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Gyeongseong Creature Season 2, starring Park Seo-joon, Han So-hee, Claudia Kim, Bae Hyun-sung, and Lee Moo-saeng, aired on Netflix on September 27, 2024. Around 79 years later, season 2 follows the story of Korea's independence from Japan in 1945 and the aftermath of Onseong Hospital and its human experiments.
Following her mother's Najin (a parasite) infection all those years ago, Yoon Chae-ok (Han So-hee) returns in Gyeongseong Creature season 2 as an immortal private investigator 79 years after the events of season 1. As she investigates a string of horrific fatalities, she meets Ho-jae (Park Seo-joon), the amnesic guy who has a striking resemblance to Jang Tae-sang from the first season.
Over the course of seven episodes, the two become entangled in the dark operations of Jeonseung Biotech. It is a dubious company that has produced the Kurokos, a legion of superpowered soldiers infested with Najins. They soon discover that they must once more confront the darkness they encountered decades prior since it was never truly vanquished.
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Weaved with scintillating action sequences and cool gadgets of 2024, Gyeongseong Creature season 2 promises a lot in the beginning. However, it loses the plot in the middle of the show. The well-built legacy of season 1 somehow crumbles beneath the latest season's disappointing plot, lackluster concept, and overzealousness to show a love story amidst a world-shattering crisis.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this series review belong solely to the author.
Gyeongseong Creature season 2 arrives with a bang but falls flat on its face, ruining fans' expectations
Gyeongseong Creature season 2 opens with Jang Ho-jae, who looks like Jang Tae-sang from 1945—both played by Park Seo-joon. The mystery revolving around his true identity—whether he is Tae-sang or just a doppelganger—is enough to keep viewers hooked in the early few episodes. However, Chae-ok's (Han So-hee) naivety starts getting on the nerves.
With a powerful Najin inside her, which she directly received from her mutated mother in season 1, Chae-ok's character is underwritten and reduced to a girl lovelorn and waiting for her knight in shining armor. With 79 years in between the plot of Gyeongseong Creature's two seasons, one would assume that Chae-ok would use her superpowers against Lady Maeda's Jeonseung Bio efficiently.
Unfortunately, she overestimates herself and goes against the organization by herself again and again, only to get injured and almost getting killed each time. Meanwhile, Jang Ho-jae turns out to be Jang Tae-sang from 1945, who got infected with a Najin in 1947 by Lady Maeda.
This particular scene was beautifully filmed, shot, and established. As a brutally injured Tae-sang gains consciousness at his house and finds the mutilated bodies of his friends and associates, Mr. Gu and 20-year-old Beom-o hanging from the ceiling, Park Seo-joon delivers as an actor. He cries profusely and tries to take the hanging bodies down while falling down on the floor multiple times.
Another noteworthy scene is right after this, when the Najin inside Tae-sang takes control of his brain and he rushes to attack an injured Mrs. Nawol. Tae-sang tries to fight the Najin with the remnants of his conscious mind as he asks Mrs. Nawol to run away. But Mrs. Nawol caresses Tae-sang's face one last time and gives him permission to take her life.
Apart from these two scenes, Gyeongseong Creature season 2 offered nothing much to write home about. Lee Moo-saeng as the Kuruko army's head and the right-hand of Jeonseung Bio's chairman delivered a powerful performance, as expected from an actor with his repertoire and stature. Claudia Kim never fails to impress, as always.
However, the entire second season is flawed with loopholes. For instance, what happened between Tae-sang and Jeonseung Bio for 79 years? How did Seung-jo (the son borne of Akiko who was infected with the Najin in season 1) meet Tae-sang and forge an unlikely kinship towards him? How did both Tae-sang and Chae-ok survive with the Najin inside them without feeding off of humans?
The questions kept piling up, making up for an extremely disappointing season. Furthermore, the ending was marred by the overzealousness of the director's wish to turn Chae-ok into Han So-hee from her previous K-drama Nevertheless, yearning for a lover.
Gyeongseong Creature season 2 should be watched only to stay updated with the plot, as the renewal for the third season was confirmed by the show's end-credit scene. Other than that, season 2 couldn't live up to the legacy and name built by season 1.
Gyeongseong Creature season 2 is available on Netflix for global streaming.
