Panda and Hefhehog Review

    

      After much procrastination, I’ve finally finished Panda and Hedgehog! Before I dissect this (and by dissect I mean the characters), I admit, although I had many complaints and rants about this drama, it was cute, delicious, and the story line was easy to follow. I honestly think that if this drama didn’t have Donghae, so much aegyo, and cute chemistry between characters, I probably wouldn’t have liked it AS much. From my last review I explained what the basic story line was about, so I won’t go into the stories as much as the characters. And if there are people who read this and haven’t finished the series yet, I'll TRY not to give the WHOLE story line away. 

First let’s talk about the characters and the relations. Although I thought the Panda and Seung Ji pairing was pretty cute, they weren’t the couple I loved the most. Their chemistry was okay for me. Their interaction was entertaining (especially the fact that Panda is basically an idiot) and I preferred friendship over a relationship.  I probably liked the height difference more than anything.  The three relationships I loved watching was Seung Ji and Won Il, Seung Ji and his grandfather, and Won Il and Won Yi (and probably all her relationships). For Seung Ji and Won Il, there was bromance. As a drama fanatic, of course I love bromance. When it comes to romantic comedy’s I’m all for the bromance. Between these two rivals in love, they definitely have a love and hate relationship. They might be rivals fighting over who wins Panda’s heart, but they both can’t help but enjoy each other’s company. No matter how informal Seung Ji can be, Won Il finds him quite endearing. As their become “closer” you get really torn between who gets the girl. We obviously knew who was going to get the girl, but I was torn, and for me to be torn is a rare occasion. There was a point in the drama where I felt like those boys should ditch Panda and just carry on with their bromance. 

Stills of the pairings:

A drunk but adorable Seungji

Sums up my OTP

Bbo bbo for Seungji? :3

Halbe taking care of a drunk Seungji

Ko Seungji, nicknamed Hedgehog, was played by Lee Donghae. You would probably recognize him as one of the members of Super Junior. This was his first main lead and I honestly can say he did a great job! Sure, his acting wasn’t as good as other actors, but it wasn’t bad. The way Donghae portrayed Seungji was great. His delivery at playing a rough on the outside but kind and softhearted on the inside character was convincible. It was cute and this is probably the only time you’ll see him and his aegyo’s WITHOUT being embarrassed. His character was likeable as soon as he was introduced. It’s probably a different introduction to what I’ve seen. His intro is him yelling and chasing after a thief. And sure Seungji didn’t have the greatest or easiest life, his character in fact, had to go through a lot of trial and error, but his attitude is what attracts viewers. His basic “Press on and carry on” attitude was what that made him so attractive. His stubbornness to never give up. Donghae had said in a interview that he could relate to Seungji because his character had a similar background, and that similarly, they both have a hard time expressing their emotions and are both straight forward. The writers purposely wrote Seungji as a similar to Donghae, so he would have a easier time to relate to it. 

The next character is Choi Won Il, played by Choi Jin Hyuk. This was the first drama I’ve seen him in. A

talented actor who probably deserves more spotlight and popularity!

In the first episode Won Il has just come back from the U.S. His "dad" is the owner and chef of Saint Honore. The viewer can obviously tell at the beginning of the drama that they (Won Il and "dad'') don’t have a good relationship. He doesn’t have any respect for him and I was pretty okay with that. And obviously, Won Il has a crush on Panda, his childhood friend, who shows no particular love interest in him, poor guy. 

What I liked about Won Il was that he wasn't afraid to speak out. He’s not one of those characters where they won’t speak because they’re afraid of how the other person would respond. He would make jabs and just show he didn’t like his father, which of course made me happy. I do like a man who’ll stand up and won’t be pushed down so easily.

He also had a very cute personality. A man who had no experience with the opposite sex. And when he’d see Seungji and Panda together, he brought out those pouty lips and jealous side. Of course you felt bad for him, but couldn’t help but go “awwwww…fjdsjfkdj”. This is acatually one of those rare dramas where I felt insanely bad that the third main wasn't going to get the girl. I think this was the first drama where I didn't want the girl to have neither guy.

