Extracurricular: a highschool kdrama that isn't all fun and games

If you have been watching K-dramas for as long as I have, by now you have probably grown tired of the rom-com genre as well. High-school k-dramas like Heirs mostly focus on romance and  while the School series highlight bullying, it's portrayal fails to draw enough attention to it. If "Class of Lies" caught your attention last year, then Extracurricular, starring Kim-Dong Hee of "Itaewon Class" will be right up your alley, with its engaging, fast-paced plot which steers from stereotype and focuses on social issues, sex industry, bullying and mental health. The plot is brought to life on-screen by realistic acting. There are no distracting side stories and the plot follows a mostly linear timeline instead of switching back and forth for the sake of creating cliffhanger like many dramas do.The drama makes good use of elements like visuals, contrasting colors and background music to portray subtle emotions without wasting words.The title of the kdrama can be very misleading if you're going in blind, because it's not about the kind of extracurricular activities that are brownie points for a high-school student. The opening scene shows a teenager rummaging through lego toys and other scrap while in the background we hear a man's voice showering praises on a "model student", as we see the teen holding up a taser, the voice ironically says "he never gets in trouble and sets a good example for others."

              The drama's main character, Ji-soo is congratulated by his adviser for being ranked 1st, but when he sees that he has no demerits or even warnings, he remarks that "it's almost as if you're invisible". He goes on to say "you should make a little trouble every now and then or you'll get into huge trouble later all at once" which gives the viewers an ominous sense of foreboding as an indicator of what is to come, that this might just be the calm before a storm. Despite his top grades, Ji-soo comes across as ambition-less about his future goals and dreams and seems to be interested only in making money. On the advice of his homeroom teacher, Ji-soo joins the social issues research club where he and Bae Gyuri, the only other club member, work together to earn points for "extracurricular" activities. Both his teacher and Gyuri are unaware that Ji-soo leads a double life - one of an invisible, model student and the other as a mastermind behind providing security services to sex workers, which is his "extracurricular" activity outside of school. However, Gyuri finds out about his business when she picks up the phone that Ji-soo uses to operate discreetly. Instead of blowing his cover, she offers to join him, and together they get entangled into a gradually escalating web of madness.

                The viewers curiosity is satisfied when we learn that the sole reason Ji-soo is desperate enough to make money by getting involved in such risky business is because he had been abandoned by his parents and had to support himself, which is why his only dream was to "lead a normal life". While the same cannot be said for Gyuri, who comes from an affluent family, one cannot help but sympathize when the viewers are offered a glimpse into her life, where she lives like a puppet under the dictatorship of her overbearing parents. In one telling scene, when they are kidnapped and their kidnappers go through their account books, they are shocked to find that they spent the money they earned from their illegal business to cover school costs. It is heartbreaking to see high-school kids go to such lengths to receive education, which so many of us take for granted. Min-hee, their classmate is a sex worker who also uses their service although her motive of satisfying every want and whim of her boyfriend Ki-tae who also happens to be the class bully, is not very convincing. While their motives in no way justify their illegal deeds, it leaves less room for loopholes in the plot.

               While this is in no way your average high-school romance, it is fascinating how Extracurricular explored this aspect too, by conveying emotions through actions rather than words. Ji-soo and Gyuri make perfect business partners. Their teacher observes that both of them have a common trait "high intelligence, low emotions" and Ji-soo himself admits that they are too similar. But Ji-soo who had been abandoned by his parents, and Gyuri who detaches herself from her controlling parents have only each other to rely on. Gyuri is probably the only character who understands Ji-soo when she says "He has an unexpected wolfish side to him, but he thinks he's a puppy". Her friends fail to see his charm and asks her what she sees in a loner like him. She is attracted to his smart intellect and the way he coordinates and conducts his business, but she is the only one who sees this side of him when they work together. They go to great lengths to cover for each other, sometimes endangering their own lives or the lives of those around them to protect the other. While Min-hee illegally earns money to pay for her boyfriends wants, he does not seem to care as much for her. However, when he learns of her profession, he tracks down the people she works for, rounds up his friends and tears down a brothel which even leads to several arrests. Ki-tae may not be verbally expressive of his feelings for Min-hee but his actions, though reckless show that he loves her in his own way. Its fascinating how these emotions are portrayed without the usual "I love you"s and kisses typical of other dramas.

A much purer relationship is that of Minhee and a bodyguard from the security service. The way he cares about her well-being and the way Minhee is always at his beside when he is at the hospital is heart-touching. 

            The ending of the drama is beautifully wrapped up with slow-panning shots of Seoul, possibly depicting that Ji-soo and Gyuri are still out there, on the run. It leaves room for a season 2 that many viewers are hoping for, but it may not be such a bad idea to leave the ending open to interpretation for it might be difficult to live up to viewers already high expectations and it would be a shame to see such an amazing drama get dragged and fizzle out.