Cantabile Tomorrow has its Masumi character
by javabeans
So the Masumi role isn’t to be left out of the Korean Nodame Cantabile remake, which is good news since I (and many fans, I’m sure) was quite fond of the character who loved the hero unabashedly and often challenged the heroine (in a harmless sort of way) for his love. (Which generally turned to comedy more often than not, since our hero didn’t exactly shower either with affection, or anybody really, since he tended to regard most of his crew with weary, if grudgingly fond, bemusement.)
This character is named with a nod to the original—he’s Ma Su-min, heh—and will be played by relative newcomer Jang Se-hyun. Ma Su-min will keep Masumi’s trademark curly hair and is a skilled percussionist, specializing in the timpani. He’ll harbor a one-sided crush on Joo-won and thus clashes with Shim Eun-kyung, who’ll also be in love with him.
Jang Se-hyun has been in a few big dramas before but in small roles, so don’t feel bad for not recognizing him; he was one of the minor scholars in Sungkyunkwan Scandal, and I can’t even place him as a background character from Boys Over Flowers. More recent roles include cable dramas Flower Halbae Investigation Unit and God’s Quiz 4. So I can’t speak to how good he is, but I’ll hope for the best.
That said, perhaps we could all dial it down a notch in the comments, given that the show hasn’t aired yet. I have some concern that in getting so bent out of shape over honoring the original, the original itself is getting blown out of all proportion as the best thing since sliced bread, and I don’t know that that’s a fair representation. Furthermore, I’m all for expressing doubts—I love the original story and don’t want it messed up either—but the tone of the comments is reaching hysteria levels, and I think we could all benefit from cooling down and stepping back for a bit. After all, we have until October before the thing even starts!
Via Star News
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- Joo-won offered lead in Korean remake of Nodame Cantabile
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1 danna
August 19, 2014 at 8:27 PM
I was thinking the same thing last time you posted about this drama... I love the original to pieces (mangag, anime. drama, 2 movies..you name it) ...but fans were going berserk
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kaizen68
August 19, 2014 at 8:42 PM
Thankfully, He has the same height and age as joo won ..
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redfox
August 20, 2014 at 12:10 AM
I agree to a certain agree, but when they start changing the basic things that are the backbone of this story, I think they shouldn´t have picked this story at all. the thing that upsets people (who are not even rabid fans) is that the usual kind of tropes are sneaking in.
well, ok, lets wait till October. But if that love triangle will become another polar bore, then... I mean, Witches´ Romance could have done without. if you are going to change the story, change it for the better. ok?
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Writer's Block
August 21, 2014 at 3:20 AM
Change it for the better. If only.
Many K dramas follow a very limited, rigid format. Especially if it's the Big 3 networks, cable does better.
Perhaps there's a law requiring x amount of worn out cliches?
Quick, insert more cliches, stat! I need a birth secret here ! Mother in law not evil enough, we're going to loose the ahjummas, somebody do something! I know, cancer is the answer ! Whew !
Good job everyone, now this drama is just like every other throw away drama. Fighting !
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SS
August 21, 2014 at 9:22 AM
"Good job everyone, now this drama is just like every other throw away drama. Fighting !"
Sarcasm overload.
By the way, how many cliches have you detected in this drama which has not aired or even released a teaser? You sound as if you have found a number to conclude this drama is "just like every other throw away drama"
Maybe I am missing something. The only possible cliche I read is the love triangle(which certainly did not adversely affect many of my favorite dramas) and that's not even certain. Or are you saying that Nodame Cantabile is a drama full of cliches?
Genius and handsome male lead, check
Rich male lead, check
Ditzy candy female lead, check
Slim female lead with a voracious appetite, check
Arrogrant stone faced male lead with a childhood trauma, check
Overcoming all odds, discovering each other and self, falling in love in the process, check
I can go on but in case, you think I hate Nodame Cantabile, I don't. While I can't say I love it like some fans do, I enjoyed it enough. I just think it is ridiculous to make such conclusion the way you did at this point in time.
