MovieChat Forums > Kim's Convenience (2016) Discussion > Pretty good show with a minor flaw

Pretty good show with a minor flaw


I've watched the pilot episode and really enjoyed it, it felt like Corner Gas. The 'minor flaw' that I speak of, is that the family even at home doesn't speak their native language which immigrants normally do (I'm one myself) so it's somewhat awkward that Kim's Convenience avoids doing that.

It would be understandable for them to speak English outside but within their home? That just doesn't feel right.

Well, anyhow, hope more folks start watching it too. 

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So the majority of the show would be subtitled? It's not high brow cinema, it's a CBC tv sitcom.

You should have taken the money. - Robert McCall

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Just at home and it wouldn't need to be always but sometimes to have variety.

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Well, that is your experience. My parents are immigrants as well. Although they did speak their native tongue to us, the majority of our conversation in the house was in english. My mother wanted to be sure that my sister and I were not at a disadvantage in school. It also helped my father who had jobs where he needed to communicate in english. It just depends on the family.

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Fair enough. Still, most immigrants teach their children their own language and it's always useful to know more than one language.

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I'm pretty sure the character Janet knows little to no Korean (see episode 4 "Frank & Nayoung" with Janet in the Korean restaurant trying to order in Korean), so it would just be the parents speaking it to each other.

You should have taken the money. - Robert McCall

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I am also ethnic Asian (Chinese), born and raised in Canada, and my immigrant parents did own and operate a convenience store in a major Canadian city when I and my siblings were younger.

I agree with much of what Jay said. My parents did speak Cantonese at home, largely with each other and with other immigrant friends and relatives. However, once my eldest sibling started going to school, English largely supplanted Cantonese in our household to a point when it would be 90% English and 10% Cantonese by the time I reached school myself (five years later). At that point, my parents, although wanting me and my siblings to retain some semblance of Cantonese, it just didn't happen as me and my siblings were exposed more to English, especially as my parents needed to speak English in their day-to-day lives outside of the home.

As another poster states however, I find the accents of Lee and Yoon just a little thick. Their characters have been in Canada for 35 years or so, and I doubt their accents would be that strong, especially in running an "English" language business. My parents had an accent all their lives, but nowhere near Appa and Umma's level. I find Mr. Chin's accent closer, but again my parents' accents were still not quite that strong.

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actually Korean accents are one of the most notable strong accent of all Asians, just like European accents.

The immigrant parents have always had to learn English the hard way/street way in that most of them rarely attend English school due to jobs/family/lack of time.

So, all in all, this show is a very accurate depiction of Korean culture and I have enjoyed every single episode of Season 1 and I hope it gets renewed.

Great job, CBC

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