Twenty-Five Twenty-One

It just felt incomplete but yet loved it

I loved this drama with all my heart and everything from the very begining. I loved how it explored friendship, goals and might I dare say love. It had everything. This series gave me butterflies and made me cry at some points. How I kept on silently rooting for both Na Hee-Do and Baek Yi-Jin. How I cried every time Hee-do won and celebrated with her friends. This series really showed how friends grow apart but still play a great role in Every step of your life. Reminded me of my college buddies and how we all went different ways and still are there for eachother always to support each other. The cast was just amazing and acting was perfect except the middle aged Na Hee-Do. She kinda ruined the character's vibe tbh. The tracks were great too. The story was so nice to watch and of course I desperately wanted a happy ending but didn't get one which was okay too. The drama really taught us that not every fluffy love story has a happy ending. I was not dissapointed at the fact that they didn't end up together but I was more dissapointed at how they ended the series without proper explanations. At some point of the drama it was indicated that Na Hee-Do didn't have much connection with her friends anymore. The show never really told anything about that later. They never showed us if they actually got apart or just weren't friends anymore. They never finished Ko Yu-Rim's story. And the worst was they never showed Na Hee-Do's husband. I really was hoping to see her husband or at least their family photo to know who she actually ended up with. And what happened to Baek Yi-Jin.. Was he married too? Ughhh so many questions and not a single answer and yet THIS is one of my favourite dramas. Netflix you owe us some answers baby. Give us a season 2 or at least a special episode or something. We really need some closures.
So to summarize It felt incomplete but yet I loved it

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A very bittersweet story about love, hard work, friendships, fate and facing the inevitable. I very much enjoyed the story as it was so much different from your regular Korean dramas. The plot was very refreshing, and even the side characters had an interesting character development overall.

While most topics about the ending and relationships were discussed in many of the existing reviews, I just wanted to say personally, the ending didn't work for me. Maybe it's because I had too many unanswered questions about Na Hee Do's year's leading up to her marriage and then having a daughter. Hence, I wasn't that satisfied with how the show was executed towards the final episodes.

I'd say a very good watch because of the rather interesting story and the visuals, worth the hype that it gets.

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Suggestion to watch

“Learn to let go sometimes.” both Hee Do and Yi Jin grew up, their relationship failed to grow. They expected it to stay the same when they weren't the same people anymore. Yi Jin understood this fact more than Hee Do, but miscommunication, misunderstanding, and impatience took the best of their relationship. This drama was really enjoyable and i loved it. However, in context of the story, and as substantiated by the Hwa&Dam production company, the first love of Heedo and YiJin was each other. YiJin corroborates it in the final minute of the drama: Who is your first love? Na Hee Do.

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Can I ever move on from this? Maybe, maybe not.

Finally gathered the courage to write a review about this. It wasn't easy going back to this drama and collecting my thoughts because it caused me a great amount of pain, and pain, and pain. No other television show has made me cry like this drama did and it was literally ugly crying and catching my breath at 3AM. I physically felt the ache in my chest as if it personally happened to me. Even until now, weeks after I originally finished watching this, the wound is still fresh and it's a constant sting that will forever haunt me. Can I ever move on from this? Maybe, maybe not. Seeing the actors' photos unrelated to this drama tears me up, even.

Let me reminisce the good things first. This drama has shown me beautiful representations of friendship, love, life, family, passion, dreams, and youth. The characters feel so close to my heart. Each and everyone of them has given me good memories and lessons that I will treasure and cherish forever. The character development is topnotch for everyone. The buildup is so strong with just the right pacing which delivered so much impact. Each character felt like a portrayal of each and everyone of us and our struggles. Witnessing how the they have spent their youth and waved goodbye to it sends a feeling of nostalgia, bliss, and sorrow all at the same time and it made me realize and think about how I'm spending my own youth and my life, what I'm doing for the things I love, and how I'm valuing my personal relationships.

I watched this drama completely aware of the nature of the ending but I am in the dark on the specifics of how things will go down. That's actually why I put off watching this drama for so long to the point that I even said I will never watch this so it was surprising, especially to me, when I finally did. As much as I have no regrets and I will forever carry the memories this drama gave me, this hurts like hell, partly because it depicts the reality we all go through. I fully understand why things happened. Sometimes life just ambushes us and punches us in the gut and we won't be able to do anything about it. It is what it is. That's just life and I've had my fair share of life surprises that I am able to always expect for the best, while preparing for the worst. However, I do think that there were some important events that felt so out of character and it's so hard to accept. Up until now, it doesn't feel natural as much as I try to make myself come to terms with it. I'm out of my denial phase but some things just doesn't feel right. To me, it just wasn't possible given the history. Though it wasn't perfect as all things are, but this easily found its way to a spot in my all time favorites.

