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One of the best dramas I have watched and trust me I am very picky with the shows I like
I just lovedddd this drama. I was putting this off for so long bc its not my genre and i already know the ending and i hate spoilers it always ruins the watching experience for me.But i finally decided to watch it yesterday bc i was v bored. And I totally binge watched all 16. episodes.
It was a simple story but the way it unfolds was beautiful. I love the fact that the first few episodes was solely dedicated to get to know the main lead and her goals. Really helped me empathize and connect with her emotionally, everytime she accomplished something and the go! ost by dk plays it felt like my personal achievement and gave me a huge adrenaline boost lol . Of course Kim tae ri did an amazing job as always.
Usually in dramas with this genre there are alot of filler episodes and I will lose interest around the 12th episode. But this drama got me hooked till the very end,
One of the best and heartwarming but at the same time it was heartbreaking. Despite knowing the ending beforehand I couldn't stop crying.
I personally liked the ending. I think na hee do deserves better. Yes yi jin is a sweetheart and loved hee do dearly. But I empathize with hee do, throughout her childhood she has always been the second choice, she kept getting ditched by her mom even in some of the most important moments of her life bc of her job and she was always expected to be understanding and adjust. It is not fair that she is expected to adjust that way in her adult relationship as well. She deserves someone who can be actively present in her life as a strong emotional support and fill the void of loneliness in her heart.
It was a realistic but bittersweet ending (But a part of my unrealistic petty ass still hopes that her husband died or something and those two kind of reunites in the end like in how i met your mother lol)
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Youth, passion and growing pains
This drama is the epitome of youth, passion and growing pains.I’m not much for watching coming of age stories but this one got me good. Right now as I’m writing this I’m still picking up the pieces of my broken heart caused by that heart wrenching end. No kidding I was a sobbing mess.
Honestly I haven’t cried this much watching a drama before (like I’ve cried before but not like this, I was gasping for air?!). I was like Jesus can you please stop I want to stop crying!! I could not stop sobbing throughout the last episode so much so that I kept thinking I couldn’t cry anymore because I didn’t have any tears left and then BAM! the waterworks started again.
And you know what? I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The lesson that this drama and the writers set out to teach was that sometimes love is not enough.
And in this case it didn’t matter how stupid in love they were with each other if they couldn’t overcome their problems. In some ways it felt to me like they loved each other too much. So much so that it ended up being their demise. She loved him too much to be selfish and ask him to be there for them and he loved her too much to share his burden with her because he didn’t want to taint her or drag her down.
Ultimately what killed me the most was that *we don’t know whatever happened with Baek Yi Jin?!?!* Did HE get married? Did he stay single pinning for the love that never was? Had any children??? Does he regret anything???!! I know that the story is Na Hee Do’s but STILL how could they leave him out and only put him in that ending? Scene??? Though it was ironically sad how the name of the person you THOUGHT you would have by your side, love forever and grow old with becomes but the answer of a security question. 21st century sadness.
The cast did a terrific job. Everyone say thank you to Nam
Joo Hyuk for making Baek YiJin what he was. I saw an interview were him and Kim Taeri where they said that YiJin in the script was totally different to JooHyuk’s YiJin. Apparently Yijin was cold and distant and then JooHyuk said let’s make him warm and cutely dorky/weird. I’ll love you forever for that Nam Joo Hyuk. Taeri WAS Na Hee Do no more needed. And the rest of the cast was great too their chemistry was good.
The ost was top notch, the cinematography excellent, the nostalgia on point and it even got me excited for FENCING -didn’t see that one on my bingo card-. Tough tbh I was low key salty about the other couple making it through
At the end of the day Twenty-five twenty-one can be summarized with two words: first love. And, sadly, the undeniable truth is that we usually learn a lot from it before it reaches its final destined day for it’s seldom made to last. Because first love is as fleeting as youth.
Ps: now I’m going to sleep because my eyes and my head HURT from all the crying! I have half a mind to sue the writers for causing me distress and irreparable emotional damage. So excuse any grammatical or spelling mistake.
