K-Drama School

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Castaway Diva (2023, tvN) written by Park Hye-ryun starring Park Eun-bin, Kim Hyo-jin, Chae Jong-hyeop, Cha Hak-yeon of VIXX and Kim Joo-hun. Grace admires actress Park Eun-bin and her extraordinary acting abilities where she shines playing weirdo characters. Grace critiques the ridiculous ageism and sexism of the Korean entertainment industry by treating a...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses an old school K-drama called Into the Sunlight (1999, MBC) starring Kim Hyun-joo, Kim Ha-neul, Cha Tae-hyun and Jang Hyuk. Grace’s new book K-Drama School: A Pop Culture Inquiry into Why We Love Korean Television is available now for pre-order on Amazon. Release date is April 23, 2024: https://shorturl.at/fAFY1 . Please visit K-Drama School’s Patreon page to support...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Destined with You (2023, Netflix) starring Rowoon and Jo Bo-ah. Grace is disappointed by K-dramas’ boring trope of past lives coming back to haunt couples in the present life. She wants to see something new. Grace discusses Jo Bo-ah’s co-hosting gig on Baek Jong-won’s Back Alley with chef and restauranteur Baek Jong-won and Kim Sung-joo. Grace also admires...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Daily Dose of Sunshine (2023, Netflix). The show stars actress Park Bo-young and tackles mental illness stigma, socio-cultural factors that contribute to mental illness, and the helplessness that people feel. Grace is still battling a cold, and her psychologist is telling her to quit therapy because she’s all better. Grace also discusses her first sangha ex...

No K-drama today. School is closed because the host is ill. Get your flu shots!

No K-drama coverage today. Grace is home visiting her parents for the first time in 7 years and is having mystical encounters with friends, animals, and family. It’s a wild time. Grace’s new book K-Drama School: A Pop Culture Inquiry into Why We Love Korean Television is available now for pre-order on Amazon. Release date is April 23, 2024: https://shorturl.at/fAFY1 . Please visit K-Drama School’s...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Doona! (2023, Netflix) starring K-pop star Bae Suzy formerly of Miss A and actor Yang Se-jong. Grace borrows a concept called the “superfemale” named in Richard Dyer’s 1979 star studies text Stars to analyze Doona’s K-pop star figure as a superfemale archetype. Grace is also humbled by the show’s ending and pleasantly surprised by its maturity. Grace’s new...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show The Light in Your Eyes (2019, JTBC) starring veteran K-drama actress Kim Hye-ja. Kim Hye-ja’s first Korean TV series entitled Frog Husband (1969) which was controversial but showed MBC and its competitors that TV viewers want scandal. Kim Hye-ja is also famous for speaking up on her frustration for being older and more experienced and a better actress in he...

Grace reviews a few shows from the past that are ideal for autumn viewing to chase those fall blues away such as Autumn in My Heart, Something in the Rain, and Now, We Are Breaking Up. All three shows are romantic K-dramas with a depressive tone that captures the seasonal changes that people feel around this time of the year. Grace recommends watching Autumn in My Heart to compare against Now, We...

[Spoiler Alert] K-Drama School: A Pop Culture Inquiry into Why We Love Korean Television now has a pre-order link available on Amazon! Release date has been updated to April 23, 2024. Grace discusses the show Behind Your Touch (2023, JTBC) written by Lee Nam-kyu and directed by Kim Suk-yoon who also directed My Liberation Notes . Grace brings up the concept of the gireogi dad, dabang, and rural vi...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Miraculous Brothers (2023, JTBC). The show is written by Kim Ji-woo whose TV screenwriting days date back to 2001 with Stock Flower . The show stars Jung Woo, Bae Hyun-sung, Park Yu-rim, Oh Man-seok and Lee Ki-woo. Themes include rationalizing one’s personal shame and the importance of tending to one’s own pain rather than only externalizing through action...

No K-drama today. Grace’s SoCal comedian buddy Viet Nguyen returns as a guest. They chat outside a coffee house in Long Beach. Viet teaches Grace how to say “cheers” in Vietnamese and drops knowledge on the Vietcong’s history. They talk about bulldogs, Japanese dogs, Asian aliens, Transformers, Shia Labeouf, parents, war, independence from authoritative influence, and autonomy. Grace recommends th...

