After percolating for the past year, SM Entertainment has finally finalized the cast for its adaptation of Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (Hana Kimi) which is called To the Beautiful You. The cast is a combination of two idols in the lead, Sulli from f(x) playing the role of Ashiya Mizuki and Minho from SHINee as Sano Izumi, plus two young actors Lee Hyun Woo as Nakatsu Shuichi and Kim Ji Won as the token second female lead. This looks and feels like a potential Playful Kiss, which I personally loved, but tanked so badly with domestic ratings in Korea. I don’t have a great fascination with Hana Kimi, despite watching the original J-dorama version (not the atrocious 2011 remake) because of my adoration for Horikita Maki and finding Oguri Shun strangely okay, but really it was Ikuta Toma who stole the show (plus the remaining gaggle of cute J-boys). What’s worse for Beautiful You’s prospects is that it’s going up against Nice Guy and Arang the Magistrate, and younger themed dramas continue the trend of getting low ratings. Wishing this drama good luck probably won’t do it much good.
I have no clue about this Minho feller but he looks solid enough to convince me he’s a star athlete. Sulli is adorable, and she was a child actress (she was young Princess Sunhwa in Seodongyeo, my first K-drama ever and I loved the child story in that drama) so I have faith she’ll do just fine. She’s about as convincing as a boy as Maki was, so believability isn’t exactly a requirement in Hana Kimi adaptations (though conversely Ella and Maeda Atsuko both looked like boys in their turns). I’m actually tuning in for the second leads in this version, though tuning in doesn’t sound right, since I’ll be slavering over Arang to really pay attention to other things. But I am curious to see how the K-version stacks up to the other three remakes.
Also joining the cast is L of Infinite (who folks think looks like my Shin but I only see a vague resemblance) and Hwang Kang Hee (of ZE:A). For the adult characters, supposedly Ki Tae Young has signed on, and rumors have Jang Dong Gun’s wife Ko So Young in talks to join the cast. Beautiful You premieres in August on SBS following Ghost. It will be directed by the PD who did Boys Over Flowers (Korean Hana Yori Dango), Witch Amusement, and My Girl, and written by the screenwriter for High Kick 2 and 3 as well as Once Upon a Time in Saengchori. If you are one of the rare folks out there who hasn’t seen one of the existing three Hana Kimi adaptations, it’s the story of a girl cross-dressing to join an all-boys boarding school to encourage her star athlete crush to regain his sporting mojo. Hijinks ensue.
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Mrs Koala,
Minho is a member of SHINee not 2PM. ;)
Fixed it. See! I told you peeps I know nothing about K-pop. Other than if my babies like Lee Seung Gi and Shin sing.
You have become more familiar with K-pop idols than you might think, Mrs Koala. Remember Super Junior's Si Won, Donghae in Skip Beat and Heechul in Bad family (luved your entry on this cherished drama btw)? Let's not forget Shinhwa's Eric (mine mine mine ^_^) because of Spy Myung Wol or Que sera sera. :D
Fyi, L already displayed his interesting acting skills in Shut up flower boy band as the "Hyun soo" character. ZE:A's Kanghee's tentatives in dramas weren't quite as promising.
And just for the record, I am not looking forward to the drama. No offence to the cast but the premices are not my cup of tea plus, well, I kinda have a grudge against SME.
I loved the J and T version a lot. For some reason, I'm worried since I heard we would have a remake done by SM Ent. I will wait to see what people have to say about it. I will be glad if it turns right but...
Maybe I'm also too old for those cross-dressing stories anymore. Always the same tricks.
Why not a guy in a female community? That would bring a bit of fresh air.
LOL, I can only imagine the "Pervert!!" screams.
SM Ent bought the rights to the drama, other than that & providing the lead actors, they arent really doing much, in terms of creative control.
I actually like Hana kimi the original j-version because of the cast... the tw-version is ok for me ... ella was so convincing and did look like a boy.. and jiro was cute as Nakatsu Shuichi... i actually like the 2nd male and female leads.. i think Lee Hyun Woo will be a good shuichi... but i will probably watching my LJK.. been missing him...
i guess the rating will likely be low due to other shows but the k-version sounds like fun for the young casts... after all hana kimi is really just a fun drama.. not so much about plot...
idk how good either of the leads are or care 'cuz I ffwed through every scene that was about Maki and Shun in JDorama...and of course they would cast the only interesting cast member (Lee Hyun Woo) to play my favorite Nakatsu....i like Kim Ji Won a lot too but that only makes me peeved that they are casting her as second lead, not that I should've expected anything else from a drama that is being produced by SM...this drama doesn;t really stand much of a chance going against Arang and Nice Guy and I really dislike the BOF director so i don't know if it will be any good...but then again the only way this will work for me is if they took themselves as seriously as Hana Kimi did..which is to say not very much...plus I'll always have this to cheer me up if it sucks : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMeYK_6S3gk
Honestly, I loved the manga to bits and read it from cover to cover so many times I can't remember. I hope they will add some new spins to the remake. There have been way too many remakes already; if there's nothing new, I doubt it'll take my attention away from Arang. Too little time.
Not a Super Junior member listed, as was originally rumored.
Sulli will most likely wear a wig. But I heard in this adaption soccer plays a bigger role then high jump?
Shun Oguri is one of my favorites, so I watched J version, started with Taiwanese and quit after 2 eps. Now to watch the same drama on Korean oooo, no,no..I'll probably check it out, it's s'thing stronger then me, but enough is enough.
This is in August.., my Vampire prosecutor is also in August...
There will be a new season of vampire prosecutor??
OMG, Seodongyo was my first ever sageuk!!!!
The original J version was a very strange creature. Most of the time it was manic and grating and I endured it with a nervous laugh and a cringe. But once in a while, tucked in there, would be a moment of real feeling. Usually brought on by Oguri Shun or Ikuta Toma (when he wasn't being manic). I'll never understand why people keep re-making this, it is so peculiarly J in its OTT whack mixed with flashes of sensibility.