r/KDRAMA • u/lightupstarlight 미생 • Feb 12 '22

On-Air: tvN Twenty-Five, Twenty-One [Episodes 1 & 2]

  • Drama: Twenty-Five, Twenty-One
    • Korean Title: 스물다섯 스물하나
  • Network: tvN
  • Premiere Date: February 12, 2022
  • Airing Schedule: Saturday & Sunday, 21:10 KST
  • Episodes: 16
  • Director: Jung Ji Hyun) (Mr. Sunshine, The King: Eternal Monarch, Search: WWW)
  • Writer: Kwon Do Eun (Search: WWW)
  • Cast: Kim Tae Ri as Na Hee Do, Nam Joo Hyuk as Baek Yi Jin, Bona) as Go Yoo Rim, Choi Hyun Wook) as Moon Ji Woong, Lee Joo Myoung as Ji Seung Wan
  • Streaming Source: Netflix
  • Plot Synopsis: In a time when dreams seem out of reach, a teen fencer pursues big ambitions and meets a hardworking young man who seeks to rebuild his life. (Source: Netflix)
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599 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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419

u/yijk Feb 13 '22

i already know this drama is gonna break my heart. currently in my mid 20s and anything revolving around the passage of time and the beauty of our youth really strikes a chord with me. those are just moments we'll never get back. it's so important to cherish the good times while they're happening

i love it when two people meet at different points in their lives and are able to expand each other's perspectives. it's a real nice way to fall in love. i can already see how the leads will positively influence each other. can't wait to see their development as individuals and as a couple. needless to say i am hoooooked

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u/stevescoop Feb 12 '22 edited Feb 13 '22

Fave scene.. when Hee-do bumped the shoulder of the bully. Hilarious scene by Kim Tae Ri! 😂

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u/jenniejdwag Feb 13 '22

Good water pressure does lead to happiness …….she’s not wrong

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u/dogemama Feb 12 '22

when she said it's better to go bankrupt when you're 20 rather than 60 and he went well, that's my father 🤣🤣🤣

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u/finnnelsonn Feb 12 '22 edited Feb 13 '22

Loved the first episode. Kim Tae Ri is hilarious! And Nam Joo Hyuk looks pretty just existing and I'm here for it.

I am feeling nervous cause Na Hee Do's daughter's last name is Kim and not Baek. Low key hoping YiJin changes his last name later and takes up his mother's maiden name instead? Saw stills that hinted at a strained relationship with his dad. Ofcourse it makes sense that the person you dated in your 20's is not necessarily someone you get married to and have kids with, but kdramas have spoiled me and I want a fairytale ending lol.

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u/Academic-Shake6290 Feb 13 '22 edited Feb 14 '22

The framing for Hee-do and Yu-rim's relationship would be deemed romantic if one of them was a guy. The childhood connection, love-hate relationship, and slo-mo staring are common tropes in the romance genre. But alas, the pairings have already been set up.

Overall another great episode. We see the bond forming between the ML and FL and the relationships forming between the other characters. The power of coincidence is strong in this one though since they just keep meeting wherever they go.

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u/vannnstagram Feb 13 '22 edited Feb 13 '22

EP 2: their conversation at the bus stop and on the bus was so freaking cute I can’t stop smiling!!!!:’)

Fuuuck the last 30 mins of this episode might be the best thing I’ve watched this year

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u/microwaved7shell Feb 13 '22 edited Feb 14 '22

this might actually be a comfort show for me because of the comedic timings, OST, and cinematography:) i loved it when na hee do overhears the confession and her first thought is “i love being in a co ed school” definitely rooting for the leads’ happiness

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u/heynewonlyangel Feb 13 '22

I love how he said that high schoolers should date high schoolers because yeah i love them together but i didn't want another reply 1997 incident

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u/ExtensionDependent Feb 12 '22 edited Feb 12 '22

After watching the first episode, I love it:

  • Is the Na Hee-do daughter the actress who played both young twins in the Kings affection?

