The Urban Lily Talks Tropes

0:00 Greetings from the both of us. Apologies for some of the sound issues later. Not sure what happened. 0:28 Where we begin talking about Pursuit of Jade — a show that started so well and then came crashing down like a ton of bricks in the final phase of the drama. ***Beware of spoilers. 41:39 We finally move on from our severe critique of Pursuit of Jade to absoluteM’s latest favourite, Hold A Court Now a legal drama featuring Gong Jun and Ren Min. 48:00 I talk about Veil of Shadows another popular C drama with fantasy elements. Then give a short review of Rebirth, the sequel to Princess Agents. If you got something out of this podcast please like, share or leave a comment. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:28 absoluteM gets right into it and mentions Pursuit of Jade. 1:00 She asks me about Unveiled: Jadewind led by Bai Lu and Wang Xingyue. 15:45 absoluteM opines about ancient detective dramas. 21:51 absoluteM gives a synopsis of what she’s seen so far in The Pursuit of Jade, which is about 4 episodes at the time of recording. 28:51 absoluteM mentions How Dare You?! with Cheng Lei and Wang Churan as a transmigration show that 30:50 I shift our focus to Vendetta of An which I’m currently watching. 38:43 absoluteM asks and I answer with a Korean show, Our Universe which has become oddly controversial. It’s a typical K drama in many respects and the online acrimony is unwarranted. 1:01:01 absoluteM talks about why she likes Honour. If you enjoyed this, please like, share or leave a comment. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

Hi everyone. We jumped a lot in this episode because neither of us watched the same dramas. Thanks for being onboard and supporting what we’re doing here. All the best for the new year. Xing Nian Kuai Le. 0:00 Introduction 0:37 absoluteM launches into a review of Undercover Miss Hong starring Park Shin-hye as a investigator/auditor in a checkered relationship with Go Kyung-po the CEO of the company she’s digging into. 7:41 We talk more generally about dramas 11:50 absoluteM talks about Honour, another legal drama featuring Lee Chung-ah as three friends who set up their own law firm to champion the forgotten people. I comment on the recent spate of stories. 18:49 I start yapping about Pro Bono and it’s protagonist. Afterwards absoluteM references his previous drama Oh My Ghost Clients — also another legal show. 30:36 Our focus shifts to The Judge Returns and then our discussion moves to Ji Sung who plays the titular character. 39:33 absoluteM starts talking about C dramas by first mentioning Bai Lu and Wang Xingyue’s newest release on Netflix, Unveiled: Jadewind. She’s watching another C drama spearheaded by Cheng Lei and Wang Churan, How Dare You?! — a piece of lighthearted fare about two book transmigrators trying to navigate the ancient past. 45:32 Our relationship with C dramas and dramas more generally. 57:37 We discuss recent dramas of Wang Xingyue and his career thus far. 1:01:26 absoluteM misses Lin Gengxin. Where has he gone?? Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

