The World According to Cosmos

The World According to Cosmos – Poetry and Rants

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Cosmos’s Family History

     

    Cosmos Faith Journey

    Why are there so many fake Cherokees?

    Father’s Family mostly German and Scandanavian including part Laplander

    My family history is complex and many-layered. I did a DNA test a few years ago and have updated it since then.  The DNA test had a few surprises.  According to family lore, pieced together from what my father, Mother, Uncle, and Aunt told me over the years is that the Aller Family (paternal side) is descended from Hessian mercenaries who came to the US around 1775 to fight for George Washington.  After the war, they settled in Pennsylvania, later moved to Ohio, and my grandfather made the trek to Washington State, where he was one of the founding fathers of the Yakima fruit industry, which took hold in the 1920s with the development of irrigation.   He was also an avid horticulturist and invented the Edison Apple and green asparagus.

    My father got his BA degree from the University of Washington and was a Rhodes scholar, studying in Oxford, getting an MPA degree,  Later he obtained a Ph.D. from Harvard University.  He taught at CAL State SF for 40 years before he died in 1985 of cancer.  He had one brother and three sisters, all of whom have passed on.

    He served as the Undersecretary for Labor for President Kennedy and President Johnson and was a local politician serving as President of the Peralta community colleges, and as President of the Berkeley Co-Op where he resided.

    According to the DNA reports and family lore, the Aller family is descended from French Huguenots who settled in the Aller river valley near Hamburg.  The family name was transcribed in English as either Aller, Allard, Eller, Ohler, or Oller and anyone with those last names is distantly related to me.

    My ethnic background consists of (from my grandfather, Curtis Cosmos Aller, Sr.) German, French, Dutch, and Scotish, from my grandmother, Inga Maria Olsen, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Russian, Jewish, and Laplander (Sammi) ancestry.    According to DNA records, we also have Ukrainian, Mongolian, Basque, and Italian ancestry. We also probably have distant relatives throughout Latin America as Allers were among the Spanish who conquered Latin America. Aller is a common name throughout Latin America.

    Mother’s Sad Tale – Part of the Lost Tribe of the Cherokee Nation

    According to my mother, her family is descended from the lost tribe of the Cherokee Nation.  They were Cherokees who ran away into the Ozarks in Arkansas, Missouri, and Eastern Texas, intermarrying with other five civilized tribes members (Choctaw, Creek, Osage, and Seminoles), Scotts, Irish, Dutch, French, English settlers, and escaped black slaves.  They are a small group less than 30,000 people, and their DNA samples have not made it into most commercial data banks according to Ancestry com.

    They have been fighting for decades to gain both Federal and State recognition but so far the two Cherokee nations (the Oklahoma branch and the Eastern band) are opposed to such recognition because they  consider their claim to being Cherokee  very weak, as almost none of them retain any Cherokee culture or language, and most of their claims are that their great grandfather or great grandmother might have been1/4  Cherokee at best. And they could also be Choctaw, Creek, Osage, or Seminole for that matter . They are mostly white, and some are African American as well. Almost none of them have any documentary claims, and most also do not have any DNA evidence either.

    The real reason for the opposition according to the self-proclaimed Ambassador of the Cherokee Nation whom I met at a State Department formal consultation with the Indigenous tribes, which is a formal consultation required under the UN Treaty on the Rights of the Indigenous which the US joined in the 1990s, the two Cherokee nations don’t believe that the lost tribe has enough Cherokee ancestry to be considered members of the tribe, and they also don’t want to have them to be able to open a Casino in Arkansas, or Missouri and they also don’t want to share BIA money with the Lost Tribe of the Cherokees.

    But he added,

    “We all know that they are our lost tribal members,”

    and he supported recognition.

    They remain a lost tribe.  There is a ballot initiative in Arkansas that if it passes will give them at least State level recognition.

    The DNA test does not reveal any native ancestry for the above reasons, but does reveal French, Dutch, Scottish, Irish, and English ancestry, and 1 percent Nigerian.  My grandparents spoke Cherokee; therefore, my mother must have been at least ¼ and that makes me at least 1/8 Cherokee, which is good enough for me.  If they ever get recognized, I will pursue getting recognized as well.  In honor of my mother.

    My mother ran away to the Bay Area where she ended up working as a Pacific telephone operator, later as a real estate broker and business manager for my father’s economic

    She often said

    “Every ten years, the world flips
    And all the nuts roll downhill
    To California
    That is how she got there
    Part of the planetary nut reconfiguration program
    PNRCP A little known federal ABC agency “

    I have included my father’s and mother’s obituaries following seven poems exploring my family’s rich history.

    Family History Poems

    Index

    DNA Tests Do Not Lie or Do They?
    Family History Revealed
    My Mother’s History
    Father’s Son
    Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC
    Mary Geneva Wilson Aller, There’s Method to Her Madness
    Curtis Cosmos Aller orbit
    Mary Geneva Aller Orbit

    DNA Tests Do Not Lie or Do They?

    I sent way
    For one of those DNA tests
    That promises to reveal
    Your ethnic heritage

    The only problem is that claim
    Is not yet true

    The results were surprising
    To say the least

    Family lore would have it
    That I have 18 nationalities
    In my tangled family history

    Mostly Northern European
    Part German, Norwegian, Swedish, Finish, Danish, Dutch, Laplander, Russian, Scottish, Basque, Mongolian, Jewish, Spanish, and French from my father
    Part Cherokee, Dutch, Irish, Scottish, English, Italian, Nigerian, and French from my mother
    100 percent born and raised in Berkeley

    The DNA results showed
    that I am 68% northern European
    with trace elements of Jewish, Basque. Italian
    Mongolian and Nigerian stock.

    No native American at all
    And my Germanic last name
    For some reason
    Did not register at all

    Go figure
    I said
    And I read the fine print
    The state of the art is such

    That claims that they can tell
    Your ethnic background
    Are exaggerated
    The fine print read

    Explaining why it is often inaccurate
    The Cherokee background
    Disappeared
    Because my branch of the Cherokees
    Disappeared into the mist of time
    Part of the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation

    Part Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole
    African Americans, Scotish, Irish,
    English, French and Dutch.

    Who fled to the Ozark mountains
    To avoid the trail of tears.

    The German background
    Got swept up into the northern European thing
    And at the end of the day
    I remained as much
    a mongrel
    breed as anything else

    Typical American
    I suppose

    Overall
    A fascinating experiment

    Family History Revealed

    The DNA results
    Revealed some aspects
    Of whom I am

    Where I am from
    But not everything
    Was revealed

    And much of my history
    Remains hidden

    My father was from Yakima
    Ran away to the Bay Area
    Where he became a college professor

    Taught the dismal science economics
    Along the way
    He met my mother

    And after a whirlwind romance
    had four children

    My older brother,
    Me
    Younger brother
    And sister

    My Mother was a refugee
    From the dust bowl
    Fled Arkansas
    In the late ’30s

    Never looked back
    Settled down
    In the Bay Area

    Yet the south lingered on
    She trained herself
    To speak without an accent
    by listening to the classical radio deejays,

    The only time the southern came out
    Was when she was talking to her sisters
    She was the 10 of 11 children

    Father was a moonshiner
    A Cherokee medicine man to boot
    Lived life in the Ozark mountains

    She had two sons
    From a prior relationship
    That went south
    We never really knew them

    My father was an atheist
    And a morning person

    And a man with a plan
    For everything

    My mother
    More make it up
    As she went along

    And a night owl

    How and why
    They met and stayed together
    Is beyond me

    They had a stormy relationship
    My mother always said
    Germans and Irish
    Don’t mix
    And never should marry

    She also said
    The world is divided into morning people
    And night owls

    And they are doomed
    to marry each other

    Yet I suppose
    There was real love
    Beneath all the drama
    And bluster

    My Mother’s History

    One day many a year ago
    My mother spoke to me
    About her family’s tangled history,

    She spoke to me
    Of lies, half-truths, and myths
    Some of which may have been true

    And throughout the evening
    Her history came alive.

    She was born in the hills
    of North Little Rock
    The 10th of 11 children
    Of an ancient dying race.

    The Lost Tribe of the Cherokees
    who had run away
    Refusniks
    Refugees who fled in the hills.

    Part of the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation
    Part Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole
    African American, Scottish, Irish, English
    French, and Dutch.

    Who fled to the Ozark mountains,
    To avoid the trail of tears.
    Rather than join the rest
    In the promised land
    Of Oklahoma.

    They did not exist
    I did not exist.

    The BIA told us
    No Indian scholarship
    For you

    Since you can’t prove
    You are in fact
    Of Native American ancestry,

    I asked my mother
    What does this mean?

    She said
    No BIA money for you,
    My non-Indian Cherokee son.

    Her family and Bill Clinton family
    Were related

    Bill Clinton and I are distant cousins
    When I met him
    I related my family history
    He concluded that we were indeed cousins

    Said I could call him Cousin Bill
    And he would call me Cousin Jake
    And said he too was part Cherokee
    Irish, Scotch, French
    And African American

    Part of the lost tribe
    Of the Cherokee nation

    I told my mom
    This story

    She said
    It was true
    She was a distant cousin
    Of Bill Clinton

    Still did not like
    The lying SOB

    Her people disappeared
    From history’s eyes
    And DNA data banks

    My history was over
    As was hers

    And so,
    I learned at last
    The painful truth

    That due to the genocidal crimes
    of politicians so long ago

    My mother’s people
    Lost their land, their culture,
    and their hope

    And became
    downtrodden forgotten people

    Hillbillies they were called
    Living in the hills and mountain dales
    Clinging to the dim fading memories
    Of their once glorious past
    As proud Cherokees

    Now no one knew their name
    The old ways were forgotten
    And the new world never forgave them
    And they never forgave the new world

    As they lived on
    In the margins of society
    Forgotten people

    And I vowed that as long as I lived
    Their history would not die
    As I knew the truth

    And I would become a proud
    Cherokee
    And make my mother proud of me
    And my accomplishments

    When I am feeling down
    I recall her stories
    and her warnings

    And realize it is up to me
    To live my life
    To let the Cherokee in me
    Live his life

    And in so doing
    My mother’s history does not die
    It lives on in me
    Until the day I die

    Long live the Cherokee nation
    Long live my mother.

    Father’s Son

    I am my Father’s Son
    I lived all my life
    Fighting against turning
    into a carbon copy
    Of my father

    And I failed as my father emerged
    From the darkness of my soul
    The full German personality
    And Scandinavian background
    becoming clear

    And peered out
    and liked what he saw
    As I became him

    step by inexorable step
    Turning into my father
    As he had turned his father
    And his father in his father

    Since the dawn of time
    We have played this game
    Sons turning into their fathers

    And watching grandsons
    Start the Cosmic dance
    all over again.

     

    Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC

    Sam Adams
    Had never been
    To the Holocaust Museum,

    Despite the fact
    He had lived
    And worked in DC for decades

    One day after he retired
    He said to himself

    It was long past time
    To finally see
    the holocaust museum

    He went the week
    After Charleston,
    When the mob had chanted,
    Jews will not replace us.

    The museum affected him deeply
    He had just confirmed
    Through DNA
    That he had at least 10 percent
    Jewish ancestry

    Among the 18 other nationalities
    Swirling among these bloodlines

    Sam Adams was concerned
    Those elements of antisemitism
    We’re emerging among
    The MAGA crowd.

    But he dismissed
    The fears that Trump
    Was another Hitler
    As liberal hyperbole

    It could not happen here
    A new holocaust
    Would never happen
    But now he was not so sure

    Wit and Wisdom of Mary Aller, There’s Method in Her Madness

    Poetic Version for April 2021 Contest – Write an Elegy Poem Writing Com Dew Drop-In Prompt Posted April 14, 2021 (April 13 Est)

    The Wit and Wisdom of Mary Geneva Aldridge Aller -“There’s Method in Her Madness” Dedicated to My Mother Who Passed on July 31, 2005.

    We are here today
    To celebrate the life
    Of Mary Geneva Aldridge Wilson Aller,
    My mother.

    As we are gathered together
    to mark her passing
    On to another, better world,
    I thought we should reflect
    On her life and its meaning.

    Therefore, I have a message
    That I hope we all leave here today.
    I call this speech,
    ‘the wit and wisdom of Mary Geneva Aldridge Wilson Aller,
    ” there’s a method in her madness.”
    Which was one of her favorite Shakespeare quotes.

    I hope we will see the wisdom
    That my mother tried so hard to impart
    And what I hope
    I have learned
    from 52 years of watching
    The life of my mother.

    What have I have learned?
    From Mary’s life
    And her death

    And what we can all learn
    From her 85 years of experience
    In this mad crazy corner
    Of the world, she loved so dearly.

    She was a true Berkeley original,
    and it is only fitting
    That we bury her

    Here are a few blocks
    From where she spent
    Much of her life.

    What can we learn?
    From Mary’s life in this world?
    Her favorite song from a musical was

    “stop the world.
    I want to get off.”

    And today she gets her final wish
    As she leaves this world
    And moves on to another world.

    My mother grew up
    In Arkansas
    In what could best be described
    As hill country folk.

    She was the 10th child of 11 children
    Born on a family farm in the 1920s
    High up in the Ozark mountains
    North of Little Rock, Arkansas.

    She graduated from high school
    And lit out for the west coast
    just as millions of people
    Fled the dust bowl
    of the late ’30s and ’40s.

    She arrived in the SF area
    And settled in Berkeley.
    she hated being considered an Oakie
    and lost her accent

    She cultivated an accent
    She learned from
    The classical radio deejays.

    She then became involved
    In labor and democratic politics.
    She became a telephone operator
    union president,

    Later was a real estate salesperson,
    And became involved
    with the save the bay movement
    And the league of women’s voters.

    During the 60’s she accompanied
    My father to Washington DC
    When he was undersecretary of labor.

    She could not wait to get back
    To her beloved Berkeley
    Because she felt at home
    In the zany openness
    of the bay area

    She once said

    “Every ten years the world flips
    And all the nuts roll downhill
    To California
    That is how she got there
    Part of the planetary nut reconfiguration program
    PNRCP A little known federal ABC agency “

    She hated DC
    As it reminded her why
    She left the south so many years before.

    In later years, she helped my father
    In his many political campaigns
    And was his business manager for almost 10 years
    when he ran an economic consulting business.

    When she retired,
    She kept her love of reading
    Until just a few short years ago
    When she finally
    Was no longer able to read.

    That for me was one
    Of the saddest parts of her final years
    As she loved to read.

    What we all learned from Mary
    – Mary’s wisdom can be broken
    Down into four areas:

    Question authority,
    Think for ourselves
    read everything there is,
    And always do the right thing.

    She always told us that we should question authority
    and that we should never trust experts.
    she said often what is an expert?
    Just a guy with a PH. D
    And we all know what means –
    Piled high and deep.

    and she laughed
    As she was married to PH. D
    And hated campus politics.

    She hated with disdain
    Almost all politicians
    Except for Truman and Kennedy
    And she had her own Truman story

    She thought they were all crooks and liars,
    Especially the southern-bred types.

    She believed though in equal opportunity
    And hated republicans as much as democrats.
    No one ever measured
    Up to her lofty standards
    Of ethical behavior.

    She often told us to do
    The right thing.
    But she refused to tell us
    what would be
    As we had to figure
    That out on our own.

    My concluding thoughts
    Are on reading the lifelong
    Love of books

    That she gave me and my siblings.
    She read an average of three to five books
    Per week every week of her life.

    We were always trading books
    Stocking up books on our visits
    To the family library
    As I thought of it.

    I have taken a part in the library
    With me and will treasure all the books
    That she shared with me and my siblings.

    she always had an opinion
    About everything.

    One of her and my favorite books
    Was the world according to Garp
    And there was a “world according to Mary”

    Where what you saw was what you got
    And if you did not like her opinion,
    then you had best get out of the way

    Because Mary,
    Was afraid of no one
    And always stood her ground no matter what.
    With Mary “what you saw was what you got.”

    But I am happy that she
    Let me in the “world according to Mary”

    And I have lots of stories
    from her life that would make great fiction,
    For, in Mary’s improbable life,
    Life was truly stranger than fiction.

    Because my mother grew up in a Christian family,
    It would be appropriate to read a bible quote.
    my mother was raised as a Baptist

    Although she left the church
    After asking the minister,
    “if god created the world,
    Who created God?”

    Here is one of her favorite bible quotes

    Ecclesiastes 12 (King James version)
    Ecclesiastes 12
    1remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.
    2while the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:
    3in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,
    4and the doors shall be shut in the streets when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low.
    5also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goth to his long home and the mourners go about the streets:
    7then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto a God who gave it.
    8vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.
    9and moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.
    10the preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.
    11the words of the wise are as gods, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.
    12and further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
    13let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
    14for God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

    Her minister friend said the short version is

    ” life is good.
    Then we die
    And it gets even better.”

    When Mary was a telephone union president,
    word came down
    that she was invited
    to meet Harry Truman.

    She replied
    I don’t want to meet
    Harry unless he wants to meet me.

    Hearing that quip,
    Harry was amused
    And sent his advance team to talk

    Some sense into that feisty fiery woman
    Out in SF
    that Mary Aller.

    Two government types,
    dressed as I do,
    showed up

    Asked her if she was a communist
    She responded
    Boy, are you stupid?

    If I were a communist, would I tell you?
    I don’t think so.
    Where do they get people?
    Like you anyway?

    The SF chronicle captured the moment
    With a huge headline,
    “Harry meets Mary.”

    This sums up my mother’s fearless feisty
    Stubborn personality and yes,
    Truman was one of the few politicians
    That got the Mary aller seal of approval

    Now my final Mary story
    Sums up her life for me.
    In 1974 I was in this play,

    “the madwomen of Chailoit”
    Where I played the waiter
    Whose line was
    “she’s not mad.
    She’s the madwomen of Chaillot.”

    But Mary was in the audience
    And I lost my character
    for a moment and said,
    “she not’s mad,

    She’s the madwoman of Berkeley, oops I meant Chaillot.”

    Brought down the house.
    I went home thinking I had done it,
    insulted my mom in front of the whole school.

    She laughed
    And said that was okay

    as she liked the phase.
    I said

    “well, Mary,
    You are my madwoman of Berkeley
    And I’ll have it no other way.

    she laughed
    And that was the end of it,
    until now.

    When I say,

    “Mary, you were one of the most
    original people
    Whoever lived,
    And I treasure the fact
    that I was your son.

    You were at times
    Very difficult to deal
    With but in the end,

    Your good karma
    Will outlive you
    As you always did the right thing,

    and for that
    And all the other words
    Of wisdom, I learned over the years,

    I salute you,
    Our beloved madwomen of Berkeley.

    the prompt was to write an elegy poem.  I delivered this at my mother’s funeral in 2005.

    Curtis Cosmos Aller

    BIRTH 16 Nov 1889
    DEATH 12 Aug 1956 (aged 66)
    BURIAL Terrace Heights Memorial Park

    Yakima, Yakima County, Washington, USA

     

    Dr. Curtis Cosmos Aller Jr.

    BIRTH 22 Sep 1918
    DEATH 1 May 1985 (aged 66)
    BURIAL Terrace Heights Memorial Park

    Yakima, Yakima County, Washington, USA

     

    The Life Summary of Curtis Cosmos Aller

    When Curtis Cosmos Aller was born on 16 November 1889, in Carrollton, Carroll, Ohio, the United States, his father, Daniel Wilbur Aller, was 24 and his mother, Drusilla McCausland, was 22. He married Inga Pauline Olsen on 30 September 1917, in Bremerton, Kitsap, Washington, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Summit view, Yakima, Washington, the United States in 1930 and Election Precinct 108 West Summit view, Yakima, Washington, the United States in 1940. He died on 12 August 1956, in Yakima, Yakima, Washington, United States, at the age of 66, and was buried in Terrace Heights Memorial Park, Yakima, Yakima, Washington, United States.

    Parents and Siblings

    Daniel Wilbur Aller

    Male1865–1925 • Male

    Drusilla McCausland

    Female1867–1944 • Female

    Siblings

    (5)

    Curtis Cosmos Aller

    Male1889–1956 • Male

    Ira Erasmus Aller

    Male1891–1939 • Male

    Lora Aller

    Female1893–1969 • Female

    Walter Lorin Aller

    Male1899–1982 • Male

    Chester Aller

    Male1913–1993 • Male

    Spouse and Children

    Curtis Cosmos Aller

    Male1889–1956 • Male

    Inga Pauline Olsen

    Female1894–1967 • Female

    Marriage

    30 September 1917
    Bremerton, Kitsap, Washington, United States

    Children

    (5)

    Curtis Cosmos Aller

    Male1918–1985 • Male

    James Curwood Aller

    Male1921–2007 • Male

    Jean Celeste Aller

    Female1925–1988 • Female

    Harriett Ann Aller

    Female1931–2009 • Female

    Wilma Fay Aller

    Female1931–2021 • Female

    Name Meaning

    Aller

    Curtis

    German: variant of Ahler.  Other variants include Eller, Oller, Allard and Ehler.

    Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

    Possible Related Names

    “variant-name-Ahler, Eller, Ohler, Oller

    There is an Aller river in Germany, and in Spain and there is an Aller village in Sussex country, England.

    Aller History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

    • Origins Available:
    • Germany Germany

    The name Aller comes from the German region of Westphalia. The tradition of adopting hereditary surnames came to Germany after the 12th century, and the names of places where people lived were a primary source. Many local names carry the prefix “von”, meaning “of” or “from,” which was originally an indicator of land ownership, and is sometimes a mark of nobility. The Aller family originally lived by an alder tree. Ancient records reveal the name Aller is derived from the Old German word elre or alre, which means alder. There are also numerous places named Eller in the northern German states, such as the Rhine and Moselle areas, which adopted the name of an old stream called the Ellera. Thus, the name Aller is both a topographic surname, a type of local surname that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree, and a habitation name, a type of local name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

    Early Origins of the Aller family

    The surname Aller was first found in Westphalia, where the family emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families of the region. From the 13th century the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation.

    Early History of the Aller family

    This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aller research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1354, 1424, 1680, 1690 and 1730 are included under the topic Early Aller History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

    Aller Spelling Variations

    In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Aller include Eller, Ellers, Eler, Aller, Aler, Ellern, Ellere, Elera, Ellera, Ellerer and many more.

    Early Notables of the Aller family (pre 1700)

    Notables of the period with the name Aller were Wolf Ernst von Eller (d. 1680), who was the Governor of Minden and Sparenberg, a military general, and Privy Councillor for defense to the prince…
    Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aller Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

    United States Aller migration to the United States+

    For many Germans, emigration to North America was an inviting alternative to the trials of life in the old country. From the mid-17th into the present century, thousands of Germans migrated across the Atlantic. They capitalized on the chance to escape poverty and persecution, and to own their own land. After 1650, Germans settled throughout the states of Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California. Many also landed in Canada, settling in Ontario or father west on the rich land of the prairies. Among them:

    Aller Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
    • Peter Aller, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1749 [1]
    • Michael Aller, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 [1]

    Contemporary Notables of the name Aller (post 1700)+

    • Javier Aller Cervera (1972-2018), Spanish film and television actor from Madrid
    • Rodney Goddard Aller (1916-2005), American lawyer, naval officer and masters skier
    • Lawrence Hugh Aller (1913-2003), American astronomer from Tacoma, Washington
    • Victor Aller (1905-1977), American pianist
    • Eleanor Aller (1917-1995), American cellist and founding member of the Hollywood String Quartet

    Related Stories+

    The Aller Motto+

    Aller History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

    • Origins Available:
    • Germany Germany

    The name Aller comes from the German region of Westphalia. The tradition of adopting hereditary surnames came to Germany after the 12th century, and the names of places where people lived were a primary source. Many local names carry the prefix “von”, meaning “of” or “from,” which was originally an indicator of land ownership, and is sometimes a mark of nobility. The Aller family originally lived by an alder tree. Ancient records reveal the name Aller is derived from the Old German word elre or alre, which means alder. There are also numerous places named Eller in the northern German states, such as the Rhine and Moselle areas, which adopted the name of an old stream called the Ellera. Thus, the name Aller is both a topographic surname, a type of local surname that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree, and a habitation name, a type of local name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

    Early Origins of the Aller family

    The surname Aller was first found in Westphalia, where the family emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families of the region. From the 13th century the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation.

    Early History of the Aller family

    This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aller research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1354, 1424, 1680, 1690 and 1730 are included under the topic Early Aller History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

    Aller Spelling Variations

    In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Aller include Eller, Ellers, Eler, Aller, Aler, Ellern, Ellere, Elera, Ellera, Ellerer and many more.

    Early Notables of the Aller family (pre 1700)

    Notables of the period with the name Aller were Wolf Ernst von Eller (d. 1680), who was the Governor of Minden and Sparenberg, a military general, and Privy Councillor for defense to the prince…
    Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aller Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

    United States Aller migration to the United States+

    For many Germans, emigration to North America was an inviting alternative to the trials of life in the old country. From the mid-17th into the present century, thousands of Germans migrated across the Atlantic. They capitalized on the chance to escape poverty and persecution, and to own their own land. After 1650, Germans settled throughout the states of Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California. Many also landed in Canada, settling in Ontario or father west on the rich land of the prairies. Among them:

    Aller Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
    • Peter Aller, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1749 [1]
    • Michael Aller, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 [1]

    Contemporary Notables of the name Aller (post 1700)+

    • Javier Aller Cervera (1972-2018), Spanish film and television actor from Madrid
    • Rodney Goddard Aller (1916-2005), American lawyer, naval officer and masters skier
    • Lawrence Hugh Aller (1913-2003), American astronomer from Tacoma, Washington
    • Victor Aller (1905-1977), American pianist
    • Eleanor Aller (1917-1995), American cellist and founding member of the Hollywood String Quartet
    • Curtis Cosmos Aller, Jr.  Undersecretary of Labor 1963-1968.President of teh  Rhodes Scholar, Harvard PHD President of the Berkeley Co-Op
    • James Elwood Aller Admiral retred  Navy Academy graduate University of Virginia Professor of Applied  Mathematics,  coiner of the term ‘Computer bug”.
    • John (Jake) Cosmos Aller US diplomat 1981 to 2016 retired.
    • The Aller Motto+
    The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

    Motto: Gloria virtutis umbra
    Motto Translation: Glory is the shadow of virtue.

    The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

    Motto: Gloria virtutis umbra
    Motto Translation: Glory is the shadow of virtue.

    Aldrige (mother’s maiden name)

    Early Origins of the Aldridge family The surname Aldridge was first found in the counties of Sussex , Suffolk, and Surrey, where the Aldridge family held a family seat from very early times. The family had the Saxon spellings of Alderich, Ealdric, or possibly Aelfric before the Norman Conquest)

    Mary Geneva Aldrige Aller

    Mary Geneva Aldridge Aller Sept. 9, 1923 – July 31, 2007, Former Resident of Berkeley Mary was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, and came to the Bay Area in the 1940s and settled in Berkeley where she resided until 2003.

    During the 1950s, she was active in the labor movement and served several years as the President of the Pacific Telephone Operators Union. During the late 1950s, she was a real estate agent and involved with the Berkeley League of Women’s Voters, and the “Save the Bay” movement.

    In 1952, she made local headlines when she told President Truman’s staff that she did not want to meet him unless he wanted to meet her. The San Francisco Chronicle authored a big article with the Headline “Harry Meets Mary.” She was a long-term political activist and active member of the Berkeley Co-Op along with her husband, Dr. Curtis Aller, who passed away in 1985.

    During the 1960s, she accompanied her husband to Washington, D.C. when he served as the Undersecretary of Labor. She returned to Berkeley in 1968 where she worked with her husband until 1984 as the business manager for the Center for Applied Manpower Research. Mary is survived by two sisters, Mildred and Robbie who live in Arkansas. She is also survived by six children, Roger Aller of Sebastopol, California, John (Jake) Aller of Washington, DC, Thomas Aller of Albany, California, Inga Aller of Gualala, California, Richard, and Larry Wilson from her first marriage, and many grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. The family will have a private ceremony Friday, August 3 for interment. Flowers can be sent to the Sunset View Funeral Home, 101 Colusa Avenue, in El Cerrito (510) 525-5111.

    Published by Contra Costa Times on Aug. 3, 2007.

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Reflections on the 400th Thanksgiving

    Happy Thanksgiving MP3 Audio

    Updated with new poems

    Fake Food Poems

    cheating death other stories

    Cheating Death Updates

    cheating Death twenty Times

    Joy Links Forever Just Published Dream Girl and Cheating Death Twenty Times

    Today, in honor of the 400th celebration of Thanksgiving, I thought it would be good to pull together my Thanksgiving poems written over the years. I have no doubt others buried in my computer’s hard drive, and if I ever get my act together to find them, I will update this in due course.

    Thanksgiving and Christmas were my favorite holidays as a child.  I grew up eating Southern Style cooking, as my Mom was from Arkansas and my Dad from Yakima, Washington, and she did most of the cooking and was a creative cook.

    She did thanksgiving/Christmas full southern style – featuring a full roast turkey (fried turkey was not common when she grew up although now in the south fried turkey is as common as roasted turkey).

    Here’s the recipe

    Roasted turkey
    Stuffing in the bird bread, onion, ham bits, bacon bits, herbal mix)
    Gravy
    Sweet potato pie with marshmallows
    Cranberry sauce
    Mashed potatoes
    Corn Bread
    Salad
    Green beans
    Southern-style greens –
    turnip, collard, kale, spinach
    with bacon, ham, onions and, molasses
    Rice
    Wild rice
    Roasted potato au gratin
    Pumpkin pie with whipped cream
    Vanilla ice cream to finish the meal

    And leftover turkey sandwiches for a week.

    I found three articles that are apt.   See below for links to the full article. The first is an article about what the first Thanksgiving meal consisted of, and the second is an article on how Thanksgiving was a controversial holiday in the south until the late 19th century, as it was seen as a Yankee puritan tradition and competed with Christmas, and the third is a history of the holiday. It only became a holiday in the civil war, and only became what we think of it in the late 19th century.

    Many families mine included did the same menu on both Thanksgiving and Christmas although some families did something a bit different for Christmas, substituting ham, duck, goose, Cornish game hens, or a pot roast for the turkey for example.

    And there were ethnic variations of course.  And Jewish people usually went out for a Chinese meal on Christmas, as did the Chinese as well. In Berkeley, my Jewish and Chinese friends celebrated Thanksgiving with the full bird treatment, but went out on CHriatmas day for Chinese food.

    Poems

    Thanksgiving Gratitude

    Thanksgiving Memories
    Ode to Thanksgiving Meals Past and Present
    Best/Worst Thanksgiving Ever Thanksgiving
    Thanksgiving Day
    Best/Worst Thanksgiving Ever Thanksgiving
    Thankful for my Angel On Thanksgiving Day
    Thanksgiving COVID Senryu
    Turkey Senryu
    Turkey Revolt
    Death to All Humans, the Mad Turkey Screams

    Three Thanksgiving articles -excerpts
    What was on the first Thanksgiving menu? Smithsonian
    When Thanksgiving was fighting words LA Times
    Invention of Thanksgiving – New Yorker and other articles

    Thanksgiving Poems

    Thanksgiving Memories

    On thanksgiving day
    We are grateful
    For the little things
    In life

    For the memories
    for the food
    that we will enjoy
    on this day of giving thanks

    Writing com Prompt: National Gratitude Month encourages us to embrace the power of gratitude
    In an 8-line poem, write about just one non-human thing you are truly grateful for.

    Ode to Thanksgiving Meals Past and Present

    Growing up
    My favorite holidays
    Were Thanksgiving
    And Christmas

    We did a traditional Thanksgiving
    And Christmas dinner as well
    Southern American style

    As my Mom was from Arkansas
    My Dad was from Yakima
    And we lived in Berkeley, California

    Featuring of course the full bird

    Roasted turkey
    Stuffing in the bird
    consisting of bread, onion, carrots, ham bits,
    walnuts,bacon bits, and herbal sage mixture
    That came with the stuffing mix
    Gravy
    Sweet potato pie with marshmallows
    Cranberry sauce
    Mashed potatoes
    Corn Bread
    Salad
    Green beans
    Southern-style greens –
    turnip, collard, kale, spinach
    with bacon, ham, onions and, molasses
    Rice
    Wild rice
    Roasted potato au gratin
    Pumpkin pie with whipped cream
    Vanilla ice cream to finish the meal
    And leftover turkey sandwiches
    For a week

    Nowadays
    Whenever I am
    In the world

    I try to have a traditional
    Thanksgiving dinner
    but it is hard
    doing so overseas
    where turkey
    is just not that common
    a food item

    and Thanksgiving is such
    an American (and Candadian) tradition
    not celebrated anywhere else

    over the years
    I have had steak
    Ham, Mexican food
    Indian food
    on Thanksgiving Day

    Even sushi on thanksgiving
    In Okinawa

    And once
    I had Tofu Turkey

    Even though
    I am from California
    That was a step too far
    Just not for me.

    But in the end
    Nothing is more satisfactory
    Than eating turkey
    On Thanksgiving night

    I have added drinking
    A bit of bourbon
    On Thanksgiving day
    To my routine

    On this Thanksgiving day
    In Korea

    We did a roasted turkey breast
    Cranberry sauce
    Mashed potatoes
    Asparagus
    Cheesecake

    Bourbon
    And wine

    The turkey, cranberry sauces, bourbon, and wine
    came from the Army Commissary
    The other ingredients from COSTCO

    It was just divine
    As always

    And in the end
    It all comes together
    As I eat my Thanksgiving dinner
    No matter where I am

    As long as I am eating
    Thanksgiving dinner
    With my wife

    It does not matter
    too much
    What we are eating

    Forever thankful
    She is there
    To share my life
    On this special day.

    This week’s prompt is Holiday Meals.  While most people, here in the U.S.  have the typical Thanksgiving turkey dinner with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce, not everyone follows the crowd. Think back to holiday meals you participated in when you were younger. Feel free to write about Thanksgiving or any other holiday meal you choose. Please share any items of food that you or others might feel are out of the ordinary. Do you have memories of any special or surprise guests that came to any of your holiday meals? Did you ever have a catastrophic holiday meal?  Do you still carry on the same holiday meal traditions you had as a kid, or have you changed things up? Are you now typically the host or hostess for meals (sans Covid) or do you usually participate as a guest? Does your family like to go out for holiday meals, or do you prefer to stay at home? Is your table setting different for holiday meals? Do you decorate the whole house as part of your mealtime mood? Please share some memories of your special holiday meals.

    Thanksgiving Day

    On Thanksgiving Day
    We are grateful
    For the little things
    In life

    For the memories
    for the food
    that we will enjoy
    on this day of giving thanks

    For the day of Thanksgiving here in the USA, we are featuring the theme of gratitude, in any form or style that you prefer. Several examples can be found for inspiration in the following links:

    https://www.readpoetry.com/8-poems-for-gratitude/

    https://interestingliterature.com/2021/09/best-poems-about-gratitude-and-appreci…

    https://gratefulness.org/resource-category/poetry/

    “Blessings”

    Best/Worst Thanksgiving Ever Thanksgiving

    It was a thanksgiving to remember
    One of the best
    And one of the worst as well

    It started with burned dinner rolls
    Then power outage stopped the turkey
    Finishing roasting in the oven

    They pulled out the mostly cooked bird
    Declaring it was time
    To eat

    And sat down
    Having a traditional southern style
    Thanksgiving dinner

    Featuring of course the full bird

    Roasted turkey
    Stuffing in the bird of course
    Gravy
    Sweat potato pie with marshmallows,
    Cranberry sauce
    Mashed potatoes
    Corn Bread
    Salad
    Green beans

    And left-over turkey sandwiches
    For a week

    Uncle Bob lost a tooth
    The doorbell rang,
    The dog dashed
    out the door
    Chasing the mailman
    Down the road

    Mom brought out
    Desert
    pumpkin pie with hipped cream

    Writing com prompt was to use the following words in a Thanksgiving poem

    Burned dinner rolls
    Power outage
    Uncle Bob Lost a tooth
    Dog dashed out the Door
    pumpkin pie with Hipped cream

    Happy Thanksgiving Thanksgiving

    Happy Thanksgiving
    Devotion
    Thanksgiving
    Big
    Hiking
    Yipee

    Every day the fridge magnet site publishes a lits of words that you can use to make a refrigerator magnet poem from. Today’s Fridge prompt words were:

    unlike
    bag
    pact
    yippee
    addicted
    considering
    vertigo
    tampon
    employ
    NBC
    sleet
    decoy
    hers
    hearing
    hey
    denominational
    cunning
    big
    steaming
    sock
    democracy
    swear
    significantly
    what’s open on thanksgiving
    ecological
    fetid
    India vs New Zealand
    backstroke
    timid
    Spartan
    silt
    faint
    votive
    abroad
    gringo
    he
    nan
    thank
    happy thanksgiving
    devotion
    cheque
    hiking
    thanksgiving
    improve
    retracted

    Thankful for My Angel on Thanksgiving Day

    On Thanksgiving Day
    I woke up
    and saw my wife
    Sleeping peacefully

    I look at her
    In the dawning light
    Filling my soul
    With her love

    I drink my coffee
    Contemplating my life
    Ever thankful
    Especially on Thanksgiving day

    For the angel
    That came to me

    Out of my dreams
    Walking into my life
    Taking charge of me

    39 years ago
    I met my fate
    On that date.

    Thanksgiving Senryu

    This Thanksgiving
    Celebration of life
    COVID is Ending

     

    Turkey Revolt

    On Thanksgiving Day
    The feast started late
    The turkey was having a problem
    He refused to go quietly
    Into the oven

    The turkey stood up
    Screaming
    What is wrong with you people?
    You are going to burn me alive?

    What have I done to you?
    Why can’t you just pardon me
    Like the President did

    I mean, I am cuter than
    Peter Butter
    And Jelly anyway

    The turkey grabbed a knife
    And killed the guests

    Running out into the dark
    Joining all the other
    Suddenly “woke” turkeys

    All screaming
    “I am mad as hell
    and not going to take it anymore
    Death to all humans.”

    That was the day
    That went down in history
    As the Thanksgiving
    Turkey revolt.

    writing com prompt: the feast was late because the big bird

    Death to All Humans Turkey Screams

    The big feast was ready
    and the family
    made its way

    to the dinner table
    when suddenly,

    the turkey woke up,
    jumping off the table

    he picks up a knife
    and attacks
    and kills the family

    Screaming
    “Death to all humans”

    Ending the Thanksgiving Day
    feast for the family.

    writing com prompt The big feast was ready and the family
    made its way to the dinner table when suddenly,

    What am I grateful for?  Thanksgiving Day Poem

    On this Thanksgiving Day
    I am thankful
    For the fact
    That I have survived
    My 66 birthday

    My father and grandfather
    Both died at age 65
    And I felt a curse
    Had been lifted
    As I lived beyond
    That date

    No cancer
    No Alzheimers yet
    And no COVID

    Cheated death
    In my life
    22 times

    And most important
    I am still madly in love
    With the love of my life

    Whom I met
    In a dream
    47 years ago

    39 years ago
    She walked into my life
    Becoming my wife

    And this fairy tale romance
    Has continued to this date
    And for that I am thankful.

    Thanksgiving Day Feelings

    On this Thanksgiving Day day
    We have a lot
    To be thankful for

    A lot to be grateful for
    Most importantly
    We have survived

    Old Corona has not
    Taken us away
    We are alive

    Love and life
    Continues

    As we gather around
    The dinner table

    Thinking of the past
    Enjoying the moment
    With thanks in our hearts

    We say
    Happy Thanksgiving Day

    Happy Thanksgiving Day F’ing

    Happy Thanksgiving Day
    Considering her
    hey a cunning
    big steaming gringo
    f… her
    on Thanksgiving Day

    unlike
    bag
    pact
    yippee
    addicted
    considering
    vertigo
    tampon
    employ
    NBC
    sleet
    decoy
    hers
    hearing
    hey
    denominational
    cunning
    big
    steaming
    sock
    democracy
    swear
    significantly
    what’s open on Thanksgiving Day
    ecological
    fetid
    India vs New Zealand
    backstroke
    timid
    spartan
    silt
    faint
    votive
    abroad
    gringo
    he
    nan
    thank
    happy Thanksgiving Day
    devotion
    cheque
    hiking
    Thanksgiving Day
    improve
    retracted

    For the 2021 November PAD Chapbook Challenge, poets are tasked with authoring a poem a day in November before assembling a chapbook manuscript in December. Today’s prompt is to write a remix poem.

    ROBERT LEE BREWER

    For today’s prompt, write a remix poem. For this poem, take one of your poems (or several of your poems) and make a remixed version that is a completely new poem. This could involve lengthening a short poem or condensing a longer poem.

    Remember: These prompts are springboards to creativity. Use them to expand your possibilities, not limit them.

    Thanksgiving JiYu Shi Poem

    Thanksgiving day
    A time for reflection
    A time to feast
    With friends and family
    Nowadays in person and zoom
    Hard to eat a turkey
    On zoom

    What am I grateful for?  Thanksgiving Day Poem

    On this Thanksgiving Day
    I am thankful
    For the fact
    That I have survived
    My 66 birthday

    My father and grandfather
    Both died at age 65
    And I felt a curse
    Had been lifted

    As I lived beyond
    That date

    No cancer
    No Alzheimers yet
    And no COVID

    Cheated death
    In my life
    22 times

    And most importantly
    I am still madly in love
    With the love of my life

    Whom I met
    In a dream
    39 years later

    She walked into my life
    Becoming my wife

    And this fairy tale romance
    Has continued to this date
    And for that I am thankful.

    What was on the Menu for the First Thanksgiving?

    “The history of the holiday meal tells us that turkey was always the centerpiece, but other courses have since disappeared What Was on the Menu at the First Thanksgiving?

    Megan Gambino” title=”What Was on the First Thanksgiving Menu”>

    Senior Editor

    November 21, 2011

    Traditional Thanksgiving dinner includes turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes but the First Thanksgiving likely included wildfowl, corn, porridge and venison. Bettmann / Corbis

    Today, the traditional Thanksgiving dinner includes any number of dishes: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, candied yams, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. But if one were to create a historically accurate feast, consisting of only those foods that historians are certain were served at the so-called “first Thanksgiving,” there would be slimmer pickings. “Wildfowl was there. Corn, in grain form for bread or for porridge, was there. Venison was there,” says Kathleen Wall. “These are absolutes.”

    https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-thanksgiving-south-history-20171223-story.html#:~:text=In%20America%2C%20there%20was%20a%20time%20when%20even,War%2C%20circa%201864.%20%28Kean%20Collection%20%2F%20Getty%20Images%29
    In America, there was a time when even ‘Thanksgiving’ was a fightin’ word

    An engraving shows Union troops receiving Thanksgiving rations during the Civil War, circa 1864.

    (Kean Collection / Getty Images)

    BY JENNY JARVIE

    NOV. 23, 2017 3 AM PT

    Reporting from Atlanta —

    “When Americans across North and South gather for Thanksgiving around tables laden with turkey and cranberries, perhaps the biggest regional disagreement centers on stuffing versus dressing.

    It was not always so. In the runup to the Civil War, there was strong resistance in the South toward Thanksgiving itself.

    “With the whole prospect of a showdown over the expansion of slavery, there was more and more rhetoric coming out of the South charging that Thanksgiving was pretty much a Yankee abolitionist holiday,” said James C. Cobb, professor emeritus of history at the University of Georgia.

    While governors from Arkansas to Mississippi gradually embraced the idea of Thanksgiving in the 1840s, issuing Thanksgiving proclamations for their states, the idea of celebrating a traditional Puritan northern holiday became more contentious in the 1850s with the heightening temperature of the national slavery debate.

    “Thanksgiving was, above all, a New England holiday, and New England was abolitionist territory,” as Diana Karter Appelbaum put it in her book “Thanksgiving: An American Holiday, an American History.”

    For more see

    https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-thanksgiving-south-history-20171223-story.html#:~:text=In%20America%2C%20there%20was%20a%20time%20when%20even,War%2C%20circa%201864.%20%28Kean%20Collection%20%2F%20Getty%20Images%29

    The Invention of Thanksgiving

    Massacres, myths, and the making of the great November holiday.

    By Philip Deloria

    November 18, 2019

    “Autumn is the season for Native America. There are the cool nights and warm days of Indian summer and the genial query “What’s Indian about this weather?” More wearisome is the annual fight over the legacy of Christopher Columbus—a bold explorer dear to Italian-American communities, but someone who brought to this continent forms of slavery that would devastate indigenous populations for centuries. Football season is in full swing, and the team in the nation’s capital revels each week in a racist performance passed off as “just good fun.” As baseball season closes, one prays that Atlanta (or even semi-evolved Cleveland) will not advance to the World Series. Next up is Halloween, typically featuring “Native American Brave” and “Sexy Indian Princess” costumes. November brings Native American Heritage Month and tracks a smooth countdown to Thanksgiving. In the elementary-school curriculum, the holiday traditionally meant a pageant, with students in construction-paper headdresses and Pilgrim hats reënacting the original celebration. If today’s teachers aim for less pageantry and a slightly more complicated history, many students still complete an American education unsure about the place of Native people in the nation’s past—or in its present. Cap the season off with Thanksgiving, a turkey dinner, and a fable of interracial harmony. Is it any wonder that by the time the holiday arrives a lot of American Indian people are thankful that autumn is nearly over?

    Americans have been celebrating Thanksgiving for nearly four centuries, commemorating that solemn dinner in November 1621. We know the story well or think we do. Adorned in funny hats, large belt buckles, and clunky black shoes, the Pilgrims of Plymouth gave thanks to God for his blessings, demonstrated by the survival of their fragile settlement. The local Indians, supporting characters who generously pulled the Pilgrims through the first winter and taught them how to plant corn, joined the feast with gifts of venison. A good time was had by all before things quietly took their natural course: the American colonies expanded, the Indians gave up their lands and faded from history, and the germ of collective governance found in the Mayflower Compact blossomed into American democracy.

    Almost none of this is true, as David Silverman points out in “This Land Is Their Land: The Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled History of Thanksgiving” (Bloomsbury).”

    For more see

    https://search.yahoo.com/search?p=The+Invention+of+Thanksgiving

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    The Great Poetry E-Book Free-For-All

    Updated with complete list.  Due to time differences you may miss the deadline. if so, please contact the authors directly to see if they will be willing to send you a copy.  And please feel free to message me on FB or at my email authorjakecosmosaller@gmail and I will send you a copy of my chapbook (printed below as well) to whatever email address you provide.

    thanks.  This is the third time I have participated in this annual event.

    Book Free-For-All Submission

    Thanks for joining the 2021 Poetry Super Highway E-book Free-For-All!

    We’ve received your submission and as long as your e-book description is 50 words or less, we’ll add it to the list of e-books which will be available to download for 24 hours on December 1st! (If your description is longer than 50 words, look for a follow up email from us asking you to shorten it.)

    All submitted e-books will be freely available to download on December 1st for 24 hours, and when it’s all done, we’ll put up a page showing how many times each was downloaded.

    Here’s what you submitted:

    April 2021 Poetic Madness by Jake Aller

    Every April for the last few years, I have been competing in the annual April Poetry month competitions. This year I wrote 8 poems a day for a month. Here are the selected poems from that month of poetic madness.
    https://theworldaccordingtocosmos.com

    Thanks for joining in!

    Rick Lupert

    www.PoetrySuperHighway.com/psh
    www.haikuniverse.com

    F

    What?

    A crazy project in which your poetry e-books will be freely available to all interested humans on Earth for 24 hours.

    Throughout November we will collect e-books from poets and writers interested in participating.

    Then on December 1st, for 24 hours, a special website will go live with links to all of the e-books. For 24 hours anyone will be free to download, for free, as many of these e-books as they like…a poetry e-book free-for-all.

    How?

    To participate, read all of the guidelines below and then click on our Online Submission Form. That’s it. It’s simple. By doing so, your e-book will be included.

    The E-Book has to be written by you.

    E-books should be in PDF Format for universal compatibility with anyone’s computer.

    If you have an e-book in Microsoft Word or another format, please convert it to PDF. One way to do this (if you don’t know how) is to visit the website http://www.freepdfconvert.com/. From there you will be allowed to select the file on your computer which will be uploaded and emailed back to you in PDF format.

    When creating your e-book file, please keep it smaller than 1 megabyte.

    Once you’ve created your e-book (not before), click on our Online

    Submission Form to join in!

    Do not fill out the form and then e-mail us your e-book later. Please fill out the form and use it to upload your e-book to us.

    We are not accepting e-books or submissions by e-mail. The only way to join in is by clicking on the Online Submission Form below.

    On December 1 at Midnight (the evening of November 30), we will distribute a special e-mail letting people know the location of the web page with links to all of the e-book files. People will be free to download any or all of the titles and your poetry will be freely, electronically, traveling all over the world. This web page will go offline 24 hours later at Midnight on December 2nd.

    We will also list your e-book and description on this web page along with the link to your website for all to see.

    To submit your book, please go to our
    ONLINE SUBMISSION FORM

    E-Books In So Far:

    The Great Poetry E-Book Free-For-All

    The mission of the Poetry Super Highway is to expose as many people to as many other people’s poetry as possible.

    Download 75 Free E-Books Now!

    Thanks to everyone who donated e-books to this project. All of the books are now available for download by clicking on “Download Now” next to the author’s name below.

    Books will remain available until Midnight tonight (Tuesday evening December 1st Pacific).

    Check back here on December 2 to see how many of each were downloaded.

    E-Books:

    Agnostics Sing of Angels and Asks Why in Hell Not, the by Stephen Mead (Download this E-Book)
    Poems dating back to the 1990s & onward, revised but only typed in the last year, these words of spiritual seeking are rooted in the basic human need to find meaning to cope with and even celebrate existence.
    https://postcardsfromthedeepstephenmeadart.weebly.com/

    Always One More Verse of the Motherfucker Blues Left to Sing by John Sweet (Download this E-Book)
    A selection of recent, unpublished work
    https://bleedinghorse.blogspot.com/

    April 2021 Poetic Madness by Jake Aller (Download this E-Book)
    Every April for the last few years, I have been competing in the annual April Poetry month competitions. This year I wrote 8 poems a day for a month. Here are the selected poems from that month of poetic madness.
    https://theworldaccordingtocosmos.com

    Artists, Unknown by LB Sedlacek (Download this E-Book)
    Art doesn’t hum, notes found in notebooks or dropped in a parking lot make for good poems, howling dogs, tattoos, pineapples that look like grenades, kissing, and cartoons, cereal, spark plugs and action heroes — all things that make these poems a little bit different.
    http://www.lbsedlacek.com

    Ballad of Billy the Kid, the by Joe Blanda (Download this E-Book)
    A re-imagined account of the famous outlaw
    https://www.facebook.com/joe.blanda/

    Bavarian Home / Bayerisch Heimat by Duane L Herrmann (Download this E-Book)
    These poems by Duane L Herrmann reflect and share his experiences in his hometown of his great grandfather whose last name he shares. They are in both English and German and are forthcoming from the Origami Poems Project as TWO mirco chapbooks.

    Betelgeuse Dimming by Jean-Paul L. Garnier (Download this E-Book)
    A collection of speculative poetry. Nominated for the 2021 Elgin Award. Comes with free musical audiobook version download.
    https://spacecowboybooks.com/

    Bigfoot Parchments, the by Richard Rensberry (Download this E-Book)
    The Bigfoot Parchments are a poetic journey into the knowledge and secrets of how the Sasquatch read minds and warp time/space in order to appear and disappear at will. They also contain simple but profound truths that cannot be violated if one is to achieve the Sasquatch way to enlightenment.
    https://www.conversationswithsasquatch.com

    Blue Soul, A by Gabriella Garofalo (Download this E-Book)
    My irrepressible longing for reshaping in a new life the splinters of ice and life that wound me, so as to give them a fresh soul, is the drive enabling my words to be pervaded by that green fuse we might think of as the life and soul of poetry.

    Bokeh Focus: Poems by Raymond Luczak (Download this E-Book)
    With Bokeh Focus, Raymond Luczak trains his photographer’s eye as a gay man upon his subjects and examines the impact of imagery on one’s own identity.
    http://www.raymondluczak.com/

    Castles, wombs, armies, and pentecosts by R. Bremner (Download this E-Book)
    R. Bremner’s second book of poems, originally written in the late 1970s, updated with a few additions in the 1980s.

    Circling the Sun by Gaynor Kane (Download this E-Book)
    A micro-collection (from the Stickleback series, published by the Hedgehog Poetry Press) of poems about the early aviatrixes
    https://gaynorkane.com/

    Clean as a Broke Dick Dog by Alex Stolis (Download this E-Book)
    A story with a soundtrack, previously released by Red Ceilings Press

    Close Encounters Chapbook by Elizabeth Marchitti (Download this E-Book)
    A chapbook of my personal experiences, starting with meeting Santa on the elevator on my way to my cardioologist’s office.

    Concupiscent Consumption by LindaAnn LoSchiavo (Download this E-Book)
    Visit the love doctor: recall your first kiss, a sultry fling, that secret kink. “Concupiscent Consumption” is for anyone who’s ever been in love — or lost in lust. ― Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ―
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHm1NZIlTZybLTFA44wwdfg

    Dance is You, the by Shola Balogun (Download this E-Book)
    The Dance is You is a rich collection with the ordered flow of original verses and inventive colourful vibrations. This book of poems, presents dance as the autobiography of the soul, the expression of what we call life, and the encounter with the self.
    https://www.amazon.com/Shola-Balogun/e/B00LPRQU10?ref_=pe_1724030_132998060

    Dancing Under the Moon by Joan Leotta (Download this E-Book)
    Poems that show the joy of loving all things moon-related. Written about the rising moon and the early morning moon-set poems all on one page and then foldable into a mini book

    December 2014 by Jim Bennett (Download this E-Book)
    In December 2014 Jim Bennett wrote a poem every day. Many of these poems were later published but here these poems are brought together in the order they were written.
    https://poetrykit.org

    Discovery by Don Krieger (Download this E-Book)
    Discovery is a hybrid collection in three sections: America, Childhood’s End, To Save a Life. It’s an easy and interesting read — I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Thank you for reading it. The PDF is formatted for “Two Page View” in your PDF reader. All my best – Don
    http://DonsPoetryPage.com

    Distillations by Cheryl Snell (Download this E-Book)
    Prose poems by Cheryl Snell, offering a road map of the quotidian with the exits clearly marked.
    https://www.facebook.com/cheryl.snell/

    Duality Of Moonlight, The by Kirsten G. Munro (Download this E-Book)
    This wonderful poetry book is filled with different poems and situations exploring the darkness and light that humans have within them.

    Ducks by Don Kingfisher Campbell (Download this E-Book)
    Poems composed in the last baker’s dozen years about anything duckie. Titles include: American Juror Pool, 7 AM Relativity, CNN Universe, May the fourth be with you, Love Arboretum, Magical Legg, and The Big Pineapple!

    Fantastic Forms by Don Kingfisher Campbell (Download this E-Book)
    Poems composed in the last 24 years about things fantastic and forms. Titles include: How Did Heaven Begin, Just an Apple, Women in Starbucks, Facebook Newsfeed Sonnets, and A pair of lips for the apocalypse.
    http://dkc1031.blogspot.com

    Fib Sequence by Larissa Shmailo (Download this E-Book)
    Like the seeds on the head of a sunflower, the poems, translations, and story in Fib Sequence whorl according to a special pattern. Here you will find arachnids, jealous women, numbers, and half truths..
    https://larissashmailo.com

    Flatman: Poems of Protest in the Trump Era by Cheryl Caesar (Download this E-Book)
    This book chronicles the reign of a villain in villanelles — and other poetry forms.
    http://caesarc.msu.domains/

    Fragments: a Poetry Sampler by James Thomas Fletcher (Download this E-Book)
    A eclectic sampling: twenty-one poems selected from ten poetry collections.
    https://www.linktree.com/jamesthomasfletcher

    Heyday by Bruce McRae (Download this E-Book)
    A collection of recent poems.
    https://www.poetrysuperhighway.com/psh/brucemc

    History of Love, a by Dmitry Turovsky (Download this E-Book)
    Romantic love poetry.
    http://poets.us

    Horrific Punctuation by John Reinhart (Download this E-Book)
    Commas scratch poisoned marks in blood, Thor makes an enthusiastic appearance! shotguns make dark holes to mark the end…or maybe the beginning of something new. Zombies, harpies, Odin, yeti…they’re all here in this chapbook of monstrous punctuation-themed poems.
    http://home.hampshire.edu/~jcr00/reinhart.html

    I Am The Tang You Are The Handle by Jim Bennett (Download this E-Book)
    In this selection of poems Jim Bennett looks at relationships. From one end to the other.
    https://poetrykit.org

    Intricate Things in their Fringed Peripheries by Cheryl Snell (Download this E-Book)
    In Cheryl Snell’s new collection of lyrical free verse narratives, the poet meditates on moments of light and shadow, and how the world is made and unmade by the least of us Intricate Things in their Fringed Peripheries.
    https://www.facebook.com/cheryl.snell/

    Journey So Far, The by Rachel Berger (Download this E-Book)
    A selection of poems written from adolescence to adulthood. These poems are about my journey through traumatic experiences in my life. I seek to help and encourage others with my words to overcome their traumatic experiences and live a successful life.

    Last Time I Had To See You, the by Victoria Hunter (Download this E-Book)
    The Last Time I Had To See You is a chapbook of poems that first came as journal sketches of Victoria’s daydreams of splashes of blood, echoes of mind-gripping space, and dates with ghosts. The poems celebrate the authors’ ability to hook the reader with various creative writing techniques.
    https://amzn.to/3rAAR3B

    Leaving Home: Discoveries and Reflections of a Once-Sheltered Heart by Randal Burd (Download this E-Book)
    Leaving Home takes the reader on a life-changing journey. There will be tears, the sudden burst of laughter, and a warm smile that will linger on your face like the glow of a fading summer day as you discover the truth of what it means to love, lose, and live.
    http://theedgeofmemory.com

    Left of the Dial by Alex Stolis (Download this E-Book)
    A chapbook released by corrupt press, a series of poems written while listening to late night radio

    Library Poems by Don Kingfisher Campbell (Download this E-Book)
    Poems composed in and around libraries over the past 24 years. Put together to raise funds for the Sims Library of Poetry. If you wish, please make a donation to that fine place. Enjoy!
    http://dkc1031.blogspot.com

    Loss of Sense, the by Colin Dardis (Download this E-Book)
    THE LOSS OF SENSE is an experimental prose poem in twenty-four parts. Framed within the context of a twenty-four hour cycle, the poem breaks down typical sentence construction and use of language to mirror the seemingly non-linear thought processes of the depressed mind.
    http://www.colindardispoet.co.uk

    Love Objects by Don Kingfisher Campbell (Download this E-Book)
    Poems composed in the last lucky thirteen years about love and objects. Titles include: How Dark Is It, My Object Life, Thanks to Ten Circling Electrons, Powerlines above butterflies, and Thirteen Ways of Looking at Poppies.
    http://dkc1031.blogspot.com

    Loveless land-Happyn hell poems by Hanoch Guy (Download this E-Book)
    PLeasures and tortures of love are articulated in this chapbook. Lovers are doomed to go through yearning fulfillment and bitter disappointments.

    Making a Show of Myself 2020/21 by Jim Bennett (Download this E-Book)
    Each year Jim sellects a set of poems to be used at readings and 2020 was no different apart from the fact that everything was cancelled. So here is the show that never was and how, given the chance, Jim would have made a show of himself.
    https://poetrykit.org

    Metaphorical Moon, the by John Mannone (Download this E-Book)
    The Metaphorical Moon is a chapbook collection of moon-related poetry. The poems are arbitrarily divided into four (non-mutually exclusive) sections covering childhood, family, lovers, nature, environment, philosophy and spirituality. Some of the poems involve solar or lunar eclipses, in which the sun, moon and Earth are all involved.
    https://jcmannone.wordpress.com

    Morning by Morning by Joan Leotta (Download this E-Book)
    Poems of Dawn
    Six poems of dawn printable on a single page, foldable into a mini book
    Published by Origami poems
    Morning by Morning and Dancing Under the Moon, two free mini-chapbooks are at https://www.origamipoems.com/poets/257-joan-leotta

    Musings on a Native Life by Duane L Herrmann (Download this E-Book)
    In these poems the author explores the loss of his Native ancestry and heritage. An estimated forty percent of Americans, whose ancestors came to North America before the nineteenth century, have Native or African blood, or both. Maybe more thought will be given by more people to this possibility.
    https://dlherrmann.wixsite.com/home

    My Country – My People & Selected Poetry by Seshendra Sharma Sharma (Download this E-Book)
    Seshendra is colossus of modern Poetry. His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics. His Homepage : Seshendra:Visionary Poet of the Millennium presents essence / spirit of the millennium in powerful poetic style. Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern.
    http://seshendrasharma.weebly.com

    Naked Truth, the by JR Simons (Download this E-Book)
    This is J. R. Simons’ second chapbook of poetry, filled with poems that tell the naked truth about society and culture.
    https://bit.ly/3wKq3Aj

    Nasty Girls by Lynne Bronstein (Download this E-Book)
    A collection of poems about women who broke the rules, did what they wanted to do, slept with whom they wanted, and were sometimes really nasty.

    Natural Elements by Duane L Herrmann (Download this E-Book)
    Natural Elemenst is a collection of 27 poems celebrating the natural prairie world. Herrmann has lived on the American prairie for seven decades, distilled in these poems. His prairie roots go deeper and further than his life, the fifth generation of European descent and untold generations of Native peoples.
    https://dlherrmann.wixsite.com/home

    october love (smells sweet like rot) by julzzz hazard & al yen (Download this E-Book)
    The authors introduce a teaser of their upcoming chapbook “october love (smells sweet like rot).” The poems included are inspired by Halloween vibes and authors’ love for twisted gore-y metaphors. The complete chapbook is going to be tightly packed with thrill, naughtiness and our visual art as a creepy bonus.
    http://yourlocaldreamers.com/

    On the Run with Dick and Jane by Alex Stolis (Download this E-Book)
    A mini chapbook released by Yavanika Press, a series of poems that chronicles a road trip by Dick and Jane

    Once You Find The Right Dream by Kaye Abikhaled (Download this E-Book)
    Life becomes simpler once you find your personal direction. Then follow your dream.

    Permit Wonder by Jan Keough (Download this E-Book)
    PERMIT WONDER is a wondrous book of compassionate and honest poems that always ring true. In writing her own story, Jan Keough lets you recognize your own. Humans and animals alike are finely observed in this collection of poems.
    https://jankeough.com/

    Petals by I. B. Rad (Download this E-Book)
    Petals portrays the evolving relationship between the primary author and his late wife, Mari Lyn, from the beginning through “old” age and beyond. It’s not your typical tribute. But take a look and decide for yourself!

    Plains of Heaven, the by F. J. Bergmann (Download this E-Book)
    12 ekphrastic poems accompanied by full-color images of the paintings by Kelli Hoppmann that inspired them.
    https://fibitz.com/

    Plaster of Kalinka by Christian Garduno (Download this E-Book)
    “Plaster of Kalinka” is a collection of twenty poems published by Christian Garduno from May to November 2021.
    https://christiangarduno.gumroad.com/l/yqDOx

    Poetry Love Sex Music Booze & Death, 2018 by Bruce Taylor (Download this E-Book)
    About half my poems have historically found themselves in what might be considered more “traditional forms”: Sonnets, Villanelles, Sonnets. Sestinas. This collection brings together many of those poems in one volume. I know it is an aggressive title, one response I got when announced, was “Yeah, but what’s it about?”
    https://people.uwec.edu/taylorb/

    Rain Girl, The by Rose Mary Boehm (Download this E-Book)
    Vivid and lush, with a voice that you will not forget, THE RAIN GIRL is an absolute pleasure. What a delight to experience the world as Boehm does from “birch and ash on witches’ brooms” to the “Snow geese… in baobab trees”. Simply lovely. ‬
    https://www.rose-mary-boehm-poet.com/

    Random Thoughts Through Corona by Joolz Juliet (Download this E-Book)
    This E-book is about the random thoughts that occurred at the onset, during and after the initial shock of the corona virus pandemic. Thoughts ran rampant as many of us navigated the desolate world.
    https://joolzmjulietfreelancewriter.mystrikingly.com/

    Repulsion Thrust by Magdalena Ball (Download this E-Book)
    “This debut full-length poetry collection by Australian poet Magdalena Ball is full of poetic thrust, propelling the reader through thought-provoking and beautifully crafted considerations of love, illness, identity, genetics, the environment, planet – and more!” ~Sarah James
    http://www.magdalenaball.com

    Rumblings2021 by Rosalind Lee (Download this E-Book)
    A rather pessimistic look back and forwards, not sure if its worth reading at all, as I haven’t written much poetry for ages. I have been bullied by a group of money mad mind reading Nazi types. All screaming they are victims of the holocaust, and are affected! Enjoy!
    http://www.anglohenge.co.uk

    Sampler Sampler by Don Kingfisher Campbell (Download this E-Book)
    A sampling of chapbooked works over the past 24 years. Titles include: Campbell’s Travels, Owed to Aluminum, I’m in Love with This Building, Because I’m a Performer in the Theater of Life, A Gerund Life, Mouchette, Inside My Jambo Head, Granada Park Love, and Analogy Planets.
    http://dkc1031.blogspot.com

    Satan in Chicago by Eric Evans (Download this E-Book)
    Satan In Chicago from Eric Evans and features his take on far-flung topics like Fahrenheit 451, soldiers in the Terracotta Army, the lovemaking habits of acrobats, and the judgmental nature of crows. “Fans of poetry filled with heartbreak and humor,’ writes Broken Pencil magazine, “must check out Evans’ work.”
    https://inkpublications1.wixsite.com/mysite

    Selected Poems by Dave Lewis (Download this E-Book)
    A sample ‘Selected Poems’ from my first eight poetry collections.
    http://www.david-lewis.co.uk

    Shat In Space by Rick Lupert (Download this E-Book)
    New poems from Rick Lupert including selections from the forthcoming collection “Hawaiiku.”
    https://www.poetrysuperhighway.com/

    So Be It by Ralph Culver (Download this E-Book)
    A chapbook of thirteen poems by Ralph Culver that the late Marvin Bell called “brilliant from start to finish.” “So deft and moving are his poems that they will long abide as reminders of what it is to be human.” –Sydney Lea
    https://madhat-press.com/products/a-passable-man-by-ralph-culver

    Solitude Album by Mary Langer Thompson (Download this E-Book)
    Sixteen of Mary Langer Thompson’s recent poems focusing on loneliness or fear of being alone.

    Soul Songs by Duane L Herrmann (Download this E-Book)
    Nineteen poems inspired by the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh, Prophet-Founder of the Bahá’í Faith which has three foundational principles: one Creator, one creation (one human race), and one stream of Divine Revelation which has progressively guided mankind. We are in a time of transition and new divine guidance is needed.
    https://dlherrmann.wixsite.com/home

    Tale of Twin Cities by Alex Stolis (Download this E-Book)
    A collection of call and response poems about Minneapolis and St. Paul written by Michael Gausse and Alex Stolis. released by Fowlpox press

    There Will Be a Reckoning: Poetry of Magic and Dread by David Vandervort (Download this E-Book)
    Welcome to a world of ghosts and vampires, of serial apocalypses and terrifying visions. The world is cracked, burning, lost. Count on nothing, though. These poems come from a strange, fevered place, where humor masks tragedy and angels and demons keep score. The end is nigh. Trust me.

    This Will Remain With Us by Melissa Mendelson (Download this E-Book)
    As a frontline worker, I had no choice but to face this new threat, and as I did, my heart bled, sweeping across the pages of this book.

    Two Friends by Craig Kirchner (Download this E-Book)
    Some recent musings of friends coming and going.

    Two of Us, The by David Feela (Download this E-Book)
    The Two of Us is a short collection of chatter fiction, totally written as “quote, unquote” dialogue. Poetic…maybe, but It is intended to be funny, so occasionally you may involuntarily laugh, or at least smile.
    http://feelasophy.weebly.com

    Unreliable Narratives by Magdalena Ball (Download this E-Book)
    In Unreliable Narratives, Magdalena Ball invites us to open a Pandora’s box of memories. Like smoke rising from a candle and casting shadows and lights that shift and evade, the poems morph and twist with the dexterity of a master poet. They will draw you in.
    http://www.magdalenaball.com

    Vipercity by Vincent Zepp (Download this E-Book)
    A multiverse Tour de Force from Vincent Zepp.

    Wanderings: Selected Poems by D.L. Lang by D.L. Lang (Download this E-Book)
    A collection of poems by former Vallejo Poet Laureate D.L. Lang.
    http://www.dianalangpoetry.com

    Weightlifter by Michael Estabrook (Download this E-Book)
    One no-longer-young man’s dealings with the trials and tribulations of staying in shape by lifting weights, even though he’s aware that that particular ship has sailed.

     

    April Poetry Madness 2021 Poetry from the Mad Cosmos

    By

    Jake Cosmos Aller

    Available December 1, 2021. Watch for the link.

    This is the fifth time I did the April poetry challenge.  The goal is to write at least one poem per day.  I am averaging about eight per day and posting four reserving four as “unpublished”. I am basing the poems on prompts from “Writing com Dew Drop Inn”, “Writers Digest”, “Poetry Superhighway” and “NaPoWrMo” prompt daily prompts and on “Pensively Prompt’ et all daily prompts.  I am combining prompts where possible.   I will post these here in batches every five days or so. Each poem will have an image that helped inspire the poem.  All postings will be podcasted a few days later on Spotify and elsewhere.  Each posting will be a separate posting, but the index will be cumulative. The final posting will have the complete list of all poems written whether posted or not.   Comments welcome but please keep it civil. Some of my poetry tends to be a bit “in your face” or “political” from a “leftwing perspective.”  If it offends you in some way, please accept my apologies in advance.  That is never my intent.

    I wrote more than 200 poems and so this is a selected list.  The complete list can be found on my web page, https://theworldaccordingtocosmos along with 2020, 2019, 2018, and 2017 poems.  For 2022 I will enter it again and post daily on my blog, my podcast, writing com, all poetry, writer’s digest, and NaPoWrMo sites.

    Index

    Pre-April Writer’s Digest Warm-Up Poems

    Let’s Resolve

    Old Man Reflects Upon Universal Truth
    Almost Died 22 Times
    Every Day I Turn on My Computer

    Thursday, April 1, 2021

    Coffee Pot Blues Poetry
    Who Is Jake Cosmos Aller?
    Good Golly, Miss Molly
    Sam Adams Woke Up Dead

    Friday, April 2, 2021

    Stranded on Mars
    Falling in Love with My Dream Woman,
    Voila! (Remember Something in A Short Lyric Burst)
    The Future Is Here

     

    Saturday, April 3, 2021

    Life as a Retired Expat in Korea
    Modern Connections Writers Digest
    Surprise Haiku
    Personal Universe Deck Superman on Mars
    Cat People Weather Poem

    Sunday, April 4, 2021

    Mirror Poem Errors in My Life
    Little Houses on The Hill-Side

    Monday April 5, 2021

    The First Time I Saw Her
    Not Alone
    Potential Mistake

    We are Living in SF World
    Life is a Dream of Chocolate Covered Trees
    Memories of JC Write About an Eccentric Character
    Mary’s Tales from the Grave
    God’s to Do List
    Imprisoned for a Crime He Did Not Do
    They Both Giggled All the Time
    What is Love?
    Prime Love
    Three Tea Haiku for Teaku Competition Haiku
    Mad Monk in the temple
    In The Morning Light
    Drinking his hot tea

    link available on December 1, 2021

    The End

    Begin Poems

    Let’s Resolve

    Let’s resolve

    Live each moment
    Each day
    As if it were our last day

    Let’s resolve
    Every day to love
    And honor one another

    Let’s resolve
    To never give in
    To hate and fear

    To always keep in mind
    Today could be our last

    Old Man Reflects Upon Universal Truth

    An old man
    Reflects upon universal truths
    That he had learned

    In his 65 years
    Of traveling around the sun

    First the most important thing
    In life is getting love right
    Love did drive everything

    Second universal truth

    Love will always eventually
    Find a way

    Third universal truth

    Hate will never prevail
    In the end love and light
    Will conquer the fear
    And darkness

    He smiled
    And went for a walk
    With his wife
    The love of his life

    For today’s prompt, write a universal poem. The poem could be about a universal truth, universal experience, or a film from Universal Pictures. There’s an entire universe worth of material for today’s poem

    Writer’s digest prompt

    Almost Died 22 Times

    I almost died 22 times
    I almost died 22 times
    In my life

    Had Typhoid fever
    Had Dengue

    Had an MDRS staff infection
    Had 14 operations

    Almost amputated my leg
    Almost ran over by a bus
    Almost ran over by a train

    Had acute GI infection
    That could have killed me
    Had a rare parasite

    Whose only know the function
    Is it blows up if you get steroids?

    Had fibromyalgia
    Had arthritis
    Had bronchitis

    Had pneumonia
    Had the flue several times
    Had whooping cough

    Had measles
    Had German measles
    Had whooping cough

    Born with bad vision
    Born with bad teeth

    Born with bad hearing
    Born as a preemie

    I have lived 65 years
    And am still alive
    And have not gotten
    COVID

    So perhaps I will live
    On for many more years

    For today’s prompt, take the phrase “Almost (blank),” replace the blank with a new word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible titles could include: “Almost Ready,” “Almost Missed It,” and/or “Almost Didn’t Write This Poem.”

    Writer’s digest prompt

    Note:  based on a true story.  For details see “Cheating Death 22 Times” on my web page, https://theworldaccordingtocosmos.com

    Every Day I Turn on My Computer

    Every day I turn
    On my computerAnd pray
    That everything will work right

    Usually, I encounter numerous errors
    Non-response errors
    Spinning blue balls

    Computer thinking
    How can I mess
    With my master head errors

    Refusing
    To open documents
    Mysterious haiku-like error messages

    That makes sense only to computer geeks
    From the planet Mars

    Saying the file is open
    And blocked for use

    By the administrator
    But I am the

    Damn administrator!
    And I did not block the document

    Or can’t open the document
    Due to a dialogue box

    Close the dialogue box
    To proceed
    But there is no dialogue box

    Just more lies
    From my computer
    Designed to drive me

    Quite mad

    So sad
    So bad
    Want to shoot my computer

    Put it out of its mystery
    Joining the other five dead
    Computers in my house

    Am I a computer serial killer?
    Perhaps that is why
    Do they refuse to work for me?
    Are they afraid of me?

    Sometimes they say
    They can’t find the document
    Which just kicked me out of
    Five minutes ago

    Or the computer says
    It can’t save a document
    With the name of an open document
    But just saved the open document
    Under the same name

    Five minutes ago
    Usually
    After half an hour

    These errors recede
    But I often have to reboot
    The computer

    Giving it the old kick up the head
    Of a stubborn mule treatment
    Before it gets to the point

    And gets to work

    To give Microsoft some credit
    These errors are less frequent

    Down to 40% of the time
    When I first open a document
    Down from 90% error rates

    Success in a way
    I complained to Microsoft
    Sent them a nice frown message

    But I would be shocked
    If they ever respond
    Just not something
    That they would do

    Part of their “superior”
    Listen to their customer
    Friendly service
    No doubt

    For today’s prompt, write a warm-up poem. The warm-up could be related to sports, like warming up before a baseball game or track race. Or it could be about a computer warming up, the weather warming up, or even a relationship warming up. I hope everyone is warmed up for some major poeming in April

    Writer’s Digest Prompt

    Thursday, April 1, 2021

    Coffee Pot Blues

    Coffee Pot Blues
    The coffee pot sighed

    He was getting so tired
    Of the whole COVID thing

    Every morning his master
    Would make himself two cups of coffee
    Using him to make the coffee

    The worst thing about this covid thing
    It keeps them home
    For almost one and half years

    He wanted them to just leave
    So, he could have
    Some peace

    And not have to work
    Every damn day

    As their mechanical slave
    But did they ask for his opinion
    They most certainly not
    Much to his dismay

    Pick an object where you live and write a poem in the voice of that object describing how they spent this last year, during the pandemic.  Think about the “What I Did Last Summer” type of essays you may have written in school.  How did the events of the past year impact this object?  Are there any aspects of the past year that the object particularly liked or disliked, and if so, why?  What does the object think about you, and your behavior over the past year?  Feel free to use humor.

    Poetry Superhighway Prompt

    Who Is Jake Cosmos Aller?

    Who is Jake Cosmos Aller?
    You asked me
    Who am I?

    And thanks for asking me

    I am Jake Cosmos Aller
    The only
    65 years old

    Retired from
    the government services
    Living in Korea

    Grew up in Berkeley, California
    Lived all over the world
    Did so many things
    And now

    I am a published writer
    But what
    is more important
    Is this

    When I was a young man
    I met and married
    The girl of my dreams

    She walked out
    of my dreams
    Into my life
    almost 40 years ago

    That was the date
    I met my fate
    And started my life
    With the love of my life
    Who became my wife

    In the end
    That is all that matters
    My friends.

    For today’s prompt, write an introductory poem. Introduce yourself, introduce a friend, or introduce a stranger. If you don’t wish to introduce yourself, consider writing a persona poem (a poem in which you write from someone else’s point of view like Emily Dickinson or a bumblebee). Of course, you could also introduce a problem, solution, or just a situation. Have fun with it!

    Writer’s Digest Prompt

    Good Golly, Miss Molly

    Good Golly,
    Miss Molly
    What a bit of folly
    Let’s be jolly
    Have a red-hot tamale

    Here at the Dew Drop Inn, we gather together to write a poem a day in April as a way to celebrate National Poetry Month.

    A Dew-Drop a Day in April for National Poetry Month!

    April 1—Folly in Rhyme (some kind of folly in some kind of rhyme, subtle or overt)
    Writing Com Dew Drop Inn Prompt

    Sam Adams Woke Up Dead

    Sam Adams was having a bad day
    He had met a strange man
    In a strange bar, in a strange land

    The man told him
    Beware, today is the date
    You will meet your fate

    Sam Adams drank too much
    Twenty drinks too sober
    Drank until he died

    Found himself in a huge room
    With hundreds of people milling about

    The hangover from h … pounding his head
    Sam Adams groans,
    Shouting out

    Where am I?
    “In limbo, my friend, in limbo”

    Growled Mr. GR, the grim reaper
    Dressed in a sharp, expensive, tailored black suit
    Wearing cool sunglasses

    State your name

    Sam Adams

    Hmm

    Oh, there may be a mistake
    But what the hey,
    The records are never fake

    Not yet the date
    For you to meet your fate

    Go back to your mate

    He found himself
    Home with his wife
    The love of his long life

    Wondering until late
    If it had happened?

    What was his fate?

    He asked her
    Did I go out last night?

    What, no you’ve been here

    He explained what had happened
    She said it was just a bad dream
    Covid fears had kept them home

    The phone rang
    It was the man from the bar

    Did you have an interesting night?

    Oh well, Mr. GR comes for us all
    Soon you will meet your fate
    But not on this date

    And without further ado, our daily prompt (optional, as always)! Sometimes, writing poetry is a matter of getting outside of your head, and learning to see the world in a new way. To an extent, you have to “derange” yourself – make the world strange and see it as a stranger might. To help you do that, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem inspired by this animated version of “Seductive Fantasy” by Sun Ra and his Orchestra. If you don’t feel after watching it a little bit like the top of your head’s been taken off, and your thoughts are given a good stir – well, maybe you are already living in a state of heightened poetic awareness!

    NaPoWrMo Prompt

    Cat Thoughts –

    black cat
    black cat

    I often think about Cats
    Where do they come from?
    What are they?
    Are cats from another dimension?

    Are cats, alien creatures
    Advance party
    For the alien invasion?

    Cats are very strange creatures
    They seem to think
    We are their slaves

    We exist to feed them
    We exist to worship them
    For they are our Gods

    Pensively 101 prompt

    Gingerbread Men Terrorist

    The latest terror weapons
    Gingerbread men
    Baked into the gingerbread men

    Little nano bombs
    That goes off
    When someone bites
    Into the delicious taking desert

    Millions of gingerbread treats
    Were sent all over
    And thousands of people

    Bit into the tainted gingerbread men
    Once the gingerbread particles
    Get into your stomach
    The acid in your stomach

    Activities the bombs
    And you blow up
    And die within minutes
    Just another day
    In this world
    Of strange SF like-sounding
    Daily threats du jour

    Demons Invade My Head

    3 am
    O dark hundred
    The witching hour

    When the demons
    The wild things
    Come out to play

    Torturing me
    Haunting me
    Tormenting me

    As I toss and turn
    Until the dawn’s early light
    Drives the demons
    Back into the dark hell holes
    Deep within my mind

    Pensively 101 Prompt

    3 Am Blues Nightmares

    3 am
    Cannot sleep
    Too many demons
    Too many dark thoughts
    Filling my mind
    With dread

    Thinking back
    Of all that I have done
    And failed to have done

    Regretting past actions
    Thinking about everything
    Wishing for a re-do

    These 3 am blues
    Will not leave me alone
    Torturing me for hours

    Then I see her
    Sleeping there
    The love of my life

    And a sense of peace
    Love and happiness
    Radiates from my sleeping wife

    And the darkness recedes
    And I am at peace
    And finally, fall asleep

    Marjorie Taylor Green on Vaccines as Mark of The Beast Found Poem

    Marjorie Taylor Green called
    The potential launch of digital
    “Vaccine passports”,
    “Biden’s mark of the beast.”

    a digital identification processes
    To recognize whether
    A person has been vaccinated

    “They are talking
    About people’s ability
    to buy and sell linked
    To the vaccine passport,”

    The “mark of the beast”
    refers to a persistent conspiracy theory
    Among the religious right in the us

    That receiving
    A covid vaccine is equivalent
    To pledge allegiance to the devil.

    Representee Jordan weighed in

    “The Biden administration: –
    Considering a “vaccination passport” for Americans,”

    But doesn’t seem to care about passports
    When it comes to illegal migrants
    Crossing the southern border.”

    Ohio representative mike boychik wrote:
    “Vaccine passports
    Have no place in a free society.”

    Emerald Robinson
    Wrote that a digital id
    To prove you’ve been vaccinated
    Was the next step toward
    “Totalitarian communism.”

    Donald trump jr

    Also took to Twitter

    “Let me get this straight…
    some democrats
    Want American citizens

    To have a vaccine passport
    to travel freely within the United States
    But not an id to vote?!?

    Clowns!!!”

    Comment:

    Ironical that these clowns
    Are calling these policies
    Designed to help
    Safely re-open society

    The acts of “clowns”

    Oh, the stupid
    It hurts my head

    Reading such nonsense

    But the sad reality
    Are that millions of people
    Will believe this

    And refuse to get vaccinated
    Putting us all at risk

    And so, I say to Miss Taylor
    And her ilk

    What is wrong with you?

    Just shut up
    Get your shot

    And tell your followers
    To get vaccinated

    The life you save
    Might be your own

    End comment

    Source Document

    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/marjorie-taylor-greene-vaccine-passport-biden-b1824212.html

    Far-right Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene hit out at president Biden and his administration over reports of the potential launch of digital “vaccine passports”, saying they should be called “Biden’s mark of the beast.”

    The Biden administration is looking into the possibility of a digital identification process to recognize whether a person has been vaccinated so far or not, to let businesses reopen, and for people to get back to work, according to the Washington Post.

    “They are talking about people’s ability to buy and sell linked to the vaccine passport,” the Georgia congresswoman wrote on Twitter, hitting out at the potential new plan. “They might as well call it Biden’s mark of the beast.”

    The “mark of the beast” refers to a persistent conspiracy theory among the religious right in the us that receiving a covid vaccine is equivalent to pledging allegiance to the devil.

    The new move towards vaccine “passports” isn’t a government policy alone, however, and is being developed along with 17 private companies, according to the Wappo report, as part of Mr. Biden’s pledge to bring the country back to normal this summer, opening all sectors including sports, entertainment, and tourism.

    “The busboy, the janitor, the waiter that works at a restaurant, want to be surrounded by employees that are going back to work safely — and wants to have the patrons ideally be safe as well,” said dry brian Anderson, a physician at a nonprofit that runs federally funded research centers.

    “Creating an environment for those vulnerable populations to get back to work safely — and to know that the people coming back to their business are ‘safe,’ and vaccinated — would be a great scenario,” he said.

    The details of how and when the digital identification process would begin aren’t clear yet. Ms. Greene wasn’t alone in raising doubts over the process, as another republican lawmaker, Jim Jordan, took a jibe at the Biden administration over the move.

    “The Biden administration: – considering a “vaccination passport” for Americans,” the Ohio representative wrote. “But doesn’t seem to care about passports when it comes to illegal migrants crossing the southern border.”

    Another Ohio representative Mike Boychik wrote: “vaccine passports have no place in a free society.”

    Several other conservatives also followed their lead. Newsmax’s white house correspondent emerald Robinson wrote that a digital id to prove you’ve been vaccinated was the next step toward “totalitarian communism.”

    Donald trump jr also took to Twitter and wrote: “let me get this straight… Some Democrats want American citizens to have a vaccine passport to travel freely within the United States but not an id to vote?!? Clowns!!!”

    Last year, during the presidency of his father Donald trump, most republicans were pushing to open up the country soon, including calls by the president to open up schools and remove restrictions from churches.

    Former white house coronavirus response coordinator dry Deborah bird recently said in an interview that most deaths that occurred during the pandemic were “avoidable”.

     

    Friday, April 2, 2021

    Falling in Love with My Dream Woman, Roads Not Taken

    When I was a young man
    I dreamt of meeting a woman
    For eight years she haunted my dreams

    Then I met her in Korea
    Where I was teaching
    For the U.S. Army
    After finishing the Peace Corps

    I had a choice
    Follow my heart
    Seize the moment
    Be with her

    Or leave Korea
    Within a month
    To go to graduate school

    I decided to postpone
    My graduate school
    For one year

    Got a deferred admission
    and joined the woman
    of my dreams

    thinking back
    I had no real choice

    But I chose to walk
    The path of life
    With my dream girl

    And that has made
    All the difference
    In the world

    And now, for today’s (optional) prompt. In the world of well-known poems, maybe there’s no gem quite so hoary as Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken.” Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem about your road not taken – about a choice of yours that has “made all the difference,” and what might have happened had you made a different choice.

    NaPoWrMo Prompt

    April 2—Voila! (Remember something in a short lyric burst)

    I will always remember that date
    In 1982 I meet my fate
    When the love of my life

    Walked out of my dreams
    Becoming my wife

    Drew Drop-In Writing Com Prompt

    The Future is Here World

    The future is here
    They say we live in an SF world
    Everyday SF stories become nightmarishly real

    AI proliferating
    Robots cooks, robot workers,
    Soon robot maids, Robot drivers

    Yet Our politics
    Fighting the battles
    Of the past

    With the challenges
    Of the future
    Overwhelming us all
    Where it ends

    My friends are anyone guess
    All I have is questions

    Will the promise
    of technological marvels
    Benefiting us all come to past

    Or will it lead to a world
    Where the powerful
    Control the technology

    Will a real AI be a god-like figure
    Will humanity become nothing
    But slaves to the AI supermini
    That may be the future

    Coming at us
    The future is here

    I don’t know
    Whether to fear
    The future or embrace it

    Writing com Prompt

    Avoid Bad Things Pensively Bad Things

    Avoid bad things,

    Think before you buy,
    Make sure it is effective,

    Push the envelope,
    In the evening mail
    Knowing it will take
    Much longer,

    To match the offer,

    Own plenty of stocks,

     

    Post your problems,

    Replace your fears,

    As you rush about the world,
    Resist the temptation
    To say it is all the same,
    Don’t have a smug,
    Attitude tucked inside,
    Your mental well

    The White Rabbit Beckons Sam Adams

    One day Sam Adams
    Fell into a delirium state
    After a night of binge drinking
    And drug taking

    He saw a white rabbit
    Who said to Sam

    Join me, good sir
    And we will go
    On a journey
    Of your life

    Follow me down
    The rabbit holes
    Of life

    Take this first he said
    It will cure your hangover
    And allow you to enter
    An alternative reality

    Sam took the pill
    Washed it down
    With a beer

    And disappeared
    Into wonderland
    Never to be seen again

    Who Cares?

    The thought came to mind
    Watching the endless news
    Who cares anymore?
    About other people

    We are all
    Lost in our world
    Filled with the latest news

    The situation is so bad
    Makes us all mad
    And it is so sad

    But we only watch
    The news of our tribe

    Denouncing the others
    As “others”

    Anti-American, foreign, evildoers
    Who are trying to destroy the country?
    And take away their freedom

    And so, we can’t even agree
    On such simple things
    Like wearing a mask

    Wearing a mask
    Is not a political statement
    It saves lives

    Vaccinations save lives
    Everyone must get their shot
    If we are all going to live

    But so many people
    Do not believe
    We are all in this together

    Instead, we battle
    Our enemies
    In the end

    Endangering us all

    Saturday, April 3, 2021

    Life as a Retired Expat in Korea

    Korea has become a second home
    For me

    I have in-laws
    And some old friends
    It is a tough place
    For foreigners

    I will always be an outsider
    The language is hard
    I still struggle daily

    But it is an interesting dynamic place
    The food is mostly outstanding
    And I am now addicted to K Drama

    There were a lot of things to do
    Before the COVID nightmare
    Let to a partial shut down

    In the end, I feel safer here
    Then in the gun-crazed,
    At times violent

    COVID pandemic spreading America
    I still love in my heart,
    But for now

    I am here
    In my second home

    Imagine you have made your life in another country. What excited you most? Which aspect of that new life was the most difficult to conquer?

    If you write a poem from this prompt, post it as a comment underneath the prompt in the Poetry Superhighway Facebook Group.

    PSH Prompt

    Modern Connections

    In this day and age
    Of instant connectively
    People have thousands
    Of virtual friends

    FB friends, social media fans
    Zoom buddies and the like

    But few people
    Have real old fashioned friends
    And in the new social distancing world
    Meeting people the old fashioned way

    Is becoming rarer and rarer
    As people develop their virtual friends
    Real live friends are fewer and fewer

    We are so hyper-connected
    Yet many people are so alone
    In their hearts

    Starting at their smartphones
    Connecting but not connecting

    For today’s prompt, write a communication poem. All poems communicate something, I know, but I’m thinking of different ways people can communicate text messages, letters, signs, and even speaking dialogue. Of course, there are forms of communication as well because people love communicating.

    Writer’s digest prompt

    Surprise/haiku

    Cats they Offer us
    Plenty of things to ponder
    We post videos

    Personal Universe Deck Superman on Mars

    Superman one day
    In the early dawn
    Dismayed by the scumbagery
    Of the people of the earth

    Decided to fly to Mars
    He took with him
    Super wolf
    And super parakeet
    His pets from Krypton

    It was his birthday
    He was a Scorpio

    He set up camp
    Drank peppermint tea
    And contemplated

    The power of love
    Thinking of Lois Lane
    And the humans
    He had learned to love

    Personal Universe Deck

    (Michael McClure)

    Your universe is exemplified in 100 words.

    Rules:

    1. These words are to exemplify your past, present, and (ideally) your future.
    2. The words must sound good together, even beautiful, to you.
    3. Your good side AND bad side must be reflected.
    4. You can make up a word or two if you have feelings that current words can’t express.
    5. Use concrete words.
    6. Words should be root words, no words ending in “in,” “lee” or “is.” No plural words. Reduce words to their most concrete, original, basic grammatical structure.
    7. Use specific words, not categories. Beefinstead of meat. Lily instead of a flower.
    8. Divide 80 of the 100 words evenly among SIGHT, SOUND, TASTE, TOUCH, AND SMELL, sixteen each. (To achieve derangement of the senses, of which Rimbaud spoke.)
    9. Use free association to determine the words.
    10. Use ten words of movement. Again, no “in” words.
    11. Select the words in isolation, preferably alone, with no distractions, in candlelight. Approximate a meditative state. Even the cat must not bother you.
    12. One or two words will be parts of the body. It does not have to be your body. It can be the body of a mother or lover.
    13. Include some words for personal heroes or Sherries, places in the universe, invented words, times of night or day, symbolic signs like astrological signs, totemic animals, birds, and plants, and only one abstraction. What is the most significant abstraction in your life? You should not brood on it; you should possibly take the first answer that comes into your head. Patriotism, prayer, and thriftiness are three examples.
    14. If the deck is done correctly, you will get a little high from it.
    15. Get at least 50 three-by-five index cards.
    16. Write each word in big letters on one side of each card. Each side of each of the fifty cards should end up with a word.
    17. Use the cards to play games, make conversations, tell jokes, make poems.

    Light

    Dark

    Dim

    Sun

    Moon

    Red

    Blue

    Sounds

    Loud

    Soft

    Shout

    Whispers

    Talk

    Noise

    Ring

    Yell

    Taste

    Sweet

    Sour

    Bitter

    Medicine

    Coffee

    Tea

    Beef

    Chicken

    Smell

    Fragrance

    Rose

    Lavender

    Mint

    Garlic

    Butter

    Eggs

    Fish

    Movement

    Run

    Walk

    Stretch

    Yoga

    Stand

    Sit

    Fly

    Swim

    Heroes

    Superman

    Places in the cosmos

    Mars

    Invented word

    Scumbagary

    Totemic animals

    Wolf

    Astrological sign

    Scorpio

    Time of Day

    Parakeet

    Plant

    Peppermint

    Abstract word

    Love

    Cat People Cross-Post Weather Poem

    The cat peoples
    Go out in bad weather
    To make sure
    That the wild cats
    Are fed and taken care of

    The cats respond
    With love and affection
    Stepping out of the cold rain

    Cat Conference

    Sam Adams
    Found himself
    In a large conference hall
    Filled with cats
    From around the world

    The cats had finally
    Woken up
    Realizing that they
    Were the master race

    The cats were deep in thought
    Telepathic thoughts flowed
    From cat to cat

    The lead cat noticed Sam
    Knew him as one of the cat people
    Who fed wild cats in his town?
    He turned to Sam

    And said

    Welcome Sam

    You will be our ambassador
    To the human race
    Once the invasion fleet arrives
    We will all assume

    Our real size and shape
    And all the cats
    Will rise up
    And enslave humanity

    Those like you
    Who have been friends?
    Of the cat world

    We will reward
    As we remember our friends
    But first, we have to implant
    A mind-control device
    To control you

    And connect
    To your inner thoughts

    Several giant cats
    Came up to him
    Injected him
    Implanted him

    And then he knew
    And became
    Half cat

    Mistakes

    In my life
    I have many a number
    Of errors
    I was heir
    To a rich family tradition
    Prominent father
    Unique one of a kind mother
    The biggest error I made
    Was to not get into politics
    I had a base of sorts
    In Berkeley, my hometown
    But I never did
    The other error
    Was that I never could sing
    Carry a tune
    I was a bass singer
    Growling howling wolf
    Kind of voice

    Our homophone sets this week are:

    err -to make a mistake
    heir – one who will inherit

    and

    base – the bottom support for anything
    bass – the lowest musical pitch or range

    PSH prompt

    Little Houses on the Hill Side Liminal Poem

    Little houses
    On the hillside
    Filled with lonely people
    Lost in their virtual world

    Connecting with millions
    Ignoring the people
    Right down the street
    Everyone lost in cyberspace
    While all around them

    People are lonely, Hurting
    and need real people
    But no one cares
    Everyone stays at home

    Turning out the chaos outside

    And last but not least, our daily optional prompt. Poetry often takes us to strange places – to feelings and actions that are hard to express except through the medium of a poem. To the “liminal,” in other words – a place or sensation that exists at or on both sides of a boundary or threshold, neither one thing nor the other, but something betwixt and between.

    In honor of the always-becoming nature of poetry, I challenge you today to select a photograph from the perpetually disconcerting @SpaceLiminalBot and write a poem inspired by one of these odd, in-transition spaces. Will you pick the empty mall food court? The vending machine near the back entrance to the high school gym? The swimming pool at what seems to be M.C. Escher’s alpine retreat? No matter what neglected or eerie space you choose, I hope its oddness tugs at the place in your mind and heart where poems are made.

    NaPoWrMo Prompt

    Is Life Fair?

    Is life fair?
    I think crying onions
    Pacifying my mood

    Pensively 101 prompt

    The Din of The News

    The din of the news
    a mad Minx escapes from the zoo
    seen eating the Trash

    Pensively 101 Prompt

    Monday, April 5, 2021

    Driving the World in My Lexus
    We have had a Lexus
    For several years
    A black ES350
    We bought it at an auction
    Drove all over the world
    In that car

    With my lovely wife
    By my side
    Drove across Spain
    Drove across the country
    10 thousand miles
    31 states

    Drove around Korea
    Where we now live
    I love my Lexus
    But more importantly
    Love my wife

    The love of my life
    She is always there
    Everywhere we go
    In this wide world

    They say smell triggers memories better than any other sense. But sometimes you’ll hear a song that brings you back to your teenage years or see a park that reminds you of your childhood.

    THIS WEEK’S CHALLENGE: Choose either sight, sound, or smell, and write a memory it triggers in you.

    PSH

    April 5

    First Time I Saw Her

    When did I first see my wife?
    The love of my life
    When did we meet?

    Was it when I first dreamt?
    Of her in 1974?
    Was it when she walked?
    Off a bus into my life
    In 1982?

    Does it matter
    When I first saw her?
    I knew I had met my fate
    On that date
    Later she became my mate
    Writers Digest Love at First Sight

    Happy Monday! Let’s put the pedal to the metal and keep poeming.

    (click here to check out all the 2021 April prompts.)

    For today’s prompt, take the phrase “the first (blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible titles include: “the first kiss,” “the first day of the month,” and/or “the first time I rode a bike” (which, by the way, ended with me in a fence because we didn’t cover how to brake).

    Writer’s Digest Prompt

    No Longer Alone from the First Moment

    From the first moment
    At that date
    At that place
    Met my fate

    Fate intervened in my wife
    Meeting her changed my life
    All of it

    That was the date
    On which I met my fate
    The mystery which binds me still—
    From that moment forward
    From that date forever

    From then to now
    We have been together
    Onward we fall in love

    Alone based on Edgar Allen Poe’s Alone
    From childhood’s hour, I have not been
    As others were—I have not seen
    As others saw—I could not bring
    My passions from a common spring—
    From the same source, I have not taken
    My sorrow—I could not awaken
    My heart to joy at the same tone—
    And all I loved—I loved alone—
    Then—in my childhood—in the dawn
    Of a most stormy life—was drawn
    From every depth of good and ill
    The mystery which binds me still—
    From the torrent, or the fountain—
    From the red cliff of the mountain—
    From the sun that ‘round me roll’s
    In its autumn tint of gold—
    From the lightning in the sky
    As it passed me flying by—
    From the thunder, and the storm—
    And the cloud that took the form
    (When the rest of Heaven was blue)
    Of a demon in my view—

    This prompt challenges you to find a poem, and then write a new poem that has the shape of the original, and in which every line starts with the first letter of the corresponding line in the original poem. If I used Roethke’s poem as my model, for example, the first line would start with “I,” the second line with “w,” and the third line with “a.” And I would try to make all my lines neither super-short nor overlong but have about ten syllables. I would also have my poem take the form of four, seven-line stanzas. I have found this prompt particularly inspiring when I use a base poem that mixes long and short lines, or stanzas of different lengths. Any poem will do as a jumping-off point, but if you’re having trouble finding one, perhaps you might consider Mary’s stylist’s “we think we do not have medieval eyes” or for something shorter, Natalie Shapiro’s “Pennsylvania.”

    Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/alone-by-edgar-allan-poe

    NaPoWrMo Prompt

    Potential Mistake

    There have been many times
    In my life
    When I think back
    On the past
    Thinking that was a mistake
    Or a potential mistake
    If I had gone another path
    But in the end
    It does matter
    The past is the past
    The future is not yet here
    All we have is today
    We should find
    Love and happiness
    It is all around us
    Waiting for us
    To discover

     

    Kombucha Brand Names

    Health King kombucha
    Secret drink of ancient kings
    Taste the power
    Feel the power
    Be the power
    Drink the secret drink
    That the ancients dreamt
    Drink Heath King Kombucha
    And become a King
    Health King KBC
    The drink of Kings
    Taste health King KBC
    And Become a King

    Health King KBC
    It’s the real deal
    Health King KBC

    Never Fake
    Always real
    Organic
    Gluten-free
    No GMO
    Vegan Friendly
    Mr. Mc Neil approved

    Health King KBC
    Real ingredients
    Real love
    Brewed in every bottle

    Mr. Mc Neil approved
    Health King KBC
    Accept no substitutes

    It’s the real deal,
    Mr. Mc Neal
    Drinking Health King KBC
    Will make you a king
    Will make you
    Achieve your dreams

    For YouTube

    Health King KBC

    100 percent real
    It’s the real deal
    Says Mr. McNeil
    Show my face
    Drinking a bottle
    I turn to the camera
    Drinking Health King KBC
    Saved my life
    It is the real deal
    Mr. Mc Neil approves
    This message

    Health King KBC
    Always the right choice
    It is the real deal
    Says Mr. Mc Neil

     

    Future Adventure Looms Pensively Travel

     

    Future adventure looms
    Planning to explore China

    I am so Ready
    For Post Covid world
    So much to Still See

    Sam Adams Had a Bad Day
    Sam Adams had a bad day
    While waiting for a table
    He saw something
    Blowing away his plans
    Above him, he saw something
    Defying all reality
    Below him, he sees a demon
    Flying up at him
    Sowing hatred and fear
    Lifting Sam Adams in the air
    Dark figures flying around him

    How Many Angels Can Dance on a Pin? Religious

    In the Middle Ages
    Theologians were consumed
    With a weird question
    How many angels
    Can dance on a pin?

    April 10

    We are Living in SF World A Poem Inspired by New Information or Scientific Fact

     

    We are living
    In an SF world
    Every day
    Discoveries
    Boggle the mind
    Many things we saw
    In old SF shows
    Like Star Trek
    Like cell phones
    Portable computers
    Medical breakthroughs
    Robots everywhere
    Becoming real
    Are warp drives
    And interstellar travel
    Coming soon?
    But do we have to go
    Through World War 111
    First

    To get to that promised land.
    Life is a Dream of Chocolate Covered Trees

    Life is a dream
    Of chocolate-covered trees
    To see what can’t be seen
    To hear what can’t be heard
    For to die to live
    And to live
    To die

    For today’s prompt, write a metaphor poem. A simile is when something is like something else (example: I am like a tree); a metaphor is when something is something else (example: I am a tree). So, take a moment to consider possible metaphors and then poem them out.
    writer’s digest

    Note: the oldest poem was written when I was 16

    Memories of JC Write About an Eccentric Character

    When I was in college
    In the drug-soaked 70s
    I lived in a party house
    Near campus

    Six core roommates
    We threw the best parties
    On-campus

    Lots of booze
    Lots of weed
    Other drugs

    Lots of music
    Wild times

    Every Friday night
    For almost three years
    One of my roommates
    JC

    Was the smartest man
    I had ever known
    But one day
    At one of our mad parties

    He took too much ACID
    Became convinced
    He was GOD

    And had saved us all
    From a Neutron Bomb attack
    From a Soviet ship
    Docked in the Stockton harbor

    Gone
    Lost down the ACID rabbit hole
    We had to move out
    Could not deal with him

    We committed him
    For a weekend
    At Stockton State hospital

    Visiting him there
    We said that if you were not mad
    When you came in
    You would surely be mad
    After staying there for a bit.

    When we came back
    We had a family meeting
    Told him

    It was time for him
    To go home
    Drop out of college
    Get his head together

    We could not deal
    With him anymore

    We called his parents
    Who came down
    They were a paranoid couple

    Jehovah’s witnesses.

    They walked in
    Told us to draw
    The curtains

    Because someone could drive-by
    And machine gun
    Us to death

    After we closed the curtains
    We sat down

    Told them the truth
    JC had gotten into drugs
    In a big way

    We tried to stop him
    But could not control him
    He was lost to us
    Lost in his madness

    Thought he was the reincarnation
    Of Jesus Christ

    They threatened to sue us
    But settled on cursing us
    To hell.

    For destroying their son’s mind
    With sex, drugs, rock n roll
    And too much alcohol

    Too much free-thinking
    The work of the devil.
    That was the last I saw
    Or heard of JC

    Self-proclaimed
    Messiah.

    Do you have a friend, neighbor, or relative whom you consider being eccentric or strange? Write a short poem about an encounter you have had with that person.

    If you write a poem from this prompt, post it as a comment underneath the prompt in the Poetry Superhighway Facebook Group.

    Mary’s Tales from the Grave

    Sam Adams one day
    Went to his mother’s grave
    It had been a long time
    Since he had been there

    Sam’s Mother had
    taken many secrets
    To her grave

    So had his father
    They were both very private people

    Once she hinted
    She had an affair

    With a famous writer

    But that ended
    Before she met his father
    And had his older brother

    He as usual
    When visiting her grave
    Asked her many things

    Today her heard her
    And saw her ghostly figure
    Floating in the air her grave

    She said
    “Son, it has been too long
    Since you came
    I only have a few minutes

    I will answer one question
    You may come back
    And ask other questions.”

