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Playful Kiss: Episode 3

Ah, the eternal kdrama conundrum. Go for the perfect meanie who needs to be convinced of your worth, or the loyal lackey who already knows it?

And of course, the answer (in a drama) is always the opposite of the one we’d advocate in real life. Funny how television can romanticize the unromantic, and vice versa.

SONG OF THE DAY

Lee Seung-hwan with Park Shin-hye – “Wonderful Day” [ Download ]

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EPISODE RECAP

After Ha-ni surprises everyone with her high test score, the students (led by teacher Kang-yi) chant for Seung-jo to live up to his promise of carrying her around the school. The two had privately agreed to nullify that bet, but can’t explain that to the others without revealing that they’re living together.

Ha-ni mutters to Seung-jo not to misunderstand — she had nothing to do with this. He grumbles that she’s a public menace, but sighs and tells her to go ahead and claim her piggyback ride. If everyone’s going to assume he’s a flake, he’d rather just get it over with.

Three-year crush notwithstanding, being called a public menace can go a long way in quashing the warm fuzzies, and Ha-ni refuses. He grabs her wrist (oy), and protective Joon-gu arrives on the scene at just this moment, seeing Ha-ni struggling against Seung-jo’s grasp.

Joon-gu steps in and offers the piggyback ride instead, and while Seung-jo hadn’t been eager to carry her, damned if he’ll be upstaged by this guy. What ensues is a double-wrist-grab competition of whose back she’ll climb on. Oh, that we all had such problems.

Joon-gu’s more aggressive, and (literally) sweeps Ha-ni off her feet to carry her outside. Ju-ri and Min-ah reproach him for interfering, and he’s so dense that he thought he was being helpful.

Now he asks suspiciously if Ha-ni still likes Seung-jo, to which she blurts that she doesn’t. He’s cold and mean and lacks any spark of humanity. She totally hates him now.

Suuure. That totally explains her fit of jealousy in special study hall when another girl tries to flirt with Seung-jo, right?

Ha-ni’s the odd duck out in study hall, where we hammer in the stereotypes inherent in this drama: that all humble, average-brained folks are nice and friendly, while smart people are rich snobs. But how does that explain all the dumb snobs I’ve met? And poor jackasses?

Ha-ni is cheered when Seung-jo rejects the girl’s offer of a soda. You’d think she would have a little bit of sympathy for this predicament, but she hasn’t learned the lesson from her own humiliation and bursts out laughing at the other girl, even pointing a finger literally as she guffaws. Wait, drama, aren’t we supposed to like her?

Ha-ni’s presence in the study hall is such an anomaly that you can practically hear the minds being blown as people try to figure out how she got there. One such example: the vice principal, who takes great pride in Seung-jo as the school’s star pupil and therefore can’t understand how Ha-ni squeaked through.

He asks Class 7’s teacher Kang-yi if she finds that odd, but she answers simply that hard work can yield good results. The other teachers are unconvinced, however, particularly the pretty teacher (whom I suspect will be Kang-yi’s rival, or at least her foil) and Class 1 teacher Ji-oh. They even go so far as to speculate about cheating, though they make no accusations.

Each class has an upcoming outing planned, and Classes 1 and 7 get stuck in an athletic competition at Kang-yi’s suggestion, because she’s determined to prove that her class can beat the snooty Class 1-ers at something. Class 7 isn’t terribly enthusiastic, but are won over with Kang-yi’s bribe of pizza if they win all three events.

Motivated by pizza — and yeah, beating Class 1, although mostly the pizza — the class practices for the competition, performing drills and running through relay simulations. It’s pretty cute how enthusiastic they are, so of course haughty Seung-jo has to rain on their parade by sniffing at how silly they look.

He says indifferently that Class 7 is sure to win, because his class just doesn’t care. Riiiight. You care so little that you have to announce just how little you care, in case they thought you cared. (I sorta love how Seung-jo tries to pretend he’s so superior to Ha-ni, but he can’t resist poking and prodding at her, when a truly indifferent person wouldn’t bother.)

Worse than insulting them is his air of “Oh, we’re so above that,” and Ha-ni has to hold back Joon-gu from launching into a fight. But when Seung-jo goes so far as to call them “pathetic,” she has to speak up: What’s pathetic about working hard? She gives Joon-gu an inadvertent compliment by saying he’s super fast and athletic, which makes his day. She was just saying it to warn Seung-jo not to be so snooty, but Joon-gu is, adorably, thrilled.

What I enjoy about Ha-ni and Seung-jo’s budding dynamic is that Ha-ni knows how to push his buttons right back. She gets a rise out of him by saying the losing chicken makes more noise — effectively calling him both a chicken and a loser. Two birds, one stone.

There’s a cute but ultimately irrelevant scene (which is beginning to be Playful Kiss‘s hallmark) when Ha-ni heads out to the field dressed in a mascot’s costume. She takes advantage of her momentary anonymity to sneak up on a passing Seung-jo and pokes him in the butt. Saucy!

Her brief satisfaction (and getaway) is ruined when she trips. He has to help her up, and flings off her mask to get a good look at the offender.

On to the first event. The two classes line up for a 15-person, 16-legged race, and the smarties (in blue) stumble along badly, since they didn’t bother practicing or figuring out strategy. In contrast, the yellow-vested misfit team marches forward in unity for an easy victory.

Misfit Class erupts in cheers, and Ha-ni and Joon-gu clutch each other in celebration. Seung-jo would very much like not to notice, but he sneers at the sight. Totally what a non-caring person would do, right? I’ll posit that Seung-jo has actually got it pretty bad to be envious (though reluctantly, and in denial) of being hugged by a butternut squash in pigtails.

Seung-jo’s mother arrives during the second event, a team tug of war, taking care to stay out of Seung-jo’s sight. She runs into Jang-mi, who is leading her team of cheerleaders in chants for Seung-jo.

