Currently Watching: Fiery Priest
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Hey :) I'm back with my 2nd article!
I'm trying this new random format because I got inspired as I was explaining some particular jokes of this drama to some online friends and viewers! Then, I thought it'd be nice to share them with the MDL community as well LOL. I hope you get to learn something new through this.
So, when I first picked up Pegasus Market, it was mostly because of its cast. Everyone looked familiar, but at the same time, they are mostly underrated actors since they usually play supporting characters or scene stealers. I was thrilled and just jumped right into it, knowing nothing about it haha.
I'll admit the first episode left me... surprised and disappointed? I didn't understand why these amazing actors picked such a strange comical project. Don't get me wrong, I definitely appreciate it a whole lot now, but it was just totally shocking and unexpected, at first. I was so afraid the humour code of the drama just wouldn't fit with mine. I thought: "Alright, this is only the first episode. Let's give it another go before judging it too soon," and here I am, all caught up with the current episodes :P
While I was watching, I noticed that there was just so much going on! It was filled with a wonderful amount of parodies, some more obvious than others. Which is why I decided to write this article since I wanted to explain and honour a few of them. I mean where else could I share my random knowledge about Korean culture other than on MDL right? The drama is so underrated right now, so I'll just make a brief summary in case you're as clueless as I was when I started it.
 Jung Bok Dong by Kim Byung Chul |  Moon Seok Gu by Lee Dong Hwi |
 Kwon Young Gu by Park Ho San |  Jo Mi Ran by Jung Hye Sung |  Kim Dae Ma by Lee Soon Jae |
Jung Bok Dong (played by Kim Byung Chul) gets unreasonably transferred from the remarkable DM company to the place most of the employees consider the ''exile'', you've guessed it the Pegasus Market. That's where we get introduced to Moon Seok Gu (Lee Dong Hwi), the manager of this very sad looking market. He's currently trying his best to revive the place but here comes Jung Bok Dong with revenge on his mind, coming as the new president of the place. What will ensue when these two men with completely opposite goals meet? Will this market get through this rough path? Watch to find out. :)
Also, the story is based on a webtoon by Kim Kyu Sam, under the same title.
This drama is full of hilarious moments but also really heartwarming ones. It's like an unimaginable joke that goes on and on, but it has layers to it + relatable moments are thrown in there. I've never seen a concept quite like this, and I'm pleasantly surprised to be on this ''Pegasus'' ride... alright I tried >.<
Obviously what will follow is going to spoil a few jokes/parodies, so make sure to catch up with the latest episodes before reading (by the time I'm writing this, ep. 9 is the most recent)!
So here are the 3 main categories of Easter eggs!
Actor Woo Hyun plays a cameo as :
Kim Chi Ah... is this self-explanatory enough? That's one of the first scenes you get as the intro to the show. This character is actually a political candidate, but it's a little hard to take him seriously with such a name ^^' When I noticed his name, that's when I started wondering if all the characters' name had a special meaning to them.
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Kwon Young Gu is the ''official'' antagonist of the story as he tries to ruin Jung Bok Dong, his rival in the DM company. It actually took me a while before I noticed how familiar this name was. If some of you watch Korean variety shows, maybe you've already heard it mentioned in the past.
Young Gu is the name of a character quite renown among the Korean audience for his stupidity, which creates some great situations for slapstick comedy (source 1 & 2). He's been portrayed multiple times in TV shows and movies, mostly popular in the 90s.
Now, that sure doesn't make our villain very threatening if he shares his name with such an iconic figure of comedy, right?
(Commercials and products)
*Click on the images to be redirected to their respective videos.*
Alright so this scene comes from episode 6, and the plot was definitely heading towards a great set up for parodies about Korean advertisements. So, they did just that! These were reenactments to some viral commercials, and I figured it'd be even more hilarious if you'd get to see the source material. That's why I've listed them down below (in order of appearance):
Green Plum Juice by singer Jo Sung Mo.
Try (?) Cf with veteran actor Lee Deok Hwa, possibly an underwear advertisement based on some Korean comments...
Vega Iron a mobile phone ad starring Lee Byung Hun.
As you might've noticed, these ads are quite terribly cringey, cheesy, overdramatic and awkward. However, these are the same factors that made them so well known and hilarious until this day. The last parody reserved for the great finale of the episode involving Jung Bok Dong had to be a different kind of epic. They naturally chose something cool involving a bit of ''stunt'' as the highlight that I hereby present:
A Reebok ad starring actor Lee Jong Won.