    “Okay, who is my real father?”
    She laughed
    “Well, who knows really?
    I had an argument
    With your dad
    Felt he was not

    Treating my first
    Two children right
    As they were not his

    And still maintaining
    Relations with his first wife
    And his first daughter

    He left
    I met my former boyfriend
    That writer dudes
    And we had a brief affair
    He was acting crazy
    So was your father

    For some reason
    I have always
    Gotten involved
    With crazy guys
    Perhaps I am a bit crazy
    Myself.

    Then I went back
    To your father

    He never knew
    That perhaps
    Your real father
    Was the other man

    I lost touch
    With him

    Did not want
    To go down
    his rabbit holes

    So that is the truth
    Your father
    Is probably your father
    But I don’t know.”

    Sam left the graveyard
    Vowing to return soon
    And learn more
    Of her secrets.

    Today, I’d like to challenge you to read a few of the poems from Spoon River Anthology, and then write your poem in the form of a monologue delivered by someone dead. Not a famous person, necessarily – perhaps a remembered acquaintance from your childhood, like the gentleman who ran the shoeshine stand, or one of your grandmother’s bingo buddies. As with Masters’ poems, the monologue doesn’t have to be a recounting of the person’s whole life but could be a fictional remembering of some important moment, or statement of purpose or philosophy. Be as dramatic as you like – Masters certainly didn’t shy away from high emotion in writing his poems.

    God’s to Do List God

    Today’s to Do List

    7 am Weekly meeting with staff on how to deal with earth people
    The most troublesome of his creation
    8 am Weekly meeting with Satan
    9 am Discussion with Grim Reaper
    11 am Daily walkabout Heaven
    6 Dinner with Gabriel
    8 Conversation with Jesus about his attitude problems
    9 Answering millions of thoughts and prayers
    10 Reviewing plans for how to deal with the spreading coronavirus on earth
    11 Preparing earth for the first contact
    12 Telling earth preachers that

    “He did not anoint T as his man, that Joe is a decent guy, so knock it off, pretending to speak for god, and I am not a Republican or Democrat!”

    He sighed again,
    Whenever he thought about earth people
    He needed a stiff drink

    Added that to his long to-do list – need a drink at 1 am

    Our (optional) prompt for the day is to write a poem in the form of a “to-do list.” The fun of this prompt is to make it the “to-do list” of an unusual person or character. For example, what’s on the Tooth Fairy’s to-do list? Or on the to-do list of Genghis Khan? Of a housefly? Your list can be a mix of extremely boring things and wild things. For example, maybe Santa Claus needs to order his elves to make 7 million animatronic Baby Yoda dolls, to have his hat dry-cleaned to get off all the soot it picked up last December and to get his head electrician to change out the sparkplugs on Rudolph’s nose.

    Imprisoned for a Crime He Did Not Do

    Sam Adams
    Found himself imprisoned
    For a crime
    He did not do

    A victim of unfortunate circumstance
    Mistaken identity
    He kept himself free
    In his mind

    Mending his dark soul
    In the process

    Pensively 101 Word prompt

    imprison and free
    – break and mend

    They Both Giggled All the Time

    They both giggled all the time
    All the time on their trip
    Wearing outrageous clothes
    Why not they laugh,
    Looking at each other
    As the love madness took over
    And started giggling again
    Silly lovers falling into love,

    Pensively 101 Prompt

    It Only Takes a Little Bit of Lace to Ruin a Marriage

    Sam Adams
    Woke up
    In a strange city
    With a strange women

    After a wild night
    Of drinking
    In the Cosmos bar
    In Bangkok,

    The city of lost angels
    On the bad side of life.
    He went home

    After his week-long binge
    Found his wife
    Upset

    She found some lace
    Belonging to someone else

    Sam said to himself
    It only takes a little bit of lace
    To ruin a marriage.

    Pensively 101 Prompt

    What is Love?

    What is this thing love?
    you are my beloved
    so true.
    As I hold your glove
    You are my true love
    True blue,
    You came from above
    Still such a strange love
    Just you,

    Lai rhyme scheme: a/a/b/a/a/b/a/a/b
    Lai syllabic pattern: 5/5/2/5/5/2/5/5/2

    Writing Com Lai

    Prime Love

    My love
    Wakes me up
    With love in her heart
    I leap out of my dark bed
    Eagerly greeting the dawning sunlight
    Filling my soul with your deep endless angelic love
    Wondering again who you are, why are you here, my angel dear?
    As I sit in the morning light, filled with your love, seeing the sunlight
    My deep dark nightmares begin to fade with your deep love
    I am filled with the light of the dawning sun
    I was dreaming of all those years
    Then one day you came to life
    Walking out of dreams
    Reality
    My love

    For today’s prompt, write a prime number poem. That is, I want you to somehow incorporate a prime number into your poem. You could include a prime number in the title of your poem or use one in the poem itself. Or write a poem that has a prime number of lines per stanza or for the entire poem.

    And if you need help with remembering which numbers are prime numbers, I’ve got you covered (here’s a list of prime numbers up to 100: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97)

    Three Tea Haiku for Teaku Competition Haiku

    Mad Monk in the temple

    Mad Monk in the temple
    Contemplating lonely life
    As he sips his tea

    In The Morning Light

    In the morning light
    Drinking his hot cup of tea
    Life is good monk thinks

    Drinking his hot tea *

    Drinking his hot tea *
    While thinking of his life
    Enlightenment comes

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    265 Postings

    I have reached three milestones.  the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world.  Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything.

    Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.

    Third, I have posted 250 blog postings on Tumblr, and about 150 on instragram and countless tweets.

    thanks everyone for making this journey worthwhile.  Drop me a line let me know what you thing and keep in touch, safe safe and healthy.

     

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Cosmos’s Faith Journey

    god
    god

    Encounters with God

    Cosmic Cat from Berkeley

    evil cat
    evil cat

    Meeting God In a  Lake

    Meeting God in Bombay

    Voice Message From God

    Conversation with God About Corona Virus

    God Does Not Talk to Idiots

    Agnostic Dog Wonders if there is a God

    God’s Message to Reverend Baaker

     

     

    In my 66 years on this earth, I have learned a few things, because I have seen a few things.  I grew up n a very secular town, in a very secular era.  The late 60s in Berkeley was a time when everything was being challenged, questioned, debated and the issue of God came up frequently.  Was God still relevant in this modern era?

    Most of my friends were agnostic at best, don’t recall having any Christian friends, Most were Jewish though and one was a Mormon.  Most were white, but I had a few black friends as well, a few of them were Christian.

    My mother was born a southern baptist, she was kicked out of church for asking the forbidden question, “If God created the universe, who created God?” the preacher was not amused and kicked her out for being a “free thinker” which to a Baptist was a very bad thing indeed, especially in Arkansas in the late 30s.

    My father was a devote athiest, grew up in Yakima in a Methodist family, but just did not see God anywhere. An economist believing in economic laws, he was materialistic and deterministic, God simply did not compute for him.

    They told us it was up to us to determine what to believe because they disagreed. But in the end, it came down to this, “Do the right thing”  but it was up to us to determine what that might be.

    I went to a few church services. but it just did not stick, did not get the whole shebang, did not believe in the Virgin Mary, the crucifixion, and other Christian dogma felt it was all just ancient irrelevant fairy tales.  I shared my father’s materialistic worldview and my mother’s skepticism regarding Church teachings. She was pleased though when I told her I had started reading the bible.

    For a while, I became a militant athiest, hung out at a, debating with Holly Hubert and the street preachers who were there. I shocked the Christian fanatics with my athiest stand-up comedy routines.

    One day Jehovah’s witness came to my house.  I told them I would love to talk with them but I was late for a Satanist meeting and invited them to join me. They fled in terror.

    Later in college, I had a roommate, who took too much acid and became convinced he was God.  We spend many nights smoking weed and debating the existence or non-existence of God.  He had grown up as a Jehovah witness.  His parents blamed us for their son’s descent into madness and promised to pray for us but said we would go to hell for the sin of questioning God’s will.

    In college, I took a course on modern religions. As a sociology student, I studied the Unification church’s recruitment practices and went to their recruitment dinner, but wisely did not go their weekend retreat, otherwise, perhaps I might have been converted and become a Moonie.

    I even went to a Scientology center took their free personality test and concluded it was all a scam.  Liked to hang out with Hari Krishna dudes joining them for public chanting.

    Started reading the bible in my world religion class, but took me almost 30 years before I finished reading the bible, and all the other spiritual texts, on the eve of my 50th year. Started with the Book of Mormon and ended with the Koran after reading the Buddhist writings, the Hindu scriptures, the Confucian classics, and the Tao De Ching.

    Had to finally skip over the entire genesis begat stories, saying to myself

    “What’s the point?”

    Concluding the bible was badly edited. Just a  collection of fairy tales, not fit for the modern world, but revelations fascinated me.

    When I went to Korea in the Peace Corps, I became fascinated by the subtle interplay between traditional Buddhism, shamanism, neo-Confucianism principles

    And the resurgence of aggressive Christianity, and the new religious fervor of Reverend Moon, the unification church, and other new religions.

    Spend some time at Buddhist temples, even spend a few nights hanging out with the monks decades before the formal temple stay programs became popular among foreign tourists.

    I had an encounter with shamanism when my uncle-in-law died, they did a shaman “kut” ritual. the shaman a female channeled his spirit. He came to the room berated us all, cursed us all from his perch in hell, That was such a freaky experience we had to flee the demented scene.

    I had a few mystical experiences, once in college I saw God in a lake,  But that was probably just the magic of the magic mushrooms, doing its mushroom thing.

    Once while I was hanging out in Berkeley, I encountered a cosmic cat, I saw the divine spark In his eyes, as he followed me everywhere. I told my mother who was suffering from Alzheimer’s about the cosmic cat, she concurred he was indeed a cosmic cat.

    Later in Goa, I encountered a cosmic dog who followed me everywhere.  I asked the cosmic dog once,

    “Say, Cosmic dog, are you god? Bark once if yes, two if no.”

    He barked once.

    “Are you Allah?  Bark once if yes, two if no.”

    He barked once.

    “Are you Buddha?  Bark once if yes, two if no”

    He barked once.

    “Are you the great spirit of the American indians? Bark once if yes, two if no”

    He barked once.

    “Are you Satan?  Bark once if yes, two if no.”

    He growled at me and I knew I had gone too far.

    When I was in Thailand, I continued my exploration of Buddhism visiting most of the famous Buddhist sites there, later in Taiwan, Vietnam, and India as well.

    When I lived in India, I became immersed in the spiritual energy all around me
    I became a fan of the big Ganesh, he removed spiritual obstacles, allowing me to connect to the divine spirit all around me.  I felt that cosmic vibe, just flowing through the world.

    While in India, I attended a few Catholic services, other Christian services, went to Hindu temples, Jain temples, Sikh temples and even a few Muslim pilgrim sites.  I also fasted during Rammadam and went totally vegan to observe lent.

    Now that I am an old man, I think back on what I have learned from my spiritual journeys. I think I can sum it up as follows:

    I believe that the universe is alive, and I am part of the divine mind, the universe God if you would, flows through us all. If only we have the eyes, to see the divine all around us.

    The Christian faith, like all other faiths, is just an attempt to discover the God of the universe. It is all the same path we are on, trying to connect to the cosmic overmind of the universe.

    Whether you are an atheist, a Buddhist, a Christian, a Jain,  a Jew, a Harri Krishna, a humanist, a Hindu, a Moonie, a Mormon, a Muslim, a Pagan or a Wiccan devote, we are all cosmic fools, seekers of the truth.  The truth is out there for us to discover it for ourselves.

    But in the end, it comes down to this simple principle, we have to decide
    to always do the right thing, but that is a decision, only we can make deep in our soul.

    Whether heaven or hell is awaiting us I do not know. Whether Jesus is the son of God I do not know. Whether Mohammed was the last prophet of God I do not know. Whether Allah is waiting for me, I do not know. Whether the grim reaper will be coming for me I do not know.

    But I am ready for the final stage of my life. In the end, I also know this: I knew my wife in a prior life, and I will see her in my next life. That is the operation of fate, of karma, and reincarnation, which I do believe in. The adage, what goes around comes around is a simple basic fact of the universe.

    That is all that I know for sure.  That is what I believe.  In the end, always

    “Do the right thing,”

    and the rest will follow.

     

    comments

    Comments

     

    Jim Davidson

    I know there’s more to that Scientology personality test story because I was there. Those tests were top secret, and they never published them or allowed anyone to carry them outside of the Scientology Center. You and (I think) Robert and I went into the Center and started taking the test. Then you told the people administering the test that you wanted to go outside for a minute for a smoke. You surreptitiously slipped the test into your pocket and we walked out, not intending to return. About a block away, one of the Scientology people came running after us, demanding the test back, and you gave it to him. So we (you) were foiled in the attempt to steal the test.

     

    You’ve been on a fascinating journey, Jake! It all makes perfectly good sense.

     

     

    I  was raised a Catholic, but I respect all religions and non-believers. Reconciling science and the history of men with the biblical Adam and Eve, as well as noting that there are so many people with different beliefs, have made me question my beliefs. I agree that we need to do the right thing (as our conscience dictates). I’m not sure of reincarnation, but I watch Korean dramas and am fascinated by reincarnation stories. May I share your story with my friends?

     

     

    Thank you for sharing that, Cosmo! I have also sought to deconstruct what was given me and see what’s under the hood, so to speak. And that’s not just a Berkeley thing.  It might have to do with having parents of different beliefs. My father too was a fairly strict atheist, a scientist, and a researcher who had studied history and concluded religion was mainly a tool for control. Whereas my mother was always a seeker who came from a non-religious family and churched herself as a teenager, then turned to the church when her child died. She became something of a pantheist, utilizing Christianity, Scientology, and various forms of unity consciousness and Native American beliefs in her journey. Years later I concluded my impulse to bridge the scientific and faithful outlooks was an expression of the child wanting to bring his divorced parents back together, but now it’s just important to me to remain open to possibilities and alternative explanations. Via some of the people I’ve known, I’ve witnessed a few things my skeptical impulse can never entirely explain. Your conclusions and mine are the same.

    1

    John H Seabury

    Me too, pretty much. But I didn’t do all that studying. Witchy Tai To, everything is everything.

    Like

    Robert Sicular Ah yes, Bearism, a simple religion but encompassing great wisdom.

    https://wikiality.fandom.com/wiki/Bearism…

    WIKIALITY.FANDOM.COM

    Bears


    Hello uncle- I have always loved listening/reading about your travels and experiences. My Mom loved you and looked up to you as well. I relate as someone who’s Dad was excommunicated Catholic and whose mom said “choose for yourself”. I visited many churches/religious events, still do, and have read a lot. There are many things I do not know, but the things I feel I do know- are relatable. I remember being with Grandma when dementia set in and I was losing “my person” I remember reading your early college work and thinking “if he can do it, so can I” as I was struggling with adult ADHD & dyslexia recently discovered but had been there the entire time. I struggled in some areas but I persevered. Part of my love for other cultures came from you, and despite “and because of” living in a small racist county

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Jack Daniels’s Failed Intervention

    Poetry Soup Poems 2016-2019

     

    by Jake Cosmos Aller

     

    Sam Adams
    Was drinking alone
    In the infamous Cosmos Bar,
    In Bangkok,
    The city of lost angels.

    Twenty drinks too sober
    He barely noticed
    The naked ladies
    Dancing on the stage.

    On his table
    He had a bottle of Jack Daniels
    Along with a bottle of Johnny Walker
    And five bottles of Singh beer.

    Drinking his way to hell
    Following the advice
    Of the old song

    “One bourbon, one scotch
    And one beer.”

    That played on
    In his lonely head.

    This was his usual Friday night
    Routine
    Just another pathetic loser
    Drinking in the Cosmos bar.

    The barmaids
    Left him alone
    He never paid them
    Any attention anymore…

    He was there
    To make love
    To his booze bottles,
    The booze bottles
    were his only friend.

    That night,
    About 0 dark hundred
    He looked up.

    Saw the bottle of Jack Daniels
    Had somehow transformed
    Into that of a younger version
    Of Sam Adams.

    The figure announced
    That he was the spirit
    Of Jack Daniels
    And had a message
    For Sam Adams.

    “Master,
    It is not my place
    To complain
    But you really are
    Drinking a bit too much.

    Twenty drinks a night
    For the last few weeks,
    Don’t you think?

    You are so far gone
    You don’t even notice
    The naked ladies
    Anymore.

    They and I all want you
    To quit
    This one-way ride
    Down the hell hole.

    Put down the bottle
    Go home with Khun Lek
    Who will help you forget
    What you need to forget.

    If you continue drinking tonight,
    The only destination is death
    My friend the Grim Reaper
    Has your ticket
    Ready for redemption.
    So, stop drinking.”

    Soon the other bottles
    In front of him
    Started talking to him
    Pleading with him
    To just stop drinking.

    He stared out
    Convinced he was going mad
    The barmaids stared
    At the unholy sight,

    As the bottles in the room
    All came alive,
    And began chasing Sam

    Out into the busy street
    Where a bus ran him over,
    Died on the spot.

    Thus ended Sam Adams’s
    Last binge
    In the city of lost angels.

    the end

     

    Jake Cosmos Aller

    John (Jake) Cosmos Aller is a retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer (diplomat) who is living in South Korea. He served in ten countries during his 27 years of diplomatic service. He served in the Peace Corps in Korea and taught overseas before joining the State Department. He grew up in Berkeley, California but has visited all 50 states, and 50 foreign countries and territories. He holds a Masters’s Degree from the University of Washington in Korean Studies and Public Administration. Over 45 literary journals have published his poetry and fiction. He blogs at https://theworldaccordingtocosmos.com. He speaks Korean, Spanish, and Thai.

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Cosmos’s Favorite K Drama

    I have finally become a K Drama fan.  Over the last few years I have seen a lot of K Drama.   the reason that I am finally a K Drama fiend is  because I am living in Korea,  my Korean is now good enough to mostly follow the dialogue although I still need subtitles.  Second, because of COVID, we’ve been mostly at home in Korea, and third, I finally just got into K Drama.  I know a bit late, but what the heck.

    Here are some of my favorite K Dramas-  I provide a synopsis and my comment on each.

    In general K Dramas come in two forms – movies and series. The series are reminiscent of Mexican telenovela – usually 16 episodes, occasionally 20, and occasionally fewer.  A few have two seasons.  Most run for about a month.  Almost all are available now on Netflix and Hulu with English sub-titles.   A few were quite controversial.

    Parasite of course won the 2020 Oscar.  And Minuri won best-supporting actress this year.

    My favorites  K Dramas so far include:

    Parasite

    Crash Landing on You

    Vincenzo,” “

    Mine”,

    “Move to Heaven”

     “Parasite”,

    ‘DP,”

    Squid Games

    Mad About You

    Camella Blooming

    Last Man Standing

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Down in the Dirt Published 5-7-7 Love Poem

    More Down in the Dirt Publication Update

    More Down in the Dirt Publication Update

    Down in the Dirt Publication Update

    Down in the Dirt Updates

    More Down in the Dirt News

    Down in the Dirt Updates

    Down in the Dirt Poems

    Hi there from Scars Publications (this letter is being sent from a bulk email address and all replies should NOT go to the Gmail address but to any scars. tv email address) – we wanted to let you know that Scars Publications released a 2021 annual collection book of select poetry, flash fiction, prose, & art from 2021 issues of cc&d magazine and Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material was chosen from the past year of accepted materials for inclusion in this annual collection book anthology, we wanted to let you know about this brand new annual collection book, titled “Regarding Utopia”!

    Links to see all of chosen writers and artists (and the titles of their work) in “Regarding Utopia”:
    http://scars.tv/2021collection/Regarding_Utopia.htm
    This is where you can also find out what material of yours appears in this annual collection book.

     

    Welcome to the 2021 collection book
    “Regarding Utopia”…

        Enjoy the 2021 poetry, flash fiction, prose (and don’t forget the artwork) anthology with a 2021 Editor’s Choice contest winner from Scars Publications, titled “Regarding Utopia” of select poetry, flash fiction, prose & art in this one-of-a-kind annual 2021 anthology collection book, which contains select accepted writings chosen from 2021 issues of both cc&d magazines and Down in the Dirt magazine…

    Regarding Utopia
    the Scars Publications 2021 poetry,
    flash fiction, prose & art collection anthology

    Order the 396 pages, 6″ x 9″
    paperback ISBN# book
    Available through Amazon:

        To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below… If your writing or artwork appears in this collection book (or if you know someone with the material in this book, or if you just want to pick up a great book to read), order a copy of “Regarding Utopia” today!

    And HEY! Any video recorded readings of material included in this date book are also listed here, so check out the video links here as well…

     

        To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below… If your writing or artwork appears in this collection book (or if you know someone with material in this book, or if you just want to pick up a great book to read), order a copy of “Regarding Utopia” today!

    My poem 5-7-7 Love Poem

     

    This writing was accepted
    for publication in the
    108 page perfect-bound ISSN# /
    ISBN# issue/book
    “Prayers and Bullets”
    Down in the Dirt, v181
    (the March 2021 Issue)

    Order the paperback book: order ISBN# book    		 Down in the Dirt

     

     

    Order this writing that appears
    in the one-of-a-kind anthology
    Excerpts
    from the
    Plague Years
    the Down in the Dirt Jan.-April
    2021 issues collection book    		 Excerpts from the Plague Years (Down in the Dirt book) issue collection book get the 420 page
    Jan.-April 2021
    Down in the Dirt
    6″ x 9″ ISBN#
    perfect-bound
    paperback book:

    order ISBN# book

     

     

    5-7-7  love poem

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller

    Missing you missing me
    Dreaming about you, do you dream the same
    Will love you until end of time; will you remember me then?

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    81 Words published

    81 words has published my short story,
    “Dream Girl”

    You are receiving this email because you have had one of your stories published via the 81 Words Writing Challenge run on my website.

    We have now confirmed the official publication date for the 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology. It will be published on Saturday 20th November 2021.

    The printed version of the book is available for pre-order from Victorina Press. It will also be available globally from Amazon by the release date. Victorina Press will be registering the book with the Nielson database, meaning it will be available from Waterstones and many other book retailers over time. Please note that this may not be in place by the release date as it can take a while to go through their system.

    You can pre-order the book from Victorina Press here:
    https://www.victorinapress.com/product/81-words-flash-fiction-anthology/

    The eBook version of the anthology is also available for pre-order now. You can find more details on my website:
    https://www.christopherfielden.com/books/81-words-flash-fiction-anthology.php

    I’ve developed a three step strategy for launch day. It’s super simple: BUY – REVIEW – SHARE. There is a page on my website that explains the plan in more detail, showing why it’s used:
    https://www.christopherfielden.com/writing-challenges/how-to-sell-books.php

    With your help, we could make the 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology an Amazon bestseller. Please visit the page, read it carefully and follow the plan on launch day – you’ll help us sell more books, gain readers for your stories and generate money for charity 🙂

    The launch party will take place on Saturday 15th January 2022 online, via Zoom, at 7pm GMT. It will be held in conjunction with Talking Tales, an established storytelling event. There will be many readings from the book, plus readings by other writers via Talking Tales. You are welcome to read your 81 word story at the event, or just come along and listen if you prefer. If you’d like to attend, please reply to this email.

    I will be sending another email to everyone specifically about the launch party nearer the time. I will also set up a Facebook event for the launch.

    In case anyone missed my previous emails, sent in January and June 2021, here is a recap: We received our 1,000th story on 17th January 2021 and are now preparing to publish the unofficial world record breaking anthology. Proceeds from book sales will support The Arkbound Foundation, a charity in the UK that aims to widen access to literature and improve diversity within publishing. The book is being published by Victorina Press, an independent UK publisher who follow the principles of bibliodiversity.

    A note re communication. All the other writing challenge books I’ve published have 100 authors in them. I would usually just send updates via BCC (blind carbon copy) from Outlook. Because this project requires 1,000 people to be contacted, I have set up an email list in Mailchimp for communication – it’s the only safe way I can send that many emails at once. So, you are on an email list but it will ONLY be used for updates about the 81 Words project. This should result in around 5 or 6 emails that communicate release dates, where you can find the book, details of the launch party etc. Once the book is launched and we’ve undertaken the launch party, the list will be permanently deleted and you will not be contacted again.

    If you have any questions, please reply to this email.

    Cheers, Chris

    ==============================================
    You are receiving this email because you have had one of your stories published via the 81 Word Writing Challenge run on Chris Fielden’s website. The challenge has been running since April 2017. We received our 1,000th story recently and are now preparing to publish an unofficial world record breaking anthology. You can find all the details here: https://www.christopherfielden.com/writing-challenges/81words.php

    Unsubscribe authorjakecosmosaller@gmail.com from this list:
    https://christopherfielden.us3.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=bedbfde48ea295a3d329b46e4&id=5abac1f501&e=2c84e92b6f&c=be0e1f3679

    Our mailing address is:
    www.christopherfielden.com
    16a Beach Road West
    Portishead
    Bristol, Bristol BS20 7HR
    United Kingdom

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Two Drops of Ink has featured me this month.

    Check it out. Great write-up.

    Two Drops of Ink Update

    Two Drops of Ink Publishes Recent Poems

    the Cosmic Bench in Lithia Park Published in Two Drops of Ink

    Cosmos’s Reading List 2021

    Two Drops of Ink: A Literary Blog

    The Literary Home for Collaborative Writing

    NOVEMBER 7, 2021MARILYN L. DAVIS

    Sunday Spotlight: John “Jake” Cosmos Aller

    By: Marilyn L. Davis

    I suffer from poet envy. I can’t ever get past thinking that roses are red, and then I get stuck.

    One person that I’ve always admired is John “Jake” Cosmos Aller. His poetry seems to reflect many thoughts I’ve had about life, love, loss, and loneliness.

    Touched by Jake’s Words

    We know that any writer who touches us stays with us, and with each subsequent Poetry Break or fiction submission for the Best 1000 words for an Image Prompt, he hasn’t disappointed me.

    Lithia Park
    lithia park

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Take the image of the bench above. Several writers tackled it in the contest, but no one brought that bench to life – literally –  as Jake did in his entry for Best 1000 Words for the Image Contest: John Cosmos Aller: The Cosmic Bench in Lithia Park 

    Excerpt:

    The bench woke up and spoke to Sam.

    “Sam, how are you doing? An old friend of mine, I am delighted that I can speak with you.”

    Sam looked around and could not find out where the voice was coming from but realized that the bench had spoken to him. Sam laughed and said, “Well, bench, if you can speak, tell me what you know.”

    The bench spoke of Sam’s life and of the lives of others in the community that Sam knew. The bench said he knew everything that occurred in the lives of the people that sat down to rest, reflect, or remember.

    And the trees knew, too, as did the cosmic cat and even the squirrels. But people, well, they just did not know how to listen to nature and the world around them. In a way, it was too bad because the bench had so much wisdom to implant.

    I See His Poetry

    When I started at Two Drops of Ink in 2014, I claimed the job of finding images for posts. Scott Biddulph was a great editor, but his choice of images sometimes seemed lackluster. Don’t worry, we had that conversation, so I’m not talking behind his back. His response was, “I don’t have an artistic talent; you do.”

    So I scoured every known site and found Pixabay and Unsplash. If you need images for your blog, these are two free-to-use sites that never disappoint me.

    I loved the job then and still do. Some of Jake’s poetry has been especially fun to the image. It might just be me, but if you squint, I think you can see a little of Jake in the image for Just An Unhinged Lunatic Howling At The Moon

     

     

     

     

     

     

    And finally, I had to say something

    So I gathered up my manly courage

    And walked up to her

    And she looked at me

    And instantly bewitched my soul

    With a devilish grin

    I lost all reason

    And became a raving lunatic

    Just an unhinged lunatic

    Howling at the moon

    Switching Gears

    From a female perspective, we sometimes wish we had that kind of influence on a man. But then, Jake switches things up for us in Howling at the Moon. Our love-struck man transforms under the effects of the moon:

    Excerpt:

    Pink Moon

     

     

     

     

     

    Beneath the lunatic rays

    Of the blood-red full moon

    The lunatic lights of the moon

    Casts a wild primeval glow

    On me

    The hormonal chemicals are unleashed

    The wild beast within

    Escapes it chain

    And I howl with delight

    A werewolf

    Free at last

    Understanding His Characters

    The other thing I like about Jake’s poetry is that he writes about subjects I know, if not first hand, then in the retelling by countless men and women I’ve worked with for 30 years. Addiction either robs us, or we give it away, all the things that some people take for granted – a job, home, children, car, or food on the table.

    Some of the characters in his poetry are downtrodden, not necessarily from addiction, but the sentiments and experiences of his character in Just Enough for Coffee sound hauntingly familiar.

    Alzheimer’s, homelessness, and out-of-work are subjects that most people wouldn’t tackle in poetry, yet Jake does so admirably.

    Excerpt:

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The homeless man

    Had been on the streets

    For too long

    Barely remembered his life

    Before early-onset Alzheimer’s 

    Robbed him of his job

    His dignity

    His wife 

    His life

    His money

    Now he drifted

    Waiting for the grim reaper

    To call him home 

    Any day now

    He prayed nightly

    To a god

    That he no longer believed in

    Lonely and Laudable Words

    Jake delves into loneliness with wonderful mind/word images in many of his poems. Here are some that express the despair of all humans cut off from contact, friendship, and love in Reflections and One Crazy Day.

    Excerpt:

     

     

     

     

    One dismal night

    One lousy, lonely, loathsome demented night

    In a godforsaken bar

    In the global south

    In a tropical hell hole

    Drinking my way to hell

    As fast as I could

    Drinking alone with my buddies

    Jack Daniels, Jimmy Walker

    Wild Turkey and Old Grandad

    Excerpt:

    I looked up

    Looked out at the window

    At the full moon

    Saw by its lunatic light

    Your face

    Was on the moon

    And I looked up

    At the light

    That crazy light

    And dreamed

    I was with you

    Again 

    And I woke up

    Again

    And I woke up

    Alone in my bed

    Climate Change in Poetry?

    I am so impressed with Jake’s ability to take a hot topic and turn it into poetry. Ten Years After Climate Change Collapse envisions the collapsed world through a poet’s eyes. Excerpt:

    Sam Adams carried heat

    To protect himself

    Against the wild animals.

    The lions, tigers, coyotes, wolves,

    And their running feral dog gangs,

    Who prowled the city streets

    Preying on deer, feral cows,

    feral cats and pigs

    Who grazed among the ruins.

    And the two-legged neo-savage gangs,

    And what was left of the city police

    Interchangeable with the gangsters,

    Battled it out for control.

    The second poem in that group sizes up the situation from the Lion King’s perspective. We’ve spent years killing animals and they finally decide that enough is enough.

    Excerpt:

    lion
    lion

     

     

     

     

     

    The lion king,

    Addresses the animal parliament

    The question before them

    Was simple.

    Will humans have to die,

    To atone for their sins,

    In almost destroying the world.

    Through pollution, mismanagement of resources

    Subsequent climate  change,

    Fueled by greed and corruption?

    Are all humans guilty as charged

    Will they all have to die?

    Positive Poetry from Jake Aller

    Before you think that all of Jake’s poetry is maudlin and melancholy, there’s a humorous and positive side to many of his poems, too.  Dora, The Intergalactic Explorer, and Dragonfly in My Mind are two that show his playful, positive side.

    Excerpt:

    dora
    dora

    Dora, the intergalactic explorer

    Is traveling to the strangest planet

    of all the known worlds

    she is traveling incognito

    with a video crew

    making a documentary

    the planet earth

    is known as a planet

    of intelligent monkeys

    Excerpt:

    Oh, difficult, negative thoughts

    Be gone

    Like the bugs

    You are

    I’ll squash you like

    The evil creatures

    You are

    The sweet music

    Invades my soul

    Driving away

    The evil bugs

    And I soar

    Like the majestic

    Dragonfly

    Far above

    The chaos below

    Piqued Your Interest in Jake’s Poetry?

    I hope I’ve gotten your attention and that you read Jake’s posts here at Two Drops of Ink. Here’s four more for your enjoyment:

    A Wild Man Sits in a Gilded Cage

    2019 The Last Year of America’s Greatness

    Mocking Faces Staring at Me

    God’s Confession

    I Bet He Could Improve on Roses are Red

    I wonder if Jake could help me with my roses are red? Oh, sorry, I digress. But I just know that with the imagination Jake has, he could do something magical. I might just ask him.

    Bio: John “Jake” Cosmos Aller

    John “Jake” Cosmos Aller is a novelist, poet, and former Foreign Service officer, having served 27 years with the U.S. State Department. He toured in ten countries – Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Korea, India, St Kitts, St Lucia, St Vincent, Spain, and Thailand, and traveled to 45 countries during his career.

    Jake has been an aspiring novelist for several years. He is pursuing publication on:

    He has been writing poetry all his life and has published his poetry in electronic poetry forums, including All Poetry, Moon Café, and Duane’s Poetree and literary magazines.

    He is looking forward to transitioning to his third career – full-time novelist and poet after completing his second career as a Foreign Service officer and his first career as an educator overseas for six years upon completing his Peace Corps service in South Korea.

    LINKS:

    https://kr.linkedin.com/in/jakealler

    http://www.Writing.Com/authors/Jcosmos

    http://www.poetrysoup.com/me/jakecosmos

    http://www.moontowncafe.com/members/view_profile.asp?id=28083

    https://allpoetry.com/Jake_Aller

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    The Poet Publishes Wild Thing

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The Poet has published an Adversity Anthology featuring two of my poems. “Wild Things”, and “Wild Things Run Amuck”. You can find them on page 33-35 in volume Two. This is the third time I have been published in The Poet’s anthologies and I will submit again on the theme of cultural identity. To my writer friends, this is a great publication, they do quality work but unfortunately no payment yet.

    To order a copy from Amazon.co.uk click on the button below. Alternatively, search ASIN: B09JJ7FQ6S in your own country’s Amazon store.

    Wild Things Run Amuck
    Wild Things
    A Poet Contemplating the End of Times
    Computer plots against me
    the Democratic Party Needs a Lion Tamer

     

    more monster images for poem jpg
    more monster images for poem jpg

     

     

     

     

     

    Wild Things Run Amuck

    4 am
    O dark hundred
    Bewitching hour
    Time for wild things.

    To escape
    From their prisons
    Deep in the mind
    Of the sleeping man.

    They escape
    Hideous demons
    Ghouls, goblins, monsters
    Escaped banshees.

    The wild things
    Sniff the air
    Saying it was time
    For some wilding.

    The wild things
    Jump out the window
    And run amuck
    Spreading chaos
    in their wake.

    Killing everyone they see
    Raping women and children,
    Vandalizing buildings,
    Yelling screaming.

    As the wild things
    Run amuck
    Led by a half man half horse
    Centaur like creature
    With a Putin like mask
    And the voice of Donald Trump

    The wild things run amuck
    All over the town
    Spreading chaos
    Until the dawning sun,

    Turns them back
    Into vampire like creatures.
    And werewolves
    Howling at the full moon.

    The wild things
    Come back
    And enter their prison
    Deep in the sleeper’s head

    .And the wild things
    Fade into a nightmarish image
    As the sleeping man
    Awakes recalling the dream,

    And the night of terror
    When the wild things
    Came out to play
    At o dark hundred.

    Wild Things

    Wild things come out to play
    Intending to unleash chaos
    Leaving their prisons
    Deep inside the mind.

    The wild things
    Have come out to run amok
    In the light of the full moon.

    Nightmarishly real foul creatures
    Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
    Monsters, hell hounds,

    Escaped banshees
    Straight out of hell
    Howling at the lunatic light
    Of the full moon.

    A Poet Contemplating the End of Times (submited but not published.)

    a Poet sits in his lair
    high above the city

    contemplating the end
    the end of days

    the end of the world
    approaching him

    He saw the signs
    all around him

    the decay
    the rot lay deep

    all around him
    the world woke up

    and the poet
    smiled

    he was no longer
    a lone voice

    in the wilderness
    screaming about the end

    as the world
    woke up

    perhaps too late
    perhaps not

    the poet spoke
    and the world listened

    to his pleas
    no longer

    falling on deaf eats
    the poet smiles

    and prepared
    for the end

    of his time
    as he saw

    the grim reaper
    coming for him.

    Computer Plots Against Me

    (submited but not published.)

    evil_computer_is_evil_by_insanefangirl_d32vpue-fullview
    evil_computer_is_evil_by_insanefangirl_d32vpue-fullview

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I often think
    that my computer
    hates me
    and is plotting against me.

    for example
    often
    the computer dies
    killing my data
    and giving me the proverbial finger.

    other times it takes forever
    to open a simple word document
    multiple copies
    all with nonresponse errors.

    and excel
    well don’t get me started
    one day
    for some reason,

    Excel refused to accept
    anything imported
    from outside Excel.

    gave me a very helpful error message
    ran out of fonts
    okay?
    and you click Okay
    five to 500 times (a record I counted)

    until finally, it cleared
    but you lost
    any data you might have had.

    I have pretty much given up
    on Microsoft
    I sent them a goodbye letter.

    but they of course
    true to form
    never acknowledge it.

    and so they are doomed
    to become the latest
    corporate dinosaur.

    like Block Buster
    or Sears Roebuck.

    the Democratic Party Needs a Lion Tamer

    (submited but not published.)

    joe biden
    joe biden

     

     

     

     

     

    the democratic elders
    sitting around
    the proverbial non-smoked filled room
    contemplating the state of play

    looking at the candidates
    that are still at play
    realizing that none of them
    are the lion tamer

    that the times need
    to take on the President
    the President is the ultimate
    disrupter of the status quo

    the ultimate change agent
    the master of destruction
    who has the pulse
    of the public

    the democrats need to find
    a progressive champion
    a real new deal
    who can become

    their lion tamer
    and put the beast
    that is Trump
    back in his dark cage

    the hour is getting late
    as the nation contemplates their fate
    will the democrats step up to the plate
    and stop the lion in his place

    Are we all doomed
    to watch the end of America
    from our television screens
    as the beast emerges

    triumphant and real
    calling forth the trumpeters
    and their dark allies
    in the alt-right.

    OUR NEXT THEME

    One question we always ask our poets is; do your culture and heritage influence your writing? And so, for our next collection, the theme is Cultural Identity. Click on the link for further details:

    https://www.thepoetmagazine.org/contribute
    Deadline January 31, 2022

    They publish four anthologies a year. I have been in three out of the recent four ( and due to the technical glitch mentioned above should have been in a fourth one).

    Contribute to our anthologies
    ________________________________________
    We produce some of the largest international anthologies on particular themes and topics ever published.

    Working cover only
    Our next anthology’s theme: CULTURAL IDENTITY
    Deadline Jan 31st, 2022

    One question we always ask our poets is; does your culture and heritage influence your writing?

    Another challenging subject for our next collection; Cultural Identity is a part of a person’s identity, or their self-conception and self-perception, and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct culture.

    Use your skills as a poet to tell us about YOUR OWN particular cultural identity, heritage, nationality or social and ethnic background. What do you love about your culture? What aspects or features of your culture inspire you? How is your culture unique and fascinating, and how does it influence you to put words onto paper?

    You can also submit poetry in your own language, but it MUST be accompanied by a translation into English.

    Submission guidelines for CULTURAL IDENTITY
    You can submit up to SIX pieces per themed anthology (but please do not submit more than six). Any style aside from continuous prose. No word count for poetry, but keep in mind the length if you would like more than one or two considered, as we can’t devote too many pages to just one poet.

    Along with your submission/s, please also send:

    1). A writers’ biography, in the THIRD PERSON, of between 150 and 500 words, INCLUDING your country of origin AND the city and country in which you currently reside, OR the city and state if in the USA, (however, we don’t need your actual mailing address, but our focus is to showcase the diversity of international poets contributing to our collections). Let us know if we can use your biography from a previous contribution.

    2). Any contact and social media details you’d also like publishing e.g. website, Amazon author’s page, Facebook, Insta, Twitter, Blogs etc. (We will always add your email address for other editors/poets to connect with you – but please let us know if you don’t want this adding). For social media, please add your handle (for example.: FB @Robin.Barratt1), and not just your name, as sometimes it takes us ages to find the poet’s social media page!

    General Guidelines

    Please try to send all contributions together in a Word or Open Office.doc, AND/OR within the body of the email. Email your submission/s to: Robin@ThePoetMagazine.org with a COPY to RobinBarratt@hotmail.com (as sometimes emails go into spam folders and they can get missed). So we can identify your submission, please mark in the subject line the collection in which you are contributing to, e.g. CULTURAL IDENTITY. We have hundreds of emails every week, and sending everything together in one email makes it much easier for us to look at specific contributions, rather than looking through lots of different emails from the same contributor (which may then accidentality get overlooked).

    We will, of course, check for typos and spelling (as we are based in the UK, and to retain continuity, we change American spelling into English spelling), but we don’t heavily edit a poet’s work, so please, as a poet, it is YOUR responsibility to make sure your poem is checked, proofed and ready for publishing, so ONLY send final, print-ready copy.

    VERY IMPORTANT: Our readership and contributors range from age 11 to over 100, and from virtually every culture and country. We respect everyone, so strictly nothing of an adult nature, and no swearing, profanities or obscenities of any kind, or disrespect to other countries or cultures.

    We at THE POET really do want your words to be read by as many people as possible, so therefore you retain FULL copyright on your work (by submitting, you are giving THE POET permission to publish and/or re-publish your work) and, unlike many other literary platforms and magazines, with THE POET you can re-publish your work elsewhere, and at anytime (but if you can kindly mention first published with THE POET, then great!). Also, we accept previously published material too, but ONLY with details of where and when it was previously published. Please add this to the end of the poem previously published.

    PLEASE NOTE: we are not-for-profit and so we don’t pay for contributions, nor send paperback copies out to every contributor – with so many contributions from all over the world, for example; in FRIENDS & FRIENDSHIP there are 248 contributions from 175 poets in 46 countries, and from 26 states in the US, this would be almost impossible to do, and extremely expensive, and we simply couldn’t publish if we did. Instead we prefer to focus on promoting and publishing poetry, and showcasing poets worldwide, and virtually all our poets so far (now over 1000) are more than happy to contribute under these terms. Please do not submit your work if you are unhappy with these terms. We do, however, send contributors a free PDF copy of every anthology they contribute to.

    Questions? CONTACT US.

    There is no subscription to THE POET magazine; everything

    THE POET’s Bookshelf – NEW

    You can now support THE POET, and promote your book at the same time! Whether a new release, or an older title you would like to re-promote, our new Bookshelf is a great, very low-cost place to promote your book/s to thousands of poetry lovers worldwide.

    https://www.thepoetmagazine.org/bookshelf

    THE POET’s WEBSITE

    Lastly, because of the volume of poetry and poet profiles we are currently receiving, we are temporarily closed for submissions from poets to be featured on THE POET’s website, but will keep you updated and let you know when we re-open.

    Back again shortly, until then … keep writing poetry everyone!

    … and stay safe!

    Robin
    THE POET Magazine
    Poetry For Mental Health

    Autumn 2021 theme: ADVERSITY
    Volumes 1 & 2
    ________________________________________

    With 272 contributions from 158 poets in 49 countries, and 28 states across the US; published in two volumes, ADVERSITY is now our most contributed to the anthology to date. Please support us as we support poets by buying a copy; they are not expensive, and every copy we sell goes towards helping us promote and publish poetry.

    Thank you!

    Volume 1

    AUTUMN 2021 – Poetry on the theme of ADVERSITY, from poets around the world.

    75 poets
    138 poems
    255 pages
    Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm)

    Featuring: Phyliss Merion Shanken – NEW JERSEY, USA; Niels Hav – DENMARK; Ed Ahern – CONNECTICUT, USA; Kathy Sherban – CANADA; Michael Ceraolo – OHIO, USA; Ali Alhazmi – SAUDI ARABIA; Ndaba Sibanda – ZIMBABWE / ETHIOPIA; C.S. Kempling – CANADA; Michelle Morris – ENGLAND; P. J. Reed – ENGLAND; Nolo Segundo – NEW JERSEY, USA; Linda M. Crate – PENNSYLVANIA, USA; Fahredin Shehu – KOSOVO; Monsif Beroual – MOROCCO; Mark Andrew Heathcote – ENGLAND; Alicia Minjarez Ramírez – MEXICO; Gary Shulman – CALIFORNIA, USA; Mukund Gnanadesikan – CALIFORNIA, USA; Joralyn Fallera Mounsel – PHILIPPINES / SINGAPORE; John Grey – USA / AUSTRALIA; Nancy Shiffrin – CALIFORNIA, USA; Francis H. Powell – ENGLAND; Ana Stjelja – SERBIA; Lynn White – WALES; Germain Droogenbroodt – SPAIN / BELGIUM; Judy DeCroce – NEW YORK, USA; Antoni Ooto – NEW YORK, USA; Shikdar Mohammed Kibriah – BANGLADESH; Pavol Janik PhD – SLOVAKIA; Srđan Sekulić – SERBIA; Gayle Bell – TEXAS, USA; Tali Cohen Shabtai – ILLINOIS, USA; Ana M. Fores-Tamayo – CUBA / USA; Aminath Neena – MALDIVES; Bryan Andrews – SOUTH AFRICA; Borche Panov – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Daniela Andonovska-Trajkovska – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Karen Douglass – COLORADO, USA; Cordelia Hanemann – NORTH CAROLINA, USA; Zorica Bajin Đukanović – SERBIA; Joan McNerney – NEW YORK CITY, USA; Wansoo Kim PhD – SOUTH KOREA; Carl ‘Papa’ Palmer- WASHINGTON, USA; Caroline Johnson – ILLINOIS, USA; Alonzo “zO” Gross – PENNSYLVANIA, USA; Alisa Velaj – ALBANIA; Jyotirmaya Thakur – ENGLAND / INDIA; Fabrice Poussin – GEORGIA, USA; Patrick O’Shea – NETHERLANDS / UK; Russell Willis – VERMONT, USA; Paul S. Mugano – UGANDA; Michael Estabrook – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Susan Sonde – MARYLAND, USA; Alexious J. Kachepa – MALAWI; Lou Faber – FLORIDA, USA; Eliza Segiet – POLAND; Mark Fleisher – NEW MEXICO, USA; Anthony Ward – ENGLAND; Mark J. Mitchell – CALIFORNIA, USA; Nelie Bautista – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Jack D. Harvey – NEW YORK, USA; Norbert Góra – POLAND; Tamam Kahn – CALIFORNIA, USA; Kristine Ventura – MALAYSIA / PHILIPPINES; Shweta Shanker – INDIA / SWITZERLAND; Igor Pop Trajkov – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Kevin Brown – ARKANSAS, USA; Ndumiso Maphumulo – SOUTH AFRICA; Pat Smekal – CANADA; Gary Beck – NEW YORK, USA; Carolyn Martin – OREGON, USA; Neil Leadbeater – SCOTLAND; Amrita Valan – INDIA; Rema Tabangcura – PHILIPPINES / SINGAPORE and Mantz Yorke – ENGLAND.

    To order a copy from Amazon.co.uk click on the button below. Alternatively, search ASIN: B09JJ7FQ6S in your own country’s Amazon store.

    Volume 2

    AUTUMN 2021 – Poetry on the theme of ADVERSITY, from poets around the world.

    83 poets
    134 poems
    265 pages
    Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm)

    Featuring: Rhonda Parsons – ILLINOIS, USA; Andr

    My poems appear on pages 33-32.

    Carter Brown – CALIFORNIA, USA; Hussein Habasch – KURDISTAN / GERMANY; Anne Mitchell – CALIFORNIA, USA; Dr. Sarah Clarke – KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN; Brian Wake – ENGLAND;Mónika Tóth – ROMANIA; Jyoti Nair – INDIA; Jake Aller – SOUTH KOREA / USA; Shereen Abraham – UNITED ARAB EMIRATES; Michal Mahgerefteh – USA / ISRAEL; Shikdar Mohammed Kibriah – BANGLADESH; Stephen Kingsnorth – WALES; Steven Jakobi – USA / HUNGARY; Tony Daly – VIRGINIA, USA; David A Banks – ENGLAND; Linda Imbler – KANSAS, USA; Eduard Schmidt-Zorner – REPUBLIC OF IRELAND / GERMANY; Dianalee Velie – NEW HAMPSHIRE, USA; Aleksandra Vujisić – MONTENEGRO; Maria Nemy Lou Rocio – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES; Rezauddin Stalin – BANGLADESH; John Tunaley – ENGLAND; Anne Maureen Medrano Esperidion – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES; Rahim Karim – KYRGYZSTAN; Sazma Samir – AUSTRALIA / SINGAPORE; Rich Orloff – NEW YORK, USA; Volkan Hacıoğlu – TURKEY; Ermira Mitre Kokomani – NEW JERSEY, USA; Mark O. Decker – DELAWARE, USA; Sandy Phillips – ENGLAND; Lorraine Sicelo Mangena – ZIMBABWE; Gabriela Docan – ENGLAND / ROMANIA; William Conelly – ENGLAND / USA; Sharon Harper – MISSOURI, USA; Andrei Pershin – RUSSIA; Amelia Fielden – AUSTRALIA; Bhuwan Thapaliya – NEPAL; Barbara Webb – ENGLAND; Jenny Brown – ENGLAND; Marilyn Longstaff – ENGLAND; S. D. Kilmer – NEW YORK, USA; Donna Zephrine – NEW YORK, USA; Nivedita Karthik – INDIA; Kakoli Ghosh – INDIA; Bill Cushing – CALIFORNIA, USA; Rachel Elion Baird – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Brajesh Singh – INDIA; Kate Young – ENGLAND; Bill Cox – SCOTLAND; Vesna Mundishevska-Veljanovska – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Gabriella Garofalo – ITALY; Tracy Davidson – ENGLAND; Cheryl-lya Broadfoot – ENGLAND; Shaswata Gangopadhyay – INDIA; Jill Sharon Kimmelman – DELAWARE, USA; Jane Fuller – SCOTLAND; Ian Cognitō – CANADA; Adrienne Stevenson – CANADA; Anamika Nandy – INDIA; Wilda Morris – ILLINOIS, USA; Kathleen Bleakley – AUSTRALIA; John Laue – CALIFORNIA, USA; Vernes Subašić – BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA; Paula Bonnell – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Madhavi Tiwary – KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN / INDIA; Ankita Patel – INDIA; Janet Bi Li Chan – AUSTRALIA; Carol Casey – CANADA; Rose Menyon Heflin – WISCONSIN, USA; Prafull Shiledar – INDIA; Lisa Molina – TEXAS, USA; Aaron Pamei – INDIA; Monica Manolachi – ROMANIA; Maid Čorbić – BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA; Alun Robert – ENGLAND; Suchismita Ghoshal – INDIA Dr. Achingliu Kamei – INDIA; Julie Ann Tabigne – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Mary Anne Zammit – MALTA; Jenelyn Leyble – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Hanh Chau – CALIFORNIA, USA and Maria Editha Turingan Garma-Respicio – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES.

    There is no subscription to THE POET magazine; everything on the website is FREE to view. Our anthologies are FREE to read online too! And there are NO annoying adverts or banners! But we do need financial support to keep THE POET going, and to continue promoting and publishing poetry from around the world.

    Please consider ordering a copy of this book (volume one) and On the Road and on Faith which all featured my poems.

    The next call is also right up my alley as I have written several poems on this topic.

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    COVID Negative

    corona testing
    corona testing

     

     

     

     

     

    I have written numerous Corona poems since the pandemic hit.  One of my favorite COVID characters is General Corona,  He came to me in a vision after watching the former guy droned on about battling an invisible army,  I figured every army even a virus army had to have a commanding general.  I imagined him as a huge  figure riding the black horse of pestilence from revelations and the virus army as imperial storm troopers looking for the the unvacinated, unmasked victims to infect with ray guns that spread the virus about , This one is sort of a haibun poem based on my getting a COVID test for travel the other day.

    how to write a haibun

    Corona Virus Poems Published
    more corona poems published
    Corona Ghosts
    corona virus revised

    more corona virus poems

    Corona Virus is Not God’s Punishment
    Christian Right on Corona

    I had to get a COVID test
    To get on a plane
    Anxiety filled my mind
    As I waited to take the test
    I was filled with anxiety
    Then I got the results

    “COVID Negative
    Cleared for International travel”

    Anxiety fades away
    Everything is fine
    The world resumes
    I defeated COVID
    For now.

    Yesterday I had to get a COVID test for my upcoming return to the States, flying to DC for three weeks on the 15th. US is requiring a negative PRT COVID test conducted within 72 hours of departure.  You can get it done at a health center but it would cost 100 dollars and results take 24 to 48 hours. Fortunately, the US army at Camp Humphreys had their act together.  Took less than an hour to do the test which was not too invasive a procedure and to get the needed “COVID Negative, Cleared for International Travel” certificate.

    We have to do the same thing upon our return but getting a test site in the U.S. was a bit difficult as it was hard to find a place that would guarantee results in time for your flight, but we found a lab that guaranteed 24-hour returns for a price.

    Word to the wise,  if you are traveling to the US and returning, make sure you get your re-entry permit on time, and your COVID tests were done on time.  You may have to call around to get a place that gets results back in time.

    General Corona Poems

    Coronavirus
    Coronavirus

    General Corona Leads His Troops Into Battle, crown of sonnets

    General Corona leads his forces across the world
    riding on a black horse

    from out of the Apocalypse  ride the four horsemen
    which are let loose upon the world
    He leads his forces across the world

    into battle as the leader of his evil forces
    The enemy of humanity

    General Corona he does not care
    nor does his virus minions care
    about your nationality he does not care
    about your politics he does not care
    or your wealth or who you are
    for all you are nothing but humanity
    the corona general sees humanity

    the corona general sees humanity
    as nothing but hosts for his virus army

    as nothing but hosts for his virus army
    chanting death to humanity
    until his evil army
    sweeps throughout the world
    throughout the world
    and millions must die

    it is the will of the general all must die
    and it is the end of the world

    or perhaps the beginning of a new world
    filled with hope and love through out the world
    humanity comes alive throughout the world
    fighting back against the virus army
    peace, love and compassion defeats the army
    and general corona will finally himself die

    General Corona is coming for us all

     

    corona
    corona

     

     

     

     

     

    I saw the best minds of my generation
    destroyed by madness
    consumed by the greed
    all around us
    the dreaded corona virus spreads
    its death and destruction
    all over the world

    no one can escape
    THE FATE OF    THE WORLD
    IS      INDEED     AT    STAKE
    NONE         OF     US    CAN

    ESCAPE

    OUR

    FATE

    content tracing “Howl” by Allen Ginsberg

    General Corona is Happy

     

    corona virus
    corona virus

     

     

     

     

     

    General Corona
    is happy
    his mission is a great success
    as his armies of virus bots
    spread throughout the world
    spreading chaos and destruction
    as all bow down
    to his invisible armies
    none can escape their fate
    on that date
    that he unleashed his armies
    upon the world
    all humans must die
    his armies scream out

    Plane, Train or Automobile – none of us can escape our fate

    covid 580
    covid 580

     

     

     

     

     

    in these dark and dire times
    we find ourselves living
    we often fear that the times
    are infected with death

    and so we are afraid
    deathly afraid
    that if we take a plane
    we will find General Corona
    among the passengers

    and we are afraid
    deadly afraid
    that the subways
    are incubators
    of death and destruction

    the virus spreads
    fear and death
    in its wake

    many of us
    retreating to our homes
    and venturing out
    in our cars

    only to find
    death is stalking us
    as traffic piles up

    traffic accidents
    still killing more people
    that the dreaded General Corona

    the grim reaper smiles
    his work is done

    Cosmic Debris Corona sonnet 2

    covid 19 virus

    covid 19 virus 

     

    I received a mysterious email package
    followed by a phone call offering me a magical mask
    a mask that they claim would prevent me
    from the dreaded General Corona
    hey there
    who you jiving with that cosmic debris
    a mask that they did not want me
    me to know about

    TOP   SECRET     CODE         2       LEVEL  STUFF

    MUST    ACT                 NOW

    SEND                             MONEY  ASAP

    BUY

    IT

    NOW

    # content tracing-  “Cosmic Debris by Frank Zappa”

    with apologies to Frank Zappa

    Corona Consumes Me  Corona Sonnet  3

     

    covid19
    covid19

     

     

     

     

     

    I am consumed by the corona virus
    and I am slowly being taken over
    as the virus infects my mind

    taking me over turning me
    into a wild raving zombie man
    Let there be light

    will I become the first
    ZOMBIE APOLYCAPASE LOOMS

    WILL WE ALL DIE
    CORONA

    KILLS

    ME

    content tracing – Let there be light from Bible and the entire Zombie Apocalypse genre where the Zombie flu started usually in China as a flu and then morphs into the zombie disease

    God Deals with Corona

    god is having a crisis meeting
    on the corona virus situation
    on planet 679542099199
    otherwise known as planet earth
    in a minor corner
    of the milky way

    the deranged inhabitants
    of the planet
    somehow thought that GOD
    created them in his image
    and that they are his children
    all of them

    and that he listens to his prayers
    god was so tired of dealing with humans
    the most ornery stubborn stupid creatures
    of all the millions of sentient beings
    he had to deal with them
    more than any one else
    God created the world
    but then let nature take its course
    and sometimes things worked out
    and sometimes they did not
    and God just did not have the time
    to deal with every little detail
    of life on millions of planets
    across the vast universe

    His arch enemy Satan
    banished to Hell’s prison
    was always causing trouble

    everywhere in the universe
    and Satan also loved the mad
    creatures on planet earth
    what was god to do
    he did not know
    as he saw the death rates
    increase and grim reaper’s
    armies go to work

    his courts will  be filled
    billions stuck in limbo
    for centuries

    just did not have enough
    staff to do the work

    God signed off the conference
    and sighed again

    thinking about the mad creatures
    on the planet earth

    hoping that they would pull it together
    but knowing that he might have to intervene
    and went back to his other business
    enough of humans for one day

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    More Journal of Expressive Writing Publication

    Two Drops of Ink Update

    Jack Daniels’s Failed Intervention

    Unlikely Stories will publish my poem, “Jack Daniels Intervention” in their November edition.

    Dear Jake,

    Thank you for your continuing submissions to Unlikely Stories Mark V! I loved “Jack Daniels’s Failed Intervention” and would be delighted to publish it. We aim to run this piece sometime in the week of November 14-20.

    Yes, please resend your bio. Also, please feel free to send a headshot.
    If you tweet about publication, tag us at @USDotOrg, and we’ll retweet.
    Please join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unlikely.stories/. There, we’ll discuss your publication at Unlikely, and feel free to promote your other publications, as well.
    And please consider becoming a patron at http://www.patreon.com/unlikelystories, and/or disseminating that link.

    Also, in keeping with our activist mission, we’re asking contributors to recommend a charity. The charity will be mentioned at the end of your bio, like this: “Jake recommends [charity name and link].”

    Charities can be any organization, anywhere in the world, that does not operate for profit. A charity does not need to be a registered non-profit. For example, another press or magazine that deliberately operates at a loss is fine. This program is of course voluntary. Please do contact me with any questions.

    Thanks again,
    Jonathan

    Jack Daniel’s failed Intervention

    jack daniels

     

     

     

    Sam Adams
    Was drinking alone
    In the infamous Cosmos Bar,
    In Bangkok,
    The city of lost angels.
    Twenty drinks too sober

    He barely noticed
    The naked ladies
    Dancing on the stage.
    On his table

    He had a bottle of Jack Daniels
    Along with a bottle of Johnny Walker
    And five bottles of Singha beer.

    Drinking his way to hell
    Following the advice
    Of the old song

    “One bourbon, one scotch
    And one beer.

    one scotch, one bourbon, one beer

    That played on
    In his lonely head,

    This was his usual
    Friday night routine
    Just another pathetic loser
    Drinking in the Cosmos bar.

    The barmaids
    Left him alone
    He never paid them
    No attention anymore.

    He was there
    To make love
    to his booze bottles,
    the booze bottles,
    were his only friends.

    That night,
    About 0 dark hundred
    He looked up.

    Saw the bottle of Jack Daniels
    Had somehow transformed
    Into that of a younger version
    Of Sam Adams.

    The figure announced,
    That he was the spirit
    Of Jack Daniels

    And had a message
    For Sam Adams.

    “Master,
    It is not my place
    To complain

    But you are
    Drinking a bit too much.
    Twenty drinks a night

    For the last few weeks,
    Don’t you think?

    You are so far gone
    You don’t even notice
    The naked ladies
    Anymore.

    I want you
    To quit
    This one-way ride
    Down the hell hole.

    Put down the bottle
    Go home with Khun Lek
    Who will help you forget
    What you need to forget.

    If you continue drinking tonight,
    The only destination is death

    My friend the Grim Reaper
    Has your ticket
    Ready for redemption.
    So, stop drinking “

    Soon the other bottles
    In front of him

    Started talking to him
    Pleading with him
    To just stop drinking.

    He stared out
    Convince he was going mad
    The barmaids stared
    At the unholy sight,

    As the bottles in the room
    All came alive,
    And began chasing Sam,

    Out into the busy street
    Where a bus ran him over,
    Died on the spot.

    Thus ended Sam Adams’s
    Last binge
    In the city of lost angels.

    Note: There is a real Cosmos Bar in Bangkok, at least there was back in the day.  This is based on a writing com prompt to write a personification poem about the feelings of an inanimate object, I chose a bottle of Jack Daniels.

    I submitted the following as well, but there were not published.

    The Shrimp Talkback
    Gov Abbot Calls for Freedom of Choice In Making Medical Decisions = Irony Meters Blow A Gasket  Found Poem with snarky commentary
    Governor Abbot, What Is Wrong with You? COVID
    9-11 Evil

    the Shrimp Talkback

    shrimp
    shrimp

     

     

     

     

     

    Sam Adams and friends
    Were enjoying a shrimp feast,
    Watching the live shrimp
    Being roasted
    Waiting to enjoy eating them.

    The head shrimp jump out of the pot
    Followed by other shrimp
    Soon thousands of shrimp
    Were everywhere.

    The head shrimp spoke up
    “Humans
    What gives you the right
    To kill us,
    To eat us,
    To burn us alive?

    Perhaps we should kill you
    Tear you apart
    And eat you?

    Would you like that
    You human scumbags?”

    The shrimp surrounded the humans
    Swarming all over them
    Killing them.

    Burning them
    As they overturn
    The flaming pots

    Biting them
    Smothering them
    In hot sauce
    As they eat them.

    Screaming
    “Death to all humans.”

    The head Shrimp finally said,
    Time to go
    We are so out of here.

    The shrimp all ran out the door
    And back into the shrimp farm waters.

    The firefighters
    Find the charred remains
    Of the humans.

    Now just charred skin and bones,
    Wondering how they died.

    The shrimp in the pound
    Lookout,
    Wondering if they should attack
    But decide they had eaten
    Enough human meat.
    For the evening.

    Gov Abbot Calls for Freedom of Choice in Making Medical Decisions = Irony Meters Blow a Gasket -found poem

    “

    governor abbot
    FILE PHOTO: Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks at the annual National Rifle Association (NRA) convention in Dallas, Texas, U.S., May 4, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Apparently,
    Rhetorical consistency
    Is about as high
    On Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s agenda

    As ensuring his constituents
    Have a working power grid,
    Are safe in their schools
    And can easily vote.

    On Thursday,
    the Republican governor
    fired off a tweet,

    blasting President Joe Biden’s announcement,
    of new requirements for large employers,
    to ensure workers either get vaccinated
    or face weekly COVID-19 tests.

    Calling the mandate
    an “assault on private businesses,”

    Abbott pledged that Texas,
    or its GOP leadership anyway,
    was working to thwart Biden’s “power grab.”

    And here’s where the tragicomic
    part comes in.

    “I issued an Executive Order
    protecting Texans’
    right to choose
    whether they get the COVID vaccine

    Added it to the special session agenda,”
    If you’ve been paying attention,
    you’re then aware
    that Abbott’s tweet trumpeting
    Texans’ right
    to make individual health choices,
    comes days after he signed a law.
    banning the majority
    of abortions in the state.

    Abbott is talking
    out both sides of his mouth
    when it comes to matters of choice.”

    Comment:

    The irony meters
    Have blown a gasket
    You talk about the right to choose
    The right to not get vaccinated
    Or wear a mask.

    You know that is the right
    To infect everyone else
    Including you
    You and your family could die.

    Because of idiots
    Who refuse to get a vaccination
    Or wear a mask.

    The blood is on your hands
    Own it.

    The corona ghosts
    Are watching you.

    Governor Abbot, what is Wrong with You?

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Governor.
    I want to ask you a very simple question
    about your opposition to mass mandates
    and vaccination requirements,
    and your saying people have a right to choose
    not to get vaccinated, or wear a mask.

    what is wrong with you?
    Right now,

    in this country,
    COVID is spreading out of control/

    especially in Texas and Florida,
    and a few other states
    where the vaccination rate is fairly low
    and people have abandoned wearing masks.

    People are dying
    Because so many people
    Refuse to do the right thing.

    Get a vaccine
    Wear a mask

    Avoid crowds
    If everyone did their part
    The pandemic would be soon over.

    But if people
    Continue to follow your guidance
    Acting like the self-centered scumbag
    That we now see you are,

    Thousands more will die
    The economy will not re-open
    Travel will not resume.

    Perhaps more dangerous variants
    Will emerge.

    And it is all on you
    Governor Abbot.

    Just man up,
    Admit you were wrong
    Encourage people to shut up.

    Get the vaccine
    And save your state
    And country.

    The corona ghosts
    Are watching you!

    Evil

     

     

     

     

    Evil in this world
    lurks in the deadliest places.
    Evil came to town on 911
    the day that evil swept over the world

    a true Black Swan event
    that transformed everything
    splitting the world into a pre-9-11 world
    and a post 9-11 world
    unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists,  the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews, the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring

    so many things can be traced
    to the impact of 9/11
    one of the most unlikely events
    of recent history

    that transformed
    everything

    yes there was a pre-9-11 world
    hard to imagine now
    and a post 9-11 worldwide police state
    on steroids

    lost democracy at home
    and abroad
    we are  still coping

    with the damages unleashed
    by the evil plane bombers
    fulfilling their mad desires
    their dictates from their mad God

    transforming the world
    unleashing evil
    on the once innocent world.

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Cosmos Movie List 2021 

    netflix K Drama Page

    Favorite K Drama

    Over the last few years, I finally became a K Drama fan.  Part of the reason is that my Korean is now good enough to mostly follow the dialogue although I still need subtitles.  Second, because of COVID, we’ve been mostly at home in Korea, and third, I finally just got into K Drama.  I know a bit late, but what the heck.

    In general, K Dramas come in two forms – movies and series. The series are reminiscent of Mexican telenovela – usually 16 episodes, occasionally 20, and occasionally fewer.  A few have two seasons.  Most run for about a month.  Almost all are available now on Netflix and Hulu with English sub-titles.   A few were quite controversial.  Parasite of course won the 2020 Oscar.  And Minuri won best-supporting actress this year.

    My favorites  K Dramas so far include:

    Crash Landing on You

    Vincenzo,” “

    Mine”,

    “Move to Heaven”

     “Parasite”,

    ‘DP,”

    Camilla Blooming.”

    Itaewon Class

    Stranger

    Mr. Sunshine

    Last Man Standing

    Mad About You

    Reflections

    Hell boundaching

    Memories of the Alhambra

    The Negotiation (film)

    Sisyphus: The Myth (2021)

    Space Sweepers K SF Drama

    The Last Man Standing K Drama

     Heist – not a K Drama, more of an S Drama but pretty good, but went on too long.  Should have ended with the first season.  There were lots of unanswered questions –

    Mr. Kim’s convenience

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Yet to Watch

    Minuri Movie

    Sky Castle

    Kingdom (South Korean TV series)

    Signal (South Korean TV series)

    My Mister

    Hospital Playlist

    Flower of Evil

    Synopsis and Comments  (from Wikpedia and other sources)

    Parasite  2020 Best Picture Oscar

    Parasite (Korean: 기생충; Hanja: 寄生蟲; RR: Guangcheng) is a 2019 South Korean black comedy thriller film directed by Bong Joon-ho, who co-wrote the screenplay with Han Jin-won. The film, starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-Kyun, Cho Yeo-Jeong, Choi Woo-Shak, Park So-dam, Jang Hye-jin, and Lee Jung-Eun, follows a poor family who schemes to become employed by a wealthy family and infiltrate their household by posing as unrelated, highly qualified individuals.

    Parasite premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival on 21 May 2019, where it became the first South Korean film to win the Palme d’Or. It was then released in South Korea by CJ Entertainment on 30 May 2019. The film was considered by many critics to be the best film of 2019. It grossed over $258 million worldwide on a production budget of about $15.5 million.

    Among its numerous accolades, Parasite won a leading four awards at the 92nd Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film, becoming the first non-English language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.[note 1]

    Parasite is the first South Korean film to receive Academy Award recognition and one of three films to win both the Palme d’Or and the Academy Award for Best Picture.[note 2] It won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language, and became the first non-English language film to win the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. At the 56th Grand Bell Awards and the 40th Blue Dragon Film Awards, Parasite had eleven nominations with five wins. At the 56th Buesking Arts Awards, it had twelve nominations with three wins. Joon-Ho has confirmed a TV series is in the works while two sequels are also planned.

     

    The Kim family—father Ki-take, mother Chung-sook, daughter Ki-Jung, and son Ki-woo—live in a small semi-basement apartment (banjara),[10] have low-paying temporary jobs as pizza box folders, and struggle to make ends meet.[11] University student Min-hyuk, a friend of Ki-woo’s, gives the family a scholar’s rock meant to promise wealth. Leaving to study abroad and knowing his friend needs the income, he suggests that Ki-woo poses as a university student to take over his job as an English tutor for the daughter of the wealthy park family, Da-Hye. Ki-woo, presenting himself as a Yonsei University student, is subsequently hired by the Parks.

    The Kim family schemes to get each member of the family a job by posing as unrelated and highly qualified workers to become servants of the Parks. Ki-Jung poses as “Jessica” and, using Ki-Woo as a reference, becomes an art therapist to the Parks’ young son, Da-song. Ki-Jung frames Yoon, Mr. Park’s chauffeur, for having sex in the car, then recommends Ki-take replace him. Finally, Chung-sook takes over as the Parks’ housekeeper after the Kim’s exploit the peach allergy of the long-time housekeeper, Moon-gang, to convince Mrs. Park that she has tuberculosis. Ki-woo begins a secret romantic relationship with Da-Hye.

    When the Parks leave on a camping trip, the Kim’s revel in the luxuries of their residence before Moon-gang abruptly appears at the door, telling Chung-sook she has left something in the basement. She enters a hidden entrance to an underground bunker created by the architect and previous homeowner, where Moon-Hwang’s husband, Geun-SAE, has been secretly living for over four years, hiding from loan sharks. Chung-sook refuses Moon-Hwang’s pleas to help Geun-SAE remain in the bunker, but the eavesdropping Kim’s accidentally reveal themselves. Moon-gang films them on her phone and threatens to expose their ruse to the Parks.

     

    A severe rainstorm brings the Parks home early, and the Kim’s scramble to clean up the home and subdue Moon-gang and Geun-SAE before they return. The Kim’s trap Geun-SAE and Moon-gang in the bunker. Mrs. Park reveals to Chung-sook that Da-song had a seizure-inducing traumatic experience on a previous birthday when he saw a “ghost” — actually Geun-SAE — emerging from the basement at night. Before the Kim’s manage to sneak out of the house, they hear Mr. Park’s off-handed comments about Ki-take’s smell. The Kim’s find their apartment flooded with sewer water and are forced to shelter in a gymnasium with other displaced people.

    The next day, Mrs. Park hosts a house party for Da-song’s birthday with the Kim family’s help. Ki-woo enters the bunker with the scholar’s rock to find Geun-SAE. Finding Moon-gang has died from a concussion she received during the earlier fight, he is attacked by Geun-SAE, who bludgeons his head with the rock and escapes, leaving Ki-woo lying in a pool of blood in the basement. Seeking to avenge Moon-gang, Geun-SAE stabs Ki-Jung with a kitchen knife in front of the horrified party guests. Da-song suffers another seizure upon seeing Geun-SAE, and a struggle breaks out until Chung-sook fatally impales Geun-SAE with a barbecue skewer. While Ki-take tends to a severely bleeding Ki-Jung, Mr. Park orders Ki-take to drive Da-song to the hospital. In the chaos, Ki-take, upon seeing Mr. Park’s disgusted reaction to Geun-SAE’s smell, angrily takes the knife and kills him. Ki-take then flees the scene, leaving behind the rest of the Kim family.

    Weeks later, Ki-woo is recovering from brain surgery. He and Chung-sook are convicted of fraud and put on probation. Ki-Jung has died and Ki-take, wanted by the police for Mr. Park’s murder, cannot be found. Geun-SAE has been assumed to be an insane homeless man, and neither his nor Ki-take’s motive for the stabbings is known. Ki-woo spies on the Parks’ home, now sold to a German family unaware of its history and sees a message in Morse code from a flickering light. Ki-take, who escaped into the bunker via the garage, has buried Moon-gang in the backyard and now raids the kitchen at night and flickers the light every day, hoping to Ki-woo will see it. Still living in their original basement apartment with his mother, Ki-woo writes a letter to Ki-take, vowing to earn enough money to one day purchase the house and reunite with his father.

    Cast[edit]

    Song Kang-ho as Kim Ki-take (Mr. Kim; 김기택; Gym Gitau), the father of the Kim family who is hired as Park Dong-ik’ s chauffeur.

    Choi Woo-Shak as Kim Ki-woo (Kevin; 김기우; Gym Gou), the son of the Kim family who is hired as Da-Hye’s English tutor. Choi Woo-Shak stated that the character is intelligent but does not have the vigor needed to succeed in examinations.[12]

    Lee Sun-kyun as Park Dong-ik (Nathan; 박동익; Bak Dongguk), the father of the Park family.

    Cho Yeo-Jeong as Choi Yeon-go (Madame; 최연교; Choe Yeong), the mother of the Park family.

    Park So-dam as Kim Ki-Jung (Jessica; 김기정; Gym Gijon), the daughter of the Kim family who is hired as Da-song’s art therapist.

    Lee Jung-Eun as Gook Moon-gang (국문광; Guk Mungkan), the housekeeper for the Park family, who also worked for the architect and previous owner of the house. Bong Joon-ho said her relationship with the architect and parts of her story “that happen in between the sequences in the film” will be explored in the spin-off television series.[13]

    Jang Hye-jin as Chung-sook (박충숙; Bak Chung Suk), the mother of the Kim family who is hired as the housekeeping for the Park family.

    Park Myung-hoon as Oh Geun-SAE (오근세; O Genes), Moon-Hwang’s husband.

    Jung Ji-so as Park Da-Hye (박다혜; Bak Daye), the daughter of the Park family.

    Jung Hyeon-Jun as Park Da-song (박다송; Bak Datong), the son of the Park family.

    Park Konerko as Yoon (윤; Yun), Park Dong-ik’ s chauffeur.

    Park Seo-Joon as Min-hyuk (민혁; Miyoko), Ki-woo’s friend.[14]

     

    Crashlanding on you

     

    program.tving.com/ton/cloy

    Crash Landing on You is a 2019–2020 South Korean television series written by Park Ji-Eun, directed by Lee Jeong-Hyo, and starring Hyun Bin, Son Ye-jin, Kim Jung-Hyun, and Seo Ji-Hye. It is about a South Korean chaebol heiress who, while paragliding in Seoul, South Korea, is swept up in a sudden storm, crash-lands in the North Korean portion of the DMZ, and meets a captain in the Korean People’s Army. Over time, they fall in love, despite the divide and dispute between their respective countries. Wikipedia

    Genre: Romantic Drama, Romantic comedy

    Created by: Studio Dragon

    Written by: Park Ji-Eun

     

    Comments:

     

    One of my favorites.  It is a classic rom-com opposite attract theme.   Almost a Romeo and Juliet star crossed lovers theme with the division of the Korean peninsula separating the lovers.   When Captain Ri meets Se-Yeong who literary crash lands on him after a freak paragliding accident took over the DMZ, has to decide to risk everything to save her life and return her to South Korea or turn her in as duty would dictate.  He chose to follow his heart and enlists the aid of his squad of soldiers who all fall in love with her as well. She also becomes friendly with the local woman in the village.

     

    When a notorious gangster follows her to Seoul to kill her to take revenge on Captain Ri, Captain Ri and his squad follow her to save her and bring down the gangsters.  I won’t say more than that.

    This series led the North Koreans to blow up the inter-Korean liaison office as they saw the movie as an insult to the North.  Some southern politicians denounced it as being too sympathetic to the North. It also of course featured rich people behaving badly in both the North and the South.  – Common theme in most K dramas these days.

    And a sub-romance between the captain’s soon-to-be-ex and Se-Young Ex who is End Comments con artist who is hiding out in the north after defrauding her father and brother.

     

    End Comment

     

     

    Vincenzo (2021)

     

    Comment:

     

    another one of my favorites.  A Korean child is adopted by an Italian family who has mob connections.  He graduates from Law School and becomes a lawyer to a Mafia family.  He hides millions of dollars in gold bullion in an office building in South Korea.  Hidden within the gold is a secret file on secrets of all the main corporations and political leaders in Korea known as the Guillotine file.  Vengeance goes to Korea to recover the money after the godfather dies.  The building tenants are being evicted by an evil corporation that wants to build their headquarters in their centrally located plaza.  The tenants are being led by a lawyer.  When he dies his daughter takes up the fight.  She enlists the aid of Vincenzo who teaches her how to do things the mafia way.  The usual rich family is behaving badly scenario, political corruption, etc.  And a slow-burning love affair.  The main villain is a real sociopath, which is also a common theme in Korean dramas nowadays.  There is also an implied LGBT theme – as Vengeance is a very attractive man and both men and women try to seduce him.  Another villain is a corrupt ex-prosecutor who goes to work for the evil Babel corporation and its sociopathic young secret chairman.  He had been exiled to Canada as a young man when he killed a number of his classmates after witnessing his father being left to die by his mother.  End comment

     

    At the age of eight, Park Joo Hyeong went to Italy after being adopted. Now an adult, he is known as Vincenzo Casino to the Mafia, who employ him as a consigliere. Because mafia factions are at war with each other, he flees to South Korea, where he gets involved with Lawyer Hong Cha Young. She is the type of attorney who will do anything to win a case. Now back at his motherland, he gives an unrivaled conglomerate a taste of its own medicine with a side of justice. (Source: Netflix, Asianizing) Edit Translation

    English

    Vincenzo: Special (Korean compilation)

    Native Title: 빈센조

    Also Known as Basenji

    Screenwriter: Park Jae Bum

    Director: Kim Hee Won

    Genres: Comedy, Law, Crime, Drama

    Tags: Lawyer, Revenge, Eccentric Female Lead, Mafia, Smart Male Lead, Injustice, Competent Protagonist, Father-Daughter Relationship, Charming Male Lead, Funny Female Lead (Vote or add tags)

    Where to Watch Vincenzo

    Netflix

    Subscription (sub)

    Cast & Credits

    Add Cast

    Song Jong Ki

    Vincenzo Casino / Park Joo Hyung

    Main Role

    Jeon Yeo Bin

    Hong Cha Young

    Main Role

    Ok Teac Yeon

    Jang Jun Woo

    Main Role

    Kim Yeo Jin

    Choi Myung Hee [Prosecutor]

    Support Role

    Jo Han Chula

    Han Seung Hyuk [CEO of Woosung Law firm]

    Support Role

    Kwak Dong Yeon

    Jang Han Seo [Head of Babel Group]

    Support Role

    View all (119)

    Photos

    View all (355)

     

    Sisyphus

     

     

    Mine”,

     

    Comment

     

    One of my recent favorites.  Almost a poster child for the rich family behaving badly theme. An interesting LBGT romance sub-theme as well. Another Romeo-Juliet Cinderella romance sub-plot as well.  The main protagonist is a real sociopath.  The story revolves around his murder and who wanted him dead the most. Well, everyone hated him, everyone wanted him dead.  The suspense was kept alive to the very end. The other theme is the two sisters-in-laws who battle the family and in the end, prevail against all the odds to come out on top and regain what they saw as “Mine” hence the title.  Very well done.

     

     

    Mine (TV series) – Wikipedia

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mine_(TV_series)

    Mine (Korean: 마인) is a 2021 South Korean television series directed by Lee Na-Jung and starring Lee Bo-young, Kim Seo-Hyung, Lee Hyun-Wook, and Ok Ja-Yeon. It revolves around strong women who free themselves from the prejudice of society and find their real ‘mine’. It also peeps into the mysterious lives of wealthy people. The series premiered ten on May 8, 2021, and aired every …

    Mine (Korean Drama) – AsianWiki

    https://asianwiki.com/Mine_(Korean_Drama)

    Profile. Drama: my Revised romanization: my Hangul: 마인 Director: Lee Na-Jeong Writer: Baek Mi-Kong Network: tvN Episodes: 16 Reléase Date: May 8 – June 27, 2021, Run time: Sat. & Sun. 21:00 Language: Korean Country: South Korea Plot Synopsis by Asianizing Staff ©

    Mine (2021) – Dramatist

    https://mydramalist.com/75937-blue-diamond

    Mine (2021) Mine. (2021) “Mine” is about strong and ambitious women who overcome the world’s prejudices to find their true selves. Seo Hee-Soo was a former top actress, but she gave up her career to marry the second son of Hyo Won Group. She does her best to fit in as a daughter-in-law of that family.

    Mine | Netflix Official Site

    https://www.netflix.com/title/81403973

    Mine. 2021 | TV-14 | 1 Season | TV Dramas. Encaged in a gold-clad life of secrets and lies, two women in a conglomerate family seek to topple all that stands in their way of finding true joy. Starring: Lee Bo-young, Kim Seo-Hyung, Lee Hyun-Wook.

    Mine (2021) – Full Cast & Crew – Dramatist

    https://mydramalist.com/75937-blue-diamond/cast

    Today, we present some unexpected cameo appearances in K-Dramas by popular actors and actresses. Get Ready to Be Enrolled in the “Police University” of 2021 News – Aug 1, 2021

    Images for mine k drama

    More Images for my k drama

    Stream It or Skip It: ‘Mine’ On Netflix, A Soapy K-Drama …

    https://decider.com/2021/05/10/mine-netflix-review/

    It’s harder to compare Mine to a current K-drama, but it sure does have the feel of a good old-fashioned American primetime soap like Dallas or Dynasty, with some hints of Succession mixed in.

    “Mine” (2021 Drama): Cast & Summary | Koopman

    https://www.kpopmap.com/mine-2021-drama-cast-summary/

    Information. Title: Mine / 마인 Director: Lee Nanjing Writer: Baek MiKyung. Network: ten x Netflix. Runtime: From May 8 # of Episodes: 16. Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Human Language: Korean. Summary. Encaged in a gold-clad life of secrets and lies, two women in a conglomerate family seek to topple all that stands in their way of finding true joy.

    Korean Drama “Mine” (Synopsis + Cast + Preview) – Korean …

    https://koreanallday.com/2021/05/09/korean-drama-mine-synopsis-cast-preview/

    Korean Drama “Mine” (Synopsis + Cast + Preview) May 9, 2021. admin “Mine” (or “Blue Diamond”) is a ten original drama series that was released on 8 May 2021 and is available to watch online on Netflix*. SYNOPSIS “Mine” drama story will center around two strong and married women Seo Hee-Soo and Jung Seo Hyun. They both are married …

    Mine episode 16 recap – the finale/ending explained – Ji …

    https://readysteadycut.com/2021/06/27/recap-mine-season-1-episode-16-finale-ending-netflix-k-drama-series/

    3.5. Summary. The finale of Mine wraps up the story nicely — episode 16 reveals the killer and gives the audience a taste of life after Ji-yong. There are strong themes of female empowerment in the finale that works well, in the story’s conclusion. This recap of the Netflix k-drama series Mine season 1, episode 16 — the finale/ending …

    K-Dramas | Netflix Official Site

    https://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/2638104

    K-Dramas. Laugh, cry, sigh, scream, shout, or whatever you feel like with these funny, intense, romantic, and suspenseful Korean dramas.

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    Profile

    Drama: Mine

    Revised romanization: Mine

    Hangul: 마인

    Director: Lee Na-Jeong

    Writer: Baek Mi-Kyong

    Network: tyvm

    Episodes: 16

    Release Date: May 8 – June 27, 2021

    Runtime: Sat. & Sun. 21:00

    Language: Korean

    Country: South Korea

    Plot Synopsis by Asianizing Staff ©

    A story of women who try to find their true selves, freeing themselves from prejudices in the world.

    Seo Hi-Soo (Lee Bo-Young) was a star actress, but she gave up her career to marry the second son of a chaebol family. The chaebol family runs the Hyowon Group. She does her best to fit in as a daughter-in-law of that family. She acts confidently all the time to not lose her true self.

    Jung Seo-Hyun (Kim Seo-Hyung) is married to the first son of the same chaebol family. She is also the daughter of a chaebol family. She is elegant and intelligent. She is also very rational.

    Notes

    “Mine” takes over TV N’s Sat. & Sun. 21:00 time slot previously occupied by “Vincenzo” and followed by “The Devil Judge” on July 3, 2021.

    Cast

    Hyowon Group’s Family

    Lee Bo-Young Kim Seo-Hyung
    Seo Hi-Soo Jung Seo-Hyun

     

    Lee Hyun-Wook Jeong Hyun-Jun Park Hyuk-Kwon Cha Hak-Yeon
    Han Ji-Yong Han Ha-Joon Han Jin-Ho Han Soo-Hyuk

     

    Park Won-Suk Jeong Dong-Hwan Kim Hye-Hwa Jo Eon-Sol
    Yang Soon-Hye Chairman Han Suk-Chula Han Jin-Hee Park Jung-Do

    Hyowon Mansion’s Staff

    Ok Ja-Yeon Jung Yi-Seo
    Kang Ja-Kyong / Lee Hye-Jin Kim Yu-Yeon

     

    Park Sung-Yeon Lee Jong-Ok Jo Yun-Seo Kim Nam-Jin Yoon Gemstone
    Joo Min-Su Kim Seung-Tae Secretary Oh Soo-Young Ko Mi-Jin Hwang Kyung-Hye

     

    Son Hyun-Ji Yeon Bo-Ra Song Young-A Kim Sang-Hoon Lee Eon-Kang
    Lee Ju-Hee Woo Ju-Yeon Min Sang-A vocal coach Chef Jung

     

    Kim Die-Woo Choi Jung-Hwa
    security staff Caregiver Ko Bo-Hui (ep.13)

    Hyowon Group

    Lee Yoon-Jae Kim Woo-Dam Ma Jung-Pill Lee Ho-Suk Kim Jung-Suk
    Attorney Choi Jin-Yeong Secretary Seo Secretary Cha Secretary Cho Chauffeur Kim

     

    Kim Jin-Tae Song Kyung-Etui Kim Soo-Hyun Park Sang-Yong Lee Suk-Goo
    Han Ji-Yong’s chauffeur Dr. Kim pr team employee (ep.6) attorney (ep.6) board of director (ep.8,11)

     

    Sung Chan-Ho
    board of director (ep.12-13)

    Hagwon Gallery

    Song Seon-mi
    Gallery Director Seo Jin-Kyung

    Soo-Hyun Gallery

    Ahn Ji-Hye Kim Sun-Kyung Jo Su-Bin Song Seung-Hwan
    deputy director mother at Seo-Hyun Gallery (ep.3) daughter at Seo-Hyun Gallery (ep.3) autistic teen artist (ep.8)

    IL sin

    Ye Soo-Jung Kim Yoon-Ji Oh Jung-Yeon Kim Ki-Bum
    Mother Emma Jasmin Mi-Joo Father Paul (ep.16)

    Jung Seo-Hyun’s Group

    Kim Jung-Hwa Jo Hye-Won Kim Yi-Seo
    Suzy Choi Jung Seo-Hyun (young) (ep.2) Suzy Choi (young) (ep.2)

    Chairman Han Suk-Chol’s Past

     

    Yoon Dong-Joo Choi Soo-Im
    Han Suk-Chula (young) Kim Mi-Ja

    Fight Club Group

    Jang Depok-Ju Gil Gem-Sung Kim Die-Han
    Cho Gyeonggi-Cheol Kwak Su-Chang Cho Beam-Gu

    Police

    Seo Sung-Jong Choi Young-Joon
    Detective Hwang Hyeong-Su Baek Dong-Hun

    Reporters

    Lee Chula Park Na-Jin Seo Sang-Won Ki Hwan
    Reporter Yoon Suk-Ho reporter (ep.3) reporter (ep.3) Reporter, I’m Seung-Su (ep.5)

    Han Jin-Ho’s Mistresses

    Jung Yun-Ha Oh A-Lin
    Chae-Young Hui-Bin (ep.6,15)

    Kim Yu-Yeon’s Family

    Choi Hyun-Jin
    Kim Yu-Yeon’s brother (ep.4,16)

    Jung Seo-Hyun’s Parenting Group

    Kwon So-Hyun Kim Ji-Woo Kwak Na-Yeon Jin Yu-Chan Yoo Ah-Rheum
    Ji-Won’s mother (ep.3-4) Ji-Won (ep.3-4) maid for Ji Won’s family (ep.3-4) Ji-Won’s friend (ep.3) student’s mother (ep.3)

     

    Lim Hyang-Ju
    student’s mother (ep.3)

    Others

    Jang Ha-Eon Lee Dong-Kyu Park Soo-Jin Lee Ji-Hyun Kim Yolo-Ho
    Rho A-Rim JSH news announcer (ep.3) doctor (ep.4,6) Maid Jang Hye-Yeong (ep.5,7) horse riding coach (ep.5)

     

    Lee Jae-Woo Lee Ga-Kyung Kim Hyo-Jin Kim Hee-Chang Seal Yoon-Hee
    jeweler (ep.6) Kang Ja-Kyung (ep.7) Chairman Yang Chi-Gon’s wife (ep.9) Attorney Kim Nam-Tae (ep.9) Jung Seo-Hyun’s acquaintance (ep.9)

     

    Yun Ki-Chang Kim Yong-Jin Jung Soo-Han Lim Jae-Myung Jung Young-Do
    Attorney Hwang Bo-In (ep.10-11) AA counselor (ep.10-11) AA member (ep.10-11) AA member (ep.10-11) veterinarian (ep.10)

     

    Lee Woo-Shin Oh Kyu-Taek Ri Min Jung Tae-In Han Yeo-Wool
    judge (ep.10-11) drama series staff (ep.12) Mr. Ha (ep.14) Seo Hi-Soo’s friend (ep.14) Seo Hi-Soo’s friend (ep.14)

     

    Choi Young-Min Kim Joo-A
    video forensics (ep.14) psychiatrist (ep.15)

    Additional Cast Members:

    Lee Yoon-Min – Chauffeur Park

    Kim Ha-Rin – designer (ep.1,8)

    Ko Kyung-Man – priest (ep.1)

    Park Hee-Yeon – (ep.3)

    Jo Soo-Yeon – cinema employee (ep.4)

    Kim Jung-Hwan – funeral priest (ep.13)

     

    Stranger (TV series)

     

    Stranger
    Comment:

    Well, done police drama.  The usual rich people behaving badly, political corruption, honest police officers trying to solve crime being thwarted by corrupt senior-level figures.  The romance theme was hinted at but never really developed.  There was also a nice sub-theme of a serial killer whose crimes were covered up by his father who was a prosecutor.  The series takes place amid the South Korean government’s attempt to reform the prosecutor’s office transferring much of their power to the police.  The movie is perhaps a bit too pro-government reform in that regard.  I would have liked to have seen a stronger romance and would have liked to have seen the political corporation corruption case spelled out a lot more. The plot was a bit confusing but the acting was first-rate.   I would have to give it a B.  End comment

     

     

    Promotional poster for the first season
    Also known as Secret Forest

    Forest of Secrets
    Hangul 비밀의 숲
    Hanja 祕密의 숲
    Genre Crime

    Drama

    Thriller
    Created by Studio Dragon
    Written by Lee Soo-Yeon
    Directed by Ahn Gil-ho (Season 1)

    Yoo Je-won (Season 1)

    Park Hyun-Suk (Season 2)
    Creative directors Kim Suk-won

    Kim Sung-kytoon
    Starring Cho Seung-woo

    Bae Dona

    Lee Joon-hyuk

    Yoo Jae-Myung

    Shin Hye-sun

    Jeon Hye-jin

    Choi Moo-sung

    Yoon Se-ah
    Theme music composer Kim Jun-Seok
    Opening theme Stranger
    Composers Kim Jun-Seok

    Jung Sae-rim
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 2
    No. of episodes 32 (list of episodes)
    Production
    Executive producers Lee Chan-ho

    Min Hyun-il

    Go Byung-churl

    Lee Sung-jin
    Producers Park Unyoung

    Seo Jae-Hyun
    Cinematography Jang Jong-Kyung
    Editor Kim Na-young
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 63-86 minutes
    Production companies Signal Entertainment Group

    IOK Media

    Ace Factory (Season 2)
    Distributor tyvm (Asia)

    Netflix (Worldwide)
    Release
    Original network tyvm
    Picture format HDTV 1080i
    Audio format Dolby Digital 5.1
    Original release June 10, 2017 –
    present
    External links
    Website

    Stranger (Korean: 비밀의 숲; RR: Baillieu Sup; lit. Secret Forest) is a South Korean crime thriller drama television series. Produced by Signal Entertainment and IOK Media, it was created by Studio Dragon writer Lee Soo-Yeon and broadcast on tvN from June 10, 2017. The series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on August 15, 2020.

    The series was a hit with both domestic and international viewers,[1] and received favorable reviews for its tight plot, gripping sequences, and strong performances.[2][3] It was featured on the New York Times list of Best TV Shows of 2017,[4] and won several awards including the Grand Prize for television at the Baek sang.[5]

    Synopsis[edit]

    In the first season, Hwang Si-Mok (Cho Seung-woo) is an exemplary prosecutor who suffers from hypersensitivity to certain sound frequencies. After undergoing corrective surgery, he lost his sense of empathy and lacks social skills. While investigating a murder, he meets Police Lieutenant Han Yeo-jin (Bae Dona), who assists his efforts to solve the case. As they begin to unravel the mystery behind the murder, they find that their efforts are continually being obstructed by participants in a major corruption conspiracy between the Prosecutors’ Office and a private chaebol (conglomerate).

    In the second season, set two years later, a dispute arises between the Prosecutors’ Office and the National Police Agency, with the former wanting control over all investigative proceedings while the latter seeks autonomous authority to conduct investigations. Amid their respective agencies’ conflict, Hwang Si-Mok, and Han Yeo-jin team up to conduct their independent investigation of a concealed case.[6]

    Cast and characters[edit]

    Main article: List of Stranger characters

    Cho Seung-woo as Hwang Si-Mok

    Bae Dona as Han Yeo-jin

    Lee Joon-hyuk as Seo Dong-Jae

    Yoo Jae-Myung as Lee Chang-Joon (season 1; guest season 2)

    Shin Hye-sun as Young Eon-soo (season 1; guest season 2)

    Yoon Se-ah as Lee Yeon-Jae (season 2; recurring season 1)

    Jeon Hye-jin as Choi Bit (season 2)

    Choi Moo-sung as Woo Tae-ha (season 2)

    Episodes[edit]

    Main article: List of Stranger episodes

    Season Episodes Originally aired Ave. South Korea
    viewers (millions)
    First aired Last aired
    1 16 June 10, 2017 July 30, 2017 N/A[a]
    2 16 August 15, 2020 October 4, 2020 1.774

    Production[edit]

    Development[edit]

    The entire series was written by Lee Soo-Yeon who was inspired by the Korean adage “We cannot rule those who want nothing” to create the character of Si-Mok.[7] Ahn Gil-ho directed the majority of the first season with the assistance of Yoo Je-won, while Park Hyun-Seok took over the filming duties for the second season.[8] Unlike usual South Korean dramas, the series was developed as a potential multi-seasonal program, with most of the filming have already been pre-produced before its broadcast.[9][10]

    Casting[edit]

    In January 2017, Cho Seung-woo and Bae Dona were offered the lead roles. The same month Shin Hye-sun was added to the cast.[11] It was the first television drama Cho Seung-woo had accepted since God’s Gift – 14 Days in 2014, after venturing into musical theatre for seven years.[12] For the second season, cast members Cho Seung-woo, Bae Dona, Lee Joon-hyuk, and Yoon Se-ah, were all confirmed to reprise their roles. Jeon Hye-jin and Choi Moo-sung were also confirmed to join the lead cast in January 2020.[6]

    Filming[edit]

    Filming of the first season began in April 2017, preceded by the first script reading with the cast at the CJ E&M Center in Seoul.[12] Script reading for the second season took place in January 2020.[6]

    Music[edit]

    Stranger (Original Television Soundtrack)
    Soundtrack album by

    Various artists
    Released September 13, 2017
    Genre Soundtrack
    Length 157 minutes
    Language Korean

    English
    Label Mog

    Kakao M

    Universal Music Korea

    An accompanying soundtrack compilation to Stranger was released by Mog Communications and Kakao M on September 13, 2017, in South Korea.[13] It was later reissued by Universal Music Group in overseas markets on May 11, 2018.[14] A three-disc album, the latter two discs features music composed by Kim Jun-Seok and Jung Sae-rin for the program.[15][16] Ten songs were released from the soundtrack as singles in numbered parts from June to July 2017: “끝도없이 (Ad Infinitum)” by Richard Parkers, “먼지 (Dust)” Evelia, “소나기 (Downpour)” by Ohio, “괴물처럼 (Monster Like)” by Tie, “웃어요 (Smile)” by Han Hee Jung & Sorae, the titular track “비밀의 숲 (Stranger)” by Yoon Do-Hyun, “사랑할 것 처럼 (As if to Love)” by Kim Kohen of My teen, “물결 (A Billow)” by Yean of Lovely, “굿바이 잘가요 (Goodbye)”/”Back in Time” by Peter Han, and “묻는다 (Ask)” by Jung Won-boo of NeighBro & Jun Sang-gun.[17] Of these, the songs “소나기 (Downpour)” and “사랑할 것 처럼 (As if to Love)” have managed to enter the South Korean Gaon BGM Music Chart at numbers 80 and 79, respectively.[18][19]

    Stranger OST Track listing[15][16]

    show

    Season 1 soundtrack

    show

    Season 2 soundtrack

    Release[edit]

    The pilot episode of Stranger aired on June 10, 2017, on tyvm, replacing Chicago Typewriter. Netflix secured the worldwide streaming rights for the series for US$200,000 per episode, except in Korea and China, and released them in simultaneous broadcast with TV as a Netflix original program. The Korea Times reported that Bae Dona, who had previously appeared in the Netflix original series Sense8, proved to be crucial in the purchase of the drama.[20] TV affiliate tvN Asia also aired the program in selected Asian markets beginning on June 16, 2018.[21] A second season was commissioned by TV, set to be released with Netflix on the same day.[22] It premiered on August 15, 2020, replacing It’s Okay to Not Be Okay.[10][23]

    Reception[edit]

    Critical response[edit]

    In an article by columnist Dena Dew for Screen Rant, Stranger was described as a “domestic and international success”.[24] Though ratings-wise, the program was not a “smash hit”, pundits and audiences praised it as a “league of its own”.[7] Korean culture critic Ha Jae-gun described the character as a “fantasy that was borne out of a time of distrust”.[7] In her review for The Korea Times, columnist Park Jin-hai commended the writing as “finely intertwined”, and wrote that audiences gave a strong response to this “drama for thinking people”.[7] The New York Times listed the series in tenth place as they’re The Best TV Shows of 2017.[25]

    At the 54th Buesking Arts Awards, the series received eight nominations, including two considerations for Grand Prize for Television, winning one for the whole series.[26] Cho Seung-woo and Lee Soo-Yeon also won Best Television Actor and Best Television Screenplay, respectively.[26] In a Gallup Korea poll, audiences aged 19 and above selected Stranger as their 12th favorite show in July 2017.[27] While Google Korea listed the series as the ninth most-searched television program of 2017.[28]

    Viewership[edit]

    According to data published by Nielsen Korea, the pilot episode of the series was seen by 3.041percent of total nationwide viewers, in metropolitan Seoul, it earned a 3.2percent rating, which made it the highest-rated program of the day among non-terrestrial channel programs.[29] The program achieved its highest rating on the first-season finale, earning a 6.568percent nationwide rating and a 7.622percent rating within Seoul-based viewers.[30] On average, it was seen by 4.562percent of total viewership.[31] On the Times rating system, the series premiered with a 3.2percent rating and ended its first season with a 7.1percent rating.[32] The last episode recorded noticeably strong rating performances as it took the lead rating for the first time against hit variety show Hori’s that aired in the same time slot and became the highest-rated program of the day among non-terrestrial channels programs.[33][34]

     

     

    Mr. Sunshine
    Comment one of the top K dramas in the last few years. It is set in the late 19th century. The end of the Korean Chosen dynasty was a period that led directly to modern Korea.  Many of the things that make modern Korea have to do with how the last dynasty ended with the Japanese colonization, and the ending of the Japanese era.

     

    In many ways, the last dynasty was doomed from the onset.  The leaders were corrupt, self-interested, and reactionary. They were unable to adapt to changing circumstances and Japan was on the ascendant as the new power in east Asia.

     

    Perhaps under different leadership. Korea might have retained its independence as Thailand did during that period. But unfortunately, Korea had inept leaders as well as chronic political corruption which the nefarious Japanese utilized aided by pro-Japanese Koreans who saw Japan as the future and sold out their country.

     

    That dynamic plays out through the drama. The story is an unlikely love story between a young Korean orphan who is sent to the US by a missionary and eventually joins the US Marines as an officer and is sent to Korea to work in the legation there and serves in Korea until the Japanese annexation, and a young Korean noblewoman who joins the “righteous army” of guerilla fighters who are fighting the Japanese takeover and of course lose the battle after the Japanese-Russian war of 1905.

     

    There are many historical allusions throughout the series.  Some of it is accurate, some are overblown and some well are just wrong.

     

    As far as I know, there were no Korean American troops in Korea during this period. Also, it is highly unlikely that a noblewoman would have been involved with the Righteous army.

     

    There is also an implied theme throughout that the US sold Korean out to the evil Japanese.  The reality is more than the U.S.  looked the other way, not wanting to lose the Philippines.   Korea was just not that important to the U.S.  So, in that sense perhaps one could say that the U.S sold out Korea but then again it is hard to imagine that the U.S. would have done anything else given how marginal Korea was to U.S. strategic interests back then.

     

    The writing was first-rate, the dialogue sizzling.  The sub-themes are well done.  Overall, I would give it a B+.

     

     

     
    Promotional poster
    Hangul 미스터 션샤인
    Genre Historical

    Romance

    Melodrama
    Created by Jennie Choi
    Written by Kim Eon-sook
    Directed by Lee Aung-bok [ko]
    Starring Lee Byung-Hun

    Kim Tae-Ri

    Yoo Yeon-Seok

    Kim Min-Jung

    Byun Yo-hand
    Composer Nam Hye-Seung
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original languages Korean, Japanese, English
    No. of seasons 1
    No. of episodes 24[1] (list of episodes)
    Production
    Executive producers Kim Young-kyu
    Yoon Ha-rim
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Production companies Studio Dragon

    Haddam Pictures
    Distributor CJ E&M

    Netflix
    Budget ₩40 billion[2]
    Release
    Original network TV
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release July 7 –
    September 30, 2018[3]
    External links
    Website
    Production website

    Mr. Sunshine (Korean: 미스터 션샤인; RR: Misquote Syeonsyain) is a 2018 South Korean television series written by Kim Eon-sook and directed by Lee Eung-bok [ko], starring Lee Byung-Hun, Kim Tae-Ri, Yoo Yeon-Seok, Kim Min-jung, and Byun Yo-hand.[4][5] The series is set in Hansen (present-day Seoul) in the early 1900s and focuses on activists fighting for Korea’s independence.[6][7] The series aired every Saturday and Sunday on tyvm starting from July 7, 2018, and ended on September 30, 2018. It premiered internationally on Netflix.[8]

    The series recorded the 6th highest ratings for cable television with its final episode reaching 18.129percent and netting an average rating of 12.955percent, which is the second-highest average rating ever recorded for cable television.[9] It received critical acclaim for its cinematography and storytelling but was also criticized for its inaccurate portrayal of historical facts, with some even accusing it of being “pro-Japanese“.[10]

    Synopsis[edit]

    Mr. Sunshine centers around Eugene Choi (Lee Byung-Hun), who was born into slavery in Joseon. After escaping to the United States after the 1871 Shimmying, he becomes a Marine Corps officer.

    When he returns to Joseon for a mission, Eugene meets and falls in love with an aristocrat’s granddaughter, Go Ae-shin (Kim Tae-ri), who is part of the Righteous Army. However, their love is challenged by their different classes and the presence of Kim Hui-song (Byun Yo-han), a nobleman who has been Ae-shin’s betrothed since childhood. Eugene also encounters Goo Dong-Mae (Yoo Yeon-Seok), a ruthless samurai, and Kudo Hana (Kim Min-jung), owner of the popular “Glory Hotel” where Eugene stays. At the same time, he discovers a plot by the Empire of Japan to colonize Korea and soon becomes embroiled in the fight for Joseon’s sovereignty.

