The handling of the attempted rape scene has been beaten to a pulp, so I will take the time to talk about something else which bugs me. Why didn't they just make Tae Joon find out in the 1st episode that Jae Hee is a girl? I mean he DID see her underwear when she was flying down the stairs. They should have at least made him appear more suspicious if anything. When he finally rescued her from Creepy Pension Hyung and then hugged her, I was thinking for sure, he knows. Then when he heard the fight Jae Hee and her brother were having, he didn't act too terribly surprised. I don't know. They should have made it clearer how he found out that Jae Hee was a girl, but it would have made it a lot clearer if they did it at the end of episode 1/beginning of episode 2.

I wish more of Jae Hee's background and reason for coming here were explained. Little things like how she slowly tries to approach Tae Joon, and when she justifies that she's staying to help Tae Joon, it would be more logical that in the beginning, the media reports that he's faltering in his high jump activities and shows signs of never going back again - then I'd understand more why it was so important for her to jump on a plane for her idol.

I also like Kim Ji Won from previous works, but I'm baffled at the purpose of this additional character Han Na. Could she be a foil to Jae Hee, in that here's a brat who is actually more like a stalker but selfishly pressures Tae Joon to like her? Whereas Jae Hee is more interested in being friends, slowly have him open up, and help him get back into high jump. It doesn't seem like Han Na's a love interest when Tae Joon clearly expresses no interest and even Jae Hee questions if she could be his girlfriend. The love triangle between the two guys and Jae Hee is far stronger. I just want her to be more than Uee's role from YAB or Jang Mari from Big.

The only think that I felt really weird was when Tae Joon hugs Jae Hee. At that time, I assumed he already knew that she is a girl, like in the manga. But, it seems that he just knows it when Jae Hee talks with his brother. I found it is confusing.
Also, I'm not a directing expert, but the scene when Tae Joon knows the truth is a fail of directing. I like Tae Joon's face at that time, but it will be better if the directing style is more dramatic since it is the moment when he finds out that his roommate dresses up as a boy just to help him back to high jump again.
I found this Korean version is quite funny and neat, but still doesn't have some epic funny moment like the Japanese version. Aaarrrggghh, I don't want to compare it to the Japanese version but it keeps happening!!

I had so much WTF moments watching this ep.
I was fricking scared of that creeper in both eps 3&4 that I wanted him to go to jail.
Moreover. Minho is such a bad actor. I though I watched him doing photoshoot in every single scene.
This drama, it was cute at the beginning but getting worse now.
I do not find a "heart" in this drama.

after this ep, i don't even think i can give it a 6 episode test. i'd rather see a solidly written original drama than another korean remake of a popular japanese drama that most korean audiences have already seen.

i'd love to see what korean netizens are saying about this because iirc, hana kimi and other japanese dramas are available over there. and the manga has been translated over there.

so somewhere on a korean net cafe, blog, or bbs, people are having the same discussion and gripes that we are :-/

Man, don't compare this to J-dorama vers or T-version. Compare this to the manga please. This is the remake for the manga. Not J/T-version.

The assault situation along with the whole set up of a girl living in a boys' dorm is consistent in that it shows this girl is reckless and not thinking about the potential consequences.
If she really grew up in the States though, she would know that she has to keep her eyes peeled and be vigilant 24x7. Hence this set up is a fail for me.
So, while I am absolutely horrified and absolutely do not condone what the perv did to her, I am surprised that none of the commenters here asked - what was she doing in the boys' school/dorm in the first place, and isnt' she putting herself in a dangerous situation - so many young men with raging hormones together... I shudder to think...
I hope that there is a moral to the story, and our heroine learns a thing or two and grows up a bit, because she was really lucky up until now. Hope her brother takes care of her, and well.

I like this drama actually. I think some of the negative comments here are valid. But I think it's a bit too early to say that it's not making sense at all.

