205. History of a Salaryman 샐러리맨 초한지 (2012) Korean

Lee Beom Soo, Jung Gyu Woon, Jung Ryeo Won, Hong Soo Hyun

Drama Rating: 9/10     Neck Score: B

I loved this show.  It was so well done.  Lizabreff hates corporate dramas, but she loved this one too.  It was gripping the whole time.  Probably because it was one part sageuk, one part corporate drama, and one part witty comedy (I mean, those hilarious bits at the end of each episode were pure gold).  Also it has three very strong women who kick butt in whatever way they have chosen.  I liked and admired every single one of them, even the evil lady who made me disgusted and full of hate.  She was still super strong and kicked butt (literally) as she rose to power and eventually went crazy with power.  If I have to say anything negative about this show it's that it was extended, which led to the last two episodes being ridiculous.  I mean, they went all sensational court room, which is literally my least favorite type of drama ever.  I pisses me off when people pull ridiculous shiz in a court of law and get away with it.  Maybe I should have been a lawyer.  I also feel like there could have been lots more Yoo Bang.  I can never get enough of Lee Beom Soo and while he was technically the lead in this, this show is pretty equally about all four of our leads, which is a good thing.  I just love Lee Beom Soo.  I think that was another reason the extended ending brought less to the table.  It was more of Wiener Thinker being and idiot (which is really wasn't that much of in the first half) and less of Yoo Bang dominating, since he had to wait two more episodes to do it.  But what character development.  When characters go from bums, country boys, spoiled rich girls, etc. to cool corporate generals, you know you have something good.  I loved Yeo Chi's (Jung Ryeo Won) development the most.  She was amazing.  She was unlikable at the beginning (to the lovable point) with her clueless, cussing, ridiculousness, and then she became a wonderful, strong, cussing wonder woman.  Woo Hee (Hong Soo Hyun) was literally one of the smartest people in the entire drama, and I loved how she used every tool she had, even if it was her sexuality to make that idiot know how big of an idiot he was.  I especially loved the two couples.  We had to extremes of cuteness.  The couple who hilariously fights and eats ice cream together, and the couple who are pushing and pulling too much, but are so adorably in love with each other that we can't wait for them to finally stop being idiots and just make out.  Then Kim Sung Oh had a cameo in the last 3 episodes and when I saw him in the preview I was so excited I screamed into a pillow.  His cameo was one of the most amazing cameos ever.  Because I absolutely love him?  No, it was also hilarious.  He did so good.  So I would like to have had the ending a little more tidy in the writing, but this show was good enough to make up for that.  It was amazing.  I needed something actually good right now, and it was perfect.  Best one I've chosen to watch in a while... well, one of them at least.

181. Oh My Venus 오 마이 비너스 (2015) Korean

So Ji Sub, Shin Min Ah, Yoo In Young, Jung Gyu Woon, Henry Lau, Sung Hoon

Drama Rating: 8/10     Neck Score: A

This was way better than I thought it was going to be.  I mean, shows about weight loss and having to change your image to find love and happiness are blech to me in typically.  But I love So Ji Sub and Shin Min Ah, and them together was sure to be worth something even if the plot was meh.  But it surprised me.  It wasn't about getting a makeover and getting a man.  It was about being healthy and healing, but it was more about total healing, like attitude, heart, emotional, etc.  The OTP was better than expected too.  What genuine people.  They were both people who weren't going to put up with crap, we honest about how they felt and especially about each other.  He fell in love with her way before she lost weight and suddenly became beautiful, so when he saw her dimples for the first time, that was cute.  They were overly cute and not in a bad way.  In fact there was really no one to hate in this show, unless it be that step-uncle, the grandma, PD Ex, and naturally the stalker pervert.  But even they were only mild hates.  They generally made everyone redeemable.  I actually was just as invested in the second leads romance as I was in the main leads.  I love Yoo In Young, so much that I looked to her for inspiration in my latest hair style.  So I liked that her character was not just bitca in this one, but that she had the issues she was dealing with (however badly she was) and we were more anxious about her bad decisions than about hating her.  And Wiener Thinker was surprisingly a nice guy and not the d-bag ex we expected him to be.  I loved them together and was more frustrated about them at the end, and whether they would get together or not, than anything else.  You know you have a good set of couples when every one of them makes you say "those two! Oh!" when they are doing something cute.  Then of course Henry and Sung Hoon were adorable and sexy.  Basically there was a decent set of characters which made up for any plot holes (why did there have to be a car accident and a year recovery gap?  Huh?) and silliness.  There was only one episode that was insufferable and made us tweet to get through it, and even that one wasn't that bad.  So basically if you want good chemistry and a couple that isn't afraid to express themselves, this is probably a good option.  I mean, how many other dramas have the girl seducing the guy?  Repeatedly?  So even if it had a few cheesy parts and a few head scratching moments, it was better than most romcoms I've seen.  Good job.

127. Birth of a Beauty 미녀의 탄생 (2014) Korean

Han Ye Seul, Joo Sang Wook, Jung Gyu Woon, Wang Ji Hye

Drama Rating: 6/10     Neck Score: A

The thing that makes this show work is how flippin' adorable the main couple is.  But they are pretty much the only likable people in the entire show.  Well Secretary Choi and the PD chick and maybe the mom and friend are ok, but everyone else in the show are evil murderers or just plain stupid (Oppa and Granny).  I loved their revenge comedy stuff from the first half, and I love love loved them falling in love and being cute together, but then when it got serious it got draggy, and I really hated how they kept the other chick around for like ever.  She was one of the worst, evilest bitca ever, and she needed to be punished harder than she was.  I shouted hateful things at her every time she was on the screen.  Also Wiener Thinker and Dog Poop Face (the other men in the show) were just annoying, evil, and dumb.  So much hate for everyone else and so much love for the main couple.  It made it a bit hard to watch because there was so much ew, but then there was also so much cute that it was never as bad as we thought it was going to be, so it was a weirdly good and bad drama at the same time.  Definitely over-the-top ridiculous in plot, but full off adorableness at the same time.  Well, it is what it is.