“Master’s Sun” (Korean Drama) Review

This week we remember the horror-romantic comedy drama “Master’s Sun”.

Written by the Hong sisters, my favourite K-Drama writers, it is a strong contender on my must-watch drama list; despite revolving around ghosts.

Even if I watched many parts while covering my face with my hands or a pillow, I truly enjoyed the drama.

Starring

Gong Hyo-Jin as Tae Gong-Shil
So Ji-Sub as Joo Joong-Won
Seo In-Guk as Kang Woo
Kim Yoo-Ri as Tae Yi-Ryung

In addition to the impressive cast listed above, Kim Myung-Soo (‘L’ of Infinite) appears as the teenage Joo Joong-Won.

A horror story

Tae Gong-Shil (Gong Hyo-Jin) became able to see ghosts after being involved in an accident as a teenager.

Due to this, the formerly lively girl became increasingly reclusive. Living in constant fear of the ghosts scary appearances and what they may do to her.

If she lets her guard down in any way, ghosts have taken over her body in the past to resolve their grudges. Whenever this happens, Gong-Shil has no recollection of the things they did afterwards.

For this reason she is careful to not get drunk or become weak minded in any way. However, her constant effort to stay alert has taken it’s toll on her overall health. Especially since her condition also affects her ability to get some restful sleep.

Master's Sun — Gong-Shil: **“You don’t know because you can’t see or hear them but it really frightens me.”**

Stuck in this cycle, Gong-Shil struggles through daily life until, one day, she meets Joong-Won. He seems to be the miraculous answer to her troubles that she’s been waiting for.

A hidden past

Joo Joong-Won (So Ji-Sub) is CEO to the Kingdom Group, which also owns and operates a major hotel and department store.

As heir to Kingdom, Joong-Won personally directly oversees the running of the department store and the hotel.

To onlookers he has the appearance of a composed, serious, and somewhat mysterious person that mostly keeps to himself.

His business associates know him as a ruthless business man who always gets what he wants and does what he sets out to due.

Only a few select people around Joong-Won know that he carries the scars of a kidnapping gone wrong from when he was a teenager.

The trauma of that event not only changed how he views the world but also took away his ability to read. Backed by his trusty secretary who records all written content for him, Joong-Won manages to hide his trauma.

Master’s Sun

Joong-Won and Gong-Shil meet one rainy night on a deserted road under bizarre circumstances.

Determined to catch a ride into the city, Gong-Shil gets into Joong-Won’s car and out of pity he agrees to take her.

Her appearance and behaviour increasingly confirm to him that she is a crazy person and his goal is to remove himself from her presence as soon as possible.

Along the ride Gong-Shil is haunted by a ghost again and in an attempt to hide she grabs unto Joong-Won and buries her face in his sleeve.

To her amazement, the ghost disappears at once and Gong-Shil is now desperate to seek Joong-Won’s side whenever possible.

Despite Joong-Won’s attempt to keep her away from him, Gong-Shil appears in front of him in a way he would have never expected.

Not one to believe in ghosts, Joong-Won is shocked when Gong-Shil comes to see him and calls him by a name only used by one person in his life. A person who he thought only existed in his past and is tied to his trauma.

Discovering that it was not Gong-Shil but a spirit possessing her, he resolves to keep her around to find answers to his kidnapping no one was ever able to provide.

With Joong-Won’s consent, Gong-Shil starts working as a cleaning lady at the Kingdom Department Store.

While relying on each other through their daily experiences and trying to overcome their respective traumas, the two slowly start having feelings for one another.

Confused Intentions

Kang Woo (Seo In-Guk) is Head of Security at the Kingdom Department Store and as such also keeps close tabs on its CEO.

With his background as a soldier Kang Woo is exceptionally good at his job and takes his responsibilities to keep his assignments safe very serious.

Alerted by Gong-Shil’s sudden presence in Joong-Won’s life, he has a hard time figuring her out. More importantly, he is worried that she may represent a threat to his boss.

While dealing with all the changes that seem to ensue with Gong-Shil’s appearance, he also notices someone else increasingly shadowing his steps.

Tae Yi-Ryung (Kim Yoo-Ri) is the main model for Kingdom Department Store.

Yi-Ryung went to High School with Gong-Shil and always saw her as her main rival.

Back then their roles were opposite of what they are now: While Gong-Shil was the pretty & popular one in High School, Yi-Ryung was seen as the unassuming nerd with braces.

Meeting Gong-Shil again, Yi-ryung initially plans to take revenge on her. However, as time passes, this plan takes a backseat to something else.

To Yi-Ryung’s surprise, she keeps feeling drawn to Kang-Woo and despite her efforts to the contrary finds herself seeking his company.