About the attempted rape scene, I agree, to a certain extent, that common sense tells us that someone should have done something about it and the writers could have dealt with it more delicately. But we also have to remember the characters involved here. JH is a girl pretending to be a boy so her actions are to be expected. She was shocked with what has transpired as depicted in the scenes after, but at the same time, she does not want her real gender to be discovered. TJ, on the other hand, could have done something, or at least, that's what we want the drama to go with - for TJ to do something. However, we should also consider the idea that TJ might be thinking that the best way to protect her is to not tell anyone about it. Of course, this will only makes sense if he already knows or had suspicions that JH is a girl. And I honestly think that he knows. I will explain further later.

Furthermore, doing something about the attempted rape would conflict with the whole idea that he is to keep JH's real gender a secret and protect that secret, which TJ is supposed to do or is expected to do throughout the series if we based it on the manga and the previous adaptations. Even if he can do something about it without people asking a lot of questions and opening a can of worms, it would just digress from the whole focus of the drama. The attempted rape is not the focus, but what happens next - some alone time with the 2 main characters. Perhaps the writers just found it more convenient to include the attempted sexual assault (which I heard was in the manga) as an excuse for the 2 main characters to have their precious bonding time in the woods or wherever that is. I am not sure if this is a flaw in the writing or a flaw inherent in compressing volumes and chapters of a manga into 16 hours of Korean drama. There is just not enough time to focus on the details that are of no or little consequence to the core of the manga.

Now, let's go back to the idea that TJ knows that JH is a girl. I have been thinking about it for a while now. I think the drama is implying that TJ already knows even before he overheard the conversation between JH and her brother. If you think about it - the rain scene and the way he looked at her, the scene when he looked at JH and noticed her collar bone and shoulder exposed, the scenes when he was suspicious of the hyungs' advances, and finally, the hugging and piggy back scene. Something is up. He was acting as if he already knows or had suspicions that were waiting to be confirmed.

Going back to the scene where TJ was talking to the dog. People point to this scene as somewhat confusing in that if TJ already knew that JH is a girl then why would he talk to the dog as if he just found out? I think he was talking to the dog to merely imply that he had his suspicions and this just confirmed it or just plain talking to the dog to reaffirm what he just heard. People talk to themselves or to others to get a better grasp of what is going on. Based on his reactions, he was not at all surprised that JH is indeed a girl, but more concerned about her reason for being there.

In any case, I honestly hope that there is a deeper reason for JH being there, and I hope they stay true to the manga when it comes to it because JH's explanations and reasons so far seem vague and seem too simple for someone to go through all the trouble that she is going through. If there is, then I am really excited to hear it.

The near-rape scene made me sick to my stomach. The way it was (mis)handled when it was over sickened me more. Anyway.

One thing that really annoyed me was the fact that they used a Canadian for an American. I also don't understand why he looks so Caucasian when his sister looks completely Korean. I'd understand it if they were half siblings, but from what I understand, they aren't. If I'm delving into the picki-ness of it all, I might as well tack on the 1st episode's language annoyance for me: Sulli's "I've got to do this." Doesn't sound like she's lived in America for 10 or so years. Ah, I'm being picky. I'm really watching for the pretty. :) Thank you for the recap!

thanks gummimochi

looks like eun ghul ex-classmate coming from america is jae hee's classmate too from america !.

Young Eun-gyeol is so cute! - Of course.
"the girl [...] moving to the States [...]" = Goo Jae-hee??? I think not... :(
*gasp* maybe Julia?!!!

nearly sexual assault - Hmmm...I think there's also that thread in the orig.manga

gay Dr. Eugene - of course~! All renditions from manga to TV has him gay~! And his first scene looking at Yon-sama is a giveaway already, LOL~! I think drama will have no boyffie for Dr. Eugene, since manga has the orig. character have a boyfriend.

Daniel Dawson - I think he's Ashiya Shizuki and Gilbert Lang (the character looking like Leo DiCarpio, and was Mizuki's friend back in the US) combined. Jus' thinking.

"[W]e see Tae-joon has heard the entire exchange." - Fuq. And just when I thought he knew all along. Why did you have to follow the 2007 Japanese version?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for the recap!

I was wondering if I was going to watch this show, because I am afraid I will end up comparing it to Hana Kimi 2007 that I absolutely adored (except for Sano's character who was just soooo dull). I think I'm just gonna stick to the recaps for the time being and see if it gets better, because as for now, it doesn't seem that good.

