HALLYU ZOMBIE DRAMA REVIEW: Bride of the Century Episodes 1-2 (2/2)

Zombie: I just have to ask, are you two loving Bride of the Century as much as I am because really, I’m freakin’ loving this show!!!

 

Tanya: I love the unexpected bits of comedy thrown into the darkness of this slightly creepy drama. It’s like they took My Love From Another Star and The Master’s Sun and rolled them together. I like it.

 

Zombie: I know, right? There are so many elements of this drama that I’m freaking out about right now because the combination of them all is flippin’ fantastic (baby)! This drama is fairly serious but it’s got just enough moments of comedy overlaying a dark and creepy undertone that makes it so stinking incredible, I’m totally addicted!

 

Shai: It does slightly remind me of Master’s Sun with the serious story line yet it can balance out the comedy well.

Zombie: Is anyone else as excited to see Lee Hong Ki taking on a serious role as I am? I always thought he had so much more potential than he was given in You’re Beautiful. I’m so happy to see that someone else thought so as well. I think he’s really going to shine in the role of Kang Joo!

 

Tanya: He is a very dynamic person in real life, so it totally makes sense that he can suit so many roles. Knowing how mischievous he can be though, we’re definitely going to see some classic Hong Ki in the comedy parts. I love the “did that really just happen?!” looks his character gives and those are classic Hong Ki faces.

 

Shai: Do not kill me, this is my first time seeing him act nor am I a huge fan of FT Island lol

 

Tanya: No worries! We all have to start somewhere.

Zombie: So how about we talk about Choi Kang Ju for a bit. What do you two think of him as a character? Do you think he’s going to remain the stereotypical chaebol heir throughout this drama or do you think he’ll develop into something more? I’m thinking he’s already showing signs of change but I still want to know what you think.

 

Tanya: When haven’t we seen a chaebol break in Dramaland? They always do and it’s going to be the poor version of her, Doo Rim, that does it.

 

Shai: Of course he’s going to change..this is Dramaland ya know. But it is kinda early for him to show signs of that change, we’re almost on episode 3 and he’s already showing feelings. Makes me think the drama is going to use the average drama tropes and put a twist to them.

Zombie: I’m perfectly okay with that! Here’s another question for you… Do you think that Kang Ju admitting he was using Jang Yi Kyung as a puppet warranted her reacting the way she did? I mean, isn’t it a given that a marriage for the sake of business is going to be nothing more than using each other to their advantage?

 

Tanya: Honestly, Yi Kyung is a spoiled brat. While Kang Ju is a bit harsh, she knew what her family was doing by marrying her off. If he doesn’t want a real relationship, you don’t need to go and runaway over that. Just go have fun with your friends and money. And in the terms of where her family falls, they’re new money and they are failing. She doesn’t really get options.

 

Zombie: That’s what I thought. Girl, you know what you’re getting yourself into, just suck it up and deal with it! Of course, expecting a spoiled rich girl to act like any normal, responsible adult, is just ridiculous when you’re living in DramaLand, so her reaction is kind of given. I honestly don’t care if she never comes back because I love seeing Kang Ju and Doo Rim together but you know she’s going to have to come back at some point to stir up trouble. Laws of DramaLand, ya know? So how about Yi Kyung’s family, huh? Her mother seems like your typical snotty, desperate pain but her brother, Yi Hyun, seems to be incredibly sweet and overprotective of his little sister. I’m really liking him, at the moment and I totally see him becoming the second male lead and falling for Doo Rim, against his better judgement.

Shai: I agree with both of you. Yi Kyung is a brat and isn’t that naive. She’s rich and knows why her family is marrying her off. While Kang Ju is a jerk, he’s at least being honest with her about his intentions and how he feels. I know she wants to have love in her marriage, she should know what she’s getting into and needs to fight off that need to show off her fiance to her friends.

 

Tanya: I’m glad I’m not the only one that got the creeper sense that he’s going to like Doo Rim. Not that it’s actually creepy because they ARE different people but being attracted to someone who looks exactly like your sister is a bit…. wrong?

Zombie: At least it’s been firmly established that they are in no way related! I’m really happy about that because I’m seriously bothered by dramas who make it okay to have a couple fall in love only to find out later that they’re related. EWW! Not that Doo Rim is going to fall in love with Yi Hyun, I’m just saying that having him fall for her is enough to creep me out, had they been secretly related. And speaking of creepy… The Choi family ghost is pretty much terrifying. I can’t decide if she’s more mischievous or malicious. I mean, there were moments when it seemed the ghost was trying to bring Doo Rim and Kang Ju together but I can’t decide if it’s to help them develop a real relationship or if it’s just so she can murder Doo Rim after they’re married.

