I Understand There’s an Issue Here

Flex x Cop 2, Metroid, Attack of the Monster Women

Rare situation. Late last year, I became somewhat enamored of this actress Jung Eun-chae, right? That’s totally normal. Lots of people are like me. Beyond her striking appearance is an exciting talent, as she selects roles for their substance rather than billing in the credits. Admittedly, this is a double-edged sword, because while supporting roles tend to be the most interesting – especially in K-dramas – in practice, the dearth of leading roles means a lot of Jung Eun-chae material without a lot of Jung Eun-chae. To date, the best performance of hers I’ve seen is in the Bae Suzy drama Anna, in which she bares her fangs as a villainous socialite, but isn’t featured in every episode. The cumulative result is that she’s done just about everything, from cameos and guest spots to indie films and international productions, donning the right outfits for lawyers, judges, detectives, opera stars, middle managers, and even the prime minister. Surprisingly, no doctor yet, as far as I can tell. And while “detective” would catch my eye on that list, it’s in a supernatural show about demons, which is a bit of a no-fly zone for me personally (it’s bad enough Park Shin-hye is gonna make me sit through another season of The Judge from Hell).

Couldn’t get it done in one paragraph. Now this is blogging! It was eye-opening to learn that Jung Eun-chae wasn’t the first choice for her signature role, Moon Ok-gyeong in Jeongnyeon: The Star is Born. Initially, they sought Kim Hieora (coming off of a high-profile appearance in The Glory as a drug addict), which explains a lot of my question marks around the character’s endgame. Apparently, Ok-gyeong in the original webcomic is more “drifting and unrooted,” making the abrupt exit consistent with her behavior throughout. The director, Jung Ji-in, recently discussed the casting process during a talk at an event called Korea Forum with Jung Eun-chae and the writer Choi Hyo-bi, and noted how when Jung Eun-chae came in for a camera test dressed as the prince, all the female production staff swooned. I actually found the tension between Ok-gyeong as passionate heartthrob and suicidal junkie almost irreconcilable. While I admire the actress’s versatility, she is better at some things than others. Now, I’m still stuck on “detective,” and realize she’s yet to do an action-oriented role. Would she rise to the occasion?

We’ll find out next month, with the premiere of Flex x Cop 2 on August 7th, whose trailer teases Jung Eun-chae in just about every kind of police outfit, including tactical gear (not to mention the taekwondo dobok, slamming the male lead Ahn Bo-Hyun onto the mat). She’s jumping out of explosions and whacking with the baton. It’s all very “fainting couch” stuff for silly people like me. I’ve seen similar reactions among fellow Jung Eun-chae enthusiasts, but far more prevalent, under the trailer on YouTube and on every Instagram or Reddit post are comments like: “I’m looking forward to it, but it’s such a shame that they couldn’t get the original FL [female lead] to return” and “So sad park ji hyun could be a part of s2” and “I think everyone agrees. they should’ve waited so the FL could return…” As you can see, “Flex x Cop 2” has a conspicuous “2” in it, and indeed Jung Eun-chae is coming in as a replacement. It’s not like Jeongnyeon, though, as we never saw a second of footage of Kim Hieora as Ok-gyeong. Fans of Flex x Cop had an entire season with the previous actress, Park Ji-hyun.

So, we have a miniscule clash of cultures going on here. On one side, the kind of K-drama viewers who pine hopelessly for a second season of a show they enjoyed (which is every K-drama viewer) and consequently expect some continuity with the original season, and on the other side, those who think Jung Eun-chae is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Believe me, I sympathize with the aggrieved. When I learned that the second season of Hello, My Twenties! recast the lead (and dropped the best character), I couldn’t bring myself to watch it, even though it looks like they brought in a really tall girl! I don’t begrudge anyone their feelings about the change, so long as it’s properly directed: into the air. It’s not the fault of the production, since it seems like Park Ji-hyun didn’t want to return, and it’s not the fault of Park Ji-hyun, since that’s totally reasonable. And obviously, though it needs not be said – to anyone who isn’t a netizen – it isn’t Jung Eun-chae’s fault. Thankfully, it looks like nobody was stupid or brave enough to comment negatively on Jung Eun-chae’s first Instagram post about the show. Still, I worry, though I’m sure she knows what she’s getting herself into.

