HIGH SCHOOL: LOVE ON EPISODE 3

Can Woo Hyun see angels?

Recap:
When we last left off, a bully had pushed Woo Hyun into the pool, and he was drowning. Sung Yeol and Seul Bi drag him to the shallow end of the pool. The next day, Woo Hyun searches for the necklace that his mother gave him, but he can't find it anywhere. Seul Bi finally agrees to go to school and ends up in the same class as Woo Hyun and Sung Yeol. She becomes the target of the female bullies when they learn she lives with Woo Hyun -- they want him all to themselves. Sung Yeol finds his necklace for him and is studying  the necklace when his stepmom, Ji Hye, sees it and recognizes it. She tries to get him to tell him where he got it, but he just leaves. He calls Seul Bi, and they hang out in the arcade.  

Ji Hye later encounters Woo Hyun in the supermarket and is stunned when she hears his name. She trails him to his grandmother's shop, but does not reveal herself. Seul Bi drops the necklace into the sewer through a grate and spends all afternoon and much of the evening fetching it, worrying Woo Hyun. After thanking her for the necklace, he takes her to task for worrying him. She sees her sunbae angel and runs toward him. And, judging from Woo Hyun's shocked expression, he can see him as well...


Aquaman, er, I mean Sung Yeol to the rescue!

My take:
Despite some of my readers maintaining that the two INFINITE idols are half-brothers, I haven't been able to find anything about that. However, it seems something akin to that is revealed in this episode. Ji Hye would recognize the necklace if she bought it for her son from her first marriage. But how long has it been since she saw Woo Hyun? She seems to recognize the name, but not him? And why did that marriage break up in the first place? And where is Sung Yeol's mom? Or is that supposed to be a big reveal that they're setting us up for?

Where there are students, there are bound to be bullies. This has been true for ages, and the depictions in K-dramas tend to be somewhat whitewashed. It's interesting that the bullies don't tend to be punished. We see clear indications that these particular hooligans have a tendency towards violence--and right in gym class. Where's the teacher when all this is happening?


Sung Yeol and Seul Bi hanging out at the arcade

I love the way the writers poke fun at their own show this episode. Twice they make amusing references to both of the boys from INFINITE being like idols, and Woo Hyun's friend even pokes fun at the potential love triangle that is bound to develop. When a show is self-aware in this way, it adds a dimension of humor not often seen, like the writers are nodding and winking at the viewer.

The only thing I'm worried about is this drama kind of losing its way. It's funny, and it takes pains to be that way, but the main reason I'm watching is to find out why the angel turned human, how she can turn back, and to laugh a lot along the way. I think the high school elements tend to detract from that somewhat, although now that she's enrolled, that can be considered part of her journey. We do have a new wrinkle this episode, though: It almost looks like Woo Hyun can see sunbae? I thought angels were invisible to humans...


"Where did you get that?"

I bumped the score a bit. I always do that when a drama plays songs that I like, and I heard some K-Pop in the background. Sorry. I'm a music lovin' fool.

I like where this is going. It's setting up more conflicts and the pieces of the story are starting to come together. I just hate the fact that it's only one episode a week.  That means I have a short window in which to feed my fix for cute romance, and then I have to wait. Ah well. Bear with me. The next episode will be here before you know it.

SEE ALSO: Former T-ara trainers side with Hwayoung in past bullying controversy