The Penthouse Season 3: War in Life (2021)

Over the top messy but still entertaining

When i had finfinished s2 i had no plans of watching s3 immediately after while it was currently airing so i waited for the 13th episode to catch up. Over that time i ran into a few spoilers and many spoke on how they didn't see a need for season 3.
In opinion season 3 wasnt has bad as people said but everyone is entitled to their own opinion whether you like it or not. But i felt this season closed the emotional roller-coaster of a kdrama that is penthouse.

Throughout this season there have been questionable choices such as logans brother's Alex who i didn't understand his purpose or why his character was mad that way. As a black person i too felt weird seeing that character especially in 2021. But I didn't want that to ruin the show.
In terms of thr storyline all i can say is it served its purpose to the end. Whether you like it or not everyone got a pretty decent ending even if you hate the character their endings kinda suited them in a way that doesn't feel forced like most kdrama endings.

Bae Ro Na star of the show in my opinion. She captured so many hearts and props to the actress for acting her ass off for 3 seasons since it was her first show debut. Bae Rona got the last laugh and succeeded over all the terrible obstacles she had faced. From the bullying , min seol a and her mothers/fathers death she needed a happy ending and im glad she got it and hopefully and im pretry sure it will happen her and seok hyun.I hope to see her in more shows or even the big screen.

Shim Su Ryeon MY MOTHER, this lady doesnt need any more essays about how amazing she is and as much as it hurt seeing her pass away it felt right in a way. Many may say it wasnt needed but her death and Logan's 3rd or 4th death idk went well. Its just the way things play out.

Overall everyone evil got what they deserved and if you hated the season and didn't see the need that's fine but if you one of the few people that did well congrats we made and Its over.

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Plot + review

Plot: The residents of Hera Palace, a luxury penthouse apartment with 100 floors, have many
secrets and hidden ambitions. Shim Su-Ryeon, who was born into wealth, is the queen of the penthouse apartment. Cheon Seo-Jin, the prima donna of the residence, does all she can to give everything to her daughter. Oh Yoon-Hee comes from a poor family background, but she strives to enter high society by becoming the queen of the penthouse, the pinnacle of success in her eyes. A battle for wealth, power, and prestige at Seoul’s most coveted penthouse begins.

Main: Shim Su-ryeon is a graceful, elegant woman who is kind and thoughtful, despite her immense wealth. She and her husband, Joo Dan-tae, live in the penthouse of Hera Palace, making her the queen of the penthouse. Learning of her husband's affair with Cheon Seo-jin and his involvement in the death of her daughter Min Seol-ah, she is determined to take revenge against him. Later in the series, she is also revealed to be the biological mother of Joo Seok-kyung.
Cheon Seo-jin is a wealthy woman who would do anything for power, money, and pride. She and Oh Yoon-hee have been bitter rivals since childhood. She pushes her daughter, Ha Eun-byeol, to sing in order to beat Oh Yoon-hee's daughter, Bae Ro-na, who is more talented than her.
Oh Yoon-hee is a woman whose dreams have been stunted by her lack of money and power. She does everything in her power to move up socially and financially so that her daughter, Bae Ro-na, is able to enter the prestigious Cheong-ah Arts School.

Review: This is one of my favorite and lowkey the best kdrama ever! The characters are so relatable. This drama shows us that parents will do ANYTHING for their kids, even if it means becoming evil. We all need to take risks.

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Oscar worthy and beyond.

Thank you to all the professionals who know how to evaluate a show and undermine the entire plot. DO NOT READ ANY SPOILER REVIEWS, I guarantee watching it is the best way to make your own judgement because you will get the best experience. The work done on this show since I've been following from the beginning is phenomenal. I strongly suggest you don't let any negativity cancel out an opportunity to watch one of the best shows of all time.

As individuals our opinions may differ, but I must say I find it hard to understand why anyone would label this show as 'rubbish' I myself, am not the biggest fan of drama but the murder mystery was what got me hooked and so did the drama eventually along with elements of humour and themes of family which left me crying so much through season 1 to season 3.

please watch this. you will probably cry at times but there is a good thing in everything that is 'bad' except for the... Villains of course... who you may cry for as well. I'll end this here before I become someone who spills to much myself!

