The thread is now open.
Since I’m behind you all, I’m avoiding any gifs from Episodes 3 and 4.
But I can’t help posting this. We know what it’s all about, right? Right?
He was “flexing.” I think flexing his biceps/triceps is including in his contract in lieu of naked torso. hahaha.
We saw a similar move in “Start-Up.” That moment in Episode 7 when he was tightening the screw on the chair.
I’m looking forward to seeing more muscles from this guy.
Let’s enjoy the show!
Heh! Thanks @pkml3. Really? I had no clue. An arm muscle expose instead of abs? I can’t even recall him doing any ‘heavy work’ in Start Up LOL.
I’m so innocent like @GB, I thought he was just having a heat rash hence he was scratching his arm. 😂
🙋🏻♀️ what’s the password please? ☺️
LOLOL @agdr03. Thanks for letting me join the ranks of the innocent. I wanted to say so too, but thought that was shameless of me LOLOL. 😆 😂
I was taking it for granted that the post will be unlocked once @pkml3 finishes with it, or are we again in the midst of ‘oppa fans’ and need a password to enter the post?
Sigh, hopefully not any of those. We don’t need it especially with what’s happening now. ☹️
🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
Looks like I’m not that innocent! LOL! I had the same thought as @PM3 because we noticed this in Start Up. Many opportunities to flex those biceps in 25/21 since he wears tshirts a lot. But that’s not the reason why we are looking forward to the weekend, right? Hahaha.
Indulging a bit on visuals (pardon me @PM3), I’m more partial to seeing him riding a bike (like in Start Up) vs driving the red car unless Heedo is withi him or the squad (hope that beach trip is shown this weekend). That reminded me that he also drove a top-down car in Start Up.
@packmule3,Am also watching The Bride of Haebeck.we see a lot more of him in that one
The drama itself is more of a middle but it has its comedic moments.
I guess he has more clout now and doesn’t need to do shower,upper nude scenes. At least unlike American programming, the women don’t have to bare their breasts, although S. Korea does have a thing for women’s legs, miniskirts and short shorts.
@Janey, I agree. We’ve seen a lot of muscle in this episode. Also it makes him look more mature than the other male actors in the drama. I appreciate his flexing; he worked hard to look like that.
This definition from itectec.com made me laugh:
“Why are biceps guns? It doesn’t make sense and seems so remote from the literal gun.
It’s actually not that remote, if you work in reverse. Arms has a common meaning of weaponry in English. If you were to say small arms you would be specifically referring to guns. Which is funny when you think of the irony.
I found a partial answer on the Straight Dope message board.
The baseball origin is probably correct, according to Lighter. As early as 1929 the NYT was writing “A player’s arm is his gun or his wing. A good gun means that the possessor has a strong arm.
That message also includes this snippet:
Then a quote from something in 1973 “Guns–the biceps and triceps part of the arm.”
Sorry PK3 – I am just as innocent as they come. I did not know that arms meant manly or grownup or similar to six pack abs. Good to know. Learn something new everyday, Did not watch startup 😒, but will catch up with it sometime.
Sent you an email regarding the password.
Hope Trouble making skunks stay away from the site and mess everything thing up causing headaches and more work for you. They are a generation where NO means YES and YES means “Hella YES”
@angelwingssf I think the password is only temporary. Packmule often puts posts she hasn’t quite finished yet in the password protected space until she finishes eg adds gifs and pics. It’s probably just in draft form now and not quite ready to be published yet. And once it’s finished, it will be open for public viewing. The good thing about this drama is that there doesn’t look to be any love triangle, unlike Start Up. So the main questions seem to be if YJ/YR will make it to the present (there are many who are predicting one of them or both will die). And of course the question about who MC’s father is. Seeing she has the surname Kim.
@nrllee, there are predictions that one or both of the leads die? Oh, no please. But in the present time Hee Do is alive and in one of the episodes (also in the present time), I forget which, Hee Do’s mother mentions meeting Yee Jin recently. Anyway, looking forward to episode 5 and pm3’s first impressions.
@LaurazZZz. Yes. Just rumours and fans speculating. And the fact that there is no actor in the cast list playing mature aged YJ (HD has another actress play her). And the actress who plays SW mentioned in her interview that audiences should expect lots of tears. That put everyone on edge. I haven’t seen SearchWWW (the other drama by this writer). Does anyone know if that one ended well? I did Google fencing accidents and deaths and there have been a few (gruesome). I am hoping they just all lost touch and went their separate ways.
