Packaging Spotlight 017: Tamra Island
When Tamra Island originally aired in August 2009, I honestly never gave it much notice. None of my friends were watching it, and since picking up a drama is a pretty hefty time commitment, the series quickly slipped off my radar completely. That is, until a couple months ago, when my best friend's mother (let's call her Mrs. Lee) called me one night raving about the series. She had just finished watching with some other K-drama moms in her neighborhood, and she swore up and down that I would absolutely love it if I'd just I give it a shot. Being the trusting, substitute daughter I am, I included it in my last K-drama order.
Come to find out, Mrs. Lee totally knows her stuff! I ended up marathoning Tamra over the course of just a couple days - a pretty impressive feat considering the fact that it's 21 hours long. I love sageuks in general, but I'm particularly fond of the period pieces that tend to be a bit more light-hearted, and Tamra Island was, almost from the get go, utterly charming and full of lively, lovable characters I looked forward to seeing every time they were on screen.
[Warning: The first 15 minutes are set in a rather horrifyingly accented faux-England. I won't sugar coat things - that first quarter of an hour had me wondering what the hell I was getting myself into. As soon as the setting shifted away from the West (and consequently whatever mishmash of non-Asian "actors" the powers that be were able to cast), the entire show turned around, and I was enamored with every episode thereafter.]
Tamra Island
More photos ahead...
YA always does an excellent job on their box sets, but Tamra Island boasts some of the loveliest packaging I've seen from them. The heavy, chipboard box and inner cases feature a palette of bright, eye-catching blues that evoke the series' spirit and setting all at once and set the tone for what you'll be watching for the next 20+ hours. So that's yet one more reason to give the show a shot.
I was really surprised to see, rather than the usual muti-disc Amaray cases, the Tamra Island box set consists of two thick, sturdy digipaks containing four discs each. They are literally covered with beautiful key art - seriously, no surface is untouched. The outer box is slightly glossy, but the light texture of the paper keeps it from picking up too many fingerprints.
Here's the front and back of the first digipak. That white thing the guy with the platinum blond hair is carrying is almost like an additional character, by the way.
The above shot greets you when you open the digipak.
Flip it open once more and you have all four discs displayed.
The disc art is fairly standard, but at least it's all very pretty.
And here's the front and back of the second digipak. I love these two characters so much!
And then onward to another group shot. If you're a fan of Korean variety shows, at least one of these faces should be familiar (though Sungkyunkwan Scandal fans should remember yet another face). The woman standing closest to the men is none other than Jung Juri, and I definitely hope she continues to take roles in dramas. Her character, though totally obnoxious, was entirely too much fun to watch on screen.
Another four discs!
Altogether, it's an extremely beautiful box set housing a surprising gem of a K-drama. I know the next time Mrs. Lee makes a suggestion, I'll jump to pick whatever it is up as quickly as possible in hopes of finding yet another series I like as much as Tamra Island.
Back of the box:
What happens when an Englishman gets shipwrecked in 17th-century Korea? Find out in the exciting comic-based TV drama Tamra Island!
Young British noble William hops on a Japan-bound ship to look for Far Eastern treasures, but he gets thrown overboard during a storm and drifts to the exotic island of Tamra. Despite the language barrier, he falls for local girl Beojin (Seo Wu), a cute and inquisitive young lady who dreams of life elsewhere. However, Park Kyu (Lim Juhwan, Boys Over Flowers), an arrogant, exiled noble, isn't going to let William take Beojin away without a fight. But most importantly, all their lives are at stake if the government officials find out there's a foreigner on the island.
Add in a mysterious Japanese sailor from the East India Company and an iron-lady merchant planning an insurrection, and little old Tamra Island is suddenly overflowing with romance, mishap, and adventure!
