I just haven't been buying much K-pop stuff recently... and with school and work, it's hard to enjoy something that's supposed to be a hobby when you're tired and/or stressed out. When I have free time, I just want to enjoy myself and relax!
Anyway, today I wanted to post about some K-dramas that I've been obsessing over recently.
First is one called Healer.
This one stars Ji Chang Wook (male lead) and Park Min Young (female lead).
I've never seen any of Ji Chang Wook's works, so this is my first time watching him. I hear he does a lot of historical/olden day dramas, and I'm not super, super into those, so maybe that's why I haven't seen him in anything before. I know he was in Empress Ki, which was a pretty big hit, but I just never considered watching that one even though I love Ha Ji Won so much. It's 50 episodes long!! For a drama that I'm not sure how I'll feel about, that's a lotta episodes.
ANYHOW, wow this drama is/was amazing!!! I kind of just started watching it since I heard a lot of buzz around it on the online K-entertainment communities; I decided to give it a try. I basically got hooked right away because this drama has such a good combination of action, romance, humour and suspense.
Ji Chang Wook makes an ah-mazing Healer. His eyes are so expressive and I think overall he's just a really good actor. Oh, and not to mention, he's absolutely GORGEOUS. xD Just a small detail, you know? I know it sounds completely superficial, but I think I enjoy dramas a lot more when I find the male lead attractive, which isn't hard because I find a lot a lot of male leads attractive, if not at least charming. But if the story is well written, the characters are well cast, and the main lead is handsome, well that's a complete winner in my books (oh, and if the female lead isn't annoying, even better). Plus the Healer character was very playful and a little dorky, which Ji Chang Wook pulled off super well (I'm currently watching him on Running Man, and I have to say his real personality is definitely closer to the dorky, silly type instead of the strong silent type like the Healer) :P
Anyway this drama is about a "night errand boy," the Healer, who does tasks for people (regardless of ethical issues, except he doesn't hurt/kill people) who can afford the hefty sum that he and his hacker partner, a middle aged woman with amazing computer/technology skills, charge. His dream is to one day be able to afford an island in a tropical paradise that he's already picked out.
The story revolves around an incident involving 5 friends, 4 male and 1 female, from the 1980s-1990s, who are all connected to the three main characters (pictured above) in one way or another. Healer gets involved with the other two main characters and together, they begin uncovering the truth behind the incident as reporters.
So yes, all in all, I would definitely recommend this drama. I think it was exceptionally well done, from the well-thought out storyline, to the casting of the characters, to the portrayals from all the actors - Healer was an amazing drama *applause*
I especially recommend it to people who enjoy action-y dramas partnered with a romantic storyline, like City Hunter (which Park Min Young also starred in - also a pretty good drama :P).
One last super honourable mention to one of my favorite characters ever: AHJUMMA!
(isn't it adorable? her nickname for Healer is dog poop, hah....)
OMG I just had to add... this OST is AH-mazzzzing!!! Seriously, it's just an instrumental.. but it added that perfect touch to those scenes where the Healer was just... so awesome x) ah~~ my feels!! I miss this drama so much >_<
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The second drama I want to talk about is Kill Me Heal Me.
I had a couple of hours between class and work one day and I decided to pop in the computer lab and enjoy some K-drama... so I ended up starting this one. I had heard a couple of good things about this drama before I started, but honestly not that much. I know Ji Sung and Hwang Jung Eum did "Secret" together back in 2013, but I didn't watch that one. I heard it was really good, though. Honestly it seems really, really dark, so I don't know if I'd ever go and watch it myself, but somehow I have no doubt that it's a good drama.
I've seen Ji Sung in "Protect the Boss" but I've actually never seen any of Hwang Jung Eum's works... I've only spotted her on WGM a couple times. These two's chemistry is famous in the K-drama world, and I wouldn't be one to argue with that. You can see they're clearly very, very comfortable working with each other, and together, they create this synergy that makes the drama that much more enjoyable.
This drama is about a chaebol (Ji Sung) with multiple personality disorder, and a psychiatrist (Hwang Jung Eum) who tries to help him with his condition. I think psychological disorders are becoming a trend nowadays in K-drama, with this drama and also "Hyde, Jekyll and I" (which is also about multiple personality disorder, I hear, but I have no interest in watching because I've heard some nasty things about it... even though I love Hyun Bin so much ;o;) following the success of "It's Okay, That's Love" (another amazing drama - omg, must watch, guys! I guess I didn't post about it right? ;o;).
This drama is still airing, so I can't write about the drama as a whole and the conclusion, but I am really really enjoying it right now. Ji Sung does such an amazing job portraying different personalities, he's seriously one talented actor - his eyes are the key point in expressing different personalities, I think. As for the plot, Ji Sung's character is, with the help of a couple of people, trying to recover some lost memories and figure out why he has this disorder in order to overcome it. It's quite an interesting story - very angsty and sometimes extremely dark - that I think many people would enjoy. Some parts are a little cheesey, though, but given it's a K-drama, I have come to accept that most of them will have some cheesey moments. It's still able to maintain a lightness, though, that makes it easy to enjoy - probably because there's also a good amount of humour involved. I think the romance (chemistry between the two leads) and the interesting story is what will keep most people watching. Also, Park Seo Joon is an absolute cutie! He portrays his playful character perfectly (when he's not in his serious mode), and is personally, the source of much of the comedic relief.
Here's Ji Sung as his "original" personality, Cha Do Hyun, and one of his other personalities, Shin Se Gi.
Overall I'd also recommend this drama to anyone who's interested in watching. Any fans of Ji Sung should definitely hop on the bandwagon, and even though I feel like Hwang Jung Eum's character isn't super crucial, especially in comparison to all the personalities Ji Sung has to portray, she's doing a good job also. Don't forget the awesome chemistry between the two!!! (geez, have I mentioned that enough yet?)
People who normally enjoy rom-coms will like this, especially if they enjoyed something like "It's Okay, That's Love". I wouldn't recommend it to people who are really picky about stuff like psychological disorders being portrayed super, super realistically, though. I heard that it was very well done in "It's Okay, That's Love" and not done that well in "Kill Me Heal Me" so just a small warning. More than anything, a lot of stuff is very exaggerated in this drama so it will bother people who are pickier with the dramas they watch/enjoy. I'm not very picky so honestly it's not that hard to please me.
One last thing - this OST is seriously so good. They chose such an awesome and fitting song as the theme.. I absolutely adore the soft vocals in the chorus juxtaposed against the harsher sounding rap. Perfection.
Alrighty, thanks for reading!! I think I'll post another K-drama one soon about the dramas I've finished recently (and some recommendations!). Until next time, take care and enjoy your K-drama responsibly! xD
Josie ♥