That rape thing! I so agree with everybody here, it seems really badly handled. I mean, I can understand that Jae-Hee would be afraid of blowing up her cover and that she may be still under the shock so she wouldn't be thinking straightly, but wth, Tae-joon??? He should have reported that guy to the police, whether he knew Jae-Hee was a girl or not! I mean, this is just irresponsible! What if the Creepy Dude goes and rapes someone else? If he knew she was a girl (which I think he didn't as he seemed to learn it from the brother-sister conversation), did he think maintaining a cover is more important than saving potential future rape victims? And even if he doesn't know she's a girl, he must have understood that Creepy Guy wanted to rape her, so what? Does he let him go because it's not a big deal to rape guys??? WTF!!!

And yeah, I'm actually rooting with the brother here. What the Hell are you doing in that school, Jae-Hee? Throwing up your future for a guy like if you were a creepy stalker? I didn't want to compare, but to me it was much more acceptable in Hana Kimi because of the fact that they actually told us it was supposed to be a crazy, not serious, story. And it was so much fun because of it.

However, this is being too serious to me, so I'm not buying it. If they want to make it serious, then Jae-Hee's reasons of being there have to be serious as well. To me, it just doesn't seem enough, so she just turns into some kind of stalker. I hope she will explain it more in details and add something more serious, like being the cause of Tae-yoon's injury like in the jdrama, because to me, regaining hope or whatever because of the guy is not enough. Because, hey, I'm sure there's a lot of people who had some very tough time too, and went through it with the help of some actor's smile or some singer's songs.

Anyway, as for the actors, I actually like Sulli's look, she seems to be a believable boy. And Eun-gyul seems to be good too, and that was a hard thing because after Toma's Nakatsu, it seemed difficult to me to stand the comparison. And well, as for Tae-joon...I don't think he can be worse than Sano...

Still waiting for more role from the other characters, and more fun. Then I'll see if I'll watch it. :)

Thanks for the recap!

I was wondering if I was going to watch this show, because I am afraid I will end up comparing it to Hana Kimi 2007 that I absolutely adored (except for Sano's character who was just soooo dull). I think I'm just gonna stick to the recaps for the time being and see if it gets better, because as for now, it doesn't seem that good.

That rape thing! I so agree with everybody here, it seems really badly handled. I mean, I can understand that Jae-Hee would be afraid of blowing up her cover and that she may be still under the shock so she wouldn't be thinking straightly, but wth, Tae-joon??? He should have reported that guy to the police, whether he knew Jae-Hee was a girl or not! I mean, this is just irresponsible! What if the Creepy Dude goes and rapes someone else? If he knew she was a girl (which I think he didn't as he seemed to learn it from the brother-sister conversation), did he think maintaining a cover is more important than saving potential future rape victims? And even if he doesn't know she's a girl, he must have understood that Creepy Guy wanted to rape her, so what? Does he let him go because it's not a big deal to rape guys??? WTF!!!

And yeah, I'm actually rooting with the brother here. What the Hell are you doing in that school, Jae-Hee? Throwing up your future for a guy like if you were a creepy stalker? I didn't want to compare, but to me it was much more acceptable in Hana Kimi because of the fact that they actually told us it was supposed to be a crazy, not serious, story. And it was so much fun because of it.

However, this is being too serious to me, so I'm not buying it. If they want to make it serious, then Jae-Hee's reasons of being there have to be serious as well. To me, it just doesn't seem enough, so she just turns into some kind of stalker. I hope she will explain it more in details and add something more serious, like being the cause of Tae-yoon's injury like in the jdrama, because to me, regaining hope or whatever because of the guy is not enough. Because, hey, I'm sure there's a lot of people who had some very tough time too, and went through it with the help of some actor's smile or some singer's songs.

Anyway, as for the actors, I actually like Sulli's look, she seems to be a believable boy. And Eun-gyul seems to be good too, and that was a hard thing because after Toma's Nakatsu, it seemed difficult to me to stand the comparison. And well, as for Tae-joon...I don't think he can be worse than Sano...

