Line #221 Characters/ThePenthouseWarInLife


1	[[foldercontrol]]
2
3	!The Joo Family
4
5	[[folder:Suryeon Sim]]
6	!!Sim Suryeon / 심수련
7	->'''Played by:''' Lee Jiah
8
9	Wife of Joo Dante and stepmother to his twin children.
10	----
11	* KilledOffForReal: At the end of Season 1, or so it seemed. As it turns out, she and Aegyo switched places at the last second.
12	* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Season 1 could be summarized by Suryeon invoking this trope.
13	* SpoiledSweet: She is one of several characters born into immense wealth, but is respectful and kind to everyone she interacts with. [[spoiler: However, she does use her money to manipulate for her own gain, which she is aware of; sometimes her displays of generosity are rooted in guilt, such as compensating the Hera Palace residents after the explosion, which was in reaction to her pursuing Dantae for revenge.]]
14	* SupportingProtagonist: She has at least a small connection to everything that goes wrong in the story, but Yoonhee's the (usual) [[TheHero Hero]].
15	* WhiteSheep: The only one in her family with a genuine conscience.
16
17	[[/folder]]
18
19	[[folder:Joo Dan Tae]]
20	!!Joo Dante / 주단태
21	->'''Played by:''' Um Kijoon
22
23	Sim Suryeon's husband, and the CEO of J-King Holdings.
24	----
25	* AbusiveParent
26	* AfraidOfBlood: A noticeable weakness; unfortunately, it's the type where his crazy dials are turned up after a brief panic attack.
27	* BadBoss: He is, at the very least, unpleasant to everyone who works for him. He's particularly abusive to Mr. Cho, his Secretary/henchman, [[KickTheDog regularly beating him up when he fails to deliver.]] [[spoiler: He eventually kills Mr. Cho in season 3 as he calls the police to report the bomb plot on Hera Palace.]]
28	* BigBadEnsemble: While none of the Hera Palace cast can be considered heroic, Dante and Seojin takes the spot over the rest considering many of the plot points happen because of him.
29	** BigBad: Midway through season 2, he officially takes the spot by himself. Though by Season 3, he and Seojin share the spotlight again.
30	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler:In Season 3, Sim Suryeon shoots Joo Dante in the head and kills him instantly.]]
31	* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler: In season 3, it's revealed that he lived in abject poverty as a child, and his mother and sister were killed in a tragic incident involving a Simwoon Construction bulldozer [[DoomedHometown ploughing into their shack while they were still inside.]]]]
32	* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: The memory of his mother's death is clearly painful to him. [[spoiler: In season 3 it turns out Dantae has been acquiring wealth and power throughout the years in order to finally buy back the land they'd been squatting on the night she was killed, and to avenge her death by destroying Suryeon, as the bulldozer that had killed her belonged to her father's company.]]
33	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
34	** He suffers from hemophilia after his mother's death, and no matter how much he turns into a power-hungry businessman, his mother's love is forever.
35	** Similarly, he did genuinely love Na Aegyo.
36	* FreudianExcuse: Subverted. [[spoiler:He suffered from poverty as a child and has a past in which his mother and sister were unfairly murdered and exploited by the real Joo Dan Tae's father. But his past doesn't really justify him as he becomes chairman of JKING Holdings and turns into an increasingly sadistic, power-hungry businessman who still loves his mother and sister but more heinous than the real Joo Dan Tae's father.]]
37	* IHaveManyNames: As it turns out, [[spoiler:Dante Joo isn't his real name. It's Baek Joongi.]]
38	* IfICantHaveYou: [[spoiler: It turns out Dantae was the one who assassinated Suryeon's first husband. The one she left him to be with. The one who turned out to be Seola and Seokgyeong's biological father.]]
39	* ItsAllAboutMe: Subverted. The reason he wanted to build Joo Dan Tae Village in the Cheonsu District was to relieve the sorrow of his mother who died unfairly. Moreover, he still loves his mother and sister and intends to build a memorial for them.
40	* NotMeThisTime: While he has certainly killed many people in his time, [[spoiler: he didn't kill Seola even though we see flashbacks of him holding her by the balcony. It turns out these flashbacks are somewhat of a false memory. While yes, he was about to push her, he hears something at the last minute and runs away. Yoonhee is the real culprit.]]
