To say my feelings towards Gu Family Book is like an odd little duck might be the best way to describe it. Clearly I was disappointed it failed to live up to my hopes, but then that really never bothered me too much other than a shrug and a wish for better next time around for Lee Seung Gi. Whereas I took Jang Ok Jung, Live in Love‘s descent into Le Terrible really personally, because it was so freaking awesome initially that the insanity later on felt like a stark betrayal. Normally when I don’t love a drama the weeks when it airs feels interminable because I’m just waiting for it to end quickly so the next better thing can come along. Oddly I really enjoyed following along with GFB, sometimes watching scenes that seemed interesting, other times just enjoying the camaraderie on the set as MBC released fun BTS stills. The leading couple of Lee Seung Gi and Suzy had chemistry in my eyes – of the playful sibling variety. There wasn’t a lick of romance there and that’s a shame though it doesn’t tank the drama’s central love story since Yeol Wool seemed rather like a block of wood and Kang Chi took so long to come around that he was falling for her. My gut tells me Suzy is just so young, and so much younger than Seung Gi, that real life age difference and life experience probably just immediately placed them into oppa-dongsaeng vibe. Who’s with me that they would have been awesome playing onscreen siblings in a weekend drama where they bicker all the time but support each other with their own OTPs. GFB would have been leaps and bounds better in the hands of a genuinely talented scriptwriter, so in the end of the day the poor directorial choices, the acting misses here and there, that is all secondary to the main reason this drama failed to be as good as its interesting concept warranted. But in terms of ratings its a definite winner and for that the cast and crew has every reason to smile and enjoy the experience. Check out the cute and sweet BTS stills from the drama as released by MBC. Poor Sung Joon may have been the biggest waste of his talent in this drama but at least he seemed to have developed a real life bromance with Seung Gi. That’s worth something to me, those two cutie pies.
Love the stills they’re so adorable! They look like brother and sister with these bts photos. It’s nice to see all of them having so much fun while filming. I especially like Seung Gi and Sung Joon’s bromance shots haha. :))
Off topic! Ms. Koala I was wondering if you’ll still recap our beloved MONSTAR? Hihi hope you’d reply! Thanks! 🙂
I think Lee Seung Gi himself looks so young and Suzy is a good match as far as age is concerned.
I liked him with Ha Ji Won, but still, he looked younger than her. Shin Min Ah was really cute with him and Han Hyo Joo was perfect for him.
she is too young
Early ’87 to late ’94 and early ’87 to mid ’78 are almost the same freaking gap – about 8 years and about 9 years, respectively. Dude might look younger than 26, but he sure doesn’t look 18.
who is talking about looks? She is to young for him both age and maturity wise. And to young, and to poor of an actress to have been cast in this lead role. Period.
well…..I’m not exactly talking about ‘age’….at least not going by numbers….Just the way they look…..They both look young and of similar age…..that’s all I’m saying 🙂
For me it seems I don’t have the same opinion with you Ms.Koala..hehehe..I really enjoy their chemistry.and this is the second time I really enjoy Seung Gi and his co-star chemistry.Before GFB,I enjoy Seung Gi-Han Hyo Joo chemistry.I also like his other co-stars like Ha Ji Won and Shin Min Ah,but two that I enjoy the most are when he was with Hyoo Joo and now with Suzy.I feel the same excitement for seeing Seung Gi-Suzy scene as what I have experienced with Seung Gi-Hyo Joo.And I don’t get any feeling of dongsaeng-oppa at all from Seung Gi and Suzy..LOL.
I agree with koala. Suzy is just as cute as a basketful of kittens, and LSG is just as adorable as a puppy that’s just ‘fessed-up’ to chewing on your slipper, but there is so little sexual chemistry there they could very well have played brother and sister with just a tweak of the words and a few less clinches.
To me, chemistry is more than just the impression that a couple actually enjoys each other’s company – I need to get the feeling that the only thing keeping them from jumping into bed is the interference of the plot and the necessity for saying some words. So from that criteria, LSG had much better “chemistry” with Ha Ji won, and as for Suzy – she’s never had it, yet.
he and chung jo actress have it too, they would have made it enjoyable and believable. I started FF her scenes, cant watch her
I agree, if LSG had continued with LYB (as a lead for example, leading to more scenes in general and more romantic scenes with her), they would have been really good. They had really good chemistry.
