The first 3-4 episodes of the show are just too good and really make the viewers excited for what is to come, and this rise in expectation can be a problem. I had already read enough reviews of this drama to know that it does not live up to the potential it has, and yes I agree to this. However, the show has many other reasons to stick to it and personally it did not fail me (for most parts).

There are a few things I personally feel most viewers should keep in mind:
-The characters are from a comic book- so even after they realize they are playing a role, there is still only an extent to which they can be developed as the writer of the book has limited their backstories and developing traits (differs from character to character).
-It might seem like Baek Kyung's character is more interesting and developed than most and that is due his complex feelings portrayed in the comic as well so it makes sense as to why he would go through an emotional battle in the shadow too. It helps that Lee Jae Wook portrays him with perfection.
-Haru may seem unfinished in terms of character writing but that perfectly made sense to me as he his fate was always inter-linked to Dan Oh. There are scenes , where he gets to portray overwhelming emotions (memory loss and flashbacks of the previous comic) and Rowoon plays his part so well! This is a character that could easily have been bland but he adds life and charm to Haru.

Now getting to the things that worked well for me:
-Do-Hwa's character, seriously the guy was too good.
-The chemistry between the leads and the entire cast as a whole was amazing. A weird note here- Lee Jae Wook and Rowoon seemed to have the best chemistry, scenes where they look at each other with passion made me think of things they did not intend to lol.
-Haru and Dan Oh were just too cute and I found it super easy to root for them.
-The concept as a whole is extremely fresh and the gorgeous cinematography helps its execution.
-Acting by each character from the main to the support roles is excellent.
-OST and background score was used to enhance the scene instead of making the scene.
-No character was boring as such, those that I was lesser interested in got lesser screen time as well.
-Inner monologues of the character when they realize the nonsensical scenarios that go on in the stage.
-This might be controversial but in spite of the unanswered questions I was pretty satisfied with the ending .

Things that did not work for me:
-As I mentioned, with the strong start, one's expectations rise but the drama does not do all that it could. It has more potential then it lives up to.
-Certain episodes between maybe 11-14 have multiple repeated scenarios.
-Dan Oh starts off strong but starts fitting into conventional tropes as the story follows. She does not do much to change her fate its more of Haru, Do Hwa or even Baek Kyung working for it.
- The drama allows more clichés then necessary, the problem is they have enough elements to avoid those but they do not make use of it as the drama progresses.
-Baek Kyung was interesting but in no way likable for most of the drama. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed watching his scenes but Dan Oh made her disinterest pretty clear but he just did not get her. Troubled childhood does not justify his violent and harsh behavior even in the shadow.
-I did not appreciate them giving Nam Joo the illegitimate son storyline towards the end to justify why Joo Da goes with him considering there was a lot of development for Do Hwa and Joo Da and I really think they wasted the potential of making the second lead end up with the girl considering the scenario they built.

I have mixed feelings towards one thing, lack of involvement of the writer. This SERIOUSLY BOTHERED me at first as I thought the dry squid guy was the writer and later I assumed it was BK's brother but then I realized this revelation could have added more convolutions to the story then necessary and thus it worked for me.

Whoever stuck to this till the end thank you for reading! This might be my longest review lol I just had a lot to say. I would recommend watching this show if you are in a mood for romance and a genuinely interesting concept! Just try not to raise your expectations too high and you'll like it more than you think.