Monday, December 30, 2013

When A Character Takes Off - The Best Sidekicks of 2013

Who Says that Role is Too Small? 
The Power of the Sidekick (or Secondary) Character
Best of 2013

What better way to cap off the year of drama watching by mentioning some of my absolutely favorite sidekicks or secondary characters from the dramas this year. What exactly is a sidekick? A sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. 

In the Asian dramas, these characters are not necessarily always close friends or even a subordinate; they could be the person that works closely with the lead; in a lot of scenes with the lead but most importantly, they are the characters from the drama we will always remember as much as the leading characters. For me, all but one of these characters I'd never seen before but from now on, I want to see more and more of them in the future. Here are my favorites from 2013:

Park Kwang Hyun
How is it at 36 years old, I have NEVER seen him before watching Cheongdamdong Alice ? After looking through the previous roles in various dramas, I see I've never seen any of them. He is currently in the drama, Ruby's Ring but alas, no one is subbing it. But as Heo Dong Wook, our crazy Cha Seung Jo's friend and therapist, he will be remember very, very fondly, especially in this scene:

Fujioka Dean
I admit that watching the bulk of my Taiwanese drama happened this year. Unfortunately, there weren't a lot that I actually finished. But, thanks to Just You and Aaron Yan, along with Fujioka Dean, it was nice to finally see a Twdrama that I absolutely loved!! Dean's character of wait for it...Dean was just so lovable! On the screen, he took such pleasure in torturing poor Qi Yi and we, the drama watcher, loved him for it! How often does that happen?
Choi Woong
I don't think I am the only one (watch the comments on Viki when he comes on the screen) who totally fell in love with Gwang Soo of Secret. His stoic demeanor in putting up with Jo Min Hyuk's many idiosyncrasies! Now that I think about it, Gwang Soo didn't have much of a speaking role but as this is only his 3rd drama role ever, I look forward to seeing him again. Maybe this time in a real speaking role!
Maya
 How could I NOT talk about my fashion goddess, In Joo from Ugly Alert? As the Designer Seonsangnim to Gong Joon Su, her character came out of nowhere! Maya has this way of commanding the screen. I said the same thing when I saw her in Family's Honor as well as Dandelion Family. She has this way of putting forth her character portrayals in such a way, you never, never forget her or the character. BTW, I think the stylist for this drama should be hired for ALL dramas for now on! Except for those freaking animal epaulet jackets, the stylist did overtime on dressing not only Maya's character but other characters as well. 
Yoon Hyun Min
What can I say...It was drama love at first sight!! I swear, I do not know what my fascination with Yoon Hyun Min is! Admittedly, the big draw for me and watching Heartless City/Cruel City was definitely Jung Kyung Ho as I am a big fan of his. But leaving this drama, I find that I am an even BIGGER fan of Hyun Min! I am so looking forward to his, again, small role in Age of Feeling. However, I can already predict that I will be grabbing snapshot after snapshot because who can forget a man in uniform. A girl can't help it!!


2 comments:

  1. Great post! I first saw Park Kwang Hyun in Sweet Buns with Choi Kang Hee back in 2004-2005. He has such a baby face that I didnt realize his age. Onr ssource has him born in 1969, which makes him older than me?! Not possible! LOL

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    1. 1977. Thanks for the praise. This subject has been on my mind all week!

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