Boys before Flowers Mania

(or in Korean, 꽃보다 남자 "Ggotboda Namja")

Me & Lee Min Ho of "Boys Before Flowers"

Turns out I'm not the only one obsessed with this ridiculous show. Boys Before Flowers mania has swept over Korea. Love it or hate it, everyone, foreigners included, is talking about this show, which is based on a Japanese manga series. The much-anticipated Korean adaptation aired in January, with relatively unknown actors, and became an instant success, almost entirely due to the four male leads, known as F4 (or Flower Four). We discussed the show as part of my lesson plan this past week, which was about expressing opinions, and it definitely got my students talking. (With the exception of some of the upper-level boys' classes, who told me they didn't care who Geum Jan Di chose in the end. The audacity!) I've also overheard ajummas talking about it on the bus, foreign girls discussing their favorite F4 member while waiting for the subway, and supposedly guys are requesting Gu Jun Pyo's signature curly hairdo at the barber shop.

While the show was a huge success, and the actors have become household names overnight, the show was criticized, among other things, for its implausible and silly storyline. In an interview, the director said this in response:

"Our main focus was to cast the most handsome, cutest and freshest F4, [as opposed to the Japanese and Taiwanese versions] and keep them that way throughout the show,” said director Bae. “Everything else came after that."

In that they succeeded. I've watched the Japanese version, Hana Yori Dango, and it is much better in terms of acting, storyline and character development, but the F4 boys aren't nearly as pretty as the Korean ones. The last episode was Tuesday, much to the dismay of all the females in this country, myself included. However, the show's actors are endorsing everything from cosmetics to cell phones to Dunkin Donuts, so their pictures are plastered everywhere. There's also talk of a sequel. I'm crossing my fingers...

The last episode, tear.

My new favorite socks, featuring "Gu Jun Pyo" and "Yoon Ji Hoo"

You can watch episodes with English subtitles at mysoju.com Be careful, it is highly addictive.