Love Alarm: 5 Ways Season 2 Met Expectations (& 5 Ways It Shocked Fans)

Many K-drama fans know that most shows don’t go past one season, but the webtoon-based Netflix drama, Love Alarm became such a smash hit that it needed a new installment. A lot of storyline questions weren’t answered by the end of the first season, leaving fans wanting more. Would Sun-oh and Jo-jo continue their story?

Or would Jo-Jo finally let him go and find new love? Fans were overjoyed to see the new season premiere in 2021. The new episodes had some fans shocked at its outcome, while it still met many expectations set up the storyline. It’s safe to say that the second season started and ended some chapters.

10 Met Expectations: Sun-Oh Still Loves Jo-Jo

In the first season, Sun-Oh isn’t the one who breaks up with Jo-Jo. Instead, Jo-Jo uses her LoveAlarm shield so that  Sun-Oh’s app stops ringing. But despite having moved on, Sun-Oh never forgot about his first love, hence it was an expectation of the second season that he would still want her back.

Sun-Oh is still unsure why Jo-Jo stopped ringing his alarm. When he learns about the Shield, he confronts her and tries to make her see that she still loves him. Once again, his life is in shambles as he can’t let her go, even though she tells him the truth and her real feelings.

9 Shock: Jo-Jo’s Role On Social Media

Jo-Jo’s storyline got slightly more complex in the second season in regards to LoveAlarm and social media. In the first season, audiences know that a group of LoveAlarm users tried to end their lives together, distraught over the impact the app has had on their love lives.

The second season shows that Jo-Jo might have had a role in it. She’s part of the Badge Club as the author of The Ringing World, where she shares heartfelt illustrations of her struggles. Unfortunately, her posts influence several people leading to them wanting to end their lives, but one survivor becomes obsessed with her and creates a tense storyline.

8 Met Expectations: LoveAlarm Still In Control

Seeing as the first season relied so heavily on the LoveAlarm app, it was no surprise that the second would still rely on it as well. What set the first season’s storyline in motion was the popularity of the app. In the second season, the app never lost its momentum, even after many safety incidents and reports.

Everyone still relies heavily on the app to help them find love. Gul-Mi is even overjoyed that she gets first dibs at a new software update that allows her to see a map of possible suitors, not to mention that the app now has a list of the best and hottest users.

7 Shock: Sun-Oh’s Mother

Since the first season, fans know that Sun-Oh doesn’t have a good relationship with his mother. She’s manipulative and cares more about her family’s image than her son’s feelings. Fans didn’t expect to have some sympathy towards her in the second season, but her real struggles are now on display.

She becomes more vulnerable and opens up a bit more to Sun-Oh, so much so, that he actually starts sympathizing with her. When having to appear on television with her husband, Sun-oh sees her outside smoking. She explains with sorrow that his father still rings her alarm, despite knowing about his infidelities. She then takes a deep breath and opens the door to the studio.

6 Met Expectations: Gul-Mi Gets What She Deserves

Fans really didn’t like the character of Gul-Mi in the first season. She was stuck-up, manipulative, and a bully. So when it came to the second season, fans were hoping to see her life in the dumps. And it is. Her online shop is failing terribly, she has no prospects, and her mother wants her to grow up.

Gul-Mi is still envious of Jo-Jo and ridicules her at times. Above all, she’s still the same egotistical girl she was in high school. When given an opportunity at a new LoveAlarm update, where she must prove her ranking to learn the identity of the creator, she takes it. When she learns that it was Duk-Gu all along, she berates him for creating a lie detector app, but he could care less.

5 Shock: Duk-Go’s Storyline

By the end of the first season, fans were left heartbroken when Duk-Go is seen sitting on the edge of his window and then ends his life. So obviously his storyline wasn’t expected in the second season. The new season has a suave and handsome man as the creator and CEO of LoveAlarm, but there’s an aura of mystery around who he really is, as Jo-Jo looks for Duk-Go to remove her shield.

There are hints that Duk-Go might not actually be dead and that the fake CEO knows where he is. Eventually, it’s revealed that Duk-Go never died and instead stayed in hiding, leaving his older brother to run the company as a fake CEO. But he’s still the boss, as he stops his brother from releasing LoveAlarm 2.0.

4 Met Expectations: Jo-Jo’s Complex Story

Jo-Jo’s storyline is quite complex, but what made it so complex to watch on screen was her constant battle with her emotions. She’s first dealing with her ex and quickly falls in love with Sun-Oh, leading to issues on social status and overbearing family members. In the end, she’s never able to come to terms with how she really feels and puts up the shield.

The same happens in season two and Jo-Jo can’t come to terms with her feelings. She knows she can’t be with Sun-Oh anymore but doesn’t make the leap to commit herself to Hye-Young. Intermixed with this are her emotions of feeling alone and the guilt over her posts in the Badge Club. Jo-Jo also can’t tell Hye-Young how she feels unless she gets rid of the shield.

3 Shock: Sun-Oh Giving Yuk-Jo A Chance

Often fans have ill feelings toward a main character’s new girlfriend. Yuk-Jo was introduced in the first season as a famous socialite and Sun-Oh’s girlfriend. Their relationship continues in the second season, but it’s clear that Sun-Oh doesn’t see her in that way.

Fans felt bad for the character, as she’s not a bad person and wants to give Sun-Oh a chance, despite knowing he loves Jo-Jo. They eventually break up, but fans weren’t expecting Sun-Oh to come back to her. While she’s away, he constantly visits her apartment and leaves her voicemails. When she returns, he walks around the corner and they embrace while smiling.

2 Met Expectations: Hye-Young Is Still By Jo-Jo’s Side

Between Hye-Young and Sun-Oh, Hye-Young was the sweet guy, while Sun-Oh was more of a bad boy. Hye-Young proves time and time again that he truly loved and cared for Jo-Jo, and even when she decided to date his best friend, Hye-Young backed away.

It was heartwarming to see that he never gave up on Jo-Jo in the second season. He promised to always be there for her, even as a friend, and he promised to ring her LoveAlarm 10 times a day. What fans loved is that Hye-Young didn’t pressure Jo-Jo to love him. She needed to come to terms with it on her own. Much like the first season, Hye-Young was Jo-Jo’s shoulder to cry on, no matter what.

1 Shock: Hye-Young Gets The Girl!

Fans of K-drams know that it’s incredibly hard to break the “second-lead syndrome” trope. Many characters go through the struggles of caring and pinning for the lead girl, but never winning her heart. Hye-Young broke the mold and became a second-lead that gets the girl.

The second season had fans on a rollercoaster of emotions, wondering if Jo-Jo and Hye-Young would actually get together or if Jo-Jo would go back to Sun-Oh. But patience and true love win and Jo-Jo uses the spear to ring Hye-young’s alarm, finally showing him that she really does love him out of her own free will.

About The Author

Gabriela Silva
(477 Articles Published)

Gabriela Silva is a List writer for Screen Rant with experience in all things television, film and pop culture. A graduate of Fordham University with previous years experience interning for Cliché Magazine.

With her passion for movies, television and entertainment, she’s interviewed some great actors from Cress Williams of ‘Black Lightning’ to Tati Gabrielle from ‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.’

Her love for entertainment reaches a broad range of interests from 90s thriller movies, guilty pleasure teen dramas, action-packed MCU movies to popular K-dramas. You’ll most likely find her binge-watching a new television show or movies on Netflix into the early morning.

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