With strong science fiction writing based on a popular Japanese novel written by Kotaro Isaka, the Korean drama Goodbye Earth (2024) creates a powerful depiction of a main female character, played by wonderful actress Ahn Eun Jin (My Dearest, The Good Bad Mother, Hospital Playlist), which is in turn mesmerizing yet sometimes quizzically detached from reality: I kept wondering, as I watched her character react to incredibly dire, life-threatening situations, if any normal schoolteacher on earth would be as passionately protective as she was of her students whenever they were placed at risk, even risking her own life to protect them from all harm, or would a regular teacher seek vengeance on the criminals who abused them? (I would have called the police instead of taking justice into my own hands!). I was completely engrossed in watching Ahn Eun Jin's acting in this amazing story, about an asteroid which was hurtling to earth, and specifically toward South Korea and the city where her character lived and worked. Then I was also thrilled to see that stupendous actor Yoo Ah In (Chicago Typewriter, Jang Ok Jung Living In Love, Sungkyunkwan Scandal, and the unforgettable film The Throne) was cast as her love interest in the drama. They had nice, gentle chemistry together. I hadn't seen him in awhile due to a drug scandal he was involved in, which temporarily impeded his career, but he is just too much of an incredible actor to be sidelined for long! Come on Korea, forgive him! We don't want another Lee Sun Kyun tragedy on our hands!

Other powerful actors in this drama who gave unforgettable performances were young actor Jeon Sung Woo (Beautiful Mind) who played a newbie Roman Catholic priest with great poignancy, and actress Kim Yoon Hye (Flower Boys Next Door) who played a military commander with superb ingenuity. Look at that sweet face! Can you see her as a soldier? No? Well, watch Goodbye Earth and she will convince you she is one in about ten seconds' screen time!

Also enjoyable to see in this drama were many familiar veteran actor and actress faces in the cast, whom I always smile broadly at whenever they pop up in my K-dramas, including Baek Ji Won (Extraordinary Attorney Woo), Kim Yeo Jin (Angel Eyes), Kim Young Ok (working as an actress since the 1950's!), Lee Si Hun (Moonshine), Park Ho San (My Mister), Park Hyuk Kwon (Something In The Rain), Cha Hwa Yeon (It's Okay, That's Love), and Shin Eun Jung (who had played Hyun Bin's doctor so well in Hyde, Jekyll and I). In the story most of these characters belong to the same church so they all know each other and get together frequently. I loved seeing them all together in scene after scene!

The drama was put in the capable hands of a great director named Kim Jin Min who had also directed the epic Road Number 1, Pride And Prejudice, and Lawless Lawyer, all excellent dramas that I loved a lot. 

The Story:

Scientists tell the world that an asteroid is on course to crash into earth in two hundred days and the main country that is to get the first brunt of its impact is South Korea. We meet a group of Korean citizens who live in the industrial city of Woongchun and are close-knit through their dedication to their local Roman Catholic Church, and we watch how each person copes with the news that their lives will probably soon end.

Jin Se Kyung (Ahn Eun Jin) works as a middle-school teacher in Woongchun. She learns about the impending asteroid destruction of her country and decides to quit her main teaching job in the public school setting and instead do volunteer work at a child protective division in city hall. She struggles to save children in danger.

Her fiance is Ha Yun Sang (Yoo Ah In). He works as a genetics researcher at a biotechnology research institute in the United States. After news of the asteroid hurtling towards the earth is released to the public, he flies back to South Korea to be with his love Jin Se Kyung. After a joyful reunion they decide to get married as quickly as possible. Ha Yun Sang has a priceless piece of paper given to him by the Americans that declares that he and his fiance will be able to leave South Korea for America under special government protection, but Se Kyung seems reluctant to leave. She has too many people she cares about in Woonghun to just desert them selfishly; besides, there's no guarantee that the entire earth would survive this asteroid hitting it so why leave? They both decide to stay and make the best of things until the end. At one point a large military jetliner tries to take Korean citizens and some American citizens who have paid a hefty price to leave the country away to "safety" but it has an accident mid-air and crashes into the ocean. No one survives, including some nefarious rich people who were harming folks in Woongchun.

Meanwhile we also meet Woo Sung Jae (Jeon Sung Woo, outstanding performance!) who is an assistant newbie priest at the large Roman Catholic Church in Woongchun. The presiding older priest Baek Sang Hyeok (Kang Seok Woo) was arrested for trying to illegally steal funds to protect himself from the asteroid hit, and so priest Sung Jae is put in charge of the congregation in his absence. A feisty young nun named Sister Chae Won (Park Joo Hee, cute performance) helps him take care of the parishioners, although sometimes she fumbles her duties in comical ways.

On the sidelines, trying to keep order in suffering Woongchun City, is stoical military officer Kang In A (Kim Yoon Hye, excellent performance). She works as a commander of a combat support battalion and is very forceful and wise in her decision-making. As the city morally degrades more and more with the coming of the asteroid she helps to provide survival supplies and security to the increasingly fractured populace.

At one point in the story a gang of jailbreaking hoods try to kidnap young schoolchildren to sell them for nefarious purposes and our teacher Se Kyung seeks personal revenge on them, even attempting to shoot them dead late at night in various places. Some of the children die before she can seek her revenge, adding to her sense of urgency, including a young boy named Min Ho (Eun Ye Jun) who was part of a foursome of fast friends including Park Jin Seo (Kim Kang Hoon), Jeong Ha Yul (Kim Do Hye) and Yoo So Min (Kim Bo Min). His loss turns the devoted foursome into a sadder threesome. Some of the families who lose young children are parishioners at the church and receive a lot of comforting support from the others. At one point the older priest returns to his fold but it is obvious few trust him anymore. He just becomes yet another tragic figure. I mean, how can you listen to the confessions of others when you yourself have behaved so un-righteously? I would have voted to kick him out of MY church! The younger priest Sung Jae was a much more compassionate person to watch over the flock as it comes closer and closer to the time of the asteroid hit.

If you are expecting a violent dramatic ending in Goodbye Earth you will only see it in symbolic terms, not physical, which I was actually relieved to see! I am sure there are viewers out there who wanted to see mass gore and blood and devastation in one big end scene but I much preferred a more spiritual take on the asteroid's impact. If you like science fiction tales then definitely check out Goodbye Earth and make up your own mind about it. With only twelve episodes your viewing will go fast, and the dynamic action in the drama, and the chemistry of its wonderful ensemble cast, make it all worthwhile. Enjoy! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HOME TO KOREAN DRAMA REVIEWS

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PICTURE GALLERY