FRIDAY NIGHT DRAMA: Love Around

With so many dramas having come to an end in recent weeks and a new wave just starting, things are a bit slim in the currently airing drama department which is why I’ve decided to go back in time a bit and feature one of Taiwan’s rom-coms of the summer, Love Around for this week’s Friday Night Drama.

Love Around Title

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HALLYU ZOMBIE DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 11-12 (2/2)

Anneyong! I really want to dive into the episodes from last week, although a bit later than planned! We saw Ma Te get humiliated, but overall a lot of growth in all the characters.

PlayerMa Te convinced Gwi Ji to take him to the MG Group Party, just to be humiliated by one of Jackie’s friends in front of Park Ki Suk, who he believes to be his father. It is rather unfair that this woman painted him as a player, however Ma Te has no one to blame but himself. He should have realized that his past and his decision to take on the ten women task that Yu Ra gave him would come back to bite him somehow. There is no way you can move through so many people in a short amount of time and not be seen as opportunistic or of bad moral character. He is then further insulted by Hong Na Ran when she laughs at his attempts to meet his father and calls him a piece of trash. This leads him to breakdown for the second time in the show.

FameIn true spoiled-brat fashion, Gwi Ji got rid of Myo Mi so she could have Ma Te to herself. Sadly for Ma Te, you can tell that he actually liked Myo Mi so he is a little disappointed, but admits that Myo Mi is the queen of timing, which was the lesson she was to teach him in the end. I’m actually sad to see Myo Mi go. She was one of the better characters in the series since she was so very grounded considering her profession and the people around her. That type of genuine person is really what Ma Te needs to have in his life.

MoveBitch

In the lesson of clout, Ma Te decides to challenge Gwi Ji’s father and ask/demand SS Home Shopping network from him. Gwi Ji challenges Ma Te to submit to her by making him her boyfriend with SS Home Shopping as the bait, but Bo Tong steps in and gives him a reality check by slapping Gwi across the face and calling her trash for using those types of tactics. Bo Tong is, of course, correct. You shouldn’t have to buy your boyfriend via his humiliation. I enjoyed Gwi Ji and Ma Te receiving a dose of reality, even if it did result in Bo Tong’s arrest.

ProtectorMa Te and David face off at the police station over Bo Tong. David’s tells Ma Te that he is going to protect Bo Tong, however Ma Te is unsatisfied with that. Subsequently, he decides that he is going to protect Bo Tong and tells her that to her face, which is an admission of his feelings for her.

Continuing her evil ways, Na Hong Ran manages to set up Park Moon Soo and get him arrested for illegal gambling. Although he is dismissed from all charges after some investigation, she continues to press the situation and uses it to try to remove him from MG Group all together.

MoreUsefulGoing further, it seem that Bo Tong will never get over her obsession with Ma Te. She decided to seek out Yu Ra and beg on her knees that she give Ma Te the passcode he needs to see his father. This leads to David confessing to Yu Ra that his is a son of MG Group and the agreement that he will work to protect Moon Soo and take down Na Hong Ran. Once Yu Ra tells Bo Tong that David is giving up everything for her, Bo Tong runs to him and David admits that he loves her.

WhatHaveYouDone

Yu Ra ends of giving Ma Te the code per her deal with David, but he deletes it because he did not earn it for himself. This is by far the most grown up thing we have ever seen Ma Te do! Not because he didn’t earn it himself but because he is uncomfortable with the fact that so many people are being affected by this passcode. He is actually starting to take the lives and feelings of others into consideration although it put himself into a tougher situation.

Gwi Ji gets herself into a situation that she cannot get herself out of because she refuses to apologize for ruining a shoe. Ma Te comes to her rescue and proceeds to tell her that sometimes you have to learn to choke back your pride, which is a lesson she needs to learn. Money can’t buy everything.

