zleighz

You know, I watch Kdramas more than any other kind, but I have never been able to finish BOF. I have tried a few times at this point and I just can't do it! It still shocks me that it was the show that re-upped hallyu back in the early 2010s, since there are almost no other kdramas that I've seen with the same level of over-acting and cheesiness.

It doesn't help that I can't stand Lee Minho in almost everything. He just comes across like a black hole of charisma to me. He's like a fancy piece of cardboard. I did finish Heirs, but kind of in spite of LMH if I'm being honest.

Every once in a while I get the theme song stuck in my head though lol

So who feels like Thyme's style stays true to the character's style concept? (What do they usually say... pineapple hair?)

I showed my partner the first 30 minutes of BOF and Meteor Garden (2018), then we watched the Thai episodes together, and his first comment about Thyme was "oh, so they decided not to make his hair ridiculous anymore?" (lol)

I pretty much agree with this. To me it seems like Thyme has deliberately messy hair, but it doesn't seem ridiculous enough to comment on.

That said, someone further in the thread actually did make a comment about Thyme's hair, so it seems like the stylist maybe stayed true to the style concept after all.

Anyone else have thoughts?

Oh, haha, I was just musing on the scene, not trying to tell you that you were wrong!

It went along with the scene in episode 2 where he pushed Thyme into the waiter, making them both fall. To me, it seemed like Ren is so calm and collected usually, but if something makes him snap, he doesn't pay attention to his actions or the people around him. As soon as Thyme touched Mira, he snapped. Seeing Gorya on her knees begging Mira, he snapped. It seemed consistent to his character, which is good, because otherwise it would feel like they took a nice character and made him a jerk for no reason.

Bold move to post this! Just kidding ;)

I'm sad that you can't feel what I feel while watching, though.

I'd be willing to bet that there is conflict in Thyme at that moment. Like with Gorya when Mira is leaving... part of her can't help but think that it gives her an opening, but the part that wins out is actually the one that cares about Ren.

Thyme, too, probably felt jealousy (and also like he was about to lose a love rival), but all of that lost out to his feelings of friendship.

It is also a huge moment of growth for Thyme. Earlier, he talked to his sister about how he knows his teenage years are ending and he'll have to step-up for his mom and the business, and you can see just how awful that feeling is for him. And now, without any kind of warning, his best friend of over 10 years is leaving him, so of course it guts him. So much so that he, who has never once apologized to Ren first, steps-up to apologize.

It was lovely, and absolutely the right move for the character. Especially since Gorya was watching, and obviously moved by Thyme. Of any other scene, this is the first time that I think she thinks of him as a person, not just as F4.

Oh, I really like that you articulated the feeling of a chapter ending at the end of the episode. I think you are spot-on!

In much of the first 3 episodes, Thyme watched Gorya : from his car when he sees her with Ren, from another room when he sees her by the pool, from the stairwell when he sees her on the roof... and so we know that he is thinking about her and many of his actions have been because of her.

But Gorya has pretty much only thought about Thyme in relation to the red card, or as Ren's friend. The end of episode 2 pushed them together, literally, but the end of episode 3 was more of a significant shift because it shows that now Gorya is thinking about Thyme, too, if only in the back of her head.

As viewers, we shouldn't want Gorya to be with Thyme because, to be honest, she has no feelings towards him except bad ones. We need to see her start to open up to him first, and the moment she runs to him in the rain signifies that willingness to be open to him.

Thyme's discussion with his Sister made Ren's departure really sweet... you can tell he's afraid of childhood ending, and a best friend leaving is a huge step. It helps make it believable that Thyme would get over his pettiness and apologize.

I also feel like the show is earning the speech at the beginning of episode 1, about how they will all change because of knowing Gorya... I can see that Gorya directly influenced Mira and Ren, whose departure led to a big moment of growth for Thyme. Obviously Thyme will keep being influenced by Gorya, but this was a nice, indirect way.

Also, regarding the sister- so hopeful that this version won't make her abusive to her brother. I think it was the Chinese version that made me feel like Daomingsi only fell for Shancai because he had a sister-complex and Shancai beat him like his sister did. Very weird undertone.

Add a spoiler tag please

To one of your points:

Thyme telling Gorya to give in was fantastic. He is trying to gain the upper hand, and doesn't know how pull himself back. Too bad for him, Gorya won't give in to his demands.

