Opening Shot: A massive new condo development in Seoul; we push in to see a man looking at a model. \u201cThat was me, when I was happy,\u201d we hear him in a voice over. \u201cWhen I didn\u2019t have to worry about having superpowers.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Gist:\u00a0Kang Sang-woong (Lee Jun-ho) is a civil servant who is looking to buy a condo with his longtime girlfriend Kim Min-sook (Kim Hye-jun), who is an accountant and someone who is so practical that she told him that she wanted to start dating him instead of him asking her. She figures out that, even if they pool their savings and sell all of his stuff (she already has his stuff up on an auction site), they\u2019d still be 30 million won (about $20,000) short for the down payment.<\/p>\n
When he goes to the country to visit his mother Lee Eun-hee (Kim Soo-jin) and father Kang Dong-gi (Jung Seung-gil), Dong-gi, a generally bitter man who has never been able to manage money, tells Song-woong he has something to give him. He shakes his son\u2019s hand and tremors rattle the shed they\u2019re in.<\/p>\n
What Dong-gi is giving is son is powers he\u2019s had his entire adult life, apparently passed to him from his own father. Sang-woong finds out what those powers are \u2014 among them, super strength and invulnerability \u2014 but finds out the catch: The powers only work if he has cash on him, and if he uses them, the money disappears, leaving some coins behind.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s not supposed to tell anyone, but he tells Min-sook. Ever practical, Min-sook tests out how useful the powers are. What they find out is that it costs a minimum of 10,000 won (about $7) to use the powers at all, but the more money Sang-woong has on him, the stronger the powers are. She determines that the powers aren\u2019t useful, and even if he helps people lift heavy things or walks fast, it\u2019ll cost them money, and they have a condo to save for.<\/p>\n
Photo: Netflix<\/p>\n
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Cashero, written by Lee Jae-in and Jeon Chan-ho and based on the webtoon of the same name, reminds us of other \u201creluctant superhero\u201d shows like Heroes<\/a>, Extraordinary<\/a> or The Greatest American Hero<\/a>, but with this monetary twist.<\/p>\n Our Take: The idea that drives Cashero is that Sang-woong wants to use his powers to do good deeds, but the cash restriction really hurts those chances. We see examples of how he has to be careful of even tiny good deeds, like helping an elderly woman with her heavy bags up the subway stairs. When he buys a PS5 from a man, and that man immediately gets jumped by thugs with Sang-woong\u2019s cash in hand, he really wants to help, but knows it\u2019ll cost him the rest of the cash he has. But there\u2019s a price for not helping, as he gets covered in hives.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a fun concept to think about, especially as Sang-woong is guided by the very pragmatic Min-sook. But things may change due to what happens after his mother gives him the 30 million won they need to put the down payment on the condo. He has the cash in a paper bag (so she can avoid gift tax) when a massive accident on the bridge he\u2019s walking on leaves a bus teetering over the water. He needs the cash, but he also knows that much cash will give him the ability to save the bus. His choice, and how public that choice is, will send him on a much more purposeful journey than he initially intended.<\/p>\n In fact, he\u2019s going to end up finding a group of people who also have superpowers, fueled in strange ways. One needs to eat a lot in order to have useful powers, another needs to get drunk. So they\u2019ll all be grappling with the idea that they either can help people or be in better control of their own lives, and how the struggle between the two rules their lives.<\/p>\n The show does have a lighthearted tone, which works well with the goofy nature of Sang-woong\u2019s powers. But it\u2019ll be interesting to see how he figures out how to help people, even if it costs him the middle-class life he and Min-sook have wanted.<\/p>\n Performance Worth Watching: It\u2019s funny watching Lee Jun-ho as Kang Sang-woong, walking super slowly to avoid costing himself a few bucks.<\/p>\n Sex And Skin: None.<\/p>\n Parting Shot: People on the bridge watch Sang-woong save the bus, as coins rain down on the road. \u201cGreat. Now I\u2019m screwed. Completely. Screwed,\u201d he says in voice over.<\/p>\n Sleeper Star: We\u2019ve yet to meet Kim Hyang-gi as Bang Eun-mi, who has to eat to use her telekinetic powers, or Kim Byung-chul\u00a0as Byeon Ho-in, who has to drink to use his powers.<\/p>\n Most Pilot-y Line: Min-sook tells Sang-woong they should get married so that they have a better chance in the condo lottery. How romantic.<\/p>\n Our Call: STREAM IT. Cashero has a fun superhero premise and doesn\u2019t take itself seriously, striking the right tone for a show where a superhero wants to use his powers but knows it\u2019ll cost him \u2014 literally \u2014 to do so.<\/p>\n Photo: Kim Hobin\/Netflix<\/p>\n