Boys Before Flowers: Episode 3
There are some parts of Boys Before Flowers that are pretty good. And then there are parts that are really, really bad. Like, hilariously mockable, I’m-embarrassed-for-you bad..
That won’t stop me from enjoying the drama, but it does put the entertainment into a different category than what I was hoping for, which was sheer, heart-lifting, giddiness-inducing, shamelessly romantic fun and angst. Instead, I think this goes into the “check your brain at the door or you won’t be able to enjoy the ridiculosity” kind of fun.
SONG OF THE DAY
Sentimental Scenery – “Falling in Love” [ Download ]
EPISODE 3 RECAP
At Seo-hyun’s prodding, Ji-hoo asks Jan-di to dance. Jan-di gets swept up in the romanticism of the moment, dancing with her pretty-boy crush, while he’s less enthused (she’s dancing on his feet). I suppose the entire sequence is supposed to be magical and dream-like, but when everyone on the dance floor is bumbling around in a stiff, bobbing box-step, it does kind of suck the elegance out of the moment.
Not keen to watch Jan-di dancing with his best friend, Jun-pyo leaves the ballroom and ends up by the pool, where he takes out his frustration on the poolside furniture. At least they can’t fight back. His anger turns to wussy-boy fear when he sees a bug, and freaks out when it flies toward him. He makes wild swatting motions and tries to ward off the bug, jerking around in a panic.
After her dance, Jan-di sits out and watches Ji-hoo dance next with Seo-hyun. I’m guessing she is supposed to feel wistful that Ji-hoo dances so much more wonderfully with Seo-hyun, but as that’s just not true, I’m making a guess here. Not keen to watch her crush dancing around with his lady-love, Jan-di wanders outside and hears a loud splash.
The next thing we know, a student bursts into the ballroom to announce that Jun-pyo has fallen into the pool. Dude, I’m sure announcing his humiliation is ever so much more helpful than actually, yunno, helping. Yi-jung notes that Jun-pyo cannot swim, and everyone stampedes outside.
When they arrive outside, Jan-di is dripping wet, having dragged Jun-pyo out of the pool, and shouts at him worriedly to wake up. He lies there, unmoving, so she starts performing CPR, pushing down on his chest and breathing into his mouth.
Only, well, he doesn’t exactly need the CPR. Not that he’s going to tell her that, of course. Why ruin a good thing?
Jan-di sees that that his eyes have opened and stops immediately — but he grabs her shoulder, puckers up, and tries to pull her back down toward him for a kiss. It’s hilarious, because it doesn’t work, and Jan-di punches him in the face, disgusted, thinking he was faking the entire thing. (I’m not sure how much he was faking, but I’m sure the part about him not being able to swim was real. So at least she did save him on that score.)
She storms off in a huff, but Jun-pyo is still exceedingly pleased with his one stolen “kiss.”
He remains in a fabulous mood the next morning, even surprising his butler with his eagerness to get to school early. Jun-pyo mangles the “early bird” adage by saying knowingly that there’s a proverb about “the early bug gets dead first.”
He’s feeling so cheerful that when a maid spills his tea — a previously fire-able offense — he barely notices. When his butler assures him that the maid will be fired, Jun-pyo tells him magnanimously that the household is run too strictly — loosen up!
He grins and walks off, announcing, “What great weather!” just as thunder rumbles in the distance.
Because, y’see, Jun-pyo has great things planned for today! He plays more practical jokes on Jan-di, first smearing the locker room door with what appears to be Vaseline, then filling the pool with ducks. He watches her irate reaction on his lounge television, chuckling to himself all the while. Yi-jung and Woo-bin marvel that this is the hardest they’ve ever seen him work at anything.
(In his mangled reasoning, Jun-pyo feels this is his way of expressing his “gratitude.” Well, I suppose if throwing trash in the pool is his way of tormenting her, then tossing cute live animals is a step up. Never mind the fact that she can’t swim in either scenario.)
Ji-hoo has been particularly withdrawn recently, spending more time than usual away from F4. Instead, he chooses to play his violin outside in the snow. (Who doesn’t love that?)
Jan-di comes upon him as his string breaks, cutting his finger. She senses he doesn’t want her there, so she tells him she’ll just attend to his hand, then go. She takes the handkerchief that Ji-hoo had previously lent her and wraps it around his finger, then takes out an umbrella and places it over the violin to protect it from the snow.
Little does she know that they’re being watched and taped on Ginger’s phone. Although her encounter with Ji-hoo isn’t very warm or friendly — mostly prolonged silence — it looks more suggestive from a distance, and the Bimbos Three are determined to bring Jan-di down.
Jun-pyo’s great mood lasts while he basks in the pool, anticipating Jan-di’s arrival.
When he hears someone approach, he automatically assumes it’s her, and starts to chide her for her late arrival and lax training (his equivalent to a little boy pulling a girl’s hair, or perhaps calling her “Carrots”).
But instead of Jan-di, it’s the mean girls, who eagerly show Jun-pyo the video clip. As his mood darkens, they fan the flames, adding that it looked like Ji-hoo and Jan-di have been dating for a while, calling her a gold-digger.
Coldly, he tells them to shut up, then throws the phone to the ground, breaking it. He stalks out.
Jun-pyo surprises Jan-di outside, where she has returned in hopes of talking to Ji-hoo (who has already left). Pride and feelings hurt, he lashes out mockingly: “Are you disappointed I’m not who you were hoping for?”
She starts to walk away, so he grabs her arm and demands to know, “Where are you going?” She retorts, “I have nothing to say to you so I’m going home.” Well, he has something to say to her, and sneers that she was playing around with him. He was going to make allowances for her and treat her nicely, but now he feels ridiculed.
Jun-pyo grabs her tightly and tries to force a kiss on her. Alarmed, Jan-di struggles against him, shaking her head back and forth so he can’t kiss her. She yells in a panicked voice, “No! I don’t want to! No!”
That stops him, and Jun-pyo slowly lets her go. He asks her, this time without anger, “Do you hate it that much?” He walks off.
This is easily the best scene of the episode. What could have been unintentionally funny or cheesy comes off instead with a lot of tension, a lot of conflicting emotions, great chemistry, and (for once!) a nice piece of score. Now, if only the rest of the series could be like this.
As a result, the next morning, Jan-di is mortified and refuses to go to school. Her parents are ready to force her to go anyway, but are distracted by the arrival of a fancy invitation: it’s for Seo-hyun’s birthday party.
Jan-di’s parents are immediately excited at this proof of their daughter’s social success, and look into “borrowing” a formal dress for the occasion. From their dry-cleaning service. I’m sure this is completely against their own rules, but it doesn’t matter because all the dresses suck.
Plot contrivance to the rescue! A special package saves the day: a lovely formal dress sent from Seo-hyun. (I suppose they do get points for making up reasons, however obvious, for dressing up the poor girl in rich clothes, instead of just glossing over that point as is so often the case.)
Jan-di arrives alone at the party, and is soon whisked off to the F4 table by Yi-jung, who uses her as an excuse to get away from a group of women he’d promised to call but never did.
She and Jun-pyo look at each other warily, a bit uncomfortable after their last encounter but managing to resume their bickering dynamic. To Jun-pyo’s surprise, Yi-jung and Woo-bin lavish praise on Jan-di, calling her “really pretty” and “the cutest in the room” (Jun-pyo scoffs his disagreement).
Seo-hyun arrives on the arm of Ji-hoo, and a cake is brought out. Seo-hyun thanks everyone for coming, then makes a startling announcement — she’s planning on leaving for Paris, for good. She wants to succeed on her own terms, without inheriting her parents’ law firm — she has goals for bigger and brighter things.
The F4 guys suddenly realize why Ji-hoo’s been so down lately, and Jan-di’s eyes fill in tears in empathy for his pain. She watches Ji-hoo leave the party early. Seo-hyun finishes her speech, then follows him up to a hotel room.
Ji-hoo fiddles with an old toy, a puppet she’d given to him when they were kids. “That was when you stopped calling me ‘noona,’” she reminds him (which was an indication that he had started to harbor feelings for her).
Ji-hoo angrily throws the toy in the trash and says, “I feel like I’m being abandoned.” Seo-hyun tries to tell him gently, “If there’s anything here I can’t leave, it’s you.”
Ji-hoo tells her not to lie; she responds that if it was a lie, she wouldn’t have been so bothered to see him looking at somebody else: Jan-di. She admits, “When you went running to her, I found my heart falling with a thump. Isn’t that funny?”
Ji-hoo accuses her of treating him as a toy, and argues that he’d spent the past fifteen years looking only at her, “And that’s not enough? I’m a man too.” Seo-hyun hugs him, and apologizes.
