The Societal Issues Addressed In Itaewon Class
Itaewon Class is a Korean Drama series about ex-convict, Park Saeroyi, wanting revenge against Chairman Jang Daehee and his son for covering up his father’s accident. His plan is to destroy Jangga - the company that Jang worked so hard to keep thriving for his family - by opening his own pub restaurant, Danbam. He hires a crew: Jo Yi-seo as the manager and Choi Seungkwan, Toni, Ma Hyon-yi, and Jang Guen-soo as waiters. The drama touches on power-play, transgender, racial profiling, and other issues that intrigue the viewers, enticing them to know more about the story.
Daehee utilizes money and the status he has in society to get Saeroyi’s business into bankruptcy. Oh Soo-ah, Saeroyi’s long-time crush, falls victim to Daehee’s power as he grants her a scholarship and job opportunity if she as the witness falsely accuses Saeroyi of attempted murder of Daehee’s son, Jang Guen-woo. Oh Soo-ah feels awful for what she does but finds herself trapped as she becomes allegiant to Daehee. He obligates her to know how Saeroyi and Danbam are doing. Daehee believed that it wouldn’t survive until Yi-seo boosts the popularity of Danbam using social media and improving the food menu. As a result, Daehee decides to buy the restaurant to put Saeroyi in his place. When Saeroyi looks for an investor for his pub. Daehee once again, using his connections, sets up an investor that would help franchise the pub, only to be out of business.
Jang Guen-soo, the son of Jang Daehee, gets called the coward frequently by his father, his brother, and Yi-seo. Guen-soo decides to do something right by working at Danbam to re-pay for charges that Yi-seo did because she is underage. He then plans to be the chairman of Jangga in order to win Yi-seo's heart. However, he realizes after Yi-seo ends up kidnapped by his brother Guen-woo, that he hates what his father has done and wants to be free from him and the hurt inflicted on the people he once called friends. He saw that his father only cared about his company, treating him more like an employee than family. Working at Danbam, he felt like he was part of a family rather than just a business.
Next, we have Toni, a Guinean-Korean, believed by Seungkwan, Hyeon-yi, and Yi-seo that he is American, but is ultimately Korean. Yi-seo hires him as a waiter because she believed that he spoke English but discovers he does not. When the whole crew decides to go to a bar, Toni was not allowed to enter because of him appearing American. Saeyori gets angry with this fact, deciding to help find his father to prove his Korean nationality.
Hyeon-yi, reveals that she is a transgender after Seunkwan, Guen-soo, and Yi-seo go to a club. Yi-seo wanted to fire her as she felt it would jeopardize the reputation of Danbam. Saeroyi denies it as he believes that there is nothing wrong with her sexuality. Her sexuality gets brought up again when Guen-soo, working at Jangga to be the chairman, reveals to the public that she is transgender to prevent her from winning a food contest. Everyone judges her but she ultimately confronts her fears and ends up winning the contest.
Sareoyi, the main character, always confronts any challenge given by Daehee. Saeroyi wanted to be a police officer but ended up becoming a convict. In Korea, if you become a convict, you are not allowed to enter the police academy. As a result, Saeroyi decides that if he cannot achieve his dream, he would plot out his revenge on Daehee by opening his own pub. After being released from prison, he worked in fishing ports to earn money to start the pub. During his time in prison, he spends the time reading business books which other convicts thought was absurd. Seungkwan was one of those convicts who thought the same, but after seeing that he owned a pub in front of his eyes, wanted to be out of his criminal lifestyle he had.
This k-drama brought out issues that are going on in Korea and around the world. As a person who listens to Korean music, I knew a bit of Korean culture, but this drama went in depth of the grand issues plaguing Korean society. Every episode felt captivating to watch as we learn at the start of the few episodes the plot of revenge. I supported Saeroyi to get revenge for his father’s accident. However, as we get into the last few episodes, we see that his crew members questioned what he will do after his revenge is done. Seungkwan questions Saeyori’s relationship with Yi-seo, having told him many times that she loved him. Seungkwan ponders why he has not said his true feelings to her as he and Hyun-yi notice that he does care for her.. Saeroyi eventually comes to terms with realizing that revenge was all for nothing, realizing he could have settled down with the person who mattered the most, Yi-seo. When he rejected her feelings the first time, it was because she was underage, but he also felt at peace when he was with her. His life was once filled with nightmares from his father’s accident, but now is filled with sweet memories because of her, ending up together and happy.
Itaewon Class does a good job demonstrating the characters’ struggles and misfits. To prove that they have the ability to improve themselves and be successful.
