@95 Dele - LOL at thinking the movie was a comedy... that's exactly how i felt after the second watch. I have unfortunately seen the movie several times and each time i go into it thinking 'i wonder if it'll be LESS unintentionally funny this time around'... and lo and behold, it is NOT... in fact it's funnier with each watch because of the ridiculousness of some scenes, particularly the ones you mentioned. I actually thought Edward was going to vomit when Belle walked into the classroom. And poor Jasper just constantly looks... scared..and confused? Like Edward Scissorhands. But Jasper's baseball scene kinda solidified my love for him lol. the flipping of the bat was hot. haha.

@74 djes - i'm in love with Taeyang's Wedding Dress ... been going back to that song all day. And Bom's You and I is really good too. I really love her voice and i'm so glad she's getting her solo chance finally!! YG is really steppin up their game!

@97 reluctantbutaddicted -
1)Try Dil Chahta Hai:-) 'Fun'tastic movie:-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dil_Chahta_Hai

2)Wake up Sid
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake_Up_Sid

3)Dostana
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dostana_(2008_film)

And 'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi' roughly translates to 'God has made the match' :-)

@ockoala & @bspanda -- when you read the His Dark Materials books, did you get that they were rants against the Catholic church? I certainly did not, then felt like I must be a really shallow reader to have missed it when all the reviewers kept harping on it and people wantied them banned from libraries because they were anti-religion.

@reluctantbutaddicted
I can only recommend the old bolywood movies the newer slicker productions tend to leave me cold. They seem trying too hard to be holywood.
Have you seen Faana? The theme might be a little controversial but I thought the movie was wonderful. The song " tere haath mein mera haath ho" is one of the most hauntingly beautiful ever.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS8pjB1K24g

And my all time favorite is a Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge. it is a classic!
Sorry couldn't be of more help. If you are desi you have probably seen both! :P

@langdon813
I whole heartedly agree with you. Reading JB's recap after watching any episodes of a drama has almost become a religon with me.

@ 94 ockoala

Hm...I was probably 13 or 14 when I started reading them, but Amber Spyglass didn't come out until I was 16. I work as a nanny for a 9 year old girl, and I've been trying to decide how old she should be when she reads those books. She's read all of Harry Potter, but somehow these books feel less appropriate. I'm not sure how because all the religious aspects would go over her head, but unless she finds them on her own, I won't give her my copies until she's a few years older.

I enjoyed Lyra's book, but it was too short D: I guess Lee's book is supposed to be a little bit longer, so I'm going to have to savor it!

@ lovenyc52

Same here, it gets funnier and funnier each time I watch it. I made my sister watch it with me just so we could laugh about it together. The only person who fits perfectly to me is Ashley playing Alice.

@ 102, 104

thanks for those recommendations... I am arming myself for the post-YB chasm that will open up in my viewing life, and these will be just what I need. !

I just had a strange experience.

My boss just called me up and said that he's planning to come to Mississippi next April for a blues festival. Cool, fine, whatever. And then he said "You'll let me stay at your house, right?" Uh, what? I mean, we get on well but...what?

How am I going to get out of this???

@ JB, ockoala and gallivanter

After our chats about books here today on OT, I've spent that past hour researching the HDM trilogy, Phillip Pullman, Hard-boiled, and everything that Murakami has written. And now my Amazon basket has one too many books. :D Oh well, one book at a time, I guess. :)

@ 108 langdon 813

LOL .... I have no idea why your boss would invite himself to stay at your place. Random!! But these days, with the financial crisis and all, I guess people are finding inventive ways to save on hotel costs?? :D

@106 Dele - I actually feel that most of the Cullen family was well cast, I even think Kristen Stewart pre-unwashed and unkempt days was physically well cast as Bella... until i saw her horrible acting, PARTICULARLY the hospital scene. And now i am excited for and yet also dread New Moon. Excited for Taylor Lautner (c'mon, the kid grew up nicely and totally belongs in ICOMYM) and dread the bad acting.

