Roxy's Top 9 Korean Dramas of 2012 P1

I know what you’re thinking. “Why only 9? 9 is such an odd number for a top list. Why not just add one and make it top 10?” Well, all nine dramas in this list are in a league of their own. The only drama that I could think of for the tenth spot (and that I’ve watched) is ‘good’ at best, and including that kind of drama among these gems would seem like such a travesty.

Some might say it’s a little late, but I think now’s a good time to look back on 2012’s dramas. Before making this list, I had no idea that 2012 had put out this much A+ material. But it does make sense given that the top two dramas in MDL come from 2012. That says something, right? As for spoilers, I was careful about not including any so no worries.

I know a lot of you would be bummed to see their precious favorite dramas get bashed, have their flaws said out loud and even be in denial: “B-but *insert drama name* is flawless!” Sadly no drama is flawless, so I figure I should write each respective drama’s flaws as well, but you’ll see that I also wrote reasons why these flaws should be overlooked on little arrows for potential watchers. Don’t wanna scare ‘em off y’know. And oh, since it was a year of time travels, think about this one thing as you read through this list: Only one of those time travel dramas made the cut. Which one is it?

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9. King 2 Hearts


You’re probably thinking, “What? King 2 Hearts is only 9th? This better be an awesome list then.” Yes, it is a pretty awesome list. So why not check out the list first before writing that hate mail? King 2 Hearts definitely had one of the most epic love stories of the year. It delivered a sweeping romance that triumphs over war. To ignite a war, you have to go through these two, like literally. Forget bickery love-hate romance (though they did have that). This kind wins, hands down. A major plus I would give the drama, also, is that the hero actually confides in the heroine and trusts her to save the day. I know, right?
No less than the romance, King 2 Hearts was also about Jae Ha’s growth as a king. Jae Ha started off as someone who didn’t believe in the monarchy and thinks it’s a sham, and we see his journey as he ultimately grows into a worthy king. It was definitely a marvel to watch his growth throughout the drama and King 2 Hearts did such a fantastic job with his character. I should also mention Jo Jung Seok’s fantastic portrayal of such an earnest and adorable character, Eun Si Kyung, as well as Lee Yoon Ji who stole scenes, as usual.

Flaws: What’s with the English speakers? They are terrible actors, and the fact that they get like 15 minutes per episode is ridiculous. When they show up I just tune out, and that’s definitely not a good thing. You have to hook your audience for the whole time that hour’s ticking and I think King 2 Hearts didn’t deliver on that front.

15 minutes of "meh" and 45 minutes of awesome. Take it or leave it. King 2 Hearts may be my least favorite on this list, but it did everything it set out to do.

8. Nice Guy


I'd argue that this drama is probably the most popular of 2012; all the buzz was sometimes even fun to watch. But does Nice Guy live up to that?
The right words to describe Nice Guy would probably be entertaining and addicting. The strength relies on its fast-paced (sometimes to the point of insanity) narrative. Events after events transpire before our eyes, and we're left glued to the screen. There's just something so intriguing about watching people mess up each other's lives. I don't think Nice Guy did anything terribly new, although a lot of you guys would argue that it was a classic. The thing is, I actually thought Nice Guy was a masterpiece while I was watching. It was sort of like I was brainwashed throughout the drama into thinking it was some work of art because if you actually take a second to notice the drama's quality, you'd see that everything that was happening was just conventional stuff. The way everything was presented made it very compelling. I think the writer is to be credited for that.

Half of Nice Guy’s appeal comes from the acting. There were strong performances left and right. Song Joong Ki played the fascinatingly twisted nice guy (or is he?) Ma Ru marvelously. Moon Chae Won played a great amnesiac, and I had fun hating Park Si Yeon’s Jae Hee, so she did wonderfully. Also, did I mention that Song Joong Ki and Moon Chae Won had such fantastic chemistry?

Flaws: I felt zero emotional connection to anyone in this drama. Probably because everyone’s actions in the entire drama were so severe that it was hard to relate to them. Extreme events from extreme characters, you’d have to experience a whole different kind of crisis to be able to relate. Also, Nice Guy is addictive as a whole, but I feel that the first few episodes were on a different level. I was on the edge of my seat from all the intensity, but when the amnesia hit I feel that the earlier addiction high fizzled. The amnesia sucked the life out of such a headstrong heroine in Seo Eun Gi.

Yes, being able to relate is a plus but you don’t have to relate to the characters to care about them. And Nice Guy was engaging enough for me to want to know how each character turns out. As a whole, I still don’t know what to make out of Nice Guy even now. Do I think it was over-hyped? Yes. But I know for sure I had a whole lotta fun.

7. Arang and the Magistrate



Arang and the Magistrate was the most creative in terms of creating its own fictional world out of all the dramas 2012 had to offer. It had grim reapers, ghosts, a God who plays baduk, a goat who grows leaves (I’m serious!). Can anything else top that?

