A Slow Watch Until The Last 3 Episodes
Oh dear, I have just completed this drama and truly had mixed feelings about it. Can't say I loved it, but I didn't dislike it. The story had many flaws in it (for the serious viewers) and it is a slow watch. However, the young at heart who enjoy sailing through fluffy romantic 17 episodes, may find this drama delightful. It was personally a difficult watch for me, until the burst of the final 3 episodes which played out really well. All emotions which were to be felt, was felt.The message I got out of this drama is that love does happen in it's own time, regardless of age. And who are we to judge? In these modern times in Korea, where culture, traditions and stereotypical relationships are still primarily looked upon highly, this drama kinda "broke that glass ceiling". We just love who we love, and instead of judging, there will be more grace and happiness if we choose to embrace it. The message of friendship is also very good sharing between school mates, office mates and family relationships etc...
Then comes Seo In Guk who did a really good job playing Lee Ming Suk, an 18 year old high school student who has a confident and positive outlook in life. He takes responsibilities for pursuing and loving Jung Soo Young (played by Lee Ha Na) who is 10 years his senior working going through a series of events started by Ming Suk's brother. It was enjoyable to see this side of Seo In Guk, in a happy romantic story for a change. Though, it is his seemingly cool macho attitude that we enjoy most in his other dramas. But, In Guk did not let us down on his performance for High School King of Savvy.
I will most probably not watch this drama again, and will think twice if I should recommend my friends, unless he/she is a die-hard Seo In Guk fan, then you will enjoy his cuteness from beginning to end. He is just that good.
Cheers! K-Drama Forever!
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Firstly, I'd like to address several of the aspects of the show that (from what I've seen) are fairly controversial; starting with the female lead. I've noticed that many people dislike the female lead because, to put it bluntly, she's spineless and a pushover. I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about her, but I will say that I've seen worse. She was definitely (for the most part) a weak character, but she had her merits and I wasn't bothered too much by her. I don't think that Lee Ha Na's acting was bad either. I think it was just the way the character was written. She wasn't my favorite character, but she had her good points and she definitely didn't ruin the drama for me.
Secondly, High School King of Savvy is known for its noona romance theme. This is actually the first noona romance that I've been able to complete and I was pleased to find that it didn't make me too uncomfortable. If I really think about it, it's a little odd, but this is dramaland and anything can happen. There are definitely situations in this show that are unrealistic and maybe not socially acceptable, but aside from that, it's pretty ok. I think it helped that both members of the main couple were fairly childish and naive in their own ways.
Anyway, aside from that I really enjoyed the show. If I could give you one reason to watch High School King of Savvy it would be Seo in Guk. He was the star of the show (literally and figuratively). This is my first time seeing him play the male lead, and he did a fantastic job. He was so expressive and put on a wonderful performance! I adored him in this role.
Lee Soo Hyuk was a great second male lead as well. He was probably one of the most complex characters in the show and I actually really liked him. Sure, he was a terrible person sometimes, but I didn't want to strangle him (most of the time). I loved that he was interesting and had the classic second-male-lead-sob-backstory/family problems, but these things didn't take over the main plot. His character had a lot of depth and I have mixed feelings about him in the best way. I really like Lee Soo Hyuk as an actor and he did a great job in this role.
The music wasn't especially memorable for me. But I did enjoy it. The songs were catchy and fit the show, they just won't leave a lasting impression in my mind.
Overall I really enjoyed High School King of Savvy. If anything, it was very entertaining and fun to watch. It's not a show to analyze, but it's a perfect easy watch. It's dramatic without being overwhelming and it's lots of fun. Despite it's flaws, I really enjoyed it and thought that it was worth watching!
My Video Review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0N6a7iabPA
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The story was not bad and the cast did an amazing job, seriously imho the actors were awesome and they really brought their characters to life.
Anyone who has spare time should watch this drama, that is if they can look past the romance of a high school boy and a MENTALLY RETARDED woman!