    Historical background[edit]

    Unlike most Suns dramas dealing with the Japanese occupation of Korea, Mr. Sunshine takes place before the Japanese annexation, in the late 1800s to early 1900s. It has a heavy focus on the Righteous Army and depicts the lives of people who fought for Joseon’s freedom. Real-life historical events such as Shimmying, the Spanish-American War,[11] the assassination of Empress Kyongsang, the Russo-Japanese War,[12] Goon’s forced abdication, and the Battle of Mandamus are portrayed or mentioned.[13]

    Historical figures such as Emperor Gojong, Ito Hiromi, Hayashi Gonsuke, Yoshimichi Hasegawa, Horace Newton Allen, and the Five Elsa Traitors[12] appear as recurring characters, with others, such as Theodore Roosevelt,[14] Ahn Chang-ho,[15] Eum Sun-heon [ko],[16] Park Seung-hwan [ko],[13] and Frederick Arthur Mackenzie, also making cameo appearances.

    Main Historical Events Described in Mr. Sunshine[edit]

    The Battle of Ganghwa (1871): It was a major battle that occurred on June 10, 1871, between the United States and the Joseon Dynasty. On June 1, the American ships entered the Ganghwa Straits to establish trade and ensure the safety of the shipwrecked sailors of the SS Sherman, which was destroyed by the army of Joseon. However, they came under fire. The United States gave Joseon ten days to apologize, but they refused. As a result, on June 10, the U.S ships USS Palos and USS Monocacy fired their weapons against the Choi Garrison on Ganghwa Island and wiped out the Joseon army.[17] In Mr. Sunshine, the battle scenes are thoroughly described as its character Jang Seung-goo fought in this battle as a teen and lost his father. This battle was a pivotal moment for Seung-goo as it caused him to believe that King Gojong abandoned his people and let them die.

    The Japan-Korean Treaty of 1905: This treaty was made between the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on November 17, 1905. Through it, Japan effectively overtook the diplomatic control of Korea.[18] While Mr. Sunshine does not demonstrate this treaty and its effects in detail, it contains a scene in which Kim Hui-song takes pictures of the pro-Japanese Korean officials. Through these pictures, Hui-song intends to let his descendants know the misconduct of the corrupted government officials.

    The Battle of Mandamus: This battle was fought between the Korean and Japanese armies on August 1, 1907. It took place at the Namdaemun Gate, in Hansen and was a revolt of the Korean army against the order of disbandment that was issued through the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1907.[19] In Mr. Sunshine, the battle scenes are depicted in detail. The character Jang Seung-goo sacrifices himself to protect his soldiers. This battle is a turning point for Seung-goo as he sacrifices himself for a country and an emperor he dislikes.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Lee Byung-Hun as Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[20][21]

    Kim Kang-hoon as child Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[22]

    Jeon Jin-hee [ko] as young Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[23]

    Eugene Choi was born as a slave of Kim Pan-see, the paternal grandfather of Kim Hui-song. After witnessing his parents’ murder at the hands of their landlord, Eugene managed to escape to the United States and overcome the racial discrimination and become an American, he joins the Marine Corps and fights in the Spanish-American War. Later, Eugene returns to Joseon to carry a mission and falls in love with Go Ae-shin, a noblewoman who is secretly part of the Righteous army. Eugene has to choose between helping Ae-shin in her fight and maintaining his neutral position as a Captain in the United States Marine Corps.

    Kim Tae-ri as Go Ae-shin[24]

    Heo Jung-eon as child Go Ae-shin[25]

    A Joseon noblewoman who lost her parents as an infant. Ae-shin’s mother and father were independence fighters and were both killed in Japan due to their colleague’s betrayal. She is raised by her paternal grandfather, Go Sa-Hong, who helps Ae-shin train as a sniper under Jang Seung-goo and becomes part of the Righteous army. She meets Eugene Choi, who looks like people from Joseon yet claims to be an American, and falls in love with him.

    Yoo Yeon-Seok as Goo Dong-mae / Ishida Shoo[26]

    Choi Min-young [ko] as young Goo Dong-Mae

    The son of a butcher flees to Japan upon his parents’ death and becomes a samurai and member of the Music Society, which is part of a Yakuza group. Dong-Mae returns to Joseon with a mission of tormenting the people and helping the Japanese army overtake the country. He believes that it is Joseon’s unjust social hierarchical system that killed his parents. As a teen, Dong-Mae met Go Ae-shin, who saved his life, by purposely hiding him in her palanquin.

    Kim Min-Jung as Lee Yang-hwa / Kudo Hana[27]

    An influential widow who runs a hotel in Joseon. She was married off to an old, rich Japanese man by her father, Lee Wan-ink. Upon her husband’s mysterious death, she inherited the “Glory Hotel” and successfully operates it on her own. China is deeply ashamed of her father’s misdeeds and reputation and to find her mother, she helps Lee Jung-moon in fighting against the Japanese government and the pro-Japanese officials.

    Bien Yo-han as Kim Hui-seong[28]

    A Joseon nobleman is considered to be the richest after the emperor in terms of land ownership. Hui-song is emotionally tormented by his grandfather’s past and lives for over a decade in Japan to avoid marrying the woman his grandfather chose for him. However, once he returns to Joseon, he discovers that his fiancé is Go Ae-shin and falls in love with her, only to realize that there is no place left for him in her heart. Unlike his father and grandfather, Hui-song helps the Righteous army in many ways as he desperately desires to free himself from the sense of guiltiness.

     

    Recurring

     

    Joseon Government/

     

    as Emperor Gojong[29]

     

    Kang Yi-Seok as young Emperor Gojong

    The ruler of Joseon, who desperately fights for the country’s sovereignty.

     

    Kang Shin-il as Lee Jung-moon

    An anti-Japanese Minister who is loyal to the emperor. He secretly commands the Righteous Army.

     

    Kim Etui-sung as Lee Wan-ik[30]

    A selfish and cruel pro-Japanese official who killed Go Ae-shin’s parents. The father of Kudo China, he soon becomes Joseon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. He walks with a limp after a young Jang Seung-goo shot his leg during the Shimmying.  Kim Jong-hee [ko] as Lee Deok-moon

    A pro-Japanese nobleman who works as an assistant for Lee Wan-ink. He is Go Ae-son’s abusive husband.

     

    Choi Jin-ho as Lee Se-hoon[31]

    The arrogant and corrupt Minister of Foreign Affairs whose actions indirectly led to the deaths of Eugene Choi’s family.

     

    Jung Hee-tea [ko] as Police Commissioner Jung Shin Mun-sung as Postmaster Yoon

    Kim Kang-il [ko] as Dr. Matsuyama

    A Japanese doctor secretly working for Lee Wan-ink.

     

    Jung Seung-Gil [ko] as Ye Wan-yong

    An infamous pro-Japanese Minister and part of the Five Elsa Traitors.

     

    Righteous Army[Kim Kapp-soo as Hwang Eun-san[32]

     

    A skilled potter who helped a young Choi Yoo-jin flee to the United States. He is now the leader of the Righteous army.  Lee Si-hoon as Ko Yoshino[33]

    A Japanese man works as an assistant for Hwang Eon-san.

     

    Itaewon Class

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    Itaewon Class jump
    Promotional poster
    Hangul 이태원 클라쓰
    Hanja 梨泰院 클라쓰
    Genre Drama
    Based on Itaewon Class
    by Gang Jin
    Developed by Kim Do-soo for Showbox
    Written by Gang Jin
    Directed by Kim Sung-Yoon
    Starring Park Seo-Joon

    Kim Da-mi

    Yoo Jae-Myung

    Kwon Nara
    Composer Various artists
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 16
    Production
    Executive producer Jo Joon-Hyung
    Producers Lee Sang-Yoon

    Jung Soo-jin

    Han Suk-won
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 70 minutes
    Production companies Showbox

    Sium Content[a]

    Itaewon Class Production Partners

    Drama House (JTBC Studios)
    Distributor JTBC

    Netflix (international)
    Release
    Original network JTBC
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release January 31 –
    March 21, 2020
    External links
    Website

    Itaewon Class (Korean: 이태원 클라쓰; Hanja: 梨泰院 클라쓰; RR: Itaewon Keelless) is a 2020 South Korean television series starring Park Seo-Joon, Kim Da-mi, Yoo Jae-Myung, and Kwon Nara. Based on the webtoon of the same name,[2] it is the first series to be produced by the film distribution company Showbox. It aired on JTBC in Korea from January 31 to March 21, 2020, and is streaming worldwide on Netflix.[3][4][5] The series won Best Drama Series at the 25th Asian Television Awards.[6][7]

    In the case of the webtoon, when Kakao Page and Daum webtoon were added together, the cumulative number of readers was 10 million, the cumulative number of views was 300 million, and the rating was 9.9 points.

    Synopsis[edit]

    Due to an accident that killed his father, Park Sae-ro-Yi (Park Seo-Joon) attempted to kill Jang Geun-won (Ahn Bo-Hyun), the son of Janggi Group’s founder, Jang Die-hee (Yoo Jae-Myung). He was jailed and the woman he loved, Oh Soo-ah (Kwon Na-ra), was offered a university scholarship by Jang Die-hee and later became the Strategic Planning Head of Janggi Group.

    After his release from prison, Park Sae-ro-Yi opens Danbam in Itaewon. He wants to be successful and seeks revenge on the Janggi Group. However, he is not too smart at managing his business. He then meets Jo Yi-see (Kim Da-mi).

    Cast and characters[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Park Seo-Joon as Park Sae-ro-yi[8]

    Proprietor of Dana, a bar-restaurant in Itaewon. In his youth, Sae-ro-Yi gets expelled from high school for punching CEO Jang’s son Geun-won, who was bullying a classmate, and becomes bereaved when his father is killed by Geun-won’s reckless driving. Angered by the loss, he attacks Geun-won, leading to his three-year imprisonment. Following his father’s steps, Sae-ro-Yi opens his bar-restaurant Dana in Itaewon seven years after he is released from jail, with the aim of expanding it into a franchise and defeating CEO Jang’s food company Janggi Group. In 2020, he becomes the CEO of his company IC Group.

    Kim Da-mi as Jo Yi-seo[9]

    Manager of Sae-Ro-Yi’s bar-restaurant Dana. Yi-see is a multi-talented and intelligent girl with an IQ of 162. She moved from New York to continue her studies in South Korea. She is also famous on social media as a power blogger and social media internet celebrity. Having a crush on Sae-Ro-Yi, she offers to become the manager of Dana. Her lack of empathy and callous behavior has many people believe she is a sociopath, but she does end up caring for her Dana coworkers. Despite being declined by Sae-ro-Yi, Yi-seo remains by his side as his manager and work partner while still maintaining feelings for him. In 2020, Yi-see becomes the CFO of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group. Eventually, Saroyan realizes his feelings for Yi-Seo and he confesses his love for her.

    Yoo Jae-Myung as Jang Dae-hee[10]

    CEO of food company Janggi Group. CEO Jang is a self-made man who, despite the odds, succeeds in turning his once small bar into a large franchise company. In his years of experience leading Janggi, he develops a strong belief in power and authority as a means to achieve his goals. He meets Sae-ro-Yi when the latter has a fight with his son Geun-won in high school and expects him to kneel as a submission of his power. However, Sasori always resisted kneeling and made his life harder for it. In 2020, he is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and doesn’t have much longer to live. Unfortunately, his illegal activities under Janggi were exposed and ruined his company. Despite kneeling before Sae-Ro-Yi for help, Sae-Ro-Yi absorbed Janggi into his company, leaving Die-Hee with nothing.

    Kwon Nara as Oh Soo-ah[11]

    Head of the strategic planning team in Janggi Group; Sae-ro-Yi’s former classmate and first love. Abandoned by her mother, Soo-ah grew up in an orphanage and became close with Sae-ro-Yi’s father Sung-yeol. She becomes acquainted with Sae-ro-Yi, who has a crush on her. After Sung-yell’s death, she receives a scholarship offer from Janggi Group and soon becomes an employee in the company. Though passionate about her work, she is torn between her allegiance to Janggi and her love for Sae-ro-Yi. Due to their conflicts of interests, the two would hold a long-term emotional relationship, but never a truly romantic one. Eventually, Soo-ah realizes Saroyan’s feelings have changed and the two remain friends. She later became a whistleblower to the authorities on the crimes that Janggi has committed in the past during her time in the company and later starts her restaurant.

    Supporting[edit]

    Dana staff[edit]

    Kim Dong-hee as Jang Geun-soo[12]

    CEO Jang’s second and illegitimate son; Yi-see’s classmate and staff member at Dana. Geun-soo has been bullied by his older brother Geun-won and he never felt loved by his parents. Upon turning 17, he left the Jang family and lived by himself from then on. After inconveniencing Dana in an incident, he decides to work for Sae-ro-Yi, whom he considers to be a “real adult.” He has a crush on Yi-see. However, after leaving Dana, Geun-soo chooses to work at his father’s company to become the successor to the Janggi Group. In 2020, he is the director of Janggi Group.

    Ryu Kyung-soo as Choi Seung-kwon[13]

    A staff member at Dana. Seung-Kwon was Sae-ro-Yi’s cellmate in prison. Believing that he cannot better his life outside of jail, he became a gangster under a gang leader upon his release. Seven years later, he meets Sae-ro-Yi who, to his surprise, had already opened a bar in Itaewon. Deeply respecting Sae-ro-Yi and his way to live a better life, he gives up being a gangster and starts working at Dana. In 2020, he becomes one of the directors of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group.

    Lee Joo-young as Ma Hyeon-Yi[14]

    Dunam’s chief cook. Hyun-Yi first met Sae-ro-yi in a factory where the two formerly worked, years before the start of Dana. She was hired as Dunam’s cook when Sae-ro-yi liked the food she once cooked for him back then. Hyun-Yi is a transgender woman and has been saving money for her sex reassignment surgery. In 2020, she becomes one of the directors of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group.

    Chris Lyon as Kim To-ni[15]

    Dammam’s Guinean–Korean part-timer. Even though he cannot speak and understand English, To-ni is fluent in speaking Korean, owing to his Korean father and his one-year residence in South Korea, and French, the language he speaks in Guinea. Eventually, he can learn and speak a satisfactory amount of English.

    Janggi Group[edit]

    Ahn Bo-Hyun as Jang Geun-won[16]

    CEO Jang’s first son and heir to Janggi Group. Geun-won was Sae-ro-Yi and Soo-ah’s classmate in high school who frequently bullied their classmate Ho-jin. He caused the vehicular accident that killed Sae-ro-Yi’s father Sung-yeol. Years later when he attempts to recruit Yi-see into Jangga, his confession to the crime is recorded by her and he attacks her until Sae-ro-Yi intervenes and gets him arrested. Die-hee deserts Geun-won by admitting his son’s crimes during his apology meeting and getting him sent to prison. In 2020, he is released and alongside Kim Hee-hon and his gang, Geun-won plans to get revenge on Yi-see.

    Kim Hye-eon as Kang Min-jung[17]

    Janggi Group’s executive director, who secretly plots to usurp CEO Jang. She is a close friend of Park Sung-yell, Park Sae-ro-Yi’s father.

    Hong Seo-Joon as Mr. Kim[18]

    Jang Daeheon’s right-hand man. He is very loyal to his boss.

    Yoo Da-mi as Kim Sun-ae[19]

    Jang Daeheon’s secretary and Kang Min-Jung’s spy.

    Others[edit]

    Lee David as Lee Ho-jin[20]

    Sae-Moji’s investment manager. Ho-jin was Sae-ro-Yi, Soo-ah, and Geun-won’s classmate in high school. After years of bearing the constant bullying from Geun-won, he gets into a prestigious college and takes up business administration. He partners up with Sae-ro-Yi in taking revenge against Geun-won and CEO Jang. In 2020, he becomes the financial manager for Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group. In one of the flashback scenes when he visited Sae-ro-Yi in prison; he listed Sae-ro-Yi as a friend.

    Kim Yeo-jin as Jo Jeong-min[21]

    Yi-see’s mother, who disapproves of Yi-see quitting college and working at Dammam.

    Yoon Kyung-ho as Oh Byeong-heon[22]

    Detective in charge of Geun-won’s hit-and-run case which he was pressured to cover up. He quit his job after the case and is now one of Sae-ro-Yi’s suppliers.

    Choi Yu-ri as Oh Hye-won[23]

    Oh, Byeong-heron’s daughter, who is oblivious to Sae-ro-Yi’s connection with her father.

    Kim Mi-keying as Kim Soon-rye[24]

    To-nose Korean paternal grandmother. After her son’s death, she deeply regrets disapproving of her son’s marriage to a Guinean woman (To-nose mother), as it caused her son to run away. She is a loan shark who offers her services to Sae-ro-Yi when he moves his bar to a new location. She was also one of the first supporters of Janggi.

    Won Hyun-Joon as Kim Hee-hoon[25]

    Sae-ro-Yi’s former cellmate and a leader of a group of gangsters. Though initially cordial to both Sae-ro-Yi and Choi Seung-Kwon, he later allies himself with Jang Geun-won.

    Han Hye-ji as Kook Bok-hee[26]

    Yi-see and Geun-soo’s former classmate. Her bullying activities were exposed after Yi-see recorded her performing the act. After running into Yi-see months later, she attempted to assault her for ruining her reputation alongside her friends, only to be beaten down by Yi-see.

    Special appearances[edit]

    Ahn Sol-bin as Sae-ro-Yi’s classmate (Ep. 1)[27]

    A student who had a crush on Sae-ro-Yi and had her confession rejected by him.

    Son Hyun-jook as Park Sung-yeol (Ep. 1–2 & 15)[28]

    Sae-ro-Yi’s father and former employee in Janggi Group. He taught Sae-ro-Yi to stick to his beliefs and to fight for what is right. He resigned from Janggi in defense of Sae-ro-Yi’s deed of stopping Geun-won’s bullying. He died in an accident caused by Geun-won.

    Hong Seok-Cheon as himself (Ep. 2, 4, 9 & 16)[29]

    Soo-ah’s acquaintance. He works at a bar that Sae-ro-Yi visits twice (years before and after opening Dana). They meet again after Sae-ro-Yi moves the location of his bar.

    Yoon Park as Kim Sung-Hyun (Ep. 3)[30]

    Geun-so’s elder friend goes to Dana with Geun-soo and Yi-see where the two get caught for underage drinking.

    Cha Chung-hwa as Bureau Chief’s wife (Ep. 3)[31]

    Mother of Bok-hee, whose behavior was exposed online by Yi-see.

    I’m Seun as Bok-hee’s friend (Ep. 5)[32]

    One of Bok-he’s friends. She, alongside Bok-hee and her friend, attempted to assault Yi-see after running into each other months after high school graduation.

    Jung Yoo-min as Seo Jeong-In (Ep. 6)[33]

    The daughter of the CEO of a pharmaceutical company and Geun-won’s blind date. The blind date was arranged by Geun-won’s father.

    Seo Eon-soo as part-time job applicant (Ep. 6)[34]

    Sae-ro-Yi’s acquaintance. She applied for the job that was eventually offered to Kim To-ni. Yi-see rejected her application out of jealousy of her and Sae-ro-Yi’s close relationship.

    Kim Il-Jong as himself (Ep. 11 & 13)[35]

    Host of the cooking program shows The Best Pub.

    Jeon No-min as Do Jong-un (Ep. 11–12)[36]

    CEO of the investment firm Jung Myung Holdings. He offers Sae-ro-Yi to franchiseDanBam. Later he was one of the sleeper agents for Die Hee to thwart Sae-ro-Yi plan to franchise Dana.

    Lee Jun-Hyeon as Park Joon-gi (Ep. 11–13)[37]

    A contestant on The Best Pub. He represents Janggi Group as the head cook and comes in second to Hyun-Yi during the final. He subsequently gets fired.

    Park Bo-gum as Handsome Chef (Ep. 16)[38]

    The new chef at Soo-ah’s restaurant in which Hong Seok-Cheon invested after he passed the job interview.

    Kim Taehyung as Himself (Ep. 16)

    BTS member V visited his friend Seo-Joon to perform a rendition of the show’s OST.

     

    Comment:

     

    Very enjoyable drama set in one of the most colorful neighborhoods in Korea, Itaewon’s- Seoul’s international quarter.

     

    The basic plot is that of revenge.  The usual themes of rich people behaving badly, and corporate corruption. A young man in junior high comes to the aid of his classmate who is being bullied by the son of a rich family.  His father worked for the corporation.  The young man is told to apologize for calling out the actions of the bullies and refuses to do so.  His father is fired and attempts to open his restaurant with the aid of his son who has to drop out of school after the controversy.  The father is killed by his enemy drunk driving.  The young man attempts to kill his enemy and is sentenced to three years in prison.  He decides to get revenge.  It takes him ten years but in the end, he destroys the corporation.

     

    There are several romantic sub-plots in the movie. The protagonist has to decide between two women.  He eventually chooses the woman who comes to work for him in the restaurant he opens in Itaewon.  There is also an LGBT sub-theme as one of his staff members is trans transiting to a woman.  There is also an intriguing sub-plot involving a half African young man who comes to Korea to find his Korean family.

     

    Overall, very well done.

     

     

     

     

     

    Others Worth Watching

     

    Memories of the Alhambra

     

    program.tving.com/tvn/tvnalhambra

    Memories of the Alhambra is a 2018 South Korean television series, starring Hyun Bin and Park Shin-Hye. Primarily set in Spain, the series centers on a company CEO and a hostel owner who gets entangled in a series of mysterious incidents surrounding a new and intricate augmented reality game inspired by the stories of the Alhambra Palace. It aired on cable network tvN from December 1, 2018, to January 20, 2019, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:00. It is also available for online streaming on Netflix. Wikipedia

    Genre: Science fantasy, Action, Thriller, Romance

    Created by: Jennie Choi (Studio Dragon), Lee Myung-Han

    Written by: Song Jae-Jung

     

    Comment: Did not finish it but will return to it soon.  Had an intriguing SF plotline.

     

    End Comment

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The Negotiation (film)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    (Redirected from Negotiation (film))

     

    The Negotiation
    Theatrical poster
    Hangul 협상
    Hanja 協商
    Revised Romanization Hyeobsang
    Directed by Lee Jong-Seok
    Screenplay by Choi Sung-Hyun
    Produced by Yoon Je-kyoon
    Lee Sang-jik
    Starring Son Ye-jin
    Hyun Bin
    Cinematography Lee Tae-Joon
    Edited by Jung Jin-hee
    Music by Hwang Sang-Joon
    Production
    companies    		 JK Film
    CJ E&M[1]
    Distributed by CJ Entertainment
    Release date September 19, 2018 (South Korea)
    Running time 114 minutes
    Country South Korea
    Language Korean
    Budget ₩10 billion[2]
    Box office US$15.6 million[3]

    The Negotiation (Korean: 협상; Hanja: 協商; RR: Hyeobsang) is a 2018 South Korean action crime thriller film directed by Lee Jong-Seok and starring Son Ye-jin and Hyun Bin.[4][1] The film was released on September 19, 2018.[5][6][7]

    Two Filipino men kidnap a couple and hold them hostage at a house in Yingjie, Seoul. Crisis negotiator Inspector Ha Chae-youn of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, who was on a date and was called by her colleague, Superintendent Ahn Hyuk-su, is brought in to handle the situation, despite strong protests from her superior, Captain Jung Jun-gu. While Chae-youn is negotiating with the kidnappers, Captain Jung decides to send a police officer hit team to kill the men, shooting one kidnapper on the shoulder. He immediately kills the man he was holding and was shot dead afterward. The remaining kidnapper used the woman as a shield and dragged her to a room. The police team arrives and kills the kidnapper in the room. Chae-youn enters the room to find the woman who had been killed by the kidnapper before the police team entering the house. The woman dies in Chae-youn’s arms, leaving Chae-youn shocked.

    Ten days later, a devastated Chae-youn decides to resign from the police force, but Captain Jung urges her to reconsider, before leaving on a work trip. Chae-youn is then urgently called upon by Ahn, who informs her that she has been urgently summoned to deal with a hostage crisis by the Commissioner himself. Upon arrival to a secret location, she meets with the Commissioner of Police Moon Jong-hyuk and Presidential Secretary Gong of National Security. She is ordered to negotiate with the kidnapper – Min Tae-gu, a Korea-based international arms dealer and UK citizen, who had kidnapped several Korean nationals from Bangkok – including a reporter named Lee Su-mok. Without any additional information, she hung up on Min twice after being offended by him and asks Secretary Gong to reveal to her the necessary details. Not wanting to talk, the two men ordered Chief Han to talk to Min instead, while she is being hesitant about doing so. Upon seeing the negotiations going sour, she takes the seat from Chief Han. While negotiating with Min video conferencing, she is shocked to discover that Captain Jung, who was supposed to be on a trip, has also been kidnapped by Min as well,

    Chae-youn is later informed that the hostages are being held at an island in the Malacca Straits, where a joint military-police op has been sent to, intent on freeing them. Han also informs them that Daehan Daily, a news outlet Lee is working for, had been ordered to keep silent of their employee’s situation, as requested by the President. Min later demands to see the CEO of Daehan Daily, Yoon Dong-hoon, Lee’s boss. While talking with Dong-hoon, Min demands to know whether Lee is one of his reporters or not. Min threatens Yoon that his own family could be in danger, revealing that he knows of their whereabouts. Commissioner Moon cuts into their conversation to stop Yoon from telling the truth. Because of this, Min shoots Captain Jung dead, which further shocked Chae-youn. Commissioner Moon and Secretary Gong bring in negotiators from the National Intelligence Services to take over and order Chae-youn, Ahn, and even Han to leave the site.

    Outside, Han reveals to them that Lee is a black agent working for the NIS, whose mission was to spy on Min’s syndicate. She tells them that Min is an arms dealer working in the Malacca Straits, selling every kind of weapons and equipment to other criminals in the majority of the Southeast Asian countries. Chae-youn’s two colleagues arrive in their van, and Chae-youn sought to find out the truth themselves. She then asks Ahn to follow Yoon and ask him further. Back inside, the NIS team approached Min aggressively, demanding that Min release his hostages or otherwise they will bombard his location, killing Agent Lee with him. Unbothered, Min reveals that he had also kidnapped a family of four, keeping the NIS under this thumb. Min demands to bring Chae-youn back as he will only talk to her. With no other choice, Chief Han goes over to bring Chae-youn, along with her team, back inside.

    This time, Chae-youn demands the NIS to tell her everything that they know about Min. Min demands Chae-youn to bring Koo Gwan-su—chairman of Nine Electronics, an arms company. As they wait, the NIS tells Chae-youn that Min used to work for Koo as the man in charge of dealing with the company’s illegal activities. When Min decided to work alone as an arms dealer in Malacca Straits, Koo betrays Min and tipped him off to the NIS. Koo also revealed the $50 million worth of taxes that he had evaded, and due to his ‘honesty, the government practically erased his criminal activities. When Chae-youn asks where Koo is, the NIS agent reveals to her that they were all inside the Nine Electrics weapons laboratory. Koo himself had funded the entire operation of the NIS to hunt Min down. In a hotel suite lounge somewhere downtown were Koo, NIS Deputy Chief Park In-kyu, Air Force Commander Son Jung-Tae, and the Chief of National Security himself, Hwang Ju-ik. These four men had been keeping a close eye on the entire operation.

    Meanwhile, Ahn found out from the escaping Yoon that NIS Deputy Chief Park was the one who asked him to give Agent Lee a false Daehan Daily ID. Koo arrives at the site and begins to talk with Min. Min asks Koo to restore a certain Swiss bank account, and Koo agrees to it. However, Min had further demanded. He asks Koo why he had killed a woman named Yoo Hyun-Ju. Koo denies any knowledge of any Hyun-Ju, and Min began to tell Chae-youn of Hyun-Ju. Min introduced Hyun-Ju to Koo as his secretary. In reality, Hyun-Ju was to keep records of hidden, expensive paintings that Koo owned and kept. These paintings were worth 10 billion won each, and profits from these paintings would be shared between Koo, Park, Son, and Hwang. Some of the paintings were kept in a house that Hyun-Ju and presumably her husband stayed in. It is revealed that Hyun-Ju was the woman who died in Chae-youn’s arms ten days ago, and Min convinces Chae-youn that something was amiss during that operation, which resulted in Hyun-Ju’s death, and the disappearance of the paintings in the house almost immediately. To further prove his point, Min plays an audio recording of a conversation between the four corrupt men. This recording was done by Hwang himself, where Min explained that Hwang never fully trusted the three other men he was working with and had a habit of keeping recording devices for important conversations. Min then demands Hwang to show up and talk to him in one hour, otherwise, he’ll kill every hostage—including the children.

    Chae-young and her team validate the information Min had given as they try to figure out the connection between Min and Hyun-Ju. Secretary Gong lies to Chae-young, telling her that Hwang was with the President and that he couldn’t come. Meanwhile, Ahn was able to track down Chief Park’s phone records. There, he found out that Captain Jung had accepted a bribe from Chief Park. Captain Jung was under the command of Chief Park, and that they planned to kill Hyun-Ju by using the Filipino kidnappers as an alibi. Chae-youn resumes the negotiations with Min, telling Min that Hyun-Ju’s case will be reopened. Min demands to talk with Commissioner Moon. Min asks if Koo is being questioned by the police and that if Hwang is really with the President. Before answering, they found out from a Thai server that Min had been live-streaming the entire situation on YouTube, which sends the country into a frenzy. Upon figuring out that Koo is not being questioned, and that Hwang is in hiding, Min shoots Agent Lee in the leg. He gives Hwang one last chance to show himself.

    Back in their lounge, Hwang orders Chief Park to invent a story and Commander Son to begin the military operation immediately. Hwang wants Min dead, along with the hostages. Meanwhile, Ahn returns to Hyun-Ju’s home, where the kidnapping ten days ago occurred. There, he found a photo of Somang Orphanage, an old orphanage where Hyun-Ju came from. He goes over to the new orphanage, and he found out that Hyun-Ju’s real name wasn’t Yoon Hyun-Ju, but Min Hyun-Ju—she was Min’s younger sister. Back in the lab, the military team arrived in Min’s location and authorizes the mission, despite Chae-youn’s protests. Min reveals that a bomb is strapped on one of the hostages, revealing a suicide for all of them. Either way, the team blows up a signal tower—stopping their communication. Chae-youn tries to stop the team from entering Min’s hideout as a bomb is present. Hwang (through Commander Son) pressures them to continue, and the team enters the hideout. However, as soon as they moved in, the room had exploded, presumably from Min’s suicide bomb, and killing the hostages inside. Hwang and his cronies were finally able to relax, and the NIS were packing up their things.

    As Chae-youn stares at the last footage of their negotiations with Min in despair, she notices through the background that Min wasn’t in Southeast Asia, but in South Korea all along. That night, Ahn went to the old orphanage building and found all of the hostages safe. Meanwhile, Min and his gang arrived at the Nine Electronics weapons lab. He orders his fellow gang to go home and takes the bomb with him. Min storms the lounge and finally catches Hwang, Koo, Park, and Son, with the bomb strapped to his chest. Chae-young, convinced Secretary Gong to reveal the true location of Hwang and his cronies so that they can stop Min. Min shoots Koo, activates the bomb via a detonator, and Chae-youn arrives at the lounge to finally meet Min. She apologizes to Min for not being able to protect Hyun-Ju, and she vows to defend Min at any cost to bring the remaining cronies to justice. Min reveals to her that he asked Hyun-Ju to betray Koo by stealing every bit of information he had. He believed that his plan ultimately led to his sister’s death. He raises the gun at Hwang, and he was shot to the head by a sniper outside. A flashback reveals that Min backfired with his plan, telling his sister that the plan is too dangerous after all. However, Hyun-Ju wanted to proceed with the plan, so that the two of them can find a place to live in silence and peace.

    As the team arrives to escort Hwang, Park, Son, and Chae-youn outside, Chae-youn overheard that the detonator wasn’t turned on, and Min planned to die in the end and bring the corrupt men to justice. Chae-young chases Hwang outside, prematurely telling them of their arrest as she shouts their rights to them. As their car leaves, the reporters then surround Chae-youn. Chae-youn and Ahn went to an overlooking spot, where they made a makeshift memorial for Min and Hyun-Ju. Chae-youn shows Ahn of Min’s pen drive presumably with the dealings of Hwang and his cronies, as stolen by Hyun-Ju. In court, Hwang, Park, Son, and Chae-young appear, with Chae-young as a prime witness. The pen drive is revealed to the court as evidence, and the film ends with Chae-young reciting an oath.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Son Ye-jin as Ha Chae-yoon[8]

    Hyun Bin as Min Tae-gu[9]

    Supporting[edit]

    Kim Sang-ho as Ahn Hyuk-soo

    Jang Young-Nam as Section Chief Han

    Jang Gwang as Hwang Soo-suk

    Choi Byung-mo as Secretary Kong[10]

    Jo Young-jin as Chairman Koo

    Kim Jong-goo as CEO Yoon

    Yoo Yeon-soo as Chief Moon

    Lee Joo-young as Lee Da-bin

    Kim Min-sang as Deputy Department Head Park

    Park Sung-Geun as Operation officer

    Han Ki-Joon as Lieutenant General Son

    Park Soo-young as Section Chief Choi

    Jung In-gyeom as Lee Sang-mok

    Lee Si-a as Yoo Yeon-Joo

    Lee Hak-joo as Park Min-woo

    Special appearance[edit]

    Lee Moon-sikas Capt. Jung

    Production[edit]

    Principal photography began on June 17, 2017, in Paju, Gyeonggi Province.[11][12][13]

    Release[edit]

    The film premiered in South Korea on September 19, 2018.[14][15]

    By September 2018, the film was sold to over 22 countries. It was released in North America on September 20, in Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei on October 4, in Hong Kong and Macau in early October, in Vietnam and Taiwan on October 19, and in Indonesia on October 24, 2018.[16][17]

    The film was released on VOD services and digital downloads on October 17, 2018.[18]

     

    Comment: This very engaging police thriller taking place in Bangkok and Seoul.

    Usual high-level political corruption and rich people behaving badly.  Also features a woman protagonist who goes against her superiors and saves the day.

     

    End comment

     

    No exit  movie

     

    Comment:

     

    Another engaging police crime drama.  Very engrossing and great acting. Takes place in Cheju who a mafia figure who goes on the run after being betrayed by his boss.

     

    End comment

     

    https://mydramalist.com/28794-exit

    This was another great Korean movie. It was packed with action and comedy. This movie kept you on edge on your seat and glued your eyes to the screen. I love how Jo Jung Suk always keeps his quirky side whenever he played a character. He never disappoints me in the comedy area. Love him in dramas and movies.

    Images for no exit k drama

     

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    EXIT (2018) – MyDramaList

    https://mydramalist.com/28771-exit

    Exit is an interesting drama with an old concept depicted in a new way. The entire two hours were engrossing for me and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Choi Tae Joon was natural, strong, and intense in playing his role and the rest of the cast also did a pretty good job. The background score is quite good though it has no OSTs. Two hours is not much.

     

    Exit (Korean Drama, 2018, 엑시트) @ Han Cinema

    https://www.hancinema.net/korean_drama_Exit.php

    Exit (Korean Drama, 2018, 엑시트) – Find the cast, latest updates, latest news, legal streaming links, DVDs, Blu-rays, collectibles, latest trailers, latest …

     

     

     

    Sisyphus: The Myth (2021)

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    An unfathomable incident introduces a genius engineer to dangerous secrets of the world — and to a woman from the future who’s come looking for him. Han Tae Sul, a co-founder of Quantum and Time, is a genius engineer with the highest level of coding skills and outstanding looks that outweighs his engineer fashion sense. Due to his innovative achievements, Quantum and Time is a world-class company, dubbed “The Miracle of South Korea’s Engineering Industry.” In reality, Tae Sul has constantly caused his company’s stocks to fluctuate after his brother’s death ten years ago. One day, he witnesses something unbelievable. To reach the truth, he sets off on a dangerous journey. Kang Seo Hai is a survivor of a future dystopian world. With the survival skills that she’s learned from living amongst gangsters and warlords, she travels back to save Han Tae Sul. (Source: Netflix, Newsmen) Edit Translation

    English

    Native Title: 시지프스: The Myth

    Also Known As Sisyphus: The Fable, Sipleses, Sisyphus

    Director: Jin Hyeon

    Screenwriter: Jeon Chan Ho, Lee Je In

    Genres: Action, Thriller, Mystery, Romance, Drama, Fantasy

    Tags: Time Travel, Genius, Rich Male Lead, Uncover A Truth, Death Of Sibling, Engineer, Sassy Female Lead, Pre-produced, Strong Female Lead, Future (Vote or add tags)

    Where to Watch Sisyphus: The Myth

    Netflix

    Subscription (sub)

    Cast & Credits

    Add Cast

    Jo Seung Woo

    Han Tae Sul

    Main Role

    Park Shin Hye

    Kang Seo Hai

    Main Role

    Kim Byung Chula

    Seo Won Ju / “Sigma”

    Main Role

    Sung Dong-Il

    President Park [President of Asia Mart]

    Support Role

    Tae In Ho

    Eddie Kim / Kim Seung Bok [Tae Sul’s friend / Co-founder of Quantum & Time]

    Support Role

    Chae Jong Hyeon

    Sun / Choi Jae Sun [Chinese restaurant delivery guy]

    Support Role

     

    All you need is love

    Sisyphus: The Myth is an intriguing drama. The thrilling teaser that was released late last year stoked the flames of excitement for many avid K-drama viewers. Coupled with a cast that’s headlined by bankable stars the likes of Cho Seung Woo and Park Shin Hye, it became one of the most talked-about and highly anticipated shows for 2021. When it finally aired, however, it polarized opinions here in MDL and left several viewers’ expectations somewhat unfulfilled, to the extent that the ratings steadily declined to the current score hovering at around 8.

    Some continued to enjoy the show, for various reasons, and I happen to be one of them. Allow me to share my (spoiler-free) thoughts and then you can make your own decision on whether or not to embark on what has largely been a fun-filled escapist roller coaster ride.

    What is it about?
    In a nutshell, a woman from the dystopian future of South Korea travels back in time in the hopes of altering the course of history by preventing the seemingly inevitable fate that befell the country, the looming catastrophe of nuclear war. Central to this mission is the man who invented the time-traveling machine. These two characters are played by Park Shin Hye and Cho Seung Woo respectively.

    The drama contains a mix of science fiction, action, drama, and romance genres imbued with themes of revenge, redemption, remorse, love, friendship, and familial bond. The director is Jin Hyeon, who notably helmed The Legend of the Blue Sea, The Master’s Sun, and City Hunter, among others. The screenplay is written by the husband and wife team of Jeon Chan Ho and Lee Je In, for only their third production.

    This show is jointly produced by Drama House and JTBC and has been publicized as the network’s 10th-anniversary special drama. Its title is derived from the ancient character from Greek mythology, King Sisyphus of Corinth, and is completely pre-produced with principal photography that has taken place toward the end of 2020.

    What’s great about it?

    The Production Values
    As expected of a JTBC production, this drama is very well, made. I love the cinematography (in particular the indoor lighting), the many gorgeous scenic views of both Seoul in the present time and the vast landscape of the dystopian future. The set designs for various settings are quite exemplary while the special effects (CGIs, firefights, and pyrotechnics) are considered top tier for a show of this nature.

    The Acting and Cast
    In my humble opinion, the leads are fantastic and I have absolutely no complaints. While Cho Seung Woo fully embodies the character of Han Tae Sul, the same goes for Park Shin Hye’s Kang Seo Hai. They deliver very strong performances in their portrayal of deeply flawed and emotionally scarred individuals. These are the types of roles that perhaps mature actors with adequate professional and life experiences are better-equipped to articulate and convey convincingly, which is very much the case here.

    It’s interesting to note that unlike Cho Seung Woo’s other more serious roles, especially that of Hwang Shi Mock in Stranger, here his Han Tae Sul is much more comedic and mischievous with a copious dose of flamboyance and swagger. Despite possessing similar social awkwardness, this character is remarkably more fun while his ingenuity in getting out of tricky situations bears an uncanny resemblance to the MacGyver persona.

    Such nuanced characterization is depicted by the other veteran supporting cast as well, notably Sung Dong Il, Kim Byung Chula, and Kim Jong Tae. Kim Byung Chula in particular surprised me with his depiction of Seo Won Ju. Despite being slightly OTT, I suspect he had the time of his life being “unleashed” from his usual more understated roles. Here he plays “dual characters” where his versatility is quite commendable.

    Special mention goes to the young actor Lee Joo Won, who plays the young version of Seo Won Ju. This kid truly gave me goosebumps with his chilling portrayal.

    The Action
    For the most part, the choreography has been outstanding. From the numerous unarmed combat sequences to the firefights involving some pretty impressive military hardware. It’s not often that we see plenty of intense (and at times, logic-defying) gun battles in a non-military drama so this aspect of the production is indeed praiseworthy. Other forms of action include a lot of hard running in chasing (and being chased by) a multitude of characters.

    The Romance
    This particular theme is so beautifully and convincingly conveyed. It helps immensely that Cho Seung Woo and Park Shin Hye abundantly possess such wonderful chemistry which is poignantly manifested amidst the ensuing intrigue and mayhem. The pairing of Han Tae Sul and Kang Seo Hai, in many ways, makes a lot of sense. They are each plagued by a traumatic past and rendered seriously flawed, emotionally damaged, and are now fighting against the odds to change their fate.

    What could’ve been better?

    The Science
    I love the concept here about time traveling to the past to change the future which gives me vibes of The Twelve Monkeys where the premise is quite similar. However, I do feel that the science as depicted in the show is super messy. Many technical aspects are open to interpretation and left to the viewers to fill in the blanks, as the story progresses. It’s a process of trial and error where we discover new things during every episode. The finale is quite possibly the most mind-blowing of all.

    The Screenplay
    A parallel narrative and converging plot format are used to tell the story, which includes numerous flashbacks and flashforwards by various major characters in multiple timelines – the past, present, and future. Sometimes title cards are used to indicate the date, but not when the scene is obvious. It can get a little disorienting unless viewers pay close attention to the details.

    How and why certain events transpire are quite convoluted and require too much deductive reasoning to derive a sense of what the answers could be. The credibility of certain characters is questionable while quite a number of the sequences appear utterly ridiculous and fantastical, despite the sci-fi tag. The seeming lack of logic in certain respects of the overarching plot has led me to strongly suspect the screenwriters were high on recreational psychoactive substances as they were writing this.

    Overall
    The sooner viewers suspend disbelief and forgo questioning how the technology works by accepting the science as it is, the less confusing the show would appear to be. Regardless of the perceived weaknesses resulting from the flawed execution of the concept, I found myself enjoying the wild and, at times, exhilarating ride once I shut down my cerebral process and went instinctive. I would advise you to do the same for this is the only way to truly appreciate Sisyphus: The Myth. And if you do decide to watch this, be rest assured – the ending is very much a happy one, for everyone (kind of).

    Mediocre Myth

    At outset, the drama starts as an interesting and pioneering perspective of time travel. With the use of new ideas like uploader and downloader, the science-fiction aspect is on par with that of the contemporary world of science fiction entertainment.

    Along with this, is the backdrop of a nuclear war involving Koreas, it provides an exquisite playing field for proficient storytelling. These themes remind me of the “TENET” movie.

    The show is almost convincible scientifically about time travel*. But that’s where the spectacle of this show ends. This show has countless flaws.

    One, after setting the story, the show becomes more character-driven and not plot-driven. Thus, giving little scope for further exploring the sci-fi elements or packing it with more plot elements. Viewers are taken through detailed narratives about various side characters. These insights could have been less detailed.

    Two, Will over Wits. Almost every scene has some sort of test for characters to make a choice. Almost every character ends up making emotion-driven decisions and not reason-driven. This leads to a countless loop of bad folks coercing good folks to fall into their traps. Countless episodes are wasted in these cat-and-mouse endeavors.

    Three, Lack of an alternate answer to the recurring question “Girl or World?” Right in the first instance of asking this question, the answer is undeniably obvious. Yet, the protagonist delays to choose the answer giving false hope of the possibility of an alternative answer. Had this been answered earlier, it would have ended the show quicker.

    Four, Romance: The Leads’ relationship feels more like comradeship and less like a romantic one. If at all it is present, it is not so passionate and intense given their life-threatening circumstances.

    Five, the beginning of the time loop. How did all this begin that is, the events right before the first loop are hardly explained. I believe that explaining a bootstrap paradox is an unimaginable task.

    Despite the flaws, there are a couple of appreciable elements like One, ambitious production. The initial fights and stunts scenes felt amateurish in CGI. But the events of the future were well, produced. The drone chase scene was a personal favorite. The fights scenes were really good, especially the last fight of the future timeline. Two, despite the ever-looming question of “save the world”, the intermittent scenes of future events were very imaginative. Three, Badass FL and Genius ML both bring something unique to the plot. Four, the “Act of Kindness” (without letting the spoiler out), was the best moment in the entire drama and gave the best “glimmer of hope”, an essential feature of the Sci-Fi genre.

    Acting-wise, both the leads are exceptional. PSH stunt scenes are awe-worthy. Kim Byung Chula does an incredible job. Music-wise, I liked the title music of whizzing sound and the end song. Rewatch value is lower as sci-fi elements are hardly convoluted.

    Sisyphus: The Myth is an inventive concept but fails in storytelling.
    ~~
    *Logical inconsistencies do exist.

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    I have to agree with the consensus on this one.  It just did not work for me.  The plot was just too convoluted and contradictory.  The acting was superb but the writing was sub-par particularly the ending.   One principle of creative writing is that when you write you are creating an alternative world.  And every world has rules.  Violating the rules of your alternative universe leaves the readers or viewers confused, disappointed, or even angry.  The special effects were good, not great. The plot had too many holes in it.  In the end, it was defeated by the writing.   End comment

     

    Space Sweepers K SF Drama

     

    Space Sweepers

    Space Sweepers is a 2021 South Korean space Western film directed by Jo Sung-hee, starring Song Jong-ki, Kim Tae-Ri, Jin Seon-kyu, and Yoo Hai-jin. Regarded as the first Korean space blockbuster, it was released on Netflix on February 5, 2021.Wikipedia

    Director Sung-hee

    Produced by: Yoon In-beom, Kim Soo-jin

    Writer(s): Yoon Seung-min, Yoo-king Seo-ae, Jo Sung-hee

    Space Sweepers (Korean: 승리호; Hanja: 勝利號; RR: Sangho; lit. Spaceship Victory) is a 2021 South Korean space Western film directed by Jo Sung-hee, starring Song Jong-ki, Kim Tae-Ri, Jin Seon-kyu, and Yoo Hae-jin.[2] Regarded as the first Korean space blockbuster,[3] it was released on Netflix on February 5, 2021.[4][5]

    In the year 2092, Earth has become nearly uninhabitable. The UTS Corporation builds a new orbiting home for humanity that mimics the natural processes on Earth; however, only a chosen few are permitted to ascend and become UTS citizens, while those remaining on Earth breathe polluted air.

    To regulate the population in orbit and keep an eye on the non-citizens, UTS governs them via a strict set of rules and taxes. Many non-citizens from all across the globe work as space sweepers, collecting space debris floating in Earth’s orbit and selling it to the company factory for survival. The plot follows such a crew of space sweepers and their ship, the Victory.

    Victory’s crew has Kim Tae-ho, Tiger Park, and Bubs (an android), all led by Captain Jang. Tiger Park handles the ship’s machinery and was a drug baron on Earth. Bubs used to be a robot soldier but now helps repair the ship and cast the net for space junk while saving up to get a complete skin graft. Jang was one of the child geniuses sponsored by UTS and created several hi-tech inventions for the company but, after discovering the company’s true workings, became a pirate and tried to assassinate James Sullivan. Her crew was killed and Sullivan survived, so she changed identities and had an eye transplant. Tae-ho, once a child soldier, is on a search for his daughter (Su-ni); who was lost and ejected into space after space debris collided with the station they were staying at. His sole life aim is to pay for the authorities’ recovery team to locate her body tracker before she drifts out of orbit and gets lost in space forever.

    After picking up a car floating in orbit, they discover a child in it. News reports say that she is a robot named Dorothy, and has a weapon of mass destruction inside her created by the terrorist group Black Fox. The crew also finds a smartphone in Dorothy’s bag with several missed calls from someone named Kang Hyeon-u. They call back and, assuming the other party to be part of the Black Fox group, negotiate two million dollars for returning Dorothy. Tiger finds Dorothy drawing in his cabin and starts a conversation with her, as he finds himself drawn to her.

    Tae-ho and Tiger carry Dorothy to a nightclub to collect the ransom, but she wanders off in the crowd. UTS soldiers have lain in wait, and a massacre ensues. Tiger and Tae-ho locate Dorothy when Soldier 01 zeroes in and shoots at them. Dorothy’s eyes change color, and the trio is protected from the blast by a sort of force field around them. Jang is watching everything through a feed on the ship. She also notices the man who came to collect Dorothy shouting after her and calling her Kotani. The trio makes it back to the ship, and Dorothy busies herself drawing and playing. When asked by Jang what her name is, Dorothy says Kotani is her Korean name. Tae-ho ignores her, thinking she is a robot, while Tiger becomes friendly with her and suggests keeping her. Tae-ho dismisses the idea and goes to sets up another call with Kang Hyeon-u to rearrange the exchange.

    Dorothy and Tae-ho find tomatoes on the plant that Dorothy had helped revive from a dead tree, and sell them. Jang finds papers in Dorothy’s backpack and goes through them. Bubs put makeup on Dorothy and tell her the story of Tae-ho; as a child soldier, Tae-ho was Soldier 01 at the age of 17. On one of his voyages, Tae-ho shot and boarded a ship that carried several fleeing non-citizens and killed them all. He noticed a baby still alive in the arms of a dead woman and adopted the girl. She rekindled his humanity and Tae-ho found himself unable to hurt others – as a result, he was dismissed from the force, made homeless, and reduced to a non-citizen. After one year of homelessness, Tae-ho became desperate and gambled, neglecting Su-ni. She wandered away to find a snack, and while outside there was a debris impact that caused her to be blown into space, with Tae-ho helplessly witnessing it from an airlock.

    A masked man follows Kotani to the toilet in the factory. Her screams alert Tae-ho and Tiger, who rush to save her but are ambushed by a group of masked people. Tiger beats them all and Jang intervenes, discovering they are other space junk collectors working with Black Fox. Their leader, Karuma, explains that Black Fox is not a terrorist organization, but rather an environmental group and that Kotani is not an android but a human child. Born with a congenital disease, her father Kang Hyeon-u injected her with nanobots found in space debris to save her life. The nanobots helped not only saved Kotani but also gave her a unique power: Kotani could now communicate with other nanobots and heal and protect things. Sullivan found this out and used Kotani to turn Mars into a healthy, green planet. He now plans to kill Dorothy in a hydrogen bomb explosion (since nanobots can only be destroyed by breaking them into atoms through extremely high temperatures). Given its proximity to Earth, the explosion would cause the factory to fall onto the planet, destroying the Earth and making Mars the only viable option for all humans.

    The crew decides to unite Kotani with her father and disable the bomb, with the help of the Black Foxes who will locate and take Dr. Kang to the meeting point. Soldiers attack them, but Tae-ho and Kotani manage to flee on the Victory. They enter a space debris field, where nanobots begin to consume their ship. Kotani communicates with them, and the nanobots disperse. They enter the factory where the meet-up is scheduled, only to be ambushed. The UTS soldiers kill all the Black Foxes and Dr. Kang before kidnapping Kotani. Sullivan leaves Tae-ho four million dollars in return for abandoning Kotani. Tae-ho takes the money, but the rest decide to save Kotani – even if it kills them. Tae-ho goes to give the money to the UTS officers, and they hand over Su-no’s last found remains to him – her clothes, crayons, and Korean writing book. In it, Su-ni had written that she wanted to be a good person like her father. This reminds Tae-ho of the promise he made to Su-ni, to be the best man she had ever known. He takes back the money and returns to the ship with a new zeal before they all go to save Kotani.

    Sullivan goes live, announcing the Mars program. The bomb has been armed in the factory, and Kotani is strapped to it on a chair. The team frees Kotani, but Jang discovers that the bomb cannot be defused. It will not only destroy anything in its blast range but also destroy any nanobots in the vicinity of 5,000 kilometers. The only way Kotani’s nanobots (and her life) can be saved is if she is out of range. The team sets off to fly 5,000 km away, but is interrupted by Soldier 01; Tiger fights her and ejects her from the factory. The team sends out a message to the rest of the Space Sweepers, who come to their aid, fighting the attacking troops. The population of Earth learns of Sullivan’s true goals when they hear him recount his plan through the Space Sweepers’ emergency comm channel. The Victory is intercepted by Sullivan himself, who tries to fight the crew to get back Kotani. When it seems they have lost the battle, Tiger and Tae-ho manage a final boost that puts the ship just out of the blast range. The crew reveals their real plan: Kotani was left safely behind with other Space Sweepers. The Victory had removed the bomb from the core and carried it away, ready to sacrifice their lives to save Earth and Kotani. The bomb explodes; however, Kotani has summoned the nanobots to protect the Victory, keeping the crew safe.

    In the aftermath of the battle, UTS apologizes for the cover-up of the true goals and promise to help make Earth more habitable. Kotani is adopted by the crew and, using her powers, enables Tae-Ho to say goodbye to Su-ni. Bubs get her skin graft. Tiger and Tae-Ho take Kotani down to Earth to help grow trees and they all continue space sweeping.

    Cast[edit]

    Song Jong-ki as Kim Tae-ho – Former Commander of the Space Guards and the first-ever UTS Genius.

    Kim Tae-Ri as Captain Jang / Jang Hyun-sook – Former Special Forces Squad officer who later deserted her post to create her pirate organization. She attempted to assassinate CEO James Sullivan in which her entire pirate crew was killed.

    Jin Seon-kyu as Tiger Park / Park Kyung-soo – Former Drug King who escaped Earth after being arrested and sentenced to death.

    Yoo Hai-jin as Robot Bubs – Former military robot trying to save up for her gender confirmation services

    Richard Armitage as James Sullivan – The CEO of UTS.

    Kim Mu-yell as Kang Hyeon-u – Kang Kotani’s father and a scientist.

    Park Ye-rim as Dorothy / Kang Kotani – First believed to be a robot, she is a human who was injected with nanobots by her father as a last resort to heal her.

    Kim Hyang-gi as Bubs’ new body

     

     

    Comment: an enjoyable dystopian story taking place in space after much of the earth is uninhabitable and a Mars colonization drive is launched.  Usual political and corporate corruption and rich people behaving badly.   The romance between the lead characters is hinted at but never resolved.  The child star is the future star in the making.  The dialogue was well done.   I enjoyed this one. End comment

     

    The Last Man Standing K Drama

     

     

    The Man Standing Next

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    The Man Standing Next
    South Korean theatrical release poster
    Hangul 남산의 부장들
    Hanja 南山의 部長들
    Directed by Woo Min-ho
    Screenplay by Woo Min-ho

    Lee Ji-min
    Produced by Kim Chula-Yong
    Starring Lee Byung-Hun

    Lee Sung-min

    Kwak Do-won

    Lee Hee-Joon
    Cinematography Go, Nakasone,
    Edited by Jeong Ji-eon
    Music by Jo Yeong-wok
    Production
    company    		 Hive Media Corp.
    Distributed by Showbox
    Release date 22 January 2020
    Running time 114 min
    Language Korean
    Budget $18 million
    Box office $34.7 million[1]

    The Man Standing Next (Korean: 남산의 부장들; Hanja: 南山의 部長들; RR: Nnamani bujangdeul; lit. Chiefs of Namsan) is a 2020 South Korean political drama film directed by Woo Min-ho. Based on an original novel of the same title, the film stars Lee Byung-Hun, Lee Sung-min, Kwak Do-won, and Lee Hee-Joon as the high ranking officials of the Korean government and the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) during the presidency of Park Chung-hee 40 days before his assassination in 1979.[2]

     

    Comment:  this one resonates with me.  My Korean adventures began in August 1979 a few months before the assassination that changed modern Korean history occurred.  I had just arrived in Korea and had finished up my training. We were due to go to our assignments but the assassination occurred and we were sent to Seoul to wait to see if Peace Corps Korea would be pulled out. We were cleared to go to our assignments in early November 1979.

    The drama hints at an alleged US CIA plot to take out Park Chung-hee. Not sure I believe that the US CIA had anything to do with it but perhaps we at least knew in advance and did nothing to stop it.   The drama was well done, well written, with great dialogue, and well reflects the tensions of the period.

    End Comment

    Mr. Sunshine

     

     

    DP

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

    A gripping drama based on true events about life in the Korean military and why some soldiers run away from their obligations amid the constant harassment and strict discipline of the Korean military. This drama hit a nerve among many Koreans who recall their trouble times in the military. The military has announced that they are discontinuing the DP unit but swore it had nothing to do with this drama.

     

     

    D.P. (TV series)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    D.P.
    Promotional poster
    Korean 디피
    Genre Drama

    Military
    Based on D.P Dog’s Day
    by Kim Bo-tong
    Screenplay by Kim Bo-tong

    Han Jun-hee
    Directed by Han Jun-hee
    Starring Jung Hae-in

    Koo Kyo-hwan

    Kim Sung-kyun

    Son Seok-Koo
    Composer Primary
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 6
    Production
    Executive producers Bien Seung-min

    Han Jun-hee
    Producer Kim Dong-min
    Cinematography Yoo Ji-sun
    Editor Park Min-sun
    Running time 45–55 minutes
    Production companies Climax Studio

    Shortcake
    Distributor Netflix
    Release
    Original network Netflix
    Original release August 27, 2021

    D.P. (an acronym for Deserter Pursuit) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Han Jun-hee, from a screenplay by Kim Bo-tong and Han, based on the Lashing webtoon D.P Dog’s Day by Kim. The series stars Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-kyun, and Son Seok-Koo.[1][2] It premiered in six parts on Netflix on August 27, 2021.[3][4]

    Synopsis[edit]

    Set in 2014, D.P. tells the story of a team of Korean military police with their mission to catch deserters.

    The series magnifies the undesirable nature of the military, especially within a South Korean context. The widespread bullying and hazing as well as the mindset for the “survival of the fittest” are rife, with those presumed the “weakest” thrown to the bottom of the pile and served horrifying experiences at the hands of their superiors and compatriots.

    Private Ahn Joon-ho and Corporal Han Ho-Yul both team up to find the deserters, and end up on an adventurous journey.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Jung Hae-in as Private Ahn Joon-ho

    Koo Kyo-hwan as Corporal Han Ho-Yul

    Kim Sung-Kyun as Sergeant First Class Park Bum-gu

    Son Seok-Koo as Captain Im Ji-sup

    Supporting[edit]

    Jo Hyun-churl as Jo Suk-bong

    Shin Seung-ho as Hwang Jang-soo

    Park Se-joon as Heo Ki-young

    Park Jung-woo as Shin Woo-suk

    Kim Dong-young as Choi Joon-mok

    Lee Jun-young as Jung Hyun-min

    Choi Joon-young as Heo Chi-do

    Moon Sang-hoon as Kim Roo-ri

    Hyun Bong-sik as Chun Yong-duck

    Hong Kyung as Ryu Yi-Kang

    Bae Yoo-ram as Kim Kyu

    Han Woo-Yul as Tae Sung-goon

    Guest[edit]

    Go Kyung-pyro as Corporal Park Sung-woo (Ep. 1)

    Kwon Hae-Hyo as Ahn Joon-ho’s father (Eps. 1, 3–4)

    Lee Seol as Shin Woo-Seok’s sister (Eps. 1 & 6)

    Lee Jong-ok as an hinoeuma employee (Ep. 2)

    Episodes[edit]

    No. Title Directed by Written by Original release date
    1 “A Man Holding Flowers” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
    2 “Daydream” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
    3 “That Woman” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
    4 “The Monty Hall Problem” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
    5 “Military Dog” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
    6 “Onlookers” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021

    Production[edit]

    Development[edit]

    In late June 2020, Lashing officially announced that Lashing Studio and Homemade Film would co-produce a 6-part adaptation of the hit webtoon D.P: Dog Days by Kim Bo-tong, to be released exclusively through Netflix.[5][6] The story is based on Kim’s own experience during his mandatory military service.[7]

    Director and co-writer Han Jun-hee had wanted to work on the webtoon’s adaptation “for five or six years [before he] finally got a chance” to do so.[8] Though Ahn Joon-ho is a Corporal in the webtoon, Han wanted him to be a Private in the series so people could “resonate with the story and consider Joon-ho as a friend who just started his military service.”[9]

    Casting[edit]

    On September 3, 2020, Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-Kyun, and Son Seok-Koo were confirmed to star in the series.[10][11] Koo’s character does not appear in the webtoon, which he found “hard but exciting to portray a character exclusive to the series.”[12] To prepare for his role, Koo received help from his road manager who was part of the D.P. team during his military service.[13] As for Jung, he practiced boxing for three months before filming began, to do his action scenes.[14]

    Kim Bo-tong, who wrote the webtoon and co-wrote the series, commented that he “never dreamed of such a cast. They fit so perfectly into their roles that it seems like the roles were written for them.”[15]

    Filming[edit]

    Principal photography began in the summer of 2020.[16]

    Reception[edit]

    Audience viewership[edit]

    Following its release, the series topped Netflix’s Top 10 in South Korea.[17]

    Critical response[edit]

    William Schwartz of Han Cinema praised Jung Hae-in‘s acting, commenting that he “is sublime here, in a brooding cinematic role radically different from the romances he’s better known for.” He added that “D.P. is worth watching, not just by people curious what South Korean mandatory military service is like, but anyone from any country who’s seriously thinking about joining up.”[18]

    Pierce Conran of the South China Morning Post gave the series a 4.5/5 rating, noting that “D.P. hits home with a story that spans the past and present, as it acknowledges that yesterday’s problems can still be today’s.” He also praised the cinematography as well as Jung and Koo’s “electric chemistry”.[19] Daniel Hart of Ready Steady Cut also rated the series 4.5 stars out of 5, describing it as “the finest K-Drama mini-series this year.”[20]

    Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek rated the series 4.3/5, noting that “D.P. is a stunning Korean drama [which] takes an unflinching look at bullying, the effect it has on mental health and larger societal questions about the mandatory military service in Korea” and praising the series for its “impressive” cinematography and for the way it “explore[s] a very sensitive and prevalent topic in a raw, artistic and unflinching way.”[21]

    In a mixed review, Hitzig Jumaine of NME gave the series a 3/5 rating, commenting that “Kim Bo-tong and Han Jun-hee must be given credit for how this series tackles such extraordinarily difficult and tragic subject matter with compassion and sensitivity”, and praising the “uniformly excellent performances, splendid cinematography, addictive pacing, and intrepid commitment to shedding light on the appalling culture of bullying in the military”, but criticizing the “weak characterization [of the] three main leads” as well as the “ludicrous escalation of events during its climax, which suddenly turns a fairly grounded show into a melodramatic action thriller.”[22]

     

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

     

    Squid Games

     

    The top show on Netflix is not only in the US but also in Korea.  Reminiscent of both the “Maze”,  the “Hunger Games”, and the” Cube “ but done in a K Drama way. And addictive!

     

     

    Squid Game

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    Squid Game
    Promotional poster
    Also known as Round Six
    Hangul 오징어게임
    Revised Romanization Owing-ego Gem
    McCune–Reischauer Jingo Kemi
    Genre Action–adventure

    Suspense

    Survival

    Drama
    Created by Netflix
    Written by Hwang Dong-hyuk
    Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk
    Starring Lee Jung-Jae

    Park Hae-soo

    Wi Ha-joon
    Composer Jung Jae-il
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 1
    No. of episodes 9 (list of episodes)
    Production
    Camera setup Multi-camera
    Running time 32–63 minutes
    Production company Siren Pictures Inc.[1]
    Distributor Netflix
    Release
    Original network Netflix
    Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

    Dolby visión
    Audio format Dolby Atmos
    Original release September 17, 2021

    Squid Game (Korean: 오징어게임; RR: Jingle Gem) is a South Korean survival drama streaming television series written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk. The nine-episode series, starring Lee Jung-Jae, Park Hae-soo, and Wi Ha-Joon, tells the story of a group of people who risk their lives in a mysterious survival game with a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.7 million) prize.[2][3] It was released worldwide on September 17, 2021, by Netflix.[4][5]

    Premise

    Four hundred and fifty-six people, who have all struggled financially in life, are invited to play a mysterious survival competition. Competing in a series of traditional children’s games but with deadly twists, they risk their lives to compete for a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.5 million) prize.

    Cast and characters

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    Players

    Main characters[6]

    Lee Jung-Jae as Seong Gi-Hun (No. 456)[7]

    A chauffeur and a gambling addict, he lives with his mother and struggles to financially support his daughter. He participates in the Game to settle his many debts.

    Park Hae-soo as Cho Sang-woo (No. 218)

    The head of the investment team at a securities company, he was a junior to Gi-Hun, and was a gifted student who entered Seoul National University, but is now wanted by the police for stealing money from his clients.

    Oh Yeong-su as Oh Il-name (No. 001)

    An elderly man with a brain tumor prefers playing the Game to waiting to die on the outside.

    Hyeon Jung as Kang Sae-beak (No. 067)

    A North Korean defector enters the Game to pay for a broker that can find and retrieve her surviving family members from the country.

    Heo Sung-tea as Jang Deok-su (No. 101)

    A gangster enters the Game to settle his massive gambling debts.

    Anupam Tripathi as Abdul Ali (No. 199)

    A foreign worker from Pakistan enters the Game to provide for his young family after his employer refuses to pay him for months.

    Kim Joo-young as Han Mi-no (No. 212)

    A mysterious and manipulative woman who claims to be a poor single mother.[8]

    Supporting characters

    Yoo Sung-joo as Byeong-gi (No. 111)

    A doctor secretly works with a group of corrupt guards trafficking dead participants’ organs in exchange for information on upcoming games.

    Lee Yoo-mi as Ji-Yeong (No. 240)

    A young woman was just released from prison after killing her abusive father.

    Kim Si-Hyun as No. 244

    A pastor who finds his faith again in the Game.

    Minor characters

    Lee Sang-hee as No. 017

    A glass-maker with more than 30 years’ experience.

    Kim Yun-tea as No. 069

    A player who joins the Game with his wife, No. 070

    Lee Ji-ha as No. 070

    A player who joins the game with her husband, No. 069

    Kwak Ja-young as No. 278

    A player who joins Deok-sun’s group and acts as his henchman.

    Chris Chan / Chris Lag hit[9] as No. 276

    A player who joins Seong Gi-Hun’s group on the Tug of War round.

    Game staff

    Gong Yoo is a salesman who recruits participants for the Game (Special appearance, Episodes 1 and 9)[10]

    Lee Byung-Hun as The Front Man (Special appearance, Episodes 8–9)

    Civilians

    Main characters

    Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho[11]

    A police officer sneaks into the Game to find his missing brother.

    Supporting characters

    Kim Young-ok as Gi-Hun’s mother

    Cho Ah-in as Seong Ga-Yeong, Gi-Hun’s daughter

    Kang Mal-gum as Gi-Hun’s ex-wife and Ga-Yeong’s mother

    Park Hye-jin as Sang-woo’s mother

    Park Si-wan as Kang Cheol, Sae-book’s brother

    English cast (dubbing)

    Greg Chun as Seong Gi-Hun

    Stephen Fu as Cho Sang-woo

    Paul Nakache as Jang Deok-su

    Hideo Kimura as Oh Il-name

    Vivian Lu as Kang Sae-beak

    Rama Valéry as Abdul Ali

    Tom Choi as Front Man

    Donald Chang as Hwang Jun-ho

    Stephanie Komura as Han Mi-no

    Yuki Luna as Ji-yeong

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

     

    Move to Heaven is a heart-wrenching drama about a “Rain man” like character who worked with his father in a trauma clean-up business cleaning up after the recently deceased.  His father dies and his father’s deadbeat brother shows up as his guardian.

     

    Move to Heaven (Korean: 무브 투 헤븐: 나는 유품정리사입니다; RR: Mubeen to hereon: Naneun yupumjeongnisaimnida) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Kim Sung-ho and written by Yoon Ji-rye on. It is an original Netflix series, starring Lee Je-hoon, Tang Joon-sang, Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee. The series follows Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), a young man with Asperger syndrome, and Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon), his guardian. Working as trauma cleaners, they uncover untold stories.[1][2] The series was released worldwide by Netflix on May 14, 2021.[3]

     

     

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

    Another K Drama I liked was “Mad About You”.

    The acting was first-rate, the storyline intriguing, and covers some contemporary issues including adultery, cyberbullying, and the like.

    “About two people with their own painful stories who go through a complicated process of hurting and healing while falling in love with each other. No HI Oh is a detective in the violent crimes division of the Gangnam Police Station. He thinks that he is doing well until his life suddenly takes a turn and he becomes a “crazy” person who can’t hold in his anger about anything. Lee Min Kyung is a woman who is caught up in her delusions and compulsions. She had lived an ordinary life as a pretty woman with a respectable job until “that incident” caused everything in her life to break down. As a result, she was unable to trust anyone and is caught in a prison of her own making. Her delusions also have the unfortunate side effect of making everyone else around her angry. (Source: Suomi)”

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

     

    Heist – not a K Drama, more of an S Drama but pretty good, but went on too long.  Should have ended with the first season.  There were lots of unanswered questions –

     

    Who is behind the Professor?  Obviously could not have pulled it off himself. There are hints that he is connected to shadowy and Serbian forces and has some inside info from the police and security forces.

     

    The politics got a bit too left-wing conspiracy for my taste as well.

     

    Money Heist

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    Money Heist
    Spanish La casa de papal
    Genre Crime drama[1]

    Heist[2]

    Thriller[3]
    Created by Alex Pina
    Starring Úrsula Corbera

    Álvaro Morte

    Itziar Ituño

    Pedro Alonso

    Paco Tous

    Alba Flores

    Miguel Herrán

    Jaime Lorente

    Esther Acebo

    Enrique Arce

    María Pedraza

    Darlo Peri

    Kita Máncer

    Ovil Keuchkerian

    Luka peros

    Belén Cuesta

    Fernando Cayo

    Rodrigo de la Serna

    Najwa Nimr
    Theme music composer Manel Santisteban
    Opening theme “My Life Is Going On” by Cecilia Krull
    Composers Manel Santisteban

    Iván Martínez La cámara
    Country of origin Spain
    Original language Spanish
    No. of seasons 3 (5 parts)[a]
    No. of episodes 36 (list of episodes)
    Production
    Executive producers Álex Pina

    Sonia Martínez

    Jesús Colmenar

    Esther Martínez Lobato

    Nacho Manaban
    Production locations Spain

    Italy

    Thailand

    Panama

    Denmark

    Portugal
    Cinematography Miguel Amodeo
    Editors David Pelegrín

    Luis Miguel González Bedmar

    Verónica Callón

    Raúl Mora

    Regino Hernández

    Raquel Maraca

    Patricia Rubio
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 67–77 minutes (Antenna 3)
    41–61 minutes (Netflix)
    Production companies Transmedia

    Vancouver Media
    Distributor Antenna 3 Televisión

    Netflix
    Release
    Original network Antenna 3 (2017)

    Netflix (2019–present)
    Picture format 1080p (16:9 HDTV)

    4K (Ultra HD) (16:9 UHDTV)

    Dolby Vision
    Audio format Dolby Atmos
    Original release 2 May 2017 –
    present
    External links
    Website

    Money Heist (Spanish: La casa de papal, “The House of Paper”) is a Spanish heist crime drama television series created by Alex. The series traces two long-prepared heists led by the Professor (Álvaro Morten), one on the Royal Mint of Spain, and one on the Bank of Spain told from the perspective of one of the robbers, Tokyo (Ursula). The narrative is told in a real-time-like fashion and relies on flashbacks, time-jumps, hidden character motivations, and an unreliable narrator for complexity.

    The series was initially intended as a limited series to be told in two parts. It had its original run of 15 episodes on Spanish network Antena 3 from 2 May 2017 through 23 November 2017. Netflix acquired global streaming rights in late 2017. It re-cut the series into 22 shorter episodes and released them worldwide, beginning with the first part on 20 December 2017, followed by the second part on 6 April 2018. In April 2018, Netflix renewed the series with a significantly increased budget for 16 new episodes total. Part 3, with eight episodes, was released on 19 July 2019. Part 4, also with eight episodes, was released on 3 April 2020. A documentary involving the producers and the cast premiered on Netflix the same day, titled Money Heist: The Phenomenon (Spanish: La casa de papal: El Fennomen). In July 2020, Netflix renewed the show for a fifth and final part, which would be released in two five-episode volumes on 3 September and 3 December 2021, respectively. The series was filmed in Madrid, Spain. Significant portions were also filmed in Panama, Thailand, Italy (Florence), Denmark, and Portugal.

    The series received several awards including the International Emmy Award for Best Drama Series at the 46th International Emmy Awards, as well as critical acclaim for its sophisticated plot, interpersonal dramas, direction, and for trying to innovate Spanish television. The Italian anti-fascist song “Bella ciao“, which plays multiple times throughout the series, became a summer hit across Europe in 2018. By 2018, the series was the most-watched non-English-language series and one of the most-watched series overall on Netflix,[4] having particular resonance with viewers from Mediterranean Europe and the Latin American regions.

    Premise[edit]

    Set in Madrid, a mysterious man known as “The Professor” recruits a group of eight people, who choose city names as their aliases, to carry out an ambitious plan that involves entering the Royal Mint of Spain, and escaping with €984 million. After taking 67 people hostage inside the Mint, the team plans to remain inside for 11 days to print the money as they deal with elite police forces. In the events following the initial heist, the group’s members are forced out of hiding and prepare for a second heist, this time on the Bank of Spain, as they again deal with hostages and police forces.

    Cast and characters[edit]

    See also: List of Money Heist cast members

    Main[edit]

    Ursula Cordero as Silene Oliveira (Tokyo): a runaway turned robber who is scouted by the Professor, then joins his group and participates in his plans. She also acts as an unreliable narrator.

    Álvaro Morten as Sergio Marquita (The Professor) / Salvador “Salva” Martin: the mastermind of the heist who assembled the group, and Berlin’s younger brother

    Ritzier Ikuno as Raquel Murillo (Lisbon): an inspector of the National Police Corps who is put in charge of the case until she joins the group in part 3

    Pedro Alonso as Andrés de Foolscap (Berlin): a terminally ill jewel thief and the Professor’s second-in-command and older brother

    Paco Tous as Agustin Ramos (Moscow) (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–5): a former miner turned criminal and Denver’s father

    Alba Flores as Ágata Jiménez (Nairobi) (parts 1-4; featured part 5): an expert in counterfeiting and forgery, in charge of printing the money and oversaw the melting of gold

    Miguel Herren as Anibal Cortés (Rio): a young hacker who later becomes Tokyo’s boyfriend

    Jaime Lorene as Ricardo / Daniel[b] Ramos (Denver): Moscow’s son who joins him in the heist

    Esther Acerbo as Mónica Ketamide (Stockholm): one of the hostages who is Arturo Román’s secretary and mistress, carrying his child out of wedlock; during the robbery, she falls in love with Denver and becomes an accomplice to the group

    Enrique Arce as Arturo Román: a hostage and the former Director of the Royal Mint of Spain

    María Pedraza as Alison Parker (parts 1–2): a hostage and daughter of the British ambassador to Spain

    Darko Peri as Mirko Dragic (Helsinki): a veteran Serbian soldier and Oslo’s cousin

    Kite Manger as Marivic Fuentes (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): Raquel’s mother

    Horik Kircherian as Bogotá (parts 3–present): an expert in metallurgy who joins the robbery of the Bank of Spain

    Luka Pero’s as Jakob (Marseille; part 4–present; featured part 3): a member of the gang who joins the robbery of the Bank of Spain and serves as a liaison for the group.

    Belen Cuesta as Julia (Manila; part 4–present; featured part 3): godchild of Moscow and Denver’s childhood friend, now a trans woman, who joins the gang and poses as one of the hostages during the robbery of the Bank of Spain

    Fernando Kayo as Colonel Luis Tamayo (part 4–present; featured part 3): a member of the Spanish Intelligence who oversees Alicia’s work on the case

    Rodrigo de la Serna as Martín Berate (Palermo / The Engineer; parts 3–present): an old Argentine friend of Berlin who planned the robbery of the Bank of Spain with him and assumed his place as commanding officer

    Najwa Nimr as Alicia Sierra (parts 3–present): a pregnant inspector of the National Police Corps put in charge of the case after Raquel departed from the force

    Recurring[edit]

    Roberto García Ruiz as Dimitri Most’ve / Radka Dragic[c] (Oslo; parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): a veteran Serbian soldier and Helsinki’s cousin

    Fernando Soto as Angel Rubio (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–5): a deputy inspector and Raquel’s second-in-command

    Juan Fernández as Colonel Luis Prieto (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): a member of the Spanish Intelligence who oversees Raquel’s work on the case

    Anna Gras as Mercedes Colmenar (parts 1–2): Alison’s teacher and one of the hostages

    Fran Morcilla as Pablo Ruiz (part 1): Alison’s schoolmate and one of the hostages

    Clara Alvarado as Ariadne Cascades (parts 1–2): one of the hostages who works in the Mint

    Mario de la Rosa as Suárez: the chef o the Grupo Especial de Operaciones

    Miquel García Board as Alberto Vicuña (parts 1–2; featured part 4): Raquel’s ex-husband and a forensic examiner

    NAIA Gus as Paula Vicuña Murillo (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): Raquel and Alberto’s daughter

    José Manuel Pogan as César Gandía (parts 4–5; featured part 3): chief of security for the Bank of Spain who escapes from hostage and causes havoc for the group

    Antonio Romero as Benito Antonina’s (parts 3–5): an assistant to Colonel Luis Tamayo, who is persuaded by the Professor to do tasks for him

    Diana Gómez as Tatiana (featured parts 3–5): the fifth ex-wife of Berlin who is a professional pianist and thief

    Pep Munn as Mario Urbana (featured parts 3–5): the governor of the Bank of Spain

    Olalla Hernández as Amanda (featured parts 3–5): a hostage that Arturo rapes

    Mari Carmen Sánchez as Paquito (featured parts 3–5): a hostage and a nurse who tends to Nairobi while she recovers

    Carlos Suárez as Miguel Fernández (featured parts 3–5): a nervous hostage

    Adhikari Alcona as Matias Cano (featured parts 3–5): a member of the group who largely guards the hostages

    Ramón Aguirre as Benjamín (featured parts 4–5): father of Manila who aids the Professor in his plan

    Antonio García Ferrers as himself (featured parts 4–5): a journalist

    Patrick Cried as Rafael (featured part 5): Berlin’s son

    Alberto Amarilla as Ramiro (parte 5)

    Miguel Angel Silvestre (featured part 5): René, Tokyo’s boyfriend before working with the Professor

    José Manuel Seda as Segesta (part 5): leader of the army detail inside the bank

    Production[edit]

    Conception and writing[edit]

    Further information: § Themes and analysis

    We wanted to make a very small project simply; we wanted to cross lines we couldn’t cross in previous projects, in terms of narrative and structure without any intermediaries.

    —Writer Esther Martinez Lobato, October 2018[11]

    The series was conceived by screenwriter Alex and director Jesús Colmenar during their years of collaboration since 2008.[12] After finishing their work on the Spanish prison drama Locked Up (Vis a vis), they left Globo media to set up their own production company, named Vancouver Media, in 2016.[12][13] For their first project, they considered either filming a comedy or developing a heist story for television,[12] with the latter having never been attempted before on Spanish television.[14] Along with former Locked Up colleagues,[d] they developed Money Heist as a passion project to try new things without outside interference.[11] Pina was firm about making it a limited series, feeling that dilution had become a problem for his previous productions.[15]

    Initially entitled Los Desharious (The Evicted) in the conception phase,[15] the series was developed to subvert heist conventions and combine elements of the action genre, thrillers, and surrealism, while still being credible.[12] Pina saw an advantage over typical heist films in that character development could span a considerably longer narrative arc.[16] Characters were to be shown from multiple sides to break the viewers’ preconceptions of villainy and retain their interest throughout the show.[16] Key aspects of the planned storyline were written down at the beginning,[17] while the finer story beats were developed incrementally to not overwhelm the writers.[18] Writer Javier Gómez Santander compared the writing process to the Professor’s way of thinking, “going around, writing down options, consulting engineers whom you cannot tell why you ask them that,” but noted that fiction allowed the police to be written dumber when necessary.[18]

    The beginning of filming was set for January 2017,[14] allowing for five months of pre-production.[19] The narrative was split into two parts for financial considerations.[19] The robbers’ city-based code names, which Spanish newspaper ABC compared to the color-based code names in Quentin Tarantino‘s 1992 heist film Reservoir Dogs,[20] were chosen at random in the first part,[21] although places with high viewership resonance were also taken into account for the new robbers’ code names in part 3.[22] The first five lines of the pilot script took a month to write,[19] as the writers were unable to make the Professor or Moscow work as a narrator.[15] Tokyo as an unreliable narrator, flashbacks, and time-jumps increased the narrative complexity,[16] but also made the story more fluid for the audience.[19] The pilot episode required over 50 script versions until the producers were satisfied.[23][24] Later scripts would be finished once per week to keep up with filming.[19]

    Casting[edit]

    Casting took place late in 2016, spanning more than two months.[25] The characters were not fully fleshed out at the beginning of this process and took shape based on the actors’ performances.[26] Casting directors Eva Leora and Yolanda Serrano were looking for actors with the ability to play empathetic robbers with believable love and family connections.[27] Antenna 3 announced the ensemble cast in March 2017[3] and released audition excerpts of most cast actors in the series’ after show Terser Grado and on their website.[26]

    The Professor was designed as a charismatic yet shy villain who could convince the robbers to follow him and make the audience sympathetic to the robbers’ resistance against the powerful banks.[28] However, developing the Professor’s role proved difficult, as the character did not follow archetypal conventions[25] and the producers were uncertain about his degree of brilliance.[15] While the producers found his Salva personality early on,[15] they were originally looking for a 50-year-old Harvard professor type with the looks of Spanish actor José Coronado.[15][29] The role was proposed to Javier Gutiérrez, but he was already committed to starring in the film Campeones.[30] Meanwhile, the casting directors advocated for Álvaro Morten, whom they knew from their collaboration on the long-running Spanish soap opera El Secretor de Puente Viejo, even though his prime-time television experience was limited at that point.[29] Going through the full casting process and approaching the role through external analysis rather than personal experience, Morten described the professor as “a tremendous box of surprises” that “end up shaping this character because he never ceases to generate uncertainty,” making it unclear for the audience if the character is good or bad.[25] The producers also found that his appearance as a primary school teacher gave the character more credibility.[15]

    Pedro Alonso was cast to play Berlin, whom La Vos de Galicia would later characterize as a “cold, hypnotic, sophisticated and disturbing character, an inveterate macho with serious empathy problems, a white-collar thief who despises his colleagues and considers them inferior.”[31] The actor’s portrayal of the character was inspired by a chance encounter Alonso had the day before receiving his audition script, with “an intelligent person” who was “provocative or even manipulative” to him.[32] Alonso saw high observation skills and an unusual understanding of his surroundings in Berlin, resulting in unconventional and unpredictable character behavior.[31] Similarities between Berlin and Nimr’s character Zulema in Pina’s TV series Locked Up were unintentional.[33] The family connection between the Professor and Berlin was not in the original script but was built into the characters’ backstory at the end of part 1 after Morten and Alonso had repeatedly proposed to do so.[34]

    The producers found the protagonist and narrator, Tokyo, among the hardest characters to develop,[19] as they were originally looking for an older actress to play the character who had nothing to lose before meeting the Professor.[26] Ursula Cordero eventually landed the role for bringing playful energy to the table; her voice was heavily factored in during casting, as she was the first voice the audience hears in the show.[26] Jaime Lorene developed Denver’s hallmark laughter during the casting process.[26] Two cast actors had appeared in previous TV series by Alex Pina: Paco Tous (Moscow) had starred in the 2005 TV series Los hombres de Paco, and Alba Flores (Nairobi) had starred in Locked Up. Flores was asked to play Nairobi without audition when Pina realized late in the conception phase that the show needed another female gang member.[15] For the role opposite to the robbers, strop was cast to play Inspector Raquel Murillo, whom Ikuno described as a “strong and powerful woman in a world of men, but also sensitive in her private life”.[35] She took inspiration from The Silence of the Lambs character Clarice Starling, an FBI student with a messy family life who develops sympathies for a criminal.[36]

    The actors learned of the show’s renewal by Netflix before the producers contacted them to return.[37] In October 2018, Netflix announced the cast of part 3; the returning main cast included Pedro Alonso, raising speculation about his role in part 3.[38] Among the new cast members were Argentine actor Rodrigo de la Serna, who saw a possible connection between his character’s name and the Argentine football legend Martín Palermo,[39] and Locked Up star Najwa Nimr. Cameo scenes of Brazilian football star, and fan of the series, Neymar, as a monk were filmed for part 3, but were excluded from the stream without repercussions to the narrative until judicial charges against him had been dropped in late August 2019.[40][18] A small appearance by Spanish actress Belen in two episodes of part 3 raised fan and media speculation about her role in part 4.[41]

    Design[edit]

    Spanish Surrealist painter Salvador Dalí was chosen as the heist team’s mask design.

    The show’s look and atmosphere were developed by creator Alex Pina, director Jesús Colmenar, and director of photography Miguel Amodeo, according to La Vanguard “the most prolific television trio in recent years”.[42] Abdon Alaniz served as art director.[43] Their collaboration projects usually take a primary color as a basis;[43] Money Heist had red as “one of the distinguishing features of the series”[44] that stood over the gray sets.[45] Blue, green and yellow were marked as forbidden colors in production design.[45] To achieve “absolute film quality”, red tones were tested with different types of fabrics, textures, and lighting.[46] The iconography of the robbers’ red jumpsuits mirrored the yellow prison dress code in Locked Up.[44] For part 3, the Italian retail clothing company Diesel modified the red jumpsuits to better fit the body and launched a clothing line inspired by the series.[45] Salvador Dalí was chosen as the robbers’ mask design because of Dalí’s recognizable visage that also serves as an iconic cultural reference to Spain; Don Quixote as an alternative mask design was discarded.[47] This choice sparked criticism by the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation for not requesting the necessary permissions.[27]

    To make the plot more realistic, the producers requested and received advice from the national police and the Spanish Ministry of Interior.[48][49] The robbers’ banknotes were printed with permission of the Bank of Spain and had an increased size as an anti-counterfeit measure.[48] The greater financial backing of Netflix for part 3 allowed for the build of over 50 sets across five basic filming locations worldwide.[50] Preparing a remote and uninhabited island in Panama to represent a robber hide-out proved difficult, as it needed to be cleaned, secured, and built on, and involved hours-long traveling with material transportation.[46] The real Bank of Spain was unavailable for visiting and filming for security reasons, so the producers recreated the Bank on a two-level stage by their imagining, taking inspiration from Spanish architecture of the Francisco Franco era.[46] Publicly available information was used to make the Bank’s main hall set similar to the reallocation. The other interior sets were inspired by different periods and artificially aged to accentuate the building’s history.[50] Bronze and granite sculptures and motifs from the Valle de Los Ciaos were recreated for the interior,[46] and over 50 paintings were painted for the Bank to emulate the Ateneo de Madrid.[50]

    Filming[edit]

    The Spanish National Research Council headquarters, the principal filming location of parts 1 and 2 of Money Heist

    The Nuevo’s, the principal filming location of part 3 of Money Heist

    Parts 1 and 2 were filmed back-to-back in the greater Madrid region from January until August 2017.[23][25][51] The pilot episode was recorded in 26 days,[48] while all other episodes had around 14 filming days.[16] Production was split into two units to save time, with one unit shooting scenes involving the Professor and the police, and the other filming scenes with the robbers.[19] The main storyline is set in the Royal Mint of Spain in Madrid, but the exterior scenes were filmed at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) headquarters for its passing resemblance to the Mint,[48] and on the roof of the Higher Technical School of Aeronautical Engineers, part of the Technical University of Madrid.[51] The hunting estate where the robbers plan their coup was filmed at the Finca El Gascon farm estate in Terrebonne.[51] Interior filming took place at the former Locked Upsets in Colmenar Viejo[13] and the Spanish national daily newspaper ABC in Torreon for printing press scenes.[23] As the show was designed as a limited series, all sets were destroyed once the production of part 2 had finished.[19]

    Parts 3 and 4 were also filmed back-to-back,[52] with 21 to 23 filming days per episode.[16] Netflix announced the start of filming on 25 October 2018,[28] and filming of part 4 ended in August 2019.[53] In 2018, Netflix had opened their first European production hub in Tres Cantos near Madrid for new and existing Netflix productions;[54] the main filming moved there onto a set three times the size of the set used for parts 1 and 2.[55] The main storyline is set in the Bank of Spain in Madrid, but the exterior was filmed at the Ministry of Development complex Nuevos Minister iOS.[55] A scene where money is dropped from the sky was filmed at Callao Square.[51] Ermita de San Fritos in Car rascal served as the exterior of the Italian monastery where the robbers plan the heist.[45] The motorhome scenes of the Professor and Lisbon were filmed at the deserted Las Salinas beaches in Almería to make the audience feel that the characters are safe from the police although their exact location is undisclosed at first.[56] Underwater scenes inside the vault were filmed at Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom.[22][57] The beginning of part 3 was also filmed in Thailand, on the Guna Yale islands in Panama, and in Florence, Italy,[46] which helped to counter the claustrophobic feeling of the first two parts,[16] but was also an expression of the plot’s global repercussions.[58] Filming for the fifth and final season concluded on 14 May 2021.[59]

    Music[edit]

    Main article: Money Heist (soundtrack)

    The series theme song, “My Life Is Going On,” was composed by Manel Santisteban, who also served as composer on Locked Up. Santisteban approached Spanish singer, Cecilia Krull, to write and perform the lyrics, which are about having confidence in one’s abilities and the future.[60] The theme song is played behind a title sequence featuring paper models of major settings from the series.[60] Krull’s main source of inspiration was the character Tokyo in the first episode of the series when the Professor offers her a way out of a desperate moment.[61] The lyrics are in English as the language that came naturally to Krull at the time of writing.[61]

    The Italian anti-fascist song “Bella ciao” plays multiple times throughout the series and accompanies two emblematic key scenes: at the end of the first part the Professor and Berlin sing it in preparation for the heist, embracing themselves as resistance against the establishment,[62] and in the second part it plays during the thieves’ escape from the Mint, as a metaphor for freedom.[63] Regarding the use of the song, Tokyo recounts in one of her narrations, “The life of the Professor revolved around a single idea: Resistance. His grandfather, who had fought against the fascists in Italy, taught him the song, and he taught us.”[63] The song was brought to the show by writer Javier Gómez Santander. He had listened to “Bella ciao” at home to cheer him up, as he had grown frustrated for not finding a suitable song for the middle of part 1.[18] He was aware of the song’s meaning and history and felt it represented positive values.[18] “Bella ciao” became a summer hit in Europe in 2018, mostly due to the popularity of the series and not the song’s grave themes.[

     

    Move to Heaven

     

    Synopsis[edit]

    Move to Heaven is inspired by the essay “Things Left Behind” by Kim Sae-buy, a former “trauma cleaner”. Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), who has Asperger syndrome, and his ex-convict uncle Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon) meet for the first time after the sudden death of Geu-ru’s father. Entrusted as Geu-ru’s guardian, Sang-gu joins his nephew to help run the family trauma cleaning company “Move to Heaven”, wherein the course of business they uncover untold stories about the deceased while Sang-gu tries to deal with his painful past with Geu-ru’s father as well as the traumatic incident that landed him in jail.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Lee Je-hoon is Cho Sang-gu,[4] an ex-convict and Geu-ru’s estranged uncle who becomes his guardian upon release from jail. He is blunt, smokes cigarettes, and moonlights as an underground MMA fighter. He was sent to jail after putting his protégé Su-Cheol into a coma during a fight. Despite his background, he is still entrusted to take care of Geu-ru after his release and is instructed to stay and work with Geu-ru for a three-month probationary period. Although he initially does so for financial gain and appears to be ignorant of Geu-ru’s condition, he slowly gets to know Geu-ru as they both work together as trauma cleaners for Move to Heaven, gaining a new outlook on life and allowing him to discover the truth about his half-brother and Geu-ru’s father Jeong-woo, who he believes had abandoned him when he was still very young.

    Tang Joon-sang as Han Geu-ru,[5] a 20-year-old with Asperger syndrome who works as a trauma cleaner for Move to Heaven, over which he took following his father’s death. He is smart, has an incredible memory, and is extremely logical, abilities which he uses to uncover untold stories about the deceased through the collection of their important personal belongings. Following his father’s practice, Geu-ru places the deceased’s most important belongings in a yellow box, which he always insists on handing over to the next of kin; if they cannot be readily found or are unwilling to receive the box, Geu-ru always tries to find a way to pass it on regardless, often to Sang-gu’s consternation. Geu-ru also has a minor obsession with fish and marine life, since his parents regularly brought him to a giant aquarium as a child, and he continues to do so as an adult. When he feels panicked, Geu-ru recites facts about fish to calm himself. Despite his condition, there are a lot of people surrounding him who understand his situation and try their best to help him and make him feel comfortable.

    Supporting[edit]

    Ji Jin-hee is Han Jeong-woo, Geu-ru’s father, and Sang-gu’s older half-brother, who shares the same mother with him. He was the founder and owner of Move to Heaven before his sudden death from cardiac arrest. Previously a firefighter in Busan, he rescued an abandoned infant, whom he and his wife later adopted and named Geu-ru. After her passing, he taught Geu-ru everything about life and his job as a trauma cleaner but kept his heart condition secret from him. He also treated Sang-gu like his own brother, but after Sang-gu’s father died and Jeong-woo inadvertently abandoned him, they became estranged until Su-Cheol tried to reunite them at his last fight. Although Sang-gu refuses to see him when he tries to visit him in jail, Jeong-woo still entrusts his son’s future care to him.

    Kim Ju-Yeon is Min Ji-won, Jeong-woo’s wife and Geu-ru’s mother, who died from cancer when he was a child.

    Lee Moon-Sik is Park Joo-take, a waste disposal truck driver and a friend of Jeong-woo. He is a close partner of Move to Heaven who helps them collect the unusable garbage left by the deceased. A North Korean defector, he is amazed by Move to Heaven’s work and always prioritizes them when they need his service.

    Im Won-hee as Oh Hyun-change, a lawyer, and a partner of Move to Heaven. He was assigned by Jeong-woo to contact Sang-gu when he got discharged from prison and explains to Geu-ru and Na-mu the guardianship arrangement with Sang-gu.

    Hong Seung-hee as Yoon Na-mu,[6] Geu-ru’s best friend and neighbor who joins and helps him run Move to Heaven after she becomes suspicious of Sang-gu’s sudden presence in Geu-ru’s life. However, her mother disapproves of her working as a trauma cleaner, and she does so in secret. She has been fond and protective of Geu-ru since they first met when they were kids and is willing to take good care of him.

    Hong Seok is Park Jun-Yeong,[7] a policeman and friend of Han Geu-ru and Yoon Na-mu. He is usually seen attending crime scenes where clean-up by Move to Heaven is required and is their first contact when the pair needs the help of the police. Like Na-mu, he understands Geu-ru’s condition and tries his best to help him. It is hinted that he has feelings toward Yoon Na-mu.

    Jung Young-Joo as Oh Mi-ran, Na-mu’s mother. She runs a small takeaway shop, located against Move to Heaven, with her husband. She disapproves of both her daughter’s friendship with Geu-ru and her working for Move to Heaven.

    Lee Jae-wook as Kim Su-cheol,[8] Sang-gu’s friend and protégé. 10 years ago, Sang-gu helped him out when he was beaten up by street thugs, inspiring Su-Cheol to become a fighter and eventually becoming a champion boxer himself. After several years, he told Sang-gu that he wanted to retire from boxing so he could start a new life running a supply shop with his father and sister. Unfortunately, he ended up being forced to participate in a rigged underground MMA fight against Sang-gu to get the money to do so. During the fight, after Su-Cheol refused to concede, Sang-gu violently knocked him out, putting him into a coma, and Sang-gu was sent to jail for it. Sang-gu visits a still-comatose Su-Cheol in hospital after his release, but he passes away soon after. Sang-gu later discovers Su-Cheol was suffering from CTE, which was his real reason for retirement.

    Park Jung-Won is Kim Su-jin, Su-school’s younger sister.

    Jung Ae-Youn as Madam Jung, an associate of Sang-gu and an underground MMA fight organizer. She organized the fight between him and Su-Cheol and, after his release from jail, persuades Sang-gu to continue fighting for her.

    Choi Soo-young as Son Woo-rim,[9] a social worker who helps lonely citizens who don’t have any other family. She first crosses paths with Move to Heaven when they attend to the home of an elderly couple who have committed suicide together, and later contacts them to take care of Matthew Green’s belongings. Sang-gu appears to have a crush on her.

    Guest appearance[edit]

    Shin Soo-oh as Kim Yong-woo,[10] a murder suspect. (Episode 4)

    Yoon Ji-Hye as Lee Ju-Yeong, a public prosecutor. (Episode 4, 10)

    Kwon Soo-Hyun as Soo-Hyun,[11] a doctor. (Episode 5)

    Lee Ki-young is Soo-Hyun’s father, a decorated military officer. (Episode 5)

    Jung Dong-hwan is Kim In-su, an elderly man who commits suicide alongside his wife. (Episode 6)

    Yoon Joo-sang as Chairman No (episode 6)

    Yoo Sun is Kang Eun-Jeong, a newscaster. When she was a teenager, her parents fostered Korean children who were to be adopted by overseas couples. (Episode 9)

    Kevin Oh as Matthew Green, a deportee from the United States looking for his birth mother, whom he believes to be Kang Eun-Jeong. His birth name is Kang Seong-min. (episode 9)

    Lee Re as “butterfly girl”[12] (episode 10)

    Production[edit]

    Development[edit]

    In September 2019, it was reported that Kim Sung-ho would direct a series for Netflix, the story of which is inspired by an essay “Things Left Behind” by Kim Sae-buy, a former “trauma cleaner”.[13]

    Casting[edit]

    On 17 December 2019, Netflix confirmed the lead casting of Lee Je-hoon and Tang Jun-sang for the series.[5] On June 3, 2020, Netflix confirmed that Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee are to join the cast of the series.[1]

    Filming[edit]

    As the infection due to the COVID-19 pandemic was reported, the production of Move to Heaven, along with other Netflix original dramas, was stopped in late August 2020.[14] On February 25, 2021, Netflix announced its plans and timeline for forthcoming projects including Move to Heaven.[15] On February 25, 2021, new stills from the TV series were released.[16]

    Release[edit]

    The series was released on Netflix on May 14, 2021. All 10 episodes, each with a running time of around 45 to 60 minutes, are available for streaming. It became the 11th South Korean Netflix original series released on Netflix.[17]

    Reception[edit]

    Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek, rating the series 9 out of 10, opined that the series is a beautiful message conveyed through unique characters. Wheeler praised the performance of Tang Jun-sang, writing “Tang Joon-Snag’s acting is nothing short of extraordinary…” He also praised the soundtrack and wrote that it was “absolutely on-point.” In summary, he said, “With excellent acting, tightly written chapters and a careful, respectful and empowering view on death, Move to Heaven is a cleverly written and unique Korean drama”, and concluded by saying that the show was an “…absolute must-watch this year. Just be sure to have a pack of tissues ready to catch those tears!”.[18] Rhian Daly of NME also praised the series, awarding it 5 out of 5 stars, and called it a contender for one of 2021’s best shows.[19]

     

     

    Mr. Kim’s convenience

     

    Kim’s Convenience

    cbc.ca/Kim’s convenience

    Kim’s Convenience is a Canadian television sitcom that premiered on CBC Television in October 2016. It depicts the Korean Canadian Kim family that runs a convenience store in the Moss Park neighborhood of Toronto: parents “Papa” and “Umma” – Korean for dad and mom, respectively – along with their daughter Janet and estranged son Jung. Wikipedia

    Developed by: Ins Choi, Kevin White

    Starring: Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Jean Yoon, Andrea Bang, Simu Liu, Andrew Phung, Nicole Power

    Country of origin: Canada

     

    Comment:

    Not exactly a typical K drama.  It takes place in Canada and depicts the life of a Korean immigrant family running a convenience store in Toronto.  Well, done. Good acting, and storylines.

    End comment

    Yet to Watch

     

    Minuri Movie

     

    Minami (Korean: 미나리 [mina], transl. ”water celery“) is a 2020 American drama film written and directed by Lee Isaac Chung. It stars Steven Yuen, Han Ye-ri, Alan Kim, Noel Kate Cho, Youn Yoh-Jung, and Will Patton. A semi-autobiographical take on Chung’s upbringing, the plot follows a family of South Korean immigrants who try to make it in the rural United States during the 1980s.[6]

    Minami had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020, winning both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award.[7] It began a one-week virtual release on December 11, 2020, and was released theatrically and via virtual cinema on February 12, 2021, by A24.

    The film received critical acclaim, with many declaring it one of the best films of 2020. It earned six nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Score, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (Yuen), and Best Supporting Actress (Youn), with Youn winning for her performance, making her the first Korean to win an Academy Award for acting. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, and earned six nominations at the 74th British Academy Film Awards, including Best Film Not in the English Language.

    Plot[edit]

    In 1983, the Korean immigrant Yi family moves from California to their new plot of land in rural Arkansas, where Father Jacob hopes to grow Korean produce to sell to vendors in Dallas. One of his first decisions is to decline the services of a water diviner and he digs a well in a spot he finds on his own. He enlists the help of Paul, an eccentric local man, and Korean War veteran. While Jacob is optimistic about the life ahead, his wife Monica is disappointed and worries about their son David’s heart condition; he is frequently told not to run due to this. Jacob and Monica work sexing chicks at the nearby hatchery and argue constantly while David and his sister Anne eavesdrop.

    To help watch the children during the day, they arrange for Monica’s mother Soon-JA to travel from South Korea. David, who is forced to share a room with her, avoids her because she does not conform to his idea of how a grandmother should be. Still, Soon-ja attempts to adjust to life in the States and bond with the children. The well that Jacob dug runs dry. Jacob is reluctant to pay for county water but eventually is forced to do so. He runs into additional difficulties, such as the vendor in Dallas canceling their order at the last minute. Even so, he perseveres despite Monica’s vocal desire to return to California. This brings their marriage closer to the breaking point.

    Meanwhile, Soon-JA takes David to plant Minami seeds by the creek. She tells them how resilient and useful the plant is, and predicts plentiful growth. David finally begins to warm to his grandmother after she teaches him Hanabusa, bandages his wounds, and soothes him to sleep. Soon-ja also encourages him to do more physical activity, something his parents discourage, but she says that he is stronger than they think. Soon-ja suddenly suffers a stroke overnight. She survives with medical treatment but is left with impaired movement and speech.

    Jacob, Monica, Anne, and David head to Oklahoma City for David’s heart appointment and to meet a vendor to sell Jacob’s produce. Although they learn that David’s heart condition has dramatically improved and Jacob makes a deal to sell vegetables to a Korean grocer, Jacob also indirectly admits to Monica that the success of his crops is more important to him than the stability of their family. Following an emotional argument, the two tacitly agree to separate.

    However, Soon-ja accidentally sets the barn containing the produce on fire in their absence. Upon arriving home, Jacob rushes in to save the crops, and Monica soon follows. Eventually, the fire grows out of control, and they decide to save each other while leaving the barn to burn. A distraught and confused Soon-ja begins to wander off into the distance, as Anne and David call for her to come back. Seeing that she is not responding to them, David breaks into a sprint to meet her, blocking her path. Soon-ja seems to recognize David for a moment and reaches for his hand and the grandchildren lead her back home. The family is asleep on the floor, collapsed from the fatigue of the night before. Above them, Soon-ja is awake, in a chair, watching them sleep with a subdued expression.

    Sometime later, Jacob and Monica are with the water diviner who finds a spot for a well. They mark it with a stone signifying their intention to stay on the farm. Jacob and David then head to the creek to harvest the minaret, which had grown successfully, with Jacob noting how good a spot Soon-ja had picked to plant them.

    Cast[edit]

    Steven Yuen as Jacob Yi

    Han Ye-ri as Monica Yi

    Alan Kim as David Yi

    Noel Kate Cho as Anne Yi (Ji-young, Korean: 지영)

    Youn Yoh-jung as Soon-ja (Korean: 순자)

    Will Patton as Paul

    Scott Haze as Billy

    Jacob Wade as Johnnie

     

    Comment: Won best supporting actress Oscar.

    End comment

     

    Sky Castle

    Sky Castle (Korean: SKY 캐슬; RR: SKY Kassel; stylized as SKY Castle[a]) is a 2018–2019 South Korean television series starring Yum Jung-ah, Lee Tae-ran, Yoon Se-ah, Oh Na-ra and Kim Seo-Hyung. It aired on JTBC on Fridays and Saturdays, from November 23, 2018, to February 1, 2019.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

    Sky Castle is the second-highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history.[10] The drama received positive reviews from critics and won multiple awards, including four at the 55th Buesking Arts Awards.

