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Boys becoming men overnight: the new drama trend

Huh. There’s a new fantasy-romance drama on the horizon, and it’s about a teenage boy who suddenly turns into a 30-year-old adult—and it’s NOT Big, the drama that’s courting Gong Yoo and Lee Min-jung and written by the Hong sisters that’s also about a teenager turning into an adult overnight.

This one is titled I Love Lee Tae-ri (not to be mistaken for I Love Italy, as I initially read it) and stars Super Junior’s Kim Ki-bum (also of Tree With Deep Roots). He’ll play the main character Geum Eun-dong (really? You named your child Gold Silver-Bronze?) who starts out the drama as a 14-year-old middle school student. He goes to an idol concert, encounters “an unexpected situation” and suddenly turns into a 30-year-old man.

Eun-dong then becomes the secretary to the haughty chaebol heiress Lee Tae-ri, played by Park Ye-jin (Mr. Idol, My Princess), and romance ensues. It’s like Mr. Big Protects the Boss.

I’m not sure I buy this couple, and it’s not only about their age gap (which, if online profiles are to be believed, is only six years). It’s also their images and auras, since Park often comes across much older and worldly, while Kim Ki-bum still seems like he’s growing out of his puppy-dog adolescence. There’s just something a little off about it, even though on paper there’s no reason it can’t work—but I’m thinking back to Yoon Shi-yoon and Han Go-eun of Me Too, Flower, which had a similar off-vibe to it. I’m sort of cringing in anticipation of their chemistry; I’m hoping they’ll have some, but not convinced it’ll be there.

But that aside: What is with the constant trend-following? Recall a couple years ago when we had the Great Sports Drama Crush of 2009 (none of which managed to make a splash), and then the influx of medical dramas, and now the current clusterfuck of time-travel fusion sageuks. Is overnight aging the new trend? ‘Cause as much as I love the Tom Hanks version of Big, I’m not sure we want to see a bunch of dramas just doing that, over and over.

In any case, I Love Lee Tae-ri will be a tvN drama that follows the newly premiered Marriage Plot, and is aiming for a May release.

Via Star News

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COOL!!

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Park Ye Jin is back! :D The sweet and savage lady! I missed her so much on small screen.

But like you said, I'm not liking this couple that much, since Ki Bum looks really young. And the summary sounds a little bit creepy, with a 14 year old becoming 30.

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Park Ye Jin...I MISS YOU TOO !!!

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Same here. I missed Park Ye-jin. But we could do with an older actor. I want Lee Chun hee romancing her (I can't have it in reality so at least in drama-land.) ;)

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Hahaha, seriously? I had to check the date to make sure it wasn't still April Fools' Day - I will laugh so hard if this is indeed the next big thing. Time travelling I could understand, what with the recent time travel hits in China, but accelerated growing up? Well, I guess there'll be shenanigans galore.

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I'm not sure what it is (hair? face? demeanor?) but Park Ye-jin has always looked like she's in her mid to late 40's to me. She looks much older than every actor she's been paired up with. I don't get it! (maybe it's just me?) LOL

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No it is not just U.

KiBum and Park Ye Jin O__o

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No, it's not just you. I noticed the same thing when I saw her in "My Princess."

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I noticed it when I saw her in what happened in bali. I wouldn't say she looks like she's in her 40s though, more like in her late 30s.

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I always thought she was much older than Hyori when I first saw her in Family Outing, so I was super surprised when Yejin called Hyori unni!! I just CANNOT believe there's only a 6 year difference between Kim Kibum and Park Yejin!!

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I think it's actually 7 years difference. Ki bum is 24 and Park Ye jin 31 (American age). But, I agree Ye-jin still looks older than celebrities of her age.

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no believe me you are not alone, this grosses me out....look like mom and son...she looks way too old and he looks way too young...
does not work for me, give me shivers *ugh...ones*
I guess the casting ppl didn't do a good job.
I think I will give it a skip (believe me I watch nearly every drama, but this noona (mom in this case) thingie really gives me indigestion...

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I hope there's no love line between the two leads since he is technically still a 14 year old mentally. Also, this noona trend was okay when they did it a few times but now, it's becoming the norm rather than the exception to the norm and I'm not feeling it.

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Clearly, it has become a norm.
And not only in Korea. But I don't mind, when it's well done, and not played *only* to please the noonas all around the world.

and now that you're putting it that way, I don't think I'd ship an age-gap love with one being (technically but still) 14 y/o.
It just sounds wrong in so many ways...

