Happiness (South Korean TV series)

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Happiness
File:Happiness (South Korean TV series).jpg
Promotional poster
Hangul 해피니스
Genre
Created by
  • Yang Ji-eul (Tving)
  • Lee Myung-han (tvN)
Developed by
  • Kim Young-kyu
  • Studio Dragon
Written by Han Sang-woon
Directed by Ahn Gil-ho
Starring
Country of origin South Korea
Original language(s) Korean
No. of episodes 12
Production
Executive producer(s) Jo Moon-ju[1]
Producer(s)
  • Hong Won-ju
  • Jeong Se-mi
Running time 70 minutes
Production company(s)
Release
Original network tvN
Original release November 5 (2021-11-05) –
December 11, 2021 (2021-12-11)
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

Happiness (Hangul: 해피니스; RR: Haepiniseu) is a 2021 South Korean television series starring Han Hyo-joo, Park Hyung-sik, and Jo Woo-jin, produced by Studio Dragon. It is an apocalyptic thriller that takes place in a time in which infectious diseases have become the new norm.[2] It premiered on tvN on November 5, 2021 and aired every Friday and Saturday at 22:40 (KST) for 12 episodes.[3][4] It is also available for streaming on Viki, Viu, Netflix, and iQIYI in selected territories.[5]

Synopsis

Setting

Happiness takes place in the near future, where the release of a failed treatment drug "Next" has caused a worldwide pandemic known as the Lytta Virus, a.k.a. "mad person disease". Those infected by Lytta experience short bouts of insanity and bloodlust, before completely regressing into a zombie-like state. The South Korean Military and Police forces are trying to contain the spread of Lytta and Next through extensive investigation and authoritative quarantine measures, while civil rights groups protest against them, believing the infected are still capable of normal human interaction.

Plot

Yoon Sae-bom (Han Hyo-joo) encounters a trainee at the Special Operations Unit who is infected by mad person disease. In the struggle to subdue the trainee, she is scratched, leading her to meet Han Tae-seok (Jo Woo-jin) at a research facility. The facility houses many of the "patients" who are kept under observation in order to understand and cure the disease. It is revealed that the symptoms of mad person disease are first accompanied by unabated thirst, followed by the pupil turning white, and then thirst for human blood. The disease is not airborne, but spreads through scratches and bites, with Yoon Sae-bom seemingly immune to the disease. Some of those who contracted the disease is ultimately able to return to their former selves temporarily. Yoon Sae-bom makes a deal with Han Tae-seok which leads her to secure an apartment in a newly constructed building, however in order to do so, she must be married. She asks her high school friend Jung Yi-hyun (Park Hyung-sik), a former star baseball player but now a police detective, and he agrees to be her fake husband. The building is luxurious and highly stratified, with the public rentals consisting of the lower five floors, and the upper floors for those who own their apartment. Class discrimination is evident where the upper floor resident Oh Yeon-ok (Bae Hae-sun) struggles to be the apartment representative while keeping everyone in check. Yoon Sae-bom meets many interesting and strange residents, forming a close attachment to her neighbor's young daughter.

Through Jung Yi-hyun's detective work, he encounters a diseased person who he believes became this way due to a failed pneumonia drug called Next, which has been widely circulated in order to promote attentiveness and strength. This assumption is later confirmed when a resident member who consumed the drug, secretly sold to her in the building's gym, ultimately became infected with the mad person disease and succumbed to the illness. This begins the outbreak in the building. In an effort to protect the residents in his building, Jung Yi-hyun and Yoon Sae-bom establishes quarantine rules, while securing the building from the outside with the help of his Captain, Kim Jung-guk (Lee Jun-hyeok). Jung Yi-hyun conflicts with building resident Oh Joo-hyung (Baek Hyun-jin) who seems to encourage destructive behavior in the building. The question of humanity and whether to view those infected with mad person disease as human beings forms a psychological battle for Sae-bom, Yi-hyun and Tae-seok.

