Sug and Dan discuss the latest headlines out of North Korea, which include: 

1. NORTH KOREA UNVEILS NEW NUCLEAR MISSILE SUBMARINE
2. North Korea Only Reports Victories from the Asian Games
3. NORTH KOREAN PRISON BREAK AMIDST GROWING PUBLIC UNEASE OF SERIOUS CRIMES
4. North Korea Freedom Week Ahead of Chuseok
5. A Desperate North Korea has Finally Reopened
6. US secures the release of the soldier who crossed into North Korea 2 months ago

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Did you know North Korea had a booming film industry? Yes, the second Great Leader, Kim Jong Il, was a huge film buff. He had his own vast library of films, he produced many films and yes, he even kidnapped a famous South Korean director Shin Sang Ok to make North Korean movies. Pulgasari was the work of Kim as the executive producer and Shin as director.  Pulgasari is a kaiju film (like "Godzilla") set in ancient Korea. Dan and Sug explain the movie in detail (spoiler alert) and break it down for you so that you don't have to see it yourself.

North Korea is a fascinating place, watching this movie gave our hosts an inside look into the Hermit Kingdom.

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LINKS
Pulgasari full movie
Dan's full, epic review of Pulgasari

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North Korea's Dear Leader Kim Jong Un chose a peculiar mode of transportation to visit his buddy Vladimir Putin: A bulletproof train. On this episode we discuss Kim Jong Un's choice of transport: the features, the speed, the customized flourishes designed specifically for the Great Leader himself. 

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The US recently declared July 27 "National Korean War Armistice Day" in honor of the many soldiers who gave their lives defending the Korean peninsula against communism. This day is now an officially acknowledged day for North Korea, South Korea and the US. Each country has their own version of what occurred both on that day and also, in the Korean War. And with these distinct stories come different moods and attitudes about the war and all of its complexities. Sug and Dan discuss this day and attempt to look at it from all angles.

LINKS:
AP: Rival Koreas mark armistice anniversary in two different ways that highlight rising tensions

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North Korea's mental health system relies on methods that were done away with decades ago. Such methods include inducing insulin coma to its patients. Being sent to a hospital 49 is akin to throwing away your family's standing with the regime. Sug and Dan discuss the system and talk about the ways that mental health is viewed in the Korean-American communities. 

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Sug and Dan go through a few headlines from straight out of North Korea including the curious case of the US soldier crossing into North Korea. Our hosts also discuss the rise in overseas surveillance of North Korea's own diplomats, North Korea's dramatic call out of Japan over their dumping of potentially contaminated water and much more. 

Links:
US Soldier Defects to North Korea
Other Top Headlines from North Korea

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Did you know that North Korea and South Korea call each other every day? The two countries talk often to coordinate what happens at the DMZ, over airspace and over their maritime borders as well. But sometimes North Korea ghosts its neighbor to the south. Sug and Dan discuss this strange dynamic as well as look back fondly on the days of the land line.

LINKS:
Pictures of the inter-Korea phone system  
Wiki

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The South Korean martial art Taekwondo has become a ubiquitous mainstay in the US and much of the world. But did you know that North Korea has developed its own martial art call Kyeok Sul Do? It's like Taekwondo but more North Korean. We discuss the two martial arts and trace back their shared origin.

Links:
Kyeoksuldo demonstration
Rexquando demonstration

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North Korea has one main sporting event: The Arirang Mass Games. It's not necessarily a sporting event but more a show with thousands of performers and an audience of over 100,000 also performing in synchrony. All of this is for the Great Leader himself.

Links:
Arirang Mass Games
Arirang Mass Games Wiki

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Sug and Dan go through all the current events related to North Korea. North Korea hacks more cryptocurrency. South Korea begins to test North Korean refugees for radioactivity. North Korea prepares for yet another military parade. 

Links:
Crossing Borders blog
North Korea's War on Outside Info

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