[Dramaland Catnip] Supernatural powers and mind-reading abilities
by Guest Beanie
I Hear Your Voice
By @Inkshoals
My drama catnip is ESP, in any of its forms, because of the way that the supernatural powers result in intimate knowledge of someone and encourages bonding. That’s why I looked forward to I Hear Your Voice from the first posting of its basic storyline on Dramabeans. The drama starts out introducing us to Park Su-ha’s world where he can hear everyone’s thoughts so long as he can see their eyes. It’s a terribly loud and lonely world, which he usually tries to drown out by wearing earphones.
Along the way he discovers that his idealized noona thinks more about money than justice when she works as a lawyer. That doesn’t stop him from quietly crushing on her, although she doesn’t return the feelings until much later after being in full denial of them. I loved the scene when he has recovered his memory but she thinks he still has amnesia, and he catches her thoughts turning into a confession of her feelings for him, along with the internal struggle to not let those feelings continue because of the age gap between them.
Secret Garden
Another form of this comes in the body swap scenario, such as in Scret Garden. Walking in another’s shoes totally changed the arrogant Joo-won’s impression of poor but hardworking Ra-im when they become victims of a supernatural body swap. While it isn’t ESP per se, it’s ESP’s cousin, and a beautiful way to discover what lies below the skin of another human being.
When they swap back into their own bodies the first time, Joo-won rewards Ra-im with a hug of compassion and appreciation that would have been impossible had he not lived as her. Later on, when their bonds have grown deeper, Joo-won even sacrifices his own life to save hers by swapping her spirit into his body after an accident lands her in a coma. It’s a perfect way to express how deep love comes from deep knowledge of another individual.
In You From Another Star, alien Do Min-joon’s ability to hear Chun Song-yi talking out loud to herself is as good as ESP. He overhears her agonizing out loud to herself about her feelings for him, which provides comedy moments. And when she is in danger, he hears her, no matter how far away, and comes to save her, which gives us swoony romantic moments.
You From Another Star
Then in W–Two Worlds, manhwa protagonist Kang Chul is intrigued by the details that stranger Oh Yeon-joo knows about him, even down to the thoughts in his head which he hasn’t spoken to anyone. He doesn’t know he’s a character in a manhwa series of which she is a great fan, but it gives her a lot of knowledge about him as a person.
He discovers that she has ways of knowing about the incoming danger to him before they happen. Moreover, she’s a powerful force in his fate because she is even able to go into his world and change his death from the supposed series ending to simply a cliffhanger, giving him another chance at life.
As the result of one plot twist, his memories of their relationship were written away as a dream, but when he reads the copy of the book she accidentally left behind, he learns about not only their relationship, but also her inner thoughts. ESP in manga form! It’s extra satisfying that after all those years of her knowing his thoughts, he finally got his chance to read hers right back.
W–Two Worlds
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- What’s your dramaland catnip? Tell us your stories!
Tags: Theme of the Month
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1 SnarkyJellyfish
June 29, 2017 at 9:16 AM
Ohh, I like this catnip. It's definitely a fun way to break down walls between characters. Have you checked out Soulmate @inkshoals? It has a bit of ESP in it, and it's my absolute favorite drama of all time, even though the drama is not really supernatural per se.
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:06 AM
I haven't watched Soulmate. If it has ESP, I'll have to check it out! Thanks for the rec!
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2 TrinPie
June 29, 2017 at 9:17 AM
Yesssss. I love fantasy and sci-fi-type elements in kdramas. Adds an extra element to the drama you can't get from average rom-coms. I Can Hear Your Voice is one of my favorite kdramas.
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:07 AM
I think it's my top favorite...
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3 lezah
June 29, 2017 at 9:24 AM
Does Goblin fit into this? I love fantasy elements so much because my first love (way before K dramas entered my life) was fantasy novels (made even better with romance subplots). I love seeing things that are out of the ordinary, and fantasy allows for so much more development. I loved You Who Came From the Stars; it's definitely one of my most, most, MOST favourite dramas.
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kayedrama
June 29, 2017 at 11:55 AM
I looked for Goblin too when I read the title but I guess she focused more on telepathic skills boiling down to empathy so she inc Secret Garden
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Chanelboy loves Jackson Wang A LOT
June 30, 2017 at 12:48 AM
Then legend of blue sea could counter too!
