A Shop for Killers Season 2

A Stronger Season 2

Season 2 takes everything that worked in the first season and elevates it. Jeong Jinman has a much stronger presence here, though Jian remains the true core of the story. The emotional range feels a lot wider this time around as well. Season 1 was mostly pure survival in the one house setting. However, this season really opens up the world, introducing new settings and a solid lineup of fresh characters who are just as dynamic of the main cast.

It fell a little short for me as the drama was closing in on the end, with a couple of major plot points getting glossed over, which made the finale feel somewhat rushed. Despite that, it's a dynamic, emotional, and super satisfying continuation off the first season.

8/10 Fantastic Watch!

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NOT THAT GREAT BUT IT'S GOOD

The story continues from the previous season but this time its a bit down for me... No doubt I loved it but that raw action and the scenes in the first season couldn't match the second one... The actions were great just like the previous one but the character depth was missing here... Many scenes which could have been avoided were shown and some characters which did not have depth were drastically pulled... The deaths of certain characters could have been avoided as I think so... And the Babylon Boss which I personally thought could be someone we know but that suspense failed... Overall you can always give it a watch if you have watched the first season... And I hope if they bring a third season, they are gonna rock it because this time it will be leaded by Jian and the war is over for now but it will happen again and we know...

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Oh, boy.... Higher budget (maybe), yet it became even worse

Thanks to the high ratings, this new season got some extra cash I guess. A lot of things are of a higher quality, not always, but they do exist. Unfortunately, the sht is still there...

Visuals. It started with some good cinematography. A couple of different colour palettes, to give us different aspects of storytelling. Even the fight choreography got an upgrade. But then, it went back to meh. Weird camera spinning. Some of the VFX are terrible, mostly when its about scaling them correctly. You get a shot of the MC, some drones behind him, drones that look like (and later we do find out/see it) they have the length of a human torso, then the angle changes and they have a different size. Stuff like that. And no, its not nitpicking, it means the extra budget wasn't well-spent.
Audio. The sound design might be considered good. It has a few terrible choices, such as the track with the annoying beat that also plays at a higher volume so you must keep your fingers on it and keep adjusting it. But overall, good sound design, especially for the tense scenes. It really helps in getting you hooked.
The editing is kinda meh, all over the place. Sometimes good, sometimes it ends the scene too fast... The pacing is also meh. It started ok, but then.. Well, you know... Life happens or something. The world building is minimal but you don't really need it anyway. High production value. And it shows? Well, yes, sometimes it does.

Now the "good" stuff. For the most part, the cast was good. Even some nice chemistry. And the JP team was phenomenal in terms of acting. They really felt like professionals and that they were a team for the last maybe 10 years. I even loved their personalities. Oh, even the old JP gang that appears for just 2 min, in ep 5 I think, yep, even those felt like real people. And the charisma between them ofc. Back to the rest of them. Meh. A mix of meh and very good acting. Also, just a personal thing, but I hated the new young boy. The acting, his role, everything.
Moving on. Some decent character development, but also character assassination. Well played! While the first season had a silly story, at least there was some character work going for it. But now, it all went down the drain. The writer thought he was being cheeky, he tried some "omg" moments, but in fact, it was just sht writing, petty tricks meant to get a reaction from the viewer.
Nice segue, if I say so myself. The writing is horrible. Full of plot holes, plot contrivances, exposition dialogue, villain monologue, plot devices meant solely for artificial pay-offs, red herring, and so on and so on. Everything is meant to push the plot forward in the direction that the writer wills it, no matter if it makes sense or not, if a character would do such a thing or not. And after figuring out its "play", it was easy to guess how the events will unfold. Not everything, obviously. But when something weird was happening on screen, I could guess the general idea as to why, what it was intended to happen next.
A personal opinion: when the new season started, I kinda liked what was happening, I genuinely thought it got better. Then crazy and dumb sht happens and I realised that it wont. Then, the JP enter the stage and again I liked what I saw and I hoped for some things to happen, I started to write a scenario with them in mind. A good one I mean. But with each passing minute, when the stuff happening got dumb and dumber, and sh***ier, I knew then and there that it will be bad. But I had no idea HOW bad.

