In a bit of a throwback mood, I’ve been rewatching Dream High. Do you like stories about young people working hard to achieve their dreams? Do you like shows about music and talent? Look no further!
Dream High
‘Dream High’ came out in 2011 and was so popular that it even got a sequel a year later. The story follows six students at the prestigious Kirin arts high school, each with their own dreams and worries.
Suzy stars as Go HaeMi, a talented although kind of stuck-up singer who was originally going to Julliard to study opera, but due to family problems had to stay in Korea. She auditions for the school together with her best friend-turned-rival BaekHee (Eunjung) by singing ‘A Goose’s Dream’. During the audition, HaeMi looks down on BaekHee and seemingly betrays her, leading BaekHee to turn against her.
There’s steamy Jin Guk (Taecyeon), who seems to be around whenever HaeMi is in trouble, and made our hearts melt so many times in this drama. There’s also Song Sam-Dong (Kim Soo-Hyun), the lovable albeit slightly goofy country bumpkin with a tremendous talent. He fell for HaeMi at first sight, and followed her to the school. (By the way, did you know our sweet baby Kim Soo-hyun could sing so well? <3 chills)
IU made her acting debut in this drama as the extremely talented but terribly shy Kim Pil-Sook who develops a crush on mad-dance-skillz classmate Jason (Wooyoung). Ah, their chemistry was just too good!
If the crazy amount of talent gathered here hasn’t already enticed you, JYP himself is in the drama as the school’s P.E. teacher who helps the kids with their training (so, basically as himself, heh).
The verdict
The drama is lighthearted, and has its share of funny and sad moments, but mainly it has us rooting so hard for these kids! The story is well-balanced, and the show doesn’t lose sight of its tone until the end. The cast are all very talented so all the performances are real and great. The love triangle is actually done quite refreshingly, and other than the unfortunate use of a fat suit to make IU look the part, I have no complaints about this show.
The OST gave us some amazing performances, including the original theme song ‘Dream High’ by the ensemble cast, Kim Soo Hyun’s solo ‘Dreaming’, and the only ‘Tell me your wish’ cover that can make you tear up because of how bittersweet that moment is in the drama.
If you’ve somehow missed this drama before, rejoice! It means you’ll get to enjoy it for the first time! If you’ve seen it, I can vouch for its excellent rewatch value.
Dream High 2
The sequel, Dream High 2, came out in 2012 and has a completely different cast, but don’t worry, JYP is still here. Its events are set years after the first one.
Kirin High school is long past its glory days, and has been acquired by OZ Entertainment. Because of a new law prohibiting underage idols to perform late at night, and requiring them to study a certain amount of hours, they transfer their idols as students in the school, and rivalry ensues between them and the regular students.
At the center of the regular students we have Hae-Sung (Kang Sora) a hardworking but not very talented singer and Yoo-Jin (Ji-woon), a former child actor and talented songwriter who wants to be a rock star. On the idols’ side, the leads are JB (JB of BTOB fame), a member of popular group I:dn and a great dancer, and Ri-an (Jiyeon of T-ara fame), member of girl group HerSHe, an aspiring (but untalented) actress. Getting to hear Hyorin (Hyolyn of Sistar fame) perform as Na-na, another member of HerSHe, is one of the blessings of this drama.
We follow them as they fall in love, chase their dreams, and realise that maybe there’s a different path for them.
The verdict
The reason DH2 was not as popular as the first one is basically the same as most sequels, it didn’t have the same oomph. While this show has its fair share of great moments and performances, compared to the first season it feels forgettable. The characters are all well fleshed-out, but rooting for the MC (Hae-Sung) is a little hard at least in the beginning, because honestly, she’s kind of annoying. Generally it seemed to lack the same tenacity we could feel from the students in season one.
That said, it had a satisfying and in a way, realistic conclusion. Other than the regret of the couple we all wanted not happening in the end, it was overall fun to watch. I’d say in terms of rewatch value, it’s not as high as the first one, but if you haven’t seen it, and the themes are something you’d enjoy, definitely give it a chance. After all, it did gift us the exceptional ‘You walking towards me’ by Jiwoon among other superb performances, and for that alone it’s worth a mention.
