TS | That Woman, That Man, The Tortoise and The Crane

This post was first published on SEOULRHYTHMS.
bb | February 16, 2011




hee, guess some of you might know what this post is about from the title, ya?

yup, yup, it’s about the SBS drama that’s ignited such a blaze of CRAZY FAN-FIRE and SILLY PARODIES in korea… in fact, many korean celebs (including AFTER SCHOOL’s UEE and SE7EN! and oh, you HAVE TO watch that UEE clip, k?) are fans of SECRET GARDEN.




as lame as the soul-swopping plot was, there were many uniquely secret-gardenish scenes and even more terrific lines! and, there were those ♥moments♥. ahhh… those ♥moments♥…

remember the famous sit-up scene? yea, doing stomach crunches has never, ever, been THIS appealing to me, LOL!




while i’m at it, i might as well repost a clip of the sit-up scene.

credit: joonismine2 @YT




and later, the second sit-up scene in the last epi (#20)… when he (really!) got to kiss her.

still on ♥moments♥… the cappuccino kiss!

although it reminded me somewhat of the american advertising campaign GOT MILK? aimed at encouraging the consumption of (cow’s) milk, it’s still an incredibly sweet scene when he kissed her foam away. hee, me loves a man who’s straight-talking and abit domineering!




that’s why i also like the scene where she had gone to his (super-nice!) house to confront him, and he just grabbed her and kissed her speechless (and senseless too…?), keke!




oh ya, i also love the scene where Hyun Bin‘s character, Kim Joo Won stared at the sleeping Ha Ji Won, playing the stuntwoman, Gil Ra Im, with such intensity. and later, when she woke up, how the two seemed to be reading each other’s thoughts.

yea, that’s definitely a ♥moment♥!




and… of course, that EPI 14 PUBLIC KISS counts for a ♥moment♥ too! one of the hottest and longest kisses in TV drama that got more than just a few viewers’ hearts stop for a few secs, i’d read…




i’ve gotta confess that i’m not exactly terribly big on k-dramas; don’t think i even finish watching more than three dramas a year in the past few years. sometimes i’d get intrigued by all the online hype that i’d start watching, but i’ve always found it hard to finish watching anything.

but for secret garden, despite me not liking ha ji won much, nor am i a particularly big fan of hyun bin, i’d spent a continuous span of a few nights to finish secret garden. yea, i finished watching it the week before last, i think… *beams proudly*

me thinks the writer did a really great job with the dialogue, else i wouldn’t find the drama this riveting. i went to dig abit more and found out that the writer for secret garden is KIM EUN SOOK!

she’s the magician (of words) behind the popular LOVERS series! remember LOVERS IN PARIS(2004)? what about LOVERS IN PRAGUE(2005) and LOVERS(2007)? and oh, she also penned ON AIR(2008) starring SONG YUN AH and THE LATE PARK YONG HA.

surprise, surprise!

for someone who doesn’t watch K-dramas regularly (other than dramas by YJ and KHJ), i’d watched Lovers in Paris, Lovers and On Air and i’d finished ‘em too! i can still remember that these dramas had great dialogue, the volleying of lines amongst the characters was probably what got me to finish watching.

it was really funny how so many people were following the drama and rooting for the couple. even the writer’s husband is a secret garden fan, and he’s even threatened (jokingly, of course) to file for divorce if she didn’t give the couple a happy ending! you can read more about what she’s gotta say about secret garden HERE.




but seriously… other than the good scriptwriting and lines, the sizzling chemistry between hyun bin and ha ji won is probably another key factor why the drama captured so many hearts. they seemed so comfortable with each other and the acting came across as natural. very convincing, indeed.




on the side, i also think the fact that both characters weren’t written to be some ridiculously perfect or incredulously selfless person helped too, keke! it kindda made them more believable and real, and yes, definitely more lovable!

the supporting cast were also great fun to watch. in the beginning, i truly found Oska (played by YOON SANG HYUN) irritating, jinjja jinjja over the top. was kindda a pain in my royal butt… but i found him increasingly endearing as the drama played on.

secret garden probably won’t be as engagingly funny if without Oska. the almost-childish banter and petty rivalry between the cousins gave the comic relief. and later, when Oska let known that he was playing along coz of what Joo Won had gone through, whoa… that was touching!




interestingly, this 1973-er only made his acting debut at the age of 32! definitely a late bloomer, and also proof that you’re never too old to try! one more small gossipy tidbit, there was some rumours at one point about him DATING YOON EUN HYE whom he had worked with on the My Fair Lady drama! but he’s since clarified that yes, they still keep in touch, but it’s really more of a oppa-dongsaeng (sibling) relationship.