Still waiting for more role from the other characters, and more fun. Then I'll see if I watch it. :)

Hana Kimi is supposed to be a fun mix of ridiculous and cute. What we see happening here is that the Kdrama tries go heavy on the dramatic side, and it totally upsets the balance cos Hana Kimi is not something you can go dramatic all of a sudden and then immediately go back to the regular ridiculous and cute. They need to decide on how they gonna approach Hana Kimi, and smoothen out their transitioning. Though i get the sense that we as viewers probably should gear ourselves for more and more dramatic angst to come in this version.

I think i came to terms with my own expectations of this drama after the first two eps and found myself able to enjoy eps 3 and 4 better. I am just very confused when exactly did Tae Joon realised Jae Hee is a girl. Like many had pointed out, he seemed to suddenly care a lot for her. He could have rescued her from creepy hyung because he knew, too. But then we get the scene here in ep 4 that he overheard the conversation Jae Hee had with her oppa and went telling the dog "What guts she has, to come here under the guise of a boy." I don't know if we're only gonna get an answer later on, but i just wish we could get a better sense from the acting (or directing) cos it is really annoying me.

...is it just me or the fact that he didn't know she was a girl during rape rescue mission and bus splash-covering mission, that it makes him appear ...semi...homosexual.
Imagine if he was close friends with any other dude from this drama. Like an actual dude. And they're walking in the rain together, suddenly he sees the bus coming and blocks the guy from the rain in very close, close, creepy proximity.
Then later, he magically comes to the guy's rescue, hugs him close, then carries him home. Also bringing food for the guy, but later backs out from giving the food when he sees his male buddy bonding with another male buddy.

My gay radar is going off right now.

This version is just weird! If they showed us that he knew she was a girl, then all of this would be sweet. But because they're basically telling us now that he just found out she's a girl from overhearing her conversation with her brother, i just think he's ....bisexual...now.

sigh...

I think they forgot to put together the beginning pieces where he realizes she's a girl during her soccer falling concussion scene. And then they went on to make other moments in the plot, only to slap their forehead and say "shit! now we're making tae joon appear so gay! lets stick this sudden reveal of her identity out of nowhere so it would make a little sense. "

First off I well watch this to the end, it an Idol drama and the lead girl cute enough for me to give it a couple of hours out of a week worth to watch. But when I watched the Japanese version 1 or two though more 1, I did so with that fluttering of butterflies in my belly and a little giggle at the back of my throat, with this version ........
waiting...waiting....nothing..ow ke ke..that was funny..I have to almost force myself to see the funny rather than it just reacting to what on the screen...

I'm sure (bathroom scene) Tae Joon noticed that JH is a girl when she had the towel wrapped around her body above her chest. Their gestures when she fell on her knees in front of him after the marathon. TJ's been checking her out in a subtle manner, sometimes obviously, thinking "no adam's apple", " smooth feminine neckline". TJ hearing TH's bro just confirmed it. Maybe he's not surprised but a relief. He cares enough to let her go as he's reminded after hearing the bro tell JH that she must care more for her goals too.

TH has a big crush on TJ, maybe she has fallen in love w/ him. Not just a fan but she cares for him. She cares that he must heal to be an elite high jumper again. She feels that she must be there w/him to push him. He's been her inspiration while lonely in the US. As room mates they have bonded. For TH to accept TJ"s hug & the piggy back is not a surprise or how can she accept a piggy back from a man she likes after being punched by a pervert she just met. After a scary ordeal & saved by TJ, I feel that the hug is a relief & comfort for both who have bonded & care for each other. As a viewer, I was touched as they hugged w/ Onew's OST soothing voice.

I watched TTBY without thinking about the manga or Hana Kimi. Thank goodness, ignorance is a bliss otherwise would I be holding a plackard in front of TTBY production set to protest? I don't think so because I'm enjoying TTBY. Love Shinee Minho & Sulli OTP.

Honestly when I read this recap, I was like...in which episode does Tae joon get to know that Jae Hee is a girl? or does he know yet?
What's the point of this scene then? Why would Tae joon consider Jae hee to be so unsafe with another man?
What? huh? I don't get it.

I'd like to add to my #72 comment...
That surely... TJ must have noticed TH's feminine personal items when he packed her bag (ie if he packed from her drawer) the first time he rejected her as her room mate.

