Boys Before Flowers: Episode 25 (Final)

629 March 31, 2009January 24, 2016

by javabeans

Last episode!

I was pretty satisfied with this finale. It didn’t feel rushed, but it wasn’t too dragged out either — it wrapped up everything much as you’d expect, but managed to insert enough details to keep it interesting (because I was fearing that the ending would go down too predictably and therefore be lame). Oh, and you know the part that they kept saying would deviate from the Hana Yori Dango original? I LOVED IT.

(First) SONG OF THE DAY

Toy – “Bon Voyage” with Jo Wan-sun of Roller Coaster. [ Download ]

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Oh my god, this recap is so long. Sorry, guys! You are forewarned.

EPISODE 25 RECAP (FINAL)

Jan-di visits the hospital in the early morning, while Jun-pyo is still sleeping. She makes a joking comment trying to magic back his memory (“abra cadabra, make Gu Jun-pyo remember Geum Jan-di”), then drops off her dosirak lunchbox at his bedside.

Later that morning, Yumi comes by. I want to give her the benefit of the doubt (so far she’s annoying, but not evil), but really, she’s got boundary issues to be slipping into a sleeping patient’s room and applying a skincare device to his face while he sleeps. That wakes him up.

Glancing over at the side table, he wonders what the lunchbox is doing there. Yumi opens the containers, and as she pulls out the Jun-pyo Face Rice tray and the egg roll-up snacks, Jun-pyo furrows his brow, a thought niggling at the back of his mind.

He tries one of the egg rolls, and the taste jogs his memory — it gives him a vague (good) feeling. Jun-pyo asks if she made the food, and for a brief moment Yumi hesitates, as though wondering how to answer, then nods. He says, “I remember. The thing I forgot — it was you, right?”

Although you get the sense she hadn’t intended to lie at first, this is too good for her to pass up, so she goes with it.

F2 arrive at the restaurant for some lunch, while the girls watch in puzzlement, wondering why they’re here. Finally, when they’re done eating, they announce the good news: Jun-pyo’s been released from the hospital.

Jan-di perks up. The guys encourage her to go to him, and she rushes off excitedly.

Yi-jung remains behind, because he has something to say to Ga-eul. They watch clay baking in a kiln as Ga-eul muses, “They look happy, those plates inside. For some reason, rather than thinking they’re hurting in that heat, it feels like they’re happy. They’re full of hope that if they endure this, they can come out and receive love.”

Yi-jung has two things to tell her, and starts with the bad news first, the way she likes it: He’s leaving. He adds, “I guess that may not be bad news to you.” He plans to remain abroad for four or five years.

Ga-eul tries to be optimistic, saying it’s actually good news because he’ll be sure to return an even better potter. She asks for the second part, so he tells her, “When I come back, I’ll come find you first.”

That’s even more startling than the first, but makes her much happier. Perhaps Yi-jung is a little uncomfortable to have opened up, because he adds, “I mean, if you can’t find your soulmate by then.” But that’s enough of a confession for Ga-eul, who breaks into a smile.

Eager to see Jun-pyo, Jan-di rushes into his room, calling out a welcome greeting, then stops short: Yumi is already there. Jun-pyo just tells her that Ji-hoo’s not here, and that she should take care of her boyfriend before rushing to check up on him.

At his ungracious non-welcome, Jan-di figures this was a mistake, and turns to go. Yumi steps in to admonish Jun-pyo for being mean, and urges Jan-di to stay for tea. It’s an odd dynamic, because Yumi has usurped Jan-di’s position as hostess, and I’m not the only one who thinks she’s an upstart: the maids also direct dirty looks at Yumi.

Jun-pyo acts pretty friendly and relaxed with Yumi, which is hard for Jan-di to watch, so she gets up to leave. Jun-pyo tosses out casually, “Don’t come by again.” (He doesn’t say so in a mean tone, but maybe it’s all the more hurtful that he’s so blasé about something that means so much.) He adds, “When I see you, I feel really bad. It bothers me.”

Jan-di retorts, “Fine. I’m sorry! I won’t come by anymore!”

Yumi reads the tension and follows Jan-di outside to ask, “Are you the person Jun-pyo oppa is supposed to remember?” She sees that Jan-di is, and takes a tone of concern as she says, “But as you can tell, I think it’s worse for him to see you. If he sees you, I think his condition will deteriorate. So for now, I think it’ll be better if you don’t drop by. Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to bring back his memories of you naturally.”

Yumi’s words are reassuring, but Jan-di is also a little doubtful; after Yumi rejoins Jun-pyo, Jan-di peers inside. Jun-pyo asks Yumi to make the lunchbox again — proof that Yumi had taken credit for her lunch, which probably means she’s lying about the rest, too.

Upset, Jan-di rushes down the stairs on the way out and bumps into Ji-hoo, who tells her firmly, “Don’t run away.”

Jan-di tries to escape, but Ji-hoo says, “You can’t be pushed aside like this.” Pulling Jan-di behind him, he heads for Jun-pyo’s room. Unfortunately, they find Jun-pyo and Yumi napping cozily on the couch together.

That hurts. Jan-di rebuffs Ji-hoo’s attempts to reason with her (and persuade her to fight for Jun-pyo), telling him that it’s over, she’s done: “Even if he lost his memory, even if we started over from the beginning, I had faith he would recognize me. But I was wrong.”

Ji-hoo starts to protest, but Jan-di isn’t swayed:

Jan-di: “No, it may be upsetting and unfair, but I have to acknowledge the truth. The Gu Jun-pyo I loved is gone now.”
Ji-hoo: “I told you that you couldn’t be the little mermaid. I can’t let you two break up over such a ridiculous thing.”
Jan-di: “This isn’t because of Yumi. In the end, Geum Jan-di and Gu Jun-pyo could only make it this far.”

Yumi presents her lunchbox to Jun-pyo, who eats an egg roll with anticipation. However, the moment he registers the taste, he frowns: “This isn’t it. The taste is different from before. Did you really make it that time?”

Yumi stutters, “O-of course! Who else could have made it? That’s just because every time I make it, the taste is a little different. I’ll make it right next time.”

But something’s not right, and the taste of the food just enhances his bad feeling. He says, frustrated, “That girl. That Jan-di weed girl — I can’t forget her expression.”

Yumi: “That’s too mean! How could you say that? I’m the one who was with you, from the hospital up till now, but you feel so bothered by a girl who just dropped by and bugged you a few times? Your friends all treat me badly and take her side, and her boyfriend totally ignores me. But still, I put up with it because of you. If you act like this too, what is Yumi supposed to do?”

For us who know the truth, she’s obviously way over the line with this speech — but if she really WAS Jun-pyo’s girlfriend, I suppose this is how she would react, and she’s acting her part to the hilt. She cries, and makes Jun-pyo feel uncomfortable.

The guilt trip works, because the next thing we know, Yumi and Jun-pyo are jointly hosting a “surprise pool party.” (I’m wondering what the surprise is, if they’re handing out formal invitations.) The setting is absolutely gorgeous. In fact, this entire episode is pretty visually stunning, on the whole.

Yumi wastes some screentime with a harp performance — and seriously, Mr. Jeon PD, do you really have to pay tribute to yourself (again!) by using a My Girl theme song here?

