50FiftillidideeBrain
Jack & the Hedgehog Take a Bite Outta the Hood °8.4° °Excellent°
Yoon Hye Jin (HJin) loses it one day. Total Mariah-moment. She quits. She drinks. She trashes her boss online. HJin is a skilled dentist with a conscience. This, invariably, put her at odds with her greedy boss who expected her to prescribe unnecessary, but expensive treatment for their unwitting patients. She couldn't take the pain anymore, and extraction was necessary. Now she's jobless and no one wants to hire a ‘poison pill’. Going keyboard commando on her employer put all her potential employers’ teeth on edge.
What does she do? She goes for a ride. Her wandering takes her to a quaint seaside town. Her love affair begins with the sign over one establishment: Coffee in the middle of the day. Beer in the moonlight… But she ends up having a fateful day: She loses her shoes. Then her phone dies. She can't find her money either. At every turn she received reluctant assistance from a local yocal, Hong Doo Shik (DShik).
HCCC is a 2021 release that is rated 90 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of 16 70-minute episodes. Shin Ha Eun of Love Next Door and The Crowned Clown is the screenwriter who brings small town magic to life here. The deep-dimpled and lovely Shin Min Ah (Chief of Staff, Oh My Venus-7.4, My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho, Our Blues-8.5) is HJin. She's the hedgehog - get too close you'll get stuck. Kim Seon Ho (Welcome to Waikiki S2, 100 Days My Prince-5.5) is DShik, our Jack-of-all-trades. Since Start-up-8 and Strongest Delivery Man-6.6, I've been a fan. It's wonderful to see him play the romantic lead. Lee Sang Yi (Youth of May, When the Camellia Blooms-8, Han RiverPolice-7.4) once again shows his range as Ji Sung Hyun. The magnificent Lee Jung Eun has a guest appearance in ep1. The rest of the cast is wonderful, and the music might even be better. After Shazaming ‘Wish’ by Choi Yu Ree I pulled the entire playlist up on Spotify. All of the music is sensational. It compounds the delight factor. HCCC is excellent. There's a little bit of filler in double-digit episodes, but it doesn't suffer much from it.
I'm a fan of the director, Yoo Je Won. He's brought us Oh My Ghost-10, and the popular Love Next Door, & Crash Course in Romance. High School King of Savvy is his first effort and it's solidly rated. Oh My Ghost, as highly rated as it is, is still under-appreciated. Not only are the 4 leads (as well as supporting actor Lim Ju-hwan) absolute savants, but there is not one wasted line of dialogue. Everything points to something else. There's constant use of foreshadowing, metaphors, and other techniques that don't stop. Every viewing of the show reveals only more. Furthermore, it's a laugh-out-loud delight in the first half and then gets genuinely teary later on. I suspect it suffers because things don't get rolling until the very end of ep1, so a chunk of viewers probably didn't stick with it. Nevertheless, it is a masterpiece and catapulted this director and the lead actors to super-stardom. Tomorrow With You-7, which also stars Shin Min Ah, was next. I liked it very much, but some of the logic is deeply flawed - so much so that I cannot rate it above a 7. The positives outweigh the bad, but it should have been better. The Smile Has Left Your Eyes was well received and followed up by Abyss-4.7, which is a complete failure in every way possible. It is a debacle and there is almost nothing redeeming about it, other than the good looks of the ML. It is over-rated by kind viewers, many of which are likely reacting to a dearth of good romantic content from Hwood. Abyss is better than most Hwood gunk, but it is not worth watching once, given the many better features Asia has to offer. Hi Bye Mama!-6.5 has plenty of positives, but I wouldn't choose to watch it again. It was intended to be a ray of hope for people that have suffered loss, which was exactly what I was going through at the time, but it didn't do it for me. With HTCCC, CCiR, and LND he seems to have recaptured his magic. This Director exudes warmth, has an appreciation for good food, and really “gets” good music, particularly jazz. Like OMG, the soundtrack for HTCCC is stellar. Top tier. After some bold & underlined question marks, I am so happy that he's settled back into his own and is cranking out such amazing stuff, like I know that he can.
The main character in HCCC is the home town. HJin is from Seoul. She is used to high fashion and upscale amenities. The people that live in her new home lead different lives and rely on eachother heavily. We have the young, the old, the men, the women, the silly and the wise. There's a full cast and wide variety of well-developed characters that help push the plot. They also like to sink their teeth into some juicy gossip. After taking the plunge and opening a dental practice there, HJin offends everyone with her unconsciously elitist attitude, but with DShik's help from the shadows, she eventually settles into small town life. The next closest dentist is an hour away, so customers begin to wander in.
When HJin & DShik finally start dating, she wants to keep it a secret. The town is full of busybodies, afterall. Most of it isn't mean-spirited, but that's besides the point. Every time someone happens upon a sweet moment they are sharing, she turns around and slaps or kicks him. She even gives him a bloody nose in an effort to throw the dogs off. He almost doesn't survive their initial secretive phase. As it turns out, none of it was working anyway. Everyone saw through it.
