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| Image of the drama’s promotional poster was taken from the drama’s official website (JTBC) and reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
This is the first post in a two-part series for the International Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31) looking at recent K-dramas that incorporated transgender characters in positive ways.
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| Lee Joo-young plays Ma Hyeon-yi in Itaewon Class. Photo from the drama’s official photo gallery (JTBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
Itaewon Class (이태원 클라쓰, JTBC, 2020) has the premise of a revenge drama, but at its heart it is a story about a group of misfits who find a sense of belonging at the restaurant where they work. They give their all so that DanBam thrives as a business, and the community they’ve built also helps them thrive as individuals. At one point in the drama, the restaurant’s chef, Ma Hyeon-yi, is competing on a television cooking contest, with prize money on the line that the business desperately needs. In order to sabotage her popularity and reduce her chances of winning, a competitor leaks to the media the fact that Hyeon-yi is a transwoman, so when she shows up for filming, she finds the studio abuzz with rumours about her.
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| The DanBam gang learn that Hyeon-yi’s trans status has been maliciously revealed. Photo from the drama's official photo gallery (JTBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
The business’ owner Park Sae-ro-yi could have stepped in and taken control of the situation, and it could have been a thrilling moment to see him put the mean-spirited people in their place, but the writers made a different choice here, and a wise one. They recognized that while Sae-ro-yi is the drama’s lead character and Hyeon-yi just a side character, she is the heroine of her own story, including her coming-out story.
Throughout the drama, Sae-ro-yi’s gift was to create a supportive environment where the members of the group could succeed based on their skills, without judgement about their history or identity–skills that he also helped them develop, even as he was developing his own skills. And so, here he stays on the sidelines, trusting that Hyeon-yi can handle the situation in whatever way she chooses, but ready to give her an assist if she needs it. She chooses to put an end to the rumours by proudly claiming her identity as a transwoman and as the chef to beat in the competition, a victory made possible because of the confidence and skill we have seen her develop with the DanBam gang, and which she continues to develop through the rest of the episodes. Hyeon-yi’s storyline is an effective way to underline the characteristics that make Park Sae-ro-yi the drama’s hero while giving a trans character a chance to shine.
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| Hyeon-yi refuses to be ashamed and is determined to win the competition. Photo from the drama's official photo gallery (JTBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
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