Pop Culture Critic Declines To Label “Perfect Crown” As K-Drama—Harsh Review Sparks Viral Buzz

Pop Culture Critic Refuses To Call “Perfect Crown” A K-Drama—The Brutal Review Goes Viral

IU and Byeon Woo Seok‘s K-Drama Perfect Crown is facing serious backlash after a pop culture critic slammed the show online.

The controversy began when critic Oh Soo Kyung posted blunt tweets about the drama, calling it more of a “moving photoshoot” than an actual drama.

She said this in response to whether she’d review Perfect Crown:

“은 비평 안 하냐는 질문을 받았는데… 그건 ‘드라마’이기 보다는 움직이는 화보라고 생각하기에 드라마 비평하는 내 관심사가 아님. 사실 1-2회를 봤는데…”
— 오수경 (@odeng7)

I was asked whether I’m not going to critique Perfect Crown. But I think of it less as a ‘drama’ and more as a moving photoshoot, so it’s not something I’m interested in as someone who critiques dramas. I did watch the first two episodes and…
— Oh Soo Kyung

Oh Soo Kyung didn’t hold back. She said the show failed at building a believable world:

“드라마가 서사와 캐릭터를 엉망으로 만들었다? 그런건 드라마로 보지 않는다. 차라리 가 드라마지…”
— 오수경 (@odeng7)

No matter how genre-transcending the content may be, I believe the structure has to at least make sense within that world for the characters and narrative to have plausibility. And that is exactly what Perfect Crown failed at the most.
The drama ruined its narrative and characters? Then I don’t consider that a drama. At that point, I Am Solo is more of a drama…
— Oh Soo Kyung

The critic pushed back on comments saying the show’s popularity meant it reflected the “spirit of the times”:

“에 관한 내 트윗에 어느 커뮤에서 회자되는 와중에 ‘대중의 흐름에는 시대정신이 담겨 있음. 그게 옳든 그르든 시대정신임’이라는 댓글이 눈에 띄었다. 일단 ‘글로벌 1위=좋은 드라마’ 아니고 ‘시대정신=비판 대상 제외’ 이것도 아니다. (계속)”
— 오수경 (@odeng7)

First of all, it’s not ‘No. 1 globally = a good drama,’ and it’s also not ‘spirit of the times = exempt from criticism.’ Just because something is No. 1 globally and has a strong fandom does not mean you can say that a poorly made work was made well. It probably prioritized being something that would ‘sell well.’ That’s why it comes across like a ‘moving photoshoot’… But then I guess that’s what the public wants.
— Oh Soo Kyung

Viewers on Korean community theqoo echoed the critic’s points, laughing at the drama’s lack of originality and saying the leads don’t even work their bodies well enough for it to count as a photoshoot.

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Some comments from theqoo:

I was curious, so I watched it, but it’s so old-fashioned… The leads are in love but it’s boring to me.
LOL. Not even a photoshoot because the leads don’t know how to work their bodies.
‘I Am Solo is more of a drama,’ LMAO.
Even so, those viewership numbers… Is it just actor power?
It doesn’t have even 1% authenticity…
Highborn setting and originality are worse than free web novels.
It’s garbage.
Not even pretty enough to be called a photoshoot.

Fans are split. Some love the visuals and styling, but others say the writing and world-building fall apart beneath the surface.

This ongoing debate asks: Can a drama be visually stunning but fail entirely as a story?

Theqoo comments on Perfect Crown