Character Relationship Map: Sunflower

Characters

• Oh Tae-sik (played by Kim Rae-won) — protagonist

  A former prisoner returning to his hometown, Oh Tae-sik tries to leave his violent past behind by working at Well Being Garage and removing his tattoo. He reconnects with Yang Deok-ja, lives with her,...

• Yang Deok-ja (played by Kim Hae-sook) — supporting

  Yang Deok-ja is the mother who takes Oh Tae-sik in after his return and runs the restaurant whose property is being threatened. She discovers evidence linking Jo Pan-soo to the past attack, uses it to...

• Choi Hee-joo (played by Huh Yi-jae) — supporting

  Choi Hee-joo is Yang Deok-ja's daughter and is preparing for college. She grows close to Oh Tae-sik, treating him as a protective older brother while he settles into family life. When pressure is plac...

• Kim Yang-ki (played by Kim Jung-tae) — supporting

  Kim Yang-ki is involved with the town's criminal faction and is pressured to secure the land occupied by Yang Deok-ja's restaurant. Alongside Lee Chang-moo, he tries to intimidate Yang and Choi Hee-jo...

• Jo Pan-soo (played by Kim Byeong-ok) — supporting

  Jo Pan-soo is the figure revealed to have ordered the attack against Oh Tae-sik ten years earlier, using a former gang leader and his men. When Yang Deok-ja discovers written evidence of his involveme...

• Lee Chang-moo (played by Han Jung-soo) — supporting

  Lee Chang-moo is connected to the criminal forces competing over Club Oracle and the restaurant property. He works with Kim Yang-ki to pressure Yang Deok-ja and Choi Hee-joo, but the confrontation tur...

• Byung-jin (played by Ji Dae-han) — supporting

  Byung-jin provides crucial information about Oh Tae-sik's violent past. He reveals that Jo Pan-soo ordered the attack ten years earlier through a former gang leader and his men, and later warns Tae-si...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Oh Tae-sik → Choi Hee-joo (Family Protective Older Brother) — Their relationship reflects Tae-sik's effort to become a protector rather than a violent man.

  Choi Hee-joo treats Oh Tae-sik as a protective older brother while preparing for college.

• Yang Deok-ja → Choi Hee-joo (Family Mother And Daughter) — Yang protects Hee-joo while trying to secure her future.

  Choi Hee-joo is identified as Yang Deok-ja's daughter and lives within the family conflict surrounding the restaurant.

• Oh Tae-sik → Yang Deok-ja (Family Son And Mother) — Their family bond becomes the emotional foundation of Tae-sik's attempted new life.

  Oh Tae-sik returns to his hometown and reconnects with his mother, Yang Deok-ja, eventually living with her.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Kim Yang-ki → Oh Tae-sik (Conflict Declared Opponent) — Kim actively identifies Tae-sik as a threat requiring action.

  Lee Chang-moo warns that Tae-sik may have returned to reclaim the town, and Kim Yang-ki decides to deal with him.

• Lee Chang-moo → Choi Hee-joo (Conflict Intimidating Opponent) — Lee is part of the force that places Hee-joo in physical danger.

  The property confrontation involves intimidation of both Yang Deok-ja and Choi Hee-joo, and the confrontation turns violent.

• Kim Yang-ki → Yang Deok-ja (Conflict Property Adversary) — Kim represents the criminal pressure threatening Yang's home and livelihood.

  Kim Yang-ki joins Lee Chang-moo in trying to intimidate Yang Deok-ja over the restaurant property.

• Lee Chang-moo → Yang Deok-ja (Conflict Property Adversary) — Lee pressures Yang as part of the attempt to obtain the restaurant property.

  Lee Chang-moo and Kim Yang-ki try to intimidate Yang Deok-ja over the land occupied by her restaurant.

• Lee Chang-moo → Kim Yang-ki (Alliance Criminal Associates) — They cooperate within the town's criminal struggle over the restaurant land.

  Lee Chang-moo and Kim Yang-ki are described as connected to Tae-sik's violent history and act together to secure the property.

• Byung-jin → Oh Tae-sik (Narrative Informant) — Byung-jin supplies crucial information that shapes Tae-sik's decision to confront Jo.

  Byung-jin reveals the order behind the attack ten years earlier and later warns Tae-sik about Jo Pan-soo's response.

• Jo Pan-soo → Byung-jin (Conflict Opposed Interests) — Byung-jin's disclosure places him against Jo's effort to contain the past.

  Byung-jin reveals Jo Pan-soo's role in the earlier attack and warns Tae-sik that Jo will not let the matter go.

• Jo Pan-soo → Yang Deok-ja (Conflict Threatening Opponent) — Their conflict escalates from exposure to direct danger against Yang.

  Yang Deok-ja uses a diary documenting Jo Pan-soo's involvement to threaten him, and Jo responds by placing her in danger.

• Oh Tae-sik → Jo Pan-soo (Conflict Primary Adversary) — Their unresolved conflict drives the story toward its unfinished final confrontation.

  Byung-jin reveals that Jo Pan-soo ordered the attack against Tae-sik ten years earlier, and Tae-sik later decides to confront him.

Story Analysis

A former prisoner tries to build a family-centered life while an unresolved criminal conspiracy draws him back toward confrontation.

Plot Progression

1. A Home Without Sunflowers — Oh Tae-sik returns from prison and finds that the landscape of his childhood has changed. He reconnects with Yang Deok-ja and begins searching for a more ordinary life.
2. Trying to Start Over — Tae-sik takes work at Well Being Garage and removes a tattoo associated with his past. His growing closeness with Choi Hee-joo gives his attempted transformation a family-centered purpose.
3. The Property War — Criminal factions fight over Club Oracle and the land beneath Yang Deok-ja's restaurant. Lee Chang-moo and Kim Yang-ki intimidate Yang and Hee-joo, turning the dispute violent.
4. Secrets From Ten Years Ago — Tae-sik's violent history resurfaces as Byung-jin explains the attack that led to his imprisonment. The revelation identifies Jo Pan-soo as the person who ordered the earlier assault.
5. Family Under Threat — Yang Deok-ja finds a diary implicating Jo Pan-soo and uses it against him. After Yang is injured, Tae-sik chooses to confront Jo, but the supplied dialogue ends before the meeting.