Updated: corrected the year 2049 to 2091 (also corrected Section 6). I remembered incorrectly the year the Ghost…
>> The first one is that the Ghost can't be in a hundred time lines simultaneously because she is the same person holding the same device and the same implant. Sae Ha took her time travel device and her implant and left her at 2021.
== She is not. At least as far as the show has revealed, the time travel mechanics in the show is not based on the MWI (many-worlds interpretation) theory. In the Grid, there is only one timeline. If a time traveler changes something in a time period they are not supposed to be at (relatively speaking), it changes their own reality. No branch of time/universe is created by their actions.
>> She met her again back in 1997, where she was trying to install the Grid and by preventing her from installing it, he made her disappear causing a completely different version of the word from 2005 and onward, the destroyed one that needs a time travel and a Grid in order to prevent its destruction. So her disappearance means that in the destroyed version of the world. the Ghost lady doesn't even exist, and that is the reason why she disappears in the past, though her "presence" is needed in order to travel back in time to attempt to install the Grid.
== Yes, it's what I said. ^_^
>> But even if she succeeded, she wouldn't be needed in the first place, to travel back in time to install the Grid again and again in a time loop, because the world would have been going on normally and even in the case that the Grid failed at some future point, the Ghost shouldn't go that far back in time, at 1997 to install it again, as the first time that she did so was enough to give them the information and the technology that they needed to fix the Grid even if it failed.
== Good point. However, as I explained, the possible scenario between 2021 and 2091 is that when the Grid failed it was irreparable. It is not something that they can fix even if they have an advance knowledge.
== There are two things happening in that scenario: 1. The Grid was based on technology so old (1997-2005) they can not do anything with it. This actually happens in real life, even to this very day, there simply are old technologies that we can not upgrade. 1a. They could've had replaced it. But we can suspect that a replacement was not prepared at all -- humans are like that especially when economies, politics, and the military, are concerned. We tend to think "we'll cross the bridge when we get there" but by the time we do cross the bridge, it is too late. Those people who think "prevention is better than cure" were probably blocked by those countries and financiers who only care about themselves and their money. 1b. Going back to 1997 is much better, quicker, and safer, than changing the minds of politicians and those with the money to help build a replacement. 2. They are advance in their science and technology knowledge that they can not understand how old science and technology works. This also happens in real life. Good examples are the pyramids in Egypt and Greek Fire. We still do not understand how the pyramids at Giza, and the Greek Fire were built/made. We are too advance in our S&T that we can't unlock the secrets of a "primitive" civilization.
== Combine the two and it's a recipe for a disaster, as far as the Grid is concerned.
>> So to conclude. >> There are two versions of the world.
== That is correct. The "no grid" reality and the "grid" reality.
>> 1/The normal one with the Grid that was installed by someone who came from a destroyed world, installed it and gave them this way the information to save the world. But if the world wasn't destroyed the time traveler wouldn't have a reason to go back and save the world in the first place. >> And >> 2/ The destroyed world without the Grid that needs someone from the destroyed world to go back and install it. >> But if the time traveler fails to install the Grid then she disappears so probably she doesn't exist in the destroyed world. >> In the first case scenario she has no reason to travel back in time. In the second case scenario she doesn't even exist in order to do so.
== If another time traveler was the source of the first iteration of the Grid, and then s/he fixed it, then yes, there is no reason for that time traveller--or any time traveller for that matter--to go back to 1997. If no time traveller go back to 1997, then the Grid will not be installed. This is called a grandfather paradox. To prevent a grandfather paradox, the writer needs to make a reason for time travellers to go back to 1997 and install the Grid.
== That reason is, again just a theory, the Grid failed sometime between 2021 and 2091 and it is irreparable. By 2091, they have a reason to send someone back in 1997 to install the Grid (possibly a better version). But it is always failing between 2021 and 2091, so once again, by 2091 a time traveler is sent back to 1997. A constant loop, and it is the only way to 2091 and the Ghost to exist.
== As I've explained, the Ghost did not come from the "no grid" reality. In episode 7, she disappeared when she failed to install the grid.
== The only possible explanation currently is the writer is also using the fictional "time bubble" theory. a. In episode 7, she disappeared after she was distracted. Meaning, there is only a fix time window to install the Grid. b. In the earlier episodes, she was caught in CCTVs in various laboratories around the world, installing the Grid. They figured out that all her appearances in the CCTV were on the exact same time. This supports the possibility that there is only a fix window to install the Grid.
== So, when she got distracted by the emotional outburst of SH, she failed to install the grid in that "time bubble" (the fix time window). By failing, her "grid" reality" disappeared because she doesn't exist in the "no grid" reality.
I think what you are asking is: if she does not exist in the "no grid" reality, then how come SH still have a time travel device?
I did not explain that in detail in my original post. Here are the possible reasons why: 1. In fiction, it is a common trope that a time travel device (a portable one usually), once invented will always exist no matter if the cause of its creation was stopped. 2. Another common trope is, when non-living things are carried through time, even if the person who brought it was erased from reality, since it is a non-living thing, it will stay where it is. Only the living things (the time traveler in this case) will disappear.
If you combine #1 and #2, then it's a very solid reason why SH still have the portable time travel device even after the Ghost disappeared.
3. Another trope, though not popular, the time travel device still exist because in the "no grid" reality, the device also exist. It was probably invented and created in 2090s. It is even possible it was created in 2424 (it does not matter when it was invented). As long as time travel is possible, the portable device will exist. It does not matter how SH acquired it as long as the device was still invented. This prevents a time paradox.
