Wehaiyo Drive: Where Do Stories Lead Us?

Hello Readers,

It's been a while. I might not be able to update as often, but please keep an eye out on random updates in the future.

This week's Dramas:

1) My ID is Gangnam Beauty (내 ID는 강남미인)

Watch it on: Dramafever 

I finished this drama! Episodes 14 through 16 included the build-up to the finale, but I was left somewhat disappointed because there was not enough time to really have any meaningful scenes. I want to mention my final thoughts on most of the cast because the ending seemed rushed. Overall, there seem to be a lot of characters who are underdeveloped.

Main couple: Kang Mi Rae (Im Soo Hyang) and Do Kyung Seok (Cha Eun Woo)
I always find it refreshing to see a couple develop naturally and this is definitely a couple that did not have any problems in becoming a couple. All the problems that they encountered were really what was in Mi Rae's mind because she has such off-putting low self-esteem. Had she not been so self-conscious, they would have became a couple much faster, but there would not have been much of a plot.

Do Kyung Seok's Parents
This was not really up to open interpretation, but it seems a reconciliation is a long shot after Kyung Seok's father tried to have better relations with Kyung's Seok's mother. He seems to have lost his career and his assistant, but he does not seem to have truly reflected on his actions toward his children. Furthermore, there are no scenes of him attempting to connect with his children. I found it sad and unresolved.

Hyun Soo Ah
I really think her character took an unrealistic turn when she started having panic attacks after seeing candid campus pictures of her body on the internet. All along, she was the type of person who can twist the truth to her advantage. All she had to do, if asked, is to deny those pictures. She collapsed in the last episode, really weak and bitter. I could not fully blame her stalker, student Chung Dong Woon (Ham Sung Min) for confronting Soo Ah because Soo Ah had a responsibility in making him believe she had feelings for him. I am not sure why Soo Ah became friendly with Dong Woon in the first place. This story line is not that realistic to me. I was upset when she said that she wants Dong Woon in jail for as long as possible when he basically threw water in her face when it could have been worse. He is given a restraining order and he was expelled from school, so that is already a huge punishment. Lastly, we do not see Soo Ah and Mi Rae reconcile, but there is a hint of a friendly gesture from Soo Ah when she quietly left Mi Rae a present and visited Kyung Seok at his part time job for maybe the last time. I am not sure if I should pity her since she wasted so much time pursuing somebody she does not truly love.

Yeon Woo Young (Kwak Dong Yeon) and Oh Hyun Jung (Min Do Hee)
The story line for Woo Young went downhill after he was rejected by Mi Rae. He did not have much of a story and the plot forced him to help Soo Ah, but he failed in helping her or even finding her whereabouts when Dong Woon was confronting her. In the end, the Yeon Woo Young and Oh Hyun Jung characters became empty characters. I read that Oh Hyun Jung's character is not in the originally webtoon story line, but inserted into the drama to make Mi Rae less lonely. She did not have any significant influence on the plot and was mostly absent. It is a shame that these two characters were not developed enough to become interesting.

Mi Rae's Parents
They were not given enough time to react to Mi Rae in a dating relationship with Kyung Seok and the fact that Kyung Seok spent a night at their home without supervision. They spent a lot of time at the beginning of the drama to introduce Mi Rae's father and how protective he is of his daughter, but there are no more scenes to continue his character's protectiveness of Mi Rae.

Woo Jin (Lee Tae Sun) and Choi Jung Boon (Jun Seung Hye)
Are these two even a couple? I think they were supposed to be, but I suppose we ran out of time and there is basically no story line between the two people. There is no solution for Woo Jin when he lost his bar and I do not see the purpose of Jung Boon's character for being in the story.

Yoo Eun (Park Yoo Na)
I find Yoon Eun to be a strange character that I do not understand. All of a sudden, she is really interested in Soo Ah and is trying really hard to be Soo Ah's friend. I find that unrealistic that she would go out of her way to support Soo Ah.

