King of high school was a solid drama, i enjoyed it thoroughly, although it had its flaws.
STORY
The main idea of the story was very nice, but the storytelling was poorly executed. There is a HUGE backstory to everything (which was very nice), the show lets you understand that there is something more to the story apart from the obvious scenario, but it doesn't get explored until later episodes, and when it does get explored it gets halfassed. Obviously the writters didn't care about it that much and they used it just to complete the story and make it more complicated.
The main idea of the show is the love triangle between the 3 main characters. It is pretty nice and the ships change all the time, i was pretty much shipping everyone with everyone at some point. I'd prefer if the storytelling was focusing on the backstory to develop it into a mystery and then use the love triangle to just make everything more complicated. Overall it wasn't bad the way it was made though, it just had great potential that was wasted in my opinion.
ACTING
EXQUISITE. I loved it completely. Seo In Guk does a great job, he is funny when he should be, he is cute all the time, he is powerfull, he is great in every way.
But, Lee Soo Hyuk, was the real surprise for me. Of course his character is the best written one, but he did a great job in it. Its not in many shows i go from completely hating a character to completely loving him. This happenned here. Soo Hyuk made my heart acke with almost every scene he was in after episode 8. He was wonderful, heartbreaking and emotional, loved him.
The only reason i didn't give it a clear 10/10 is because of Lee Hana. I think the actress is trying a bit too hard here. She was great, and i guess she was told to be like that, but sometimes her reactions seemed kinda forced. Apart from that i didn't mind her personality it was refreshing seeing a character like hers.
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
This is my biggest problem apart from the whole backstory thing i wrote before. The show has a lot of great characters, and almost all of them get on the side for some unnecessary development on the main couple. Sure their love is #goals, and amazing and pure... ok, but i'd like to have seen the development of other characters as well.
Also they tried to develop a 2nd love triangle but it failed misserably ending up one of the main characters getting extremely neglected when she had so much potential.
OVERALL
Overall, i can't say it was the best drama i've ever seen, but i am happy i did watch it. It was funny for the most part and it was emotional in a way i wasn't expecting. I found myself crying and crying like crazy. I'd recommend it to anyone who'd want a great laugh with a wonderful couple in the middle, great acting and some amazing shocks that will make your jaw drop by the end.
EPISODE VALUE:
Episodes 1-6: Setting the story, mostly comedy. I found the first 6 episodes unnecessary, it was watchable, but i'd shrink them in 3-4 episodes.
Episodes 7-13: Love triangle development. GREAT just great episodes. A lot of feels, the 3 main characters develop nicely and everything comes into place. Sometimes the ways the characters find out about their feelings might feel rushed, but sometimes all you need to understand how you feel is one tiny little thing. I appreciated that thought, although i am not sure if it was done on purpose by the writters or it was just... rushed....
Episodes 14-15: Back story revealing. In my opinion this should have been the main premise of the show. The reveals were SHOCKING, i found myself screaming and crying because life and family problems end up being more emotional than love. The backstory should have been developed more, the way they ended it felt rushed as well. Maybe they didn't believe in it, or couldn't think of a better way to end it. Still it was ok.
Episode 16-17: Sweet episodes, kinda continues the love story, the show could have ended in episode 15, there are some unnecessary plot developments here, but still the show concentrates on 2-3 characters and everyone is neglected.
The end was sweet, apart from the already said problem of the neglected characters, i finished the show feeling complete and happy.
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Not to mention that it has a second lead male, Yoo Jin Woo (son to the Ceo), who is a real arse rather than the usual dreamy sweet cutie, and who has, apparently, no soul.....certainly the blindingly beautiful Lee Soo Hyuk looks like THE most beautiful vampire throughout most of the drama (even down to appearing to have snow white skin in a few scenes) ;)
I have to say the moment Yoo Jin Woo realises the colossal and monumental mistake he's made and what he's lost by it ...it just breaks your heart (you know his back story by then); especially when Lee Min Suk confronts him. You loathe Jin Woo but can't help but feel sorry for him too. There were times when I cried for him, but also times when I hurled foul-mouthed abuse at him (always a sign of an excellent actor and good drama; neither Lee Soo Hyuk nor HSKoS disappoint here).
It's just another twist in a story that has been done so many times, yet this puts a few curves in that make you like it and make it a little different. The 'noona' in this, Jung Soo Young (or Popcorn Sister as Min Suk has her labelled on his phone, which is a sweet touch) is very strong in her own way, just not the usual 'noona' way; she fights for those she loves and those she feels are bullied.
