The Glory Part 2: Overlooked Details from the Perspective of Literariness and Lens Language

In March this year, The Glory Part 2 ended perfectly in anticipation. First, congratulations to Dong-eun for her successful revenge. Secondly, I only want to say it is one of the Korean dramas with a relatively high degree of completion at the beginning of 2023.

Today, I would like to share the drama from literariness, camera language, character analysis, and props, which will involve some lens details and overlooked metaphors.

Attention, the following content contains spoilers!

The Literariness of The Glory Part 2

The literariness of The Glory can be talked from Demian by Hermann Hesse, a German writer. There is a detail in the drama. Kang Hyeon-nam misremembers Demian as the name of an apartment in South Korea. At the end of the drama, when tidying up the room, she finds that her daughter has changed the book's title to the name she has misremembered.

As we all know, The Glory is "detail-oriented," with almost no meaningless props. Why did the scriptwriter Kim Eun-sook choose the book "Demian" and it appeared twice?

I think some sentences in this book are metaphors for the situation and direction of the characters in the drama. The depth of Kim Eun-sook's writing and the literariness of the script are all traceable in this book.

“The bird must get rid of its shell. Eggs are the world. If you want to be born in the world, you have to destroy the world.” —— Demian

Kang Hyeon-nam, many audiences' favorite character in the drama, whose family is the shell that traps her. She aims to kill her abusive husband initially. The death of her husband means breaking the shell and destroying her original world. Finally, Kang Hyeon-nam is reborn.

"These frightened people gather together, they are so afraid, and everyone has a different intention." —— Demian

It applies too well to the bullying team of five. Dong-eun only sets the game up and barely does it herself, which is enough to make the five fall apart, showing the fragility of their relationship.

They guard against each other to betray each other when necessary, such as Son Myeong-oh's recording, Yeon-jin's video of bullying someone, and Sa-ra's video of taking drugs.

“Each of us should seek our reasonableness and taboo. A man may never break the rules throughout his life, but that doesn't stop him from being an asshole, and vice versa.” —— Demian

This sentence, at first glance, is very suitable for Ha Do-yeong, a "nice son of a bitch." In the second season, his narrative does not unfold. Compared with the first season, his role shaping is more introverted. The scriptwriter no longer describes Ha Do-yeong's relationship with Dong-eun but reduces his character to the pair of shoes taken off in front of the entrance, the surprised look when he sees Dong-eun's scars, or the rice ball in the convenience store.

Until he kills Jeon Jae-joon, Ha Do-yeong's image is very decent, as Parasite says, "Because he is rich, he is kind." He is a typical arrogant but kind rich man. He loves his daughter very much and offers to pay Yoon So-hee for 18 years. He even gives Yeon-jin a choice.

But in the end, he does not hesitate when he pushes Jeon Jae-joon off the roof. Not considering the practical moral issues, only from the perspective of role shaping, Ha Do-yeong is an attractive character.

"This is just a story about kindness, trying to move you with words. If I must choose one to be my friend between two robbers or whom to trust more, I certainly not choose the one who cries for repentance but the other. Because he has more backbone and does not change from beginning to end. Because change is a lie for him, he goes all the way to the dark without abandoning the devil who has abetted him behind.” —— Demian

In the drama, Yeon-jin always says that she doesn't understand why poor people believe in promoting virtues and punishing evils and karma, but the story of revenge must be full of karma. Dong-eun and Ha Do-yeong both give her a choice, and Yeon-jin is the one who goes all the way to the dark and ends up being bullied by her cellmates. And she is implied to have been wronged but never gets the truth, which is the most suitable ending for her.

Demian's metaphors for the drama are only the tip of the iceberg, and if you read the book carefully, you may find more content corresponding to the characters. Of course, the scriptwriter did not quote directly from the book as a line. Demian only appeared as a prop, seen as a little hint.