and of course, the other actors and actresses added flavours and spice to the drama too. it’s kindda rare that i sit through an entire drama and not hate at least half a dozen characters in the drama, keke! this time around, the only peeps i can’t stand is probably Joo Won’s mother. but the rest of the cast are really not half bad!

like the evil woman who’s actually not so evil, Yun Seul. this character’s played by the one with the lovely name and even lovelier body, KIM SA RANG.

did you know she’s Miss Korea 2000?




tall with seemingly endless legs, she really has a gloriously statuesque body and with all the right curves at all the right places. remember the scenes in the drama where she was in the spa and sauna? it’s OMG perfect body with perfect skin! she must have scrubbed like a godzillion times before going to the set! me so jealous envious!




and the super-cute bimbo-roommate Min Ah Young (played by YOO IN NA).

she’s nearing 30…! gotta say i’m surprised coz she looks so young! did you know that she’s been in the industry for over a decade, but has only managed to debut recently? in fact, secret garden is only her second work, her first being High Kick Through the Roof.

she’s now with YG, but previously when she was with another agency, she was SEXUALLY HARASSED by the CEO of that former agency! she had revealed this during a variety show last year, and said that the CEO was a famous singer in korea. hmmm… not too many agency bosses are famous singers, ya?

another piece of juicy tidbit. seems like quite some men and boys are drawn to this BAGEL GIRL! Lee Seo Jin and G-Dragon from Big Bang have noticed her BIG TIME! Lee said she’s beautiful, whilst GD said he wanted to marry her! read the details HERE. oh, that lucky gal!

meanwhile, you might wanna click HERE to read about her plans and thoughts for the new (lunar) year.

and the other ‘colourful’ characters in secret garden include the whiny Secretary Kim (played by KIM SEONG OH), the strong and silent Director Im Jong Soo (played by i-am-so-in-love-with-his-voice PHILIP LEE, and the rest…

did you think i wasn’t going to mention SSUN?!

of course, not! the uber-cool model-turned-actor Lee Jong SeokK (aka Lee Jong Suk) who played the super-talented gay musician Han Tae Ssun. aigoo, he’s so cool, so cool, so cool in the show! and OMG, his skin! he’s sooooo fair that i’m tempted to describe him as luminous! and, i’d give an arm and a leg (fat arm and fat leg that that too!) to be THAT fair!

did you know his role in secret garden was originally intended for JAY PARK? anyway, i do know that quite a few gals are kindda besotted with this young man, keke! you can read more about him HERE and HERE.

and oh, news just out… he’s just received notification that he’s been ACCEPTED BY KONKUK UNIVERSITY.

chukahamnida, lee jong seok!




and now back to why i’m doing this (getting way too long-winded) post… that oh-so-cute(!) rhyme thingy that hyun bin’s character’s always reciting to get Ra Im out of his mind! he’s so cute doing that, and every time i saw him recite this in the show, i’d make a mental note to check it out. and i wanna share, keke!

credit: CooLoo555 @YT

here’s what he was muttering…

Kim~~suhanmoo keobugiwa durumi samcheongabja Dong Bang Sak Chichigapo Sarisarisaenta Woriwori Saepeurika Moodoosella gureumi heorikaein dambyeorak seosaengwonae goyangyi badookineun Doldolri




and me being the usual curious intellectual that i am (a’hem!), i had to check out what on earth that smattering of nonsensical sounding gibberish was! what i found cracked me up, it’s hilarious! you just gotta read it, alrighty?

here, read THIS for everything you need to know about that Kim-Su-Han-Moo rhyme thingy.




next up… me wanna know what your default ringtone is^^

why am i asking? hee, coz i wanna tell you mine! i’ve been using hyun bin’s That Man (그남자, pronounced as Geu Namja) as my ringtone since last week! i love that song, both man and woman versions! i love the lyrics, so meaningful! and i even love the title! okie, okie, i love everything about the song!

have you heard it? yes, yes, hyun bin’s version means that he really sang it.

credit: evamouse1960 @YT




actually the original song (yup, it’s from the OST) is That Woman (그여자, pronounced as Geu Yeoja), sung by BAEK JI YOUNG.

credit: designerha @YT




it’s really nice, ya? baek ji young has a wonderfully rich voice and she’s able to really emote the feelings. here, watch and listen to her perform the song live

credit: ehuman11 @YT




actually, baek ji young also made a CAMEO APPEARANCE on secret garden. it was in epi 13, aired on christmas day. did you notice? she was the one who was singing and dancing with Oska. i thought she was loud… anyway, nothing spectacularly memorable about that scene.

