SB1070 and Sound Strike: Why I now hate Zach de la Rocha

I’m going to go on a little rant here, so just bear with me.

Recently, this whole “boycott Arizona”  has been shoved in my face again, via Sound Strike.
Can I just say how much bullshit this is? How much rage this causes me? Boycotting Arizona isn’t going to change our politics. Yeah, businesses and tax funded anything are going to pitch a fit, but ultimately, it isn’t going to do any good. It isn’t going to effect the Governor, or the representatives, or anyone that REALLY matters in the world of politics.

It’s going to effect the schools, the road crews, the people who work in hotels, the police, the little shops in Sedona and Flagstaff that rely on tourism for most of their business.

All boycotting us is going to is raise my tuition and make it harder for Chandler High School to buy new, UPDATED textbooks for it’s classrooms. It’s going to make it tougher for the family that relies on Daddy’s police/road crew/EMT/fireman’s salary.

Because before they cut their own pay, before they even BEGIN to think of changing the law, they’re going to trim the budget and cut funding to things that we actually need. Already, my tuition has raised by (I think) around 10%. Already they cut a $1000 scholarship to only $200. That isn’t even enough to buy some textbooks.

I read somewhere that Arizona has lost roughly $10,000,000 in taxes because people decided that their sense of justice is more important then the economic well-being of 6.5 million people.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t agree with SB1070. I think there are better ways to go about solving the illegal immigration problem. But don’t you think that boycotting the state is a little counter intuitive? One of the biggest arguments people make against illegal immigrants is that they take tax payer money away from legal citizens in the forms of welfare, education funding, police funding, etc. So, in effect, by decreasing the amount of tax money coming in, these immigrants that you are so concerned about are being slighted. Because those systems are the ones that are going to lose funding first.

So before decided to “boycott” a state and fuck over it’s economy, take a step back and actually think about what you’re doing instead of just jumping on the bandwagon.

A Slightly More Caustic Addition Regarding Sound Strike:

Dear Mr. de la Rocha,

Do you actually have any idea what you're talking about? Having read the "Letter to Artists",  I'd like to point out that the vast majority of it is rather bias. There is no large scale "mean spirited and fanatical persecution of immigrants". Yes, Sheriff Joe is a dick and should be castrated with a rusty scalpel, but him and his cronies are really the only ones up to any shenanigans. At least the only ones that can do anything about anything.  Yeah, being Sheriff makes you powerful, but charges do have to stand up in court. The people he has deported or sent to Tent City actually deserved what they got. They did something illegal. They are criminals, and I, for one, do not want criminals walking the streets of my state. It's hard enough to hold on to a bike (or car, money, life, whatever) around here without that.

And those videos you posted on the side of the article? They seem to have nothing to do with SB1070. They are about Tent City, and people being deported, and you know...things that would occur racist law or no. All the really prove is that Arpaio and his crew are bastards. Yes, being deported sucks and all, but here's the thing. They shouldn't be here anyway. I'm not saying that I'm against immigration, because I'm not. I'm here because my great-grandmother decided it was better than Germany. But you know what? She did it legally. Yeah, the legal road is hard and paved with red tape but hey, at least you can't be deported. SB1070, ultimately, is about illegal immigrants. If you did it the way you're supposed to, no harm. If you didn't well...you'd be deported anyway, even before the law.

So really, Zach, your protest is rather pointless. All you've done is disappointed countless fans and please the people that don't want you here to begin with. Also, thanks for raising my tuition. I really appreciate that. That $10 mill you're so proud of taking from us would have been really helpful. I mean really, how can you be proud of destroying the economy of what would have been considered a small country 200 years ago? We did the same thing to Germany after WWI and I'm sure you remember what happened then. Not saying we'll go all Nazi on your ass, but you know...the analogy stands. 

Yes, there will always be racist, horrible people. Yes, some of these people will make it into the government, because there will always be other people that will agree with them. However, that is no reason to go around being a passive-aggressive little bitch. If you're going to protest, fucking protest

(On a side note, if I am factually wrong about any of this, please (politely) let me know. If you simply disagree with my opinion, don’t bother. I couldn’t care less about that.)


[/rant]

Errrgh Arrrgh

nanonanonano...you give me so much trouble

This always happens. I get my beginning, I know my end, but the shit in the middle...idek.
I don't want to write out of order, I really don't. But I think I might have to. Ack!
And I feel like I need more characters..I really only have four, and one is dead, so only three to work with.
Maybe I'll bring in a love interest...
But MC is married....
Oh well, hello infidelity I guess.

omfgnano

So, I'm almost a full day behind. Which kind of sucks. Ah, well. I'll catch up this weekend.

