CNBLUE Can't Stop Tour 2014

The guys are coming back to Manila and I need to be there!!! I caught their Blue Moon concert last year and had so much fun. Possibly one of the best concerts I've ever been to. Not only because they sounded flawless live, but also because of how much effort they had put into connecting with their fans. The endless banter they exchanged with the Filipino audience was endearing because they endeavored to speak not just in English but also in Tagalog. And even when they spoke in Korean, most of the fans could still understand.

One of my favorite moments from last year's concert was when bassist Jungshin noticed the audience responding even to their banter in Korean and so reverted to his native tongue to ask the audience a few things.

Jungshin: 재밌어요? [Are you having fun?]
Fans: 네! [Yes!]
Jungshin: 여러분 재밌어요? [Everybody, are you having fun?]
Fans: 네! [Yes!]
Jungshin: 한국말 알아요? [Do you understand Korean?]
Fans: 네! [Yes!]
Jungshin: 대박! [(Daebak) Awesome!]
Fans: /screaming/
Jungshin: 필리핀 대박! [The Philippines is awesome!]
Fans: /more screaming/

And who could even try to forget the entire conversation the 3 other guys had in full Tagalog as they conspired with the fans to surprise Yonghwa for his upcoming birthday? It was beyond fantastic.

It's not flawless Tagalog (or English), but still. They're the only foreign artist I've watched live who dared to speak this much Tagalog. Ever. Sandara Park totally does not count.

So, even though I'm not exactly rolling in cash right now (what with my upcoming trip to Seoul), I kind of really want to catch the boys in concert again. Especially now that my appreciation of them goes way beyond just Yonghwa and Jonghyun. Jungshin and Minhyuk have totally stolen my heart as well. And my love for their music is a given. Ugh. I'm such a fan right now.

The tickets are not exactly cheap, so I'm crossing my fingers for a miracle.

Because I'm in a CN Blue mood right now, here's a bunch of awesome live performances. Just because I can.

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Current Addiction: Taeyang's "Eyes, Nose, Lips"

It's been over a month since Taeyang released his new album RISE containing hit track "Eyes, Nose, Lips" and, to be really honest, I'm still not over how awesome this song is. It's an amazing contemporary R&B track with a haunting melody and an addictive hook. It's no wonder the song is everywhere.

In a smart marketing move, YG is not only accepting cover entries for an "Eyes, Nose, Lips" cover competition, they've also released 3 (so far) YG Family covers from Akdong Musician, Tablo, and Lydia Paek. Each one of these covers are awesome in their own right and despite changing up the lyrics - adding rap verses, or totally changing the song into English and just keeping the basic foundation of the song's hook - they've all just succeeded in making me fall in love with the original version even more.

Brother-sister duo Akdong Musician put their own spin on the song and the results are fantastic

Epik High's Tablo angrily rewrites the song and churns out a purely English rap version
with Taeyang joining in on the song's bridge and outro

Quest Crew member and YG producer and artist Lydia Paek puts out the same song minus the angst

I've been listening to these covers on repeat. They're awesome and, for covers, all quite unique. They took the original and spun the song on its feet and made it their own, without forgetting that they're all homages to Taeyang's awesome single.

As a testament to how awesome this song is, several different Korean artists have also come out with their own covers. Eric Nam's version (video posted below) is, by far, my favorite. I've ripped the audio from YouTube and I listen to it on repeat. K-pop groups 2BiC, BTS, and Topp Dogg have also uploaded their own renditions onto YouTube. Even Korean YouTube-star and guitar prodigy, Sungha Jung (a frequent YG collaborator) has released his own guitar cover of the song.

Solo artist Eric Nam loves the song so much that he came out with 2 different covers,
the English version posted above and a live Korean version

Now I'm off to watch more covers from fans all around the world. VIPs rock!

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Currently Watching: Fated to Love You, You're All Surrounded, Trot Lovers, Marriage Not Dating

It's been awhile since I've had this much shows on my plate... and I love it. SO. MUCH.

That's not to say that the currently airing shows are the best shows ever, but at least they're all managing to keep me glued to the screen and I've been pretty good with keeping up to date with most of them. Which means I'm watching at least two dramas a day, plus the occasional variety show. Which also means I'm driving myself crazy waiting for the next episode and I'm going through all the woes that's part and parcel of live watching k-dramas.

I shouldn't be complaining about lack of sleep and time though, because seriously, I've been begging the drama gods for good stories for the past months and my prayers have finally been answered.

