DIFFERING OPINIONS ON K-DRAMA "PLAYFUL KISS"

The two main leads of the drama

The lady in the middle plays the mom of Baek Seong Jo

The Baek Family

The Korean Drama, "Playful Kiss" is currently being aired over TV8 in Malaysia on Saturday evenings.  I watched the drama online when it was first aired in South Korea.  Okay, I did not watch it live as I had to wait for about two days for it to be posted on the Internet.  Nevertheless, that was already very fast.
To be very honest, I watched the series because it starred Kim Hyun Joong of SS501 and Boys Over Flowers Fame. 
What did I think of the drama?  Of course, I like it because Kim Hyun Joong was in it.  What to do?  I am biased and cannot give a fair review as I am a fan of Kim a.k.a. Doctor Prince.  Actually, the storyline is from a popular Japanese Manga "Itazura na kiss" which had already been made into a hit Taiwanese Drama series, "It started with a kiss" starring Ariel Lin and Joe Cheng.  Obviously the  plot was good and interesting for it to become a hit and to be made into a drama.  The story revolves around a high school student by the name of Oh Ha Ni who has a crush on a boy in her school by the name of Baek Seang Joo.  This young man has the IQ of a genius, the looks of a K-pop Idol and excels in sports as well but he is rather cold and serious.  Ha Ni who is not so bright and also clumsy is rejected by the perfectionist Baek Seung Jo when she professes her love for him in a letter. When the house Ha Ni and her dad is living in collapses, they move into the house of her father's long-time friend who happens to be Seung Jo's dad.  What a small world, eh?   So our Ha Ni is given the opportunity to be near the guy of her dreams. Will she be able to move Seung Jo's heart given the added advantage? Need I answer the question?
REVIEW
The drama already has a winning ace in such an interesting plot.  And now all that is left to comment is the acting and the direction.  The drama did not achieve too great ratings when it was aired in South Korea but to me  it was indeed entertaining.  The young stars were supported by very able veteran actors.  I especially liked the actress who played Kim Hyun Joong's mom.  She reminded me of myself - perkily going aroung with a camera and posting all her activities in her blog.  Actually, Jung So Min who played Oh Ha Ni did a great job of a not-too-pretty and not-too-bright girl winning the heart of the Baek Seong Jo through her sheer determination and her great love for him.  As for Kim Hyun Joong, he did great as Baek Seong Jo because the character was very much an extension of this Korean hearthrob's own personality.  He may not have the acting chops of Jo In Sung or Jang Geun Suk but then who cares, his smile and charm alone makes up for it.  See, I told you I was biased.  By the way, my sister, Li Lian is also biased when it comes to KHJ.  It runs in the family.  My mum and Aunt Linda say that his acting is bland and unimpressive.  They found "Playful Kiss" to be mediocre and did not finish watching it.