So, when the new season started, I had some ideas for the story, how it should go. Now that she knew, obviously, you need a time skip and training montage. Teaching her basic and superficial stuff while she has no idea? OK, then now she must learn everything she can, asap. Right? Well, I wont spoil it for you, you have to suff-- ahem, you'll have to watch and figure it out yourself, too. So, I hit play and hoped for the best. It started OK, or at least it was enjoyable. After the initial 20-30 min or so, it became the usual slop. The episode 2 happens, more nonsense. Then the 3rd one, even more nonsense. No, not even the JP team (that I loved) couldn't help me in enjoying it more. Yes the episode starts ok, but the ending is horrible. Many times have I yelled "shut the fk up, you dumb b**ch", no matter who it was that was talking. Because, surprise, the dialogue is sht. And the quality will never get better.
Then ep 4 happens. Cheap melodrama. When it happened, I knew what the next thing will be, Why it was there like that. Is it sad (maybe "sad" is too much)? Sure. And it took me by surprise. Because I thought they'd use it better, not just going for the cheap tricks. My bad, dunno why I was having such high opinions about them. But before that, the next scenes were decent, apart from fight choreography and decisions. Those were NOT moves of super mega, high efficient, OP soldiers, with their background. And THEN it gets to the dumb "plot-twist" that I knew it was coming. Ep 5 has sht and dumb dialogue, again. But it also had that 1-minute scene, with the old JP "grandpa" that had higher gravitas than all the supporting cast before. And he only has like 2-3 lines... Episode 6 was full of dumb-fk actions. All the characters became re****ed because the script needed them to be, so that the plot could happen. Starting with episode 7, I was just waiting for it to end. No matter what happened on screen, I couldn't care less. The drama: "Sad things happening... sad music... see? Its sad. Be sad". Me: "Fk off. Where's that damn playback speed settings?" So, yeah. The rest went by faster (because of me, not because the pacing got better). I already knew what the general plot lines will be, how the writer will make usage of them, so the last hour went by smoothly. Nothing special, everything sht.

And now you know. This story exists only because "it just so happened that...*insert random motive*", times 4. Coincidences do exist, do happen. But forcing 4-5 of them at the same time? Thats just lazy (or sht) writing. For example, lets say you work in a high-lvl bio research facility. And, while in a biosafety/hazmat suit, you open you visor to eat a chocolate candy bar and you drop the wrapper on the floor. That wrapper gets sucked into the door's intern mechanisms, that creates a short-circuit and a fire, that creates an error into a computer that, for some abstract (and dumb) reason was programmed to open all the doors. Into a building full with species, predatory species btw, that you experiment on. And just for the fun of it and to make it even more "whoa", lets make those animals something really really mean. Oh, and big. Yeah, lets make them.. dinosaurs! Ofc, such a movie doesn't exist. Just imagine doing a movie with such a sh***y idea, the reason for all of it to happen being a series of random coincidences. Yep, that will never happen ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

So, the technical aspects did got some upgrade, but overall, it got worse. While the first season had sht dialogue and the logic behind the action was lacking, you could put it all on her, saying she's a noob, only a few pro helpers etc. But now? You have a whole fking cast of mega op soldiers. On both sides, mind you. Every action, every thought should be full with high efficiency in mind. But nope. And the dialogue is soooooooo re***ded that will make you blink and look again. "I was living a normal life" (when in fact she did everything possible to not interact with anyone, do not create any relations. Only in the last 3 weeks she did something more). Or "He took the first step and shut down the website. He really wants a truce with us.... I do only whats best for the company. He did that of his own accord. He should hunt him down". So, he wants a ceasefire, so he took something to force you into it, he has the upper hand (the info) in the negotiations and he chose to make something self-damaging as a show of good faith. You do everything for the sake of the company, so your first thought is to hunt him down, when he could go public at any moment? What??? How the fk is that a logical thing? And why is no one asking her how is that making any sense in what she just said? And thats just about the logic behind their words/actions. There's also "evilman dialogue", while laughing. I'm not being cheeky. That person is telling outloud all the evil plans that happened or that will happen, while laughing maniacally. And not just once. I know its hard to believe, to imagine it... But it really is in this drama. And those are just some tiny examples of sht dialogue. It goes on and on and on and on.... Also, they have drones and robots that can withstand a blast, and super mega shields... Omg, I forgot about those shields... Those are the same as the suits in John Wick Universe, a bad plot device that will destroy any story-telling. If you have access to those, just send 1000 of them. Done. The whole drama will end in 5 minutes. *sigh* How could I forget about those? *double-sigh*

