Healer
I don't often write reviews, and this would be the first on Google. Among some of the most popular K-drama up until now, I still think this drama deserves a lot more attention. I had maybe a 15-year separation with K-drama (since the "Stairway to heaven" days), not until the pandemic hit that my love affair with K-drama returned!! I caught up with all of the most-worth-watching K-drama listed, but this one wasn't even the list. Upon recommendation of a friend, I gave it a try one night, and then the rest was history!! One sleepless night turned into consecutive sleepless nights as I could not stop wondering how the story unfolds.The story is intriguing and unlike the typical K-drama stories. The romance interlaces in the plot is thrilling. The action scenes are awesome. The chemistry between the leads is believable. The main leads are just charming!! I have watched a few of PMY dramas, and she acts well with all of her partners, it seems; so I expected nothing less from her, and she did not disappoint. This is my first JCW drama, and boy, I am hooked. Not your typical K-drama prince-charming, but a more rugged badass heroic image. The man can act, I assure you! How he switches between the cool Healer to the goofy Bong-soo effortlessly. Watched the behind-the-scenes, JWC did most of his own stunts, how admirable!! The skinship between the main leads is natural; they truly acted like lovers (these scenes sometimes just look awkward in Asian shows). I could not imagine how the shippers had gone crazy over this couple!! Read that JWC gained international recognition after this drama, and very well-deserved.
The OST is nice. The theme song brings a gentle excitement with just a few notes in. The song by "Michael Learns to Rock" continues to echo in my head even after the drama ends. And a bonus, JWC also sang a song here. Because of this song, I looked up his other songs... and the man can sing - a voice with lots of emotion and good technique.
I have re-watched this drama twice, and have not grown tired of it. Definitely one of my most favorite K-drama of all time!! If you haven't watched it, you're missing out. It's the kind of drama that makes you feel smitten just thinking about it!!
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They don't have many OST or what ? Because their OSTs aren't really great tbh but hey we are watching a drama not listening to music.
Is "Healer" a worth to watch drama ? It is worth your time.
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Ji Changwook really sold me. There were three different sides to his characters and sold me on every single side of them: the cool and collected nature of Healer, the nervousness and silly side of Bongsoo, and a mixture of both in Junghoo. Because of how well his performance, it made every reveal hit ten times harder. Park Minyoung also really shined in this performance. Yeongshin has definitely made it in my top three favorite female leads because she's so unapologetically herself. She cares for the people around her and even though she is naive at times, she holds her ground.
This was truly the first drama that I cared about almost every single character not just the mains. The storyline and conflict were enough to fill the drama with suspense right until the very end. Truly, such a great drama and I recommend every go watch.
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A favourite romantic action drama
It had an interesting storyline, a good-paced and well-written drama with the perfect amount of comedy. Loved ML and FL characters, their interactions (protective MLs are my weakness:D ). Support characters also get a 5/5 from me.Action scenes were well produced!
And ladies I mean, Ji Chang Wook, great actor who also knows how to play real kissing scenes (!) <3
Also have to mention Park Min Young, love her acting (and knows how to kiss, no closed mouth and weirdeness)
I love how this drama had real kisses, sweet moments.
Badly chosen music can spoil any good drama for me, but not in Healer's case though: just Loved the music!
Re-watched many times:D
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A very enjoyable drama
I started watching because of the high praises from other reviewers and because of Ji Chang Wook (now one of my favorite actors). I really liked the way they executed the concept of the drama. The action scenes where very good, the plot was full of twists the tension was always there. I fully recommend this drama even though I found the cinematography slightly lacking. Considering the drama is from 2014 it is still good but I am quite the sucker for crispy clean shots. This was the first drama I watched of both Park Min Young and Ji Chang Wook and I am looking forward to more.Was this review helpful to you?
