ITAEWON CLASS: Never Give Up On Your Dreams [Kdrama review]
Here comes my review on one of my favorite dramas ever: Itaewon Class. If you have never heard of Itaewon Class or heard about it but don’t want to watch, I am sure that once you have read my review you will straightaway head to give it a go. The above poster didn’t convey much on the story, right? Well, all you could see here is the main leads standing on the streets of Itaewon. Never heard of Itaewon? Well, me too. Itaewon is a multicultural and diverse area within Seoul and it is well known for amazing restaurants and nightlife. This drama is an adaptation of a webtoon by the same name authored by Jo Gwang Jin. In 2022, a Japanese remake of this drama called Roppongi Class was released, but I am glued to the original so much that I don’t want to watch the remake.
What’s the plot? The underdog story of how an ex-convict climbs up the ladder and seeks revenge for his father’s death. Chop chop! You can pack and leave now. (Just kidding!😎)
Before I go on with the review, I think a character sketch of main leads would give a better picture. So, here you go:
- Jo Yi Seo : Yeah, I can hear you asking, “Shouldn’t we start with the male lead first?” There’s a reason…she is the modern version of Jang Man Wol (Jang Man Wol is a character from Hotel Del Luna kdrama. You can read its review from my profile.) She is multi-talented, extremely intelligent girl and a very popular internet celebrity. But, she is considered as sociopath because of her lack of empathy and rude behavior and she goes for psychological therapy. She discriminates people based on color and sexual identity. Yet she shines by making a decision that would risk her bright career. I am sure not many girls would make such a decision.
2. Park Saeroyi: He is the underdog and Itaewon Class is his story. He lived with his dad who was a manager at the famous food company Jangga Co.. Saeroyi follows his dad’s teachings blindly and has a lot of pride and self-esteem. He shares a good rapport with his dad. He aspires to become a police officer and also clears the exam for it. He wants to stick to his ideals no matter what happens, which in the end, backfired on him. He cannot tolerate injustice and has a “never-quit” attitude. In his teenage years, he was a very anti-social person and the only person he ever befriended was Oh Soo Ah, whom he has a crush on.
3. Oh Soo Ah: Oh Soo Ah is an orphan and her orphanage is sponsored by Jangga company. As a result, she shares a deep fatherly bond with Saeroyi’s dad, who looks after the orphanage matters. She is a very stubborn person and hates to rely on anyone. She dislikes injustice but she doesn’t want to meddle with other peoples’ affairs and risk her career. Though she might come across as a selfish, shameless and nosy person initially, I was astonished when she seeks revenge for Saeroyi’s dad’s death in her own way.
4. Jang Dae Hee: The CEO of Jangga Co.. A self-made successful businessman who sees business as business. He started as a small pub owner and through years of experience, he became more authoritative towards people. He doesn’t care about the people working under him as long as he could rope in the profits. He is extremely competitive and would go to any lengths to win the race. He has two sons: Jang Geun Won and Jang Geun Soo. Dae Hee is a perfect example of “karma is a bitch”.
5. Jang Geun Won: The eldest son of Jangga’s CEO. He inherits his dad’s traits of looking down on people below his status. He bullies his classmates and even the teachers and the principal turn a blind eye to his atrocities. At his school, he strongly believes in “Jang Geun Won is the law” and whoever stands up to him is doomed. This idiot is the reason why Saeroyi had to suffer for many years. He is a classmate of Saeroyi and Soo Ah and he has a crush on Soo Ah, though she despised him. Geun Won doesn’t have a warm relationship with his dad or his brother. He dislikes his father’s ways but gives in with no option left.
6. Jang Geun Soo: The second illegitimate son of Jang Dae Hee. He is a classmate of Jo Yi Seo and has a crush on her. It’s a miracle to see him as a kind, humble and independent guy which conflicts the personalities of his family. He never gives in to his father’s orders and lives the life as he wants. But, to seek attention from Yi Seo, he makes some bitter decisions which degrades his character and his friendship with Yi Seo.
I think I have a given rough outline of the important people. Let’s start the drama!
The drama opens with Yi Seo attending to her therapy and she is the one who introduces us to Itaewon. We go fifteen years backward in time. Saeroyi beats Jang Geun Won when the latter bullied a classmate called Lee Ho Jin(David Lee). Remember this guy, he will pop up again in future. Saeroyi’s dad and Geun Won’s dad arrive at the school and Jang Dae Hee asks Saeroyi to kneel down and apologize to his son or else he will be expelled from his school.