Here's my take on the casting of the rest of the Cullen family. Alice - cute and adorable but a lil tall since Alice is supposed to be tiny. Jasper - well, I'm Team Jasper so ya... he's supposed to be awkward though since he's the newbie. Emmet - big and bear-like. yay. Rosalie - gorgeous but looks hoooorrrrible as a blond. Carlisle - pretty good but i can think of better looking actors. Esme - no real opinion since she never really stood out to me in the books so i guess almost anyone would have sufficed. When I first saw that Rob Pattinson was cast as Edward I was actually really excited cuz i liked him as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and thought he was pretty good looking. But then he decided to stop showering and shaving and dressed in the dark and now I really can't stand him :( I wish they could have gone with Stephanie Meyer's original choice of Henry Cavill as Edward cuz he is beyond dreamy *wink!!* Pity he was too "old" at 24 when they finally started casting.

@91 crzycpl -

40 hours? Try 70+ here. I don’t think he sleeps! I would pull the plug on the game, but that would mean my internet connection (and hence, connection to OT) would also be lost. So, it’s a lose-lose situation here. Frying pan. hmm…. I might try that.

I know how addictive WoW can be.

I was a lead (main) tank (fighter class) for a end-game guild, and it was my responsibility to know everything there was to know about the game, strategies, how to play, keeping order in the ranks, training other tanks, etc.

I had to ready to lead 30 mins before any raid. After a raid, I had to go over the success and failures of various tactics and strategies, discussing over Teamspeak with other raid leaders who was strong, who was weak, what went wrong, if anything. Then there was the farming of metals, gold, individual quests, etc.. the updating of the guild websites and charts, rankings, the player vs. player combat logs, omg...

So anyhoo, that's why I quit cold turkey. You cannot play WoW half-ass, and playing with all your attention = epic fail in other parts of your life.

@108 langdon813 -

I would politely decline the use of your home by uninvited bosses. I would email him/her and just apologize, saying that you have in-laws over during the time, and so it is difficult to accomodate.

End of story.

@ langdon813 - i would have to agree with samsooki regarding your boss staying over at your house. I actually think it's pretty inappropriate of him to invite himself over to stay, but i guess he thinks you guys are cool enough to do that?

Happy Friday!!!

Anyone watching Hello My Sweetheart? I just saw the first episode and I love it. I don't care that its extremely hard to believe Rainie is supposed to be a tough fighter girl - its cute and unexpectedly funny in parts.

Question for those more familiar with the Korean culture: can someone tell me how much of the korean culture/attitude is reflected in the korean dramas? I'm not sure if I'm being overly sensitive to this issue, but the way that some of the korean dramas reflect how casual people are to abandoning children really bothers me.

For example - in High as the Sky, Wide asthe Ocean the oldest daughter gets a divorce from her cheating husband and while the husband gets the kids, there is no effort to see the kids and it actually seems that she just remarries and starts her life over with her new husband's kids. What the heck? I'm so confused as to how divorce & child custody arrangements are reflected in the dramas.

The other example, a more recent one, is in YB. The twins aunts drop off the kids at an orphange and no one seems bothered by it(no mention of it, no discussion), let alone the children. Its very matter of fact. So this casual attitude in abandoning children seems at odds with the family-oriented image that Korea tries to portray. Can someone shed some light on this?

@lovenyc52

I'm excited for New Moon just because I think it will be better than Twilight, even though the book is my least favorite one. Eclipse is the best book in my opinion in the saga.

IDK about Taylor, I respect his dedication to his role, but Steven Straitt (too old though) was my ideal candidate. I would have been all Team Jacob in the movie versions if it had been him. I'm glad Taylor gets short hair, cause the long hair does him no justice.

Oh you know what annoyed me in the movie...that they didn't mention Jasper's power. I was like WTH!

I agree on Esme...but I just kept thinking why is she so tan when KS/Bella is whiter than her. It just bugged me. LoL

No matter what, I'm still going to watch all the movies they make just cause I have to/want to since I read the books. I will be in Korea when Eclipse comes out so we shall see how that goes.

I just wonder how their going to do the baby in BD if they make it a movie.

Haha...so much Twilight talk.

@112, samsooki

You're right, I will definitely have to do something along those lines. I like the guy, but I don't want him walking around my house in his pj's while I make pancakes, you know? I'm mortified; I would NEVER invite myself to stay at someone's house. I won't even go to my mom's without calling first.

I went through the evils of WoW with my oldest son a couple of years ago. He didn't sleep, he didn't eat; we tried everything to get him to stop. But it's kind of hard to ground a 21-year old, and we couldn't exactly cut off the internet. It was only after we showed him pictures of himself (pre-WoW) to show him how drastically his appearance had changed (he lost about 25 pounds), that he finally admitted that he had a problem. He quit cold turkey, too. Ironically, he's in the gaming industry now so he's predisposed to playing video games 24/7, but this was just insane!

