Korean Variety - ZOMBIEVERSE S1

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안녕하세요

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こんにちは

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你好

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Zombieverse is a South Korean real-variety survival series.

The shows scenarios' are scripted but the cats reactions aren't.

The series was released on Netflix on the 8th of August 2023.

The series contains 8 episodes.

Cast:

Lee Si Young

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Noh Hong Chul

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Park Na Rae

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DINDIN

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Tsuki

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Yoo Hee Kwan

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Jonathan

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Patricia

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Hong Seong Woo

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DEX

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A second season has been announced and confirmed, with cast members from season 1 returning as well as new cast members being announced as well.

Zombieverse invites viewers to experience an alternate reality immediately after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, right around the time when outdoor filming was being permitted.

Each episode, the cast members must fulfil various quests in order to obtain food, transportation, shelter, and more.

Anyone that gets bitten by a zombie must be left behind.

In Seoul, where a zombie virus outbreak has run amok, who will outwit the undead in the face of challenging quests and come out alive?

Owned by NETFLIX

Netflix Asia

I went into this show only really knowing Lee Si Young as I'd watched her in a couple of drama's, one of which was Sweet Home. I also knew of Tsuki as I remembered her going viral for her facial expressions during one of her groups comebacks. Other than that I wasn't really familiar with the rest of the line-up.

I knew I was going to like this show as it had a similar set-up that BUSTED did, in that it's scripted to an extent, but most of their reactions and responses were unscripted.

I loved the first season of ZOMBIEVERSE, I loved the whole line-up, they all bounced off one another and I loved how protective they were with one another.

I was laughing from the very first episode, from their reactions to the responses.

I came away from this show loving each one of them, especially Tsuki, DINDIN and DEX, each episode I was rooting for them to survive.

The situations they got placed into definitely had me holding my breath in the hopes they'd complete the missions, and I was glad when a second season was announced, as we were left with a bit of a cliff-hanger in what would happen next for those that survived.

I really recommend this variety show, especially if you were a fan of BUSTED, but I feel for me this was on another level, especially when you think about how their will to survive was probably unscripted. But it also brought humour to the episodes where we had fatalities and casualties as they know it obviously wasn't real.

Have you watched season 1 of ZOMBIEVERSE?

Wee you a fan of the line-up of the participants?

Were you a fan of the concept?

What did you think of season 1?

Let me know in the comments below.

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

Blackout - Book Review

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안녕하세요

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

BLACKOUT is the 3rd and final instalment in the Newsflesh series written by Mira Grant.

The book was published by Orbit Books on the 1st of June 2012.

Before the release of BLACKOUT, Mira Grant released FED, an alternate ending to the first instalment of the Newsflesh novel FEED.

BLACKOUT is set several decades after  the zombie apocalypse, the Rising. Kellis-Amberlee is a normally beneficial virus that, on the death of any host mammal over 40 pounds (18kg), "goes live" or "amplifies", and turns them into a zombie. Most humans reside in controlled zones, and blogs are now the primary source of news and entertainment.

The novel is written from the perspective of Georgia and Shaun Mason, siblings and blogger-reporters.

THE WORLD DIDN'T END WHEN THE ZOMBIES CAME.

WE JUST WISHED IT HAD.

The conspiracy that rules post-zombie America is alive and well. The same can't be said of the bloggers who dared to tell the truth as they found it. Now, with too much left to do and not much time left to do it in, Shaun Mason and his team must face mad scientists, zombie bears and rogue government agencies - and if there's one thing they know is true in post-zombie America is this:

Things can only get worse.

This book takes it's twists and turns and I remember being shocked by what unfolded within the novel. Even the second time round with knowing what was going to happen, I found myself holding my breath anticipating what was to come.

I think no matter how many times I read this book, there will be a rollercoaster of emotions, I know many people were left feeling weird by the end of this book, but I always keep an open mind and part of me was expecting it. Especially when you think about the actions and what was said in the first book.

