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This review may contain spoilers
A Different Take on Itazura na Kiss, with Its Own Charm!
I started watching *Kiss Me* because of Mike Angelo and Sucharat Manaying, and it turned out to be quite an interesting experience, especially as someone who genuinely loves the original *Itazura na Kiss* story. This is only my second version of the story so far, and while writing this review, I also started watching the 1996 Japanese version. I haven't watched all the adaptations yet, so my perspective is still limited, but I already know that the original story and its characters hold a special place in my heart.
*Kiss Me* isn't simply a copy-and-paste adaptation. It takes the familiar storyline, rewrites certain situations, and gives the characters a different personality and dynamic while still following the broad progression of the original story. I can appreciate the effort to make it feel more contemporary and give it an identity of its own. However, I have mixed feelings about some of the changes because, for me, they also take away part of what made the original characters and their relationship so distinctive.
For anyone unfamiliar with the story, it follows two people with exceptionally high IQs but very different emotional intelligence. TenTen is a brilliant, cold, and seemingly unreachable guy, while Taliw is an academically challenged, clumsy, dreamy girl who falls hopelessly in love with him. She is much more straightforward about her feelings, even when he makes it painfully obvious that she isn't his type. The first part follows Taliw as she pursues TenTen and tries to win his heart, while the later part explores their relationship after marriage. At its core, it's a story about two very different people learning to understand each other, although their journey is certainly not without frustration.
One of my biggest issues with this adaptation is that I felt both leads became less extreme versions of their original characters. I understand that adaptations need to make adjustments to fit their own setting and audience, but some of those changes made the characters feel more ordinary to me.
TenTen is still intelligent, academically gifted, and cold on the surface, but he also shows a gentler side quite early on. He feels much more approachable and socially integrated than the original Naoki Irie. The childhood connection between the leads is also expanded considerably, making it feel as though TenTen has been emotionally connected to Taliw from the beginning. He becomes part of her wider social circle, and their interactions sometimes feel more like those of friends who are secretly dating than a relationship in which one person is persistently chasing the other.
For me, this changes the nature of their relationship quite a bit. The original Irie is emotionally awkward and difficult to read, and even when he eventually falls in love, he doesn't suddenly become a completely different person. His emotional limitations are part of who he is. TenTen, on the other hand, feels more capable of being affectionate and charming when he wants to be. His behaviour comes across less as emotional awkwardness and more as a mixture of prejudice, stubbornness, and his own judgments about Taliw. That makes him a different kind of frustrating ML, and I don't think the two characters are interchangeable simply because they occupy similar positions in the story.
I also felt that the class differences were toned down. The original story has a more noticeable contrast between the leads' academic abilities and social positions, which contributes to the imbalance in their relationship. Here, their world feels more like an ordinary student environment, and the distinction isn't as pronounced. Again, this isn't necessarily a bad change on its own, but combined with the altered personalities, it makes the story feel more like a regular rom-com inspired by *Itazura na Kiss* rather than the same story with a fresh presentation.
Taliw was another interesting change. She is still clumsy, naive, hopelessly in love, and not particularly bright academically, but I liked that her character had more layers to her silliness. She isn't just stupidly in love with TenTen; she can be genuinely clueless about everyday things, jokes, idioms, and metaphors, which adds another dimension to her character. Some of her moments were genuinely funny, and I appreciated that the drama gave her enough time to show this side of herself.
At the same time, she has more self-esteem and emotional awareness than I expected. She knows what she feels, expresses herself directly, and can sometimes understand a situation emotionally better than TenTen does. She is also surrounded by loyal friends who support her, which gives her a stronger sense of belonging outside her relationship with him. I found her more natural and less exaggerated than some versions of Kotoko, whose excessive enthusiasm and clumsiness can occasionally become too much for me. Taliw still has her silly moments, but she doesn't constantly feel like she's performing for the audience.
However, this is also where I felt the adaptation lost something important. In the original story, Taliw's decision to stop pursuing TenTen carries a certain emotional weight because of how long and one-sided her pursuit has been. When she finally reaches her limit, it feels like a genuine turning point in their relationship. In *Kiss Me*, because the leads already share a more familiar and comfortable dynamic, that same kind of decision doesn't carry quite the same impact for me. Their relationship feels less like an unrequited love story gradually changing into something mutual and more like two people who already have feelings for each other but aren't properly communicating them.
I also noticed some changes to iconic moments. The first kiss, which is supposed to feel cold and hurtful to the FL, is presented in a much sweeter and more playful way here. The hospital kiss from the Japanese *Mischievous Kiss* version, which was one of the moments that introduced me to this story in the first place, is also changed in its setting and circumstances. I understand that adaptations need to reinterpret scenes rather than recreate every moment exactly, but these changes alter the emotional meaning of some of the original scenes.
