touch late to be THE main plot line.

So Jung Moon never killed anyone, but is he still a psychopath or was that a lie too?

What Was Great:

The Darkness:

Visually, I really loved how gritty and dark the show looked. The extreme contrasts in the cinematography really set this drama apart from others. As well as having a unique story line, having such uncommon visuals really made the drama stand out. The drama played really well with light and shadow, and incorporated that into the mystery of the actual story.

The visuals are certainly attention grabbing

The silhouette shots were not only super cool, but further enforced the not-everything-is-as-it-seems tone of the series. The happy flashbacks for all the characters were lighter and less contrasting scenes, and often had more colour than just the various shades of dark that the present day scenes had. It was a subtle way to maximise the impact of our characters’ pasts and exactly how much an event or events have weighed on these men and just how much they have changed.

Bad Guys:

The three prison boys were all delightful. You’d think that you wouldn’t like them much because they’re, y’know, bad guys, but it’s enjoyable to watch their stories unfold.

Bad boys, bad boys

Their backgrounds are revealed in ways that show their mistakes and vulnerabilities, so it’s hard to not like them. Of course it helps that none of the main guys are really all that bad. Sure, contract killing isn’t great, but even the hired hitman knew that kidnapping and harvesting organs was just evil and wrong. The whole idea of these three characters is quite a nice thought as well- they may have made some bad choices at one time or another, but it’s those bad choices that put them in a position to help people, and those who’ve never made bad choices wouldn’t be able to think and mobilise the way our bad guys do. The bonding moments between the three criminals were always pretty sweet, and it was nice to see them draw together as a team- though a bit more teamwork and boy-bonding wouldn’t have gone astray.

What Wasn’t:

Pieces Missing:

I will admit that sometimes I found the story a little hard to follow. I’m not sure if it’s because some things just weren’t explained enough, or if the dialogue simply made less sense once it was translated. The show was absolutely ripe with doublespeak and that could make it hard to follow at times for me as a non-Korean speaker.

Half the time I had zero idea what in the hell the Commissioner was going on about

Like, are the dogs we’re talking about the police, our bad guys or the real bad guys? I’m lost. I’m not against doublespeak here and there but I do feel like the show had just too many metaphors and layered speeches and hidden meanings.

Guuuuurl wat u doin'?

I had no clue why Inspector Yoo decided to change sides from the Police Commissioner to Prosecutor Oh. I actually questioned her necessity in the story at all, but I suppose we can’t have a 100% male cast. Similarly, I struggled to understand what was going on with Goo Tak most of the time as well. While he was a simple guy who hated injustice and would do anything to bring criminals down he was easy to understand, but as time went on I found myself questioning his actions. It wasn’t so much his motive that confused me but more how he went about doing things. Like, if he was so sure that Jung Moon was his daughter’s murderer, why didn’t he kill him straight away as soon as the criminals were released for the first case? And if he didn’t 100% believe Jung Moon killed his daughter why did he suddenly snap and try to kill Jung Moon at every turn? Maybe it’s because I was so positive that Jung Moon wasn’t a murderer that Goo Tak came off as confusing and blinded, but he really sort of stopped making sense when the time came to focus on Jung Moon’s story.

Either shoot him or don't, but make up your mind

Like come on, if you’d made up a bunch of evidence to imprison the guy maaaaaybe while he was out of your way you could gather up some evidence that either supported or contradicted your ‘hunch’. Just sayin’.

All my years of TV and movie viewing tell me you're a big ol' red herring

The series sure didn’t go out of its way to make things clearer either. Sometimes we would see a scene one way, and then we’d see it again and something would have changed. Sometimes we saw things on screen that just flat out weren’t true (such as Jung Moon wiping down a murdered girl’s body when by the end it was clear he’d never done such a thing). It was like the drama was trying way too hard to make us second guess Jung Moon, and that itself pretty much assured me of his innocence. Would they really put so much time and effort into making Jung Moon look like the murderer if he really was the murderer? My previous experience with mystery-thrillers tells me no. 

Recommend?

