[Drama 2019-2020] Woman of 9.9 Billion, 99억의 여자

[Fabbo]

 

22 hours ago, larus said:

I have a problem with many action dramas (for exemple, it is hard to find a very good action drama) because they concentrate of the action scenes and not enough on characters, plot, they lack substance. I find myself thinking at similarities when I am watching this drama. 

 

And there is the problem that the stakes are not as high. If you are not as invested in the characters. If you have them escape near death each episode. Etc.

 

59 minutes ago, larus said:

About In Pyo. Seeing him so resourceful you wonder why he was so bad in doing business.

 

Yeah i had that thought as well. 

 

Btw i binged the mini drama Babysitter with Cho Yeo‑jeong a few days ago. It's only 4 episodes. It feels way more cinematic than most kdramas. The writing is more structured and tight. A haunting soundtrack and great performanes. And it also goes to some pretty crazy places. I have to watch Perfect Wife next. And it confirmed my intent to catch up on all of those kbs drama specials this year. (I wish the tvn drama stages were subtitled)

I would make some changes to the drama but i can wholeheartedly recommend it. And it's only 4 episodes anyway.

[larus]

On 1/19/2020 at 12:45 PM, 40somethingahjumma said:

I don't necessarily think Leon is irrelevant but the way he is being packaged and delivered perhaps doesn't always live up to the hype. At the end of the day, he's just a somewhat  clever man with a lot of money. He has many minions and he can manipulate people with his charisma. But the "casa del raza" stuff challenges even my ability to suspend disbelief.

 

About "Caza del Zorro". I learned something from this drama.

Let me tell you a funny story. About my ignorance. I don`t know Spanish or Italian (I`ve never studied these languages) but because they are latin languages like my native language I understand a basic conversation. Now I can even watch a telenovela or people talking on TV shows without subtitles and I understand very well everything but that doesn`t mean I know Spanish, for exemple. So then I heard "caza del zorro" my brain translated "House of Zorro". "Casa" [casa- Romanian, casa- Spanish, casa (read "caza")  Italian] means "house". I thought the Spanish world is pronounced "caza" like in Italian too. For me Zorro was the famous fictional character and I did not know it means "fox".  That makes sense. The vigilante was astute like a fox. 

Silly me... to find out now that "caza del zorro" means "fox hunting". Now I know.

 

 

 

Leon worked on a whole operation named "caza del zorro" for three years to take revenge against Hee Joo. It became an obsession? He even made a wine brand with the same name? I wonder what he would have said if Jae Hun would have brought that particular bottle. "No, I open that bottle on a special occasion, when I catch The Fox." 

 

 

The fox

 

or The Leopardess?

[lebeaucouple]

@40somethingahjumma and @larus

Thanks for sharing the drama name, "Last" i will try to watch it if i have time as the thriller genre of drama is my cup of tea. 

 

About you mentioning the woman of 9.9 billion that comes with the combination of serious and ridiculous comedy plots, I am not sure if this will be the future direction of kdrama that attract high rating. I noticed the "Fiery Priest" also had the same genre : crime, action and comedy, and it was kind of cartoon type of action...I had dropped it half way, not sure if I should continue it...because it is more like watching an entertaining drama...

 

Currently watching "Crash landing on you" and "When camellia blooms", surprisingly the latter one was quite good, I watched it not because of the actors, it's because this drama won the best drama award in 2019, so I decided to give it a try, just started not long only, the simplicity of heartwarming romance and family has given me the feeling of bitter-sweetness which reflect the reality while still remain the suspense storyline at the end of each ep...that was quite interesting so far. I will certainly continue to watch it...

 

@Fabbo

I had watched Cho Yeo‑jeong's "Babysitter" long time ago, yes the story is very different.  Cho Yeo Jeong & Kim Min Jun reunion again in this drama after their last movie in The Concubine (2012). You can also watch Cho Yeo‑jeong's last drama in "Beautiful World" (I have not watched yet), the viewers' comments for this drama were very good, though she was not the heroine.

 

Among all her previous drama, I like : I Need Romance, Haeundae lovers, Divorce Lawyer in Love, Woman of 9.9billion. I had watched her previous movies : The Servant, The Concubine, The Target, Obsessed, Parasite. 

 

Parasite is the best movie (highly recommended), not so much of her acting, (the male lead was even better) but it's the overall story that touches my heart...especially the palpable contrast shown between the rich and the poor classes....

[40somethingahjumma]

@lebeaucouple If you have Netflix, you can find Last there. I highly recommend it. Quite a unique premise as well. Often it's hard to separate the good guys from the bad and that's including the protagonist. 

 

I'm glad you're enjoying Camellia. It's one of the best things from 2019. 

 

I'm enjoying the lead actress in 9.9 Billion. I don't think I've ever seen her in anything before. I especially love her mellow vocal delivery... she sounds like she belongs in radio. The way she delivers her lines suggests someone with unknown depths. Maybe that's why all the fellas go ga-ga over her.