A prideful Saeroyi didn’t yield and Saeroyi’s dad resigns from his job. Oh Soo Ah and Saeroyi both were upset of this outcome. Saeroyi’s dad starts a new restaurant with his savings. But, soon Saeroyi’s world comes crashing down when his dad meets with a car accident and dies. And the car which hit him was not just any random car…it was Jang Geun Won’s car! Saeroyi beats the shit out of Jang Geun Won who was admitted in the hospital for his minor injuries.
Oh Soo Ah arrives at the hospital with the cops before Saeroyi could kill him(Geun Won should have died then and there…it could have saved so much time and pain). Once more, Dae Hee asks Saeroyi to kneel down and apologize to gain freedom from jail. But, you know our Saeroyi well….he refused to oblige.
While Saeroyi gets three year imprisonment for attacking Geun Won, Geun Won walks free as his gardener takes the blame for the car crash and his dad’s power seals the mouths of the cops too. But, we were able to see an ounce of conscience in Geun Won when he requests his dad to free Saeroyi, only to get brainwashed by his dad of him being a potential successor of Jangga. Oh Soo Ah gets a seat in her preferred university and even Jangga company offers her a position after her graduation in return for saving Geun Won from being hit by Saeroyi (though that wasn’t her intention) — as a means to make her feel indebted to Jang family. Saeroyi respects her decision of taking side with Dae Hee.
The prisoners did give a hard time to Saeroyi, but a strong Saeroyi swam across all the hurdles with ease. He engrossed himself in books from the prison library and reads Jang Dae Hee’s autobiography, which enthralled him — the way he built an empire with his determination. Soo Ah’s visiting him in prison perks up an idea of revenge and he comes up with a plan for his future. Oh Soo Ah talks about Itaewon’s Halloween Day and the city culture through her letters to Saeroyi and thus, Saeroyi arrives at Itaewon on the Halloween day once he got released.
Geun Won is still an asshole as the news of him beating a person flashes on the TVs. Saeroyi runs into Soo Ah and they have fun celebrating the day. Saeroyi decides to open a restaurant in Itaewon after seven years though he has sufficient money from his dad’s savings and his own money. Soo Ah does think the whole idea as pretty much absurd as rentals are very expensive in Itaewon. They bid goodbye and we jump to seven years later.
Oh Soo Ah is now the head of the strategic planning team in Jangga Co.. Geun Won still tries to win her heart, but the latter doesn’t even flinch. On her way to check out a location for a new project, she sees Saeroyi. He made it happen…Saeroyi has opened Danbam bar-restaurant(Danbam literally means ‘chestnut’ or ‘sweet night’…Soo Ah called him chestnut once).
Saeroyi runs his business with the help of chef Ma Hyun Yi and waiter Choi Seung Kwon, who are always at loggerheads with each other. He runs into Jo Yi Seo beating a lady whose daughter bullied one of her classmates. When Saeroyi interferes, she makes up a story that her dad died because of that lady which Saeroyi relates to immediately and then Yi Seo admits it was a lie and leaves him.
Meanwhile, the prime location of Jangga Pub, Itaewon, comes under the supervision of Soo Ah. Jang Dae Hee aware of the fact that Saeroyi has opened his own pub, confronts Soo Ah to choose him or Jangga…and she replies she would be forever loyal to Jangga. She proves her point when an underage Yi Seo with Geun Soo and another friend dines at Danbam and she doesn’t reveal this to Saeroyi. Instead, she calls the cops. To make things worse, the other guy who came with Yi Seo and Geun Soo disrespects Seung Kwon and Saeroyi, which leads to Seung Kwon knocking the guy out when the police enter.
Yi Seo’s minor identity surfaces and Saeroyi has to close his business for two months. Geun Won comes to rescue his brother from the police station and meets Saeroyi. He mocks him and tells the police to go easy on his friend. Saeroyi refuses his offer and wants to abide by the law. Geun Won provokes him to punch him while Saeroyi says he will wait for another six years to defeat Geun Won. Yes, he has a plan for fifteen years to rise and shine.
