Cdrama Review: Bu Bu Jing Xin (2011)

Bu Bu Jing Xin
步步惊心
10/10 ♥♥♥♥

Twdramas have been failing me recently – so I took a trip to the mainland instead. Bu Bu Jing Xin, or Startling at Each Step, will be my first mainland Chinese drama. It came highly recommended, and is talked about in some circles with almost cult-like fanaticism. Recipe for something good, yes? Yes!

The Premise

Our modern day heroine has a car accident and her soul travels back in time 300 years into an old incarnation of herself: Maertai Ruoxi (Cecelia Liu). It’s the Qing dynasty and Emperor Kangxi reigns; spoiler alert: he’s got over a dozen handsome sons. Stuck in the past Ruoxi is forced to live the life of a court lady, maneuvering herself through a web of princely politics, succession battles, and of course love.

So which prince will she end up with? 

Don’t be fooled. BBJX is not another elaborate time travel drama. Based on a novel, it’s merely an excuse to throw a lady of the modern world into a stunning and gorgeous period setting, and let history take over. Ruoxi ‘arrives’ years before the next exchange of power will take place. She therefore comes with the foreknowledge of which prince becomes emperor, and which princes will fail at the attempt. They only unknown is how exactly she should live, walking the careful path of survival.

And what her role is, no one knows.

Why is this drama is a cut above anything else with a vaguely similar plot?

• Because, Ruoxi is an intelligent woman who more or less knows how to survive; she adapts to her surroundings, plans her life as best as she can, and never loses her humanity, or her love of forging and maintaining relationships. 
• Because, BBJX isn’t just about the love entanglements of the main actors. It’s about everyone’s relationships: brothers, sisters, servants, lovers, and most importantly, friends. Their ties to each other are deep-rooted, and highly explored within the course of the drama. They might lead to sacrifice or death, or be the sole reason a person wants to be alive. 
•  Because, there are some killer love stories. Choose the right OTP and you’re almost rewarded, but I can count at least 9 different ships, four of which I hung out my sails for. Romantic or non-, these ships could break your heart.   

Warning - Super feels will be had by all.

Is it funny or serious? Both. Bu Bu Jing Xin walks a fine line between the genres of youthful comedy, and more melodramatic settings of life and death in the Forbidden City. So stop everything you’re doing and WATCH IT

And if you have already, read on for a short series of essays on Bu Bu Jing Xin. :) 

WARNING: Major Spoilers - Stop reading now unless you've finished the drama and are majorly obsessed with it. Like me.

Kdrama Review: Nine: Nine Times Time Travel (2013)

Nine: Nine Times Time Travel
나인: 아홉 번의 시간여행
10/10 ♥♥♥♥

Poor Nine. Poor me. When I heard months ago there’d be yet another time travel drama (with such an obnoxiously long title), I wrote it off instantly. As a favor to a fellow editor, I then found myself proofing a single mid-drama episode recap, and while reading it on a grammar/spelling only basis, I couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on and it sounded utterly ridiculous. I fully planned on it being included on this year’s upcoming “Dramas I Skipped” post.

Then it ended, and the blogosphere exploded.

And I suddenly thought, “Did I just miss out on something spectacular??”

You really had to ask yourself that question??

For those of you who’ve seen it, you’ll probably scream out YES. And now, so will I.

What’s the Story?

Lee Jin Wook (I Need Romance 2012) plays Park Sun Woo, a super sexy news anchorman with a super cute, though not sexy almost girlfriend Joo Min Young (Jo Yoon Hee). When his older brother is found dead in the Himalayas, Sun Woo go to retrieve his belongings. Amongst the items is an incense stick and his brother’s diary, claiming the stick can send you back in time. And if such a thing is possible, maybe Sun Woo could finish his brother’s dream and change a few things… like their father’s suspected murder 20 years ago.

And, I seriously can’t say anything else about the plot unless you want to be ridiculously spoiled.

Just know that this time travel story is one of the most tightly-woven stories I’ve ever seen, full of mind-blowing plot twists that no one, and I mean no one could’ve seen coming. I wouldn’t even call it a Kdrama except that it’s, you know, Korean. And the cast is perfect. My favorite character might actually be Dr. Han (Lee Seung Jun) as Sun Woo’s best friend and well meaning mischief maker/mischief fixer. And the find of the year has to go to ZE:A’s Park Hyung Sik who plays the younger Sun Woo. Who knew an idol (other than TOP) could act?!? 

Who is this guy (he says) and wow - I'm gonna look hot in 20 years.

Since I finished the drama, I can’t let it go. Hence I’m going to go ahead and keep analyzing it just to keep things straight in my head. Or my brain might just explode.

More Up on my thoughts of time travel, parallel dimensions, a timeline of events and how they are altered, and other wibbly wobbly stuff like that. Also, if you want my general thoughts on it, skip down to the end. I seriously wrote a ton!

Super Major Ridiculous Giant Spoilers Beyond! 

K-Variety Review: We Got Married Global (2013)

We Got Married: Global
Taec & Gui Gui        4/10
Hongki & Mina    100/10  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 


I’m heartbroken. This show that I started 15 weeks ago against my better judgment (with no lack of initial scoffing at the concept) has ended. 

Verdict: What, I’m supposed to go back and ship fictional couples again? 

Well this sucks. Heads up - I’ve never watched the regular WGM except for maybe the first 3 episodes from season 1 and while I thought it was interesting, I wasn’t particularly attached to any of the couples at the time –Andy and Solbi were cute, but I didn’t have the patience to sit through the rest, or catch up to the show and watch later couples (not even for Yonghwa, sorry baby) and definitely not for the current couples (again, sorry, Taemin).