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:09 AM
Yeah, ESP is my drama/book catnip, but it isn't directly used in enough dramas to just list it, that's why I added things like-unto, but not quite as wide as supernatural. Which I also like. If I'd gone that route, I would have added Master's Sun and Goblin for sure...probably some others too, but my head file isn't as big as my computer files, so I'd have to go down a list somewhere to catch all the fish for that topic!
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:11 AM
I like ESP best, so I focused on that, but if I widened the arc to include supernatural, I would definitely have included Master's Sun (love that one) and Goblin.
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4 kabsy
June 29, 2017 at 9:29 AM
The catnip I wanted to write about. I love fantasy and supernatural elements in my dramas, Goblin, YFAS, I hear your voice, Secret Garden, Pinocchio etc...It makes for great comedic scenes, epic action scenes, swoony romantic gestures...
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:14 AM
My favorite swoony scene at the end of I Can Hear Your Voice is when she has (uncharacteristically) declared her love and loyalty for him in weepy splendor (because she just read his lonely journal and thinks he's going to prison for attempting to kill her mother's murderer), then she is totally embarrassed about her confession in light of finding out he's not actually going to prison (and she's going to be seeing him on a regular basis), but he urges her to confess her feelings to him anyway, and she does with her eyes tightly shut because she's really not the gushing type, and then...they lock eyes, and the music stops, and he kisses her and you know it's because he can read her mind!!!
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5 Allnighter
June 29, 2017 at 9:30 AM
U reminded now I will have to rewatch w2w
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6 CrimeFighter
June 29, 2017 at 9:30 AM
Fantasy genre can be considered as one of my catnip too. That's why I love I Hear Your Voice too.
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7 Pickwick12
June 29, 2017 at 9:30 AM
Nice post! Not usually my catnip unless there's a really well-explained reason for it. (I'm still side-eyeing Secret Garden for the "explanation," even though I loved that drama.) But I did massively enjoy the fact that W's premise gave the characters seemingly-supernatural/odd powers in each other's territory that were completely necessary according to the laws of the universe the writer created.
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8 bebeswtz
June 29, 2017 at 9:37 AM
Do Min Joon is my fave of this catnip... Sooo many swoony and comedic moments =))) But who are we kidding? Cheon Song Yi herself is such a comedic, yet lovable and glamorous character
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9 yukilili
June 29, 2017 at 10:09 AM
I really liked the ESP/super power theme too and enjoyed all the dramas listed! I am still rather disappointed with the later half of W... i loved how the manga and real worlds connected and the wonderful leads... but all the love dwindled rapidly when the show starts to throw logic and "face" out of the window...
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10 Aly
June 29, 2017 at 10:19 AM
Well, I did love "I Hear Your Voice" and "W" but I never really considered that I like supernatural elements in my dramas.
Most of the time I'm disappointed with how dramas insert those elements and WASTE THEM completely in favor of old-school melodrama and the hated love triangle.
With that said, "Signal" is the perfect example of how to do it RIGHT. It really blew my mind. Such an amazing drama. *wishes for sequel*
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yukilili
June 29, 2017 at 10:26 AM
Well said. even though I am mostly a rom-com person, I enjoyed Signal and the recent Tunnel extremely (surprising myself too)!
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natzillagorilla
June 29, 2017 at 10:48 AM
I'm torn between *really* wishing for a sequel and not wanting to suffer such emotional/psychological trauma again heh
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Lulu02
June 29, 2017 at 2:05 PM
Strong woman DBS is also one to add into the superpowers list, but to me they did it wrong with that killer plot, and I didn't liked last ep. I think I watched that show because the couple was cute. Min Min was a jelly man in front of her
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11 Thaisfrede
June 29, 2017 at 10:30 AM
I really like the fantasy in My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho.
Another Miss Oh is another excellent "supernatural power". I love everytime Park Do-Kyung saw Hae-Young in his thoughts...
What else? I have Sci-Fiction now, with Circle (awesome kdrama)...
And one kdrama that I love, and the most do not, is BIG, God, I Love the end, but so much... Has so many meanings behind it.
And let's not forget about Oh My Ghost... I laughed so much at this drama. Cho Jung-Seok and Park Bo-Young were perfect in the roles.
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12 Lilia
June 29, 2017 at 10:31 AM
I love anything to do with the supernatural. I've always been drawn by strange and outside the reach of reason elements in anything I dive any; books, movies, and dramas. For me this is a leeway to leave this ordinary world and step into a stunning one where you get to learn the rules anew and live a new life with every new setting. Reading minds, superpowers, goblins and grim reapers... all elements that open up possibilities for something great to happen :)
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13 Riman Rakshit
June 29, 2017 at 10:50 AM
This is Lee Jong Suk's catnip!!