After this incident, Yi Seo always seemed distracted. Nothing interested her any more and she drew pictures of Saeroyi. We now get to witness how Seung Kwon met Saeroyi. Seung Kwon was a year younger to Saeroyi and he shared a prison cell with him. He was annoyed when Saeroyi always seemed to be in his own world reading books. “What good reading books will do for us convicts?” he asks Saeroyi. Saeroyi says his life has just began and that he’d do anything to achieve his goals.
After Seung Kwon gets released, he goes into his old habits of being a gangster. And after seven years, he meets Saeroyi while he sets up his pub. He realizes both of them had the same amount of time, but Saeroyi utilized his to grow his career. Seng Kwon kept visiting the pub when there were no customers at all and expressed his interest to live a diligent life. That’s how he ended up at Danbam.
Meanwhile, Geun Won thinks Saeroyi must be despondent because of his pub’s suspension but we get to see Saeroyi with his workers in a karaoke room.(Gosh, this guy is so cool.) Saeroyi helps an adult Yi Seo when a crazy guy pesters her. Yi Seo figures out it was Soo Ah who called the cops at Danbam when she dines with Soo Ah and Saeroyi. Soo Ah herself confesses to Saeroyi and asks him if he still loves her after what she has done and he says yes. Yi Seo realizes that she loves Saeroyi. She later discusses with her mom about her love life. Her mom is against the idea of her dating useless guys. But, her guts drives her to Saeroyi and she asks him to appoint her. Yes, Yi Seo threw her career in the drain with a determination that she will make Saeroyi achieve his dreams.
But, Saeroyi had already recruited a person — Geun Soo. Geun Soo was never loved by his dad, stepbrother or his own mom. He moved out to fend for himself. Saeroyi offers him a part-time job in his pub, despite knowing who he is. Yi Seo makes Saeroyi see why he needs her by pointing out pretty rudely the poor ambiance, unappealing dishes, etc. But, since her opinions were true, Saeroyi hires her as Danbam’s manager.
Their first day of Danbam’s launch is a massive hit since Yi Seo posted the grand opening on her blog and social media. Apparently, this caught the attention of Dae Hee and Soo Ah. On the second day, Yi Seo, Geun Soo and Seung Kwon go clubbing after the pub was closed and they run into a cross dressed Hyun Yi. Hyun Yi is a transgender. Saeroyi already knew about it when they both worked in a factory. Yi Seo asks Saeroyi to fire Hyun Yi due to her lack of culinary experience and identity. Instead, Saeroyi asks Hyun Yi to work twice as hard giving her two month’s worth of salary.
Remember the lady Yi Seo beat…the one whose daughter bullied Yi Seo’s classmate? It is revealed that it wasn’t Soo Ah but that lady’s daughter who called the cops at Danbam to check for underage drinking. But, Soo Ah did watch silently as that girl made the call to the cops. Hyun Yi works on her culinary skills and finally Yi Seo approves her cooking. Yi Seo also becomes a bit compassionate and calls Hyun Yi “sister”. Meanwhile, Soo Ah finds it frustrating as she has to constantly make a choice between Saeroyi and Jangga.
Soo Ah insists on joining Danbam’s team dinner, where she takes in all the future plans of Danbam. She doesn’t know Geun Soo is Geun Won’s brother but when she eventually does, she lets Jang Dae Hee know about it and also spills the Danbam’s goals. Yi Seo’s mom finds out Yi Seo had cancelled her university enrollment and she is now Danbam’s manager. Following the quarrel with her mom, she gets kicked out of the house.
It’s time to introduce the new part-timer of Danbam: Kim Toni(Chris Lyon). He is half-Korean and half-African. Geun Soo finds out Yi Seo has a crush on Saeroyi when he accidentally finds her drawing of Saeroyi. Soo Ah gets to know from Saeroyi that Danbam is going to compete in a reality show called The Best Pub. However, Geun Won’s pub was also invited for the show and he mocks Saeroyi. So, the director of the show cancelled Danbam’s show. At the same time, Yi Seo tells the truth of how Soo Ah wasn’t the one behind his pub’s suspension. Saeroyi then apologizes to Soo Ah for putting her in a difficult situation and promises to destroy Jangga Co. and free her.
With that note, he immediately calls the classmate Lee Ho Jin who was bullied by Geun Won. Seems like that guy is now into stocks. Saeroyi orders him to put all his money obtained from various investments under Jangga. The next day, Jang Dae Hee is informed about Saeroyi’s investment. He realizes that Saeroyi became a stakeholder eight years ago when be bought the stocks as there was dip in Jangga’s stocks because of Geun Won’s scandal. Jang Dae Hee along with his son and Soo Ah go to Danbam to dine. He ponders how he had underestimated Saeroyi and Saeroyi bows his head to welcome his customer.(Saeroyi does shine brightly with each action, right?)
