As Blood Free drops its first two episodes on Hulu, a South Korean company’s revolutionary and extremely lucrative fake meat tech is suddenly under attack, leaving its CEO trying to right the ship and wondering who she can trust. Directed by Park Chul-hwan and written by Lee Soo-yeon, Blood Free stars Han Hyo-joo (The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure), Ju Ji-hoon (Kingdom), Lee Hee-joon (Badland Hunters), Park Ji-yeon (Hospital Playlist), and Lee Moo-saeng (The Silent Sea).
BLOOD FREE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: A herd of cows, grazing in a green field underneath a brilliant blue sky. But don’t get attached to this iconic scene. Suddenly, the image bursts from the screen and into the midst of the well-heeled corporate audience gathered in a theater, who witness via hologram the realities of how livestock is traditionally harvested and processed for human consumption.
The Gist: “What kind of meat would you like?” asks Blood Free founder and CEO Yun Ja-yu (Han). “I asked you all this question just four years ago. But I don’t need to ask anymore, because BF successfully commercialized cultured meat for the first time in 2022.” Yun goes on to tout the success of her company’s cellular culturing technology, which has expanded from red meat into popular seafood varieties, and she pledges the culturing of agricultural grains and palm oil within six months. Then a sleek logo and corporate branding appear. Blood Free: A Company that Saves the Earth.
BF’s rise and Yun’s notoriety have not come without controversy, as dueling protests outside the event reveal. While some support the company’s successful partnership with the Korean government, others criticize the jobs eliminated by its animal-free technology, and news outlets are circulating an anonymous report that the proprietary serums developed by BF bioengineer Kim Sang-ho (Kim Sin-gu) actually inject germs and poison into the company’s lab-grown meat. When a bankrupted livestock trader leaps to his death by smashing into the roof of Yun’s limo, it’s another indication of the trouble the CEO is facing.
Then Blood Free is hacked by a ransomware organization known as CitizenX, which holds the company’s research hostage in exchange for billions of won in bitcoin. And while Yun considers her next move, we also meet Woo Chae-woon (Ju), former Naval intelligence officer turned corporate security operative. The recent attacks on BF put him in line for a job protecting Yun Ja-yu. But Woo is also dealing with traumatic flashbacks and the political fallout from a recent terrorist bombing, the implications of which have put Yun and her decision-making on the radar of South Korean prime minister Seonu Jae (Lee Hee-joon) and the former president the blast knocked from power.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The tension between Big Tech’s ability to transform our world and the potential costs to our society is also at the heart of FX/Hulu’s A Murder At the End of the World. And Blood Free’s Ju Ji-hoon valiantly fought Joseon Dynasty-era zombies in the South Korean horror series Kingdom.
Our Take: Nowadays, with big companies, we’re largely in the era that comes after Google’s original motto of ”Don’t Be Evil.” (Downfall: The Case Against Boeing appeared in 2022, and that was before doors started flying off the airline’s planes.) Which makes it interesting how Blood Free presents the company at the core of the series. is BF a force for global good, like its polished branding purports? Or as its founder and CEO, does Han Hyo-joo’s Yun Ja-yu know exactly what corners her company cut to reach its 72-percent market share? We’re also interested in Yun’s emerging connection to Ju Ji-hoon’s Woo Chae-woon, who already have more in common than she knows. It goes back to a terrorist bombing which itself has still-murky links to the corporate hacking Blood Free is experiencing. And while Free takes care to establish the lonely emotional lives of Yun and Woo – there could very well be a love connection in the midst of all this business world battling, because Korean dramas adore a romantic angle tinged with melancholy, and Han and Ju are attractive people – it also hints at an intriguing stew of volatile unknowns. Big profits, and who benefits; political schemes intersecting with business interests; and just who’s trying to take down who.
Sex and Skin: None.
Parting Shot: “Go to Yun Ja-yu,” South Korea’s former president instructs Woo. “Become her right-hand man. Gain her trust.” But while that’s an order he’ll follow, Woo also has motivations that are more personal.
Sleeper Star: Park Ji-yeon (Hospital Playlist) plays Jeong Hae-deun with confidence and a touch of enjoyable sarcasm – Jeong’s the only member of Yun’s inner circle that doesn’t just reflexively jump at the CEO’s every directive.
Most Pilot-y Line: After the CitizenX ransomware attack, it takes Yun Ja-yu just a few seconds to formulate and issue her company’s tiered response. “Set up a new firewall. Deny all allegations and threaten to take legal action. Request a culture fluid analysis from food safety organizations, and report the results. As for this hacking incident…let’s keep it amongst ourselves.”
Our Call: STREAM IT. Contemporary food tech, corporate warfare, intrigue in the halls of power, and a touch of melodrama – Blood Free is taking its drama in some interesting directions.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is an independent writer and editor living at large in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.
