In many cultures, ants symbolize group effort and a diligent work ethic. They are also meant to represent the common, working-class men and women. In Korean culture in particular, they may also embody the insignificant common person. They’re the proletariat of the bug world.
In Season 2 of Netflix’s hit show, “Beef,” ants appear as a recurring character — tiny armies of them marching steadfastly over fruit, across windowsills, and over other objects and spaces. They’re never acknowledged beyond an absentminded yet forceful smudge of a fingertip or a disinterested, if slightly disgusted gaze.
It’s almost like they’re not even there. And that just might be the point.
The first season of Lee Sung Jin’s dark comedy was ultra-aggressive in its main characters’ pursuit to exact revenge upon one another, with Ali Wong and Steven Yeun locked in a primal, ever-escalating grudge match to the bitter, grisly end, earning both actors Emmys along the way. Then, the “beef” in question began over an incident of road rage before spiraling out of control to affect every aspect of their lives, with themes that explored class and culture in a crashing domino effect.
Now, Season 2 lands viewers “The White Lotus”-style into a new locale and with a new cast (Wong and Yeun remain as executive producers), and refines the concept of payback into something that, at least initially, feels more restrained than its predecessor.
Quickly, though, the story spirals into a series of events that prove to be just as deliciously wicked and twisty as its predecessor. In addition to class and culture, jealousy and greed are explored to their darkest depths, and everyone’s impulses are tested to their basest instincts.
The eight-episode series focuses on the workplace, opening at a lavish country club where everything appears picture-perfect and where we meet two couples at the heart of the story. There’s the Gen Z pairing, Ashley (Cailee Spaeny) and Austin (Charles Melton), both low-ranking employees, and their older, millennial-age counterparts, country club manager Josh (Oscar Isaac at his Clooney-lite best) and his interior designer wife, Lindsay (a very posh Carey Mulligan).
One evening, after a lavish party, Ashley and Austin follow Josh and Lindsay home to return his wallet, only to inadvertently witness an explosive argument between the two.
A cellphone video camera is, of course, involved and eventually turned into a weapon of mass exploitation, with the younger couple becoming complicit in the crumbling state of Josh and Lindsay’s already fragile marriage.
That Josh and Lindsay are older adds to the sense of divide between the two couples, who are, in reality, serving the same overlord. This isn’t just about the haves versus the have-nots; it’s about who can scurry up the corporate ladder faster. Blackmail being what it is, the sordid hijinks soon go very, very sideways. As the younger couple is given better opportunities at the country club—in Ashley’s case, at the expense of a co-worker—a wealth of secrets and lies start to emerge for just about everyone involved.
Josh and Lindsay allow Austin and Ashley access to all that wealth and privilege — but at what cost for either couple? Eventually, both couples become entangled with the club’s Korea-based, billionaire owner, Chairwoman Park (an icy Youn Yuh-jung), who is trying to navigate her own seedy peccadillos by way of a disastrous scandal brought on by her plastic surgeon husband, Dr. Kim (Song Kang-ho).
When the chairwoman travels to the United States to handle her affairs, accompanied by her glamorous assistant, Eunice (Seoyeon Jang), everyone starts beefing in pursuit of their own self-serving agenda, even a nosy neighbor with security camera footage.
Eventually, most of the players experience some sort of emotional fallout, be it their pocketbook or their pride. It’s especially cringe-inducing to watch Josh subjugating himself to the club’s rich clients, including his “friend” Troy (William Fichtner), an uber-rich man with celebrity friends and a much younger wife, Ava (Mikaela Hoover). Anything to keep Troy in his good graces. Another round of free drinks? Absolutely! Comped rounds of golf for four? Yes, of course! Anything for you, pal.
Meanwhile, Lindsay flounders and flails, searching for equal parts purpose and payback through Woosh, the club’s hot young tennis instructor (Korean pop star BM).
And then there’s Austin and Ashley. Their relationship is in trouble from the beginning, but it takes the stripping of their souls to realize how deeply unsuited they are for one another. Ashley is clingy, paranoid and ridiculously naïve, while Austin’s judgment is clouded, first by a sense of allegiance and duty, and later by the promise of something new and shiny.
Throughout the series arc, Lee alternates fast-break action with contemplative moments. There is a wild drug trip, a hospital visit and assorted tense, jealousy-driven misconducts. You may never look at a glass or orange juice in the same way again. There are also trippy episodes of hallucination as key characters briefly morph into other characters leading to startling moments of self-awareness. Cameos from Benny Blanco, Baron Davis, Michael Phelps, the musician Finneas and Olympic figure skater Suni Lee heighten the show’s sense of wealth and exclusivity.
The whole thing hurtles to a wild ride of an ending in Korea, where actions and their repercussions will shape everyone’s lives to come. The final episode is executed with the dazzling adventure of a screwball comedy.
Throughout, some plot points and twists may be ludicrous, but they’re rooted in everyday pathos and greed.
“Babe, everyone is scamming,” Josh tells Lindsay at one point, justifying the more nefarious of their actions. Maybe so, but to what degree do we allow ourselves to use that notion as moral justification? Moreover, does our collective effort to keep up with — or get ahead — of the Joneses really add up to anything of value?
For example, when Lindsay implores Ava, with whom she’s become friendly, to help out her and Josh, it is starkly evident that friendly and friends are two very different states of being.
“Think about everything Josh has done for you guys,” Lindsay says.
“He has to, that’s his job,” Ava replies without a hint of irony or guilt.
The takeaway: Everyone is replaceable in a capitalistic ecosystem. Even the poor dog eventually learns this the hard way. Even — no, especially — the ants.
“Beef” Season 2 is now streaming on Netflix.