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Good Enough

The third season of the extravaganza of the drama 'The Penthouse: War in Life' was not as good as the rest of the seasons, as it was mostly a repetition of what had happened, with overplayed twists and a thinly stretched main plot.

The revenge plan and the conclusion should have come earlier on, however, they dragged it so much that it ended up tiring to watch. At least, this season didn't hesitate to eliminate many of the key characters, but they didn't give the chance to pay for their crimes at the same time. The ending was just too cheesy when it came to the fantasy element, which was unnecessary, and questionable, when it came to the result, but nevertheless, still a letdown.

But it did have some good moments too, like the short exploration of the main villain's past and the raise and fall of Seo Jin. The performances were mostly enjoyable.

So, overall, 5.5 out of 10.

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Honestly, this is actually my most liked among the three seasons. All the things or events I would've expected to happen in first season to finish it off in one go, was all here. Perfect acting specially from Joo Seokkyung who got a lot of screen time here. I like everything from the flow to the events that had happened. It's just that, why did they have to end like that? They don't necessarily have to kill SSR because she still have JSK. How is that paying her sins when she left her only daughter in the world. They focused too much on "I don't deserve to be happy with Logan because a lot of people died with me getting my revenge" She didn't even mention or think of her daughter (and her son)? And Logan also randomly died?? Ok? Everything was okay except that.

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Good but a little disappointing

The whole series was really nice. I enjoyed it throughout but I'm a little disappointed with the last season. After giving two amazing seasons of this drama, after captivating us for so long, what they do is give us a sad ending.

I feel that the deaths of Sim Su Ryeon and Logan Lee wasn't needed. Although the ending was happy for some characters and sad for some other characters, it was more of a sad ending. They could have made it a little happier by showing Sim Su Ryeon and Logan Lee together. Their deaths is the only reason why I didn't like the ending.

Overall, it is a really good drama and a must watch. It is not recommended for sensitive people.

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Understanding reasons over the 'irrationalities' and avoiding pushed ideals.

Part of the drama portrays reality. And people talking about sense in drama. Look around you, as if reality you see everyday is full of sense. In the news, a son kills his parents for $50 for a petty reason of being annoyed. What drives people is reason. If you give people enough reason, anything could happen. Life is not giving what people deserve either. Some work hard and get paid less while some make money in sleep. That is life. Regarding death, it gives reason to the living ones to keep struggling. Sometimes, only the death of a parent is able to trigger the one realization of his mistakes. Death also affect people around (Joo Seok Kyung).

People say that season 3 is a let down. I’m against it. People say the series should end with Season 2 and I disagree with it since it is really necessary for the drama to highlight the existence of loopholes in law. In this world, it often happens. The criminal is not always fairly punished for their crime when they still have power and influence.

I find that the death of Oh Yoon Hee was necessary.

1. Provide evidence of Joo Dan Tee and Cheon Seo Jin crime.

2. Oh Yoon Hee to Cheon Seo Jin - Prove that people can sacrifice for their rival/enemy for the good sake.

3. Cheon Seo Jin to Oh Yoon Hee - Prove that people still can do bad things to people who do good to them for hatred reasons.

I find that the death of Shim Soo Ryun was necessary by pretending Cheon Seo Jin killed her.

1. Add irrefutable reason (evidence of being pushed by Cheon Seo Jin in front of police) to the Cheon Seo Jin’s collective crimes. As a result, the law gave the maximum penalty to Cheon Seo Jin and she got no parol.

2. Mockery to Cheon Seo Jin for killing a person when she actually can save the life of her father and Oh Yoon Hee. This time, Shim Soo Ryun used reverse psychology and killed herself thus giving Cheon Seo Jin a feeling of guilt and putting her under a state of shock. It is a soft message from Shim Soo Ryun to Cheon Seo Jin, to not commit any crime in the future. It is like parents want to stop their child from climbing high places by telling them to climb using a different voice tone and their children find it disturbing and decide not to climb.

