Showing posts with label Son Naeun. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Son Naeun. Show all posts

Thursday, 12 January 2017

2016 Jaybird Awards

2016 Jaybird Awards


Wow, another year has come and gone- welcome to 2017! While 2016 wasn’t exactly my favourite year in K-Dramaland, I can’t deny that there was loads to choose from and a heap of variety. There were some huge dramas that were released last year- some lived up to the hype while others drowned under it, and there were of course a few lesser known dramas that snuck in some great stories. Not a lot really jumped out at me as being some of the best dramas of all time, but they all seemed to be on the higher parts of middle ground (though admittedly there are a few total stinkers). All in all, I think 2016 was a fairly good year for K-Dramas- the variety meant that there was something for everyone and bound to be at least a couple of dramas that you fell in love with.

Best Drama:

‘Signal’ really was a cracker of a drama. It’s a quirky little piece that stays a fair bit off the beaten track, but for a drama that covers so much new territory, it makes perfect sense. Time travel shows are a hard nut to crack as there can be so much that can go wrong, and have a higher risk of forming plot holes than other types of shows. However, the writing for ‘Signal’ was so fluid and sure of itself that it was hard to critique the plot. It was easy to trust that the writers weren’t going to drop the ball halfway through, as the story started off with such conviction that it was clear the drama knew what it wanted to do with itself. The acting was all splendid and everyone involved did an excellent job at bringing the story and the characters to life, so that it was almost impossible to disengage from our three detectives and their struggles. The confident and brilliant directing was really just the icing on the cake. 




Best Actor:

Despite what a complete and utter clusterf*ck ‘Moon Lovers’ ended up being, you can’t deny that Lee Joon Ki was totally killer. While the plot made little (to no) sense, Lee Joon Ki’s performance was always engaging, and he made So likeable in a way that might not have been possible had the role been taken on by a different actor. The odd directing hand that resulted in extreme close ups of our characters really gave us all a good look at how completely Lee Joon Ki threw himself into the role. His facial expressions were so incredible, right down to the smallest lip twitch.


Runner Up: Song Joong Ki (Descendants of the Sun)


Best Actress:
Oh Yeon Seo (Come Back, Ajusshi)
I find it quite hard to sort out the really great actress from the good ones, as sadly there’s not a huge variety of heroine roles- at least not as varying as the men get. However, every now and then there’s a drama with an actress who makes you really laugh, or really feel- or both. This year it was definitely Oh Yeon Seo. I don’t think she’s exactly a new face in K-Dramaland, but it was for sure the first time I was seeing her. She totally owned the role of an ajusshi trapped in a woman’s body, and was oddly believable as Kim Soo Ro. She has a flair for laugh-out-loud comedy, and paired with Rain it was just hilarious. Not only was Oh Yeon Seo able to bring the laughs, but she also hit the emotional beats perfectly. She conveyed perfectly the pain of a love that was never realised, and it truly ended up being a stand-out performance of hers.


Runner Up: Lee Sung Kyung (Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo)


Best Short Series:

This mini-series was so good I almost wished they’d made it into a full 16 episode series. The young cast dazzled and gave strong, compelling performances, which is something mini-series often tend to lack. The story was succinct and tight, and got right to the point. Despite the limited amount of time the series had to tell it’s story, it was able to throw in so much emotion- both happy and heartache. 










Best Support:

Shin Rin Ah (Marriage Contract)
Oh my goodness, what an amazing, pocket-sized actress. A lot of young actors and actresses are passable because they’re adorable, and don’t have to do very much. Shin Rin Ah had a huge role in ‘Marriage Contract’, and had the acting chops to back up her sweetly adorable face. She had dazzling chemistry with both UEE and Lee Seo Jin, and added a huge amount of enjoyment to the series.










Best Couple:
Lee Sung Kyung and Nam Joo Hyuk (Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo)
This totally didn’t seem like the drama that would have the best romance, but it definitely was. The two characters of Bok Joo and Joon Hyung were so sweet and innocent, and felt all their emotions so clearly. It was a beautiful coming-of-age series, and really highlighted the ways relationships shape you into the person you become. The two were not only insanely adorable, but a source of support and strength for each other. Their relationship highlighted so beautifully and so simply that there are some things that family and friends can’t do for you- and you just need that one special someone to not only tell you that you’re perfect the way you are, but believe it themselves. The progression of the relationship between Bok Joo and Joon Hyung was so sweet and so realistic, and the friends-to-lovers dynamic really came into its own- the two were practically dating before they even knew they liked each other. It was a cute romance that had a lot of heart, and two loveable leads.