Lastly, Kim Tae Ri is a revelation to me. She left me in awe of such powerful performance and from the bottom of my heart, I am sending her my sincerest love as sign of my gratitude for bringing Na Hee Do's character to life. Nam Joo Hyuk is my absolute favorite actor and just when I thought it wouldn't be possible to fall in love with him even more, I did.

This may be inconsequential but I think they could've casted a better actor for the role of Adult Hee Do. I swear she feels so awkward, I was so distracted.

P.S. THE SOUNDTRACKS ARE PERFECT AND I'M EVEN PLANNING TO PURCHASE THE OST ALBUM 🥺

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i love this show sm

everything from the acting, soundtrack, production was perfect. the emotions i felt watching this, crying multiple times each episode is what made this drama stand out to me. what seems like a normal coming of age show is actually a rollercoaster of feelings, filled with lighthearted romance, comedy and heartache.

i really enjoyed this show; the friendships and family hardships were so wonderfully depicted. i know nothing about fencing and yet i found myself so immersed. whether the characters were competing or just hanging out with their friends, every scene was meaningful beyond words.

however, the ending (last 2 episodes ish) really broke my heart. i still cherish this drama but i wish it couldve ended well. or at least better. the show made the main couple out to be ill fated, or right person wrong time. it was disappointing to see 2 characters who seemed more than perfect together have to be pulled apart. they were more than lovers, more than friends. their connection ran deeper than labels and they deserved a happy ending with each other. but this show invalidated whatever bond they had at the end. it didnt ruin the show; its still amazing if i disregard the ending and just focus on the times they had as young people. this is just one of those shows where its because they loved each other so much they had to let each other go, i guess. if the point was that they found happiness, just not with each other then yes this drama showed that really well even if it was painful and bittersweet as a viewer to watch. ahhh i really wanted them to end up together but it is what it is lol still one of the best dramas i've ever seen tho

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the cast was perfect. the pacing was perfect until the end. the plot.... good enough, but not great. it started out wonderful; they tried to deliver a message. they failed in the last few eps. the build-up of showing the present-time characters amounted to nothing. we don't get an explanation as to what heedo is feeling. how she ended up getting married to someone else?? i can see that they tried to leave it mysterious alluding to the concept "not everyone is meant for each other. life moves on and so should you.". in reality it feels like lazy writing. heedo's present-time character does not connect to her past at all. as a representation they show yijin and heedo having an imaginary conversation through the diary, yet it is just a repeat of everything throughout the show. this led to heedo not feeling like heedo anymore with no explanation.

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It's a beautiful story, with such amazing acting. The actors truly brought their characters to life. This is a show that captivates you, makes you so emotionally invested that you aren't even aware until the tears fall. I cried, laughed, and sat in shock. Words aren't enough to describe the feelings I felt, and continue to linger on. Amidst this immense heartbreak I can't help but still recommend this show and give it high praise for the stunning 15 episodes it gave us.

After watching the 16th episode, I find myself heartbroken, confused, frustrated... a cluster of emotions and no way to make sense of them. One of the things that left me unsatisfied at the end of this series was a lack of closure. The questions I had at the beginning, the questions I imagined answers to as the characters grew up, these questions... never really got answered.

The ending is a heated debate. But I don't want it to discredit the journey. Heedo, Yijin, Yurim, Jiwoong, and Seungwan's struggles navigating their youth deserves more than that. Episodes 1-13 were absolutely gorgeous. From the cinematography, to the outstanding acting, to the build up we were all waiting for between Heedo and Yijin. There is incredible attention to detail anyone can appreciate. Everything, every scene, has significance. It matters, so watch closely. 2521 represents youth in a very relatable way, yet also makes you long and pine for those special, one of a kind experiences.

The escapist part of myself wants to believe it ended there, that day in the snow.

But reality isn't like that (unfortunately, haha...)

(ending spoilers ahead!)

For me, this is the reason why the ending is so unsettling. Heedo and Yijin had such a magical, fantastical relationship that was built up so well. They leaned on each other during the darkest time of their lives, but their romance ended because of mere growing apart? And they reunite on live television, years later? Never to speak again? After something that was founded on strong friendship, unconditional support, "love in all ways," it bothers me that they aren't even friends in the future. And their personalities were shown to be so strong-willed and passionate in their own ways. Heedo giving up on Yijin was never what I would've expected. Yijin not discussing anything with her is also something I didn't expect. It 100% feels out of character. So, that's why their breakup is so painful... it's not really them. That's what made their separation so difficult. They never saw it coming, after the five years they spent by each other's side, feeling on top of the world and invincible. Those feelings are momentary. To put it simply, things change, whether it's over time or in the blink of an eye. Sometimes you can't put a stop to it. It's such a bleak and hopeless realization in spite of the optimism that pushed them through their youth.

