I’ve watched a few shows and movies since my last kdrama wrap up and will include a couple of Chinese dramas in this list too as they have a similar vibe/theme to them but they’re both very different to what I’m used to in Korean dramas.
To start off with, I finished Sisyphus: The Myth and to be honest the ending felt quite rushed but the development of the romantic relationship was quite nice and not insta-love which happens in some shows. There were a few BTS fan moments which were quite cute (listening to Spring Day while walking through the aftermath of a nuclear war or taking a banner from the last stadium show back to the underground bunker they lived in for 10 years…) but this isn’t a show I think I would rewatch. The time-skips and future-travel is easier to understand than it was in The King: Eternal Monarch as they jumped between universes but it’s more sci-fi than fantasy and I’m just not that kind of nerd so can’t take explanations JUST magic.
Strangers From Hell ok so while sci-fi may be a massive genre that I’m not that into, it turns out that cannibalism thrillers is a niche genre that I keep stumbling into. I LOVED THIS. It has Im Siwan who I loved in Run On as well as Lee Dong Wook so it was bound to be good but I really enjoyed the story and thought that Siwan did amazingly in this. Strangers From Hell is also called Hell Is Other People and is about a young man who moved to Seoul from a small town and is only able to afford a small room in a run down apartment block. The neighbours soon turn out to be completely hellish and the disappearance of the previous occupant of his room as well as disappearances linked to the building raise suspicions with him and the local police department. Lee Dong Wook is a fantastic villain in this and without spoilers, Im Siwan really is amazing throughout.
Use For My Talent was my next watch and it is a Chinese remake of Cleaning With Passion For Now (Korean). This is quite possibly one of the cutest shows I have ever seen in my life and I loved every second. The show follows a young woman as she gets a job at a cleaning company and works with the germaphobe CEO who, in true romantic drama fashion, becomes completely besotted with her. The love triangle in this was infuriating for me though, if you’re not a fan of unethical psychiatric practices (which no one should be) then I would just expect that going in because Male Lead A is a therapy client of Male Lead B so…yeah. If you liked Strong Girl Bong Soon then I would definitely recommend you try this, Jasper Liu is the lead on this one and I’ve watched him in Twogether (his travel show with Lee Seung-gi).
Next on the list was Vincenzo a story about a mafia consigliere moving back to Korea after being raised in Italy and then defending the residents of a building that is soon to be demolished by Babel Group (though he’s really trying to get to the gold that is buried underneath the building). The villain in this is once again, fantastic, I don’t know if that says something about me though. Ok Taecyeon says he is a lot like his character in this which is…worrying? Everyone in this is funny, adorable, loveable and also completely unhinged which is always good in a crime drama.
Soon after finishing this, I moved onto the Chinese drama Well Intended Love which I had been recommended but as it is focused on a girl with leukaemia and that has been my life for the past five years but I mentioned that on Twitter and someone said that I should stick with it and THE TWISTS AND TURNS IN THIS SHOW??? OMG. There is not a single drama trope that was not jammed into this show including amnesia, car accidents, jealousy, poisoning, family dramas and love triangles. Then they did a second season where the first one never happened! I didn’t know they could even do that…I haven’t watched that season yet only the first episode but I do want to want to get to it at some point because the first season was unpredictable.
The rest of this wrap up will be posted next week! Please comment below if you have any suggestions for me based on these few shows, I’m always looking for new shows to get into so please let me know!!
Books For Becca 