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Bittersweet drama with an emphasis on VERY sweet
A lot of people are saying it had a sad ending. But I disagree it was a happy bittersweet ending (not to invalidate their feelings). It makes us think as viewers what really constitutes a happy ending. I recommend everyone to watch this because the story and characters are so sweet and made me feel things. acting superb. Nam Joo Hyuk special shout out he improved by leaps and bounds. So sad he is enlisting. Please read full review! <3 <3Let's talk about the ending first without spoiling anything. It was a very sweet almost sickenly sweet so it had to have some..., a lil, bitterness to give the final beautiful bitter sweet flavour. It's like dark chocolate with cranberries. The ending was very beautiful and felt like a dream. The relationships in this story were completed to a perfection. Each and very relationship received a beautiful alluring conclusion.
Na Hee do and Baek Yi Jin are sweet hearts to one another and the first loves of each other. Even though Yi Jin has dated others girls in high school none are like Hee do. Only Hee Do deserves being Yi Jin's first love. I am not making this up. Hee do and Yi Jin supported each other in life's hardest times and believed in each other when no one could. They were capable of anything and everything and were also capable of breaking up.
But don't worry the ending is not bad writing. The characters are all very well written and there is no troped cliche drama. It is a vanilla story and sweet. All the characters are precious cinnamon rolls that must be protected at ALL TIMES. Watch it and find out for yourselves. A sweet rivalry between two girls, two sweet heart lovers that grew into and out of each other, a sweet relationship that survived the ups and downs and long distances, two childhood friends who remained good friends and a queen who stood up for wrongdoing in her school. Watch it for these stories.
The acting was top notch. Kim Tae Ri made me believe I was really watching a reckless loving teenager, Na Hee Do. As expected from a seasoned actor ofcourse. BUTTT Nam Joo Hyuk OHHH MAAHHH GAWWWD. His acting has improved so much by leaps and bounds. Before 25-21 I was not a fan of Nam Joo Hyuk's works, although I liked weightlifting fairy. But now I have become a die hard Nam Joo Hyuk fan. I am even depressed that Nam Joo Hyuk is going to enlist in December. Hee do is a character that makes you want to do something. Because she is trying so hard to make her dream happen. And Kim Tae Ri made me want to do something too with her acting. The supporting characters and story is also very beautiful.
A drama everyone should watch!!!!! Bonus the OST's are nice too! JOOOOOOOO OOOOOO OOOO
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I did not regret watching this!
I stopped watching this drama at Episode 6… and then heard and saw spoilers until the drama ended. Even though I already knew the ending, I can’t resist and I am still curious of the whole story that’s why I continued watching from where I left.ON THE STORY: The drama is set mostly in the 90s going back and forth in the present time. A sports-themed drama which focuses on achieving dreams, love, friendship and family. I love the fact that they did not focus only on romance but on many different aspect.
In a long time, I am glad that there were no love triangle between the main leads. The rivalry between Na Hee Do and Ko Yu Rim were not annoying and I loved the character development between the two characters. I also liked the unexpected friendship made by the five characters. Each of the characters have their own unique story to convey.
ON THE CASTING/CHARACTERS: For me, Kim Tae Ri acted so well that I can’t think of any actress who can play the role of Na Hee Do other than her. Hee Do as an athlete is a very inspiring character. Her character development is also well seen. Then there’s Nam Joo Hyuk who stars again in a sports-themed drama. I am not a fan of his acting on this one, feels like it isn’t remarkable in my opinion. Bona who played Ko Yu Rim got me hating her the first few episodes. You’ll love her character when she started to open up especially when she became friends with Hee Do. Choi Hyun Wook (Moon Ji Ung) and Lee Joo Myung (Ji Seung Wan) were great characters too and compliment well on the group. The portrayal of their friendship isn’t awkward but the slow development felt more realistic.
ON THE ENDING: If I were Hee Do, I would’ve done the same thing. I think their LDR wouldn’t work either, in my opinion. Baek Yi Jin even accepted the job offer in New York without even telling Hee Do. I kind of accepted the ending that they’ve shown. It was realistic. It is also noticeable that the other four characters is not shown on the present day or the ending. We never even got to know who is Min Chae’s father. Nevertheless, I am well satisfied with the drama. It brought out a lot of emotions.