No K-drama today. Grace discusses how long it took her to go completely blonde, and her experience drinking cacao. Grace recommends that you visit K-Drama School’s Patron page: http://www.patreon.com/kdramaschool . She'll upload weekly posts covering all shows and movies that are not K-dramas. Grace also recommends that you visit the K-Drama School Store at http://www.kdramaschool/com/store . She...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Glitch (2022, Netflix) directed by filmmaker Roh Deok and written by Jin Han-sae who also wrote Extracurricular and. It stars Jeon Yeo-been and Nana from the K-pop group After School and the series Mask Girl. Grace observes the show’s exploration of UFOs, aliens, queerness, and objective/subjective reality. Follow @KDramaSchool on Instagram, Twitter and Tik...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace celebrates the early phase of the full moon in Pisces—this month’s second Super Moon, and it is blue! She also celebrates finding a hat she loved and lost from five years ago. This week, Grace covers the show Mask Girl (2023, Netflix) which stars Lee Han-byul, Nana, Go Hyun-jung, Ahn Jae-hong and Yeom Hye-ran and explores lookism through black comedy and psychological thrill....

[Spoiler Alert] Grace is obsessed with a new Korean sparkling water called Cloop which is grape flavored and comes with a plastic cap to keep the water carbonated longer. Hell yeah. (Not a sponsored ad!) She also plays the xylophone a bit as promised. This week, Grace discusses season 2 of DP and male Korean filmmakers’ infernal cynicism which she is tired of. She also sees the goodness of show’s...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the director’s cut version of Anna (Coupang Play, 2022) based on the novel Intimate Stranger by Chung Han-ah, adapted for the screen by female writer/director Lee Zoo-young. The show stars Bae Suzy, Jung Eun-chae, Kim Jung-han and Park Ye-young. Anna was marred in controversy because the executives of Coupang Play recut the show without the director’s consent or app...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show King the Land (JTBC, 2023) written by Choi Rom starring Im Yoon-ah of Girls Generation and Lee Jun-ho of 2PM. Grace analyzes the show’s politicized recognition of emotional labor jobs like hospitality, retail and flight attendance occupied by women. Grace dedicates this episode to her late friend Tuim Kim Weaver who survived Japanese occupation, the Korean...

No K-drama coverage today. Grace is on a saga. She goes to the ER after carbon monoxide exposure in her home. She records the podcast in real time with the event as it unfolds. She apologizes for the poor quality of the recording. She promises to cover King the Land next week. She also appreciates her beloved listeners. 🫰 Follow @KDramaSchool on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. Visit https://www.kd...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show See You in My 19th Life (tvN, 2023) based on a webtoon by Lee Hye, written by Choi Young-rim and directed by Lee Na-jeong. The show explores the theme of past lives which Grace sees as a metaphor for negative flashbacks. How to let go of past memories that feel so real? Grace also discusses her experience of seeing Barbie (2023) in theaters, and her fantasy...

No K-drama. Grace talks about World of the Married and why the ending of the pilot was so appealing to her. She also talks about Fight Club and the ending of that film, and what it means in terms of her mental/emotional/physical health journey up until now. Grace mentions that she is watching See You in My 19th Life and King the Land so those are two shows you can keep up with her until she discus...

No K-drama today. Grace repaints a self-portrait she painted back in July 2013. What did she paint ten years later? Who is she today? Grace offers a few pointers for you to carry in your back pocket this week.

Grace plays with her caterpillar xylophone to honor her inner joy and talks about a baby pet pig neighbor she sees every week. She discusses the past week’s journey to taking care of her physical, mental and emotional well-being and what that’s triggered for her. Grace shows her appreciation for her friends, doctors, and figures like Tara Brach. [Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Bloodhounds...

No K-drama this week. Grace has decided to continue dropping new episodes every Monday regardless of whether or not she has a show to discuss. Sans make-up, Grace celebrates meeting her weight loss goal, running into angelic saviors in the most unexpected places and finally understanding what all her defensive mental dialoguing means. This episode is dedicated to Minnie and K-Drama School fans who...

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Lost (2021, JTBC) which stars Jeon Do-yeon and Ryu Jun-yeol. The show dwells on themes of existential loneliness, hitting rock bottom, and seeking a way to love freely. The show is directed by Hur Jin-ho and written by Kim Ji-hye. Grace discusses the culture of South Korean host bars that cater to women with money and stand-in services where sex workers and...