Author: colourfulgranny

Week in Review (Aug 15 – 21, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Racket Boys (2021) – Ep 9-16

Do you ever come across a show where you look forward to watching it each week, but you also can’t bring yourself to watch it too quickly for fear it will be over soon? That’s what Racket Boys was, a weekly dose of fun, humour and heart, all rolled into one perfect show. When I found out that the show was only going to be once a week due to the Olympic preemptions, I decided to wait until it had finished airing, because I didn’t want to drag out my viewing experience. I’m glad I did, because I don’t know how I could have waited through those cliffhangers each week.

The show managed to build incredible tension in its final few weeks, with the girls and boys competing in the National Competitions. Each week seemed to bring out a new facet of our players’ personalities, and it was such a delight watching not only the kids grow, but also the adults take it upon themselves to do better and be better. It was nice seeing the invincible Coach Ra (Oh Na-ra) have a moment of struggle when she was without her star player but have her juniors show her the way back. Coach Yoon (Kim Sang-kyung) was similarly self-reflective, apologizing to the boys for his shortcomings as a coach and promising to do proud by them in the future. Even some of the veteran coaches were shown that just because they’ve seen everything doesn’t mean there aren’t some more surprises waiting around the corner for them.

That is exactly what the our Racket Boys showed them, with their dedication to teamwork, training and even letting their pride take a backseat for the greater good of the team. Woo-chan (Choi Hyun-wook) in particular displayed this last quality greatly; rather than insisting he wanted to play knowing he wan’t on the same level as the others, he gave in to sit on the sidelines so others could shine. I’m glad that Coach Yoon managed to take everyone’s prejudice against him and found the perfect opportunity to let him play the final game with Hae-kang (Tang Joon-sang).

Hae-kang had the most difficult journey as a player, with his injury seemingly career-ending, but even there they found a solution. In-sol (Kim Min-ki) was the true hero in Hae-kang’s journey, providing strategic advantages and encouragement, finding solutions to unsolvable problems. Those two boys could not have been further apart in personality, but when paired together they were virtually undefeatable. The writers definitely excelled in this arena, taking two extremes and finding a happy middle ground between them.

They also did fabulously when it came to showing the struggle on identity that several of our players felt during the show. Yong-tae (Kim Kang-hoon) in particular was so caught up in trying to imitate his idol, that he forgot to be himself in the game. However, once he met that idol, and realized that there’s more to him than just what he can emulate, it opened up a whole new dynamic to his game. Han-sol (Lee Ji-won) similarly struggled with figuring out what she was, using Se-yoon (Lee Jae-in) as a crutch to her gameplay. I liked that they showed that she could have just as much confidence in her game by having Se-yoon there with her in spirit as her being there in person. (I also liked the misdirect of having us think that she would think of Yoon-dam (Son Sang-yeon) to cheer her up just because he’s her boyfriend, when really girls always stick together.)

By far my favourite part of the show was its tongue-in-cheek style of humour. Whether it was characters breaking the fourth wall for product placements (with confused onlooker wondering who they were talking to) or it was the adults trying and failing miserably to relate to their kids (like Coach saying the boys were better than BTS and the boys instantly distancing themselves for fear of backlash), the show always managed to make me laugh. This was mixed in with plenty of heartwarming moments too, from the tribute to the village elder to Coach Bae (Shin Jung-keun) introducing his protege, Tae-soon, to the girls and boys to help boost his confidence and show him his worth.

I’m genuinely upset that I have to say goodbye to the show, but I’m glad to say that I got to see it off so well. The Racket Boys (and Girls) in this show were some of the best characters on TV, and I’m sure I’ll end up revisiting these characters very soon.

Week in Review (Aug 8 – 14, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

30 Rock (2006) – Season 1

After a relatively slow week, what with Olympics preemptions in dramaland, I decided to turn to an old favourite of mine recently. It had been so long since I’d watched this show, and wasn’t sure if it would have aged well. Aside from a few outdated pop culture references, the show is still brilliantly written, and is just as fun to watch as when I first saw it.

