CB Hunter

Yes, it’s a Prison story, but believe me it is heartwarming, funny, tense & truly so warmly bromantic that you will find yourself missing the characters when you finish this 16 episode series. That’s why I re-watched it and after 6 years, I loved it just as much this time. The story gets to the plot quickly. A baseball player is thrown in jail for beating someone that was raping his sister. No, we don’t see that scene, because this drama keeps the real gritty action offscreen because the heartbeat of the plot comes from the inmates and the correctional officers who keep the peace. No such things as white hats versus the black hats, because the men locked into the prison cells, and the officers who watch them, all have a complicated mix of the good, the bad and the ugly character traits. You’ll root for them to change and get choked when they fall. And alongside weird and funny ways they cheat the system and manage to make wine in their cell, or smuggle in cigarettes you will find yourself smiling. Our ML is a hero but naive, introspected and a little ‘thick’ grows in prison, yet is strong principles manage to change even a murderer’s heart. His adventures in Prison keep you guessing whether he will blow his chance to shorten his sentence or will his temper lengthen it. Best part of this Bromantic series for me? The are also two romances that are loosely woven into the story never detracts from the viewer’s focus on ‘if’ or ‘when’ our ML will be released. The ending is so satisfying for all of the characters you become attached to, except one. Not a bad average for a prison. I highly recommend this strangely serious-comedy. Well worth your time!

This movie plays both sides of the fence...north & south korea aren't necessarily the enemy...it's the men who govern them. We also get a dual-layered movie featuring a tense, high-action and bullet-ridden thriller balanced by what koreans do best: characters that give you the 'feels'. The friendship between our divorced over-weight south-korean diplomat and his charge, a patriotic, driven and desperate north korean soldier is naturally developed and believable in the short time they spent together. Both felt real...and so were my moist eyes at the end when the battle was over. Worth your time.

Must say I chose Monkey 2 ahead of #1 not expecting much, but found I got into it pretty quickly. Ok. First off, a warning, it seemed kind of lowbrow silly in the first 20 minutes, especially since I didn't know the characters from the first movie, but Aaron Kwon's portrayal of the Monkey King: Sun Wukong, tickled me. Awesome mannerisms by Kwon and the writer gave him a glowing heart under that ferocious thatch of red hair. Loved him. The Monk didn't grab me at first because he was so low-key compared to the others, but man, did he grow on me as an intriguing blend of klutz and wisdom. The other two characters on the road were inane and didn't add to the script at all for me. It was all about the bromance between our King and the Monk. The Bone Demon as a lost soul was a great idea, especially when it came time for the monk to save her at the end. Got choked about that one. From there I went directly to Monkey King Three and loved the whole idea of Woman-Land and the challenges that they met there. Again it was the Monkey King that excited me, but the Monk, Tang Sanzang, who touched me. Lots of fun along with some philosophy in both movies. Don't miss #2...it's where actor Feng Shaofeng (Monk) met his wife onscreen.