When watching makjang, oftentimes people push their irrational ideals to reality and that is what makes things go wrong. It is best for you to rationalize their irrational behaviour by looking for reason, regardless how irrational it is from your standpoint. For instance, Shim Soo Ryun chose death just to meet the dead ones. Emotions like guilt/ undeserved do push people to go against rational (to keep living). Same goes for Logan's death.

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All over the place

Somehow I am kind of ready for the most "ridiculous" ending they are going to pull on this drama, since the end of S2 I know this will not end as "neat & clear" which is why I set my expectation low. But, I am still disappointed lol. For the antagonist death, especially Cheon Seojin, it's quite acceptable for me, that left such a gloomy feeling knowing how she didn't meet her daughter till her last day and how her ex-husband had said something she hates the most in their last meeting. As for Joo Dan Tae, it's like they just choose to end his life as quick as possible and it was so rush. He was so persistent to stay alive to the point of killing anyone who get in his way but suddenly he is like "I am going to die in my palace" okay??

The same goes for Logan & Suryeon, losing their will to live after all these struggles and the sacrifice their friends made because they felt 'guilty' feels so so to me. They should at least live for the sake of these people and the kids. Also, I was never a fan of logryeon thingy so it looked so cringey when they go to the afterlife with that red thread of fate. (I was into this drama not for the romance so 🤷‍♀️)

But, regardless of these I still enjoyed it because of the actors and acting. The writer should thank every actors involved in this.

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the craziest ride

(Had to write a review so I can let go of this drama)

I think this drama is like no other in terms of craziness and plot twists, that's why it was so thrilling to watch and kept me with the suspence up every single episode. That said, looking back on the whole season, I think it was too much. My opinion is that writer-nim had her mind set to kill everyone off so that the ending could be just, because everyone, even the good characters, did bad things and as we saw in season 2, law wasn't powerful enough to punish their sins: the only way out was for them all (at least the main adult characters) to be dead in the end. I'm stating this season was too much because it was effectively too much to handle, I think even the writer got confused and left a few things unexplained, while other seasons made more sense. I also think there were some unnecessary extras like Baek Jun Gi ??? Alex ??? I don't know, quite a waste of time.

Now let's talk about the main characters' deaths. As I said before, writer nim truly wanted every main character dead. In my opinion, poor Yoon Hee and Yoon Cheol's deaths were used by the writer to make Dan Tae and Seo Jin's sins list even worse and to make Su Ryeon feel guilty for taking revenge. Dan Tae's death was unavoidable and I think it was the most just and satisfying. I think Seo Jin should have died sooner back then in the chandelier scene, which was the peak of her craziness but I see it was useful for the writer to keep her alive a little more. The only death I can't accept is Suryeon's (and following Logan's). What makes me mad is that I can see that it makes sense in a way. On the one hand, I think a happy ending where Su Ryeon and Logan live together happily with the kids and everyone else would have been great, it's what I expected actually, maybe that's why my first reaction was complete disappointment. On the other hand, I get Su Ryeon's repent for all that happened because she wanted to take revenge. Many people died and even though it wasn't really Su Ryeon's fault, I can see she could feel guilty. But if she hadn't decided to take revenge in the first place, maybe she would have kept living with Dan Tae just to stay with the kids, tossing everything in. That's a horrible and impossible scenario, as I said before: Dan Tae's death was necessary. So even this guilty feeling of Su Ryeon didn't quite make sense. The least thing I could expect from Su Ryeon was to go and let herself drown, that was such a selfish decision so not in her character to take. First of all, it made Yoon Hee and Yoon Cheol's sacrifices useless because Su Ryeon and Logan at least had a chance to live together happily. Secondly, maybe "ok": Su Ryeon was ready to leave behind Logan, we heard her thoughts on that but what about her kids excuse me??? I get the point of some people saying they're not kids anymore and they're leading happy lives now but as I heard before "the best thing a parent could do for their child is to live a long, healthy life" and that's so true. Also, Su Ryeon *always* put her children before all but we don't even hear a thought on them when she's letting herself die?? I can't accept it. Also it's not cool how they leave Logan's death unclear. He could have been seriously ill, because Kang Ma Ri said he refused to receive treatment ?? Anyways he probably let himself die too and that's really so sad. Even there, the ending makes no sense because if Su Ryeon felt that guilty how is she sure she'll end up in paradise and meet everyone else? I don't think she would deserve that, especially after the selfish decision she took, if I were Min Seol Ah, Yoon Hee or Yoon Cheol up there I would punch Su Ryeon and Logan like wth are they doing there when they could live happily on earth. Also it's sad how the waisted the opportunity of showing Min Seol Ah, Yoon Hee and Yoon Cheol in paradise, it would have been 1 satisfying thing about the last episode.

