My Two Cents: Stairways to Heaven

Warning: 

Spoilers are ahead. Please do not read if you do not want me to spoil parts of the drama.

Stairways to Heaven

Year: 2003-2004

Episodes: 20

Synopsis:

After the death of her mother, Han Jung Suh (Choi Ji Woo) was happy for her father when he met actress Tae Mi Ra and married her. Tae Mi Ra has two kids, Yu Ri (Kim Tae Hee) and Tae Hwa (Shin Hyun Joon). Both Mi Ra and Yu Ri bully Jung Suh because they think that she looks down on them. Jung Suh hides this from everyone, including her childhood best friend, Cha Song Joo (Kwon Sang Woo), a rich heir who likes her and she likes him back. When Yu Ri saw Song Joo, she was in love with everything about him, his money, face, and status. Mi Ra and Yu Ri are determined to make Yu Ri his future wife. When Song Joo leaves for the US, Jung Suh waits for his return but during that time, Tae Hwa falls for Jung Suh. The day Song Joo returns, Jung Suh gets into an accident and loses her memory. Tae Hwa changes their names and hides Jung Suh. Song Joo is now about to be engaged with Yu Ri but still can't forget about Jung Suh. One day when he sees Jung Suh, now named Kim Ji Soo, and is confused because she keeps saying that she isn't Han Jung Suh. Will Jung Suh ever remember the love of her life?

Stairways to Heaven is one of Korea's OG dramas and helped spread the Korean Wave. This drama is known to help define what Korean dramas are today. This drama stars the handsome mom-zzang (someone with a nice body), Kang Sang Woo, and Choi Ji Woo is the female lead of the infamous Winter Sonata, along with the beautiful Kim Tae Hee and actor, Shin Hyun Joon. With such a great cast and a plot that has all the necessary elements to a kdrama, it was loved by many at that time. 

BUT

The leads are so indecisive. I'm like yay they are getting together, and then due to external pressures, they change their minds and are like no this is impossible. What gets me really mad is that they don't actually try to separate and go separate ways. Song Joo will be like, I'll marry Yu Ri and then he will constantly meet up with Jung Suh and tell her that he can't live without her. The second male lead, Tae Hwa, is the biggest victim in this drama. He loves Jung Suh so much and when he finally makes up his mind to let her go, Jung Suh comes back to him. He is always the second option. In other dramas, the leads fall in love and then get together and the second male lead gets rejected, but in this drama, he already decides to let go and then the leads give him another reason to not let go. Right when Tae Hwa changes his mind and decides never to let go of her again, the leads suddenly decide they can't live without each other and Jung Suh leaves Tae Hwa again. He is constantly being used. The male lead may seem manly and loving, but to me he is forceful and indecisive. He keeps disrupting Jung Suh and is one of the most indecisive leads in Kdrama history. When I watched this drama, I was like, "JUST DECIDE ALREADY, DO YOU WANT THE GIRL OR NOT?!"