Will ‘Lovers Of The Red Sky’ Be Your New Must-Finish Drama?

New historical K-drama Lovers Of The Red Sky starring Kim Yoo-Jung and Ahn Hyo-Seop is skyrocketing in ratings even with just two episodes in. The drama currently airs in SBS during Mondays and Tuesdays and is also available for streaming in Viu.

The story revolves around Joseon’s only female painter Hong Chun-Gi (Kim Yoo-Jung) who meets blind astrologer Ha Ram (Ahn Hyo-Seop). After developing a bond, they fall in love. But something tragic about their fates challenges their budding relationship.

Piqued your interest? Here are three reasons why you should catch this drama ASAP.

It’s adapted from the work of renowned novelist Jung Eun-Wol

Love historical K-dramas like Sungkyunwan Scandal and Moon Embracing The Sun (which Kim Yoo-Jung also starred in)? ICYDK, both dramas were adapted from the works of novelist Jung Eun-Wol, who also wrote the source material for the Lovers Of The Red Sky K-drama. Jung Eu-Wol’s works often reflect the importance of politics, gender equality, and class disparity intertwined with heartwarming romance.

The story mixes the supernatural with real-life history

Fans of Jung Eun-Wol’s work know that she’s an expert at mixing real-life historical references with mysticism and fantasy in most of her novels. Lovers Of The Red Sky is no exception.

The story starts with a lore about a creature named Samsin who hosts three deities in one body: Life, Death, and the Balancer of the two. One day, the deity of Death craved for blood and devoured the Balancer. As an effect, the world was put into chaos, with wars happening left and right. Death escaped Samsin’s body and became a demon that started feeding off of humanity’s greed. A woman who lost her lover in the war created a painting filled with her mourning for her other half. Samsin, who was abandoned by the three deities residing in her body, felt the woman’s feelings, and gave her spirit to the painting, making it powerful. In a turn of events, Death, who is now a demon, ended up trapped in the painting.


The series shows Hong Chun-gi as the woman painter. But we learn that in the current timeline she’s in, the painting was burned, and the Demon escaped. What does that say about the plot? Is Chun-gi the reincarnation of the woman in the story? Who was the lover in the lore and why did Samsin choose this couple out of all the others who lost their loved ones in the war? So many questions!

There’s also the fact that Chun-gi was born blind but was miraculously given her vision back, enabling her to become a painter. Meanwhile, Ha Ram, who was blinded by an event, ended up regaining his sight too. It’s still early to tell how all this plays into the bigger picture, but it’s more than enough reason to wait for the next episodes.

The drama’s cast lineup adds on to the excitement

Kim Yoo-Jung is no stranger to saeguk dramas (historical TV shows); she’s been acting in them since the early years of her career. That’s why we’ve been anticipating a similar drama from her after bagging her first saeguk lead role in Love In The Moonlight with Park Bo-Gum back in 2016.

Meanwhile, Ahn Hyo-Seop, who captured the hearts of everyone as Seo Woo-Jin in Dr. Romantic 2, takes on his first historical drama role. Even as a newbie, he’s proving to be quite charming in his role as Ha Ram. His chemistry with Yoo-Jung is also fun to watch.

Joining the two is Gong Myung (Be Melodramatic) as Prince Yangmyeong, whose character is described as free-spirited and in love with anything related to art but is hiding a certain loneliness. He will serve as the second lead in the drama, who not only falls in love with Hong Chun-Gi but will also be good friends with Ha Ram.

Kwak Si-Yang (Alice) completes the main cast of the drama as Grand Prince Juhyang, who is based on real historical figure King Sejo. He is ambitious and determined. The story will also explore his path on becoming a usurper.

Overall, Lovers Of The Red Sky holds a lot of promise. While other K-dramas tend to be cliched, this one introduced enough unique elements to ensure that it sticks out among the rest. Whether or not it can keep its momentum is still up for debate, but we’re hoping this will prove to be another fan favourite in the making.

(Cover photo from: @sbsdrama)