K-Drama Review: Rooftop Prince, Episodes 1-2

Read episode reviews for:

Rooftop Prince--Episodes 3-4
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 5-6
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 7-8
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 9-10
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 11-12
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 13-14
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 15-16
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 17-18
Rooftop Prince--Episodes 19-20, Finale

Contains Spoilers for Episodes 1-2

It's nearly impossible to describe or recap Rooftop Prince because of its mindblowing fusion of historical-modern-time-travel-romantic-comedy-murder-mystery, but I love a challenge, so let's take a look.

In the Joseon era of Korea, Crown Prince Yi Gak's wife, the royal princess, is found floating in a lake. The prince is overwhelmed with sadness.

The show then does a brief flip back into the past, 20 years ago, when Yi Gak was a child. As a kid, he said he wanted a beautiful wife. Nearby, a powerful family has two daughters who could be princess candidates--sophisticated big sis Hwayoung (about 12) and joyful little sis Booyoung (about 7). But though Big Sis has her heart set on becoming a princess, Dad decides to send the baby sister as a princess candidate instead. Cue Big sis weeping buckets.

Now timeskip to the 1980's, where Big Sis and Lil' Sis have modern-day doppelgangers called Park Ha and Sena. Lil' Sis and Big Sis are part of a strained stepfamily relationship. Big Sis Sena takes things too far when she tells the little kid to take a nap in a MOVING VAN and then lets her be carted away in said van, which is leaving Seoul and headed for BUSAN, which is clear across the country. We have moved beyond reasonable frustration and sibling rivalry into blatant psychopathery. I could punch Sena in the face right now.

Back to the Child-Past, where Big Sis Hwayoung "accidentally" trips and burns Booyoung with an iron until her face scars. Because Hwayoung is still beautiful, she gets to marry the prince while Booyoung stays at home and wears a veil to hide her scar. If there weren't a distinct air of pure weirdness to all of this, it would be too much to bear.

Flip forward to Adult-Past, still in the Joseon era. Booyoung is grown up and still wearing a veil while doing embroidery, but Big Sis Hwayoung passes Booyoung's beautiful embroidery off as her own. But Hwayoung can't really even communicate with her own husband, though he loves her, because she's essentially worthless--not proficient in either the intellectual or domestic arts while Booyoung has studied scholarly poetry and can exchange intellectual dialogue with her brother-in-law, the crown prince Yi Gak. Suddenly, I'm kind of okay with Hwayoung being found floating in the lake, and I feel so guilty for not feeling guilty.

Husband, Wife, and Veiled Sister-In-Law, Out for a Garden Stroll.

And now we move to Adult-Present, around 2010. Rich guy Taeyong should be running his family's company, but he doesn't want the responsibility. His illegitimate cousin Taemu arrives to bring him back to Korea, but Taeyong falls off a boat and presumably, drowns. Taemu acts like the accident never happened, because this means he can now inherit the family business. Family betrayal is an ongoing theme with Rooftop Prince, I see. Taemu arrives back in Korea after having accidentally-on-purpose killed his cousin, and it's revealed that he's dating a grown-up Sena. Cold-blooded schemers are drawn together, I guess.

In the past, prince Yi Gak wants to hunt down his wife's killer, because he's certain her death was not an accident. Yi Gak puts together a serious team of investigators (Like CSI: Joseon-Era Korea), but due to some random time-travelling, the four guys materialize inside grown-up Park Ha's apartment in 2012 Korea, which freaks everyone out nicely. Hilarity ensues, and the hilarity is a jillion times better than the darker part of the drama. Park Ha bosses the historical guys around, but she's also kind to them, and things are about to get more complicated because Yi Gak gets discovered by the family of his own deceased doppelganger, Taeyong.

Things I Loved:

1. Yoochun's acting. Yoochun is famous for being a memeber of the Korean boy bands DBSK and then JYJ. I knew he'd been in a few dramas before, but I truly didn't expect much from Micky Yoochun on the acting side, because a lot of K-pop singers really don't do well with the transition to acting. Not so with Yoochun! As the prince, his grief over his wife's death is very real, and in his comedic role, he plays it with such miffed seriousness, it's hilarious. In other words, when it comes to acting, Yoochun really brings his A-game.

Can Do More Than Sing.

2. Child actors. What is it with the kids in K-dramas? They're all totally convincing. Their emotions seem real, even the youngest ones seem to be bringing some depth to their performances, and they are so. So. SO cute.

Seriously, So Cute It's Almost Painful to Watch.

