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Short summary

The surprise hit of 2010, Personal Taste (aka Personal Preference) garnered high ratings and a huge fanbase in a comedy that proves true love is found in the most unlikely places. Quirky and insecure Gaein lives alone in her father's famous 'Old World'--an architectural tribute to old Korea and Gaein's late mother. Money troubles loom and Gaein is desperate for a roommate. To get inside this rare building, architect Jinho (Lee Minho from Boys Over Flowers) allows Gaein to believe he's gay. Their friendship deepens and grows to love in this tender romantic comedy. D. Bannon is the author of The Elements of Subtitles.

User reviews


  • comment
    • Author: Blackstalker
    Personal Taste is a 16 episode 2010 kdrama where the two leads strive to make this drama work but the story line eventually stymies' their efforts leaving a B-grade drama.

    Our male lead, Jin-ho, lies to our female lead, Kae-I that he is gay so she'll rent a room to him in her father's house which he wants to study for an architecture design that will make or break his company. They fall for each other but the lie stops their romance. He eventually confesses, she is a doormat and accepts this huge deceit with ease. Their romance is the best part the show. They have chemistry and work hard to be likable. The middle episodes are their best. Unfortunately the story line is littered with annoying characters and plot decisions that pull entire series down.

    What I liked about Personal Taste:

    1. Lee Min-ho as Jin-ho. He has loads of appeal and the camera loves him. His character starts out as a cold fish in the initial episodes, warms up nicely in the middle, then is an idiot in the home stretch until the final episode epilogue where he sparks up again.

    2. Son Ye-jin as Kae-i. She has excellent chemistry with Lee Min-ho and they clicked as a couple. Her doormat character was annoying in the initial episodes, cute and charming in the middle, then a bit sad in the final episode where she offers him blind trust in the form of herself. The emotional payoff is in their epilogue scenes.

    3. Jung Sung-Hwa as Sang-Jun. He is Jin-ho's friend. He is funny impersonating Jin-ho's gay lover. I was horrified that the writers pair him with the despicable In-hee in the final episode, lazy storytelling.

    4. Ryu Seung-ryong as Do-bin. As the quiet, lonely director, this actor embodies this character with human kindness and is an emotional touchstone.

    What I did not like about Personal Taste:

    1. Wang Ji-Hye as In-Hee. Supposedly Kae-I's friend but she is selfish, willing to use and abuse to get her way. This annoying character had no growth during the series.

    2. Ahn Seok-Hwan as Yun-Seop (Chang-Ryeol's Dad). I loved this actor in Delightful Girl Chun-hyang but here he portrays a one dimensional annoying character that sneers, bribes, and bullies his way through life.

    3. Choi Eun-Seo as Hye-Mi. Another annoying character that believes she has a chance with Jin-ho. Worthless and whining, the script this character was given was a waste.
  • comment
    • Author: Kerry
    Personal Taste is a story about a guy who pretends to be gay in order to become a roommate of a female friend,who is still characterized by innocence and naivety.

    Jeon Jin Ho is a straight guy who pretends to be gay in order to become a roommate to his female friend, Park Kae In. His hobbies include organization and ironing, and he's known for his stoic poker face. He's a stickler for cleanliness, but he also has a talent for figuring out a women's feelings. Kae In is very trusting even though she has a habit of being betrayed. However that doesn't stop her from giving people the benefit of doubt and Jin Ho is no different. How will Kae In react when she finds out that her gay roommate is not actually gay at all and that he has fallen for her?

    It touches issues such as maturity, being organized and creative, how to hold onto life when things don't go one's way and how to become successful in business.

    The leads have the greatest of chemistry. As usual, the great Son Ye-jin continues to amaze while Lee Min-Ho can stand on his own amidst the great actress. The story is a good one and a must see especially for Son Ye-jin fans.

    Check this out.It definitely good entertainment.
  • comment
    • Author: Agarus
    This was a stellar series. I have seldom watched anything that gave me as much true enjoyment. Right up till the ending...

    The first 2/3 were pure heaven. Gae In mistakenly assumes Jin Ho is a homosexual, and he allows her to continue thinking that so that she will feel comfortable renting out a room to him. The two overcome their differences, becoming friends, and eventually develop romantic feelings for each other—much fun ensues. This section of the series had endless amounts of charm, warmth, comedy, and romantic tension. It always kept me guessing and avoided clichés like the plague.

