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Extraordinary Attorney Woo: What about the real Woo Young-woos?
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Extraordinary Attorney Woo
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Extraordinary Attorney Woo: What about the real Woo Young-woos?
Writer: Daeho Park, Jiyoung Kang
Editor: Sunny Um
Senior Editor: Regine Armann
Editor-in-Chief: Fred McNulty
Illustrator: Ah-young Kim
The Netflix drama Extraordinary Attorney Woo (이상한 변호사 우영우) has become a big hit since it was broadcasted this June, both within and outside Korea. The drama depicts the growth of Woo Young Woo (우영우), a genius lawyer on the autism spectrum in her career as well as in her personal relationships. In a flood of dramas full of violence and provocative stories, Extraordinary Attorney Woo has received respect for its exceptional approach in dealing with a socially relevant topic that is not often dealt with in Korean media.
During its two-month run until the 16th and final episode, this drama ranked highest among Netflix's most-watched non-English series. Domestically, the show started at a viewer rating of 0.9% on the first episode, and the final episode showcased a rating of 15%. CNN highly praised the drama, expecting it to be the next “Squid Game” (오징어게임).
Although the last episode aired on August 18th, fans don’t need to be disappointed. With the upsurge in popularity, the producers are looking forward to airing a Season 2 in 2024.
Discussions Around Woo Young-woo
Over the last two months, both the sales of goods related to the drama and visits to places introduced in Extraordinary Attorney Woo have highly increased. Due to its popularity and awareness, even the term “Woo Young Woo Syndrome” (우영우 신드롬) has been created.
However, although the show received praise from the public, some aspects of the protagonist or the plot were severely criticized. One point of criticism was how the character Woo Young Woo failed to describe actual people on the autism spectrum. Some people with the disorder have argued that Young Woo represents an extremely rare case, not a typical person on the autism spectrum.
Last month, Kim Se-i (김세이), a viewer on the autism spectrum, said that the Young Woo character in the drama is someone with “savant syndrome”, meaning that she demonstrates exceptional skills in particular but limited fields although suffering from a developmental disorder. In the plot, Young Woo is a graduate from the top law school in Korea and has an outstanding ability to memorize everything that she reads.
Kim said, “The drama depicts a fictional story of a person with savant syndrome, which is severely rare among actual people on the autism spectrum”. She added, “It is one of the biggest misunderstandings toward people on the autism spectrum, and this is the reason why many people with autistic disorder believe that this show does not represent them well”.
On the other hand, the popularity of Extraordinary Attorney Woo has brought up more societal interest and discussions in Korea. Park Eun-bin (박은빈), the actress who played Woo Young Woo in the show, said (Korean link) that a viewer on the autism spectrum wrote a handwritten letter to her expressing his gratitude. Park added, “While the media used to emphasize only the dark side of autism, this letter contained a message of gratitude for expressing a more positive side of people with this condition that only they used to be aware of”.
Park Eun-Bin added that playing Woo Young Woo in this drama series has been a great turning point in her life as an actress. Explaining herself as “a person who believes that she has the power to influence people as an actress”, she said that receiving more attention than she ever expected gave her a feeling of moral responsibility.
The way that Extraordinary Attorney Woo has been received by the public both domestically and globally represents how a social interest can be sparked by the popularity of a drama series. However, rather than cheering and focusing on the refined image the media gives us, we need to pay more attention to the real lives of autistic people and the difficulties they face.
The National Solidarity for the Elimination of Discrimination Against the Disabled (SADD, 전국장애인차별철폐연대) released a comment on July 26 comparing the public's view of disability activists protesting on the subway to the viewers’ reaction to the drama.
On the same day, the SADD (전장연) posted a cartoon titled "Different Response" on their official Facebook page, to demonstrate how viewers who watch Woo Young-woo sympathize with the disabled in the drama but are angry at the real-life activists who demonstrate on the subway.
The SADD said, "It’s ironic that people sympathize with and think they understand Woo Young-woo (and the situation of people with disabilities)," adding, "Everyone seems to dream of a world where people with disabilities are integrated into society when watching the drama." However, they continued, "If a person with disabilities returns to reality after turning off the drama, on their way to work, the hearts of the people who watched the drama are nowhere. Whether it's in the real world or the drama series, people criticize, mock, swear, and sometimes make violent threats (to people with disabilities)."
