Rooftop Prince: SeNa

--SMTOWN-B2ST-INFINITE SUBS

I watched Rooftop Prince at about the same time I watched Fashion King. I preferred Fashion King over Rooftop Prince, even with its crazy ending. 

Unlike most of the viewers, I thought Sena with how evil she was, was the saddest character. She was as sad as Jae Hyuk in Fashion King, and thankfully both characters were just as complex (Jae Hyuk wins in complexity). The saddest part for me was when Sena's real mum meets her adoptive mum (her aunt) and the adoptive mum made her favorite dishes and the floodgates open when she burned herself trying to carry a hot pot. That moment hit a nerve because it was absolutely realistic. Sena never really liked her "mum" and she was not a caring daughter. Yet her "mum" gave her everything a mum could--Sena's foods cooked in that picky manner, and as much love as a mum could give. Sena did not return the favor but the "mum" was her mum.

Sena played by Jung Yoo Mi

"mum" played by Song Ok Sook

Biological mum played by Na Young Hee

From Left to Right: Choi Woo Shik, Jung Suk Won, Lee Min Ho

KDRAMA SUMMER VIEWING CHALLENGE

I love villainous characters and Fashion King, so far, is the only one to give me a good one. I do not like typecast roles, they are simple and boring. My favorite characters would have to be the "Power Rangers," the King's 3 men,  and the antagonist SeNa. The Power Rangers are hilarious and adorable while SeNa is just beautiful to watch, her acting is just amazing.

Green Ranger (the smart one) played by Lee Min Ho

Yellow Ranger (the adorable one) played by Choi Woo Shik

Blue Ranger (the bodyguard) played by Jung Suk Won

King played by Micky Yoochun

I do not pay attention to main characters unless they stand out, exceptions: Hyun Bin, Kim Sung Ah, Lee Seung Ki among others. The main characters in this drama are actually pretty good but the "loveness" of it all is just not my cup of tea. I do have to say that Micky Yoochun did exceptionally well here.

I like Sena because she was such a bad character (in the literal meaning and the Michael Jackson meaning) and played by a really good actress. I wanted a reason behind why she hated her sister but the writers/directors never gave one. Something must have spurred that hate. In the past it was because her family put her aside for the Crown Princess (which does serious damage to a kid's psyche). But in the present, there is nothing concrete. Other than her real mother abandoning her with her aunt, which could explain why she was never close to her adoptive mother.

What I really really really loved about this drama is that for once, the characters had common sense--the main male lead that is. The King, along with his Power Rangers, had to solve a mystery and they were pretty smart. It is pretty rare to find a drama where the lead characters apply real life common sense so that was refreshing to watch. Also, this drama did the time travel bit excellently. I watched Secret Garden and the body switching was so underplayed and underutilized but in this one, the writers got it oh-so-right.

The drama was definitely about love but I liked the mystery aspect of it as well. Oh and the power rangers and the food---KDrama and food is something else. And those rangers were absolutely darling.

DBSK-TVXQ-JYJ

I applaud celebrities. I love my privacy and for them to be so open to put themselves on such a platform is scary to me. I am a fan of korean pop and korean drama. I used to watch this channel called Arirang and I was introduced to DBSK/TVXQ, Shinee, FT Island, Shinee, Super Junior, SNSD, Girls Generation, etc.

Now DBSK/TVXQ was and is my first Korean boy band, actually they are all full grown men now. But they were my first. They began in South Korea, and Wikipedia help me out here:

TVXQ, an acronym for Tong Vfang Xien Qi, is a South Korean pop group formed in 2003 under SM Entertainment. In South Korea they are known as Dong Bang Shin Ki often abbreviated as DBSK; and in Japan as Tohoshinki. Their name translates to "The Rising Gods of the East".

U-Know Yunho

Max Changmin

Hero JaeJoong

Micky Yoochun

Xiah Junsu

Credit: LiveJournal users: mytsubasa, ibleedyunho, YONGYONG

Now this group is amazing. Their first video I saw was Mirotic and this was when I missed artists who actually danced, not gyrated. So they filled that niche beautifully and I have loved them (and the kpop that followed) since. The language is beautiful, I'm learning a few words here and there, their dancing is amazing to watch, the choreography is awesome and the video and the concept is stunning. This is what I want from my Naija stars but no, they're all autotuned-I-got-money-and-non-Naija-girls.