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I watched "Big' and was disturbed by the romance between a child and a woman. I thought it was wrong. This noona love thing is way overdone and if they make him 14, then it's crossing the line.

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i think it started more of a "necessity" coz for a while "younger" leading men were more famous And, more importantly, available coz the Men were mostly in the army (e.g. jo in sung, lee jun ki, lee dong wook) while the more famous and dependable actresses were "older". think lee min ho & son ye jin when jo in sung etc weren't available yet. or they were making movies instead of dramas. so yeah i think there's a carry-over of that "trend", if you would call it that, to the present.

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well they better think of some thing better as this noona thing is getting a stale and stinky.

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Ha six years. This pairing seems so off! She looks like she'll eat him up. Hmm, will this be like Big or 13 going on 30? Will there eventually be a 17 Again?

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ROFL I laugh my head off and love it whenever javabeans uses the word 'clusterfuck' ^.^

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At last, he's got the lead role. o/

Although I'm not too keen on chemistry with Park Ye Jin either. She did surprise me with her cutesy and aegyo behavior on a RM episode. Who knows? =)

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I don't feel comfortable with that premise of minor boy stuck in a grown up body. Give me time travelling, give me noona love where both are legal age, give me male / female body shifting between adults. But this... Not for me.

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Me neither. It's barely even funny, to have a grown woman somehow infatuated with the body holding a little boy (as you can tell, I was not a fan of Big). Yes, the body is the right age, but it has a similar vibe for me as if someone is taking advantage of someone with a mental disability... the brain, at 8 or 14 or even 16-17, is just not capable of supporting a real relationship.

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Yes, and i keep imagining the woman after "doing it" learning the truth. For me it's not erotic or funny. It's plainly scary. Like a guy who realizes in the morning he picked a minor at the club. Cold sweat. You can't even check the ID. Sorry guys, but we are in unhealthy territory. Give me flower boys with driving license please.

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Well put!

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I wholeheartedly agree.
I'm still really young, and I don't understand the infatuation girls have with the idea of dating a man while they are still minors (even if they are a couple of months from becoming a legal adult). Even if you have physically matured doesn't mean you have mentally.

I sincerely hope this isn't the new trend.

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Oh that's totally true. Technically this would be a romance between a 30 yr old and a 14 yr old. Yeah, the creators didn't think that out much...

The only way this would be OK now is if they make it one-sided. As in the male's side. Hmm...

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Can't you get a driving license at 16 in the US?

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Yeah you can, lol.

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I'm not per se uncomfortable with it, it would depend on the storyline and exact details I suppose.

But, hmm, although I'm happy to see Kim Bum cast in a lead role, not sure I can buy him as either a 14 or a 30 year old! I think he'll be a too grown-up looking 14-year old or a too youthful 30 year-old!

These noona-love premises are getting old too. Not because they shouldn't exist, but it only seems to be noona-love stories, never oppa-love ones (and never with such gaps as the noona-love ones).

And closer-aged stories (love or not) seem to have gone out of style pretty much?

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But it's not Kim Bum it's Kim KI-Bum who is super young in the looks department.

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Oops... Confusing them! (Darn Korean names! I always feel like they shuffle the same syllables around and that makes them so HARD to remember.)

But yeah, from that picture, the 14-30 stretch is just gonna be hard to buy...

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NO! I'd just pledged allegiance to tvN because they've been doing such great things lately, but... I don't care if the premise looks good or bad, it's Park Ye-Jin makes me worry about this drama because she's one of those actresses who really doesn't appeal to me in the least. I'll try it out of loyalty to the station, but I don't promise to finish it.

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Have you seen her works (except for My Princess)? She's actually a really good actress. Give her a try!

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I second that, but I won't even give it a try..waste of time. I feel sorry for the actor thou

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Not a trend I can get on board with. 'Big' only worked because it was Tom 'friggin' Hanks, the most loved entertainer in the US. The story itself is actually a bit pervy.
I was willing to accept the Gong Yoo drama because I have a desperate need to see him on screen again. This I can't really accept, especially if the transformation happens at an idol concert, lol.

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Is it wrong of me that I immediately thought the 'unexpected situation' that 'suddenly turns him into a man' is that he...ah....hooks up with someone older?

