Great article, thank you so much for writing it! :)
I didn't plan to watch this drama, in fact I wanted to stay away from it as much as possible.
The story is cliche and I didn't think 16 episodes were short enough for the story who ought to stick to the Japanese standard of 11, despite being Korean. It's been proven that simple storylines while really pretty on paper are best kept short, otherwise they become repetitive and boring.
Yesterday however, my friend had asked me what was I watching and I told her, then she went raving about What's wrong with Secretary Kim and how addicted she was to the show that she made me promise her that I would give it a try and I did and so far, I'm on episode 4, has been fun! We'll see how it moves on from here but I hope it's now downward as I'm really enjoying the drama.
I will still give it a 10 rating even though not clearly satisfied with the ending. This open ended ending and…
I really didn't like the end.
Being poetic with Oto running towards Haruto waiting for her at Ebisu Garden sculpture where once Domyoji has waited for Makino was amazing, granted but it would have been incredible if they actually met at the end instead of leaving fans in the expectation that they will eventually meet after seeing her run towards him, which didn't happen.
It's like waving a carrot in front of a horse and in the end continue to wave the carrot in front of the horse.
Maybe a season 2 might be in the works? One can only hope.
:) Thank you for your article! I enjoyed reading it a lot.
I've watched all the 8th episodes that have come out and so far my thoughts are: - The beginning was slow for me, beautiful and well accomplished, without a doubt but slow - I got a lot of vibes of Hunger Games - I only thought about Ten Miles...whenever I saw Lai Yi which was also in Ten Miles but his character Zong Yue is far more interesting and intriguing than Die Feng. - The clifhangers at the end of each episode are exceptional as they create just the right amount of expectation towards the next episode that keep the audience on its toes. - Yang Mi is smart. She's not a brilliant actress but she has exceptional business acumen. Not only does she know what the audience wants but she's witty enough to join projects that 1) are high profile, 2) widely talked about on social media and media in general, and 3) she surrounds herself (most of the time so far) with good actors, which 'minimize' her acting deficiencies, not really that important in the grand scheme of a good quality drama done well (so far).
I am truly enjoying this drama and I have hopes that it maintains its consistency throughout its run and continues to be as satisfying to watch as it has been so far.
Undoubtedly Kiss Me 1st hands down. I totally agree with you! 7th place however...for me...Playful Kiss had and…
I agree with you, it would be extremely boring if we all liked or disliked the same things! Different tastes show different perceptions of things and different perspectives which are an added source of knowledge for those that enjoy INK versions. I am very happy when I encounter someone who shares my opinions, but I am grateful when someone does not or shares them partially, showing me another perspective, one that otherwise perhaps I might not have considered or might not have come straight to mind if you know what I mean! I learn more from it and I love it! I am also going to agree with you that it was indeed brilliant to cast Kim Hyun Joong as the lead in Playful Kiss following the success of BOF and his popularity. Saying that I didn’t like him in BOF though despite loving the drama. I found his acting to be limited but enhanced through the other performances around him. It’s like a classroom with 4 great students and one not so great. They’ll pull him up as not to be dragged down. In Playful Kiss, Kim Hyun Joong didn’t have Lee min Ho and co. to do that for him and his weaknesses were highly evidenced throughout the drama as the performances were consistently in need of improvement, some more than others but all within the same range of blandness. I didn’t enjoy it.
It Started with a Kiss and They Kissed Again were amazing. Great cast, great performances and great script for me at least and better than any Japanese version which didn’t mean that Japan doesn’t know how to do good versions of the story. It comes down to preference and for me, everything I have already mentioned in the article when concerning the dramas but I’m a big fan of Jiro Wang! ???? I am with you on that. Say that You Love Me and Miss in Kiss, ummm again…I don’t believe I will touch those versions again but hey you never know.
Thank you so much for your wonderful comment and I look forward to your forthcoming comments in future articles! ????
Congrats on your article! :) I enjoyed reading it! :)
China has master storytellers that write beautiful stories which are then adapted to screen.
For me, its hard to beat Gu Man. She's phenomenal. I've read 3 of her novels: Love 020, Shan Shan come and Eat aka Boss & Me and You are My Sunshine and I loved them! She's an amazing writer and all 3 dramas had great scripts and performances to match!
Three Lives, Three Worlds, Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms by Tang Qi Gong Zi was perfect and the drama matched that perfection to every detail!
General and I aka A Lonesome Fragrance Waiting to Be Appreciated by Feng Nong was a great reading and on my opinion the drama was well accomplished.
Princess Agents aka 11 Chu Te Gong Huang Fei by Xiao Xiang Dong Er was also amazing. The drama to my great disappointment didn't portray the novel in full.
I have recently finished reading Jie Ai·Yi Ke Feng Huan aka The Love Knot: His Excellency's First Love by Shi Ting Rou which is currently airing. I loved the book and I'm loving the drama as well particularly Huang Jing Yu!