And those bodies, it's icing on the cake.

They are all so so beautiful, and they are dedicated. They are now venturing into acting and some of them have found quite a niche for it. Yunho was in Heading to the Ground and I would've loved Junsu to make a cameo since he loves soccer (me gusta!). His most recent work, till date, is Poseidon. Changmin was in Paradise Ranch. JaeJoong was in Protect the Boss and Time Slip Dr. Jin. Micky was in Sungkyunkwan Scandal, Miss Ripley and Rooftop Prince. Junsu had a cameo as himself on Scent of a Woman. And when they are not acting, they lend their voices to soundtracks. 

And the point of this is that sniffle my first kpop group, my very first foray into South Korean music and drama sniffle, splitting up. I keep replaying Mirotic and watching in amazement at their chemistry. I keep watching their performances on variety shows and I just cannot come to terms with their disbandment. In all fairness, I do support their move. Apparently, they were under some, Wikipedia and a notice:

The Seoul Central District Court in October 2009 ruled in favor of JYJ affirming their right to independently engage in entertainment activities and granted JYJ's injunction suspending the JYJ-SM contract; its ruling emphatically pointed out it was a "subjugating contract" with terms that are grossly incompatible with Korean labor and contract law.

JaeJoong, Yoochun and Junsu formed JYJ while Yunho and Changmin remained as TVXQ members. I will continue to support all of them because I love them all. They all have talent and I hope to see more of them. I will miss seeing them as one but I want them to continue making good music because they are seriously talented chincha! And if they will keep bringing things like these out:

 

FIGHTING OPPAS!

Anime and cartoons

I want to make a list of the anime and drama I have watched so far, so here goes. I started out with Inuyasha. I used to watch Inuyasha on Adult Swim, this was 2003-2007 ish. I also saw Samurai Champloo, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (I had to copy and paste that), Fullmetal Alchemist, Bleach, Ghost in the Shell, Blood+, Eureka Seven, and I can't forget Toonami which game me Megas XLR, Teen Titans, Justice League, Atomic Betty, One Piece, and Zatch Bell.

oh, and TOONAMI IS BACK!!!!!!!!!! THIS JUST MADE MY DAY. Saturday Nights are going to be a whole lot better from now on. Now if only orbitz can make a comeback T_T

...Anyway. I watched those shows on telly, the awesome Cartoon Network. Then I also began reading mangas: Inuyasha, Fruits Basket, mars, etc. Then I found out that these mangas had their anime so I began hunting for them. I watched Inuyasha and Fruits Basket on YouTube before I found Crunchyroll.com and luckily they have an ipod/iphone/ipad app. It was on Crunchyroll that I found out about dramas. I'm not sure whether I began with Japanese dramas (JDrama) or Korean dramas (KDrama) or Taiwanese Drama (TDrama). This list took me back to those old websites I used to use: crunchyroll, nairaland, and too bad most of the videos are gone on YouTube.

Non-Dramas: These are anime, manga, cartoons, whatever that is not a drama. 

Atomic Betty
Bleach
Blood+
Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo
Chobits
Code Lyoko
Eureka Seven
Fillmore
Fruits Basket
Fullmetal Alchemist
Ghost in the Shell
Inuyasha
Justice League: Unlimited
Love Hina
Marmalade Boy
Mars
Megas XLR
Naruto
One Piece
Ouran High School Host Club
Peach Girl
Ranma 1/2
Samurai Champloo
Shaman King
Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go!
Teen Titans
Tokyo Mew Mew
W.I.T.C.H.
Winx Club
Yu-Gi-Oh
Zatch Bell

KDrama

I do not like film characters that I am supposed to like.

I'm watching this Korean Drama, popularly referred to as KDrama, and I cannot find complexity in the characters.

The King 2 Hearts                                        Rooftop Prince

See KDramas have this formula, in the same way a culture's movie's does: Hollywood, Nollywood, etc. The girl is weak, the guy is mean and needs redemption and he gets it through the girl. I got it. I just want some twist in it. I want a Romeo and Juliet type of thing, according to the way Shakespeare wrote it, where both main characters both die, there is a lot of comedy (a la my favorite character Mercutio), and most importantly the characters are dynamic and complex. There is a reason why Romeo fell for Juliet so quickly (Rosaline dumped him) and Juliet was the rebound girl.

I'd like to see a rebound girl/guy in a KDrama. And if there is already a drama with a rebound girl/guy, please let me know.

