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Signal (South Korean TV series)
2016 South Korean TV series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Signal (Korean: 시그널) is a South Korean television series written by Kim Eun-hee, directed by Kim Won-seok, and starring Lee Je-hoon, Kim Hye-soo, and Cho Jin-woong. It was inspired by real-life criminal incidents in Korea,[1] including the Hwaseong serial murders.[2][3] The first season aired on tvN from January 22 to March 12, 2016, every Friday and Saturday at 20:30 (KST).[4][5][6] In March 2024, a second season was confirmed to be in production.[7]
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The series received widespread acclaim from audiences and critics alike for its story and performances. It is also one of the highest-rated Korean dramas in cable television history with a peak audience viewership of 12.544%.
This series is inspired by the 2000 film, Frequency, a science fiction thriller film starring Dennis Quaid, Jim Caviezel, Andre Braugher, and Elizabeth Mitchell, which also inspired a TV series in 2016 of the same name by The CW, Frequency .
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Plot
In present-day 2015, criminal profiler Park Hae-young (Lee Je-hoon) finds a mysterious discarded walkie talkie; inexplicably, the person at the other end, Detective Jae-han (Cho Jin-woong), is from the past, and addresses him familiarly, even though Hae-young has never met him. Hae-young is able to solve a 15-year-old kidnapping and murder case involving a former classmate from his childhood with Jae-han's help. The success of this case triggers the formation of a cold case team, led by Detective Cha Soo-hyun (Kim Hye-soo), who has been searching for Jae-han, her long-lost mentor and unrequited love, for the past 15 years.
With Jae-han's help from the 1990s, Hae-young solves other cold cases that have remained unsolved for years and is drawn into the mystery surrounding Jae-han's disappearance in the year 2000. As they try to fix the past and catch the criminals, unintended consequences follow in the present.
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Cast
Main
- Lee Je-hoon as Park Hae-young[8]
- The jaded and hotheaded criminal profiler who finds the walkie-talkie by chance, and uses his connection with Jae-han to solve cold cases.
- Kim Hye-soo as Cha Soo-hyun[9]
- The first female police officer in the Special Task Force, she becomes the leader of the Seoul cold case squad. She has been searching for Jae-han, her mentor and unrequited love, for 15 years, believing him to be dead.
- Cho Jin-woong as Lee Jae-han[10]
- The socially inept but virtuous and quick-tempered detective from the past who establishes a rapport with Park through the walkie-talkie. His timeline during his communication with Park spans from 1989 to 2000.
Supporting
- Police officers
- Jang Hyun-sung as Kim Bum-joo
- The corrupt police superintendent.
- Jung Hae-kyun as Ahn Chi-soo
- The section chief and supervisor of the Seoul cold case squad who acts as Bum-joo's lackey but appears morally gray.
- Kim Won-hae as Kim Gye-chul
- A police officer who joins the Seoul cold case squad and often serves as comic relief.
- Jung Han-bi as Oh Yoon-seo
- A colonel.
- Lee Yoo-jun as Jung Han-ki
- A forensic scientist and member of the Seoul cold case squad, often seen with Detective Kim.
- Kim Min-kyu as Hwang Eui-kyung
- A junior officer that cleans up the Seoul cold case squad's work area and admires them.
- Extended
- Kim Hyun-bin as young Park Hae-young
- Kang Chan-hee as Park Sun-woo
- Hae-young's older brother who was convicted in the high school gang rape case and died by suicide after being released.
- Yang Dae-hyuk as Hong Won-seo
- A detective.
- Lee Moon-soo as Lee Jae-han's father
- Seo Ju-hee as Cha Soo-hyun's mother
- Lim Hwa-young as Cha Soo-hyun's younger sister
- Lee Do-yeop as Kim Jung-jae
Special appearances
- Oh Yeon-ah as Yoon Soo-ah (ep. 1-2)
- Lee Young-eun as Kim Yoon-jung (ep. 1-2)
- Lee Si-a as Kim Won-kyung (ep. 2-4)
- Kim Jung-young as Won-kyung's aunt (ep. 2-4)
- Kim Ki-cheon as Lee Chun-goo (ep. 3-4)
- Lee Dong-ha as Han Se-kyu (ep. 5-8)
- Jung Suk-yong as Oh Kyung-tae (ep. 5-7)
- Park Si-eun as Oh Eun-ji (ep. 5-6)
- Choi Woo-ri as Shin Yeo-jin (ep. 5-6)
- Yoo Ha-bok as Shin Dong-hoon (ep. 5-7)
- Son Hyun-joo as Jang Young-chul (ep. 7, 11, 14, 16)
- Lee Eun-woo as Shin Da-hye (ep. 7-8)
- Lee Sang-yeob as Kim Jin-woo (ep. 9-11)
- Lee Chae-kyung as Jin-woo's mother (ep. 10)
- Seo Eun-ah as Yoo Seung-yeon (ep. 10-11)
- Shin Yi-joon as Kang Hye-seung (young / ep. 11-14)
- Kim Woo-suk as Lee Dong-jin (ep. 12-14)
- Lee Jin-kwon as a bully (ep. 12)
- Hwang Seung-eon as Han Do-yeon (ep. 13)
- Jeon Su-ji as Kang Hye-seung (adult / ep. 13-14)
- Seo Ji-hoon as Jang Tae-jin (ep. 14)
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Episodes
Summarize
Perspective
![]() | This episode's plot summaries may be too long or excessively detailed. (March 2024) |
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Original soundtrack
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Reception
Upon its premiere, the series attracted attention for weaving actual cases into its plot and attained high ratings.[11][12] With its finale rating of 12.54%, it is one of the highest rated Korean dramas in cable television history.[13][14] It received praise for its solid acting, tightly-constructed plot and detailed and sophisticated direction; and enjoyed success internationally in China and Japan.[15][16][17]
The drama went on to win several awards from different award-giving bodies, including Best Drama, Best Screenplay for Kim Eun-hee, and Best Actress for Kim Hye-soo at the 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards, as well as another Best Actress award for Kim and the Daesang (Grand Prize for Television) for Cho Jin-woong at the tvN10 Awards. Cho also won the Daesang at the 1st Asia Artist Awards for his performance.
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Ratings
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Awards and nominations
This section needs additional citations for verification. (March 2024) |
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Adaptations
- A Japanese remake of the series starring Kentaro Sakaguchi was aired from April 10 to June 12, 2018, on Fuji TV.[21][22]
- On October 23, 2019, Unknown Number, a Chinese remake of the series, started airing on Tencent Video.[citation needed]
- On January 20, 2023, a Thai remake of the series titled 23:23, was aired on True4U.[citation needed]
- On April 24, 2024, an Indian remake of the series titled Gyaarah Gyaarah, has premiered on August 9, 2024 on Zee5.[23][24]
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See also
References
External links
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