When I was living in Japan, I discovered the mass-following of Korean Dramas. Japan has it's own thriving TV serial and drama industry, but it is very closely tied to the Korean industry, and would be hard to say which is more popular (as far as I could see, although, statistics would probably have a concrete answer).
I was first introduced to Korean Dramas by my second host family, the lovely lovely Yamaoka-san's (the suffix -san, is a generic polite term attached to names, first or last. In Japanese culture it is not impolite to address a work colleague or classmate by their last name if you are not paticularly close. Or i you wish to convey a respectful distance in your relationship to that person. Or if you just want to show you respect them, and value them For how close you are. Japanese Manners are convoluted but interesting.)
The mother of that family, whom I grew close to in the two months I lived in their apartment by the mountain and the river, was (and hopefully still is) a keen fan of Korean Dramas, and so introduced me early on to them, in an effort to find out what I was interested in, and share her interests with her new houseguest/host family member.
Thus, I met "Ikemen desu ne" - the Japanese title meaning 'Good looking {boy} isn't {he/she}'. And fell in love. Korean Dramas, I found out, are addictive to watch!! I lost whole nights staying up to find out via youtube, what happens in the next chapter. They're just so funny and engaging, much more so than I expected (I really had no concept of what they would be like), and since that time, I've become a die-hard fan, meeting many more people who are interested in Korean and Japanese dramas, a collective interest society I previously never knew existed. Nice to meet you! Welcome, sit down, and tell us what ones' you've seen and what was the best about it?!
"Ikemen desu ne", when I first watched it, was Korean acted and voiced, dubbed in Japanese with Japanese subtitles (because it was broadcasted for the Japanese audience); but online on youtube and drama-streaming sites that allow people with no access to foreign films, inclusion i.e. dramacrazy.net.To be included in the culture they've come to love, many people out there, like me, are very grateful to you uploaders and translators Cheers guys!!
Known to the english audience as "You Are Beautiful!", "Ikemen desu ne", although the very first drama I ever saw in both the Japanese and Korean drama categories, still holds it's quality level after I can now compare the plot, acting and dialogue to a longer and longer list of dramas. You can find out more information on them here :). Here is a clip, not of the pilot, which is slow as is usual for dramas, before the plot builds and all the characters come together and establish a setting and context for their interactions. This is Episode 4, part 4, where the band of three guys and the undercover girl are already put together, and they are preparing for their first performance when complications arise with the rival idols at the studio...
Hahaha, I'm terrible at selling things, it's better than how I can make it sound :) I apologise director and cast etc!
And here is the 2PM parody :D PLease please, let some people who are familiar with Korean pop groups and dramas watch this _ it was like watching the Dream High 1 and 2 cast do Ikemen desu ne, with Jason as Com In Nam :D
Unfortunately there is no embed HTML, so only a link here
Some of my favourite dramas, (since I started watching like a TV addict) are:
Secret Garden (Korean)
A high-class, eich young man with no understadning or interest in the middle and lower classes finds himself drawn inexplicably to a brash and disinterested stunt actor woman, who doesn't interact with him nor he with her in the way they would wish. Complications build, including a soul/body swap :D
(BEST QUALITY is on dramacrazy.net
Here is a clip-mix youtube AMV to one of the theme music tracks; just for video awesomeness (better to watch than to read about a drama :)
Dream High season 1 (Korean)
Set in a performing arts high school for producing idols for the Korean entertainment companies to scout. Featuring real-life Korean idols as actors, playing students trying to make it to the big time for the first time.
(For teenagers more than Secret Garden)
Ep. 13 featuring my favourite singing duet in the show :)
Hana-Kimi (Japanese)
A naive girl disguises herself as a boy and enters a boys-only school in order to pay back a debt she believes she owes to one of the students. Antics ensue
Ep 2 (where she is already in the school)
Koizora "Sky of Love" (Japanese)
A tragedy that, like Romeo and Juliet, forewarns the watcher at the opening, of the death of one of the central characters. It spans many years in time-lapse. Sometimes, dark, and challenging, and usually sad and romantic, this is the first episode, which is the tone-setter for the series:
saa, iku-zo, ja, mata ne.
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