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[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area" Episode 1

Tokyo (played by Jeon Jong-seo) was a huge fan of BTS back in high school, despite the fact that she lived in North Korea at the time. Her sincere appreciation for South Korean culture gave way to a huge opportunity as successful Korean reunification talks allow her to work in South Korea. But she works as a karaoke bar hostess in abusive conditions. After one particularly bad night, Tokyo turns the tables on her oppressors, becoming a wanted criminal.

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You might be wondering what any of this has to do with "Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area" which is, as the title implies, primarily a show about heisting money. Well, director Kim Hong-seon-I decided that Tokyo needed a lot of backstory exposition. None of the other members of the team, all with city based code names of their own, seem to need any motivation more complicated than a need for money.

Apparently, the promise of economic opportunities under the auspice of Korean reunification turned out to be a lie. "Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area" is fascinating in this way for its premise being both grotesquely cynical yet weirdly optimistic. The scenario was quite obviously written before the various Korean political pratfalls of the last few years. Yet the show was also just as obviously edited in a post "Squid Game" creative environment to call attention to the political aspects of the story.

None of these politics really seem to matter all that much, mind you, except to the extent that the titular Joint Economic Area is in an awkward jurisdiction that's administered by both North and South Koreans ahead of the country's official unification. I'm assuming this awkward jurisdiction is important. Although honestly, the master plan of The Professor (played by Yoo Ji-tae) is so ridiculously vague every new piece of information we learn about the heist just sounds really made up.

He is, I think, sleeping with Negotiator Seon (played by Kim Yunjin), which might explain how he knows some things but certainly not everything. When we find out at the end that The Professor is actually after a money printer rather than the money itself I was just left wondering, OK, but how did he know about either of those things in the first place? I'm not optimistic that further explanations of how this heist turned hostage situation is supposed to succeed will be any more convincing than the ones I've seen so far.

Review by William Schwartz

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"Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area" is directed by Kim Hong-seon-I, written by Choi Sung-joon-I, Kim Hwan-chae, Ryoo Yong-jae, and features Yoo Ji-tae, Kim Yunjin, Park Hae-soo, Jeon Jong-seo, Lee Won-jong, Park Myung-hoon. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2022/06/24~Now airing, Fri on Netflix.

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