The first season of Lee Sung Jin’s dark comedy Beef was a hit and an award-winner for Netflix because of its relatable story, class differences that people could connect to, and fine performances.
The second season has an all-new story and characters, who face similar issues.
But something about this season feels off.
BEEF SEASON 2: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT? Opening Shot: Ants are crawling on the ground on what looks like fake snow.
Then they’re stepped on by someone carrying a case of beer.
The Gist: Joshua Martin (Oscar Isaac), the general manager of Monte Vista Point country club, is at the microphone at the end of a fundraiser gala, and he’s praising his wife, Lindsay Crane-Martín (Carey Mulligan), for putting the soiree together.
She has also done the interior design for an upgrade to the club as it gets a new owner, Chairwoman Park (Youn Yuh-jung), a Korean billionaire.
Working the party are Ashley Miller (Cailee Spaeny) and Austin Davis (Charles Melton), who recently got engaged.
While the Martins put on a happy face, as soon as Lindsay gets in the car with Josh to go home, the fight starts.
She is not happy with the work she’s doing, the house is still not fully renovated after six years, and she thinks Josh is avoidant about discussing his issues.
The fight spirals out of control, moving to Josh’s “man cave” in the guest house, and Lindsay smashing things with a golf club.
It’s then that Ashley and Austin show up to return the wallet Josh left behind at the club, and through the window of the guest house they see the Martins grappling with each other.
Ashley decides to record the melee.
Josh and Lindsey seem to shrug off the whole thing as just another fight in their long marriage, but the younger couple are traumatized by what they saw, and are ready to send the video to the police.
Then the next day, Josh passive-aggressively threatens to fire Ashley in more than one way; when he encounters her beverage cart, for instance, he takes time to tell her that she needs to keep the “make believe” atmosphere of the club going.
For his part, Austin visits Lindsay at her home to offer his support, which is when she tells him that a married couple who never fights is hiding something.
When Ashley is told she’s going to need surgery on a cyst near one of her ovaries, and that the chances of bearing children are reduced, she gets angry that she’s suffering without health insurance while jerks like Josh get away with things like his fight with Lindsay.
In the meantime, Chairwoman Park arrives at the club and decides to redo all the decorative changes Lindsay made to the place.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The second season of Beef, written by Lee Sung Jin, has....
