Ms Temper & Nam Jung Gi review

Drama name: Ms Temper & Nam Jung Gi/ My Horrible Boss (English title)
Country: South Korea
Year: March- May 2016

I came across this drama on our local TV channel one Sunday... It was subbed in Malay and I was hooked because of the title My Horrible Boss haha! I'm glad that I managed to pick it up again online and slowly watched it at my own pace. 

So, what's this drama about?

Nam Jung Gi is a middle aged man working as a manager in a small cosmetics company named Lovely, and he is in charge of product development there. As Lovely is a small company, they survive by supplying products to a larger cosmetics giant named Gold Chemicals. Now, Lovely is not doing so well and they need Gold Chemicals to sign on another new product in order to continue business. 

This is where Nam Jung Gi meets Ok Da Jung, a fierce hot tempered woman who is a team leader at Gold Chemicals. He must get her to buy their product and sign on the contract. However, the meeting with her did not go well and Nam Jung Gi was left in dismay. He tried desperately after that to get another chance to pitch Lovely's new product which is a moisturising serum named Pat- pat to her. 

Ok Da Jung is no ordinary woman. She has had three marriages that all ended in divorce and she is a strong opinionated woman who does not tolerate nonsense. She also does not care about what others think of her and is always work driven. With her fiery personality, she has her own power struggles within Gold Chemicals as well. 

The rest of the story goes on with Ok Da Jung leaving Gold Chemicals and joining Lovely cosmetics, thus becoming Nam Jung Gi's immediate boss. The horror! She tries to launch Lovely as its own brand with the Pat- pat serum and that sparks the major market fight between Gold Chemicals and Lovely, which ultimately pushes the employees of Lovely to their limits.

Overall thoughts

The beginning of this drama can be a bit slow and I know that many will find Nam Jung Gi's character too weak. However, his character is so relatable because as a salary employed worker in Asia, you will have to swallow your pride almost if not, all the time in order to keep your job. I really enjoyed this show because of all the life struggles from work to personal life. The issues that were mentioned were all so relatable. 

Best parts of the drama

As I have mentioned above, the life issues covered in this drama is really good. Ranging from trying to live life...

to... Money. Is money the root of all evil? No, money in itself is not evil... but the greed for money is... 

I really love this line from Nam Jung Gi's father... Money isn't everything, you will feel comfortable only with the money which you have earned honestly... and life is bitter sweet indeed... 

And pride in your work... For most of us (speaking for myself! :D) just getting by from paycheck to paycheck... having to swallow your pride and work like a dog....wondering if life is worth anything... 

Conclusion

It's a good ending, Lovely cosmetics finally becomes a known brand and opens its first flagship store. They managed to fend off Gold Chemicals from swallowing up their company, Nam Jung Gi finally gets promoted to become Chief... 

There is an open ending between Nam Jung Gi and Ok Da Jung, he did confess that he liked her in the last few episodes and Ok Da Jung also showed some interest in him. For those hopeless romantics this drama will not appeal to you because there is zero romance. Yaassss!! I actually enjoy dramas without cheesy and the usual cliche romance... 

This drama is really good. I know each drama is suited for different taste. I liked this show a lot because of all the life thoughts, which you will think about all the time. It also has the story of businesses and powerful people... the market fight between big influential companies and smaller ones. 

That's it for now. I'm currently on a drama hiatus, haha! Maybe you can suggest something for me to watch. I'll leave you with Nam Jung Gi's family.... despite being just a working class family, they are happy and that is something, which worth more than money and riches... 

Hello Stranger Korea Grand Sale review

Drama name: Hello Stranger Feat. Chance Encounter/ Korea Grand Sale 
Country: South Korea
Year: Nov 2018

I stumbled across this short drama while surfing TVN Asia channel. I saw it was only about 40 minutes and decided to watch it. Glad that I did! :D 

So, what's this drama about?

This is actually a global advertisement to promote South Korea for tourism. It is a collaboration between the Visit Korea Committee and CJ ENM. Produced by TVN it features Hye-Rim from the Wonder Girls.

Ahn Hyun-Jun is part of the Korea Grand Sale committee and one of the proposals include inviting foreigners to South Korea and getting them to review their experiences during their time there. 

This is where the three girls come in, they were invited by the committee and the moment they landed, Seo-Rae (Hye-Rim) got a text message from her boyfriend asking for a break-up. I know right?! What a douche bag, breaking up over a text... smh... (-_-")  The other girls told her to enjoy herself since they have arrived in South Korea. 

Mr. Ahn was their tour guide, however...His first encounter with the girls was not a good one. Haha! K-drama style of course... ;D Seo-Rae mistakes him for being a pervert and slaps him. Ouch! XD

The drama goes on with the girls enjoying themselves visiting some of the famous places in Seoul and a blossoming romance between Seo-Rae and Mr Ahn. 

