The Dark Side of Seoul Podcast

Episode Summary A father and his four children were found dead in their home in Ulsan after months of severe financial hardship. While the case was ruled a murder-suicide, the discussion quickly expands beyond the crime itself into the failures of Korea's welfare system, the stigma surrounding mental health, and the bureaucratic obstacles that can leave vulnerable families without meaningful suppo...

Dark Side of Seoul Podcast Episode 316 The Weird Science Behind Korean Food Nationalism   Episode Description A 2023 paper published in the Journal of Ethnic Foods argues that Korean cuisine developed in isolation, authentic Korean food isn't spicy, and even that royal court cuisine isn't truly Korean. In this episode, we examine the paper's historical, linguistic, archaeological, and scientific c...

Send us Fan Mail After the release of his book Supernatural Encounters in South Korea , one of the comments Shawn received surprised him. Several readers expected a book about ghosts to be written by a true believer. Instead, they found a surprisingly skeptical approach to paranormal claims. One reviewer described the book as "a rather clever turn," while another called Shawn "a mor...

Send us Fan Mail South Korea just held its 9th nationwide local elections on June 3, 2026, and what should have been a routine referendum on President Lee Jae-myung's first year turned into a genuine mess. Polling stations in Seoul started running out of ballot paper mid-day. Voters waited hours. Some gave up and left. In Songpa and Gangnam, people were still voting at 10 p.m. And then the protest...

Send us Fan Mail A car exploded in Shawn’s neighborhood, setting off a chain reaction that destroyed multiple vehicles and exposed a brutal insurance loophole in Korea. In this Fun Sized episode, Joe and Shawn discuss the recent fire involving a smoking vehicle that erupted near a GS25 convenience store, igniting a nearby van and damaging surrounding buildings. The discussion quickly turns to the...

Send us Fan Mail AI scams are getting weirder. In this Fun Sized episode, Joe and Shawn discuss the rise of biometric crime in Korea and how AI tools can now potentially lift fingerprints from ordinary photos posted online. Korean security experts are warning that common hand gestures like peace signs and finger hearts may expose enough detail for criminals to recreate biometric data. The hosts ex...

Send us Fan Mail “Koreans are better surgeons because they use metal chopsticks.” “Korean grammar makes people more emotionally intelligent.” “Korean relationships are deeper because the language has honorifics.” You’ve probably heard some version of these before. In this Fun Sized episode, we look at some of the strangest Korean nationalist myths, where they come from, why people believe them, an...

Send us Fan Mail Flashing and public indecency have been a problem in Korea for decades, but recent cases suggest the issue may be getting worse. In this Fun Sized episode, we look at the rise in flashing incidents across South Korea, including cases involving schools, parks, buses, apartment complexes, and public transportation. We also explore the psychology behind exhibitionism, the surprisingl...

Send us Fan Mail Isang Yun was one of Korea’s most important composers, blending traditional Korean sounds with modern European music. But in 1967, he was kidnapped off the streets of West Berlin by South Korean agents, tortured, and sentenced to death. In this episode, we explore Yun’s life, his music, and the political forces that turned a composer into a target. From his early years under Japan...

Send us Fan Mail We’re back with another Fun Size episode. This time, we’re looking at something that sounds simple on paper: sick leave. In Korea, it’s legally guaranteed. In reality, it’s often difficult, discouraged, or just not used at all. From teachers paying out of pocket for substitutes to cultural pressure to keep working no matter what, the system doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to. W...

Send us Fan Mail Cherry blossoms might seem like the most harmless part of spring in Korea. But behind the crowds, festivals, and photo spots, there’s a deeper story that most people don’t notice. In this episode, we explore the quiet controversy surrounding cherry blossoms in Korea, from their role during Japanese colonial rule to the modern debates about whether they should even be celebrated at...

Send us Fan Mail We’re trying something new. This is our first Fun Size episode—a shorter format where we tackle current topics that spark debate in Korea. This time, we’re looking at the controversy surrounding the sign at Gwanghwamun. Should it be written in Hangul or Hanja? It sounds like a simple design choice, but it opens up deeper questions about history, identity, and how Korea presents it...

Send us Fan Mail This episode takes a lighter turn with a “This or That” game that somehow turns into strong opinions about Korean food, hiking, cities, and history. We compare Bukhan-san and Inwang-san, break down bibimbap preferences, and get into the difference between taxi buffets and mountain restaurants. Along the way, we talk about cooking at home versus eating out, the cultural weight of t...