@nrlee, Searching WWW had a good ending.
YouTube must know what I have been watching as it recommended this video to me. The cast talked about some screens in the upcoming episodes.
@haengbog thanks for letting me know. I read that this writer is good at realistic relationship building. So her friendships and relationships come across as quite organic. And it shows here in 2521. Thanks for that YouTube video. So we’re onto Act2 now. Looking forward to it!
Thanks @nrllee. Yes, the relationships are realistic and even non-Koreans would relate to the friendship and family dynamics. I love the YouTube video commentary, they even showed scenes from future episodes. Thanks @haengbog.
Looking forward for this weekend’s episodes. Sounds like a very steady story building and a good balance of humour and heavy topics. I love the outlook of this drama towards being resilient. HeeDo is an inspiration!
Thanks @haengbog for the video! It is really fun to watch them talk about their roles.
@nrllee, Do you think it is possible that it is NJH acting as his older self? It might be harder for KTR to look very mature since she is really so full of energy and youthful. NJH comes across to me as a little potential to be whacky but has that very calm chill feel.
@haenbog, thank you for the link to the interview. Gosh, it made me wonder if Seung-wan, who only changes at the end, ends up with YJ?
Looking forward to tonight’s episode.
@grace I don’t see why not? They could’ve aged KTR too. That girl can play anyone convincingly. I don’t know why they didn’t just age her and used another actress (who I really cannot picture as the older HD). I find the actress playing mature HD lacklustre. They kept grandma the same and aged her? 🤷♀️
@Fern SW is our constant in the friendship group. She’s the glue. That’s why PD filmed her approaching them (her back was to us) and then standing right between the pairs. Like a bridge. During that scene where the 2 couples were in the street having a bit of a face off. And it was at her home where the loach catching team building exercise happened. Where it all began. Not sure what she meant by her character changing in the end. She’s quite a driven individual. Top of the class. Class President. Probably one of those “most likely to succeed in life” type students in the Year book. 😂
@nrllee That’s what I thought too. Why is the older Hae Doo like a totally different person? 🙂 Even if a person ages or goes through life’s challenges, the personality does not really change drastically, does it? I was hoping to see a bit of the brightness and spunk of the young Hae Doo.
@LaurazZZz I get the feeling it’s the actress. She doesn’t have the nuance and range that KTR does. She shouts like TR but it comes across as grating. TR is loud but she’s coming across as endearing (and goofy). I don’t think it’s just an age thing. It’s their portrayal of the character HD and how they’ve interpreted her as per the script. That’s why @packmule3 and I were wondering how NJH would hold up against the powerhouse that is KTR. She’s a tough act to follow. She may be diminutive but she illuminates the screen. She’s captivating and owns the role she’s been handed. He’s done a good job so far which just goes to show how far he’s come in his acting. He’s grown in confidence and as an artist with each role he’s taken on. Kudos to him. I guess he had to stand his ground amidst the negativity thrust at him from KSH fan girls in Start Up. 🙂
I guess that’s why when we saw the older HD it was hard to connect it to the young HD. Or did something happen in a really life changing way that HD as an older woman changed?
NJH has been in shows that explore very different kind of themes and with very diverse kind of character. I loved The Light In Your Eyes. There was the weird School Nurse Files and more melodrama JoSee. The only one I haven’t really watch him in is action shows! Maybe The Great Battle, anyone seen it before?
Anneyong!
I just wanted to say Hi, but you guys have already commented that much!
I have to catch up!
While waiting for the Episode, I decided to check out the posters for this show. Here are 3 of them. Which do you like best?
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qHhNpOV7Zl3D5EnHu-Fa4B7qX9d7lRW_/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wwcObmnEGew0j5o_adDV1xJpDPu9BOIq/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K6M0U0snJovxV44Tkl05mbg2pgiToiLq/view?usp=sharing
I personally can’t decide. All I can say is that the first one blew me away because tour OTP look so different. I also like the 5 of them so colourfully dressed and brimming with confidence (I felt that NJH’s t-shirt look was more 2020 than 1998, though) and the 3rd one that I never noticed before but which I should have. Maybe that’s my fave, with them so relaxed and familiar with each other, but looking at us, instead of at each other.
I’m watching Episode 5 and I’m so stressed!!! LOL. So good.
