Money Heist recently returned as a Korean remake, and it’s currently #1 on the streaming platform. Starring actors with solid acting chops, Money Heist Korea proves once again that the Korean entertainment industry has not come to play. Our review of Money Heist Korea will tell you why you need to watch this series ASAP.
Money Heist Korea follows the plot of the original series closely, save for some localisation changes. The Professor – the mastermind behind the heist – comes up with a plan to burglarise the Mint in the Joint Economic Area, where the unified currency of both Korea is printed.
He gathers a team of individuals with questionable personalities and even more dubious pasts, and together they plan to pull off the biggest heist the world has seen before disappearing into thin air with 4 trillion won.
Image adapted from: Netflix
The episode opens up with the monologue by the show’s main narrator, who is later identified as Tokyo. She talks about her life living in North Korea, such as enduring hardships and having to join the military.
Image adapted from: Netflix
During her time serving in the military, a piece of pleasant news is bestowed upon the people of both Koreas: North and South Korea will establish an economic community and collaborate to create a common currency.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Image adapted from: Netflix
This plan also welcomes the construction of the JEA – the Joint Economic Area – where North and South Koreans can visit, work, travel, and set up businesses freely.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Like many North Koreans, Tokyo promptly leaves Pyongyang for Seoul to pursue the “Korean Dream”.
Image adapted from: Netflix
However, reality often strays from expectations, and this was exactly the case for Tokyo. She is scammed by her immigration broker and forced into odd jobs, and even resorts to escorting to get by.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Many other Koreans also suffered the same fate at the hands of selfish and greedy businessmen, and subsequently turned to drugs as an outlet.
Image adapted from: Netflix
It seems like the only people who can benefit from the re-unification of the two Koreas’ economy are the rich and powerful.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Tokyo is on the run after murdering loan sharks targeting vulnerable North Koreans. She’s approached by the Professor, who offers her a spot in his heist crew.
Image adapted from: Netflix
When introducing the crew to each other for the first time, the Professor tells everyone to drop the formalities and to come up with nicknames for each other for privacy’s sake.
Image adapted from: Netflix
He suggests using the names of cities, such as ideal cities they would like to live in, for their new monikers.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Rio, the team’s IT specialist, chooses the city Rio due to his interest in Samba music.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Denver, who has extraordinary combat skills, takes up the nickname Denver as his favourite movie is Rocky.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Denver’s father, Moscow, is an expert at mining. He chooses his code name due to the fact that his late mother used to dream about travelling across the globe from Busan to Moscow.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Nairobi used to be a counterfeit artist and claims to have a lot of experience in crimes. She greatly appreciates the diamonds from Nairobi, hence explaining her choice in her nickname.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Helsinki and Oslo are a duo who used to be fixers from China. They supposedly eliminated their old gang and are the only 2 survivors.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Berlin is one of the only people who successfully escaped from the torturous Kaechon concentration camp in North Korea, making him a greatly feared figure.
Video adapted from: Netflix
Last but not least, Tokyo explains her reason for picking the city as her code name: because they were “going to do a bad thing”.
The Professor’s plan was to overtake and rob the Mint of 4 trillion Korean won, but it didn’t simply end there. He carefully considered the different scenarios that could occur and how to deal with them.
Video adapted from: Netflix
After staging a negotiation with the robbers, the special task force consisting of both North and South Korean soldiers storms into the venue.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Even though the number of armed soldiers greatly outnumber the heist team, the robbers aren’t caught off-guard at all. In fact, the Professor had planned for this all along.
Video adapted from: Netflix
The team took hostages and made them dress up in disguises. As the hostages donned the same outfits as the robbers and were even armed with fake guns, the task force couldn’t tell them apart.
Video adapted from: Netflix
The task force, viewing the scene through cameras, stares in disbelief at the sheer number of “robbers”, especially after the Professor duped them into thinking there were only 4 on the team.
Image adapted from: Netflix
The daughter of the US ambassador and the Director of the Mint are made to film a live-streamed hostage video, urging the officials to abort their invasion and to continue negotiations.
Image adapted from: Netflix
Without risking the lives of their own crew and agitating the officials by hurting the hostages, the heist team manages to take their first win over the police and military.
Although the plot of Money Heist Korea largely follows the original’s, the localisation of the story makes this spin-off fresh and intriguing. On top of that, the story weaves in bits of Korea’s history and culture without coming across as preachy.
With a promising narrative and action-packed scenes that will excite adrenaline junkies, the first episode is proof that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel if it isn’t broken.
The first episode kept us on our toes, anticipating the next turn of events, and we look forward to what the rest of the season will bring.
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Cover image adapted from: @NetflixKR, @NetflixKR
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