[TRANS] Heading’s abrupt story changes prompt viewer complaints

Viewers are apparently unhappy with the recent events of MBC’s Heading to the Ground, and I can’t say I blame them — because, doth mine eyes deceive me? Has the drama’s main star U-Know Yunho actually been packed off to a mental hospital?

The drama is now halfway through, and despite the soccer theme, the story shifted abruptly in Episode 5 to center around a mental ward, after Bong-kun (Yunho) suffered an accident. He had been saving Hae-bin (Go Ara) from falling into the Han River, and ended up in the hospital with amnesia.

This week, he finally recovered his memory and escaped the hospital, where a fire had broken out. He risked himself to rescue a fellow patient who had been a support to him during his stay.

As a result, viewers are voicing their complaints about the drama’s choppy plotting and the lack of connection to the previous story. Some point out that the story of Bong-kun being locked up in the hospital dragged on too long (”The Bong-kun who dreams of soccer disappeared, and we got a Bong-kun who dreams of escaping a mental hospital… it’s so improbable”).

Another comment (which cracks me up) complained, “I thought we were getting a soccer drama but that wasn’t it, then I thought it was a romance drama but that wasn’t it, then it turned into a One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest or Papillon drama, but finally it turns out that it’s a fantasy drama where you hit the wall once and the hospital collapses.”

Of course there are some who defend the latest storyline, saying it was touching to see Bong-kun saving his fellow patient-captive and showing some maturity in overcoming adversity. Unfortunately for the drama, it’s still languishing in the bottom of the Wednesday-Thursday ratings; its last episode pulled in a 5.1% against Swallow the Sun’s 18.8% finale and My Fair Lady’s 14.1%. Perhaps they’ll do better since one of those is now over and SBS’s new drama You’re Beautiful kicks in next week — but probably not, since fans of idol star Yunho may be more drawn to that idol-star-themed trendy series anyway.