One thing about 2521 is that it’s hard to predict where the story goes. I read so many theories that don’t pan out. I’m amazed at writer-nim for it.
I finished Ep5, and I’m exhausted from feelings things. I jumped and yelled during Hee-do’s match and cried my eyes out at the ending. Another superb episode.
@Ella I’ve finished Ep 5 as well. Yes, unpredictable. Just so good.
I just watched Episode 5 and I am happy myself!
What an amazing story so far!
@GB – I doubt if the first poster is official 25/21. It seems like it’s from a commercial that KTR and NJH did in the past. I like the 2nd for the squad youth in colorful clothes and the 3rd – Yijin leaning in more to KTR (KTR in an elevated position) and seems to mirror their relationship.
@Grace – I watched The Great Battle and NJH was very good there. He won several acting awards for his role.
Ep5 – although it’s a total invasion of privacy, I like that Minchae is recognizing the hard work of her mom when she was an athlete by way of her diaries. Tidbit: I read that KTR wrote a diary for her fencing lessons and they were actually used in the show.
I can’t believe the mom did not even know she was competing for a national team spot! She is definitely proud of her but too proud to reveal that to her daughter. I am not getting this mom. SMH! She’s the adult, she should throw the first efforts to reconcile with Heedo.
Yi Jin’s family situation becomes worse.
Yijin and Heedo away from each other is breaking my heart. I’m glad they can still leave messages to each other. And their shared memories of stealing happiness by way of water fountains. Can’t wait for Full House #15 when Yijin returns.
@Janey, @Cleo
Isn’t it funny that we, the viewers, are just as invested as the characters, in the publication of Full House vol. 15?
I’m thinking about how many coins they needed to prepare in order to just listen to each other’s voice messages on repeat. Never considered pagers and voice messaging via payphones all that romantic before.
YJ’s kid brother’s pretending to be still rich and being ashamed of his brother who’s doing honest work is sad but quite realistic. If he does that to get friends, then what happens when those friends find out he’s been lying?
I also felt it sad that the person who gave HD a well deserved hug was Coach Yang, and not her own mother. Like @Janey, I don’t know what kind of parenting Mum is doing. Tough love, no communication, and being absent is not quite the right way to parent.
The other parent with issues seems to be YJ’s mother. She seems to be the needy type and not the strong parental type. So we’re seeing all kinds of parents in this show. We mentioned good parents like YR’s Dad in another thread. Poor YJ has to bear the brunt as a young adult to be almost ‘dad’ to his brother and support to his mother. At least his uncle seems reasonable.
In the time they are at NTC, I was wondering if neither Injeolmi or Ryder37 could be chatting online. I’d imagine curfew is strict in the NTC and there don’t seem to be computers for private chatting. It still seems that they both do not know who the other chat partner is.
It seems like a long wait until tonight’s episode!! 😆 🙃
Ep5 has Hometown Cha3x feels. Is the location same?
I’ve always hated payphones back in HS and I remember having to wait in long lines during lunch break to page/send messages to friends (even if we are together LOL!).
Love the parallels.. water scene, the payphone, and running together in his imagination. so touching and romantic. Cinematography and the acting of NJH and KTR = superb!
HD and YJ miss each other so much and they are holding on to the tapes and beeper voice messages. 😭 They are each other’s strength and support. Can’t wait for Full House vol 15 so they can be reunited again.
The conversation between YJ and his brother is both heartbreaking and powerful/awakening. YJ is hurt but showed maturity.
My favorite part of ep5: We haven’t learned about a world in which you don’t have to do well. But I still hope that even if we fail, we’ll be strong enough to get back up again.
–> We all need to hear this and can relate.
Hello ladies !!
It’s good to see you all this weekend. Hope you all safe despite the crazy war news out there..
I enjoyed the episode 4 so much. Even their separation could be that sweet. I am glad when Hee Do saw the fencing sword in front of her house colored by blue paints, at least knew that Yi Jin congratulated her in his own way. It was sad that they couldn’t celebrate her victory together but it was so mature of her to not resent him.
@GB, I agree with you regarding of how romantic the payphone scenes of them. They listened to each other voices when they were feeling down or missing each other.. oh how lovely it was the 90s Long Distance romance, lol.