Someone will probably wonder: "why is it the exact same model"? Good question. In the real-world, it was observed that humans generally create and design things exactly the same way as their ancient ancestors. There is a proper term about this but I can not recall it, I only encountered the term in passing. Anyway, this would explain why the portable time travel device is of the same design. No matter which reality is the "current reality" in the show, the portable time travel device is invented and the design always end up the same. Is the model the same? Probably not but having a different model wouldn't create a grandfather paradox. Paradoxes are created because of time travelers, not the object itself.
That last sentence also explains why objects doesn't disappear when the time traveler is erased: Paradoxes are created because of time travelers and not the because of the objects they brought with them.
4. This is an extreme trope: time heals inconsistencies.
There is a real world theory about that but there are few supporters of it. I mean, if "time heals inconsistencies" then is time sentient? Forget about the scientists, even in philosophical circles that is a thought avoided. But, as the proponents of this theory claims, we do see nature healing itself when it encounters inconsistencies. By the word itself "heal". It is not sentient per se, it just is the natural process.
If this is the case in the Grid, then, the time travel device did not disappear because it still is being used by a time traveler. Since SH was in 1997 when he is not supposed to be there, then the device will not disappear. He is an anomaly. Or a non-dangerous bacteria or deactivated virus, if you will. Like how it is in our bodies, our anti-bodies are not activated when it can not detect something that is not supposed to happen.
For example, when you get Hepatitis A, the virus stays in your body inactive for a few more years. It's just there, ignored. In some people, it gets re-activated, unfortunately, in some people, it eventually dies and disappear. Think of SH and the device as that virus. He's not doing anything so nature is not triggered to "heal" or "fix". But once he started doing things again, the safety protocols of nature/time is triggered -- for example, his father getting killed … again. (Which we still don't know why.) Maybe nature/time intend to remove the time traveler (the virus) but ended up killing a friendly (the father) -- which also happens in our bodies … anti-bodies attacking friendlies.
Corrected the year the Ghost came from, I incorrectly recalled it as 2049 instead of 2091. Section 6 was also updated to reflect the corrected information.
Updated: corrected the year 2049 to 2091 (also corrected Section 6). I remembered incorrectly the year the Ghost came from. Thank you @Mariam for the heads-up!
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Episode 7: analyses
1. The Ghost: a. The captured Ghost said Sae Ha's mother was already dead. This means the captured Ghost is the "latest" (or most recent) version. She also said there is only one way to save her -- to time travel. b. The Ghost seen in episode 6, who injected something to Sae Ha's mother, appears to be one of her previous travels. Not necessarily the "past" since "time does not flow".
2. Su Keun (Sae Ha's father) always dying when creating the Grid. a. This seems to be trade-off. If they want to create the Grid, Su Keun will die no matter what. If Su Keun is saved, the Grid won't exist. b. There is something about Su Keun why this point in time is an important moment. c. The 1997 Ghost said that "your father …" but Sae ha cut her off with his emotional crying. The Ghost knew about Su Keun, just that, it was only at that moment when she made the connection who Sae Ha is and _when_ he came from. c1: The Ghost knows something. d. This is my guess: since Su Keun was the one who created the radiation antidote, it is possible that in the original time period of the Ghost, Su Keun's antidote was well known. This is probably what she was about to say when Sae Ha cut her off. e. Sae Ha did realise that the Ghost was not killing anyone, and whenever someone dies, it was unintentional. e1. This makes sense if she knew who Su Keun is. Why would she kill him? e2. The Ghost probably does not have full control of the device when she arrived in 1997 to install the Grid. As Sae Ha said, unintentional. e3. The Ghost probably have no idea either that Su Keun will always die whenever the Grid is setup.
3. The Original reality a. When the Grid failed, we saw what the original reality was. b. This is the reality of the Ghost's 2091 -- without the Grid.
4. The Ghost disappeared when she failed to create the Grid. a. As far as time-travel rules in the show is concerned--at least up to episode 7--the Ghost should not disappear at all. If her 2091 was a reality where the Grid did not exist, then it is guaranteed she will always travel back to 1997 -- cause-and-effect.
But she disappeared. This means that:
b. The 2091 of the Ghost was not a reality where the Grid did not exist. b1. My guess here is, the 2091 of the Ghost is a reality where the Grid existed (past tense). Sometime from 2021 and 2091, the Grid failed and they never fixed it. So they invented time travel, sent the Ghost back in 1997 to create a better version of the Grid. c. However, the question is, she should still disappear if the new Grid is better. My guess here is that, no matter what Grid is created, it fails sometime between 2021 and 2091. This is why the Ghost from 2091 always travel back in 1997 to install the Grid. d. This explains why she disappeared when she failed to install the Grid, because her reality was erased.
5. Time travel rules a. Changing something, like installing the Grid, is very time sensitive. When the Ghost was distracted by Sae Ha in 1997, the slight delay in finishing her code resulted in her disappearing. a1. This tells us that there is some sort of "time bubble". As long as the Grid is installed within that time bubble, it will work. a2. This explains why the Ghost installed the code at the exact same time in different locations (I think this was episode 5?) She practically appeared in multiple places at exactly the same time to install the Grid. It is the only window in time she can install the Grid, otherwise, her reality will disappear. -- Which was what happened in episode 7. b. If the same time traveler appears at the same location (using the device), the events at that location is reset. However, if the same time traveler appears at the exact same period in time but different locations, things stay intact (like when the Ghost was caught in CCTVs installing the Grid). b1. This is why Sae Ha can not stop the moment when he distracted the Ghost. The Ghost is gone, and the only way to bring her back is to recreate the condition which led to 2091 sending a time traveler back in 1997.