Why must life always get in the way of NaNo-ing?

Seriously, CW majors should just be able to take the full month off from everything. So it's like you really are a full-time author and can just hole up wherever you live.

On a related note, I downloaded the trial for Scrivner. I kind of like it. I may just buy it one day.

That is all.
Happy NaNoing.

November is the greatest month of all time

Why?
Because NaNo. And I will finish this year. I promise. I have a full plot this time too. Shocker.

Also, next Monday, I can enroll in classes for next semester. My thursday will suck. Actually, not really too much. But I do wonder what exactly one would do in a studio portion of a film class. A two and a half hour studio. Maybe we just watch movies. That would be nice.

My birthday is in like...two and a half weeks. I'll be legal (finally). I feel like I should plan some gigantic thing but...idk what. I'm not good at parties.

I really have nothing else to say, not about me at least.

Miyavi named his new daughter Jewelie Aoi. It's cute...the entire family has names ending in an -ie sound. Miyavi, Melodie, Lovelie, and Jewelie. I wonder what they would name a boy...

Today in Japanese I accidentally said I had a bookstore in my closet, instead of a bookcase. It caused more confusion than it should have...
Honya...Hondana...bookstore...bookcase....almost the same, right?

I really need to figure out how to put that language pack on my Mac...

That's all for today, I guess. Happy NaNo-ing.

Neglect is a crime

Poor blog. It's been alone for a long time. I might just start posting random crap on here...reviewing has not gone so well.

Not that I have anything to say right now, other than attempting to catch up on twelve seasons of South Park, DWS5 and Classic, and fangirling over Sherlock is starting to hurt my brain. Too much media. Too much ridiculousness.

And I miss everything. Seriously, the weekend everyone down here goes home, my mother decides to go to California. Even my roommate went home. I have nothing to do but cleaning and laundry and 12 seasons of SP...

My life is very boring. -sigh-

Off-Topic: Raging in TRADS

So, this really has nothing to do with anything, and I should be doing english homework right now, but I just had to rant about this.

Why is it, that when given an assignment to answer a question that really only takes minimal brain power, people just spit out utter crap? Seriously, a simple question, an opinion question, and all you get is badly written regurgitation? Is it so hard to sit down and spend 15 minutes writing a well composed, thoughtful response instead of taking 30 to post whatever comes into their feeble minds?

Take for example this rage-inducing bit: "A civilization's culture is a understanding of a social wellbeing, a harmonic balance among the people. China's culture is vast and full of heritage. However, with their communism governing, many of china's cultural understandings are being for-shortened. For example, the social issue of tibet in china. This should be seen as a backlash at china's own heritage and cultural/religious views. Also the vast differences in the territory and climate seem uneven."
With a little work and proofreading, this could have been a well formulated argument (if still offensive and irrelevant). Instead it is mere offensive dribble.

And it doesn't make me feel any better to know that I have to respond to this kind of crap. You non-existent readers have no idea how tempting it is to post only that they are offensive, vapid, and have no idea what they are talking about. Because that wasn't all of it. That was the part that made the most sense. Ugh.


And another thing, since when is it okay to blatantly plagiarize another classmates words? They didn't even try to hide it. It was so obvious. And that made me more angry than the fact that they copied, word for word, part of what I wrote. I have never before been copied when I did not allow it. Seriously. These people make me rage.

Coffee Prince: 15th, 16th, and 17th

I suppose that if you're reading this you'd like to know about the end of Coffee Prince. Well...I suppose I can tell you.

It was honestly on of the most anti-climatic, disappointing endings I've ever seen. Three hours of nothing but fluff. There was some fake-out drama of Eun Chan going to coffee school in Italy, but it really only lead to a montage of everyone missing her. You'd expect that there'd be a big wedding scene at the end right? Wrong. Nothing. She just comes back. That's it. End of story. I was highly upset. I was ready for a blow-out not a flop. Granted, I haven't seen the after-series special (since everyone has taken it down), but the end of the series proper did not give me the sense of satisfaction and closure that I have come to expect from drama endings.

Don't get me wrong, the fluff was cute and all but after Han Kyul and Eun Chan made up it was like the plot jumped off a cliff. There was no tension, no nothing.

I wouldn't say it was bad, per se, just boring. Overall score of the series, 5. Score for the ending, 1, but only because it was cute.

