Pleasurable watching, The Return of Iljimae

I have to say, I just can't go on watching Take Care of the Young Lady. The writing is bad and the plot is contrived. What I did instead was go to the episode recaps on dramabeans.com which confirmed that the drama just isn't worth watching.

Instead, I am continuing with The Return of Iljimae which also stars Jung Il Woo but in a role much more suited to him.

My Fair Lady and style

I can't let go of the clothes and hair thing in Take Care of the Young Lady (My Fair Lady...why do so many Korean dramas have two titles?). I've seen a few images with this hideous velvet outfit culminating in the ridiculously oversized bow on top. I fervently hope it won't be in the actual drama.

What is wrong with Ha Nae's wardrobes? On the one hand, overstylized, none of it seems to be couture. Much of it seems just plain cheap. The best dress I've seen yet is the nightgown in the third episode. Of the many outfits paraded in just the three episodes I've watched, the one I felt cohered best was the riding outfit.

I was pondering why the feel of the outfits were so different than the men's clothing in Boys Before Flowers. And I realized that since that drama is based on a manga, the clothes reflect the overstylization in mangas, the ultra fantasy European clothes with ridiculously wide lapels. The ridiculous aspect of the clothes matches the feel of the whole drama with all the wealthier characters owning multiple sports cars.

While My Fair Lady aspires towards that same atmosphere with similar references (horseback riding, multiple servants, a large estate, "the" chaebol family, riches and rags romance), it's not quite enough. In Boys Before Flowers, all the pieces fit to make a whole, to emphasize the fantasy atmosphere of the drama. In My Fair Lady, the pieces don't all match.

Searching for the internet as to the designer behind the clothes on My Fair Lady, I read that Forever 21 supplied all the clothes and accessories. (For anyone unfamiliar with Forever 21 as an apparel retailer, take a look.)

However, the problem doesn't lie only with the clothes sponsor. A good deal of the problem has to do with a lack of cohesive characterization of Ha Nae through her clothes. In one scene, she's wearing a sophisticated dress. In another, she looks like a cute manga character in a black puffy dress and boots. In another scene, her look verges on a hint of slutty. Other times, she looks sedate, sometimes as though she has on too many accessories, sometimes punkish, sometimes fancy.

Take Care of the Young Lady, Episode 1 & 2

Take Care of the Young Lady (or aka The Fair Lady) is pure cotton candy fluff of the wealthy and the poor. One exceedingly popular take on this was Boys Before Flower. Like Boys Before Flower, Take Care of the Young Lady includes a fantasy mansion filled with servants that's the residence for Kang Hae Na, the misbehaved heiress to the largest corporation in South Korea.

Enter Dong Chan, a guy in debt to loan sharks and who borrowed the money to pay off hospital bills for his mother. Alas, the mother passed away despite all of Dong Chan's efforts. But Dong Chan isn't a mere goodhearted and pure guy (not at all like the Jandi of Boys Before Flower). One of his past professions was being a night club host, a gigolo who lured older women to spend money buying him drinks; one of his nicknames is Di Caprio (after Leonardo). He takes on the job of becoming Hae Na's person butler, staking his liver and kidney on a promissory note to the loan sharks, with the hope that he can seduce Hae Na into paying off his debt.

The person who's been helping Dong Chan with a place to sleep is Eui Joo, a round-faced girl with big eyes and an aspiring shoe designer. As to be expected, Eui Joo has a crush on Dong Chan. The fourth person needed to fill the usual romance square for Korean drama is Tae Yoon, a human rights lawyer who showed up to a blind date set up by Hae Na's grandfather with the ulterior motive of convincing the corporation to rethink a golf course that would damage the environment.

It's weird seeing Yoon Eun-Hye playing the spoiled princess role of Kang Hae Na. I just finished watching her being fresh, poor, and naive in Coffee Prince where she seemed such a natural in that role. I am just having a hard time seeing her play the Paris Hilton of Korea.

Right now I am of two minds about the clothing in this drama. There's a part of me that understands that this is candy...but if it's candy, shouldn't the clothes be even more over the top? Plus, that hair style on the male characters...eech. And I wish they should shave the fuzz off Yoon Sang-Hyun (who plays Dong Chan). It's distracting and makes him look like he didn't wipe his mouth after eating.

The best aspects about this drama is that it's light and fast-paced with some funny scenes.