Well, that was fun! Now I really want to know who'll be playing the parts of Ho and Shing. I'm having a hard time seeing SSH playing the Chow Yun-Fat character, but no problem at all with LMK playing the Leslie Cheung character. And not just because I love him!

It's been so long since I watched an 80's movie! The hair, the makeup, the clothes, the smoking, the synthesizer-heavy soundtracks, the gigantic cell phones, the even bigger room-size computers...makes me want to go pull out old photo albums. You guys should have heard me the other night watching Friend and squealing over the boys playing PONG!

God, I feel old all of a sudden. ;-)

@199, nycgrl

I love Gackt too, I just don't admit to it very often! You brought me out of the JRock closet. :-D

@kpm1111
OH god I know exactly how you feel! I Ialso got the "get daughter back from dreamland" speech from my mother!

@hjkomo

Re: Assorted Gems
I needed to get my overactive mind away from thinking more plot lines of YB so I went to soompi AG thread to backread. ROFL, you, dramaok, mhugh et al are so humorous with your comments, I literally squeal from laughter in the middle of the night! Seriously, sometimes, I really LURVE all the witty comments and recaps more than the drama itself! Hjkomo, can I be your fan (or ‘pan’ in korean pronunciation) please? :-)

Thanks for the info. I managed to get ep19 and ep20 subs but for ep18 subs and below requires password. I try downloading the later episodes by torrent but there’s hardly any seeds. I am hesitant to register MU. The last time I tried MU’s requirement need to download their toolbar or whatever my simple mind non comprendo. :-D

@ockoala
Thanks for you book offer. As it is, I don’t even have time to post and chat with y’all in OT. I think I will need it when I have no internet access LOL! The last book I enjoyed was Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story. My favourite romance author in my ‘younger’ days was LaVryle Spencer.

@200cingdoc

Re: YB
Am I wrong or has this drama have its obligatory “U turn” driving scene , yet??

Yes, its done in ep6 29:58. (I think I rewatched 3 times) LOL at all your possible scenes. My overactive mind is also on overdrive but my very, very slow ‘typing’ (if it can be called that, as I have to search for the keys) prevent me from putting it down! Of course, it’s a blessing for all OT readers. Lol

Re: I went “awww” when HTK held GMN’s hand and gently guided her back to her room. I know HTK sneers a lot, but I think deep down he’s a romantic.

Aaawwww, ME TOO! Oh, what a hopeless romantic I am! Now I am so happy I have a kindred spirit. Clapping my hands in glee!!!

Hahaha… love all your scenes, man… you even include the Holy Father! (As he turns, there stood his “moon”… ROFL). Since you are ‘playwriting’ you have not included the part where they will be shooting in Japan??? :-)

Anyway, I hope the Hong sisters will give us more romantic surprises. I have been praying for them, the casts and the crew. They are working their hearts and bodies out for our enjoyment, I kinda feel 'guilty'! I am also continuously praying for a miracle for your cousin. I hope she is coping well with her 2 babies.

@ cingdoc
"As much as I despise the Cardinals, I’m glad USC is done."

You are not alone. When they announced the score of that game over the loudspeaker, the entire Memorial Stadium cheered...it goes to show that even the most diehard Cal fans would rather see USC go down. ;)

Well, this week, I remembered to dress more warmly to the game. But with four layers, thermals, gloves, and a fleece blanket...I was still cold but, at least, not frozen. It was a strange, nail-biting game but very interesting. A good win for Cal. :D

@ kb

I'm pretty sure hubby watched Oldboy with me and didn't fall asleep or walk away. I don't think he was bored, but I also don't think he truly appreciated the film, either. He's not a big TV fan except to pass the time when he's bored and mostly watches movies (whether on cable or in the theater) for the mindless entertainment - enjoyable for the moment, forgotten as soon as it's over.
The only show he does like is Mythbusters. I tried to get him to watch Top Gear but he thought it was lame. He never gets addicted to any shows, and I think the last one he really enjoyed was Six Feet Under.

How he ended up with a kdrama/sci-fi/BBC-aholic wife who also likes to watch college football is a mystery. ;)

{Note to all husbands out there: when your wife is trying to watch the second episode of V,
DO NOT mock her choice of viewing subject by imitating a Visitor peeling off his human skin to reveal the reptile scales underneath.
Just
walk
away.} :P

@ nycgrl, ockoala

I'm not a Rain fan, but I think I will be the one dragging hubby to watch Ninja Assassins. Lol. Come on, after all, it's a Korean starring in a Hollywood movie. Who wouldn't be curious? And it's just the kind of mindless entertainment & action fight sequences that hubby might enjoy watching. Plus, it's produced by the Wachowski brothers, and hubby loved the Matrix trilogy.

