I finally decided to watch The Heirs because I was curious about why people hate this drama so much. Now, I too am people (lol). I'm already not the biggest fan of school dramas but this one reminded me exactly why I usually avoid them (usually they are too cute and slow for me). I was also deceived by the cast, which is filled with familiar faces from dramas I liked, even loved, but nothing could save this drama from itself. I guess the point was to show these superficial characters as having hidden depth but because this drama lacked depth itself that theme failed miserably.

The Heirs stars Lee Min Ho as another extremely wealthy student, like a Boys over Flowers flashback, but honestly, he seemed way too mature to be a student this time. Maybe it's because his character was so passive, but even with his usual charm, he seemed out of place as Kim Tan. He is matched with Park Shin Hye as Cha Eun Sang, in a standard poor girl role that has definitely been overdone but can still work if there is great chemistry... Spoiler Alert: There is no great chemistry! Initially, I was kinda entertained by the first few episodes, even if it was full of tropes and way too many coincidences and seemed to escalate to romance way too unrealistically. If the show kept up the same energy as the beginning then this drama could have been decent. Instead, it became so painfully dull I had to force myself to watch it till the end. It didn't help that most of that dullness came from Park Shin Hye's acting (and this isn't the first time I thought she was boring in a drama). Other than successfully crying on cue, I thought she was a bad choice for this role. Her character was supposed to inspire all this attention and admiration, but I couldn't understand what everyone saw in her since she was so boring and uninteresting. That brings me to the bad@ss third-wheel Kim Woo Bin as Choi Yeong Do. He is definitely the most interesting of the three main characters, and a great 2nd lead to secretly root for, but his storyline just didn't make the most of his performance. That can also be said about most of the performances, and that brings me to the writing which is this show's biggest flaw.

I don't always need a drama to make complete sense if it's entertaining. I also understand that melodramas tend to be over the top, which can be fun to watch if done right. I kept waiting for something entertaining or over the top to happen but it never did. Most of the show is the same unequal social status romance trope over and over again mixed in with school scenes of students being catty and bullying each other. How they are kept apart isn't even interesting, neither are the random moments of corporate infighting, featuring Choi Jin Hyu in a forgettable role. Please don't make the same mistake I did and expect the story to eventually pick up or end with a bang. It never does. Even if they condensed this drama into a two-hour movie I still don't think there'd be enough drama to keep the story from dragging, so 20 episodes seemed painfully long.

If I had to choose the best parts of the show it would be the relationship between the leads' moms. Kim Mi Kyung is a favorite of mine and the best performance in this whole drama, and she doesn't even speak, which says A LOT.

Would I watch this again? Never. I'm still surprised I didn't drop it the first time.

Overall, don't be fooled by the cast. This drama really is as bad as people say. Watching characters do the same things over and over again was like watching a drama that is 90% flashbacks. What's the point of a romance with a boring couple that mostly cries over being apart, and anytime they do get together you don't even care (Don't even get me started on the awful kissing scenes). This drama tried to rely on repeating what has already been done in countless other popular dramas and failed. This is the kind of drama you can take several naps through and not miss anything. If you do watch and you start getting bored just skip to the final episode, I promise you that you won't miss anything that important and you will save yourself from wasting hours of your life like I did. Yes, there are worse dramas than this one, but there are too many good dramas with these cast members to watch 20 hours of this.

I guess the point of The Heirs was to feel sorry for these characters who seemed to have everything, but by the end, I just felt sorry for myself for giving this drama a chance. Please don't be like me, believe these bad reviews and skip this drama.