But there was something very cute and inspired about putting international couples together. Awkward as it was, Guigui was really adorable for the first few episodes, and her virtual marriage with 2pm’s Taecyeon was highly realistic in that situation: just what does a laid back male idol do with this Taiwanese bundle of energy girl and her limited comprehension of English? Oddly enough, he seemed like a normal guy. Kind of confused, more than a little bewildered, often vexed and doing a damned good job of holding it in. I’m not saying he succeeded throughout the show (far from it), but it was engaging for a while.

What got me on the slow simmer burn (and proceeded to boiled over) was FT Island’s Hongki and Japanese actress Fuji Mina. I haven’t seen onscreen chemistry this hot since the last time I watched Coffee Prince. I haven’t shipped two people this hard since Queen Inhyun’s Man. But the minute those two met, and I got that glimpse of Hongki’s totally smitten face – I fell hard. 

Kind of like this

I tried to remember that this was a variety show, that these marriages were just fake… but at some point it doesn’t even matter. I get jittery and weepy over scripted drama couples all the time. Why shouldn’t I be allowed to do the same for these couples? Bonus points because there is obviously some percentage of interaction that is unscripted and natural. Taec’s allowed to act standoffish and aloof. Mina’s allowed to cry the first time Hongki serenades her. I can buy that.

And I did.

Read on for why I loved these two + my favorite scenes (Yes I re-watched most of their scenes just to write this section). 

Jdrama Review: Orthros no Inu (2009)

Orthros no Inu 
オルトロスの犬 
10/10 ♥♥♥♥

It’s a little whim I had: to watch something completely different. Given a choice between several different Jdramas by a friend, I decided to venture out of my comfort zone, and into the territory of supernatural thriller. Orthros no Inu, or The Dog of Orthros, caught my attention, and not only for the stunning gorgeousness of its two male leads. 

The Plot

Takizawa Hideaki is Ryuzaki Shinji, and Nishikido Ryo (1 Litre of Tears) is Aoi Ryosuke – two sides of a coin and each blessed/cursed with a unique power. One wields the “God’s hand” and can heal people with just a touch. The other has the “Demon’s hand” with the power to kill. Where this seemingly basic synopsis veers into the unknown, however, is in the portrayal of these two powerful figures. Aoi Ryosuke may have a devil’s curse, but he is terrified of his own abilities, while his counterpart Ryuzaki Shinji is a devil himself, with the gift of god. When they are brought together through female detective Hasebe Nagisa (Mizukawa Asami), the game begins. It’s a cat-and-mouse thriller, as the two battle and compete against each other and their insecurities, and try to uncover the hidden past. And all the while, the threat of exposure haunts them both. 

Nishikido Ryo and Takizawa Hideaki

From beginning to end, the mystery behind their powers drives the plot of the drama: just how much they know about each other and what are the implications of their gift. Is it a curse or blessing, or both, and how are they to be used? What is their purpose on this world? While a larger mythological background is hinted at, I actually appreciated how the drama focused more on the immediate repercussions. This isn’t a tale of gods and demons. It’s the story of two men who behind their powers are just as human as you or me. Their entanglement with Detective Hasebe gives this even more of a humanly-backing as she struggles to learn more about them - to trust or fear, protect or arrest. 

“If I were able to change this world, would God be the only one who could allow that? If humans were able to hold God’s powers, would they be able to change the world? There is only one problem. To be on par with God, there’s only one way. That is, just like God, to become heartless.” 

Thus begins the story, in voice-over form as Ryuzaki, the devil with a God’s hand, stands overlooking a city drenched in rain. The camera pans down to reveal Aoi, the angel with a devil’s hand, as he walks into the nearest police station and turns himself in for murder. 

“Coming here on my own makes the distinction, of what sort of person I, who has taken away that life, will become.” 

The "devil" and the "angel" 

It should be a story that is black and white, but as the picture above depicts – the demon wears white, and the angel wears black. Only their respective gifts are reflected in outside appearance. While I can’t say that I really agree that to be on par with God, they must become heartless like Him – that that is their image of God reflects the disconnect our characters feel from whatever being gifted them with god-like powers, and then abandoned them to make their own way. In a microcosm it’s the same walk that every human being has to go through: how to live their life, and how to use their own judgments to make or shape the world around them. It just so happens that Aoi and Ryzuzaki have the potential to make even greater impressions on a much larger scale.

The Dog of Orthros

The name comes from Greek mythology. Orthros was a two-headed dog beast (brother of the more famous 3-headed dog Cerberus), and minion to a giant. I'm sure other comparisons could be made between drama and myth, but there's not much known about the dog (other than that he eventually gets slain by Hercules). Rather, it's more interesting to me that nowhere in the show does it say which man, the angel or the demon, is the actual beast. Both are just two parts of the same whole. 

Not to ignore the drama’s political plotline (because, in this kind of scenario unfortunately one just has to exist), but that part was a little more on the predictable side of things – the only questionable outcome is which man, if either, would align with the greedy and power-hungry parties and politicians. What was more subtly done I thought were many of the side characters, including Detective Hasebe’s young daughter (who often seemed to understand important things better even than her mother), and delinquent youth Kumakiri Masaru (Yaotome Hikaru). *Note: All three of this drama's aforementioned male actors were all J-Pop idols. I may not have listened to their music (J-Pop’s not really my thing), but I do so love it when I get to praise idols for being great actors. Good job, boys! 

Or is he really just a devil?

Should you watch it? 

*coughs* Well, just look at my score. I could barely turn away from this drama, and not even the political plotline bored me for more than a few minutes at a time. Like most Jdramas, the romance may be a tiny bit lacking, but the relationship between the three main players was anything but lacking in overall chemistry. The thriller/mystery aspects were also extremely well done (if not completely perfect) but enough that even knowing the outcome, I’d be likely to watch it again.