Likewise, so the younger' dongsaeng, Min Suk, is not your typical 'puppy' in his own way - there's not all the usual dog-like devotion and puppy eyes; he's tough and gets frustrated and annoyed with her too. None of the relationships are easy - every one gets tested. This all makes a pleasant change and a very entertaining watch.....so much so I bought the dvd.
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From a story perspective, this drama is a solid win in my book. I always love the secret identity trope and this is a perfect example. Mixing it with Noona romance is just a bonus. Of course you get one of my least favorite tropes: a second male lead with a sad backstory who is technically a much better choice of partner and inexplicably can't seem to get a girl so has to get his heart broken by the FL. I get that a lot of dramas would have little to no drama in them without these second leads, but I seriously get very tired of it. There were also some minor issues through the drama where you wonder at the choices the characters make that introduce needless drama, but overall this story is just so much fun, you can pretty much ignore everything else.
Acting/Cast (7.0/10):
Here's where I'm slightly conflicted. There are some great roles in this movie and the whole cast is undeniably talented. Seo In Guk's acting as the two brothers is especially great and so much fun to watch.
BUT I couldn't like Lee Ha Na's character portrayal of Jung Soo Young (yeah, the FL) and it seriously stunted my speed of watching this drama. In fact, before finally completing it I started and dropped it numerous times.
Now, I don't have anything against Lee Ha Na. I've enjoyed her acting in more recent and serious dramas like Voice where there isn't anything to complain about, and such older and more similar characters like in Merry Mary. So perhaps it was her directions for the character? A great number of the mannerisms and characteristics Lee Ha Na used to portray this character were just so bothersome. Often times, it felt really fake. Not fake as in bad acting from Lee Ha Na, but I felt like the character was being fake. That laugh especially got me every time. So bothersome.
Did anyone else feel this way? I don't mind watching dorky characters who could use a makeover, but something about this one didn't work for me.
The character and the actress are both great, but together it didn't mix.
To wrap up this section, I have to say that I really enjoyed the Grandpa character! He was so much fun and honestly looked like he had so much fun playing that part.
Music (6.5/10):
Plenty of fun tracks to go along with all the hijinks, but nothing I'd choose to play by itself.
Rewatch Value (6.0/10.0):
The benefit to starting and dropping a drama multiple times, is that you know at least the first part is completely rewatchable! :) There are parts of this drama I'll probably come back to now and then and others I'll never watch ever again thank you very much. It took me long enough (think years) to get through this drama the first time.
Overall (7.0/10):
I had a lot fun watching this drama, but it took many false starts and recap reading to finally finish it. I can see why it would be highly rated, but I can't in all honesty give it a higher score than this. That said, I don't regret finally pushing through to the end!
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the story isn't outstanding and there are some truly strange moments but i was never bored. i can always go back to this and watch on a rainy day and see their story unfold. all the love and friendship and family.
one thing i will say is that i understand the premise could bother some people. i am mostly just super against age gaps (particularly the older male/younger female because of how the actors are aged as well) but they are genuinely...on the same playing field. a lot of people don't like soo young? i guess. which is like she's weird and probably has neuoroses but she was also the heart of the drama. perhaps very socially awkward or neurotypical like whatever. she is a smart capable STRANGE naive woman. and min hyuk was a strange strange clever wonderful teen. when you see them together (besides stating it with literal words ) there's no power imbalance or hierarchy. it also helps that the actors are close in age. had she known who he was from the start would probably be a different story but it goes to show how much you can ruin something by making it creepy via the dialogue if something abt a r=ship is taboo.
i say give it a go. it's not crazy amazing and i wouldn't recommend it as a show to get "into" but just something to watch and laugh with and absurd. i'm fairly positive if you go into it with an open mind, you'll very much enjoy it.
