''The Soldiers'' () is a South Korean

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

-themed

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

show. The show seeks to find the "best

special forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

operator in the world," beginning with selecting the best Korean special forces representatives through a series of missions. Twenty male South Korean

reservists A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is ...

who served in various special forces units of the

Republic of Korea Armed Forces The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength of ...

competed on the show. The cast also includes four former special forces operators from the United Kingdom, Sweden, the United States and South Korea who serve as mentors and later team leaders to the participants. The show aired on

SBS TV SBS may refer to: Broadcasting * SBS Broadcasting Group, Belgium, formerly many countries * Talpa TV, formerly SBS Broadcasting B.V., Netherlands ** SBS6, Dutch television channel ** SBS9, Dutch television channel * Special Broadcasting Service ...

from November 19, 2021, to January 28, 2022, every Friday at 23:10 ( KST). Longer, uncut versions of each episode were released the following Wednesday at 18:00 (KST) on the

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

channel "뉴띵 NDD". In the first episode, the show was explained as a three-season project: * Season 1: select the best team of South Korean special forces reservists * Season 2: compete with national representative teams across Asia-Pacific * Season 3: find the strongest team across the globe The survival program has been compared by media and viewers to ''

Steel Troops ''Steel Troops'' () is a South Korean reality show broadcast on Channel A and skyTV. Dubbed a "military survival program," the show features male South Korean reservists who served in various special forces units across different branches of the ...

'', which has a similar special forces premise and aired its first season half a year earlier. In response to the comparison, show host

Kim Sang-joong Kim Sang-joong (born August 6, 1965) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for starring in the television dramas ''My Husband's Woman'' (2007), ''City Hunter'' (2011), and ''The Chaser'' (2012). He won the Grand Prize at the MBC Drama Award ...

said that " 'The Soldiers''is more upgraded and entertaining, with more intense missions." Show producer Gi Sang-soo also asserted that ''The Soldiers'' is "the first television program of its kind," with its global focus bearing the largest distinction.

Cast

Host and mentors

Participants

List of episodes

In the ratings below, the highest rating for the season will be in and the lowest rating for the season will be in .

Mission results

The show began with an individual competition, spanning episodes 1 to 3, to assess and rank the 20 participants. At the end of this stage, 4 participants were eliminated. The mentors then collectively ranked the remaining 16 participants prior to selecting their desired team members. However, the top 4 ranked participants were given the right to choose which mentor's team to join instead. From the second half of episode 3, the show then proceeded with the main team competition. In the tables below, * results in indicate a penalty given, such as an extra mission or becoming a candidate for elimination. * results in indicate either gaining a mission benefit or surviving an elimination round. * the final champion is indicated in .

Notes

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soldiers (South Korean TV series), The Seoul Broadcasting System original programming South Korean television shows 2021 South Korean television series debuts South Korean military television series