It’s been a crazier second season, and I think this is the only show wherein all character developments are for the worse. Every episode seemed like confirmation of fan theories from previous events. It’s as if the writer was reading the comments section of every article written about the drama or all the audience’s social media posts to get some more idea of how to stretch the story. It’s not easy to write a three-season drama, especially with a pandemic plaguing not just the production process but everyone in the world. But Penthouse 2, amidst it all, managed to exceed expectations and gave us a better show than its first season. Just when you thought you know it all, the predictability of this show takes one step higher, making it a bolder and in-your-face grandiose makjang fashion. I know I’m already blabbing, but to sum it up – I like it. I like it so much I can’t wait till the third season.
Since there’s going to be another season to wrap everything up, let’s just focus our energy to the major highlights of Penthouse 2.
Oh Yoon-hee marries Ha Yoon-chul to seek revenge only to be betrayed by him and Cheon Seo-jin (again)
Remember when I hyped up the now infamous helicopter scene in the pilot week for my First Impression? It didn’t age well. I was so looking forward to the revenge plan of Yoon-hee and Yoon-chul, but of course, it’s not Penthouse if there were no surprise change of plans along the way. Yoon-chul slowly succumbed to the pressure of protecting his first family because they all thought Ha Eun-byeol killed Bae Ro-na. The daddy revelation was also made in this season. Of course, the fans already knew Ro-na’s real dad was Yoon-chul. We’re all trained for this intertwined family tree by now. What caught me by surprise was the realization of Cheon Seo-jin that she indeed loved Yoon-chul after all these years. They’re indeed in a love triangle. And Yoon-chul chose to protect Eun-byeol in the end, not knowing Ro-na was also his child.
Na Ae-gyo and Shim Su-ryeon are two different people living in a single body
Okay, technically they’re not in one body – this isn’t a fantasy series although it almost feels like it because of the nonstop rebirth/return of dead people. But Na Ae-gyo has been living as Shim Su-ryeon to help Joo Dan-tae gain more connections and wealth. It’s not explained why they looked alike, but I would like to think Ae-gyo went under the knife to look like Su-ryeon so it’s easier to disguise as her. It’s the only plausible reason, right? Anyway, it’s a surprise to know that Dan-tae was capable of loving a person sincerely! He did love Ae-gyo as seen in the season two finale.
Joo Dan-tae and Cheon Seo-jin as couple of the year gone wrong
LOL. This was one of the funniest developments in the drama! We all thought Dan-tae and Seo-jin would become K-drama’s most powerful villain-couple, but man, we were in for a treat. It’s so satisfying to see Seo-jin’s downfall from being a dignified soprano to a kitchen maid. I couldn’t even call her a housewife because she’s not living as the penthouse’s samonim. Seo-jin’s major problem was her decision-making skill. Her hatred for Yoon-hee and hunger for power blinded Seo-jin that a jerk like Dan-tae easily fooled her.
Su-ryeon, Seo-jin, and Yoon-hee teaming up against Dan-tae
This was my favorite part of the season! All three women joined forces to take Dan-tae down, and they all managed to keep their real motives behind the plan. Seo-jin fell into Yoon-hee’s trap for the illegal detention crime (so that she’ll be implicated later on for the same offense she did with Min Seol-ah). Yoon-hee helped Su-ryeon in executing the “killing” of Ae-gyo (without her knowledge that Ro-na was alive all along). And Su-ryeon bravely risked her life to punish Dan-tae for all the crimes he did in the past.
Min Seol-ah finally got the justice she deserved
After all the chaos, Yoon-hee finally turned herself in and implicated all the other accomplices at Hera Place. Up until the hearing day, everyone was clueless that Yoon-hee was the real murderer. It was chaotic until the end. The parents were unapologetic about the desecration of Seol-ah’s body and the many other crimes they have committed. This is when I realized that the character developments all season long were put to waste. This drama will never be about characters’ redemption arcs. This drama exists for us makjang fans to satisfy all our cravings for extreme plotlines and over-the-top narratives that will never happen in reality. And it’s totally fine for me! We all need to have that one drama where we can pour all our madness into, right?
Grumpy Alley
👑 Seo-jin swallowing the sim card of Eun-byeol’s phone is the biggest WTF moment of this season!
👑 Lee Sang-woo and Yoo Jun-sang were my favorite cameos so far!
👑 All hail the mother-daughter acting queens
👑 What is the secret of Eun-byeol’s teacher? Who is she? What’s her real deal?
👑 Park Ho-san ahjussi is Jenny’s dad!! He’s enough reason to look forward to Season 3!
👑 I wonder how Dan-tae managed to escape prison? Of course, he had to bribe everyone! But he’s not out for good, right? He’s serving life imprisonment, right?
👑 With Logan Lee’s death, I could only imagine what could be Su-ryeon’s new revenge plot this time! Will we finally witness retribution in the third season?
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