“Hit-and-Run Squad” (뺑반)
I’m so used to seeing Jo Jung-Suk play the good guy (“Hospital Playlist,” “Oh My Ghost”) that it was fun to watch him chew up the scenery as a bad-boy rich guy who is brutal, immoral and nasty.
Month: October 2021
Go Away With … Misty Copeland
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, and raised in San Pedro, California, Misty Copeland understands her role as a trailblazer in the classical dance world. She is the first Black female principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre.
“My Name” (마이 네임)
You know how in most action series, there is that one guy who can fight a team of gangsters, get stabbed and bounce back into action in no time? In “My Name,” that guy is a kickass woman.
Go Away With … Philipp Maximilian
“Being a part of a Disney blockbuster wasn’t anything I thought I could ever dream of,” said “Jungle Cruise” actor Philipp Maximilian. “Jean-Vincent Puzos built the most incredible sets for us, so filming this movie was like being a kid in a candy store for a Disneyland nerd like me. Jesse Plemons (Prince Joachim) and I had so much fun playing around with my character, Axel, and coming up with a lot of silly stuff.”
“D.P.” (디피)
The superb “D.P.” is not an easy series to watch. While not as gory as “Squid Game,” it’s more disturbing in many ways, because it deals with South Korea’s real-life mandatory military duty — which requires every able-bodied Korean man to enlist for approximately two years.
Shin Min A & Kim Seon Ho: Team Dimples!
How much do you know about Team Dimples (aka Shin Min A and Kim Seon Ho)?!
In ‘Squid Game,’ children’s games get awfully bloody
NPR asked me to share my thoughts about the Korean series, “Squid Game,” for their Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. We discussed the controversy about the subtitles, whether the Western actors in Episodes 7 lended anything to the series and whether a Season 2 would be a good thing or not.
“Squid Game,” Yu Jae Seok and More!
Can’t get enough of the “Squid Game” stars? Then you’ll be happy to know that Ho Yeon (who played No. 067), Anupam Tripathi (No. 199) and Oh Young Su (No. 001) are set to appear on three Korean variety series!
Go Away With … Laurie Fortier
“I think I’d like to go camping with Agatha – maybe Yosemite,” said Laurie Fortier, the actress who plays the character on “The Walking Dead.” “I imagine she’d know how to pitch a tent, fish and make a fire.”
“Hospital Playlist” (슬기로운 의사생활): Season 2
“Hospital Playlist” is a good series, where the core friendship is warm and engaging. The five doctors have the kind of relationship with each other that makes me envious … even though I don’t particularly feel a need for that many close friends in my real life. (haha)
Rising “Squid Game” Stars HoYeon Jung and Wi Ha Joon
Get to know “Squid Game” stars Jung Ho Yeon (who played North Korean defector Sae Byeok) and Wi Ha Joon (who portrayed the police officer Jun Ho).
Go Away With … Joanne Lee Molinaro (the Korean Vegan)
Trial attorney by day and content creator by night, Joanne Lee Molinaro is known to her millions of social media followers as the Korean Vegan. In her social media posts, she delivers beautifully crafted videos showing her cook, while she shares personal stories about her life and that of her parents, who had escaped North Korea as children before immigrating to the United States as adults.
“Squid Game” Is a Social Allegory Informed by Korean History
“Squid Game” is not this year’s “Parasite,” so much as it is a satire in the vein of “A Modest Proposal.” Just as Jonathan Swift pointed out the abject brutality of telling the poor to satiate their hunger by eating healthy, plump babies, Hwang depicts the cruelty of lording a huge sum of money – literally – over desperate people’s heads, knowing that most will die as they lived: penniless.