Aahana Swrup
The second season of ‘BMF’ introduces a new detective on the field, Veronica Jin, who transfers to Detroit and becomes Detective Bryant’s new partner. Thus, the narrative gains a crime-fighting duo to combat protagonists Demetrius “Big Meech” and Terry “Southwest T” Flenory as they expand their drug trafficking ring to take their business to entirely new levels. Furthermore, Jin’s inclusion in the narrative adds another level of storytelling by incorporating more law enforcement perspectives to balance out the stakes within this crime drama show. However, while Veronic Jin remains a valuable addition to the story, her presence in the true-story-inspired narrative of this show raises the question of her character’s authenticity and basis in the Black Mafia Family’s real-life history.
Detective Veronica Jin: Based on Realistic Research
As a dramatized account of the real-life events behind the rise and fall of the Black Mafia Family, ‘BMF’ retains a significant amount of realism in its storylines, characters, and general details. Even so, the show’s creator, Randy Huggins, and his team equip considerable creative liberty to translate real-life events into cinematic storytelling made for TV. As a result, the narrative consists of characters like the Flenory family, who are direct interpretations of their off-screen counterparts, or Lamar Silas, who sports notable inspiration from a real-life individual. Yet, characters like Veronica Jim emerge as a materialization of the show’s more fictionalized parts.
While it is probable that a local law enforcement duo such as Bryant and Jin existed in real life and were investigating the Flenory brothers in the 80s, one can’t confirm their concrete existence through records. Furthermore, Jin’s participation in personal, more dramatic storylines, such as her relationship with Bryant and his kid, Kevin, departs her character further from the real-life criminal case. Yet, the same storyline solidifies her emotional ties as a fleshed-out character within the narrative, allowing for a more nuanced depiction.
Therefore, since there are no real-life counterparts for Jin’s character, it is likely that she’s a fictional element within the show. Still, her character holds on to certain aspects of reality. Mike Nguyen Le, one of the screenwriters and co-executive producers on ‘BMF,’ expanded upon the same on a Reddit thread about the character. “We interviewed several former Detroit detectives who worked the city during the 80s, and there were a few Asian American women in the department,” Nguyen Le noted under the username HyperionCanto when a user raised complaints about Jin’s lack of realism due to her identity as an Asian-American woman.
“One particular senior detective was a Chinese American woman, and she was considered a pitbull and a little reckless when it came to catching criminals,” the screenwriter said. “Jin’s character is very much grounded in reality and research.” Thus, even though her character lacks a tangible connection to any law enforcement officer attached to the Black Mafia Family, her character possesses crucial roots in real-life research.
As the show unfolds its unique crime story, it highlights the moral ambiguity involved within drug trafficking circles— often equipping law enforcement officers to do the same. Jin’s partner, Bryant, remains a stellar example of this as he constantly partakes in morally dubious activities in the name of the law. Likewise, Jin’s character highlights a similar theme as she gradually undergoes a character arc that darkens her moral ambiguity further.
Actress Kelly Hu spoke about the same in a conversation with Bossip. “I think that she [Veronica Jin] has learned that there is a lot of gray area and that sometimes you have to cross over that line to do well, to do good,” said the actress who portrays Jin’s character. “And I think that [Detective] Bryant has really caused her to open up her eyes to see what the real world is like in Detroit, on this dark side.”
Consequently, despite lacking a real-life counterpart, Detective Jin’s character manages to present a realistic and authentic narrative as a police officer in Detroit. Ultimately, with only research-based roots in reality, Jin remains one of the few largely fictitious characters in the show.
Read More: BMF: Is Lamar Silas Based on an Actual Drug Dealer?