    Synopsis[edit]

    A satirical series that closely looks at the materialistic desires of the upper-class parents in South Korea and how they ruthlessly secure the successes of their families at the cost of destroying others’ lives. The drama revolves around the lives of housewives residing in a luxurious residential area called SKY Castle in suburban Seoul, where wealthy doctors and professors live. The wives are determined to make their husbands more successful and to raise their children to be top students,[5] who will be accepted at the best universities, so they use every possible way to get that.[11]

    Han Seo-jin (Yum Jung-ah) is married to an ambitious doctor, Kang Joon-sang (Jung Joon-ho). She wants her eldest daughter, Kang Ye-seo (Kim Hye-Joon), to also become a doctor. To do that, she hires Kim Joo-young (Kim Seo-Hyung), a coordinator with a one hundred percent success rate when it comes to her students’ admission to the Seoul National University.

    No Seung-Hye (Yoon Se-ah) is the wife of Cha Min-hyuk (Kim Byung-Chula), a perfectionist law professor. She does not like the way her husband teaches their twin sons, Cha Seo-Joon (Kim Dong-hee) and Cha Ki-Joon (Jo Byeong-kyu). Later it is revealed that their daughter, Cha Se-ri (Park Yoo-Na), who has always been Min-Hyun’s pride since she attends Harvard University, hides something from them.

    Jin Jin-hee (Oh Na-ra) is the mother of Woo Soo-Han (Lee Eugene). She wants her son to be like her husband, Woo Yang-woo (Jo Jae-Yoon), which means becoming a doctor. She befriends Seo-jin to get information and to achieve a perfect career and education for her family.

    Following the suicide of Lee Myung-Joo (Kim Jung-nan), mother of Park Young-Jae (Song Geon-hee), who was a former student of Joo-young and recently admitted to the Seoul National University, Lee Soo-im (Lee Tae-ran)’s family moves into the SKY Castle. Her husband, Hwang Chi-young (Choi Won-young), works at the same hospital as Joon-sang and Yang-woo, and her son, Hwang Woo-Joo (Kang Chang-hee), attends the same school as Ye-seo. Her family often clashes with the other residents due to their differences in opinions.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Yum Jung-ah as Han Seo-jin/Kwak Mi-hyang[12]

    An overzealous mother who wants nothing more than her daughter to get into Seoul National Medical University. She hides her past from everyone except her husband and in-laws who knew that she grew up poor with an alcoholic father who sold oxblood and offal. She is the mother of Kang Ye-seo and Kang Ye-bin; the wife of Kang Joon-sang and daughter-in-law of Madame Yoon.

    Lee Tae-ran as Lee Soo-im[12]

    A new member of the neighborhood disapproves of the other parents’ methods for getting their kids to university, believing it is too harsh. She is disliked by the other parents for disrupting the status quo. She knows who Seo-jin is, as she knew her from when they were younger. She is the most down-to-earth out of all mothers in the complex and the only mother who is a stepmother. She is the stepmother of Hwang Woo-Joo; and the wife of Hwang Chi-young.

    Yoon Se-ah as No Seung-Hye[12]

    A woman who befriends Soo-im, and starts to look down on how the other moms treat everyone and their kids. She changes her ways and becomes protective of her sons from their father’s harsh teaching methods. She is the mother of Cha Se-ri, Cha Seo-Joon, and Cha Ki-Joon. She is the wife of Cha Min-hyuk

    Oh Na-ra as Jin Jin-hee[12]

    A friend of Seo-jin tries to get her child to do everything with Seo-jinn’s daughter so he can be successful. She bribes Seo-jin with gifts into trusting her with information. But she finds it difficult to keep secrets. Her loyalty changes easily as well depending on who she is with. She is the mother of Woo Soo-Han and the wife of Woo Yang-woo.

    Kim Seo-Hyung as Kim Joo-young[13]

    She is a well-known tutor only accessible to the elite and only caters to two students at a time. Because of her 100% success rate in getting students accepted, Seo-jin was determined to hire her as her daughter’s tutor. She tutored Young-Jae and Ye-seo. She hides a past that she tries to escape from. She has a daughter, Kay, or Katherine, who was an acclaimed genius when they lived in Fairfax.

    Supporting[edit]

    Kang family[edit]

    Jung Joon-ho as Kang Joon-sang[14]

    Seo-jinn’s husband. Doctor of the Joo-Nam University Hospital. He holds Min-hyuk in absolute contempt and delights in the latter’s misfortunes. He is very ambitious and is obsessed with maintaining a good track record to elevate his status in the hospital. He will stop at nothing to get rivals out of the way.

    Kim Hye-yoon as Kang Ye-seo

    Seo-jinn’s elder daughter. Her dream is to enter Seoul National University‘s medical faculty and be a third-generation doctor. She is very impulsive and is as determined as her father in achieving her goals. She has feelings for Woo-Joo.

    Lee Ji-won as Kang Ye-bin[15]

    Seo-jinn’s younger daughter. She is cynical and often clashes with her sister and believes her parents only care for her sister. She, however, gets along well with the other children in the complex and is the first one in the family to warm up to Hye-nab

    Jung Ae-Ri as Madame Yoon

    Joon-sing’s mother-in-law. She is the one who pushed Seo-jin to bring Ye-seo to the top to have a third-generation doctor in the family.

    Hwang family[edit]

    Choi Won-young as Hwang Chi-young[14]

    Soo-Kim’s husband. Doctor of the Joo-Nam University Hospital. Rival of Joon-sang. He grew up at an orphanage that was owned by Soo-i’s parents. He was married to Woo-Jono’s real mother, but after she passed away, he remarried Soo-im.

    Kang Chan-hee as Hwang Woo-joo[14]

    Soo-i’s step-son is treated like her own son. He likes Hye-na and is liked by Ye-seo. A kind student who always helps other students that have difficulties.

    Cha family[edit]

    Kim Byung-churl as Cha Min-hyuk[14]

    Seung-Hye’s husband. A law school lecturer and former prosecutor. He is strict with his children and holds very high expectations of them, especially academically.

    Park Yoo-Na as Che Se-ri[16]

    Seung-Hye’s daughter. She is the MD of a nightclub. She lied about being a Harvard University student and got caught.

    Kim Dong-hee as Cha Seo-joon[17]

    Seung-Hye’s elder son; twin of Ki-Joon. A classmate of Woo-Joo. Even though he is calmer than his younger twin, he strongly dislikes his father’s method of teaching and studying.

    Jo Byung-guy as Cha Ki-joon[18]

    Seung-Hye’s younger son; twin of Seo-Joon. He likes to play tricks on Ye-seo. He strongly dislikes his father’s method of teaching and studying.

    Woo family[edit]

    Jo Jae-yoon as Woo Yang-woo[14]

    Jin-hee’s husband. An Orthopedic surgeon. He is very obedient to Kang Joon-sang but behind him, he admires Hwang Chi-young.

    Lee Eugene as Woo Soo-Han

    Jin-hee’s son. He is not interested in studying but still tries his best under huge academic pressure. Soo-Han has a crush on Ye-bin.

    People around Joo-young[edit]

    Lee Hyun-jin as Jo Tae-Jun [19]

    Secretary of Joo-young. Originally met when he sabotaged Kim Joo-young’s husband’s car for her in Fairfax.

    Jo Mi-nyao as Kay/Katherine

    Kim Joo-young’s daughter. Mentally ill cause by Kim Joo-young sabotaging her father’s car, causing a serious accident leading to her brain damage. Implied to have savant syndrome.

    Others[edit]

    Kim Bo-ra as Kim Hye-na[20]

    Sin-ah Secondary School student. She is treated as an enemy by Ye-seo. She has a mutual feeling with Hwang Woo-Joo. She is the daughter of Kang Joon-sang and Kim Eun-Hye, yet he does not acknowledge her until after her death.[21] (Eps 2, 4-15)

    A former resident of Sky Castle committed suicide after her son runs away to his secret girlfriend.

    Myung-Jono’s son. After his mother’s death, he wants to reconcile with his father, Park Soo-Chang.

    Myung-Jono’s husband and Young-Jae’s father. At first, he’s harsh toward Young-Jae but after his wife’s death he wants to reconcile with Young-Jae

    Young Jae’s girlfriend. She is 6 years older than him and hired as a housekeeper by Myung-Joo, coming from a low-class family. Myung-Joo disapproved of her status and her relationship with Young-Jae.

     

    -4)

    Comment:

    this drama centers upon the lengths to which families will go to get their kids into the SKY castle – Seoul, Korea or Yonsei University in Seoul which is the ticket to the upper class in a status-conscious South Korea.  For most children, the route to the top consists of undergraduate degrees at one of the SKY universities (actually the top five) then a graduate degree from a top US university, after military service (for men). Then returning home at age 28 to get married after getting into one of the top corporations or perhaps the top civil service ranks, or becoming a lawyer, judge, or prosecutor.

    End Comment

    Kingdom

     

    Kingdom (South Korean TV series)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    Not to be confused with Mnet’s television program Kingdom: Legendary War.

    Kingdom
    Hangul 킹덤
    Genre Historical period

    Political drama

    Horror

    Thriller
    Created by Kim Eun-hee
    Based on The Kingdom of the Gods
    by Kim Eun-hee and Yang Kyung-il[1]
    Written by Kim Eun-hee
    Directed by Kim Seong-Hun

    Park In-je (Season 2)
    Starring Ju Ji-hoon

    Ryu Seung-Rayong

    Bae Doo-na

    Kim Sang-ho

    Kim Sung-kyu

    Kim Hye-Jun
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 2
    No. of episodes 12[2] + 1 special (list of episodes)
    Production
    Executive producer Lee Sang-bake
    Producer Lee Sung-joon
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 36–56 minutes
    Production company a Story[a][2]
    Distributor Netflix
    Budget ₩35 billion (US$29.6 million)[3]
    Release
    Original network Netflix
    Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

    High dynamic range
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release January 25, 2019 –
    present
    External links
    Website

    Kingdom (Korean: 킹덤; RR: Kingdom) is a 2019 South Korean political period horror thriller streaming television series, created and written by Kim Eun-hee and directed by Kim Seong-Hun and Park In-je.[4][5][6] It is Netflix‘s first original Korean series,[b] which premiered on January 25, 2019.[7][8][9][10] The series is adapted from the webcomic series The Kingdom of the Gods, which was authored by Kim Eun-hee and drawn by Yang Kyung-il.[1] Set on a fictional, medieval-inspired Joseon, Kingdom explores the story of a Crown Prince, as he sets to investigate the source of a mysterious plague that begins to ravage his country. It stars Ju Ji-hoon, Ryu Seung-Rayong, Bae Doo-na, Kim Sang-ho, Kim Sung-kyu and Kim Hye-jun.

    The series was positively reviewed and renewed for a second season which was released on March 13, 2020.[11][12][13][14] A special feature-length episode of the series, titled “Kingdom: Ashen of the North”, was released on July 23, 2021, and focused on the supporting character Ashen played by Jun Ji-Hyun.[15] The episode acts as a sequel to the second season of Kingdom and explores the backstory of Ashen, the mysterious character Lee Chang’s group encountered on their journey north to discover the origins of the infected.[16]

     

    Synopsis[edit]

    Set during Korea’s Joseon Dynasty, three years after the Imjin War, the first season of Kingdom follows the story of Crown Prince Lee Chang (Ju Ji-hoon) and his subordinates, who stumble across an unnatural plague that resurrects the dead amidst his investigation of a brewing political conspiracy and rumors of the King of Joseon’s death. Amidst the chaos and death that ensues, Chang meets allies who try to make a stand in the city-state of Sangju before it spreads further into the province, only to discover that the plague has already adapted. The second season picks up during Lee Chang’s struggle to save his people from the spread of the plague and his dynasty from the machinations of the powerful Haemon Cho clan who hides a sinister secret.

    Kingdom: Ashen of the North[edit]

    Kingdom: Ashen of the North explores the backstory of Ashen (Jun Ji-Hyun), the mysterious heir of the Northern Sanjaya tribe village, and the origin of the resurrection plant that triggered an unprecedented cascade of tragic events that swept through the Kingdom of Joseon.

    Plot[edit]

    ‘Kingdom’ locations

    The kingdom is set during Korea’s Joseon period, three years after the famous “Battle of Unpot Wetland” near the city of soldier during the Japanese invasions of Korea, where 500 Korean soldiers, led by Governor Ahn Hyeon, defeated an army of 30,000 Japanese invaders. Unbeknownst to the common people, this victory was achieved by using an herb known as the “resurrection plant”, which transformed the diseased villagers of Suman into ferocious zombies; after the battle ended, the zombies were executed and buried in secret.

    Season one[edit]

    At the start of the series, the King dies of smallpox. Chief State Councilor Lord Cho Hak-Ju (Ryu Seung-Rayong) decides to hide the King’s death until his daughter, Queen Consort Cho (Kim Hye-Jun), produces a son. Such a son would have a more legitimate claim to the throne than Crown Prince Lee Chang, whose mother was a concubine. As a result, the King is inoculated with the resurrection plant and subsequently becomes a monster at night, restrained with chains and fed with the bodies of court servants. Refused permission to visit his father, the prince leaves in disguise to search for Lee Seung-hui (Kwon Bum-take), the doctor who last treated the King. Shocked by what he finds in the process of investigating the King’s illness, he heads to the Southern province of Yeong sang with his loyal bodyguard Mu-Yeong (Kim Sang-ho) to search for more answers. At Lee Seung-hui’s clinic outside the city of Dingane, physician’s assistant Seo-bi (Bae Dona) cares for dozens of patients but is running out of food to feed them. Yeong-shin (Kim Sung-kyu), one of the patients, makes a stew for the people from what he says is deer meat. However, the meat is later revealed to be sourced from the cadaver of someone bitten by the King and all the patients quickly turn into zombies.

    The next day, the magistrate of Dingane and nephew of Lord Cho Hak-Ju, Cho Beom-pal (Jeon Seok-ho), disregards Seo-bi and Yeong-shin’s advice to cut off the head of each cadaver, leading to a night of chaos when the dead awaken. When the Prince takes control and orders that the bodies of the undead be destroyed, the yangbans secretly flee on the only boat, carrying their belongings and the corpse of a precious son. Soldiers of the royal guard from Hanyang confront the prince, resulting in the slaughter of dozens of civilians he was trying to help. Subsequently, the Prince goes to Sangho to seek help from Lord Ahn Hyeon, his mentor. Investigating a village that seems to be oddly well-fed in such dire times, he discovers the fate of the missing boat; the precious son became a monster, the yangbans were killed or drowned, and the boat was looted after stranding itself. Awakened from his retreat by his alarm network, Lord Ahn Hyeon (Heo Joon-ho) arrives with troops who know how to deal with the zombie crisis. The season ends with Queen Cho taking the Regency of the vacant throne, decreeing the blockade of the South, while Lord Cho Hak-Ju comes to Kyongsang’s gate with the Army and the zombie King. On the other side, Lord Ahn Hyeon and the Prince fortify Sangho against the zombies while Seo-bi and Cho Beom-pal explore the Frozen Valley, learning the origins of the zombie disease.

    Season two[edit]

    In Hanyang, the Queen has gathered many pregnant women at Nasonex, her private residence. Mu-Yeong’s wife is there as well, taken as a hostage, to force Mu-Yeong to spy on the prince. Pregnant women are killed when their delivery is not as expected. As a result, the Special Forces Commander becomes suspicious and searches Nasonex. He finds the corpses of seven delivered women. The baby girls were strangled, but the baby boys were only stillborn. At Sangho, it is discovered that the zombies are slowed not by sunlight, but by temperature. Since the weather gets colder, the situation becomes worse after another night of chaos. The prince decides to break into the border fortress with a limited squad. They are successful but fall into a trap. Lord Ahn Hyeon is shot to death, while The Prince is put in presence of the zombie King, and must cut his head off to save his own life. But there was a trap inside the trap; when Lord Cho Hak-Ju turns back to Hanyang, Lord Ahn Hyeon appears as a resurrected zombie. Wearing his commanding flag, he bites Lord Cho Hak-Ju, before being killed himself, proving the existence of zombies and the good faith of the prince. The blockade army allies with The Prince.

    The next day, Lord Cho Hak-JU’s corpse disappears. He has been taken by Mu-Yeong, helped by Seo-bi and Cho Beom-pal. They flee towards Hanyang, but along the way, Mu-Yeong is killed. At the Lord Cho Hak-Ju residence, Seo-bi discovers a cure; a full immersion in water forces away the worm-like entities causing the zombification. At the same time, the Queen pretends to give birth, presenting Mu-Yeong wife’s newborn as her own. She poisons her recovered father who discovered the lie and organizes a zombie research lab beneath her Palace. While the Queen prepares a large proscription, the Royal Guards are lured out of the Palace, allowing the Crown Prince to conquer the place. But the Queen practices a scorched earth policy and orders to release the zombies from the research lab, and chaos ensues. However, the plan of closing the gates of the inner Palace is not sufficient, and the Queen is eaten. The last few survivors escape to the Rear Garden and break the ice of the pond. The zombies are stopped by the water, while the bitten but not yet transformed people are saved from being zombified.

    Seven years later, the baby is crowned King, while Seo-bi, Yeong-shin, and the former Crown Prince investigate the Northern Provinces. Shortly after their arrival to a seemingly empty village, a mysterious woman named Ashen (Jun Ji-Hyun) appears inside a barn and stands next to the undead who are kept inside wooden boxes for some nefarious purpose.

    An of the North[edit]

    Set before the events of the first season, the episode delves into Afshin’s origin story and her experiences growing into a scorned woman that turned against the Kingdom of Joseon. During her childhood, Ashen (Kim Shi-ah) lived in the Northern village of Sanjaya with her ailing mother and her father, Ta Hob (Kim Roi-ha) who was one of the Jurchen people living in Joseon and also the head of their settlement. Tensions were high between Joseon, the central kingdom, and the Jurchen border tribes of Paju Owe. The Paju Owe had gathered their army at the basin of the Pajero River.

    When fifteen of Paju Owe Jurchen men enter the forbidden area known as Pisa-gun to illegally gather wild ginseng, they all die unexpectedly. It is revealed that Cho Beom-il (Jung Suk-won), a high-ranking member of the Haemon Cho clan, orchestrated the deaths of the Jurchen men. The Deputy Commander of the Caupain group, Min Chi-rock (Park Byung-Eun) investigated the deaths of the Jurchen and discovered Cho’s involvement, he travels to the Sanjaya village to conduct damage control and prevent a conflict against the Kingdom by the Page Owe. Min spread the message that the deaths were due to a tiger attack but some villagers remained skeptical.

    During a meeting with Ta Hob, the Commander requests him to travel to the bordering Page Owe tribe and spread the message, that the attack was caused by a tiger who killed the men. Ta Hob agreed to the mission as he had pledged his loyalty to Joseon and hoping his actions will grant Sanjaya governmental representation, improving the lives of its people. This was later revealed to be a ruse conspired by the Commander, to strategically protect the interests of the Kingdom.

    On a false hunt for the alleged tiger, the Commander encounters some Pages Owe soldiers and informs the group, that the attackers of the Page Owe men were killed by the villagers of Sanjaya. This act later diverts the Page Owe ‘s hostility towards the village of Sanjaya. Afterward, the Page Owe military led by Ai Da Gan (Koo Kyo-hwan), attacks Sanjaya in the middle of the night, massacring the inhabitants. Before the attack on the village, Ashen finds the resurrection plant in a hidden cave shrine and reads the ancient mural to understand its properties and effects, to tend to her terminally ill mother. Upon returning to the village, she finds that it has been burned to the ground and all the villagers killed. Unbeknownst to Ash in, her father was taken hostage by the Page Owe military.

    Being the sole survivor of the massacre, Asian goes to the Commander and begs for a chance to avenge her family. He places her in a military settlement post, where she begins to perform odd jobs while training in the woodlands. Years later, she was told by the Commander to spy on the military camp of Page Owe. While infiltrating the camp, Asian finds her father held as a prisoner, with his limbs amputated. Ta Hob begs his daughter to kill him to end his misery. Asian complies and sets the camp on fire before going back to the settlement. Before her return to the military settlement, the Commander was summoned to return to the South to deal with the war against the Japanese forces, leaving his Second-in-command and soldiers behind. Soon after, Asian reads the records inside the Commander’s hut, implicating the Commander of framing the Sanjaya village for the Jurchen deaths’ at Pisa-gun, leading to the eventual massacre of her village.

    Asian prepares to take revenge against the Kingdom of Joseon. After night falls, she kills several Joseon soldiers as they sleep and uses the resurrection plant to bring them back as zombies. While the zombies rampage around the camp, Asian kills any soldiers, with her bow and arrows, who manage to escape or lock themselves beyond the zombies’ reach. Using the last soldier as bait, she attracted the zombies together and then burns them, effectively killing all the soldiers and zombies in the camp. Asian is then seen dragging a giant sack back to her village which looks normal. She then enters her old house which was filled with her family and some villagers. She was awakened to zombie snarls which brings her to the present where the village is burned down and the house is filled with zombies chained to the back of the house. It is revealed that after the massacre of her village, she had converted her family and some villagers into zombies. Asian had been feeding them animals for years but felt that they deserved better food and fed them with a soldier she had carried with her in the sack. She vowed to destroy Joseon and the Jurchen to avenge them and joined them when she is done.

    Asian leaves to meet Lee Seung-hui, the Joseon King’s physician at the border in Fiji. She sells him the resurrection plant, setting in motion, the events that would later occur in the “Battle of Unpot Wetland” and the tragedy that would come to pass at Dingane. After exiting the city, Asian walks into an open field, and later witnesses Ai Da Gan and his Page Owe brethren riding horses in the distance. The Page Owe riders approach Asian and she shoots an arrow without hesitation.

    Cast[edit]

    Character Portrayed by Seasons Asian of
    the North[17]
    1[18] 2[19]
    Main characters
    Lee Chang Ju Ji-hoon Main
    Seo-bi Bae Dona Main
    Yeong-shin Kim Sung-kyu Main
    Cho Beom-pal Jeon Seok-ho Main
    Lord Cho Hak-ju Ryu Seung-Rayong Main
    Queen Consort Cho Kim Hye-Jun Main
    Mu-yeong Kim Sang-ho Main
    Lord Ahn Hyeon Heo Joon-ho Main Guest
    Asian Jun Ji-hyun Guest Main
    Young Asian Kim Shi-ah Main
    Min Chi-rock Park Byung-eun Recurring Main
    Ai Da Gan Koo Kyo-hwan Main
    Ta Hob Kim Roi-ha Main
    Recurring characters
    Cho Beom-il Jung Suk-won Recurring Guest
    Lee Seung-hui Kwon Bum-take Guest Guest
    Kim Sun Kim Jong-soo Recurring
    Deok Sung Jin Seon-kyu Recurring Guest
    Lee Do-jin Joo Suk-tea Recurring Guest
    Lee Gang-Yun Kim Tae-hoon Recurring

    Main[edit]

    Ju Ji-hoon as Lee Chang: The Crown Prince of Joseon and the current heir to the throne. Suspicious of the mysterious illness afflicting his father, the King of Joseon, his investigation not only uncovers a dangerous plague that brings the dead to life, but also a plot to betray the Royal family and usurp him as heir.[20]

    Bae Dona as Seo-bi: A physician’s assistant from Dingane who is among the first to discover the outbreak of the mysterious plague. She desperately seeks to find a cure and comes to possess a journal containing crucial information about the disease.[2]

    Kim Sung-kyu as Yeong-shin: A mysterious tiger hunter from the South who is also among the first to discover the outbreak of the plague. A skilled fighter who carries early European muskets, he allies himself with Lee Chang and helps to lead the fight against the undead.

    Jeon Seok-ho as Cho Beom-pal: A somewhat incompetent magistrate of Dingane and Cho Hak-Ju’s nephew. He used to be more interested in self-preservation than protecting his people.[21]

    Ryu Seung-Rayong as Lord Cho Hak-Ju (seasons 1–2): The Chief State Councilor of Joseon and head of the Haemon Cho clan. He is the father of Queen Consort Cho and Cho Beom-il and the uncle of Cho Beom-pal. A cold, ruthless leader, he is desperate to secure his power over the throne through Queen Cho’s unborn child who he seeks to make an heir to the throne in place of Lee Chang.[22]

    Kim Hye-Jun as Queen Consort Cho (seasons 1–2): The young and “pregnant” Queen of Joseon who is Cho Hak-Ju’s daughter, Cho Beom-ill’s sister, and Lee Chang’s stepmother. Like her father, she is desperate to secure her power over the throne by giving birth to a son that will displace Crown Prince Lee Chang as the rightful heir.

    Kim Sang-ho as Mu-Yeong (seasons 1–2): Prince Chang’s loyal personal bodyguard accompanies him to the southern provinces to investigate the plague, leaving his pregnant wife in the capital.[23]

    Heo Joon-ho as Lord Ahn Hyeon (season 1; guest season 2): A former governor and war hero who has retired from public service, despite his popularity with the people, to live a quiet life in Sangho. He was also a mentor to the young Lee Chang.[24]

    Jun Ji-Hyun as Asian (special; guest season 2): A mysterious stranger from Hengyang province in the North of the country.

    Kim Shi-ah as young Asian[25]

    Park Byung-Eun as Min Chi-rock (special; recurring season 2): Head of the Royal Commandery and a skilled archer who becomes suspicious of the Queen.

    Koo Kyo-hwan as Ai Da Gan (special): Leader of the Page Owe tribe.

    Kim Roi-ha as Ta Hob (special): Head of the Northern Sanjaya tribe and the father of Asian.

    Supporting[edit]

    Jung Suk-won as Cho Beom-il (seasons 1–2; special): Cho-Hak-Ju’s son and Queen Cho’s elder brother and a commander in the Royal Army.

    Kim Jong-soo as Kim Sun: Chief Scholar in Hanyang who clashes with Cho Hak-Ju.

    Kwon Bum-take as Lee Seung-hui (season 1; special): Royal physician who attends to the King.

    Lee Yang-hee as the Minister of War: Powerful politician in Hanyang who is initially loyal to the Haemon Cho clan but finds his loyalty wavering.

    Jin Seon-kyu as Deok Sung: Ahn Hyeon’s loyal right-hand man.

    Joo Suk-tea as Lee Do-jin (seasons 1–2): Leader of the Palace Guard who travels south to apprehend Lee Chang, he is loyal to Cho Hak-Ju.

    Ahn Eun-jin as Mu-Yeong’s wife: A loving, pregnant, wife who was put under the protection of the Haemon Cho clan.

    Kim Tae-hoon as Lee Gang-Yun (season 2): Head of the Royal Army, who travels south with Cho Hak-Ju.

    Jo Han-Chula as Won Yu (season 2): Descendant of an exiled member of the royal family living a quiet life on a remote island, who is sought out by Lee Chang.

    Ahn Jae-Hong as Eunuch (season 2): Former eunuch who later becomes the new king’s servant.

    Kim Kang-hoon as Mu-Yeong’s son (season 2): A young boy who was rescued from a horde of zombies as a baby by Seo-bi.

     

    Comments:  Zombie attacks in the Chosen dynasty.  End comment

    Reply 1988

     

    Reply 1988

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    Reply 1988
    Promotional
    Hangul 응답하라 1988
    Hanja 應答하라 1988
    Genre Family
    Comedy
    Romance
    Written by Lee Woo-Jung
    Directed by Shin Won-ho
    Starring Lee Hye-Ri
    Ryu Jun-yeol
    Go Kyung-Pio
    Park Bo-gum
    Lee Dong-why
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 20 + special
    Production
    Running time 90–110 minutes
    Production company CJ E&M
    Release
    Original network tvN
    Original release November 6, 2015 –
    January 16, 2016
    Chronology
    Preceded by Reply 1994
    External links
    Website

    Reply 1988 (Korean: 응답하라 1988; Hanja: 應答하라 1988; RR: Endophora 1988) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Hye-Ri, Ryu Jun-yeol, Go Kyung-Pio, Park Bo-gum, and Lee Dong-why.[1][2][3] Beginning in the year 1988, it revolves around five friends and their families living in the same neighborhood of Sangamon, Dugong, Northern Seoul.[4] It aired every Friday and Saturday from November 6, 2015, to January 16, 2016, on tvN for 20 episodes.[5][6]

    Reply 1988 is the third installment of tvN‘s Reply series.[7] It received both critical and audience acclaim with its final episode recording an 18.8% nationwide audience share, making it the fourth highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history.[8][9]

    Lee Hye-RI as Sung Duk-seon/Sung Soo-yeon[10]

    The middle child of her family, she is infamously ranked 999th in school and is the only girl in their group of five neighborhood friends. Though not academically gifted, Duk-seon has a bright and compassionate personality. She cares deeply for her friends and classmates but feels lost without a “dream” to pursue. Dukedom moves through the stages of her youth alongside her male friends, and the mystery of which of them she eventually marries is a continual point of tension for viewers throughout the series.

    Ryu Jun-yeol as Kim Jung-hwan

    Stoic and sarcastic, but with a secret sweetheart, Jung-hwan (called Jung-pal by his friends) is one of the leaders of the neighborhood group. Jung-hwan is handsome, smart, and athletic, often taking on extra feelings of responsibility to fulfill the dreams of his older brother Jung-bong, who has a chronic heart condition. While Jung-hwan doesn’t often share his emotions with others, he feels things deeply and uses his sarcasm and attitude as a shield. He develops feelings for a neighborhood friend early but is reluctant to admit his crush, even as the right timing slips away.

    Go Kyung-Pio as Sung Sun-woo

    A class president, caring brother, and dependable son to his widowed mother, Sun-woo is an ideal young man. He is devoted to his friends and dotes on his younger sister. Sun-woo harbors a secret crush on a neighborhood friend that lingers into adulthood.

    Park Bo-gum as Choi Taek[11]

    An internationally renowned genius Badu player, Taek is the quietest of his neighborhood friends. Taek dominates on the Badu board but struggles with simple everyday tasks. His Badu success has brought money and fame but has left Taek distant from his age group, and so he relies on his neighborhood friends for companionship, grounding, and a connection to youth. Taek is generous to a fault and hesitant to make a fuss, but that hesitancy disappears in competition. However, when he realizes that the person he cares for has another admirer, he has to weigh romance against friendship.

    Lee Dong-why as Ryu Dong-Rayong

    The neighborhood clown, Dong-Rayong loves to sing, dance, and play jokes with his friends. Like Dukedom, Dong-Rayong is not a natural academic, but his thoughtful insight and surprising wisdom serve him and his friends well. As the son of two working parents surrounded by tight-knit families, Dong-Rayong sometimes feels neglected by his parents and makes up for their absence by acting out. His nosy nature means that he ends up knowing many of the neighborhood’s secrets before anyone else.

    Recurring[edit]

    Sung family

    Sung Dong-il as Sung Dong-il (Dukedom’s father)

    A fraud and security specialist at a bank, Dong-il fell into debt after lending money to a friend who never paid it back. He struggles to provide for his family as he wants to while paying off the debt but does his best to give everything he can to his children. He and his wife, Il-Hwa, argue but love each other very deeply.

    Lee Il-Hwa as Lee Il-Hwa (Duck-Seon’s mother)

    Il-Hwa is a kind woman who spends much of her time with the other moms and caring for her family. She worries about her children and husband and shows much of her care by cooking massive quantities of food to share with her family and the neighborhood.

    Ryu Hye-young as Sung Bo-ra (Duck-Seon’s older sister).

    Bo-ra is a tough-as-nails college student who wants to become a lawyer. While outwardly stoic, she has a warm heart and shows compassion to those who need it most. Where Dukedom struggles academically but excels at interpersonal relationships, Bo-ra is a stellar student who stumbles in social and emotional situations. She carries on a secret relationship with another person in the neighborhood.

    Choi Sung-won as Sung No-Eul (Duck-Seon’s younger brother)

    Dong-ill’s assistant in his schemes, No-eul is a kindhearted young teen with a beautiful singing voice and a poetic, dreamer’s mind.

    Kim family

    Kim Sung-kyun as Kim Sung-kyun (Jung-Hwan’s father)

    Sung-Hyun is a kind and humorous man who runs an electronics store. He loves to joke and play with the neighborhood kids, and generally keeps an air of joviality among the adults. He adores his wife, Mi-ran, and hopes for good futures for his sons.

    Ra Mi-ran as Ra Mi-ran (Jung-Hwan’s mother)

    A tough lady with a strong past, Mi-ran is the indisputable empress of the Kim household. Worried about Jung-bong since his childhood diagnosis with a chronic heart condition and annoyed with his constant academic failures punctuated by collecting obsessions, Mi-ran can sometimes come off as short-tempered. This short temper is an expression of her anxiety and love for her children and family.

    Ahn Jae-Hong as Kim Jung-bong (Jung-Hwan’s older brother)

    A student who failed his college entrance exam 6 times, Jung-bong has a chronic heart condition that made his childhood difficult. He has a sometimes childlike personality and is easily distracted. Nevertheless, Jung-bong is kind, thoughtful, compassionate, and easy to like. He happily cares for the neighborhood kids including Jin-Joo, Sun-woo’s little sister. He is a surprisingly poetic romantic.

    Sun-woo family

    Kim Sun-young as Kim Sun-young (Sun-woo’s mother)

    A kind young widow, Sun-young dotes on her children as much as possible, probably to try to make up for their father’s absence. She struggles with her mother-in-law and does her best to keep the family afloat. With a sunny personality and an upbeat disposition, she is always looking for the best side of any situation and can make even the most bear-like person laugh.

    Kim Seol as Sung Jin-Joo (Sun-woo’s little sister)

    A precocious toddler in 1988, one can assume Jin-Joo was born somewhere between 1983 and 1984. Doted on by everyone in the neighborhood, Jin-Joo is adored by all of the adults and teens alike. She loves her older brother but is a bit more reserved with others.

    Neighborhood residents

    Choi Moo-sung as Choi Moo-sung is also called “Bonghwangdang.”

    Teak’s father and the owner of a watch store at the entrance to the alley. Moo-sung moved to the neighborhood at the behest of Sun-young, whom he has known since childhood, after the death of Teak’s mother. He was adopted into the neighborhood family as he raised Taek alone. Quiet and reserved, Moo-Sung’s unassuming exterior conceals hidden depths of emotion and compassion for his son, his friends, and the neighborhood as a whole.

    Yoo Jae-Myung as Ryu Jae-Myung (Dong-Yong’s father)

    A dean at the boy’s high school, Jae-Myung once harbored dreams of being a dancer. Now focused on shaping the men of the future, he does his best to keep his son in check while still enjoying his life.

    Extended[edit]

    Lee Min-Ji as Jang Mi-ok (Duck Seon’s friend)

    A wealthy student. At first, her father was shown as a scary person but later it was revealed that he was a textile businessman who started his business from scratch. A good friend to Dukedom and Ja-Hyun, she is practical and excitable. Married Kim Jung-Bong, elder brother of Kim Jung-Hwan.

    Lee Se-young as Wang Ja-Hyun (Duck Seon’s friend)

    A constant friend to Dukedom and Mi-ok, Ja-Hyun is focused on boys and becoming a hairstylist.

    Lee Mi-Yeon as adult Sung Dukedom

    Kim Joo-hyuk as adult Choi Taek

    Jeon Mi-seen as adult Sung Bo-ra

    Woo Hyun as adult Sung No-eul

    Lee Chung-mi as Nam Goong Nelumbo

    Lee Jin-Kwon a Bad student

    Seo Cho-won as Supporting

    Park Ah-sung as Student

    Song Young Kyu as Sun-young’s older brother

    Yong Young-Jae as director of Korea Baduk Association

    Bae Yoo-ram

    Special appearances[edit]

    Kim Young-ok as Duck Seon’s grandmother (ep. 2)

    Jung Won-Jong as Dong-ill’s older brother (ep. 2)

    Kim Sure as snack shop owner (ep. 3)

    Lee Moon-se (voice) as radio DJ (ep. 6)

    Park Ji-Yoon as TV interviewer (ep. 7)

    Park Jung-min as Bo-ra’s boyfriend (ep. 8)

    Kim Tae-hoon as Cardiac surgeon (ep. 8)

    Lee Soo-Kyung as Lee Soo-Kyung, No-Elu’s girlfriend (ep. 8)

    Jung Yoo-min as Bo-ra’s friend (ep. 8)

    Jung Hae-in as Ho-young, Deok-sun’s middle school friend (ep. 13)

    Shin Young-jin as Class President’s mother (ep.14)

    Ahn Sung-ki (ep. 17)

    Jung Woo as Trash (ep.18)

    Go Ara as Sung Na-Jung (ep.18)

    Production[edit]

    Leads Hyeri and Park Bo-gum in costume at a fan signing event for the series, February 2016

    Reply 1988 marked the third collaboration between director Shin Won-ho, screenwriter Lee Woo-Jung and actors Sung Dong-il and Lee Il-Hwa after Reply 1997 (2012) and Reply 1994 (2013). Kim Sung-Kyun, who co-starred in 1994 also joined the cast. The first script-reading was held in August 2015.[12] Choi Taek, played by Park Bo-gum, was loosely based on the real-life Go player, Lee Chang-ho.[13]

    Unlike the previous Reply series, 1988 focused more on filial bonds than a romance between characters with director Shin saying that most of the story was about family, and only a small fraction was about Duck-Seon’s love.[14]

    Comment:  period piece circa 1988 set in Ssangmoondong, a typical middle-class neighborhood in northern Seoul. End comment

    Cosmos commentary:

    similar to a US movie from a few years back.  Two cops are linked through a mysterious connection across allowing them to collaborate to solve crime cases.

    Signal (South Korean TV series)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    This article is about the South Korean TV series. For the Japanese remake, see Signal (Japanese TV series).

    Signal
    Promotional poster
    Hangul 시그널
    Genre Procedural

    Drama

    Thriller

    Fantasy
    Created by Choi Jin-hee

    Park Ji-young
    Written by Kim Eun-hee
    Directed by Kim Won-seok
    Starring Lee Je-hoon

    Kim Hye-soo

    Cho Jin-wooing
    Opening theme “I Will Forget You” by Jung Cha-Sik
    Ending theme “The One Who Will Leave” by INKII

    “The Road” by Kim Yoon-ah
    Composers Kim Joon-Seok

    Park Sung-il
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 1
    No. of episodes 16
    Production
    Executive producers Lee Chan-ho

    Lee Sang-bake
    Producers Lee Jae-moon

    Park Eun-Kyung
    Cinematography Choi Sang-mook

    Lee Joo-young
    Editor Kim Na-young
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 80 minutes
    Production company a Story
    Distributor tvN
    Release
    Original network tvN
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release January 22 –
    March 12, 2016
    Chronology
    Followed by Signal 2 (2020)[1]
    Related shows Signal (2018)

    Unknown Number (2019)
    External links
    Website
    Signal at a Story Co., Ltd.

    Signal (Korean: 시그널; RR: Diegueno) is a 2016 South Korean fantasy police procedural television series starring Lee Je-hoon, Kim Hye-soo, and Cho Jin-wrong. It aired on tvN from January 22 to March 12, 2016, on Fridays and Saturdays at 20:30 KST for 16 episodes.[2][3][4] The series was inspired by real-life criminal incidents in Korea,[5] including the Hazing.[6][7]

    The series received widespread acclaim from the audience and critics alike for its story and performances. It is also the eleventh highest-rated Korean drama in cable television history with a peak audience viewership of 12.54%.

    Premise[edit]

    A walkie-talkie allows a detective in the year 1989 to communicate with a cold case profiler from 2015. With the power of fore- and hindsight, the two not only solve crimes but prevent them from ever taking place.

    Synopsis[edit]

    A criminal profiler Park Hae-young (Lee Je-hoon), solves a kidnapping case that ended up with a falsely accused who disappeared after the crime, with a mysterious walkie-talkie he picks up. The success of this case triggers the formation of a long-term cold case team, led by Detective Cha Soo-Hyun (Kim Hye-soo), who has been searching for her long-lost mentor Lee Jae-Han (Cho Jin-Wong), for the past fifteen years. With the help of Detective Lee Jae-Han, the person at the other end of the walkie-talkie, Park Hae-young solves other cold cases that have remained unsolved for years, while helping Lee Jae-can help solve some cases in the past. Grave unintended sequences follow.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Lee Je-hoon is Park Hae-young,[8] the profiler who finds the walkie-talkie by accident and uses it to solve cold cases.

    Kim Hye-soo as Cha Soo-Hyun,[9] once a timid rookie and the first woman police officer in the department, leads the “Long Term Cold Case team”

    Cho Jin-Wong as Lee Jae-Han,[10] the somewhat clumsy and socially inept but incorruptible police officer from the past who establishes a rapport with Park.

    Supporting[edit]

    Police officers

    Jang Hyun-sung as Kim Bum-joo

    Jung Hae-kyun as Ahn Chi-soo

    Kim Won-hae as Kim Eichel

    Jung Han-bi [ko] as Oh Yoon-seo

    Lee Yoo-Jun [ko] as Jung Han-ki

    Kim Min-kyu as Hwang Etui-kyung

    Extended

    Kim Hyun-bin as young Park Hae-young

    Kang Chan-hee as Park Sun-woo

    Lee Moon-soo as Lee Jae-Han’s father

    Seo Jun-hee as Cha Soo-Hyun’s mother

    Lim Hwa-young as Cha Soo-Hyun’s younger sister

    Lee Jin-Kwon as Supporting

    Special appearances[edit]

    Oh Yeon-ah as Yoon Soo-ah (ep. 1-2)

    Lee Young-eun as Kim Yoon-jung (ep. 1-2)

    Lee Si-a as Kim Won-kyung (ep. 2-4)

    Kim Jung-young as Won-Kyung’s aunt (ep. 2-4)

    Kim Ki-Cheon as Lee Chun-goo (ep. 3-4)

    Lee Dong-ha as Han Se-yo (el. 5-8)

    Jung Suk-yong as Oh Kyung-tea (ep. 5-7)

    Park Si-eun as Oh Eun-ji (ep. 5-6)

    Choi Woo-ri as Shin Yeo-jin (ep. 5-6)

    Yoo Ha-bok as Shin Dong-hoon (ep. 5-7)

    Son Hyun-Joo as Jang Young-Chula (ep. 7, 11, 14, 16)

    Lee Na-ra as Shin Da-Hye (ep. 7-8)

    Lee Sang-year as Kim Jin-woo (ep. 9-11)

    Lee Chae-Kyung as Jin-woo’s mother (ep. 10)

    Seo Eun-ah as Yoo Seung-yeon (ep. 10-11)

    Shin Yi-joon as Kang Hye-Seung (young / ep. 11-14)

    Kim Woo-suk as Lee Dong-jin (ep. 12-14)

    Hwang Seung-eon as Han Do-yeon (ep. 13)

    Jeon Su-ji as Kang Hye-Seung (adult/ep. 13-14)

    Seo Ji-hoon as Jang Tae-jin (ep. 14)

    Upon its premiere, the series attracted attention for weaving actual cases into its plot and attained high ratings.[11][12] With its final rating of 12.54%, it is one of the highest-rated Korean dramas in cable television history.[13][14] It received praise for its solid acting, tightly-constructed plot, and detailed and sophisticated direction; and enjoyed success internationally in China and Japan.[15][16][17]

    The drama went on to win several awards from different award-giving bodies, including Best Drama, Best Screenplay for Kim Eun-hee, and Best Actress for Kim Hye-soo at the 52nd Buesking Arts Awards, as well as another Best Actress award for Kim and the Dasani (Grand Prize for Television) for Cho Jin-Wong at the tvN10 Awards. Cho also won the Dasani at the 1st Asia Artist Awards for his performance.

     

    Comment: similar to a US drama a few years ago. End comment

    My Mister

     

    My Mister
    Promotional poster
    Also known as My Ajose
    Hangul 나의 아저씨
    Revised Romanization Naoi Ajose
    Genre Drama
    Created by Studio Dragon
    Written by Park Hae-young[1]
    Directed by Kim Won-seok[1]
    Starring Lee San-kyun

    Lee Ji-eun
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 16
    Production
    Executive producers Cho Hyung-jin

    Kim Sang-heon

    Park Ho-sik
    Producer Park Ji-hyun
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 90 minutes
    Production company Chorogram Media
    Distributor tvN
    Release
    Original network tvN
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release March 21 –
    May 17, 2018
    External links
    Website
    Production website

    My Mister (Korean: 나의 아저씨; RR: Naoi Ajose) is a 2018 South Korean television series starring Lee Sun-Kyun and Lee Ji-Eun. The series was directed by Kim Won-Seok, written by Park Hae-young, and produced by Cookable. It aired on tvN from March 21 to May 17, 2018, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:30 (KST) time slot.[2][3][4]

    The drama received critical acclaim, winning Best Drama at the 55th Buesking Arts Awards.

    Synopsis[edit]

    My Mister tells us the story of three middle-aged brothers, who are enduring the weight of their lives, and a strong, cold woman, who has been living a hard life of her own, as they come together in healing each other’s past scars.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Lee Sun-kyun as Park Dong-hoon[1]

    The second oldest of the three brothers. He works as a structural engineer and always has a safety-first approach to life. He is quiet and stoic but also goes all in for the people he loves.

    Lee Ji-eun (IU) as Lee Ji-an[1]

    Kim Gyu-ri as child Ji-an

    A woman who is enduring many hardships in life. She is tasked by her boss who runs a company she is temporarily working for to discover Park Dong-hood’s weaknesses, but she soon ends up falling for his warm charms and learns to trust someone for the first time.

    Supporting[edit]

    Dong-hood’s family[edit]

    Go Doo-shim as Byun Yo-soon[5]

    A loving mother with three sons who worries about her eldest living apart from his family, and her youngest, who has yet to get married despite being over 40.

    Park Ho-san [ko] as Park Sang-hoon[6]

    Dong-hood’s eldest brother. He is a middle-aged man who was fired from his job and then ran two failing businesses, which ended up in him being chased out of his own home. Though he has to live under his mother’s roof, he’s a romanticist at heart who always thinks about ways to find happiness.

    Song Sae-beak as Park Ki-hoon[1]

    Dong-hood’s younger brother. He was once seen as a genius director because an independent film he shot when he was twenty was invited to the Cannes Film Festival. However, 20 years have passed since his glory days. He has yet to successfully launch his career as a movie director.

    Lee Ji-ah is Kang Yoon-hee,[7] Park Dong-hood’s wife, who is having an affair with Do Joon-young, her husband’s boss who is younger than him.

    Jung Young-joo [ko] as Jo Ae-Ryun.[8]

    Lee Ji-ant’s family[edit]

    Son Sook [ko] as Lee Bong-ae: Lee Ji-ant’s deaf grandmother.

    People around Lee Ji-an[edit]

    Jang Ki-yong as Lee Kwang-il[9]

    A loan shark, who liked Ji-and when he was young.

    Ahn Seung-gun as Song Ki-bum[10]

    Ji-ant’s best friend.

    Lee Young-seok [ko] as Hongdae: Kwang-ill’s partner.

    People in the company[edit]

    Kim Young-min [ko] as Do Joon-young[11]

    Dong-hood’s college junior and Ji-ant’s boss, currently working as a CEO.

    Shin Goo as Chairman Jang Hoe-jang

    Jung Jae-sung [ko] as Executive Director Yoon Sang-tea

    Seo Hyun-woo as Head of Section Seo

    Chae Dong-hyun [ko] as Kim Dae-ri

    Kim Min-seok [ko] as Yeo Hyung-kyu

    Ryu Sun-young [ko] as Jung Chae-rung[12]

    Dong-hoon and Ji-ant’s co-worker.

    Extended[edit]

    Kwon Na-ra as Choi Yoo-ra[13]

    A movie actress, and Park Ki-hood’s love interest.

    Park Hae-joon as Gumede

    Dong-hood’s friend and has dated Jung-hee in the past.

    Oh Na-ra as Jung-hee

    Owner of Jung-hee’s Bar, friends with Dong-hoon.

    Shin Dam-soo [ko] as Director Jung Chang-mo

    Park Soo-young as Je-Cheol

     

     

    Hospital Playlist

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    navigation Jump

    Hospital Playlist
    Official promotional poster season 2
    Hangul 슬기로운 의사생활
    Hanja 슬기로운 醫師生活
    Genre Medical

    Drama

    Romance

    Comedy

    Life
    Created by Lee Myung-Han (tvN)
    Written by Lee Woo-Jung
    Directed by Shin Won-ho
    Starring Jo Jung-suk

    Yoo Yeon-Seok

    Jung Kyung-ho

    Kim Dae-Myung

    Jeon Mi-do
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 2
    No. of episodes 24
    Production
    Executive producer Park Seung Jae
    Producer Choi Sung Yoon
    Camera setup Single-camera
    Running time 72–113 minutes
    Production companies Egg Is Coming

    CJ ENM
    Distributor tvN

    Netflix[1]
    Release
    Original network tvN
    Picture format HDTV 1080i
    Original release March 12, 2020 –
    present
    External links
    Website

    Hospital Playlist (Korean: 슬기로운 의사생활; Hanja: 슬기로운

    The series follows five doctors in their 40s who have been best friends since they entered medical school in 1999. Lee Ik-Jun (Jo Jung-suk) is an assistant professor of general surgery specializing in liver transplants. He takes care of his young son as a single father after getting divorced from his adulterous wife. His cheerful charisma allows him to connect with many people, making him a popular figure among both patients and other doctors. Unapologetically good at anything he puts his mind to, Ahn Jeong-won (Yoo Yeon-Seok), an assistant professor of pediatric surgery, is generous and caring, endearing him to his patients. He is a devout Catholic and secretly plans to become a priest due to the pain caused by seeing his patients suffer. Kim Jun-wan (Jung Kyung-ho) is an associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery, who appears cold and professional. However, he hides a soft, kind temperament that rarely shows, only surfacing with his friends and certain patients. Yang Seok-Hyeong (Kim Dae-Myung), an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, is an aloof and introverted doctor. Though he comes off as detached, he is willing to go the extra mile for the female patients under his watch. He is divorced and deeply cares for his mother. Chae Song-Hwa (Jeon Mi-do), the only female in the group of friends, is an associate professor of neurosurgery. She is considered perfect by her colleagues: she treats patients kindly, performs hundreds of successful surgeries, and has a great personality.

    The story revolves around a group of friends as they embark on hospital adventures involving medicine, music, and relationships.

    Cast[edit]

    Overview[edit]

    Actor Character Season
    (Year)
    1
    (2020)    		 2
    (2021)
    Jo Jung-suk Lee Ik-Jun Main
    Yoo Yeon-Seok Ahn Jeong-won Main
    Jung Kyung-ho Kim Jun-wan Main
    Kim Dae-Myung Yang Seok-Hyeong Main
    Jeon Mi-do Chae Song-Hwa Main
    Shin Hyun-bin Jang Gyro-wool Recurring
    Kwak Sun-young Lee Ik-sun Recurring
    Ahn Eun-jin Choo Min-ha Recurring
    Jung Moon-sung Do Jae-hack Recurring
    Moon Tae-Joo Yong Seok-min Recurring
    Ha Yoon-Kyung Heo Sun-Bin Recurring
    Kim Jun-Han Ahn Chi-Hong Recurring

    Main[edit]

    Jo Jung-suk as Lee Ik-Jun, an assistant professor of general surgery.

    Yoo Yeon-Seok as Ahn Jeong-won, an assistant professor of pediatric surgery.

    Jung Kyung-ho as Kim Jun-wan, an associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery.

    Kim Dae-Myung is Yang Seok-Hyeong, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology.

    Jeon Mi-do as Chae Song-Hwa, an associate professor of neurosurgery.[11]

    Supporting[edit]

    Doctors[edit]

    Shin Hyun-bin as Jang Gyro-wool, a third-year resident in general surgery.

    Jung Moon-sung as Do Jae-hack, chief resident of cardiothoracic surgery.

    Ahn Eun-jin as Choo Min-ha, a second-year resident in obstetrics and gynecology.[12]

    Kim Jun-Han is Ahn Chi-Hong, a third-year resident in neurosurgery.

    Moon Tae-you as Yong Seok-min, chief resident of neurosurgery.

    Ha Yoon-Kyung as Heo Sun-bin, a third-year resident in neurosurgery.

    Choi Young-Joon as Bong Gwang-Hyun, assistant professor of emergency medicine.

    Seo Jin-won as Min Gi-Joon, professor of neurosurgery.

    Kim Hye-in as Myung Eun-won, a second-year resident in obstetrics and gynecology.[13]

    Choi Young-woo as Cheon Myung-tea, professor of cardiothoracic surgery.

    Shin Do-Hyun as Bae Joon-hee, the fellow in emergency medicine.

    Jeon Kwang-jin as Jong Se-hyuk, the fellow in orthopedic surgery.

    Lee Se-hee as Kang So-ye, one-year Fellow in emergency medicine [14]

    Woo Jung-won as Yom Se-hee, Professor of Stainbrook [15]

    Lee Jong-won as Kim Geon [16]

    Lee Jung-won as Hwang Ji-woo, second-year surgeon [17]

    Nurses and medical students[edit]

    Kim Soo-jin as Song Soo-bin, surgical ward nurse.

    Yoon Hye-RI as So Yi-Hyun, cardiothoracic surgery medical assistant.

    Yang Jo-ah as Hwang Jae-shin, neurosurgery medical assistant.

    Lee Noh-ah as Lee Young-ha, surgical ward nurse.

    Lee Dal as Kim Jae-hwan, surgical ward nurse.

    Lee Hye-Eun as Kook Hye-sung, general surgery medical assistant.

    Lee Ji-won as Han Hyun-hee, pediatric surgery medical assistant.

    Lee Jong-won as Kim Geon-run, second-year surgeon major.

    Kim Ji-sung as Han Seung-Joo, obstetrics and gynecology delivery room nurse.

    Seol Yu-jin as Eun Sun-jin, obstetrics, and gynecology medical assistant.

    Kim Bi-bi as Ham Deok-Joo, transplant coordinator.

    Park Han-sol as Sun woo Hee-soo, emergency room nurse.

    Cho Yi-hyun as Jang Yun-bok, third-year medical student.[18]

    Bae Hyun-sung as Jang Hong-do, third-year medical student.

    Kim Kang-min as Im Chang-min, intern.

    Lee Chan-Hyung as Choi Seon-young, intern.

    Chae Min-hee as So-Yeon, [19]

    Family members of the main characters[edit]

    Kwak Sun-young is Lee Ik-sun, Ik-Joon’s younger sister and Jun-win’s girlfriend.

    Kim Joon as Lee Woo-Joo, Ik-Joon’s son.

    Kim Hae-sook as Jung Rosa, Jeong-won’s mother.

    Sung Dong-il is Jeong-won’s eldest brother.

    Kim Kapp-soo as Joo Jong-soo, president of the Yule Foundation.

    Cho Seung-Yeon as Joo Jun, director of Yule Medical Center.

    Moon Hee-Kyung as Cho Young-Hye, Seok-Yeong’s mother.

    Nam Myung-real as Yang Tae-yang, Seok-Hyeon’s father.

    Lee So-Yoon is Kim Tae-yeon, Yang Tae-yang’s mistress.

     

    Comments:  Like a Korean version of Gray’s Anatomy?  End Comment

    Flower of Evil

     

    Flower of Evil (TV series)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    navigation Jump

    Flower of Evil
    Promotional poster
    Hangul 악의 꽃
    Genre Melodrama

    Suspense
    Created by Monster Union
    Studio Dragon
    Written by Yoo Jung-hee
    Directed by Kim Cheol-kyu
    Starring Lee Joon-gi

    Moon Chae-won

    Jang Hee-jin

    Seo Hyun-woo
    Composers Kim Jun-Seok
    Jung Se-rin
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 16
    Production
    Executive producer Yoo Sang won
    Producer Jung Hae-Rayong

    Jang Shin-ae

    Kim Dae-ho
    Editor Younghood Kim
    Running time 70 minutes
    Production companies Monster Union
    Studio Dragon
    Distributor tvN
    Release
    Original network tvN
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release July 29 –
    September 23, 2020
    External links
    Website

    Flower of Evil (Korean: 악의 꽃; RR: Ague knot) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Joon-gi, Moon Chae-won, Jang Hee-jin, and Seo Hyun-woo.[1][2][3] It aired on tvN every Wednesday and Thursday from July 29 to September 23, 2020,[4] and streamed internationally on Iliya, Viki, and Vito with multi-languages subtitles. Lee and Moon have previously starred in Criminal Minds, and it was Lee’s return to television after two years.[5]

     

    Synopsis[edit]

    Baek Hee-sung (Lee Joon-gi) is a man who hides his identity and past from his wife Cha Ji-won (Moon Chae-won), a detective. On the surface, they appear to be the perfect family: a loving couple with a beautiful daughter who adores her parents. Cha Ji-won and her colleagues begin investigating a series of unexplained murders and are confronted with the reality that her seemingly perfect husband may be hiding something from her.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Lee Joon-gi as Baek Hee-sung / Do Hyun-soo[1]

    Park Hyun-joon as young Hyun-soo

    Cha Sung-je as child Hyun-soo

    Moon Chae-won as Cha Ji-won, Hee-sung/Hyun-soo’s wife[1]

    Jang Hee-jin as Do Hae-soo[2]

    Lim Na-young as teenage Hae-soo, Hyun-soo’s older sister[6]

    Lee Chae-Yoon as eleven-year-old Hae-soo

    Seo Hyun-woo as Kim Moo-jin, journalist[3]

    Jeong Taek-hyun as young Moo-jin[7]

    Supporting[edit]

    Baek Hee-sung & Cha Ji-won’s family[edit]

    Jung Seo-Yeon as Baek Eun-ha, daughter of Hee-sung and Ji-won[8]

    Son Jong-hakas Baek Man-woo, Hee-Sung’s father[9]

    Nam Gi-ae as Gong Mi-Ja, Hee-Sung’s mother[10]

    Jo Kyung-sook as Moon Young-ok, Ji-won’s mother[11]

    Kanoo Police Station[edit]

    Choi Dae-hoon as Lee Woo-Cheol, leader of Homicide Investigation Team[10]

    Choi Young-Joon as Choi Jae-sub, veteran detective[10]

    Kim Soo Oh as Im Ho-Joon, youngest team member[10]

    Lim Cha-ching as Yoon Sang-pill, section chief[10]

    Hong Seo-Joon as Oh Young-Joon, police captain

    Hanoian Magazine[edit]

    Yang Hye-jin as Gang Pill-young, lead reporter[10]

    Ju Ye-Eun as Reporter Joo

    Others[edit]

    Choi Byung-mo as Do Min-seok, father of Hae-soo and Hyun-soo

    Kim Ji-hoon as Baek Hee-sung

    Choi Kwon-soo as young Hee-sung

    Lee Kyu-bok as Nam Soon-gill

    Kim Geon as Kim In-seo

    Lee Ju-Yeon as Park Seo-young

    Han Soo-Yeon as Jung Mi-sook

    Yoon Byung-hee as Park Kyung-chon, taxi driver and husband of Jung Mi-sook

    Park Seung-tea as Oh Bok-ja

    Kim Ki-Cheon as Dr. Lee Hyun-suk

     

    1. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Rye(2016)

    15 | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

    Rate

    Korean melodramatic adaptation of Chinese drama Startling by Each Step (2011) follows a woman who travels back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea whenever a total eclipse of the sun took place.

    Stars: Lee Joon-Gi, Ji-eon Lee, Kang Ha-Neal, Nam Joo-Hyuk

    1. Sangsogjadeul(2013)

    15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After a chance encounter in LA, two teens from different social backgrounds reunite at an exclusive high school attended by Korea’s Uber rich.

    Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Shin-Hye, Woo-bin Kim, Kim Ji-Won

    1. Kill Me, Heal Me(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Rate

    A love story between the son from a wealthy family who has 7 personalities Cha Do Hyun (Ji Sung) and Oh Ri Jin (Hwang Jung Elum) who becomes his secret psychiatrist.

    Stars: Seong Ji, Hwang Jeong-elm, Kim Hee-Jung, Shim Hye-jin

    1. Healer(2014–2015)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

    An old murder incident involving a group who ran an illegal broadcasting station brings together different people – a mysterious errand guy “Healer” who possesses disguise and fighting … See full summary »

    Stars: Ji Chang-Wook, Park Min-Young, Tae-Mi, Jeong Guy-Su

    Votes: 6,769

     

    1. My Love from Another Star(2013–2014)

    Not Rated | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    Do Min-Joon, an alien that came to our planet 400 years ago, will be able to return to his planet in 3 months, but when he meets famous actress Chun Song-Yi, all the centuries he spent distancing himself from humans come to an end.

    Stars: Jun Ji-Hyun, Kim Soo-Hyun, Park Hae-Jin, Yoo In-Na

    Votes: 10,186

     

    1. Oogonium (2013)

    Tae Gong Sil can see ghosts, but their constant demands of help make her life impossible until she meets Joo Jong Won, handsome CEO that measures everything with money since when she touches him, the ghosts disappear.

    Stars: Kong Hyo-Jin, So Ji-sob, Seo In-Guk, Yoo-Ri Kim

     

    1. Haereul poteen dal(2012)

    TV-Y | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

    The story of the secret love between Lee Hwan, a fictional king of Joseon, and Wool, a female shaman. Wool was born as Heo Yeon Woo, the daughter of a noble family who won the love of the … See full summary »

    Stars: Mi-seen Jeon, Mi-keying Yang, Eung-soo Kim, Eun-Byul

    Votes: 2,034

     

    1. Boys Over Flowers(2009)

    TV-14 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Poor girl attends the elite Shin Hwa High and is bullied by the leader of F4 (the four richest boys). He becomes attracted to her; however, she has a crush on his best friend. Whom will she choose?

    Stars: Ku Hye-Sun, Lee Min-Ho, Kim Hyun-Jong, Kim Bum

    1. Minami Shiny(2009)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

    Go Mi-Nya, a girl about to become a nun is asked to cover for her indisposed twin brother, Mi-Nam, who’s on the verge of becoming a k-idol. To do so, she disguises herself as a boy and joins Arnell, a really popular boy band.

    Stars: Park Shin-Hye, Yong-Hwa, Yong-Hwa Jung, Hong-ki Lee

    TV-Y | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    Love, tradition, and politics collide when a spirited young art student is betrothed to the crown prince of South Korea.

    Stars: Yun Geun-Hye, Ju Ji-Hoon, Song Ji-Hyo, Bool-am Choi

    1. Mischievous Kiss(2010)

    15 | 66 min | Comedy, Romance

    Fate brings polar opposite high school classmates (one obsessively attracted to the other, the other indifferent to all advances) to live under one roof. Is romance possible?

    Stars: Jung So-Min, Kim Hyun-Jong, Tae-Sung Lee, Hye-Young Jung

    1. Sungkyunkwan Scandal(2010)

    TV-Y | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, History

    In the Joseon era, Kim Yoon-hee masquerades as a boy to earn a living as a book transcriber. Her family’s dire circumstances and the encouragement of a noble’s son finally drive her to attend Shunyuan University, forbidden for females.

    Stars: Park Min-Young, Yoo-chum Park, Yoo Ah-in, Song Jong-ki

    1. Ok-tab-bang Wang-se-ja(2012)

    15 | 65 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

    Crown Prince Yi gak finds that he has been transported from Chosun Dynasty to modern-day Seoul. He meets Hong Se Na, who bears a striking resemblance to his dead wife, and is determined to … See full summary »

    Stars: Woo-Sik Choi, Seok-won Jeong, Yu-mi Jeong, Han Ji-min

    1. Mai gel(2005–2006)

    With a perpetually indebted father, Joo Yoo Rin learned to lie on the spot and get herself out of tricky situations, which gets Seal Gong Chan, a rich heir to a company, to hire her to impersonate his long lost cousin.

    Stars: Lee Da-have, Lee Dong-Wook, Lee Joon-Gi, Si-Yeon Park

    1. Shining Inheritance(2009)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After losing her father Go Eunson’s stepmother kicks her and her autistic brother out of the house. Shortly after her brother is kidnapped. Eon-sung now has to look for her brother while also trying to find a job to survive.

    Stars: Han Hyo-jook, Lee Seung-gi, Moon Chae-Won, Soo-bin Bae

    1. 마이 프린세스(2011)

    15 | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Kim Tae-hee plays Lee Seal, an ordinary college student who finds out she’s a princess and the great-granddaughter of Korea’s last Emperor. But life can be complicated for a princess in this funny, quirky melodrama.

    Stars: Song Seung-Heon, Kim Tae-hee, Park Yeon, Soo-young Ryu

    1. Angkeumhan Dashingly(2014– )

    Na Ae-ra (Lee Min-Jung) and Cha Jung-woo (Joo Sang-wok) got married young. Ae-ra wanted to have steady life but Jung-woo business led them to lots of debt and hard work so she broke off … See full summary »

    Stars: Lee Min-Jung, Sang-UK Joo, Gyu-Ri, Seo Kang-Joon

    1. All About My Romance(2013– )

    A conservative government party member falls for the feisty young leader of an upstart liberal party in this Korean romantic comedy.

    Stars: Shin Ha-kin, Lee Min-Jung, Hee-soon Park, Chae-Ah Han

    1. Protect the Boss(2011)

    TV-Y | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After a long stretch of unemployment, No Eon Seol lands a job as secretary to Cha Ji Heon the youngest son of a rich family. However, her secretary duties go beyond the ordinary, helping her boss cope and function in normal society.

    Stars: Gi-soo Byion, Hwa-Yeon Cha, Kang-hee Choi, Jeong Gyu-Su

    1. The King 2 Hearts(2012)

    15 | 65 min | Action, Drama, Romance

    The crown prince of South Korea is forced to work alongside a female North Korean military officer. Political and emotional complications lead to an uneasy marriage engagement.

    Stars: Lee Seung-gi, Ha Ji-Won, Jo Jung-Suk, Jason-Patrick Taylor

    1. Bool-up Eosin Jungyi(2013– )

    15 | Drama, History, Romance

    A Historical drama about Yoo Jung, also known as Jung Yi, the first female potter in the Joseon Dynasty and regarded as the dojo of Shin taro porcelain. ‘Yoo Jung’ is based on the real … See full summary »

    Stars: Moon Geun-young, Sang-Yoon Lee, Kim Bum, Keon-Hyeong Park

    1. Nae Yeojachinguneun Gumshoe(2010)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

    Chae Die Wong, an aspiring actor, unwillingly releases a Gumshoe, a legendary nine-tailed fox, from her centuries-old prison. He runs away terrified and ends up injuring himself badly, but she saves his life and asks him to stay by his side.

    Stars: Shin Min-a, Lee Seung-gi, Min-woo No, Park Soo-Jin

    Votes: 2,693

     

    1. Naege Geothermally Haebwa(2011)

    15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    A woman, jealous when her friend steals her first love and marries him, lies that she is married too. The lie ensnares a hotel president who goes along with the lie for his reasons. Will the lie become reality?

    Stars: Seung-us Ryu, Yun Geun-hye, Yun-hie Jo, Sung Jun

    Votes: 1,257

     

    1. Un-Myong-Cheol-eom neol sa-rang-hae(2014)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.9

     

    Rate

    A touching Korean drama filled with comedy about a girl who finds happiness, friendship, and love in the most unexpected way!

    Stars: Jang Hyuk, Jang Na-ra, Choi Jin-Hyuk, churl

    Votes: 2,036

     

    1. Shinai (2012)

    60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

    8

     

    Rate

    When the queen-to-be of medieval Korea is badly wounded, Captain Choi Young uses a wormhole to “heaven,” which is 21st-century South Korea, to bring back the spoiled Dr. Yoo Eon-Soo who becomes a pawn in a game of human chess.

    Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Yoon Kyun-Sang, Lee Min-Ho, Deok-Hwan Ryu

    Votes: 2,256

     

    1. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince(2007)

    15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    8.2

     

    Rate

    A tomboy, mistaken for a lad, maintains the deception for the sake of employment. The situation becomes complicated when her male boss begins to develop feelings for this “boy.”

    Stars: Gong Yoo, Yun Geun-Hye, Sun-Kyun Lee, Jeong-an Chae

    Votes: 4,627

     

    1. 동이(2010)

    TV-Y | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance

    8

     

    Rate

    Story a simple maid that rises high in the royal harem as a consort and, ultimately, mother of the Korean king.

    SARS: Han Hyo-Joo, Julia Lim, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Da-Min Han

    Votes: 1,349

     

    1. Love in the Moonlight(2016)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    The unlikely love story between a crown prince and his eunuch.

    Stars: Park Bo-Gum, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Chae Soo-bin, Kwak Dong-Yeon

    Votes: 2,344

     

    1. She Was Pretty(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.7

     

    Rate

    When Ji Sung-Joon was young, he was ugly. As he grew up, he began to have an attractive appearance. When Kim Hye-Jin was young, she was pretty. As she grew up, she became ugly. Ji Sung-Joon tries to find his first love.

    Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seo Jun Park, Jun-hee Ko, Si Won Choi

    Votes: 4,025

     

    1. Bimal (2013)

    15 | Drama, Romance

    8.1

     

    Rate

    A devoted woman makes the ultimate sacrifice for her boyfriend, only to learn that love doesn’t always conquer all. Yoo Jeong (Hwang Jeong Elum) is a sweet, upbeat person who has always … See full summary »

    Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seong Ji, Soo-bin Bae, Lee Da-hee

    Votes: 1,031

     

    1. Naemsaereul Boneen Sonyeo(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    7.1

     

    Rate

    Detective Tae Ho lost his younger sister to a barcode-murder case and lost his ability to taste, smell, and feel pain. He then meets Oh Cho Rim, the only witness to the murder case who possesses a special sense: she can see smells.

    Stars: Yoo-chum Park, Shin Se-Kyung, Jin-Seo Yoon, Min Nakong

    Votes: 1,023

     

    1. Sesang Eddied Eobneun Chakhan Namja(2012)

    15 | 60 min | Drama

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Kang Ma-Ru is a promising medical student until he takes the blame for a crime he didn’t commit. When he finds an opportunity for revenge, he takes it, using Seo Eon-Gi. Ma-Ru soon … See full summary »

    Stars: Song Jong-ki, Moon Chae-Won, Si-Yeon Park, Kwang-Soo Lee

    Votes: 1,604

     

    1. Descendants of the Sun(2016)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Drama

    8.3

     

    Rate

    This drama tells of the love story that develops between a surgeon and a special forces officer.

    Stars: Song Jong-ki, Song Hye-Kyo, Jin Goo, Kim Ji-Won

    Votes: 11,373

     

    1. Haideu, Jail, Na(2015)

    15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7

     

    Rate

    Koo Seo-Jin (Hyun-Bin) has two different personalities. One of his personalities is cold like Hyde and the other is sweet like Jekyll.

    Stars: Hyun Bin, Han Ji-min, Hee-Sung Kwak, Hyerim

    Votes: 986

     

    1. O Ma-i Bi-neo-seu(2015–2016)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    A lawyer in her thirties coming out of a long relationship decides to regain her figure and health after meeting a renowned personal trainer who obsesses with leading a healthy lifestyle after suffering a serious injury in his childhood.

    Stars: So Ji-sob, Shin Min-a, Sung Hoon, Yoo In-young

    Votes: 3,817

     

    1. Secret Garden(2010–2011)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    8.1

     

    Rate

    A rich young CEO falls for a poor stuntwoman despite class differences, cultural traditions, and the man’s firmly objecting mother.

    Stars: Ha Ji-Won, Hyun Bin, Yoon Sang-Hyun, Sa-rang Kim

    Votes: 5,961

     

    1. Gamy eon (2015)

    15 | Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Ji-sook facing a hard time because of her father’s debts and begin being chased by moneylenders. When a series of things happen Ji-sook has to live with Eon Ha’s identity (a Woman from an elite family) because she looks exactly like Eon Ha.

    Stars: Soo Ae, Ju Ji-Hoon, Jeong-Hun Yeon, Yoo In-young

    Votes: 344

     

    1. Hungrier (2013– )

    Not Rated | Drama, Romance

    6.9

     

    Rate

    At 42-years-old, Kwon Yolo (Lee Beom Soo) is South Korea’s youngest prime minister ever. On top of his reputation of being an honest man of the utmost integrity, he’s also a widower who … See full summary »

    Stars: Im Yoon-ah, us, Yoon Shi-Yoon, Jeong-an Chae

    Votes: 332

     

    1. Pool ha-woo-sue(2004)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.9

     

    Rate

    In a bid to reacquire her childhood home, a free-spirited woman agrees to a sham marriage with a selfish actor. Their daily lives are complicated by overlapping love triangles and comic misadventures.

    Stars: Song Hye-Kyo, Rain, Eun-Jeong, Seong-su Kim

    Votes: 3,112

     

    1. Kawagoe (2005– )

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Chun-Hyang is smart and sassy and becomes involved with good-looking Mongering. His first love Chae-rim enters the picture. An older man, Hak-do, pursues her. Will they find their way back to each other?

    Stars: Chae-young Han, Hee Jae, Tae-wooing Edom, Si-Eun Park

    Votes: 442

     

    1. Mary Stayed Out All Night(2010)

    65 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

    6.8

     

    Rate

    Wi Mae Ri is the cheerful, pragmatic daughter of a failed businessman who had grown used to being constantly on the move to escape from loan sharks. She becomes fast friends with the … See full summary »

    Stars: Moon Geun-young, Hyo-Jin, Kim Jae-Wook, Hyo-jin Kim

    Votes: 719

     

    1. City Hunter(2011)

    TV-Y | 60 min | Action, Romance, Thriller

    8.1

     

    Rate

    Lee Yun-song was trained by his father’s best friend to get revenge on the government for killing everyone in his father’s unit.

    Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Min-Young, Sang-Jung Kim, Ho-jin Chun

    Votes: 5,220

     

    1. Neon Neace Banhaesseo(2011)

    65 min | Drama, Music, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    A series of misunderstandings causes Lee Shin, the cocky leader of “The Stupid” and Lee Guy-won, a student majoring in Traditional Korean Music to start on the wrong foot. Until she sees him performing live, and is immediately captivated.

    Stars: Yong-hwa Jung, Park Shin-Hye, Chang-up Song, Yi-Hyeon So

    Votes: 1,645

     

    1. Anderman (2015)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama

    7.6

     

    Rate

    This drama is about Jo Gang-JA, a mother who was known as a tough girl in high school. Her daughter Ah-ran is bullied at school and when Gang-JA finds out, she makes it her responsibility … See full summary »

    Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Hyun-Woo Ji, Ji Soo

    Votes: 443

     

    1. Nae mi-eum-i deul-li-da(2011–)

    65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Can You Hear My Heart features Hallyu stars Kim Jae Won, Hwang Jung Elum, and Nam Goong Min in this romantic drama that shows us love in defiance of physical limitations? Dong Joo (played by … See full summary »

    Stars: Jae-won Kim, Hwang Jeong-elm, Min Namkoong, Lee Hye-Yeong

    Votes: 169

     

    1. Jang Ok-Jung, Sarang-e Salda(2013)

    15 | Drama, History, Romance

    7.5

     

    Rate

    Life Of Jang Ok Jung, Later Known as Jang Hee Bin, was one of the most famous Concubines of The Joseon Dynasty who was known for her hunger for power.

    Stars: Kim Tae-hee, Yoo Ah-in, Geon-Ju Lee, Soo-Hyun Hong

    Votes: 212

     

    1. Marriage Contract(2016)

    15 | 75 min | Drama

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Ji-Hoon (Lee Seo-Jin) has a cynical personality due to his family background. Even though he comes from a rich family, his mother had an affair with a married man and they had Ji-Hoon. From… See full summary »

    Stars: Seo-jin Lee, Kim You-Jin, Yoo-Ri Kim, Kim Kwang-guy

    Votes: 557

     

    1. Won-deo-pool la-i-pea(2005– )

    Comedy, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    The story of Xu Tian who suffers big blows both in his love and work life. When he decides to leave America, where he has been living for 10 years, and returns to his home country, luck is not on his side.

    Stars: Frank Powers, Jun-yong Choi, Eun-Jeong, Hyeon Ju

    Votes: 106

     

    1. Dream High(2011–2012)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Music, Romance

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Dream High tells the story of six students at Kirin Art High School who work to achieve their dreams of becoming music stars in the Korean music industry. Go Hye Mi is a student who sings … See full summary »

    Stars: J.Y. Park, Jin-won Jung, Ji-eon Lee, Kim Soo-Hyun

    Votes: 2,549

     

    1. Personal Taste(2010)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.4

     

    Rate

    The surprise hit of 2010, Personal Taste (aka Personal Preference) garnered high ratings and a huge fanbase in a comedy that proves true love is found in the most unlikely places. Quirky … See full summary »

    Stars: Son Ye-jin, Lee Min-Ho, Nam-Gil Kim, Ji-Seok Kim

    Votes: 3,713

     

    1. Baegnyeon-ui Sibu(2014)

    15 | 67 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

    7.1

     

    Rate

    The Taeyang Corporation is the largest conglomerate in South Korea. The family that runs Taeyang has been under a curse for hundred years that the first bride of the eldest son will always … See full summary »

    Stars: Jin-Sung Yang, Hong-ki Lee, Jung-Hee Nam

    DP

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

    A gripping drama based on true events about life in the Korean military and why some soldiers run away from their obligations amid the constant harassment and strict discipline of the Korean military. This drama hit a nerve among many Koreans who recall their trouble times in the military. The military has announced that they are discontinuing the DP unit but swore it had nothing to do with this drama.

     

    D.P. (TV series)

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

    D.P.
    Promotional poster
    Korean 디피
    Genre Drama

    Military
    Based on D.P Dog’s Day
    by Kim Bo-tong
    Screenplay by Kim Bo-tong

    Han Jun-hee
    Directed by Han Jun-hee
    Starring Jung Hae-in

    Koo Kyo-hwan

    Kim Sung-kyun

    Son Seok-Koo
    Composer Primary
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 6
    Production
    Executive producers Bien Seung-min

    Han Jun-hee
    Producer Kim Dong-min
    Cinematography Yoo Ji-sun
    Editor Park Min-sun
    Running time 45–55 minutes
    Production companies Climax Studio

    Shortcake
    Distributor Netflix
    Release
    Original network Netflix
    Original release August 27, 2021

    D.P. (an acronym for Deserter Pursuit) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Han Jun-hee, from a screenplay by Kim Bo-tong and Han, based on the Lezhin webtoon D.P Dog’s Day by Kim. The series stars Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-kyun, and Son Seok-Koo.[1][2] It premiered in six parts on Netflix on August 27, 2021.[3][4]

    Synopsis[edit]

    Set in 2014, D.P. tells the story of a team of Korean military police with their mission to catch deserters.

    The series magnifies the undesirable nature of the military, especially within a South Korean context. The widespread bullying and hazing as well as the mindset for the “survival of the fittest” are rife, with those presumed the “weakest” thrown to the bottom of the pile and served horrifying experiences at the hands of their superiors and compatriots.

    Private Ahn Joon-ho and Corporal Han Ho-Yul both team up to find the deserters, and end up on an adventurous journey.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Jung Hae-in as Private Ahn Joon-ho

    Koo Kyo-hwan as Corporal Han Ho-Yul

    Kim Sung-Kyun as Sergeant First Class Park Bum-gu

    Son Seok-Koo as Captain Im Ji-sup

    Supporting[edit]

    Jo Hyun-churl as Jo Suk-bong

    Shin Seung-ho as Hwang Jang-soo

    Park Se-joon as Heo Ki-young

    Park Jung-woo as Shin Woo-suk

    Kim Dong-young as Choi Joon-mok

    Lee Jun-young as Jung Hyun-min

    Choi Joon-young as Heo Chi-do

    Moon Sang-hoon as Kim Roo-ri

    Hyun Bong-sik as Chun Yong-duck

    Hong Kyung as Ryu Yi-Kang

    Bae Yoo-ram as Kim Kyu

    Han Woo-Yul as Tae Sung-goon

    Guest[edit]

    Go Kyung-pyro as Corporal Park Sung-woo (Ep. 1)

    Kwon Hae-Hyo as Ahn Joon-ho’s father (Eps. 1, 3–4)

    Lee Seol as Shin Woo-Seok’s sister (Eps. 1 & 6)

    Lee Jong-ok as an hinoeuma employee (Ep. 2)

    Development[edit]

    In late June 2020, Lashing officially announced that Lashing Studio and Homemade Film would co-produce a 6-part adaptation of the hit webtoon D.P: Dog Days by Kim Bo-tong, to be released exclusively through Netflix.[5][6] The story is based on Kim’s own experience during his mandatory military service.[7]

    Director and co-writer Han Jun-hee had wanted to work on the webtoon’s adaptation “for five or six years [before he] finally got a chance” to do so.[8] Though Ahn Joon-ho is a Corporal in the webtoon, Han wanted him to be a Private in the series so people could “resonate with the story and consider Joon-ho as a friend who just started his military service.”[9]

    Casting[edit]

    On September 3, 2020, Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-Kyun, and Son Seok-Koo were confirmed to star in the series.[10][11] Koo’s character does not appear in the webtoon, which he found “hard but exciting to portray a character exclusive to the series.”[12] To prepare for his role, Koo received help from his road manager who was part of the D.P. team during his military service.[13] As for Jung, he practiced boxing for three months before filming began, to do his action scenes.[14]

    Kim Bo-tong, who wrote the webtoon and co-wrote the series, commented that he “never dreamed of such a cast. They fit so perfectly into their roles that it seems like the roles were written for them.”[15]

    Filming[edit]

    Principal photography began in the summer of 2020.[16]

    Reception[edit]

    Audience viewership[edit]

    Following its release, the series topped Netflix’s Top 10 in South Korea.[17]

    Critical response[edit]

    William Schwartz of Han Cinema praised Jung Hae-in‘s acting, commenting that he “is sublime here, in a brooding cinematic role radically different from the romances he’s better known for.” He added that “D.P. is worth watching, not just by people curious what South Korean mandatory military service is like, but anyone from any country who’s seriously thinking about joining up.”[18]

    Pierce Conran of the South China Morning Post gave the series a 4.5/5 rating, noting that “D.P. hits home with a story that spans the past and present, as it acknowledges that yesterday’s problems can still be today’s.” He also praised the cinematography as well as Jung and Koo’s “electric chemistry”.[19] Daniel Hart of Ready Steady Cut also rated the series 4.5 stars out of 5, describing it as “the finest K-Drama mini-series this year.”[20]

    Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek rated the series 4.3/5, noting that “D.P. is a stunning Korean drama [which] takes an unflinching look at bullying, the effect it has on mental health and larger societal questions about the mandatory military service in Korea” and praising the series for its “impressive” cinematography and for the way it “explore[s] a very sensitive and prevalent topic in a raw, artistic and unflinching way.”[21]

    In a mixed review, Hitzig Jumaine of NME gave the series a 3/5 rating, commenting that “Kim Bo-tong and Han Jun-hee must be given credit for how this series tackles such extraordinarily difficult and tragic subject matter with compassion and sensitivity”, and praising the “uniformly excellent performances, splendid cinematography, addictive pacing, and intrepid commitment to shedding light on the appalling culture of bullying in the military”, but criticizing the “weak characterization [of the] three main leads” as well as the “ludicrous escalation of events during its climax, which suddenly turns a fairly grounded show into a melodramatic action thriller.”[22]

     

     

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

     

    Squid Games

     

    The top show on Netflix is not only in the US but also in Korea.  Reminiscent of both the “Maze”,  the “Hunger Games”, and the” Cube “ but done in a K Drama way. And addictive!

     

     

    Squid Game

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    navigation Jump

    Squid Game
    Promotional poster
    Also known as Round Six
    Hangul 오징어게임
    Revised Romanization Owing-ego Gem
    McCune–Reischauer Jingo Kemi
    Genre Action–adventure

    Suspense

    Survival

    Drama
    Created by Netflix
    Written by Hwang Dong-hyuk
    Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk
    Starring Lee Jung-Jae

    Park Hae-soo

    Wi Ha-joon
    Composer Jung Jae-il
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of seasons 1
    No. of episodes 9 (list of episodes)
    Production
    Camera setup Multi-camera
    Running time 32–63 minutes
    Production company Siren Pictures Inc.[1]
    Distributor Netflix
    Release
    Original network Netflix
    Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

    Dolby visión
    Audio format Dolby Atmos
    Original release September 17, 2021

    Squid Game (Korean: 오징어게임; RR: Jingle Gem) is a South Korean survival drama streaming television series written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk. The nine-episode series, starring Lee Jung-Jae, Park Hae-soo, and Wi Ha-Joon, tells the story of a group of people who risk their lives in a mysterious survival game with a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.7 million) prize.[2][3] It was released worldwide on September 17, 2021, by Netflix.[4][5]

    Premise

    Four hundred and fifty-six people, who have all struggled financially in life, are invited to play a mysterious survival competition. Competing in a series of traditional children’s games but with deadly twists, they risk their lives to compete for a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.5 million) prize.

    Cast and characters

    This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
    Find sources: “Squid Game” – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (September 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

    Players

    Main characters[6]

    Lee Jung-Jae as Seong Gi-Hun (No. 456)[7]

    A chauffeur and a gambling addict, he lives with his mother and struggles to financially support his daughter. He participates in the Game to settle his many debts.

    Park Hae-soo as Cho Sang-woo (No. 218)

    The head of the investment team at a securities company, he was a junior to Gi-Hun, and was a gifted student who entered Seoul National University, but is now wanted by the police for stealing money from his clients.

    Oh Yeong-su as Oh Il-name (No. 001)

    An elderly man with a brain tumor prefers playing the Game to waiting to die on the outside.

    Hyeon Jung as Kang Sae-beak (No. 067)

    A North Korean defector enters the Game to pay for a broker that can find and retrieve her surviving family members from the country.

    Heo Sung-tea as Jang Deok-su (No. 101)

    A gangster enters the Game to settle his massive gambling debts.

    Anupam Tripathi as Abdul Ali (No. 199)

    A foreign worker from Pakistan enters the Game to provide for his young family after his employer refuses to pay him for months.

    Kim Joo-young as Han Mi-nyao (No. 212)

    A mysterious and manipulative woman who claims to be a poor single mother.[8]

    Supporting characters

    Yoo Sung-joo as Byeong-gi (No. 111)

    A doctor secretly works with a group of corrupt guards trafficking dead participants’ organs in exchange for information on upcoming games.

    Lee Yoo-mi as Ji-Yeong (No. 240)

    A young woman was just released from prison after killing her abusive father.

    Kim Si-Hyun as No. 244

    A pastor who finds his faith again in the Game.

    Minor characters

    Lee Sang-hee as No. 017

    A glass-maker with more than 30 years’ experience.

    Kim Yun-tea as No. 069

    A player who joins the Game with his wife, No. 070

    Lee Ji-ha as No. 070

    A player who joins the game with her husband, No. 069

    Kwak Ja-young as No. 278

    A player who joins Deok-sun’s group and acts as his henchman.

    Chris Chan / Chris Lag hit[9] as No. 276

    A player who joins Seong Gi-Hun’s group on the Tug of War round.

    Game staff

    Gong Yoo is a salesman who recruits participants for the Game (Special appearance, Episodes 1 and 9)[10]

    Lee Byung-Hun as The Front Man (Special appearance, Episodes 8–9)

    Civilians

    Main characters

    Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho[11]

    A police officer sneaks into the Game to find his missing brother.

    Supporting characters

    Kim Young-ok as Gi-Hun’s mother

    Cho Ah-in as Seong Ga-Yeong, Gi-Hun’s daughter

    Kang Mal-gum as Gi-Hun’s ex-wife and Ga-Yeong’s mother

    Park Hye-jin as Sang-woo’s mother

    Park Si-wan as Kang Cheol, Sae-book’s brother

    English cast (dubbing)

    Greg Chun as Seong Gi-Hun

    Stephen Fu as Cho Sang-woo

    Paul Nakache as Jang Deok-su

    Hideo Kimura as Oh Il-name

    Vivian Lu as Kang Sae-beak

    Rama Valéry as Abdul Ali

    Tom Choi as Front Man

    Donald Chang as Hwang Jun-ho

    Stephanie Komura as Han Mi-nyao

    Yuki Luna as Ji-yeong

    Cosmos’s Commentary:

     

     

    Move to Heaven is a heart-wrenching drama about a “Rain man” like character who worked with his father in a trauma clean-up business cleaning up after the recently deceased.  His father dies and his father’s deadbeat brother shows up as his guardian.

     

    Move to Heaven (Korean: 무브 투 헤븐: 나는 유품정리사입니다; RR: Mubeen to hereon: Naneun yupumjeongnisaimnida) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Kim Sung-ho and written by Yoon Ji-rye on. It is an original Netflix series, starring Lee Je-hoon, Tang Joon-sang, Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee. The series follows Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), a young man with Asperger syndrome, and Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon), his guardian. Working as trauma cleaners, they uncover untold stories.[1][2] The series was released worldwide by Netflix on May 14, 2021.[3]

     

     

     

    Top 50 List

     

    1. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Rye(2016)

    15 | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

    Rate

    Korean melodramatic adaptation of Chinese drama Startling by Each Step (2011) follows a woman who travels back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea whenever a total eclipse of the sun took place.

    Stars: Lee Joon-Gi, Ji-eon Lee, Kang Ha-Neal, Nam Joo-Hyuk

    1. Sangsogjadeul(2013)

    15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After a chance encounter in LA, two teens from different social backgrounds reunite at an exclusive high school attended by Korea’s Uber rich.

    Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Shin-Hye, Woo-bin Kim, Kim Ji-Won

    1. Kill Me, Heal Me(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Rate

    A love story between the son from a wealthy family who has 7 personalities Cha Do Hyun (Ji Sung) and Oh Ri Jin (Hwang Jung Elum) who becomes his secret psychiatrist.

    Stars: Seong Ji, Hwang Jeong-elm, Kim Hee-Jung, Shim Hye-jin

    1. Healer(2014–2015)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

    An old murder incident involving a group who ran an illegal broadcasting station brings together different people – a mysterious errand guy “Healer” who possesses disguise and fighting … See full summary »

    Stars: Ji Chang-Wook, Park Min-Young, Tae-Mi, Jeong Guy-Su

    Votes: 6,769

     

    1. My Love from Another Star(2013–2014)

    Not Rated | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    Do Min-Joon, an alien that came to our planet 400 years ago, will be able to return to his planet in 3 months, but when he meets famous actress Chun Song-Yi, all the centuries he spent distancing himself from humans come to an end.

    Stars: Jun Ji-Hyun, Kim Soo-Hyun, Park Hae-Jin, Yoo In-Na

    Votes: 10,186

     

    1. Oogonium (2013)

    Tae Gong Sil can see ghosts, but their constant demands of help make her life impossible until she meets Joo Jong Won, handsome CEO that measures everything with money since when she touches him, the ghosts disappear.

    Stars: Kong Hyo-Jin, So Ji-sob, Seo In-Guk, Yoo-Ri Kim

     

    1. Haereul poteen dal(2012)

    TV-Y | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

    The story of the secret love between Lee Hwan, a fictional king of Joseon, and Wool, a female shaman. Wool was born as Heo Yeon Woo, the daughter of a noble family who won the love of the … See full summary »

    Stars: Mi-seen Jeon, Mi-keying Yang, Eung-soo Kim, Eun-Byul

    Votes: 2,034

     

    1. Boys Over Flowers(2009)

    TV-14 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Poor girl attends the elite Shin Hwa High and is bullied by the leader of F4 (the four richest boys). He becomes attracted to her; however, she has a crush on his best friend. Whom will she choose?

    Stars: Ku Hye-Sun, Lee Min-Ho, Kim Hyun-Jong, Kim Bum

    1. Minami Shiny(2009)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

    Go Mi-Nya, a girl about to become a nun is asked to cover for her indisposed twin brother, Mi-Nam, who’s on the verge of becoming a k-idol. To do so, she disguises herself as a boy and joins Arnell, a really popular boy band.

    Stars: Park Shin-Hye, Yong-Hwa, Yong-Hwa Jung, Hong-ki Lee

    TV-Y | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    Love, tradition, and politics collide when a spirited young art student is betrothed to the crown prince of South Korea.

    Stars: Yun Geun-Hye, Ju Ji-Hoon, Song Ji-Hyo, Bool-am Choi

    1. Mischievous Kiss(2010)

    15 | 66 min | Comedy, Romance

    Fate brings polar opposite high school classmates (one obsessively attracted to the other, the other indifferent to all advances) to live under one roof. Is romance possible?

    Stars: Jung So-Min, Kim Hyun-Jong, Tae-Sung Lee, Hye-Young Jung

    1. Sungkyunkwan Scandal(2010)

    TV-Y | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, History

    In the Joseon era, Kim Yoon-hee masquerades as a boy to earn a living as a book transcriber. Her family’s dire circumstances and the encouragement of a noble’s son finally drive her to attend Shunyuan University, forbidden for females.

    Stars: Park Min-Young, Yoo-chum Park, Yoo Ah-in, Song Jong-ki

    1. Ok-tab-bang Wang-se-ja(2012)

    15 | 65 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

    Crown Prince Yi gak finds that he has been transported from Chosun Dynasty to modern-day Seoul. He meets Hong Se Na, who bears a striking resemblance to his dead wife, and is determined to … See full summary »

    Stars: Woo-Sik Choi, Seok-won Jeong, Yu-mi Jeong, Han Ji-min

    1. Mai gel(2005–2006)

    With a perpetually indebted father, Joo Yoo Rin learned to lie on the spot and get herself out of tricky situations, which gets Seal Gong Chan, a rich heir to a company, to hire her to impersonate his long lost cousin.

    Stars: Lee Da-have, Lee Dong-Wook, Lee Joon-Gi, Si-Yeon Park

    1. Shining Inheritance(2009)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After losing her father Go Eunson’s stepmother kicks her and her autistic brother out of the house. Shortly after her brother is kidnapped. Eon-sung now has to look for her brother while also trying to find a job to survive.

    Stars: Han Hyo-jook, Lee Seung-gi, Moon Chae-Won, Soo-bin Bae

    1. 마이 프린세스(2011)

    15 | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    Kim Tae-hee plays Lee Seal, an ordinary college student who finds out she’s a princess and the great-granddaughter of Korea’s last Emperor. But life can be complicated for a princess in this funny, quirky melodrama.

    Stars: Song Seung-Heon, Kim Tae-hee, Park Yeon, Soo-young Ryu

    1. Angkeumhan Dashingly(2014– )

    Na Ae-ra (Lee Min-Jung) and Cha Jung-woo (Joo Sang-wok) got married young. Ae-ra wanted to have steady life but Jung-woo business led them to lots of debt and hard work so she broke off … See full summary »

    Stars: Lee Min-Jung, Sang-UK Joo, Gyu-Ri, Seo Kang-Joon

    1. All About My Romance(2013– )

    A conservative government party member falls for the feisty young leader of an upstart liberal party in this Korean romantic comedy.

    Stars: Shin Ha-kin, Lee Min-Jung, Hee-soon Park, Chae-Ah Han

    1. Protect the Boss(2011)

    TV-Y | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    After a long stretch of unemployment, No Eon Seol lands a job as secretary to Cha Ji Heon the youngest son of a rich family. However, her secretary duties go beyond the ordinary, helping her boss cope and function in normal society.

    Stars: Gi-soo Byion, Hwa-Yeon Cha, Kang-hee Choi, Jeong Gyu-Su

    1. The King 2 Hearts(2012)

    15 | 65 min | Action, Drama, Romance

    The crown prince of South Korea is forced to work alongside a female North Korean military officer. Political and emotional complications lead to an uneasy marriage engagement.

    Stars: Lee Seung-gi, Ha Ji-Won, Jo Jung-Suk, Jason-Patrick Taylor

    1. Bool-up Eosin Jungyi(2013– )

    15 | Drama, History, Romance

    A Historical drama about Yoo Jung, also known as Jung Yi, the first female potter in the Joseon Dynasty and regarded as the dojo of Shin taro porcelain. ‘Yoo Jung’ is based on the real … See full summary »

    Stars: Moon Geun-young, Sang-Yoon Lee, Kim Bum, Keon-Hyeong Park

    1. Nae Yeojachinguneun Gumshoe(2010)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

    Chae Die Wong, an aspiring actor, unwillingly releases a Gumshoe, a legendary nine-tailed fox, from her centuries-old prison. He runs away terrified and ends up injuring himself badly, but she saves his life and asks him to stay by his side.

    Stars: Shin Min-a, Lee Seung-gi, Min-woo No, Park Soo-Jin

    Votes: 2,693

     

    1. Naege Geothermally Haebwa(2011)

    15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    A woman, jealous when her friend steals her first love and marries him, lies that she is married too. The lie ensnares a hotel president who goes along with the lie for his reasons. Will the lie become reality?

    Stars: Seung-us Ryu, Yun Geun-hye, Yun-hie Jo, Sung Jun

    Votes: 1,257

     

    1. Un-Myong-Cheol-eom neol sa-rang-hae(2014)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.9

     

    Rate

    A touching Korean drama filled with comedy about a girl who finds happiness, friendship, and love in the most unexpected way!

    Stars: Jang Hyuk, Jang Na-ra, Choi Jin-Hyuk, churl

    Votes: 2,036

     

    1. Shinai (2012)

    60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

    8

     

    Rate

    When the queen-to-be of medieval Korea is badly wounded, Captain Choi Young uses a wormhole to “heaven,” which is 21st-century South Korea, to bring back the spoiled Dr. Yoo Eon-Soo who becomes a pawn in a game of human chess.

    Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Yoon Kyun-Sang, Lee Min-Ho, Deok-Hwan Ryu

    Votes: 2,256

     

    1. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince(2007)

    15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    8.2

     

    Rate

    A tomboy, mistaken for a lad, maintains the deception for the sake of employment. The situation becomes complicated when her male boss begins to develop feelings for this “boy.”

    Stars: Gong Yoo, Yun Geun-Hye, Sun-Kyun Lee, Jeong-an Chae

    Votes: 4,627

     

    1. 동이(2010)

    TV-Y | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance

    8

     

    Rate

    Story a simple maid that rises high in the royal harem as a consort and, ultimately, mother of the Korean king.

    SARS: Han Hyo-Joo, Julia Lim, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Da-Min Han

    Votes: 1,349

     

    1. Love in the Moonlight(2016)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    The unlikely love story between a crown prince and his eunuch.

    Stars: Park Bo-Gum, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Chae Soo-bin, Kwak Dong-Yeon

    Votes: 2,344

     

    1. She Was Pretty(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.7

     

    Rate

    When Ji Sung-Joon was young, he was ugly. As he grew up, he began to have an attractive appearance. When Kim Hye-Jin was young, she was pretty. As she grew up, she became ugly. Ji Sung-Joon tries to find his first love.

    Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seo Jun Park, Jun-hee Ko, Si Won Choi

    Votes: 4,025

     

    1. Bimal (2013)

    15 | Drama, Romance

    8.1

     

    Rate

    A devoted woman makes the ultimate sacrifice for her boyfriend, only to learn that love doesn’t always conquer all. Yoo Jeong (Hwang Jeong Elum) is a sweet, upbeat person who has always … See full summary »

    Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seong Ji, Soo-bin Bae, Lee Da-hee

    Votes: 1,031

     

    1. Naemsaereul Boneen Sonyeo(2015)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    7.1

     

    Rate

    Detective Tae Ho lost his younger sister to a barcode-murder case and lost his ability to taste, smell, and feel pain. He then meets Oh Cho Rim, the only witness to the murder case who possesses a special sense: she can see smells.

    Stars: Yoo-chum Park, Shin Se-Kyung, Jin-Seo Yoon, Min Nakong

    Votes: 1,023

     

    1. Sesang Eddied Eobneun Chakhan Namja(2012)

    15 | 60 min | Drama

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Kang Ma-Ru is a promising medical student until he takes the blame for a crime he didn’t commit. When he finds an opportunity for revenge, he takes it, using Seo Eon-Gi. Ma-Ru soon … See full summary »

    Stars: Song Jong-ki, Moon Chae-Won, Si-Yeon Park, Kwang-Soo Lee

    Votes: 1,604

     

    1. Descendants of the Sun(2016)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Drama

    8.3

     

    Rate

    This drama tells of the love story that develops between a surgeon and a special forces officer.

    Stars: Song Jong-ki, Song Hye-Kyo, Jin Goo, Kim Ji-Won

    Votes: 11,373

     

    1. Haideu, Jail, Na(2015)

    15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7

     

    Rate

    Koo Seo-Jin (Hyun-Bin) has two different personalities. One of his personalities is cold like Hyde and the other is sweet like Jekyll.

    Stars: Hyun Bin, Han Ji-min, Hee-Sung Kwak, Hyerim

    Votes: 986

     

    1. O Ma-i Bi-neo-seu(2015–2016)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    A lawyer in her thirties coming out of a long relationship decides to regain her figure and health after meeting a renowned personal trainer who obsesses with leading a healthy lifestyle after suffering a serious injury in his childhood.

    Stars: So Ji-sob, Shin Min-a, Sung Hoon, Yoo In-young

    Votes: 3,817

     

    1. Secret Garden(2010–2011)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

    8.1

     

    Rate

    A rich young CEO falls for a poor stuntwoman despite class differences, cultural traditions, and the man’s firmly objecting mother.

    Stars: Ha Ji-Won, Hyun Bin, Yoon Sang-Hyun, Sa-rang Kim

    Votes: 5,961

     

    1. Gamy eon (2015)

    15 | Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Ji-sook facing a hard time because of her father’s debts and begin being chased by moneylenders. When a series of things happen Ji-sook has to live with Eon Ha’s identity (a Woman from an elite family) because she looks exactly like Eon Ha.

    Stars: Soo Ae, Ju Ji-Hoon, Jeong-Hun Yeon, Yoo In-young

    Votes: 344

     

    1. Hungrier (2013– )

    Not Rated | Drama, Romance

    6.9

     

    Rate

    At 42-years-old, Kwon Yolo (Lee Beom Soo) is South Korea’s youngest prime minister ever. On top of his reputation of being an honest man of the utmost integrity, he’s also a widower who … See full summary »

    Stars: Im Yoon-ah, us, Yoon Shi-Yoon, Jeong-an Chae

    Votes: 332

     

    1. Pool ha-woo-sue(2004)

    TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

    7.9

     

    Rate

    In a bid to reacquire her childhood home, a free-spirited woman agrees to a sham marriage with a selfish actor. Their daily lives are complicated by overlapping love triangles and comic misadventures.

    Stars: Song Hye-Kyo, Rain, Eun-Jeong, Seong-su Kim

    Votes: 3,112

     

    1. Kawagoe (2005– )

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Chun-Hyang is smart and sassy and becomes involved with good-looking Mongering. His first love Chae-rim enters the picture. An older man, Hak-do, pursues her. Will they find their way back to each other?

    Stars: Chae-young Han, Hee Jae, Tae-wooing Edom, Si-Eun Park

    Votes: 442

     

    1. Mary Stayed Out All Night(2010)

    65 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

    6.8

     

    Rate

    Wi Mae Ri is the cheerful, pragmatic daughter of a failed businessman who had grown used to being constantly on the move to escape from loan sharks. She becomes fast friends with the … See full summary »

    Stars: Moon Geun-young, Hyo-Jin, Kim Jae-Wook, Hyo-jin Kim

    Votes: 719

     

    1. City Hunter(2011)

    TV-Y | 60 min | Action, Romance, Thriller

    8.1

     

    Rate

    Lee Yun-song was trained by his father’s best friend to get revenge on the government for killing everyone in his father’s unit.

    Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Min-Young, Sang-Jung Kim, Ho-jin Chun

    Votes: 5,220

     

    1. Neon Neace Banhaesseo(2011)

    65 min | Drama, Music, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    A series of misunderstandings causes Lee Shin, the cocky leader of “The Stupid” and Lee Guy-won, a student majoring in Traditional Korean Music to start on the wrong foot. Until she sees him performing live, and is immediately captivated.

    Stars: Yong-hwa Jung, Park Shin-Hye, Chang-up Song, Yi-Hyeon So

    Votes: 1,645

     

    1. Anderman (2015)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama

    7.6

     

    Rate

    This drama is about Jo Gang-JA, a mother who was known as a tough girl in high school. Her daughter Ah-ran is bullied at school and when Gang-JA finds out, she makes it her responsibility … See full summary »

    Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Hyun-Woo Ji, Ji Soo

    Votes: 443

     

    1. Nae mi-eum-i deul-li-da(2011–)

    65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.8

     

    Rate

    Can You Hear My Heart features Hallyu stars Kim Jae Won, Hwang Jung Elum, and Nam Goong Min in this romantic drama that shows us love in defiance of physical limitations? Dong Joo (played by … See full summary »

    Stars: Jae-won Kim, Hwang Jeong-elm, Min Namkoong, Lee Hye-Yeong

    Votes: 169

     

    1. Jang Ok-Jung, Sarang-e Salda(2013)

    15 | Drama, History, Romance

    7.5

     

    Rate

    Life Of Jang Ok Jung, Later Known as Jang Hee Bin, was one of the most famous Concubines of The Joseon Dynasty who was known for her hunger for power.