I think my husband may feel this way about me and Kdramas...but that's totally different, right? ;-)

@ 116 langdon 813

LOL. Your comment about your evils with WoW and your son made me laugh so hard and I just HAD to share it with my other half (who, coincidentally, is playing WoW as I type). I hope he gets the message soon and also quits cold turkey. Although I haven't seen him lose any weight from WoW yet ... I wish that would happen to him! :D I can't believe there are so many guys out there who are so addicted to WoW. Yes, you're right, the addiction is a little insane.

And I also agree that our addiction to kdramas is TOTALLY different to their addiction to WoW. ;)

@ 111 samsooki

All your speak about being the lead tank for an end-game guild had me shivering in fear. The fact that I understand what you were saying just creeps me out! :P Thankfully, my other half is not yet an officer of his guild so he doesn't have to distribute the gold or whatever after a mission. And his addiction has only been for the past 4 months ... but that's enough to drive me insane already. How long was your addiction?

What am I going to do? I can't stop rewatching YAB for the past weeks. I am so addicted. I need to get my life back together. I can't wait till next week but I also do not want the drama to end. Hopefully SBS will reconsider about extending the show. I don't see they can find anything to complete with IRIS or even HERO which is coming out next week. With a huge budget and strong casts like IRIS - YAB still stay strong and be able to maintain the rating it is not bad at all. JSG oppa... aja aja fighting and will support you forver.

@114 b020

I would say that there has to be some grain of truth, however small, in any kind of characterization, otherwise people cannot relate.

That said, parents are generally the same all around the world - they love their children, and they would do anything for them. And Koreans are no different.

On other hand, there are no shortage of bad or very poor examples of parents everywhere, just like there are examples of bad humans everywhere.

Taking a look at the cavalier nature at which certain American TV soap opera characters go through marriages with or without children, you'd think that marriage isn't a sacred thing in this country. But far be it for me or anyone else to use Stefano DiMera or Sami Brady Horton DiMera of Days of our Lives as examples of how Americans regard marriage. lol.

@118 crzycpl

How long? Well, I started about when the game started, and I ended right when Frozen Throne was released. By the time I just quit cold turkey, I was writing online guild guides, posting on guild and WoW forums, raiding bi-weekly, questing daily, farming, you name it. Crazy time suck. No time to do anything else in life. I mean, it was fun. My guild was one of the top guilds on our server, we were doing raids and beating top bosses that only tiny fraction of other guilds were doing. It was a lot of fun, rewarding and I met a lot of nice people.

Basically, the only way to stop playing WoW is just to stop playing, period. You just decide to end it, forget about selling your gear or your character, just end it. Terminate your account, resign from the guild, write notes of apology, etc., destroy the headset, uninstall the game and all clients, all add-ons.

There is no other way that I know of, to beat a WoW addiction.

@ everyone who expressed interest/wished me luck on the project

thank you thank you thank you, and pretty please more ppl join in! i've been collecting the names of OT frequenters, so if u guys don't do it, imma go get 'chu...lol, just kidding! but yeah, i'd LURVE to get some responses from you guys, so go ahead and email me : ))
here it is again: [email protected]
im so sorry im like spamming OT and not contributing to the discussion. for one thing, im not watching YB (gasp!) but im sure i will be checking it out during one of those lovely long school breaks : ) i did download all the episodes of story of a man couple weeks ago, and i was so busy i only got to check out the first episode last night. but, i assure you i will watch it! maybe after all this crazy shizz at school is over xp
pls email me! u know u wanna ; )

@118, crzycpl

Yeah...my appearance has changed pretty drastically too. But no 25-pound weight loss for me, oh no! THAT would have been fine, actually!

Nope, for me, it's all in my face. I wish someone would decide that deep, dark undereye circles are now tres chic, because then I could be the poster girl. Ajumma. Whichever. ;-)

My sister is a WoW widow, while I'm a work widow. Widows are widows everywhere, and we bond together over our mutual love of dramas and shoujo manga, cultivated through a childhood of loving those genres.

Work widows - I rationalize that at least the hubby is doing something constructive. WoW, I have yet to determine what the constructive consequence of it can be, other than personal satisfaction and accomplishment, which is nothing to be sneered at I concede. But we are trying to persuade bro-in-law to quit, because my nephew is 6 and getting way to interested in it. 6! That's not right.

