As I’ve grown older, I have finally appreciated staying at home more often. This quarantine period is not a hardship for me because holing up in my bedroom is something I missed since I got a day job. I can while away the entire day lying on my bed, reading, watching TV or movies, playing games on my phone, among other things.
I hardly ever watched any TV series since The Big Bang Theory ended. I was a regular at watching these starting from Friends, Prison Break, Grey’s Anatomy, Weeds, How I Met Your Mother, The Sopranos and Revenge.
A friend introduced me to this series and I never regretted watching. I always had fun watching every episode as it often brought out the nerd in me. Penny (Kaley Cuoco) was the proper antithesis to these scientists and amazed me with how clueless she was. Unfortunately, they ended after 12 seasons but most of their shows are still saved in my computer. I can still watch them any time.
Later on, I usually just watched movies on Netflix or the big screen when I wanted to do relax or unwind. My fiancee thinks watching movies and subsequently sleeping is a great way to spend the weekend, especially if we aren’t traveling. Due to my work, I also didn’t have much time to devote to any TV series because I would rather spend my free time sleeping. I started watching a few such as The Outlander, Designated Survivor and Money Heist but ended up to the just first few episodes only. I even tried The Game of Thrones but couldn’t go further than Season 1, Episode 1. Honestly, I didn’t last more than 5 minutes. I felt it too gruesome so I stopped. I am not really a fan of fighting and blood and knives and swords and such.
Last month, a friend told me to start with Crash Landing on You on Netflix. I told her the only Korean Drama I ever saw was That Winter the Wind Blows and that was probably 10 years ago.
I told her I liked watching it because both the lead stars were good looking. I mean look at that pretty woman, right? And guy looks like a manly man. But since I didn’t really have much to do, I gave in.
I watched Crash Landing on You on Netflix. I started Episode 1 on a Tuesday and finished it on a Saturday. I then watched Episode 2-4 with the fiancee and when I got to Episode 5, I was hooked. Would you believe me if I told you I finished the whole series in the next two days? And that I actually slept at 5 in the morning to complete the entire series. Captain Ri (Hyun Bin) was so perfect and he was like the ideal man you never knew you needed. I liked the story line because it was carefully woven and makes you realize that there are people whom you have already met previously but cannot even recall them. The story about a man from North Korea and a woman from South Korea was probably an old thing for them but for a K-drama newbie for me, it was a fantastic plot. When I was done watching that series, I looked up Hyun Bin and found out we actually share the SAME BIRTHDAY. Like seriously! And I had also seen him in a movie, The Swindlers (on Facebook) and Memories of the Alhambra (on Netflix) although I stopped at 3 episodes because it was for gamers and I couldn’t really appreciate both lead stars’ chemistry. All I remember about him was that he was good looking but wasn’t that interested until now.
Once I was done with CLOY, my friends urged me to watch Descendants of the Sun. The female lead is the same one from That Winter the Wind Blows and apparently, these two lovebirds actually got married (and eventually divorced) in real life. I like this drama as well because it was action-packed but still light and heartwarming. It wasn’t the tear-jerker that Crash Landing on You was, so that was a relief. The second lead stars had a more dramatic love story and the rest of the cast were great characters too so it really is worth your time.
Talking with the rest of my K-drama loving friends made me realize how many I still have to catch up on. Apparently, I NEEDED to watch Itaewon Class, Goblin, My Love from the Star, Something in the Rain, The K2, Arthdal Chronicles and Worlds Within. Considering that I might not have a lot of time to watch is fine with me. At least I have these titles to look forward to in the coming months.
So if you’re wondering what to do with your free time in this COVID-19 home stay, I suggest you do as I did. Fall in love with Captain Ri and Se-ri. Totally worth your tears, I swear. Otherwise, you can also bake. Haha!
Mole on my Foot 