W (2016)

Disappointing

Disappointing. The story is at first ambitious, unconventional, and exciting but it eventually falls flat, spirals out of control, and becomes worse than average. The acting leaves a lot to be desired. The characters are poorly written and not well thought-out. The romantic aspect is completely immature and fails to develop into something interesting. The music is alright but not incredible. The premise had a lot of potential and the production quality was high but the execution failed.

At times, the story felt like an excuse to pad out the run time. By the end, I was watching it not because I enjoyed it but so that "I might as well finish it". It drops in quality in every aspect and by the end it is a shell of what it promised to be. I appreciate the boldness of the author to attempt a story such as this but in the end, it was a failure.

Leia Mais

So this started out GREAT! The first like 10 episodes were super interesting and I was so hooked, I couldn't go to sleep without knowing what would happen next. But sadly, the quality of the show declined.

I understand why this has such great ratings. The plot is one of a kind, Lee Jong Suk's acting abilities in this one are on point and honestly, it's super thrilling! BUT BUT BUT after a while the plot just keeps repeating itself. Sure, there is some logic behind all of it but having the same characters die and come back to life 3 or 4 times really gets old. There were so many points at which I thought "NOW would be a great time to end it" but no, they kept going by making a character we thought was dead/gone reappear for the hundreds time...

The female lead was also a big problem for me. Her personality was... non-existent. I couldn't tell you ANYTHING about her other than that she is in love with Kang Chul and that she is a doctor (which she forgets throughout the show by the way, because she never goes back to work lol)

All I can say in conclusion is that the plot is very interesting and I really wanted to know how this show would end, which is why I kept going even after the numerous twists became very old. Would I still recommend to watch this drama? Yes, because I feel like this has become somewhat of a "classic" in the kdrama world and it is one of a kind after all.

Leia Mais

First of all, the idea of this drama was really creative and different, the actors were also really great (especially the main male character </3), the setting, the background everything was great. However, the plot though, it's really confusing. I'm not the type who will watch the entire episodes minutes by minutes, I would do a lot of skipping because I don't have enough patience, but still understand at least what was going on in the drama as a whole. This one though, I still don't understand the main plot or how the webtoon's author had the power to enter the webtoon's world he created. I asked my friends (they also said they don't understand too) who also watched this and even google it, and I still don't understand. I think it's such a pity because maybe if they simplified the conflict a little bit it would be more enjoyable? What do you guys think?

Would I rewatch this? Maybe, but solely because of the actor LOL he's soo handsome </3

Leia Mais

This was the drama where I discovered LJS and HHJ. Such sizzling, charming sparkles between the two. I've fallen for both of their charms and I HEAVILY ship them together.
Acting: So. Freaking. Good. THE ACTING WAS SO GOOD. As a newbie to k-dramas, this is one of the only dramas that make me think, 'wow, this is some mad acting'. HAN HYO JOO is the best actress I've watched so far. Everything feels so natural and not overdone and when she cries, I cry. I understand the reputation around her now. Her character was so charming and I loved every scene she was in. You know there are some dramas where the female lead becomes annoying or cries out of nowhere, HHJ doesn't do this. I could sympathise and understand her actions and I just loved this character.
LEE JONG SUK is the ideal bf. I ADORE Kang Chul. He does this small smile that makes the girls go CRAZY. The chemistry between them is unbelievable. I want them to go out in real life. They're so cute together I can't imagine LJS with anyone else.
The actor who played the dad. Wow. Wow. I have no other words. Korea is so blessed to have him as an actor. The emotions... whoa. The acting for this show was just so right.

Story: Original. So original. Laughed a lot, cried a lot. Have conflicted feelings towards the ending because it's acceptable but idk, I feel conflicted.

Music: Feel like more focus was on the acting rather than music so I didn't really pay much attention to the music to have much thought about it.

HIGHLY recommend. Even if you just watch this because you love LJS or want a break from overused cliche dramas, it's a must watch. LJS x HHJ.

Leia Mais

My favorite Korean drama.Absolutely the best in every aspect.It's a must watch for me but careful!You need to have a lot of time as this will make you lose your sleep.Also a box of tissues next to you is adviced as this is an emotional rollercoaster.
P.S. If you weren't in love with Lee Jong Suk,this drama is the one that will make you love him no matter what.
P.S.2.The female lead is absolutely amazing as well.She's a great actress and plays a relatable and overall great character.It's refreshing to have an interesting female lead that doesn't make you want to rip her heart out.

