I recently had my first initiation into Korean dramas and I must say I was pleasantly surprised and reluctantly impressed. Growing up with HK TVB shows to which I have my own favourites like ‘At the Threshold of an Era’, ‘Cold Blood Warm Heart’, ‘Condor Hero’, ‘Duke of Mount Deer’ (Luk Deng Gei) and many others… I was a skeptic. I didn’t think it was quite possible to top the quality actors, writers and directors that create these serials that keep us glued to the TV every evening.
I was wrong…
‘Winter Sonata’ (겨울연가) was released in 2002 and is the 2nd part of the KBS TV ‘Endless Love’ starring Bae Yong Joon, Choi Ji Woo, Park Yong Ha and Park Sol Mi. In Greek Mythology, Helen of Troy had a face that “launched a thousand ships”. In 2002, Bae Yong Joon giving life to the character Kang Jun Sang (and Lee Min Hyung) in ‘Winter Sonata’ launched a thousand airplanes of fans that have since flocked to Korea to visit the locations used in the filming of ‘Winter Sonata’. ‘Winter Sonata’ became a major catalyst in the growth of Hallyu (Korean Wave).
‘Winter Sonata’ is a story of a wholesome love between Kang Jun Sang and Jung Yoo Jin, the two protagonists in this drama. It starts with Jun Sang and Yoo Jin meeting on a bus on the way to school on their 18th winter. Although they are complete opposites in personality, they are both inexplicably drawn towards each other. Jun Sang is a new student in Yoo Jin’s school and transferred there to Choon Chun, the town where his mother grew up so that he can search for his father, the identity of whom his mother refuses to reveal.
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Jun Sang is withdrawn, cool and uneasy with people. Yoo Jin, who is bubbly, confident and lighthearted, makes it her mission to draw him out of his shell. In the process, the two of them begin a friendship that turns into love. They are both each other’s first loves and appropriately a theme song during this part of the show is a piano piece called처음 (Cheoeum) ‘First Time’. Beautifully played it is a central theme to the show as these two characters are creating first time memories.
While Jun Sang and Yoo Jin are busy discovering their new love, there are 2 other contenders for their affection. One is Sang Hyuk who is Yoo Jin’s best and oldest friend and the other is Chae Reen. Chae Reen falls for Jun Sang and so begins the love quadrangle that carries through the rest of the story. Meanwhile, Jun Sang suspects that it is Sang Hyuk’s father is his father. He transfers his resentment and bitterness towards Sang Hyuk much to Sang Hyuk’s confusion.
Jun Sang discovers some possible awful truths about the identity of his father and decides to leave Korea. On his way to the airport he changes his mind about leaving without seeing Yoo Jin and rushes to meet her as they had planned to on 31st December. As he rushes to their meeting point, he gets hit by a bus and his friends are told that he died in the accident.
His friends are grieved over his death but Yoo Jin is devastated. She holds onto his memory in the years ahead never forgetting him.
The show then fast forward to 10 years later, Yoo Jin and Sang Hyuk are getting engaged. On her way to her engagement party, Yoo Jin sees someone who looks like Jun Sang on the street but loses him in the crowd. The reintroduction of Bae Yoon Joon here creates the rest of the weave that completes the tapestry that is Winter Sonata. Yes, the drama has it’s shares of clichés and plot elements that can also be found in other drama’s: deception, angst, misunderstandings, fidelity, honour, traditions, responsibilities, obligation, duty, sacrifice and selflessness etc… What makes this drama in particular a captivating story is not only the actors but the central themes that create an emotional journey for the audience.
The main characters go through different levels of emotional pain as they struggle to cope with fulfilling their own desires and (especially for Jun Sang and Yoo Jin) responsibilities towards their friends and family. Some of the concepts of social obligations that were introduced in the show may come across as rather alien to some of the audience within and beyond Asia, as their behaviour reflect that of more conservative times.
A story like this makes question whether there is really isn’t such a thing as fate, destiny or kismet. Jun Sang and Yoo Jin’s path in life was akin to the pattern of the helix. Their paths kept crossing and then they were pushed apart only to meet again later. In the end, battle scarred but still true to each other, they were reunited and fulfilled whatever destiny had in store for them.
Bae Yong Joon did a superb job playing both Kang Jun Sang and Lee Min Hyung. There was a distinctive difference in the personalities between Jun Sang and Min Hyung which was really put across to the audience by his acting. You could see him reintroduce Jun Sang’s characteristics when he regained his memories. He also really gave Min Hyung an engaging personality which appealed to the audience. But I must say that towards the end when he realized he could not be with Yoo Jin there were moments which I felt were a little too wishy washy and that his Min Hyung persona would have dealt with the situation better.
Choi Ji Woo was very lovable as Yoo Jin and it was nice to see her at regain some of the personality she showed when she was acting as a high school student, towards the end of the show. Some of the sub characters that added colour to the show and was also key in grounding the central figures of the drama as the voice of reason, but seldom mentioned in reviews include Yoo Jin’s ‘Oni’; Jung and the ‘sum baes’ for Min Hyung’s and Sang Hyuk.
Buckets of tears were shed during this show and hats off to CJW and BYJ for the timing of their tears. How CJW can cry so demurely is beyond me. The director really knew how to pull on your heart strings although I felt he could have spent a little more time on the ending. I doubt that there are many who will watch this show and not have shed a tear or two.
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