 

@larus Thanks for the correction. I just couldn't be bothered looking up the exact phrase.

It may be cute for Leon to have some kind of branding but this is another example of why he comes across as being unserious. Why would anyone give a hush hush revenge operation a name and then use the same name for a wine label? It's sounds stupido to me. Is he trying to claim bragging rights?

There's nothing wrong with the term "fox hunt" or Operation Fox Hunt. The plan is decent enough if the intention is to back HJ into a corner and strip her of her nearest and dearest. But is he so obsessed with HJ that he even names a wine in honour of her take down? The man has serious ego issues that will be his undoing.

 

I like the actor that plays HIP heaps especially after Prison Playbook where he played against type. (Everything about Prison Playbook is good. Undoubtedly one of the best K dramas ever made) But here the character is all over the place. I keep wondering if he was an ex-NIS agent or a failed NIS experiment.

[larus]

48 minutes ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

I like the actor that plays HIP heaps especially after Prison Playbook where he played against type.

 I knew Jung Woong In even since he played in I Can Hear Your Voice. I did not watched the drama but I read about him everywhere. Reading his filmography, I saw him first in  The Great Queen Seondeok. I don`t remember him there but maybe that`s why I found him familiar. I saw him in 2018 in a positive role in Ms Ma, Nemesis and last year in Chief of Staff. BTW, Chief of Staff, a good political drama where in every single episode I could feel the tension, the adrenaline rush. Without feeling repetitive, the good guys tried and tried again to bring down the baddies. When one door was shut for them, they open another one.   It was a continuous battle of wits between them. Many characters changes sides based on the situation. The hero wanted to change the system but the question what if the system changed him is stays with audience all the time (but I trusted him100% ) One of my favorite dramas last year. Jung Woong In was a supporting cast and his character was on the baddies`s side.

 

I watched Cho Yeo Jeong in three dramas and one movie before 9.9 Billion Woman, Kim Kang-Woo in two dramas, Oh Na Ra in four dramas and Lee Jee hoon in just one drama (I don`t count his cameo in another drama because i don`t remember him there at all), Gil Hae-Yeon (Ms Jang) in two dramas.

I even saw Im Tae-Kyung in Misty too.

I have to say, I am familiar with every key players of this drama.

 

 

*****

BTS

Coffee truck for Oh na Ra

***

48 minutes ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

There's nothing wrong with the term "fox hunt" or Operation Fox Hunt. The plan is decent enough if the intention is to back HJ into a corner and strip her of her nearest and dearest. But is he so obsessed with HJ that he even names a wine in honour of her take down? The man has serious ego issues that will be his undoing.

 

 

If he put so much work to revenge against one woman, I hope they will have at least a confrontation scene, a scene face to face.

[larus]

BTS

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

http://star.mt.co.kr/stview.php?no=2020012016072181811&MS2

http://sports.chosun.com/news/news.htm?id=202001200100141520008923&ServiceDate=20200120

http://star.mt.co.kr/stview.php?no=2020012018272944715&MS2

 

 

 

 

[Guest]

@40somethingahjumma @ktcjdrama I definitely got side tracked binging on Chocolate , that I finally caught up with eps 14. That one is slow burn romance but is headed somewhere but this , is it even going anywhere ? @larus @imgreatgal puffer jackets ! They keep teasing us .
 

The problem now is this - while Tae Woo still has feelings for SY , it’s hard for him to come to terms that SY hesitated for a second to call the ambulance, not that it would make a difference . He’s questioning her humanity. I’m also frustrated with SY - after all she’s been through , she’s still rather naive . But anyway what I would like to understand is SY’s insistence on investing in Hee Ju’s foundation or project . Is it really because she wants to help HJ as she so tells Leon or it’s her way of getting back at HJ for putting her down in the past ? 
 

@lebeaucouple I re-read your post & you were spot on about Jae Hoon.  Leon clearly understood that too - that what JH wanted was respect, to feel like a man to his wife . He used that to bait JH to head the VIP Investment Club. This is going to drive HJ batty , which is what Leon wants . Smart guy . He really has Hee Ju cornered. 

[lebeaucouple]

1 hour ago, triplem said:

But anyway what I would like to understand is SY’s insistence on investing in Hee Ju’s foundation or project . Is it really because she wants to help HJ as she so tells Leon or it’s her way of getting back at HJ for putting her down in the past ? 

My observation and understanding is that all human nature has a minute of angel and evil thoughts crossline when making decision. Part of her mind has intention to help HJ while part of her wanted to show proof that she can be as rich as her one day. Isn't it this is what she has been longing all these while? Human desires for winning is obviously demonstrated in this drama, especially compete with your peers..she is no exception for this case. 

[Guest]

Preview !!!!

 

[The_Doctor]

Preview with eng sub  so now SY knows who Leon is and tells TW i think. And she is going to danger herself just to catch Leon and make amends about TW's brother. Pretty predictable, but i want something more!

