Looking through these older reviews, it would seem apparent for most drama watchers that there are two extremes from reviewers of this show; those who cited “ W” as the best thing since sliced bread, and those who believe that it is one of the worst/ mediocre K-dramas ever produced .

“W” revolves around our female lead Oh Yeon-Joo ( Han Hyo- Joo) , a rational surgeon who is fairly embarrassed about her father , the celebrity artist Oh Seong-moo ( Kim Eui Song) ‘s popular webtoon series “ W”. Things become strange for Yeon- Joo, however, when her father suddenly disappears and she is able to meet the main protagonist Kang Chul ( Lee Jong Suk) by stepping into his fictional world. Yet things become even stranger when Yeon-Joo and Kang Chul learn of a mysterious man who wants to erase the bridge between fiction and reality by somehow moulding them together. Together with Kang Chul, Yeon- Joo begins a journey both in reality and fiction to find her missing father and put an end to the intentions of this mad man once and for all.

Of course there’s no denying that “ W” has all the right markers of being a brilliant production; the actual premise was intriguing and gave food for thought(thanks to renowned scriptwriter Song Jae Sung -Nine: Nine Times Travel, Queen In Hyun’s Man and Memories Of The Alhambra), the show had a top-notch cast in particular Lee Jong Suk , Han Hyo- Joo) and having a high -production should have easily sealed its fate as an an instant blockbuster phenomenon.However, the drama’s biggest flaw can probably be found within its lacking abilities to “ pace and progress” storyline, plot inconsistencies ( including a bathos ending) and ( in particular) character progression.

By default our Oh Yeon Joo had the potential should have been a well-rounded protagonist ; highly-intelligent, stuck in a strange relationship with her father and having an even more complicated childhood than a lot of heroines in K-dramas . Yet, Yeon-Joo didn’t really have enough time or purpose aside from her “ assets” to the plot, to actually be deepened or grow as a character- she rarely acted upon her intelligence ( even in the webtoon world), was exposed to have really any emotional depth or relationships ( including friends) outside of her father’s circle and her job, and it was hard for a major part of the series to see any striking reason for her attraction towards Kang Chul ( apart from the fact that she “ had a crush on him” when she was younger) as an individual .

Arguably Kang-Chul was slightly better tackled upon this front of characterisation that Yeon Joo. ( His existentialism as well as darker personality traits from trauma to revenge play a major part in the later storyline, adding a subtle twist from the typical “ Prince Charming” trope typically taken on by screenwriters in this scenario.) Nevertheless, Kang-Chul often felt a little “ bland” as a love interest for Yeon-Joo. It is often hard to entirely pinpoint where this “ blandness” can truly be found , however, the most apparent feature within Kang-Chul and Yeon-Joo’s lacklustre relationship is that Kang-Chul never really goes out of his way “ to get to know” Yeon-Joo.

Naturally whilst some of this is obvious to the plot line, it seemed odd even for a webtoon character not to intrinsically try to strike up conversations or at least ponder the similarities and differences in personality and behaviour between himself and Yeon-Joo. Although Kang-Chul undeniably has reasons behind some of his actions , he often felt like an intrinsically selfish individual who often pulled Yeon-Joo into uncomfortable situations and emotional gaslighting over the course of the series. For a show which focused upon these two individuals as a couple, their relationship often felt too mismatched, lacking in actual depth and anticlimactic.

Sadly, however, the show didn’t really try to pragmatically “ flesh-out” their relationship, instead ironically focusing upon “ the overarching antagonist” who was sadly more disappointing than our main characters . It is wrong to entirely deny that the villain of “ W” wasn’t intriguing, as there was a lot of potential ( especially in later revelations) towards the antagonist being well-rounded, however, before even the halfway mark, the show’s later decisions with our antagonist greatly began to downgrade storyline and general interest in what was happening to our main characters. A bad writing move in any drama hoping to engage viewers through plot .

It’s therefore fair to say that “W” isn’t necessarily a “ dire ” show and actually has some praiseworthy factors including a good cast, screenwriter, production value and an intriguing premise. On the other hand, it’s fair to say that “ W” did let down a lot of expectations for viewers in regards to the fact it had such a good cast and premise as well- poorly - written and “ stock” characters ( particularly our villain), a dragged-out storyline and an incredibly lacklustre “ deus ex machina” finale, instead of ending the show on a natural and appropriate high note. Overall, “ W” is a perfect show if you’re bored and looking for something to binge watch without a second thought , however, if you’re actually looking for a fleshed-out story with well-written characters and an engaging storyline , then look elsewhere because “ W” is truly a waste of time.