That said, I still enjoyed seeing how the drama recreated certain moments in its own style. The studying-at-the-table scene was one of my favourites from the original story, and I thought *Kiss Me* did a beautiful job bringing it to life. It retained the charm of the moment while making it feel natural within this version. I particularly liked how the drama rewrote familiar plot points to achieve similar developments without simply repeating the original scenes word for word.
The chemistry between Mike Angelo and Sucharat Manaying is another major reason I enjoyed this adaptation. Their pairing works wonderfully, and their interactions feel lively, playful, and natural. Mike has a certain charm as TenTen, while Sucharat brings warmth and personality to Taliw. I especially enjoyed the little moments when Taliw managed to leave TenTen speechless. Their dynamic made the romance entertaining even when I wasn't entirely convinced by the changes to the story.
The soundtrack deserves a mention as well. It complements the romantic atmosphere nicely and adds to the overall charm of the drama.
One thing I particularly appreciated was that *Kiss Me* didn't feel obligated to reproduce every detail of the original storyline. It takes familiar situations and develops them differently while retaining the broad progression of the relationship. For viewers who found the original characters too extreme, especially Kotoko's behaviour or Irie's coldness, this version might be a much easier watch. Taliw feels more grounded in certain aspects, and TenTen has a more visible gentle side, making their relationship more accessible to viewers who prefer a conventional rom-com dynamic.
On the other hand, if you're a fan of *Itazura na Kiss* precisely because of its unusual characters and the frustrating, awkward, and sometimes uncomfortable dynamics between them, you might have mixed feelings about this version, as I did. I missed some of that original characterisation, and I sometimes felt that the drama softened the very traits that made the story memorable. The ending also felt a little short to me, and I would have loved more time with the couple and more romantic moments after everything they went through.
Ultimately, I enjoyed *Kiss Me*, even though I wasn't entirely satisfied with all its changes. It has its own charm, a lovely pairing, a good soundtrack, and some beautifully recreated scenes. I can understand why viewers who didn't connect with the original might prefer this adaptation. For me, though, the original story and characters still have a special appeal that this version doesn't completely capture.
I wouldn't call it a bad adaptation at all. I simply think that, in making the characters more approachable and the romance more conventional, it loses some of the quirks and emotional dynamics that made the original so distinctive. Still, I'm glad I watched it, and I'm looking forward to exploring more versions of this story and seeing how each one interprets these familiar characters.
*Kiss Me* isn't simply a copy-and-paste adaptation. It takes the familiar storyline, rewrites certain situations, and gives the characters a different personality and dynamic while still following the broad progression of the original story. I can appreciate the effort to make it feel more contemporary and give it an identity of its own. However, I have mixed feelings about some of the changes because, for me, they also take away part of what made the original characters and their relationship so distinctive.
For anyone unfamiliar with the story, it follows two people with exceptionally high IQs but very different emotional intelligence. TenTen is a brilliant, cold, and seemingly unreachable guy, while Taliw is an academically challenged, clumsy, dreamy girl who falls hopelessly in love with him. She is much more straightforward about her feelings, even when he makes it painfully obvious that she isn't his type. The first part follows Taliw as she pursues TenTen and tries to win his heart, while the later part explores their relationship after marriage. At its core, it's a story about two very different people learning to understand each other, although their journey is certainly not without frustration.
One of my biggest issues with this adaptation is that I felt both leads became less extreme versions of their original characters. I understand that adaptations need to make adjustments to fit their own setting and audience, but some of those changes made the characters feel more ordinary to me.
TenTen is still intelligent, academically gifted, and cold on the surface, but he also shows a gentler side quite early on. He feels much more approachable and socially integrated than the original Naoki Irie. The childhood connection between the leads is also expanded considerably, making it feel as though TenTen has been emotionally connected to Taliw from the beginning. He becomes part of her wider social circle, and their interactions sometimes feel more like those of friends who are secretly dating than a relationship in which one person is persistently chasing the other.
For me, this changes the nature of their relationship quite a bit. The original Irie is emotionally awkward and difficult to read, and even when he eventually falls in love, he doesn't suddenly become a completely different person. His emotional limitations are part of who he is. TenTen, on the other hand, feels more capable of being affectionate and charming when he wants to be. His behaviour comes across less as emotional awkwardness and more as a mixture of prejudice, stubbornness, and his own judgments about Taliw. That makes him a different kind of frustrating ML, and I don't think the two characters are interchangeable simply because they occupy similar positions in the story.
