Twenty Five Twenty One (2022)

A great drama

I enjoyed this drama for what is was refreshing break from everyday. The intensity and passion they all had for life was so beautiful to watch and I hope I take some of it with me each day. That I would push for whatever it is I want out of life just like Hee do and the others did in this drama

The ending wasn’t exactly my favorite but I truly believe it wa realistic and suited the flow of events thus far. I would definitely recommend anyone to watch and enjoy the greatness that is Twenty-Five Twenty-One. I probably wouldn’t rewatch because I don’t rewatch dramas and I personally love happy endings. Especially since life doesn’t always work out the way we want it to.

Butt do enjoy watching it! You will not regret it!

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Tender, sensitive, beautiful. Thoroughly excellent.

This is a story about an age gap. It’s in the title, but it’s also at the heart of the writing and the unfolding of a relationship in which one is already an adult and the other coming of age. The mesmerising beauty of this drama is the acute observation and treatment of this journey.

It is in the excellence in the writing (Kwon Do Eun) that has perfectly captured the age difference in the dialogue, and displayed a depth of understanding that reveals, in sequence, each tiny step forwards. It is in the directing (Jung Ji Hyun) that forces nothing and under rather than overplays each scene, giving it space for a natural unfolding. It is in the cinematography and editing that keeps it very clean and pure, capturing facial expressions in the moment, in a simple and direct way and not holding them until they lose their essence. It is in the soundtrack which is sparingly used and refrains from emotive strings. And finally, it is in the excellence of the acting by all of the cast, but especially the two leads (Kim Tae Ri and Nam Ju Hyuk) who reveal the emotions with a visual ease that belies the skill involved, so that they emerge with total credibility. Wah! Superb!

It would be a mistake to approach this piece as simply a romance. The underlying theme is how the times and circumstances that we are born into as well as the random events that happen impact our dreams and shape our lives. It also reveals the cost that must be paid for the realisation of aspirations and responsibilities. Set in the economic downturn of the IMF crisis in the late nineties we see lives and relationships transformed and dreams crushed, but also opportunities realised, responsibilities fulfilled and sacrifices made through an engagement with the reality of the present.

This is a story about how nothing is forever. Moments of love, friendship, success, failure, ambition and passion — all change irrevocably with time and events. It is important to realise that the present is the only time that you have. If you live for and fully engage in the present the memories that stay with you will become the colour of your life. They may not be the moments that you think are important at the time, but these are the moments that last forever.

Perhaps the illustration of this theme provided the only fault I can find—that of the pacing and slight fragmentation in the latter stages and the necessity to rush some character development but I think it came true at the end (which I thought was the right ending). I loved the nod to her previous drama "Search WWW" that was the postscript to the show.

Setting it in the late nineties allowed the writer to explore a love story in a time far enough distant for it to be credible that development was at a later stage and the innocence of adolescence was something to be preserved. The ML (Baek Yi Jin) respects and gives space to the unfolding of maturity in the FL (Na Hee Do), which he himself was denied and this is a major part of the charm and warmth of the story. The gradual awakening of her sensuality, particularly during the beach scene, is beautifully portrayed by Kim Tae Ri and sensitively directed and filmed in close ups of her face that capture the subtle moments of realisation. This is pure, heartwarming nostalgia at its very best.

I defy you not to fall completely in love with Na Hee Do. What a creation she is! Kwon Do Eun has created a peach of a role and who wouldn’t jump over 10 metre fences for the opportunity to play this part. Kim Tae Ri has convincingly dropped thirteen years to engage with her unfailing optimism and resilience to failure. She has perfectly captured the character’s naivety, disarming honesty and staunchness as she blunders forwards, regardless of risk, inspiring hope in those around her. This is a stunning performance by Kim Tae Ri that completely enthrals from the first moment to the last.

If the writer has a weakness it’s her male characters. They don’t really have enough wrong with them; no edge, no raw, roughness to play with. Here again, as in “Search WWW”, she shows no hesitation in writing a range of strong, complex female characters; from the unhappy, controlled and judgemental, Shin Jae Kyung (Hee Do’s mother) to the clever, hard-nosed fencing coach, Yang Chan Mi. But her leading males are soft centred, as though she is nervous of being able to make them attractive if they have flawed character traits or are dislikable in any way.

