Save the Last Dance for Me is one of the most far-fetched Kdramas I’ve ever watched. It’s a melodrama that stands at the head of all other melodramas. It’s one of those “you’ve got to be kidding me” kind of shows. That said, I loved it.
So let me tell you about the plot. Before I even begin I know how ridiculous it will all sound but I don’t care. It’s silly, but for some unknown reason it’s enjoyable. Kang Hyeong-Woo wants to be a photographer but his father insists he take over his very lucrative business. Hyeong-Woo and his father argue and Hyeong-Woo storms out of the house. He is attacked by a robber who takes his car and leaves him for dead. But he’s rescued by a nice man and his daughter, Ji Eun-Su, and because he has lost his memory and has nowhere to go they take him to their home and call him Chang-Ho. Hyeong-Woo/Chang-Ho and Eun-Su fall in love. But their happiness is short lived because once again Hyeong-Woo/Chang-Ho is attacked and this time when he recovers he has lost all memory of Eun-Su and the time he spent with her as Chang-Ho. Of course Eun-Su goes looking for him, and finds him, but she is a stranger to him now. Will she be able to get him to remember their life together? Okay, so there’s a lot more to it than that, and there’s other characters as well… Hyeong-Woo’s plotting, jealous, ex-girlfriend and an evil guy who likes Eun-Su. I would tell you more but then you’d probably think it’s silly and not watch it. Well, it does get more and more ridiculous as the show goes on but, as I said in the beginning, for some reason I didn’t care.
In my opinion, Ji Sung is one of the best looking actors in Korea. His acting ability is top notch, performing equally as well in a melodrama as in a romantic comedy. He was darling in Protect the Boss, intense in Secret Love, and down-right amazing in Kill Me, Heal Me. In this, he plays down-to-earth Chang-Ho just as well as elite Hyeong-Woo. He’s the best thing about this drama and probably the main reason I kept watching it.
Eugene plays sweet Eun-Su, Lee Bo-Young is the old girlfriend who can’t let go of Hyeong-Woo, and Ryu Soo-Young is the dangerously obsessed guy who wants Eun-Su.
The acting reminded me of a high school play – amateurish. Like I said, Ji-Sung was wonderful but everyone else’s acting was like it was their first time on a drama, over acting or just not enough there.
Neither soundtrack nor scenery is anything note worthy. And the directing falls flat. This Kdrama is 20 hours long which is quite a lot of time to be spending on a “not good” drama. It’s also an old one, airing in 2005. I have seen many older dramas that were pretty good so I don’t think its airing year has anything to do with it being blah, though.
Just a little side note… Ji Sung and Lee Bo-Young (the gal that plays his horrible ex-girlfriend in this drama) have been married in real life since 2013.
I’m sure you’ve noticed, by now, that I’ve avoided referring to Save the Last Dance for Me as a “bad” Kdrama. Even though it’s plain out and out silly, I enjoyed it so I can’t classify it as “bad”. I do suggest you watch it but I’d understand if you never finished it.
Score: 2.5
The Good:
Ji Sung
The Bad:
Ridiculous plot
Poor acting
Lack of major stars
Soundtrack
Writing
Directing
Too long