Monday, April 18, 2016

[DRAMA REVIEW] Descendants of the Sun (2016)


Current hit drama Descendants of the Sun just finished airing last Thursday. Just like its title, it has become a light in the middle of declining Korean Drama industry. Descendants of the Sun is the first drama that break 30% rating in television after four years. The last episode even has 38.8% rating. This is a fantastic achievement if we see current condition where people prefer watching drama online than watching it on television. It is hard for one drama to reach 10% rating in television nowadays, but Descendants of the Sun manages to change this perception.

The craze for this sixteen-episode drama continues. People search for brands that seen in this drama, go for place just like in the drama setting, and listen for the soundtracks. The casts popularity rise and they were invited to various events overseas. It’s a similar craze with You Who Came From Another Star three years ago. In other words, it’s Hallyu fever all over again!


Amidst all of its hype, a question popped out. Does the drama itself really lives up its hype? Check out my review of Descendants of the Sun below…………………..


Descendants of the Sun tells a love story between a soldier, Yoo Si Jin (Song Joong Ki), and a doctor, Kang Mo Yeon (Song Hye Gyo). They dated briefly, but decided to separate because of their job nature and opposite principal. “Soldier kills people while doctor saves people”, that’s what Kang Mo Yeon said to Yoo Si Jin. Who knows that fate brought them together again in the middle of deserted place, Urk. Fate also brought Yoo Si Jin comrade, Seo Dae Young (Jin Goo) to reconcile his romance with army surgeon, Yoon Myeong Joo (Kim Ji Won). Together all of them try to work out their relationship while fight to save people’s lives in the middle of disaster.

The story actually pretty simple and doesn’t really groundbreaking. We have seen several dramas that deal with nation issue and action or medical element such as The King 2 Hearts and Doctor Stranger. Disaster theme just recently covered by D-Day. However, Descendants of the Sun offers a new perspective to this theme.

It deals with how does your profession affect your way of life and relationship with other people. This drama shows Si Jin and Mo Yeon dedication to their profession. To them, soldier and doctor aren’t just a job. Being a soldier and doctor means that they carry its principal in everyday life. That is why it’s hard for them to date each other in the beginning because they have opposite moral value (You kill, I save). We see Si Jin several times questioned Mo Yeon action, which he thought was dangerous, but she thought it was a common sense action for her. We also see Mo Yeon wish to tell Si Jin her simple worry like lunch menu, but she couldn’t because she knew he has bigger things to worry about. It’s a new angle of story and it makes us able to relate more with the character. We understand their concern and want to see them overcome it.


The story flows smoothly during its Urk setting. We see how Si Jin and Mo Yeon overcome their obstacles, how doctors always have to be prepared to cure people, and how soldiers must ready with the worst option. This drama does a good job in highlighting each element of this story. We see that behind doctors and soldiers readiness, they feel scared and panicked too. It feels real and it makes me respect their profession more. Unfortunately, the story gets lost once they move its setting to South Korea. The writer seems confused on how to fill up the remaining episodes. It’s a pity because this drama starts nicely.

As for the casts, the main leads of Descendants of the Sun don’t have a complex character. However, they need someone who has strong screen presence because both Si Jin and Mo Yeon are figure of authority in the middle of disaster zone. That is why I can see why they choose Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Gyo as the leads.


Song Joong Ki’s army experience and great acting take a big part in making Si Jin’s character believable as a captain. If you see his appearance, he actually doesn’t have an army look. Plus, he’s really charismatic. His eyes speak different feelings and his gaze pulls you in. His partner, Song Hye Gyo also has the same charisma like Joong Ki. She’s basically glowing in this drama from her appearance to her aura. Song Hye Gyo showcases her natural acting as Kang Mo Yeon where I feel that every dialogue is like a daily conversation. But, she displays enough emotions whenever needed. Together they make a sizzling chemistry. You can’t help but smile whenever they start bantering and flirting.


Beside Si Jin and Mo Yeon, Descendants of the Sun also has another couple, Seo Dae Young and Yoon Myeong Joo. Their love story is more intense and heartbreaking because it against Myeong Joo’s father approval. It makes us sympathize more to their relationship, even I root for their happiness more than for the main couple. Both Jin Goo and Kim Ji Won present great emotional acting and chemistry. Seo Dae Young tough and stiff personality can balance Yoon Myeong Joo childish and stubborn personality. Also, they did an amazing job in balancing the big names acting and shine on their own. I was particularly impressed with Kim Ji Won who didn’t overshadow by Song Hye Gyo whenever they have scene together despite coming from different actress generation.


Descendants of the Sun also excel other dramas in term of production. We can see that the pre-production process gives a lot of benefit to this drama. It has beautiful cinematography that really emphasizes the beauty of Greece, the actual setting of this drama, and the good-looking appearance of the casts. The editing is slick, which makes 1 hour-duration flies fast when we watch it. The music complements the beautiful scene well although it becomes repetitive at some parts. The other minus points would be some shots are too dramatic, which feels like the writer wants us to feel something, and the massive amount of product placement at several last episodes.


Descendants of the Sun is not a perfect drama, but it’s entertaining to watch. Everything is beautiful from the cinematography, casts to settings. In term of story, it provides a different angle of love and disaster theme although it falls flat at the end. So, does it live up its hype? I have to say yes and I recommend all of you to watch it just to experience this one of a kind Hallyu fever J



Rating:            3.5/5

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