Thyme (versus Daomingsi, Jun Pyo, etc) is so much more sympathetic and relatable.

I lost one of these on a bus once and I still kick myself over it. If someone hit on me by giving my apple pencil back, I'd be so grateful I couldn't say no, lol

So I just finished the episode where they confess their feelings to each other and now I'm stopping. I had already been contemplating stopping here, since it was starting to give more time to the boring side characters, but the reviews have sealed the deal.

Having only watched episodes 1 through (I think) 7, it was an extremely enjoyable watch. Great acting and super nice, light romance, with a sweet conclusion.

I also loved that after he kidnapped her, he didn't try to make her his gf. Like, in his eyes, it looked as though he thought if she accepts his gifts, she accepts him, but he didn't just go "you're my gf now", which I appreciated. It's nice that Gorya doesn't have an inkling of his feelings yet, and that the kiss can be what propells us to the next stage of Thyme pursuing her.

I agree with you.

It is hard to read reviews/comments from people who seem to lack empathy with a character. As you mentioned, because Kiyoi might have called Hira disgusting, then it must mean Kiyoi is a jerk... or maybe he is a teen who is uncertain of his own feelings and hasn't yet grown up to the point that he knows how to reckon with his own inadequacies and uncertainties without acting on them slightly inappropriately.

For real, Kiyoi was such a sympathetic character... like, he was clearly so moved by Hira and was made to believe that Hira really REALLY liked him, but as soon as he made the first move and full-on kissed Hira, he got NOTHING in return. He just had to wallow in sadness with the thought that Hira moved on. So much sympathy pains in my stomach watching him.

Dang it. Im gonna have to rewatch the show again now lol. It's just so good and so well acted.

Think about it this way...

If you work really hard on an assignment, put time and effort into it, and feel really good about the end product and your teacher/boss says "great job!", then it'll probably feel good, because the praise reflects your effort.

But if you grab something out of the trash to turn in and you still hear, "great job!", then you know the person giving praise is full of s***, right? It makes the praise meaningless.

This is how some people watch their shows and it seems to be the approach you take based on your comments. But imo it doesn't do these shows the justice they deserve. A drama like F4 *deserves* to be critiqued and evaluated, and have its merits discussed, rather than simply praised uncritically.

Some of us right on this thread are clearly so obsessed with F4 because we ARE critical of the story. Because this version is just SO good in comparison to the others. Because the writers and actors have amazingly crafted a fantastic version of the story *because* they have approached it critically and made it BETTER.

The smile killed me. The way he kept his fingers in front, so the smile was barely visible (just a flash and mostly in the eyes) was just fantastic. Nothing about this show has been over the top or cringy and its awesome. And Bright has been playing Thyme so perfectly. I have never rooted for the ML at the beginning of a Hana Yori Dango adaptation until now. I'm so excited to see Thyme learn and grow and become what he will become.

Omg.... Gorya's dad was totally right about rich people mixing prints.... look at Thyme's shirt on the bus!! 🐆🍌

How fitting! I'll definitely check it out.

Wow, yes! Agree.

My usual descriptor of any version is "problematic, but I like it". I think that's why I watched the first 2 epodes of F4 with my jaw on the floor.... I could never have imagined a version of this story that upends every single instance when I'm prepared to cringe, or look at sideways, or pretend I didn't hear etc etc... and, like you said, keeps the parts that are integral to the original while crafting a fresh, fantastic take on it.

Also, if you happen to blog about dramas, let me know. I'm extremely interested in your takes on any of them.

I'd like to suggest caution with this take...

Part of what can make a show better than others is going to be the story of a person changing...

No one really wants to watch a bully/selfish/shit head ML fall in love in 5 minutes and all of a sudden be an angel... because it's boring, bad storytelling, right?

Part of what I am absolutely loving about this version of the story is *how* it is telling the story.

Most of the content on this page seems to be positive about the drama as well.

Your comment is kind of a thought-terminating cliche... like, instead of discussing the merits of the show, or a real argument against the story, you made a comment that risks doing nothing but drawing a line in the sand between you and anyone who doesn't echo your statement.

By the way, I'm not trying to argue with you, just pointing out a concept I've spent a lot of time contemplating.