The first season in particular takes a little while to find its feet. I didn’t realize how quickly the show descends into madness, from Tracy’s (Tracy Morgan) hallucinations to Jenna’s (Jane Krakowski) paranoia and all the antics in between. However, the strongest part of the show has always been the relationship between Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) and Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin). 30 Rock found pure magic by pairing those two up together, since the clash between their mentor-mentee dynamics and their polar opposite worldview is rife territory for conflicts, and therefore 30 Rock-style humour.

The show also had an incredible line-up of guest stars in this first season, from NBC regulars like Conan O’Brien and Jason Sudekis to veteran actors like Isabella Rossellini and Rip Torn. Back in the day, this was definitely one of the main factors pulling people in to watch the show, but looking back, it was also where a lot of people who weren’t famous then got their start. Donald Glover and Aubrey Plaza both had minor roles as extras in the show, and both went on to star in major NBC sit-coms.

However, my favorite things about the show, by far, is the setting. I love TV shows and movies that are set in the world of film and TV production. 30 Rock’s setting is the fictional world of a sketch comedy show, but also in the very real 30 Rockefeller Plaza, NBC’s New York studios. The clash between upper management and the creative team, the filming of the show within the show, and the slew of meta jokes are what drew me to the show when I watched it almost 15 years ago, and it’s what still excites me about it today.

Though not perfect, the first season helps set the tone and groundwork for what becomes a more whimsical and hilarious show. Fey really struck gold with this show, and it remains one of my favourites of all time.

Week in Review (Aug 1 – 7, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

Movies

Jungle Cruise (2021)

Disney continues to make films off the strangest concepts, and the newest one is based on another one of their theme park rides. Set during the turbulent First World War, the film starts by introducing us to the brother-sister duo of Lily and MacGregor Houghton (Emily Blunt and Jack Whitehall, respectively), the former of which is not treated very kindly by members of historic societies despite her intellect due to her gender, and the latter of which is not interested in following the family tradition of academia and is more concerned about having the right outfit for his dinner party.

Both, however, get caught up in the hunt for the mythical Tears of the Moon, a flower said to cure any illness. Being in the midst of a war, Lily is determined to help the war effort by finding said flower and harnessing its powers. Their search takes them to the Amazon, where they hire the enterprising skipper Frank (Dwayne Johnson). After several false starts, the three of them finally make their way along the Amazon River, and a series of adventures leads them directly to the tree they’ve been looking for.

During the trip, the trio gain a trust in one another, and they also learn about the curse that was cast on a group of conquistadors who had tried to steal the flowers abilities 400 years ago, which trapped their spirits to the Amazon river, as well as Frank being one of those very conquistadors. The climax of the film has Frank being trapped by the curse, and Lily sacrificing the only petal that she got from the tree to free him. Aside from a few other subplots to do with a German Prince wanting the powers of the tree for himself, and the reason for the conquistadors being curse, that’s the film in a nutshell.

Pretty standard fare, not anything new, but it was a fun watch nonetheless. I liked the three main cast members, who each brought their own sense of humor to the roles. Frank’s so-bad-they’re-funny jokes were taken exactly from the Jungle Cruise ride at Disneyland, one of my favourite things about the attraction. Blunt and Whitehall were similarly funny, playing with the contrast of their polished first impressions and the goofy personalities below the surface.

I think what enhanced the experience for me was getting to watch the film in IMAX. The visuals really work in the film, and theirs a rich backdrop presented here that we haven’t seen much of in Disney film much. The wildlife and the scenery were stunning, and while most of it might not have been really there, it really is amazing what can be done in graphics animation nowadays.

Overall, the film was fun, but it doesn’t have that re-watch factor that a lot of action/adventure films like the Mummy or Indianan Jones have. I came out the film satisfied, but not gripped by it, since it felt like they had played it safe for broad appeal, and in that, it ended up a little too generic, and was missing that essential component that makes you crave more.

