Here are the other places to catch Lee Min Ho from ‘Boys over Flowers’
If there is such a thing as a gateway series to K-dramas, then it’ll probably be 2009’s Boys Over Flowers. One of the most beloved and popular modern K-dramas, Boys Over Flowers is based on the Japanese manga of the same name. It follows a poor but vivacious scholarship student at an elite high school (Ku Hye-sun), who catches the attention of the gorgeous and rich group of young men known as F4.
The leader of the F4 Gu Jun-pyo (Lee Min-ho) initially hates her, but that changes over the course of the series. The pair fall in love with each other while dealing with Gu Jun-pyo’s abusive mother, class differences, romantic rivals, and more. Boys Over Flowers was huge in South Korea during its release and remains a pretty beloved series. It also launched the careers of the series stars into the stratosphere.
And what of the dashing Lee Min-ho? What other series can you see him in? Here are a couple of other projects to check him out in.
City Hunter (2011)
Based on the manga of the same name by Tsukasa Hojo, City Hunter follows Lee Yoon-sung (Lee Min-ho), who was raised by his father’s best friend in order to avenge the death of his father following an attempt to sneak into North Korea and assassinate high-ranking officials following a bombing. Assuming a double life, Lee Yoon-sung gets a job in South Korea’s presidential palace while carrying out his vengeance.
And then he falls in love with presidential bodyguard Kim Na-na (Park Min-young). City Hunter proved to be quite popular in South Korea during its run. It was a good leading role follow-up for Lee Min-ho following his breakout in Boys Over Flowers. He won several awards for his work in the role including a Korean Drama Award for Best Actor, and an SBS Drama Award.
Faith (2012)
Do you like time travel series? Do you like Lee Min-ho? Then this series has two loves for the price of one excellent series. Faith follows modern day plastic surgeon Yoo Eun-soo (Kim Hee-sun), who is kidnapped and transported back to the past where she is believed to be an apprentice of a famous Chinese surgeon sent from Heaven. She slowly falls for her kidnapper, the leader of the royal guard (Lee Min-ho).
Kim Hee-sun used Faith as her comeback project. She was something of a 1990s K-drama queen, but took a hiatus from work to focus on her marriage and family. The series itself experienced a lot of setbacks, but was also fairly well received. It netted both Kim Hee-sun and Lee Min-ho several awards and nominations for their roles in the series. Plus, anything with time travel makes it automatically cooler, right?
Legend of the Blue Sea (2016)
Legend of the Blue Sea is based on a classic Joseon era legend about a fisherman who captures and releases a mermaid. The series itself expands upon the legend, telling a story of star crossed lovers who are stuck in a story of rebirth, fate, and unrequited love. In the modern era, mermaid Shim Cheong (Jun Ji-hyun) falls for con artist Heo Joon-jae (Lee Min-ho.)
Running parallel to the modern story is another about their Joseon era counterparts: mermaid Se-hwa (Jun Ji-hyun) and town head Kim Dam-ryeong (Lee Min-ho). The series performed well domestically and overseas. It also did well at the SBS Drama Awards as well.
The King: Eternal Monarch (2020)
The King: Eternal Monarch is a pretty wild concept focusing on alternate realities. In one reality, Lee Gon (Lee Min-ho) is the ruler of the Kingdom of Corea, who crosses the barrier into the modern day Republic of Korea where he meets Jung Tae-eui (Kim Go-eun), who he recognizes from an identity card left behind during an unsuccessful assassination attempt on his life as a boy.
Hype was high for The King: Eternal Monarch, which is Lee Min-ho’s comeback project following mandatory military service. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its interesting idea, setting it apart from mainstream K-dramas, but also found the series too confusing at times. Lee Min-ho’s performance was praised and viewership was pretty solid though.