Feeling pretty low, Jan-di steps aside to be alone. Yumi finds her by the pool and keeps up the ruse that she’s been working to “help” Jan-di. She has news to report, but it’s not good: “He doesn’t remember you.”

Yumi speaks obnoxiously about herself in the third person (because we don’t already hate her enough?): “I’m sorry to tell you, but Yumi likes Jun-pyo. I didn’t try to deliberately, but I ended up falling for him, so much that I can’t break up with him. Oppa feels the same as Yumi. But you can understand, can’t you? We can’t control our hearts.”

Yumi draws everyone’s attention to make a big announcement: She and Jun-pyo are going to study abroad together to the States. They will leave in one month.

F3 marvel in a sort of disgusted fascination at Yumi’s fast maneuvering. Ji-hoo leads Jan-di away from the crowd to the pool, where he leaves her while for a moment to get her a drink.

Alone, Jan-di takes out her star-moon necklace, just as Jun-pyo walks by. As soon as he sees her, Jun-pyo turns to leave, but Jan-di asks if he remembers the necklace she’s holding, or the names engraved on it. Jun-pyo takes a look at the “JJ” and says irritably, “How would I know that?”

Jan-di holds it out to him: “I’m giving it back. Take it.” None of this makes sense for Jun-pyo, and he retorts, “Why would I take something like this? If you want to get rid of it, do it yourself.”

He hands it back. Jan-di says, almost defiantly, “Fine.” She throws the necklace into the pool, where it settles on the bottom. But she’s not quite done:

Jan-di: “Gu Jun-pyo. I’ll ask just one more thing. Do you know how to swim?”
Jun-pyo: “Swim? I don’t swim.”
Jan-di: “You don’t, or you can’t?”
Jun-pyo: “I have a bad childhood memory, so I don’t swim. I’ve never learned.”
Jan-di: “No. You did know how.”

Jun-pyo bristles at the way Jan-di is talking about him so familiarly, but her words start to unnerve him, particularly as she tells him what kind of person he truly is (including a few of the sayings he’d messed up previously):

Jan-di: “You’re hardly afraid of anything in this world, yet you shake in fear over a bug. You’re an idiot who thinks it’s better to get all your ribs bashed in than see one of your girl’s fingers break. You’re a dummy who can’t tell the difference between the words privacy and pride, who insists like a train that swallowed its heart that the 38th Strategy [of ancient China] is running away [it’s the 36th]. You say you hate kids, but you want to be a devoted father who watches the stars with your son. You’re a lonely person with a lot of love.”

Uneasily, Jun-pyo demands, “What are you really after?”

Jan-di tells him, “Say my name,” then starts to step backward, slowly, purposefully. At the edge of the pool, Jan-di pauses… and then lets herself fall backward into the pool.

It’s an eerily beautiful image as she hits the water, stiff as a board.

In the pool, Jan-di picks up the necklace, but doesn’t come back up to the surface. Clutching the necklace, she remains submerged.

The rest of the party rushes to the water’s edge, alarmed. Jun-pyo stands frozen in shock… and then, memories come flooding back.

In quick succession, he flashes to all the other water-related emergencies earlier in the drama (if I didn’t love this moment so much it would be funny that they have enough of those to compile a montage).

He whispers, “Jan-di.” Then, jolted out of his stupor, Jun-pyo shouts her name again, and dives in.

Memory now back in full force, Jun-pyo pulls her to safety, where he tries to revive her. In a panic, he administers CPR and calls her name repeatedly, until Jan-di sputters awake.

She looks up and asks weakly, “Do you remember now?” He tells her he’s sorry, and she asks him to say her name again.

He clutches her to him and obliges.

(Yumi walks off, petulant. Good riddance!)

And then, it’s back to everyday life, kinda.

Jan-di and her family are back at their old place in Seoul, and she’s about to graduate. She doesn’t intend on going to her graduation party, although her mother urges her to.

Jun-pyo calls her out to congratulate her on her upcoming graduation. He also asks if she’s really serious about medical school, teasing about how she’s not smart enough.

He’s also here to request a date. Echoing an early scene, Jun-pyo traps Jan-di against his car, leans in closely, and says: “Tomorrow, ___.”

Naturally, just as he relays that crucial bit of information, a passing motorcycle drowns out his words. Jun-pyo thinks his message is clear and warns Jan-di that if she’s late this time, she’s really dead.

True to her word, Jan-di doesn’t plan on showing up to her graduation party, but a stretch limo pulls up (presumably from Jun-pyo) to take her — so when she arrives at the formal party, she’s still wearing her school uniform. (Let’s ignore the horrid dancing and the familiar set, shall we?)

F3 greet her warmly, and Woo-bin steps up first to ask her to dance. This allows each person a send-off as each gets his moment with Jan-di. As she dances with Woo-bin, she thinks, “Song Woo-bin, he’s always reliable and caring, as though he was the eldest in F4. I know now that he understands better than anyone how to comfort a person’s feelings, while standing one step behind.”

With Yi-jung, she thinks: “He acts cold and like a bad boy, but in reality he’s warm and innocent. Thanks to Yi-jung sunbae, I think Ga-eul has really become a lovable woman.”

Ji-hoo’s last:

“I was like Alice dropped into Wonderland. Could he know what a huge solace he was to me, that I was able to meet him whenever I went to that emergency door? He’s like a ‘bonus’ given to me from heaven. I won’t ever forget him. My soulmate Ji-hoo sunbae, thank you.”

When Jun-pyo doesn’t make his appearance, the guys wonder what’s keeping him. Jan-di thinks back to his drowned-out words, and now realizes what this reminds her of — and rushes off to Namsan Tower.

Sure enough, Jun-pyo’s waiting for her and asks, “Didn’t I say you were dead if you were late?” But he’s not upset, and with a snap of his fingers, lights fill the courtyard.

Jun-pyo comments, “It’s nothing magical. Stuff like this is really easy — compared to tending to the Jan-di-baht.” (Literally, “maintaining the grass.”)

Since this is a reenactment of their first date (albeit upgraded), Jun-pyo buys her coffee, then leads her to the viewing deck. In a cute moment, Jun-pyo brings her to the cable car, intending on pointing out the graffiti he’d written on their first date, but Jan-di’s embarrassed and blocks his view.

She complains, “Why’d you write this, and make it impossible for me to get married?” (This means that it makes her look promiscuous and would therefore be a stain on her character.)

Jun-pyo doesn’t see the problem: “Then just marry me — who else are you thinking of marrying?” In contrast to her grimace, Jun-pyo looks at the scrawled words proudly, announcing, “Now you can’t get married.” (To anyone else.)

But now it’s time for them to get down to some serious talk. Jan-di tenses nervously when Jun-pyo’s tone turns solemn: “Let’s marry.”

Jan-di doesn’t know whether he’s joking — he isn’t — and is completely taken aback, since she just graduated from high school. Jun-pyo explains, “I have to go to America. This time it’s not because of my mother, or the company. I decided this.”

He’s decided to take his future into his own hands: “I’m going to do my best. If I can save the company, that’s good. If I can’t, I’ll shut it down with my own hands.”

Jan-di’s dismayed when he says that he’ll be back in four years at best, asking, “That long?” Jun-pyo: “So come with me.”

But that’s not the magic solution, and it’s Jan-di’s turn to grow (more) solemn. She can’t go with him: “When you went to Macau, I made a decision too, regarding my dream, my work, what I want to be. Like you, I have something I want to devote myself to, and it’s here.”