@ isabelh

"when you read the His Dark Materials books, did you get that they were rants against the Catholic church?"

Yes, the entire subtext of HDM is in fact Pullman decontructing and questioning organized religion through the ages. The Catholic Church may be the largest and most obvious target, but because PP is writing something of substance, his books are targeted in a way Dan Brown's quasi-eviseration of the Catholic Church is considered okay by the masses and the churches, except for some poo-pooing here and there. But PP is not targeting the Catholic Church per se, or any particular religion, the purpose of HDM is to verify that there is indeed a greater power and higher authority - he questions those who purports to be the voice of that authority.

@ gallivanter

Hhmm, 9 is too young for HDM, old enough for Harry Potter I agree. I love HP! I think perhaps because Lyra and Will are 13, perhaps 13 is the right age. But I think high school might be better, I'll probably give it as a gift to a 15 year old.

And yes, Lyra's Oxford was *way* to short, but then, PP is like that, he who giveth doth taketh away. And while Lyra and Will (and Pan and Kirjava) have resigned themselves to their roles in their worlds, I haven't been able to accept that. After my sister finished HDM after I recommended it, it elicited the shriekiest most distraught call to me EVER (even more distraught than the call she made when she finished Hong Gil Dong - she hasn't seen a lot of k-dramas compared to me, and t-dramas are always happy, fluffy fare). I pretty much had to calm her down over hours on the phone, and then we cried together, and then cried some more. Maybe this winter I, too, will re-read His Dark Materials, I know there is something I missed, perhaps.

Arggghhh! It's been a tourture without internet connections at a different hotel, finally having 5m of it and skimmed through the recap of YB! I miss Dramabeans and everybody here! Wish me luck please.

@108 langdon813

Just started to read comments here from the bottom. OMG! How absurd! OK, your house is going to go through major remodeling during that time. How's that?

@ Ana

Thank you so much for the link to He's a Woman, She's a Man. It's frickin' hilarious and I just finished watching it! I knew I would love it within the first five minutes, when the classic, "Twist and Shout" was belted out by the main lead in the club. I love the old 1990s movies and how... bloody awesome they are. And this one doesn't even pretend to have any deeper meaning than jolly good fun, lol! And haha, Jessica was right - there are a ton of parallels between this and YB. Awesome parallels, such as the glow-in-the-dark sticks/balls *grins*

@ langdon-unni

What your boss asked - not only is it inappropriate and discourteous - it's a potential EEOC complaint happening. Just say what samsooki et. al. have suggested and move on. Hopefully this was just a mental lapse or a joke on his part, again, no one comes to my house unless I invite them, anything else is just plain rude.

You can come to visit me and the ockoala babies anytime (and samsooki, cingdoc, lovenyc52, hjkomo, and everyone else I chat with at OT - if you are as crazy about k-drama and good entertainment of any kind as me, then you are a kindred spirit and I always welcome you if you need a place to rest your weary feet).

@ lovenyc52

Twilight the Movie - it was a drinking game's worth of bad acting and bad direction, and bad directing the acting. I think KS and RP are not bad actors, they were just horribly stiff in TW. I think Eclipse, both being the best book of the series (not saying a lot there) and the most emotion required, would also be the best acting we'll see from the lot. The only scene SM has written that has moved me is the intense confrontation between Bella and Jacob outside the tent after them three spent huddling in the freezing tent together. KS and TL better bring it!

TT__TT I'm more than 10 k behind in nanowrimo .... hic hic

I underestimate the amount of stress school can deliver.lol

That aside, I'm refraining from reading your recaps until I have a chance to watch up to date. I should condemn school.

@ 124 ockoala

I would rather be a work widow than a WoW widow. Although, to be fair, I'm probably the workaholic out of the two with the exception of today when work forced me to take leave because I have too many days left before year end. A good predicament to be in, I assure you. ;)

I read on PP's website (see, I told you I had been researching) that he's releasing a book about Jesus Christ next April - "The good man Jesus and the scoundrel Christ". More material on the topic of the Christian Church, if anyone is interested.

I've placed my order for Northern Lights (aka The Golden Compass) and hopefully I can participate in your conversations with gallivanter in future OT. ;)

@ 123 langdon813

LOL ... I too would like to lose 25 pounds from watching kdramas. But it seems to have the opposite effect on me. Maybe it's all the ramyun that I eat while watching it in the wee hours of the morning? Eating ramyun while watching kdramas somehow enhances the effect for me. :P

@121 samsooki

I have passed on your comments to said WoW addict and he has laughed at my words of advice.