Omg this is a first lmao. I very much respect the opinion but so totally think the complete opposite. These two have so so much chemistry it’s ridiculous. Their emotional scenes just get you at the heart. But anyway, that’s what I think.
Adore the first pic and how comfortable they are with one another. Even rehearsing while hugging is cute. Seung gi has bromance (or rather chemistry in general) with pretty much everyone. I love his relationship with the cast and I hope these guys remain in contact for a long time 🙂
lol, Seung gi awesome actor, but the chemistry is not romantic or sexual its big brother all the way.
Like I said. Personal opinion differs 🙂
You’re right on the money – they have no romantic chemistry, in fact they have more spark with Sung Joon than they do with each other.
And I don’t even think it is the age gap, since IU is just a year older than Suzy and has a THIRTEEN-year age gap with Jo Jong-suk on You’re The Best Lee Soon-shin, and still had chemistry with him (I say had, because the makjang of that drama made me give up). It’s just not there between LSG and Suzy, which is a shame.
You’re also right about Sung Joon being sadly wasted in here – he’s enjoyable when he’s on, but his character is so pointless.
Yeah, age is nothing but a number when it comes to romantic chemistry. On the other hand, age can be used to your advantage or it can turn against you. That’s why we praise so many child actors these days because they exceed our expectations and are able to captivate us at such a young age with their keen understanding of the acting world. And then we shake our heads at someone like the beautiful but lacking song seung hun.
Suzy is staring in a show that requires her to be more mature than her age, so she needs to give a stronger, better performance than she did in dream high(where there weren’t as much critics on her acting then because she suit the role she was given). The backlash is mostly apparent now in GFB for suzy because it was more obvious that she is not as strong of an actress to take on the role of yeo wool. I did love her more for her performance in dream high, and that’s because i wasn’t screaming at her behind the screen to emote more. I do however appreciate the fact that she is trying harder and is evidently improving in some scenes so anyone who’s working hard on their weaknesses gets a plus in my book.
Also, i noticed my icon color is always a light purple. Are we all assigned the same color on this blog? That’s king of cool.
Ilikemangos – she’s trying, and the effort shows when it actually shouldn’t – she just does not have a knack for acting, or playing characters really, and I don’t excuse it in Hand Towel so I really don’t see any reason to accept the million excuses her fans put out for her (the writing, the directing, the costars, her age, everyone else sucks, blah blah blah). She has a cute personality though, she’d make a better variety host than an actress tbh.
My opinion is that IU and JJS have totally no chemistry, I can’t feel or see them as a real couple at all. For the Kangdam couple, I just feel that they are a match made in heaven. Love watching them together !!
I think they should just have kept the story with Lee Yeon Hee and hot gumiho daddy.
You’re right, from the start I’ve felt to real connection or attraction between the main characters.
They seem more like friends then lovers, they’d make a cute sibling pair with Seung Gi and protective oppa but that’s about it.
Suzy isn’t leading lady quality (not yet at least) and Sung Joon was such a wasted talent in this.
Yoo Bi on the other hand, hopefully she’ll get some good parts after this and continue to develop because she is good. I know she’s been critiqued for riding on her mothers coattails but she proved that she has talent.
Who is Yoo Bi’s mom? I thought she was an up-and-coming actress, her work here very promising, and I have no idea who her mother is.
If idols can get into a show with nothing but a wink and a wave to their credit, I don’t see why actors/actresses progeny should be criticized. In Japan, it is an honored tradition to have sons and daughters continue in the trade, and they have a lot more going for them then a set of abs or a winsome personality. Really, fans don’t have a leg to stand on in criticizing Yoo Bi.
Yup, I agree. In Japan you have plenty of performers who’s parents also are in the industry and aren’t critiqued for it.
Lee Yoo Bi’s mother is the actress Kyun Mi Ri (currently in wonderful mama). Yoo Bi proved that she can act and is someone to reckon with. She steals every scene with Suzy. I hope she can continue getting good parts.
