What was your first drama?

[jenny]

I was just wondering how long everybody has been watching the 6:00 drama on KBC? I've heard some references to shows as far back as Dear Encounter and More Than Words Can Say (my personal favorite!). I started watching Ties That Bind in 1997. Let's take an inventory of everyone's first drama! Because you always remember your first .

[mikey]

Actually, I really can't remember my first Korean drama. I do remember stumbling upon them entirely by accident a few years back, and I quickly concluded that they were so inferior to Japanese dramas that they weren’t even worth tape recording (I vaguely remember one series called “Our House,” but – aside from its weirdly cute theme song – it left little impression on me).

I still had that smug attitude towards Korean dramas when “Dear Encounter” began, and by the end of the first week I was kicking myself for not tape recording it from the very beginning. That was my first exposure to a really superior Korean drama. Since that time, if anything, the quality of Korean dramas had steadily improved, while my once favorite Japanese dramas continue to go downhill. Korea really whips Japan in the TV drama department these days.

[yobo]

I'm afraid I'm at a bit of a disadvantage here because I've been watching these dramas for so long I can't say for sure what my first was, tho I've believed for some time that it was Missing You which ran in and around '94 and was about twice as long as its current counterparts but I didn't watch all the way through, and there were some I looked in on before that without subtitles. It would be cool to reminisce online about some of our favorites but I need a refresher course on which titles go with which characters/stories.

[Knov1]

Wait .. are we talking first 6:00 drama or just first ever drama overall? Hmm .. I have no idea what the first 6:00 drama I watched was ... I don't usually watch those anyways since they're so long and it's hard for me to keep up with them because of the time they're given at. The first drama I ever watched was 'First Love'. It starred Choi Soo Jung (Emperor Wang Guhn, On The Green Prairie), Lee Seung Yeon (Who's My Love, Wedding Dress), Bae Yong Jun (Winter Love Song) and Choi Ji Woo (Winter Love Song). It aired here in 96-97.

[Cadie]

mikey said:

I do remember stumbling upon them entirely by accident a few years back, and I quickly concluded that they were so inferior to Japanese dramas that they weren’t even worth tape recording

I started watching Korean dramas because they were on the same station as my Japanese dramas, and I too remember thinking they were vastly inferior to Japanese dramas. For one thing, the acting was horrible. During the crying scenes, you really had to search to see one little tear drop. Well, things have really changed. The acting improved by leaps! Also, there is more variety in the storylines. Several years back, you would never see the main heroine with a baby out of wedlock.
Now, I never watch Japanese dramas (Is it just me or have the storylines gotten increasingly bizarre?). All I watch are Korean dramas. Heck, I am up early on a Labor Day weekend morning reading the Korean drama boards!

As for my first Korean drama, I can't remember what it was. The first Korean drama that I liked was called Hourglass or something like that (I can never remember the titles and character names). It was one of the first Korean dramas (that I saw) which dealt with current political and social issues.

[Soju]

One day, I was trying to see how many stations I could receive, and stumbled across 'Tender Hearts'.

I remembered a scene from the show 'Caroline in the City', where the characters watch "that Korean soap opera", and try to figure out what's going on with "chain smoking man" and "long fingernails woman". I saw that TH had subtitles, and thought, "I don't have to guess what happening".

I saw something about Donguk and Yoonju being brother and sister, and had to watch again to find if that was so. In a few days, I was hooked.

I was so sad when TH ended, but then found that I enjoyed "So This is Love" even more. It remained my favorite until YH.

[mikey]

Cadie said:

Now, I never watch Japanese dramas (Is it just me or have the storylines gotten increasingly bizarre?).

Boy, are you right about that. Seems like every new drama out of Japan these days is about gangsters or witchcraft, and most of them are really awful (though one such Japanese drama might be worth a look if it makes it to Chicago: “Trick,” about a magician’s daughter who sets out to prove that a cult leader is a fraud. Just started running in Los Angeles, and so far it’s a little weird but still not bad).

Actually, I was very prejudiced against the new Korean series “Bodyguard” (which replaced “On the Green Prairie” in Los Angeles) since the previews made it look like a copycat version of one of those endless Japanese gangster dramas. Shouldn’t have worried: the Koreans have their own way of doing things, and “Bodyguard” is moving along quite nicely here in Los Angeles (we’re up to episode #6). If it makes it to Chicago it will be very much worth watching.

Mikey

[yobo]

With all these references to Japanese duramas, could anyone tell me if any have ever been shown in Chicago, and were/are they subtitled?

[Cadie]

mikey said:

Actually, I was very prejudiced against the new Korean series “Bodyguard” (which replaced “On the Green Prairie” in Los Angeles) since the previews made it look like a copycat version of one of those endless Japanese gangster dramas. Shouldn’t have worried: the Koreans have their own way of doing things, and “Bodyguard” is moving along quite nicely here in Los Angeles (we’re up to episode #6). If it makes it to Chicago it will be very much worth watching.

