Hahaha, no no not thisss soon! Let them live a little >.<

I wanted to catch Master's Sun live tonight but I just couldn't. Ironic, how things turn out because IHYV was a way to kill time before MS and now... I just have no interest in it. Argh%$#%

@Celery

Ikr. I still have no urge to start on any of the new dramas yet. Like I said on Twitter, will get my ass moving next week on securing a drama distraction, hoping at least one of the 4 newly premiered ones would be enough to do the job.

This week is solely dedicated to IHYV. :D

@RWJQ

At least you have four options D: I'm putting all my eggs in one MS basket. I would try Who Are You if the cast appealed to me since I like procedural crime type series.

Good Doctor - nah, not my cup of tea at all :( What's the last one?

Anyway, the cast's in Phuket for their vacation now, wheee!

@Celery

I'm open to all 4 shows because none of them, based on their promo materials, has really gripped me like, Omg, I really need to catch this!

Admittedly, I'm leaning more towards Master's Sun but I suspect that's due to residual love for Greatest Love than the sisters per se, since I still can't get the horror of Big out of my head. ;)

I'm not a fan of medical dramas, but am willing to have a go at Good Doctor for Joo Won.

On that note, coincidentally, all 4 shows have leads I like and not:

Two Weeks: yes to Lee Jun Ki, no to Park Ha Sun

Good Doctor: yes to Joo Won, no to Moon Chae Won

Who Are You: yes to Kim Jae Wook, no to So Yi Hyun and Taecyeon.

Overall feel, ambivalence.

Yeah, saw a few photos of LBY, JWI, YSH and LDH at the airport leaving for Phuket. Hope someone, maybe the staff, will post more pics of them having fun there. :)

Lee Jong Seok, on the other hand, is hard at work filming No Breathing in Davao, Philippines.

Oh I left out Master's Sun: yes to Gong Hyo Jin but no to So Ji Sub. ;)

@RWJQ

Omg, and here I'm, thinking that I'm the only one resilient to SJS's charm. (To be fair, I'm not physically attracted to LJS either, but he's pretty adorkable IRL.)

CSW > SJS, ftw. A pity about his son's recent scandal though, hope the truth surfaces soon.

@Celery

Hee, you have me for company then. ;)

I tried catching Ghost last year. SJS just ... didn't quite do it for me. Not enough to make me hang on to the show. He's just not my cup of tea.

LJS ... I am not physically attracted to him either. I just find him very very adorable. Like a cute little puppy. I'm not about to start laying claims on him and calling him mine.

That said, he's impressed me so much in School2013 and IHYV that he's now on my list of actors whose projects I'd defo keep an eye out for.

CSW, on the other hand ... is completely another kettle of fish. HE IS HOT. ;)

He, Jung Woo Sung and Gong Yoo are the 3 actors whose dramas (even if they stink to high heaven) I'd gladly sit through just so I could feast my eyes on them. And you know the drama's sucktitude, if there's any, will be through no fault of theirs.

I read about the scandal involving CSW's son. Guess it'll be some time before we see CSW back in dramaland. :(

@RWJQ

I'm pretty much stalking this thread just to reply you, lol.

I'm relatively new to KEnt but so far, I have my eye on CSW, JWS (the hot boys) and Song Kang-ho, Ha Jung-Woo (the not so hot boys). I still wouldn't sacrifice my time for a sucky series or movie even with them in it BUT I would be more partial to their works.

Gong Yoo seems to be pretty popular based on what I have seen thus far but strangely, I have yet to catch anything with him in it.

LJS... I think I need him to shed his pretty/flower high school boy image before I can take him seriously. And I do want to because I think he's quite talented.

OH speaking of School 2013 (and by natural extension, piqued interest in KWB), I'm actually watching White Christmas now and woah, KWB. WOAH. Maybe I will get down to watching School 2013 soon :P

@Celery

I know! It's turned into our little chat room! I sped-scrolled down the main page to this post just to check the comment number ... Oooh, 109, she's replied! .... and here I am. :D

Song Kang Ho and Ha Jung Woo: two talented actors with many critically acclaimed projects under their belts. Unfortunately, I've yet to catch any of their works. I need to make time for more K-movies. So far, my little K-ent world has been constrained to only K-dramas. :(

I used to watch way more KDramas than I do now. Indiscriminately and with a huge tolerance for crappy ones too. Over the years, I have learnt to be more discerning, or maybe it's just my patience wearing thin, and now I drop the shows if they can't hook me by the 4th episode, even with cast I like in them. Same will go for the 4 new shows mentioned above.

