some incoherent thoughts on love, and hye-jin and du-sik
it’s there, isn’t it? or at least something like it, drifting beneath them like an undercurrent, a slipstream.
it’s how du-sik always notices when hye-jin enters or leaves a room. it’s how hye-jin knows he’s about to cry from a look. it’s how they sit at dinner, close, sleeves brushing, but not quite touching. it’s how hye-jin is half-turned to him in every scene, how du-sik is so aware of her anytime she’s near. it’s how she notices he’s hurt, how she notices he’s sick, how she turns to watch him walk away. it’s how he sees mi-seon at the set and then immediately looks around for hye-jin. oh, you’re going for drinks, for lunch? let me join you. never mind that i said i didn’t want to, that was before i knew you would be there.
it’s how their interactions must be casual, otherwise they have to give it weight, give it meaning. i’m going to call you a rhino when you bump into me, because otherwise i’ll have to think about how it felt to have you close. i’m going to bicker and laugh at you while our hands touch, otherwise i’ll have to look at you and i can’t do that. it’s the way the camera doesn’t linger every time they touch but only when it matters, only when they can no longer pretend that it doesn’t. your hands on my face; you leaning in to kiss me; you holding me while i cry, when i’m frightened.
it’s how they linger here, in this halfway place between love and indifference. when i nearly kiss you, i’m going to hit my head and call myself crazy. when i stare at you in the store, i’m going to shake my head and tell myself to get a grip. i’m going to call this anything other than what it is. this is not love; it’s just kindness or attention, and i don’t care that they all mean the same thing. just don’t make me call it love.
it’s how i can’t even fit it all in here, because otherwise i’d be talking about every second they look at each other. because isn’t that what love is? not something bright and blinding, but a constant, steady attention?
but mostly, i think it’s about how du-sik finishes the porridge when it’s hard to eat, how hye-jin finishes the tea when it’s hard to drink. i’m going to complain the entire time but i’m still going to do it, because you gave it to me. because it’s you.
KDramas have a huge pool of talent - be it the male/female leads or supporting casts. You have to sit back and just admire the variety and talent on display in terms of looks, acting, delivery, voice, everything that an actor/actress has to offer.
And it’s natural to have multiple crushes and loves in this dramaland. I started with crushing on Hyun Bin’s Captain Ri in CLOY - who wouldn’t? He was picture perfect - brooding, charming, endearing, madly in love. He looked dashing in that army uniform ( actually I do have a weakness for men in uniform). What did I know that it was the beginning of watching extremely well written male characters. I would learn later over my journey in dramaland that 90% writers are female and no wonder they wrote such fine male characters.
Second stop was Descendants of the Sun, I didn’t think Captain Ri could be matched, but then I bumped into Captain Yoo SiJin. Many might be conflicted and think he was a snob and bit cocky, but I didn’t think so. He was confident in his own skin, he was shown to be the best in the business and he made sure everyone knew it - nothing wrong in that. I like male characters who are smug, but not condescending, who are sarcastic and have dry wit or a great sense of humour, who have an unfailing sense of duty , who are respectful to ladies and will do anything to protect their people. Yoo Sijin had all those qualities. Song Joong Ki is not your typical muscled, well built - six pack guy, but he carried off the Captain’s role with loads of charm and I loved his smirk. I loved watching him in The Sungkyunkwan Scandal (one of his best roles) and he looked so dapper in Vincenzo, but his Captain Yoo SiJin will always have a special place in my heart.
I watched Suspicious Partner with no expectations and Ji Chang Wook as Prosecutor No Jiuk blew my mind away. I maintain that Suspicious Partner is peak Ji Chang Wook - he looked his best, he acted his best. He looked so handsome, so gorgeous , so smashing in both looks! But he in his prosecutor look with those crisp white shirts, suits and those thin rimmed Gandhi round glasses - dishy as hell! His emotions were spot on - oh how I loved his outbursts! I loved when he pined for his lady love and no one does angst as well as he does (nope this is not open for debate). To top it off his chemistry with Nam JiHyun was off the charts - a post one day for these two. My favourite couple in dramaland.
For the next few months - I watched many dramas, liked few more - didn’t really swoon over anyone, but enjoyed their acting a lot - Nam Goong Min, Ju Ji Hoon, Lee Joon Hyuk, Park Seo Joon , Nam Joo Hyuk- all fantastic actors in their own right.
I really enjoyed watching Nam Joo Hyuk in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo, so I started to watch StartUp. Little did I know that this man whom I would see for the first time on screen would ignite the fan girl cell in my brain.
Kim Seon is not a head turner , but boy did he bull doze himself in my heart as Han Ji Pyeong from scene 1 . Darcy has ruled my heart for eternity and now Han Ji Pyeong sits right there beside him. That’s high praise cause no one has ever come close to Darcy. The writer probably did not expect that Kim Seon Ho would elevate the character 100x to what she had imagined and then to save face and make sure sympathies stayed with the main leads, the writing fell apart in the last few episodes. A character assessment of Han Ji Pyeong for another post. It remains one of my favourite characters, hell no, it sits right at the top of my favourite characters in Dramaland!
I have now gone and watched Kim Seon Ho in every single series of his and all his theatre clips. He is the reason I got onto Twitter and Tumblr to find people I could talk to about him. What an amazing actor he is! It helps that he is utterly gorgeous with that bright smile of his with big dimples that warms my heart every-time I see him smile!
His voice - people don’t hype up his voice as much as it deserves to be. It’s deep and soothing and a perfect voice for mic and radio. I would buy every audiobook if he ever reads one!
He does angst well, he is an intense actor, he has great comic timing, he makes me cry with the emotions he portrays on screen and there is no actor currently for me that comes close to him. He is my source of happiness. I love watching him perform and emote on screen. I know he is going to go places - people are discovering him now and he is rising up the popularity charts with the currently airing Hometown Cha Cha Cha. I want to watch him play an antagonist , or a dual personality role like Lee Seung Gi played in Mouse. I want to see him play a prosecutor or a detective hunting down criminals.
But amidst all this rising popularity and fame that he has been getting, since he broke the internet with his portrayal of Han Ji Pyeong - he remains a lovable, humble human being offscreen and an absolutely adorable, clumsy dork. I love this duality in him.
I will continue to admire many actors as I discover more dramas (so many to watch), but I know that no one is going to capture my heart and mind like Kim Seon Ho has!
The thing I love about Seonho is that he’s not drop dead gorgeous in the way other Korean actors are — I’d argue that there are a lot of others who’d probably be considered hotter or better looking. But he has the cutest smile and he is so effortlessly charming without being too saccharine that it’s like a foregone conclusion that he’d win anyone and everyone over. How no one managed to see the leading man potential in this guy for so long is beyond me.
I came to know him just 4 days ago but here I am still fangirling though it’s past midnight and I have to wake up at 6 am. I didn’t watch Start Up so when I watched Homcha last Tuesday, I don’t have any idea who he is. All I know is at the 1st ep, i fell for his smile and deep voice. Kyaah >///<