The absolute only good thing in this season was the JP team. And more specifically, the actress named Q in the drama (dunno her name), was phenomenal. Fantastic work. Its been a moment since I last saw such an amazing performance. When she's happy, funny, cheeky, sad, everything. Even her fight choreography was enjoyable even good. Now, if the story would've been better, I would've rewatched it just to see her acting again.
Anyway. It gets a rating of 3. Mostly in regards of the JP cast, and some visuals. And maybe 2-3 character development. The story, the plot, the dialogue, everything in regards to that was sht. Not recommended, no rewatching value. I don't know if it will get a new season, but it might. The ending for the last one made sense to have a new one, but for this, who knows. I'm sure it will be praised a lot, because people still think that "enjoyment" = "good media".... So, yeey us.... *sigh*

Have a lovely evening.

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Murthehelp VS Babylon

Season 1 of A Shop for Killers worked thanks to a subtle balance between a gripping, claustrophobic thriller and inventive action that managed to surprise at every turn. We followed Ji-An through a believable progression, we worried about her, and we anxiously watched her make one risky choice after another. The tension was constant, with twists in every episode. It was pretty difficult to figure out where the story was going because information was revealed little by little. Season 2 completely changes direction, and yet the first episode really whetted my appetite because it was clever and offered another great idea to bring both returning viewers and newcomers into the story. Unfortunately, I was immediately less convinced by what followed. Sure, the drama is as addictive as a good pack of Kopiko candies, but it completely abandons the novel in order to exploit the 100% action angle.

The first episode starts with a rather original idea: it takes place during the final episode of Season 1, but from Jin-Man's point of view. We get to see what was happening behind the scenes, while also discovering his connection to Babylon's Japanese branch more than fifteen years earlier, before he founded Murthehelp. If Season 1 was a faithful adaptation of the first chapter of Kang Ji-Young's book, this sequel is a very loose adaptation that no longer follows the original trilogy's storyline at all. I'll be honest: I could have stopped right there at the end of this introductory episode. Why? Because what follows completely abandons the intelligent thriller side of the story and dives headfirst into much more generic action spectacle. I felt like I was watching a mix of Counter-Strike and Splinter Cell (the video games), with a bit of The Expendables thrown in. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing, but it still needs to live up to the stakes. Unfortunately, this feels more like fan service than anything else. Overall, it's enjoyable, but nothing more. I'm a little disappointed because the narrative downgrade compared with Season 1 isn't merely a matter of degree.

After Season 1, we were expecting the return of Bale (Jo Han-Sun), the iconic antagonist, the psychopath, the unstoppable killing machine. He is indeed here, but unfortunately, he's little more than a guest appearance before giving way to the Sino-Korean Jin Kusanagi (Jung Yun-Ha), the head of Babylon's Japanese branch. She has about as much charisma as an oyster, and her best agent, Agent Q (Hyunri), is barely any better. I'm not against women being used as badass characters—quite the opposite—but seriously, was there really nothing better available? They simply lack presence, and more importantly, they never feel dangerous in any way. The Murthehelp team is still around, but many of them no longer have the same impact. They mostly seem to be there to make an appearance, before several of them are eventually taken out toward the end. We could have hoped for stronger bonds between Jin-Man and Ji-An. Nope. Everything feels artificial and predictable. I don't get the same hype as before, especially that wonderfully chaotic feeling that things were almost being improvised on the spot. The plot is so basic that Episode 2 is almost the complete opposite of the first. I genuinely thought it was some kind of elaborate joke. The rest isn't exactly brilliant either, and by the final episode, you can pretty much read the whole thing like an open book.

The story creates a stylistic clash between two rival organizations fighting for the parallel-market arms trade, supplying Third World governments, rebels, and private militias. Whereas Murthehelp was originally presented almost like a local business catering to the "killers in the neighborhood," it has now received a massive upgrade and is suddenly capable of almost going toe-to-toe with Babylon. The arrival of a whole army of "clowns" makes the series more spectacular and bloodier, with sound design that can sometimes be excessive (the knife impacts sound downright cartoonish). The violence is therefore turned up a notch, and the visual spectacle improves, while realism and atmosphere take a hit. Some characters we had grown attached to in the past aren't treated with much respect. A minimum amount of empathy, please—is that really too much to ask? Meaningful relationships disappear in favor of predictable and pointless behavior. Thankfully, the fight sequences are well choreographed, because it would have been something if they'd messed those up too. Special mention to Ji-An, who apparently read How to Become G.I. Joe in 10 Easy Lessons to make up for her previous combat deficiencies.

