The ending for Season 2 of Hellbound is a major disruption nationwide as chaos reaches a pivotal point. Episode 6 opens with Sodo member Jeong Hyeoksang kidnapped by Arrowhead; he has a decree, and his demonstration is scheduled. Meanwhile, Jungja is with Hyejin, while Secretary Lee spies on them via Kim Sungjip.
The sixth episode is the beginning of the end; it’s become a dystopian world – an apocalypse. In this recap, I break down the key moments.
Jinsu Knows What Secretary Lee Is Doing
Jinsu has some incredible intuition in Season 2. In the finale, he messages Secretary Lee and reveals that he has figured out that she is behind the recent chaos and has planned to kidnap Jungja herself.
Jinsu knows the government wants to control the chaos and narrative by creating two opposing groups. He lays out his intentions to speak to Jungja—he asks her to bring her to him, and in return, he’ll give her whatever he wants.
(Of course, what follows is not true – Jinsu had no intention of helping the government).
There was plenty of disruption in Episode 5, and it continues in the final chapter; Jeong Hyeoksang’s decree arrives, and Arrowhead, as usual, broadcasts it with its deep religious ideology behind it. During the demonstration, Hyejin, Kim Sungjip, and Jungja attempt to escape the building, but Arrowhead captures them relatively quickly.
In A Surprise Twist, Jinsu Turns Into An Executor
The writers were blatantly trying to reach this moment where Jinsu learns a profound, underlying truth about himself, and it was worth the wait.
Jinsu finally meets Jungja and asks Arrowhead to let her go. With desperation etched on his face, he explains to her that he, too, has been resurrected, but he wants to know if she sees the executors in the mirrors. He breaks down as he describes being repeatedly ripped apart between worlds.
You can tell this has been eating away at him since his resurrection, which has been a secret to many.
But Jungja tells Jinsu something he does not want to hear. She explains that despite what happened to her, the reality of her life is still the same—she is a mother of her children. This is a sweet tie-in to her purpose; while her circumstances are dark, she still remembers who she is.
Jungja suggests they experienced different “Hells” and confirms that she never sees the executors. She looks at Jinsu intently and tells him the executors are within him because he’s a coward.
Of course, little did we know at this point that Jungja was being literal. A confused and shocked Jinsu turns around and cannot prove that the executors are behind him. Initially, he is happy that they are gone, but then, suddenly, he is unable to breathe and begins to form into an executor.
Jinsu attempts to grab Jungja, but Hyegin saves her and eventually drives away. Before she does, Jinsu’s face looks even more desperate as he asks Hyejin for help.
Jinsu eventually fully forms into an executor and disappears.
Ultimately, this forms the story of Season 3, where we ponder why or what happened to Jinsu. Is he simply a demon? Does he now serve Hell? Or is this part of the natural disaster that Sodo keeps implying?
Secretary Lee Reveals She Is Just As Much About Power Than The Cults
In the aftermath of Jinsu’s new form, the government noticed that the riots had died down, and people were now unmotivated to cause chaos for religious benefit. However, interestingly, Secretary Lee wants to assign a new chairman to the New Truth and prepare a statement for Jinsu’s sins. Despite evidence that they can destroy these cults for good, she does not think anything changes.
Secretary Lee wants to march on and eradicate Arrowhead and have New Truth and Sodo as two opposing powers.
This is, of course, an indictment of wielding power. It is perhaps a perception of governments worldwide today, with the conspiracies of a New World Order brewing on social media. Secretary Lee implies that with power, she can suppress people by using division and chaos. Based on her previous monologues, it would not surprise me if she’s doing that.
Secretary Lee (played by Moon So-ri) in ‘Hellbound’ Season 2 (Credit – Netflix)
The Finale of Hellbound Season 2 Brings A Savouring Fight Between Hyejin and Sungjip
I was floored by the events after Jinsu’s new form into an executor – I was not expecting the production to provide a golden moment in television.
Hyejin continues to help Jungja and heads to a car scrapyard. While there, she sees an illustration of an elephant on the side of a van. In the previous episode, Jungja sees a vision of Hyejin’s death with the same illustration of the animal.
Knowing this is when she’s supposed to die, Hyejin quickly turns around to see Sungjip about to attack her. Luckily, she manages to evade the attack. Kim Sungjip is working for Secretary Lee, so this betrayal has been coming for a long time.
Hyejin tells Jungja to split up. What follows is an impressive, well-choreographed fight between Hyejin and Sungjip. No matter how brutal it gets, Hyejin does not give up. She perseveres. The fighting nearly leads to Jungja getting crushed in a car, but Hyejin saves her.
Honestly, this is one of the best fights I’ve ever seen on television.
Against all odds, Hyejin eventually strangles Kim Sungjip into submission and then ties him down with some handcuffs.
Sungjip tells her that they need to save the world, but she cooly tells him to save himself and leaves the keys to the cuffs out of his reach. Barely anyone visits this scrapyard, so he’ll be alone for a long time.
(Interestingly, Hyejin’s death prophecy did not happen. Did she cheat death? Or was Jungja prophesying something else?)
The Beginning Of The End Of The World
Hyejin hands Jungja to a trusted acquaintance to take her to her children. Before they leave each other, Jungja tells her that the world will end and that she must do what she wants while she can.
Chaos resumes in the city, and Secretary Lee receives a decree. Then, decrees are delivered throughout the city. The world is ending, and the nation is in terror and panic. Tens of thousands of decrees are reported. Meanwhile, Heejung dies. Jungja is told that Hayul is waiting for her, too.
Hyejin returns to her niece. Her colleagues ask her if this is the end of the world. She explains to them that a new world will begin soon – “go find the world that you desire.”
Hyejin leaves the city with her niece and asks if she can tell her a story about her parents and how much they loved her. She tells her that she wants to be her mother after the story. Flashback scenes show the parents covering their child from the executors. All three of them were killed, but the child (Hyejin’s niece), resurrected. It’s at this point that Hellbound Season 2, Episode 6 ends.
Despite the three years between Season 1 and Season 2, this story remains as compelling as ever. There are so many more questions that need to be answered as Hellbound becomes a Korean Drama series that needs to stay on Netflix. As for whether the world has ended? It has. Humanity is not wiped out, but you feel that the new world is beginning. A new government must form, and extreme religious factions will strengthen.
