Well, folks, the wait is finally over, Money Heist Korea has now hit Netflix with the first 6-episodes released last Friday.
It took me a little longer than expected to get through the first half of the series. To be honest, I thought I would have swallowed all those episodes in one single viewing but of course, I had to work and do some adulting.
So, as a big fan of the original Spanish series, I have to admit, I was a little bit annoyed and let down at the approach. This is very much a remake of the Spanish series.
It took me up until the 3rd episode before I started seeing differences and boy, was I happy to see those. But everything up until then was pretty much a carbon copy of the original; even the characters’ physiques are as annoyingly close to the original as possible.
Although the heist and main characters are the same, we start to see some differences in the hostage situation.
Money Heist Korea is set slightly in the near future (2025 I think). The unification of North and South Korea is now a reality. Not only is our new band of robbers from both North and South Korea, but the police force is also…and the hostages. And as one can imagine, the reunification of a country that has been separated for decades doesn’t come without its paranoia or hate. This is what I think sets his series apart from the original…but it still might not be enough.
The professor is a great character but I dunno, maybe we got spoiled with Álvaro Morte. The new professor doesn’t seem to carry even half the charisma as the OG Professor. However, I do think that both of these characters have been approached differently. This new vision seems to be a lot more serious. He seems to hide a far darker side to the character that we have not yet gotten to see. I have a feeling this new professor has a lot more tricks up his sleeve.
I am not 100% sold yet. But, I owe it to my love of South Korean cinema to continue my journey with Money Heist Korea
For some reason, I was under the impression that this was set in the same universe. And in my opinion, would’ve been a much fresher approach. The original heist still exists and the characters’ names’ are now a metaphor. Different countries take on the same model, and names but their reasoning and personalities would be completely different to what we have seen in the original Money Heist. I dunno, that’s how I would’ve rolled. How about you?
So far, a 6.5 out of 10 for me. I am hoping that will improve. As always, thanks for reading.
