The Atypical Family has gone down a storm with K-drama fans — but they’re struggling to see past a major red flag with the character Dong-hee.
The Atypical Family revolves around the Bok family after a woman arrives in their house. She learns the truth behind the family’s superhuman abilities, while also playing her own con. But along the way, she develops a romance with Gwi-joo.
Dong-hee is a member of the Bok family and a sister to Gwi-joo. Like the rest of her family, she too has superpowers, like the ability to fly. When real-life afflictions cause her family to lose their powers, so does she. Gwi-joo loses his ability to travel to the past due to depression while Dong-hee can’t fly because she’s overweight.
The detail about Dong-hee’s storyline has pushed fans to call out The Atypical Family for fatphobia, particularly with Claudia Kim wearing a fat suit instead of hiring a plus-sized actor.
One fan on X/Twitter said, “Sat down for the atypical family ep 1 and it’s literally what I look for in a hit show like good cinematography, soundtrack, script, acting, and plot THIS IS FOR MEEEE.”
Others were less than thrilled about Do-hee. One person commented, “Watching The Atypical Family and realizing its 2024 yet K-drama still adding fat characters for the jokes, it’s f**king disgusting!”
While another wrote, “was excited about The Atypical Family but pressed play and saw they put a suit on some skinny actress it put me off so bad (it looked weird in the trailer already but now it’s confirmed), it’s 2024 and they can’t cast an actual fat actress for the role and respect it? F*ck you”
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#theatypicalfamily has firmly established its position that fat = bad. that's really all it takes to be fatphobic. and given that the character is played by a skinny actress in a fat suit, there's no doubt in my mind that her storyline will involve weight loss. #atypicalfamily pic.twitter.com/ShfeoZsf8r
— dramakakes 🧁 (@DramaKakes) May 5, 2024
“#theatypicalfamily has firmly established its position that fat = bad. that’s really all it takes to be fatphobic. and given that the character is played by a skinny actress in a fat suit, there’s no doubt in my mind that her storyline will involve weight loss,” posted another.
After the release of the first two episodes, it’s becoming clear that part of Dong-hee’s grand story will involve losing weight — all to make her feel better about herself and regain her powers.
In one instance, a new personal trainer at Gwi-joo’s gym jokes that she recognized Dong-hee for mukbang (eating) videos on YouTube. By Episode 2, Dong-hee begins to realize how people see her for being overweight. She urges her then-boyfriend to get married, but he rejects her.
Let’s not forget that Dong-hee also works for a cosmetic surgery clinic — one that specializes in liposuction. Another scene involves her running on a treadmill until she begins to have a panic attack.
The Atypical Family has its successful and questionable storylines. You’ll have to see how the story will unfold on Netflix, and you can catch other May K-dramas.