This is hardly Asian-related news anymore, but it’s possible that the existence of a new Metroid game leaked, courtesy of Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security, and it may or may not be called “Metroid Ravenous.” Now, for fans of Metroid – or wiki-fans like me – this is a very exciting title. See, “Metroid” kind of refers to three things: a portmanteau description of the gameplay and aesthetic combining the words “metro,” like subway, and “android,” the in-universe creature that serves as the central plot object, and of course, the protagonist herself. Despite bearing the totally rad name Samus Aran, this is one of those cases where the title and character name are sometimes confused. But it’s just like Halo or Metal Gear, where the game is named after the thing the player is meant to destroy in the end. And like those two examples, the story of Metroid eventually grew past that setup, as one might expect after 40 years this year.

In 2017, the first “real” Metroid game in seven years was announced and released, entitled Metroid: Samus Returns. Developed by Spanish studio MercurySteam, it was a remake of Metroid II: Return of Samus. I thought this was the perfect opportunity to pivot away from the word “Metroid,” and start using “Samus,” but MercurySteam had a better idea. Their next Metroid game, Metroid Dread, would instead expand the definition of “Metroid.” Don’t laugh, but according to the lore, “Metroid” translates from Chozo (bird aliens) as “Ultimate Warrior.” You’re laughing because the Metroid is a floating jellyfish monster, and while certainly dangerous – even ultimately so – it doesn’t exactly exhibit the qualities of a “warrior.” The Metroid isn’t holding a weapon or parrying attacks, though it does suck out the life energy of its victims. That aside, Dread follows up on the titular plot element in Metroid Fusion, when Samus was infused with Metroid DNA to combat an infection by the X Parasite, the Metroids’ natural prey. Now she can absorb the X for energy.

Dread takes it a step further, with Samus discovering she can absorb the life energy of any creature, making her, for all intents and purposes, a Metroid. Genius! And this relates to something that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately, to the point of considering starting a new blog. As mentioned before, my longtime interest in action heroines was never fully matched by the field of actual action heroines out there, and so I gradually drifted to the horror genre, with rape-and-revenge as an uncomfortable intermediary. It was inevitable, with sci-fi/horror like Alien and The Thing as gateways, not to mention David Cronenberg, but I’ve gone all in on slashers despite my younger self never being able to handle the violence against women. Nowadays, I love Jason and Pennywise, but I’m always on the lookout for their female equivalents. I pretty much liked all of Ti West’s X trilogy, with Pearl the standout. Audition, of course, is an old favorite. But as I found with Prey, “woman versus monster” is great, but I’d also love to see “woman as monster.” If “Ravenous” is any indication, that’s where Samus is headed – if she’s not there already.

The blog is tentatively titled “Attack of the Monster Woman,” and it’ll be about monster women, surprisingly enough inspired by a bit of research into Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades. She’s a good example of a character who’s both physically monstrous as well as violent or malicious, but I’d be taking a look at characters who express either. Like, Samus becomes physically monstrous but isn’t malicious, and Pearl and Asami are malicious but quite people-like. This is an idea I come back to every now and again, but you’ll notice please that posts on this very site have been infrequent lately. I’ve got a few buns in the oven, and only time will tell which bun will one day bear fruit, if any. There’s also the concern that a blog about monster women will be considered strange, or at least too strange. But I’m getting the sense that the world is ready for a celebration of these characters, from the Gorgons of Greek mythology up through the countless spider ladies (so, so many spider ladies) and even the precious few slashers. We shall see if it’s true or if I just end up looking foolish.