Seeing Similarities: Goong and Boys Over Flowers

I watched the first episode of Goong yesterday. It is a really popular series from 2006 that I've wanted to watch for a long time. Although it seems like a really interesting show, the only thing I could think about was how similar the first episode is to the first episode of Boys Over Flowers.

(1) The main characters from Goong and Boys Over Flowers are both high school aged girls who come from families that are struggling financially.

Boys Over Flowers

Goong

(2) They both have younger brothers, strict mothers, and silly fathers.

Boys Over Flowers
Goong

(3) In both shows, there are rich and popular boys at the school who the main character does not like due to their arrogance. In Boys Over Flowers there is the F4, rich and popular boys who come from powerful families. In Goong there is a prince who must be followed by body guards and thinks he is better than everyone else.

Boys Over Flowers

Goong

(4) In Boys Over Flowers, the main character stands up to the F4 where as in Goong the main character only daydreams about telling off the Prince. However, in both shows the girls run into the arrogant boys through embarrassing situations. They are both attracted to the boys while still hating the way they act.

Boys Over Flowers

Goong

I am excited to keep watching and noticing more similarities and differences between the two shows. Are these situations used in any other recent Korean Dramas?

Image Sources:
http://www.velverse.com/img/2007/february/goong_img03.jpg
http://www.gofigures.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/boys-over-flowers-album.jpg
http://img520.imageshack.us/i/36083901vl6.jpg/
http://www.velverse.com/img/2007/february/goong_img13.jpg
http://a0.vox.com/6a0109d06f577a000e0110161e6e30860b-500pi
http://allkoreandrama.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/goong-s1.jpg
http://sookyeong.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/200902021012261001_1.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXLHlf8RoaajfIaKvK_fXWGHrNUu3LK95A6uXJl4Zi40Qz0e5k824OXFQ_QhkMEGhVN6CE5Cuizf22jNv8ngNYxZ7TEarEd0RG3Oa3eg4Y-V3zsRxzn1yD-xwFZJPSCAB8HSdgfyabj9eP/s400/Goong_05.jpghttp://dancingredheels.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/jan_di__jun_pyo_kiss-200906120106212.jpg

The Korean Wave

The Korean wave or Hallyu refers to the increased popularity of South Korean Culture around the world since the 21st century, especially among younger generations. The term Korean Wave was coined by journalists from Beijing in 1999 who were surprised by the growing popularity of South Korean goods in China (Faiola).

South Korea is among the world's top ten cultural exporters and the Korean wave began with the export of Korean television dramas and then incorporated Korean movies, music, food, and language (Kim Sue-young).

Some speculate that the Wave was caused by a financial crisis in South Korea in 1997. At this time South Korea changed its business structure from being a manufacturer of hardware to a creator of software. The crisis caused Korea to start creating intellectual capital, and thus the Korean Wave was born through Korea’s high literacy levels and the strong ability to manufacture sophisticated telecommunications & information technology products (Ramesh).

However the wave started one thing is for sure: it has been very good for South Korea. In recent years, the wave has moved on from exports of television dramas, movies and music to drive sales of anything Korean. Washington Post journalist Anthony Faiola said the Wave helps sell everything “…from cars to kimchi” (Jakarta).

The Wave has also been a blessing for South Korean tourism. Of the six million foreigners who visited the country in 2006, many were fans of the Korean Wave and stayed in the country for more than a few months at a time, either to learn the language or to scour for any Korean Pop culture merchandise they could get their hands on (Jakarta).

In America we have the Korean Wave to thank for our beloved Korean Dramas, hilarious reality/variety shows, and fun and catchy K-pop music. I, for one, hope this is one Wave that never reaches the shore.

References:

“A Hallyu Story: Behind the origins and success of the Korean Wave in China
& the future of content in a broadband world” by Bharadwaj Ramesh, National Tactical Planning Director, GroupM Chinahttp://www.wpp.com/NR/rdonlyres/7E5C1958-653E-481C-AED1-E356EF0E8DD2/0/Insidewpp_Atticus2005_BharadwajRameshGroupM_Atticus2005_Jul06.pdf
“Riding the Korean Wave” The Jakarta Post, May 23, 2008http://research.flagler.edu:9026/us/lnacademic/results/docview/docview.do?docLinkInd=true&risb=21_T8654740115&format=GNBFI&sort=RELEVANCE&startDocNo=1&resultsUrlKey=29_T8654740118&cisb=22_T8654740117&treeMax=true&treeWidth=0&csi=227171&docNo=5
“Japanese Women Catch the 'Korean Wave': Male Celebrities Just Latest Twist in Asia-Wide Craze” by Anthony Faiola, Washington Post Foreign Servicehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/30/AR2006083002985.html
“Korean Wave ‘Hallyu” Abroad” by Kim Sue-young, Korean Times Reporterhttp://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/special/2008/05/180_23641.html