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Dear More BS
August 22, 2014 at 5:14 AM
Chiaki's wealth:: Never an issue in the story. Never flaunts it, like the K Drama will be sure to. Gotta have the chaebol factor, right? Check? Miss !
Nodame's voracious appetite? Must have missed that . She likes anything Chiaki makes due to the fact he makes it. Check ? Miss ! That's strike two .
Genius lead. Check? Miss ! That's strike three. You're out. Chiaki's accomplished yes, that's due to hard work on his part. Never saw any reference to his being a "genius" the way 99% of any K dramas leads are portrayed.
But I'm sure the rich chaebol genius trope will be trotted out because their stories are so rigid and rubber stamped. Let's go for the wrist grab because that's sooooo much better than slap stick !
Nana
August 21, 2014 at 5:46 PM
I don't really understand how exactly they're "changing basic things that are the backbone of this story." All we're getting is casting news right now and a tentative title. Besides, so far, it's clear to me that they're putting a lot of care and consideration into choosing their cast.
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2 quirkstine
August 19, 2014 at 8:31 PM
All I can say is:
MASUMI-CHAAAAAAAAAN! Hep hep hurray hurray! Hep hep hurray! *boogie dances*
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3 Kitchel
August 19, 2014 at 8:37 PM
I agree javabeans some of us have been going berserk and we need to dial it down and watch it first. I think its because I lot of japanese drama lovers have seen korean re-makes(seen them being completely destroyed) and just don't want to see it happen to Nodame. I love the original to death, but I agree to take a step back and breathe
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pigsnout
August 19, 2014 at 11:19 PM
Also there is the fact that the production company behind this Nodame remake has a history of bad manga adaptations....like BOF, Playful Kiss, Pretty Man etc that can't be saved even by a talented cast. People aren't wrong to be sceptical.
But I guess we wait for the show to actually airand then see whether it's as bad as we fear.
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windsun33
August 20, 2014 at 3:44 AM
Unlike most here I am not in wild anticipation of this. I did not care for the original that much (never finished the last 4 ep).
I may check it out but truthfully not expecting anything like what happened to FTLY.
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Lixie
August 20, 2014 at 6:38 AM
Me neither, I never went past ep 2, found out the mangaesque humour is not for me. Everything is so over the top, is too hard to understand. I know I only watched 2 eps but the main guy was so bland and stereotypical, I have no idea why people are picking on JW.
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4 celest4
August 19, 2014 at 8:37 PM
Curly hair is not enough, i wanna see a fro' on this guy's head.
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Riya
August 19, 2014 at 9:20 PM
And that stache!!!!
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v3
August 19, 2014 at 11:19 PM
:D That was good for hilarious scene.
but i wish he show us masumi-chan girl's heart. "aw... chiaki-sama!!"
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Lixie
August 20, 2014 at 6:36 AM
BUt why? I kept looking at the japanese and never understanding why he dressed like that, it had no logic for me.
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Sayee
August 20, 2014 at 8:58 PM
Look around. Do you really find logic in all those hair colours and strange hairstyles around you in real life? Let's just call it a form of expression(or whatever the kids are calling it these days) and leave it at that, while shaking our heads internally.
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5 bibapr57
August 19, 2014 at 8:38 PM
I agree, we (fans of the originals in general) need to tone down our comments. Give this version the chance to be it's own thing, to be a nod to the Japanese but have it's own character. When your basing something of something else there needs to be changes, especially so the new version engages the public for which it's meant. Can't wait to see Joo Won acting again, I've missed him BUNCHES and I really did like Nodame so I can't wait to see how this version will be.. October seems like forever away!
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6 ana
August 19, 2014 at 8:41 PM
Please keep his sexuality intact and not just him having some sort of "man-crush" on Joo-won's character.
