Goodbye Earth
Warning: This content has a Mature/R rated content warning for blood, violence, language, and intense themes. The Brainy Pixel reviewer has assessed the piece of media and determined that it is not glorifying sin as one of the major themes of the story, but viewer discretion is heavily advised.
Summary
Goodbye Earth is a South Korean drama based off of a Japanese novel with the same name by Kotaro Isaka. The main premise is observing the lives and decisions of people living 200 days before an asteroid strikes their hometown. With no way to escape or evacuate, the people turn to a variety of different methods to cope with the situation.
Assessment
Goodbye Earth is a heavy and unforgivingly brutal look at how people handle their own impending mortality. In it, South Korea faces waves of civil unrest, violence, and chaos as an asteroid fit to wipe out all life on the peninsula approaches. Some people are resigned to their fate, some buck against it, some try to escape, some plant gardens, some set out to revenge those that were hurt by the societal upheaval; each character has their own way of coping and reconciling (or not) with this situation.
The story is not for the faint of heart, dealing with heavy themes such as suicide, cults, child trafficking, revenge, murder, starvation, and hopelessness. This said, Goodbye Earth is not without its moments of levity, its lightness, and its hope. These are, ultimately, human beings dealing with a severe crisis, but they take time to celebrate. They take care of their families, they have feasts, they celebrate Christmas in a church. They even seek God — most of the characters are Catholic — to guide them in their struggles and pain.
Light-o-Meter
Writing: 5 out of 7 Little Lights
Filmmaking: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Acting: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Cleanliness: 2 out of 7 Little Lights (for violence, blood, and language. No nudity or sex is depicted in the show)
Theological Message: N/A
Overall: 5 out of 7 Little Lights
Talk
Goodbye Earth is one of the most human stories I have seen in a long time. All of the elements of humanity from cruel greed to soul-crushing guilt to hope that seems to forget all life is going to be wiped out in less than a year. The characters garden, raise chickens, and in somewhat futile gestures, take on the evil that is pouring into society’s ever-widening cracks. It’s an absolutely fascinating mixture of how people react to intense, prolonged stress and trauma. It asks the question “what would you do if you knew you were going to die, and then everything you love was taken from you?”
Like I said earlier in the article, however, this is not a show that is for everybody. As far as I can tell, it is not glorifying any kind of sin; the violence is either from the villains or the heroes’ reaction to that initial violence (self-defense or revenge, the latter of which is not held in high esteem and comes with serious consequences for the heroes). The language seems like a natural extension of the situation, it’s typically reserved to a few characters (soldiers and ruffians, for the most part) and never feels like it’s thrown in there just to shock the audience. There is no nudity or sex in the story whatsoever. If you like disaster shows, dystopias, or shows that ask questions about agony, this is probably right up your alley.
In terms of cinematography and show quality, this is top-notch. It was an immediately immersive show with expert directing that let the characters shine but provided plenty of atmospheric shots and framing to set the scene and atmosphere. The acting was — as is typical with South Korean dramas — fantastic and really brought the characters to life; the actors were able to carry all the weight of the show and what their characters were going through amazingly well. I think my only complaint regarding the show is that sometimes the timeline was difficult to track. There was a lot of back and forth between several points in the past and the present. Overall, it wasn’t too bad, but a bit tricky at times (especially if you are watching the episodes a piece at a time).
Finally, I really love how much care and respect went into presenting Christian characters and their struggles both in terms of faith and in terms of morality. From the young priest who was one of the main characters, to the other characters that sought reconciliation with each other, asked God for answers or healing, or took care of one another during this crisis, there was a lot of solid Biblical morality that was great to see. Despite there being two genuine cults involved in the plot (one of which was just a front for human trafficking), it is the Christian church that is depicted as the beacon of hope, the last piece of the community where people could gather and feel even slightly normal.
Wrap-up
Goodbye Earth is a tough, heartbreaking South Korean drama based off of a Japanese novel by Kotaro Isaka. The story zeroes in on how characters of various ages, personalities, and backgrounds handle an impending, inescapable catastrophe. This dark, sometimes violent show brings to the foreground both the good and the bad of human nature, shining a light on healing, forgiveness, and faith.
Where to Enjoy
Goodbye Earth is available for streaming on Netflix!
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