I am glad I continued watching this. I am also glad that Tae Ri is finally receiving recognition on her work as she rightfully deservers. Though I loved this drama, for now, my re-watch value on this is low (LOL) because of the roller-coaster of emotions I felt the whole time I was watching this. It has a lot of good moments and lots of drama which made me cry (Refer to specific scenes on the picture above! You’ll know what I mean.)
RECOMMENDATIONS: This drama is slightly similar to the Reply series in terms of the setting and the various stories involved. Another similar drama with a lighter story is Weightlifting Kim Bok Joo, also a sports-themed drama that stars Nam Joo Hyuk.
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A Failed Romance Story
What starts as a flashback set in 1995 to 2000s , with Korean Economy being bad and everyone struggling financially, we have Na Hee Do ( Main Heroine ) wanting to become a Fencing champion and we have Baek Yi Jin ( Main Hero ) wanting to solve financial crisis for family. Na Hee Do and Baek Yi Jin eventually fall in love, but in the end they separate because their jobs keeps them busy and they don't have time for each other. This drama is good, but it could've been much better. Na Hee Do in the present ( 2020 ) doesn't meet Baek Yi Jin , which was disappointing. It is a good high school romance story set in the past. We also have Ko Yu Rim ( 2nd Heroine ) , also fencing champion fall in love with Moon Ji Woong ( 2nd Hero ), and their romance, chemistry is much better than main Hero , Heroine. This journey is growth of these characters over the years, but it would've been better if it was set at high school only. The show could've been much better if it had incorporated elements from 1990s but still a good watchWas this review helpful to you?
Just try enjoying the show without connecting to it emotionally
When I thought of watching this drama i already knew the ending because I started watching after completion of airing in the tvn. As I knew the ending be-forehead I thought I wouldn't be affected a lot.But when I started watching it i was totally involved and connected to the drama. When they were happy i was happy when they were sad I felt that emotion. I have completed this show in 3 days that too working days (Heheehehe).
The night in which I have complete watching this show I wasn't able sleep all the night. When ever I opened my eyes only "Naa hee-Do' and "Baek yi-jin" are the only names on my lips and mind.
I was totally sad thinking they haven't tried their best to be together and keeping their relationship standing. Even it was struggle they should have endured it for some time so that they can be happy forever together.
I was thinking this because the other couple which were apart got to get married even though Ko-yurim went to Russia for the sports and ji-wook was in korea. If it was possible to this couple why not for them. They should have tried their best.
Actually the ending of the main couple was so realistic as many people around have the similar experiences. So, i wanted the happy ending even in the drama but unfortunately its not.
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Youthful Angst Meets Adult Wisdom
This was a coming of age story with all the happiness, sorrows, ups, downs, and amazing experiences one has with a group of friends that just go through it all together. I like that they diversified the group of friends. Friend groups that are all alike, their families are carbon copies of each other are so boring and cliche'. This group was well mixed. The top athlete/superstar yet whose family is poor and sacrificing everything for her, the fatherless child whose single-parent is so busy providing for their home she is neglecting her daughter (I could relate to this one), the son thrust into poverty by the mistakes of his father yet taking responsibility to care for his brother and mother, the smartest kid in the school and bored to tears by everything, and the kid who fails academically because the school fails to offer him and his skill set anything other than studying for the next test. These kids came together and experienced first love, bullying, pressures from school, parents, life, disappointments, failures, successes, forgiveness, fun, fear, and heartache. They took the viewer along with them every step. I laughed, I got bored, I cheered, I got angry, I cried. The storyline moved me along with the lives of these 5 people just like surfing a wave onto the sand.I read a lot of reviews that were angry and disappointed at the ending. I wasn't. This is the type of story where you get hooked into the characters and want more. I think the ending was purposeful to provide a second series. Anyway, I hope so. There were some unanswered questions, and information about these 5 characters that could lead easily to another series to fill in the gaps. The writers know how to provide a rich storyline and very developed characters. I do believe they could provide us with another amazing story of Na Hee Do, Baek Yi Jin, Go Yu Rim, Moon Ji Woong, and Ji Seung Wan five or ten years later that would be very satisfying to those of us who loved this story. I hope we will see more.
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Perfection!