Jang-mi is eager to play up their acquaintance, but Mom’s puzzled reaction shows that Jang-mi hardly registers in her memory. Mom brightens to see that the girl’s cheering for her son, as she was having a hard time deciding who to root for. (This leaves her free to support Ha-ni. Aw.)

The last event is a relay race, which both Seung-jo and Joon-gu are anchoring. Ha-ni is also running a leg, as is her teacher, who enjoys rubbing in her class’s imminent victory to Ji-oh. Although Ji-oh had shared his class’s indifference, he can’t abide Kang-yi’s side bet to call him oppa if he loses. She even teases him about losing on purpose in order to be called oppa, and he shudders at the thought. This gives him new motivation to win this event to prevent such a horrific outcome.

But not without suffering some indignities. Min-ah gives the misfits a nice head start in the first lap, but Ji-oh, determined not to lose, makes up the difference in the next. Kang-yi flails and reaches out as he passes her, accidentally grabbing his pants as she does.

She goes down, and loses precious seconds that she attempts to make up for by throwing the baton at the next runner, Ha-ni. (Impeding an opponent and throwing the baton — nobody’s gonna call cheating? Just sayin’.)

Thankfully, Ha-ni is a fast runner and she blows by her rival, clearing the way for Joon-gu to carry them to victory.

But then, a curious thing happens: Seung-jo smiles directly at her, and this messes with her mind. Suddenly thrown into confusion, the two boys blur together in her mind, and her tunnel vision narrows to one point: Seung-jo.

The sign of an effective bit in a comedy is when it makes you cringe so badly for the heroine’s behalf that it kind of hurts, and you have to pause the video to lessen the impact of the moment. Hypothetically speaking.

With her mind messing with her eyes, Ha-ni misses the hand-off to Joon-gu and instead reaches for Seung-jo. He’s awaiting his own teammate’s baton and doesn’t accept it; as he succeeds in his own hand-off, he thinks, “Idiot.” Ouch. But he’s not wrong.

Seung-jo is the toast of his team, but what warms Mama’s heart is the smile on his face as he takes a moment to bask in the victory.

Ha-ni’s team, on the other hand, is bummed to lose, particularly the pizza. The team clamors for Ha-ni to buy it since she lost the race, at which point Joon-gu totally wins my heart for jumping to her defense. He takes the blame for the race, apologizing to Ha-ni for bungling their hand-off. Aw! Joon-gu, you win one free pass for future boorish behavior with this move. (But just one! That’s one wrist grab or forced back hug — but not both — so use it wisely, buddy.)

His acceptance of blame means the class wants HIM to buy the pizza, then, and unfortunately he doesn’t have a spare hundred bucks lying around to do that. Saving him from the wrath of a pizza-craving horde, Seung-jo’s mother makes her appearance and offers to treat them. Instead of revealing who her son is, Mom introduces herself simply as “Ha-ni’s fan.”

That night, Seung-jo asks Ha-ni about the baton pass, guessing that she got ragged on by her peers. Even so, Ha-ni’s in a good mood, saying that it was all okay because his mother bought them pizza, which surprises Seung-jo.

He sighs that Mom’s always causing trouble, which he means affectionately. Even so, Ha-ni speaks up to say she really likes her, and that his mother’s presence brought her happiness today. Mom, listening just around the corner, is gratified to hear it.

Ha-ni explains that her own mother never came to her school, since she died so young. Her father and grandmother did, and “I was thankful for that, but I don’t think it was happiness.” Today, it felt like her mother came to school.

Perhaps mention of her mother rouses some sympathy in Seung-jo, or maybe it’s just his growing interest in Ha-ni, but in any case it’s becoming clear his feelings are changing. (Albeit against his will.) Example: Ha-ni says she has to help prepare dinner, and he starts to blurt that she should rest. Catching himself, he amends his words to say that she ought to earn her keep since she’s mooching off his family.

Ha-ni interprets Seung-jo’s comment about her costume as more mocking, since a compliment, even a grudging one, is completely beyond her expectation. Therefore she thinks that he told her “You had no ears” (gwi-ob-da) rather than what he really said: “You were cute” (gwi-yub-da).

Dad comes upon Mom as she’s updating her blog with her new photos, and Mom says with satisfaction, “Since Ha-ni’s been here, it feels like real people live in this house.” She takes particular notice of a photo of Seung-jo after winning his race, because it’s been a long while since he’s has smiled like that.

The two families have dinner at Ha-ni’s father’s restaurant, and as usual, Seung-jo is the sourpuss of the group, with little bro doing his best to be Sourpuss Jr. (I’m convinced that his constant iPod fiddling is just an affectation, so he can pay attention while pretending he doesn’t care. When clearly he cares, YA BIG FAKING FAKER.)

Dad thanks Seung-jo for helping Ha-ni with her test results, and Seung-jo politely plays down the compliment. Mom jumps in and says that it’s more impressive that Ha-ni taught Seung-jo how to study, and the parents engage in a round of Thank-you, oh no, thank YOU.

Everyone has a glass of makgulli to toast Ha-ni’s accomplishment… which means Ha-ni gets tipsy. With her tongue loosened, she reveals that Seung-jo’s a big fat meanie who treats her like she’s nothing and called her a public menace who mooches off his family. The guilty look that flashes across his face is pretty gratifying; put that way, he comes off as quite the bad guy.

Ha-ni slurs, “Even if you’re so great, can you just look down on people like that?” This declaration disappoints Mom, who had thought the kids were well-matched and hadn’t realized that Ha-ni hates Seung-jo so much.

Seung-jo retaliates by reciting Ha-ni’s confession letter, which swiftly turns the tables and mortifies her. She reluctantly admits that it’s true she wrote it, but vows that she’s just wiped out every last bit of lingering affection for him.

Ha-ni’s proclamation is tested immediately when Seung-jo is pressed to carry her home, because the half-cup of rice wine hits her hard.

Seung-jo says sarcastically that she got what she wanted in the end with the piggyback ride. That jolts her out of her tipsy haze and she wants to be put down, but he points out that it shouldn’t bother her to be carried since she’s soooo over him, right?

