Sunday 24 February 2013

25. My Girlfriend Is A Gumiho (Nine Tailed Fox)

Broadcast: Aug - Sep 2010
Episodes: 16, Romance/Comedy/Fantasy
Cast:
Lee Seung Ki as Cha Dae Woong
Shin Min Ah as Gumiho/Park Sun Ju
No Min Woo as Park Dong Ju
Park Soo Jin as Eun Hae In
Byun Hee Bong as Cha Poong (Dae Woong's grandfather)
Yoon Yoo Sun as Cha Min Sook (Dae Woong's aunt)
Sung Dong Il as Ban Doo Hong
Hyo Min as Ban Sun Nyeo
Kim Ho Chang as Kim Byung Soo


I put off watching this one for a while. I thought the name was too ridiculous, and it'll be a silly drama:P It received good reviews and ratings so I decided to give it ago while waiting for other dramas to finish airing. It pleasantly surprised me. I really enjoyed watching this one.

I became a fan of Shin Min Ah after watching Arang and the Magistrate. I was never a fan of Lee Seung Gi. His character in The King 2 Hearts annoyed me. However, this couple matching turned out well for this drama.

A gorgeous nameless girl, later named Mi Ho by Cha Dae Woong, followed him home after he unknowingly freed her from a painting at the temple. She was able to find him by following his scent. Dae Woong fell accidently down the mountain and was injured badly. He was only able to recover and heal due to Min Ho's precious fox bead which she fed him. Min Ho had to be near him to keep her bead safe and to recover it once he had healed.

At first, Dae Woong was scared when he found out what she is. He tried various tactics to get rid of her but without success. As he got to know her better, he realised she was harmless and quite ignorant to human life. He took advantage of that and was very mischievous in getting her to do his dirty work.

Min Ho grew to love Dae Woong. She loved him unconditionally and would sacrifice her own life to give him everything and be by his side. She knew it'd be impossible for him to love a fox. She really wanted to become human so she could be with Dae Woong, live a human life and grow old with  him.

With Teacher Park Dong Ju's (a good looking half goblin half human) help, she would become human  in 100 days after drinking his blood. The bead continues to stay inside of Dae Woong. After 100 days, Dae Woong would have to give Min Ho back her bead. She would then become human. Here's the catch but she didn't know this until later: After the100 days, the bead would have absorbed all the human chi from Dae Woong. When it's passed back to Min Ho, she would become  human, but Dae Woong would die. If Dae Woong doesn't give the bead back, Min Ho would die. During the 100 days, each of her tails disappeared and she would lose her super strength and fox abilities. During the process she would go through excruciating pain each time a tail disappeared.

When they both found out each one would die, Dae Woong gave back the bead half way through the 100 days. He didn't want to die nor did he want Min Ho to die. He had fallen for Min Ho but refused to admit to himself or to her as he was confused to loving a fox.

Even after giving back the bead to Min Ho, her tails were still disappearing. It meant that her desire to become human was so strong, she couldn't stop her tails from disappearing. The only way to help her stop the tails from disappearing (suggested by Park Dong Ju) was for Dae Woong to leave her side and convince her that he didn't want her near him anymore. This was very painful for Min Ho and Dae Woong. Because he loved Min Ho so much, he wanted to keep her alive and this was the sacrifice he chose so she can continue living.

After he left her, a couple of months later, he found out that she was still dying, and her tails were nearly all gone except one. His time away from her didn't help! She had lost all her fox strength and abilities. He no longer could stand it anymore. He wanted her back to spend the last days with her. 

On the 100th day, she disappeared from human life. He was so heart broken. He continued with his life and continued filming action movies. His debut movie hit box office and his popularity grew. This was his life long dream but he felt empty because his true love had disappeared.

The Sam Shin Grandmother who originally created and locked Min Ho in the painting made a promise in the past. If she was able to find a husband that love her for who she is and willing to die for her, she was able to become human and continue to live on. The grandmother looked reluctant but a promise was a promise. One month after Min Ho's death, she was ressurrected by the grandmother. She and Dae Woong got back together. Was she human or was she still a fox? Well you'll find out in the last episode :)

Shin Min Ah was so cute in this drama. I loved her character, so innocent, sweet and ignorant. She's got a beautiful smile. The winking and finger gun gestures she picked up and practiced cracked me up.

Lee Seung Gi played this immature 21 year old well. So young! His character matured over time. I liked his character here. Not the most good looking compared to other kdrama leading actors, but he has a nice smile.

The action film director Ban, although he's suppose to be funny, I found him kind of gross and greasy. His ridiculous fashion sense with the sun glasses, trench coat and match in his mouth was suppose to be an imitation of HK action film star Chow Yun Fat. I've never been a fan of Chow Yun Fat fan so can't relate to it.

The drama played some Leslie Cheung's songs and had HK action movies running in the background of the studio. I thought this was kind of amusing. I've never seen a kdrama with chinese music/songs before.

Also, the legend of the nine tailed fox, this was only ever mentioned in Chinese and Japanese folklore.  It's a bit surprising it's part of Korean legends too. Perhaps this was borrowed from Chinese/Japanese history like how Chinese characters were borrowed during the Joseon era.