Technically, it's solid, no complaints there: the direction lives up to its ambitions. And if you're looking for fights, massacres, explosions, and mass dismemberment, you're going to be well served. It's a shame we don't get to see the uncle and niece together more often; they seem to spend most of their time avoiding each other. I wasn't convinced by the supposed-but-not-really passing of the torch: Kim Hye-Jun was better and more convincing in Season 1 than she is here. Apparently, somewhere between a stray bullet and a punch to the face, she somehow found time to get her hair done and her makeup touched up... Yeah, between a full-blown brawl and a beauty salon, priorities matter. Lee Dong-Wook does the job; it's clean and solid without being outstanding. As for Jin-Man's team, it's nice to see the old faces returning, but since I don't want to spoil anything, prepare to be disappointed and disgusted. The drama is short, just like Season 1, but the density is noticeably lower. That's undeniable. It feels like they spend several episodes circling each other before finally making an appointment for the big final fight. What a surprise!

In the end, Season 2 isn't bad, far from it, but it has lost what made the first season so appealing. Where Season 1 was constantly trying to surprise us, this one is mostly trying to blow us away. It works fairly well if you approach it as pure, unapologetically over-the-top entertainment, but much less so if you were hoping for the tense and clever thriller that made the first season such an addictive watch. We still have the characters, the weapons, the fights, and gallons of blood, but we've lost a large part of what made the first season so compelling: the tension, the uncertainty, and that feeling that everything could go completely off the rails at any moment. It's spectacular and occasionally exhilarating, but considerably more predictable. The entertainment factor is still there, but if the steak is bloodier, it doesn't taste as good. The conclusion is bafflingly predictable, but the good news is that the ending seems fairly definitive... Which, in my opinion, won't stop them from making one final installment anyway.

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Season 1 still tops!

The Shop For Killers season one still sits on the throne of one the best action thriller kdrama ever produced. The action scenes,the thrill,the background stories,the emotional attachment it had...every thing was top notch. I can't forget the absolute horror the little Jian witnessing Honda being killed and his hand haunting her for years....or that gut punching scene of her finding her mothers deadbody in the morgue and trying to find shelter by hugging that deadbody thinking that deadbody would save her....her bonding little by little with Jinman,Jinman finding her absolutely crushed after being locked in the school storehouse after calling out his name three times......the step by step revealation of Murthehelp and its backstory,Bale and his monstrosity, the absolute horror of him throwing grenade to room full of abducted women......and in the end of everything, Jinman coming back alive and the final relief in Jian's eyes. It was absolute cinema.

Believe me,nothing in this season could touch me the way season 1 did. I know second season of any popular drama almost always sucks. This one didn’t suck. It just didn’t had that attachment.

The things that bothered me in this season....

1. The nerfed down version of Jinman.. He suddenly became brainless. The person who made Murthehelp from scratch,without letting even Jian guess anything under the basement of the house she lives,went head to head fight with Babylon....suddenly he became inactive. He cant make any decision, he was out of the picture half the time. And an amature like Jian taking alll the decisions, not even someone like Minhye. I really dont get it. Yeah I know this season is to showcase Jian's growth as the CEO but hey,if we think realistically, Jian still has a looooooong way to go as to become a decision maker for something like Murthehelp. She didn’t even know its existence like few years ago,distanced herself from it. Going face to face war with something so massive like Babylon without Jinman,idk how is this even possible. They just kept Jinman out of picture out of the time when he should be the one guiding Jian in this season. I still don't understand why she sent Jinman to Babylon as an abducted when it could be a suicidal decision if they failed.

2. Bale's death. It was waaaayyyy too early. I admit Kusanagi is a very stratagic villain but she is also extremely narcissistic person. She has no personal animosity with any of Murthehelp. She's just doing her job and saving her a**. She thinks she's great in her job,but she couldn’t bring the absolute horror. But Bale was the first threat that started all of this chaoes. Bale HIMSELF is the chaoes. He doesn’t care if he lives or dies,he only wants Jinaman to rot in hell at any cause. And this sort of madness with personal animosity was really necessary to keep the things tight till the end. Bale and Jinaman both had worked together for years. They had background stories. They both were trained the same way. Its their morals that collided. Bale brought the monstrosity and Jinman brought the humanity. This story needed Bale. I believe Bale and Kusanagi together could be a very powerful villain duo.