And yeah, I already told him we're going to watch Avatar when it comes out.

@ Samsooki

It's kinda frightening that you know far more about fashion than I do. ;)

OMG!OMG! OMG! No internet(except that 5m I was on yesterday) for past 56 hours! Moved to another hotel now and I broke down spending $20.00/24 hrs to watch YB before I go home tomorrow. Finally, feeling like a human being, sigh... So, I shoudln't be spending much time here since I'm meeting my colleagues in Chinatown for Laksa dinner.... Only for OT, I'd wait on YB.... I haven't been able to read them all, just JB's comment since it's high lighted caught my eyes which took me to

@138 serendipity

Hi, since last week, somebody was also mentioning Murakami's Kafuka's shore!? (I can't remember the English title now, but it was something like it or Kafka on a shore?) and I happened to be to Tokyo the day after that, I looked for that particular book at a second hand bookstore and got them(2 volumes). After getting a bit disappointed by Norwegian forest myself, I thought I'd try. Anyway, I'd say his style is rather non conversational even in dialogues. Even depictions(it almost feels like depictions)of the monologues of this 15 years old is rather over exaggerated and peculiar. So, I'd imagine may be this translator is actually doing a decent job.

And I notice there were some discussions about J-anime, the ones I grew up with! I know all of them!!! Meaning I can sing all the the theme songs for them all, So evocative to here those names... Were they broadcasted here?

Anyway, I'd love to come back and read all the comments here later. I missed you guys all.

@206 cingdoc

SPOILER ALERT!!! (just in case)

I read from a post in soompi YB thread:
The Wednesday-Thursday drama 미남이시네요 (produced by the Hong sisters) will have the filming of their last episodes in Okinawa, Japan.
Osen was informed through a phonecall about the 4 days, 5 nights trip to Okinawa and the members will be leaving on the 18th and will stay there till the 22nd of November.
Source: Osen
Translated by: Pao!

Enjoy the movie with Mr cingdoc. Its good but then any movie with Jet Li in it is always good! :-)

@ 184 paula253

Burberry scarf?? That's so chav! Hahahaha Not sure if you guys in the US would understand that term. Check out the wikipedia definition of chav here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chav

Designer handbags, I can do. :D

@ 192 samsooki and 195 Snikki

LOL at your fashion advice, samsooki. I think I will stick to jeans and many many layers of wool / cashmere jumpers and thermal underwear. Plus my over sized goose down jacket, but making sure to top it all up with a designer bag. That way, I won't look so out of place a Apgu. :P

I've been glued to my computer screen for past 3 and 1/2hrs... The thing is that every time Viikii site slows down my computer crashed. Took me two hours to watch YB Finally got my YB fix and OT fix both!

I noticed that there's some interests in Bollywood movies here as well. As others have already posted, I also have some titles, I'd recommend which may have been mentioned above

KKKG, Jab we met and Ajah Nachle(not quite sure of spelling): Madhri Dixit's come back movie, I just adore her, she was great in Devdas as well even though everybody says older one's better. But to me, they are two different shows, I like them both,just like older and newer versions of Umaro Jaan. Jodhaa Akbar w/ Hrithik Roshan. There's a Sufi song Khwaja Mere Khwaja. Talking about him, Dhoom1 and 2, they are just hysterical, silly fun... On a serious side, Deepa Mehta's trilogy, Fire, Earth and Water. Water is the most famous with that gorgeous John Abraham in it. But Earth was absolutely powerful and heart wrenchingly beautiful. And can't forget Aparna Sen's Mr and Mrs. Iyer and 15, Park Ave. I can go on....

Anyway, I'd better watch YB Ep12 one more time before going to bed to let it sink in.... I realized that next Wed, is OK But Thursday, I'll be leaving for Japan(visiting my mom plus business). A week after that one, I'll be coming home from Japan on Wed. and leaving for Sydney on Thursday. It's not working out with YB schedule!!! I need my immediate fix so desperately. A big dilenma. I must be the one of a few people who is so happy to see it ending in two weeks(of course, I do demand a great convincing ending), I really do need to get control back on my life. Right now, I'm just living from Thursday to Wednesday seeking for that hit..... So pathetic. Whoops, even here in Sydney, it's almost midnight. Have to work tomorrow...

