'Kingdom' Season 2 Ending Explained: The show sets up a brilliant season 3 follow-up by introducing Gianna Jun
Spoilers for 'Kingdom' Season 2
'Kingdom' Season 2 consisting of six episodes is fast-paced as it captures the journey of Crown Prince Chang's (Ju Ji-hoon) attempts at stopping a plague in Joseon. The plague unlike any that people have seen before has the characteristic of turning people into monsters that are driven by their bloodlust and it spreads when one of the monsters bites a human. We know them as zombies and have seen many variations of these monsters on screen before -- white walkers in 'Game of Thrones' for instance; but what makes these monsters different is the cause of the plague.
This cause and how to cure it forms the crux of the second season. Seo-bi (Bae Doo-na), the nurse who knows of physician Lee Seung-hui's attempts to revive the king, tries to find out all that she can about the plague and the plant that is causing the plague. Crown Prince Chang, on the other hand, has to play court politics, fight the zombies that have already taken over Dongnae among other towns all while ensuring that he isn't snared into the many traps that First Counsellor Jo Hak-ju (Ryoo Seung-ryong) has planned for Chang. It doesn't help matters that the zombies are working their way through most of the people that have so far tried to help Chang with an attempt to stop the plague from spreading.
Now the last episode centers on how Chang manages to stop the plague with Seo-bi's help, however, he ends up giving up his throne. He is in favor of letting the newborn baby that everyone believes is the legitimate heir to the throne take over the ruling. He knows the truth about the baby's true family, yet he doesn't reveal it to the ministers (the ones who managed to stay alive through the zombie attack in the palace). We learn how he is accompanied by Seo-bi and Young-shin (Kim Sung-kyu) in finding the truth behind how the resurrection plant plays the role it does in spreading the plague.
While everyone believes that the plague has been stopped, Chang and Seo-bi believe otherwise. They have found the resurrection plant in other parts of the country as well and they learn that someone at the border between Joseon and China is selling farmers the plant with the promise that they would earn a lot of money because the plant brings the dead back to life. When they follow the trail, they arrive at a place where they meet zombies again after seven long years of dealing with them.
They see the monsters thirsty for blood come at them, but only this time it seems as if these infected humans are being used by someone. They have an anklet tied similar to dog collars and their master...that individual is the one who Seo-bi and Chang are in search of. In the meanwhile, the prince, who has turned seven years old has also been infected by the plague and the worm that brings out the bloodthirst in infected humans has already reached the brain of the child, who is now the King of Joseon.
The episode ends with a shot of Gianna Jun dressed like a pirate surrounded by crates filled with infected humans. She seems to be in control of them, and possibly even the King's chief server in the palace. What is her plan and how will Chang stop things from getting out of control is possibly going to be the central plot of an all-new season of 'Kingdom' and we cannot wait to see how things pan out.
'Kingdom' Season 2 can be streamed on Netflix.