Top Dramas

Softy’s:

Korean Dramas

Ojakkyo Brothers

Can you hear my heart

Secret garden

Coffee Prince

SKKS

Smile You

You’re Beautiful

My girlfriend was a gumiho

Scent of a woman

Spring Waltz

Queen In Hyun’s Man

Rooftop Prince

Best Love

You’ve fallen for me

A Wife’s Confidential

Protect the boss

49 days (if it wasn’t for the ending this would be higher on the list)

Japanese Dramas

The flowershop that doesn’t sell roses

Pride

Itazura Na Kiss

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I used to think I could spot a great drama a mile away, but then A Wife’s Credentials came along and taught me a surprising lesson. Sometimes you don’t need all the eye candy for a drama to grab your attention. In a way, not having anyone to stare at really makes you focus on the dialogue and story better.  When I first saw trailers for AWC, I said in my head very decisively: “never in a million years would I ever watch that.” Then I ended up giving the first episode a try cuz my sister gave it a unique compliment. Since my sister praised it so highly, I didn’t take AWC seriously at first. You can’t blame me since Winter Sonata is her idea of a great drama so my hesitancy is justified. Next thing I knew, before E1 had finished, I began downloading the rest of them. This is not the kind of drama you wait on pins and needles for nor do you rush home to catch it live, but it is the kind of drama that lingers in your heart. No one has died or anything, but already I think I cried during every episode. There is something about the dialogue that just grips you and squeezes out every emotion you have. It goes beyond just empathy for the characters cuz you feel just as emotionally drained as them as they go through their tribulations. AWC managed to do the impossible and shattered every preconceived notion of what a great drama should be simply by demonstrating that words that ring true can have the power to enthrall and enrich our lives.

I saw “Spring Waltz” for the first time recently and this scene still haunts me. The way the passing countryside and light bathed his face and made it glow is just stunning. While he watched her sleep, just for those few minutes, I bet he was thinking this is what she would have looked like if she had lived. You could tell his heart was at peace after fifteen years of regret and longing. How romantic is it that even when he didn’t know she was the love of life, he was still drawn to her.

When I first watched QIHM, I wondered why no one bothered to mention that this drama had a righteous sageuk klepto from the past – that’s sort of an important point to leave out when they were trying to sell this drama’s premise from the start. I certainly would have watched it sooner. Forget his photographic memory – the man’s got some serious skill for theft. It cracks me up that he always manages to steal the nicest backpacks and clothes. Did anyone else wonder what would happen if he couldnt steal any outfits and walked around like that – wouldnt he just get locked up. Another first is the drama title – sort of objectifies a guy for a change to call him so and so’s man. How ironic is it that the man being objectified is from 300 yrs ago. Love it.

QIHM feels like we are watching two people fall in love for real. Every word, glance, or action seems like we are experiencing every step of their romance. Seeing these two people grow closer together and becoming more intimate as time goes on, it gets harder to look away cuz we are drawn into their plight. Next thing you know we are rooting for them to work out, as if they succeed in solidifying their relationship in their fictional world, it gives us hope in our real ones.