334. The Fiery Priest 열혈사제 (2019) Korean

Kim Nam Gil, Kim Sung Kyun, Lee Ha Nui, Go Joon, Keum Sae Rok

Drama Rating: 8/10     Neck Score: A+

I don't know if I've ever had a drama that's stressed me out this much. I loved it, but I also was so worried about half the characters all the time, especially since the bad guys were just so bad. Like they really made them kick puppies. Like, they made them hurt children, and priests, and puppy priests, and really nice people. Also, half the characters that you know are supposed to be good guys are working for the bad guys. This was a corruption crime drama on steroids. It reminded me a lot of Lawless Lawyer, with the level of corruption, etc., but with a much larger comedy element. Even the bad guys were comedic, just not when they were killing people, etc. Also, we don't get the romance because, well, he's a priest. Waste of some good chemistry, but it's not about that. But what it doesn't have in romance is made up with some epic bromances.

Korean Movie Night: The Bros 부라더 (2017) Korean

Ma Dong Seok, Lee Dong Hwi, Lee Ha Nui

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: B

When this movie was being released, and I saw that some of my favorites were in it, I had to watch it. So I was really excited when I saw it was available on Netflix. What could be better than Ma Dong Seok and Lee Dong Hwi being brothers? Both comedians, but like polar opposite in physical build. But both really good at the physical comedy. I knew it was about them going to their father's funeral, and not getting a long, but in the way that brothers do, but I actually hadn't paid much attention to the plot and watched it solely for the cast. So I guess I was surprised about what it was actually about. But that was a good thing. So should I just not spoil it?

It's definitely about the two brothers not liking each other, or their family. They come back under protest almost, for their father's funeral and then do everything they can to not be the first grandson, because this family and village is very traditional. To the point that we get to see Ma Dong Seok looking like a fluffy teddy bear in the unbleached linen robes, looking like he came out of a sageuk, only he's not, so it's extra fluffy and hilarious. Then you add in Lee Ha Nui as the mysterious manic amnesia Seoul girl they met on the way, and it is just so much going on, but it's also so much fun.

Even the side characters and actors are the best. The cousin who is a cop (and Curdy's favorite Turtle) and his wife who wants nothing more than for him to NOT be the first grandson (and subsequently have to cook food for all those memorials), the old relative who speaks like a Confucian classic, Ma Dong Seok's two teacher friends at the or the monk who shows up and acts suspicious AF. It's all just a lot of fun. Confusing at first, all over the place, but then as the pieces start to slowly fit together, it just keeps getting better. It was a lot of fun, and like all good Korean movies, it also puts you through all the feels. It's good.

Women Who Make Me Watch Dramas Against My Will: Goddess Edition

Time for another collection of lovely ladies.  This time I grouped them by the category "Goddess."  You know when your actress just has it all and they are so awesome that this might be the only appropriate way to refer to them?  They are gorgeous, great at acting, and full of personality.  I could probably put all my ladies on this list, but the purpose of these groups was to create decent sized posts.

These are the women who the first thing you think of when trying to describe them is: She's a freaking goddess.  Hashtag woman crush for days.

Korean Movie Night: Sori: Voice From the Heart 로봇, 소리 (2016) Korean

Lee Sung Min, Shim Eun Kyung, Lee Ha Nui, Lee Hee Joon, Kim Won Hae, Chae Soo Bin

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: B

Lizabreff summed it up nicely when she said that if it had been anyone with less acting chops than Lee Sung Min, this movie might not have worked.  It would have been superbly campy and not the sweet tear jerker it was.  Lee Sung Min was amazing as a man who has lost his daughter and doesn't believe she was killed in the subway fire like everyone else keeps telling him.  During his crazy search to find her, he finds a crashed surveillance satellite that can trace calls and phone records.  It also has an attitude.  Shim Eun Kyung did an awesome job with the satellite robot's voice, making it sound very robot AI, but also have such character and personality.

He join forces with the robot and goes in search of his daughter, based on phone records and GPS locations.  Naturally, since this was an NSA surveillance satellite, they don't want it falling in the wrong hands, so we've got some bad English speaking actors.  We also have the NIS and KARI involved too.  Lee Ha Nui is the KARI employee, and she is awesome.  Her English was awesome too.  At first, based on the friction between her and Lee Hee Joon, the NIS agent, we were like "couple?" but then he was just a tool, so we were glad that didn't happen.  Ew.  So, it definitely had an agenda.  It was very anti-surveillance and pro-personal privacy protection.  No one seemed to have a good opinion about the NSA.  The NIS wasn't very favorable either, for that matter.  They definitely made a statement about the issues about privacy in the digital age, as well as corruption based on the power of having the sort of information that would be stored in such a remarkable surveillance satellite.

So it's going to put you through all the emotions.  I described it to my brother as "a tear jerker, but funny" and that is true.  The robot is so sassy, and Lee Sung Min is great and a little crazy.  Ryu Jun Yeol's bit part was funny.  That wig, haha.  Then all the crying parts.  It's good.  But really, it is a silly concept, so it could have been so bad so easily, but it wasn't.  It was a funny tear jerker and it was good.

