Kill Me, Heal Me

I watched this as part of my PSJ marathon. Though he's second lead here, I've heard great things about the main, Ji Sung. The other main, Hwang Jung-eum starred with Park Seo-joon in She Was Pretty. Although this was the reason why they had that series together because of their chemistry in this drama. This aired from January to March 2015.

The story revolves around the idea of multiple personality disorder and how Cha Do-hyun (Ji Sung) dealt with it.

Oh Ri-jin (Hwang Jung-eum) is a psychiatrist who was hired to treat Do-hyun and in the process, encountered all his other personalities. Oh Ri-on is Ri-jin's twin bother who was actually a blockbuster fiction writer in secret.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT

The Story
The plot and its reveals deserves a standing ovation. The last twist made my jaw drop and I had to point at the screen and shout in astonishment. It was just awesome!
When I watch something, I usually try to guess the outcome and more often than not, I'm right. But this one, I really did not get it at all that's why I was so surprised! I never expected that curve ball! Though I want to discuss it in detail, I don't want somebody reading this who haven't watched it be disappointed.
It's interesting to note that the writer of this series, Jin Soo-wan, was also the writer of my other favorite drama, Moon Embracing the Sun.

Ji Sung
He was just a revelation. Portraying 5 or 6 different characters one after the other can be difficult but he did so with flair. Other actors would opt for a costume change but in his case, it was not necessary (although I think the director did it to not confuse the viewer). He altered his pitch, his mannerisms and his voice to fit the personality of who he was portraying. I am just at awe of him.
I have a crush on one of the personalities of Cha Do-hyun, Shin Se-gi. He's sort of the "bad boy" personality and he appears whenever Do-hyun experiences violence. I used to wonder why these guys wear make-up but the eyeliners are really growing on me. It makes them look more sexy.

Shin Se Gi Killme Healme GIF from Shinsegi GIFs

The Bromance
The scenes of Ji Sung and PSJ together were just hilarious especially when Oh Ri-on met the other personalities of Cha Do-hyun. They really deserve to win the Best Couple Award!



The OST
There are a lot of ear-worm songs in this drama. One of them, Auditory Hallucination is featured in the clip below:



Park Seo-joon also has a song featured in the series. It's one of my favorites:


Quotable Quotes
I found myself pausing in the middle of an episode because I wanted to take down the lines being uttered by the actors.

"My imagination decides the size of my fear. Fear is something created by oneself, and is the fruit of one's imagination. So now, confront your past. Don't waste your imagination on your past that has already been concluded. Imagination should be left over for the future. For the sake of the future what's going to happen ahead." - Mr. X, Episode 20

- The above is my favorite quote, especially the part on imagination being left for the future. There's no use in dwelling in the past because it's already done and we cannot change it. We should spend more of our energy in preparing for the future.

"There is a dark basement in everyone's hearts. If ignored and is only observed, the darkness becomes thicker. You should muster your courage and go downstairs, then turn on the light. If you're scared when alone, someone can hold your hand." Cha Do-hyun, Episode 20

"No matter how scary the nightmare, it will always end sometimes." Cha Do-hyun, Episode 13

"If it folds in one go, then it's thank you. If you open it up again, then it's lingering attachment. If you open it twice, then it's sadness. If you open it three times, it's pain. After unfolding it over and over again and it becomes ragged, that's how the heart gets ripped. And when ripped, just deal with it until you become numb. That's how it is." - Oh Ri-on (Episode 13)

- It took awhile for me to understand what the above quote meant and when I did, it sounded cool, especially the last part. A broken heart can really be painful and one would tend to wallow in that pain. But however painful it is, you really have to deal with it and later on, it will get better.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE ABOUT IT

Hwang Jung-eum
I cannot unremember her from She Was Pretty and she was again screaming and overacting in the first episode. I had to turn down, again, the volume of my speaker as my ears were hurting. Fortunately, she was more quiet towards the middle and end of the series.

Lover's Resolution
In the dramas I've watched, I always look for the happy ending of the main leads. Though this one ended with them together, I was looking for something else--like if they're getting married or what. I'm too old to still believe in "...they got married and lived happily ever after." but I'm still a child at heart.

RATING
I give this a rating of five tissue boxes. Definitely one of my favorites! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Watched: July 22-28, 2018

Love in the Moonlight

Starring Park Bo-gum and Kim Yoo-jung with second leads, Jinyoung, Chae Soo-bin and Kwak Dong-yeon. The drama aired on August 2016 and ran until October that same year. The network, KBS, even made a teaser video with Park Bo-gum dressed in his hanbok dancing to Boombastic.



This is the second Joseon period drama I've watched and though how much of an eye-candy PBG was and regardless of the good reviews and ratings, I almost did not finish it.

