XII. "2023" Final Act: December
Where did the year go?
Hello dear readers, pardon the slightly delayed reaction time as it’s already December 2nd. I’ve just awoken from my Black Friday/Cyber Monday retail craze…life’s been a bit hazy since my last post, I’m not sure what happened, but next thing I know: here we are.
A friend of mine once told me her husband crowned her “the Queen of Amazon and the King of Returns.” Now a few years later, I’m pretty sure the “King of Returns” crown has shifted to yours truly.
As we hit the usual year-end-chaos-season, I find myself more and more in “salty fish” mode (literally translated from Chinese slang term 「咸鱼」, meaning having no motivation and just lazing around like a salted fish).
I’ve been rather uninspired in terms of Christmas shopping/gifting as well. Waaaaay back in October I already sent a message to my friends-group-chats saying: “Hey, this year let’s all not get each other presents. We can get a cake and party or something.”
We all agreed, but I’m still on the lookout for small stocking-stuffers just in case SOMEBODY breaks the agreement and gets gifts for everyone. I’M NOT GOING TO BE THE AWKWARD ONE WITH NO GIFT(S).
Ahem. Apologies, I just get a little carried away.
On another note, there have been a plethora of new dramas released recently. I’m not going to pretend I know all of them, since I don’t have the energy to do the research. As most of my readers know, I’m mostly interested in K-dramas and C-dramas. Here are the ones on my radar:
C-dramas
“为有暗香来 Scent of Time” - 30 episodes (45min/episode), starring Zhou Ye. The classic, super-over-used-in-novels-but-not-in-Cdramas: villainess-regresses-into-past trope. The FL tries strives for redemption and aspires to a peaceful life, but things don’t play out the way she hopes. SPOILER ALERT: there’s a polarizing plot-twist ending. Status: finished airing
“乐游原 Wonderland of Love” - 40 episodes (45min/episode), starring Xu Kai and Jing Tian. In a nutshell, the story of how our main leads grow together in a chaotic time period. Enemies to lovers, power struggles, hidden identities, feel free to Google the plot synopsis. The story is pretty fast-paced and respects the audiences’ IQ, the FL and ML (female lead and male lead) are normal humans with normal logic (words cannot describe what a rarity this is in current C-dramaland). Status: airing (unless you’re a VIP member)
“一念关山 A Journey to Love” - 40 episodes (55min/episode), starring Liu Shi Shi and Liu Yuning as our FL and ML. Assassain (I can never spell this word) spy FL, martial arts action scenes, etc. So far the reviews seem to be pretty positive, I have high expectations for this drama since Liu Shi Shi majored in dance, so her action scenes should be aesthetically pleasing. Status: airing
“很想很想你 Love Me, Love My Voice” - 33 episodes (45min/episode), starring Tan Jian Ci and Zhou Ye. Adapted from a novel of the same title, a sweet, fluffy modern-day romance between an aspiring musical artist FL and a famous voice-actor ML. The CP chemistry for this one is such eyecandy, I’m definitely going to check this out when I get a chance. Status: just started airing November 30, 2023.
K-dramas:
“The Matchmakers” - 16 episodes (1hr 10min/ep) starring Rowoon and Cho Yi Hyun. Both lead characters are widowed, an unlikely twist of fate brings the two together as they struggle to find a way through tumultuous times. I admit I’m a Rowoon fan, so will check this out when I get the chance. Status: airing
“A Good Day to Be a Dog” - 14 episodes (1hr 10min/ep) starring Cha Eun Woo and Park Gyu Young. FL’s family is under a curse: after their first kiss, they will turn into a dog for six hours, every midnight to six o’clock am. The curse is broken once the person they shared a first kiss kisses them again in dog form. As things turn out: the ML is terrified of dogs…a cute premise and cute leading CP, worth checking out. Status: airing
“My Demon” - 16 episodes (1hr 10min/ep) starring Kim Yoo Jung and Song Kang. Kind of a similar premise to “Goblin,” supernatural-demon ML vs heiress FL. ML’s powers get transferred to FL and the only way for him to live normally for the time being is by being in close contact with FL…Status: airing
Disclaimer: I haven’t watched all of these dramas, I’ve only seen reviews and deemed these worthy of recording into my ever-growing wishlist of “To Watch Dramas.” If I am not lazy, I will do drama reviews for the ones I actually watch.
As time passes, I’ve grown more and more comfortable with living in my own skin, which makes me all the more grateful for my “innocent baby-face” since it let’s me get away with my true inner feelings which is usually RBF-don’t-mess-with-me mode, ha.
To wrap up this ramble, I’m going to share a Korean singer that I’ve recently rediscovered:
Stay safe and sane everyone! The year’s almost over, let’s finish it off with a bang shall we?