Drama Queen

So the horrible Canadian drama shown on Rupavahini in the popular 6.30 pm time slot finished off a few days back. I was just anxiously waiting for it to finish off as it was so very boring. Anyhow the new drama shown on Rupavahini is Empress Ki which was shown on MBC Korea. It consists of 51 episodes and has quite an engaging storyline. If it is 51 episodes in Korea and so it will add up to about 120 Sri Lankan episodes. The story itself is based on Empress Gi of Yuan who was married to Emperor Toghon Temur.

 Something which is quite strange is that Rupavahini is showing two dramas about strong women one after another instead of the normal strong woman- strong man sequence. If you guys can remember it all started off with Sujatha Diyani and then the sequence was strong female character to strong male character. Anyhow be assured that the next drama after Empress Ki will be headed by a strong young man in the lead role.

Anyhow let’s take a quick look at the background information of this drama and whether it is worth your timeJ .

Empress Ki aka Suriya Diyani is mostly about the Yuan Dynasty of China. At this time China was primarily governed by Mongolians. So the cute Prince (Ta Hwan) in the drama who would end up being the next Emperor is a Mongolian Prince. The story itself is based on a young woman who is taken away to Yuwan as a slave but ends up being the Empress and later the future Emperor’s mother of Yuan. The main character of this drama is Ki who is a daughter of a General of Goryeo. Her mother runs away from General Ki and is later sent away as a female slave to Yuan. Anyhow on the way there the mother dies while the daughter finds refuge in Prince Wang Go’s (the bad prince) care. She grows up as a girl behind the disguise of a boy. Fortunately our little “to be Empress” finds a special friend in Prince Wang Yoo the Crown Prince and later the King of Goryeo. With time the Ki is able to work under her father as soldier and this is where Ki first meets Crown Prince Ta Hwan of Yuan.

The story itself takes a bittersweet take when Ki or then Seung-nyang falls in love with King Wang Yoo. Their relationship is so sweet to watch and it’s sad that we know that it is heading nowhere. I have to say the actor Jo jin-mo is so cute in the role and I just love him (second lead syndrome hereL ). The thing is that half way through our dear Ki is forced to choose Ta Hwan over Wang Yoo and this choice pretty much kills the souls of the two lovers.

However this is not without hope. Ki later becomes the Empress of Yuan and slowly finds herself drawn to Ta Hwan the Emperor. The love story that blooms between them is one of sacrifice and honour. Ta Hwan is of course facing a lot of rivalry to the throne in the same way Wang Yoo did. Anyhow in this case those very much close to Ta Hwan poisons him and this slowly kills the Emperor. Ki is of course torn between her love for her son and husband as she has to make hard choices.

I love the fact that until the end Ki is a very strong woman. She did have her moments of falling apart and losing control but all this just strengthened her. Her love for her adopted country and her love for Ta Hwan drove her to make hard choices while remaining a strong leader like figure. Unlike in the case of Silla’s Seondeok (Janahithakami Rajiniya) Ki never actually became Queen but yet she was a strong woman. I hope that you too would be inspired by this strong woman’s story and you can watch this drama every weekday (except poya days) at 6.30pm on Rupavahini. Enjoy the Yuan Dynasty J J J J J .

             

 City hunter is one of my favorite Lee Min Ho dramas and so there will be a lot of fan girl comments all over this post – I am sorry about that. Today we saw the end of the love and boring KDrama West Palace and so now it’s time for some action. This drama I have to point out is very different from any of Lee Min Ho’s other dramas (BOF, The Heirs, P.C). It doesn’t have a young school boy struggling with his emotions. However this drama does have a struggling father and son trope and it is usually available in all Lee Min Ho dramas. So let’s get to the basics of this drama.

The drama was shown on SBS way back in 2011. It got very famous and is one of those dramas which gave 5 awards to Lee Min Ho. You guys all remember that we all fell in love with Lee Min Ho when he first appeared on our TV screens at Gu Jun Pyo on TV Derana. Then he reappeared as Kim Tan and all his characters were dubbed by Isuru. I do hope ITN chooses Isuru to dub Lee Min Ho this time too because I cannot imagine him with any other voice. We will also be meeting Kim Yong Hee from Asaliya Mal again as Lee Min Ho’s girlfriends.

Let’s get to the details of this drama now.

