High Kick 3 cast revealed

50 July 1, 2011November 11, 2011

by javabeans

Well, the official cast has been announced for the third season of the hit family sitcom series High Kick, which had big successes with 2006’s Unstoppable High Kick, and then 2009’s High Kick Through the Roof.

My interest has waned in the series since the controversial ending to the second installment, but I have to give them some credit for coming up with a pretty amusing third title (still a working one): Counterattack of the Short Legs. HA. But the cast list doesn’t really excite me, and if anything is surprising for being so heavy on the pop stars and musicians. Is there a music slant this season, or is it just coincidence?

The full cast list, in order of their pictures in the chart below:

Ahn Nae-sang (Sungkyunkwan Scandal, Three Brothers)
Yoon Yoo-sun (The Duo, My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho)
Yoon Kye-sang (Best Love, Phungsan Dog)
Lee Jong-seok (Secret Garden)
Krystal, idol starlet from f(x)
Seo Ji-seok (Manny)
singer Kang Seung-yoon
Park Ha-sun (Dong Yi)
Kim Ji-won (CF model, Romantic Heaven)
comedienne Park Ji-sun
Julien Kang (High Kick Through the Roof)
Go Young-wook, former member of pop group Roo’ra
Baek Jin-hee (Acoustic)
as well as singer Yoon Gun
and singer Lee Juck.

girlfriday: Isn’t Yoon Kye-sang too big a star for High Kick 3?

javabeans: He’s had leading roles before, but he hasn’t had a lot of big hits — some memorable flops like Road No. 1, Triple, even Who Are You, which I loved but did single-digit ratings.

girlfriday: Really? Didn’t he pretty much go from basking in the idol glory to basking in the Star Actor glory?

javabeans: I don’t think he basked much, actually. Heh. And aw. I think Best Love was his biggest mainstream role to date.

girlfriday: I suppose I haven’t seen that much of his work, but I thought he was bigger. Not that this is a bad move, but just a surprising one.

javabeans: He may…perhaps…be disproportionately big on Dramabeans compared to, oh, real life. I accept no responsibility.

girlfriday: Dude, it’s TOTALLY your fault! You’ve been blinded by the hotness.

javabeans: No, not the hotness, the adorable little-boy-ness!

girlfriday: Either way you’ve been blinded. Or I’ve been duped.

javabeans: Duping implies he’s not actually hot.

girlfriday: HA. Okay, got me there.

javabeans: At first I thought it was strange he took a second lead role in Best Love, but after seeing the show, I’m beyond glad he took it. So tired of anemic Hong Sisters second lead actors, and he made that role work. I’m still sorta torn up about him, and that’s despite rooting 100% for Dokko Jin. Can I have more than 100% of love to give?

girlfriday: Yes, in my math, you can have as many percentages as you want, because no matter how much you love Gong Yoo, someday a Seung-gi is gonna come along, and screw up the numbers. So yeah… you just go with it. I speak from actual number-crunching experience.

javabeans: Remind me not to let you do my taxes.

girlfriday: Even I don’t let me do my taxes.

javabeans: I think scoring High Kick is considered a coup nowadays, since it’s shot people to superstardom practically overnight.

girlfriday: But mostly young newbies, yeah?

javabeans: Mostly, I think, but I definitely got to know other actors through it that I wouldn’t have otherwise. Even being a small part of a huge sensation is gonna benefit you more than being the star of a sinking ship, yeah? Big fishies and ponds and such?

girlfriday: So he’s gone to spread his Little Fishy wings?

javabeans: Can we mix that metaphor more? Yes, he’s going to fly to bigger pastures, where the water’s greener.

girlfriday: Heh. Is that… better? I can’t tell anymore.

javabeans: Let’s say green water is good. For acting careers and idol singers.

girlfriday: It seems like idol actors are getting more flak in the Korean media these days (or again, rather) but there’s a spike lately for some reason.

javabeans: Really? I thought it was getting better. Did something happen?

girlfriday: I don’t know if there was an inciting incident or anything, but there have been more op-ed pieces about the idol actors “taking” roles away, statements from veteran actors against it, etc.

javabeans: Has Lee Soon-jae been cranky again?

girlfriday: Yunno. Cranky Grandpa’s gonna be cranky.

javabeans: I think there’s actually a stark divide. Mediocre-to-bad idol-actors are always going to be attacked (not entirely unfairly) for the constant attempts to capitalize on idol fame. But I feel like the media conveniently forgets a big chunk of the idol-to-singer transitionees, the ones who have ironically transitioned so well that some people forget where they started. And then they’ll bust them out when it’s convenient to their argument.

