F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers
For fans of South Korean drama Boys Over Flowers (Netflix, Viki, Tubi, Hulu) or the Chinese (or Taiwanese) Meteor Garden (Netflix) or indeed the original, Japanese Hana Yori Dango, there’s now a new version of the classic story coming to streaming channels straight from Thailand.
If you’ve watched Meteor Garden 2018 (Netflix – see mini-review here) early indications show F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers to have a similarly modern vibe attached to the classic manga story. To get closer to the source material, you can catch the anime version of Japanese Hana Yori Dango (translation: Boys Over Flowers) on Crunchyroll.
The story of F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers, centres around a school for the elite reigned by four guys with an overabundance of privilege, money and good looks. So much so that they’re both feared and revered by those around them.
A girl who isn’t from within upsets their applecart, clueless about the rules and not interested in knowing them. She’s just there to go to school. Until she clashes with the leader of F4 which begins a series of battles that eventually shows glimmers of romance.
Directed by Patha Thongpan for Thailand’s GMMTV, he’s noted an interest in honouring the classic storyline, adding a ‘now’ freshness and displaying a unique Thai aesthetic that meets the original.
What does that mean for us? Thai drama is known for its way-over-the-top ‘da-da-da!’ portrayal of stories but has more recently, particularly at GMM, gotten closer to a familiar highly dramatized reality in contemporary series like The Gifted or Kiss the Series. It’s delivered in a more believable, less day-time-TV fashion that’s way more watchable than some of the old-skool offerings.
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Cast
If you watch Thai TV, you may have spotted the same faces cropping up regularly on the same channel. Many actors are signed directly to a station with long-lasting contracts. Notably, GMM, which has a dedicated BL (Boys Love) drama following, has previously paired two of the F4 leads in BL series 2gether. So, it will be interesting to see how they fare in a drama where chemistry is crucial to live up to the brand.
Vachirawit ‘Bright’ Chivaaree plays lead character Thyme (Tsukasa Domyoji/Joon Pyo/Dao Ming Si). His counterpart in 2gether, Metawin ‘Win’ Opas-iamkajorn is the playboy Kavin (Sojiro Nishikado/Yi-jung/Ximen). Is it a miss that they’re not after the same girl?
It’s actually newcomer Jirawat ‘Dew’ Sutivanichsak, who plays Ren (Rui Hanazawa/Ji-hoo/Huaze Lei) in the love triangle. But content to date seems to throw more emphasis on the Kavin character than Ren, possibly indicating a slightly different balance in the storyline.
Hirunkit ‘Nani’ Changkham as MJ (Akira Mimasaka/Woo-bin/Meizuo) rounds out the Flower Boys, but in this version he’s both playful and a fighter. And Tontawan ‘Tu’ Tantivejakul plays ordinary but forthright girl turned love interest, Gorya (Tsukushi Makino/Jan-di/Shancai).
According to the director, all of these actors exude their characters – so, let’s wait and see.
Where Can I Watch F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers?
This new series airs on GMM 25 on Saturdays for 16 episodes. It will simultaneously stream internationally through GMMTV’s official YouTube channel and on streaming platform Viu.
Episode 7 Release Info
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers are in the swing of a regular weekly schedule, so we expect Episode 7 to run on Saturday, February 5th at 8.30pm (Bangkok Time) – 8.30am (ET) and 1.30pm (GMT). The simultaneous international release on YouTube will come ready with English subtitles, so you’ll be viewing right along with audiences in Thailand.
Episode 7 Preview
And here it comes… in Episode 7, Thyme kicks Ren out of F4. MJ and Kavin try to talk him out of it, while Ren spends time with Gorya instead. Ren asks Gorya THE question – who she would choose, Thyme or Ren. Which all leads to a showdown between Ren and Thyme at the old stadium. Gladiator shoes on.
Watch Tips
If you’re watching live… be sure you’ve backed up to the beginning of each segment, so you don’t miss anything. YouTube automatically sticks you at the live moment, so if you’re a few seconds behind you may be missing a scene or two.
As we shift from one bit of story to the next, the link to the following chunk zips by super-fast. If you’re watching via YouTube, you can back it up a second to catch the link and save yourself the trouble of having to search for it.
If you’ve got further tips, please add them in the comments section. Here’s to a smooth view for all😊.
Is There a Trailer for F4 Thailand?
If you haven’t caught it yet, there is a trailer for the series:
In addition to the trailer, the team have released an official soundtrack featuring the main cast. It’s certainly channelling the vibe and seems to be right on target to deliver everything Director Thongpan has promised:
Opening song, Who Am I?
And the more energetic tune Shooting Star.
What Happened in Episode 6?
See the recap and review here: F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 6 Recap & Review. Watch for recap and review stories each week after airing.
Read More:
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 5 Recap & Review
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 4 Recap & Review.
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 3 Recap & Review
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 2 Recap & Review
F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers Episode 1 Recap & Review
Episode 6 Random Thoughts: Ridiculous or crucial?
Let’s talk about Tesla. Even with Thyme’s fresh burn, he still defends Gorya by punching the obnoxious Tesla. Who is the least believable character in the episode, bordering on the ridiculous. Kaning should’ve run sooner. Does this little piece feel like a throw-away? Perhaps the first of the drama.
But if you know the storyline, there’s a reason we need Kaning to have a crappy date. I have a close friend who’s been unlucky enough to have had a string of seriously bad dates. They make for great storytelling, but that’s hardly consolation in the moment. Are awful dates crucial to making a good date all the sweeter? Or do they serve to wear down your expectation levels?
Meanwhile – Spoiler Alert: Skip to the next paragraph if you don’t want to compare to spoilery scenes from other versions.
If you’ve watched previous iterations, does it strike you that Ren and Gorya’s embrace on the roof could be the 16-episode Thai-equivalent to the kiss on the beach? Less dramatic to be sure but it takes a lot less screen-time to keep everyone at school.
Spoiler over. Continue below!
We’ve already had Thyme and Gorya’s accidental kiss in episode 3. So this could be it. I don’t mind the venue change as much as changing the relationship between Ren and Gorya. That kiss on the beach was about potential. While this feels like a friendly hug that could seem like a misinterpretation on Thyme’s side. It all hangs on how this embrace ends.
We’ll continue to cover the series episode-by-episode, so watch along with us and tell us what you think. Any observations on the details that you’d like to share? Jot ‘em below – we’d love to hear about it.