Fantasy Couple, ep. 01-04

[oyceter]

Anna is a filthy rich woman who has spent several years (or most of her life? I can't tell) in the US. She's recently moved back to Korea, much to the dismay of her browbeaten, bullied husband, who married her for her money but who also seems to have loved her once. Jang Chul Soo is a handyman trying to pinch pennies, since he's raising his dead brother's three sons. They anti-meet-cute when he helps her with her car, and she mistakes him for a murderer and beats his head in with a shovel.

Eventually, she gets amnesia (my first amnesia drama! a milestone!), and he ends up convincing her she's his girlfriend to save on housekeeping bills and to get back the money she owes him.

Normally, this premise would have me hating the hero from the get-go. While I wasn't very fond of Jang Chul Soo in the beginning, I at least don't want to whap him multiple times because of his scheme, largely due to the slapstick tone of the drama. In the beginning, the humor is extremely broad -- Anna's snobbiness and meanness is hugely exaggerated, to the point where even I didn't like her, and I usually like "bitchy" women (scarequotes for problematics surrounding use of "bitchy" as descriptor, not to imply the women aren't actually mean). I have some problems with this, namely that the heroes of kdramas seem to be allowed to be alpha male and aggressive and often plain mean in a way heroines aren't; if heroines are, it has to be shown as being wrong. I was also completely unconvinced of the viability of Anna and Chul Soo as a couple, and I was (and am) bored by her husband's storyline.

That said, the third and fourth episode either improve tremendously, or I got used to the broad humor and started to like it. The entire thing with Anna knowing so little about housework that she makes things worse and not better is totally expected, but I still thought it was funny, largely because of Chul Soo's expressions. That, and the very cute laundry-in-a-tub scene.

Chul Soo's softening much faster than Anna is, despite Anna's (very few) moments of weakness, and that while the joke seems to be on Anna most of the time, it always ends up being on Chul Soo. Well, that, and they're hilariously cute when they bond over finding money. I am even growing fond of the snooty way she tosses her hair.

Am having the same class issues with this one that I have had with most of the other series I've seen (moral uprightness of being poor coupled with fetishization of the filthy rich lifestyle), ditto with race issues (socializing with white people as sign of breeding and wealth, knowledge of English as shortcut to coolness). But it's making me laugh, so I will probably keep watching.

Also, this show makes me crave jajangmyeon like crazy, even though I have only had it once in my life. Must find restaurant around here with it, so I can have some, though may settle for zhajiangmien if I can't find jajangmyeon.

Comments

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I think the reason Chul Soo isn't annoying very much is because you realize that he can be petty and occassionally self centered, but really, he's just a big, soft(good looking) sweetie.

I think it really hits its stride about mid-way through, when it starts showing the differences between being outwardly and inwardly good and generous, and when it starts forcing Anna to make choices and decisions.

[oyceter]

He is totally a big sweetie. I love that he keeps trying to get himself to ditch Anna and totally can't do it.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Yeah. he knows he made a mistake, but there's no way for him to fix it, so he's being as responsible as he can. It's really about both of them growing up and maturing and being more consioderate, the focus is jusy more on her.

[oyceter]

I am really looking forward to that! (the focus on her, that is)

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Yes. I think when it becomes obvious is when she sees through the secondary girl's machinations, and then when she has to take care of his nephews alone.

[yhlee.livejournal.com]

Ah, yes. Class and race issues in Korea. Yeah. Do black people ever even show up? When I was there, the tendency was very strongly toward Korean prejudice against blacks. I had a black classmate who said that she hated taking the subway because all the Koreans would stare at her; I don't blame her in the least.

Jjajangmyeon! It used to be one of my sister's favorite foods, although I wonder if that's now seolleongtang. My personal favorite is naengmyeon (cold noodles), which I like even in the winter. But I'd take jjajangmyeon, too. (The double jj indicates a fortis ["tensified"] consonant.)

[oyceter]

Ha, black people showing up. /cycnicism

Yeah, there was a lot of that attitude in Taiwan too -- American and America were all good and cool, as long as it was white America.

Oh! Now I am confused -- Wikipedia said it's not actually the double jj because that signifies non-Chinese foreign words (??), but the subtitlers had it. I have no clue.