As they pull apart, Ji-hoo kisses her. (And Han Chae-young again proves she can’t kiss worth a damn onscreen. Oy, this scene is painfully awkward at points. If the earlier Jun-pyo & Jan-di argument was an example of great, intense chemistry, here we have an example of… well, uncomfortable non-chemistry.)
Jan-di arrives at the doorway to see the kiss. She retreats, closing the door quietly, then starts to beat her head into the wall. Jun-pyo calls from behind her, “If you collapse here, it’ll be really embarrassing.”
Hearing the others moving inside the room, Jan-di hurries away from the door, but not quickly enough to escape being seen. She pretends she just arrived to spare everyone the embarrassment of mentioning the kiss.
Seo-hyun mentions that she and Ji-hoo are on their way out for a drive, and invites Jan-di along. Not wanting to be the third wheel, Jan-di stutters no thanks, and Jun-pyo answers smoothly, “We’re on our way somewhere too.”
Relieved to be given an exit strategy, Jan-di jumps to agree. To make the “act” more convincing, Jun-pyo puts his arm around her, which Ji-hoo notices with… interest?
When they’re out of earshot, Jun-pyo tells Jan-di that this act of kindness makes them even; he has now paid her back for saving him from the pool. Jan-di protests that they are in no way comparable acts, and concedes that this is worth perhaps 10% of a payback. Jun-pyo: “Fifty percent.” Jan-di: “Twenty-five.”
Jun-pyo takes Jan-di to a fancy bar, which is empty of patrons because he bought the place for the night. It’s a romantic gesture, but Jun-pyo tells her in his typical (unsentimental) way that she can shout or cry or do whatever she wants.
Jan-di wonders why she would do any of that, and Jun-pyo reminds her of the kiss she witnessed. Morosely, Jan-di says she is no competition against Seo-hyun: “I’m not pretty, I’m not smart, my family is poor…” “Your figure’s not that great either,” Jun-pyo adds, “and your temper’s bad too.”
She retorts, “Fine. How can such a worthless person like me be jealous of her? I don’t even have a right to feel jealous.”
Jun-pyo says matter-of-factly that she’s right about not being that special, “But you’re not worthless. You have a right.” He continues, saying that if Ji-hoo had met her before Seo-hyun, he’d have liked her. Sure, her looks and her family circumstances suck, “But you’re the first girl the Almighty Jun-pyo has acknowledged.”
A heartbeat starts pounding loudly. It’s unclear whose it is, but I think it could be either of them — or, more probably, both. Suddenly feeling overheated, Jun-pyo excuses himself to the men’s room, where he fans his face. Outside, Jan-di does the same, then reaches for a class of clear liquid and gulps it down.
By the time Jun-pyo comes back, she’s totally wasted, her head lolling around like it’s too heavy for her neck. Impatiently, he prods her: “Hey, come on, woman!”
That word (woman) gets Jan-di’s attention, and she slurs back, “Yeah, I’m a woman. Can’t a commoner be a woman too? My family, my looks, and my brain suck, I know. Even if you didn’t point it out so clearly, I already know, got it, punk?”
Now Jun-pyo’s amused. Jan-di continues rambling about her woes — her family, money. Suddenly, she jerks up and starts laughing ruefully, saying, “I’m sad today.” She pats his face (slaps it, more like) affectionately, and concedes, “All right, let’s say you’ve paid me back fifty percent.”
She continues, “Thanks, Gu Jun-pyo, for saving me today. I can’t do anything for you, but instead…”
And she learns forward… grabs him by the lapels… and smacks her lips together.
Jun-pyo waits to see what she’ll do, and she smiles at him… and vomits all over his suit.
Jan-di awakens in the morning in a strange bed in a strange room.
Upon seeing Jun-pyo sitting nearby, she immediately jumps to conclusions and demands to know why she’s here. He reminds her of the night’s events, and the details start to flash back to her. He brought her home after the bar, and called her parents to let them know. She hangs her head, embarrassed, and mumbles her thanks.
Jan-di would leave if she could, but Jun-pyo is alerted to his mother’s return home. We get the sense that this is an unusual occurrence. Today, she’s here to host a charity auction that evening. Anticipating Jun-pyo’s reaction, Mom has ordered her men to watch over him to keep him from leaving the house — which now means that Jan-di can’t leave without being seen, either.
Jun-pyo panics and immediately calls F4 for help. The friends join Jan-di and Jun-pyo to try to brainstorm a way out of this, knowing that Mom’s reaction will be fearful to behold if she were to somehow find out the truth — not only is there a strange girl with Jun-pyo, but she’s a poor, nameless, insignificant commoner to boot.
Jan-di is dressed up in one of the fancy dresses to be auctioned off that night, and the F4 friends do their best to pass her off as a new friend. Naturally she’s from a rich and prestigious family.
Mom is coolly polite, and inquires about her family background, prompting the F4 guys to jump in and fill in the details, describing Jan-di’s father as a businessman in the fashion industry. Ji-hoo puts his arm on her shoulder and says Jan-di’s like their “F4 mascot.” (Yeah, I dare anybody to use that on a parent and see how well that works. “Mascot,” indeed!)
Thankfully, the questioning is kept short. Just as Mom seems ready to sharpen her interrogation, she is called away, and tells everyone to join her downstairs for the auction.
The first item for auction is a pair of Olympic gold medalist Park Tae-hwan’s goggles. Jan-di’s mouth drops open as the bidding climbs up from an opening bid of 500,000 won (approximately $365) and skyrockets into the millions. Jun-pyo notices her reaction as a phone bid wins the goggles for 10 million won ($7,500).
The auction continues. Jun-pyo models his suit, followed by Jan-di modeling her dress (albeit reluctantly).
Mom eyes her with suspicion and asks her secretary, Mr. Jung, if he recognizes the girl. The man does remember her as the “Wonder Woman” who was given the Shinhwa scholarship. But unlike Mom, he’s got a heart and chooses, for now, to lie and say that all he knows is that she’s supposedly a student at Shinhwa High School. She orders him to look into the girl’s background.
After the auction, Jan-di thanks Jun-pyo again, somewhat grudgingly. Jun-pyo pretends not to hear, and forces her to repeat it twice.
It’s rather cute, actually, how he calls her “Jan-di baht,” which means “grassy lawn.” He tosses her a package and says, “Don’t drink when I’m not around.” (No doubt he wants to keep her from kissing other guys under the influence.)
After he leaves, Jan-di opens the bag to find the auctioned swimming goggles in the bag.
At home, her family oohs and ahhs over the acquisition, and urges her to sell them online since they’re worth a lot. Jan-di’s unwilling to part with them, though, and fumbles around for an excuse, saying that the goggles are worth “so much more than money” and shouldn’t be sold. She also distracts her parents so she can grab back the goggles, then runs off hoarding her prize.
Alone in her room, Jan-di opens her desk drawer. As though to show us how much this means, the space formerly used to hold Ji-hoo’s handkerchief is now given to the goggles. (Oh! The! Symbolism! Let me hit you with it.)
The next day, Jan-di has a visitor: It’s Seo-hyun (wearing a fur bib), here to say her last goodbyes, since she’s leaving the next day. Stunned to hear how suddenly she’s moving away, Jan-di tries to express her thanks.
Seo-hyun tells her, “I knew from the first time I saw you that you were the girl Ji-hoo always talked about with a smile.”
Speaking of whom, Ji-hoo spots Seo-hyun’s car outside and heads toward the pool, just in time to see Jan-di fall to her knees in front of Seo-hyun.
Jan-di explains that she’d been her fan for a long time, and understands her decision. “But let me ask a favor. Please don’t leave.”
Jan-di: “I know I don’t have a right to ask such a favor of you, but if I don’t ask…”
Seo-hyun: “Is it because of Ji-hoo?”
Jan-di: “I don’t know anything about him. But I know how special you are to him. He looks so sad to me, but there are times when he smiles, warmly enough to melt the heart of anyone who sees. You’re the only one who can make him smile. If you leave like this, he may not smile again.”
Seo-hyun explains that her decision is “like buying something in a foreign country. If you don’t buy it right then, there’s no next chance. I know too well how cruel that regret can be. Ji-hoo is dear to me, and I believe I am to him. That’s why I think he wouldn’t want me to face that regret.”
Subdued, Jan-di apologizes. Seo-hyun assures her, “No, I’m glad to hear you talk like that. Thank you.” She takes out a strappy set of heels and gives them to Jan-di: “I hope these shoes will take you to good places. I have something to ask you, too. Please make Ji-hoo smile again.”
When Jan-di walks out, Ji-hoo confronts her, asking angrily, “Who do you think you are to do that? Who asked you to make that kind of favor? It’s not even a favor, it’s begging. Don’t you have any pride?”
Jan-di: “It’s not because I have no pride. It’s because you looked so pained, like you’d die of sadness.”