I loved Gong Yoo in Coffee Prince. That love made me sit through the horrible Big. And of course, Athena, for JWS and CSW. I dunno if I'll continue to put up with shit just for them. Worse comes to worst, I still have the FF button to save my sanity. ;)

I want LJS to take on darker roles in his future works, something with maybe a gritty image. Was rather disappointed to read that he'd be reprising yet another high-school role in IHYV. (But am glad I didn't give the show a pass because of that.) Boiling Youth and No Breathing come with a high school premise too, right? Guess I'll have a while to wait then.

KWB ... my sole reason to catch School 2013 was for him!! I saw him in A Gentleman's Dignity and he impressed me, even with his limited screen time. How is White Christmas? Good?

@RWJQ

Teehee (in a non-creepy way).

I actually sort of got more involved with Korean movies because the lawverse in IHYV left me scratching my head in disbelief.

SKH bowled me over in Memories of Murder and HJW in Chaser. They have utterly raised the bar for what I would consider good acting (and you know, the acting in k-dramas can get a lil uneven for many many reasons).

I probably have completed under... eight series? LOL, dropped about eight as well? But I do have a cursory knowledge of the industry on the whole due to my mom's K-Ent fanaticism. Though I gotta admit, TGL (and IHYV) revved my interest in k-dramas and showed me that there's more to them than makjang, melo sob stories and ridiculous plotholes.

White Christmas is really good and riveting as of ep. 5 - starts off slow but kicks off at around ep 3. Now, I don't usually like high school dramas but throw in a Lord of the Flies premise in the midst, and I'll Be There (lol). It's a psychological thriller of sorts, which means heavy characterization and tons of monologue - not sure whether it's your cup of tea - but the script is awfully good and it helps to buoy the raw acting. Also, it feels like a long-ass play with its stark lighting and theatrical sets.

I <3 KWB's character in the series - he's sort of a free-spirited agent of chaos from what I have seen so far (ep 5). There's not a whole lot of him BUT I would say, pretty impressive acting for his first TV series. I'm rather blown away by HJH's (I know nothing of him, 'xcept that he's a model friend of KWB and LJS) subtle nuances for his character and I would say he's the best actor of the lot in the series.

Speaking of Big, the main lead in WXmas was in it as well and hmm, he's relatively cute and all that but I don't think he can act that well? I see a lot of action going on with the upper part of his face but his mouth is perpetually frozen.

(PS - I'm missing LBY/HS very much. MS is just not really doing it for me at the mo.)

@Celery

The law aspect in IHYV raised many questions in my head initially, then I decided to just suspend my disbelief on it. Suspension of disbelief — a practice that MUST be employed when watching Kdramas, if enjoyment is desired.

Memories of Murder and Chaser have been added to my To-watch list, though I'm not sure when I'd get around to watching them. I'm ashamed to admit that the said list is looooong .... and getting longer, yet I'm not doing anything actively to rectify it. ;)

Oh, the truckloads of ridiculous makjang dramas with gaping plot holes and asinine characters I sat through before I learned the art of early checkout. Too embarrassed to list them here. In short, better late than never. Hee.

You've got me intrigued on White Christmas. Just googled it and pleasantly surprised to see it's only 8 episodes. Good. Manageable. I'll try to catch it if the new dramas tank in my eye.

I guffawed at your "I'll Be There". ;)

By HJH, did you mean Hong Jung Hyun? Omg, he's the only gem I picked up from the recently wrapped-up Dating Agency: Cyrano!! Never saw him before this drama but he got my attention. He looks promising.

I had to go through the cast list of White Christmas one by one to come to Baek Sung Hyun to realize he was the one you meant in Big. He had a small supporting role in Big, as the female lead's younger brother. I wouldn't call his acting bad. He's just .... serviceable. I need to see him in WC to gauge and compare.

I miss HS and the whole cast too. Just rewatched (for the umpteenth time) Ep 3 of IHYV. Pathetic, huh? I know. :(

@RWJQ

OOO, Memories of Murder is really good (coincidentally, one of the main leads is also in WXmas, I guess he really like crime/thrillers?). So is Mother - both films have made me a big fan of the director, so all his movies are now on my to-watch list, esp. Snowpiercer.

Oh, and there's Arcade Fire in WXmas - indie music in k-dramas, wow. Practically life-changing.

Yes, that HJH :D His character is sort of a wallflower and definitely not my favorite, but he's without a doubt the best out of the young actors in WXmas IMO. I get the vibe that he's the sort of underrated young actor who will probably never get too famous? (Dude looks 28, not 23 though.)

