Okay, I need to watch this now.
I think you've succeeded! XD

I loved this show--for all the reasons you mentioned. I liked that it went against type: the rich snotty boy, the dirt poor Cinderella girl. I liked all the characters and accepted all their flaws.

The promotion materials for this show really worked against it. It was quite a well-plotted drama, and much deeper than the promos made you think. Thanks for spreading the word about how great it was!

Hogu's Love needs defending? It's one of my favorites! I am a devoted fan of the writer who also wrote Flower Boy Ramyun Shop and Because It's Our First Life. Her dramas are all tightly written and full of humor and emotion.

This is great @hotcocoagirl !

There were so many things that I really liked about this show. Without giving any spoilers, let's just say it's got a fantastic love triangle and, even though it tackles some serious subjects, it often is hysterically funny.

Towards the end, Kang-chul was by far my favourite character and that's after totally hating him in the first couple of episodes. Seulong did an amazing job and I thought he and his crush had awesome chemistry ;P

Very well put :-) It hadn't occurred to me that a defence was necessary; Ho-gu's Love is one of my all-time favourites. I had to roll my eyes at the Kang-chul/Ho-kyung storyline, because it was rather far-fetched and not particularly sensitive in execution. But Ho-gu is not a gullible fool; he is just an extremely kind person, and it is nice that for once we get to root for the complete opposite of the tsundere chaebol with (supposedly) a heart of gold; the payoff is the sweetest and most satisfying I can remember in ages.

Ps. check the opening scenes for a public service announcement on the dangers of the word "oppa"... :-))

I recently watched this and really loved it! Ho gu was such a wonderful character and so refreshingly not the Asshole Chaebol Who Slowly Warms Up!
It is a gem of a show and Ho Gu and Do Hee both made me care about them a lot.

I have an issue with how the show tackled the resolution of Kang Chul's confusion of sexuality but other than that, awesome!

I have bypassed this show many times due to the description, but will now add it my list. Great defense.

I had same probs with watching it due to the title but you encouraged me too. The problem is my to watch list keeps getting longer....Thanks for the writeup.....

It's now on my list..! Especially since JBL, IANAR and Jugglers are (and have) ended. I admit I fell victim to the trailers and thought exactly that. Glad it's more deep and sweet than it probes to be.

OMG!! I loved this show so much. It was so underrated. AND YES, can Choi Woo Shik be in another drama asap. Hopefully with a cameo from Park Seo Joon. I'm not asking too much, am I?

Thanks for your eloquent defense of HOGU'S LOVE, @hotcocoagirl. I've seen positive references to it here on DB. I've wondered about the title, and am glad to know that I'm not the only one who gets the wrong idea from names that lose something in translation as well as synopses that don't scintillate.

HOGU sounds like a show I'd enjoy.

One question: I recently watched OJAKGYO BROTHERS, and got well and truly fed up with the heroine's deer-in-the-headlights look. Is that a thing of the past now?

Congrats! Lovely read. I’m so into these nice boy characters right now. I will have to put this on my watchlist!

Thank you @hotcocoagirl for the wonderful defense! Hogu's Love is one of my all-time favorite dramas. Both Choi Woo-sik and UEE are absolutely fantastic and the show made CWS one of my favorite actors in Dramaland. All of the Beanies who love BTLIOF definitely should put this show on their to-watch-now list!

Thank you @hotcocoagirl for defending Ho-gu's Love, I absolutely love this show, it's so underrated!

Ho-gu is one of my favorite characters, he wasn't what his name suggested, he wasn't just a pushover, at least not when it came to Do-hee, he was just the sweetest!

That scene when he brings all the squids home because he felt sorry for them is one of my all-time favorites, LOL!

You're absolutely right! Hogu's Love is a great drama. Most of the bad reactions to it were due to people expecting a light romcom and being put off from such a serious premise. I respect that opinion, but it doesn't have anything to do with the actual drama. THIS DRAMA IS GREAT. It's a severely underrated gem!

