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Tatler Asia
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Tatler Asia
9 iconic K-dramas that deserve a reboot (and who should star in them)
2. 'Winter Sonata' (2002) Photo 1 of 3 'Winter Sonata' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Han So-hee (Photo: JTBC) Photo 3 of 3 Cha Eun-woo (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Bae Yong-joon, Choi Ji-woo Dream 2025 reboot: Cha Eun-woo, Han So-hee This groundbreaking show is one of the most iconic K-dramas of all time. The snow, the bicycle, the aching piano score—it's the drama that launched a thousand scarves. For a modern twist, this classic could be rebooted as a quiet, visually poetic slow-burn set between Seoul and a sleepy Nordic-style town. Cha Eun-woo brings the serene beauty, Han So-hee brings the aching vulnerability, and together they'll make you believe in memory loss and destiny all over again. 3. 'Full House' (2004) Photo 1 of 3 'Full House' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Rowoon (Photo: JTBC) Photo 3 of 3 Kim Se-jeong (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Rain, Song Hye-kyo Dream 2025 reboot: Rowoon, Kim Se-jeong Back in the day, contract marriages were the ultimate rom-com trope. But today, we'd expect better real estate, better outfits and some actual emotional maturity. Enter Rowoon as the grumpy megastar and Kim Se-jeong as the chaotic screenwriter who moves into his architectural dream home. Add a strong B-side of found family and social media chaos and Full House 2.0 is ready to trend. See more: Love contracts: 8 fake relationships in K-dramas that had us invested 4. 'Stairway to Heaven' (2003) Photo 1 of 3 'Stairway to Heaven' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Park Bo-gum (Photo: IMDB) Photo 3 of 3 Kim Yoo-jung (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Kwon Sang-woo, Choi Ji-woo Dream 2025 reboot: Park Bo-gum, Kim Yoo-jung Ready to cry for 16 straight episodes? This ultra-melodrama had it all: childhood trauma, terminal illness, evil step-relatives and a theme song that haunts you to this day. Rebooted, it could take a more sensitive, art-house approach, with Park Bo-gum's quiet intensity and Kim Yoo-jung's emotional range rebalancing the pathos without tipping into parody. And yes, the piano stays. It's as emblematic as these iconic K-dramas. 5. 'Princess Hours' (2006) Photo 1 of 3 'Princess Hours' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Roh Yoon-seo (Photo: tvN) Photo 3 of 3 Lee Do-hyun (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Yoon Eun-hye, Ju Ji-hoon Dream 2025 reboot: Lee Do-hyun, Roh Yoon-seo In a reimagined monarchy, an ordinary high school girl gets forced into a royal marriage with a reluctant crown prince. We'd modernise it with sharper political satire ( The Crown but make it K-pop) and streaming-worthy costume budgets. Lee Do-hyun has the emotional range for the tsundere prince, while Roh Yoon-seo is the bubbly everygirl we'd root for in a tiara. Don't miss: 5 historical (saeguk) K-drama classics to watch: Hwarang, Mr Queen 6. 'Coffee Prince' (2007) Photo 1 of 3 'Coffee Prince' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Jeon Jong-seo (Photo: IMDB) Photo 3 of 3 Yoo Ah-in (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Yoon Eun-hye, Gong Yoo Dream 2025 reboot: Jeon Jong-seo, Yoo Ah-in Gender-bending identity crises? Yes, please. Coffee Prince was ahead of its time, which is no doubt why it's one of the most iconic K-dramas ever. A 2025 reboot would lean into the queer-coded storyline with more nuance. Jeon Jong-seo ( The Call ) brings the edgy ambiguity and fierce presence, while Yoo Ah-in delivers a hot-and-cold emotional ride that's impossible to look away from. Expect latte art, gender politics and existential vibes. If this reboot does happen, we expect a Gong Yoo cameo. See more: 9 crossover cameos that prove the K-drama multiverse 7. 'Boys Over Flowers' (2009) Photo 1 of 3 'Boys Over Flowers' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Minji (Photo: Instagram / @newjeans_official) Photo 3 of 3 Hwang In-youp (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Gu Hye-sun, Lee Min-ho Dream 2025 reboot: NewJeans' Minji, Hwang In-youp The mother of all school dramas, Boys Over Flowers , needs a soft reboot more than any other. This time, we swap the campy bullying and over-the-top privilege for something more Euphoria meets Sky Castle . Minji plays the headstrong outsider who disrupts the elite boys' club, while Hwang In-youp channels that old-school chaebol charm—with less hair gel and more therapy. Still iconic. Just less problematic. 8. 'My Lovely Sam Soon' (2005) Photo 1 of 3 'My Lovely Sam Soon' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Lee Sung-kyung (Photo: IMDB) Photo 3 of 3 Kim Young-dae (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Kim Sun-a, Hyun Bin Dream 2025 reboot: Lee Sung-kyung, Kim Young-dae She bakes, she swears, she doesn't have a flat stomach—and she was that girl before 'relatable' became an Instagram buzzword. Sam Soon was a revolutionary character for her time, and in a 2020s reboot, she could return as a pastry chef running her own viral dessert café in Seongsu. Lee Sung-kyung ( Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo ) has the comedic timing and chaotic charm to nail the role, while Kim Young-dae ( The Penthouse ) makes for a deliciously uptight CEO love interest. Bonus: the new version could lean even more into body image, dating apps and burnout in the kitchen. And just like Coffee Prince , we demand a Hyun Bin drop-by. 9. 'You're Beautiful' (2009) Photo 1 of 3 'You're Beautiful' (Photo: IMDB) Photo 2 of 3 Wonyoung (Photo: IMDB) Photo 3 of 3 Choi Hyun-wook (Photo: IMDB) Original stars: Park Shin-hye, Jang Keun-suk Dream 2025 reboot: IVE's Wonyoung and Choi Hyun-wook Before K-Pop: The Ultimate Audition and Dream High , there was this fever dream of a show: a nun-in-training pretending to be her twin brother in a boy band. Who knew that premise would make one of the most iconic K-dramas of the decade? In 2025, that setup still holds up. Wonyoung (IVE), with her dual charm and stage presence, could pull off the gender disguise with campy flair, while Choi Hyun-wook ( Twinkling Watermelon ) brings just enough angsty idol energy. Add cameos from actual idols and a darker take on the cost of fame, and it's ready to trend.