Lastly, Goo Tae Young (Ryu Ki San) and Kim Tae Hee (Lee Ye Rim)
This is the type of ending I appreciate for this couple where Tae Hee tells Tae Young that she has gotten over him. I see how flaky Tae Young is with his relationship with Tae Hee and it is clear that they would not be in a relationship for long. It does not have to be Soo Ah, but I feel any girl could have lured Tae Young away from Tae Hee. Tae Hee deserves a better man.

2) Devilish Joy (마성의 기쁨)

Watch it on: Dramafever

I started watching this drama, episode one through four, and realized that this is a romantic comedy with an emphasis on comedy. I have not laughed this much in a while and I have this drama to thank for that. The screenshot I posted was a result of our main character, Gong Ma Sung (Choi Jin Hyuk) who ate an entire cabinet of home-grown lettuce because he thought it would help him go to sleep and erase his love, entertainer Joo Gi Bbeum (Song Ha Yoon) from his short term memory since he wakes up with a clean memory slate every morning.

I am reminded of actor Choi Jin Hyuk's charms as he gets into character as a genius doctor with a strong passion for charity, though I do not know if he is doing charity work because he knows one day his memory and overall condition will deteriorate or if he was truly passionate to work on building a charitable foundation from the beginning.

I love how unafraid actress Song Ha Yoon is to make herself look unattractive for her role. How many actresses are willing to put a fish in their mouth and have an extra bra visibly fall onto her stomach underneath her clothes?  Song Ha Yoon has guts and I can tell she will be a well-loved popular actress because of this role. I was interested in watching more of her works since she acted in Fight My Way last year as a helpless girlfriend who watches her boyfriend almost gets lured away by a woman who has a similar personality with her.

3) Delightful Girl Choon Hyang (당신의 하우스헬퍼)

Watch it on: Dramafever

I watched episode 12, which is only one episode. I thought I would have finished this drama by now, but I have slowed down a bit. Again, I am still smitten by actor Uhm Tae Woong who plays Byun Hak Do, but this is probably the last episode we will see him being considered as a good guy before he turn into a bad guy, so I am hesitating a bit before I finish this drama.

I still love to watch Han Chaeyoung and Jae Hee act together. They have a great chemistry together that is easily shown on the screen. I finally see a kiss scene between their characters, Choon Hyang and Mong Ryong, which made me excited. It is good to see them overcome their obstacles, but the second leads, Hak Do and Chae Rin (Park Shi Eun) will not stop until they break this couple apart.

This week's Music:

As promised, I am introducing some female artists. I have been fascinated by watching reaction reviews of K-pop songs lately. I think it is interesting to see a professional review K-pop in many aspects: song, production, and dance.

1) Girls' Generation Oh! GG - 몰랐니 (Lil' Touch)

Girls' Generation is back as a unit, Oh! GG, but who cares as long as they are back. I miss this group because they are the first K-pop group I seriously liked since 2009, which sparked my love for K-pop music. This song is also very catchy and I enjoyed watching their dance for this song. I do not feel like the other members are absent because this is such a well made music video with a charming dance.

I feel also a bit awkward since recently there was news that Hyoyeon was caught on camera telling a male staff member at a World Club Dome Korea event not to repeatedly touch her. It makes me think that suggestive songs like this give men the wrong idea.

The song lyrics give an American feel to it by asking someone to actually touch the singer: Give me a lil' touch

2) Sunmi - (선미) - Siren (사이렌)

I could not wait to introduce this song for my Wehaiyo Drive since I absolutely love Sunmi's music video and song. She is really coming up with songs that seem so lyrically and physically strong. It's also sad that she is not too strong in real life since she really looks too skinny and that she often collapses from overworking.

Recently, she collapsed again after a Music Bank pre-recording though I do not know if she truly collapsed or she was dizzy overall. In any case, I hope she gets some rest and come back again to show her awesome stages.

The song is about a seemingly bad girl who gets into a relationship with a boy, who knows she's toxic for him, but won't leave her. She does not want him to be hurt by her, so she tries to be the strong one and push him away. It's an interesting story and who knows where that story will potentially lead us.

