Park Bo Gum attends the 2016 LACMA Art + Film Gala honoring Robert Irwin and Kathryn Bigelow presented by Gucci at LACMA on October 29, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo : Getty Images for LACMA/Frazer Harrison)
The KBS Drama Awards 2016 honored the best productions and actors on produced by the state-run network. As anticipated by many, "Descendants of the Sun" was the biggest winner of the night, along with "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds." The lead stars of the former Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo accepted the grand prize.
The friendship between the two male lead stars of both dramas Joong Ki and Park Bo Gum did not go unnoticed. Joong Ki cried when his junior friend Park received the Top Excellence Award. He hugged Park upon accepting the Grand Prize with co-star Hye Kyo, Soompi reported.
"Descendants of the Sun" has two Best Couple awards, to Joong Ki and Hye Kyo as well as to Jin Goo and Kim Ji Won. Joong Ki and Hye Kyo also got the Best Asia Couple Award. The drama earned for Kim Ji Won Female Excellence Award for Mini-series and Best New Actress Award as well as Best Scriptwriter Award for Kim Eun Sook and Kim Won Suk.
"Moonlight Drawn by Clouds" garnered Female Excellence Award for Mid-length Drama for Kim Yoo Jung, Best New Actor Award for Jinyoung and Best Couple for Park and Kim. Park earned Male Top Excellence Award and Netizen Award while Lee Joon Hyuk got the Best Supporting Actor Award.
Popular dramas on the network were also honored during the KBS Drama Awards 2016. "On the Way to the Airport" garnered Female Top Excellence Award and Male Excellence Award for Kim Ha Neul and Lee Sang Yoon.
Child actor Jung Yoon Suk garnered Best Young Actor Award for his performances in "Five Children," "Jang Young Sil" and "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds." Child actress Heo Jung Eun of "Oh My Geum Bi," "Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul Ho" and "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds" was also honored with the same award.
Furthermore, "Descendants of the Sun" was the most engrossing show of 2016. It topped a survey which measures the level of engagement viewers have in a television series. The survey was based on the Program developed by the Korea Broadcasting Advertising Corporation called Program Engagement Index which is conducted six times yearly.
The KBS 2TV's 2016 series scored 150.9 points while MBC's "W" scored 146.2 and "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds" on KBS 2TV scored 143, Yonhap News reported. Viewers of "Descendants of the Sun" said in the survey that they could not take their eyes off the show. Other statements its viewers said were "I didn't change the channel while watching the show" and "I wasn't distracted with other stuff while watching the show."
Watch photos of Park thanking Joong Ki in his acceptance speech.