Sunao ni Narenakute: EP 1 & 2

So, as promised I've started posting again. I'll start off with a fairly recent Jdrama, Sunao ni Narenakute (Hard to Say I Love You), starring Ueno Juri, as Mizuno Tsukiko (Haru), Eita, as Nakajima Keisuke (Nakaji), and Kim ( or Han, or Yeong Woong, or Hero. The man has too many names) Jaejoong, as Park Seonsu/Kang Insong (Doctor).

The first episode opens with an odd scene of Nakaji racing to someone's (at the point we don't know who's) apartment. He get's there, and there's blood seeping out from under the door. Now cut to a scene of Haru leaving her new job as an assistant teacher. She is on her way to do some shopping and later meet up with her mysterious online friends she met via Twitter (it's a big thing in this drama). On the way, she gets mistaken for a purposely-spill-tea-on-lap-then-wipe-it-up pervert by a scruffy, yet attractive man (guess who?). They both proceed to tweet about how much they hate each other after the encounter.

Later at the meeting, we find out that scruffy, yet attractive, asshole guy is actually Nakaji, the twitter guy Haru had a crush on. Big surprise there. It's tense for a while, but they eventually warm up to each other (a bit) and a lot of nothing important follows. Doctor develops a crush for Haru, the first string in a very confusing web of love interests.

Up next is episode two. We find out that everyone has pretty much lied about their lives and professions. Doctor is not really a doctor, he just sells medical equipment and acts basically as a slave to real doctors to get them to buy said equipment. Which they never do. Nakaji is not actually a famous magazine photographer. He is a magazine photographer, but for the J equivalent of Maxim, or Playboy. The only one who was really honest was Linda. He's a magazine editor, but only because his boss has a creepy crush on him and is blackmailing him for sexual favors. We also find out that Nakaji has a mysterious girlfriend and that they both share mysterious tattoos.

At some point, the group goes out for drinks again, and they all get terribly drunk. Haru refuses to throw up on Doctor, and instead calls for Nakaji, thus leading to them all thinking that Haru likes Doctor, because apparently, "you can't throw up in front of someone you like". This leads Nakaji to set her up on a secret date with Doctor, which only makes her mad. To shorten things up, he eventually finds out that she likes him (Nakaji).

By the way, I completely forgot to mention that Haru's friend, Peach (this is her Twitter name), is involved in this as well. She's a flight attendant with emotional problems that's pregnant by an older, married guy. But in the grand scheme of things, she's unimportant. (Update: Turns out she lied too. She actually works in a children's clothing store)


Overall, the seems like a promising series. At first I only watched it because JJ was in it. The summary on DC made it seem a little questionable, if not utterly plotless. Fact is, while cliche, it's full of plot twists and surprises. On a basic level, it's very typical and similar to a lot of dramas, but there are also some big differences. Most of the dramas that I have watched thus far haven't been very...deep, for lack of a better word. They're mostly light-hearted, the characters are revealed rather quickly, and while interesting, they don't have much meat to them. SNN is different. Each character is well-developed with traits and quirks that play out over time. Usually, by episode two of a series you know pretty much all there is to know about all the major characters. This is not true for SNN. There are still a lot of questions regarding Nakaji and his relationship with Kiriko (his on again/off again girlfriend) and a mysterious old man that Haru's mother is also involved with. You don't really know that much about Linda yet. You know he's an editor with a terrible boss, is estranged from his family, and seems to be willing to do a lot for his friends. There's one moment between him and Nakaji that almost makes me think that he's gay. There's a mysterious boy at Haru's school that we now nothing about that seems to have something for her and her brother seems to be taking drugs, but we really don't know for sure.

There's an sense of mystery about this show and it's characters that I really liked. And the use of twitter and the fact that the relationships formed thereon were based mostly upon deception also says a lot about the depth of plot, but I won't get analytical here.

Anyway, to wrap things up, I really do enjoy this series so far. I hope it stays good. My preliminary score is a five. Although the Doctor/Nakaji/Haru mix-up love triangle is a bit too reminiscent of You're Beautiful for my tastes, but I doubt that was intentional.

So....

I realize it's been a while since either of us posted...
I'd like to say it's because I'm busy, but it isn't. I've been lazy.
But I promise to get back on the review horse soon. There are a few things I've been meaning to post.
So until then...enjoy this nicely captioned photo of JGL.

