K-Drama School - Ep 119: Beef & T...
Explicit

K-Drama School - Ep 119: Beef & The Korean American Drama of a Jang-nam’s K-Rage

Explicit

K-Drama School by Grace Jung

Episode notes

[Spoiler Alert] Grace discusses the show Beef (Netflix, 2023) created by Lee Sung Jin starring Steve Yeun and Ali Wong. While Beef is a Netflix production made in Hollywood, Grace sees a lot of Korean influence on the show like how Danny tries to kill himself using hibachi grills similar to the way Koreans use charcoal briquettes, having a billionaire character, and the jang-nam (eldest Korean son) pressure that Danny puts on himself to buy his parents a house. What makes the show arguably a Korean American drama are the church scenes and an exploration of K-rage exhibited by characters like Danny, Issac (David Choe) and Edwin (Justin H. Min). Grace analyzes Ali Wong’s former marriage to Justin Hakuta whose great uncle was world-renowned Korean artist Paik Nam-june, and how this backdrop creates Amy Lau’s character. The ... 

Read more
Keywords
david choesteve yeunali wongpaik nam junebeeflee sung jinsteven yeun