lost in melb.
11-18-2021, 11:32 PM
North Korea has slammed the show as a “beastly” example of Southern culture, but even they couldn’t escape the hype.
https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/20313e1a8107beef8483dc28b5f537ca
More Netflix viewers watched dubbed versions of the South Korean drama “Squid Game” than subtitled versions. WSJ met one of the show’s English-language voice actors to see how dubbing foreign content is fueling the streaming giant’s growth. Photo Illustration: Sharon Shi; Source Photos: Netflix, Chris Warren for WSJ
It appears even the most secluded nation on Earth can’t escape the Squid Game hype.
New reports from South Korea have confirmed Netflix’s hit show — which is officially the streaming platform’s most successful series of all time — has found its way across one of the world’s tightest borders into Kim Jong-un’s North Korea.
The TV series, which has been described as a bleak take on capitalist culture in Asia, took the internet by storm in October, becoming a suddenly inescapable phenomenon across the globe.
Installations dedicated to the dystopian series began emerging across the globe and memes populated every corner of the web. There was even a cryptocurrency scam worth millions linked to the hype of the show.
Kim Jong-un’s government has long voiced his disgust at South Korean culture, referring to K-Pop as a “cancer” for the North’s youth. But even the head of the world’s most secretive hermit society hasn’t been able to stamp out the cultural steamroller that is Squid Game.
Authorities were quick to respond as the show caught fire, labelling it an example of the “sad reality of the beastly South Korean society.
“It is said that [Squid Game] makes people realise the sad reality of the beastly South Korean society in which human beings are driven into extreme competition and their humanity is being wiped out,” state-run media announced.
But it hasn’t stopped locals risking it all to view the hit series, which Netflix estimates tallied over 1.6 billion hours of stream-time in its first 28 days.
Speaking anonymously to US-funded radio station Radio Free Asia, a resident of North Korea explained how oppressed civilians are getting their hands on the first season.
"Squid Game has been able to enter the country on memory storage devices such as USB flash drives and SD cards, which are smuggled in by ship and then make their way inland," the source said.
According to the resident, the show’s themes are resonating across all classes in Pyongyang, with the wealthy believing the plot line “parallels their own reality”.
“They say that the content is similar to the lives of Pyongyang officials who fight in the foreign currency market as if it is a fight for life and death,” the man said.
“They think the show’s plot kind of parallels their own reality, where they know they could be executed at any time if the government decides to make an example out of them for making too much money, but they all continue to make as much money as possible.”
The man said the youth of North Korea were watching the series in secret on portable media players late at night and under the covers.
“It not only resonates with the rich people, but also with Pyongyang’s youth, because they are drawn to the unusually violent scenes. Also, one of the characters is a North Korean escapee and they can relate to her,” the source continued.
“They secretly watch the show under their blankets at night on their portable media players.”
The penalties of being caught with foreign media remain catastrophic for those inside North Korea. Last year, the government passed an "anti-reactionary thought" law that brought in drastic punishments for people found to have distributed or consumed taboo media. Those caught spreading or even watching Squid Game risk the death penalty.
“Law enforcement is not playing around with the new law and they are fiercely trying to root out every instance of capitalist culture,” a second North Korean resident told Radio Free Asia.
“But times are tough due to the pandemic, so even the police are struggling to make ends meet. Putting a few bucks in their pocket will make them go away if you get caught watching South Korean media. So that means more and more people here will watch Squid Game moving forward.”
Defectors smuggling music, movies into North Korea
North Korean defector Jung Gwang-il, who runs a music network smuggling K-pop across the border, says the dictatorship is losing his grip over the youth, presenting a mounting problem for the Kim dynasty pushing to extend its rule of law.
The three-generation lineage, beginning with Kim Il-sung in 1948, has ruled the Asian nation for 73 years after establishing a communist state.
Kim has publicly feared for the “ideological and mental state” of the next generation, admitting the unchecked distribution of foreign culture could “crumble like a damp wall”.
“Young North Koreans think they owe nothing to Kim Jong-un,” Jung Gwang-il told the New York Times.
Jung’s network, No Chain, specialises in the risky business of smuggling USB drives into North Korea. The high-tier contraband containing everything from James Bond movies to South Korean soap operas is snuck in via human smugglers, helium balloons and helicopter drones.
The reinforced push against South Korean influence means anybody distributing content to North Koreans faces the death sentence if caught. It is now completely illegal to even “speak, write or sing in South Korean style” once inside the country.
“To Kim Jong-un, the cultural invasion from South Korea has gone beyond a tolerable level,” said Jiro Ishimaru, a chief editor of Asia Press International.