She hurriedly agrees, but Seung-jo can feel her heart racing against his back and can’t resist commenting on it, which makes her pull back self-consciously.

He also teases her about her “severe condition” — will she be able to nurse when she has babies? Meaning, of course, that her chest is flat. Man, he really knows how to hit a pubescent girl where it hurts.

Ha-ni remembers that taunt when she wakes in the morning, now painfully aware of her flat chest. An idea seizes her, and she stuffs her bra with socks, pleased with the more robust silhouette this produces. When Seung-jo’s gaze takes note of her newly augmented chest, Ha-ni smiles with satisfaction.

At breakfast, Seung-jo tries to teach his brother how to jump rope for an athletic test at school, because Eun-jo’s having trouble. Ha-ni offers advice, but Eun-jo sneers, loath to take suggestions from such a dimwit. Ha-ni, to her credit, doesn’t take Eun-jo’s constant insults to heart and keeps treating him with friendliness.

Demonstrating how to jump, Ha-ni’s skills earn grudging respect from Eun-jo. Seung-jo, always the Debbie Downer of the group, is reluctant to give Ha-ni any props and sits there with his silent grumpyface. I particularly enjoy the Harrumph expression at below left. Totally the face of someone who doesn’t care at all.

Of course, all this jumping has an unintended side effect, which Seung-jo is the first to notice. Something lies crumpled on the ground, and it looks like… a sock?

Ha-ni looks down at her chest, then squeals in protest as she dives to retrieve the fallen sock before anyone else gets to it.

At school later that morning, the kids hang out before class begins, and Ha-ni reaches for her book, not noticing that a photograph flutters down from inside it. It’s the snapshot that Seung-jo’s mother had stuck in there earlier.

And let’s just say that without any context, it’s pretty incriminating: it shows Ha-ni and Seung-jo asleep at the table during one of their tutoring sessions in the previous episode.

As if that weren’t bad enough, there’s no faster way to attract the rest of the class’s attention than to exclaim loudly, “Why are you sleeping with Baek Seung-jo?”

With the photo posted on Mom’s blog, it takes no time at all for the news to spread through the school. Ha-ni tells her friends the truth, while bratty Jang-mi stews in indignation and Joon-gu nurses a broken heart.

As for Seung-jo? Yeah, he’s not happy either.

 
COMMENTS

I think one of this drama’s charms is also its biggest liability, and that’s the lack of a strong plot from episode to episode. As I noted with Episode 1, this episode is also a loose string of events rather than a plot-driven hour of strong conflict, motivation, and escalation.

There are advantages and disadvantages of this approach. In its defense, I understand that this narrative looseness is the entire point. I haven’t followed shojo anime or manga closely, but I have seen and read enough to appreciate what this drama is doing. As in those types of stories, the overall series is carried by small events collected loosely together in a slice-of-life format, rather than relying on a high-concept hook. That works particularly well in anime with the shorter running times that accommodate smaller conflicts. And in this regard, Playful Kiss feels a lot more like God of Study than Boys Before Flowers.

The interstitial moments with the band Bye Bye Sea also reinforce that vibe, and I find those bits charming.

On the downside, an hour is a lot of time to fill without much conflict. I like vignettes, but I firmly believe that it’s possible to string them together in a way that carries momentum and tells an overall story instead of a ten-minute vignette leading into another ten-minute vignette.

There’s nothing wrong with making an episode around an athletic contest, for instance. It’s okay that the story is a small one — but give it more of an emotional throughline. This is what American television shows do so well. If you have an A, B, and C storyline in every episode, don’t start and finish A, then start and finish B, then start and finish C. You start A, B, and C all at the beginning, then you let them play out over the hour, and hopefully if you’re good enough, the end of the episode will resolve all three points in a surprisingly harmonious way.

Three episodes in, I still don’t know what the plot of this overall drama is. “Guy eventually falls for girl” isn’t a plot, it’s a concept. So what’s the story? I think this lack of momentum is the biggest reason that this drama has failed to pick up an audience, because there’s no urgency. Is Episode 10 going to tell the exact same general story as Episode 1, only in slightly different configurations?

Boys Before Flowers may have been a hot mess in the plotting department, but it did manage to create arcs in its vignettes, and connected episode to episode with an overall story. They didn’t always do it WELL, but I felt like they were heading in a clear direction. I sort of feel like Playful Kiss is paddling in the kiddie pool.

On the upside, this lack of direction can be mitigated by cute interactions, good chemistry, and adorable scenarios. In that regard, I am enjoying watching this drama; it’s not all bad stuff. I just think it could have been so much better.

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First of all thanks for the recap JB and Girlfriday.

While reading your recap for episode 3. I have this feeling, it's missing the usual Oomph! I don't know, It's just might be me, but it sort of lacking your fairy dust of personal charm compared to when I read your recap with MGIG and SKK Scandal. I'm sorry for the comparison but I just cannot help it. I agree with some of the comments here, It's not KHJ acting ability to be blame this time (poor guy) but its the cohesiveness of the drama, the pacing of the story is flat and slow in its entirety that watching this in an hour is tiresome. And with so many good dramas airing, I really don't know if they can pull it off.

As I decided before this drama aired that I'll be solely reading your recap and maybe save this drama for later since there are so many good ones airing all at the same time. I think I made a good decision this time.
I'll stick with MGIG for that awesomesauce cuteness and wonderful chemistry and SKK Scandal as the plot and all the characters are surprisingly good!!!!!!

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The drama is actually cute, fluffy and full of laughs. If you are into dramas that are not so plot-heavy but are charmingly funny with its 'moments' then this one you can watch now and saved the others for later.Just a suggestion, just watch the subbed version of episode 3/4 before making a final decision. I think this lackluster recap is not a very good basis. (I mean JB and girlfriday are already doing so much for us, at some point something's gotta give, right?)

