Hit the Top seizes an enjoyable comic relief drama with the right mix of bizarre plot and a fantastic cast
Feel-good is the operative word fit for Hit the Top. Brimming with humor and zippy characters, viewers can enjoy laughter from all kinds of comedic notes injected into the story.
- Lead Cast: Yoon Shi Yoon | Cha Tae Hyun | Kim Min Jae | Lee Se Young | Cha Eun Woo
- Streaming Site: Netflix
- Addictive Meter:
- Overall Rating:
- Rewatch Value:
- Dramas of Similar Vibe: Still 17 |
- *First published in 2017
Hit The Top Quick Plot Recap *Spoiler Alert
Hit the Top narrates the story of a 90’s top idol, Yoo Hyun Jae (Yoon Shi Yoon), who gets transported 20 years after to a new world where his star power is of no use. At the height of his career, he decides to leave the management company which supported his stardom, and takes off with a big sum of money.
When a storm hits the country, he slips through time and reconnects with the people he was supposed to let go in the past timeline. His manager-friend Lee Kwang Jae (Cha Tae Hyun) eventually learns his odd appearance as he lives at the rooftop with his son Lee Ji Hoon (Kim Min Jae), who is also Hyun Jae’s biological son.
Ji Hoon has been secretly training in an entertainment agency owned by Kwang Jae’s nemesis, Park Young Jae, who used to be the duo partner of Hyun Jae. The villain, whom you won’t even hate that much in the story, secures Hyun Jae’s music composition notebook, which he has used to launch the career of his company’s prized artist MJ (Cha Eun Woo).
Hyun Jae confronts Young Jae about the truth, and the latter has left no choice but succumb to Hyun Jae’s demands.
Romance blossoms between Hyun Jae and Choi Woo Seung (Lee Se Young), who is also liked by Ji Hoon.
The Time-Traveling Idol
With a heavy heart, Hyun Jae takes on an opportunity to go back in his time to make sure that the future for his son will not be compromised. In his quest to find the money he has taken in the past, he finds a check and a letter written a year after he time-jumps, citing an incurable disease that he was diagnosed with.
Hyun Jae connects the puzzle pieces, which explains the top idol’s disappearance.
When a storm resembling the typhoon that propelled Hyun Jae’s time warp is reported to be approaching the country, he takes the opportunity to time travel again, and meet the dying Hyun Jae near the lake where he was reported to have vanished. He urges him to come with him to the present time to get treatment for the illness that does not have a cure in the 90’s, he refused.
Time traveler Hyun Jae successfully returns back to the present time and lives happily ever after with the gang.
Hit The Top Peak Points
Upbeat, Feel Good and Retrospective Storytelling
Announced as a hybrid of variety show and drama, but I think it is still more of a drama with a lot of comedy in it.
What I loved most about Hit the Top is how it pinches your heart with those scenes of the characters in their life realization moments. The intention to shower a zesty spirit is evident that I am not sure if the production team is aware of how they have imparted you only-live-once pep talks as well.
It helped that the drama is sketched with characters that family members can relate to. The side stories, which feature the supporting cast, are able to stand up on their own without abusing the sanity of the show.
Hearthrob Male Cast
The handsome cast of Hit The Top features Yoon Shi Yoon, Kim Min Jae and Astro’s Cha Eun Woo. They are all visually appealing as eye candies on the screen, and they are definitely a bonus for what viewers signed up for. *wink
Even Astro’s Cha Eun Woo, who is a newbie in acting, delivers a cute persona to prove that he is not just a pretty face. Coming from his serious role as a troubled King in Goblin, Kim Min Jae loosens up in his role as a dream-chasing young man.
Thanks to his stint in 2 Days 1 Night, Yoon Shi Yoon effortlessly nails an endearing face, who covered a lot of emotions in the story. I still consider Cha Tae Hyun oppa as a beautiful man inside and out.
While his juniors took most of the toll in maintaining the consistent hijinks of the story, he responsibly rose to the occasions on moments requiring emotional depth alongside Yoon Shi Yoon.
Humor Overload
Hit the Top is a comical solace – a breather from complicated drawn stories which depend a lot on a problem-resolution-driven trajectory. This easy-go-lucky drama just wants to have fun, and not worry about balancing the yin-yang energy.
It mischievously plays here and there with fantasy and mystery plots, but the fan base mostly relies on the execution of the goofy frames. The inside jokes, the funny situations, and even the slapstick comedy blinded my critical eyes. I ended up on a voodoo trance with its so basic setting.
Hit The Top Series Musings
While the endearing story is coated with the best bubble-wrap in the whole wide world, the improvised story has evident drama no-nos if the viewer has a keen eye on K-drama guidelines. The rules of its chronicle go from hilarious to absurd. If you are the type who rationalizes a lot, then you definitely won’t appreciate it.
It is an amusing drama that does not have anything grand or quaint going on at the time it was airing. But you end up watching it with gusto and with all your heart and soul. *chuckles
A simple story acted earnestly with the right fusion of comedy and thought-provoking lectures, can wheedle an affecting connection to the viewers. The series has stayed on a positive note all throughout its run. That is why it is such an engaging and comfortable show which will soothe you right after a week-long life debacle.
Hit the Top is like meeting your drunk treasured friend, who would blab about insane ideas, and you would stay by his side listening patiently to all those crazy things. My favorite lesson from this drama is how we won’t be having a time-traveling chance like Hyun Jae to settle the mistakes we have done in our lives. So we can avoid choosing the wrong thing, or take the long route of fixing what has been broken.
Life is meant to be lived in the moment. Chasing dreams does not have an expiration date. If you go for it with a persevering intention, it will yield a joyful outcome. I know it does not add up how a comedy-filled drama can give such introspective lingering thoughts. But I promise it really did – in me.
Takeaway Snippets
“Your best days have yet to be lived.”
“Time never flows backward. Live it having no regrets.”
“Having everything in your hands does not mean you can’t be lonely.”
Photos: KBS Videos: Stone Entertainment
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