# Dongjae, the Good or the Bastard

Dongjae, the Good or the Bastard (Korean: 좋거나 나쁜 동재) is a 2024 South Korean crime thriller legal drama television series created by Lee Soo-yeon [ko], co-written by Hwang Ha-jung and Kim Sang-won, directed by Park Gun-ho, and starring Lee Joon-hyuk and Park Sung-woong. The series is a spin-off of the Korean drama Stranger by Lee S. and revolves around the life of Seo Dong-jae as a prosecutor. It was released on TVING from October 10, to November 7, 2024, and aired on tvN from October 14, to November 12, 2024. It will also be available for streaming on Paramount+ in selected regions.
Dongjae, the Good or the Bastard was invited as one of the six drama series in the On Screen section of the 29th Busan International Film Festival.

## Synopsis

Seo Dong-jae, who works at the Cheongju District Prosecutors' Office, has a bleak future due to the stigma attached to his past as a sponsored prosecutor. While struggling with a redevelopment case, he is assigned to the case of the murder of a high school girl and begins a dangerous tightrope walk between his intuition as a prosecutor and his instincts as an opportunist.

## Cast and characters
### Main

* Lee Joon-hyuk as Seo Dong-jae
    A prosecutor at Cheongju District Prosecutors' Office, who wants to be recognized in the present rather than his past as a sponsored prosecutor.
* Park Sung-woong as Nam Wan-sung
    CEO of Lee Hong Construction, who appears in front of Dong-jae and brings up his past mistakes.

### Supporting

* Lee Seong-woo [ko]
* Kim Su-gyeom as Nam Gyeo-re
    Wan-sung's son, who obeys his father's words.
* Shim Wan-joon as Choi Kang-min
* Lee Hang-na as Jeon Mi-ran
* Jung Woon-sun as Kim Ji-hui

## Production

In February 2023, Lee Joon-hyuk was cast to reprise his role but this time as the main character. Studio Dragon confirmed the spin-off series production under the working title Good or Bad Dong-jae, with principal photography to began in May 2023, and writer Lee Soo-yeon [ko], who wrote both first and second seasons of Stranger (2017–2020), participated as the creator. Directed by Park Gun-ho, and co-written by Hwang Ha-jung and Kim Sang-won. Studio Dragon, Ace Factory, and Higround [ko] co-managed the production. On November 1, 2023, actors and production team held its first script reading in Seoul. Park Sung-woong has been cast to appear in the series.

## Release

TVING announced that Dongjae, the Good or the Bastard would be released on its platform and on Paramount+ in 2024. The release date was confirmed to be on October 10, 2024, after TVING unveiled the first teaser video of the series. It would also broadcast on tvN on October 14, 2024, and would air every Monday and Tuesday at 21:00 (KST).
The series was invited as one of the six drama series in the On Screen section of the 29th Busan International Film Festival on October 2–11, 2024, where two out of 10 episodes would have its world premiere.

## Viewership

| Season | Season | 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 | Average |
| | 1 | 796 | 516 | 514 | 481 | 545 | 515 | 408 | 464 | 440 | 558 | 524 |
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 | October 14, 2024 | 3.766% (1st) | 3.949% (1st) |
| 2 | October 15, 2024 | 2.885% (2nd) | 3.249% (2nd) |
| 3 | October 21, 2024 | 2.546% (3rd) | 2.696% (3rd) |
| 4 | October 22, 2024 | 2.281% (3rd) | 2.545% (2nd) |
| 5 | October 28, 2024 | 2.620% (4th) | 2.746% (3rd) |
| 6 | October 29, 2024 | 2.682% (2nd) | 2.631% (2nd) |
| 7 | November 4, 2024 | 2.131% (2nd) | 2.260% (2nd) |
| 8 | November 5, 2024 | 2.359% (2nd) | 2.478% (2nd) |
| 9 | November 11, 2024 | 2.271% (2nd) | 2.415% (2nd) |
| 10 | November 12, 2024 | 2.775% (1st) | 3.121% (1st) |
| Average | Average | 2.632% | 2.809% |
| In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. This drama 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
### Listicles

Name of publisher, year listed, name of listicle, and placement :
| Publisher | Year | Listicle | Placement | Ref. |
| Cine21 | 2024 | Top 10 Series of 2024 | 6th place | |