3. Humor. The Joseon guys coming into the present is hilarious because they are all adorably bumbling. The guys beam into Park Ha's apartment, but leave and wind up in prison due to misunderstandings. Since the police don't know what to do with these cosplaying delinquents, they drop them back off at Park Ha's apartment! They are her problem now, so she takes the situation in hand by putting the fantastic four into color-coded tracksuits and getting them to work for her, to pay for the property they've damaged in her apartment. She also introduces them to conveniences like flushing toilets and microwaves.

Discovering the Magic of the Stovetop.

Complaints:

 1. Too many time periods. It is honestly very confusing to have scenes of Kid-Past and Adult-Past in Joseon, plus Kid-Present and Adult-Present in New York and Korea. That's four distinct time settings! And everyone has a doppelganger in the other world, some of which are dead and most of which are related to each other? Man. My head is spinning.

2. No parental intervention. If Hwayoung and Booyoung's parents in the past weren't so idiotic, they would have known that it's a bad idea to set up a rivalry between your superficial, ambitious elder daughter, and your naive, helpless younger daughter. You don't pit a Slytherin against a Hufflepuff is all I'm saying.

3. Too dark. I'm just not into the murder plots at all. If this show weren't so funny, I would have skipped out on all the evil sibling drama.

Themes:

Mood-appropriate songs: "L-O-V-E" by Nat King Cole plays in a modern scene when stepparents announce to their children that they are in love and getting married. "Alone Again, Naturally" by Gilbert O'Sullivan hilariously plays while Sena tells Park Ha that she doesn't want to be her sister anymore--it's darkly funny because Park Ha has been abandoned by everyone in her life and is now getting rejection on top of rejection.

Sibling Relationships Will Destroy You: Are there any good siblings or quasi-siblings in this show? Hwayoung disfigures her sister, Sena abandons her step-sis, Taemu covers up Taeyong's death and doesn't try to rescue him...yeesh. Schemers, the whole lot of them.

You Can Almost Hear the Wheels Turning in Her Head.

Cultural Observances:


New Words: Booyoung calls her dad "Abonim" which is more formal than the regular word for father, "aboji" which is in turn more formal than "appa," the casual word for "dad". "Insa" is "greeting". "Yeogiyo" is "over here!" and is used to call waiters or waitresses in restaurants. "Mun" is "door". "Saramdeul" is "people".

I also think that the Joseon fantastic four must be using a lot of old-timey phrasing, too, because Korean words that I should be understanding are going over my head--it's like watching a Jane Austen film if you're not used to Ye Olde British Vocabulary.


Watch Episode 1 of Rooftop Prince here at DramaFever


Episode Evaluations:

Huh. What a strange show, and how very contradictory it is! I despised the meanness of the sibling-villains, but then I nearly died laughing at the sight of a Joseon-era prince standing under an awning by a modern 7-11, just to escape the rain. Basically, the ultra dark format of Episode 1 lost me entirely, while the light fluffiness of Episode 2 won me over entirely. Oh, please, let's totally forget about the mystery plots and just stick with Park Ha and the baffled historical guys in 2012?  If we focus more on the funny and less on the pain, Rooftop Prince will turn out fine.

Scripture Sunday: The Book of Philemon

Philemon is an interesting one-chapter book of the New Testament. It's a quick letter from Paul to a rich man named Philemon. One of Philemon's slaves, Onesimus, ran away, but shortly after leaving his master, Onesimus became a Christian. Since Philemon is already a Christian, Paul is writing to ask him to be kind to Onesimus when he returns.

I have to confess that I feel uncomfortable with the general topic of this book. As a Christian, shouldn't Philemon have freed his slaves anyway? The Old Testament laws didn't permit Jews to have slaves (though they could have indentured bondservants who went free after seven years of service), but the New Testament doesn't quite address the evils of slavery like I'd expect it to. If I were writing Philemon, I'd be asking the man "Why do you still own slaves? What is wrong with you?" but Paul doesn't take that approach. He simply commends Philemon for his love for the Lord, then asks him to be good to Onesimus, who Paul now sees as a son.

K-Drama Review: Dream High 2, Episodes 15-16

Read episode reviews for:

Dream High 2--Episodes 1-2
Dream High 2--Episodes 3-4
Dream High 2--Episodes 5-6
Dream High 2--Episodes 7-8
Dream High 2--Episodes 13-14

Contains Spoilers for Episodes 15-16

This has been a cute, medium-interesting show, so let's see how its final episodes measure up.

As our 15th episode begins, Hyesung is crying while watching JB sing from the hospital where he's recovering from the accident that nearly crippled him. Hyesung gave her last stage--and her last chance to be drafted into the super-idol band--to JB, which is the ultimate gesture of thoughtfulness.


