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Pachinko (TV series)

Pachinko is an American drama television series created by Soo Hugh based on the 2017 novel by Min Jin Lee. The series is directed by Kogonada and Justin Chon, and the first season was released on Apple TV+ on March 25, 2022. It received critical acclaim, particularly for its cinematography, writing, and the performances of the cast. The second season is scheduled to be released on August 23, 2024.

Synopsis

Pachinko follows four generations of a Korean family, starting from 1915 to 1989. In 1931, Sunja leaves her family in Korea under Japanese rule, to move to the Koreatown of Osaka, Japan, and start a new life there. The series details the living conditions and discrimination of Korean immigrants in Japanese society.

Cast

Main

Youn Yuh-jung as Kim Sunja, the main character of Pachinko. She is a Korean woman from Yeongdo-gu, Busan, who fights for a better life in a Korea dominated by the Japanese.
- Kim Min-ha as young adult Sunja
- Yu-na as childhood Sunja
Soji Arai as Baek Mozasu (whose Japanese name is Bando Mozasu), a wealthy businessman who owns several pachinko parlors. He is Sunja's second son (the first and only child fathered by Isak) and Noa's half-brother.
- Carter Jeong and Koren Lee as baby Mozasu
Jin Ha as Solomon Baek, the son of Baek Mozasu and grandson of Sunja. Educated at English-speaking schools and Yale University, he has always socialized with Americans and Westerners.
- Yoon Kyung-ho as teenage Solomon
Han Jun-woo as Baek Yoseb, Isak's second older brother who lives in Osaka, Japan. He is Kyunghee's husband and Sunja's brother-in-law.
Jeong In-ji as Yangjin, Sunja's mother, who runs a boardinghouse in Yeongdo.
Jung Eun-chae as Kyunghee (whose Japanese name is Bando Kimiko), Yoseb's wife and Sunja's sister-in-law. She quickly becomes a best-friend figure for Sunja after they first meet in Japan.
- Felice Choi as older Kyunghee
Lee Min-ho as Koh Hansu, a Zainichi Korean man who lives in Osaka, Japan. He is introduced as a merchant and fish broker who regularly visits Busan, South Korea. He is Noa's father.
Kaho Minami as Etsuko, Hana's mother and Mozasu's girlfriend.
Noh Sang-hyun as Baek Isak, a Protestant minister from Pyongyang, Korea. He marries Sunja despite his oscillating health condition to save her honour by giving her his surname. He is Yoseb's younger brother, Noa's legal father and Mozasu's father.
Anna Sawai as Naomi, Solomon's co-worker at the Tokyo branch. Graduated from Harvard Business School.
Jimmi Simpson as Tom Andrews, Solomon's superior at the Tokyo branch.

Recurring

Louis Ozawa as Mamoru Yoshii, a client of Shiffley's.
Takahiro Inoue as Arimoto, Solomon's co-worker at the Tokyo branch.
Park Hye-jin as Han Geum-ja.
Yoshio Maki as Katsu Abe, a client of Shiffley's.
Martin Martinez as Angelo, Mozasu's employee.
Ryotaro Sugimoto as Tetsuya, Solomon's classmate at International School.
- Dakatade Shoumin as teenage Tetsuya
Mari Yamamoto as Hana, Etsuko's daughter and Solomon's ex-girlfriend.
- Jung Ye-bin as teenage Hana
Yoriko Haraguchi as Hansu's Japanese wife.
Hiro Kanagawa as Mr. Goto, Mozasu's friend.
Jeong So-ri as Jiyun, a rich Korean girl.
Yeon Ye-ji as Shin Bokhee, Donghee's older sister, who works at Kim's boardinghouse.
- Kim Young-ok as older Bokhee
Kim Bo-min as Shin Donghee, Bokhee's younger sister, who works at Kim's boardinghouse.
Kim Dha-sol as Sung Chung, one of the Chung brothers who lived in Kim's boardinghouse.
Ku Sung-hwan as Fatso Chung, one of the Chung brothers who lived in Kim's boardinghouse.
Park Min-i as Gombo Chung, one of the Chung brothers who lived in Kim's boardinghouse.

Guest

Lee Dae-ho as Kim Hoonie, Sunja's father
Jeon So-hyun as a mudang, a female shaman
Leo Joo as Song Byung-ho, a fisherman who lived in Kim's boardinghouse
Lee Ji-hye as a Korean singer.
Hiromitsu Takeda as Totoyama Haruki, Mozasu's best friend
Rome Kanda as a Japanese doctor
Jung Woong-in as Koh Jong-yul, Hansu's father
Takashi Yamaguchi as Ryoichi, Koh's employer
Kerry Knuppe as Mrs. Holmes, Andrew's mother
Jimmy Bennett as Andrew Holmes, Hansu's tutoring student
Bob Frazer as Mr. Holmes, Andrew's father, an American businessman
Dai Hasegawa as Ryoichi's son
Lee Hyun-ri as Kiyo, Jong-yul's girlfriend
Hideo Kimura as Mr. Shimamura, Yoseb's boss
Park Jae-jun as Baek Noa, Sunja's first son and Hansu's biological son

Episodes

Season 1 (2022)

Season 2

The eight episodes of season 2 are written by Soo Hugh, Soo Hugh & Christina Yoon and Melissa Park, Melissa Park, Ethan Kuperberg and Soo Hugh, David Mitchell, Karen Chee and Chang-rae Lee, Haruna Lee and Soo Hugh, and Chang-rae Lee, respectively.

Production

In August 2018, Apple Inc. obtained the rights to the series, which was given a series order in April 2019. The reports also included that Soo Hugh would act as showrunner, writer, and executive producer for the series. The production company, Media Res, would also produce alongside Hugh. In October 2020, Lee Min-ho, Jin Ha, Anna Sawai, Minha Kim, Soji Arai, and Kaho Minami were announced to star, with South Korean filmmaker Kogonada and Justin Chon set to executive-produce and direct four episodes each. Soo Hugh said it took six to seven months of worldwide search to cast the main actors and that she had asked all her actors to audition for their roles. Filming was set to commence on October 26, 2020, in South Korea, Japan, and North America. Lee Min-ho said he had finished filming in Busan, South Korea, in December 2020 and that he was preparing to film in Canada. Filming in Vancouver was scheduled to take place between February 6 and April 9, 2021.

The show's opening theme song is "Let's Live for Today" by The Grass Roots. Hugh said she originally thought about selecting "Out of Time" by The Rolling Stones but they were unable to secure the rights to that song. The title sequence was shot several times with different songs until "Let's Live for Today" was added during post-production.

On April 29, 2022, Apple renewed the series for a second season. Filming was scheduled to take place in Toronto from January 9 to March 27, 2023, and in Japan from March 27 to June 16, 2023. Leanne Welham was to direct four episodes of the second season.

Release

The first season, consisting of 8 episodes, was produced in three languages (Korean, Japanese, and English). It premiered on March 25, 2022, on Apple TV+ with 3 episodes. One episode was released every Friday until April 29, 2022. The second season is set to premiere on August 23, 2024.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 97% based on 62 critic reviews, with an average rating of 9.1/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Intricate yet intimate, Pachinko is a sweeping epic that captures the arc of history as well as the enduring bonds of family." On Metacritic, it has a score of 87 out of 100 based on 29 critics.

The standalone "Episode 7" starring Lee Min-ho and directed by Kogonada is listed as one of the best TV episodes of 2022 by The New York Times, Rolling Stone and Collider.