6. Who is the murder suspect? a. One of my early guess is he is her father. If the character is 40 years old (same age as the actress), then it means she was born in 2051. The murder suspect probably got married or got someone pregnant. b. Or, the murder suspect is her grandfather, either way, it is why she is protecting him. Notice how she also prevented him stealing cash from a random guy … she even repeatedly tried various scenarios before she intervened directly (by teleporting the cash from the murder suspect's hands back to the pocket of the owner). c. In the reality without the Grid, the murder suspect is living a good life. Probably did not get married which resulted in the Ghost not being born.
7. Then how did the Grid get created in the first place? a. Sae Ha, as was shown in the ending of episode 7. b. Since he has a time travel device and he exists in any reality, there will always be someone to install the Grid. c. I am suspecting in episode 8 we will see the Ghost back after Sae Ha installs the first version of the Grid. And the cycle begins anew. d. If this turns out to be the case, then it means the reality of the Ghost was indeed a reality where the Grid existed, then failed between 2021 and 2091.
8. Then how did Sae ha come across time travel device from the original reality where time travel did not exist? a. We will never know. b. In some time travel fiction, it is explained that the original reality ceases to exist and is replaced by the loop/paradox. c. The way I explain it is: time bubble. Within a time bubble, anything and everything is happening simultaneously. All possible versions are happening at the same time in that time bubble. Depending on which actions the time travelers do, once they reach the edge of the time bubble, it will be the new reality. c1. This is explains why the Ghost disappeared. She has not finished installing the Grid by the time they reached the end of the time bubble. That inaction, that delay, became the new reality. c2. Yes, that 1997 moment is critical. It is the only time period where/when the Grid can be installed. They can not do it earlier, they can not do it later. c3. In some time travel fiction, it is called "fixed time". It should never be changed.
9. What happens to "time doesn't flow"? a. In episode 6, our guess is the story is using the original "block universe theory". But in episode 7, with the Ghost disappearing, it appears they are using something else. (The Ghost should not disappear in the block universe theory.)
a1. At this point, it is hard to tell. I am suspecting either the "growing block universe theory" (scientific) or "presentism" (philosophy). There are also other possible explanations but I'd rather avoid and just wait what the show will reveal, since these are philosophies already, no longer scientific theories -- the different philosophies of space and time are very hard to explain. So yeah, let's wait.
(You can search online for these topics, you can read the ones in Wikipedia but those aren't explained well either. Much better to go join serious circles or search sciencedirect.com for papers. TIP: do not try to understand it if you can't; come back to it after a few months or years if you are really interested; often than not, we tend to understand something much later in life.)
10. I hope they don't mess this up. - I haven't been this challenged with a time travel show. I literally can not figure this one out. The lack of clues. The lack of rules about their time travel. And then now, in episode 7, it seems to contradict the revelations in episode 6. - It makes sense but it is so hard to pinpoint. If you know that feeling that you can grasp it but something is not fitting well … yeah that. - The time travel rules are there. But it's so hard to pinpoint what those are. - The key is in "time doesn't flow" but we are not sure what exactly do they mean by that. The Ghost disappearing in episode 7 threw everything off. It created a paradox that should not exist at all. - Oh, another thing, when the Ghost was holding the murder suspect, they both disappeared. She used the same with the two men who tried to assault her on the train station scene and brought them somewhere cold. BUT when Sae Ha was holding his parents … at least based on the scene in Episode 7, he was the only one who went back to 1997. - Lastly, while some will probably say "plot hole" or "writer error" or anything similar, we should avoid it and try to see it from the writer's perspective -- especially when it comes to time travel because any writer attempting time travel do a lot research. If we are having a hard time with it, imagine what the writer had to go through to get his/her story straight and logical. - Yes, plot holes and writer error are possible, it does happen, but until they admit it, we should assume that the writer had everything laid out. We just have to unlock, or figure out, what that is.
Wouldn’t that be unfair for their future partners? Like heedo and yijin continuing to love each other even if…
True, it is unfair. But the truth is, it is not about being "unfair", it is about slowly killing their current relationship.
Because if one still have feelings with their ex (be it love, anger, missing them, or hatred--it doesn't matter it's all feelings), then it means they haven't let go or moved on. These feelings will always crop up in them as a person and in their current relationship--without them knowing it.
While it is unfair for their current partner, it is a total pity and dangerous for the person who haven't moved on (because they are not aware of it, or they are refusing to admit it, telling themselves they've moved on when they really did not). Every relationship they enter in will almost always end up in disaster. If they already got married and there's no divorce in their country, the more problematic it will be … and their kids.
For their current partner, they only have two choices: [1] end the relationship while they still can; or [2] help them realize that they haven't moved on so they can finally let go -- a.k.a. healing.
If you choose Option 2, be very careful. Almost every relationship where the partner is in the healing process, end up going their separate ways. The reason for this is that the partner who is healing, once they heal, they no longer need you (the healer). The couple doesn't realise that their relationship is a healer-healee type of relationship. I've just been in that one recently (for 15 years at that) -- it was my fault in the first place since I knew it already, I took a risk, I thought it can turn out good in the end … but nope, still ended up that way like every other healer-healee type of relationships.
