K Life-Ruiners

·      I love SJR’s choices for his physical transformation here.   He not only lost even more weight, he grew a moustache and soul patch.  He cut his hair short but carefully coiffed and colored it. Outside of his black uniform, he constantly wore greens, blacks, blues, whites and greys in pieces that were practical, masculine but tailor fit and trendy.  The entire look screamed METICULOUS METROSEXUAL.  One glance and you can believe that yes, his nails must be immaculately groomed and yes, he must be working in the personal beauty industry.    

·      Becoming one of the leads was not only a step-up for SJR, but his minimally-drawn character actually enabled him to color outside the lines.  On paper, Kei was just supposed to be the cool, aloof, reformed gangster that would be vying for the heart of Bunny against her first crush, Alex.  SJR imbued that cool attitude with a temper that simmered just below the surface.  He chewed the scenery with a whole plethora of tics and mannerisms: side-eye glances, squinty stares, literal tongue-in-cheeks, jaw clenches, eye-rolls, raised eyebrows (either or both), hunches, shuffles, prissy lip purses, longing stares, gangster drawls, hissy fits, etc. etc. etc.  And when Kei started to realize that he was falling for Bunny, SJR made you believe that it wasn’t just an emotional, I’m-falling-for-the-person-not-the-gender, connection.  That it was also a physical, I-want-to-take-you-now, attraction.  SJR can certainly throw lustful glances but it’s the aftermath of each encounter that shows you his depth.    

·      Ten episodes make for an easy, non-addictive watch.  This makes the show the perfect filler or time killer when you’re waiting for the next episode of your current addiction or when you’ve just gotten over your last one and can’t bear to start a new one just yet (as was the case with me).

BOO:  

·      This is a KDrama that refuses to fit in one genre.  It’s a rom-com, mystery, thriller, drama, procedural, fantasy, melo.   As such, it’s hard to get into the groove of things. You’ll suffer through whiplash and some motion-sickness before you finally get the hang of it.  For me, it was choosing to be apathetic but focusing on the Kei-Bunny-Alex triangle and the fantasy writer/gumiho segments.  For addikorean16, it was simply letting go of all rational thought and inborn skepticism.

·      How on earth did anybody think Bunny was a guy???  She was petite, hyper, completely lacking of facial hair, and wore a bad wig that was supposed to stand-in for a bad haircut.  She constantly wore skinny jeans and heeled boots.  Men wear skinny jeans, you say.  Yes, they do.  And their package shows.  Bunny’s shirts barely cleared her lower hip and there was no package to be hinted at.  Yoon Eun Hye is the gold standard for girl-pretending-to-be-a-boy-who-falls-for-the-boy but even she took a while to convince me.

·      This is supposed to be set in a high-end nail shop.  So why were the nail art garish, questionable in taste, poorly executed (especially the press-on nails), even bordering on menacing and scary at times?  Some of those can cut you!  

·      Really?!  Part of the flower boy manicurists’ job description is to solve their clients’ problems?   Forget invasion of privacy.  Forget lack of qualifications.  These guys are cute and have hearts of gold so they should be able to solve whatever problems their clients bring to the shop.  Yes, sign me up for the next session.  

·      *** POTENTIAL SPOILER ALERT ***  Needy, clingy Kei.  Clueless, wishy-washy Bunny.  There.  I’ve said it.  

MEH:  

·      Alex, the A-lead guy, was portrayed by an actor who truly personifies “Meh.”  No passion.  No strength. No weakness.  No charisma.  In fact, his intonation and speech pattern were constantly dialed to “Meh.”  No offense, JJH, but the truth must be spoken.

·      Most of aspects of this drama sit on the “Meh” part of the spectrum.  But because the writers throw so much “Meh” your way, you end up reacting quite a bit.  I have laughed, yelled, rolled my eyes, teared up, and paused the episode in disgust so many more times than I expected, given the apathetic stance I chose to take.  

·      That freakin’ ending.  I know I should feel one way, but somehow, I don’t.  So I just end up not feeling anything beyond confusion.

TAKE-AWAY FOR THE THE SJR FAN: