Friday, January 25, 2019

[I Live Alone Roundup] Lee Si Eon moves into his new home + Kian84 and Sung Hoon bond over paragliding


Nationwide ratings for this week's episode: 14.0% (cr. Naver TV)

1. [+3021, -29] I hope he's only filled with good things at his new home as well.

2. [+1772, -27] He was happy when his application was selected and it felt like it was just yesterday when he showed the apartment construction site but he's already moving in.. Time flies by~

3. [+1555, -39] People who watched 'I Live Alone' instead of soccer are the real winners.

4. [+1043, -40] Oddly, I was really happy with him. ㅋ He'll clean his new apartment, right? ㅋㅋ

5. [+634, -35] Lee Si Eon~~~ I hope only good things con~~~~~~~~tinues to come to him 



1. [+720, -6] Their chemistry is awesome. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Even body comedy. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

2. [+530, -8] Ah seriously it was crazy when he fell over ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㄱㅋㅋㄱㅋㅋㅋㅋㄱㅋㅋㄱㅋㅋㅋㅋ

3. [+541, -91] It felt somewhat empty because Dhalsim wasn't there 

4. [+446, -7] Today's episode was really packed and so freaking fun ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Especially when Kian was hopping around and fell ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ It was body comedy that wasn't constructed, it was good - good, good, good!!!! ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

5. [+303, -17] Kian is a character that can't stop coming out in 'I Live Alone' ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ I thought I was really dying from laughter 

6. [+201, -9] I feel like Sung Hoon really has a good personality, their pairing is so freaking fun...      

This episode was so fun!!!
When Lee Si Eon teared up after looking at his home for one last time ㅠㅠ
Sung Hoon and Kian get along so well lololol
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Sunday, January 13, 2019

[I Live Alone Roundup] Han Hye Jin turns into a radio DJ for a day, Lee Si Eon transforms into Hwasa





Nationwide ratings for this week's episode: 12.6% (cr. Naver TV)

t/n: 'Dhal D' stands for 'Dhalsim + DJ'

1. [+3683, -84] After they started dating, they tried to not make it obvious on the show but because foolish articles keep popping up, it's nice to see them making it (the relationship) obvious ㅎㅎㅎ Instead of explaining break up rumors, it's nicer to see them showing it like that and it seems real!!! 
↪ [+119, -2] I agree ㅎ After they briefly stop smiling after they kept on laughing they say that they fought, if they don't make their relationship obvious then they say they broke up - ignore the haters and be happy you two 
↪ [+102, -0] It's because people make a fuss saying they broke up if they don't make their relationship obvious... Just ignore the bastards who swear/hate because you make it obvious, I feel like it's a lot nicer to watch them making it obvious ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
  
2. [+2185, -65] Because there were a lot of reactions where people were saying what were they doing on a show (t/n: judging their behavior for making their relationship obvious), they controlled their actions and they're being pestered that they broke up so the production team is editing like they used to, they're not controlling themselves and just doing the show now, it's nice to see ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ignore the comments and do what you're attracted to do

3. [+1171, -108] Hye Jin-ie her episode was really funny today ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

4. [+949, -20] Today's episode highlight was the chung jung bo ㅋㅋ The members are really compatible ㄱㄲ (t/n: Kian thought the logo song for MBC's radio programs started with the singer saying 'chung jung bo' when it's actually 'jam kkan man'/'wait a minute', you can listen to it here - X)

5. [+899, -104] They're seriously a couple that's nice to watch... I hope they get married

6. [+208, -36] Han Hye Jin was so pretty today, she really matches pink    



1. [+5446, -140] I think Lee Si Eon is the funniest on 'I Live Alone' ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ He created all the nicknames ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Lee Si Eon made up the nicknames Bardem and Dhalsim ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

2. [+2625, -73] Seriously, it was so freaking funny while watching, I was drinking cider and I spit it out on the TV ㅋㅌㅋㅋㄱㅌㅋ

3. [+1453, -44] I blew up laughing ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ leggo leggo 

