Last weekend was a big new arrival in K-drama land with Castaway Diva premiering on tvN, following Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun and with the return of Park Eun Bin after her career elevating hit Extraordinary Attorney Woo last year. I was swamped so haven’t checked it out yet but this is a much watch for me not just for Park Eun Bin but the drama being from writer Park Hye Ryun who is one of my all time faves. Castaway Diva premiered to a bit lower than expected ratings of 3.172% but notched a big jump in episode 2 to 5.155%. Scene stealing teen actress Lee Re plays younger Park Eun Bin perfectly and everyone apparently did double takes to see very well known child actor Moon Woo Jin show up playing a teen high school student like we went from baby to teen young man in a fortnight haha. I expect massive shipping wars as there is already about which of the two male leads Chae Jong Hyeob or Cha Hak Yeon is the grown up version of Moon Woo Jin’s character. Ah Park Hye Ryun, please never change.
I totally did not expect it, the depth of the story but am loving it!
PEB definitely can do anything…
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I was anticipating this drama. Happy to see the reviews are so strong. PEB is on a roll with her dramas: hit after hit after hit and she always plays great and interesting characters.
I like it from the beginning. The brothers’dynamic was so funny. And wow uncle dalgeon, chahoon is grown up now🤣
Both episodes were good. The child actors were great. I ver thought the reason she ended up on this island would be so sad.
I’m really curious about the 2 brothers, there is clearly a big mystery.
The friendship between the both ladies will be nice to watch.
A bit skeptical when I first heard about the storyline but the writer is at the top of her game ( just found out she wrote “Start Up”- one of my faves). The first episode is perfect – the best I’ve seen so far in my years of K-drama viewing. Was in tears, which is quite rare for me. The young actors, the storytelling, & the music … wow!
I found both “teen actors” great , they made me cry, how can parents treat their own child this way ? Alcohol is a problem greater than drugs as is it legal and it destroys families, kill people, … how can a conservative society as Korea let people think that being good at drinking is something to be proud of when it’s about drugs , they made such a media play ?
I like both episodes as they got me in a way i wasn’t excepting .
Thanks for recommending me other works of PEB. She’s great!
I have to say writer PHR is one of my fav scriptwriters too. Her works are so memorable and she’s reliable. I have yet to watch While You Were Sleeping.
I can’t rave about Park Eun Bin enough. She is such a talented actress. I’m currently watching Do You Like Brahms and really love this melodrama. Both leads, PEB and Kim Min Jae, did great jobs as pro musicians convincingly. They both play the instruments in real life. But PEB went extra miles of efforts to pick up violin lessons with a teacher before filming, in order to position herself as a violin major in a music conservatory and she did look very much like a pro violinist convincingly. Her recording of progress in violin during the course of lessons just wowed me. That shows how serious she is about her acting jobs, small or big. I’m familiar with all the classic pieces performed in the drama. I also relate so much to the training culture of classical music reflected in the drama, e.g., the pains and psychology experienced going into competitions etc. That’s a great drama for me!
Watching DYLB, I can’t help making comparison with Yang Zi in Love of Oath, the C drama she costarred with Xiao Zhan. YZ played a cello major and later on a performing celloist in the drama too. I watched that drama for YZ because she impressed me in Ashes of Love. But YZ was such a huge disappointment in OoL. She obviously did not commit due diligence before filming the drama. She’s so embarrassing and unconvincing as a cello major, looking out of sync with the music each time she picked up her bow, moving against strings. LMAO. She’s so fake and such an unprofessional actress in OoL. It’s as if she only focused her acting on the lovelines with Xiao Zhan that was pretty cheesy too. At least it looked that way for most of her projects so far; she’s been focusing all her work on romance of dramas and did not completely embrace her characters. But OoL was said to be a hit in China when it was aired. LOL. Nonetheless, I got to watch Xiao Zhan’s acting the first time in OoL and later found him a talented actor in The Untamed. Before then, I was already his fan in the music variety show, Our Song, but had never watched any of his dramas. So, it’s not a waste of time watching OoL anyway. LOL
Anyhow, the more dramas of PEB I watched, the more I admire her. It’s rare to have such a talented actress in Asia who’s really great in acting. She will be able to take a role playing pro pianist too. She’s decent on intermediate-level piano and just needs practice to look professional! I’ll definitely check out all her dramas including this new one.
Have you watch her role in both Age of youth ? She is great too . And Operation proposal 2012 , 10 years ago but she was one of the very few actresses who had chemistry with Yoo Seun Ho . She is the kind of actress who i find really pretty, not the kind of beauty which overshadowed acting . She is the gem of her generation . And there isn’t a fan war as for actresses as Kim Yoo Jung/ Kim So Hyun, whom we can’t even say something without having the dogs barking . Which is sad for them .
So much appreciate it for your recommendation of her dramas. I’m still watching Do You Love Brahms, slowly, thanks to my busy schedule at work. I don’t have much spare time to binge a drama as I wish. I’ll check out Operation Proposal 2012 although I prefer more recent dramas. You’re so right about her being pretty that doesn’t overshadow acting. It just proves how great she is an actress and nobody can get any chance to invalidate her acting. Not every actor is privileged to such honor.
It’s very sad that my fave C actor for example, who’s considered the most handsome man in C ent had to try very hard to convince ppl of his acting talent until recently. His extreme good looks always shadow his acting even he’s a charismatic and versatile actor with a great acting range and still keeps improving himself.
Not everyone is a born actor. But PEB seems to inherit her talent directly from heaven. LOL. She seemed to live in the characters that I totally forgot her roles in other dramas.