Everything about the show is perfect. The main relationship between Na Heedo and Ko Yurim is powerful and written beautifully, sustaining the entire series in a perfect parcel. While I did enjoy the romantic relationships, they were definitely not the most important relationship in the show. Every character has its own purpose, nobody exists only to further, someone else’s story line. The dialogue and themes are thoughtful, hilarious, heartwarming, and heartbreaking. No other show has ever made me laugh and cry as much as this one. I’m only sad that I’ll never be able to watch it for the first time ever again.Was this review helpful to you?
I got a little bored
I really loved the characters and cast in the show, but at the end, for some reason I thought of dropping it.I got bored and didnt really feel like anything that drastic could happen, which, surprise surprise, it didn't.
Anyhow, I really love the scenery and the characters so it was still a fun watch and the song Your existence that plays once in a while is so friggin good.
I wont say I cried during the show, I wont even say I felt sad. The plot didnt move me to that extent, but I did feel happy in the brighter parts of the show and it felt very realitsic.
It's also original and the characters personalities feel very real and true.
Anyways, I recommend watching this show if u like romance, sadness and if u like having a laugh at weird shinanigans ?
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I have love-(at some point)hate relationship with this drama
I have a few issues with this drama and yet I love it. I'm writing my review right after a rewatch, so it definitely isn't objective — treating this as a kind of love letter to the show.First of all, the acting was amazing. It felt real with every single character and I enjoyed the performance of Kim Taeri so much, it might be my favorite aspect of the drama. Na Heedo and other characters were very well written for most of the time and I liked them all.
Second, the story was great. It didn't feel real all the time because they were pushing that "meant to meet" idea so hard, but it's fine, it's a TV show. And now I will say my very, very personal opinion — Heedo and Yijin as a couple didn't make sense. Why can't we have a male-female friendship? Do they always have to get together? I would give this show a 9 if it never happened. Yes, I did tear up during the altered break up scene but because it felt more as a summary of the whole show, not a break up. I think it's messed up they made a big deal of the "Yijin is a fencing reporter and Heedo is an fencer, what if he hurts her in the future because of this" but there was no problem with the fact she was still a teenager when they became a couple. They even admit she wasn't an adult yet in the last episode and that's just... I don't know. They made Heedo mad about his past relationships when she was like 17 and he 21. Why would she be mad if it wasn't because she was jealous? I don't get it. What I do know is that the romance was unnecessary.
Music was great and I'm not gonna lie, "Very, slowly" as the second version of the intro was the best thing in this drama after Kim Taeri's acting. I just love it so much! The rest of the OST was alright, sometimes the soundtrack bothered me a little bit, but that's nothing.
Overall, I love this drama. Yes, I hate the romance, but it didn't ruin the experience for me. This is a show about youth, passion, friendship, love (the love part wasn't that good though) and life and it was good! They did a great job. And, the fencing is the third best aspect of the drama. It was so entertaining, which I didn't expect. Also, it was visually stunning. I think I will rewatch it someday one more time.
Watch this drama! It's worth it:)
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In a class by itself
Even though i watched this drama while it was airing, i put off writing a review about it until i get over the ending. My initial reaction to the ending was a very emotionally charged response declaring it outright unacceptable. I absolutely couldn't believe it. I was invested in their story that the ending blew mind...... in a not so cool way.But, even at that time, this one easily took a spot in my top ten kdramas. It is beautifully written and it is completely unpredictable. It managed surprise me every single time. Every week, there were countless theories on twitter and other social media but it is so unpredictable that most, if not all, got proven wrong. It was absolutely crazy. Even the ending, the writer managed to keep everyone on the edge until the last two episodes, and that is NOT some easy feat. So, kudos to the writer.
2521 might be the story of Na Heedo but the lives of the rest of the characters are also shown and its not just for some plot convenience. Their stories are also given equal importance. And all of them are so likable that you feel like rooting for all them. The cast did a wonderful job.
The only reason why i am giving it a relatively low re watch value is because I am still a bit bitter about the ending even though i have come to accept it. I watch kdramas to escape reality so realistic endings are a tad bit difficult for me to comprehend. But, on an overall, it is a must watch slice of life.
