# Low Life (TV series)
**Low Life** (파인 촌뜨기들; *Pain Chonddeugideul*, literal title "Country Bumpkin") is a 2025 South Korean crime drama series streamed on Disney+, set in 1977 and centered on small-time crooks who chase a sunken treasure ship off the coast of Shinan, South Jeolla Province.[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) It ran for 11 episodes from July 16 to August 13, 2025, and was directed by Kang Yoon-sung from a script by Kang Yoon-sung and An Seung-hwan, adapted from the webcomic *Pain* (파인) by Yoon Tae-ho.[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 파인 촌뜨기들 (*Pain Chonddeugideul*); also known as *The Hooligans*[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) • [2](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/81602/low-life) |
| Network and run | Disney+, 11 episodes, July 16 to August 13, 2025[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) |
| Setting | 1977, on the coast of Shinan, South Jeolla Province[3](https://www.cineplay.co.kr/en-us/articles/19420) |
| Source material | Webcomic *Pain* (파인) by Yoon Tae-ho, published July 18, 2014 to August 25, 2015 via Kakao[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) |
| Lead cast | Ryu Seung-ryong (Oh Gwan-seok), Yang Se-jong (Oh Hee-dong), Im Soo-jung (Yang Jung-sook)[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/81602/low-life) |
| Streaming performance | First place for 25 consecutive days on the Disney+ Korean content chart as of August 12, 2025, per FlixPatrol[4](https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/entertainment/lim-soo-jung-wraps-acclaimed-role-in-low-life-i-seized-the-chance-without-holding-back/11967718) |
| Audience rating | 6.7/10 on IMDb from about 418 votes[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32122656) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Oh Gwan-seok ([Ryu Seung-ryong](https://www.edgepedia.org/ryu-seung-ryong)) is a petty crook who will do anything to make money, legal or not, and who raised his nephew Oh Hee-dong ([Yang Se-jong](https://www.edgepedia.org/yang-se-jong)) and led him into the criminal world. When Gwan-seok receives a request to salvage treasure from a sunken ship off Shinan, he sees a chance at a fortune, but rumors about the ship draw all sorts of people to the area.[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) Disney+ describes the setup as 1977, when everyday Koreans struggled to survive and rumors spread of an Imperial Chinese shipwreck found off the Korean coast.[6](https://www.disneyplus.com/en-id/browse/entity-ddd7ffea-905a-49a3-8906-617f49d10ce6)
[Im Soo-jung](https://www.edgepedia.org/im-soo-jung) plays Yang Jung-sook, a shrewd businesswoman who heads Heungbaek Industries and gets drawn into the hunt.[7](https://www.kdramakopi.com/en/kdrama/low-life/) The supporting cast includes Kim Eui-sung, Kim Sung-oh, Kim Jong-soo, Lee Sang-jin, Lee Dong-hwi, and U-Know Yunho (Jung Yun-ho of TVXQ) as Beol-gu, a Mokpo thug among the treasure seekers.[8](https://news.sbs.co.kr/amp/news.amp?news_id=N1008198698)
## Source material and historical background
The series adapts the webcomic *Pain* by Yoon Tae-ho, a writer also known for *Misaeng*, *The Insider*, *Moss*, and *Incheon Landing Operation*.[9](https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-entertainment/2025/07/08/XV3TDGPKEZF6NH7GX5K57I7I3Q/?outputType=amp) The webcomic ran on Kakao from July 18, 2014 to August 25, 2015, and was inspired by a real event: the 1975 discovery of a sunken 14th-century Chinese ship off the coast of Shinan, South Korea.[1](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29) The South China Morning Post identifies the source comic as *Pa-in* ("dug out") and notes that Yoon Tae-ho's works had previously been adapted into the films *[Inside Men](https://www.edgepedia.org/inside-men-film)* and *Moss*.[10](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-drama/k-drama/article/3318760/disney-k-drama-low-life-impressive-sea-crime-caper-spends-too-long-stuck-port)
## Production and release
Kang Yoon-sung directed the series and co-wrote it with An Seung-hwan; he had written Disney+'s *Big Bet* and directed the film *The Outlaws*.[11](https://www.techradar.com/streaming/disney-plus/is-this-swashbuckling-crime-drama-the-next-big-disney-hit-low-life-is-the-latest-korean-original-to-come-to-streaming) Disney+ held a production presentation on July 8, 2025 at the Conrad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, with the main cast in attendance.[9](https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-entertainment/2025/07/08/XV3TDGPKEZF6NH7GX5K57I7I3Q/?outputType=amp)