Baby and I (Movie)

As Zazi so aptly pointed out, I really don't have anything better to do that watch dramas and write about them. Mostly because I've been putting off packing for college. So here's another one

I originally decided to watch this movie just because it had Jang Geun-suk in it. I excpected it to be a lot like the manga, Aishteruze Baby. Cute and entertaining, but not something I'd devote too much time to.

I started watching it this afternoon while eating my lunch of a small sandwich, blueberries, and a granola bar (holy god, I hate dieting. When I say small, I mean small. Like, it was on a freaking dinner roll). The first scene involved Geun-suk's character, Han Joon-su, running around looking for someone to breast feed this baby, Woo-ram (played by Mason Moon). And the baby replied to Geun-suk's exclaimation of why couldn't he just drink formula (or so I thought at the time). I'm sure you can imagine my face. Talking baby? Breast obsession? What the hell was this movie about?

Turns out it was about a troublemaker high school kid that get's a mysterious (and effing adorable, I must say) baby dumped on him by an unknown person, after his parents "run away" to teach him a lesson. There were also the necessary side plots of a girl with a crush on him, his friend's sick mom, and the super gay momma's boy getting bested by the girl that had a crush on him.

For most of the movie, Joon-su is meerly trying to survive with this baby. Surviving includes getting kicked out of school, "accidently" leaving said baby on the train, and getting arrested for trying to steal a guy's wallet because he ran out of money. After all this, his parents finally come home from their vacation, find out about the baby, and agree to help take care of it and get him back into school. But, surprise of all surprises, the baby gets sick. While the baby is sick, Joon-su finds out that it isn't really his baby. It's his friend's (the one with the sick mom). He dumped the baby on Joon-su so it could have a better life. Predictably, Joon-su gets mad, gives the baby back, and pretends not to miss him. Eventually, the friend decides to give the baby up for adoption. Of course this leads to a touching airport scene where Joon-su begs for his baby back, screaming and crying. I was all ready to be sad and tear up, but lo and behold, he gets the baby back.

The movie is actually a lot more interesting than it seems. It was really cute and funny. And in case you were wondering, the baby doesn't really talk. What you get to hear are his thoughts. Which are by far the funniest part of the movie.

As for the characters, they're pretty typical, but interesting. Kim Byoel, the girl with a crush on Joon-su, is some super genius with eight brothers and sisters. Joon-su is a typical rebel rich kid. Woo-ram (the baby) is the most adorable baby ever. He is why I want asian babies. Not because I like asian men (though I do, I sure sure do), but because they're just cuter than white babies, or any other race of baby for that matter. Look, I have proof!

That's baby Mason! CUTEST THING EVER! He's even the MC of the Korean show "Good Daddy". Ok, granted, he's only half asian. But that means if I marry an asian, my kids will be this adorable. And I totally just became a fan of him on Facebook, just so you know.

 

Coffee Prince: 13th and 14th

Today was the 13th and 14th episodes of Coffee Prince. So let's get strait to it.

In episode 13 Yoo Joo came back after ditching Han Seung. Han Kyul and Eun Chan had a "date" at his house. They (meaning the two couples) had a dinner party at Han Seung's place. Everything was really cute and it really did make me smile. Unfortunately, that's all that really happened. Can we say "filler"?

Episode 14 was when the real drama happened. Han Kyul's family finally found out that he was dating Eun Chan. They hated her immediately after finding out. They had met her before, but like everyone else (besides Han Seung) they thought she was a boy. It came out when they visited the family's house after making coffee deliveries. Han Kyul was just too smitten to keep it quiet. Both Mom and Gramma were like "Hell no, she's ugly and would make a terrible wife". Han Kyul yelled ( he does that a lot, btw) and stormed out dragging Eun Chan behind him.

The next day Mom and Gramma came to the cafe and bitched Eun Chan out some more. They even offered her money, because I guess if you're dating a wealthy guy, that automatically makes you a golddigger. They had a heart-felt talk with Han Kyul, too, where he told them he wouldn't be going to New York (mostly because of Eun Chan, but he gave some other bullshit reasons too). They left, Han Kyul told Eun Chan he was staying, they made out in the kitchen (at least by Kdrama terms, which really means just a few kisses on the cheek), and the episode ended on a happy note for them.

Things went pretty well for Han Seung and Yoo Joo too. In episode 13, Yoo Joo foud out she was pregnant (did I forgot to mention that? Well, now you know) and she tells Han Seung via text and ultra sound pic while at a baby supply store. Both are, as expected, happy yet nervous. Han Seung even composes a "Prenatal Baby Care" soundtrack.