Pan Dayang. A character I really would like to skip over. The actress played by her is Yoon Seung Ah. You probably recognize her as the best friend in Mischivious Kiss. She even plays the younger sister in the newest drama Empire of Gold. The actress herself is amazing and she acts very good! She’s actually really cute, considering her age *wink

But the character she played, didn’t fly in my book. Da Yang was insanely annoying. I didn’t enjoy her until towards the end of the series, unfortunately. She was over the top sensitive, naïve, and childish (considering she’s a 20 something year old). And the pout of her lips drove me insane. I don’t know if she was told to pout and talk with a pout, but that irritated me. It wasn’t cute. To top it off, Panda let Seungji buy and replace a lot of the baking ingredients when they go shopping. When they went to clothes shop, thinking about it now, I still don't understand why she said they should go on a pretend "date". At this point Seungji was falling for her, he just wasn't aware of it. And during that time, he willingly bought the clothes for her. The only thing he wants her to promise her is she do what he wants the next time which she consents to. But of course, she breaks the promise. Panda gets mad and doesn't want to do what Seungji wants. 'Course, I think she's crazy. I'd love to do whatever he wanted..how could you say no and NOT be attracted to his face at this point?? It's beyond me.

The other characters within the series either appealed to you or obviously, you hate them.

One of the other supporting characters were WonYi, Won Il’s sister. Okay, I’m just going to say, she was probably the best supporting character in the series. Her tomboyish and bubbly personality won me over. Plus, the fact that she called the other guys in the series hyung were absolutely adorable AND this girl can take her alcohol like a beast!

    

Because I think Won Yi is probably one of the best funny supporting characters, enjoy some pics of her xD

This girl loves money

The rare Seungji and Won Yi moments

       The antagonist of the drama drove me insane to no end. And literally, he was pretty insane. PLUS Choi Jae Kyum has the nerve to steal my Seungji’s macaroon ideas and claim them as his idea! Then this man has another nerve to stalk Seunji’s mom (*SPOILER) and think she wants to take revenge  on him..yeah very insane. As we know, she just wanted to start over. But I guess what’ s a drama without psychotic characters?

So What Did I Think of It?

I admit for me, and like I stated in my last review, episode 1 was slow for me. And I think it's why I had such a hard time watching ep 2. I just wanted to see Seungji, Won Il, and Panda interaction since they all hadn't met yet. Luckily and finally, the story line started picking up at episode 3. There was definitely more interaction from then on, there was also stress, compliments of Pa Da Yang. Episode 3 is a pretty important one, since it explains how Won Il and Panda know each other. So since it's a pretty important beginning ep, I want to talk about my favorite moments.
 Although Won Il studied in America for 14 years, the affection that Panda still had for her childhood friend was very adorable. When I mean adorable, I mean Da Yang calling Won Il by his nickname, Pangy. And that's all I can give her. Sorry Panda. Of course, this episode wouldn't be complete without some Halbe and Seungji moments. One cute moment was Seungji's drunk moment (this was in ep. 2 but whatever). It was start of some beautiful and memorable moments between these two. The last cute moment was between the Choi siblings. What's not to like about the siblings?  From Won Yi's love experience to Won Il being totally a noob to this kinda thing, you can't help but love the sibling

If you focus on the characters more than the storyline itself, I think you might like it. I think it also depends on what kind of taste you have in a drama. If you don’t mind a predictable storyline with right away likeable characters, then this is the drama for you. If not, then you should give it a shot anyway. Not only are there yummy good looking men (*Cough shirtless Donghae *cough) in this (BROMANCE), but also yummy and creative deserts.

*HINT

Rewatched the first ep. BIG hint to say who the lady was released from jail.

Enjoy some extra pictures from this drama :

Panda and Hedgehog Episode 1 Review

    The title of this drama that I’ve just started is called Panda and Hedgehog,  판다양과 고슴도치 (Pandayanggwa Goseumdochi). It aired last year from August 18 till October 7 of 2012. This romantic comedy series consists of 16 episodes. The first episode so far was  just okay for me, others might disagree. Although the first episode wasn't as satisfactory as I though, there is something about the drama that wants me to keep watching it and finish it to the end. If anything, it was probably that that little scene at the end of episode 1, usually happens, right? The "cliffhanger". Now, if you’re a fan of K-pop and K-dramas, you’ll probably notice that the main character is Lee Donghae from Super Junior. Since I'm bringing Donghae up, he might also be another factor, since I'm such a big fan of Super Junior. 

What's it about?

The story is basically about Go Seung Ji (Donghae), a patissier, who's been an orphan since his childhood. His personality matches his nickname hedgehog “gruff and prickly”. Towards the end of episode 1, he meets the female lead, Pan Da Yang (Yoon Seung Ah). Her personality is sweet natured and easy going who also has the nickname Panda. Hence the title of the drama, Panda and Hedgehog and her name, literally. Panda hires Seung Ji as the new patissier of her café, Panda Café. They team up and work together to make her café a success while also competing with the popular Saint- Honore bakery.