Wouldn’t that be unfair for their future partners? Like heedo and yijin continuing to love each other even if…
Yep, relationships like that do exist. My first ex, we're like that. We were together for three years before we broke up. While the reasons for our break up was painful and mainly my fault for being a fool and taken her for granted, we broke up properly.
22 years later, we're still friends, probably what others would call "best friends" too. However, we know our boundaries _and_ there is absolutely nothing between us anymore (since 11 years ago).
We rarely intentionally meet outside of work (our fields have an overlap so, there are times when we do have to meet for work/business). If we do meet, intentionally or not, work related or not, we tell our better halves respectively. It is our way of telling our partners that "hey, there's nothing between us", "do you want to come with me", and "this is where we will meet, you come later when you have the time, let's bond together".
So, yeah, it is possible. but it is not easy at first. I mentioned "since 11 years ago" because the first 11 years was when both can't let go of our feelings. It was only in 2011 that we finally did, permanently.
Its not light and fluffy with very little if any comedy involved, it starts off pretty good until about episode…
Ouch. It's too much with that many episodes for 70 minutes each. T_T
I'm picky these days when it comes to anything more than 25-30 episodes, especially if it is at least 50 minutes long per episode. Times changed, lot of things to do, and the world is too 'sad' and 'evil' these days.
It would've been fine if it's more comedic overall. But I guess I'll skip this one.
Thank you for the honest feedback! Much appreciated!
It’s episode 14 rn and we haven’t reached 2521 yet…
Hahaha yeah. This style is uncommom in TV shows, it's usually seen in novels.
As most are thinking by now, the title is probably a hint to the best and worst period of their lives. That part wherein one has to make the biggest decision of their life, break or make.
It isn't so much about them, the characters and their relationship, but about life, growing up, and learning to live in a harsh world. Taken in a Korean context, that would also mean, how the Korean public tries to dictate and control the lives of celebrities and public personalities.
Umm… Kim Min Chae is the obvious clue. If Baek Yi Jin and Na Hee Do got married, Min Chae would be "Baek Min…
I see where you're coming from.
But the episode 14 "2019 broadcast" reveal points the other way.
They are both sad in that broadcast. They want each other but they know they can never cross the chasm separating them, ever again. Something big and serious happened.
Also, Hee Do's last words in that 2009 interview: "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you."
"I will take care of everything" is ominous. It means there is something that they're supposed to do together, or is obligated to do together, but for whatever reason Yi Jin can not, so Hee Do "will take care of everything".
"See you when I see you" means they have no idea when they will see each other again.
Together, "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you", means because of a wedge between them, a certain responsibility falls on Hee Do's shoulders alone, and they might never see each other.
I am suspecting Kim Min Chae was born a year earlier and the father is Yi Jin. But because of a wedge between them, they can not be together again, so in the end, to save face, she married a Kim.
If Kim Min Chae is the same age as the actress, then the character was also born in 2008. Yet Hee Do was married in sometime 2009 or possibly late 2008.
Yes, Yi Jin slightly smiled … but that's him trying to be happy for her even though it is too painful for him.
Yes, Hee Do obviously smiled but not how she usually do it, because she needs to show a happy emotion on national television … even though deep inside she isn't happy about it.
If Yi Jin is supposed to be "Kim Yi Jin": 1. Kim Min Chae doesn't know him. From episode 1 to 14, Min Chae never once said something in the line of "oh, it's dad, so this is how they met".
2. Hee Do wouldn't say "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you."
If you've known each other since school days and then had a relationship for years, then yes, you trust each other…
I see what you mean. The characters are on the extreme edge of the spectrum.
KJ is a simpleton. He is slow to learn. And he always need confirmation if what he has in mind is a good thing. He also likes to sulk in the corner first before doing anything.
HK is too "high and mighty". She always want to portray a perfect image. She thinks that the people around her should not see how frail she is like everybody else.
It's rare to see these extremes of character in real life. There are but its rare.
Isn't it the other way round though where KJ seeked HK out for relationship advice?
Yes, at least as far as "seeking" is concerned. On HK's part, she did not look for advice but found it indirectly through him and his experiences.
Remember that scene in their office rest area? KJ kept talking and touched on how HK is this and that. Exactly the same thing SW told her a few minutes earlier.
So, at first, HK dismissed what SW said, probably got a bit angry too. But when she heard the same from KJ that gave her pause and she started to look inside. "Am I really like that?"
HK won't ask for advice, literally, but she looks at other people's experiences and take it as an advice quietly. She thinks that letting people see her asking for advice and help is like showing them how weak and powerless she is, an image she can not afford--especially after their nasty break up.
While KJ, a fool that he is, actively seeks advice because he understands his own limitations.
Why? He did the right thing. They've known each other since school days and been in relationship for years. If…
People can be a fool but it doesn't mean they are a fool for the rest of their lives.
Shi Woo obviously was about to make a huge mistake in his life and Ki Joon noticed it, so he gave him advise so he could avoid the same mistake that he did--a fool.
You can listen to someone with more experience even if you hate the person. Shutting them them and telling to f*ck off is a recipe for disaster.
If Shi Woo told him to "get lost", like what the OP said, then he'll definitely make the biggest mistake of his life. If Ki Joon stayed quiet like what the OP wanted, then Shi Woo would've had make the biggest mistake of his life.
Gosh, guys kudos to you for watching this as it's airing! I am patiently waiting for the ending and only after…
Are you just looking for a happy ending? Or, are you looking for a _romantic_ happy ending?
The answer is in Episode 1 and Episode 14. It's a story about life; of growing up; of relationships between parents and children; of relationships between friends.