@Grace, I also love the message of this drama so far about being resilient. I don’t know but, maybe every “teenagers” in every era has their own issues, but sometimes If I see teenagers nowadays, they seem forgot to learn about how to be resilient. I hope that if there are teenagers watching this drama, they could be inspired by Hee Do, and also Yi Jin. It is so sad for me to hear the news in my country, that young people who lost their money on crypto or something decided to end their life. I am hoping that through watching this drama we all could be reminded that when experience the failure it is important for us to push another day to live, to survive.
It was funny to see how Yijin’s mother miss her husband so much. I usually see the young couple who could be so attached to each other but not for yijin’s mother. Her love for her husband stay “young” (or childish ?) along the time.. however, I hope that she could learn how to be stronger like her son anyway..
I saw glimpse of episode 6 preview where there is a cameo from Choi Tae Joon (PSH’s husband) as Hee do’s boyfriend (?), they had meal together with Yijin. It was a cute scene of them. I think we could all laugh together at this episode. Yay can’t waiit..
@Janey @Diane @moonstar @Cleo
I was saying that I hoped the growth in characters extends to Min Chae who was pretty bratty with her mum, and now that she’s become aware of how much effort her mum put into her dream, maybe she’ll decide on a dream of her own.
@Diane I also transcribed the recorded words of YJ. He had so much hope back in high school. It’s interesting that he says ‘We haven’t learned about a world in which you don’t have to do well.’ – It sounds so stressful, as if everywhere they are, they have to do well.
@Moonstar, yes about resilience. I believe hardship builds resilience in us, but our young people who’ve had a privileged and relatively easier life, may have lacked the opportunities to develop greater resilience in the face of much suffering.
I was struck by what HD said about looking for YJ’s father… she said she wouldn’t be able to find him if she didn’t search. She seems one to never say ‘die’. So it’s persistence as well as resilience. I’m not surprised that people like Yoo Rim and another contender said that they were afraid of HD.
I was thinking that because of this Show, I won’t be surprised if there’s a great uptick of interest in fencing and that kids may go around trying to make their own water fountains. LOL.
@GB it’s interesting how the writer is using Full House to establish timeline
They met for the first time when Full House vol 11 just came out
They started to get close when vol 12 out (the fight with Yoorim)
Yijin lied about volume 13 to tricked Hee-do into winning their bet
Volume 14 was out during their separation (winter 98)
And Yijin promised to comeback before volume 15 is out (spring 99)
So Full House was actually a thing. Ryder Bayer (o my goodness talk about fancy name 😂😂) is British? 😂😂. Methinks the characters in the comic have more similarities to YR and HD than our OTP.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_House_(manhwa)
😂😂😂 preview clip for Ep6.. Cringe factor – maximum. High school romance. 😂😂😂
>>
Edited as requested by nrllee. Here’s the new Twitter account. -pm3
https://twitter.com/imzeroclock/status/1497731584090263555?s=21
Ya! What the? 😂
Even I’m cringing more than YJ. 😂
That whiny voice. 🤦🏻♀️😂
@Ella and @nrllee Thanks for the info. I guessed that Full House really did exist but didn’t know the characters looked Caucasian. (I watched the kdrama of it though). I thought the volumes came out more frequently than once a quarter or once a season. It would be nice to know how many months YJ was in Seoul. We know he spent 3 months in Pohang at the end of Ep 5.
Conversations and Recordings
Significantly, YJ is shown to be in the red phone box and HD is in a green one, as they listen to their messages. It is a mirroring of the fencing score lights where YJ is always in a ‘stop’ position although HD keeps giving him the green light LOL. The other thing about red is that it’s obviously HD’s colour. It embodies her energy, vibrancy, positive spirit and exuberance. YJ wants some of that to rub off on him, and so it’s appropriate that his phone box is red. Both payphone boxes are in desolate, cold-looking places, showing how alone these kids are but how they support each other regardless.
After YJ and HD have their fencing match, YJ with HD skipping along beside him stop outside her home. It must be close on midnight! Unbeknownst to them, HD’s mother is understandably outside waiting for HD.
YJ : “Good night. Have a safe trip tomorrow and do your best. And don’t forget what I said earlier.”
She asked which of the many things he said that she should not forget.
YJ : “Whichever struck you the most.”
We return to the time HD had struck YJ with her sword to switch on the green light.
HD : “Why do you root for me? Even my mum doesn’t.”
YJ : “Because you give me hope. And I want more from you. And it makes me want to do well.”
HD : “What part of me makes you feel like that?”
