I'm currently curled up on the sofa with some authentic green tea (not the weird Sainsbury's sachets or the extortionately priced, high-end green teas provided in five star hotels) in my Hello Kitty mug, watching this random Korean drama called Cinderella's Sister. I'm only into the first or second episode, but it seems to be ok so far. Here's the English description on the back of my (pirated) DVD case (edit: card, anyone who buys pirated DVDs know that they come wrapped in a plastic film and a protective card):
"She has neither aspiration nor emotion, and her smile is sarcastic. Eun-jo is a girl who has apathy towards life. Her mother, who has been living as a single mother for 18 years, finally found the right person to marry and brought Eun-jo into the stepfather's house.
A decent house and a decent family... Eun-jo feels that everything in this house does not fit for her. The most unbearable thing she faces is the stepsister Hyo-sun, who is the apple of her father's eyes and beloved by everyone in the house."
One thing I love about Korean dramas is the intensity and sincerity of emotion expressed; most of the time it's not cheesy at all, and I actually nearly cried 5 minutes into the first episode. Maybe they have better actors and place more emphasis on choosing the right music, portraying emotions through body language as well as through words. Although the Korean drama market is probably just as saturated as the Taiwanese market, in my opinion it seems to keep things classy, classic and engaging. Plot isn't as important in Taiwanese dramas, I'd say, because you know how things will turn out, but you watch it for the unique comedy value that the producers and actors bring to the performance. In fact, the most popular Taiwanese dramas are all so similar that they actually cross-reference each other very openly. For example, in the newest Vanness Wu drama, Next Stop Happiness, the head of the village calls himself Hua Ze Lei, which is a blatant reference to Vic Zhou's character Hua Ze Lei in Meteor Garden.
When I refer to dramas, I'm ashamed to say I can only speak for those 'popular' dramas that are a hit with tweens, teens and (at a push) those in their early 20s. I think I've become sufficiently dumbed down by these silly but very entertaining dramas now, so any recommendations for more 'mature' stuff would be much appreciated! I now find myself laughing at the appalling acting in dramas like "Let's Go Watch a Meteor Shower'.
Here are some of the dramas that have taken up so many valuable hours in my life when I could've been doing other more productive things. I love them all. :)
First one is Huan Zhu Ge Ge. This was one of my favourites!! It's a Chinese drama, and I loved it as a child. I used to read the book and watch the drama, it had everything you'd want - martial arts, romance, exciting plot. The main character is the girl in the bottom left corner, who became so famous as a result of this drama that she found it difficult to become recognised as anything else than 'Princess Pearl'. Her character is vivacious, quick-witted and playful, with a kind heart. I also LOVED the soundtrack. Amazing.
Next up is Qing Shen Shen Yu Meng Meng/Romance in the Rain. Based on a book by the same author who wrote Huan Zhu Ge Ge, it's set in Shanghai in the 1920s. The soundtrack is arguably better than the drama itself, but like any genuine drama-lover, my attachment to the songs grew from watching the drama. Definitely give this a go!
Ok, Meteor Garden (below) was the one that got me into the whole craze of Taiwanese dramas. Even my parents eventually got to knowing their names when they appeared on screen. At one point, my mum actually said to the TV 'Lei, I love you!' Nuff said. These guys went on to become extremely famous and starred in other dramas, formed a very successful boyband, most of whom are solo artists to this day. The endearing part is that the guys, who play four heirs of the most influential families in Taiwan, actually come from a very modest background. And everyone knows the public love a rags-to-riches story. 'Liu Xing Yu', the title song, is one of my absolute favourites at KTV!
Jen recommended Miss No Good to me, and it's so funny! That's the best way to describe it. The girl with the unruly hair and zero social etiquette seeks out the famous stylist (right) in a desperate attempt to get a makeover, so as to impress a guy from school. But she finds herself becoming attracted to the stylist, whilst at the same time dating her schoolfriend. Classic love triangle. Very fresh and unpretentious humour.
Yayyy, Next Stop Happiness!! Vanness Wu from F4 aka one of the actors in Meteor Garden stars in this drama with another of my favourite actresses, Ady An. Ok I think I only love her because she's pretty. Anyway Vanness had been having a hard time coming back to the entertainment industry, some of his solo artist endeavours flopped a little, and even in his breakthrough drama he was still criticised for his sub-par Chinese and distinctive slanting eyes. He then underwent a transformation, learning Chinese using English phonetics, trained his body to death and wore iris-enlarging 'circle lenses' in a bid to make him more attractive to the entertainment industry. And it worked. There are several (excessive) shots of him taking his top off or just lying there topless, but I was majorly impressed by his skill at playing a silver-tongued lawyer and reeling off so many complex lines with such confidence! Don't be fooled by the title, this drama WILL MAKE YOU CRY. The theme tune is gorgeous though, it'd be another KTV favourite of mine, if I could actually sing it without butchering it.
Ok I'm still not halfway through. This has Vic Zhou from Meteor Garden, and Park Eun-hye. It's called Silence because a) Park Eun-hye doesn't speak Mandarin, and b) her character can't speak. This is such a sweet drama!! The theme tune is average but still good.
Coffee Prince is so cute! It's a Korean drama, and it's a really genuine, more true-to-life drama than the overly romanticised and dramatic walking away/just-missed-each-other scenes. The lead character is a very tomboy-ish girl, and gets mistaken for a guy, and then decides to keep up the pretense to work at his all-male cafe. Too bad that the guy ends up falling for her, and thinks he's gay! Hilarious, and very cute.
One for the tweens, or those who love teen dramas. I loved this. It's basically a school/uni setting, with the usual basketball playing (that's how Asian dramas like to present the guys, I think they think it looks 帅...) Mike He (bottom left) is your typical bad boy, but Rainie (bottom right) manages to delve deeper and understand why he is the way he is, and slowly makes a place for her in his heart. Sweet.
Ahhh I loved The Outsiders!! I still do. It's about mafia peoplez. Very dramatic, lots of fighting. A story about love, life, friends, and surviving in the mafia world. Ady An (centre) plays a very studious, talented piano player, who falls in love with Dylan Kuo (bottom left). She runs away from home to start a new life with Dylan, but things take a turn for the worse when he and his friends end up joining the mafia. Initially it was to protect their girlfriends, and they vowed never to kill anyone. But you see them all becoming embroiled in this world which was too powerful for them to fight against or escape... There's a sequel to this, and I love it just as much. The theme song for The Outsiders 2, 'Hei Se Kong Jian' is great! It's about how the 'grey areas', the blurred boundaries between good and bad that lead you to becoming someone you no longer recognise.
Last one, yay! Vic Zhou and Barbie Xu in Mars, a great Taiwanese drama. I loved their performances, and I think the two actually got together whilst filming this drama. It's very moving, definitely worth watching. The most famous song in this soundtrack is 'Rang Wo Ai Ni/Let Me Love You.' A classic too!
I should add that all popular dramas are widely available to watch for free on Youtube/Tudou etc., with English subtitles. Even the pirated DVDs probably have English subtitles. Happy watching!
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