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:18 AM
Lee Jong Suk might also be my catnip...
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14 chase graves
June 29, 2017 at 10:51 AM
Lots of lee jong seok here. <3 Love supernatural dramas. I'd add any kind of supernatural element as instantly drawing my attention, like My Girlfriend is a Gumiho and Surplus Princess.
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15 Kudo Ran
June 29, 2017 at 11:21 AM
Thank you Inkshoals for this catnip, I love the addition if supernatural /magic element in dramas, Secret Garden is one of my favorites .
Does time travel belong to this category ? If yes, I nominate Nine time travels and Splish Splash Love :). Off to begin Queen In Hyun's Man...
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Kudo Ran
June 29, 2017 at 11:22 AM
*of
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:22 AM
Oooh...I loved Nine. I recommended to a friend whose wife now watches Kdrama too (I still don't know if it is because of that recommendation or another route). I didn't like all of the versions of the female lead in the many threaded possible realities, but I loved the exploration into the "what if" of multiple memories and the variations that can occur in life based on the different outcomes of one particular decision point.
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16 vanilla_latte
June 29, 2017 at 11:43 AM
Yes, my favorite catnip and starring my favorite actor, LJS! It seems he cannot resist starring in this type of drama as well. He's so good at it, so I don't blame him.
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17 fatcat007
June 29, 2017 at 11:45 AM
Yes this is my catnip, not the mind reading part though, I don't think people like their minds to be read, nor does the person who hears the thoughts like it, isn't that why the lead guy in I hear your voice always used to wear those headphones?? Any other supernatural element is good :-)
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:24 AM
So many relationship help books list the advice: no one can read your mind, so you need to learn to communicate!! But I think there is that childish voice inside that says, "but wouldn't it be nice if Mr. Right could know exactly how I feel and who I am?" I think the ESP trope answers that feeling.
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:25 AM
But yeah, it would certainly be hard to hear everyone's thoughts. No matter how we choose to act, our thoughts are far more chaotic and mixed than our choices.
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18 fangirl98
June 29, 2017 at 12:48 PM
Ooh - good one! I didn't realize this was my catnip. The dramas mentioned are some of my all-time favorites.
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19 rlg07
June 29, 2017 at 6:23 PM
I love it, @inkshoals. And of course you named my favorites, because you are the one who got me hooked on this whole drama thing in the first place. :) I love how kdramas include so much fantasy. It's definitely one of the things that attract me to dramas in the first place.
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Inkshoals
June 30, 2017 at 10:26 AM
Thanks, 언니!
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20 dee
June 30, 2017 at 3:21 AM
VOICE. Kang Kwon-Joo.
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hannaehh
July 1, 2017 at 11:15 AM
I love Voice! She's awesome her ability to hear all kind of sounds!
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21 celine
June 30, 2017 at 6:30 AM
I like this very much. Although I vote for more female leads with superpowers, especially mind-reading. I'd love to see, for a change, the girl having the ability to read the guy and everyone else. I cannot recall a drama with that kind of female lead. I may be wrong though...
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22 modestgoddess
June 30, 2017 at 8:44 AM
Lee JongSuk is my catnip
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23 elvira
June 30, 2017 at 8:59 AM
In conclusion, Lee Jong suk is supernatural, because he starred SeGa, IHYV, W-Two Worlds, and Pinocchio.
The man knows how to choose good projects.
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24 Maelstrom
June 30, 2017 at 12:15 PM
I'm fairly new to Dramaland, but after reading this post I realize that this is my catnip, too! I'm a sucker for supernatural tropes and stories, and loved that two of my favorites (I Hear Your Voice and You From Another Star) are mentioned here. Legend of the Blue Sea has a touch of ESP, as the hero can hear the heroine's thoughts in part of the story.
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25 javinne
June 30, 2017 at 12:53 PM
I also like this catnip. I am always attracted by some fantastic super power that would make a person special. Particularly, i enjoyed how HS accepted the fact that SH was able to "listen" to People's thoughts, so much she wanted to use him! But the rest of the drama was perfectly normal... and except from this little advantage in court rooms, it is not like they used his ability to gain some profit, which actually somebody could have tought...
And life carried on pretty simple (except then again, because of Min joo).
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26 pickledplumtree
July 6, 2017 at 10:20 AM
Yayyy you gotta love the sweet silliness of it
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