Favorite Dramas

if somebody asked what's my all-time favorite korean drama ever, it will be missing noir m. this drama absolutely feels like created for me: it's dark, it's really on the brain-side, it's complicated, and it's kinda crazy sometimes. the scorings, the production, the vibe, the soundtrack, the story, and the acting... everything is nailed to the perfection. 

this is also the drama that really makes sure to be a fan of kim kang-woo for life, he's my favorite k-actor ever and this project really let him shine his best (beside the enigmatic a man's story - which is also my fave!)... also making me the fan of the channel - ocn. i feel like there hasn't been any ocn's procedural that aired after M that can really exceed M's quality and complexity - it's still, personally for me, the best procedural drama that ever aired for kdrama.

although it's my favorite, but i am sadly can never recommend it for others since the heaviness of this drama makes this drama becomes so niche. but, i swear it really worth it.  if you brave enough to see the darker side of the society and questioning the justice... this drama is for you.

the first time i watched this drama, i really had no expectation to actually relate the story but somehow, it just made a way to my heart. the story about people struggling to survive each day and finding friends, companions along the way... those were universal things that can be easily related to.

incomplete life (a.k.a misaeng) is a drama that i love dearly. the story showed how harsh life can be and provided comfort at the same time. it's a slice of life, more on the bluer side and sometimes optimistic. many slice of life dramas come after this, but incomplete life still remains my top favorite from the genre for its' honesty, bleakness, and comfort.

maybe not for everyone since it's really, one of the heaviest slice of life drama i ever watched, but the journey is really worth to be taken: so many things to learn and so many hopes to be spread from it.

prison playbook is a weird drama. logically, it's hard to find "warmth" in a prison and yet "thinking" that people in the prison are "good people" but this drama flipped everything in the best way possible. is it a slice of life? probably. is it a dark comedy? definitely. is it a romantic tale? somewhat. it kinda hard to label the genre where the drama is supposed to belong...

the thing that stands out is this drama really did comedy so freaking well and yet when it comes to those events that meant to touch your heart -  it's impossible to not cry with the characters. i laughed a lot and cried a lot with this drama. so many good things to be talked about it. 

another thing that stands out is the duration of each episodes... like tbh, this drama's average runtime is probably the highest i ever have known. but, don't be afraid with the long duration! although it started kinda slow, it really won't be felt at all. there are so many things to be told yet no stories are boring. even the romance side hits well, sometimes they're sweet, sometimes they're adorable, but sometimes they're really, really sad.

definitely a must watch, really. no wonder why this is a favorite of many.  

duel was more like an accident that really flipped my whole life. when it was announced, the only actor i knew from this project was only jung jae-young and the story? i also still didn't know. like seriously, i came in zero.... but i didn't know which magic that made me Research the whole thing about this drama. i even felt sorry for Tunnel that aired before duel since i became more hyped for this drama to aired rather than waiting the finale....

but, back to duel - the moment my research started... oh my goodness, no single posts or promotional materials that escape my sights. as well as seeing the only video that seemed only existed in duel's promotion material: yang se-jong's audition clip. 

if there is a drama that make me sign up to become sejong's fan for life - this is IT. he was still a rookie with only having two projects aired before duel aired... and somehow he was given the dual roles (and actually three!) and.... he nailed it to the perfection. those who has watched duel definitely understand how mindblowing sejong's performance in this drama - two different characters with same face yet giving a totally different vibe... almost to the point you wanted to believe that sejong actually has a twin brother.

the story was more on the okay side, but it was the performance that actually made this drama become so remarkable for me as well as finding yang se-jong, seo eun-soo, and lee na-yoon together in this drama. 

also: i rewatch it almost like every year.... i miss my twins a lot, y'know.

strangers from hell was my most awaited drama of 2019 along with jtbc's my country - for what reason? probably because this was the first comeback of si-wan as well that the drama's material was adapted from a really bizarre webtoon that really left me speechless and confused until the end.

this drama is really stressful to the maximum, like Extremely Stressful. it's a drama that didn't fit the word 'escapism' since watching it just make you even more stressed out. i also don't really recommend it to watch it on marathon since i wish you can take time to understand what the drama wants to convey as well as giving you time to breath. 

this drama is full of turns and twists. it begun as kinda 'slice of life'-y with hints of sinister to some true psychological horror. also, if you wonder, was there any jumpscares innit? definitely. best watched: at night, alone, with headset for maximum experience.

also, for more information: this drama belongs to the ocn's dramatic lineup which means that it has shorter episodes with film-like quality. don't expect a pretty-looking drama, because this drama is really gritty-looking (definitely not noir) and those who loves detail will really appreciate it. the way it looks really emphasized the feeling.

lastly, to wrap this up: [spoiler alert] this drama will change the way you look at lee dong-wook... which i really love/hate it.