If you're Asian, they want to know what you think of beef, I liked it

[theking]

I finished the 10 episodes and enjoyed it  :

If You're Asian, I Want To Know What You Think About Netflix's "Beef" — I'll Go First



Unless you've been driven off the road and stranded in the desert, you've probably seen A24's latest series Beef. Netflix dropped the 10-episode series, starring Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, earlier this month and it's since generated a lot of buzz on the internet, including rave reviews, discourse around the Asian American identity, and controversy.

Since we're in an era of increased Asian representation and Beef follows the intense story of nuanced and complex Asian American characters, I want to know from fellow Asian folks: What are your thoughts or feelings on Beef? I'm talking everything from representation to the show's take on anger and generational trauma to the reception of the show.

For starters, the series centers around Asian American characters, but I think it's clear that — unlike Asian characters who are limited to their cultures and subsequently presented as flat in other stories — the characters in Beef are augmented by their cultures to create dimensional, complicated characters.

As Beef creator Lee Sung Jin told Variety, "Yes, these characters happen to be Asian American, but there’s so much more to them than just that ... Just the fact that they are Asian American says a lot on the posters, so allowing the show and the world and the characters to overtake that — it just happened organically more than anything else."

At the same time, the show's Asian American lens can't be overlooked as Beef explores the nuances and intricacies of anger. Like the New York Times stated, "What makes it one of the most invigorating, surprising and insightful debuts of the past year is how personally and culturally specific its study of anger is. Every unhappy person in it is unhappy in a different and fascinating way."

For instance, while Amy struggles to express her emotions and connects this to her upbringing — communication was never her Chinese American father's forte, while her Vietnamese immigrant mother "thought talking about your feelings was the same thing as complaining" — Jordan, a wealthy white woman, perceives her disposition as a "serene Zen Buddhist thing."

Similarly, amongst the numerous stories about the show, BuzzFeed News published a post called, "Netflix's Beef Confronts Asian Parent Stereotypes," Inverse published an article called, "How Beef Cuts To The Heart Of Asian American Angst," and HuffPost published a piece called, "Finally, A Show About Angry Asians."

That being said, the series has also received backlash for its casting, namely around David Choe, who plays Danny's cousin Isaac. Now, I'm not asking anyone to debate their take on David Choe. However, it is fair to acknowledge how the controversy has affected both the general and your personal perspectives of the show.

For example, some people have wondered if it's perhaps reductive to allow Choe's problematic past to overshadow the merits of Beef and its place in Asian American pop culture. I've also seen others point out this being a theme in Hollwyod not limited to Beef, as (especially white) celebrities protect or support their problematic peers.

On the other hand, as SF Chronicle's article, "We're In Asian America's Peak Media Moment; But Beef Has Poisoned The Well," notes, thanks to the rise of Asian representation, we — as viewers — have the space to be more selective and critical about Asian content. And that criticism doesn't have to be limited to the casting controversy.

On the other hand, as SF Chronicle's article, "We're In Asian America's Peak Media Moment; But Beef Has Poisoned The Well," notes, thanks to the rise of Asian representation, we — as viewers — have the space to be more selective and critical about Asian content. And that criticism doesn't have to be limited to the casting controversy.

[theking]

Choe's the bad guy?  :

I Was So Excited To Watch 'Beef' — But David Choe Ruined It For Me
Instead of being able to enjoy its cathartic portrayals of Asian American rage, I found myself disturbed every time Cousin Isaac appeared onscreen.


David Choe plays Isaac in "Beef."

Initially, I was thrilled to enter the almost entirely Asian American space of “Beef.” Getting to watch two Asian American leads channel their repressed second-generation anger into an escalating road rage incident? It was the show I never knew I wanted.

I also deeply appreciated how “Beef” effortlessly incorporated Korean American specificities: Steven Yeun’s character, Danny, pausing a rant to answer his parents’ KakaoTalk video call in a saccharine tone, the two cousins catching up at a sullungtang restaurant, the Korean evangelical church with a wailing praise team. I marveled at them all.

Full of inside jokes for Korean American communities, “Beef” felt refreshingly free of white-pandering tropes. It felt like an onscreen experience that was made for Korean American viewers like me. That’s why, a few episodes in, I was especially devastated to learn about David Choe, the actor portraying Danny’s bullying, volatile older cousin Isaac.

In 2014, on a taped podcast Choe co-hosted with Asa Akira, he bragged about forcing oral sex onto a Black masseuse in Los Angeles. Despite Akira repeatedly chiding him — calling his confessional conquests rape — Choe barreled on, partially admitting to “rapey behavior.” When outlets started to cover Choe’s graphic account, he later retracted his statement by excusing his podcast as a work of fictional art.

As a Korean American sexual assault survivor, I found it almost impossible to separate the art from the artist. This question looming over “Beef” — whether Choe was or was not in fact a rapist — distorted my entire experience of watching the show. Instead of being able to enjoy its cathartic portrayals of Asian American rage, I found myself disturbed every time Isaac appeared onscreen, wondering how much of the character’s aggression was a performance and how much of it was channeled from Choe’s documented misogynoir. The toxicity of Cousin Isaac hit uncomfortably close to home.

[theking]

Asian Americans are no longer pop culture side-kicks — they're defining the mainstream

Asian Americans are over just being included — they're defining mainstream culture
Why Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are no longer chasing the opportunity to merely be represented.

Netflix’s “Beef” dives deep into the psyches of two people who happen to be Asian American as they’re entangled in a universal experience — road rage. But what the show doesn’t do is spend time with heavy-handed explanations about the cultural nuances of identity.

And it’s because Asian American and Pacific Islander creators have reached a point where they don’t necessarily feel they have to, critics say. Starring an all-Asian cast, “Beef” is an example of how Asian Americans are seeing pieces of themselves and their families comfortably integrated into on-screen stories like never before.

A proliferation of movies and television shows in recent years has made it clear Asian Americans are no longer chasing the opportunity to merely be included. Instead, diaspora storytellers are increasingly defining mainstream culture while creating their own spaces on their own terms — without feeling the need to contextualize their stories for the masses.

While “Beef” revolves around the accessible feelings of anger, grief and resentment, the storyline still includes pieces of the Asian American experience, like Danny’s (Steven Yeun) emotional experience during a service at a Korean evangelical church.