Hi! It’s Annie!
I did make a fairly recent post once again about ‘Boys Over Flowers’ because of my friend group absolutely loving this show. We call ourselves the F4 now because there are four of us. But, while we mostly like this show un-ironically, this isn’t really a recent show by any means. And that means there are some older cringey things that probably weren’t meant to be funny the first time it aired. And most of these I didn’t even catch the first time I watched it. Or maybe myself and my friend group are just weird (which is probably also true). But now that I’ve actually had the opportunity to talk more with them about this show, we have all found that there are moments in this show that we laugh hysterically at, that probably weren’t meant to be funny. This aided with my recent rewatch has helped me compose a list. This might be more for my entertainment than yours, but I hope you also enjoy this too!
Chef’s Hands:
In the very first episode of ‘Boys Over Flowers’ the show tries incredibly hard to convey the characters of the F4 to the audience. Which actually ends up being a really good introduction over-all and I would say that it pays off. However, one of the things the first episode hopes to get across is the hardcore flirting nature of most of the members of the F4. Specifically I’m talking about YiJung and WooBin here. YiJung is shown to be flirting with a chef who appears to be Swedish in one of these scenes; the caveat here is that they are both speaking in English. I am definitely not one to point out an English mistake in any sort of drama from another country because I’m not sure that it matters too much. But this scene is so ridiculously funny that I have to say something. YiJung tells the chef that he can tell that she’s a chef and when she asks why he explains that it’s because her hands look delicious. Yep. Her hands look delicious. I must have not been paying too much attention the first time I saw this, because I was so caught off guard while watching it with my friends that I almost died from simultaneous laughter and cringing.
Beach Dinner:
A couple episodes into BOF, all of the characters end up going on a vacation to JunPyo’s private island. This already gets off to a bad start with JanDi wearing the awful hamburger dress (it looks like a hamburger with lettuce and tomato). But this is made to be even more awkward when JunPyo plans an ocean-side dinner for two on a private part of the beach. Keep in mind, this is during a point in the show where JanDi has made it pretty clear that she has feelings for JiHoo and she doesn’t want anything to do with JunPyo. About halfway through the meal, JunPyo gets up and starts taking off his shirt while staring down JanDi. I know a lot of people found this scene to be sexy, but the first time I saw this scene I was suddenly struck with the thought that JunPyo doesn’t know how to swim (awkward). It also didn’t help that the look on his face was so funny while he was doing this. Am I a horrible person? Possibly. Sorry!
Childhood Flashbacks:
Again, this might make me a horrible person. But I laugh every single time one of the F4 flashbacks happens, and it’s pretty much entirely because of their hair. JunPyo (who is sometimes referred to as “Becky with the Good Hair” in my house), has had the same perm since he was a little kid. It looks ridiculous. Don’t tell me that’s not funny.
WooBin’s Sudden Mafia Connections:
Ok, I think it’s overall badass that WooBin is part of the mafia. Really, it was one of the only developed character points that he was given to run with, and I think that WooBin deserves the world. He certainly deserves more recognition. But you have to admit that the sudden reveal of it is kind of funny. The major moment that I consider to be the reveal is when JanDi gets lost in Macao and almost gets mugged only to be saved by JiHoo, JunPyo, and WooBin. And while they are all kicking ass, WooBin definitely kicks the most ass. At the end of this the muggers ask WooBin if he is Prince Song to which WooBin replies with a very sassy and punctuated “Yeah”. WooBin’s sass in this scene right after he was revealed to be a mafia member made the reveal even better. Also, can we talk about the implications of WooBin being a part of the mafia? Does he just beat people up? I have so many questions.
JiHoo’s Constant Appearances:
JiHoo always seems to be at the right place at the right time, but sometimes this can be hilariously so. From the balcony at the school, to the gym building, to the small doctor’s office, somehow he’s always there. For example, there’s a scene towards the end of the show where JanDi is helping out her parents by participating in a cleaning job in a massive building. And while we’ve seen JiHoo at this building before, it’s still kind of funny when JiHoo suddenly appears behind JanDi and then raises his eyebrows and points to the music hall when she asks why he’s there. It’s because you’re everywhere JiHoo. It’s a valid question.
JanDi Drowning:
Ok, this one definitely sounds bad. But it’s honestly because of how weird it looks every time it happens. The first time JanDi starts drowning it’s during one of the beach episodes when she suddenly gets a leg cramp. Despite the fact that she’s a competitive swimmer. Let me repeat, she’s a competitive swimmer! It’s also in very shallow water. And she nearly drowns in the other pools that she accidentally falls into as well. All have such shallow water that all she would have to do is stand up. Not only does this look weirdly unrealistic, it also ended up injuring the actress. The last pool that she fell into was so shallow that she hit her head on the bottom. That is much less funny. Just stand up, JanDi! Or maybe the creators should have found a safer more realistic way to shoot these scenes.
“Almost Paradise!”:
What’s not funny is this song getting stuck in your head. Because it will run on repeat for days and days and you won’t be able to think about anything else. What is funny is torturing your friends by screaming “Almost paraadiiissseee!” any time your friend enters the room. This is now a running joke for me and my friends. The song is amazing, but it’s also fun to use it to annoy the people closest to you. Ask J-Hope. He totally agrees with me. And if you don’t believe me look up ‘BTS and Boys Over Flowers’ on YouTube and press the video from six years ago that’s on BTS’s official YouTube account. You won’t regret it.
I swear, I absolutely love ‘Boys Over Flowers’! I like the wholesomeness and lightheartedness of it as well as some of the serious stuff too. I still cry when watching some of the scenes with YiJung and JiHoo in particular. And some of the scenes are very romantic! But I can’t deny that this show is fun to poke fun at sometimes. For me, it just makes it that much more fun to rewatch it and talk about it with my friends.
See you across the pond!
Sincerely, Annie
Oreos & Peanut Butter 