Sunday, September 17, 2006

Drama Review: Winter Ballad


Winter Ballad (KBS 2002)
Number of Episodes- 20
Main Cast- Bae Yong Jun, Choi Ji Woo, Park Yong Ha, Park Sol Mi
Korean Wiz link: http://www.koreanwiz.org/drama-winter.html

I would be remiss to have a blog introducing people to Korean dramas and not include Winter Ballad. This 2002 drama is one of the leading "Korean Wave" dramas. It was a mega-hit across Asia and gave the lead actors super stardom status. You can even plan a Korean vacation based on the filming sites for this drama! When the drama begins, Yujin (played by Choi Ji Woo) is a happy carefree high school student. Her constant companion is Sang-Hyuk (played by Park Yong Ha). They have grown up together, and while she doesn’t think of him romantically, he is completely in love with her. One day a quiet mysterious new student named Joon Sang (played by Bae Yong Jun) joins their school. Joon-Sang is the son of a famous concert pianist, but she was a single mom and refuses to reveal his birthfather. Joon-Sang has had a difficult life without a father, and he has now moved to his mom’s hometown in the hopes of discovering the identity of his father. All the girls in the school are attracted to this good-looking student, and he ends up in a relationship with Yujin. They are suppose to meet on New Year's Eve, but on the way to meet Yujin, Joon-Sang gets killed in a car accident. The drama then jumps ahead ten years. Yujin is soon to be engaged to Sang-Hyuk when she meets Min-Hyung, who looks exactly like Joon-Sang. Yujin thought that Joon-Sang was part of her past, but meeting Min-Hyung rocks her world. How can this man not be Joon-Sang?

I usually don’t recommend this drama to a first time viewer of dramas only because it is sooo melodramatic that I don’t want to turn off a skeptical American viewer. You have to buy into a memory-loss theme plus Bae Yong Jun’s style (which was immensely popular in Japan) in the drama may be a bit "fluffy" for the American audience. However, that being said, there is something about this one that draws you in and keeps you hooked. I’ve probably watched it at least 3 times now! In addition to being drawn into the intense plot, the winter scenery is beautiful, and the music, which is now symbolic for Korean dramas, is moving. Bae Yong Jun does a nice job of portraying a cool Joon-Sang as well as a charismatic Min-Hyung, and I think Choi Ji Woo is absolutely stunning as Yujin. In addition, as he struggles to hold on to his love against all of Yujin’s memories of Joon-Sang , Sang-Hyuk is a very sympathetic compelling character. So, suspend reality just a little and lose yourself in Korean drama world!

Get a preview by checking out Ryu's Music Video from the OST:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIj_zQeFaOY

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3 Comments:

At 5:09 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

julier, can you believe this is one drama I didn't watch all the way through? Just caught snippets here and there.

I absolutely loved BYJ in Was It Really Love and Lost Innocence so no excuse for me not watching all of it. Maybe it was his orange hair?

Now I'm waiting for my favorite Kwon Sang Woo to come out in another drama. Sad Love Story was so good! Did you hear of what we may be up to lately?

 
At 7:55 PM, Blogger Julie said...

Orange hair, the glasses, the scarf...I dunno, but still this drama gets me. Plus I love Park Yong Ha. The last time I watched it I blew thru 5 eps in one night! My husband was already in bed, and he woke up to find me sitting there at 2 a.m. still watching. I felt a little embarrassed! On his next trip to Saipan, he brought me home a pair of BYJ socks. Such a nice guy! Kwon Sang Woo is wonderful. I have Sad Love Story sitting here next to me still in the shrink wrap. It was one of the dramas my husband bought me in Bangkok. One of these days I'll watch it.Have no idea what is up next for KSW.

 
At 5:39 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Loved this one ... giving it to a friend, hoping to make a new KDrama addict! ;)

 

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