Money Heist: Korea — Joint Economic Area (Review)
(종이의 집: 공동경제구역; released on June 24 and December 9, 2022 on Netflix; 12 episodes)
I am used to the situation when Hollywood studios remake foreign films or shows, but a Korean remake of a Spanish show, that’s new (okay, there are Korean remakes of other shows or films, to be fair, still Spanish show is something surprising). Hard to shake an impression that is mostly Netflix milking the successful franchise: because do we really need a remake of Money Heist? The premise and franchise make somewhat a generic heist show anyway, and remaking it doesn’t introduce much of a new value.
The Korean version (with outrageously long title, Money Heist: Korea — Joint Economic Area) follows very closely the Spanish original (of Season 1): we generally have the same characters, and the overall plot is very similar. There are some differentiators though. First, the setting is an alternative earth (?) where North and South Koreas are very close to unification, they set up the titular Joint Economic Area, where most of the events take place, and significant political and economic powers are interested in wrapping up the reunification process as fast as possible. The situation like that is completely unrealistic in our world, especially because of Russo-Ukrainian war which further divided the superpowers and their allies (the war which seemingly is not happening in the show).
In connection with the setting, there is an obligatory conspiracy plot in K-Dramas: obviously the powers behind reunification do that at the expense of Korean people and will stop at nothing to finish what they started. The Professor (Yoo Ji-tae) is here not only a mastermind behind the heist, but also, it seems, a political activist, who by completing the heist wants to expose these powerful and corrupted people.
His target is the Mint, the facility where the common currency for both Koreas is printed. His plan is to occupy the Mint for ten days and print the money. He assembles a team nearly identical to that in the Spanish show, a people with similar backstories to the orignals: Berlin (Park Hae-soo), Tokyo (Jeon Jong-seo), Rio (Lee Hyun-woo), Moscow (Lee Won-jong), Denver (Kim Ji-hoon), Nairobi (Jang Yoon-ju), Helsinki (Kim Ji-hun), and Oslo (Lee Kyu-ho). That cast is enlarged by people in the law enforcement, starting with Seon Woo-jin (Kim Yun-jin), a police negotiator targeted by the Professor, and North Korean Captain Cha Moo-hyuk (Kim Sung-oh) a nemesis of the Professor’s team. We also have a lot of secondary characters, including hostages, members of the conspiracy, members of Berlin’s supporting team (including Lim Ji-yeon as Seoul, an actress also known from fantastic The Glory on Netflix), etc.
The cast is enormous: while the show largely does a good job of fleshing out the characters, their motivations, and their backstories, it obviously suffers because it has to fit everything in just 12 episodes. And we have numerous secondary arcs: like romance arcs somewhat reimagined from Spanish version, between Tokyo and Rio, and Denver and one of the hostages (Lee Joo-bin as Yoon Mi-seon) and the romance between the Professor and Seon Woo-jin; the arc revolving around Anne Kim (Lee Si-woo), one of the hostages and the daughter of the U.S. Ambassador; the whole conspiracy plot (which is somewhat confusing); in addition to numerous flashbacks and backstories. To say that the show is overcrowded would be an understatement.
The show is trying to navigate all of that by focusing mostly on three characters: Tokyo, also a narrator of the show (like in the Spanish version), the Professor, and Berlin. Most of other events are somehow related to these three. These are also the strongest performances in the show in addition to Kim Yun-jin as inspector Seon Woo-jin.
For me, the show is a mixed bag: strong performances and good cast are the advantages of the show. On the other hand, the whole alternative world setting is confusing to say the least. It might be clearer for a Korean viewer, no idea. Nevertheless, we’re mostly left with unanswered questions, why and how the reunification happened and how exactly it works: the show doesn’t really explain how that whole Joint Economic Area operates, and why we have North and South Korean officials working together and against each other. Who are really the people behind the conspiracy: there are several characters introduced, but barely explained. What really are their goals, why do they need the Mint, and so on. I would prefer for the show to do away with the whole alternative world setting, as it doesn’t add much value to the show, but it makes it more confusing.
Also, the show doesn’t really justify its existence: besides switching actors to Koreans and changing some story lines it is not so different from the Spanish original. Making remakes is always risky, especially when the remake and the original are made within just five years of each other. In sum, while the show is definitely solid entertainment with good performances, you wouldn’t miss much if you skip it.
Money Heist: Korea — Joint Economic Area on Wikipedia and MyDramaList