Ji-hoo: “What is that to you? It has nothing to do with you. Get lost.”
COMMENTS
Like I said, some really nice moments — and then some really bad ones. It pains me to say this, but I think the weak link here is not actually the acting, but the directing. I had such great hopes because PD Jeon Ki-sang was a director I really liked after falling in love with his style in Delightful Girl Chun-hyang. I’d hoped Witch Amusement was a fluke in his resumé, but now I’m wondering if in fact Chun-hyang was the fluke, and the cheesy gimmickry of Witch Amusement is in fact his norm. Or perhaps he just had a really talented young assistant director working for him in the past, who isn’t with him now? The weird pacing of scenes, the horrible music (that grating electric guitar, for instance), the awkward framing of shots… It feels like this drama is being filmed by Garry Marshall (the later years).
On the other hand, more goodness from Lee Min-ho, and Gu Hye-sun! (Whenever she’s not being too cute.) They, more than anything else, are definitely going to carry this drama (which I suppose is the point).
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- Boys Before Flowers: Episode 2
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Tags: Boys Before Flowers, episode recaps, Gu Hye-sun, Han Chae-young, Kim Bum, Kim Hyun-joong, Kim Joon, Lee Min-ho
first !
I thought this episode was a little slow. Ep 2 was better. But I still love the drama! I love the scenes with Jandi and Jun Pyo. Jandi and Lee Min Ho is the reason why I watch the BBF! I loved his acting in contrast to the other guy (with the orange hair,i forget his name) he does not have any expression on his face!! !
Hopefully tomorrow episode will be better
Thanks Javebeans for the great recaps! you rock!
Thanks Javabeans for the recap. You’re awesome.
FYI for anyone interested in reading the manga with english translations: http://www.onemanga.com
you make it sound rather like a TW drama, with the comment of having to turn your brain off to enjoy it. But I like TW dramas as I go around with my brain turned off most of the time. So I think I well enjoy this drama.
I can see the lead actress growing on me. If you like TW drama you have to like “cute” in your lead ladies..:-)
I totally love your recaps, Javabeans! And oh, Jun-pyo makes me swoon!
THANK YOU! I have been checking this blog continously just for these recaps
and I agree….fire the director or hire a smart intern to help him
What happened to the music?! The best moments in this drama so far are the ones when no music is playing. Argh! Music please improve!
thanks for the recap..
my fav scene was the confrontation between jun pyo and jan di…
lee min ho is getting better onscreen…
it is still too early to say but.. the way he portray the role he can be a match to the characters played by the other K drama actors that made them a sensation…
which are:
LEE DONG WOOK— GONG CHAN — MY GIRL
RAIN—- LEE YOUNG BIN– FULL HOUSE
LEE DONG GUN– LOVERS IN PARIS
JOO JI HUN — PRINCESS HOURS
GONG YOO– COFFEE PRINCE
Thanks for the look into today’s episode. I agree with you that there is a lot to roll your eyes at in this series but none-the-less I keep coming back for more Jun-Pyo awesomeness.
Dress contrivances aside, they have yet to put Jan-Di in a lovely gown that really complements her or give her a modern, young hairstyle. That said, I do like her regular helmet hair so I guess one should be happy her hair doesn’t look like absolute crap for more than 5% of the time.
Thank you so much for this recap.. i was watching this episode and there were scenes that the transition was bad like the scene where he gave her the google i felt that was misplaced… because when i saw her back home i had to rewind the scene to make sure i did not miss anything because i was thinking when did she come home? I like hyun joong’s look because it really fits his character but he’s acting still needs improvement. I kept laughing at the hotel scene where he was mad because of his eyes were bugged out as if he’s surprised instead of mad! he does that again in the end when was telling off jan di but it wasn’t that much compared to the hotel scene.. in fairness to him of all the version i think for the look part i like hyun joong the best ..oh i love the part that jan di was drunk! i think that was done well she looked so funny and comical.. all in all im liking this series.. can’t wait what will happen next on next episode
yay! thanks javabeans!
the dancing scene between ji hoo and seo hyun is so awkward! i had to laugh.
i wish the network read your blog so they can make constructive improvements to future episodes.
wah I really enjoy this drama, its entertaining. I agree with the directing being the bigger problem in the picture because suprisingly, for me, the acting is fairly good… the best without a doubt is Lee Min-ho, he is totally rocking his character!! Thanks for the recap!!
This ep is ok but not epic. Sometimes I think the director forgot that they are still in high school. I feel like the khyd is more suitable for college environment as in the tdrama.
I still dont see much chemistry between JP and JH. They should show more interaction between them. and also more scene between JP an his mom. His hidden frustration towards his mom. plus also the friendship between JanDi and Sakurako (forgot her name here). For the betrayal to have a big impact for JanDi. We only see their interaction in ep1.
Thanks for the translation!
loved the ‘carrots’ shout out.
is it me but is Gu Hye-sun’s hair and makeup getting too similar to Nodame?
I feel like…both the combination of a bad script that never made JiHoo more likeable than Jun pyo and Hyun Joong’s acting has completely ruined the character in this version.
Which may be good for those who hate love triangles. I don’t know if it makes the series better or not, but it’s kind of made the character useless.
Thanks for the recap, I haven’t gotten this excited over a kdrama for awhile, but then again it is BBF. albeit, I cannot help but compare the previous versions of hana yori dango, it has been a while since I’ve watched both the japanese and taiwanese versions. anyways, I agree w/ the first commenter that I did enjoy ep 2 better than today’s, and even though I’m always anticipating the interaction between Jan-di and Jun-pyo, I found the bar scene where Jan-di is drunk to be a little too dramatic w/ the drunkness on Gu Hye-sun’s part although she’s beginning to grow on me and Lee Min-ho is of course doing a marvelous job (really loving him so far) . and although I think Kim Hyun Joong is adorable, he just looks so tired compared to the other actors =( anyways just my two cents once again thanks javabeans for the quick recap, will be looking forward to ep 4 tm =)
i completely agree with you…I think even Hyun Joong’s acting is not too unbearable….but what really makes this drama feel really awkward at times is the directing, editing and the way music is used…*sigh*
before i go gushing about this episode, i just wanted to say THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU JAVABEANS!
you’ve been super speedy with recapping this drama, which is especially wonderful to all of us.
Lee Min-Ho has sexy toes.
[...] Recap: Episode 3 Javabeans saves the day again. Thanks!! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Boys Over [...]
I love this show… I can’t wait ’till Jun-pyo finally makes a (decent) move to pursue her. xp
Please continue on with the recaps.
I really think that GHS can act in quiet scenes and her acting in the part where Lee Minho want to kiss her forcefully is awesome, so is lee minho’s acting. His emotions came out so well and this is the first scene in BOF that made my eyes go wide and stunned. I didn’t see this coming definitely but that’s intense and for once, the music is just nice for a scene. I can say that the bgm in ep 3 is better than the previous episodes.
Lee Minho is TOO cute!! OMG……. i love him so much
The CPR scene was HILARIOUS. And she punched him to boot! The way he just smiled afterwards was fantastic! LOLL
Jun Pyo ROCKS!
And Kim Bum’s hotness steams up the screen, often making it hard for me to see anything…loll.
And the Kim Hyun Joong – Han Chae Young kissing scene. Was. AWKWARD.
The worse kissing scene I’ve seen in a VERY long time.
Can’t wait for the next episode!!
Love your recaps for Boys Before Flowers!! I always look forward to reading your blogs before actually watching the subbed episodes.
“his equivalent to a little boy pulling a girl’s hair, or perhaps calling her “Carrots”…oh Gilbert Blythe it is!
Ive been checking, rechecking yer blog javabeans for as long as i can remember…thank you very much for the great recaps=]
The music! It makes me gag.
And although Lee MinHo does keep me somewhat interested,
it’s all about your recaps! Your insights are right on!
Oh, and four gold stars for the “Anne of Green Gables” nod!!!!!!
(”Hey… Carrots!”)
You’re the best! THANKS!
Han Chae Young never opens her mouth or move it. Where’s the fun in that? And she doesn’t carry out a lot of scenes well and I’m thinking that’s cause she doesn’t get to be ‘crazy’, she has to be contained and graceful in Seohyun’s shoes. Another point to why she’s not fit to be Shizuka. I know we should also look at her companion in most of her scenes, Hyunjoong, but we all know she’s the senior here and thus has to be much better at it. But she’s not. It’s painful cause I love past Rui/Shizuka but this time, there just doesn’t seem to be any chemistry there.