@ 200 Cingdoc : they had the U-turn scene when TK went to get MN at the bus stop and she was dressed as a girl to go visit Mother Superior (MS?). But that doesn't mean there can't be another one. I mean, nothing expresses deep emotion better than a high-speed 6-lane U-turn, does it?

I don't think MN will go back to the convent in any serious way, just to be contrary. I only think that b/c it seems likely that she would and I'm hoping the Hong sisters won't go for 'likely'.

@ockoala

If you find the collection, can you tell me? I would love to own all his works, but I haven't seen any collections.

“ockoala hubby is the insane book reader – his papa was a university librarian – so our house has entire walls turned into bookshelves to accommodate his books.”

Adopt me! I was planning my own library while my peers were playing with Barbie. I've fantasized about combining two rooms in my future house, making it a library, and living in there. "Entire walls turned into bookshelves" <3xinfinity

hjkomo 204

you find top gear entertaining, enjoy football, and appreciate what ninja assassins has to offer....

i envy your husband.

RE: City Hall ep 1

LOL! The whole, "I can give you refills" part was so over the top. KSA rocks!

ROFL at the part where JG tries to stop SMR from falling. :D And the toilet!! HAHAHAHAHA

For a moment there I was thinking, are they going to leave his house multi-coloured?? LOL.

OK, I'm hooked. Will need to continue for the rest of the night.

@ crzycpl - oh i'm so glad you're enjoying the first ep of CH!! i know people said the first few eps were *boring* but i actually enjoyed it from ep 1.. it sets up everything nicely and i feel is important for the rest of the series. But like ockoala i think it really was ep 4 that "hooked" me and made me have this burning need to finish it. And i'm sooooo glad that i did. Have a wonderful CH day and make sure to check in with us once in awhile to rant and rave hehe.

for my fellow YB fans :) i love this girl's fanvids and thought i'd share her wonderful work. Song fits so perfectly with MN's feelings. enjoy!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scBikfA3Pws

@ 199 nycgrl

"Love all the discussions on His Dark Materials Trilogy. I read them a while ago and I remember feeling so transported into alternate universe, a feeling I haven’t felt since I was 8 and reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe books"

Yes, His Dark Materials feels like the successor in some respects to C.S. Lewis' The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe series, and akin as well to JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

Personally I enjoyed HDM more - I read the others as teens and liked them a lot, but HDM really resonated with me as an adult. Can't really explain why.

@ bspanda and doubtlethink101

Okay, adopted! I now have two new members of my virtual family (I'll assumed I'm older than you two so you can be my dongsaengs - I'm in my early thirties). Books are strewn around the house, and I'm always finding a new place to shove it, which drives hubby made as he as sorted his books into genres and themes. I got a corner of the bookshelf for chick lit, nice.

I still need to go back home to my parents and unearth my boxes of college books that I want to add to the book collection. It's no Beast's library from Beauty & the Beast the movie, but it'll do.

@ crzycpl

Wow, one episode and you're hooked on City Hall, huh? So excited to hear that. You and belleza must have extraordinary taste and insight to really "get" episode 1 of CH, cuz I sure didn't on first watch, though I loved the opening sequence, when JG is walking through Inju village.

@ Retta

Welcome City Haller! There are so many great dramas also out this year, you'll not go wrong checking on DB and seeing what Javabeans liked. I have yet to get a recommendation I didn't like.

@ hjkomo and cingdoc

Yeah, USC losing always makes me happy, except Stanford wiping the Coliseum with Matt Barkeley's four interceptions was so ugly I felt bad for him. And Cal's win was indeed ugly, agreed, but a win is a win. And if Notre Dame doesn't fire that tub of lard Charlie Weis next week (when he has the same win-loss percentage as when ND fired their last 2 coaches, include Ty Willingham) then whatever residual respect I have for that institution's love of football is going down the drain.

Actually, college sports isn't really my area of expertise or interest, I follow cuz, well, its sports, but I really follow pro football and basketball. So, Saturdays are for hubby, Sundays are for me. It's totally fair.