Having said that, Nam Ju Hyuk’s performance as Baek Yi Jin was a masterpiece of warmth and tenderness. His character represents the voice of the times. He embodies someone for whom love and compassion are the currency of life and shows us its simplest form as a desire to hold a space for another to live in safety and happiness. His relationship with Na Hee Do is a voyage through varying aspects of love and support that subtly change as they both grow in age and understanding to embrace equality. And it was easy to see the transitions in Nam Ju Hyuk’s face. There were some beautiful moments in their relationship that explore not just romance, but the foundations of love, protection, support, generosity and respect. I enjoyed his interpretation of the ML and the chemistry between him and Kim Tae Ri was magic.

Kwon Do Eun knows how to touch your heart without raising a fuss. No false emotions, onion tears of histrionics necessary. Just simple scenes, like listening to a pager message from a phone booth. She sympathetically captured the excruciating embarrassment of adolescence that reached an unforgettable climax in the aftermath of “I have to have you”! But she also knows how to ham it up, as in the brilliant scene between separated husband and wife in the internet café. There’s a thread of delightful, knowing humour that swims like a silvery fish through all the episodes. It frequently made me laugh out loud and kept an almost permanent smile on my face.

The colour palette utilises bright and vibrant summer colours, reinforcing the nostalgia of a youthful optimism and perseverance, rather than the drabness of the economic downturn. The cinematography has an elegance that frames each shot with care and keeps the viewers’ attention where it should be, on the actors, whilst also adding character, texture and visual beauty. Who can forget the scene on the bridge (enhanced by CGI) with its opalescent sheen and overarching rainbow.

The whole production cleverly walks the edge between the nostalgic and the sentimental. It rarely falls over it and that is something very difficult to achieve. It is helped enormously by the straightforward cinematography, the choice of simple music and the partnership between director and actors that kept the performances restrained and the emotion true. This could easily have been overplayed, sickly sweet and emotionally exaggerated, but it wasn’t and that’s why it has earned such a high rating from me. It was a complete joy to watch and I cannot recommend it more highly.

What my rating means: 9+   A drama I totally fell in love with and is endlessly re-watchable. It ticked all the boxes and had some serious wow factor. It would go on my personally recommended list.

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Bittersweet & Touching to the end

Wow…what a drama. It truly yanked on my heartstrings so many times, I am usually a “happy endings only” kdrama watcher but I couldn’t resist being drawn into this one, despite guessing it would not end well for the romantic relationship between Baek Yijin and Na Heedo.

The heartache and struggle they all go through to achieve their goals - be it love, success, helping family, supporting friends - it was all such a beautiful portrait of the transition between being a brand new young adult to the actual adult realities of responsibility, tragedy & incompatibility. Freedom and possibility are so exciting, so the crash down to earth when they had hard lessons and had to make sacrifices was just so hard to watch :’( I am only a bit younger than these characters, old enough to have watched 9/11 from a high school TV, all of us frozen in horror. The endless tragedy unfolding in the news for weeks and months after….I really felt Baek Yijin’s deep exhaustion and hopelessness. Nam Joo Hyuk did an amazing job.

I absolutely ADORED the relationship between Na Heedo and Ko Yurim, from beginning to end. It was the highlight of the show for me, even though I also loved Baek Yijin. Everyone’s growth as individuals was so real and satisfying, and I didn’t feel like the ending was out of place, despite it being very disappointing. Life is clearly as much full of nostalgia, regret, and moving through pain as it is about happiness and success.

The soundtrack was nice enough but not super memorable to me. The 90s aesthetic was perfect. I think the modern scenes were interesting since they actually showed COVID-era details with masks, but otherwise it was unnecessary and I found adult Heedo’s acting a little too subdued and depressing (and annoying, I guess she is that type of Mom). One of the most disappointing things about the ending was the daughter being SOOO invested in the story but decided not to read the last diary?? She just dropped it like that? I wanted her to be more disappointed, since she was like all the rest of us viewers, desperately rooting for Heedo and Yijin! At least admit that it was a crushing disappointment for us all! I’ll be moping about this drama for a while.

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"You will have no idea how much your love has brightened up my life." - Baek Yi Jin

STORY: More than the journey of love, 2521 was a coming-of-age story filled with friendship and family. Yijin and Heedo's story started with their respective struggles with their family and friends. Yijin in the middle of the wreckage the the IMF has left his family and Heedo trying to survive and fend for herself with the absence of her mother. I love how they narrated and showed their story from being strangers, friends, someone they can rely on to being lovers and eventually back to being strangers again.

