oringinal posting from: www.koreanfilm.org/htdocs/dcforum/DCForumID3/3762.html

[Goose]
I have just completed watching Papa, an old drama by BYJ. I must say I am pretty disappointed. First of all, the quality of the VCDs were not very good, especially when it comes to the last 10 mins of every disk, I can hardly hear or see what is going on! irksome to say the least!
The plot is pretty lame, without giving good solid substance to why BYJ and the female lead fell in love in the first place and why they split eventually. Subsequently, when the female lead expressed her love to BYJ and asked for a chance again, it was also unclear why BYJ rejected her (perhaps he didn't want to stand in her way of furthering her studies?? just guessing...) and why did BYJ have a sudden change in heart and expressed his willingness to start again at the very last 10 minutes of the show?
There were no memorable or especially touching scenes...perhaps the only one I can think of is when BYJ and his ex-wife were dancing and he suddenly clutch her nearer as emotions flooded his mind.
In comparison, the development of the love relationships of the female lead's brother and BYJ's housemate were more enjoyable! and the 2 little kids brighten up an otherwise dull and uninspiring drama.
A little on BYJ's acting. I feel he came across pretty stiff and there weren't much room for varied display of emotions. He was either comtemplative, happy when with daughter, or playful when with brother-in-law and housemate. Guess I may be unfair if I compare him in Papa with his WLS protrayal where maturity and experience have added more layers to his acting skills.
So, has anyone else watched this and what do you think of it?

[Crystal]
Papa didn't live up to my expectations either. The problem, I feel, is the failure to develop the plot. The storyline -- a couple who married after university because they were going to have a child and then split because they were too young to cope with the responsiblities but still love one another -- actually provides a lot of scope for a great drama. But somehow this potential was not exploited in the show. The end result is a terribly weak plot where developments were skimmed over or left unexplained.
BYJ had a limited range of emotions in the show, possibly because he was still a fairly young actor then. The situation was made worse by the lack of depth and character development in the show -- most of the characters were two-dimensional and cardboard-like.
But all in, I don't regret watching the show. It's a good foil to compare a good and so-so production. And it goes to show how far BYJ had come as an actor, both in terms of acting skills and discerning choice of scripts. I'm eagerly looking forward to any new shows that he may be starring in. Anyone has any idea?

[Star Sapphire]
I've also just finished watching Papa yesterday. Although the story is quite flat, from another perspective, I found it very easy to watch... no pressure at all! What a welcome relief compared to watching HWRL which I had to recuperate for a few days everytime I watched one disc!
And I've learnt another few dialogues from Papa too! Where he said to Shi Ying "Hao hao shui" - Sleep Well in ep 1, "Ying Wei Ni Shi Zhui Bang De" - Because You Are the Best and of course, the christmas lightings part where he said "Xin Fu Ma?" - Do you feel blissful? : )

[Priscilla]
About "Papa," well, I first watched it when it came out, and I thought BYJ was pretty to look at(we shouldn't call a guy "pretty"?). The drama was cute and entertaining, but without much in-depth. So I soon forgot it. I recently went back to watch it again, and I couldn't say more than that. If you don't have anything better to do, watch "Papa."
Rating was high though(Higher than 30 %?). His fans just loved to watch him. Amongs all his works, I think this would rank one of the lowest in quality. BYJ was too young for the role, and this was the most miss-matched role he took. He was 25 then, and he surely didn't look like a father of a 6 year old girl. I've read many commentaries about YJ's works, written by his Korean fans, and almost zero mention about "Choi Hyun Jun" from "Papa."
This was the 3rd role he played (without counting the TV-specials). The producer of Papa was "Jeon Ki Sang," the man who "discovered" BYJ at "Love Greeting." So BYJ had a sort of "father-son" relationship with this producer. I read somewhere that this was the reason he chose this role. It was a continuation of the 2 previous characters he took--a soft and warm hearted man.
After Papa, producer "Jeon," set BYJ free. Meaning that BYJ totally metamorphosized and became a tough and serious man at "First Love," getting rid off his "soft" image.
So, if you are able to seat for 66 episodes, this should also be a "must" for all his fans. This drama became the highest rated ever in Korea (65%). It was too long for me, but I recently watched it (fast-forwarding =), and I liked it.