Leia Mais

W is one of the most interesting and creatively devised K-dramas I have ever watched. It is packed with a fair amount of suspense and drama (from light-hearted to serious). It does have some romance, but this aspect isn't as prominent as the other two. I love this fact as most dramas, especially the cheesy ones, tend to overemphasize the lovey-doviness of it all, while W offers the "mama bear" amount (just right). The first several episodes were light-hearted and easy to follow but became fast-paced and somewhat difficult to follow towards the end (keep your eyes peeled!). I ended up rewatching a few of the latter episodes to reassess and to confirm answers to questions that had popped up in my mind while watching. In the end, most were answered but I still had a tiny bit of questions that remained unanswered...W's cast choices were excellent as everyone appeared to balance each other out in acting styles that flowed seamlessly with the storyline. My hat's off especially to Kim Eui-Sung (Oh Sung-Moo) who portrayed a variety of character tropes that would be difficult for an actor of amateur caliber. Not only is the story and acting/cast well-thought out, the OST and background music really rounded out W, especially bringing out the suspense and fast-paced-plot factors. Overall, I would definitely rewatch W in the future and potentially share the show with friends who aren't even into Korean dramas.

Leia Mais

If you're looking for originality and a thriller suspense filled drama that keeps you on the edge of the seat, W is one of the few that will satisfy that hunger. This drama filled with unpredictability and full of anticipation has its reason why it became one of the highly anticipated dramas of 2016. This drama will also hit a soft spot for the majority of the audience who perhaps had a thing for fictional characters- and I'm no exception.

Story
Oh man, I was hooked right from the start- the plotline moved incredible fast during the first few episodes which resulted in me binge-watching all 16 episodes in 2 days, without any regrets. The summary sounds simple, a webtoon character comes to life and struggles to live- however it's more than that. It follows Kang Chul and his hardships and struggles to live while everyone is out to kill him, and you can't help but emphasize with him as this character just simply wants to live as a human, and who has a right to take that from him?

The Good
What really made this drama successful is Lee Joon Suk and his incredible portrayal of his character really brought this story to life, however like all dramas, there always something that could be done better. Aside from Kang Chul, Yeon Joo's father is the only other person I found incredible- his portrayal of a father turned psycho over his creation coming to life was incredibly realistic- who wouldnt freak out if the character you drew was out to kill you?

The music was wonderful- the music fit the mood of this piece quite well and the instrumentals were the best, I already downloaded some of the OSTs which already tells that I liked it.

The Bad
The female lead Yeon Joo was amazing, don't get me wrong since I didn't mention her in the good- however she had so much potential at first. she's a doctor for goodness sake but it seemed like with every accident that happens, she just somehow never makes it on time to save the day and although she is a strong confident woman, when romance kicks in- she is reduced to a love-induced mess.

Romance. Did I expect romance? Of course, with almost every drama- there is always at least a bit of romance, which is totally fine. It was adorable in the beginning, how an enigmatic man is curious about this secretive woman full of mysteries- however nearing the end, it makes you question, just why on earth did they fall in love with each other? Their romance was sadly very spurious, it was just two leading roles acting out scripted lines and I did not feel any spark between the two which was quite disappointing. It made me question what made the two fall in love with each other? It only seemed like they got together because Kang Chul deemed her as the key to his life to figure out the ultimate truth.

Not to mention, the side characters were beyond regrettable as they had so much potential to be more than just someone to fill out Kang Chul's life and perhaps further the plot slightly.. the side characters didn't have much.....character (haha) at all as they existed just so Kang Chul wouldn't be reduced to a crazy lonely billionaire. I was looking forward to his sidekicks and how they would help him act out his revenge on the killer or save him- but literally, they were almost never there when he was in trouble. It was literally just Kang Chul + Yeon Joo versus the villians.

Plot Holes- this story is filled with confusion, especially at times. Overall, there may be illogical moments but it's still doable, however the ending did not make sense to me- as i felt like the writer only made the ending that way because people wanted it. I know its confusing but I can't really explain much without giving away spoilers. Some things may be illogical but it ties up in the end... well most of them, and some other things just downright do not make sense.

You must be wondering why I'm giving this drama such a high score with all these paragraphs of what I didn't like- but thats because this drama is exceptional despite its problems. These little plot-holes are insignificant when you look at the bigger picture as you're too overwhelmed with what truly matters- the story line.