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This review may contain spoilers
Seo In-guk really carries the story
8/10 is my rating. This is a 2014 South Korean drama with 17 (+1 Special), 1 hr, episodes. Also known as High School King of Savvy.High School varsity ace hockey player, Lee Min-seok (Seo In-guk) is living as a normal high school student, when his brother, Lee Hyung-seok (also played by Seo In-guk) calls him and asks for a favor. His brother has been abroad and is due to report to a new job as a Director at an IT conglomerate. Something he won't divulge has happened and he needs Min-seok to pretend to be him and fill in until he can get free and take his place. Normally that would be an impossible request but, despite the 9 year age gap, the brothers look like identical twins. Being loyal to his brother, Min-seok agrees to the farce and a colleague at the company is aware of the ruse and helps Min-seok fit in - in the otherwise alien corporate environment. Min-seok is supposed to be a puppet but turns out the young man has a knack for the type of work and starts to make a name for himself at the company, and also gains favor with the company President. Jung Soo-young (Lee Ha-na), is originally a contract employee at the company who Min-seok finds himself drawn to. He eventually falls in love with her and helps her get a permanent job with the company. His rival, Yoo Jin-woo (Lee Soo-hyuk) senses something suspicious about this mysterious new director and vows to get to the bottom of it. He is also jealous that his father seems to find more favor with this bright new director and, eventually he is also jealous of Soo-young who he also falls in love with. To further complicate things, fellow high schooler and Soo-young's younger sister, Jung Yoo-ah (Lee Yeol-eum), has already confessed to Min-seok and, despite his repeated rejections, considers "hubby Lee" her man. With so many twists and turns can Min-seok continue to fool everyone until his brother steps in? Can he overcome the age and generation gap between him and Soo-young? What if she finds out he is only in high school?
spoiler ? I really liked the beginning of this. In-guk is a great actor and I just enjoy watching him. I liked how he was able to handle both roles so well. He seems so different when he played the older brother it was almost eerie the way he was able to make that transformation. He seem like a different person. Soo-young has a freshness and innocence about her that is much younger than her age and he is actually rather mature for his age In the beginning. So early on it is easy to see the attraction. Towards the end it lost me a bit when it was revealed he was a high schooler and it just felt like his character underwent a dramatic change and he suddenly seems less mature. I also found it disappointing that his hockey career ended because he could’ve went on to be very successful and then could have taken care of her even though she was older. So it started really good but the last half or so was it not quite as good. It was redeemed though in that it ended well. I’m a fan of happy endings and this one definitely had a happy ending. There were some loose ends though that I did not feel were tied up such as the brothers never learned about the illegitimate child angle and I was unsure who exactly the illegitimate child was. It also wasn’t completely clear to me what exactly the president did to Min-seok’s dad. I wanted to know what happened with the brother since Min-seok did not wind up going to Germany. I thought at one point maybe it would be revealed he was the illegitimate one and find out that Jin-woo was his brother and then he could’ve stayed on at the company and just been a very young executive. It does allude to the fact in the end that he is going to make it big because as he won some thing but I wasn’t quite clear with that some thing was. That felt pretty sad. It was good but could have been a bit better. Well acted though. Jin-woo was somewhat of a villain yet I had a very deep sympathy for him and wanted to see where his life went and wanted the relationships he developed to continue at least as friendships. All in all I liked it just had a bit of a drag point and I wasn’t a complete fan of the change in Min-seok’s character and how he was on a very successful path but then all of a sudden hockey ended and he had nothing going on at the company. Worth the watch just not one of my top choices.
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Basically this is a story of a May-December love, office romance and family.
I watched it because of Seo In Guk. Basically this is a story of a May-December love, office romance and family. I like it. I never thought that I would like Kdrama like King of Highschool. I discovered it through an ig account and it goes on. I love how they portrayed their characters well. The acting is superb — i know that SIG can pull any kind of character the PR would give him. It was nice, it makes you cry, laugh, frustrated, cry, and it's nice to be in love afterall. If you want something to watch that will make you laugh, then please watch King of Highschool.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
I just finished watching this drama and even though I did have fun watching it in the beginning and looked forward to the updates every week, I must say that I'm glad it's over now. Like most dramas, this one lost its charm after about 10 episodes. Nevertheless it managed to entertain me for a few weeks and made me watch until the end to find out how the couple would get over their little age-gap problem.The plot, as you can see, sounds like a typical kdrama plot. Kind of ridiculous and very hard to believe that something like that would ever happen in the real world. Some of the characters - especially the female lead and her sister - were also quite irritating and just not... realistic. But if you watch a korean romcom, I guess that's what you have to expect anyway.
Apart from the fact that I absolutely didn't like the female leads, I liked both of the male leads so I continued watching. I feel like Lee Soo Hyuk's character had the most potention and I'm sad that they KIND of dropped his storyline towards the last few episodes. I also didn't like how they decided to end his storyline in the last episode, but since I won't spoiler, I guess you have to see it yourself.
The acting was overall ok. As this is a romcom, there were many many ridiculous and exaggerated scenes but I guess you can't really expect brilliant acting for those anyway. Basically all of the sidecharacters (the coworkers, Seo In Guk's friends etc) had a kind of comedic-role so don't expect a deep storyline for them, because nobody besides the main characters will get one.
The OST was really really annoying. And I mean REALLY annoying. I guess it depends on your music taste, but I almost dropped watching this drama at some point because I just couldn't stand the background music...