Shai: It’s hard to get a reading on the family ghost because I am wracking my brain trying to figure out why she’s chosen Doo Rim in the first place. Does the curse only some into effect if the guy is in love with the woman? Because this would make sense, Kang Ju isn’t in love with Yi Kyung so maybe the curse wouldn’t affect their marriage. Then again, what if she’s trying to help the family, but I can’t see why when she’s killed off every first son’s first wife in the last hundred years.

 

Zombie: Wow, I’d never even thought of that but it makes a great point. If the firstborn son marries for love the first time, and the bride always dies, it would make sense for the family to want to marry him off for convenience the first time around and spare him the heartache of losing his love right off the bat. If they understand the workings of the curse, that is.

Tanya: I want to know how this ghost hasn’t noticed that it’s not really Yi Kyung. Did that bother anyone else? She told the monk to give the mom anything she wanted, but that was when it was still her real daughter as the target. I don’t know… seems a little off to me.

 

Zombie: Maybe the ghost doesn’t really care who the girl is, as long as she dies in the end. I can’t really see a ghost being all the picky, when it comes down to it.

 

Tanya: Very true. A soul is a soul. I’m still trying to figure out how I feel about Kang Ju’s parents. I like the dad, Choi Il Hwa, but I don’t know whether I should feel sorry for the situation his mother, Kim Seo Ra, had to go through and that’s why she is the way she is? Or maybe she’s just a mean-spirited person? Especially when she was talking about being friendly with the help…

Zombie: I think she just has a very realistic grasp on her life. She understands what her role is in her marriage and what her duties are and she excels in fulfilling her duties as a chaebol’s wife. I’m pretty sure she spent her entire life being groomed for such a role and has no unrealistic expectations or fantasies of true love. I think she would like to have a special place in her husband’s heart but she seems to have, at least begrudgingly, accepted the fact that she probably never will.

 

Shai: I feel for Kang Ju’s mom only because she knows how her husband still feels about his first wife. She’ll never be that special to him (at least right now, this is a drama after all) so she’s just accepted it. I think she told Doo Rim (“Yi Kyung”) not to be too friendly with the help because maybe it took a while for them to actually respect or listen to her. She seemed to be speaking from experience and not just as some rich person. Then they were gossiping about the family curse, she didn’t want to scare her either and is fully aware of something odd about that family.

Zombie: I picked up on that vibe too. Again, I have a feeling she’s been groomed for this role her entire life and had to learn this particular lesson, the hard way. And yes, I’m pretty sure Seo Ra didn’t want Doo Rim picking up any hints of the family’s dark side. Can’t have a bride running away when there’s a ghost to appease.

Tanya: What about the brother, Kang In? I kind of feel like he’s going to end up being a bigger part of the story than the little we have seen so far. Although, sometimes dramas like to ignore what should be important characters and leave them on the side as eye candy or the occasional annoyance. With Doo Rim being a fan of his idol group, I could see some tension there.

 

Zombie: There’s definitely room for a little brotherly jealously… Makes me think of Secret Garden and the rivalry between Oscar and Kim Joo Won and how I could see this going a similar way. It would be so easy for Doo Rim to find comfort in a friendship with Kang In. I could see him becoming a safe-haven in an otherwise difficult and sometimes hostile world. If that were to happen, I could see Kang Ju’s eyes turning green, from time to time.

 

Shai: I can also see some jealousy that could happen here. You’re so right with the Secret Garden comparison. Joo Won was jealous of Ra Im’s friendship with Oscar so the same can happen here. Ra Im was a huge fan of Oscar’s and Doo Rim likes Kang In. He can be the nice and understanding one while Doo Rim tries to figure out her feelings. However, there would be no doubt that Doo Rim’s heart lies with Kang Ju.

 

Zombie: There are, undoubtedly, some similarities between the two. I’m excited to see where all of this goes because I have a feeling it’s going to be awesome but I have to say, I’m the most excited to watch Kang Ju’s icy and uncaring exterior melt under the bubbly warmth of Doo Rim’s smile. Just thinking about it makes me giddy with anticipation! You know he’s going to fall so hard for her… I can’t wait! *squee!* (Um, can I do that? “Squee” in a post???)

Shai: Squee away lol I am also very excited to see him fall really hard for her. It’s even better since he thinks she’s Yi Kyung so when the real one shows up, it’ll be very interesting. His feelings are already taking a turn and now he’ll start acting on impulse, his heart is way ahead of his mind so this will be fun.

