‘Welcome to Waikiki’ Review: A Funny, Underrated K-Drama

It’s the k-drama that will have you doing spit takes and thigh slaps from all the hilarious hijinks! This Welcome to Waikiki review is basically one huge fangirling session because I just finished it last weekend, and it was so freaking good. I’m so glad that I was able to see this in my Netflix algorithm because it would’ve been so easy to miss out on this hidden gem.

The sequel of the show has found some newfound popularity after the entire Asia population fell in love with Ji-pyeong from Start-Up. The actor who plays him, Kim Seon-ho, stars in Welcome to Waikiki 2, leaving the first season to go unnoticed.

But we all know that a show being obscure does not mean it’s automatically a bad show. Find out why Welcome to Waikiki is the perfect example of that after the jump. And good news: we are keeping things relatively spoiler-free for this one!

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Welcome to Waikiki Synopsis

Before we delve into the actual Welcome to Waikiki review, let’s first get to know what it’s all about. The JTBC-produced show is good ol’ classic comedy sprinkled with some cute romance in between. When we say “classic comedy”, that means leaving your expectations of smart humor out the door.

We follow six normal young adults — three men and three women — who always find themselves in insane situations while living their daily lives. All of them eventually stay together under the roof of the breathtaking Waikiki Guesthouse which they also run. The ensemble of roommates include the petty Kang Dong-gu (played by Kim Jung-hyun), his sister Kang Seo-jin (played by Ko Won-hee), the geeky Bong Doo-sik (played by Son Seung-won), and the breakout star of the show, Lee Joon-ki (played by Lee Yi-kyung).

Things start to shake up in the guesthouse when they see a random baby inside one of the rooms. Later on, they learn that the adorable but awkward Han Yoon-ah (played by Jung In-sun) left her there because she was afraid of being a single mother.

The guys feel bad for her situation, and slowly welcome her into their family. Dong-gu is the most reluctant one at first because he found her ditziness quite annoying. But in traditional k-drama style, he soon starts to develop some romantic feelings for her.

They are also joined later on by Dong-goo’s ex-girlfriend and aspiring model, Min Soo-ah (played by Lee Joo-woo) after she falls for a scam. While her brash attitude and history with Dong-goo makes it hard for her to win over the hearts of the other characters, she soon finds herself fitting in naturally with them.

Welcome to Waikiki Review

Welcome to Waikiki is a fun and easy-to-pick-up k-drama with a lot of heart. We actually placed this show in our 2021 list of feel-good, lighthearted k-drama recommendations, and for very good reason.

It’s like a sitcom presented k-drama style; think high production value and tight writing. The sticky situations they get into are usually a direct result of their own ridiculous choices and their stubbornness, and their problems snowball into bigger ones until they get their well-deserved comeuppance. While most of the situations only happen within the space of a half-hour, certain storylines last for multiple episodes. Basically, you’d still have to watch the entire thing in order.

Don’t get it twisted though: Welcome to Waikiki is not pure unadulterated comedy. They suck you in with ridiculous humor at first, and then inject some romance and a tiny wee of drama later on. It doesn’t get in the way of the show’s “flow” though.

In fact, some of the best moments in the show come because there’s a little drama in it. You’ll find yourself laughing at a guy munching on buffalo bones to go viral one minute, and then loudly cheering on a guy who confessed his feelings for the girl.

It’s the perfect show to watch if you’re looking for a fun little break from all the heavy k-dramas that you’ve been watching. Whenever I was on a binge for the weekend and needed something to rinse off some major boredom from the previous show I had watched, I’d always put this on because I knew that it was a guaranteed way to improve my mood.

There are many good things about this show which make it a required watching experience for everyone who likes to have fun. So… that’s everyone.

The Good

First, the humor is different (in a good way) from many modern American sitcoms that you may be accustomed to. It doesn’t rely heavily on sarcasm or witty comebacks to get some laughs out of the audience. Instead, it focuses on the situation at hand and how the characters deal with the unrealistic ridiculousness they are faced with.

I will admit that the show’s humor does tend to border on childish sometimes especially when it gets to slapstick territory. But once you get used to it, you’ll find that its part of the charm.

