Bride of the Century: You're so not my type

I feel a little like one of those snotty, chaebol heroes a la Secret Garden, Master’s Sun, Flower Boy Ramyun Shop, etc. I shake my head at the cheeseball antics of this show. Turn my nose up at the recycled, K-drama clichés. And think I’m so far above it all. Then I realize I actually sent an email to Dramafever this weekend asking if they would be releasing the episodes earlier, since Korea changed the show’s time. Why do I like you, Bride? Why?!!!!!

It’s a wonder I even gave it a chance. BotC had everything stacked against it. I’m not a fan of Lee Hong Ki with his blond dye-job and penchant for male, nail art. I hate horror stories. And still think 20 episodes is too long for a drama (The King 2 Hearts being my ultimate exception to that). But this show has me giggling, and squeeing, and recalling my teenage fangirl days of the 90s when I dressed up like Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman for a costume party, or searched the TV Guide for pictures of Dean Cain as Superman. Sometimes it’s nice to embrace the cheddar. Who needs logic, or an original story set-up when they’re recycling all the old ones I love in such a cute, charismatic way.

No shrinking violets allowed

I adore a strong, female lead. And this fashion-challenged, champion of the underdogs stole my affections along with Kang Joo’s. She takes bricks to the head, piggybacks loopy grandmas, and giggles at the gory parts when the rest of the theater is hiding their eyes. A drama staple that drives me up the wall is when a heroine gets manipulated by the shady, second lead and then spends the next three episodes sobbing in noble idiotic exile, without trying to clear up the misunderstanding. Although Doo Rim trips over a few of Roo Mi’s snares, she just picks herself up, dusts herself off, and tosses a designer shoe in the girl’s face. Evil mommas, self-serving doppelgangers and century old curses better stand back. She’s got a frying pan, and she’s not afraid to use it.

Another Drama Darcy is born

A posh, haughty, know-it-all fights his overwhelming attraction to the poor, but sassy heroine. Hmmmm. Sounds kinda familiar. Perhaps it’s my longstanding love for Jane Austen, but I never grow tired of this stereotype. I get such a kick out of watching the hero declare, “She’s not handsome enough to tempt me,” (or in modern-day terms, “Girl’s not hot enough”) and then watching him follow our Ms. Independent around like a lovesick puppy, practically begging for her attention. Although Hong Ki left me cold in the past, I gotta admit his Kang Joo looks pretty good in his tailored suits, and conservative, chaebol hairstyle.

Do you know Casper?

Maybe friendly. Maybe not. Who can tell with this ghost? Sure, she saved the kidnapped Kang Joo when he was a little boy and brought him home. Maybe she’s just the victim of bad publicity, but I don’t know if she’s on the heroine’s side or not. What I do know is that she’s hilarious. She won me over with the signpost shenanigans she pulled in episode 4, when she directed a confused Doo Rim back to the cabin where Kang Joo waited. I just loved her little tippy-toe through the fog with a knowing smirk on her face. Normally, I don’t like ghost stories, but I find myself actually missing this character when she doesn’t make an appearance. I hope we get more of this supernatural matchmaker, cause her machinations keep leading to more skinship for our main couple.

What . . . no kiss?

How hilarious is it that Episode 6 left me disappointed because there was no liplock? You can’t give a girl a kiss in every single episode and then expect her to quit cold turkey! And then the horrible dry spell of Episodes 7 and 8 where our main couple is separated. From the moment Doo Rim and Kang Joo met, we’ve had sparky skinship galore. The Oops-I-accidentally-landed-on-your-lips-when-I-tripped skinship. Arrogant-come-ons-that-end-with-a-headbutt skinship. Forced-PDAs-by-your-cheeky-future-brother-in-law skinship. And my so-far favorite, you’re-so-embarrasing-with-cake-all-over-your-mouth-but-I-just-can’t-help-myself skinship. There’s still plenty of kiss clichés left to exploit. What about the Someone-falls-in-the-water-and-needs-CPR skinship? Or the We-got-caught-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-and-have-to-stay-at-a-hotel-with-only-one-room-left scenario? There’s plenty of Old Faithfuls left to copy. Pretty please!

No, Bride of the Century. You're not clever enough to tempt me. Or so I'd like to believe. Then I find myself trolling the internet for recaps, scouring Youtube for sappy MVs, and writing vaguely pushy email to get your episodes subbed faster. What have you done to me? Whatever it is, I think I like it.