The only thing I'm happy with is the kids' ending. Everyone had such a beautiful character development I really felt moved and proud of each one of them. After being ultra traumatized by their stupid and immature parents, I was soo happy of seeing them lead happy lives. At least, Seok Kyeong and Eun Byeol who did a lot of bad things decided to live paying for what they did by doing great deeds. Of this I'm very happy because at least they decided to live with their guilts, unlike Su Ryeon. I'm the proudest of Eun Byeol because she became very very strong after seeing her mom kill 3 times in front of her, she even saw her mom committing suicide!! Also I'm the happiest for Ro Na, literally every kid had the best ending I could imagine while almost all the parents died.

Overall, what can I say? Yes, the ending ruined it a bit for me as it really went dark, but I can't forget about how awesome this drama was and how amazingly the actors portrayed their roles. It was really iconic, I wish I weren't this attached to it because now it's hard to let go but... Goodbye, it was an awesome and crazy ride!

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season 3 is good but definitely not all that it could've been *SPOILERS EP 1-10*

i love the penthouse! it is one of my top kdramas. season 1 and 2 were very well done and kept me on the edge of my seat. i think season 3 is great but the plot is a bit TOO much this time around. i think solah having a twin that is alive was a great addition to the plot because it ended up being seokkyung and we can finally see some character development in her. when seokhoon and rona break up i think that was one of the worst things the directors could've done and was completely unnecessary. it doesn't really make sense either because rona's mom had just died and she leans on seokhoon a lot during that time and him and his mom take care of her after yeonhee's death. it doesn't make sense that a few weeks after that seokhoon is like "alright imma pack it up and leave now because my dad might've killed your mom." like she won't blame it on you????? AND IT WASN'T EVEN HIS DAD WHO DID IT LIKE- they better make up soon because i am TIRED. i was so ready to see some development in their relationship this season since in the past seasons they haven't gotten too much of the spotlight but then he dumps her??? so stupid. another thing i didn't quite like was the additional information from dantae's past. like i think it was kinda unnecessary in my opinion. i know it is probably going to add to how dantae gets arrested in the end but i think there are other ways of doing that. but if it really needed to be added, i think it would've fit better in one of the past seasons when dantae would freak out when he got blood on his face. like a flashback to his mom and sister dying would've fit better back then instead of adding this new and useless character to the story. ANOTHER THING. justice for eunbyeol because i was starting to love her and then she just had to take those fucking memory loss pills again???? i didn't like that. i just wanted eunbyeol and rona to be besties. is that so much to ask for??? anyways i'm still gonna finish it and watch any more seasons if they do more because i still really like the show. i just think season 3 had a lot of potential but it was not as good as it could've been.

ps. a little more character development between rona and the dilf (aka eunbyeol and rona's dad) would be nice!

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Reflecting on the Impactful Conclusion of Penthouse Trilogy

The third and final season of Penthouse, in my opinion, serves as a fitting conclusion for all the characters in the series. Despite their actions, driven by the desire for the betterment of their children, the characters' deeds are, in essence, irredeemable. While some may argue that the two mothers should have survived, I find the collective demise to be a more acceptable ending. The toll of their actions has left them physically, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted.

The conclusion of the students/children's arcs is also well-executed, offering significant character developments and delivering just outcomes, even considering the involvement of other characters in crimes such as murder and arson. This trilogy holds a special place in my heart, and I anticipate revisiting it whenever I seek a touch of complexity in my drama list.

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Season 3 is no no.

Before I start, I just want to warn this review contains spoilers. Read at your own risk.

