My Two Cents ... or more

Is it possible to fangirl myself to death?  In the very least, excessive squealing has caused a deadly lack of oxygen.

The reason for my condition you ask?  Well, it all began while watching the Japanese drama for one of my favorite anime series, Ouran High School Host Club.  I thought I would survive with just a mild case of fangirling induced fever.  

But then...I saw this picture in the sidebar of recent additions:

Curses!  Why?!  Someone must be conspiring to kill me.  They know my weakness.  So just what is this exactly?  Well, it is a newly released drama called Ikemen Desu Ne.  I could just leave it at that and let those who know me well infer the rest.  But for those lucky ones that don't.  This is the Japanese remake of "You're Beautiful"...my favorite k-drama.  Ever.  

                                           

So this is it.  The day has finally come that I wish I had even an ounce of skill at doing reviews.  Honestly, I don't.  And I feel like sharing my ideas on how this remake stands in comparison to the original Korean series.  If you want to succumb to the madness of fandom with me, welcome :)

If not, feel free to miss out on the fun; I won't hold that against you. 

Summary (with he entire purpose of this comparison, is this even necessary?): 

The management company of the idol group A.N.JELL insisted on adding a new singer to the group as the lead vocal, Ran's voice was hurting. However,the new member, Mio, had to go to the States to repair a botched nose job just before signing the contract. His agent came up with the idea of having his twin sister, Miko,to stand in for him and pretend that she was her brother. The two of them grew up in an orphanage and Miko, who was all set to become a nun, agreed to this charade as she didn't want to spoil her brother's chance of fame which would make it easier to look for their mother, disappeared when they were very young.

Recaps: Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Japanese Names of Characters

Go Minyeo = Miko

Tae Kyung = Ren

Shin Woo = Shu

Jeremy = Yuki

Japan Cast        / Korean Cast

I have seen a lot of people complaining that the cast isn't nearly as attractive as the korean one.  I personally agree (most of them actually grew on me as the series progressed...except for Jeremy.  That will take some getting used to.  Amazingly enough, there are times when Miko's actress looks frighteningly similar to Park Shin Hye).  

But the acting is great.  Good enough to win me over.  As far as acting goes, I don't have any complaints, though it really isn't my area of expertise anyway. 

I find the president and manager to be even more entertaining in this version too.

They never ceased to amaze me; the actor who plays Ren has his own signature smirk and displeased pout face.  Ah if only he put it into practice as much as Tae-kyung did.  That is part of what won me over - his facial expressions.

Ren's Expressions 

(On another irrelevant note, Tae-kyung in the K-drama has my permission to wear eye liner. I never thought that I would grant that to a man but...*swoon*)

                                                   

Tae Kyung is a complex character that Jang  Geun Suk nailed in a way that would be impossible to replicate.  But honestly, the actor who plays Ren does a fantastic job as an actor for a very convincing Tae Kyung...Ren.  Or whatever.  (Found an awesome article of his charater...down to his 10 hair styles.  Don't believe me?  CLICK HERE NOW!)

It is plain and simple.  Tae-kyung is bad at being badass.  He is genuinely compassionate, and there is no hiding it, even with being terse.  I worried that this wouldn't be portrayed well in the J-drama remake, but I was happily surprised.

For one, they kept the scene when Nana is hit with a basket ball just after threatening Ren with revealing Miko's secret about her identity.  Once people start snapping pictures of the bloody nosed actress, he still intervenes.

He isn't exactly thrilled about it.  He knows that it is more trouble than its worth, probably being an act that will cause him more grief later on.  But that is just who he is.  He will do the right thing, even if it means dealing with unfavorable consequences, such as requiring to put up an act, pretending to love someone that he actually hates with a burning passion.


I was probably most impressed by the fake kiss scene in front of the reporters.  It is typical to have the whole fake kiss witnessed by the "true" love interest.  I liked how in the original series, such a generic asian drama cliche moment was twisted to have more meaning behind it.  I was clutching my pig-rabbit in suspense, wondering if they would do the scene right.  They did.

Ren turns to Miko and asks if she has to stay in the band, disguised as her brother.  Her answer is a definite yes.

