K-melodrama

Sheetal

K-dramas are known for focusing on a unique subject and weaving a love story or a thriller around it. ‘Blood Free’ is no different. Though only two episodes are streaming on Disney+Hotstar, these depict an intriguing thriller that should entice you to the sci-fi series.

In the opening shot itself, a bio-engineering company, Blood Free (BF), is introduced, with its CEO Yun Ja-yu (Han Hyo-joo) giving a presentation announcing a new launch and future plans. The presentation shows a herd of cows grazing in a field that suddenly transforms into the harsh environment of a slaughter house through virtual reality. And then BF presents its product — genetically-engineered meat that isn’t made from slaughtering animals, shedding their blood.

Yun, who has monopolised this technology, severely impacting her rivals in the meat business, announces plans to bring cultured sea meat and cultured plant-based food in the market in the next six months. This earns her a lot of haters, from the common man to Korean drug cartels, hackers, her own colleagues and even farmers. The threats bring Ju Ji-hoon as Woo Chae-woon into the picture. He is an ex-soldier and now a private bodyguard, whom Yun hires but is not sure can fully trust.

The series has various sub-plots, for instance, a terrorist attack in the past that connects the lead pair and other supporting characters to each other. However, it is the bio-engineering company that lies at the heart of everything.

The actors play their part well, but come across as individual players rather than a team. In about two hours, Yun’s newly-appointed driver brings out more emotion and humour than the lead characters. Perhaps, director Park Chul-hwan is not giving away much to retain the mystery.

Overall, it is a corporate story overlapping political interests, with hints of mystery, whodunnit (Woo Chae-woon has his own agenda to find a terrorist who killed his fellow soldiers and handicapped a former President) and the involvement of science and technology. The web series blends many genres and makes for an interesting binge.

It’s a series that has its roots in the future of earthlings and the only hope is that the actors manage to turn up the melodrama in the coming episodes — that Korean shows are known for.