# Through the Darkness (TV series)

Through the Darkness (Korean: 악의 마음을 읽는 자들 – Those who read the hearts of evil) is a 2022 South Korean television series starring Kim Nam-gil, Jin Seon-kyu and Kim So-jin. It is based on the 2018 non-fiction book of the same title co-written by Korea's first criminal profiler Kwon Il-yong [ko] and journalist-turned-author Ko Na-mu, which highlights Kwon's field experiences. It aired on SBS TV from 14 January to 12 March 2022, every Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST).

## Synopsis

Set during the early days of implementation of criminal behavior analysis in the South Korean law enforcement, the series is about a very first criminal profiler who struggles to determine the behavioural patterns of serial killers while trying to prove to society that criminal behavior analysis is the future of criminal investigation.

## Cast
### Main

* Kim Nam-gil as Song Ha-young, profiler of the Criminal Behavior Analysis team at Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's (SMPA) Scientific Investigation division.
** Lee Chun-moo as young Song Ha-young
* Jin Seon-kyu as Gook Young-soo, leader of the Criminal Behavior Analysis team.
* Kim So-jin as Yoon Tae-goo, team leader of the Mobile Investigation Unit at SMPA.

### Supporting
#### Criminal Behavior Analysis team

* Ryeoun as Jung Woo-joo, the person who provides information and analyzes various incident data. He later joins Ha-young and Young-soo's team.

#### Mobile Investigation Unit

* Lee Dae-yeon as Baek Jun-sik, head of SMPA's Criminal division.
* Kim Won-hae as Heo Gil-pyo, head of SMPA's Mobile Investigation Unit.
* Jeong Soon-won as Nam Il-young, the youngest member of Mobile Investigation Unit who respects and follows Tae-goo unconditionally.

#### Others

* Kim Hyun as Hwa-yeon's mother
* Gong Sung-ha as Choi Yoon-ji, a journalist from online media Fact Today.
* Kim Hye-ok as Park Young-shin, Ha-young's mother.

### Extended

* Go Geon-han as Yang Yong-cheol, a man who claimed to be the "Red Hat" murderer.
* Seo Dong-gap as Kim Bong-sik, the first commander of the squadron.
* Hong Woo-jin as Oh In-tak, a forensic officer in SMPA's forensic team and is a junior of Young-soo.
* Oh Seung-hoon as Jo Kang-moo, a serial killer.
* Oh Hee-joon as Kang Yoo-min
* Han Joon-woo as Goo Young-chun, a psychopathic serial killer.
* Kim Jung-hee as Nam Ki-tae, a psychopathic serial killer.
* Na Cheol as Woo Ho-seong, a psychotic serial killer.

### Special appearances

* Jung Man-sik as Park Dae-woong, crime squad leader.
* Hwang Jung-min as the key witness of a crime.
* Oh Kyung-ju as Bang Ki-hoon, a suspect who was investigated for killing his own girlfriend.
* Ha Do-kwon as Shin Ki-ho, the director of the online media Fact Today.

## Release

It was initially reported that the series was likely to be aired in October 2021. However, it was later confirmed in November that it would premiere on 14 January 2022.

## Viewership

| Season | Season | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Average |
| Season | Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Average |
| | 1 | 1.210 | 1.398 | 1.533 | 1.726 | 1.442 | 1.388 | 1.508 | 1.056 | 1.610 | 1.251 | 1.411 | 1.426 | 1.413 |
Average TV viewership ratings :
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Average audience share | Average audience share | Average audience share |
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Nielsen Korea | Nielsen Korea | TNmS |
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Nationwide | Seoul | Nationwide |
| 1 | 14 January 2022 | 6.2% (14th) | 6.4% | 5.2% (14th) |
| 2 | 15 January 2022 | 7.5% (7th) | 8.1% (5th) | 5.2% (17th) |
| 3 | 21 January 2022 | 7.9% (9th) | 8.6% (9th) | 5.6% (12th) |
| 4 | 22 January 2022 | 8.2% (5th) | 8.6% (2nd) | 6.2% (6th) |
| 5 | 28 January 2022 | 7.5% (10th) | 8.6% (6th) | 6.0% (9th) |
| 6 | 29 January 2022 | 6.9% (9th) | 7.8% (6th) | 5.1% (16th) |
| 7 | 25 February 2022 | 7.4% (8th) | 8.0% (5th) | 6.6% (11th) |
| 8 | 26 February 2022 | 5.0% (19th) | 5.1% (17th) | 4.9% (18th) |
| 9 | 4 March 2022 | 8.3% (3rd) | 8.9% (3rd) | 6.8% (10th) |
| 10 | 5 March 2022 | 6.0% (12th) | 6.2% (11th) | 4.6% (17th) |
| 11 | 11 March 2022 | 7.3% (7th) | 7.9% (6th) | 6.3% (11th) |
| 12 | 12 March 2022 | 7.0% (8th) | 7.6% (5th) | 5.9% (11th) |
| Average | Average | 7.1% | 7.7% | 5.7% |
| In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. |||||

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee | Result |
| APAN Star Awards | 2022 | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2022 | Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Jin Seon-kyu | Won |
| Asian Television Awards | 2022 | Best Picture Award | Through the Darkness | Won |
| Asian Television Awards | 2022 | Best Drama Series | Through the Darkness | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2022 | Best Actor – Television | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Series Awards | 2022 | Best Actor | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Series Awards | 2022 | Best Drama | Through the Darkness | Nominated |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2022 | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2022 | Excellence Award, Actor | Jin Seon-kyu | Nominated |
| New York Festivals: TV & Film Awards | 2023 | Entertainment Program – Crime Drama | Through the Darkness | Finalist |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Kim Nam-gil | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama | Jin Seon-kyu | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best New Actor | Ryeoun | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best New Actress | Gong Sung-ha | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Director's Award | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama | Kim So-jin | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama | Kim Won-hae | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best Supporting Team | Through the Darkness | Nominated |
| Seoul International Drama Awards | 2022 | Best Actor | Kim Nam-gil | Nominated |

## Note

* ↑ The series was suspended for three weeks due to the broadcast of 2022 Winter Olympics.
* ↑ Kim So-jin, Kim Nam-gil, Jin Seon-kyu, Ryeoun, Kim Won-hae, Jung Se-woon and Lee Dae-yeon