YJ : “I don’t know. It’s just that when you try hard, it makes me want to try hard too. When you accomplish something, it makes me want to accomplish something. You make other people do well, not just yourself.”
He puts his hand on his heart and says : “I praise you for it. That’s why I root for you. So take it all.”
In the present HD says : “I’ll take all of your support. And let’s be great together.”
YJ : “You are one of a kind.” HD smiles and YJ sort of shakes himself out of the sentimental mood. He tells her to go in.
She suddenly remembers to give him the sword he used earlier.
HD : “It’s my first time giving away a sword, so don’t you forget it either.”
YJ : “I won’t”
When YJ is gone, HD asks Seung Wan if she can borrow Yi Jin’s voice recordings.
SW : “What do you want with them?”
HD : “To listen to them at NTC when things get hard. I’ll need his support.”
SW : “You two were really close. Aren’t you mad that he took off?”
HD : “No I’m not.”
SW : “You have faith he’ll come back?”
HD : “No, not exactly. I have faith that he made the right choice. I’m sure he went somewhere better. Somewhere less tiring. And somewhere he’ll get hurt less. It’s now my turn to root for him.”
Seung Wan smiles at this.
HD finds YJ’s voice recordings help her get through a night of YR’s snoring.
YJ’s recorded voice : “The college entrance exam is coming up. Hang in there. You can do it. But can we really do it? Sometimes, saying that we can do something can be more discouraging. We haven’t learned about a world in which you don’t have to do well and can fail. Still, let’s do the most we can. Let’s do our best. But I still hope that even if we fail, we’ll be strong enough to get back up again.”
HD writes a response in her diary. I wonder if she may have recorded it as a message for YJ to hear.
HD’s message : “You’re right Baek Yi Jin. We have the strength to get back up again. So let’s be as frustrated as we want when things are tough. Let’s be as sad as we want. And let’s get back up together. Even if we’re not together, let’s get back up together. I’ll be your strength to help you back up again. I’ll make sure it happens.”
We see YJ in a red payphone box listening to his messages on repeat, and I wonder if he hears HD’s written words.
After the altercation with his brother and telling his Uncle that he feels like a loser, YJ goes to the payphone.
HD’s message to YJ : “Baek Yi Jin, It’s me, Hee Do. I’m sad that you disappeared, but I don’t resent you. Just as you rooted for me without reason, it’s my turn to root for you. Wherever you are, I’ll make sure my support reaches you. I’ll take care of everything. See you then.” I’m thinking that since more than one message can be saved and this was the first message, YJ had saved this first and maybe every one of her messages to listen to.
The next day YJ sees on TV that HD has won 3rd place in the Presidential Cup Fencing Competition. He sees her smiling face on TV and as he had said, (in italics above) when she accomplishes something, it makes him also want to accomplish something. She makes him want to do better.
In the visual interpretation of how both of them are on the same page, we see that both have made their own little fountains to cheer themselves, and are looking up as it starts to snow. We also see that in their messages to each other, to YJ at least, it’s as if YJ and HD can see each other. He congratulates her, then YJ mentally brings HD into his reality, running together hand-in-hand (in the first snow of course!) just rejoicing in being united in spirit. Even apart, they are together. It’s of course just right that they run across the bridge leading to a red light house that’s brightly shining it’s beacon of light. YJ was hopeful again.
In the run across to the lighthouse,he had changed his hold on her, from her wrist to her hand. A different kind of distance ie no distance? (actually the editing made the hold change back and forth from wrist to hand, but we know what they meant to do 😉 )
YJ’s message brings tears to HD’s eyes : “I’ve missed you. But I saw you because you showed yourself to me. So I got to smile today. Did Full house volume 14 come out yet? (She says aloud that it did.) I’ll show up before volume 15 comes out. Wait for me, Hee Do-yah.”
We look forward to YJ making a return to accomplish more, knowing that he’s gained new hope while HD supports him all the way.
@nrllee. The Full House K Drama certainly took liberties with the source material and was so different. When the manhwa was first mentioned in 2125, I immediately thought of the K Drama. Now I view the comic as a plot device to establish time frames and to bring our leads together
After reading the Wikipedia article I am now wondering if we get a time jump to the more distant future to learn that they get together in a simultaneous episode 16 or if there is no significance to the manhwa and the drama’s last episode number. My sense is that we’ll see some gap in their relationship.