Runner Up: Gong Hyo Jin and Jo Jung Suk (Jealousy Incarnate) 


Best Villain:

Yum Jung Ah (Mirror of the Witch)
It might be an understatement to say that historical dramas can verge on boring. But in ‘Mirror of the Witch’ Yum Jung Ah delivered a spine-chilling performance that added a huge amount of intensity to the series. Hong Joo wasn’t just a villain without rhyme or reason, and could at times be oddly pitiful- a huge credit to Yum Jung Ah who could make the same character so hatable and horrific, but also strangely sympathetic. While the writing often seemed a bit repetitive, Yum Jung Ah continued to deliver a strong performance as the villain, and was always a force to be reckoned with, while also gradually drawing back the layers of her character’s complexity.

Runner Up: Kwon Yul (Let’s Fight, Ghost)


Best Ensemble:

There’s something so wonderful about a drama that has a beautiful ensemble. It’s so much easier to fall in love with a series that has a number of different characters, but so much harder to write a number of characters convincingly. ‘Age of Youth’ appeared to be a happy coming-of-age story, but surprisingly had some darker undertones. The five girls each had a different story to tell, and the writers managed to focus on each of the housemates without the drama feeling jumpy. Each of the girls was acted brilliantly, with the actress fitting the character perfectly. While the girls were delightful on their own, it was the scenes of them together and the budding friendship that arose despite their differences that really sold the show. No matter how much they bickered and criticised each other, the housemates were always there for support, advice or a drink. The girls created a true feeling of camaraderie that made the show so enjoyable to watch, and the girls so easy to love.

Runner Up: Fantastic


Best Bromance:

A great bromance is always a fun time, but it just becomes even funnier when one half of the bromance is trapped in the body of a stunningly beautiful woman. This was an adorable bromance that transcended lifetimes, with the two dead ajusshis returning to the world of the living together. The relationship between the two was so sweet, and often hilarious, and was the true heart of the show. All four of our ajusshis (their souls and their reincarnations) did a brilliant job, and Rain and Oh Yeon Seo had brilliant chemistry. The two did an excellent job in ensuring that the relationship between the characters remained purely platonic- especially when you consider how smokin’ hot they both are. The bro-love in ‘Come Back’ was definitely a winner, and rivalled both the love-lines.


Best Gal Pals:

The housemates in ‘Age of Youth’ were just so sweet and likeable. As each girl had a completely different personality it was inevitable that they clashed, but it was so enjoyable the way they all reconciled after. No matter how angry they got at each other or how many toes were trod on, at the end of the day the girls were all there for each other when it was most important. The relationships that sprung up between the friends were so real and relatable, and were just pure entertaining to watch.





Runner Up: Fantastic

Best Idol Gone Actor:

Seo Kang Joon (Cheese in the Trap)
Three of the 5urprise boys were keeping themselves very busy this year with some notable acting roles, but Seo Kang Joon was a standout. Despite all the conundrums going on behind the cameras of the drama, no one can deny that Seo Kang Joon put in a strong performance. He was able to easily grab the necessary emotions in a character that could have easily come across as too closed off or too volatile. Seo Kang Joon hit a nice balance between the two and delivered an engaging, likeable second male lead, and definitely earned himself some attention in the world of acting.



Runner Up: Kang Min Hyuk (Entertainer)


Worst Idol Gone Actor:

It’s a sad truth that for every successful idol-turned-actor there’s going to be…well…a not so successful one. Son Naeun took on the second female lead in ‘Cinderella’, and the results weren’t that pretty. Her obvious green acting did little to help a character so poorly written that it was at best difficult to watch, and at worst downright annoying when Hye Ji was on screen. 








Runner Up: Kwon Yuri (Gogh’s Starry Night)


Least Convincing Couple:

Yoon Shi Yoon and Kim Sae Ron (Mirror of the Witch)
The drama had a lot of things going for it, but romance was not one of them. Which is a shame when love is kind of the driving force behind the characters’ motivations. Yoon Shi Yoon did a pretty good job carrying the romance all on his own, but where the series made its error is probably in casting a heroine half Yoon Shi Yoon’s age. Poor Kim Sae Ron just didn’t have the capacity for portraying a convincing love story. I think that really, due to her incredibly young age, she didn’t have enough experience as either an actress or in actually experiencing romantic love. Sure, the two had some pretty cute scenes- but did I ever believe they were so madly in love with each other that they’d die for the other? No. Not really.

