this is a reply to sam bola's review:
Thanks for the… let’s call it a review, even though it reads more like a confused reaction from someone who expected a checklist of drama clichés and got a mirror instead.
You say the lead actor was "insane," his emotions, intensity, everything felt real. And then in the same breath, you say the drama didn’t grip you? That’s like biting into a Michelin-star meal and complaining it didn’t taste like fast food. High School Heroes is a psychological, character-driven story. It’s not there to throw explosions at your face every ten minutes. It builds tension through silence, pain through nuance. If you blink or scroll through your phone, you’ll miss it. And clearly, you did.
You complain that characters come and go. That’s not a flaw, that’s literally the point. Every character reflects a piece of the main protagonist, a possible version of him, a consequence, a memory, a regret. The cast isn’t random. It’s a broken mirror of his inner world. This isn’t a linear school drama. It’s layered and messy like real life. But yeah, if you’re looking for simple patterns, maybe this just flew over your head.
Now about the emotional arc with his brother. You really didn’t catch it? The entire story breathes through that trauma. It’s not written out in some overexplained flashback. It’s there in his breakdowns, his panic, his relationship with Yoongi, his avoidance, his guilt. This show respects the audience enough not to spoon-feed. If you need subtitles for feelings, again, not the right genre for you.
And the whole “blue sky” and airplane bit? That was honestly the moment I knew you weren’t paying attention. It’s not meant to be a literal plot point. It’s a metaphor. For peace, for escape, for something he can never quite reach. It’s visual poetry. Just because you didn’t get it doesn’t mean it had no meaning. It just didn’t wait around to explain itself to you.
The truth is, High School Heroes is one of the best Korean dramas in years. Not because it yells its themes out loud, but because it shows them in quiet, broken, painful, human ways. It’s being compared to Weak Hero Class 1 and Extracurricular for a reason. It doesn’t hold your hand. It dares you to pay attention.
So next time, maybe don’t rush to rate something you clearly half-watched. Or just go back to shows where everything is spelled out and nobody expects you to think. You’ll feel safer there.