(on the side, did you know baek ji young was implicated in a sex scandal about a decade ago?

at that time, it was even dubbed the SEX, LIES & THE INTERNET SCANDAL. anyway, from what i’d read, she seemed to be stronger and braver than most young women would feel when faced with something like this. good for her that she didn’t let that ruin her life and halt her career. yea, SHE’s OVERCOME THAT.)

other than downloading That Man to use as my ringtone, i also downloaded the SMS alert on Ra Im’s cellphone.

you know, that cute SMS tone Munja-wa-shong….? (문자왔숑, it means a text message has come/arrived.)

Ra Im has the habit of repeating 문자왔숑 in a certain cutesy manner whenever she receives a text message, and whenever there’s a soul-switch, we get to see Joo Won do that. it’s cute, it’s cute, it’s cute!!

it’s actually an LG sms alert tone, you can read more about it HERE.

if you’ve an iphone, you can also check out the secret garden app HERE. trouble is… practically everything’s in korean, so unless you understand the language, it’s gonna be quite hard to navigate and play around with it. so, good luck!




one more tidbit from secret garden, and this time, it’s not about people, but about the houses.




yes, those beautiful houses that Joo Won and Oska stayed in. according to THIS, joo won’s house is located in yeoju, gyeonggido, and the home is actually a research centre for a makeup and health food company in korea.

and… omo, it was used in winter sonata too! apparently, the same house was on loan to the Winter Sonata drama team to be used as BYJ (who played Lee Min Hyung) as a vacation home. mind you, that was about ten years ago… it’s amazing how the property doesn’t look dated at all. very often, something classic with understated sophistication and simplicity will easily outlast whatever the hottest trends may be.




you can see more pics of the property and its interior HERE.




you know, hyun bin surprised me with this drama. i wasn’t expecting to like him much, but i ended up liking him lots when i was watching secret garden.

to me, his character in the drama is not exactly likeable; he’s quite the self-centered (mini) nutcase with a superiority complex. if the role’s not handled carefully, it could go the other way, yea the wrong way, keke! but somehow hyun bin’s managed to flesh out the character with a likability and vulnerability that probably called out to all the female viewers who watched the drama.

the man-child managed to make the Joo Won character work. on one hand, he’s your typical alpha male, and yet at times, he’s so adorably naive you just want to alternate between tousling his hair and doing sit-ups with him, keke!

i also thought he handled the more ‘melodramatic’ scenes fairly well too, without overdoing it (though i did think the crying was a tad too much when he was writing that letter on that chaise lounge towards the end…)

and oh, the scene when he was trapped in the elevator? he was so convincing, no?

and most of all, his burning gaze when he’s staring into Ra Im’s eyes… that’s scorch-hot! he’s scorch-hot in those scenes, totally smoldering! makes me wonder all the time when i was watching it… how on earth could ha ji won, or any girl for that matter, not feel electrified…??　眼睛好有戏！




for now, i’ll leave you with a great-to-watch NG clips from secret garden.

credit: iadoresojisup @YT




credit: xStarCandii @YT




and… i suppose all the secret garden fans will know that there was a 70-minute special that aired a week after the last epi was aired, ya? click HERE and HERE for info on this secret garden special.

and, remember to check out the TAXI program which hyun bin appeared in (watch it, it’s fun and funny, keke!). hyun bin hardly appears in variety shows, and he’d agreed to appearing in TAXI coz his hyung is the host. so go search for the clips and watch, ya? you can click HERE for part 1.




lastly (finally! it’s such a looooong post, aigoo!), if you haven’t yet watched secret garden, yes, i highly recommend. i can almost guarantee that you won’t regret watching it, keke!

so come on down to the Annyeong Seoul Korean fair and check out the Secret Garden DVD set from TS DVD. while you’re at it, go sign up for their membership program and start clocking points, k?

and… if you’re dying to get your hands on the secret garden merchandise, you can check out SEOULRHYTHMS.




p.s. hee, this post will not be complete without mentioning Big Bang’s parody of the drama! TOP TOP TOP played hyun bin’s role of Kim Joo Won in the parody during Big Bang’s Big Show concert earlier this year. he looked soooooo… yummylicious!




read more and check out Big Bang’s secret garden parody HERE.