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Thanks for the recap, I'm enjoying this series! Maybe it's not as exciting as I thought it would be, but it sure is cute! And the chemistry is enough to keep me intrigued :)

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Don't expect so much because the story is just simple romantic love story of high school students. though the story is simple it makes us smile watching it. isn't it that is always the reason why we watch dramas.. enjoy it , smile or cry, love or hate the characters... if these emotions are present ... then the story is good... the story could be better but making it better will be subjective..see you guys on the next episodes!

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Thanks for recapping. I love your recaps.

I guess it's official...after my YAB craze and now my PK cravings...I'm a certified Fluff Addict! And darn proud of it!

I have already told hubby that I will be onboard for DC of Playful Kiss when it comes out on DVD...*pats poor pocketbook*

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If they are cramming two seasons of the Taiwan version into one season of the Korean, I am glad they have not started on season 3. That is like putting an elephant in a box made for a mouse. I am glad you are recapping it because if I had to watch it, I would be greatly disappointed. Thank you for making it a bit entertaining.

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First off - thanks Javabeans for this recap which I have been eagerly waiting for. It's amazing how you guys try to tirelessly do so much for us - I thought this was not due until next week. You're right, the show does have a lot of disconnects. That however doesn't affect how much I'm enjoying the show. Sometimes, cutesy shows like PK are just great distractions and stress relievers from drama-heavy happenings in my life! Thanks again (although this recap does not exactly live up to my high expectations of JB recaps, it is still much appreciated!)

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thanks javabeans for the update. Usually you write the update a little later so it was a wonderful surprise thank you. Also I am really enjoying this drama and can I say that when I was watching the taiwanese and the japanese version of the drama what I really wanted was what I am watching right now (playful kiss). The korean version.

I know that the plot is somewhat of an issue but I am enjoying the cuteness of the show and its still a little early and I am hoping the korean version will somewhat change some things when the story progresses to college life so the plot becomes more dynamic. Which would really put the icing on the cake. I know some people have been disappointed but what is being shown is the actual plot of the manga. Its the countries that produce them which makes it different. And also hoping that javabeans continues to recap the show even though it lacks plot. Cuteness can be the main reason

heeeeeeee now waiting for gf's recap....

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thank you for the recap. please dont give up on PK yet. i really enjoy the drama.its so cute and sweet

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Ahhh Round 3

I like that this version follows near to the anime rather than ISWAK.

So now the family and the schools knows about them... LOL
I love the reciting love letter part, and I like the content as well
BSJ being the spirit of the forest, refers back to OHN dreams in episode 1
And I predicted that we'll be seeing that particular scene around episode 10.. only that its not a dream!!! Wahahah

OHN continuous effort to hate BSJ are pointless as he somehow, in his cold n meanest way showed a little tiny speck of the prince charming she always dreamed of and I find it hilarious...

p/s : Sometimes over analyzing everything won't get you to capture the real picture.

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Okay, so I was totally disappointed in 1&2.

This week was going to be the deciding week for me and I have to say, I felt a lot better about these episodes..

KHJ is doing better, but don't get me wrong, he's still a terrible actor. But they do have chemistry that is appearing and I enjoyed both 3 and 4.

I like it much better now that it's following the manga at least a little bit more, though some parts are out of place..

I love the actress for Ha Ni. She is really taking the show and carrying it.

While I don't think this version is better than the manga or anime, I'm liking it better than ISWAK & ISWAK 2. Ha Ni is much more close to the manga here. I mean, she's pathetic and stupid, but you can kind of see her heart much more.. and ISWAK dragged a little for me.

So I am hoping for more improvement. So again, I will hang around for another week.

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for the 18796986th time the lead character is carrying the girl! i really can't remember a drama in which this doesn't happen, i think in korea the actors have to attend a special test whether they can carry a girl or not, before starting to act^^

it's a cute drama tough and a cute couple:D

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KHJ carrying the lead girl. wow you must be high. i'd like to have what you're smoking.

KHJ has improved a bit but like the one two posts above me said. He's still terrible. He's still reading his lines and more often than not he's monotonous.

DON'T GIVE ME THE BS that he's playing a cold character. see how LMH JGS and other real actors how they do cold characters. they still have expressions and react to what their co-stars are doing. not just basing off the script and reading what they had in the script. there's more to acting than just learning how to memorize lines...

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I'm pretty sure the comment means literally carrying the girl. As in piggybacking. Which is, yes, in every drama ever (but we fall for it every time!).

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thanks javabeans for highlighting this to the commentor ^-^

you know, everyone has their likes/dislikes/viewpoints, but for me personally, although i have my views about xxx actor or xxx actress, i don't abuse so badly.

i mean, no matter what, there are ALWAYS merits to a person.
for the innocuous viewer like me who started out watching the show just to find out what all the fuss was about, even i can see that KHJ put in much effort into this role.

(btw, it struck me that his cheeks were slightly chubby in epi 1-2, but his face got thinner in ep 3-4, did anyone else notice that?....
i'm sure he lost sleep and weight over this role.)

maybe i'm slightly older now *cough*, so i actually quite like his protrayal of this young boy:
so smart but still relatively emotionally stunted - he can't tell at this stage what he is really feeling coz he's used to using his head but not his heart.

there were quite many moments while watching the show that i aww-ed over his expressions: sometimes being quite mean, sometimes with that fake bravado that teenage boys have in front of girls, but sometimes suddenly with a quick flash of little-boy-lost across his face.

it reminds me of my brother when he was younger during that time of high school days, and i wonder if my son will turn out this way too (although if he had seung jo's exam-acing abilities, i say, bring it on!! haha ^^)

so, my take is,
enjoy the show (and if you don't like/enjoy it, watch something else, life's too short),
and why post not-so-nice comments about actors out there who are trying their best.

everyone deserves some love, if you tried your best at something, even if it doesn't turn out excellently in the end, but everybody else just bashes all your efforts and keeps throwing stones, it's definitely not a nice feeling and extremely demoralizing.

cheers~

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Just wanted to say that I completely agree with and appreciate your comment, not just about KHJ's acting, which any objective viewer could see has actually gotten pretty good, but also about being considerate of our words, even though we're all anonymous. Thanks for the kind and sensible words.