JB and Hyesung now go back to their routine of doing cute, couple-y things. JB even asks her to eat with his special pair of chopsticks, which is kinda romantic in a weird way. JB eventually gets the cast taken off his foot, but he's unwilling to admit that he has recovered because Hyesung promised she'd stay with him throughout his convalescence. If he says he's better, he's worried she'll leave. But it's all semi-pointless anyway, because JB breaks up with Hyesung to save HER future as a music composer, like she once did for him.

Rian is chosen as the last member of the super-idol group, and we get to see Rian growing up and working hard for once, because she's no longer so focused on externals. Yujin was kicked out of the group because he trolled his final audition, playing the same chord dramatically on repeat, since he doesn't really want to do pop music anyway. (Note: The guys that DH2 has playing American studio execs are...Russian, I think. Those accents are definitely from the Eastern Bloc.) JB and Hyesung have a tearful goodbye at the airport, and I should be emotionally touched by all this, but I'm not. There's a massive emotional disconnect between the impact the show is trying to have and the impact it actually is having.

And we have an 8-month timeskip to the future.  The super-idols return to Kirin for their graduation. Hyesung doesn't even come, but she sends a heartfelt note from America.

Then we have yet another time-skip, 8 years into the future. JB is now a musical producer. (Why? He's only semi-creative.) Ui-bong is a dance instructor, and he and Seul are still together. (Yay, they're cute together.) The Shiwoo-Nana-Hongjoo love triangle is still going. (Why? You can't decide how you feel about the two guys after eight years have passed, Nana?) And Yujin is a teacher at Kirin. (Why? He doesn't like restrictions or playing by the rules, so he should really be a starving musician by now.)

Yujin sets up a performance at Kirin where his own graduating class comes back to school to perform a mini-musical about following your dreams. *shrug* Okay. Also, we get no romantic resolution for Rian, Yujin, Hyesung, or JB, just a Buddies-Ever-After scenario. I don't remember ever feeling this non-plussed about the conclusion of a drama. It's like walking down a forest path with pretty scenery and winding up nowhere special, having wasted several hours on the trip.

JB's Expression Reflects My Dissatisfaction.

Things I Loved:

1. Hongjoo's singing.  It's quite heavenly. Normally I'm bored by the full songs in this show, but I'm so glad he got a stage all by himself:

2. Rian and Hyesung making up. Rian finally sees Hyesung's merits and her talent as a composer. Yes, ladies, this is what I'm talking about! Mutual respect. They even acknowledge each other as friends when Hyesung returns a necklace with big symbolic value to Rian.

Mystical Necklace of Musical Success.

3. Cameo: There's a quick blink-and-you-missed-it cameo by Miss A, and it's so cool to see Yujin fanboying over Suzy of Miss A, especially since they're with the same record label in real life.

Complaints:

1. The Speeches. I'm just now noticing how throughout the whole run of this show, characters have used their stages and performances as an opportunity to fillibuster and talk at length about whatever issues are upsetting them. In ep 15, Yujin gives a big speech about how he used to be a child star, and as he's talking, the scene loses so much power because these sorts of lengthy speeches happen in every single episode.

Great at Singing, but Should Probably Stay Away From Speech-Making.

2. The Emotional Disconnect. No matter how many touching montages of past scenes flash past, I don't feel the impact. Dream High 2 doesn't grab my heart.

3. Lack of Romantic Resolution. Not everyone needs to end up happily ever after, but if I watch a show with this much romantic content, I expect for at least one pairing in the main cast to work out. None of them do. Sure, high school relationships rarely last forever, but this show was patently unrealistic to start with--couldn't we have gotten a little unrealistic love and happiness to go with it?

Themes:

Father/Daughter bonding: Hyesung and her dad have a very touching relationship and her father has grown very supportive of her. I teared up when Hyesung's dad told her that she didn't have to work herself to death trying to be exceptional anymore--it's enough that she's his daughter. Also, Seul wants to study music management from dear old dad and to be just like him. She now makes affectionate jokes about her dad's gaudy taste instead of sliding in pointed jabs. It's sweet.

Maybe the Most Aww-Inducing Relationship in the Show.

Cultural Observances:

New words: This is an old one, but "Mianhae" means "I'm sorry" and Yujin sings a song that repeats that refrain. "Mogo" means "eat" which is what JB says when he wants Hyesung to eat using his chopsticks. "Ahjusshi" is middle-aged man, and Shiwoo has Hongjoo looks like an ahjusshi, not a teenager. "Ka" is "go!"...I think it's the shortened for of the verb gaseyo.

Episode Evaluations:

This series was never really the kind that audiences turned to for emotional depth; it just had some nice songs and a cute cast. If I were a little more invested in the outcome of the show, I would feel extremely let down by the randomness and non-resolution of the ending, but as matters stand, I'm just feeling "meh" about it.