Jang Dae Hee asks him to give up but Saeroyi promises he’d make him pay for his evil deeds. We now flash back to Lee Ho Jin visiting Saeroyi in prison wishing to be his fund manager to revenge on Geun Won and Jangga. And that’s how they bonded. In the present day, Ho Jin and Saeroyi approach Jangga’s Director Kang Min Jung(Kim Hye Eun) in order to show their support. It was her dad and Jang Dae Hee who built the Jangga empire. Jang Dae Hee often considers her as a potential threat to his business as she is the second largest shareholder at Jangga and since Geun Won is immature, the possibility for her leading Jangga increases. She tells she will consider him as an ally if Jang Dae Hee who only dines at the top restaurants dines at Danbam. And now, Saeroyi has successfully completed his mission and Min Jung agrees to be his business partner.
However, Dae Hee knows that Min Jung is working with Saeroyi behind his back. He also feels Geun Won is incompetent when he realizes he paid off to cancel Danbam’s show. Left with no option, he tries to win his second son over, but the latter doesn’t wish to live like his dad. Saeroyi tells his entire story to Yi Seo and they meet the cop who covered up the car accident. Saeroyi wants the cop to reveal the truth, which he doesn’t wish to do so. Yi Seo gets emotional when she sees Saeroyi’s scars that he had obtained with many years of manual labor. To make things worse, the building of the pub has a new owner who has increased the rentals and wants to kick out Danbam to launch his business. And the new owner….you guessed it….Jang Dae Hee.
Jang Dae Hee gives a last chance to Saeroyi to get on his knees and apologize so that Dae Hee wouldn’t bother him in future. Again, our hero refused with a swag. Yi Seo tells Geun Soo what his family had did to Saeroyi, so he apologizes to Saeroyi. When the team goes clubbing, Toni is denied entry as he looks like African, though he keeps saying he was Korean and a mean Yi Seo points out his dark skin color. So, Saeroyi draws graffiti on the pub’s door at night for their racist behavior.
Geun Soo decides to leave Danbam and request his father to go easy on Saeroyi, which Yi Seo thinks as a good idea. Saeroyi disagrees as to him, business is his people. And he has a realistic alternative instead of shutting down his business…he buys a new building and shifts Danbam there. Toni had come to Korea in search of his dad who arrived here to meet Toni’s grandma. Yi Seo agrees to help Toni to find his family and get his Korean nationality. Dae Hee plans to hit on Saeroyi’s weakness: his employees. He calls Yi Seo for a deal.
Jang Dae Hee offers Yi Seo to join Jangga but she refuses as she is confident that she can make Danbam successful. Saeroyi now makes a move to upgrade his business. Itaewon Class and for global recognition IC Inc. is decided as the company name. Kang Min Jung and Saeroyi find out they are being watched by Jangga’s men. Danbam is not doing too good as the restaurants located in the same alley are out of business. So, Saeroyi helps around in order to revitalize the entire alley, which is good for other businesses and his as well.
The cop who covered up Saeroyi’s dad’s accident is now a supplier of ingredients to Danbam. Dae Hee asks him to cancel all his deals and sign an exclusive contract with Jangga only. The cop doesn’t give in to Dae Hee’s wishes. In order to prove he is capable to lead Jangga, Geun Won goes to Yi Seo with a detailed salary proposal, only to get outwitted by her as she records him admitting how he trampled on Saeroyi’s life. Geun Won beats her on the streets to retrieve her phone with the video, but is caught by the cops and with Yi Seo’s evidence, Saeroyi’s dad’s accident is re-investigated.