Another question: Does anyone know if winters in Seoul are any worse than those in London? i.e. do I need to buy a thicker jacket?

@ 130 crzycpl

I hope that you will enjoy Northern Lights/The Golden Compass. I would love to have a discussion with you (and gallivanter, bspanda) about the novels (and we can take it off OT to not distract others).

I also bought only the first book, wondering what it would be like. Mid-way through, I sent hubby to the nearest Barnes & Noble the buy The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass (I didn't even buy it on Amazon cuz that meant waiting for the next books to arrive via mail - nope, not going to happen).

I also love what PP believes when he writes:

* As a passionate believer in the democracy of reading, I don't think it's the task of the author of a book to tell the reader what it means. The meaning of a story emerges in the meeting between the words on the page and the thoughts in the reader's mind. So when people ask me what I meant by this story, or what was the message I was trying to convey in that one, I have to explain that I'm not going to explain. Anyway, I'm not in the message business; I'm in the “Once upon a time” business.*

And his "Once upon a time" was indeed a magical experience for me. ;-)

@ 43 C_Janeth
Recap of Creating Destiny at
http://dw4ptommyrot.wordpress.com/

samsooki 51,

corona lights... aww yes... i could use one or two right about now.

karate kid 1, rocky 1, and bloodsport... absolute classics.

your WoW addiction reminded me of my college roommate. all those nights i was up studying, he was up playing starcraft. i was just glad i wasn't the only one awake at those god-forsaken hours.

he's now a video game developer. yeah, he made good use of his 'addiction.'

About the "I give you permission to like me" line. I did not at all find it condescending. I thought it was a clever way to evioke the star moon conversation: Takyung tells go minam to ask the star if she can like it, Takeyung does not realize he is the star so he does not answer and when he looks at gominam's half tearful expression, he sees some emotion but heyi interrupts the moment. I think it is a clever way for taekyung to say "I know i am the star and yes, you can like me". What do you guys think?

Just finished watching Episode 9 and 10 of IRIS. Am very satisfied with the overall quality of IRIS and the plot is getting more and more intriguing. The second lead actress is gorgeous and she is definitely stealing the show from KTH!! :)

Hehe...the South Korea's "FBI" and SWAT team is really crappy!! And the North Korea seems to be so advanced in many respect!! Strange world!!

Happy Friday!

I'm late to the thread, but there's some interesting conversations going on. Yay for the Murakami love! I've read Wind-Up Bird Chronicles and planning to start Sputnik Sweetheart sometime soon. I also liked some of his short stories that he wrote when he used to contribute to the New Yorker, which I think are included in one of his short story collection.

Also it's great that His Dark Materials are getting some love! I read them when I was 14 and they are one of my favorite series. My sister had randomly checked The Golden Compass out of the library and I realized that I had read his earlier works (the Sally Lockhart series) and so I ended up reading the first one and was hooked. I've been meaning to reread them again since I know I would interpret a lot things differently now. About Golden Compass the movie, I really didn't want them to make an adaptation because the books were so good, and the movie definitely paled in comparison to the book. Though I was glad Iorek's voice was done by Ian McKellen.

Am glad it's the weekend...means Smile You is around the corner. Excited about more Soo-in moments!

Happy Friday, everyone! I am finally done with my work day!

After carefully watching every YAB BTS and every YAB scene, here are my conclusions:
Hong Ki has a mad crush on Jang Geun Suk
Jang Geun Suk has a mad (like really mad) crush on Park Shin Hye
Park Shin Hye, contrary to most beliefs, has a crush (maybe not a mad one) on Jung Yong Hwa
Jung Yong Hwa is too much of a closed book for me to figure out who he likes...

Jab We Met fans -- I love this song -- great lyrics! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dS92ETDr1Y

Opening stanza:
When you arrive, my dear (x2)
The courtyard will bloom with flowers
And the heavens will open with rain
This is how our two hearts will meet.

The rest of the song is even more beautiful!

@Javabeans: Have you read Wind-Up Bird Chronicle? I think that is his best work. It is Hard-Boiled Wonderland on acid.