The success of this show depends a lot on what you think it's trying to achieve. As a piece of entertainment, I don't think that Dream High 2 gets us very invested in any of the characters or their stories. But as an act of promotion and marketing, it has worked marvelously well for me. Thanks to DH2, I've cemented my love for Kang Sora as an actress, I've developed an interest on Jinwoon's real-life band 2AM where before they hadn't been on my radar, and I've also become invested in seeing JB's actual K-pop debut when it happens. In conclusion, Dream High 2 is not a very high-quality show even among light romantic comedies, but it's populated by people you want to see more of.

K-Drama Review: Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 15-16

Read episode reviews for:

Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 1-2
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 3-4
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 5-6
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 7-8
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 9-10
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 11-12
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 13-14

Contains Spoilers for Episodes 15-16

I'm not even close to ready to let this series go, but these are the final two episodes, so let's see if we get something akin to proper closure.

When last we saw our heroes, all was wrong with the world. Eye Candy had broken up as a band, Ji-hyuk and Suah had broken up as a couple, and the entire cast had their individual hearts broken. Right now, keyboardist Kyung-jong is in Busan, drummer Do-Il is holed up in his family's pool hall and refusing to see visitors, bass player Hajin is dispassionately taking acting classes, guitarist Hyunsoo is singing his solo songs like they're funeral dirges, and leader Ji-hyuk isn't speaking to anyone. Hyunsoo finally mans up and calls Ji-hyuk, as does everyone else, but our boy is out aimlessly wandering the streets of Seoul.

And Pensively Riding the Bus.

The next thing we see is Ji-hyuk heartbrokenly visiting his dead friend Byunghee's funeral memorial. He wonders out loud if things would have been different if Byunghee was still alive. (Waaaaahh. *reaches for tissues*) But just when it looks like all hope is lost, the guys come back together. Kyung-jong returns from Busan, Hyunsoo and Ji-hyuk resurface, and finally they all yell at each other and get their issues resolved.

Eye Candy may have been dropped from their Korean label, but they've now got an offer to play in Japan! Hyunsoo bossily thinks they should accept, but Ji-hyuk points out that none of them truly want to go to Japan--this is just the only way they think they can keep from breaking up. Ji-hyuk says for everyone to give the matter some serious thought and consider a few facts: Do-Il hates the spotlight, Hyunsoo wants to succeed on his own terms, and Hajin and Kyung-jong have never been as passionate about music as Ji-hyuk. Is their high school band really what they want to pursue for the conceivable future, or are they just desperate to accept any venture so long as it means they won't split apart?

The guys finally admit that they mainly kept the band going as a way to stay together. Ji-hyuk and Byunghee were the only two who were really all about the music, and everyone has different dreams to pursue. So Ji-hyuk quits school to pursue music fulltime, and becomes apprentice to master musician Rock Kim. Hyunsoo has his vibrant solo singing career, Hajin's trying his hand at acting, sweet little baby Kyung-jong is going to be a chef, and Do-Il weirdly develops a serious taste for academia and decides to prepare for college.

But though Eye Candy has disbanded, they've still gained more than they've lost. Do-Il and Wookyung finally get together. Hyunsoo takes a shot at a romance with Yerim. Teacher Kim may not be their band manager anymore, but he's back in the classroom as their actual teacher again. Suah even moves back into the rooftop apartment across from Ji-hyuk, so the main couple is back together. The guys all gather at Ji-hyuk's place to watch Hajin's acting debut on TV, and it looks like all of their careers and relationships are going great.   

And when it's time for Ji-hyuk's solo stage at a local club, all his friends come to support him and even his onetime arch-rival Seung-hoon comes to watch and enjoy the show. After his own set is done, Ji-hyuk calls his buddies onstage for one last performance of their smash hit song, "Jaywalking". The band may be done, but the friendship and the memories are forever.  

Things I Loved:


1. Suah. She still doesn't get much of the story's focus, but as usual, I appreciate having a female character to connect with, and I'm proud of how well Suah holds up even in the most emotionally trying circumstances. I like how she decides for herself not to do the safe and expected thing by following her dad to China. Instead, she chooses a life that she wants, which isn't such a bad existence after all.

Cheer Up, Honey!

2. Ji-hyuk/Suah. We don't get quite enough of them, but what little we get is very good. Their relationship doesn't have a ton of depth, but it's not superficial either, and they always seem to draw strength from each other. I'm glad it was actually Suah, not Ji-hyuk, who made the big impressive romantic gesture that got them back together.

A Boy, a Girl, and a Guitar. All is Right with the World.

3. Haeri Noona. Seung-hoon's big sister has a great eye for talent and charisma, and she gave Eye Candy a gazillion chances to succeed. She couldn't keep them together because she's a shrewd businesswoman above all else, but Haeri Noona is a decent person at the core. And like everyone else in Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, she grows up a little, too. 