“If this is left unchecked, he fears that his people might start considering the South an alternative Korea to replace the North.”
https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/20313e1a8107beef8483dc28b5f537ca
More Netflix viewers watched dubbed versions of the South Korean drama “Squid Game” than subtitled versions. WSJ met one of the show’s English-language voice actors to see how dubbing foreign content is fueling the streaming giant’s growth. Photo Illustration: Sharon Shi; Source Photos: Netflix, Chris Warren for WSJ
It appears even the most secluded nation on Earth can’t escape the Squid Game hype.
New reports from South Korea have confirmed Netflix’s hit show — which is officially the streaming platform’s most successful series of all time — has found its way across one of the world’s tightest borders into Kim Jong-un’s North Korea.
The TV series, which has been described as a bleak take on capitalist culture in Asia, took the internet by storm in October, becoming a suddenly inescapable phenomenon across the globe.
Installations dedicated to the dystopian series began emerging across the globe and memes populated every corner of the web. There was even a cryptocurrency scam worth millions linked to the hype of the show.
Kim Jong-un’s government has long voiced his disgust at South Korean culture, referring to K-Pop as a “cancer” for the North’s youth. But even the head of the world’s most secretive hermit society hasn’t been able to stamp out the cultural steamroller that is Squid Game.
Authorities were quick to respond as the show caught fire, labelling it an example of the “sad reality of the beastly South Korean society.
“It is said that [Squid Game] makes people realise the sad reality of the beastly South Korean society in which human beings are driven into extreme competition and their humanity is being wiped out,” state-run media announced.
But it hasn’t stopped locals risking it all to view the hit series, which Netflix estimates tallied over 1.6 billion hours of stream-time in its first 28 days.
Speaking anonymously to US-funded radio station Radio Free Asia, a resident of North Korea explained how oppressed civilians are getting their hands on the first season.
"Squid Game has been able to enter the country on memory storage devices such as USB flash drives and SD cards, which are smuggled in by ship and then make their way inland," the source said.
According to the resident, the show’s themes are resonating across all classes in Pyongyang, with the wealthy believing the plot line “parallels their own reality”.
“They say that the content is similar to the lives of Pyongyang officials who fight in the foreign currency market as if it is a fight for life and death,” the man said.
“They think the show’s plot kind of parallels their own reality, where they know they could be executed at any time if the government decides to make an example out of them for making too much money, but they all continue to make as much money as possible.”
The man said the youth of North Korea were watching the series in secret on portable media players late at night and under the covers.
“It not only resonates with the rich people, but also with Pyongyang’s youth, because they are drawn to the unusually violent scenes. Also, one of the characters is a North Korean escapee and they can relate to her,” the source continued.
“They secretly watch the show under their blankets at night on their portable media players.”
The penalties of being caught with foreign media remain catastrophic for those inside North Korea. Last year, the government passed an "anti-reactionary thought" law that brought in drastic punishments for people found to have distributed or consumed taboo media. Those caught spreading or even watching Squid Game risk the death penalty.
“Law enforcement is not playing around with the new law and they are fiercely trying to root out every instance of capitalist culture,” a second North Korean resident told Radio Free Asia.
“But times are tough due to the pandemic, so even the police are struggling to make ends meet. Putting a few bucks in their pocket will make them go away if you get caught watching South Korean media. So that means more and more people here will watch Squid Game moving forward.”
Defectors smuggling music, movies into North Korea
North Korean defector Jung Gwang-il, who runs a music network smuggling K-pop across the border, says the dictatorship is losing his grip over the youth, presenting a mounting problem for the Kim dynasty pushing to extend its rule of law.
The three-generation lineage, beginning with Kim Il-sung in 1948, has ruled the Asian nation for 73 years after establishing a communist state.
Kim has publicly feared for the “ideological and mental state” of the next generation, admitting the unchecked distribution of foreign culture could “crumble like a damp wall”.
“Young North Koreans think they owe nothing to Kim Jong-un,” Jung Gwang-il told the New York Times.
Jung’s network, No Chain, specialises in the risky business of smuggling USB drives into North Korea. The high-tier contraband containing everything from James Bond movies to South Korean soap operas is snuck in via human smugglers, helium balloons and helicopter drones.
The reinforced push against South Korean influence means anybody distributing content to North Koreans faces the death sentence if caught. It is now completely illegal to even “speak, write or sing in South Korean style” once inside the country.
“To Kim Jong-un, the cultural invasion from South Korea has gone beyond a tolerable level,” said Jiro Ishimaru, a chief editor of Asia Press International.
“If this is left unchecked, he fears that his people might start considering the South an alternative Korea to replace the North.”