Alchemy of Souls (Korean: 환혼) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Jae-wook, Jung So-min, Go Youn-jung, and Hwang Min-hyun. Written by the Hong sisters, it depicts the stories of young mages dealing with heaven and earth. It aired on tvN from June 18, 2022, to January 8, 2023, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:10 (KST) for 30 episodes. It is also available for streaming on TVING and Netflix in selected regions.
The series was divided into two parts: Part 1 aired from June 18 to August 28, 2022, for 20 episodes, while Part 2 (Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow) aired from December 10, 2022, to January 8, 2023, for 10 episodes.
Contents
Synopsis
Part 1
Set in a fictional country called Daeho, the series is about the love and growth of young mages as they overcome their twisted fates due to a forbidden magic spell known as the "Alchemy of Souls", which allows souls to switch bodies.
It follows the story of an elite warrior named Naksu whose soul is accidentally trapped inside the weak body of Mu-deok. She becomes entangled with Jang Uk, who is from a noble family, and becomes his servant and master, teaching Jang Uk her skills as they both fall in love with each other.
Part 2
Three years after a tragedy, engineered by Jin Mu, that led Mu-deok to run wild and kill innocent people, Jang Uk, who returned from the dead as a result of the powerful Ice Stone inside his body, becomes a ruthless hunter of soul shifters and becomes increasingly isolated due to his heartbreak over the death of his love—Mu-deok. He then meets the mysterious heiress of Jinyowon, Jin Bu-yeon, whose words frequently echo those of Naksu.
Cast
Main
Lee Jae-wook as Jang Uk
Park Sang-hoon as young Jang Uk
Jung So-min as Mu-deok / Naksu (after alchemy of souls) / Jin Bu-yeon (Mu-deok's birth name)
Go Youn-jung as Naksu (before alchemy of souls) / Cho Yeong (real name) / Jin Bu-yeon (in part 2)
Gu Yoo-jung as young Naksu
Hwang Min-hyun as Seo Yul
Moon Seong-hyun as young Seo Yul
Supporting
Oh Na-ra as Maidservant Kim Yeon
Joo Sang-wook as Jang Gang
Bae Gang-hee as Do-hwa
Jang Tae-min as Servant Lee
Do Sang-woo as Seo Yun-oh
Yoo Jun-sang as Park Jin
Yoo In-soo as Park Dang-gu
Lee Ha-yool as Sang-ho
Lee Do-kyung as Heo Yeom
Hong Seo-hee as Heo Yun-ok
Jung Ji-an as Soon-yi
Kim Yong-jin as Physician Seo
Jo Jae-yoon as Jin Mu
Choi Ji-ho as Gil-ju
Cha Yong-hak as Yeom-su
Lee Ji-hoo as Cha Beom
Lee Bong-jun as Gu Hyo
Joo Min-soo as Han Yeol
Park Eun-hye as Jin Ho-gyeong
Joo Seok-tae as Jin Woo-tak
Arin as Jin Cho-yeon
Yoon Hae-bin as young Jin Bu-yeon
Shin Seung-ho as Go Won
Choi Kwang-il as Go Soon
Kang Kyung-hun / Shim So-young as Seo Ha-sun
Extended
Jeon Hye-won as Ae-hyang
Yoon Seo-hyun as Cho Chung
Shim Jae-hyun as a thug
Kim Cheol-yoon as Byeong-gu
Special appearances
Yeom Hye-ran as a mysterious middle-aged woman
Yegyul Band
Kim Hyun-sook as Maidservant Park
Jang Sung-beom as Master Kang
Lee Jun-hyeok as a merchant
Kim Dae-gon as a merchant
Lee Chae-min as a merchant
Production
Development
Preparations for the series, as well as program discussion with tvN, started in 2019 under the working title Can This Person Be Translated (이 사람 통역이 되나요; I saram tongyeogi doenayo).
Casting
In January 2021, Park Hye-su's agency revealed that the actress auditioned for Alchemy of Souls. In June, it was announced that actor Joo Sang-wook was offered a role in the series.
The female lead role was first confirmed to be played by Park Hye-eun. However, in July 2021, she decided to leave the series after a mutual agreement with the production team. It was stated that although Park is a rookie actress, she prepared hard for the series, but felt a lot of pressure about playing the main character of a big project. The role was then offered to actress Jung So-min. Jung and director Park Joon-hwa previously worked together in 2017 TV series Because This Is My First Life.
Line-up for the lead stars consisting of Lee Jae-wook, Jung So-min, Hwang Min-hyun, Shin Seung-ho, Yoo Jun-sang, Oh Na-ra and Jo Jae-yoon was officially announced by tvN on March 3, 2022. On March 21, Yoo In-soo, Arin, Park Eun-hye, Lee Do-kyung and Im Chul-soo were announced to have joined the cast.
After the end of part 1 in August 2022, the female lead actress Jung So-min was replaced by Go Youn-jung for part 2, after she previously portrayed the original identity for Jung's character in a cameo in part 1.
Filming
In August 2021, production companies Studio Dragon and High Quality signed an agreement with Mungyeong to build a filming site in Maseong-myeon worth ₩5 billion for the production of Alchemy of Souls.
Filming locations include Nongwoljeong Pavilion in Hwarim-dong Valley, Hamyang County, Goseokjeong Pavilion in Cheorwon County, and CJ ENM Studio Center in Paju. The tree shown in the fictional place called Danhyanggok is located on the lower reaches of the Geumgang River in Garimseong Fortress, Buyeo County. Post-production began as filming began in the summer of 2021.
On October 6, 2021, it was announced that filming of the series was canceled for that week after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19 on the morning of the 5th. All production crew members subsequently underwent PCR tests. Some staff members who were classified as close contacts went into self-quarantine, even though they tested negative for the contagion.
It was reported that filming for the second part of the series had started by July 2022, and was completed on October 6.
Original soundtrack
Viewership
Alchemy of Souls ranked second, tied with Our Blues, in streaming for Netflix Korea TV show category from January to December 22, 2022.