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junny
August 20, 2014 at 2:50 AM
Yes, that's important as that is who Masumi really is. And keep his rivalry with Nodame intact as well - they had some hilarious spats!
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Dr. Hwata
August 20, 2014 at 12:37 PM
Ha! Mystery solved.
So the love triangle involving one girl and two guys is not over the girl but over one of the guys (to be played by Joowon)? Wow.
Now that is refreshing. I think I will watch this one. How the straight guy (or is he?) who is chased by the other two of the triangle conducts himself in a Korean drama - that will be something really interesting to watch. A life raft tossed into the sea of noona romances now playing everywhere.
Joowon better know what he is getting into. This could be an Oscar-worthy opportunity for him. He better not merely squirm all the way to the end or pretend not to understand what is happening until the last episode.
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junny
August 20, 2014 at 2:15 PM
Well, I don't know how it'll be in the remake, but in the original, there was no love triangle. Masumi harbours a one-sided crush on Chiaki, whom he's never spoken to until Nodame's arrival in the story. Offended that this hentai girl is always around Chiaki, Masumi and Nodame end up "duking it out", to hilarious results. But in the end, they become the best of friends and Masumi often helps Nodame keep Chiaki's admirers at bay.
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7 jakebot
August 19, 2014 at 8:47 PM
I'll be happy if they skip the ridiculous giant afro wig. It was probably my biggest complaint with the original, in that it was so wacky and artificial that it was beyond the normal wacky realm of the show, which was a put off. Masumi is an important rival/ally for Megumi, so I'm glad that character's gonna be around
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fandomnerd12
August 19, 2014 at 9:17 PM
Well the reason it was in the original was because it was in the manga. They just wanted to stick to the original source material. Whether or not they do it, I just hope the personality is still there to-for lack of a better word-match Masumi's personality to the manga.
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jakebot
August 19, 2014 at 9:45 PM
I get that, I read the manga, too. The afro is a personal pet peeve in manga and in doramas. It's altogether far too silly. There are times to take liberties, and a big perm would have been fine, but giant ridiculous wig was too much.
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junny
August 20, 2014 at 2:47 AM
At least let him keep the kawaii hair accessories! I got a kick out of trying to keep track of Masumi's hair clips, they came in all sorts of shapes and colours!
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8 kaizen68
August 19, 2014 at 8:48 PM
great news!!! Finally.... we have our masumi...
it's kinda hard for me to imagine Masumi's hairstyle on him... But I believe, he can pull off Masumi's character after watched him as Kim Woo Tak in Sungkyunkwan Scandal.
Plus, he has the same age and Height as Joo Won (185 cm & 26 years old).
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9 D's handphone
August 19, 2014 at 8:48 PM
He was kim Woo Tak, the bespectacled self-declared genius scholar(?) for able to recite something at a very young age, sprouting some quotes here & there and one of the theft victims.
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10 crazedly
August 19, 2014 at 8:57 PM
Thanks for the note at the end. People turn maniacal sometimes. A LOT. Geesh. The original was awesome, but it surely was NOT the best thing since sliced bread. Chill, people.
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redfox
August 20, 2014 at 1:03 AM
it is easy to be better than sliced bread cause it dried so quickly. a full loaf is actually much better. and Nodame was a full loaf, certainly. very full.
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junny
August 20, 2014 at 3:32 AM
And oh so delicious too, mmmm...
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Rachel
August 20, 2014 at 8:21 AM
LOL I certainly wasn't expecting this comment.
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SS
August 20, 2014 at 10:03 PM
Aww...come on, everyone knows what javabeans means. But since you want to play with the words, I can have my fun too. Nodame may be a full loaf but one that is inedible to some.
One man's meat is another man's poison.
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Half Baked
August 20, 2014 at 8:43 AM
Yeah we don't want stale K drama cliches/tropes/lazy writing either resulting in half baked junk either.