Runner Up: Madame Antoine


Show Carrier:

Ryu Joon Yeol (Lucky Romance)
‘Lucky Romacne’ was a pretty cute drama overall, but I think that most of the cute came from Ryu Joon Yeol. He absolutely carried this show, no questions asked. The plot was really pretty minimal and the love interest was bland if not annoying, yet the show remained engaging and enjoyable as our adorable robot hero learned to love. And he learned to love in the cutest way possible.








Runner Up: Song Jae Rim (Thumping Spike)


Biggest Disappointment:

There are several ways that a drama can be a huge disappointment- the most common being a drama getting so hyped up before its screening, only to then fall underneath all the crushing expectations. ‘Moorim School’ was not one of those. The drama didn’t really create much hype, but the writers, producers and director were all making some pretty loud noises about how ‘Moorim School’ was going to be a groundbreaking drama in terms of making K-Drama a more international place. Which excited me to no end being a Westerner with a huge love of K-Drama. And then it so did not do that. Sure, there were some international cast members, but none of them were important- none of them did anything, and the fact that they were non-Korean was pretty swept under the rug. Also it was just a bad drama. The story sucked, the acting wasn’t that great, and the romance was beyond disappointing.



Jaybird's Choice

This is not only my favourite drama of the year, but quite possibly my favourite drama of all time. It may not be a high-stakes drama, but the characters are the heart of the show- and they’re such great characters. Bok Joo and Joon Hyung are just a dream to watch develop, and their adorable friends-to-lovers romance is backed up by stellar acting from both our leads. A host of side characters gave the show an in-depth, fleshed out feeling, and the ties of friendship and family were just as prominent, important, and adorable as the romance. The drama never had any lags, or points were the conflict was dragged out for too long, and always kept a cracking pace that left you wanting more, more, more. I could talk for days about how much I love this show. This show is love. This show is life.


Runner Up: W- Two Worlds





2016 Dramas Watched:
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Wednesday, 5 October 2016

Cinderella and Four Knights

Cinderella and Four Knights

3.5/10
Cinderella and Four Knights
Genre:                                Episodes: 16                             Year: 2016
Romance
Comedy 

Synopsis:
Eun Ha Won lives with her step-mother and step-sister, and works several part-time jobs in order to save up for her university tuition. After an accidental encounter with the heir to large corporation, her charm and tenacity is noticed by the company’s Chairman. Ha Won is hired by the Chairman to keep his three grandsons under control and try and turn them into a real family.

Cast:
Park So Dam (Eun Ha Won)
Jung Il Woo (Kang Ji Woon)
Ahn Jae Hyun (Kang Hyn Min)
Lee Jung Shin (Kang Seo Woo)
Choi Min (Lee Yoon Sung)
Son Naeun (Park Hye Ji)



