The Glory: Part 2 | Open Thread + Reviews

A woman seeks revenge on her high school bullies.

Notable Actors/Actresses

Song Hye-kyo: Moon Dong-eun

Lee Do-hyun: Joo Yeo-jung

Lim Ji-yeon: Park Yeon-jin

Park Sung-hoon: Jeon Jae-joon

Yum Hye-ran: Kang Hyun-nam

Jung Sung-il: Ha Do-young

Director: 

Ahn Gil-ho

Screenwriter:

Kim Eun-sook

Hangul Title

더 글로리 시즌2

Genres: Contemporary, Slight Romance, Suspense 

Year: 2023

Network: tvN

Episodes: 8 (16 total, Part I in Remarks)

Jump to Reviews | Remarks | Comments  

Remarks

By FanFanX

[Actors/Actresses] Song Hye Kyo is back, so don't look away! Part 1 was my first series with Lee Do Hyun, who is enigmatic... Yeom Hye Ran is one of my favorite actresses, so I was curious to know what her character would be in this. All six leads are quite convincing (and some are very loathsome) in Part 1, so I'm looking forward to what Part 2 will bring - Dong Eun's actual fire and brimstone perhaps?! 

Why yes, there are two posts back-to-back with Lee Do Hyun as lead... It's just my year to finally enjoy him! 

[Notes on Part 1] These are very much notes with my reactions and some [Spoilers] contained within. 

The Glory. Part I. 

Ep1. I cannot wait for Moon Dong Eun's revenge. I really loathe Park Yeon Jin. (They did well with the casting of young and present PYJ.)

Ep2. How Moon Dong Eun ignores Joo Yeo Jung but she totally noticed... Him being her Go tutor is saying a lot. Park Yeon Jin, I love the scared look she got when she heard she was being talked about. 

Son Myeong Oh is Jae Jun's dog. I'm cackling over this!

Oh, this is who Kang Hyun Nam is. I love Yeom Hye Ran and was curious as she never disappoints!

Ep3. Kang Hyun Nam. T___T OMG, but Moon Dong Eun’s plan to help her! That evil witch has such a cute daughter. (The kid actress is young Woo Young Woo!)

Hmmm, Jae Joon is the ML from Into the Ring. What?! Bwahaha, it’s totally his HAIR again! Beyond that... he's such a POS!!

Joo Yeo Jung when he sees her again… I’m a sucker for him!

Oh. That guy is the asshole teacher’s son. Omo.

Ohhh, the actress Kim Hi Eo Ra who was the NK defector from EAW is in this as Lee Sa Ra. Her eyes are soooo striking! The two characters are like night and day. Yikes.

Bwahahaha, this is sooooo delicious. Moon Dong Eun showing up in front of these assholes.

Ep4. Another EAW actor, Heo Dong Won who is so good at being creepy AF is wearing this odious wig…which makes him even more creepy. LOL
I kind of like the PYJ's husband, Ha Do Young.

Ep5. No way…Ha Ye Sol is Jae Jun’s kid?! 

BWAHAHAHA. Finally came across Yeo Jung's phone reaction. I've been waiting for him to eventually do that bug-eyed thing. WINNING! He throws the phone like it's on fire! LOL I love how he then calls her to ask to meet.

Ep6. And there's the psycho in Joo Yeo Jung. Dang. These two in every scene has been soooo addicting. 🔥🔥🔥

Ep7. I'm getting a Dexter vibe with Yeo Jeong...
Wow. I really loathe Jae Jung. (But I really like this actor!)

Ep8. I love how Moon Dong Eun's been setting them up and knocking out one-by-one. The cliffhanger ending. March huh... I can wait three months, right?!

Worth the watch. (IDK how I am going to survive the wait.) Trigger warnings galore: severe violence, sex, and bullying. If you can make it past Ep1, then you can probably watch the entire 8 eps. If you cannot make it past the events in Ep1, it will not get much easier. The six main leads deserve accolades! 🙌🙌🙌
Revenge is bitter, tough and so delicious. 5/5.

[Behind the Scenes] 

→ BTS of Part I. Onscreen v. IRL. They're all so sweet!

→ Part I commentary which includes Song Hye Kyo and Lee Do Hyun! Im Ji Yeon is told that she was born to be a villain. No lie there as she's stellar here. (I was not far off the mark about the romance being a separate tiny entity from the rest of this series.) Absolutely love that the writer and Song Hye Kyo are both such fans of Yeom Hye Ran.  

→ Not a BTS. The supporting cast discuss fan theories on Part 2. No spoilers. I find Park Sung Hoon to be so witty. (Yet he's such a psychopath in the series!) Bwahaha, and they all rib Jung Sung Il for being old. (He’s really got such a serious dad vibe. lol!)  

[Ending] Happy for those deserving of it.
For those who don't want to watch the series but want to know about the villains' fates.

Reviews

Submit Your Review | Rating Guide

Five (5/5)

Four (4/5)

Three (3/5)

Reviewer: FanFanX 

Date: April 2023

[Mid-series Review]

This first half is worth the watch. Trigger warnings galore: strong violence, sexual acts, and bullying. If you can make it past Ep1, then you can probably watch the rest of it. If you cannot make it past the events in Ep1, it will not get much easier. The six main leads deserve accolades! If the rating was based on this part only – 4/5!

It’s a gritty show, and if one thought that Part II was going to get easier – not quite. You would think watching the villains fall is easy but it isn’t. Would we be human if we did? 

Moon Dong Eun has been plotting her revenge for years now. She’s been studying the five villains and finally made her presence known. She never crosses the line of doing anything illegal, and actually lets them work/eat each other into extinction. And then she meets Joo Yeo Jung who nearly disrupts all of her plans - and he wants to become her swordsman. There is the tiniest amount of romance in this, which I, even as a hardcore romance fan, feel that it was unnecessary. The romance between the leads is fine but it felt very out of place with the rest of the series – which is about revenge, corruption, madness and mayhem. Even as I say this, I also understand that this contributes to the seed of humanity left in Dong Eun, as she doesn't need to not become a monster like her perpetrators.

My favorite character is Kang Hyun Nam who brings such humanity to this series with her personal suffering and the strides she takes to ensure that her daughter doesn't have to live this way forever. Im Ji Yeon and Jeon Jae Joon are both so despicable – and the actors behind them deliver such an immersive performance.  

I've said it for Part I, and I'll repeat it: If you can’t get through the events of Ep1, then it won’t get much easier to digest the rest of it. You can read about Ep1 and watch the rest of the series but they incorporate various flashbacks so there’s just no way around the violence, gore and trauma in this one. The first half was fabulous in keeping us engaged and made us ravenous for the second half. The second half felt a bit detached from the raw emotions of Part I, and I was a bit disappointed for that reason. 

Overall, I enjoyed this series for what it is at face value – a tale of all-out revenge. The cast was amazing in this, and if one can tolerate the violence and trauma – it’s worth the watch, and probably only once.  

Revenge is bitter, tough and so delicious.

Random Recommendation: 

Rating: 3/5

Two (2/5)

One (1/5)