‘Pachinko’ Episode 7 Review: Lee Minho Starrer Highlights The Plight Of Koreans After Great Kantō Earthquake

‘Pachinko’ Episode 7 Review: Lee Minho Starrer Highlights The Plight Of Koreans After Great Kantō Earthquake

I love watching superhero movies as I get to see supercool superheroes with amazing powers. However, we are also getting to see a lot of villains and they are basically changing the way we look at them, their stories are so appealing and emotional that we are drawn towards them and they are becoming fan-favourites. Basically, they are refining the line between bad and devil and highlighting the fact that everything in this world has become subjective. Well, I don’t know about supervillains but the one villain that is reigning in the hearts of many fans is definitely Koh Hansu from Pachinko streaming on Apple TV+. The character is played by the Hallyu star Lee Minho and the internet can’t enough of his swag and charismatic charm. The series is written and created by Soo Hugh and also features Yuh-jung Youn, Minha Kim, Jin Ha, and Jung Woong-in. It is directed by Justin Chon and Kogonada.

 
 
 
 
 
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Episode 7 

I was really surprised when I heard that Lee Minho was making his Hollywood debut and he gave an audition for the role of Koh Hansu who is a grey character as he is known to play the romantic lead in Korean dramas. Well, at the start, his character looked similar to his other k-drama characters but soon, I realised that he is literally the villain of the series. Although, his good looks definitely stole our hearts, not gonna lie. However, I always found something strange about the ‘ruthless Korean businessman who lives in Japan and who is all about perfection and powerful avatar’. I mean, a penniless person can’t just travel to Japan and return as a rich person, this only happens in movies and Pachinko is based on real-life incidents, so that’s not possible or the person is involved in dirty business. Whatever the reason is, I was kind of intrigued by the character and had so many questions. And the makers of Pachinko heard my requests and they made a solo episode based on the early life of Koh Hansu. Good job, guys and now I’m going to review it. So hold your breath and let’s take a trip down memory lane for real because it is 1923. 

Meet Teenage Hansu

In the beginning, we saw teenage Sunja and now it’s time to see her lover aka teenage Hansu. And let me tell you, he’s not that cute and handsome as compared to adult Koh Hansu but also he’s not cruel and realistic as him and we are glad to see a pure-hearted Hansu even if he’s in an unflattering and shabby bowl cut. We also meet Hansu’s father who works for bad people but wants Hansu to stay away from the dirty work which didn’t work because Koh Hansu is a gang member now. We see that the duo share a great bond and have big dreams. Koh Hansu is a tutor who works for an English family who wants to take him to America to help their son in his studies because Hansu is an intelligent person who is good at math and can speak three languages – English, Japanese, and Korean. Wow, I’m impressed. However, he can’t pursue higher studies as he is poor and I feel so bad but that’s the reality of our world, people who deserve certain things are not able to achieve them, as they lack resources.

Also Read: ‘Pachinko’ Review: Yuh-jung Youn, Minah Kim Are The Heart Of This Epic Heart-Touching Family Saga And Lee Minho Is The Brain

Yokohama, Japan

The episode takes place in Yokohama and the set is so good and looks like as if we have travelled back in time. The wooden houses, the people, their clothes, everything looks breathtaking. Talking about the story, Hansu’s father stole a huge amount of money from his boss for a woman but the money’s gone and they have to repay the loan or else the boss will kill his father. When Koh Hansu confronts his father and tells him that he should have just said no to her when she asked for the money, his father tells him that one day he will fall in love with a woman and will lose himself to her. Even though I hate to admit it, this is quite true and this happened when Koh Hansu met Sunja in the marketplace. And we all know that he practically ruined her life but he also lost himself in the process. Why everyone in this series is predicting the future so accurately?

Kantō Earthquake

The penniless man returns to his boss named Ryochi after telling his son to go America with the Holmes family. Hansu’s father asks his boss to forgive him and says he will work hard to repay the loan but as I told you, the man is a gang member and they have a reputation. However, Koh Hansu comes to rescue his father and says he will work for him until the loan is paid but his father wants him to stay out of it because he cares for him.

At this point, we know that someone is going to die but nature has some other plans and the beautiful city is destroyed by an earthquake which is historically accurate. During the earthquake, we can see Hansu’s father trying to save him and it shows us that parents never give up on their children. Amid the chaos, Hansu’s father passes away while saving him. 

Ryochi takes him to the higher ground and tells him to go to America with the Holmes family as it was his father’s last wish. 

Kantō Massacre

On the other hand, the Holmes family is also trying to flee Japan but a massive fire blocks all the roads. And it’s so hard to see Hansu struggling to survive alone in the difficult situation after losing his father. He meets Ryochi again and they see Mrs Homes and her son’s dead bodies and Hansu takes the watch from her which looks similar to the one he gave to Sunja, is this a coincidence? 

After a terrible earthquake, the Japanese start believing that Koreans are plotting something against them. As a result, they blindly start killing Korean people without any evidence which is truly heartbreaking. With the help of Ryochi, Hansu hides in a cart but he witnesses the men setting up a house on fire where few Korean men were hiding and the fear is so evident in his eyes. 

Also Read: ‘Jersey’ Review: A Hard-Hitting, Wholesome Sports Drama That Will Tug At Your Heartstrings. A Must-Watch

Verdict 

The episode 7 of Pachinko was filled with violence and disaster. It is the shortest episode of the series and it also doesn’t include the opening song. Seeing people losing their lives during the Kanto earthquake and massacre is so terrible and Koh Hansu surviving alone just breaks my heart. Lee Minho played the role of a teenager really well who just lost his everything including innocence. Lee Minho shines as a younger version of Koh Hansu in this heartfelt, moving, and powerful depiction of the plight of Koreans during the Kanto earthquake that took place in Japan in 1923. After watching this episode, we know why Koh Hansu is the way he is, seeing so much brutality at a young age has scarred him from the core and that’s why he craves the power to feel safe and secure or he knows that he will get crushed by the others.

You know, I’m quite unsure about this episode because it gave us a backstory of Koh Hansu which was needed as he is one of the main character of Pachinko but it was not compulsory as the audience is already in love with him and people who don’t like the character have their own reasons. And I felt like the episode was a bit chaotic and rushed as the makers just wanted to show real-life incidents and get away with it, it takes a lot of time for the audience to fully understand such horrific and heartbreaking real-life incidents and the execution was literally all over the place but the emotions did their job really well. 

Currently, Pachinko is streaming on AppleTV+

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Preeti Singh

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