I hope the Dr. Stranger watching experience does not devolve into the fervor of last year’s epic and messy Answer Me 1994 shipper fan wars. That was over which of the two male lead characters ought to get the girl, and perhaps it’s refreshing to see DS with the opposite problem of which of the two female lead characters viewers ship with the titular stranger doctor. The two ladies Jin Se Yeon and Kang Sora are in various periodicals recently so I thought it nice to showcase both of their different but equally charming styles outside the show. Jin Se Yeon rocks the shorter do in both Nylon Korea and Singles Magazine while Kang Sora does a BNT International photo shoot that deftly toggles four different looks. I’m happy for Kang Sora that her second female lead character is so well-written, it’s good for her career and even better for the viewers to see that not all second female leads are bitchy, vindictive, obsessed, or marginalized in the story. Jin Se Yeon’s Jae Hee is heartbreaking but Seung Hee is just a cold slab of ugh at this point in the story. It’s disappointing to see some viewers continue to bitch about Jin Se Yeon as Jae Hee/Seung Hee while heaping praise on Kang Sora as Soo Hyun when the time could be better spent discussing the STORY since there is so much crazy going on with plot threads spouting every which way. If the urge to spew forth on the ad nauseam complaint of “I wish Kang Sora was the female lead and Jin Se Yeon is so blank of an actress” is still there, enjoy this spread and then go crazy in the comments section. Let’s leave the recap comments for what’s actually happening in the drama story itself and hopefully generate more interesting discussions.
I adore Soo Hyun and if that Dr. McGorgeous Jae Joon doesn’t start treating her sincerely then I’m all for her giving him the hand by the end of the drama. I don’t want her with any guy unless he loves her completely. Sadly that guy can’t be male lead Dr. McGenius Hoon because his entire character construct is that he loves Jae Hee. That is it, the doctor part comes naturally but is merely the means to an end for him to be with Jae Hee. Normally I’d want him to get a life outside of romance but we’ve seen from his entire growing up background that he literally does not have a functioning life outside of Jae Hee. That’s what makes his character so pitiable and what elevates the first love trope in this drama into something that has to have a happy ending for Hoon’s entire world to make sense. This is not a guy who can fall for another girl even if she’s better than Jae Hee for him.
It is a drama where currently, I am still trying to figure out who is the main actress and who is supporting….
I believe, Sora is supporting but I don’t like that.
Really ? I hope that Kang Sora will be the main character. SH and JH should be the past, supporting for present.
Both girls have their own charm, they are so pretty but acting wise I do really think JSY is blank, I hope she will improve because we still can feel her character, she does not sell it well….Seung Hee if she’s Jaehee could have shown more in her scenes with Hoon….The story is forcing her character on us, she has to win us over…I do understand the viewers’ complaints 🙁
Let’s leave her a chance though
Jin se yeon looks pretty refreshing here. I hardly recognised her in 2 last spreads (nylon and single). Kang sora though looks drop dead gorgeous!!! She rocks every outfit and it is as if she’s portraying a different character each time! Totally awesome. I’m so glad I got to see her acting skills in Dr. Stranger because I had bad memories from Dream high 2 so I wasn’t at all happy when I first heard about Kang Sora being cast. Go girl!
Haha 🙂 I’ve watched Ugly Alert, the main actress played by Kang Sora. U should watch it and have a refresh ur bad memory
About the shipping war… I actually also ended up adoring Jin se yeon’s Jae Hee despite not being a fan of the actress, so kudos to that. Sadly the Seung hee character is pretty dull but I find the mystery around her pretty intriguing. If she really is Jae Hee, she and Hoon need a happy ending together! Although I also find myself shipping Soo Hyun with Hoon as mind boggling as that is, I really like their interactions. So for once I’m on both shipping sides and what’s important is that the ending OTP will make sense to me and I’ll be happy viewer 😛
I actually gave JSY lots of chances to prove herself since Bridal Mask but I went mad every time she opened her mouth. Can’t stand her voice + acting. Opposite to her KSR looked rather plain in her first daily but I loved Sunny and Ugly Alert so what can I say.
She was awesome in Ugly Alert, which was surprisingly really good. Definitely one of the highlights of 2013 IMO. If any one of you hasn’t gotten on the Ugly Alert train, I highly recommend that you do. 133 episodes might look daunting but you’ll fly right through them (I promise!)
I got every episode on my Hard Drive. Love how she’s the initiative one in that relationship. And the design part in the drama is more realistic than other.
how can anyone ship JSY with any guy. this woman just dont have good screen with any guy cuz of her lack of acting/emotion. rally try to like her but her lack of acting/no emotion just trun me off.
yay! i can’t agree more! At each character, SH and JH, she had got only one emotion! But i still love JH in the past! Not SH at now! So i support Sona to be the main character.
