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The American-Korean drama Pachinko is set to come back with season 2 on August 23, 2024. The first season of the drama was released back on March 25, 2022, starring Lee Min-ho, Kim Ha-min, Jin Ha, Noh Sang-Hyun, and Youn Yuh-Jung as the leads.
Pachinko, based on the best-selling 2017 novel by Min Jin Lee, was directed by Kogonada and Justin Chon. The drama followed four generations of Sunja and her family, who left Korea under Japanese rule for Koreatown in Osaka, Japan. The drama was critically acclaimed for its cinematography, writing, and performances.
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Before the season 2 of Pachinko releases, here are 6 key points from the Season 1 to remember
1 ) Sunja's life that threaded the story :
The story of Pachinko mainly follows Sunja, played by Kim Ha-min and Youn Yuh-Jung, from her childhood in 1915 to her days as a grandmother in 1989. Sunja was born and raised in a poor family in a poor village in Busan in Japanese colonized Korea. Her family came from a poor background and ran a guesthouse in colonized Korea.
Raised by her widowed mother, she grew up mixing with various kinds of people in the guesthouse and turned into a bright young woman. She fell in love and became pregnant with Ko Hansu's child, who unknown to her was already married. When Sunja heard that he could not marry her, she left the relationship refusing to be his mistress and his money for child support.
She married Isak Baek, a Christian priest, and moved to Japan with him and his brother and sister-in-law. She sacrificed her homeland, culture, and identity, to provide for her children. Even when her husband died he stood strongly for her children.
Sunja's resilience is a crucial emotional element in the narrative in Pachinko, emphasizing her unwavering fortitude in the face of challenges, especially as a woman in a society predominantly led by men.
2) Ko Hansu's complexity :
Ko Hansu played by Lee Minho, was not just an antagonist. He came from poverty and was raised to be a wealthy and powerful man. He had survived the harshness of life that stemmed his ambition. He also married for convenience. He was not an out-and-out villainous character. When Sunja sold the watch he gifted her he vowed to make her regret it. However, he also came across as a caring father who kept an eye on his son and Sunja.
3) Solomon Baek's struggle:
Solomon Baek played by Jin Ha, was Sunja's grandson. Ambitious young man Solomon worked for an American company. He was responsible for the job of getting land from a Korean woman living in Japan.
However, she refused to sell the land and asked him if he would ask his grandmother the same knowing all the sacrifices she had made for that land. Through this struggle of Solomon Baek the themes of identity, ambition, and family ties, as well as the sacrifices previous generations made, were explored in Pachinko.
4) Themes of Identity and Displacement:
Pachinko season 1 heavily explored the themes of identity, displacement, and the immigrant experience. These themes were mostly explored through Sunja after she moved to Japan for a better life for her children. Even after years of living in Japan, Korea never left her.
One of the central themes of the story revolves around Sunja's deep yearning for her motherland and the loss of identity, tradition, and cultural challenges her family faced while residing in Japan. Sunja's brother-in-law, Yoseb, and his wife, Kyunghee, exemplified the challenges faced by working-class immigrants in Japan.
Sunja's second son's achievements in the pachinko industry highlighted the marginalized Korean community's dependence on gambling sectors for economic sustenance in Japan, notwithstanding the social stigma associated with it.
5) The Legacy of Japanese Colonialism:
Pachinko also delved into the harsh realities of Japanese colonialism. Sunja in her childhood had seen Japanese troops torturing guests who supported the liberation of Korea in her family guesthouse. However, not only the Korean people of colonized Korea but also their descendants continued to face prejudice and economic challenges in Japan long after the colonial period.
Sunja and her family encountered significant discrimination and hardship as Korean immigrants in Japan. They struggled with issues of identity, financial difficulties, and societal bias, which profoundly shaped their lives in Japan.
6) Intergenerational Narrative Exchange:
The series chronicled the lives of four generations of a Korean family, beginning with Sunja's early years in Japanese-occupied Korea and continuing through her life in Japan. The narrative alternated between various time periods, primarily the early to late 20th century.
Pachinko explored the profound impact of one generation's decisions on subsequent generations, shaping relationships and choices. Noa, the eldest son of Sunja, aspired to assimilate fully into Japanese society, distancing himself from his Korean heritage. This internal conflict between his Korean identity and his desire for Japanese integration created tension within his family.
His struggle was intensified by the revelation that his biological father was Koh Hansu, a symbol of oppression. Solomon's pursuit of success was inextricably linked to the sacrifices made by Sunja and her sons.
Pachinko will be available for streaming on Apple TV + from August 23, 2024, at 12 a.m. ET and 9 p.m. PT.
