"We will place more caution": Little Women Vietnam controversy explained as production house responds

Little Women, starring Kim Go-eun, Nam Ji-hyun, Wi Ha-joon and Park Ji-hu, is in the news for historical distortion of the Vietnam War. As a result, the show has been removed from Netflix's slate in the country as of October 6. The request to stop airing the program in their country came from Vietnam's Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI).

The scenes in question feature in episodes 3 and 8, and it sees a South Korean war veteran brag about the "kill to death" ratio that allegedly existed between the South Korean troops and the Viet Cong. Viet Cong is the communist army of the country.

Many may suggest that the Viet Cong was on the wrong side of the war, and since they are seen as antagonists, it shouldn't matter. However, fans argue that shows should not be commenting on war and death, especially those pertaining to another country lightly.

In response to the allegations and the backlash that the show has received recently, the producers of Little Women released a statement. In this statement, they explained,

"We are addressing the concerns regarding a portion of the (story) set-up covered in Little Women. We will place more caution in societal and cultural sensitivity issues in future content production."

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Scenes criticised for historical distortion in Little Women

The scenes feature general Won Sang-ah's father Won Ki-sun performing "distinguished military service" in the Vietnam war. It is from Vietnam that the general brings his blue ghost orchid. The scene does further damage by glorifying the death count, as the lead character in question claims that one Korean soldier could easily kill 20 Vietnamese soldiers.

The character then proudly proclaimed that South Korean soldiers were the heroes of the Vietnam war. This then caused furore among fans, who took to social media to discuss and call out the show for its insensitive portrayal of a historical event.

The show is currently headed towards its finale this week. The show, about three siblings caught in the trap of a wealthy conglomerate, sees each of them face their fears in different ways. So far, the show has featured some shocking deaths, some intense twists and unbelievable turns. At one point, it even began to seem as if the show was headed towards becoming a convoluted mess. One that audiences would have lost interest in.

However, the tvN drama has managed to keep audiences on edge with every new development. Even now, the question of whether Choi Do-il (Wi Ha-joon) has betrayed Oh In-joo drives the curiosity of the audience. The main reason for people to tune into Little Women’s episode 11 would be to understand if the man who has been by In-joo’s side all this while has, in fact, left her high and dry.