Not watching the series, but even in this spreads, Jin Se Yeon is rather plain looking. She’s sporting the same exact smile in all her pictures. I love her hair and it looks good on her but nothing special about the pictures.
I actually find that Hoon being in love with Jae Hee as more potent and teeming of narrative possibilities, that there is more depth into it to be explored other than the superficial ‘first love’, if the show chooses to do so. For that I appreciate the fact that you’re just as engrossed to that pairing koala.
I like both Hoon and Soo Hyun as characters and they are the easiest to root for in the show, by far. They have chemistry, and in a rom-com format, I might have shipped them together too. But them becoming a couple is just too convenient for me. These days, people are so quick to jump the bandwagon of “first love trope is so overused, why can’t he end up with the second lead?”, that sometimes I cannot help but wonder if they’re just saying it because it’s in vogue, or they have other deeper motivations above shipping? Of course don’t get me wrong, shipping is totally fine, and I ship many drama couples too. However, just as much as people want to see the ‘first love’ trope be subverted, I myself want to see the “why can’t guys and girls be just friends” and “no romance policy” be upheld more. I would definitely like to see Soo Hyun grow more as a person as she continues to interact with Hoon and also admire his devotion to both saving lives and Jae Hee. Sometimes, an inspiration is better left to be admired from a distance rather than to be possessed for yourself, doing so, only make it lose its meaning and significance.
Going back to Hoon and Jae Hee, I like for the fact that Hoon’s love is more than just vanilla romance, that it has a dimension of dependency to it as well. Indeed, one of the many reasons to how Hoon became the person that he is now, is largely because of Jae Hee too. Outside of her, Hoon have virtually nobody left to care for. Arguably, she is one of the reasons that have kept Hoon in tact mentally and pushed him to keep going despite being imprisoned to NK’s medical bootcamp from hell. And if I go further, the same can also be said of Hoon’s current state in SK–he’s a stranger both literally and metaphorically, as he lives in a world that he’s long since forgotten, and his quest to finding Jae Hee is what anchors him back to his reality. For him to give up on her, is like giving up a part of what makes Hoon, Hoon.
I also like the fact that both Hoon and Seung Hee (if JH is indeed SH that is) are not pure hero or heroines, that they do have shadows beneath their seemingly brighter facades. Hoon is definitely no angel, as he himself have done countless immoral practices of medicine, which arguably fast-tracked his growth and in part made him the genius doctor that he is now. Seung Hee, for the apparent nefarious plot that she’s got herself into which I could only imagine as the means that she’s willing to take to reach her end–emancipation from her NK trappings and eventually back to Hoon’s hands. There is that sense of mutuality not only in feelings but also identity to both that I like, and would want to be explored some more. For that I take the Park Hoon-Jae Hee/Seung Hee couple as the more worthwhile couple over the cute and sassy Hoon-Soo Hyun.
OH Shoot, you said to leave the worthwhile discussion to the drama recap thread. So this is the bashing section? I’m in the wrong place then…
If I don’t create a bashing section, imagine the utter monotony of every subsequent recap being a Clockwork Orange torture of the same complaints. Or maybe I’m too optimistic and it’s never going to end. Quelle horreur…
A thoughtful well-reasoned discussion is welcome any thread here, Scientia. And is all the more precious because you took the time to share it.
Did I say that I want to have a debate? no. Did I say you can’t express your opinion? no. You can express your opinion that defer from mine as free as you want for all I care. But I did ask not to argue with me on my own opinion and be all defensive.. in which you just did. End of discussion.
Kang Sora is girl crush worthy! so gorgeous! <3
She’s getting more and more beautiful. I thought she was luminous in Ugly Alert but she’s managed to wow me even more here. *___*
Yay! She’s getting better and better! So excited!
No matter what you say, Iafter watched several of her dramas, IMOH, JSY is a flat and blant as an actress and it can not be helped that I voiced this opinion of mine in the episode reviews since that’s how she performed (as I said, IMOH. So, I would appreciate if none of her defenders arguing with me on this. Thank you).
I never said she ISN’t flat. Quite the contrary, she’s flatter than a pancake as Seung Hee. But repeating it over and over again isn’t going to suddenly make her (1) unflatten herself and rise up like dough, or (2) magically kill off her character from the show.
The drama is going to continue as is. JSY will be in it until the point when either she’s killed or the drama ends. As such, saying over and over that she’s flat is just pointless at this time when the drama is already well underway and nothing will change. How about have an opinion about the story? Much more interesting, IMO, a topic to converse about.