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thanks for this comment. i think i couldn't make myself clear, of course i meant piggybacking. and i agree with you, this is cute even for the millionth time:D

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@ lol@KHJfans

i'm not high, but you may have some problem with understanding what you read.
of course i meant literally carrying, piggybacking or whatever. i don't find both KHJ and the lead actress as masters of acting, they are both in the beginning of their career and have lot of things to learn.
but this is also not a kim ki duk movie, it's just a drama you know^^
for your knowledge i'm not a KHJ fan, just another cute actor for me.

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Do you guys remember the Korean teen dramas series from the 90s and early 2000s (School, Sharp, Adults don't know, etc)? Each episode was one string of events in the teens' lives, and there was still continuity between the episodes. They were surprisingly well-written and any love story between the characters was very quiet but charming. Many of them were extremely popular among teens, and reached respectably high ratings. PK reminds me of those dramas, but masked as a prime time drama. I think if PK had been formated as a resurrection of those teen dramas from the past, it would have done much better.

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Dunno why, but I enjoy reading the recap more than watching the actual show.

Thanks a lot!!

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This drama is merely a filler while I impatiently wait on Weds, Thurs and Fri and Sat and Sun for SKKS... I don't want to be those "cruel netizens" and "demanders" (HA! I know it's not a real word, but it works...HAHA!), but there is this little, super micro, tiny part of me that wish you and girlfriday would just drop recapping this drama and switch to SKKS (yes, I screamed on top of my lungs when I found out there will be guest recappers working on it). I think my addiction to SKKS is like...my addiction to your blog. If I don't get a dose of it everyday, I'd go insane!

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Thanks Javabeans for the wonderful recap. I am enjoying this drama so much because it is light, so many feel good and funny moments and it takes me down to memory lane... when I was in high school and having this huge crush on someone. I am 31 but everytime I see Ha Ni and her expression...I feel like am back to 16...lol.

I simply love the Mom...she is supermom and soo pretty. With what is all happening in the world and reading depressing news...this drama is good to watch. Always have a grin on my face watching this...

Thanks again....

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That's how I feel too. I smiled, giggled, laughed out loud. There is no high drama, but the little moments, I am enjoying them.

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Although I was introduced to this drama because KHJ acts in it, I find my eyes following Hani in every episode.. so much so that I have to rewind to catch what Seung Jo is doing..haha. I've watched the J&TW version and Kotoko/Xiang Qin always manage to annoy me at least 3 times in one episode. They're too clingy, retardedly played.. I dunno how else to describe it, just that at the end of the day they still couldn't convince me that Irie/Zhi Shu's love for them is true. Maybe because the low self-esteem thingy was played excessively well (emphasis on 'excessive').

So, because I mostly enjoy a drama when the female lead is as strong or stronger than the male lead, I couldn't enjoy the previous versions much. One other thing, usually the moment the girl falls in love with the boy, she just gets weaker inexplicably.. case in point: Jan Di in BOF (since people keep comparing PK to BOF here and there for whatever reason unknown to me), but Oh Hani just gets more and more determined to succeed. That's what attracts me to Kotoko in the anime too.

Am completely mesmerized by Seung Jo's ebilness, maybe becoz it's rare that a fan gets to see KHJ displaying all sorts of undesirably almost-violent temperament (e.g. all the literally-throwing-stuff-at-Hani moves he did). He's so placid and even-tempered in public appearances. I kept shouting.. "Seung Jo! You're so mean!!!" while LOL-ing helplessly at Hani's ability to spring back an attack. I dunno which one of them is more masochistic.. :P

About the plodding plot.. if the k-version follows the storyline marker of the anime.. wait until they get pass high school (I dunno who's the idiot in Group 8 who promoted this as a school romance drama). I'm hoping to feel the emotional roller-coaster.. "I want to hit you with a brick, you ebil meanie..but I can't coz you're goddem perfect!" ..moments I felt when watching the anime. I just hope the writers work harder at creating momentum while not tossing the original completely out of the door.

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Totaaly agree with you! I actually enjoyed the drama so far, all because of Oh Ha Ni, she's pathetic & dumb, yes! But she's lovable & cute & cannot really dislike her character! This drama actually follows the j-anime version (which I enjoyed compared to other versions). KHJ's acting got better IMHO, though there's still space to improve. But I like their chemistry so far. The story is enjoyable!

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I think you're totally right about why SeungJo is mesmerizing (besides being eye candy). It's because the character is so not KHJ! Even when the teasers first came out, all the fans said, "I like it when he yells, 'YAH OH HANI!'" lol. It's just so different from the Leader we know, so it's a lot of fun to see him like that, and it also shows how hard he works and how much he's improved that he's believably frustrated, annoyed, or angry. I honestly think KHJ is doing a really good job as BSJ!
I also agree that JSM is delightful and makes Hani really endearing. Actually the whole cast is so charming! The cast, the music, and the atmosphere are all cute enough, and the situations are funny enough, to make me like Playful Kiss despite its simplistic plot, so I'll continue watching! ^_^

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I'm surprised at myself, I had no expectations and I was not impressed by the first episode, but I'm really enjoying PK!

I'm wondering if this slice-of-life quality lacks any Big Drama or major plot is the reason the makers of ISWAK made Xiang Qin so incredibly dumb and bad at everything, I think more so than the original character. (Haven't read the manga, but I've seen the jdrama and anime). It was really a miracle for them to fall in love, they were that far apart in intelligence and capability. And thus you have your conflict.

Ironically, I like Ha Ni as a character more than her previous two incarnations, but the very attributes that make her more likable also mean that there is less to overcome between the two leads and thus a more boring story.

