In a show titled All of Us Are Dead, the question of who survived is a pretty important one. Usually, these post-season round-up articles are about who died; who met tragic fates, and under what circumstances. But almost everyone dies in a zombie apocalypse drama, and most of them in the same way. Cause of death: Eaten by zombies. You’d spend 8000 words repeating the same thing.
But asking who survived is different. There aren’t many who fall into that category, but their stories are more interesting, and the obstacles they had to surmount in order to make it to the end are worth highlighting. So, let’s do that. Here’s a list of the major characters who survived the disaster, how they managed to do so, what they suffered and learned along the way, and what the future might hold for them.
Note: Some other people survived, such as Assemblywoman Park and her staff, U-sin, and virtually all of the Martial Law Command, but they’re not worth mentioning since they were never really in that much danger to begin with. This article will focus on the students who started out at Hyosan High School and managed to still be around in the epilogue, four months after the events depicted in the show.
Who survived in All of Us Are Dead?
On-jo
On-jo was one of the show’s primary characters, and her relationship with Cheong-san was one of its strongest throughlines. She also suffered in a big way, losing her best friend I-sik, her father Su-jo, and then Cheong-san himself. She wasn’t bitten during the show and managed to avoid any major injuries. In the epilogue, she makes it to the Hyosan quarantine zone.
Su-hyeok
Martial artist former bully Su-hyeok seemed like a character who would have a more substantial arc than he ended up having. An early love interest for On-jo, his focus eventually settled on class president Nam-ra (more on her below). Despite a relatively personal rivalry with Gwi-nam, Su-hyeok didn’t really have many deeply personal losses or close calls outside of tethering himself to Nam-ra as her infection took hold. He also managed to make it to the quarantine zone.
Dae-su
Dae-su was an unlikely pick for a survivor since he was the butt of the joke throughout much of the season given his weight and general uselessness. However, he more than proved himself throughout, and while he was never anyone’s first port of call or closest companion, he was well-liked among his peers and seems to have developed a closeness to Ha-ri in the quarantine zone.
Ha-ri
Speaking of Ha-ri, the captain of the archery team also made it out. A senior and the sister of Wu-jin, she was kept on the sidelines for a lot of the season and in truth didn’t have much to do other than look cool with her bow. She got some funny moments with Dae-su, her not-so-secret admirer, and seems to have bonded with him in the quarantine zone, and also struck up an unlikely friendship with Mi-jin.
Mi-jin
Mi-jin was so antagonistic in the early days of the show that I was convinced she wouldn’t make it, but her arc had her gradually soften throughout, forming a particular attachment to and admiration for Ha-ri. Some of the losses she suffered along the way opened her eyes to the bravery of the juniors, and she took Joon-yeong’s death especially hard after being so harsh to him previously.
Hyo-ryung
I honestly had to Google this to double-check she was still there, but yeah, Hyo-ryung survives, her sole claim to fame being that one moment where she’s too tired to continue.
Nam-ra
Class president Nam-ra was able to survive, but it wasn’t easy. She was infected earlier in the season by Gwi-nam and became one of what Dae-su dubbed “hambies”, half zombies and half-humans. Late in the season, while her new abilities proved crucial to everyone’s success, she felt her impulses getting the best of her and distanced herself from the group. In the epilogue, the other students meet with her on the roof of the high school, where she reveals she’s happy helping others “like her” who also survived the bombing.
You can see who survived in All of Us Are Dead by streaming the show exclusively on Netflix.
