Synopsis
Asai Tomoko is a Japanese girl who is on vacation in Hong Kong. When her purse was snatched, she mistakenly accuses a Korean man nearby named Kim Ji Hoon of stealing her purse (Kim and the thief were wearing identical hats). When she finds out she was mistaken she apologizes and tries to talk to him, but to no avail since they can't understand each other except through very simple english and hand motions. Still, Ji Hoon feels sorry that she lost her money and treats her to dinner and in return asks her to be in his movie (Kim is an amateur film director).
The two immediately start liking each other and as they part for their respective countries, they exchange e-mail addresses. As they e-mail, they realize that they are growing more and more in love. Asai starts learning Korean and eventually moves to Seoul in order to be with Kim Ji Hoon. However, many things come in the way of their relationship such as other love interests, the army, and Kim's parents.
Review
Friends is a great series and it was quite ingenious for them to come up with this Korean/Japanese drama. Since the series was only four episode, each episode really builds the tension and resolves the story. There aren't any parts that felt slow like there usually are in some Korean dramas. Although some may argue that this story didn't develop the characters enough, I thought that both Tomoko and Kim Ji Hoon were acted so well that there didn't need to be 16 + episodes to show the development in their relationship.
I was skeptical at first about the whole Korean/Japanese thing, but after watching the first episode I was hooked. Kyoko Fukada is sooooo dammmm kawaiii, she's a bit chubby in the chin in this series, but for some reason I thought that made her look really cute and roundish. She's definitely a girl I would go after.
Won Bin is cool as always. He exudes a really nice persona and it's not a wonder that many girls like him. He acted really well in this series. Kim Ji Hoon is a very likeable character that shows a lot of growth as the series ends. Although Friends was only 4 episodes, it seemed much longer because so much happened in each episode.
THe antagonists aren't really antagonists at all. Although they do come in the way of Tomoko and Kim Hi Joon's love, they are much better and less evil than most Korean drama antagonists.
Overall, this series is highly reccomended. Luckily, you can watch the series in about 4 hours since each episode is only about an hour long. I watched it for four hours straight. Great series!