 

Zombie: And that is EXACTLY what I’m most looking forward to in this drama. I want to watch Lee Hong Ki… I mean Kang Ju, fall ridiculously in love. (Sorry, my inner fangirl broke free for a second there…)

Tanya: Can anyone else confirm love for Kang Ju’s “did that really just happen?!” looks every time Doo Rim does something unexpected. I laugh EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. He seriously doesn’t know how to handle her at all because she is nothing like the actual Yi Kyung. Hilarious.

 

Zombie: Um, yeah… Add to that the indignant little squeak that usually accompanies that look and I just lose it. He’s just TOO. DANG. ADORABLE!!!

 

Shai: Haha Yes he does have that WTF type of look every time she does something unexpected. It’s to be expected since Yi Kyung is a spoiled princess who doesn’t have half of the life experience that Doo Rim has. Whenever the real Yi Kyung will show up and Doo Rim will go away (we know it will happen), she won’t be able to compete with what Doo Rim has already done and people will find it odd.

Tanya: Can I just say “closet scene”? Oh my goodness… but she dished out more than he did in the end. It was priceless.

 

Zombie: That was another one of those moments where I lost it… It was just perfect. You know Kang Ju was trying to mess with her and she didn’t even bat an eye!

Shai: I really loved that scene! He kinda looked scared of her for a minute lol

 

Zombie: He should be! She could take him in two seconds flat! I also thought the whole scene with the cat was adorable. Doo Rim completely takes charge the whole time and Kang Jus is just standing there, flabbergasted by the fact he’s taking orders from this crazy girl who is becoming more intriguing by the second. I loved it!

Shai: That entire scene with the cat and burying the mother was just another thing to deflate his ego lol He huffed about everything, but still ended up listening to her. She never gave him a chance to decline or say no, she gave him the kitten or mentioned how he’s never done anything in his life when it came to the digging. She pretty much makes him look incompetent and he doesn’t enjoy feeling this way lol

Tanya: But he needs that. He’s been on a pedestal his entire life. It’s time to see the real world from the vantage point of the people on the ground! It’s the only way he would last longer-term, especially as the head of a company. Just as Yi Hyun drank with the workers at the construction site, it gave them a better view of him because he was willing to get down to their level, for lack of a better way to say that.

Shai: You’re right. I did forget about the scene with Yi Hyun drinking with the workers, he may have done that for a financial reason but it did give him a better understanding of them. Kang Ju needs to realize what his workers are going through. I have a feeling that him firing of that lady won’t be the last he hears from her or her situation. She threw a tomato at him, but he’s still going to have to pay for what he did to her, firing her for no reason. With him being with Doo Rim he’ll see just how hard his workers may have it. Speaking of which, what is with that ending scene to episode 2? The only one to make a move was Doo Rim, everyone stood there especially Roo Mi and she’s suppose to be in love with him.

 

Zombie: Well of course Roo Mi isn’t going to step up, she might mess up her perfect hair, or perfect makeup or heaven forbid, she might chip a nail! Why risk your perfection just to save the man you “love” from a measly tomato? (and yes, that is dripping with sarcasm…) I could see the other members of that entourage jumping in to save Kang Ju before I could see Roo Mi doing so but of course, this is Dramaland we’re talking about here, only the plucky female lead is brave enough to fight off rogue tomatoes. I just want to know what happens next… The look on Kang Ju’s face… *bursts into ridiculous fangirl giggles of delight* (I’m gonna have to find a way to lock my inner-fangirl up while we write this or my contributions may end up being crap…)

Shai: I think Roo Mi isn’t in love with Kang Ju himself, she’s in love with his status and this will be her flaw. While Doo Rim will work hard to get to know who Kang Ju really is, all Roo Mi will be worried about is how he looks to the public and whether his image is tainted. This reminds me of another drama, I just can’t think of the name right now.

 

Zombie: You’re pretty much safe naming any chaebol centered drama to use as your example here. There’s always a spoiled rich girl who feels she’s entitled to stay by the chaebol’s side, just because she’s known him the longest. As if that mattered at all when it comes to love…

 

Shai: Yeah very true. I was just thinking a more recent drama, but can’t put my finger on it. While this is like other dramas of its genre, I am excited to see how they execute it.

 

So what are your thoughts on Bride of the Century? When do you think Yi Kyung is going to return? Will Kang Ju and Doo Rim fall in love before or after Yi Kyung’s return? What are the ghost’s real intentions? Let us know what you think in the comments below!

 

You can find more of our ramblings on our blogs or start a conversation with us on Twitter:

Zombie: ZombieMamma or @TheZombieMamma

Shai: k-dramacentral or @princess_smilez

Tanya: HallyuKnow? or @Hallyu_Tanya

Miss a review? Catch up on all of our past Bride of the Century ramblings here:

Episodes 1-2: [Part 1] [Part 2]