    Then, in episode 11, the cat came out of the bag—Jin Ho was not gay, he loved Gae In, and wanted be loved by her. At first I thought, "This is good; we get to enjoy seeing them together." However, I found that "Personal Taste" lost a lot of its peculiar charm at this point— it became another when-will-they-have-sex story. Still, it gained another kind charm. It became the story of a man and woman who were trying to make their relationship work, about two lovers who were trying to figure out how deal with past wounds and personality flaws, about two people respectfully combating parental disapproval, about a man lovingly waiting for sex until his woman was ready. Again, the series steered clear of clichés.

    And then we spent the last three episodes on a completely unnecessary clichéd plot twist—guy decides he should convince girl not to care about him, so guy treats girl worse than he ever treated his enemies.

    One of the things that made this series really great was the way Gae In and Jin Ho argued. They would get upset and say things they didn't mean, but then later apologize. It was realistic and compelling, but in the end the creators threw this away with both hands.

    Another thing that was great in this series was that Jin Ho spent a lot of time teaching Gae In to respect herself and not let people trample on her. However, in the end Gae In goes to Jin Ho and finally sleeps with him, though he has treated her like dirt, saying "I will trust you no matter what, even if I get hurt." This completely went against everything that came before. I personally think that it is good to wait until marriage to have sex; however, I realize I am in the minority. Still, the series had led me to hope that the consummation would at least be happy and loving, but it was just sad and depressing.

    To add insult to injury, the creators left most of the subplots hanging in order to spend three episodes on this ghastly cliché, and then wound everything up quickly, saccharinly, and unrealistically. A very, very poor finish to a great story.

    Yes, I understand this is a romantic comedy, but there is no law stating that romantic comedies have to be dumb; and this one had constantly shown itself to be so much more. A sad waste of excellent writing and acting.

    So, if you read this and think you are like me, you might want to stop watching this series after the first 20 minutes of the 11th episode.
  • comment
    • Author: grand star
    Classic, classic, classic!! I loved this show from episode one!! Though towards the ending, it wasn't as good as the first episodes, it was still funny and interesting. Well, the story is a mess at the beginning, but it gets better after the third episode and the humour is good enough to keep you entertained. The romance is so cute, as the chemistry between the two leading roles is great. You can sense it from the beginning that those two are either going to kill each other or fall in love. And they almost do kill each other! The side stories weren't that great, as they were there only to fill the gap between the scenes and they merely helped the development of the story. The performances were good as well (well, most of them) and I liked the development of the characters, as they changed each other gradually. All in all, one of my favs so far and with a great soundtrack!! So, 8 out of 10.
  • comment
    • Author: Whatever
    This series really hovered between being so bad its good and being just plain bad. Visually this looks appalling, this looks like someones high school project. The plot is just a series of misunderstandings and two-dimentional irrational characters doing stupid stuff for 16 hours. The best part of this series is the awful execution of an even worse script leading to this series unwillingly having some really funny moments, especially when delivered by the male lead which does not know how to act for his life. The reason this does not get a lower score is because the soundtrack was decent and the female lead actually made an effort.
  • comment
    • Author: Endieyab
    Overall review is awsome! As usual, his acting skill do not fail, so he is not only a handsome face on screen. The ideea of the drama and what you can learn from it is not bad . Also the funny moments actually maked me giggle.. which doesn't happen often for me. Also, the number of episodes are not 2... maybe multiplied by 10. I was so captivated by this drama that I finished it in less than 2 days ????.
  • comment
    • Author: Stan
    He listened to her and comforted her when she was sad. He took care of her when she was sick. He never cheated on her. He felt for her mother's loss. He was helpful to her in cleaning and cooking. He gave her strength to not dwell in the past but for a brighter future. He defended her and protected her when she fell into states of weakness. He supported her when she fell into financial troubles. He slept in a bed with her without even touching a finger of her in the beginning of their romance and waited for her consent.
  • Series cast summary:
    Min-Ho Lee Min-Ho Lee - Jeon Jin-Ho 2 episodes, 2010
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