3.Q. Her introduction was powerful ngl. But as the episode proceeds,it started to get evident, she doesn’t use her brain much except in action sequence. So many things happened,she is a skilled assassin,she knows kusanagi and her nature, she got to know Bale and the grudge between Bale and J,she also saw how Jinman saved both of their lives before,a whole bus of people from Babylon got burned down to death......but nothing made her think something is going on inside Babylon behind her??? And after she got to know the truth,she just went back to her country instead of going after Kusanagi??? Girly was literally after Jinaman to avenge her brother, then why not Kusanagi????

4.Pasin. Oh God what should I even say about this storyline.... What madness possessed the makers to make one of the most loveable characters of the series a betrayer??? And also why could pasin communicate through writing or anything before the hidde camera was installed? Also that camera was blinking red right before our eyes ffs. And again...why was pasin's son so out in the open that Babylon could get him so easily? We know Pasin is Jinmans right hand man. Babylon went all out to find Jian when she didn’t even know anything. Now when Pasin is actively working,what made them think Babylon wont go after Pasin's weakness too????


5. Killing almost all important characters. Idk if they ever gonna make season 3. But if they do, Murthehelp without Pasin,Brother,the detective and a villain like Bale....idk how are they gonna compensate that. Bring all new characters you want,but emptiness of the characters that started this journey can never be fully compensated.


As I said,this season was'nt all bad. But that attachment is definitely gone for me.

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LISTEN UP AUDIENCE! Season 1 was Jinman’s story, Season 2 is Jina’s story

We start right off where season 2 ended and get introduced to new characters + re-meet old foes as uncle and niece band together to face off against Babylon. Fight scenes are genuinely amazing and exciting to watch and the actors do a great job like they did in season 1. The new season’s actors too bring their A game. Special shout out to all the actors who were alternating between like Korean, Japanese/Thai/Chinese and English. I loved how much bigger the setting of this season was from Japan to Korea to Thailand.

I really enjoyed everything about it despite some suspending disbelief moments (which s1 actually had way more imo like Jinman not killing Bale with the knife or Jinah being in the woods with those wolves so it wasn’t a big deal). There were also more comedic dark humor moments especially between Bale, Marco and J which I liked.

Unfortunately I saw a lot of people complaining about the story being messy or the 2nd season “losing the plot.” I would argue these people are the ones who completely lost/missed the story, not the drama. Below are spoilers, but know that so many people just feel entitled to have dramas go exactly the way they want or its’s “bad writing.”

Character motivations were very clear and made sense, they’re not even that different from S1 which was always either protect Jinah or kill Jinman/Jinah so the some comments about this motivations being unclear this season also confuses me.

Season 1 was always Jinman/the uncle’s story. We uncover his backstory, what motivated him, his enemies and allies. Despite being presumed dead in S1, the uncle is the main character haunting the narrative and even though yes, Jian is there in S1, she’s more of a audience surrogate as we constantly flash back and forwards to piece together the image of who Jeong Jiman really is. Of course Jian’s story itself gets set up a bit but overwhelmingly every piece of how season 1 unfolds were planned in advance by her uncle, it’s really his game to control and move. The big bad of the season too is the uncle’s nemesis with a fraught history between them, Bale was nowhere near all the operations to take Jinah down, he never goes there personally in s1 because his ultimate focus is Jeong Jiman and Jinah is a supporting character.

Season 2 now is Jinah’s story. We open with her struggling to cope with what she’s disvored, running away to a faraway village and eventually establishing connections with people. Losing them too and learning what pain is like her uncle did in season 1 (other characters also point this out that she will learn to be like her jaded uncle soon). Season 2 is Jinah’s transformation into her uncle in a way or to see if she can be different from him experienceing the same things (Jinah herself plants this seed by saying she will never be like her uncle in the beginning of s1). She even has the same “slapping herself over guilt of a loved one’s death” scene her uncle did in season 1 here. The writers are clearly making a parallel. Even the big bad(s) of this season were written to mirror Jinah.