And that was about all that happened. Both episodes were really adorable though. Really. I enjoyed them. Though, may I add, what's with the rich family hating on poor family theme that comes up in so many dramas? I mean, why must you meddle in your son's love life? So what if he marries a poor girl? Is that so bad? Will their children turn out retarded or something? Eesh.

Bad Guy, up to Episode 9

Wow, Lola, way to make me look lazy!! I do exist, everyone!! I'm just busier than a certain someone. Now for my first post!

So I've been watching this drama, Bad Guy (or Bad Boy, apparently), for a few days and it's been....well....hmm. To be frank, I cannot decide if I kinda like this drama or really hate it. The reason I chose it is because Kim Jae Wook is in it (LOVE), and I figured you can't go wrong if he's in it, right? Well, I've yet to answer that question.

Here's a little relatively Spoiler-free synopsis of Bad Guy:
Choi Tae-Seung is adopted by the Haeshin Group, sold by his real family (who actually loves him), because he is believed to be the President of the Haeshin Group's illegitimate child. However, after a little while it is found out that the paternity tests were mixed up and the child is not actually the illegitimate child of the President, and is cast out as a liar (he's like, 6 years old by the way) for attempting to trick his way into the Haeshin Group. The real illegitimate child was then brought in, and the first son was forced to go. Years later, all involved have grown up and the first son, who has taken on the name Shim Gun-Wook, takes revenge on the Haeshin Group for all it has done to him.

Now, like I said, I have a hard time telling whether I like or hate this drama. The premise is good, with a very interesting story. Starts off with a death, but it comes forth that it might be a murder rather than a suicide, which they originally thought. They find out that the girl who died is Hong Tae-Seung's (the second son, the real illegitimate child) girlfriend. This may or may not be a major plot point later on.
In the mean time, It's Hong Mo Ne's (the youngest daughter of the Haeshin Group) birthday! So she's having a party on an island. And what do you know, there's a movie being filmed on this island as well, which causes Mo Ne and her sister to meet an unknown, but undeniably sexy stuntman. This may also become important later on.
In the mean time, we also find ANOTHER main character (now are you getting why I can't tell if I like this?), who is employed by the wife of the Haeshin Group, and is friends with Mo Ne. This girl's name is Moon Jae-In (alias: Mary-Sue). She decides to go to this island, as well, to attend Mo Ne's birthday party, but secretly her mission is to seduce Hong Tae-Seung, because she's kind of a gold-digger. So she goes to the island and ALSO meets this mysteriously sexy stuntman. This may or may not become important later.

So that's pretty much a summary of the first episode or two. Lots of confusion, lots of characters, and, once we get to know Shim Gun-Wook better, LOTS of dramatic flashbacks. And not dramatic in that 'OMG so saaaad! D;' way. No, no, no. At first it's kinda like that. But after the...oh, I dunno, FIFTH ridiculously dramatic flashback, it's kinda gotten to the If-that-really-happens-in-real-life-I'm-gonna-go-kill-myself-right-now-because-I-have-no-faith-left-in-humanity amount of tragic and sad. It's really hard to watch. Once those Smack-You-In-The-Face-With-Drama Flashbacks end, though, it's better. The story begins to unfold, Shim Gun-Wook's plan starts going into action, all with a more-than-healthy helping of Sexual Tension, and OH, did I mention Love Triangles? Or really, it's more like Love Hexagons....or something. Basically, everyone wants to sex Shim Gun-Wook, both Hong Tae-Seung and Shim Gun-Wook are in love with Moon Jae-In, Moon Jae-In is in love with the guy who has the CashMoneys, and Moon Jae-In's sister is in love with her sideburns.