All Things Considered, Haeri Noona is Pretty Cool.

4. Seung-hoon. What to say about our non-villain? I really appreciated his character and how he complicated life for the main cast without ever truly being a bad guy. Seung-hoon is now going to America so he can act like a responsible adult and take his place in the family business. He comments to Suah that he has developed personally over the last few months. For the first time in his life, he tried to do some worthwhile things; win Suah's heart and excel at music. He succeeded at one of those things. Although it's a tad bittersweet, I'm glad that Seung-hoon gets such a good ending.

Seung-hoon: He's Gonna be All Right.

Complaints:

None.

Themes:

What You Thought You Wanted is Not Really What You Wanted: Before he has fully repented of his sneaky ways, Seung-hoon says to Hyunsoo "We're both traitors," trying to draw a parallel between the two of them leaving their respective bands. But Seung-hoon points out that though they both got everything they ever wanted (Hyunsoo: fame, Seung-hoon: revenge), neither is happy.

Seung-hoon, Using His Jedi Mind Tricks on the Weak.

Referring to Other Dramas: I love it when dramas give a nod to each other! Hajin goes to an acting audition and tries out for the part of "Cha Chisoo" by slinging his hair to and fro just like Jung Il-Woo in Flower Boy Ramyun Shop. What's even better is that FBRS was a previous show on this particular cable network, TvN, and FBRS and SUFBB were produced by the same company (note the similar names: Flower Boy Ramyun Shop/ Shut Up Flower Boy Band).

Cha Chisoo!

Shared Dreams vs. Shared Lives: The guys learn the hard way that they don't all have to pursue the same dream in order to be a consistent part of each other's lives. Rock Kim tells Ji-hyuk that guys like them (grouchy, focused guys) can really only do music. But the other kids in the band have many options in life. Yet these many different paths don't have to mean that friends must give up on each other.

Cultural Observances:

Manhwa: While trying to keep his mind off his problems, Ji-hyuk flips through some Korean comics called manhwa. Unlike Japanese manga, the pages read left to right, not right to left.

Rock Music: The representatives from the Japanese record company mention that rock is more established in Japan than Korea. From what I can tell, this is true--Korea focuses more on pop and trot, though they do have rock and hip-hop.

New Words: "Tarrawa" is "follow me". "Arasso" is "okay, all right, I got it". "Maeil" is "every day". "Chunguk" is China, which is where Suah's dad is going to go. "Ilpon" is Japan, where Eye Candy has been given an offer to play music.

Episode Evaluations:

What an ending! I think I'm satisfied with it. Part of me wants for the show to end on a triumphant note, with the guys at the height of their popularity, frozen forever in that perfect moment that Byunghee talked about in episode one. But this bittersweet ending is just right, somehow. It's more realistic than having everyone riding magical unicorns off into the sunset. This is what life is like: endless victories, defeats, and changes. But the show indicates that no matter what changes arise, it's important to open up and share your life with the people you love. Thanks for a great story and a great time, Shut Up, Flower Boy Band.

K-Drama Review: Dream High 2, Episodes 13-14

Read episode reviews for:
Dream High 2--Episodes 1-2
Dream High 2--Episodes 3-4
Dream High 2--Episodes 5-6
Dream High 2--Episodes 7-8
Dream High 2--Episodes 15-16

Contains Spoilers for Episodes 13-14

Kirin High School of the Arts is still having sing-offs in order to pick the kids that will be turned into a super-celebrity band with OZ Entertainment. The "proposal" singing challenge is over and JB is disqualified for the running to be in the supergroup. It's too bad that losing the challenge doesn't feel too significant, because everyone in this show who fails/gets disqualified/gets kicked out of anything bounces back just fine and suffers no longterm downsides. Not that I want to lose any cast members; it's just that it would be nice if the eliminations felt like they counted for something. 

Bigshot Producer Dude tells our heroine Hyesung that JB was eliminated because he chose her as a partner, and that his poor decision ruined his chances of winning. Eek. Way to make a girl feel rotten, Producer Dude! JB's thoughtfully acting happy, letting Hyesung know he's not at all upset over the loss. But Hyesung is still afraid that she's dimming JB's light now that she's his girlfriend, and all signs point to her actually being a big deterrent for his career.

Hyesung discovers that JB's working himself to death with secret dance practices because he hasn't given up on his dream. So with some prodding from Rian, Hyesung breaks up with JB for his own good. She has to say some hateful things in order to convincingly break things off, and then when he chases after her, he is hit by a truck. Sorrow! JB makes it out of the accident with only a torn ACL, but that's still about that worst thing ever for a dancer. Hyesung has to figure out a way to preserve JB's dreams no matter what, even if it means sacrificing her own hopes for a singing career.