I could write so much more about this and imagine what if situations. Yes, there is indeed a world in which their relationship would have most definitely survived. But their downfall wasn't because of their love for each other fading, it was more because of the situation they were in. Their dreams brought them together, allowed them to stick together--temporarily. This is what hurts the most.

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Good show about friendships and fencing, go watch!

This is a true coming-of-age story with a large lovable cast. 25-21 is a drama about the dreams and friendships of a group of young students who thrive together despite their struggles. As the story spans from Na Hee Do's teenage years until she's a mom of Kim Min Jae, it shows how the time we enjoy with our friends and families changes our lives to an extent. Time might fly by but still brings success and all of the consequences of our choices.

The enemies-to-friendships between Na Hee Do and Ko Yu Rim are my favorite part. Oh my god, I just love how pure the camaraderie between them is. Not only them, there's not a single cast member that I dislike, they're all just so beautifully written as real people. The ones you don't like at first, you learn more about them or the characters themselves interact more and form understandings of each other. I really commend all of the actors and actresses involved.


! Spoiler section: don't read unless you want to be spoiled :)




Regarding the ending, As I wasn't invested in the romance plot much, nothing hurts me in the end. It's lovely to see the slow-burn romance between Na Hee Do and Baek Yi Jin evolves from meaningful friendship to pure love, so to me there's no surprise whatever happens in the end. Overall, I enjoyed their conversations and interactions together.

So, why my rating is 8/10? Because I have frustrations and questions about the whole news anchor plot. This conflict of interest issue, everyone clearly sees is a problem from afar. So then why Baek Yi Jin is not being clear to Na Hee Do and just say it from the beginning that they are not meant to be? Just be friends from the beginning. Also, some scenes on the present-day Na Hee Do as a mom I feel they're a bit unnecessary. Her husband is not introduced at all in the story, so why bother breaking up with Baek Yi Jin, if the future husband is not living together with Na Hee Do?

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So emotional in the best way ever.

This is a gorgeous story told in a truly fascinating way. It shows not only the importance of childhood but the importance of not forgetting what life is about as an adult.

One topic that stood out the most to me in the beginning was Hee Do and Yi Jin’s friendship. It was so important for their development, and it makes me wish that friendships of that nature weren’t as frowned upon because of creeps who do bad things. Teenagers can learn a lot from young adults and vice versa, even if the age difference is only three to four years, because when the world starts to view you as an adult, I think the importance of things changes, and you start to forget how careless and problemless you were in high school because there are much higher stakes in your life. Therefore, I think that Hee Do being able to show Yi Jin how to have fun again added a lot of depth and meaning to their relationship.

Another thing I really loved was the loud and proud narrative of friendship. Not just talking about Hee Do, Jiwoong, and Seungwan, but I mean between Hee Do and Yu Rim. Their relationship was a pure example of girlhood. The way that their true friendship was about them and not some outside factor like a boy or fencing, and despite all the disrespect they shared in the beginning, they knew that at the end of the day, THAT was the person they found comfort in. It made me miss my friends and feel even more grateful to them.

I really loved this show and its portrayal of each relationship, even the parental ones. I loved its portrayal of grief and communication, and even aside from all of that, I felt so nostalgic of a time I never grew up in. It made me want to make the most of life and have true fun like Hee Do.

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Trying to understand the message

The rumours are true: this show is excellent until it takes a major swerve towards the end. And a lot of people (myself included) didn’t enjoy that swerve (although it was extremely effective as a gut punch). In my case, it’s not because I didn’t like the choice (although I didn’t), but rather that they didn’t explain it well enough. This leaves me trying to decide if this is a writing/direction fumble, or if their message is ultimately intended to be “realistically random”—the problem is, it’s not real life, it is a structured, fictional creation. I know someone chose this, which leaves me asking “why?”.

SPOILERS

I’m working this out as I go, so please bear with me.

TL; DR: it’s not their story, it’s HER story.

NHD’s fencing journey is great; I didn’t even mind that they “spoiled” her success and hand-waved her later accomplishments. The show was really only interested in her life until 21/22; everything after that (including the modern framing device) was only there to support that story.

The development of NHD’s relationship with BYJ was also great. It was playful and joyful and painful. And I think this is mostly thanks to her. She’s a poster child for the exuberance of youth. But where did it go?

The show decided to make NHD inadvertently replicate with BYJ the dysfunctional relationship she had with her mother. She ends up with someone distant, who hides/doesn’t share pain, is unreliable and self-centred (in that they are clinging to their career and prioritizing it to an insane degree and/or unable to integrate it with their life or loved ones), and shows love “in the background” with unrevealed actions (that hotel room!).