Due to this scandal, the Jangga stocks is impacted and Saeroyi asks Min Jung to dismiss the chairman and lead Jangga, as this is the right time to strike. The cop turns himself in after Yi Seo’s video went viral. An immediate meeting is organized to vote for the next chairman. The critical moment has come for Dae Hee to choose between his son or the company. And you know the obvious answer…Dae Hee arranges urgent press conference and apologizes kneeling down to the public, thus admitting that his son is guilty. Saeroyi and his allies are disgusted and upset by Dae Hee’s actions as his dismissal gets rejected. When Geun Won realized his father has abandoned him, he denies that his father was involved in the scandal and takes all the blame. He is sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
Geun Soo wanted to be on his dad’s side on this critical time. Also, Yi Seo playfully asked him to take over Jangga to win her heart. He thought over these things and quit Danbam and Saeroyi respected his decision. In the prison, Geun Won transfers all his shares to his dad upon his request. (What an evil dad!) Hyun Yi’s surgery goes well and she returns as a pretty lady. The Best Pub show that was cancelled wants Danbam to onboard because of the recent events. The Jangga Pub in Itaewon comes under the supervision of Geun Soo and Soo Ah is assigned to train him.
Sixteen pubs including Danbam(Hyun Yi as the chef) and Jangga Pub compete in the The Best Pub contest and Danbam wins the first round while Jangga comes in the second place. Saeroyi helps in Toni’s visa extension and pastes posters of Toni’s missing dad. JM Holdings, a reputed investing company, invests in Danbam for franchising it and other investing companies follow suit. Toni finds out that an old lady who dines at Danbam often is his grandmother and his Korean dad had died in a car accident. So, Toni and his granny are reunited.
Hyun Yi again wins the second round with her excellent culinary skills and again Jangga Pub wins the second place. While playing Truth and Dare game on account of Danbam’s win, Yi Seo is forced to admit she loves Saeroyi, but Saeroyi rejects her. Already failed to win the first place for two times, Geun Soo takes on the full authority over the final round of Jangga’s Pub in the contest. But, when all was going well for Danbam, JM Holdings withdrew their investment with no explanation and all other investment firms did the same. Danbam had to suffer a heavy loss as they had established IC in a new building, staffed new employees and other stuff. It is revealed that Jang Dae Hee was behind the investment withdrawals. (Dude is literally having poison instead of blood in his body.)
All the rest of the investors turned up at IC demanding an explanation when Soo Ah enters with a gift from Dae Hee that has a quote “Be satisfied with what you have. Know your place.” Saeroyi realizes Dae Hee is the one who has ruined his venture. We get to see Dae Hee admitting that he was the one who made JM Holdings to invest in Danbam at the first place…he had planned it all right from the beginning. Soo Ah requests Saeroyi to forget about his resentment and get together with her to lead a happy life. But, Saeroyi firmly declines that he could never he happy until he gets his revenge.
And here we have a surprise — Kim Toni’s grandma is a rich investor who sometimes invests in small start-ups. In fact, she was the one who helped Dae Hee when he was a poor kid. (She looked so poor and stingy, didn’t think she was so wealthy.) Danbam has to win the first place in the contest to make the grandma invest in the business. Hyun Yi knows about this only on the day of the event but Saeroyi trusts that she will win.
But all hell breaks loose — an article about Hyun Yi being a transgender goes viral on the internet and she runs away from the show venue. And the person who spread this news is Geun Soo…he has proved that he is as wicked as his father. He did such an evil thing when he was very close to Hyun Yi out of all Danbam workers. Even Soo Ah was disgusted by his act, but he didn’t show the slightest remorse…all he wants is to win. But, Hyun Yi comes back with a bang…that scene alone will literally give you goosebumps. No point in describing that powerful entry of Ma Hyun Yi…so watch it yourself below and rate the scene. [I can’t find the entire scene on YouTube, so please bear with me and watch the tiny clips.]
Below is the poem narrated by Yi Seo, as Hyun Yi makes her entry back to the show venue.
I’m a rock
Go ahead and sear me
I won’t budge an inch, because I’m a rock
Go ahead and beat me up
I’m a solid rock
Go ahead and leave me in darkness
I’m a rock that will shine all along
I don’t break, ash nor decay as I go against nature’s way
I survive
I’m… I’m a diamond
Hyun Yi announces she’s a transgender while the show is airing. And out of the four contestants, she wins The Best Pub show defeating Jangga once again. Jang Dae Hee is disappointed with his son but he still makes him the successor of Jangga. And Toni’s grandma signs the investment contract. Yi Seo knows that Geun Soo was one behind Hyun Yi’s news but she doesn’t tell anyone about it.