As with the other 2 books, it's really well written, there is plenty of character growth and I think it concluded the story perfectly. I wasn't left feeling that I needed more to know what happened to characters, they all had the perfect closure to their story.

Mira Grant Novels

Newsflesh:

FEED

DEADLINE

BLACKOUT

Parasitology:

PARASITE

SYMBIONT

CHIMERA

Into the Drowning Deep

Alien: Echo

Canto Bight

Final Girls

Kingdom of Needle and Bone

In the Shadow of Spindrift House

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

DEADLINE - Book Review

Hello

안녕하세요

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

DEADLINE is the second book in the Newsflesh series written by Mira Grant.

The book was published by Orbit Books and it was published in May 2011.

Mira Grant's interests in horror movies and virology inspired her to write the book, but she struggled with the plot until a friend suggested using an election as a framing device.

The novel has been praised for it's detailed worldbuilding, including the characters' awareness of previous zombie fiction - an element Grant found lacking in most horror works.

Without the framing device of a Unites States Presidential Election to use as in FEED. Grant chose to focus more on the zombie virus itself; how a lab-engineered virus developed and evolved, and how humans were responding to it, on both societal and biological levels. Grant also wanted to address the long term-impact of a zombie apocalypse on society and the associated psychological ramifications.

Other themes covered in the novel include medical ethics and human responsibility.

DEADLINE was originally to be titled Blackout, but was changed shortly before publication to avoid confusion with Connie Willis' Novel Blackout, which was published a year earlier in 2010.

Blackout was instead used for the 3rd instalment of the Newsflesh series.

The book was compared favourably with Max Brooks' World War Z that was released in 2006.

DEADLINE was also nominated for the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

SPOILER ALERT

Set after a zombie apocalypse and written from the perspective of blog journalist Shaun Mason, DEADLINE delves deeper into the conspiracy unveiled during the events of FEED, while depicting Shaun's attempts to deal with the loss of his sister Georgia.

DEADLINE delves more into the origins of the zombie-causing virus, and how humanity is responding to it on a societal, biological, and psychological levels.

NOTHING STAYS BURRIED FOR LONG...

Shaun Mason is a man without a mission. Not even running the news organisation he built with his sister has the same urgency as it used to. Playing with dead things just doesn't seem as fun when you've lost as much as he has.

But when a researcher from the Centre for Disease Control fakes her own death and appears on his doorstep with a ravenous pack of zombies in tow, Shaun's relieved to find a new purpose in life. Because she brings news: the monster who attacked them may be destroyed, but the conspiracy is far from dead.

Now, Shaun hits the road to find what truth can be found at the end of a shotgun.

The emotions I felt reading this book, I remember when I originally read this book series, it took me a while to get stuck into this one, because of how the first book ended. I was heartbroken, and even with the 2nd time round, I went into this book with the same feelings of heartbreak. Which I think makes this book so much harder to read, as you're feeling everything right along with Shaun. You really witness his spiral into madness, as well as seeing him fight to reach his goal of getting revenge for Georgia.

We get to meet more characters, as well as getting to know more about characters we met briefly in the first book.

Yet again there are times when my heart sunk, even reading it for the second time. I don't think I'll ever get over reading this series, no matter how many times I'll read these books, they'll always make me feel the same way, they'll still leave me shocked and crying.

I will continue to recommend each of these books, as they show not only different views from the characters, but they show you what life could be like because of a zombie outbreak.

'Gripping, thrilling and brutal' - Publishes Weekly

'A truly Shocking ending' - Daily Telegraph

'The zombie novel Robert. A Heinlein might have written' - Sci-Fi Magazine

Mira Grant Novels

Newsflesh:

FEED

DEADLINE

BLACKOUT

Parasitology:

PARASITE

SYMBIONT

CHIMERA

Into the Drowning Deep

Alien: Echo

Canto Bight

Final Girls

Kingdom of Needle and Bone

In the Shadow of Spindrift House

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

FEED - Book Review

Hello

안녕하세요

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

FEED is the first book in the Newsflesh series by Mira Grant.

