Korea–Khitan War () is a 2023–2024 South Korean television series based on the 2018 South Korean novel Goryeo–Khitan War: Sweet Rain in the Winter by Gil Seung-soo. Produced to commemorate KBS’ 50th anniversary, the series stars Kim Dong-jun, Choi Soo-jong, and Ji Seung-hyun. It aired on KBS2 from November 11, 2023 to March 10, 2024, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:25 (KST). It is also available for streaming on Wavve in South Korea, on Kocowa in the Americas, and on Netflix in selected regions in Asia.
Synopsis The series tells the story of King Hyeonjong of Goryeo (Kim Dong-jun) uniting Goryeo under his tolerant leadership by leading the war against the Khitans to victory, together with Gang Gam-chan (Choi Soo-jong), the King's political mentor and the commander-in-chief of the Goryeo army.
Cast Main Kim Dong-jun as King Hyeonjong of Goryeo Choi Soo-jong as Gang Gam-chan Ji Seung-hyun as Yang Gyu
Supporting People from Goryeo Lee Won-jong as Kang Cho Kim Jae-min as Lee Hyun-woon Han Jae-young as Ji Chae-mun Lee Ji-hoon as Jang Yeon-woo Jang In-sub as Hwangbo Yu-ui Ju Seok-tae as Choe Jil Ryu Seung-hyun as Kim Hoon Lee Cheol-min as Gang Min-cheom Kim San-ho as Jeong Seong Joo Yeon-woo as Kim Sook-heung Bang Jae-ho as Kim Jong-hyeon Jung Ho-bin as Yoo Bang Lee Jae-gu as Dae Do-su Kwak Min-seok as Won Jong-seok Lee Do-guk as Ha Gong-jin Jo Sang-gi as Tak Sa-jeong Kim Joong-don as Jo Won Kim Sun-bin as Choe Chung
People from Khitan Empire Kim Hyuk as Emperor Shengzong of Liao Kim Jun-bae as So Bae-ap (Xiao Paiya) Lee Sang-hong as Yayul Bun-no (Yelü Pennu) Park Jung-hwan as Yayul Jeok-ro (Yelü Dilu) Kim Gu-taek as Han-gi
Goryeo royal family and subjects Jo Hee-bong as Yoo Jin Kim Jeong-hak as Choe Hang Han Seung-hyun as Chae Chung-soon Park Yoo-seung as Choe Sa-wi Lee Si-a as Queen Wonjeong Ha Seung-ri as Queen Won-seong Yoon Chae-kyung as Queen Wonhwa Jo Seung-yeon as Kim Eun-bu Kim Oh-bok as Yang Hyeop Baek Sung-hyun as King Mokjong of Goryeo Lee Min-young as Empress Cheonchu Gong Jung-hwan as Kim Chi-yang Lee Poong-un as Yoo Haeng-gan Oh Jae-young as Yoo Chung-jeong
Others Shim So-young as Court Lady Choi Yoon Bok-in as Gang Gam-chan's wife Lee Jae-yong as Park Jin Kang Shin-il as Monk Jin-gwan
Extended Lee Chang-jik as Lee Joo-jeong
Original soundtrack Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Album OST
Reception Critical response Puah Ziwei of NME rated the series 5 out of 5 stars, claiming that "this well-written Korean historical series will keep you hooked on its bloody tale of war and survival." He praised the conflict between Kang Cho and Gang Gam-chan, respectively played by Lee Won-jong and Choi Soo-jong, and the "delightfully malleable" performance of Baek Sung-hyun who played Mokjong, "an openly gay king" without any heirs. He also applauded the fact that the show depicted the times of Goryeo–Khitan War through an "old-school sageuk charm and style", and stated that "much like the anxious times it is inspired by, Korea-Khitan War is driven by purpose and complex interpersonal dynamics that leave little time for theatrics". Choi Bo-yun noted that in the series, there is a narrative of putting people first even in the midst of war, shedding light on less well-known battles and figures of Korean history such as Yang Gyu, and that the growth of King Hyeonjong who won the two wars against the Khitans with the help of Gang Gam-chan is worth watching.
Historical novel author Gil Seung-soo, who wrote the original novel which the series is based on, expressed his disappointment about the progression of the show after episode 16, since he was dissatisfied by the fact that it not only deviated from his novel, but also from actual Goryeo history. He criticized the attitude of the scriptwriter and the way he anachronistically portrayed the local gentries of early 11th century Goryeo, claiming that the series' depiction is just as absurd as "BTS suddenly appearing right after the Korean war" and that the production team should have been more careful to depict history accurately. The article noted that many viewers also complained about the storyline after episode 16, even visiting author Gil's personal blog to leave a comment about their concerns for the series.
Viewership
+ Average TV viewership ratings Original broadcast date Average audience share Nielsen KoreaNielsen Korea ratings:
TNmSTNmS ratings:
Nationwide Seoul Nationwide 1 November 11, 2023 5.5% 5.1% 2 November 12, 2023 6.8% 6.1% 5.7% 3 November 18, 2023 4 November 19, 2023 7.0% 6.4% 5 November 25, 2023 7.5% 7.0% 6.1% 6 November 26, 2023 7.8% 6.9% 6.2% 7 December 2, 2023 8.4% 7.8% 6.5% 8 December 3, 2023 7.9% 7.1% 6.0% 9 December 9, 2023 8.9% 8.6% 10 December 10, 2023 10.0% 9.2% 7.9% 11 December 16, 2023 9.7% 9.2% 12 December 17, 2023 9.6% rowspan="3" 13 December 24, 2023 9.2% rowspan="20" 14 December 30, 2023 9.4% 15 January 6, 2024 10.2% 9.2% 16 January 7, 2024 10.0% 8.7% 17 January 13, 2024 9.8% 9.0% 18 January 14, 2024 10.0% 8.7% 19 January 20, 2024 7.9% 6.4% 20 January 21, 2024 10.1% 9.1% 21 January 27, 2024 9.6% 8.6% 22 January 28, 2024 9.6% 8.5% 23 February 3, 2024 9.7% 8.8% 24 February 4, 2024 10.0% 8.6% 25 February 17, 2024 8.7% 7.6% 26 February 18, 2024 11.5% 10.2% 27 February 24, 2024 11.0% 9.7% 28 February 25, 2024 12.7% 10.9% 29 March 2, 2024 11.0% 9.3% 30 March 3, 2024 12.9% 10.9% 31 March 9, 2024 12.0% 10.7% 32 March 10, 2024 Average In the table above, the represent the lowest ratings and the represent the highest ratings. N/A denotes ratings that were not published.
Accolades + Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination Award ceremony Year Category Nominee / Work Result Baeksang Arts Awards 2024 Best Supporting Actor Ji Seung-hyun Technical Award Lee Seok-geun (Costume design) KBS Drama Awards 2023 Best Couple Award Choi Soo-jong and Kim Dong-jun Best Supporting Actor Lee Won-jong Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama Ji Seung-hyun Grand Prize (Daesang) Choi Soo-jong Popularity Award, Actor Ji Seung-hyun Scriptwriter Award Lee Jung-woo Top Excellence Award, Actor Kim Dong-jun Best New Actress Lee Si-a Best Supporting Actor Kim Hyuk Best Young Actor Hong Jae-min Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama Choi Soo-jong Kim Dong-jun Kim Jun-bae Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama Lee Si-a Top Excellence Award, Actor Choi Soo-jong Korea Drama Awards 2024 Excellence in Acting Award (Male) Ji Seung-hyun Seoul International Drama Awards 2024 Best Series Drama Korea–Khitan War
Notes
References
External links