warning: this show has no pansies (despite what the title may tell you)
I almost didn't watch Shut Up, Flower Boy Band, the second entry in the cable series featuring wall-to-wall bishies whose title I forgot (preceded by FBRS). Seriously, that title. Whoever thought up of that should be fired. The "Shut Up" part, I get. It may serve as shorthand for the teen angst prevalent in this show. But the "Flower Boy" part? Really, Mr. Title Man? The delicate bishies of shoujo manga and trendy kdramas may be present in the poster, but they sure are absent in the show. In their place are five (six, including their erstwhile leader Byung-hee, or seven if you also include lonely rich boy Seung-hoon) lost adolescents bound together by love their love of music and the freedom it brings them.
And yes, this show is amazing. I'm glad I gave it a chance.
I admit the first few minutes of the first episode didn't hook me. I'm not into music-themed shows outside of musicals, and I'm one of the rare few who never got into Dream High or What's Up. Heck, I was one of those who could never stand an episode of Glee. Something about the entitled and elitist attitudes of those who call themselves "artists" grates at me. It's no different here, what with boys playing music, the girls going wild, the police attempting to break the fun by stopping the concert...
Which brings the question, why are there only girls in their audience? Eye Candy (pfft!) is no teeny bopper boy band catering to the whimsies of Justin Bieber fans. They're an indie rock band, and their music is something I'm sure guys would enjoy listening to. But the way this show shows it, it's as if Eye Candy's target demographic are females 10 to 34.
The moment the show finally clicked was when these boys stopped being too-cool rock stars and became dejected schoolboys with dysfunctional families (who thankfully stays at the periphery) and nowhere to go.
You can call Byung-hee, Ji-hyuk, Do-il, and the others (whose names I can't remember, but I still like them) orphans, and you wouldn't be too far off the mark. The parents and guardian figures are mostly mentioned, or appear for a total of five seconds. It's sad when you have to scavenge money for uniforms because your parents probably don't care. This is why I buy that these boys spend most of their time with each other. They are each others' true family, the ones they can count on to be there.
Truth be told, I would much prefer to watch the boys practicing and trying to create music instead of performing in front of screaming girls. The bromance simply leaps off the screen whenever they try to create music, and everything seems more personal. I would like to think the show knows this. And I would like to think the show knows that Eye Candy isn't for just girls. Seriously, how can you have a rock concert without guys?
And how can the casting people find six guys with amazing chemistry with each other? Sure, we lost Byung-hee at the end of episode 2, but when these guys are with each other, it's so easy to believe that they've been family for a long time. Have these guys really gone on bonding session in real life prior to filming this show? The bantering, the tsundere school of caring, the way these people would put themselves on the line for each other... It all seems so real.
Am I in the minority when I say that Byung-hee was never my favorite? I liked him and I'm sad that he's gone (and what a crappy death that was), but my heart has always belonged to Ji-hyuk. Still, Byung-hee's total wackiness and upbeat devil-may-care attitude was fun while it lasted. The way he acts, he must have caffeine in his blood. He's so hyper and off-the-wall. His womanizing ways seems less Casanova and more ADHD, which he probably has.
What I liked most about Byung-hee was how he was willing to meet with someone who hates his guts in the middle of the night at the notion that he might be able to provide new drums for Do-il. It's sad that this big brotherly act is what costs him his life. The way his head was bleeding, his head could've been seriously injured. And then when that truck hit him... I was torn between wanting to laugh at the camp movie death and crying out at the sheer horror of it all. And then the scene cuts back to Byung-hee sleeping on the pool table while everyone's saying that with him there, everything will be alright. Of course, this means that nothing will be from this point on. The boys will be even more adrift than they already are. Group dynamics will be changed, and Ji-hyuk will probably face the choice of stepping in Byung-hee's shoes as leader and big brother, or being his own person while fulfilling both roles.
I haven't mentioned her yet (because the boys are such a rich topic for rambling), but I love Su-ah. She may be a princess with a (seemingly) perfect prince boyfriend, but once her family loses everything and she has to camp out at some ratty rooftop room, she takes everything in a stride. She proves that she can take care of herself, doing her own chores and finding a job. Being poor doesn't worry her. Her main concern is that everyone will find out she is.
I don't think Su-ah has any friends. What she has are people who flatter her, are envious of the charmed life she lives and her prince charming, people who buy pretty clothes with her. Yeah, Deo-mi, I'm looking at you. She seems so reserved and afraid to put her opinions forward, deferring to those of Seung-hoon and Deo-mi. I understand her, because just like so many people at whatever age, she fears criticism. She fears being mocked and left alone, but she doesn't really realize that she IS alone. I agree with Ji-hyuk when he points out that people who leave friends at the drop of a hat aren't really friends, but I understand where Su-ah's coming from when she asks him to keep her dire straits a secret.
I ship Su-ah/Ji-hyuk like mad. I like OTPs who really know each other, and SA/JH is one of them. At this point, Ji-hyuk knows more about Su-ah than people who've known her for years. I love their bonding on the roof because it's a genuine moment of friendship, which is sadly lacking among many, many OTPs. I love the scene where Su-ah demands an apology from Ji-hyuk because she seems like the type who will let things lie. I'm glad that she has found someone she can show her true self to.
