[DR] Drama Special ~ Never Ending Love ★★★☆☆

     I just stumbled upon this randomly as I was looking through Nam Gyuri's videos. And it was really hard to find since I had to look up Kyujong's wiki page to figure out what show they were in together. Turns out, it's just a drama special. Regardless, I thought I'd review [it's more of a summary] it any way. So, here we go.

     First of all, our main stars are Nam Gyuri [SeeYa, 49 Days], who plays Kyuri, and Kim Kyujong [SS501, Saving Madam Go Bong Shil], who plays Junsu. And to support the couple, we have Park Ki Woong [The Musical, Bridal Mask].

     Five minutes into this drama and I already figured out that I'm probably going to end up crying by the end of this. And for some K-drama fans, it may be an automatic turn-off. Well, what else can drama-makers expect when they put brain tumor and heart disease together in one show? It sure as hell doesn't beat Oohlala Couple but it's no joke.

     So the story starts off with Park Kiwoong's character [Junsu comes up with the nickname Gown for him later so I'll just call him that], who happens to be Kyuri's childhood friend, jogging with her. And what do we find out in those first few seconds? One, Kyuri has heart problems, and two, she is quite stubborn. Anyways, the jogging was too much so she was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. The doctor in charge of her is none other than Gown. Right away, I can guess why he became a doctor in the first place but in case other people can't, he'll tell you himself.

     As she's brought into the hospital, we meet our male lead Junsu [Kyujong] who is also a patient at the hospital [brain tumor, remember?]. Anyways, he captures the whole scene where Kyuri is brought into the hospital on his video camera? No, I did not understand that at first [Maybe he wanted to be a movie-maker?] but I think some people might get offended by being video-taped like that.

     In the midst of all this, we are introduced to a minor couple which consists of Junsu's brother [who is a kidney? patient...I don't know if they're blood-related at this point] and the nurse that takes care of them. I actually thought this couple was very cute. It was pretty much one-sided but I think anyone would soften up for a guy who brings you drinks and folds a jar full of cranes.

     Back to Kyuri's stubborn nature. Apparently, the hospital is too stuffy for our leading lady. Hence, she always ventures out despite the doctor's orders, and she gets associated with Junsu. Junsu asks Kyuri to be the leading actress in his movie and offers a cigarette as the performance fee. Overtime they become friends, almost kill each other, and eventually fall in love. But that was bound to happen right, especially when their  hearts match. As soon as this little bit was revealed [maybe even way before that], I could predict, either one of them is going to die or both. I had a theory: it's very simple and obvious. I think Junsu will die first [despite all of the times Kyuri jokes about dying] and his heart will be given to her.

Junsu's heart belongs to Kyuri, literally.

     However, before the big tragedy hits, they should live their lives to the fullest [together]. So, for her birthday, Kyuri forces Junsu out of the hospital to hang out. They go try on wedding gear, take pictures, share some kisses on the cheeks, and enjoy a meal together. Oh and Junsu sings for her, gives her flowers, and proposes. It was LEGEN- [wait for it...]

"There is no performance fee. And I also can't guarantee about the show...There's still no plot yet. And I don't know how much I can record, but...You are the main actress in my life. Do you want to record a movie with me?"

DARY!

     First of all, aww poor Gown. I mean, he was obviously in love with her. But she rejected him a long time ago. And he still vowed, whether friends or lovers, he would cure her. So yeah, a little sympathy for him [Park Kiwoong just never seems to get the girl]. BUT, Junsu even got her a ring [not a real one but still...]. And it turns out the song he sang is Confession [originally by SS501?]. He gets a "YES" for effort, after which they hug and kiss. Happy ending? I think not. Well I don't know but this is when they decide to leap 1 month into the future.

     Now we have Gown in the hospital with Kyuri, who does not seem like a healthy bride. Nor does Junsu seem like a healthy Groom. But he's still alive so that's good I guess [I thought he'd die after the leap]. But of course, Kyuri's condition worsens, and as soon as she's taken into [what I assume] the operation theatre, Junsu's heart rate goes flat. TT_TT And everyone moves on with their lives. Just kidding. They forward and show a healthier looking Kyuri and I'm pretty sure my predictions are correct. You can probably guess what happened. And then another leap, but this time it's 1 year.

     It shows Kyuri going into the same restaurant where Junsu proposed to her. Turns out he left her a video diary message for her birthday before he died. And the first thing he says is that when he first met her on the roof, he was actually going to jump. And, not gonna lie, during that scene I was scared he was planning it too, but he didn't so I thought I was wrong. But turns out I was right. He ends the message with "Sorry for leaving first." Cue the tears.

They did a good job making him look sickly...

     Junsu's kidney hyung is shown getting ready to leave the hospital but before he does, he thought it would be nice to gift us with another reason to cry. Apparently, Junsu had found out that his heart matched Kyuri's [forget patient confidentiality...he probably heard nurses talking] and made his hyung promise to remove his oxygen mask if anything happened to Kyuri before him. I wracked my brain trying to remember the last scene with him. All I know was that he was alone, but I can't remember if he had the oxygen mask or not. Anyways, the hyung finally says "I Love You" to the nurse and they make out. No I'm not making this shit up; that's really how it went. Like I said earlier, after his countless efforts, how could she not like the guy.

     The ending scene shows Kyuri running [now she can run all she wants] and when she stops she stomps her feet. In the beginning, Junsu had told her that in Africa, some people stomp their feet when they miss someone [apparently they can hear no matter how far away they are]. But hey, I don't want a sappy ending. So of course, Gown runs up to her...actually, his new nickname is "Weakling". Anyways, it's not really clear whether they are together or not but I'm assuming she's not going to spend the rest of her life alone.

All in all, I think those 55 minutes of my life are not something I'll want back. I don't have much to say. It wasn't really a drama or a movie. It was pastime. 3 stars from me. Yeah, it was typical/cliche/predictable but I wasn't necessarily bored. It was cute, sad, depressing, melancholic, heartbreaking, gloomy, dejecting, dreary...but at least there was only 1 death, right?

Actually, let's just say he went to the army for a while. ;)

And for anyone who wants to watch it, it's available here with full English subs.