He is an intense first love and a lousy partner. She needs to get away from him.

NHD is herself the opposite of BYJ: (over)sharing, demonstrative, brave, confrontational, tenacious, reliable. Her “weaknesses” are mostly structural—getting the fencing/coaching opportunities she needs and also the “youth” opportunities that fencing largely precludes; avoiding victimization in unfamiliar settings (as with the documentary and the Internet hate). Rather than self-centred, she is focused. Rather than knuckling under to authority to get along or curry favour, she goes at the problem. Rather than withdrawing, she seeks out. Fencing is a fine metaphor for this—you face your problems and do battle with them.

BYJ tells NHD at one point that one of her best advantages is her mental fortitude (and, when she is younger, the “right to ask for help”). She is resilient. She has enough support when it counts, which allows her to stand on her own two feet when necessary.

He is not mentally strong. He runs away. He retreats into alcoholism. He loses himself in his work by overempathizing. I think he feels inferior.

Because BYJ is ultimately a failure—or perhaps succeeds at the only goal he actually set for himself, which was reuniting his family (but isn’t his dad still a fugitive?). Perhaps he is a victim of “the times” (the IMF crisis and 9/11). He is browbeaten by his father’s creditors until he gives up even the concept of happiness. His home is not so much broken as annihilated.

Yes, he’s handsome. He has the residual breeding of his upbringing and high school glory. But he’s not strong. He even wavers with NHD when he should have been more in control of his emotions.

His only real advantage is being four years older--and as time goes on and NHD matures, this advantage dwindles to essentially nothing.

He loses sight of his relationship with NHD once he’s in it. He detaches and still takes it for granted. NHD cannot escape her mother (or at least it would be more difficult). But she can escape him.

Is this the lesson the show wants to impart?

NHD does the right thing by breaking up/giving up. “You need therapy” was 100% accurate. “I can’t comfort you” was 100% accurate. “You are only with me in the good times; you withdraw in the bad times” (in other words, we aren’t really a couple) was 100% accurate.

He doesn’t appear in the modern framework. He is alluded to. He is present only in “historical” documents (her diary, old video clips). So in the end, this is really NHD’s story. How he developed later (family, whatever) is irrelevant. The show is her reminiscing through the mechanism of her daughter’s “rebellion”.

And I guess that’s okay. But if so, the Kdrama conventions didn’t really work for me. The “couple” structure obscured her story too much.

Still, this drama is well made and well worth a watch.

And NHD burns so bright in youth that we (like BYJ) can still warm our hands and take inspiration from her.

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VIBE OVER SUBSTANCE

The plot was interesting enough for me to try it out but ultimately, despite the hype, this show didn’t really do anything for me. I think for me the first 7 episodes were superior to the other half of the drama, from the vibe to the story building. The cinematography and the beautiful OSTs couldn’t save this or make it a favorite that I will revisit. It’s not the breakup that made this dull(I’ll get to that later). I think it has more so to do with me just losing interest. I really did try to get into this but I just couldn’t. I was engaged within the first few eps but after a while I found myself checking my phone and multitasking while watching.

The characters were ok. I did like Yijin and Heedo’s story, and their interactions were very natural. They were very charming and relatable to the youth of today. Personally I felt their chemistry was good enough to be believable and some of the moments they shared together were heart fluttering. Their characters were well written, but I can’t exactly say the same for Yurim and Jiwoong. Yurim just frustrated me a lot and I found it hard to care about her struggles. She improved in the end. Jiwoong was cute but nothing too special.

Ok so the BREAK-UP. For me I didn’t really think Yijin and Heedo would be the end goal from the way things were headed. Actually I thought it was kinda obvious after a certain point. However I get it when people are mad that they didn’t get that happy ending, but I don’t think the story would have been as authentic if that had happened. Sometimes people just come into your life for a season, whether it be for support, comfort, encouragement, or other things. Those things can’t always last because that’s just how it’s meant to be. Life might take you in a direction that other person can’t follow, and that’s ok. It’s ok to let go of people. Natural even. It’s especially necessary if you and that person don’t serve each other at that point in your life or you’re not maturing/growing. I feel like some viewers needa hear that.

Saying that, I think the strongest attribute of this drama is the vibe. It’s centered around teens but there is this nostalgic undertone in the early episodes that I really liked. The double feeling of possibility and uncertainty young people know so well is really well done. I think what I enjoyed most was the vibe this show exuberated. In the end this wasn’t my cup of tea but the writer really nailed that universal feeling of being young, struggling, and pursuing your dreams despite the difficulties of life.

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