There's this strange phenomenon where the truly innovative Japanese originals get overshadowed by foreign knock-offs. This happened with the ingenious Battle Royale and the intolerable Hunger Games; the inspired As the Gods Will and its commercially successful copy Squid Game, and so on.
IMHO, the same has happened with Boys Over Flowers... this original Hana yori Dango shines in so many ways where the Korean remake is, at least to me, absolutely unwatchable.
The actors, the chemistry between them, the storyline and the atmosphere are all superior in this Japanese version.
The manga heritage clearly comes through here in quite a few scenes, so just be ready that this dictates the acting style.
I'm far from being then target audience but I thoroughly enjoyed both seasons (not the final movie though). The second season did start getting repetitive but this first season is the real deal.
My nostalgia for the early-2000s Japan may have biased my opinion, too :)
IMHO, the same has happened with Boys Over Flowers... this original Hana yori Dango shines in so many ways where the Korean remake is, at least to me, absolutely unwatchable.
The actors, the chemistry between them, the storyline and the atmosphere are all superior in this Japanese version.
The manga heritage clearly comes through here in quite a few scenes, so just be ready that this dictates the acting style.
I'm far from being then target audience but I thoroughly enjoyed both seasons (not the final movie though). The second season did start getting repetitive but this first season is the real deal.
My nostalgia for the early-2000s Japan may have biased my opinion, too :)