Has anyone thought that YJ might get together with Yu rim and not HD after HD wins a series of championships and is separated from YJ while she is on the road for her career, having defeated her rival You rim? I keep thinking of the agency reports of a tor break ups bling same on their busy schedules. My gut is telling me to expect a bitter sweet outcome during the interim years when HD is single mom to her daughter
So far we are not told who the father is. And part of the bitter might be YJ and Yurim restarting their past relationship much to HD”s dismay. This type of thing is a well used trope. The other thing is that HD goes into such an unexpected profession that I sense might be related to her own disappearance after the birth of her daughter.
I did tear up in this episode, especially when YJ had to move. To me it was interesting that HD realized that she and YJ weren’t as close as she thought when she didn’t know his pager number and had to get it from Yurim. We know that YJ had feelings for HD but we see a potential triangle with her rival who knows how to reach YJ. This is an obstacle that seems to be like a splinter to me so that’s why I”m imagining a triangle here. I hope that I’m wrong
LOLOL Thanks @nrllee, that cringe cut was so funny!!!
YJ could barely hold back his laughter. Oh dear, Kim Tae Ri must have had a hoot suddenly speaking like an infant and I need to see the BTS of them doing this scene. Could they have made it through this scene without laughing?
@GB, it must have been hilarious to film that scene! Those were genuine hiding of laughter.
On Ep5, oh those pager days! Who would think leaving messages like that long distance can be so romantic? To be able to hear a recorded voice, like in a tape, again and again is something that we take for granted now. I remember I would send pager ‘messages’ with my friends using the numerals to say “I miss you” or “I love you” or whatever…I forgot what they were. I think you can’t quite do that with hangul.
It is friendship that this two has built upon, a kind of friendship that I’m hoping will develop into something more. But judging by the unpredictability of it all, I am just going to enjoy the ride. They said there was going to be a twist in SY’s story or character?
@packmule3 can you change the link above of the preview clip for Ep6 to this please?
https://twitter.com/imzeroclock/status/1497731584090263555?s=21
This was the original translator. Her translations were stolen without credit to her and reposted by others. Someone pointed out my error. Thanks in advance. 🍪
On a side note…Is it deliberate? Park Chan-Ho being mentioned in here and Start Up. The part in Start up when he told Dosan to follow his dreams…appearing as just a mention in 2521.
https://twitter.com/sksk_inspiring/status/1497760265521143813?s=20&t=7Yi7NGhAGBXrXVlSOJuKcg
Done, nrllee.
@grace, Good catch! I didn’t pay attention to what they were saying in the news office, except to hear Na Hee Do’s name. So this writer is sort of promoting either him or good stuff with Park Chan Ho in it.
Episode 6 – another great episode. Much to laugh about and some cringe LOL. Enjoyed it thoroughly with guffaws in between.
We discover one revelation about Coach Yang and HD’s Mum.
Seems Mum is a reporter before anything else… before being a mother, a friend…and I wonder… before being a wife?
@GB
Yes GB. Much laughter and cringe session lololol. But overall I really like it. I like the pace of relationship that the writer built for this couple.
What Mum said about being a reporter first also hit me. Was the reason behind her absence in her own husband funeral related to her job too.. sometimes I am scared to the people like her..
Next week we will reach to the halfway of this show.. My thought is the same as baekyijin when Heedo told him that she had a fight with yurim.. when will this girls start over their friendshipp.. I am waiting for it too
@GB, Another great episode. HD’s Mom, in her earlier years is very problematic. She seems to be a driven career woman. We have yet to find out about most of her back story, especially regarding HD’s father(a person of mystery). She has a bitter quality.
However it seems like Mom has changed with age for the better.
I loved the cameo by our newlywed Choi Tae Joon. The scene with him was hilarious. The producers use this cameo well and also offer Easter eggs as have been pointed out to good use for those in the know.
I also loved how they handled HD and YJ’s longing for each other. They are not giving us what we want. It’s almost as if we have to work for it. They hook us in using so many lures. I guess we’ll have to wait for the very end.🏅🤺🤞
I liked that HD and YJ spoke about where she would be at that moment if they hadn’t met previously. YJ says they would have met at the train station anyway. “We were destined to meet at some point in our lives.” He gets her back into the right mind set after settling her in the car.
A bit later, HD complained that she had romanticised the idea of a break-up. She only dated because she wanted to experience a break-up. 😲 She broke up with her boyfriend and didn’t feel much at all. YJ tells her that you have to be in love to feel the despair of a break-up. Then she has a flashback to how she felt when she found the sword he stuck in her gate. YJ may also be thinking of his family. HD’s break-up with her boyfriend is such a contrast to the break-up of YJ’s parents.
