Trolley (트롤리) is a thriller-mystery Korean drama series directed by Kim Mun-kyo, written by Ryu Bo-ri and stars Kim Hyun-joo and Park Hee-soon in lead roles. The series takes over SBS’ Monday-Tuesday 10 PM KST timeslot previously occupied by Cheer Up.
Trolley episode 16 has a runtime of 60 minutes.
Netflix’s description of the series reads:
A SUDDEN TRAGEDY BRINGS THE WIFE OF AN ASSEMBLYMAN OUT OF HER PRIVATE LIFE AND FORCES HER TO CONFRONT FAMILY SECRETS AND HER OWN TROUBLING PAST.
– Trolley Episode 16 Review Contains Spoilers –
After ending off on a rather shocking cliffhanger, Trolley episode 16 starts with Hye-joo thinking back to Soo-bin’s pressing question and Yeo-jin’s desperate need to know whether she is at fault for being silent about Joong-do’s horrible deeds. Now facing a throng of reporters, Hye-joo agrees not to suffer any more for other people’s terrible choices.
However, she realises that the moment she made up her mind was when Yoon-seo, too, asked her not to expose Joong-do, calling the sexual assault as a small stain that can never come to light if only Hye-joo and Yeo-jin stay quiet. Yoon-seo even says that it’s not like Joong-do murdered someone, and everyone will call her a sexual predator’s daughter.
She realised that If she ran away from this difficult decision right now, that is what Yoon-seo would also learn. And that is a lesson she cannot allow her daughter to learn.
After the interview, everyone is left shocked and confused and at a loss for words. On the other hand, after the land scandal proof come out, Soon-hong holds a press conference but is left fuming when he realises that Joong-do’s news could’ve helped him run away from facing any consequences if only he had known earlier.
Either way, in the aftermath, Yoon-seo continues to give Yeo-jin and Hye-joo a hard time as she starts to get bullied at school. Meanwhile, Hye-joo and Yeo-jin try to patch up their relationship in these hard times and stay by each other. Elsewhere, Joong-do looks broken as Woo-jae tries to convince him to not turn himself in, at least not after what he has done. It is heavily implied that he might have killed Ji-hoon.
Also Read: Trolley Episode 15 Recap and Review: Hye-joo’s Time to Decide
Either way, he tries to convince him that he should deny the allegations and paint Hye-joo and Yeo-jin as the bad guys. The only way Joong-do can atone, according to Woo-jae, is if he continues to do good work for the people. Meanwhile, Soo-bin interjects Yeo-jin’s former employee’s blatant lies as she comes to Hye-joo’s house to meet her. The press, of course, asks her who she is, which lands her in a bind.
Elsewhere, Yoo-sin gets the shock of her life when Ki-young tells them that Soon-hong has decided to sell her land. In the heat of the moment, to get Ki-young to make a deal with him, Yoo-sin lets it slip that she had, in fact, lied about Hye-joo lying about Seung-ho. The news leaves Seung-hee shocked and confused, and while admitting her fault, Yoo-sin suffers another medical emergency.
Meanwhile, Woo-jae takes a clearly traumatised Joong-do with him to a friend’s cabin. On the way, Woo-jae leaves Joong-do in the car and goes into a department store. While there, Joong-do listens to his wife’s voice note that details why she took this step and where he went wrong in his path for atonement. Her voice note is to-the-point and rational and outlines how his atonement shouldn’t have been decided by him.
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In the end, Woo-jae looks outside the store to find the car and Joong-do gone. He immediately calls Hye-joo and asks her whether she knows where her husband is. But it seems like she might have an idea. Hye-joo rushes to find Joong-do at Sokcho, slowly walking into the water, fully intending on ending his life. He stops himself when he hears Hye-joo running after him, and the two return to shore, where Hye-joo gives him a piece of her mind for abandoning them.
