Eternal K-Drama in the Spotless Mind
Annyeongsayo!
That’s how they say “Hello!” in Korean. No, I did not go to SungDo in an exchange program and no, I did not go to Korea for a competition. My venture to Korea was a virtual one — through my laptop screen and a long list of downloads.
I used to think Korean drama was a senseless obsession. My family loved K-drama. They would watch a new series almost every week and whenever I arrived home, it would be to laughing at a new episode of the reality television show Running Man. Meanwhile, I, the ever so arrogant teenager, had a great aversion to a highly commercialized and looks-obsessed culture. (Heck, there is an insane number of “plastic” Korean actors.)
You could imagine my surprise then after I watched the first Korean series I really liked — The Moon That Embraces The Sun.
I envisioned my long break as a time to get in touch with my tall pile of to-be-read books and watching pretentious art films. However, by the break, I was exhausted. I just needed a long “thinking break.”
The Moon That Embraces The Sun was perfect for just that. It’s not that it was mindless, but it was perfect for cathartic entertainment. As I tweeted, Aristotle would have loved it. From there, I watched four more series. Yes, four more series in a week.
To be fair, I only watched half of two of those. But I spent literally an entire day watching one of them — Scarlet Heart Ryeo.
Now that series was cinematic garbage, as are many other K-dramas. But you know those stories that are just so good that you’re willing to shrug off the bad?
I don’t know what it is with K-drama that makes you want to waste so much life on it. It’s still, certainly, a very materialistic and narcissistic culture. The actors, though pretty, impose impossible expectations on how you must look. There must always be an elite class who looks down on the peasant hero/ine. Additionally, many aspects in their story are vain.
Still, I think I need these kinds of breaks every now and then. After the long break, a friend told me she noticed how much happier I seemed. And that could only be attributed to K-drama!
Of course, reality sets in and you’re reminded of how insignificant K-drama is in the grand scheme of things. But you learn to forgive yourself for this bit of senseless obsession. “Pampatulog utak” someone called K-drama. And I completely agree. A Pisay student needs some “Annyeongsayo” once in a while.