Pic from from starmometer.com

Kim Yoo-jung plays Hong Ra-on, a young girl disguised as a boy and renders love and dating advice to men. It was later on that she accidentally met the character of Park Bo-gum, Crown Prince Yi Yeong who took interest in her and later on became his eunuch much to the consternation of the people around him.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT

Park Bo-gum
Friends have been raving about him and I finally figured out why. His eyes are just beautiful and you can just stare into them all day long without realizing that you have already fallen into the dark entrancing depths.
Though he can be considered a pretty boy, his jaw makes his face more masculine. Of course, him dancing adds to his charm. I found myself giggling while he jived to Boombastic.
It was because of this series that PBG won Best Actor in the KBS Drama Awards.

The OST

I love my oppas. So far, all of them can sing. Bo-gummy sang one of the songs included in the drama. This is My Person/My Dearest.



I'm sore that the OST is not in Spotify and I had to download Soundcloud just to listen to most of the songs in the series.
The other song that I love is Moonlight Drawn by Clouds sung by Gummy. She sang my other favorite OST from Descendants of the Sun.


WHAT I DON'T LIKE ABOUT IT

I felt my interest wane 3/4 along the way. I took to reading episode recaps just to find out what's going to happen. Maybe that's why I didn't feel the poignant scenes too much as I already knew how it would turn out.

Also, I felt the ending has not much resolution. I felt cheated when the contrabida died that way. After all the chaos that he caused, he deserved to die a painful and bloody death. And whatever happened to the two leads? Though there was some sort of resolution, after all that they've been through, I felt it was not enough.

Moon Embracing the Sun is still the best period drama for me.

RATING
I give this a rating of two tissue boxes. Bo Gummy and the OST saved this for me.

Edit: 8/4/21 upgrading the rating to 3 tissue boxes

Watched: July 13-16, 2018

Moon Embracing the Sun

Ever since my sister and sister-in-law found out that I've been watching Korean dramas, they've been bugging me watch this. I finally gave in after watching Kim Soo-hyun at My Love from the Star.

Moon Embracing the Sun is the first Joseon-period drama that I've watched. The other series (Legend of the Blue Sea) had old Korean scenes in it but not the whole drama. This one had them wearing hanboks from the start up to the end.

This series was shown January - March 2012, definitely older than any that I've watched. It starred Kim Soo-hyun and Han Ga-in as the two leads with Jung Il-woo and Kim Min-seo as the second leads.

This historical drama, which has elements of fantasy, was adapted from a novel written by Jung Eun-gwol. It revolves around a king from the Joseon period and his attempts to be with his loved one and at the same time, fight his way through the political intrigues to solidify his hold on his throne.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT IT

Kim Soo-hyun
If I took notice of him at My Love from the Star, this series made me love him more. Even the actor who played his younger version, Yeo Jin-goo, was superb. Soo-hyun was only 24 when the drama was shot but he had shown acting maturity that can be the envy of actors his age. He also won the Best Actor award for this series in the 48th Baeksang Arts Awards (Korea's version of the Golden Globes) and the MBC Drama Awards.
I also love his character here. I love how he grew into such a strong person and to have enough guts and courage to fight for his convictions and for the woman he loves.
When he cries, he definitely gives his all. Here's a clip below posted by TV-People where Kim Soo-hyun's character finally learned the truth about his beloved and how much she suffered.



The Story
The final episode was so suspenseful that I cheered when a key person made a vital decision which turned the tide of the story. I cried so much over this drama and all the twists were properly unraveled and closed. I actually loved it when the contrabidas got their comeuppance and it was bloody like the way they deserved it. Hehehe.
This won Best Drama in the 2012 Baeksang Arts Awards and tons of other nominations and awards.
Definitely one of the best ones that I've watched.

The Oppas
In the past dramas, I'm just used to seeing one or two oppas during the series. This was the first time that I experienced multiple ones that I was smiling the whole time I was watching them.
The younger versions of their characters are not excluded from the list.

• Yim Si-wan, who played the younger version of Heo Yeom (the brother of the female lead)
• Lee Tae-ri, who played the younger version of Prince Yang Myung (the brother of the male lead and the second lead as well)
• Song Jae-rim, who played the bodyguard of the king. I would swoon whenever he would do his swordfights and such. The moves are so graceful it looks as if he's dancing.

Jung Il-woo, Kim Soo-hyun and Song Jae-rim

Instant Korean History and Cultural Lesson

Watching the series gave me an idea on what Korean culture is all about. One thing's for sure, anything that involves a throne would lead to a lot of bloodshed and sacrifice. 

Other than that, I enjoyed seeing the intricate hanbok costumes and the elaborate headpieces (the thing that looks like a chopstick but with decorations at the end) the designs of which emphasizes their social rank. Makes me want to wear one when I eventually visit Korea.

WHAT I DON'T LIKE ABOUT IT

I found it a tad bit too long. I really felt sorry for the character of Han Ga-in especially all the sufferings that she had to undergo. Moreover, the main characters did not appear until the 6th or 7th episode. But I can forgive them for this because of how everything was resolved in the end.

RATING

Highest rating should be five tissue boxes but this deserves 6 tissue boxes for the story and acting. It also made me appreciate Sageuk dramas more.

Watched: June 25-28, 2018