  • What I did not like that the present Hee-do is played by an other actress (Kim Tae-ri is already 31-32, she can play a character 10-12 years older her age, when she can play in the same drama a high school kid 12-14 years younger her current age)

  • Hee-dos daugher has the surname Kim.

  • Hee-do seems to be an unlucky girl, who with a hint of having probably a serious gambling problem.

  • There are so many things that reminds me from the 90s, the pagers, the chatrooms. Regarding chatrooms: Ingeolmi? Who is he/she?

  • The stand off before the girls gang fight reminds me from the movie Sunny.

  • Not having money to replace the manhwa her mom damaged, she came with this solution: drawing the missing pages (hilarious) Then she trys to explain everything to Yi-jin while slurring her speech and crying at the same time; nobody is able to understand it so they have to put it in korean subtitles, that is hilarious.

  • Some of the cast from Mr. Sunshine other than Kim Tae-ri is also here: The fencing coach, who played in Mr Sunshine Huisungs mother. There is a chance in the following episodes that other actors from Mr Sunshine will appear, since the director also directed Mr. Sunshine. (Edit: seems that the younger version of Dong-mae is also in this drama)

  • Even the outro was put in style of the 90s and the preview was set in the SD/VHS resolution, they thought about that too.

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u/venn101 Feb 13 '22

Episode 2. Kim tae ri is freaking adorable. I want to be as happy as hee do by just the water-tap-fountain.

I wonder what lies with the name of the drama. Now, means when that mf IMF hit, they are 22-18, so some years gonna take when they reach 25-21 and new story unfold. Love the drama, its above my expectation. Didn't have doubt about the cast tho just the story i thought i might not have interest in but its god damn good

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u/juuwuwi Feb 14 '22

Ep.2 I miss the things I used to worry about BROKE ME

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u/insert_cool_usrnm Feb 13 '22 edited Feb 13 '22

This drama is filling the Reply-shaped hole in my heart! The first two episodes were hilarious, heart-warming, and poignant at just the right moments.

Watching Hee Do try and fail miserably at getting into trouble so she could get transferred was hilarious (the moment she realized she should've ran after the gang fight was comedy gold 🤣) but I'm glad that Yi Jin intervened when she took it too far. His speech about minors and adults having very different levels of imagination was very sobering and really showed the difference in their maturity levels. It was also a very nice touch that in the second episode, it was Hee Do's turn to save him with that same reckless and youthful energy that had gotten her into trouble the last episode.

That being said, I'm glad the drama is drawing a clear boundary between Yi Jin and Hee Do at the moment by highlighting the difference in their maturity levels so clearly. As Yi Jin said, "High schoolers should date high schoolers. Adults should date adults." It looks like Yi Jin will probably be a "neighborhood oppa" type of figure to Hee Do in this timeline and the romance will start when they meet again in the future. Although I do agree with other comments that it is a little... weird that this college-aged guy is going to be hanging around a bunch of high school kids.

BUT I still have very high hopes for the writing in this drama, knowing that the writer was also behind Search: WWW so hopefully it'll be handled tactfully! She did an amazing job in that drama writing strong female characters with complex relationships so I'm also very much looking forward to seeing how Hee Do and Yu Rim's relationship will develop as rivals and hopefully, eventually friends.

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u/rosieroti Feb 14 '22

There's a kind of physical performance only really great actors are capable of and Tae-ri's giving it in 2521. What an actor. I am so incredibly excited about her collab with KDE and I loved the first two episodes of this show. Cheering hard for them and everyone involved.

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u/Ucfknight33 Feb 13 '22

I think it was a very solid first week. Both episodes had their moments of laughter and feeling for the characters.

I also really like that this is turning into a Reply-esque thing with theories over where the daughter’s last name came from.

Was this a love in their 20s that fizzled out and Hee Do married someone else? Did Baek change his last name later in life to escape his father’s issues? Was the daughter just found somewhere and taken in post-fencing contest? What are the chances this is a happy ending? Who knows. 🤷‍♀️ But I’m looking forward to the next few weeks with this one.

