Woman Crush Wednesday

Ladies and Gent's we are back again with one of my FAVORITE actresses of all time, the ever gorgeous *Drum Roll*, please

KANG SO-RA

I was first introduced to her by the drama Misaeng. She played the highly intelligent and quick-witted An Young-Yi. She was the embodiment of a brilliant female employee, who possessed more insight than her counterparts. Kang So-Ra illustrated, brilliantly I might add, the struggle of being a female in a male-dominated work environment. I thought her performance was exceptional in this drama, and she was a major factor in why I enjoyed it so much.

The next project I saw her in was Ugly Alert! Now, this drama "is long as I don't know what". It made me cry buckets and buckets of tears, but Kang So-Ra's portrayal of a chaebol woman trying to prove herself was awesome. She balances the hyper-productive qualities of a CEO with having incredible empathy and warmth, I skipped some episodes (the drama has 133 episodes, I watched 50 episodes straight before I started skipping ahead lol) but I would highly recommend this touching story. Kang So-Ra's counterpart, Lim Ju-Hwan, never disappoints. They had incredible chemistry between both of them.

One of my favorite projects she stars in is Warm and Cozy. I've written multiple times about this cute little drama. Bottom line is... I simply adore it. Kang So-Ra's portrayal of Lee Jung Joo was enjoyable. I loved seeing this character flustered, her feathers ruffled, and just her overall attitude in life. This wasn't the most complex acting I've seen from her, but I really enjoyed the performance.

Though she doesn't have the biggest role in this movie, she does star in My Paparotti. She plays a feisty, spunky student and it was a new way of seeing her. This role showcases her range in acting and once again it was an enjoyable performance. The movie its self is amazing. It will send chills down your spine! At the same time that it's melting your heart, it's also making you laugh a lot. 

The project that clenched her as one of my all time favorites is her participation in "We Got Married"

We got to see a quirky, shy, sensitive girl navigating through a "marriage" I loved seeing her break off into different characters, and watching her grow on the show. It was an amazing thing to feel so connected to her. Kang So-Ra and Super Junior's Lee Teuk had such sweet chemistry and connection. I loved them both so much! 

That's it for today's Woman Crush Wednesday I  hope you check out Kang So-Ra's projects, I'm sure you'll fall for her like I have. 

Warm and Cozy

This cotton candy drama is my all time favorite pick-me-up! There are some "kdrama troupes" that made me cringe a bit, but overall this drama never fails to make me giddy and gooey on the inside.

Baek Gun Woo is the carefree youngest son of a chaebol family. He goes against convention by pursuing his culinary dreams and opening a restaurant in a small community in Jeju Island. On the outside, it seems idyllic, but Baek Gun Woo doesn't have a good relationship with the area, and his restaurant is consistently lacking customers. I adore this character because he's willful, childish and at the same incredibly compassionate. Yoon Yeon-Seok is amazing in every role he plays. His eyes have a special brand of tenderness, and it seemed as though he had a lot of fun playing this role.




While Baek Gun Woo lives a relatively carefree life, as is custom, our female lead is struggling.

 Lee Jung Joo has worked incredibly hard to save enough money to buy a house. She entrusts her cousin to go to Jeju island and find something suitable. Instead, her cousin buys are crumbling property and runs off with the rest of the money. Stuck in a difficult situation, she pulls herself by the bootstraps and proceeds to make something of herself in this small town. Kang So-Ra is my all time favorite actress. I love the animation and portrayal of agitation she brought to this drama.

Baek Gun Woo is under the impression that Lee Jung Joo is terminally ill and he goes out of his way

to try to make her precious amount of time on earth as comfortable as possible. It was adorable to see them develop feelings for each other. They small hints and signals they gave each other made my heart melt, and any time I am in a drama rut, I watch a few scenes from this drama to perk up my mood.

Overall this drama is cheesy and cute. It's a nice time filler, and nothing to be taken too seriously!

Misaeng

This drama was the first corporate drama I'd ever watched. It was an interesting insight into the corporate world in Korea. The types of challenges workers go through, and the type of work environment both positive and negative was different than anything I'd watched before. I wasn't familiar with any of the actors, even though it was a veteran studded cast. I really enjoyed this drama and the dynamics it explored.

The story centers around temp worker Jang Geu-Rae. Introverted, awkward, and earnest, this young man tries to navigate the corporate jungles despite having no experience. Siwan plays this character, and I can't applaud this performance enough. I was impressed by the style of this character and the nuances of his personality. There was a unique insight into the mind and life of a novice. I wanted to hug this character a lot, he looked as though he needed some extra support.

The team leader Oh Sang-Sik played by veteran actor Lee Sung-Min was amazing. He was the consummate leader, he guided his team, he supported them. he didn't take in bribes, he was a quality human being. I loved everything about this man. Oh Sang-Sik showcased the balance between a family man and a working man. He kept his integrity even when it benefitted him to be sketchy. I liked how he chose to be kind when he had the power to be mean. He was an incredible mentor throughout this series.

This show was my introduction to Kang So Ra. I absolutely love her, and I've enjoyed the majority of the projects that she's picked out. She plays fiercely intelligent An Young-Yi. She represents the journey of having to prove why you're the best. Though she was the ace of the recruits, her working life wasn't as smooth as it should've been. She was often reduced to doing menial tasks because she was a woman. Though she was smarter than people around her, and everyone knew she had a great educational background she wasn't treated the way she should've been.

I was also introduced to Kang Ha Neul, he legitimately has only been in projects that I thought were spectacular. I loved his performance, even though I hated his character. Jang Baek Ki comes from a privileged background. He's hyper-competitive, and he's got a stick stuck up his butt. I liked how his personality grew throughout the show. This performance was a testament to the range that Kang Ha Neul can play.










Overall be prepared to shed buckets of tears. This drama will take you to some dark places emotionally but in the end, everything works out the way that it should.

Happy Drama Watching