So true! I was never a fan of "Green Prairie" until the latter episodes, but I am already hooked on "Bodyguard".

[humble]

my first drama was the one before yellow handerchief. the one that was on wenesday and thrusday at 8pm. cannot rember the name of it those. I love the yelllow handerchief. I used to watch america soap oprea but now I hate them these are great. even my daughter really likes them.

[spanishlady]

The first one I can remember is "Ties that Bind" I believe the woman who plays JY grandmother on Yellow Hankerchief was on it. I also remember one called "Love and Success" that was pretty good as well.
One of my favorite actors played in both of these. He's an older actor and came out in "More that Words can Say", "Sang-Do", "Oriental Theatre", "Dear Encounter" )whose ending I did not care for one bit) and the first 2 mentioned on my email. If anyone knows who I am referring to and knows his name please let me know.
I even watched the ones without subtitles and basically just watched their actions and figured out what the story was that way.

[jenny]

One of my favorite actors played in both of these. He's an older actor and came out in "More that Words can Say", "Sang-Do", "Oriental Theatre", "Dear Encounter" )whose ending I did not care for one bit) and the first 2 mentioned on my email. If anyone knows who I am referring to and knows his name please let me know.

Try this website: www.koreanwiz.org/actors.html. It is a photo album of popular Korean tv actors. It also includes their names, birthdays, past tv shows and movies. I hope you can find the actor you are looking for, I can't think of who he is!

[galacticchick]

My first drama was also Tender Hearts. For those people who watch Japanese dramas, I have one question: Do the dramas you watch have subtitles?

I ask because my brother is a big fan of Japan, and when he asked someone from International Channel about why they didn't subtitle the dramas they gave him the excuse that it was because the Japanese government doesn't want to subtitle their dramas because they are meant for Japanese audiences only.

That was kind of mean. What if we didn't want to subtitle our movies?

[candy]

::)well lets see, i don't remember the name of the drama but Choi Soo Jung was the leading actor, i think, it was around '95 or '95, but i couldn't understand a thing, even if it had subtitles 'cause i had just arrived to U.S., then i stopped watching until "First Love" appeared which is one of my absolute favorites,btw can anyone tell me if at the end choi soo jung stayed with the love of his life or what? 'cause i remember that at the end they showed some letters but they weren't translated, and the girl only looked at him, but they never really talked, so anyone knows what happened?

[mikey]

galacticchick said:

My first drama was also Tender Hearts. For those people who watch Japanese dramas, I have one question: Do the dramas you watch have subtitles?

I ask because my brother is a big fan of Japan, and when he asked someone from International Channel about why they didn't subtitle the dramas they gave him the excuse that it was because the Japanese government doesn't want to subtitle their dramas because they are meant for Japanese audiences only.

That was kind of mean. What if we didn't want to subtitle our movies?

The guy from the International Channel is partly right. One of Japan’s major TV networks (Fuji-TV) produces some fine dramas, but a few years back they issued a directive forbidding any English subtitling of their dramas on the grounds that they are only intended for viewing by Japanese nationals living in America. I’m not sure if it was because the Japanese viewers complained (sometimes subtitles can be annoying – I’ve tried watching English-language shows with Spanish subtitling and it was tougher than I expected) or if it was just simple, old-fashioned Japanese arrogance on the part of Fuji-TV.

However, I think that Fuji-TV is the only major Japanese network that forbids English subtitles. Tokyo Broadcasting System (usually called TBS, though it has nothing to do with Ted Turner’s network) sometimes comes up with a few good dramas, and they do allow subtitling, as does TV-Asahi (the producers of the drama “Trick,” which I mentioned earlier).

A special mention has to go to Japan’s NHK network. NHK is partly (or wholly, I’m not sure) owned by the Japanese government, and they seem to consider it desirable to educate foreigners about Japanese culture. They freely allow subtitling, though I have to say that their dramas are often pretty lackluster (their historical dramas, in particular, usually seem as if the script came straight out of a high-school history textbook – *yawn*). But they do make special efforts to support their international audience, even going so far as to broadcast bilingual Japanese/English news and sports coverage (not subtitles – last I checked, they actually have an English-speaking American guy doing the commentary during NHK’s coverage of sumo wrestling)!

Of course, ultimately it’s up to a TV station in your viewing area to broadcast some of these subtitled Japanese dramas, and I’m not sure if any of the Chicago area stations has elected to take them on. A shame, really. Japanese culture is quite a bit different from Korean culture, and these Japanese dramas can open up a whole new world to us, just as our favorite English-subtitled Korean dramas have.