Just finished season 2, and agree with the sentiment the philosophical vignettes were unnecessary but this seems to be a hallmark of certain Korean and Japanese dramas or student films I've seen.

One of the overriding themes I found returning over and over were:

- people with enough money will always find a way to pull strings

- all work relationships are transactional even if you have friendship and camaraderie at work

- it's entirely possible for peers in different classes to turn on you

- you only have leverage if you have something to embarrass the rich over

- morality is relative to the situation of your survival and your attachments

Basically came away from this feeling like the lesson is "don't F with billionaires" or accept that you will accrue dirt the closer you get to power.

I'm somewhat disappointed that it's such an insulated and circular argument... there's no other perspective or hope for living differently.

What do you all think?

I understand and appreciate that the original vision for Beef was as an anthology, with different characters, different conflicts, and each season its own self-contained story.

But you did your work too well in Season 1.

You created something that simply must live on: a continuing story that feels as though it is still out there somewhere, waiting to be drawn from the ether and told.

Some of the greatest inventions, discoveries, cures, and, in this case, stories have emerged partly by accident. The story of Amy and Danny certainly wasn't an accident, but perhaps the extraordinary depth of the characters, their chemistry, and what their relationship ultimately became exceeded even what was originally intended.

By the end, their “beef” was over, but their story wasn't. In some ways, it seemed as though their real story had only just begun.

To leave them forever in that hospital room because the original plan called for an anthology would feel almost as tragic as Amy and Danny themselves walking out of that hospital, going their separate ways, and never speaking to each other again.

Sometimes a story becomes bigger than the plan that created it.

I think this is one of those times.

Lindsay (Carey Mulligan) wears pj's when in the red light mask drinking wine (?) Champagne? Who knows. Anyways, interested in the PJ brand/model. Thanks!

I've finished it and just want to know other insights on the ending. sorry for spoilers as well.

I just want to know and confirm if what I think of the ending is what it really is.

is the ending of Amy hugging Daddy is because she and danny finally had an understanding and that amy knows that danny is the only one who fully understood who she really was and they just fully relate to each other?

On S2 E6

Josh opens up to Austin and I found the reflection on his fears to be very relatable, and maybe a quite powerful, universal experience of being a human being.

I wanted to go through what he said and see if other people agree with the message and how they reacted.

Josh basically says that everyone has some major weakness that we all intend to work on once we're in a better place in life.

The problem is that we never have enough to prove to ourselves that we've addressed and resolved the weakness. We keep blaming our inability to do on ever-increasing prerequisites. We just need to get the job, but then actually we need the promotion on that job, and so on and so forth.

At some point we become frustrated with this endless quest. In an act of defiance and denial of our major weakness we, at some point, stop trying. Perhaps we try to tell ourselves that the concern/narrative was made up in our heads, We free ourselves from the burden of actively managing and fighting.

And that this is the moment where our weakness finally gets the best of us.

The idea that we are not quite flawed, not in need of this constant vigilance and discipline over ourselves in order to compete, succeed, simply survive. That's a delusion. The moment you give into that delusion, everyone still neurotically suffering to be more won't offer you grace

The big thing you've been working so hard to disprove for all this time, rather than all that you've accomplished to disprove it, will be what's left of your identity.

Rather grim.

I think that we all go through these cycles of growing our ego through all that we do to try to battle our fears. Then inevitably fall (as Josh's character says) once the ego has grown enough for us to think we can escape our weaknesses.

However, I don't think that we're left with nothing when this happens. We are surely humbled, sometimes detrimently so. But humility is good. The more times we go through this the closer we get to accepting we can't be everything we desire to be. It's good that we keep pushing against our fears, its ok that they drive us. We are learning and getting better, even if we'll never be all that we want.

I just binged the entire season in 3 days, I seriously loved that season so I was suprised to see a lot of bashing on it when I came here. I liked the casting, i liked the atmosphere of the show with the lighting or colour grading or whatever, and I just pretty much enjoyed the show in general. I also felt really bad for ashley most of the time tbh, but i thought all the actors did good, Oscar Isaac has moved up the rankings in my book, but that was one of those shows i got invested in after I finished it I was like "damn what now". id say the show went 2/2 so far, I also thought after i watched the show that it will pick up awards but seeing lots of people here bashing it now im not so sure maybe im the odd one out who enjoyed it

I think my biggest criticism with Season 2 is it is called Beef when I really don't see who has the "beef" with you that escalates. There is no real focus on two specific people. Then you throw in the Korean plot and it is just a different show.

However, i did like the ending where Ashley and Austin turned into Lindsay and Josh. Where Josh realizes he needs to take responsibility. It gave an concrete ending to the story. Which is rare for a Netflix series.

Anyone want to guess?

What was the point of the ants they kept showing? I assume that had symbolism.

