Hooked on CLOY amid COVID-19

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Charlotte, North Carolina—As we approach the weekend let’s take a break dear readers from the pandemic that is COVID-19 and talk about some things more relaxing and feel good like the Filipino’s ongoing fascination with Korean dramas which I only got hooked on due to my home quarantine with husband Ronnie.

My baptismal into the K-drama craze as it is commonly called started innocently enough with that now famed ‘Crash Landing On You’ series. While my husband Ronnie and I vacationed in Cagayan de Oro City last December I would often see my daughter Janice Baisas watching the series known by the hashtag #CLOY on her IPad.

Initially dismissive at first, my curiosity got the better of me after several days and I mistakenly asked what she read at the time and she replied that she wasn’t reading, she was watching CLOY. I asked what CLOY is only to be ignored by Janice whose facial expressions ranged from sadness, joy or even outright intensity. 

She asked me about North and South Korea and I answered her what I know about those countries and that peaked my interest on CLOY. Only when I returned to the US and had little to do at my home during quarantine--other than my weekday online radio broadcast ‘Barangay S’ at the Way Kurat FM Balingasag Facebook page (Mondays and Wednesdays to Friday every 7 to 8 am Philippine time), my weekday columns at Mindanao Daily and my blog—was I told that CLOY stood for ‘Crash Landing On You.’

Watching drama series  is not my thing anymore though I am a hopeless romantic because I read the books of Elin Hilderbrand or Nora Roberts.  The last time Korean TV series I watched was ‘Lovers In Paris’ which aired God knows when. 

So I checked out CLOY on Netflix one afternoon and I was hooked after one episode. I’m sure I slept at 5 am and woke up at noon to resume watching it until I finished the whole season. The main actor Hyun Bin  was quite affecting in his role and I was convinced by his acting and his looks. 

Hyun Bin,I am in my 60s and if I were young again, I will find you. I give credit to his buddies in the series. They were cute, funny and loyal to him and Siri. A thumbs up to the whole cast including the director, scriptwriters and the team.

Oh and did you readers know that I ended up watching Memories of Alhambra. Maybe, after COVID 19 and the airports are open again, I would ask my husband who was stationed in South Korea that we pass by there to see the demilitarized zone again. Good luck Hyun Bin and be safe always.