@ 43 Panda "using a bomb to kill a chicken"
&
@44 Purpleclouds "loved him for some unknown reason"

LOL <--- that's what your comments made me do.
Ahaha !

Lee Min Ho and Lee Min Jung, please!!!!!!!!!

Any hot man will do, just pleasepleaseplease don't pick Kim Hyun Joong!

Kim Soo Hyun and Park Bo Young get my vote!

The most important thing is right leading actors and good chemistry ( like ISWAK) it's gonna be fun to watch!

wow... I really hope they know what they're doing with this one. I hated the Taiwanese version because of the girl, well and the guy as well. I read a few chapter of the manga, and the girl was definitely not as annoying in it. That COULD be because of ink on paper vs seeing it in reality.

I really really hope they don't make her to be as slow and dimwitted as the taiwanese heroine. But a lot of people did love the drama, so they must be doing SOMETHING right.

Looking forward to this, but I have a hard time believing that they'll find two characters that will top the performances of Joe Cheng and Ariel Lin in the lead roles, not to mention Jiro Wang. Eh, maybe I'm being overly skeptical, but the performances in ISWAK were amazing and the casting was pretty spot on, I'm not sure they could top it.

Also, *sigh*, as much as I wanted to like Boys Over Flowers, the Japanese and the Taiwanese interpretations of that story were SO much better, in my opinion of course. Maybe the acting/directing/writing styles of Taiwan and Japan make the Manga to Television transition easier to handle (for Japan it does help that it is THEIR comics). Korean shows seems less likely to go over the top in a more "cartoony" way that I feel is often necessary to capture the essence of the manga the series is based on (which is not to say that they aren't over the top, just not in THAT way) The spirit of the manga can be lost if you try to play it down too much.

Whatever, I'll hope for the best and pray they do a good job with the casting.

#52 Daisy,

The first girl I thought of was Kim So Eun. But now that you mention it, I think Park Bo Young is the best candidate for this part. Lee Min Ho can do this role I'm sure, and they would have excellent chemistry as they've known each other for years. But then again, I don't think Lee Min Ho can do another drama almost similar to Jeon Jin Ho.

Yep. Park Bo Young would be perfect. I've only seen her in Mackerel Run and she was funny with her cameo appearances and at the same time sweet. So yeah, she's perfect for this role.

I like GoongS....
The drama is actually not bad just that people in the drama can't act.

I want Kim Bum and KIm So Eun...

@62 shu, if you saw Moon Geun Young in "My Little Bride" and "Love Me Not" she was so adorably gullible! She's an extremely versatile actress, actually. I can see her in almost any role.

MGY = <3333 (:

this is one i'm gonna follow. Love this director's works! thanks javabeans!

A terminally stupid (but warm) heroine and a genius (but cold) hero? Oh, and don't forget the smart girl who tries to get between them. No thanks.

No matter how good the directing is, I positively hate the basis of the story, and I have not liked a single version of it.

Maybe if they switched the genders it would at least have a novel appeal, but otherwise it is just tired and embarrassing.

ISWAK and TKA (it's sequel) were awesome Taiwanese series. I really want to see how a Korean version will excel such excellence. I want both to finish through. I'm shuffling through actor profiles and no Korean actors stands out to play the lead roles. Joe Cheng and Ariel Lin were simply phenomenal embracing their roles. This thread will be fun to stalk.

@ 61 amktsy

Ditto, I now can see Kim So Eun able to play Xiang Qin. I disagree Kim Bum as Zhi Shu.

squeeeeeeeeee!! LOVE ISWAK (it was my first TW drama) and I am SO excited for this...hopefully not as cheesy, but will retain the cutesy aspects of the story.

can't wait!!

@ 61 amktsy

Don't you agreee, Zhi Shu needs to be tall as a wise tree hovering over Xiang Qin most of the time?

I wonder what Gong Yoo has been doing. Yoohoo ~ Time for you to come out to play Gong Yoo... as Zhi Shu!

I miss his hotness.

Oh! would like to see Kim Bum as the lead.

Choi Siwon would be good too - Oh my! How I miss OML. :o(

OMG. Anyone whose watched Goond and ROI would know how beautiful his dramas are! They've got that nice... feeling. Visually pleasing to the eyes.

It's like perfection in every way~

*dies*.

I'm giggling as I did when I first heard of BOF remake. Where I couldn't wait and stayed up all night to wait for the airing, than immediately rushed for recaps as if an alien descended down upon the Earth and screaming "IT"S ACTUALLY REAL AND HERE".