Business Mayor
03-05-2025
- Science
- Business Mayor
Cats and dogs are evolving to look alike, and it's all humans' fault
Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Domestication has made cats and dogs more diverse, but also curiously alike – with serious implications for their health and welfare, new research shows. At first glance, Persian cats and pugs don't seem like they'd have much in common. One's a cat, the other's a dog, separated by 50 million years of evolution. But when evolutionary biologist Abby Grace Drake and her colleagues scanned 1,810 skulls of cats, dogs and their wild relatives, they found something strange. Despite their distant histories, many breeds of cats and dogs show striking similarity in skull shape. In evolutionary biology, divergence is a common process. In simple terms, divergence is where two organisms that share a common ancestry become increasingly different over time, while convergence means becoming more similar. As populations of animals split and adapt to different environments, they gradually develop new traits, a process known as divergent evolution. This is one of the main ways new species form different traits, causing populations to evolve along separate paths. But sometimes, evolution can take a different direction. Convergence happens when unrelated species, shaped by similar pressures, independently evolve similar features. In the case of domestic cats, dogs and many other domesticated species, intentional and unintentional selection by humans seems to have created convergence, accidentally steering different species toward similar traits. Despite a long history of evolutionary separation, flat-faced breeds like the Persian cat and pugs share similar skull structures. Winter Sonata, a Persian breed, gets a combing during Vietnam's first national cat show in Hanoi (AFP/Getty) To investigate how far domestication has reshaped skull structure, Drake and her colleagues analysed 3D scans of skulls from museum specimens, veterinary schools and digital archives. Their dataset included domestic cats such as Siamese, Maine coon and Persian breeds, as well as over 100 dog breeds from short-muzzled dogs like pugs to long-muzzled breeds like collies. Read More ChatGPT can now access up to date information - Their findings showed that domestication has not only increased skull shape diversity beyond that of wolves and wildcats but also led some cat and dog breeds to resemble one another, with convergence towards either long or flat faces. Wild canids (the group of animals that includes dogs, wolves, foxes and jackals) tend to share a similar elongated skull, while wild felids (the group of animals that includes domestic cats, lions, tigers and jaguars) show more natural variation. Yet domestic breeds of both species now span a more extreme range at both ends of the scale. This trend can be seen in the emergence of cats bred to resemble XL bully dogs. Domestication has long shown that when humans intervene, even distantly related species can end up looking, and sometimes suffering, in similar ways. Cats and dogs are evolving to look more alike (Getty/iStock) Selective breeding has exaggerated traits across species. Many other human-made changes can push animals beyond what their bodies can naturally support. For instance, some chickens bred for their meat carry 30 per cent of their body weight in breast muscle, which often results in heart and lung problems. The human preference for flat-faced pets taps into some of our most fundamental instincts. Humans are hard-wired to respond to infant features like rounded heads, small noses and large, low-set eyes. These traits, which are exaggerated in many flat-faced cat and dog breeds, mimic the appearance of human babies. Of all species, humans are among the most altricial, meaning that we are born helpless and dependent on caregivers for survival, a trait we share with puppies and kittens. In contrast, precocial animals are able to see, hear, stand and move shortly after birth. Because human infants rely so heavily upon adult care, evolution has shaped us to be sensitive to signals of vulnerability and need. Read More News and events - University of Oxford These signals, like the rounded cheeks and wide eyes of babies, are known as social releasers. They trigger caregiving behaviour in adults, from speaking in higher-pitched tones to offering parental care. Puppies, like human babies, are born helpless and dependent on their caregivers for survival (Getty) Herring gulls (a type of seagull) are an example of this in non-human animals. Their chicks instinctively peck at a red spot on the parent's beak, which triggers the adult to regurgitate food. This red spot acts as a social releaser, ensuring the chick's needs are met at the right time. In a similar way, domesticated animals have effectively hijacked ancient caregiving mechanisms evolved for our own offspring. These traits may give pets an advantage in soliciting human care and attention, but they come at a cost. The UK government commissions its Animal Welfare Committee to provide independent expert advice on emerging animal welfare concerns. In reports they produced in 2024, the committee raised serious concerns about the effect of selective breeding in both cats and dogs. The reports highlighted that breeding for extreme physical traits, like flat faces and exaggerated skull shapes, has led to widespread health problems, including breathing difficulties, neurological conditions and birth complications. Some cats are being bred to look like XL Bullies (PA Wire) The committee argues that animals with severe hereditary health issues should no longer be used for breeding, and calls for tougher regulation of breeders. Without these reforms, many popular breeds will continue to suffer from preventable, life-limiting conditions. Selective breeding has shown how easily humans can bend nature to their preferences, and how quickly millions of years of evolutionary separation can be overridden by a few decades of artificial selection. In choosing pets that mimic the faces of our own infants, we have, often unwittingly, selected for traits that harm the animals. Understanding the forces that drive convergence between species is a reminder that we play a powerful and sometimes dangerous role in shaping it. Grace Carroll is a lecturer in animal behaviour and welfare at the School of Psychology, Queen's University Belfast This article was originally published by 'The Conversation' and is republished under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article
