Netflix's My Name ended with Ji-woo's long-awaited showdown with her enemy. Here's what he really wanted, and how the fight set up her future.

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for My Name.

The My Name finale wrapped up its story with a long-awaited showdown between Ji-woo (Han So-hee) and Choi Mu-jin (Park Hee-soon) and the ending revealed the villain's ultimate plan. Toward the end of the season, My Name flipped its premise on its head by revealing the shocking truth about Mu-jin and her father’s true identity. Through eight episodes, the Korean Netflix series focused on Ji-woo’s efforts to work with Mu-jin to find her father’s killer, only for her to discover that he was the real mastermind all along.

Similar to recent Netflix breakout hit Squid Game, My Name is a brutal thriller with a shocking twist ending involving someone's true identity being revealed. The whole show was centered on the concept of Ji-woo, a gangster’s daughter, going undercover in the police force to take revenge on the cop who killed her father. Finding out that her dad was actually a police officer sent to infiltrate Mu-jin’s organization and that Mu-jin killed him turned her world upside down. Unknown to her, Ji-hoo was always a cop’s daughter, which means that she joined Mu-jin’s drug ring under false pretenses and that the criminals, not the cops, were her real enemies from the very beginning. Discovering this changed everything for Ji-woo, but it was too late to undo the crimes she had already committed at his behest.

In the eighth and final episode of the series, Ji-woo’s journey to catch her father’s killer reached a dramatic conclusion. While Ji-woo faced obstacle after obstacle to reach him, Mu-jin started to come unglued. When the two came face-to-face for the last time, My Name finally painted a clearer picture of what Mu-jin was trying to accomplish in manipulating and emotionally torturing Ji-woo. Here’s what went down in My Name’s ending, and what it means for the characters involved.

My Name's Title & Real Meaning Explained By The Finale

A key scene in the finale delivered a proper explanation for the show’s title. After being accosted by Jeon Pil-do (Ahn Bo-hyun), Han So-hee's Ji-woo brought up the events of episode 2, which saw her abandon her life as “Ji-woo” to become “Oh Hye-jin.” She told Pil-do that she threw away her future and “my name” for the purpose of avenging her father’s death. How this line highlights the fact that Ji-woo abandoned her shot at a normal life over a lie gives the title of the series a deep and tragic meaning. In addition to that, the title also references the twist where Yoon Ji-woo learned that she was really “Song Ji-woo,” the daughter of a cop. In another layer, one meaning of the name Ji-woo is "will" or "purpose," symbolizing the very quality that shapes her.

Why Mu-jin Killed Pil-do

The biggest surprise in the My Name finale came when Pil-do was suddenly killed off. Shortly after becoming romantic with Ji-woo and taking her side, Pil-do was shot in the head by Mu-jin. As indicated by the scene where Mu-jin momentarily pointed his gun at Ji-woo, he had an opportunity to end the threat she posed to him. But instead, he elected to kill Pil-do. He wasn’t aware of their relationship, but likely understood the deep emotional impact it would have on her character. He also knew that it would only deepen Ji-woo’s hatred of him. During the last two episodes, Mu-jin was becoming frustrated with Ji-woo’s failure to come looking for him and seemed intent on speeding things up. He knew that killing Pil-do would renew her commitment to getting her revenge on him.

My Name's Villain Plan Explained: Why He Wanted Ji-woo To Kill Him

For a while, it wasn’t clear why Mu-jin was so determined to have a fight with Ji-woo, but his conversation with her in his office shed light on what he was after. According to him, Dong-hoon (Yoon Kyung-ho) was “weak” because he didn’t try to kill Mu-jin, but he thought Ji-woo might be different. In fact, he believed that she had the potential to be like him. As their fight progressed, Mu-jin urged Ji-woo to kill him and become a “monster,” too. Apparently, that was what he wanted from the start. It appears that in a way, Mu-jin felt alone, and saw a kindred spirit in Ji-woo. Since he pushed her down this path, he didn’t view her actions against him as a “betrayal,” because to him, killing him was what she had to do; after all, it's what he would have done. Mu-jin, who spent so much time guiding, shaping, and manipulating Ji-woo into being a cold-blooded killer, believed that she had to kill him in order to complete her transformation. He could die knowing that he ultimately had the last laugh in a true display of the power he wielded throughout the series.

Why Ji-woo Does Finally Kill Mu-jin (& What It Really Means)

In a sense, Mu-jin achieved his master plan in Netflix's My Name, even though he died in the process. Just as Ji-woo admitted in the episode, she hesitated to finish off her mentor because she desired to “live like a human being.” Ji-woo was afraid of becoming a monster but told Mu-jin she was ready to become one to get her revenge. There was a great deal of significance to be found in Ji-woo killing Mu-jin as it symbolized Mu-jin winning and ultimately breaking Ji-woo. Killing her father and deceiving her into joining him was what laid the groundwork, while the murder of Pil-do is what pushed her over the edge. This was reflected by the moment where she told Mu-jin that he had taken away the one person she “could lean on.” It was after this that she decided to put away her reservations about taking Mu-jin’s life. Pil-do's affection for her and understanding was the one thing that had made her feel as though she were still human; without him, Ji-woo decided there was nothing left to keep her from becoming a monster. Mu-jin ultimately destroyed Ji-woo twice, first by taking away her source of happiness in Pil-do and then by taking away her humanity.

What Happens To Ji-woo After My Name's Ending

My Name confirmed that Ji-woo recovered from the knife wounds she sustained in her fight with Mu-jin and his minions, but the popular Netflix Korean drama didn’t reveal what would come next. All that was shown of Ji-woo in the aftermath was her paying her respects to Dong-hoon and Pil-do at their gravesites. It was unclear whether she would go on the run or turn herself in for her previous crimes. When taking her loyalty to Pil-do into consideration, the latter option makes sense for her character. Before his death, Pil-d expressed his hope that she would surrender to the police when it was all over and she had her revenge. At the time, Ji-woo seemed to willing to do so, but that was before Pil-do was murdered and Ji-woo gave in to her worst impulses. Ji-woo may choose one last act to honor Pil-do and turn herself in, or she may feel that as she's a monster now, she may as well complete her downfall and go on the run. The ending is left ambiguous.

How My Name's Ending Sets Up Season 2

Theoretically, questions about Ji-woo’s future could get a concrete answer if Netflix were to make My Name season 2, but the chances of this happening seem low. The series tied up all major loose ends, killed most of My Name’s main characters, and provided closure for Ji-woo. With it being built around a single-minded mission for revenge against one specific person, My Name was clearly designed to be an eight-episode, single-season arc. A second season could explore life on the run for Ji-woo, or an even greater conspiracy, but since her father has been avenged and all her enemies are dead, her story being revisited feels unlikely and unnecessary.

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