sab’s Year In Review (2015): Why You Should…and Shouldn’t

I’ve decided to trim the lengthy Year in Review post to as short as possible. So I’ll give as few words as I can manage for each on why you should watch/ shouldn’t watch, then round it up with a grade.

Here goes:

1. Healer (KBS2)

Watch: Ji Chang-wook turning super hero in nerd disguise
Don’t: Nada
Score: 5/5

2. Pride and Prejudice (MBS)

Watch: Convoluted twists
Don’t: Too much conspiracies
Score: 2.5/5

3. Birth of a Beauty (SBS)

Watch: Funny, as long as it lasts
Don’t: Eventually boring
Score: 2/5

4. Dr Frost (OCN)

Watch: Psychological thriller with a smart psycho
Don’t: Majority of cases rather dull
Score: 3/5

5. Kill Me, Heal Me (MBC)

Watch: Ji-sung becoming Yoo-na
Don’t: If you can’t stand Hwang Jung-eum screaming her head off
Score: 4/5

6. Hyde, Jekyll and Me (SBS)

Watch: Hyun-bin become super hero in his other personality
Don’t: Ridiculous plot, and sappy (supposedly circus-trained) heroine
Score: 3/5

7. Heart to Heart (tvN)

Watch: 2 unlikely individuals who complement each other in every way.
Don’t: Maybe the weird secret in the end would turn you off.
Score: 4.5/5

8. Blood (KBS2)

Watch: Handsome doctor vampires extolling the idea of “Monsters”
Don’t: Crappy hospital politics with politicking doctor-vampires
Score: 2/5

9. Angry Mom (MBC)

Watch: Kim Hee-sun in a cute school girl uniform, and (almost) getting romanced by a boy half her age.
Don’t: Stressful
Score: 3/5

10. A Girl Who Sees Smells (SBS)

Watch: Park Yoo-chun and Shin Se-kyung, heroes with super powers take down a psycho-chef
Don’t: None
Score: 5/5

11. Super Daddy Yul (tvN)

Watch: The adorable Lee-re as Sa-rang.
Don’t: Nonsensical Mummy Mi-rae
Score: 3/5

12. Missing Noir M (OCN)

Watch: Interesting cases solved by a trio of experts + genius
Don’t: Not much character buildup
Score: 3.5/5

14. Producer (KBS2)

Watch: Slice of life with the entertainment industry as backdrop (and gorgeous actors/actresses)
Don’t: Insiders’ jokes — you get them, or don’t
Score: 4/5

15. Divorce Lawyer in Love (SBS)

Watch: Rom-com between 2 ex-arch enemies
Don’t: Not much chemistry between OTP
Score: 3/5

16. Let’s Eat 2 (tvN)

Watch: Rom-com with food porn (yumz)
Don’t: If you are on a diet
Score: 5/5

17. Masked Prosecutor (KBS2)

Watch: Conspiracy that spans 2 generations
Don’t: Plot is patchy
Score: 1/5

18. Orange Marmalade (KBS2)

Watch: Vampires in high school, cute.
Don’t: Has a sageuk portion in between
Score: 3/5

19. Warm and Cozy (MBC)

Watch: Jeju-do. Blue skies, Blue seas.
Don’t: The annoying OTP
Score: 2.5/5

20. I Remember You (KBS2)

Watch: Feisty, petite police woman takes on taller hunks around her.
Don’t: Can’t think of any, and dunno why ratings were low (in Korea)
Score: 5/5

21. Hidden Identity (tvN)

Watch: 5-members team take on the baddies
Don’t: Not much characterisations
Score: 3/5

22. Oh My Ghostess (tvN)

Watch: The amazing Park Bo-young becomes Kim Seul-gi and how she lusts after Jo Jung-suk. (who i bet was trying hard not to giggle on screen)
Don’t: It’s not even scary. So no excuses.
Score: 5/5

23. My Beautiful Bride (OCN)

Watch: Hunky Kim Moo-yul takes down the Underworld.
Don’t: One million plot holes. And that soundtrack. Yuk.
Score: 2.5/5

24. The Eccentric Daughter-in-law (KBS2)

Watch: It’s rom-com at its best. Light, and breezy
Don’t: Kim Da-som isn’t the best actress around
Score: 4/5

25. Scholar Who Walks The Night (MBC)

Watch: Lee Jun-ki as deliciously tortured vampire.
Don’t: Lee Yoo-bi‘s role as wallpaper flower needs to be re-written.
Score: 2/5

26. Mrs Cop (SBS)

Watch: Kim Hee-ae turns scruffy, kick assy ahjumma. Sohn Ho-joon and Lee Da-hee‘s sizzling chemistry.
Don’t: Stupid over arching Baddie with his toes in all the pies.
Score: 4/5

27. Yong-pal (SBS)

Watch: Joo-won outwit the powerful bad guys and Kim Tae-hee becoming badass.
Don’t: However, the OTP don’t seem to know what to do after conquering everyone.
Score: 3.5/5

28. Twenty Again (tvN)

Watch: Choi Ji-woo turns from weepy to bubbly spritely college girl. And of cos her Black Knight, Lee Sang-yoon, turns from Grumpy pants to Dimply Cuteness.
Don’t: If you don’t like the idea of ahjummas/ ahjusshis going back to school.
Score: 5/5

29. Cheo-yong 2 (OCN)

Watch: Ghost-busting detective with his high school ghost sidekick solve scary crimes. Surprisingly better than Season 1.
Don’t: If you are a scaredy-cat.
Score: 5/5 (with commendations, for its vast improvements)

30. She Was Pretty (MBC)

Watch: A warm, lifting story about secondary roles being important in Life too.
Don’t: If you can’t stand Hwang Jung-eum and her shouting.
Score: 4/5

31. The Village: Secrets of Achiara (SBS)

Watch: Have patience. It gets better as the confusing conspiracies and secrets clear.
Don’t: If you have no patience, and prefers psycho-thrillers which are non-meandering.
Score: 3/5

32. D-Day (jtbc)

Watch: Doctors in action, saving lives against a Armageddon backdrop.
Don’t: Unfortunately, the biggest disaster is Hospital (and National) Politics.
Score: 1.5/5

33. Reply 1988 (tvN)

Watch: For that sense of good ‘ol days, where friends are real friends, and not online ones.
Don’t: If you are a Millenia-kid and cannot relate to cassette tapes, VCRs, baggy pants, and centre partings on the hair. (and oh yes, no internet OR wifi)
Score: 5/5

34. Oh My Venus (KBS2)

Watch: Shin Min-na turns “ugly” and plump for  her role. And of cos, So Ji-sub‘s abs and…those arms…
Don’t: Plot is really been-there, done-that.
Score: 3.5/5

35. Imaginary Cat (MBC every1)

Watch: Yoo Seung-ho + cat
Don’t: If you have no time. Plot is wandering and slow.
Score: 2.5/5

36. Sassy Go Go (KBS2)

Watch: High school hijinks with a chemistry-filled onscreen couple.
Don’t: You really should try…
Score: 4.5/5