ANN/THE KOREA HERALD – Facing intense scrutiny over the intricate storyline and complex structure of the Netflix original series Goodbye Earth, Director Kim Jin-min expressed that he would deem the project a triumph if it compelled viewers to contemplate their actions when confronted with impending doom.
Adapted from the renowned Japanese fantasy novel Shumatsu no Furu, the 12-episode science fiction series follows the journey of South Koreans informed of an imminent meteorite strike set to obliterate their nation and its neighbouring territories within 200 days.
Since its release on April 26, the series has been under fire from audiences for its complex and slow development.
Addressing the criticisms, Kim said the backdrop of the series may have confused the viewers who are accustomed to the usual settings found in apocalypse-themed narratives.
“The novel speaks of the destruction of Earth,” said Kim during an interview recently. “In the series, we decided to set up a situation where the meteorite would destroy the Korean Peninsula and the region around Japan.
“Therefore, the setting was quite different from typical backdrops found in dystopian narratives,” he said.
“If such an event occurs, there will be people who manage to escape Korea and people who cannot. And (when discussing the story of people who can’t escape Korea,) we were given two options – to either explore the story of people who riot (in Korea) or the story of people who try to spend the remaining time in their own way. I chose to discuss the latter,” he said.
“I think such a choice may have led the viewers to feel like fish out of water, as the viewers are usually expecting dystopian genre works to discuss the possibility of survival during an apocalypse,” said Kim.
Kim added the decision to combine the separate stories told in the original novel may have added to the confusion.
“The original novel adopts an omnibus format, but in the series, we opted to interweave and blend the separate stories of the characters, resulting in a situation where the narrative could have appeared complex to the viewers,” he added.
Kim said he would consider his work a success if he could have the audience pose just one question after watching the series: What would they do if an apocalypse were to take place?
“Also, if someone could say after watching this drama, ‘Out of those characters, that one is the most similar to me’, I think the message I intended to convey through this work was delivered as I had hoped,” added Kim.