If you have a chance to read those novels, I recommend! They're wonderful readings! :)
I have watched every single one of these series, but the Taiwanese version definitely remains my all-time favourite,…
I'm like you. A new version comes out and I have to watch it! It's kind of like Pride and Prejudice. A new version comes out and I have to watch it! I might drop it if I don't like it but I still give it a try! :)
Sadly the only one I've completed is Playful Kiss... I should finish Kiss Me.
Yes, it's good!!! :) If you have a chance as well, give It Started with A Kiss a try. The drama is a bit old but it's a classic with 2 seasons and it's really good as well! :) It's very iconic albeit kind of semi vintage now in the universe of INK versions and adaptations!
I did not know there is an older version than "It Started With A Kiss" until I read this article, which is a 1996…
The Taiwanese version is really good! It was the first version I've watched and I loved it. I didn't really think another version could or would top it up for me but it did, one version. It Started with a Kiss though will always remain special and close to my heart!!! :)
1 
Great article, thank you so much for writing it! :)
I didn't plan to watch this drama, in fact I wanted to stay away from it as much as possible.
The story is cliche and I didn't think 16 episodes were short enough for the story who ought to stick to the Japanese standard of 11, despite being Korean. It's been proven that simple storylines while really pretty on paper are best kept short, otherwise they become repetitive and boring.
Yesterday however, my friend had asked me what was I watching and I told her, then she went raving about What's wrong with Secretary Kim and how addicted she was to the show that she made me promise her that I would give it a try and I did and so far, I'm on episode 4, has been fun! We'll see how it moves on from here but I hope it's now downward as I'm really enjoying the drama.
Thank you again for writing the article! :)
Being poetic with Oto running towards Haruto waiting for her at Ebisu Garden sculpture where once Domyoji has waited for Makino was amazing, granted but it would have been incredible if they actually met at the end instead of leaving fans in the expectation that they will eventually meet after seeing her run towards him, which didn't happen.
It's like waving a carrot in front of a horse and in the end continue to wave the carrot in front of the horse.
Maybe a season 2 might be in the works? One can only hope.
I've watched all the 8th episodes that have come out and so far my thoughts are:
- The beginning was slow for me, beautiful and well accomplished, without a doubt but slow
- I got a lot of vibes of Hunger Games
- I only thought about Ten Miles...whenever I saw Lai Yi which was also in Ten Miles but his character Zong Yue is far more interesting and intriguing than Die Feng.
- The clifhangers at the end of each episode are exceptional as they create just the right amount of expectation towards the next episode that keep the audience on its toes.
- Yang Mi is smart. She's not a brilliant actress but she has exceptional business acumen. Not only does she know what the audience wants but she's witty enough to join projects that 1) are high profile, 2) widely talked about on social media and media in general, and 3) she surrounds herself (most of the time so far) with good actors, which 'minimize' her acting deficiencies, not really that important in the grand scheme of a good quality drama done well (so far).
I am truly enjoying this drama and I have hopes that it maintains its consistency throughout its run and continues to be as satisfying to watch as it has been so far.
I am also going to agree with you that it was indeed brilliant to cast Kim Hyun Joong as the lead in Playful Kiss following the success of BOF and his popularity. Saying that I didn’t like him in BOF though despite loving the drama. I found his acting to be limited but enhanced through the other performances around him. It’s like a classroom with 4 great students and one not so great. They’ll pull him up as not to be dragged down. In Playful Kiss, Kim Hyun Joong didn’t have Lee min Ho and co. to do that for him and his weaknesses were highly evidenced throughout the drama as the performances were consistently in need of improvement, some more than others but all within the same range of blandness. I didn’t enjoy it.
It Started with a Kiss and They Kissed Again were amazing. Great cast, great performances and great script for me at least and better than any Japanese version which didn’t mean that Japan doesn’t know how to do good versions of the story. It comes down to preference and for me, everything I have already mentioned in the article when concerning the dramas but I’m a big fan of Jiro Wang! ????
I am with you on that. Say that You Love Me and Miss in Kiss, ummm again…I don’t believe I will touch those versions again but hey you never know.
Thank you so much for your wonderful comment and I look forward to your forthcoming comments in future articles! ????
China has master storytellers that write beautiful stories which are then adapted to screen.
For me, its hard to beat Gu Man. She's phenomenal. I've read 3 of her novels: Love 020, Shan Shan come and Eat aka Boss & Me and You are My Sunshine and I loved them! She's an amazing writer and all 3 dramas had great scripts and performances to match!
Three Lives, Three Worlds, Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms by Tang Qi Gong Zi was perfect and the drama matched that perfection to every detail!
General and I aka A Lonesome Fragrance Waiting to Be Appreciated by Feng Nong was a great reading and on my opinion the drama was well accomplished.
Princess Agents aka 11 Chu Te Gong Huang Fei by Xiao Xiang Dong Er was also amazing. The drama to my great disappointment didn't portray the novel in full.
I have recently finished reading Jie Ai·Yi Ke Feng Huan aka The Love Knot: His Excellency's First Love by Shi Ting Rou which is currently airing. I loved the book and I'm loving the drama as well particularly Huang Jing Yu!
If you have a chance to read those novels, I recommend! They're wonderful readings! :)
Thanks again for your article! :)