“Boyhood” Introduction
The Korean drama “Boyhood” stars the renowned actor Im Si-wan and is a collaboration with Lee Myung-woo, the director of “The Fiery Priest.” This Coupang Play original series has been in production since June last year. Set in South Chungcheong Province in 1989, it tells the story of a lonely high school student, Jang Byeong-Tae, whose life takes a dramatic turn after he unexpectedly becomes the strongest student at Buyeo Agricultural High School, aiming to avoid getting beaten up. Scheduled to be released on November 25, 2023, on friDay Video, the series will have 10 episodes, with two episodes airing every Friday and becoming available in Taiwan on Saturdays.
“Boyhood” Cast
Im Si-wan, Lee Sun-bin, Lee Si-woo, Kang Hye-won, Heo Kyung-young, Lee Sang-jin, Jung Yoon-jae, Jung Ah-yeon, and others.
“Boyhood” Trailer
“Boyhood” Ep1-2 Review
Turns out, two episodes are released in a day, which at least saves everyone from spending all their evenings on Korean dramas. The first two episodes essentially lay out the story of “Boyhood,” depicting how the weak Jeong Byeong-Tae becomes the legendary White Tiger of Asan at Buyeo Agricultural High. Overall, it’s quite interesting. Im Si-Wan, now in his thirties, plays this high school character. Although there’s a significant age gap, he looks passable. Still, I wonder why they didn’t just cast a younger actor. Even with his baby face, it’s hard to believe he’s a high schooler on the street. Of course, if it’s all about showcasing Si-Wan’s acting skills, then it’s fine, haha.
Jeong Byeong-Tae flees overnight due to his father’s illegal business, but I wonder how effective that is. Wouldn’t the police know where they moved once he transfers schools? Byeong-Tae’s family moves in with Park Ji-Young, a neighbor from his childhood. Ji-Young seems like a fragile girl but is actually known as the Black Spider among the local bad students. Byeong-Tae worries about getting beaten up at his new school, so his father devises a plan to have him arrive in a police car and confront everyone. This strategy, apart from the initial scare of the police car, shouldn’t have worked, but the bullies might have challenged him if they didn’t think he was the White Tiger.
Byeong-Tae still gets taken to the restroom for a chat after class, but they don’t hit him right away, thinking he’s the White Tiger. He was about to kneel and apologize, but then they all kneeled, thinking he was practicing martial arts by sitting upright. An accidental touch on Byeong-Tae’s shoulder gets blocked reflexively. Thus, without knowing what’s going on, Byeong-Tae somehow gets through this first hurdle. Later at dinner, Kang Sun-Hwa, the school beauty from Buyeo Women’s College, appears. Her classmates narrate Byeong-Tae’s feats to her, and only then does he realize why everyone’s been so nice to him.
Although everyone now thinks Byeong-Tae is the White Tiger, doubts arise when he’s easily knocked down during a soccer game. Rumors start that he might have fabricated his tales of beating seventeen people. Some weaklings plan to approach him in private, but Byeong-Tae soon faces his first challenger. During the showdown, some peers sneakily watch, but they miss the part where Byeong-Tae gets beaten. By the time they pay attention, the challenger is already knocked out by an accidental elbow from Byeong-Tae. Now everyone truly believes he’s the White Tiger of Asan, and Buyeo Agricultural High is saved!
Byeong-Tae and his classmates encounter Sun-Hwa and her admirer after dinner. Byeong-Tae, with the support of his friends, stands up for Sun-Hwa, driving the admirer away and even having a meal with her afterward. When he returns home and learns from his classmates that Park Ji-Young is the Black Spider, he confronts her and ends up getting beaten. It seems Byeong-Tae wants Ji-Young as his enforcer to keep his weak identity hidden. But the real White Tiger of Asan, Jeong Kyeong-Tae, wakes up from the hospital. Once he returns to school, won’t the classmates suspect him, given his name and build?
The scene at the beginning with the students and the teacher felt very real, reminding me of getting punished by teachers in my childhood. It’s unlikely that kids today have experienced this, and they might find it exaggerated. Seriously, even the third student asking the teacher to hit him directly is something I’ve said before, so I know how true that is. Hilarious.
“Boyhood” Ep3-4 Review
These two episodes are quite entertaining, and the real White Tiger of Asan also makes an appearance, keeping the story from dragging. Jeong Byeong-Tae stirs up trouble by stealing the girlfriend, Sun-Hwa, of a student from the Industrial High School. The boyfriend storms into the campus for a showdown, but Byeong-Tae is conveniently indisposed in the woods at the time, and nobody sees him surrendering.
Later, during a class, the teacher discusses how Toyotomi Hideyoshi ruled Japan, suggesting that Hideyoshi used wars to cover up his incompetence. However, being able to become a regent doesn’t exactly indicate incompetence; this is probably criticism from the perspective of a country that was invaded. Inspired by this, Byeong-Tae decides to use school conflicts to cover his own incompetence.
Thus, Byeong-Tae rallies the second-year students of Agricultural High for a raid on the rival school, using a manure spreader as a siege weapon. Though successful, Byeong-Tae doesn’t consider the possibility of being caught alone, especially if he’s out on a date with Sun-Hwa; his lack of fighting skills could easily be exposed. After their successful raid and the arrival of the police, Byeong-Tae orders everyone to scatter and escape. By the next day, it seems the mass brawl has been forgotten.
With the arrival of Jeong Kyeong-Tae at the school, Byeong-Tae begins to suspect he might be the real White Tiger of Asan, so he prevents his followers from provoking Kyeong-Tae. After school, Byeong-Tae follows Kyeong-Tae home to his mother’s bakery, where he learns about Kyeong-Tae’s amnesia. Byeong-Tae surmises that these days of amnesia must be the happiest for Kyeong-Tae’s mother, as her son isn’t causing trouble outside. After leaving the bakery with bread in hand, Byeong-Tae and Kyeong-Tae are cornered by three students from Industrial High. Byeong-Tae is about to get beaten up but is saved by Kyeong-Tae.
The next day, Byeong-Tae takes Sun-Hwa out for fun, including boating and ice skating. However, at the restaurant, Byeong-Tae realizes he’s short on cash. He rushes to find his followers for money, but since he stopped them from collecting protection fees earlier, they’re broke too. Coincidentally, they encounter Kyeong-Tae at a billiards room and threaten him for money, only to be beaten up by the real White Tiger of Asan. The Industrial High trio returns to corner Kyeong-Tae, and it seems the group beating triggers his memory recovery. Afterwards, Kyeong-Tae goes to the restaurant to give Byeong-Tae the money, giving him a menacing look.
With ten episodes in “Boyhood,” it’s unlikely that Kyeong-Tae will fully recover his memory so soon, right? And what about Byeong-Tae’s neighbor, Park Ji-Young? She hasn’t played a significant role yet. Will she be Byeong-Tae’s personal enforcer, secretly dealing with the Industrial High guys, or can she actually beat the White Tiger of Asan? Personally, I hope the White Tiger becomes a good kid. Seeing how happy his mother is now, it’s hard to imagine her son turning back into a delinquent.