*sigh* If only he did Cinderella's Sister as well, things would have been nice~

Knowing k-drama, they're going to give her some backbone and spunk, aren't they? The original Kotoko is actually pretty cute and not really annoying. I'm hoping they kind of stick with that. Something like Park Shin-hye's character in You're Beautiful, but a bit stronger. Please, anything but a Jandi.

i'd love to see kim bum and park shin hye for this project... =)

I think all Team Park Kyu -ers are thinking, IM JOOHWAN. Well, I know I am, heh. LOL. But seriously, Im Joohwan's Park Kyu, wow. I know he can pull off a decent Naoki Irie. Crossing fingers here..

I've seen the Taiwanese version of this. I know for a lot of people this was one of their favorites, but I've gotta say I absolutely hated it. And I think it's because of that I sort of thought less of Ariel Lin. I don't think she brought out any (existing?) charming features of the Kotoko character. Sorry, I can't rally behind a really really, and I mean really, dumb female protagonist. Most of the time I was watching that I wanted to headdesk myself.

The Kotoko character in itself is really difficult for actresses to pull off, at least in my opinion, where I find it hard to just rally behind such a dumb protagonist - therefore, the female casting is really important in determining whether Kotoko will just be plain dumb or with somewhat redeeming factors that I can sympathize with enough. Still. Hwang Inroi is a huge plus. Hopefully this will become a Tamra success. Hopefully.

But, really, not many actresses come to mind. Or maybe it's because I don't really wanna see some of my favorite actresses play such a.... "meh" character.

Kim Bum acting is great too
and he looks good with PSH as well ( since they are good friends )

@48 and 49,
Yeah I forgot that SJK is already booked ^^;;
But Kim Bum or Choi Si Woo is not bad either
I really want PSH for this role
**fingers crossed**

wow i'm a really big fan of this manga / taiwan drama, (i devoured both!) i hope they do this justice. the chemistry between ariel lin and joe cheng in this was simply amazing, so i hope korean casting for this one would be perfect. i dont want to be disappointed by a BOF-hype again.

Wow! I am learning a lot by reading comments by drama enthusiasts and experts here. I am quite new and only started to view TV dramas (Taiwanese and Korean) not too long ago. I particularly like Boys Before Flowers for the story-line and sound tracks. Perhaps naive, I still feel Lee Min Ho will do a good job if casted for this drama. As for the female lead, Park Shin Hye seems suitable in my view.

@Snikki

I love your suggestions!

I hope it's Dara Park - Choi Si Won.
BlackJacks and ELFs will just support their idols!
That'll be a casting coup! LOL.
Okay, fine. I'm just so excited when I read the choices above!
Plus I've loved the story since I've watched both TW and JP versions of it!

Naoki: Kim So Hyun, Im Joo Hwan, Yoo Seung Ho, Kim Suk.

Kotoko: Park Bo Young, Go Ah Sung, Shin Se Kyung, Seo Woo, SNSD Yoona,

Love the Ariel Lin Joe Zheng Taiwanese tandem. They can't cast too beautiful actress for Kotoko, must be quite ordinary faces but can do adorable and not overload cutesy. As for Naoki they can cast handsome boy, but he must can looks cold & bit emotionless at the beginning.

hope this adaptation is not as bad as BOF
sorry but the taiwanese's pairing is the best!! Joe Cheng and Ariel Lin DEFINITELY have it!!!
Casting should be good... or else, GOODBYE...:

but I don't want to watch "stupid" girls anymore...

:( personally, there are better mangas out there that they could adapt. /sigh

I looooove goong!!
I do hope, they cast kim so eun and kim bum!!! soeulmates forever! plus, that will be their first on screen kiss, so it would really be where “it started with a kiss”.. please oh please oh please!!

I remember pre Goong days when fans of the manga highly opposed PD Hwang's cast... but then he proved them wrong & we all know how Goong turned out :)
he's not the type who would be influenced by fans' choices for the lead roles, he'll stick to his preferences. I agree w/ JB, he has a sharp eye & brings out the best in his actors :)

I've been wondering about when then this drama was going to get started and if they were still doing it. I'm so excited to hear they're going to start filming this year and that it should air this fall. YAY!!