SOME QUESTIONS WORTH PONDERING:
1. Was it an open ending? - For me it wasn't. If anything, it stayed true to its roots--Na Hee Do's journey. Saying her proper goodbye to Yijin at the final scene was heartbreaking but it was fitting since that moment haunted her a lot in the years that followed. I understand the outrage since this is something new to kdrama. But also, it is beautiful in its own way. Heedo and Yijin will remain beautiful.
2. The break-up did not make sense. How can they break up just like that? - If you paid attention to all the things happening before the break up, you would understand that it was inevitable. Heedo practically raised herself when her Dad died. That is because of the path her mother chose to cope with her grief in losing a husband. In contrast, Yijin is impliedly asking her to go through all that waiting, being sorry, being disappointed AGAIN. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There was a scene in the original break up when Yijin said that everything fell apart when he went to NY. But if distance was the only problem, Heedo would not have felt so exhausted. It was the fact that Yijin was making decisions where Heedo was no longer included and Heedo just doesn't have the strength to go through another round of trauma with an absent lover. Her mother was enough in her lifetime. So yes, the build up to the break up was being true to the story.
3. Why didn't they reveal the father? - This one is the easiest to let go. They did not reveal him since the important point is that it wasn't going to be Yijin anyway.
4. Why? - Honestly, I haven't felt this beautiful pain about a kdrama in a long while. The last time was with Scarlet Heart and that had been so hard to let go. With Heedo and Yijin being as wonderful as they have been, giving me this bittersweet ache was welcomed. They both looked happy in their respective lives. I regret not seeing enough of present day Yijin but we can't always have what we want. What I know is that regardless of the outcome, Heedo and Yijin brought me so much comfort just by sharing their story.

ACTING/CAST: Hands down one of the best performances from Kim Taeri and Nam Joohyuk. There was that confrontation scene in the tunnel where they were both shouting at each other. When Heedo said, "Did you ever really love me?" and Yijin replied, "Watch what you say" that was the culmination of their relationship. Their range really did shine all throughout the drama but that one moment was so memorable because of all the emotions they had to portray. I don't think another couple can play Heedo and Yijin as well as they did. Their supporting cast has been outstanding as well. Can't wait for everyone's next drama project.

MUSIC: The music was great but not as memorable as I would have thought. Fave song, Very, Slowly by BIBI.

REWATCH VALUE: Would definitely rewatch it. Even though I know it will only bring me pain in the end, it does not discount the fact that their journey was so comforting and beautiful to witness.

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“It’s better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all”

I watched this show with no expectations as I’m not into high school dramas, but episode by episode, I’ve grown to love it.

The acting is superb! Very convincing as emotions were delivered perfectly! This is a show about life experiences rather than anything else. It’s about the memories we created wither the happy or the sad ones, the memories that shapes who we are.

As for the ending, I think I loved it because it’s very relatable to me, I’ve been through a similar experience emotionally and I can tell you that I felt what they both did exactly. People who are in the 30’s will understand how those experiences make us grow so much and when we look back, we can’t help but smile because as they say “it’s better to have loved and lost than the never have loved at all”

The only downside about this show was the time transitions as they weren’t gradually convincing.

P.S: the single thing that was missing for me would be, them meeting in the current time even if it’s only for a glimpse and with only an eye contact.

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One of the best coming of age stories in a K-drama.

I am already rather reminiscent of this drama and I am going to miss waiting every week for it. To state it briefly, this is a very well rounded coming of age story and I love how they have wrapped it into this quaint bundle.

Kim Min chae picks up her mother's coming of age story when she herself is dejected and unmotivated. Twenty Five, Twenty One is solely told from the perspective of Na Hee do. It is not a story about the love between Yi jin and Hee do, it is only the story of how Hee do grew up to be the person she is.

I love how they captured the IMF crisis and how it effected different people from different walks of life.

If I break down characters, Hee do is such a refreshing Female Lead. Kim Tae ri is brilliant actress who has played Na Hee do to utmost perfection. I love how they've represented Hee do's temperament throughout the show. When they show her as a child and as she grows as person as well. The writers have taken careful account of how Hee do is as a person and created a rather inspirational character.

Baek Yi jin is another character that is rather well rounded. Nam Joo hyuk is one of the actors in the K-industry that is rather expressive with their eyes (kind of like Jung Hae in). He displays emotions like Yi jin's from innocence, joy and happiness to his depression, fear and sorrow through his eyes. Yi jin as a character is a person who had to grow up too soon because of unforeseen circumstances. Yi jin is an individual who hasn't had the opportunity to grow consistently and has had his growth happen very haphazardly. When it comes to upholding responsibilities , Yi jin is matured and put together. Yet, when it comes to emotionality, Yi jin is very similar to a teenager. I think that is why Yi jin starts being friends with Hee do and the rest of the gang. It allows him to embrace the childish part of himself that he has to lock away when it comes to his daily circumstances.

