Mousetrap Ending Explained: Netflix Korean thriller Mousetrap is a cat-and-mouse chase that asks an imperative question about what an identity is and how you prove it. The series, spanning over 10 episodes, goes through several ups and downs to try to understand who the real Je Moon-jae is and why the Rat is after the protagonist. With a moneylender and a detective on their tail, Moon-jae must spin through a lot of hoops to get his old life back.
But just when viewers were coming to terms with following the protagonist, a shocking twist turns everything on its head, and the ending scene, set once again in Moon-jae’s apartment, turns the situation completely upside down. What does the ending mean, and why is it important? Let’s break down the ending of the Netflix Korean thriller Mousetrap.
Starring Ryu Jun-yeol, Sul Kyung-gu, and Lee Kyu-hyung, the series (들쥐) is directed by Kim Hong-seon and is adapted from the webtoon “Field Mouse” (들쥐) by Ludvico.
Mousetrap Ending Explained
Who Is The Rat in Mousetrap?
As the story starts, the real Rat is Yu-min, who was friends with Moon-jae during their college time. As it turns out, Moon-jae was extremely jealous of Yu-min and technically stole his life by pushing his girlfriend towards suicide and then stealing his writing to become an author. Moon-jae, who suffers from identity issues, left all of these thoughts in the back of his mind and refused to acknowledge or even remember his role in destroying Yu-min’s life by taking everything from him.
Thus, when Yu-min came back and decided to reveal everything to Moon-jae and challenge all of his thoughts, he was left confused and unable to understand what was happening or why. As Moon-jae tries to understand who is responsible for the ordeal, he is left to confront his own thoughts and feelings and everything that he has done in his life to get what he wants.
Moon-jae’s Biggest Secret Revealed
Moon-jae’s biggest secret showcases his lack of identity and his extreme jealousy towards Yu-min and how that devolved into a series of dangerous and destructive choices. Throughout his life, Moon-jae has been coveting Yu-min’s life and everything that he has had, including his girlfriend and his work. However, that resulted in Yu-min losing everything and Moon-jae running off to remake his life. We also learn that he burnt his school down when his real identity was almost revealed, signifying a fresh start for him.
However, this resulted in Yu-min seeking revenge for putting him through unbelievable turmoil and taking away everything, including his bright future, from him.
Why Is Detective Sun-yong Important?
In a rather shocking twist, we learn that Sun-yong and Moon-jae were together in the same orphanage, and the latter joined his orphanage after he had left. As it turns out, Sun-yong was the original Moon-jae, and everything we knew about his past until the end was actually the life he had forgotten. After learning about this, he is able to reconnect with his past and make amends with his family. This gives another layer to the story, as we eventually learn that neither of these people is Moon-jae.
What Happened to Yu-min?
In Mousetrap Episode 10, Yu-min confronts Moon-jae and finally reveals everything that has been kept hidden for all of these years. It opens up Moon-jae’s eyes and forces him to face the truth of everything that has happened. In the end, the two engage in a scuffle, as they both realise that they both can’t live with this huge problem forever. In the end, Yu-min seemingly dies, and Moon-jae eventually takes over the identity, but as it turns out, now knowing what he knows, he can’t settle into his life and his identity anymore.
Does Moon-jae Get His Life Back?
Technically, yes. He does get into his flat and start to live his old life, complete with another deadline for his next book – The Rat Pt 2. Unfortunately for him, Yu-min has left him in quite the bind – he now knows what he has done and what has led him to this place. Plus, Yu-min has left a manuscript of the next chapter of the book that details how he has ruined people’s lives and murdered someone. Moon-jae, with the information that he has now, is left to rewrite the book from scratch, but since he has never written anything on his own, always having stolen Yu-min’s work, he cannot come up with anything. It’s a difficult bind that he finds himself in, one he has created and that will destroy him in the end.
What Happens in the Final Scene?
The final scene showcases a tense and frantic Moon-jae who, even after getting his identity back, is clearly a fraud and is unable to write anything. Plus, he has a loan shark on his tail and constantly thinks that Yu-min is keeping an eye on him. Eventually, he is shown to be losing his mind, unable to comprehend and bring together the idea of the life he lived before everything came to light and right now. He constantly finds himself fighting the thought of Yu-min coming to get him and the destruction he has caused, while also trying to keep all of these thoughts at bay.
What Does the Mousetrap Ending Mean?
The ending flips the script on what the series had started with, portraying Moon-jae as the victim at first and eventually turning him into the villain in everyone’s story, including his own. While he was trying to battle an imposter who had taken his life, it turns out that he himself is an imposter who had stolen someone else’s life to get where he is today. The ending signifies that our identities are not absolute and that we are the work that we do. Even after getting his identity back, Moon-jae isn’t able to live his life because he doesn’t know who he is. He has an idea of what Moon-jae does, but hasn’t really lived the life. Now that he is forced to confront the truth, he finds himself lost and without a way to move forward.
In the end, the question is: if you have spent years pretending to be someone else, what does it mean to be the real you?
Watch Mousetrap Kdrama on Netflix. What are your thoughts on the series? Let us know in the comments below!
Also Read: