Hajiwon’s Stunning Comeback in ENA’s ‘Climax’: What to Expect from the Drama’s Second Episode

Ha Ji-won at the Climax premiere / Photo=ENA

[Sports Today reporter Lim Si-ryeong] Ha Ji-won made a striking return to television with ENA’s new Monday-Tuesday drama Climax, announcing what critics are calling the triumphant return of the queen.

In the March 16 premiere, Ha plays Choo Sang-ah, an actress once idolized as the nation’s first love who fell from grace amid a tax scandal. Her bold transformation in the role drew immediate attention.

Early in the episode, a low-profile Choo Sang-ah (Ha Ji-won) attends the first-birthday celebration of her agency’s co-CEO. Guests rudely press her to sing; she hides her discomfort and carefully suppresses her emotions as she maneuvers a comeback. The scene lands powerfully when she forces a humiliating smile for Director Lee Yang-mi (Cha Ju-young) — the wife of WR Group’s third-ranked executive and a major power broker in entertainment — vividly conveying the character’s urgent, often painful bid to reclaim her status.

Her chemistry with co-star Joo Ji-hoon (playing Bang Tae-seop) dominated the screen. At the height of her career, Choo Sang-ah entered a strategic marriage with Bang Tae-seop, a prosecutor from a working-class background. Unbeknownst to outsiders, their interests diverge: her husband holds leverage over WR Group’s illicit dealings. That private conflict fuels a taut, electric tension in their marriage. After entertaining Lee Yang-mi and returning home, Choo confronts Bang and confesses, “I could clearly go further, but this feels like the end here — it scares me. I thought you would stay with me to the end.” The pair then share an intense kiss, signaling the start of a fraught and unpredictable marital narrative.

In the episode’s second half, Choo Sang-ah’s agonizing inner turmoil and past wounds come to the fore, deepening audience engagement. When she learns that agency junior Bae Yoon-sung promised sexual favors to Mayor Nam Hye-hoon, a close ally of Lee Yang-mi, Choo rushes to the hotel to stop it. There she confronts a buried trauma and begins to unravel emotionally. Tension escalates when Bang Tae-seop bursts into the hotel to stage a raid and brushes past her in the elevator, leaving Choo frozen and foreshadowing unpredictable developments.

Marking her first television role in four years, Ha Ji-won reasserted her singular presence, and expectations are high. ENA’s Climax episode 2 airs tonight, the 17th, at 10 p.m.

[Sports Today reporter Lim Si-ryeong ent@stoo.com]
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