MEET SANDRA!

Kdrama Weekly's Resident Rom-com Ahjumma

Hi there! I’m Sandra, the eldest of us Kdrama Weekly hosts, I’m our resident ahjumma; I’m also a horror cinephile, picky foodie, and cat lover. 😻

I got into kdramas and kpop in the most random way possible! Back in 2010 (I wrongly said 2012 on the pod), I came across a Spanish cover of SS501’s “Because I’m Stupid” MV, which surprisingly still exists! This song is of course from the OST to the one and only Boys over Flowers! 

I was so curious about the drama from the scenes in the video that I just had to watch it! Once I did, my life was changed! I had to share it with anyone that would listen! And that’s how I sucked Benner and Valerie into it! I discovered kpop through the BOF OST, starting of course with SS501 and SHINEE. This led me to discover other SM artists like SNSD, f(x), and SUJU, and eventually the rest of the kpop world! 

At first I wasn’t fully immersed into kpop or kdramas, only casually watched whatever was on YouTube or Netflix. It wasn’t until 2014 that I really dove into the kworld head-first with the help of Viki and Dramafever! Since then I’ve watched dozens of dramas and my kpop playlist has grown exponentially! 

Check out my fav kstuff below! In the meantime, I’m always down to talk about all the kstuff, so HMU at kdramaweeklypodcast@gmail.com!

My Favs!

KDRAMA

Full House is one of my favorite k-dramas! (Go listen to us talk about it over on over on the pod!) I rewatch it every year it gets better with each rewatch! Psycho but It’s Okay gave it a run for its money though! Other dramas I love: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, My Mister, Let’s Fight, Ghost, Jealousy Incarnate, and Hwayugi. Just give me all the rom-coms! 

KDRAMA COUPLE

It's a toss-up between Yong Jae/ Ji Eun in Full House and Joo Won/ Ra Im from Secret Garden. Honorable mention: Bok Joo/ Joon Hyun from Weightlifting Fairy: Kim Bok Joo.

KDRAMA GENRE

Obviously, as the rom-com ahjumma at Kdrama Weekly, my fav genre is rom-coms! I especially love when my rom-coms have elements of fantasy and horror in them! Really I love any drama with romance in it! I'm also partial to mystery thrillers as well!

KDRAMA BFFs

This one is tough! There are so many fabulous bromances (of all genders) I've witnessed! Some of my tops would have to be: Goblin and Grim Reaper from Goblin (iconic!), Joon Ki and Doo Sik from Welcome to Waikiki, Sang Tae and Mang Tae from Psycho but It's Okay, Ji An and Park Dong Hoon from My Mister, Healer and Ahjumma from Healer.

SECOND LEAD

I usually find the 2nd leads super annoying but I couldn't help but fall for Kim Jung Hwan from Reply 1988! I'll never not be mad that he didn't get the girl! My only consolation is that actor Ryu Jun Yeol who play Jung Hwan ended up dating Hyeri in real life. Runner ups: Super Junior Siwon Oppa in She was Pretty and Taecyeon Oppa in Dream High.

KDRAMA VILLAIN

This one is hard! Originally I was going to say cult leader Baek Jung Ki from Save Me because he's a shit person but then I remembered how much I hated Queen Consort Cho from Kingdom! Seriously, what kind of vile human being murders innocent babies??? Honorable mention: Han Yoo Ri from Stairway to Heaven

LOVE SCENE

Ugh I can't possibly decide on just one, so here are my top three-ish! Obviously both ice skating scenes from Full House because it's adorable to see Yong Jae do something nice for Ji Eun but struggle because he doesn't know how! Also when Kang Tae shouts at Moon Young that he loves her with the exact words she used to confess to him in Pyscho but It's Okay. When Ji An and Park Dong Hoon say farewell to each other and after their first and only hug, they say hwaiting to each other which I consider a love scene even though they’re just friends! 😭😭😭

KDRAMA OST

This is a three-way tie between “Fate” by WHY from Full House, “For You” by CBX from Scarlet Heart: Ryeo, and “Rainbow” by Vincent Blue from My Mister. But obviously, I have all the honorable mentions: “She Is” by Clazziquai from My Lovely Sam Soon and “I’ll be Fine” by Suran from Hwayugi, “Stranger” by Bobby Kim from Doctor Stranger, “I Miss You” by Soyou from Goblin, “Easy for You” by Leeraon & Lee Seung Yeon from That Man Oh Soo.

ACTOR

I can't choose just one, so here are a couple of my favs: Kim Soo Hyun, Lee Jong Suk, Lee Joon Ki, Lee Seung Ki, Rain Oppa, Jo Jung Suk, Taecyeon Oppa, Park Bo Gum, Kim Seon Ho, Kang Ha Neul, Oh Jung Se & Lee Dong Wook

ACTRESS

My top 3 actresses are: IU, Gong Hyo Jin, & Seo Ye Ji! I also really like Bae Doona in Kingdom & The Silent Sea and need to watch more of her stuff!

KFILM

Probably going to have to say the Along with the Gods series! Pirates 1 & 2 not far behind and Extreme Job as well.

KVARIETY SHOW

I’m not into variety shows as much as Benner and Valerie, but I have consistently been watching Superman is Back since 2015. I started watching SIB to learn Korean vocab but stayed for the cuteness! In this show, celebrity dads watch their kids for 48 hours without their wives around. They get to bond with their kids and appreciate all the hard work their wives do. (PSA: Normalize fathers being active in child-rearing!) I love watching all the babies grow into toddlers! 🥰

KPOP GROUP

I’m actually a multi-fandom kpopper, so I don’t have one favorite. I tend to favor SM artists, with EXO and NCT 127 topping the list. Some of my other favs include SHINEE, SNSD, SUJU, TWICE, Sunmi, 4Minute, BIGBANG, Itzy, Mamamoo, VIXX, & Pentagon.

KFOOD

Food glorious, food! I love anything spicy, the spicier the better! 🤤 Buldak is one of my favs, closely followed by jjajjangmyun and japchae. I also love me a good instant ramyun! And you can’t go wrong with some kimchijaeon and a good makgeolli, which is better than soju, fight me! 😤