    Stars: Kim Tae-hee, Yoo Ah-in, Geon-Ju Lee, Soo-Hyun Hong

    Votes: 212

     

    1. Marriage Contract(2016)

    15 | 75 min | Drama

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Ji-Hoon (Lee Seo-Jin) has a cynical personality due to his family background. Even though he comes from a rich family, his mother had an affair with a married man and they had Ji-Hoon. From… See full summary »

    Stars: Seo-jin Lee, Kim You-Jin, Yoo-Ri Kim, Kim Kwang-guy

    Votes: 557

     

    1. Won-deo-pool la-i-pea(2005– )

    Comedy, Romance

    7.2

     

    Rate

    The story of Xu Tian who suffers big blows both in his love and work life. When he decides to leave America, where he has been living for 10 years, and returns to his home country, luck is not on his side.

    Stars: Frank Powers, Jun-yong Choi, Eun-Jeong, Hyeon Ju

    Votes: 106

     

    1. Dream High(2011–2012)

    15 | 70 min | Comedy, Music, Romance

    7.6

     

    Rate

    Dream High tells the story of six students at Kirin Art High School who work to achieve their dreams of becoming music stars in the Korean music industry. Go Hye Mi is a student who sings … See full summary »

    Stars: J.Y. Park, Jin-won Jung, Ji-eon Lee, Kim Soo-Hyun

    Votes: 2,549

     

    1. Personal Taste(2010)

    15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

    7.4

     

    Rate

    The surprise hit of 2010, Personal Taste (aka Personal Preference) garnered high ratings and a huge fanbase in a comedy that proves true love is found in the most unlikely places. Quirky … See full summary »

    Stars: Son Ye-jin, Lee Min-Ho, Nam-Gil Kim, Ji-Seok Kim

    Votes: 3,713

     

    1. gnyeon-ui Sibu(2014)Over the last few years, I finally became a K Drama fan.  Part of the reason is that my Korean is now good enough to mostly follow the dialogue although I still need subtitles.  Second, because of COVID, we’ve been mostly at home in Korea, and third, I finally just got into K Drama.  I know a bit late, but what the heck.Here are some of my favorite K Dramas-  I provide a synopsis and my comment on each. 

      In general K Dramas come in two forms – movies and series. The series are reminiscent of Mexican telenovela – usually 16 episodes, occasionally 20, and occasionally fewer.  A few have two seasons.  Most run for about a month.  Almost all are available now on Netflix and Hulu with English sub-titles.   A few were quite controversial.

       

      Parasite of course won the 2020 Oscar.  And Minuri won best-supporting actress this year.

       

      My favorites  K Dramas so far include:

       

      Crash Landing on You

      Vincenzo,” “

      Mine”,

      “Move to Heaven”

      “Parasite”,

      ‘DP,”

      Camilla Blooming.”

      Itaewon Class

      Stranger

      Mr. Sunshine

      Last Man Standing

      Mad About You

       

       

      Others Worth Watching

       

      Memories of the Alhambra

      The Negotiation (film)

      Sisyphus: The Myth (2021)

      Space Sweepers K SF Drama

      The Last Man Standing K Drama

      Heist – not a K Drama, more of an S Drama but pretty good, but went on too long.  Should have ended with the first season.  There were lots of unanswered questions –

      Mr. Kim’s convenience

       

      Yet to Watch

       

      Minuri Movie

      Sky Castle

      Kingdom (South Korean TV series)

      Signal (South Korean TV series)

      My Mister

      Hospital Playlist

      Flower of Evil

       

      Synopsis and Comments  (from Wikpedia and other sources)

       

      Parasite  2020 Best Picture Oscar

       

      Parasite (Korean: 기생충; Hanja: 寄生蟲; RR: Guangcheng) is a 2019 South Korean black comedy thriller film directed by Bong Joon-ho, who co-wrote the screenplay with Han Jin-won. The film, starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-Kyun, Cho Yeo-Jeong, Choi Woo-Shak, Park So-dam, Jang Hye-jin, and Lee Jung-Eun, follows a poor family who schemes to become employed by a wealthy family and infiltrate their household by posing as unrelated, highly qualified individuals.

      Parasite premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival on 21 May 2019, where it became the first South Korean film to win the Palme d’Or. It was then released in South Korea by CJ Entertainment on 30 May 2019. The film was considered by many critics to be the best film of 2019. It grossed over $258 million worldwide on a production budget of about $15.5 million.

      Among its numerous accolades, Parasite won a leading four awards at the 92nd Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film, becoming the first non-English language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.[note 1]

      Parasite is the first South Korean film to receive Academy Award recognition and one of three films to win both the Palme d’Or and the Academy Award for Best Picture.[note 2] It won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language, and became the first non-English language film to win the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. At the 56th Grand Bell Awards and the 40th Blue Dragon Film Awards, Parasite had eleven nominations with five wins. At the 56th Buesking Arts Awards, it had twelve nominations with three wins. Joon-Ho has confirmed a TV series is in the works while two sequels are also planned.

       

      The Kim family—father Ki-take, mother Chung-sook, daughter Ki-Jung, and son Ki-woo—live in a small semi-basement apartment (banjara),[10] have low-paying temporary jobs as pizza box folders, and struggle to make ends meet.[11] University student Min-hyuk, a friend of Ki-woo’s, gives the family a scholar’s rock meant to promise wealth. Leaving to study abroad and knowing his friend needs the income, he suggests that Ki-woo poses as a university student to take over his job as an English tutor for the daughter of the wealthy park family, Da-Hye. Ki-woo, presenting himself as a Yonsei University student, is subsequently hired by the Parks.

      The Kim family schemes to get each member of the family a job by posing as unrelated and highly qualified workers to become servants of the Parks. Ki-Jung poses as “Jessica” and, using Ki-Woo as a reference, becomes an art therapist to the Parks’ young son, Da-song. Ki-Jung frames Yoon, Mr. Park’s chauffeur, for having sex in the car, then recommends Ki-take replace him. Finally, Chung-sook takes over as the Parks’ housekeeper after the Kim’s exploit the peach allergy of the long-time housekeeper, Moon-gang, to convince Mrs. Park that she has tuberculosis. Ki-woo begins a secret romantic relationship with Da-Hye.

      When the Parks leave on a camping trip, the Kim’s revel in the luxuries of their residence before Moon-gang abruptly appears at the door, telling Chung-sook she has left something in the basement. She enters a hidden entrance to an underground bunker created by the architect and previous homeowner, where Moon-Hwang’s husband, Geun-SAE, has been secretly living for over four years, hiding from loan sharks. Chung-sook refuses Moon-Hwang’s pleas to help Geun-SAE remain in the bunker, but the eavesdropping Kim’s accidentally reveal themselves. Moon-gang films them on her phone and threatens to expose their ruse to the Parks.

       

      A severe rainstorm brings the Parks home early, and the Kim’s scramble to clean up the home and subdue Moon-gang and Geun-SAE before they return. The Kim’s trap Geun-SAE and Moon-gang in the bunker. Mrs. Park reveals to Chung-sook that Da-song had a seizure-inducing traumatic experience on a previous birthday when he saw a “ghost” — actually Geun-SAE — emerging from the basement at night. Before the Kim’s manage to sneak out of the house, they hear Mr. Park’s off-handed comments about Ki-take’s smell. The Kim’s find their apartment flooded with sewer water and are forced to shelter in a gymnasium with other displaced people.

       

      The next day, Mrs. Park hosts a house party for Da-song’s birthday with the Kim family’s help. Ki-woo enters the bunker with the scholar’s rock to find Geun-SAE. Finding Moon-gang has died from a concussion she received during the earlier fight, he is attacked by Geun-SAE, who bludgeons his head with the rock and escapes, leaving Ki-woo lying in a pool of blood in the basement. Seeking to avenge Moon-gang, Geun-SAE stabs Ki-Jung with a kitchen knife in front of the horrified party guests. Da-song suffers another seizure upon seeing Geun-SAE, and a struggle breaks out until Chung-sook fatally impales Geun-SAE with a barbecue skewer. While Ki-take tends to a severely bleeding Ki-Jung, Mr. Park orders Ki-take to drive Da-song to the hospital. In the chaos, Ki-take, upon seeing Mr. Park’s disgusted reaction to Geun-SAE’s smell, angrily takes the knife and kills him. Ki-take then flees the scene, leaving behind the rest of the Kim family.

      Weeks later, Ki-woo is recovering from brain surgery. He and Chung-sook are convicted of fraud and put on probation. Ki-Jung has died and Ki-take, wanted by the police for Mr. Park’s murder, cannot be found. Geun-SAE has been assumed to be an insane homeless man, and neither his nor Ki-take’s motive for the stabbings is known. Ki-woo spies on the Parks’ home, now sold to a German family unaware of its history and sees a message in Morse code from a flickering light. Ki-take, who escaped into the bunker via the garage, has buried Moon-gang in the backyard and now raids the kitchen at night and flickers the light every day, hoping to Ki-woo will see it. Still living in their original basement apartment with his mother, Ki-woo writes a letter to Ki-take, vowing to earn enough money to one day purchase the house and reunite with his father.

      Cast[edit]

      Song Kang-ho as Kim Ki-take (Mr. Kim; 김기택; Gym Gitau), the father of the Kim family who is hired as Park Dong-ik’ s chauffeur.

      Choi Woo-Shak as Kim Ki-woo (Kevin; 김기우; Gym Gou), the son of the Kim family who is hired as Da-Hye’s English tutor. Choi Woo-Shak stated that the character is intelligent but does not have the vigor needed to succeed in examinations.[12]

      Lee Sun-kyun as Park Dong-ik (Nathan; 박동익; Bak Dongguk), the father of the Park family.

      Cho Yeo-Jeong as Choi Yeon-go (Madame; 최연교; Choe Yeong), the mother of the Park family.

      Park So-dam as Kim Ki-Jung (Jessica; 김기정; Gym Gijon), the daughter of the Kim family who is hired as Da-song’s art therapist.

      Lee Jung-Eun as Gook Moon-gang (국문광; Guk Mungkan), the housekeeper for the Park family, who also worked for the architect and previous owner of the house. Bong Joon-ho said her relationship with the architect and parts of her story “that happen in between the sequences in the film” will be explored in the spin-off television series.[13]

      Jang Hye-jin as Chung-sook (박충숙; Bak Chung Suk), the mother of the Kim family who is hired as the housekeeping for the Park family.

      Park Myung-hoon as Oh Geun-SAE (오근세; O Genes), Moon-Hwang’s husband.

      Jung Ji-so as Park Da-Hye (박다혜; Bak Daye), the daughter of the Park family.

      Jung Hyeon-Jun as Park Da-song (박다송; Bak Datong), the son of the Park family.

      Park Konerko as Yoon (윤; Yun), Park Dong-ik’ s chauffeur.

      Park Seo-Joon as Min-hyuk (민혁; Miyoko), Ki-woo’s friend.[14]

       

      Crashlanding on you

       

      program.tving.com/ton/cloy

      Crash Landing on You is a 2019–2020 South Korean television series written by Park Ji-Eun, directed by Lee Jeong-Hyo, and starring Hyun Bin, Son Ye-jin, Kim Jung-Hyun, and Seo Ji-Hye. It is about a South Korean chaebol heiress who, while paragliding in Seoul, South Korea, is swept up in a sudden storm, crash-lands in the North Korean portion of the DMZ, and meets a captain in the Korean People’s Army. Over time, they fall in love, despite the divide and dispute between their respective countries. Wikipedia

      Genre: Romantic Drama, Romantic comedy

      Created by: Studio Dragon

      Written by: Park Ji-Eun

       

      Comments:

       

      One of my favorites.  It is a classic rom-com opposite attract theme.   Almost a Romeo and Juliet star crossed lovers theme with the division of the Korean peninsula separating the lovers.   When Captain Ri meets Se-Yeong who literary crash lands on him after a freak paragliding accident took over the DMZ, has to decide to risk everything to save her life and return her to South Korea or turn her in as duty would dictate.  He chose to follow his heart and enlists the aid of his squad of soldiers who all fall in love with her as well. She also becomes friendly with the local woman in the village.

       

      When a notorious gangster follows her to Seoul to kill her to take revenge on Captain Ri, Captain Ri and his squad follow her to save her and bring down the gangsters.  I won’t say more than that.

       

      This series led the North Koreans to blow up the inter-Korean liaison office as they saw the movie as an insult to the North.  Some southern politicians denounced it as being too sympathetic to the North. It also of course featured rich people behaving badly in both the North and the South.  – Common theme in most K dramas these days.

       

      And a sub-romance between the captain’s soon-to-be-ex and Se-Young Ex who is End Comments con artist who is hiding out in the north after defrauding her father and brother.

       

      End Comment

       

       

      Vincenzo (2021)

       

      Comment:

       

      another one of my favorites.  A Korean child is adopted by an Italian family who has mob connections.  He graduates from Law School and becomes a lawyer to a Mafia family.  He hides millions of dollars in gold bullion in an office building in South Korea.  Hidden within the gold is a secret file on secrets of all the main corporations and political leaders in Korea known as the Guillotine file.  Vengeance goes to Korea to recover the money after the godfather dies.  The building tenants are being evicted by an evil corporation that wants to build their headquarters in their centrally located plaza.  The tenants are being led by a lawyer.  When he dies his daughter takes up the fight.  She enlists the aid of Vincenzo who teaches her how to do things the mafia way.  The usual rich family is behaving badly scenario, political corruption, etc.  And a slow-burning love affair.  The main villain is a real sociopath, which is also a common theme in Korean dramas nowadays.  There is also an implied LGBT theme – as Vengeance is a very attractive man and both men and women try to seduce him.  Another villain is a corrupt ex-prosecutor who goes to work for the evil Babel corporation and its sociopathic young secret chairman.  He had been exiled to Canada as a young man when he killed a number of his classmates after witnessing his father being left to die by his mother.  End comment

       

      At the age of eight, Park Joo Hyeong went to Italy after being adopted. Now an adult, he is known as Vincenzo Casino to the Mafia, who employ him as a consigliere. Because mafia factions are at war with each other, he flees to South Korea, where he gets involved with Lawyer Hong Cha Young. She is the type of attorney who will do anything to win a case. Now back at his motherland, he gives an unrivaled conglomerate a taste of its own medicine with a side of justice. (Source: Netflix, Asianizing) Edit Translation

      English

      Vincenzo: Special (Korean compilation)

       

      Native Title: 빈센조

      Also Known as Basenji

      Screenwriter: Park Jae Bum

      Director: Kim Hee Won

      Genres: Comedy, Law, Crime, Drama

      Tags: Lawyer, Revenge, Eccentric Female Lead, Mafia, Smart Male Lead, Injustice, Competent Protagonist, Father-Daughter Relationship, Charming Male Lead, Funny Female Lead (Vote or add tags)

      Where to Watch Vincenzo

      Netflix

      Subscription (sub)

      Cast & Credits

      Add Cast

      Song Jong Ki

      Vincenzo Casino / Park Joo Hyung

      Main Role

      Jeon Yeo Bin

      Hong Cha Young

      Main Role

      Ok Teac Yeon

      Jang Jun Woo

      Main Role

      Kim Yeo Jin

      Choi Myung Hee [Prosecutor]

      Support Role

      Jo Han Chula

      Han Seung Hyuk [CEO of Woosung Law firm]

      Support Role

      Kwak Dong Yeon

      Jang Han Seo [Head of Babel Group]

      Support Role

      View all (119)

      Photos

      View all (355)

       

      Sisyphus

       

       

      Mine”,

       

      Comment

       

      One of my recent favorites.  Almost a poster child for the rich family behaving badly theme. An interesting LBGT romance sub-theme as well. Another Romeo-Juliet Cinderella romance sub-plot as well.  The main protagonist is a real sociopath.  The story revolves around his murder and who wanted him dead the most. Well, everyone hated him, everyone wanted him dead.  The suspense was kept alive to the very end. The other theme is the two sisters-in-laws who battle the family and in the end, prevail against all the odds to come out on top and regain what they saw as “Mine” hence the title.  Very well done.

       

       

      Mine (TV series) – Wikipedia

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mine_(TV_series)

      Mine (Korean: 마인) is a 2021 South Korean television series directed by Lee Na-Jung and starring Lee Bo-young, Kim Seo-Hyung, Lee Hyun-Wook, and Ok Ja-Yeon. It revolves around strong women who free themselves from the prejudice of society and find their real ‘mine’. It also peeps into the mysterious lives of wealthy people. The series premiered ten on May 8, 2021, and aired every …

      Mine (Korean Drama) – AsianWiki

      https://asianwiki.com/Mine_(Korean_Drama)

      Profile. Drama: my Revised romanization: my Hangul: 마인 Director: Lee Na-Jeong Writer: Baek Mi-Kong Network: tvN Episodes: 16 Reléase Date: May 8 – June 27, 2021, Run time: Sat. & Sun. 21:00 Language: Korean Country: South Korea Plot Synopsis by Asianizing Staff ©

      Mine (2021) – Dramatist

      https://mydramalist.com/75937-blue-diamond

      Mine (2021) Mine. (2021) “Mine” is about strong and ambitious women who overcome the world’s prejudices to find their true selves. Seo Hee-Soo was a former top actress, but she gave up her career to marry the second son of Hyo Won Group. She does her best to fit in as a daughter-in-law of that family.

      Mine | Netflix Official Site

      https://www.netflix.com/title/81403973

      Mine. 2021 | TV-14 | 1 Season | TV Dramas. Encaged in a gold-clad life of secrets and lies, two women in a conglomerate family seek to topple all that stands in their way of finding true joy. Starring: Lee Bo-young, Kim Seo-Hyung, Lee Hyun-Wook.

      Mine (2021) – Full Cast & Crew – Dramatist

      https://mydramalist.com/75937-blue-diamond/cast

      Today, we present some unexpected cameo appearances in K-Dramas by popular actors and actresses. Get Ready to Be Enrolled in the “Police University” of 2021 News – Aug 1, 2021

      Images for mine k drama

      More Images for my k drama

      Stream It or Skip It: ‘Mine’ On Netflix, A Soapy K-Drama …

      https://decider.com/2021/05/10/mine-netflix-review/

      It’s harder to compare Mine to a current K-drama, but it sure does have the feel of a good old-fashioned American primetime soap like Dallas or Dynasty, with some hints of Succession mixed in.

      “Mine” (2021 Drama): Cast & Summary | Koopman

      https://www.kpopmap.com/mine-2021-drama-cast-summary/

      Information. Title: Mine / 마인 Director: Lee Nanjing Writer: Baek MiKyung. Network: ten x Netflix. Runtime: From May 8 # of Episodes: 16. Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Human Language: Korean. Summary. Encaged in a gold-clad life of secrets and lies, two women in a conglomerate family seek to topple all that stands in their way of finding true joy.

      Korean Drama “Mine” (Synopsis + Cast + Preview) – Korean …

      https://koreanallday.com/2021/05/09/korean-drama-mine-synopsis-cast-preview/

      Korean Drama “Mine” (Synopsis + Cast + Preview) May 9, 2021. admin “Mine” (or “Blue Diamond”) is a ten original drama series that was released on 8 May 2021 and is available to watch online on Netflix*. SYNOPSIS “Mine” drama story will center around two strong and married women Seo Hee-Soo and Jung Seo Hyun. They both are married …

      Mine episode 16 recap – the finale/ending explained – Ji …

      https://readysteadycut.com/2021/06/27/recap-mine-season-1-episode-16-finale-ending-netflix-k-drama-series/

      3.5. Summary. The finale of Mine wraps up the story nicely — episode 16 reveals the killer and gives the audience a taste of life after Ji-yong. There are strong themes of female empowerment in the finale that works well, in the story’s conclusion. This recap of the Netflix k-drama series Mine season 1, episode 16 — the finale/ending …

      K-Dramas | Netflix Official Site

      https://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/2638104

      K-Dramas. Laugh, cry, sigh, scream, shout, or whatever you feel like with these funny, intense, romantic, and suspenseful Korean dramas.

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      Profile

      Drama: Mine

      Revised romanization: Mine

      Hangul: 마인

      Director: Lee Na-Jeong

      Writer: Baek Mi-Kyong

      Network: tyvm

      Episodes: 16

      Release Date: May 8 – June 27, 2021

      Runtime: Sat. & Sun. 21:00

      Language: Korean

      Country: South Korea

      Plot Synopsis by Asianizing Staff ©

      A story of women who try to find their true selves, freeing themselves from prejudices in the world.

      Seo Hi-Soo (Lee Bo-Young) was a star actress, but she gave up her career to marry the second son of a chaebol family. The chaebol family runs the Hyowon Group. She does her best to fit in as a daughter-in-law of that family. She acts confidently all the time to not lose her true self.

      Jung Seo-Hyun (Kim Seo-Hyung) is married to the first son of the same chaebol family. She is also the daughter of a chaebol family. She is elegant and intelligent. She is also very rational.

      Notes

      “Mine” takes over TV N’s Sat. & Sun. 21:00 time slot previously occupied by “Vincenzo” and followed by “The Devil Judge” on July 3, 2021.

      Cast

      Hyowon Group’s Family

      Lee Bo-Young Kim Seo-Hyung
      Seo Hi-Soo Jung Seo-Hyun

       

      Lee Hyun-Wook Jeong Hyun-Jun Park Hyuk-Kwon Cha Hak-Yeon
      Han Ji-Yong Han Ha-Joon Han Jin-Ho Han Soo-Hyuk

       

      Park Won-Suk Jeong Dong-Hwan Kim Hye-Hwa Jo Eon-Sol
      Yang Soon-Hye Chairman Han Suk-Chula Han Jin-Hee Park Jung-Do

      Hyowon Mansion’s Staff

      Ok Ja-Yeon Jung Yi-Seo
      Kang Ja-Kyong / Lee Hye-Jin Kim Yu-Yeon

       

      Park Sung-Yeon Lee Jong-Ok Jo Yun-Seo Kim Nam-Jin Yoon Gemstone
      Joo Min-Su Kim Seung-Tae Secretary Oh Soo-Young Ko Mi-Jin Hwang Kyung-Hye

       

      Son Hyun-Ji Yeon Bo-Ra Song Young-A Kim Sang-Hoon Lee Eon-Kang
      Lee Ju-Hee Woo Ju-Yeon Min Sang-A vocal coach Chef Jung

       

      Kim Die-Woo Choi Jung-Hwa
      security staff Caregiver Ko Bo-Hui (ep.13)

      Hyowon Group

      Lee Yoon-Jae Kim Woo-Dam Ma Jung-Pill Lee Ho-Suk Kim Jung-Suk
      Attorney Choi Jin-Yeong Secretary Seo Secretary Cha Secretary Cho Chauffeur Kim

       

      Kim Jin-Tae Song Kyung-Etui Kim Soo-Hyun Park Sang-Yong Lee Suk-Goo
      Han Ji-Yong’s chauffeur Dr. Kim pr team employee (ep.6) attorney (ep.6) board of director (ep.8,11)

       

      Sung Chan-Ho
      board of director (ep.12-13)

      Hagwon Gallery

      Song Seon-mi
      Gallery Director Seo Jin-Kyung

      Soo-Hyun Gallery

      Ahn Ji-Hye Kim Sun-Kyung Jo Su-Bin Song Seung-Hwan
      deputy director mother at Seo-Hyun Gallery (ep.3) daughter at Seo-Hyun Gallery (ep.3) autistic teen artist (ep.8)

      IL sin

      Ye Soo-Jung Kim Yoon-Ji Oh Jung-Yeon Kim Ki-Bum
      Mother Emma Jasmin Mi-Joo Father Paul (ep.16)

      Jung Seo-Hyun’s Group

      Kim Jung-Hwa Jo Hye-Won Kim Yi-Seo
      Suzy Choi Jung Seo-Hyun (young) (ep.2) Suzy Choi (young) (ep.2)

      Chairman Han Suk-Chol’s Past

       

      Yoon Dong-Joo Choi Soo-Im
      Han Suk-Chula (young) Kim Mi-Ja

      Fight Club Group

      Jang Depok-Ju Gil Gem-Sung Kim Die-Han
      Cho Gyeonggi-Cheol Kwak Su-Chang Cho Beam-Gu

      Police

      Seo Sung-Jong Choi Young-Joon
      Detective Hwang Hyeong-Su Baek Dong-Hun

      Reporters

      Lee Chula Park Na-Jin Seo Sang-Won Ki Hwan
      Reporter Yoon Suk-Ho reporter (ep.3) reporter (ep.3) Reporter, I’m Seung-Su (ep.5)

      Han Jin-Ho’s Mistresses

      Jung Yun-Ha Oh A-Lin
      Chae-Young Hui-Bin (ep.6,15)

      Kim Yu-Yeon’s Family

      Choi Hyun-Jin
      Kim Yu-Yeon’s brother (ep.4,16)

      Jung Seo-Hyun’s Parenting Group

      Kwon So-Hyun Kim Ji-Woo Kwak Na-Yeon Jin Yu-Chan Yoo Ah-Rheum
      Ji-Won’s mother (ep.3-4) Ji-Won (ep.3-4) maid for Ji Won’s family (ep.3-4) Ji-Won’s friend (ep.3) student’s mother (ep.3)

       

      Lim Hyang-Ju
      student’s mother (ep.3)

      Others

      Jang Ha-Eon Lee Dong-Kyu Park Soo-Jin Lee Ji-Hyun Kim Yolo-Ho
      Rho A-Rim JSH news announcer (ep.3) doctor (ep.4,6) Maid Jang Hye-Yeong (ep.5,7) horse riding coach (ep.5)

       

      Lee Jae-Woo Lee Ga-Kyung Kim Hyo-Jin Kim Hee-Chang Seal Yoon-Hee
      jeweler (ep.6) Kang Ja-Kyung (ep.7) Chairman Yang Chi-Gon’s wife (ep.9) Attorney Kim Nam-Tae (ep.9) Jung Seo-Hyun’s acquaintance (ep.9)

       

      Yun Ki-Chang Kim Yong-Jin Jung Soo-Han Lim Jae-Myung Jung Young-Do
      Attorney Hwang Bo-In (ep.10-11) AA counselor (ep.10-11) AA member (ep.10-11) AA member (ep.10-11) veterinarian (ep.10)

       

      Lee Woo-Shin Oh Kyu-Taek Ri Min Jung Tae-In Han Yeo-Wool
      judge (ep.10-11) drama series staff (ep.12) Mr. Ha (ep.14) Seo Hi-Soo’s friend (ep.14) Seo Hi-Soo’s friend (ep.14)

       

      Choi Young-Min Kim Joo-A
      video forensics (ep.14) psychiatrist (ep.15)

      Additional Cast Members:

      Lee Yoon-Min – Chauffeur Park

      Kim Ha-Rin – designer (ep.1,8)

      Ko Kyung-Man – priest (ep.1)

      Park Hee-Yeon – (ep.3)

      Jo Soo-Yeon – cinema employee (ep.4)

      Kim Jung-Hwan – funeral priest (ep.13)

       

      Stranger (TV series)

       

      Stranger
      Comment:

      Well, done police drama.  The usual rich people behaving badly, political corruption, honest police officers trying to solve crime being thwarted by corrupt senior-level figures.  The romance theme was hinted at but never really developed.  There was also a nice sub-theme of a serial killer whose crimes were covered up by his father who was a prosecutor.  The series takes place amid the South Korean government’s attempt to reform the prosecutor’s office transferring much of their power to the police.  The movie is perhaps a bit too pro-government reform in that regard.  I would have liked to have seen a stronger romance and would have liked to have seen the political corporation corruption case spelled out a lot more. The plot was a bit confusing but the acting was first-rate.   I would have to give it a B.  End comment

       

       

      Promotional poster for the first season
      Also known as Secret Forest

      Forest of Secrets
      Hangul 비밀의 숲
      Hanja 祕密의 숲
      Genre Crime

      Drama

      Thriller
      Created by Studio Dragon
      Written by Lee Soo-Yeon
      Directed by Ahn Gil-ho (Season 1)

      Yoo Je-won (Season 1)

      Park Hyun-Suk (Season 2)
      Creative directors Kim Suk-won

      Kim Sung-kytoon
      Starring Cho Seung-woo

      Bae Dona

      Lee Joon-hyuk

      Yoo Jae-Myung

      Shin Hye-sun

      Jeon Hye-jin

      Choi Moo-sung

      Yoon Se-ah
      Theme music composer Kim Jun-Seok
      Opening theme Stranger
      Composers Kim Jun-Seok

      Jung Sae-rim
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 2
      No. of episodes 32 (list of episodes)
      Production
      Executive producers Lee Chan-ho

      Min Hyun-il

      Go Byung-churl

      Lee Sung-jin
      Producers Park Unyoung

      Seo Jae-Hyun
      Cinematography Jang Jong-Kyung
      Editor Kim Na-young
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 63-86 minutes
      Production companies Signal Entertainment Group

      IOK Media

      Ace Factory (Season 2)
      Distributor tyvm (Asia)

      Netflix (Worldwide)
      Release
      Original network tyvm
      Picture format HDTV 1080i
      Audio format Dolby Digital 5.1
      Original release June 10, 2017 –
      present
      External links
      Website

      Stranger (Korean: 비밀의 숲; RR: Baillieu Sup; lit. Secret Forest) is a South Korean crime thriller drama television series. Produced by Signal Entertainment and IOK Media, it was created by Studio Dragon writer Lee Soo-Yeon and broadcast on tvN from June 10, 2017. The series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on August 15, 2020.

      The series was a hit with both domestic and international viewers,[1] and received favorable reviews for its tight plot, gripping sequences, and strong performances.[2][3] It was featured on the New York Times list of Best TV Shows of 2017,[4] and won several awards including the Grand Prize for television at the Baek sang.[5]

      Synopsis[edit]

      In the first season, Hwang Si-Mok (Cho Seung-woo) is an exemplary prosecutor who suffers from hypersensitivity to certain sound frequencies. After undergoing corrective surgery, he lost his sense of empathy and lacks social skills. While investigating a murder, he meets Police Lieutenant Han Yeo-jin (Bae Dona), who assists his efforts to solve the case. As they begin to unravel the mystery behind the murder, they find that their efforts are continually being obstructed by participants in a major corruption conspiracy between the Prosecutors’ Office and a private chaebol (conglomerate).

      In the second season, set two years later, a dispute arises between the Prosecutors’ Office and the National Police Agency, with the former wanting control over all investigative proceedings while the latter seeks autonomous authority to conduct investigations. Amid their respective agencies’ conflict, Hwang Si-Mok, and Han Yeo-jin team up to conduct their independent investigation of a concealed case.[6]

      Cast and characters[edit]

      Main article: List of Stranger characters

      Cho Seung-woo as Hwang Si-Mok

      Bae Dona as Han Yeo-jin

      Lee Joon-hyuk as Seo Dong-Jae

      Yoo Jae-Myung as Lee Chang-Joon (season 1; guest season 2)

      Shin Hye-sun as Young Eon-soo (season 1; guest season 2)

      Yoon Se-ah as Lee Yeon-Jae (season 2; recurring season 1)

      Jeon Hye-jin as Choi Bit (season 2)

      Choi Moo-sung as Woo Tae-ha (season 2)

      Episodes[edit]

      Main article: List of Stranger episodes

      Season Episodes Originally aired Ave. South Korea
      viewers (millions)
      First aired Last aired
      1 16 June 10, 2017 July 30, 2017 N/A[a]
      2 16 August 15, 2020 October 4, 2020 1.774

      Production[edit]

      Development[edit]

      The entire series was written by Lee Soo-Yeon who was inspired by the Korean adage “We cannot rule those who want nothing” to create the character of Si-Mok.[7] Ahn Gil-ho directed the majority of the first season with the assistance of Yoo Je-won, while Park Hyun-Seok took over the filming duties for the second season.[8] Unlike usual South Korean dramas, the series was developed as a potential multi-seasonal program, with most of the filming have already been pre-produced before its broadcast.[9][10]

      Casting[edit]

      In January 2017, Cho Seung-woo and Bae Dona were offered the lead roles. The same month Shin Hye-sun was added to the cast.[11] It was the first television drama Cho Seung-woo had accepted since God’s Gift – 14 Days in 2014, after venturing into musical theatre for seven years.[12] For the second season, cast members Cho Seung-woo, Bae Dona, Lee Joon-hyuk, and Yoon Se-ah, were all confirmed to reprise their roles. Jeon Hye-jin and Choi Moo-sung were also confirmed to join the lead cast in January 2020.[6]

      Filming[edit]

      Filming of the first season began in April 2017, preceded by the first script reading with the cast at the CJ E&M Center in Seoul.[12] Script reading for the second season took place in January 2020.[6]

      Music[edit]

      Stranger (Original Television Soundtrack)
      Soundtrack album by

      Various artists
      Released September 13, 2017
      Genre Soundtrack
      Length 157 minutes
      Language Korean

      English
      Label Mog

      Kakao M

      Universal Music Korea

      An accompanying soundtrack compilation to Stranger was released by Mog Communications and Kakao M on September 13, 2017, in South Korea.[13] It was later reissued by Universal Music Group in overseas markets on May 11, 2018.[14] A three-disc album, the latter two discs features music composed by Kim Jun-Seok and Jung Sae-rin for the program.[15][16] Ten songs were released from the soundtrack as singles in numbered parts from June to July 2017: “끝도없이 (Ad Infinitum)” by Richard Parkers, “먼지 (Dust)” Evelia, “소나기 (Downpour)” by Ohio, “괴물처럼 (Monster Like)” by Tie, “웃어요 (Smile)” by Han Hee Jung & Sorae, the titular track “비밀의 숲 (Stranger)” by Yoon Do-Hyun, “사랑할 것 처럼 (As if to Love)” by Kim Kohen of My teen, “물결 (A Billow)” by Yean of Lovely, “굿바이 잘가요 (Goodbye)”/”Back in Time” by Peter Han, and “묻는다 (Ask)” by Jung Won-boo of NeighBro & Jun Sang-gun.[17] Of these, the songs “소나기 (Downpour)” and “사랑할 것 처럼 (As if to Love)” have managed to enter the South Korean Gaon BGM Music Chart at numbers 80 and 79, respectively.[18][19]

      Stranger OST Track listing[15][16]

      show

      Season 1 soundtrack

      show

      Season 2 soundtrack

      Release[edit]

      The pilot episode of Stranger aired on June 10, 2017, on tyvm, replacing Chicago Typewriter. Netflix secured the worldwide streaming rights for the series for US$200,000 per episode, except in Korea and China, and released them in simultaneous broadcast with TV as a Netflix original program. The Korea Times reported that Bae Dona, who had previously appeared in the Netflix original series Sense8, proved to be crucial in the purchase of the drama.[20] TV affiliate tvN Asia also aired the program in selected Asian markets beginning on June 16, 2018.[21] A second season was commissioned by TV, set to be released with Netflix on the same day.[22] It premiered on August 15, 2020, replacing It’s Okay to Not Be Okay.[10][23]

      Reception[edit]

      Critical response[edit]

      In an article by columnist Dena Dew for Screen Rant, Stranger was described as a “domestic and international success”.[24] Though ratings-wise, the program was not a “smash hit”, pundits and audiences praised it as a “league of its own”.[7] Korean culture critic Ha Jae-gun described the character as a “fantasy that was borne out of a time of distrust”.[7] In her review for The Korea Times, columnist Park Jin-hai commended the writing as “finely intertwined”, and wrote that audiences gave a strong response to this “drama for thinking people”.[7] The New York Times listed the series in tenth place as they’re The Best TV Shows of 2017.[25]

      At the 54th Buesking Arts Awards, the series received eight nominations, including two considerations for Grand Prize for Television, winning one for the whole series.[26] Cho Seung-woo and Lee Soo-Yeon also won Best Television Actor and Best Television Screenplay, respectively.[26] In a Gallup Korea poll, audiences aged 19 and above selected Stranger as their 12th favorite show in July 2017.[27] While Google Korea listed the series as the ninth most-searched television program of 2017.[28]

      Viewership[edit]

      According to data published by Nielsen Korea, the pilot episode of the series was seen by 3.041percent of total nationwide viewers, in metropolitan Seoul, it earned a 3.2percent rating, which made it the highest-rated program of the day among non-terrestrial channel programs.[29] The program achieved its highest rating on the first-season finale, earning a 6.568percent nationwide rating and a 7.622percent rating within Seoul-based viewers.[30] On average, it was seen by 4.562percent of total viewership.[31] On the Times rating system, the series premiered with a 3.2percent rating and ended its first season with a 7.1percent rating.[32] The last episode recorded noticeably strong rating performances as it took the lead rating for the first time against hit variety show Hori’s that aired in the same time slot and became the highest-rated program of the day among non-terrestrial channels programs.[33][34]

       

       

      Mr. Sunshine
      Comment one of the top K dramas in the last few years. It is set in the late 19th century. The end of the Korean Chosen dynasty was a period that led directly to modern Korea.  Many of the things that make modern Korea have to do with how the last dynasty ended with the Japanese colonization, and the ending of the Japanese era.

       

      In many ways, the last dynasty was doomed from the onset.  The leaders were corrupt, self-interested, and reactionary. They were unable to adapt to changing circumstances and Japan was on the ascendant as the new power in east Asia.

       

      Perhaps under different leadership. Korea might have retained its independence as Thailand did during that period. But unfortunately, Korea had inept leaders as well as chronic political corruption which the nefarious Japanese utilized aided by pro-Japanese Koreans who saw Japan as the future and sold out their country.

       

      That dynamic plays out through the drama. The story is an unlikely love story between a young Korean orphan who is sent to the US by a missionary and eventually joins the US Marines as an officer and is sent to Korea to work in the legation there and serves in Korea until the Japanese annexation, and a young Korean noblewoman who joins the “righteous army” of guerilla fighters who are fighting the Japanese takeover and of course lose the battle after the Japanese-Russian war of 1905.

       

      There are many historical allusions throughout the series.  Some of it is accurate, some are overblown and some well are just wrong.

       

      As far as I know, there were no Korean American troops in Korea during this period. Also, it is highly unlikely that a noblewoman would have been involved with the Righteous army.

       

      There is also an implied theme throughout that the US sold Korean out to the evil Japanese.  The reality is more than the U.S.  looked the other way, not wanting to lose the Philippines.   Korea was just not that important to the U.S.  So, in that sense perhaps one could say that the U.S sold out Korea but then again it is hard to imagine that the U.S. would have done anything else given how marginal Korea was to U.S. strategic interests back then.

       

      The writing was first-rate, the dialogue sizzling.  The sub-themes are well done.  Overall, I would give it a B+.

       

       

       
      Promotional poster
      Hangul 미스터 션샤인
      Genre Historical

      Romance

      Melodrama
      Created by Jennie Choi
      Written by Kim Eon-sook
      Directed by Lee Aung-bok [ko]
      Starring Lee Byung-Hun

      Kim Tae-Ri

      Yoo Yeon-Seok

      Kim Min-Jung

      Byun Yo-hand
      Composer Nam Hye-Seung
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original languages Korean, Japanese, English
      No. of seasons 1
      No. of episodes 24[1] (list of episodes)
      Production
      Executive producers Kim Young-kyu
      Yoon Ha-rim
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Production companies Studio Dragon

      Haddam Pictures
      Distributor CJ E&M

      Netflix
      Budget ₩40 billion[2]
      Release
      Original network TV
      Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release July 7 –
      September 30, 2018[3]
      External links
      Website
      Production website

      Mr. Sunshine (Korean: 미스터 션샤인; RR: Misquote Syeonsyain) is a 2018 South Korean television series written by Kim Eon-sook and directed by Lee Eung-bok [ko], starring Lee Byung-Hun, Kim Tae-Ri, Yoo Yeon-Seok, Kim Min-jung, and Byun Yo-hand.[4][5] The series is set in Hansen (present-day Seoul) in the early 1900s and focuses on activists fighting for Korea’s independence.[6][7] The series aired every Saturday and Sunday on tyvm starting from July 7, 2018, and ended on September 30, 2018. It premiered internationally on Netflix.[8]

      The series recorded the 6th highest ratings for cable television with its final episode reaching 18.129percent and netting an average rating of 12.955percent, which is the second-highest average rating ever recorded for cable television.[9] It received critical acclaim for its cinematography and storytelling but was also criticized for its inaccurate portrayal of historical facts, with some even accusing it of being “pro-Japanese“.[10]

      Synopsis[edit]

      Mr. Sunshine centers around Eugene Choi (Lee Byung-Hun), who was born into slavery in Joseon. After escaping to the United States after the 1871 Shimmying, he becomes a Marine Corps officer.

      When he returns to Joseon for a mission, Eugene meets and falls in love with an aristocrat’s granddaughter, Go Ae-shin (Kim Tae-ri), who is part of the Righteous Army. However, their love is challenged by their different classes and the presence of Kim Hui-song (Byun Yo-han), a nobleman who has been Ae-shin’s betrothed since childhood. Eugene also encounters Goo Dong-Mae (Yoo Yeon-Seok), a ruthless samurai, and Kudo Hana (Kim Min-jung), owner of the popular “Glory Hotel” where Eugene stays. At the same time, he discovers a plot by the Empire of Japan to colonize Korea and soon becomes embroiled in the fight for Joseon’s sovereignty.

      Historical background[edit]

      Unlike most Suns dramas dealing with the Japanese occupation of Korea, Mr. Sunshine takes place before the Japanese annexation, in the late 1800s to early 1900s. It has a heavy focus on the Righteous Army and depicts the lives of people who fought for Joseon’s freedom. Real-life historical events such as Shimmying, the Spanish-American War,[11] the assassination of Empress Kyongsang, the Russo-Japanese War,[12] Goon’s forced abdication, and the Battle of Mandamus are portrayed or mentioned.[13]

      Historical figures such as Emperor Gojong, Ito Hiromi, Hayashi Gonsuke, Yoshimichi Hasegawa, Horace Newton Allen, and the Five Elsa Traitors[12] appear as recurring characters, with others, such as Theodore Roosevelt,[14] Ahn Chang-ho,[15] Eum Sun-heon [ko],[16] Park Seung-hwan [ko],[13] and Frederick Arthur Mackenzie, also making cameo appearances.

      Main Historical Events Described in Mr. Sunshine[edit]

      The Battle of Ganghwa (1871): It was a major battle that occurred on June 10, 1871, between the United States and the Joseon Dynasty. On June 1, the American ships entered the Ganghwa Straits to establish trade and ensure the safety of the shipwrecked sailors of the SS Sherman, which was destroyed by the army of Joseon. However, they came under fire. The United States gave Joseon ten days to apologize, but they refused. As a result, on June 10, the U.S ships USS Palos and USS Monocacy fired their weapons against the Choi Garrison on Ganghwa Island and wiped out the Joseon army.[17] In Mr. Sunshine, the battle scenes are thoroughly described as its character Jang Seung-goo fought in this battle as a teen and lost his father. This battle was a pivotal moment for Seung-goo as it caused him to believe that King Gojong abandoned his people and let them die.

      The Japan-Korean Treaty of 1905: This treaty was made between the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on November 17, 1905. Through it, Japan effectively overtook the diplomatic control of Korea.[18] While Mr. Sunshine does not demonstrate this treaty and its effects in detail, it contains a scene in which Kim Hui-song takes pictures of the pro-Japanese Korean officials. Through these pictures, Hui-song intends to let his descendants know the misconduct of the corrupted government officials.

      The Battle of Mandamus: This battle was fought between the Korean and Japanese armies on August 1, 1907. It took place at the Namdaemun Gate, in Hansen and was a revolt of the Korean army against the order of disbandment that was issued through the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1907.[19] In Mr. Sunshine, the battle scenes are depicted in detail. The character Jang Seung-goo sacrifices himself to protect his soldiers. This battle is a turning point for Seung-goo as he sacrifices himself for a country and an emperor he dislikes.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Lee Byung-Hun as Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[20][21]

      Kim Kang-hoon as child Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[22]

      Jeon Jin-hee [ko] as young Eugene Choi / Choi Yoo-jin[23]

      Eugene Choi was born as a slave of Kim Pan-see, the paternal grandfather of Kim Hui-song. After witnessing his parents’ murder at the hands of their landlord, Eugene managed to escape to the United States and overcome the racial discrimination and become an American, he joins the Marine Corps and fights in the Spanish-American War. Later, Eugene returns to Joseon to carry a mission and falls in love with Go Ae-shin, a noblewoman who is secretly part of the Righteous army. Eugene has to choose between helping Ae-shin in her fight and maintaining his neutral position as a Captain in the United States Marine Corps.

      Kim Tae-ri as Go Ae-shin[24]

      Heo Jung-eon as child Go Ae-shin[25]

      A Joseon noblewoman who lost her parents as an infant. Ae-shin’s mother and father were independence fighters and were both killed in Japan due to their colleague’s betrayal. She is raised by her paternal grandfather, Go Sa-Hong, who helps Ae-shin train as a sniper under Jang Seung-goo and becomes part of the Righteous army. She meets Eugene Choi, who looks like people from Joseon yet claims to be an American, and falls in love with him.

      Yoo Yeon-Seok as Goo Dong-mae / Ishida Shoo[26]

      Choi Min-young [ko] as young Goo Dong-Mae

      The son of a butcher flees to Japan upon his parents’ death and becomes a samurai and member of the Music Society, which is part of a Yakuza group. Dong-Mae returns to Joseon with a mission of tormenting the people and helping the Japanese army overtake the country. He believes that it is Joseon’s unjust social hierarchical system that killed his parents. As a teen, Dong-Mae met Go Ae-shin, who saved his life, by purposely hiding him in her palanquin.

      Kim Min-Jung as Lee Yang-hwa / Kudo Hana[27]

      An influential widow who runs a hotel in Joseon. She was married off to an old, rich Japanese man by her father, Lee Wan-ink. Upon her husband’s mysterious death, she inherited the “Glory Hotel” and successfully operates it on her own. China is deeply ashamed of her father’s misdeeds and reputation and to find her mother, she helps Lee Jung-moon in fighting against the Japanese government and the pro-Japanese officials.

      Bien Yo-han as Kim Hui-seong[28]

      A Joseon nobleman is considered to be the richest after the emperor in terms of land ownership. Hui-song is emotionally tormented by his grandfather’s past and lives for over a decade in Japan to avoid marrying the woman his grandfather chose for him. However, once he returns to Joseon, he discovers that his fiancé is Go Ae-shin and falls in love with her, only to realize that there is no place left for him in her heart. Unlike his father and grandfather, Hui-song helps the Righteous army in many ways as he desperately desires to free himself from the sense of guiltiness.

       

      Recurring

       

      Joseon Government/

       

      as Emperor Gojong[29]

       

      Kang Yi-Seok as young Emperor Gojong

      The ruler of Joseon, who desperately fights for the country’s sovereignty.

       

      Kang Shin-il as Lee Jung-moon

      An anti-Japanese Minister who is loyal to the emperor. He secretly commands the Righteous Army.

       

      Kim Etui-sung as Lee Wan-ik[30]

      A selfish and cruel pro-Japanese official who killed Go Ae-shin’s parents. The father of Kudo China, he soon becomes Joseon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. He walks with a limp after a young Jang Seung-goo shot his leg during the Shimmying.  Kim Jong-hee [ko] as Lee Deok-moon

      A pro-Japanese nobleman who works as an assistant for Lee Wan-ink. He is Go Ae-son’s abusive husband.

       

      Choi Jin-ho as Lee Se-hoon[31]

      The arrogant and corrupt Minister of Foreign Affairs whose actions indirectly led to the deaths of Eugene Choi’s family.

       

      Jung Hee-tea [ko] as Police Commissioner Jung Shin Mun-sung as Postmaster Yoon

      Kim Kang-il [ko] as Dr. Matsuyama

      A Japanese doctor secretly working for Lee Wan-ink.

       

      Jung Seung-Gil [ko] as Ye Wan-yong

      An infamous pro-Japanese Minister and part of the Five Elsa Traitors.

       

      Righteous Army[Kim Kapp-soo as Hwang Eun-san[32]

       

      A skilled potter who helped a young Choi Yoo-jin flee to the United States. He is now the leader of the Righteous army.  Lee Si-hoon as Ko Yoshino[33]

      A Japanese man works as an assistant for Hwang Eon-san.

       

      Itaewon Class

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      Itaewon Class jump
      Promotional poster
      Hangul 이태원 클라쓰
      Hanja 梨泰院 클라쓰
      Genre Drama
      Based on Itaewon Class
      by Gang Jin
      Developed by Kim Do-soo for Showbox
      Written by Gang Jin
      Directed by Kim Sung-Yoon
      Starring Park Seo-Joon

      Kim Da-mi

      Yoo Jae-Myung

      Kwon Nara
      Composer Various artists
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 16
      Production
      Executive producer Jo Joon-Hyung
      Producers Lee Sang-Yoon

      Jung Soo-jin

      Han Suk-won
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 70 minutes
      Production companies Showbox

      Sium Content[a]

      Itaewon Class Production Partners

      Drama House (JTBC Studios)
      Distributor JTBC

      Netflix (international)
      Release
      Original network JTBC
      Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release January 31 –
      March 21, 2020
      External links
      Website

      Itaewon Class (Korean: 이태원 클라쓰; Hanja: 梨泰院 클라쓰; RR: Itaewon Keelless) is a 2020 South Korean television series starring Park Seo-Joon, Kim Da-mi, Yoo Jae-Myung, and Kwon Nara. Based on the webtoon of the same name,[2] it is the first series to be produced by the film distribution company Showbox. It aired on JTBC in Korea from January 31 to March 21, 2020, and is streaming worldwide on Netflix.[3][4][5] The series won Best Drama Series at the 25th Asian Television Awards.[6][7]

      In the case of the webtoon, when Kakao Page and Daum webtoon were added together, the cumulative number of readers was 10 million, the cumulative number of views was 300 million, and the rating was 9.9 points.

      Synopsis[edit]

      Due to an accident that killed his father, Park Sae-ro-Yi (Park Seo-Joon) attempted to kill Jang Geun-won (Ahn Bo-Hyun), the son of Janggi Group’s founder, Jang Die-hee (Yoo Jae-Myung). He was jailed and the woman he loved, Oh Soo-ah (Kwon Na-ra), was offered a university scholarship by Jang Die-hee and later became the Strategic Planning Head of Janggi Group.

      After his release from prison, Park Sae-ro-Yi opens Danbam in Itaewon. He wants to be successful and seeks revenge on the Janggi Group. However, he is not too smart at managing his business. He then meets Jo Yi-see (Kim Da-mi).

      Cast and characters[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Park Seo-Joon as Park Sae-ro-yi[8]

      Proprietor of Dana, a bar-restaurant in Itaewon. In his youth, Sae-ro-Yi gets expelled from high school for punching CEO Jang’s son Geun-won, who was bullying a classmate, and becomes bereaved when his father is killed by Geun-won’s reckless driving. Angered by the loss, he attacks Geun-won, leading to his three-year imprisonment. Following his father’s steps, Sae-ro-Yi opens his bar-restaurant Dana in Itaewon seven years after he is released from jail, with the aim of expanding it into a franchise and defeating CEO Jang’s food company Janggi Group. In 2020, he becomes the CEO of his company IC Group.

      Kim Da-mi as Jo Yi-seo[9]

      Manager of Sae-Ro-Yi’s bar-restaurant Dana. Yi-see is a multi-talented and intelligent girl with an IQ of 162. She moved from New York to continue her studies in South Korea. She is also famous on social media as a power blogger and social media internet celebrity. Having a crush on Sae-Ro-Yi, she offers to become the manager of Dana. Her lack of empathy and callous behavior has many people believe she is a sociopath, but she does end up caring for her Dana coworkers. Despite being declined by Sae-ro-Yi, Yi-seo remains by his side as his manager and work partner while still maintaining feelings for him. In 2020, Yi-see becomes the CFO of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group. Eventually, Saroyan realizes his feelings for Yi-Seo and he confesses his love for her.

      Yoo Jae-Myung as Jang Dae-hee[10]

      CEO of food company Janggi Group. CEO Jang is a self-made man who, despite the odds, succeeds in turning his once small bar into a large franchise company. In his years of experience leading Janggi, he develops a strong belief in power and authority as a means to achieve his goals. He meets Sae-ro-Yi when the latter has a fight with his son Geun-won in high school and expects him to kneel as a submission of his power. However, Sasori always resisted kneeling and made his life harder for it. In 2020, he is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and doesn’t have much longer to live. Unfortunately, his illegal activities under Janggi were exposed and ruined his company. Despite kneeling before Sae-Ro-Yi for help, Sae-Ro-Yi absorbed Janggi into his company, leaving Die-Hee with nothing.

      Kwon Nara as Oh Soo-ah[11]

      Head of the strategic planning team in Janggi Group; Sae-ro-Yi’s former classmate and first love. Abandoned by her mother, Soo-ah grew up in an orphanage and became close with Sae-ro-Yi’s father Sung-yeol. She becomes acquainted with Sae-ro-Yi, who has a crush on her. After Sung-yell’s death, she receives a scholarship offer from Janggi Group and soon becomes an employee in the company. Though passionate about her work, she is torn between her allegiance to Janggi and her love for Sae-ro-Yi. Due to their conflicts of interests, the two would hold a long-term emotional relationship, but never a truly romantic one. Eventually, Soo-ah realizes Saroyan’s feelings have changed and the two remain friends. She later became a whistleblower to the authorities on the crimes that Janggi has committed in the past during her time in the company and later starts her restaurant.

      Supporting[edit]

      Dana staff[edit]

      Kim Dong-hee as Jang Geun-soo[12]

      CEO Jang’s second and illegitimate son; Yi-see’s classmate and staff member at Dana. Geun-soo has been bullied by his older brother Geun-won and he never felt loved by his parents. Upon turning 17, he left the Jang family and lived by himself from then on. After inconveniencing Dana in an incident, he decides to work for Sae-ro-Yi, whom he considers to be a “real adult.” He has a crush on Yi-see. However, after leaving Dana, Geun-soo chooses to work at his father’s company to become the successor to the Janggi Group. In 2020, he is the director of Janggi Group.

      Ryu Kyung-soo as Choi Seung-kwon[13]

      A staff member at Dana. Seung-Kwon was Sae-ro-Yi’s cellmate in prison. Believing that he cannot better his life outside of jail, he became a gangster under a gang leader upon his release. Seven years later, he meets Sae-ro-Yi who, to his surprise, had already opened a bar in Itaewon. Deeply respecting Sae-ro-Yi and his way to live a better life, he gives up being a gangster and starts working at Dana. In 2020, he becomes one of the directors of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group.

      Lee Joo-young as Ma Hyeon-Yi[14]

      Dunam’s chief cook. Hyun-Yi first met Sae-ro-yi in a factory where the two formerly worked, years before the start of Dana. She was hired as Dunam’s cook when Sae-ro-yi liked the food she once cooked for him back then. Hyun-Yi is a transgender woman and has been saving money for her sex reassignment surgery. In 2020, she becomes one of the directors of Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group.

      Chris Lyon as Kim To-ni[15]

      Dammam’s Guinean–Korean part-timer. Even though he cannot speak and understand English, To-ni is fluent in speaking Korean, owing to his Korean father and his one-year residence in South Korea, and French, the language he speaks in Guinea. Eventually, he can learn and speak a satisfactory amount of English.

      Janggi Group[edit]

      Ahn Bo-Hyun as Jang Geun-won[16]

      CEO Jang’s first son and heir to Janggi Group. Geun-won was Sae-ro-Yi and Soo-ah’s classmate in high school who frequently bullied their classmate Ho-jin. He caused the vehicular accident that killed Sae-ro-Yi’s father Sung-yeol. Years later when he attempts to recruit Yi-see into Jangga, his confession to the crime is recorded by her and he attacks her until Sae-ro-Yi intervenes and gets him arrested. Die-hee deserts Geun-won by admitting his son’s crimes during his apology meeting and getting him sent to prison. In 2020, he is released and alongside Kim Hee-hon and his gang, Geun-won plans to get revenge on Yi-see.

      Kim Hye-eon as Kang Min-jung[17]

      Janggi Group’s executive director, who secretly plots to usurp CEO Jang. She is a close friend of Park Sung-yell, Park Sae-ro-Yi’s father.

      Hong Seo-Joon as Mr. Kim[18]

      Jang Daeheon’s right-hand man. He is very loyal to his boss.

      Yoo Da-mi as Kim Sun-ae[19]

      Jang Daeheon’s secretary and Kang Min-Jung’s spy.

      Others[edit]

      Lee David as Lee Ho-jin[20]

      Sae-Moji’s investment manager. Ho-jin was Sae-ro-Yi, Soo-ah, and Geun-won’s classmate in high school. After years of bearing the constant bullying from Geun-won, he gets into a prestigious college and takes up business administration. He partners up with Sae-ro-Yi in taking revenge against Geun-won and CEO Jang. In 2020, he becomes the financial manager for Sae-ro-Yi’s company IC Group. In one of the flashback scenes when he visited Sae-ro-Yi in prison; he listed Sae-ro-Yi as a friend.

      Kim Yeo-jin as Jo Jeong-min[21]

      Yi-see’s mother, who disapproves of Yi-see quitting college and working at Dammam.

      Yoon Kyung-ho as Oh Byeong-heon[22]

      Detective in charge of Geun-won’s hit-and-run case which he was pressured to cover up. He quit his job after the case and is now one of Sae-ro-Yi’s suppliers.

      Choi Yu-ri as Oh Hye-won[23]

      Oh, Byeong-heron’s daughter, who is oblivious to Sae-ro-Yi’s connection with her father.

      Kim Mi-keying as Kim Soon-rye[24]

      To-nose Korean paternal grandmother. After her son’s death, she deeply regrets disapproving of her son’s marriage to a Guinean woman (To-nose mother), as it caused her son to run away. She is a loan shark who offers her services to Sae-ro-Yi when he moves his bar to a new location. She was also one of the first supporters of Janggi.

      Won Hyun-Joon as Kim Hee-hoon[25]

      Sae-ro-Yi’s former cellmate and a leader of a group of gangsters. Though initially cordial to both Sae-ro-Yi and Choi Seung-Kwon, he later allies himself with Jang Geun-won.

      Han Hye-ji as Kook Bok-hee[26]

      Yi-see and Geun-soo’s former classmate. Her bullying activities were exposed after Yi-see recorded her performing the act. After running into Yi-see months later, she attempted to assault her for ruining her reputation alongside her friends, only to be beaten down by Yi-see.

      Special appearances[edit]

      Ahn Sol-bin as Sae-ro-Yi’s classmate (Ep. 1)[27]

      A student who had a crush on Sae-ro-Yi and had her confession rejected by him.

      Son Hyun-jook as Park Sung-yeol (Ep. 1–2 & 15)[28]

      Sae-ro-Yi’s father and former employee in Janggi Group. He taught Sae-ro-Yi to stick to his beliefs and to fight for what is right. He resigned from Janggi in defense of Sae-ro-Yi’s deed of stopping Geun-won’s bullying. He died in an accident caused by Geun-won.

      Hong Seok-Cheon as himself (Ep. 2, 4, 9 & 16)[29]

      Soo-ah’s acquaintance. He works at a bar that Sae-ro-Yi visits twice (years before and after opening Dana). They meet again after Sae-ro-Yi moves the location of his bar.

      Yoon Park as Kim Sung-Hyun (Ep. 3)[30]

      Geun-so’s elder friend goes to Dana with Geun-soo and Yi-see where the two get caught for underage drinking.

      Cha Chung-hwa as Bureau Chief’s wife (Ep. 3)[31]

      Mother of Bok-hee, whose behavior was exposed online by Yi-see.

      I’m Seun as Bok-hee’s friend (Ep. 5)[32]

      One of Bok-he’s friends. She, alongside Bok-hee and her friend, attempted to assault Yi-see after running into each other months after high school graduation.

      Jung Yoo-min as Seo Jeong-In (Ep. 6)[33]

      The daughter of the CEO of a pharmaceutical company and Geun-won’s blind date. The blind date was arranged by Geun-won’s father.

      Seo Eon-soo as part-time job applicant (Ep. 6)[34]

      Sae-ro-Yi’s acquaintance. She applied for the job that was eventually offered to Kim To-ni. Yi-see rejected her application out of jealousy of her and Sae-ro-Yi’s close relationship.

      Kim Il-Jong as himself (Ep. 11 & 13)[35]

      Host of the cooking program shows The Best Pub.

      Jeon No-min as Do Jong-un (Ep. 11–12)[36]

      CEO of the investment firm Jung Myung Holdings. He offers Sae-ro-Yi to franchiseDanBam. Later he was one of the sleeper agents for Die Hee to thwart Sae-ro-Yi plan to franchise Dana.

      Lee Jun-Hyeon as Park Joon-gi (Ep. 11–13)[37]

      A contestant on The Best Pub. He represents Janggi Group as the head cook and comes in second to Hyun-Yi during the final. He subsequently gets fired.

      Park Bo-gum as Handsome Chef (Ep. 16)[38]

      The new chef at Soo-ah’s restaurant in which Hong Seok-Cheon invested after he passed the job interview.

      Kim Taehyung as Himself (Ep. 16)

      BTS member V visited his friend Seo-Joon to perform a rendition of the show’s OST.

       

      Comment:

       

      Very enjoyable drama set in one of the most colorful neighborhoods in Korea, Itaewon’s- Seoul’s international quarter.

       

      The basic plot is that of revenge.  The usual themes of rich people behaving badly, and corporate corruption. A young man in junior high comes to the aid of his classmate who is being bullied by the son of a rich family.  His father worked for the corporation.  The young man is told to apologize for calling out the actions of the bullies and refuses to do so.  His father is fired and attempts to open his restaurant with the aid of his son who has to drop out of school after the controversy.  The father is killed by his enemy drunk driving.  The young man attempts to kill his enemy and is sentenced to three years in prison.  He decides to get revenge.  It takes him ten years but in the end, he destroys the corporation.

       

      There are several romantic sub-plots in the movie. The protagonist has to decide between two women.  He eventually chooses the woman who comes to work for him in the restaurant he opens in Itaewon.  There is also an LGBT sub-theme as one of his staff members is trans transiting to a woman.  There is also an intriguing sub-plot involving a half African young man who comes to Korea to find his Korean family.

       

      Overall, very well done.

       

       

       

       

       

      Others Worth Watching

       

      Memories of the Alhambra

       

      program.tving.com/tvn/tvnalhambra

      Memories of the Alhambra is a 2018 South Korean television series, starring Hyun Bin and Park Shin-Hye. Primarily set in Spain, the series centers on a company CEO and a hostel owner who gets entangled in a series of mysterious incidents surrounding a new and intricate augmented reality game inspired by the stories of the Alhambra Palace. It aired on cable network tvN from December 1, 2018, to January 20, 2019, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:00. It is also available for online streaming on Netflix. Wikipedia

      Genre: Science fantasy, Action, Thriller, Romance

      Created by: Jennie Choi (Studio Dragon), Lee Myung-Han

      Written by: Song Jae-Jung

       

      Comment: Did not finish it but will return to it soon.  Had an intriguing SF plotline.

       

      End Comment

       

       

       

       

       

       

      The Negotiation (film)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

      (Redirected from Negotiation (film))

       

      The Negotiation
      Theatrical poster
      Hangul 협상
      Hanja 協商
      Revised Romanization Hyeobsang
      Directed by Lee Jong-Seok
      Screenplay by Choi Sung-Hyun
      Produced by Yoon Je-kyoon
      Lee Sang-jik
      Starring Son Ye-jin
      Hyun Bin
      Cinematography Lee Tae-Joon
      Edited by Jung Jin-hee
      Music by Hwang Sang-Joon
      Production
      companies      		 JK Film
      CJ E&M[1]
      Distributed by CJ Entertainment
      Release date September 19, 2018 (South Korea)
      Running time 114 minutes
      Country South Korea
      Language Korean
      Budget ₩10 billion[2]
      Box office US$15.6 million[3]

      The Negotiation (Korean: 협상; Hanja: 協商; RR: Hyeobsang) is a 2018 South Korean action crime thriller film directed by Lee Jong-Seok and starring Son Ye-jin and Hyun Bin.[4][1] The film was released on September 19, 2018.[5][6][7]

      Two Filipino men kidnap a couple and hold them hostage at a house in Yingjie, Seoul. Crisis negotiator Inspector Ha Chae-youn of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, who was on a date and was called by her colleague, Superintendent Ahn Hyuk-su, is brought in to handle the situation, despite strong protests from her superior, Captain Jung Jun-gu. While Chae-youn is negotiating with the kidnappers, Captain Jung decides to send a police officer hit team to kill the men, shooting one kidnapper on the shoulder. He immediately kills the man he was holding and was shot dead afterward. The remaining kidnapper used the woman as a shield and dragged her to a room. The police team arrives and kills the kidnapper in the room. Chae-youn enters the room to find the woman who had been killed by the kidnapper before the police team entering the house. The woman dies in Chae-youn’s arms, leaving Chae-youn shocked.

      Ten days later, a devastated Chae-youn decides to resign from the police force, but Captain Jung urges her to reconsider, before leaving on a work trip. Chae-youn is then urgently called upon by Ahn, who informs her that she has been urgently summoned to deal with a hostage crisis by the Commissioner himself. Upon arrival to a secret location, she meets with the Commissioner of Police Moon Jong-hyuk and Presidential Secretary Gong of National Security. She is ordered to negotiate with the kidnapper – Min Tae-gu, a Korea-based international arms dealer and UK citizen, who had kidnapped several Korean nationals from Bangkok – including a reporter named Lee Su-mok. Without any additional information, she hung up on Min twice after being offended by him and asks Secretary Gong to reveal to her the necessary details. Not wanting to talk, the two men ordered Chief Han to talk to Min instead, while she is being hesitant about doing so. Upon seeing the negotiations going sour, she takes the seat from Chief Han. While negotiating with Min video conferencing, she is shocked to discover that Captain Jung, who was supposed to be on a trip, has also been kidnapped by Min as well,

      Chae-youn is later informed that the hostages are being held at an island in the Malacca Straits, where a joint military-police op has been sent to, intent on freeing them. Han also informs them that Daehan Daily, a news outlet Lee is working for, had been ordered to keep silent of their employee’s situation, as requested by the President. Min later demands to see the CEO of Daehan Daily, Yoon Dong-hoon, Lee’s boss. While talking with Dong-hoon, Min demands to know whether Lee is one of his reporters or not. Min threatens Yoon that his own family could be in danger, revealing that he knows of their whereabouts. Commissioner Moon cuts into their conversation to stop Yoon from telling the truth. Because of this, Min shoots Captain Jung dead, which further shocked Chae-youn. Commissioner Moon and Secretary Gong bring in negotiators from the National Intelligence Services to take over and order Chae-youn, Ahn, and even Han to leave the site.

      Outside, Han reveals to them that Lee is a black agent working for the NIS, whose mission was to spy on Min’s syndicate. She tells them that Min is an arms dealer working in the Malacca Straits, selling every kind of weapons and equipment to other criminals in the majority of the Southeast Asian countries. Chae-youn’s two colleagues arrive in their van, and Chae-youn sought to find out the truth themselves. She then asks Ahn to follow Yoon and ask him further. Back inside, the NIS team approached Min aggressively, demanding that Min release his hostages or otherwise they will bombard his location, killing Agent Lee with him. Unbothered, Min reveals that he had also kidnapped a family of four, keeping the NIS under this thumb. Min demands to bring Chae-youn back as he will only talk to her. With no other choice, Chief Han goes over to bring Chae-youn, along with her team, back inside.

      This time, Chae-youn demands the NIS to tell her everything that they know about Min. Min demands Chae-youn to bring Koo Gwan-su—chairman of Nine Electronics, an arms company. As they wait, the NIS tells Chae-youn that Min used to work for Koo as the man in charge of dealing with the company’s illegal activities. When Min decided to work alone as an arms dealer in Malacca Straits, Koo betrays Min and tipped him off to the NIS. Koo also revealed the $50 million worth of taxes that he had evaded, and due to his ‘honesty, the government practically erased his criminal activities. When Chae-youn asks where Koo is, the NIS agent reveals to her that they were all inside the Nine Electrics weapons laboratory. Koo himself had funded the entire operation of the NIS to hunt Min down. In a hotel suite lounge somewhere downtown were Koo, NIS Deputy Chief Park In-kyu, Air Force Commander Son Jung-Tae, and the Chief of National Security himself, Hwang Ju-ik. These four men had been keeping a close eye on the entire operation.

      Meanwhile, Ahn found out from the escaping Yoon that NIS Deputy Chief Park was the one who asked him to give Agent Lee a false Daehan Daily ID. Koo arrives at the site and begins to talk with Min. Min asks Koo to restore a certain Swiss bank account, and Koo agrees to it. However, Min had further demanded. He asks Koo why he had killed a woman named Yoo Hyun-Ju. Koo denies any knowledge of any Hyun-Ju, and Min began to tell Chae-youn of Hyun-Ju. Min introduced Hyun-Ju to Koo as his secretary. In reality, Hyun-Ju was to keep records of hidden, expensive paintings that Koo owned and kept. These paintings were worth 10 billion won each, and profits from these paintings would be shared between Koo, Park, Son, and Hwang. Some of the paintings were kept in a house that Hyun-Ju and presumably her husband stayed in. It is revealed that Hyun-Ju was the woman who died in Chae-youn’s arms ten days ago, and Min convinces Chae-youn that something was amiss during that operation, which resulted in Hyun-Ju’s death, and the disappearance of the paintings in the house almost immediately. To further prove his point, Min plays an audio recording of a conversation between the four corrupt men. This recording was done by Hwang himself, where Min explained that Hwang never fully trusted the three other men he was working with and had a habit of keeping recording devices for important conversations. Min then demands Hwang to show up and talk to him in one hour, otherwise, he’ll kill every hostage—including the children.

      Chae-young and her team validate the information Min had given as they try to figure out the connection between Min and Hyun-Ju. Secretary Gong lies to Chae-young, telling her that Hwang was with the President and that he couldn’t come. Meanwhile, Ahn was able to track down Chief Park’s phone records. There, he found out that Captain Jung had accepted a bribe from Chief Park. Captain Jung was under the command of Chief Park, and that they planned to kill Hyun-Ju by using the Filipino kidnappers as an alibi. Chae-youn resumes the negotiations with Min, telling Min that Hyun-Ju’s case will be reopened. Min demands to talk with Commissioner Moon. Min asks if Koo is being questioned by the police and that if Hwang is really with the President. Before answering, they found out from a Thai server that Min had been live-streaming the entire situation on YouTube, which sends the country into a frenzy. Upon figuring out that Koo is not being questioned, and that Hwang is in hiding, Min shoots Agent Lee in the leg. He gives Hwang one last chance to show himself.

      Back in their lounge, Hwang orders Chief Park to invent a story and Commander Son to begin the military operation immediately. Hwang wants Min dead, along with the hostages. Meanwhile, Ahn returns to Hyun-Ju’s home, where the kidnapping ten days ago occurred. There, he found a photo of Somang Orphanage, an old orphanage where Hyun-Ju came from. He goes over to the new orphanage, and he found out that Hyun-Ju’s real name wasn’t Yoon Hyun-Ju, but Min Hyun-Ju—she was Min’s younger sister. Back in the lab, the military team arrived in Min’s location and authorizes the mission, despite Chae-youn’s protests. Min reveals that a bomb is strapped on one of the hostages, revealing a suicide for all of them. Either way, the team blows up a signal tower—stopping their communication. Chae-youn tries to stop the team from entering Min’s hideout as a bomb is present. Hwang (through Commander Son) pressures them to continue, and the team enters the hideout. However, as soon as they moved in, the room had exploded, presumably from Min’s suicide bomb, and killing the hostages inside. Hwang and his cronies were finally able to relax, and the NIS were packing up their things.

      As Chae-youn stares at the last footage of their negotiations with Min in despair, she notices through the background that Min wasn’t in Southeast Asia, but in South Korea all along. That night, Ahn went to the old orphanage building and found all of the hostages safe. Meanwhile, Min and his gang arrived at the Nine Electronics weapons lab. He orders his fellow gang to go home and takes the bomb with him. Min storms the lounge and finally catches Hwang, Koo, Park, and Son, with the bomb strapped to his chest. Chae-young, convinced Secretary Gong to reveal the true location of Hwang and his cronies so that they can stop Min. Min shoots Koo, activates the bomb via a detonator, and Chae-youn arrives at the lounge to finally meet Min. She apologizes to Min for not being able to protect Hyun-Ju, and she vows to defend Min at any cost to bring the remaining cronies to justice. Min reveals to her that he asked Hyun-Ju to betray Koo by stealing every bit of information he had. He believed that his plan ultimately led to his sister’s death. He raises the gun at Hwang, and he was shot to the head by a sniper outside. A flashback reveals that Min backfired with his plan, telling his sister that the plan is too dangerous after all. However, Hyun-Ju wanted to proceed with the plan, so that the two of them can find a place to live in silence and peace.

      As the team arrives to escort Hwang, Park, Son, and Chae-youn outside, Chae-youn overheard that the detonator wasn’t turned on, and Min planned to die in the end and bring the corrupt men to justice. Chae-young chases Hwang outside, prematurely telling them of their arrest as she shouts their rights to them. As their car leaves, the reporters then surround Chae-youn. Chae-youn and Ahn went to an overlooking spot, where they made a makeshift memorial for Min and Hyun-Ju. Chae-youn shows Ahn of Min’s pen drive presumably with the dealings of Hwang and his cronies, as stolen by Hyun-Ju. In court, Hwang, Park, Son, and Chae-young appear, with Chae-young as a prime witness. The pen drive is revealed to the court as evidence, and the film ends with Chae-young reciting an oath.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Son Ye-jin as Ha Chae-yoon[8]

      Hyun Bin as Min Tae-gu[9]

      Supporting[edit]

      Kim Sang-ho as Ahn Hyuk-soo

      Jang Young-Nam as Section Chief Han

      Jang Gwang as Hwang Soo-suk

      Choi Byung-mo as Secretary Kong[10]

      Jo Young-jin as Chairman Koo

      Kim Jong-goo as CEO Yoon

      Yoo Yeon-soo as Chief Moon

      Lee Joo-young as Lee Da-bin

      Kim Min-sang as Deputy Department Head Park

      Park Sung-Geun as Operation officer

      Han Ki-Joon as Lieutenant General Son

      Park Soo-young as Section Chief Choi

      Jung In-gyeom as Lee Sang-mok

      Lee Si-a as Yoo Yeon-Joo

      Lee Hak-joo as Park Min-woo

      Special appearance[edit]

      Lee Moon-sikas Capt. Jung

      Production[edit]

      Principal photography began on June 17, 2017, in Paju, Gyeonggi Province.[11][12][13]

      Release[edit]

      The film premiered in South Korea on September 19, 2018.[14][15]

      By September 2018, the film was sold to over 22 countries. It was released in North America on September 20, in Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei on October 4, in Hong Kong and Macau in early October, in Vietnam and Taiwan on October 19, and in Indonesia on October 24, 2018.[16][17]

      The film was released on VOD services and digital downloads on October 17, 2018.[18]

       

      Comment: This very engaging police thriller taking place in Bangkok and Seoul.

      Usual high-level political corruption and rich people behaving badly.  Also features a woman protagonist who goes against her superiors and saves the day.

       

      End comment

       

      No exit  movie

       

      Comment:

       

      Another engaging police crime drama.  Very engrossing and great acting. Takes place in Cheju who a mafia figure who goes on the run after being betrayed by his boss.

       

      End comment

       

      https://mydramalist.com/28794-exit

      This was another great Korean movie. It was packed with action and comedy. This movie kept you on edge on your seat and glued your eyes to the screen. I love how Jo Jung Suk always keeps his quirky side whenever he played a character. He never disappoints me in the comedy area. Love him in dramas and movies.

      Images for no exit k drama

       

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      EXIT (2018) – MyDramaList

      https://mydramalist.com/28771-exit

      Exit is an interesting drama with an old concept depicted in a new way. The entire two hours were engrossing for me and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Choi Tae Joon was natural, strong, and intense in playing his role and the rest of the cast also did a pretty good job. The background score is quite good though it has no OSTs. Two hours is not much.

       

      Exit (Korean Drama, 2018, 엑시트) @ Han Cinema

      https://www.hancinema.net/korean_drama_Exit.php

      Exit (Korean Drama, 2018, 엑시트) – Find the cast, latest updates, latest news, legal streaming links, DVDs, Blu-rays, collectibles, latest trailers, latest …

       

       

       

      Sisyphus: The Myth (2021)

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      Reviews

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      An unfathomable incident introduces a genius engineer to dangerous secrets of the world — and to a woman from the future who’s come looking for him. Han Tae Sul, a co-founder of Quantum and Time, is a genius engineer with the highest level of coding skills and outstanding looks that outweighs his engineer fashion sense. Due to his innovative achievements, Quantum and Time is a world-class company, dubbed “The Miracle of South Korea’s Engineering Industry.” In reality, Tae Sul has constantly caused his company’s stocks to fluctuate after his brother’s death ten years ago. One day, he witnesses something unbelievable. To reach the truth, he sets off on a dangerous journey. Kang Seo Hai is a survivor of a future dystopian world. With the survival skills that she’s learned from living amongst gangsters and warlords, she travels back to save Han Tae Sul. (Source: Netflix, Newsmen) Edit Translation

      English

      Native Title: 시지프스: The Myth

      Also Known As Sisyphus: The Fable, Sipleses, Sisyphus

      Director: Jin Hyeon

      Screenwriter: Jeon Chan Ho, Lee Je In

      Genres: Action, Thriller, Mystery, Romance, Drama, Fantasy

      Tags: Time Travel, Genius, Rich Male Lead, Uncover A Truth, Death Of Sibling, Engineer, Sassy Female Lead, Pre-produced, Strong Female Lead, Future (Vote or add tags)

      Where to Watch Sisyphus: The Myth

      Netflix

      Subscription (sub)

      Cast & Credits

      Add Cast

      Jo Seung Woo

      Han Tae Sul

      Main Role

      Park Shin Hye

      Kang Seo Hai

      Main Role

      Kim Byung Chula

      Seo Won Ju / “Sigma”

      Main Role

      Sung Dong-Il

      President Park [President of Asia Mart]

      Support Role

      Tae In Ho

      Eddie Kim / Kim Seung Bok [Tae Sul’s friend / Co-founder of Quantum & Time]

      Support Role

      Chae Jong Hyeon

      Sun / Choi Jae Sun [Chinese restaurant delivery guy]

      Support Role

       

      All you need is love

      Sisyphus: The Myth is an intriguing drama. The thrilling teaser that was released late last year stoked the flames of excitement for many avid K-drama viewers. Coupled with a cast that’s headlined by bankable stars the likes of Cho Seung Woo and Park Shin Hye, it became one of the most talked-about and highly anticipated shows for 2021. When it finally aired, however, it polarized opinions here in MDL and left several viewers’ expectations somewhat unfulfilled, to the extent that the ratings steadily declined to the current score hovering at around 8.

      Some continued to enjoy the show, for various reasons, and I happen to be one of them. Allow me to share my (spoiler-free) thoughts and then you can make your own decision on whether or not to embark on what has largely been a fun-filled escapist roller coaster ride.

      What is it about?
      In a nutshell, a woman from the dystopian future of South Korea travels back in time in the hopes of altering the course of history by preventing the seemingly inevitable fate that befell the country, the looming catastrophe of nuclear war. Central to this mission is the man who invented the time-traveling machine. These two characters are played by Park Shin Hye and Cho Seung Woo respectively.

      The drama contains a mix of science fiction, action, drama, and romance genres imbued with themes of revenge, redemption, remorse, love, friendship, and familial bond. The director is Jin Hyeon, who notably helmed The Legend of the Blue Sea, The Master’s Sun, and City Hunter, among others. The screenplay is written by the husband and wife team of Jeon Chan Ho and Lee Je In, for only their third production.

      This show is jointly produced by Drama House and JTBC and has been publicized as the network’s 10th-anniversary special drama. Its title is derived from the ancient character from Greek mythology, King Sisyphus of Corinth, and is completely pre-produced with principal photography that has taken place toward the end of 2020.

      What’s great about it?

      The Production Values
      As expected of a JTBC production, this drama is very well, made. I love the cinematography (in particular the indoor lighting), the many gorgeous scenic views of both Seoul in the present time and the vast landscape of the dystopian future. The set designs for various settings are quite exemplary while the special effects (CGIs, firefights, and pyrotechnics) are considered top tier for a show of this nature.

      The Acting and Cast
      In my humble opinion, the leads are fantastic and I have absolutely no complaints. While Cho Seung Woo fully embodies the character of Han Tae Sul, the same goes for Park Shin Hye’s Kang Seo Hai. They deliver very strong performances in their portrayal of deeply flawed and emotionally scarred individuals. These are the types of roles that perhaps mature actors with adequate professional and life experiences are better-equipped to articulate and convey convincingly, which is very much the case here.

      It’s interesting to note that unlike Cho Seung Woo’s other more serious roles, especially that of Hwang Shi Mock in Stranger, here his Han Tae Sul is much more comedic and mischievous with a copious dose of flamboyance and swagger. Despite possessing similar social awkwardness, this character is remarkably more fun while his ingenuity in getting out of tricky situations bears an uncanny resemblance to the MacGyver persona.

      Such nuanced characterization is depicted by the other veteran supporting cast as well, notably Sung Dong Il, Kim Byung Chula, and Kim Jong Tae. Kim Byung Chula in particular surprised me with his depiction of Seo Won Ju. Despite being slightly OTT, I suspect he had the time of his life being “unleashed” from his usual more understated roles. Here he plays “dual characters” where his versatility is quite commendable.

      Special mention goes to the young actor Lee Joo Won, who plays the young version of Seo Won Ju. This kid truly gave me goosebumps with his chilling portrayal.

      The Action
      For the most part, the choreography has been outstanding. From the numerous unarmed combat sequences to the firefights involving some pretty impressive military hardware. It’s not often that we see plenty of intense (and at times, logic-defying) gun battles in a non-military drama so this aspect of the production is indeed praiseworthy. Other forms of action include a lot of hard running in chasing (and being chased by) a multitude of characters.

      The Romance
      This particular theme is so beautifully and convincingly conveyed. It helps immensely that Cho Seung Woo and Park Shin Hye abundantly possess such wonderful chemistry which is poignantly manifested amidst the ensuing intrigue and mayhem. The pairing of Han Tae Sul and Kang Seo Hai, in many ways, makes a lot of sense. They are each plagued by a traumatic past and rendered seriously flawed, emotionally damaged, and are now fighting against the odds to change their fate.

      What could’ve been better?

      The Science
      I love the concept here about time traveling to the past to change the future which gives me vibes of The Twelve Monkeys where the premise is quite similar. However, I do feel that the science as depicted in the show is super messy. Many technical aspects are open to interpretation and left to the viewers to fill in the blanks, as the story progresses. It’s a process of trial and error where we discover new things during every episode. The finale is quite possibly the most mind-blowing of all.

      The Screenplay
      A parallel narrative and converging plot format are used to tell the story, which includes numerous flashbacks and flashforwards by various major characters in multiple timelines – the past, present, and future. Sometimes title cards are used to indicate the date, but not when the scene is obvious. It can get a little disorienting unless viewers pay close attention to the details.

      How and why certain events transpire are quite convoluted and require too much deductive reasoning to derive a sense of what the answers could be. The credibility of certain characters is questionable while quite a number of the sequences appear utterly ridiculous and fantastical, despite the sci-fi tag. The seeming lack of logic in certain respects of the overarching plot has led me to strongly suspect the screenwriters were high on recreational psychoactive substances as they were writing this.

      Overall
      The sooner viewers suspend disbelief and forgo questioning how the technology works by accepting the science as it is, the less confusing the show would appear to be. Regardless of the perceived weaknesses resulting from the flawed execution of the concept, I found myself enjoying the wild and, at times, exhilarating ride once I shut down my cerebral process and went instinctive. I would advise you to do the same for this is the only way to truly appreciate Sisyphus: The Myth. And if you do decide to watch this, be rest assured – the ending is very much a happy one, for everyone (kind of).

      Mediocre Myth

      At outset, the drama starts as an interesting and pioneering perspective of time travel. With the use of new ideas like uploader and downloader, the science-fiction aspect is on par with that of the contemporary world of science fiction entertainment.

      Along with this, is the backdrop of a nuclear war involving Koreas, it provides an exquisite playing field for proficient storytelling. These themes remind me of the “TENET” movie.

      The show is almost convincible scientifically about time travel*. But that’s where the spectacle of this show ends. This show has countless flaws.

      One, after setting the story, the show becomes more character-driven and not plot-driven. Thus, giving little scope for further exploring the sci-fi elements or packing it with more plot elements. Viewers are taken through detailed narratives about various side characters. These insights could have been less detailed.

      Two, Will over Wits. Almost every scene has some sort of test for characters to make a choice. Almost every character ends up making emotion-driven decisions and not reason-driven. This leads to a countless loop of bad folks coercing good folks to fall into their traps. Countless episodes are wasted in these cat-and-mouse endeavors.

      Three, Lack of an alternate answer to the recurring question “Girl or World?” Right in the first instance of asking this question, the answer is undeniably obvious. Yet, the protagonist delays to choose the answer giving false hope of the possibility of an alternative answer. Had this been answered earlier, it would have ended the show quicker.

      Four, Romance: The Leads’ relationship feels more like comradeship and less like a romantic one. If at all it is present, it is not so passionate and intense given their life-threatening circumstances.

      Five, the beginning of the time loop. How did all this begin that is, the events right before the first loop are hardly explained. I believe that explaining a bootstrap paradox is an unimaginable task.

      Despite the flaws, there are a couple of appreciable elements like One, ambitious production. The initial fights and stunts scenes felt amateurish in CGI. But the events of the future were well, produced. The drone chase scene was a personal favorite. The fights scenes were really good, especially the last fight of the future timeline. Two, despite the ever-looming question of “save the world”, the intermittent scenes of future events were very imaginative. Three, Badass FL and Genius ML both bring something unique to the plot. Four, the “Act of Kindness” (without letting the spoiler out), was the best moment in the entire drama and gave the best “glimmer of hope”, an essential feature of the Sci-Fi genre.

      Acting-wise, both the leads are exceptional. PSH stunt scenes are awe-worthy. Kim Byung Chula does an incredible job. Music-wise, I liked the title music of whizzing sound and the end song. Rewatch value is lower as sci-fi elements are hardly convoluted.

      Sisyphus: The Myth is an inventive concept but fails in storytelling.
      ~~
      *Logical inconsistencies do exist.

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      Comment::

       

      I have to agree with the consensus on this one.  It just did not work for me.  The plot was just too convoluted and contradictory.  The acting was superb but the writing was sub-par particularly the ending.   One principle of creative writing is that when you write you are creating an alternative world.  And every world has rules.  Violating the rules of your alternative universe leaves the readers or viewers confused, disappointed, or even angry.  The special effects were good, not great. The plot had too many holes in it.  In the end, it was defeated by the writing.   End comment

       

      Space Sweepers K SF Drama

       

      Space Sweepers

      Space Sweepers is a 2021 South Korean space Western film directed by Jo Sung-hee, starring Song Jong-ki, Kim Tae-Ri, Jin Seon-kyu, and Yoo Hai-jin. Regarded as the first Korean space blockbuster, it was released on Netflix on February 5, 2021.Wikipedia

      Director Sung-hee

      Produced by: Yoon In-beom, Kim Soo-jin

      Writer(s): Yoon Seung-min, Yoo-king Seo-ae, Jo Sung-hee

      Space Sweepers (Korean: 승리호; Hanja: 勝利號; RR: Sangho; lit. Spaceship Victory) is a 2021 South Korean space Western film directed by Jo Sung-hee, starring Song Jong-ki, Kim Tae-Ri, Jin Seon-kyu, and Yoo Hae-jin.[2] Regarded as the first Korean space blockbuster,[3] it was released on Netflix on February 5, 2021.[4][5]

      In the year 2092, Earth has become nearly uninhabitable. The UTS Corporation builds a new orbiting home for humanity that mimics the natural processes on Earth; however, only a chosen few are permitted to ascend and become UTS citizens, while those remaining on Earth breathe polluted air.

      To regulate the population in orbit and keep an eye on the non-citizens, UTS governs them via a strict set of rules and taxes. Many non-citizens from all across the globe work as space sweepers, collecting space debris floating in Earth’s orbit and selling it to the company factory for survival. The plot follows such a crew of space sweepers and their ship, the Victory.

      Victory’s crew has Kim Tae-ho, Tiger Park, and Bubs (an android), all led by Captain Jang. Tiger Park handles the ship’s machinery and was a drug baron on Earth. Bubs used to be a robot soldier but now helps repair the ship and cast the net for space junk while saving up to get a complete skin graft. Jang was one of the child geniuses sponsored by UTS and created several hi-tech inventions for the company but, after discovering the company’s true workings, became a pirate and tried to assassinate James Sullivan. Her crew was killed and Sullivan survived, so she changed identities and had an eye transplant. Tae-ho, once a child soldier, is on a search for his daughter (Su-ni); who was lost and ejected into space after space debris collided with the station they were staying at. His sole life aim is to pay for the authorities’ recovery team to locate her body tracker before she drifts out of orbit and gets lost in space forever.

      After picking up a car floating in orbit, they discover a child in it. News reports say that she is a robot named Dorothy, and has a weapon of mass destruction inside her created by the terrorist group Black Fox. The crew also finds a smartphone in Dorothy’s bag with several missed calls from someone named Kang Hyeon-u. They call back and, assuming the other party to be part of the Black Fox group, negotiate two million dollars for returning Dorothy. Tiger finds Dorothy drawing in his cabin and starts a conversation with her, as he finds himself drawn to her.

      Tae-ho and Tiger carry Dorothy to a nightclub to collect the ransom, but she wanders off in the crowd. UTS soldiers have lain in wait, and a massacre ensues. Tiger and Tae-ho locate Dorothy when Soldier 01 zeroes in and shoots at them. Dorothy’s eyes change color, and the trio is protected from the blast by a sort of force field around them. Jang is watching everything through a feed on the ship. She also notices the man who came to collect Dorothy shouting after her and calling her Kotani. The trio makes it back to the ship, and Dorothy busies herself drawing and playing. When asked by Jang what her name is, Dorothy says Kotani is her Korean name. Tae-ho ignores her, thinking she is a robot, while Tiger becomes friendly with her and suggests keeping her. Tae-ho dismisses the idea and goes to sets up another call with Kang Hyeon-u to rearrange the exchange.

      Dorothy and Tae-ho find tomatoes on the plant that Dorothy had helped revive from a dead tree, and sell them. Jang finds papers in Dorothy’s backpack and goes through them. Bubs put makeup on Dorothy and tell her the story of Tae-ho; as a child soldier, Tae-ho was Soldier 01 at the age of 17. On one of his voyages, Tae-ho shot and boarded a ship that carried several fleeing non-citizens and killed them all. He noticed a baby still alive in the arms of a dead woman and adopted the girl. She rekindled his humanity and Tae-ho found himself unable to hurt others – as a result, he was dismissed from the force, made homeless, and reduced to a non-citizen. After one year of homelessness, Tae-ho became desperate and gambled, neglecting Su-ni. She wandered away to find a snack, and while outside there was a debris impact that caused her to be blown into space, with Tae-ho helplessly witnessing it from an airlock.

      A masked man follows Kotani to the toilet in the factory. Her screams alert Tae-ho and Tiger, who rush to save her but are ambushed by a group of masked people. Tiger beats them all and Jang intervenes, discovering they are other space junk collectors working with Black Fox. Their leader, Karuma, explains that Black Fox is not a terrorist organization, but rather an environmental group and that Kotani is not an android but a human child. Born with a congenital disease, her father Kang Hyeon-u injected her with nanobots found in space debris to save her life. The nanobots helped not only saved Kotani but also gave her a unique power: Kotani could now communicate with other nanobots and heal and protect things. Sullivan found this out and used Kotani to turn Mars into a healthy, green planet. He now plans to kill Dorothy in a hydrogen bomb explosion (since nanobots can only be destroyed by breaking them into atoms through extremely high temperatures). Given its proximity to Earth, the explosion would cause the factory to fall onto the planet, destroying the Earth and making Mars the only viable option for all humans.

      The crew decides to unite Kotani with her father and disable the bomb, with the help of the Black Foxes who will locate and take Dr. Kang to the meeting point. Soldiers attack them, but Tae-ho and Kotani manage to flee on the Victory. They enter a space debris field, where nanobots begin to consume their ship. Kotani communicates with them, and the nanobots disperse. They enter the factory where the meet-up is scheduled, only to be ambushed. The UTS soldiers kill all the Black Foxes and Dr. Kang before kidnapping Kotani. Sullivan leaves Tae-ho four million dollars in return for abandoning Kotani. Tae-ho takes the money, but the rest decide to save Kotani – even if it kills them. Tae-ho goes to give the money to the UTS officers, and they hand over Su-no’s last found remains to him – her clothes, crayons, and Korean writing book. In it, Su-ni had written that she wanted to be a good person like her father. This reminds Tae-ho of the promise he made to Su-ni, to be the best man she had ever known. He takes back the money and returns to the ship with a new zeal before they all go to save Kotani.

      Sullivan goes live, announcing the Mars program. The bomb has been armed in the factory, and Kotani is strapped to it on a chair. The team frees Kotani, but Jang discovers that the bomb cannot be defused. It will not only destroy anything in its blast range but also destroy any nanobots in the vicinity of 5,000 kilometers. The only way Kotani’s nanobots (and her life) can be saved is if she is out of range. The team sets off to fly 5,000 km away, but is interrupted by Soldier 01; Tiger fights her and ejects her from the factory. The team sends out a message to the rest of the Space Sweepers, who come to their aid, fighting the attacking troops. The population of Earth learns of Sullivan’s true goals when they hear him recount his plan through the Space Sweepers’ emergency comm channel. The Victory is intercepted by Sullivan himself, who tries to fight the crew to get back Kotani. When it seems they have lost the battle, Tiger and Tae-ho manage a final boost that puts the ship just out of the blast range. The crew reveals their real plan: Kotani was left safely behind with other Space Sweepers. The Victory had removed the bomb from the core and carried it away, ready to sacrifice their lives to save Earth and Kotani. The bomb explodes; however, Kotani has summoned the nanobots to protect the Victory, keeping the crew safe.

      In the aftermath of the battle, UTS apologizes for the cover-up of the true goals and promise to help make Earth more habitable. Kotani is adopted by the crew and, using her powers, enables Tae-Ho to say goodbye to Su-ni. Bubs get her skin graft. Tiger and Tae-Ho take Kotani down to Earth to help grow trees and they all continue space sweeping.

      Cast[edit]

      Song Jong-ki as Kim Tae-ho – Former Commander of the Space Guards and the first-ever UTS Genius.

      Kim Tae-Ri as Captain Jang / Jang Hyun-sook – Former Special Forces Squad officer who later deserted her post to create her pirate organization. She attempted to assassinate CEO James Sullivan in which her entire pirate crew was killed.

      Jin Seon-kyu as Tiger Park / Park Kyung-soo – Former Drug King who escaped Earth after being arrested and sentenced to death.

      Yoo Hai-jin as Robot Bubs – Former military robot trying to save up for her gender confirmation services

      Richard Armitage as James Sullivan – The CEO of UTS.

      Kim Mu-yell as Kang Hyeon-u – Kang Kotani’s father and a scientist.

      Park Ye-rim as Dorothy / Kang Kotani – First believed to be a robot, she is a human who was injected with nanobots by her father as a last resort to heal her.

      Kim Hyang-gi as Bubs’ new body

       

       

      Comment: an enjoyable dystopian story taking place in space after much of the earth is uninhabitable and a Mars colonization drive is launched.  Usual political and corporate corruption and rich people behaving badly.   The romance between the lead characters is hinted at but never resolved.  The child star is the future star in the making.  The dialogue was well done.   I enjoyed this one. End comment

       

      The Last Man Standing K Drama

       

       

      The Man Standing Next

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      The Man Standing Next
      South Korean theatrical release poster
      Hangul 남산의 부장들
      Hanja 南山의 部長들
      Directed by Woo Min-ho
      Screenplay by Woo Min-ho

      Lee Ji-min
      Produced by Kim Chula-Yong
      Starring Lee Byung-Hun

      Lee Sung-min

      Kwak Do-won

      Lee Hee-Joon
      Cinematography Go, Nakasone,
      Edited by Jeong Ji-eon
      Music by Jo Yeong-wok
      Production
      company      		 Hive Media Corp.
      Distributed by Showbox
      Release date 22 January 2020
      Running time 114 min
      Language Korean
      Budget $18 million
      Box office $34.7 million[1]

      The Man Standing Next (Korean: 남산의 부장들; Hanja: 南山의 部長들; RR: Nnamani bujangdeul; lit. Chiefs of Namsan) is a 2020 South Korean political drama film directed by Woo Min-ho. Based on an original novel of the same title, the film stars Lee Byung-Hun, Lee Sung-min, Kwak Do-won, and Lee Hee-Joon as the high ranking officials of the Korean government and the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) during the presidency of Park Chung-hee 40 days before his assassination in 1979.[2]

       

      Comment:  this one resonates with me.  My Korean adventures began in August 1979 a few months before the assassination that changed modern Korean history occurred.  I had just arrived in Korea and had finished up my training. We were due to go to our assignments but the assassination occurred and we were sent to Seoul to wait to see if Peace Corps Korea would be pulled out. We were cleared to go to our assignments in early November 1979.

      The drama hints at an alleged US CIA plot to take out Park Chung-hee. Not sure I believe that the US CIA had anything to do with it but perhaps we at least knew in advance and did nothing to stop it.   The drama was well done, well written, with great dialogue, and well reflects the tensions of the period.

      End Comment

      Mr. Sunshine

       

       

      DP

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

      A gripping drama based on true events about life in the Korean military and why some soldiers run away from their obligations amid the constant harassment and strict discipline of the Korean military. This drama hit a nerve among many Koreans who recall their trouble times in the military. The military has announced that they are discontinuing the DP unit but swore it had nothing to do with this drama.

       

       

      D.P. (TV series)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      D.P.
      Promotional poster
      Korean 디피
      Genre Drama

      Military
      Based on D.P Dog’s Day
      by Kim Bo-tong
      Screenplay by Kim Bo-tong

      Han Jun-hee
      Directed by Han Jun-hee
      Starring Jung Hae-in

      Koo Kyo-hwan

      Kim Sung-kyun

      Son Seok-Koo
      Composer Primary
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 6
      Production
      Executive producers Bien Seung-min

      Han Jun-hee
      Producer Kim Dong-min
      Cinematography Yoo Ji-sun
      Editor Park Min-sun
      Running time 45–55 minutes
      Production companies Climax Studio

      Shortcake
      Distributor Netflix
      Release
      Original network Netflix
      Original release August 27, 2021

      D.P. (an acronym for Deserter Pursuit) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Han Jun-hee, from a screenplay by Kim Bo-tong and Han, based on the Lashing webtoon D.P Dog’s Day by Kim. The series stars Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-kyun, and Son Seok-Koo.[1][2] It premiered in six parts on Netflix on August 27, 2021.[3][4]

      Synopsis[edit]

      Set in 2014, D.P. tells the story of a team of Korean military police with their mission to catch deserters.

      The series magnifies the undesirable nature of the military, especially within a South Korean context. The widespread bullying and hazing as well as the mindset for the “survival of the fittest” are rife, with those presumed the “weakest” thrown to the bottom of the pile and served horrifying experiences at the hands of their superiors and compatriots.

      Private Ahn Joon-ho and Corporal Han Ho-Yul both team up to find the deserters, and end up on an adventurous journey.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Jung Hae-in as Private Ahn Joon-ho

      Koo Kyo-hwan as Corporal Han Ho-Yul

      Kim Sung-Kyun as Sergeant First Class Park Bum-gu

      Son Seok-Koo as Captain Im Ji-sup

      Supporting[edit]

      Jo Hyun-churl as Jo Suk-bong

      Shin Seung-ho as Hwang Jang-soo

      Park Se-joon as Heo Ki-young

      Park Jung-woo as Shin Woo-suk

      Kim Dong-young as Choi Joon-mok

      Lee Jun-young as Jung Hyun-min

      Choi Joon-young as Heo Chi-do

      Moon Sang-hoon as Kim Roo-ri

      Hyun Bong-sik as Chun Yong-duck

      Hong Kyung as Ryu Yi-Kang

      Bae Yoo-ram as Kim Kyu

      Han Woo-Yul as Tae Sung-goon

      Guest[edit]

      Go Kyung-pyro as Corporal Park Sung-woo (Ep. 1)

      Kwon Hae-Hyo as Ahn Joon-ho’s father (Eps. 1, 3–4)

      Lee Seol as Shin Woo-Seok’s sister (Eps. 1 & 6)

      Lee Jong-ok as an hinoeuma employee (Ep. 2)

      Episodes[edit]

      No. Title Directed by Written by Original release date
      1 “A Man Holding Flowers” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
      2 “Daydream” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
      3 “That Woman” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
      4 “The Monty Hall Problem” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
      5 “Military Dog” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021
      6 “Onlookers” Han Jun-hee Kim Bo-tong & Han Jun-hee August 27, 2021

      Production[edit]

      Development[edit]

      In late June 2020, Lashing officially announced that Lashing Studio and Homemade Film would co-produce a 6-part adaptation of the hit webtoon D.P: Dog Days by Kim Bo-tong, to be released exclusively through Netflix.[5][6] The story is based on Kim’s own experience during his mandatory military service.[7]

      Director and co-writer Han Jun-hee had wanted to work on the webtoon’s adaptation “for five or six years [before he] finally got a chance” to do so.[8] Though Ahn Joon-ho is a Corporal in the webtoon, Han wanted him to be a Private in the series so people could “resonate with the story and consider Joon-ho as a friend who just started his military service.”[9]

      Casting[edit]

      On September 3, 2020, Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-Kyun, and Son Seok-Koo were confirmed to star in the series.[10][11] Koo’s character does not appear in the webtoon, which he found “hard but exciting to portray a character exclusive to the series.”[12] To prepare for his role, Koo received help from his road manager who was part of the D.P. team during his military service.[13] As for Jung, he practiced boxing for three months before filming began, to do his action scenes.[14]

      Kim Bo-tong, who wrote the webtoon and co-wrote the series, commented that he “never dreamed of such a cast. They fit so perfectly into their roles that it seems like the roles were written for them.”[15]

      Filming[edit]

      Principal photography began in the summer of 2020.[16]

      Reception[edit]

      Audience viewership[edit]

      Following its release, the series topped Netflix’s Top 10 in South Korea.[17]

      Critical response[edit]

      William Schwartz of Han Cinema praised Jung Hae-in‘s acting, commenting that he “is sublime here, in a brooding cinematic role radically different from the romances he’s better known for.” He added that “D.P. is worth watching, not just by people curious what South Korean mandatory military service is like, but anyone from any country who’s seriously thinking about joining up.”[18]

      Pierce Conran of the South China Morning Post gave the series a 4.5/5 rating, noting that “D.P. hits home with a story that spans the past and present, as it acknowledges that yesterday’s problems can still be today’s.” He also praised the cinematography as well as Jung and Koo’s “electric chemistry”.[19] Daniel Hart of Ready Steady Cut also rated the series 4.5 stars out of 5, describing it as “the finest K-Drama mini-series this year.”[20]

      Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek rated the series 4.3/5, noting that “D.P. is a stunning Korean drama [which] takes an unflinching look at bullying, the effect it has on mental health and larger societal questions about the mandatory military service in Korea” and praising the series for its “impressive” cinematography and for the way it “explore[s] a very sensitive and prevalent topic in a raw, artistic and unflinching way.”[21]

      In a mixed review, Hitzig Jumaine of NME gave the series a 3/5 rating, commenting that “Kim Bo-tong and Han Jun-hee must be given credit for how this series tackles such extraordinarily difficult and tragic subject matter with compassion and sensitivity”, and praising the “uniformly excellent performances, splendid cinematography, addictive pacing, and intrepid commitment to shedding light on the appalling culture of bullying in the military”, but criticizing the “weak characterization [of the] three main leads” as well as the “ludicrous escalation of events during its climax, which suddenly turns a fairly grounded show into a melodramatic action thriller.”[22]

       

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

       

      Squid Games

       

      The top show on Netflix is not only in the US but also in Korea.  Reminiscent of both the “Maze”,  the “Hunger Games”, and the” Cube “ but done in a K Drama way. And addictive!

       

       

      Squid Game

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      Squid Game
      Promotional poster
      Also known as Round Six
      Hangul 오징어게임
      Revised Romanization Owing-ego Gem
      McCune–Reischauer Jingo Kemi
      Genre Action–adventure

      Suspense

      Survival

      Drama
      Created by Netflix
      Written by Hwang Dong-hyuk
      Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk
      Starring Lee Jung-Jae

      Park Hae-soo

      Wi Ha-joon
      Composer Jung Jae-il
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 1
      No. of episodes 9 (list of episodes)
      Production
      Camera setup Multi-camera
      Running time 32–63 minutes
      Production company Siren Pictures Inc.[1]
      Distributor Netflix
      Release
      Original network Netflix
      Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

      Dolby visión
      Audio format Dolby Atmos
      Original release September 17, 2021

      Squid Game (Korean: 오징어게임; RR: Jingle Gem) is a South Korean survival drama streaming television series written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk. The nine-episode series, starring Lee Jung-Jae, Park Hae-soo, and Wi Ha-Joon, tells the story of a group of people who risk their lives in a mysterious survival game with a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.7 million) prize.[2][3] It was released worldwide on September 17, 2021, by Netflix.[4][5]

      Premise

      Four hundred and fifty-six people, who have all struggled financially in life, are invited to play a mysterious survival competition. Competing in a series of traditional children’s games but with deadly twists, they risk their lives to compete for a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.5 million) prize.