Ooo, what's seolleongtang? One of my coworkers said I had to try naengmyeon and took me to a place, though she said it wasn't as good as Korea's (of course). Ok, now I am really craving noodles! I think kdramas are to blame for my recent comfort Asian food kick (I was on a comfort American food kick a few months ago).

[yhlee.livejournal.com]

I'm going by pronunciation. Maybe it's spelled without the double jj (ssang jjiot, I think?) but pronounced with? There are situations where fortis enters the pronunciation even though it's not in the spelling. I'll have to ask my mom. Or maybe vonnie_k knows?

Seolleongtang is beef soup of some kind. I think it's only okay, but my sister likes it a lot. (Or she did last I checked, anyway.) Of course, right now I'd definitely take "only okay" Korean foods out of sheer nostalgia.

[oyceter]

Huh, the way the article is phrasing it makes it look like a technical error that's commonly used, so maybe it's something like how people say "could of" instead of "could have"?

Oh man. I wish I could go with you and Rachel to LA's Ktown or something, in lieu of a trip to Korea.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I think the worst case of racism I've seen in an asian drama was in the second season of Hana Yori Dango. The heroine goes to NYC, and a middleaged white man stopped to help her because she's lost, then when, trying to speak English, she says "I am bus." he throws up his hands and dumpers her, complaining about stupid foreigners, and then later, she runs into and extremely fouldmouthed street gang, all of whom are black...and who are then scared off by the secondary hero's blatantly toy gun.

[oyceter]

Aiiieeee! Bad!

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. Even the series' biggest fans almost jumped ship over that. I just gritted my teeth and reminded myself that it wasn't any worse than what US entertainment tends to do.

[desdenova.livejournal.com]

*reads plot summary*

I swear this was a bad American movie back in the 80s. I can't remember what it was called or who was in it, though...

[oyceter]

Oh yeah! I think it was based on "Overboard"? Not that I've seen that...

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Overboard. The main character's name, Anna Jo, is a nod to Goldie Hawn's name in the movie, Joanna.

I *cough* am kinda fond of the movie...as a guilty pleasure.

I think the drama handles the story, better...the movie more tried to justify his actions, where the drama couldn't be any clearer that he was wrongwrongwrong and screwed up big time, but can't fix it.

[octopedingenue]

Now I'm going to have to watch this drama, so two of my guilty pleasure genres can BREED.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Well, considering it's the one modern kdrama I rec to EVERYONE(though I suspect Lovers will end up being another) I shall say: wwwwwaaaaaaatttttttcccccchhhhhhhh.

[oyceter]

Waaaaaatch it! Also, if you are curious about any other of the kdramas I am rabidly blogging about (Coffee Prince! Have you seen Coffee Prince?), I, um, am very willing to put together a pimping package.

[desdenova.livejournal.com]

Right! It had Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell!

I'm so glad I wasn't just imagining the similarity--it's intentional!

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Yes...it was a COUPLES MOVIE!

Mostly similarities that obvious are intentional...it's just whether or not it's admitted.

[octopedingenue]

I thought that reading the summary too! Overboard! When I was a kid, reruns on TBS gave me a deep affection for it among miscellaneous terrible Kurt Russell movies*. Until at some point my hindbrain took over and was like "Pssss, really freaking smugly sexist and awful, btw, wow." But I still have an odd fondness for the pre-Photoshop photoshopped wedding pictures.


*Soldier would be a bulletproof-kink-movie for me were it not so indescribably awful in every conceivable way.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Sigh...Kurt Russell really was unforgivably alpha male in that movie, and yet...I must still like him in it. I think he just has a sheer likability(plus the looks and body...) that gets him past it, even when you really should hold the entire movie against him. Everytime I watch, though, I keep hoping she'll tear into him more and make him work a little harder to get her back, but she never does...

[octopedingenue]

I never said I turn it off when it reruns on TBS now, mind.

[marzipan-pig.livejournal.com]

Eventually, she gets amnesia (my first amnesia drama! a milestone!), and he ends up convincing her she's his girlfriend to save on housekeeping bills and to get back the money she owes him

Of course, b/c this makes PERFECT SENSE! I think the ridiculousness charms me more than the standard-American-sitcom ridiculousness b/c it's such a crazy mix of real and over-the-top.

[oyceter]

Hee, I know! I was so sure I was going to be squicked by it, but it's so over the top that I don't particularly mind.