1. Fated to Love You - I only saw the first episode of the original Taiwanese version years ago, so really, I can't compare. But so far, so good.

Although, admittedly, Jang Hyuk's over-the-top portrayal can get testy, it's the fact that he delivers the softer moments of Lee Gun with so much heart that has me invested in him. And I just really love Jang Nara. She always conveys so much with just a simple look or the nuances of facial expression or body gesture. It would've been too easy to dismiss Kim Mi-young as pathetic and weak, but Jang Nara has managed to portray her as having so much inner strength and heart that's hard to disregard. I love it, so far.

2. You're All Surrounded - This drama is almost coming to a close, and I'm enjoying the ride so very much. And as much as I love Go Ara and Cha Seung-won, I have to say that Lee Seung-gi is selling this drama for me. He has carried so much weight in the lead role and I'm glad he's delivering way beyond expectations. I never doubted his capability as a dramatic actor, The King 2 Hearts assured me of that, but I'm just happy that his progress as an actor has been continuous.

I'll be watching the final episode tonight, and though I know the turn of events will have me squirming in my seat (and plotting the bloody demise of certain drama villains), I'm also looking forward to seeing Puppy happy and at peace.

3. Trot Lovers - Jung Eun-ji. She's awesome. And adorable. And just such a delight to watch.

Admittedly, right now, I'm not yet completely sold on either male leads, but Jang Joon-hyun (Ji Hyun-woo) is slowly converting me. Yes, he's an immature, irrational hothead... But there's still so much time for the drama to turn that around. He doesn't deserve someone as nice as Choi Choon-hee, so I'm hoping the drama makes him work for it. Because when he isn't being an ass, he actually has so much chemistry with Choon-hee. And with Byul! Those two together; they just kill me. And to be honest, while on paper Geon-woo seems like the perfect guy, he just isn't enough for our girl. Choon-hee needs someone who is as passionate about music as she is, someone who's willing to fight for what they believe is right, someone as determined as her. And that's not Geon-woo.

4. Marriage Not Dating - Honestly, I first decided to watch this drama because of Yeon Woo-jin. And of course, Jinwoon is always adorable. But good god, Han Groo is such a revelation. This is the first time I've seen her in anything and I'm in love. She's just wonderful.

Also, I'm always so surprised by the way this drama is spinning gender roles in a way I'd never expect. Initially, when I read that it was about a man who didn't want to get married contracting it up with a girl who is desperate to get married just to throw off his matchmaking mother, I thought it was going to be yet another pathetic female stereotype. Well, color me surprised. Our heroine, Joo Jang-mi may be the romanticist who believes in happily ever after and does want to get married, but she is far from pathetic. Or weak. Or desperate. Instead, she's headstrong and vocal yet kindhearted and loyal. She is also awesome enough to question gender roles and call out injustice where she sees it. Even from her fake boyfriend's seemingly nice grandmother.

5. High School King of Savvy - I'm still not sure about the age gap between our leads, not because it's huge (because realistically speaking, it's only 10 years, and I've seen dramas with 14-20 years age differences) but because the guy is a child. He's not even legal yet. He's jailbait. So here's my dilemma... Jung Soo-young and Lee Min-suk are adorable together. So I do love the kisses and hugs, and everything that makes them a couple. But there will always be that niggling voice in the back of my head reminding me that he is a baby. And she is very much an adult.

Here's to hoping they use that 2-episode extension to introduce some kind of time jump just to make Min-suk legal enough for some sexy kisses. Mmmm...

6. We Got Married (Woo-young + Se-young, Jong-hyun + Yura) - I've finally dropped watching Namgoong Min and Hong Jin-young. Things were getting boring on their end. And reversely, things are starting to pick up with Woo-young and Se-young. They were totally adorable and awkward in the beginning and then right just when they were getting really close, Woo-young kept pulling back and things turned cold. But now they're back to insane skinship and cute bickering so I'm tuned in again.

But, hallelujah! More Hong Jong-hyun on my laptop screen! Gawd, I love that guy. Not only is he gorgeous, he's not a bad actor either. I just clearly have a thing for them male-model-turned-actor group. All of them. Kim Woo-bin, Lee Soo-hyuk, Sung Joon, Lee Jong-suk, Hong Jong-hyun. I love them. So to the person who decided to cast Jong-hyun, THANK YOU. He is beyond adorable. And surprisingly quiet. It's a good thing Yura is extra bubbly and super talkative. Jong-hyun paired up with someone just as introverted as he is would kill ratings. Haha.

