Even a 15 year old can write better plot. Seriously!!
It was too long, stretching the plot....20 episode HAHAHA....
The storyline was a bit off..how can 18 year old how a love so deep and focused too much on it.
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the only problem is the usual korean cliche. they pause tooooo much, they pass each other in 360 degrees for a whole 3 minutes and bla bla. as usual the kissing scenes where psh is tight lipped. the first episodes in america were bad esp the eng guy, he was trying too hard. it gets better when hes back in korea.
drama drama
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So let me tell you why this drama IS worth your time: THE. SUPPORTING. CAST. Basically everyone but the lead couple make you drawn into what's going on and they all do an amazing job with the measly little scraps they are given. I really wanted to know more of all of their stories, and infinitely less of the lead couple. They were cardboard and a waste of life. Why do people love Lee Min Ho again? I can't for the life of me figure this out. Park Shin Hye is right there with him. Why do people love her? I'm so confused.
I was irrationally invested in Young Do and Rachel's brother-sister relationship for the abysmal screen time they got together. I needed them to be together and awesome close friend-siblings forever, because every time they were together was amazing and so funny. They had that warring "I can't stand your face but I still have to love you so I do" thing that siblings have and did it so well. Bo Na and Chan Young were also my favorite thing in the universe. So sickeningly adorable and stole the show from anyone else that was in the scene with them individually or as a couple. Also, thanks CNBlue for giving me another human I irrationally love. I already LOVE Krystal, but Kang Min Hyuk was new to me and now I have another kpop star that I need to quit that life so he can be in dramas all the time. I wanted a better ending for Kim Won, but we can't have everything. I mostly just wanted a reason to be invested in him enough to be invested in his ending. Now there's a character who got the short end of the stick. If the lead couple's screen time had been cut in half and the story had been distributed evenly among the rest of the characters it probably would have been a much better show.
I'm also very convinced that the ending would have been better if it was a Taiwanese drama. But then I wouldn't have Krystal or KWB, so maybe not. That ending is a disaster though.
And OMG that song. Way to be heavy handed with the OST. I love Taiwanese dramas irrationally, so you must be really aggressive with the soundtrack for me to not like you. Plus in general it's horrible song, and if I never hear that song again it will be too soon.
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The Heirs is one of those shows that is my guilty pleasure. It's like wearing a shirt that you love but everyone else hates: you know it's not flattering and it doesn't make you look sophisticated, but you just can't stop liking it nonetheless.
Objectively, The Heirs should be so- so. The story was the regular he was rich and she was poor; they can't be together but could love conquer it all? Top it with a couple of mean girls, preppy school for ridiculously rich, spoiled brats and the unavoidable love triangle, put in as many Kdrama cliches as you possibly can and give it a go. Objectively I know that the Heirs wasn't a masterpiece yet I had a ridiculous amount of fun watching it. Sure, it was stuffed with cliches like a Thanksgiving turkey, but most of the wrist-grabbing, love quibble scenes were just entertaining for me. I'll even admit that the story fell apart towards the end of the show and I ended up fast forwarding 2 episodes.
The acting was ok for me. It is probably true that Kim Woo Bin's acting stole the show. Once again, I can admit that he was the highlight of the show even though I didn't particularly love his character nor did he give me a bad case of second lead syndrome. Some people didn't like the acting of the female lead. Park Shin Hye has a particular style of acting that not everyone likes. She pretty much acted here the same way as she acted in other shows I saw her. Can't say she was worse here than in You're Beautiful or Pinocchio.
All in all, I just had fun watching it and this is ultimately why I watch Kdramas in the first place: to have fun.
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But I admit. The Heirs is not exception from the common plot cliches. Lead A is rich, lead B is poor and together they fall in love because of destiny or pure coincidence. And that is exactly how this drama works. It's a pity that the plot is quite similar to Boys Over Flowers (which I haven't seen, I've seen the Japanese and Taiwanese version) making it difficult for Min Ho is move away from that typecast. Of course, his character here has its individual characteristics that sets him aside from the icon role of Jun Pyo. But still, it somehow and in some way, go down the same rabbit hole. So that's cliche number one.
Cliche number two is really how dramas make use of the Iceberg effect. It has a tendency to just show these little details in the beginning but like an iceberg, it has deep hidden ones below the surface and once discovered will cause great disaster. Needless to say, those under the tip of the iceberg are pretty little "twists" that don't seem to be twists at all. In fact, I've become fed up with the complicated family secrets of cliche plots. This person's mother is actually this person's blah blah blah, it's embedded and will always somehow connect the two leads together. Yes, The Heirs suffers from this cliche. Again.
But what the good points? Perhaps, plot wise, a good aspect might be that being a tycoon's child and having to deal with that kind of responsibility and how it burdened the characters made the plot interesting and exciting. I didn't particularly like the high school setting (it seemed similar to Boys Over Flowers again but okay) but it's really how with power comes great responsibility and how it forced the rather young characters to carry such burden somehow pushed the plot and developed the character.
Still, the series seems to be overflowing with characters. And it's come to the point where I ask myself if having this character here is really necessary or if it's crucial to the development. Sometimes, the answer is no. Having too much characters creates unbalance and results in distraction. A character needs a purpose to be there. Not to be manic pixie character but at least to have some sort of purpose if not to the main lead then at least to the story.
