Kim Ga-On
Appreciation post
Drama: The king's affection
Status: Side character
Portrayed by: Choi Byung-Chan
Side character, but he can make a big impression. He is the kind of mysterious character that appears to be bad guy but you hope that he is a good guy. He is cute, brave, great fighter and has the best whump scene in the show.
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Joint Security Area [공동경비구역 JSA] (2000)
A picture really does say a thousand words. The final image of Park Chan-wook’s DMZ character study perfectly sums up the relationship between its four central characters as well as the overall tone that it sets in examining the human consequences of such a specific and thoroughly enforced piece of diplomatic work. The monochrome photograph captures Sgt Oh’s wry expression, Pvt Jeong grinning as he marches in the background, Pvt Nam against the wall and Sgt Lee moving to block the lens. There’s an irreverence hiding in plain sight here, a secret pact which Park teases out over the course of this military thriller. But even more brilliantly, the taking of the image itself served as a character beat earlier in the film. While it’s not the first time we meet Sgt Oh, this is his first true reveal, making the choice to hand a tourist’s hat which has blown over into the DPRK back over to the ROK. He’s stiff and militaristic, but capable of making humanistic gestures, we see here. Throughout the rest of the film, he is perhaps the levelest mind in the room. Though fervent in his dedication to the DPRK in his words, Oh seems to value the lives of those he cares about more when things get tense. He uses this zealotry to purposefully, perhaps, sabotage a cross-examination when Lee looks about to break and perhaps damage his future, and as we come to learn about the confrontation which sparked the investigation and film, Oh works to protect his brethren on the southern side of the border even after his comrade is shot. He’s a good man. They’re all good men, on some level. The central idyll is like a warm blanket were it not for the knowledge that this is doomed to fail violently, nightly gatherings of camaraderie. But we come as an audience to enjoy their time together goofing off and swapping cigarettes and stories. It’s a connection not seen anywhere else in this world of strict and arbitrary ceremony and custom. Even the woman investigating the incident, Swiss negotiator Maj Jean, is separated from her intimate connections, her father’s past as a North Korean general weaponized and herself distant from him. Everything is defined by this line in the sand, and yet four men found a way to step across it. If only for a moment. Neither Lee nor Nam escape the fallout, and Oh can only find the release of discharge. It’s a moment in time, a snapshot.
Director Park uses flashbacks and perspective to spool out the different potential truths at hand before revealing the full facts of the matter. It’s well-executed, but not exactly anything novel. What is more interesting is his effortless as usual command of visual storytelling through editing and motifs. Borders are at once very important and completely frivolous, as exemplified by the concrete band defining the split between the two territories. ROK soldiers line up in drills to shoot moving targets from a model version of this setup, but those same soldiers from both sides will in other instances line up to swap cigarettes and hunt rabbit in a whole different kind of war-game. Our secret friends become increasingly juvenile during their duties, early on making threats about shadows crossing the border, which escalates to a spitting contest. They can’t even maintain a straight face when on duty facing off against one another, which makes their later face-to-face encounter at deposition, when there can be no falsehood, all the more heartbreaking. Later, mulling her options, Jean walks back and forth on that line like it’s a tightrope, balancing geopolitical consequences. Park is never twee or kumbahyah, we should all just get along about it: klaxons warn of imminent invasion and the ROK border defense react, our central quartet mull the consequences of invasion and how they would have to shoot each other in such a scenario. He's not naive, but Park does arch his brow at the theatrics of it all.
Underneath all of this is a heavy layer of queer subtext. It’s almost full-on text, just have an orgy! The one thing holding this film back. Nothing’s perfect. But there’s a definite longing between these four, especially Nam and Jeong. The secrecy of night can hide these normal interactions which the outer world condemns. Further overtures are made and blissfully received as Nam witnesses a mirror being flashed from across the border and practically exits this plane of existence. Jeong enjoys the arts and receives his birthday gift rhapsodically. Coded messages—the passing of a Yankee lighter, whistling—take the place of conventional conversation. The memento of the landmine fuse intertwines intimacy of that first meeting with danger, a Very Queer Thing. Nam paints a dark line under his eye akin to Oh’s scar in homage to him. That’s right, I’m going full tinfoil here, this will DEFINITELY fit into my Grand Unified Gay Theory come hell or high water.
THE RULES
SIP
Someone says 'Commie' or 'bullet'.
A car with a diplomat flag on its hood appears in a scene.
Someone names a nation.
BIG DRINK
A flashback begins.
CGI(?) birds? Are birds real?
Song Kang-ho whistles.
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K-Pop Debuts and Comebacks for the Third Week of February (Feb 13-19 2023)
Feb 13
0WAVE - off this
Hip hop crew 0WAVE is back with another vibey banger.
KEY - Killer
SHINee's KEY returns solo in this retro synthpop bop!
LIMELIGHT - Honestly
Rookie trio LIMELIGHT debuts in this upbeat pop track!
tripleS - Rising
Jaden Jeong's newest produced group following LOONA and onlyoneof makes a powerful and unique debut.
XG - Left Right
AVEX's Korea-based Japanese girl group XG drops a high-budget MV for their follow-up track.
Feb 14
STAYC - Teddy Bear
Popular young girl group STAYC is back with another refreshing and unique track!
Feb 15
PURPLE KISS - Sweet Juice
Talented girl group PURPLE KISS continues their unique dark yet delicate sound in this comeback!
Feb 16
No releases.
Feb 17
Lee Byung Chan - Snowman
Soloist Lee Byung Chan shows off his delicate and smooth vocals in this track!
Feb 18
Poetree X Kim Hyunchul - Belated Love
Veteran Korean singer Kim Hyunchul collabs with indie artist Poetree to release this newtro track that calls to both early 90s and current alternative pop sounds!
Feb 19
Jeong Dong Won - Forever
Trot wunderkind Jeong Dong Won drops a touching song thanking fans!
What is your favourite release of the week?
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Top Picks of 2023
My Top 12 Favorite TV Shows - #9: Business Proposal
Show Premiered: February 28th, 2022
Show Ended: April 5th, 2022
Started Watching: September 2023
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