Flames of desire was a hit show that came out in 2010 starring: Shin Eun Kyung,Jo Min Ki, Seo Woo and Yoo Seung Ho. This particular Korean drama made me feel like an emotional wreck and it got me to ponder over our basic human need which is desire. Anything that remotely resemble desire could either help mankind or destroy them. Throughout this presentation my emotions were like a rollercoaster despite how the actors were being a bit over the top from time to time. Shall we delve into the world of Flames of Desire?

The story was about a woman name Yoon Na Young ( Shin Eun Kyung) and she always dreamed about becoming rich. Na young was a tomboy when she was a kid and had a hard time with being poor. Also, she didn’t  approve of the way her father lived and  Na Young respected a tycoon named Kim Tae Jin (Lee Soon Jae) which was her father’s close friend. Kim Tae Jin had three sons: Kim Young Dae (Kim Byung Ki), Kim Young Joon (Jo Seung Ha) and Kim Young Min (Jo Min Ki).

Na Young was motivated to move to Seoul from a young age and she wanted to marry one of Kim Tae Jin’s sons. Yoon Na Young ended up marrying Kim Young Min and had a son; Kim Min Jae (Yoo Seung Ho). Kim Tae Jin’s family was quite large and all the members of the family wanted a piece of the pie called: Dae Seo Yang Group and because of this there was a huge family feud that ended up costing the relationship between the Kim family members.

Kim Tae Jin was  getting up there in years, so, he was  trying to pick the appropriate person to take his place and everybody in the family was doing their best to be in favor with the old man. Min Jae, Young Min’s son was  a likely candidate to become the successor of the Dae Seo Yang company but he started to waver the moment he interacted with the hottest celebrity in Korea by the name Baek In Gi (Seo Woo).

Yoon Na Young really annoyed me at the beginning. I wasn’t quite sure if it was the character itself or maybe  even the slight over acting from Shin Eun Kyung’s end. However, with repeat viewing I figured that it was both. This actress was overdoing it on occasion but I still thought that the problem laid mostly in the writing.

I became an emotional wreck while watching Yoon Na Young but the more I pondered over this character I couldn’t help but to realize that she was a bit amped up.The creators of this show made Na Young so extreme that you couldn’t help but to hate her and I sometimes felt that they did that on purpose. The creators did a good job with making me totally dislike her since I was able to think that Yoon Na Young was a total lunatic.

I even thought that this woman was evil and the people who wrote the script  made sure that I felt that way about her. However, the more I watched  this show I came to the realization that everything was just a facade and underneath all that madness Na Young wasn’t what she seemed to be on the surface.

Baek In Gi was the hottest thing in Korea but this girl carried a lot of baggage. On the exterior she looked like she had it all but there was this deep seated pain that many didn’t know about. Baek In Gi might be very popular and in the spotlight quite often but her agency had to create scandals in order for her career to stay relevant.

This girl was mysterious and also she had a hard time following orders from the company. In Gi’s life changed once she encountered with the possible successor of the gigantic company: Dae Seo Yang. This girl had many fans admiring her but at the same time she had just as many anti-fans. On the internet it was very easy to find all kinds of nasty rumors about her regarding her sex life and among other things. However, this was just nothing more than rumors created by the company that represented her. To Baek In Gi love was nothing but a game to help boost up her career but after she had that fateful encounter with  Min Jae she seemed to be in a dilemma about this whole ordeal.

Kim Min Jae was the son of Kim Young Min and Yoon Na Young. He lived away from his parents ever since he was a young boy. He was sheltered from such a  young age that this boy became hungry for freedom.The  more he was protected the more he seemed to want to get away. This kid enjoyed going on camping trips all by himself. Also, he was quite interested in going from place to place  taking pictures. He loved riding on his bike and roaming freely even if his family was wealthy. Min Jae’s mom expected a lot from him since he could possibly inherit the family business but that was the least of his interest.

Kim Min Jae had a lot of cousins and they were  jealous of him since he was favored by the grandpa.The cousins were  busy either playing around or working at their respectable jobs or even waiting for a  husband to come by but Min Jae was trying to get out more so he can experience life outside of his home.

Kim Young Min was the third son of the tycoon for Dae Seo Yang group. Chairman Kim Tae Jin really adored this guy and even his older brothers admired him as well. The third boy Kim Young Min was kind of hard to tell what he really was about. The reason why I say this is because on the surface he seemed like a gentleman but there was this side of him that nobody knew about.

This man was quite mysterious since what you see on the exterior could possibly be something totally different than what he actually was. I think that this character had a lot of layers and it was surprising to find out that he could be a certain kind of way. Kim Young Min came off as a guy that was  gentle and nice but from the beginning he was pretty cold to his wife Na Young. However, to his son Min Jae he was more or less always nice and also Young Min seemed to try his best to understand his son; even if he didn’t agree with him.

There were a handful of side characters and it wasn’t overwhelming like some Korean dramas because there weren’t a whole lot to keep track of. Most of the side characters were other family members of chairman Kim Tae Jin. The  oldest son Kim Young Dae was supposed to be the comic relief but unfortunately this character got annoying really quick. Most of the time in these K-Dramas, comic relief works very well but with this particular character it might have been funny at first but I got burnt out with this supposed humor. However, I did like the interaction between Young Dae and his wife just because they both put their brains together to make something happen. Sometimes I couldn’t help but to think that Young Dae’s wife was  actually smarter than him. The oldest son boasted about his achievements and made a big deal about it even if nothing really happened yet.

Kim Young Joon was  the second son and this man was a bit of a goody goody two shoe. He could be a bit stubborn and liked to do things  in just one way. He wouldn’t waver and hardly ever changed his mind about things. This  son supported his father all the way through even though the dad might be taking care of business in an unethical way.Young Joon and his wife Nam Ae Ri(Sung Hyun Ah) were like fire and water. Young Joon seemed to just have humble dreams while his wife was a very ambitious person.