Week in Review (Jul 25 – 31, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

So I Married My Anti-fan (2021)

Do you ever start watching a show knowing it’s going to be bad, but that it’s going to be fun regardless? That’s exactly the mindset that I went into Anti-fan with, and I was not in the least bit disappointed. Was the dialogue cheesy? Yes. Were the second leads annoying? Infuriatingly so. Was the story predictable? To the point where I felt like a psychic.

But it was also charming and wholesome and had some great characters, and I came away from the show absolutely in love. Lee Geun-young (Girls’ Generation’s Sooyoung) is a bad-ass who isn’t afraid to speak her mind, even if that means she gets in trouble. Who-joon (Choi Tae-joon) is an entitled pop-star, who’s handed everything he wants on a silver platter. But when they two of them butt heads is when the real magic happens. While not the most competent of people, there is something about the craziness of the reality TV world they’ve been thrown into that really plays to their strengths. Geun-young’s exaggerations and Who-joon trying to cover them up are a real rollercoaster ride, so it’s no wonder that their imaginary audience can’t get enough of them (as well as the very real me).

I’ll admit that aside from our main duo, there wasn’t really much to keep me interested in the show, but the bits that did stand out for me where Who-joon’s ever supportive manager, Ji-hyang (Kim Sun-hyuk), who seemed to ship these two as much as I did, and Geun-young’s parents looking out for their kid and not knowing or caring two hoots about Who-joon and his alleged fame. I also liked that the show took the time to give us a bit of backstory on Geun-young’s high-school bully/Who-joon’s superfan Yu-ri (Song Chae-yoon), showing that the girl was really just in need of a firmer parental figure and someone to show her the error of her ways.

For a show that was made in 2018, is only just seeing the light of day after three years of production hell, it shows its age most in the second leads’ storyline the most. The dynamic between Jae-joon (2PM’s Chansung) – who is clearly taking out his frustrations in the worst possible manner – and In-hyung (Han Ji-an) – who seems to be stuck in the same harmful repetitive loop – feels so dated it almost belongs in the 90s era of dramas.

Other than that, the fact that they filmed it so long ago seems to have stripped it of a lot of the trimming that make Korean dramas what they are. Some are for the good, like the lack of obnoxious product placements; but others, like the minimal background music take some getting used to. The show is clearly a labour of love by people who wanted to stay true to the source material, but ultimately they just wanted to get it out there in the end.

For a show that I watched just for a good time, I really found myself enjoying it much more than some of the more critically acclaimed shows that often come across my screen. Anti-fan is by no means perfect, but the show is infinitely more entertaining than I could have ever hoped for, and much like Geun-young and Who-joon couldn’t help but fall for each other, I couldn’t help but love the show.

Week in Review (Jul 18 – 24, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Loki (2021)

I’m glad I waited to watch Loki in one sitting once it had finished airing, because I felt that not a lot actually happened over the course of the show. Most of the action occurred in the final episode, with the first five mostly just long expositions and a chance to explore the scenery.

While Tom Hiddleston is very good at delivering a complex monologue, it felt like that was just about all he had to do. The entire first episode was exposition and rather than pulling me into the world of the TVA, it actually pulled me out. It made the show feel a little bit flat, despite the grandness of its settings.

That being said, I did enjoy the final episode of the show, which was essentially a battle of wits between the mysterious figure beyond the void (Jonathan Majors), and Loki and Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino). Majors adds a calmness to the age-old character that could very easily have been over the top and campy, bringing a much needed weight to the show.

The debate between thinking you are the best version of yourself and doubting that you may not be was captured quite well, with a literal battle between two different versions of the same entity. I did not like the incestuous narcissistic take that the show had on Loki and Sylvie’s relationship, the clash of ideologies was well conveyed.

The idea of multiverses is definitely nothing new in the comic book world, but seeing it manifested in such a fun way is always delightful. I’m looking forward to seeing how the show takes things forward in that direction. I also want to see more of Mobius (Owen Wilson) and Loki together, since the two of them had incredible chemistry on screen.

