Monday, August 16, 2010

Topsy Korean

I'm a bit embarassed to admit this, but......my wife and I are getting addicted to Korean TV drama series. I'm not really sure why. In my case, my reason, or "justification" if you will, is because of the English subtitles. I'm a little hard of hearing and usually don't understand what's going on when listening to the normal TV dialogues. In California I can watch all the popular shows like NCIS, Criminal Minds, Castle, etc. because of close-captioning. Unfortunately, Philippine television does not have this kind of facility. So when we discovered that Korean shows have subtitles, I started watching them.

And then we were hooked! There is something about these shows that somehow grabbed our interests. Most of these dramas can be quite dragging sometimes and the propensity for flashbacks can be annoying. Overall, though, the storylines can be gripping. And then there is the "cleanliness" that is so lacking in American television (and even in the Philippines). There aren't any crudeness nor salaciousness. The most the characters have done to show their affection was embrace and an occasional kiss. No bedroom scenes, no scantily clad bodies. Although some of the series we've seen so far (Will it Snow in Christmas? and Secret Agent Miss Oh) had really tacky endings, others are very well written.

Right now two of our favorites are still currently being shown in Korea. Dae Jo Young, an epic drama tells the story of a warrior-chief intent on rebuilding their tribal kingdom. Except for the director's quaint style (what's with all those facial close-ups?) the intensity of the conflict between several tribes and their respective leaders is interesting to watch. On the other hand, have your tissues ready if you want to watch Bread, Love and Dreams (aka Baker King aka King of Baking), currently South Korea's number one television show. The twists and turns of the storyline will keep you eagerly anticipating the next episode. The philosophies of love and forgiveness triumphing over evil schemes makes the show wholesome and extremely enjoyable. So enthralled are we with this particular show that we even searched the internet for episodes that are not yet being shown here in the Philippines.

I honestly don't know if we will eventually tire of watching Korean drama series. For now we can't wait for the airing of the new episodes of our favorite shows.