We Will Miss You, D.O.!

By Jae-Ha Kim
Kocowa.com
June 30, 2019

Though he could’ve gotten an extension, EXO’s D.O. chose to enlist on July 1 to begin his mandatory military duty. It’s a fact of life that all able-bodied South Korean men have to serve their country in the armed forces. K-Pop idols aren’t exempt from this, no matter how famous they are.

EXO-L’s were heartened to see D.O.’s bandmates take him out for a family meal before his enlistment. Sehun shared a sweet photo on his Instagram. Unfortunately, two members couldn’t attend. Lay was in China, where he’s doing promotions, and Xiumin had already enlisted in the armed forces on May 7.

 

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A post shared by SEHUN (@oohsehun) on Jun 25, 2019 at 7:48am PDT

D.O. shared a warm message for his millions of fans on EXO’s fansite:

Hello, this is D.O. of EXO. EXO-Ls, the sudden news must have been surprising for everyone, right? I wanted to first share the news, so I have a heavy heart, because I feel like it’s a little late. I’m posting this letter because I wanted to let you know that this decision was made after lots of consideration. I will return healthy. I sincerely thank EXO-Ls, who are always supportive. I hope that everyone will remain healthy and be filled with things that make you laugh. I will carefully serve and return to greet you all.’

Breakthrough role: “It’s OK, That’s Love“

In this stellar 2014 K-Drama that tackles mental illness, the role of a high school student, Kang-Woo, was integral to the storyline. Left in the hands of a less skilled actor, the part could’ve turned into a cliche. Instead, D.O. more than held his own against his veteran co-stars, Jo In-Sung and Gong Hyo-Jin. With just a glance, he conveyed the sorrow his character felt. Viewers wanted to protect Kang-Woo from the beating he would get back at home and cheered him on in his quest to become an author one day. I’m not gonna lie. My heart could barely handle it when it was revealed who Kang-Woo really was (or wasn’t, depending on your perspective). This series is one of only a handful of K-Dramas that I consider being a perfect drama, and D.O. played a big role in my assessment.

Prior to his own enlistment, Xiumin was overcome with emotion when his bandmates joined him at a fan meeting. As several EXO members broke down in tears, D.O. lightened the mood by saying, “It’s not like he’s leaving the country!”

Let’s try to keep this in mind for D.O. as well. We’ll all miss the talented idol and actor while he’s serving his country. But we look forward to his safe return to civilian life. He is expected to be discharged from service on January 25, 2021. I did the math: that’s 1 year, 6 months and 21 days that he will be in the military.

Some of D.O.’s best acting roles include the film “Swing Kids” and the K-Dramas “It’s OK, That’s Love“ and “To the Beautiful You” (where he makes a cameo in Episode 2).