I keep forgetting that Hogu's love actually needs defending and that many people bypass it because of it's name or because of the relatively less famous actors but this was a personal favourite when it was airing. It made me smile and it gave me feels... I do remember that I didn't like the ending too much, or had just lost a lil bit of interest towards the end but it still remains an all over happy watch!

I still remember that cute dance on the Chickadee song :)

Thank you for writing this @hotcocoagirl <3 More people should watch and appreciate this show :D

Agreed. I also enjoyed this drama and couldn't figure out why so many others didn't. I thought it handled a lot of sensitive topics very well. No nightmare-inducing flashback scenes for those of us who are uh....more sensitive to those things. The moral of Hogu's love: Nice guys can--and do--finish first!

I was already in love with Hogu's Love since its first few teasers were released. I knew it was going to be somehow quirky, but I knew I would love it. I was right. At first glance, Hogu might seem like a too-good-to-be-true character, but he was also realistic at the same time. I really agree with you. I remember him telling Hokyung that feelings (or heart?) are like paint tubes, they will dry out if we don't use them. That felt like a huge punch in the heart. He was right, he was completely right.

I really loved Dohee as a character too. Until now, she's still one of the strongest characters I've seen in a drama. However, my favorite character in Hogu's Love until this day is still Byun Kangchul. Man, I love that guy with all my heart.

Wow, Hogu's Love.. It's been a while. I remember live watching this drama being so fond of the story and Hogu. He wasn't the most "dashing knight"or most confident male lead but he was someone reliable and a stable character, a sort of pillar to the lost heroine and her adorable baby.

I've always been put off by something in the description of this show or maybe because UEE is in it but I liked Ramyun Shop and enjoyed most of the recent Because this is Our First Life so I'll put it on the list. Thanks @hotcocoagirl

I loved this drama. UEE has one of the best crying scenes here, so raw and real.

I love this drama so much! Thank you! I hope more people give it a shot. There is nothing else like it out there. Choi Woo Shik is absolute perfection in this.

I've been eyeing this one since BTLIOF ended and this post has me convinced I should give it a go!

The hero sounds like my type of hero. I'll never understand the male leads that are just complete jerks to the heroine. Am I supposed to be attracted to that? I tried rewatching/finishing Goong recently, which was my first ever kdrama, but I just couldn't do it. The male lead was such a jerk! I'm so over the flat-out mean drama "heroes".

Kindness and compassion are virtues! They should be celebrated! I'll be checking this one out soon. If BTLIOF is anything to go by, I'm sure I'll like the characters.

Guh, Hogu's Love is one of my all-time favourite kdramas ever. I love all your points and also can I just say I love Hogu's parents so much.

I love that Hogu is not the typical chaebol tsundere hero and he is innately good (one the Beanies point out about this about the hero in Strongest Deliveryman, and good kind hero is my weakness) and all the characters just living like the normal human being, with their struggles in life.

I love UEE as Do-hee and I was surprised when initially few commenters pointed out about UEE being too stiff in her character because I think the way she potrayed Do-hee was accurate, she built this wall because of the toxic people around her hence her coldness. I love the moment when UEE broke down sobbing because she thought she could no longer love someone after what happened to her, that is so heart-wrenching to watch.

The side characters too are perfect even with their flaws.

And I love the background music and OST of this drama.

I need to check this out. I remember seeing and reading some of the promo materials and I didn't really understand what they were going for.

I love this drama and definitely recommend! It was so addictive what with all the rampant misunderstandings and hilarious situations. This one was such a joy to watch!

I started episode 1 and never finished it. I'm going to try again based on your defense.

I remember it had the most hilarious, cute fight scene (ep 15 I think) among all dramas I have watched (the fight scene in Police unit 38 is another one I can't forget). It made my day that time.

Thanks for your post. It is on my to-do list to go back and finish this drama now.

I have been meaning to watch this for awhile now. You convinced me and I am now on episode 14. Thank you really love it. What you wrote made the difference and I enjoyed this drama a lot and especially loved Ho-Gu as the beta male with Do Hee being alpha.