They run into relationship static at one point. She knows he's keeping hurts from the past bottled up. She wants him to open up. She comes to the conclusion that she should wait for him. She tells him that if he promises to open up to her one day, then she'll wait until he's ready. He can take as long as he wants to “open wide”. I think that's the right answer instead of drilling him for what she wants, when she wants it.
HCCC digs into the root of things once or twice. One of the characters gets a beautiful speech followed up shortly by quite a beautiful death scene. Rather than the sequence feeling sad, it is a triumph of a simple life, lived well, to the fullest satisfaction. That is the theme of HCCC: A simple life and being content with just enough is the key to a happiness. We let our endless wants create discontent and dissatisfaction. Choosing simplicity and contentment is choosing joy and peace. Love will always follow Along those lines, HCCC is a pleasant trip to the seaside with nothing complicated or heavy. Qite the opposite.
〰 IMHO 〰
RATINGS
Directing 8.2
Writing 7.8
Acting 8
Romance 7.7
Flutters 5
Art 7
Sound & music 8.8
Ending 8
LEVELS
Warmth 6.5
Action/ Excitement 3
Laughs 4
Tears 3
Fright 2
Tension/Anxiety 2
Gore 1
Thought provocation 5
Snores 1
Re-watch? Likely
Age 12+
Language: PG-13, but there isn't much of that
Rated
TV-14: Parents Strongly Cautioned.
In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:
Fish out water tales:
Live Up To Your Name-7.6;
Mr. Queen 8.5,
The Legend of the Blue Sea-7.2 - It's exceptional except for 2 episodes,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Hotel del Luna-8.4,
Modern Day Kromcoms-
Mad For Each Other-7.7 ~silly fun;
Crazy Love-7.8,
My First First Love-8,
A Witch's Love 7.8,
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Romance is a bonus book-7.9;
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Our Blues-8.7,
Descendants Of The Sun-8.3,
Familiar Wife-8.5,
Because This Is My First Life-7.7,
Hospital Playlist 9,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
Historical/Period -
My Only Love Song 8.7 ~ excellent comedy,
My Sassy Girl 8.5,
Saimdang 8.5,
The King's Affection 8.3,
Romance junkies only -
My Secret Romance 7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks),
99 days with the Superstar-7,
Boys Over Flowers 8 ~ melodrama to the max,
The Bride of Habaek 7,
A Korean Odyssey-7.2,
Heirs 7.3,
That Winter, The Wind Blows 7,
Something in the Rain 9,
C: Well-Intended Love 7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine,
You are my destiny 6.8 cute, sweet & 1/2 padding, When I Fly Towards You-7.8, Find Yourself 8.9,
Hidden Love-7.8,
Wait, My Youth-8.4,
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5,
What does she do? She goes for a ride. Her wandering takes her to a quaint seaside town. Her love affair begins with the sign over one establishment: Coffee in the middle of the day. Beer in the moonlight… But she ends up having a fateful day: She loses her shoes. Then her phone dies. She can't find her money either. At every turn she received reluctant assistance from a local yocal, Hong Doo Shik (DShik).
HCCC is a 2021 release that is rated 90 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of 16 70-minute episodes. Shin Ha Eun of Love Next Door and The Crowned Clown is the screenwriter who brings small town magic to life here. The deep-dimpled and lovely Shin Min Ah (Chief of Staff, Oh My Venus-7.4, My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho, Our Blues-8.5) is HJin. She's the hedgehog - get too close you'll get stuck. Kim Seon Ho (Welcome to Waikiki S2, 100 Days My Prince-5.5) is DShik, our Jack-of-all-trades. Since Start-up-8 and Strongest Delivery Man-6.6, I've been a fan. It's wonderful to see him play the romantic lead. Lee Sang Yi (Youth of May, When the Camellia Blooms-8, Han RiverPolice-7.4) once again shows his range as Ji Sung Hyun. The magnificent Lee Jung Eun has a guest appearance in ep1. The rest of the cast is wonderful, and the music might even be better. After Shazaming ‘Wish’ by Choi Yu Ree I pulled the entire playlist up on Spotify. All of the music is sensational. It compounds the delight factor. HCCC is excellent. There's a little bit of filler in double-digit episodes, but it doesn't suffer much from it.
