Glutton & Furry (2021)

this show filled the hole in my heart

left when they removed Hyori's Homestay from Netflix. It is just fun to watch and makes you feel good. It had all of the things I love about Korean reality shows... great scenery, lots of good food, awkward situations and sweet caring interactions. It makes me happy! And oh yeah - RAIN. Heart heart heart.

Perfect for rewatching over and over because the scenery and food never get old and the music that Sangsoon added is so healing! I could just watch them all sit and banter back and forth forever!

PS - is anyone else obsessed with the scene where Hyori sings Hongchul's Theme? I cried and cried - so sweet! I don't understand why that version isn't on the soundtrack :(.

Hoping for a season 2!

Leia Mais

Well, I tried.

Sorry. I really wanted t like this - I mean, Rain, Korean scenery, motorbikes, and exquisite food ... what's not to love?
Well, for me, RAIN's companion, Hong Chul. He must be the most vacuous, irritating, mindless, attention-seeking companion on the planet, and (sadly) I found his interventions did nothing but distract from things which could have been more interesting. He spent his journey "waaaaaaaaaaaah"ing at everything while seldom making any coherent comment or adding anything of value, and "Netflix, Netflix, Netflix"ing all over the shop - as if any of us actually care how a programme is being delivered to us. It was the running "joke" of the show, but, frankly, not funny even a little bit. Perhaps he was hoping that Netflix "magic" would turn this series into the next Squid Game.... well, it did not.
He was at his most engaging when (rarely) he was so mesmerised by the scenery that he shut up and LOOKed! THAT was much more powerful than any of his fake enthusiasm. And he repeatedly laughed at nothings, with a crazed and humourless expression in his eyes - never went so far as sinister, but very off-putting and, well, very very very fake.
To be fair to Hong-Chul, I believe he's very experienced in entertainment shows, and am certain he has great skills. He was determined to demonstrate that a Korean male CAN wear unisex clothing anywhere. Good for him. He's also a very good swimmer. I imagine he is also pretty bright.
I suspect he and Rain were meant to be foils for each other, perhaps each bringing something out in the other - they are indeed very different. Rain isn't perfect - and much humour was made of the fact that his wife in the past said her ideal man is humorous and has double eyelids - well we all know Rain has mono-lids, and he's described here as unfunny and dull. Perhaps they thought that he on his own would be too serious or too boring. But I found him a million times more interesting than Hong Chul, who sadly just got in the way.
Rain is clearly meticulous, can perhaps be controlling (from little things he said - usually eats only one meal a day, wouldn't allow his wife to go clubbing with one of the "visiting" celebrities - half a joke, but was it?), hard-training, loves and is very skilled about food, and may be a bit straight-laced. However, he can laugh at himself, treats everyone with respect (actually, so does Hong Chul), and is very honest.
The moments in this series where I wanted to pay attention were those where the landscape and scenery dominated (and that wasn't really the case in the biking shots, when we were looking at Rain and Hong Chul who was mainly just screaming) and when Rain was ... well, doing anything. His abs were out there in episode one, and no hardship was imposed on the viewer, though I had thought it not likely to continue. I was wrong - they were in fact all over the place, and several viewings of him doing his daily work-out, in which he regularly loses count and starts again. Hong Chul says, good naturedly, that he's a bit dumb. But those abs could sharpen a knife.
I tend to feel this kind of programme is most effective when the viewer can imagine themselves on the trip. I almost made it, but I kept getting kicked out of that perspective, not only by my fantasies of murdering Hong Chul (apologies) but also by the regular invisible intervention of "crew" or others, who organised several things which appeared without explanation. Bikes got changed, there was a train trip in the middle of the bike trip, a night camping where the kit (and Rain's immaculately groomed standard poodle) has arrived before our intrepid pair, and then the (very posh) camping kit magically erects itself. Of COURSE we know there has to be organisation behind the scenes of this kind of programme, but I think they got the balance a bit wrong. I wonder just how much fun would we have had (for example) watching Rain and Hong Chul working out together how to erect that tent? Maybe they tried that and it did not show them at their best! Or maybe it was just (another) opportunity missed.
I forced myself to persist but had to abandon at the start of Ep 6.
A nice idea for a series, but sadly failed by - I felt - poor casting.

Leia Mais

Cool concept but bad execution-editing

Note: Some details of the show included to clarify points of my review. It is not a drama, so those details ain't spoilers right?

Tbh, having enjoyed prior Netflix’s travel reality shows such as Twogether and New World (well, the hosts traveled and stayed together on an island for about a week or so) and seeing this show’s trailer, I had high expectations for this show only to be utterly sorely disappointed.

Netflix travel reality x concept of bike touring around S Korea with two hosts sounds great and cool but the execution-editing is bad.

The trailer is spot on on what an enjoyable travel reality show should have: aerial panoramic panning views, glorious, mouthwatering food and goofing fun games and activities unique to the travel locations.

Those are unfortunately grossly overshadowed by footage cut out from the trailer but what made the full show:
(1) Relentless mundane chatting of the hosts with their mates and non-stop bickering between their couple mates.
(2) Never-ending close-up views of the hosts riding their bikes screaming away.
(3) Endless inclusion of an overbearingly obsessive and atrociously-cum-flamboyantly dressed Hong Chul (wearing dresses and long coats on bike trips and almost had an accident but continued to do so???) flashing his incessant self-printed Netflix paraphernalia and shouting Net-pleaseeeee and Reeeeed Haaaastingssss in desperate attempts to get lifetime free Netflix subscription. Those are neither funny nor funnee at all, but nerve-wrecking and hair-raising in bad ways to get one to shut down the app.

I was so put off by the freaking long mundane chats in episode 1 that i did not continue episode 2 until months later.. It picks up in episode 2, slumps again in episode 8 (why the visit to an amusement park when there are tons to see at the many UNESCO World Heritage sites at the ancient capital Gyeongju???) and ultimately tanks in the final episode which is really just a bts clip of them recording music for the show and their couple bickering over peeing (yes, no typo).

The only bonus point is seeing new sides of Rain. Not only was he meticulous in planning for the trip, Rain also took care of his co-host’s safety, stomach and tastebuds. Rain can cook and appreciate food! Be amazed of his appreciation of food through both his fine and creative culinary skills (waffling korean rice-cakes and fish cakes topped with ice cream for breakfast) and novel ways of consuming food.

For a much more consistently enjoyable travel reality show, watch Twogether (more in “Recommendations” tab)

Leia Mais