why did you say that though? do you ship yeol and yeon do then?
It obviously depends on the show, and not all love triangles are bad ones, but in general, I dislike them. I don’t think they serve any beneficial narrative purpose and more often than not, it results in character assassination because for one guy (or girl) to “win” over the other, the writer often destroys any good qualities the “loser” has. It makes people into trophies to be won. In kdrama it always seems so forced too, and if a girl is at the center of the triangle, she’s often mistreated or belittled. I know that it can be done well, but I just avoid it. I don’t ship anyone really, though they can be very cute! I watch that show because I like the friendships and complicated family relationships.
tyn are you still watching high society? i think i might drop it...i really just don't like any of the characters. except for hyung sik.
I am…but not very enthusiastically, although I haven’t seen this weeks episodes yet! (cut for length and because I take things too seriously)
The writing is just odd (so much potential wasted) and I agree that it’s hard to find some of the characters likable. I do love the female friendship though and now that the shit has hit the fan with the boys, I feel like the ball has finally started rolling. I’m all about friendship angst, especially when it comes with growth.
I think Hyung Sik is charming and he almost single handedly keeps this drama afloat, but I actually dislike his character. I really hate it when someone sits atop a moral high horse when they have absolutely no grounds to be up there in the first place. I don’t like the way he treats Ji Yi, and while I think it’ll make good character development (if the writing gets better), Chang Soo’s motivations for his friendship with JK were also dubious to begin with. He’s immature, hypocritical, and he doesn’t see or treat anyone as his equal. I’m not defending JK because he’s his own bag of cats, but to have your alleged ‘best friend’ draw a line and reinforce all the ways you’re beneath him through your daily interactions, all the while spouting how much he cares about you…for someone who is already sore about class differences, I can see why he’s acted the way he has. Not that he should have/he’s had his own share of manipulation and insincerity.
hey tyn :) I watched the first two episodes of Producers but it was too slow so I dropped it.. buuut I keep hearing really great things about it (esp regarding the ladies). does the pacing get any better? I don't know if I should pick it up again or not!! would you recommend it?
Oooh. Cut because I talk too much.
It’s hard to answer because I definitely think this show has a certain sense of humour/styling that not everybody would like. And that being said, it doesn’t really fully commit to the humour it’s trying to portray? My biggest issue with the show (aside from pacing) is that they seem like they’re always only going about 60% on what they’re trying to achieve. So this dry, quasi-office like humour gets watered down by a more traditional kdrama style, and you get the impression that they don’t really know what they want to do/ the show could be so much more. If you thought the first two episodes were slow, I’m not sure your opinion will change. I’m more invested in the characters now so it doesn’t bother me so much anymore, but 80+ minutes is way too long for an episode, especially when maybe only 3 important things actually happen. I do really like the setup though, the cameos and the cute situational relationships (Kim Jong Kook and his obsession with A4 paper/supply manager, for instance). All four actors are doing a great job with their characters and their interactions (when not mindless) are excellent. I really enjoy Joon Mo and Ye Jin’s relationship in particular, probably because Gong Hyo Jin and Cha Tae Hyung are fantastic actors, but also because I’m a total sucker for best friends who have more than just friendly feelings. Kim Soo Hyun is also great at playing petty, robotic puppy Seung Chan, but I think I love IU’s Cindy the most. She’s rude but so lonely, and I just want her to be happy after all of this is over. (Also I desperately want she and Ye Jin to develop some sort of sisterly bond. Let’s make it happen!)So that was way too much information and I’m not sure I answered you well. I’m sticking with it as I’ve come to really like the characters and the clever little cameos, but it is definitely slow and you could go an entire episode where only one really worthwhile thing happens. So it’s up to you! There’s always recaps too :) Thank you for your question!
hey. I'm 77% done watching heirs (questionable experience) and well, you seem to have a lot more animosity for tan than young-do, even though they're both crazy assholes. literally, the main thing i got from that show is that tan and yd are douches and eunsang needs to learn how to get out of a wrist grab. actually, i'd argue that young-do is more of a psychopath than tan. so i want to ask, what makes young-do redeemable and tan not? i hope you don't get hate mail! thanks.
Hey anon, sorry to get back to you about this only now. I could write an essay on how horrendous I think Heirs was, how poorly many of the women were treated in this (the gross double standards , for example), and how disgusting Tan and Young Do’s actions were. I’d love to discuss it with you at more length in private if you’d like, but I’ll just answer you briefly here. Audrey recently wrote an excellent response to this question just the other week, and she echoes a lot of my own feelings on it.
It wasn’t until YD began to realize the consequential extent of his actions (whether you believe Eun Sang was the catalyst or not) that he, as his own agent, began to mature and change. As Audrey has said, Young Do apologized to Joon Young, not for his own piece of mind or to assuage his guilt, but for Joon Young. He knew he didn’t deserve to be forgiven, but it wasn’t about him, it was about Joon Young. By the end of the drama Young Do was no longer the same person, and while that doesn’t make him a good guy or even forgiveable, it does lead me to believe that he has promise for the future, and that he is a character worthy of consideration.
Tan on the other hand did none of these things. Tan’s persistence, harassment, and abusive actions were wrapped up into a pretty romantic package. It makes me sick to think of the emotional and even physical abuse he inflicted on Eun Sang, Rachel, and even his own Mother. He never matures, he never realizes the problematic extent of his actions, and is instead given a heroes ending with Eun Sang as his “reward.” He never leaves his tortured little bubble of self-concern, too obsessed with his own pain to ever consider how he might be hurting others, and punishes those he deems deserving of his abuse. I could go on about his treatment of Rachel which was also particularly disgusting, but other tumblr users have addressed it far better than I have.
In the end, while both men were horrible, Young Do did learn and mature as a character, while Tan did not. This gives Young Do the potential for redemption (it is not freely given), while Tan can languish in his sick, abusive ways for all I care. I have no sympathy for him at all, and I don’t think either men deserve Eun Sang after their behaviour.
This wasn’t a very well thought out response, and other people have tackled this question far better than I have, so forgive me! I can clarify if you have any other questions, though.
Joo Ji Hoon and Soo Ae (considering)
Song Ji Hyo and Byun Yo Han (confirmed)
Kang Sora and Kim Woo Bin (maybe)
Kim Soo Hyun, Cha Tae Hyun, Gong Hyo Jin, and IU (rumoured)
*dies*
this is not a slam on your Kim Woo Bin anon who was pretty reasonable, but I noticed a tendency in some circles to equate KWB with some absolutely TERRIBLE (foot acting) actors and say that people only like him for his looks and bad-boy roles and therefore Terrible Actor/Actress X is not as bad as we say. Which is totally false equivalency since Woobin, for all his inexperience, has never appeared to struggle at the absolute basics of acting - body language, facial expression and line delivery.
I agree. I think it’s a problem. I think there are a lot of excellent actors that we may even ignore because they’ve been pigeon-holed into specific roles and given no room to grow. And on the other hand, there are many actors who really have nothing but a pretty face to get them anywhere, and they monopolize roles that could go to actors with more talent and less opportunity. Looks can be a curse both ways I suppose. And I think it’s often worse for models turned actors because the assumption is just that they have nothing but their bodies. Even when actors like Cha Seung Won have disproved that completely. (I mean, not all models-turned-actors are good of course).Woo Bin, in my opinion is one of the better rookie actors and has a lot of raw talent/potential. He made a decision that he wanted to act and he’s worked extremely hard to become a real actor. In no way has he ever given me the impression that he was just coasting on his looks/in it for the fame like many others seem to be.