To conclude, I highly recommend you to watch it as its one of a kind, however don't expect it to be the best dramas ever- but I sincerely enjoyed every moment

Leia Mais

It was the best in everything

I don't know what to say but I'm gonna bless the one who wrote it because I think he's a genius. I mean every episode came with something new, innovative.
Now to talk about the actors they are also very very good and had a best chemistry.
I think I watched every ep with curiosity,happiness and sometimes sadness too but this doesn't matters because, aah,to say in four words: THE BEST DRAMA EVER WITH THE BEST PLOT,BEST CHARACTERS,THE BEST PRODUCER,THE BEST DIRECTOR .......I think I need more than four words to describe it and to describe what I feel. 1000000000 stars for this beautiful drama

Leia Mais

I love this drama! Particularly since the concept is great – in and out of the 2 worlds and the readers of the manhwa actually see how the characters deal with the fact that they are in manhwa and how they come to term with it, how Yeon Joo’s dad gave his face to the killer and the consequences of it and how they tried to end it (you literally can read from the manhwa how Kang Cheol discussed the ending lol). Its pretty cool if you think about it. How exciting to read that kind of manhwa in real life. So I ended up really like it a lot. I want to be entertained while watching a drama so I ended up enjoying lots of the plot twists – it is enjoyable when you can’t predict it. And I understand all the rules and concepts of the manhwa world so I pretty much understand why this and that happened so I didn’t end up hating the plots.

But it seemed many people didn’t understand the concept of the W world since many keep asking if the world keep spinning when Kang Cheol is no longer there. The writer pretty much explained everything in the drama. The W world is just another world that moves on its own. Yeon Joo’s dad only control the lives of the main characters of the manhwa through the tablet and his drawings. But despite that, these manhwa characters can control their own destiny as Kang Cheol managed to save himself many times despite the countless of times Yeon Joo’s dad tried to kill him. So with or without Kang Cheol in the W world, the world still exist and everyone is living there normally. The concept is that the W world is just another world in another dimension. It moves on its on with or without Kang Cheol.

Many were also confused on what happened to Yeon Joo’s dad. He died/disappear as Kang Cheol is the one who survive the end. It is the last chapter, so one of them needs to die for the manhwa to end. He supposed to kill Kang Cheol to survive (noticed how the Dad’s hands stop disappearing when Kang Cheol was shot) but since he killed the congressman and let Kang Cheol survive, he will cease to exist because of that. Why one of them need to die? It got to do with the fact that they keep disappearing when they are not doing anything – it indicates they need to end it properly for one of them to survive.

Its understandable why people lost interest in the second half of the drama especially when it got confusing. But this drama still score high on my list for its creativity and pace alone. Not many Kdramas as unpredictable as this so I enjoyed this one a looooot. And I finally see the fuss on Lee Jong Suk. He is an amazing actor without a doubt. The revelation scene between Yeon Joo’s dad and him is very memorable. How his expressions change from sad, disappointed to angry is just amazing.

I thought the scene when Kang Cheol was waiting at the Bus Stop was particularly heart wrenching – how he kept calling Yeon Joo since he knew he’s running out of time and when Yeon Joo come back to the real world before reaching him was brilliant as well.

As someone who have been watching Kdramas for more than a decade, I’m really tired of watching sad or plateau endings in Kdramas. I’m glad that it is not the case for this one. Its a happy ending and a deserved one at that considering the main character had suffered so much – being shot, stabbed, beaten, prisoned, family killed, realization that he is just a character and etc… He’s just very pitiful and I’m glad they give Kang Cheol a happy ending. :D

Leia Mais

Be prepared for the most satisfying and well balanced K drama on your plate!

So this is the first K drama I have ever watched and...I just love it! The plot hooked me in right from the beginning. Not gonna lie I was not a fan of K dramas, it was actually my bestie who suggested this and I found the topic interesting so I decided to give it a go. And it was amazing. It completely satisfied me.

The plot was just...wow. I loved the idea, and there was always something happening on screen that made it impossible to stop watch. For the people who rated this below 8/10, I will never understand you. Of course there were cute, cosy and adorable moments with just the right pinch of humour and comedy in the midst of all seriousness. It was a very balanced blend of an interesting plot with a bit of humour and romance. There are also scenes that make you tear up, or maybe just me cause I'm really sensitive...But still!

And the acting was also really good as well! This being the first K drama I have ever watched, and not knowing any actors or actresses I knew that Han Hyo Joo and Lee Jong Suk, were definitely one of my favourite actors.

Okay, not gonna lie I forgot all about the music so I listened to it again and I wouldn't say that I liked it but I wouldn't say that I hated it. Altogether the music was alright but I didn't fall in love with it like I normally do.

The re - watch value is high because I re - watched the whole thing like 5 times again as soon as I finished it. And then I got tired of watching it over and over again, but now I'm back to it again.

So overall this is an amazing drama, the only reason I didn't give it 10/10 is because it was kinda sad, and bits where they were trying to create suspense were actually sometimes (very rarely) confusing. But all in all I would completely recommend this.

Leia Mais