It’s not a rejection, it’s reality butting in. Jan-di says with a hint of a smile, “Go, and come back. In four years, if you come back as a really impressive man, I’ll think about it again then.”

At this, the mood lightens. Maybe it’s not an ideal solution, but the compromise will work for them. Jun-pyo asks, half-jokingly, “Do you mean that? If you lose me, you’ll really regret it.” She teases back, “Hey, if you lose me, you’re the one who’ll regret it.”

Jun-pyo has no problems admitting, “I know that if I lose you, I’ll regret it till I die.”

Once again repeating some words she’d formerly told him, Jan-di says, “Gu Jun-pyo. You may not be a complete idiot.”

And now, we’re four years later.

Jun-pyo has made significant progress as a managing director with the company, and is being interviewed on television. While it starts with his business successes, the interview segues into personal questions. Naturally, as a rich, young, handsome chaebol, Jun-pyo’s the target of a lot of crushes and romance speculation.

When asked whether there’s anybody in his life to help him through the hard times, Jun-pyo responds, “It would be a lie to say I haven’t had tough times or been lonely. But because of a promise I made with somebody, I drew upon that as support and was able to endure.”

Watching proudly are Jun-pyo’s family — Mama Kang actually shows warmth as she watches alongside her husband, showing him affection that we’d never seen from her. It looks like she’s finally showing the personality that the others have hinted at — the kinder version of herself before she’d become Shinhwa chair.

And maybe the biggest surprise in this epilogue is that Jun-hee has now taken over from her mother’s position — she’s the new Shinhwa chair.

Next up: Yi-jung, who arrives at the airport with dark shades and a swagger. (I’m sorry, Yi-jung being badass just makes me giggle.) True to his word, he heads first to Ga-eul, who is now a teacher. He watches as she leads her young students in a pottery session, then steps in.

It’s adorable how one of the little girls looks at Yi-jung and asks, “Ajusshi, did you come from abroad?” He’s surprised that she guessed right, and she follows up, “Did you come from Sweden?” Is he their teacher’s boyfriend? ‘Cause, y’see, Teacher Lady mentioned something about someone in Sweden… A little embarrassed, Ga-eul moves to shut the girl up, but Yi-jung enjoys this proof that she’s been talking about him to her kids. (SO CUTE.)

Now, for Jan-di. And, somewhat surprisingly, also Ji-hoo.

She is a student at Shinhwa University’s medical school, as is Ji-hoo. As we might expect, Jan-di’s sorta struggling along, klutzy and bumbling as ever, while Ji-hoo is doing very well and about to graduate.

Today, they’re on a sort of medical outreach trip. During a break, Jan-di sighs to Ji-hoo about her tough time, and he teases her about failing.

A sudden disturbance interrupts their conversation — a helicopter hovers above, and a familiar voice comes over the loudspeaker. Just like a prior scene when Jun-pyo crashed Jan-di’s working vacation on the fishing boat, he now announces, “Oy, commoner! Can you hear me? Geum Jan-di!”

He instructs her meet him at the beach and zooms away.

When she arrives at the beach, well, now THIS really is almost paradise! (Yes, I’ll admit it — despite making my ears bleed earlier, I was glad to hear the return of “Almost Paradise” after its extended vacation.)

Jan-di approaches with gladness, but a little disbelief to see Jun-pyo here in the flesh .

Indicating her white coat, he teases that she looks like “an ugly duckling playing at being the white egret” — another callback to a previous Jun-pyo-ism (he means swan). At that, Jan-di laughs, “It really is you.”

Pulling her to him in a hug, Jun-pyo says, “I missed you to death. I’m not letting go again.”

He reminds her that she’d agreed to marry him when he came back. Jan-di returns, “Look here, Dummy Gu Jun-pyo. If you want to get technical, I said when you came back in four years, I’d think about it.”

Jun-pyo drops down to one knee, pulls out a ring box, and makes it official: “Geum Jan-di. Marry me.”

And of course, at that moment a voice calls out:

Ji-hoo: “I have an objection to that proposal!”
Yi-jung: “I do, too!”
Woo-bin: “Me too! You two can’t agree without our approval!”

THE END (finally)

And, okay, another Song of the Day, just because:

Rumble Fish – “사랑해 마지막 그날까지” (I’ll Love You Till My Last Day). If this were a movie, this would be the point halfway through the ending credits where the main song ends and a second song starts up. [ Download ]

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I’m going to start off with the criticism, because ultimately I was happy with the ending and would prefer to end on an upbeat note. So I’ll pull a “Ga-eul” here and start with the bad:

WEAKNESSES (aka, Stuff I Just Let Slide):

(1) Madam Kang’s witchy opposition. Poof, gone now? To be fair, I don’t really think it’s a logic flaw, because after Jun-pyo recovers his memory, I take it we are to assume Mama Kang gave up her opposition. It actually does make sense — there’s nothing like contributing to your son’s near-death to give you a wake-up call. But on the other hand, we didn’t see that explicitly, which might give the impression that the Jun-di reconciliation happened too easily, when goodness knows it came anything but “easily.” Not after all those episodes of separation and angst.

(2) Dr. Ji-hoo. Uh, but what about The Music? Where did his doctorly pursuits come in? I get that this probably has as much to do with his grandfather as Jan-di, but it felt random. Like it was conjured just to prove again that Ji-hoo is Jan-di’s soulmate, only now it emphasizes that they’re platonic soulmates, since they’ve remained friends even though Jun-pyo’s been away.

This leads me to:

(3) Soulmates (not to be confused with Soeulmates). I’ve never been a big fan of the “Ji-hoo is Jan-di’s soulmate” aspect. Maybe we’re all conditioned to think that soulmates are a romantic thing, and maybe I resent how much time was overwhelmingly given to the soulmate and not the actual love interest. I think Kim Hyun-joong has improved a lot over the course of the drama, but I still don’t really feel the chemistry between Ji-hoo and Jan-di. The fact that they had SO many sweet, intimate moments throughout the series and I still never jumped ship indicates just how lacking their pairing was for me.

(Intellectually, I thought Ji-hoo was better for Jan-di, but I never felt their emotional connection on a gut level, and their interactions never got me excited or giddy or otherwise invested.)

On the other hand:

STUFF I LIKED:

(1) Callbacks, yay! I enjoyed all the revisited past moments and bits of dialogue that were injected into the finale. I’ve seen dramas do this in the past, but a lot of times they feel forced in. Boys Before Flowers surprised me by doing a good job of incorporating past lines or interactions to build the action here. It didn’t feel like a mere rehash but a natural use of these characters’ personalities.

For instance, I liked how all of Jun-pyo’s misstated sayings came back and were worked into dialogue — both in really serious scenes (the pool) and lighter, more upbeat scenes (the cable car, the beach). In some dramas, it feels like characters are suddenly altered/forced into making the ending work, but I like that this was an example of continuity done right. Done wrong, we get blatant fanservice, but done right, it’s pretty emotionally satisfying.

(2) The epilogue. The time-skip epilogue is a risky device and is sort of an easy out. Epilogues can be problematic in that they provide a “perfect” wrap-up for characters, kinda like sticking a band-aid over a more serious problem. BUT, in an over-the-top, feel-good romantic comedy like this, I’m all for it. I know there’s no such thing as a true-life Happily Ever After, but this is what I want from a giddy, lovey romance drama. The perfecter the better!

