& Totally Not So Nice Guys
A Year in Review
A Superordinary 2012
It was quite the adventuresome year, overflowing in quantity and quality. As more networks sprang up to compete for advert dollars, more were willing to experiment beyond the standard drama formula to lure in viewership. Reflective of the amount of new money and talent being poured into it, dramas have been steadily maturing, the industry positively preening from all the global attention both kdramas and kpop have been receiving of late.For better or worse (this year, definitely for the better), the communication of creativity ran both ways. Korean culture continued its unstoppable advance into the mainstream psyche of the universe and the universe likewise influenced the content in our shows. The global entertainment industry has been mighty crazed with flights of fantasy (Twilight, Hunger Games, Vampire Diaries, Game of Thrones) and our Korean dramas followed trend, going all out supernatural as well—from imagined kings, to meddlesome gods and angels, to sexy vamps, to a press of time travelers. It came as no surprise that many of my faves this year had some sort of freaky deaky manipulating the story. It made for especially outlandish narratives, but in a totally good way.
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