Weak Hero Class 1 Review: A Galore of Thrilling Acting & Action

Before I finally decided to check out this high-school drama, I would always see caveats like – “Beware, it’s extremely violent” or “It has very dark and inhumane scenes” – and they would stop me from checking out the drama despite the same comments lauding its praises.

Now that I’ve emerged from the other side, I can boldly say that this drama was not as violent and dark as I had braced myself for. Maybe it’s because I already had expectations and was ready for intense violence and darkness, but the drama did not scare me in that way.

In fact, I found it to be a hundred times more entertaining and riveting, even hilarious, than I found it to be dark and violent. What I would say boggled me though was how abrupt and absurd the violence seemed at times, especially from characters you wouldn’t expect at all. It also did not make any sense that the kind of frenetic violence that took place in the drama mostly happened in classrooms – sometimes in front of teachers.

But I quickly remembered that the drama is based on a webtoon, so it makes sense that it can plan and get away with outlandish scenes. Moreover, the crazy good acting and directing make the scenes powerful – they are soooo well built and executed.

Overall, Weak Hero Class 1 follows the story of a physically weak student, Yeon Si-Eun, who is far from weak intellectually and mentally. He’s very calm, almost eerily calm every time he’s focused on studying, and has the kind of fortitude – effortless and merciless – that is hard to intimidate or pierce through. This makes him a frustrating quandary for bullies who think physical weakness equals complete weakness.

Si-eun is a multi-faceted character, and I really found it interesting how his pen was (literally) both his shell and his shield. He used his pen to sink into his books, blocking out his pain, loneliness, and the world’s ugliness. He also wielded it as a weapon, using it to protect himself from threats, danger, and harm.

Park Ji-hoon, a member of the popular boy band Wanna One (now disbanded), plays Si-eun. Right before the first episode started, I realised that oh, this is an idol (a famous Korean-pop band member). This immediately made me think – This is probably his first role. Would he even be able to live up to the expectations I have and all the hype?

But This Guy. HE BLEW IT OUT OF THE BALLPARK. Oh gawd. The crazy part is that he did it without so much as trying hard – his gaze that expressed varying emotions at once, his lackadaisical yet threatening eyes, his lonely spirit doused with apathy – everything came across viscerally without this guy trying hard AT ALL. His eye acting is ridiculously good. Freakishly effortless! And the way that he was able to stay in character, scene by scene – all sickly, internally tortured, and defiant – without so much as batting an eye or losing momentum/ focus for a second is MESMERISING!!! I remember being astounded and even worried, because I know how the dark emotions of this kind of role can trickle into the real feelings and life of an actor. But damn, he risked it all.

I Googled him straight up and discovered that he had been a child actor who appeared in dramas like Jumong and Iljimae. That finally gave me some form of sanity, because I was like, NO WONDERRRRR! a noob wouldn’t be this AMAZING. Park Ji-hoon IS A TALENT. A raw and true one. I will for sure, be on the watch out. He’s seriously mesmerising to watch.

We have two other major characters that become Si-eun’s close friends fighting bullies together – Ahn Soo-ho and Oh Beom-seok. The actors that played them were absolutely fascinating to watch as well.

Choi Hyun-wook portrayed Ahn Soo-ho, the charismatic and self-assured student with sharp martial arts skills and a carefree attitude. At first, I found the character he played here very similar to the one he played in Twenty Five, Twenty One, and that’s because he’s a goofball in both roles. But I later realised he played a mature role here. He was more buff, confident, and attuned to his sarcastic skills. He was just entertaining and captivating in every scene. Choi Hyun-wook’s future is indeed bright. I can’t wait for his future projects and watch how he blows up further.

Hong Kyung, on the other hand, played Oh Beom-seok, and I would say that at some point he almost stole the show from Park Ji-hoon. If an actor can almost steal the show of a ridiculously good actor, then you know that actor is something too. Beom-seok is bespectacled and weak both in the physical and mental sense of things. He’s insecure and easily intimidated. But he quickly shocked me as an audience, turning out to be the most unstable and unpredictable of the friends. This complexity of character must have been hard to portray, but Hong Kyung made the transitions feel very natural. He’s another one to watch out for. I’m super impressed.

Beom-seok was a thought-provoking character. You would want to hate him, but something about the way he was written (and portrayed) would not make you judge and hate him as easily or as comfortably. Bullying indeed breeds bullying is a key message his character was meant to pass across in a drastic way.

The three friends had FABULOUS chemistry. The way the three unseemly characters clicked was so heartwarming and so natural. Kudos really, to the actors and writers.

I have to touch on the action scenes of this series. It was intriguing, refreshing, and deft to say the least. In what feels like what I have not seen in ages, the antagonists are just as skilled in fighting as the protagonists are. There are no easy moves or easy defeats. No matter how self-assured anyone was, you literally had to fight HARD and use your wits to win, and the results were damn thrilling!

Weak Hero Class 1, despite being a high-school drama, did not feel common at all. However, this is not because of the bizarre violence in the show – the opening montage and its accompanying music, the cinematography, acting, and directing make it so unique and in a class of its own. Just like “The Glory”, a drama similarly based on high-school bullying, the episodes are crisp and engrossing.

I recommend this show wholeheartedly and would be exhilarated the day the second season drops.

Thanks for reading guys. Hope you enjoyed it? Ciao, Lovers!