I'm a fan of the director, Yoo Je Won. He's brought us Oh My Ghost-10, and the popular Love Next Door, & Crash Course in Romance. High School King of Savvy is his first effort and it's solidly rated. Oh My Ghost, as highly rated as it is, is still under-appreciated. Not only are the 4 leads (as well as supporting actor Lim Ju-hwan) absolute savants, but there is not one wasted line of dialogue. Everything points to something else. There's constant use of foreshadowing, metaphors, and other techniques that don't stop. Every viewing of the show reveals only more. Furthermore, it's a laugh-out-loud delight in the first half and then gets genuinely teary later on. I suspect it suffers because things don't get rolling until the very end of ep1, so a chunk of viewers probably didn't stick with it. Nevertheless, it is a masterpiece and catapulted this director and the lead actors to super-stardom. Tomorrow With You-7, which also stars Shin Min Ah, was next. I liked it very much, but some of the logic is deeply flawed - so much so that I cannot rate it above a 7. The positives outweigh the bad, but it should have been better. The Smile Has Left Your Eyes was well received and followed up by Abyss-4.7, which is a complete failure in every way possible. It is a debacle and there is almost nothing redeeming about it, other than the good looks of the ML. It is over-rated by kind viewers, many of which are likely reacting to a dearth of good romantic content from Hwood. Abyss is better than most Hwood gunk, but it is not worth watching once, given the many better features Asia has to offer. Hi Bye Mama!-6.5 has plenty of positives, but I wouldn't choose to watch it again. It was intended to be a ray of hope for people that have suffered loss, which was exactly what I was going through at the time, but it didn't do it for me. With HTCCC, CCiR, and LND he seems to have recaptured his magic. This Director exudes warmth, has an appreciation for good food, and really “gets” good music, particularly jazz. Like OMG, the soundtrack for HTCCC is stellar. Top tier. After some bold & underlined question marks, I am so happy that he's settled back into his own and is cranking out such amazing stuff, like I know that he can.
The main character in HCCC is the home town. HJin is from Seoul. She is used to high fashion and upscale amenities. The people that live in her new home lead different lives and rely on eachother heavily. We have the young, the old, the men, the women, the silly and the wise. There's a full cast and wide variety of well-developed characters that help push the plot. They also like to sink their teeth into some juicy gossip. After taking the plunge and opening a dental practice there, HJin offends everyone with her unconsciously elitist attitude, but with DShik's help from the shadows, she eventually settles into small town life. The next closest dentist is an hour away, so customers begin to wander in.
When HJin & DShik finally start dating, she wants to keep it a secret. The town is full of busybodies, afterall. Most of it isn't mean-spirited, but that's besides the point. Every time someone happens upon a sweet moment they are sharing, she turns around and slaps or kicks him. She even gives him a bloody nose in an effort to throw the dogs off. He almost doesn't survive their initial secretive phase. As it turns out, none of it was working anyway. Everyone saw through it.
They run into relationship static at one point. She knows he's keeping hurts from the past bottled up. She wants him to open up. She comes to the conclusion that she should wait for him. She tells him that if he promises to open up to her one day, then she'll wait until he's ready. He can take as long as he wants to “open wide”. I think that's the right answer instead of drilling him for what she wants, when she wants it.
HCCC digs into the root of things once or twice. One of the characters gets a beautiful speech followed up shortly by quite a beautiful death scene. Rather than the sequence feeling sad, it is a triumph of a simple life, lived well, to the fullest satisfaction. That is the theme of HCCC: A simple life and being content with just enough is the key to a happiness. We let our endless wants create discontent and dissatisfaction. Choosing simplicity and contentment is choosing joy and peace. Love will always follow Along those lines, HCCC is a pleasant trip to the seaside with nothing complicated or heavy. Qite the opposite.
〰 IMHO 〰
RATINGS
Directing 8.2
Writing 7.8
Acting 8
Romance 7.7
Flutters 5
Art 7
Sound & music 8.8
Ending 8
LEVELS
Warmth 6.5
Action/ Excitement 3
Laughs 4
Tears 3
Fright 2
Tension/Anxiety 2
Gore 1
Thought provocation 5
Snores 1
Re-watch? Likely
Age 12+
Language: PG-13, but there isn't much of that
Rated
TV-14: Parents Strongly Cautioned.
In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:
Fish out water tales:
Live Up To Your Name-7.6;
Mr. Queen 8.5,
The Legend of the Blue Sea-7.2 - It's exceptional except for 2 episodes,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Hotel del Luna-8.4,
Modern Day Kromcoms-
Mad For Each Other-7.7 ~silly fun;
Crazy Love-7.8,
My First First Love-8,
A Witch's Love 7.8,
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Romance is a bonus book-7.9;
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Our Blues-8.7,
Descendants Of The Sun-8.3,
Familiar Wife-8.5,
Because This Is My First Life-7.7,
Hospital Playlist 9,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
Historical/Period -
My Only Love Song 8.7 ~ excellent comedy,
My Sassy Girl 8.5,
Saimdang 8.5,
The King's Affection 8.3,
Romance junkies only -
My Secret Romance 7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks),
99 days with the Superstar-7,
Boys Over Flowers 8 ~ melodrama to the max,
The Bride of Habaek 7,
A Korean Odyssey-7.2,
Heirs 7.3,
That Winter, The Wind Blows 7,
Something in the Rain 9,
C: Well-Intended Love 7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine,
You are my destiny 6.8 cute, sweet & 1/2 padding, When I Fly Towards You-7.8, Find Yourself 8.9,
Hidden Love-7.8,
Wait, My Youth-8.4,
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5,
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