The autism activist group estas, to which Columnist Lee Won-moo (이원무) belongs, issued a critical statement (Korean link) about the series at the end of last year that was signed by about 10 people on the autism spectrum. Their statement relays the argument that portraying Woo Young-woo, the main character, as a genius lawyer with an IQ of 164 who memorizes countless laws and precedents without ever making a mistake could lead to discriminatory views of the disabled.
Lee says people anywhere on the autism spectrum need to be introduced as normal human beings. The Netflix comedy drama "It's Okay to Be Unique" (별나도 괜찮아) is an example. It describes the growth process of an 18-year-old boy on the autism spectrum and the daily life of his family. The characterization of autism spectrum disorder in this drama goes beyond the dichotomy of “genius talent” vs “sad story”.
Yoon Eun-ho (윤은호), Korea’s first Ph.D. recipient on the autism spectrum who has a degree in Cultural Content (문화콘텐츠학과), said, "It is true that there has been improvement compared to the past. There are certain points where social awareness changes, but I think we need to see the end of the show," he said. "If we hadn't written the statement, I think our opinions would not have been considered. People on the autism spectrum have different ways of experiencing and expressing emotions, but I don't think it's right to emphasize what they can't do socially because their emotional quotient is low," he said.
Can lawyers on the autism spectrum like Woo Young-woo actually work in Korea? Yoon’s answer is no. In Korea, people on the autism spectrum do not have any rights when it comes to work free of discrimination. This irony remains unresolved.
"When I go abroad, I see a world of doctors and researchers on the autism spectrum, but in Korea it is just a fantasy that such people can receive higher education," Yoon said. "I actually applied for Seoul National University, where Woo Young-woo graduated in 2005, as a “disabled candidate”, but I was not recognized as such and was instead moved to the general admission because they didn’t recognize autism as a disability […] I wonder how Woo Young-woo was able to enter Seoul National University in the 2014-2015 academic year."
Yoon Sun-ah (윤선아), a special education doctor in pediatric psychiatry at Seoul National University Hospital, has been diagnosing and studying patients on the autism spectrum since 1995. She explains (Korean link) the ripple effect of the media's “setup error” on the site in this way. “People often think that if their children are smart, they won't be autistic. The negative view of autism often makes it difficult to detect autism and support children early," Yoon said, adding that especially the servant syndrome narrative, which is portrayed as a way of "overcoming" autism, is one of the most confusing factors when it comes to supporting children on the autism spectrum.
There is a saying among people in the special education or medical field that supports people on the autism spectrum: "If you met a person on the autism spectrum today, you met only one of all such people in the world." Individuals on the autism spectrum have different traits and characteristics, and the range includes those with outstanding talent as well as those with low cognitive abilities; those with difficulties even just moving around, and those with high cognitive functions. On the other hand, the way the media generally represents autism disorders usually resembles "tragic narratives" or "overcoming narratives."
Woo Young-woo'’s story is somewhat out of this familiar narrative, but focuses on the characteristics of autism disorder itself. According to author Oh Soo-kyung (오수경), who wrote the book Words of Drama (드라마의 말들), diseases are often instrumental for dramatic development, while disabled people do not appear at all or are typified as poor, pitiful beings. "Dramas tend to not explain much about mental illnesses or disabilities."
However, the Woo Young-woo drama does not only inform us about the exact diagnosis of her condition, but also focuses on social awareness of disabilities. Despite criticism that it has merchandised the disability, Oh evaluates, "It provided viewers with an opportunity to understand the disability more accurately and practically."
What also makes the Woo Young-woo drama stand out is the "three-dimensionality” surrounding its characters. Lawyer Chung Myung-seok (강기석 배우) is at first biased against Woo Young-woo being hired, but humbly admits his mistake after working with her on several cases. Moreover, the lawyers and employees of the law firm Hanbada reflect on their prejudices, and we are invited to do the same, watching passersby who ignorantly tell Woo Young-woo to "cheer up," as if being on the autism spectrum is something to be pitied, a prosecutor who does not believe a person on the autism spectrum can be a lawyer at all, and a client who openly refers to the fact that Woo Young-woo is on the autism spectrum as well to try and use it to get their point across in court. Writer Oh Soo-kyung analyses, "It is not just a warm and nice drama, but a drama with a clear message that makes us reflect on things and problems we haven’t thought about so far."
This Week's Recommendations
Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022)
Available on Netflix
Woo Young-woo is a young attorney who is on the autism spectrum. A person with a remarkable memory and high IQ, she deals with various court cases through unconventional, creative ideas. Watch how she grows as an attorney in 16 episodes, each with a separate story. The drama series recently aired its season finale so now is the perfect time to binge-watch till the end!
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