41	* SelfMadeMan: Although, this is not obvious straight away [[spoiler: as he stole the identity of a Korean-Japanese heir after killing his parents, and therefore as far as everyone around him is concerned, he was born into wealth just like they were.]]
42	* UnholyMatrimony: [[spoiler: Subverted. While both powerful antagonists in their own right, Seojin is under duress when she marries him in season 2, as she is being blackmailed into marrying him to avoid the truth about her father's death getting out.]]
43	* WhatHaveIDone?: [[spoiler:He thought he had killed his foe Shim Su Ryeon in season 1, but in season 2, he actually killed not her , but his beloved childhood friend, Na Ayegyo, when he found out at the police station that he was truly heartbroken and desperate.]]
44	* WouldHurtAChild: Just ask Seola, his own kids and Rona.
45	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Essentially a character tic for him. Even his own kids admit they're just one quote-unquote "expiration date" away from getting killed themselves.
46	[[/folder]]
47
48	[[folder:Seokhoon Joo]]
49	!!Joo Seokhoon / 주석훈
50	->'''Played by:''' Kim Yongdae
51
52	Dante's son and the older of his twins.
53	----
54	* TheAtoner: After falling for Rona and realizing the depths of what he did to Seola, he starts making efforts to be a better person.
55	* BigBrotherInstinct: His one redeeming trait is that he's very protective of his younger twin.
56	* TurnOutLikeHisFather: Played with. Despite Dantae raising him in his image, especially [[spoiler:given that he is his only biological child]], and despite starting off as an insufferable and violent bully, Seokhoon [[IAmNotMyFather grows up to be kind and compassionate]]. [[HatesTheirParent He of course hates Dantae,]] given how abusive he is towards literally everyone.
57	[[/folder]]
58
59	[[folder:Seokgyeong Joo]]
60	!!Joo Seokgyeong / 주석경
61	->'''Played by:''' Han Jihyun
62
63	Dante's [[spoiler:adopted]] daughter and the younger of his twins.
64	----
65	* AlphaBitch: Though it's downplayed as it's revealed she's a top student by way of under-the-table methods.
66	* NeverMyFault: Seokgyeong has a rather stubborn streak where she'll deflect blame, excuse and do literally anything but admit her own faults/flaws. Unfortunately for her, both her parents finally have enough of this behavior and stop covering her for it.
67	* SiblingTeam: Not that she's aware, but she threatened Seojin in nearly the exact same way Min Seola did.
68	* SmugSnake
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Na Aegyo (Unmarked Spoilers)]]
72	!!Na Aegyo / 나애교
73	->'''Played by:''' Lee Jiah
74
75	Dante's mysterious first wife, and the twins' biological mother.
76	----
77	* ActionMom: What else do you call a woman with two now-18-year-old kids that can subdue a fool with her own fighting skills?
78	* TheGadfly: Compared to the more elegant and calm Suryeon, Aegyo's energetic, lively and very blunt about her thoughts and feelings.
79	* GlorifiedSpermDonor: Inverted. She left the twins with their dad shortly after giving birth to them.
80	* HeroicSacrifice: As noted above, Aegyo was the one that died in place of Suryeon at the end of Season 1.
81	* IdenticalStranger: It's her cosmetic choices that make the difference from Suryeon.
82	* NeutralNoLonger: She was initially uncaring about leaving her kids until Suryeon tells her that Dante's been abusing them; causing Aegyo to turn against her lover.
83	* TattooAsCharacterType: She has a black butterfly tattoo on her back. Considering tattoos are still socially not accepted in most of Korea, this visually tells the audience of her being very different from everyone else.
84	[[/folder]]
85
86	!The Ha Family
87	[[folder:Seojin Cheon]]
88	!!Cheon Seojin / 천서진
89	->'''Played by:''' Kim Soyeon
90
91	Ex-wife of Ha Yoonchul, mother to Ha Eunbyeol and part of the Cheongha Art School board.
92	----
93	* AbusiveParent: Not once did Eunbyeol get any verbal or physical love from her (unless it suited Seojin's purpose/goals), when she does accomplish something; Seojin says it's not enough.