Now that’s just the basic story line. As a person who knows K-dramas, that’s not just going to be what Panda and Hedgehog is going to be about, there’s always more to the story and things always get complicated.

At first watch, the drama was okay for me. Of course, I liked Donghae’s character, a cool character with edge. The opening scene is him chasing a guy out of a bakery shop he works at. Then the female lead is also introduced, played by Yoo Seung Ah. I personally didn’t like her at first. I don’t like how she acts “cute”, but hopefully she'll eventually grow on me..hopefully. But her character is introduced when she is in a panda suit passing out flyers to advertise her café. You’ll see throughout the first episode that she struggles to make ends meet with her failing business.

The next character introduced is Choi Won Il, the president of Saint Honore Bakery. He returns from studying in America. From the interaction with his patissier father and his doting mother, you can tell the relationship they have isn’t very close. He definitely shows in his actions that he's not very fond of them. His sister on the other hand, is shown favor and it seems their brother and sister relationship is friendly and easy going.

Another character in the beginning of the story is Seung Ji's gradpa and owner of a bakery shop. His character is shown with a older female and they possibly could be lovers. Now I know for a fact that the man Seung Ji works for isn’t just some boss. He has some significant part in the story, so I anticipate when the story really unfolds and what role he has.

When Pan Da puts her resume in to apply to Saint Honre Bakery, Won Il spots her picture while looking at the resumes and immediately recognizes her as the girl who went to high school with him. His first and last love. Towards the end of the episode, he goes to see her at her café, but soon leaves when he sees her in the arms of the handsome Seung Ji. Of course he takes the whole situation as a misunderstanding.

   Overall the first episode was a little slow, but I think that’s to be expected as it is for most dramas. The first episode was obviously just the introduction of the characters and their situations. Since I already started on the second episode, I know that I’m going to watch all sixteen episodes. Luckily if this drama doesn’t reach my expectation, at least I get to see a lot of Donghae action!

Here are some screen shots from ep 1: 

That look

That smile

the cliffhanger of ep. 1

Flower Boy Next Door Review

Guess what this reviews about?? :D

I was going to do another review, but I just finished it so may as write about this review while it's fresh in my mind.

Flower Boy Next Door is a romantic comedy that consists of 16 episodes. A fun fact before we can get into the story, Flower Boy Next Door was actually based on a web toon comic called, I Watch Him Everyday.  The lead in this drama is Park Shin Hye's character Go Dok Mi. Similar to some other character's she's played in the past, this character is a shy loner. Dok Mi loves to spend all her time in her apartment. She even works as an editor...at home. During her free time she likes to spy on her neighbor, Han Tae-Joon, who lives across from her building. Dok Mi copies his morning activities before he goes to work.

Then there's Enrique Geum, a very good looking genius artist, video game designer, and lover of soccer. He eventually is the one that catches Dok Mi spying on his brother who lives in the building across from our protagonist.

Oh Jin-Rak

Another important character that completes the later love triangle, is Oh Jin-Rak. He lives right next door to Dok Mi. Jin-Rak is a webtoon artist along with his drawing partner, Dong-Hoon, try to create an original story for a web comic to present to their editor. Just when Dok Mi thinks that she's able to live a peaceful and quiet life, another handsome man moves into the same building as her. With all these handsome men that surround her, it turns her world upside down and thus the story gets very interesting!

If I had to rate this drama, it was 1 1/2 in the beginning but as I continued to watch it, it spiked to a 4/5 stars. I didn't really like how the story first started. It was funny but creepy since Dok Mi

Go Dok Mi

would spy on her neighbor, her crush with whom she's never met before. That brings creepy stalker to a whole different level. Then she develops a friendship with Que Geum, who she doesn't even want to spend time with. I don't want to spoil the story line, but I really want to talk about the character Park Shin Hye plays. Once again, she plays a shy character that has good comebacks but doesn't express it in words. I love the actress but I just can't stand weak characters. Go Dok Mi eventually gets better at expressing herself but is annoying to the very end because she always puts everyone else before her...usually this is good. Not this time. It annoyed me so much..I was ready to rage quit on the drama -.-

Another character that was annoying was the protagonist's ex best friend. Cha Do Hwi. Unlike other antagonist’s in other dramas, she’s actually not that bad. Like I said before, she’s just plain annoying. She constantly tries to flirt with Jin Rak and even attempts to make him fall in love with her. But is constantly thwarted since he’s only interested in Dok Mi and doesn’t really care what she does. As a viewer, you might hate her or like her, guess it all depends on your perspective. But I think at the end of the drama, you’ll like her.