As far as acting goes, this is a pretty good drama. I can't say I really love the characters, since half of them are intended for your hatred, and half of them have some kind of stunted emotions caused by some kind of trauma.
Shim Gun-Wook is an AMAZING character, played PERFECTLY by Kim Nam Gil. The perfect click between the two sides of Shim Gun-Wook is literally visible, nearly tangible: the cold, ruthless hatred of a man who was hurt beyond measure and is thus seeking revenge, and the sweet, caring, more-than-lovable man that he would have been, and almost is, if not for his childhood trauma and lust for revenge. Shim Gun-Wook is an excellent character, played by an incredible actor, but I would probably like him a lot more if he wasn't such a pussy and got a little more selfish when it comes to Moon Jae-In.
Moon Jae-In is basically a Mary-Sue character. She is poor, and hates it. Her father died a while ago and her mother is off working somewhere. She lives with her troublesome little sister (who is pretty annoying in my opinion, and has a terrible haircut), and works for Haeshin Group's wife's art gallery. She WAS Mrs. Hong's favorite, because she knew her boundaries around people of a higher social class, but after the whole glass mask thing around episode 7 or 8, she lost favor in Mrs. Hong's eyes. Moon Jae-In is pretty, with gigantic eyes and lovely cheekbones, and manages to seduce the man she's after, be it the real Hong Tae-Seung or Shim Gun-Wook, who pretends to be Hong Tae-Seung for the first few episodes. She has a flawed, but strong sense of justice, getting angry and yelling at anyone who does bad, and yet is only interested in men with money, since her philosophy in life is to have 'A fine carriage rather than fine morals'.
Hong Tae-Seung is a really, really dumb character, but I guess he's necessary. He is played by Kim Jae-Wook, and played perfectly, so it's really just the character that I hate, rather than the acting. Hong Tae-Seung is basically the rebellious character of the illegitimate son who never got enough attention. He spends the whole drama pouting, crying, shouting, sulking and drinking, and generally acting like a very over-grown four-year-old. My hatred for this character very nearly cancels out my love for Kim Jae-Wook (at least while I watch this drama) because of how mind-numbingly obnoxious and blatantly damaged he is.

Not to sound too repetitive, but I really cannot decide if I like or hate this drama. With the factors of the premise versus the outcome, the acting versus the characters, the confusion versus the complexity of the story, it's just too hard to decide. I know I'll review this again, once it gets more interesting and/or when the series ends.
As far as recommendation goes, if you're looking for a really good drama, then watch something else. If you're so bored that you need to watch a drama or else you're going to start yanking your own hair out and banging your head against the walls, go for it! (That is, watch the drama, don't yank your hair out or cause yourself brain damage) The later episodes are worth watching, at the very least, even if you have to go through those first few (annoying) episodes to get there.

Sorry about the ridiculously long post! I couldn't help ranting a little bit, along with synopsis and whatnot. Hopefully I can find time to post more! Until then,

Love~ Zazi.

Coffee Prince: 11th and 12th episode

I have been watching Coffee Prince for a while, and I do not care to go back go through all of the episodes. But since I'm not done with it, I'll start here. But I will provide a short synopsis of what has happened so far.

Go Eun Chan (played by Yoon Eun Hye) is hired by Choi Han Kyul (played by Gong Yoo) to pretend to be his boyfriend to get him out of the blind dates his grandmother has sent him on. What he doesn't know, is that Eun Chan is actually a girl. After the failed blind dates, Grandma makes him re-open a coffee shop to make it profitable. Eun Chan goes to work for him, still pretending to be a man. Eventually (and predictably) she falls for Han Kyul, and he for her, even though he thinks she's a man.

In episode 10, Han Kyul confesses his love for Eun Chan and kisses her, despite still thinking she's a he.

Now, on to episode 11. Han Kyul finally finds out that Eun Chan is actually a girl, because his friend can't keep his mouth shut. One would think he'd be ecstatic. He isn't gay after all. But no. Just like every other main guy in a genderbender drama, he throws a bitch fit, says a bunch of really mean things, storms away and ignores her for days. He even fires her, despite the fact that she is the "breadwinner" (their term, not mine) for her family. Long story short, for an entire episode he's a total douche.

That is the kind of thing I don't understand about those kind of situations in dramas. Sure, she lied and had no good reason to pretend to be a man, that doesn't mean it has to be a big deal. It wasn't in You're Beautiful. Just accept that it's a girl and move on. You should be happy, Han Kyul. Eesh!

Anyway, this episode also features the demise of poor Han Seung's (played Lee Sun Gyun), Han Kyul's cousin, relationship with the artist Han Yoo Joo (played by Chae Jung Ahn). She decided to leave him and go back to New York because Han Seung developed a little crush on Eun Chan (he knew she was a girl from the beginning). Well, he did kiss her too, but that's another matter. So of course he's heartbroken and begs her not to leave. And of course she won't listen, because this wouldn't be a drama if there wasn't, well, drama. Now everyone's all alone because no one can play nice.

As for episoede 12, it's mostly a continuance of the main characters torturing themselves over their relationships, or lack thereof.

On the Han Kyul/Eun Chan front, there is another episode of turbulence, until Han Kyul finally gets with the program and admits that maybe, just maybe, he was wrong to get all pissy and that maybe it isn't all Eun Chan's fault. By the end of the episode, they're back together, happy as can be.

