“An ordinary man who inherits super strength discovers a greater evil out to steal his power. The one catch? Every use drains money from his wallet.” So reads the logline for the unique new superhero series from Netflix, which introduces audiences to a different, pricey new avenger. And, clearly, it’s a winning logline, as the series has already entered the streamer’s top 10.
Debuting on the popular streamer just last week, the new superhero series in question is Cashero, which follows Kang Sang-ung (Lee Jun-ho) as a down-to-earth civil worker who suddenly obtains a unique set of superpowers. But while it’s usually the case that with great power comes great responsibility, and the personal costs that follow, this is literally the case for Kang Sang-ung. You see, every time he throws a punch, his bank balance drops, forcing him to crunch the numbers on the heroics that burn through his pay.
In the world of Cashero, powers are directly intertwined with a certain (problematic) external element, which Kang Sang-ung soon discovers when he meets lawyer Byeon Ho-in (Kim Byong-chul), the head of the Korean Coalition of Superheroes, whose own abilities kick in when he drinks alcohol. Alongside a pastry-loving telekinetic whose powers are linked to her caloric intake, the trio fights to take down the mysterious “Criminal Association,” an organization that’s started hunting down superheroes.
Directed by Lee Chang-min and written by Lee Jae-in and Jeon Chan-ho, Cashero hails from South Korea and stars Lee Jun-ho (King the Land, The Red Sleeve) as Kang Sang-ung alongside Kim Hye-jun (A Shop for Killers, Inspector Koo) as Kim Min-suk, Sang-ung’s longtime girlfriend and maths whiz; Kim Byong-chul (All of Us Are Dead, Doctor Cha) as Byeon Ho-in, a lawyer with booze-related superpowers; and Kim Hyang-gi (Hansan: Rising Dragon, Poong, the Joseon Psychiatrist) as Bang Eun-mi, whose psychokinesis runs on pastries and bread.
What Are the Critics Saying About ‘Cashero’?
Cashero debuted on Netflix on December 26 and has already made its way into the streamer’s top 10 alongside the likes of the hit thriller The Beast in Me, documentary series Sean Combs: The Reckoning, the romance Emily in Paris, and the sci-fi thriller phenomenon that is Stranger Things. You can check out the official synopsis for Cashero below…
Sang-woong, an ordinary civil servant, struggles to make ends meet; one day, he discovers he has supernatural powers, granting him the ability to wield powers equal to the amount of cash he holds.
While not enough reviews have yet been counted for a Rotten Tomatoes score, the reactions that have emerged have been a little mixed. While Decider called the series “a fun superhero premise and doesn’t take itself seriously, striking the right tone for a show where a superhero wants to use his powers but knows it’ll cost him — literally — to do so,” LeisureByte.com concluded, “Cashero is fine, but I think it would’ve been more memorable as a more humorous affair.”
