Short review: If you enjoy romance plots, go ahead, give it a chance. I really enjoyed my time with this show. It is not perfect and maybe not for everyone, but what k-drama is? You'll know in a few episodes if it's for you or not. What I appreciated the most is the wonderful cinematography, great acting, and very little melodrama. It's a straight-forward and heartwarming experience.

Now, I'll try to keep this as spoiler-free as possible, but as I'm discussing other reviews it is not entirely spoiler-free.

I just finished watching Start-Up and was absolutely confused by all the negative reviews here - so I wanted to share my own opinion as well.

I would like to counter some of the points negative-reviewers have made:

1. It is unrealistic (?)
- Yes, this show is about a start-up but no, this story doesn't probably follow what real start-ups go through. Does this make the show unrealistic? I'd like to counter with: Is ANY k-drama really realistic? huh? It's a show made to be enjoyed, not nit-picked at by IT-engineers and actual start-up people. And even if you do find flaws (which, if you are an adult, are very very obvious) does that automatically make this plot bad? For me it was like watching a fantasy-start-up-plot in a sense, where you obviously know that the people will meet success in the end (again, this is a k-drama) but you're here for the ride of "wow, wouldn't it be so cool if it was that easy".

2. No character development
- Again, did we watch the same show? All leads go through their ups and downs but more importantly, the show literally TELLS YOU when the characters are changing and developing. I very much disagree that the characters don't take huge strides during this show. They all change in their own ways, especially in the ways the characters themselves state they are lacking in (whether that be self-confidence, being considerate of others, being kinder etc.). I find it very lazy that some viewers seem to have been totally caught up in their own thoughts about the show to be totally blinded to very blatant story and character development. If I didn't sincerely believe in this, I would not be writing this review.

SPOILERS:

3. Wrong love-interest
- *sigh* I mean, wasn't it just obvious straight from the first few episodes? Yes, the back-story was mainly focused on Han Ji-Pyong and the letter-storyline was pretty romantic, but I cannot believe that is the only thing you're basing your opinion on. Him "not getting the girl" does not make him any less of a great character. His arc is a big part of what makes this show worth watching, someone who has always lived just for himself starting to open up and accept happiness and other people into his life. Like many other second-leads in k-drama, he was just too late. His affection with (the current) Dal-Mi wasn't enough - it was never reciprocated. One sided love is sad, I've been there myself. Dal-Mi never showed any romantic interest in him, whatsoever. But it isn't Dal-Mi's fault, nor his that it couldn't work out. Shows that make me root for both love interests are always commendable for building up two good leads. You're supposed to feel a bit sorry for him for god sakes! That does not make Do-San a bad lead, though. I feel like the chemistry worked really well and Nam Joo-Hyuk did an excellent job acting wise. I get that not everyone was sold, but I was. When you're not sure if the affection in his eyes is actually irl-real or just acting - well that is good acting! And I felt it from both male leads. I'll defend this position till the end, I said what I said. But I get the disappointment, I do (Reply 1988 broke me in pieces).

Thank you for your time!