Dream High

I finished Dream High (KBS, 16 episodes) and I hope that I won't have withdrawal symptoms...

Dream High Synopsis: (from DramaWiki)
Six students at Kirin Art High School work to achieve their dreams of becoming stars.

Cast:
Suzy as Go Hye Mi
Kim Soo Hyun as Song Sam Dong
Taecyeon as Jin Gook / Hyun Shi Hyuk
Ham Eun Jung as Yoon Baek Hee
Wooyoung as Jason
IU as Kim Pil Sook


My comments:
When I first saw the teaser of Dream High during the end of Mary Stayed Out All Night, it didn’t really catch my interest but I’ve always liked dramas/movies related to the music and dancing so I gave it a shot. It’s better that what I expected as I found the drama uplifting, moving and heartwarming about six teenagers going through ups and downs to reach their dreams. This drama is not a melodrama but I lost count of many times I cried because I found some scenes so touching (example 1).

The drama had a grandiose opening of a certain ‘K’, the very first Korean singer winning the Grammys in 2018. We have six candidates, who is it? That was a big suspense of the drama and when it was revealed who at the end, it wasn’t the one I expected though. The pacing of Dream High was fairly consistent as there were almost no draggy moments and it was a rare time for me to be undecided who Hye Mi should end up with for half of the drama. Both got injured for saving her and both changed her one way or another so the big dilemma. Anyway, I’m a Sam Dong supporter so I’m satisfied with the ending although I found it bittersweet that the couple or the sixsome didn’t have a proper reunion. It’s also a rare case in Korean dramas where the the guy and the girl who shared childhood memories together didn’t end up as a couple.

The only flaw of the drama is the acting from the cast as most of them are idol rookies. Yes, they are inexperienced and unnatural at times but I think they gave earnest performances and the drama has so much “heart” therefore, I can close my eyes for this flaw and let it slide. Park Ji Young (known as JYP or Rain’s mentor) is a hoot to watch as the comic relief. I’m looking forward to see how the younger cast will do in their next drama, and like everyone else, I think Kim Soo Hyun will go very far with his career…


* Opening credit of the drama