Lens details of The Glory Part 2

In addition to the work's literariness, the lens language is also the key to the drama's success. When watching the second season, I found many interesting details and metaphors.

1. An ugly plant with sharp thorns

When the landlady picks the rotten flowers, the camera has a close-up of a round plant covered with sharp thorns, followed by Dong-eun's mother pestering her. This ugly plant symbolizes Dong-eun's mother.

She is Dong-eun's first and biggest victimizer. The overall revenge of the second season is very smooth, and the only time bomb is her.

2. An executioner with black humor

In the second season, Joo Yeo-jeong's narrative is more developed. In addition to he's an executioner, the character is so funny. For example, he pretends to accidentally almost hit Jeon Jae-joon, and his first action after getting out of the car is to pick up Jeon Jae-joon's umbrella. After saying all the words, he throws the umbrella aside and walks away, leaving Jeon Jae-joon standing in the rain, inexplicably funny. In the second season, there are many plots of this kind of black humor, and silly and funny villains are more popular.

3. The stunning contrast lens design

Joo Yeo-jeong also has a deeper relationship with the murderer of his father. I have to say that there is a stunning shot in which Joo Yeo-jeong meets 3724 in the prison's corridor. From the picture, 3724 has more space, but Joo Yeo-jeong is squeezed to the edge and covered in barbed wire. Visually, one side is open and stretched, the other is closed and depressive, and the contrast is strong.

With the elevation angle and the tilt lens, we can see 3724 is in a commanding position, precisely a display of the power relationship between the two. While 3724 finds pleasure in killing without guilt, Joo Yeo-jeong, the victim's son lives in an inner prison.

In the end, with Dong-eun's help, 3724 is transferred to the prison where Joo Yeo-jeong works. In this shot, the power relationship has shifted, with Joo Yeo-jeong standing in the light of a larger space while 3724 is in the shadow.

In the center of the shot, although there is a railing dividing the picture, there is an open door connecting the two, which is still the elevation angle and the tilt lens, implying the result of Joo Yeo-jeong's revenge.

4. The religious church scene

In the second season, Sa-ra's scene in the church is somewhat controversial, but I have to say the scenery is excellent, and the shots are beautiful. The ruins of the temple in a yellow-green tone, the unreal Garden of Eden, with the iron stand in the foreground, blocking the cross in the background. It highlights the feeling that there is no God, while the mobile phones sticking in from the windows on both sides replace the judgment of God.

Why is it not enough to take drugs but also to add the sin of lust to Sa-ra? I think understanding it from a religious perspective is easier. It more strongly satirizes the identity of a chaplain's daughter. In front of the cross, it is more directly blasphemous than drugs.

5. A perfect ending for Hye-jeong

In addition to Sa-ra's scene, Hye-jeong's nudity scene is another controversy. Despite the use of body doubles and CG, many audiences felt that some nudity is unnecessary and the selfish desire of the male director.

First, using X-rated shots as a publicity stunt is an old problem of Netflix! When it comes to unnecessary sex scenes and the male gaze perspective of male directors, there are a lot. However, in terms of plot and role shaping, the ending of Hye-jeong's loss of voice is very suitable for her.

Throughout the drama, there are many depictions of Hye-jeong's mouth, such as putting on lipstick, always quarreling, and so on. At last, Sa-ra inserts a chopstick into her neck, and she can no longer speak. The punishment for losing her voice is to let her experience the pain of the victim's loss of voice. Yoon So-hee's mother is mute. Dong-eun kept silent about what had happened to the last victim. After her own experience, she also lost her voice. The victims are all "mute."

Over speaking, the role shaping of The Glory Season 2 from leading roles to supporting roles, the overall plot layout, the control of the story rhythm, and the deepening of the theme of feel-good drama are all the reasons that it is highly rated.

Okay, who is your favorite character in this drama? In my next article, I will talk about some of my favorite characters in it and the use of props. Stay tuned!