Another controversy, netizens’ criticize Jung Hae-in and Jisoo’s “Snowdrop” once again due to this scene

JTBC drama “Snowdrop,” which has been embroiled in controversy over beautifying the National Security Agency, has been criticized due to a scene in episode 4.  

In the fourth episode of “Snowdrop”, which aired on Dec 25th, the male protagonist Lim Su-ho (Jung Hae-in) was to the confession room of the Catholic Church by professor Han Yi-seop of Hankook University to convince him to take his side by pretending to be his son. 

However, netizens pointed out on the online community theqoo shortly after the broadcast, “It is inappropriate to use the cathedral as a meeting place for spies.” 

Since the 1970s, Myeongdong Cathedral, as the Holy Land of the democratization movements, has served as a hideout for college student sit-ins during the June Uprising, including the March 1 Democratic Relief Declaration in 1976, Cardinal Kim Soo-hwan’s 1971 Christmas Mass Lecture, the May 18th anniversary of Park Jong-cheol’s death.

Netizens who watched episode 4 of “Snowdrop” has reacted,“They let spies into a place connected with the democratic movements,” “Amazing, I have nothing more to say,” “Considering the role of Catholicism, we shouldn’t make such distortion,” “We have to protest at the parish level,” “From the name of the female lead to the cathedral…”, “Why they gotta use the cathedral?”

On the other hand, there were other opinions that defended the drama’s setting, saying, “It’s common in other movies and dramas for the cathedral to be used as a meeting place”, “It’s not even Myeongdong Cathedral. Let’s not diss ‘Snowdrop’ reluctantly” and “It’s just a scene where Jung Hae-in is threatening someone.”

In addition, regarding the beautification of the National Security Agency on this day, the dormitory superintendent Pi Seung-hee (Yoon Se-ah) told Young-ro (Jisoo) and Gye Boon-ok (Kim Hye-yoon), “You’re in trouble for hiding spies. They’re the ones who make the spies yet catch them.” In fact, it was stated that the National Security Agency had suppressed civilians by accusing them of being spies under the pretext of investigating them.

Set in Seoul 1987, “Snowdrop” tells the love story of Im Su-ho, a prestigious university student who suddenly jumps into the dormitory of a women’s university wounded, and female college student Young-ro, who hides and takes care of Su-ho amidst the serious surveillance and crisis. The drama completed its filming last July.

However, after its synopsis was leaked, “Snowdrop” was embroiled in controversy over whether “Young-cho”, which is Jisoo’s role “Young-ro” in the original work, might have been inspired by Chun Young-cho, who resisted Park Chung-hee’s regime in the 1970s.

Regarding this, JTBC explained, “The motive behind Snowdrop’s background and major events is the presidential political situation amidst a military regime. Against this backdrop, the drama tells a fictional story of a government engaging with the North Korean regime to maintain its power. Many people have recently expressed concerns about ‘history distortion’ and ‘disparaging the democratic movement’. However, most of the misunderstandings will be resolved when more developments of the drama are revealed in the future.”