my ajumma notes

A doomed inter-racial relationship, dashed hopes, betrayal, deception, manipulation, fear, hatred, obsession… or is it enduring love?     First, the  chupu  on the cover is misleading.  There aren’t any Babas or Nonyas, nor any reference to Peranakan heritage.   [Also, there are no Indians or Eurasians, which was surprising, and there are two Filipinos in the latter part of the story, which was somewhat random.]   The plot does have its interesting ideas and twists but An Mei and Hussein’s relationship, from which it develops, is a little weird.  Now, anyone can predict that this Chinese Christian-Malay Muslim couple would face problems, and all the other important characters have misgivings about their relationship, but the two don’t, until it is too late.  They are smart Oxford grads and Hussein is from a prominent, politically ambitious family so it’s unrealistic for them to be oblivious to the possibility of probl...

What a happy, crazy, funny show!  Putting together six leads, one baby (also a lead), numerous cameos and various groups of non-Koreans is quite a feat.  Each episode, you’re thinking that there can’t be more ridiculous, sillier ideas, knowing that there  will  be more to laugh at, and when the next episode comes, it doesn’t disappoint! The leads The guys are super individually and together.     The ladies are not equally compelling.  Jung In-sun is alright as pretty, innocent, efficient Yoon-ah, and her character is suitably cute, of course pitiful and sometimes so unexpected (such as her dream to be a rapper!).  Ko Won-hee is also alright as Seo-jin but I found her character the least funny, actually not even funny most of the time.  Why wasn’t she vindicated for standing up to the interviewer who harassed her fellow interviewee and why was so much work-bullying allowed at her office, though?   Lee Jo...

Initially, I avoided this show because I thought it would be like  Start-up .  Fortunately, it turned out to be a funny fake identity/fake relationship show though it could do with a snazzier title. Ha-ri Kim Sejeong is excellent as Ha-ri, and Ha-ri is very likable as a wonderful daughter, friend and colleague.  She is such a sunny and cheerful person, the perfect foil for Kang Tae-moo (Ahn Hyeo-seop) and his stuffiness.  Sejeong brings out all her drama, maturity and loving heart, and she is especially impressive as the role-switching Ha-ri scaring off Young-seo’s (Seol In-ah) suitors!  The humour tones down after Ha-ri stops pretending she is ‘Geum-hee’ but her emotions swing in from then. 'Rachel and Samantha' 😂 Ha-ri’s family and her work team are funny.     The poignant point that it is this regular, decent family that embraces Yeong-seo, Sung-hoon (Kim Min-kyu) and Tae-moo (interestingly, the last of the lot to ‘join’) is unf...

Three shows I dropped before I hit the jackpot   Start-up (2020) Although business and investments are not my kind of thing, I wanted to watch Kim Seon-ho’s pre- Hometown   outing.  It is fast-paced and punchy, with an interesting mix of characters. What I liked: - Kim Seon-ho (Han Ji-pyeong) and Nam Joo-hyuk (Nam Do-san), together and separately techie who knits - Nam Da-reum playing the young version of Ji-pyeong, with depth and emotion - the other two Sans (Yoo Su-bin, Kim Do-wan) of Samsan Tech – funny, loyal and such fantastic friends - Kim Joo-hun playing the father of Dal-mi and In-jae – full of life and ideas; he should have spent more time explaining the nature of entrepreneurship to his wife! - In-jae’s silly, unethical and irritating stepfather and stepbrother (no wonder her mother moved out!) - the story between Ji-pyeong and Dal-mi’s grandma - the eclectic looks of Do-san’s family home, and Dal-mi and grandma’s home - the offices in Sandbox   What ...

Oh my word, Park Gyu-young!  From the spoilt, clueless rich kid in  Romance is a bonus book , she transformed into elegant, gentle, genteel Dali.  When I saw her in  Romance , I thought she was destined to play supporting roles but she proves me very wrong.  She can be soft-spoken, soft- hearted, sad, scared, subtle, stylish, cheeky, throw in a few fiery moments, make us laugh, and speak English well!  Well done, young lady! OH MY WORD, Kim Min-jae!!  It is so refreshing for him to come to life here after the melancholy of  Do You Like Brahms .  He is wonderful as genuine, funny, smart, single-minded and kind-hearted Mu-hak.  Never thought he could do comedy so well.  He is cute with that so-pleased-with-himself private smile whenever Dali unexpectedly says something affectionate.  And all his little pouty lines – “I just wanted you to be happy”, “I just wanted to be with you”… aww…...