Character Relationship Map: Wide Awake

Characters

• Ryoo Jae-woo (played by Kim Myung-min) — protagonist

  A surgeon who was connected to the childhood heart operation at the center of the mystery. Twenty-five years later, he investigates the deaths of the doctors and nurses involved, while suspecting that...

• Seo Hee-jin (played by Kim Yu-mi) — supporting

  The wife of surgeon Ryoo Jae-woo. She is part of his personal life while he confronts the disturbing deaths linked to a heart operation from his childhood, although the available plot summary does not...

• Kang Wook-han (played by Yu Jun-sang) — supporting

  A seemingly unhinged man who becomes one of the leading suspects in the mysterious deaths. His suspicious behavior places him within the investigation surrounding Ryoo Jae-woo, the childhood surgical...

• Sang-woo's Father (played by Lee Sung-min) — supporting

  Na Sang-woo's father is present after his son's childhood operation, when Na says he was conscious and heard the doctors. Along with Na's mother and a psychiatrist, he dismisses the boy's account as a...

• Psychiatrist (played by Kwak Min-seok) — supporting

  The psychiatrist speaks with Na Sang-woo after his childhood operation, when Na insists he was conscious and heard the doctors during surgery. Along with Na's parents, the psychiatrist dismisses the a...

• Na Sang-woo (played by Baek Su-ho) — supporting

  Na Sang-woo survives a childhood operation at Sangnoksu Hospital but remains consumed by the experience of being awake, in pain, and unable to move or speak. Years later, he identifies the doctors inv...

• Sang-woo's Mother (played by Seo Young-hwa) — supporting

  Na Sang-woo's mother is present after her son undergoes surgery as a child and later insists that he was awake and heard the doctors. Along with his father and a psychiatrist, she dismisses his accoun...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Sang-woo's Mother → Na Sang-woo (mother)
• Sang-woo's Father → Na Sang-woo (father)
• Ryoo Jae-woo → Seo Hee-jin (Family Husband And Wife) — Her death becomes the personal and investigative focus of Jae-woo's search for the truth.

  The plot identifies Seo Hee-jin as Ryoo Jae-woo's wife.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Na Sang-woo → Psychiatrist (Conflict Dismissed His Account) — The psychiatrist's dismissal leaves Sang-woo's account of the operation unaccepted.

  After the childhood operation, Sang-woo insists he was conscious, but a psychiatrist dismisses his account as a dream.

• Kang Wook-han → Na Sang-woo (Conflict Pursuer And Suspect) — Wook-han's pursuit connects him directly to Sang-woo as the investigation reaches its final confrontation.

  Sang-woo says Wook-han followed him from America and waited for him to appear; Wook-han also pursues the truth about the deaths.

• Ryoo Jae-woo → Na Sang-woo (Conflict Confronted Adversaries) — Their confrontation centers on Sang-woo's role in Hee-jin's suffering and death, and ends with Jae-woo urging him to put down a gun.

  Jae-woo confronts Na Sang-woo after Sang-woo reveals that he arranged Hee-jin's operation and withheld thiopental.

• Ryoo Jae-woo → Kang Wook-han (Social Close Friends) — Their friendship places them on overlapping paths as they investigate the deaths.

  The plot says Kang Wook-han knew Jae-woo as a close friend and also pursued the truth.

Story Analysis

A surgeon investigates his wife's suspicious death as the buried trauma of a childhood operation resurfaces.

Plot Progression

1. The Operation Remembered — In 1982, young Sang-woo undergoes an operation and later says he remained conscious. His parents and a psychiatrist dismiss his account, leaving him deeply traumatized.
2. Deaths and Suspicion — Years later, deaths connected to former hospital staff raise questions. After Hee-jin dies and suspicious substances are found, Jae-woo and Wook-han pursue the truth.
3. The Past Uncovered — Myung-suk's death and the discovery of Sang-woo's earlier involvement in a killing deepen the mystery. The investigation reveals Sang-woo survived the childhood operation and identifies the doctors he...
4. The Final Accusation — Sang-woo explains how he arranged Hee-jin's operation and withheld thiopental, then admits placing PMMA in her body while blaming Jae-woo for operating. Jae-woo confronts him, and the story ends with...