Dream High (Korean Drama)

I know that it's a bit silly to write 'Dream High's' review now, since it was a 2010 drama. But still, it better late than never, and i simply had to write the review of this drama as I loved it really a lot.

Actually, i knew Dream High was a really popular K-Drama but never bothered to watch it until recently. I didn't expect much from the drama before I watched it. I knew that it's a story of High School students aspiring in the career of music and dancing and that the drama involve a lot of singing and dancing. But i thought it might be something similar to High School Musical or something. But I was SO wrong. (That gives me a lesson to never underestimate Korean Dramas)
It would have been a HUGE LOSS if I did not watch 'Dream High'.
It's just so much more than an entertaining Drama.

'Dream High' is about aspirations, dreams and hope. About friendship. About teacher student relationships. About Handwork and believing in your selves. It leaves us with a hope that nothing is impossible if you believe in it.

It has great characters. The characters in Dream High are not like any characters that we find in other Korean Dramas. Each characters is different from each other but have their own spark inside them. And some of the characters are so lovable that they leave a permanent impression on us and never leave our hearts. There is the irritatingly Narcissistic Go Hye Mi as the main Female lead, and then the country bumpkin Song Sam Dong who is adorable and cute as one of the main male leads. Then there is Kim Pil Sook, the 82 kg fat girl who has an angelic voice, and who is sweet as a candy having crush on the most popular guy in School. Also, unlike the most popular guys, there is Jason who is so particular about showing good manners to girl and taking care of them, is warm and friendly to Kim Pil Sook. Also there is Beak Hee, who turns from good to greedy because of pressures from outside.

Also there is the character of Shi Sem (Teacher Shi). At the starting of the drama we doesn't except the character of Shi Sem to be so versatile. At the binning she is just a bit too strict and seems to be cruel. But when she gets locked in a closet and freak out the cute side of her comes out. And once she gets drunk and wines about not being appreciated enough by her students she becomes so adorable. And then she falls in love and gets more adorable. Still in front of the students Shi Sem is still strict and a bit cruel. And it simply puts Shi Sem's character on another level when she cry with Beak Hee after her mishap. That implies compassion and strength. So on the whole that character shows all of her sides to us in just the 16 episodes. That is rare for any K-Drama characters (coz usually K-Drama characters show only 1 behavioral traits).

An adorable side of 'Dream High' is the romance of Kim Pil Sook and Jason. That was the part I liked the most in 'Dream High'. Not just in Dream High. Kim Pil Sook and Jason's love story is one of my favorite love stories ever, and I would love these couple forever.
It's unusual and cute. Fat girl Pil Sook have a crush on popular boy Jason. Usually it's a romance that is never possible. Or in other Movies/stories/Dramas the course of the romance won't be this natural and lovely. Here we can see why Jason likes Pil Sook. The blow he gets when Pil Sook doesn't prepose to him after she lose wight for him, and when she tells him the reason for that. When he gets concerned about her and flies back from Japan only to get criticized again. And in the end telling her there is still one person that liked Pill Sook when she was 82 kg, and giving her the picture of her in his mobile. So for me, Kim Pil Sook and Jason's story is one of the best love stories that I have come across. (Ya, better than 'Twilight', 'Romeo Juliet', or even 'Guem Jan Di-Gu Jun Pyo. ;-D)
(Also, I didn't knew IU until I watched 'Dream High'. Now I am die Hard IU fan and listened to all of her songs. Such a beautiful singer. Just Wow!)

But above all this 'Dream High's real asset is Kim Soo Hyun as Song Sam Dong. What an actor..! I have got simply no words for Kim Soo Hyun as Song Sam Dong.
Actually, I watched 'The Moon that Embraces the Sun' before 'Dream High' and liked Kim Soo Hyun very much in that. But in 'The Moon that Embraces the Sun', he just have to be that Charming and Smart King, and even though he has done the role really well, there was not much of a need of an acting of that much intensity. Also in 'You who Came From the Stars', good acting. Charming and all...But, for me, there was not that much of an impact.

But not Song Sam Dong. Dream High Song Sam Dong is of another level entirely. Awesome and Amazing is not enough to describe this character and how well Kim Soo Hyun has portrayed this role. The character leaves so much big of an impact on anyone who has watched 'Dream High'. I don't think that anyone who have watched 'Dream High' can ever forget this character.
I don't want to spoil the suspense, but the horror faced by Song Sam Dong after coming to know about his condition is cuts in to people because of Kim Soo Hyun's acting. No other words to describe than - honestly, seriously, damn good.
Also Kim Soo Hyun handles 'saturi' (country dialect) so smoothly in 'Dream High'. So smoothly that puts the Reply 1997 and Reply 1994 series actors to shame.
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Another reason you should definitely watch 'Dream High' is for the music and dances in it. All the actors are popular professional K-pop members, and hence the quality of the music and dance in the Drama is nothing novice. It's perfection. We get awed by some of the performances in the Drama. My personal favorite is the Snake Dance performed by Jin Gook, Beak Hee and team in the competition. That was so awesome.
Also IU as Kim Pill Sook gives us a treat of her wonderful voice in a few songs.