Also, have I mentioned that I absolutely adore how Yura is not even trying to rein in the obvious fact that she's super pleased to be married to Jong-hyun, no matter how fake the marriage? That girl is literally kvelling before our very eyes. She's super into him, no acting required. I can't say he feels the same way, but he's certainly intrigued by her. But remember that time when Yura accidentally drove his RC car into the lake? And she persistently said she was sorry and when she was using a hairdryer to fix the toy, the way he looked at her... That killed me.

I have several more dramas to look forward to, with It's Okay, That's Love just around the corner and Discovery of Romance fast approaching. When will I ever find time to sleep again? But nope, not complaining. I love it when dramaland decides to bombard me with awesome shows. After a very long season of drought, I'm quite happy to be drowning in my drama downloads.

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My so-called kdrama-induced culture shock

Full House (2004) was probably my third kdrama ever

Amanda's blog entry on her experience of watching Korean dramas as an American viewer was an eye-opener of sorts. It's interesting discovering the different perspectives we have on dramaland. For me, because I'm from a very heavily Western-influenced Asian country, I can relate so very much to both Western and Asian dramas.

(Note: In order to fully understand where I'm coming from in this blog entry, I suggest reading Amanda's blog post on Outside Seoul first because what follows was originally supposed to be a comment in response to her entry that became tl;dr material and so I decided to post it here instead.)

My first language was English; I'm positive I only ever read English books (save for school-required reading assignments); I grew up watching Sesame Street, Nickelodeon, and Disney; and up until the early 2000's, all I ever watched was American and British shows and movies (and the occasional Mexican telenovelas). I knew there were things that were distinctively Western, but because of the lengthy exposure to the Western culture, none of them were jarringly obvious to me.

When I finally started watching Asian dramas (it all started with Meteor Garden, the Taiwanese adaptation of Hana Yori Dango, and everything else snowballed from there), I got the same "culture shock" as I did with the Western shows - in that, there weren't a lot.

My favorite multi-generational household in Ojakgyo Brothers (2011)

Multi-generational households wasn't a new thing, I myself still live at home with my parents and sisters. And when they were still alive, my great-grandparents too. And until the very end, they had a say on most big family decisions. Although I do have friends who have moved out of their parents' homes, that doesn't mean they have full autonomy of their lives. I would have to say there is no clear cut definition on what the norm is anymore. Both are widely accepted. So when I see our heroine going home to her parents' house, where her grandmother and an uncle also live, this is not weird for me.

I also live in a sprawling, yet highly-congested metropolis. Not as gorgeous or high-tech as Seoul, but not provincial or rural either. And we eat rice for almost every meal. Even for breakfast. Sure, we do cereals and cornflakes, bacon and eggs, but rice for breakfast is the local preference. And we do have dine-in tables at convenience stores. I've never eaten ramyeon there, but I do usually have the microwaveable rice meals. At 7-11, yes.

Tables outside convenience stores are also an option, as seen in You're Beautiful (2009)

I guess, culturally, from my standpoint, growing up in a country that has been colonized by Spain and the US, plus the short-lived Japanese settlement, my perspective is vastly different from a lot of the other international kdrama audience. Yes, I'm Asian, but I come from a country that is far from being homogenous. To quote Stanley Karnow, my people spent "300 years in a convent, and 50 years in Hollywood." Our population is a mix of Malay, Chinese, and Spanish, not to mention the ever-growing Korean community. So in terms of dramas being relatable, both kdramas and Western dramas feel very familiar and yet very different, at the same time.

Digging deeper into the matter of relatability though, as Amanda has also pointed out in her own post, the reason we watch dramas in general is because they speak to us on the most basic level. It's not really about the who and the where, but the what and why and how. It's not really because our hero is the grandson of a chaebol who manages a coffee shop in Hongdae. We cared because when he unwittingly fell in love with someone so beyond his imagination, he threw caution to the wind and faced his inner turmoil head on. Love, friendship, family, living happily ever after - these are the common themes we look for in stories, no matter where the story can be found.

Still dreaming of my very own Choi Han-gyul, because Coffee Prince (2007) will forever own me

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In defense of Park Bom

First of all, prior to watching Roommate, I was never Park Bom's biggest fan. But getting to peep into her "life" on the show and how she interacts with her housemates, I came to appreciate her and I have been slowly changing my mind about her. So now that shit is hitting the fan from all directions, I just felt the need to voice out what I think about all this crap.