4. [+1417, -19] The really interesting thing is Henry seems like he has Korean blood in him... Although I know he's a different nationality, he seems Korean ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ At this rate, it's hard ㅋㅋ      
↪ [+110, -2] Seriously both his mom and dad are completely foreigners ㅋㅋㅋ 

5. [+735, -29] Did he shave his eyebrows??? ㅋㅋㅋ It's still funny ㅋ

6. [+176, -7] Lee Si Eon was legendary today ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 
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Sunday, January 6, 2019

[SPOILERS!!!][ddoboja reviews] Mr. Sunshine


When initial reports came out about 'Mr. Sunshine', I'm going to be honest - I wasn't that excited for it. Some of the reasons for my lack of interest was due to: my love-hate relationship with writer Kim Eun Sook's dramas and Lee Byung Hun's playing the main role in this drama

I think the reason I have a love-hate relationship with Kim Eun Sook's dramas is because I find some of her dramas childish or mediocre. 'The Heirs' reminded me of a bad rendition of 'Gossip Girl' where you just watched a bunch of immature characters fighting for the affection of a female character. I couldn't get into 'Descendants of the Sun' because the drama just felt like it was filled with fan service for romance drama lovers. The only drama written by Kim Eun Sook that I enjoyed from start to end was 'Goblin'. The reason I enjoyed that drama so much was because of the acting performance by Kim Go Eun and Gong Yoo, the cinematography (wow... those sageuk scenes tho), and the soundtrack - to this day I still listen to Ailee's 'I Will Go to You like the First Snow'. So after it was announced that Kim Eun Sook's next drama was 'Mr. Sunshine', I was a little bit interested because 'Goblin' really left me impressed but then it was announced that Lee Byung Hun was the male lead. 

Many people often say, "love the art not the artist." These words are usually used when the artist is problematic. I think it also perfectly describes Lee Byung Hun's career. Let's be real, Lee Byung Hun's acting is critically acclaimed. He never fails to impress viewers whether he's playing an agent who's fighting a cannibalistic murderer in 'I Saw the Devil' or a thug who loses his hand in 'Inside Men'. But it often seems like his personal life overshadows his performance. And I believe with 'Mr. Sunshine' Lee Byung Hun once again proved to viewers that he is actor Lee Byung Hun with amazing performance abilities and not actor Lee Byung Hun with a messy personal life. 


What I was looking most forward to was Kim Tae Ri. I became a fan of Kim Tae Ri the moment I saw her in Park Chan Wook's 'The Handmaiden'. Can you believe 'Mr. Sunshine' was Kim Tae Ri's first drama? Kim Tae Ri has filmed four movies in the past three years and they're all critically acclaimed. The reason I love Kim Tae Ri's performance in all her projects is because of her diction. Especially in 'Mr. Sunshine', she plays the role of Lady Ae Shin - she's supposed to be a soft-spoken lady that belongs to a high status noble family but every time Kim Tae Ri delivers her lines that are meant to attack her enemy, you can sense the anger but her tone is still clear and stable. 


 

I know many people weren't happy that three of the main male leads (Lee Byung Hun, Byun Yo Han, Yoo Yeon Seok) were going after the female lead (Kim Tae Ri). But I think this drama handles a love triangle/square really differently compared to other Kim Eun Sook dramas and Korean dramas. I think each male lead is in love with their own idea of Kim Tae Ri. Yoo Yeon Seok's character Goo Dong Mae was obsessed with Kim Tae Ri's character Go Ae Shin after their first encounter during their childhood and he looks out for her in his own way but initially, Ae Shin just thinks he has something against her and her status. 


Byun Yo Han's character Kim Hee Sung is drowning in his own regrets because he made Ae Shin (his betrothed) wait for him throughout a lengthy period and then she fell in love with someone else while waiting for him while Kim Hee Sung fell in love with Ae Shin the moment he saw her. 



And Lee Byung Hun's character Eugene Choi falls in love with Ae Shin, a woman who is from the country that abandoned him - the same woman who is trying to save that country. 