94	** In episode 8, when Eunbyeol hallucinates Seola, Seojin's response is to drag her poor daughter down to the basement (where Seola died no less), and tell her to be the best so her mother can be the director. And then tell her to practice Seola's song and then locking her up until she deems it such.
95	* ArchEnemy: With Yoonhee, and the feeling is very much reciprocated with extra interest.
96	* AintTooProudToBeg:[[spoiler: Trapped in an abusive marriage and having lost everything by season 2 episode 10, she desperately begs Yoonhee to help her; even admitting Eunbyeol killed Rona and that Seojin herself has no real right to ask her.]]
97	* AwfulWeddedLife: Both of her marriages. [[spoiler: When married to Ha Yoonchul, they had not shared a bed for 10 of its 17 year duration, and constantly argued with one another even after divorcing. Her extramarital affair with Joo Dantae was the final straw that ended their union. However, the happiness with her second husband did not last, as he was only using her to gain control of Cheong-a Foundation.]]
98	* ControlFreak: She can't stand it when something doesn't go her way.
99	* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:In the season 3 series finale, Seojin kills herself by overdose because she has laryngeal cancer and doesn't want to go back to prison.]]
100	* FakingAmnesia: [[spoiler:After Dante's death, it is revealed that Seojin was faking her dementia the entire time and never lost her memories from taking the memory suppression drugs given by her daugther. In Seojin's flashback, she secretly found out her daughter Eunbyeol saves up the drugs she's planning to give to her mother to make her forget the bad memories. After Eunbyeol leaves the room, Seojin makes herself throws up in the bathroom to remove the drug after she drank the drug Eunbyeol secretly put in her wine.]]
101	* FamilyHonor: As the eldest child, she's been groomed from a young age to eventually inherit Cheongha from her father, and this means no scandals that could embarrass the family. [[spoiler: She fails spectacularly on the whole family embarrassment thing, and when Yoonhee exposes her extramarital affair to her father, he disinherits her. However, before he's had a chance to announce anything he suffers from a fall during an argument with Seojin; instead of helping, she watches him die and destroys the newly signed will, retaining leadership of Cheongha for herself.]]
102	* FreudianExcuse
103	* HappyMarriageCharade: True for both of her marriages. [[spoiler: She forces Yoonchul to stay with her just long enough for her to be named Director of Cheongha Arts. And her subsequent marriage to Dantae is a sham, but they have to maintain pretences to the public for the sake of their companies.]]
104	* HumiliationConga: [[spoiler:Season 2 can be described as Seojin's HumiliationConga; her new husband-to-be turns out to be....EvilerThanThou to put it lightly, she loses her own singing voice, the love of her daughter and even the respect of the other Hera Palace residents.]]
105	* LuxuryPrisonSuite: [[spoiler: During her first prison stint at the beginning of season 3, she briefly enjoys the luxury life in a separate cell and with access to all her usual helpers. However, this eventually proves too conspicuous and so she's forced to slum it with the rest of the general population.]]
106	* Main/{{Hypocrite}}: She accuses Yoonchul of having an affair. All the while cheating on HIM with Dante.
107	* ImportantHaircut: [[spoiler:During the three year timeskip, Seojin's hair is starts to fall out due to laryngeal cancer, so she decides to cut hair down to short length.]]
108	* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: All Seojin's smugness hides a deep insecurity that knows she couldn't get anywhere without her money and connections. Her own father being an asshole and comparing her to his more favored younger daughter (Seojin's younger sister) only deepens the wound.
109	* [[ItsAllAboutMe It's All About Me]]: Little wonder why she and Dante get along so well.
110	* [[LaserGuidedKarma Laser-Guided Karma]]: In Season 2. After [[spoiler:stealing Yoonhee's trophy, robbing her of most of her singing voice and framing her for murder; Seojin starts suffering throat problems which may result in her never being able to sing again. Ironically, this causes her to wear a scarf just like Yoonhee used to.]]
111	* PyrrhicVictory: She's the only one of the main mothers to [[spoiler:survive the whole series, but at the cost of everyone she loved, everything she wanted/cherished and her own freedom.]]
112	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: As long as you're not on her shitlist.
113	* TheSpeechless: [[spoiler:During the three year timeskip, Seojin loses her voice due to laryngeal cancer during her imprisonment.]]