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11 SS
August 19, 2014 at 9:02 PM
"That said, perhaps we could all dial it down a notch in the comments, given that the show hasn’t aired yet. I have some concern that in getting so bent out of shape over honoring the original, the original itself is getting blown out of all proportion as the best thing since sliced bread"
Well said! I can't agree with you more.
Even as a fan of Joo Won who watched every drama of his including 7LCS, I will call a spade a spade. I hope it will be a good drama in its own right.
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12 calicali
August 19, 2014 at 9:09 PM
Amen to the note at the bottom. I haven't seen or read a lot of the original source of a lot of these big remakes, but I DID somehow read City Hunter. I went into it expecting it to be nothing like the manga partly because I couldn't see Lee Min Ho acting like a pervert. And it really wasn't at all. It's like they took the father son revenge team thing and that was it. And you know what? That was a pretty damn good drama, one of the best LMH has done and it brightened up my 2011. I haven't read nodame nor have I seen the anime but I will soon and expect and respect that a remake and an adaptation are really not the same.
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13 fandomnerd12
August 19, 2014 at 9:23 PM
I think the only time we went over the edge was the possible casting of Yoon-ah. Wait. Have we gotten our Miki Kiyora, Tagaya Saiko, or Harisen-sensei yet? I can't wait to hear who might play them. Everyone who has been officially cast so far are capable of being the characters we fell in love with in the manga/anime/drama.
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yuja
August 19, 2014 at 9:32 PM
Kim Yumi has been confirmed to play Saiko.
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moonleaf
August 19, 2014 at 9:39 PM
Eto Kouzo/Harisen-sensei will be played by actor Lee Byung Joon.
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thursdaynexxt
August 20, 2014 at 3:14 AM
Ooh, really? Been looking forward to this casting. Wonder if he'll look anything like his character from God of Study?
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14 kaizen68
August 19, 2014 at 9:37 PM
The role's name is Do Su Min, is not Ma Su Min.
http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&oid=241&aid=0002243027&sid1=001&lfrom=twitter
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Javabeans
August 19, 2014 at 9:39 PM
Er? That article states it's Ma Su-min.
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kaizen68
August 19, 2014 at 9:45 PM
looks like I misread after translated by Google.
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Hmm
August 19, 2014 at 10:35 PM
And that was your mistake. Never fully trust Google Translate.
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kaizen68
August 20, 2014 at 4:53 AM
:D okay,okay..
QQ
August 19, 2014 at 9:49 PM
I prefer Do Su Min.
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15 naos
August 19, 2014 at 9:39 PM
Also, even if it is messed up, it's not like the Korean drama is going to replace the Japanese drama or the anime or the manga. If it's terrible, we can just go back to thinking fondly of the other versions. If it's divisive and some people like it but some people don't like it, people who don't can think fondly/rewatch the other versions.
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16 CFLH
August 19, 2014 at 9:42 PM
was he the guy who kept on quoting confucius in sungkyunkwan?
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Dramafed1782
August 19, 2014 at 9:49 PM
Yep that's him.
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mary
August 20, 2014 at 12:55 AM
OMG YES. You are awesome!
He looks like a teenager in the pic up top though which is why I couldn't place him too!
In SKKS he was like a really tall tree and looked to be in 20s. :D
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17 kanz
August 19, 2014 at 9:54 PM
He's cute. That's all I can say...
I never watch him in anything and I never watch the original drama or read the manga.
I only hope this drama is quite good for the sake of Joo Won and Shim Eun Kyung and other hardworking actors.
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18 jwspazz
August 19, 2014 at 10:04 PM
I remember him on Sungkyunkwan Scandal !! ahhh. okay, anticipate !
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19 Yenlinh69
August 19, 2014 at 11:18 PM
Awful title. Not going to watch it. Besides, the handsome leading man? Yeah, I am shallow like that.
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20 Jenny
August 20, 2014 at 12:11 AM
YES! Does the happy dance! I was worried that Masumi would not be in this version because his clear love for Chiaki and of course his wonderful sense of fashion.