We jump ahead four years, precisely in 2020 when IC has established its roots in China as well. Hyun Yi and Seung Kwon are chief members of IC and Saeroyi is now the CEO of his own company. But, even after everything, Jangga still tops the food industry while IC is second.During this time, Geun Soo was in US managing the Jangga business. But, he has returned now and is the Director of Jangga. And, his dad has severe pancreatic cancer. (Serves him right!). Oh, not to forget his other son…Geun Won is now free after serving his tenure in prison. Saeroyi finds out Jang Dae Hee’s condition and he is the only one who wishes him to live a long life so that he could punish him rather than the heavens.
With Saeroyi’s tactics, the corruption allegations of a key board member of Jangga leaks out, which forces Dae Hee to fire the concerned person. The shareholders have to vote for the new non-executive director to fill the space and Yi Seo volunteers to run for the election. She is also on good terms with her mom, after her success with IC Co. But, she overworks and collapses on the day of the election. The election happens without her and the proposal is rejected as all the US stockholders were on Jangga’s side. And when Yi Seo is ill, Saeroyi realizes he does love her when he comes across the drawings of himself drawn by Yi Seo. But, before he could confess, Geun Won kidnaps her. Apparently, he wants to kill Saeroyi but Geun Soo also arrives at the location specified by his brother. When Geun Won was moments away from killing his brother, Saeroyi jumps in and saves Geun Soo. He is hit by the car and remains motionless.
Saeroyi is hospitalized and Geun Soo and Yi Seo are under the custody of Geun Won. Now, this is the moment for Seung Kwon to shine. He knows very well the ex-con who was hired by Geun Won to kill Saeroyi and gathers the evidence and gives it to Soo Ah. Jang Dae Hee receives it from her along with her resignation letter. She further gives him the data of all the illegal things Dae Hee has done for his business and proudly walks away thinking of her promise of repaying her gratitude to Saeroyi’s dad. In his coma, Saeroyi is in between life and death and he meets his dad. His dad beckons him to pass the bridge of afterlife and escape his painful and burdened life, but Saeroyi who never gives up refuses the offer.
And at that moment, Saeroyi wakes up from his coma and starts crying. The last time he cried was on his dad’s funeral. All the pent up sorrow and the decision of letting go of his dad forces him to broke down into tears. He immediately left the hospital with Seung Kwon to meet Dae Hee who knows where Geun Won is located. Dae Hee once again asks Saeroyi kneel down before him if he wants to save Yi Seo, but unlike the other times, he willingly obeys. He knows this could help Yi Seo and this has no regards to his pride. Dae Hee is amused to see Saeroyi finally get on his knees.
Meanwhile, Yi Seo and Geun Soo try to escape, but only Yi Seo could escape while Geun Soo is stabbed. She is chased by Geun Won and the ex-con’s gang, but Saeroyi saves her in time. They both run away while Geun Won still chases them. Seung Kwon fights off the ex-con and his men. Amidst the chaos, Saeroyi confesses his love to Yi Seo. (Is this the time? LOL.) Saeroyi makes Yi Seo to run away alone to get the cops while he has a one-on-one fight with Geun Won. The cops arrive and Geun Won is arrested.
Soo Ah turns up at the police station with all the data of Jangga’s illegal activities, thus becoming a whistle-blower. Dae Hee is charged with embezzlement and bribery and he is investigated. Geun Soo is also rescued and he returns to his dad. Geun Won’s actions also impacted Jangga negatively along with Soo Ah disclosing every crime of Jang Dae Hee. Ho Jin meets Geun Won to convey the fact that the Jangga Co. he wanted to protect so much was on the verge of bankruptcy and soon will be taken over by another company.
As a last resort, Dae Hee asks Toni’s grandma to help his company but she refuses. He then visits Danbam. Saeroyi himself cooks the food and serves him. The old man got on his knees and asked Saeroyi who is about to take over Jangga, to spare his company. But, Saeroyi quotes Dae Hee’s motto “business is business” and thus, takes over Jangga.
Geun Soo resigns from Jangga and admits to Saeroyi that he was behind Hyun Yi’s news. But, Saeroyi forgives him. He also apologizes to Hyun Yi and Seung Kwon(he knew the business ventures of IC Co. through Seung Kwon, so they were still in contact). He then leaves for the States. Soo Ah opens a restaurant with her savings as no company would hire a whistle-blower…and her business does well. We also see her crushing over a new chef she has hired. Seung Kwon and Hyun Yi go on a movie date (are we getting a new couple?) And Saeroyi’s soju, which always tasted bitter, tastes sweet now. We see him enjoying his date with Yi Seo.