Will it be a happy ending, generally speaking? It depends how you understand the story about life, about growing up.
Will it be a _romantic_ happy ending? Wrong show. :p
Since you want to know the ending, then the following is not a spoiler for you:
Episode 1: Hee Do's daughter is "KIM Min Chae". Episode 1: Yi Jin is BAEK Yi Jin. Episode 14: year 2009, Baek Yi Jin congratulated Na Hee Do on her marriage. Episode 14: year 2009, they were very sad and talked as if they have regrets, that if they can only turn back time they'll make a different decision
Potential spoilers / rumours from twitter, huge grain of salt on this: https://twitter.com/kdramasreview/status/1508469154457993219?s=21&t=rSyw1DS_CPi5vEZ-7GWj0Q
Umm… Kim Min Chae is the obvious clue. If Baek Yi Jin and Na Hee Do got married, Min Chae would be "Baek Min Chae".
Unless there is an unknown tradition in Korea where parents can choose a different family name, like what they do in some African countries.
1 
I love it when a writer can challenge the audience, especially when it comes to time travel.
== She is not. At least as far as the show has revealed, the time travel mechanics in the show is not based on the MWI (many-worlds interpretation) theory. In the Grid, there is only one timeline. If a time traveler changes something in a time period they are not supposed to be at (relatively speaking), it changes their own reality. No branch of time/universe is created by their actions.
>> She met her again back in 1997, where she was trying to install the Grid and by preventing her from installing it, he made her disappear causing a completely different version of the word from 2005 and onward, the destroyed one that needs a time travel and a Grid in order to prevent its destruction.
So her disappearance means that in the destroyed version of the world. the Ghost lady doesn't even exist, and that is the reason why she disappears in the past, though her "presence" is needed in order to travel back in time to attempt to install the Grid.
== Yes, it's what I said. ^_^
>> But even if she succeeded, she wouldn't be needed in the first place, to travel back in time to install the Grid again and again in a time loop, because the world would have been going on normally and even in the case that the Grid failed at some future point, the Ghost shouldn't go that far back in time, at 1997 to install it again, as the first time that she did so was enough to give them the information and the technology that they needed to fix the Grid even if it failed.
== Good point. However, as I explained, the possible scenario between 2021 and 2091 is that when the Grid failed it was irreparable. It is not something that they can fix even if they have an advance knowledge.
== There are two things happening in that scenario:
1. The Grid was based on technology so old (1997-2005) they can not do anything with it. This actually happens in real life, even to this very day, there simply are old technologies that we can not upgrade.
1a. They could've had replaced it. But we can suspect that a replacement was not prepared at all -- humans are like that especially when economies, politics, and the military, are concerned. We tend to think "we'll cross the bridge when we get there" but by the time we do cross the bridge, it is too late. Those people who think "prevention is better than cure" were probably blocked by those countries and financiers who only care about themselves and their money.
1b. Going back to 1997 is much better, quicker, and safer, than changing the minds of politicians and those with the money to help build a replacement.
2. They are advance in their science and technology knowledge that they can not understand how old science and technology works. This also happens in real life. Good examples are the pyramids in Egypt and Greek Fire. We still do not understand how the pyramids at Giza, and the Greek Fire were built/made. We are too advance in our S&T that we can't unlock the secrets of a "primitive" civilization.
== Combine the two and it's a recipe for a disaster, as far as the Grid is concerned.
>> So to conclude.
>> There are two versions of the world.
== That is correct. The "no grid" reality and the "grid" reality.
>> 1/The normal one with the Grid that was installed by someone who came from a destroyed world, installed it and gave them this way the information to save the world. But if the world wasn't destroyed the time traveler wouldn't have a reason to go back and save the world in the first place.
>> And
>> 2/ The destroyed world without the Grid that needs someone from the destroyed world to go back and install it.
>> But if the time traveler fails to install the Grid then she disappears so probably she doesn't exist in the destroyed world.
>> In the first case scenario she has no reason to travel back in time. In the second case scenario she doesn't even exist in order to do so.
== If another time traveler was the source of the first iteration of the Grid, and then s/he fixed it, then yes, there is no reason for that time traveller--or any time traveller for that matter--to go back to 1997. If no time traveller go back to 1997, then the Grid will not be installed. This is called a grandfather paradox. To prevent a grandfather paradox, the writer needs to make a reason for time travellers to go back to 1997 and install the Grid.
== That reason is, again just a theory, the Grid failed sometime between 2021 and 2091 and it is irreparable. By 2091, they have a reason to send someone back in 1997 to install the Grid (possibly a better version). But it is always failing between 2021 and 2091, so once again, by 2091 a time traveler is sent back to 1997. A constant loop, and it is the only way to 2091 and the Ghost to exist.
== As I've explained, the Ghost did not come from the "no grid" reality. In episode 7, she disappeared when she failed to install the grid.
== The only possible explanation currently is the writer is also using the fictional "time bubble" theory.
a. In episode 7, she disappeared after she was distracted. Meaning, there is only a fix time window to install the Grid.
b. In the earlier episodes, she was caught in CCTVs in various laboratories around the world, installing the Grid. They figured out that all her appearances in the CCTV were on the exact same time. This supports the possibility that there is only a fix window to install the Grid.
== So, when she got distracted by the emotional outburst of SH, she failed to install the grid in that "time bubble" (the fix time window). By failing, her "grid" reality" disappeared because she doesn't exist in the "no grid" reality.