First yes both Q and Kusanagi are women leaders like Jinah. On top of that Q is similar to Jinah as someone who was raised by the yakuza like Jinah was raised by her assassin uncle. Q had to watch her dad be killed in from of her when she was 10 just like Jinah witnessed her uncle’s friend’s arm get chopped off, and had to hide from a killer by laying next to her dead mom’s body in the morgue. The writers are so on the nose about it, idk how people missed it but the scene where Brother is hurt and Q and Jinah face off, you can see the parallels of them both wanting to seriously hurt the person that took away their loved ones. Q even says to Jiman that “your niece in that moment had the same look in her eyes I had back when I was young.”But unlike Q who lets others manipulate her using her brother’s death, Jinah learns to not let her temper and hurt control her, she doesn’t impulsively go after Q to kill her when she could be used as a great pawn to take down the head of Babylon Korea. Both are team leaders that care deeply about their teammates, but Jinah learns to be more levelheaded as part of her character development.

Then there’s Kusanagi who again the writers are very obvious about being a female CEO like Jinah and being the head of a major organization like Babylon/murthehelp. Kusanagi isn’t cold and crazy for the sake of it, she’s there to be a character foil to Jinah who genuinely treats her employees like family so they’re willing to lay down their lives to her versus how Jin gets abandoned by every Babylon employee in the end cause she’s cold hearted and don’t consider them hers.

Even the choice to make Kusanagi a self hating Korean wanting so hard to be Japanese and super disdainful of everything Korean + speaking Japanese all the time which in the end backfired on her with the lawyer and other Babylon employees is purposeful imo. She can’t unite people of these different nationalities under her like Bale and J, while Jinah despite hiccups on the road with Pasin, in the end had everyone from Thailand and North Korea to China and South Korea laying down their life for her. Kusamagi likes siding with whoever is more powerful and can benefit her the most, which was the case for many pro-Japanese Koreans during Korea’s colonization under Japan whose descendants live in luxury today. Kusanagi is very much the same and wants to take over murderthehelp borrowing Babylon’s power. The choice to make her have this identity is not random. Her boss tells her multiple times that she doesn’t work for the good of Babylon, but only herself, in direct constants to Jinah who works for the good of her murthehelp family.

I get people wanted some melodramatic confrontation and longer story between Bale and Jinman, but dragging that story out when 1. that would be way too unrealistic considering they’re literally just trying to kill each other anytime they make contact 2. this is not Jinman’s story but Jinah’s. Bale and Jinah don’t have much emotional character connections/juxtaposition between them like she does with Q and Kusanagi. Bale is Jinman’s nemesis and his foil with both being cold killing machines when they worked for Babylon and favorite of their boss who says they’re very similar but also different cause Jinman is not entirely psychotic. Bale is not fit for Jinah’s season. (Plus just having a indestructible big bad who’s always coming back from the dead + explosions and fire is so Alice in Borderland type of shounen manga cliche, I’m glad they avoided that in this season).

The drama make it a point to tell the choice to make everyone part of the green code and be protected just like her is Jinah’s choice, not her uncle’s (he’s surprised by the meeting even being called). In fact the theme of “Jinah is now in control” is repeated so many times in the drama and we see the “LISTEN UP JEONG JINAH” chapter title cards actively change to “LISTEN UP JEONG JINMAN” at the end of the season, signifying Jinah’s growth as a character throughout her own story, now the one with experience + wisdom to share as a result of her journey, no longer led by the advice of her elder. You may not like it, but it makes absolute sense with how the story is written, so the lost the plot or the story don’t make sense complaints just tells me people consider it “bad writing” if a drama don’t go exactly the way they want it. Don’t even get me started on the people giving low ratings cause god forbid fan favorite characters die in an action thriller drama named a shop for KILLERS.

Overall a good drama that kept me engaged and glued to my screen

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Good but too many thing are missing.

Actually Shop for Killers Season 2 was not bad and the fighting scene are more intense. Lee Dong Wook and Kim Hyejun are still do good job for their acting and action scene. Okada Masaki was only for less than 1 episode like flash. Hyunri cast was a mistake and her acting are too weak compare to other supporting actors. Pasin and Minha which is my favorite characters from season 2 didn't get the spotlight and they are also the key of the story.

They included too many new character and lost the core of season 1 and lost the suspense feeling of it. I feel they killed main enemies too fast and make me lost excitement. It feels too hollow since the plot is going nowhere.

Do I hate Season 2? No. I was hope they could built pace of plot more decent.