114	* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:Season 2 episode 5, under Seokgyeong's blackmail of her father's death Seojin can either A. declare Seokgyeong the winner of the Cheongha Arts festival trophy and keep herself safe or B. declare Eunbyeol the winner like she desired, which would in turn make it clear to the audience, herself and Seokgyeong how corrupt she is. She decides C. give the trophy to the real winner chosen by the judges, Bae Rona.]]
115	* ToughLove: With Eunbyeol, especially in season 1. Inevitably, [[WasTooHardOnHim it turns out she was too hard on her]], [[spoiler: as Eunbyeol attempts suicide, terrifying her into drastically changing how she deals with her daughter from then on.]]
116	* UnholyMatrimony: [[spoiler: Subverted. While both powerful antagonists in their own right, she is under duress when she marries Dantae in season 2, as she is being blackmailed into marrying him to avoid the truth about her father's death getting out.]]
117	* UnwantedSpouse: [[spoiler: Her marriage to Dantae is under duress. He is blackmailing her, and she needs preserve their reputation long enough to maintain the value of their companies - hers in particular.]]
118	[[/folder]]
119
120	[[folder:Yoonchul Ha]]
121	!!Ha Yoonchul / 하윤철
122	->'''Played by:''' Yoon Jonghoon
123
124	Seojin's husband, and a head neurosurgeon. Come season 2, he's now the CEO of a medical company called John Bio.
125	----
126	* AtLeastIAdmitIt: Seojin states he's a monster. Yoonchul states he knows, but does she?
127	* AwfulWeddedLife: [[spoiler: When married to Cheon Seojin, they had not shared a bed for 10 of its 17 year duration, and constantly argued with one another even after divorcing. Her extramarital affair with Joo Dantae was the final straw that ended their union. Besides, [[TheOneThatGotAway Seojin isn't his real love, Oh Yoonhee is.]]]]
128	* TheAtoner: His arc in Season 3, trying to make up for not being there for his other daughter.
129	* CareerEndingInjury: [[spoiler:Thanks to thugs hired by Dante, his hands are injured beyond repair to do surgery again, similar to [[Comics/DoctorStrange Doctor Strange.]]. So he decides to turn his eyes from medical performance to medical business.]]
130	** Gets worse in Season 3 when a head injury renders him blind.
131	* DyingDeclarationOfLove: [[spoiler:Subverted. At first, as Yoonchul is dying from blood loss, he apologizes to her for leaving her and confesses his love for Seojin (Seojin thinks he was talking to her), but he was actually talking about Yoonhee. It means that Yoonchul was actually hallucinating Yoonhee and not talking to Seojin in his dying moments.]]
132	* [[IveComeTooFar I've Come Too Far]]:[[spoiler: Yoonchul is forced to abandon Yoonhee to keep Eunbyeol safe. He internally laments that he has to betray Yoonhee again, and tells her to not forgive him.]]
133	* HappyMarriageCharade: True for both of his marriages. [[spoiler: He is forced to stay legally married to Seojin just long enough for her to be named Director of Cheongha Arts. Subverted in his subsequent marriage to Yoonhee; while they marry in season 2 in order to exact revenge on Seojin, he actually loves her.]]
134	* LastRequest: [[spoiler:In Yoonchul's last moments, he requests that Suryeon not kill Seojin, since she has to atone for her sins before he passes away due to blood loss (as seen in Suryeon's flashback).]]
135	* [[LukeIAmYourFather Luke, I Am Your Father]]:[[spoiler: To break him further, Yoonhee reveals to him that he is Rona's biological/real father; Yoonchul having unknowingly impregnated her just prior to dumping her for Seojin. To say he [[ThisCannotBe doesn't takes it well is an understatement]].]]
136	* PetTheDog: He secretly pays off the settlement money that the Oh family couldn't afford.
137	* UnrequitedLove: With a wife like Seojin, he yearns to be back with Yoonhee.
138	** On a familial note, he ultimately doesn't receive the love of his [[spoiler:older daughter Rona; nevertheless he begs her to live life happy and to put all the events of the series behind her]].
139	* [[Main/WasItReallyWorthIt Was It Really Worth It?]]: He dumped Yoonhee in college and married Seojin for the money/economic wealth that was secured. Given what Seojin and her family's like, he regrets it greatly.