I don’t really notice about the directing actually, but now that you’ve pointed it out, I should start paying more attention.
thanks javabeans for the recaps! i’ve been reading your blog regularly, and always found our analyses of dramas very insightful. i never really thought about posting a comment, but i have to say, lee min ho as goo jung pyo is way too adorable! (i always thought he looked alot like the japanese pop idol, tikuya kimura.) i love the chemistry between jan di and jung pyo,
but like u said, the rest of the drama falls short. i wanted it to be a feel-good drama too, but some stuff just didnt make logical sense. i didnt quite get why ji hoo and jan di got uncomfortable around each other after the dance party. maybe it’s cause i haven’t watched the episode with subtitles to fully understand it yet? but anyhow, i thought the SWAT team sequence (during the F4’s childhood) was absolutely ridiculous!
another thing i feel like complaining about is: perhaps the drama is taking on a faster pace than expected? i feel like it should take a while before jung pyo starts falling for jan di. the reason i like k-dramas is cause the lead couple always goes thru a process to develop feelings for each other. jan di should def. take some time before showing signs of liking jung pyo. or maybe this is just my wishful thinking.
still, im looking forward to ep. 4! and again, thanks to javabeans (i’ve been anticipating the drama recap for the whole day : ))!
i read your recaps before i finally watched the 1st 2 eps. 2day & aside 4rm what i’ve read that made you cringe, i actually enjoyed it & didn’t think the parts you mentioned were as bad (maybe i expected it to be worse).
i do agree w/the awkward editing & music, but overall, since i’ve seen the anime & am a fan bc of it, i can’t help but to watch & be entertained by it. you’re prob mostly right w/your comments, but i don’t think any1 really expected this drama to be over the top good. just a trendy drama to be added to the hana yori dango list.
maybe i should watch the taiwan ver. so i can appreciate the krn 1 even more, lol~ i’m sorry, but i don’t get & see how meteor garden’s so good. i’ve tried many times watching it, but their so-called acting made me cringe.
ps keep them recaps coming! fun to read^^
haha. last thing as a dude i’d want is a mother/sister figure. what a delightful bullshit role to have. time to crash green gables. gee, i wonder who would play her IRL. *smirk*
Jun-pyo is the essential prick. Everyone knows one. He probably has a ton of property in Sim City and his daddy wants to buy him another toy.
I have to say i love junpyo….when the casting was release….i totally all for Kim Bum to be the lead…..But I think Jin Ho is doing a great job…….he has quicky become quite a heartthrob…
This series has a bit of gossip girl touch….parties…events….charity functions…. rich people must really love those….there are like 5 of them in 1 episode.
AMAZING chemistry between jandi and junpyo!!! it’s so much more natural between these two as opposed to jihoo and jandi. i’m a fan of hyunjoong, but i think they made a mistake casting him. they need a MUCH STRONGER actor. he might get better as the show progresses?!?
i’m so in love with lee min ho. ::sigh::
hmmm….I’m a bit guilty to say I haven’t even finished episode 2 yet. Somehow it doesn’t pull me like it should have. Is it because of HYD overload? I did get a full dose of the manga, of Meteor Garden 1 and 2 (oh the horribleness), of Japanese HYD 1 and 2 + movie (I actually like it) and now this.
School is almost coming and I doubt I can give it much time. *sigh*
Seeing, though, how your reviews are it’s pretty much the same storyline I am so familiar with. Oh well.
Thanks for the recaps!
im actually liking ep 3 better than the first ep. a lot of improvement. but yes there are those weird moments. we get to see the f4 bonding somehow. hmm i think KHJ was doing better here? well i think his part of kiss was better than HCY’s. just my opinion. and i really find LMH charismatic in this ep a whole lot. which is good.
Am i the only person in the world that is not satisfied with Joon Pyo’s character!? lollllllll……..
lee min ho – cutie!
is it only me or is hyun joong’s face getting more awkward with each episode? i don’t know–is he losing sleep, not eating, or stressing out? he doesn’t look… fit.
“When he hears someone approach, he automatically assumes it’s her, and starts to chide her for her late arrival and lax training (his equivalent to a little boy pulling a girl’s hair, or perhaps calling her “Carrots”).”
ahahaa i love this anne of green gables reference!
This episode was cute and really awkward at soe points especially with HCY and KHJ… The kiss was the most awkward kiss I’ve ever seen and that scene wasn’t as tense as I would’ve thought it would be… But Lee Min Ho and Goo Hye Sun’s chemistry is definitely the best. =)
the drama is good. youre just too critical seriously.
you need to stop trying to be a drama critic and watch the drama.
HI! Because of your recaps, I’ve been watching my HYD collection in anime and the japanese version recently, reading the manga, I bet Kamio Yoko would really be pleased with the cast especially Lee Min ho as the great Domyouji, and Goo Hye Soon as tsukushi.. the chemistry is there like watching inoue mao and matsumoto jun…I’m still waiting for the other actors and actresses to deliver the goods..
looking forward to more recaps and beautiful drama this year..it really was a lull in 2008, kdrama is back this 2009 because of HYD.
helo..i’m new here..may i ask sumthing..
did u guys watch the drama at kbs now?
hello again! thanks for the super prompt recap – i had downloaded the episode but seeing your recap made me realize i had to watch it!
sadly, i just watched the japanese series (05/07) hana yori dango and think its far superior. its nice to hear everything in my “native tongue” but at the same time… WHY??? lee min ho, is definitely the redeeming quality of this version… but im hoping that the series does justice to what others have done. ee… tbd, for sure.
thanks for the hard work
The point where I thought, ‘FINALLY, a worthy scene!’ was when Junpyo takes his hurt and anger to Jandi at the bench where Jandi had been looking for Jihoo. That was the turning point for me. I had been enjoying the episodes so far with superficial enthusiasm, but this scene actually moved my heart. The ones carrying this drama are Junpyo and Jandi! I had thought Kim Bum would be more of a heavyweight (of course it’s only episode 3) but I saw a bit of that acting talent from East of Eden, even if for just a second, when he rushed outside saying Junpyo can’t swim.
I want better lines, better directing, better music, and less fur!! Please!!
“Kim Hyun Joong – Han Chae Young kissing scene was AKWARD”
Maybe it was meant to be akward? At least I feelt that it was supposed to look like that. Like an older sister receiving a kiss from a younger brother and don’t know what to do really.
The music was for sure better in this episode.
Personally I think this episode went more dramatic than the first two. I know many are asking for the slapstick stuff and “acting overcute” and so on to tone down. I would prefer they would keep up with that. That’s what I want to see at least: lots of silly comedy.
In Witch Amusement the first episodes were also extremly funny and they toned it down later and didn’t keept it up.
In any way.. looking forward to todays episode.
to tell you honestly, i am surprised you found Delightful Girl Chun-hyang amusing, because i thought it was crappy
I’ve been a silent (albeit appreciative) reader for a while but I had to comment on the Anne of Green Gables reference. One of my favorite series when I was a kid and I still love to flip through it from time to time.
Thanks for the recaps, as usual!
can’t wait for tomorrow!
what you said is so true. the background music is indeed irritating!
Guys, help me decide. I’m torn between watching Hana Yori Dango and Boys without flower first. I’ve been told the Japanese version was very very good. So which one?
Yes, I agree that this is really growing on me but as some readers have said before me, Ji Hoo is not doing anything for me at all. There is no appeal whatsoever in him as the third corner of the love triangle. I remember that in all the other versions of HYD, part of me wished that Makino would choose Rui but here I’m glad that the foregone conclusion is that Jan Di chooses Jun Pyo.
the casting of the mother’s role is also one to rave about. She is a striking beauty that can awe and scare someone at one look!
agreed.
the drama has its moments, but its sometimes SOOO awkward i want to cry.
why does hyunjoong only have one facial expression T_T
Why is every drunken girl drama scene always so freakin’ funny???? Usually it’s the girl who’s cute, but this time I can’t help giggling over JP. He’s so adorable, especially when she slaps him around. LOL
junpyo is definitely growing on me. I think lee minho fits his image to the tee!
to #48 sere, Boys Before Flowers is definitely (at least for me) A LOT better than the other two version. Have watched the TW Meteor Garden and just recently watch the Jap HYD coz got curious about it when others said it is better than the Korean version?? Definitely not! I don’t watch Jap series coz I have yet to find a good Jap actor/actress, only take a peek before in HYD when it was shown in our country and I wasn’t hook coz I find all their actors overacts plus the fact that they are not such eye candies LOL! HYD only has 9eps in Season1 and I almost fall asleep halfway of it, if not for my will power and my curiousity about others saying that HYD is better. But alas have finish the Season 1 and I have no intention of watching the season2 if I will see the same F4 there. Meh… Korea really has a better looking actors/actresses plus they act better compare to the Japs and TW.
I wonder if the butler represents the role of Tama the main housekeeper in HYD, who was the only person that Doumyoji’s mother was intimidated of.