I wish I were more into football, I really do! It would make life so much easier. But then again, that would mean less time for dramas, so maybe not! I do root for Ole Miss though, so y'all remember that next Saturday when they play LSU and help me cheer for my team! :-)

Today's drama agenda has been pure fluffy fun! I've been watching Smile, You (so adorable) and Hi, My Sweetheart. I haven't watched a silly Tdrama in ages so I decided to give this one a look. It's very wacky and very fun, definitely what I was in the mood for. I'm not the hugest fan of Rainie Yang, but I like her in this, and Show Luo is just great. I'm going to miss his mushroom head!

Oh, and YAY for the City Hall love today!!

RE: City Hall .. now up to ep 5

ROFL!! I can't stop laughing. Seriously. Can this get any funnier? SMR and JG rock!

The beauty pageant was just GOLD! The tango! LOL! And the end ... where she fakes the faint. ROFL!!

JG's back pains from carrying her ... twice! LOL.

The other half thinks I've lost it will all my outbursts of laughter and constant clapping at the computer screen. It's late here but I think I'm going to try to squeeze in a few more eps before I need to ....

OMO OMO ... I've just been reminded that I left the stove on!!! CH made me forget about the pot of soup I've been cooking!! LOL Luckily I haven't burnt it but there is no more soup left. Gotta start over now :( Oh well. CH is worth it. :P

Just watched Younha promote her newest J-pop album on J-Melo. Her English is stunning; she even used words like "mentoring." Wow. In fact, if I didn't know who she was, I'd assume she learned English in Taiwan.

@ 220 crzycpl

Gee, you're quick. Ep 5 of City Hall is the gear-change point of the drama charging into a new emotional territory from Ep 6. Enjoy, and don't forget to check out Samsooki's excellent re-caps!

@ 217 lovenyc52

Yes, watching YB vid is the way to survive before Wednesday comes along.

Here are two MVs that I like:

Collide - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6CPV9oGry4

Right Now - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asPnC9WmSW4

@celestialorigin
Oh another person who liked Aparna Sen's Mr. & Mrs. Iyer! It's one of my favorite movies! I haven't had the chance to see any of Aparna Sen's other works, Bengali or Hindi/English. But I was really impressed, especially by both the actors.

To all who are watching Smile, You:
I really really heart Hyun-soo. The best lines in this drama b/c of how they were said/done were:
"Let's go together"
"And what if I am?" *SQUEEEE* Episode 16 was AWESOME!
I actually think I might be looking forward to Smile, You more than to YAB (which I still love). But the whole Hyun-soo being a beta male...when it comes to protecting the women he loves....he's so confident and protective::sigh:: I can't believe I considered dropping this drama. I think that while in City Hall, JG and SMR's relationship was intense...Hyun-soo and Jung-in's relationship is just as intense, but in a different way. I don't know how to explain it.

@226, Taohua

I'm with you, Smile, You is so great! The last 10 seconds of Ep 16 are pretty swoonworthy! Funny because I hated, and I mean HATED, Jung Kyung-ho after watching I'm Sorry, I Love You. In fact, that's one of the reasons I gave up on Smile, You so early. I just couldn't look at his face without feeling intense rage...petty and vindictive? You bet!

But then I started reading the recaps and they really piqued my interest, so I gave it another shot. I started watching from Ep 10 onward and never looked back. Someday I'll watch the ones I missed but I think that's probably when it started to get really good anyway.

@langdon813
Yeah, episode 10 is pretty much where it's gets better. I probably wouldn't watch the earlier episodes unless it was on fast forward just to get to all the Hyun-soo/Jung-in moments. The parent storyline has become much better in the last couple of episodes. I haven't stopped smiling (lol!) since watching Episode 16 this afternoon. I can't wait to see the next episode, b/c it's probably going to have Hyun-soo's answer to Jung-kyung's question.

Yeah, I disliked Jung Kyung Ho's Yoon in MiSa passionately too, but I realized it was because he was doing such a good job after I saw TBDAW. In which he also did a great job. I always thought he would do well in a comedy and am glad he finally decided to do a rom-com!