Happy New Year! We beckon another year of too many dramas. 0:00 Introduction and greetings 0:36 absoluteM talks about what she’s been watching on: Typhoon Family, Dynamite Kiss, Idol Eye, including Wallace Chung’s latest Second Chance Romance — widely thought to be something of a dud. 2:04 She mentions his 2022 drama Because of Love in passing. 4:27 Sniper Butterfly — a sleeper hit. A noona romance ie. an older woman romancing a young man. Neither of us have seen it yet. 5:48 I briefly mentioned what I watched on Viki before I went travelling last month. Taxi Driver 3 and Dear X. 6:49 What I watched on D+: The Manipulated, Tempest and Vigilante. I critique The Manipulated and then… 14:15 We get into a longer discussion of Typhoon Family which we both watched. We highlight the best and the negative aspects of the show. 31:23 I put Jung Kyung-ho’s Pro Bono on hold but will be getting back to it soon. I talk about what I like about it so far. 37:25 absoluteM launches into a review and outlines the plot of tropefest Dynamite Kiss, the rom com starring Jang Ki-yong and Ahn Eun-jin. 41:40 absoluteM watched body swap fantasy Moon River with Kang Tae-oh and Kim Se-jeong and recommends it. She goes on to praise 44:56 Idol Eye but not Cashero. Based on the plotline of Idol Eye, we talk about the darkside of fandom’s relationship with celebrities — trafficking gossip and salacious speculations on social media. 54:01 Taxi Driver 3 and comparing the various seasons. Then our attention shifts to Dear X and Kim You-jung’s performance. 59:56 I do a brief review of Tempest. 1:01:31 Tan Songyun and Liu Xueyi’s upcoming drama, Against the Current. Will Liu Xueyi hit the jackpot this time? Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Introduction — could be my last podcast for 2025. 1:09 Where we begin our conversation about Walking on Thin Ice, the underwatched crime K drama led by Lee Young-ae and Kim Young-kwan as partners in crime. This conversation does contain spoilers for the show. If you’re trying to avoid spoilers please go to my spoiler free review of the first half of the drama. 28:05 We talk about Kim Young-kwan and his career so far. 32:50 Our chat shifts to Typhoon Family. The historical backdrop of the Asian financial crisis and a brief synopsis. This heartwarming drama is spearheaded by Lee Jun-ho and Kim Min-ha as partners in a fledgling trading company. 51:03 What else is absoluteM watching… an “obscure” C drama; a K drama called Moon River (Kang Tae-o, Kim Se-jong) 52:39 Short dramas and another adaptation of Prisoner of Beauty. 58:13 What’s on the horizon? Dynamite Kiss, a rom com featuring Jang Ki-yong and An Eun-jin. Ji Chang-wook’s The Manipulated and Dear X which stars Kim Young-dae and Kim You-jung. If you enjoyed the podcast, please like, share and or leave a comment. Thanks again for your support. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

Recorded on 27 September 2025 for October. 0:00 Introduction 0:28 absoluteM begins the conversation with a review of Queen Mantis starring Go Hyun-jung and Jang Do-yoon as a mother-son pairing in this police procedural. 8:31 absoluteM mentions Tempest with Ju Ji-hyun and Kang Dong-won as leads and Bon Appetit Your Majesty led by Im Yoo-na and Lee Chae-min as well-regarded dramas that are currently airing. 11:49 I do a quick review of Beyond the Bar with a focus on the characters. 17:07 I say a bit about SK police procedurals 18:31 absoluteM talks about her love for Kim Young-kwan and his latest drama Walking on Thin Ice which also features Lee Ae-young. 22:15 I make mention of Mobius which is the most recent Bai Jingting offering. Read my review here. Then absoluteM talks about Chen Jingke and his dramas: Watch Your Back and The Long Way Back. Then we go back to talking about Mobius. 36:14 We complain about the length of C dramas and the abolishing of the 40 episode cap. We make mention of The General and I that featured Wallace Chung and Angela Baby as an example of a show that dragged out the separation trope. I mention First Frost in that vein as well. 46:54 I review 12 Letters another recently completed C drama that is led by Zhou Yiran and Wang Yinglu. 54:49 I mention The Princess Royal briefly. 56:15 absoluteM talks about what she’s planning to watch. She brings up Shin’s Project which is led by Han Suk-kyu who plays a court arbitrator/mediator. If you found this helpful, please share, like and leave a comment with your thoughts. Thank you as always for your ongoing interest and support. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

00:00 Greetings and absoluteM immediately launches into a review of Summit of Our Youth, a second chance story featuring Sun Zhenni and Chen Jingke. 5:19 We shift the conversation to The Legend of the Female General led by Zhou Ye and Cheng Lei. Be warned: I have nothing complimentary to say about the show. absoluteM mentions Cheng Lei’s other drama Shadow Love, currently airing. It also stars Song Yi. 26:17 absoluteM takes a turn to talk about Wang Xingyue’s latest, The Wanted Detective. 31:47 I am asked if I’m watching any K dramas and so the discussion leads to Beyond the Bar which features Lee Jin-uk and Jung Chae-yeon as the leads. I provide a synopsis of the set-up and run through the show’s themes. 43:34 We then move on to talk about the “new” 12 episode C drama Twelve Letters. A bleak existential story about young people struggling to overcome their limiting circumstances which don’t make things easy for anyone. Wang Yiliu and Zhou Yiran are good in their respective roles. 51:10 I’ve started on The Princess Royal which is led by Zhao Jinmai and Zhang Linghe. So far I have mixed feelings about this. We opine about Zhang Linghe and his projects. If you enjoyed this post or found it helpful, please like, share or leave a comment. Please subscribe if you haven’t already. As always thank you for your support. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

