I’m not sure why I remain so optimistic about the upcoming K-version of Bu Bu Jing Xin, other than I’m most likely still not jaded as a drama watcher and enjoy the excitement of happy anticipation. Even though I love the novel and C-drama adaptation to pieces, neither are masterpieces without flaws, and what makes them so near and dear for me is how visceral the story connected with me rather than being an untouchable ideal.
That means that K-version can succeed even if it changes elements up and doesn’t have a cast nearly as talented as the C-version. I can’t say the C-cast are all award winning caliber, though a few are, but above all else each lead delivered career breakthrough level performances and captured the chemistry of both romance, rivalry, and sibling intensity. Check out both casts side-by-side and see if visually you can picture it. For whatever reason I’m pretty at peace with the K-casting.
Nicky Wu v. Lee Jun Ki as 4.
Personality in novel: Aloof, reserved, perceptive, incisive, patient, proud.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: Initially she purposely keeps her distance from him because she knows that he is the future Emperor Yongzheng and the ultimate victor of the 9-Prince-Battle. But it’s her wariness and heightened guard against him which intrigues him even more. He genuinely falls in love with her, and it’s a very intense love because he’s the kind of man that rarely lets go of his emotions, but once he does, it’s all or nothing.
But he’s not great husband material since as Emperor he’s forced to take certain actions that may run contrary to what Ruo Xi thinks is right. This ends up driving an increasingly unbridgeable wedge between them. 4th Prince probably isn’t the funnest husband to half, his sense of humor is stuck between negative 1 and occasionally maybe a zero. He’s insanely intelligent, but probably likes reading boring classical texts.
IU vs. Liu Shi Shi as Ruo Xi the time-traveling heroine.
Personality: Independent, thoughtful, practical, spirited, adaptable.
Musings: Ruo Xi doesn’t win all those princely hearts and survive in the Qing Dynasty because she’s so beautiful that men are blinded by her looks. She’s described as merely fresh-faced, but it’s her intelligence and ability to read any situation that gives her the advantage. She’s very tenacious – when she becomes the tea-serving maid to the Emperor, she makes the effort to learn the expertise at brewing tea, for which she wows the Emperor and the princes time and again with her skill. She’s not written as a pure and idealistic heroine, but rather she is exceedingly realistic and not one to toss caution to the wind.
Kevin Cheng vs. Kang Ha Neul as 8.
Personality: Refined, calm, gentle, passionate, ambitious.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: He fell in love with Ruo Xi first, and wrote her letters during her ten years in the palace serving the Emperor. It wasn’t until they went to Manchuria together with the Emperor that their relationship finally blossomed. Ruo Xi was reluctant to reciprocate his feelings because she knew his ultimate fate in life. But his steady and passionate pursuit of her finally wore down her reluctance and she accepted him. But she still wanted to ensure her own choice would not be doom and gloom, so she forced him to choose between her or pursuing the throne. He could not give up something he worked his entire life towards, so they ultimately broke up and never got another chance again.
Yuan Hong vs. Nam Joo Hyuk as 13.
Personality: Rebellious, wild, carefree, loyal, dashing.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: He is Ruo Xi’s one true friend in the Qing Dynasty, someone she feels most at ease with. As she’s stepping around all the landmines in the palace, he is someone she never needs to guard against. If Ruo Xi and 13th Prince were attracted to each other, they’d be the perfect fit. They are clearly soulmates who understand each other intellectually and emotionally and their friendship is a thing of beauty.
Ji Soo v. Lin Geng Xin as 14.
Personality: Sincere, forthright, selfless, impetuous, brave.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: Initially just a casual friend to Ruo Xi, not close enough to be a confidante, but neither did she treat him with polite distance. He sincerely supported Ruo Xi marrying 8th Prince and was quite angry on behalf of 8th Prince when Ruo Xi rejected him. Though later he fell in love with her, but she never reciprocated his feelings. He never pressured her to do so, and instead waited patiently for her to choose him. Pretty much the perfect husband material – giving, patient, genuine. Not as emotional or as potentially flighty as 13th Prince. Too bad Ruo Xi didn’t love him like that.
