The Mantis: Original Sin is a well-known ending hotspot.
SBS Friday-Saturday drama The Mantis: Original Sin (director Byun Young-joo/writer Lee Young-jong/planning Studio S/produced by Merry Christmas, Mega Monster, Film Production House Boim) has captivated living rooms with its meticulous and shocking story, overwhelming performances by the actors, and stylish, compelling direction. Amid pouring praise from the press and the public, The Mantis: Original Sin, despite being a densely plotted crime thriller, renewed its own highest viewership rating for two consecutive episodes.
One thing that significantly contributes to the powerful immersion The Mantis: Original Sin boasts is its strong endings. It stacks up 55 minutes carefully and then delivers unimaginable shock and impact in the final five minutes. Viewers say they cannot bear not to watch the next episode. To see how The Mantis: Original Sin became a renowned ending hotspot, let's revisit the endings from episodes 1 through 4.
◆ Episode 1 ending - joint investigation begins between serial killer mother and detective son, Go Hyun-jung's eerie smile
Twenty-three years ago, serial killer Jung Yi-shin (played by Go Hyun-jung) brutally killed five men and became known as "The Mantis: Original Sin." Jung Yi-shin's son Cha Soo-yeol (played by Jang Dong-yoon) became a police officer to save lives, carrying guilt about his mother. But when a copycat crime of "The Mantis: Original Sin" occurs after 23 years, the mother and son's lives begin to unravel. The son desperately needs the help of the mother he has hated all his life to solve the case, and the mother, whose intentions are unclear whether she is helping the son she met after 23 years or using him, appears. The joint investigation begins, and Jung Yi-shin's eerie smile, which sent chills down viewers' spines, capped the episode 1 ending.
◆ Episode 2 ending – island?? Go Hyun-jung vs. desperate Jang Dong-yoon, stark contrast and extreme synergy
In episode 2, Cha Soo-yeol used a clue Jung Yi-shin threw him to find a person who could become the third copycat crime victim. Cha Soo-yeol desperately collided to save the victim who was facing death. Meanwhile, Jung Yi-shin opened a vent and fed a few leaves hidden in her mouth to unidentified insects, heightening the unease. Island? Jung Yi-shin and the desperate Cha Soo-yeol formed a stark contrast, and the episode 2 ending delivered extreme impact to viewers.
◆ Episode 3 ending – Jang Dong-yoon learns the truth about Go Hyun-jung's first killing, 15 minutes of spine-tingling performance that tore through living rooms
In episode 3, Cha Soo-yeol learned the truth about Jung Yi-shin's first murder, which had not been revealed to the world until now. Jung Yi-shin's first murder victim was her husband, that is, Cha Soo-yeol's biological father. She killed him impulsively after he assaulted not only her but also their son. Not only did she speak as if murder was nothing in front of Cha Soo-yeol, she also shouted at him with madness in her eyes, "Do you hate me? Is it horrible? Kill me!" The shocking story and 15 minutes of unwavering acting by Go Hyun-jung and Jang Dong-yoon shone in episode 3's ending, sending shivers through viewers' living rooms.
◆ Episode 4 ending – after escaping, the serial killer Go Hyun-jung visits daughter-in-law Kim Bo-ra, chilling greeting "Hello"
In episode 4, Jung Yi-shin escaped from the confinement house where she had been held. In the meantime, a prime suspect in the "The Mantis: Original Sin" copycat crimes, Seo Gu-wan (played by Lee Tae-gu), died in a hit-and-run traffic accident. Earlier, Jung Yi-shin wanted to kill Seo Gu-wan, who knew about the mother-and-son relationship between her and Cha Soo-yeol as well as the existence of daughter-in-law Lee Jung-yeon (played by Kim Bo-ra). Amid this, Jung Yi-shin appeared at Cha Soo-yeol and Lee Jung-yeon's house. In front of an oblivious Lee Jung-yeon, serial killer Jung Yi-shin casually greeted her with the chilling words "Hello?", making viewers' hearts drop in the ending.
With suffocating endings each episode that toy with viewers' hearts, The Mantis: Original Sin has kept audiences on edge. Halfway through the eight-episode series, with four episodes aired, viewers are curious and eager to see what shocking stories the remaining four episodes of The Mantis: Original Sin will tell and how powerful the endings will be. SBS Friday-Saturday drama The Mantis: Original Sin airs every Friday at 9:50 p.m. and Saturday at 10 p.m.
[Photo] SBS Friday-Saturday drama The Mantis: Original Sin
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