Going Beyond K-Drama Love Stories And Pretty Korean Actresses


It's no secret that a lot of people starting point with K-Drama has indeed been with love stories. Some Filipino fans started with Autumn in My Heart while others started with Full House. Recently, the top K-Drama series is The King: Eternal Monarch which I think isn't going to be in my rewatch list any time soon. For me, I think Rugal has been better rewatching though I felt that the series needed more episodes because it felt pretty rushed! I always felt like the potential was there but everything was cut out short. I started off with love stories. The first K-Drama I actually bothered to complete was Spring Waltz only because it got popular. I had that bad crush on Han Hyo Joo which led me to watch Shining Inheritance next and hating Lee Seung Gi simply for being her leading guy.

I confess that I tend to watch a good show for bad reasons. I can't deny that I actually did watch a couple for stupid reasons. I did watch Forbidden Love because of Kim Tae Hee while rejecting to watch Lobo in spite of Angel Locsin. I'd confess that I actually watched Kill It and Justice because of Jin A Nana though the excellent plot can distract me. I did watch Gu Family Book because of Suzy Bae. Then I ended up watching any KDrama with the rather unattractive Shin Hye Sun on them because of her performance and the plot. 30 But 17 was a plot of a 30-year-old woman who's still mentally 17 years old. Hye Sun's charming performance always makes it up for her lack of physical attractiveness and makes it easier to concentrate on the plot. What disappointed me though is how Hye Sun decided to leave Strangers (which was going to have a new season) and instead went for the love story My Golden Life which became popular among Filipino viewers when it aired on GMA-7. Hye Sun is unattractive but the good plot and acting just made me realize it's never about the pretty faces. It made me think why I ditched Lobo even if Angel was that hot during that time?

I thought about watching beyond the love story and focusing on Korean action drama. A lot of the Korean crime drama usually lacks an attractive actress. The K-Drama Voice really doesn't have one. There's no love story plot. It's all about tackling a series of crimes that would lead to the downfall of a serial killer. I also thought about how the ladies in Rugal were not really attractive but the plot was kind of engaging. Okay, I confess I did also watch IRIS because of Tae Hee but the engaging action got me to really like the show. The same went for Forbidden Love where action scenes are more beautiful than the female protagonist. I felt that ascending above my superficiality (which I don't think I've really had) happens whenever I enjoy a good show that's without eye candy. I mean, I did enjoy a couple of series where the protagonist isn't pretty.

What're my latest criteria for any future watches? I think it depends on my mood. Sometimes, I get bored with the love story. Maybe, I'll go back to watching love stories only when I'm bored with crime drama. It's always been a matter of shifting preferences. Some loves stories are too focused on the boy and girl narrative even if they're written well. Take What's Wrong With Secretary Kim as an example. I felt everything got predictable with a wedding finale while plots from one's childhood do unveil in a good way. However, I don't find myself wanting to rewatch it in exchange for some action-loaded series. I view the action-loaded, plot-loaded series as complex Korean food, difficult to make soups like seollongtang and gomtang, and Korean dishes with loads of spices. Meanwhile, regular love stories are kimbap, kimchi, and samgyetang which aren't all too complex. I guess it's all in the mood and time constraints, right?

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