I think what you are asking is: if she does not exist in the "no grid" reality, then how come SH still have a time travel device?
I did not explain that in detail in my original post. Here are the possible reasons why:
1. In fiction, it is a common trope that a time travel device (a portable one usually), once invented will always exist no matter if the cause of its creation was stopped.
2. Another common trope is, when non-living things are carried through time, even if the person who brought it was erased from reality, since it is a non-living thing, it will stay where it is. Only the living things (the time traveler in this case) will disappear.
If you combine #1 and #2, then it's a very solid reason why SH still have the portable time travel device even after the Ghost disappeared.
3. Another trope, though not popular, the time travel device still exist because in the "no grid" reality, the device also exist. It was probably invented and created in 2090s. It is even possible it was created in 2424 (it does not matter when it was invented). As long as time travel is possible, the portable device will exist. It does not matter how SH acquired it as long as the device was still invented. This prevents a time paradox.
Someone will probably wonder: "why is it the exact same model"? Good question. In the real-world, it was observed that humans generally create and design things exactly the same way as their ancient ancestors. There is a proper term about this but I can not recall it, I only encountered the term in passing. Anyway, this would explain why the portable time travel device is of the same design. No matter which reality is the "current reality" in the show, the portable time travel device is invented and the design always end up the same. Is the model the same? Probably not but having a different model wouldn't create a grandfather paradox. Paradoxes are created because of time travelers, not the object itself.
That last sentence also explains why objects doesn't disappear when the time traveler is erased: Paradoxes are created because of time travelers and not the because of the objects they brought with them.
4. This is an extreme trope: time heals inconsistencies.
There is a real world theory about that but there are few supporters of it. I mean, if "time heals inconsistencies" then is time sentient? Forget about the scientists, even in philosophical circles that is a thought avoided. But, as the proponents of this theory claims, we do see nature healing itself when it encounters inconsistencies. By the word itself "heal". It is not sentient per se, it just is the natural process.
If this is the case in the Grid, then, the time travel device did not disappear because it still is being used by a time traveler. Since SH was in 1997 when he is not supposed to be there, then the device will not disappear. He is an anomaly. Or a non-dangerous bacteria or deactivated virus, if you will. Like how it is in our bodies, our anti-bodies are not activated when it can not detect something that is not supposed to happen.
For example, when you get Hepatitis A, the virus stays in your body inactive for a few more years. It's just there, ignored. In some people, it gets re-activated, unfortunately, in some people, it eventually dies and disappear. Think of SH and the device as that virus. He's not doing anything so nature is not triggered to "heal" or "fix". But once he started doing things again, the safety protocols of nature/time is triggered -- for example, his father getting killed … again. (Which we still don't know why.) Maybe nature/time intend to remove the time traveler (the virus) but ended up killing a friendly (the father) -- which also happens in our bodies … anti-bodies attacking friendlies.
I hope it helps.
Corrected the year the Ghost came from, I incorrectly recalled it as 2049 instead of 2091. Section 6 was also updated to reflect the corrected information.
Thank you @Mariam for the heads-up.
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Episode 7: analyses
1. The Ghost:
a. The captured Ghost said Sae Ha's mother was already dead. This means the captured Ghost is the "latest" (or most recent) version. She also said there is only one way to save her -- to time travel.
b. The Ghost seen in episode 6, who injected something to Sae Ha's mother, appears to be one of her previous travels. Not necessarily the "past" since "time does not flow".
2. Su Keun (Sae Ha's father) always dying when creating the Grid.
a. This seems to be trade-off. If they want to create the Grid, Su Keun will die no matter what. If Su Keun is saved, the Grid won't exist.
b. There is something about Su Keun why this point in time is an important moment.
c. The 1997 Ghost said that "your father …" but Sae ha cut her off with his emotional crying. The Ghost knew about Su Keun, just that, it was only at that moment when she made the connection who Sae Ha is and _when_ he came from.
c1: The Ghost knows something.
d. This is my guess: since Su Keun was the one who created the radiation antidote, it is possible that in the original time period of the Ghost, Su Keun's antidote was well known. This is probably what she was about to say when Sae Ha cut her off.
e. Sae Ha did realise that the Ghost was not killing anyone, and whenever someone dies, it was unintentional.
e1. This makes sense if she knew who Su Keun is. Why would she kill him?
e2. The Ghost probably does not have full control of the device when she arrived in 1997 to install the Grid. As Sae Ha said, unintentional.
e3. The Ghost probably have no idea either that Su Keun will always die whenever the Grid is setup.
3. The Original reality
a. When the Grid failed, we saw what the original reality was.
b. This is the reality of the Ghost's 2091 -- without the Grid.
4. The Ghost disappeared when she failed to create the Grid.
a. As far as time-travel rules in the show is concerned--at least up to episode 7--the Ghost should not disappear at all. If her 2091 was a reality where the Grid did not exist, then it is guaranteed she will always travel back to 1997 -- cause-and-effect.
But she disappeared. This means that:
b. The 2091 of the Ghost was not a reality where the Grid did not exist.
b1. My guess here is, the 2091 of the Ghost is a reality where the Grid existed (past tense). Sometime from 2021 and 2091, the Grid failed and they never fixed it. So they invented time travel, sent the Ghost back in 1997 to create a better version of the Grid.
c. However, the question is, she should still disappear if the new Grid is better. My guess here is that, no matter what Grid is created, it fails sometime between 2021 and 2091. This is why the Ghost from 2091 always travel back in 1997 to install the Grid.
d. This explains why she disappeared when she failed to install the Grid, because her reality was erased.