Joong-do breaks down, telling her that he feels ashamed for what he has done. A hysterical Hye-joo tells him to live with his shame and suffer the consequences of his actions. That’s what he should be doing in the situation, anyway.
Later, after things have calmed down, Joong-do tells her that he apologised sincerely and thought was forgiven. Thus, he tried to make the world better but it turns out that he was simply being arrogant. He apologises to Hye-joo and promises not to make any more excuses. After the conversation, Joong-do does surrender to the police and apologises to everyone for his actions.
As Woo-jae looks on, he remembers what really happened to Ji-hoon – Ji-hoon wanted to get caught with the drugs that he had stolen in order to end Joong-do’s career, still thinking that he was having an affair. Sensing that his career was about to end, a threatened Woo-jae lets Ji-hoon, who tried to hide from Woo-jae underwater, drown.
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Meanwhile, Hye-joo goes to the columbarium to meet Ji-hoon while Jin-seok holds a press conference wherein she mentions that Joong-do has been sacked from the party and the national assembly. Looking at the past, it turns out that she had helped Hye-joo hold the press conference after realising that there will never be an end to waiting for the right time. The decision, however, leaves Gwi-soon absolutely heartbroken.
Elsewhere, Soo-bin lets a cocky Jung-dae know that the baby she aborted was his, not Ji-hoon’s and that she will make him pay for everything that he has done to her. Soo-bin goes to the police after that to expose not only her ex but also Soon-hong’s chief advisor for soliciting prostitution. She later meets Hye-joo to hand over pictures of Ji-hoon and assures Hye-joo that Ji-hoon loved and cared for her deeply. It’s a rather emotional scene, and Kim Hyun-joo is just so subtly yet expressive it will break your heart.
The next day, Seung-hee tries to make amends with Hye-joo after learning the truth. She tells her to sue her and her mother for the harm that they have done to her, and she will accept it as her punishment. It turns out that Seung-hee left her mother after asking her to apologise to Hye-joo, and her apology seems sincere as she finally calls Hye-joo by her new name. Things seem to be looking up for them, finally.
Trolley Episode 16 Ending
Later, Hye-joo serves Joong-do divorce papers, and he promises not to appeal whatever decision the judge makes. As she goes out, he apologises to her, looking rather distraught, seeming like he has given up. On her way back, the news mentions that Namgoong Sol’s Law might be discarded, but there is an uprising happening against the decision nationwide. Meanwhile, Soo-bin gets the news that the police caught Jung-dae, and she will only get a fine.
It turns out that she shares a very close relationship with Hye-joo, and even Yoon-seo is starting to come around and see her mother’s bravery. Elsewhere, Hye-joo gets a letter on her store’s door telling her that she helped her be brave, while Yeo-jin shows signs of getting better as well.
In the end, Hye-joo, Yeo-jin, Yoon-seo and Soo-bin are one big happy family, and Soo-bin now works with Hye-joo. The Trolley finale ends with Hye-joo opening up a new paper, signifying her turning over a new leaf.
Trolley Episode 16 Review
I honestly really liked this review. It was the perfect blend of honesty, emotion and hope. The ending positivity is exactly what you need after ‘rape’ and ‘prostitution’ are the common words spoken in the last few episodes.
The end is also positive for Joong-do in a sense. He’s a bad guy, but he is not a total monster. However, he is pretty close to it. It’s nice that he accepted what he has done and is not fighting it anymore.
Man, Kim Hyun-joo and Park Hee-soon are just so phenomenal. Although their characters leave much to be desired, their performances are to die for. It’s the perfect blend of emotions, and everything just comes to the forefront through their eyes. They work off each other really well as well, and it’s honestly great.
Still unsure what Seung-hee’s purpose was. But at least she didn’t die a fool, so that’s good.
It’s not the best show, truly. But the ending is on par with the show’s overall vibe and story.
Trolley is streaming on Netflix.
Also Read: Check Out All Of Our Trolley Reviews