Hospital Playlist 2 (2021) – Ep 5-6

It was an interesting two weeks on HP, with Episode 5 setting up the time jump and Episode 6 showing us how everyone has changed (or stayed the same) in the past year. For the most part, not much seems to be different for our main 5. Jun-wan (Jung Kyoung-ho) still can’t seem to move on from his relationship. Song-hwa (Jeon Mi-do) and Ik-joon (Jo Jeong-seok) are still comfortable with one another, with just the tiniest hint of tension under the surface. Seok-hyung (Kim Dae-myung) has decided to open himself up to the possibility of dating Min-ha (Ahn Eun-jin). And Jeong-won (Yoo Yeon-seok) is still keeping his relationship with Gyeo-ul (Shin Hyun-bin) under wraps; although it definitely feels like she wants more out of it.

Now that Song-hwa is back for good, I think that the writes will start to establish a more concrete arc for her future relationship with Ik-joon. With only half the season left, it seems very likely that we will get to the point of a confession by the end of the season, with actual dating happening in the next one. I hope that if that is where the show is heading, we don’t just get the two of them in an isolated bubble, but rather get to see the effects of it in their existing lives, especially how it might impact U-joo (Kim Jun).

Jun-wan is definitely being written as the most tragic of the characters. All his friends seems to have something else to do or somewhere else to be. Even his devoted resident Jae-hak (Jung Moon-sung) hasn’t got the time to spend with him, and it’s really taking a toll on him. While he isn’t showing it outwardly yet, I feel that the hints about expressing your emotions this episode will apply most aptly to him, and he’s going to have a breakdown soon. Even though his friends will be there for him, it seems that the show is hinting that he isn’t complete without a partner. While I dislike this line of thinking, I do understand that Jun-wan’s prickly exterior often makes him unapproachable and therefore harder to befriend.

Seok-hyung and Jeong-won seem to have the least amount of change in their immediate environment the past year, but I feel like the more interesting changes are going to unfold in the latter half for the two of them. Both seem to have marriage in the periphery, Seok-hyung because of his mother and Jeong-won potentially from Gyeo-ul.

We seem to be getting a few more scenes of the friends interacting with one another, which is by far my favourite part of the show. The actors really pull off that decades-long-friendship vibe, and they feel comfortable and homey in those moments. Their band practices are only getting better and better, and I can’t wait to see the uproar when they finally have to let Song-hwa sing for her birthday.

Week in Review (Jul 11 – 17, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Because This Is My First Life (2017)

I had seen about a million reviews all with great things to say about BTIMFL. It’s very rare that something gets that many positive reviews, and then actually holds up to the expectations I have built up of it. But this show does it in droves. The premise itself is quite simple: a contract marriage born out of convenience for both parties. They have their share of miscommunications and misunderstandings, but ultimately the show is about showing two people growing closer to each other. Not out of any sense of obligation or despite themselves, but simply by realizing that they find a comfort in one another that no one has ever been able to provide before.

When we first encounter Yoon Ji-ho (Jung So-min), she is at her lowest. She barely has time to sleep let alone pursue a romantic relationship. It’s no wonder that when she finds herself facing homelessness or living with a strange man, she chooses the latter. Even though it’s a choice made out of desperation, she comes from a background that taught her that her complaints are irrelevant, so she makes the best of a bad situation. Nam Se-hee (Lee Min-ki) on the other hand complains about everything under the sun, and then some. He’s prickly and particular, so when the perfect roommate shows up that matches all his criteria, he’s reluctant to let her go, despite her being of the opposite gender. From they they eventually get closer and more comfortable with one another, and they build a strong bond with one another – even if it takes them forever to realize it or act on it. They also learn to let go of the hurts of their pasts, and allow it to give way for future relationships.

