Boys Over Flowers (2009)

It’s the most fun K Drama to watch but also not that good .

Boys over Flowers is absolutely fun . I thoroughly enjoyed myself watching this K Drama and I think you will too.

I would like to address the show itself before I delve into the 5 points of a review. First and foremost , Boys Over Flowers is not overrated in the slightest. It is a pop culture phenomenon like Mean Girls and Clueless. That is how this show should be treated and viewed. Secondly, because it’s like Mean Girls and Clueless - do not expect Oscar worthy acting and Sundance Film Festival story lines . It really is not that deep. Get into it like that and you will be A okay . Promise.

Now for the review itself ... let’s get into it !

The story is fun , comedic and lighthearted but also intermixed with the melodrama that is a K Drama. In a lot of ways - plot unraveling was ridiculous and absurd and this was accentuated by the unfortunate Geum Jan Di . Also ,the writers overplayed their hand on some story lines that inadvertently made the protagonists romantic plot unnecessarily weak .Other than that ; the essence of the Boys over Flowers story is timeless and makes for a good formula . No wonder they keep making them over and over again . I loved the thrill I got from watching this series especially the first 6 episodes . I actually did not sleep and became a slight insomniac because of those episodes . To be honest- I have never felt such a thrill from a show and I’m still yet to feel that and for that reason alone , BoF has some sentimental value to me .

The cinematography was excellent and non dialogue scenes were beautifully shot. The locations were stunning and this production was really good in cut aways. The recurring motifs are the strong point of the drama. I always find that when motifs for a drama are good , strong and most importantly recurring- then continuity currency is especially strong . That was the case for BoF. As for actual scenes , well this is where the drama falls short . The story is not tightly woven and one can tell the writers got carried away and flustered by hype. It was messy , things strewn together here and there and that made for a frustrating watch in the middle but because the phenomenon factor is so strong - it’s not hard to push through. It’s actually fun to scoff in the end and say “ oh cmon!”

Next we have the acting and cast. This is tricky because this has so much to do with the actual story and how the plot unraveled. This to me in hindsight is a weakness of BoF.

I for one loved the cast and at the same time there was some sort of weakness that I can’t quite put my finger on. The F4 were AMAZING especially to look at. Absolute walking sculptures , my goodness! I also loved their friendship but I mostly loved the friendship they formed with Geum Jan Di . This shows that the cast had overall chemistry for days . However , in the flip side , Lee Min Ho single handily carried the entire show and that’s good but also bad . Good for Lee Min Ho because it means he’s so incredible in this and shows wide acting range and talent and bad because it means everyone /everything else was lacking something . This is substantiated by the fact that even though Madam Kang was not a main character - she also carried the show . In fact the scenes between Kang Hee Soo and Lee Min Ho are the most powerful and cohesive in the entire drama. Should it not be the two protagonists having the powerful scenes ? It’s weird inconsistencies like this and more that give the overall rating of the entire show something below 8.

Special mention to the Geum family ! They were the best and comedic timing was on point ! Incredible mention to Kang Hee Soo too. POWER personified . I was actually scared of her .

I raise my glass to Lee Min Ho! Gu Ju Pyo was EVERYTHING. In the words of one of my favorite male protagonists of all time ; Mr Knightley of Emma , I say this about Gu Ju Pyo and Lee Min Ho “ if I loved you less - I would talk about it more”
And I end there on Gu Jun Pyo/ Lee Min Ho.

Umm, the music makes for a nuanced review. Firstly - the songs themselves are not half bad and are made even more special if you find BoF special like how I do. Music evokes memories and the BoF soundtrack evokes feel good memories. However , the way these songs were inserted was quite challenging . One song was particularly overplayed especially in moments that did not suit it and the soundtrack had too many songs. But overall - there were some reall good tracks and BoF had put on to some Korean music heat .The music did make for profound capture especially in the case of Kim Hyun -joong’s moody and “fifth dimensional” Ji Hoo.

