Halfway through Damo (kdrama) and . . .
Do you know what I find funny (sometimes annoying) about martial arts in Asian dramas? Besides the cliche that chicks can really only kick other chicks' asses? (Well, to her credit, Chae-Ohk can kick the asses of lesser male minions, but I doubt she can take down either of the two male leads.)
Besides the flying?*
Or . . . the incredibly (overly) dramatic scenarios for a fight.
Because bamboo forests are the most beautiful places to get your ass pwned.
And practicing in a snowstorm on a deserted mountain is my favorite way to get warm.
Or working out bitter and inexpressible romantic feelings in a tropical storm. (It's not a tropical storm, but from the way they hosed down the set, you think it would be!)
But on top of all this? It's the sound effects! The way-too-meaty smack of a good kick landing! The over-the-top swishing of a sword cutting through the air! Or the random electric guitars. Oh, Damo, why the electric guitars? I understand this is "fusion" sageuk and all that, but the classical music would have done just fine. D:
(Oh, and the creepy possibilities of incest. Don't fall for the brother/sister-that-you-don't-know-is-your-sibling, please! Apparently this is the real reason why nuclear families are so important: divide up family members and you may accidentally-on-fateful-purpose meet your sibling again and develop all sorts of feelings that would be appropriate in any situation but yours!)
*Actually, I like the flying. My parents set me up for disappointment when, during my younger years, they watched all sorts of dubbed Asian kung fu/historical dramas filled with flying and fighting that could never be achieved in reality. I couldn't understand a single word, but I still wish I could go flying across the rooftops and through the trees like that. =(
Also on my watching plate has been Dae Jang Geum (kdrama, 2003)--but I saw what happens to you as I was browsing through the episodes, Lady Han (and other assorted good guys)! D: D: D: D: D: The subtitles I have are also so bad that I miss out on 70% of what's going on and usually that's ALL the political stuff. D: To add to the confusion, all the names except Jang-Geum's (and even then, it's misspelled several times!) are spelled wrong. LOL. I don't know if I can slog through 70 episodes of frustration as Jang-Geum's life sucks most of the time (yet you want to keep cheering for her =(). Also, the show makes me extremely hungry since they're cooking food 80% of the time--imperial Korean cuisine, yum!
I haven't seen a summary/recap/translation of it yet, but it seems like after episode 7, Painter of the Wind (kdrama) will abandon its gay storyline. But I'm dying to see a translation because it seems like it has gone "gay" in the other sense, since I'm pretty sure Yoon-bok's teacher has no idea that "he" is a she and thus that little moment in episode 7 is gay in the other direction, lol. Which will all be miraculously cleared up when she reveals her true gender. Whew, right?
I am keeping up with Beethoven Virus (kdrama) almost exclusively through recaps over at dramabeans.com now. (I also enjoy the PotW recaps over there, though they come out much more slowly.) I think after the awesome acting in Alone in Love, I personally find it hard to watch Lee Ji Ah's Du Ru-Mi. But Kim Myung Min's performance as Maestro Kang Gun Woo is very good, so if you want a love triangle, take a look.
Wow, with such a fierce forage into Korean dramas, I feel like I should put feelers out into the other Asian markets (Japan, check). This would mean jumping blindly into the Taiwanese, Hong Kong, and Chinese markets--unless people have recommendations? Good lord, I don't even remember how I got into the Korean part of things.
(I've got a Korean language question for any Korean-speaking readers:
After hearing it a million times--in fact, far more times than I've heard "I love you"--and I swear something must be wrong with my ears, but "I'm sorry" is actually "mianhe" (romanized), yes? So why in the world does the "m" sound like a hard "b" every time I hear it? Is it just me? Same thing with "yes" (neh), I swear it sounds like it should start with a "d." It is driving me up the wall and makes me just want to shout "aigoo"!)
Besides the flying?*
Or . . . the incredibly (overly) dramatic scenarios for a fight.
Because bamboo forests are the most beautiful places to get your ass pwned.
And practicing in a snowstorm on a deserted mountain is my favorite way to get warm.
Or working out bitter and inexpressible romantic feelings in a tropical storm. (It's not a tropical storm, but from the way they hosed down the set, you think it would be!)
But on top of all this? It's the sound effects! The way-too-meaty smack of a good kick landing! The over-the-top swishing of a sword cutting through the air! Or the random electric guitars. Oh, Damo, why the electric guitars? I understand this is "fusion" sageuk and all that, but the classical music would have done just fine. D:
(Oh, and the creepy possibilities of incest. Don't fall for the brother/sister-that-you-don't-know-is-your-sibling, please! Apparently this is the real reason why nuclear families are so important: divide up family members and you may accidentally-on-fateful-purpose meet your sibling again and develop all sorts of feelings that would be appropriate in any situation but yours!)
*Actually, I like the flying. My parents set me up for disappointment when, during my younger years, they watched all sorts of dubbed Asian kung fu/historical dramas filled with flying and fighting that could never be achieved in reality. I couldn't understand a single word, but I still wish I could go flying across the rooftops and through the trees like that. =(
Also on my watching plate has been Dae Jang Geum (kdrama, 2003)--but I saw what happens to you as I was browsing through the episodes, Lady Han (and other assorted good guys)! D: D: D: D: D: The subtitles I have are also so bad that I miss out on 70% of what's going on and usually that's ALL the political stuff. D: To add to the confusion, all the names except Jang-Geum's (and even then, it's misspelled several times!) are spelled wrong. LOL. I don't know if I can slog through 70 episodes of frustration as Jang-Geum's life sucks most of the time (yet you want to keep cheering for her =(). Also, the show makes me extremely hungry since they're cooking food 80% of the time--imperial Korean cuisine, yum!
I haven't seen a summary/recap/translation of it yet, but it seems like after episode 7, Painter of the Wind (kdrama) will abandon its gay storyline. But I'm dying to see a translation because it seems like it has gone "gay" in the other sense, since I'm pretty sure Yoon-bok's teacher has no idea that "he" is a she and thus that little moment in episode 7 is gay in the other direction, lol. Which will all be miraculously cleared up when she reveals her true gender. Whew, right?
I am keeping up with Beethoven Virus (kdrama) almost exclusively through recaps over at dramabeans.com now. (I also enjoy the PotW recaps over there, though they come out much more slowly.) I think after the awesome acting in Alone in Love, I personally find it hard to watch Lee Ji Ah's Du Ru-Mi. But Kim Myung Min's performance as Maestro Kang Gun Woo is very good, so if you want a love triangle, take a look.
Wow, with such a fierce forage into Korean dramas, I feel like I should put feelers out into the other Asian markets (Japan, check). This would mean jumping blindly into the Taiwanese, Hong Kong, and Chinese markets--unless people have recommendations? Good lord, I don't even remember how I got into the Korean part of things.
(I've got a Korean language question for any Korean-speaking readers:
After hearing it a million times--in fact, far more times than I've heard "I love you"--and I swear something must be wrong with my ears, but "I'm sorry" is actually "mianhe" (romanized), yes? So why in the world does the "m" sound like a hard "b" every time I hear it? Is it just me? Same thing with "yes" (neh), I swear it sounds like it should start with a "d." It is driving me up the wall and makes me just want to shout "aigoo"!)