I'm more worried about that they added a triangle drama that basically was non existent in the original work.
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21 Dramafed1782
August 20, 2014 at 12:26 AM
Thanks JB for this -
"Furthermore, I’m all for expressing doubts—I love the original story and don’t want it messed up either—but the tone of the comments is reaching hysteria levels, and I think we could all benefit from cooling down and stepping back for a bit. After all, we have until October before the thing even starts!"
We all have our favourite dramas and wouldn't want the crux to be messed up with; but being optimistic isn't a bad thing either for a different remake?
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22 Dafuqwhat
August 20, 2014 at 12:48 AM
Eeeh I had thought to watch the jdorama before this show air (my friend did urge me to watch or read the manga few years back but somehow I never did) but after seeing your comment, maybe there's a benefit going to this show without any knowledge about the original..
Reading character description, how I wish it can be played by Park Ki woong (yea I know oppa is away but damn I really miss him and Joo won (TAT ) they are my OTP). But I guess Joo won won't mind having new bromantic-line. The more the merrier!
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23 sw33tnshie
August 20, 2014 at 1:29 AM
He was great in god's quiz 4...I recommend that episode!! I cried so much....I even had to go back to see what other dramas he was in and found out he was the Confucius scholar in SKKS
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24 Haitai
August 20, 2014 at 1:36 AM
He better have the fabulous hair and he better be gay!
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25 katasu1996
August 20, 2014 at 3:02 AM
I totally agree with Javabeans on this one. I don't think Nodame Cantabile was the best Japanese drama ever to be created in existence, so a lot of the fuss seems unnecessary to me. It was cute and fun, but it wasn't AMAZING or groundbreaking even if you've watched a lot of J dramas. I think the viewers of the J drama want to re live their exact experience when the reality is the formatting of J dramas are very different from K dramas. I want the show to be good too, but I'm not expecting this to feel like the original or really be like the original, because Japanese dramas and Korean dramas are inherently different in their own way. For us Nodame Cantabile viewers, it may be sad to accept but it's not like the original will change because the Korean drama didn't live up to hysteric expectations. Let's look forward to what the Korean drama can do within it's formatting.
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26 thursdaynexxt
August 20, 2014 at 3:21 AM
Jang Se-hyun? I did a double take and went off to see if he was one of the schoolboys hanging around in High School Love On or something, but nope, he's totally new to me.
All that matters is that they've kept Masumi-chan, so at least their intentions are good!
Hope he and Shim Eun-kyung will have a great comedic partnership!
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27 john
August 20, 2014 at 4:04 AM
I'm curious to see who will play Elise, Stresemann's hard-nosed agent and business manager.
The lovely Kichise Michiko played her in the J drama.
Any word on how many episodes?
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28 ccut
August 20, 2014 at 4:18 AM
Hooray for another adorable-looking Masumi. Hope he's as FUN, too. Nodame Cantabile FTW!
Thanks, Javabeans, for the constant updates on this series.
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29 Sayee
August 20, 2014 at 5:32 AM
Omo, he is such a cutie!! Is he legal yet? *goes off to google*
87 born????? Bloody Koreans and their baby faces...
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30 djeedjes
August 20, 2014 at 6:15 AM
He looks like baby Sung Joon, only apparently he's older than SJ... seriously, his face is like the soft version of SJ.
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31 autumnscribbles
August 20, 2014 at 6:27 AM
Yay! Masumi(n) FTW.
I am excited for sure, but just try not to keep my hopes up in case of disappointment ><
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32 blo
August 20, 2014 at 10:10 AM
I don't understand people. How does a remake "ruin the original"? When Oldboy was remade by Hollywood, I laughed at the remake, realized how much more awesome the original movie was (oh what a big difference directing makes) and moved on with my life. The same here. If this version sucks, you can laugh at it (as you want to anyway) and then move on, holding onto your original dearly.
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alua
August 20, 2014 at 11:14 AM
That only works though if you've seen the original.
