Season 1, Episode 2, titled “2 Times”, directed by Yoon Sunghyun, and written by Han Jinwon and Jee Hojin, marks the beginning of the zombie outbreak with a catastrophic plane crash in Gangnam, Seoul, signaling the extent of the infection’s spread. The episode pays homage to classic outbreak scenes from other films and shows, notably referencing the plane crash from The Last of Us and the truck plowing through cars from World War Z. Even the zombies bear similarities in design to those from other Korean zombie films like Train to Busan.

At its core, the episode explores the theme of chaos. The infection spreads rapidly, appearing in multiple locations throughout Seoul, plunging the city into turmoil. A state of national emergency is declared, and martial law is imposed in an attempt to contain the outbreak. However, as seen in many zombie narratives, the military’s arrival is likely too late—by the time they intervene, much of the population has already succumbed to the infection.

The zombies in this series appear to follow The Walking Dead logic, where humans instantly turn upon being bitten or killed—unless their heads are destroyed. This is evident when victims of car crashes slowly reanimate as the undead. Fortunately, these zombies aren’t as fast as those in World War Z, but they also aren’t as sluggish as The Walking Dead’s walkers. Instead, they stumble while running, giving survivors a brief head start in their escape.

With civilization crumbling, humanity faces its ultimate test. In a life-or-death scenario, people reveal their true nature—whether selfish, selfless, or outright psychotic. It echoes Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight: “You see, their morals, their code… it’s a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They’re only as good as the world allows them to be. I’ll show you. When the chips are down, these… uh… these ‘civilized’ people? They’ll eat each other.” Ironically, zombies literally consume the living without discrimination.

The Hotel Outbreak

At the 77A Building, a plane crashes into the streets of Gangnam, leaving Private Lee Jae-yoon (Park Jeong-min), Kang Young-joo (Jisoo), and numerous onlookers in shock. Some speculate it could be a terrorist attack. However, the two soldiers, rather than investigating further, resume their duties—an indifference that leads them to cross paths with the arrogant yet highly competent chief hotel manager, Aaron Park (Kim Junhan), in the elevator.

Upon reaching the 53rd floor, they are confronted with chaos as the zombie outbreak spreads through the hotel. Meanwhile, on the rooftop’s anti-aircraft military base, the rest of the 1st Platoon arm themselves following the declaration of martial law.

Aaron Park, receiving an urgent phone call, relays to Private Lee Jae-yoon and Private Ra In-ho that the entire 77A Building is infested with zombies and advises them to avoid the lower floors. The trio splits up—the soldiers attempt to reach their military base via the emergency stairs, while Aaron stays behind to assess the situation on the 53rd floor.

However, the soldiers’ path is blocked by a locked gate on the 77th floor, forcing them to find an alternate route through the north stairwell on the 75th floor. Along the way, they encounter Oh Soo-jeong (Hong Seo-hee), who has barricaded herself inside the staff room. Together, they make their way to the north stairs—only to find Chef Jung (Kwang-Jae Park) desperately holding the door against a horde of zombies trying to break into the lounge. The glass doors are already beginning to crack.

The City Outbreak

On the streets of Gangnam, Kang Young-joo (Jisoo) and her senior colleague, Seo Jin-wook (Kang Young-seok), slowly recover from the shock of a dead zombie crashing through Jin-wook’s windshield.

In a twist of fate, Sung Tae-sik, also known as Alex (Lee Hak-joo), the CEO of Alex Entertainment, witnesses the crash. Under the watchful eyes of his fans—many of whom are recording on their phones—he reluctantly helps pull the corpse from the car. His actions, however, are not entirely selfless; it’s clear he’s motivated by public perception rather than genuine concern.

As the situation escalates, multiple car crashes occur, killing numerous people—who soon begin reanimating as zombies. Panic spreads, forcing Young-joo, Tae-sik, and Jin-wook to split up and flee. Eventually, Young-joo and Jin-wook reunite with the help of a hair salon owner and attempt to reach a nearby police station. However, their journey is interrupted by a massive zombie horde rushing toward them.

Rating: 9/10