As for the romance. Yes, it's like a modern Romeo and Juliet, Min Ho and Shin Hye against the world. For the most part, The Heirs lacks cohesiveness in general maybe because there's too much characters. But it also lacks consistency. Instead, it's consistent with this pattern of breaking-up-letting-go-going-back-together cycle that the leads keep going to that just becomes frustrating. You see, each episode is an hour long. In one episode, they're happily together and in the next, they're avoiding each other. And this keeps going on and on and in the end they'll be together anyway. I know that it's to show the endless power of their love but does it have to be repetitive. I notice that this is another romance cliche.
Having said that, I ship Kim Woo Bin's character with Shin Hye's character more. For me, I believe that it would have become a much more interesting romance to see how Do Young changes from this I-hate-everyone-so-I'm-going-rebel attitude to becoming this vulnerable person who can actually love but just covers up his wounds to cope with his brokenness. I'm not saying Kim Tan (Min Ho) is not having a difficult time because he is too. But at least he has a mother. Or at least he can pursue his brother's approval and just focus on that. But Do Young is just...so broken. I'm still waiting for that day where second leads will break this cliche and get the girl (or guy).
Now Shin Hye's character is really just wallowing in some much self-pity. Unlike the main lead in Boys Over Flowers who despite being poor and attending a rich school is bold, daring and brave and fights head on. But Eun Sang is just so miserable and still so pessimistic that it becomes annoying. It becomes a character that doesn't have independence or strength to draw from herself. I mean it's good that Kim Tan gives her courage and take care of her (how sweet!) but despite being a couple, one must still be great as an individual.
Did I mention how I love Kim Woo Bin and Kim Ji Won's acting? They're the ones that left the mark for me.
Hence, as I've mentioned before, the plot is good when it shows how these youngsters handle power and responsibility and that's one the message. Another one would probably be the power of love. Or even young love. (And yes, you shouldn't underestimate it) Young people are indeed fearless when it comes to love but this drama shows that an 18-year-old's love can be fearless and it can conquer. Perhaps, love is not in age after all.
Nevertheless, it's these dramatic plot cliches and intense romance that becomes the show's greatest asset. Because of that, it leaves so much emotions as a viewer who's watching. It's moving, it's dramatic, it's intense that makes you wanting for more and just ignoring all these cliches as you watch. I guess for entertainment value, the show hits the mark.
Lastly, I'd like to comment on the criss-cross and slow motion combination of "sweet" shots like hugging, kissing or whatever romantic scenes there are. This is to emphasize, sure. But it's become a cliche shot in Korean drama. And a soundtrack.
Despite all that cliches, the series moved me. So for entertainment and FEELS value's sake (because it made me cry which left a lasting impression), I would have to give it this rating.
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This review may contain spoilers
I’ll keep it short. Kim Woo Bin - the bad guy- is the the reason I stuck it out with this drama. He’s character was the only one with an actual story arc and he had an amazing way of portraying a nasty man who redeemed himself. Otherwise everything else was cliched and/or poorly written. The main leads had no chemistry, which was so disappointing. Half way through as Kim Woo Bin’s character became more redeemable, I hoped that that main female lead would date him!
The female lead just gets pushed around by everyone- so frustrating!
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Emotional roller coaster.
This story started really cute. I've never seen a Kdrama shot in any other country besides Korea.The rest of the story was so full of twists and turns. So much back stabbing and conflict. It seemed that every character had some sort of dark past that they were frantically hiding from someone. So many emotions it made my head spin. Lies, deceit, hate, jealousy and then of course, unrequited love made for one hell of a roller coaster ride.
Secrets turned into weaknesses, turning people into monsters. It seems that most of Kdrama set in schools deal a lot with being bullied. Status seems to be a huge factor.
I felt really bad for most of the actors, especially Tan and at times just wanted to hug him.
This drama deals with a lot of different relationships. Between parents, lovers and friends.
It was a good story in my opinion.
It made me realize that we as humans should be kinder to one another. You never know what someone else is going through.
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- The beginning is way to slow. There are WAY too many characters. Although if you watch long enough, everything makes sense.
- OMG, PARK SHIN HYE, SHE CRIED WAY TO DUCKING MUCH, even though I know it wasn't her fault. She is so stupid... It's one of those situations where you want to smack the female lead for her stupidity.
- Of course, LEE MIN HO was just amazing as usual.
- The drama was definitely an EXTENDED EXTENDED music video. It would have been so good if they cut out some of the still scenes and shorten it by an episode or two.
- The music within the drama was also played at really crappy times. I'm like hmmm... and then music comes on and I'm like UGHHHHHH.
- THE BEST PART THE DUCKING BEST PART of this drama was the way all the characters grow throughout the series.
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Actor/ Cast: All of the cast played their part extremely well!
Music: The music accompanied the drama very well, it made it feel more real. The timing of the music was also done perfectly, however it did feel a little repetitive at times.
Like: - The side story are equally pleasing but sometimes it gets too tangled up with the main story, and made it very confusing.
- The seriousness was balanced with humour.
Dislikes: - The ending escalated too quickly, it felt too rush and there was a lot of question that was not answered.
- Relationships between characters were too rushed and at times not believable.
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