Wild Romance: A (Halftime) Review.

Wild Romance (2012)

 picture credits to: wiki.d-addicts.com/Wild_Romance

Currently, as of this review – Wild Romance is only at episode 10 and I’ve only watched the first 9.

I meant to write this earlier, or wait till the story finishes before I write another one of those pseudo-reviews I do for shows that have owned my heart at certain points in time or another – but then I caught on with episode 9 last night, and could not resist.

Oh Eun-jae, how I feel for you. You, what a sweetheart girl with so much spunk and personality!

Lately the Kdrama scene is spoiled with choices – plenty of dramas with plenty potential or simply plenty different flavors to offer – but I feel like I’ve unconsciously been leaning towards the underdogs. They’re not ones being raved about by the typical dramabloggers but frankly: I don’t care. I just know that they’ve touched me and I’m really glad for that.

Wild Romance obviously falls in this category. I say underdog because it’s not receiving a lot of love ratings-wise in Korea and it’s not really receiving love from yes, the English dramabloggers I frequent either. However – I’m pretty sure that it, like any other underrated shows, has its own avid fanbase. I jumped into this show because of my love for His Hotness Lee Dong Wook (what? It’s true!) and it being touted as a romantic comedy – something I fiercely appreciate at this particular point in time as school’s being all shitty with me this term – but find myself, as I often do, surprised to be so taken by Lee Shi-Kyung instead, in her portrayal of Eun-jae.

For one, she is OMG hilariousssssssssssss (I should probably capitalize this because man, she’s had me in stitches almost every episode!) in her portrayal of Eun-jae – totally no holds-barred in acting comically. For another, her character is adorable – the hair is, I admit, borderlines on an “OMG fugly!” remark every fifteen minutes (Must. Resist.) and her wardrobe? Someone fire her stylist! Nevertheless, on an overall spectrum, all these collectively work in giving us Eun-jae.

Strangely, as much as I love Lee Dong Wook, I don’t have a particular affinity towards Mu-Yeol, our anti-hero-of-sorts … but I don’t hate him either. Frankly, I think he’s a douchebag, especially in recent episodes featuring scenes of him and The Annoying Ex-Girlfriend (whom can someone PLEASE for the love of good acting, someone PLEASE tell these directors to stop employing idols who are better off left being their pretty faces selves)  but a harmless one. So yes, so far he doesn’t strike my fancy, but I’m not particularly opposed to him either. Not yet?

I’m writing this because episode 9 totally broke my heart; those scenes of Eun-jae just looking on as Mu-Yeol and whatshername walked together everywhere hand-in-hand and that stupid scene (okay, excuse the riled viewer in me) of the two visiting that painted wall … oh my heart, it feels for Eun-jae. As she looked on, her eyes trying so hard to hold back tears and then her being able to picture the lovebirds as they were in the past …oh my heart, I can’t describe enough just how heartbroken for Eun-jae I felt.

Now I am off to watch episode 10, already bracing myself (and heart) for the pain that Eun-jae’s sure to encounter. I will admit – the truth is I am not entirely sold on them as a couple or more specifically of him falling for her, so I don’t quite mind if they end the show with an Unconventional Ending (though Kdrama basically created a PhD on cliches, if there ever is one!) BUT I’ll be damned if they give or portray her as any less than she deserves. Eun-jae is a character that I feel to be so true-to-life: not the prettiest, not particularly bookish smart, nothing particularly outstanding – normal as the normal everyperson is .. yet these external aspects of her don’t define who she is inside. Such that so what that she’s not attractive or dainty, all cutesy like Annoying Ex-Girlfriend? This girl, she’s so much spunk that if she is a real person – I’ll be sure to make friends with, no lie.

So here’s my score for this halftime-report-of-sorts of Wild Romance : 7.5/10.

Much like an acquired taste, this show is of a specific flavor. It isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and that’s okay. True to any other underdog show (the most recent being the lovely Me Too, Flower which I reviewed here) – Wild Romance isn’t one to call attention to itself. Of course it has its share of flaws – totally under-utilizing Oh Man Seok and Hwang Sun Hee for instance – but though its star may not shine as bright as a particular Moon & Sun pairing, it has something worthy: heart.

I don’t know about you, but more than anything else – that one’s always a winner in my book.

05 Feb This entry was published on February 5, 2012 at 12:25 AM. It’s filed under drama junkie galore, the write stuff and tagged Drama/Movie Reviews. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.