City Hunter — Ending Explained

The narrative reaches its dramatic climax around a major biological revelation: Lee Yoon-sung is not the son of the deceased soldier Park Moo-yul, but the biological son of sitting President Choi Eung-chan, the fifth and final member of the corrupt council. Lee Jin-pyo had intentionally kidnapped Yoon-sung as an infant so that the President’s own flesh and blood would become the instrument of his destruction.

In the final arc, Prosecutor Kim Young-joo is brutally beaten to death by Cheon Jae-man's henchmen while securing vital financial records, passing the duty of unmasking the truth to Yoon-sung. During the climactic confrontation inside the Blue House, Yoon-sung refuses to execute President Choi and holds a gun to his own head to force Jin-pyo to halt his rampage. When bodyguards open fire, Yoon-sung takes a bullet meant for the President.

Recognizing his deep paternal love for Yoon-sung, Jin-pyo makes the ultimate sacrifice: he proclaims that he is the sole City Hunter, drawing all gunfire onto himself and dying with his hand reaching toward Yoon-sung. This act clears Yoon-sung of all criminal charges. Following a recovery period, Yoon-sung briefly reunites with Kim Na-na before driving off into the Seoul night to continue guarding the city.

Interpretations of the series finale diverge across three main perspectives:

• The Reality of Yoon-sung’s Survival (The Literal Reading): Following the climactic shootout, a time jump shows Yoon-sung meeting Na-na at the airport before driving through Seoul. SBS producer Kim Young-sup officially confirmed that Yoon-sung survived his injuries, took time to heal, and reunited with Na-na in a definitive happy ending.
• The Ghost / Metaphorical Vigilante Reading: Because Yoon-sung appears silently and ethereally without extended dialogue, some viewers interpreted his presence as an apparition or a symbolic embodiment of the eternal City Hunter spirit watching over Seoul.
• The Cycle Broken vs. Lingering Sacrifice: Critics debate whether the resolution is ultimately triumphant or tragic, noting that dismantling the corrupt council came at the cost of Prosecutor Kim Young-joo's life, Jin-pyo's death, and Yoon-sung remaining an unsung outcast from ordinary domestic life.