The production team acknowledged the controversy and immediately stopped using the image and issued an apology.
The poster dispute risks clouding expectations about the story and the performances.
The incident raises fresh questions about creative ethics and the gaps in content review systems.
“An angel’s face, a devil’s story” — Plagiarism, image, and a drama’s core
Overview
Audience attention focused sharply.
Dear X is a Tving original drama based on a Naver Webtoon (an online comic platform familiar in South Korea). Tving is a South Korean streaming service.
The lead, Baek Ah-jin (played by Kim Yoo-jung), is written as a top star who hides a cruel interior behind a dazzling appearance.
Through the genre of tragic romance suspense, the series probes the doubleness of human nature and the masks people wear.
The release of a launch poster is meant to start promotion. However, commentators noted a strong resemblance to a 2018 Chinese film poster, and the reaction grew loud.
The production team admitted the similarity, withdrew the poster, apologized, and released a new teaser.
That sequence exposed weaknesses in promotional review and imperfections in the creative process.
Background and timeline
The controversy spread rapidly.
In September 2025, right after the poster was posted, posts on online communities and social media pointing out the likeness surged.
Comparison posts argued that pose, composition, and color were nearly identical in visual terms.
The debate moved beyond simple design similarity to broader questions about creative ethics and copyright.
The quick apology was praised from a crisis-management angle. However, the apology alone cannot erase the underlying problem.
Observers are now asking whether overseas-source checks and legal reviews were thorough, and whether internal approval systems worked properly.
Moreover, plagiarism allegations affect trust in the creative ecosystem, not only legal liability.
Narrative meaning
The drama is built on duality.
Baek Ah-jin’s character is the fulcrum.
The contrast between outward image and inner turmoil, the star constructed by media and the private emptiness behind that image, are at the story’s core.
The work compresses human psychology into a plot that blends destructive love and criminal elements.
Kim Yoo-jung’s acting is a major variable in making the character three-dimensional.
Performance can broaden how viewers interpret the piece. On the other hand, external controversies can distort the frame through which critics and audiences judge the work.
Therefore, a fair artistic appraisal requires re-evaluating the drama on its own completeness: direction, script density, and actors’ expression.
Arguments in favor
Artistic merit should be considered separately.
Dear X is rooted in the webtoon’s narrative and attempts original direction and character interpretation.
The story’s density and the actors’ performances are likely to carry the drama’s quality.
In particular, the casting around Kim Yoo-jung is seen as capable of expressing the character’s layered psychology.
Also, the production’s swift admission and apology can be read as a responsible stance.
Accepting a mistake at the operational level and correcting it could be a crisis-response model.
Indeed, many fans and some critics argue that the poster issue should not decide a drama’s narrative worth. They say creative process mistakes are fixable, and the series should be judged on its own merits.
In short, plagiarism allegations and artistic value should be treated as distinct questions.
This view asks for the minimum fairness in how a work is evaluated.
Plagiarism deserves criticism, but it should not automatically erase all of a drama’s value.
Arguments against
Others demand ethical accountability.
A plagiarized poster is not merely a slip; it exposes deeper problems in creative ethics.
Weak review by the production team and a shortage of original ideas shake the industry’s trust.
At the same time, the controversy makes regaining audience trust more difficult.
Moreover, if copyright checks and verification processes have gaps, similar incidents can recur.
Post-hoc actions from the studio are positive, but without structural changes to pre-release vetting, risk of repetition remains.
Critics call for improvements across the industry: stronger review systems, legal checks, and mechanisms that protect originality.
Furthermore, the plagiarism allegation can overshadow the cast and crew’s hard work.
When a promotion scandal dominates the conversation, the sincerity of performances and production may be doubted.
Over time, this dynamic erodes viewer trust and can harm the content sector’s competitiveness.
Ultimately, creative ethics are the foundation of industry trust, not a mere guideline.
From this perspective, the industry needs robust institutional safeguards and transparent review systems.
Legal accountability aside, internal ethical codes and external oversight should be reinforced.
Cause analysis
Structural causes are visible.
A poster’s plagiarism cannot be reduced to an individual designer’s error.
Approval procedures for design, overseas reference checks, and legal review should be connected as a single process. That chain was weak here.
Also, tight schedules and budget pressure can shorten time for creative review.
Internal culture at creative teams matters too.
If replacing ideas or using reference images does not routinely include source citation and legal checks, plagiarism controversies will repeat.
Thus, the industry urgently needs stronger norms, training, and pre-release checklists.
Fan and online reaction
Responses are mixed.
Some fans welcomed the production team’s quick apology and kept looking forward to the show.
By contrast, critical voices are strong. Online, demands for ethical responsibility and accountability dominate.
The controversy has even split fandoms.
Fans of the drama may still be sensitive to ethical issues.
Restoring trust between audiences and the production will not be quick; substantive measures and clear communication are required.
Remedies
Concrete changes are necessary.
First, studios should standardize legal review for designs and promotional materials before release.
Second, internal review processes must be documented and adopt multi-stage approval.
Third, mandatory education on creative ethics should reduce repeat incidents.
At the industry level, a shared guideline to prevent plagiarism would help.
Common standards could set minimum requirements for both small production companies and major platforms.
Over time, these changes would strengthen the content industry’s credibility and the health of its creative ecosystem.
Cultural implications and the future
Put in a wider context, the poster incident points to industry-wide issues.
In the digital age, images and ideas spread rapidly. That speed raises the importance of careful review and accountability.
Hence, both legal frameworks and industry practices must improve together.
The case also sparks debate about the "authenticity" of creative work.
Audiences today can quickly spot and criticize possible plagiarism.
Platforms and producers should recognize that reality and work continuously to rebuild trust.
Conclusion
The message is clear.
The poster’s plagiarism is a real problem, but the drama’s artistic value deserves a separate assessment.
At the same time, without fixes to ethical standards and review systems, similar incidents are likely to recur.
Therefore, responsible behavior by producers and structural industry improvements must go hand in hand.
In conclusion, both the work’s artistic quality and creative ethics must be preserved together.
Viewers have the right to demand transparency about how a show is made while also enjoying its storytelling.
How will you judge this drama when it is released?