(really sorry i had to put it out that way, and it is not the actresses fault - she did an amazing job, but her character was plain bad)
I seriously did not know what the writers though when they were deciding on her character - for that reason it was unbearable for me to watch.
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As usual, the writer will make the r/s growing in the drama that their characters also develop. I dislike the little sister coz she is a little nuts i think, female lead is too weak but i guess it is just her personality, but she is kind hearted. So for people who dislike weak female character, stay away from this drama.
All in all, yeah, just put aside some logic and u will enjoy the show coz the humors are charming.
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This drama is my favourite kdrama of the year. I watched this drama when it actually started airing on tv, and I think this is the only drama that I watched from start to finish that I enjoyed every single episode of. At first I thought the storyline was a bit dumb, I mean how can a 26 year old play an 18 year old, and I had not heard of the other actors in the show, so I was expecting much. I think the writer, director and all actors did an awesome job, the drama had the perfect ending. Would definitely watch again, actually I've already watched it twice haha.
Would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a fun, sweet drama with awesome acting and a great storyline and ending.
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This review may contain spoilers
Great drama and happy ending for main leads.Ending also had a montage showing our couple’s progression passes by as Soo-young narrates her final thoughts:
Soo-young: It could be that fate doesn’t come to those who sit around and wait for it.
Real fate comes when you discover it, when you take the courage to choose it; then it comes to you as a gift.
So with the person I’ve chosen as my fate, I’m loving with all my heart and I’m living my life to the fullest as the cool and confident modern woman, Jung Soo-young.
Finale episode was great, especially the wedding one of the best scenes in kdramas
I also enjoyed the ending of episode 12 when Soo Joung embraces male lead, and tells him what she truly feels after she already found out who he really was.
She doesn’t care if he’s 28 or 18, or if he’s Lee Hyung-seok or Lee Min-seok.
“I love you like crazy.”
This was truly a great drama, and gonna miss many great things from this drama, that it cannot be found easily in other dramas to compare it.
I enjoyed male lead, Min seok's growing love and attention towards female lead, Soo Young.
Many people had the chance to grow and develop throughout the drama, especially female lead a lot, as male lead helped to bring the best out of her.
Female lead's mother even accepted him to marry her daughter despite 10year gap, as Soo young’s mother said, "Min-seok had created such a tight-knit group of friends and allies because of who he was, and that’s no small feat and proved himself to be a great man."
In the end, the drama wasnt about the matter of true love or overcoming age gaps or any other barriers.
It was about being fiercely loyal, unapologetically passionate, and embracing the vulnerabilities because someone’s always got your back.
++
There are many great things that I am gonna miss from this drama, many great characters, and the workplace dynamic was great, and all members of Retail Team were amazing, as one of the best characters, Team Leader Kim supporting male lead every episode even when male lead acted like a troublemaker.
Great performances by Seo In-guk and Lee Ha Na.
Wonderful chemistry, and they brought out each other’s charms and fed off of each other to create such an oddly perfect couple
They were loving, vulnerable, supportive, brave, loyal, and if anything, they were generous.
I consider them one of the best couples ever in kdramas.
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Light-hearted and fun
Seo In Guk, as always, truly special. I especially enjoyed his progression into maturity when he was dropped into the work place. Lee Ha Na's character was older than him, but she was very immature, so they worked together. the physical comedy was wonderful. I loved all the various friendships at work, at school, and at home. My favorite scene of the whole show was when he left school and found her waiting for him outside the gate. Sigh...so romantic. I downgraded the show only for the ending. Once they decided to get married the whole thing became a big old mess.Was this review helpful to you?
A funny cliche to make you laugh!
Finally I finished this cutie and I'm pretty happy to see a cliche that isn't cheesy or boring. "High School King Of Savvy" is a refreshing comedy to the silly ones like me.
