[feministkdramafeels]

A Fond Farewell

When I first came up with the idea for this tumblr, I really didn’t expect it to grow as quickly as it did. I secretly hoped we might break a hundred followers--I never thought that, nineteen months out, we’d be at nearly ten times that much. Gwynne and I have loved hearing from you via asks, fanmails, or reblogs, and we have been thrilled to connect with the wonderful kdrama community here on tumblr.

As much as we would love to continue FKF indefinitely, our lives have changed a great deal since January 2014. It is time, sadly, for us to move onto other things. Gwynne is about to begin studying for the GRE so she can return to school and get her master’s degree, and I have put off too many projects of my own for far too long.

I thought for several months that we might be able to continue FKF by dropping weekend posts, which would cut down on the number of dramas we each needed to watch. It helped, a little, but we continued to struggle staying current on shows while also trying to accomplish other goals. We briefly considered cutting down even further, but let’s face it—I’d rather end the project cleanly instead of letting it die a slow death.

(That’s one of the things we all like about kdramas, right? A brief run and then they’re done before they can wear out their welcome or self-implode too much.)

Gwynne and I aren’t abandoning kdramas, for the record. We will still be writing about dramas at our personal tumblrs (dramatic-gwynne and audreyskdramablog), but we won’t be adhering to the rigid FKF schedule we had here. If you want to continue reading our commentary, follow us at those places. If not, then let us say thank you now for following us while we were here.

Wishing you all the best,

—Audrey & Gwynne

[feministkdramafeels]

[High Society Final Thoughts]

For the most part, I enjoyed my experience watching this drama even if I’m not entirely sure why. While I wasn’t excited about the main couple, the secondary couple did a fantastic job keeping me engaged. I thought there was a lot of potential going in, especially with the flipping of the rich/poor trope making the girl wealthy.

A lot of the execution fell flat. By the time Joong-Gi and Yoon-Ha got to a place that I was interested in their romance again, the show was over. Not only that, the final episode left me really disappointed for all but one of our ladies.

Because only Ji-Yi really got what she wanted the way she wanted it. 

Yoon-Ha was wrapped up in a mystery she wasn’t allowed to unravel. She wasn’t competent or experienced enough to be a threat to Ye-Won. Joong-Gi told her several times that she was an easy mark. She just didn’t have a clear path or even really clear desires after her Marry for Love plan fell apart on the first try. But the thing that gave me the most pause was when she talked about how she enjoyed Joong-Gi’s criticisms of her. After a lifetime of her mother and sisters tearing her down, I just think it’s a bit of a red flag to be turned on when your boyfriend is constantly pointing out your flaws as well.

Ye-Won was a strong, albeit unethical, businesswoman who literally did everything her parents demanded. She made smart plays and didn’t linger in indecision. She was the oldest child but because she had been born a girl (a nice little point made by her brother) she had no real chance to be the heir and leader until her brother voluntarily left. I don’t understand why she was involved in such an odd powerplay to begin with. Except, of course, she was a girl, so she couldn’t be set up for success without working twice as hard as her brother.

There could’ve been so much more to So-Hyun (middle daughter) and Seo-Ra (mistress) but instead they were played as shallow and vapid. They were only there to give us laughs. It kind of bothered me that Min-Seok (Joong-Gi’s mother) never held any sort of empathy for Seo-Ra. Instead she was passive-aggressive in her judgement and since she was supposed to be a good person, it left a bad taste in my mouth. She also never had to confront the fact her son had done some awful things to women to attain his position.

While I like that Yoon-Ha was not required to forgive her mother, I also appreciated that Hye-Soo acknowledged the damaged she’d done to Yoon-Ha over the years. The drama also did an excellent job getting me to empathize with her. Her husband was horrible and never changed. He put all the blame on her and not once showed a moment of concern or care for her or any of the their daughters.

In the end, the only person to come out of this story with any sort of success, was Ji-Yi. The final scene with her and Chang-Soo’s mother was amazing. She pushed and negotiated and didn’t not compromise until she got what she wanted--the right to date and potentially marry on her terms with a promise that married life wouldn’t be miserable because of her poor background. 

It’s hard not compare a writer’s projects. Can We Get Married is a good, solid drama filled with complicated, wonderful, and oftentimes unlikable women. When the drama ended, I felt satisfied with the lives they would lead in the future because they were lives the women all wanted and fought for. 

High Society lacked all of that. With the exception of Ji-Yi, every woman was thoroughly screwed over by some aspect of the patriarchy. It was a let down and I really wish it had been something else.

[everythingendsdarling]

Ás vezes penso no potencial que teria sido se tivessem investido direito na história das minas.

[fabkwangchul]

“Thank you, for taking care of me for the past 20 years and for liking me so steadfastly. I appreciate all that beyond words. When I decided to marry you , I told you that I can’t become your woman , no matter what. Yet you said that was okay, that just being by your side was enough. Thank you for saying that. Back then I had nowhere to go, thank you for making me a place to say …… I’ll get going now”

[feministkdramafeels]

I put on the Healer OST while I was at work today, and I was instantly overwhelmed by my love for the show. One of the many things Healer did right was in providing us with a variety of women at different ages and stages of life and allowed them to play differing but crucial roles in the story.