THE UPS:
- PARK SAEROYI AND PARK SEO JOON: Frankly speaking, I can’t imagine a character like Saeroyi in today’s world. He is the strongest person I have ever seen in any drama or series. I might have lost it if I was in his shoes. His self-esteem and his perseverance is something we all need to learn from. I have huge respects for this fictional character and I am absolutely in love with him(forget about Yi Seo). No matter how many times he falls down, he is sure to get up and walk with pride. He is a lion. The way he planned and when things went wrong, he again started over….I can praise him all day. Props to Seo Joon who portrayed Saeroyi so well. I had always been fan of Seo Joon oppa but Saeroyi has my heart out of all the roles he played.
- JANG DAE HEE: I hated every second of his airtime…which means Yoo Jae Myung literally lived like Dae Hee. He was so selfish that he abandoned his own son for the sake of his company. For me, he seems to be the most evil character in the k-drama history. And his maniac smile sends chills down my spine everytime. But, I wondered how he turned into such a monster. There is a scene where a young Dae Hee tells his friend and a little girl that he would own a multi-storeyed building some day and he seemed just a sweet and ambitious teenage back then. There was no explanation provided for this character transition.
- HYUN YI: Forgive me Yi Seo, but I adore Hyun Yi more than you. I loved Lee Joo Young ever since she played a support role in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo. And I have a thing for short haired women…hehe. Hyun Yi was as powerful character as Saeroyi. And she owned the scene where she came out as a transgender. To be honest, she had more chemistry with Saeroyi than Yi Seo….because whenever Saeroyi and Hyun Yi interacted I was secretly shipping them though I know they were not the endgame. Especially when Saeroyi lifted her up after she won the contest, that scene lives on my mind rent free. Compared to their chemistry, Saeroyi and Yi Seo came across as more like siblings, father-daughter or uncle-niece. Just my thoughts, no offense.
- YI SEO: Though Kim Da Mi was just a rookie actress, she pulled the role of Yi Seo smoothly. Yi Seo will come across as a sibling of Moon Young of It’s Okay to Not Be Okay. She impressed me a lot when she threw her career down the drain for a complete stranger Saeroyi. Who on the right mind would do that? It seemed to be illogical…but her decision had a swag in it. And I admired her badass character. Just imagine if she went to an university as per her mom’s wish and after graduation landed a high-earning job but still it would take almost a decade or more for her to become the top of a corporate ladder. Unlike other dramas, where the bad or evil lead turns over a new leaf because of a certain circumstance leading to self-realization, Yi Seo gradually changed her behavior over time…which makes it more relatable and believable.
- THE OST: The entire OST collection was so dope. My personal favorites were Start Over by Gaho, With Us by VERIVERY and Stone Block by Ha Hyun Woo. Whenever I listen to them, I feel the adrenaline rush in my body and I wanna do something. Especially, Stone Block would make you feel like you are Hyun Yi proving to the world that you are a diamond. Here is the entire playlist for all the music lovers: Itaewon Class OST Full Album
- THE CAR CRASHES: There were two car accidents — the one at the very beginning when Saeroyi’s dad was hit by Geun Won’s car and the second, Saeroyi being hit while trying to save Geun Soo. Both of the car crashes were realistic. You would feel like you are the one who being hit by the car. The sudden crash and the body rolling off the road…amazing cinematography and kudos to the cameraman.
NEITHER UP NOR DOWN: (Because I couldn’t take sides either way…lol)
- JANG GEUN WON: I want to hate him, but I could not hate him to the fullest. There was a human inside this devil. He is obviously a by-product of bad parenting. If only his dad wasn’t there to brainwash him every single time he had a change of heart, I think his actions would have been redeemable. When Saeroyi was arrested, he asked his dad to release him. Dae Hee compared Saeroyi to a chicken and even asked Geun Won to crush the head of a hen. That incident left an impact on Geun Won to the point that decades later, he still couldn’t eat chicken. Obviously, he loved his dad though his dad abandoned him. And even after such a betrayal, he wanted to protect Jangga because he knew his dad valued the company. Apart from that, he was a gentleman to Soo Ah. “I know I am a jerk. I don’t want to ruin the life of the woman I like.” — He said this line to Soo Ah. Though he loved her, he never approached her with bad intentions as always expected from a bad character. So, I believe that he would have been a good person if he didn’t have much influence from his dad.
