Uncontrollably Fond Of Suzy Bae


I've just finished watching Uncontrollably Fond while waiting for more releases of the weekly Zyuohger, Kamen Rider EX-AID and hopefully more Changeman, Flashman, Timeranger and Janperson subs will be coming out. But I could talk about the 20 episode series with each episode ranging up to one hour.

The plot of Uncontrollably Fond involves Kim Woo Bin as Shin Joon Yong who does a pretty good job playing as a stuck up jerk who still has some goodness left within. Joon Yong has brain cancer and he's doing his best to survive. He's estranged from his mother who has some mental issues, trying to keep all her feelings to herself and his biological father has no idea that he exists. Suzy Bae plays Noh Eul a producer who tends to be money hungry just so she could support her younger brother. I admit though letting Suzy play a 28 year old character when she's only 22 feels awkward. It's like as if Samhwa Networks could have phoned Maaya Uchida for a little more age accurate casting. Kim Woo Bin is just as old as Maaya Uchida in real life.

While watching it, I can't help but either be distracted by Noh Eul or the story itself. I don't think I'm all that distracted by Noh Eul. Power Rangers Megafail had eye candy but it didn't stop me from bashing its horrible execution. I'll always like Kimberly over Mei but I'd still watch Zyuranger over Mighty Morphin' because of plot execution. While I was initially watching it because Suzy resembles Maaya in Akibaranger (my dumb reason to even watch it at first) but like Akibaranger, I was soon there for the plot and not for the girl. The story was somewhat captivating in some way. It didn't really matter anymore how pretty Noh Eul was considering that some of the leading ladies of my favorite TV series aren't always attractive. An example would be Solbrain's Reiko isn't as attractive as Junko but it doesn't stop me from enjoying a good show.

As I watched the show, I even wonder how will Joon Yong disclose his brain cancer or will he reconcile with his mother? Will his father Congressman Choi know he exists before it's too late? Will Noh Eul get her justice from Jung-Eun's evasion and cover-up? Sidenote, I felt like Ji-Tae looked like a younger version of Hiroshi Miyauchi while Jung Eun looks like actress Mayu Gamo. Oh just think about how weird things are if Hiroyo Hakase ran into Succubus. As everything goes, a lot of stuff happen that reveal that life's unfair but somehow there's always going to be justice. It's like it's obvious Joon Yong will die or that it's hinted that maybe, just maybe Jung Eun might get away again.

For the ending, I wished a few things happened different. Like when Eul held her belly, I honestly wished she were pregnant with Joon Yong's child. At least, some kid out there (male or female) has Joon Yong's DNA. It's not like as if Eul couldn't take care of their child. Even if being a single mother might be hard but I think Joon Yong's mother would probably have one more person to keep her company: her grandkid aside from two of her employees who became her stepchildren. It's not really the best return I have to Korean drama but I still feel it's a good return.

But does it mean I'm taking another break from Tokusatsu? Not really. I'm still looking forward to more of Kamen Rider EX-AID and I don't think I can totally separate myself from Tokusatsu in general. It's just that I still prefer Korean, Taiwanese and Japanese drama over Tokusatsu.

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