So you want to spout out your opinion without someone else stating theirs? What is the point of having debate than?
The point is that the debate should MOVE ON. Stop harping on about things that will not change and debate to your heart’s content about things yet to come!
You missed the point entirely. The problem is that a vocal group of people are stating the same opinion over and over again without anything else constructive to add to the discussion about the drama itself. Once and done better serves the enjoyment of the drama. Don’t those folks have anything more/else to opine on with respect to the drama? Hello? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? *crickets chirping*
I’ve loved Kang So Ra when I first saw her in We Got Married with Leeteuk because she seems to be really down to earth and has the easy going personality ^_^ She is not the typical stereotype “all cutesy, pretty me” personality… then I saw a video clip of her guesting in SBS Strong Heart and she was really good! She is one of my girl crushes 😀 (my girl crushes: Yoon Eun Hye, Song Ji Hyo, Kang So Ra, Ha Ji Won, and Eugene)
One of my favourites is her acting as American-Korean over rice cake.
lol. mee too. she won me over with her exag “omahgahhhd”! so yayyy!
which film are u talking about? Plz tell me. I want to see it too!
KANG SORA surprise me with her acting in doctor stranger. while JSY still that emotionless person that i come to watch. she really need to put more emotion into her acting.
While we are bashing things, I found most of the fashions in the photos pretty sucky.
well in my opinion Jin se yeon is a really pretty girl, she just need to do a whole lot of work to improve her acting, she’s not as bad as some actresses I’ve seen that made my eyes and ears bleed, but with a lot of work she could be better, she has potential. Kang sora is so beautiful
especially in the picture where she is sporting short hair and dark make-up, she might not be the best actress in the world but she is giving her all in Dr stranger, I’m not the kind of girl that takes notice of second leads in a drama or movie because if they make me care i will give my everything in rooting for that character and when they fail to get the girl or boy, it hurts a whole lot and makes me cry and i really hate crying(answer me 1994 will remain in my book of unspoken evil for life), maybe the fact that i loved Kang sora’s character in Ugly Alert so much is making me transfer my love for her character in Dr stranger I don’t know and don’t care all I know is that I love Soo hyun to bits and can’t help but ship her so hard with Park hoon even though I know I’m going to cry my heart out at the end of the drama. My only prayer is that the writer does not turn her into
a typical desperate, clingy and pathetic second lead and if she can’t get Park hoon then Jae joon should see the error of his ways and love her with everything he’s got. I just want Soo hyun to be happy when all is said and done and the last credits roll.
:(( U’re exactly my partner! I also feel the same!
I’d have to agree with everyone on how Kang Sora is worth of a girlcrush. Definitely not the typical type of beauty, she seems to have a healthy gorgeous body unlike most of the celebrities nowadays, seems like a smart woman and has interesting personality as well (based on some interviews and tv shows). *obviously girlcrushing here*
Both girls are hot. Kang Sora brings a little “oomph” to her pics, though. Has anyone thought that maybe Jin Se Yeon’s problem is burn out(extreme fatigue)? Actors take breaks for a reason. A great majority of them only do one or two dramas a year, using the time between those dramas to recharge, reaccess their performance and evaluate how they can improve themselves. I mean, conveying all those emotions and inhabiting all those characters must be exhausting.
With Jin Se Yeon, here’s a girl who has literally done her dramas back to back, often starting one before the other ends. Nor is she a particularly strong or experienced actress. How much time has she given herself for self reflection? How much emotion can she really bring to the table? Even I, a mere office worker go on auto pilot when I have worked for too long without a break and my job isn’t as emotionally draining as theirs. And considering the pace of the kdrama live shoot system, it’s no wonder she’s flat and emotionless when the role calls for more than the basics and requires a little extra in terms of nuances. My recommendation to her is to take a break and go on a long and nice holiday.
I felt that Jin Se Yeon looked a little awkward in the second group of pictures for the Nylon spread though…
hate, hate, hate.
Jesus christ, people need to get over themselves.
Just stop saying the same things over and over again in EVERY DR. STRANGER TOPIC.
Like I see people literally commenting the same thing about wishing Sora is the main lead OVER and OVER and OVER. Just get over it and accept the show as it is. Nothing is changing just cuz “you wish”.
If Sora were to play Seung Hee, she’d still be flat. Cuz that’s the way the character is……
Forgot to mention how people also get WAY TOO enthusiastic talking about their hate for Jin Se Yeon =.= Poor girl.
it s hard to top Reply1994 regarding shipping war, the drama thread in Soompi was closed several times as well as shipper threads.