@223 epyc - ooo thanks!! I think i've seen the Right Now one because i subscribe to her channel, but i love the Collide one too! Thanks for the links! :)

@ Taohua - re: 2PM and Big Bang. It's funny because it's more the opposite with me. I've adored 2PM since their Again & Again days and it was only when they went on hiatus during the whole Jae controversy that I gave Big Bang a more serious listening to. But damn am I glad I did because I really am loving their style and their different voices (Tabi deep smexy growl gets me everytime). And Koe Wo Kikasete is such a gorgeous song. Not typical BB style at all, but loving it and they rocked it. Have you heard the acoustic version? Soo pretty :)

@hjkomo,

"1) Remaking ABT -> bad, bad idea…ah, such fond memories of watching HK cinema on Tuesday nights at the UC theatre…"

Oh I know!! Still remember my friends and I watching Spike+Mike's Sick and Twisted at the Landmark Theatre on Shattuck. And the old Jet Li classics too.

"You, of course, are always welcome here, should you make your way to Northern California (really, it’s nicer here than SoCal"

I miss the City more than anything. I don't really care much for

"Creating Destiny started out warm and comforting. I’m still enjoying it (not as much as Assorted Gems, of course), but like belleza pointed out before, the premise IS a little scary if you really think about it."

There's a lot of things about CD that I have to uhm "filter." For example, her daddy's blatant racism against her dating a white guy. Even his nationalistic condescension about visiting the mother land. Let's just say I'm glad high school is well over. :D

The YJ/SE relationship is pleasant. Really, if the parents would back off, they would get along SO much better. The bromance between the fathers made me kinda teary-eyed.

I mostly watch Creating Destiny for the single-mum/noona love triangle. And unlike most noona relationships, this one has a very real age gap. There's 14 years between the actors, and in the story, he is her little brother's best friend. There's many dramas where the older woman sees the younger guy as a child, but it really feels that way here. And I really hate the biological father. Wow.

And oh how I love the little daughter. She's such a darling!! I hope my Jung Pyo and Ji Hoo can be as well behaved!! ;)

Why Autumn Concerto episode 7 is a win (and the drama is a should-watch for all t-drama watchers)

1. At the 24 minute mark of episode 7 - there is an *extended* Vanness showering sequence. 100% unnecessary and irrelevant to the plot - as much a fan service as the Jo Gook showering sequence in episode 17. Win!

2. Mu-cheng (Ady) gets rid of her mushroom on top, mullet on the bottom haircut and goes for the farmgirl messy knot to turn into the luxurious shower of hair in upcoming episodes - functional and pretty. Win!

3. A cute, not annoying, okay in the acting department little boy cast as the son of Vanness and Ady - can be a drama-breaker but thankfully avoided here, the son is cute without being cloying or acty. Win!

4. The second male lead - he's so steadfast without being clingy, honest and forthright without being pushy, considerate and caring without being over-the-top - I adore him, even though he's not going to get the girl, he's still a great character and good acting and cute guy. Win!

5. Cinemetography - I love the lyrical simplicity of the directing in AC, it sets the mood, softens the edges, and brings a semi-dream like state to all the messiness inherent in the story (Vanness freakin FORGETS his true love, and can't even understand that he has a son, the horror!). Win!

6. The story - I love that AC has heart, it really does, it's not relying on gitz or glamor, showy props or scenary, transcending its chock full of cliches plotline - and really gets to the heart of a good drama - making us care that Vanness and Ady overcome their obstacles and get together in the end, with their adorable little boy. Win!

I don't know how many dramas where I just stopped caring as the show went on, and watched to see how the story ended. Here, I care, I want to feel like these two sad, lonely, wounded, loving people find each other again, and then shove a giant stick into the bitchy mom, the pervert step-dad, and every other mean, hateful person who hurts them.

And at a brisk 13 episodes - Autumn Concerto may very well become my fave Autumn in its title drama ever!

Time for my embarrassing confession of the week re: Autumn's Concerto.

Vanness Wu sent posted a message on Twitter thanking everyone for making his drama # 1 in Taiwan. And I replied to it, thanking him in return for the shower scene.

Yep. I really did. :-(

You are too adorable, unni! I wouldn't dare, but then again, I'm the type to watch the shower scene huddled in the corner of the room with the lights off. Good for you! I also felt kinda shallow and pervy for listing said scene in my list-of-win as #1, I didn't mean to, but it sorta happened by itself. Unconsciously.

Well, Vanness puts himself out there on a public forum so I figure he wants feedback, right? And it was just such blatant fanservice that I felt I should thank him for it. If I could have figured out a way to thank CSW for his shower scene in City Hall, or LBH for stripping down to his underwear in TGTBTW, I probably would have done that too.