I also felt that the class differences were toned down. The original story has a more noticeable contrast between the leads' academic abilities and social positions, which contributes to the imbalance in their relationship. Here, their world feels more like an ordinary student environment, and the distinction isn't as pronounced. Again, this isn't necessarily a bad change on its own, but combined with the altered personalities, it makes the story feel more like a regular rom-com inspired by *Itazura na Kiss* rather than the same story with a fresh presentation.
Taliw was another interesting change. She is still clumsy, naive, hopelessly in love, and not particularly bright academically, but I liked that her character had more layers to her silliness. She isn't just stupidly in love with TenTen; she can be genuinely clueless about everyday things, jokes, idioms, and metaphors, which adds another dimension to her character. Some of her moments were genuinely funny, and I appreciated that the drama gave her enough time to show this side of herself.
At the same time, she has more self-esteem and emotional awareness than I expected. She knows what she feels, expresses herself directly, and can sometimes understand a situation emotionally better than TenTen does. She is also surrounded by loyal friends who support her, which gives her a stronger sense of belonging outside her relationship with him. I found her more natural and less exaggerated than some versions of Kotoko, whose excessive enthusiasm and clumsiness can occasionally become too much for me. Taliw still has her silly moments, but she doesn't constantly feel like she's performing for the audience.
However, this is also where I felt the adaptation lost something important. In the original story, Taliw's decision to stop pursuing TenTen carries a certain emotional weight because of how long and one-sided her pursuit has been. When she finally reaches her limit, it feels like a genuine turning point in their relationship. In *Kiss Me*, because the leads already share a more familiar and comfortable dynamic, that same kind of decision doesn't carry quite the same impact for me. Their relationship feels less like an unrequited love story gradually changing into something mutual and more like two people who already have feelings for each other but aren't properly communicating them.
I also noticed some changes to iconic moments. The first kiss, which is supposed to feel cold and hurtful to the FL, is presented in a much sweeter and more playful way here. The hospital kiss from the Japanese *Mischievous Kiss* version, which was one of the moments that introduced me to this story in the first place, is also changed in its setting and circumstances. I understand that adaptations need to reinterpret scenes rather than recreate every moment exactly, but these changes alter the emotional meaning of some of the original scenes.
That said, I still enjoyed seeing how the drama recreated certain moments in its own style. The studying-at-the-table scene was one of my favourites from the original story, and I thought *Kiss Me* did a beautiful job bringing it to life. It retained the charm of the moment while making it feel natural within this version. I particularly liked how the drama rewrote familiar plot points to achieve similar developments without simply repeating the original scenes word for word.
The chemistry between Mike Angelo and Sucharat Manaying is another major reason I enjoyed this adaptation. Their pairing works wonderfully, and their interactions feel lively, playful, and natural. Mike has a certain charm as TenTen, while Sucharat brings warmth and personality to Taliw. I especially enjoyed the little moments when Taliw managed to leave TenTen speechless. Their dynamic made the romance entertaining even when I wasn't entirely convinced by the changes to the story.
The soundtrack deserves a mention as well. It complements the romantic atmosphere nicely and adds to the overall charm of the drama.
One thing I particularly appreciated was that *Kiss Me* didn't feel obligated to reproduce every detail of the original storyline. It takes familiar situations and develops them differently while retaining the broad progression of the relationship. For viewers who found the original characters too extreme, especially Kotoko's behaviour or Irie's coldness, this version might be a much easier watch. Taliw feels more grounded in certain aspects, and TenTen has a more visible gentle side, making their relationship more accessible to viewers who prefer a conventional rom-com dynamic.
On the other hand, if you're a fan of *Itazura na Kiss* precisely because of its unusual characters and the frustrating, awkward, and sometimes uncomfortable dynamics between them, you might have mixed feelings about this version, as I did. I missed some of that original characterisation, and I sometimes felt that the drama softened the very traits that made the story memorable. The ending also felt a little short to me, and I would have loved more time with the couple and more romantic moments after everything they went through.
Ultimately, I enjoyed *Kiss Me*, even though I wasn't entirely satisfied with all its changes. It has its own charm, a lovely pairing, a good soundtrack, and some beautifully recreated scenes. I can understand why viewers who didn't connect with the original might prefer this adaptation. For me, though, the original story and characters still have a special appeal that this version doesn't completely capture.
I wouldn't call it a bad adaptation at all. I simply think that, in making the characters more approachable and the romance more conventional, it loses some of the quirks and emotional dynamics that made the original so distinctive. Still, I'm glad I watched it, and I'm looking forward to exploring more versions of this story and seeing how each one interprets these familiar characters.
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