TVING original series Island rose to No.9 on Amazon Prime Video’s top 10 shows list, according to Flixpatrol. The compelling story of the original comics and the similarities between the cast and the original characters are claimed to be the reasons behind the show’s success.
The original comics were written by Yoon In Wan and Yang Kyung Il. It sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, forming a loyal fanbase. After the remake was announced, there were many fan castings and speculations on how the work would be reproduced into a live-action series.
Island tells an exciting story based on folk legends about the creatures and gods that reside on Jeju Island, such as Dolhareubang, Seolmundae Halmang, Baekjutto (Geum Baek Joo) and Benjullae, which were rarely seen in other K-dramas.
The drama adaptation introduces a new character named Geum Baek Joo (played by Go Doo Shim), who is inseparable from Pan (Kim Nam Gil). The character was inspired by Seolmundae Halmang and Baekjutto from the traditional Jeju folk legend, which refers to a goddess of immense size and strength who created the island by shoveling mud from the seabed. Meanwhile, the female monk from the original comics was rewritten as a third-generation chaebol named Won Mi Ho (Lee Da Hee) for the TV adaptation and is now playing an important role in the series.
The character Johh which Cha Eun Woo plays in the series also got expanded to be a much more interesting character as he gets assigned to the island, instead of voluntarily arriving on the island to find the savior from the prophecy.
Other monsters and creatures on Jeju, which were also rewritten according to the current taste of people, are also garnering attention.
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