Singers Krystal, Kang Seung-yoon, Go Young-wook, Yoon Gun

girlfriday: Right. It’s interesting that if you succeed as an actor, that past is conveniently forgotten. Not that anyone’s going to forget that Yoon Kye-sang was in g.o.d.

javabeans: I was just going to say that his past totally gets forgotten! Some people don’t even know he was in g.o.d.!

girlfriday: Haha. Maybe it’s ‘cause WE’re in the generation that wouldn’t be able to forget it, but I do think he’s in that group of actors who transitioned successfully enough to shed his idol past (not that it’s a bad thing, but just what the media does).

javabeans: Then there are the ones like Rain and Eric — there’s no escaping their singer halves since they’re so famous for it, but they’ve done well enough in the acting realm that they escape the scorn. Mostly.

girlfriday: Or their stars were too big to fuck with.

javabeans: I do think they’re decent actors though, fame notwithstanding. They’d have made that transition pretty well if they hadn’t been that famous, don’t you think?

girlfriday: Yeah, they’d be playing leading men anyway.

javabeans: I’m more surprised that the rest of the High Kick 3 cast seems kind of…lackluster? The older generations are always solid (Ahn Nae-sang!) but Park Ha-sun, Lee Jong-seok? Eh.

girlfriday: And old? Well old-ER than the (High Kick) norm?

javabeans: There are some young’uns mixed in there, but yeah. I guess there’s no reason to mimic its prior seasons completely, just ‘cause Season 2 was so closely structured after Season 1. But it’s a curious choice, since it’s such a youth launchpad. Where’s the Kim Bum? The Jung Il-woo? The Park Min-young? The Shin Se-kyung?

girlfriday: Yeah, it seems severely lacking in the Big Stars of Tomorrow trajectory that it’s usually on. It’s interesting that High Kick has become the launching pad that sitcoms used to be in yesteryear. I’m thinkin’ WAY old school, like Song Seung-heon in 3 Men, 3 Women.

javabeans: I know MBC made a concerted effort to steer away from campus sitcoms in favor of family ones, hence the dying of Nonstop and the rise of High Kick. Maybe the demos were better.

girlfriday: They were just stuck in the prehistoric sitcom format. But it’d be interesting to see a rebirth of that genre, like single-camera, HD, no laugh track, fresh music, and fresh faces. Particularly funny ones.

javabeans: Yeah, I’m looking forward to that. In like 2040.

girlfriday: HA.

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1 danna

July 1, 2011 at 3:13 PM

I love Baek Jin Hee!!!

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danna

July 1, 2011 at 3:14 PM

her+lee Jong Suk would be incredibly cute!!

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2 blahblahblah

July 1, 2011 at 3:19 PM

I think that Yoon Kye Sang is way too good to be in this, but honestly it'll boost his popularity and get him more jobs which is why he probably took the role. I can't wait to see him in Phungsan Dog! I know it's gonna be great :)

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traumaqueen

July 1, 2011 at 4:36 PM

I agree. Though I didn't really like Who Are You as a drama, I was very impressed with Yoon Kye Sang's acting chops. He killed the second lead part in Best Love as well. Can't wait to see him take lead roles again, I love watching him take roles and give them so much life.

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3 sweetyo0on

July 1, 2011 at 3:35 PM

kang seung yoon! the power of yg... scares me.
he didn't even come debut as a singer yet! and already he's acting.
not to mention, suh in gook and for that matter huh kak, and jung jae in still can't perform on inkigayo and music core because they were discovered through mnet - yet seung yoon is coming out of their daily drama! -.-;;;;
i'm thinking this will really bring lee jong suk to fame. the new jung il woo and kimbum. he was so adorable as sun! <3

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4 aparna

July 1, 2011 at 3:41 PM

I have always wanted to see HKTTR. But the number of episodes scared me away. But I did not know that Jung il woo, park min young and Kim bum debuted through this series. I am more of a 16 episode kind of a girl. This article makes me wanna give it a shot. Hmmm..