The rest of the characters- Ko Yu rim, Ji Seung wan and Moon Ji woong were all perfect aspects of the story. Each of the characters were special and all of them had their own nuance. I loved Yu rim's determination and her passion. Seung wan was one of the most interesting characters I have seen to date. She represents the ideal qualities of a leader. I loved her relationship with Yi jin and how similar they were in certain aspects. Ji woong and his creativity and charm was a pleasure to watch. I loved the friendship between all of them and the interconnectedness each of their relationships had with one another.

Coming back to my initial statement. Twenty Five, Twenty One is a story purely from the perspective of Na Hee do. All of the characters are in some way connected to her. Yi jin plays large role in the entire story because he is the one that has influenced Hee do the most in her youth. From emotionally growing up to maturing and understanding the world. Baek Yi jin features as an integral part of Hee do's youth. Similarly, for Hee do's fencing career, Yu rim is a key factor that built Hee do up as a fencer. Therefore, Yurim features alot during Heedo's youth

As I read some of the comments, I did notice that a lot of people were not very happy about how the last two episodes turned out. I understand the frustration about getting a rather bittersweet ending for the couple and not really knowing more about Yi jin and Hee do in the present. Yet, I believe the ending was well done too. Like I said the focus was Hee do and her story. Yi jin does not really play a part in her story after her youth and that's where their story ends. Especially since this story is read by Min chae who wanted to know her mother better, this is just the story of how her mother became the person she is. Therefore, making the ending justifiable.

Likewise, I do have a few issues with the story. Such as they gave a lot of emphasis on the "Twenty Five, Twenty One". Yet, there was barely an episodes worth of the characters in that time period. As much as I love Hee do and Yu rim's relationship, I did not understand why Yu rim was so mean to Hee do in the beginning. Even though it was explained in later episodes, I felt that the contempt Yu rim had for Hee do was a little too strong in that sense.

Factoring the other elements of the drama, the acting was pretty good and all the characters like said was done well enough. The music was beautiful and I bloody loved songs like Very, Slowly by Bibi and 스물다섯, 스물하나 by Jaurim.

The drama encapsulated the retro 90s aspect in Korea and the mise en scene catered wonderfully to all of the very 90s elements of the drama.

Would I rewatch this drama, definitely. I hope all of you who watched this drama had a pleasurable experience.

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Felt Like A Self Help Book To Me

There’s a debate regarding how the show was ended. I think that the ending was a risk for a Korean Romantic Drama, however, I do think that it was a risk worth taking. A lot of romantic dramas have happy endings. Twenty Five Twenty One took a route I’ve never seen done before. The ending was meant for the characters, not for the viewers. I think Hee Do held a huge regret regarding how she ended the relationship. There were words she said to Baek Yi Jin that she wished she said and wished she hadn’t said. On the other hand, Baek Yi Jin was able to find closure because Hee Do’s journal where she wrote how she truly felt ended up on his door, while Hee Do never got closure til the end of the show. I honestly liked how the reasoning behind why they had to break up, Baek Yi Jin chose his career and did not want to share the pain he was going through as a reporter which shows the trauma he went through at the beginning of the show. Hee Do decides to initiate the breakup because she wanted someone who could share both their happiness and sadness which Yi Jin was unable to do. In the end, Yi Jin and Hee Do broke up because they wanted different things for each other. One thing I got from watching Hee Do’s closure as she reads and imagines an alternative breakup with Yi Jin is that when you choose to end a relationship build from love and support it is best to end it the same way. I truly enjoyed watching this drama. I do not by means think it is the best Kdrama I have seen but it is definitely the drama that made me think about my relationship with myself and my relationship with others and how I treat them.

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The writer did not bother to write a well thought out ending, why should I give this a high rating?

Okay, so the ending is just horribly bad. It's not just that I did not get the happy ending that I have wanted, but none of it makes any sense. BYJ leaves the sports department to be with her love NHD, joining the New York office is the bestest idea -also BYJ. I hugely dislike watching shows that are about first loves failing amicably, but I don't think this show ever wanted to be that. (otherwise they would've set things up differently) What I think happened is that the writer had no idea how to finish the story, so she kept procrastinating until the last two episodes & then just went with this knowing that no matter what she does, the commercial success of the show is not in danger anymore. Behavior like this is fairly common in Kdramaland, but this ending is truly one of the worst ones I've seen, in my opinion it's far worse than How I Met Your Mother's, there should be a blowback, right? Unfortunately I cannot do anything else other than writing this review & giving the show a low rating, so here we are!

