Guardian Cast Reunites for 10th-Anniversary Trip to Drama Landmarks

Ten years after Guardian: The Lonely and Great God became one of tvN’s defining global K-drama hits, its core cast has reunited for a special built around memory, travel, and the enduring pull of a drama that still lives strongly online.

Gong Yoo, Lee Dong Wook, Kim Go Eun, and Yoo In Na came together for tvN’s 20th-anniversary edition program Together, Shining Because We Are Together – Guardian 10th Anniversary Trip, which premiered on July 4 at 9:10 p.m. KST. The show follows the actors as they travel to Gangneung and revisit locations tied to the 2016-2017 series, including the Jumunjin breakwater where one of the drama’s most recognizable scenes was filmed.

The special leans directly into the drama’s most replayed images. Reports ahead of and during the premiere highlighted Gong Yoo and Kim Go Eun returning to the seaside setting associated with Kim Shin and Ji Eun Tak, using familiar props such as buckwheat flowers and a red scarf to recreate the feeling of the original moment. Lee Dong Wook and Yoo In Na, remembered by many viewers as the so-called Peach Couple, also add their own reinterpretation to the reunion format.

A reunion shaped by the cast’s own history

One reason the special has drawn attention is that it is not framed only as a network anniversary project. According to coverage of the first broadcast, the idea began after Gong Yoo, Lee Dong Wook, and Kim Go Eun met at a concert last November and talked about how the cast might mark the drama’s 10th year. Gong Yoo and Lee Dong Wook said Kim Go Eun suggested that the four actors do something together, possibly a trip, to celebrate the milestone.

That origin gives the program a looser texture than a standard promotional retrospective. Kim Go Eun reportedly said there is a chemistry that appears only when the four are together, and that she wanted to preserve a relationship viewers had rarely been able to see outside the drama itself. The first episode uses that familiarity as a central attraction, showing the actors teasing one another before the trip and shifting between polished nostalgia and casual, real-life banter.

One early moment reported by Newsen captured that tone clearly. When Kim Go Eun arrived at a pre-trip meal after attending a press event, Gong Yoo laughed at her full makeup, while Kim explained that she had considered removing it but her manager told her not to. The exchange became a small reminder that the special is selling more than famous scenes; it is also offering viewers the comfort of watching actors who still know how to joke with one another years later.

Why Guardian still works as anniversary television

Guardian remains unusually well suited to this kind of reunion. The drama’s visual identity, from the winter mood to the red door, the seaside setting, and the now-iconic character pairings, is easy to translate into a travel-variety structure. NewsPim’s earlier preview also noted the appearance of a newly prepared ‘Goblin House’ space filled with objects connected to the drama, including props that call back to Ji Eun Tak’s school ID and the door that linked Korea and Quebec in the story.

For fans, that kind of staging turns a reunion into a guided return through the drama’s emotional map. For tvN, it also shows how Korean broadcasters are extending the life of past hits in the streaming era. Rather than simply rebroadcasting clips, the network is packaging nostalgia as new content: a mix of travel, cast commentary, location visits, unreleased anecdotes, and upgraded presentation. The program airs in HD on tvN, while TVING offers a sharper 4K version depending on the viewer’s subscription plan.

The special also promises behind-the-scenes stories that were not widely discussed during the original run. Reports said the cast would revisit details behind memorable scenes, including the famous green onion runway sequence involving Kim Shin and the Grim Reaper, as well as the buckwheat field kiss scene between Kim Shin and Eun Tak. A teased exchange involving Lee Dong Wook and Yoo In Na also hinted at a playful revelation that left Lee apologizing on camera.

That balance is the reason the anniversary trip is likely to travel beyond domestic viewers. For longtime fans, it offers closure and fresh material from a drama they already know. For newer viewers who discovered Guardian through streaming, social media edits, or later K-drama recommendations, it functions as a reminder of why the series remained visible for so long after its broadcast ended.

As more Korean series become international catalog titles with long afterlives, reunion programming may become an increasingly valuable tool. Guardian has the advantage of a cast whose public warmth still matches the audience’s memory of the show, and a set of locations and props that can instantly revive its atmosphere. The result is not a sequel, but it serves a related purpose: it lets the audience spend a little more time inside a story world they never fully left.