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Some Good, Some I Don't Understand
Let's do it by the numbers, starting from a baseline of 6.0.+1 because Kim Tae Ri nailed the Na Hee Do character the energy and innocence of youth, along with the various mannerisms of a teenage athlete. I don't how she did it, but she earned some awards for this performance. She made the character a lot of fun.
+1 for the rest of tbe acting cast and characters. There are a couple of jerks in the script but no continuing arcs of bad guys. These are young, mostly likeable young people trying to make tbeir way through life. What conflict that emerges is from reasonable differences in priorities and from social circumstances.
+1 for the relationship between Na Hee Do and Baek Yi Jin, two people who were too young to be so alone like that. They helped each other through some dark times in their youth when nobody else was there for them. We all should have someone like that in our lives. The payphone scene was an effective way to express how important these two were to one another.
+1 for the relationship between Na Hee Do and Ko Yu Rim. A relationship like this between two young women just doesn't seem to happen often in the shows I have watched. This relationship has only the slightest hint of being part of a love triangle, and that hint dissappears quickly enough. The hug in Madrid and Hee Do saying "nobody else knows what we have been through" conveyed the special nature of their connection.
+0.5 for the introduction to fencing, a sport I knew nothing about. I do wish the series had done some more here. In particular I wish there had been some more slow motion shots and better camera angles, because there were a few times where I could not tell what thr heck was going on.
-1 for the framing of the story as primarily a giant flashback from 2022 to 1998-2002. The times play a key role in the relationship between Hee Do and Yi Jin, so i understand why the story would start in 1998, but I don't understand the point of the bits of dialogue that take place in 2022. It feels like the primary purpose was to give us some hints on how the story will turn out, but judging by social media, a LOT of people did not get the hint. Adding the daughter character led to a cute "breaking of the fourth wall" scene but it also led to an obvious but futile question about the daughter's connections with the main narrative. There is another question -- is Hee Do happy in the present day? -- which gets almost completely ignored, which leads to...
-1 for the story gaps. So we get heavily invested in this character Na Hee Do, and we get little hints about her present day life, and, er, that is it. Just felt weird. I don't want to go into spoilers, but there are obvious questions about Mr. Kim that went completely ignored. The bigger gap though is what happens near the end of the main narrative, where the relationship between Hee Do and Yi Jin just... breaks down? Yi Jin made a decision that in some respects is true to his character, but also seems to violate his personal prime directive of not hurting Hee Do. That conflict needed to be presented explicitly on screen, and it wasn't, and a LOT of viewers were frustrated as a result. The other gap is what happened in the later years between Yi Jin and Hee Do; while it is easy to guess, it feels odd that we have to guess given the narrative framing mentioned above.
-0.5 because my wife thought the story didn't seem to have an underlying point. There is some discussion about impermanence and youth, and there is some discussion of "the times", that the forces of history at work on our little lives. But these themes seem to waft in and out rather than driving the story.
I am neutral on the ending. Some people were offended by it, but i thought it felt natural and true to the characters. If you are the type of person who will fall in love with an attractive actor like Nam Joo Hyuk, you will be frustrated with the ending, but I thought the presentation of the character made clear how this story would turn out. As mentioned above, the writing could have been tighter with the resolution, so no positives from me.
One aspect of the series that it is unclear to me is that Hee Do's mom was a well known journalist who completely fails to acknowledge in public that this extremely successful and prominent athlete is her own daughter. This is held out as a basic tenet of professionalism, but it is foreign to me. Is this common among Korean journalists? Or is this woman weird? For that matter, is her successor as UBS news anchor also similarly pathological during an interview with a close friend?
Finally, the idea that the best fencer in the world might be 18 years old and then retired by age 29 (or earlier) puts some additional negative vibes on the ending. The series has some uplifting moments at the start and then... well, we're past our peak at 25. There is a vague sadness around the older Hee Do, that she was done writing "her story" even when she still had more Olympic gold medals ahead of her. That does not seem true to the younger Hee Do, and again I will attribute the inconsistency to the clumsy present day framing.
In summary the plot was good, not great. The characters, their relationships, and the acting carried the series. It is a good watch, but clearly not for everyone. 8.0/10.
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