QOT had the potential to be a heart-wrenching exploration of fading love in marriages but instead it gives you bland nothing but a frustrating mess.
Sure, the initial premise was intriguing. A couple from opposite worlds, Haein with her messy family dynamic burdened by family issues and Hyunwoo a seemingly picture-perfect handsome guy from a humble family falling in love despite their differences? This is what I signed up for. From the promos, the show even promised to delve into the complexities of their unraveling marriage.

But here's where things go south. Haein who was surprisingly honest about her family baggage from the get-go during the proposal, gets painted as the villain in her own marriage. We see her blaming herself for the miscarriage, a wound the show never bothers to properly explore. Its there solely for the shock value, just another trope for the writer to add to the list. How can you leave something as important as this, which apparently caused Hyunwoo to be withdraw from the marriage open to interpretation? If this was the main reason, why wasn’t it discussed between the couple? Major Ick.
The initial portrayal of Haein as a cold, workaholic CEO immediately positions viewers on Hyun-woo's side in their contentious divorce. Yet, the series never fully shows us the nuances of a complex character like Haein. After bombarding us with many reasons why Hyunwoo wants to end the marriage, these motivations are inexplicably dropped. The narrative then shifts gears, showing Hyunwoo seemingly forgetting his initial animosity and falling back in love just like that. This was so frustrating. Why establish these compelling reasons for the divorce only to completely abandon them later? This emotional whiplash left me dizzy.

The show never bothers to address the root of their problems. We never get that crucial conversation, that heart-to-heart where they dissect what went wrong. We never get them discussing their insecurity or even the miscarriage.
The only saving grace is the phenomenal acting by Kim Soohyun and Kim Jiwon. Their performances are the sole reason this drama doesn't completely sink. But even their talent can't salvage a story that abandons its own premise.

I believe unconventional love stories can be powerful. But without proper exploration of the conflict, it feels like a missed opportunity. QOT had the potential for greatness, something people remember by for years to come, hailed as one of the top kdramas ever made, but the execution left me wanting more. It's a show that relies solely on its cast's charm, ultimately failing to deliver on the promise of a unique and thought-provoking drama.
While I don’t regret watching it, there are far better K-dramas out there exploring love and relationships with more depth. This one, sadly, remains stuck in a melodramatic telenovela past.