Overall thoughts

I didn't know what to expect from the title of the drama at first, but it is a short fluffy drama with a cute romance. :D 

Best parts of the drama

You get to visit the places which you have heard of (or seen in K-dramas!) Not visit in detail but just enough to get an overall feel of it... 

Mr. Ahn is hottt... Yes, you get to see his body... *ahem* XD It was nice to see him again after Temperature of Love, he is handsome! 

The cute romance... you get the full K-drama works in this short drama! The usual fall- catch, eye glance chemistry, hands touching electricity... Haha!! And of course, the kiss... Yes unlike Seven First Kisses there wasn't any kiss... meh... > . > 

Conclusion

It seemed like it was going to be a sad ending at first, because Mr. Ahn didn't manage to give the ring to Seo-Rae during the kiss at the bench. She got a call from her ex- boyfriend... dayum can someone kill that douche bag already?! > . < !! Mr. Ahn sends the girls off at the airport and looks so sad... Nuuu! :'( 

Okay, don't cry just yet... It's a happy ending... Yay! Three months on, Seo-Rae goes back to Seoul and she meets Mr. Ahn at the same place where they first met. The story ends with them smiling at each other... Aww. What a cute fluffy drama! 

I enjoyed this short drama or advertisement... It was done with global audience in mind, so you get all the usual cliche K-drama scenes in just 40 minutes! Fantastic... and now you wonder why normal K-dramas have 16- 20 episodes... :D Alright, I'll leave you here with the cute couple! 

My secret Terrius review

Drama name: My secret Terrius/ Terius behind me (literal title)
Country: South Korea
Year: Sept- Nov 2018

Came across this drama through the Disqus kdrama channels that I am following. The plot seemed interesting with a secret agent and of course, So Ji Sub as the male lead! Was looking forward to his latest drama after completing Oh My Venus recently. 

So, what's this drama about?

Kim Bon was a NIS (National Intelligence Service) agent on a mission 3 years ago in Poland involving nuclear technology from North Korea. His informant (his girlfriend) was killed on the final day of the mission. The last piece of information that she handed to him was missing and Kim Bon had been blamed for betraying the NIS for it. He had been on the run ever since then. 

Present day, Kim Bon was living a quiet life but he was still on the case to figure out who killed his girlfriend and to find the mole within the NIS agency. He lived opposite a normal family when one day, the husband of that household passed away. 

He befriended the wife of that family, Ko Ae-Rin as he realised that her husband's death was somehow connected to the mission that he was investigating all these years. 

The story goes on with Kim Bon and Ko Ae-Rin finding out the truth behind her husband's death as well as a bigger underground group named Cornerstone that is involved in international affairs. 

Overall thoughts

I expected more action and suspense from this drama but it ended being more comedic with many funny scenes. I did enjoy the show and followed it each week with much enthusiasm and excitement. However, there were times where you have to leave your brain behind and just take the drama as it is. :D 

Best parts of the drama

Kim Bon's blue sports car....so much eye candy! I like cars too, Mr Kim Bon! ;D

The aww moments where Kim Bon spent with the twins... 

KIS ladies! (Kingcastle Information System) ;D It consists of the residents in the Kingcastle apartment complex who act as an internal security as well as information central for all the gossips XD... They actually function even better than NIS, they managed to catch the illusive Magician killer! :O 

Lots of bromance, between Kim Bon and the KIS guy as well as the somewhat bad guy, Jin Young Tae... But that nose kiss was just too much... I cannot... XD

The JJ International office, the two cafes as well as Kim Bon's apartment interior was quite nice as well... 

Special mention

The second lead couple in the drama was sweet... I enjoyed the scenes with them... 

Conclusion

As I have mentioned earlier, you would need to leave your logic behind while watching this drama at some point... Kim Bon finally realised who the mole was in the NIS agency. It was the chief whom he had trusted and respected. He was the mysterious person who shot him back in Poland three years ago and stole the last piece of information needed to end that mission. 

No worries drama fans, it is a happy ending for Kim Bon and Ko Ae-Rin! They meet again after one year at Seoul Tower where they had promised to have mojito together... The story ends with another mission, to disguise as husband and wife and fly to New York together. Yay! Does this mean they are going to do a part two? Nah, I hope not... 

This is a light hearted drama with an equal balance of action, suspense, comedy and romance. I would recommend this show to anyone solely for the badass blue sports car... Hahah!! I will leave you now with cool walking poses from the drama... Until we meet again... ;D Thanks for stopping by...

