You know, I’m going to have trouble convincing people that I really like Lee Min Ho, given that it’s pretty much three-for-three in me striking out with his dramas. I finally watched Faith yesterday, both episodes at once, and the verdict is a solid “dislike”. It would veer into hate but for the fact that I like Min Ho’s character, and that’s about it. The acting from the two leads ranges from apathetic and devoid of nuance (Min Ho) to freakishly shrill and shrieky from his leading lady Kim Hee Sun (so bad she can give a class on “how not to act”), plus they have no chemistry.
Forget the age difference concerns, watching her almost turned me homicidal. The special efforts were oddly lame and overall I just find the story more interesting than the execution and delivery. I think Faith has so much potential in its mystical fantasy elements mixed with sageuk construct. But I think its miscast in both Lee Min Ho (decent in modern dramas but so far really lacking in sageuk presence) and Kim Hee Sun (just a bad actress, period). It’s a sayonara Faith for me at this stage, this a clearly a drama much better suited for others to enjoy rather than me following along and driving myself batshit insane. However, I realized that I also checked out two episodes into City Hunter (whereas I stuck with probably the worse drama of the lot in Personal Taste because of Son Ye Jin and a desperate hope it would redeem itself – it never did). Noticing this trend led me to wonder – what dramas have been dropped on first impression alone, never to be picked up again regardless of the drama possibly getting better down the line?
This phenomenon I’m discussing isn’t watching a drama until one loses interest somewhere down the road, but genuinely catching one or two episodes and actively deciding not to watch anymore for whatever reason. A few recent notables drama drops for me are:
1. A Gentleman’s Dignity – Hated/loathed the first two episodes, so much immaturity and self-aware wittiness that was in truth witless.
2. Flower Boy Ramyun Shop – Really turned off by the first two episodes, didn’t like the two leads characters or the directing.
3. I Need Romance 2012 – Found the first two episodes just terribly set up and executed, and a love story where I don’t care if the OTP fell into a wormhole means it won’t work for me.
4. Rooftop Prince – Loved the premise and the OTP, but hated the execution and the ridiculously evil second leads.
5. Thousand Day Promise – Almost put me to sleep in between the makjang, and since I couldn’t stand the heroine and hers was the story I was supposed to root for, I realized I batted for the other team and needed to leave the game.
6. Heartstrings – I was soooo excited about this one, but the spastic PD camerwork and the lackluster story left me lukewarm.
This list is merely a snapshot of the dramas that have stayed in my memory as actively annoying me right off the bat. There are a lot more dramas I watch and find okay so I continue to trudge along, only to gradually fade away for me until I either forget to keep watching or stop somewhere down the middle and then it promptly disappears into my mental blackhole. At least those dramas on top left an impression with me, albeit a bad one. On an upside, as much as Faith left me cold and activated an all-consuming desire to snark at it, I just watched the first episode of Arang and the Magistrate and found it so utterly perfect and amazing and OMG-I’m-swooning here. And even the first episode of To the Beautiful You isn’t bad at all (Really, it’s quite decent!), so I realize it’s just a matter of aesthetics on what I love and what I don’t. So what dramas left you cold right off the bat?
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Dr. Jin...do I need to say more?
I watched 10 episodes of that PoS drama, all for my love of Song Seung Heon and morbid curiosity. T___T That was a mistake.
Oh Ms Koala, your amazing love for all things Song Seung Heon runs very deep. Scary! :)
Me too! But I read the Dramabeans recaps for the funny.
I agree on some of the dramas listed above. Add 'Love Rain' to it.
Haha, I ran away screaming from Love Rain within 15 minutes. That must be a new record or something. Anyways, I didn't even watch enough LR for it to make this list. But HOMG what little I watched was atrocious.
I read the first four episodes in recaps and then started watching it. It wasn't bad once into modern times, then about halfway through it just sloooooooowed down and got somewhat ridiculous (omg, we can't be together but we're in lurve!11!! *cue angst*).
sigh...Love Rain.. I watched the first maybe 1.5 eps then decided to skip to save my sanity. Jumped to the modern day eps and was cute for maybe another 5-7 ep and then like someone else said just slowed down. Actually it was more like it got bogged down as it went on by the drama among the parents in the story..I would forward to the scenes between the younger leads. And I held on just to see what happens and in the hope it recovers but sadly not to be.
I ran away from that one when I saw the teaser...kkk
Oooh yeah Love rain!
So boring.
Faith is just MEH. Droping it.
Also do not enjoy LMH's acting or finds him charming.
He just has this blank/lost expression I hate.
Dr. Jin
Rooftop prince (I tried...)
Best Love (annoying main guy, no no no)
Lee Min Ho in Faith -------> just has this blank/lost expression EXACTLY! But he wasn't like this before. I'm so confused as to how/why he suddenly forgot how to act. He is just acting "cool" and "reticent" and instead comes off as looking really constipated and/or bored. And, uhm, that is not acting. I is sad, I really like him.