An epilogue gives us a little more time to deal with goodbyes, so we avoid the let-down feeling of a resolution that comes too quickly. I would have been sorely disappointed if we ended after the cable-car kiss — and for a few dreaded seconds, I actually thought they’d ended the drama there — but the “four years later” gave us (okay, me) that needed buffer to let myself down gradually. LOL.

(3) Soeulmates. I expressed my ambivalence about how they would wrap up, but I was pleased with their ending. I don’t think they really needed a huge finish — that would’ve taken time away from the other romance — but I like that we have hope for their future without necessarily seeing it.

The time skip works for them because they, perhaps more than Jan-di and Jun-pyo, needed to grow up and live their lives and mature some more before getting together. As much as it might have been romantic for Yi-jung to have made a big gesture at the age of 20, I wouldn’t have the hope for their future that a time skip sorta automatically takes care of.

(4) The amnesia fix. Just as I was pleasantly surprised about how the amnesia plot came about, I was pleased at how it played out.

Example: The taste thing was one part that was well tied in, because Jan-di made those foods for him in the past, and when she did, they had some significance. The first time Jun-pyo asked for those egg rollups, it was after the snowstorm. It also symbolizes something of their class differences — or rather, emphasizes the “Hey, maybe we’re not so far apart” aspect of their statuses, since Jun-pyo loves this commoner food for what it is, even though he has gourmet stuff all around. (Hey, metaphor!)

But I was glad that the taste issue alone wasn’t enough to get Jun-pyo’s memory back. Here’s where the plot diverges from Hanadan, and I was really happy with it — and frankly wished they’d diverged more often. The taste was enough to remind Jun-pyo of his newer, warm-n-fuzzy feelings, but not enough to identify all the details (like, for instance, WHO those warm-n-fuzzies were directed at).

That leads Jun-pyo to be chummy with Yumi (grrr), because he’s correlating his memory of Jan-di’s warmth (evoked by her food) with Yumi. I doubt he feels anything for Yumi specifically; it’s more like his wires got crossed so the affection he feels for Jan-di is being misdirected at Yumi.

(5) The pool. OH, the awesomeness of the pool!

Here’s why I love that Jan-di fell into the water:

(a) It proves that despite what she tells Ji-hoo, she still does have faith in Jun-pyo. At first I thought she would merely fake being in “trouble” underwater till he jumped in to save her, but she committed to her last-ditch effort so much that she was really in danger. Was it foolish? Perhaps. But it’s also evidence of how much she believed that he would come around, because even if his conscious memory can’t recall her, she believed in their other connection — that intangible, indestructible love they feel, that connection that’s so strong that forces much stronger than plain ol’ amnesia weren’t able to sever them. (Namely, Madam Kang.)

(b) I love Jan-di’s speech to Jun-pyo, because it appears that his selective amnesia (as evidenced by his belief that he can’t swim) has blocked out the past year or so. Any feelings that resemble the Newer Jun-pyo (post-Jan-di) are mostly expressed subconsciously; everything he knows and does consciously is from pre-Jan-di times. So in her speech, Jan-di speaks to the Jun-pyo who changed for/because of her. The things she tells him may not even be things he realizes concretely — they’re things he’s forgotten as well — but as she talks, he feels them resonate. He can try to deny that he knows her, but he can’t deny the truth of her insight into his character, and that scares the bejeebus out of him.

(c) And most importantly, Jan-di’s jump into the pool forces Jun-pyo’s subconscious to act. Sure, all throughout the episode, Jan-di (or F3) could have told Jun-pyo the truth of their relationship, but it would’ve done little good to merely announce, “Hey, I’m your girlfriend, you idiot!” Maybe it would have helped, but it wouldn’t have provided the jolt that would return the rest of his memory — not like a good ol’ scare to the subconscious could, anyway.

OVERALL THOUGHTS

Was Boys Before Flowers a GOOD drama?

Well, no.

In all honesty, I can’t really call it good — insofar as a “good” drama requires strong acting, masterful directing, tight storytelling, and overall high quality. And it can’t just have one of those elements, but most or all of them, expressed in skillful balance.

On the other hand, it depends on how you define the word “good” for yourself. “Good” might not mean “artistic” to you; it might not mean “eloquent” or “insightful.” Good might mean entertaining, or emotionally provocative. Excitement-inducing. Enjoyable to watch and rewatch and participate in fan culture. And in those measures, I’d say BBF delivered.

Because sure, an Academy Award-winning film deserves its praise, but to be frank, they’re not always entertaining. Or they may be beautiful and meaningful, but not move the heart.

Boys Before Flowers was kind of a glorious mess — the acting was sometimes very good, sometimes horribly bad. The music was decent, but applied carelessly in messy spurts like a five-year-old who’s sneaked her way into mommy’s makeup stash for the first time. The writing had its moments, but more often than not was poorly paced, and as we know you can’t build an entire drama upon random nice moments.

But it also had its weird brand of narcotic magic. If you stuck around till the end, you know what I’m talkin’ about. If you didn’t, well, you may still know what I’m talking about, even if you were never under the influence. A film snob may sniff at “the masses” — and I’ve been that person too — but so what? Let the snob enjoy his lofty solitude while we masses can commune with each other and laugh and cry together.

I was actually reading a book somewhere around the middle of BBF’s run, and a paragraph leapt off the page and just about smacked me in the face with its aptness. And who can argue with the words of the (late, great) awesome David Foster Wallace?

“At root, vulgar just means popular on a mass scale. It is the semantic opposite of pretentious or snobby. It is humility with a comb-over. It is Nielsen ratings and Barnum’s axiom and the real bottom line. It is big, big business.”

Truer words, y’all.

Okay, okay, I’m done! Finally!

I’ve had SO MUCH FUN, you guys! I think the drama has reached its time to go, so I’m not sad that the series is over, but I will miss the insanity of this drama. All the discussion, the fangirling (myself included), the plot dissection, future predictions, kvetching about story insanity, snarking about ridiculosity, and yes, even bitching about everything that drove us crazy.

Honestly, I haven’t been this entertained following a drama in a while. True, in a vacuum, this product itself is far from perfect — but thankfully, I don’t consume my entertainment in a vacuum, but out here in the wilds of the internet as part of an enthusiastic community.

THANKS FOR ALL THE FUN TIMES!

629

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501 JINGJING

November 16, 2009 at 7:12 PM

☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺

I LIKE GU HYE SUN AS JAN DI IN BOF SHE REALLY DESERVE THE ROLE OF JAN DI CAUSE SHE LOOKS LIKE DOLL AND SHE'S VERY CUTE................................
LOVE U HYE SUN..............................

☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺

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502 mblaqluv

December 3, 2009 at 8:02 PM

i have to say...i didnt like this drama as much as the j version. The 2 main characters didnt have any chemistry...at all. Throughout the drama there were cute moments and romantic and lovely and funny between them but i didnt feel all jumpy when they kissed or feel anything at all. If you compare this couple to another couple...say "Smile you" couple, Hyun-soo and Jungin, you can tell the difference. Theres loads of exploding chemistry and feeling between them and you as the viewer can feel it too. You feel excited when things happen and sad and you cna connect with them but I couldnt really do that for these two. Plus, the fact that she kinda seemed alot smarter than him and she didnt have act the girlfriend part very well. Anyway, i have to say during the time it was interesting but afterwards i didnt find anything interesting in it. Anyway, i know alot of people liked it but this particular thing bothers me alot especially since i expected alot from this drama. Personally, i think it wouldve been better to replace them two with other actors. yeah i know i'm writing this like a year later but i just came across this and felt like writing. :) lol

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503 lexx

December 8, 2009 at 11:35 AM

@mblaqluv

-As much as I respect your opinion but I have to disagree on the part where "Personally, i think it wouldve been better to replace them two with other actors", I mean for me, I didn't really felt the chemistry of Gu Jun Pyo and Geum Jan Di... maybe because I never really liked Jan Di's character, at times she could be really super cute, that it annoys me to death... and I also think that BoF is no a really good series since there were many flaws in the story line but it still made my year [YES, my year ^_^]. all because of LEE MIN HO! I think the series made it big all over Asia not because of the great chemistry between the two main characters [well, maybe ... ] but more over, it's because of Lee Min Ho and the F4, I think nobody really cares about Jan Di, or is it just me? kekeke. Personally Lee Min Ho's great portrayal of Jun Pyo was the reason behind the success of BoF. I even think that he made a better perfermance than Jun Matsumoto, since he brought out a new side of the Bad Ass leader of F4. He showed us the other side, the softer side of his character without losing his angst. So maybe I'd go with you on replacing JAN DI [GOO HYE SUN] but not LEE MIN HO! [well, as if we could do something about it. but oh well.] As I've said, no chemistry between them, if there was, it was not much of an impact. I am all for JUNKYUNG! i love Jae Kyung, with her and Jun Pyo, I could feel more intensity, the electricity. :)

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504 Fix me

December 14, 2009 at 3:04 AM

i like this whooole series and thank you so much dramabeans for putting such a good summaries (i even like your own comments that slipped between the summaries, eventhough sometimes it goes a little bit harsh, i still could laugh at it cause sometimes i think the same too :) )
but the only reason i love the series is just because they all (the actresses and the actors's) are so well-polished and so good to be seen. All are soo extremely beautiful that no matter how wrong the story could be, i still could forgive it.

but after i read the manga, i think it would be a whole lot more better if they really built geum jan di character into really strong heroine like the original form (makino tsukushi in manga), not like all those weakling geum jan di who almost get raped in a foreigner country without any struggle, or anything like that. (you should really watch makino tsukushi act in the japanese manga).

i think its just that i wanna say, once again thankyoou dramabeaaans!

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505 asdfghjkl;

December 24, 2009 at 9:10 PM

oh my god the ending was terrible
Gu Jun Pyo is so FRIGGIN UGLYYY! jeez idk wut guys see in him
JiHoo all the waay dude
how cud u not like him? he's sooooooooo much more hot and you cant deny and he's so much nicer and caring to JanDi and they had so much more "special moments"
i mean LOOK at Jun Pyo curly hair ew haha

there shud have been a better ending for Yoo Bin and Gaeul though, they're cute too
though ur commentary bout JanDi was funny though hah
F3 witout jun pyo's aasooomee

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506 Aera Love BBF!

December 26, 2009 at 5:08 PM

thx u sooooo much! 4 this infooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee lovvveeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! lllllllllloooooooooooooooovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BOYS BEFORE FLOWERS!

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507 ghaliby ardhia

January 6, 2010 at 9:20 PM

I LOVE YOU BBF .
LOVE FOREVER !!
muach ! :-*
love you so !

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508 Mars

January 10, 2010 at 10:51 AM

I want a video of this.

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509

January 14, 2010 at 12:42 AM

thanks so much.........im so happy! lol

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510 rila

January 15, 2010 at 4:29 AM

it's make me happy when i wach tv. thanks

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511 mei

January 24, 2010 at 3:30 PM

It was enjoyable, that's all I can say. I agree with you that whilst it was a bit disappointing acting-wise, it does have a rather high entertainment value, hugely due to all the eye-candy. Hahahhaha!
Lee Min Ho was the best thing in BOF, really, though I preferred Matsumoto Jun's interpretation of the character more.
KHJ was decent at times, ie when he doesn't talk and just sits there lookin' pretty. I love Oguri Shun's Rui (and him, hehehehe) and KHJ's performance just wasn't up to par.
Kim Bum was good too, but then again he has always been a good actor. I liked the pairing between his character and Ga Eul better than JD and JP, JD and JH, etc.
Kim Joon...poor Kim Joon, relegated to several cheesy lines that only a black guy can get away with saying, though he did have some cutesy scenes.
All in all, I'd give it a 6/10, for making me happy watching it but also left me thinking at the end of most episodes, heck, SCENES: "Now what was the point of that?"

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512 jenlayn turla

January 30, 2010 at 5:35 AM

this movie, for me is so nice..!:)...it inspires me in many thing......i hope there will be a part 2 for this movie.... because many Pilipino still hoping that there will be a Part2 for this movie..? can it be happen? we will wait...:)

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513 jenlayn turla

January 30, 2010 at 5:39 AM

ahhmm... for me this is nice...! it inspires me lot in different things......i love this movie so much... not just only me... but all the Pilipino.... we're all hoping that there will be a Part2 of this movie...! can it be happen? we will wait..!:)--------------------Jenalyn Turla:) love it!

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514 jenlayn turla

January 30, 2010 at 5:42 AM

well, thanks you for bringing this movie drama in Philippines..! and it made most the Pilipino become "addicted" on this movie.... and I am part of those..:)

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515 jenlayn turla

January 30, 2010 at 5:44 AM

☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺
☺ GU HYE SUN and LEE MIN HO you’re my favorite loveteam!!!☺ ☺ I love you’re chemistry together ☺
☺ I wish that you will have a movie again!!! ☺
☺ Love U GU HYE SUN & LEE MIN HO……………………… ☺
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516 poo

February 17, 2010 at 12:10 AM

therz gonna be a season 2 yay! \^_^/
I loved this drama so much!
Personally i dun agree with ur opinion on the 'soulmates' thing
Of course there was not enough chemistry between jandi and ji hoo as it was between jandi and gu jun pyo but i feel it was coz ji hoo didnt tell her anythng till d 24th episode (not dat i expect a different ending had he told her befors lol)...but i really admire his character...it is really difficult to love someone with no expectation...ppl say one sided loving is tiring...but ji hoo's character is like an inspiration. Being a soul-mate is really difficult sometimes, watching d person u love madly in love with someone else...itz like going thru a heartbreak everyday...on top of that if 'that someone else' is ur best friend...itz worst! I think datz d reason y ji hoo never really gave his 100% tho i seriously feel his love for jandi is definitely more than gu jun pyo and at a completely different level, which is why it was one of the main aspect of this drama and datz y it was given so much time. It is really hard to find ppl like ji hoo nw a days....jandi is one lucky girl ^^

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517

February 17, 2010 at 1:12 AM

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518 Anonymous

April 2, 2010 at 8:25 PM

This drama series is funny, emotional and has a lot of plot, and I really like that kind of stuff and the thing that made me like BBF so much is Yi Jung and Ga Eul's relationship. Because the Jun-di relationship is almost the same in all the versions. Yi jung and Ga Eul's relationship is a never before seen plot and is only available in the korean version. They look really great together and they both are just really really sweet people. And i just love all that darkness coming out of Yi Jung, their complicated chemistry and involvement with the past and everything. Its just brilliant! :D

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519 Anon

April 5, 2010 at 8:40 AM

Hello, I really hope someone can help me here.Does anyone know the name of this instrumental song which was on the last episode, where Jan Di started to dance with F3, the one with the strings instruments?Please try to help, thanks!!!