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wootwoot

July 1, 2011 at 6:10 PM

you should try the first season, i think it's called unstoppable highkicks(?)- i think it was more comedy/ laugh out loud humor oriented whereas the 2nd season (highkick through the roof) was heavier with romance/drama.

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5 yuoi

July 1, 2011 at 3:41 PM

"no matter how much you love Gong Yoo, someday a Seung-gi is gonna come along, and screw up the numbers"

girlfriday, I so love your love to SeugGi ><

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amysticlady

July 2, 2011 at 1:56 AM

Its such a true statement!!!!.....ahahaha....I had this biggie crush for Rain aft full house....n then ju jihun aft goong.......bt when Seunggi came along with my gf is a gumiho....everything crashed down....LOL

So girlfriday...*hugs*...I undertand!!!!

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6 Abbie

July 1, 2011 at 3:43 PM

The only one's I recognize are Yoon Kye-sang and Seo Ji-seok. Can't wait! Cute title too!

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just me

July 2, 2011 at 4:05 AM

Yup, me too. Out of all this, I only like Seo Jiseok and Lee Jongseok.. Yoon Kyesang also..
but for others.. no comment.. -.-

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7 sweetyo0on

July 1, 2011 at 3:44 PM

The second was horrible. I didn't like how the bratty girl was so rude and how they treated the dad's disappearance as a joke nor did I like how the grandfather was dating even after the way his wife died. I know they are supposed to be jokes but it just wasn't funny and made me uncomfortable. The first one had it's problems but the characters were lovable despite their flaws so I had a good time watching it.

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wootwoot

July 1, 2011 at 6:11 PM

i agree, the second one had better acting (overall) but it got too dark sometimes (ehem the ending argggg)... I actually enjoyed the first season because it was lighter and funnier :P

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mooses

July 1, 2011 at 7:35 PM

i was really bothered with how they had shinae (ssk's character's little sis) steal the bratty girl's doll, only for the bratty girl to be spanked for supposedly lying and instead of being punished after being found out, shinae got a bunch of dolls. that episode still bugs me now.

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8 jinkzz

July 1, 2011 at 4:05 PM

I watch part of High Kick 1 and part of High Kick 2...beginning to middle part but couldn't finish any of them...lost interest halfway through the series.

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9 theedie

July 1, 2011 at 4:20 PM

Accountant here, _I'll_ do your taxes so that you two can devote more attention to bringing Korean hotties to our attention :D

Btw I'm surprised this dialog didn't somehow end up being a podcast. I feel like you could've done a whole big discussion on the idol/actor thing.

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10 danni

July 1, 2011 at 4:31 PM

Lol at Counterattack of the Short Legs. Yeah, they need to work on that. I was a little surprised to hear about YKS in the new High Kick, but after reading the conversation, it seems reasonable. After having such a successful turn in Best Love, High Kick could only raise his profile.

I guess Korea's going the way of Japan and Taiwan with the way of casting more idols in dramas. Not complaining though, some idols can act and some can't, that's just how it is.

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11 KotKot

July 1, 2011 at 4:34 PM

Yoon Kye-sang is also famous for his movies like 7 years Of Love or Fly Boys ^^

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12 notoriousnoona

July 1, 2011 at 4:54 PM

I've never watched one season of the HK franchise but I am definitely checking it out if YKS is apart of it.
And sadly, perhaps it's true we over here love us some YKS (more than the masses) but he's so worthy of it! I've loved all his roles--save one, and liked all his dramas.