I immediately dismissed it - this IS KDrama, after all - but tell me I'm not the only one who thought it, at least.

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I agree. For Big, it worked because of Tom Hanks and I knew there wouldn't be a "so they married and lived happily ever after" sort of ending. And its selling point wasn't the love story, but one of personal growth. For the Hong sisters/Gong Yoo drama, they upped his age to 18. For this drama, the kid is going to be mentally 14. I don't find many boys likable at that awkward age, even when I was 14 and young enough not to know better. And because this is a kdrama, they're really going to push the love story and the angst.

The idol concert part is really lol!

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I saw this and heaved a big old sigh. Next they'll be a time traveling 10 year old Crown Princess who escapes a murder plot and turns into a 20 year old, goes to the future, and disguises herself as a boy to join an idol group, but the leader of the group is the doppleganger of the guy who tried to kill her, EXCEPT WAIT NO HE'S NOT IT'S THE ACTUAL GUY WHO ALSO TIME TRAVELED but then they fall in love, the end.

That's all we're doing at this point, pulling ideas out of a hat, right? <.<

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ohhhhh . . . you've just given the drama industry their next big trend! hahahahaha

At this point, I can't exactly see their compatibility either. Perhaps, with their hard work and a load of luck, they'll be able to pull it off.

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Geneva, where is the vampire?

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The Vampire trend hasn't hit k dramaland yet... it's due umm... ^checks crystal ball^ this winter. Yikes... as long as they are not sparkly!!

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I'm actually (pleasantly) surprised that the vampire trend hasn't caught on in kdrama. Only ones I know of so far are Vampire Prosecutor and Vampire Idol, and neither of those sparkle.

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There was also Hello Franceska and I think there's yet another, but name escapes me. Or might be CDrama, TDrama, etc.

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And the Cancer? And the Incest?
True, these are old trends but isn't vintage trendy?

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Now there's two words I would NEVER have put together but now make perfect sense:
Vintage Incest
although to be truthful it was usually
Vintage Fauxcest
(Thank gooodness!)

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One word: Ew.
And yet, it sounds like a knockoff brand name...

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Lolll. Don't forget that the boy is also secretly a chaebol heir with family issues and a jerk with a heart of gold. Or he also moonlights as a cold genius brain surgeon.

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Doogie Howser, Chaebol MD!

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Atleast her hair is better than in My Princess....

I know I said this on another post, but if the character is 30 why don't they just get a 30 year old to play the role. (Or 30ish, or atleast someone who can pass, i am willing to be reasonable)....don't get it.

Write dramas for 24 year olds if that is all you want to cast.

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Not liking this trend of teenage boys waking up in a 30 year old bodies, it's slightly creepy. I also feel like the romance is killed from the get go since you know that it's a 14 year old boy (albeit in a 30 year old body) romancing a woman, the mind is still of a hormonal teenager which is just weird and slightly sad for the female lead. I'm already left wondering how their romance will end if the boy returns to his teenage self. Will she wait for him to grow up and legally be able to date her? Or will the romance just end??

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WOw Kim Ki bum finally makes his way back to the world. THough i don't like Park. THey look more like brother and sister. Even though i'm kkb fan, i have to say that his is not much to talk about.

Either of them are strong actors. So i can't see any good things coming out of this.

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Hmm I'm not so convinced of this pair....not a big fan of YeJin's acting and Kim Ki Bum...is well - where has he been for the past few years? I'd like to see him have some substance in secondary roles before pushing him to lead role....*shrug...

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What an odd pairing....
I love Yejin, but she indeed looks older than her real age, I know that they're really only six years apart, but this just unbelievable.

I don't know, I'm anticipating Big, with Gong Yoo and Lee Minjung ( and hopefully Suzy! ), I think I only need one boy turns to man once a year, so I'll pass this.

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...is he going to be OLDER but YOUNGER than her?? Imagine if that was the case LOL. Magic, you silly thing you.

Imagine your fairy god-mother going "Yeah, I had some limitations so I had to knock off like 5 years, but I mean...maybe she likes younger guys. Go for it!"

But it's from tvN??? I trust them with making wacky things work out.

I'm still looking out for confirmation news on BIG too O: I saw a new ad with Lee Min Jung & Gong Yoo and was all googly-eyed and hopeful.

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Well this:
"a teenage boy who suddenly turns into a 30-year-old adult"

isn't fantasy. It is the fate of all men.