Kim Tae Jin grew up poor in a little town in the outskirt of the city of Ulsan and he became a self made man.He started out small but by making the right decisions the man became very powerful in the country. Many people wanted to do business with him in various sectors of society because this man had so much power that he was able to help them get things done.

Yoon Jung Sook was the older sister of Yoon Na Young and this lady was the total opposite of her younger counterpart. If Na Young was a go getter then Jung Sook was the type that would just stand  by  and watched things happen. There were times when I was a little frustrated with Jung Sook’s apathy. I don’t know if I should call it apathy or some kind of low self esteem but either way Jung Sook rarely to ever stood up for herself. However, I do praise this lady’s nice personality but she was too extreme in her kindness that she let other people  step all over her. I guess the Yoon sisters were  totally polar to each other in a way.

Park Duk Sung was a guy that Yoon Na Young used to know when she was a young woman but this guy was known to be a player and obviously he was not very responsible when it came to his deeds. I honestly think that this character made me laugh more than Kim Young Dae and saying that Park Duk Sung made me giggle comparing to Kim Young Dae isn’t a good thing since this man was  immature and didn’t know how to take care of things like an adult should.

There were a few actors in this show that did a good job. Some were just merely entertaining and the others were able to prove to me that they were able to grow into wonderful actors as they get older.

Shin Eun Kyung did a great job as Yoon Na Young, even though her character was a little over the top. Shin Eun Kyung’s overacting happened because of the poor writing and maybe even the direction. The reason why I say that Shin Eun Kyung did a good job was because she made you convinced that you dislike her a lot.

The actors that I enjoyed were Seo Woo, Yoo Seung Ho and Jo Min Ki. Also, I was very impressed with the veteran actor Lee Soon Jae.

Seo Woo was able to play a character that was multi-layered and just like usual she was very good at being innocently cute while she could be seductive in kind of an evil way. This  lady could combine these attributes in one character and made it her own. As a viewer I just couldn’t help but to be in awe of how she was capable of  making you feel sympathetic towards her at one moment and at the same time it was very easy to say negative things about her.

The actor that I watched with great anticipation was Yoo Seung Ho. Maybe it’s not fair to say this since I am a huge fangirl of this actor but I tried to be as objective as I possibly could. Truth be told I watched this show mainly for Yoo Seung Ho and thankfully it worked out somewhat well.

Yoo Seung Ho was only seventeen years old when this show aired on network television. He played a young man that was 21-23 years old and even though he was only in his teens he played the role quite well. The only thing that was a little strange to me was the fact that Seung Ho still had a boyish face but then he was able to do a good job since he is such a fine actor. On top of that if you look at him closely he could  look a bit mature under that boyish face.  

Another thing that initially bothered me was Seo Woo playing Yoo Seung Ho’s love interest and the main reason was because of the age gap but after watching them together in a few episodes I changed my mind. The main reason why I changed my mind was because of both Soo Woo and Yoo Seung Ho’s interaction with each other. At first I thought the two actors would look very awkward because of the difference in their age but the two of them looked really cute together after awhile. Seo Woo looked very youthful so she didn’t look like she was robbing the cradle while Seung Ho was able to pull off playing a 23 year old college grad.

Seo Woo was really good at being cute and innocent while having an ulterior motive. This actress was able to be attractive in a sexual way, good enough to lure in a young man and at the same time she was able to pull off a childlike image with her youthful looks. Seo Woo had proved to me numerous of times that she was a fine actress. She was in other dramas like: King’s daughter Soo Baek Hyang and Tamra the Island. Seo Woo’s character in Flames of Desire  reminded me of herself in the drama King’s daughter Soo Baek Hyang since they have similar characteristics but in Tamra the Island she was more or less happy go lucky.

Jo Min Ki’s character was supposed to be nice and he was able to play that well. This actor had a very intense aura and that’s why he seemed to be perfect for a character like Kim Young Min. He was able to play a nice guy but cold at the same time or should I say aloof.

Lee Soon Jae is a veteran actor,he has been around for a handful of decades and that is besides the point. Since this man is a seasoned actor and he was able to make us feel comfortable even though his character was not quite what he seemed to be on the surface.

Camerawork,editing,writing and music are important factors when making a film and even television dramas. I would have to say the cinematography was slightly above average and I did enjoy certain shots as well. Also, editing didn’t seem bad either. There are so many Korean dramas that get pumped out every year but some of them look so bad because of the poor editing. I try to understand with the poor editing though because these editors in the editing room don’t get a whole lot of time to make everything perfect. This drama didn’t look choppy like some I have seen over the years so that’s why the editing was somewhat good even though it’s not the best I have ever seen.

I am starting to realize how important writing is for anything you watch whether it’s for movies or dramas on television. However in Flames of desire the writing could have been better. I mean, the writing wasn’t bad since I have seen shows where the writing was just horrible. The problem with the writing in this drama was the way they have written certain characters. I think my main problem was the two sisters. Whoever wrote this made Na Young just a little bit too over the top while Na Young’s older sister Jung Sook was a bit pathetic to look at. I really had a hard time understanding why the writers made Na Young so crazy, I wonder if it just was for the dramatic effect?

Flames of desire has many different small themes and as the title suggests desire is the main thing. It is normal to have desires since we are humans but when it becomes too extreme then we could mess things up.

I really enjoyed watching this drama even if there were flaws here and there but it was well worth it for me. If you are into family drama and family fued then Flames of desire is for you. I have to mention this, if you are a Yoo Seung Ho or Seo Woo fan then you would also get a kick out of it.

The Photo belongs to MBC and I do not own it.