As for rewatch value - I would watch this again.Not all episodes but particular episodes . As mentioned before - the motifs and symbols are especially good and dare I say redeem the weakness of this show. It actually managed to be sweet and oddly profound that I cried mid way and I rarely do but perhaps that was down to a particularly powerful Lee Min Ho scene ? You know what ? Lee Min Ho IS the rewatch value !!!

I would also like to add that though Geum Jan Di had her shortcomings- I especially applaud how she took charge of her own destiny and did not flop into a mould set before her . I find that refreshing and give kudos to the writers for that execution. Such female protagonists are rarely seen in KDramas.But she really was grating to watch .

Overall , this was fun . And I would like to take that away. Even though this is not a 10 out of 10 show - it’s actually uniquely great . Its weak , ridiculous and absurd and for that one must take off their thinking hats .

Edit : I now have some sort of experience with KDramas and I can say with confidence that if you can stomach BoF then you have been baptised by the ridiculous and fantastical entities of dramaland. You can take anything. Also if you mildly liked BoF - there’s no way you are ever leaving dramaland. In no way am I insinuating that BoF is any standard but it is accurate in the phenomenon that is KDramas.BoF preps you for all the glaring plot holes sure to come your way in dramaland . But it also preps you that in the next foray - lies transient spaces of beauty in every way . It’s just that BoF muddied everything but the essence is undeniable.

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Honestly this drama is a good watch! In some ways it differ's from your average k-drama. There's 4 handsome guys and a tuff main leading woman that carries this drama to the end. I should say that some of the things that happen in this drama could be what you call "over doing it" and there are some parts where there are "over-acting", but none the less, this gives you just the right emotions that you would want when watching a drama. The plot moves along accordingly and the acting ranges from "Well Done" to "ehhhh..." I would definitely recommend this drama to anyone whose a fan of Lee Min Ho and loves a drama romance that's hard to forget!

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I really disliked this show. Sorry! I know it has loads of fans and I can see why it would, it's flashy and the actors are gorgeous, but I hated the storyline.

Basically the main actress shouts her way into having Stockholm Syndrome and falls in love with a guy who tried to have her sexually assaulted. He was jealous, controlling and vindictive and I just didn't get it.

The "But I changed him" thing doesn't work for me. I never saw the change, he's just beautiful.

I know that my main issue with this is not exactly this drama's fault, it is in the original manga, which I have also read in an attempt to understand the hype over this drama more. I also watched the J-drama version.

After all the tears and tantrums and chloroforming, I not only disliked the drama, but found it boring.

Maybe I would have liked this if it was the first K-drama I had ever watched to get me addicted, but it was actually the third after You From Another Star an Coffee Prince and comparatively, this was just terrible.

I did laugh ridiculously when "This must be Paaarrraaaadiiiiiiise" played out over Jun Pyo kicked the crap kicked out of him. Worst music choice ever for that moment.

This is just my opinion though, I can understand that there are elements that probably would draw in a captive audience, but for me the first few episodes made me irrevocably hate the male protagonist and that damage was never undone.

Send your brain on a marathon run before sitting down to this and you will have a great time.

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Though my scores are low, you should still watch this drama!!!! This was the very first K-drama I watched. I found it on Netflix and started watching it one day in the summer when I was sick. I spent about 16 episodes questioning why I was still watching the show. Then BAM! I couldn't stop watching. When I finished, I immediately made my boyfriend watch it. Oddly enough, he likes this show too. I read somewhere that Boys Over Flowers is a lot like crack: Not that good for your brain, but want MOAR!

The scores are low partly because this looked like it was filmed using a phone camera. The editing and quality are poor. The music is a bit ridiculous. Whenever there's a life-endangering scene, the song "Almost Paradise" comes on. It is totally not appropriate for those scenes. Even the acting was pretty mediocre.

This show should really just be called "The Lee Min Ho Show". Lee's character is the only one with any depth. Ji Hu is pretty much the worst ever. Incredibly pretty, but lacks any acting skills.

