Very recently finished the first season of Kim’s Convenience.
It’s a sitcom (based on a play) about a Korean-Canadian family in Toronto who owns and operates a convenience store. All the seasons are on Netflix for me, so I’m checking it out for the first time.
I’m surprised and dissapointed I hadn’t decided to check it out before now, it’s nice! Can definitely see why this became such a local hit.
Seeing local landmarks and areas is pretty cool, the show has some great messages of unity and coming together as a family, and lots of the humour is pretty fun, particularly involving Mr. Kim/Appa’s strict demeanor.
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee definitely has his catchphrases down pat. Same inflection, every time, always fun. (“Ok, See You!” “Stop! 
” in that exact way)
He’s not a perfect character, but his conviction to treating his customers with respect and good service is really nice to see every episode.
Its also pretty cool to see essentially where Simu Liu got his big break into the mainstream Canadian conciousness as Jung, before slingshotting his way to Marvel Studios as Shang Chi. Damn. What a trajectory 
The show isn’t perfect – I found a lot of the conflicts surrounding Janet revolved around her vs. her dad’s stubborn old-ways-of-thinking and that kind of got boring. Hopefully she has something else to do than butt heads with Appa later. (Sitcoms don’t usually find their footing in S1, its ok.)
Also, I feel like the parents’ heavy Korean accent and broken english are played up for laughs sometimes, which I feel guilty for giggling at sometimes, though I’d say it’s probably a character trait made to reinforce the idea behind the younger generation clashing with the older generation’s old ways of thinking/speaking.
I’ll definitely have to re-read the play, since it’s been a good few years since I read it for school, and I’d love to see what was specifically adapted from the page.
I remember there being much more of a conflict and climax in the story between Appa and Jung in the play, but they really seemed to downplay or skirt around it in the show. Maybe it’ll come later, but it’s probably sticking to its sitcom rules.
7.5/10, very nice introduction.
