"Ikemen Desu Ne" vs "You're Beautiful"

Don't get me wrong with the title, okay! The last thing I want to do is to bash anyone. This article is about how I think about the Japanese remake of "You're Beautiful".

Yesterday, I had an "Ikemen Desu Ne" marathon and satisfied myself by finishing it until midnight. And as promised, here's what I think about the series.

Please remember that the following are just my personal opinion. If you haven't seen the whole drama yet, please be inform that this article contains SPOILERS.

What I think about the the Japanese characters:

Sakuraba Mio/Miko - ★★★★★

I'm giving the Japanese counterpart of Go Mi Nam/Mi Nyeo a perfect score because I'm satisfied at how she portrayed the character. Miori Takimoto, who played Mio/Miko is such a beautiful and great actress.

Katsuragi Ren - ★★★

He did good playing the role of Hwang Taekyung. Ren is portrayed by Yuta Tamamori and I'll be honest with his looks. I think he's cute, but I'll stick to Jang Geun Suk from the original version.

Fujishiro Shu - ★★★★★

In the Korean version, a lot of times I felt my heart also broke when Shinwoo was in pain. The same goes at how I felt with Shu, Shinwoo's Japanese counterpart. Shu is my favorite character this time because I think he's better looking among the members of Japanese A.N.Jell. He is played by Taisuke Fujigaya.

Hongo Yuki - ★★★

Yuki is played by Hikaru Yaotome, and he's Jeremy at the Korean version. Now if you're going to ask me why only three stars? It's because Yuki is kawaii and Jeremy is aegyo, which means they're BOTH CUTE. But I prefer the aegyo, also because that is my blog's name.

Nana - ★★★★

I hate her character, but a little less than how I hated UEE when she played Yoo He Yi at the original version. Nana was portrayed by Haruna Kojima, and I must say that she's an effective antagonist.

Hajime Mabuchi - ★★★★

Mabuchi is  Ma Hoon Yi (Mi Nam's manager) in the original version. He is played by Shingo Yanagisawa, and I think he's funnier because I had a lot of laughs whenever he's on the scene. Two thumbs up for him.

Toru - ★★★★

Toru was Nana's gay stylist. Even though his character wasn't on the original version, he spiced up the Japanese remake which was really good. I won't forget his "Love Injection" pose and at how persistent he was with Yuki. However, whenever he's there, he gives me goosebumps almost all the time.

Teguchi, Hashimoto and Baba (3 Paparazzi) - ★★★★

There's Mr.Kim as the only persistent paparazzi at the original version. But whether it's three or only one paparazzi, both versions are great with it just the way it was made and portrayed. (From left to right: Seiji Rokkaku, Shigenori Yamazaki and Yutaka Shimizu)

*    *    *    *

That would be it for the characters that gave me a huge impact. I'm leaving the other characters alone like the President, Mother Superior, A.N.Jell stylist, Mizusawa Reiko and the Mio's Aunt because I'm not that interested with them. Haha!!! But they were good at the remake, okay.

Anyway, now here are some points I want to include:

Mio at the construction site building - ★★★

When Mi Nam was crying out for help when she was on top of a moving bus, I was also crying. So I was expecting a great remake on the bus scene but the Japanese version only showed Mio holding on so she won't fall from the top of a construction site building (She fell anyway but Ren caught her). Well, this version was more dangerous though.

Ren chased by a pig - ★★

It was hilarious when Hwang Taekyung panicked and ran when he was chased by a pig. The Japanese version only showed Ren running like it was a from an anime scene. Anyway, it was funny too, but I prefer the original.

Japanese A.N.Jell fans - ★★★★★

It was really amazing at how Japanese fans support A.N.Jell. There are a lot of them! Especially during at the concert at the ending (even though I know it was edited). THE BEST!

Yuki crying at the bus - ★★★

When Jeremy was crying in HIS bus after he found out that Minam already chose Taekyung, my tears also poured out. So when it was Yuki's turn to show his version, I was moved but the feeling isn't the same. I'm full of his kawaii-ness that I can't appreciate his sad or serious scenes.

No Jolie - No Star

Since Jeremy's dog was also my favorite in the Korean version, I was a little sad that the remake didn't have a Japanese Jolie. But if there was a dog, I'm imagining an Akita dog.

Crown pin - ★★★★

It was beautiful, but I like the ribbon pin better.

Ren's expressions - ★★★★

Ren's expressions are cute so I'm giving it four stars. But I personally think that no one beats Hwang Taekyung's pouting, smirk and lovable expressions.

Japanese A.N.Jell house - ★★★★★

I seriously want their house! I prefer the Japanese version because it was bigger and prettier, especially their heart-shaped kitchen counter. I'm just too sad that there's no white piano unlike in the Korean version. Anyway, it was still beautiful.

Ikemen Desu Ne episodes/ characters acting- ★★★★

The show? I love it! But I'm still undecided whether I should say "It happens too fast" or "At least the pacing doesn't feel like it takes forever." Acting-wise, I think it's understandably that the Koreans are better since their actor are veterans in the industry (except for Jung Yonghwa <Shinwoo> who was a new-comer at that time, but he did good anyway) and honestly, the Koreans are better looking. But still this version and their characters deserve FOUR stars from me.

Songs- ★★★★

I know it was the same song, only translated in Japanese but I somehow feel plain with their version. I think its because I'm too absorbed with the original soundtrack. But I would like to clarify that before I became a KPOP fan, I was a JPOP fan already, so I made a fair decision with this one.

Jang Geun Suk's appearance - 100 STARS

Yes, it's more than perfect! When the original Taekyung appeared on the eighth episode, Ren, Shu and Yuki were jealous at how he treats Mio. It was really my favorite scene.

That's it!!! I don't expect people would agree on me because just as I said, it's MY PERSONAL OPINION. I was a huge fan of the Korean version and now, I'm also a fan of the Japanese remake. Both versions are great in their own way. But for you to understand me or get your own opinion on this matter, you should watch it yourself.

All in all,

Ikemen Desu Ne- ★★★★