There are a bunch of other relationships and dynamics shown over the course of the show, all with the intent of showing unconventional romances. The show manages to tackle them with varying degrees of success, but none fully held my attention if I’m being entirely honest. But I did like all of them as individuals. By far my favorite was Woo Soo-ji (Esom), who manages to be a badass despite the toxic work environment she deals with. I also thoroughly enjoyed Ji-ho’s friendship with Bok-nam (Kim Min-kyu), who realized that what she needed more from him was a friend to confide in rather than a whirlwind romance.

That was what I ultimately took away from the show. It is an exploration of the fluidity between familial, friendly and romantic love. Ji-ho and Se-hee had a long and winding road to one another, but I liked that the show gave them the room to explore themselves as much as each other, and find what was truly important to them. This show was heart-warming in the true sense of that word, in that it was a touching, and familiar with just a hint of spark to keep things interesting. I would definitely recommend this show as one of the best in its class.

Week in Review (Jul 4 – 10, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Youth of May (2021)

Youth of May explores an era of Korean history that I’m unfamiliar with, The Gwangju Uprising of 1980. My love for historical dramas is no surprise, neither is my love for the acting chops of Lee Do-hyun and Lee Sang-yi. So of course I was going to watch this show. I was just a bit apprehensive about starting it knowing that the material would be heavy, and that I would be in for an emotional ride.

The show definitely maintains a strong focus on character development, and the setting of the show is really just that: a backdrop that provides conflict for our characters, but not something they ever directly involve themselves in. Our heroine, Kim Myung-hee (Go Min-si), could not be more run of the mill. She’s quite plain on first glance, dressed in muted colors and seemingly a pushover. But the more time we get to spend with her, the more we’re charmed by her boldness. It comes out in burst when she sees those in a weaker position mistreated by those in power. Lee Do-hyun’s Hwang Hee-tae in contrast is uninterested in the conflicts and protests going on around him, despite having had a hand in helping the people on the front-lines. We get the impression that he wants to blend into the wall. Their paths cross in a very cliché way, and if not for the setting, this show could easily have been a rom-com drama. A case of mistaken identity, love-at-first-sight, arranged marriage and love squares, it’s all there.

But what makes this show different is exactly that setting, and the raised stakes because of it. Hee-tae’s father (played by the incredible Oh Man-seok) is the absolute scum of the earth, bringing a real sense of danger for our four leads. Add to that the individual hurdles that Myung-hee and the Lee siblings have to tackle within their respective families, and we have rife territory to explore.

There’s nothing quite like opposing parents to bring a couple closer, and that’s exactly what happens with Myung-hee and Hee-tae. Go and Lee have worked together before, and that prior relationship definitely seems to influence their performance here. They seem comfortable with each other from the first encounter, and I was invested in their journey from the very beginning, despite knowing it may not end well for them. What I found particularly interesting, is that despite having Soo-chan and Soo-ryun (Keum Sae-rok) set up as potential romantic rivals for our leads, they never felt like actual threats to their relationship.

Despite all the blood and gore that the show portrayed there was one bright ray of sunshine in the show: the friendship between the little brothers, Jung-tae (Choi Seung-hoon) and Myung-soo (Jo Yi-hyun). These two boys were the embodiment of adorable, and despite their rocky start, they ultimately became inseparable.

While the show does end on a bittersweet note, it leaves a lasting effect and a message of hope. To not give up, to not forget the difficulties of the past, and to stand against injustices despite your fears. Youth of May wasn’t perfect by any means, and it definitely had its fair share of issues, but the final impression it leaves you with is a good one, of having been glad to be along for the journey with these characters.

Hospital Playlist 2 (2021) – Ep 3-4

The highlight of the past two weeks has definitely been the PICU moms. Eun-ji’s mother (Lee Eun-joo) in particular stole the show. I loved how she managed to show the duality of being supportive of the parents who got their miracles while also desperately hoping for one for her own child. To see her finally admit that it was difficult to keep going, and that she was on the verge of giving up on her child was heartbreaking. However, the moment when she finally got good news was equally joyous.