I apologize for the sound quality. While I managed to boost the volume more generally I couldn’t get rid of the earlier distortions from absoluteM’s side of things. Thankfully the misbehaving audio righted itself after a time. Maybe it’s time to invest in a decent microphone. Greetings and introduction: A brief summary of what we’ve been watching 1:49 The Princess’ Gambit — What in the world went wrong with his? 16:56 We switch our attention to shows absoluteM has been watching — A Dream within a Dream and the sequel to Flourished Peony, In the Name of Blossom. She talks about what worked for her and what didn’t. 39:15 The baton goes to me and I discuss a couple of dramas I’ve been watching on Viki: A Calm Day and Beautiful Days with You as well as Deep Affectionate Eyes. 48:48 absoluteM plugs Our Movie and Our Generation. 54:09 I ramble on about recent Netflix offerings, Wall to Wall and Trigger. 59:57 absoluteM is keen to look at My Lovely Journey and promotes Wang Xingyue’s latest, The Wanted Detective 1:04:40 What’s popular among the short C dramas at the moment. If you enjoyed this please like, share and leave a comment. Please consider subscribing and support what we’re doing here. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Greetings. What we’re watching and what we want to watch. We refer to The Legend of Zang Hai, The Princess’ Gambit, In the Name of Blossom, Mercy for None. 4:33 We begin our discussion of The Princess’ Gambit. 29:48 absoluteM asks about Legend of Zang Hai and I give a review. 41:26 absoluteM goes into what else she’s been watching: Perfect and Casual, The Best Thing, Our Movie, Head Over Heels 52:03 I ramble on about the latest in short C dramas Thanks for everyone’s support. I apologize for the sound quality of the last podcast. Hopefully this one is better. Unfortunately I do everything myself and the results aren’t always the best. Will aim to do better. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