So the story starts with The Rangoon bombing in Burma where many high officials South Korea. It was all planned out by North Korean fighters and now it’s time for revenge. So South Korea sends 21 elite fighters to North Korea for the revenge mission. These 21 elite fighters also include Lee Jin Pyo and Park Moo yul who are best friends. The story revolves around these two friends and their social relationships. In this attack on North Korea most of the elite fighters are killed. While trying to save Lee Park is also killed and Lee is left helpless. When Lee comes again to South Korea he learns that the officials withdrew from the mission in the last moment because it will bring a bad image to South Korea and make America angry. Lee also learns that all their personal details and their data bases have been erased. To avenge this Lee kidnaps his friend Park’s little son and names him Lee Yoon Sung, 

He raises little Yoon Sung to take revenge from the 5 officials who abandoned the 21 elite fighters. So Yung Sung (Lee Min Ho) grows up as a revenge machine. He gets a degree from MIT and has two egos. The first Yung Sung is a playboy who loves to have fun. His second ego is a masked fighter who under covers corruption. The citizens call him the City Hunter.

Although he is warned against love he does fall in love with Kim Na-Na. She is played by Kim Yung Hee from Asaliya Mal. She is a body guard of the president who was involved in the killing of the 21 members.

This drama also stars one of the worst KDrama dads I have seen in a while. I don’t know why Lee Min Ho oppa always get the worst dads ever. This time it’s his adoptive dad who pretty much doesn’t like Yung Sung’s views. While Lee wants to kill every official involved Yung Sung wants to show the world who they really are.

 

Remember Semmi in Melody of Love ? :)

So this was the last week of My Love from another Star. This is the last week we see Song Yi and Do Min Jo’s love story. This week we saw the happily ever after ending we always wanted for Song Yi and Do Min Jo. So let’s get to see what happened this week in one of the most loved KDrama’s of 2015 in Sri Lanka.

The week starts off with Do Mi Jo and Song Yi magically appearing in front of Song Yi’s family. They are pretty shocked but adoration shines in Song Yi’s brother’s eyes.  So the rumor is around that they are married and Song Yi’s dad doesn’t mind it.

Semmi moves away from HwKyung and they are now just friends. He is anyhow struggling with the fact that his brother actually killed his older brother and it seems to me that he cannot handle it. The scene where he takes wine to his dad is just so emotional that I was on the verge of crying. Throughout the drama he was this rich playful and adorable boy but all this trouble has actually made him grow up. I also liked that fact that he trusts Do Min Jo and wants him to help out with his family problems. The dad however is one of the most annoying dad’s I have seen and he comes straight after Kim Tan’s dad in The Heirs for the most hated KDrama dads.

Do Min Jo on the other hand is having huge problems. It all starts with the blood coming from his nose and his knowledge that he will die very soon. He wants to stay with Song Yi but times running out and his powers are disappearing. I feel really sorry for this guy as he is going to lose the one true love he found after 400 years. The fact that he disappeared just as Song Yi is making her wish was just heartbreaking to watch. Anyhow when he started to reappear here and there I thought everyone was just imagining things.

Song Yi has grown up throughout this drama and it has been quite hilarious to watch. From being a top end actress to a passionate lover she has had quite a journey. I felt quite heart broken when she opened her eyes and saw Do Min Jo has actually gone. The way she fell down and started to cry was just so sad. The fact that her husband is going to leave her just like her father did makes things really sad for her. The half madness with which she ran around after Do Min Jo’s departure was just so understandable. We actually could cry along with her when she asked all her friends for “Do Min Jo” stories and it was quite heartbreaking. Overall in the last few episodes we could safely say that it was Song Yi and HwKyung who got the hardest blows.

The Ending:

Do Min Jo was sighted 3 times if I am not mistaken by 3 different people and that quite made me suspicious. I mean I was just like could it be? I was hoping that it was actually Do Min Jo all the time. When he finally appeared out of the blue I was just like crying from happiness. Throughout this drama I so hoped that the screen writers would not give us a Roof Top Prince ending and when Do Min Jo reappeared I was just relieved.  The ending was just one of the best I have seen in a KDrama. The kiss and the last episode were just heartwarming. In the end My Love from another Star  I believe will join the ranks of best KDramas shown in Sri Lanka. It will be up there with Dae Jang Guem, Dong Yi, BOF etc. I also have to point out that Sirasa did a good job in the dubbing unit. Of course there were a few slips here and there when compared with the Korean version but hats off to you guys. My favorite voice of this drama was HwKyung’s of course. Isuru’s voice matched the actor’s face so well and his voice and behavior reminded me so much of Gu Jun Pyo.