As we said earlier, Welcome to Waikiki starts to veer into romantic territory halfway through. While this allows room for more melodrama into the show, those parts are usually kept to a minimum. The romance is not really why someone would watch this particular k-drama, so it’s okay even if they are largely forgettable.

The writers are still able to work in the humor into the romance relationships anyway. Having them in the show also helps with some key character development, so they are very much welcome. My only gripe is how a large portion of the final episodes does get brought down a bit by all the romance drama.

What I’m saying is the romantic relationships (especially the build-up to them) is enjoyable to watch, but ultimately, it’s not really the number one reason why you should seek out Waikiki.

Aside from the humor, the cast of brilliantly funny actors makes the show really enjoyable. I found myself constantly surprised with how committed they are to making themselves look like clowns for laughs. I’ve always had the idea that Korean actors are afraid to look un-beautiful, but Waikiki proved me wrong. I mean when one of your main girls’ quirks is being able to grow a moustache overnight, looking beautiful doesn’t matter.

All of them look like they’re having fun throughout it all. While the show didn’t explore some relationships among the characters as deeply as they could’ve, I was able to feel the chemistry among them. This is especially towards the latter half when the actors have become noticeably more comfortable with one another. I could not imagine other actors filling in their roles.

And if I do see these actors in other projects, I don’t think I would be able to disassociate them from the people they played here.

The characters are really the ones that turned this show from “just good” to great. Everyone is likeable in their own right, especially Lee Joon-ki. He is an aspiring actor who has the most memorable storylines in the show. He just steals the scene all the freaking time with his huge movements and wacky facial expressions.

The other ones in the ensemble cast are able to balance him out pretty well, but trust me: all of them are dorky idiots… idiots we love.

Unique is a word that encapsulates Welcome to Waikiki. You’ll notice this from how it’s edited and all the way down to the set design. For instance, the entire show is presented in pleasing pastel colors which helps bring accentuates its lightheartedness and easy-watching vibe. Aside from that, there were so many memorable one-off/side characters who brought so much laughs into the show even if they were only there for a little bit. If you ask me right now, I could probably name half of them.

I just wanted to point these small things out in my Welcome to Waikiki review because they all add up together to make the show even more brilliant than it already is.

The Bad

There are only two cons I would like to point out in this Welcome to Waikiki review, and they are pretty minor in the grand scheme of things. The first one has to do with the awkward first impression it gave me. I will never forget how I tried to watch this way back in May, but the very beginning of the show involved toothpaste getting into the mouth of a sleeping Dong-goo. Just like that, I turned it off because “meh, it wasn’t for me”.

I obviously ended up giving it a second try and fell in love with it afterwards.

Looking back, Waikiki relies on a lot of similar “childish” humor at the first couple of episodes and it isn’t going to be everybody’s cup of tea. I know it didn’t seem like the show for me who was so used to American sitcoms. But the more you watch it, the more you get used to it. Then it really starts to get when Yoon-ah starts to settle in with the other residents in the guesthouse.

If you’ve read any of my reviews, you’d know that how long an episode lasts is a huge deal for me. For Welcome to Waikiki, every episode runs for approximately 60 minutes… and that is a lot of comedy to get through in one sitting.

Even if I was laughing my ass off and having fun with what I was watching, I would find myself constantly checking how much time was left before it ends. I just don’t think a scripted comedy series was meant to have that running time. As I learned, you do get tired from laughing a lot and there is some fatigue involved from having too much fun.

As a result, the last twenty or so minutes of most episodes recurringly become an afterthought. If I’d already get exhausted halfway through a single episode, that does make me doubt how “binge-able” Waikiki truly is.

  Welcome to Waikiki Rating: 8.5/10 

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Any questions about our Welcome to Waikiki review? Leave them in the comments below! And if you missed it, you can view our reactions and review for other episodes here.

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If Welcome to Waikiki isnt your cup of tea, check out our list of the best k-dramas to watch for Gen Z’ers here. Don’t miss out on anything by following us @ZoomersCornerPH on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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