VOL.69/2024.04

 

[Book & Media ④]

D.P.

Mission: Return Safely with the Deserter!

 

2023.05.02

 

 

The drama “D.P.” released on Netflix in 2021, starring popular Korean actors such as Jung Hae-In and Koo Gyo-Hwan, made not only Korean viewers but also international viewers go wild. Setting the stage as authentic as possible, using duties and similar incidents that actually happened in the Korean military, the drama had its audience empathize with the story. Plus, the distinct, humorous lines and the humane storyline in each episode made the viewers cry and laugh. As such, the drama “D.P.,” which induced the audience to feel various emotions throughout the story, won three gold medals at the Baeksang Arts Awards in 2022, a representative general arts award in Korea. International media outlets also gave positive comments on the drama, saying, “The best Korean drama of the year” and “A realistic representation of the vicious cycle of bullying.” (Ready Steady Cut, August 27, 2021)
With the drama at the center of attention, its original webtoon D.P Dog’s Day (book publisher: Cine 21 Books), has once again gotten under the spotlight. The webtoon D.P Dog’s Day was a popular work recording 10 million accumulated views during its serialization, and it was then published into a physical book series. The writer, Kim Botong, also participated in the drama script. As he had won the Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Award with his previous work Amanza (Wisdom House), which features the story of a cancer patient, the dramatization of D.P Dog’s Day drew high expectations from webtoon fans. With the drama’s success based on the quality original content, “D.P.” is set to release season 2 in the second half of this year. While we wait for the new season, let’s do a quick review of the story covered in season 1.

 

 

PlotComplete the Mission!

 

“D.P. (Deserter Pursuit),” meaning the “deserter arrest team” is under the military police, given the duty to arrest deserters. Given its nature, its members mainly carry out missions among the public, wearing civilian clothes, growing their hair, and using mobile phones relatively freely, unlike ordinary soldiers, to stay undercover from the deserters. The position is actually quite unfamiliar to Koreans – there is even a misperception among people that already know about the team that D.P. is one of the “easy as pie” duties, because of the freedom mentioned earlier.
Protagonist Ahn Joon-Ho is offered to join the D.P. while he has been having a hard time serving in the military. He then begins a new life as a “soldier that arrests deserters.” There’s one mission for Ahn to complete - “Bring back the deserters safely!” Running and sometimes going undercover to track down the deserters, Ahn Joon-Ho faces the sick reality of the military as he continues to complete the mission. The dilemma between the humane understanding of the deserters and the responsibility to complete the mission adds more challenge, both physically and mentally, to Ahn’s life in D.P.. Will Ahn be able to clear the mission successfully and be discharged safely?

 

Book vs DramaDouble the Fun by Comparing the Drama and the Webtoon!

 

#1. New characters appear in the drama

 

The biggest difference between the drama and the original webtoon is the role of Han Ho-Yeol, who only appears in the drama. While the two members work as a team in D.P. like police detectives, Han is the one that pairs with Ahn Joon-Ho in the drama. Han is skillful and professional, but at the same time, witty and clever. He has been one of the popular characters in the drama with his humorous lines. Actor Koo Gyo-Hwan, who played Han Ho-Yeol, deserves to be complimented for his performance, creating something out of nothing, as he even won the Super Rookie Award for TV Shows at the Baesang Arts Awards.

 

#2. Realistic characters

 

While Korean and international audiences of the drama gave positive reviews to the work, the realistic acting of the actors and actresses deserves more attention. Watching the actors and actresses play in episodes that we might have experienced or heard of in real life, such as how nervous the young man is with the enlistment date coming up and the uncomfortable relationship between an old sergeant first class and a young captain, you get to think as if the characters are real. Also, the audience is more absorbed into the drama as the deserters and the surrounding characters perform so lifelike in each episode. The original webtoon was also drawn in an achromatic, plain style to add more real-like elements to the military background, with the realistic description as Kim Botong, the author, was a member of D.P. himself.

 

#3. A build-up for season 2

 

There’s good news for those that enjoyed watching the drama “D.P.” Season 2 is coming up in the second half of the year. As the original webtoon is longer in the story with many more episodes than the drama, not all the characters from the webtoon could be dramatized. The charming characteristics of some characters in the original story were combined as one character in the drama. Also, one way to enjoy the long wait would be to take a detailed look at how the drama is different from the original webtoon, as the drama had parts of character settings and screenplay hinting at a sequel. Stay tuned for D.P. Season 2 – how the characters from Season 1 will appear in the new season, what roles will be newly added to the story, and what episodes will grasp our attention, all heighten our expectations!

 

 

* Trailer of the drama “D.P.”

 

 

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Written by Choi Ha-Yeong