The premiere on July 16, 2025 offered three episodes at once, followed by two episodes weekly until a two-part finale on August 13; in the United States the series premiered as a Hulu Original and streamed internationally on Disney+.[11](https://www.techradar.com/streaming/disney-plus/is-this-swashbuckling-crime-drama-the-next-big-disney-hit-low-life-is-the-latest-korean-original-to-come-to-streaming) Episodes run about 56 minutes on a Wednesday schedule.[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/81602/low-life)
## Reception
The series performed strongly on Disney+ charts: it ranked first for 11 consecutive days in the overall Korean content category on Disney+ according to FlixPatrol, and by August 12, 2025 it had held first place for 25 consecutive days.[8](https://news.sbs.co.kr/amp/news.amp?news_id=N1008198698) • [4](https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/entertainment/lim-soo-jung-wraps-acclaimed-role-in-low-life-i-seized-the-chance-without-holding-back/11967718) A ContentAsia demand dataset for late September 2025 placed *Low Life* fifth among Korean series, with a demand score of 19.0 against the average TV show.[12](https://www.contentasia.tv/eNewsletter/2025/ContentAsia_eNewsletter_29_September_2025.pdf)
Critics praised the period craft. The [South China Morning Post](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-china-morning-post)'s review called the production value sterling, saying it brings 1970s Korea to life through period detail in a story moving between the streets of Seoul and the harbor of Mokpo, while faulting the show for spending too long on obstacles and haggling before the action gets under way.[10](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-drama/k-drama/article/3318760/disney-k-drama-low-life-impressive-sea-crime-caper-spends-too-long-stuck-port) Common Sense Media described it as an entertainingly unpredictable crime caper combining drama and dark comedy in 1970s South Korean nostalgia.[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/low_life/s01) On IMDb the series holds 6.7/10 from about 418 votes.[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32122656)
Creator Yoon Tae-ho said in an August 2025 interview that Im Soo-jung surprised him most among the cast, calling her casting unexpected and her performance stunning.[14](https://news.sbs.co.kr/english/endPagePrintPopup.do?news_id=N1008221058)
## References
1. [Low Life (Korean Drama), AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?redirect=no&title=Low_Life_%28Korean_Drama%29)
2. [Low Life, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/81602/low-life)
3. [OTT Rating: Disney+ Series Low Life, Cineplay](https://www.cineplay.co.kr/en-us/articles/19420)
4. [Lim Soo-jung wraps acclaimed role in 'Low Life', Korea JoongAng Daily](https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/entertainment/lim-soo-jung-wraps-acclaimed-role-in-low-life-i-seized-the-chance-without-holding-back/11967718)
5. [Low Life (TV Series 2025), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32122656)
6. [Watch Low Life, Disney+](https://www.disneyplus.com/en-id/browse/entity-ddd7ffea-905a-49a3-8906-617f49d10ce6)
7. [Low Life, Korean Drama 2025, Kdramakopi](https://www.kdramakopi.com/en/kdrama/low-life/)
8. ['I Learned Dialect from Mokpo Taxi Drivers', SBS News](https://news.sbs.co.kr/amp/news.amp?news_id=N1008198698)
9. [Disney+ aims for revival with Ryoo Seung-ryong's 'Low Life', ChosunBiz](https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-entertainment/2025/07/08/XV3TDGPKEZF6NH7GX5K57I7I3Q/?outputType=amp)
10. [Disney+ K-drama Low Life: crime caper superbly brings 1970s Korea to life, South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-drama/k-drama/article/3318760/disney-k-drama-low-life-impressive-sea-crime-caper-spends-too-long-stuck-port)
11. [Is this swashbuckling crime drama the next big Disney+ hit?, TechRadar](https://www.techradar.com/streaming/disney-plus/is-this-swashbuckling-crime-drama-the-next-big-disney-hit-low-life-is-the-latest-korean-original-to-come-to-streaming)
12. [ContentAsia eNewsletter, 29 September 2025](https://www.contentasia.tv/eNewsletter/2025/ContentAsia_eNewsletter_29_September_2025.pdf)
13. [Low Life: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/low_life/s01)
14. ['Low Life' Creator Yoon Tae-ho interview, SBS News](https://news.sbs.co.kr/english/endPagePrintPopup.do?news_id=N1008221058)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › East Asian drama series › Korean historical drama (sageuk)*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license