After seing two eps I can say, it’s nice to watch and entertaining but not as good as the jdorama version.
OMG. I agree with you! There were some really nice moments (Most of them Jun Pyo and Jan Di’s <3) but there were some moments wherein I laughed so hard because of the..awkwardness?
I don’t want to judge too much but for now, I’m so not Kim Hyun Joong. Argh! And I feel so disappointed because his character is pretty important.
Thank God for Lee Min Ho!
) Hehehe
NICE SUMMARIES BTW, I enjoy reading your summaries
Thanks for the recap.
You were right on about the best (JP-JD) & worst (JH-SH) scenes of this episode.
The one thing it still bother me is the amount of yelling/screaming (specially Jandi to her family).
A 3% jump on the rating. Having a 21% rating for ep.3. must give a big boost to the cast & production team.
Looking forward to the next episode for the good & the bad!
actually KHJ acting so lack for me but i forgive since he is not actor Like 13-years-debut-but-still-mediocre like Song Seung Heun .. so far i still feel Good with this
Please Pass that ” EOE: special song seungheon and LeeYeon hee “’s rating BOF!!!
Watch the anime first, then watch the dramas. You point out a lot of missing or changed scenarios. And I mean the anime series not the anime movie. The anime movie was just wrong…
As for my thoughts on the show, yes the KHJ and HCY kiss was awkward. Aside from the fact that I thought it was supposed to be awkward too, since in the past interpretations of their relationship she pretty much looks at him as a little brother for a good part of the series (in the anime I don’t remember her reappearing after he comes back from following her), KHJ doesn’t look like the type who is comfortable kissing if you watched WGM. I think they said on the WGM community that he called Hwang Bo after the scene. So awkward…. yea.
Before I saw the episode, I was all defensive & ready to say, “No, javabeans, you’re wrong! BBF is perfect as is.” Then I saw the episode.
Alas, you’re right about the direction. And the music–it’s enough that it’s bad, why does it have to be so loud? *Silent fan girl tear*
It’s so frustrating, because I love the cast (except for KHJ). As a fan of the original manga, I LOVE Jun Pyo & Jan Di–none of the other versions really got the main couple right, and here they’re perfect. Plus, I like the way they’ve reworked the plot–the CPR kiss sequence, the ducks, the Shizuka-Rui kiss with the vomiting scene. They’ve managed to preserve most of my favorite scenes from the manga while keeping it fresh–pretty impressive.
I wish I could make a Franken-HYD with Oguri Shun, the Japanese drama’s production values & direction, this script, this F4 (minus Rui) & this Makino (with 1/3 less screaming). Maybe episode 4 will be better?
Oguri Shun still makes the best Hanazawa Rui. He totally captured the character! It would be very hard for anyone to be up to his standard. The character Hanazawa Rui was like made for Oguri Shun.
Yes, I agree! The scene in which Jun Pyo looks for Jandi and then tries to kiss her was a real standout. But then again, many scenes from this episode was sub-par, IMO. The music continues to be atrocious. Kim Hyun Joong’s getting on my nerves – I know Ji-Hoo is supposed to be mellow, but he just looks downright spaced out. His eyes seem so hollow, devoid of any emotion, which makes it very hard for me to empathise with his character.
And what’s with those fake ducks in the swimming pool? If they couldn’t use real ducks, then they should have opted for something entirely different. It wouldn’t have made any difference to the plot development anyway. These ’special effects’ just serve to cheapen the overall feel of the drama.
I’m glad to see that GHS has toned down her performance somewhat. At times, she’s still too OTT for me, but I think she really excels in the dramatic scenes. And she has great on-screen chemistry with LMH, which is fun to watch.
nice summary! thank u! i like this version better than japanese HYD. but i’m quite disappointed with Hyunjoong’s acting. no hard feelings. cos i really like him in WGM.
thank God Lee Minho’s character suits him really well. but i think it takes time for me to like the leading actress. ;p i dislike her ugly hairstyle and i’m yet feeling the chemistry between jandi and jungpyo.
hope this drama will get better and better!
btw, wth with the fake duck? ;p
who cares with the bad music and directing. as long as i get to see hottie lee min ho
I had a really silly smile on my face when I was watching this and I haven’t been doing that while watching a drama, for ages… Well, since Coffee Prince anyway, haha… Jun-pyo just brings out the giggles in me!
I agree with Right so, Oguri Shun is the best Rui. I can’t get into this version…not liking the Jandi character.
totally agree with vrosemarie.
Hahaha I really really enjoyed watching the 2 leads now; if this keeps up the 3rd point of the triangle is going to be so weak as to put up not much resistance – and it won’t be convincing if they force it. Actually it would be kind of nice if they just diverged at this point and gave up on conflict from this sector?
It is v.v.sad to have your heart represented by a desk drawer. Sigh
I can’t help but compare this series to Gossip Girl which I’m also following at the moment, especially with the integration of the sms-news system thing, and it’s kind of sad how they can really pull of the UES-posh thing, while the whole playing-posh thing still feels cheap in (i’m sorry to overgeneralise but) Korean productions in general (to go further, let’s say Asian – cf Taiwan’s Romantic Princess). I guess it’s possibly because such backgrounds are just surreal? But 2 of the F4 boys (those with undyed hair) do a pretty good job of it, and I did like JoonPyo’s smirk as he was modelling his suit. Nice.
I read in the news about how the viewers were commenting about the cg in this episode, I seriously did not think they were going to put a scene with a pool with a bunch of ducks.. what’s with that??
And the scene where Ji-hoo was playing violin in the park and the snow just falling down, was just so fake.. it didn’t look real at all..
And Javabeans, I think you mentioned this before, but Gu hye sun?(don’t think I spelled her name right) at times needs to pull back a bit.. she overexaggerates some scenes and other scenes she’s cute. The scene where she was at the bar and she got drunk and started acting wild, I thought maybe she didn’t have to go so over the top.
Anyways.. Continue to watch to see how it goes..
Yea, the ducks were pretty lame. That scene bugged me. I remember thinking as I watched it, “Why are they still letting him prank her.”
They should have just stuck with the original format, though as director plus I have to say that getting rid of the “I tripped and fell on his lips, OMG” part was a good choice. I’d rather believe he fell in the pool after seeing a bug.
That scene with the mom’s arrival made me laugh. The way he sends out an SOS to all the guys.
As for the KHJ comments, give the kid some time, as he isn’t even an actor to begin with and this is his first role. I realize too his acting is a sketchy at best but the guy is at least trying.
There were people who hated Yoon Eun Hye’s acting when she started too, and then, after 3 series of so-so comments comes Coffee Prince.
mans. jun pyo is growing on me
different feeling from before
jap i was into rui… and cause tsukasa isnt that… handsome
tw i actually liked neither. in the first place. den i felt sorry for lei.
korean? jun pyo is the new love
and i actually didn’t start out liking ji hoo at first
he just kind of stands out like from the beginning. in a negative way.
he’s just weird. after he flys off to france together with seo yeun gone.
thats where the fun comes in. i guess?
hopeful.
maybe turn off the music?
Le Min Ho really made this series worth watching.
Totally agree that they should sack the music director. In some scene, the BGM totally ruin the mood. Only one song (the one with the female voice) got the feel of the series.
And like you said, I wish JanDi could lower down her cute attitude, she already adorable if she’s not trying too hard to be cute.
Did anyone notice the funny thing, when JiHoo run out to the pool, he grab his overcoat. Then in the side pool scene, he already wear it….^_^ does one really have a time to wear it when they rush to save a friend? ha…ha…
and to those who told javabeans not to write critics…… then don’t read this blog. simple. most of us came here to read her opinion. If you don;t like it, just leave.
“As for the KHJ comments, give the kid some time, as he isn’t even an actor to begin with and this is his first role. I realize too his acting is a sketchy at best but the guy is at least trying.
There were people who hated Yoon Eun Hye’s acting when she started too, and then, after 3 series of so-so comments comes Coffee Prince”
————————————-
But YEH earned her criticism, and then earned her praise with CP. KHJ has not earned anything so far, he’s fair game to be criticized. Come on, even you acknowledge he’s doing poorly. “Trying” is admirable, but it doesn’t mean we’re supposed to cut him slack.
i am currently watching this drama and a star’s lover . i’m in episode 3 also of a star’s lover so i recognized right away that choi ji woo and han chae young wore the same dress …. CHY in the party in this episode and CJW in her presscon in Japan as Mari
All I am saying is wait till it’s over to make up your mind, or at least half way, it’s only 3 eps.
I swear I thought the ducks were real!! Weren’t they??
They totally looked real to me…omg, maybe my mind’s been melted by the excessive amounts of CGI that I’ve been exposed to in Hollywood, I can’t tell what’s real and what’s not anymore…loll.