For Han Seung and Yoo Joo, it's a different story. She makes a big show of leaving, Han Seung begs and yells on the side of the road and gets all depressed and mopey. Turns out though it was all for nothing. Yoo Joo doesn't leave, not to New York at least. She takes off to somewhere unknown, possibly never to be seen again. Which does make me a little sad. She wasn't a bitch, like most side character girls are (case in point: Yoo He Yi in You're Beautiful)



So that was 11 and 12. Pretty basic. And if you were wondering, I do like this series. I give it five stars.

The Case of Itaewon Homicide (Movie) and my latest obsession

So this morning I watched The Case of Itaewon Homicide, starring one of my now favorite actors.

It opens with a really graphic scene of murder in the bathroom of a burger place in Itaewon (a district of Seoul) and develops into basically a Korean Law and Order. There are two suspects, Pearson (played by Jang Geun-suk), an American born mexican/korean with really horrible corn rows and AJ (played by Shin Seung-hwan), a Korean-American brought to Korea by his father for getting in trouble.

At first, everyone thinks it's Pearson, because of his gangsta-like appearance and near sociopathy. Then it looks like it's AJ. Of course, they finger each other for the crime. The prosecution (played by Jeong Jin-Yeong) goes after AJ and after a lengthy trial he ends up with life in prison. Pearson does a year for possession and witholding of evidence.

But it doesn't end there. AJ's father (played by Ko Chang-Seok), still ever convinced of his son's innocence, brings the case to the Supreme Court, where AJ's conviction is over-turned. Pearson get's pardoned two months before the end of his sentence and high-tails it back to America after gettig rid of those corn rows (thank god). The case itself goes unsolved, much to the victim's family's dispair. I, personally, think AJ did it. He was whiny and obnoxious and, as Shakespeare famously wrote, "the lady (or man I guess) doth protest too much, me thinks".

After watching and reading the comments on DramaCrazy, I did some digging into the background of this movie. Turns out it was based on a true story. On April 3, 1997, a college student was stabbed 9 times in the bathroom of a Burger King in Itaewon. This case also went unsovled and in 2012 it'll be closed officially. That makes me sad. I am a firm beleiver in the justice system, and the fact that it failed for that poor family really ticks me off. I hope something comes up before then.

Anyway, on to my review. For a cut and dry mystery flick, it was pretty good. There was a nice amount of suspense and the do-gooder in any viewer's heart will rear it's ugly head when AJ gets aquitted. The characters are very unsypathetic, as they are meant to be. You really end up hating AJ and his daddy's boy attitude and Pearson, while creep-tastic, is a tad more likeable. I give it four stars. It wasn't perfect, but it was pretty damn good. I reccomend it highly if you like crime dramas.



On a side note, I'm really starting to like Jang Geun-suk. At first, when I saw him in You're Beautiful, I didn't like him all that much. He was aattractive, but not much more than average and his character was a bit of a douche. Then, all of a sudden in the episode where Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung get lost, he smiled. And I heard angels sing. I don't know what it is, but that smile. It's the most adorable thing ever. Here, see for yourself.

I don't know what it is about it, but it's the most adorable smile ever. And later on, in the episode with the pig, he does this scrunchy angry face thing, which is just as cute.

And thus, my obsession was born. We'll add him in with Kim Jae Wook, Gackt, and Changmin (Max)  from DBSK.

Attack on the Pin-Up Boys (Movie)

OMG, another? I'm on a roll today!

So today I watched Attack of the Pin-Up boys, which I will, from now on, refer to as the SuJu movie. In case you don't know who Suju is (which I doubt, if you're reading this blog), it is short for Super Junior, the 13 member, too large for it's own good, generally obnoxious Korean idol boy band group. I will say right now, that I am not a fan of Suju. Yes, they have a few good songs (2, to be precise), but overall I think there are too many of them. They confuse me. Although, I will admit, some are very attractive.

Anyway, back to the movie. It stars all members of Suju, except Kyuhyun because he got in a car accident. Basic premise is that someone is attacking the pretty "Flower Boys" of various high schools by throwing what I will only describe as a horrible bag of gross at them as they walk home from school. In the dark, of course. The movie opens after the first three victims, Yesung the rocker boy (this made me happy, btw. I will admit he is my favorite), Han Geng the basketball star, and Sungmin the pretty boy have been attacked. Kibum, the narrator and studious boy detective, has made it his prerogative to find out who the next victim will be.

