Introduction

Descendants of the Sun (Korean: 태양의 후예; RR: Taeyang-ui Huye) is a 2016 South Korean television series starring Song Joong-ki, Song Hye-kyo, Jin Goo, and Kim Ji-won.

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It aired on KBS2 from 24 February to 14 April 2016 for 16 episodes.

KBS then aired three additional special episodes from 20 April to 22 April 2016 containing highlights and the best scenes from the series, the drama’s production process, behind-the-scenes footage, commentaries from cast members and the final epilogue.

Outline

Yoo Si-jin (Song Joong-ki) is the captain of a South Korean Special Forces unit. He and his friend Sergeant Major Seo Dae-young (Jin Goo) are off-duty when they witness a young man stealing a motorcycle and apprehend him. The thief, Kim Gi-bum (Kim Min-seok), is injured during his capture and therefore sent to the hospital. Dae-young realises his cell phone was stolen by the thief and goes to the hospital along with Si-jin to retrieve his cellphone.

In the emergency room, Si-jin meets Dr. Kang Mo-yeon (Song Hye-kyo) for the first time, and is instantly attracted to her. Mo-yeon mistakenly assumes Si-jin is part of the thief’s criminal gang, due to his nickname “Big Boss”, which is actually his call sign. He proves his identity with the help of army surgeon Yoon Myung-ju (Kim Ji-won).

Si-jin and Mo-yeon begin to date, but due to Si-jin being called in for duty, their dates are interrupted halfway. Si-jin receives his orders to be deployed on a peacekeeping mission in the country of Uruk (likely a fictional representation of Greece). Meanwhile, Mo-yeon is upset because she had been passed over for professorship in favour of a colleague who had familial connections to the hospital management. When Si-jin returns and meets Mo-yeon again, she directly asks him to explain his sudden disappearances and his job but he is unable to go into too much detail due to the highly classified nature of his assignments. They talk about their views on life and realise how different they are. Si-jin, as a soldier, kills to protect lives while Mo-yeon, as a doctor, honours the Hippocratic Oath and tries to save lives. Due to their philosophical differences, they agree to part ways. Dae-young, on the other hand, faces a dilemma on whether to continue his relationship with Myung-ju or risk being forced out of the army for breaking fraternisation rules by Myung-ju’s father, who is a general and commander of the Special Forces.

Eight months later, Mo-yeon rebuffs the advances of the hospital director and, as a result, is assigned against her will to lead a voluntary medical team to Uruk. There, Si-jin and Mo-yeon reunite and both gain a deeper insight into one another’s jobs as their respective teams endure an earthquake and a viral endemic. While in Uruk, Mo-yeon accidentally confesses her feelings (much to the amusement of their respective teams) and the two officially start dating. She gradually comes to terms with the fact that she may never have full disclosure of his whereabouts and the possibility of him being killed in action. In the meantime, the usually stoic Dae-young finally works up the nerve to show more affection toward Myung-ju after she nearly dies in quarantine.

Si-jin and Mo-yeon continue their relationship after returning to Korea, until Si-jin and Dae-young are sent on a classified operation in which they disappear and are assumed to be dead. Months pass, and Mo-yeon mourns Si-Jin’s death, deciding to commemorate his passing by volunteering with a medical team sent to Albania. This is where Si-jin eventually finds her on the day of their one-year death anniversary, after he and Dae-young are rescued from captivity by “a friend from afar”, a soldier from North Korea whom Si-jin had helped earlier. Si-jin and Mo-yeon along with Myung-ju and Dae-young are all happily reunited with each other.