Photo credits: Dramabeans, Google, my own screenshots

Suspicious Partner review

Drama name: Suspicious Partner
Country: South Korea
Year: May- July 2017

Wow, this drama has taken me more than a year to write its review! ^_^V Haha, I was chasing this series when it was aired each week and it took me a long time to recover from it... :D I came to know about this drama as it was Ji Chang Wook's last drama before he enrolled for military service. I liked him from The K2, so I decided to watch it. Was fortunate that it was aired on my local cable TV so I didn't have to watch it online. 

So, what's this drama about?

Eun Bong Hee is training to be a prosecutor when she met Noh Ji Wook, a prosecutor on the subway train. She thought that he had molested her and accused him of it. She made a huge fuss and blocked him from getting off at his stop.

She thought she had done good by getting her revenge but then she discovers that her boyfriend was cheating on her. She caught him at the hotel lobby and in her anger, she blurted that the next guy she bumps into she will sleep with him.

Now, Noh Ji Wook was at the hotel as well and he saw everything. He heard what Bong Hee said and he decided to help her. He got up and bumped into her. Shocked, she realised it was the guy from the subway earlier but because of her dare she went off with Ji Wook in front of her boyfriend.

She had a couple of drinks and she passed out. She woke up the next morning in Ji Wook's house. Thinking it was just a one night stand, she went on with her life.

To her horror, three months on she was assigned to Noh Ji Wook's prosecutor office. She realised it was him but then pretended that nothing happened. She worked hard but then tragedy strikes...She told her ex-boyfriend (the one she caught cheating at the hotel) to take his things back from her apartment.

There was a blackout that night, Bong Hee went down to buy something at the convenience store. Her ex came and then he was murdered at her apartment. She was accused of killing him and Noh Ji Wook was the prosecutor for the case.

However, Ji Wook helped her and he lost his job as a prosecutor. Bong Hee was set free but the stigma stuck with her. Her ex boyfriend's father is the head prosecutor and he was so dead set that Bong Hee had killed his son.

The rest of the story goes on with Bong Hee trying to find the killer of her ex while facing much opposition from the head prosecutor and her relationship with Noh Ji Wook.

Overall thoughts

I thought it was going to be a fluffy rom-com but after the first episode, it was like whoa! It got serious so fast and intriguing as well. You would want to continue watching to find out who is the killer and why.

Best parts of the drama

Noh Ji Wook's house, before and after he transformed it to be a home office...

Ji Chang Wook of course... ;D He looks extra hot with glasses on...

The bromance between Ji Wook and his best friend, Eun Hyuk...

The chemistry between Ji Wook's team... Lots of laughter...

Special mention

I contemplated putting Chief Bang here but then I felt this frenemy deserves a special mention. She is Bong Hee's classmate and also the girl whom the boyfriend cheated with. She also blamed Bong Hee for his death. For most part of the drama she was really the b* you want to hate, but at the end her character warmed up.

Conclusion

Bong Hee managed to find the killer in the end, the part where the killer actually came and befriended them was just so heart stopping. Fantastic job by Dong Ha portraying this character, he really gave me the chills with his smirk and insane look... :D So different from his role in Chief Kim drama.

The reason he killed the ex boyfriend was that he thought that the boyfriend was Bong Hee. He had killed an earlier person and was on the rooftop at that blackout night. However, he did not know that Bong Hee is near sighted so she couldn't have recognised him from across the building. Basically, the ex boyfriend was at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Meanwhile, why the killer was on the spree of killing others was that he was avenging the death of his high school sweetheart. Apparently he suffers from a shock and he could not remember that actually he was part of the gang who sexually assaulted that girl. The girl took her own life after that. He only remembered that the perpetrators got away scot-free and that's why he decided to become Judge Dredd bringing them to justice... Well, in this case, death. :O

As for the main couple, there is a happy ending despite their struggles. The last episode is basically how couples behave when they are together for some time while being in love, bickering and also juggling their careers in between. I was cringing because I was kinda let down by the ending of the case.

I felt there wasn't much of a closure for the killer and the writer just ended the script abruptly to cater to the romance of the last episode. Overall, it's an okay drama. I enjoyed it and I have seen many good comments saying that it is the best drama and all that...

You could watch this solely for the thrill and mystery of the killer for most part of this series. If you are those who absolutely love romance, this drama will appeal to you for sure. The chemistry between Ji Wook and Bong Hee is good, there are rumours too that they are dating in real life... ;D

That's about it. For those wondering if Bong Hee and Ji Wook slept together or not, it was revealed during the epilogues after each episode... I watched it on TV so I didn't miss any, but I read that those who watched it online did not know what happened because the epilogues were not included. 

The answer is no. Both the first and second time also they did not sleep with each other. Bong Hee was on top of Ji Wook and then she passed out. Second time, Ji Wook on top of her and he too passed out. There, you can thank me now. XD 

Thanks for reading. I'll leave you with the cute bunnies from this drama... ;D