In the end I have to say it is a sad farewell and I already miss our Min Jo couple. However we will meet them next week Saturday at 2.30 for the last week episodes. It was quite bad of Sirasa to drag it to next week than show it today but at least it will make us meet our favorite characters all over again. I know it is a sad farewell but the next KDrama on Sirasa TV is very nice and very popular. More news on it will be put up later today or tomorrow night at the latest. J J J J J J

In Bidam we come across a Silla era tragic hero. He is the hero of the story to some extent but due to one single mistake on his part his whole life turns around. The fault wasn’t one he makes but was something that was in him and that was his love for Deokman. His love for Deokman makes him do things which were not quite right.

When we first come across Bidam he is a playful, arrogant, hot tempered chicken lover. He was everything that Yushin was not. He had no such responsibilities, cared nothing and had a cunning mind. His playfulness and hilarious jokes usually made our day. I mean he was one of the main Hawarangs with a sense of humor.  To add to this I loved his bad boy style. He never bent down before anyone or anything. He made his own decisions and killed anyone he wanted. He had no sense of responsibility at the beginning and was pretty much never serious. He is someone who will be digging his nose in the most crucial battle but end up becoming the hero.  Since he had no such thing as obligations there was an air of calmness around him and when he comes on screen you kind of feel that the worst was over.

 

He is sooo cute :) Bidam's the best.

This calmness I am talking about is not the kind Yushin has but something less serious and less showing. I also loved the fact that he had this chumminess with everyone around him even when it came to Deokman. His endless happiness and boyishness made us feel happy and fall in love with him. Yet in the end Bidam was nothing more than a tragic hero.

It seems as if his kick ass style that actually made all the audiences love him. Kim Nam Gil’s extremely flexible face when it came to funny but sexy expressions made us love Bidam more and I am sure Deokman loved him for that too. However at times I was afraid of him because of the way his mind goes along with that of Mishil’s. The moment he starts to think like her his whole personality changes and he becomes a part of Mishil. At times I feel that it was a son like Bidam whom Mishil always wanted behind her. If Bidam was on Mishil’s side then she would have become the Queen. Anyhow it is Mishil and her connections which destroy Bidam. Her cronies cause a misunderstanding between Bidam and Deokman which drifts them apart. At the end of it we see the two lovers waging war against each other and each making very hard decisions.

When Deokman and Bidam wage war against each other Bidam still loves Deokman. He never stops loving her, he loved her till his very last breathe and Deokman knows this. His wages war against Deokman not because he is angry with her but because he wanted her next to him. He thought that by being the King of Silla he would be able to let Deokman have her freedom and be with him. Anyhow things do not go according to plan His last words whispered into Alcheon’s ear are D-e-o-k-m-a-n, D-e-o-k-m-a-n, and D-e-o-k-m-a-n. 

 In the end the fact they were sons and daughters of the wrong people destroyed their relationship. Deokman knows that Bidam loves her and because of Bidam’s death she too dies of that grief. In the end Bidam becomes the tragic hero but I have to say that the way he died and what he did all the while just won my heart over. His commitment, his love, his loyalty and his playfulness was just too much to forget. Kim Nam Gil is at the end of the day one of the best actors I have seen in the KDrama world.  His has done justice to Bidam’s character and for that and his sexy looks J I have to say hats off to him J J J J J J

Destined to be together, yet destiny pulls them apart.

Bidam and Deokman was pretty much the “it couple” through out Queen Seondeok/ Janahithakami Rajiniya. Of course there was the occasional “Yushin – Deokman” fever and half the time we hated the fact that Bidam came in between them in the first place. However Deokman and Yushin both gave each other up for the benefit of the nation. If their marriage was to be then Deokman would never have been able to be Queen. On the other hand Yushin would obviously been stuck between his loyalty to the people of Kaya and his citizens of Silla if he became the new King. So everyone could agree that both of them gave up their love for the love of their nation.

Bidam when it comes to this drama is a young, playful hooligan. However in reality Bidam was an elderly nobleman for Silla who was a misogynist. If records are right he was a famed martial artist and was very much against Queen Seondeok and thus waged war against her. Anyhow in Janahithakami Rajiniya is a young man who is only a few years older than Deokman herself.  He is everything Yushin is not and sometimes his thinking is dangerously like his mother Mishil’s. Maybe his is what attracted him to Deokman. He was this bad boy general who was always informal even with the Queen/Princess. I mean even I am attracted to his hot temper, arrogance and playfulness but mind you it is a dangerous combination.

Deokman is a woman with an aim and ability. Her responsibility is her country and her people but yet in Bidam she finds a lover, a companion and a trusted friend. This is not to mention how good these two look together. They were of course destined to be together. Others would even point out they were made for each other. As pointed out by General Mun Noh the initial plan was to marry both these two together and make them King and Queen. Anyhow as always plans don’t go as they are supposed to.