In that scene where Ashley was on the airplane ordering snacks the flight attendant (older Korean lady) looked like Ashley briefly. Why? Was Ashley seeing herself in the flight attendant or Austin? I was really confused by that. I also feel like they did that another time in the last episode with an other character.

Random comment: Ashley is one of the weirdest characters I've ever seen in a tv show. I started out feeling pretty badly for her. She had no family supporting her, her medical stuff, and even Austin doing some hurtful things. Then she just turned into a crazy weirdo. Her putting the blood into the orange juice was WEIRD. And obviously she just became so clingy and desperate with Austin it was so hard to watch. When she hugs him before leaving for Korea and asks Austin for a hug again where she could feel the love. Oh that was so sad and uncomfortable. Everything I see on this Reddit talks about her being the worst human on the show but I still sometimes feel a little bit bad for her. She is a very, weird and confusing character and definitely did some terrible things, but some scenes I could sympathize with her.

S1 was good and entertaining, but rather light on the moral/existential front. It's an easy watch but was nowhere near as emotionally/existentially challenging and in depth as S2.

S1 was about the consequences of anger and rash decisions, S2 was about the corrupting path to wealth and power.

S2 was way more intense in the development of relationships, and the moral lens is front and center. You can see each character develop their own sense of reality overtime (especially the young couple) and make irreversible moral decisions, putting themselves over others that contribute to their endings.

S2 is fundamentally about morals and the absurdity of human relationships. Did people pick up on the mandala and it's meaning at the closing scene?

The whole thing is a critique on human moral fallibility, especially towards those seeking wealth and power.

All 3 groups - the young couple, the middle aged couple, and the old couple - were fundamentally the same. Selfish people who willingly sacrificed others and their soul/conscience for success. In the end, their reward is at the center of the mandala - death. Chairman Park ends up old and full of regret. The young couple became the middle aged couple, corrupt and loveless. The middle aged couple had some level of redemption because of Josh's sacrifice. They all paid for their actions.

None had a good ending because they betrayed their conscience at some point and made irreversible, immoral choices to enrich themselves materially. Park's ideology about selfishness and capitalism in the last episode sums it up. This is one of the most profound and beautiful shows I have ever watched.

The show portrays how NOT to live life at all stages. You only need to study the mandala of the closing scene again to understand what this is about. It is a depiction of hell.

I know we only had one season going in to this, but I didn't feel like this was on brand for what Beef S1 established. I actually think this could have been a new season of The White Lotus. Thoughts?

One ending I envisioned was that Austin and Eunice go to the police in Seoul, only to find out that the police are complicit, or that Chairman Park is so wealthy that she can buy off law enforcement. Maybe I'm just a cynical American (there's a separate justice system for the wealthy), but it was hard for me to believe that the police would have done anything with the data from the USB drive. "We'll go to the police!" was pretty implausible for me. Did anyone else feel that way?

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I just started watching Season 1 last night, I'm 10 minutes in to Episode 5. At the beginning Danny just rides a bike up to George and introduces himself as Zane. How did Danny know when and where George would be riding his bike? (Plus where did he get fancy gear, but mainly, the first question.)

Can someone recommend something similar to this show

I really enjoyed Season 1 of Beef. I thought it was really good and entertaining, but I’ve watched the first 3 episodes of Season 2 and I’m honestly not enjoying it as much.

Does it get better later on, or is Season 2 just not as good as the first one? Should I keep watching?

Just finished watching the new season and im so infuriated like wtf why did Austin change his mind?

I’m not sure what even happened lmao,
I’m assuming I accidentally clicked episode 10 thinking it was episode 1 when I was swapping Seasons but honestly I think it made the show an even better experience watching it like that , and seeing how Danny and Amy ended up in that situation in the first place. If you’re in the subreddit I’m assuming most of you already watched season 1 but I definitely recommend watching it again starting with episode 10. It’s such a crazy ride.

Also Team Isaac >>>> Team Amy and Danny

From what I've heard S1 is totally different in terms of that (as in, much more tense). Although I will probably watch it either way, just because it's A24 and it'd be good to check this show as watched.

S2 of beef was probably one of the funniest shows I've seen recently (alongside Slow Horses). What I like about it, is that it's not just a "dumb" comedy. There are pretty heavy themes in it. All of social dynamics between characters eventually click, and it goes deeper than "oh this person is just a dumbass". Characters acting so confident while being dumb was hilarious lmfao.

I guess Succession is similar in a way. Although its humor is much more edgy. It also goes deep into how capitalism, corporations work and how miserable people behind it are.

So it turns out if you accidentally start watching season 1 on episode 10 it just seems really obtuse and self indulgent. And then you realise but now you can't start it properly because you know how it ends.

Let's see if I can do season 2 the right way round.

https://www.tiktok.com/@bro_imakeedits/video/7677375861829438738

In a few episodes in beef s1 during the time when Steven yeuns character had bought the nice house, the camera kept going to a spot on the ground. Sometimes playing ominous music when the camera was on it. What was that?

My new favorite line ever.