So in Rooftop Prince, which tries too hard to be funny, the characters are in some reincarnation twist similar to Once Upon A Time (USA show). While I do love the twist, the past explores the complexity of the characters more than the present does. In the past, it is shown why the female antagonist is the way she is: she wanted to be the bride of the Crown Prince but her father sidelined her for being older for her younger sister (and females are taller than males pre-puberty) and her mother gave her prized ribbon to her younger sister to look pretty for the prince. There is an accident with an iron, which may or may not have been intentional, and the sister is scarred for life. I get why she is evil to the sister, I do. Kids at that age, especially pre-teens and teens at that age are fragile. The younger sister could not help it but the parents could and they basically fucked up both of their daughters. Now it's up to the audience to decide whom to root for: the psychologically damaged older sister or the younger sister who just wants her unni's love?

And in The King 2 Hearts, another prince tagline, three members of both Koreas are combined for a WOC fighting-soldier-armed-forces tournament. That soldiers from North and South Korea are participating in the fictional WOC is meant for a unification of both Koreas. I do like the idea and given that the current tide is North Korea is undergoing a leadership change, this is good. The Crown Prince of South Korea is on the South Korea (SK) team to please the people who pay for his upkeep. Y'know, to make the taxpayers proud. On the North Korea (NK) team is a female and two guys. I love that the North team has the female, the symbolism of that is just beautiful. As usual, the Crown Prince is the one in need of redemption and his character gets complexity. He did not want to be king, even though he has the IQ for it. He is lazy and he does not like the added pressure from being in the royal family.

Now when the two teams get together, the pranks begin. The Crown Prince disrupts the team's campfire bonding because he's excluded (more like he excluded himself), and the NK team play one on him where they have him convinced he will be killed with a poisonous needle in his sleep. The Crown Prince comes back with telling the team and the entire faculty, where they are practicing for the WOC, that the female got dumped (ouchie), and he delivers a low blow telling her he does not see her as a woman. The two keep going back and forth, mainly between the main leads (crown prince and female) until the Crown Prince shoots the woman in an exercise.

Now I admit, that has got to be awful, getting shot by someone you are supposed to trust. But...where was the trust? Both of them are acting like little kids and it doesn't help that you have a gun in my face. Yes, the guy gave a low blow and so did the girl when she gave a psycho-analysis. However, I cannot connect with the female because by the 4th episode, there is no complexity to her. She seems like a strong person--physically and mentally--who uses both her fists and tricks to get what she wants. Except I never know what she wants. One minute, she's brave and fearless, the next she is coy and fearful. The abrupt switch between both traits is too jarring and uncomfortable.

A part of me was actually hoping her character died with that gunshot. Her teammates have more complexity than she does, and I cannot even remember her name.

Naija films-the good

Gugu E. Michaels: Here is an action film. There are no cars not hitting someone who then falls and dies. There are no lazy punches and thankfully no horrible sounding blows.

   

Dangerous Men and Unge's War

Naija films-the bad

I applaud actors for what they do, Nigerian actors most especially. I laud the creative bodies behind an art piece: music, film, literature.

One thing I find irritating with Naija films--perhaps above the crappy writing and editing, is the speaking or the butchering of what is supposed to be said.

With the Yoruba movies, I get irritated when an English word is used when its Yoruba equivalent does exist. This is not just bits and pieces of English, but entire sentences and phrases when unneeded. I might as well stick with periodicals, except those are near going extinct. With the English genre, my grouse comes when the actor starts speaking English. Many actors--both male and female, are guilty of this.

But I am not faulting the actors. I blame the director for not catching it and for not fixing it. And I blame the producer for allowing it. It shows laziness on both the producer and the director. This particular post is aimed at the director and producers. If an actor makes a mistake, the director and producer are the ones who should and must catch the and rectify it.

Acting does not mean impeccable language, be it Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa or English.

Now some Nigerians say English is not our mother tongue. That is a sad excuse. The institutions of learning are in English: primary, secondary, poly and Uni. Governing is conducted in guess what? English. So stuff it with the English is not the mother tongue. English is the official language--keep the mother tongues, those tones and vernacular are beautiful. And stop using this pathetic excuse as a crutch to allow "educated people" butcher it. It's yours, and that is not likely to change. 