Poor Kim Hyun Joong is taking such a beating for his lifeless portrayal of Rui, it honestly made my appreciation of Oguri Shun as Rui increase 1000 fold…
The ratings are so excellent! Hyun Bin and Song Hye Gyo must be like “WTF!?!”
Go Jun Pyo! And Kim Bum!!
i meant episode 2 of a star’s lover
Oh BTW, yes I admit he is doing poorly, there was times I cringed at the late expression or where he was missing a bit out of an expression, but I’m not up on here saying I hate him 3 episodes in.
Like I said above, at least give it a couple more episodes before you completely make up your mind. Everyone starts off rocky. You said it yourself, YEH built up to it and KHJ hasn’t done anything yet. So why not wait a little bit and see if he’s improved or not before writing him off completely. That’s all I am sayin’.
were all entitled to our own opinions and…
its all goin well for me!!!
am luuvin this episode!!its all happy and giddy~~
junpyos just amazing!!!
hJs acting is waaay better now!he luuks more relaxed..
theres even a scene where i thought:
‘darn how could i just judge him like that!i shouldnt compare him to other ruis now~~’
heehee
i think , they should put hwangbo as shizuka if they want ji hoo showing some love chemistry in the kiss scene…
ouu.. this episode sounds good
i cant wait until it comes out xD
AWFUL AWFUL AWFUL DRAMA. Bad acting, off characterization, bad directing, boring storyline………
(sorry sorry I know. But I couldn’t help)HYD is defintely way way way better.
Jun Pyo is noooooooooo nice, so stupid, so in love he looks like Forrest Gump but not Domyoji because even in the Manga Domyoji is so mean that you hate him at first and love Rui. Don’t you think something is wrong? It doesn’t follow the manga at all.
And RUI…. What a wasted
Jun pyo is loved because Lee min oh portraying is simply OFF CHARACTER!! He is sooo WEAK!!! It’s everything but Domyoji. People read the manga Domyoji is not like that at all!!!!!!
I think KHJ is getting better….
i love this drama
And Rebeca you are not the only one. I think they made a bad job with Jun forrest Gump Pyo
i have to say that the way the characters and their relationships are being developed in the korean version is better than the japanese one (i guess the screenwriter’s really good); maybe it’s due to fewer episodes in HYD….episodes 1&2, i fell for hyunjoong’s character, but in episode 3, i have to say minho is doing a great job in his portrayal (starting to love him)….the makino character, eh….overacting; her acting is a pain to see (for it’s the facial expressions! there are moments that i really can;t stand it! but i’m hoping for the best & don’t get me wrong, the korean version is pretty good, so far!); inoue mao i have to say is WAAAY BETTER…i hope the korean makino improves!
i miss more of ur funky analysis. please add more!! u kinda seem like ur just summarizing. even though i rely on u to read about what happened in each episode, i look forward more to ur sarcasm.
keep up the good work dramabeans!
I was underwhelmed by Ep 3. You are right….it’s the director who’s not delivering. The dance scenes were awful. I still remember the dance scene in What Star Do You Come From . It was shot so well and captured perfectly the magical moment for the girl dancing for the first time with the man of her dreams. It doesn’t help the Korean Rui has turned out to be such a casting disaster. But a good director could have worked around it. The director should also stop making his leading ladies pout so much. Makino is supposed to be cute….not act cute! I remember I liked My Girl a lot but midway thru I got so tired of the girl’s excessive cutesy antics i was wishing LDW would run away with his tall elegant serene looking assistant.
LMH continues to thrill. He is so good he’s making everyone look bad. I want to give a shout out to Kim Joon who in a smaller role gets to the essence of being F4. Kim Bum is good but that adorable baby face is no player! I wanted to take the wine glass away from him.
REBECA you are not the only one Jun forrest Gump Pyo in love with his Jenny Oups Jan-Di
lily…..you have got a point there. Domyoji is a little too normal and level headed in the Korean version. He is supposed to be a brat! Makino is supposed to be the grounded one. Well, it’s just the 3rd episode so there’s still hope.
LMAO about “Kim Bum is good but that adorable baby face is no player! I wanted to take the wine glass away from him.”
OUF someone is agree with me
Because in the manga, the anime version, meteor garden and HYD are all different but Domyoji remains Domyoji!!!a Psyco despical mean with bad japanese man (Jun Pyo korean is not so bad) to slowly become the more mature, nice, supporting man we know
totally agree with sonam! thanks for the recap, javabeans.
for me the Jap version didn’t have enough romantic scenes between Jun and Inoue but at least it made me laugh. Remember what he said about the rem sleep. With the Korean version, i noticed there is no the chemistry between the 3 leads or even between the F4. I don’t feel anything when they are together whether it’s Makino with Tsukasa or even with Rui. It is too bad. I’m really looking to this one.
For instance BOF is a big big disappointment
Does anyone else find it ironic that Jun Pyo was reading the The Wall Street Journal in the scene after they went to the bar? I mean, I thought that Jun Pyo was suppose to be a little stupid and immature.
I know the economy is distressing and all right now, but what immature highschool student picks up and reads The Wall Street Journal? Oops on the props? >_<”
that dressing scene at her parent’s drycleaners was so funny. too bad we didn’t get to see more of the dress that Jan-di wore to the party because it looked pretty.
you’re recaps are so fast. keep up the great job.
I know this is kinda superficial…but does anyone think Lee Min-Ho’s legs are really skinny/feminine in the scene right after the pool when he’s talking to the mean girls? I seriously think they’re even smaller than the girl’s legs lol…and really perfectly tan too
actually out of all of the versions of hana yori danga dramas
i like the k one the best
i think it’s b/c everyones better looking *cough matsujun *cough*
and they really spent a ton of money making them seem like gazillionaires
i really couldn’t believe the “richness” in the tw version ahahahah
That’s true in MG they look cheap.
LMAO about Jun Pyo legs
@ anotheranony yes too Weird
I just noticed this…but Jan Di (i 4got the actress’s real name) does a great job in the crying scenes. She does a great job in the “angst” scenes…She just reallllllllllly overacts the made and cute scenes…..
So i realllllllly hope (just like you stated in your recap) that they keep delivering more scenes like the Forest scene. Cuz thats when both Jan Di and Joon Pyo shine
wow the number of comments for this series’ recaps is really telling haha.
anyway, does anyone else think that hyun joong’s expressionless eyes and face are beginning to make him resemble a dead fish? it’s disturbing! seriously, i love the boy in reality shows and in his music performances, but why does he seem less pretty boy and more dead here than anything? ): i understand that jihoo is supposed to be an enigmatic and charismatic character, but i hope he doesn’t try too hard to look mysterious and detached, because it just isn’t working.
but i’m still fairly excited for the rest of the episodes, this drama is coming along quite nicely! thanks for the recap!
I agree with Anna; Gu Hye Sun is not working for me. No, I take that back. She does well in the serious scenes. But when it’s time for her to act cute or tomboyish, it looks so fake. And I also am not feeling any chemistry between Jandi and Junpyo and the F4. The only people I’m interested in here are Lee Minho and Kim Bum. He he.
the first two episodes were ok for me. but now suddenly i feel like the story is too fast….. the relationship doesnt even start blooming for me yet, but there are already many things happened between them…
i thought someone would feel the same with me, but then maybe just me. uu~uuh~.. i actually really hope i enjoy this drama. i’ve been craving for romantic comedy since long.. and i have really BIG hope for this drama. or my age just past for this kind of drama?..
i realize what you mean by the off-directing, especially after episode 4.
i think i’m gonna blame GHS’s over the top portrayal on the director ’cause if he wanted her to pull back, i have no doubt she could. and before i saw the ep, reading the summary and looking at the cap, i thought that he had put rubber ducks into the pool. little did i know he had managed to wrangle fake looking CGI ducks. maybe JunPyo borrowed CNN’s hologram technology?
Thank you so much for this entry…couldn’t stop smiling reading it.
“Don’t drink when I’m not around.” She should’ve listened…hehe…
They’re so cute together.
hahaha at the CNN’s hologram technology. let just think so. i also gonna blame some GHS’s overacting on the director (especially sticking a branch of leaves at her hair). she was a fine actress before. and whenever JanDi is not overacting, she is extremely good, like how she cried and shouted when they threw eggs at her uniform and thinking of her father.
May I say that while the kissing scene was awkward/stiff – it is no different than from every other kissing scene I’ve scene in Kdramas-Delightful Girl, Samsoon, My Girl, Spring Waltz, Snow Queen, Full House, Love Story in Harvard, etc. (with the exception of Goong & Lovers)? The females always, always, always, just stands there with her eyes closed! She doesn’t even move her arms!!! Every time I think, if a hot guy just declared his love and wanted to sweep me off my feet with a hot kiss, I think I’d do more than just stand there!!!
