idiosyncreant (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
idiosyncreant) wrote2011-03-29 11:53 pm
idiosyncreant) wrote2011-03-29 11:53 pm
K-Drama Report: PASTA
Pasta was an odd show--in that there were several reasons I wouldn't have liked it, if presented with them, though only one even phased me while I was watching...
I mentioned the first, somewhere, in some form. Which was that the hero yells. A lot. And for a whole episode and a half seems to be doing it just to make people feel small, or because he's somehow imbalanced. :anxiety:
BUT, it falls into a sane pattern (I think that was just clumsy writing in the earlier part) of being more of a reaction than an offensive strategy, and he takes on more dimension, and it became less stressy for me.
For a romantic comedy, it was also not very sexy. And yet...it makes that *work*. It was a little distant, in that I felt more like an observer who sees two people falling for each other, rather than feeling it myself, but there were some really sweet, funny moments. I know it could be counted as a flaw, and has been, but in a way I kind of liked that more unpolished dynamic. I really felt like I was friends with the characters, and eager to have things turn out for them.
In most dramas I feel more involved, but then that makes it harder if I don't like the guy the girl does, or think the girl is too stupid...
For me, it felt kind of mature, because of the lack of tension in the romance. ...to think I'd ever write that sentence. It must be maturity or something equally sad.
It also didn't feel long, tho' it was either extended or just written to be 20 episodes. I could probably point out where they started writing it to be 20 episodes, if that was a matter of extension, but I think it had a more satisfying and not cop-out finish with the time it had.
It had some beautifully filmed shots (though in the beginning some of the editing was headache-y atrocious-slash-experimental). The fact that the same food looked awesome at the end though we had many loving, SEXYSEXY (unlike the romance) shots of it through all 20 episodes says something about that. And the goldfish that were silent cast-members, starring as the resident gratuitous colorful pan-fetishes of something-other-than-pasta, always seemed tasteful, though I was just waiting for it to get old.
In the end, the stumbling blocks that would have made it not work for me in a more standard show were trumped by the fact that sometimes it went with K-Drama tradition, but in certain key places it veered off from expectation.
Taking the main annoying antagonist of the characters, and putting him at a disadvantage, so he's more that character who's always bumbling along trying to do the evil boss's bidding--except he's got no evil boss. Taking the wide cast of characters and pitting them against each other, and weaving them into shifting alliances.
Even taking the two characters I kept confusing for each other, and putting them side-by-side, being annoyed by their similarities.
In the end, the humor of the show was more subtle and humane than most of the dramas I watch. I'm impressed.
...And I got to see mah favorite Ajussi get the girl, even if he had to be a jerk to do it. 9_9
I mentioned the first, somewhere, in some form. Which was that the hero yells. A lot. And for a whole episode and a half seems to be doing it just to make people feel small, or because he's somehow imbalanced. :anxiety:
BUT, it falls into a sane pattern (I think that was just clumsy writing in the earlier part) of being more of a reaction than an offensive strategy, and he takes on more dimension, and it became less stressy for me.
For a romantic comedy, it was also not very sexy. And yet...it makes that *work*. It was a little distant, in that I felt more like an observer who sees two people falling for each other, rather than feeling it myself, but there were some really sweet, funny moments. I know it could be counted as a flaw, and has been, but in a way I kind of liked that more unpolished dynamic. I really felt like I was friends with the characters, and eager to have things turn out for them.
In most dramas I feel more involved, but then that makes it harder if I don't like the guy the girl does, or think the girl is too stupid...
For me, it felt kind of mature, because of the lack of tension in the romance. ...to think I'd ever write that sentence. It must be maturity or something equally sad.
It also didn't feel long, tho' it was either extended or just written to be 20 episodes. I could probably point out where they started writing it to be 20 episodes, if that was a matter of extension, but I think it had a more satisfying and not cop-out finish with the time it had.
It had some beautifully filmed shots (though in the beginning some of the editing was headache-y atrocious-slash-experimental). The fact that the same food looked awesome at the end though we had many loving, SEXYSEXY (unlike the romance) shots of it through all 20 episodes says something about that. And the goldfish that were silent cast-members, starring as the resident gratuitous colorful pan-fetishes of something-other-than-pasta, always seemed tasteful, though I was just waiting for it to get old.