5. Time travel rules
a. Changing something, like installing the Grid, is very time sensitive. When the Ghost was distracted by Sae Ha in 1997, the slight delay in finishing her code resulted in her disappearing.
a1. This tells us that there is some sort of "time bubble". As long as the Grid is installed within that time bubble, it will work.
a2. This explains why the Ghost installed the code at the exact same time in different locations (I think this was episode 5?) She practically appeared in multiple places at exactly the same time to install the Grid. It is the only window in time she can install the Grid, otherwise, her reality will disappear. -- Which was what happened in episode 7.
b. If the same time traveler appears at the same location (using the device), the events at that location is reset. However, if the same time traveler appears at the exact same period in time but different locations, things stay intact (like when the Ghost was caught in CCTVs installing the Grid).
b1. This is why Sae Ha can not stop the moment when he distracted the Ghost. The Ghost is gone, and the only way to bring her back is to recreate the condition which led to 2091 sending a time traveler back in 1997.
6. Who is the murder suspect?
a. One of my early guess is he is her father. If the character is 40 years old (same age as the actress), then it means she was born in 2051. The murder suspect probably got married or got someone pregnant.
b. Or, the murder suspect is her grandfather, either way, it is why she is protecting him. Notice how she also prevented him stealing cash from a random guy … she even repeatedly tried various scenarios before she intervened directly (by teleporting the cash from the murder suspect's hands back to the pocket of the owner).
c. In the reality without the Grid, the murder suspect is living a good life. Probably did not get married which resulted in the Ghost not being born.
7. Then how did the Grid get created in the first place?
a. Sae Ha, as was shown in the ending of episode 7.
b. Since he has a time travel device and he exists in any reality, there will always be someone to install the Grid.
c. I am suspecting in episode 8 we will see the Ghost back after Sae Ha installs the first version of the Grid. And the cycle begins anew.
d. If this turns out to be the case, then it means the reality of the Ghost was indeed a reality where the Grid existed, then failed between 2021 and 2091.
8. Then how did Sae ha come across time travel device from the original reality where time travel did not exist?
a. We will never know.
b. In some time travel fiction, it is explained that the original reality ceases to exist and is replaced by the loop/paradox.
c. The way I explain it is: time bubble. Within a time bubble, anything and everything is happening simultaneously. All possible versions are happening at the same time in that time bubble. Depending on which actions the time travelers do, once they reach the edge of the time bubble, it will be the new reality.
c1. This is explains why the Ghost disappeared. She has not finished installing the Grid by the time they reached the end of the time bubble. That inaction, that delay, became the new reality.
c2. Yes, that 1997 moment is critical. It is the only time period where/when the Grid can be installed. They can not do it earlier, they can not do it later.
c3. In some time travel fiction, it is called "fixed time". It should never be changed.
9. What happens to "time doesn't flow"?
a. In episode 6, our guess is the story is using the original "block universe theory". But in episode 7, with the Ghost disappearing, it appears they are using something else. (The Ghost should not disappear in the block universe theory.)
a1. At this point, it is hard to tell. I am suspecting either the "growing block universe theory" (scientific) or "presentism" (philosophy). There are also other possible explanations but I'd rather avoid and just wait what the show will reveal, since these are philosophies already, no longer scientific theories -- the different philosophies of space and time are very hard to explain. So yeah, let's wait.
(You can search online for these topics, you can read the ones in Wikipedia but those aren't explained well either. Much better to go join serious circles or search sciencedirect.com for papers. TIP: do not try to understand it if you can't; come back to it after a few months or years if you are really interested; often than not, we tend to understand something much later in life.)
10. I hope they don't mess this up.
- I haven't been this challenged with a time travel show. I literally can not figure this one out. The lack of clues. The lack of rules about their time travel. And then now, in episode 7, it seems to contradict the revelations in episode 6.
- It makes sense but it is so hard to pinpoint. If you know that feeling that you can grasp it but something is not fitting well … yeah that.
- The time travel rules are there. But it's so hard to pinpoint what those are.
- The key is in "time doesn't flow" but we are not sure what exactly do they mean by that. The Ghost disappearing in episode 7 threw everything off. It created a paradox that should not exist at all.
- Oh, another thing, when the Ghost was holding the murder suspect, they both disappeared. She used the same with the two men who tried to assault her on the train station scene and brought them somewhere cold. BUT when Sae Ha was holding his parents … at least based on the scene in Episode 7, he was the only one who went back to 1997.
- Lastly, while some will probably say "plot hole" or "writer error" or anything similar, we should avoid it and try to see it from the writer's perspective -- especially when it comes to time travel because any writer attempting time travel do a lot research. If we are having a hard time with it, imagine what the writer had to go through to get his/her story straight and logical.
- Yes, plot holes and writer error are possible, it does happen, but until they admit it, we should assume that the writer had everything laid out. We just have to unlock, or figure out, what that is.
^_^
Thank you for the suggestion!
Because if one still have feelings with their ex (be it love, anger, missing them, or hatred--it doesn't matter it's all feelings), then it means they haven't let go or moved on. These feelings will always crop up in them as a person and in their current relationship--without them knowing it.
While it is unfair for their current partner, it is a total pity and dangerous for the person who haven't moved on (because they are not aware of it, or they are refusing to admit it, telling themselves they've moved on when they really did not). Every relationship they enter in will almost always end up in disaster. If they already got married and there's no divorce in their country, the more problematic it will be … and their kids.