Particularly with something that's exported abroad as a remake, a bad remake can mean that people will never see the original but will just dismiss it on the basis of the remake being crap. A good remake, meanwhile, has the potential to get people interested in the original and can draw them into discovering more works from that director / country / specific actors and even a country / culture more generally.
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PPasun
August 20, 2014 at 2:44 PM
That's ridiculous. Now, remakes have the obligation to promote their originals, the directors and actors, countries of origin, and those countries' cultures?
Hasn't this J-dorama been out for a long time? There are many people who are aware of the existence of this drama yet who chose not to watch or finish watching it. If the original itself on its own has not managed to attract these people by now, I doubt any Korean remake, no matter how good it is, will convince them to tune into the J-dorama. Nor can a bad Korean remake kill off any interest they never had in the original to begin with. Now, the only effect the Korean remake, good or bad, can have on the Japanese original is to make more people be aware of the original, whether they choose to watch it or not. Isn't that a good thing? If I were the original's writer, I wouldn't mind more people being aware of the existence of my work.
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webby
August 20, 2014 at 6:44 PM
Don't be ridiculous.
Read the comment carefully. It says "Has the potential" NOT "has the obligation".
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Ppasun
August 20, 2014 at 7:12 PM
So isn't she/he implying that a remake without that "potential" should not be made at all? Who decides whether a remake that has not been remade yet has that potential or not anyway? Some drama remake police?
Just imagine, some avid fan of Shakespeare telling Korean drama makers not to make "Princess's Man" because it does not have the potential of promoting Shakespeare, the original actors who played Romeo and Juliet, England and English culture in general. And some zealous fan of YWCFTS telling Chinese producers not to make their version as well as some fan of "You Are Beautiful" telling the Japanese not to make their version.
webby
August 20, 2014 at 9:42 PM
I don't think she/he implies such thing. The comment was a response to a simple question, "How does a remake 'ruin the original'?" and she/he presented the case in which it does happen sometimes. It is on remakes that are already in existence and deemed good or bad. After the fact.
If I should infer anything from her/his statement is that remakers should be careful with their translation or interpretation of the source material.
There are remakes that translate well like White Tower (Shiroi Kyoto) or maybe in Britain, "Sherlock". There are more that don't.
That's it.
alua
August 21, 2014 at 12:02 PM
Thanks webby. You explained it better than I did. :-)
Ppasun, I simply hope that every remake aims for the best and, if they fail, people look at them and consider what went wrong and why. I am wary of remakes just for the money's / claim to fame sake (which do happen), but it's a free world, people can remake whatever they want and mess it up as much as they want. However, we viewers do have the freedom not to watch as well (or to review such failures critically, including by comparing to the original).
Chaitea
August 21, 2014 at 5:52 PM
For heaven's sake, they're only announcing the cast right now. Why are you all getting your panties in a twist already and bemoaning that they're omgRUINING the original when all they've haven't done so much as to release a teaser picture?
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33 enkeys
August 20, 2014 at 6:58 PM
i think this boy will rock the small moustache. idk man. i wish they gave him the small moustache
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34 goldeng
August 20, 2014 at 7:16 PM
yaaayyy! now the love triangle -can I actually call it a triangle tho? xD- i wanted to watch is complete!! Masumi-chan is so cute! I wonder if theyll make him gay-gay or someone who looks up to his "hyung" bromance style? we'll see...
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35 Viki
August 21, 2014 at 7:23 PM
Yay! I think Masumi is totally needed!
Anyway, he seems too pretty, which actually works out since Masumi is supposed to be gay. Can't wait til he dunk the wig on. :)
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36 Yon Yih
August 24, 2014 at 1:12 AM
I love the original so much that I somehow don't like the idea of the remake at all..but since its goin to happen I'm glad at least they got Shim Eun Kyung ,she's really fitted the quirky role n pls don't change much of the original stories...pls no amnesia ,secret birth or any evil parents plssss
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