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13 saranga

July 1, 2011 at 6:03 PM

i'm torn about kang seung-yoon's casting. he was super winsome on superstar k (look up his cover of yoon jong-shin's "by instinct"!!), so i really look forward to seeing him again. however he spoke so passionately and earnestly about pursuing rock, i thought he would have come out with an album first. if this sitcom launches him to mainstream fame, i wonder if it will help or hurt his efforts to launch a serious rock career... at any rate, i root for this boy's success!

i thought park ha sun was heading into her thirties but apparently she's an 87er!? wasn't she in queen seon-duk as the king's first wife? maybe that's why i thought she was so much older than she actually is...

i wish they had lee soon-jae grandpa in this series. the casting seems off without his name.

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Obsidian

July 6, 2011 at 12:03 AM

Well, he's still in the VERRRY early stages of his training in YG Entertainment and it'll take anywhere from 2-5 or more years for him to debut so I think YGE is trying to keep him in the public eye while he's preparing for his singing career. Plus it's a good opportunity, he's still very very young (like 16) so it'll be good for him to explore other things in the entertainment industry, maybe he'll develop a passion for acting too :)

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14 isabella

July 1, 2011 at 6:03 PM

i find YKS in this weird also o_o i recently rewatched my sister in law is 19 which was his debut drama and he was the main role so it fascinates me that hes sorta going backwards in a way xD but he seriously carried that drama so iunno why isnt more of a higher level actor xD

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15 ^_^

July 1, 2011 at 6:09 PM

so excited for Krystal and yoon kye-sang..only bad thing is waiting for subs...isn't High Kick a daily sitcom show, that means I'm gonna be so behind on subs

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Lacey

July 1, 2011 at 6:18 PM

Yep and we have to hope that someone will sub the sitcom from start to finish

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^_^

July 2, 2011 at 9:30 PM

that and I hope it's a large subbing team or various subbing teams collaborating...im sure iheartfx subs are only going to sub krystal's scenes, they did the same when she was in More Charming By The Day

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16 Bluefyre

July 1, 2011 at 6:25 PM

I LOVE you guys' convo!!

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17 Arhazivory

July 1, 2011 at 7:03 PM

" He may…perhaps…be disproportionately big on Dramabeans compared to, oh, real life. I accept no responsibility." <- lulz

Didn't I read somewhere that his manager convinced him to do the role? Sounds like he might also have been reluctant. I hope it pays off.

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18 KANGly

July 1, 2011 at 10:24 PM

"girlfriday: Isn’t Yoon Kye-sang too big a star for High Kick 3?"

maybe that's why he's covering his face in the pictures posted here. so we won't recognize him... hahahaha

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19 eggy

July 1, 2011 at 11:21 PM

I wonder how well f(x)'s Krystal is going to do :O

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20 ann

July 1, 2011 at 11:23 PM

girlfriday : because no matter how much you love Gong Yoo, someday a Seung-gi is gonna come along, and screw up the numbers.

Im totally with you on this! My two favorite men!

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21 ar

July 2, 2011 at 12:03 AM

"Counterattack of the Short Legs"--- wicked awesome title!

but I'm also surprised by how there aren't any real young and up-and-coming stars.

I also thought YKS was bigger since he did a bunch of movies.

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22 MJP

July 2, 2011 at 12:13 AM

I just adore when you ladies chat like this! I think I liked the article more for your chemistry together than for the information on the new show. Does that make sense?

Anyway, GirlFriday, there's a very hot video of Lee Seung-gi on the OT. So I thought you might see it better here, since it's always crazy over there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQqrJHEfMb4&feature=related

It's a present from me to you. Can I have Gong Yoo now?

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23 Viki

July 2, 2011 at 12:59 AM

yay Lee Jong Suk! Hope he will be the one who will shot to stardom!

but I think there's a bit more known young stars in this than the previous 2...

and i hope they wouldn't do what they did at the end of High Kick 2...so, so stupid and disappointed (as well as confusing).

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24 Sisneyace

July 2, 2011 at 2:50 AM

I don't care who they cast, I am not watching it. I still haven't recovered from the ending of the second season. Of all the Kdramas ( I've been watching them since I was a kid and i'm in my 30's so that's a long time) it was the only ending that had me throwing my slipper at the tv.

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25 pumpzz

July 2, 2011 at 3:41 AM

Yoon Kye Sang is the main lead in She is Nineteen/My 19 Year Old Sister in Law. He's the main lead there and it is his FIRST drama. I think it's a hit drama because it was also shown in our country in 2005. And it was also a hit here. Although Yoon Kye Sang was freaking adorable, has an amazing azting chops. I find the drama awful.