A bit of a down side of 'Dream High' is that sometimes the songs used in background becomes a bit of a distraction. Just some times. But the scenes where Kim Pil Sook and Jason is confessing their jealousy to each other IU's 'Marshmallow' and 'Good Day' is playing in background, which isa bit distracting and totally not suitable for the mood created in the scene. (Especially the song  'Marshmallow'). So it leaves us thinking that the scene would have been better if no song was playing in the background.
Still the background musics used in the Drama are really of vast verity and cover many songs of K-pop. Even small details put in the drama using songs gives the drama a really nice feel. For example, Kim Pil Sook confess her love for Jason through a song written in post-its 'Crush' of band 'gigs'. (After watching this drama I searched for that song in internet and listened to it and found it such a spunky and catchy song. Loved it). Also, when Hye Mi, Pil Sook, Jin Guk and Sam Dong sings 'Genie' of 'Girls Generation' for Jin Guk's older friend. Hye Mi wishing Happy Birthday to Jin Guk through the 'Winter Child' song.  Then there is when Kim Pil Sook finds Jason listening to the songs 'Waiting' and sings that for him the next time he visits her in hospital. (And IU's version of 'Waiting' is so much better than the original version.)
Like this, little bit details are done through songs that's a bit interesting.

The development of the relationship between Hye Mi and Sam Dong is done so beautifully. How Hye Mi first just think of his casually and then comes to care for him. That care develops in to a good friendship as these two takes the longer road of hardworking together to achieve perfection. And finally the feelings that can't be changed now... The road to the final destination is so strong and eventful. Making the viewers see the strength in that relationship. They are another couple whom we would never forget. :-)

 The main pot of 'Dream High' is the hope and feeling of achievement it leaves us with. When we finish watching 'Dream High', the inspiration we get from it is imminence. And that alone is why Dream High is such a great Drama.

Characters :

Suzy as Go Hye Mi : An irritating Narcissist girl who has got professional music training. She can sing technically perfect. But she disregards things like conveying emotions through her music and hence her songs can never touch people's hearts. Hye Mi was originally the daughter of a wealthy family. But her father's business suddenly fails and he goes in to hiding. This incident makes Hye Mi unable to go to Julliard, her Original Dream, and she is forced to go to the audition of Kirin High School, with her side Kick Yoon Beak Hee, whom Hye Mi considers as someone without any talent. But to cut her arrogance, Hye Mi fails the audition where as Beak Hee passes it.

Kim Soo Hyun as Song Sam Dong : A village boy with fairly good singing talent. He doesn't even know the name of 'Kirin High School' until Go Hye Mi visits him in his remote village to invite him to Kirin High School, after the orders from the Chairman of the school. Song Sam Dong falls for Go Hye Mi on first sight and from that moment on loves her one-sidedly even though she never consider him anything more than as a friend. He follows Hye Mi to Seoul, and to Kirin High, more because of love for Hye Mi than coz of his interest in music. But after coming to Kirin, music becomes his life.

TaeCyeon as Jin Guk : A bit of an anti-social, hunk rebelling teenager. He has run away from his family as his politician father is ashamed to admit him as his son. He has even changed his real name. Jin Guk is a personality who likes to put ear phoes to his ear and pretend to listen to music so as he can pretend that he can't hear what others are whispering about him behind his back. Jin Guk is a loyal friend and responsible personality.

IU as Kim Pil Sook : A fat girl with an angelic voice. She not only sings excellently but also can convey emotions through her songs beautifully. Kim Pil Sook is admitted in to Kirin because of her singing but no one believes that she can ever debut because of her figure. But Jason, the most popular and most talented boy in Kirin behaves politely to her and helps her in a few situations. Kim Pil Sook starts to have a crush on Jason. But when she gets politely rejected by him, she ask him sweetly if he would like her if she get slim, and lose 30 kg in 200 days. But then, she doesn't confess her feelings again after losing weight.

WooYoung as Jason : He is the student that get 1st in the Kirin High audition. And when the batch's classes starts Jason is the most popular boy in the school. But Jason being the best in singing and dancing, he is not really that hardworking and likes to do his singing and dancing just for fun. For him performance is about enjoying it. Jason is polite and believes that girls should be treated with the best manners. So he behaves well to very girl, and opens doors for them to pass through and so. And he is actually really caring towards the fat girl Pil Sook and doesn't make fun of her like others do. In fact he openly admits that he is a fan of Pil Sook's singing.

