Strongest Chil Woo

Strongest Chil Woo
Promotional poster for Strongest Chil Woo
Also known as	Chilwu the Mighty
Genre	Historical drama Action
Written by	Baek Wun-cheol
Directed by	Park Man-yeong
Starring	Eric Mun Ku Hye-sun Yoo Ah-in Lee Eon Kim Byul
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language(s)	Korean
No. of episodes	20
Production
Running time	Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:55
Release
Original network	KBS2
Picture format	480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Original release	17 June (2008-06-17) – 19 August 2008 (2008-08-19)
Chronology
Preceded by	Formidable Rivals
Followed by	Love Marriage
External links
official KBS website

Strongest Chil Woo (Hangul: 최강칠우; Hanja: 最強七迂; RR: Choi Kang Chil U; also known as Chilwu the Mighty) is a 2008 South Korean historical drama that aired on KBS2. The titular hero is similar to a Zorro during the Joseon period.

This drama served as the last project of actor Lee Eon who died on August 21, 2008 in a motorcycle accident.

The series starts by stating: "Rather than being a person born in chaotic times, better to be reborn as a dog in peaceful times. However, there are some people who are born as dogs in chaotic times. This is their story."

The series occurs during the reign (1623–1649) of King Injo, the 16th ruler of Joseon. Injo was the son of Prince Jeongwon, who himself was the 7th son of King Seonjo, the 14th ruler of Joseon with Royal Noble Consort In of the Suwon Kim clan. The 15th ruler, King Gwanghaegun, was the 3rd son of Seonjo with Gongbin of the Gimhae Kim clan and therefore the Injo's uncle. In 1623, Gwanghaegun was ousted of power by a political plot from the Western faction, that puts Injo on the throne. The turmoil of the civil war was thereafter increased by the Mandchu invasions of 1627 and 1636.

Two events are the cornerstones of the series and are stepwise described during numerous flashbacks. Both of them were instigated by the conservative Western faction. One of them is the bloody extermination of the "Rising Sun Utopia" (Muryundang), occurring during the year of the Snake (Gisa year, 1629, Injo '6), and the other is the assassination of Crown Prince Sohyeon by his father in 1645 (Injo '22). The main action is situated circa 1648. While elements of these former plots are re-emerging from the past despite a series of murders, a group of mysterious assassins is avenging the sadness of the poor people.