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The Art of Negotiation

The story picks up right after Season 1 ends, when Jeong Jinman returned to the destroyed home. They later showed a flashback of what happened in Jeong Jinman’s side during the siege of the shopping mall in season 1, and then some. Jeong Jian decides that she is not going to lead the same life as her uncle, and goes off seeking to live a normal life in some remote island under the new fake identity her uncle prepares for her. Although the ceasefire seems to have been achieved between murthehelp and Babylon, it is not long before Babylon cannot stand for their server being held hostage by murthehelp, hence started their move to retrieve it again, violating the ceasefire and hunting down Jeong Jian to get to Jeong Jinman. The wreckage Babylon inflicts on the island Jian was living in made her realize that there no running away anymore, and returns to her uncle’s side to deal with Babylon.

While Season 1 focused entirely on Jian’s survival during the mall siege, Season 2 sheds the spotlight on her character growth post aftermath, of how she made peace with the kind of life she had to lead, how she develops relationships with people around her and how she matures with every decision she made for murthehelp. The earlier episode of her life on the island was rather slow-paced, but it picks up when she returned to Jinman. The actress did a great job here, displaying quite a wide range of intense emotions with each episode. Her character is not the perfect antihero. She experienced panic, frustration, disappointment, indecisiveness, and I feel irritated when she goes through those episodes, but I also know it is important to show her vulnerabilities to enhance her growth.

I totally love murtahelp’s archenemy of season 2, Kusanagi Jin. Previously an executive of Babylon’s Japanese branch, she is tasked to help with the server retrieval in Korea. A Korean born Japanese wanabe, she is obsessed with control and she takes ultimate pride of her leadership ability. Kusanagi secretly went rouge as she takes the helm of the Korean branch by shady means, relying heavily on the team she brought in from Japan led by Q. Although Bale and Lee Seongjo had been ruthless and unhinged in Season 1, they actually pale in comparison to Kusanagi, whom proves to be even more diabolical than the previous main villains in Season 1. While the two guys rely heavily on their physical abilities, Kusanagi nails her enemies using tactical and strategical means even if it means manipulating her team or her own sexual partner. Utterly unhinged and unreliable as a boss or a friend.

There are so many flashbacks in the drama, which usually take place at the beginning of each episode to explain what really had happened on the other party of what is shown in the previous episode. I can’t say I am fond of this storytelling technique, cuz it always feel like a failed suspense-buildup for me. I get that they were trying to manifest different situations within the same timeframe, but somehow it’s just not working for me. It kind of becomes my petpeeve. I really hate productions that rely on flashbacks to tell their story.

I am also quite disappointed that most of the villain characters that I root for die early. I am glad Marco the trilingual translator of Q’s team survived though. This guy is very entertaining, the clown kind of character. The fact that they decide to put multilingual characters here without a hiccup in its execution is admirable, when other kdramas struggle with only English as the other language written in its dialogue. Here we get to see characters speaking Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and English very smoothly. The actors definitely put serious effort in delivering their lines, well done!

SPOILER BEYOND THIS LINE……..







I am so mad that they decided to kill off Pasin Kradek character. He had been my all time favourite of the show. Really love his smooth fighting skills, and to know that the actor is an actual competetive martial artist is mindblowing. No wonder his moves had been so fluid and didnt look like he learnt it just for the series. Though what’s even more mindblowing is to realize that the actor is Korean all along. He acted as a Thai character very convincingly, i am suspecting one of his parents must have been a Thai cuz his features looks very Thai to me. Just why can’t this character be preserved just like Minhye? 😫 I really wanted to see more of him in S3

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Eight Episodes Were Not Enough

One of my most anticipated dramas this year, and after finally finishing Season 2, I can say it was absolutely worth the wait. What I appreciated most was how naturally the season continued from Season 1, bringing back familiar characters, answering lingering questions, and expanding on the events we were left with.

This season gives us more insight into Jeong Jin-man, including what happened after he faked his death and what he was doing during the attack on Jian. His past becomes increasingly important as the Babylon Group and its branches emerge as a new threat. Since Jin-man already has a history with them, the conflict feels personal and connected rather than simply introducing another group of villains.

At the center of the season is Jian, who is still struggling with everything she experienced in Season 1. She wants to escape the dangerous world her uncle left behind, but she gradually realizes that running from it won't make it disappear. The more she tries to protect herself and the people she loves, the deeper she becomes involved.

I especially loved Jian's character development. She becomes smarter, more resourceful, and more capable of protecting herself. Her traps, cameras, and ability to anticipate danger show just how much she has grown since Season 1. But what makes her development more interesting is the darker direction her character takes.