General Thoughts:
Oyyyyyyy, this drama. I’ve rolled my eyes so much I think they’re permanently stuck in the back of my head. This writer is very talented- but not in a good way. Seriously, it’s a special skill to have 4 handsome men living in the same house as 1 cute girl and make it so completely boring to watch. Where’s the fluff? Where’s the cute? Not f*cking here that’s for sure.
Not even all that handsome could save this series
The plot is basically the suckiest piece of poo I’ve seen in a long time. I have absolutely no idea why any of the characters acted the way they did- and at times even the actors seemed confused as to what was going on. The stage had been set for a simple, light-hearted romance story about a rags-to-riches girl.
How fun I thought the drama would be vs. How fun it actually was
Sure, the scenario has been done to death- but at least that shows that an engaging story can be made out of this set-up. But while this story is simple, it’s far from light-hearted and romantic, and not one moment was I engaged in the plot. The only plot device this writer seemed to know how to use was to have one character be a total downer and sap the fun out of everything that happened. First it was Ji Woon with his no smiles and incessant ‘get lost’s, then it was Hye Ji because Hyun Min wouldn’t pay attention to her, then Hyun Min because Hye Ji stopped paying attention to him (jeeezusss). Lastly the lovely secretary and Ha Won had some identity crises with the former Noble Idiot-ing off into the distance and the latter falling into a heap of misery because his mommy’s a b*tch. The laughs or cute moments were very, very few. The only character that managed to make it away unscathed was Seo Woo, who was sweet, gentlemanly and loveable throughout. As it’s Lee Jung Shin’s first real big role, I was glad that the character was able to avoid the catastrophes that turned our other heroes into such unlikeable messes. What the most frustrating aspect of this drama was is that we were given virtually no explanation into why our characters were acting/reacting in the ways they did.
Just goes to show that a good looking cast isn't everything in Dramaland
Our leading man seemed to have a personality transplant halfway through. For half the series Ji Woon only had eyes for Hye Ji and followed her around like a miserable puppy. He spares no feelings or words for Ha Won except when he tells her to piss off- then suddenly he’s dumping Hye Ji with no warning because he has feelings for Ha Won?
At the halfway point these kids switched personalities
We all knew it was going to end up like that, and it was clear that there were some sparks between Ha Won and Ji Woon, but there was no progression of feelings, only an abrupt shift in his actions. But at least Ji Woon got a nice personality swap, unlike poor Hyun Min. While he was always arrogant and douchey, Hyun Min was a fun character when he was trying to seduce the only girl who wouldn’t fall for him- Ha Won. The two had awesome chemistry together, and I honestly believed that Hyun Min was falling for Ha Won for real because of how I saw him acting towards her, the way he looked after her, and the way she was able to fluster him. All I saw him do to Hye Ji was ignore her. Yet lo and behold, a couple of episodes later Hyun Min has turned into a sloppy mess because he loves Hye Ji soooooooo much, and she’s stopped following him around. But they caaaaaan’t be together because her brother died (yeah, what?). It was just way too much moping in a drama that was supposed to be cute and cheery. And it really started to feel like ‘Cinderella and Three Knights’, because the loveable Secretary made a pretty swift departure, only to return as a duller, sadder version of himself.
I was rooting for you from Episode 1- until you became Mr. Conflicted
The obvious music cues made me want to bash my head against a wall. Rather than relying on a solid script and the actors’ talents, the series used music as a crutch (or a wheelchair) to attempt to convey what our characters were feeling. Even though I didn’t feel like Ha Won was falling for Ji Woon, I knew that it surely must be happening due to the swoony music and choirs of angels singing whenever he came near her.
*cue the singing angles*
Similarly, although I felt as though Ha Won and Hyun Min had a pretty solid connection (in the early, less-broody stages of the drama), their interactions were never accompanied by angel choirs- so while I saw them hitting it off, the music was used as a way to tell me that this was not going to happen. It really added a sense of confusion to the drama when music was used as one of the main ways to express our characters emotions because…well…the music doesn’t come from the characters. It comes from the production/editing. Another musical gripe is that they rarely ended song in a satisfactory way. Rather than coming in and out gradually in a way that was unnoticeable while watching, quite often a song would just- BAM. FINISH. Right in the middle. Or there would be a really quick  fade out- like super quick. It wasn’t a huge downfall in the series, but it’s just one of those tiny little things that added on top of a bunch of slightly bigger things only served to increase annoyance. While there were glimmers of fun and what should have been, the show’s broody, angsty vibe killed off a lot of the entertainment. It had good potential to be an easy, fun watch, but turned out to be kind of painful to get through.

What Was Great:

Jung Shin Chingoo:
I wouldn’t go as far as saying that any of the acting in this series is particularly phenomenal (and I blame that on the poor writing and one-dimensional characters rather than the actors’ lack of ability), though it did mean that Lee Jung Shin wasn’t completely blown out of the water by the performances of much more experienced actors.
You adorable piece of human
As it is, Lee Jung Shin gives an endearing performance as the loveable idol with a one-sided crush and is able to confidently act alongside the rest of the boys. He was always believable in his character and fit the tone of the series well, very often providing that breath of fresh air and cuteness that was really lacking. While the drama as a whole was a bit of a disaster, it was still a good project for Lee Jung Shin to take part in to expand his acting career. The series wasn’t too ambitious, and the character of Seo Woo wasn’t too difficult to manage, so Lee Jung Shin was able to stretch his acting muscles a little bit more, all while providing us with an adorable, enjoyable character for the show.

