I Hear Your Voice

I just had to start with this one. This is I Hear Your Voice, and it set a whole new standard for the kind of shows, books, and films I levitate towards. It's a concotion of several genres - romance, comedy, law, thriller, fantasy - and although it can't quite decide what it wants to be, it's a smootly-written drama with a whole lot of heart.

The story revolves around the lifes of Jang Hye-seong, a jaded lawyer with little concern for her clients, and Park Soo-ha, a student with the ability to read minds. Soo-ha gained his ability in an accident ten years ago, which resulted in his Father's death. Perhaps 'accident' is the wrong word, because in reality he was actually killed purposely by a man named Min Joon-gook, and Soo-ha just barely escaped with his life. The only reason he did was because Min Joon-gook's attention was diverted when Hye-seong, just a disgraced girl at the time, stumbled upon the scene and took a photograph. If Hye-seong were to have never appeared, Joon-gook could easily have claimed the crash was an accident and avoided prison, but Hye-seong gathers the courage to testify against him - and then immediately regrets it. Joon-gook promises that as soon as he leaves prison, he'll track her down and kill her for her trouble. So Hye-seong is afraid for her life, but Soo-ha couldn't be happier that she helped him, thus he spends ten long years searching for her so he can protect her the way she protected him. When he finally meets her though, he finds she isn't the great person he imagined her to be.

I can hardly find a fault in this drama. I love it with a passion. The story is unique and flawlessly-written, the actors inspiring, the music beautiful - I honestly wasn't bored for a moment.

  The character development in I Hear Your Voice was wonderful to watch. Hye-seong is originally a very cold and apathetic person, although after meeting Soo-ha again she softens and becomes kinder. She’s arrogant after winning a case and loves to gloat. However, she grows accustomed to Soo-ha, to the point where she’s lonely without him. After discovering his identity the two become inseparable, whether they’re fighting together or laughing together. Lee Bo-young nailed her character perfectly. This drama is one of the reasons Lee Jong -suk is so popular today, I completely fell in love with Soo-ha. Soo-ha would have been a difficult character to play; an emotional nineteen-year-old high school student with the ability to read minds. However, Lee Jong-suk's acting was amazing, as he really brought Soo-ha to life. It isn't just Lee Jong-suk, all the actors in I Hear Your Voice were amazing. Even characters who I initially disliked, like Do-yeon and Min Joon-gook, made me feel for them.

  The story of the drama completely changed the way I see things. It was my first time watching a thriller of any sorts, and combined with the combination of comedy, fantasy and romance, it became a new kind of genre I obsessively long for more of. It was what convinced me to watch  You Who Came From the Stars, which began airing nearer the end of the year, as well as Signal and Hello Monster. It was so successful it was extended by two episodes! I really have to give my respect to the writer, after watching this couldn't find anything which would satisfy me for a while (hence why I watched You Who Came From the Stars). 

In conclusion, I believe that this drama is perfect. It brought me to my emotional highs and lows; during the last episode I even cried so hard my nose started bleeding! I found myself growing deeply attached to the characters, shouting and screaming for them even though they couldn’t hear me. I was always thinking of the next episode, hanging onto every word, the beautiful soundtrack lodged in my head, repeating over and over like a broken record. This drama is a perfectly-written masterpiece, and although this is where I should say I’d recommend it to anyone, I wouldn’t, because this is my secret pleasure I won’t share with anyone but myself.