To those who are unfamiliar, there have been "breaking news" surrounding Bom during the past week that have been very hurtful, to both 2NE1 fans and Park Bom herself. It started with the resurfacing of a 4-year-old dismissed case about her alleged attempt to smuggle drugs into Korea. Which was already cleared by YG CEO Yang Hyun-suk himself in this statement.

However, respite was short lived because now the Korean media are questioning Bom's real age. And it is at this point that I roll my eyes and groan because they clearly have nothing else to talk about (because someone's probably shutting them up about the Sewol tragedy and the donation money the government supposedly used to build a badminton court instead) and are pulling all these "news" out of their asses.

It's stupid. All these news about Bom and none of them are really worth our time. If this results in Bom leaving Roommate, I’m gonna be so pissed. Also, Bom is the sweetest little thing (as far as I can tell) and does not deserve so much unwarranted hate. No one does.

Also, in what US school are sophomore high school students 17 years old? NO. Here they go mucking up ages because of the confusing East Asian Age Reckoning thing. They’re claiming that Bom was 17 in 1998 because she was already a sophomore. Well, I am one month older than Bom (here I go revealing how old I am) and I was definitely a sophomore high school student in 1998. AND I WAS 14 YEARS OLD. I was 17 years old during my freshman year of university.

And please. Even if she were actually 2 years older than declared, WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MATTER?! Does it change anything? Does it affect her career as a singer? All it changes is the fact that more people need to be calling her noona or unnie and need to be giving her the respect she deserves.

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My Lists: 15 favorite k-pop songs of 2014 thus far

Once again, another 6 months have passed just like that and we're now entering the second half of 2014. How is time flying by so fast?!

The first half of 2014 saw the return of the king of k-pop Rain, as well as the debuts of two amazing rookie groups, Got7 and Akdong Musician. We've also been given the long-awaited full-length albums of 2NE1 and Taeyang (it was about damn time, honestly). And this past months also gave me my current addiction; a song by artists I never paid much attention to before, Soyou & Jung GiGo.

So just as I've done for the past year, I'm listing down my favorite songs released during the first half of this year, for the months of January to June 2014.

Rain - "La Song"

Got7 - "I Like You"

Gain (ft. Bumkey) - "FxxK U"

Soyou & Jung GiGo (ft. Lil Boi) - "Some"

Bangtan Boys - "Boy In Luv"

CN Blue - "Can't Stop"

Girls' Generation - "Mr. Mr."

2NE1 - "Come Back Home"

MBLAQ - "Be A Man"

A Pink - "Mr. Chu"

Akdong Musician - "Melted"

Exo - "Overdose"

Taeyang - "Eyes, Nose, Lips"

Beast - "Good Luck"

Taeyang - "1AM"

What are your favorites of the year so far?

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First Impressions: High School King of Savvy

I've just finished watching the second episode of tvN's newest rom-com High School King of Savvy and so far, so good. Unfortunately, the show wasn't picked up by either Viki or Dramafever, so looking for the subbed episodes proved to be more difficult than usual. Still, where's there's an insane international fanbase, the subbed episode will be found. Huzza!

First of all, everyone knows I love me some Seo In-guk, that much is a given. And keeping with the trend of my loving him in every drama he's in, I do love him in this role of corporate-director-hyung cosplaying high-schooler. He was cast in this role perfectly.

I love the character of Lee Min-seok. He's not just a lazy high school student who is somehow forced into pretending to be his older brother. Yes, he's that, but he's also a guy who loves his brother despite the 8-year separation. He's a guy who hates seeing his adoptive father hurting. He's the guy who stays and makes sure a drunk stranger is safe before he heads home himself. Yes, he's a highly hormonal high school student, but Seo In-guk plays him with so much heart.

This is the first drama I'm seeing Lee Hana in but I think I already love her. She plays awkward and ungainly so comfortably. I'm no authority, but I'd say she's quite perfect for physical comedy. Her portrayal of Jung Soo-young is so relatable even though I'm nowhere as socially problematic as her (if anyone, I would probably think I'm more like her younger sister Jung Yoo-ah - the bulldozer stalker).

Soo-young is both amusing and cringe-worthy. She's awesome as a sister and as a person, in general. Completely humble and persevering, I could do better with trying to be more like her. But then, her social weaknesses creeps in and I'm just screaming at my laptop screen for her to back away and shut up. If you've seen the first episode, you know what I mean. Nonetheless, she's a very likable character and I can't wait for both boys to fall in love with her. That's where we're headed, no?

