Jang Ki-yong received Song Hye-kyo's 'visiting gift'

Soldier Jang Ki-yong will soon return as a top star. He enlisted on August 23, 2021 and will be discharged after completing his national defense duties on the 22nd.

Jang Ki-yong ranges from Lee Gwang-il, the loan shark who harasses Lee Ji-an (IU) in the tvN drama 'My Mister', to Park Morgan, Bae Ta-mi's (Im Soo-jeong) exciting younger boyfriend in 'Enter a search term WWW', and SBS drama 'Now, Breaking Up'. He enlisted in the military after playing a passionate role as Ha Young-eun's (Song Hye-kyo) lover Yoon Jae-guk in 'Jihejung' (hereinafter referred to as 'Jihejung').

‘Jihejung’ was a pre-recorded work. Jang Ki-yong carefully prepared an enlistment gift for his fans. Thanks to this, there was no ‘military period’ (military + gap period) not only for fans but also for Jang Ki-yong himself.

The 'Jihejung' team, who worked together on his last project before enlistment, also met with Jang Ki-yong and gave him strength. At that time, actors Song Hye-kyo, Choi Hee-seo, Kim Joo-heon, and Yoon Nam-mu traveled a long way to support the youngest child despite their busy schedules.

Accordingly, Jang Ki-yong appeared on SBS Power FM's 'Doo O'Clock Escape Cultwo Show' and expressed his gratitude, saying, "The entire 'We're Breaking Up' team, including actress Song Hye-kyo, came to see me. It was a great help."

Afterwards, he appeared in the military musical 'Blue Helmets: Maysa's Song' and showed his powerful star power. 'Blue Helmets: Maysa's Song' is set in two countries with completely different cultures: Kamur, a fictional country that has been in a civil war for a long time, and Korea, where K-POP auditions are taking place. Centered around 'Raman', who was born and raised in Kamur, it tells the story of how he came to Korea in search of 'Maysa' (Kamuric - bright star), a UN peacekeeper who gave him dreams and hope.

Jang Ki-yong plays the role of 'Yeon Jun-seok', who applies for military deployment at the suggestion of his friend Yoon Seon-ho and changes and grows through a series of events experienced in Kamur. He led the center of the play along with boy group EXO's Chanyeol (played by Raman).

Also, in October last year, he attracted attention by serving as the MC for the closing ceremony of the ‘Gyeryong World Military Culture Expo’ held in Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do.

In addition to Jang Ki-yong, there are other stars who will soon be back with their fans. First, Gong Myung, who enlisted in December 2021, is scheduled to be discharged on June 13. He also left after completing filming for the movie 'Hansan: Emergence of the Dragon' and minimized his military service. The movies 'Citizen Deok-hee' and 'Killing Romance' also completed filming before enlistment, but are awaiting release as the film market faces an unprecedented recession in the aftermath of COVID-19.

Seo Kang-joon will enlist in November 2021 and be discharged on May 22. Seo Kang-Jun also made up for his time away from military service with the release of the movie 'Happy New Year', which he filmed before enlisting, and the release of the Disney+ original 'Grid'.

While the 'military service corruption scandal' has recently emerged in the entertainment industry, Jang Ki-yong, Gong Myung, and Seo Kang-jun have shown outstanding capabilities as soldiers, so their future activities in some form are expected. The three actors, who will proudly return to their full-time military service, are expected to revitalize the entertainment industry.

Ryu Ye-ji, Ten Asia Reporter ryuperstar@tenasia.co.kr