Myung-hee was one of my absolute favorite characters. Twenty years ago she was an activist who helped run an illegal radio station from the back of a beat up truck so she and her friends could broadcast their messages in spite of government crackdowns and police car chases. She was passionate about trying to heal the ills of society, and that passion drove her, her husband, and her friends straight into a deadly conspiracy, one that cost Myung-hee her husband, her daughter, and the use of her legs.

It took time for her to rebuild her life, but she did, with one of her surviving friends. And for a long time she was okay--until she noticed the clues that her second husband was not the good person she had thought he was. She used her cunning and investigative skills to find out what was really going on inside her home.

And then she used her strength to leave. No matter how comfortable she had become over the last twenty years, it was comfort built on lies, and Myung-hee was a woman who had once devoted her life to exposing injustice. She took the information she had discovered with her and went straight to people she could count on to help her heal the ills of society--and in the process reunited with her daughter.

[no-llywood]

(insp)

[feministkdramafeels]

[Flower Boy Next Door Episode 16: Final Thoughts]

I don't think I'm ever going to be over how fantastic Dok-Mi's journey truly was. To watch her go from panic attacks whenever she walked out her door to a woman working towards her dream while going into work and comfortable around people. Having a good support system is key to overcoming social anxiety and depression and it was nice that the drama gave her that in the form of Enrique. Dok-Mi was introverted but that didn't mean she didn't have an opinion or was willing to let people treat her poorly. She constantly made her desires clear and wasn't afraid to reject anyone if she didn't like the terms.

I think the last shot of her taking Enrique's hand and running down the street was a fun ending.

One of the things I really liked was that the drama didn't force Dok-Mi to forgive Do-Hwi and work out their friendship. Do-Hwi gave Dok-Mi a scar that took years to heal and that sometimes there is no forgiveness in these kinds of situations. I liked that Do-Hwi was successful at her job and able to employ three other people. Not only that, she went from being the loser to leader of this group. She wasn't a weak coward and I think part of that is what made her so terrifying as Dok-Mi's antagonist.

I enjoyed Webtoon Editor. She was fun. I like that she went after what she wanted. I especially liked Dong-Hoon literally thought everything about her was fantastic. 

While I didn't hate him, I spent a lot of time irritated at Jin-Rak. I think he had a few great epiphanies over the series but I was very disturbed that his final shot includes longing towards Dok-Mi's doppleganger. I just didn't like the implications. It wasn't cute or hopeful for me.

And finally, I absolutely did not understand the relationship between Security/Owner and Lady. He was constantly getting in her space and she did not appear to enjoy his attentions at all. So what if she enjoys being around all the Flower Boys on her floor? So when they got together it felt weird.

In the end though, I loved this drama. I was eager to watch every episode which isn't something I felt with, say, some of the other older dramas I've watched, like Coffee Prince. Flower Boy Next Door was always on my mind. Once I got started, I watched an episode every day. Even though I mostly enjoyed Coffee Prince, I would forget about it if I skipped a few days.

So I am on the lookout for more dramas like this.

[Photo: Dramabeans]

[yeo-rims]

(X)

[minhamaniac]

I’m really disappointed in you. You want me to live like I’m invisible?

Heard It Through The Grapevine Episode 27

[feministkdramafeels]

There were many scenes to love in the 30 episodes of Heard It Through the Grapevine, but this one is one of my absolute favorites--in any drama. We’ve seen Bom and In-sang’s young love and all of the ridiculous demands and shenanigans In-sang’s parents have put them through, and right now, this young couple’s relationship is at a breaking point.

Bom tried everything she could to be accepted by In-sang’s family, but her continual attempts to win their love were rebuffed. She wasn’t good enough to fill the role of their son’s wife, and they always reminded her of her inferiority. She hung on as long as she could because 1) she loved In-sang and 2) his family would provide her son with opportunities he would never have otherwise.

So when it’s all too much, when she leaves, when she can’t trust In-sang to defend her or their son, when she has finally finished making her cost/benefit calculations and comes to terms that life in the Han household is not worth it, In-sang comes after her and begs her to return.

Sacrifice yourself for me once more, In-sang says.

And Bom walks away.

Because Bom has her limits. In-sang’s single-minded love for her--and her love for him--is not worth the prospect of enduring in a household that barely tolerates her existence. Bom refuses to sacrifice any more of herself in exchange for an invisible life, and I was so proud of her for it.

[no-llywood]

[feministkdramafeels]

Orange Marmalade Final Thoughts

So the plot was a bit of a mess, the pacing was really off, and I might have felt a bit betrayed after being given a really fantastic love story in the first arc only to watch Jae-Min turn into a Jerk for the majority of the rest of the drama. The final episode returned Jae-Min to his loving and sweet self but after watching him be cruel and hateful towards Ma-Ri over the course of seven episodes, I needed a verbal apology from him to Ma-Ri. He also needed to apologize to his mother but that is an entirely separate rant.