Also in these episodes, Yujin confesses his feelings for Hyesung! I still don't know if any of these potential couples can actually stay interesting for more than two episodes at a time, but the confession is precious.

Things I Loved:

1. Rian. Well, she's not precisely lovable, but she gains a lot of points when she makes breakfast for everyone, acts nice to her mom, and sticks up for Hyesung against some bullies. She also shows that she truly loves JB, although I don't know if that was made clear enough all along--in the early eps, she genuinely seemed like she was just an occasionally catty buddy of JB's. But anyways, I'm glad she's becoming more of a secondary heroine, now.

 Rian: Slightly Less Evil Than in Previous Episodes.

2. Hyesung's Maturity. Our little Hyesung sure is growing up! She has to make a lot of tough decisions, and she's always looking out for others. Well, mainly for JB. But in repeatedly sacrificing for JB, she's actually doing what's best for herself, too. Hyesung now seems like she has a gift and purpose, when before it seemed like she was chasing fruitless dreams.

Making Sure Her Honeybunny is Safe and Warm.

3. References to other K-dramas. In the class where Kirin students act out scenes from dramas, I recognize lines from Secret Garden and My Name is Kim Samsoon.The really great thing about this is when Hyesung and Rian exchange lines from My Name is Kim Samsoon where a guy's current girlfriend is talking to his old girlfriend, it actually mirrors Hyesung and Rian's basic conflict over JB. Quoting another show is such an interesting way to add depth and humor to a scene, so bravo.

4. Normal-guy JB. I half-like and half-dislike this change, but I'll classify it as a "like" for now. JB has always had a certain glitz and glitter to him, but now he has undergone a hair and wardrobe change to reflect his new, humble station in life. He dresses casually and sports dark, flattened-out hair, and he reveals a few more everyday quirks, like how he always carries around a spoon with him so he can eat whenever he wants. It's sweet and nerdy.

 Superstar JB and His...Lucky Spoon.

Complaints:


1. Master Plan?  Rian reveals that every event in the past few months--OZ's takeover of Kirin High, the super-idol competition, etc, have all been done in an attempt to draw attention to JB and to make him into the star to end all stars. Okay, then. Kangchul didn't really seem like he had some massive master plan when took things over; he's just the kind of guy who buys up stuff that he thinks will benefit his business. But now the show is trying to introduce this insidious "master plan" plot when I don't think it was really set up all along. Plus, there are only about a trillion ways that this plan could backfire.

2. Yujin's Stardom. Yujin signs a contract with OZ in order to become a big star and impress Hyesung? What? Why? How? That's a horrible reason for Yujin to sell out to this soul-crushing, star-exploiting company. It goes contrary to everything we've seen from his character. And due to magical television time, Yujin catapults to stardom overnight, films a half dozen commercials, and gets interviewed by major news outlets all within the same week. *headdesk* But his fame makes him hang out with Rian more, which is surprisingly good for both of them, though they give off more of a Good Friends vibe.

Not Actually Too Bad of a Pairing.

3. The accident. In the scene where JB is hit by a truck, he falls to the pavement still clutching the lyrics to the song "Together" that Hyesung wrote for him. He looks at the lyrics meaningful before losing consciousness. Ehh. That's horribly contrived and would be cheesy, even in a music video. Plus, JB gets hit by a truck and doesn't bleed except from a strategically placed scrape on his cheek!


Themes:

Father/Daughter Bonding: I love-love-love the subplot with Kangchul, the president of OZ Entertainment, and his tough daughter Seul. These two could almost have been their own K-drama. Kangchul is BEAMING while watching his daughter's recorded musical performance, and it's cute to see that he's a loving daddy even if he is also a cruel overlord. Kangchul is finally trying to do right by Seul, but it's going to take a lot more than just sending her to the boarding school of her choice. Seul finally admits to her dad that she wants to be at school with him and she calls him out on stage and tells him that he needs to loosen up and make some friends. I like her tremendously.

Cultural Observances:

Couple clothes: In Korea, couples will often wear matching t-shirts while on dates, or they'll have matching accessories like cellphone charms or even the same shoes. When Nana buys a matching backpack for another guy, it makes her boyfriend Shiwoo jealous. Shiwoo then goes and buys himself an identical backpack to theirs so that they can all be a---a triple-couple, I guess?

K-pop: I nearly died when Seul and Eui-bong started performing the K-pop song "Balloons" by TVXQ. If you've seen the original video....*snort*. If not, look it up. Words fail to describe the wonder and horror of "Balloons".

