Overview of Forest
The medical romance drama ‘Forest’ starring Park Hae-jin and Jo Bo-ah in lead roles aired on KBS2 from January 29 to March 19, 2020. Kang San-hyuk is the CEO of an investment company, RLI, and he would go to any extent for a business deal. Kang San-hyuk entered the 911 special rescue team to research a resort development in Miryeong Forest, and there he met Jung Young-jae, a promising young surgeon who was sent to a deserted hospital in Miryeong. The pair are drawn to a mystical forest in Korea’s countryside.
The drama had some plot lines that really could have made an outstanding melodrama: solid romance, many cute romantic moments, steamy kisses, and truly real emotions.

Profile
- Drama: Forest
- Director: Oh Jong-rok
- Writer: Lee Sun-young
- Network: KBS2
- Episodes: 32
- Release Date: January 29 – March 19, 2020
- Language: Korean
- Country: South Korea
Cast
- Park Hae-jin as Kang San-hyuk
- Choi Seung-hoon as young Kang San-hyuk
- Jo Bo-ah as Jung Young-jae
- Lee Go-eun as young Jung Young-jae
- Jung Yeon-joo as Oh Bo-mi
- No Gwang-sik as Choi Chang
Supporting
119 Rescue Team
- Ryu Seung-soo as Bong Dae-yong
- Woo Jung-kook as Ki Pil-young
- Geum Kwang-san as Yang Chul-sik
- Kim Eun-soo as Gook Soon-tae
- Myung Jae-hwan as Kim Man-soo
Miryeong Hospital
- Ahn Sang-woo as Park Jin-man
- Go Soo-hee as Nurse Kim
- Lee Nam-hee as Hospital Director
Red Line Investments
- Lee Si-hoon as Park Hyung-soo
- Kim Su-hyeon as Chairman Jang
- Jung Soo-gyo as Han Ji-yong
Taeseong Group
- Choi Kwang-il as Kwon Joo-han
- Kim Young-pil as Jo Kwang-pil
Others
- Park Ji-il as Jung Byung-hyuk
- Lee Do-kyung as Choi Jung-mok
- Jung Myung-joon as Shin Joon-young
- Heo Ji-won as Cha Jin-woo
- Choi Beom-ho as Seo Seok-yong
- Kim Min-seok
- Han Chul-woo
Special Appearances
- Grace Lee as Professor presenting conference materials on Bangladesh epidemic cases (episode 20)
- Jeong Moon-ho
- Kim Choong-sik
Synopsis
Kang San-hyuk (Park Hae-jin) is the CEO of an investment company named RLI. The passionate businessman enters the 911 special rescue team as a fearless and intelligent emergency service worker. He was in charge of a project to build a resort in the Miryeong Forest.

Kang San-hyuk is blighted by memory issues; he cannot remember key details about his childhood, and he longs to unlock the secrets of his past. During the project, he shared the house with Doctor Jung Young-jae (Jo Bo-ah). Young-jae is a young and passionate surgeon who was also demoted to the rural Miryeong hospital after an unexpected incident in which Young-jae lost everything except her heart.

Kang San-hyuk worked hard to become a qualified member of the 911 rescue team so that he could get access to the records to find a reason for the site relocation. However, the leader of the team, Bong Dae-yong (Ryu Seung-soo), was not impressed with San-hyuk’s performance, as San-hyuk focused more on attaining personal goals than looking after the team’s safety.
Jung Young-jae tried to find ways to bring the villagers to seek medical help at the rural hospital, much to her colleague Park Jin-man’s (Ahn Sang-woo) displeasure. Another character is introduced: a staff member from the office in charge, Oh Bo-mi (Jung Yeon-joo). Oh Bo-mi is very enthusiastic about her job, and she often goes to the forest to inspect if people have violated the rules. She became close with 911 special rescue team member Choi Chang (No Gwang-sik). Choi Chang is the one who taught her the way around the forests. Young-jae was not aware that Choi Chang’s father operated the largest lumber mill in Miryeong.

The Childhood Trauma of Kang San-hyuk
While staying at Miryeong, San-hyuk realised he had subconscious memories of the forest, as if he had been at Miryeong in his childhood. One time, while saving Young-jae from a forest fire, he recalled memories of the forest fire he came into contact with and thought that he was the one who caused the forest fire.
A Local Disaster
Meanwhile, the young surgeon Young-jae found out that some villagers had the symptoms of poisoning, and she suspects that the water source at Miryeong has been contaminated. Young-jae collected samples for testing, and the results came out normal. The testing lab was then found to be associated with the Taeseong group, a group that provided full medical services to Miryeong’s 911rescue team.

The Taeseong Group and Revealed Secrets
Kwon Joo-han (Choi Kwang-il) is the leader of the Taeseong group, and he also opposes San-hyuk in purchasing the land and getting approval to re-develop the forested area. The same water samples were later sent to another laboratory, and it revealed that the water source had been contaminated with heavy metals because of the inappropriate mining of lanthanides that happened many years ago.
Taeseong Group wanted to redevelop Miryeong as that place was rich in lanthanides, and years ago, the company built a station for 911 special rescue teams on the site of illegal mining.

The forest fire demolished the entire Miryeong village, and the fire was also not set by San-hyuk but by the Taeseong group’s leader, Kwon Joo-han, to cover up illegal mining. Joo-han killed San-hyuk’s sister in the fire and after his sister’s death, San-hyuk went through trauma and lost all his memories.
The surgeon Young-jae came to know that her parents wanted their entire family to commit suicide; however, her birth parents tried to save her from the water. She heard all this from her foster father and thus the reason behind her fear of water and her hostility towards her parents was revealed.
Ending Explained
The longer Kang San-hyuk and Jung Young-jae spend together in the seemingly magical forest, the closer they get to discovering the truth about their pasts, and the forests play a main role in their intertwined destinies.

Theme
The characters of the drama were broken individuals who helped each other overcome their life struggles. The drama portrays the romance of a man who has everything except a heart and a woman who has lost everything except her heart. They meet in a strange and mysterious forest and embark on a journey to uncover their secrets, as well as the secrets of that puzzling forest.
The drama sheds light on the story of two people and their relationship, filled with a terrifying and unforgettable past. Set in an obscure and mystic woodland, the story takes place in an appeasing atmosphere while narrating the tales behind the tall trees.
Awards
No information is available.
Interesting Facts about Forest
- Park Hae-jin’s highly-anticipated small-screen return after three years.
- DJ actor No Gwang-sik made his acting debut in the role of Choi Chang.
- The drama has excellent cinematography; beautiful shots of the forest bring a mystical element to the screen.
- The drama serves a serious zen woodland ambience with the smart incorporation of sounds.
- The early work title of the drama was ‘Secret’.
- Filming of the drama finished in August 2019, and the series aired as a completed production.
FAQs
- Who are the writer and director of the K-drama ‘Forest’?
The drama is written by Lee Sun-young and directed by Oh Jong-rok.
- What is the genre of ‘Forest’?
The drama falls into the psychological, romance, and medical drama genres.
-
How many episodes are in the K-drama ‘Forest’?
The drama has concluded a successful 32-episode run. - Is the K-drama ‘Forest’ worth watching?
This beautiful K-drama is worth your time. A healing romance found deep beneath the woods is purely refreshing and heart-fluttering. -
What is the Instagram ID of Park Hae-jin?
parkhaezin_official is the Instagram ID of Park Hae-jin.
- What is the Instagram ID of Jo Bo-ah?
xxadoraa is the Instagram ID of Jo Bo-ah.