Stories without Borders
The most interesting thing about Ex-Girlfriend Club from the beginning was how the simple story of Soo-Jin and Myeong-Soo’s friendship was transformed and took on a different meaning every time we learned something new. In the first three weeks of the series, each installment left us with a new impression of what happened back then and … Read more
Episodes 17 and 18 of Hwajung (aka Splendid Politics) deliver the pay-off we’ve awaited since early in the series. The Queen Mother’s arrest forces the princess to reveal her identity. After last week’s episodes, which occasionally got bogged down in MIBTIR (Men in Beards Talking in Rooms), it was a good change of pace. The … Read more
Joo-Won is horrified to discover Hwa-Yi is a girl. He can be so tough and resourceful sometimes, but offend his propriety and he’s got no idea what to do. It’s hard to say what bothers him more, the fact that Hwa-Yi has lied to him, or the fact that Joo-Won has accidentally spent time with … Read more
I’m loving Ex-Girlfriend Club more than any of the other new shows. It’s primarily a comedy, with hints of real emotions underneath. But episode 3 begs the question, why does Soo-Jin think she and Myeong-Soo were going out? This misunderstanding isn’t the central premise of the show. The story is really about dramatizing Myeong-Soo’s webtoon. … Read more
This week, the adult actors have settled into their roles and look more assured. Episode 9 starts slow, setting up the action to come, but when things get going, Hwajung delivers some dynamite scenes. At the end of episode 10, I was desperate for what’s next. I’m surprised at how quickly things are unfolding—the princess has grown … Read more