Its also possible that one of the reasons he wanted her out of his room is that he suspected or knew he was a girl. Had the drama shown that to us already, then there wouldn't be much curiousity from the viewers. Perhaps later, flashbacks will show us the clues when TJ found out.

For me, TJ is shown in a subtle way that he knows. He's a young man whose male hormones are active & zapping to notice or smell the female hormones!

where are the three dorm leaders ?,

the japanese version of them, can't forget their antics comedies !.

It feels as if the writers want to get it over and done with. They touch and go on the original plot points just to satisfy fans. But I do hope that this means that the latter half of the drama would be better.

thank u so much recapper for recaping the dramas.

i have a request could u plz recap only you 2005 drama i watched that drama but i also like to read in your bog or u only recap new drama?... please consider my request if possible.

thank u

So this might have been mentioned before but I haven't looked through every single comment although every one has nice and critical points.

I think the thing that I'm mostly disappointed about this episode is realizing that this drama is mainly lacking in connecting and threading all the pieces together.

I really hate how we can't penetrate through Tae Joon's thoughts and feelings towards Jae Hee. Yes there are little gestures, yet he just comes off to be this bipolar character and doing things without basis because we really don't know what he's thinking about. I think what I'm really disappointed about is how I thought that he knew all along since episode 1 that she's a girl... and just the special concern that he shows for her all through the past episodes. HE EVEN HUGGED HER ROMANTICALLY and the umbrella scene.. and I'm pretty sure he's not confused with his sexuality all along compared to Eun Gyeol. Yet they reveal that he only found out that Jae hee is actually a she in this episode. There's obviously a lack of connection there and NO BASIS.

It's funny and amusing, but plot-wise, I'm getting really frustrated.

Thanks for the recap (:

Not too sure if anyone mentioned this, but i was a little disappointed with how little attention the writers payed to the obvious "engreesh" that was shown throughout the drama. I hate being a nit pick, but i just thought these face palm's were a little too humorous to keep to myself :D

In the brothers email, he makes two very obvious spelling errors. "Hey THER sis, want to grab some LAUNCH?"
COME ON SM. THE BROTHER IS A JOHNS HOPKINS ALUMNI DOCTOR. I know that the targeted audience is younger Korean teens, but I sincerely doubt that it would have been too hard for them to actually double check this with someone else. English speaking Koreans are not too hard to find.

Again SM doesn't exactly do background checks when the older brother storms in to Jaehee's room and starts to scold her with very convincing logic. Here I can follow the story well and I can see where he's coming from! .....Until he blurts out "weren't you going to follow my footsteps into the ivy league??" oh snap.

Johns Hopkins isn't an Ivy League School. Awk. Yes, Hopkins is one of the best pre-med schools in america but it isn't ivy league.

Don't get me wrong, I love the drama and I can't wait to continue watching it! I also do love how the producers casted someone who could actually speak Korean and English fluently. But SM if you're going to use a foreign language make sure you're using it RIGHT.

I really don't think that the attack was swept under the rug.

You can tell that it really bothered Jae-Hee and that it had at least some effect on her. I thought the subtle acting was excellent.

I think the main reason it wasn't brought up to the others was to save Jae-Hee, who is thought by everyone to be male, from the embarrassment and humiliation of being sexual assaulted by an older male.

Tae-Joon has no idea of her true gender, otherwise he would be referring to her as "she/her" instead of "he/him" while talking to himself/thinking to himself, which he doesn't do. No, HE is still male to Tae-Joon.

I've drawn this conclusion and I believe it fits in well by using the theory that the writers attempted to use a subtler and simpler approach to handling the situation whilst keeping in mind how a male would deal with the situation of another male being sexually assaulted by an older man. Remember, this isn't FEMALE Jae-Hee being attacked, it's MALE Jae-Hee. I have no doubt that had her true gender been know, Tae-Joon wouldn't have stopped with a few kicks and punches. And it most certainly would have been mentioned to the rest of the group as well as the police.

Jae-Hee cannot bring attention to the sexual assault. If she does, it will focus too much attention on why the skeevy pervert did it in the first place. People would begin questioning Jae-Hee's appearance and, by effect, her gender. I admit that they might first question Chang-Hyun's sexuality, but eventually they will begin wondering what it was about Jae-Hee that made him such a creeper. Too much attention on an aspect of her life that she MUST keep secret.

