# Welcome to Samdal-ri

Welcome to Samdal-ri (Korean: 웰컴투 삼달리) is a South Korean romantic comedy drama television series written by Kwon Hye-joo, directed by Cha Young-hoon, and starring Ji Chang-wook and Shin Hye-sun. It aired on JTBC on December 2, 2023 to January 21, 2024, every Saturday and Sunday at 22:30 (KST). It is also available for streaming on TVING in South Korea, and on Netflix in selected regions.

## Synopsis

Cho Yong-pil and Cho Sam-dal are childhood friends. After his mother, a member of the haenyeos, drowns because of a mistaken weather report, Yong-pil decides to become a weather forecaster to protect the elders of his Jeju Island hometown. However, his passion and refusal to let misinformation slide earns him a reputation as a stubborn troublemaker. On the other hand, Sam-dal moves to Seoul to pursue her dreams of becoming a successful fashion photographer, and goes by the name of Cho Eun-hye. But when her life suddenly falls apart, she returns to her hometown, where she reconnects with Yong-pil. Despite an incident that drove them apart, the two friends find their affection for each other still as strong as ever.

## Cast
### Main

* Ji Chang-wook as Cho Yong-pil
    A weather forecaster at Jeju Island's Meteorological Administration.
* Shin Hye-sun as Cho Sam-dal / Cho Eun-hye
    A photographer in the fashion industry under the stage name Cho Eun-hye.

### Supporting
#### Sam-dal's family

* Kim Mi-kyung as Go Mi-ja
** Chung Ye-jin as young Mi-ja
    Sam-dal's mother who is a leader of haenyeo.
* Seo Hyun-chul as Cho Pan-sik
** Lee Suk-hyeong as young Pan-sik
    Sam-dal's father who is a bus driver on Jeju Island.
* Shin Dong-mi as Cho Jin-dal
    Sam-dal's older sister who is a former flight attendant.
* Kang Mi-na as Cho Hae-dal
    Sam-dal's younger sister.
* Kim Do-eun as Cha Ha-yul
    Hae-dal's daughter.

#### Yong-pil's family

* Yu Oh-seong as Cho Sang-tae
** Yoo Hee-je as young Sang-tae
    Yong-pil's father who works as a contract worker in the civil affairs team.
* Jung Yoo-mi as Bu Mi-ja
** Oh Woo-ri as young Mi-ja
    Yong-pil's late mother.

#### Five Eagle Brothers

* Kang Young-seok as Boo Sang-do
    Sam-dal and Yong-pil's best friend who is a symbol of wealth in the village. He has had a crush on Sam-dal for a long time.
* Lee Jae-won as Wang Kyung-tae
    Sam-dal and Yong-pil's best friend who is a security guard at Jeju Island's Meteorological Administration.
* Bae Myung-jin as Cha Eun-woo
    Sam-dal and Yong-pil's best friend who is an observer at Jeju Island's Meteorological Administration.

#### People around the three sisters

* Yang Kyung-won as Jeon Dae-young
    Jin-dal's ex-husband and AS Group's CEO.
* Kang Gil-woo as Go Cheol-jong
    Dae-yeong's secretary.
* Kim Min-chul as Gong Ji-chan
    CEO of Dolphin Center, a Jeju southern bottlenose dolphin protection group.

#### People in Samdal-ri

* Baek Hyun-joo as Oh Geum-sul
    Kyung-tae's mother who is a haenyeo.
* Kim Mi-hwa as Yang Bu-ja
    Eun-woo's mother who is a haenyeo.
* Yoon Jin-seong as Jeon He-ja
    Sang-do's mother who is a haenyeo and owner of the best restaurant in Jeju.
* Kim Ja-young as Yang Geum-ok
    Yong-pil's maternal grandmother who suffer dementia.
* Yoo Sun-woong as Bu Dae-chun
    Yong-pil's maternal grandfather.
* Kim Hak-sun as Boo Dae-song
    Sang-do's father.
* Byun Jong-su as Wang Seong-gu
    Kyung-tae's father.
* Yoo Seung-il as Cha Man-deok
    Eun-woo's father.
* Sazal Mahamud as Kim Man-soo
    A foreign part-timer at Kyung-tae's Lucky Convenience Store.

