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A Koala's Playground

I'll talk about dramas if I want to

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Yang Kyung Won Poses with Song Joong Ki Filming Space Sweeper Movie and Having Best Career Year After Crash Landing on You and Baeksang Nomination

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 24, 2020 by ockoalaMay 23, 2020
Two men posing on a bridge, one laughing.

One of the best parts of hit drama Crash Landing on You was the North Korean soldier squad supporting male lead Hyun Bin, and the best of that bunch was by far gruff and proud Yang Kyung Won. He got a deserving Baeksang Award Best Supporting Actor nomination out of it and will know in two weeks whether he’s taking … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged Crash Landing on You, Space Sweepers, Yang Kyung Won

New MBC Wed-Thurs Drama Kkondae Intern with Park Hae Jin Does a Bollywood CF that is Upsetting Some Viewers for Being a Stereotypical Parody

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 24, 2020 by ockoalaMay 23, 2020
Man in ornate attire holding noodle packet.

MBC premiered a new Wed-Thurs K-drama this week called Kkondae Intern starring Park Hae Jin and Kim Eun Soo but all the media attention has been on maybe problematic commercial within the drama sequence that brings back the similar issues from another MBC drama The Man Who Dies to Live. Park Hae Jin plays a product advertising executive who comes … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged Kkhondae Intern, Park Hae Jin

Mysteries Continue to be Doled Out in Dribbles as the Tepid OTP Romance Dominates into Episode 12 of The King: Eternal Monarch with 6.1% and 8.1% Ratings

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 23, 2020 by ockoalaMay 24, 2020
Romantic interaction between two characters indoors.

Let’s get it out of the way, the ratings for episode 12 of The King: Eternal Monarch is 6.1% and 8.1%. This drama with the big name screenwriter, cast, and budget is an unequivocal flop domestically, which is the most important barometer of a drama’s success because it’s the ruler by which advertisers assess whether to buy ads and how … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged The King: Eternal Monarch

Suzy on the Cover of Vogue June 2020 Edition and Achieves All Kill of Being on Cover of All 6 Top Women’s Fashion Magazines in Korea

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 23, 2020 by ockoalaMay 22, 2020
Model showcasing fashion on Vogue Korea cover.

I don’t think Suzy is the only K-actress to have landed the cover of all 6 of South Korea’s top women’s fashion magazines but she’s likely the youngest (25 years old) to have achieved this feat. Magazines don’t put top stars on their covers close to each other, there’s an unspoken scheduling rule to rotate so that for example Jeon … Continue reading →

Posted in Fashion | Tagged Suzy

Lovely Posters and Stills for the Rom-com MBC Drama Dinner Mate with Song Seung Heon and Seo Ji Hye

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 23, 2020 by ockoalaMay 22, 2020
Couple dining under a starry sky.

I’m glad I didn’t check out the source material manhwa for upcoming K-drama Dinner Mate (Shall We Have Dinner Together). It just exudes classic rom-com vibes and I want the feeling of being pleasantly surprised rather than already knowing what the story is about. Leads Song Seung Heon and Seo Ji Hye are so visually matched onscreen and in the … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged Dinner Mate, Seo Ji Hye, Song Seung Heon

The King: Eternal Monarch Drops to Even Lower Ratings of 5.2% and 6.6% in Episode 11 Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 22, 2020 by ockoalaMay 22, 2020
Dramatic scene with characters in distress.

The end is nearing for SBS Fri-Sat drama The King: Eternal Monarch and today’s episode 11 marked a new low in ratings. It’s only fallen lower and lower with each recent episode and today only managed 5.2%, 6.6%. I hope this is the nadir for this once highly anticipated drama, to say it was the 2020 drama with the most … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged The King: Eternal Monarch

C-media Reports on Netizen Belief that Hyun Bin and Song Hye Kyo Have Reunited After Scouring for Clues

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 22, 2020 by ockoalaMay 22, 2020
Two smiling individuals in stylish attire.