Special Features:
"Behind the Scenes" featurette
Interviews
Gag reel
Specs:
U.S. Region 1, NTSC
YA Entertainment
8-discs
21 hours, plus 141 minutes of special features
16:9, anamorphic widescreen
Not rated
Korean audio
English subtitles
Series Preview:
Not sure where to shop? Trying to avoid bootlegs? Check out my retailers page to get the skinny on reliable online stores out there!
Come to find out, Mrs. Lee totally knows her stuff! I ended up marathoning Tamra over the course of just a couple days - a pretty impressive feat considering the fact that it's 21 hours long. I love sageuks in general, but I'm particularly fond of the period pieces that tend to be a bit more light-hearted, and Tamra Island was, almost from the get go, utterly charming and full of lively, lovable characters I looked forward to seeing every time they were on screen.
[Warning: The first 15 minutes are set in a rather horrifyingly accented faux-England. I won't sugar coat things - that first quarter of an hour had me wondering what the hell I was getting myself into. As soon as the setting shifted away from the West (and consequently whatever mishmash of non-Asian "actors" the powers that be were able to cast), the entire show turned around, and I was enamored with every episode thereafter.]
Tamra Island
More photos ahead...
YA always does an excellent job on their box sets, but Tamra Island boasts some of the loveliest packaging I've seen from them. The heavy, chipboard box and inner cases feature a palette of bright, eye-catching blues that evoke the series' spirit and setting all at once and set the tone for what you'll be watching for the next 20+ hours. So that's yet one more reason to give the show a shot.
I was really surprised to see, rather than the usual muti-disc Amaray cases, the Tamra Island box set consists of two thick, sturdy digipaks containing four discs each. They are literally covered with beautiful key art - seriously, no surface is untouched. The outer box is slightly glossy, but the light texture of the paper keeps it from picking up too many fingerprints.
Here's the front and back of the first digipak. That white thing the guy with the platinum blond hair is carrying is almost like an additional character, by the way.
The above shot greets you when you open the digipak.
Flip it open once more and you have all four discs displayed.
The disc art is fairly standard, but at least it's all very pretty.
And here's the front and back of the second digipak. I love these two characters so much!
And then onward to another group shot. If you're a fan of Korean variety shows, at least one of these faces should be familiar (though Sungkyunkwan Scandal fans should remember yet another face). The woman standing closest to the men is none other than Jung Juri, and I definitely hope she continues to take roles in dramas. Her character, though totally obnoxious, was entirely too much fun to watch on screen.
Another four discs!
Altogether, it's an extremely beautiful box set housing a surprising gem of a K-drama. I know the next time Mrs. Lee makes a suggestion, I'll jump to pick whatever it is up as quickly as possible in hopes of finding yet another series I like as much as Tamra Island.
Back of the box:
What happens when an Englishman gets shipwrecked in 17th-century Korea? Find out in the exciting comic-based TV drama Tamra Island!
Young British noble William hops on a Japan-bound ship to look for Far Eastern treasures, but he gets thrown overboard during a storm and drifts to the exotic island of Tamra. Despite the language barrier, he falls for local girl Beojin (Seo Wu), a cute and inquisitive young lady who dreams of life elsewhere. However, Park Kyu (Lim Juhwan, Boys Over Flowers), an arrogant, exiled noble, isn't going to let William take Beojin away without a fight. But most importantly, all their lives are at stake if the government officials find out there's a foreigner on the island.
Add in a mysterious Japanese sailor from the East India Company and an iron-lady merchant planning an insurrection, and little old Tamra Island is suddenly overflowing with romance, mishap, and adventure!
Special Features:
"Behind the Scenes" featurette
Interviews
Gag reel
Specs:
U.S. Region 1, NTSC
YA Entertainment
8-discs
21 hours, plus 141 minutes of special features
16:9, anamorphic widescreen
Not rated
Korean audio
English subtitles
Series Preview:
You can watch this video on www.livejournal.com
Not sure where to shop? Trying to avoid bootlegs? Check out my retailers page to get the skinny on reliable online stores out there!