This drama really resonated with me because I'm Korean-American and the historical events behind this drama's plot is really culturally personal. Growing up Korean-American, I went through a phase that's very common amongst other Asian-Americans. You just want to be identified as American and not be labeled as Asian-American but I learned to grow out of this very sad mindset and have come to embrace and appreciate my culture. This drama also deals with a topic that many people aren't familiar with. Many people don't realize that Korea gained independence in 1945 after being under Japanese rule for 35 years. In my opinion, this drama was able to educate people on history that many people weren't aware of and that many have forgotten about. When this drama was airing, a lot of the comments I translated were about commenters saying that they can't forget what the independence fighters fought for so that they can have the Korea they currently have. If I'm not mistaken, I believe the writer Kim Eun Sook said that she got inspiration to write 'Mr. Sunshine' after seeing a picture of members of the Righteous Army at a museum. 






I also loved how this drama was able to make actress Kim Min Jung's acting shine. Kim Min Jung is a well-known actress but I feel like she's mostly known for her glamorous looks rather than her acting. But her performance as Yang Hwa really left me breathless as she played a character who was only living on with the hopes of finding her mother and to sabotage her traitor father's (Kim Eui Sung) plans.  


I think my favorite part about this drama would have to be the selflessness from many of the good-hearted characters like Hamandaek (Lee Jung Eun), Shin Jung Geun (Haengrang), Shim Jong Min/the tailor (Nam Chang Hee), and more. Many of these good-hearted characters weren't afraid to risk their jobs and lives in order for their loved ones to live in a better Korea and in this drama, they knew Ae Shin needed to survive in order to help Korea gain independence. 


Overall, this was one of my favorite dramas of 2018. The production, directing, acting, and dialogue really touched my heart one by one. You can feel whenever a character was going through a heartache after losing someone they loved (make sure to have tissues next to you starting from episode 14 and onwards). Even if you're not a fan of historical Korean dramas, I definitely recommend you to check out 'Mr. Sunshine'. There's still a modern twist to it so that the drama won't seem monotonous and you'll learn something about Korea that you never knew about. 


This is a really belated review about 'Mr. Sunshine'
ㅠㅠ
I didn't expect it to take me this long to post this....
I don't think I can rewatch this drama anytime soon or else I'll cry like crazy again ㅠㅠ
And all the gifs in this post were made by me!
I made them for my tweets about this drama  

If you already finished this drama, help me go through my 'Mr. Sunshine' withdrawals ㅠㅠ
And if you haven't watched this drama yet, make sure to check it out!
(。•́◡•̀。)
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Two Years with ddoboja ♡

Hello everyone! *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
I hope you're all doing well and the new year is starting off good for you~  
(◍•ᴗ•◍)

I'm so happy to announce that today (January 6) marks my second anniversary of running this blog!
WOWWW!!!
2 whole years of running ddoboja


I started this blog in 2017 and my very first post was about Jung Joon Young coming back to 1N2D
At the start of this blog, I was a bit lost at what I wanted to do and I basically covered anything about the Korean entertainment industry (yes, even KPOP LOLOL) and then I slowly started focusing solely on Korean dramas and variety shows


Fun fact: The first ever drama roundup that I wrote was for 'Prison Playbook'!


It's really interestingcringy and funny to see the changes in how I write the post titles compared to then and now LOL
The post titles used to be soooo messy! (I'm so sorry you guys had to go through that ㅠㅠ)
But it's also nice to see that I was finally able to find my groove
(◍•ᴗ•◍)

In 2017, I finished the year with writing 119 posts
In 2018, I wrote a total of 574 posts ㅠㅠ
Although my posting schedule was a bit sporadic in 2018 due to school, work, and my personal life, I want to thank y'all for continuing to read this blog and for supporting me 
I know I always repeat myself but I'm always thankful for each and every comment, email, retweet, and follow I've had the honor of receiving throughout this journey
All of you guys make this journey so much more enjoyable for me, knowing that someone out there in Indonesia, Singapore, Europe, the U.S., etc is enjoying my translations ㅠㅠ