The book was published by Orbit Books and it was published in 2010.

Mira Grant's interests in horror movies and virology inspired her to write the book, but she struggled with the plot until a friend suggested using an election as a framing device.

The novel has been praised for it's detailed worldbuilding, including the characters' awareness of previous zombie fiction - an element Grant found lacking in most horror works.

FEED came 2nd in the 2011 Hugo Award for Best Novel category.

FEED is set during the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse and written from the perspective of blog journalist Georgia Mason, FEED follows Georgia and her news team as they follow the presidential campaign of Republican Senator Peter Ryman. A series of deadly incidents leads Georgia and her brother Shaun to discover efforts to undermine the campaign, linked to a larger conspiracy involving the undead.

'ALIVE OR DEAD, THE TRUTH WON'T REST.

MY NAME IS GEORGIA MASON, AND I AM BEGGING YOU, RISE UP WHILE YOU CAN'

The year was 2014. We had cured cancer. We had cured the common cold. But in doing so we created something new, something terrible that no one could stop. The infection spread, virus blocks taking over bodies and minds, with one unstoppable command: FEED.

Now, twenty years after the Rising, bloggers Georgia and Shaun Mason are on the trail of the biggest story of their lives - the dark conspiracy behind the infected. The truth will out, even if it kills them.

I think no matter how many times I read FEED, I'll always struggle to put it down, which to me is a sign of a good author. Mira Grant blew me away with this book and it's definitely one of my favourite books, as well as one of my favourite book series'. I love that it's told from Georgia's point of view and I love that she goes into the ins and outs of blogging after the Rising as well as the different roles each of her teammates play within their site.

Throughout the book we're taken on twists and turns, which still bring me to tears, give me that lump in my throat, has me holding my breath and keeping me on the edge of my seat, you're definitely taken on an emotional rollercoaster throughout the book.

I remember the first time I read this book, I had to have a moment to myself because I was in shock from the ending, I don't think a book has ever affected me in a way that I needed to have a moment to get over the ending, and even the 2nd time round, I still struggled to hold back the tears.

I've recently read that there is an alternate ending to this book, and I can honestly say that while the alternate ending would have been sad and heart breaking, I think this one, really pulls at the heartstrings as you've come to love each one of the characters, I also think throughout the book that you're friends and family with each of the characters too. For me while traumatising, it's the perfect ending for the first book.

I honestly can't put into words how amazing this book is, all I can do is recommend it, and hope you're just as hooked as I was and still am. I can only hope that one day there will be a series adaptation or even a movie series. I personally think this book and series work adapt really well to the screen, especially if Mira Grant is behind the wheel.

I can't wait to get back into the series with the 2nd and 3rd book and relive it all again, and I don't know what you're waiting for, go read it yourself and enjoy the ride.

'A truly shocking ending' - Daily Telegraph

'The zombie novel Robert. A Heinlein might have written' - Sci-Fi Magazine

Mira Grant Novels

Newsflesh:

FEED

DEADLINE

BLACKOUT

Parasitology:

PARASITE

SYMBIONT

CHIMERA

Into the Drowning Deep

Alien: Echo

Canto Bight

Final Girls

Kingdom of Needle and Bone

In the Shadow of Spindrift House

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

Korean Drama - All Of Us Are Dead

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(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

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All Of Us Are Dead is a 2022 South Korean Zombie Horror series on Netflix, written by Chun Sung Il and directed by Lee Jae Kyoo & Kim Nam Su.

The series is based on the webtoon Now at Our School by Joo Dong Geun.

The series was released in Netflix worldwide on the 28th of January 2021, and has 12 episodes.

