What Is HOMETOWN (홈타운) KDrama & My Spoiler Impressions (Ep.1-6)



A question lingered within my headspace after watching the fist two episodes of HOMETOWN: "Do you fking know what your children are doing right now?"



In all honesty, I was ready to bail on HOMETOWN after Ep2. The infernal unanswered questions, vague collective pasts... and a direness that reminded me of when I was watching "Beyond Evil", of being exhausted watching each episode.

But to be utterly fair, I had thoroughly enjoyed BEYOND EVIL, and have no doubt at this time that the series'll rank pretty high on my "TOP TEN KDRAMAS of 2021"-list! But I also realize that it is a series I would not watch twice, not wanting to be emotionally drained by the end.

For HOMETOWN, the first two episodes for me teetered on the4 precipice of testing my patience, rather than "tolerance", because we do not actually witness a "crime(s)" (except for the crime scene blurred out in Ep3), nor do we see gruesome "dead bodies".



At the end of Ep2, the suspicions had been planted, and by Episode three, we are hit with a massive one-two combo of "The Ring" Greatest Hits VHS Mixtape playback = TWICE!

The further flashbacks of path once thread and "forgotten memories", gradually fermented with lost friends, reunions and coincidental situations, you know you're in a heck of a ride to come.

Another kick in the teeth came at the end with "inverted dreams", which I subsequently realised the show's poster to be literally a upside down image! "Stranger Things", much? And of course the "cult" angle had always been a constant thing since the beginning.



But what really sold it for me, was actress Han Ye-Ri's "Jo Jung-Hyun" mental breakdown by Ep3, than made me realize I had become emotionally invested in this South Korean drama, than just needing to have "questions answered".

Also realising the said-poster image - though upsize down or otherwise - had not shown any particular actors' faces or profiles, as they have for other KDramas - which perhaps might change as the story progresses, but I'd side with this notion, for now.

Then falling into Ep.4, 5 and 6 (the half-way point of the 12-episode series), I had somewhat lost my shit, for this has become somewhat of a Cult + Occult-ccentric venture, with super-normal powers wielded by who would be a mass murderer, incarcerated, but leaving behind a wake of a Cult perhaps borne of said mass murder situation.



I had started this morning thinking of listing out the various SPOILER-Questions I had for the series, 6 episodes in, but realised letting it remained unanswered, but incur more of my own hesitance to continue watching the series, and quite frankly, I do not know if I would want to, at the point. It all depends on what else catches my attention in the days to come, I suppose... or I might just wait it out to binge watch the rest later on when it is completed.

SPOILERS AHEAD IN RED

Detective Choi Hyung-In's wife (Im Se-Yoon) is mention ed as having died in the Saju Gas Attack, and we do see her in an episode. And in true KDrama-twist fashion, we later see her in a car seating next to Jo Kyung-Ho, before he executes said gas attack.

If Im Se-Yoon turns out to be Jo Jae-Young's mum tho...

That 10 feet tall pile of people the cult was praying to, will certainly not leave any doubt there is the work of a cult, if the brainwashing on Jo Jung-Hyun does not convince you.

Jo Kyung-Ho is Guru.

Jo Jae-Young is not dead, and you'll see her in Ep.5 (but not recognise it's her), but you'll know where she is in Ep.6.




This is what we know of HOMETOWN so far:

"Hometown" ("홈타운") is a 12 episoder series on tvN, launched September 22nd, and scheduled to end October 28th, 2021. Airing twice a week at the 22:30 time slot (Wednesday & Thursdays in South Korea), the genre indicated is "Mystery / Thriller". I personally think this is not suited for "children" at all, even if you attempt to sit and explain it to them, which I do not recommend, thanks. Did I mention the (possible) "drug-induced mass psychosis"?

Directed by Park Hyun-Suk (2020's "Stranger 2" & 2018's "Just Dance"), with writer Joo Jin has thus far crafted a swirling puzzle of connected pasts that has yet to be pieced together (hoping the answers match the hype tho), with "memory" being an underlying notion of content, IMHO. Something I am personally fascinated with, and have been for all my adult years, of the Power of Memory, and how it could define your future, and erase your past(s).

When it is somewhat revealed that Jo Kyung-Ho has the ability to tamper with a person's memories (or so it shows), you know the show's genre has taken a turn.



The series is primarily set in 1999, while constant flashbacks to 1989 runs parallel and informs the situation. As the series progresses, it is without a doubt showing situations that started way before that. The synopsis below describes the bare essentials of the situation, but the plot veers deeper than you'd think, IMHO.

SYNOPSIS: "Set in a small rural town in 1999 where a recording tape containing a mysterious serial murder and an unidentified bizarre sound is discovered.

In 1989, terrorist Jo Kyung Ho came back to South Korea after studying in Japan and released sarin gas at a train station in his hometown, killing passengers and subsequently being sentenced to life in prison after turning himself in. His daughter, Jo Jae Young, is sent to live with her aunt, Kyung Ho’s younger sister, Jo Jung Hyun.

Ten years later, a murder case takes place in the small town with Detective Choi Hyung being put in charge. Suspecting that the case is somehow related to the terrorists, Choi Hyung, who is consumed with the guilt of failing to prevent his wife’s death 10 years ago in the terrorist attack, begins investigating when Jung Hyun’s niece suddenly goes missing. Jung Hyun now must come face to face with tragedy once again and she teams up with Choi Hyung to discover the truth and find her niece."




The series stars Yoo Jae-Myung as main lead "Detective Choi Hyung-In" (whom we last seen in "Vincenzo" as Hong Yu-Chan), Han Ye-Ri as main female lead "Jo Jung-Hyun", and her Orphanage brother "Jo Kyung-Ho", played in uber-calm-creepiness by Um Tae-Goo (last seen in "Night in Paradise"), amongst an ensemble of actors that can noticeably describe as a "actor-led" project (as opposed to "idol led", with no faces of said actors seen on the cover of the show's poster.



There is a host of videos on YouTube hash-tagged "#홈타운", but having "English Subtitles" was a struggle for me to find ... maybe you'll have better luck, cheers.

(Additional info via asianwiki.com)

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