Acting also does not mean incorporating an accent just because. If the character is a poor rural girl/guy, she should sound like one. Now if a character is supposed to be a student, in University, then he/she should not be butchering the lingua franca. Unless she is supposed to portray an uneducated person.

Acting is also not about just speaking English: Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo actors show us that. It is not about having a British-Carribbean-Australian-American accent when you are a poor and struggling guy/girl who has never left the country. 

But then again, it could be a reflection of the current Nigerian society. The weaves are already in competition for the longest and most outrageous, so it may not be completely wrong that the accents are equally so.

back in the day films

I decided to find the old Naija movies, the early ones of back in the day. If I had the money, and the access, I would purchase these things. If I had even the website to buy these things from sef, I would buy. So far I have seen:

The Diamond Ring

Top (Left-Right): Bukky Ajayi, Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD), Shola Shobowale, Liz Benson
Bottom (Left-Right): Teju Babyface, Bimbo Akintola
Directed by: Tade Ogidan

Synopsis:
The son (Teju Babyface) of a wealthy man (RMD) is sent to a Nigerian university where he is pushed to join a cult (XG) and later alongside his fellow cult members, robs the grave of a rich woman (Liz Benson). They steal a diamond ring and then become hunted, dying one after the other. The son falls ill and refuses to tell his parents the story behind his ill health, until his aunt (Bukky Ajayi) ,a seer ,intercedes with the ghost on his behalf. His father is faced with the task of finding the diamond ring which had been sold to someone in the UK.
--culled from Sola

I remember watching this movie as a kid, but seeing it again several years later sealed so many things for me. One, Teju Babyface is adorable. This confirms my crush on the guy. Second, Bimbo Akintola, Sola Sobowale, and Bukky Ajayi are amazing. Watching them was spectacular. Third, Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD) is seriously good. The man is just so good. The cast was so perfect, I was sad when the movie ended. And you get to see everyone while they were young: Lanre Balogun (ah-mazing actor) and Funsho Adeolu.

More Money

Left-Right: Lanre Balogun, Bimbo Akintola, Jake Aernan, Segun Arinze
Directed by: Unknown

Synopsis:
This is story of a young school dropout (Jake Aernan), he retires in the village and resolves to do art works, he soon falls in love with a village girl Amaka (Bimbo Akintola) but does not have the money to marry her. 
--culled from Irokotv

This film featured Segun Arinze, who is seriously underrated or maybe ignored. He is one of Naija's finest actors, perhaps even better than RMD but not as gorgeous. It is similar to the Genevieve/Bimbo matter. He plays a professor here. Ramsey Nouah is also in this as well as the talented Jake Aernan. Now, we all know Ramsey is good and I will credit him as such. But this blog is dedicated to those who are not so harped upon in the Naija film industry. Jake Aernan is simply divine, especially with Bimbo Akintola. My favorite part of this is when the film actually shows the two of them courting. The directing was poor here, the trees were interfering and the scenes kept overlapping which is seriously distracting. But the process by which one actually falls in love with another is displayed.

Lest I forget, John Okafor plays the village jester. The kids love him but the adults do not take him seriously. This is the first time I have actually found him funny; that I actually remember him weeks after watching this film. Lanre Balogun plays Bimbo Akintola's father, an Igbo man. His acting here sealed it for me that he is in fact good. I completely forgot that he is Yoruba. There were some other actors, particularly the man who broke the news to Aernan's character that his parent is dead...I will find the man's name, I shall.

Deadly Affair

Left-Right: Sam Loco-Efe (deceased), Dolly Unachukwu, Emeka Ike, Sandra Achums, Jide Kosoko, Toyin Afolayan (Lola Idije)
Directed By: Chico Ejiro

Synopsis:

Ikechukwu (Emeka Ike) loves two women, Isabella (Dolly Unachukwu) and Bola (Sandra Achums). Isabella is a gangster and she is determined to have Ikechukwu (IK) at all cost, even if it means destroying Bola and her beloved IK. 


I have no idea what happened to Emeka Ike, but in this film he is absolutely good. Not exceptional but really really good. A 180 from what he does today, and I would like to see him return to that. The man is a pretty good actor, when he delivers. The film is great, it showcases Igbo, Yoruba, English and Pidgin English. I'm seeing Jide Kosoko, Toyin Afolayan (Lola Idije), Emeka Ike, Sandra Achums and  the deceased Sam Loco Efe. The story is pleasant and unpredictable, but somehow very Nigerian.