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Queen of Tears (ongoing)

I feel bad for the MMC, first he has to deal with a diva girlfriend while being an alien, then he has to survive a murderous situation with a femme fatale and his autistic brother, now he has to tread the most dangerous waters of them all: married life and the complacency that seeps.

Pinocchio

The Pinocchio in the title refers to a fictitious syndrome that causes the FMC to hiccup whenever she tells a lie. It's a cute plot device that is also used to great effect in a few other media, like how Ana de Armas's Marta cannot lie without vomiting in Knives Out, or how Kim So-hyun's Sol-hee can hear lies in My Lovely Liar. Juxtaposed by the FMC being a reporter, the show does an amazing job expounding on the “with great power comes great responsibility” theme in the world of journalism. The only other job that can make a hilarious situation out of a Pinocchio is lawyer which is actually mentioned and made fun of in the show's first episode...

Doona!

A very slow-paced character study, the show has almost zero plot and almost no antagonists as a result. While a dealbreaker to many viewers (for example, my wife), it makes the show stand out to me even more; at points, I even feel like I'm watching a rare Mike Flanagan romantic comedy, and I'm not sure if that's supposed to be a compliment...

While You Were Sleeping

The show interweaves several themes: premonition (the protagonists are able to dream about future events), determinism (a very minor theme that goes away at the end of the first episode once the MMC was able to change the future), and a bit of “with great power comes great responsibility.” But at its heart, the show is a legal drama that follows a monster-of-the-week format where you get different cases spreading over a few episodes; this is my favourite format which explains why I love shows like Midsomer Murders, Supernatural, Lucifer, etc...

The Legend of the Blue Sea

The year is 2024. I had just bought some sushi and wanted to watch something that thematically fits. I saw The Little Mermaid remake was available so I gave it a shot. And so wasted two hours of my life that I'm never getting back.

To reset my palate, and since I just recently came off the high of My Love from the Star, I decided to watch The Legend of the Blue Sea and see for myself what all the rage is about. 21 episodes later, this proved to be the second-best decision I've made in the year of 2024 — see full review.

My Love from the Star

There are so many themes and plot lines in the show, and at times it feels like the MMC was not going be able to grow as a character which makes me think the show may be a repeat of that-which-must-not-be-named. Ultimately, the show pays off immensely, no small thanks to the charm of the FMC. Coincidentally, this show marks the actress' return to TV in 14 years, which makes the plot line about how a top actress can quickly fall out of grace a bit intriguing if not meta. I think one day I will watch this show again and give it a proper full-page review.

My Secret Romance

For any Korean TV series, and particularly relevant to romantic comedies, if the characters can be honest to themselves and to each other, the number of episodes would be halved. This show takes that to the next level. Don't get me wrong, it's fun to watch characters falling in love without them realising so, and it's fun rooting for them to get there, enjoying the wild ride along the way — see full review.

Where Stars Land

The MMC has an accident that left his right arm unusable and he himself was confined to a wheelchair for a time. He experienced discrimination by onlookers for his physical disability and was very much depressed until an experimental wearable device allowed him to stand again, even gained some form of superpower with his right arm in the process. Just as he thought he could now start living a normal life, he met again the woman that would cause his wearables to malfunction. Can he juggle between his wants of a normal life and his heart? — see full review.

W

A unique premise that appeals to the ultimate male and female fantasy: to live out your life in a comic book just the way you want. Unfortunately, while the premise would have allowed for the perfect romantic comedy, the show went in a very different direction of being an action-thriller with supernatural and mild horror elements, and with only sprinkles of romantic comedy here and there to keep the show just barely grounded. — see full review.

Lost Judgment

What makes a Yakuza game a Yakuza game?
To me, it's three things: the heart-wrenching story, the silly mini-games, and the general sense of hopefulness and goodness in humanity. This game has it all and even more. — see full review.