Asian Addicts Anonymous

Short dramas…are a good thing. Most of the time. Sometimes the acting is not 100% the best in these little dramas and sometimes it is excellent. Mr. Heart (미스터 하트) follows the story of two young men in college. One is a marathon athlete and the other is a pace runner. This is only eight 11 minute episodes. You can’t go wrong or be bored. Sometimes the acting seemed like acting and sometimes it was spot on. I overall enjoyed this and the plot and drama on a whole did seem better to me than Where Your Eyes Linger. If you are not averse to boys’ love and can handle a light-hearted comedy with some melodramatic moments then this drama is for you.

Lee Se Jin stars as Go Sang Ha. He is tapped by the Coach Bong (Yoo Jang Young) to help Jin Won (played by Cheon Seung Ho) to make a break through in his marathon running. After setting a pretty stellar record, Jin Won has not been able to surpass this record and his pacing has always been off for the marathons he runs later. Jin Won of course bulks at the idea of getting a pacemaker or whatever they are called, but when put to the test Sang Ha is really great a setting an maintaining a desired pace.

It does take a bit, but Jin Won does eventually warm up to Sang Ha. They live in the same dorm on the university and even their passcodes are the same. Sang Ha is a very bubbly and open person and he makes no secret that he really likes Jin Won and wishes to help him. We do later learn that Jin Won was Sang Ha’s senior in high school. Sang Ha witnessed Jin Won throwing out a pair of running shoes, so he painstakingly cleans them and returns them anonymously. Jin Won throws them out again. Sang Ha doesn’t get it. He gives them back secretly once more only to have Jin Won say after using these shoes to run a marathon, they can’t be used again so whoever thinks they are helping him aren’t. After that, Sang Ha gives milk to Jin Won every day.

They are then reunited in college and Sang Ha is happy to be near Jin Won and happy to help him. While Sang Ha is trained perfectly in setting a pace, he himself is not a marathon runner. Jin Won does reveal this his issue when running marathons has become he gets scared running out their by himself. It seems awful dark and lonely. So when Jin Won ran his first marathon with Sang Ha as his pace setter, the boys enthusiasm and outfit caught his eye and actually spurred him on because he is running with someone, not by himself alone. Of course, Jin Won is a stoic person so he doesn’t really like to show that Sang Ha has grown on him and he really is starting to like him as well.

Sang Ha, to help Jin Won, ends up taking him on his morning milk route. This route has helped train him to be the pace setter he is now. He had to make the rounds in a certain amount of time and would challenge himself to break his previous records. You also learn about Sang Ha’s past. Losing his mother, being buried in debt. This leads Jin Won to decide to do something to help him. He talks to the coach to have him draw up a contract to have Sang Ha get paid well for his pacing services. The little adorable puppy that is Sang Ha is NOT happy by this. He isn’t doing this for Jin Won a a job, but because he likes him and honestly wants to help him, so he turns down the offer. Jin Won doesn’t get it. Sang Ha needs money, so why won’t Sang Ha do this?

The debt collectors are getting angry with Sang Ha’s lack of payment and ignoring their calls because he’s helping Jin Won. They want him to do some quick, nasty work to get the last of the debt repaid. Sang Ha pleads to finish what he’s doing first to no avail. They tell him he either wins the marathon and gives them the prize money or he must sign Jin Won’s contract. Of course, Sang Ha being Sang Ha, won’t tell Jin Won what is going on.

In the end Sang Ha does run the race and he does beat Jin Won. He then disappears from beside Jin Won as you know he feels guilty. But…little by little…we could see Sang Ha’s cheery attitude and affection start worming its way into Jin Won’s heart. He finds Sang Ha and scolds him for leaving. He also confesses his own feelings. He likes Sang Ha.

Given how short the time is, I surprisingly didn’t feel like their relationship didn’t develop well. Jin Won didn’t immediately accept Sang Ha and instead his affection did grow over time. Jin Won himself couldn’t believe his own feelings that were growing for Sang Ha were something akin to love. His best friend Hyo Ri (played by Lara) had to help him figure this out. It was nice to see Jin Won’s development towards Sang Ha. Our adorable puppy Sang Ha never changed in his affections and I am happy to see that there actually wasn’t a conflict at the end it was just Sang Ha being depressed and overthinking things and Jin Won had to come in and tell him he can’t just leave. Seeing them on their first official date was also adorable.

While the dark parts were a jarring contrast to the brightness of the rest of the episodes, I did overall enjoy this drama and I really liked Sang Ha. Lee Se Jin did an amazing job and his acting seemed very natural. There were times I thought Cheon Seung Ho’s acting as Jin Won had weak moments, but overall I think he did a great job. Seeing the quartet of Sang Ha, Coach Bong, Jin Won, and Hyo Ri together preparing for the marathons and celebrating was also a highlight. I think there was great chemistry between the actors overall.

So why don’t you marathon this short and sweet little drama? I don’t think you’ll regret it if you do!