Tomorrow | K-Drama Series on Netflix
Grim reapers who prevent suicides?
Don’t look at me! It was the Jade Emperor’s idea. Hell was getting overcrowded.
“Tomorrow” has a unique and interesting storyline.
If I were handing out ratings just for originality, this Korean drama series would get 10 out of 10 stars. The Jade Emperor (in Chinese mythology, a deity considered to be the ruler of heaven) identifies a problem and comes up with a solution. By the way … in myth, the Jade Emperor is a man, but in this series, the Jade Emperor is a woman (played by Kim Hae-sook) who looks like she could be your grandmother until she dresses up in her royal robe. Then she looks like what you might imagine a ruler in the divine realm to look like.
- What’s the problem? Hell is becoming overcrowded because so many people who have committed suicide are ending up there.
- What’s the solution? Stop people from committing suicide! A grim reaper is supposed to escort souls to the afterlife. But the Jade Emperor creates the Risk Management Team and assigns grim reapers the job of Suicide Prevention.
The Risk Management Team
Initially, the RM Team is comprised of two grim reapers: Koo Ryeon (played by Kim Hee-Seon) and Im Ryoog-Gu (played by Yun Ji-On). They came to save a homeless man from committing suicide. But when they arrive, a young man named Choi Jun-Woong (played by Rowoon) is already there. He tries to stop the man but they both go over the bridge together. When he wakes up in the hospital: his body is in a coma but his spirit is alive. His interference with the RM team’s rescue effort results in him being half in the Afterlife and half in the Land of the Living. The Jade Emperor admits the Team is at fault and offers a solution. He will work as a “temporary” Grim Reaper. After 6 months, he will wake up from the coma and get hired for his dream job. Choi Jun-Woong accepts the offer.
Stylishly Dressed Grim Reapers
When you hear the words grim reaper it conjures up an image in your mind. A creature that sort of looks human, wearing a hooded black robe, and carrying a sickle. However, in Tomorrow the grim reapers could be models on a runway in a fashion show. They wear the latest fashion and they are all so good-looking!
Lee Soo Hyuk is the reason I wanted to watch Tomorrow. He was the evil vampire in “The Scholar Who Walks the Night”. He was evil, but he dressed so stylishly and his walk was super cool!! When I watched a preview of Tomorrow, there he was, playing Park Joong Gil, and he had that same swagger. He dressed way better than all of the other grim reapers. If he were a mile away and you only saw his silhouette, you would know it was him. You would recognize his walk. Nobody walks like this guy!
He is the head of the Grim Reapers Management Team. Not sure about their relationship but he and Koo Ryeon, the head of the RM Team, know each other from the Land of the Living. During various episodes, there are flashbacks of events in their lives when they lived during the Joseon Era.
The Best Episode
Tomorrow has 16 episodes. Speaking candidly, I thought the episode about the dog wanting to commit suicide was a bit too much. However, you have to give the writers extra points for originality.
But let’s say you did not have time to watch the entire series and you could only watch one episode. If that’s the case, I suggest you watch Episode 6. The title is “A Soul Becomes a Star”. By the end of that episode, I was choking back the tears. When you watch it, keep a box of tissues nearby.
FINAL REMARKS
Park Joong Gil thinks the Risk Management Team should be eliminated. He sees no reason to try to save people who “choose death so easily”. The Jade Emperor corrects his erroneous, unempathetic, and unsympathetic point of view by telling him plainly: “Nobody chooses death easily.”
This series addresses a sensitive topic like suicide and the myriad of issues that lead a person to lose all hope and want to choose death over life. Some viewers might find it hard to watch. Others might find it helpful. I do agree with the Jade Emperor. Any person who decided to commit suicide did not make that decision “easily”.
Tomorrow had mixed reviews. Because it was streamed on Netflix, it was viewed by a global audience. According to kpopmamp.com, in July 2022, it ranked as the 8th most popular TV show on Netflix worldwide. Other than for script originality, it was difficult for me to give this show an overall rating. But I do feel that Episode 6, “A Soul Becomes a Star”, was worthy of 10 out of 10 stars. Based on a webtoon.
Thanks for reading.
Asia, N. (2022, March 17). Tomorrow | Official Trailer | Netflix [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsNRPkOV_Mo&feature=youtu.be
Thanks for reading.