For me, what PK does best is capture those adolescent moments of awkwardness and embarrassment better than anything I've watched in a long time. The way he teases her about her flat chest; the bra-stuffing that fell out; the way they notice each other while trying so hard to, etc. It's so nice to see teenage characters actually acting like teenagers.

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It always bothers me when people hate Kotoko and say she doesn't "grow" as a character. I think this version DOES do Kotoko more justice than the others. Because honestly she is dumb and does not have much self-respect (even though she tries to/that grows a little), but her strengths do come out. Even though she fails time and time again, she never really gives up and I find that to be a strength. She puts others before herself and while sometimes that causes people to take advantage of her, it also shows kindness. Her stubbornness is admirable too. Especially when she goes through her nurse phase.

Again, I'm not sure what timeline they are going to follow since the manga is so long.. but I would hope that they go past high school for a while at least.. because Kotoko doesn't really grow until past that.

The reason I love this manga so much is because of the chemistry between them. Yes, she's not smart, but she's got a lot of heart. He's selfish and not particularly nice, but he's got brains. They both have what the other lacks and it compliments each other. I honestly think that it's not so much that Kotoko wears him out, but rather than HE learns from HER just as much as she learns from him. They don't show that as much in the dramas. But in the manga.. her kindness and giving spirit and love toward him (she accepts his grumpiness and bad parts and still loves him despite his faults) soften him.. not because it's forced on him, but simply because he knows that no matter what, she's going to be there for him.

I think she kind of undermines everything he's thought is supposed to be valuable in life - brains, intelligence, being #1, pride, etc. And he does learn from that.

Anyway.. my favorite parts are the kisses (in the manga) because the first one (which is why it get's it's name "Playful Kiss"), he is teasing her, but at the same time, there is a lot of emotion under that. And then at the end, it kind of shows that he is succumbing to the fact that he DOES need human interaction and that he DOES need to follow his heart sometimes instead of his head.. etc.

Yeah, the manga does a much better job at showing this dynamic. I haven't seen that done very well in any of the dramas so far. If this one achieves it, I will be so happy.. :)

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I also think the problem with this drama is continuity. It sort of plays STACCATO style (short and detached) rather than LEGATO (smooth and connected). There are reasons I'm still watching it though:

1. MGIAG was not yet completely subbed in Viikii but Playful Kiss was
2. Oh Ha-ni and Seung-jo's mom are so cute
3. The visuals are really great
4. In fairness to KHJ, he's really trying with his expressions

You know, in BOF or in any other kdramas set in a high school environment, as a viewer I never felt like those shows were treating me like a grade schooler or worse a kindergartener. When watching Playful Kiss, I really feel like the show is treating me like a kid. And I never felt that when I was watching the Taiwanese version.

Re Goong similarities: And aside from the teddy bears at the end, I noticed that Ha ni's 2 friends are cut like Chae Kyung's friends as well.

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Cant get enough of bye bye sea.. Love them!! Enjoying PK a lot.. Chemistry is definitely building between Seung-jo and Oh Hani.. Excited for next week!!

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After too many heavy, angst, dramatic story lines, i find this one quite entertaining and fun to watch.

I don't know why some of you criticizing the male lead, Seung Jo. I think he did a very good job as a cold, indifferent, with inner conflict individual. Which is not an easy character to portray. I haven't watched any of his works before, but I think he did a better job than his two peers in other two versions.

Hani is absolutely adorable in her role. She's not smart, but she has strong and sweet personality. The girl is perfect for her character, as well as the boy. All other casts are very interseting and cute.

This is my first time visiting your blog. Very interesting.
Thanks for the recap

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the plot on the manga is rly just "guy eventually falls for girl"

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Oooo! You're early with the recaps. Thanks!

I'm so falling in love with this cute drama. OHN is just too adorable for words...and I think...I'm totally falling for BSJ.

PK...keep the cuteness factor coming. It soothes my weary soul right now.

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So they are going to go all the way until marriage? No wonder it was so fast past. I wonder who will play Christine, the white girl in the drama who falls in love with Joon Gu. I think then they will follow the Japanese anime version of the manga then.

If I remember correctly, one of the reasons why the Taiwanese version was so successful was not only because of its actors but because the women who wrote the manga worked personally with the cast and director up until she died.

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The race scene where Ha Ni fails to pass the baton was totally orchestrated by Seung-Jo! He is completely aware of her feelings for him and the power he wields over her. So, in order to win he manipulated her by playing the role of the charming prince, holding out his hand oh so invitingly and smiling oh so angelically. And off course poor Ha Ni fell for it and melted into a pile of goo.(can't say I blame her ;)

He totally enjoys the power he has over her. He is such a bra, and i find him oddly endearing :)

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*face palm* first guilty panties and now a bra! guy just can't catch a break. I meant brat. lol.

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That's what I thought too! He is after all a smart-aleck! In the later part of the episode, when SJ was smiling and holding his hand to his heart, i kind of interpreted that as him being happy that they won AND mainly that he was relieved because OHN still has feelings for him - not JG.

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Yeah.. I totally think he does it purposely. Hani doesn't lose concentration without a reason.. SJ's hand was really near JG and his eyes are trained in her direction too, not on his teammate. Tease.. LOL.

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I'm actually kind-of loving this drama, as sort of mild cotton candy that I nibble when I want fluffy cuteness in my day. The episodes are short and sweet and I don't feel weighed down after finishing one. It sort of reminds me of Oh! My Lady in that respect, as in nothing that will really make an impact on me, but something that I enjoy watching and that makes me happier after each episode.

Except, and I'll say the same thing about ISWAK too, I am so in love with the second male lead. Who wants the cold snotty jerk when you have a madly-in-love puppy following you around? So my heart breaks for him every episode... but I'm like that with virtually every second male lead. The rejected third party fetish. Sadface.

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just finished ep 4 ( holy crap it was awesome) this drama is really cute. girl is freaking cute and khj well he looks so hot when he gets angry His acting has surprised me it was good. chemistry between them is what makes me want to watch it more.