Suddenly, they're supposed to be a 30 (40,50) year old adult when, in actuality, they have never progressed past being a teenage boy.

Don't beleive me? Just say "Boobs" in a room of men and watch the heads spin! LOL!

(Apologies to RthRH and John, of course)

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lol so true!

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Boobs?
Where?? *turns head left and right*

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It's always such a treat to see Ricky mid-week!

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:D

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Check to see whether the are vibrating, Ricky.

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HAHAHAHA
Oh, men. They have a long way to go, compared to us.

"Choco abs"
Where?? *turns head left and right*

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Really? Where?
*turns head 180 degrees just in case I miss anything!*

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*hands ointment and collar*
No pain, no gain!

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ABS HERE I COMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
* clambers over 180 degree head-turning Jomo,whips out high-powered binoculars*

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*waves at himonogirl* :-)

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Kyaaaah!
*waves back*

I just finished checking some papers and will head straight to bed too.
See, this blog is worse than a 24/7, the traffic never stops ^^

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You're up late... but I'm up later (unless you are still up BUT I AM REALLY NOW GOING TO BED).

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Am I the only one who thought the photo UP THERE of PYJ
was because the story was about a teenage boy who suddenly turns into a 30-year-old WOMAN and would be played by the male actor in drag?

NOW THAT, I would watch.
OMG, somebody in the world make this story. It would be so wrong on so many levels.

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OMG I would so watch that!

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Seriously? o_O

Park Ye Jin has not sat well with me all the while and now playing the lead opposite a guy who looks young enough to be her son? I'm ok with age gap of 6 years but they really don't fit well together. I can't see this as comfortable as Tackey and Nanako even though that pairing has an even greater age gap. Is it really a romantic relationship? I can be convinced of a mom and son relationship though.

I don't mind the storyline but with Park as the lead I'll probably think twice before watching.

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Why so much hate for Ye-jin flying around? She is a great actress and has such a sweet personality. If you watch something other than My Princess, I'm sure you'll like her. If you already have, oh well.....

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Not so much as hate than thought she's not too great an actress, at least not as a lead. I saw her in varieties too and she appeared dull. She may have a sweet personality but that's besides the point. Guess I'm ok with her in other roles but not this.

I may not sound as harsh towards Ki-bum possibly as I've only seen him in a minor role without much room to show any acting skills. But at least I thought he's young and therefore prepared to give him room for improvement. Somehow I thought Ye Jin should be in this line long enough and therefore didn't give her the room for improvement. It comes back to how matured she looks.

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well.. they run out of ideas, huh... How about a grandma suddenly turns into a 17 yrs old girl overnight? and.. gets this... fall in love with the grandpa next door! yeahhh.. have they thought about it?

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LOL I would totally watch it. Would be hilarious. Especially when she starts talking to everyone her "age" as if she was older. And everyone with her actual age normally (as in not formally as younger people should).

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I'd much rather see someone older become someone younger... a la that old Disney Channel movie with the Mowry twins back in the day. XD

A granny in a teenage body, mouthing off in banmal to everyone who's ~technically younger than her.. where's THAT drama?

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Love that idea!

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Great idea! But if it's about falling in love with a hot young man, wouldn't that satisfy ahjumma's fantasies more? Ratings hit definitely.

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now THAT would be hilarious! true comedy

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Wait wait... let me get this sorted out again:

It's a 24 year old who looks 18 playing a 14 who turned into 30 falling in love with someone who is really 31 but looks like 40 and not sure how old in the drama?

Sorry if I come across rude but seriously it's too scandalous a pairing. And I am pretty open-minded (as I mentioned Tackey/Nanako were perfectly fine with me).

It would have been easier for me to accept him falling in love with an older man on national Tv.

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Amen. And i'm not prude either.If dramaland wants to go into Forbidden land, there are others kind of pairings i would like to see on my screen. A child is a child. Period. Kid and romance in the same sentence are no, no.

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Agree with you 100 per cent. A child of 14 and a 31-year-old woman is just SICK.

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"it’s about a teenage boy who suddenly turns into a 30-year-old adult"

-So shouldn't there be a different actor playing the 30-yr old Ki Bum? (much older actor, that can "match well" with Ye Jin) Or is Ki Bum gonna play the 30-yr old (which I highly doubt...)