I agree with all you said, especially about Lee Yoo Bi. She was the really unexpected gem of this drama when her character had stuff to do, and i hope she gets a lead role in a good project too – famous mother or not, the girl is really good and I find it amazing, how much she’s improved with each project she does.
Suzy looks like a lovely bunny in the last picture 🙂
Thank you for posting these stills…
As a fangirl of LSG, I didn’t enjoy reading some of your opinions on his acting (and Suzy’s for that mattet) or the drama, which in my opinion, are overly harsh. But despite that I had to agree with you on several points.
LSG’s chemistry with Suzy is mostly just cute and not romantic. I enjoy the cute moments but their romance did not touch my heart at all and I wasn’t even expecting anything deep or heartrending in the first place.
Writing and directing were uneven, and these, more than the acting, were the letdown of GFB. Like you, I find GFB enjoyable on a very surface level, and though there are scenes which will raise my heartbeat or make my eyes tear (which are only the scenes between KC and LSS), in the end this is a drama which I will not re-watch.
for me i agreed that both of them have more of oppa and dongsaeng chemistry but for suzy..as the show goes ,i m more convinced with her acting ability.esp on the last few episodes.for those who don’t watch the show because can’t stand of suzy’s acting,i recommend u to watch few last episodes.if u compare her to some of the senior actresses(ex : eugene in hundred years inheritance,i like her too but her acting is terrible in this drama)suzy is much more better now.
I have watched, she has not done the role justice, and
she is still horrible. I am honestly glad this show is over after one more episode, so that I never have to watch her again. I thought that if anyone could warm me to her it would be LSG but no luck. And I feel bad for all the negative he has had to endure because of her poor acting, and the show being written to accommodate her poor skills.
Actually, I get that you have your opinion of Suzy’s acting. I too think that she has a long way to go in terms of acting ability.
But all your comments about her are so vociferous that you come across as anti-Suzy and seemed rather biased in your obvious dislike of her.
Suzy ang LSG both won best actors and actresses for this series. Also best couple. What proof do you still want to validate supeeb 8their acting skills.
I’m actually fine with Suzy and like their chemistry. What I am not fine with is the director and the writer. They completely under cook what could have been a very heartwarming story.
seconding this, the repeato mode over and over forced me to skip scenes. And more over, the way he let suzy just stand ther is a meh, Suzy is yes, not very experienced, but there’s no reason to let viewer know it. Im not a fan nor anti here, I just see that the biggest fault comes from the writing and directing
age is nothing. the importance is the chemistry. to bring it the actor has to work well together. sorry to mention here, instead the BIG age difference IU and JJS really have a great chemistry in YTBLSS. they both really look good together. for me age is nothing when the actor can bring it in their action and pull out the chemistry well.
I really have to disagree that IU and JJS have great chemistry together, really they are more like Uncle and niece to me, not even siblings. I can’t for the life of me, picture them as a romantic couple. LSg and Suzy on the other hand, are my idea of an ideal couple, I watched GFB because I root for them and hope they have a happy ending !
maybe you dont watch the drama yet so you said something like that. hmmm its ok for me its just my opinion and other people who really ship for IU-JJS pairing in that drama.
Oh, so cute photos. Love ’em!
Ratings were solid but nothing to brag about. They still didn`t pass that famous 20% mark and i doubt they will. And with two IT stars like Lee Seunggi and Suzy i think they were expecting a National drama. Yes they were No1 drama in it`s time slot but lets be honest- they had weak competition!
Compare it to Yawang in same time slot who had better rating but had HUGE competition from the Horse Doctor.
Tbh i would say in terms of rating the drama didn`t disappoint but it wasn`t precisely a hit drama!
The two IT stars were great, esp LSG unfortunately the plot leaves much to be desired. Frankly if I were not such an ardent fan of LSG or if Kang Chi was acted by some other actor, I would have not watched till the end.
i hope lee seung gi and yoon eun hye will work together. it will be the best!
i hope lee seung gi and yoon eun hye will work in drama together. i really love both of them. i hope it will happen before he will enlist in the army. plsssss…….