Cast

• Main
  • Song Joong-ki as Captain Yoo Si-jin (a.k.a. Big Boss):
    • The Captain and team leader of Alpha Team, a fictional elite special forces team of the 707th Special Mission Battalion in South Korea. He followed in the footsteps of his father, a retired Sergeant Major, into the military and graduated from the Korea Military Academy at the top of his class. Si-jin cares little for the politics of war and believes in protecting and defending those who need help, his country and his men’s honour, even if it means having to question his superiors’ orders. His light-hearted approach to life and witty sense of humour make him popular with his team but Mo-yeon quickly realises that it is his way of deflecting her questions about his job and coping with the pain of losing comrades. At the end of the series, he was promoted to Major. He is in love with Dr. Kang but gets rejected three times. Later, they meet again and fall in love.
  • Song Hye Kyo as Doctor Kang Mo-yeon (a.k.a. Beauty and Pretty one):
    • A cardiothoracic surgeon who works at Haesung Hospital. She is a beautiful, strong and assertive woman who believes that competence should outweigh connections but must confront the harsh reality that she cannot get anywhere without connections. She stands firmly by her principles and does not fall prey easily to her emotions, though she is not afraid to admit her mistakes. She falls in love with Captain Yoo but thinks that their relationship will not work and breaks it off. Still, she cannot overcome her feelings of love towards him. Eventually, they meet again and start dating.
  • Jin Goo as Master Sergeant Seo Dae-young (a.k.a. Wolf):
    • As the senior non-commissioned officer in Alpha Team, Dae-young is a career soldier who sticks to his principles and is extremely loyal to his commanding officer Si-jin and comrades. He is notorious among recruits and Academy cadets as a strict instructor. His level head and vast experience often come in handy in times of crisis during deployments. He is often the straight man to the happy-go-lucky Si-jin and possesses a sharp deadpan sense of humour. For much of the series he struggles with expressing his true feelings for Myung-ju.
  • Kim Ji-won as First Lieutenant Yoon Myung-ju:
    • An army doctor who is also the daughter of Lieutenant General Yoon, commander of the South Korean Special Forces Brigade. She follows her father’s footsteps and graduates from the Korea Military Academy, where she was a junior of Si-jin, before doing an internship at Haesung Hospital. At her first assignment she meets Dae-young, a non-commissioned soldier. Their relationship is considered a taboo as she is an officer and he is a non-commissioned officer but it does not deter her from pursuing Dae-young, much to the Lt. Gen’s chagrin.

• Recurring:
  • Alpha Team Members:
    • Park Hoon as First Sergeant Choi Woo-geun (a.k.a. Snoopy) – bomb expert and only married member of Alpha Team.
    • Choi Woong as Staff Sergeant Gong Cheol-ho (a.k.a. Harry Potter).
    • Ahn Bo-hyun as First Sergeant Lim Gwang-nam (a.k.a. Piccolo).
  • Haesung Hospital Medical Services Team:
    • Onew as Lee Chi-hoon (1st year resident of Thoracic Surgery a.k.a. Handsome Spaceman).
    • Lee Seung-joon as Song Sang-hyun (General Surgeon).
    • Seo Jeong-yeon as Ha Ja-ae (ER Senior Nurse) (a.k.a. Miss B).
    • Park Hwan-hee as Choi Min-ji (ER Nurse).
  • People at Haesung Hospital:
    • Hyun Jyu-ni as Pyo Ji-soo (Pathology Specialist).
    • Tae In-ho as Han Suk-won (Chairman of Haesung Hospital).
    • Park Ah-in as Kim Eun-ji (Thoracic Surgery Specialist).
    • Jo Woo-ri as Jang Hee-eun (1st Year Resident of Anesthesiology) (wife of Dr. Lee Chi-hoon).
  • Tae Baek Army:
    • Kang Shin-il as Lieutenant General Yoon Gil-joon (a.k.a. Yellow Tiger) (Myung-ju’s father).
    • Kim Byung-chul as Lieutenant Colonel (later promoted to Colonel) Park Byung-soo.
    • Kim Min-seok as Private First Class Kim Gi-bum (later promoted to Staff Sergeant as seen in ep 16). A pickpocket later enlisted to the army.
  • Uruk Area:
    • Cho Tae-kwan as Daniel Spencer (Peacemaker Emergency Doctor Team).
    • Jeon Soo-jin as Ri Ye-hwa (Peacemaker Emergency Nurse Team).
    • David Lee McInnis as David Argus (Gang Boss, former Delta Force Captain), the main antagonist.
    • Dean Dawson as the Chief of Police (Tae Baek Police Chief).
    • Jo Jae-yoon as Jin Young-soo (Chief Manager of Uruk Electric Power Corporation).
    • Lee Yi-kyung as Kang Min-jae.
    • Zyon Barreto as Fatima.
    • Elena Zhernovaia as Valentine.
    • David Pipes as Martin (World Times Reporter).
    • Ji Seung-hyun as Senior Lieutenant Ahn Jung-joon, Korean People’s Army.
    • Kwak In-joon as Lee Han-soo (Minister of Foreign Affairs)
    • Joey Albright as US Army Delta Force member.