Finally, I can't believe how much I'm loving Lee Soo-hyuk in this. I've only ever seen him in White Christmas (and several clips from Vampire Idol, and then a handful of music videos and runway shows) and he wasn't particularly good in that one. Not terrible, but nothing to write home about either. Granted, that was his first drama ever. I'm so glad he's seemingly much better at acting now. The duality in his portrayal of Yoo Jin-woo is delightful.

For a second lead, I love that Jin-woo is, right off the bat, being given a multi-dimensional treatment that not a lot of second leads get. On the one hand, he has that hard and unnerving side to his personality that's apparent whenever he's working. He's brutal when it comes to work but at the same time he's never not respectful and polite to his colleagues. But then you see a total 180-turn when he turns into this fearful and insecure little boy in the presence of his father. It's also good to note that despite him not reciprocating the feelings of our lead girl, Jin-woo was never rude or particularly cruel. I wouldn't complain if he ends up with Soo-young in the end (especially since our lead guy is still considered jailbait).

While not laugh-out-loud funny, this drama has me smirking and smiling all throughout. It's cute and zippy, though not quite cut from the same rom-com cloth as its predecessors. I just love that the story has a lot of heart and characters you want to root for. I can't believe I need to wait a whole week for the next episode. Gah! Episode 3, I need you!

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Currently Watching: You're All Surrounded, Angel Eyes, Roommate, Burning the Beast

Admittedly, I have more dramas in my download folder that remain untouched. Despite that, all my free time is still mostly spent glued to my laptop screen. There truly can never be enough time to watch all the shows, sadly.

While Witch's Romance just ended (and oh my lordy did I love it to bits and pieces and I will probably re-watch it very soon - I need a Yoon Dong-ha of my own), I still have some more dramas on my currently watching list.

1. You're All Surrounded - I started watching a while ago but I had sort of let this fall to the side and only recently picked it up again. And then I ended up marathoning 5 episodes last weekend and fell deeply in love with each and every character - except maybe for Prosecutor Han, he's an asshole.

I just love how Eun Dae-gu's secret is out of the bag now. I love how Seo Pan-seok and Uh Soo-sun reacted to the reveal. I love how they both care so much for Dae-gu. But Dae-gu's a tough one. And I love being able to witness how the wall he's built around him is slowly being taken down one brick at a time by the people around him. I can't wait for him to allow Pan-seok in. That's an intense bromance waiting to happen.

2. Angel Eyes - This drama is about to end this weekend, I'm still on episode 11 though. I never thought I would be so in love with Goo Hye-sun and Lee Sang-yoon together but I am. I wasn't expecting this much chemistry between them and I am so loving it. They are perfect together. But this also means I am about this ready to get my claws on Vice President Oh and her machinations. I need my OTP happy, and they won't be happy once daddy's secret is out. Ugh.

Also, I love that the drama keeps giving us flashbacks to our OTP's youth, if only because it's the only way to get more of Kang Ha-neul on my screen. As I've already mentioned previously, he's the reason I started watching the show anyway.

3. Roommate - How much do I love these housemates? Let me count the ways:

• Shin Sung-woo is perfection and I am truly befuddled by the fact that he never married. He would be the perfect husband. He cooks, he cleans, he's a sweetheart, and he's freaking hot. 
• Lee Sora is such a beautiful person as well. It's telling by how much the younger girls in the house just adore her. 
• Hong Soo-hyun is adorable and quirky and a breath of fresh air. 
• Lee Dong-wook is adorably dorky and I'm pretty convinced he's got a major crush on Bom. 
• Jo Se-ho is hilarious and sweet and his signature pajamas make me snicker. 
• Park Bom is hilarious and aegyo-riffic. She was never my 2NE1 bias, but she's slowly climbing up that list. 
• Park Min-woo and his dimples keep slaying me on a weekly basis. It doesn't help either that he seems to be such an awesome oppa to Ga-yeon.
• I never really cared for Nana but this show has started to change my mind about her. I never thought she'd get along this well with Bom and I am pleasantly surprised to find out that those two are cut from the same cloth. 
• Park Chanyeol has just completely obliterated my EXO bias list with his puppy dog ways. His relationship with Shin umma is beyond glorious.
• Seo Kang-joon is either really dim or a total variety genius. He's hilarious! And, I'm also quite convinced, that he and Min-woo will be the couple to go on that overseas trip.
• And last but not the list, adorable Song Ga-yeon. What a force to be reckoned with. She's strong and gorgeous. I love her.

