Category Archives: K-dramas

Heirs

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After watching Lee Min Ho in Boys Over Flowers, I decided to see if I could find another of his dramas on Hulu since that was the platform I was still using for my newfound K-drama love. The option available for me there was Heirs.

Heirs very much reminded me of Boys Over Flowers in the beginning as a poor girl was awarded a place in a school for children of the elite. (However, it was definitely closer to Cheese in the Trap as far as style and cinematography go.) This drama centers around Cha Eun Sang and her trials while attending this school and being seen as inferior.

Park Shin Hye’s portrayal of Cha Eun Sang was amazing. Even CJ mentioned how she truly looked terrified when in an unsettling situation.

I couldn’t help but to be drawn into the conflict of the first and second male leads. I longed to find the reason behind their complicated love/hate relationship and was heartbroken for both boys when things were finally revealed.

This drama is a good place to start in the genre. It helps you learn more about social hierarchy and stigmas. It also introduces you to some great actors whose other works are worth viewing as well. Definitely worth a watch.

Boys Over Flowers

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Hulu’s first recommendation for me was Boys Over Flowers. After the beauty and amazing cinematography that was Cheese in the Trap, I had kind of high expectations. The first episode was loud and rough. Some of the sound effects were very game show like. I almost didn’t finish it because I thought it was just too silly. I’m glad I stuck with it though. Although it could be a little ridiculous at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The female lead is an unlikely heroine. She is obnoxious and LOUD. The more I came to know her, the more I loved her though.

As cliché as it may be, I love me a bad boy turned good through the love of a girl, but that’s not exactly what happened here. I feel it can be argued that the male lead experienced some growth before he had won the love of the girl. It was this change that helped him win her loyalty.

I adored how fiercely loyal she was. Even when things were difficult or appeared like they may never be together, she still remained steadfast and did not waffle between male characters as is typical with a “love triangle.”

Another thing I really liked was the male lead’s friends. They ended up coming to love the female lead in their own way and were her greatest champions. Even if it came to protecting her from their own friend, they were there for her.

So if you’re looking for a show full of growth that focuses on friendship, this is the one for you.

Cheese in the Trap

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This was the first k-drama I watched. (Talked about in a previous post)

At first, I just thought the title had been poorly translated, but the intro features little blocks of cheese, a cat, and a mouse. So Cheese in the Trap it is. I decided to watch it because I was reading the webtoon it is based off of and saw someone had made a comment comparing the main male character’s looks to the drama. Once I knew there was a show, I started searching across the platforms available to me at the time. I checked my then go-to of Netflix first, but no luck. I checked Hulu next and found it! I was beyond excited.

It consisted of 16, hour long episodes. That’s all. Just one season. I was actually a little discouraged at first because that just didn’t seem like enough. I felt there was no way the entire story could be told in that short amount of time. I mean, in American dramas, hour long shows don’t often tell us much and we’re lucky to have a season long plot arc. These shows have sections of fluff and filler that can be missed with no real impact to your understanding of the story. K-dramas however, are not like that. Each episode is packed full of so much that if you miss some, you will be confused during the next episode. Also, there’s so much to them that sometimes, during the credits where they replay scenes from the just finished episode, I have found myself going: “Oh, yeah. I forgot that happened in this episode,” because there had just been so much going on you forget it’s only been one hour. This drama has a clear beginning, middle, and end. Because there is only one season, the writers knew exactly what story they wanted to tell and didn’t waste any time or space when telling it. It’s very refreshing.

Cheese in the Trap is the story of Hong Seol, a student just returning to college after some time off to save money for tuition. She has adorable and lovable friends who are beyond happy to have her back in school. She meets the enigmatic Yoo Jung and the foolhardy Baek In Ho who both help and hinder her at times. It is a story about growth and communication. It made me laugh numerous times, every time I’ve watched it. (CJ even really enjoyed it – and the only thing I can get him to watch with me on a somewhat regular basis is America’s Got Talent.) I was glad to see a female character stand up for herself in a relationship, stating that she can’t be the only one to make changes. All female role models should be that strong.

After finishing, I could not believe just how much I loved it. I followed Hulu’s recommendation and tried another. And then a third. The very few TV shows I still watched, I have basically abandoned. They cannot compete in content. This also led me to the discovery of k-pop and DramaFever. I am a happy girl lol.