The ending of Climax brings its extremely tangled web of revenge and ambition to a frustrating close. While some questions are answered, the finale leaves several key threads unresolved.
Things just felt more like a pause than a true conclusion.
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Climax Cast
Ju Ji-hoon, Ha Ji-won, Nana, Cha Joo-young
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Climax Kdrama Director
Lee Ji-won
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Climax Series Screenwriter
Lee Ji-won, Shin Ye-seul
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Original Title
클라이맥스
Climax Ending Explained
What happened to Jeong-won?
Jeong-won could not make it till the end of the series as she died in episode 9. She had grave evidence against Yang-mi, which could prove that Yang-mi was the one making Tae-seop and Sang-ah’s lives a living hell. Thus, Yang-mi makes sure to kill Jeong-won, and it happens in front of Sang-ah. Towards the end, Jeong-won actually fell in love with Sang-ah, who also started to have feelings for Jeong-won.
Her death becomes one of the reasons Sang-ah sought revenge against Yang-mi.
Was the ending satisfactory?
The ending would have been satisfactory had the episode shown a proper conclusion, which it did not.
What happens in the end?
Both Sang-ah and Tae-seop succeed in freeing themselves from Yang-m’s influence by outing her in the best way possible. They prove Yang-mi’s schemes and how she is the one who plotted everything.
However, suddenly, the Chairman wakes up, and Yang-mi is temporarily bailed out of jail. This completely destroys everything that the leads built till then. Though it was not shown that they were affected in a bad way by Yang-mi, it is shown that they are afraid of what can happen in the future.
Will there be another season?
Given how abruptly and unsatisfyingly the story wraps up, a second season feels almost necessary to provide proper closure. As of now, there’s no official confirmation, but the finale strongly suggests that the story is not truly over yet.
What are the prominent themes of this series?
Morality VS Ambition
One of the most prominent themes of this series is the constant battle between ambition and morality. From the very beginning, we see the characters are very much flawed and morally corrupt, with no one emerging as a quintessential good person. Sang-ah married Tae-seop because she wanted to hide the fact that she is attracted to women from society. Plus, having a husband also protected her from other men, who only ever saw her as a means of conquest.
On the other hand, Tae-seop married Sang-ah not just because he was smitten with her, but also because her name would help him grow in his career.
Power is everything
No character is above the lust for power, and it is the driving force of the entire storyline. People can go to great lengths just to have power in their hands, including being with partners they do not even love. Yang-mi marries a man way older than her because she wanted wealth. Tae-seop pursued Sang-ah, who would never love him back, because he wanted to reach greater heights in his career and win the election.
On the other hand, Sang-ah stayed with Tae-seop till the end because he would protect her from all the scandals she had been in. Not only that, but both Tae-seop and Sang-ah do everything to get their hands on what they want, even if it means living through humiliating situations.
Depicting taboo subjects
A very important aspect the series explores is se*ual exploitation within the entertainment industry, with Sang-ah repeatedly becoming a victim of such behaviour.
The director also handles same-s*x relationships quite boldly, without shying away from anything. It’s rare to see a K-drama tackle these themes so openly, and the show manages to present them effectively.