The k-drama Undercover High School is a series that brings a handsome spy to play a student at an elite private school where a legend about billions of gold hidden there persists. It's more silly slapstick comedy than anything, but has some surprising romantic and dramatic moments, too.
Seo Kang-joon is one of my favorite Korean actors, and this is the first series he's made since finishing up his mandatory military service. He plays Jeong Hae-seong/ Jeong Si-hyun, an NIS agent who infiltrates a snobby elitist school to hunt down the gold. There are four urban legends connected to the treasure that he has to figure out, all under the too-watchful eye of his homeroom teacher, Oh Su-Ah (Jin Ki-joo) whom he eventually discovers was his elementary school love Oh Bong-ja (there's a lot of name changing in this series.)
The hunt for the treasure is the highlight of this series, but the romance between the leads is cute, too (and not as taboo as you might think, given that they believe each other to be student/teacher for half the series.) I have to say that Kim Shin-rok, who plays Seo Myeong-ju, Chairwoman of the Foundation that runs the school and mother of the top female student, plays such a menacing antagonist that she seems almost out of place in a romantic comedy. She's absolutely psychotic behind her smug, entitled mask, and will have you cringing in your chair every time she deals with someone.
Is it worth a watch? If you like your romances silly, definitely. The storyline is completely implausible, and I thought Kang-joon did a great job handling the often ridiculous scenarios his character had to manage. It could have been better if it were a bit more serious, and maybe someone toned down the viciousness of Seo Myeong-ju, a character who was way over the top for really no sensible reason. There is a very satisfying surprise at the very end of the series, however, that you probably won't see coming as well. Available to watch on Viki.com.
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