KBS 2TV is giving in to requests of fans of the phenomenal Korean drama "Descendants of the Sun" who sought either an extension of the 16-episode series or a director’s cut.
However, KBS is not giving them the two. Instead, it would air special episodes of the blockbuster series after the 16th episode airs on April 14. A KBS representative said the special episodes will broadcast from April 20 to 22.
For the first two nights, the South Korean TV station will air highlight episodes. For the last night, on April 22, the station would broadcast a making of “Descendants of the Sun” epilogue, reported Allkpop.
The drama, featuring army officers and doctors in a fictional war-torn country Uruk, ends on a high note with rating of more than 30 percent in South Korea. In China, the show – which initially alarmed the country’s Ministry of Justice – has more than 1 billion views on video streaming platform iQiyi.
“Descendants of the Sun,” to be replaced by “Masters – God of Noodles,” by April 27, is seen in 19 countries and has 33 subtitles available.
The show is now the most popular search keyword on Weibo, China’s equivalent to Twitter, according to Korea Times. It was searched 74.5 billion times on Weibo, the most popular social media site in China.
Because of the show, Song Joong-ki, the lead actor, is the most popular actor in China and is called by his Chinese fans “qianmin laogong” which means “national husband figure.” They also call him “liaomei nansun,” or “heartthrob,” while the fans refer to themselves as Song’s “xiaolaopo” or his mistress.