Healing
I have to say - the oldies are the best. Really enjoyable thriller/romcom that falls into the classic Kdrama format that we all fell in love with. Great cast and quite possibly the most enjoyable Park Min Young drama I've watched - even more than Secretary Kim as she's just so real and adorable. Ji Chang Wook is great in his role as 'Healer'.Took me a while to warm to Yoo Ji Ta's character (Kim Moon Ho) but you learn what he all about after a couple of episodes. Kim Mi Kyung is brilliant as always and plays a super hacker who supports Healer.
Some of the production is not as good as what we see in today's dramas - eg everyone is so evenly lit and the soundtrack is good to average - but don't let it put you off. This is a great drama and very satisfying to watch. Also did I mention how cute PMY is in this?..
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This review may contain spoilers
This was a really really good series. The plot is complex, but not so much that you feel overwhelmed. The cast is spot on and does a phenomenal job in every single role. The intertwining family/friend groups is always fun to watch in any series and this one is no different in that aspect. Here is where I differ from I think about every person who loved this show (and let me say again, I REALLY liked it)...I found the romance a bit lacking. That's not to say that there wasn't a romance. There was, and it was super sweet and you wanted to see more of it because the lead characters had such great chemistry, but they don't let you see much of it. They don't get together until 3/4 of the way through the show, and then once they are a couple they only let you see them as a couple for a very few minutes of each of the remaining episodes. It was super frustrating to me because as I said, they were amazing together. I think it would have been fun to watch them read each other the phone book. They just were great on screen together...but you don't get to see them together nearly enough, in my opinion. Granted the romance isn't the driving force of the story as it is in other shows, so that is probably why it's not so prominent. And what you do see is super sweet and cuddly, so it's not like it's not there. Maybe if I watch it again, I'll feel differently, but as of now, that was my thought.
Even so though...GREAT SHOW. I highly recommend it.
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Ji Chang Wook became my immediate actor crush after this drama because it's obvious how good of an actor he is. This was his third work that I watched after Fabricated City and Suspicious Partner, before I moved on to The K2. He is obviously in his best element under these types of action roles, and Park Min Young played really well for her character as well. Yoo Ji Tae was an absolute delight to look at, but I did find his facial expressions a bit stiff in a sense. The ahjumma hacker was the real MVP of the show I must admit, since she's so unapologetically sassy and badass, haha.
The producers could've been more creative with the BGM as the same song was used so many times, but I really loved the OST that Ji Chang Wook himself sang.
Rewatch value is very high because it's such an enjoyable ride to be able to revisit some action or romance scenes, and this drama has also now been uploaded in full series in KBS World TV Youtube channel. Go watch it if you haven't!
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Perfect Balance Between Romance and Thriller
When I started looking into popular Kdrama romances, Healer was one of the most popular and recommended shows. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy a show released almost ten years ago. I figured the production value, acting quality, and storyline would be outdated and problematic. I am so happy to report I was absolutely dead wrong! This show stands the test of time with an outstanding cast and story expertly balancing between an intense plot and epic romance.Let’s first talk about the chemistry - all of the actors worked well together, but the romantic relationship between So Jung-hoo and Chae Young-shin sizzled on screen. Although secrets kept them apart for much of the first half of the show, the second half more than makes up for that distance with plenty of skinship between the two (hugs, cuddles, kisses, etc.). I appreciated the time spent developing their emotional connection to one another, particularly when unveiled secrets threatened their burgeoning romance. The secondary characters were also memorable, particularly Kim Mi-kyung as Jo Min-Ja. Her character had a surprising amount of depth despite being regulated to working at the computer most of the show’s run.
The action sequences were intense and well-done. I know Ji Chang-wook is know for his action work, and it is on showcase in Healer. I did find the storyline to be rather confusing, although I think it worked perfectly well for the mystery aspects of the show. Mystery is not my genre of choice so I tend to miss red hearings and clues other sleuths may pick up. The show tied up lose ends well, although I do wish some more closure was given regarding the role of the Healer in the future.