Main Cast:

Park Ji Hu as Nam On Jo

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Yoon Chan Young as Lee Cheong San

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Cho Yi Hyun as Choi Nam Ra

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Park Solomon as Lee Su Hyeok

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Yoo In Soo as Yoon Gwi Nam

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Lee Yoo Mi as Lee Na Yeon

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Kim Byung Chul as Lee Byeong Chan

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Lee Kyu Hyung as Song Jae Ik

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Jeon Bae Soo as Nam So Ju

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Supporting Cast:

Im Jae Hyuk as Yang Dae Su

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Kim Bo Yoon as Seo Hyo Ryung

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Ahn Seung Gyun as Oh Joon Yeong

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Ham Sungmin as Han Gyeong Su

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Kim Joo Ah as Yoon I Sak

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Kim Jin Young as Kim Jimin

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Son Sang Yeon as Jang Woo Jin

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Ha Seung Ri as Jang Ha Ri

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Lee Eun Saem as Park Mi Jin

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Jin Ho Eun as Jung Min Jae

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Yang Han Yeol as Yoo Jun Seong

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Oh Hye Soo as Min Eun Ji

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Ahn Ji Ho as Kim Chul Soo

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Lee Sang Hee as Park Sun Haw

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Yoon Kyung Ho as Jung Yong Nam

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Um Hyo Sup as School's Principal

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Park Jae Chul as Jeon Ho Chul

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Woo Ji Hyun as Kim Woo Shin

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Dong Hyun Bae as Park Young Hwan

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Bae Hae Sun as Park Eun Hee

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On the 12th of April 2020, Netflix announced that JTBC Studios & Film Monster would produce a series called All Of Us Are Dead, based on the popular webtoon Now at Our School.

In selecting the cast, directer Lee Jae Kyoo said, "I thought that bringing on actors who were great at acting but still unknown to the public would add to the immersion of the series."

Then on in August 2020, production was temporarily suspended due to the re-spreading of the Covid-19 Pandemic in South Korea.

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After a failed science experiment, a local high school is overrun with zombies, and the trapped students struggle to survive. With no food or water, and communication cut-off by the government, they must use equipment around the school to protect themselves in the middle of a battleground or they will become part of the infected.

Netflix

I binged watched this drama within 2 days, I started it the Saturday evening and finished the final 2 episodes the Sunday morning. Even though I've never read the webtoon, I was on countdown for this drama to be released, 1) because I really enjoy the zombie genre and 2) because I was looking forward to seeing some of the cast that I knew were in this drama, and I was looking forward to seeing them in starring roles.

I was hooked from the very first episode, even if I did have some question, for example, how did he 1) get away with bashing his sons head in, while in the hospital, 2) where did he pull the suitcase from and 3) how the hell did he even get him out of the hospital in a suitcase, without anyone noticing. 

I have to say the director made the perfect choice of having lesser known actors star in this series, as it shows how skilled they are, especially with everything they had to do while making the series.

The cast were amazing, each one pulled off their role exceptionally well, and they definitely made me feel all the emotions they were feeling themselves. It was also nice to have a series, where the characters already know about zombies, the Train to Busan mention had me in stitches because I wasn't expecting it.

I think this came out at the perfect time, especially when there has been quite a few bullying scandals coming out lately, whether they're true or not is another thing, so it really highlights some of the bullying that happens in schools in South Korea and how some have mentioned that teachers turned a blind eye and allow it to continue.

A part of me wants their to be a 2nd season so see how everything unfolds and how the spread is being stopped and eradicated, but a part of me also doesn't want a 2nd season as I think they ended it perfectly, and I wasn't left with any unanswered questions, and without giving anything away I think 2 of the characters are dead dead and wouldn't return for a 2nd season, even though I would love that.

I think Park Ji Hu did an amazing job as Nam On Jo, she initially starts off being scared, but soon begins to start using her head and starts putting together what she's been taught by her firefighter father. You can also see that she's very caring and even though she's scared by the events unfolding, she stays by her friends side as she turns and even tries to help her, even when it's her rival in love, she wants to see the positive, rather than going straight into defence mode.