If I want to be entirely honest, the ending is not the only problem with this drama. Yes, up until episode 10ish, up until HD made up with Go Yurim this was a 10/10 drama for me(Episode 9 was probably the best kdrama episode I've seen since IOTNBO's episode 3.), however after that, much of what made the drama so great has been toned down several notches. For example it would have been possible for me to partly ignore what happened with the OTP, if we would have gotten more fencing. Like I don't know, HD at the Olympics, HD at the Olympics for a second time. Could have even gone with some fairly standard plot with Evil Foreigner injuring GYR & HD having vengeance with her saber, there were endless possibilities to end this sports drama respectfully as a sports drama. Fencing was more than just cool up until episode 7-8.

So if you have have yet to watch this drama, should you watch it? Well, if you are not obsessed with getting closure, then yes you can watch the first 9 (perhaps even 10) episodes & then stop. Treat it like it's the American TV show Wonderfalls and just enjoy the ride. (Speaking of Wonderfalls, I should watch that again sometime soon)

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Comfort Drama with a box of tissues!!!

I love love love this drama so much and will forever be in my top 10 favorite dramas, top 5 dramas to recommend and top 5 drama to re-watch!!!

With tears in my eyes I can genuinely say Twenty-five Twenty One, became my forever comfort drama! Every episode left me happy and always wanting more even though I will also occasionally shed tears. I found solace in each and every character and the storyline. And don't get me started on the ost... I just can't get enough of it! Especially Your Existence by Wonstein. I've had that song on replay and every time I cry as if I've not listened to it a hundred times already. The friendships, romantic relationships and familial relationships just struck a chord with me. Especially Hee Do and Yu Rim's friendship. It really captured how we sometimes go from enemies to friends and being able to laugh at your past selves seeing how childish you were in the moment. I love all the characters but there was something about Ji Seung Wan that really made me fall in love with her.

But on a serious note why did it end like that? I get that it' realistic and things like that happen in life but still my heart was shattered to pieces. Plus I have so many unanswered questions....like who is MinChae's father? Are they still in contact with each other? etc... And the ending credit...ugh...when the security code question said, 'who is your first love? And YiJin type Na Hee Do, I jut started crying all over again. Because when she get her lost diary, the monologue she gives when revisiting the tunnel, just shows that they both have some regret on how they handled things in their relationships. And YiJin's answer for the security code jut shows that Hee Do was and will forever be his first love and him hers.

It' sad to see this amazing show end and I keep on crying just thinking about HeeJin endgame. Thank you for being my comfort/happy place these pat weeks.

saranghae <3

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Could have been better

It's nice to see high-schoolers trying to figure out what to do with their life, and anchor the whole in real facts (Asian financial crisis of 1997, then to a minor extent the Sept. 2001 terrorist attacks), but looking a few below the surface, the series unravels, leaving much nonsense.
The series is full of monoparental families, or where parents are absent, and as such can't help their kids, which is seriously odd in Korea today. Extremely odd is the daughter of HeeDo who makes 0 reference to her father (she was somehow born! even if sperm donation was performed).
The whole spiel about fencing looks abnormal. Geographically, the high-school supplying half of the female national competitors and the national training center make no sense. Linguistically, the French sucks big time (school in "France", commands during Korean training, and at international events, ... the whole thing); the producers could have recorded a complete set of orders and then used it ad hoc throughout the series.
In the end, I am left with the feeling that the author didn't really know what to do, and thus took a bit of this (choose a sport, fencing), and that (some pseudo-rivalry among leads, a point in time for the main story and another for the results of the story), and then see what happens.
What happened is not much.

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WHY?!?! It could have been better.

I am so annoyed with the ending, I don't understand this. There are SO many loose ends, I would have been okay with them not ending together but the execution and the plot just did not make sense. First of all, why did she have that picture of her that yijin was supposed to have? Why did she marry someone and have a long distance relationship with them when that's the reason she broke up with yijin? They didn't show her happy and have that "It's okay, we don't end up with our first loves as someone else out there is the one for us" ending but was just like "We don't end up with our first loves, whatever."
AHHHHH i am infuriated rn, I'm gonna be mad at this for a while
Even scarlet heart was better than this.

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