No Min Woo who played Park Dong Ju, is good looking but too much make up! A lot of the time, he looks too feminine. And that hair style didn't help. If he bulked up a bit and dress more manly, he'll be pretty hot.

 The final line in the drama was a play on words. I thought that was slightly amusing.

In asian culture, it's usually men that make the first move in catching a partner. In this drama, it was Min Ho that made the first move and continuously chased Dae Woong. I think women, if they like a guy, they should make the first move and not wait. A fine example of this by the annoying character Eun Hae In.

Oh, Lee Hong Ki (from FT Island) played a cameo role at the end. How funny. He played  his character Jeremy from You're Beautiful.

Love the OST in this drama:  Losing My Mind – Lee Seung Gi; Fox Rain (Rhythm Ver.) – Lee Sun Hee; The Person I Love – Lee Seul Bi; Now I Love You by Lee Seung Gi.

I'm a sucker for love stories. This drama, I would consider to be a great love story.

Rating: 5/5  ♥

Monday 4 February 2013

24. Cheongdam Dong Alice

Broadcast: Dec 2012 - Jan 2013
Episodes: 16, Romance/Comedy
Cast:
Moon Geun Young as Han Se Kyung
Park Shi Hoo as Cha Seung Jo/ Jean Thierry Cha
So Yi Hyun as Seo Yoon Joo
Kim Ji Suk as Tommy Hong
Kim Yoo Ri as Shin In Hwa


The title of this drama is a play on words or a direct comparison of the fantasy novel Alice in Wonderland. It's about Han Se Kyung chasing her white rabbit.

This is the first drama I have seen with Moon Geun Young. I think she is a great actor. In this drama she is smart, tough and honest. 

Han Se Kyung, when she broke up with her boyfriend In Chan due to poverty issues, she decided she would be like her high school friend Seo Yoon Joo, to grab hold of a white rabbit so she can step into Cheongdam Dong which is a high class suburb within Gangnam in South Korea. With Seo Yoon Joo's help and diary (how to be dirty to get into Cheongdam Dong :)), she started her journey.

She met Cha Seung Jo, mistaking him for being the secretary of Jean Thierry Cha who was a rich CEO of a luxury brand company called Artemis. She fell in love with him and this was an obstable because her target was Jean Thierry Cha. Secretary Kim was in actual fact Jean Thierry Cha. He also fell for  Se Kyung but did not reveal his true identity until later.

Later on, Se Kyung found out the truth about his identity without him knowing. She was shocked but happy at the same time. She kick started her plan. Along the way, she was found out and confronted by Seung Jo (akas Jean Thierry Cha but I'll call him Seung Jo for the rest of the review).  Her main plan was to secure her place in Cheongdam Dong through Seung Jo but she was sincere and genuine in her love for him.

Everything turned chaotic. Amidst the chaos, how can she prove her love for him?  The ending is a happy one, although there were implications asking viewers if it was reality or still a dream that she was living in like Alice. I think this part was put in to confuse viewers or to challenge us to think about what is reality and what is a dream.  My take on the ending was that it was reality and it ended well :)

Se Kyung was a fashion designer in the drama but yet we didn't see many of her designs. I thought that was a shame. I loved her character. I thought that she was smart, strong, honest, calm and dealt with the consequences of her actions quite well. Never once did she run away.

Seung Jo is an eccentric, immature and petty character but lovable at the same time. He was funny too, cracked me up with his dancing. The way he shooked his head whenever he danced was so comical. He was quite good looking, but at times the makeup was too white and his lips a bit too red for a male. 

Seung Jo's best friend Dong Wook reminded me a bit of Yoon Ah In (Fashion King). Perhaps an older brother? 

The characters Seo Yoon Joo and Tommy Hong who helped Se Kyung in her climb, they were initially all enemies. When you have a common goal, you get together and friendships develop. I really liked the fact that they all hated each other but ended up being good friends who cared about each other near the end. 

Seo Yoon Joo was a developing character. Good on her in the end to finally stand up for herself and not worry about status and money. She was poor in the end but she was happier.

The moral of this drama to me was that lies and manipulations never get you anywhere, but accountability, honesty and sincerity can help and save you. This drama touched on poverty issues, family relationships, the attitude and behaviour of the rich. 

Se Kyung said a couple times in the drama that hope and working hard will not save you from poverty, or help you get where you want or to be happy. I disagree with that. I believe working hard, having hope and trying your best, you will achieve something. Never fall down, but keep trying. The journey along the way will make you a stronger person. This in turn is already a wonderful thing to realise and an amazing experience to learn. This usually leads to appreciation in life and happiness.

OST, this drama had a very nice soundtrack. Songs that stood out: It’s Okay – F(x)’s Luna; Daddy Long Legs – Baek Ah Yeon; Love Like This – K.Will; Stop Hurting – Melody Day;  Rain
Shower – Every Single Day; Sorry – Lee Seung Hwan (Feat. Yozoh).

This drama is very typical of kdramas  where poor girl meets rich guy, falls in love, trouble happens, love will overcome the obstacles, and a happy ending. I still liked it. Maybe I'm a sucker for such fairy tales. It was entertaining. Highly recommended.

Rating: 5/5