Hey, just in case they're both Dramabeans lurkers (and I would not be at all surprised if this were the case, along with a bunch of other celebrities too, honestly), THANKS GUYS! KEEP IT COMING!! :-D

@ serendipity

We're in for a treat - I hope its done right - they are planning an amine movie next year of Princess Sappire! (and Buddha, which I have yet to read):

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-04-21/tezuka-buddha-princess-knight-planned-as-anime-films

It's like a cross-dressing Princess with multiple personality hijinks, just awesome! And she saves the day time and time again, yay for female empowerment.

@ doublethink101

Amazon has a nice collection of Osamu Tezuka's work translated into English. Including Buddha and Black Jack. I'm tempted, so very tempted, to push the buy button.....May wait until Chrismas to justify the buy.

Oh man, Edward Woodward died. :-(

Everyone always thinks about Miami Vice as the quintessential 80's show but I loved The Equalizer. Such a great character. Love the opening credits and Stewart Copeland music:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g87nDBIyqeU

For your enjoyment.

I have no clue what the reporters are saying (my Japanese language skills have grown bastardized with all this k-drama watching).

All I can say is: wow, none of them look their best. And one of them seems to have taken a page from the Jo In-sung/Jang Geun-soek handbook and decided to go fem (he's also the one who looks absolutely bored out of his mind).

Oh well, I'd pay $175 to see them in action. I suspect them four in this video are having the exact same conversation I scripted for them in OT.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujZRqrfuE1o

Just got home from Sydney. So. Cal.! Such a beautiful place:D

Anyway, I'm just in time for
@239 ockoala

So there they are practicing to say Good morning(How lame) in Japanese. By the way, this is what DBSK does so well. Going to back to super duper power 4, They wanted to greet viewers of Mezamashi(wake up) TV(show), Good morning! Which wasn't exactly a success! Then a newscaster was saying " all of them are great achievers and it's rare even in Korea to see 4 of them all together"

Going to back to DBSK, I mean, especially Micky Yuchun, He even writes lyrics in Japanese, I'm sure he's gotta an editor or something. Anyhow, Chunjae's (soulmate couple's) new J song Shelter is amazing. They are so talented... Plz forgive me. I'm going off the topic, after all, I'm so totally jet lagged, can't help being a bit off...

Princess Sapphire! That's Ribonno kishi(Japanese title: a knight of/with a big bow(ribbon) I loved that Anime! I'm sure I was still in grade school when it was so popular!

@226 Taohua

I know, I know and her daughter, Konkona Sen Sharma was fab. in it as well, she can look beautiful or total disaster, another interesting actress.

Just watched Autumn's Concerto ep 6 (i know, i'm behind....) and omg.

That's all. O.M.G.

I think i'm gonna have to watch ep 7 raw and really stretch my chinese skills, because..O.M.G.

Its retribution time. I've made fun of my husband all week for wanting to watch Ninja Assassin and today what should arrive in the mail from YesAsia but the Your Beautiful OST I ordered more than 3 weeks ago which I had planned on hiding from my husband. But like all good plans it was foiled because I forgot about it and he had opened the package wondering what could have come all the way from Hong Kong.

When I came home he took great pleasure in rolling his eyes at me like "I can't believe how flacky you are" and yes he even did the "L" thing near his forehead to tell his wife she is a loser. I guess what goes around comes around.

@ Ockoala

"Yes, His Dark Materials feels like the successor in some respects to C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe series, and akin as well to JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
Personally I enjoyed HDM more – I read the others as teens and liked them a lot, but HDM really resonated with me as an adult. Can’t really explain why."

Lyra being an orphan and having such parents as she has was one of the reasons why HDM resonated so strongly. You wanted to protect her and hug her during her hard journey north and through the personal losses she suffers. No child should have to endure the experiences she suffers. Tolkien's LOTR could have cut 20-30% if he got rid of all the walking, wandering and riding. There were parts that were quite tedious.

@231 lovenyc52
Yeah I've heard the acoustic version which I also really liked. For some weird reason the style reminded me a lot of their song Haru Haru. I'm not sure why, because they are nothing alike. But I hope they do experiment some more with this style. Have you listened to Taeyang's solo single "Wedding Dress" ? I liked it. Too be honest before the whole 2pm thing I never realized there were so many kpop groups out there. I'm actually impressed (and a bit intimidated) by how many new groups are debuting this year.

