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Park Hyung Sik, Heo Joon Ho’s Buried Hearts Ending Explained: Did Cha Woo Min kill someone and what happened to Hong Hwa Yeon's love story?
Buried Hearts finale left fans disappointed with its rushed ending, unsatisfying conclusions, and romance arc left unresolved. Read here to know more!
Buried Hearts, which initially impressed audiences with its intriguing premise and complex characters, ended in a way that left many fans disappointed and frustrated. What seemed like a carefully crafted plot about power, revenge, and family bonds quickly unraveled in the last two episodes, leaving viewers with more questions than answers. The finale, in many ways, failed to live up to the expectations set by the rest of the series.
The final episodes of Buried Hearts take an ambitious leap forward, jumping an entire year after the disappearance of Yeom Jang Seon (Heo Joon Ho). The time jump introduces a drastically changed world within Daesan Energy. Seo Dong Ju (Park Hyung Sik), who had once been a mere subordinate, now stands at the helm as CEO of the company. Yeo Eun Nam (Hong Hwa Yeon) is promoted to a director position on the board, while Guk Hui heads a new subsidiary, Daesan Volt.
Tae Yun, initially introduced as a character caught in the family’s power struggle, is now tasked with learning the ropes under Guk Hui’s leadership. Meanwhile, Seon U (Cha Woo Min) is sent off to school, with the expectation that he will one day take over Daesan after Dong Ju.
At first glance, it seems that everything has fallen into place. The company is running smoothly, with Guk Hui's subsidiary on track to go public. Even Yeom Jang Seon, who had once seemed untouchable, appears to have been sidelined, with no major presence in the company or the storyline until a subtle hint is dropped. The final moments of the series reveal that, rather than being dead, Yeom is hidden away in a secret vault, effectively a prisoner to Dong Ju's elaborate plan for revenge.
Dong Ju's revenge plan, as revealed in the finale, is chillingly methodical. It’s clear that his primary goal is not to take Yeom’s life, but to take everything that Yeom and his family have. In a cruel twist, Dong Ju’s aim is to strip Yeom of his wealth, his power, and his very identity. This pursuit of revenge is tied directly to the traumatic incident when Heo Il Do (Lee Hae Young) shot Dong Ju, leaving him with a deep desire to exact justice. Dong Ju had already inherited Il Do’s fortune, but Yeom’s wealth remains elusive, and Dong Ju’s goal is simple: to force Yeom to hand it over willingly, leaving him with nothing.
In a shocking revelation, Dong Ju’s cruel treatment of Yeom becomes apparent. He only feeds him hamburgers, a stark contrast to the traditional Korean meals Yeom once demanded from his wife. This act symbolizes the complete erosion of Yeom’s identity and his former status. It’s a bitter, psychological torment for Yeom, who had once mocked Dong Ju as being unworthy of ever surpassing him. But as Dong Ju strips away the remnants of Yeom’s old life, Yeom finally reaches his breaking point and signs over his fortune to Dong Ju, even as he faces a future of imprisonment for the murder of Il Do.
Yet, this act of revenge doesn’t bring the satisfaction that Dong Ju might have expected. Instead, the finale takes a darker turn as the story shifts to Seon U, who unexpectedly becomes the show’s most chilling figure. In a shocking and sudden move, Seon U pushes Tae Yun off a wall during a seemingly innocent moment where they had been sitting and drinking coffee. Tae Yun, who had never truly wanted to be involved in the cutthroat world of business and had only pursued it for his grandfather’s love, is killed by Seon U’s cold, calculated action. This death is one of the most shocking moments in the entire series.
Tae Yun’s death leads to a complete unraveling within the family, with Guk Hui left devastated and Deok Hui spiraling into madness. However, the most unsettling aspect is that Dong Ju is completely unaware of Tae Yun’s death. He remains oblivious to the fact that Seon U has taken over Daesan, and that the Chairman, once a powerful force within the company, has now descended into senility.
What truly baffles fans, though, is the unresolved emotional arc between Dong Ju and Eun Nam. Throughout the series, there were moments of a growing connection and yearning between the two characters, a potential romantic subplot that seemed poised to reach a conclusion. Yet, in the final episodes, this relationship is completely abandoned.
Dong Ju’s actions throughout the series have been driven by a complex mixture of anger, betrayal, and longing, and while it appeared that Eun Nam might offer him emotional support, she is left on the sidelines in the end. Instead of ending with any kind of romantic reconciliation, Dong Ju gives Eun Nam the vault password, a key to the final piece of his revenge plan and then prepares to take a break from Daesan, leaving her behind.
The final moments of Buried Hearts are haunting and melancholic. Dong Ju scatters his father’s ashes into the sea, fulfilling his father’s last request. However, this moment of closure does little to satisfy the emotional arcs that were set up throughout the series. Dong Ju, now emotionally hollow after completing his revenge, seems to have no reason to continue living.
As he sits by the sea with the same gun that his father had once used to shoot him, viewers are left wondering whether he will take his own life. The implication is strong, but the show stops short of giving a definitive answer. However, considering Yeom’s wife’s earlier words urging Dong Ju to keep living in honor of his deceased mother, suggest that Dong Ju may continue his journey, though emotionally scarred and lost.
The most intriguing and yet frustrating aspect of the finale is the unresolved cliffhanger: Dong Ju gives Eun Nam the vault password, a crucial detail that suggests the story is far from over. The possibility of a second season looms large as fans are left wondering if Eun Nam will take control of the vault, what Seon U’s true intentions are, and whether Dong Ju will ever find redemption or peace. The story seems to be setting up for a larger family conflict in the future, particularly with Seon U now in charge of Daesan and the Chairman’s state of decline.
In conclusion, Buried Hearts had all the potential to be a gripping, emotionally complex K-drama, but the finale left much to be desired. The slow unraveling of the family dynamics, the shocking deaths, and the abandonment of emotional arcs led to an ending that felt incomplete, disjointed, and unsatisfying. Fans are left hanging, desperate for answers to the many unresolved plotlines. While the show leaves open the possibility of a second season, it remains to be seen whether it can redeem itself and provide the closure that viewers deserve.
