Spoilers from the end
Love Alarm brought some important thoughts on Netflix. In the age of technology, the worldview has undergone a radical change. Human emotions, feelings, and relationships are now included in the scope of technological developments.
At the same time, connecting with people has become easy and the apprehension of expressing oneself has been relieved. ‘ Love Alarm’ is a Korean drama series that positions itself at this juncture and explores the feeling of love.
The story revolves around Kim Jo-jo, who has a cheerful temper, despite having a painful story. She reluctantly uses the “Love Alarm” and finds herself in a relationship with Sun-oh. However, the app reveals that in fact, Hye-Yeong is the one who likes her.
In this way, the first season explores the romantic relationships of the three main characters. In the end, an evolved form of the Love Alarm app is released, and the second season starts where the first one left off. So, let’s analyze what happened and explain the ending (via The CinemaHolic ).
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Remembering the second season
The second season shows version 2.0 of Love Alarm, with an improved algorithm. Now, he talks about the people who will love the user.
Kim Jo-jo and Hye-Yeong are trying to strengthen their bond by taking things slowly. Meanwhile, Hye-Yeong’s love alarm rings the app on Jo-jo’s phone, indicating his love. Because of the installed shield, Jo-jo’s application is not reversed. She believes that her relationship with Hye-Yeong will flourish over time.
On the other hand, Sun-oh has not yet overcome her breakup with Jo-jo and finds it difficult to maintain her relationship with Yuk-jo. Sun-oh’s alarm does not activate Yuk-jo’s alarm.
Gul-mi wants to increase his reach through Love Alarm and does his best to manage his online shopping business. She manages to obtain a police identification that helps her to connect with the developer of Love Alarm.
Sun-oh and Jo-jo have an inconclusive confrontation. He seeks validation of the application and cannot forget Jo-jo and move on. At the same time, he has to deal with his parents, who are going through a difficult time in their marriage. Jo-jo meets with Love Alarm developer Brian Chon, hoping to remove the shield. He reveals that the restriction cannot be undone and Duk-gu is reportedly dead.
Read Also: Love Alarm Season 3 Release Date
And still…
Hye-Yeong goes through his tribulations when he finally meets his father, who is in prison for alleged murder. Hye-Yeong denies his father’s parole. Jo-jo can feel the problematic situation and tries to console him. Gul-mi has a chance to prove himself and receive a prize from the developer. The developer’s mystery deepens as the narrative progresses.
Sun-oh follows Jo-jo in search of closure. Her confrontation with Jo-jo in the classroom goes viral, putting her current state at risk. However, there have been attacks on certain people, which is related to the alarm. Jo-jo receives the power of the spear – a new algorithm that will allow her to ring the love alarm of a person of her choice. Sun-oh has not yet reconciled with her past, which results in emotional turmoil.
Gul-mi tries to reach a milestone in Love Alarm and reach the developer. Brian Chon is under pressure from the police and, in desperation, reaches out to Jo-jo to ask about the arrow and shield.
However, such revelations initiate a chain of events that separates the three titular characters. They are forced to reconcile with their past and choose the best partner for themselves.
What does Jo-jo’s application log indicate?
The shield prevents Jo-jo from validating his feelings for Hye-Yeong through Love Alarm. Because of this situation and Sun-oh’s tireless search for the truth, she cannot fixate on either.
Sun-oh then makes him believe that he still likes her, and after finding out about the shield, he finds a reason to justify his feelings. In the process, Sun-oh’s relationship with Yuk-jo deteriorates further. In the end, Duk-gu provides Jo-jo with the registration tape of his application that will outline the trajectory of his feelings.
After reconciling with Hye-Yeong, she wants to confess and decides to fix the log. However, the recording tape plays after the two leave the scene. In a moment of poetic justice, the tape reveals that Jo-jo has always had feelings for Hye-Yeong. The beautiful montage of his moments of tenderness is perfectly juxtaposed with the outcome, which proves that Jo-jo was in love with Hye-Yeong throughout their union.
How do Jo-jo and Sun-oh manage to reconcile with the past?
The story reveals that the perpetrator of the crimes related to the app was influenced by Jo-jo’s posts on Instagram. The Instagram page is known as ‘The Ringing World’ aims to be a channel of emotion for Jo-jo. The fact that your posts influence a person to walk the path of crime shakes your emotions. She reveals her ownership of the page to the world and ventures into Jeju for a marathon.
Jo-jo blames herself for not being able to break free of her past that hampered her decision-making skills. Being the sole survivor of a mass suicide triggered her anxiety. And, in accepting his love for Hye-Yeong, Jo-jo lets go of the luggage he has been carrying for so long. Sun-oh finds it difficult to deal with her relationship with Yuk-jo. Also, his parents’ difficult relationship comes at a high price to him.
In his quest to find the truth, Sun-oh is caught in the height of despair. Despite knowing the truth behind the shield, he struggles to change the way Jo-jo feels about him. Jo-jo tells Sun-oh that it is a lie to blame their situation on the love alarm because she chose to leave of her own free will. Also, she always thought of Hye-Yeong and finally decided to act accordingly.
Sun-oh decides to let go of her and focuses her attention on Yuk-jo. He can’t call her love alarm, but he wants to keep trying and let his guard down for her. Essentially, anger and despair subside when Sun-oh realizes that attachment to the past will slowly consume him.
The spear and shield
In the technological universe of the application, the shield and the spear provide Jo-jo with the opportunity to exercise his will. The shield is a protector and a cinematographic representation of the phrase “ Don’t let your guard down”.
Because of the shield, Jo-jo can choose between Sun-oh and Hye-Yeong. Incidentally, a decision that is validated by your application log. She then wishes to repay Hye-Yeong, through the application. And therefore, you want it to be removed. Instead, she receives the spear, which allows her to call Hye-Yeong’s alarm. It is the moment we have all been waiting for. So, finally, she checks her feelings, deciding on her own time.
Duk-gu is the person behind these developments, as the series reveals that he is the younger brother of Brian Chon. He feels that Love Alarm 2.0 dictates the choice of people, while the previous version did not invade the user’s agency.
Duk-gu then provides Jo-jo with the spear to give him freedom in the Love Alarm 2.0 technical space. Also, Duk-gu keeps his promise to Gul-mi and provides her with the fame and success she so longed for. After all, it is the reason why Love Alarm exists in the first place.
Duk-gu, however, humanizes the Love Alarm aspect through Jo-jo, but at the same time maintains its diffusion by raising Gul-mi’s position. Even though the app mechanizes the feeling of love, it provides a form of affirmation that establishes Hye-Yeong and Jo-jo’s relationship. Hye-Yeong doesn’t want to focus on Jo-jo’s love alarm and instead tries to charm her with his true feelings.
Then, Duk-gu tells him that the sword and spear provide agency to users and exercise their will in mechanized predictions. He changed his mind and finally reconnected with Jo-jo.