Starting from the characters, I will say that Min Suk is the second best character of Seo In Guk for me until now. The way how he put all the stereotypes of an eighteen years old boy in such believable form makes me think that he really had eighteen and was just being himself. Min Suk was intense, adorable, funny... I'm almost thirty as Jung Soo Yeong, and I think I would easily fall in love with a young guy like him (mostly if he had the face of Seo In Guk). The personality of Jung Soo Young matched totally with Min Suk, and I'm so happy that they didn't make a transformation in her appearance! Min Suk falls for her because of her weirdness and she stayed like this until the end. Soo Young was one of my favorite female leads. She was tough, even when she seems so fragile and silly. I loved her personality and the way how she perseverates in what she wanted. The last episode was the most incredible to see these things. Seo In Guk and Lee Ha Na were amazing and their chemistry captivated me little by little, even this kind of plot involving underage disturbing me a little bit.
The support roles were also pretty fun. Lee Soo Hyuk and Lee Yeol Eum didn't have much time on the screen, but they had their charms. I liked Lee Yeol Eum's role, she was definitely the cute stalker, and I would like to see more of her interfering in the couple. I had the sensation of a too-easy resolution. An honorable mention to my harabeoji, the greatest grandpa ever! Another honorable mention to my favorite bromance ever, Seo In Guk and Lee Soo Hyuk <3
As I said, this drama is a big cliche of switching places but is a pretty fun and cute one. The perfect type of drama to clean your palate and laugh a lot. Inside its proposal, I'll put this in the position of a good one, almost an amazing one! (★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★★/2) The cliches and some holes in the script (like the fact of Min Suk sees Soo Young and Yoo Ah in the neighborhood and after that forget that she was her sister) made me decrease some points, but it's still a good drama to enjoy.
See you soon!
XOXO, Mari.
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Seo In Guk really shines in the show, seriously. I didn't care about his role in Reply 1997 (great show, but didn't move me like many other fans). He's great at playing cold to sweet characters. I was baffled by his performance. He's really good a playing cute, immature guys without being annoying. His character is really sweet, likeable, and charismatic. Also female lead, is pitiful but likeable without being super annoying unlike other female leads for comedic effect.
The supporting characters are well written and well acted. Seriously, like the writers gave them purpose without ruining the flow of the show. I never seen a show that fully utilizes entire supporting cast compared to other romcoms that focus on the main couple 95% of the drama and then like 2-4 supporting characters. Also, most of the supporting characters were likable.
There is some realism in the show, even though the show is a comedy there is character development. There are a lot of details in the show that make it unique compared to other dramas. I wish I could explain the details, without spoiling the show. You just need to watch it, yourself.
A flaw of the show was that camera was always shaky. I don't know if it was like that when it aired on tv but all of the streaming sites, the camera shaky. I need to focus on subs or one character to not get sick. Also, the ending of the show was kind of weak (I just felt like it could've been slightly better, it was good but what I expected from the writers) and the hyung wasn't fully utilized as I had hoped. I felt like they could've done more with his character.
This is lighthearted, rewatchable romcom that can be very sweet and touching. I highly recommend giving the show a try. It also helps that there is a lot of eye candy!!!
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The rest of the cast are also good. Lee Ha Na is his secretary and love interest. I didn't recognise her at first from her role in Voice. Here she is meek and insecure, gaining strength as the storyline progressed. She is fantastic here.
Lee Soo Hyuk is wonderful here. He is the secret illegitimate son of the company owner, treated terribly by his father and is completely friendless and lonely. His face is uniquely suited to tragic roles. He is not a real villain in this drama. I'd like to know how he got on afterwards.
The rest of supporting cast is rounded out school students Lee Yeol Eum, Lee Tae Hwan and Kang Ki Young, and Workmates Jo Han Chul and Kim Chang Soo.
Watch this light hearted drama for romance, humour and brilliant supportive friends.
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