140	[[/folder]]
141
142	[[folder:Eunbyeol Ha]]
143	!!Ha Eunbyeol / 하은별
144	->'''Played by:''' Choi Yaebin
145
146	Seojin and Yoonchul's daughter.
147	----
148	* AtLeastIAdmitIt: Not verbally, but compared to the other Little Hera Palace kids; Eunbyeol seems self-aware that she got this far because of her family's wealth and connections. She genuinely paid attention to Ms. Lee (read: Seola) for her tutoring and then thanked her when it got her math grade up (while the other kids paid no attention and straight up walked away from her lessons). Eunbyeol also puts in actual hard work to improve while the other kids just gust on by, confident their money and connections will always save them.
149	* [[spoiler:[[Main/BigLittleBrother Big Little Sister]]: Yoonchul's daughter with Seojin and noticeably taller than her older half-sister Rona.]]
150	* TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry: Comes in effect with the revelation that she and her arch-rival are half sisters.
151	* GreenEyedMonster: A key aspect of her dynamic with Rona; it's especially galling that her crush Seokhoon prefers Rona over her.
152	* HappinessInMinimumWage: By the end of the series, she works as a choir conductor for a local church; far from her original wealth. That said, Eunbyeol is truly happy and enjoying life now that she's finally free of her mother's influence.
153	* [[spoiler:[[Main/IDidntMeanToKillHim I Didn't Mean To Kill Her]]: Due to a medication-induced hallucination, she attacked Rona and pushed her down the stairs. When Eunbyeol recieves the news that Rona did indeed die in the hospital she's horrified; admitting that for all their mutual hatred, she never meant to actually kill the other girl.]]
154	* LikeParentLikeChild: Seojin's daughter becomes the [[TheRival rival]] and [[Main/ArchEnemy arch-nemesis]] to Yoonhee's daughter.
155	* [[Main/TheMentallyDisturbed The Mentally Disturbed]]: Eunbyeol regularly has psychotic breakdowns, hallucinations and episodes.
156	* SelfHarm: [[spoiler:The season 3 series finale. Out of guilt for her mother's murders, Eunbyeol slashes her own throat in the same place as Rona's mother Yoonhee. Not only does she almost die from blood loss, but she can no longer sing and follow her mother's career.]]
157	* SpannerInTheWorks:[[spoiler: She set Seola free in episode 4. Given Eunbyeol's now under the impression that she killed Seola, she's paranoid that fate will punish her.]]
158	[[/folder]]
159
160	!The Oh Family
161	[[folder:Yoonhee Oh]]
162	!!Oh Yoonhee / 오윤희
163	->'''Played by:''' Yoojin
164
165	Mother to Bae Rona.
166	----
167	* CosmicPlaything: Lost her amazing singing voice due to a jealous rich girl, forced to drop out of high school and college, thus worked as a (fake) real estate agent to make ends meet. When things finally turned around her daughter is bullied to no end, then Yoonhee's framed for [[spoiler: Suryeon's murder (even if rightfully declared innocent later) and then her daughter is murdered by her ex-boyfriend-now-husband's biological daughter. And if that wasn't enough, her nemesis' new husband is revealed to have sealed Rona's fate.]]
168	* EveryScarHasAStory: She has a scar on the left side of her neck, courtesy of Seojin and a trophy back in high school.
169	* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:In Season 3, Yoonhee is killed when Seojin breaks her leg and throws her off a cliff and she drowns in the lake.]]
170	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Yoonhee couldn't remember due to being heavily drunk, but[[spoiler: she's the one that pushed Seola off the balcony and killed her. When she remembers, Yoonhee is terrified/shocked.]]
171	* StrugglingSingleMother: Our introduction to her is her working as an unlicensed real estate agent, struggling to make ends meet for her and Rona. She goes to extreme lengths throughout the series to ensure Rona has the highest standard of living.
172	* TheOneThatGotAway: To Yoonchul.