Definitely. Probably not a drama for the lovers of rom-coms and not much else, but if you like a bit of action and a bit of an underdog tale it’s a great story. I think Korean audiences can probably get more out of it than non-Korean speaking viewers, but it’s enjoyable all the same.

Come at me Season 2

7 First Kisses

7 First Kisses

5.5/10

7 First Kisses

Genre:                                  Episodes: 8                          Year: 2017

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

On her 25th birthday, Min Soo Jin is visited by an Angel. Having never had a boyfriend, or even a kiss, the Angel grants Soo Jin 7 fantasies with 7 men. Soo Jin can only choose one fantasy to become reality, and can pick only one of the men she has met.

Cast:

Lee Cho Hee (Min Soo Jin)

Lee Joon Ki (Lee Joon Ki)

Park Hae Jin (Park Hae Jin)

Ji Chang Wook (Ji Chang Wook)

Kai (Kai)

Ok Taecyeon (Ok Taecyeon)

Lee Jong Suk (Lee Jong Suk)

Lee Min Ho (Lee Min Ho)

General Thoughts:

It wasn’t quite what I was expecting, as I only went in knowing the title and the cast. Usually I complain because dramas are just far too long, but in this case I was kinda left feeling like ‘where’s the rest of it?’.

Handsome men, handsome men- everybody loves handsome men

I mean, it was cute and it was a little funny at times, but each episode was over before you really got into it. I guess that’s the downside of having so many high profile actors- they’re either too busy, or you just can’t afford them for a whole hour.

It's basically just a whole series made for fangirling

But on the bright side, you can smash out this drama in less than an evening. Each episode sits at less than 10 minutes, and most of the episode is just Soo Jin being confused about what was going on. Most of Lee Joon Ki’s episode was Soo Jin freaking out, and sadly that did lessen the cuteness of it. The short episodes also mean that the sweetness is spread pretty thin- there’s no depth to anything and no room for the boys to grow as characters. On the other hand, it was cute how each boy was given a different fantasy- neighbourhood oppa, boss, secret agent, student, chaebol, actor. It was fun in an unsubstantial way. We only came for the boys, and the writers know that, so really its just showing off how cool/cute these guys are. The layout was a little weird for me- and maybe that’s just because of where I watched it, but it took me a little while to figure out how to get from one episode to the next as all the different endings were mixed in, so I started out going from the end of Lee Joon Ki’s episode to the Angel telling Soo Jin to pick one of the guys and was highly confused. But then I figured it out and it was all good. While the idea of the different endings is pretty fun, I do think I prefer the more traditional start-to-finish layout in my dramas. 

It's 'Healer'!

What Was Great:

Flower Parade:

The whole selling point of this drama is the boys, and they do deliver. Each boy is decked out in handsomeness and gets a pretty cool (or at least funny) scenario. The boys were all brilliant as all they really had to do was stand there and be attractive. Which isn’t hard for them. 

I would be fine with any of these situations, thank you

What Wasn’t:

What a Tease:

Yeah, so -spoiler alert- there are no kisses. The title is a big fat lie. Also Lee Min Ho’s ‘bonus episode’ was a bit of a joke- there’s not really even a hint of romance in it.

The kiss is a lie

It should really be called ‘6 Almost Kisses and Blink and You’ll Miss Lee Min Ho’. At the end of the day it’s not a huge deal, but when your sole selling point is that this one girl gets to snog seven amazing men, and then take out the snogging, you’re not left with very much. Once I realised what was going on it was easy to see the humour in the situations, but at first I was super confused. When the ending finished I thought that there’d been some mistake and that only half of it had been aired, but no. This girl doesn’t kiss anyone at all. Like, sure she gets to live in her fantasy world with the man of her choice and there’ll be kissing later for her- but not for us. We have to live in the crappy real world where the Ji Chang Wook’s and Lee Jong Suk’s don’t give a monkey’s ass about us. Boo the real world.

Re-watch?

Nah, fluffy as it was it was very disjointed. The episodes don’t flow together (as they’re all different fantasy/scenarios), and let’s be real- the romance is pretty light.

You can't really go wrong