I never expected this blog to grow this much and every little accomplishment really encourages me more and more. Although there has been a few bumps along the way with some people reposting my translations without crediting me, translating my work without my permission, and having a few people being rude to me - y'all always helped me keep my head up and just continue along with this journey.
This blog has really become a part of my daily life. I catch myself checking Naver the moment I wake up and saving interesting articles throughout the day to translate for this blog.
Just like everyone else my age, I'm always updated with my emails because it's connected to my phone and when I visited my sister a few days ago, she asked me why my phone alerts go off at like 3 AM and I had to explain to her that it's because I'm getting notified about the comments that are being left on my blog LOL 


Once again...
Thank you for always being there for me and for supporting me when I go through my rough days
I honestly don't think I would've been able to grow this blog to what it is today without you guys - like if you asked me two years ago if I would've been able to write long ass article translations, I would've scoffed in disbelief LOL 
Because of your support and hilarious comments, I'm able to continue writing posts day after day.
Thank you for being on this journey with me and I can't wait for the years ahead of us
Thank you for reading, commenting, and supporting me.
It really means a lot.
I hope you all have an amazing week and for all my fellow college students, I hope you have an amazing school semester/quarter, don't stress too much!

우리 또 보자~ 
(t/n: let's meet again~; uri ddoboja~) 

(。•́◡•̀。)
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Friday, January 4, 2019

[I Live Alone Roundup] Behind the Scenes at the 2018 MBC Entertainment Awards


Nationwide ratings for this week's episode: Nielsen Korea isn't updated yet so I'll update it once they release the ratings

1. [+8245, -109] The person who won a daesang in my heart is Park Narae ❤️ I'll support you even more this year, hwaiting to all of the production crew and members of 'I Live Alone'  
↪ [+103, -2] Seriously the dedication video at the end.. It's moving to the point where it's sad and I feel like they did a good job by playing Paul Kim's song in it ㅜㅜ

2. [+6690, -201] No matter how much I think about it~ It's weird that she didn't receive the daesang ㅠ They made her promote a documentary and do the opening, they made her work like a slave, how can they make a dedicated person do that for two years - even the PD said while in tears that Narae worked hard even though her body wasn't in good condition 

3. [+4295, -36] She worked tirelessly for two years without a break.. I thought that the more you see her, she really is a good person. Narae-yah, you worked hard!

4. [+2589, -39] Park Narae, you really worked hard ㅠㅠ Beautiful gag woman Park Narae, fighting!

5. [+1835, -31] Park Narae is the best! You worked hard! 

6. [+1194, -14]  I really like the members' relationship in 'I Live Alone' ㅜㅜ During the award ceremony, even though Kian was talking gibberish, they helped him fix it and they sincerely comforted Narae and cheered her up ㅠㅠ They all sincerely cheer for the other members' awards rather than their own... And Narae who sincerely congratulated Young Ja for winning the daesang, she's quite nice and the dedication video at the end was really moving ㅠㅠ


1. [+6847, -411] I'm still sad that Park Narae didn't win the daesang.. I think she worked hard to the point where she was in the top 3.. I'm so so so sad that she didn't win the daesang.. She worked really hard to the point where she would wreck herself;; This might be my personal opinion but Lee Young Ja winning the daesang feels like it's a lifetime achievement award ㅠㅠ;; Narae, in 2019, you're the daesang ~~!! 

2. [+4697, -205] I really like Dhalsim 

3. [+2402, -37] She completely became an entertainer~  

4. [+1146, -35] So freaking funny ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

5. [+983, -31ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

6. [+912, -25] This is Han Hye Jin's charm - from the outside, she looks really cold but she really does everything and she seems like a warm person 
↪ [+11, -0] She's really a tsundere 
  

I love how all the members look out for one another ㅠㅠ
When Dhalsim was taking care of Kian when they were presenting the award and she kept reassuring him that he's doing a good job ㅠㅠ
Ah my kokoro ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
And the dedication video the production team made for Park Narae ㅠㅠ
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