173	[[/folder]]
174
175	[[folder:Rona Bae]]
176	!!Bae Rona / 배로나
177	->'''Played by:''' Kim Hyunsoo
178
179	Yoonhee's daughter.
180	----
181	* TheAtoner: [[spoiler: Once Rona finds out in Season 2 exactly why Seola died (minus the thing about Dante and Seojin), she decides to re-enroll in Cheongha Arts and achieve Seola's dreams in her place; as her way of making up for the fact that Seola died because of her existence.)]]
182	* Main/{{Expy}}: In-universe example. Because of their similar backgrounds of coming from poor upbringings, she repeats many statements that Seola said to the Little Hera Palace; something said kids do take note of. In season 2, Logan more or less explicitly states that he looked after Rona while she was in the US because of this trope.
183	* HeroicBastard: The only one of the kids not named Seola that can be considered truly heroic and was born to Yoonhee and Yoonchul out of wedlock.
184	* LikeParentLikeChild: Her on-campus nemesis is the daughter of Seojin, the school director and her mother's own sworn enemy. Gets a bit more in season 2, when Eunbyeol nearly kills her in nearly the exact same method that Seojin used to take away Yoonhee's voice way back when.
185	* SmallRoleBigImpact: Seola's death may have been the drama's inciting incident, but it was Rona's desire into get into Cheongha Arts that got the poor orphan killed to begin with.
186	* TheGlovesComeOff: After 2 seasons of trying to win against the other rich kids on the uneven playing field + Eunbyeol plying obvious coy about [[spoiler:her role in Yoonhee's death]], Rona decides enough is enough and starts playing their game. One example is in season 3 episode 8; with Seojin unable to bribe/threaten the judges to select Eunbyeol, Rona wins fair and square for the first time and even subtly rubs it in in Seojin's face.
187	* WideEyedIdealist: Rona wholly believed that she could win against the rich students of Cheongha Arts by working harder and performing better than them. She didn't realize how far the rich families would go to keep their kids at the top and to screw her over.
188	[[/folder]]
189
190	!The Yoo Family
191	[[folder:Marie Kang]]
192	!!Kang Marie / 강마리
193	->'''Played by:'''
194
195	Jenny's mother and Dongpil's wife.
196	----
197	* FaceHeelTurn
198	* GossipyHens: Especially when with Sangah.
199	* HappilyMarried: The only happy, functional marriage in Hera Palace. [[spoiler: It even overcomes Dongpil's lengthy prison sentence, as she visits him the whole time.]] The only time their marriage comes under strain is when [[spoiler: Dantae catches Dongpil unburying the hidden bodies; [[ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies threatening to frame him for Yoonhee's murder and kill their family, when she asks Dongpil to stop associating with Dantae he has no choice but to defy her.]]]]
200	* [[Main/RichBitch Rich Bitch]]: Even more so than the other Hera Palace women. This is incredibly audacious considering she's only there because her husband is rich while Marie herself works as a masseuse at a run-down bathhouse.
201	[[/folder]]
202
203	[[folder:Jenny Yoo]]
204	!!Yoo Jenny / 유제니
205	->'''Played by:''' Jin Jeehee
206
207	Another of the Little Hera Palace, and Rona's classmate since middle school.
208	----
209	* DisappearedDad: For a while anyway. As far as Jenny knows, her dad is in Dubai. [[spoiler: However, she later finds out through Seokgyeong that he's actually serving time in prison for murder.]]
210	* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Her reward for turning over a new leaf and being [[spoiler:nicer to Rona? The rest of the Little Hera Palace making her the new target of their bullying.]]
211	* SmugSnake: Though not anymore as of the [[spoiler:end of season 1.]]
212	* TookALevelInKindness: Originally the bane of Rona's existence,[[spoiler: Jenny actually offers her food and some advice in the season 1 finale; advising her to keep her head down as long as possible until the press about her mother being a murderer dies down.]]
213	** Even before that, [[spoiler:Jenny's also the only one to show little, if any remorse aside from Seokhoon for the part they played in Seola's death.]]
214	[[/folder]]
215
216	[[folder:Dongpil Yoo]]
217	->'''Played by:''' Park Hosan
218
219	A construction worker, Jenny's father and Mari's husband.
220	----
221	* BruiserWithASoftCenter: He was a tough guy in Incheon, is one of Dantae's most trusted confidantes and is even a convicted murderer, but he clearly adores his family. [[spoiler: It also turns out that he took the fall for Dantae due to their friendship; while Dantae was the real killer, Dongpil helped hide the body and took the blame instead.]]
