Go Hyun-jung's mesmerizing performance in 'Mantis: The Murderer's Outing' captivated the home audience.
According to Nielsen Korea, the third episode of SBS's Friday-Saturday drama 'Mantis: The Murderer's Outing' (hereafter referred to as 'Mantis'), which aired on the 12th, recorded a nationwide viewership rating of 7.3%, setting a new personal best.
This figure ranks first among all channels in the same time slot and is the top-rated Friday mini-series, with a peak viewership of 8.3%. The key indicator of channel competitiveness, the 2049 viewership rating, also ranked first among all channel dramas aired on Friday, averaging 2% and peaking at 2.57%, proving its popularity.
In this episode, the truth surrounding the serial killer 'Mantis', played by Go Hyun-jung, was revealed. It was disclosed that Jeong Yi-shin had killed not five, but six men. Her first murder victim, which had not been revealed to the world, was her husband and the father of her son, Cha Soo-yeol (played by Jang Dong-yoon).
Cha Soo-yeol managed to save Kim Tae-seok, who could have been the third imitation murder victim. For Cha Soo-yeol, who became a police officer to save lives, the survival of the victim held great significance. Therefore, he sought out Jeong Yi-shin, who had provided a clue to the case, to express his gratitude.
Kim Na-hee (played by Lee El) harbored doubts about Jeong Yi-shin's 'zero murder'. There was another murder by Jeong Yi-shin that was unknown to the world, but known to Seo Gu-wan.
Meanwhile, another imitation murder by 'Mantis' occurred. The prime suspect, Seo Gu-wan, was in the hospital with a gunshot wound. The investigation returned to square one, and the serial murder investigation team headed to the location where the cellphone signal of the third imitation murder victim was detected. In a sparsely populated rural village, Cha Soo-yeol strangely recalled memories of his father from his childhood. Following that memory, Cha Soo-yeol discovered a message from the perpetrator saying, "Welcome! Finally found you," along with a corpse in a well.
Everything was intended by the perpetrator. The perpetrator led Cha Soo-yeol to uncover Jeong Yi-shin's first murder. He found a skeleton and Jeong Yi-shin's wedding ring in the well of the house where he lived as a child, realizing that Jeong Yi-shin's zero murder was his father.
His father was extremely jealous and often drunk, committing violence against his wife, and eventually laid hands on Cha Soo-yeol before being killed by Jeong Yi-shin. Young Cha Soo-yeol fainted in shock and lost the memory of that day.
Cha Soo-yeol, in agony, choked Jeong Yi-shin, who provocatively said, "Do you hate me? Am I terrible? Do you want to kill me? Go ahead! It's such a headache that mom is alive. Our son." The chilling confrontation between mother and son, who could never get close, came to an end.