Bidam’s love and support however makes Deokman a stronger woman. Bidam’s ability to read others and his extremely sharp martial art skills do help Silla a lot. This of course lead him o be named the Prime Minister and this meant more time with the Queen. If things went well of course Queen Seondeok would have given up the throne in due time and got married to Bidam. However destiny intervenes. They are destined to be together but it is this same destiny which pulls them apart.

A few misunderstandings caused by Mishil’s followers caused Bidam to misinterpret that the Queen wants him dead. He under this false knowledge wages war against Deokman. This is not because he hates Deokman but because he loves her. He wanted to take over Silla and become King then he would make Deokman his Queen and he believed things would become better. Only later does he know that it was all a misunderstanding but by then it is too late to turn back. He comes before the Queen and right before her he is killed by Alcheon and Yushin. His parting words being “D-e-o-k-m-a-n” whispered into Alcheon’s ear.  Hearing this Deokman too dies out of grief and their love story ends.

What separated Deokman and Bidam was their destinies. It was who they were and where they came from that divided them up. If Bidam was never Mishil’s son but the son of a nobleman or if Deokman was never a princess then they would have ended up together forever.  If Mun Noh’s plan was carried out by Sowha then of course Deokman and Bidam would have been together but destiny had other things for them and they had to sacrifice themselves for it. At the end of the day this is one of the most tragic love stories I have seen in a Historical KDrama and I still feel sad when I watch these two even now, even after 5 years after first watching it. So guys get some buckets because I assure you, all of you are going to cry buckets and buckets after Janahithakami Rajiniya ends. J J J J J J

                       

Song Yi! Song Yi! Song Yi! Man I love this drama. Kim Soo Hyun oppa is the best and this drama is proof for that. Moon Embraces the Sun was where we all first fell in love with Kim Soo Hyun oppa and now this drama is just making everyone go mad over him. Do Min Jo I so wish that you were my lecturer at University cause man, you are awesomeJ!!!! Let’s just get to this week review without dwelling to much on my fan girl openingJ.

Do Min Jo is yet not very sure who exactly Song Yi is and so he is trying to keep his distance.  Of course this is not successful because Song Yi lives right next door to him. Mr. Alien is having problems with his emotionsJ. His lawyer friend notices this and points it out but Do Min Jo just keeps his mouth shut. He ends up taking Song Yi to hospital and staying there with her long enough to warn her to keep away from water. She some how persuades him to get her some books. These books turn out to be romance books and Do Min Jo is pretty embarrassed to even ask them from the shop keeper J

Song Yi on the other hand is just after the surgery. She feels that she has lost some weight and is quite enjoying her break. This is all until her mother turns up with the camera crew and made a big drama. Song Yi just kicks everyone out. She is hurt but well what to do.  Anyhow her mind is kept away from all this by the upcoming wedding of one of her friends.

Hilariously she finds that her favorite slippers are missing and she suspects that Do Min Jo has them. Of course he does. He has robbed them so that his nightmare of her drowning wouldn’t come true. LOL J This part was so hilariousJ. Anyhow Song Yi gets a new set of the same slippers and attends the wedding which is held on a boat – oh no! Do Min Jo meanwhile see all this on television and he knows that his nightmare is coming true. Well again Song Yi’s rival has worn something similar to hers and so hell comes forth anywayJ.

Song Yi’s rival is having a relationship with the eldest son of a rich family. The younger son of the same family is Song Yi’s friend and he continuously proposes to her. This elder brother is the bad character and he kills anyone who is against him. I believe Song Yi’s rival will be the next in line as she is forcing him to go public with their relationship and marry her. Song Yi notices the secret glances they give each and I believe she feels suspicious. Main while on TV Do Min Jo sees a video about Song Yi’s younger days and he sees that she is the one he has been waiting for the past 400 years. Also to make things better he also sees her saying her first love was the man who saved her on that one night (this is Do Min Jo)  and also that she will be able to recognize him if she sees him again (lol J )

In the Joseon time flashbacks we see the alien Do Min Jo taking the little girl to her family. The family pretends they are all happy. However when the little girl was a sleep the mother comes and strangle her in her bed. The father poisons Do Min Jo’s food. This makes him paralyzed and he sees his fellow aliens leave without him.

You guys could now rewatch the episodes you have missed every Saturday at 2.30 pm straight after Swapna reruns J

So this week we will see who was pushed out of the boat and who pushed her. Also we will see who gets caught in all this and how Song Yi gets caught in all this. So lets meet again next week with the 3^rd week’s review J J J J J J