I dropped City Hunter because I read that manga growing up and what the K-drama did with the story was just impossible for me to accept, but I actually thought Lee Min Ho was all sorts of awesome acting-wise in the first two episodes I watched of CH. I dropped it for other reasons, but I did love what little I saw of him in it. Yuuuuummmmy!
Maybe he started botoxing himself? I mean it's possible right even at that age
same with me MS. K....i watched faith 2 eps..and the lady is so annoying...i thought it was just me...its just she doesnt fit the role...she was far better when she was a nerd intern...i am also irritated by the sound of her voice...she's not that convincing...as for LMH...he seems good when he was fighting..but when he was with the girl...it sucks...no chemistry at all.
Kim Hee Sun's voice is in the pantheon of "worst voices on television". Nails on a chalkboard. Coupled with her OTT bug-eyed twitchy acting, I feel like I was watching some Sunday afternoon horror movie special and she was in an episode of "The Blob."
Funny. I rarely drop a drama at 1 or 2 episodes. I guess I know exactly what I want from the dramas I start. My problem is with those who start good but go downhill. Call it noble idiocy of the viewer but I feel so guilty when I loved the start and have to drop at the last third. It's heartbreaking.
I completely agree. It took me like four episodes of loathing Big before I was able to admit to myself my love was totally misplaced and it had turned into a suck fest ;)
Omg! Loved the first episode of Hana Kimi! Sulli/Minho/Hyunwoo are so adorable. Hope it continues on being awesome, so far though, I sense that this could easily be ruined if they shall walk the darker path. Please stay in the light my precious. Can't wait to watch Arang! Still waiting on subs tho.
Haeundae Lovers is a tricky one. So overacted, so cheesy, so greasy. My mind is telling me to drop it now, but my heart keeps holding onto it.
The ones I could think of at the moment....
1. City Hunter
I keep trying, but I just always lose focus of what was going on.
2. Iris
Really wanted to get into this. But I just could not continue. It was just so greasy.
3. Baker Kim Tak Goo
Really wanted to watch this because of my latest obsession with Joo Won and Bridal Mask, but I only lasted till the end of the childhood segment. Too much drama for a drama.
4. Love Rain
Could not stand JGK's 60s hair. Could not stand even looking at Yoona. Really dislike the "I'm so pure and innocent and beautiful" get-up. Also they tried to be all artsy, but I was so bored.
5. Baby Faced Beauty
I dunno, everything about it just irritated me.
6. Tree With Deep Roots
I love Jang Hyuk. I love Song Joong Ki. But this drama just made me feel incredibly sleepy. Like listening to a mono-toned professor read from a book of statistics.
Koala Unnie, good thing you dropped I Need Romance 2012. I should have bailed long time. I do not learn. But I got easily captivated by the cafe owner who goes to orphanages to sing with kids aka, Mr. Perfect Shin Ji Hoon.
I should have bailed Gentlemen's Dignity as well. I never knew 25, 30s, and 41 year olds could be so immature. At first I found it cute, but got so annoyed throughout the second half.
Oh ya.. Forgot about baker king! I checked it out cos of joo won too after ojakgyo. It was really bad for me.. Script, direction, acting... All
I dropped dr jin like a hot potato. Couldn't stand rooftop prince. But I liked faith. The story line is GD! Give it time...
I have to say, I enjoyed all three of the new drama offerings! Even TTBY, which I found a pleasant surprise. Fashion king was a drama I just couldn't finish
I thank God you are not the only one kdrama blogger on the net...
pheeeewwh;)
Did you really have to leave such a comment here? Really!?
Lol. It's funny because I was thinking the exact opposite. Almost every other kdrama blogger (like the dramabean recappers for instance) goes on and on about how insanely hot LMH is, and completely ignores the fact that he can't act for shit. I think he's hot too, but when it comes to expressing emotion or having stage presence, he totally sucks.
So finally stumbling across this blogger, who seems like the only one in the bunch who's not so blinded by the actor's good looks that she is oblivious to his weak acting... I was really relieved.
So, shoo fly... go somewhere else if all you wanna read are praises and adoration for an actor who can't even express pain without looking constipated.
Sorry to disappoint you, but god is busy playing badook with his evil younger brother/overlord of the underworld as of the moment.
(On a less snarky note, drina put a smiley in there, perhaps she meant this as a joke. As in: thank god koala unnie gives me my Shun and Shin fix while other sites give me my Lee Min Ho fix. win/win!)
Not into Faith either, although i check out the recaps from Dramabeans to see how its doing just cause of LMH. Some of the dramas I've dropped right away were Love Rain (no matter how great my love for Jang Geun Seok is, it couldn't keep me from leaving) Dream High 2 (!st one was better), Fashion King, Ghost and a few more I can't remember...I guess it depends on my taste but some genres still captivate me if they're done perfectly (the right cast and execution) For now I'll stick to my Gaksital, Arang and To the Beautiful You to satisfy my k-drama addiction ^___^