-And, wow so many Ye Jin haters in here...

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I know...and I wonder how many dramas people have watched with PYJ in it for people to diss her? She IS a decent actress, even if her roles weren't necessarily likable.

Besides that, I don't mind the trend of storylines as long as it's well written and well acted. I actually don't have any probs with PYJ. But Kim Ki Bum? What's he done lately to get the leading nod? And is he still with Super Junior? Haven't seen him in any of the recent appearances or performances but then again, I'm not a fan of SJ so who knows? Would have liked another male lead actor but oh well...if there's any critique in casting, it shouldn't be directed at PYJ.

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I know, the finger-pointing at PYJ is ridiculous...and most of those are mainly because "she looks old" wow...acting-wise, she can definitely hold on her own...it's just that her roles have been those you'd love to hate...and sometimes other people can't go pass that...smh...

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I thought her acting was stiff right from her first scene in My Princess. And that's before knowing her role was unfavorable. Even so, I've never disliked any actors just because they have the role of a villain.

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Hmm not convinced by the casting, but I'll give it a try since it's tvN.

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This was not the tvN drama I wanted Park Yejin in. I mean no offense to Kim Ki Bum or the drama, but I just think that Park would have sat more comfortably opposite Lee Jin Wook in I Need Romance 2. Not only is the pairing much better, but that is actually a drama with a much better promise than this.

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I so agree with you. Or, they could have cast a number of different actors BESIDES Kim Ki Bum. I wouldn't have minded Lee Ki Woo as the leading actor. Yum...I mean, *ahem*, hmm...

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Or Lee Sang Woo.

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completely agree! and I saw that episode in Family Outing with Lee Jin Wook as a guest and they look pretty cute together! As for the storyline, yeah you're right I think the "I Need Romance" sequel would have been a much better project for her, the question is, was it even offered to her...sigh...

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Agreed. I wanted to see her in "I need romance." I feel like she perfectly fits the premise too. Plus, her romancing Lee Jin Wook? I want!

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So, i'm curious is he still with SME &/or SJ?

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Oh dear. I love Kibum. He was my first korean bias circa 2007. Buuuuuut he can't really act. Sooooooooo. This is worrisome. -_-"

Second hand embarassment here i come!

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WOW. no way. their age gap LOOKS gigantic.

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I first saw PYJ in My Princess - she played the part of the museum director - she looked to be in her late 30s which would have been ok for a director - and the professor's first love. Ryu Suyeong acted as the professor and he was styled to look in his mid-30s, and she looked older than him.

Shakes head - I dunno - this pairing in Lee Tae-ri doesn't feel right.

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Park ye jin! i want see her film

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Really? Another "30 Over Night" premise?
Come on, people. I know that everything has been done by now, but there has to be something more interesting and less creepy than that.
If you use the syfy elements for your drama, why don't you make it more syfy-y? That would be something new (at least to me) on Korean TV.
But that's just my wishful thinking. And if the whole "30 Over Night" idea doesn't work, they can always do it the other way around. "Detective Conan" says hello! ;D

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what is "syfy"? do u mean "sci-fi"?

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Ooops. Typo. Exactly what I meant.

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Cringing all over the place i am.
I've personally always disliked Big because the concept was too much for me - all i felt was a pedophilic relationship. YET i'm still considering watching hong sisters version because they neveer seem to disappoint in terms of humour and overall dramas, as well as the leads that i adore. and then THIS? how long i have waited for kibums return to dramas as a leading man yet this is the project? i'm trying to hope for the best and try not to reject this too quickly.

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Not more of the same theme JB we don't like that but I do like the photo:)

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i love park ye jin :] she was great in hateful but once again and she can definitely hold her own.
more worried about the storyline and kim ki bum. wished they would tweak the storyline a bit and make the kid at least 19 or 20. 14 is just wayyyyyy too young.
i will probably tune in for PYJ, keeping fingers crossed that this will go well

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totally miss seeing park ye jin in dramas as a female lead. hehehe looking forward to seeing her in a drama again :D
park ye jin hwaitin!

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yes good luck to her. but she should choose roles suited to her.

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Most of you might have not laughed at this:

Really? You named your child Gold Silver-Bronze?

but... I did. HAHAHAHAHA. Geum Eun Dong. OMFG. TROLOL. Was not expecting that.

Okay now that the randomness has escaped me, I will stop. Lol. c:

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