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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