The Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint live-action adaptation has already sparked controversy with the many changes it made using creative liberties. One of the biggest concerns is its treatment of Lee Jihye.
Lee Jihye is an important character who grows along with Dokja in the series. Her sense of justice, courage, and pride are all embodied in her combat style. Using a sword to defend herself, even when she seemed like a weak and naive child, Jihye grew to be one of the strongest survivors and a proud member of Kim Dokja’s Company.
The live adaptation decided to just replace her sword with a gun without any proper basis. This isn’t just an aesthetic change as it fundamentally alters her character, fighting style, and relationships.
Lee Jihye’s sword isn’t a weapon, it’s her identity
Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint is known for its well-written female characters, especially because they are not treated as a special addition but just happen to be among the characters in the story.
This impartial treatment is what makes their personalities shine even when the next apocalyptic challenge is inching closer. Lee Jihye is one of the most intriguing female characters in the story.
Being the disciple of Yoo Joonghyuk, this ex-student took up arms to fend for herself when many people would have chosen to give up or become slaves to the stronger ones. Jihye’s personality shows no fear, even as she faces disgusting and terrifying monsters.
This is the reason she was one of the key characters even in The Ways of Survival (the novel that Dokja reads to the end and gets his ability from). By changing a weapon, which is an essential combat tool of such an important character in the series.
If such drastic changes are happening in the live-action, it raises real concerns about how the anime adaptation could utilize their creative privileges to make changes that could essentially take away what makes the series so good and popular.
Some changes corrupt the essence of the story
Lee Jihye is one of the most compelling female characters in Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint. She isn’t just strong, her entire character is built around her resilience and confidence. Her combat skills shone through her swordplay.
She even hangs a keyring that Na-Bori gave her on her sword, making it hard to ignore this massive change. The original source has to be respected in order to deliver a faithful adaptation. There are many examples of series that took matters into their own hands and ended up with a bad reputation.
This not only affects the anime media version, but also makes people associate the failure with the original as well. Tokyo Ghoul is one such example, as it was ruined by the anime going in a fresh creative direction.
Her sword represents her journey and her training under Yoo Joonghyuk, and all her achievements cannot be translated into the series if such changes are made. We can only hope that the anime stays faithful to the original.
Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint is available for reading on Webtoon.
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