For their current partner, they only have two choices: [1] end the relationship while they still can; or [2] help them realize that they haven't moved on so they can finally let go -- a.k.a. healing.
If you choose Option 2, be very careful. Almost every relationship where the partner is in the healing process, end up going their separate ways. The reason for this is that the partner who is healing, once they heal, they no longer need you (the healer). The couple doesn't realise that their relationship is a healer-healee type of relationship. I've just been in that one recently (for 15 years at that) -- it was my fault in the first place since I knew it already, I took a risk, I thought it can turn out good in the end … but nope, still ended up that way like every other healer-healee type of relationships.
22 years later, we're still friends, probably what others would call "best friends" too. However, we know our boundaries _and_ there is absolutely nothing between us anymore (since 11 years ago).
We rarely intentionally meet outside of work (our fields have an overlap so, there are times when we do have to meet for work/business). If we do meet, intentionally or not, work related or not, we tell our better halves respectively. It is our way of telling our partners that "hey, there's nothing between us", "do you want to come with me", and "this is where we will meet, you come later when you have the time, let's bond together".
So, yeah, it is possible. but it is not easy at first. I mentioned "since 11 years ago" because the first 11 years was when both can't let go of our feelings. It was only in 2011 that we finally did, permanently.
I'm picky these days when it comes to anything more than 25-30 episodes, especially if it is at least 50 minutes long per episode. Times changed, lot of things to do, and the world is too 'sad' and 'evil' these days.
It would've been fine if it's more comedic overall. But I guess I'll skip this one.
Thank you for the honest feedback! Much appreciated!
As most are thinking by now, the title is probably a hint to the best and worst period of their lives. That part wherein one has to make the biggest decision of their life, break or make.
It isn't so much about them, the characters and their relationship, but about life, growing up, and learning to live in a harsh world. Taken in a Korean context, that would also mean, how the Korean public tries to dictate and control the lives of celebrities and public personalities.
But the episode 14 "2019 broadcast" reveal points the other way.
They are both sad in that broadcast. They want each other but they know they can never cross the chasm separating them, ever again. Something big and serious happened.
Also, Hee Do's last words in that 2009 interview: "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you."
"I will take care of everything" is ominous. It means there is something that they're supposed to do together, or is obligated to do together, but for whatever reason Yi Jin can not, so Hee Do "will take care of everything".
"See you when I see you" means they have no idea when they will see each other again.
Together, "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you", means because of a wedge between them, a certain responsibility falls on Hee Do's shoulders alone, and they might never see each other.
I am suspecting Kim Min Chae was born a year earlier and the father is Yi Jin. But because of a wedge between them, they can not be together again, so in the end, to save face, she married a Kim.
If Kim Min Chae is the same age as the actress, then the character was also born in 2008. Yet Hee Do was married in sometime 2009 or possibly late 2008.
Yes, Yi Jin slightly smiled … but that's him trying to be happy for her even though it is too painful for him.
Yes, Hee Do obviously smiled but not how she usually do it, because she needs to show a happy emotion on national television … even though deep inside she isn't happy about it.
If Yi Jin is supposed to be "Kim Yi Jin":
1. Kim Min Chae doesn't know him. From episode 1 to 14, Min Chae never once said something in the line of "oh, it's dad, so this is how they met".
2. Hee Do wouldn't say "I will take care of everything. See you when I see you."
KJ is a simpleton. He is slow to learn. And he always need confirmation if what he has in mind is a good thing. He also likes to sulk in the corner first before doing anything.
HK is too "high and mighty". She always want to portray a perfect image. She thinks that the people around her should not see how frail she is like everybody else.
It's rare to see these extremes of character in real life. There are but its rare.
Remember that scene in their office rest area? KJ kept talking and touched on how HK is this and that. Exactly the same thing SW told her a few minutes earlier.
So, at first, HK dismissed what SW said, probably got a bit angry too. But when she heard the same from KJ that gave her pause and she started to look inside. "Am I really like that?"
HK won't ask for advice, literally, but she looks at other people's experiences and take it as an advice quietly. She thinks that letting people see her asking for advice and help is like showing them how weak and powerless she is, an image she can not afford--especially after their nasty break up.
While KJ, a fool that he is, actively seeks advice because he understands his own limitations.
Shi Woo obviously was about to make a huge mistake in his life and Ki Joon noticed it, so he gave him advise so he could avoid the same mistake that he did--a fool.
You can listen to someone with more experience even if you hate the person. Shutting them them and telling to f*ck off is a recipe for disaster.
If Shi Woo told him to "get lost", like what the OP said, then he'll definitely make the biggest mistake of his life. If Ki Joon stayed quiet like what the OP wanted, then Shi Woo would've had make the biggest mistake of his life.
There, very short.
The answer is in Episode 1 and Episode 14. It's a story about life; of growing up; of relationships between parents and children; of relationships between friends.
Will it be a happy ending, generally speaking? It depends how you understand the story about life, about growing up.
Will it be a _romantic_ happy ending? Wrong show. :p
Since you want to know the ending, then the following is not a spoiler for you:
Episode 1: Hee Do's daughter is "KIM Min Chae".
Episode 1: Yi Jin is BAEK Yi Jin.
Episode 14: year 2009, Baek Yi Jin congratulated Na Hee Do on her marriage.
Episode 14: year 2009, they were very sad and talked as if they have regrets, that if they can only turn back time they'll make a different decision
Unless there is an unknown tradition in Korea where parents can choose a different family name, like what they do in some African countries.
^_^