What Arang and the Magistrate did incredibly well on was the writing. Sure it had other goods up its sleeves like for instance, the gorgeous soundtrack and the strong acting (honorable mention to Yeon Woo Jin’s portrayal of Joo Wal that allows you to sympathize with him even when he was *insert spoiler*). But I feel that all those are inferior to the writing. Arang and the Magistrate remained mysterious enough throughout the drama that I was kept guessing every episode. Secrets get revealed not too long and not too fast, but at just the right pace. The drama feeds us bits and pieces of the truth but not too much that it becomes anticlimactic, just enough to keep us hooked.

My most favorite thing about Arang and the Magistrate was probably the romance between Arang and Eun Oh. They didn’t have to show much physical contact (it’s a sageuk, that’s a given) to show the viewer their connection. They are hands down my 2nd favorite couple of 2012. What helped was the stirring chemistry between Shin Min Ah and Lee Jun Ki. I had never liked Lee Jun Ki as much as I loved him in this drama and Shin Min Ah played a hilarious ghost with so much tenacity.
Flaws: I mentioned that Arang and the Magistrate was the most creative, but I have to say that the way it was presented was… awful. The effects were laughable and cringe worthy. That’s what getting used to American movies and their incredibly believable effects would do to you. The plot also slowed down at times and nothing much was happening. So for a drama that was mostly carried by the writing, it got a bit boring.

No amount of fancy effects could ever compensate for bad writing. Arang and the Magistrate could have the most advanced effects, but without the writing, it would lose half of its appeal. So I appreciate everything I got. The plot did slow down at times, but the writing was solid for the most part

6. History of the Salaryman


I can never find a word to describe Salaryman as a whole. Is it a comedy? A romance? About politics? Revenge? Salaryman was definitely a whole lot of things and some might say to a fault, but it mixed all these things together so skillfully that it just worked. When it wanted to be funny, it made my stomach hurt from laughing, when it wanted to be emotional, it tugged at my heartstrings and got me on the verge of tears, and when it wanted to be smart, it made me fist pump in the air. Who would have thought that politics could be so interesting and intense to watch before this drama? Also, for a non-action drama, there is also some literal butt kicking here and there. Just twisted a tiny weeny bit to allow room for laughs, in slow motion and all. *insert random sprinklers going off*

The acting was very strong and consistent throughout this drama. Salaryman boasted fantastic performances all around. Lee Beom Soo was so hilarious, and I knew Hong Soo Hyun would make it big ever since Lie to Me, and she definitely delivered. Jung Kyeo Won was okay; I thought he was the weakest of the four leads, but when it came down to showing emotional gravitas, I thought he held up well. That face was pretty priceless though.

But the real standout was definitely Jung Ryeo Won. ‘Jesus Christmas!’ she was utterly bleeping hilarious as Yeo Chi but especially in her emotional scenes, the way she acts Yeo Chi's emotional vulnerabilities, I'm a goner. It’s also a major plus that she had the best character in the show. The thing about Yeo Chi is that she's so foul-mouthed, bratty, and spoiled on the surface that when she stops and shows us flashes of vulnerabilities we can't help but take notice. It creates a bigger impact and Yeo Chi’s character growth was one to marvel at. There were many things Salaryman did great but, in my opinion, none greater than the way they handled her character. I’m dumbfounded watching her character back in the first episode and seeing how much she had grown. She cursed her way right to my heart and made her my most favorite female character of 2012. Maybe ever.
Flaws: I said before that the political mechanisms of the drama were intense, but in truth, it took me a while to get invested in that aspect of the drama. And the fact that the drama's first few episodes required a lot of scenes without any of our four main leads to introduce that aspect of the drama just made it 2 times worse. At that point in time, I only cared for our four leads so then when you give me 20 minutes of screen time without characters I care about, then I tune out.

I think this should be overlooked because when that political and company-takeover extravaganza started becoming interesting, not only was it intense, but boy did I fall head over heels. And I'm not saying that the beginning of the drama was a snooze-fest, Salaryman started off pretty darn hilarious in a sort of crazy wacky way, and it just gets better from then. And we also got our fair share of our four leads, being cute and all

TO BE CONTINUED...

And that’s not because I just like being a troll (I swear!). This list is split in half because, well… it takes time. The rest will be continued for part 2 which… I’ve only barely (an understatement) started. The earliest it would be available is probably by next week, but if you consider lazy pants like me, don’t count on it too much

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Do you have any drama you know that is well-deserving of the unfilled 10th spot? If so, just write it down in the comments. Any volunteers to write down a mini review for it (no spoilers!) with photos, just like the one I did, are welcome. Credits will be given, and it will be included in the part 2. Just message me first before doing anything. And what’s your prediction of the top 5 in the coming part 2? What’s your own top 6-9?