About Joanna, Sung Hee and Jen

We're Joanna Pineda, Sung Hee Lee, and Jen McWhorter. We're Asian-American moms who love K Dramas. We love K Dramas so much that we decided to create a podcast to talk about them in great detail and share our love of these amazing show!

Here's a little about Joanna:

I'm mom to two amazing boys
I was born in the Philippines and moved to the US when I was 14.
I went to high school and college in the San Francisco Bay Area and have been living in the DC area since grad school.
My husband and I run Matrix Group International, Inc., an interactive agency based in Arlington, VA.
In addition to K Dramas, I'm passionate about cooking and martial arts. I'm a black belt in TaeKwonDo, and a black belt in HapKiDo.

Here's a little about Sung Hee:

I'm mom to two amazing children, a boy and a girl. One is out of college and the other is just starting college.
I'm a doctor specializing in anesthesiology.
I live in the Providence, RI with my family.
I was born in the US and am learning Korean.
I've been to Korea a couple of times

Here's a little about Jen:

I'm mom to two amazing girls
I enjoy K Dramas, but also love reality tv shows. Real Housewives is my guilty pleasure.
The first K Drama show I watched/binged was "My Lovely Sam Soon" and I became addicted ever since.
I enjoy traveling and I studied abroad in Germany. I hope to visit Korea soon; I still have relatives there.
I love my peloton - Robin is my favorite instructor.

Joanna and Jen were hosts of K Drama Chat in the first two seasons. Life has gotten in the way of podcasting for Jen, so now Joanna and Sung Hee are the regular K Drama Chat hosts.

Comments

11.10 - Podcast Review of Episode 10 of When Life Gives You Tangerines

Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 10 of When Life Gives You Tangerines , the hit K Drama on Netflix starring IU as Oh Ae-sun and Park Bo-gum as Yang Gwan-sik as young adults, then Moon So-ri as Oh Ae-sun and Park Hae-joon as Yang Gwan-sik as older adults. We discuss: The featured song during the recap: “Theme of Ae-sun” by Park Sung-il, the musician who also wrote “Theme of Gwan-sik,” “Spring in a Heartbeat,” and “Two Faced Summer” from this OST. The Baeksang Awards wins for this show—Best Drama, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Supporting Actor—and how validating it feels to have picked a gem for Season 11 of our podcast! How this episode focuses on three mothers and their powerful love for their children: Ae-sun, Yeong-ran, and Chung-seop’s mom. The symbolic and cultural significance of white rice, and how Bu Sang-gil uses it as a weapon in his drunken tirade. Oh Seong’s boiling anger against his father and sister, and his tragic learned behavior from witnessin...

12.17 - Special Episode About the Art and Science of Screenwriting with Ellen Sullivan

Today, we have a special episode of K Drama Chat where we’re joined by longtime listener, friend, and screenwriter, Ellen Sullivan . We talk about the art and science of screenwriting and how the best K Dramas follow—or creatively depart from—dramatic structure to deliver compelling, emotional stories. In this episode, we discuss: The shows that are heavily spoiled in this episode: Crash Landing On You , Mr. Queen , Mr. Sunshine , When the Phone Rings , and Captivating the King . Ellen’s background as a screenwriter and technical writer, and how her passion for K Dramas began with My Mister. The Western three-act structure versus the Korean four-act structure (gi-seung-jeon-gyeol), and how each style approaches storytelling and character development. Detailed examples of setup, midpoint, and conclusion in Crash Landing On You , Mr. Queen , and Mr. Sunshine . What makes these shows work: believable character arcs, clear motivations, strong midpoint turns, and emotional payof...

12.16 - Podcast Review of Episode 16 of Extraordinary Attorney Woo

Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 16, the finale, of Extraordinary Attorney Woo , the hit K Drama on Netflix starring Park Eun-bin as Woo Young-woo, Kang Tae-oh as Lee Jun-ho, Ha Yoon-kyung as Choi Soo-yeon, Ju Hyun-young as Dong Geurami, Kang Ki-young as Jung Myung-seok, and Joo Jong-hyuk as Kwon Min-woo. We discuss: The songs featured during the recap: Dance with a Best Friend by Roh Young Sim and Beyond My Dreams by Sunwoojunga. The Wall Street Journal article that explores the wide spectrum of autism and how the medical community thinks we need better and different diagnoses for the different presentations of autism. Woo Young-woo and Choi Sang-hyeon’s similarities, including their autistic traits, intelligence, and love of gimbap and Rubik’s cubes. Tae Su-mi’s response to her son’s confession of hacking and how it reflects both ambition and maternal instinct. The ethical and legal complexities of the Raon hacking case, including Woo Young-woo’s dilemma between social ...

K Drama Chat Weekly

Search This Blog