Being with the moms meant we also got to see more of their doctor. Jun-wan (Jung Kyoung-Ho) has been visibly struggling in his long-distance relationship and things finally came to a head this week. Ik-soon (Kwak Sun-young) was becoming more and more withdrawn from him, and even the medical staff around the hospital felt the need to comment on how haggard Jun-wan seems, throwing himself into his work. While I’ve never been particularly invested in their relationship, I do feel badly for him and how Ik-soon doesn’t seem to be very considerate of him. Ik-joon’s (Jo Jeong-seok) indirect talk with her about how his girlfriend isn’t being good to him seemed to have the opposite effect of what he intended, and she broke up with Jun-wan with what I suspect was a lie, rather than trying to be a better partner to him.

I was a bit disappointed at the lack of Seok-hyung (Kim Dae-myung) recently. It seems like the writers are setting him and Min-ha (Ahn Eun-jin) up as the next targets of Ik-joon’s matchmaking, but I really just want to see him interacting with his patients and medical team. That has been the one weak point of this season so far. I’m uninterested in any of the lovelines that the show is trying to push on us, despite the hammer-to-the-face approach they took with Lee Kyu-hyung’s cameo. Rather than wondering whether Song-hwa (Jeon Mi-do) will end up with Ik-joon or if Jeong-won’s (Yoo Yeon-seok) relationship will be exposed, I’d like the show to be more about the friendships and the hospital.

Week in Review (Jun 27 – Jul 3, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

Movies

Luca (2021)

The story of Luca is fairly simple and straightforward. Luca (Jacob Tremblay), a young sea monster, is sick of living his life underwater herding fish all the time, and wonders what’s above the surface. His parents have told him horror stories of humans who hunt and kill creatures like him, but much like Ariel from The Little Mermaid, he thinks they’re being paranoid. So he goes up and discovers a world of wonders. Not only does he meet another sea monster named Alberto (Jack Dylan Grazer) living up there, he also finds out that he can look like a human, so long as he’s completely dry. Alberto introduces him to a whole new world, and the two boys set out on a mission to get a Vespa and travel the world.

Of course, little do they know that this simple mission will get them tangled up in a whole mess of things. They make an enemy of Ercole (Saverio Raimondo), and find a friend in Giulia (Emma Berman), who have a long standing rivalry for the local triathlon and the esteemed Portorosso Cup. The boys get dragged into competing with Giulia in the hope of winning the prize money to buy a Vespa, and along the way get to learn about all sorts of things, like pasta, biking and astronomy.

Over the course of the film, the boys’ friendship is tested, Luca discovers a love of learning, and they realize just how scary people can be sometimes, but how most of the time they can be kind and caring. Yes, the story was simple, but that’s exactly what suited the style of the film. It reminded me of a bygone time, where people took joy just from being, and Luca took its time establishing the setting and the people of this idyllic town on the Italian Riviera.

Week in Review (Jun 20 – 26, 2021)

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What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Hospital Playlist 2 (2021) – Ep 1-2

The Yulje crew is back!

And they are just as good as ever. The show picks up exactly where it left off, and it feels like the cast hasn’t missed a beat since they ended the last season. With a few meta jokes about how Ik-joon’s (Jo Jeong-seok) kid seems to have grown overnight, the show returns to all it’s usual shenanigans.

The first episode seems intent on wrapping up all the cliffhangers it left us with at the end of the first season, and staying true to her signature style, most of them turned out far less dramatic than they seemed. Seok-hyung (Kim Dae-myung) goes to see his ex-wife after he learns that her father is admitted to the hospital. Jun-wan’s (Jung Kyoung-ho) returned ring was cleared up with a quick phone call and it turned out that Ik-soon (Kwak Sun-young) just wasn’t home when it was delivered. Jeong-won (Yoo Yeon-seok) and Gyeo-wool (Shin Hyun-bin) are officially a couple, and Song-hwa (Jeon Mi-do) neatly turns Ik-joon down on his hypothetical offer to date.

