Dramas to Watch

81. Itaewon Class (2020)

Itaewon Class

Country: South Korea

Genre: Food, Friendship, Business, Romance, Life Drama

Episodes: 16

Aired: Jan 31, 2020 - Mar 21, 2020

Network: jTBC

Duration: 1 hr. 10 mins.

Plot:

          Park Saeroyi's (Park Seo Joon) life has been turned upside down after he gets expelled from school for punching a bully and his father is killed in an accident. Following his father's steps, he opens a pub named "DanBam" in Itaewon and, along with his manager and staff, strive towards success and reaching greater heights.

Cast:

Park Seo Joon

Park Sae Ro Yi

Kim Da Mi

Jo Yi Seo

Kim Dae Myung

Jang Dae Hee

Kwon Na Ra

Oh Soo Ah

Ahn Bo Hyun

Jang Geun Won

Review:

by mars of mydramalist

"Itaewon Class was an emotional ride with an especially promising start. Just after the first two episodes, I felt immensely attached to the main character, Park Saeroyi, and was looking forward to following him on his journey. Throughout the 16 episodes, I definitely learned a lot from his hardwork and values. Park Seo Joon did a phenomenal job with his character and left me in absolute awe. Whether it may be understanding the beauty of life or being reminded the importance of hardwork; I was thankful to be able to get to know and learn from Park Saeroyi.

However, apart from Park Saeroyi, I did have a few complaints for the other characters. Some characters were especially annoying, and lacked development. I did like that the drama showcased imperfect characters, but it also sometimes excused the ignorant behaviour of these characters - almost making it seem that such behaviour was appropriate to viewers. Some characters were especially inconsistent, and just seemed random. This switch was really annoying to see because it didn't make sense. I think these characters had a lot of potential to really compliment the story, but the writer just changed them randomly in order to make Park Saeroyi look good. I wish the side characters had contributed a little more to the overall plot but unfortunately we were unable to see that as viewers.

The show also became a little slow in the middle, but then quickly picked up its pace later. I was disappointed with the last two episodes as I felt that there were unnecessary additions to the plot. However, the ending was still quite nice and most questions were answered.

Overall, this was definitely a meaningful and enjoyable watch. The reason why this show is receiving such a high rating (from me) despite its flaws is because of the lessons it served. As I saw this show and went about my life, I found myself thinking about Park Saeroyi and the importance of hardwork. Even if it was fiction, I really learned a lot from this drama and was thankful for the insights I gained. In addition, Itaewon class held some especially beautiful scenes that had my heart racing and gave me goosebumps. The OSTs were beautiful, and I know I will play them countless times in the future! Itaewon Class may have been lacking in some areas, but it was still a great show that managed to keep me eagerly waiting for new episodes each week ((:"

Reviewer's Rating: 9.0

My Rating: 9.5

Mydramalist Rating: 8.7

Asianwiki Rating: 8.2

You can comment your own rating and justify why you gave that rating if you want :)

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