Poster Shoot Raises Excitement for New Drama

On February 5, the cast of KBS's new epic drama "Great Merchant Kim Man-deuk" assembled to shoot poster pictures. The poster shoot was held at the KBS Suwon Drama Center and lasted over seven hours. The show will focus on the concept of Noblesse Oblige and will premiere on March 6.

Lee Mi-yeon

Park Sol-mi, Ha Suk-jin, Lee Mi-yeon, and Han Jae-suk

Image Source: http://english.kbs.co.kr/Entertain/EntertainmentGallery/view.html?No=386

Kim Yoon-jin on cover of Entertainment Weekly

Korean Actress Kim Yoon-jin has been chosen to appear on the cover of U.S. Magazine Entertainment Weekly according to her agency Zion Entertainment. Kim, who works in the United States and Korea, is being recognized for her role on the hit U.S. series "Lost".

Kim shot the cover of a magazine with other “Lost” cast member in 2006, but this is the first time she will be appearing alone on a U.S. cover.

Kim said, “I was lucky to appear in the TV series Lost. Making the cover of the magazine is a great opportunity for me. I am glad that my efforts during the past six years have finally come to fruition.”

Lost

image source: http://star.koreandrama.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/Kim%20Yoon%20Jin.jpg
image source: http://www.fumed.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Lost-Saison-6-finale.jpg

Kim Bum in legal dispute

Kim Bum, from the hit drama "Boys over Flowers, is involved in a legal dispute between his previous and current agencies according to KBS Entertainment News.

Kim’s previous agency E Entertainment has filed a damage suit against Kim and his current agency K Entertainment for an alleged breach of contract.

E Entertainment said they paid 150 million won to Kim's agency K Entertainment to take over the rights to the exclusive contract with Kim.

E Entertainment also said they hired Entertainment representative Lee as their exclusive manager.

However, they said that Lee and actor Kim Bum cancelled the contract in February, 2009, when Kim shot to stardom through the KBS drama Boys over Flowers.

On December 8, 2009, E Entertainment accused Lee of doing financial damage to the agency due to a breach of contract. In addition, E Entertainment filed the suit with the Seoul district court, claiming 500 million won from Kim and 440 million won from K Entertainment.

K Entertainment denied the claims stating, “The contract was not an exclusive contract, but for M & A [Mergers and Acquisitions]. I will demand compensation for the loss.”

Actor Kim Bum first gained popularity through the MBC sitcom “High Kick” and the MBC drama “East of Eden” in 2008, and became a heartthrob in Korea with the drama Boys over Flowers in early 2009.


Boys over Flowers

Image Source: http://sookyeong.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/mclee8645_39940383.jpg

Image Source: http://blog-imgs-27.fc2.com/d/o/l/dollmasteryuuki/BoysOverFlowers.jpg

Welcome

Welcome to the Korean Connection!

This blog will focus on currently airing and recently aired Korean Dramas. Korean Dramas refer to televised dramas, similar to Western miniseries, produced in Korea for Korean audiences. Some of the most internationally popular Korean dramas are Winter Sonata, Dae Jang Geum, Full House, Stairway to Heaven, My Girl, My Loverly Sam Soon, Love Story in Harvard, Shining Inheritance, Autumn in My Heart, Princess Hours, 1st Shop of Coffee Prince, Yi San, Boys Over Flowers and You're Beautiful.

This blog will discuss the content of the shows as well as the actors and actresses who star in the dramas. Some entries will be dedicated to aesthetic discussions and comparisons between Korean dramas and American dramas.

All of the shows being discussed can be found at http://www.mysoju.com/ with English subtitles.

I’ll end with a picture from my favorite Korean Drama 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.

Image source: http://animesearchsite.com/images/coffee_prince1.jpg

Happy Watching!