Itaewon Class

It had great reviews, so I thought maybe it would be a hit and I'd really like it. Well, I didn't. First, though, I'd like to give a shout out to Kim Da-Mi, because she was really great! Those puppy dog eyes of hers when she was happy about something; she was wonderfully mischievous and could be serious too, not to mention her mean side. She and her character are the reasons people should watch this show. Then there's Park Seo-joon, an average handsome guy who can act – every time his character ran his hand through his hair from back to front he was able to convey to the viewer exactly what his character was feeling. And then there's the rest of them. Park Seo-joon's character was basically unchanging; some 15 years of his life showed up and he hadn't changed at all. Don't tell me there's a person who doesn't change in that long a time, not to mention a person who has been through a lot. There's nothing new about the story, it's about revenge and actually at the end it's hard to tell if it actually happened. It was more about cause and effect (of something that started before the revenge). I was absolutely not entertained by the first two episodes, then it caught on and pretty much held its own until about the ninth episode, when it picked up speed down the road, only to crash in about the thirteenth episode. From that episode onwards, I basically suffered until the end, and because of that I had a chance to think the series through more and realized that beyond what looks new (transgender, racism, and a black character) it's actually dull. And even though the main character had a strong manager behind him, most of his success was built on chance ([SPOILER] – Toni and her rich grandmother perfectly positioned for the place they moved to, etc. [END SPOILER]). It's not really even a criticism of the company, it's just an affirmation that "the stronger dog is the one who fucks" – excuse the expression, but there's just no other way to put it in this show. In the end, the most tragic character is the spoiled son who sins, and it is he – oddly enough – with whom I was able to sympathize the most. And he was seven years old. The OST is slightly above average, the sweet bit at the end is a rip-off of others, but the theme song is excellent. The series is right on the border between 2 and 3 stars. Two is not enough, three is too much. 50%. (16/07/2020)