In ‘Mantis: The Murderer's Outing’, serial killer Go Hyun-jung provocatively confronted a copycat murderer.
According to Nielsen Korea, the SBS Friday-Saturday drama ‘Mantis: The Murderer's Outing’ (written by Lee Young-jong, directed by Byun Young-joo), which aired on the 19th, recorded a viewership rating of 6.9% in the metropolitan area, ranking first in its time slot across all channels and among Friday-Saturday mini-series. The peak viewership reached 7.8%. Additionally, the key indicator of channel competitiveness, the 2049 viewership rating, also showed a high of 2.76%, proving its popularity.
In this episode, the serial killer ‘Mantis’ Jung Yi-shin (played by Go Hyun-jung) strongly provoked the perpetrator of the copycat murder case. The insane dialogue between the two murderers sent chills down viewers' spines, while Cha Soo-yeol (played by Jang Dong-yoon) was shocked to witness the death crisis of another person.
Earlier, the prime suspect in the copycat murder case, Seo Gu-wan (played by Lee Tae-goo), died in a mysterious hit-and-run accident. At a perfectly timed moment, Jung Yi-shin, who escaped from a retirement home, appeared at the home of Cha Soo-yeol and Lee Jeong-yeon (played by Kim Bo-ra). Cha Soo-yeol, suspecting that Jung Yi-shin killed Seo Gu-wan, rushed home upon hearing the news. Jung Yi-shin, hiding the fact that she is a serial killer, said, “I missed you. The person next to you.” Cha Soo-yeol was furious.
After the death of the first prime suspect, Seo Gu-wan, the second prime suspect, Park Min-jae (played by Lee Chang-min), was released. Having admired Jung Yi-shin like a mother since childhood and envying Cha Soo-yeol, Park Min-jae pointed out that Cha Soo-yeol actually wanted to see Jung Yi-shin, but could not admit it, thus rationalizing Jung Yi-shin as a demon. Was this a hit to the core? Cha Soo-yeol shouted, “Stop praising the murderer!” and turned away.
Meanwhile, the copycat murder perpetrator began to move. They sent a mobile phone containing murder videos to Cha Soo-yeol and even made a call. Coincidentally, the serial murder investigation team, while investigating Park Min-jae, discovered a woman named ‘Joy’ who was followed by both Park Min-jae and the previous victims of the copycat murder case on a dating app. At that moment, the mobile phone sent by the perpetrator rang. Ultimately, Cha Soo-yeol revealed to his team that he was receiving investigative help from Jung Yi-shin, but he could not mention their mother-son relationship.
Finally, the call between Jung Yi-shin and the copycat murder perpetrator began. Although it was uncertain when another victim might appear, Jung Yi-shin provocatively challenged the perpetrator without wavering. Instead of trying to appease the perpetrator to gain information, her actions, which touched the perpetrator's pride, left the members of the serial murder investigation team bewildered. However, only Cha Soo-yeol was able to read Jung Yi-shin's thoughts. As a result, the copycat murder perpetrator began to reveal clues as Jung Yi-shin intended.
From the words of the copycat murder perpetrator, the serial murder investigation team caught a clue about the ‘final scene’ and found a famous opera singer among Joy's followers. They immediately dispatched to the venue where he was performing. However, Jung Yi-shin said, “It can’t be him,” and told Cha Soo-yeol, “You need to think like Joy, or think like me.” Cha Soo-yeol felt uneasy but headed to the theater to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, and safely secured the opera singer who had disappeared after the performance.
At that moment, an unexpected situation occurred. Park Min-jae, claiming he would help Cha Soo-yeol, provocatively called Joy to his garage alone. Cha Soo-yeol, who saw Park Min-jae's message late while searching for the opera singer, rushed to him. However, Park Min-jae was already tied up and appeared to have been brutally attacked by Joy. Cha Soo-yeol embraced Park Min-jae and shouted, “You can’t die!” The desperate cry of Cha Soo-yeol concluded episode 5 of ‘Mantis: The Murderer's Outing’.
Episode 5 of ‘Mantis: The Murderer's Outing’ quickly and meticulously showcased the meeting between the escaped Jung Yi-shin and Lee Jeong-yeon, the full-fledged appearance of the copycat murder perpetrator, the insane dialogue between Jung Yi-shin and the perpetrator, the crisis of another copycat murder occurring, the gradually revealing outline of the perpetrator, and the death crisis of the prime suspect Park Min-jae, heightening the tension. Additionally, the relationship between Jung Yi-shin and Cha Soo-yeol, as well as Cha Soo-yeol's psychology as he discovers similarities with Jung Yi-shin, were detailed. Above all, the powerful presence of the actors, who expressed all of this with performances beyond perfection, was remarkable.
Will the prime suspect Park Min-jae die like this? Will Cha Soo-yeol be unable to prevent death once again and be consumed by pain? Who exactly is ‘Joy’? Is ‘Joy’ indeed the copycat murder perpetrator? ‘Mantis: The Murderer's Outing’, which has turned a corner and left even stronger questions, will air on the 20th at 10 PM.
[Lee Da-kyum, Star Today Reporter]