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520 Kayalia

April 13, 2010 at 6:01 PM

Whew - what an emotional rollercoaster.

I've seen the anime, read the manga and seen both seasons of the J-drama as well as the Japanese movie. I finally decided to see the Korean version because, I really love the story, and also because I kept hearing really great things about it - I was not disappointed.

It took me a while to really get comfortable with the Korean version, because it did deviate enough from the manga to not sit well with me, but once I got over that little technicality I did enjoy it.

However, there were some things that really bothered me. I felt as though they spent the majority of the time building up Ji-Hoo and Jan Di's relationship so that it didn't make sense to me when Jan Di and Gu Jun Pyo ended up together. Now, I could be very biased against this, as I've always been a huge Hanazawa Rui fan and was REALLY wanted Rui and Makino to end up together, but I could always accept Makino and Doumyouji.

I enjoyed what they did to Ji-Hoo's character, though, and while I admit that Kim Hyun Joong did not do the traditional Hanazawa Rui justice, I did feel like they gave Ji-Hoo a lot more character and depth - making him a more playful and personable person, which I think is when Kim Hyun Joong seemed more at ease in his character. However, he was really given A LOT more air time than I had remembered in any other version, and in doing so, I felt that they built up a strong relationship between Ji-Hoo and Jan Di when they should have had more scenes with Jan Di and Gu Jun Pyo - so I felt a huge disconnect when Jan Di and Jun Pyo got together and even sadder that Ji-Hoo didn't get the girl (again).

However, I did REALLY enjoy how they went about Ga Eul and Yi-Jung - and it's probably my favourite rendition of the couple. They didn't make Ga Eul a silly, lovesick friend who was constantly chasing after Yi-Jung, which was the feeling I got in the Japanese drama - and made me feel almost embarrassed for her. The Korean Ga Eul went after him with dignity and it was really pleasant to watch.

Despite the fluctuation in good acting, the cheesy lines (I felt bad for the actor playing Yi-Jung - I think he got some of the worst lines in the drama), the sometimes painful-to-watch expressions of Jan Di, I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed Boys Before Flowers. It was engaging, entertaining and overall a pleasant watch.

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521 lina

May 23, 2010 at 9:55 PM

I LIKE BBF

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522 mena

June 14, 2010 at 6:41 AM

mejor se bieran quedado kim hyun joong con geum jan di ------------------------------------ubiera sido mejor asi
en taln hermoso ubiera estado con ella
-----------------________________________________________
eta muy mal el ji hoo sunbe subre mucho no es justo¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡

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523 tuhin subhra nandi

June 24, 2010 at 1:38 PM

this is simply nice story,thats it.

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524 robby bachtyar

June 28, 2010 at 9:38 AM

i like you all

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525 robby bachtyar

June 28, 2010 at 9:40 AM

my wife tooo love you gun jun pyo, i'm so jealous if she is looking u at tv, she's your fans in indonesia

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526 Pooie

July 9, 2010 at 8:16 AM

Well, this is a long time after it ended, but really, BBF was pretty much what led me into Kdramas (well, at least 1 if them) and when I watched it, I didn't really know where there were flaws or not. ^o^ So oh well, I enjoyed it, and the actors\actresses were decent....except a few who stand out :P

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527 :)

July 12, 2010 at 9:11 AM

honestly i couldnt bear to watch a single episode after the introduction of the tedious fiance arc, actually since the whole evil mama kang kicked in, til i knew it was going to end well. and little did i realise. (==) i`d end up reading the whole entire series. :/

the. first. half. is. so. much. better.
and jan di definitely has not given enough in the relationship in my opinion :'/.

and. i love you javabeans. :)
thaaaaaaaaaaaaankyouuuuuuuuu so so much.
recaps are honestly really awesome :D
and personally, i like the biased ones more. ;)

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528 Rida

July 13, 2010 at 1:39 PM

Firstly, I wanna thank Dramabeans - the summaries were so awesome (you should think about giving Wikipedia tips on how to give a proper summary ;) Thanks so much once again!) And I actually cried when this ended, I absolutely love love LOVE BBF so much. I wish they showed Jan Di and Jun Pyo getting married or atleast Jan Di saying I Love You or yes to his face D:
Lee Min Ho has bounced up to ny bias list, number two :D

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529 Nikki

August 14, 2010 at 1:25 PM

Well, I finished this a year late. I started watching it a couple weeks ago. Yeesh, over 25 hours in 2 weeks! But I had a blast watching this and reading your recaps ;) The only thing I would change about this final episode is JanDi's level of excitement when she sees JunPyo. I wanted to invade her body, run to him on the beach, and shreak like a 13 yo girl when he got down on one knee. Ah, JunPyo I believe JanDi loves you, but she was never infatuated. Too bad. Still loved it though!!! BOF FIGHTING!!!!

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530 Bobbi

August 17, 2010 at 10:14 PM

I am seriously bummed out....I wanted Ji Hoo to end up with Jan Di...aaaah!

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sakuramonsun

September 4, 2010 at 10:43 PM

i hope so but if Jan Di with Ji Hoo, what 's going on to jUn pyo.. poor him.. but i think this drama is the most great korean drama..!!

<3 kim hyun joong

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531 ntlk158

August 22, 2010 at 11:49 PM

i watched BOF after seeing Min Ho in Personal Taste and at first i was like... okay.. the lead actress is not as cute or funny or convincing like HYD but i think i get hooked up on episode 14 onwards where in Macau Jun Pyo said Jan Di is a stain he want to erase.. that really hurts and the plot kind of grow on me from that episode but im terribly disappointed at the epilogue, they really could have done better than just standing watching the sunset (especially after Jun Pyo proposed, was expecting something else) and hell.. the pool scene was good that i have to give thumbs up :)

i'd give it 4/5 in the sense i will re-watch the whole drama but i wont buy the dvd (unlike HYD i have everything haha.. )

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532 Mimi Huynh

August 27, 2010 at 5:41 PM

I watched BOF about a yr ago but i only watch like 10 eps (then stopped watching because i was too busy with school) so then last nite i finished it :D i rlly liked it but it was kind of slow and long (LUUUV U KIM HYUN JOONG ) so now i cant cant cant wait until Playfull Kiss XD (BTW IM VIET AND I LOVE KDRAMAAAAAS)

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533 sakuramonsun

September 4, 2010 at 10:41 PM

i really love this drama.. hopes that this drama will have new season.. i want to ask, why ji hoo and woo bin don't have girlfriend but jun pyo and yi jeong have them..

loves u kim hyun joong!!!

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534 marilynn ahkam

September 8, 2010 at 7:31 PM

u are fool of it u think that u are so cool more like losers.i have a nick name for all 4 fo us the first one is hottie,curly,gangster,cutie.+ the girl she is cute and nice kick,kick him again.i hope u are are all in another movie too.i hope we all get 2 see u in Australia. I love u :) nice movie wat is ur msn i want 2 talk 2 u wat's ur phone number's enyways i need 2 go see u in another movie better be see ya later.