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of course this drama is very light and heartwarming
i love how it makes me smile watching the family, and of course the couple.....every short story in each eps, makes it less draggy and light.

People say it's FLAT....definetely, because they all love how in K-Dramas there is a dramatic things happen or very evil character (Hye in noona in MGIAG). Where in PK drama, there is no very evil character.

It's true that the major focus in the story of the manga, is about a guy falling for a girl but the process and how it's done makes it so famous.

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hey did anyone else notice that at th end of the photo the name of the mom's blog appears and its called blog.jjojjomam.com.....correct me if i'm wrong but i think the mom coined up after the name ends of both her sone....hw cute is that??....lol...i love hw all the side characters are soooo adorable!!

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ahahaha, wow, i didn't realise that! that is so cute!! yes, i really like the family dynamic in this drama too, just mild and heartwarming =)

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i agree that in this episode is lacking in something but episode 4 is AWESOME, waiting for Jb to recap epi 4~

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As much as I adore this Korean version, there is a lot of flaw with writing. If we didn't already know the plot of the story, we may have pulled away already. I plan to continue to finish this series since I love both of the leads but I really hope that the writers wake up and make it more interesting.

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im a fan but i do hope that this drama can do a lot/bit better than this. i really hope this drama can make my mind go crazy on every single line i read. come on, playful kiss..show me better!!! hahahahah. im a bit disappointed though. i'll cross my finger for the better story line next week.

thank for the recap! ;D

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is someone other than haru2 subbing this? they still haven't got out episode 1 and i hate watching shows in 7-12 parts.
does anyone know who's subbing s. scandal as well?

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For SSK Scandal, GOE-SS (God of the East Subbing Squad) are the one doing the sub. 1 and 2 are out.

here's the link:
http://community.livejournal.com/goe_ss/

Hope its okey for JB/Girlfriday is I post the link here.

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you can check out viiki! the goddesses there in the PK team sub so fast, bless them =)

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"dumb snobs...And poor jackasses"

LOL

You have a point. I think I'm guilty of both, definitely the latter. ^^

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umm...what are the ratings for episode 3 and 4??

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3.5% and 3.4%.

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I am watching the taiwanese version of this..... I am happy that the korean version is a little bit different. I feel that the lead has more chemistry on screen together and Hani is not portrayed like a love sick girl like in It started with a kiss......

good and I hope it will be better.

Thanks JB.

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So far the drama has been a good dessert from MGIAG & Sungkyunkwan.
I'm loving Oh Hani, she's not as irritatingly stupid like Ariel Lin's character.

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that's exactly the same issue i have with the show! it's enjoyable but it relies on meandering vignettes. that's why sungkyunwan scandal is so much more engaging - the plot is a bit more complex and it has yoo ah in

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This drama is very light, and sweet. It's very much like J-drama with a touch of K-drama; slow but somehow very real. If you expect all the dramatic and heart wrenking details, then definitely, this is not for you.

It's lovely and beautiful in its own way. Both lead characters are really good in their roles. I love how the feeling of the boy for the girl is slowly building up. Their chemistry is defitely showing.
I like it very much, very cute drama.

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Okay I love ISWAK and it's one of my fave T-Dramas but I must say I am enjoying this drama immensely and I am happy to be proven wrong.

The major reason is that I actually like the Korean version's interpretation of the lead girl. Sure she may not be academically gifted but she can actually excel if she tries. She's got some wits of her own as oppose to Xiang Qin's clumsy bumbling character. ISWAK took great lengths in showing how out of this world stupid the female lead character is and Ariel Lin did a great job portraying her. However, I am liking Oh Ha Ni more than Xiang Qin. She is literally your average ordinary girl and totally relatable not some cartoony, exaggerated version.

I fell in love with the chemistry between Joe Cheng and Ariel in ISWAK (it's good because otherwise I don't find Xiang Qin's gazillion stupid moments endearing), but for this one, I must say I am falling in love with Oh Ha Ni. I can actually see (and believe) how Seung Jo can fall for her too.

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I personally like the way Ariel Lin portrayed the character better because she is supposed to be "SLOW" and very "STUBBORN" she's very tenacious and doesn't give up easily...so we, the audience cringed of her stupidity and at times lack of pride in anything related to the genius she loves. Therefore, I personally find it more amazing that such a cold hearted genius guy could fall in love with her. Talk about APPOSITE ATTRACTS! Whereas in the Kdrama, Hani is more of a regular girl and isn't that unique...and SJ isn't such a cold hearted person. TW follow the manga closely and we all sighed and said "About damn time!" when Joe Cheng finally broke down his wall and told Ariel she couldn't love anybody but him...because she's been loving him all these time. He still did not admit his feelings for her...but that was the closest he got to telling her he loves her!
So, while I enjoy watching Kdrama PK..., it's definitely not in the same league as ISWK.

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Humming ost '...say that you love me ,say that you care...' ^_^

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I expected to hate PK, since I hated ISWAK with a virulence i have never before experienced. ISWAK's meandering, dead end plots, glacier like pace and Ariel Llin's character made me want to gouge out my eyes with a spoon. She was just soooo annoying.

But strangely enough I adore PK and Ha NI, and while I was utterly disdainful of KJH before, now I adore him too. How strange.

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i agree with others that PK definitely has that J-drama feel..free-flowing, meandering, a string of vignettes. i'm a certified K-drama addict and only lately have a started watching J-dramas and i must say that i'm actually starting to love the overall tone of the latter.

in most of the J-dramas i saw, there's no overtly evil 2nd lead girl, no manipulative mother-in-law, no larger-than-life male heir to a mega-corporation, etc. , the main narrative is something that could easily happen in real life. and maybe because my life is already stressful enough as it is, i find myself more drawn to these type of narratives, which is why i am really enjoying PK so far. its light and pretty and most of all, its exactly what i need right now.