Because Ma-Ri was amazing. Her growth as a character was fantastic. She went from just trying to survive and hiding such an important part of herself, to embracing every part of who she was, and fighting for a normal life. As a heroine, I enjoyed rooting for her. I wanted her to succeed.

Ah-Ra’s arc surprised me. She was set up to simply be a mean girl in both timelines but I really appreciated the moment where she sincerely apologized to Ma-Ri in the past  which allowed Ma-Ri to physically save her from vampires and Ah-Ra to run and get help to save Ma-Ri. I wouldn’t exchange that sequence for anything. I love it when ladies save ladies. 

I thought it was really interesting that her rivalry with Ma-Ri had absolutely nothing to do with the fact Ma-Ri was a vampire. While I’m not thrilled that it involved competing over Jae-Min and girl-hate, Ah-Ra’s anger had to do with Ma-Ri as a person. When it became clear that Jae-Min wasn’t going to like her, Ah-Ra moved on and supported integrating with the vampires.

Which leads me to Soo-Ri becoming Ma-Ri’s first friend. Ma-Ri never went out of her way to win anyone over, not when she was in hiding, and not when she came out. She just politely existed and Soo-Ri was able to see her as a person and empathize with her. Soo-Ri was brave in standing by Ma-Ri, not because of a boy, but because Ma-Ri was her friend.

So while I was disappointed by the love story, the ladies really pulled it out. They got me through those moments where very little made sense or the pacing was really poor. I guess, in the end, I enjoyed enough of it to finish, I really liked the music, and I wish we got more of the vampire coming out themes, but I probably won’t ever recommend it.

[hachikim]

Eunjo + her flawlessly messy hair

[shura-blog1]

[jungeums]

(insp.)

[feministkdramafeels]

With Soo Hyang already sending an assassin after Yang Sun, I have a feeling her character is going to go down that road. I feel like she's going to become more angry and jealous and end up going to Gwi to make some kind of deal. Like trading immortality for Yang Sun. It would be a shame if she does though, because she's a very smart and capable woman. Sung Yeol wouldn't have kept her by his side for so long if she wasn't.

I’m still clinging to the hope that Soo-hyang won’t succumb to a common second lead/tertiary ladies’ curse: turning evil or being cruel/spiteful toward the heroine simply because they’re jealous of the first leads and their budding romance. Besides simply pitting ladies against each other for no good reason, it is remarkably boring to watch play out. Unlike other tropes, it is rarely subverted, averted, or given a clever twist. It is a lazy storytelling device that still manages to keep the hero front and center in a relationship between two ladies.

If Yang-sun and Soo-hyang have to be at odds, I want it to be because of conflicts between them that aren’t about Sung-yeol. There have been many women in my life that I have disliked or even hated, and never once has a guy been the reason for it. Give me more ladies who are at odds because of personality clashes or ideological divides or workplace rivalries or even cuz they support different sports teams–anything but a guy, please.

I want to know more about Soo-hyang. I want to know her story: how did she rise to that position in the gisaeng house? How did she find out about Sang-yeol? What has made her so loyal she resorts to assassins to tie up loose ends? Where does she get her info?

There could be so much more to her character, and I hope the show will allow her to dodge the tired character tropes of turned evil/spiteful cuz someone else is moving in on “my guy.”

--Audrey

[suddenlydramas]

It’s not that I don’t have friends. I do. I do have friends. They are all so busy…

[feministkdramafeels]

[Flower Boy Next Door Episode 15]

When I (re)started this drama, I was both curious and a little worried if Dok-Mi's transition out into the real world and into a relationship with Enrique would follow a natural and believable flow. Too often the magical fairy brings changes that are too radical and my suspension of disbelief is not anywhere close to suspended.

But the callback was executed beautifully. She had all the elements to remind Enrique of their beginning but she did them as Dok-Mi--not Dok-Mi pretending to be Enrique. And it did something to prove that the affection between them was not all one sided.

These two have been able to talk about their feelings quite well over the course of the series but it is Enrique's part of the conversation that has me cheering. He promises to slow down and not be blind about insisting she does things his way. He sees that there is value in thinking things through--something that he and others have treated like a fault in Dok-Mi.

I think it leads nicely into their desire to go on a trip together. This is absolutely a couple you can believe in and care about succeeding, but even at this point, this is a couple that you can trust to survive during a separation.

Until this point (and what I'm pretty sure the cliffhanger is setting us up for) both of them have believed that Enrique going to Spain would be the definite end to their relationship. It has been stay or go and not go and come back.

I really like that the message seems to be about facing hard things together in whatever capacity they can manage. Dok-Mi's voice over talks about the importance of having someone strongly on your side. She wants to feel what it would be like, not to just have someone in the room while she does hard things, but an active friend who sacrifices at risk to himself.

I'm really going to miss this show.

[Photo: Dramabeans]

[jungeums]

character traits | byun ji sook (insp.)