New words: "Seonbae-nim" means senior or upper-classman. Even though they're the same age, Yujin jokingly calls Rian seonbaenim because she's been in the music industry longer than he has. "Himdun" is "difficult" and Hyesung asks Rian how she survived the difficulty of her trainee period with OZ Entertainment.


Episode Evaluations:

The plot suddenly got very soap-opera-like and needlessly dramatic in these episodes, but I'm still watching, so that counts for something. There are a few sparks left in this show, and I hope they don't all fizzle before the finale.

Scripture Sunday: The Book of Titus

In this book, the apostle Paul is writing to Titus, a pastor at Crete. Paul is fond of Titus and calls him his "own son after the common faith". Titus has been left in Crete to bring order to the church and to appoint church leaders in the area. Paul gives him a lot of instructions about what a pastor/elder in the church ought to look like:  "If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly. For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre..." (1:6-7) And the instructions continue for a few more verses. The main point of all these instructions seems to be that a person must have their own life under God's control before they can possibly lead the church.

One problem Titus faces is the fact that the people of Crete, as a society, have a reputation for laziness and general worthlessness. As Paul quotes, "One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, the Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies." (1:12) So if even they themselves think they have major moral and ethical issues, it's clear that Titus has a big job ahead of him if he wants to build up this group of believers.

Paul says that Titus is to encourage the older men and women of the church to live righteously and teach the younger ones: "That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things" (2:2-3). And Titus himself is also supposed to lead by example and show others the pattern of godly behavior.

And all these attempts at righteous living have a purpose. They are not just things that believers do because it's important to be nice. We live like this because we are, "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." (2:13-14). We belong to Jesus Christ and we change our behavior to please him because he has changed our hearts and saved us. Paul's advice to Titus is still very relevant today, and though this is a personal letter, the instructions found within it can be applied to anyone's life.

K-Drama Review: Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 13-14

Read episode reviews for:

Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 1-2
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 3-4
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 5-6
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 7-8
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 9-10
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 11-12
Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, Episodes 15-16


Contains Spoilers for Episodes 13-14


It's episode 13, and we're at a big press conference for the band Eye Candy. They are truly catching fire in the public consciousness and everyone wants to know more about them. The guys are worried that the reporters will ask questions about drummer Do-Il's father, who is a mob boss, but instead it's leader Ji-hyuk who gets the tough questions: "Do you have a girlfriend? Because we have photos of you leaving a residence with a certain young woman, which makes it look like you were cohabiting while still in high school..." The trouble is, Ji-hyuk does have a girlfriend, but though the photos of him and his girl Suah only prove that they were hanging out together, he's still a bit guilty because he hasn't told even his bandmates that he's dating Suah. So what does Ji-hyuk reply to the nosy reporter?

"Yes. I have a girlfriend." Yay! Woot! Honesty is so hard for characters in K-dramas, and for Ji-hyuk in particular, so it's nice to see someone being transparent for once. But people are still scandalized by his admission, and they all assume the worst about him and Suah. At school, people are looking at Suah like she's a woman of ill repute, and when her best guy friend Seung-hoon asks her if she's living at Ji-hyuk's place, she tearfully nods yes. Which is dumb, because Seung-hoon assumes the worst and Suah could have cleared up the confusion just by saying "I'm living in Ji-hyuk's old apartment while he is living elsewhere, in his record label's dorms." But noooo, tearful nodding is all we get. Where is that spine that Suah grew in episode 12? Where? Oh, well. 

Haeri Noona suspends Eye Candy's promotions because of Ji-hyuk's reckless talking to the press. Hyunsoo is upset that all his solo promotions have been cut off just as he's needing money to pay for a surgery his baby sister needs. Ji-hyuk finds out about Hyunsoo's dilemma, and he knows that the only way Hyunsoo can earn the money he needs for Baby Sis is to go solo. So as the leader, it's Ji-hyuk's job to drive Hyunsoo to the point where he'll leave their scandal-ridden band and strike out on his own lucrative solo gig. Ji-hyuk does this by making Hyunsoo incredibly angry.

Suah suggests that they she and Ji-hyuk break up--she's doing it to save his career, and he's agreeing to it to save her reputation. *sniffle* Ji-hyuk has lost both Hyunsoo and Suah, so all he has left are his remaining band members. Do-Il wonders if they should even keep making music if it's not fun anymore, but for Ji-hyuk, almost nothing is going to be fun if he has to do it without Hyunsoo or Suah. So now Ji-hyuk is imbalanced, Suah is heartbroken, and Hyunsoo is falling to pieces because he hears that the band is breaking up permanently.

Then Ji-hyuk returns to his old apartment to retrieve his favorite guitar, douse it in gasoline and set it on FIRE. Episode 14 ends there. You slay me, show. Your final two episode better be glorious, because Ji-hyuk has been through enough!