Oops, BSH, ahaha. I take my word back about him being the main lead (because honestly, every character gets their screen-time and fleshed-out backstory) but he definitely has slightly more scenes than the rest because, without spoiling anything, he's the straight man in the show. Maybe he's more cut out for comedy cos' man, his awkward and stiff acting... He should have switched roles with HJH.

Coincidentally, I just found out that the other dude (KWK) in Hot Blooded Youth also acted in WXmas. Was a real tool of a character in it and I suspect he will recycle some of that attitude for the movie because it sounds quite like the one he played in the series.

LAWYER SHIN AND YOO CHAN :( ARE you re-watching it again?! I'm stalking its soompi thread and other sources for news on the cast but that's about it; it's too freshly imprinted in my mind for me to enjoy another re-watch. I'm watching WXmas (ep 5), still sampling MS (ep 2) and WAYou (ep 2) but will probably drop the latter though.

@Celery

Okay, now I feel a pressing need to go look for all Bong Joon Ho's films and cover as many of them as possible this weekend, though I know it's impossible as I've lots scheduled for the next two days. :(

Have come across lots of news on Snowpiercer these few days online. Especially on its record-breaking success at the Korean theatres. Naturally, I'm intrigued and it's on my to-watch list too. Chances are I might get to that first, before any of his older films.

I had to google Arcade Fire. Am totally not familiar with the indie music industry. :( So, WC used a track of theirs? If I do catch the series, will keep a lookout for it.

As for HJH probably not attaining more fame, I wouldn't be too sure about that. Nowadays, anything is possible. Look at Lee Jong Seok (feel like I need to mention him at least once, to justify us still having exchange on this thread. ;) ), I'd never have thought 3 years ago when I saw him in Secret Garden that he'd be where he is now.

All it takes is LUCK which in this industry translates to the right script and the right role at the right timing, and voilà, you've got it made. To be fair, I think LJS is talented and I'm sure he's been working hard, but look at stars (I don't even wanna acknowledge them as actors) like Song Seung Heon, Kim Tae Hee, Suzy, and Bae Yong Joon ... etc, who cannot act to save their lives, and yet rolling in wealth and fame.

If HJH continues to work on honing his craft, then I hope for his sake that he'll get a fair chance and attain whatever level of fame that's at least proportional to his commitment and efforts.

Looking at the young cast list, WC seems a vehicle to showcase the new faces then. You have guys like Lee Soo Hyuk, Sung Joon, and Kim Woo Bin who were rookies then. I'll manage my expectations in the acting department when I catch it. :)

I'm not rewatching the whole of IHYV from the beginning. Just random eps for random scenes on the random occasions when I feel like some Soo Ha + Hye Sung moments. I'm not catching any of the new shows yet, so this is how I get my Kdrama fix. Win-win. ;)

I give Soompi a wide berth because of the fanatics there. One wrong word or anything against their opinion, you get vitriol spewed all over you. I'd rather get my news from other Kpop sites and Twitter.

I have not read any recaps of the new shows. Don't wanna get spoilt, but judging from the sentiments I've gathered from the quick scroll here on DB and Twitter, seems MS is turning out to be a letdown, while Two Weeks is gaining praises, despite losing out in the domestic ratings race. I might give Two Weeks a go first, since I prefer Lee Jun Ki to So Ji Sub. :)

@RWJQ:

Ooo, I thought KWB did pretty good in WC. His character's so loveable there. LSH... hmm, I love his voice, lol. I don't find him hot but I just can't help staring at him whenever he pops up on screen cos' of how otherworldly he looks.

Oh, I don't mean it in a bad way. HJH can definitely be lead male material right now but I feel like he's deliberately taking a different trajectory when it comes to acting - I mean, as an actor, sometimes the lead roles aren't as... challenging as the supporting roles?

Having taken a look at his filmography, his choices have been extremely diverse, varied and challenging, despite their inaccessibility. LJS (and to a smaller extent, KWB) have stuck to more accessible roles, which is smart on his part because that's fulfils the vision he has for his career. Hmm, take of it as Ed Norton vs Tom Cruise. Oh and he sort of reminds me of KJW in terms of their "reluctance" to conform to male lead roles.

I guess "under the radar" would have been a more applicable description than "underrated" (though I think they come hand-in-hand sometimes).

The only small complaint I have is... why the eff is he only 23?! Can't he look like 28 AND be 28? :( I very much prefer liking older men, tqvm!