• Special Appearances:
  • Lee Kwang-soo as shooting arcade operator (episode 1).
  • Lee Jong-hyuk as Captain Kim Jin-seok (episode 2, 5, 10, 15).
  • Matthew Douma as Jordan, US Army Delta Force Captain (episode 2, 10, 12).
  • Jung Ji-won as TV announcer (episode 2).
  • Park Tae-won as TV announcer (episode 2).
  • Ryu Hwa-young as Seo Dae-young’s ex-girlfriend (episode 4).
  • Jun In-taek as Yoo Young-geun (Yoo Shi Jin’s father) (episode 6, 7, 15, 16).
  • Park Joon-geum as Lee Chi-hoon’s mother (episode 7, 11).
  • Yoo Ah-in as bank reception Eom Hong-shik (episode 13).
  • Nam Ki-ae as Kang Mo-yeon’s mother (episode 13).
  • Lee Jae-yong as Lieutenant General Choi Ji-ho, Korean People’s Army.
  • Red Velvet as themselves (episode 16).

Trivia

• The series was a major hit in South Korea where it drew a peak audience share of 38.8%.
• It received several awards, such as winning the Grand Prize in television at the 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards; and was named the Most Popular Show of the year by Korea Broadcasting Advertising Corporation.
• The show was broadcast across Asia where it was hugely popular, and has been credited with a rise in tourism in Korea.
• Locals adaptations have been aired in Vietnam, China, and the Philippines.
• Descendants of the Sun was fully pre-produced before airing which is a departure from the live-shoot production format that characterises most Korean dramas.
• The drama is Song Joong-ki’s comeback project after serving his two years of mandatory military service.

Adaptations and Sequel

• A Chinese film adaptation produced by Huace Film & TV and directed by Zhang Yibai is planned.
  • A book based on the script is also planned for release.
• A Philippine television adaption produced by GMA Entertainment Group. Starring Dingdong Dantes and Jennylyn Mercado.
  • It premiered on 10 February 2020 on the network’s Telebabad line up.
• A Vietnamese television adaptation titled “Hậu duệ mặt trời”, and starring Song Luân, Khả Ngân, Cao Thái Hà, Hữu Vi, aired beginning in September 2018 for 48 episodes.
• Sequel:
  • As per KBS’s Head of Drama, Jung Sung-ho, said the sequel is in planning, and filming would likely take place in Greece.
  • The sequel, this time, will be co-produced by Jidam Inc., the production company behind the hit and award-winning TV dramas My Daughter, Geum Sa-wol and Jang Bo-ri is Here!.

Descendants of the Sun Series

• Series 01 (2016).
• Series 02 (Planned).

Production & Filming Details

• Creator(s): KBS Drama Production.
• Director(s): Lee Eung-bok and Baek Sang-hoon.
• Producer(s): Bae Kyung-soo, Ham Young-hoon, Yoo Jong-seon, and Park Woo-ram.
• Writer(s): Kim Eun-sook and Kim Won-Seok.
• Music: Gaemi.
• Cinematography: Kim Si-hyeong and Uhm Jun-seong.
• Editor(s): Choi Jung-won and Kim Young-joo.
• Production: KBS, Next Entertainment World, Barunson Inc., and Descendants of the Sun SPC.
• Distributor(s): KBS.
• Release Date: 24 February 2016 to 22 April 2016.
• Running Time: 60 minutes.
• Country: South Korean.
• Language: Korean.