The Verdict: LOVE! Complete, absolute LOVE! I can't wait to see more of what this show has to offer. Now if only I they would release the whole soundtrack for this show...
And yes, this show is amazing. I'm glad I gave it a chance.
I admit the first few minutes of the first episode didn't hook me. I'm not into music-themed shows outside of musicals, and I'm one of the rare few who never got into Dream High or What's Up. Heck, I was one of those who could never stand an episode of Glee. Something about the entitled and elitist attitudes of those who call themselves "artists" grates at me. It's no different here, what with boys playing music, the girls going wild, the police attempting to break the fun by stopping the concert...
Which brings the question, why are there only girls in their audience? Eye Candy (pfft!) is no teeny bopper boy band catering to the whimsies of Justin Bieber fans. They're an indie rock band, and their music is something I'm sure guys would enjoy listening to. But the way this show shows it, it's as if Eye Candy's target demographic are females 10 to 34.
The moment the show finally clicked was when these boys stopped being too-cool rock stars and became dejected schoolboys with dysfunctional families (who thankfully stays at the periphery) and nowhere to go.
You can call Byung-hee, Ji-hyuk, Do-il, and the others (whose names I can't remember, but I still like them) orphans, and you wouldn't be too far off the mark. The parents and guardian figures are mostly mentioned, or appear for a total of five seconds. It's sad when you have to scavenge money for uniforms because your parents probably don't care. This is why I buy that these boys spend most of their time with each other. They are each others' true family, the ones they can count on to be there.
Truth be told, I would much prefer to watch the boys practicing and trying to create music instead of performing in front of screaming girls. The bromance simply leaps off the screen whenever they try to create music, and everything seems more personal. I would like to think the show knows this. And I would like to think the show knows that Eye Candy isn't for just girls. Seriously, how can you have a rock concert without guys?
And how can the casting people find six guys with amazing chemistry with each other? Sure, we lost Byung-hee at the end of episode 2, but when these guys are with each other, it's so easy to believe that they've been family for a long time. Have these guys really gone on bonding session in real life prior to filming this show? The bantering, the tsundere school of caring, the way these people would put themselves on the line for each other... It all seems so real.
Am I in the minority when I say that Byung-hee was never my favorite? I liked him and I'm sad that he's gone (and what a crappy death that was), but my heart has always belonged to Ji-hyuk. Still, Byung-hee's total wackiness and upbeat devil-may-care attitude was fun while it lasted. The way he acts, he must have caffeine in his blood. He's so hyper and off-the-wall. His womanizing ways seems less Casanova and more ADHD, which he probably has.
What I liked most about Byung-hee was how he was willing to meet with someone who hates his guts in the middle of the night at the notion that he might be able to provide new drums for Do-il. It's sad that this big brotherly act is what costs him his life. The way his head was bleeding, his head could've been seriously injured. And then when that truck hit him... I was torn between wanting to laugh at the camp movie death and crying out at the sheer horror of it all. And then the scene cuts back to Byung-hee sleeping on the pool table while everyone's saying that with him there, everything will be alright. Of course, this means that nothing will be from this point on. The boys will be even more adrift than they already are. Group dynamics will be changed, and Ji-hyuk will probably face the choice of stepping in Byung-hee's shoes as leader and big brother, or being his own person while fulfilling both roles.
I haven't mentioned her yet (because the boys are such a rich topic for rambling), but I love Su-ah. She may be a princess with a (seemingly) perfect prince boyfriend, but once her family loses everything and she has to camp out at some ratty rooftop room, she takes everything in a stride. She proves that she can take care of herself, doing her own chores and finding a job. Being poor doesn't worry her. Her main concern is that everyone will find out she is.
I don't think Su-ah has any friends. What she has are people who flatter her, are envious of the charmed life she lives and her prince charming, people who buy pretty clothes with her. Yeah, Deo-mi, I'm looking at you. She seems so reserved and afraid to put her opinions forward, deferring to those of Seung-hoon and Deo-mi. I understand her, because just like so many people at whatever age, she fears criticism. She fears being mocked and left alone, but she doesn't really realize that she IS alone. I agree with Ji-hyuk when he points out that people who leave friends at the drop of a hat aren't really friends, but I understand where Su-ah's coming from when she asks him to keep her dire straits a secret.
I ship Su-ah/Ji-hyuk like mad. I like OTPs who really know each other, and SA/JH is one of them. At this point, Ji-hyuk knows more about Su-ah than people who've known her for years. I love their bonding on the roof because it's a genuine moment of friendship, which is sadly lacking among many, many OTPs. I love the scene where Su-ah demands an apology from Ji-hyuk because she seems like the type who will let things lie. I'm glad that she has found someone she can show her true self to.
The Verdict: LOVE! Complete, absolute LOVE! I can't wait to see more of what this show has to offer. Now if only I they would release the whole soundtrack for this show...