Wow, all this hate and bashing towards Jin Se Yeon is really distasteful and distracting for me. This continuous bashing of the lead actress is preventing me and I’m sure numerous others out there from enjoying what should be a fun and suspenseful drama and turning the show into a petty fight of actress hating and shipping war instead.
I agree that Jin Se Yeon is not the best actress but she is playing two very pivotal roles/characters in the drama, two characters that are very central and important to Hoon’s character. Please try to focus more on her characters roles and intentions in the storyline instead of on the actress’ portrayal. It’s very hard for her to move the story/plot forward when some of you keep bashing her acting every single time. Please try to enjoy the storyline – plot holes and all – like I am. I hope in the future to read more comments that offer insightful discussion into the drama’s plotline instead of the hate I’ve encountered.
For me, the story of Dr. Stranger is focus on Hoon and his great love for Jae Hee and his inexhaustible quest to find her – either alive or dead. His love for her is so great that he lives and breathes on her memories alone; no matter painful he is in his loneliness. Just listen to the first two released OSTs that describe their yearning and love they have for each other. Hoon in his drunken stupor even stated that Jae Hee is the only woman he will ever love.
As for Han Seung Hee, I find her character to be very intriguing. It’s very hard to like her character right now with all her coldness and shadiness but I tried to look at the overall big picture of what her character means to the plot and to Hoon. I believe /hope that she is Jae Hee but is acting like she has amnesia in the big picture to protect Hoon from all the people plotting against him. I’m sure the plotline will involve /tied back to the first episode but don’t know how yet.
I hope for the sake of the drama that the plot will move faster in episode 7 and reveal more of Han Seung Hee and her role in the storyline. Right now, Soo Hyun is more likeable than Seung Hee because she can afford Hoon the support that he needs and people are seeing this friendship as a love line when it’s furthest from the truth.
Kaola, I want to thank you for keeping this board civilized with all this shipping war and actress bashing. I really enjoy reading your recap and insightful thoughts. Thank you for continuing to make this blog so enjoyable to visit.
Excuse me but it’s not called hating if you’re stating the facts! And from what I’ve seen jin se yeon being bad at acting is a fact! I would’ve agreed with you about how hard it could be to act two different roles but if you’ve watched Bride of the century, the female lead Jin sung is a rookie and never really had a leading role before but she played two completely different characters so convincingly that sometimes I forgot she was the same person!! Seeing that jin se yeon have more “experience” than jin sung that can’t be an excuse for an actress!
Even tho I ship the Soohoon couple I know it might not happen and it’s fine as long as hoon doesn’t destroy his entire life for a woman that May or may not be alive!
@ Cc_Luv, I’m sorry – I must not be clear in what I was trying to say about Jin Se Yeon acting in two different roles. Yes, I know she’s flat and she is not as good of as an actress as I would like her to be. What I’m trying to say is that she has major roles in the drama and she will be in almost every scene and episode. I do not need you and others to state how bad her acting is every episode. It’s detracting my love for the drama and the overall plotline. She is limited in what she can do and like Koala stated above, there is no point in saying the same thing over and over again because it is not adding anything constructive to the drama discussion nor is it going to make her a better actress. Just enjoy the drama for what it is, bad acting and all.
Both are really gorgeous but acting wise I gotta give it up to kang so ra since she have awesome chemistry with both lee jong suk and park hae jin!! I thought jin se yeon would improve since her Bridal mask days but she’s just so dull and not convincing which I’m guessing maybe her acting have a lot to do with the confusion if seung hee is jae hee or not! Or it’s probably just how the plot is! Lol! But since I’m shipping the Soohoon couple Soo hard, I want them to end up together despite him being overly obsessed with jae hee! I mean past is past and he really got to learn to move on!
@anon nah. if KANG SORA play JSY char. she would do better then JSY is doing now. the reason why JSY char sux is cuz she cant put emotion into her acting.
Some haters just really lacking of braincells.
i just wish really wish and beg in my feather like knees, if kang sora going to take another role in drama, please really please, someone tell her not to accept any second lead lady offer. Or else im going to see this disgusting fanwar again and again because her not so good in manner fans have a hard time accepting reality. In a serious case even if the leading lady is hajiwon , song hye kyo, yoon eun hye, or another more great with more experience actress instead of jin se yeon, those better actress will absolutely still get hate from KSR mannerless fans or teukso diehard shippers.