Hhhhmmmm, on one hand this is so far-fetched and yet on the other hand C-netizens are truly sleuths who have uncovered many a breaking relationship or breakup news by digging under every rock for tiny clues. This week C-news picked by a hot gossip thread among C-netizens that maybe top actor Hyun Bin and top actress Song Hye Kyo, both … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged Hyun Bin, Song Hye Kyo

KBS Reincarnation Drama Born Again is a Confirmed Clunker with Flat Acting and Abysmally Laughable Story Trying to Be Edgy

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 22, 2020 by ockoalaMay 21, 2020
Dramatic scenes featuring four characters in action.

Well, K-actress Jin Se Yeon continues her own personal curse of sucking in modern dramas and seeing commensurate low ratings while finding success only in sageuks. KBS Mon-Tues drama Born Again maybe should like die again and this time not reincarnate to annoy viewers with it abysmally thin and plot ridden story line. I don’t know if Jin Se Yeon’s … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged Born Again, Jang Ki Yong, Jin Se Yeon, Lee Soo Hyuk

tvN Drops First Teaser Sneak Peak at Kim Soo Hyun and Seo Ye Ji in K-drama It’s Okay to Not be Okay

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 21, 2020 by ockoalaMay 21, 2020
Young man with a serious expression indoors.

I love Kim Soo Hyun and just realized upon seeing the sneak peek at his upcoming drama that he mainly has like two looks onscreen. Super dorky (Dream High, Producers, Secretly Greatly) or super suave (You From Another Star, Miss Granny, Hotel Del Luna). For upcoming tvN drama It’s Ok to Not Be Okay (Psycho, But It’s Okay) the look … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged Kim Soo Hyun, Seo Ye Ji

Kim Go Eun and Jung Eun Chae’s Dopplegangers Get Screentime in New Stills for Episode 11 of The King: Eternal Monarch

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 21, 2020 by ockoalaMay 21, 2020
Collage of dramatic character portraits.

I do get the fans of The King: Eternal Monarch saying the drama has a lot of interesting elements and mysteries to unpack, that’s not untrue except the delivery is terrible and there hasn’t been any unpacking to properly build upon this grand world building. One mystery I am curious is who Luna is, like her full backstory and what … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged Jung Eun Chae, Kim Go Eun, Lee Min Ho, The King: Eternal Monarch

Looking Ahead to Second Half of 2020 Dramas and Movies with Kim Soo Hyun, Park Seo Joon, IU, Suzy, Park Bo Gum and More

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 21, 2020 by ockoalaMay 21, 2020
Two actors reading scripts in a meeting.

I did a happy clap when I saw the script reading pictures for IU and Park Seo Joon for Dream, their upcoming movie from the director of Extreme Jobs. Both are coming off highly successful last projects and collaborating with a top director, expectations are high but it’s worth getting excited for something assembled so well. June 2020 is right … Continue reading →

Posted in K-dramas | Tagged IU, Ji Chang Wook, Kim Soo Hyun, Kim Yoo Jung, Nam Joo Hyuk, Park Bo Gum, Park Seo Joon, Suzy

Show Luo Pisses Off Everyone by Posting 7000 Word Weibo Love Letter Remembrance and Apology to Ex-girlfriend Grace Chow on 520 Love Day

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 20, 2020 by ockoalaMay 20, 2020
Couple embracing on the beach at sunset.

As if his habitual and incessant cheating wasn’t enough, TW actor-singer-host Show Luo managed to one-up his own level of douchebaggery today and do so in a way to inflict maximum emotional harm. Show posted a nearly 7000 word (that’s long!) Weibo post complete with pictures titled “Boy and Girl” which earnestly recounted his entire romance with now ex-girlfriend Grace … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged Dating, Grace Chow, Scandal, Show Luo

Female K-stars Under Fire for Attending Itaewon Birthday Party at Restaurant in Early May 2020 During COVID-19 Resurgence

A Koala's Playground Posted on May 20, 2020 by ockoalaMay 20, 2020
Collage of women smiling at events.

Welp, all the celebs in South Korea better be prepared to give an accounting/explanation/apology for their whereabouts in the last month or so as media and netizens are on a war path. On the heels of news that four male idols in late April 2020 went to Itaewon restaurant and two clubs during COVID-19 situation, today the news is reporting … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged Hyomin, Jooyeon, Lee Min Jung, Son Yeon Hae

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