A Webcomic Character Gets Real in W – The Two Worlds

A webcomic is not real. Or is it? “W – The Two Worlds” is a Korean drama series, released in 2016, with 17 episodes. (An alternate title is: “W: Two Worlds Apart”.) “W” is the name of a popular manhwa (webcomic) and fans absolutely love the main character, Kang Cheol. One day he met a woman from another world, who told him that he was just a character in a cartoon world. That was a shock but even more shocking was when he walked through a portal screen and entered the real world.

♦ In “W”, the webcomic, Kang Cheol, the Hero, Must Die!

It’s been 10 years and Oh Sung-Moo has enjoyed being a successful and popular cartoonist. His webcomic “W” has been well received by numerous adoring fans. But he thinks that it’s time for the protagonist, Kang Cheol, to die! He drew the last scene in the webcomic where Kang Cheol lay on the ground bleeding because he had been stabbed by an unknown assailant.

Oh Sung-Moo’s writing assistant went into his office to bring him a cup of coffee and the cartoonist had disappeared. When his daughter, Oh Yeon Joo, arrived to visit him, the assistant said he didn’t know where her father was. When she went into the office, a hand reached out to her through the computer screen and pulled her in. In??? In … where? She was inside the world of the webcomic. Although she did not know where she was, she did see that a young man was near death. She’s a doctor and she did what doctors do. Saved his life! Shortly after that, she returned back to the real world.

The writing assistant came into the office, completely unaware of what had just happened. He told Oh Yeon Joo not to worry because her father was well. He did not see her father but … the latest chapter of the webcomic had been uploaded. Guess what? Kang Cheol did not die! When Oh Yeon Joo pulled up the latest chapter to read it, everything that had just happened to her was in the last chapter. WHAT’S GOING ON??

♦ Moving Between the Webcomic World and the Real World

In the real world, Oh Yeon Joo was confused, and bewildered, and started questioning her sanity. In the webcomic world, Kang Cheol wanted to find the woman who saved his life. But it was as if she had disappeared into thin air.

When Oh Yeon Joo revisited her father’s workshop, he was sitting at his desk and appeared to be fine. So she asked if he was the one who had written the latest chapter of “W”. The chapter where she saved the life of the webcomic’s main character. He said he did not and told her not to worry because he would clear up any misunderstanding with the publisher.

Oh Sung-Moo’s first attempt to kill off the main character had failed. So he tried to draw a different scene.  This time Kang Cheol would be poisoned to death. That attempt was also a failure because Oh Yeon Joo found out that her father was trying to kill him and … ??? She’s not sure how she did it. But she returned to the webcomic world and saved his life again!

And then … ??? She’s not sure how it happened but she found herself back in the real world. And so it began. Oh Yeon Joo kept going back and forth between the webcomic world and the real world. She had no clue how to control or stop herself from going between the two worlds.

♦ Kang Cheol Chooses to Live?  How?  He’s a Webcomic Character!

Frustrated that the main character was still alive, Oh Sung-Moo decided that Kang Cheol would commit suicide. Only this time Oh Yeon Joo did not appear to save him. Kang Cheol decided on his own that he wanted to live and refused to jump off the bridge into the river. Even though the cartoonist, his creator, had drawn his final scene with him ending his life by jumping off the Han River Bridge. Kang Cheol saved his own life.

Not only that but one day a portal screen appeared, and when Kang Cheol walked through it, he entered reality. But he was just as clueless as Oh Yeon Joo, not knowing how to go between the webcomic world and the real world. One thing he did understand was that Oh Yeon Joo wanted his story to have a happy ending.

♦ Oh Sung-Moo Had a Secret: The Webcomic Killer Also Lives

Oh Sung-Moo never told his daughter that the killer from the webcomic had found a way to enter the real world. He forced Oh Sung-Moo to write and draw the cartoon in a way that would make him, the villain, the main character. He wanted to prevent Kang Cheol’s story from having a happy ending.

Meanwhile, Kang Cheol and Oh Yeon Joo begin to fall in love and they both go back and forth between the two worlds. They also try to rewrite the webcomic to eliminate the killer so the last chapter can be a happy ending.  However, because the cartoon killer is determined to get rid of the heroic main character, this puts Oh Yeon Joo’s life in danger. Depending on which world she is in at the time she could really die! Her father does all that he can to prevent that from happening but … these life-and-death matters get really complicated.

How Will “W” End?

• Does Oh Yeon Joo choose to live in the webcomic world? OR …
• Does Kang Cheol become a real person and stay in reality?
• How on earth is Oh Sung-Moo going to find a way to write the final chapter of “W” and end the killer’s madness?

Main Characters:

• Kang Cheol (played by Lee Jong Suk, “Pinocchio“)
• Oh Yeon Joo (played by Han Hyo Joo, “Love, Lies”, “Happiness”)
• Oh Sung-Moo (played by Kim Eui-Sung, “Taxi Driver”, “Special Delivery”)

Where to Watch

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb Rating: 8 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 8.5 out of 10 stars
• Viki viewers gave “W” 9.6 out of 10 stars

My personal rating is 9 out of 10 stars. I liked the main characters and the story idea. The entire time I was watching the series I kept thinking of the music video “Take on Me” by a-ha. I deducted one star because I didn’t like the ending. (No spoilers) But that’s my only complaint.

LINKS OF INTEREST:

• W Two Worlds – Falling for Fictional Characters and Facing Responsibility as a Writer – The Silver Petticoat Review
• 16 Top Manhwa (Webtoons) to Read Online Now | Books and Bao

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Viki Global TV. “W – Official Trailer | Lee Jong Suk & Han Hyo Joo 2016 New Korean Drama.” YouTube, 1 July 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFyxffHNwvE.‌