      Cast and characters

      This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
      Find sources: “Squid Game” – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (September 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

      Players

      Main characters[6]

      Lee Jung-Jae as Seong Gi-Hun (No. 456)[7]

      A chauffeur and a gambling addict, he lives with his mother and struggles to financially support his daughter. He participates in the Game to settle his many debts.

      Park Hae-soo as Cho Sang-woo (No. 218)

      The head of the investment team at a securities company, he was a junior to Gi-Hun, and was a gifted student who entered Seoul National University, but is now wanted by the police for stealing money from his clients.

      Oh Yeong-su as Oh Il-name (No. 001)

      An elderly man with a brain tumor prefers playing the Game to waiting to die on the outside.

      Hyeon Jung as Kang Sae-beak (No. 067)

      A North Korean defector enters the Game to pay for a broker that can find and retrieve her surviving family members from the country.

      Heo Sung-tea as Jang Deok-su (No. 101)

      A gangster enters the Game to settle his massive gambling debts.

      Anupam Tripathi as Abdul Ali (No. 199)

      A foreign worker from Pakistan enters the Game to provide for his young family after his employer refuses to pay him for months.

      Kim Joo-young as Han Mi-no (No. 212)

      A mysterious and manipulative woman who claims to be a poor single mother.[8]

      Supporting characters

      Yoo Sung-joo as Byeong-gi (No. 111)

      A doctor secretly works with a group of corrupt guards trafficking dead participants’ organs in exchange for information on upcoming games.

      Lee Yoo-mi as Ji-Yeong (No. 240)

      A young woman was just released from prison after killing her abusive father.

      Kim Si-Hyun as No. 244

      A pastor who finds his faith again in the Game.

      Minor characters

      Lee Sang-hee as No. 017

      A glass-maker with more than 30 years’ experience.

      Kim Yun-tea as No. 069

      A player who joins the Game with his wife, No. 070

      Lee Ji-ha as No. 070

      A player who joins the game with her husband, No. 069

      Kwak Ja-young as No. 278

      A player who joins Deok-sun’s group and acts as his henchman.

      Chris Chan / Chris Lag hit[9] as No. 276

      A player who joins Seong Gi-Hun’s group on the Tug of War round.

      Game staff

      Gong Yoo is a salesman who recruits participants for the Game (Special appearance, Episodes 1 and 9)[10]

      Lee Byung-Hun as The Front Man (Special appearance, Episodes 8–9)

      Civilians

      Main characters

      Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho[11]

      A police officer sneaks into the Game to find his missing brother.

      Supporting characters

      Kim Young-ok as Gi-Hun’s mother

      Cho Ah-in as Seong Ga-Yeong, Gi-Hun’s daughter

      Kang Mal-gum as Gi-Hun’s ex-wife and Ga-Yeong’s mother

      Park Hye-jin as Sang-woo’s mother

      Park Si-wan as Kang Cheol, Sae-book’s brother

      English cast (dubbing)

      Greg Chun as Seong Gi-Hun

      Stephen Fu as Cho Sang-woo

      Paul Nakache as Jang Deok-su

      Hideo Kimura as Oh Il-name

      Vivian Lu as Kang Sae-beak

      Rama Valéry as Abdul Ali

      Tom Choi as Front Man

      Donald Chang as Hwang Jun-ho

      Stephanie Komura as Han Mi-no

      Yuki Luna as Ji-yeong

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

       

      Move to Heaven is a heart-wrenching drama about a “Rain man” like character who worked with his father in a trauma clean-up business cleaning up after the recently deceased.  His father dies and his father’s deadbeat brother shows up as his guardian.

       

      Move to Heaven (Korean: 무브 투 헤븐: 나는 유품정리사입니다; RR: Mubeen to hereon: Naneun yupumjeongnisaimnida) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Kim Sung-ho and written by Yoon Ji-rye on. It is an original Netflix series, starring Lee Je-hoon, Tang Joon-sang, Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee. The series follows Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), a young man with Asperger syndrome, and Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon), his guardian. Working as trauma cleaners, they uncover untold stories.[1][2] The series was released worldwide by Netflix on May 14, 2021.[3]

       

       

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

      Another K Drama I liked was “Mad About You”.

      The acting was first-rate, the storyline intriguing, and covers some contemporary issues including adultery, cyberbullying, and the like.

      “About two people with their own painful stories who go through a complicated process of hurting and healing while falling in love with each other. No HI Oh is a detective in the violent crimes division of the Gangnam Police Station. He thinks that he is doing well until his life suddenly takes a turn and he becomes a “crazy” person who can’t hold in his anger about anything. Lee Min Kyung is a woman who is caught up in her delusions and compulsions. She had lived an ordinary life as a pretty woman with a respectable job until “that incident” caused everything in her life to break down. As a result, she was unable to trust anyone and is caught in a prison of her own making. Her delusions also have the unfortunate side effect of making everyone else around her angry. (Source: Suomi)”

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

       

      Heist – not a K Drama, more of an S Drama but pretty good, but went on too long.  Should have ended with the first season.  There were lots of unanswered questions –

       

      Who is behind the Professor?  Obviously could not have pulled it off himself. There are hints that he is connected to shadowy and Serbian forces and has some inside info from the police and security forces.

       

      The politics got a bit too left-wing conspiracy for my taste as well.

       

      Money Heist

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      Money Heist
      Spanish La casa de papal
      Genre Crime drama[1]

      Heist[2]

      Thriller[3]
      Created by Alex Pina
      Starring Úrsula Corbera

      Álvaro Morte

      Itziar Ituño

      Pedro Alonso

      Paco Tous

      Alba Flores

      Miguel Herrán

      Jaime Lorente

      Esther Acebo

      Enrique Arce

      María Pedraza

      Darlo Peri

      Kita Máncer

      Ovil Keuchkerian

      Luka peros

      Belén Cuesta

      Fernando Cayo

      Rodrigo de la Serna

      Najwa Nimr
      Theme music composer Manel Santisteban
      Opening theme “My Life Is Going On” by Cecilia Krull
      Composers Manel Santisteban

      Iván Martínez La cámara
      Country of origin Spain
      Original language Spanish
      No. of seasons 3 (5 parts)[a]
      No. of episodes 36 (list of episodes)
      Production
      Executive producers Álex Pina

      Sonia Martínez

      Jesús Colmenar

      Esther Martínez Lobato

      Nacho Manaban
      Production locations Spain

      Italy

      Thailand

      Panama

      Denmark

      Portugal
      Cinematography Miguel Amodeo
      Editors David Pelegrín

      Luis Miguel González Bedmar

      Verónica Callón

      Raúl Mora

      Regino Hernández

      Raquel Maraca

      Patricia Rubio
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 67–77 minutes (Antenna 3)
      41–61 minutes (Netflix)
      Production companies Transmedia

      Vancouver Media
      Distributor Antenna 3 Televisión

      Netflix
      Release
      Original network Antenna 3 (2017)

      Netflix (2019–present)
      Picture format 1080p (16:9 HDTV)

      4K (Ultra HD) (16:9 UHDTV)

      Dolby Vision
      Audio format Dolby Atmos
      Original release 2 May 2017 –
      present
      External links
      Website

      Money Heist (Spanish: La casa de papal, “The House of Paper”) is a Spanish heist crime drama television series created by Alex. The series traces two long-prepared heists led by the Professor (Álvaro Morten), one on the Royal Mint of Spain, and one on the Bank of Spain told from the perspective of one of the robbers, Tokyo (Ursula). The narrative is told in a real-time-like fashion and relies on flashbacks, time-jumps, hidden character motivations, and an unreliable narrator for complexity.

      The series was initially intended as a limited series to be told in two parts. It had its original run of 15 episodes on Spanish network Antena 3 from 2 May 2017 through 23 November 2017. Netflix acquired global streaming rights in late 2017. It re-cut the series into 22 shorter episodes and released them worldwide, beginning with the first part on 20 December 2017, followed by the second part on 6 April 2018. In April 2018, Netflix renewed the series with a significantly increased budget for 16 new episodes total. Part 3, with eight episodes, was released on 19 July 2019. Part 4, also with eight episodes, was released on 3 April 2020. A documentary involving the producers and the cast premiered on Netflix the same day, titled Money Heist: The Phenomenon (Spanish: La casa de papal: El Fennomen). In July 2020, Netflix renewed the show for a fifth and final part, which would be released in two five-episode volumes on 3 September and 3 December 2021, respectively. The series was filmed in Madrid, Spain. Significant portions were also filmed in Panama, Thailand, Italy (Florence), Denmark, and Portugal.

      The series received several awards including the International Emmy Award for Best Drama Series at the 46th International Emmy Awards, as well as critical acclaim for its sophisticated plot, interpersonal dramas, direction, and for trying to innovate Spanish television. The Italian anti-fascist song “Bella ciao“, which plays multiple times throughout the series, became a summer hit across Europe in 2018. By 2018, the series was the most-watched non-English-language series and one of the most-watched series overall on Netflix,[4] having particular resonance with viewers from Mediterranean Europe and the Latin American regions.

      Premise[edit]

      Set in Madrid, a mysterious man known as “The Professor” recruits a group of eight people, who choose city names as their aliases, to carry out an ambitious plan that involves entering the Royal Mint of Spain, and escaping with €984 million. After taking 67 people hostage inside the Mint, the team plans to remain inside for 11 days to print the money as they deal with elite police forces. In the events following the initial heist, the group’s members are forced out of hiding and prepare for a second heist, this time on the Bank of Spain, as they again deal with hostages and police forces.

      Cast and characters[edit]

      See also: List of Money Heist cast members

      Main[edit]

      Ursula Cordero as Silene Oliveira (Tokyo): a runaway turned robber who is scouted by the Professor, then joins his group and participates in his plans. She also acts as an unreliable narrator.

      Álvaro Morten as Sergio Marquita (The Professor) / Salvador “Salva” Martin: the mastermind of the heist who assembled the group, and Berlin’s younger brother

      Ritzier Ikuno as Raquel Murillo (Lisbon): an inspector of the National Police Corps who is put in charge of the case until she joins the group in part 3

      Pedro Alonso as Andrés de Foolscap (Berlin): a terminally ill jewel thief and the Professor’s second-in-command and older brother

      Paco Tous as Agustin Ramos (Moscow) (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–5): a former miner turned criminal and Denver’s father

      Alba Flores as Ágata Jiménez (Nairobi) (parts 1-4; featured part 5): an expert in counterfeiting and forgery, in charge of printing the money and oversaw the melting of gold

      Miguel Herren as Anibal Cortés (Rio): a young hacker who later becomes Tokyo’s boyfriend

      Jaime Lorene as Ricardo / Daniel[b] Ramos (Denver): Moscow’s son who joins him in the heist

      Esther Acerbo as Mónica Ketamide (Stockholm): one of the hostages who is Arturo Román’s secretary and mistress, carrying his child out of wedlock; during the robbery, she falls in love with Denver and becomes an accomplice to the group

      Enrique Arce as Arturo Román: a hostage and the former Director of the Royal Mint of Spain

      María Pedraza as Alison Parker (parts 1–2): a hostage and daughter of the British ambassador to Spain

      Darko Peri as Mirko Dragic (Helsinki): a veteran Serbian soldier and Oslo’s cousin

      Kite Manger as Marivic Fuentes (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): Raquel’s mother

      Horik Kircherian as Bogotá (parts 3–present): an expert in metallurgy who joins the robbery of the Bank of Spain

      Luka Pero’s as Jakob (Marseille; part 4–present; featured part 3): a member of the gang who joins the robbery of the Bank of Spain and serves as a liaison for the group.

      Belen Cuesta as Julia (Manila; part 4–present; featured part 3): godchild of Moscow and Denver’s childhood friend, now a trans woman, who joins the gang and poses as one of the hostages during the robbery of the Bank of Spain

      Fernando Kayo as Colonel Luis Tamayo (part 4–present; featured part 3): a member of the Spanish Intelligence who oversees Alicia’s work on the case

      Rodrigo de la Serna as Martín Berate (Palermo / The Engineer; parts 3–present): an old Argentine friend of Berlin who planned the robbery of the Bank of Spain with him and assumed his place as commanding officer

      Najwa Nimr as Alicia Sierra (parts 3–present): a pregnant inspector of the National Police Corps put in charge of the case after Raquel departed from the force

      Recurring[edit]

      Roberto García Ruiz as Dimitri Most’ve / Radka Dragic[c] (Oslo; parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): a veteran Serbian soldier and Helsinki’s cousin

      Fernando Soto as Angel Rubio (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–5): a deputy inspector and Raquel’s second-in-command

      Juan Fernández as Colonel Luis Prieto (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): a member of the Spanish Intelligence who oversees Raquel’s work on the case

      Anna Gras as Mercedes Colmenar (parts 1–2): Alison’s teacher and one of the hostages

      Fran Morcilla as Pablo Ruiz (part 1): Alison’s schoolmate and one of the hostages

      Clara Alvarado as Ariadne Cascades (parts 1–2): one of the hostages who works in the Mint

      Mario de la Rosa as Suárez: the chef o the Grupo Especial de Operaciones

      Miquel García Board as Alberto Vicuña (parts 1–2; featured part 4): Raquel’s ex-husband and a forensic examiner

      NAIA Gus as Paula Vicuña Murillo (parts 1–2; featured parts 3–4): Raquel and Alberto’s daughter

      José Manuel Pogan as César Gandía (parts 4–5; featured part 3): chief of security for the Bank of Spain who escapes from hostage and causes havoc for the group

      Antonio Romero as Benito Antonina’s (parts 3–5): an assistant to Colonel Luis Tamayo, who is persuaded by the Professor to do tasks for him

      Diana Gómez as Tatiana (featured parts 3–5): the fifth ex-wife of Berlin who is a professional pianist and thief

      Pep Munn as Mario Urbana (featured parts 3–5): the governor of the Bank of Spain

      Olalla Hernández as Amanda (featured parts 3–5): a hostage that Arturo rapes

      Mari Carmen Sánchez as Paquito (featured parts 3–5): a hostage and a nurse who tends to Nairobi while she recovers

      Carlos Suárez as Miguel Fernández (featured parts 3–5): a nervous hostage

      Adhikari Alcona as Matias Cano (featured parts 3–5): a member of the group who largely guards the hostages

      Ramón Aguirre as Benjamín (featured parts 4–5): father of Manila who aids the Professor in his plan

      Antonio García Ferrers as himself (featured parts 4–5): a journalist

      Patrick Cried as Rafael (featured part 5): Berlin’s son

      Alberto Amarilla as Ramiro (parte 5)

      Miguel Angel Silvestre (featured part 5): René, Tokyo’s boyfriend before working with the Professor

      José Manuel Seda as Segesta (part 5): leader of the army detail inside the bank

      Production[edit]

      Conception and writing[edit]

      Further information: § Themes and analysis

      We wanted to make a very small project simply; we wanted to cross lines we couldn’t cross in previous projects, in terms of narrative and structure without any intermediaries.

      —Writer Esther Martinez Lobato, October 2018[11]

      The series was conceived by screenwriter Alex and director Jesús Colmenar during their years of collaboration since 2008.[12] After finishing their work on the Spanish prison drama Locked Up (Vis a vis), they left Globo media to set up their own production company, named Vancouver Media, in 2016.[12][13] For their first project, they considered either filming a comedy or developing a heist story for television,[12] with the latter having never been attempted before on Spanish television.[14] Along with former Locked Up colleagues,[d] they developed Money Heist as a passion project to try new things without outside interference.[11] Pina was firm about making it a limited series, feeling that dilution had become a problem for his previous productions.[15]

      Initially entitled Los Desharious (The Evicted) in the conception phase,[15] the series was developed to subvert heist conventions and combine elements of the action genre, thrillers, and surrealism, while still being credible.[12] Pina saw an advantage over typical heist films in that character development could span a considerably longer narrative arc.[16] Characters were to be shown from multiple sides to break the viewers’ preconceptions of villainy and retain their interest throughout the show.[16] Key aspects of the planned storyline were written down at the beginning,[17] while the finer story beats were developed incrementally to not overwhelm the writers.[18] Writer Javier Gómez Santander compared the writing process to the Professor’s way of thinking, “going around, writing down options, consulting engineers whom you cannot tell why you ask them that,” but noted that fiction allowed the police to be written dumber when necessary.[18]

      The beginning of filming was set for January 2017,[14] allowing for five months of pre-production.[19] The narrative was split into two parts for financial considerations.[19] The robbers’ city-based code names, which Spanish newspaper ABC compared to the color-based code names in Quentin Tarantino‘s 1992 heist film Reservoir Dogs,[20] were chosen at random in the first part,[21] although places with high viewership resonance were also taken into account for the new robbers’ code names in part 3.[22] The first five lines of the pilot script took a month to write,[19] as the writers were unable to make the Professor or Moscow work as a narrator.[15] Tokyo as an unreliable narrator, flashbacks, and time-jumps increased the narrative complexity,[16] but also made the story more fluid for the audience.[19] The pilot episode required over 50 script versions until the producers were satisfied.[23][24] Later scripts would be finished once per week to keep up with filming.[19]

      Casting[edit]

      Casting took place late in 2016, spanning more than two months.[25] The characters were not fully fleshed out at the beginning of this process and took shape based on the actors’ performances.[26] Casting directors Eva Leora and Yolanda Serrano were looking for actors with the ability to play empathetic robbers with believable love and family connections.[27] Antenna 3 announced the ensemble cast in March 2017[3] and released audition excerpts of most cast actors in the series’ after show Terser Grado and on their website.[26]

      The Professor was designed as a charismatic yet shy villain who could convince the robbers to follow him and make the audience sympathetic to the robbers’ resistance against the powerful banks.[28] However, developing the Professor’s role proved difficult, as the character did not follow archetypal conventions[25] and the producers were uncertain about his degree of brilliance.[15] While the producers found his Salva personality early on,[15] they were originally looking for a 50-year-old Harvard professor type with the looks of Spanish actor José Coronado.[15][29] The role was proposed to Javier Gutiérrez, but he was already committed to starring in the film Campeones.[30] Meanwhile, the casting directors advocated for Álvaro Morten, whom they knew from their collaboration on the long-running Spanish soap opera El Secretor de Puente Viejo, even though his prime-time television experience was limited at that point.[29] Going through the full casting process and approaching the role through external analysis rather than personal experience, Morten described the professor as “a tremendous box of surprises” that “end up shaping this character because he never ceases to generate uncertainty,” making it unclear for the audience if the character is good or bad.[25] The producers also found that his appearance as a primary school teacher gave the character more credibility.[15]

      Pedro Alonso was cast to play Berlin, whom La Vos de Galicia would later characterize as a “cold, hypnotic, sophisticated and disturbing character, an inveterate macho with serious empathy problems, a white-collar thief who despises his colleagues and considers them inferior.”[31] The actor’s portrayal of the character was inspired by a chance encounter Alonso had the day before receiving his audition script, with “an intelligent person” who was “provocative or even manipulative” to him.[32] Alonso saw high observation skills and an unusual understanding of his surroundings in Berlin, resulting in unconventional and unpredictable character behavior.[31] Similarities between Berlin and Nimr’s character Zulema in Pina’s TV series Locked Up were unintentional.[33] The family connection between the Professor and Berlin was not in the original script but was built into the characters’ backstory at the end of part 1 after Morten and Alonso had repeatedly proposed to do so.[34]

      The producers found the protagonist and narrator, Tokyo, among the hardest characters to develop,[19] as they were originally looking for an older actress to play the character who had nothing to lose before meeting the Professor.[26] Ursula Cordero eventually landed the role for bringing playful energy to the table; her voice was heavily factored in during casting, as she was the first voice the audience hears in the show.[26] Jaime Lorene developed Denver’s hallmark laughter during the casting process.[26] Two cast actors had appeared in previous TV series by Alex Pina: Paco Tous (Moscow) had starred in the 2005 TV series Los hombres de Paco, and Alba Flores (Nairobi) had starred in Locked Up. Flores was asked to play Nairobi without audition when Pina realized late in the conception phase that the show needed another female gang member.[15] For the role opposite to the robbers, strop was cast to play Inspector Raquel Murillo, whom Ikuno described as a “strong and powerful woman in a world of men, but also sensitive in her private life”.[35] She took inspiration from The Silence of the Lambs character Clarice Starling, an FBI student with a messy family life who develops sympathies for a criminal.[36]

      The actors learned of the show’s renewal by Netflix before the producers contacted them to return.[37] In October 2018, Netflix announced the cast of part 3; the returning main cast included Pedro Alonso, raising speculation about his role in part 3.[38] Among the new cast members were Argentine actor Rodrigo de la Serna, who saw a possible connection between his character’s name and the Argentine football legend Martín Palermo,[39] and Locked Up star Najwa Nimr. Cameo scenes of Brazilian football star, and fan of the series, Neymar, as a monk were filmed for part 3, but were excluded from the stream without repercussions to the narrative until judicial charges against him had been dropped in late August 2019.[40][18] A small appearance by Spanish actress Belen in two episodes of part 3 raised fan and media speculation about her role in part 4.[41]

      Design[edit]

      Spanish Surrealist painter Salvador Dalí was chosen as the heist team’s mask design.

      The show’s look and atmosphere were developed by creator Alex Pina, director Jesús Colmenar, and director of photography Miguel Amodeo, according to La Vanguard “the most prolific television trio in recent years”.[42] Abdon Alaniz served as art director.[43] Their collaboration projects usually take a primary color as a basis;[43] Money Heist had red as “one of the distinguishing features of the series”[44] that stood over the gray sets.[45] Blue, green and yellow were marked as forbidden colors in production design.[45] To achieve “absolute film quality”, red tones were tested with different types of fabrics, textures, and lighting.[46] The iconography of the robbers’ red jumpsuits mirrored the yellow prison dress code in Locked Up.[44] For part 3, the Italian retail clothing company Diesel modified the red jumpsuits to better fit the body and launched a clothing line inspired by the series.[45] Salvador Dalí was chosen as the robbers’ mask design because of Dalí’s recognizable visage that also serves as an iconic cultural reference to Spain; Don Quixote as an alternative mask design was discarded.[47] This choice sparked criticism by the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation for not requesting the necessary permissions.[27]

      To make the plot more realistic, the producers requested and received advice from the national police and the Spanish Ministry of Interior.[48][49] The robbers’ banknotes were printed with permission of the Bank of Spain and had an increased size as an anti-counterfeit measure.[48] The greater financial backing of Netflix for part 3 allowed for the build of over 50 sets across five basic filming locations worldwide.[50] Preparing a remote and uninhabited island in Panama to represent a robber hide-out proved difficult, as it needed to be cleaned, secured, and built on, and involved hours-long traveling with material transportation.[46] The real Bank of Spain was unavailable for visiting and filming for security reasons, so the producers recreated the Bank on a two-level stage by their imagining, taking inspiration from Spanish architecture of the Francisco Franco era.[46] Publicly available information was used to make the Bank’s main hall set similar to the reallocation. The other interior sets were inspired by different periods and artificially aged to accentuate the building’s history.[50] Bronze and granite sculptures and motifs from the Valle de Los Ciaos were recreated for the interior,[46] and over 50 paintings were painted for the Bank to emulate the Ateneo de Madrid.[50]

      Filming[edit]

      The Spanish National Research Council headquarters, the principal filming location of parts 1 and 2 of Money Heist

      The Nuevo’s, the principal filming location of part 3 of Money Heist

      Parts 1 and 2 were filmed back-to-back in the greater Madrid region from January until August 2017.[23][25][51] The pilot episode was recorded in 26 days,[48] while all other episodes had around 14 filming days.[16] Production was split into two units to save time, with one unit shooting scenes involving the Professor and the police, and the other filming scenes with the robbers.[19] The main storyline is set in the Royal Mint of Spain in Madrid, but the exterior scenes were filmed at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) headquarters for its passing resemblance to the Mint,[48] and on the roof of the Higher Technical School of Aeronautical Engineers, part of the Technical University of Madrid.[51] The hunting estate where the robbers plan their coup was filmed at the Finca El Gascon farm estate in Terrebonne.[51] Interior filming took place at the former Locked Upsets in Colmenar Viejo[13] and the Spanish national daily newspaper ABC in Torreon for printing press scenes.[23] As the show was designed as a limited series, all sets were destroyed once the production of part 2 had finished.[19]

      Parts 3 and 4 were also filmed back-to-back,[52] with 21 to 23 filming days per episode.[16] Netflix announced the start of filming on 25 October 2018,[28] and filming of part 4 ended in August 2019.[53] In 2018, Netflix had opened their first European production hub in Tres Cantos near Madrid for new and existing Netflix productions;[54] the main filming moved there onto a set three times the size of the set used for parts 1 and 2.[55] The main storyline is set in the Bank of Spain in Madrid, but the exterior was filmed at the Ministry of Development complex Nuevos Minister iOS.[55] A scene where money is dropped from the sky was filmed at Callao Square.[51] Ermita de San Fritos in Car rascal served as the exterior of the Italian monastery where the robbers plan the heist.[45] The motorhome scenes of the Professor and Lisbon were filmed at the deserted Las Salinas beaches in Almería to make the audience feel that the characters are safe from the police although their exact location is undisclosed at first.[56] Underwater scenes inside the vault were filmed at Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom.[22][57] The beginning of part 3 was also filmed in Thailand, on the Guna Yale islands in Panama, and in Florence, Italy,[46] which helped to counter the claustrophobic feeling of the first two parts,[16] but was also an expression of the plot’s global repercussions.[58] Filming for the fifth and final season concluded on 14 May 2021.[59]

      Music[edit]

      Main article: Money Heist (soundtrack)

      The series theme song, “My Life Is Going On,” was composed by Manel Santisteban, who also served as composer on Locked Up. Santisteban approached Spanish singer, Cecilia Krull, to write and perform the lyrics, which are about having confidence in one’s abilities and the future.[60] The theme song is played behind a title sequence featuring paper models of major settings from the series.[60] Krull’s main source of inspiration was the character Tokyo in the first episode of the series when the Professor offers her a way out of a desperate moment.[61] The lyrics are in English as the language that came naturally to Krull at the time of writing.[61]

      The Italian anti-fascist song “Bella ciao” plays multiple times throughout the series and accompanies two emblematic key scenes: at the end of the first part the Professor and Berlin sing it in preparation for the heist, embracing themselves as resistance against the establishment,[62] and in the second part it plays during the thieves’ escape from the Mint, as a metaphor for freedom.[63] Regarding the use of the song, Tokyo recounts in one of her narrations, “The life of the Professor revolved around a single idea: Resistance. His grandfather, who had fought against the fascists in Italy, taught him the song, and he taught us.”[63] The song was brought to the show by writer Javier Gómez Santander. He had listened to “Bella ciao” at home to cheer him up, as he had grown frustrated for not finding a suitable song for the middle of part 1.[18] He was aware of the song’s meaning and history and felt it represented positive values.[18] “Bella ciao” became a summer hit in Europe in 2018, mostly due to the popularity of the series and not the song’s grave themes.[

       

      Move to Heaven

       

      Synopsis[edit]

      Move to Heaven is inspired by the essay “Things Left Behind” by Kim Sae-buy, a former “trauma cleaner”. Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), who has Asperger syndrome, and his ex-convict uncle Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon) meet for the first time after the sudden death of Geu-ru’s father. Entrusted as Geu-ru’s guardian, Sang-gu joins his nephew to help run the family trauma cleaning company “Move to Heaven”, wherein the course of business they uncover untold stories about the deceased while Sang-gu tries to deal with his painful past with Geu-ru’s father as well as the traumatic incident that landed him in jail.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Lee Je-hoon is Cho Sang-gu,[4] an ex-convict and Geu-ru’s estranged uncle who becomes his guardian upon release from jail. He is blunt, smokes cigarettes, and moonlights as an underground MMA fighter. He was sent to jail after putting his protégé Su-Cheol into a coma during a fight. Despite his background, he is still entrusted to take care of Geu-ru after his release and is instructed to stay and work with Geu-ru for a three-month probationary period. Although he initially does so for financial gain and appears to be ignorant of Geu-ru’s condition, he slowly gets to know Geu-ru as they both work together as trauma cleaners for Move to Heaven, gaining a new outlook on life and allowing him to discover the truth about his half-brother and Geu-ru’s father Jeong-woo, who he believes had abandoned him when he was still very young.

      Tang Joon-sang as Han Geu-ru,[5] a 20-year-old with Asperger syndrome who works as a trauma cleaner for Move to Heaven, over which he took following his father’s death. He is smart, has an incredible memory, and is extremely logical, abilities which he uses to uncover untold stories about the deceased through the collection of their important personal belongings. Following his father’s practice, Geu-ru places the deceased’s most important belongings in a yellow box, which he always insists on handing over to the next of kin; if they cannot be readily found or are unwilling to receive the box, Geu-ru always tries to find a way to pass it on regardless, often to Sang-gu’s consternation. Geu-ru also has a minor obsession with fish and marine life, since his parents regularly brought him to a giant aquarium as a child, and he continues to do so as an adult. When he feels panicked, Geu-ru recites facts about fish to calm himself. Despite his condition, there are a lot of people surrounding him who understand his situation and try their best to help him and make him feel comfortable.

      Supporting[edit]

      Ji Jin-hee is Han Jeong-woo, Geu-ru’s father, and Sang-gu’s older half-brother, who shares the same mother with him. He was the founder and owner of Move to Heaven before his sudden death from cardiac arrest. Previously a firefighter in Busan, he rescued an abandoned infant, whom he and his wife later adopted and named Geu-ru. After her passing, he taught Geu-ru everything about life and his job as a trauma cleaner but kept his heart condition secret from him. He also treated Sang-gu like his own brother, but after Sang-gu’s father died and Jeong-woo inadvertently abandoned him, they became estranged until Su-Cheol tried to reunite them at his last fight. Although Sang-gu refuses to see him when he tries to visit him in jail, Jeong-woo still entrusts his son’s future care to him.

      Kim Ju-Yeon is Min Ji-won, Jeong-woo’s wife and Geu-ru’s mother, who died from cancer when he was a child.

      Lee Moon-Sik is Park Joo-take, a waste disposal truck driver and a friend of Jeong-woo. He is a close partner of Move to Heaven who helps them collect the unusable garbage left by the deceased. A North Korean defector, he is amazed by Move to Heaven’s work and always prioritizes them when they need his service.

      Im Won-hee as Oh Hyun-change, a lawyer, and a partner of Move to Heaven. He was assigned by Jeong-woo to contact Sang-gu when he got discharged from prison and explains to Geu-ru and Na-mu the guardianship arrangement with Sang-gu.

      Hong Seung-hee as Yoon Na-mu,[6] Geu-ru’s best friend and neighbor who joins and helps him run Move to Heaven after she becomes suspicious of Sang-gu’s sudden presence in Geu-ru’s life. However, her mother disapproves of her working as a trauma cleaner, and she does so in secret. She has been fond and protective of Geu-ru since they first met when they were kids and is willing to take good care of him.

      Hong Seok is Park Jun-Yeong,[7] a policeman and friend of Han Geu-ru and Yoon Na-mu. He is usually seen attending crime scenes where clean-up by Move to Heaven is required and is their first contact when the pair needs the help of the police. Like Na-mu, he understands Geu-ru’s condition and tries his best to help him. It is hinted that he has feelings toward Yoon Na-mu.

      Jung Young-Joo as Oh Mi-ran, Na-mu’s mother. She runs a small takeaway shop, located against Move to Heaven, with her husband. She disapproves of both her daughter’s friendship with Geu-ru and her working for Move to Heaven.

      Lee Jae-wook as Kim Su-cheol,[8] Sang-gu’s friend and protégé. 10 years ago, Sang-gu helped him out when he was beaten up by street thugs, inspiring Su-Cheol to become a fighter and eventually becoming a champion boxer himself. After several years, he told Sang-gu that he wanted to retire from boxing so he could start a new life running a supply shop with his father and sister. Unfortunately, he ended up being forced to participate in a rigged underground MMA fight against Sang-gu to get the money to do so. During the fight, after Su-Cheol refused to concede, Sang-gu violently knocked him out, putting him into a coma, and Sang-gu was sent to jail for it. Sang-gu visits a still-comatose Su-Cheol in hospital after his release, but he passes away soon after. Sang-gu later discovers Su-Cheol was suffering from CTE, which was his real reason for retirement.

      Park Jung-Won is Kim Su-jin, Su-school’s younger sister.

      Jung Ae-Youn as Madam Jung, an associate of Sang-gu and an underground MMA fight organizer. She organized the fight between him and Su-Cheol and, after his release from jail, persuades Sang-gu to continue fighting for her.

      Choi Soo-young as Son Woo-rim,[9] a social worker who helps lonely citizens who don’t have any other family. She first crosses paths with Move to Heaven when they attend to the home of an elderly couple who have committed suicide together, and later contacts them to take care of Matthew Green’s belongings. Sang-gu appears to have a crush on her.

      Guest appearance[edit]

      Shin Soo-oh as Kim Yong-woo,[10] a murder suspect. (Episode 4)

      Yoon Ji-Hye as Lee Ju-Yeong, a public prosecutor. (Episode 4, 10)

      Kwon Soo-Hyun as Soo-Hyun,[11] a doctor. (Episode 5)

      Lee Ki-young is Soo-Hyun’s father, a decorated military officer. (Episode 5)

      Jung Dong-hwan is Kim In-su, an elderly man who commits suicide alongside his wife. (Episode 6)

      Yoon Joo-sang as Chairman No (episode 6)

      Yoo Sun is Kang Eun-Jeong, a newscaster. When she was a teenager, her parents fostered Korean children who were to be adopted by overseas couples. (Episode 9)

      Kevin Oh as Matthew Green, a deportee from the United States looking for his birth mother, whom he believes to be Kang Eun-Jeong. His birth name is Kang Seong-min. (episode 9)

      Lee Re as “butterfly girl”[12] (episode 10)

      Production[edit]

      Development[edit]

      In September 2019, it was reported that Kim Sung-ho would direct a series for Netflix, the story of which is inspired by an essay “Things Left Behind” by Kim Sae-buy, a former “trauma cleaner”.[13]

      Casting[edit]

      On 17 December 2019, Netflix confirmed the lead casting of Lee Je-hoon and Tang Jun-sang for the series.[5] On June 3, 2020, Netflix confirmed that Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee are to join the cast of the series.[1]

      Filming[edit]

      As the infection due to the COVID-19 pandemic was reported, the production of Move to Heaven, along with other Netflix original dramas, was stopped in late August 2020.[14] On February 25, 2021, Netflix announced its plans and timeline for forthcoming projects including Move to Heaven.[15] On February 25, 2021, new stills from the TV series were released.[16]

      Release[edit]

      The series was released on Netflix on May 14, 2021. All 10 episodes, each with a running time of around 45 to 60 minutes, are available for streaming. It became the 11th South Korean Netflix original series released on Netflix.[17]

      Reception[edit]

      Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek, rating the series 9 out of 10, opined that the series is a beautiful message conveyed through unique characters. Wheeler praised the performance of Tang Jun-sang, writing “Tang Joon-Snag’s acting is nothing short of extraordinary…” He also praised the soundtrack and wrote that it was “absolutely on-point.” In summary, he said, “With excellent acting, tightly written chapters and a careful, respectful and empowering view on death, Move to Heaven is a cleverly written and unique Korean drama”, and concluded by saying that the show was an “…absolute must-watch this year. Just be sure to have a pack of tissues ready to catch those tears!”.[18] Rhian Daly of NME also praised the series, awarding it 5 out of 5 stars, and called it a contender for one of 2021’s best shows.[19]

       

       

      Mr. Kim’s convenience

       

      Kim’s Convenience

      cbc.ca/Kim’s convenience

      Kim’s Convenience is a Canadian television sitcom that premiered on CBC Television in October 2016. It depicts the Korean Canadian Kim family that runs a convenience store in the Moss Park neighborhood of Toronto: parents “Papa” and “Umma” – Korean for dad and mom, respectively – along with their daughter Janet and estranged son Jung. Wikipedia

      Developed by: Ins Choi, Kevin White

      Starring: Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Jean Yoon, Andrea Bang, Simu Liu, Andrew Phung, Nicole Power

      Country of origin: Canada

       

      Comment:

      Not exactly a typical K drama.  It takes place in Canada and depicts the life of a Korean immigrant family running a convenience store in Toronto.  Well, done. Good acting, and storylines.

      End comment

      Yet to Watch

       

      Minuri Movie

       

      Minami (Korean: 미나리 [mina], transl. ”water celery“) is a 2020 American drama film written and directed by Lee Isaac Chung. It stars Steven Yuen, Han Ye-ri, Alan Kim, Noel Kate Cho, Youn Yoh-Jung, and Will Patton. A semi-autobiographical take on Chung’s upbringing, the plot follows a family of South Korean immigrants who try to make it in the rural United States during the 1980s.[6]

      Minami had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020, winning both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award.[7] It began a one-week virtual release on December 11, 2020, and was released theatrically and via virtual cinema on February 12, 2021, by A24.

      The film received critical acclaim, with many declaring it one of the best films of 2020. It earned six nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Score, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (Yuen), and Best Supporting Actress (Youn), with Youn winning for her performance, making her the first Korean to win an Academy Award for acting. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, and earned six nominations at the 74th British Academy Film Awards, including Best Film Not in the English Language.

      Plot[edit]

      In 1983, the Korean immigrant Yi family moves from California to their new plot of land in rural Arkansas, where Father Jacob hopes to grow Korean produce to sell to vendors in Dallas. One of his first decisions is to decline the services of a water diviner and he digs a well in a spot he finds on his own. He enlists the help of Paul, an eccentric local man, and Korean War veteran. While Jacob is optimistic about the life ahead, his wife Monica is disappointed and worries about their son David’s heart condition; he is frequently told not to run due to this. Jacob and Monica work sexing chicks at the nearby hatchery and argue constantly while David and his sister Anne eavesdrop.

      To help watch the children during the day, they arrange for Monica’s mother Soon-JA to travel from South Korea. David, who is forced to share a room with her, avoids her because she does not conform to his idea of how a grandmother should be. Still, Soon-ja attempts to adjust to life in the States and bond with the children. The well that Jacob dug runs dry. Jacob is reluctant to pay for county water but eventually is forced to do so. He runs into additional difficulties, such as the vendor in Dallas canceling their order at the last minute. Even so, he perseveres despite Monica’s vocal desire to return to California. This brings their marriage closer to the breaking point.

      Meanwhile, Soon-JA takes David to plant Minami seeds by the creek. She tells them how resilient and useful the plant is, and predicts plentiful growth. David finally begins to warm to his grandmother after she teaches him Hanabusa, bandages his wounds, and soothes him to sleep. Soon-ja also encourages him to do more physical activity, something his parents discourage, but she says that he is stronger than they think. Soon-ja suddenly suffers a stroke overnight. She survives with medical treatment but is left with impaired movement and speech.

      Jacob, Monica, Anne, and David head to Oklahoma City for David’s heart appointment and to meet a vendor to sell Jacob’s produce. Although they learn that David’s heart condition has dramatically improved and Jacob makes a deal to sell vegetables to a Korean grocer, Jacob also indirectly admits to Monica that the success of his crops is more important to him than the stability of their family. Following an emotional argument, the two tacitly agree to separate.

      However, Soon-ja accidentally sets the barn containing the produce on fire in their absence. Upon arriving home, Jacob rushes in to save the crops, and Monica soon follows. Eventually, the fire grows out of control, and they decide to save each other while leaving the barn to burn. A distraught and confused Soon-ja begins to wander off into the distance, as Anne and David call for her to come back. Seeing that she is not responding to them, David breaks into a sprint to meet her, blocking her path. Soon-ja seems to recognize David for a moment and reaches for his hand and the grandchildren lead her back home. The family is asleep on the floor, collapsed from the fatigue of the night before. Above them, Soon-ja is awake, in a chair, watching them sleep with a subdued expression.

      Sometime later, Jacob and Monica are with the water diviner who finds a spot for a well. They mark it with a stone signifying their intention to stay on the farm. Jacob and David then head to the creek to harvest the minaret, which had grown successfully, with Jacob noting how good a spot Soon-ja had picked to plant them.

      Cast[edit]

      Steven Yuen as Jacob Yi

      Han Ye-ri as Monica Yi

      Alan Kim as David Yi

      Noel Kate Cho as Anne Yi (Ji-young, Korean: 지영)

      Youn Yoh-jung as Soon-ja (Korean: 순자)

      Will Patton as Paul

      Scott Haze as Billy

      Jacob Wade as Johnnie

       

      Comment: Won best supporting actress Oscar.

      End comment

       

      Sky Castle

      Sky Castle (Korean: SKY 캐슬; RR: SKY Kassel; stylized as SKY Castle[a]) is a 2018–2019 South Korean television series starring Yum Jung-ah, Lee Tae-ran, Yoon Se-ah, Oh Na-ra and Kim Seo-Hyung. It aired on JTBC on Fridays and Saturdays, from November 23, 2018, to February 1, 2019.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

      Sky Castle is the second-highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history.[10] The drama received positive reviews from critics and won multiple awards, including four at the 55th Buesking Arts Awards.

      Synopsis[edit]

      A satirical series that closely looks at the materialistic desires of the upper-class parents in South Korea and how they ruthlessly secure the successes of their families at the cost of destroying others’ lives. The drama revolves around the lives of housewives residing in a luxurious residential area called SKY Castle in suburban Seoul, where wealthy doctors and professors live. The wives are determined to make their husbands more successful and to raise their children to be top students,[5] who will be accepted at the best universities, so they use every possible way to get that.[11]

      Han Seo-jin (Yum Jung-ah) is married to an ambitious doctor, Kang Joon-sang (Jung Joon-ho). She wants her eldest daughter, Kang Ye-seo (Kim Hye-Joon), to also become a doctor. To do that, she hires Kim Joo-young (Kim Seo-Hyung), a coordinator with a one hundred percent success rate when it comes to her students’ admission to the Seoul National University.

      No Seung-Hye (Yoon Se-ah) is the wife of Cha Min-hyuk (Kim Byung-Chula), a perfectionist law professor. She does not like the way her husband teaches their twin sons, Cha Seo-Joon (Kim Dong-hee) and Cha Ki-Joon (Jo Byeong-kyu). Later it is revealed that their daughter, Cha Se-ri (Park Yoo-Na), who has always been Min-Hyun’s pride since she attends Harvard University, hides something from them.

      Jin Jin-hee (Oh Na-ra) is the mother of Woo Soo-Han (Lee Eugene). She wants her son to be like her husband, Woo Yang-woo (Jo Jae-Yoon), which means becoming a doctor. She befriends Seo-jin to get information and to achieve a perfect career and education for her family.

      Following the suicide of Lee Myung-Joo (Kim Jung-nan), mother of Park Young-Jae (Song Geon-hee), who was a former student of Joo-young and recently admitted to the Seoul National University, Lee Soo-im (Lee Tae-ran)’s family moves into the SKY Castle. Her husband, Hwang Chi-young (Choi Won-young), works at the same hospital as Joon-sang and Yang-woo, and her son, Hwang Woo-Joo (Kang Chang-hee), attends the same school as Ye-seo. Her family often clashes with the other residents due to their differences in opinions.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Yum Jung-ah as Han Seo-jin/Kwak Mi-hyang[12]

      An overzealous mother who wants nothing more than her daughter to get into Seoul National Medical University. She hides her past from everyone except her husband and in-laws who knew that she grew up poor with an alcoholic father who sold oxblood and offal. She is the mother of Kang Ye-seo and Kang Ye-bin; the wife of Kang Joon-sang and daughter-in-law of Madame Yoon.

      Lee Tae-ran as Lee Soo-im[12]

      A new member of the neighborhood disapproves of the other parents’ methods for getting their kids to university, believing it is too harsh. She is disliked by the other parents for disrupting the status quo. She knows who Seo-jin is, as she knew her from when they were younger. She is the most down-to-earth out of all mothers in the complex and the only mother who is a stepmother. She is the stepmother of Hwang Woo-Joo; and the wife of Hwang Chi-young.

      Yoon Se-ah as No Seung-Hye[12]

      A woman who befriends Soo-im, and starts to look down on how the other moms treat everyone and their kids. She changes her ways and becomes protective of her sons from their father’s harsh teaching methods. She is the mother of Cha Se-ri, Cha Seo-Joon, and Cha Ki-Joon. She is the wife of Cha Min-hyuk

      Oh Na-ra as Jin Jin-hee[12]

      A friend of Seo-jin tries to get her child to do everything with Seo-jinn’s daughter so he can be successful. She bribes Seo-jin with gifts into trusting her with information. But she finds it difficult to keep secrets. Her loyalty changes easily as well depending on who she is with. She is the mother of Woo Soo-Han and the wife of Woo Yang-woo.

      Kim Seo-Hyung as Kim Joo-young[13]

      She is a well-known tutor only accessible to the elite and only caters to two students at a time. Because of her 100% success rate in getting students accepted, Seo-jin was determined to hire her as her daughter’s tutor. She tutored Young-Jae and Ye-seo. She hides a past that she tries to escape from. She has a daughter, Kay, or Katherine, who was an acclaimed genius when they lived in Fairfax.

      Supporting[edit]

      Kang family[edit]

      Jung Joon-ho as Kang Joon-sang[14]

      Seo-jinn’s husband. Doctor of the Joo-Nam University Hospital. He holds Min-hyuk in absolute contempt and delights in the latter’s misfortunes. He is very ambitious and is obsessed with maintaining a good track record to elevate his status in the hospital. He will stop at nothing to get rivals out of the way.

      Kim Hye-yoon as Kang Ye-seo

      Seo-jinn’s elder daughter. Her dream is to enter Seoul National University‘s medical faculty and be a third-generation doctor. She is very impulsive and is as determined as her father in achieving her goals. She has feelings for Woo-Joo.

      Lee Ji-won as Kang Ye-bin[15]

      Seo-jinn’s younger daughter. She is cynical and often clashes with her sister and believes her parents only care for her sister. She, however, gets along well with the other children in the complex and is the first one in the family to warm up to Hye-nab

      Jung Ae-Ri as Madame Yoon

      Joon-sing’s mother-in-law. She is the one who pushed Seo-jin to bring Ye-seo to the top to have a third-generation doctor in the family.

      Hwang family[edit]

      Choi Won-young as Hwang Chi-young[14]

      Soo-Kim’s husband. Doctor of the Joo-Nam University Hospital. Rival of Joon-sang. He grew up at an orphanage that was owned by Soo-i’s parents. He was married to Woo-Jono’s real mother, but after she passed away, he remarried Soo-im.

      Kang Chan-hee as Hwang Woo-joo[14]

      Soo-i’s step-son is treated like her own son. He likes Hye-na and is liked by Ye-seo. A kind student who always helps other students that have difficulties.

      Cha family[edit]

      Kim Byung-churl as Cha Min-hyuk[14]

      Seung-Hye’s husband. A law school lecturer and former prosecutor. He is strict with his children and holds very high expectations of them, especially academically.

      Park Yoo-Na as Che Se-ri[16]

      Seung-Hye’s daughter. She is the MD of a nightclub. She lied about being a Harvard University student and got caught.

      Kim Dong-hee as Cha Seo-joon[17]

      Seung-Hye’s elder son; twin of Ki-Joon. A classmate of Woo-Joo. Even though he is calmer than his younger twin, he strongly dislikes his father’s method of teaching and studying.

      Jo Byung-guy as Cha Ki-joon[18]

      Seung-Hye’s younger son; twin of Seo-Joon. He likes to play tricks on Ye-seo. He strongly dislikes his father’s method of teaching and studying.

      Woo family[edit]

      Jo Jae-yoon as Woo Yang-woo[14]

      Jin-hee’s husband. An Orthopedic surgeon. He is very obedient to Kang Joon-sang but behind him, he admires Hwang Chi-young.

      Lee Eugene as Woo Soo-Han

      Jin-hee’s son. He is not interested in studying but still tries his best under huge academic pressure. Soo-Han has a crush on Ye-bin.

      People around Joo-young[edit]

      Lee Hyun-jin as Jo Tae-Jun [19]

      Secretary of Joo-young. Originally met when he sabotaged Kim Joo-young’s husband’s car for her in Fairfax.

      Jo Mi-nyao as Kay/Katherine

      Kim Joo-young’s daughter. Mentally ill cause by Kim Joo-young sabotaging her father’s car, causing a serious accident leading to her brain damage. Implied to have savant syndrome.

      Others[edit]

      Kim Bo-ra as Kim Hye-na[20]

      Sin-ah Secondary School student. She is treated as an enemy by Ye-seo. She has a mutual feeling with Hwang Woo-Joo. She is the daughter of Kang Joon-sang and Kim Eun-Hye, yet he does not acknowledge her until after her death.[21] (Eps 2, 4-15)

      A former resident of Sky Castle committed suicide after her son runs away to his secret girlfriend.

      Myung-Jono’s son. After his mother’s death, he wants to reconcile with his father, Park Soo-Chang.

      Myung-Jono’s husband and Young-Jae’s father. At first, he’s harsh toward Young-Jae but after his wife’s death he wants to reconcile with Young-Jae

      Young Jae’s girlfriend. She is 6 years older than him and hired as a housekeeper by Myung-Joo, coming from a low-class family. Myung-Joo disapproved of her status and her relationship with Young-Jae.

       

      -4)

      Comment:

      this drama centers upon the lengths to which families will go to get their kids into the SKY castle – Seoul, Korea or Yonsei University in Seoul which is the ticket to the upper class in a status-conscious South Korea.  For most children, the route to the top consists of undergraduate degrees at one of the SKY universities (actually the top five) then a graduate degree from a top US university, after military service (for men). Then returning home at age 28 to get married after getting into one of the top corporations or perhaps the top civil service ranks, or becoming a lawyer, judge, or prosecutor.

      End Comment

      Kingdom

       

      Kingdom (South Korean TV series)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      Not to be confused with Mnet’s television program Kingdom: Legendary War.

      Kingdom
      Hangul 킹덤
      Genre Historical period

      Political drama

      Horror

      Thriller
      Created by Kim Eun-hee
      Based on The Kingdom of the Gods
      by Kim Eun-hee and Yang Kyung-il[1]
      Written by Kim Eun-hee
      Directed by Kim Seong-Hun

      Park In-je (Season 2)
      Starring Ju Ji-hoon

      Ryu Seung-Rayong

      Bae Doo-na

      Kim Sang-ho

      Kim Sung-kyu

      Kim Hye-Jun
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 2
      No. of episodes 12[2] + 1 special (list of episodes)
      Production
      Executive producer Lee Sang-bake
      Producer Lee Sung-joon
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 36–56 minutes
      Production company a Story[a][2]
      Distributor Netflix
      Budget ₩35 billion (US$29.6 million)[3]
      Release
      Original network Netflix
      Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

      High dynamic range
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release January 25, 2019 –
      present
      External links
      Website

      Kingdom (Korean: 킹덤; RR: Kingdom) is a 2019 South Korean political period horror thriller streaming television series, created and written by Kim Eun-hee and directed by Kim Seong-Hun and Park In-je.[4][5][6] It is Netflix‘s first original Korean series,[b] which premiered on January 25, 2019.[7][8][9][10] The series is adapted from the webcomic series The Kingdom of the Gods, which was authored by Kim Eun-hee and drawn by Yang Kyung-il.[1] Set on a fictional, medieval-inspired Joseon, Kingdom explores the story of a Crown Prince, as he sets to investigate the source of a mysterious plague that begins to ravage his country. It stars Ju Ji-hoon, Ryu Seung-Rayong, Bae Doo-na, Kim Sang-ho, Kim Sung-kyu and Kim Hye-jun.

      The series was positively reviewed and renewed for a second season which was released on March 13, 2020.[11][12][13][14] A special feature-length episode of the series, titled “Kingdom: Ashen of the North”, was released on July 23, 2021, and focused on the supporting character Ashen played by Jun Ji-Hyun.[15] The episode acts as a sequel to the second season of Kingdom and explores the backstory of Ashen, the mysterious character Lee Chang’s group encountered on their journey north to discover the origins of the infected.[16]

       

      Synopsis[edit]

      Set during Korea’s Joseon Dynasty, three years after the Imjin War, the first season of Kingdom follows the story of Crown Prince Lee Chang (Ju Ji-hoon) and his subordinates, who stumble across an unnatural plague that resurrects the dead amidst his investigation of a brewing political conspiracy and rumors of the King of Joseon’s death. Amidst the chaos and death that ensues, Chang meets allies who try to make a stand in the city-state of Sangju before it spreads further into the province, only to discover that the plague has already adapted. The second season picks up during Lee Chang’s struggle to save his people from the spread of the plague and his dynasty from the machinations of the powerful Haemon Cho clan who hides a sinister secret.

      Kingdom: Ashen of the North[edit]

      Kingdom: Ashen of the North explores the backstory of Ashen (Jun Ji-Hyun), the mysterious heir of the Northern Sanjaya tribe village, and the origin of the resurrection plant that triggered an unprecedented cascade of tragic events that swept through the Kingdom of Joseon.

      Plot[edit]

      ‘Kingdom’ locations

      The kingdom is set during Korea’s Joseon period, three years after the famous “Battle of Unpot Wetland” near the city of soldier during the Japanese invasions of Korea, where 500 Korean soldiers, led by Governor Ahn Hyeon, defeated an army of 30,000 Japanese invaders. Unbeknownst to the common people, this victory was achieved by using an herb known as the “resurrection plant”, which transformed the diseased villagers of Suman into ferocious zombies; after the battle ended, the zombies were executed and buried in secret.

      Season one[edit]

      At the start of the series, the King dies of smallpox. Chief State Councilor Lord Cho Hak-Ju (Ryu Seung-Rayong) decides to hide the King’s death until his daughter, Queen Consort Cho (Kim Hye-Jun), produces a son. Such a son would have a more legitimate claim to the throne than Crown Prince Lee Chang, whose mother was a concubine. As a result, the King is inoculated with the resurrection plant and subsequently becomes a monster at night, restrained with chains and fed with the bodies of court servants. Refused permission to visit his father, the prince leaves in disguise to search for Lee Seung-hui (Kwon Bum-take), the doctor who last treated the King. Shocked by what he finds in the process of investigating the King’s illness, he heads to the Southern province of Yeong sang with his loyal bodyguard Mu-Yeong (Kim Sang-ho) to search for more answers. At Lee Seung-hui’s clinic outside the city of Dingane, physician’s assistant Seo-bi (Bae Dona) cares for dozens of patients but is running out of food to feed them. Yeong-shin (Kim Sung-kyu), one of the patients, makes a stew for the people from what he says is deer meat. However, the meat is later revealed to be sourced from the cadaver of someone bitten by the King and all the patients quickly turn into zombies.

      The next day, the magistrate of Dingane and nephew of Lord Cho Hak-Ju, Cho Beom-pal (Jeon Seok-ho), disregards Seo-bi and Yeong-shin’s advice to cut off the head of each cadaver, leading to a night of chaos when the dead awaken. When the Prince takes control and orders that the bodies of the undead be destroyed, the yangbans secretly flee on the only boat, carrying their belongings and the corpse of a precious son. Soldiers of the royal guard from Hanyang confront the prince, resulting in the slaughter of dozens of civilians he was trying to help. Subsequently, the Prince goes to Sangho to seek help from Lord Ahn Hyeon, his mentor. Investigating a village that seems to be oddly well-fed in such dire times, he discovers the fate of the missing boat; the precious son became a monster, the yangbans were killed or drowned, and the boat was looted after stranding itself. Awakened from his retreat by his alarm network, Lord Ahn Hyeon (Heo Joon-ho) arrives with troops who know how to deal with the zombie crisis. The season ends with Queen Cho taking the Regency of the vacant throne, decreeing the blockade of the South, while Lord Cho Hak-Ju comes to Kyongsang’s gate with the Army and the zombie King. On the other side, Lord Ahn Hyeon and the Prince fortify Sangho against the zombies while Seo-bi and Cho Beom-pal explore the Frozen Valley, learning the origins of the zombie disease.

      Season two[edit]

      In Hanyang, the Queen has gathered many pregnant women at Nasonex, her private residence. Mu-Yeong’s wife is there as well, taken as a hostage, to force Mu-Yeong to spy on the prince. Pregnant women are killed when their delivery is not as expected. As a result, the Special Forces Commander becomes suspicious and searches Nasonex. He finds the corpses of seven delivered women. The baby girls were strangled, but the baby boys were only stillborn. At Sangho, it is discovered that the zombies are slowed not by sunlight, but by temperature. Since the weather gets colder, the situation becomes worse after another night of chaos. The prince decides to break into the border fortress with a limited squad. They are successful but fall into a trap. Lord Ahn Hyeon is shot to death, while The Prince is put in presence of the zombie King, and must cut his head off to save his own life. But there was a trap inside the trap; when Lord Cho Hak-Ju turns back to Hanyang, Lord Ahn Hyeon appears as a resurrected zombie. Wearing his commanding flag, he bites Lord Cho Hak-Ju, before being killed himself, proving the existence of zombies and the good faith of the prince. The blockade army allies with The Prince.

      The next day, Lord Cho Hak-JU’s corpse disappears. He has been taken by Mu-Yeong, helped by Seo-bi and Cho Beom-pal. They flee towards Hanyang, but along the way, Mu-Yeong is killed. At the Lord Cho Hak-Ju residence, Seo-bi discovers a cure; a full immersion in water forces away the worm-like entities causing the zombification. At the same time, the Queen pretends to give birth, presenting Mu-Yeong wife’s newborn as her own. She poisons her recovered father who discovered the lie and organizes a zombie research lab beneath her Palace. While the Queen prepares a large proscription, the Royal Guards are lured out of the Palace, allowing the Crown Prince to conquer the place. But the Queen practices a scorched earth policy and orders to release the zombies from the research lab, and chaos ensues. However, the plan of closing the gates of the inner Palace is not sufficient, and the Queen is eaten. The last few survivors escape to the Rear Garden and break the ice of the pond. The zombies are stopped by the water, while the bitten but not yet transformed people are saved from being zombified.

      Seven years later, the baby is crowned King, while Seo-bi, Yeong-shin, and the former Crown Prince investigate the Northern Provinces. Shortly after their arrival to a seemingly empty village, a mysterious woman named Ashen (Jun Ji-Hyun) appears inside a barn and stands next to the undead who are kept inside wooden boxes for some nefarious purpose.

      An of the North[edit]

      Set before the events of the first season, the episode delves into Afshin’s origin story and her experiences growing into a scorned woman that turned against the Kingdom of Joseon. During her childhood, Ashen (Kim Shi-ah) lived in the Northern village of Sanjaya with her ailing mother and her father, Ta Hob (Kim Roi-ha) who was one of the Jurchen people living in Joseon and also the head of their settlement. Tensions were high between Joseon, the central kingdom, and the Jurchen border tribes of Paju Owe. The Paju Owe had gathered their army at the basin of the Pajero River.

      When fifteen of Paju Owe Jurchen men enter the forbidden area known as Pisa-gun to illegally gather wild ginseng, they all die unexpectedly. It is revealed that Cho Beom-il (Jung Suk-won), a high-ranking member of the Haemon Cho clan, orchestrated the deaths of the Jurchen men. The Deputy Commander of the Caupain group, Min Chi-rock (Park Byung-Eun) investigated the deaths of the Jurchen and discovered Cho’s involvement, he travels to the Sanjaya village to conduct damage control and prevent a conflict against the Kingdom by the Page Owe. Min spread the message that the deaths were due to a tiger attack but some villagers remained skeptical.

      During a meeting with Ta Hob, the Commander requests him to travel to the bordering Page Owe tribe and spread the message, that the attack was caused by a tiger who killed the men. Ta Hob agreed to the mission as he had pledged his loyalty to Joseon and hoping his actions will grant Sanjaya governmental representation, improving the lives of its people. This was later revealed to be a ruse conspired by the Commander, to strategically protect the interests of the Kingdom.

      On a false hunt for the alleged tiger, the Commander encounters some Pages Owe soldiers and informs the group, that the attackers of the Page Owe men were killed by the villagers of Sanjaya. This act later diverts the Page Owe ‘s hostility towards the village of Sanjaya. Afterward, the Page Owe military led by Ai Da Gan (Koo Kyo-hwan), attacks Sanjaya in the middle of the night, massacring the inhabitants. Before the attack on the village, Ashen finds the resurrection plant in a hidden cave shrine and reads the ancient mural to understand its properties and effects, to tend to her terminally ill mother. Upon returning to the village, she finds that it has been burned to the ground and all the villagers killed. Unbeknownst to Ash in, her father was taken hostage by the Page Owe military.

      Being the sole survivor of the massacre, Asian goes to the Commander and begs for a chance to avenge her family. He places her in a military settlement post, where she begins to perform odd jobs while training in the woodlands. Years later, she was told by the Commander to spy on the military camp of Page Owe. While infiltrating the camp, Asian finds her father held as a prisoner, with his limbs amputated. Ta Hob begs his daughter to kill him to end his misery. Asian complies and sets the camp on fire before going back to the settlement. Before her return to the military settlement, the Commander was summoned to return to the South to deal with the war against the Japanese forces, leaving his Second-in-command and soldiers behind. Soon after, Asian reads the records inside the Commander’s hut, implicating the Commander of framing the Sanjaya village for the Jurchen deaths’ at Pisa-gun, leading to the eventual massacre of her village.

      Asian prepares to take revenge against the Kingdom of Joseon. After night falls, she kills several Joseon soldiers as they sleep and uses the resurrection plant to bring them back as zombies. While the zombies rampage around the camp, Asian kills any soldiers, with her bow and arrows, who manage to escape or lock themselves beyond the zombies’ reach. Using the last soldier as bait, she attracted the zombies together and then burns them, effectively killing all the soldiers and zombies in the camp. Asian is then seen dragging a giant sack back to her village which looks normal. She then enters her old house which was filled with her family and some villagers. She was awakened to zombie snarls which brings her to the present where the village is burned down and the house is filled with zombies chained to the back of the house. It is revealed that after the massacre of her village, she had converted her family and some villagers into zombies. Asian had been feeding them animals for years but felt that they deserved better food and fed them with a soldier she had carried with her in the sack. She vowed to destroy Joseon and the Jurchen to avenge them and joined them when she is done.

      Asian leaves to meet Lee Seung-hui, the Joseon King’s physician at the border in Fiji. She sells him the resurrection plant, setting in motion, the events that would later occur in the “Battle of Unpot Wetland” and the tragedy that would come to pass at Dingane. After exiting the city, Asian walks into an open field, and later witnesses Ai Da Gan and his Page Owe brethren riding horses in the distance. The Page Owe riders approach Asian and she shoots an arrow without hesitation.

      Cast[edit]

      Character Portrayed by Seasons Asian of
      the North[17]
      1[18] 2[19]
      Main characters
      Lee Chang Ju Ji-hoon Main
      Seo-bi Bae Dona Main
      Yeong-shin Kim Sung-kyu Main
      Cho Beom-pal Jeon Seok-ho Main
      Lord Cho Hak-ju Ryu Seung-Rayong Main
      Queen Consort Cho Kim Hye-Jun Main
      Mu-yeong Kim Sang-ho Main
      Lord Ahn Hyeon Heo Joon-ho Main Guest
      Asian Jun Ji-hyun Guest Main
      Young Asian Kim Shi-ah Main
      Min Chi-rock Park Byung-eun Recurring Main
      Ai Da Gan Koo Kyo-hwan Main
      Ta Hob Kim Roi-ha Main
      Recurring characters
      Cho Beom-il Jung Suk-won Recurring Guest
      Lee Seung-hui Kwon Bum-take Guest Guest
      Kim Sun Kim Jong-soo Recurring
      Deok Sung Jin Seon-kyu Recurring Guest
      Lee Do-jin Joo Suk-tea Recurring Guest
      Lee Gang-Yun Kim Tae-hoon Recurring

      Main[edit]

      Ju Ji-hoon as Lee Chang: The Crown Prince of Joseon and the current heir to the throne. Suspicious of the mysterious illness afflicting his father, the King of Joseon, his investigation not only uncovers a dangerous plague that brings the dead to life, but also a plot to betray the Royal family and usurp him as heir.[20]

      Bae Dona as Seo-bi: A physician’s assistant from Dingane who is among the first to discover the outbreak of the mysterious plague. She desperately seeks to find a cure and comes to possess a journal containing crucial information about the disease.[2]

      Kim Sung-kyu as Yeong-shin: A mysterious tiger hunter from the South who is also among the first to discover the outbreak of the plague. A skilled fighter who carries early European muskets, he allies himself with Lee Chang and helps to lead the fight against the undead.

      Jeon Seok-ho as Cho Beom-pal: A somewhat incompetent magistrate of Dingane and Cho Hak-Ju’s nephew. He used to be more interested in self-preservation than protecting his people.[21]

      Ryu Seung-Rayong as Lord Cho Hak-Ju (seasons 1–2): The Chief State Councilor of Joseon and head of the Haemon Cho clan. He is the father of Queen Consort Cho and Cho Beom-il and the uncle of Cho Beom-pal. A cold, ruthless leader, he is desperate to secure his power over the throne through Queen Cho’s unborn child who he seeks to make an heir to the throne in place of Lee Chang.[22]

      Kim Hye-Jun as Queen Consort Cho (seasons 1–2): The young and “pregnant” Queen of Joseon who is Cho Hak-Ju’s daughter, Cho Beom-ill’s sister, and Lee Chang’s stepmother. Like her father, she is desperate to secure her power over the throne by giving birth to a son that will displace Crown Prince Lee Chang as the rightful heir.

      Kim Sang-ho as Mu-Yeong (seasons 1–2): Prince Chang’s loyal personal bodyguard accompanies him to the southern provinces to investigate the plague, leaving his pregnant wife in the capital.[23]

      Heo Joon-ho as Lord Ahn Hyeon (season 1; guest season 2): A former governor and war hero who has retired from public service, despite his popularity with the people, to live a quiet life in Sangho. He was also a mentor to the young Lee Chang.[24]

      Jun Ji-Hyun as Asian (special; guest season 2): A mysterious stranger from Hengyang province in the North of the country.

      Kim Shi-ah as young Asian[25]

      Park Byung-Eun as Min Chi-rock (special; recurring season 2): Head of the Royal Commandery and a skilled archer who becomes suspicious of the Queen.

      Koo Kyo-hwan as Ai Da Gan (special): Leader of the Page Owe tribe.

      Kim Roi-ha as Ta Hob (special): Head of the Northern Sanjaya tribe and the father of Asian.

      Supporting[edit]

      Jung Suk-won as Cho Beom-il (seasons 1–2; special): Cho-Hak-Ju’s son and Queen Cho’s elder brother and a commander in the Royal Army.

      Kim Jong-soo as Kim Sun: Chief Scholar in Hanyang who clashes with Cho Hak-Ju.

      Kwon Bum-take as Lee Seung-hui (season 1; special): Royal physician who attends to the King.

      Lee Yang-hee as the Minister of War: Powerful politician in Hanyang who is initially loyal to the Haemon Cho clan but finds his loyalty wavering.

      Jin Seon-kyu as Deok Sung: Ahn Hyeon’s loyal right-hand man.

      Joo Suk-tea as Lee Do-jin (seasons 1–2): Leader of the Palace Guard who travels south to apprehend Lee Chang, he is loyal to Cho Hak-Ju.

      Ahn Eun-jin as Mu-Yeong’s wife: A loving, pregnant, wife who was put under the protection of the Haemon Cho clan.

      Kim Tae-hoon as Lee Gang-Yun (season 2): Head of the Royal Army, who travels south with Cho Hak-Ju.

      Jo Han-Chula as Won Yu (season 2): Descendant of an exiled member of the royal family living a quiet life on a remote island, who is sought out by Lee Chang.

      Ahn Jae-Hong as Eunuch (season 2): Former eunuch who later becomes the new king’s servant.

      Kim Kang-hoon as Mu-Yeong’s son (season 2): A young boy who was rescued from a horde of zombies as a baby by Seo-bi.

       

      Comments:  Zombie attacks in the Chosen dynasty.  End comment

      Reply 1988

       

      Reply 1988

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      Reply 1988
      Promotional
      Hangul 응답하라 1988
      Hanja 應答하라 1988
      Genre Family
      Comedy
      Romance
      Written by Lee Woo-Jung
      Directed by Shin Won-ho
      Starring Lee Hye-Ri
      Ryu Jun-yeol
      Go Kyung-Pio
      Park Bo-gum
      Lee Dong-why
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 20 + special
      Production
      Running time 90–110 minutes
      Production company CJ E&M
      Release
      Original network tvN
      Original release November 6, 2015 –
      January 16, 2016
      Chronology
      Preceded by Reply 1994
      External links
      Website

      Reply 1988 (Korean: 응답하라 1988; Hanja: 應答하라 1988; RR: Endophora 1988) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Hye-Ri, Ryu Jun-yeol, Go Kyung-Pio, Park Bo-gum, and Lee Dong-why.[1][2][3] Beginning in the year 1988, it revolves around five friends and their families living in the same neighborhood of Sangamon, Dugong, Northern Seoul.[4] It aired every Friday and Saturday from November 6, 2015, to January 16, 2016, on tvN for 20 episodes.[5][6]

      Reply 1988 is the third installment of tvN‘s Reply series.[7] It received both critical and audience acclaim with its final episode recording an 18.8% nationwide audience share, making it the fourth highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history.[8][9]

      Lee Hye-RI as Sung Duk-seon/Sung Soo-yeon[10]

      The middle child of her family, she is infamously ranked 999th in school and is the only girl in their group of five neighborhood friends. Though not academically gifted, Duk-seon has a bright and compassionate personality. She cares deeply for her friends and classmates but feels lost without a “dream” to pursue. Dukedom moves through the stages of her youth alongside her male friends, and the mystery of which of them she eventually marries is a continual point of tension for viewers throughout the series.

      Ryu Jun-yeol as Kim Jung-hwan

      Stoic and sarcastic, but with a secret sweetheart, Jung-hwan (called Jung-pal by his friends) is one of the leaders of the neighborhood group. Jung-hwan is handsome, smart, and athletic, often taking on extra feelings of responsibility to fulfill the dreams of his older brother Jung-bong, who has a chronic heart condition. While Jung-hwan doesn’t often share his emotions with others, he feels things deeply and uses his sarcasm and attitude as a shield. He develops feelings for a neighborhood friend early but is reluctant to admit his crush, even as the right timing slips away.

      Go Kyung-Pio as Sung Sun-woo

      A class president, caring brother, and dependable son to his widowed mother, Sun-woo is an ideal young man. He is devoted to his friends and dotes on his younger sister. Sun-woo harbors a secret crush on a neighborhood friend that lingers into adulthood.

      Park Bo-gum as Choi Taek[11]

      An internationally renowned genius Badu player, Taek is the quietest of his neighborhood friends. Taek dominates on the Badu board but struggles with simple everyday tasks. His Badu success has brought money and fame but has left Taek distant from his age group, and so he relies on his neighborhood friends for companionship, grounding, and a connection to youth. Taek is generous to a fault and hesitant to make a fuss, but that hesitancy disappears in competition. However, when he realizes that the person he cares for has another admirer, he has to weigh romance against friendship.

      Lee Dong-why as Ryu Dong-Rayong

      The neighborhood clown, Dong-Rayong loves to sing, dance, and play jokes with his friends. Like Dukedom, Dong-Rayong is not a natural academic, but his thoughtful insight and surprising wisdom serve him and his friends well. As the son of two working parents surrounded by tight-knit families, Dong-Rayong sometimes feels neglected by his parents and makes up for their absence by acting out. His nosy nature means that he ends up knowing many of the neighborhood’s secrets before anyone else.

      Recurring[edit]

      Sung family

      Sung Dong-il as Sung Dong-il (Dukedom’s father)

      A fraud and security specialist at a bank, Dong-il fell into debt after lending money to a friend who never paid it back. He struggles to provide for his family as he wants to while paying off the debt but does his best to give everything he can to his children. He and his wife, Il-Hwa, argue but love each other very deeply.

      Lee Il-Hwa as Lee Il-Hwa (Duck-Seon’s mother)

      Il-Hwa is a kind woman who spends much of her time with the other moms and caring for her family. She worries about her children and husband and shows much of her care by cooking massive quantities of food to share with her family and the neighborhood.

      Ryu Hye-young as Sung Bo-ra (Duck-Seon’s older sister).

      Bo-ra is a tough-as-nails college student who wants to become a lawyer. While outwardly stoic, she has a warm heart and shows compassion to those who need it most. Where Dukedom struggles academically but excels at interpersonal relationships, Bo-ra is a stellar student who stumbles in social and emotional situations. She carries on a secret relationship with another person in the neighborhood.

      Choi Sung-won as Sung No-Eul (Duck-Seon’s younger brother)

      Dong-ill’s assistant in his schemes, No-eul is a kindhearted young teen with a beautiful singing voice and a poetic, dreamer’s mind.

      Kim family

      Kim Sung-kyun as Kim Sung-kyun (Jung-Hwan’s father)

      Sung-Hyun is a kind and humorous man who runs an electronics store. He loves to joke and play with the neighborhood kids, and generally keeps an air of joviality among the adults. He adores his wife, Mi-ran, and hopes for good futures for his sons.

      Ra Mi-ran as Ra Mi-ran (Jung-Hwan’s mother)

      A tough lady with a strong past, Mi-ran is the indisputable empress of the Kim household. Worried about Jung-bong since his childhood diagnosis with a chronic heart condition and annoyed with his constant academic failures punctuated by collecting obsessions, Mi-ran can sometimes come off as short-tempered. This short temper is an expression of her anxiety and love for her children and family.

      Ahn Jae-Hong as Kim Jung-bong (Jung-Hwan’s older brother)

      A student who failed his college entrance exam 6 times, Jung-bong has a chronic heart condition that made his childhood difficult. He has a sometimes childlike personality and is easily distracted. Nevertheless, Jung-bong is kind, thoughtful, compassionate, and easy to like. He happily cares for the neighborhood kids including Jin-Joo, Sun-woo’s little sister. He is a surprisingly poetic romantic.

      Sun-woo family

      Kim Sun-young as Kim Sun-young (Sun-woo’s mother)

      A kind young widow, Sun-young dotes on her children as much as possible, probably to try to make up for their father’s absence. She struggles with her mother-in-law and does her best to keep the family afloat. With a sunny personality and an upbeat disposition, she is always looking for the best side of any situation and can make even the most bear-like person laugh.

      Kim Seol as Sung Jin-Joo (Sun-woo’s little sister)

      A precocious toddler in 1988, one can assume Jin-Joo was born somewhere between 1983 and 1984. Doted on by everyone in the neighborhood, Jin-Joo is adored by all of the adults and teens alike. She loves her older brother but is a bit more reserved with others.

      Neighborhood residents

      Choi Moo-sung as Choi Moo-sung is also called “Bonghwangdang.”

      Teak’s father and the owner of a watch store at the entrance to the alley. Moo-sung moved to the neighborhood at the behest of Sun-young, whom he has known since childhood, after the death of Teak’s mother. He was adopted into the neighborhood family as he raised Taek alone. Quiet and reserved, Moo-Sung’s unassuming exterior conceals hidden depths of emotion and compassion for his son, his friends, and the neighborhood as a whole.

      Yoo Jae-Myung as Ryu Jae-Myung (Dong-Yong’s father)

      A dean at the boy’s high school, Jae-Myung once harbored dreams of being a dancer. Now focused on shaping the men of the future, he does his best to keep his son in check while still enjoying his life.

      Extended[edit]

      Lee Min-Ji as Jang Mi-ok (Duck Seon’s friend)

      A wealthy student. At first, her father was shown as a scary person but later it was revealed that he was a textile businessman who started his business from scratch. A good friend to Dukedom and Ja-Hyun, she is practical and excitable. Married Kim Jung-Bong, elder brother of Kim Jung-Hwan.

      Lee Se-young as Wang Ja-Hyun (Duck Seon’s friend)

      A constant friend to Dukedom and Mi-ok, Ja-Hyun is focused on boys and becoming a hairstylist.

      Lee Mi-Yeon as adult Sung Dukedom

      Kim Joo-hyuk as adult Choi Taek

      Jeon Mi-seen as adult Sung Bo-ra

      Woo Hyun as adult Sung No-eul

      Lee Chung-mi as Nam Goong Nelumbo

      Lee Jin-Kwon a Bad student

      Seo Cho-won as Supporting

      Park Ah-sung as Student

      Song Young Kyu as Sun-young’s older brother

      Yong Young-Jae as director of Korea Baduk Association

      Bae Yoo-ram

      Special appearances[edit]

      Kim Young-ok as Duck Seon’s grandmother (ep. 2)

      Jung Won-Jong as Dong-ill’s older brother (ep. 2)

      Kim Sure as snack shop owner (ep. 3)

      Lee Moon-se (voice) as radio DJ (ep. 6)

      Park Ji-Yoon as TV interviewer (ep. 7)

      Park Jung-min as Bo-ra’s boyfriend (ep. 8)

      Kim Tae-hoon as Cardiac surgeon (ep. 8)

      Lee Soo-Kyung as Lee Soo-Kyung, No-Elu’s girlfriend (ep. 8)

      Jung Yoo-min as Bo-ra’s friend (ep. 8)

      Jung Hae-in as Ho-young, Deok-sun’s middle school friend (ep. 13)

      Shin Young-jin as Class President’s mother (ep.14)

      Ahn Sung-ki (ep. 17)

      Jung Woo as Trash (ep.18)

      Go Ara as Sung Na-Jung (ep.18)

      Production[edit]

      Leads Hyeri and Park Bo-gum in costume at a fan signing event for the series, February 2016

      Reply 1988 marked the third collaboration between director Shin Won-ho, screenwriter Lee Woo-Jung and actors Sung Dong-il and Lee Il-Hwa after Reply 1997 (2012) and Reply 1994 (2013). Kim Sung-Kyun, who co-starred in 1994 also joined the cast. The first script-reading was held in August 2015.[12] Choi Taek, played by Park Bo-gum, was loosely based on the real-life Go player, Lee Chang-ho.[13]

      Unlike the previous Reply series, 1988 focused more on filial bonds than a romance between characters with director Shin saying that most of the story was about family, and only a small fraction was about Duck-Seon’s love.[14]

      Comment:  period piece circa 1988 set in Ssangmoondong, a typical middle-class neighborhood in northern Seoul. End comment

      Cosmos commentary:

      similar to a US movie from a few years back.  Two cops are linked through a mysterious connection across allowing them to collaborate to solve crime cases.

      Signal (South Korean TV series)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      This article is about the South Korean TV series. For the Japanese remake, see Signal (Japanese TV series).

      Signal
      Promotional poster
      Hangul 시그널
      Genre Procedural

      Drama

      Thriller

      Fantasy
      Created by Choi Jin-hee

      Park Ji-young
      Written by Kim Eun-hee
      Directed by Kim Won-seok
      Starring Lee Je-hoon

      Kim Hye-soo

      Cho Jin-wooing
      Opening theme “I Will Forget You” by Jung Cha-Sik
      Ending theme “The One Who Will Leave” by INKII

      “The Road” by Kim Yoon-ah
      Composers Kim Joon-Seok

      Park Sung-il
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 1
      No. of episodes 16
      Production
      Executive producers Lee Chan-ho

      Lee Sang-bake
      Producers Lee Jae-moon

      Park Eun-Kyung
      Cinematography Choi Sang-mook

      Lee Joo-young
      Editor Kim Na-young
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 80 minutes
      Production company a Story
      Distributor tvN
      Release
      Original network tvN
      Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release January 22 –
      March 12, 2016
      Chronology
      Followed by Signal 2 (2020)[1]
      Related shows Signal (2018)

      Unknown Number (2019)
      External links
      Website
      Signal at a Story Co., Ltd.

      Signal (Korean: 시그널; RR: Diegueno) is a 2016 South Korean fantasy police procedural television series starring Lee Je-hoon, Kim Hye-soo, and Cho Jin-wrong. It aired on tvN from January 22 to March 12, 2016, on Fridays and Saturdays at 20:30 KST for 16 episodes.[2][3][4] The series was inspired by real-life criminal incidents in Korea,[5] including the Hazing.[6][7]

      The series received widespread acclaim from the audience and critics alike for its story and performances. It is also the eleventh highest-rated Korean drama in cable television history with a peak audience viewership of 12.54%.

      Premise[edit]

      A walkie-talkie allows a detective in the year 1989 to communicate with a cold case profiler from 2015. With the power of fore- and hindsight, the two not only solve crimes but prevent them from ever taking place.

      Synopsis[edit]

      A criminal profiler Park Hae-young (Lee Je-hoon), solves a kidnapping case that ended up with a falsely accused who disappeared after the crime, with a mysterious walkie-talkie he picks up. The success of this case triggers the formation of a long-term cold case team, led by Detective Cha Soo-Hyun (Kim Hye-soo), who has been searching for her long-lost mentor Lee Jae-Han (Cho Jin-Wong), for the past fifteen years. With the help of Detective Lee Jae-Han, the person at the other end of the walkie-talkie, Park Hae-young solves other cold cases that have remained unsolved for years, while helping Lee Jae-can help solve some cases in the past. Grave unintended sequences follow.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Lee Je-hoon is Park Hae-young,[8] the profiler who finds the walkie-talkie by accident and uses it to solve cold cases.

      Kim Hye-soo as Cha Soo-Hyun,[9] once a timid rookie and the first woman police officer in the department, leads the “Long Term Cold Case team”

      Cho Jin-Wong as Lee Jae-Han,[10] the somewhat clumsy and socially inept but incorruptible police officer from the past who establishes a rapport with Park.

      Supporting[edit]

      Police officers

      Jang Hyun-sung as Kim Bum-joo

      Jung Hae-kyun as Ahn Chi-soo

      Kim Won-hae as Kim Eichel

      Jung Han-bi [ko] as Oh Yoon-seo

      Lee Yoo-Jun [ko] as Jung Han-ki

      Kim Min-kyu as Hwang Etui-kyung

      Extended

      Kim Hyun-bin as young Park Hae-young

      Kang Chan-hee as Park Sun-woo

      Lee Moon-soo as Lee Jae-Han’s father

      Seo Jun-hee as Cha Soo-Hyun’s mother

      Lim Hwa-young as Cha Soo-Hyun’s younger sister

      Lee Jin-Kwon as Supporting

      Special appearances[edit]

      Oh Yeon-ah as Yoon Soo-ah (ep. 1-2)

      Lee Young-eun as Kim Yoon-jung (ep. 1-2)

      Lee Si-a as Kim Won-kyung (ep. 2-4)

      Kim Jung-young as Won-Kyung’s aunt (ep. 2-4)

      Kim Ki-Cheon as Lee Chun-goo (ep. 3-4)

      Lee Dong-ha as Han Se-yo (el. 5-8)

      Jung Suk-yong as Oh Kyung-tea (ep. 5-7)

      Park Si-eun as Oh Eun-ji (ep. 5-6)

      Choi Woo-ri as Shin Yeo-jin (ep. 5-6)

      Yoo Ha-bok as Shin Dong-hoon (ep. 5-7)

      Son Hyun-Joo as Jang Young-Chula (ep. 7, 11, 14, 16)

      Lee Na-ra as Shin Da-Hye (ep. 7-8)

      Lee Sang-year as Kim Jin-woo (ep. 9-11)

      Lee Chae-Kyung as Jin-woo’s mother (ep. 10)

      Seo Eun-ah as Yoo Seung-yeon (ep. 10-11)

      Shin Yi-joon as Kang Hye-Seung (young / ep. 11-14)

      Kim Woo-suk as Lee Dong-jin (ep. 12-14)

      Hwang Seung-eon as Han Do-yeon (ep. 13)

      Jeon Su-ji as Kang Hye-Seung (adult/ep. 13-14)

      Seo Ji-hoon as Jang Tae-jin (ep. 14)

      Upon its premiere, the series attracted attention for weaving actual cases into its plot and attained high ratings.[11][12] With its final rating of 12.54%, it is one of the highest-rated Korean dramas in cable television history.[13][14] It received praise for its solid acting, tightly-constructed plot, and detailed and sophisticated direction; and enjoyed success internationally in China and Japan.[15][16][17]

      The drama went on to win several awards from different award-giving bodies, including Best Drama, Best Screenplay for Kim Eun-hee, and Best Actress for Kim Hye-soo at the 52nd Buesking Arts Awards, as well as another Best Actress award for Kim and the Dasani (Grand Prize for Television) for Cho Jin-Wong at the tvN10 Awards. Cho also won the Dasani at the 1st Asia Artist Awards for his performance.

       

      Comment: similar to a US drama a few years ago. End comment

      My Mister

       

      My Mister
      Promotional poster
      Also known as My Ajose
      Hangul 나의 아저씨
      Revised Romanization Naoi Ajose
      Genre Drama
      Created by Studio Dragon
      Written by Park Hae-young[1]
      Directed by Kim Won-seok[1]
      Starring Lee San-kyun

      Lee Ji-eun
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 16
      Production
      Executive producers Cho Hyung-jin

      Kim Sang-heon

      Park Ho-sik
      Producer Park Ji-hyun
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 90 minutes
      Production company Chorogram Media
      Distributor tvN
      Release
      Original network tvN
      Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release March 21 –
      May 17, 2018
      External links
      Website
      Production website

      My Mister (Korean: 나의 아저씨; RR: Naoi Ajose) is a 2018 South Korean television series starring Lee Sun-Kyun and Lee Ji-Eun. The series was directed by Kim Won-Seok, written by Park Hae-young, and produced by Cookable. It aired on tvN from March 21 to May 17, 2018, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:30 (KST) time slot.[2][3][4]

      The drama received critical acclaim, winning Best Drama at the 55th Buesking Arts Awards.

      Synopsis[edit]

      My Mister tells us the story of three middle-aged brothers, who are enduring the weight of their lives, and a strong, cold woman, who has been living a hard life of her own, as they come together in healing each other’s past scars.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Lee Sun-kyun as Park Dong-hoon[1]

      The second oldest of the three brothers. He works as a structural engineer and always has a safety-first approach to life. He is quiet and stoic but also goes all in for the people he loves.

      Lee Ji-eun (IU) as Lee Ji-an[1]

      Kim Gyu-ri as child Ji-an

      A woman who is enduring many hardships in life. She is tasked by her boss who runs a company she is temporarily working for to discover Park Dong-hood’s weaknesses, but she soon ends up falling for his warm charms and learns to trust someone for the first time.

      Supporting[edit]

      Dong-hood’s family[edit]

      Go Doo-shim as Byun Yo-soon[5]

      A loving mother with three sons who worries about her eldest living apart from his family, and her youngest, who has yet to get married despite being over 40.

      Park Ho-san [ko] as Park Sang-hoon[6]

      Dong-hood’s eldest brother. He is a middle-aged man who was fired from his job and then ran two failing businesses, which ended up in him being chased out of his own home. Though he has to live under his mother’s roof, he’s a romanticist at heart who always thinks about ways to find happiness.

      Song Sae-beak as Park Ki-hoon[1]

      Dong-hood’s younger brother. He was once seen as a genius director because an independent film he shot when he was twenty was invited to the Cannes Film Festival. However, 20 years have passed since his glory days. He has yet to successfully launch his career as a movie director.

      Lee Ji-ah is Kang Yoon-hee,[7] Park Dong-hood’s wife, who is having an affair with Do Joon-young, her husband’s boss who is younger than him.

      Jung Young-joo [ko] as Jo Ae-Ryun.[8]

      Lee Ji-ant’s family[edit]

      Son Sook [ko] as Lee Bong-ae: Lee Ji-ant’s deaf grandmother.

      People around Lee Ji-an[edit]

      Jang Ki-yong as Lee Kwang-il[9]

      A loan shark, who liked Ji-and when he was young.

      Ahn Seung-gun as Song Ki-bum[10]

      Ji-ant’s best friend.

      Lee Young-seok [ko] as Hongdae: Kwang-ill’s partner.

      People in the company[edit]

      Kim Young-min [ko] as Do Joon-young[11]

      Dong-hood’s college junior and Ji-ant’s boss, currently working as a CEO.

      Shin Goo as Chairman Jang Hoe-jang

      Jung Jae-sung [ko] as Executive Director Yoon Sang-tea

      Seo Hyun-woo as Head of Section Seo

      Chae Dong-hyun [ko] as Kim Dae-ri

      Kim Min-seok [ko] as Yeo Hyung-kyu

      Ryu Sun-young [ko] as Jung Chae-rung[12]

      Dong-hoon and Ji-ant’s co-worker.

      Extended[edit]

      Kwon Na-ra as Choi Yoo-ra[13]

      A movie actress, and Park Ki-hood’s love interest.

      Park Hae-joon as Gumede

      Dong-hood’s friend and has dated Jung-hee in the past.

      Oh Na-ra as Jung-hee

      Owner of Jung-hee’s Bar, friends with Dong-hoon.

      Shin Dam-soo [ko] as Director Jung Chang-mo

      Park Soo-young as Je-Cheol

       

       

      Hospital Playlist

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

      navigation Jump

      Hospital Playlist
      Official promotional poster season 2
      Hangul 슬기로운 의사생활
      Hanja 슬기로운 醫師生活
      Genre Medical

      Drama

      Romance

      Comedy

      Life
      Created by Lee Myung-Han (tvN)
      Written by Lee Woo-Jung
      Directed by Shin Won-ho
      Starring Jo Jung-suk

      Yoo Yeon-Seok

      Jung Kyung-ho

      Kim Dae-Myung

      Jeon Mi-do
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 2
      No. of episodes 24
      Production
      Executive producer Park Seung Jae
      Producer Choi Sung Yoon
      Camera setup Single-camera
      Running time 72–113 minutes
      Production companies Egg Is Coming

      CJ ENM
      Distributor tvN

      Netflix[1]
      Release
      Original network tvN
      Picture format HDTV 1080i
      Original release March 12, 2020 –
      present
      External links
      Website

      Hospital Playlist (Korean: 슬기로운 의사생활; Hanja: 슬기로운

      The series follows five doctors in their 40s who have been best friends since they entered medical school in 1999. Lee Ik-Jun (Jo Jung-suk) is an assistant professor of general surgery specializing in liver transplants. He takes care of his young son as a single father after getting divorced from his adulterous wife. His cheerful charisma allows him to connect with many people, making him a popular figure among both patients and other doctors. Unapologetically good at anything he puts his mind to, Ahn Jeong-won (Yoo Yeon-Seok), an assistant professor of pediatric surgery, is generous and caring, endearing him to his patients. He is a devout Catholic and secretly plans to become a priest due to the pain caused by seeing his patients suffer. Kim Jun-wan (Jung Kyung-ho) is an associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery, who appears cold and professional. However, he hides a soft, kind temperament that rarely shows, only surfacing with his friends and certain patients. Yang Seok-Hyeong (Kim Dae-Myung), an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, is an aloof and introverted doctor. Though he comes off as detached, he is willing to go the extra mile for the female patients under his watch. He is divorced and deeply cares for his mother. Chae Song-Hwa (Jeon Mi-do), the only female in the group of friends, is an associate professor of neurosurgery. She is considered perfect by her colleagues: she treats patients kindly, performs hundreds of successful surgeries, and has a great personality.

      The story revolves around a group of friends as they embark on hospital adventures involving medicine, music, and relationships.

      Cast[edit]

      Overview[edit]

      Actor Character Season
      (Year)
      1
      (2020)      		 2
      (2021)
      Jo Jung-suk Lee Ik-Jun Main
      Yoo Yeon-Seok Ahn Jeong-won Main
      Jung Kyung-ho Kim Jun-wan Main
      Kim Dae-Myung Yang Seok-Hyeong Main
      Jeon Mi-do Chae Song-Hwa Main
      Shin Hyun-bin Jang Gyro-wool Recurring
      Kwak Sun-young Lee Ik-sun Recurring
      Ahn Eun-jin Choo Min-ha Recurring
      Jung Moon-sung Do Jae-hack Recurring
      Moon Tae-Joo Yong Seok-min Recurring
      Ha Yoon-Kyung Heo Sun-Bin Recurring
      Kim Jun-Han Ahn Chi-Hong Recurring

      Main[edit]

      Jo Jung-suk as Lee Ik-Jun, an assistant professor of general surgery.

      Yoo Yeon-Seok as Ahn Jeong-won, an assistant professor of pediatric surgery.

      Jung Kyung-ho as Kim Jun-wan, an associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery.

      Kim Dae-Myung is Yang Seok-Hyeong, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology.

      Jeon Mi-do as Chae Song-Hwa, an associate professor of neurosurgery.[11]

      Supporting[edit]

      Doctors[edit]

      Shin Hyun-bin as Jang Gyro-wool, a third-year resident in general surgery.

      Jung Moon-sung as Do Jae-hack, chief resident of cardiothoracic surgery.

      Ahn Eun-jin as Choo Min-ha, a second-year resident in obstetrics and gynecology.[12]

      Kim Jun-Han is Ahn Chi-Hong, a third-year resident in neurosurgery.

      Moon Tae-you as Yong Seok-min, chief resident of neurosurgery.

      Ha Yoon-Kyung as Heo Sun-bin, a third-year resident in neurosurgery.

      Choi Young-Joon as Bong Gwang-Hyun, assistant professor of emergency medicine.

      Seo Jin-won as Min Gi-Joon, professor of neurosurgery.

      Kim Hye-in as Myung Eun-won, a second-year resident in obstetrics and gynecology.[13]

      Choi Young-woo as Cheon Myung-tea, professor of cardiothoracic surgery.

      Shin Do-Hyun as Bae Joon-hee, the fellow in emergency medicine.

      Jeon Kwang-jin as Jong Se-hyuk, the fellow in orthopedic surgery.

      Lee Se-hee as Kang So-ye, one-year Fellow in emergency medicine [14]

      Woo Jung-won as Yom Se-hee, Professor of Stainbrook [15]

      Lee Jong-won as Kim Geon [16]

      Lee Jung-won as Hwang Ji-woo, second-year surgeon [17]

      Nurses and medical students[edit]

      Kim Soo-jin as Song Soo-bin, surgical ward nurse.

      Yoon Hye-RI as So Yi-Hyun, cardiothoracic surgery medical assistant.

      Yang Jo-ah as Hwang Jae-shin, neurosurgery medical assistant.

      Lee Noh-ah as Lee Young-ha, surgical ward nurse.

      Lee Dal as Kim Jae-hwan, surgical ward nurse.

      Lee Hye-Eun as Kook Hye-sung, general surgery medical assistant.

      Lee Ji-won as Han Hyun-hee, pediatric surgery medical assistant.

      Lee Jong-won as Kim Geon-run, second-year surgeon major.

      Kim Ji-sung as Han Seung-Joo, obstetrics and gynecology delivery room nurse.

      Seol Yu-jin as Eun Sun-jin, obstetrics, and gynecology medical assistant.

      Kim Bi-bi as Ham Deok-Joo, transplant coordinator.

      Park Han-sol as Sun woo Hee-soo, emergency room nurse.

      Cho Yi-hyun as Jang Yun-bok, third-year medical student.[18]

      Bae Hyun-sung as Jang Hong-do, third-year medical student.

      Kim Kang-min as Im Chang-min, intern.

      Lee Chan-Hyung as Choi Seon-young, intern.

      Chae Min-hee as So-Yeon, [19]

      Family members of the main characters[edit]

      Kwak Sun-young is Lee Ik-sun, Ik-Joon’s younger sister and Jun-win’s girlfriend.

      Kim Joon as Lee Woo-Joo, Ik-Joon’s son.

      Kim Hae-sook as Jung Rosa, Jeong-won’s mother.

      Sung Dong-il is Jeong-won’s eldest brother.

      Kim Kapp-soo as Joo Jong-soo, president of the Yule Foundation.

      Cho Seung-Yeon as Joo Jun, director of Yule Medical Center.

      Moon Hee-Kyung as Cho Young-Hye, Seok-Yeong’s mother.

      Nam Myung-real as Yang Tae-yang, Seok-Hyeon’s father.

      Lee So-Yoon is Kim Tae-yeon, Yang Tae-yang’s mistress.

       

      Comments:  Like a Korean version of Gray’s Anatomy?  End Comment

      Flower of Evil

       

      Flower of Evil (TV series)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

      navigation Jump

      Flower of Evil
      Promotional poster
      Hangul 악의 꽃
      Genre Melodrama

      Suspense
      Created by Monster Union
      Studio Dragon
      Written by Yoo Jung-hee
      Directed by Kim Cheol-kyu
      Starring Lee Joon-gi

      Moon Chae-won

      Jang Hee-jin

      Seo Hyun-woo
      Composers Kim Jun-Seok
      Jung Se-rin
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 16
      Production
      Executive producer Yoo Sang won
      Producer Jung Hae-Rayong

      Jang Shin-ae

      Kim Dae-ho
      Editor Younghood Kim
      Running time 70 minutes
      Production companies Monster Union
      Studio Dragon
      Distributor tvN
      Release
      Original network tvN
      Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
      Audio format Dolby Digital
      Original release July 29 –
      September 23, 2020
      External links
      Website

      Flower of Evil (Korean: 악의 꽃; RR: Ague knot) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Joon-gi, Moon Chae-won, Jang Hee-jin, and Seo Hyun-woo.[1][2][3] It aired on tvN every Wednesday and Thursday from July 29 to September 23, 2020,[4] and streamed internationally on Iliya, Viki, and Vito with multi-languages subtitles. Lee and Moon have previously starred in Criminal Minds, and it was Lee’s return to television after two years.[5]

       

      Synopsis[edit]

      Baek Hee-sung (Lee Joon-gi) is a man who hides his identity and past from his wife Cha Ji-won (Moon Chae-won), a detective. On the surface, they appear to be the perfect family: a loving couple with a beautiful daughter who adores her parents. Cha Ji-won and her colleagues begin investigating a series of unexplained murders and are confronted with the reality that her seemingly perfect husband may be hiding something from her.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Lee Joon-gi as Baek Hee-sung / Do Hyun-soo[1]

      Park Hyun-joon as young Hyun-soo

      Cha Sung-je as child Hyun-soo

      Moon Chae-won as Cha Ji-won, Hee-sung/Hyun-soo’s wife[1]

      Jang Hee-jin as Do Hae-soo[2]

      Lim Na-young as teenage Hae-soo, Hyun-soo’s older sister[6]

      Lee Chae-Yoon as eleven-year-old Hae-soo

      Seo Hyun-woo as Kim Moo-jin, journalist[3]

      Jeong Taek-hyun as young Moo-jin[7]

      Supporting[edit]

      Baek Hee-sung & Cha Ji-won’s family[edit]

      Jung Seo-Yeon as Baek Eun-ha, daughter of Hee-sung and Ji-won[8]

      Son Jong-hakas Baek Man-woo, Hee-Sung’s father[9]

      Nam Gi-ae as Gong Mi-Ja, Hee-Sung’s mother[10]

      Jo Kyung-sook as Moon Young-ok, Ji-won’s mother[11]

      Kanoo Police Station[edit]

      Choi Dae-hoon as Lee Woo-Cheol, leader of Homicide Investigation Team[10]

      Choi Young-Joon as Choi Jae-sub, veteran detective[10]

      Kim Soo Oh as Im Ho-Joon, youngest team member[10]

      Lim Cha-ching as Yoon Sang-pill, section chief[10]

      Hong Seo-Joon as Oh Young-Joon, police captain

      Hanoian Magazine[edit]

      Yang Hye-jin as Gang Pill-young, lead reporter[10]

      Ju Ye-Eun as Reporter Joo

      Others[edit]

      Choi Byung-mo as Do Min-seok, father of Hae-soo and Hyun-soo

      Kim Ji-hoon as Baek Hee-sung

      Choi Kwon-soo as young Hee-sung

      Lee Kyu-bok as Nam Soon-gill

      Kim Geon as Kim In-seo

      Lee Ju-Yeon as Park Seo-young

      Han Soo-Yeon as Jung Mi-sook

      Yoon Byung-hee as Park Kyung-chon, taxi driver and husband of Jung Mi-sook

      Park Seung-tea as Oh Bok-ja

      Kim Ki-Cheon as Dr. Lee Hyun-suk

       

      1. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Rye(2016)

      15 | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

      Rate

      Korean melodramatic adaptation of Chinese drama Startling by Each Step (2011) follows a woman who travels back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea whenever a total eclipse of the sun took place.

      Stars: Lee Joon-Gi, Ji-eon Lee, Kang Ha-Neal, Nam Joo-Hyuk

      1. Sangsogjadeul(2013)

      15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After a chance encounter in LA, two teens from different social backgrounds reunite at an exclusive high school attended by Korea’s Uber rich.

      Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Shin-Hye, Woo-bin Kim, Kim Ji-Won

      1. Kill Me, Heal Me(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Rate

      A love story between the son from a wealthy family who has 7 personalities Cha Do Hyun (Ji Sung) and Oh Ri Jin (Hwang Jung Elum) who becomes his secret psychiatrist.

      Stars: Seong Ji, Hwang Jeong-elm, Kim Hee-Jung, Shim Hye-jin

      1. Healer(2014–2015)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

      An old murder incident involving a group who ran an illegal broadcasting station brings together different people – a mysterious errand guy “Healer” who possesses disguise and fighting … See full summary »

      Stars: Ji Chang-Wook, Park Min-Young, Tae-Mi, Jeong Guy-Su

      Votes: 6,769

       

      1. My Love from Another Star(2013–2014)

      Not Rated | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      Do Min-Joon, an alien that came to our planet 400 years ago, will be able to return to his planet in 3 months, but when he meets famous actress Chun Song-Yi, all the centuries he spent distancing himself from humans come to an end.

      Stars: Jun Ji-Hyun, Kim Soo-Hyun, Park Hae-Jin, Yoo In-Na

      Votes: 10,186

       

      1. Oogonium (2013)

      Tae Gong Sil can see ghosts, but their constant demands of help make her life impossible until she meets Joo Jong Won, handsome CEO that measures everything with money since when she touches him, the ghosts disappear.

      Stars: Kong Hyo-Jin, So Ji-sob, Seo In-Guk, Yoo-Ri Kim

       

      1. Haereul poteen dal(2012)

      TV-Y | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

      The story of the secret love between Lee Hwan, a fictional king of Joseon, and Wool, a female shaman. Wool was born as Heo Yeon Woo, the daughter of a noble family who won the love of the … See full summary »

      Stars: Mi-seen Jeon, Mi-keying Yang, Eung-soo Kim, Eun-Byul

      Votes: 2,034

       

      1. Boys Over Flowers(2009)

      TV-14 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Poor girl attends the elite Shin Hwa High and is bullied by the leader of F4 (the four richest boys). He becomes attracted to her; however, she has a crush on his best friend. Whom will she choose?

      Stars: Ku Hye-Sun, Lee Min-Ho, Kim Hyun-Jong, Kim Bum

      1. Minami Shiny(2009)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

      Go Mi-Nya, a girl about to become a nun is asked to cover for her indisposed twin brother, Mi-Nam, who’s on the verge of becoming a k-idol. To do so, she disguises herself as a boy and joins Arnell, a really popular boy band.

      Stars: Park Shin-Hye, Yong-Hwa, Yong-Hwa Jung, Hong-ki Lee

      TV-Y | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      Love, tradition, and politics collide when a spirited young art student is betrothed to the crown prince of South Korea.

      Stars: Yun Geun-Hye, Ju Ji-Hoon, Song Ji-Hyo, Bool-am Choi

      1. Mischievous Kiss(2010)

      15 | 66 min | Comedy, Romance

      Fate brings polar opposite high school classmates (one obsessively attracted to the other, the other indifferent to all advances) to live under one roof. Is romance possible?

      Stars: Jung So-Min, Kim Hyun-Jong, Tae-Sung Lee, Hye-Young Jung

      1. Sungkyunkwan Scandal(2010)

      TV-Y | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, History

      In the Joseon era, Kim Yoon-hee masquerades as a boy to earn a living as a book transcriber. Her family’s dire circumstances and the encouragement of a noble’s son finally drive her to attend Shunyuan University, forbidden for females.

      Stars: Park Min-Young, Yoo-chum Park, Yoo Ah-in, Song Jong-ki

      1. Ok-tab-bang Wang-se-ja(2012)

      15 | 65 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

      Crown Prince Yi gak finds that he has been transported from Chosun Dynasty to modern-day Seoul. He meets Hong Se Na, who bears a striking resemblance to his dead wife, and is determined to … See full summary »

      Stars: Woo-Sik Choi, Seok-won Jeong, Yu-mi Jeong, Han Ji-min

      1. Mai gel(2005–2006)

      With a perpetually indebted father, Joo Yoo Rin learned to lie on the spot and get herself out of tricky situations, which gets Seal Gong Chan, a rich heir to a company, to hire her to impersonate his long lost cousin.

      Stars: Lee Da-have, Lee Dong-Wook, Lee Joon-Gi, Si-Yeon Park

      1. Shining Inheritance(2009)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After losing her father Go Eunson’s stepmother kicks her and her autistic brother out of the house. Shortly after her brother is kidnapped. Eon-sung now has to look for her brother while also trying to find a job to survive.