In the end, the stumbling blocks that would have made it not work for me in a more standard show were trumped by the fact that sometimes it went with K-Drama tradition, but in certain key places it veered off from expectation.
Taking the main annoying antagonist of the characters, and putting him at a disadvantage, so he's more that character who's always bumbling along trying to do the evil boss's bidding--except he's got no evil boss. Taking the wide cast of characters and pitting them against each other, and weaving them into shifting alliances.
Even taking the two characters I kept confusing for each other, and putting them side-by-side, being annoyed by their similarities.
In the end, the humor of the show was more subtle and humane than most of the dramas I watch. I'm impressed.
...And I got to see mah favorite Ajussi get the girl, even if he had to be a jerk to do it. 9_9
no subject
See...I couldn't really explain why it was so amazing to me, and you hit all of the points. It was...subtle. It wasn't flashy. And, yeah. You get that sense that you're good friends with the characters, and that makes it all a bit different... This definitely seemed more of a character-centric story to me (at least, from what I remember).
Also, the food porn. :drools: I believe this precipitated one of my more experimental culinary periods. (I never made pasta from scratch, but I seriously considered it several times.)
And, from my perspective, their relationship was so *real* and true to life...
Now. You want hot sexiness, go forth to City Hall!! :fans self:
no subject
I am persevering, HOWEVER. There's only so much a girl can do. I mean...you know. A girl who bums fansubs off the Internet.
no subject
But. It's hotter than a Taiwanese drama. Intense.
Try again later, as they say...I'm sure something will be up again at some point. I remember it took me FOREVER to watch Full House, and another forever to watch that other drama Rain was in...the one about the teacher (which made me very uncomfortable, but introduced me to this song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QTSWbtsB2c), for which I will be eternally grateful. This was back when Kdramas sometimes had indie tunes from all over the world show up. (I have the OST for Coffee Prince, which is more K-indie, and I still listen to it obsessively...) Now the music is repetitive pop themes. Boo, hiss.
no subject
how could I forget to look there. YAY, I found it! XD
I see what you mean about the OSTs lately--some of the shows right around the time of Boys Before Flowers, I swear, they got the same band to do a copycat song for the same emotional theme points. I'm adjusting, nowadays, probably, and really enjoyed the music of My Princess...especially how they didn't overuse it.
I didn't really appreciate the Full House music (maybe because they used it a lot? It's been a while, in Dramaland Time, I don't remember) but there are some shows I really like and others that it feels like just more of the same...for sure.
no subject
But that Popium song was SO cheerful that I actually paused the drama to seek it out. It's incredibly difficult to find -- it's Norwegian, of all things, and Norwegian music doesn't export well. (I'm not a fan of the entire song...it goes on far too long, but I love the intro. :D)
Yay! I'm glad you found it. XD
no subject
Whenever leadership turns over at a company, the new leader has to do something to assert his authority right off the bat, like changing something minor (or major). Otherwise, he faces the situation Hyung Wook did with Yoo Kyung ("You've been working in this kitchen for three years, so you think it's more yours than mine?").
The yelling is not necessarily because he's unbalanced or due to bad writing. It's because he has to impress upon these complacent people that he's the MFIC. There's a new sheriff in town, and they can't just blow him off.
I'm about halfway through the series right now, and liking it a lot more than I thought I would. Great chemistry between the leads.
no subject
That does make sense. HOWEVER, and maybe this is just my anxiety of being yelled at for reasons I can't control, I think just a little more provocation would have made it more fluid. Then again...I know they were going for startling. It just seemed to drag...on...so...long at first.
And I think that tension of waiting to see if he's a rager like MY old boss or actually having a method was very much part of the set up for the series.
I really like how as the series goes on the side characters take on more dimension! In lots of K-dramas you get these characters set up, and they're to perform specific functions and sometimes there's no natural segue. Here, the people are all there because that's realistic, and then they all weave in and out with their personal goals.