First Impressions Archives - A Koala's Playground

Byun Yo Han and Song Ji Hyo Charm in Shortened Cable Drama Ex-Girlfriend Club

Posted on June 2, 2015 by jomo

[Hey peeps, let’s give a big welcome back for jomo, who spent all of summer 2014 writing lovely heartfelt recaps for My Spring Days, and is back with a first impressions take on cable drama Ex-Girlfriend Club. I hope her schedule looks good this summer so she can share more of her insightful caring drama analysis with us. xoxo Koala.]

TvN‘s Ex-Girlfriend Club is my standout favorite drama this season. It hurts my heart that it has been shortened to only 12 episodes. Mostly I just want to post adorable photos of Byun Yo-han (Misaeng) as cartoonist, Bang Myung-soo, playing around with a glowing Song Ji-hyo (Emergency Couple, A Frozen Flower) as film producer, Kim Soo-jin. They just seem to be having so much fun all the time. Continue reading →

First Impressions: Pride & Prejudice is an Intriguing Chemistry-filled Legal Drama with a Kick

Posted on November 3, 2014 by ockoala

The first two episodes of K-drama Pride and Prejudice are so much win I can’t even. It’s like MBC finally got its act together and did something right from casting to writing to directing. It’s not perfect but all the … Continue reading →

Addicted to the Park Hyung Sik and Nam Ji Hyun OTP in Weekend Drama What’s With This Family

Posted on October 12, 2014 by ockoala

Unexpectedly chancing upon a drama that captures my entire attention leading me to marathon all available episodes in one night is like running a marathon, it’s painful but oh so satisfying afterwards. The currently airing KBS weekend drama What’s With This … Continue reading →

First Impressions: MBC’s Warm Post Heart Transplant Drama My Spring Days

Posted on September 23, 2014 by jomo

[Yeorobum, I’m thrilled to welcome back summer hibernating Jomo to the world of drama writing! I’m even happier that she loves MBC‘s currently airing Wed-Thurs drama My Spring Days to the extent that she wants to write about it. I love … Continue reading →

It’s Okay, It’s Love with Jo In Sung and Gong Hyo Jin Bursts Out of the Gate with a Captivating Start

Posted on July 23, 2014 by ockoala

It’s love at first sight for me and It’s Okay, It’s Love. Episode 1 was everything I love about screenwriter Noh Hee Kyung‘s work without the artificial overwrought packaging of her last dramas Padam Padam: The Sound of His and … Continue reading →

First Impressions of Big Man with Kang Ji Hwan Reveals a Promising Drama Despite its Far-fetched Premise

Posted on April 30, 2014 by ockoala

I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s safe to watch Big Man airing on KBS Mon-Tues. The central premise is so ridiculous the entire drama almost sinks under it by the end of episode 1, but … Continue reading →

Lee Yeon Hee is Breathtakingly Alive as Miss Korea Soars into Awesomeness

Posted on January 12, 2014 by ockoala

I’m having a hard time writing about Miss Korea after catching up on the last four episodes in one sitting because its just that good I don’t even know where to start. I put this drama on the backburner for … Continue reading →

First Impressions: Miss Korea and You From Another Star

Posted on December 19, 2013 by ockoala

This week’s one-two punch of new K-dramas is done with its premiere and initial verdicts are already pouring in. I’m on vacation for the next few weeks so I’ll likely not be recapping either Miss Korea or You From Another … Continue reading →

Mad About the OTP of Ha Ji Won and Joo Jin Mo in the Surprisingly Entertaining Empress Ki

Posted on November 19, 2013 by ockoala

105

I have to confess I almost dropped Empress Ki about 10 minutes into episode 1. It happened at the scene where second male lead Ji Chang Wook as the Yuan Emperor Huizhong (nee Ta Hwan) whined like an insecure kid … Continue reading →

Scandal with Kim Jae Won: Big Stakes Makjang Done Right and Keeps Getting Better

Posted on July 21, 2013 by ockoala

There is a new drama rocketing up the addiction chart for me, and luckily it’s arrived just in time to swoop in and exchange out a drama I’ve just pulled the plug on because it’s official DOA. Weekends is the … Continue reading →

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart: First Impressions of the Amazing Cruel City

Posted on June 13, 2013 by ockoala

I can sum up the entirety of this post in eight words – This. Is. The. Best. Drama. Airing. Right. Now. Three months ago I wrote that the first quarter of 2013 was by and large a disappointment. I wondered then … Continue reading →

First Impressions: High School Music K-drama Monstar is a Total Win

Posted on June 4, 2013 by ockoala

Potential drama crack addiction alert! I’m still loving every minute of tvN’s Cyrano Dating Agency but I actually enjoy just watching it without the desire to recap it. The couple of the week stories are disposable narrative fun but nothing … Continue reading →

First Impressions: All About My Love with Shin Ha Kyun and Lee Min Jung

Posted on April 5, 2013 by ockoala

With the end of That Winter, The Wind Blows, Spring has officially arrived in dramaland and with it comes a spate of new primetime dramas to check out. Will it continue my ennui from Winter, or will I snap to … Continue reading →