The Best of the Best...(Sort of)

About two weeks ago, I had to idea of compiling a list of my favorite (insert category here) and posting it up for my own convenience. Unfortunately, going through some of the categories, I realised that it would be next to impossible to accomplish because there were way too many things out there that I still haven't watched, therefore there is the chance that I will not be including something that I believe my future self would totally nominate as "the best of the best". Then again, there's nothing I can do. So, in short, the following is a fairly short list of what I believe are The Best in their respective categories (and no, I do no have a ton of categories so this will be fairly short) and I, most likely, have missed a number of them.

I apologise for that in advance - but I'll be sure to rectify that when that time comes.

FAVORITE DRAMAS UP UNTIL NOW

Hua Yang Shao Nian Shao Nu
Taiwanese
I know I have mentioned this drama a number of times - so it is a given that this one is up on this list. It takes up a good part of my heart, and it is the first drama that I watched that introduced me to the world of Asian Dramas. Now, they overrun my life and is the main reason that I procrastinate as much as I do. :) Anyway... this drama is about an American girl (Lu Rui Xi, played by Ella Chen) who disguises herself as a boy in order to attend the all-boy college that her crush and idol ( Zuo Yi Quan, played by Wu Chun) attends in order to be near him. And, of course, they end up falling in love. There's also a bit of a love triangle thing going on that's one-sided with one of Quan's friends/classmates who ends up believing he's gay. All in all, it's a comedic romance and it is HILARIOUS.

I downloaded it via Veoh and commenced to copying it to a DVD. :)

Hanazakari no Kimitachi e
Japanese

This drama is also one of my favorites - and it's the Japanese version of Hua Yang Shao Nian Shao Nu. They're both collectively known as Hana Kimi. :) Anyway, this is also the only drama I've watched in real-time, meaning it was still airing and I had to wait for the subbed versions to come out so I could download them and watch them. It was torture - but it was great. I almost forgot the feeling that I had of waiting a week for an episode to come out for those American series that air on cable TV. Well, this drama has the same basic plot as the Taiwanese version, just with different names and with a number of differences throughout the series. After all, it wouldn't be fun watching the same thing twice - just in a different language. I'm also one of those people who just can't choose which one I prefer more. Honestly, both of the dramas appealed to me and the guys in both of the dramas were incredibly cute. :) It's up to you to decide!

I downloaded the series from here. Just scroll down to "Past Projects" and it's under the drama's title.

Kurosagi
Japanese

I got into this series when I just got into the Japanese boy-band NEWS. Why is that relevant? The leader of the group, Yamashita Tomohisa (YamaP) stars in this drama about justice, revenge, and reality. Or at least that's what I got from it. :) Basically, there's a girl, Tsurara (played by Maki Horikita), who's a law student who comes across Kurosaki (Yamapi), a swindler of swindlers, and she tries to get him to get on the right "track". It's generally a race against the law and for justice at the same time. It's pretty riveting and it makes you think (rather like Death Note, if you haven't come across it). I honestly found myself rooting for Kurosaki. haha... Back to the point... this is one of my favorite dramas because it deviated from most Asian dramas that center around romance (though there is romance on the side, it doesn't overtake the plot) that made it refreshing. It also showcases Yamashita's superb acting skills and shows Maki in a new light (she plays the girl-turned-boy in Hanazakari no Kimitachi e).

I got this off of Veoh and I copied it to a DVD. I don't remember if this is still up there due to copyright laws.

Yasha
Japanese

After writing "Japanese" for the third time in a row, I realised that I've watched a good amount of dramas that I like that are Japanese. OK, that has nothing to do with this. So... Yasha is a drama with the whole evil-good twin theme. It falls into the suspense/mystery/action genre and I love it - oh yes, it also has a bit of a sci-fi feel since the twins were genetically-engineered. All I have to say is that I've watched this around three times so far and it's still one of my favorites - especially with the medicine-related topics in it. I can't say much about it because if I do, I'm afraid I might give away too much - but look at it this way: the main actor (Ito Hideaki) who plays both the twins is not bad in the looks department at all. :)

I got this off of Veoh, but I'm pretty sure it was taken off due to copyright laws.

My Boss, My Hero
Japanese

This story is one of friendship. It's about a high school drop out (Nagase Tomoya) who is also the heir to a Yakuza group who has to enroll in high school again in order to receive a diploma, even though he's about a decade older than everyone there. It's pretty funny and endearing, especially with what he gets into. Tegoshi Yuya of NEWS also stars in it. :) Anyway, I recommend it! Also since I love yakuza-themed things.

This is the only drama that I have ever watched through a boxed set that a friend of my sister's let us borrow.

The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince
Korean

This was my first Korean drama that I ever watched, so of course it has to go on this list. :) That is not the only reason though: it was really good! Whenever I see the boxed set at the store, I have to mentally fight against myself not to buy it. It's really hard. Anyway, this is similar to two other previously-watched dramas in that the girl in the story is mistaken/disguised as a guy throughout a good amount of the drama. Besides that, it's different, except that 'romance' factor of it. It's basically about the girl who comes from a poor family deep in debt so she's always off doing odd jobs, sacrificing her femininity (she plays a VERY feminine girl in Goong, if you want a contrast). She meets the son of a wealthy family who is given a coffee shop to take over and make successful and he enlists the help of her (though he believed her a guy). They both eventually fall in love, though he doesn't know of her true nature until later. It's funny and great and I love it! I've been getting strong urges to re-watch it again. I most likely will before I leave for China.

I watched this at MySoju.


SOME OF MY FAVORITE YOUTUBE VIDEOS

Summer Time MV - NEWS
Japanese

This is essentially the MV to one of the more recent songs from NEWS. It is ADORABLE. My favorite scene is around the 3-minute mark. :) Here are the lyrics (they're on the right).