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This review may contain spoilers
A WORTHY ADDITION TO THE DRAMA WORLD
Is this a good drama? Yes.Are its characters well developed, for the most part?Also yes.
But can it, at times, seem draggy and honestly, kind of boring?YES.
I can definitely see how and why people see this show as a certified classic, creme de la crème of the drama world, as it admittedly has one of the more interesting and gripping plots I`ve seen so far. Action, drama, revenge, not your typical run of the mill, ruined male protagonist... All of these are its good points, together with a great soundtrack. But I still have to hold it to a higher standard, being as popular as it is. This means that my praises are still valid, but criticism is harsher. However, despite it all, it somehow still leaves me wanting more and honestly, I don`t know why. This drama is one of those things which you can respect more than, really love. Like how Lars fon Trir is a great film director, but his films are mostly just not my cup of tea. This logic can be applied here as well. Some plot lines are rather regurgitated and brought back throughout this drama, that I also wasn`t a fan of. It`s a thrill ride up until episode 5, I would say, when it slows down for some actual character development but it also becomes strangely void. My favorite part of any drama is typically that down time, when we actually start to learn and care about our characters. Only, as a fan of quick and tight characterisation(present in "It`s Okay, That`s Love" for an example, where you immediately get the feel of the characters you`re presented with with their first lines), Moon Ho was effectively my favorite character, alongside Seo Jung-hu and Jo Min-ja, who is, to me, the most organically strong female character. Moon Ho has layers upon layers of personality and you only grow more interested in the next one as you peel the previous layer. He`s funny, jaded, charismatic and even though he didn`t get as much of screen time as I would`ve liked(this goes for Min-ja and Moon Sik as well), he owned every scene he was in. The older actors are a delight to watch and you actually feel the weight of guilt, corruption and fear they experience fully. The problem lies in the two main characters however. Or rather, the way they develop less and less as the show moves along. I just feel like for the amount of episodes they were given, Jung-hu and Chae Young-shin, deserved some more introspection. When Young-shin was talking and opening up about her abusive childhood in the second episode, I felt it rushed. It felt almost out of place, this early in the show, so I would`ve liked if they had taken the same approach to her backstory as the one they took to Jung-hu`s backstory, which was presented a lot more naturally. That one scene with his mother in the shaved ice shop is an AMAZING representation of good writing and I urge you, even if you won`t watch this, to see that scene, even all on its own, it`ll move you, for sure. His development however, is halted when the romance kicks into gear. And it`s like writers give up on his intellect as well, as he makes some really questionable decisions which, his character at the start of the show would never make, because of his intelligence. And this is the weakest part of the show. It might be unpopular, but due to the way it was presented, I actually wouldn`t have minded if Young-shin and Jung-hu didn`t end up together. I feel like that would be the final act of tying everything together so that each character can get his or her, fresh start.
The last five episodes are definitely draggy, so much so that I actually ended up watching them as background noise. It`s obvious that what they needed to develop, they haven`t really, while they spent A LOT of time on stories which are nonconsequential when compared to, say, Jung-hu`s and Ki Young-jae`s relationship, which I wanted developed SO MUCH as I loved his character too. But they kill him off so quickly, so he was basically a misplaced and mishandled plot device to further the story. At times, the mystery is handled well, like with throwbacks to the five friends and their time at the junkyard. Other times, it`s messy and chaotic, like Jung-hu trying to find out whether his dad is guilty or not. The action is top notch though. Sure, it`s outlandish and obviously a bit campy but it works, and I wish we got more of it.
Overall, this drama is good, but definitely overhyped for today`s standards. Though it revolutionized the drama game, it`s still far away from that title of timeless excellence, at least in my eyes. But as a good action, it`s definitely up to snuff.
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Watch this if you are in the mood for a mystery waiting to be unveiled, a swoon worthy romance, spunky female lead, and time for binging!
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