I love the Manga, Anime and the ISWAK version. I'm really excited to see how this one will turn out.

omg omg i am so happy i love the manga anime and dramas so i am totally watching this

I noticed some people bringing up idols with somewhat okay acting. Honestly, I'm in the NO area.

I think it's great for fanfics and Banjun dramas... but I get so dissapointed when there's a drama that has such a great potential to be that good.. and then you get some people that can't act and pull down the drama.

True, this is a manga-adapted-drama. But I enjoy feeling emotionally connected to a drama regardless of it's genre, and that's pretty hard when some people are casted with little acting chops and are more about the visuals.

Maybe I'm still coping to forget Goong S. Yes. Goong. ESSSSS. THE HORROR.

OMG, this is a golden chance to SOEULMATE. please hahaha i really looking forward to it. but, i hope the cast still makes me interested in it soon.

YAY!!!

Finally, some news!! This makes me so happy...!

Now I've got 2 dramas to watch out for:
1) Jangnaseureon Kiss
2) Seonggyungwan Scandal
3) Gumiho Girlfriend

But still, this is who I want to be casted at:
-Irie Naoki - Im Joo-hwan / Lee Cheon-hee / Jang Geun-seok
-Aihara Kotoko - Seo Woo / Ji-soo ("Smile You")'s actress / Park Shin-hye
-Naoki’s mother - Geum Bo-ra / Coordi Wang’s actress / Go Hyeon-jeong
-Kin-chan - Choi Si-won
-Chris - ???
-Moto-chan - Jeong Il-woo
-Yuuki -???
-Non-chan/Nobuhiro - Yoo Seung-ho
-Matsumoto Akiko (or was it Reiko) - UEE (I hope this would be after Birdie Buddy)

Oh my! Oh my! OH........MY........GOSH! (drops my jaw) O___________o

I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT IT LOOK LIKE THIS FOR EVERY DIFFERENT CASTS TO MATCH IN THIS INCOMING DRAMA!!!! Yaaaaaaayyy! (dances so excitedly)

OOH --- It's very INTERESTING what every people from comments for their idea for choosing actors and actresses = *** for their favorite, of course! =) ***

Okey Dokey --- Let me think about THIS :

**ACTORS
Jang Geun Seok -- Kim Bum -- Lee Hong Ki -- Lee Min Ho -- BAEK SUNG HYUN -- Dennis Oh -- Lee Seong Gi -- Kim Hee Chul

**ACTRESSES
Yoon Eun Hye -- Moon Geun Young -- Park Shin Hye -- Lee Min Jung -- Sandara Park -- Jung Ryu Won -- Kim So Eun -- Choi Ja Hye -- Han Ji Min

** IDEAL COUPLES =
Jang Geun Seok & Moon Geun Young
Lee Min Ho & Choi Ja Hye
Kim Hee Chul & Sandara Park
Kim Bum & Kim So Eun
Dennis Oh & Jung Rye Won
BAEK SUNG HYUN & Park Shin Hye

*** OTHERS =
Dennis Oh & Yoon Eun Hye
Baek Sung Hyun & Moon Geun Young
Lee Seong Gi & Kim So Eun
Kim Hee Chul & Lee Min Jung

One thing -- I WANT to SEE them TOGETHER so badly:
FIRST: Jang Geun Seok & Park Shin Hye (I LOVE them from YAB!!!!)
SECOND: Baek Sung Hyun & Moon Geun Young
THIRD: Dennis Oh & Yoon Eun Hye
FOURTH: Kim Hee Chul & Lee Min Jung
FIFTH: Kim Bum & Kim So Eun

I HOPE SO!!! ((fingers crossing & big grins)) =)

Of course! Fabulous! =)

First -- I want to see Park Shin Hye & Lee Hong Ki together!!!!! I think they would have ALOT of fun time around each other because of this new drama, yay!

Good Lord...I remember finishing It Started With A Kiss and thinking "I need those HOURS and HOURS of my life back. nao." Hopefully, this will turn out better, and NOT another BOF.

I think they better adapt SKIP BEAT though, that really test your acting ability (b'coz the manga is about actors-actress life LOL).

Excited! Fingers crossed for Park So Young and Kim Soo Hyun. :D

^ * Park Bo Young

@96: Me too.

LOL.

I remembered ISWAK was like my first fan craze drama that I download all the series but when I finished the series I thought what have I done to myself?

The plot was very draggy, there is no character development and repetitious too despite the chemistry between the leads.

I hope Korean version is different since I love the Anime and like the Japanese version.