Special Mention: This one was also replicated in Reply 1988 by actor Go Kyung Pyo and resulted by his character, Sun Woo, getting injured.
Ramyuns:
In episode 7, Jung Bok Dong creates a new design for ramyun packages and Moon Seok Gu finds them outrageous, here's why:
The first ramyun package was clearly related to a song because the Bbaya tribe was covering it as Seok Gu was eating. The song in question is called:
To Mother by G.O.D.
The lyrics tell the story of a poor household consisting of a hard-working mother and her son. The first verses are about the son's only pleasure, eating ramyuns from time to time. But with time he eventually gets sick of them, that's when he demands better food from his mother. She eventually complies to his request and uses their emergency fund for it. She buys him jjajangmyun, aka Korean black noodles, which is considered a luxury, knowing their financial situation. As the son is happily eating, he notices that his mother isn't, so he naturally asks her why. That's when she says: "I don't like jjajangmyun." He doesn't think much of it until he grows older and realizes that his mother was sacrificing a lot for this simple meal. Hence, the reason behind the name of the new ramyun. This could have been a foreshadowing to Seok Gu's situation with his own mother, shown by the end of episode eight. :( This one is sad but acceptable, so Seok Gu just agrees to it.
As for the second package, they took the name directly from the main soundtrack of Iris called; Like Being Hit By a Bullet performed by singer Baek Ji Young. Then, they proceeded to replace ''Bullet'' with the word ''Mulberry'', I'm sure most of you must be wondering how this fruit is related to the ramyun.
Now let me break it down for you. Mulberries in Korea are often used to make fruit wine, one of them called Bokbunja-ju. Its properties include enhancing the male sexual stamina... If you combine what you've just learned and associated it to the picture used for the ad (above), I think that says a lot. (haha) On top of that, there are also a few K-movies with Mulberry as the main title, obviously with sexual content.
So, that's mainly why Seok Gu is jumping up and down to point out how explicit and provocative this ramyun package is to Jung Bok Dong (his idea). He asks around for other employees' opinions expecting them to dissuade the president with him but instead they all side with Bok Dong and ignore the scandalous aspect of it all. They claim that his inspiration comes from Na Do Hyang's novel of the same name, which recounts a sad story of ''a woman who prostitutes herself to villagers in order to support herself'' and explores the theme of poverty from the past. This sure makes Seok Gu look like a fool and a pervert for thinking of it differently LOL.
Pegasus Market uses very refreshing ways to pay tribute to some iconic movies and dramas. Sometimes, it is outright mentioned, but other times you'll only get a visual cue or a musical cue (through soundtracks.) So, I'll only point out a few of them, the ones I thought were interestingly done.
Even though this parody was done in the same episode and scene involving ads (#2 above, 2:50 in the video), it was actually taken from Holiday (movie) with veteran actor Choi Min Soo. In the original movie scene, we see him with a ''golden tooth'', but here they used seaweed instead :P The attention to the smallest details has to be applauded!
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One of the characters called Gab, played by actor Lee Gyu Hun, is always sporting a strange fur neck collar. I didn't realize at first, why they chose such a tacky item to represent him, and it was never addressed. It's only a few episodes in that I remembered Gu Jun Pyo was also wearing it in Boys Over Flowers. Even during his childhood flashback scene, he was seen wearing that neck collar! After a little reflection, I'm tempted to say that his whole character is actually mocking Gu Jun Pyo's in some aspects. He's the heir to one of the biggest company in South Korea but very incompetent and undeserving of his current status, a typical spoiled brat. Hmm, this sounds like a lot of the chaebol characters portrayed in K-dramas though.
*Click on the image to be redirected to the original video*
Child actress Kim Gyu Ri has previously portrayed actress Lee Ji Eun aka IU in two productions, one of them being My Ahjussi. The fact that she participated in the parody of the movie Ahjussi is definitely a fun turn of events. ;) As I was watching this scene unfold, I wasn't entirely convinced that it was a parody until she says: ''Ahjussi!'' and just like a cue, the highlight of the main OST song plays. It still remains as one of my favourite songs until this day, so it didn't take me too long to understand this one haha!
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Well, I think I've done a good roundup of most of the jokes in the drama haha. Thanks for reading until the end~ Make sure to give this genius drama a shot.
Until next time!
*All sources and credits were cited and linked accordingly*
