‘Sweet Home’: K-Drama Cliffhanger Does Not Occur in the Original Webtoon
Fans are still waiting for official news about Sweet Home Season 2. The 2020 K-drama starring Song Kang is based on a popular webtoon of the same name. The first season cliffhanger left room for the main characters to return for a new season as long as Song Kang reprises his role as Hyun-soo. But a second season might have been in the books all along, as the Sweet Home webtoon does not have the same ending as the K-drama.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for Sweet Home webtoon.]
‘Sweet Home’ K-drama has Hyun-soo kidnapped by the leading villain
In the Netflix K-drama finale, Hyun-soo gives in to his full monster side that he has been keeping at bay. He does so to save the other tenants from Ui-myeon. The character was introduced hiding among a group of mercenaries who he later betrays and kills. Ui-myeon is also a special infected who is supposedly the sole survivor of a church. In reality, the Ui-myeon fans see is not the real person. He was infected by a slime-like monster.
When he meets Hyun-soo, he convinces him that monsters and humans cannot co-exist. The government also distributed flyers giving refuge to anyone who turns in a special infectee. Ui-myeon starts to believe the building tenants will turn against him and begins to kill them.
Hyun-soo turns into his full monster form to save them from Ui-myeon and allow them to escape to safety. In their fight, Ui-myeon uses his powers to dissolve into a slime form and escapes. Hyun-soo turns himself in to the government.
But in the finale, Hyun-soo wakes up in a military tank driven by Sang-Wook. Ui-myeon possesses his body and kidnaped Hyun-soo to go on the run.
The webtoon ends on a different note compared to the ‘Sweet Home’ K-drama
For fans of the original webtoon, the Sweet Home K-drama ends on a cliffhanger that does not occur in the original story. According to the story on Webtoon, Ui-myeon goes by the name Eun-hyuk. But the final battle goes differently than what fans see on screen.
Hyun-soo becomes his full monster version and Eun-hyuk transforms as well to stop him. But Eun-hyuk transforms into a big tentacled and out-control monster that takes over both of them and causes their deaths. In the aftermath, the tentacles disintegrate and reveal two cacoons. One of them hatches to reveal Hyun-soo.
The webtoon story has an epilogue where the new Hyun-soo arrives at the military facility where the surviving tenants live. One of the characters calls for one of the tenants who is happy to see Hyun-soo alive. They embrace as the rest of the tenants go to greet him.
The K-drama’s ending was a creative decision made by the director
The original webtoon created by Carnby Kim and Youngchan Hwang was yet to be completed when the Sweet Home K-drama was being filmed. According to director Lee Eung-bok to The Korean Herald, he was advised the serialization of the webtoon was scheduled to end in July. The director was told the news earlier in the year while filming the drama.
Despite the webtoon ending not being complete, Lee saw no issue in the matter. “I knew roughly how the webtoon ended because the author tipped me off. I thought it would be better for the ending of the drama to differ a bit from the webtoon because we’re showing on different platforms,” said Lee.
His decision to leave Sweet Home on a cliffhanger allowed for the possibility of a second season that is rumored to be in production. Using the webtoon as a guide, Lee had many ideas for the monsters in the K-drama, but some did not make it into the story.
“If there is to be a second season, I want to include the kind, funny monsters in the original webtoon that I didn’t have much chance to include in the first season,” explains Lee. Fans will have to wait and see how the possible new storyline will play out.
