Korean Sayings

“Will you be the master of gold?”

“Or will you live as the slave of gold?”

In 1990, there was the New City Development, and in 1997 there was the IMF crisis. Then 1998 brought the Big Deal and Restricting and in 2000, the venture fever. In 2002 was the Real Estate Craze, and the Card Crisis came in 2003. In 2008 the Global Financial Crisis arrived. Finally, the Housing Bubble deflated in 2010.

The Korean drama “Empire of Gold” (2013) chronicles 20 years of economic turbulence, in which the whole nation participated in avaricious gambling. This empire is a huge casino where people can bet big and earn big – or instead lose everything – with a single bad decision. Inspired by real events experienced by a real royal family set in 18th-century Europe, “Empire of Gold” depicts a cold-blooded struggle for power among family members after a powerful chairman’s demise.

Unfortunately, there are only two ways of living in the Empire of Gold: either be the Master of Gold or live as a slave. Gambling occurs among those who want to keep their seats and those who want to steal from others; “the winner takes everything.”

Taeju, one of the series’ main characters, is a prime example of this lifestyle. The characters bloodlessly swindle weak people, bribe government officials, shake hands with their enemies and yes, occasionally kill people. Everything is to win, to become the Master of Gold; there is no place for morality in this world.

Unlike typical Korean dramas, there is no clear division between good and evil in “The Empire of Gold.” There is simply no good man, but this might be the reason why its audience is so taken with it: it seems more like real life. In life, most people willingly give up their morals for greed and property, and in some cases for the protection of loved ones.

If you are expecting to see frequent love scenes, the drama might be a little disappointing to you. Says one fan, “There is a reason why the drama is not so popular, despite its quality. With 90 percent of veiled enmity and 10 percent of the script being love scenes, it is pretty unbalanced.”

However, everyone is unanimous on this opinion: it is a masterpiece of a drama. So do not be surprised when you hear people quoting it.