Overall this was a funny and cute drama. If you are looking for a show that deels with a serious and emotional relationship, than I wouldn't recommend this one. If you want to laugh and see some cute scenes, though, I don't think you could do much wrong with this one. Don't expect a very satisfying ending, though, because this will end just as messed up as the rest of the drama was.
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However the female lead... wow. What a mess she was. Damn. She was weak, clumsy, stupid and overall immature. Even the male lead who was 10 years younger than her, acted even more mature than her. I don’t understand why korean writers have the need to write female leads like this, it just puts a bad taste in my mouth. I endured it long enough until I passed a little more than half way, but the female lead was just too unbearable for me to handle. I’m glad korean dramas now a days are portraying females with more strength, and less like this to be honest. It’s not cute... it’s unbearable.
Overall, give this drama a go if you want to watch a male lead that’s funny and relatable. The female lead will undoubtedly piss you off though.
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Seo in guk - just become my top 5 actors and im gonna watch everything hes in. He is very real and honest in his acting and emotions the best part was him cursing out continously i dont think he practiced it just flowed naturally. Hes not drop dead when u look at him but when u watch him act u fall in love, he did that to me in reply 97 series. .
Jung soo young - she was just pitiful and nerdy and aloof and hilarious and amazing and alot of stuff. Her acting had me laughing alot esp when the romance started in ep 9. I was balling. Shes like a twig zombie swaying with her shoulders down all the time but still amazing she did that character justice
Jin woo - aside from being the bad guy hes super hot u forget hes bad. Those eyes
Section chief - his voice is everything and hes hilarious always mad and wants to kill min seok but then he falls for his tricks and he gets frustrated. He has a signature voice
Harabuji- u cant not love this guy. Everyone loves him. So freaking funny and has dementia. Every scene hes in u will burst out laughing. I will miss him hope hes the same in other shows
MUST WATCH THIS SHOW VERY VERY ENTERTAINING
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The main female lead however, was kind of annoying and off putting (especially her wardrobe like... yikes?) and the age gap personally was too much, as he was still in highschool and she is a mature individual almost reaching her 30s, but looking past that, it was light hearted and I would recommend anyone to watch it at least once.
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My main issue was that the last episode felt very rushed and I wish that they had taken maybe one more episode to really finish it out better or had cut something else to devote more time to the ending. But overall it was an enjoyable drama and I would watch it again.
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The age gap wasn't as much of a sticking point as I thought it would be. When it does come up, it's more so from keeping appearances, and personality standpoint.
I am pleased that there wasn't a love triangle in this drama, there is a love line but it doesn't go the malicious route that most love lines do.
This is the third drama that I've watched a drama with Seo In Guk (Master's Sun and Reply 1997 being the other two) and it was nice seeing him take on a dual role. He was able to bring the youthful/playful side as Min Suk, and the mysterious/mature within Hyung Suk's character. Even though I kinda wanted to see more of Hyung Sik's character, the bits that we did of home was enough for me taking into account the overall progression of the story.
I have never watched a drama with Lee Ha Na but she was a delight as Soo Young. She really nailed the quirky mannerisms of the character such as her posture, and facial expressions without me feeling that she was phoning it in. Also, kudos to the wardrobe department for making Soo Young for reflecting her personality with overdoing it.
Lee Soo Hyuk is the perfect brooding second male lead as Jin Woo.
Other than the scenes with Lee Ha Na and Seo In Guk, the scenes between Seo In Guk and Lee Soo Hyuk were a favorite of mine. Their playful banter kinda brings out the more genuine side to Jin Woo, where he doesn't have to be serious all the time.
Another thing that I loved was how we got to see the tertiary characters outside the realm of the primary/secondary characters. Jin Woo, Yoo Ah, Tae Suk & Duk Hwan, the Retail Team, and (most importantly) Grandpa. No one was put on the back burner for the sake of the main characters' story.
The chemistry between the two main characters was the driving force in my enjoyment of this drama. By the end, both characters helped bring out the best in each other. Min Suk sees Soo Young for what she is, but his love for her aids in her becoming a "cool, modern woman." While Soo Young helps Min Suk see that hockey isn't the end-and all be-all for him.
Although the last two episode felt a little rushed to me, there was an overall cuteness to it that I enjoyed and everything came full circle for Min Suk and Soo Young. There were subtle references that connected the finale with previous episodes. As an aside, Seo In Guk is a good kisser.
Jung In's "As Life Goes On" and Seo In Guk's "The Way to Come Back" are standout songs from the OST.
All in all, this was a light, fun drama that I thoroughly enjoyed.
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