They‘re back, reloaded with laughter.

Genie TV original drama ‘Rookie 3’ (directed by Min Jin-ki and Jo Je-wook, written by Yoon Ki-young and Kang Go-eun) depicts the Shinwha Unit on high alert due to the transfer of two unpredictable rookies and the return of an all-time villain, as well as the increasingly difficult military life of Park Min-seok (played by Kim Min-ho) who gets tangled up before his promotion to corporal. The production team pointed out some key points to watch ahead of the release on the 4th.


● The fiery return of the comedy special forces!

According to the production team, ‘Rookie’ is a hyper-realistic comedy that depicts the story that unfolds as a ‘military spoon’ rookie enlists in a place where all sorts of people, from good guys to bad guys and weird guys, have gathered. The actors’ passionate performances that maximized the realism of the characters with strong personalities, and the realistic empathy exquisitely blended with cheerful comedy captured the public‘s tastes regardless of gender and generation, and received much love from the previous season. ‘Rookie 3’, which has returned amidst hot expectations, shows military life with a drastic increase in difficulty as the ‘national spoon’ rookie rookie Se-Gye (played by Kim Dong-Jun) and rookie Moon Bit-Na-Ri (played by Kim Yo-Han) who reminds him of his days of being discharged appear in front of Park Min-Seok (played by Kim Min-Ho), who has become a corporal. In particular, the ‘Rookies’, the special comedy unit that has shown great performance every season, captivates this time as well with their enhanced character play and comic ensemble. Kim Min-ho plays the role of ‘Park Min-seok’, a military scoundrel who has become a corporal but still has a hard time ‘Choi Il-goo’, Lee Sang-jin plays the clumsy but warmest platoon leader ‘Oh Seok-jin’, and Jeon Seung-hoon plays the poker-faced ‘Im Da-hye’ once again. The transformation of Lee Soo-ji, who plays ‘Park Min-joo’, Park Min-seok’s older sister and a special instructor with strong mental and physical strength, is also a point to look forward to.

Writer Yoon Ki-young chose characters as one of the keywords for Season 3, explaining, “The charm of ‘Rookie 3” is that you can see relatable characters who could be around you living together, growing through incidents and emotions that anyone can relate to that can happen in the military, while laughing.”


● Fresh vitality brought by powerful new faces

Kim Dong-jun, Oh Dae-hwan, and Kim Yo-han, who will bring a storm to the Shinwha Unit, are drawing attention. Kim Dong-jun is a child actor-turned-global star who plays the ace rookie ‘Jeonsegye’ with outstanding looks, personality, and sense. Oh Dae-hwan plays the lovable ‘Jo Baek-ho’ company commander who is newly assigned to the 2nd Platoon. Kim Yo-han transforms into the extraordinary, scrappy rookie ‘Moon Bit-nari’, who is reminiscent of Park Min-seok‘s rookie days, and delivers an impactful performance. From the nation’s spoon, to the scrappy rookie, to the love evangelist who appears as the successor to the FM company commander who is more vicious than the chemical, biological, and radiological defense forces. These three characters, whose nicknames alone are impressive, plan to fill up the turbulent times when Private Park Min-seok is becoming a veteran and increase the difficulty of military life. Indeed, attention is focused on what kind of synergy the original rookies, who have built perfect teamwork through two seasons, and the new faces will bring.

Kim Min-ho said, “This season, we have such great and wonderful actors. We were so happy to be together and filmed with such excitement. We all became ‘rookies’ in an instant and became close friends quickly, and we were able to talk comfortably and act.” Director Min Jin-ki also said, “‘Rookies’ will present laughter on a different level with upgraded camaraderie. The story, which has become even richer thanks to the activities of the new faces, will unfold in a pleasant way.”


● A sharp increase in laughter, empathy, scale, and difficulty of military life?! A change that has blown into the Shinwha unit

‘Rookies 3’ will return with stronger laughter than Season 1 and a more pleasant and rich story than Season 2. The most eye-catching thing about this season is the return of the all-time villain Sung Yoon-mo (played by Kim Hyun-kyu). I wonder what kind of storm his comeback after going straight to prison in Season 1 will bring to the Shinwha Unit. As the season progressed, ‘New Soldiers’ presented diverse fun with episodes that went beyond the barracks, such as guerrilla warfare, chemical, biological, radiological warfare, and the Arduous March. Season 3 is filled with new stories, such as the Shinwha Unit‘s extreme cold training after summer and preparation for emergency combat. In particular, the pink change that came to Park Min-joo, a ‘steel soldier’ to the bone, is expected to be another point of interest.

Director Min Jin-ki said, “Compared to the previous season, the number of episodes increased and the characters became richer, so I focused on directing to enhance the dramatic fun in addition to the sitcom fun. I think there is no place that reveals the true face of humanity as much as the military, where various people go through thick and thin together. That’s why I tried to portray the emotions and concerns of each individual, as well as the conflicts between classes, in as much detail and reality as possible,“ he said, raising curiosity.

Writer Yoon Ki-young also said, ”Through various consultations and interviews, I looked for materials with the top priority that ’it has to be something that could definitely happen in the military. I thought a lot about materials and incidents that weren‘t covered in previous seasons, and things that could possibly happen,“ raising expectations for upgraded fun.

‘New Soldiers 3’ will be first aired on Channel ENA at 10 p.m. on the 7th.

Reporter Hong Se-young, projecthong@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.