3) As One - 미안해야하는거니 (Do I Have To Be Apologize?) (Delightful Girl Choon Hyang OST) 

Since I am watching the Delightful Girl Choon Hyang drama, I am addicted to this song by the duo, As One. As One is a long time musical duo who retired last year. I asked my husband for more information because I cannot tell that there are two voices singing this song. My husband says that they purposely sing "as one," so that made sense to me.

I feel like I do not understand this song, but I can feel a sadness and a longing feeling from it. This is the amazing impact of music because we do not have to understand it, but we only need to feel an emotion from it. 

From my interpretation, the song is about the singer apologizing for developing feelings for someone whom the singer made suffer. I suppose, due to the guilt, the singer is apologetic, but cannot forget the person she loves. Therefore, I think their love is in limbo, which is why I feel sad and longing feelings from listening to this song.

Well, that is all I have to offer in our Wehaiyo Drive for now. Nobody seems to complain about the lack of updates, so I will be introducing a Wehaiyo Drive whenever I have the spare time. I hope to connect with you all again next time.

Enjoy reading Wehaiyo! posts? Please subscribe to our blog to get notified of new posts.

Wehaiyo Drive: Love Is Back

Hello Wehaiyo Drive readers,

I am back after two weeks for another round of Wehaiyo Drive. Actually, I went on summer vacation and was not able to update for a while. Nevertheless, I tried to catch up on some drama shows last week including an old drama.

This week's Dramas:

1) My ID is Gangnam Beauty (내 ID는 강남미인)

Watch it on: Dramafever 

At this point, I am reviewing episodes seven to thirteen. It is easily my top drama right now to watch. My husband joined me in watching it halfway and he was also hooked by the drama.

First, I'd like to congratulate the mom, Na Hye Sung (played by Park Joo Mi) who finally reunited with her children, Do Kyung Seok (played by Cha Eun Woo) and Do Kyung Hee (played by Kim Ji Min). Na Hye Sung is really stepping up into her role as mom, though I wish she tried to reconcile with them earlier. It's a bit extreme also to leave the country while her children were small.

Next, I want to mention the most hated girl in the drama, Hyun Soo-Ah, who is supposedly the most beautiful chemistry freshmen student, but has a lot of hidden agendas. So far, she lies about where she lives, her family background (She needs to be struck by lightning for shunning family ties to her poor grandmother without a really good reason), her feelings toward at least three other classmates on campus (ruining one relationship already without care), and now we know that she covers up her bulimia problem. Even if I had to lie about the reason for going to the bathroom by bringing my toothbrush, I would at least look the part and actually brush my teeth before returning to work. I hate it when people say something and not follow through, even if it is just for pretend.

Kang Mirae really disappointed me lately. She had another ridiculous event where she got harassed for her appearance at her part-time job and it shook her up. She even started worrying about how other people would view her if she dated Kyung Seok, one of the most handsome men on campus. Luckily for her, Kyung Seok does not take "no" for an answer and tells her he will wait until she decides to change her mind. Soo-Ah's underhanded tactics actually forces Mirae to make decisions to protect Kyung Seok and confess to him herself. This is a classic case of moving forward after taking a few steps back. Too bad Kyung Seok was hurt in the process since he was punished for being handsome.

2) No Time For Love (연애는 무슨 연애)

Watch it on: Youtube - Dingo K-Drama Channel

As mentioned in the last Wehaiyo Drive, I wanted to review a mini-drama. I am proud to add No Time For Love on the list as I was furiously waiting for each episode. I am drawn to dramas that show a different character's point of view in each episode such as Modulove (모두의 연애). I plan to do a full review on this drama in a later post, so if you are interested in that, please check this blog at a later time.

This drama talks about why each character does not have "time" or should I say, the reason, to date. College student, Geum Sarang (played by Nuri Kim) tried date a fellow college student Lee Seom (played by Joo Byung Ha), but that relationship was going nowhere as he just wanted a casual dating relationship or to flirt around with her. While trying to get over her last relationship, Sarang vows not to date after being burned by Seom, but then she meets Cha Joon Il (played by Park Sang Nam), who makes her falter.