@nycgrl
I agree with LoTR getting a bit tedious because of all the description of the wandering (and the songs). For me, I liked HDM more than CoN and LoTR because of the characterizations. While both CoN and LoTR had characters who were tempted by the dark, most of the characters tended to good or bad. Whereas with HDM, it explored the darkness that can in all of us in varying degrees. And I really liked the idea of the daemon being our conscious. I thought HDM had much more multi-faceted characters, each with their own flaws. And there was a lot of tension on making the right choice and whether that choice was necessarily a good one.

@ kb

- I've only watched a few eps of Top Gear. It was entertaining enough, but I don't follow it.

- I don't follow sports that much anymore (although I don't mind watching if something's on). But there's just something about NCAA football that is exciting.
Plus, having season tickets to one's alma mater makes you more keen on following what's going on in the conference. I would gladly skip football for kdramas. ;)

- I grew up watching [very] badly dubbed kung fu movies. :D
(Like Samsooki, I do hope there's more meat to Ninja Assassins, but I'm keeping my expectations low, so I'll be pleasantly surprised if it turns out better.)

BUT...I don't cook. Hardly ever. It works out well, though, because hubby enjoys cooking. It relaxes him after a long day of work, whereas it only stresses me, which in turn, stresses him. So, he usually kicks me out of the kitchen.

Once in a while, I do cook, but it never seems to go as planned.
Case in point - tonight, I went to the Korean market because I wanted to make hubby 미역국 (seaweed soup) for his birthday this week...but it wasn't until I was almost home (after braving the rush hour traffic) that I realized I had forgotten to buy the SEAWEED. LOL! Hubby's still laughing that I forgot the one thing I purposely went to get and often mocks my grocery shopping skills...at the Korean market (where he's the pro shopper).
At least, I bought him some kimbap for dinner. ;)

Still envious? :P

first time on OT, been a silent lurker for ages and only came out of the closet for the current YB craze..

but i just HAD to comment on the HDM conversation. i first read the books when i was abt 14.. and that was just abt the time the HP craze started spreading world-wide. while i was a fan of HP then, HDM just blew me away.. had read CS Lewis when i was younger but i never really liked it. LOTR too but it was probably to tedious for me at that age.. but HDM...... it's my favourite fantasy series ever and i hesitate when I put it under the fantasy genre cos there's so much trash out there. nothing since then came close.

was totally rooting for the movie when it was announced. and i for one loved the casting, big names and the promo pics looked awesome. but it totally disappointed me when it hit the big screens. you know how people always lament that the books are always better than their movie adaptations? well, this one didn't even come close to be compared. and i blame the director and studio for that. perhaps it wasn't the right time. LOTR had to wait for years for the right mixture to become the magic onscreen that it was.

and i weep for the fact that I will never be able to see The Subtle Knife be adapted on screen. Like you, I would have loved to see who would get the role of Will, though I didn't think any known actor at that time could personify him adequately. And to me, the knife as a literary device to traverse worlds is one of the most elegant examples ever written. no closet, no magic mirror/door etc. but a knife that can cut through worlds and the subtext of what effect that would cost. sublime.

and the amber spyglass had me crying near the end. i normally get teary eyed pretty often when watching dramas/movies/reading books. but that was the first time I CRIED. like trying to control sobs kind of cry. and I've not picked up any of PP's subsequent books based on HDM trilogy. because i didn't want to ruin the series for myself in my memory. that is how much these books meant to me.

phewww.. long post. but yeahh.. I just HAD to write abt how awesome HDM is.

in response to other threads of conversation, I WAS watching AC and getting addicted then one fine day decided to try YB and was addicted BIGTIME. so i said byebye to AC because following two on-air dramas is suicidal during term time for an undergrad. but yeahh, I think the actors are doing a phenomenal job in t-drama terms and I adore the cinematographic technique of the director. of whom I think is kick-ass just cos she's female in a male director dominated tw-idol drama world. and it shows in the kind of lyrical poetry of how her scenes are set up. will probably go back to it in the summer. and probably Smile, You too. Just cos I've been reading the recaps here and the main couple are adorable beyond words. see! the influence of javabeans!

YB talk:

Is it just me, or is the YAB soundtrack the most covered K-drama OST on Youtube? I think I've seen more covers of Without Words than for Almost Paradise or I'm Stupid from BBF.

Found the clip of JGS singing Without Words.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrRGMBw0VaM