Not only that, Matthew was previously Shim Joon-seok, the adoptive heir of the conglomerate Sungchan Group, before getting plastic surgery and turning into a mysterious entrepreneur with twisted ambitions.

The Escape of the Seven: high-society K-drama from The Penthouse team

As season two begins, he has the greedy “seven” all twisted around his little finger. He hands them each an envelope with five billion won (US$3.7 million) and reminds them that he expects them to appear before him within 30 minutes any time he calls.

The reason Matthew is a free man is that he has framed Min Do-hyuk (Lee Joon), who was revealed in the first series as the biological heir to the Sungchan Group, for the murder of Dang-mi.

While Matthew believes he is free to carry out his evil plans, there are a few surprises in store for him. Do-hyuk may be on the run, but, fuelled by a desire for vengeance and with the help of former gangster Kang Ki-tak (Yoon Tae-young) and his hacking skills, he is finding his way back to Matthew.

Other members of the seven are steadily breaking ranks with Matthew, unbeknown to him. These include his right-hand woman, Geum La-hui (Hwang Jung-eum), who, in classic melodramatic fashion, has a big change of heart and now bitterly regrets her past actions.

She tracks down Do-hyuk and Ki-tak but helps them to get away when Matthew’s men also descend on their hideout. During her own escape, she is caught in a hunting trap while traipsing in the snow and later has her leg amputated.

Wanting to feel the weight of her guilt, she endures the operation without any anaesthetic.

La-hui then learns to walk normally again within two weeks and returns to Matthew’s side, plotting to take him down, with him none the wiser.

Meanwhile, Matthew forces Go Myung-ji (Jo Yoon-hee) and Yang Jin-mo (Yoon Jong-hoon) into a sham marriage so that Jin-mo can become deputy mayor, and actress Han Mo-nee (Lee Yoo-bi) tries to foil the production of a documentary about the death of Dang-mi, which she fears could reveal the terrible things she did to her.

The formula is very similar here, with the death of a young woman triggering a Byzantine tale of deceit and about-faces playing out in the corrupt upper echelons of society.

The pacing is deliriously fast, the set pieces and twists are outrageous, and logic is gleefully thrown out of the window in favour of quick and dirty entertainment.

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The Escape of the Seven: Resurrection has begun with even lower ratings than its already disappointing predecessor – season two was in production before the first season even aired. Why is that?

The main viewer complaint about season one was that the story and its twists were absurd. While it is certainly true that the series was absurd, this kind of reaction shows how fine a tightrope writers must tread when audiences expect them to replicate their success.

Viewers who felt let down by The Escape of the Seven are unlikely to feel that The Escape of the Seven: Resurrection is a return to form, as it offers more of the same. Yet while the characters are not as compelling as those in The Penthouse, this is still a highly watchable prime time soap opera.

The Escape of the Seven: Resurrection is streaming on Viu.