I not really a Kang sora fan. i just like her acting more then JSY.
my reason for dislike JSY is nothing more then her emotionless face.
why would i want to see her when Kang sora is better actress in doctor stranger.
by the way two of those actress that u mention. happen to be my two favor actress.so why would i be dissing them?if they were cast with Kang sora.
“JSY’s acting sucks” is called stating a fact? That’s an opinion. All the reasons I hear for it are “her acting is flat”. I don’t find that solid evidence either. ESPECIALLY when seriously, the character is just flat period. The character doesn’t have any development or depth other than just looking cold and mysterious so us audience doesn’t know what to think of her. I agree she could have more expressions in her acting overall, but seriously, just accept the fact that it’s FINE being like that as Han Seung Hee. People are just jumping at all chances to bash her, and I personally don’t think it’s necessary to hate on it so much with the way this character is supposed to be.
And no, it’s still called hate when people are so enthusiastically commenting about the same hate comments every episode…… It’s really irritating.
I’ve seen a LOT of dramas too and the hate makes it sound like she’s the worst actress on the planet who’s absolutely wooden. That really isn’t the case…
And again, I honestly don’t agree. I personally feel that whoever plays HSH would still be pretty emotionless…
Really sorry if u feel offended by kangsora fans or teukso shipper…i am one of kangsora fans & also teukso shipper… the way u mention ‘disgusting fanwar’ as seems starting bcoz of kangsora fans or teukso shipper is really inconvenience to read…but this is bashing section right? U have the right to write what u feels…but from what i see this fanwar starts becoz of the writer make sweet interaction between soohyun and hoon in this drama and the emotionless Han Seung Hee….and from this the viewer think soohyun is better to be lead instead of jaehee… i admit there are fans who critizes jin se yeon’s acting….critizes doesn’t mean they hate…. yeah maybe some of them did state the ‘hate’ word to Jin Se Yeon but kang sora also did receive the hate word from Jin Se Yeon fans… it is normal as an actress….maybe JSY have to prove to the viewer her acting improved day by day….that is how kang sora did when she received a lot of bashing comparing her with suzy acting as dream high leading actress…. and untill now I believe she still improving her acting… I believe JSY did same too…she is still young…more opportunity will come to her… and I guarantee you teukso shipper really do not hate other peoples especially who are active in soompi which keep reminding each other not to hate others…
then u think think she a good actress? i saw enough of her drama to tell she is not a good actress. all she does is show the same emotionless face on screen. think she rely way too much on her look that why her actig sux. just look at kang sora she use to be not that good at showing emotion too.now she can show more emotion then before while JSY still stuck with her lifeless face. only drama i can get through watching her in is bridal mask that cuz of joo woo only.
ahhh you are brave enough to endure that! me not even my love for JW convinced me to finished the effing show. sad. 🙁
poor JSY, i’ve read some fans in DS viki comments that she should just died so she wont act in dramas again *sigh* they really takes their hates to the extreme level… they make her like she is the worst actress in the whole world…
as for me, i’ve seen worst and JSY def not like it, she is okay, not great but still serviceable to watch…
i guess, judging from the extreme hates comments in all forums toward her, even if she’s act on baeksang level, people will still hates her no matter what,,
maybe she and her agency should really pick a low-profile projects for her with a low profile costars so people wont make a fuss about it 🙂
Poor JSY…they shouldn’t be till that extreme… y did they hate JSY? Did we have to hate an actress if her acting is not in satisfactory level…? It shld be enough to dislike her acting instead of hating her personally….But what make me annoy, sometimes JSY fans blame that the haters are KSR fans…really sad to read that since I am kangsora fan…
JSY fans feel offended maybe bec everytime fans wrote hate comments toward her, they mostly said they are KSR fans, so maybe thats why, at least thats what i read in soompi, viki and many other forums…
thanks gosh, i’m the type who watch dramas mostly for its storyline, not bec my fav actors/actresses are in it, so no matter how bad the acting was i always survived and if i really cannot bear it then i’ll drop it, as simply as that,, give 1 or 2 opinions about it is more than enough, no need to make a fuss about someone acting, and then i’ll go dive to look for another dramas to watch XD
@niki. wishing for someone to die in real life is a little bit to far.
those people must really hate JSY to the bone. if they gone that far.
i may dislike her acting but never wish harm to come her way.
i would have giveup on this drama. if not for wanting to see Kang Sora acting.
Why is everyone hating on Jin Se Yeon. She is actually a pretty girl with a bright personality what do you guys expect she’s only 20. She’s an actress who is young being able to deliver this good… means she’s trying hard no need to hate. Although she has areas to work on but at least she tries to deliver her best like come on guys she didn’t do anything to you and you guys are hating on her too much.