Her first kill in Season 1 clearly traumatized her, but as she experiences more loss and betrayal, that fear and hesitation slowly begin to disappear. Her actions become more intentional, and she starts to understand that violence may be necessary to survive and protect the people around her. That transformation is fascinating, but also a little frightening.

The final look Jin-man gives Jian says a lot without needing words. It feels like he's beginning to realize that Jian is entering the very world he spent so long trying to keep her away from. I love how much stronger and more capable she has become, but I also worry about what that strength is turning her into. If we get a Season 3, I hope Jin-man can help her navigate that darkness without allowing her to lose herself completely.

I also really enjoyed getting to know Jin-man better this season. Season 1 showed us what he was capable of, but Season 2 gives us a better understanding of the person behind the violence. He's cruel and capable of doing terrible things, but he's also deeply aware of the consequences of the world he's involved in. His guilt and concern for Jian add another layer to his character and make his relationship with her much more complicated.

The supporting cast was also strong, and I liked how their relationships and motivations continued to unfold. Some of the betrayals genuinely made me angry, but most of them were well executed and made sense within the story. Unfortunately, some character deaths were difficult to accept, especially one that I felt was completely undeserved. Still, I won't say more because I don't want to spoil anything.

My biggest issue was the pacing. The first half felt a little slow in places, while the latter part became noticeably rushed. I understand why, considering there were only eight episodes, but I honestly think this story needed more room to breathe. There were too many characters, connections, past events, betrayals, and plot points to fit comfortably into such a short season. I wouldn't have minded 12 episodes, or even more, because the story had enough material to justify it.

The music was also solid and fit the dark, tense atmosphere of the drama without taking attention away from the story.

Overall, I really enjoyed Season 2. It successfully built upon the first season, gave us a deeper understanding of Jin-man, introduced a threat tied to his past, and delivered some of the most interesting character development through Jian.

My biggest wish is that the season had been longer. Despite the rushed ending, I think they made the most of the eight episodes they had. The open ending definitely left me wanting more, and if there is a Season 3, I hope they take their time and explore Jian's transformation even further.

At this point, I'm not as worried about whether Jian can survive this world. I'm more worried about what surviving it is turning her into.

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A painfully obvious, uninspired cashgrab

I really wish producers stuck to making sequels ONLY when the creators have an actually interesting, well thought out idea about how to advance the story instead of simply milking it for the sake of money!

This season was literally embarassing. Character development was all over the place (Ji-an going from being disgusted by her uncle's work to suddenly being capable and cold-blooded enough to lead a small army against Babylon in a span of two episodes is the most glaring example), there were so many plotholes that i won't even try to list them, and don't get me started on forced and frustratingly nonsensical deaths in a pathetic attempt to add some emotional weight to a painfully bland story! I was really hoping we'd get more scenes with season 1's characters interacting - they are already established, so it would've been really cool and emotionally impactful to explore their dynamics - but instead, we're bombarded with too many new characters that the writers didn't even bother to flesh out.

The only thing i liked about this mess is the acting, because it takes real talent to do it when the script either makes no sense or gives you nothing to work with. Lee Dong-wook is my favorite actor and i tend to watch most of his work, but no amount of great acting can save a drama when the writing is this abysmal. Needless to say, i really hope there won't be more seasons if this is what they're going to be like.

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With the release of this season, videos from the previous one are coming out, and one shows a flashback of the villain "Blade" killing civilians while wearing a keffiyeh… Why that choice? He's the only one. No one else wears one. What message are they trying to convey…? It makes you wonder.

Otherwise, this season makes up for the mistakes of the previous one. They've stopped replaying the same scene ten times for no reason. And the world of this evil Japanese agency continues to expand. They still struggle to do anything with their heroine. She shows impressive action skills, but… she'll end up in a romance with the only guy around, and despite her training, she barely fights at all. Maybe in Season 3 ? Haha

The action scenes are impressive for their excellent quality and their penchant for gore ! That's definitely Disney+ material... wait ?
If there's one reason to watch this series, it's for this meticulously crafted violence. However, a baseball bat to the head means death, not just a little nap. We need to stop with this nonsense. And getting shot multiple times apparently has no more effect on these people than cutting yourself while peeling onions.

An abrupt ending, just like Season 1.
Still not entirely convinced but entertained, I hope for a Season 3 that further improves the formula. Please give your heroine something to do ! (apart from crying alone and waiting for her uncle)

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