Poor Kid Looks Miserable-Verging-on-Sick.

Things I Loved:

1. Hyunsoo/Yerim. I support them very strongly. Yerim's a great singer and she's also a sweetie but not clingy (unlike Wookyung), and Hyunsoo never really gave her a chance when she said she liked him before. So I like that he's being forced to see how cool a person she really is and how well they get along. It's good to hear them singing so prettily in their duet, and it's especially nice when Hyunsoo nervously notices that he and Yerim sound good together. I love that he can't make eye contact with her for any length of time--it's nice when the Ice Prince is flustered and bashful.

Super-Cute, and They Sound as Good as They Look.

2. Hyunsoo in general. I'm just terribly biased about this character. It was nice to get two episodes chock-full of Hyunsoo and Ji-hyuk emoting, because they have a very important friendship that has been carefully developed and explained over several episodes. Unfortunately, Hyunsoo is always the first guy to get pushed to the outside of the circle because the others always suspect that he's the least loyal of the group, though that's not true. He rarely creates actual problems for the band--he just looks like he's about to create a problem.

Not Causing Trouble Yet, but You Can Tell He's Considering It.

3. The Emotions. Oh man. It's hard to keep from crying when such weepy things are going on. Suah asks Ji-hyuk if they should break up and Ji-hyuk's face is very telling--he looks stricken. His friendships mean more to him than to the average high school kid because he doesn't have any family. When he loses everyone, Ji-hyuk breaks down crying. Later, Hajin cries, Wookyung cries, Suah cries, and Episode 13 ends on Hyunsoo's tear-stained face. Are you trying to rip my heart out, show?

This Flaming Guitar Represents the Emotional Intensity of SUFBB.

4. The Music. Best K-drama soundtrack ever, without a doubt. "Wake Up" is totally likable, and Hyunsoo and Yerim's duet of "Love U Like U" was quite lovely. Check it out:



Complaints:

1. Seung-hoon. He's one of my favorite characters and I don't think we get much from him in these two episodes. He lets Suah stay at his sister's spare apartment and he also asks Haeri Noona to stop the Ji-hyuk/Suah rumors for his sake, since he cares for Suah. But aside from that, we see very little of Seung-hoon. I'm thankful that he's not doing anything creepy or villainous since he's not a bad guy, but I had hoped to see more development from him.

At Least He's Not Fighting With Suah Anymore.

2. Not Enough Ji-hyuk/Suah. When Haeri Noona comes to tell Suah that she should break up with Ji-hyuk for his own good, it's not as dramatic a scene as it might be because unfortunately, we haven't seen enough of them lately to miss them being a couple. The actors make up for the lost scenes, though, and really make the loss believable.

Absent: Her Other Half. He's Off Angsting By Himself.

Themes:

Leadership/Sacrifice:  As the leader, Ji-hyuk is expected to make life go well and smoothly for everyone, which is a tall order sometimes. Hyunsoo says he regrets following Ji-hyuk as a leader, but Do-Il knows better; Ji-hyuk gave up his dream of having the band together so that Hyunsoo could make enough money for his sister's surgery. That's a brave sort of sacrifice.

Carries the Weight of the World on his Shoulders.

Peacemaking: Do-Il stops Ji-hyuk from punching a jerk at school, and Kyung-jong is always trying to talk Hajin down from fights. Do-Il and Kyung-jong tend to be the guys who remind everyone else to stay calm and keep their heads down, so when they get angry, it means that balance has been lost and everyone's headed for trouble.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: Hyunsoo fights to stick by his friends through thick and thin, only to be pushed out of the band for his own good. Do-Il has been pining after Wookyung for forever, and when he finally works up the nerve to actually kiss her--he ruins it by saying he's sorry, so he and Wookyung are probably worse off and driven further apart than they were before. Everyone advances, only to lose what small gains they've made! Noooo.


Cultural Observances:

Kai Bai Bo: In Korea, rock-paper-scissors is called Kai Bai Bo, and the guys in the band play this to see who has to clean up after a meal.

New words: "Unnie" means "older sister" if a female is speaking, but girls can also use "unnie" to refer to any other older girl, even if they're not acquainted. Doemi speaks of Wookyung as an unnie, though she has only seen her once and has not spoken to her. "Majayo" is "that's right" or "you're right". "Yeoja taemune" is "because of a girl"--Hyunsoo asks Ji-hyuk if he'd really break up their band just because of a girl.

Episode Evaluations:

Oh, so very painful, but so rewarding! This show has some great friendships, great romance, and great music, so it's a winner all around. I heart Shut Up, Flower Boy Band and I hope that the final two episodes live up to the great set-up of the previous ones.