Bloodhounds (사냥개들, Sa-nyang-gae-deul, literally “Hunting Dogs”) is the rare Korean action series where the fights land hard but the friendship lands harder. Kim Joo-hwan (김주환, Kim Ju-hwan) directs, working from Jeong Chan’s (정찬) webtoon serialized in 2019-2020, and the result became one of 2023’s most-discussed Korean action titles on the strength of a bromance that critics couldn’t stop mentioning. Start here if you want your boxers to throw a punch and then go easy on each other afterward.
Where to watch: Bloodhounds is a Netflix exclusive, worldwide, with subtitles and dubs in multiple languages. Season 1 is eight episodes — short enough to clear in a weekend without feeling rushed.
The Season 1 premise
Season 1 premiered on June 9, 2023, and its subject is the loan-shark trade — illegal private lending that circles people already at the financial edge. The way in is the boxing ring. Kim Gun-woo (김건우, Kim Geon-u), an honest amateur boxer and former Marine, meets fellow fighter Hong Woo-jin (홍우진, Hong U-jin) over a match, and their mutual respect turns almost immediately into the easy, big-hearted partnership the whole show rests on.
The COVID-era economy is what tips ordinary families into desperation and pulls the two of them into the predatory lenders’ orbit. They find a mentor in a principled elderly lender who works by his own code, and the four of them take on a ruthless loan-shark operation. The real question underneath the action is whether you can move through a dirty business and come out clean.
The cast and characters
Woo Do-hwan (우도환, U Do-hwan) leads as Kim Gun-woo, the straight-arrow boxer whose Marine discipline and stubborn conscience make him both dangerous in a fight and disarmingly sincere out of one. It’s the kind of physical, low-key performance that turns a working actor into a name.
Lee Sang-yi (이상이, Lee Sang-i) plays Hong Woo-jin, Gun-woo’s motormouth boxing partner and the source of most of the show’s humor. The rapport between the two leads is, plainly, why people watched.
Huh Joon-ho (허준호, Heo Jun-ho) is Mr. Choi, also known as Choi Tae-ho (최태호, Choe Tae-ho) — the elderly moneylender who lends with a conscience and becomes the young men’s mentor. His gravitas is the ballast the whole production needs.
Park Sung-woong (박성웅, Park Seong-ung) plays the antagonist Kim Myeong-gil (김명길), a loan shark whose unbothered calm is exactly what makes him unnerving — the villain you want to see lose.
The late Kim Sae-ron (김새론, Kim Sae-ron) appears in a supporting role as Cha Hyun-ju (차현주, Cha Hyeon-ju), assistant to Mr. Choi. Kim Sae-ron passed away in February 2025; her Season 1 work remains part of the series.
Reception
The praise clustered around two things: the kinetic, cleanly staged fights, and the warmth holding them together. Reviewers and viewers kept returning to the Woo Do-hwan–Lee Sang-yi bromance, and Huh Joon-ho’s steady presence drew its own admiration. The show charted strongly on Netflix worldwide after release, and in a year crowded with darker, grittier Korean crime dramas, its mix of crowd-pleasing action and a sincere center stood out. It’s the unusual action series you can fairly call feel-good.
The Seoul filming tie-in
Bloodhounds uses Seoul the way most Korean productions do — generously — and following the show is a decent excuse to walk the city. The pick of the bunch for fans is Bukchon Hanok Village (북촌한옥마을, Bukchon Hanok Maeul), the cluster of traditional hanok houses wedged between Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces in central Seoul. The sloping alleys, tiled rooftops, and old-Seoul feel have drawn film crews and travelers alike for years.
Even just as a fan wandering through, Bukchon is an easy half-day: go early, before the crowds, walk the quiet lanes, and find the spots where the hanok rooftops line up against the modern skyline. One honest caveat — people actually live here, so keep the noise down. From Bukchon you can walk to the palaces, Insadong’s antique shops, and Samcheong-dong’s cafes, which makes for a tidy loop pairing K-drama sightseeing with a slow day in old Seoul.
One last note: Season 2 of Bloodhounds is now out (released April 3, 2026, on Netflix), jumping ahead a few years onto a bigger, more international stage, with singer-actor Rain (비, Bi / 정지훈, Jeong Ji-hun) coming aboard as a new villain. For the returning leads and what changes, see our separate Bloodhounds Season 2 guide.
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