absoluteM and I come get together for a chat about the show. absoluteM kicks the conversation with her overall feelings about the show. If you enjoyed this podcast episode, please like, comment or share the post. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:34 Starting off with Resident Playbook that ended two weeks ago. 37:06 absoluteM raves about The Prisoner of Beauty, Liu Yuning’s latest. He’s paired with the talented Song Zu’er. I have since seen several episodes and am quite impressed. It’s been a while since a C drama has been able to grab my attention right out of the block. 53:08 absoluteM moves on to talk about another Liu Yuning drama, Eternal Brotherhood which also stars Yang Xuwen from Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty. A show that’s not romance 56:36 A quick mention of Li Xian’s new drama, A Love Never Lost. 58:53 A brief run down on what I’ve been watching — The First Frost, When Life Gives You Tangerines 1:01:47 Shows on our radar. Thank you for your continued support. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Greeting and introduction 0:33 absoluteM mentions what she’s watching at the moment: Resident Playbook, Heavenly Ever After, Serendipity, Pump Up the Healthy Love 2:31 We launch into a lengthy conversation about Resident Playbook, the Hospital Playlist spin-off. 38:29 absoluteM does a quick review of Heavenly Ever After. 43:18 I ask if absoluteM has seen The Art of Negotiation. Then I give a brief review while she asks the questions. 57:19 Then I shift my attention to The First Frost starring Bai Jingting and Zhang Ruonan. 1:07:10 absoluteM talks with mixed feelings about Wang Ziqi’s latest Serendipity. If you enjoyed this, please like, share or leave a comment. Consider subscribing to the blog to receive the latest straight in your in-box. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:23 absoluteM lists the dramas she’s been watching on various platforms: When Life Gives You Tangerines, Undercover High School, Buried Hearts 2:48 absoluteM delves a little more into Buried Hearts’ storyline and characters — a a makjang that she found engaging. 5:02 Our discussion of When Life Gives You Tangerines begins. At the time of recording I’d only seen 2 episodes. 14:04 We review Undercover High School, the recently completed spy comedy with Seo Kang-joon and Jin Ki-joo in lead roles. Praise was also given to Kim Shin-rok who played the show’s primary antagonist, Seo Myeong-ju. 18:49 I go off on a rabbit trail about the drama’s themes dealing with how elites turn into oligarchs or technocrats. Or even tyrants. We also go into the place of the romance in the plot. 33:12 I ramble on about Tan Jianci’s latest C drama, Filter — a funny fantasy romance that I’m still watching and enjoying. I give a spoiler free review. 46:05 The latest douyin drama fad — The transmigrated noblewoman who ends up in the body of a 21st century rich daughter and catches the eye of the bored but very single CEO. 53:07 absoluteM talks about what else she’s watching: The Divorce Insurance and Hyper Knife. If you enjoyed this, please like, share or leave comment. If you haven’t already, consider subscribing to receive updates that go straight to your in-box. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, we start off by talking about: Love Scout which stars Han Ji-min and Lee Joon-hyuk 16:19 absoluteM is watching Undercover High School (Seo Kang-joon), Buried Hearts, The Potato Lab (Kang Tae-oh, Lee Sun-bin). 24:57 We yak about C dramas that are airing that we aren’t watching. Filter (Tan Jianci) and The First Frost (Bai Jingting) get mentions. 27:13 The conversation switches to Tan Jianci’s rising popularity after Lost You Forever. 29:11 We switch gears and start talking about reverse harems as done by Scarlet Heart’s author Tong Hua. 33:23 absoluteM leads a discussion about “girl bosses”. 37:48 I start our back and forth of Flourished Peony. 47:05 Going off on a rabbit trail about douyin dramas — popular tropes and plots. Is there an agenda? 59:27 Squid Game Season 2. Some early impressions. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