Even though this review is harsh, you should still watch the show! It's fun, ridiculous, and Lee Min Ho is a god.

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Good only because it’s a “classic”

This is the first kdrama I ever watched, so it had (and still has) a special place in my heart for a long time. However, after recently rewatching it I came to realize how much it lacks and that it's not the great drama I once thought it was. I think I used to think of it as a great drama because I was young and it was the first kdrama I ever watched, so I didn't know have anything to compare it to. But now that I'm older and have watched a lot of dramas, I can definitely say boys over flowers is not a good drama. At all.

It's good in terms of it being a "classic" and "must watch" but it doesn't have much else to it. The plot is fairly interesting and at first the drama is entertaining. However, as it progresses and the characters encounter ridiculous obstacles that make no senses whatsoever, it gets bad.

I won't blame it all on the drama though, because I know it's based off a manga so they might just be following the script there. But, I've watched the jdrama also based on the same manga and it's better than this adaptation.

In all, if you want to watch this drama just to say you watched it, go ahead. But if you're going into this thinking you're going to watch a drama with a great plot, amazing characters, and good development then don't bother watching this. It's really not worth your time and you'll only be disappointed.

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Why do i love this show

Some people be like watching this from like 1 or 2 years ago,and then they come here saying that they just find it cringe
Well lemme tell u something
1-this kdrama is more like 10 years old so if u have watched it back then you wouldn't think about these things now.
2-you can't watch such an old kdrama and comment on the clothing,cringy moves or what so ever
3-for most of the people and i am one of them this was the starter pack of every kdrama watcher.
4-I have watched this like maybe 5 years ago or more i was little and i used to watch episodes translated to arabic actually and yes i liked and my sibilings and i really enjoyed it,now i am 16 years old and my sibilings are way older,everytime we think about it we just get the old nostalgia of the golden days.
5-I am not attacking any1,it's just i couldn't bare seeing my childhood kdrama being attacked and not defending it lol.
6-the moral of this review is that yes i really hated the actress ways of speaking and acting sometimes but at the same time i liked her to and found them as a very good couple,i hated the way she dress even tho u are poor u could still afford for better clothes,but this was the old dramas specialities.I agree gunpyu was kind of asshole at some moments but i mean it's a kdrama so whatever.
7-This is liked the 10 time i rewatch this drama and maybe people who are watching it nowadays doesn't like it because they find it cringe and old so i understand there's much more better kdrama nowadays so,it's rare to find some people watching this for the first time and actually liking it.

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This is my third K-Drama, I watched "What's wrong with Secretary Kim?" and "Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo" before, and completely loved them both, so I know the bar was set really high, but still I gave it a chance. I couldn't go through an entire episode without fast forwarding at least ones or a hundred times. The story is so predictable, coming and going and coming and going... gosh... I felt I was on a merry go round...
If they had made just 16 episodes with the best parts, may be It wouldn't be soooo boring... still there's a lot of things that make no sense, there's no logic to many of the events, there is no depth to the story or the situations the characters go through, you can hardly see any growth in their personalities... and for the most part they come and go like they have no control over their own lives.
I wouldn't recommend this to anyone. A complete waste of time. And the Gu Hye Seon's acting is so bad, totally unnatural.

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Watched this of course because this is Korean version of Meteor Garden. Not too loved this Korean version, for me Korean version is a little bit too much. Yeah their actor is more handsome than the japan and Chinese version. But still everything a little bit too much.

I read somewhere at one point that compare main actress outfit. They say Taiwan version outfit so ordinary and repeatable, japan mostly wear uniform, but Korea outfit is so good. Yeah Geum Jan Di suppose to be just ordinary girl from ordinary maybe you can say poor family, so the outfit not suppose too good.

For you who loved watch K-drama i think this one of the classic that you have to watch. Looking for the best of this drama, just search for the Japan version. Much better.

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