   So aside from the main female characters not being my cup of tea, the two characters I enjoyed was Que Geum, Dong Hoon (Jin Rak’s partner), and Watanabe (he’s not a major character in the series but he has a special charm that’s likeable). I believe that Que Geum’s childlike personality was the one thing made me like him so much. Him being good looking is a plus ;)  

Que Gueum. Didn't I tell you he was handsome? xD

I loved how he was so persistent throughout the series with Dok Mi. He never gave up; he even gave her a taste of her own medicine in the end. (Sorry spoilers!) He was cute, playful, and even immature most of the series but he also had those really touching and sweet sentimental moments that would probably make the fan girls swoon. Que Guem had that personal touch.

   Dong Hoon probably made it to my favorite list because he added to the comedy of the series. He wasn’t a major character but some of his ignorance bold upfront attitude in the series made me laugh. He’s also a character that you would least expect to be going through problem   

Now I know Watanabe isn’t a major character BUT he’s the best cook in the series and his character has brought most of the major characters together (he holds cooking classes at his apartment.); honestly, who doesn’t like a guy who cooks, right? ;)

As a viewer, I really enjoyed watching the characters mature and their character development.

of course there's a love triangle

Storyline wise, I didn’t feel like I HAD to watch the next episode at once. The episodes weren’t suspenseful like some other dramas I’ve watched. Each episode was good and I enjoyed them, but I guess not to the extent where I was dying to know what happened next. If anything it was the love of the characters that had me going back for more. The episodes were fun and the series itself was lighthearted with a touch of seriousness. And there wasn’t a really evil antagonist. Less stress for the viewer.

   All in all I fully enjoyed this series and highly recommend it to someone looking for a new drama to watch or for the fan girls who love “flower boys”.

   

To the Beautiful You Review

The new and on going series To the Beautiful You. A Summer Drama~

Surprisingly, I'm enjoying the series so far. I was expecting the series to be very corny and cliche'd, but it's really good so far (and no corny lines!).
It also helps that Lee Hyun Woo and Sulli are in it! Woop! If it wasn't for those two, I probably wouldn't have given the drama a watch.
Yes, me watching this drama has come to the point of no return. And when I say no return, I mean retweeting everything that has to do with TTBY or Hyun Woo's character, reblogging all the the cool and cute pictures from tumbr, and look forward to watching two new episodes a week!

       Okay so despite the drama being pretty funny, cute, and an enjoyable show to watch, I'm going to talk about the things I didn't like about the show:

1) It was very cliched that Sulli/Jae Hee disguised herself as a guy. In the beginning of the drama I was having doubts and had plenty of comments about how stupid it sounded for her to travel from America to Korea, disguised as a boy, JUST to meet Tae Joon and help him jump again. The vibe I got from her seemed as though she was just a really big fangirl.
  It wasn't until the story started to really progress that I realized how cute and encouraging she was with Tae Joon. And the relationship was more than just sport star and fan.

2) I will never understand how it's always the cute and loveable characters that are the last to find out about the main character being a boy. I mean, you can' but help feel sorry for them. They think they're gay! They don't get a hint from the main character telling them he/she's actually a girl. Similar situation happened in You're Beautiful but Jeremy wasn't mad at Go Mi Nam; he was quite relieved she was a girl.

3) I'm very biased when I say this (I totally dig Lee Hyun Woo. He is SOOO handsome)! What I didn't like was the fact that Hyun Woo didn't get the girl...again. He always plays the main character's best friend. The guy who has a big part to play but doesn't get the girl. He played the usual happy go lucky best friend (no surprise). Don't get me wrong, Min Ho and Sulli looked great together, but it just didn't seem fair. Hopefully Hyun Woo will get the main lead in a highschool drama when he GETS the girl.

   What I DID like about the drama was the humor. There were funny quarrels, rivals in love, competing for Jae Hee's approval, and the feminine (but hilarious) character that Kwanghee portrayed.

Another thing I liked about this drama is wasn't stressful to watch. It was just irking at times because certain characters don't know when to let go..no names but *cough Ha Na cough*
You'll dislike some characters for a bit but they'll eventually grow on you. Even the annoying ones(hard to believe but true) o.O


Overall, the story line developed nicely, there were parts in the series that was probably cliche'd but I was too captivated by the characters to really notice, the characters were all lovable, even the annoying ones; loved the humor, the chemistry between each character was great and very convincing, the love between MinHo and Sulli was very adorable and pure, and the growth of the characters was satisfying.


So this completes my first K-drama review. Sorry it's not as detailed but I just wanted to give my opinions about the drama overall without spoiling anything. Hope you guys check the drama out!

~~Ppyong~~