4. Burning the Beast - For some reason (Okay, I know the reason... Because of Let's Eat, my officemates are now officially obsessed with Doojoon.), I have revisited my love for the group and have brought other people on the ride with me. My friend is watching it mostly for Doojoon, but I love me some Junhyung. Ever since Monstar happened, I forgot about my love for Kikwang and Doojoon and it's all about Junhyung now. 

These guys are idiots, by the way. And I mean that in the best sense of the word. I love them.

There are several more dramas on the way that I have my eyes on. One of them is the upcoming tvN noona romance High School King of Savvy starring Seo In-guk, Lee Hana, and Lee Soo-hyuk. Another is Jung Eun-ji's new series Trot Lovers. 

A bit further down the road is Discovery of Romance, the Eric Mun and Jung Yumi reunion vehicle that I absolutely can't wait for. I need it in my life so much. I've been a fan of the pairing since Que Sera Sera and this is a fantasy come true for me. The fact that they added Sung Joon to the cast is like cherry on top of an already spectacular sundae.

If the drama gods decide to throw in some more reunions, I wouldn't mind. They seem to be doing that a lot nowadays (i.e. Kwon Sang-woo and Choi Ji-woo for Temptation, Jang Hyuk and Jang Nara for Fated to Love You). Some Gong Yoo and Yoon Eun-hye, jebal and thanks.

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Psy drops new single featuring Snoop Dogg

Psy just dropped new single "Hangover" featuring Snoop Dogg and, obviously, there will be people dissing and hating it. Not everyone will like it and, I'm almost 100% certain, it will be compared to "Gangnam Style" from here on to infinity. It shouldn't, but it will.

Do I like it? Yes. Do I love it? Not yet. Do I like it more than "Gangnam Style" and "Gentleman"? I'm not quite sure. But I will say this, I think it was definitely a huge risk and a brave move on Psy's part. Was it a smart move? I think so.

More than the song though, I think the video is something worth talking about. I love the video.

You know what I think is awesome about the video? Even though the song is 90% in English and features Snoop Dogg and is clearly Psy’s attempt at making the Western world understand him, the video is still one of the most Korean-looking videos I’ve ever seen in my life. And I've seen a lot of them.

Twerking dancers aside, there was a whole lot of Korean culture to ingest. Soju bombs, chowing down on ramyun at convenience stores (GS25 cameo), Korean drinking etiquette, old-school barber shops, noraebangs, disco pang pang at the amusement park, jjajangmyun at a billiard hall, and more soju till the sun rises. All these are things I’ve learned about Korea after years of kdrama watching and two visits to Seoul -- but Psy and his team were able to squeeze them all into a 5-minute video. Plus, it had awesome cameos from Big Bang's G-Dragon and 2NE1's CL. Daebak.

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tvN releases teaser and posters for High School King of Savvy

There are a handful of upcoming dramas that I'm excited about, which is sad because I actually haven't gotten a move on with the currently airing ones. I think I'm only into episode 7 of Angel Eyes, I've only seen the first episode of Doctor Stranger, I'm only at episode 4 of Fall In Love With Me, and the only drama I'm updated with is Witch's Romance. But still, the teasers and posters of Seo In-guk's upcoming tvN series is something I'm really looking forward to.

In this drama, Seo In-guk is set to play the role of a popular high school hockey player who, for some reason, will have to masquerade as his corporate executive older brother in tvN's upcoming rom-com High School King of Savvy. It's really strange to me how this guy can still easily pull off looking like a high school student and, at the same time, look completely at ease in dapper suits that make him seem more mature and older than he really is. It's that duality of looking like both a noona-killer and an oppa in this man-child that keeps me fascinated.

The drama will feature two women vying for this high school king's affections; one is his fellow high-schooler played by Lee Yeol-eum and the other is her older sister who works at the same company as his older brother played by Lee Hana. At this point, because all press has been pointing toward Lee Hana being the main lead, it's enough to assume that it's going to be a noona romance, but I don't know this for sure. Still, the fact that it's set to follow Witch's Romance, which in turn followed I Need Romance 3, all noona romances, I guess it's safe to assume the same for this new one. And you know how much I love them noona romances. Haha.

High School King of Savvy will premiere on July 16, replacing Witch's Romance every Mondays and Tuesdays on tvN.

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