If you thought director Mo Wan-il did a fine job in leaving the viewers numb with his trademark twists in The World of the Married, then The Frog ending is sure to leave you equally stunned. To understand what happens to protagonist Yeong-ha in the finale of the Netflix K-drama, read all the details of The Frog, from the plot to the ending explained.
Triggering a sense of dread with severe violence, The Frog plays with the most visceral phobias of viewers. Written by rising star Son Ho-young, the story is a perfect blend of psychological horror and murder thriller. It focuses on two vacation rental owners and their plight after coming across two sinister killers.
Told in a nonlinear fashion, the eight-episode limited series constantly switches back and forth between two timelines — the early 2000s and the early 2020s. The Frog also boasts a stellar cast, with stars Go Min-si, Kim Yoon-seok and Yoon Kye-sang playing protagonists Yoo Seong-a, Jeon Yeong-ha and Koo Sang-jun, respectively. Meanwhile, Chanyeol from K-pop band EXO shines as the supporting character Goo Gi-ho.
The Netflix thriller K-drama The Frog opens with wide-angle shots of a narrow road in the woods, a cosy vacation rental and an interesting question — “If a tree falls in a forest, and no one is around to hear it, did it make a sound?”
It’s the summer of the 2020s and protagonist Young-ha (played by Kim) is busy running his cosy vacation motel in the woods. His life is turned upside down when a mysterious woman named Seong-a (played by Go) shows up at his property with a young boy.
From the beginning, Seong-a gives off an unusual vibe. However, Yeong-ha, assuming the young boy Si-hyeon (played by Jo Yeo-joon) to be Seong-a’s son, sees no cause for concern and allows them to stay. Days later, Yeong-ha finds Seong-a missing. When he checks the CCTV footage, he sees Seong-a leaving alone and realises that she must have harmed the child. While his conscience eats him up, Yeong-ha decides against reporting the incident, as it would ruin the reputation of his property. Instead, he cleans the vacation rental and erases all evidence of the incident.
A year passes and Seong-a returns to Seoul. This time, the show offers viewers a glimpse into her life. Yoo Seong-a, the main antagonist of the K-drama The Frog, is a disturbed painter from a wealthy family. Upon her return from an art exhibition, Seong-a finds that none of her paintings are on display. Her anger escalates when she encounters her ex Ha Jae-sik (played by Jang Seung-jo), who reveals that Si-hyeon is actually his child.
Following the heated argument, Seong-a decides to visit Yeong-ha’s vacation rental once again. There she comes across Yeong-ha’s daughter. Later when Yeong-ha calls, Seong-a answers, revealing that she has kidnapped his daughter. Yeong-ha is then blackmailed by Seong-a, who threatens to kill his daughter unless he helps her with a task. She takes him to a forest, however, the police eventually arrive and arrest her. Later, Seong-a’s father’s lawyer arrives and helps her with the release. Once out of police custody, Seong-a heads to the laundromat, where she burns all her clothes to destroy evidence. Meanwhile, Yeong-ha’s daughter barely survives from Seong-a’s torture.
Elsewhere, the search of the field in the woods reveals numerous bodies. Later, police chief Bo-min (played by Lee Jung-eun) tracks Seong-a. The latter reaches a cottage but encounters Jae-sik, who, aware of her murdering his son, confronts her with a gun. He shoots Seong-a in the abdomen and when Bo-min arrives, Seong-a takes the chance and escapes.
However, Jae-sik runs after her and shoots her twice, once in the chest and then in the head. When she falls into a nearby swimming pool, Yeong-ha goes in to make sure that she is indeed dead. Later, viewers see a dead body being carried away from the pool, confirming that Seong-a is no more.
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In the final moments of The Frog, Yeong-ha closes down his vacation rental for good and returns to his daughter. The story concludes with Yeong-ha reflecting on life and the future while at the cottage and still wondering — “If a tree falls in a forest, and no one is around to hear it, did it make a sound?”
The Korean drama also introduces viewers to another timeline in the 2000s, where protagonist Sang-jun (Yoon) runs the Lakeview motel in the same area as Young-ha’s vacation rental. Sang-jun’s life, too, is forever changed when he rents out one of his rooms to a sinister-looking guest, Ji Hyang-cheol (Hong Ki-joon), who commits a murder at the motel and flees.
Twenty years later, Sang-jun’s son Gi-ho (played by Chanyeol) is still traumatised by the tragedy, which also led to his mother’s suicide. This resulted in differences between Gi-ho and his father Sang-jun. With a burning desire for vengeance, Gi-ho, over the years, dedicates himself to expertly preparing for the moment he confronts the killer.
Towards the end of the show, Gi-ho discovers that Hyang-cheol is going to have his autobiography published. He is enraged by the fact that even after inflicting so much pain on others, the killer is moving on and accepting all the horrific things he did through a book. Following this, Gi-ho hunts him down and successfully kills him.
Later, when a guilt-ridden Gi-ho attempts to use the gun on himself, Yeong-ha saves him and leaves for his vacation rental after destroying all evidence of the incident. In the last episode of The Frog, Yeong-ha gets a call from Gi-ho, who informs him that he would like to visit his home. Yeong-ha, in return, says that they have a lot to catch up on and looks forward to Gi-ho’s arrival.
(Hero and Featured image: Courtesy Netflixkr/Instagram)
This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia India.
Sushmita is a writer with a passion for crafting engaging and informative stories. An avid fan of K-pop and K-dramas, Sushmita mostly writes about Korean culture and entertainment. When not writing, you ..Read More
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