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535 LunarMirror

September 21, 2010 at 3:40 PM

Firstly, I am watching the series.

Secondly, It's great the first few EPs and you do wanna see more. (Made me stay up an entire night in excitement ^_^)

Thirdly, It Needs MASSIVE REWORKING

I think the relationship between Jan Di And Jun Pyo is a VERY IMMATURE ONE.

No, not the bickering or fighting - but REALLY Jun Pyo's selfishness and austere/annoying jealousy is not really romantic or comfortable.

I expected Jan Di to be more assertive and show more backbone. I wanted her real conditions explored. It becomes more of a situation comedy than actual romance.

Jun Pyo's jealousy is DISGUSTING as it persists and I do feel Ji-hoo is better for Jan Di both intellectually and romantically.

Yes, I do also agree that they might go good together with Ji-hoo's attachment to Hyun and that he might be just close to Jan Di for other reasons. But I think also that the bad boy Jun Pyo would even be better for Jan Di if he is more believable.

His Jealousy at first is understandable. Then it becomes poisonous.

I expected Jan Di to help him out of those spots. Have more better one on ones - I got furious when Jan Di "who wasn't supposed to bow her head" kind of accepts everything of Jun Pyo even to the point of WTH.

Thats not the gritty, down to earth cusp up in the heavens, well hard spine Jan Di but just a meek little damsel.

I mean take EP 4 or 5 when Jan Di is discovered with pictures with a man. Jun Pyo treats her well like a *beep*

I mean C'mon it's almost like the traditional jealous male that I wanna be her first.

It's so obvious that he's not chaste himself. To expect 100% purity from Jan Di is a double standard that is hard to swallow.

Also later on when Jan Di is brutally beaten and Jun Pyo is criticizing her for not getting out. I expected Jan Di to be more angry and refuse Jun Pyo's help.

If he was that terrific that he was meant to be portrayed then he would just order the underlings to stay out of their personal business.

Instead it is because of his reaction that they are able to go that far with Jan Di.

Jan Di may have silently spoke that and due to her silence Jun Pyo may have understood the gravity of his actions and try to control such situations more. He might have even thought of taking charge of his power for positive use.

Also Jan Di as a maid? Please - that's like Ugh. Not only is it unfair to their relationship it is unfair that Jan Di didn't get to be more clever and use her situation to enforce more positive ideas to Jun Pyo. In fact, she could cleverly use "the beck and call" strategy against him and illustrate what a spoiled brat he is and how he treats his household staff is disgusting (as firing her would not be legible). Any man or woman in Jan Di's situation should do that (I called it unfair to their relationship as Jun Pyo had good moments to tease Jan Di so I wanted Jan Di to strike too - isn't that why bad boy loves Ms. Dry Cleaner is the first place? ^_^)

Also some of the music starting becoming annoying :P

What I loved about the series is that it can grab your attention (I learned the meaning of plutocrat) and exhibit the hierarchy between people very well.

In school worser crimes are committed then people suspect and bonds between people are either shattered or forged.

I loved the F4's insight - all of them have something to offer though I think Woo-bin became their most minor character.

What I would have liked more was these qualities expanded upon and their intrinsic matter be analyzed.

Jan Di keeps on insisting she's not worked on by money magic but kinda seems to tilt to Jun Pyo for it :P

I'm not saying she can't enjoy things but I would love her gritty side to come out more.

Well BBF Is A Nice Series that could stand out more if some changes were done ^_^

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536 Sue

October 24, 2010 at 7:10 PM

Thank you so much for all your hard work!! I simply couldn't miss reading all your recap even though i was watching it at the same time. Your recap gave me an insight so at times, I could stop and watch the next episodes at a later time. U kept me sane..ha ha ha..if not i would have spend many sleepless nights trying to finish the whole drama.

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537 Curious16

November 2, 2010 at 8:50 PM

Thx for the recaps,loved them! :)
Anyway,anyone noticed that the scene where Jan-di fell into the swimming pool is also similiar to a scene where it was also shown in "Lovers in Paris"???Same scene,where the female lead falls slowly into the swimming pool and the male lead dives in to save her!
LOL,but I really like these kind of "dropping-into-swimming-pool-and-the-lead-comes-and-saves-her" scenes,haha!Anyway,just for randomness! HeH! :D

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538 peekabooo

January 9, 2011 at 1:53 AM

crappy plot with too many eye candies... so many unnecessary scenes that may be considered a waste of effort, and film...

i love the people behind the characters, hate the plot...

Jandi started out as cool and aggressive.. wth happened to her when she became a damsel in distress? too eeeewwww...

i'll rate it as 3/10.

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539 rowensage

January 19, 2011 at 8:53 AM

Is it sad that the parts I rewatch of this drama are the Yi Jung and Ga Eul parts and the Ji Hoo and Jan Di parts. ^_^ Those are what made this drama for me. I have to say though in all honesty I really can't see Jan Di ending up with Jun Pyo. Then again I was far more interested in Ga Eul and Yi Jung's relationship to care about Jan Di ^_^ I think the drama would have been better if they spent more time on the side character. Putting Ga Eul and Yi Jung aside (come on who could use more of that! ^_^) We know almost nothing about Wo Bin and that's kinda sad.

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540 bobmar

June 12, 2011 at 8:18 PM

Yes it was a glorious mess. It made me remember that youthful 'anything can happen' feeling. Thank you for this website and community

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541 moon

July 12, 2011 at 3:39 AM

Thank u. The ending was good to me. hey at least its not a sad ending, like what I watched before. I hate sad endings. They dont bring hope to me.

Hey life is full of sorrowful events hence when I am watching fictions, I prefer the happily ever after thing.

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542 koe

July 14, 2011 at 7:36 AM

its 2011 and im rewatching this awesome drama. 2 years old, but still good to me. :D
and thank u for da amazing recap (:

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543 jed

August 10, 2011 at 3:54 AM

i did not watch this drama when it was shown here in the Philippines..i was planning to watch this on DVD because of lee min ho and kim hyun joong and now after reading the recaps i want to say thank you (in my most honest way) because i would rather read the recap than watch this drama.. your comments were the ones that made me laugh koala..

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544 addictKdrma

September 4, 2011 at 2:36 PM

Terrible lead actress. I stopped watching after episode 13 and just read all your recaps to the final episode. I am watching the final episode just for the pool scene.

You are a very talented, sometimes cruel writer. I love your recaps and laugh a lot reading your side observations. Omo, omo! And I don't even know what it means, LOL.

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545 cottonbloom

September 30, 2011 at 5:07 AM

Ahh Boys Over Flowers was the first ever drama I watched and was the start of my addiction. After watching further dramas I realise the flaws even though I was madly obsessed with this series.

Even though I say that, I loved this drama sososososo much! Lee Min Ho was simply charming and Jun Pyo! I'm so glad he got a lot of spotlight since then. He is such a wonderful actor.

I was mightily disappointed with Ga Eul and Yi Jeong's relationship! NOT EVEN A KISS :( And also the way Jun Pyo and Jan Di's relationship, I would've liked a somewhat stable relationship instead of random shit getting in the way all the time. Kim Hyun Joong did not very well at all.

but I can't complain, it was such a sweet series, I'm glad it was popular and still is! I'll always love this series, it's very nostalgic

thanks for the recaps again xxxxx

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546 Satin

December 28, 2011 at 11:35 AM

again very late commenting and started watching this drama in 2011 lmao.

