Heartstrings (2011) – Korean Drama

 Heartstrings

15 episodes + 1 special (2011)

Korean Drama

Romantic, Music

Synopsis:

Lee Shin is a university student majoring in modern music. He is also the vocalist and guitarist of the band "The Stupid." Shin is known for his good looks and strong passion for music, but in reality he is cold, lacks interest in anything unrelated to music and has neither dreams nor plans for the future. He initially likes Jung Yoon Soo, a dance professor at university, but this all changes when he meets Lee Kyu Won.

Lee Kyu Won is a bright and outgoing student who was born into a prestigious family and is majoring in traditional Korean instruments, especially the gayageum. Kyu Won's grandfather, Lee Dong Gun, is one of the top 3 traditional musicians of his age and his biggest wish is to see his granddaughter become a traditional music prodigy. Trying to live up to her grandfather's expectations, Kyu Won immerses herself in training and becomes a university student who knows nothing outside of her studies. As her friends are fans of "The Stupid", she was forced to go to the band's concert with them. There she saw Lee Shin performing live, and is immediately captivated by him.

Review:

I’m totally shallow, I admit, especially when it comes to my fave pretty korean boys. I decided to watch Heartstrings because I love love love Jung Yong Hw!. I first fell in love with him in “You’re Beautiful”, then I fell in love with his band CN Blue.

I think it’s lovely that Shin Woo (Yong Hwa) and Mi Nam (Shin Hye) from “You’re Beautiful” got a chance to star in their own romance! 

So, Heartstrings…. I like the characters. Yong Hwa plays his role as Lee Shin, a student majoring in Western Music very well. At the same though..it’s sort of who he is in real life, so I don’t think we can attribute much to his acting skills. That is NOT to say, I did not love his role and how he portrayed it..I DID! Lee Kyu Won was meh… I liked her A LOT more in “You’re Beautiful”. She does okay in Heartstrings, still pretty cute and did a okay-pretty good job acting. The character I really loved though was Cha Bo Woon, Kyu Won’s BFF4EVER! She was so adorably funny and such a great friend--always interrupting Lee Shin and Kyu Won’s couple moments and getting punished as a result by Shin! LOL

As this is a Music drama, we have to talk about the soundtrack. It’s pretty obvious what I think of it..it’s CN BLue’s Yong Hwa, after all! The soundtrack was GREAT! I really loved it. I paid more attention to the performances than to the plot to be honest.

The plot was a simple one…Music school, a performance, some jealousy, attempts to sabotage said performance etc etc Yet, I found myself fast forwarding..A LOT. In addition to the performance scenes, only parts I didn’t fast forward were the romantic scenes.

Overall, I give Heartstrings a "good" rating. While the soundtrack was Amazing, it alone cannot make a drama. Problem is that I can’t quite put my finger on what was lacking…the drama simply didn’t leave much of a lasting impression. I don’t have the feeling of lose one usually feels after a great drama and I certainly don’t see myself re-watching it a million times in the near future.

**Love CN Blue too? Leave your favorite song in the comments!