Moorim School ~ The School Gets Two New Students

“Moorim School” is a Korean drama series released in 2016, with 16 episodes, and categorized as Action, Youth, and or Supernatural. Its full title is “Moorim School: Saga of the Brave”.

♦ Who Removed the Barrier?

In “Moorim School”, Yoon Shi Woo is an idol in a K-Pop group called “Mobius”. One night they were performing on stage and the heavy lighting fixtures above gean falling. Everybody ran because they heard the noise. Yoon Shi Woo did not run because he did not hear anything. He was experiencing deafness and an extremely sharp pain in his ears.

Hwang Seon Ah, a loyal fan in the audience, jumped up on the stage to try and save him. To her surprise, instead of the lighting fixture falling on him, it froze, suspended in mid-air. She was surprised but reacted quickly, just in time to push Yoon Shi Woo out of the way so that he didn’t get hurt. She quickly whispered in his ear to come to Moorim School because the Headmaster there could fix his hearing problem. However, she ran away before telling him how to get to Moorim School.

Wang Chi Ang is the illegitimate son of the CEO of Shanghai Group. He adores his mother and will do anything for her and he would also like to obtain the approval of his father. But so far every school he has attended he has been dismissed. One day when he was out and about a group of guys kidnap him. They were sent by his father to take him to Moorim School. But he breaks free from them and falls into the water. Instead of jumping in to save him, the men run away because they’ve failed in their duty. A young girl, Shim Soon Deok, dives in and fishes him out of the water. She brings him to her home and he contacts his parents.

His mother comes to the home of Shim Soon Deok, but his father only calls him on the phone. The father demands that he attend Moorim School. Wang Chi Ang was not interested until he learned that Soon Deok also attends that school. He decided he would become a student and that way he could see her all the time.

But before all of this time happened, Yoon Shi Woo and Wang Chi Ang accidentally crossed paths. There was a mix-up with the hotel accommodations and they both ended up in the same room. Coincidentally, they both wore the same style jacket. When Wang Chi Ang left the room he picked up Yoon Shi Woo’s jacket instead of his own. He did not realize the mistake until much later.

Yoon Shi Woo also did not realize he had the wrong jacket until the cell phone rang. Wang Chi Ang’s mother was sending him the directions to get to Moorim School. He followed the directions to try to get there. But when he arrived he did not see a school. It was just trees.

Meanwhile, since Shim Soon Deok was already headed to class, Wang Chi Ang followed along after her. They bumped into Yoon Shi Woo on their way and the two guys got into a fight. This was just a carryover from their initial encounter in the hotel room. For them, it was hate at first sight. This fight was just to finish the argument they had already started.

In the process of scuffling with each other and rolling on the ground, Moorim School became visible. Everyone at the school, both students and teachers, instantly knew something significant had happened. The barrier which keeps the school invisible to the sight of outsiders was removed. Both boys arrived at Moorim School as new students. But the staff was informed that only one student was coming. The question was: Who removed the barrier?

At least that was the question both the students and teachers wanted to know.

Yoon Shi Woo and Wang Chi Ang wanted to know: What kind of school is Moorim School? (O.o)

Main Characters:

• Yoon Shi Woo (Lee Hyun Woo, “Secretly Greatly”, “A Good Day to be a Dog”, “Money Heist: Korea – Joint Economic Area”, “Scholar Who Walks the Night” ) )
• Wang Chi Ang (Lee Hong Bin)
• Hwang Seon Ah (Jung Yoo Jin, “Snowdrop”, “W: Two Worlds Apart”)
• Shim Soon Deok (Seo Ye Ji, “Diary Of A Night Watchman”)

Where to Watch

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb: 6.9 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 7.6 out of 10 stars
• Google users shared a public rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars
• Amazon customers rated this series 4.8 out of 5 stars
• Viki viewers rated this series 9.4 out of 10 stars

My personal rating is 8.5 out of 10 stars.

Watching the first episode of “Moorim School”, I initially thought it was some low-key Harry Potter version of a school. But they did not have all of that fabulous food. LOL.

My initial comparison to Harry Potter was so off! It’s not really like Harry Potter, although it seems the kids have special powers. On the surface, one might think it’s a school for martial arts. But as the storyline and characters start to develop, you know it’s not about learning to fight like Bruce Lee. The two main students end up at the school because there is something in their lives they need to work out. So you go with them on their journey to fit the puzzle pieces together, wondering how it all works out for them in The End.

Some reviewers said “Moorim School” was a hidden gem and underrated. To be honest it probably would have remained hidden from me. However, when I signed into my Viki account, it showed up on the home page among the various recommendations of movies and series to watch. I thought it was a new release so added it to my watch list. I realized later, that it was released in 2016.

Another reviewer said: “I want to climb to the top of a mountain and shout the awesomeness of this k-drama to the valleys below.”

Yeah uuhhh … I wasn’t that excited about it. “Moorim School” was G-rated and cheesy, but I liked it!

LINKS OF INTEREST:

• The Reason I Adore the Diversity in K-Drama Moorim School | Readiculous Blog
• Despite ‘Moorim School’ Innovative Cast And Plot, K-Drama Lacks Viewership, Trend Of School Dramas Failing Continues | Inquisitr
• Moorim School 9/10 | Kristen’s Kritiques

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

KBS WORLD TV. “Moorim School: Saga of the Brave | 무림학교 [Trailer – Ver.2].” YouTube Video. YouTube, January 18, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ekX-nl7Hm0.‌