I started off watching this Korean version of HYD and finished it. then I finished the Japenese version along with the movie.and is now deep into the Tawain version along with anime. I may try to check out the 1995 movie of this manga as well.

Few things: Best looking F4 definitely goes to Korea. I mean the Tawain's F4 are handsome and Domyouji of the Japan version is cute. However Korea's F4 is fi-yi-yi-yi-yiiiine. And they looked very well-to-do for their parts. Tawain's F4 looked like regular commoner boys. Japan's for the most part looked rich. However Korea's did a good job making these young men look GQ. Best storyline and romance chemistry between the male and female lead goes to Japanese version hands down. Makino and Dom are the cutest couples. They are the type of acting couples that make me want to believe that they are dating in real life. Best kissing scenes Tawain version hands down. I mean those scenes were totally hot.

This K-version did have alot of embarrassing, stupid what the hell moments however I was very entertained by it. I love Jun Pyo, the way he looked, and his great acting. He made hate him at first when he was being an ass. He made me love him when he was wooing Jandi. He made me cry when he was sad. Excellent acting. I love F4's brotherhood chemistry they had going on. I love the anticipation of wanting Jandi and Junpyo to get romantic and hurry up and get over the bad times lol. I love many heart felt and touching moments. Other than that this version doesnt really hold a candle to the J-version to me.

One of the most annoying characters to me was the female lead. Jandi annoyed me the most. I felt like at the times she really should reciprocate the love she was still half-stepping. I can understand certain times after her being bullied by him and when he was being a total prick in Macau. other than that there were times when her acting stupid towards him was uncalled for. I got to the point of feeling like "why in the hell should Jun Pyo even bother with this girl" lol. I mean when he wasnt in her presence she showed how much she cared more. but in his presence when he really showed her she was still wack in showing him back. I mean the kissing was totally lame especially on her part. it always looked like he was hugging her and she was just there. so of course at the end when he asks her to marry and she gives an answer like come back in four years and see how I feel....I really wanted to choke her. not because I wanted to be a totally happy ending like the J-version (well maybe a little lol) but throughout the series she just didnt seem to love him the way he loved her. and for me personally that just doesnt sound like a beneficial relationship for anybody to be in rich or poor. I mean I kind of feel toward her like I feel toward Bella lol. Like what really is so great about this girl for two guys to go head over heels over? So I couldnt really root for this female lead in relation to her male lead. I was rooting Jun Pyo majority of the time and just wanted Jandi to fricking get her act together lol. I mean looking at how those two are in this drama would make me say if this was in real life "that couple will soon divorce" smh.

On the subject of Jihoo and his acting. Yes he is very emotionless and the J-version Rui was a little more playful. However isnt his character suppose to be emotionless at times with autistic tendencies? If that is the case he nailed it. Because he did look and act autistic lol. On the subject of him being a doctor. I am a little glad that he is productive because Rui totally looked like a bum in comparison to the rest of the F4 lol.

Now I personally felt like they could have done more with Jun Pyo's dads recovery and seeing if Mama Kang really accepted or at least tolerated Jandi. It would have been perfect if the dad recovered and realized it was Jandi that helped his recovery....and when he awakens and speaks of Jandi with gratitude then Mama Kang can do nothing but except her. that was how it should have went in my personal opinion. not poof. he is up and well and being fed by Mama Kang and thats it.

but you described it perfectly it was a glorious mess. I loved it and have definitely watched my fave parts multiple times even after fiinishing it but cant help but feel embarassed for many of the other scenes because it was so bad lmao.

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547 Tee Cee

February 23, 2012 at 3:25 AM

The fall into the pool...aaah: beautiful :).

But to start off, did anyone feel a sense of a kind of perverted justice that Jan-Di had to work to get Jun-Pyo back? I did. I didn't dislike her character, but frankly, sometimes I felt that she wasn't giving her all to JD like he was doing for her. So perhaps, him not remembering her was her way of seeing that love shouldn't be one-sided--which may have been what she needed to learn in order to really be with JP.

The chick that lied to get next to Jun-Pyo--yes, I'm calling her "the chick"...what a dirty, lowdown, looks-like-a-deer heifer. Honestly hon, if you have to work that hard to get a man, you'll have to work that hard to keep him. The same dirt that she sowed was the same dirt that she reaped. Cow. The only good thing about her was that she didn't get introduced sooner so I wouldn't have to look at her for longer. Ugh. But, I digress.

Overall, I enjoyed the series. What I'll take away from it most--memories of Ji-hoo. Kim Hyun Joong is no Laurence Olivier, but the great thing is that he didn't have to be. He played Ji-hoo the way he should have been played--with warmth, purity, and beauty. What a wonderful friend he was Jan-Di, even when he desired to be far more. Every time I saw him on-screen, I was glad. It was also great for me to see KHJ in this context after seeing him in Playful Kiss. He was so convincingly mean and harsh that it was nice to see him sweet.

BBF was only my second journey into Korean TV, so now I am really anxious to see more. Many of the Korean shows I've Googled are not available on Netflix, but City Hunter is so that wil be my next venture. Thanks for all the updates; they were a great accoutrement to watching and gave me quite a bit of insight into what happened. Cheers.

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548 Germaine

July 10, 2012 at 6:53 AM

I read the manga first and completely loved the first section, in which a handsome but barely human Domyoji is shocked by a strange girl who is not pretty, and stumbles his way first towards Love and eventually Reason. The result is rather endearing; he is still very stupid, childishly loyal and not very useful apart from his brute strength.
How elegantly this theme comes back at the end, when Domyoji finally dismisses Hospital Girl. Although he has amnesia, he remembers the victims of his rage and random violence. Somehow he had returned to being human, but she knows none of this, had never been part of it, and so, "you are not what I need".

Self-awareness in Domyoji! Who would have thought him capable?

He certainly takes a long time to get there. 33 chapters in fact, largely filled with tiresome tropes. Girls who want handsome Domyoji, girls who want rich Domyoji, spiteful fangirls

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549 Germaine

July 10, 2012 at 7:45 AM

(continued)
senseless persecution by mother, flinging of love tokens into large bodies of water. Also, makeovers, maid dressing, memory loss... Yes, the characters need the time and the trials to grow. I only wished that these trials had been more original. I skimmed through the middle section, waiting page after page, chapter after chapter, for more of the brilliance that had created Domyoji. It was not to be.

As could be expected, I was disappointed with the k-drama version. The tropes were played out in all their glory, and the part I really admired, that somehow endearing brute, stupid, loyal and not very useful Domyoji had disappeared. In his place, was the same arrogant and callous chaebol heir that I'd seen in every other k-drama.

With the irritation of this shallow characterisation in my mind, for a long time, I refused to watch anything with Lee Minho in it. It is only very recently that I succumbed to watching City Hunter, and realised what I'd been missing.

Once in a while, I come across signs of the love and affection for Boys Before Flowers and wonder if the manga really spoilt it for me. If I had never known the real Domyoji, would I have enjoyed the F4, simply and viscerally, just like everyone else?

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550 humanwithoutname

August 14, 2012 at 11:48 PM

this is the great drama ever...congratulations for boys over flower...

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