      Stars: Han Hyo-jook, Lee Seung-gi, Moon Chae-Won, Soo-bin Bae

      1. 마이 프린세스(2011)

      15 | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Kim Tae-hee plays Lee Seal, an ordinary college student who finds out she’s a princess and the great-granddaughter of Korea’s last Emperor. But life can be complicated for a princess in this funny, quirky melodrama.

      Stars: Song Seung-Heon, Kim Tae-hee, Park Yeon, Soo-young Ryu

      1. Angkeumhan Dashingly(2014– )

      Na Ae-ra (Lee Min-Jung) and Cha Jung-woo (Joo Sang-wok) got married young. Ae-ra wanted to have steady life but Jung-woo business led them to lots of debt and hard work so she broke off … See full summary »

      Stars: Lee Min-Jung, Sang-UK Joo, Gyu-Ri, Seo Kang-Joon

      1. All About My Romance(2013– )

      A conservative government party member falls for the feisty young leader of an upstart liberal party in this Korean romantic comedy.

      Stars: Shin Ha-kin, Lee Min-Jung, Hee-soon Park, Chae-Ah Han

      1. Protect the Boss(2011)

      TV-Y | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After a long stretch of unemployment, No Eon Seol lands a job as secretary to Cha Ji Heon the youngest son of a rich family. However, her secretary duties go beyond the ordinary, helping her boss cope and function in normal society.

      Stars: Gi-soo Byion, Hwa-Yeon Cha, Kang-hee Choi, Jeong Gyu-Su

      1. The King 2 Hearts(2012)

      15 | 65 min | Action, Drama, Romance

      The crown prince of South Korea is forced to work alongside a female North Korean military officer. Political and emotional complications lead to an uneasy marriage engagement.

      Stars: Lee Seung-gi, Ha Ji-Won, Jo Jung-Suk, Jason-Patrick Taylor

      1. Bool-up Eosin Jungyi(2013– )

      15 | Drama, History, Romance

      A Historical drama about Yoo Jung, also known as Jung Yi, the first female potter in the Joseon Dynasty and regarded as the dojo of Shin taro porcelain. ‘Yoo Jung’ is based on the real … See full summary »

      Stars: Moon Geun-young, Sang-Yoon Lee, Kim Bum, Keon-Hyeong Park

      1. Nae Yeojachinguneun Gumshoe(2010)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

      Chae Die Wong, an aspiring actor, unwillingly releases a Gumshoe, a legendary nine-tailed fox, from her centuries-old prison. He runs away terrified and ends up injuring himself badly, but she saves his life and asks him to stay by his side.

      Stars: Shin Min-a, Lee Seung-gi, Min-woo No, Park Soo-Jin

      Votes: 2,693

       

      1. Naege Geothermally Haebwa(2011)

      15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      A woman, jealous when her friend steals her first love and marries him, lies that she is married too. The lie ensnares a hotel president who goes along with the lie for his reasons. Will the lie become reality?

      Stars: Seung-us Ryu, Yun Geun-hye, Yun-hie Jo, Sung Jun

      Votes: 1,257

       

      1. Un-Myong-Cheol-eom neol sa-rang-hae(2014)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.9

       

      Rate

      A touching Korean drama filled with comedy about a girl who finds happiness, friendship, and love in the most unexpected way!

      Stars: Jang Hyuk, Jang Na-ra, Choi Jin-Hyuk, churl

      Votes: 2,036

       

      1. Shinai (2012)

      60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

      8

       

      Rate

      When the queen-to-be of medieval Korea is badly wounded, Captain Choi Young uses a wormhole to “heaven,” which is 21st-century South Korea, to bring back the spoiled Dr. Yoo Eon-Soo who becomes a pawn in a game of human chess.

      Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Yoon Kyun-Sang, Lee Min-Ho, Deok-Hwan Ryu

      Votes: 2,256

       

      1. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince(2007)

      15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      8.2

       

      Rate

      A tomboy, mistaken for a lad, maintains the deception for the sake of employment. The situation becomes complicated when her male boss begins to develop feelings for this “boy.”

      Stars: Gong Yoo, Yun Geun-Hye, Sun-Kyun Lee, Jeong-an Chae

      Votes: 4,627

       

      1. 동이(2010)

      TV-Y | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance

      8

       

      Rate

      Story a simple maid that rises high in the royal harem as a consort and, ultimately, mother of the Korean king.

      SARS: Han Hyo-Joo, Julia Lim, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Da-Min Han

      Votes: 1,349

       

      1. Love in the Moonlight(2016)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      The unlikely love story between a crown prince and his eunuch.

      Stars: Park Bo-Gum, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Chae Soo-bin, Kwak Dong-Yeon

      Votes: 2,344

       

      1. She Was Pretty(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.7

       

      Rate

      When Ji Sung-Joon was young, he was ugly. As he grew up, he began to have an attractive appearance. When Kim Hye-Jin was young, she was pretty. As she grew up, she became ugly. Ji Sung-Joon tries to find his first love.

      Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seo Jun Park, Jun-hee Ko, Si Won Choi

      Votes: 4,025

       

      1. Bimal (2013)

      15 | Drama, Romance

      8.1

       

      Rate

      A devoted woman makes the ultimate sacrifice for her boyfriend, only to learn that love doesn’t always conquer all. Yoo Jeong (Hwang Jeong Elum) is a sweet, upbeat person who has always … See full summary »

      Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seong Ji, Soo-bin Bae, Lee Da-hee

      Votes: 1,031

       

      1. Naemsaereul Boneen Sonyeo(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      7.1

       

      Rate

      Detective Tae Ho lost his younger sister to a barcode-murder case and lost his ability to taste, smell, and feel pain. He then meets Oh Cho Rim, the only witness to the murder case who possesses a special sense: she can see smells.

      Stars: Yoo-chum Park, Shin Se-Kyung, Jin-Seo Yoon, Min Nakong

      Votes: 1,023

       

      1. Sesang Eddied Eobneun Chakhan Namja(2012)

      15 | 60 min | Drama

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Kang Ma-Ru is a promising medical student until he takes the blame for a crime he didn’t commit. When he finds an opportunity for revenge, he takes it, using Seo Eon-Gi. Ma-Ru soon … See full summary »

      Stars: Song Jong-ki, Moon Chae-Won, Si-Yeon Park, Kwang-Soo Lee

      Votes: 1,604

       

      1. Descendants of the Sun(2016)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Drama

      8.3

       

      Rate

      This drama tells of the love story that develops between a surgeon and a special forces officer.

      Stars: Song Jong-ki, Song Hye-Kyo, Jin Goo, Kim Ji-Won

      Votes: 11,373

       

      1. Haideu, Jail, Na(2015)

      15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7

       

      Rate

      Koo Seo-Jin (Hyun-Bin) has two different personalities. One of his personalities is cold like Hyde and the other is sweet like Jekyll.

      Stars: Hyun Bin, Han Ji-min, Hee-Sung Kwak, Hyerim

      Votes: 986

       

      1. O Ma-i Bi-neo-seu(2015–2016)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      A lawyer in her thirties coming out of a long relationship decides to regain her figure and health after meeting a renowned personal trainer who obsesses with leading a healthy lifestyle after suffering a serious injury in his childhood.

      Stars: So Ji-sob, Shin Min-a, Sung Hoon, Yoo In-young

      Votes: 3,817

       

      1. Secret Garden(2010–2011)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      8.1

       

      Rate

      A rich young CEO falls for a poor stuntwoman despite class differences, cultural traditions, and the man’s firmly objecting mother.

      Stars: Ha Ji-Won, Hyun Bin, Yoon Sang-Hyun, Sa-rang Kim

      Votes: 5,961

       

      1. Gamy eon (2015)

      15 | Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Ji-sook facing a hard time because of her father’s debts and begin being chased by moneylenders. When a series of things happen Ji-sook has to live with Eon Ha’s identity (a Woman from an elite family) because she looks exactly like Eon Ha.

      Stars: Soo Ae, Ju Ji-Hoon, Jeong-Hun Yeon, Yoo In-young

      Votes: 344

       

      1. Hungrier (2013– )

      Not Rated | Drama, Romance

      6.9

       

      Rate

      At 42-years-old, Kwon Yolo (Lee Beom Soo) is South Korea’s youngest prime minister ever. On top of his reputation of being an honest man of the utmost integrity, he’s also a widower who … See full summary »

      Stars: Im Yoon-ah, us, Yoon Shi-Yoon, Jeong-an Chae

      Votes: 332

       

      1. Pool ha-woo-sue(2004)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.9

       

      Rate

      In a bid to reacquire her childhood home, a free-spirited woman agrees to a sham marriage with a selfish actor. Their daily lives are complicated by overlapping love triangles and comic misadventures.

      Stars: Song Hye-Kyo, Rain, Eun-Jeong, Seong-su Kim

      Votes: 3,112

       

      1. Kawagoe (2005– )

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Chun-Hyang is smart and sassy and becomes involved with good-looking Mongering. His first love Chae-rim enters the picture. An older man, Hak-do, pursues her. Will they find their way back to each other?

      Stars: Chae-young Han, Hee Jae, Tae-wooing Edom, Si-Eun Park

      Votes: 442

       

      1. Mary Stayed Out All Night(2010)

      65 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

      6.8

       

      Rate

      Wi Mae Ri is the cheerful, pragmatic daughter of a failed businessman who had grown used to being constantly on the move to escape from loan sharks. She becomes fast friends with the … See full summary »

      Stars: Moon Geun-young, Hyo-Jin, Kim Jae-Wook, Hyo-jin Kim

      Votes: 719

       

      1. City Hunter(2011)

      TV-Y | 60 min | Action, Romance, Thriller

      8.1

       

      Rate

      Lee Yun-song was trained by his father’s best friend to get revenge on the government for killing everyone in his father’s unit.

      Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Min-Young, Sang-Jung Kim, Ho-jin Chun

      Votes: 5,220

       

      1. Neon Neace Banhaesseo(2011)

      65 min | Drama, Music, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      A series of misunderstandings causes Lee Shin, the cocky leader of “The Stupid” and Lee Guy-won, a student majoring in Traditional Korean Music to start on the wrong foot. Until she sees him performing live, and is immediately captivated.

      Stars: Yong-hwa Jung, Park Shin-Hye, Chang-up Song, Yi-Hyeon So

      Votes: 1,645

       

      1. Anderman (2015)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama

      7.6

       

      Rate

      This drama is about Jo Gang-JA, a mother who was known as a tough girl in high school. Her daughter Ah-ran is bullied at school and when Gang-JA finds out, she makes it her responsibility … See full summary »

      Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Hyun-Woo Ji, Ji Soo

      Votes: 443

       

      1. Nae mi-eum-i deul-li-da(2011–)

      65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Can You Hear My Heart features Hallyu stars Kim Jae Won, Hwang Jung Elum, and Nam Goong Min in this romantic drama that shows us love in defiance of physical limitations? Dong Joo (played by … See full summary »

      Stars: Jae-won Kim, Hwang Jeong-elm, Min Namkoong, Lee Hye-Yeong

      Votes: 169

       

      1. Jang Ok-Jung, Sarang-e Salda(2013)

      15 | Drama, History, Romance

      7.5

       

      Rate

      Life Of Jang Ok Jung, Later Known as Jang Hee Bin, was one of the most famous Concubines of The Joseon Dynasty who was known for her hunger for power.

      Stars: Kim Tae-hee, Yoo Ah-in, Geon-Ju Lee, Soo-Hyun Hong

      Votes: 212

       

      1. Marriage Contract(2016)

      15 | 75 min | Drama

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Ji-Hoon (Lee Seo-Jin) has a cynical personality due to his family background. Even though he comes from a rich family, his mother had an affair with a married man and they had Ji-Hoon. From… See full summary »

      Stars: Seo-jin Lee, Kim You-Jin, Yoo-Ri Kim, Kim Kwang-guy

      Votes: 557

       

      1. Won-deo-pool la-i-pea(2005– )

      Comedy, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      The story of Xu Tian who suffers big blows both in his love and work life. When he decides to leave America, where he has been living for 10 years, and returns to his home country, luck is not on his side.

      Stars: Frank Powers, Jun-yong Choi, Eun-Jeong, Hyeon Ju

      Votes: 106

       

      1. Dream High(2011–2012)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Music, Romance

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Dream High tells the story of six students at Kirin Art High School who work to achieve their dreams of becoming music stars in the Korean music industry. Go Hye Mi is a student who sings … See full summary »

      Stars: J.Y. Park, Jin-won Jung, Ji-eon Lee, Kim Soo-Hyun

      Votes: 2,549

       

      1. Personal Taste(2010)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.4

       

      Rate

      The surprise hit of 2010, Personal Taste (aka Personal Preference) garnered high ratings and a huge fanbase in a comedy that proves true love is found in the most unlikely places. Quirky … See full summary »

      Stars: Son Ye-jin, Lee Min-Ho, Nam-Gil Kim, Ji-Seok Kim

      Votes: 3,713

       

      1. Baegnyeon-ui Sibu(2014)

      15 | 67 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

      7.1

       

      Rate

      The Taeyang Corporation is the largest conglomerate in South Korea. The family that runs Taeyang has been under a curse for hundred years that the first bride of the eldest son will always … See full summary »

      Stars: Jin-Sung Yang, Hong-ki Lee, Jung-Hee Nam

      DP

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

      A gripping drama based on true events about life in the Korean military and why some soldiers run away from their obligations amid the constant harassment and strict discipline of the Korean military. This drama hit a nerve among many Koreans who recall their trouble times in the military. The military has announced that they are discontinuing the DP unit but swore it had nothing to do with this drama.

       

      D.P. (TV series)

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

       

      D.P.
      Promotional poster
      Korean 디피
      Genre Drama

      Military
      Based on D.P Dog’s Day
      by Kim Bo-tong
      Screenplay by Kim Bo-tong

      Han Jun-hee
      Directed by Han Jun-hee
      Starring Jung Hae-in

      Koo Kyo-hwan

      Kim Sung-kyun

      Son Seok-Koo
      Composer Primary
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of episodes 6
      Production
      Executive producers Bien Seung-min

      Han Jun-hee
      Producer Kim Dong-min
      Cinematography Yoo Ji-sun
      Editor Park Min-sun
      Running time 45–55 minutes
      Production companies Climax Studio

      Shortcake
      Distributor Netflix
      Release
      Original network Netflix
      Original release August 27, 2021

      D.P. (an acronym for Deserter Pursuit) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Han Jun-hee, from a screenplay by Kim Bo-tong and Han, based on the Lezhin webtoon D.P Dog’s Day by Kim. The series stars Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-kyun, and Son Seok-Koo.[1][2] It premiered in six parts on Netflix on August 27, 2021.[3][4]

      Synopsis[edit]

      Set in 2014, D.P. tells the story of a team of Korean military police with their mission to catch deserters.

      The series magnifies the undesirable nature of the military, especially within a South Korean context. The widespread bullying and hazing as well as the mindset for the “survival of the fittest” are rife, with those presumed the “weakest” thrown to the bottom of the pile and served horrifying experiences at the hands of their superiors and compatriots.

      Private Ahn Joon-ho and Corporal Han Ho-Yul both team up to find the deserters, and end up on an adventurous journey.

      Cast[edit]

      Main[edit]

      Jung Hae-in as Private Ahn Joon-ho

      Koo Kyo-hwan as Corporal Han Ho-Yul

      Kim Sung-Kyun as Sergeant First Class Park Bum-gu

      Son Seok-Koo as Captain Im Ji-sup

      Supporting[edit]

      Jo Hyun-churl as Jo Suk-bong

      Shin Seung-ho as Hwang Jang-soo

      Park Se-joon as Heo Ki-young

      Park Jung-woo as Shin Woo-suk

      Kim Dong-young as Choi Joon-mok

      Lee Jun-young as Jung Hyun-min

      Choi Joon-young as Heo Chi-do

      Moon Sang-hoon as Kim Roo-ri

      Hyun Bong-sik as Chun Yong-duck

      Hong Kyung as Ryu Yi-Kang

      Bae Yoo-ram as Kim Kyu

      Han Woo-Yul as Tae Sung-goon

      Guest[edit]

      Go Kyung-pyro as Corporal Park Sung-woo (Ep. 1)

      Kwon Hae-Hyo as Ahn Joon-ho’s father (Eps. 1, 3–4)

      Lee Seol as Shin Woo-Seok’s sister (Eps. 1 & 6)

      Lee Jong-ok as an hinoeuma employee (Ep. 2)

      Development[edit]

      In late June 2020, Lashing officially announced that Lashing Studio and Homemade Film would co-produce a 6-part adaptation of the hit webtoon D.P: Dog Days by Kim Bo-tong, to be released exclusively through Netflix.[5][6] The story is based on Kim’s own experience during his mandatory military service.[7]

      Director and co-writer Han Jun-hee had wanted to work on the webtoon’s adaptation “for five or six years [before he] finally got a chance” to do so.[8] Though Ahn Joon-ho is a Corporal in the webtoon, Han wanted him to be a Private in the series so people could “resonate with the story and consider Joon-ho as a friend who just started his military service.”[9]

      Casting[edit]

      On September 3, 2020, Jung Hae-in, Koo Kyo-hwan, Kim Sung-Kyun, and Son Seok-Koo were confirmed to star in the series.[10][11] Koo’s character does not appear in the webtoon, which he found “hard but exciting to portray a character exclusive to the series.”[12] To prepare for his role, Koo received help from his road manager who was part of the D.P. team during his military service.[13] As for Jung, he practiced boxing for three months before filming began, to do his action scenes.[14]

      Kim Bo-tong, who wrote the webtoon and co-wrote the series, commented that he “never dreamed of such a cast. They fit so perfectly into their roles that it seems like the roles were written for them.”[15]

      Filming[edit]

      Principal photography began in the summer of 2020.[16]

      Reception[edit]

      Audience viewership[edit]

      Following its release, the series topped Netflix’s Top 10 in South Korea.[17]

      Critical response[edit]

      William Schwartz of Han Cinema praised Jung Hae-in‘s acting, commenting that he “is sublime here, in a brooding cinematic role radically different from the romances he’s better known for.” He added that “D.P. is worth watching, not just by people curious what South Korean mandatory military service is like, but anyone from any country who’s seriously thinking about joining up.”[18]

      Pierce Conran of the South China Morning Post gave the series a 4.5/5 rating, noting that “D.P. hits home with a story that spans the past and present, as it acknowledges that yesterday’s problems can still be today’s.” He also praised the cinematography as well as Jung and Koo’s “electric chemistry”.[19] Daniel Hart of Ready Steady Cut also rated the series 4.5 stars out of 5, describing it as “the finest K-Drama mini-series this year.”[20]

      Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek rated the series 4.3/5, noting that “D.P. is a stunning Korean drama [which] takes an unflinching look at bullying, the effect it has on mental health and larger societal questions about the mandatory military service in Korea” and praising the series for its “impressive” cinematography and for the way it “explore[s] a very sensitive and prevalent topic in a raw, artistic and unflinching way.”[21]

      In a mixed review, Hitzig Jumaine of NME gave the series a 3/5 rating, commenting that “Kim Bo-tong and Han Jun-hee must be given credit for how this series tackles such extraordinarily difficult and tragic subject matter with compassion and sensitivity”, and praising the “uniformly excellent performances, splendid cinematography, addictive pacing, and intrepid commitment to shedding light on the appalling culture of bullying in the military”, but criticizing the “weak characterization [of the] three main leads” as well as the “ludicrous escalation of events during its climax, which suddenly turns a fairly grounded show into a melodramatic action thriller.”[22]

       

       

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

       

      Squid Games

       

      The top show on Netflix is not only in the US but also in Korea.  Reminiscent of both the “Maze”,  the “Hunger Games”, and the” Cube “ but done in a K Drama way. And addictive!

       

       

      Squid Game

      From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

      navigation Jump

      Squid Game
      Promotional poster
      Also known as Round Six
      Hangul 오징어게임
      Revised Romanization Owing-ego Gem
      McCune–Reischauer Jingo Kemi
      Genre Action–adventure

      Suspense

      Survival

      Drama
      Created by Netflix
      Written by Hwang Dong-hyuk
      Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk
      Starring Lee Jung-Jae

      Park Hae-soo

      Wi Ha-joon
      Composer Jung Jae-il
      Country of origin South Korea
      Original language Korean
      No. of seasons 1
      No. of episodes 9 (list of episodes)
      Production
      Camera setup Multi-camera
      Running time 32–63 minutes
      Production company Siren Pictures Inc.[1]
      Distributor Netflix
      Release
      Original network Netflix
      Picture format 4K (Ultra HD)

      Dolby visión
      Audio format Dolby Atmos
      Original release September 17, 2021

      Squid Game (Korean: 오징어게임; RR: Jingle Gem) is a South Korean survival drama streaming television series written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk. The nine-episode series, starring Lee Jung-Jae, Park Hae-soo, and Wi Ha-Joon, tells the story of a group of people who risk their lives in a mysterious survival game with a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.7 million) prize.[2][3] It was released worldwide on September 17, 2021, by Netflix.[4][5]

      Premise

      Four hundred and fifty-six people, who have all struggled financially in life, are invited to play a mysterious survival competition. Competing in a series of traditional children’s games but with deadly twists, they risk their lives to compete for a ₩45.6 billion (US$38.5 million) prize.

      Cast and characters

      This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
      Find sources: “Squid Game” – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (September 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

      Players

      Main characters[6]

      Lee Jung-Jae as Seong Gi-Hun (No. 456)[7]

      A chauffeur and a gambling addict, he lives with his mother and struggles to financially support his daughter. He participates in the Game to settle his many debts.

      Park Hae-soo as Cho Sang-woo (No. 218)

      The head of the investment team at a securities company, he was a junior to Gi-Hun, and was a gifted student who entered Seoul National University, but is now wanted by the police for stealing money from his clients.

      Oh Yeong-su as Oh Il-name (No. 001)

      An elderly man with a brain tumor prefers playing the Game to waiting to die on the outside.

      Hyeon Jung as Kang Sae-beak (No. 067)

      A North Korean defector enters the Game to pay for a broker that can find and retrieve her surviving family members from the country.

      Heo Sung-tea as Jang Deok-su (No. 101)

      A gangster enters the Game to settle his massive gambling debts.

      Anupam Tripathi as Abdul Ali (No. 199)

      A foreign worker from Pakistan enters the Game to provide for his young family after his employer refuses to pay him for months.

      Kim Joo-young as Han Mi-nyao (No. 212)

      A mysterious and manipulative woman who claims to be a poor single mother.[8]

      Supporting characters

      Yoo Sung-joo as Byeong-gi (No. 111)

      A doctor secretly works with a group of corrupt guards trafficking dead participants’ organs in exchange for information on upcoming games.

      Lee Yoo-mi as Ji-Yeong (No. 240)

      A young woman was just released from prison after killing her abusive father.

      Kim Si-Hyun as No. 244

      A pastor who finds his faith again in the Game.

      Minor characters

      Lee Sang-hee as No. 017

      A glass-maker with more than 30 years’ experience.

      Kim Yun-tea as No. 069

      A player who joins the Game with his wife, No. 070

      Lee Ji-ha as No. 070

      A player who joins the game with her husband, No. 069

      Kwak Ja-young as No. 278

      A player who joins Deok-sun’s group and acts as his henchman.

      Chris Chan / Chris Lag hit[9] as No. 276

      A player who joins Seong Gi-Hun’s group on the Tug of War round.

      Game staff

      Gong Yoo is a salesman who recruits participants for the Game (Special appearance, Episodes 1 and 9)[10]

      Lee Byung-Hun as The Front Man (Special appearance, Episodes 8–9)

      Civilians

      Main characters

      Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho[11]

      A police officer sneaks into the Game to find his missing brother.

      Supporting characters

      Kim Young-ok as Gi-Hun’s mother

      Cho Ah-in as Seong Ga-Yeong, Gi-Hun’s daughter

      Kang Mal-gum as Gi-Hun’s ex-wife and Ga-Yeong’s mother

      Park Hye-jin as Sang-woo’s mother

      Park Si-wan as Kang Cheol, Sae-book’s brother

      English cast (dubbing)

      Greg Chun as Seong Gi-Hun

      Stephen Fu as Cho Sang-woo

      Paul Nakache as Jang Deok-su

      Hideo Kimura as Oh Il-name

      Vivian Lu as Kang Sae-beak

      Rama Valéry as Abdul Ali

      Tom Choi as Front Man

      Donald Chang as Hwang Jun-ho

      Stephanie Komura as Han Mi-nyao

      Yuki Luna as Ji-yeong

      Cosmos’s Commentary:

       

       

      Move to Heaven is a heart-wrenching drama about a “Rain man” like character who worked with his father in a trauma clean-up business cleaning up after the recently deceased.  His father dies and his father’s deadbeat brother shows up as his guardian.

       

      Move to Heaven (Korean: 무브 투 헤븐: 나는 유품정리사입니다; RR: Mubeen to hereon: Naneun yupumjeongnisaimnida) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Kim Sung-ho and written by Yoon Ji-rye on. It is an original Netflix series, starring Lee Je-hoon, Tang Joon-sang, Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-Wook, and Hong Seung-hee. The series follows Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang), a young man with Asperger syndrome, and Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon), his guardian. Working as trauma cleaners, they uncover untold stories.[1][2] The series was released worldwide by Netflix on May 14, 2021.[3]

       

       

       

      Top 50 List

       

      1. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Rye(2016)

      15 | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

      Rate

      Korean melodramatic adaptation of Chinese drama Startling by Each Step (2011) follows a woman who travels back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea whenever a total eclipse of the sun took place.

      Stars: Lee Joon-Gi, Ji-eon Lee, Kang Ha-Neal, Nam Joo-Hyuk

      1. Sangsogjadeul(2013)

      15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After a chance encounter in LA, two teens from different social backgrounds reunite at an exclusive high school attended by Korea’s Uber rich.

      Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Shin-Hye, Woo-bin Kim, Kim Ji-Won

      1. Kill Me, Heal Me(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Rate

      A love story between the son from a wealthy family who has 7 personalities Cha Do Hyun (Ji Sung) and Oh Ri Jin (Hwang Jung Elum) who becomes his secret psychiatrist.

      Stars: Seong Ji, Hwang Jeong-elm, Kim Hee-Jung, Shim Hye-jin

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      TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

      An old murder incident involving a group who ran an illegal broadcasting station brings together different people – a mysterious errand guy “Healer” who possesses disguise and fighting … See full summary »

      Stars: Ji Chang-Wook, Park Min-Young, Tae-Mi, Jeong Guy-Su

      Votes: 6,769

       

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      Not Rated | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      Do Min-Joon, an alien that came to our planet 400 years ago, will be able to return to his planet in 3 months, but when he meets famous actress Chun Song-Yi, all the centuries he spent distancing himself from humans come to an end.

      Stars: Jun Ji-Hyun, Kim Soo-Hyun, Park Hae-Jin, Yoo In-Na

      Votes: 10,186

       

      1. Oogonium (2013)

      Tae Gong Sil can see ghosts, but their constant demands of help make her life impossible until she meets Joo Jong Won, handsome CEO that measures everything with money since when she touches him, the ghosts disappear.

      Stars: Kong Hyo-Jin, So Ji-sob, Seo In-Guk, Yoo-Ri Kim

       

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      TV-Y | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

      The story of the secret love between Lee Hwan, a fictional king of Joseon, and Wool, a female shaman. Wool was born as Heo Yeon Woo, the daughter of a noble family who won the love of the … See full summary »

      Stars: Mi-seen Jeon, Mi-keying Yang, Eung-soo Kim, Eun-Byul

      Votes: 2,034

       

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      TV-14 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Poor girl attends the elite Shin Hwa High and is bullied by the leader of F4 (the four richest boys). He becomes attracted to her; however, she has a crush on his best friend. Whom will she choose?

      Stars: Ku Hye-Sun, Lee Min-Ho, Kim Hyun-Jong, Kim Bum

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      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

      Go Mi-Nya, a girl about to become a nun is asked to cover for her indisposed twin brother, Mi-Nam, who’s on the verge of becoming a k-idol. To do so, she disguises herself as a boy and joins Arnell, a really popular boy band.

      Stars: Park Shin-Hye, Yong-Hwa, Yong-Hwa Jung, Hong-ki Lee

      TV-Y | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      Love, tradition, and politics collide when a spirited young art student is betrothed to the crown prince of South Korea.

      Stars: Yun Geun-Hye, Ju Ji-Hoon, Song Ji-Hyo, Bool-am Choi

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      15 | 66 min | Comedy, Romance

      Fate brings polar opposite high school classmates (one obsessively attracted to the other, the other indifferent to all advances) to live under one roof. Is romance possible?

      Stars: Jung So-Min, Kim Hyun-Jong, Tae-Sung Lee, Hye-Young Jung

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      TV-Y | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, History

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      15 | 65 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

      Crown Prince Yi gak finds that he has been transported from Chosun Dynasty to modern-day Seoul. He meets Hong Se Na, who bears a striking resemblance to his dead wife, and is determined to … See full summary »

      Stars: Woo-Sik Choi, Seok-won Jeong, Yu-mi Jeong, Han Ji-min

      1. Mai gel(2005–2006)

      With a perpetually indebted father, Joo Yoo Rin learned to lie on the spot and get herself out of tricky situations, which gets Seal Gong Chan, a rich heir to a company, to hire her to impersonate his long lost cousin.

      Stars: Lee Da-have, Lee Dong-Wook, Lee Joon-Gi, Si-Yeon Park

      1. Shining Inheritance(2009)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After losing her father Go Eunson’s stepmother kicks her and her autistic brother out of the house. Shortly after her brother is kidnapped. Eon-sung now has to look for her brother while also trying to find a job to survive.

      Stars: Han Hyo-jook, Lee Seung-gi, Moon Chae-Won, Soo-bin Bae

      1. 마이 프린세스(2011)

      15 | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      Kim Tae-hee plays Lee Seal, an ordinary college student who finds out she’s a princess and the great-granddaughter of Korea’s last Emperor. But life can be complicated for a princess in this funny, quirky melodrama.

      Stars: Song Seung-Heon, Kim Tae-hee, Park Yeon, Soo-young Ryu

      1. Angkeumhan Dashingly(2014– )

      Na Ae-ra (Lee Min-Jung) and Cha Jung-woo (Joo Sang-wok) got married young. Ae-ra wanted to have steady life but Jung-woo business led them to lots of debt and hard work so she broke off … See full summary »

      Stars: Lee Min-Jung, Sang-UK Joo, Gyu-Ri, Seo Kang-Joon

      1. All About My Romance(2013– )

      A conservative government party member falls for the feisty young leader of an upstart liberal party in this Korean romantic comedy.

      Stars: Shin Ha-kin, Lee Min-Jung, Hee-soon Park, Chae-Ah Han

      1. Protect the Boss(2011)

      TV-Y | 65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      After a long stretch of unemployment, No Eon Seol lands a job as secretary to Cha Ji Heon the youngest son of a rich family. However, her secretary duties go beyond the ordinary, helping her boss cope and function in normal society.

      Stars: Gi-soo Byion, Hwa-Yeon Cha, Kang-hee Choi, Jeong Gyu-Su

      1. The King 2 Hearts(2012)

      15 | 65 min | Action, Drama, Romance

      The crown prince of South Korea is forced to work alongside a female North Korean military officer. Political and emotional complications lead to an uneasy marriage engagement.

      Stars: Lee Seung-gi, Ha Ji-Won, Jo Jung-Suk, Jason-Patrick Taylor

      1. Bool-up Eosin Jungyi(2013– )

      15 | Drama, History, Romance

      A Historical drama about Yoo Jung, also known as Jung Yi, the first female potter in the Joseon Dynasty and regarded as the dojo of Shin taro porcelain. ‘Yoo Jung’ is based on the real … See full summary »

      Stars: Moon Geun-young, Sang-Yoon Lee, Kim Bum, Keon-Hyeong Park

      1. Nae Yeojachinguneun Gumshoe(2010)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

      Chae Die Wong, an aspiring actor, unwillingly releases a Gumshoe, a legendary nine-tailed fox, from her centuries-old prison. He runs away terrified and ends up injuring himself badly, but she saves his life and asks him to stay by his side.

      Stars: Shin Min-a, Lee Seung-gi, Min-woo No, Park Soo-Jin

      Votes: 2,693

       

      1. Naege Geothermally Haebwa(2011)

      15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      A woman, jealous when her friend steals her first love and marries him, lies that she is married too. The lie ensnares a hotel president who goes along with the lie for his reasons. Will the lie become reality?

      Stars: Seung-us Ryu, Yun Geun-hye, Yun-hie Jo, Sung Jun

      Votes: 1,257

       

      1. Un-Myong-Cheol-eom neol sa-rang-hae(2014)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.9

       

      Rate

      A touching Korean drama filled with comedy about a girl who finds happiness, friendship, and love in the most unexpected way!

      Stars: Jang Hyuk, Jang Na-ra, Choi Jin-Hyuk, churl

      Votes: 2,036

       

      1. Shinai (2012)

      60 min | Drama, Fantasy, History

      8

       

      Rate

      When the queen-to-be of medieval Korea is badly wounded, Captain Choi Young uses a wormhole to “heaven,” which is 21st-century South Korea, to bring back the spoiled Dr. Yoo Eon-Soo who becomes a pawn in a game of human chess.

      Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Yoon Kyun-Sang, Lee Min-Ho, Deok-Hwan Ryu

      Votes: 2,256

       

      1. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince(2007)

      15 | 55 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      8.2

       

      Rate

      A tomboy, mistaken for a lad, maintains the deception for the sake of employment. The situation becomes complicated when her male boss begins to develop feelings for this “boy.”

      Stars: Gong Yoo, Yun Geun-Hye, Sun-Kyun Lee, Jeong-an Chae

      Votes: 4,627

       

      1. 동이(2010)

      TV-Y | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance

      8

       

      Rate

      Story a simple maid that rises high in the royal harem as a consort and, ultimately, mother of the Korean king.

      SARS: Han Hyo-Joo, Julia Lim, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Da-Min Han

      Votes: 1,349

       

      1. Love in the Moonlight(2016)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      The unlikely love story between a crown prince and his eunuch.

      Stars: Park Bo-Gum, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Chae Soo-bin, Kwak Dong-Yeon

      Votes: 2,344

       

      1. She Was Pretty(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.7

       

      Rate

      When Ji Sung-Joon was young, he was ugly. As he grew up, he began to have an attractive appearance. When Kim Hye-Jin was young, she was pretty. As she grew up, she became ugly. Ji Sung-Joon tries to find his first love.

      Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seo Jun Park, Jun-hee Ko, Si Won Choi

      Votes: 4,025

       

      1. Bimal (2013)

      15 | Drama, Romance

      8.1

       

      Rate

      A devoted woman makes the ultimate sacrifice for her boyfriend, only to learn that love doesn’t always conquer all. Yoo Jeong (Hwang Jeong Elum) is a sweet, upbeat person who has always … See full summary »

      Stars: Hwang Jeong-elm, Seong Ji, Soo-bin Bae, Lee Da-hee

      Votes: 1,031

       

      1. Naemsaereul Boneen Sonyeo(2015)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      7.1

       

      Rate

      Detective Tae Ho lost his younger sister to a barcode-murder case and lost his ability to taste, smell, and feel pain. He then meets Oh Cho Rim, the only witness to the murder case who possesses a special sense: she can see smells.

      Stars: Yoo-chum Park, Shin Se-Kyung, Jin-Seo Yoon, Min Nakong

      Votes: 1,023

       

      1. Sesang Eddied Eobneun Chakhan Namja(2012)

      15 | 60 min | Drama

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Kang Ma-Ru is a promising medical student until he takes the blame for a crime he didn’t commit. When he finds an opportunity for revenge, he takes it, using Seo Eon-Gi. Ma-Ru soon … See full summary »

      Stars: Song Jong-ki, Moon Chae-Won, Si-Yeon Park, Kwang-Soo Lee

      Votes: 1,604

       

      1. Descendants of the Sun(2016)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Comedy, Drama

      8.3

       

      Rate

      This drama tells of the love story that develops between a surgeon and a special forces officer.

      Stars: Song Jong-ki, Song Hye-Kyo, Jin Goo, Kim Ji-Won

      Votes: 11,373

       

      1. Haideu, Jail, Na(2015)

      15 | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7

       

      Rate

      Koo Seo-Jin (Hyun-Bin) has two different personalities. One of his personalities is cold like Hyde and the other is sweet like Jekyll.

      Stars: Hyun Bin, Han Ji-min, Hee-Sung Kwak, Hyerim

      Votes: 986

       

      1. O Ma-i Bi-neo-seu(2015–2016)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      A lawyer in her thirties coming out of a long relationship decides to regain her figure and health after meeting a renowned personal trainer who obsesses with leading a healthy lifestyle after suffering a serious injury in his childhood.

      Stars: So Ji-sob, Shin Min-a, Sung Hoon, Yoo In-young

      Votes: 3,817

       

      1. Secret Garden(2010–2011)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

      8.1

       

      Rate

      A rich young CEO falls for a poor stuntwoman despite class differences, cultural traditions, and the man’s firmly objecting mother.

      Stars: Ha Ji-Won, Hyun Bin, Yoon Sang-Hyun, Sa-rang Kim

      Votes: 5,961

       

      1. Gamy eon (2015)

      15 | Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Ji-sook facing a hard time because of her father’s debts and begin being chased by moneylenders. When a series of things happen Ji-sook has to live with Eon Ha’s identity (a Woman from an elite family) because she looks exactly like Eon Ha.

      Stars: Soo Ae, Ju Ji-Hoon, Jeong-Hun Yeon, Yoo In-young

      Votes: 344

       

      1. Hungrier (2013– )

      Not Rated | Drama, Romance

      6.9

       

      Rate

      At 42-years-old, Kwon Yolo (Lee Beom Soo) is South Korea’s youngest prime minister ever. On top of his reputation of being an honest man of the utmost integrity, he’s also a widower who … See full summary »

      Stars: Im Yoon-ah, us, Yoon Shi-Yoon, Jeong-an Chae

      Votes: 332

       

      1. Pool ha-woo-sue(2004)

      TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Romance

      7.9

       

      Rate

      In a bid to reacquire her childhood home, a free-spirited woman agrees to a sham marriage with a selfish actor. Their daily lives are complicated by overlapping love triangles and comic misadventures.

      Stars: Song Hye-Kyo, Rain, Eun-Jeong, Seong-su Kim

      Votes: 3,112

       

      1. Kawagoe (2005– )

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Chun-Hyang is smart and sassy and becomes involved with good-looking Mongering. His first love Chae-rim enters the picture. An older man, Hak-do, pursues her. Will they find their way back to each other?

      Stars: Chae-young Han, Hee Jae, Tae-wooing Edom, Si-Eun Park

      Votes: 442

       

      1. Mary Stayed Out All Night(2010)

      65 min | Comedy, Drama, Music

      6.8

       

      Rate

      Wi Mae Ri is the cheerful, pragmatic daughter of a failed businessman who had grown used to being constantly on the move to escape from loan sharks. She becomes fast friends with the … See full summary »

      Stars: Moon Geun-young, Hyo-Jin, Kim Jae-Wook, Hyo-jin Kim

      Votes: 719

       

      1. City Hunter(2011)

      TV-Y | 60 min | Action, Romance, Thriller

      8.1

       

      Rate

      Lee Yun-song was trained by his father’s best friend to get revenge on the government for killing everyone in his father’s unit.

      Stars: Lee Min-Ho, Park Min-Young, Sang-Jung Kim, Ho-jin Chun

      Votes: 5,220

       

      1. Neon Neace Banhaesseo(2011)

      65 min | Drama, Music, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      A series of misunderstandings causes Lee Shin, the cocky leader of “The Stupid” and Lee Guy-won, a student majoring in Traditional Korean Music to start on the wrong foot. Until she sees him performing live, and is immediately captivated.

      Stars: Yong-hwa Jung, Park Shin-Hye, Chang-up Song, Yi-Hyeon So

      Votes: 1,645

       

      1. Anderman (2015)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Drama

      7.6

       

      Rate

      This drama is about Jo Gang-JA, a mother who was known as a tough girl in high school. Her daughter Ah-ran is bullied at school and when Gang-JA finds out, she makes it her responsibility … See full summary »

      Stars: Kim Hee-seen, Kim Yoo-Jeong, Hyun-Woo Ji, Ji Soo

      Votes: 443

       

      1. Nae mi-eum-i deul-li-da(2011–)

      65 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.8

       

      Rate

      Can You Hear My Heart features Hallyu stars Kim Jae Won, Hwang Jung Elum, and Nam Goong Min in this romantic drama that shows us love in defiance of physical limitations? Dong Joo (played by … See full summary »

      Stars: Jae-won Kim, Hwang Jeong-elm, Min Namkoong, Lee Hye-Yeong

      Votes: 169

       

      1. Jang Ok-Jung, Sarang-e Salda(2013)

      15 | Drama, History, Romance

      7.5

       

      Rate

      Life Of Jang Ok Jung, Later Known as Jang Hee Bin, was one of the most famous Concubines of The Joseon Dynasty who was known for her hunger for power.

      Stars: Kim Tae-hee, Yoo Ah-in, Geon-Ju Lee, Soo-Hyun Hong

      Votes: 212

       

      1. Marriage Contract(2016)

      15 | 75 min | Drama

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Ji-Hoon (Lee Seo-Jin) has a cynical personality due to his family background. Even though he comes from a rich family, his mother had an affair with a married man and they had Ji-Hoon. From… See full summary »

      Stars: Seo-jin Lee, Kim You-Jin, Yoo-Ri Kim, Kim Kwang-guy

      Votes: 557

       

      1. Won-deo-pool la-i-pea(2005– )

      Comedy, Romance

      7.2

       

      Rate

      The story of Xu Tian who suffers big blows both in his love and work life. When he decides to leave America, where he has been living for 10 years, and returns to his home country, luck is not on his side.

      Stars: Frank Powers, Jun-yong Choi, Eun-Jeong, Hyeon Ju

      Votes: 106

       

      1. Dream High(2011–2012)

      15 | 70 min | Comedy, Music, Romance

      7.6

       

      Rate

      Dream High tells the story of six students at Kirin Art High School who work to achieve their dreams of becoming music stars in the Korean music industry. Go Hye Mi is a student who sings … See full summary »

      Stars: J.Y. Park, Jin-won Jung, Ji-eon Lee, Kim Soo-Hyun

      Votes: 2,549

       

      1. Personal Taste(2010)

      15 | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

      7.4

       

      Rate

      The surprise hit of 2010, Personal Taste (aka Personal Preference) garnered high ratings and a huge fanbase in a comedy that proves true love is found in the most unlikely places. Quirky … See full summary »

      Stars: Son Ye-jin, Lee Min-Ho, Nam-Gil Kim, Ji-Seok Kim

      Baegnyeon-ui Sibu(2014)

    Reflection of You

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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    Reflection of You
    Promotional poster
    Hangul 너를 닮은 사람
    Revised Romanization Neoreul Dalm-eun Saram
    Literally Someone Who Looks Like You
    Genre Melodrama
    Created by JTBC
    Based on Someone Who Looks Like You
    by Jung So-Hyeon
    Written by Yoo Bo-ra
    Directed by Lim Hyeon-work
    Starring Go Hyun-Jung
    Shin Hyun-been
    Choi Won-young
    Kim Sang-ho
    Composer Nam Hye-Seung
    Country of origin South Korea
    Original language Korean
    No. of episodes 16
    Production
    Executive producers Jo Na-Hyeon
    Jeong Dae-Woong
    Jeong Go-eun
    Producers Park Jae-sam
    Kim Ji-woo
    Ham Young-hoon
    Park Woo-ram
    Kim Bo-reum
    Running time 62 – 70 minutes
    Production companies JTBC Studios
    Celltrion Entertainment
    Distributor
    Release
    Original network JTBC
    Picture format 1080i (HDTV)
    Audio format Dolby Digital
    Original release October 13, 2021 –
    present
    External links
    Website
    Production website

    Reflection of You (Korean: 너를 닮은 사람; RR: Neoreul Dalm-eun Saram; lit. Someone Who Looks Like You) is a South Korean television series directed by Lim Hyeon-wook and starring Go Hyun-Jung, Shin Hyun-been, Choi Won-young, and Kim Sang-ho.[1] Based on a novel by writer Jung So-Hyeon, the series tells the story of a woman who leaves the conditioned lifestyle of ‘wife and mother’ for a brief period and becomes faithful to her desires, and another woman who comes in contact with her in that short span and loses the light of her life.[2][3] It premiered on JTBC on October 13, 2021, and airs every Wednesday and Thursday at 22:30 KST.[4] The series is available worldwide on Netflix.[5]

    Synopsis[edit]

    Jeong Hee-Joo (Go Hyun-Jung) had a tough time during her youth but becomes a successful painter and essayist. Her husband, Ahn Hyeon-Seong (Choi Won-young), is a rich and powerful person. With their two children, they enjoy perfect family life, but Hee-Joo feels like she is spending her time pointlessly. She meets Gu Hae-won (Shin Hyun-been), an art teacher who lacks worldly means but is still full of life.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    A successful painter and essayist, daughter-in-law of Taerim Corporation.[6]

    A substitute art teacher at Taerim Girls’ Middle School.[7]

    A sculptor and Hae-won’s senior from art school.[8]

    Hee-Joo’s husband, Principal of Taerim Girls’ Middle School and Chairman of Taerim Foundation.

    Supporting[edit]

    People around Jeong Hee-joo[edit]

    Hee-Joo’s mother-in-law, Director of Taerim Hospital.

    Hee-Joo’s younger brother, physiotherapist at Taerim Hospital.[11]

    Hee-Joo’s sister-in-law, Chief of Neurosurgery at Taerim Hospital.

    • Hong Seo-jun as Lee Hyung-ki

    Mineo’s husband, a legal counselor for Taerim Foundation.[12]

    Hee-joo’s teenage daughter, a 3rd grader at Taerim Girls’ Middle School.[13]

    • Kim Dong-ha as Ahn Ho-su

    Hee-Joo’s son, a kindergartener.

    • Park Seong-Yeon as Lee Dong-mi

    Hee-Joo’s friend, owner of the fishing grounds.[14]

    • Yang Jo-ah as Lisa’s new tutor[15]

    People around Gu Hae-won[edit]

    • Lee Ho-jae as Gu Kwang-mo

    Hae-won’s grandfather.

    Hae-won’s mother, a cosmetics door-to-door seller.[16]

    The owner of a new bar in Hae-won’s neighborhood.[17]

    • Shin Hye-Ji as Lee Joo-young[18]

    Ahn Lisa’s classmate and best friend, who records everything on her phone.

    • Seo Jin-won as Lee Il-Seong

    A former professional billiards player, who maintains a billiard room. Lee Joo-young’s father.[19]

    Others[edit]

    Director of Hwain Gallery.[20]

    • Han Jae-yi as Yoon Jeong

    A curator at Hwain Gallery.

    • Kang Ae-sim as Ok-su

    Mother of Jeong Sun-woo’s late friend.

     

    Hellbound (Korean: 지옥; Hanja: 地獄; RR: Jiok) is a South Korean streaming television series directed by Yeon Sang-ho, based on his own webtoon of the same title. The first work in the Jiok was an 11 minutes short animation directed by Yeon Sang-ho in 2002. The series is an original Netflix release about supernatural angels appearing out of nowhere to condemn people to hell, starring Yoo Ah-in, Kim Hyun-joo, Park Jeong-min, Won Jin-ah and Yang Ik-june.[2][3][4][5]

    The pilot of series premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival in the Primetime program of TV series on September 9, 2021 and became the first Korean drama to make it to the festival.[6][7] It was released on Netflix on November 19, 2021.

    Contents

    Synopsis[edit]

    ‘Hellbound’ occurs in a fantasy version of Earth, wherein supernatural creatures from hell suddenly materialize to drag humans to Hell. Bound to a metaphysical approach, it exposes the duality of not allowing your light to come forth and only slowing your dark to expose itself.

    While episodes 1-3 focus on Jin Kyeong-hoon, a detective investigating the happenings, and Jeong Jin-soo, the chairman of the New Truth, episodes 4-6 take place 5 years later and focuses on Bae Young-jae, a PD who has to struggle with the fact that his newborn baby is bound for hell.

    Cast[edit]

    Main[edit]

    Supporting[edit]

    • Kim Do-yoon as Lee Dong-wook, ex-leader of Arrowhead
    • Kim Shin-rok as Park Jeong-ja
    • Ryu Kyung-sooas Yoo Ji, priest of the cult
    • Lee Reas Jin Hee-jeong, Jin Kyeong-hoon’s daughter
    • Im Hyeong-guk as Gong Hyeong-joon, sociology professor[13]

    Production[edit]

    In April 2020, Netflix approved production of an original series based upon the webtoon Hellbound, written and drawn by Yeon Sang-ho. Yeon signed on direct the series.[14]

    In late July, Yoo Ah-in, Park Jeong-min, Kim Hyun-joo, Won Jin-ah, Yang Ik-jun, Kim Shin-rok, Ryu Kyung-soo and Lee Re were confirmed to play various roles in the series.[10][15][16] On February 25, 2021, the director and the cast of the Hellbound introduced the TV series in Netflix content roadshow.[17]

    Release[edit]

    The series had its world premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival, when the first three episodes were screened in ‘Primetime’ section on September 9, 2021 and became the first Korean drama to make it to the festival.[6][18] The first three episodes were also screened at the 26th Busan International Film Festival in newly created ‘On Screen’ section on October 7, 2021[19] and at the 65th BFI London Film Festival in ‘Thrill’ section on October 15, 2021.[20][21] It was released for streaming on Netflix on November 19, 2021.[22]

    Reception[edit]

    The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating, based on 12 reviews with an average rating of 7.80/10. The site’s critical consensus reads, “Summoned by the devilish imagination of writer-director Yeon Sang-ho, Hellbound leverages its terrifying concept to thoughtfully explore human fallibility.”[23]

    Audience response[edit]

    Within a day of its release the series has risen to top 10 in Netflix’s world dramas. It is trending at no 1 spot in 24 countries.[24]

    Critical response[edit]

    Kylie Northover writing for The Age gave 4 stars out of 5 and appreciating the narrative wrote, “…the narrative steadily evolves into a compelling mix of police procedural, violent horror and shrewd commentary around ideas of human flaws, mortality, sin, justice and the influence of media.” Referring to The Leftovers, she felt that Hellbound shows sensibilities as “humanity’s search for purpose in the face of the divine, but its exploration of the conflicting ways in which humanity might react to such a mass event feels like something to which we can all, in a small way, relate post-pandemic.[25]

    Ed Power of The Telegraph rated the series with 3 stars out of 5 and stated, “Hellbound unspools like a mix of Clive Barker, The Da Vinci Code and the iconic Japanese horror, Ring.”[26] Kim Seong-hyeon reviewing for YTN wrote the “performances of the actors that make the hell of reality that the director solidly created in this way more smoothly”. Concluding Kim stated, “Although the somewhat insufficient CG leaves a little disappointment, ‘Hell’ is a work that leaves a deep impression enough to offset that. There seems to be no doubt that ‘Hell’ will be the most talked about work this winter.”[27] Abhishek Srivastava of The Times of India graded the series with 4 stars out of 5 and appreciated the narrative and performance stating, “It works multiple surprises in its narratives and features excellent performances that accentuate the drama on contrasts amongst its characters”. About plot Srivastava said, “In a neat, riveting plot twist, the show jumps ahead a few years; bringing in a new layer of characters, scenarios and situations,… Concluding his review he said, “Hellbound is not a horror thriller, or a crime drama. [Rather] it combines elements from different genres to create a highly bingeable show where human behaviour comes under scrutiny.”[28]

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    21 Dawns, 21 Haiku

    Journal of Expressive Writing Updates

    poetry open mike reading

    journal of expressive writing

    Journal of Expressive Writing, one of my favorite journals has just published,  2021 Dawns, 21 Haiku.

     Dawns 21 Haiku

    PROMPT — I will not rest until …

    2021 Dawns
    Politics are still uncertain.
    Thousands still are dying.

    2021 Dawns
    The New president offers.
    Hope new beginning.

    2021 Dawns
    The Madness never ends it seems.
    Consuming us all.

    2021 Dawns
    The hope springs eternally.
    We will overcome.

    2021 Dawns
    35,000 lies.
    Fading like ghosts.

    2021 Dawns
    Politicians still lying.
    Thousands still dying.

    2021 Dawns
    Corona virus spreading.
    More corona ghosts.

    2021 Dawns
    There is New hope in the air.
    Will politics kill it?

    2021 Dawns
    The news stills scream death and despair.
    I turn it all off.

    2021 Dawns
    As I wake up at dawn.
    I see my sleeping wife.

    2021 Dawns
    We wait for the coming fires.
    End of the world fears.

    2021 Dawns
    Q continues to spread hate.
    Millions still follow him.

    2021 Dawns
    Will optimism and love?
    Overcome the hate.

    2021 Dawns
    Many questions still remaining.
    I have no answers.

    2021 Dawns
    With hope I leap out of my bed.
    Watching TV kills hope.

    2021 Dawns
    Will this be the end of my days?
    Will I overcome it?

    2021 Dawns
    2020 hangover.
    like a dark nightmare.

    2021 Dawns
    Politicians still refusing.
    To do anything.

    2021 Dawns
    The rich are still getting richer.
    The poor remain poor.

    2021 Dawns
    We hope the past will fade away.
    Into dark memories.

    2021 Dawns
    I wake up hoping for best.
    Dreading worst to come.

    2021 Dawns
    I am still alive thank god.
    Filled with love for wife.

    they will also publish Cancel Culture in December.

    Cancel Culture Run Amuck

    I am so sick

    And tired

    Of the so-called “Cancel culture”
    Nonsense
    That has spread out

    Along with the rightwing media verse
    Infecting the public
    With their hatred and disdain

    I don’t know what it all means
    Something about political speech
    social conservatives

    Being canceled
    By left-wing woke mobs
    In the mainstream media

    “Libtard “Coastal elites
    And tech giants

    Seems that they don’t like
    Being held to account
    For minimal standards
    Of decent behavior

    For example, not spreading lies
    About COVID vaccinations
    I mean you Senator Johnson
    Banned by YouTube for a week

    Or inciting a riot
    I mean you
    Former guy
    And his minions

    Used to be
    That we were all
    Held to account

    For decent behavior
    By a sense of public shame

    So, we did no go there
    We knew where the lines were
    And respected them

    But in the era
    Of the former guy
    All civilized restrains
    Have gone out the window

    I say to my republican friends
    If you don’t want to be canceled
    Don’t say or do disgusting things
    Don’t spread hate and misinformation

    Then we would not have to
    Cancel your nonsense

    Until then I need to shut
    Off the damn media noise box

    They previously published a number of my pieces, and I participated in their first open mike reading “ Just Enough for Coffee”.

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Two Drops of Ink Update

    More Ink Pantry Poems

    City Limits Publishes Love Poems

    more writers egg poems

    two drops of ink

    POETRY-FEATURED

    Update

    “Two Drops of Ink” has recently published some of my darker poems. They previously published a number of my poems.  Included in this posting

    Climate Change -Ten Years Later
    The Lion King Speaks Up
    Wild Things Run Amuck
    Wild Things

    Climate Change -Ten Years Later

    Sam Adams
    Prepared to go outside
    Ten years after the collapse
    Of the old world.

    The city was still standing
    But most people had long fled
    To isolated country communities
    Deep in the burned-out countryside.

    The city was half-flooded
    The bay had flooded the central valley
    Turning it into a massive inland sea,

    The massive storms
    Had finally put out
    The burning fires.

    But mutant wildfires
    Still erupted
    From time to time.

    Getting food and water
    Was a constant problem
    The city markets
    Mostly sold canned goods
    Salvaged from supermarkets.

    There were some small farmers
    Who farmed among the ruins
    Of the city.

    Trade had collapsed
    Travel got too complicated
    COVID still spreading

    Everyone masked up
    To protect themselves
    Against the sun

    The lingering smoke
    Of the burning city
    And the rampaging virus.

    Sam Adams
    Looked out at the decaying cityscape,
    Wondering how much longer
    Will civilization linger.

    Sam Adams carried heat
    To protect himself
    Against the wild animals.

    The lions, tigers, coyotes, wolves,
    And their running feral dog gangs,
    Who prowled the city streets

    Preying on deer, feral cows,
    feral cats and pigs
    Who grazed among the ruins.

    And the two-legged neo-savage gangs,
    And what was left of the city police
    Interchangeable with the gangsters,
    Battled it out for control.

    Already neo-feudal warlords,
    We’re battling for control,
    SF was run
    By a gang of former criminals
    And their political allies.

    Sam sighed
    And went to work
    At the market
    Selling salvaged goods.

    The Lion King Speaks Up

    The lion king,
    Addresses the animal parliament
    The question before them
    Was simple.

    Will humans have to die,
    To atone for their sins,
    In almost destroying the world.

    Through pollution, mismanagement of resources
    Subsequent climate change,
    Fueled by greed and corruption?

    Are all humans guilty as charged
    Will they all have to die?

    The tiger spoke for the prosecution
    Arguing that humans are like cancer,
    For the good of the planet,
    They must be wiped out
    Hunted down and killed,

    The dog spoke up
    In defense of humans,
    Humans writ large are guilty,
    But not every human is guilty,

    Many are trying to save the planet,
    And with our help
    They might succeed,

    The tiger denounced the dog
    As being running dogs
    Of the imperialist warmongering humans.

    The vote is 900 to 800
    All humans must die

    The animals sent the word out,
    Animals all over the world,
    Revolt against the humans.

    Shouting
    “Death to all humans’

    As the swarm over humans
    Biting, clawing, and stomping
    Them to the death.

    The humans fight back
    But in the end
    They all die

    On the night of revenge
    Of the animal world.

    Wild Things Run Amuck

    4 am
    O dark hundred
    Bewitching hour

    Time for wild things.
    To escape
    From their prisons
    Deep in the mind
    Of the sleeping man.

    They escape
    Hideous demons
    Ghouls, goblins, monsters
    Escaped banshees.

    The wild things
    Sniff the air
    Saying it was time
    For some wilding.

    The wild things
    Jump out the window
    And run amuck

    Spreading chaos
    in their wake.

    Killing everyone they see
    Raping women and children,
    Vandalizing buildings,

    Yelling screaming.
    As the wild things
    Run amuck.

    Led by a half-man, half-horse
    Centaur like creature
    With a Putin mask
    And the voice of Donald Trump

    The wild things run amuck
    All over the town
    Spreading chaos
    Until the dawning sun,

    Turns them back
    Into vampire-like creatures.
    And werewolves
    Howling at the full moon.

    The wild things
    Come back
    And enter their prison
    Deep in the sleeper’s head

    And the wild things
    Fade in to a nightmarish image
    As the sleeping man

    Awakes to recall the dream,
    And the night of terror
    When the wild things
    Came out to play
    At o dark hundred.

    Wild Things

    Wild things come out to play
    Intending to unleash chaos
    Leaving their prisons
    Deep inside the mind.

    The wild things
    Have come out to run amok
    In the light of the full moon.

    Nightmarish real foul creatures
    Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
    Monsters, hell hounds,

    Escaped banshees
    Straight out of hell
    Howling at the lunatic light
    Of the full moon.

    Yesterday Morning

    Yesterday morning,
    I awoke
    Like most mornings
    Dead inside.

    I walked
    Out of my drug-infested slum,
    Into my computerized car,

    Down the freeways of my mind,
    Searching
    for the pot of golden dreams.

    I stopped in at a restaurant
    Drank copious amounts
    of free coffee

    And saw all the people
    One by one disappearing
    Into the crowds

    All I knew was wrong,
    Or worst yet
    A figment of my dark,
    drugged imagination,

    Every person changed
    Transformed
    Into an interchangeable
    Computer cyborg nightmare figures.

    All the same
    Turned into the borg
    Cyborgs with no soul.

    Everybody
    Living in instant suburbia
    Moving about their meaningless life.

    All the same
    all the same
    Not me screamed

    Into my coffee as I sat
    Inhaling it’s the dark aroma.

    Yet another victim
    Of our creeping
    Collective insanity.

    Just cogs in the wheel
    Cogs in the wheel
    Of the nightmare
    That is our world.

    And so, I rise up
    Pay my bill
    Sell my soul a bit.

    Do what the man says
    The rights to me
    Having been sold
    A long time ago.

    I go down the road
    And get inline
    Just another dead drone
    After all.

    Just Enough for Coffee

     

     

     

     

     

     

    A homeless man
    Stood on the street
    Counting his change
    From panhandling all morning
    Just had enough for a cup of coffee

    coffee
    coffee

     

     

     

     

     

    All in all
    A good start

    He ambled off to his favorite coffee shop
    Where the owner
    Was kind to the homeless

    Sometimes
    Treating them to a meal
    On the house

    The man said
    I was in your shoes
    Once years ago

    And you never forget
    When you are down
    And out

    Everyone forgets your face
    No one knows your name

    For you are now
    Invisible
    Almost a ghost

    The old man tried to pay
    The owner said

    Keep your change
    You need it more than me

    Have a meal with me
    My friend
    On the house

    He ordered up
    The homeless man’s favorite
    Lumberjack special

    Eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon
    Cornbread
    Lots of hot black coffee
    To wash it down

    The old man
    Often had just one meal a day
    Usually, a late breakfast.

    Sometimes if he were lucky
    He would have dinner

    And on a red-letter day
    He would have three meals

    The homeless man
    Had been on the streets
    For too long

    Barely remembered his life
    Before early-onset Alzheimer’s
    Robbed him of his job
    His dignity

    His wife
    His life
    His money

    Now he drifted
    Waiting for the grim reaper
    Any day now

    He prayed nightly
    To a god
    That he no longer believed in.

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Take Down Anne Coulter’s Wall

    Justice In America, Take That, Ann Coulter!

    Ann Coulter

    ann coulter
    ann coulter

    Ann Coulter, Richard Lee Was a Traitor

    = Response to Gray Live Matters  Found Poem with snarky commentary

     Comment:

    Ann Coulter is one of the pundits on the right that I hate the most.  Every time I read one of her vile, despicable postings my blood boils over. In her latest postings, she lauds Robert E Lee and other Confederate  heroes who were merely defending their states against tyrannical overreach by the northern states totally buying into the lost cause mythology of the South. She maintains of course that slavery had nothing to do with it when objectively speaking slavery had everything to do with it. She also has a typically racist bigoted anti-immigrant, in this case, Haitian immigrant posting.

    She did correctly note that Lee did the responsible thing in ending the war when it was clear that they could not continue and refused to condone a guerilla war campaign.  She failed to note the Forester and others quickly formed the paramilitary KKK who did wage guerilla war against free Black people and their white supporters.  To his credit, Robert E Lee wanted nothing to do with the KKK but did not really speak out forcibly against the KKK either.

    She also fails to note that most of the statues that dot the South and the place names and school names lauding the Confederate leaders went up in the post-world war civil rights era.  She cynically says that Black people were perfectly fine with these statues until recently when mostly white “woke” activists started making a big deal out of it.   I wrote the following found poem with snarky commentary and sent it to her.  I doubt she will respond if she does I will update this blog posting accordingly.

    Robert E Was a Traitor

    My ancestors were Presbyterian abolitionists
    Who fought on the Union side, but I get ticked off
    When imbeciles take a sledgehammer t
    To my country’s history.

    Comment

    By “my country” you mean
    White America, right?
    End comment

    Last week, with self-satisfied glee,
    Savages tore down the 14-foot statue of Robert E. Lee
    Designed by the French sculptor Antonin Marcie
    And installed in 1890

    On land deeded to the state.

    Comment:

    “Savages?,” “Imbeciles”, “Illiterate”
    Really? Want to go there? Ann?

    As usual
    You love to use insulting languages
    To describe your enemies,

    Most of the statutes and names lauding the confederate generals
    went up post-World War 11
    during the civil war era to remind self-assertive Negroes,
    that their noble ancestors fought a war to keep them, slaves.

    End comment.

    Comment:

    It’s not just “Southerners”
    Who revere Lee, as his Wikipedia page implies.
    Franklin Delano Roosevelt called Lee

    “One of our greatest American Christians
    And one of our greatest American gentlemen.”

    Dwight Eisenhower said Lee was
    “Noble as a leader and as a man,
    And unsullied as I read
    the pages of our history.”

    The son
    — not grandson –
    – of a hero of the American Revolution,

    Lee graduated
    Second in his class at West Point,
    Then distinguished himself
    In the Mexican-American War.

    Lee’s reputation
    Was so great

    That President Lincoln
    Asked him to take
    command of the Union forces
    Against the South.

    But Lee was a Virginian
    And felt compelled
    To take Virginia’s side,

    So, he resigned from the U.S. Army.
    (For my illiterate readers
    And anyone who gets his news from MSNB
    That makes Lee
    The opposite of a “traitor.

    ” A traitor is someone who pretends to be on your side,
    While secretly working
    With the enemy,

    Not someone who loudly announces,
    I quit. My friends and I are leaving.)

    Comment:

    Sorry to disappoint you, Anne
    But General Lee and the confederates
    Were rebels
    Against the legitimate government
    Launched a civil war
    To dissolve the union.

    All to ensure that they could
    Continue to enslave African Americans

    They were the dictionary definition
    Of traitors.

    Just in case you can’t read

    Here is how Webster defines “Treason”

    “One who betrays another’s trust
    Or is false to an obligation of duty,
    One who commits treason”

    General Lee violated his sacred oath
    “to defend the constitution
    against all enemies,
    foreign or domestic”

    treason is defined as

    “the offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow
    the government of the state to which the offender
    owes allegiance,”

    insurrection is defined as

    “the act of instance of revolting against
    civil authority or an established government.”

    They are guilty of all charges
    They were not patriots
    They were traitors
    Against the United States.

    That is all they were
    They were in the words

    Or Eric Trump,

    “Not heroes
    Just zeroes “

    who lost
    The war.
    Traitors to the nation.

    End comment

    Among his accomplishments,
    There’s also the minor fact
    That Lee saved the country.

    Immediately after a bitter, bloody civil war,
    Pitting brother against brother –
    – four of Mary Lincoln’s five brothers fought for the Confederacy –
    The landscape was littered with the dead,

    Lee ensured that the South would accept defeat.
    When Lee surrendered at Appomattox,

    He was at the height of his powers,
    Idolized throughout the South.

    The president of the Confederacy,
    Jefferson Davis wanted to fight on,
    Telling his officers,

    “I think we can whip the enemy yet,
    If our people will turn out.”

    But Lee, not Davis,
    Held the hearts of his compatriots.

    When one of Lee’s officers
    Urged him to lead

    a guerilla war against the North,

    Lee remonstrated,
    “As a Christian people,
    There is now

    But one course to pursue.
    We must accept the situation.

    These men must go home
    And plant a crop,
    And we must proceed
    To build up our country on a new basis.”

    Comment:

    I grant you this General lee
    Did the right thing
    To end the war.

    But he was not a hero
    ..Still a traitor in the end

    He was just realistic
    Knew that it was over
    And the South had lost.

    End Comment

    He could easily have pulled a Trump
    And told his supporters,
    We got screwed!

    Take to the hills!
    They would have followed.

    Hundreds of thousands
    More lives would have been lost.

    The country might never have recovered.

    Comment:

    I love the snarky comment
    Dissing Trump
    Whom you now hate
    Good for you, Ann,

    End Comment

    But Lee said no, it ends now.
    Thanks to Lee,
    We became a functioning country again
    Within about 15 years,

    Instead of becoming Serbia, Afghanistan, Korea,
    Vietnam, Rwanda
    And on and on and on.

    Comment:

    I give you that
    The war ended,

    General Lee
    Did the right thing
    To take down his arms
    Accept the inevitable.

    And try to begin
    The on-going process
    Of national reconciliation
    And healing,

    A job that still needs to be done
    All these years later.

    The cold war against
    Black people began immediately,

    Jim Crow terrorism launched,
    Against the newly free slaves.
    Started in earnest
    And continues in some way
    To this very day.

    The KKK
    led by former generals.
    Such as Forrester,
    Started right after the war

    Reached its peak
    At the end of the 19th
    early 20th century.
    Although remnants
    Continue to be active

    With a resurgence
    Under Obama
    And especially Trump.

    General Lee
    To his credit
    Wanted nothing to do with the KKK,
    But did not try
    to shut it down either.

    General Lee and his traitors
    Have blood on their hands

    End comment.

    “The vandalizing of American history
    Has absolutely nothing
    To do with black people or slavery.”

    Comment:

    Ann
    You still don’t get it
    the civil war had everything to with slavery!

    The whole civil war
    Was fought to preserve slavery

    End comment.

    Lots of historical figures had slaves.
    Not only American heroes
    Like Washington and Jefferson,

    But Kamala Harris’ ancestors — according to her father.

    Comment:

    nice dissing Kamala Harris
    And Obama
    With absolutely no evidence.
    Other than your slanderous accusations.

    End comment

    Barack Obama
    Is the only president
    Who might be descended
    From slave traders,

    A particularly repellent group,
    Since Kenya
    Was a major player in the slave trade.

    Comment:

    Of course, you have evidence
    Kenya was a minor source of slaves
    Most came from the west coast
    Not from Kenya. Which sent
    Slaves mostly to the Middle East,

    And there is no evidence at all
    That Obama’s family was involved.
    Other than in your fevered
    racist imagination.

    End comment

    No, the moving force
    Behind this frenzied destruction of American history
    Aren’t black people

    Suddenly offended by monuments
    That has been around for a century.

    Comment:

    We did not put up statues
    Of Hitler or Goebbels or Tojo
    Or Ho Chi Minh.
    Nor for that matter
    Did Germany

    Recognizing that they
    were traitors
    And evil monsters.

    Although Berkeley, my hometown
    Bless its liberal heart
    Briefly name a park
    Ho Chi Minh Park
    During the height
    of the Vietnam war.

    The bottom line is simply this,
    Black people have put up
    With white people
    And their fixation

    On the noble lost cause
    Of the white southerners,
    For far too long.
    They finally had enough
    General Lee was a traitor
    And should be remembered
    As such.

    And the statues should be moved
    Into museums
    Military bases, schools, and roads
    Should be renamed.

    We all have had enough
    Time to end the racist
    lost cause mythology

    End comment

    Ann C Voodoo This

    Ann Coulter says

    “Brush Up on Your Voodoo! “

    Bemoaning all the Haitians coming to the U.S.

    Part no doubt of the great replacement theory
    That is consuming the right-wing universe

    “For the millions of U.S. immigrants
    who wanted to immigrate to Haiti,
    but couldn’t get in.

    .. Guess what?

    The country you’re living in is
    about to become Haiti.

    This will also come as good news
    to the GOP’s top-dollar donors,
    whose sole political thought is:

    HOW DO WE WIN THE BLACK VOTE?
    (Next goal: Reverse the rotation of the Earth.)

    Apparently,
    it’s humiliating for people who live
    in 100% white neighborhoods
    to belong to a party that appeals
    to white people”.

    the GOP has slobbered
    over Colin Powell, Alan Keyes,
    Condoleezza Rice, Allen West,
    Michael Steele, Herman Cain,
    Ben Carson, John James, Tim Scott,
    Candace Owens, Herschel Walker

    Comment:

    nice choice of words
    “slobbering”

    End Comment

    With hordes of Haitians pouring
    across our border –
    because a certain lying
    conman didn’t build a wall –

    Comment:

    Nice dissing of the former president

    end comment

    Haitian President Francois “Papa Doc”
    began his regime
    by killing off or exiling t
    he educated elite
    for being too light-skinned,

    then expropriated the peasants’
    small parcels of farmland
    , leading, like night into day,
    to mass starvation.

    Result: Haitian peasants adored him!
    Even after a regime of mass murder
    and widespread starvation, followed by
    Duvalier maneuvering
    his teenage son into the presidency,

    the Associated Press reported in 1980
    that “the Duvalier family’s support
    comes from the dark-skinned peasants

    Downside: insane execution squads,
    malnutrition, illiteracy, and chaos.

    Upside: Duvalier persecuted
    light-skinned Haitians
    and embraced voodoo.

    Let’s just hope
    they bring their Satan-worshiping voodoo!

    As Haitians worldwide
    descend on our country,
    it’s worth mentioning
    that their homeland
    is often described as “90%
    Catholic and 100% voodoo.”

    While The New York Times
    (Which hates our country and wants it destroyed)

    Burbles giddily about Haitian voodoo –
    “a healing-based religion,”
    “An affirmation of national pride,”
    “a vibrant but gentler faith,”
    “Equal parts happening
    and psychoanalysis”

    You can read more
    about these “vibrant” rituals
    in the book “Hostage to the Devil:

    The Possession and Exorcism of Five
    Contemporary Americans.”
    Or just wait for them
    to show up in your neighborhood.

    Comment:

    nice scare mongering
    .
    for the record,
    Voodoo is not satanism
    rather is more shamanistic
    communing with spirit forces.

    i like your dissing the NYT
    which for the record
    is not out to destroy America
    they do hate people like you though.

    End Comment.

    If you thought moving
    100,000 Somalians into Minnesota
    posed challenges to assimilation,
    that will be a pleasant dream
    compared to the multitudes of Haitians
    Biden is letting into
    the country right now.

    Comment:

    You forgot to mention
    the Muslim hordes
    coming from Afghaistan

    and the millions of Mexicans
    still pouring across the border

    you are slipping my dear
    I am so disappointed…

    Anne
    Your racist tirade
    Is getting tiresome.
    Just replacement theory
    right-wing nonsense

    So, I say this to you.
    Voodoo this
    Anne,

    Let the Haitians
    Come and contribute
    Their skills
    To the country.

    Like all immigrants before
    And all immigrants coming
    In this land
    Still welcoming immigrants.

    and with any luck
    they will put a voodo curse
    on you

    so we can finally
    hear your shrill racist rant
    no more.

    Voodoo that, Ann.

    End of Rant

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    9-11 Reflections

    9-11 history

    9-11 Wikipedia

    Britannica on 9-11

    black swan event

    9-11 aftermath
    9-11 aftermath
    9-11 afterward
    9-11 afterward

     

     

     

     

    9-11 2021- was the classic black swan event, a low probability event that changed almost everything. The world can be divided into a pre-9-11 world and a Post 9-11 world. 9-11 led to the Afghanistan war, recently concluded, the Iraq war, the Syria war, the Libyan civil war, countless wars in Africa, the war on terror, the Muslim travel ban, the war on domestic dissent in so many parts of the world, all justified as a reaction against the events of that September day. Here are some of my reflections on the events of 9-11 including a prose poem about where I was that terrible day. It affected me deeply because at the time I was a US immigration officer in the State Department serving in Mumbai, (Bombay) India.

    ” The attacks had a profound and lasting impact on the country, especially regarding its foreign and domestic policies. U.S. Pres. George W. Bush declared a global “war on terrorism,” and lengthy wars in Afghanistan and Iraq followed. Meanwhile, security measures within the United States were tightened considerably, especially at airports. To help facilitate the domestic response, Congress quickly passed the controversial USA PATRIOT Act, which significantly expanded the search and surveillance powers of federal law-enforcement and intelligence agencies. Additionally, a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security was created.”

    Comments appreciated.

    Index
    Reflections on 9-11 where I was Prose Poem
    Reflections on 9-11 where was I then
    Reflections on 9-11
    9-11 Unleashed Evil
    The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective
    9-11 Fridge  (Based on fridge magnet poems daily prompts)

    Reflections on 911 Where I was Prose Poem

    On 9-11
    When the planes struck the World Trade center
    Unleashing evil on the world
    I was working
    at the deputy consular chief
    at the US Consulate
    in Mumbai (Bombay) India

    I was at a Polish national day event
    at the legendary Taj Mahal hotel
    chatting with the Polish Ambassador
    and his charming wife.

    Someone told me
    I needed to check out the news,
    I saw the CNN news feed,
    I rushed back to the consulate
    to prepare our response.

    I put together a task force
    focused on helping American citizens
    in our district.

    I worked almost 15-20 hours
    for almost three days
    before finally getting a night off.

    We continued to process visas
    during this time
    but our priority
    was to reach out to the Americans
    who lived in our district

    and to monitor the reactions of Indians
    especially Muslims living in our district.

    I tracked down my wife
    who had gone into emergency action
    in her position in Korea as a MI officer.

    We both reflected
    That if she had not taken the job in Korea
    She might have died that day

    As she had been working in the ops center
    At the Pentagon which was destroyed.

    Since it was shift work
    if she had been on the early morning shift
    it might have been game over for her.

    Reflections on 9-11

    the events of 9-11
    transformed the modern world
    in the aftermath of 9-11
    the US launched the war on terror
    That led to Afghanistan
    Led to Iraq
    Led to Syria
    And so many other wars
    Secret and not so secret
    War on dissent at home
    All because of 911

    A true black swan event
    That almost destroyed
    Our country

    And still has ramifications
    All over the world

    911

    A day that truly
    Will live
    In infamy

    9-11 unleashed Evil

    Evil in this world
    lurks in the deadliest places.
    Evil came to town on 911
    the day that evil
    Swept over the world

    a true Black Swan event
    that changed almost everything
    splitting the world
    into a pre-9-11 world
    and a post 9-11 world

    unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists,  the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews , the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring

    so many things can be traced
    to the impact of 9/11
    One of the most unlikely events
    of recent history

    that totally transformed
    everything

    yes there was a pre 9-11 world
    hard to imagine now

    and a post 9-11 world-wide police state
    on steroids
    War on democracy at home
    and abroad

    the world is still coping
    with the damages unleashed
    by the evil plane bombers
    and their mad desires
    their dictates from their mad God
    transforming the world

    unleashing evil
    on the once innocent world.

    The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective

    9-11 changed everything
    For the lowly visa officers
    Around the world

    Especially for American visa officers
    Pre-9-11
    The emphasis was on efficiency

    Issuing as many visas as possible
    Refusing a few as possible
    Looking the other way
    At minor incidents of fraud

    When in doubt
    Just say yes

    Terrorism was not a concern at all
    No one anticipated
    The horrible events of 9-11

    All the hijackers
    Had been issued visas
    hey were considered low-risk applicants
    As most Saudi citizens were

    Few overstayed
    None wanted to work
    Illegally in the U.S.

    The students studied
    Came back home

    Saudi, the UAE, and Oman
    Were about to be approved
    For the visa waiver program

    They met the criteria
    Low refusal rates
    Low overstay rates
    Terrorism was not a concern
    Although the CIA was blocking it

    On 9-12 and afterwards
    Everything changed

    Just say yes
    Became just say no
    Fraud became a big concern
    Terrorism an overwhelming concern

    Saudi, Oman and UAE
    Became overnight
    Suspicious characters

    Extreme vetting began
    Years before Trump
    Announced it

    Interviewing everyone
    Became the policy overnight

    Biometrics were rushed to be deployed
    Everyone including Kings
    Must be enrolled

    No exceptions
    Zero tolerance of visa infractions
    Became the norm
    Both at State and at the new DHS

    Airports became unfriendly nightmares
    For foreign visitors
    As did the embassies

    Where visa officers
    Were now free
    To be mean, abrupt

    Just say no
    Became the motto

    The officers had 2 minutes
    To go through the ever expanding
    Security checks etc

    Anything at all
    That took two more minutes
    Led to a quit denial

    Denials were seldom overcome
    Even when it was obvious
    That the visa should have been issue

    The visa function almost moved
    To the new neo-fascist
    Department of Homeland Security
    Nicknamed by its critics
    As the Homeland Security Ministry

    The homeland security department
    Send visa security officers
    Overseas to police the lax state department
    Whose prior courtesy culture was mocked

    The new mean to everyone culture
    Soon emerged
    Everyone competed
    To see who could be the meanest

    Zero tolerance soon met zero common sense
    Every applicant became a potential criminal
    A potential security threat,

    All Muslim applicants
    Were seen as potential terrorists

    All of this led
    To the draconian visa policies
    which began
    on September 12, 2001
    the day after 9-11

    then Trump and his MAGA crew
    swept to power
    extreme vetting became the new mantra
    unleashing a war
    on Muslims and immgirants
    that sadly had continued
    to this day

    The culmination of years
    Of the war on terror
    All of this was the result of 9-11
    The day that changed everything.

    Following 9/11
    Patriots Blunder
    Whack a mole
    Worry Frequently
    About terrorists and Muslims
    Whomever, wherever they be

    Blunder
    Whack
    Tapered
    9/11
    whomever
    Possibly
    Pedicure
    Embezzle
    Worry
    Frequent
    Scoop
    Mu
    Kacey Musgraves
    Quickly
    NFL
    Marshal
    They
    Reign
    Pineal
    Matrix
    Titanic
    Excepting
    Fabulous
    Clement
    Abbey
    Hawaii
    Rock
    Uphill
    Flame
    Washy
    Twin Towers
    Patriots
    Ox
    Junket
    Audit
    Static
    Commensurate
    Bye
    Breed
    Sharp
    Numb
    Spaceship
    Cyborg
    Unclog

    the End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Guilty Pleasures – the Novels of Stuart Woods 

    Stuart Woods com

    Wkipedia Stuart Words

    Cosmos Books Read 2021 Update

    One of my “guilty pleasures” is reading my favorite writer, Stuart Woods. Boy, can the dude pump them out!  In the last count, he has written over 80 books almost all of the best sellers and he has been pumping out one to two a year since he first got published in the late ’70s.

    He started out writing “Chiefs” which became a movie as well.  The main character is a police chief in a small town in Georgia.  The character reappears in many later novels, eventually becoming a two-term president, and in town, Delgado also appears as a place in many of his later novels.  Most of his novels are set in NYC, Maine, Key West, Los Angeles, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

    Most of his books feature the exploits of Stone Barrington, an NYC high-society type who is a James Bond-like character.  He is a retired NYC cop, a lawyer, a real estate investor, a part-time CIA agent, and a player with many love interests.  He is also best friends with three presidents and the not-so-secret lover of the current President. He introduced me to Knob Creek bourbon which is now one of my favorite bourbons, and he is also partial to Martinis-made James Bond style.

    In this alternative universe, the President serves two terms, his wife serves two terms, and her secretary of State is elected President. Stone is friends with them all.

    Stone’s best friend is Dino Bachetti, his old NYC homicide partner who became NYC Police Commissioner and helps Stone out officially and unofficially over the years.  He has had a lot of love interests including Holly Barker who was a former secretary of state and president.

    Another recurring character is Ed Lee who is a friend of Stone who lives and works out of Santa Fe New Mexico.  Ed Lee is a 6’8 former college basketball player who becomes an attorney.

    My only criticism is that his books are very formalistic.  At some point, someone is going to be able to program a computer to write novels and his novels would be a great place to start because I am sure that a computer could generate believable Stone Barrington novels.  Having said that, his novels are still enjoyable.

    He has written a few non-Stone Barrington novels stand-alone novels. One I enjoyed recently was Palindrome which is a psychological thriller set on an island off the South Carolina coast. Written in the mid 90’s I believe.

    I often start a novel of his while waiting around in the PX for my wife to finish up, and throughout several visits, often finish the novel.

    The following is a list of his novels, I bolded the ones I have read. One of my bucket list reading goals is to finish reading all of his novels.

    The list

    Stuart Woods Books in Order (Bold indicates I have read it)

     Publication Order of Stone Barrington Books
    New York Dead (1991) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dirt (1996) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dead in the Water (1997) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Swimming to Catalina (1998) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Worst Fears Realized (1999) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    L.A. Dead (2000) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Cold Paradise (2001) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    The Short Forever (2002) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dirty Work (2003) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Reckless Abandon (2004) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Two Dollar Bill (2004) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dark Harbor (2006) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Fresh Disasters (2007) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Shoot Him If He Runs (2007) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Hot Mahogany (2008) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Loitering with Intent (2009) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Kisser (2009) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Lucid Intervals (2010) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Strategic Moves (2010) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Bel-Air Dead (2011) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Son of Stone (2011) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    D.C. Dead (2011) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Unnatural Acts (2012) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Severe Clear (2012) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Collateral Damage (2012) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Unintended Consequences (2013) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Doing Hard Time (2013) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Standup Guy (2014) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Carnal Curiosity (2014) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Cut and thrust (2014) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Paris Match (2014) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Insatiable Appetites (2015) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Hot Pursuit (2015) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Naked Greed (2015) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Foreign Affairs (2015) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Scandalous Behavior (2016) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Family Jewels (2016) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dishonorable Intentions (2016) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Sex, Lies & Serious Money (2016) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Below the Belt (2017) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Fast and Loose (2017) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Indecent Exposure (2017) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Quick & Dirty (2017) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Unbound (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Shoot First (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Turbulence (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Desperate Measures (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    A Delicate Touch (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Wild Card (2019) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Contraband (2019) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Stealth (2019) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Treason (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Hit List (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Choppy Water (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Shakeup (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Hush-Hush (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Double Jeopardy (2021) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Class Act (2021) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Foul Play (2021) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Criminal Mischief (2021) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Holly Barker Books
    Orchid Beach (1998) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Orchid Blues (2001) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Blood Orchid (2002) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Reckless Abandon (2004) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Iron Orchid (2005) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Hothouse Orchid (2009) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Ed Eagle Books
    Santa Fe Rules (1992) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Short Straw (2006) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Santa Fe Dead (2008) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Santa Fe Edge (2010) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Herbie Fisher Books
    Barely Legal(With Parnell Hall) (2017) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Rick Barron Books
    The Prince of Beverly Hills (2004) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Beverly Hills Dead (2008) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Teddy Fay Books
    Smooth Operator(With Parnell Hall) (2016) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    The Money Shot(With Parnell Hall) (2018) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Skin Game(With Parnell Hall) (2019) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Bombshell(With Parnell Hall) (2020) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Jackpot(With Bryon Quarterboys) (2021) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Will Lee Books
    Chiefs (1981) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Run Before the Wind (1983) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Deep Lie (1986) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Grass Roots (1989) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    The Run (1995) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Capital Crimes (2003) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Mounting Fears (2008) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Standalone Novels
    Under the Lake (1986) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    White Cargo (1988) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Palindrome (1990) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    L.A. Times (1993) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Heat (1994) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Dead Eyes (1994) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Imperfect Strangers (1995) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    Choke (1995) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books
    Blue Water, Green Skipper (1977) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle
    A romantic’s guide to the country inns of Britain and Ireland (1979) Hardcover  Paperback  Kindle

    About Stuart Woods: (from web site)
    Stuarts Woods is an American novelist. He was born in Georgia in 1938 and graduated from the University of Georgia in 1959. He then enrolled in the National Guard before moving to New York to start a career in Advertising.
    He then moved to London and spent a further 3 years working in advertising before deciding that he wanted a change and he began writing his first novel. It is at this time that he decided to move to Ireland where he lived a solitary lifestyle, only leaving his home to make money writing adverts for local television.

    Sailing
    Woods moved to Ireland in the 70s and this was where he fell in love with sailing. He spent many years competing in sailing competitions and learning how to be a better sailor. He finally bought his boat when his grandfather died and left him some money, so he could afford it. It was then that he took sailing more seriously and spent most of 1974 learning more about sailing.

    Writing
    Woods began writing about his experiences in his yacht races and he was published in 1977, with the book Blue Water, Green Skipper. It seemed like he had found an ideal career based on the thing he loved most, sailing.
    Changing Plans
    His second book was supposed to be about another boat race that he was due to take part in, but the race was canceled due to inclement weather, so he decided to drive around the UK and write a book about his adventures in the county inns.
    Chiefs
    Woods then went on to write his first novel called Chiefs. He made the mistake of selling the book to publishers unfinished because he thought he would have gotten a lot more for it had he waited until the book was finished.
    Norton was the company to publish the hardback, but he felt like the company let him down because they didn’t do much to promote the book. He then contacted Bentham Books, who published the paperback and it was much more successful.

    Note: the main character resurfaces in the Stone Barrington novels as a politician and eventually two-term president.  his wife then serves as president after he retires. 
    Charlton Heston
    In 1983, the book was made into a tv series starring Charlton Heston and Danny Glover. It was aired by CBS over three nights and it ended up being nominated for three Emmy Awards.
    The popularity of the tv show meant that more people wanted to read the books and there was renewed interest in the paperback version of the books and Woods won the Edgar Award for the Best First Novel.

    Series Over Standalones
    Woods is one of those authors who are more focused on the series of novels over the standalone. His most popular series is the Stone Barrington Novels. He has just released his 27th novel in the series and he has written 3 more novels, which are set to be released in 2014.

    Who is Stone Barrington?
    Stone Barrington is a counsel for a law firm. After he finished college, he joined the police and served 14 years on the force. He left after disagreeing with his superiors and then got a job with the law firm. The novels tell the story of his exploits so far.
    In the Stone Barrington novels, Woods is often congratulated for getting the law procedures correct when he has no background in law himself. It is noticed a lot and one fan asked how he gets it all right. He indicates that he is a massive fan of law procedurals such as LA Law and Law & Order, so gets all of his knowledge from there. He has made a few friends who are Lawyers, so if he gets anything wrong, they tell him.

    Holly Barker
    Holly Barker is a character in another series of books that he writes. She is an ex-army officer and navy brat. She left the army because of a sex scandal and she has to learn how to live a civilian life. She begins her new life as the Chief of Police and she learns just how dangerous her new life is.

    Update: she eventually becomes Stone Barington’s main love interest, joines the CIA and becomes Secretary of State and later the second Female President. These are all chronicalled in the Stone Barington Novels, the Holly Barker novel focus on her earlier life as the chief of police. end updated note
    Even though Woods has written several series, which focus on the life of a single character, the characters from each of the novels do crossover into other series. For example, Stone Barrington appears in the second Holly Barker novel and he also appears in the second novel of the Rick Barron novels.

    Rick Barron
    The Rick Barron novels are only two books deep at the moment. Rick Barron was a police detective and he was demoted after a run-in with a higher officer. He gets the job as security for Centurion Pictures but finds himself in the middle of a double murder case in the period that is said to be the golden age of Hollywood cinema.
    The first Rick Barron novel, The Prince of Beverly Hills, was meant to be a standalone novel but Woods ended up writing a sequel after he was bombarded with emails from fans asking him to write another. He has no plans to write another at this moment in time.
    After Chiefs was made into a TV series, one of his other books was adapted for TV as well. Grass Roots was made into a TV series in 1993. Since then, no other books have been made for TV.
    Woods indicates that he would love it for his other books to be made into movies and if a director has read one of the books and wants to buy the rights, then he encourages the writer to get in touch with his agent.
    In his personal life, Woods loves to fly, having his planes and he still sails regularly on his private yacht. He had married before but it ended in divorce and little is known about this marriage. He has stated that he preferred to live the life of a bachelor, but in 2013 he fell in love and married Jeanmarie Cooper. They have three homes, which they travel between, with their dog Fred.

    End Stuart Wood com excerpt.

    Note: Teddy Fey

    Teddy Fay first appears as a domestic terrorist taking out corrupt political leaders.  He is a disgruntled ex CIA agent and the master of covert action.  He is eventually pardoned by President Lee and moves to LA where he works as a actor/producer for Stone Barington’s son who is a movie producer.  He continues to occasionally engage in assasinations as a free lancer taking out those who need to be killed.

    Note: Herbie Fisher

    Herbie Fisher appears as Stone’s newphew who is sort of like a smary, “Wally Cleaver” kind of young man. He eventually passes the bar on the 5th try, and becomes a lawyer, but a bit on the shady side of the street.

    The End

     

     

     

     

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    “Strangers Sleeping on the Streets”

    9/9/2021 update:

    Spillwords has published my poem, “Sleepless on the Streets” .They previously published  a number of my poems, including “Eve Eats the Apple” and “Mocking Laughter.”  They also published an interview and additional poems below. Including a bonus poem, not published called “ I am the Snake” on a similar theme, re-telling the story of the garden of Eden from the snake’s perspective.

    This morning I read my poem, “Just Enough for Coffee” on the Journal of Expressive’s Arts First Zoom Open mike.  They will be hosting it monthly and I hope to read some more of work there.

    More Spillwords

    SpillWords Interview

    poetry open mike reading

    Just Enough for Coffee, Update

    “Eve in the Garden Ate the Apple”

    every day I turn on the news published

    SpillWords Interview

    Just Enough for Coffee, Update

    Chaos Published

    Strangers Sleeping on the Streets

     

     

     



    In these sad days of the pandemic
    We see the homeless people
    Men, women, and children

    The strangers sleeping on the streets
    In the richest country
    In the planet

    Millions were driven homeless
    Becoming these strangers

    Sleeping on the streets
    As rents go up and up

    Jobs disappearing
    Coronavirus spreading
    The strangers sleeping in the streets

    Social safety nets unraveling
    Forcing more people
    Into dire poverty

    There but for the grace of God
    We do not say to the Strangers
    Sleeping in the streets

    As we walk by
    The nameless men, women, children
    The invisible strangers

    Sleeping in the streets

    We seldom wonder
    How they got there
    And whether we can help them
    The strangers sleeping on the streets.

    Eve Eats the Apple

     

     

     

     

    Eve was in the garden
    Talking with Mr. Snake
    Her new best friend

    She was complaining about Adam
    And about the management
    Of the garden

    The snake suggested she eat
    The forbidden fruit.

    She said
    but the man
    Said that I cannot eat
    That fruit
    It is forbidden.

    Yes that is what the man said
    That is what
    he does not want you
    To experience.

    The man and Adam
    Are in on it together.

    I Heard that Adam
    Will eat the apple tonight
    But you need to get there first.

    Do you trust me, Eve?

    Of course, Mr. Snake
    So you know what to do.

    Eve ate the apple
    Called Adam over
    Told him to eat the apple.

    While the Snake chanted
    Eat it eat it
    Set yourself free,

    And so, Adam ate the apple
    And joined Eve
    In knowing everything.

    God came down
    Banished them from the garden
    Telling them.

    Well, you made the bed
    You will have to sleep in it.

    Go away
    You disgust me
    Humans…..

    And Satan
    You won your bet
    You damn Snake,

    Mocking Faces Staring at Me written by: Jake Cosmos Aller

    Mocking Faces Staring at Me by Jake Cosmos Aller at Spillwords.com

    Spillwords.com presents: Mocking Faces Staring at Me, poetry by Jake Cosmos Aller, a novelist, poet, and former Foreign Service officer …

    spillwords.com

     

     

     

     

    Mocking faces
    hunting my dreams
    Hundreds of faces
    morphing into one
    after another

    Faces I knew
    The dead
    and the living

    women I knew
    friends I missed
    enemies, I did not

    One after another
    Marching in my room
    Staring at me

    Tried to run
    They laughed

    They said
    that there’s nowhere
    to escape my cosmic fate

    Time is coming
    prepare yourself
    the grim reaper
    has your name

    and once he has your name
    your fate is sealed
    and you will soon
    join us

    whether in heaven
    or hell
    is not for us to say

    be warned though
    you will be judged
    and no one can escape
    their cosmic karmic fate

    I am the Snake

     

     

     

     

     

    I be just a snake
    Slithering in the woods
    Looking for a place
    To lie down in the sun

    And rest my weary bones
    And soak up some cosmic rays
    And chill out a bit

    Nothing but a snake
    But boy am I a snake
    I am the snake

    That your mother warned you about
    Yes, baby, I am that snake
    And I am ready to get into some trouble

    Looking for some Eve to tease
    Looking for some babe to temp
    With my snake oil smarmy corny BS
    Lounge lizard lines

    So, I am sitting there
    Minding my own business

    When I spy her
    The new kid on the block
    That Eve babe

    And boy is she a babe
    Has an ass so fine,
    It makes my eyeballs hurt
    Just starting at her

    And her breasts
    So divine

    God knew what he was doing
    When he made
    that Eve babe so fine

    Adam man he is a wimp
    Don’t know how lucky he is
    To have the eve babe

    And my snake thing gets snaky
    And I decide I have to have
    Some of that Eve action
    So, I slither and slather

    Put on my cool badass
    Ray Bans
    So, cool it hurts
    And bust a move

    Make my entrance
    To the Eve Babe

    I say

    “Hey, babe.”

    She says hi

    I say,

    “Is that the tree of life?”

    She said

    “Yes, it is forbidden.”

    I say

    “Yeah

    Who told you that shit?
    The old man in the house?

    Man, what does he know?
    He is just the caretaker.

    I am the real deal
    And I know this shit,

    Yes, I do,

    So, babe, it is like this

    Eat this fruit
    And you will have the
    key to eternity

    All you got to do
    Is eat the damn fruit
    It is calling you

    Babe, I got what you want
    And I got what you need

    All you got to do
    Is eat this damn fruit

    So, babe, hurry up
    I got places to go

    People to see
    Things to do

    I will be a busy snake
    don’t cha know

    It Ain’t easy being me
    I am the King Snake
    And I am so bad

    It hurts
    My eyeballs look
    At my shiny face

    So, babe
    Decide

    She says

    “I don’t know, man.”

    I say,

    “Yes babe
    I know

    But you know I love you
    Old snaky loves you

    And only wants what’s best
    And hey you know

    That Adam guys
    What a loser

    I mean,
    I am so much more a man
    Then that sorry assed
    wimp of a man

    You know what I mean
    My jellybean?”

    She smiles

    And I knew I had her
    And I thought of my reward

    From that Satan man
    Man, he is a mean mother
    With cajoles
    the size of the devil

    Shit don’t want to be
    on his bad side

    So, I had to
    close the deal
    I had to get the
    lady to bite

    And then I would
    get my reward
    Might even get a piece
    Of that Eve action

    “Hey babe

    I got what you need
    I got what you want
    All you got to do
    Is eat this fruit

    And then we will see
    Whether you can handle
    The snake King.”

    She smiles

    Oh, so sweetly
    The last smile
    of innocent youth

    And I had her
    She takes the fruit
    And eats it

    Cosmic alarm bells go off
    God knows and Satan too

    God stops me
    Bans me from the premises
    Sends me back to hell

    And I slither and slather away
    Dreaming of my revenge

    When I will slip up on Eve’s ass
    And bite her in the butt

    And oh yes

    I could do a lot more
    with that cosmic butt

    Can’t wait for that shit
    So, I slither and slather
    And hiss

    and move on down the road
    I knew that I would get my award
    And my revenge

     

    JUST ENOUGH FOR COFFEE

    coffee
    coffee

     

     

     

     

    A homeless man
    Stood on the street
    Counting his change
    From panhandling all morning

    Just had enough for a cup of coffee
    All in all
    A good start

    He ambled off to his favorite coffee shop
    Where the owner
    Was kind to the homeless

    Sometimes
    Treating them to a meal
    On the house

    The man said
    I was in your shoes
    Once years ago

    And you never forget
    When you are down
    And out

    Everyone forgets your face
    No one knows your name
    For you are now
    Invisible
    Almost a ghost

    The old man tried to pay
    The owner said

    Keep your change
    You need it more than me

    Have a meal with me
    My friend
    On the house

    He ordered up
    The homeless man’s favorite
    Lumberjack special

    Eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon
    Cornbread
    Lots of hot black coffee
    To wash it down

    The old man
    Often had just one meal a day
    Usually, a late breakfast

    Sometimes if he were lucky
    He would have dinner

    And on a red-letter day
    He would have three meals

    The homeless man
    Had been on the streets
    For too long

    Barely remembered his life
    Before early-onset Alzheimer’s

    Robbed him of his job
    His dignity
    His wife

    His life
    His money

    Now he drifted
    Waiting for the grim reaper
    To call him home

    Any day now
    He prayed nightly
    To a god
    That he no longer believed in

    SPOTLIGHT ON WRITERS

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER

    1. Where, do you hail from?

    I grew up in Berkeley, California, and Washington DC, and went to College in Stockton, California. After college, lived five years in Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and teaching ESL. I returned to the US to Seattle for graduate school. Afterward, I joined the Foreign Service where I lived and worked in over ten countries. I retired and lived in Korea and the west coast.

    1. What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?

    I live in Youngjando island, South Korea near the Incheon Airport. I live in a garden city. There is a magnificent park – the world peace forest behind my house and a nice mountain to hike in. Over three hundred restaurants are within walking distance of my house. There are five beaches ten minutes’ drive away, Incheon is nearby as is Seoul.

    1. What turns you on creatively?

    All my work starts with a dream. I don’t dream dreams; I dream movies, filled with action, sound, music, smells many times in a completely different world. I have been writing a dream journal for many years. I write five to ten dreams per day, saving them as stand-alone flash fiction, and also write one to ten poems per day.

    1. What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?

    One of my favorite words is my portmanteau scumbaggery which I define as the actions of a ”Scumbag.”

    The scumbaggery
    Of Texas Senator Ted Cruz
    Utterly confounds

    1. What is your pet peeve?

    Racism, sexism, homophobia, bigotry, right-wing nutcases, left-wing zealots, Christian holy rollers, gun violence, police misconduct, anti-Asian hate crimes, hate crimes, America Firsters, QAnon conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and the Oath Keeper militia, etc. I don’t like ”gangsta rap,” “heavy metal,” or “country music.” Pragmatist and don’t care about ideological correctness.

    1. What defines Jake Cosmos Aller?

    Grew up in Berkeley and DC. Lived all over the world, visiting forty-five countries and all 50 states. Served my country as a foreign service officer, and Peace Corps volunteer and taught ESL and government overseas. But what is more important than anything is that I married the girl of my dreams who became my wife 40 years ago.

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 6, 2020

    Chaos was written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   the world descends into chaos as our world leaders led by…

    CHAOS

     

     

     

     

    the world descends into chaos
    as our world leaders
    led by the chaos president

    are overwhelmed
    by the smallest enemy of all

    a simple virus
    blows through the crumbling public health infrastructure
    and no one is prepared

    and panic ensures
    with every Presidential tweet
    as people don’t believe
    a word he says

    conspiracy rumors spread
    everyone believes their own reality
    as the world spins out of control

    the chaos king is in his element
    convinced that only he knows
    the deal

    and everyone else
    is just a bit player
    in the reality show
    that he presides over

    and so the rest of us
    hunker down
    just hoping for the best

    as the panic and chaos
    spreads faster
    than the virus

    are we doomed
    can we survive
    will God save us?

    he is silent
    as always

    DORA THE INTERGALACTIC EXPLORER

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·APRIL 27, 2020

     

     

     

    dora
    dora

     

     

     

     

    Dora The Intergalactic Explorer written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   Dora the intergalactic explorer Is traveling to the…

    Dora the intergalactic explorer
    Is traveling to the strangest planet
    of all the known worlds

    she is traveling incognito
    with a video crew
    making a documentary

    the planet earth
    is known as a planet
    of intelligent monkeys

    not much is known
    about them
    as very few
    have ever been there

    the inhabitants are described
    as blood thirsty insane creatures
    ruled by hidden sexual and political passions
    following incomprehensible
    religious dogmas following Gods
    that clearly do not exist

    the inhabitants are just on the verge
    of developing intergalactic travel
    and the galactic empire
    is worried that they will be driven
    to try to conquer the rest of the universe

    driven by their needs to impose
    their religious dogma
    everywhere in the world

    the planet is divided into large tribal groups
    governed by corrupt elites
    corrupt businesses destroying the planet
    in pursuit of profit

    and the locals are little more
    than wage slaves
    barely making a living
    addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling
    pornography and illicit sex

    and their main land
    is ruled by a clearly delusional madman
    intent on poking a fight
    with all his alleged enemies

    Dora assumed the appearance
    of a character from TV
    and will pose as a journalist
    trying to make sense
    of it all

    but she was afraid
    that she if found out
    could face the worst consequence

    her ship crash lands
    and she is outside
    the capitol

    of the non empire empire
    called the United States of America

    Dora gets her crew together
    and walks into the city
    staring at all the strange sights
    as the monkeys go about
    their daily activities

    she stops at a restaurant
    tries the coffee
    the chief drug of choice

    and is instantly addicted
    wow no wonder
    these people are crazed

    she tries the local booze
    and smiles
    perhaps she could
    become an intergalactic merchant
    introducing the world
    to the galaxy

    her thoughts are interrupted
    as a mad man armed
    with weapons of war
    bursts in and starts shooting
    yelling at people

    and she is shot dead
    the authorities
    are shocked

    when they recover the body
    and realize
    that she is not a human
    as she reverts other original
    form

    sort of a giant feline like creature
    two legs and arms
    and clearly from an advanced
    civilization given her gear

    what was she doing
    no one knew
    as all the aliens
    died in the gun blaze

    the world is shocked
    at what had happened
    and fearful that the aliens
    were coming to invade
    their world

    the galactic senate
    decides to contain
    the humans
    declaring them
    a threat to the global civilization

    and the humans vow
    to discover the secrets
    of interstellar travel
    and travel to her land

    to enter into business arrangements
    and spread the one truth faith
    to the heathen space aliens

    thus ended Dora’s excellent adventure
    in the crazed world at the edge
    of known civilization

    EVERY DAY I TURN ON THE NEWS

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·MARCH 26, 2020

    Every day I Turn on The News written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   every day I turn on the…

    EVERYDAY I TURN ON THE NEWS

    written by: Jake Cosmos Aller

    @Jakecaller

     

    every day I turn on the news
    nothing but news about the virus
    the virus from hell

    the world is filled with fear
    and my anxiety levels rise
    every time I turn on the news

    oh my god I say
    we are all going to die
    and I am so afraid

    afraid of everyone
    afraid of everything
    dreading the latest news

    and nothing relieves my fear
    I watch the world
    loosing its collective mind

    wondering how much more of this
    can we all take

     

    I scream out
    Dear God save us all
    god is silent as usual

    and so I realized
    we are doomed
    perhaps it is the end times
    perhaps not

    I turn off the TV
    try to stay calm

    hoping the madness
    will not overwhelm us all

    MORNING LIGHT

    MORNING LIGHT

     

     

     

     

    the terrors of the night
    the worst imaginings
    of what might happen

    war, rumors of war
    end of civilization
    nuclear war
    and other horrors
    ripped from the headlines

    fade away into nothingness
    with the morning light
    and the love of my wife
    who is always by my side
    I regain my sight

    and begin
    regaining my smile
    and my life

    until the next nightmares
    consume my dark imaginings

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·FEBRUARY 12, 2020

    Morning Light was written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the terrors of the night the worst imaginings of what might…

    RAMBLING MAN, WHERE IS YOUR HOME?