Han Tae-seok initially tries to keep the mad person disease a secret, but with more cases progressing and people getting panicked, it is revealed to the public. With the increasing number of people getting infected, Han Tae-seok along with his military team are struggling to determine whether to preserve these people, or to kill them off. Han Tae-seok ordered the complete quarantine of the new building complex where Yoon Sae-bom and Jung Yi-hyun lives, offering them a chance to leave the building before it becomes completely sealed to anyone going in or out of the complex area, however they decline the offer. Yoon Sae-bom's blood contains antibodies that could hold the cure for the disease, which Han Tae-seok seeks to exploit. It is revealed that Han Tae-seok's pregnant wife was bitten by the president of the pharmaceutical company that supplied Next, and ultimately became infected with the disease. His search for the cure is in part motivated to find a cure for his wife and to save his unborn child.

Cast

Main

A member of a Special Operation Unit police squad (KP-SOU) formerly known as KP-SWAT. She is decisive, determined, smart, and does not easily get rattled. She is excited to move into her new apartment, but as soon as moves there she faces a crisis.
A smart and honest detective who, for a long time, has held romantic feelings for Sae-bom. They graduated from the same high school. He struggles to protect Sae-bom and other people.
A lieutenant colonel and belongs to the health service command. He holds a key to the infectious disease outbreak.

Supporting

People around Jung Yi-hyun

Extended

Special appearances

Production

Happiness is helmed by director Ahn Gil-ho and writer Han Sang-woon, who worked together on the 2019 OCN series, Watcher. Ahn Gil-ho has worked on numerous hits such as Record of Youth, Memories of the Alhambra and Stranger, while writer Han Sang-woon has also penned The Good Wife, the Korean remake of the 2016 American TV series.[25]

It is the first acting project of Park Hyung-sik since his discharge from military service on January 4, 2021.[25]

The first script reading with the cast was held on May 7, 2021, and filming started on May 11.[26][27]

Original soundtrack

Happiness
Soundtrack album by Various Artists
Released 2021
Genre Soundtrack
Language
Label

Part 1

Released on November 20, 2021 (2021-11-20)[28]
No. Title Artist Length
1. "What Lies Ahead"   Joe Layne 3:40
Total length:
 3:40

Part 2

Released on December 4, 2021 (2021-12-04)[29]
No. Title Artist Length
1. "Pain"   Isaac Hong 3:23
2. "Pain" (Inst.)   3:23
Total length:
 6:47

Part 3

Released on December 11, 2021 (2021-12-11)[30]
No. Title Artist Length
1. "ENIGMA"   Jemma 3:38
2. "ENIGMA" (Inst.)   3:38
Total length:
 7:16

Viewership

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Average TV viewership ratings
Ep. Original broadcast date Average audience share
(Nielsen Korea)[31][32]
Nationwide Seoul
1 November 5, 2021 3.300% (2nd) 4.103% (2nd)
2 November 6, 2021 3.196% (2nd) 3.679% (2nd)
3 November 12, 2021 3.574% (2nd) 3.862% (2nd)
4 November 13, 2021 3.324% (2nd) 3.841% (2nd)
5 November 19, 2021 3.542% (2nd) 4.217% (2nd)
6 November 20, 2021 3.084% (2nd) 3.494% (2nd)
7 November 26, 2021 3.539% (2nd) 4.176% (2nd)
8 November 27, 2021 3.251% (2nd) 3.597% (2nd)
9 December 3, 2021 3.740% (2nd) 4.377% (2nd)
10 December 4, 2021 3.263% (2nd) 3.735% (2nd)
11 December 10, 2021 3.543% (2nd) 3.857% (2nd)
12 December 11, 2021 4.185% (2nd) 4.433% (2nd)
Average 3.462% 3.948%
  • In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.
  • This series aired on a cable channel/pay TV which normally has a relatively smaller audience compared to free-to-air TV/public broadcasters (KBS, SBS, MBC and EBS).

Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination
Ceremony Year Award Recipient Result Ref.
1st Blue Dragon Series Awards 2022 Best Actress Han Hyo-joo Nominated [33]
Best Supporting Actress Bae Hae-sun Nominated

References

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  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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