Hong Jong Hyun vs. Han Dong as 9.
Personality: Calculating, brusque, confrontational, self-absorbed, sneaky.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: None other than they pretty much dislike each other from the get go.
Ye Zhu Xin vs. Baekyun as 10.
Personality: Candid, cheerful, bumbling, kind, like an open book.
Relationship with Ruo Xi: 10th Prince is the first to fall for Ruo Xi, but it’s pretty clear that it’s just a crush, and an unrequited one at that. But Ruo Xi doesn’t dislike him or dissuade his crush, she merely enjoys his company and never leads him on. It’s clear he genuinely loved Ruo Xi in his puppy dog way and would have worshipped the ground she walked on. He’s lots of fun and Ruo Xi admitted he was her first friend after she first arrived. He’s not terribly sharp, so the likelihood of deep conversations isn’t highly likely. But he’s steadfast and loyal. It would be like marrying a Princely equivalent of a golden retriever. She could do a lot worse.
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Oh wow.. chinese actors are much more handsome. I need to start watching cdramas ??
I wouldn't watch, otherwise I will be busy compare and contrast once I watch the korean version. And that will drive me crazy if the K-version is not as good as or better than the C-version.
Anyway, thank you ockoala for giving the summary of the characters.
Hahaha I know right I saw only 1 cdrama- this year's Nirvana in Fire. Fell in love with the leads. Started watching their other dramas; fell in love with other co-actors and ended up watching dramas with them as leads. Saw others & in some sort of chain reaction spiraled into a cdrama swamp. So good luck to you on your cdrama journey!
Omg..just like me..all because of NIF. Any recommendation for cdramas? I watched boss and me. It was good.
@ Ms. Penguin You can try Wuxin The Monster killer, Too Late to Say I Love You, Legend of Ban Shu, Legend of Lu Zhen, My Sunshine, The Perfect Couple, Journey of the Flower, Prince of Lan Ling, The Glamorous Imperial Concubine, Palace 1, Beauties Without Tears, etcc..... ( I still have a lot Lol)
maybe u can try c drama journey of the Flower starring Wallace Huo and Zhao Li Ying (Boss and Me)
if you like NIF, i'll recommended THE DISGUISER. most of them are the same actors in NIF with great performances. you wont be disappointed. both NIF and TD got many awards. My Sunshine and Love Me If You Dare are also good. if you like idol drama, i recommend Tornado Girl.
i perhaps feel kinda different about Journey of flower, i dunno but this is the 2nd drama of wallace that i quit watching it in the half way. (perfect couple too).
but i really like mando-dramas... the acting is more accurate <3
Wait! Here am I to join your league all thanks to NiF. Now I'm an avid C drama viewer and googled all the onscreen C hotties almost every day. LOL
@Ivana, you seem to be a C drama buff. Where can you watch all these C drama? I only know viki and DramaFever. But I don't like DramaFever bcos of all the dang ads.
@Drama2016 I go to Maplestage, which has an extensive list, but are without subtitles. Otherwise I just search directly on youtube for the works of the actors I follow. If you need subtitles, I think dramacool.cc has a good list too.
For English subbed dramas, I'll always check Viki, MyAsianTV, and kissasian. But I discovered the website CN LoveTVShow which has considerable stock of Mainland Chinese dramas, even those currently airing AND those from early 2000s, and many are in HD. They're not subbed though.
@Ivana & lenje, thanks for the information. Do you have any good recommendations of 2015 or 2014 C-dramas. I found myself not so much the one for the works of earlier C-production. I'm waiting for certain dramas to be released in 2016 such as Chen Xiao and Yang Yang's new dramas. While waiting, I'll be interested in giving a shot to other old stuff. I tried to watch the Journey of Flower and Battle of Changsha. But they didn't work for me. I understand spoken Chinese although I prefer English sub.
I just started watching c-dramas and I'm upset at myself for waiting so long. The male actors are masculine and handsome, there's no pretty/flower boy overload like in korean dramas.
I'm certain now that this drama is going to flop since koala has taken interest in it. it continues. hope not koala supports any future drama i enjoy otherwise she would ruin it. better koala dislikes shows then the other way around
Then the question remains why are you on this site? My tastes are not similar to koala's either, but this is her blog, and she's free to like or dislike as many dramas as she like. In the end we are all audiences, and our opinions have no influence on the quality of the drama itself.
I'm definitely more attracted to the Chinese cast, except the 9th and 10th, but all of them are definitely more manly!!
13th :(
14th :(
Strangely I never really liked Ruo Xi with the 8th prince, so... But maybe Kang Haneul will change my mind.
I'm not emotional prepared yet to have JiSoo break my heart. Again. For the third time.
I'm not feeling the Korean adaptation. The Korean actors looks too young for the roles they'll play. I thought the C-drama was intriguing. Not so with this.
I thought for the c-drama the actors although were awesome were a bit too old to play the princes, but they were able to get beyond that and it did not once affect the drama. So I think age should not be a factor rather their acting is more important....
The actors were older for the C-drama because the succession struggle took place when Yinzhen was in his early thirties (when the Emperor removed the crown prince). Yinzhen was 44 when he ascended the throne. Nicky Wu was 40 thereabouts when he took on the role, so the age was more or less okay.
Performance-wise however, Nicky Wu did not cut it as the Fourth Prince for me - he just did not have that sort of aura - but I'm clearly in the minority.
@snow, you're not the only one who doesn't swoon all over the 4th prince played by Nicky Wu. Nicky Wu did not convince me either as that pivotal figure in the drama. So I'm more looking forward to Lee Jung Ki as the equivalent role in the K version.
Yeah but Korean royals particularly pre-joseon lived & died young unlike their Chinese counterparts.
Um, not really, the average life expectancy was pretty similar.
This will be awesome no matter how bad. I really love the actors who will be interacting with K-Ruo Xi the most.
* LGX kinda snuck on me while I swooned over all the other boys, so it'll be different to be watching Ji Soo in the background before his "time." It'll be tough to wait but with Ji Soo, itll certainly be worth the wait.
*I have to say that in BBJX, it was never 8 for me, like NEVER, but KHN may change that.
*As far as LJK as Emperor 4, he seems too warm IRL to be so cold and commanding, but I am more than looking forward to watching him prove me wrong.
Keep ALL the news coming. I can't get enough!! Thanks!
Welcome back to dramaland jomo! This one is going to hurt so bad, but in a good way, just like the original. Between Jun Ki and Ji Soo I see reservoirs of pain.
Waaaah, in those pics ji soo and the other 14th Scott actually look similarish/give me a similar feel lol
Scratch that Scot that's a mistake lol
I'm not really sure why people are like "oh well I like the Chinese cast more". I personally think both casts are attractive in their own way. I'm not sure if this drama will be good or bad. I like IU and she can be bubbly but I'm not sure if she is perfect for this role. But again I enjoy watching her because I just like HER. And I like Lee Jun Ki as well.
So I will just check out the drama and see how it goes. :)
IU bores me to death. She's so tiny, skinny, I feel like watching a teenage girl trying to be older, you know like "13 going 30". This drama will be the death of her, real talk!
U hit the nail on the head. She's not a bad actress but somehow could never warm up to her. Now I know why.
Like I said I don't think she can live up to the role with her acting. I would've loved to see other actresses but at least I don't dislike IU as a person.
Yeah the Chinese are handsome and liu shi shi is gorgeous but I don't dig the men's hairdos in the drama which uglified them
... well please excuse the entire Chinese population during the Qing dynasty.
Lol
@Ivana, LOL +2...Equally, I can't take some Korean hanbok seriously when I just started to watch K sageuk bcos the dress code seems to fit pregnant women only. But oh well, this K adaptation will be in a Goryeo setting. I hope the Goryeo style won't be as awkward as Joseon hanbok.