- OH SOO AH: She was a strong character and she stayed out of troubles for the sake of her career. Initially, I understood her character trying to do everything in her power to succeed in life. But, being appointed by the evil man who killed the guy who cared for her while his innocent son was in prison makes me wonder if she really didn’t have an option. What would have happened if she said no? She might have also helped Saeroyi with his business and she could have saved herself from the misery of choosing between Saeroyi and Dae Hee all her life. She was a two-faced nosy character and always intervened in Saeroyi’s business affairs. Though she earned brownie points when she exposed Dae Hee, I still couldn’t bring myself to forgive her as she hadn’t stuck with Saeroyi when he was having a difficult time.
- JANG GEUN SOO: I really liked his character a lot at the beginning. His character deviated from his dad’s and brother’s evil persona. But I wondered how a smart adult like Geun Soo would believe that Yi Seo will date him if he becomes the successor of Jangga. Maybe he just wanted to cling onto anything that gets him closer to Yi Seo. Okay, I’ll forgive him for taking sides with Dae Hee, but I will never forgive his shameful act against Hyun Yi. Even Geun Won wouldn’t have had the backbone to pull off such an evil card independently without his dad backing up. Saeroyi might have a big heart to forgive him easily, but I don’t have that generosity.
THE DOWNS:
- THE CHEMISTRY: If you are looking for romance, sorry, Itaewon Class has nothing to offer. It is a slowburn romance flick. And I didn’t feel any spark fly between Seo Joon and Da Mi or Nara unlike Seo Joon’s chemistry with his past co-actors. Maybe it’s the age gap between Da Mi and Seo Joon…I don’t know but I wasn’t able to root Seo Joon with either of the female main leads.
- THE HAIRCUTS: Everything was fine but when the show was nearing the end, the hairstyles of the cast changed. Only Saeroyi kept his chestnut haircut till the end. Yi Seo seemed to have copied the styling of Soo Ah. Hyun Yi’s boy cut was replaced by something that looked more like a wig. I know hair has nothing to do with the story or the cast, but many people including me felt it was quite unnecessary. It would have been nice if the stylists chose haircuts that looked good on the cast,or better haven’t changed them at all.
- PARK SAEROYI KNEELING DOWN: Many people bashed that Saeroyi shouldn’t have kneeled down. If he was this ready to kneel just to save a girl, shouldn’t have he done that in his school days? That would saved him from his expulsion, his father wouldn’t have resigned and opened a shop and maybe he wouldn’t have died and Saeroyi would have had a happy life with no suffering. These were the opinions of many viewers. Personally, I had no problem with Saeroyi bending over to save Yi Seo. When Saeroyi was asked to kneel down during his school days, no one’s life was at danger. Yi Seo was kidnapped and there’s a possibility that she might be killed…Saeroyi obliged to save her. And this was a mature Saeroyi (not that he was immature before…but still…), he knows kneeling down is in no way degrading his self-esteem since he knows he wasn’t wrong.
- DAE HEE BEHIND THE BARS: I really wanted to see Dae Hee in prison serving his tenure with his son. But, I get that he was nearing the death as he had got only six months left until his death. Saeroyi suffered so much in his lifetime and I hoped that Dae Hee could also suffer the same way. Karma really did hit Dae Hee hard though when he was diagnosed with cancer.
OVERALL RATING: 10/10. The ups nullified the downs.
DRAMAGEEKS CORNER:
Drama: Itaewon Class
Country: South Korea
Episodes: 16
Aired: Jan 31, 2020 — Mar 21, 2020
Aired On: Friday, Saturday
Original Network: jTBC, Netflix
Duration: 1 hr. 10 min.
Content Rating: 15+ — Teens 15 or older
Director: Kang Min Gu, Kim Seong Yoon
Screenwriter: Cho Kwang Jin
Genres: Business, Romance, Life, Drama(Details sourced from MyDramaList: Itaewon Class)
Check out Itaewon Class trailer below:
You can watch Itaewon Class on Netflix, Kissasian and other similar websites. Kissasian link is below:
Wanna read the webtoon? Here you go: Itaewon Class — Manhuascan
Itaewon Class is a very inspirational drama. When you feel lost, just remember Saeroyi. Hope you liked my review and I can imagine you hurrying up to give this drama a shot. You can see my other drama review posts on my profile. Stay happy and let’s keep watching more dramas.
