This K-drama took me by surprise! I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. It made its way on my faves’ list!
I’ve been meaning to write this blog for a while, but life got in the way. That’s okay, I’m making the time now. And you know if I took the time out to write about this show, it must be worth it.
I was skeptical when Netflix dropped this title on my “for you” list. At first glance, I thought it was about some high school drama stuff, something I’m totally not interested in. That aside, I gave the trailer a gander.
Now I gotta admit, my interest was piqued once I saw there was a black guy on the cast. Not at all ashamed to admit that, BTW. You never see a black person show up in a k-drama unless it’s for a forgetful cameo. But this guy (Chris Lyon) was a member of the main cast. That was refreshing to see. And he did a great job.
I’m going to do my best not to drop any spoilers in this blog, but I can’t make any promises.
On the first day of attending a new school, Park Sae-ro-yi (the main character) gets in a fight with a bully. Well, it wasn’t much of a fight. Saeroyi basically bodied ole’ boy, but you get what I’m saying. The dude he laid out was the son of a wealthy business owner, who basically owned the school. He demanded Saeroyi kneel before his son and apologize for beating his ass. Saeroyi refused, and his life spiraled into a tailspin as a result.
Watching Saeroyi grow from start to finish was one of the best glow-ups I’ve ever seen on a show. He went from a stubborn teenager to a successful businessman. The thing I loved about him; he never lost his morals. Some awful things happened to him, but he remained firm in his beliefs, right up to the end. His reactions to the unfortunate situations he was put in made his character so endearing! He pulled so many emotions from me, mainly due to all the trials and tribulations he went through. I felt his pain as if it were my story.
Saeroyi had a love interest (Oh Soo-ah) who held his heart throughout 80% of the season. After the first couple of episodes, I realized I couldn’t stand her. Ugh… Seriously, I wanted to toss her out a damn window. If you’ve seen the series, you know why I say this. If you haven’t yet, you’ll see why. Despite how annoying her character was, Saeroyi was all the way into her.
Then Jo Yi-seo came along and added some spice to his life. Took me a moment to warm up to her character because when she was first introduced, she came off as a haughty little bitch. But she won me over. I said midway through the season, “if Saeroyi ends up with Soo-ah instead of Yi-seo, I’m gonna write a seething letter to the creators about that.” I was serious, BTW.
I loved that the storyline didn’t shy away from real world issues, like classism, racism, transphobia, and bigotry. It was all brought to the show in such a great way.
I have to take a moment to talk about the villain, or in many aspects, villains. Jang Dae-hee (the bad guy) was a nasty piece of work. I promise you will hate him to the core, which means the actor who portrayed him did a damn good job. His son was a nasty asshat as well! More annoying than anything, though. I must say this, the bad guys in this show made Saeroyi’s glow-up so much sweeter. The sense of satisfaction I felt once I got to the end made all the emotions I went through during the show worth it!
If you need a binge-worthy show to soak up your time while you’re stuck at home, Itaewon Class is the show for you. Even if you’re not a k-drama fan, you will enjoy it. ^_^
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