Sour Sweet MV - Fahrenheit and S.H.E
Taiwanese

This is the MV for Fahrenheit and S.H.E's new song for a yoghurt drink commercial. It's really fun and happy. :) Here are the lyrics. You can download the song here.

Japanese Show on Japanese-English
Japanese

Seeing from the title of this, I obviously do not have the talent for making up catchy titles - nonetheless, this is one of my most favorite YouTube videos of all time. It is basically a Japanese show on a group of Japanese high school students who are shown a tape of a Japanese comedian speaking "English" (and no, he is not faking it - his English really is lacking). The point of the show is that they are not allowed to laugh (which is REALLY hard) but if they do, they're punished rather painfully. Anyway - just WATCH IT. :)

Miyavi as a Chipmunk
Japanese

Miyavi is a J-rock musician and very hyperactive. He is absolutely adorable - and random - in this video and I love it! I wasn't as into Miyavi as my sister, but after watching this, I got rather interested. :) He ROCKS!!

Shingo Mama and Gackt
Japanese

This is a clip of a Japanese show and it is really funny, about the host, Shingo Mama, and Gackt, an eccentric J-rock/pop musician (and one of the first Asian musicians that I listened to when I just started). There are no subtitles but everything's pretty much self-explanatory. :)

And, of course, the classic MVs of the stereotypical Asian, tear-jerking genre: Tong Hua (the singer, Guang Liang, is Malaysian) and Kiss (Korean). Then, there's also the Until You Come Back MV (Korean boyband, FT Island). It's not quite on the same level as the aforementioned MVs, but it's up there and it's nestled itself in me.

My Wish List

My sister, dad, and I went out today and one of the places we went to was to a music store in Hong Kong City Mall. I wanted to go there because they sold DVDs and CDs of various Asian stars as well as boxed sets of Chinese, Taiwanese, and Korean dramas. (It's pretty nifty.) My sister and I ended up getting a DVD of Soler's Intuition Concert for $7 and the DVD for the Korean movie, 꽃미남 연쇄 테러 사건, or Attack of the Pin Up Boys (the Chinese title is 花美男恐怖袭击事件). While there, though, I realized that I wanted a lot of things - but they were just too expensive!! Here's a small list. :)

The DVD Boxed Set of the Taiwanese Hana-Kimi
(aka Hua Yang Shao Nian Shao Nu)

I saw it at the store, but it was $70! I'm sorry, but no matter how much I love the series, I just don't have the money to spend that much on a single thing. I'll just have to wait, then. On YesAsia, it seems to be about $66, but considering the fact that it doesn't include shipping and handling, it'll amount to about the same. It's currently the only drama series that is permanently stored on my laptop, but I might need more room on my hard drive! It doesn't matter that I've seen this drama about five times already - it ROCKS!!

The DVD Boxed Set of Coffee Prince
(aka The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince/커피프린스 1호점)

I also encountered this masterpiece at the store as well. :) It's my first Korean drama so it holds a special spot in my heart. On the plus side, it was cheaper than Hana-Kimi. On the bottom side, it was only about ten dollars cheaper. I actually forgot the price, but I'm sure it's either $50 or $40 - not that it makes much of a difference, because I'm cheap. So, again, I have to look from afar. However, on YesAsia, it seems to be exponentially more expensive at $95.

I do, most likely, have more items I'd wish to purchase in the Asian Entertainment category, but those are the main ones that I found at the store. If I had to list EVERYTHING, it would take a REALLY long time, and dwelling on these things isn't very healthy. :)

Note: I'm currently watching My Lucky Star (放羊的星星) so I'll be blogging about it soon. :)

The First Shop of Coffee Prince

I just finished watching my first Korean drama and it was rather good. I suppose this will be a start to me watching Korean dramas, instead of the Japanese and Taiwanese ones I tend to go for. It's titled The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince (커피프린스 1호점 ), or simply known as just Coffee Prince (wiki version here). It stars Yoon Eun Hye (윤은혜), Gong Yoo (공유), Lee Sun Gyun (이선균), Chae Jung Ahn (채정안), as well as Kim Jae Wook (김재욱), Kim Dong Wook (김동욱), and Lee Un (이언) as the other Coffee Princes. The summary from DramaWiki is as follows:

The life of Go Eun Chan is not easy; she works many jobs to pay off debts and even gave up her feminine image. Choi Han Kyul is the heir of a big food company, but his grandmother wants him to settle down, so she arranged many dates for him. After Eun Chan bumped into Han Kyul and was mistaken for a boy, Han Kyul decided to hire Eun Chan to be his gay lover in order to avoid the arranged dates. Desperately in need of money, Eun Chan had no choice but to accept. Han Kyul's grandmother also made Han Kyul in charge of a filthy coffee shop in danger of being bankrupt. Eun Chan begged to work at the coffee shop, and not long after, feelings start to spark, except, how would Han Kyul accept his "homosexuality"?

I actually had a pretty good impression with this as my first Korean drama. It was very nice and slow-moving - though in a good way (the characters were believable and relationships seemed real). The situations were sweet and there were many funny moments. I found myself pausing the scene and running around the house when I was just too excited for the characters or if I couldn't believe if something happened. :) Needless to say, my emotions got really involved! Even so, that love... square type thing gave me a bit of a headache - but it was a drama. And, of course, there were those moments when the people are happy for practically two minutes then something comes up. I did love the entire drama, though, and even though Go Eun Chan did look like a boy, when she dressed up - she was totally believable as a girl. That must have been hard!

One last thing on this: when it ended I was sad, because I really love the drama and it was at a close. It also has a potential for a sequel, though I recall reading somewhere that it might not happen or will be postponed as Gong Yoo, one of the main characters, will be joining the army. >_<>