You remember the time you really really loved a certain actor? Then their next drama annoyed you beyond belief and your love has never recovered? That is the topic for Day 16 of our 30 Day Asian Drama Challenge.
DAY 16: Drama that ruined your fondness for an actor/actress you previously liked.
KdramaJen: I had high hopes for Nam Joo-Hyuk after Surplus Princess (Idle Mermaid). Then, I didn’t enjoy his character in School 2015. I am not saying I won’t watch him in anything else, but that character annoyed me, so it sort of spilled over onto Nam Joo-Hyuk. I had the same issue with Yoo Yun-Seok. I loved him in Reply 1994 (#TeamChilbong), but his character in Warm and Cozy left me…cold.
CLKYTTA: Pretty much every drama Sung Joon has picked has not impressed me since I Need Romance 3. Most recently, I was totally unimpressed with Madame Antoine. I don’t know why he keeps getting typecast as these cold hearted doctor types, but I’m starting to not want to watch his dramas at all.
Drama Geek: Lee Min Ho in Heirs. He hasn’t been in a drama since and it’s killing me. I do not blame it on him, but on the writer. Which is why I avoided Descendants of the Sun. I was not going to let her ruin my love for Song Joon Ki. I know once I’m able to wash Kim Tan from my brain I’ll love him again, but for now I still have a bitter taste in my mouth.
KMUSE: I loved Choi Kang Hee in Protect the Boss. Then literally every drama since has driven me batty. Especially Level 7 Civil Servant. That was the beginning of the end for my enjoyment of this actress.
Are any of our picks the same as yours? Give us your take on roles that ruined actors for you and be sure to check back tomorrow for all new challenge questions.
See you tomorrow,
The Fangirls
Lee Min Ho in Heirs. City Hunter was my very first Kdrama, and I fell in love with Lee Min Ho. I watched all of his other dramas and continued to love him, although I started to notice some acting tics in Faith. Then Heirs ruined him for me. Gangnam Blues didn’t help. I’m still hoping Bounty Hunters redeems him, but I don’t know when I’ll be able to see it.
Sung Joon is my bias, but I would love to see him do a role like I Need Romance again; it was fun to watch him be the fluffy, affectionate one.
Mine happened within one drama — Seo Kang Joon in Cunning Single Lady. I liked him in the first part and then when his character turned into a jerk I could barely even stand to look at him anymore, and I can’t watch anything with him in it. He’s the reason I never even started Cheese, which ironically I guess he did the same thing in that drama.
I actually never dislike an actor for portraying some character that a drama writer has created. I will form an opinion based on his/her abilities to BE that character.
Case in point – FIRST time I saw Lee Min Ho he played a character (Jun Pyo) who I’ve HATED in every incarnation I’ve seen. So sorry. But I was very impressed with Min Ho’s ability to flesh out that guy, and ended up liking the actor. He’s never disappointed me, even in Heirs (it was the WRITING that put my teeth on edge in that – hardly Min Ho’s fault)
On the other hand, Crystal may be a sweet girl and good on stage, but OMG she needs acting lessons or something. My Lovely Girl had tepid writing, true, but HER lack of ability to project (except when around L :d ) makes me NOT want to see her as a lead anytime soon.
I do agree with you on this. I plan on watching Lee Min Ho’s next drama. I probably should have picked someone that portrayed a villain or something. I guess the only way I’ve ever just stopped watching an actor after really liking them, was if they did something in their personal life that was horrible.
I also loved Lee Min Ho in Boys Over Flowers, even though I hated Gu Jun Pyo. Actors can be brilliant at playing unsympathetic or villainous or even poorly written characters. I thought Jackpot was horribly written, but I loved Jang Geun Suk, Yeo Jin Goo, Choi Min Soo, and even Jun Kwang Ryul (whose character made no sense at all) for their acting. Bad writing can ruin a drama, but it doesn’t necessarily ruin a performance, and the performances can make even a bad drama worth watching if the actors are good enough.
I think Heirs was poorly written and a bad drama, but there were some lovely performances in it. I think Kim Woo Bin, Kang Min Hyuk, Kang Ha Neul, and Park Hyung Shik all did great work with what they were given, but Lee Min Ho and Park Shin Hye did not. Heirs even cooled me a bit on Choi Jin Hyuk, who I usually like a lot.
This question is really interesting because it makes you think about whether you like the acting or the way the character was written or both, and whether the actor is skilled and versatile or just good in certain roles. For example, I only like Sung Joon in the I Need Romance type of role, and I think now that I only like Lee Min Ho in well-written roles. Much as I hated Gu Jun Pyo, I think the role was well written.
I love Sung Joon too and am debating about whether or not to see him in Madame Antoine. I don’t know whether it was his acting or the writing, but I’ve heard nothing but bad things and I don’t want to kill the glowing image I have of my bias.
I think my bias is such that even if the show sucks, I’d be content to just look at him, lol. I watched all of Lie to Me, which I hated, just for his scenes. It’s a problem. 😉
Agree…I loved Sung Joon in I Need Romance 3, which I just watched for the first time … his other characters I’ve seen before…not so much!!! Come back, cute and adorable and fun!!!!!
Haven’t seen 7th Level Civil Servant, but I thought Choi Kang Hee did a great job in Heart to Heart. It’s a favorite drama of mine.