SarangI don’t know if I can forgive Ma Te for the awful prank he played on Bo Tong when he got drunk and told her that he loved her. Granted, he immediately told her that is was a lie and explained why he has such a hard time dealing with feelings, but it was cruel. At least he is learning that he doesn’t actually know what love is and that is the first step to finding out. He does tell Bo Tong not to go anywhere until he figures it out, but that makes me wonder if he wants a safety net or if he actually does have the beginning of feelings for her.

 

FindEverythingWe get to witness the board meeting in which Na Hong Ran tries to get rid of Moon Soo, however David enters the meeting and as the majority stockholder saves Moon Soo from being dismissed from his position at MG. This leaves David in the crosshairs of Hong Ran because she’s going to do everything in her power to figure out just who he is.

Getting his comeuppance, Gwi Ji’s father starts to feel the pressure when Prosecutor Lee Kim investigates the company. Gwi Ji decides that she wants to study in exchange for marrying Ma Te. Her dad won’t have it though and tells Ma Te that he’ll give him SS Home Shopping if he can get Lee Kim off his back and he stays away from Gwi Ji.

SeduceYouMa Te tries twice to get close to Lee Kim but fails because she can see exactly who he is and how he works. He appeals to her sense of loneliness and is straightforward with her about it and the situation.

Our cliffhanger into the upcoming episodes is Park Ki Suk telling Na Hong Ran that David/Joon Ha is, in fact, his son. There was something gratifying about seeing her knocked off her pedestal from that news. She did make me laugh when she asked if he was “going to pull out a new son every time Moon Soo gets in trouble.” That was pretty classic!

TheWatch

I am intrigued by Yu Ra’s interest in Ma Te’s watch that Bo Tong has since it matches the piece that Hong Ran has!

So what do you think is going to happen next? Are we going to learn whose son Ma Te really is? Will David be safe from Hong Ran? Who will Bo Tong choose? Let me know what you think in the comments below or tweet @Hallyu_Tanya!

HALLYU ZOMBIE DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 11-12 (1/2)

Zombie: So is it just me, or are things kind of falling less-than-spectacularly apart for Pretty Man? I mean are the writers just so confused, they have no idea how to write their way out of this mess they’ve put themselves in or have they just given up completely?

disappointed bo tong

Tanya: I’m pretty sure Ma Te fails in a fantastic way or just gives up altogether because there is no way they can make it through four more women in 4 episodes. If you have such a strong concept at the beginning of a show I don’t understand how you can just abandon it near the end, but that seems to be what is happening here.

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HALLYU ZOMBIE’S DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 9-10 (2/2)

Zombie: So apparently I’m not so very good at guessing what’s going to happen next as I was completely WRONG about David’s true identity…

father and son

Tanya: I’m actually starting not to like David so much. He seems overly spiteful, but holy plot twist Batman! I’m starting to have suspicions that maybe Ma Te is the long-lost son of Na Hong Ran. That may be tragic, but also explains why she disappeared and is still keeping him away because she doesn’t want anyone to know.

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HALLYU ZOMBIE’S DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 5-6 (2/2)

DrunkBoTong

Zombie: So was it just me or were this weeks episodes pretty darn hilarious?

Tanya: I laughed so much it was ridiculous. I think my favorite part was Dae Shik calling Bo Tong and David out. “Are you sure you aren’t just moving in together?” And then Bo Tong flips him, which you can visually see Hoon help UI do because he’s physically larger than she is.
HoonMoveIn

Zombie: Those two are so funny! Seriously though, just about every character in this show is funny. I love that Jang Geun Suk’s facial expressions are out in full force. That was one of the best parts of You’re Beautiful so I’m happy they’re back in Pretty Man.

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HALLYU ZOMBIE’S DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 1-2 (1/2)

Hey chingus! Welcome to the very first edition of Tanya (of HallyuKnow?) and Zombie’s (of ZombieMamma) drama reviews. We’re very excited to be working together to bring you a weekly review of the latest episodes of KBS2’s newest drama, Pretty Man. The next eight weeks should be fun so let’s get to it, shall we?

Continue reading “HALLYU ZOMBIE’S DRAMA REVIEW: Pretty Man Episodes 1-2 (1/2)”

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