@68 Princess Knight! Or, Princess Sapphire. Classic anime, now very dated, so I'm not sure I would recommend watching it. (And, yes, now I'm dated too.) And very much geared to children.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE-ogh-eNlQ

Even then, as a child, I felt extremely frustrated by this plot. Can't everyone tell she's a girl? It's so obvious! And why can't she can't tell anyone she's a girl? It's so unfair! But, actually, in terms of Good Reason for Cross-Dressing, this story could take the prize. Er, the survival of your kingdom depends on it? Good reason!

@75 ockoala

I tried reading Twilight book 3 (picked up my niece's copy) and couldn't get beyond the first 15 pages which I thought were indulgent, turgid and inelegent. (go ahead, Twilight fans, stone me, I don't care.) But I watched the movie on a plane. And I thought it was awesome! Truly! I watched it twice, it was so awesome. Fascinatingly, grippingly, awesomely... bad. But, hey, kept me happy on a long plane ride. The acting, the music, directing and editing and everything was all so touchingly *earnest* and everyone took everything so *seriously*; and at the same time the lines were so eye-rollingly corny! I thought the actors deserved awards for intoning their impossible lines with straight faces. I loved it!

MURAKAMI
-- I'd like to check out more of his work. But I need to find a more literal translator. I found "After Dark" translated Jay Rubin quite unsatisfactory. It's of the "dynamic equivalent" school of translation, translating the Japanese into American idiom, so much so that when I read dialogue it sounds like a bunch of American highschoolers. And I watch enough J-drama to know that, no, Japanese do NOT talk like that. I can see why this is done - to appeal to an English-medium readership which has no idea about Japanese culture and needs a "cultural translation" as well as a language translation. But for me, the whole point of reading Murakami is to feel Japanese culture. Even if it's puzzling to non-Japanese, I actually like the differentness and mystery of Japanese expression. Can anyone recommend a good Murakami translator, one who retains the essence of the Japanese-ness?

@reluctantbutaddicted
I second the Dil Chahta Hai recommendation. It was a lot of fun and had a very youthful, trendy vibe to it. All the actors were impressive and the soundtrack is great. I haven't seen Wake Up Sid yet, but I've also heard it is good.

Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge is a classic and for the longest time was one of my favorite Hindi films. SRK and Kajol have wonderful chemistry as usual.

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam is also a good film. But very opulent and a lot more melodramatic, but the cinematography is beautiful.

Oh and another fun one is Hum Tum which is the Bollywood take on How Harry Met Sally. It is pretty cute and the main leads have great chemistry.

And if you're interested in South Indian films, the Telugu film Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana is good, it's an updated take on the early 90s Hindi film love story cliche, but with great music, acting, and cinematography. There are some cute and hilarious scenes in this movie. It's subbed somewhere on youtube I think. And I know you can get this from Netflix.

@138: Go with Alfred Birnbaum's translations! Much better! I don't know if the essence is kept -- I don't speak Japanese -- but on the page, the language captures the spirit of the story, imo.

--

I would recommend Love Aaj Kal (Love Nowadays and In the Past ... or...Love Today and Before)
http://loveaajkal-illuminatifilms.erosentertainment.com/

Wow, I'm so envious when I hear that Taohua read His Dark Materials at 14 (so, I guess 14 isn't too young then, good to know), and gallivanter read HDM as a teeanger as well. I'm equally envious of the kids who grew up smack dab during the Harry Potter craze, if I got to read the first book as a 8-9 year old, then grew up in the next decade with the rest of the story, wow, that would be amazingly influential in shaping my pop culture aesthetic.

@ Taohua

"Though I was glad Iorek’s voice was done by Ian McKellen"

McKellan has a great voice, but it's too distinctive after The Lord of the RIngs. When Iorek is talking, I'm almost afraid he's going to break out and I'll hear the King of the Bears say ""Frodo......you must destroy the Ring, Frodo."

I love McKellen, he brings gravitas even to the smallest role. I was happy with Iorek in the movie.

@ serendipity

" indulgent, turgid and inelegent"

Hee hee. that's the perfect description of the writing in Twilight. But somehow, I read all four books. Kinda needed a mental colonic afterwards, but now I know what every teenager is talking about. Worth it!

First, I love your website JB. I check multiple times a day!
I decided to unlurk today because the some of the OT convo's are about my current obsessions!

1) 2pm - these boys rock!! ever since the MV came out, my days have not been complete without watching it at least 10 times

2) YAB - need I say more.......

3) JAB WE MET! who would have thought that a bollywood movie would be talked about on a k-drama blog?