The Penthouse was a drama I never thought I would like, but season 1 and season 2 proved me wrong. This drama is makjang, similar to a telenovela but more caricatured. The acting was extremely well done, to the point I hated the characters - just like the screenwriter intended us to. And the story was so captivating it kept me on the edge of my seat. I wasn’t the only one and the proof is the ratings of those two seasons.

However, I am extremely disappointed with season 3. Only two episodes have aired, I know, but it’s enough to make me drop this drama completely. It seems like the screenwriter needed more time to develop the story, but the pressure from the audience and the higher-ups for a new season must’ve obliged her to speed things up. I can’t believe that the same writer who wrote the first and second seasons is the same one who wrote the third. So, I think the major reason for her terrible work is because of the pressure. I say this because they are repeating the same storyline from the previous seasons, with no originality. We have one more doppelganger - or twin, whatever you want to call it. By the second episode of the third season, we get to know that Logan Lee had a twin brother called Alex Lee, all this time (both are played by the same actor). I have two issues with this character.

First of all, the whole reason Logan Lee’s character exists is that Min Seol Ah (or Anna Lee) was adopted by his parents so they could donate her bone marrow to him. Introducing a character that is Logan Lee’s direct blood-related brother, particularly a twin, makes me question why they needed Min Seol Ah in the first place. Why didn’t his twin brother, who definitely was a match, donate his bone marrow to him? Okay, maybe the parents didn’t want to use their other child in case something went wrong. So they used Min Seol Ah, whom they had no connection with, instead. But these are just maybes. This is just me trying to understand what the screenwriter is trying to do here in a way that makes sense. The way I see it right now, the screenwriter did sloppy work with this one, turning the plot into a whole mess. It just doesn’t make sense why there was a need to introduce another twin/doppelganger. If the screenwriter didn’t actually want to kill Logan’s character, then they shouldn’t have done it. Otherwise, just let Logan’s character die in peace -or as much in peace as one can be by being murdered LOL.

And second, what the hell was that characterization? You can see from the pictures MyDramaList provides what I am referring to. Alex Lee is presented to us as a mockery of an African-American from the “hood”. He is not only dressed from head to toe, in what is considered a “thug” - often linked to the same style some black Americans like to wear/use -, but he also talks in a stereotypically African-American way. All of this is racist, offensive, and a mockery of an entire race and their culture. South Korea is famous for being a racist country - they are not the 10th most racist country for nothing, am I right?! So, this isn’t really a surprise. However, it’s hurtful and frustrating to see it happen, over and over again. More so, when this isn’t the first time SBS does it. It just shows how they have zero consideration for black people around the world, and even worse, for black people in their own country. SBS clearly, does not care how the way they portrait black people in their shows might impact negatively since, after what happened in Backstreet Rookie, they still gave the okay for this episode to be aired. Also, there is the fact the actor who plays Alex Lee lived in the USA for many years. He, more than anyone involved in the drama, knew how wrong it was to portray Alex’s character in this way. And let’s not talk about how Alex’s bodyguards were all black, and how in previous seasons they showed black people as hitmen while white people were shown as “prestigious” businessmen. The anti-blackness is highly present in The Penthouse.

It’s a shame to see a drama with so much success, internally and internationally, lose its reputation like this. We are in 2021 and what this world doesn’t have is a lack of information. The Internet is free. SBS and all the people involved in the drama could have prevented this from happening, but they chose not to. I agree with many others who say The Penthouse should have ended in season 2. Oh well, there’s nothing we can do now.

I felt incredibly uncomfortable by this whole Alex Lee thing so, I will drop this drama here. I understand many watchers can’t do the same due to their love and attachment to the show, characters, and actors. And it’s their choice to do so. I can’t and shouldn’t dictate how one lives their life. However, I can’t simply ignore racism. Despite loving this drama's previous seasons, I can’t turn a blind eye. It goes against my nature and my morals. I can only hope SBS and The Penthouse, at least, release an apology to all the people they offended. I don’t think that is going to happen, but a person can hope, right?

I still recommend people to watch seasons one and two, but the third? It’s not worth it.
I don’t know whether this review was helpful to those feeling indecisive about watching the drama or not, but I felt like I had to leave my two cents on it before I parted ways. It's your choice to do whatever you want.

Thank you for reading until here.
Have a nice day and stay safe!

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