Black Rubber Shoes

Synopsis

Set in 1960s and 1970s Seoul, this South Korean manhwa and children's animated series follows a family living through a time of national poverty. The title comes from the cheap, durable black rubber shoes, or gomusin, that children commonly wore. The story centers on ten-year-old Giyoung and his fourteen-year-old brother Gichul, who, despite their family's hardships, find happiness and fun in everyday life. The show evokes nostalgia for older viewers through period details like street vendors and school bread deliveries. Recognized as a Common Good Animation in September 2004, it was also nominated for a Best Program award by the Korean Broadcasting Commission and chosen as a Good Program by the Seoul YMCA Association of Children's Culture. The series is considered a standout work of Korean animation, appealing to audiences of all ages and genders.

History

Since the show debuted in 1999, it has become beloved by many children. It was broadcast on KBS 2 TV. The original version is a comic by Lee Woo-Young. The first broadcast for a special for Lunar New Year's Day program was so popular that it was made into a new series from 2000 to 2004. On November 19, 2020, it was released exclusively at CGV under the theatrical version titled The Black Rubber Shoes of Memories. Starting with the series of cartoons, it was the first time in 28 years that a theatrical version was made, and even with a TV animation as the starting point, it was the first theatrical version in 20 years.

Animation

The animation was produced and invested by Korea Broadcasting Corporation, Saehan Production, Hoseo University, and Hoseo Venture Investment (a company invested by Hoseo University), while KBS Media acted as a PR and business window. After making its debut as a special broadcast on New Year's Day in 1999 on Korean Broadcasting, the first TV series with 13 episodes was produced and aired in 2000. After that, it aired every Wednesday from June 16, 2004, to January 5, 2005.

(Second TV series) Some content was re-broadcast from May 25, 2005, to June 30, 2005, due to viewers' request for rebroadcast, and a new TV series was produced and aired in mid-May 2005. Like the original cartoon, the animation mainly dealt with the growing up of the brothers, and the special feature 〈The Ordeal of Barley Mountain〉, a trilogy, tells the story of overcoming difficulties due to sudden unemployment of the father through family love.

From October 28, 2009, to November 11, 2009, and Children's Day (HD version), the episode was re-broadcast from May 1, 2013, to May 3, 2013. In 2015, the 4 black rubber shoes, which were jointly produced by reuniting with Hyeongseol-N after 10 years, aired from May 11 to August 10.