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26 Nancii

July 2, 2011 at 7:07 AM

YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG! YOON KYE SANG!

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27 Lemon

July 2, 2011 at 7:34 AM

I actually really like Park Ha Sun! She was awesome as the queen in Dong Yi, and I felt she was totally better than Han Hyo Joo in every scene they were in, haha.

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28 le

July 2, 2011 at 2:23 PM

YKS is too good of an actor for this sitcom, but it will give him more popularity. Kim Gap Soo is an awesome actor but it is cool seeing him in a funny role in All My Love. I haven't seen Krystal act, is she bad? if she is the good thing is that sitcoms don't really require much unlike dramas.

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29 Anvesha

July 2, 2011 at 5:15 PM

I will finally get the flimpse of high kick fandom because this time I will watch it cuz of YKS

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30 koreanmichoso

July 2, 2011 at 7:02 PM

YKS!Got so damn love 4 him.love him in she is 19, who r u n in best love i was like, pil jushiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii no wait Dokgo jinshiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.bt i wil surely watch it.Show me any1 who YKS smile neva lights their world!

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31 blueFish

July 2, 2011 at 10:32 PM

Yoon Pil Joo sshi!! I already miss him..
I'm a huge fan of high kick series I'm glad they got someone like him..

Fighting YKS!!

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32 Hana

July 3, 2011 at 6:22 AM

I have no idea what high kick is about but i will watch it for yoon kye sang!!!!

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Fabmari

July 3, 2011 at 9:02 AM

Me too!!!!! Yoon Kye Sang is super cute as Pil Joo..and super cool in Phungsan dog...I am sure he will do comedy very well.

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33 mskimbab

July 3, 2011 at 6:39 AM

High Kick's an MBC sitcom right? Could this be a strategic move on YKS' manager's part to snag him a chance of being in the running for an MBC top excellence acting award? (Given Best Love was an MBC drama too ;) Anyhow, more YKS-> <3333333!

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34 honey

July 3, 2011 at 8:25 AM

High Kick is a great series except for the 2nd installment's ending. It had provided me with a good laugh and light entertainment when I needed it. Plus anything with Yoon Kye-sang is gonna be amazing. Just him alone is enough.

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35 sorcy79au

July 3, 2011 at 8:12 PM

Whoa, whoa, WHOA! What??
Yoon Kye-Sang was in G.O.D??

*Immediately runs to d/l everything from G.O.D*

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36 Gloria

July 3, 2011 at 9:15 PM

Haha I do hope that Yoon Kye-Sang gets more noticed for his awesome acting chops in the future :( Poor boy hasn't had a big hit yet.. so hopefully this will be his shot!

That being said, I totally agree with the following.
Javabeans: There are some young’uns mixed in there, but yeah. I guess there’s no reason to mimic its prior seasons completely, just ‘cause Season 2 was so closely structured after Season 1. But it’s a curious choice, since it’s such a youth launchpad. Where’s the Kim Bum? The Jung Il-woo? The Park Min-young? The Shin Se-kyung?

girlfriday: Yeah, it seems severely lacking in the Big Stars of Tomorrow trajectory that it’s usually on.
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I find it totally odd and unexpected that they're going this way with their casting choices.. I was expecting the next big stars to emerge.. It seems like the producing team of High Kick is switching things up though. Even the name is different :O

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37 Alvina

July 5, 2011 at 6:38 AM

Oh wow, High Kick has changed a lot from it's initial set-up. But, then again, by this point in the same, so had series like "Nonstop"...

I love the title, and I loved the first High Kick (KIM HYE-SUNG!!!! BROMANCE!!!) but the second one has made me wary...

that, and High Kick has always had a kind of bittersweet (and somber) twist towards the end, no matter the highjinks... which makes it hard to watch because the characters you fall in love with leave you with a bittertaste :/

I dunno... I might check it out just because of YKS (and no, I dont think he's escaped his g.o.d. fame lol. The other members still talk about him :D) or grandpa LOL.