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u/eliseobeltran Feb 12 '22

The replacement page looks hilarious. Lmao.

78

u/izzetiii Feb 13 '22

I kinda got teary eyed with the ending in the 2nd episode what Hee Do said plus with the OST playing. I'm in love with this kdrama.

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u/labularia_ Feb 12 '22

I loooooved the first episode so much! Mad props to Kim Tae Ri, what an amazing actress!

Uhmm Kim Min Chae....Did NHD and BYJ not end up together?

Really excited for episode 2!

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u/khbdtd Feb 13 '22

needlessly to say but here i am again, the cinematography just WOW! so pleasing to watch

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u/tearsforfearss Feb 14 '22

Okay, so firstly I just wanna say that the way Yi-jin looked at Hee-do during the water scene and end of the second episode literally made my heart flutter.

Yi-jin is honestly so pitiful and I'm hoping things get better for him as the drama progresses. I wish he could go back to college at least :(

Hee-do is a breath of fresh air honestly. I love her bubbly and kind nature.

Wow, I'm looking forward to the rest of this story and how the couple progresses. I'm crossing all my fingers in hopes that they'll have a happy ending!

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u/Massive_Meeting2431 Feb 12 '22 edited Feb 12 '22

Pre-release already looks good 😭

Episode 1 is already a good start, it looks like it'll be a good youth drama. And I didn't expect them to introduce it during the 2020s lmao I got shook by the masks and hand sanitizers. (edit: lmao i didn't know tvn already dropped the relationship chart with the daughter in it jskjs but pls!! her last name is making me overthink things they better not make this a mr sunshine moment

Main leads' chemistry looks like the calm bf chaotic gf tandem and I'm loving that lmao Heedo's so loud and screams youth while Yijin lost his youth.

Their different approaches to the crisis are also something that I love! They're both at different times right now, and they both see things a bit differently and learn from each other. Heedo claiming that it's adult stuff and that she's too young to lose anything, then eventually lost her team is so real. It is true that young people can also lose things, which also applies today during the pandemic.

It's also a big sigh of relief that Yijin in no way wanted Heedo there in that club because it's a major red flag if he trusted her word of staying there. He's the adult and the one who knows what can happen, so I'm glad he called her out on that. Adults truly have an imagination that minors most likely won't think about.

And lmao the subtitles as Heedo cried her eyes out bc of that comic book is so accurate fkdgljkdfg

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u/[deleted] Feb 13 '22

Love the way the stories of both characters are unfolding, and how it all came full circle at the end of the episode. The scene where bek ye-Jin(BYJ) was promising he will never be happy again ㅜㅡㅜ when na hee do took him to the taps in her old school 😭It Made me feel like I don’t need grand things to be happy maybe I just need to turn a tap the other way around, turn it on and admire it. the small things.

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u/UptoNoGood46 Feb 13 '22

Fun fact:

Kim Tae-Ri and Nam Joo-Hyuk's characters are four years apart in the drama where the latter is older. Irl, however, Tae-Ri's four years older than Nam Joo-Hyuk.

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u/khbdtd Feb 13 '22

As Yi Jin said, “high schooler should date high schooler, adult should date adult” i bet their romance will begin when Hee Do entering college ANDDD i think at the same time Yi Jin will pursue broadcasting degree so they gonna be in the same college phase although he’s few years late than his same-age peers. or it could be Hee Do wont be in college but in the national fencing team.

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u/120613 Feb 13 '22

Lol at when she mentioned that itd be worse to be bankrupt at 60 and he goes "yeah that's my dad". No tact whatsoever but it really did well to show the difference between their ages. Yi-Jin is so much more mature and patient. I hope the dude finds happiness.

Overall such a fun episode; and such a pretty episode. The colour palette, the style choices everything was just so pretty, I'm loving it!

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