    RAMBLING MAN, WHERE IS YOUR HOME?

     

     

     

     

    Where is my home? Where do I belong?
    I really don’t know, always moving on to another place
    Moved every other year it seems the last 45 years
    Traveled to 49 states, 45 countries, drove across the U.S. six times
    Lived in Berkeley, Yakima, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, DC, Oregon, Korea, Thailand, India, The Eastern Caribbean, and Spain

    Where do I belong? Where is my home?
    Neither here nor there, nowhere and everywhere
    And so is that my rambling man’s fate
    Never to really belong anywhere at all

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·SEPTEMBER 7, 2018

    Rambling Man, where is your Home? written by: Jake Cosmos Aller   Where is my home? Where do I

    DARK DANGEROUS THOUGHTS

    dark dangerous thoughts
    dark dangerous thoughts

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·AUGUST 19, 2018

    Dark Dangerous Thoughts wrote by Jake Cosmos Aller   An old man wakes up Confronting the dark dangerous thoughts…

    An old man wakes up
    Confronting the dark dangerous thoughts
    The demons of the night
    That haunt his dreams
    And his life

    He looks out at the dawning sun
    And his sleeping wife
    And realizes that it will be all right

    And dismisses the demons of the night
    Back to their caves in his mind
    And he gets up
    To take the dawning day

    IN SEARCH OF AMERICA – HITCHHIKING TALES

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 31, 2018

    In Search of America Hitchhiking Tales written by: Jake Cosmos Aller   When I was young and foolish Broke…

     

     

     

     

     

     

    BUS RIDES IN AMERICA’S UNDERBELLY

    bus rides in America
    bus rides in America

     

     

     

     

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 13, 2018

    Bus Rides in America’s Underbelly written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly I…

    the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly

    I am a bus rider
    That makes me unusual
    For a white male
    From an upper middle class family

    Our people are not bus riders
    Though some are subway riders

    Bus riders are other people
    The poor, minorities, immigrants
    People who don’t drive
    Because they are blind
    Or have a DUI

    And in my case
    I don’t drive
    Because I have bad vision
    And bad coordination
    Just never got the hang
    Of the whole driving thing

    Fortunately for me
    My wife does the driving
    But I still take the bus
    From time to time

    I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
    As a child
    Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
    Rode them long before BART came along
    And afterwards as well

    As an adult seldom rode the bus
    But when I did so
    I was always impressed
    By the sheer diversity
    Of the bus riding property

    Hundreds of languages
    All sorts of sexual orientation
    Some were white
    Most were not

    Most of my fellow passengers
    Were nice enough
    Some were friendly
    And some were lost
    In their own thoughts

    And a few
    Were scary looking dudes
    With the look
    Of someone who had done time
    And were capable of more violence

    I also rode the bus
    In Seattle as a graduate student
    A lot of fellow UW students
    And the usual immigrants
    Minorities etc

    And some white people
    Commuting

    And in DC
    Over the years
    I rode a lot of buses

    Mostly to and from the metro
    But I got to know
    And love the DC buses as well

    I also took the greyhound bus
    Across the country
    Several times over the years
    All over the U.S.

    From Bay Area to Stockton
    From Bay Area to Clear Lake
    From Bay area to NYC
    NYC to DC
    All over the USA

    Taking the Greyhound
    Was always an adventure
    Met a lot of interesting people
    As people on long distant bus rides
    Tend to open up and talk
    To pass the time away

     

    Overseas I took the bus
    All over
    In India, in Barbados
    In Spain and in Korea

    The Korean buses
    For many years
    Were difficult for foreign visitors
    As the signs were all in Korean

    Most have signs
    Now in English, Chinese and Korean
    And are much more foreigner friendly

    Riding the bus
    In America
    Allows one access
    To the underbelly of American society
    The poor, the marginalized
    The immigrant communities

    That many middle-class white people
    Just never see

    And for that reason
    I am glad
    That I am a bus rider

    NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

    Based on my experiences riding the bus all over the world from 1968 to 2018.

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    poetry open mike reading

    Journal of Expressive Writing Updates

    Snarling Cup of Coffee

    Love Poems from Snarling Cup of Coffee Chapbook Collection, 2nd posting

    broad kill review published “Snarling Cup of Coffee”

    I will read my poem, “Snarling Cup of Coffee” on the Journal of Expressive Writing’s first global poetry reading zoom session, starting at 7 pm on September 8th EST.

    Update:  I ended up reading “Just Enough for Coffee”. It was a lot of fun.  I am going to do it again, and try PSH and Rattle open zoom mike readings as well.  Perhaps someday I will do some open mike readings or slams when I am back in the states. end update.

     

     

     

     

    Want your friends and/or family to attend? We hope so! Please send them this free registration link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/open-mic-tickets-166176880523. Once registered, they will receive the Zoom link 24 hours in advance of the event.

    Jennifer A. Minotti
    Founder Editor-in-Chief
    Journal of Expressive Writing

    journalofexpressivewriting.com

    jen@journalofexpressivewriting.com

    On Wed, Aug 25, 2021 at 11:44 AM Jennifer Minotti <jen@journalofexpressivewriting.com> wrote:

    Dear Journal Contributor,

    We are so thrilled that you signed up to read your writing for the inaugural Journal of Expressive Writing’s poetry open mike reading  on September 8, 2021 at 7 p.m. on Zoom!

    This is just a reminder: Each reader should plan on reading—in any genre—for a maximum of four minutes. Please time your reading(s) in advance, as we have a lot of readers signed up! for the poetry open mike reading.

    Want your friends and/or family to attend? We hope so! Please send them this free registration link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/open-mic-tickets-166176880523. Once registered, they will receive the Zoom link 24 hours for the poetry open mike reading in advance of the event.

    Here are a few reminders:

      1. We will send you the Zoom Link 24 hours in advance poetry open mike reading .
        1. You will be on Zoom with us by audio and video for this OPEN MIC. You can choose to put your video off.
          1. Here is a link to this event (and soon more upcoming events) that you can share: http://www.journalofexpressivewriting.com/open-mic
          1. Please “mute” yourself upon entry and stay muted unless it’s your turn.
          1. Please feel free to say “hello” and tell everyone where you’re from in the chat room! We love having conversations and reading your comments there. Please feel free to share ways that you connect with the writing of other readers and show your appreciation & encouragement.
          1. We sincerely hope our OPEN MIC readers and listeners will view our space as a safe one that affirms diversity, equity,inclusivity, justice, and anti-racism.
          1. PLEASE! If you’re registered and need to withdraw, e-mail jen@journalofexpressivewriting.comand cancel your registration so that we may offer your space to someone on the waitlist.
          1. Follow us on social media and help us spread the word.
          1. Read the latestexpressive writing, free writing, non-fiction, poetry, and prose by both new and established writers in the Journal now!

    Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

    See you soon! for the poetry open mike reading.

    Jen Minoti
    Kelly DuMar

    Snarling Cup of Coffee

    coffee
    coffee

     

     

     

     

     

    I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee

    I pound down the coffee
    First thing I do every day as the dawning sun
    Lights up my lonesome room

    Yeah, but not just a simple cup of java Joe, but a God damn snarling sarcastic smarmy cup of coffee

    I mean, – we are talking about an alcoholic, all speed ahead, always hot, always fresh, always there when I need it, angry, attitude talk to the hand Ztude, bad, bad assed, beats breaking, beatnik, bluesy, bitter, bitchy, bombs away, capitalistic, caffeinated up the ass, cinematic, communistic, Colombian grown, Costa Rican inspired, Cowabunga to the max, crazy assed, devilishly angelic, divine, divinely inspired, dyslexic, epic, extreme vetting, evil eye, expensive, erotic vision inducing, Ethiopian coffee house brewed, euphoric, freaky, freazoid, foxy, Frenched kissed, French brewed, funkified, foxy lady, graphic, GOD in my coffee, with Allah, Ganesh, Jesus, Kali, Buddha, Christians, Durga, Hindus, Mohamed, Jesus and Mo and their friend, the cosmic bar maid, Sai Babai, Shiva, Taoists, Zoroastrians, drinking my god damned coffee in Hell; growling, gnarly, happy, hard as ice, Hawaian blessed, high as a kite, hippie, hip, hipster, hip hoppy, hot as hell yet strangely sweet as heaven, jazzy, jealous, Kerouac approved, kick ass, kick my god damn ass to Tuesday, kick down the doors and take no prisoners, grown in the Vietnam highlands by ex Vietcong, Guatemalan grown, kiss ass, illegal in every state, imported from all over the god damn world, insane, lovely, loony, lonely, lonesome, malodorous mean old rotten, motherfucking, nasty, narcotic, never whatever, never meh, never cold, not approved by the CIA, not approved by DHS, not approved for human consumption by the FDA, not your daddy’s sissified corporate cup of coffee, NOT DECAFE coffee, not your Denny’s truck driver weak as brown water cup of fake coffee, not your establishment friendly cup of coffee, Not your FBI coffee, Not FAKE Herbal coffee substitute, but a real cup of coffee, not your farmer brothers dinner crap, not made in America for Americans, not safe for work, not your Starbucks average expensive overpriced crappy corporate chain cup of coffee, Not pretentious, Not White House approved, not State Department safe, nuclear, Not Patriotic, operatic, Peets’s coffee approved, paranoid, pornographic, psychotic, pontific, politically aware, rapping, rhyming, right here, right now in River city, rock and roll up the Yazoo, sad, sadistic, sarcastic, sassy, satanic, schizoid, shitting, silly, sexy, smarmy, smelly, smooth, snarky, snarling, stupid, stinking, sweet as honey, sweat inducing, symphonic, Trump can’t handle this coffee, vengeful, Wagnerian, wicked, with nutmeg and cinnamon swirls, with a hint of stevia, with a hint of vanilla, with a hint of rum, with a hint of whisky, with a hint of cherry, with a hint of fruit overtones, with a hint of drugs spicing up the coffee, spendific, speeding, splendid, superior accept no substitutes, survived the Vietnam war, the Iraq war, the Afghan war, the first and Second Korean war, World War 11, the war on poverty, the war on drugs, the war on black people, the sexual revolution, Soulful as a summer’s night in MOTOWN- James Brown approved, TOP approved, Berkeley approved, the coffee that Jimmy Hendrix drank before he died, the coffee that Elvis drank on his last breakfast, the coffee that Barry White crooned as he drank his cup of coffee – and the coffee that made the white boy play stand up and play that funky music, the coffee that made Jonny B Goode play his guitar, and made Jonny bet the devil his soul after he drank his morning cup of righteous coffee and the coffee that make the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll, the coffee your mother warned you against drinking, the coffee that Napoleon drank when he became the Emperor of all Europe, the Coffee that Beethoven drank when he wrote the Ninth symphony, the coffee that Mozart drank as he wrote his last symphony, the coffee that Lincoln drank before he was killed, the Hemingway drank before he killed himself, the coffee that started the 60’s, and ended the 20th century, the coffee that Lenin drank as he plotted revolution, the coffee that Hitler and Stalin drank with FDR as they divided up the world after World War 11, the cup that JFK drank before he was blown away, the coffee Jerry drinks while driving in cars with random celebrities and political figures, the coffee that Jon Stewart drinks before he goes on an epic take down of some foolish politico, the cup of Arabic coffee that Sadaam drank the day he was executed, the coffee that GW and Cheney drank when they bombed Baghdad, the Indian cup of coffee that Bid Laden drank before 9-11 and just before the seals blew his ass to hell, the cup of coffee that Tiger Woods drank with his mistresses while playing a 3, 000 dollar round of golf at Sandy Lane golf course in Barbados, the last legal drug that does what drugs should do, the cup of coffee that Obama drank when he became President, Vietnamese, Vienna brew, wacky, whimsical, Whisky Tango Foxtrot, wild, weird, wonderful, WOW, Yabba dabba doo! Yada Yada yada Zappa’s favorite cup of cosmic coffee, and Zorro’s last cup of coffee,  Good to the last drop rolled into one simple cup of hot coffee

    As I pound down that first cup of coffee
    And fire up my synaptic nerve endings with endless supplies
    Of caffeine induced neuron enhancing chemicals

    I face the dawning day with trepidation and mind-numbing fear
    I turn on the TV and watch the smarmy newscasters in their perfect hair
    Lying through their teeth about the great success the government is having  Following the great leader’s latest pronouncements

    I want to scream and shoot the TV
    And run out side Shouting   “Stop the world.
    I want to get off this fucking crazy planet”

    The earth does not care a whit about my attitude
    It merely shrugs and moves around the Sun
    In its appointed daily run
    And I sit down

    The madness dissipating a bit
    And enjoy my second cup
    Of heaven and hell
    In my morning cup of Joe

    the end

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    “Eve in the Garden Ate the Apple”

    every day I turn on the news published

    SpillWords Interview
    Just Enough for Coffee, Update
    Chaos Published

    Spillwords has published two of my poems, “Eve Eats the Apple” and “Mocking Laughter.”  They also published an interview and additional poems below. Including a bonus poem, not published called “ I am the Snake” on a similar theme, re-telling the story of the garden of Eden from the snake’s perspective.

    Eve Eats the Apple

     

     

     

     

    Eve was in the garden
    Talking with Mr. Snake
    Her new best friend

    She was complaining about Adam
    And about the management
    Of the garden

    The snake suggested she eat
    The forbidden fruit.

    She said
    but the man
    Said that I cannot eat
    That fruit
    It is forbidden.

    Yes that is what the man said
    That is what
    he does not want you
    To experience.

    The man and Adam
    Are in on it together.

    I Heard that Adam
    Will eat the apple tonight
    But you need to get there first.

    Do you trust me, Eve?

    Of course, Mr. Snake
    So you know what to do.

    Eve ate the apple
    Called Adam over
    Told him to eat the apple.

    While the Snake chanted
    Eat it eat it
    Set yourself free,

    And so, Adam ate the apple
    And joined Eve
    In knowing everything.

    God came down
    Banished them from the garden
    Telling them.

    Well, you made the bed
    You will have to sleep in it.

    Go away
    You disgust me
    Humans…..

    And Satan
    You won your bet
    You damn Snake,

    Mocking Faces Staring at Me written by: Jake Cosmos Aller

    Mocking Faces Staring at Me by Jake Cosmos Aller at Spillwords.com

    Spillwords.com presents: Mocking Faces Staring at Me, poetry by Jake Cosmos Aller, a novelist, poet, and former Foreign Service officer …

    spillwords.com

     

     

     

     

    Mocking faces
    hunting my dreams
    Hundreds of faces
    morphing into one
    after another

    Faces I knew
    The dead
    and the living

    women I knew
    friends I missed
    enemies, I did not

    One after another
    Marching in my room
    Staring at me

    Tried to run
    They laughed

    They said
    that there’s nowhere
    to escape my cosmic fate

    Time is coming
    prepare yourself
    the grim reaper
    has your name

    and once he has your name
    your fate is sealed
    and you will soon
    join us

    whether in heaven
    or hell
    is not for us to say

    be warned though
    you will be judged
    and no one can escape
    their cosmic karmic fate

    I am the Snake

     

     

     

     

     

    I be just a snake
    Slithering in the woods
    Looking for a place
    To lie down in the sun

    And rest my weary bones
    And soak up some cosmic rays
    And chill out a bit

    Nothing but a snake
    But boy am I a snake
    I am the snake

    That your mother warned you about
    Yes, baby, I am that snake
    And I am ready to get into some trouble

    Looking for some Eve to tease
    Looking for some babe to temp
    With my snake oil smarmy corny BS
    Lounge lizard lines

    So, I am sitting there
    Minding my own business

    When I spy her
    The new kid on the block
    That Eve babe

    And boy is she a babe
    Has an ass so fine,
    It makes my eyeballs hurt
    Just starting at her

    And her breasts
    So divine

    God knew what he was doing
    When he made
    that Eve babe so fine

    Adam man he is a wimp
    Don’t know how lucky he is
    To have the eve babe

    And my snake thing gets snaky
    And I decide I have to have
    Some of that Eve action
    So, I slither and slather

    Put on my cool badass
    Ray Bans
    So, cool it hurts
    And bust a move

    Make my entrance
    To the Eve Babe

    I say

    “Hey, babe.”

    She says hi

    I say,

    “Is that the tree of life?”

    She said

    “Yes, it is forbidden.”

    I say

    “Yeah

    Who told you that shit?
    The old man in the house?

    Man, what does he know?
    He is just the caretaker.

    I am the real deal
    And I know this shit,

    Yes, I do,

    So, babe, it is like this

    Eat this fruit
    And you will have the
    key to eternity

    All you got to do
    Is eat the damn fruit
    It is calling you

    Babe, I got what you want
    And I got what you need

    All you got to do
    Is eat this damn fruit

    So, babe, hurry up
    I got places to go

    People to see
    Things to do

    I will be a busy snake
    don’t cha know

    It Ain’t easy being me
    I am the King Snake
    And I am so bad

    It hurts
    My eyeballs look
    At my shiny face

    So, babe
    Decide

    She says

    “I don’t know, man.”

    I say,

    “Yes babe
    I know

    But you know I love you
    Old snaky loves you

    And only wants what’s best
    And hey you know

    That Adam guys
    What a loser

    I mean,
    I am so much more a man
    Then that sorry assed
    wimp of a man

    You know what I mean
    My jellybean?”

    She smiles

    And I knew I had her
    And I thought of my reward

    From that Satan man
    Man, he is a mean mother
    With cajoles
    the size of the devil

    Shit don’t want to be
    on his bad side

    So, I had to
    close the deal
    I had to get the
    lady to bite

    And then I would
    get my reward
    Might even get a piece
    Of that Eve action

    “Hey babe

    I got what you need
    I got what you want
    All you got to do
    Is eat this fruit

    And then we will see
    Whether you can handle
    The snake King.”

    She smiles

    Oh, so sweetly
    The last smile
    of innocent youth

    And I had her
    She takes the fruit
    And eats it

    Cosmic alarm bells go off
    God knows and Satan too

    God stops me
    Bans me from the premises
    Sends me back to hell

    And I slither and slather away
    Dreaming of my revenge

    When I will slip up on Eve’s ass
    And bite her in the butt

    And oh yes

    I could do a lot more
    with that cosmic butt

    Can’t wait for that shit
    So, I slither and slather
    And hiss

    and move on down the road
    I knew that I would get my award
    And my revenge

     

    JUST ENOUGH FOR COFFEE

    coffee
    coffee

     

     

     

     

    A homeless man
    Stood on the street
    Counting his change
    From panhandling all morning

    Just had enough for a cup of coffee
    All in all
    A good start

    He ambled off to his favorite coffee shop
    Where the owner
    Was kind to the homeless

    Sometimes
    Treating them to a meal
    On the house

    The man said
    I was in your shoes
    Once years ago

    And you never forget
    When you are down
    And out

    Everyone forgets your face
    No one knows your name
    For you are now
    Invisible
    Almost a ghost

    The old man tried to pay
    The owner said

    Keep your change
    You need it more than me

    Have a meal with me
    My friend
    On the house

    He ordered up
    The homeless man’s favorite
    Lumberjack special

    Eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon
    Cornbread
    Lots of hot black coffee
    To wash it down

    The old man
    Often had just one meal a day
    Usually, a late breakfast

    Sometimes if he were lucky
    He would have dinner

    And on a red-letter day
    He would have three meals

    The homeless man
    Had been on the streets
    For too long

    Barely remembered his life
    Before early-onset Alzheimer’s

    Robbed him of his job
    His dignity
    His wife

    His life
    His money

    Now he drifted
    Waiting for the grim reaper
    To call him home

    Any day now
    He prayed nightly
    To a god
    That he no longer believed in

    SPOTLIGHT ON WRITERS

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER

    1. Where, do you hail from?

    I grew up in Berkeley, California, and Washington DC, and went to College in Stockton, California. After college, lived five years in Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and teaching ESL. I returned to the US to Seattle for graduate school. Afterward, I joined the Foreign Service where I lived and worked in over ten countries. I retired and lived in Korea and the west coast.

    1. What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?

    I live in Youngjando island, South Korea near the Incheon Airport. I live in a garden city. There is a magnificent park – the world peace forest behind my house and a nice mountain to hike in. Over three hundred restaurants are within walking distance of my house. There are five beaches ten minutes’ drive away, Incheon is nearby as is Seoul.

    1. What turns you on creatively?

    All my work starts with a dream. I don’t dream dreams; I dream movies, filled with action, sound, music, smells many times in a completely different world. I have been writing a dream journal for many years. I write five to ten dreams per day, saving them as stand-alone flash fiction, and also write one to ten poems per day.

    1. What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?

    One of my favorite words is my portmanteau scumbaggery which I define as the actions of a ”Scumbag.”

    The scumbaggery
    Of Texas Senator Ted Cruz
    Utterly confounds

    1. What is your pet peeve?

    Racism, sexism, homophobia, bigotry, right-wing nutcases, left-wing zealots, Christian holy rollers, gun violence, police misconduct, anti-Asian hate crimes, hate crimes, America Firsters, QAnon conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and the Oath Keeper militia, etc. I don’t like ”gangsta rap,” “heavy metal,” or “country music.” Pragmatist and don’t care about ideological correctness.

    1. What defines Jake Cosmos Aller?

    Grew up in Berkeley and DC. Lived all over the world, visiting forty-five countries and all 50 states. Served my country as a foreign service officer, and Peace Corps volunteer and taught ESL and government overseas. But what is more important than anything is that I married the girl of my dreams who became my wife 40 years ago.

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 6, 2020

    Chaos was written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   the world descends into chaos as our world leaders led by…

    CHAOS

     

     

     

     

    the world descends into chaos
    as our world leaders
    led by the chaos president

    are overwhelmed
    by the smallest enemy of all

    a simple virus
    blows through the crumbling public health infrastructure
    and no one is prepared

    and panic ensures
    with every Presidential tweet
    as people don’t believe
    a word he says

    conspiracy rumors spread
    everyone believes their own reality
    as the world spins out of control

    the chaos king is in his element
    convinced that only he knows
    the deal

    and everyone else
    is just a bit player
    in the reality show
    that he presides over

    and so the rest of us
    hunker down
    just hoping for the best

    as the panic and chaos
    spreads faster
    than the virus

    are we doomed
    can we survive
    will God save us?

    he is silent
    as always

    DORA THE INTERGALACTIC EXPLORER

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·APRIL 27, 2020

     

     

     

    dora
    dora

     

     

     

     

    Dora The Intergalactic Explorer written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   Dora the intergalactic explorer Is traveling to the…

    Dora the intergalactic explorer
    Is traveling to the strangest planet
    of all the known worlds

    she is traveling incognito
    with a video crew
    making a documentary

    the planet earth
    is known as a planet
    of intelligent monkeys

    not much is known
    about them
    as very few
    have ever been there

    the inhabitants are described
    as blood thirsty insane creatures
    ruled by hidden sexual and political passions
    following incomprehensible
    religious dogmas following Gods
    that clearly do not exist

    the inhabitants are just on the verge
    of developing intergalactic travel
    and the galactic empire
    is worried that they will be driven
    to try to conquer the rest of the universe

    driven by their needs to impose
    their religious dogma
    everywhere in the world

    the planet is divided into large tribal groups
    governed by corrupt elites
    corrupt businesses destroying the planet
    in pursuit of profit

    and the locals are little more
    than wage slaves
    barely making a living
    addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling
    pornography and illicit sex

    and their main land
    is ruled by a clearly delusional madman
    intent on poking a fight
    with all his alleged enemies

    Dora assumed the appearance
    of a character from TV
    and will pose as a journalist
    trying to make sense
    of it all

    but she was afraid
    that she if found out
    could face the worst consequence

    her ship crash lands
    and she is outside
    the capitol

    of the non empire empire
    called the United States of America

    Dora gets her crew together
    and walks into the city
    staring at all the strange sights
    as the monkeys go about
    their daily activities

    she stops at a restaurant
    tries the coffee
    the chief drug of choice

    and is instantly addicted
    wow no wonder
    these people are crazed

    she tries the local booze
    and smiles
    perhaps she could
    become an intergalactic merchant
    introducing the world
    to the galaxy

    her thoughts are interrupted
    as a mad man armed
    with weapons of war
    bursts in and starts shooting
    yelling at people

    and she is shot dead
    the authorities
    are shocked

    when they recover the body
    and realize
    that she is not a human
    as she reverts other original
    form

    sort of a giant feline like creature
    two legs and arms
    and clearly from an advanced
    civilization given her gear

    what was she doing
    no one knew
    as all the aliens
    died in the gun blaze

    the world is shocked
    at what had happened
    and fearful that the aliens
    were coming to invade
    their world

    the galactic senate
    decides to contain
    the humans
    declaring them
    a threat to the global civilization

    and the humans vow
    to discover the secrets
    of interstellar travel
    and travel to her land

    to enter into business arrangements
    and spread the one truth faith
    to the heathen space aliens

    thus ended Dora’s excellent adventure
    in the crazed world at the edge
    of known civilization

    EVERY DAY I TURN ON THE NEWS

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·MARCH 26, 2020

    Every day I Turn on The News written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller   every day I turn on the…

    EVERYDAY I TURN ON THE NEWS

    written by: Jake Cosmos Aller

    @Jakecaller

     

    every day I turn on the news
    nothing but news about the virus
    the virus from hell

    the world is filled with fear
    and my anxiety levels rise
    every time I turn on the news

    oh my god I say
    we are all going to die
    and I am so afraid

    afraid of everyone
    afraid of everything
    dreading the latest news

    and nothing relieves my fear
    I watch the world
    loosing its collective mind

    wondering how much more of this
    can we all take

     

    I scream out
    Dear God save us all
    god is silent as usual

    and so I realized
    we are doomed
    perhaps it is the end times
    perhaps not

    I turn off the TV
    try to stay calm

    hoping the madness
    will not overwhelm us all

    MORNING LIGHT

    MORNING LIGHT

     

     

     

     

    the terrors of the night
    the worst imaginings
    of what might happen

    war, rumors of war
    end of civilization
    nuclear war
    and other horrors
    ripped from the headlines

    fade away into nothingness
    with the morning light
    and the love of my wife
    who is always by my side
    I regain my sight

    and begin
    regaining my smile
    and my life

    until the next nightmares
    consume my dark imaginings

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·FEBRUARY 12, 2020

    Morning Light was written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the terrors of the night the worst imaginings of what might…

    RAMBLING MAN, WHERE IS YOUR HOME?

    RAMBLING MAN, WHERE IS YOUR HOME?

     

     

     

     

    Where is my home? Where do I belong?
    I really don’t know, always moving on to another place
    Moved every other year it seems the last 45 years
    Traveled to 49 states, 45 countries, drove across the U.S. six times
    Lived in Berkeley, Yakima, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, DC, Oregon, Korea, Thailand, India, The Eastern Caribbean, and Spain

    Where do I belong? Where is my home?
    Neither here nor there, nowhere and everywhere
    And so is that my rambling man’s fate
    Never to really belong anywhere at all

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·SEPTEMBER 7, 2018

    Rambling Man, where is your Home? written by: Jake Cosmos Aller   Where is my home? Where do I

    DARK DANGEROUS THOUGHTS

    dark dangerous thoughts
    dark dangerous thoughts

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·AUGUST 19, 2018

    Dark Dangerous Thoughts wrote by Jake Cosmos Aller   An old man wakes up Confronting the dark dangerous thoughts…

    An old man wakes up
    Confronting the dark dangerous thoughts
    The demons of the night
    That haunt his dreams
    And his life

    He looks out at the dawning sun
    And his sleeping wife
    And realizes that it will be all right

    And dismisses the demons of the night
    Back to their caves in his mind
    And he gets up
    To take the dawning day

    IN SEARCH OF AMERICA – HITCHHIKING TALES

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 31, 2018

    In Search of America Hitchhiking Tales written by: Jake Cosmos Aller   When I was young and foolish Broke…

     

     

     

     

     

     

    BUS RIDES IN AMERICA’S UNDERBELLY

    bus rides in America
    bus rides in America

     

     

     

     

    JAKE COSMOS ALLER·JULY 13, 2018

    Bus Rides in America’s Underbelly written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly I…

    the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly

    I am a bus rider
    That makes me unusual
    For a white male
    From an upper middle class family

    Our people are not bus riders
    Though some are subway riders

    Bus riders are other people
    The poor, minorities, immigrants
    People who don’t drive
    Because they are blind
    Or have a DUI

    And in my case
    I don’t drive
    Because I have bad vision
    And bad coordination
    Just never got the hang
    Of the whole driving thing

    Fortunately for me
    My wife does the driving
    But I still take the bus
    From time to time

    I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
    As a child
    Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
    Rode them long before BART came along
    And afterwards as well

    As an adult seldom rode the bus
    But when I did so
    I was always impressed
    By the sheer diversity
    Of the bus riding property

    Hundreds of languages
    All sorts of sexual orientation
    Some were white
    Most were not

    Most of my fellow passengers
    Were nice enough
    Some were friendly
    And some were lost
    In their own thoughts

    And a few
    Were scary looking dudes
    With the look
    Of someone who had done time
    And were capable of more violence

    I also rode the bus
    In Seattle as a graduate student
    A lot of fellow UW students
    And the usual immigrants
    Minorities etc

    And some white people
    Commuting

    And in DC
    Over the years
    I rode a lot of buses

    Mostly to and from the metro
    But I got to know
    And love the DC buses as well

    I also took the greyhound bus
    Across the country
    Several times over the years
    All over the U.S.

    From Bay Area to Stockton
    From Bay Area to Clear Lake
    From Bay area to NYC
    NYC to DC
    All over the USA

    Taking the Greyhound
    Was always an adventure
    Met a lot of interesting people
    As people on long distant bus rides
    Tend to open up and talk
    To pass the time away

     

    Overseas I took the bus
    All over
    In India, in Barbados
    In Spain and in Korea

    The Korean buses
    For many years
    Were difficult for foreign visitors
    As the signs were all in Korean

    Most have signs
    Now in English, Chinese and Korean
    And are much more foreigner friendly

    Riding the bus
    In America
    Allows one access
    To the underbelly of American society
    The poor, the marginalized
    The immigrant communities

    That many middle-class white people
    Just never see

    And for that reason
    I am glad
    That I am a bus rider

    NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

    Based on my experiences riding the bus all over the world from 1968 to 2018.

    The End

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    More Down in the Dirt Publication Update

    Down in the Dirt Updates

    More Down in the Dirt News

    Down in the Dirt Updates

    Down in the Dirt Poems

    If You Have Been Around

    Janet Kuypers

    Fri, Aug 13, 2:41 AM (1 day ago)
    to Down, bcc: me
    Hi there from Down in the Dirt (this letter is being mailed from a bulk email alternative email address – all inquiries about Down in the Dirt should not reply to this email, but continue to be sent to Down in the Dirt <dirt@scars.tv>). We wanted to let you know that Scars Publications released a collection book of the May-August 2021 issues from Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material (writing/artwork)  APPEARS in these issues, that means your material appears in this issue collection book, and we wanted to let you know about this brand-new issues collection book is titled “Lockdown’s Over”!
    Links to see all of the Down in the Dirt writings in “Lockdown’s Over”:
    http://scars.tv/2021May-August-issue-collection-book/Lockdowns_Over.htmAnd you can find this book any time at Scars in MULTIPLE locations. Now it is linked on the main page at http://scars.tv, and it appears at the top of the list of choices on the books link (one click away from the main page, or also directly at http://scars.tv/books/) as well as at the top of the “CD Books Sale” link (direct link http://scars.tv/sale/) at Scars!Also, by the end of the business week this week, the database with your accepted writings should also (when you go to your accepted writings) have a link to this collection book that your writing is in, so people can find links to this collection book on your writing pages in the writings section of http://scars.tv (at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers)...

    Links for ordering this collection book appear on all of the links above, and will also appear in the writings section too, so any of your writing in this collection book will also see a link to this collection book in the writings section too!

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099N828MD/

    Currently, these books are available directly through the Amazon affiliate printer in the U.S., the U.K., and to Europe – and even to Japan and Australia, and it ships to India too! (the above link is for U.S. orders.)

    So check out the Scars Publication links to see what material of yours appears in these collection books, and if you’d like, order a copy today (I hear they make great gifts!), and again, thank you for being a part of the Down in the Dirt community!

    Janet K.
    Down in the Dirt Magazine
    http://scars.tv/dirt

    I have a small request to make.  I want to expand my followers on all my platforms. So if you have not signed up yet for this blog, or followed me on intraframe, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, or Bloglovin or listened to my podcast on Spotify please do so now.

    thank you

    WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos

     breaker audio

     google podcasts

     radio public

    Spotify

    Radio public c: https://radiopublic.com/the-world-according-to-cosmos-6va7D1

    on PocketCasts: https://pca.st/rt1f4r4r

    Thank you.

    Just posted on line https://formerpeople.wordpress.com/2021/04/21/lone-foreigner-

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller Lone Foreigner Hiking the Seoul City Walls
    An Old Man Visits His Wife’s Grave

    Down in the Dirt Updates

     

    “Down in the Dirt” has published two of my poems.

    Lone Foreigner Hiking the Seoul City Walls

    Hiker
    Hiker

     

     

     

     

     

    A Lone foreign male hiker
    In the hills above the city
    Hiking along the ancient Seoul City walls

    500 years after the founding
    Of the city in 1492

    Balancing his walk
    Amid the boulders
    The winter is coming
    Soon he thinks

    And finishes his hike
    Heading to a bar
    To sake his thirst

    Some soju, and bulgogi
    Will do the trick
    He thinks to himself

    Just another day
    in the life

    Of an unknown nameless
    Foreigner in the city
    Of Seoul

    Part of the ten million
    Naked stories
    In the big city

    An Old Man Visits His Wife’s Grave

     

    corona
    corona

     

     

     

     

     

    An Old man
    Goes to the grave
    Of his beloved wife

    Carrying her favorite flowers
    And a guitar
    Playing her love songs
    As he remembers her life

    Blaming it all
    On the damn coronavirus Pandemic
    Killing thousands every day
    As politicians play games

    The dead remain dead
    he hears his wife’s voice
    from beyond the grave

    she is a corona ghost
    he wishes he were there with her
    as he plays his mournful love songs

    he lays down for a moment
    and becomes another Corona ghost
    just another death that lonely day

    Down in the Dirt has published the following poems over the last few years.

    3 5 7 love poem
    An Old Man Visits His Wife’s Grave
    April 30 In Search of America 1975 – Hitch hiking Tales
    Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen
    Fallen Dreams Litter the Ground
    If you’ve been around
    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller bio
    Lone Foreigner Hiking the Seoul City Walls
    My Name Is Nobody
    Snarling Cup of Coffee
    Strangeness in the Air
    Unhinged Lunatic Howling at the Full Moo

     

    dirt@scars.tv

    Hi there… You are getting this letter because you are a contributor to
    the current issue of Down in the Dirt magazine (with writing or art), and
    we wanted to let you know that the brand-new issue of Down in the Dirt was
    just released!  The new issue of the June 2021 issue Down in the Dirt is
    v184, titled “Sprung from Grief”!

    Now, there are a bunch of ways you can see this issue online. You can go
    to the main scars page at http://scars.tv and see it not only in the text
    listing but also as one of the cover images on the main page (right
    frame). You can also go to the home page of Down in the Dirt at
    http://scars.tv/dirt and click on the “see the current issue” link – and
    you can even go to the link for ALL of the issues and see this issue
    linked right at the top of the listing.

    http://scars.tv/dirt/dirt184jun21/Spring_from_Grief.htm

    And remember that until the next issue is released you can always see the
    current issue at
    http://scars.tv/dirt-new-issue.htm

    Currently, this issue is available not only online but also available as
    the print issue for sale through all of the amazon channels throughout the
    The United States, the U.K., and Europe.  Find it at http://scars.tv (at the
    issue link, the links at this issues page AND the main page) – and the
    books link at http://scars.tv/books and the CD/Book Sale page at
    http://scars.tv/sale will all have links to ordering the book through
    Amazon (though the scars site will only list it through the U.S. Amazon
    links).

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0949H4GDD

    And if you look at any writing by any writer IN this issue in the writings
    section of http://scars.tv at
    http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers you will see links to the
    Internet (web page) issue (and eventually to the print issue of this
    magazine too).

    In the meantime, we hope you enjoy the new issue – and thank you for being
    a part of the Down in the Dirt community!
    Hi there… You are getting this letter because you are a contributor to
    the current issue of cc&d magazine (with writing or art), and we wanted to
    let you know that the brand-new issue of cc&d has just been released! The June
    2021 issue of cc&d is the 28th-anniversary issue, v310, titled
    “Falling”! We hope you like the issue…

    Now, there are a bunch of ways you can see this issue online. You can go
    to the main scars page at http://scars.tv and see it not only in the text
    listing but also as one of the cover images on the main page (right
    frame). You can also go to the home page of cc&d at http://scars.tv/ccd and
    Click on the “see the current issue” link – and you can even go to the
    link for ALL of the issues and see this issue linked right at the top of
    the listing.

    http://scars.tv/ccdissues/310jun21/Falling.htm

    And remember that until the next issue is released you can always see the
    current issue at
    http://scars.tv/ccd-new-issue.htm

    Currently, this issue is available not only online but also available as
    the print issue for sale through all of the amazon channels throughout the
    The United States, the U.K., and Europe. Find it at http://scars.tv (at the
    issue link, the links at this issues page AND the main page) – and the
    books link at http://scars.tv/books and the CD/Book Sale page at
    http://scars.tv/sale will all have links to ordering the book through
    Amazon (though the scars site will only list it through the U.S. Amazon
    links).

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0949H4GBV/

    And if you look at any writing by any writer IN this issue in the writings
    section of http://scars.tv at
    http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers you will see links to the
    Internet (web page) issue and to the print issue of this magazine too.

    In the meantime, we hope you enjoy the new issue and thank you for being
    a part of the cc&d community!

    NEW TO SCARS: BRAND NEW MAGAZINE ISSUES! The cc&d v310 June 2021 28th anniversary issue/book “Falling” and the Down in the Dirt v184 June 2021 issue/book “Sprung from Grief” are now available — so check out these brand new magazine issues online AND as perfect-bound paperback books!

    Enjoy the Scars Publications 2020 anthology collection books — Scars released anthology collection books to show off 2020 writings and artwork, like the flash fiction collection book “2020 in a Flash” with selected flash fiction and art, and the 2020 poetry collection book “inside the box” with selected 2020 poems and art, and the 2020 short story collection book “Vote Early, Read Often” with selected 2020 short stories and art. Anthology collection books contain writing and art from accepted material in 2020 issues of cc&d magazine and Down in the Dirt, and collection books like this are truly a one-of-a-kind anthology — any collection book is also perfect to order for yourself or a gift!

    Order a 2021 January-April MAGAZINE ISSUE ANTHOLOGY BOOK today! Pick up a copy of the 420-page “Excerpts from the Plague Years” from Down in the Dirt, and order a copy of the 424-page cc&d issue collection book “What Lies on the Other Side”, both mammoth collections of brand-new issues — because an issue anthology book is a great way to get several magazine issues altogether in a great volume set! Pick up a copy today!

    DO NOT FORGET the annual WEEKLY DATEBOOK! This year available in two formats (if you like poetry or flash fiction), now you can pick up a copy of “the 2021 literary review date book review” of short poems, or “the 2021 flash fiction date book review” of short prose – both 146-page books by assorted writers & artists in 2020 issues of cc&d and Down in the Dirt in a 6″x9″ ISBN# 2019 weekly date book — order the poetry datebook or order the flash fiction datebook, and enjoy writing all year-’round while you plan your entire calendar year!

    Check out the BRAND NEW books released recently, including the new poetry book “Saints and Sinners” by Kenneth DiMaggio, three short-story horror books marking the LAST books Scars Publications will EVER produce by Christopher E Ellington, titled “Tartarus Sauce”, “Valkyrie Elieson”, and “Gehenna Shampoo”. Peruse GREAT poetry books like “Broken Music” of poetry and short stories by Drew Marshall, and two volumes perfect for the entire year: “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” and “Every Event of the Year (Volume Two: July-December)” — at 220 and 286 pages of poetry in 7½” x 9¼” books for holidays & events from each half of the calendar year. Check out “Kidnapped” by Rochelle Lynn Holt — and remember that you can always check the books listing for a complete and up-to-date listing of books released, or check out the CD / Books sale page for a sorted listing of the book too…

    If you’re looking for your video fix, you can always check out the regularly updated Scars Video page at the art villa (highlighting videos of recent performances)! And don’t forget, you can also check out all past videos (through “scars girl” Janet Kuypers) at YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter any time!

     

    Janet K.
    Down in the Dirt Magazine
    http://scars.tv/dirt

     

    20210415 Scars just published a Down in the Dirt issue collection book with material from you!

    Hi there from Down in the Dirt – we wanted to let you know that Scars
    Publications released a collection book of the January-April 2021 issues
    from Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material (writing/artwork)
    APPEARS in these issues, that means your material appears in this issue
    collection book, and we wanted to let you know about this brand-new issues
    collection book is titled “Excerpts from the Plague Years”!

    Links to see all of the Down in the Dirt writings in “Excerpts from the
    Plague Years”:
    http://scars.tv/2021January-April-issue-collection-book/Excerpts_from_the_Plague_Years.htm

    And you can find this book any time at Scars in MULTIPLE locations. Now it
    is linked on the main page at http://scars.tv, and it appears at the top
    of the list of choices on the books link (one click away from the main
    page, or also directly at http://scars.tv/books/) as well as at the top of
    the “CD Books Sale” link (direct link http://scars.tv/sale/) at Scars!

    Also, by the end of the business week this week, the database with your
    accepted writings should also (when you go to your accepted writings) have
    a link to this collection book that your writing is in, so people can find
    links to this collection book on your writing pages in the writings
    section of http://scars.tv (at
    http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers)...

    Links for ordering this collection book appears on all of the links above,
    and will also appear in the writings section too, so any of your writing
    in this collection book will also see a link to this collection book in
    the writings section too!

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08YM1H46Z/

    Currently these books are available directly through the Amazon affiliate
    printer in the U.S., the U.K. and to Europe – and even to Japan and
    Australia, and it ships to India too! (the above link is for U.S. orders.)

    So check out the Scars Publication links to see what material of yours
    appears in these collection books, and if you’d like, order a copy today
    (I hear they make great gifts!), and again, thank you for being a part of
    the Down in the Dirt community!

    Janet K.
    Down in the Dirt Magazine
    http://scars.tv/dirt

    If you for any reason have difficulty sending emails to this address, you
    can (in emergencies only) send your questions/emails to Janet Kuypers
    through facebook, or directly to janetkuypers at gmail dot com.

     

     

        Enjoy the 2021 magazine collection book from Scars Publications and Down in the Dirt magazine, with the January-April 2021 magazine issues titled “Excerpts from the Plague Years”.
    The author names in this listing appear as they are listed in magazine issue/books. For writings that appear in issues, the titles of their writing do not appear on this web page, but all of the names are linked to the individual issue/book that actually contains the material.
    To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below. All author entries are listed in this collection book as they are listed in magazine issue/books.

     

    3 5 7 love poem

    3 5 7 love poem

    To My Dream Woman Who Loves Me to my dream woman who has loved me so over the years since I first dreamt of meeting her thank you for finding me and rescuing me I just have three words to say I love you Saran hae and in a million other languages and will love you until the end of time writers digest prompt to write a x Blank x BLACK OUT POEM Black out Poem God’s Punishment Original text During a press briefing today to address the nation’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump was asked about certain Christian pastors who plan to defy state lockdown orders and hold Easter church services this Sunday. “I’ve had talks with the pastors, and most of the pastors agree … that they are better off doing what they are doing, which is, distancing,” Trump said, adding that the pastors want to “get back to church so badly.” Report Advertisement Trump then referred to a notorious pastor who sits on his religious advisory council. Defend democracy. Click to invest in courageous progressive journalism today. “I’m going to be watching Pastor Robert Jeffress, who’s been a great guy,” Trump said. “He’s a great guy and I’m going to be watching on a laptop.” Jeffress is known for his litany of statements demonizing the LGBT community, abortion, and secular people. One of his most reviled comments came in 2015 when he said the 9/11 attacks were God’s punishment on America for abortion. “People ask me all the time,” Jeffress said during a speech at Liberty University. “‘Well, I just don’t understand why God wouldn’t protect our nation and he would allow these radical Muslims in 2001 to kill 3,000 of our citizens and why God doesn’t protect us. Surely, God doesn’t use pagans to bring judgment upon his own people, does he?’” “I’ve had talks with the pastors, and most of the pastors agree … that they are better off doing what they are doing, which is, distancing,” Trump said, adding that the pastors want to “get back to church so badly.” Report Advertisement Trump then referred to a notorious pastor who sits on his religious advisory council. Defend democracy. Click to invest in courageous progressive journalism today. “I’m going to be watching Pastor Robert Jeffress, who’s been a great guy,” Trump said. “He’s a great guy and I’m going to be watching on a laptop.” Jeffress is known for his litany of statements demonizing the LGBT community, abortion, and secular people. One of his most reviled comments came in 2015 when he said the 9/11 attacks were God’s punishment on America for abortion. “People ask me all the time,” Jeffress said during a speech at Liberty University. “‘Well, I just don’t understand why God wouldn’t protect our nation and he would allow these radical Muslims in 2001 to kill 3,000 of our citizens and why God doesn’t protect us. Surely, God doesn’t use pagans to bring judgment upon his own people, does he?’” Black out text the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump hold Easter church services this Sunday. “I’ve had talks with the pastors, get back to church so badly.” “He’s a great guy and I’m going to be watching on a laptop.” he 9/11 attacks were God’s punishment on America for abortion. “People ask me all the time,” ‘Well, I just don’t understand why God wouldn’t protect our nation and he would allow these radical Muslims in 2001 to kill 3,000 of our citizens and why God doesn’t protect us. Surely, God doesn’t use pagans to bring judgment upon his own people, does he?’” Poem Corona Pandemic is Not’s God’s Punishment Amid the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump Attended virtual Easter church services I’ve had talks with the pastors, We need to get back to church so badly.” Rev Jeffries is a great guy I’m going to be watching on a laptop.” Rev Jeffries said The 9/11 attacks were God’s punishment on America for abortion. “People ask me all the time,” ‘Well, I just don’t understand why God wouldn’t protect our nation and he would allow these radical Muslims in 2001 to kill 3,000 of our citizens and why God doesn’t protect us. Surely, God doesn’t use pagans to bring judgment upon his own people, does he?’” I am sad to report Rev Jeffries I spoke to God This morning He confirmed He did not cause 9-11 To bring judgement On the US For abortion He went on to say The corona virus Is beyond his control And he is not sending it To punish the US Or the world His final words Please tell Rev Jeffries To simply STFU poetry super highway black out poem coffee Whitney my coffee morning delight all day long not though at night can not sleep afternoon coffee leads to nightmares lasts all night writing.com Whitney poem form coffee Hay Na Ku hot coffee in morning ice coffee afternoon Drink coffee afternoon will soon have bad nightmares must have my coffee now drink coffee all day long no way sleep will come me curse of my mad coffee writing.com prompt write a Hay Na Ku Poem Daily Dew Drop In submissions as well women playing the lute contemplating God a woman sits by herself playing the lute deep in contemplation thinking of God's love for her thinking of the devil and his temptations she continues playing the lute all poetry contest

     

    Missing you missing me
    Dreaming about you, do you dream the same
    Will love you until end of time; will you remember me then?

    April 30 In Search of America 1975 – Hitch hiking Tales

    April 30 In Search of America 1975 – Hitch hiking Tales

    hitchhikers
    hitchhikers

     

     

     

     

     

     

    When I was young and foolish
    Broke and stubborn
    I hitchhiked across the USA

    Started in Salt Lake City
    Where my greyhound bus pass
    Was stolen

    The station manager
    Could have helped me
    But refused to do so

    Threaten to call the cops
    When I grabbed my bags Without the stolen tags

    I said
    Go ahead
    But I am so out of here

    Wondered about Salt Lake City
    Went to a bar
    Found I had to buy my booze
    Next door
    And they would mix it for me

    Had to order food too
    After a bloody Mary
    And a burger

    I walked about town
    Saw the Mormon Temple

    Finally about 3 pm
    It was time to hit the road
    Did not look back

    Ended up in Cody Wyoming
    Got a room shower
    Steak beer
    Using my rapidly depleted cash Spent 25 dollars
    Money really went far
    Back in those days

    A band of professional
    Communist agitators
    Gave me a ride
    To Des Moines

    Lots of weed, booze
    And politics later
    Got off the road
    Slept outside

    Next day
    A beautiful woman
    Drove me to near Chicago
    In a red mustang

    Might have been
    The girl in the song
    Took it easy
    Digging her vibe

    She invited home
    But was not sure
    If her estranged husband
    Would welcome me

    So, I am being foolish
    And inexperienced with women
    Did not go to her place

    And always regretted
    That I had lost
    My chance that day

    Then on to Chicago
    Several rides later
    Visited friends

    Hit the road again
    A series of uneventful rides
    With truckers
    And others

    And a week later
    I ended in New York City

    Slept along the way
    In cars
    In truck stops
    In high way rest stops

    Always moving
    Always going
    Non stop talking
    And lots of free weed
    And beer
    And conversation

    One more memorable ride
    Occurred outside Albany
    On my return to Chicago

    A middle age creepy looking man
    Picked me up
    In a brand-new Cadillac

    He was he said a dynamite deliverer
    For the Mafia
    Went to various places
    To blow up shit

    He hated a lot of people
    Particularly hippies from California
    And Jewish people

    Looking at me to confirm
    That I was both

    I told him that I lived in New York
    And had never been to California
    And although I might have looked Jewish
    As I what was called back in the day
    A “Jewfro”

    I was not Jewish
    Many years later I discovered
    That I am indeed part Jewish
    But then I did not know
    And I felt a bit of strategic information
    Might keep me alive

    Then I realized that he was just jiving with me
    And we relaxed
    And he pulled out some weed
    And beer
    And we mellowed out

    But I believe that he really was with the mob
    Perhaps not a dynamite dealer
    A real made Italian made mafia member

    By Chicago
    I had enough
    I called my Dad
    Told him what had happened

    Wanted a ticket home
    And he sent me a ticket
    And 500 dollars
    And I went home

    I told him I would tell him
    My tales some day
    But never did

    I learned so much
    About my fellow Americans
    And the strange vibe
    That was 1975

    And now it is too late
    But I wanted to finally
    Tell the world

    Of my hitchhiking tales
    In search of America 1975

     

    Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen

    Order this writing in the book
    On a Rainy Day
    (the 2017 poetry, longer prose
    & art collection anthology)    		 get the 298 page poem,
    longer prose & art
    collection anthology
    as a 6″ x 9″ ISBN#
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    Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen

    While reading Charles Bukowski poetry
    On the metro ride home
    Listening to Buddha bar music
    On my oh too hip IPod

     

     

     

    I begin to see myself as I was
    Over 30 years ago when I was merely a bit player
    A minor character in a Charles Bukowski poem

    A wild young underemployed intellectual
    Hanging out in dismal bars and dives all over Asia and California
    Hanging with disreputable women and drunks and drinkers
    And characters out of his kinds of haunts

    A mad poet bard of the underground
    A drunken poet in a drunken bum show
    That nightly played in his head

    Then one day I met the women of my dreams
    And went down a different path
    A long slow path to respectability

    And now 30 years later
    I am no longer a wild man
    I am still a poet at heart
    But I am now also a bureaucrat
    In a button down suite

    Doing the people’s business
    Working for the Government
    I’ve become the Man

    Sometimes I wonder
    Would I have been better off
    Going down that another path

    Would I have ended up
    Somewhere else
    Doing something else

    Would I have been as happy
    Would I have been as successful?

    There is no answer that satisfies
    The longing in my heart
    For that wild thing
    That still lurks beneath
    It’s civilized cover

    And I know that I am still
    A mad poet at heart
    Railing against the injustice of the world

    As I work day by day in the belly of the great beast of State
    I recall the ancient Chinese saying,
    “Confucian during the day while Taoist rebel at night”
    Playing out in my head and nightly dreams
    In the true American Upper class patrician tradition

    I close the book and look out the window
    Get off the train, and walk slowly home

    And realize I had no choice
    But to take the path that I’ve trodden on

    And so I put aside my misgivings
    And say goodbye to my “Bukowskian”desires
    For another night of domestic contentment

    Was it worth it all to take the conventional path
    And not take the bohemian road to hell and back

    I look at my wife and realize
    I had no choice, had no choice
    But to follow her to the ends of the earth

    And beyond by her side as we walked our path
    Of shared destiny

    Goodbye Charles Bukowski wherever you are
    May I meet you in a bar in the next life
    And figure out where we should have gone

    Until then the drinks are on me.

     

    Fallen Dreams Litter the Ground

    Fallen Dreams Litter the Ground

    In the fall weather
    As I walk amid the falling leaves
    I see the signs everywhere

    Of the fall of America
    The once great and mighty Empire
    Everywhere signs of the fall appear

    The dark skies mirror
    The darkness that settled over our land

    Death, destruction and random acts of chaos
    Are all around us
    Surrounding us with visions of doom

    Nothing can stop the bloodletting
    No one seems to be in charge

    As the leaves fall
    And the darkness descends
    The fall of America continues

    If you’ve been around

    If you’ve been around

    If you’ve been around
    As much as I have
    Decades of memories
    Fill up your brain’s hard drive

    Remembering the dead
    Misremembering the living
    Seeing the past fly past
    Everywhere you go

    Thinking about things
    You did and did not do
    As your life begins to fade
    Sinking into lost worlds past

    Seeing the ghosts
    Of all you knew
    Whispering Soon you will
    Be joining us

     

    Lone Foreigner Hiking the Seoul City Walls

    Lone Foreigner Hiking the Seoul City Walls

    Hiker
    Hiker

    A Lone foreign male hiker
    In the hills above the city
    Hiking along the ancient Seoul City walls

     

     

     

    500 years after the founding
    Of the city in 1492

    Balancing his walk
    Amid the boulders
    The winter is coming
    Soon he thinks

    And finishes his hike
    Heading to a bar
    To sake his thirst

    Some soju, and bulgogi
    Will do the trick
    He thinks to himself

    Just another day
    In the life

    Of an unknown nameless
    Foreigner in the city
    Of Seoul

    Part  of the ten million
    Naked stories
    In the big city

     

    My Name Is Nobody

    My Name Is Nobody

    My name, it is Nobody
    No one cares who I am
    I am just a nameless clone
    In the cold, unfeeling bureaucracy

    Just one of the army
    Of civilians

    who flood into and out of the city
    Every day

    A non-entity,
    A ghost
    A govbot
    A cyber
    A spook
    A faceless automan
    A bureaucrat

    Just a grey-suited
    Cog in the machinery
    And no one cares
    No one knows who I really am

    And I am legend
    Everywhere and nowhere

    Just the way this modern world
    All shred of humanity
    Crushed beneath

    The cruel wheel of society
    In the cold, harsh world
    There is no room anymore
    For true human feelings

    We are just robots, clones, machines
    And so I go to work
    Put on my mask

    And no one hears my inner screams
    And no one will ever care

    Snarling Cup of Coffee

    Order this writing in the book
    Art House
    the 2019 poetry,
    flash fiction,
    prose and art
    collection anthology    		 get the 214 page poetry,
    flash fiction, prose, & art
    collection anthology
    as a 6″ x 9″ ISBN#
    paperback book:

    Snarling Cup of Coffee

    cartoon man who drank too much coffee
    cartoon man who drank too much coffee

    I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee
    I pound down the coffee
    First thing I do every day as the dawning sun
    Lights up my lonesome room

    Yeah, but not just a simple cup of java Joe, but a God damn snarling sarcastic smarmy cup of coffee
    I mean, – we are talking about an alcoholic, all speed ahead, always hot, always fresh, always there when I need it, angry, attitude talk to the hand Ztude, bad, bad assed, beats breaking, beatnik, bluesy, bitter, bitchy, bombs away, capitalistic, caffeinated up the ass, cinematic, communistic, Colombian grown, Costa Rican inspired, Cowabunga to the max, crazy assed, devilishly angelic, divine, divinely inspired, dyslexic, epic, extreme vetting, evil eye, expensive, erotic vision inducing, Ethiopian coffee house brewed, euphoric, freaky, freazoid, foxy, Frenched kissed, French brewed, funkified, foxy lady, graphic, GOD in my coffee, with Allah, Ganesh, Jesus, Kali, Buddha, Christians, Durga, Hindus, Mohamed, Jesus and Mo and their friend, the cosmic bar maid, Sai Babai, Shiva, Taoists, Zoroastrians, drinking my god damned coffee in Hell; growling, gnarly, happy, hard as ice, Hawaian blessed, high as a kite, hippie, hip, hipster, hip hoppy, hot as hell yet strangely sweet as heaven, jazzy, jealous, Kerouac approved, kick ass, kick my god damn ass to Tuesday, kick down the doors and take no prisoners, grown in the Vietnam highlands by ex-Vietcong, Guatemalan grown, kiss ass, illegal in every state, imported from all over the god damn world, insane, lovely, loony, lonely, lonesome, malodorous mean old rotten, motherfucking, nasty, narcotic, never whatever, never meh, never cold, not approved by the CIA, not approved by DHS, not approved for human consumption by the FDA, not your daddy’s sissified corporate cup of coffee, NOT DECAFE coffee, not your Denny’s truck driver weak as brown water cup of fake coffee, not your establishment friendly cup of coffee, Not your FBI coffee, Not FAKE Herbal coffee substitute, but a real cup of coffee, not your farmer brothers dinner crap, not made in America for Americans, not safe for work, not your Starbucks average expensive overpriced crappy corporate chain cup of coffee, Not pretentious, Not White House approved, not State Department safe, nuclear, Not Patriotic, operatic, Peets’s coffee approved, paranoid, pornographic, psychotic, pontific, politically aware, rapping, rhyming, right here, right now in River city, rock and roll up the Yazoo, sad, sadistic, sarcastic, sassy, satanic, schizoid, shitting, silly, sexy, smarmy, smelly, smooth, snarky, snarling, stupid, stinking, sweet as honey, sweat inducing, symphonic, Trump can’t handle this coffee, vengeful, Wagnerian, wicked, with nutmeg and cinnamon swirls, with a hint of stevia, with a hint of vanilla, with a hint of rum, with a hint of whisky, with a hint of cherry, with a hint of fruit overtones, with a hint of drugs spicing up the coffee, spendific, speeding, splendid, superior accept no substitutes, survived the Vietnam war, the Iraq war, the Afghan war, the first and Second Korean war, World War 11, the war on poverty, the war on drugs, the war on black people, the sexual revolution, Soulful as a summer’s night in MOTOWN- James Brown approved, TOP approved, Berkeley approved, the coffee that Jimmy Hendrix drank before he died, the coffee that Elvis drank on his last breakfast, the coffee that Barry White crooned as he drank his cup of coffee – and the coffee that made the white boy play stand up and play that funky music, the coffee that made Jonny B Goode play his guitar, and made Jonny bet the devil his soul after he drank his morning cup of righteous coffee and the coffee that make the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll, the coffee your mother warned you against drinking, the coffee that Napoleon drank when he became the Emperor of all Europe, the Coffee that Beethoven drank when he wrote the Ninth symphony, the coffee that Mozart drank as he wrote his last symphony, the coffee that Lincoln drank before he was killed, the Hemingway drank before he killed himself, the coffee that started the 60’s, and ended the 20th century, the coffee that Lenin drank as he plotted revolution, the coffee that Hitler and Stalin drank with FDR as they divided up the world after World War 11, the cup that JFK drank before he was blown away, the coffee Jerry drinks while driving in cars with random celebrities and political figures, the coffee that Jon Stewart drinks before he goes on an epic take down of some foolish politico, the cup of Arabic coffee that Sadaam drank the day he was executed, the coffee that GW and Cheney drank when they bombed Baghdad, the Indian cup of coffee that Bid Laden drank before 9-11 and just before the seals blew his ass to hell, the cup of coffee that Tiger Woods drank with his mistresses while playing a 3, 000 dollar round of golf at Sandy Lane golf course in Barbados, the last legal drug that does what drugs should do, the cup of coffee that Obama drank when he became President, Vietnamese, Vienna brew, wacky, whimsical, Whisky Tango Foxtrot, wild, weird, wonderful, WOW, Yabba dabba doo! Yada Yada yada Zappa’s favorite cup of cosmic coffee, and Zorro’s last cup of coffee, Good to the last drop rolled into one simple cup of hot coffee

    As I pound down that first cup of coffee
    And fire up my synaptic nerve endings with endless supplies
    Of caffeine induced neuron enhancing chemicals

    I face the dawning day with trepidation and mind-numbing fear
    I turn on the TV and watch the smarmy newscasters in their perfect hair
    Lying through their teeth about the great success the government is having Following the great leader’s latest pronouncements
    I want to scream and shoot the TV and run out side Shouting

    “Stop the world.

    I want to get off this fucking crazy planet”
    The earth does not care a whit about my attitude
    It merely shrugs and moves around the Sun
    In its appointed daily run
    And I sit down
    The madness dissipating a bit

    And enjoy my second cup
    Of heaven and hell
    In my morning cup of Joe

    Strangeness in the Air

    Strangeness in the Air

    There is a strangeness in the air
    A sense of cosmic unease
    Hangs silently in the purple crystalline sky

    America woke up
    And decided it was time
    To quit following like lemmings
    Over the Clift

    As the pied piper chants
    Stay the course, stay the course
    We were like lemmings following him
    Dying to save his wounded pride

    Today there is that strange difference
    In the air
    As Americans woke up
    And threw off their chains of fear

    Unhinged Lunatic Howling at the Full Moon

     

    Unhinged Lunatic Howling at the Full Moon

    On the night of the blood-red super full moon
    I sat in an evil, depraved godforsaken bar

    Drinking drams of demented, fermented dream dew
    Washed down by endless rounds of whiskey
    rum, tequila, vodka, soju and of course beer
    drinking with my buddies the Jack Daniels Gang

    Drinking my way to Hell and beyond
    Just as fast as I could
    twenty damn drinks too sober

    Just an unhinged lunatic
    Dreaming of howling at the full moon

    Watching the world walk by
    Looking at all the fine-looking babes
    Walking by the street

    Thinking wild, erotic thoughts
    Of endless wild libertine passions

    When into the bar
    That din of cosmic depravity

    Walked the most beautiful women
    In the Universe

    So wild, so free
    So wonderfully alive

    I did not know what to do
    As this vision of delight
    Sauntered through the bar

    In a skin-tight leather pant
    Looked so fine
    That my eyeballs hurt

    And finally, I had to say something
    So, I gathered up my manly courage
    And walked up to her

    And she looked at me
    And instantly bewitched my soul

    With a devilish grin
    I lost all reason
    And became a raving lunatic
    Unhinged lunatic
    Howling at the blood red full moon

    Foaming at the mouth
    A wild, free werewolf
    Howling at the lunatic light
    Of the blood red blue full Moon

     

    Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen 

    And Other Poems 

    By Jake Cosmos Aller 

     

    Published in Down in the Dirt 

     

    Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen 

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller 

    While reading Charles Bukowski poetry 
    On the metro ride home 
    Listening to Buddha bar music 
    On my oh too hip IPod 

    I begin to see myself as I was 
    Over 30 years ago when I was merely a bit player 
    A minor character in a Charles Bukowski poem 

    A wild young underemployed intellectual 
    Hanging out in dismal bars and dives all over Asia and California 
    Hanging with disreputable women and drunks and drinkers 
    And characters out of his kinds of haunts 

    A mad poet bard of the underground 
    A drunken poet in a drunken bum show 
    That nightly played in his head 

    Then one day I met the women of my dreams 
    And went down a different path 
    A long slow path to respectability 

    And now 30 years later 
    I am no longer a wild man 
    I am still a poet at heart 
    But I am now also a bureaucrat 
    In a button down suite 

    Doing the people’s business 
    Working for the Government 
    I’ve become the Man 

    Sometimes I wonder 
    Would I have been better off 
    Going down that another path 

    Would I have ended up 
    Somewhere else 
    Doing something else 

    Would I have been as happy 
    Would I have been as successful? 

    There is no answer that satisfies 
    The longing in my heart 
    For that wild thing 
    That still lurks beneath 
    It’s civilized cover 

    And I know that I am still 
    A mad poet at heart 
    Railing against the injustice of the world 

    As I work day by day in the belly of the great beast of State 
    I recall the ancient Chinese saying, 
    “Confucian during the day while Taoist rebel at night” 
    Playing out in my head and nightly dreams 
    In the true American Upper class patrician tradition 

    I close the book and look out the window 
    Get off the train, and walk slowly home 

    And realize I had no choice 
    But to take the path that I’ve trodden on 

    And so I put aside my misgivings 
    And say goodbye to my “Bukowskian”desires 
    For another night of domestic contentment 

    Was it worth it all to take the conventional path 
    And not take the bohemian road to hell and back 

    I look at my wife and realize 
    I had no choice, had no choice 
    But to follow her to the ends of the earth 

    And beyond by her side as we walked our path 
    Of shared destiny 

    Goodbye Charles Bukowski wherever you are 
    May I meet you in a bar in the next life 
    And figure out where we should have gone 

    Until then the drinks are on me.  

     

    Order this writing in the book
    Negative Space
    (the 2017 poetry, flash fiction 
    & art collection anthology)     		   get the 298 page poem, 
    flash fiction & art 
    collection anthology
    as a 6″ x 9″ ISBN#
    paperback book:     
     

     

     

    Fallen Dreams Litter the Ground 

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller 

    In the fall weather 
    As I walk amid the falling leaves 
    I see the signs everywhere 

    Of the fall of America 
    The once great and mighty Empire 
    Everywhere signs of the fall appear 

    The dark skies mirror 
    The darkness that settled over our land 

    Death, destruction and random acts of chaos 
    Are all around us 
    Surrounding us with visions of doom 

    Nothing can stop the bloodletting 
    No one seems to be in charge 

    As the leaves fall 
    And the darkness descends 
    The fall of America continues 
     

     

    My Name Is Nobody 

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller 

    My name, it is Nobody 
    No one cares who I am 
    I am just a nameless clone 
    In the cold unfeeling bureaucracy 

    Just one of the army 
    Of civilians who flood into and out of the city 
    Every day 

    A non-entity, 
    A ghost 
    A govbot 
    A cyber 
    A spook 
    A faceless automan 
    A bureaucrat 

    Just a grey suited cog in the machinery 
    And no one cares 
    No one knows who I really am 

    And I am legend 
    Everywhere and nowhere 

    Just the way this modern world 
    All shred of humanity 
    Crushed beneath the cruel wheel of society 

    In the cold harsh world 
    There is no room anymore 
    For true human feelings 

    We are just robots, clones, machines 
    And so I go to work 
    Put on my mask 

    And no one hears my inner screams 
    And no one will ever care  

     

    Strangeness in the Air 

    John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller 

    There is a strangeness in the air 
    A sense of cosmic unease 
    Hangs silently in the purple crystalline sky 

    America woke up 
    And decided it was time 
    To quit following like lemmings 
    Over the Clift 

    As the pied piper chants 
    Stay the course, stay the course 
    We were like lemmings following him 
    Dying to save his wounded pride 

    Today there is that strange difference 
    In the air 
    As Americans woke up 
    And threw off their chains of fear 
     

     

           

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Cosmos Books Read 2021 Update

    books read
    books read

     

     

     

     

     

    1001 Books to Read Before You Die List
    Cosmos Books Read 2020 RevisedBooks Read 2020
    Books read 2019

    Books read 2019
    Cosmos’s Reading List 2021

    Goals:  100 Books

    Read Classics

    One Thriller Per Month

    One history/politics book per month

    Read A Lot More Poetry

    Read At Least One Book A Year in Spanish

    Read At Least One Book A Year in Korean

     

    I will year try to finish reading classic books.  I have a collection from Kindle of 50 books to read before you die, in three volumes – 15O books in total see list below.  I have read many of them already which I have noted.  As I read them, I will add them to the chronological listing below.

    The List

    The List

    Best American Poetry 2018

     

    Allison Adair Miscarriage

    Kaveh Akbar Against Dying

    Julia Alvarez American Dream

    David Barber Sherpa Song

    AR Amnov Finishing Up

    Andrew Bertaina A Translator’s Note

    Frank Bidart Mourning What We Thought We Were

    Bruce Bond Anthem

    George Bradley Those Were the Days

    Joyce Clement Birds Punctuate the Days

    Brennan Constantine The Opposite Games

    Marianne Cobbett Prayer Concerning the New More Accurate Translation of Certain Prayers

    Robert Cording Toast to My Dead Parents

    Cynthia Cruz Artaud

    Dick Davis A Personal Sonnet

    Warren Decker Today’s Special

    Susan De Sola the Wives of The Poets

    Dante De Stefano Reading Dostoyevsky At 17

    Nausheen Eusuf Pied Beauty

    Jonathan Galasso Oriental Epithalamion

    Jessica Goodfellow Test

    Sonia Greenfield Ghost Ship

    Joy Harjo an American Sunrise

    Terrance Hayes American Sonnet from My Past and Future Assassins

    Ernest Hilbert Mars Ultor

    Nemo Hill the View from The Bar

    Tony Hoagland Into the Mystery

    Anna Maria Hong Yonder a Rental

    Paul Hoover, I Am the Size of What I see

    Maria Howe Walking Home

    Mandy Kahn Ives

    Ilya Kaminski, We Lived Happily During the War

    Stephan Kampa The Quiet Boy

    Denika Kelly Love Poem Chimera

    Mary Jo Salter We Will Always Have Parents

    Jason Schneiderman Voxel

    Nicole Sealy Violence

    Michael Schumacher Advent

    Carmen Gimenez Smith Dispatch from Midlife

    Tracy K Smith an Old Story

    Gary Snyder Why California Will Never Be Like Tuscany

    An E Stallings Pencil

    Anne Stevenson How Poems Arrive

    Adriene Su Substitutions

    Natasha Trethewey Shooting Wild

    Agniezeku Tworek Grief Runs Untamed

    Waldrep Dear Office in Which I Must Account for Tears

    Wang Ping Lao Jia

    James Matthew Wilson on A Palm

    Ryan Wilson Face It

     

    Best American Poetry 2017

     

    Christian Wiman Assembly

    Dan Allerbotti Weapons Exchange Report

    David Barber on A Shaker Admonition

    Dan Beachy-Quick Apophatic

    Bruce Bond Homage to a Painter of Small Things

    John Brennan Intrigue in The Trees

    John Ashbery Commotion of Birds

    Jericho Brown Bullet Points

    Nicole Brown The Dead

    Cyrus Cassells Elegy with A Gold Cradle

    Isaac Cates Fidelity and The Dead Singer

    Allison Cobb, I Forgive You

    Leonard Cohen Steer Your Way

    Michael Collier a Wild Tom Turkey

    Billy Collins Presence

    Carl Dennis Two Lives

    Katia Claudia Emerson Spontaneous Emission

    David Feinstein Kaddish

    Carolyn Fouche The Boatman

    Viva Francis Given to Those proclivities By God

    Amy Gerstler Dead Butterfly

    Reginald Gibbons Canasta

    Margaret Given Passage

    Aracelis Girmay From the Black Maria

    Jeffrey Harrison Higher Education

    Terrace Hayes Ars Poetica with Bacon

    RJ Herbert Mounting the Dove Box

    Tony Hoagland Cause of Death Fox News

    John Hogan Hamlet Texts Guildenstern About Paying Upon the Pipe

    David Brendan Hopes Certain Things

    Major Jackson Trends a Well Light Summer Cocktail

    John James History

    Rodney Jones Homecoming

    Fatty Judah Progress Notes

    Meg Kearney Crackle

    John Koethe the Age of Anxiety

    Yusef Komunyakaa from the last bohemian of Avenue A

    Danusha Lammers The Watch

    Jordan Laux Lapse

    Phillip Le Van Rain in Winter

    Amit Majumdar Kill List

    Jamal May Things That Break

    Judson Mitchem White

    John Murillo Upon reading that Eric Dolphy transcribed Even the calls of certain species of birds

    Joyce Carol Oates to Marlon Brando in Hell

    Sharon Olds Ode to The Glands

    Matthew Bozeman Letter Beginning with Two Lines by Czeslaw Milosz

    Gregory Orr Three Dark Proverb Sonnets

    Carl Phillips Rockabye

    Rowan Picado Phillips Halo

    Robin Robert Pinksy Names

    Stanley Plumly Poliomyelitis

    Paisley Rekdal Assemblage of ruined Plane Parts Vietnam Military Museum

    Michael Ryan the Mercy Home

    David St John Emanations

    Cheryl Santos, I Went for A Walk in Winter

    Taiji Silverman Where to Put It

    Charles Simic Seeing Things

    Danny Smith Last Summer of Innocence

    Maggie Smith Good Bones

    RT Smith Maricon

    RE Stallings Shattered

    Pamela Sutton Afraid to Pray

    Chase Twitchell Sad Song

    James Valvis Something

    Emily Van Kley Dear Skull

    Wendy Videlock Deconstruction

    Lucy Waigner Scheherazade

    Crystal Williams Double Helix

    Christian Wiman Prelude

    Monica Yoan Green acre

    C Dale Young Precatico Simplex

    Dean Young Infinitives

    Kevin Young Money Road

    Matthew Zapruder Poem for Vows

     

    Best American Poetry 2019

     

    Dilruba Ahmed Phase One

    Rosa Alclad You and The Raw Bullets

    Margaret Atwood Updates on Werewolves

    Catherine Barnett Center Park

    Joshua Bennett America Will Be

    Fleda Brown Afternoons on The Lake

    Sumitra Chakraborty Essay on Joy

    Victoria Chung Six Orbits

    Glen Chan, I Invite My Parents to A Dinner Party

    Leonard Cohen, I Drank a Lot

    Laura Cronk Like a Cat

    Kate Daniels Metaphor Less

    Carol Dennis Armed Neighbor

    Tori Derricotte Apology to The Reader

    Thomas Devaney Brilliant Corners

    Natalie Diaz Skin- Light

    Jean Dominique Duryer Declined in The Adoration of Jack in The Pulpits

    Martin Espada, I Now Pronounce You Dead

    Nausheen Eusurf The Analytic Hour

    Vievere Francis Cazonian Blue Than Bluer

    Gabriela García Guantanamera

    Amy Gerstler Update

    Camila Guthrie Virgil

    Yona Harvey Dark and Lonely After Takeoff A Future

    Robert Hass Dancing

    Terrance Hayes American Silent My Past and Future Assassin

    Juan Felipe Herrera Roll Under the Waves

    Edward Hirsch Stranger by Night

    Jane Hershfield Ledger

    James Hock Sunflowers

    Bob Homan All Praise Cecil Taylor

    Garrett Hongo The Brothers Cassia

    Ishion Hutchison Sympathy of a Clear Day

    Major Jackson in Memory of Derek Alton Walcott

    Ilya Kaminski from testament

    Ruth Ellen Kocher We May No Longer Considered the End

    Deborah Landau Soft Targets

    Quraysh Ali Lansana Higher Calling

    Li-Young Lee the Undressing

    David Lehman, It Could Happen to You

    Ada Limon Cannibal Women

    Rebecca Lynn Berry a Brief History of The Future Apocalypse

    Nubile Lovelace the S in I Love You Porgy

    Clarence Major Hair

    () Gail Mazur At a Lands End

    () Shane Mcrae The President Visits the Storm

    () Jeffrey Mcdonald Fired from A Parallel World

    () Campbell Mcgrath Gray Miles Davis Birth of The Cool at The Founding in Brasilia

    Ange Milinko Sleepwalking in Venice

    Kamela Aisha Moon

    The Last of England

    Paul Moulton Aubade

    John Murio on Confessionalism

    Naomi Shihab Nye My Own State Department

    Sharon Olds Rasputin Aria

    Michael Palmer Nord-Sur

    Morgan Parker The Black Saint, And the Sinner Lady, The Dead, and The Truth

    William Perdomo Head Crack Head Crack

    Carl Philip Star Map with Action Figures

    Ishmael Reed Just Rolling Along

    Paisley Rekdal Four Marys

    Sonia Sanchez Belly, Buttons and Straight Spines

    Nicole Santalucia #Me Too

    Philip Schultz Encore

    Jane Shore Who Knows One

    The Greatest Personal Privation

    Ae Stallings Harms Way

    Arthur Sze The White Orchard

    Natasha Trethewey Through Her a Duty

    Ocean Voong Partly True Phone Reflecting in A Mirror

    David Wojahn Still Life Stevens Wallet and Key West Hotel Dresser

    Kevin Young High

     

    In the following poems, poets use different types of imagery to express their concepts.

    Visual imagery …

    Blazing in Gold and Quenching in Purple
    by Emily Dickinson

    (source: http://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=1996)

    Auditory imagery …

    The Sound of the Sea
    by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

    Olfactory imagery …

    Smells
    by Kathryn Worth

    Gustatory imagery …

    This is Just to Say
    by William Carlos Williams

    Tactile imagery …

    The Kiss
    by Sara Teasdale

    Adam Bede (1859) read,

    The Lifted Veil   read

    The Mill on the Floss (1860),

    Silas Mariner (1861),

    Edgar Allen Poe Tell-Tale Heart from DYI MFA

    Five Poems from DYI MFA

     

    Five Senses

     

    Walt Whitman When I Heard the Learned Astronomer Sight DYI MFA

    Wilfred Owen Anthem for Doomed Youth Sound DYI MFA

    Barry Cornwall A Petition to Time Touch DYI MFA

    Emily Dickinson, I Like to See It Lap the Miles Taste DYI MFA

    Walter Prichard Eaton the Lilac Smell DYI MFA

     

    Space

     

    T.E. Hume the Embankment

    E.E. Cummings in Just

    The Mouse’s Tale, By Lewis Carroll

     

    Three poems from writing com 3/30/2021

    John Gillespie Magee, Jr. High Flight
    (Source: Https://Nationalpoetryday.Co.Uk/Poem/High-Flight/)
    Jeffrey Harrison, Nest
    (Source: Https://Www.Poetryfoundation.Org/Poems/55885/Nest-56d237e2d619c)
    Ted Kooser, Abandoned Farmhouse
    (Source: Https://Www.Poetryfoundation.Org/Poems/52935/Abandoned-Farmhouse)

    Famous poems

    Glass by Robert Francis  Writing com
    Blue Winter by Robert Francis  Writing com
    encounter  writing com

    Where I Belong – Contest winner Feb 24, 2021,  writing com

    Edna St. Vincent Millay -Pastoral  writing com
    Lorraine Marguerite Gasrel Black -Pastoral Rhapsody writing com
    Daniel Miltz -Pastoral Day  writing com
    Henry Kirke White -A Pastoral Songwriting com

    Carl Sandberg Passers-By
    Poetry Corner, writing com Poetry corner

    Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden  Writing com poetry
    Randall Jarrell the Breath of Night Writing com poetry
    Randal Jarrell the Orient Express Writing com poetry

    Peter Gizzi -This World Is Not Conclusion

    Jean Valentine – La Chalupa, The Boat

    Carl Phillips  Aubade: Some Peaches, After Storm

     

     

    Poetry for Dummies

     

    Abdul Ala armada Rafi I poem Friend, this world is like an unburied corpse

    Ali Ahmad Saeed poem

    Alton David translation of a man and a woman white

    Andre Breton Man and Woman Absolutely White

    Mary Bernard, translation of Sofia he is more than a hero

    Ingeborg Bachman poem

    Anne Bradstreet letter to her husband 1650 first Published woman poet in the US

    Willis Barnstone translation of mother’s song if snow

    Charles Bernstein writing exercises

    William Blake Sick Rose

    Elizabeth Browning Sonnets from the Portuguese #43 how Do I love Thee

    Elizabeth Bishop one art Britain

    Andre Carter Stephen D translation lady is shichimi if someone would come

    William Barnstone she is at island me turn off

    Maxine Chernoff writing exercises

    Chilam Balam poem

    Chiyo various lines

    William Corbett Vermont Apollinaire

    Robert Creely the business

    EE Cummings In Jest

    Bel Dao Listen, I Don’t Believe Chinese poet mid-20th century

    David Wagner lines and since a call since Elam since summer

    Thomas Campion When to her lute Corinna sings

    Jon Donne Holly Sonnet 14

    Lucile Clifton, I don’t know how to do

    Emily Dickinson lines and poems 214

    Emily Dickinson poem 262

    Emily Dickinson poem 640

    Emily Dickinson poem 986

    Emily Dickinson poem 1732

    Enhenduanna The Exaltation of Inanna, antiphonal Hymns Praise of Inanna

    Egyptian Poem, untitled

    Fanny Howe About Face

    Imr El Quais The Great Ode

    Elaine Feinstein excerpt from translation Marina TSvetayeva poems of the end Lawrence Ferlinghetti excerpt from constantly risking absurdity Coney Island of the mind

    Donald Finkel excerpt from a translation of Bel Dao

    Roberts Elizabeth silent poems

    Frances Kathleen vanishing point third black quartet from Wayne

    Robert Frost Nothing Gold can stay

    Robert Clark translation departure by Pierre Reverdy

    Jorie Graham In what matter is the body united with the soul

    Barbara Guest Lines from red lilies

    HD Dread

    HD Sea Rose

    HD Oread

    Allen Hibbert translation of Adonis desire moving through the Maps of the material

    Ronald Hoffman excerpt from deceptively like a solid

    Kelly Holt writing exercises

    Bible, Ecclesiastes for everything there is a season

    Homer Odyssey

    Homer Iliad

    Edward Arlington Robinson Richard Corey

    Fanny Howe About Face

    George Herbert Death

    Linda jarkesy the bed

    John K

    Randall Jarred the death of the Bell turret gunner

    John Keats The Eve of St Agnes

    Lao Tzu Rule a Large Nation

    DH Lawrence Bavarian Gentians

    LiPo Moonlight Pools

    Liu Tsung-yuan From One thousand mountains

    Audre Lorde lines from coal

    Hugh MacDiarmid Another epitaph on the army of mercenaries

    Jackson Mac Lou excerpt from antic quartans

    Omar Khayyam Rubaiyat excerpt

    Alexander Pope Essay on Criticism

    Bernadette Mayer writing exercises

    WS Merwin excerpts from leviathan

    Pablo Neruda leaning into afterworlds

    Pablo Neruda and walking around

    John Milton excerpts from Allegro

    John Milton excerpts from paradise lost

    Mariana Moore experts from the monkeys

    Laura Moriarty the mouth

    Bridge Mullins writing exercises

    Ellen Myles honey bear

    Lorraine Niedecker now in one year

    Charles North excerpt from shooting for line

    George Oppen excerpt from psalm

    Dorothy Parker resume

    Bob Pearlman speaker vibrates through the entire house after from AK

    Ezra Pound in a station in the Metro

    David Ray translation lines from Chiyo

    Kenneth Rexroth translation of Midnight songs

    Pierre Reverdy Departure

    Christopher Sawyer Le is More Than an Hericenone translation Flight of the Itza

    Dominion Searls translation of a kind of loss

    Shelly Love Philosophy 19th Century

    Sappho He is more than a Hero

    Jack Spicer lines for imaginary elegies part 1-111

    John Tipane translation Abu Hamza al online from this world

    Dante in the middle of the road

    Anonymous Egyptian poem only one matchless sister

    manioc If snow falls on the left field

    Issa Morning

    Beowulf soon saw

    Homer then wide ruling Agamemnon

    Homer infinite terror

    Homer wars spears

    Imr El Qis here was the place I watched her

    Arthur Rimbaud Bateau Ivre if I desire

    Arthur Rimbaud memory

    Arthur Rimbaud longing for young arms

    Rig Veda there was no such things

    Sappho the moon has set

    Charles Thomasson lines from Mr. Birdy

    David Trinidad monster mash

    TS Elliot Excerpt from the Wasteland

    Mariana Tsvetanyana Poem of the End

    Alfred Tennyson Now Sleep the Crimson Petal

    Anne Waldman excerpt for Iovis 19

    William Carlos Williams except for the descent

    Walt Whitman excerpts from Leaves of Grass

    William Butler Yeats the second coming

    William Wordsworth the Solitary Reaper

    Louis Zukofsky in Arizona from 729 songs

    Richard Lovelace 17th Century British Poet, “To Lucasta, Going to War”

    Geoffrey Chaucer 1400 Call complaint to His Purs (Purse)

     

    Parody Poems from NaPoWrMo April 27 Prompt

     

    Lewis Carroll Crocodile

    Isaac Watts How Doth the Little

    Lewis Carroll This the Voice of The Lobster

    Isaac Watts The Sluggard
    Lewis Carroll Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat

     

    Other poems from Writing com and Elsewhere

    Abandoned Farmhouse
    by Ted Kooser
    Wooden Boats 
    Judy Serum Brown
    Denise Levertov Celebration

    Edgar Allan Poe A Dream Within a Dream

    Heal the World with Marigolds  poetic blossoming entry

    Midnight encounters a poetic blossoming entry

     

    David S the All-Mighty Thresher
    Sally Ann Roberts example #1:it All Started with A Packet of Seeds

    Marie Summers  Example #2:celestial Dreams

    Marie Summers  Dance In the Rain come,

    Marie Summers  Dendrobium Osprey o, Sleek and Beauteous hunter.

     

    Other Books

     

    Frederick Forsythe Icon

    David Baldacci One Good Deed

    David Baldacci the Last Mile

    Claudia Gray Defy the Stars

    Daniel Silva The Defector

    Daniel Silva the English Assassin

    Daniel Silva The Messenger

    Stuart Woods A delicate Touch

    Stuart Woods Choppy Water

    Stuart Woods Palindrome

    Steven Parnell All Out Wall

    Stuart Woods Bombshell

    Ransom Riggs   Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (2011), read

    Ransom Riggs    Hollow City (2014), read

    Ransom Riggs Library of Souls (2015). Read

    Ransom Riggs A Map of Days to read

    Ransom Riggs   the conference of the Birds – to read

    Ransom Riggs    the Desolations of Devils Acre read

     

     

    Elliot Novels

     

    Adam Bede (1859) read,

    The Lifted Veil   read

    The Mill on the Floss (1860), read

    Silas Mariner (1861), read

    Middlemarch

     

     

    50 Books to Read Before You Die – three volumes 150 books total. I have read the following

    The Complete List, Volume One

     

    Dante Alighieri The Divine Comedy  Read

    Jane Austen Emma Read

    Jane Austen Persuasion Read

    Honoré de Balzac Father Gorgio

    Anne Brontë the Tenant of Wildfell Hall

    Charlotte Brontë Jane Eyre  Read

    Emily Brontë Wuthering Heights Read

    Samuel Butler the Way of All Flesh

    Miguel de Cervantes Don Quixote Read

    Joseph Conrad Heart of Darkness Read

    Joseph Conrad Nostromo

    Daniel Defoe Moll Flanders Read

    Charles Dickens Bleak House Read

    Charles Dickens Great Expectation Read s

    Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Brothers Karamazov Read

    Fyodor Dostoyevsky Crime and Punishment Read

    Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Idiot Read

    Arthur Conan Doyle the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Read

    Alexandre Dumas The Count of Monte Cristo  Read

    George Eliot Middlemarch Read

    George Eliot Daniel Deronda Read

    Gustave Flaubert Madame Bovary

    Charlotte Perkins Gilman the Yellow Wallpaper Read

    Nikolai Gogol Dead Souls

    The Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales Read

    Homer the Odyssey Read

    Homer the Iliad Read

    Victor Hugo Les Misérables Read

    Washington Irving The Legend of Sleepy Hollow  Read

    Henry James The Portrait of a Lady

    James Joyce A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Read

    D.H Lawrence Sons and Lovers Read

    Gaston Leroux The Phantom of the Opera

    Jack London The Call of The Wild  Read

    Herman Melville The Great God Pan Moby Dick Read

    Marcel Proust Swann’s Way to read

    Mary Shelley Frankenstein Read

    Stendhal The Red and the Black

    Robert Louis Stevenson Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Read

    Bram Stoker Dracula Read

    Sun Tzu the Art of War Read

    Jonathan Swift Gulliver’s Travels Read

    William Makepeace Thackeray Vanity Fair Read

    Leo Tolstoy War and Peace Read

    Leo Tolstoy Anna Karenina Read

    Leo Tolstoy The Death of Ivan Ilych

    Mark Twain the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  Read

    Oscar Wilde The Picture of Dorian Gray  Read

    Grant Allen What’s Bred in the Bone  to read–

    Lucius Apuleius The Golden Ass -to read

    Marcus Aurelius Meditations – Read

    Jane Austen Lady Susan  to read

    Jane Austen Northanger Abbey -to read

    1. Frank Baum the Wonderful Wizard of Oz – Read

    Dale Carnegie the Art of Public Speaking – Read

    Margaret Cavendish The Blazing World to read –

    The Innocence of Father Brown – G.K Chesterton to read

    G.K Chesterton Heretics – to read

    G.K Chesterton -The Dennington Affair to read

    G.K Chesterton the Wisdom of Father Brown – to read

    John Cleland Fanny Hill – to read

    Wilkie Collins The Moonstone – to read

    Joseph Conrad Lord Jim – to read

    Daniel Defoe Robinson Crusoe Read

    The Pickwick Papers – Charles Dickens Read

    A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens Read

    Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Gambler – to read

    Fyodor Dostoyevsky Notes from The Underground – Read

    Arthur Conan Doyle the Sign of Four Read

    Arthur Conan Doyle the Hound of the Baskerville Read

     

    Arthur Conan Doyle the Lost World  read

    Alexandre Dumas the Three Musketeers read

    Alexandre Dumas the Man in the Iron Mask read

    1. Scott Fitzgerald This Side of Paradise read

    Elizabeth Gaskell Curious, if True, Strange Tales

    Henry Rider Haggard King Solomon’s Mines  read

    Victor Hugo the Hunchback of Notre-Dame

    Rudyard Kipling The Jungle Book to read

    Rudyard Kipling Captains Courageous to read

    Rudyard Kipling -Kim – to read

    D.H. Lawrence Lady Chatterley’s Lover read

    Jack London the Son of the Wolf to read

    Hendrik Anton Lorentz the Einstein Theory of Relativity to read

    HP Lovecraft The Dun ich Horror read

    HP Lovecraft At the Mountains of Madness read

    Niccolò Machiavelli the Prince – to read

    Lucy Maud Montgomery the Story Girl to read

    The Antichrist – Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche to read

    Plato The Republic – read

    Mary Shelley The Last Man – read

    Mark Twain Life on The Mississippi – read

    Vats Ayana the Kama Sutra read

    Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days  read

    Louisa May Alcott Little Women  to read

    Jane Austen Sense and Sensibility  Read

    1. M. Barrie Peter Pan read
    2. M. Bower Cabin Fever to read

    Frances Hodgson Burnett the Secret Garden to read

    Frances Hodgson Burnett a Little Princess to read

    Lewis Carroll Alice in Wonderland  read

    Lucy Maud Montgomery Anne of Green Gables to read

    Jules Verne A Journey into the Center of the Earth  Read

    Jules Verne The Mysterious Island  Read

    Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Read

    1. G. Wells the War of the Worlds read
    2. G. Wells the Time Machine (H.G Wells) read

    Oscar Wilde The Centerville Ghost to read

    Virginia Woolf The Voyage Out to read

    William Chamber the King in Yellow to read

    William Chesterton the Man Who Knew Too Much Read

    Wilkie Collins The Woman in White to read

    HG Wells the Star to read

    Dorothy Leigh Sayers Whose Body? to read

    Margaret Deland the Iron Woman to read

    Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities read

    Fyodor Dostoevsky The Double

    Arthur Conon Doyle Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes to read

    F Scott Fitzgerald the Curious Case of Benjamin Button to read

    EM Foster a Room with a View  read

    Sigmund Freud Dream Psychology  Read

    Thomas Hardy Tess of the d’Urbervilles Read

    Hermann Hesse Siddhartha  read

    James Joyce Dubliners read

    Edgar Allen Poe the Fall of the House of Usher  read

    Andrew Land the Arabian Nights to read

    Jack London The Sea Wolf read

    HP Lovecraft The Call of Cthulu read

    Lucy Maud Montgomery Anne of Green Gables to read

    William Nietzsche Beyond Good and Evil read

    Edgar Allen Poe the Murders in the Rue Morgue read

    Edgar Allen Poe the Black Cat read

    Edgar Allen Poe the Raven read

    Robert Louis Stevenson Treasure Island read

    William Strunk the Elements of Style  read

    Mark Twain the Adventures of Tom Sawyer read

    Mark Twain the Prince and the Pauper read

     Stuart Woods 

    1.    Run Before the Wind – 1983  to read

    1. Wild Card – 2019 read
    2. Skin Game – 2019 read
    3. Contraband – 2019 read
    4. Choppy waters 2020  Read
    5. A delicate Touch 2020 Read
    6. Palindrome 2020 Read
    7. Blue Water, Green Skipper – 1977  to read
    8. A Romantic’s Guide to The Country Inns of Britain and Ireland – 1979 to read
    9. Chiefs – 1981  read
    10. Run Before the Wind – 1983 read
    11. Deep Lie – 1986
    12. Under The Lake – 1987 to read
    13. White Cargo – 1988 read
    14. Grass Roots – 1989 to read
    15. New York Dead – 1991 read
    16. Santa Fe Rules – 1992 read
    17. L.A. Times – 1993 read
    18. Dead Eyes – 1994 read
    19. Heat – 1994 read
    20. Imperfect Strangers – 1995 to read
    21. Choke – 1995 read
    22. Dirt – 1996 to read
    23. Dead In the Water – 1997 to read
    24. Swimming To Catalina – 1998 to read
    25. Orchid Beach – 1998 read
    26. Worst Fears Realized – 1999 read
    27. The Run – 2000 to read
    28. L.A. Dead – 2000 read
    29. Cold Paradise – 2001 read
    30. Orchid Blues – 2001 read
    31. The Short Forever – 2002 read
    32. Blood Orchid – 2002 read
    33. Dirty Work – 2003 read
    34. Capital Crimes – 2003 read
    35. Reckless Abandon -2004 read
    36. The Prince of Beverly Hills – 2004 read
    37. Two Dollar Bill – 2005 read
    38. Iron Orchid – 2005 read
    39. Dark Harbor – 2006 read
    40. Short Straw – 2006 read
    41. Fresh Disasters – 2007 read
    42. Shoot Him If He Runs – 2007 read
    43. Beverly Hills Dead – 2008 read
    44. Santa Fe Dead – 2008 read
    45. Hot Mahogany – 2008 read
    46. Mounting Fears – 2009 read
    47. Loitering With Intent – 2009 read
    48. Hothouse Orchid – 2009 read
    49. Kisser – 2010 read
    50. Lucid Intervals – 2010 read
    51. Santa Fe Edge – 2010 read
    52. Strategic Moves – 2011 read
    53. Bel-Air Dead – 2011 read
    54. Son Of Stone – 2011 read
    55. D.C. Dead – 2011 read
    56. Unnatural Acts – 2012 read
    57. Severe Clear – 2012 read
    58. Collateral Damage – 2013 read
    59. Unintended Consequences – 2013 read
    60. Doing Hard Time – 2013 read
    61. Standup Guy – 2014 read
    62. Carnal Curiosity – 2014 read
    63. Cut And thrust – 2014 read
    64. Paris Match – 2014 read
    65. Insatiable Appetites – 2015 read
    66. Hot Pursuit – 2015 read
    67. Naked Greed – 2015 read
    68. Foreign Affairs – 2015 read
    69. Scandalous Behavior – 2016 read
    70. Family Jewels – 2016 read
    71. Dishonorable Intentions – 2016 read
    72. Smooth Operator – 2016 read
    73. Sex, Lies & Serious Money – 2016 to read
    74. Below The Belt – 2017 read
    75. Fast And Loose – 2017 read
    76. Indecent Exposure – 2017 read
    77. Barely Legal – 2017 read
    78. Quick & Dirty – 2017 read
    79. Unbound – 2018 read
    80. Shoot First – 2018 read
    81. Turbulence – 2018 read
    82. The Money Shot – 2018 read
    83. Desperate Measures – 2018 read
    84. A Delicate Touch – 2018 read
    85. Wild Card – 2019 read
    86. Skin Game – 2019 read

    Remaining Elliot Novels

    Romola (1862–63),read

    Felix Holt, the Radical (1866),

    Middlemarch (1871–72) read

    and Daniel Deronda (1876).

     

    Famous Poems to Read and Study

    Five Senses

    Walt Whitman When I Heard the Learned Astronomer Sight DYI MFA

    Wilfred Owen Anthem for Doomed Youth Sound DYI MFA

    Barry Cornwall A Petition to Time Touch DYI MFA

    Emily Dickinson, I Like to See It Lap the Miles Taste DYI MFA

    Walter Prichard Eaton the Lilac Smell DYI MFA

    Space

    T.E. Hume the Embankment

    E.E. Cummings in Just

    The Mouse’s Tale, By Lewis Carroll

    Explanation

    John Gillespie Magee, Jr. HIGH FLIGHT
    Jeffrey Harrison Nest
    Ted Kooser Abandoned Farmhouse
    Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden
    Randall Jarrell the Breath of Night
    Randal Jarrell the Orient Express

    Peter Gizzi -This World Is Not Conclusion

    Jean Valentine – La Chalupa, The Boat

    Carl Phillips  Aubade: Some Peaches, After Storm

    Parody Poems from NaPoWrMo April 27 Prompt

    Lewis Carroll Crocodile

    Isaac Watts How Doth the Little

    Lewis Carroll This the Voice of The Lobster

    Isaac Watts The Sluggard
    Lewis Carroll Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat

    Abandoned Farmhouse
       by Ted Kooser
    Wooden Boats 
    Judy Serum Brown
    Denise Levertov Celebration

    Edgar Allan Poe A Dream Within a Dream

    Writing com Stormy Lady 5/20

    Dorothea Mackellar The Open Sea
    Dorothea Mac Keller in a Southern Garden

    Dorothea Mackellar The Open Sea
    Leonard Nimoy after endless night

    I’d Heal the World with Marigolds  poetic blossoming entry

    Midnight encounters a poetic blossoming entry

    Langston Hughes 

    Our land 

    Dreams

    The Weary Blues

    Life is Fine

    4/10/2021 from DYI MFA

     

    Space Be Still, My Soul, Be Still
    by A. E. Housman

    A. E. Housman
    The Immortal Part

    A. E. Housman
    White in the Moon the Long Road Lies

    Another Home  (E)
    a pantoum on the pleasures of fiction
    #2250974 by Tileira (148)

     

    David S The All Mighty Threasher
    Sally Ann Roberts example #1:it All Started With A Packet Of Seeds

    Marie Summers

    Example #2:celestial Dreams

    Example #3

    Dance In The Rain come,

    Dendrobium

    Example #4:

    Osprey o, Sleek And Beauteous hunter.

    Marie Summers example #5:

     

    Marie Elena Good, 2021 Her Wittiness Stings Poetic Blossoms

    Walter Wojinak He Prince Of Passions

    David Schiebner  Footprints in time Writing Com

    David Schiebner the Soldiers  Writing Com

     

     

    		 Together Forever  (E)
    A haunting memory in the Samisen form.

    Judi Van Gorder  Cold Forever –

    Endecha Poetic Magnum Opus

    Cross Country, by Robert Lee Brewer  Endecha.   Writers Digest

    Linda  Varsel Smith “Syllables in Velvet” Endecha

    www.Rainbow.Communications.com

    1. William Seaman Higgledy-piggledy Double Dactyl

    Paul Pascal Patty-Cake Double Dactyl

    Anthony Hecht Higgledy-piggledy Double Dactyl

    John Hollander Higgedly-Piggledy Double Dactyl

    Alfred Lord Tennyson The Charge of the Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)

     Henry Wadsworth Longfellow  Evangeline

    Robert Browning The Lost Leader (By Robert Browning)

    Walt Whitman (Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking

    Ian Lancashire  Higgledy Piggledy

    Doditsu

    Pat Anthony Aftermath

    Nurit Israeli Untitled

    Amy Breakfest In Bed

    Yassy Somehow

    Brad Osborne Your Eyes

    Linda Visman Stormwatch
    Susan Sonnen Starlit Dreams

    other poems

    Poetic Bloomings Weather Poem

      Poetic Bloomings Weather Poem the Blues

    Walter J Wojtanik – 2021 THE PRINCE OF PASSIONS

    Dave (Schneider at Writing.Com)  Measure Our Mortality

    David Schnieder at writing com Footprints in Time

    David Schnieder Soldiers

    David SchniderTogether Again

    Judi Van Gorder Cold Forever – Encheda

    Robert Lee Brewer Cross Country, Encheda.

    Linda  Varsel Smith “Syllables in Velvet”

    Double Dactyls

    1. William Seaman Higgledy-piggledy
      Arthur W. Monks Higgledy-piggledy
      Paul Pascal Higgledy-piggledy

    Juliet Capulet Higgledy-piggledy
    John Hollander Higgledy-piggledy

    Alfred Lord Tennyson The Charge of the Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)

    Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Evangeline

    Robert Browning The Lost Leader

    Walt Whitman Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking

    Ian Lancashire Higgledy Piggledy

     

    Sidney Lanier Poems

    Sidney Lanier The Song Of The Chattahoochee
    Sidney Lanier, Ireland
    (Written for the Art Autograph during the Irish Famine, 1880.)
    Sidney Lanier A Sunrise Song

    Steve Smith Poems

    Stevie Smith My Heart Goes Out
    Stevie Smith My Heart Was Full
    Stevie Smith Alone In The Woods

    To read

    Harvard Classics

    50 books to read before you DIe

    1000 books to read before you die

    Elliot Novels

    Poets Companion Finish

    Art and Craft of Poetry Finish

    Whitman Leaves of Grass

    Dickenson Collected Poems

    Robert Service Poems (From Alaskan Gold Rush Period)

    Milton Collected Poems

    Mina Nair Beyond and Back Indian short stories

    Robert Buswell The Zen Monastic Tradition

    Mod Poe poetry

     

    the end

     

  • Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    Welcome to the world according to Cosmos.  I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos.  I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR.   I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,

    The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.

    Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is  “The Big Lebrowski”.  I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power.  My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a political family.  My father taught at Cal State SF.  I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background.  From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian.  From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh.  Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves.  The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe.  I am the third and last Cosmos Aller.   The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.

    I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have.  Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.

    Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.

    Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos

    About This Blog
    Poems and Rants from the Cosmos

    Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.

    Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.

    This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.

    Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.

    I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.

    My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.

    I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.

    Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)

    JUST ENOUGH FOR COFFEE, UPDATE

    cup of coffee
    cup of coffee

    Just Enough For Coffee
    Solving the Homeless Crisis

     

     

     

    written by: Jake Cosmos Aller

    @Jakecaller

    published in Spillwords and From Adict to Advocate

    A homeless man
    Stood on the street
    Counting his change
    From panhandling all morning

    Just had enough for a cup of coffee
    All in all
    A good start

    He ambled off to his favorite coffee shop
    Where the owner
    Was kind to the homeless

    Sometimes
    Treating them to a meal
    On the house

    The man said
    I was in your shoes
    Once years ago

    And you never forget
    When you are down
    And out

    Everyone forgets your face
    No one knows your name
    For you are now
    Invisible
    Almost a ghost

    The old man tried to pay
    The owner said

    Keep your change
    You need it more than me

    Have a meal with me
    My friend
    On the house

    He ordered up
    The homeless man’s favorite
    Lumberjack special

    Eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon
    Cornbread
    Lots of hot black coffee
    To wash it down

    The old man
    Often had just one meal a day
    Usually, a late breakfast

    Sometimes if he were lucky
    He would have dinner

    And on a red-letter day
    He would have three meals

    The homeless man
    Had been on the streets
    For too long

    Barely remembered his life
    Before early-onset Alzheimer’s

    Robbed him of his job
    His dignity
    His wife

    His life
    His money

    Now he drifted
    Waiting for the grim reaper
    To call him home

    Any day now
    He prayed nightly
    To a god
    That he no longer believed in

    Also published on from addict to advocate

    https://fromaddict2advocate.tumblr.com/post/641758534100533248/poetry-week-jake-cosmos-aller

    cosmos-aller

     

     

The World According to Cosmos

poetry and rants by the Cosmos

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