Chemistry:
Despite the complete and utter lack of creativity for both the plot and the characters, the actors managed to get some pretty great chemistry going.
Park So Dam had chemistry with literally everybody 
Park So Dam was able to get relaxed and easy vibes out of all of the boys, and made a plausible couple with each of them. Ha Won would have been a good match for any of the four boys, and I wish the drama had veered more towards her tangled relationships with these boys rather than other, less exciting plot-lines like silly missions, Grandpa’s disapproval, or Hye Ji.

Episode 8:
The characters should have got plastered way more often
By far my favourite of all the episodes. Rather than focusing on all the boring drivel that the writers chose to showcase, I wish they’d just got all the characters in one house and got them mind-numbingly drunk for 16 straight episodes. Because believe it or not, character motivations became much clearer when everyone was drunk out of their minds. It was the first episode that really got me believing the Ha Won X Ji Woon love-line would actually work, and it was just plain fun to watch- a quality that the rest of the episodes were sadly lacking. 

What Wasn’t:

Basically Everything That Happened:
People did things and liked each other and fought each other- but did anyone really care? The piss poor characterisations really hurt the series. It’s hard to side with a character or cheer for them when you literally have no idea why they are doing anything that they do. While the motivations behind our characters weren’t explicitly bad, they just weren’t explained until the final hour. Which is far, far too late. Because by the final hour, I’ve already emotionally clocked out and am only continuing to watch because I’ve already spent so much time on the series and didn’t want all that time to be wasted.
Most of the plot-lines just kind of got ignored in the end...
I kept waiting and waiting for the story behind Hye Ji and Hyun Min to be revealed- and boy was it disappointing when it was. Basically they’re both just retards who have no idea how to communicate or have any sort of functional relationship with anyone ever. Chairman Grandpa was also a character I kept waiting to have make sense. Why did he marry the Secretary’s mother? How did he meet her? How did his sons die? How did the death of his sons impact how he treated his grandsons? And most importantly- why in the world was he so against Ha Won dating Ji Woon? All questions that went unanswered. 

H.J:
Any time Hye Ji was on my screen I wanted to smack her with a rock. She is actually one of the worst characters I have ever clapped eyes on.
All she did was cry. I wish I was over exaggerating, but I'm not.
It’s not because she's evil and gets in the way of Ha Won and her relationships with the boys- at least that would have added some tension into the series. No, she was just so darn tepid. She wasn’t evil enough to be considered a villain, but she didn’t have any redeeming qualities, so she wasn’t a character you could like either. Not to mention that she did little more than stand around crying at either Hyun Min or Ji Woon. The chemistry between her and Ahn Jae Hyun was flatter than a pancake, and the love-line between the two characters was unbareable. While Hyun Min’s confession to Ha Won had been swoony (if massively egotistical), all his conversations with Hye Ji felt boring and so very forced. Rather than feeling like two characters who were in love with each other but separated by circumstance, they felt like two actors awkwardly acting out a terrible script. I was not onboard the Hye Ji X Hyun Min ship- so I was pretty disappointed when I saw Hyun Min's story arc finished with him dating Hye Ji. Son Naeun certainly didn’t give her most convincing performance, and the blandness of Hye Ji’s character only seemed to make it worse. She had little to work with as it was, but the combination of a frustratingly boring character (that got an alarmingly large amount of screen-time) and a green, inexperienced actress made a combo that was not pretty to watch. I must say, I’m not at all sad to have the character of Hye Ji well and truly behind me.
Super lame

Frequent Flashbacks:
2% cute, 20% confusion, 30% angst, 48% flashback
You could fill about four hours with the amount of flashbacks we had in this series. It was ridiculous. Any scene that could be considered of any importance was replayed about a million times throughout the series’ progression- even if the moment had happened in the scene right before. And if there was more than one character involved in said important scene, you can bet that we’re going to get flashbacks of that same moment from everyone. The amount of time we spent on characters’ contemplative faces while they thought back on the past was downright painful. It didn’t matter if you tuned out for half an episode, because you’re going to get most of that content in flashback in the next episode anyway. Constant replays of what we were seeing didn’t really aid in telling the story or in developing our characters- it only made it that much more obvious that the writers didn’t really know what they were doing, and didn’t quite know how to proceed. 

Re-watch?
No. It’s not good.
She should have just never gone back
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