#### Jeju Island's Meteorological Administration

* Lee Tae-hyung as Han Seok-gyu
    Yong-pil's superior who is a division manager of the forecast department.
* Kim Hyun-mok as Kang Baek-ho
    Yong-pil's colleague who is a forecaster of the forecast department.

#### People around Cho Eun-hye

* Jo Yun-seo as Bang Eun-ju
    3moon Studio's assistant and an amateur photographer who makes up a false claim against Sam-dal that ruins her career and causes her to move back to her hometown.
* Han Eun-seong as Cheon Chung-gi
    Sam-dal's ex-boyfriend who is an editor of Magazine X.
* Kim Ah-young as Go Eun-bi
    3moon Studio's assistants.
* Lee Do-hye as Yang Ji-eun
    3moon Studio's assistants.

### Special appearance

* Kim Tae-hee as Herself
* Kim Dae-gon as Reporter An Kang-hyun

## Production
### Casting

On June 19, 2023, Ji Chang-wook and Shin Hye-sun were confirmed to appear in the series.

## Original soundtrack
### Soundtrack album

The series' soundtrack album was released on February 2, 2024.

### Singles
## Reception
### 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 | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number |
| Season | Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| | 1 | 1.205 | 1.262 | 1.169 | 1.522 | 1.597 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1.666 | 2.251 | 2.138 | 2.398 | 2.583 | 2.965 |
Average TV viewership ratings :
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) |
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Nationwide | Seoul |
| 1 | December 2, 2023 | 5.193% (1st) | 5.283% (1st) |
| 2 | December 3, 2023 | 5.276% (1st) | 5.552% (1st) |
| 3 | December 9, 2023 | 5.324% (1st) | 6.329% (1st) |
| 4 | December 10, 2023 | 6.509% (1st) | 7.255% (1st) |
| 5 | December 16, 2023 | 6.689% (1st) | 6.528% (1st) |
| 6 | December 17, 2023 | 8.295% (1st) | 9.2% |
| 7 | December 23, 2023 | 6.382% (1st) | 6.6% |
| 8 | December 24, 2023 | 7.913% (1st) | 7.9% |
| 9 | December 30, 2023 | 8.109% (1st) | 8.8% |
| 10 | December 31, 2023 | 8.227% (1st) | 8.7% |
| 11 | January 6, 2024 | 7.282% (2nd) | 8.037% (1st) |
| 12 | January 7, 2024 | 9.788% (1st) | 10.597% (1st) |
| 13 | January 13, 2024 | 9.324% (1st) | 10.389% (1st) |
| 14 | January 14, 2024 | 10.068% (1st) | 10.790% (1st) |
| 15 | January 20, 2024 | 10.365% (1st) | 10.919% (1st) |
| 16 | January 21, 2024 | 12.399% (1st) | 13.081% (1st) |
| Average | Average | 7.946% | 8.498% |
| In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. This series aired on a cable channel/pay TV which normally has a relatively smaller audience compared to free-to-air TV/public broadcasters (KBS, SBS, MBC, and EBS). ||||

### Accolades
#### 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 / Work | Result |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Supporting Actress | Shin Dong-mi | Nominated |
| Korean Drama Festival | 2024 | Best OST | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| Korea Grand Music Awards | 2024 | Best OST | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| MAMA Awards | 2024 | Best OST | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| MAMA Awards | 2024 | Song of the Year | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| Melon Music Awards | 2024 | Best OST | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Best OST | "Dream" (Taeyeon) | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Ji Chang-wook | Won |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Excellence Acting Award, Actor | Seo Hyun-chul | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Best New Actress | Kang Mi-na | Won |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Best Child Actress | Kim Do-eun | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2024 | Popularity Star Award, Actress | Shin Hye-sun | Nominated |

#### Listicles

Name of publisher, year listed, name of listicle, and placement :
| Publisher | Year | Listicle | Placement | Ref. |
| South China Morning Post | 2024 | The 15 best K-dramas of 2024 | 5th place | |