I like that the show continues to give us interesting doctor-patient interactions. It can often get quite boring when you have a case-of-the-week format, but Hospital Playlist has always excelled in making us connect with the patients that visit Yulje, because they aren’t there just for the week.

The most interesting patient so far was Kim Su-jeong (guest star An Si-ha), who comes to the ER after she realizes that her water has burst before her baby has even completed half its term. Not only does she serve to provide an interesting medical situation, but it also helps to show us the contrast between the different doctors at Yulje. Min-ha (Ahn Eun-jin) notes how the same patient examined within the space of a few hours by two different doctors completely changed the outlook. It also gave us an incredible insight into how Seok-hyung works as a doctor, something that did not get nearly enough attention last season. I want to know more about the inner workings of his mind, since he seems like the most thoughtful of the group.

On a personal front, they all continue to have various levels of struggles and success. Jun-wan and Ik-soon are going strong, and it makes me happy to see them communicating with one another. Song-hwa’s mystery coffee fairy on the other hand makes me nervous for another one-sided crush, much like we were teased with Ahn Chi-hong (Kim Joon-han) and the shoes last season.

I have no doubt that the show will continue to be insightful and heartfelt, and I’m excited to see what Writer Lee Woo-jung and Director Shin Won-ho have in store for us. I’m equally excited to see some excellent covers by our in-house band, Mido and The Parasols.

Racket Boys (2021) – Ep 1-8

This show is so wholesome it’s killing me with cuteness! It’s not everyday that we get to see a show about competitive middle school badminton, but Racket Boys is about so much more than that. The show manages to encompass the financial struggle of family forced to move from the city to the countryside, and how they try to fit in with the people around them. The school itself is looking for someone to turn their team around and bring back their former glory. Finally, it deals with the stresses of being a teenager, especially teenagers that have adults constantly pushing them and relying on them for their own glories.

After having watched Prison Playbook, and knowing that the same writer was in charge here, I was sure that the ensemble dynamic would be excellent. What I wasn’t expecting was how I would love each one of them. From the hot-headed Hae-kang (Tang Joon-sang) to the reserved Se-yoon (Lee Jae-in), I have yet to find a character that I dislike. The coaches may seem strict and the townspeople prickly, but ultimately those are just facades they put on to protect themselves, and you understand where they might be coming from.

By far my favourite character is Hae-kang. I love how he so many dichotomies in him. He’s competitive but carefree, walking with an air of confidence that only a fourteen-year-old kid can. However, he often shows a maturity far beyond his year, whether it’s towards his sister (Ahn Se-bin), Se-yoon or the kindly halmoni Ome (Cha Mi-kyung) next door, that I sometimes forget that he’s just a middle-schooler who likes playing video games and wants his mom (Oh Na-ra) when he’s hurt. I was already blown away by Tang’s acting prowess in Move to Heaven, but Yoon Hae-kang is a masterful character when placed in his capable hands. He is absolutely slaying it, and I love him even more every time he smirks and says “It’s me! I’m Yoon Hae-kang!”

When the rest of the kids are added into the mix we get true magic. Each of them brings their own brand of charm, whether it Yoon-dam’s (Son Sang-yeon) leadership, Se-yoon’s cool-headedness, or the optimistic dynamic duo of Woo-chan and Yong-tae (Choi Hyun-wook and Kim Kang-hoon respectively). They really take Coach Bae’s (Shin Jung-keun) words to heart: “We win as a team. We lose as team.” And they do pretty much everything else as a team too, including being embarrassed by Coach Yoon (Kim Sang-kyung) and protecting other teams from Hae-kang’s violent outbursts.

Going forward, I’m looking forward to see how the team continue to bond. Now that they know Hae-kang isn’t going anywhere, the Racket Boys seem much more at ease. I’m also loving the lovely innocence of the way that the writer is developing the lovelines between Se-yoon and Hae-kang, as well as the more direct approach with Han-sol (Lee Ji-won) and Yoon-dam.