I don't know why, but I dreaded that they would cut this crucial part out for some reason.  But they preserved it with the same degree of dire intensity.  For if she had said no, he could have let it be.  Ren wouldn't have to play the part as Nana's puppet.  He could simply tell her to skrew it, and let her carry on with her worst.

The kiss itself is purely a sacrifice on Ren's behalf.  One that is entirely for Miko's well-being, especially since he doesn't have a clue as to how she feels about him.  He feels the need to protect what is important to Miko.  And he will do so even if it turns his life into a living hell.

There were a few things that got to me though.  The first being the scene with the ring.  

Tae-Kyung - “Do you think you can find your mother if you stick around?”

Mi-Nyeo - “If I search for her earnestly, I believe I can.”

Ren does the same thing,  throwing down the gauntlet, pretending to toss her mother's ring into the water.  But the dialogue is changed in a way that I think only takes away from the main point.  I hope that it was just the subtitles, but I do know enough Japanese to believe that it wishful thinking.

In the Japanese translation Miko says something more along the lines of "If I sincerely believe, than my dreams will come true".  To me, that just destroys the whole concept of the challenge to let her stay in the band.  Finding the ring is where the double meaning of finding her mother came from.  At first I let it slide thinking about how maybe by believing that she could find it.  But her reaction when he pulled the ring out was thanking Ren for finding it for her.  What the heck?! In the original, she had said "I found it" therefore winning the challenge.  I don't know.  Maybe I am reading to far into things.

The second part of that scene that bothered me was how Ren's reaction to her spontaneous hug was cut short.  I mention before that Tae Kyung's pount and sneer are a huge part of his character.  Because it is so prominent in the series, his look is priceless.

He is not comfortable with the situation because he is upset that he does care about her, just the same as he is upset about caring about his mother.  He tries so hard to maintain his cold exterior as a coping mechanism.  Both Tae Kyung and Mi Nyo have mother abandonment issues.  He takes his self loathing out on her because the alternative is the possibility that he is a kind person with feelings.  But he doesn't want to allow himself to be venerable and wind up hurt again.   

Again, maybe I am reading too much into things.  Perhaps it was fine in itself and just got pushed aside with the highly comedic touch of Ren fainting from the shock of being in a filthy pool with a frog on his head.



Ok OK.  I am sure that you have all grown weary of my complaints.  I really do look forward to what they will do with the whole pig-rabbit thing.  Pig rabbit is an integral part of the series.  Actually, questioning it is like opening a Pandora's box of worries.  As all fans know, its origins are rooted in the infamous pig chase scene....

1.) Tae-kyung goes to the country, flails in the fields in the middle of nowhere and gets chased by a pig

2.) Also in the country, Mi-Nyeo brings up how cute she thinks rabbits are.  This brings back memories of him being bitten by one as a young child.  Rabbits are dangerous...so is she.  So, she is like a rabbit to him.

3.) The manager tricks Mi-Nyeo into thinking that her nose is a pressure point used to relieve feelings of love for someone

4.) Tae Kyung views the gesture as mocking him for being chased by the pig, attributing her to another animal he disapproves of.

And thus the Pig-Rabbit is born!


So, all of these factors have to be in place for there to be the pig-rabbit.  The whole reason for him to be in the country is because of Mi-Nyeo's aunt.  Are we to assume then that Miko's aunt is welcomed as well.  If so, will she be as enamored with grabbing Tae Kyung's butt, much to his horror, as she was in the Korean series?  In the country, will Nana fall in cow poop?  I am not saying that all of these events have to take place, but it does raise some interesting questions.

I am not saying that the Japanese re-make has to be a carbon copy of the original, in fact, I think that would be the worst thing possible.  The drama should make it its own. Yes it is an adaptation.  But the more they play around without taking away from the original, the better it is going to be.  For example, I really do like the comedic part of Ren fainting in the lake, the president threatening to drown the manager, and all their own unique quirks added so far.  But if they take Pig-Rabbit out of it...that is just unforgivable. It is somehow an integral part of the series.  If they take it out....it will be a very dark day indeed.

Now, some Jang Guem Juk as Tae Kyung pics...because I just can't exercise self control.

Why yes, I do have an extremely hard time containing myself.