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Blackpink fans clash with activists and victims while defending Jisoo’s ‘Snowdrop'

However, some fans claim that trolls are sabotaging the K-drama by pretending to be Blinks

The controversy surrounding the K-drama ‘Snowdrop’ starring Blackpink’s Jisoo and Jung Hae-in is starting to get ugly. The show has been petitioned to be canceled after the airing of the first two episodes which seemed to be distorting history. The production assured viewers that it was all a red herring and that misunderstandings would be resolved in future episodes. However, South Koreans deem it insensitive to the activists and victims who had survived the bloody revolt that ‘Snowdrop’ is based on.

The Blackpink Jisoo-starrer is set during South Korea’s 80s uprising for democracy against the then military regime. The NSA that tried to curb it was apparently a terror as they arrested innocent student protestors on false accusations. The then rulers justified the violence by claiming that North Koreans were behind the revolts. In ‘Snowdrop’, we have Jung Hae-in’s character who is apparently a North Korean who disguises himself as an activist to escape the NSA. Viewers claimed that whether he was or wasn’t a spy, it was insensitive to the countless who had suffered due to the NSA torturing innocents by falsely labeling them as spies.

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Blackpink fans clash with activists

Furthermore, the show has come under fire for glorifying the NSA and whitewashing their regime for the sake of suspense and plot twists in ‘Snowdrop’. And while more than 300k South Koreans have asked the show to be canceled, some fans of Blackpink’s Jisoo are crossing lines by clashing with activists and families of the victims. We first had many Blinks (Blackpink's fandom) claiming that BTS fans were behind the petitions and were sabotaging the show. After prominent South Koreans spoke up against ‘Snowdrop’, some fans are tweeting their dissatisfaction by asking why reality cannot be separated from fiction.

Activists claimed that one cannot whitewash such a bloody era of South Korean history for the sake of fiction. The memorial foundation of martyr Lee Hanyeol who in fact died during the protests shared that the history revisionism going on in ‘Snowdrop’ is the same as glorifying Nazis. It was simply unacceptable even for the sake of creative license. They shared that since there are still people around the world who are against democratization, the drama would further distort views. This does not help since Blackpink’s Jisoo has a huge global fanbase who would be tuning in to watch the show. Reports also shared that fans were harassing the memorial by sending emails and making phone calls.

JTBC's second statement

JTBC released a second statement after their ‘watch the show to clear the misunderstanding’ announcement did not go well with the viewers. Citing infringement on creative freedom, they have begged viewers once more to give the show a chance. They have added that they too feel the same way as the viewers and that is why the red herrings are all part of their story to reprimand the military rule. They ended their statement on a surrendering note by saying that if the uproar doesn’t die down they will only have two choices – to either reveal the whole plot or just cancel the show. They have also released a step-by-step guide video of their first two episodes to explain the misunderstandings.

'Pathetic behavior'

With even more than a dozen sponsors pulling out and 40% of Disney+’s daily users boycotting the platform, the arguments on Twitter are getting serious. Users are finding it offensive that certain Blackpink fans are arguing with activists and families of the victims. One user tweeted, “And now they telling the bereaved to turn off their tv???!!! wtf they really cross the line atp…” Another user commented, “I am disgusted. The victims of dictatorship should never be attacked and questioned bcz the wounds are still fresh. This is pathetic behaviour. The lack of empathy is not surprising bcz they've done it before as well. Ugh. This is disheartening.” Another user posted, “This situation has so quickly devolved into the most bizarre disgusting mess of immorality, kpop stan culture is a disease.” One user said, “Blinks are gonna end her career right here like coming for these martyr’s family all bc you think the world revolves around jisoo.”

'It is a troll account'

However, some Blackpink fans are claiming that the situation is being blown out of proportion and they have not been attacking victims, “Was this letter sent to the journalist who reported on this? Not sure why you are telling us to STFU when we didnt make that up? It was literally reported on by the media. I will believe it's a lie when there is media that corrects it.” Some also explained why they were defending the show in the first place, “They took their time to not only issue a proper statement but also make a video clarifying parts of episodes that people might consider problematic. This is how you move when you are confident in your work.” Another added, “I wonder what other narrative they're gonna make if it turns out Snowdrop is criticizing the dictatorship at that time, not promoting it.” Another fan tried to explain that they were not attacking victims, “It is a troll account of 8 followers that is dedicated to throwing shit at everyone and since it has the Lisa icon, everyone assumes that it is a Lisa stans when it is not, also neither Lisa nor her fans have to do with this controversy Lisa is not Korean and not in that drama.”