Send us Fan Mail Pet ownership in Korea is growing rapidly, but what happens when a beloved animal dies? In this episode, Joe and Shawn explore the surprising and often emotional world of pet funerals in Korea. From strict burial laws that classify animal remains as “waste” to private cremation services that hold full memorial ceremonies, the reality of pet death reveals an unusual intersection of...

Send us Fan Mail A minor concert rule violation at a Day6 show in Kuala Lumpur ignites a much larger confrontation between Southeast Asian K-pop fans, known online as SEAblings, and Korean netizens, or K-netz. What began as frustration over DSLR camera use quickly escalated into accusations of racism, ingratitude, and cultural superiority. In this episode, Joe and Shawn explore what this clash rev...

Send us Fan Mail Winter is cemetery season in Korea. With the grass dead, snakes gone, and sightlines open, this is when Korea’s hillside cemeteries quietly reveal their stories. In this episode, Joe and Shawn talk about what they see every year while wandering through Korean burial grounds: traditional mounds and stone guardians, Christian symbols mixed with Confucian motifs, rare Western-style g...

Send us Fan Mail South Korea became a super-aged society in 2025. The effects are showing up everywhere, but nowhere more visibly than on the roads. In this episode, Joe and Shawn talk about the sharp rise in accidents involving elderly drivers, including several deadly incidents in Seoul and beyond. They dig into the numbers, the government’s largely ineffective license return programs, and why s...

Send us Fan Mail Our 300th episode! Pojangmacha didn’t disappear by accident. In Part 2 of Where Have All the Soju Tents Gone, Joe and Shawn trace how Seoul’s soju tents went from survival spaces to cultural nuisances, then to nostalgic props. From Olympic-era crackdowns and hired enforcers to violent evictions, gentrification, and sanitized “sensibility pocha streets,” this episode looks at how m...

Send us Fan Mail There is no Waffle House in Korea. For decades, the pojangmacha was the last line of defense against going home hungry, broke, or blackout drunk. It was cheap, social, messy, and human. And then it slowly disappeared. In Part 1 of Where Have All the Soju Tents Gone, we trace the origins of the pojangmacha from Japanese yatai and Joseon-era taverns to its explosion after the Korean...

Send us Fan Mail Christmas is often framed as a moment of peace, forgiveness, and reflection. But in Korean history, Christmas Eve has repeatedly been chosen for violence, punishment, and erasure. In Part 2 of Christmas Nightmares, we examine three chilling cases tied to the holiday. We begin with the Seokdal-ri Massacre of 1949, when South Korean soldiers burned a mountain village and executed do...

Send us Fan Mail Christmas is supposed to be a time of warmth, safety, and reunion. But history doesn’t always cooperate. In Part 1 of our two-part Christmas Nightmares series, we explore some of Korea’s darkest stories tied to the holiday season. We begin with the Heungnam Evacuation of 1950, remembered as the Miracle of Christmas, when nearly 100,000 refugees escaped North Korea by sea. But behi...

Send us Fan Mail Shawn and Joe dig into Korea’s crumbling cybersecurity myth and the Coupang leak that exposed almost every user in the country. Korea sells itself as an IT powerhouse, but behind the fiber optics sit outdated servers, neglected government systems, weak regulations and a corporate culture that treats security like a box to check. From the SK Telecom and Lotte Card breaches to the g...

Send us Fan Mail Shawn and Joe trade war stories from the front lines of Seoul’s tour scene. Influencers melting down in costume, drunk guests apologizing between vomit breaks, bathroom disappearances, oddball actors who steal the show, couples who arrive mid-argument, and reviews born from pure misunderstanding. The episode digs into what really derails a tour, how guides survive it, and why some...

Send us Fan Mail This is a blog post I (Joe) wrote on ZenKimchi.com in 2012 about the extreme lengths expats in Korea would go to for creating Thanksgiving in their adopted country. I exhume this post every year to remind myself and others that giving thanks goes beyond turkey, Macy’s parades, and football. Get your comic at DarkSideOfSeoul.com Support the show Join our Patreon to get more stuff h...

Send us Fan Mail Korea’s modern history has plenty of villains, but Hanahoe might be the most quietly terrifying. This was the private club of military officers that spent decades pulling strings behind the scenes and building the foundation for South Korea’s authoritarian era. Chun Doo hwan and Roh Tae woo did not just show up and grab power. They were groomed for it inside this secret alumni clu...