222	* HappilyMarried: The only happy, functional marriage in Hera Palace. [[spoiler: It even survives his lengthy prison sentence, as Mari visits him the whole time.]] The only time their marriage comes under strain is when [[spoiler: Dantae catches him unburying the hidden bodies; [[ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies threatening to frame him for Yoonhee's murder and kill their family, when Mari asks him to stop associating with Dantae he has no choice but to defy her.]]]]
223	[[/folder]]
224
225	!The Lee Family
226
227	[[folder:Kyujin Lee]]
228	!!Lee Kyujin / 이규진
229	->'''Played by:''' Bong Taegyu
230
231	A divorce lawyer and Minhyuk's father.
232	----
233	* [[MommasBoy Momma's Boy]]: Which causes endless stress for his wife.
234	* OpportunisticBastard: Perhaps you could use this to describe every Hera Palace club member, but Kyujin is particularly slippery; in just season 3 alone [[spoiler: he betrays Yoonchul in prison, and later on he runs off with the money Dantae placed in his account for safekeeping, taking his family with him.]]
235
236	[[/folder]]
237
238
239	[[folder:Sangah Go]]
240	!!Go Sangah / 고상아
241	->'''Played by:''' Yoon Joohee
242
243	A retired news anchor, currently Kyujin's wife and Minhyuk's mom.
244	----
245	* GossipyHens: Especially when with Mari.
246	* ParentingTheHusband: She is a frustrated housewife who, despite their wealth, isn't allowed to hire any home help and even has to wait on [[ObnoxiousInLaws his mother and sisters]] hand and foot, lest she receive a tongue lashing from them all.
247	[[/folder]]
248
249
250	[[folder:Minhyuk Lee]]
251	!!Lee Minhyuk / 이민혁
252	->'''Played by:''' Lee Taevin
253
254	Kyujin and Sangah's son.
255	----
256	* CallingTheOldManOut: Both of his parents, actually. Although he starts off as a shallow bully, his frustrations with his parents' conduct becomes more obvious as season 3 progresses. [[spoiler: When they divorce, he chooses to live with neither and instead signs up for military service.]]
257	* KarmaHoudini: The only reason he hasn't suffered compared to the other kids is because he doesn't have a direct role to play in their game of kill and be killed.
258	* RefugeInAudacity: Despite the fact that he bullied Jenny through the whole series, he has the gall to [[spoiler:ask her out in the series finale. Unsurprisingly, Jenny has none of it.]]
259	* SkewedPriorities
260	* SmugSnake
261	[[/folder]]
262
263	[[folder:Mija Wang]]
264	->'''Played by:''' Hye-rin Seo
265
266	Kyujin's mother and Sangah's mother-in-law.
267	----
268	* MyBelovedSmother: The other piece to Kyujin's mama's boy puzzle.
269	[[/folder]]
270
271	!Other Characters
272	[[folder:Seola Min]]
273	!!Min Seola / 민설아 / Anna Lee
274	->'''Played by:''' Jo Sumin
275
276	A young girl who unintentionally becomes a part of the Hera Palace residents' lives.
277	----
278	* BewareTheNiceOnes: Seola is more or less the only one among the drama's characters that can be considered genuinely nice. But she won't just sit there and get pushed around.
279	* BoundAndGagged: When she refuses to hand over the video and its original file, Dante and Seojin tie her to a chair with duct tape, tape her mouth shut and leave her in the Hera Palace's basement for days until she gives in.
280	* BrokenPedestal: When she meets Seojin, whose operatic career she'd been in awe of.
281	* DidntThinkThisThrough: Granted, at that point she had nothing to lose; but threatening Cheon Seojin aka the school director with video footage of her mid-affair was the first domino that would lead to her death.
282	* DisposableWoman: To an extent; we learn her full backstory and characterisation, but it's mostly through flashbacks and other people's memories. Her actual time spent on the show is pretty minimal.
283	* [[Main/TheGhost The Ghost]]: After her death, she lingers over the Little Hera Palace; Eunbyeol, in particular continuously hallucinates her presence. [[spoiler:Rona hallucinates her in her dying moments, where Seola forgives her.]]