That being said, the charm of this show still hasn’t worn off – flaws and all.
Oooh – and a huge thanks to Dramabeans for the quick recap!!!
ok, so I think I messed something up on the comment earlier..
i wasn’t trying to mention anything bad about the acting skills for the actor who’s playing (RUI, Korean version) the violin.. He is a newbie.. and He’s doing great so far.. I think I was trying to point out the CG with the fake snow.. not him playing his part not well.
Sorry for the confusion.. I’m not korean, so its very difficult to straighten all of the names out.
Hey! Thanks for the review! I have to say that the computer graphic on this show is really awful! For example, on the first episode when they were showing the campus and the “helicopter” came on the scene.. it looks like my kid brother’s toy! Not cool. Then, with the third episode when Ja Di found the “ducks” swimming in the pool.. Duck, Duck, BOOO!!!! Sorry.. I had to use your analogy.. lolz
It’s good so far, so don’t get me wrong.. I think little details like that should not be overlooked. The viewers, I’m sure crave realism on this show..
Okay, that’s my vent…
Having rewatched episode 3, I do think that Kim Bum’s dry delivery of his character’s ironic lines – usually directed at the clueless Gu Jun Pyo (see I’m starting to get them straight!) – is underrated!
And honestly I was taken in by the closeups of the ducks hehe
i never read the manga so not really sure about the scenes but while watching epi 3, meteor garden keeps on appearing in my mind… they do have a lot of similarities (especially here like the party,,,, the vomiting..others)
i have now figured out that i like hye sun except when she’s in that uniform coz again she doesnt look like a HS student but outside of the uniform she’s passable i mean the scenes with her family makes her look like a real kid but i do have to agree with some of the comments here that more often she act’s too cartoonish… she’s supposed to be more grounded less flighty??? than jun pyo…at times the show has that japanese feel to instead of it being a korean version of the manga…
and jun pyo i mean LMH he is becoming so adorable every minute…. he is still not your domyuji but wow with those shots and angle…. he is making me forget the KHJ is even in the show…..
looking forward to the next episodes as this show is now my monday and tuesday habit
The music PD needs to die.
Hire someone from the coffee prince sound track, either that don’t use music just hum when dramatic scenes come on.
The music is very heartbreaking in the way that it sucks.
The acting is good Hyun Joong is improving.
For some reason I feel he should have stayed in variety.
Shillang suits him much much better.
The leads are doing very good even though I feel that it’s lacking compared to the earler versions most specifically the japanese version.
Sad that they didn’t do the scene where Seon cut her long luxurious hair short right then and there to prove she wanted to separate from all that was superficial and focus on her goal — becoming an international lawyer. Even if she had to leave Ji Hoo behind.
Up until now, I think the drama has been decent and watchable but since its only ep.3, it probably needs more time to establish itself, so I’ll hold back on my judgement. However, like someone said before, I think I’ve got a case of MG/HYD/Boys over flowers fatigue… It’s just too many rehashing of the same storyline in a relatively short space of time.
At the moment, I still think I enjoyed MG most, probably cos I watched it first and it wasn’t so OTT (although it was going for ridiculous melodramatics near the end) and HYD was light and fun. So heres waiting to see what Boys over flowers will turn out like…
Lee Min Ho is totally carrying the show! He is going to be a HALLYU GOD!
And that Kim Bum is pure hotness!
Sorry but its silly to say this is the best version when only 3 eps have been aired?
As to the people dissing the Jap version, Inoue Mao, Oguri Shun are unbeatable, the Korean ones don’t come close, as for MatsuJun, yes his look was wrong but his acting as Domyouji was next to perfect, Lee Min ho is pretty good too but he still hasn’t had the “Hemmingyay” moment yet and sorry to say but has next to no chemistry with the girl. As for K Rui, my god is he bad, not even the look is right.
And to the constant digs people make at the J F4 and the looks of the HYD Jap actors, grow up.
In anycase the Ep was decent enough, Im looking forward to the next ep more tho, Im glad their sticking to the source material.
As for the person talking about Lee Min ho’s legs, they really are thin, same goes for his hands, they’re tiny in proportion to his body. But he’s still so cute.
As for Kim Bum until his own little story I guess we won’t get to see his acting skills, but I hope he’s as good as everyone’s claimed.
i dont know if it was bc i saw this episode right after waking up, but i didnt like it one bit. first 2 eps i saw them 3 times, but this ep felt like i could barely finish watching it for the first time.
and i dont know why, but when jan-di was making all sorts of faces while looking for a dress, her over the top acting annoyed me even more than at the beginning.
btw, i must say i thought the same thing when the guy burst into the room announcing jun-pyo had fallen into the pool…….. i was just stupid
the pace of the drama, i thought might keep it fresh, since a lot of things might be going on, thus no fillers or lame music-video-like scenes. but not i’m starting to think it might become a problem.
That Jun-pyo guy’s second toe is longer!!! TEHE
Jan-di’s overacting is annoying everyone then, huh? The actress doesn’t compare to Inoue Mao, that’s true. And to top that off, Inoue Mao was a total newcomer, much younger and without ANY (well, some, but as a kid-star) acting experience.
I often want to kick her in the face. And the character! Jan-di’s coming off as a whiny brat biased against the rich than against the obnoxious rich. And does she have to be so damn impolite and crude? Being tough does not constitute being without manners. Can’t imagine it’d pass in Korea. And she’s supposed to be intelligent and mature enough to feel disgusted by F4, and to be courageous enough to think clearly and stand up to them. It was not an impulse, a step-decision, but a true choice. Plus, her grounded practicality is what makes her stand out from the rest of the girls. Is that how you’d describe Jandi? Can you imagine Jandi is a LAWYER?
Lee Minho… He’s great. I think the problem lies in his character, not the actor. We’re being won over by him too quickly right now. He’s not threatening, not violent, but childishly temperamental. I suppose the producers are worried about his Prince Charming image, but THAT side of him was to be shown later, and he was never really a perfect Prince Charming. He’s suppose to be despicable for the first 5 eps at least.
And the chemistry. I see a spark here and there, but I can’t help but think Lee Minho might be carrying it all himself. And most of the time, it’s dead. Ji Hoo’s love story… pity they couldn’t muster up more chemistry. It could actually be rather moving.
love the new take on the first kiss scene. i’ve only been reading your recaps (thank you so much for them) but it feels like the korean version has managed to remain somewhat fresh.
i don’t really mind the overacting as it isn’t done too overboard. after all the series came from a manga/anime where it’s almost a necessity to overact. it just reminds me of that fact.
however i do agree about the music, the way they transition scenes, the lame cg, and KHJ’s acting (lets hope it improves, but it’s safer to just not expect much). they suck. luckily there’s great chemistry between the leads.
about the kiss scene, i’ve learned that unless it’s YEH or a kmovie, better not expect much as well, specially with idols.
overall, it’s still a very interesting and entertaining show to watch, whether you’ve watched previous versions or not. so far.
i just finished watching episode three, and i really must say i agree
with your [ dramabeans ] summary of the show 100%.
i truly wanted to love this show to pieces, considering i watched the japanese and taiwanese version. however, there was something that kept bothering me at the back of my head as i watched all three episodes.
its the music. WHAT is it with this director [ PD Jeon Ki-sang ] and his pattern of only having three songs for his dramas?! why torture us, the viewers, with these irritating catchy pop songs? i also feel like there are numerous scenes that, if left on the editing floor, wouldn’t have made a difference to the finished product.
i like the cast a lot ::coughs:: Jan-di not so much ::coughs:: but as much as i love KHJ… his acting… whoa. the hotel scene when he was upset, yea, i had to chuckle to myself a couple times.
don’t get me wrong… i still like the show.
i’m going to keep watching it.
because i must. lol
… but i wish they would change the director to the coffee prince director.
now she was someone who understood how important an OST is for a show.
Kim Bum is great! I do like him in this drama.
however, this is not such a good one, sometimes I feel it’s boring.
You said it this Drama is everything but HYD (the manga).
Rui is ….Bkeh
Jun Pyo…. weak, mature, cold, maybe a little stupide (all but domyoji
Korean Akira……………..non existent (Japanese Akira had lesser scenes than the other but he was useful in some situations and the nicer and more mature of F4)
Kim Bum is a child
Makino…. is a Bad actress
I couldn’t be more agree with Mikki especially about Jun Pyo character!! people say is the best domyoji sorry but he can be the best Jun Pyo but not Domyoji!! I don’t know people read the manga. Korean makers messed it up. Domyoji is threatning, dumb, childish is not a nice supporting man. Jun Pyo is Jun Pyo but not Domyoji. Someone said Min Oh lacks “Passion”. I agree Because Domyoji has a lot of passion in everything he do even his love for Makino. He is all but cold!!
