Hit Korean drama The Uncanny Counter wrapped up its run on January 24, but fans need not worry – everyone’s favourite demon hunters are set to return for a second season.
Based on the webtoon sensation Amazing Rumor (or Amazing So-mun) by Jang Yi, The Uncanny Counter focuses on four people who run a noodle shop by day and hunt demons when they’re off the clock.
Jo Byung-gyu stars as So-mun, a high schooler who has had a limp ever since a car crash eight years earlier in which his parents perished. One day a spirit from Yung, the afterworld, enters his body and he joins the “counters” – Mo-tak (Yu Jun-sang), Ha-na (Sejeong) and Mae-ok (Yum Hye-ran) – who heal his leg.
Kicking off on November 28 last year on Korean cable network OCN and Netflix (which licensed it globally), the series was an instant hit and quickly became the highest-rated programme in OCN’s history. Early in its run, viewers were already clamouring for a second season and it would seem that the powers that be have been listening, with OCN confirming on January 25 that a second season is coming.
Korean shows have traditionally been one-season affairs, but this has slowly begun to change as the medium has evolved to adapt itself to modern tastes. So it should come as no surprise that The Uncanny Counter was also conceived as a one-season series and the showrunners only began to consider turning it into a multi-season programme after it had become a hit.
So where does the show go from here? Since there are no multi-season options with the cast, new contracts need to be negotiated and then there’s the delicate issue of scheduling. Reports suggest that talks are underway and the show may be aiming to get the cast back in front of cameras around September, with the new episodes airing early next year.
Review: Netflix’s The Uncanny Couner reaches a satisfying conclusion
Assuming all the production wrangling proceeds without a hitch, that still leaves the biggest question of all: where does the story go from here?
There was some behind-the-scenes drama when the writer and producers disagreed over the direction of the show and the former quit after 12 episodes. The director stepped up to write the next episode and a new writer was hired to pen the remaining three, but some viewers expressed disappointment over this late run of episodes.
Nevertheless, the show was able to end on a high note, not to mention a ratings peak, with a well-regarded season finale which neatly wrapped up many of the show’s plot threads. The counters finally beat the Level 4 demon Jeong-sin (Lee Hong-nae) and Mayor Shin (Choi Kwang-il) for good, in the process saving So-mun’s parents, which set the stage for a cathartic reunion.
While new threats are sure to emerge when the counters return next year, we may also have a few more relationships spicing up the plot.
Mae-ok and Jang-mul (Ahn Suk-hwan) went off on a date in the last episode and the long-teased pairing of So-mun and Ha-na got another boost when So-mun introduced Ha-na to his parents in Yung. Only time will tell if the writers choose to keep stringing along the audience on this romantic knife edge or if they’ll finally take the plunge.
One thing to look out for will be Hyuk-woo (Jung Won-chang), the son of the mayor, who went from being a vicious bully in the first half of the season to a more wise and remorseful character by the season’s end. If he returns, he could become an uneasy ally for So-mun – or perhaps his dark side could be reawakened by a new villain.
Another change was the uniforms of the counters, which were upgraded from red tracksuits to Men in Black-style suits at the very end of the finale. Beyond that, as The Uncanny Counter left us with a pretty clean slate, all we can do is imagine what adventures lie in wait for the colourful demon hunters of Jungjin City when they return, hopefully early next year.
The Uncanny Counter season one is streaming on Netflix.