Also for those of you wanting bollywood recommendations, here's my personal favorites:

1) JAB WE MET
2) HUM TUM - re-make of When Harry Met Sally bollywood-style

3) Jodha-Akbar - ridiculously long historical, BUT Hritik Roshan is beautiful
actually you don't need to watch the movie just watch this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnOIvkaQddk

4) Kal ho na ho - this could EASILY be a k-drama, in fact it might already be, great chemistry between the 3 leads, and starring the ONE AND ONLY shah rukh khan (the man is a legend)

5) Sholay - if the good the bad and the weird was a kimchi-western, then sholay is the 1970's curry-western. It was and shall remain THE bollywood film.

Now following the tv radar :-

Creating Fate
Assorted Gems
Don't Hesitate
High kick through the roof.

Who else watches Smallville? Tonight's episode was AMAZING!!!

"Jab we met" was my ultimate fave...it sad the main actors aren't together anymore in real life... they looked great together.

Just finished watching episode 12 of YB and OMG! the last line (you know which one I'm talking about) was so (EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!) amazing! it was so TK!

I really hope they keep it smooth between them from now...i can just see them doing the typical Kdrama thing (there are so many i don't know where to start) and I'm really hoping they might make it to 20 episodes instead of 16 (please!).

Can someone please point me in the directions of some YB, BTS videos which are eng subbed.....i would so very, very grateful. I need something to keep me sane till the next episode come out!

Oh! and I LOVE the new YB banners....they are AWESOME!

Sumi

@ crzycpl,

can i answer the question you put to samsooki? ^^ YES! winters in seoul are much harsher than those in london! you need a real winter coat, gloves, scarf unless you have a little generator inside you, as the young women of seoul seem to have, wearing 4" heels and 6" miniskirts. coming from seattle, with a climate very similar to london's (rainy, gray, but snow is rare), i found seoul very cold. However, unlike London haha, interior spaces are extremely warm, so as soon as you get inside you will be toasty. bon voyage!

A good list of some of the best underappreciated, supporting actors/actresses: http://blog.naver.com/yyh7186/30072822361

No plastics or pretty boys here! ;)

Before I loved KDramas I loved Hindi movies! If you're just diving in, I suggest

1) Kuch Kuch Hota Hai
2) Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham

They are like Hindi Movie 101 and they feature many of the big names you need to know if you're going to pass yourself off as a true connoisseur.

Also receiving votes:
Dostana- Hilarious and features my Indian Husband, John Abraham
Humraaz- Full of surprise twists
Hum Tum- Already mentioned
Chori Chori, Chupke Chupke- Hindi version of Pretty Woman
Baghban- My favorite Amitabh film
Water- Not a Romcom but very good and also features my Husband John Abraham
Really anything with Hritik Roshan... as somone mentioned above, he's beautiful. If nothing else, just mute the volume and stare at him.

Can't wait for Smile, You this weekend! It's getting to be wonderful except that I have a sickening feeling that we're getting to that point in the drama where Jung-Kyung is going to ask Hyunsoo to "stay by her side" again. One of two things could happen here:

a) Hyunsoo refuses because he already has feelings for Jung-in. Jung-kyung berates Jung-in for "causing him to waver" and "making him confused because she's her little sister." Jung-in thinks he only likes her for being Jung-Kyung's sister and feels bad for "burdening him" with her feelings, so she declares that she didn't really like him ever. He is a little hurt but doesn't really believe her. So, to prove her point, she starts hanging out with Hanse again. Everyone (except Hanse) is miserable for the next four weeks until the Jerky Director learns his lesson and comes crawling back.

b) Hyunsoo realizes that Jungkyung is hurt over the Jerky Director and decides that he must "stay by her side" until she has "settled her feelings" at which point he will "let her go." Jung-In is her hurt and feels led on and humiliated (as she well should). So she avoids them both as much as possible. Hyunsoo, can't let her go that easily and keeps hanging around her, causing Jungkyung to berate Jung-in for "causing misunderstandings" and "holding on to him." I'm not sure where Hanse fits into all this but I know that everyone is miserable for the next four weeks until the Jerky Director comes to his senses.

I love dramas but the super angsty portions drive me crazy! Especially when they drag on... not looking forward to that aspect of Smile, You because all the fun of the show comes from Jung-in and Hyunsoos interactions. If things between them become strained it's like "Why am I watching this? I can look at my own life if I want to be depressed."