Series: “Boys Over Flowers”
Year: 2009
Channel: KBS2

Intro

I opted to watch this series since it’s one of the most popular Korean dramas of all time and has some familiar faces in the Hallyu scene. It came out when Korean entertainment had a worldwide boom including music, television, movies, modeling, and endorsements. This series was at the forefront. It was also available to watch via Netflix, so I ended up taking the dive to watch this series.

Plot

Geum Jandi is a regular high school girl who saved a boy’s life after he attempted to kill himself. With the news becoming public, she is rewarded with a scholarship to the prestigious Shinhwa High School. There she meets bullies and the very popular rich F4 headed by Gu Junpyo. At first, they cause hell towards her, but by standing up to them, she gains their respect, trust, friendship, and more.

Good

You do get emotionally invested in the lead character as you go on a journey with her through trials and tribulations. When she feels joy, so do you. When she is hurt, you hurt alongside her. You root for her to succeed through hell and high water.

You also learn to either love or hate Gu Junpyo depending on what kind of person you are. You either like him because you think he’s handsome and tall or because you feel like he can change for the better during the course of the series. You could also hate him because he’s been a jerk for the better part of the series or because you would ship Geum Jandi with Yoon Jihoo who was always nice to her.

Bad

As much as I want to say that Jandi also improved as a character during the course of the series, I feel like she regressed. At the beginning, she was more of an independent character who could fight off anyone, but turtled up when she was facing legitimate danger during a trip out of the country. She started to become more dependent on F4. Although you could blame a lot of things on the boys, you never do so with her because you always want her to overcome all obstacles on her own which wasn’t the case.

Overview

This series became a cultural boom for South Korea as F4 became style icons that inspired many people to take care of themselves like dressing better, improving one’s image, and striving to become better versions of themselves. Because of “Boys Over Flowers”, many guys started to wear brighter colors, cosmetics, slim fit clothing, and preppy attire.

“Boys Over Flowers” is the first Korean drama I have ever watched that didn’t include action like fight sequences, gun fights, and explosions. I liked this series and got some friends of mine to check it out.

Overall rating: 4/5
Reviewed by: Timtastic