‘Mr. Sunshine’ unfolds in late 19th century. A young boy escapes servitude, returns as American soldier after years. In Joseon, he meets a noblewoman activist, a sniper and a rogue heir. They get tangled in fight for independence while facing outside threats. Exciting, right?

Meet the characters from Mr. Sunshine

Eugene Choi

Eugene is that impossibly poised, polite American marine with a Korean heart — he’s all discipline and quiet intensity, but also secretly sentimental (don’t tell him I said that). He moves like someone who’s catalogued every possible exit and has a weird habit of fixing his hat at the exact same tilt, even in battle. He’s soft-spoken and deadly at the same time, which is wildly attractive and slightly terrifying — like a gentleman who can dismantle your life or save it, depending on the day. Also, he collects tiny keepsakes (maps, stamps, a crushed cigar band?) and eats kimchi at dawn, which is somehow both heroic and oddly domestic.

Go Ae Shin

Ae-shin is fire wrapped in silk — icy elegance one second, explosive stubbornness the next, and always dramatic in the best way. She has this fierce moral backbone; she’s stubborn to the point of ridiculousness but also heartbreakingly tender when she lets someone in (rarely, like a cat). She can be gentle and scholarly and then suddenly snatch a rifle — the contrast is everything; also she keeps a ridiculous number of handkerchiefs, and I love that. Confident, complicated, a woman who edits society’s script with a pen and a pistol, and yes she probably has two different favorite colors depending on the season.

Goo Dong Mae

Dong-mae is raw, dangerous, and oddly principled in his own brutal way — a butcher-turned-gangster who’s allergic to nobles and yet weirdly sentimental about loyalty. He’s violent and scary but has this stubborn, almost clueless tenderness that makes you go “oh no” and “aw” at the same time (please stop loving him, I mean it). He hoards little things like pocket watches or buttons, which clashes hilariously with his terrifying reputation — also swears he hates sweets but will steal a donut if you blink.

Kim Hui Seong

Kim Hui-seong is the picture of cold power — polished, strategic, and absolutely determined to drag the world into whatever version of ‘order’ he believes in. He’s bureaucratic to the bone, smooth-talking, and constantly calculating; a villain who prefers paperwork and a refined chair to mud and brawls, but don’t underestimate his ruthlessness. He collects etiquette and wields tradition like a weapon (and maybe a cigarette case? — tiny detail I can’t shake), which makes him awful and fascinating. He believes in rules so much that he’ll break the few that inconvenience him, which is the worst kind of hypocrisy and also kind of elegant.

Kudo Hina

Kudo Hina is quietly magnetic — elegant, multilingual, and a little mysterious, like someone who reads maps for fun and knows too many names. She gives off this calm, uncanny composure; polite, observant, and you get the sense she notices the exact shade of your eyes, then files it away. She’s refined but has tiny unpredictable quirks (laughs at strange jokes, collects postcards, carries a folding fan and a camera, probably) and can be either an ally or an enigma depending on her mood. There’s complexity there — loyalty and distance braided together — and honestly, she might be sipping green tea while planning three moves ahead.