If there's one thing you should know about me going into this drama review, it's that:
a) one of my most listened to songs of 2021 was from Chung Joon Han's score for this drama (Good Night Irene)
b) I have a 'Bookstore Journal' google doc where I typed up all of Eun Seob's blog posts from the show, to look at when ever I need a pick-me-up.

Now that my clear adoration for this little show is established, I have to say: unfortunately, this is not a perfect drama. Eun Seob's trauma plot line seemingly comes out of nowhere and is neatly resolved in a handful of episodes (seriously, what happened to that uncle?). Don't get me started on the ep 16 separation (which I will go into in more depth in a sec). Mok Hae Won's tragedy obviously takes up a larger portion of the plot, and I think the writers did a good job of letting the story unfold naturally without dragging it out for too long or condensing it too much. The main performances are great; Seo Kang Joon is adorable as the quietly-lovestruck Eun Seob, but his more emotional scenes really pack a punch. I thought the complex relationship between the three Mok/Shim women was very interesting to watch, carried by great performances.

I adore the little sequences of life in the town, the book club meetings, the shots of the landscape. The romance is lovely to watch, and as I mentioned before I really do love Eun Seob's little blog posts included at the end of each episode - so much so that I actually wish they'd included it more within the runtime itself, allow us to see a bit more of ES's innermost thoughts.

Now to the big booboo in my view: the eleventh-hour separation. We all know Kdramas love a good episode 16 separation when they've run out of plot; unfortunately, WTWIF is no difference. It is beyond frustrating to see this relationship you've been earnestly following for 15 episodes nearly implode because 1) MHW couldn't have like... given him a call or two from Seoul? And 2) Eun Seob, whose entire character arc relied on him being a traumatised guy slowly learning to open up to people and take ownership over his own voice, didn't even try to fight for the relationship when MHW left, or when she came back. The scenes of her being back in town without contacting him, and him virtually ignoring her were painful beyond belief, and made me feel like the entire development of the relationship over the series was for nought. Argh.

Ok. Breathe. Rant over. Despite its flaws, this show is a gorgeous breath of fresh, winter air. Watch it with a blanket and a cup of tea, let the pure ~vibes~ wash over you. And maybe skip most of the final episode.