196. Come Back, Mister 돌아와요 아저씨 (2016) Korean

Jung Ji Hoon (Rain), Kim In Kwon, Oh Yeon Seo, Kim Soo Ro, Lee Min Jung, Lee Ha Nui, Choi Won Young, Yoon Park, Lee Tae Hwan, Kwak Deon Yeon

Drama Rating: 7/10     Neck Score: B

I didn't exactly expect this one to be quite this serious.  I mean, they die they come back as Rain and a woman.  That part has to be hilarious.  But then again, they are dead, so what happy ending would there be?  Can I just day that Oh Yeon Seo is amazing?  I already loved her, but she played Han Gi Tak, or Kim Soo Ro, so well, especially at first.  A gangster dude in a tiny girl's body?  Amazing.  The walk, the talk, she had it all down.  It wasn't just a dude, it was Soo Ro.  Rain also did a great job of capturing the mannerisms of Kim In Kwon.  The second male leads, Choi Won Young and Yoon Park, were probably the most confusing part for me.  They were either completely crazy (with jealousy) or a complete slimeball one moment, and then strangely sympathetic at the next.  I hated Slimeball (Yoon Park) more because he should have been a nicer person as the friend of Kim Young Soo (Kim In Kwon), while Cha Jae Gook was just always a crazy nom.  But maybe I am prejudice because I frankly just love Choi Won Young... like a lot.  He plays creepy and crazy so well... well, just everything so well.  Also, huge shout out to Lee Ha Nui.  She's my woman crush for forever.  She did so well!

So, the ending made me cry.  I didn't cry during the end of Descendants at all, but this one had me almost balling.  I didn't love everything about the ending, but it was well written at least.  It was not cheesy, it was bittersweet and good.  There were a lot of tropes or plot twists in the show that I thought I was going to hate that were written well enough that I was pleasantly surprised.  I ended up liking most every episode.  The only thing I didn't like was their attempt to redeem Slimeball.  I say no to that.  Although I saw it coming for him and Crazy Ex.  Scarface is probably the worst person, so I'll leave it at that.  Also Puppy Namja (Lee Tae Hwan) and Kang Ki Young were together again.  I love those two and their bromance.  Best thing that came out of King of High School, so yay.

Shine or Go Crazy for Goryeo Lee Gun- Another Nickname Post

What is better than Lee Gun?  Nothing, but what is pretty much equally awesome is fighting Goryeo Lee Gun, complete with facial hair and plenty of shirtlessness.

He's literally the only reason to watch this show.  Literally?  Ok, there are other reasons, but they are probably all associated with Jang Hyuk.

137. Shine or Go Crazy 빛나거나 미치거나 (2015) Korean

Jang Hyuk, Oh Yeon Seo, Lee Ha Nui, Lim Ju Hwan

Drama Rating: 6.5/10     Neck Score: A

This was a very entertaining sageuk, probably because it was not focused on being historically accurate to events, but on an engaging story line.  Also, it had some super stellar actors such as Jang Hyuk and Lee Ha Nui.  The costuming was also super awesome and beautiful.  However it suffers from the typical kdrama complex where the ending just kind of went to crap.  It got super cheesy, wrapped up too quickly, suddenly became boring, broke up the main couple for no reason whatsoever after they finally got together, and then tried to patch it up with an ambiguous band aid of an ending to imply that somehow they will be together, but not really, maybe in the next life?  I don't know what it means, but seriously the second half of the last episode just made me roll my eyes, yawn, repeatedly say "this is so dumb" and tweet about how it was so dumb.  Also, there was way too much Luscious Locks (Lim Ju Hwan).  He was so dumb, his hair was bad, and we hated his face.  He needed to be in this show way less.  We don't care about him, especially when they cut away from our OTP to show him giving up on the girl for good.  They even wasted our time at the very end to show him fixing his life, like we care.  This was HeyCurdy's first drama obsession, and literally first Kdrama she started and sat all the way through, so the ending was extra devastating for her.  But since the beginning was super cheesy, I guess I should have guessed the ending would be too.  But that was 24 episodes, how did they expect me to remember that?  It was very deus ex machina, cheesy, drawn out, and kind of lame, which is sad because it was so good for the first two thirds to three fourths of the show.  Ah well, that's fairly typical for a kdrama.  At least it wasn't Night Watchman bad.  Compared to that, this was a great show.  At least everyone could act.  Also Jang Hyuk = one of the sexiest men who have ever lived.

122. Modern Farmer 모던파머 (2014) Korean

Lee Hong Ki, Park Min Woo, Lee Si Un, Kwak Dong Yeon, Lee Ha Nui

Drama Rating: 7/10     Neck Score: B

I just need to forget the last 15 min, because they tried to be funny and it failed, which is weird because it was only time they've ever failed at being funny, in my opinion.  It was like they didn't know how to end it, especially in the romance department, so they tried to make it cyclical.  Whatever, it was a super lame that bumped this show from a 8 to an 7.  I think it didn't help that I had to wait a whole week for the final episode due to a scheduling thing, which heightened the anticipation for nothing.  But this show was still amazing.  I have not laughed so much at something in a very long time, everyone was awesome, and the running jokes were hilarious.  This show was truly delightful, but had a hard time wrapping up, so we'll just pretend that never happened and love the rest of the show for it's hilarious and perfect comedy.