Mine (2021)

Within a male dominated spectacularly exclusive golden Jaebeol-Cage women stand up for their rights

The (fictional) Hyowon Group's extended family is among the richest one percent in the country. This clan is analyzed in detail with their personal stories and their dynamics among themselves. It quickly becomes clear that despite all the wealth, nobody is happy here. They are prisoners in a golden cage of their own greed. The peacock cage in the park of the estate is a beautiful allegory for this.

If they were just satisfied with what is, they might be better off. But it always has to be more. "Mine... Mine... I want it... I want more... I don't want to give it away..." Communication is replaced by competition, love and comfort by money and luxury. The price has to be payed by suffering souls. Having lost their grounding in trust, sympathy and kindness, they somehow blindly fight for a substitute. "Mine" thus illustrates their sandbox games including mud fight. Maybe with designer sand - the architecture and furnishings are spectacularly exclusive down to the last detail. You don't have to like that, but it is supposed to impress - and it does.

Still, mud is just mud... And it is disgusting to deal with.

The Jaebeol orbit traditionally is a man´s world. In this respect the KDrama "Mine" choses a unique and inspiring approach: Here concentrated, intelligent and courageous women's power is fighting for liberation from the golden cage. This is possible in South Korea in 2021. Also that one of the female protagonists is in love with a woman. Can women set themselves free from male dominated power structures and constraints? There are some truly beautiful, touching, powerful moments of sisterhood and women's power. Sometimes offensive, sometimes subtle.

If you like, "Mine" is also a contemporary social criticism, quietly hidden behind the curtain of an exclusive and alien world of feudal arrogance. The orbit of the Jaebeol may be far far away from the rest of the world, but with all the interpersonal and inner-psychic dynamics (actually quite ordinary and human) that are in focus here, it comes very close to the themes of 'normal' (South Korean) society - with its social constraints, its strict hierarchical structures and their prejudices that put chains on people of almost every social class. The audience is thus free to choose who from the Hyowon clan household they want to identify with. And whether they want to dare to break free, too, and take a different path (together with one or the other protagonist).


--------------------- SIDE NOTE: --- Jaebeol and their different topics among second and third generation heirs ---

The rise of the founding Jaebeol, like the growth of their companies, was shaped by strong patriarchal hands. Hardworking hands, too. However, this first generation patriarchs are slowly dying out... this being accompanied by creeping processes of change. The founding fathers knew where they came from. Plus, from the very first hour, they had long-standing, loyal relationships with their assistants, secretaries, drivers, foremen that had grown over time (even if they were characterized by dependency)... and over time they have built up a systematic network that takes care of their interests wherever they wish.

Their offspring however is already born "with the golden spoon in their mouth", spoiled by wealth and far away from the ordinary people who work for them and their living environment. These Jaebeol are increasingly preoccupied with their ego, family dynamics, scandals and inheritance disputes. They lack ´brothers in arms´, who shed their blood, sweat and tears - thus they lack someone they can trust. The principle of bribery may still work, yet the reins are now in several, increasingly fractious hands. By now many Jaebeol-Clans have already begun to dismantle their power structures by themselves. And if not, their past machinations are increasingly catching up.

"Mine" documents quite vividly how the Jaebeol families dismantle themselves... how the heirs identify with their (still young!) identity as Jaebeol as if they were feudal old noble blue blood... They haven't really had to prove themselves yet and by their arrogance are already failing in the second and third generation. Additionally, the youngest generation increasingly is no longer interested in the corporate empire, let alone their management...

In this respect "Mine" also represents a new variety of topics within the Jaebeol-Genre in KDramas for the 2020s. ´Competition´, ´cabal´ and ´revenge´ as leading subjects have already been processed back and forth since the early hour of KDrama. ´Justice´ was an increasing topic during the last decade. ´Breaking free´ as a Jaebeol-topic however so far is rather new and rare, yet it might increase in the future...
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Feeds your craving for chaebol drama and mess!

This show most definitely will not fail to intrigue it's viewers. I've already watched Sky Castle, The World Of The Married, and I'm waiting on Penthouse 3 to premiere, so you already have an idea of my taste in kdramas. I was waiting for another's drama like the ones mentioned above to come and my prayers were answered. This one is just as fascinating and with fleshed out characters to match. And a murder isn't a bad way to start off a show either. 


One thing I want to talk about is the overall feel of the show. It has an aura of mystery but one that affects how you view the characters and their actions. It's hard to articulate but it's like you know what's going on but at the same time you don't. Even if you think you grasp the characters and their motivations, there's this invisible fog that's clouding your judgement. That might've been purposeful on the writer's part but it only draws you in so you can find out more. 

Each family member has secrets of their own and a storyline to go with them. The character I found most intriguing is Seo-hyun. She is the composed member of the family yet she is concealing the most damaging secret! Kang Ja Gyeong's backstory is crazy but the journey to finding out what led her to going up her son was really good. Hisoo is very likeable, which is good for dramas like this. In a world full of sinister characters you need someone to root for. My favorite storyline is that of Suhyeok and Yoo Yeon. They were quite minor but I'm a sucker for forbidden love and I just really found their dynamic interesting.

I definitely recommend this if you're a fan of the previously mentioned shows or if you just want to satisfy your craving for backstabbing rich families and dangerous secrets. 9/10

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