Published : Dec. 23, 2015 - 17:28
One of the hit television programs this year is “Reply 1988,” a drama series set in the 1980s that revolves around neighbors and friends living in an old residential area in Seoul.
A prequel to “Reply 1994,” “Reply 1988” is outperforming the series that took the country by storm two years ago, contrary to the producer’s prediction that it would “bomb.” Perhaps the producer was expressing great confidence when he said it would fail on a gargantuan scale.
More popularly called “Eungpal,” reflecting Koreans’ penchant for abbreviating everything, the drama has made the 1980s suddenly hip. “Eungpal” enjoys a broad following: Its fans include both the young people for whom this is an indirect introduction to the 1980s, and older people who lived through that turbulent decade.
Through “Eungpal,” young people are discovering the sentimental ballads and the first wave of dance music from the 1980s for the first time, while the older generation hums along to the familiar tunes. The sets and props of the drama have been carefully curated, as it were, to accurately reflect the lifestyle of the 1980s. For the young, the 1980s retro style is cool because it is “fresh” to them. For those in their 40s and 50s who were teenagers or young adults at the time, the characters’ hairstyles, clothing and set props bring back a flood of associated memories. For some of us, those baggy jeans and hairspray-stiffened fountain hairdos are something we would rather not be reminded of.
The so-called “Eungpal syndrome” has been a boon for businesses always on the lookout for the latest trend. Ironically, snacks from those days have become the new hit products and ’80s retro fashion is back in full swing. The “Eungpal syndrome,” along with a number of variety shows that featured songs and singers from the bygone days, have led to the resurrection of long-forgotten singers and groups, including Turbo from the ’90s, which earlier this week released a new album in more than a decade.
Why are we captivated by “Eungpal” which relies heavily on nostalgia-evoking props and paraphernalia for its popularity? Why do we say, “Those were the good old days” as we sit in front of the TV or whatever mobile device we happen to watch it on? Were they really the good days?
Looking through the prism of time, everything is rosier. The lapse of time dulls the pain, softens the memories so that when we reminisce on the past, we tend to think those were the “good ol’ days.” This illusion is heightened when the present time is difficult.
This seems to be the case with the “Eungpal syndrome” and our collective nostalgia for the 1980s and the past in general. As we grapple with youth unemployment, a low birthrate, an aging society, slow economic growth and increasing divisions in society, the past somehow seems to have been better.
The recent news of a young girl who was abused by her father without the neighbors having any inkling of what went on in that household, or even that there was a young girl living in the house, reminded us of how isolated and alienated from each other we have become. The news of the death of an unemployed speech therapist in her 20s whose body was found more than two weeks later spoke volumes about the harsh realities of living in Korea in 2015.
“Eungpal” offers us some solace just when we feel as if we were trapped living in a never-ending rat race. Watching the neighbors in “Eungpal” interact, ready to help each other in times of trouble, the close-knit families standing by each other no matter what, and the strong bond among friends, our hearts are warmed. Then we let out a sigh and wonder what has become of us.
“Eungpal” panders to our escapism, for what it offers is fantasy, fantasy of the past warped by time. Truth be told, the 1980s were rife with problems, too. Memories of streets filled with teargas, deaths of student activists, swarms of riot police and their caged buses still haunt many of us. The future looked bleak, uncertain.
Fast forward to today and the future still looks bleak, uncertain. Yet, we should not indulge in nostalgia for too long, waxing sentimental about the “good ol’ days.” They appear to have been good days because we worked hard to meet the challenges posed by those times. It is time that we broke free from the spell of “Eungpal” and confront the realities of 2015 head-on.
By Kim Hoo-ran
Kim Hoo-ran is the lifestyle desk editor at The Korea Herald. She can be reached at khooran@heraldcorp.com. — Ed.