01:58 Wang Xingyue’s latest entry Perfect Match — an ensemble drama with strong Jane Austen vibes. Currently airing on Netflix. A tale of a family of women in search of husbands 21:09 absoluteM mentions Flourished Peony which sees Li Xian and Yang Zi collaborating again after Go Go Squid. Trailer found here. 23:34 Despite flaws and criticisms of Perfect Match, absoluteM is still planning to continue after 17 episode. 28:17 absoluteM asks me if I liked Blossom starring Meng Ziyi and Li Yunrui. 30:21 We’re back talking about Perfect Match and notable cameos. 33:48 Trends in costume dramas that are female focused. Female “empowerment” in unrealistic proportions?? 40:44 Back to Perfect Match. Perfect men and the Peter Pan syndrome. I ramble on. Correlating marriage and maturity. 46:22 We rave on about The Trauma Code, Ju Ji-hoon’s latest outing on Netflix. 55:26 absoluteM gushes over Lee Joon-hyuk in Love Scout. 1:00:08 What we are looking forward to… Once again, thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this conversation please like, share or leave a comment. You may even want to become a paid subscriber to help keep this blog going. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Introduction and state of our relationship with dramas 2:17 Looking back at 2024 and thoughts about the output 6:03 Ji Sung's drama Connection: Our differing views of its relative success 10:38 Miss Night and Day: An example of what goes wrong 13:12 Lovely Runner -- my critique 14:07 Too many dramas and production line thesis. Too many episodes. 15:42 absoluteM's quick (very positive) review of Love Your Enemy 19:05 We talk about When the Phone Rings. 22:43 absoluteM has seen The Tale of Lady Ok with Im Ji-young as the titular character 24:26 I mention that I've been watching douyin short dramas and Under the Skin 2. I give an extended review and sends Tan Jianci plenty of bouquets. 33:56 absoluteM talks about Blossom led by Li Yunrui and Meng Ziyi 36:55 Our beef about the contemporary trends in historical dramas 39:00 The current pool of popular tropes seen through the lens of douyin dramas. 49:13 What we're looking forward to: Love Scout, Squid Game 2, 51:55 absoluteM praises Mr Plankton which had heavy themes 54:26 The latest on Zhao Lusi Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Greetings, introduction and travel plans 1:05 The current state of C dramas — what’s the problem 2:43 Discussion around The Story Pearl Girl and Kill Me, Love Me — symptomatic of issues with the most recent spate of C dramas. 20:51 We have a chat about Dong-jae, The Good or the B*****d the spin-off from the Stranger franchise, featuring the wonderful Lee Joon-hyuk in the lead role. 35:45 What’s around the corner… 36:29 absoluteM gives a quick review of Mr Plankton and at around 38:07 she launches into the subject of Fiery Priest 2 helmed by Kim Nam-gil. 44:14 What’s coming down the pike: Gong Yu’s The Trunk, a contract marriage show. Ju Ji-hoon and Jung Yu-mi in Love Your Enemy. 47:32 I talk about The Atypical Family. (Episodes 1-7) If you got something out of it please like, share or leave a comment. Consider subscribing to get the latest. Thanks for listening. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Welcome and Introduction 1:08 We chat about what we liked and didn’t really care for in Love Next Door that’s still available on Netflix. It had likeable characters but was probably too long for what it set out to do. Still a better watch than Hometown Cha Cha Cha. Both scripted by the same writer. 15:27 We briefly mention The First Shot, a C police procedural with Johnny Huang and Wang Ziqi as leads. 15:49 We launch into a discussion about short C dramas and try to account for their popularity. I talk about the latest fad in douyin dramas — an ingenue falling pregnant after a one-night encounter with an older CEO who rescues her from systematic bullying both at home and outside. I ramble on about what I enjoy about these short dramas. 35:34 We return to our conversation about The First Shot and Johnny Huang. 40:28 We start talking about Liu Xueyi at this point. He can now be seen in the palace intrigue Kill Me Love Me co-starring Wu Jinyan. At 42:04 absoluteM starts her review about Kill Me Love Me. (An early review of the show is forthcoming) 51:38 absoluteM takes off with The Judge From Hell with Park Shin-hye as the titular character and Kim Jae-young as the cop. 1:01:09 What’s trending: Dear Hyeri, A Virtuous Business, What Comes After Love If you enjoyed this podcast, please consider liking, sharing or subscribing to the blog. Thanks again for swinging by. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Introduction and what absoluteM has been watching 1:22 Discussion around Are You the One and comparing our different takes. I misspoke when I said “the last thirty episodes” when I really meant the last 10 episodes. 26:10 We move on to Love Next Door starring Jung Hae-in and Jung So-min. What I like about it 33:05 absoluteM reviews The First Shot, a period police procedural set in late 1990s China with Johnny Huang and Wang Ziqi at the helm. We do our bit to put the word out there. 48:11 I rave on a little about the Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty 2. Look forward to a 1:01:01 What absoluteM is looking forward to… The Judge from Hell Hope you got something out of this. If you enjoyed the podcast, please share, like or leave a comment. If you feel so inclined, consider subscribing to the blog, paid or unpaid. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe

0:00 Introduction 2:35 We begin with Miss Night and Day, a Netflix show that ended a few weeks ago. Definitely a show with missed opportunities and misguided use of characters. 9:45 Sweet Home 3. My critique of it after 5 episodes. Conceptually fascinating but execution is all over the place. Like a lot of sci-fi, it’s about the ideas rather than the characters. Integration of various elements is the weakest link. 31:20 I make some quick comparisons with Kingdom. 37:12 absoluteM asks me about The Auditors. My review of it can be found here. 42:16 We have a good o’l chat about Chief Detective 1958 and what we like about it. 55:34 absoluteM talks about Jung Hae-in’s latest Love Next Door. 1:00:30 absoluteM gives her review of Zhang Wanyi and Wang Churan’s collaboration Are You the One If you enjoyed the conversation, please like, comment and share this around. Also please consider being a subscriber — paid or unpaid. Click on the relevant buttons below. Get full access to The Urban Lily Talks Tropes at 40somethingahjumma.substack.com/subscribe