How would you feel if you found out you were actually a character in a comic book? And to add insult to injury, you aren’t even the main character. You’re just a secondary character whose only real purpose is to help the main couple find their happily-ever-after.

This drama provides a unique story line and a strong, young cast. At first glance, the plot reminded me of W:Two Worlds Apart, but there are plenty of original ideas to make it different. Extraordinary You is a fantasy, high school drama that follows the students in a comic book series called “Secrets”. When a few of the characters become “self-aware”, they realize they are unhappy with the fate chosen for them by the unseen “author”. The students band together to try to take control of their own lives and determine their own fates.

There are a few things I really liked about this show. First of all, as I said, the concept is fresh and original. We learn the rules of this fictional world right alongside the characters. The story is full of innocent first love and self discovery.  And it even manages to make fun of itself.  As the writer uses common tropes and cheesy line, the characters respond with eye-rolls and disgust.  It is well done and the cast does a wonderful job.

Characters

Kim Hye Yoon as Eun Dan-Oh

Dan-Oh is not the main character in the comic series, but she is our main character.  Her character in Secrets is an extra.  She is the girl with the bad heart.  She is has had a crush on Baek Kyung, a member of the f3 (Nice Boys Over Flowers reference!) since they were kids.  He isn’t interested in her, but their fathers have arranged their marriage as a business deal.

She starts to notice strange things.  Time gaps and memory loss.  Over time, she realizes that she is just a character.  But, when she is not part of the scenes written by the author, she has free will to do what she wants in the “shadows”.  The real self-aware Dan-Oh is nothing like her comic character.  She is stubborn and strong-willed.  She realizes that Baek Kyung treats her like dirt, and she hates him for it.  She is determined to break out of the fate given to her in the comic and live her own life.

Dan-Oh is drawn to another nameless extra.  She believes that if the two of them band together, they may have the power to break away from the author’s story.  Time is of the essence for Dan-Oh. She is sure the author intends to have her character die from heart disease soon. 

Ro Woon as Ha-Ru

Ha-Ru is pretty much a blank slate in the beginning.  He doesn’t have an actual character in the comic.  He is a nameless extra.  He doesn’t even speak in the beginning because he has never had any lines.  Dan-Oh continuously pesters him until he begins to remember her and starts to speak. 

Ha-ru is a quiet, sweet guy who is willing to help Dan-Oh in her quest for freedom.  And as they team up to outsmart the author, they learn that Ha-ru has a mysterious past that may link him and Dan-Oh together.  Eventually they learn that this is not the first time they have been star crossed overs.  They were the leads in the last story written by the author, a historical romance called Flower.  The last story did not give a happy ending.  Can they change their fate this time around?

Lee Jae Wook as Baek Kyung

Kyung is Dan-Oh’s finacee.  He is rude, mean, and doesn’t even pretend to like Dan-Oh.  His character is a weird one for me.  Even after he becomes self-aware, he’s still a jerk, but now he realizes he actually does like her.  Don’t get me wrong.  We do get to see a softer side to him in the later episodes.  And there is an adorable scene of him and Dan-Oh spending the day together, shopping and having fun.  But he never seems to break completely out of the shell of the character the author created for him. 

Secondary Characters

Jung Goon Joo as Lee Do-Hwa

Do-Hwa is a very cute character.  Also a member of the A3, he is the second lead of the comic book storyline.  Unfortunately for him,  even after becoming self-aware, he is still the second lead.  He really does like Yeo Joo-Da, the main female character of “Secrets”.  And she does like him, but she finds it easier to like Oh Nam-Joo as the author intended.  D0-Hwa is the glue that holds many of the friendships together in the comic and in the shadows.

Lee Tae Ri as Jin Mi-Chae

Also know as the Dried Squid Fairy, he is the most unique character of this drama.  He doesn’t seem to actually be a student.  He just hangs around the school kitchen and cooks.  He was a lead character Flower.  His job now is overseeing the story and characters.  Once the self-aware students realize he is one of them, he becomes the counselor to all of them.  He understands the author and the rules.  And he was left heartbroken when he tried to gain freedom himself.

The Ending

I didn’t love the ending of this one.  In some ways it was to be expected since ther was no easy way to tie up all of the storylines as they were written.  There were lots of unanswered questions.

As the story begins to wind down, characters and school locations start to disappear.  Only the characters who are self-aware even notice that they are gone.  Ha-Ru sees that his name has been erased from his nametag, and when he consults they yearbook, his picture is fading.  He hides it from Dan-Oh and makes sure to spend every minute he can with Dan-Oh.

There is a quote near the end of this show that “A3 shines brightest when we are all together.”  I felt that was true of our self-aware group as well.  They changed their stories.  Dan-Oh is still alive and no longer engaged to Kyung.  I wanted to see these guys find a way to break the cycle and gain freedom forever.  But that didn’t happen.

Ha-Ru disappers as he and Dan-Oh hug and call to each other.  Then our story fast forwards 1 year, to graduation day.  All of the leads are still there.  Dan-Oh finds Ha-Ru’s book of sketches and holds the book close as the screen fades to black.

But that is not the end.  A new scene opens on a college campus with all of our leads back in new roles.  Dan-Oh finds a picture of her and Ha-Ru.  At first she doesn’t remember anything, but as she sits on the bench under the tree it starts to come back in fragments.  Just then, Ha-Ru steps out and grabs her hands.  Dan-Oh says she missed him and they hug.  The end.  It’s a happy ending, for now at least.  Who knows what the author has in mind this time around. 

Should I Watch?

Extraordinary You is very popular with young fans.  Idol cast members and a story that takes place almost entirely inside the walls of a high school definitely cater to the young.  But you don’t have to be young to appreciate it.  If you are a sci-fi fantasy fan, the complex alternate reality is worth the watch.  The concept is complex and draws you in quickly.  While the ideas are complex, the characters really aren’t.  It is a high school drama, after all.  The main characters goals are simple.  She want to have the freedom to live her life the way she chooses and with who she chooses.  The plot is a push and pull between the girl who is trying to win her freedom and the author who is working to prevent it.  Some complain that this push and pull gets repetitive after a while, but I enjoyed it all the way to the end.  If you are looking for a cute rom-com with a sci-fi twist, I would give this one a try, for sure.  I give it 9 out of 10 ramen.

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