Cha Joon Il is a marketing major who works multiple jobs to keep financially afloat while he looks for a permanant job. Therefore, dating is the last thing on his mind. He meets Sarang by accident upon returning her wallet that was found in the convenience store where he works and becomes interested in her.

Riwon (played by Kim Hyeonju) is a longtime friend of Joon Il and supports him however she can. She also realizes, for a very long time, that she has an interest in Joon Il as well.

Finally, Lee Seom was a man who was not ready to be in a relationship based on seeing his friends and thought that flirting around was the best method for not getting hurt.

Throughout the drama, I was the most excited watching Joon Il and Sarang's love blossom. This drama is worth watching and is only eight mini episodes long.

3) Delightful Girl Choon Hyang (당신의 하우스헬퍼)

Watch it on: Dramafever

I have gone back to watch an older drama, Delightful Girl, Choon Hyang, which I never finished even though I loved the story. People who know the famous love story would enjoy this drama way more because this drama is a modern take of the story of Choon Hyang and her lover, Mong Ryong. I watched the 2000 film, Choonhyang, years ago so I knew the basic background of the story. At the end of every episode in the drama, there is a reference to the original storyline in a historical scene with a plot twist.

I especially love the main leads of the drama version, Han Chaeyoung and Jae Hee. They are both beautiful people with a lot of expressions when they act with each other. Their couple scenes are so realistic and comedic, which is something I miss from watching Korean dramas. I feel a certain sadness that they are not real life couples, but of course, it is only my wishful thinking.

Thirdly, actor Uhm Tae Woong, who plays Byun Hak Do, is really handsome in this drama. I almost wish his character could be with Chunhyang as well.

I had a lot of laughs with this drama and I can see why the viewership was high and the drama and its cast became very popular. So far, I watched up to episode 11 when Choon Hyang and Mong Ryong became a real couple and started falling in love. I am desperately waiting for a kiss scene. I have not finished the drama yet, so maybe I can talk more about this in the next Wehaiyo Drive.

This week's Music:

There is a lot of good music lately. I will probably introduce more in the next Wehaiyo Drive, especially female artists.

1) Nu'est W - And I (Mr. Sunshine OST - Part 10)

I have not watched the Mr. Sunshine drama, but I am already feeling very sad vibes. Baekho's voice shines in this song with his strong and sad voice in the chorus. The entire Nu'est W group sang an excellent song. It makes me think that Nu'est W will continue to have great opportunities to show their talent. Listening to this song makes me yearn for another Nu'est W comeback.

The song is about farewell, but hoping to meet the person in the happy future. It is bad timing to meet in the present and the singer hopes to meet the person again in the future. It sounds really sad.

2) NCT DREAM - We Go Up

The more I listen to this song, the more I am addicted to it. I am a definite NCT fan. Sadly, this is member Mark's last promotion with NCT Dream as he is "graduating" from NCT Dream subunit, which is a group meant to be for youngsters.

A reason why I love NCT Dream songs is that they are so positive. Their songs are very upbeat. When I think of this group, I think of cheers, joy, possibilities, and the power to dream of achieving anything.

This song is no different. There is only one direction we can head as we live our lives: We go up. We improve ourselves. We level up.

If you have time, watch their NCT Dream 100 second dance, a compilation of their songs.

3) The Boyz - Right Here

I am back again with another recommendation from The Boyz. As I wrote in the other Wehaiyo Drives, I really like The Boyz. As a group, I really like the quality of their songs.

In their new song, the music, while it sounds great, did not grab my attention as much as their dance moves. I really liked the beginning when they stand in a circle and the camera spins around to film the members. I love how they break into smaller groups to dance and how they dance around each other. I also liked how they get into an almost "pool ball" formation like how a player first sets up the balls on the pool table before starting to play pool. Their dance performance is impressive!

I am feeling their energetic performance as usual.

The song has a confident American-style song lyrics about a singer wanting to be with a girl, knowing that the girl is also interested in the singer. The girl should know that she wants to be with the singer and that to make things less complicated, they should be together.


I hope you enjoyed this week's Wehaiyo Drive. I realized that I have so much that I want to express, write and post, but it takes hours for me to create these posts. Please cheer me on.