It ends up coming down to three people. Hee-Chul, the arrogant, breakdancing prince, Si-Won, the stuco president who seems to have magical powers (which include, but are not limited to, a genius IQ, shooting lightning out of his hands, and levitating books), and Kang In, the defunct tae kwon do champion. And naturally it becomes a competition. In their version of Korea, it seems that getting hit by a horrible bag of gross makes you more popular and leads to things like record deals and modelling contracts and light eminating from oneself.

After Kibum announces on his blog who he thinks will be next, Hee-Chul and Kang In proceed compete. Si-Won seemingly takes the high road and pretends not to care. Which, like the cake, is a flat out lie, as he eventually fakes getting hit by a horrible bag of gross. Surprise, surprise, but none of them actually get hit. It ends up being Dong Hae, Kibum's best friend, after said best friend finds out the attacker is actually Kibum playing pranks on people he hates.

And of course there was a dance number in the credits with way too many people. We mustn't forget that this is the Suju movie.

Overall, I'd say the movie was generally entertaining and sometimes funny. It was definately made for the Suju fan age group. There were parts that made me laugh and parts that made me never want to admit to have watched it. I guess I'd recommend it if you have a really immature sense of humour. If you enjoyed movies like Hot Tub Time Machine, Napoleon Dynamite, and other such "gems", you will probably like this movie. I give it three stars, for the few lulz it gave me.



And if you were wondering, my favorite character is totally the Panda mascot (played by Ryeowook and Leeteuk). Dude was awesome.

You're Beautiful (Series, 16 ep)

Ok. I will not put off posting on this blog. I promise. In honor of that promise, my very first post will be today. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Today.

Also, while this is a long series, it will only be in one post. I refuse to go back ep by ep, since I already finished it. I'll try to make it short.

 So, I recently finished watching the korean drama "You're Beautiful". It was recommended to me by a friend (Thanks, Larxy!) and supported by the ADORABLE piggy-rabbit plush her friend made for our table at PCC.

Anyway, the basic plot is just like every other drama, with the additions of a nun and an idol group.

The nun, Go Mi Nyu (played by Park Shin Hye), or Gemma, as her fellow nuns call her is shanghai-ed by her twin brother, Go Mi Nam's, manager to crossdress and pretend to be him while he has corrective plastic surgery in the states. Of course, she falls for the main guy, the "Leader" of the idol group, Hwang Tae Kyung (layed by Jang Geun Suk). And of course, the other guys, Jeremy and Kang Shin Woo, fall for her. Unlike other dramas, the only one that doesn't know she's a girl is poor Jeremy, who didn't have a chance to begin with.

To make a long story short, Mi Nyu falls for Tae Kyung, while Shin Woo falls for Mi Nyu, and of course doesn't say anything until he realizes she likes Tae Kyung and Tae Kyung likes her back, even if he doesn't know it.

Normally, I would find that kind of plot over-used and obnoxious. But whoever wrote and directed this actually did it right. There was suspense, and a lot of drama. Tae Kyung, Shin Woo, and Jeremy were not your typical perfect pretty boys. Shin Woo actually stuck up for himself in the end, and didn't just step back and let his love walk all over him. He actually did something about it. And Tae Kyung wasn't all nice and perfect. He had a bad attitude to the very end that made you want to punch him in the ballsack. All of the drama he caused made the end just so much more satisfying. They (meaning Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung) didn't completly get together until, literally, the last five minutes of the last episode.

I will admit, all the drama and bullshit actually made me cry. Like, flat out cry. Multiple times. I never do that. I haven't since I was like...five or something. I think it was mostly out of frustration about what a stupid ass Tae Kyung was, and how sorry I felt for Shin Woo. But nonetheless, I cried. Which to you should mean that this was a good drama. The characters were loveable, and Jang Geun Suk was even more of a (loveable and cute, I mean seriously, have you seen him smile?) creep than he was in Itaewon Homicide. I give this drama five stars. Go watch it. Now.

On a side note, I'm still waiting for a drama where the poor, loveable, side character guy with good intentions actually gets the girl.

New look, new purpose

So, seeing as this failed as a fiction blog, I've decided to turn it into a drama review blog. Me and a friend will, from here on out, be summarizing and reviewing various k- and j-dramas, movies, and anything else we desire.

Posts will be on a one or two episode basis for long series (10 ep and up) and one or two shots for short series and movies. I hope people will actually read this!