Tae-Joon will not bring attention to the sexual assault. He still thinks that Jae-Hee is a guy. How embarrassing and emasculating it must be for Jae-Hee to be sexually assaulted by another man! He probably wants to be sympathetic toward the sensitive Jae-Hee, who is visibly frailer and gentler than the rest of the boys, as well, which is why he steers clear of mentioning the assault. No need to give the others another reason to think Jae-Hee is different besides her "dough-boy" build and actions. And he also probably notices how Jae-Hee is acting after the attack and doesn't want to make her even more uncomfortable in such a large group of people. He's thinking that Jae-Hee will bring it up if or when she feels she needs to.

I also want to address the sexual assault on a MINOR thing. Sexual assault in itself is a terrible thing, but when inflicted upon a minor it becomes horrific and disgusting. However, I don't think Jae-Hee's age was considered at all. Tae-Joon and Jae-Hee are the same age. I don't know about you, but I never considered any of my peers as "minors" when I was still underage. When you're young, you don't generally associate people of your age group with being a minor, especially if they're a close peer such as a roommate, as in Jae-Hee's and Tae-Joon's case. Why? Because they are your equals and you don't consider yourself a minor. If something terrible happened to a peer of mine, I always thought "Oh, how awful!" Not, "Oh, he/she is so young, too!" The age never factored in. That's why I don't think the bit about Jae-Hee being a minor was addressed. Tae-Joon wouldn't have really thought about that, given they are the same age and close peers. She is just Jae-Hee. I don't even think it would be a major factor with the rest of the group because they are also the same age. The ones that would have a problem with it would be the mother and Doc. I can only imagine Doc would be even more upset than his noona, because he actually knows that Jae-Hee is a girl as well. But that really doesn't matter in the least. They never find out about it because they aren't told.

Just my opinion, but I think it has some weight behind it.

I really like this drama and I love reading the dramabeans deconstruction blogs on all the K-dramas I watch.

Thanks a bunch for posting your reviews! I love them!

Just want to point out why the K Version feels off, because in the manga there is more reason for every scene that not be told or been put aside by K Version.

1. Sano(Taejon) already know Ashiya(Jaehee) is a girl from the 2nd or 3rd day she join the school. And from curious of her reason, it is become his habit and affection to protecting her identity. That so he already notice the strange behavior of the hyung, when he try to make a move to Ashiya(Jaehee). He has warned her, but she just too dense until the attemp rape happend. (It is also the reason Sano(Taejon) give her his clothe when he saw her clothe is wet.)

2. More peoples know Ashiya (Jaehee) is a girl, so there is more peoples helping her, such as Doc's Sister, the Doctor and Sano(Taejon), (Ashiya must to convince every of them every time she get caught, the one she don't know already know her identity just Sano(Taejon).
So there is why althought they want to punish the hyung, they all take the safest way to punish him while protecting her identity.(they don't want to make everybody know she is a girl.

3. Ashiya(Jaehee) obviously shaken by the attempt rape, and in the manga, she running out direct to the forest when Sano(Taejon) come and attack the hyung, even after that, when she fall from running and Sano(Taejon) get to chase her, she reject Sano(Taejon)'s touch. that until he hug her to press her to calm down. And then she have a fever and faint from the shaken, rain and sprained ankle, and they was find by the other by the next morning.

But for the K Version Sano(Taejon) don't know she is a girl from the begining, and Doc's sister also don't know, so it's look strange he suddenly care for her and come to rescue her. And the Hyung get off easilly.
I still feel dissapointed by this factor, why they make he don't know that she is a girl from the begining? It is the point that make the story interesting, that the person she mostly don't want to know her identity, is actually the first person know, and silently protecting her.
And with that condition, she try hard to safe him, by make him back to high jump, and he try hard to pretend don't know she is a girl while keep her by his side, his feeling changed from curious to falling for her.

That is my opinion, one important point which are the reason for many stories happened in this drama, get erased and that made everythings off, because not been handled properly.

Sorry for my english, hope it still understandable.