EunJung as Yoon Beak Hee : She used to be the sidekick of Go Hye Mi in their middle school. While Hye Mi was the star, Beak Hee was called as 'Hye Mi's Shoes', and disregarded by everyone. Beak Hee follows Hye Mi to Kirin auditions. And she gets a blow on her friendship when Hye Mi protests with the teachers regarding her failure and Beak Hee's pass as 'how can this useless talent-less girl be selected over me'. That changes Beak Hee's friendship to rivalry and from that day, Beak Hee starts to live to excel over Hye Mi. On this course of rivalry, she drifts off from her usual honest hardworking self and starts believing she can use any method to win because after time passes, people will only remember the results.

Teachers

Um Ki Joon as Kang Oh Hyuk (Kang Sem) : He was considered to be a useless trouble maker among the teachers of Kirin High School. So he is assigned with the special class consisting of the students who failed from the Kirin High auditions. Kang Sem is also considered to be the enemy of Go Hye Mi as he was the one who caused Go Hye Mi's mom to leave her dad. But Kang Sem is actually such a warm and caring personality. He gets personally involved with the students too much. When he gets assigned the special class, he gives his best to reform the students to best of the Kirin High students. Kang Sem is the kind of a teacher that every student would want.

Lee Yoon Ji as Shi Kyung Jin (Shi Sem) : The dance teacher of the normal class students. She is strict and seems to be just a but cruel and cynical. A person with a lot of charisma. But her cute sides comes out at odd occasions. She is a girl inside her heart. She wants her students to appreciate her, but never gets that appreciation even when she is honest and sincere towards her work. So she starts to get interested in Kang sem, whose students adore him.


Park Jin Young as Yang Ji Man (Yang Sem) : Kang Sem's old friend and Kirrin's new recruit. He is humorous and a bit childish. He is scared of the principal, so doesn't want his association to the special class to be found out. But because of the pressure from his friend Kang Sem, Yang Sem agrees to teach dance to the special class students secretly.

Story Line :

Go Hye Mi, an irritating Narcissist girl who has got professional music training. She can sing technically perfect. But she disregards things like conveying emotions through her music. Hye Mi was originally the daughter of a wealthy family. But her father's business suddenly fails and he goes in to hiding. This incident makes Hye Mi unable to go to Julliard, her Original Dream, and she is forced to go to the audition of Kirin High School, with her side Kick Yoon Beak Hee, whom Hye Mi considers as someone without any talent. But to cut her arrogance, Hye Mi fails the audition where as Beak Hee passes it. a blow on her friendship when Hye Mi protests with the teachers regarding her failure and Beak Hee's pass as 'how can this useless talent-less girl be selected over me'.
In the same audition, Jin Guk, a rebel teenager gets send off from the premises of the auditions because he cause a commotion.
And Kim Pill Sook, a fat girl who can sing beautifully gets selected with much arguments. Even though Pil Sook gets selected no one think  that she can ever debut because she is fat figured.
The Chairman gives the failed students another chance, and ask Hye Mi to bring a student named Song Sam Dong, to Kirin. Then she can also join Kirin.
Hye Mi goes to the remote village to search for Song Sam Dong. Sam Dong falls in love with Hye Mi on the first sight. And Hye mi pretends to like him in order to bring him to Kirin. So Sam Dong goes to Seoul and to Kirin, just for Hye Mi. But he gets his hopes broken when he finds out that Hye Mi only pretended to like him, and doesn't actually like him.
But Sam Dong continues to stay in Kirin High in the hope that Hye Mi will like him some day.
At the same time, Kim Pil Sook, is send out from the normal class as she fails to reduce wight. So like this Go Hye Mi, Jin Guk, Song Sam Dong, and Kim Pil Sook is put in to a Special Class as assigned separate class room. And Teacher Kang Oh Hyuk is assigned as their homeroom teacher.
 
While Jin Guk and Song Sam Dong both likes Hye Mi, Kim Pil Sook has developed a crush on the popular guy Jason.
And in the coming years, these students try hard to achive their dream and also gets their love stories. Friendship develops strongly between the students, and their bonds with their teachers is also strong.

Then there is a pendant that is given to Yoon Beak Hee by the Chairman at the auditions. That pendant is said to bring luck to the holder. That Pendent ominously revolve around all these students during their course to success, from being lost by one and found by another, or being given from a friend to another friend. The Pendant remain as a symbol of success.

All together, Dream High is a really great story about dreams and aspirations. And something not to me missed out.

My Ratings of this Drama : 10/10

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