Sorry for lack of updates.
Blue - DxS / Dokyeom and Seungkwan of Seventeen
Featuring Noh Sanghyun in the music video, this is a ballad that is going to break hearts. Popular challenge that popped up on social media sites and other idols taking on the challenge by also singing alongside this SVT unit.
A heartbreaking ballad by Seventeen's vocalists DK and Seungkwan, showing off their range and stunning voices.
From what I'm seeing in this cinema version of the MV, the main couple are falling apart. Sanghyun's character was involved in a car accident at the beginning of the video and he's traumatised from the accident which affects his relationship with his girlfriend.
Epilogue version which features DK and Seungkwan
The Moon Glow Bookshop (Seo Dongwon) - This was a lovely read. A Moon Rabbit named Bo-Reum works for a man named Mun who offers special drinks to people. The blurb on the back of the book says What if you could turn the pages of your own life, like the pages of your favourite book? and bar tender Mun does just that for wandering souls who find his shop/bar. The customer drinks magical cocktails and they start dreaming that it almost feels too real. As you go further into the story, you learn more about Mun and Moon Rabbit's past which makes the plot more interesting while also navigating the customers' lives as they experience memories.
Everything I learnt, I learned in a Chinese Restaurant (Curtis Chin) - A memoir on Curtis Chin's growing up in a Chinese restaurant and navigating as an ABC who was in the closet at the time. It's a nice dive into 80s/90s Detroit. The mentions of food certainly made me peckish while reading and Curtis manages to bring his teens and early adult years in university to life on the pages.
Your Honour (2024) - This was not on my to watch list but I caved in after watching Heo Nam Jun in his few scenes of The Impossible Heir and his appearance on Hong Seok Cheon's Jewel Box mentioning memes related to this drama. Based on an Israeli tv series, this is a gripping drama where an accident and revenge have consequences in a big way. You would think a simple thing like report to the authorities would work but not when it's against a powerful criminal organisation. The focus is more on the fathers here but the acting from all the main cast was fantastic. Morality is questioned between the good and bad guys. If there was one thing I would have liked, it was handling some of the female characters better, especially the detective and prosecutor.
Cashero (2025) - I read the webtoon first before watching the drama and both versions are very different. The drama has an actual hero meets villain and they have a big fight storyline. However the main character's superpower is the same. Kang Sangung has a superpower where he grows stronger with the more cash he holds. In the drama his father passes this power to him and Sangung has to learn to adapt to this new ability which can be difficult because you are constantly broke when you keep using money to increase your strength. I did enjoy Lee Chae Min's villainous role as Jo Nathan/Cho Nathan and if there was ever a side story available, I'd like to see more of his backstory. You can tell from the short flashback scenes with his sister Jo Anna that they do not see eye to eye.
Dreaming of a Freaking Fairytale (2024) - Back on a Lee Jun Young binge and this surprised me a lot. Far from a typical romcom, let alone a typical Cinderella story. Moon Cha Min is a far from perfect Prince Charming, absolutely hot and cold but still charismatic and vain. Shin Jae Rim aka Cinderella is resilient and hard working, has a step family that are far from nasty and actually realistic as they try to live their lives. They don't hate her yet she's never been loved in the same way while growing up after her real mother walked out.
There's elite hierarchy statuses in Cha Min's club Cheongdam Heaven while Jae Rim pursues her so-called Prince Charming at her new workplace after finding a job advertisement her late father left her. If you have ever worked for privileged, upper class people or interacted with them briefly you may feel the acidity from these club members and how they treat Jae Rim. Elite Mean Girls energy there.
I enjoyed how the main characters' stories and characters unravel as you proceed further along. Even with small signs that nothing is perfect you know they have a backstory that needs to be elaborated. Finding out what happened to Cha Min's mother being an example.
Cha Min's motto is certainly memorable and I intend to use that as I unmask - Follow your joy.