I was so excited to see Yoon Chan Young as Lee Cheong San, I watched him in Thirty But Seventeen aka Still 17, which is one of my favourite dramas, I said that I was excited to see what his future career would be like and that he had a big future a head of him and I wasn't wrong, he made it his own role and blew me away. He had me feeling all emotions and I lost count of how many times I was left on the edge of my seat, I think the most heartbreaking moment was when he came across his mother when they were breaking out of the school, I knew it was coming but it still made me cry and broke my heart for him, even seeing how they all reacted when he revealed it was his mother shows how they all cared for one another as friends.

Cho Yi Hyun is definitely going to be a successful actress, she was fantastic as Choi Nam Ra, Nam Ra seems to spend her life thinking she doesn't really need friend to succeed, but thanks to both the zombie outbreak and become a hambie, she realises what she's been missing and starts to fight to keep all those she now cherishes alive. I think for the first time in her life she feels accepted, she's a really intelligent girl and tries to help alongside On Jo.

Another person I was excited to see in this drama was Park Solomon as Lee Su Hyeok,  I'd previously seen him in Revenge Note 1 and it definitely made me a fan of his. I think he upped his acting for this drama, I feel that we got to see a different side to his acting as Su Hyeok and Cheong San have such a good friendship, you couldn't help but love their bromance, they both trusted each other to stay alive when they were separated and also came to each others defence when they needed it.

For me Yoo In Soo stole the show as Yoon Gwi Nam, he's the villain you can't help but hate, which I always say, shows how extraordinary he is as an actor. While we see him as a bully straight away, we come to see that he's weak and that's the reason he bullies, but then his desire to survive and get revenge becomes greater, and I personally think he becomes worse than a bully, because he will stop at nothing to get what he wants, no matter what or who stands in his way. I will definitely be checking out more of his dramas.

Last year Lee Yoo Mi broke hearts with her role in Squid Game and then as Lee Na Yeon, she broke hearts again, but this time for all the wrong reasons. I think this shows how versatile she is as an actress and I loved that she prepared herself for the hate she would get for her role. Na Yeon seems that because she's born into money, she is above other people and is better than everyone else, especially those that get welfare. I had trouble trusting her character and I was right to feel that way, as she practically murders someone among her group to prove a point. I was hoping she would be able to return and make up for what she did, but she she just couldn't do it alone.

I loved Ahn Seung Gyun as Oh Joon Yeong, he's definitely the main brains of the group and takes his responsibility to his group very seriously, all the way to the very end, and continues to fight to help his friends get to safety so they can survive.

Ham Sungmin was another cast member I was excited to see as I'd him in Revenge Note 1 with Park Solomon, so I loved seeing them act alongside one another again as Han Gyeong Su. For me Gyeong Su's story is the most heartbreaking and I'm so glad I didn't see his Instagram post until I'd watched the show, but if I had, I would have been more prepared.

Another great actress in this series was Oh Hye Soo as Min Eun Ji, we see her straight away being severely bullied and how everyone including her teachers turn a blind eye (expect Su Hyeok), the bullying is so bad that she's about to commit suicide as the outbreak takes place. We see her desire to get revenge on all those that bullied her, so much so that when she becomes a hambie, she becomes like those she hates.

I'd love to be able to talk about the whole cast because they did such an amazing job, but I mainly wanted to mention the cast that really blew me away in their roles and really made an impact, especially the younger cast that aren't as well known. I really think this series will open some doors for them as it's proven how hard they work to achieve amazing results.

If you haven't watched it already, then I really recommend it, the director did an amazing job, and all I'll say is prepare to be on the edge throughout and be prepared for many shocks along the way.

It's already become my favourite drama to be released so far in 2022.

Have you watched All Of Us Are Dead?

Were you a fan of the cast?

Did you enjoy the plot and Script?

Are you familiar with the webtoon?

Let me know in the comments below.

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye