"Playful Kiss" Review

Synopsis:
Playful Kiss is a south Korean drama based on a popular Japanese manga Itazura Na Kiss. This drama takes place in a high school. Oh Ha Ni is a clumsy girl who is at the bottom of her class, but she has a crush on a very popular and genius guy named Baek Seung Jo ever since the first day she saw him. Ha Ni confesses her love to him by sending him a love letter. However instead of saying his answer, Seung Jo points out her grammatical errors, grades her letter, rejects her love and says that he hates stupid girls. When Ha Ni's house unexpectedly collapses she and her father has to move into her father's long-time friend's house. It just so turns out that Baek Seung Jo lives in the same house as well. Will Ha Ni make Seung Jo fall for her?

Lead Cast:

Kim Hyun Joong - Baek Seung Jo

The character of Baek Seung Jo is played by Kim Hyun Joong. In this drama Seung Jo is a very intelligent guy. He is blessed with good looks and skills. He is in Class A which is fro ittlegent students with the highest grades. He is also born in a wealthy family. He has everything for a perfect life. However one thing he doesn't have is a dream. To him Life is just very dull.

Niki: Kim Hyun Joong's performance as Baek Sung Jo was average and tolerable. To me, he did not showcase any significance in his acting. Hyun Joong was able to show the basic characteristics of Sung Jo, but could further be developed. His acting did not differ much from when he portrayed Ji Hoo in Boys Over Flower.

Jung So Min - Oh Ha Ni

Oh Ha Ni is a very bubbly and cheerful girl. She belongs to the F Class which consists of the students with the lowest grades in the entire school. Her father, a noddle shop owner raised her since her mother passed away. She is deeply and madly in love with Seung Jo ever since the very first day she saw him.

Niki: At first I feared that the character of Oh Ha Ni would quickly become annoying and hard to bear. Fortunately Jung So Min was able to play an Oh Ha Ni who was cute and bearable. I also liked the difference in Oh Hai Ni's character versus the original Kotoko. Oh Hai Ni seem much stronger and a bit more independent than the other versions. She wasn't hopelessly incompetent as she seemed to me in the Taiwanese version. The pun of her name is also very cute ;D (Oh Ha Ni - Oh Honey)

Extended Cast:

Lee Tae-sung- Bong Jun-gu
Bong Jun-gu is a very simple hearted guy. In the drama is is very loyal to Ha Ni because he loves Ha Ni.

Niki: Lee Tae Sung did a great job as Bong Jun-gu, from capturing the spirit of the character to converting it into his own style. Jun-gu was adorable with his quirky expressions and exaggerated actions. He was perhaps my favorite character in the drama despite being a minor character.

Lee Si Young-Yoon Hye Ra
Yoon Hye Ra is a rival of Ha Ni. She is very beautiful and intelligent girl with a interest for Seung Jo.

Choi Won Hong- Baek Eun Jo
Baek Eun Jo is Seung Jo's little brother. Just like his big brother he is not so fond of Ha Ni.

Jung Hye Young-Hwang Geum Hee
Baek Seung Jo's mom.

Oh Kyung Soo-Baek Soo Chang
Baek Seung Jo's dad.

Kang Nam Gil-Oh Ki Dong
Ha Ni's dad.

Pinki's thoughts:
I really like this drama, but it isn't my all time favorite. Don't get me wrong this is a very fun drama to watch but for me is wasn't my favorite, but that's my opinion. I enjoyed a lot of scenes in this drama, even though the way the drama stared was a bit fictional and amusing. The chemistry between the lead actors is very playful and funny to watch. I think this drama has more of a comedic feel to it. I recommend this drama to anyone who is looking for a good laugh. ^^

Niki's Critique:
My feelings for this drama can be traced back several years. I had watched both the anime and the Taiwanese version of Playful Kiss. Therefore I had high hopes for this Korean version. The characters were portrayed very well and there were great chemistry between the cast and characters. However the series felt a bit rushed and compacted due to the amount of episodes. Besides that the drama was a very cute, light-hearted, and fun drama.

(Personal Note: This is mainly Pinki's post, however since I've watched this drama myself I thought I would contribute some of my opinion as well^^)