(of course, hana yori dango is an exception to all of the above but i loves me some oguri shun and matsujun, so its all good.. :P).

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Maybe PK will start a trend in K-drama.. it'll open people's eyes that over-the-top melodrama and greatly evil characters are not that necessary a recipe for a likable drama. I can only hope.. :P

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Awesome recap, JB. My favourite moment of the drama? When they accuse Class 7's Oh Ha Ni of possibly cheating (since she can't have gotten those test results through hard work alone) and her teacher goes, "But...who would she copy from in my class?" AND EVERYONE IS LIKE ER YES GOOD POINT! That just killed me.

I actually find PK refreshing for a kdrama in the sense that it's not all high stress watching this series. I get stressed out watching MGIaG and SS sometimes, as much as I love them, so PK is a bit of a welcome breather. I'm glad you haven't given up recapping this despite the low ratings! Ep 4 gets better, and I have hope that this drama will continue improving as it goes along.

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i love this drama

love the hate-love moment between Hani and Seung Jo

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*Playful Kiss*

By now most of the “Old Timers” around this place know the “Wrath Of Amg1” and people know that I can be a very “unreasonable person” with a bad attitude!!!

Having said that:
I will like to remind all the “people” in this the “Best-est” blog around, that there is “Unwritten Rules” concerning the way “we post our comments”.

1- No Spoilers please!

OT is reserved for that (give ample warning, before and after please)!

2- Your comments need to reflect as much as possible the “topic” at hand (Recap, artist news. New drama, etc, etc,)!

It is fine if one of the other dramas currently playing “tickles your fancy”, I find it tedious with all the unrelated comparisons ( fox girlfriend, etc, etc, etc), if you like them so much please post your comments there , otherwise it just crowds this “Recap Thread”.
.
By the way I spend the last 30 minutes reading “every single post” and I am very disappointed, because @ 75% of all the comments have to do with how “bad” the show is “compere”
with the “TW and J” version, (Do I have to read another 1000 more comments saying the same thing, for the rest of the recaps?)

3- Refrain from personal attacks as much as possible!

If some of you do not like the show, the ones we do are not “Idiots” or lack “good taste”, we just happen to like this drama, with no regards to the other versions! Be Polite!

4- *Stop asking when the next Recap will come out*

We all by now should know that the work that the people do in regards of “recapping” past and current dramas is a “Major Labor Of Love”, it does discourage the people who are doing the work when people “keep, and keep, and keep, and keep, asking when the next recap will be ready”, I can assured most of you that when the time is ready they will be posted, so please why not post a “Word of encouragement” or a word of thanks for their hard work instead, they will be much appreciated!

Last but not least. This is the “Recap for episode #3”, let us stay focus and discuss this episode accordingly!!!!!

Thank you all, yours truly Amg1!!!!!!

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Who are you.. the comment police?

-eyeroll-

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so glad that this show is getting better both in plot and acting. At first i was worry if this show is as bad as rating is but after seeing it I am glad that i gave it a try. I actually like this version more than tw one mainly because of the cute actress. Hope it will continue to be good!

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i agree with you in that the writing is lacking. So for all those people who complained about KHJ... it's not him. I think he's actually improving. It's just the writing that really makes this drama slow. It doesn't have any... I don't know how to describe it but it just doesn't have it. It doesn't make you want to keep watching or want to continue to watch it. I realized that after watching episode 3. The drama just keeps going but what is it that we're watching? They need to give us something more than just Hani's daydreams and acting silly all the time. And I dislike the fact that they are using the teddy bears again. That is Goong's trademark bear scenes so when I see that again I just feel like they're trying too hard to recreate that again. They need to try something new instead of recreating Goong and BOF.

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I remember laughing out loud the first time I saw Kim Hyun Joong run in Boys Over Flowers. This episode, with all the running... I was crying with laughter. Do you think they make him run on purpose? Will there be more running?? :-P

I have to say, I thought I was going to hate this series after the 1st episode, but it's actually been entertaining, if not great. The lead actress's overacting balances out the lead actor's underacting. Characters that annoyed me in the overwrought first episode -- Seung-jo's mom, Duckie -- I actually find super endearing. And Eun-jo just kills me with his contempt. I'm dropping I Am Legend for this show.

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The thing about PK is that it's more character-driven rather than plot-driven which is what most dramas have. I think i like how it is more character-driven as it will focus more on the emotions of a character and it also depicts real life situations. As for plot-driven, it will tend to make a story more complicated. If PK were to be more plot-driven, then I dont see the point of adapting the manga because that's just how the manga is. In the manga, there's no such thing as acomplicated plot(e.g secrets, murders, evil intentions, blah blah blah etc.), it's more of a slice-of-life. Something of which normal everyday people could relate to. ^^

Just my opinion. =] So far i'm enjoying PK. After all those over dramatical plot dramas i've watched, PK has the ability to make me smile and giggle. haha

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i guess most people especially korean viewers wants angst, angst, angst in their dramas. which is why PK is rather unpopular.

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Exactly. Characters drive this story, not the plot (or the lack thereof). It appears slow, because plot-wise, there isn't anything really big here-- just two people meeting each other, making choices, falling in love, growing up. So for people who are looking for makjang twists and turns, a weepy melodrama, or trendy storytelling, this might not be your cup of tea.

But for those (like us) who enjoy it for its simplicity and the warm feelings it evoke, hang on tight because the following episodes/arcs definitely won't disappoint.

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Exactly the word i'm looking for. Angst! the heart pounding catch your breath-what's going to happen next feeling. Some people can do without it but like i said, you kinda question what is it that you're watching after awhile. but I actually enjoy girlfriday's recaps. she views it a whole different way than i did. she gives it more angst. lol. however i will keep watching PK cause even tho the plot may be lacking i think it's just building up to something good. KHJ's character is certainly improving.

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not a big fan of this story.the plot is weak....the act is dull....yeah!just watch it for the leisure time.it is not necessary to watch each week..
sorry to other pk fans...just an opinion

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