@ KOK I couldn’t be more agree
I watch this serie searching what part of this drama is “far far better than HYD” (like some people say) But I don’t see. The reason is this drama “is fresh” MG and HYD were different of each other so their takes concerning their storyline were fresh too. If you simply say you simply like better the korean version although they messed it up I will understand you but (with these evidences stated) Korean version is a really bad take of HYD (the original manga).
THANKS, I ACTUALLY FIND YOUR RECAP VERY USEFUL AFTER WATCHING THE SHOW. KEEP IT UP. ^_^
What I liked some much about the Japanese version was the bond Makino and F4 developed. With the Korean version being 24 episodes I hope they’re planning to develop the relationship. With 3 episodes in I shouldn’t judge too quickly but it feels as if the Korean F4’s are strangers and not childhood friends.
“but it feels as if the Korean F4’s are strangers and not childhood friends.”
I couldn’t more. And the chemistry between the F4 is the only thing I liked in MG
@lily if you don’t like BFF all that much then stop watching so you can stop comparing and you know…for crying out loud just rewatch the version you like best and be worry free! To each his own dear, to each his own….
You can’t force anyone to like what you like just because you say so…as much as we can’t force you to like what we like…you know what im saying?
We watch to be entertained right, but if what we’re watching doesn’t satisfy us…then we can always turn the friggin’ boobtube/pc off or if not then try find something else to watch…perhaps REWATCH!
Why complicate things…ugh!
My, my. Lee MinHo is one fine looking young man. At first I abhorred his curly coif, but now it’s growing on me. =)
Thanks for the caps.
The most ridiculous part for me in this ep is Ji-hoo playing the violin under the snow. The funniest part, though, is HOW COME Jun-pyo was reading The Wall Street Journal in the morning after Jan-di woke up??? ROFL
& I actually learned sth new from this ep: “If U draw lines on the pumpkin, would it become a water melon?” LOL
K-dramas 2009, plzz try harder & make it at least a better year than last, could U? I seriously ran out of things to watch!! ^^
I really like how this series has taken its own line. It doesn’t feel like either the Japanese or Taiwanese versions. It takes the plots elements which work well, but weaves its own story. Pity the acting is so uneven.
I don’t think the supremacy of the Japanese version is threatened – its impeccable casting, coherent soundtrack, sharp editing, beautiful photography and clever adaptation of the (repetitious) manga plot. (The TW version proved, IMO, that slavish adherence to the manga does not a great drama make.) But I will see the Korean version to its end. The two leads are great (when they are not shouting), and I’m really interested to see where they will take this.
Anne of Green Gables! yay:) I loved those books. maybe I’ll read them again someday…
:D:D:D
” Oh! The ! Symbolism! ”
han chae young’s dress at her birthday party is the same one that choi ji woo wore at the japanese fan meeting in episode 3 of a star’s lover! i remember that spectacular collar
reuse reduce recycle~
aniee: the reason i like k-dramas is cause the lead couple always goes thru a process to develop feelings for each other. jan di should def. take some time before showing signs of liking jung pyo. ————– absolutely right
I’m warming up to it, I only wish Jandi didn’t shout every other line. It makes Junpyo sound like the sane one. And also I have to agree with lily^ the Korean F4 just does not compare… I still have a crush on Soujiro after watching HYD some time ago.
okay, innovation of first kiss in Kkotboda Namja: CPR…!
hahahaha…
you’re a saviour javabeans cause w/o your recaps i wldn’t be able to figure out some of episode 3 as they didn’t have subs in some parts! thanks again — you’re great!
When the girl argued with the guy with the curly hair, it reminds me of Coffee Prince .. a lot. You think the actors tried to copy CP’s couple?
love ur recaps
i didn’t realize that noise was his string popping for a while, i thought it was a gunshot, lol
it’s just great though, of course if he plays his violin in the snow the string will pop
my tailpiece exploded once because it was too cold and someone moved it
Hmm-mm, I gotta admit that after watching the first two eps, I was really disappointed (me? I’m a BIG Handan fan) but in this ep I managed to forget -at least in few scenes- that I was watching a remake…I managed not to compare BBF to HYD, which hopefully will happen more and more often (*crosses fingers*). I mean, the more BBF diverges from HYD, the better, imho. It’s not like I don’t like BBF, cos I do, but it certainly feels like everything is sort of “forced” when the similarities are way too many.
Anyway, one of my fave scenes is when Jun Pyo tries to force a kiss on Jan di. Great chemistry there and for once Gu Hye-sun wasn’t overracting (at first I thought she was irritating. Or rather, all the qualities that should’ve made Jan-di adorable and charming turned out to be a little bit grating. Thankfully she’s toning her acting down!). And the scene at the club was rather sweet, imho. Wohoo
Lee Min-ho was such a pleasant surprise! He’s really, really good!
“Oy, this scene is painfully awkward at points. If the earlier Jun-pyo & Jan-di argument was an example of great, intense chemistry, here we have an example of… well, uncomfortable non-chemistry.”
Oh thank God. I thought the only one who thought that!
Also? Word on Jeon Ki-sang! I couldn’t agree more
did anyone recocgnize Junpyo was reading about Obama
in the Wall Street Journal? heeheeh.
the swimming pool scene was hilarious.
i was literally choking on my own spit. xD
& didn’t this same director direct My Girl?
that’s one of my all time faves.
i hope in doesn’t go downhill from here on though.
& i’m really hoping for a good ending unlike Witch Yoo Hee. argghh.
Seriously cool! “Get lost!” thought that Ji Hoo liked Jan di
@Shrimp: Thank you!!! I’m starting to get really annoyed by the lily person’s comments.
@lily: if you hate it so much, then why watch it? if it’s that bad, people will eventually stop watching and hate it just as much as you do without you trying so hard to convince everyone like your life depends on it.
for those who hate BOF so much, do you honestly want this series to be EXACTLY like the Japanese version, and for the actors to play the characters EXACTLY like the manga or Japanese drama? Then what’s the point of re-making in the first place? I honestly wouldn’t want to see the exact same thing as I saw in Meteor Garden. And in my opinion, BOF is much better than Meteor Garden, acting wise and storyline wise. I can’t comment about the Japanese drama or manga either because I don’t really bother reading or watching it. But for the sake of people who’ve never heard of the storyline before, cut BOF some slack!
STOP comparing for goodness’ sake! Ugh…
On a lighter note, Lee Min-ho’s making me love him the more I watch him!
@Yoochunlove and other BOF fangirls…
You may drool on LMH and other F4 look as much as you want but one sentence comes when I saw episode 1 and two “KOREAN MESSED HYD”. That’s all ! It’s a fact ! At least MG kept HYD spirit and The F4 have chemistry and true friendship and the lead actors didn’t look they forced their acting.
Have you any argument any argument to prove me the contrary (even javabean shows every weeks how this drama is simply a rushed, flawed bad executed drama) ?
Otherwise I propose you to read the manga and wath HYD japan.
Hi! I love your recaps – they’re great! However, I noticed a mistake…Instead of “But you’re the first girl the Almighty Jun-pyo has acknowledged”, shouldn’t it be Jihoo?
hey…javabeans….
i luv ur recap… finally i found what i’m looking for…
this series was awsome….
thanks guyz…
lily-
seriously. i think you are just too bias at the point of thinking that HYD is better than BOF. They have their own style and they added in different points of views that differ from the original manga. So? It is awesome! It has a good combination of meteor garden and HYD okie?
If you really hate BOF that much, den dun watch! Lee Min Ho is AWESOME as the character Jun pyo
and whats wrong with u??? saying the first two episodes are KOREAN MESSED HYD!
Its not MESSED UP OR whatever, i think this 6.5 Billion production is SPLENDID and one of the remake of the HYD manga.
I agree with YoonChun that it will be really boring if every version follows the manga TOTALLY!
and PLEASE this production is an absolute success as you can see from the results! =|
you are making me really pissed off with ur comments.
BOF ROCKS!
btw, i am a great lover of HYD and Meteor garden and the manga.
I’m not saying I don’t like BOF but I’m agreeing to what lily said. I’m disappointed myself, and I’m sure she is too. It’s her opinion so respect it, since everyone have their own opinions anyway.
It’s not because we want this series to be exactly like the Japanese version. But you all have said it that this is a remake so they should have preserved at least however Domyouji’s original character and some other things that must have been preserved. My main problem lies with the screenwriting (and the directing.) This is not supposed to be a spinoff, this is a remake so Korean crew shouldn’t have mess with it much.
I only watched the first three episodes of BOF so I’m not going to say it much.
Although I’m so disappointed, I’m still looking forward to watch the next episodes of BOF.
love you boys over flower