Week in Review (Jun 13 – 19, 2021)

~ colourfulgranny ~ 1 Comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Prison Playbook (2017)

I’d heard a lot about Prison Playbook but it took me a while to warm up to the idea of watching it. While I am a big fan of the Reply Series and Hospital Playlist, which share a director with PP, I wasn’t convinced that his signature style of long episode lengths and the meandering pace would suit a prison setting. What finally got me on board with this project was the eclectic mix of character that make up the cast, as more and more of the actors that I enjoy seemed to have parts in the show.

I was also interested to see a part of Korean life that I hadn’t previously seen in other dramas. Having only primary seen prisons depicted in American shows, I was intrigued by the more open plan living system that seemed to be in play, with prisoners largely responsible for their own day to day needs. While I don’t know if the show accurately depicts prison life, I did enjoy the universe that was created.

The writing is by far where the show excels. It’s difficult enough to make everyday characters fun to watch, but the added challenge of making a group of criminals likable seemed insurmountable. I like that the writer gives us someone we can get behind in our protagonist, because even though Kim Je-hyeok (Park Hae-soo) is morally ambiguous when you look at his crimes alone, knowing the history of his character helps us be a bit more forgiving of him. Add to that the near hero-worship from his best friend and protector Lee Joon-ho (Jung Kyung-ho), and the writer almost makes me start to believe that Je-hyeok can do no wrong.

Also getting to see the struggles that his sister Je-hee (Lim Hwa-young) goes through in the aftermath of such events, and seeing her support system come to life through Kim Ji-ho (Krystal Jung), Joon-ho and his brother Joon-dol (Kim Kyung-nam). The dichotomy of knowing he did something bad for the greater good is what allows Je-hyeok to keep a clear conscience, and what makes him a more sympathetic character in the long run.

However, my favorite character is by far Kim Min-cheol (Choi Moo-sung). I’ve always been a fan of Choi, but most of his characters in the past have been quite straightforward. Min-cheol has nuances and layers that we aren’t fully aware of to begin with. While he has obviously committed terrible crimes, knowing that he has had 22 years to repent for them gives you hope that he will leave a better man than the one that came to Seobu Penitentiary. The relationships he develops over the course of his prison life, even though they were forced upon him, make him better and he earns respect not only from his fellow prisoners but even from the prickliest of guards like Officer Paeng (Jung Woong-in).

While there were definitely segments that were over-dramatized – Yoo Han-yang (Lee Kyu-hyung) getting arrested again five minutes after leaving prison comes to mind – for the most part it felt well-balanced with the humour and the heartfelt moments. Doctor Go’s (Jung Min-sung) bureaucracy, KAIST’s (Park Ho-san) constant arguing and Captain Yoo’s (Jung Hae-in) death glares fit in perfectly with their respective backgrounds, and they felt well-rounded the more you got to know them, despite their bizarre first impressions.

Aside from our core group, I also loved all the recurring characters and their respective actors. Kim Sung-cheol was by far my favourite, playing the baseball enthusiast and the go-to guy for all the info. He seemed to know everything about everything, and he was Je-hyeok’s biggest fanboy in prison. I was also glad to see the Lee Tae-sun/Lee Do-hyun duo that I had so thoroughly enjoyed in Hotel Del Luna. While they do serve primarily just as expositional elements to better understand our protagonists, they play the contrast in personalities and the reversal of fortunes beautifully. Finally, it was incredible (and incredibly jarring) to see Lee Sang-yi in a role completely different from the bubbly romantic in Once Again, making me want to hiss at his character every time he showed up on my screen. Seeing the atrocities he committed and having no repentance for his behaviour whatsoever put him of a level of villainy to rival some to the best. And yet, it’s sad to think that people like this may truly exist, those who have no regard for anybody except themselves.

I thoroughly enjoyed Prison Playbook and am surprised that it has taken me so long to watch it. While I could have done with slightly shorter episodes and a bit less romance plot, I came away from the show having a good sense of the characters, hopeful for their futures, and a bit regretful to have to leave them.