[40somethingahjumma]

@triplem

If we follow the logic of the show, I'd say that SY cannot have both TW and the money. That point has been made repeatedly in the drama so i'd say it's an iron-clad dictum. Presuming also that the show is true to its own world building and doesn't proceed to break its own rules.  Obviously I won't rule it out.

 

Frankly I'm a person who thinks this obsession with money is poison so of course I want her to snap out of it and ride off into the Tahitian sunset alone or with TW. There's nothing empowering about having the big money. It's a trap pure and simple. It has made her a slave to its allure of possibilities, none of them have eventuated. The stuff she gets from Granny... that's different. She's got Granny's blessing and she's doing the legwork for it. From doing the books for that, she is actually learning something. Not too sure how much she's learning from Leon for whom she's primarily a pawn. I certainly hope that she's not as naive as she seems presently. I am really hoping that she has a few cards up her sleeve because she is being rather too subservient towards Leon.

 

In the same way I don't think it's necessarily disempowering if she leaves it all behind and goes off with TW if he takes, her that is. Not helping someone in need is something he doesn't understand. This is something completely foreign to TW's DNA. He took BSJ to the hospital even though the latter was probably at death's door. She's one of the lucky ones. She's got a second chance and yet she's looking at all the wrong places.

 

In this universe, good men are scarce and of more value. Yeah money has its place. But money can be lost easily and has no loyalty but to gain the love of a good man is priceless beyond measure because over and over again, whenever she's in a jam, he's there for her. He won't try to exploit her, control her or abuse her... all he wants is be by her side.

[The_Doctor]

1 hour ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

If we follow the logic of the show, I'd say that SY cannot have both TW and the money. That point has been made repeatedly in the drama so i'd say it's an iron-clad dictum.

You are so right, they continuously said she should choose one or other. Probably the show will end on that note, SY will choose between money or TW. And I keep remembering when she talked with HJ: "in one year i will host a party for people like you". So choosing money is a high probability. Or she will choose TW and then from some other way she will obtain money. 

 

I am so excited

[Fabbo]

To come back to Jaehoon for a second. As much as i enjoy the discourse in this thread and analyzing his relationship with HJ. 

 

Maybe he is just horny and cant keep his pants on to put it simply.

[larus]

It looks like Jae Hoon is in trouble.

http://www.inews24.com/view/1237259

 

****

Seo Yeon and Ms Jang

http://sports.khan.co.kr/entertainment/sk_index.html?art_id=202001211316013&sec_id=540201

 

 

[imgreatgal]

@triplem about the puffer jackets, I think SY decided to make a detour and go skiing in the Alps before settling in Tahiti with TW of course HiP will have to make good his promise to sign the divorce papers  when he fails to find the money.

 

[The_Doctor]

Well one guess down a lot to go!

Spoiler

 

 

[ktcjdrama]

48 minutes ago, The_Doctor said:

Well one guess down a lot to go!

 

 

I have nothing else to say for now...

[Ameera Ali]

 

@triplem @ktcjdrama all romance we getting from this couple  is more grabbing her hand  

 

** so he still care  what happen to ‘’ your not human‘’  line  

 

 

.. long time I didn’t post but enjoy reading your thoughts 

 

[noor1]

One half of the episode wasted to give a proper send-off to one of the main characters - who did not even think twice about snuffing a brain-damaged woman lying on a hospital bed! 

 

What was the need for a 10 minute (death-bed) conversation between LJH and HJ other than contrived K-drama?

 

SY lives up to her reputation by not calling an ambulance yet again! (not that LJH would've lived, his day was numbered last episode when he found out the identity, when he didn't even sms anyone, and stayed at Leon's apartment)

 

Loved how HJ figured out Leon all by herself. That scene at the funeral between her and Daniel Kim / Leon was a cool one.

 

TW and SY's on-off, up-down, ships passing in the night saga continues. 

 

TW is yet again picking up bread crumbs instead of being a leader. For a detective, he is the last to know anything at anytime!

 

Loved Leon in this episode. Cool villain. Smart dress choices too.

 

Loved the cliff hanger on which the episode ended. 

 

Surprise: Security Manager Jo is alive and well and ready for more action!

 

(Dis) honorable mention: Psycho hubby really missed his calling: he should've been in the military intelligence unit or a private detective gathering evidence of unfaithful spouses for divorce cases. He'd have been rich beyond his wildest dreams. Now he makes a timer bomb?! (Is he going to get blown up by it while trying to kill Leon? Writers way of ensuring he does not fake his death again?) Anyways, another ridiculous / hard-to-believe jump for a guy who used to nitpick ship models for a hobby.

 

Another BTS:

 

 

 

[imgreatgal]

Well they still made HeeJu the smart one, she put the puzzles together from her father's bribe case to the investment from SY even before the reveal.

 

SY on the other hand acted hastily by taking the chipped from the ring. It was clearly a set up from the get go. Leon was already suspicious when she called to meet him. 

 

I agree there was the usual dragging typical k-dramas style.