284	* [[spoiler: LukeIAmYourFather: Inverted. Suryeon discovers that Seola is her biological daughter, Seola's dad being Suryeon's now-murdered first husband.]]
285	** [[spoiler: A sibling example in Season 3. As it turns out, she and Seokgyeong are fraternal twins (She's the older). Meaning, She was bullied/abused by her own younger sister.]]
286	* ParentalAbandonment: She lives alone with her dog, and a flashback implies her adoptive parents threw her away.
287	* PrivateTutor: She poses as a graduate who studied in the United States, and ends up tutoring the Hera Palace kids. All hell breaks loose when they learn she's really a kid their own age who's about to attend the same high school as them.
288	* RuleOfSymbolism: When she dies, Seola's corpse is cradled by the statue of Hera within the Hera Palace. Within Greek mythology, Hera would always make life hell for any of Zeus' illegitimate demigod kids. Considering Seola is held instead of cast aside, it symbolizes how Seola's death is only the beginning for what lies ahead for the Hera Palace and its residents.
289	* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[PlotTriggeringDeath It's her involvement and subsequent death that triggers the whole plot.]] Heck, Rona only makes it into Cheongha Arts because Seola's death conveniently opened up a spot.
290	* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth
291	[[/folder]]
292
293	[[folder:Logan Lee]]
294	!!Logan Lee / 로건 리
295	->'''Played by:''' Park Eunseok
296
297	A Korean-American billionaire from New York City who comes to Korea for a business opportunity. [[spoiler:He's also Seola's adoptive older brother]].
298	----
299	* AnonymousBenefactor: Even after [[spoiler:getting ousted in Season 1, he's still a player in the game, being the Oh family's support and even attaching a spy within Seojin's inner circle.]]
300	* BillyNeedsAnOrgan: The main reason why he and Min Seola met.
301	* Fiction500: His company is rich enough that in-universe, Logan is the current owner of the Madison Square Park Tower.
302	* [[Main/WigDressAccent Wig Dress Accent]]:[[spoiler: He's actually Hodong Goo, the SouthernHick gym teacher at Cheongha Arts. He drops it at the end of season 1.]]
303	[[/folder]]
304
305	[[folder:Myungsoo Cheon]]
306	->'''Played by:''' Sungmo Jung
307
308	Seojin's father
309	----
310
311	FollowInMyFootsteps: As his eldest child, he puts enormous pressure on Seojin to live up to his expectations and continue his legacy, [[HistoryRepeats and she clearly takes a lot of parenting cues from him in how she raises Eunbyeol.]]
312
313	[[/folder]]
314
315	[[folder:Secretary Do]]
316	->'''Played by:''' Do-hyun Kim
317
318	Seojin's hardworking secretary throughout the series.
319	----
320	* YesMan: It's basically in his job description. There isn't anything that Seojin asks that he is [[BlindObedience unable or unwilling to do.]]
321	[[/folder]]
322
323	[[folder:Bunhong Jin]]
324	->'''Played by:''' Ahn Yeonhong
325
326	A carer hired by Seojin to help look after Eunbyeol.
327	----
328
329	* CreepyHousekeeper: She develops an obsession with Eunbyeol, and begins to alienate her from Seojin in order to have her to herself; [[spoiler: this is not difficult, given that [[ParentalObliviousness both Seojin and Yoonchul are constantly preoccupied with other things]] and eventually end up in prison. Eunbyeol manages to escape her in season 3 but Ms. Jin kidnaps her; Yoonhee sees this and tries to rescue Eunbyeol.]]
330	* TheMole: [[spoiler: She is secretly working with Logan Lee, at least initially.]]
331	[[/folder]]
332
333	[[folder:Dooki Ma]]
334	->'''Played by:''' Ha Dokwon
335
336	Teacher at Cheongha Arts School
337	----
338
339	* ProfessionalButtKisser: His loyalty is initially to his boss Seojin [[spoiler: but we soon see how fickle he is, given that he accepts Dantae's money to give Seokgyeong an advantage over Eunbyeol. [[HonestCorporateExecutive One of the first things Suryeon does upon replacing Seojin as Director is fire him.]]]]

Context Characters / ThePenthouseWarInLife