...a thoroughly entertaining and addictive drama.
Sisters torn apart, a love polygon, a large corporation caught in a fight over who becomes the heir, dramatic illness, betrayal, redemption &mdash "Country Princess" has all the hallmarks of a typical Korean drama made in the early 2000's. There are some ridiculous ups and downs in the plot, improbable coincidences, and humorous moments mixed in with some very touching scenes. Sometimes very silly special effects are used for comedic value. All of this is combined to form a thoroughly entertaining and addictive drama.
Eun-hee is an outrageous character, unafraid to speak her mind, even when she is obviously incorrect. Even though her personality is sometimes comically exaggerated, the energetic performance by Bae Doo Na really makes her feel believable. Eun-hee is not perfect, not noble, not wise, yet she has a great amount of loyalty and common sense mixed in with her crazy behavior. She may be flawed, but she has a strong will and doesn't let all the strikes against her keep her down. Keum-hee is also a believable character. She truly loves her sister, in a warped way, but her jealousy and feelings of inferiority compel her to do things she knows she will regret. She feels betrayed by her mother, and only wants someone to love her.
Caught in the middle of the two sisters is Ji-hoon, who really is the most "normal" of all the characters. He worked hard to become a doctor, and cares about both sisters, but he may have missed his chance for true happiness. In-woo is my favorite character. It is his character that changes the most from the beginning to the end. His hard, unsympathetic personality is softened by Eun-hee's craziness. She lightens him up, and he begins to realize that not everything is about money.
My only complaint about this series - and Korean dramas in general, really — is the use of toilet humor. I mean this literally. I could really do without the scenes involving Eun-hee and In-woo and the bathroom, and the diaper scenes. Fortunately, this type of humor is not the focus of the series, but I think it would be better without it altogether.
The "Country Princess" box set contains all 17 episodes spread across 6 disks. Each episode is approximately an hour long, so here we have around 17 hours of solid, funny entertainment.
Video:
"Country Princess" is presented in full frame 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The colors are sharp and solid. No complaints about picture quality.
Audio:
There is only one audio track in this set, a serviceable Korean Stereo 2.0 track that is perfectly suited for this dialog-driven series.
Extras:
Thre are no extras directly related to "Country Princess" in this set. Instead there are 20-minute previews of two other dramas released by YA Entertainment — the student/teacher love story "Romance" and the police comedy "Super Rookie". Both dramas look to be very entertaining! I wish that we could have had some "Country Princess" extras though, such as NG scenes (bloopers) or something.
--Miscellaneous--
This DVD comes packaged in a sturdy, attractive box. The 6 disks are packed 3 to a flip case, with both flip cases fitting snugly into the box. As always, YA Entertainment provides good quality packaging.
Film Value:
Even though it is rife with Korean drama cliches and has a heroine that can sometimes be very abrasive, "Country Princess" remains one of my favorite Korean dramas. For me, it is all about Eun-hee's free spirit, the transformation of In-woo's character, and the nice way in which people who do bad things get what they deserve.
Eun-hee is an outrageous character, unafraid to speak her mind, even when she is obviously incorrect. Even though her personality is sometimes comically exaggerated, the energetic performance by Bae Doo Na really makes her feel believable. Eun-hee is not perfect, not noble, not wise, yet she has a great amount of loyalty and common sense mixed in with her crazy behavior. She may be flawed, but she has a strong will and doesn't let all the strikes against her keep her down. Keum-hee is also a believable character. She truly loves her sister, in a warped way, but her jealousy and feelings of inferiority compel her to do things she knows she will regret. She feels betrayed by her mother, and only wants someone to love her.
Caught in the middle of the two sisters is Ji-hoon, who really is the most "normal" of all the characters. He worked hard to become a doctor, and cares about both sisters, but he may have missed his chance for true happiness. In-woo is my favorite character. It is his character that changes the most from the beginning to the end. His hard, unsympathetic personality is softened by Eun-hee's craziness. She lightens him up, and he begins to realize that not everything is about money.
My only complaint about this series - and Korean dramas in general, really — is the use of toilet humor. I mean this literally. I could really do without the scenes involving Eun-hee and In-woo and the bathroom, and the diaper scenes. Fortunately, this type of humor is not the focus of the series, but I think it would be better without it altogether.
The "Country Princess" box set contains all 17 episodes spread across 6 disks. Each episode is approximately an hour long, so here we have around 17 hours of solid, funny entertainment.
Video:
"Country Princess" is presented in full frame 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The colors are sharp and solid. No complaints about picture quality.
Audio:
There is only one audio track in this set, a serviceable Korean Stereo 2.0 track that is perfectly suited for this dialog-driven series.
Extras:
Thre are no extras directly related to "Country Princess" in this set. Instead there are 20-minute previews of two other dramas released by YA Entertainment — the student/teacher love story "Romance" and the police comedy "Super Rookie". Both dramas look to be very entertaining! I wish that we could have had some "Country Princess" extras though, such as NG scenes (bloopers) or something.
--Miscellaneous--
This DVD comes packaged in a sturdy, attractive box. The 6 disks are packed 3 to a flip case, with both flip cases fitting snugly into the box. As always, YA Entertainment provides good quality packaging.
Film Value:
Even though it is rife with Korean drama cliches and has a heroine that can sometimes be very abrasive, "Country Princess" remains one of my favorite Korean dramas. For me, it is all about Eun-hee's free spirit, the transformation of In-woo's character, and the nice way in which people who do bad things get what they deserve.
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[release]24219[/release]