In episode 5, YJ’s uncle said that some of YJ’s mother’s concern should go towards her sons and not just to her husband. The mother says something like, ‘I gave birth to them. They’ll take care of themselves. A husband isn’t the same. That’s right, what do you know about love? That’s why you’re still single.’ I don’t think she means that completely – she obviously loves her sons. The sentiment could be more apt coming from HD’s mother, who has a daughter but doesn’t really take care of her except physically and materially.
I’ll have to watch again. I laughed when YJ stowed the recording equipment in the back of his broken-roof convertible. I expected his manager to call him on that (’cause what if it started to rain?), but he only said ‘who would take a reporter seriously who drove a car like this?’
Really enjoyed lurking and reading everyone’s comments here as I am loving this drama! It’s been a while since a drama has hooked me the way this one has…the last one was JBL. What I love the most about NHD and BYJ is just how open and transparent they are with each other. They don’t put on airs..there are no masks, no distance between them, regardless of the time that passes. I’m interested in seeing what could possibly cause friction between these two as it would seem that the typical “misinterpretations” that happens in most kdramas wouldn’t happen here because these two just bare their souls out for each other to see. I obvs would love to see these two cuties end up together, but more importantly, I am hoping that they are still in each other’s lives in some way, shape or form because above all, the basis of their relationship was always their friendship and support of each other.
Thanks to everyone for all of their insight…Saturday can’t come fast enough 🙏
Thanks @packmule3 🍪🍪🍪
Ep5 hit all the right notes for me. It was a roller coaster. Bewildering. Then happy. Then heartbreaking (with the brothers). And finally hopeful. It is said that winners are those who have that drive to succeed. HD has that. She wants the top spot more than YR does. And she’s not just doing it for herself. She carries on her shoulders the hope of YJ (and her other friends). If she wins, they find hope in her endeavour and they “win” too. There’s an aura around being a gold medalist. YR has bathed in that aura for so long she believes she deserves it. HD has no time for auras. She is no longer overawed by her “idol”. It is said that in any sport, the mental game is what gets you over the line (just like how the competition went when HD’s opponent tried delaying tactics). You need self belief. Stick to your game plan. If you’re starstruck by your opponent, you’ve already lost the battle. HD isn’t at all fazed by YR and her “aura”. It’s the right mindset to have.
But yes as others have noted, I am horribly disappointed with the mothers portrayed in this ep. HD’s mom only saw her pic on TV and completely side stepped her achievement. Perfectionist parents are like that. 99/100? What happened to that 1 mark? 🙄. And YJ’s mom? I just wanted to shake her and tell her to get a grip woman! Your boys need you to be strong right now. Quit with your wailing and get productive! Provide comfort and hope.
I liked the mirrored lights…beginning of Ep5 there was that lamp outside HD’s house that they stood under as they said their farewells. And then at the end the red lighthouse and that light flashed as they “met”. Connected in thought even though the reality was that they were actually apart. Loved loved loved the phone boxes and the green phones. See? Romantic doesn’t have to be raging hormones and hopping into bed together. This yearning and the waiting? Stuff of legend. ❤️👍
Hello @Jaxiefish
Welcome to this thread. Great that you enjoy this drama as much as we are..
My weekend also gets more exciting with twentyfive twentyone in my schedule. Hahaa.
@nrllee
I super agree with you. The mirrored lights, both the lamp light in front of heedo’s house and the red lighthouse scene were awesome. They were connected by thoughts, by prayers, by heart.
I like the meeting between them in episode 6. We get to see the people marching to the opposite direction, and yijin stopped his steps then walking towards heedo when heedo called his name. This scene was emphasized by his words towards her later when they had lunch, “It was so noisy out there, but all I could hear was your voice”.(oh be still my heart..)
Yes indeed, romantic doesn’t have to be about hormones and bed at all.
Kalimera Ladies!
I enjoyed both episodes this weekend. I am not that online, mostly because I am taking some time off and secondly because I am kinda sad with what is happening at the moment in the world.
I enjoyed both Hee Do and Yi Jin’s interaction. I really like that they are the light for one another, even though they were not together for all those months. Just knowing that there is someone else in that world that is there for you, you feel blessed and you can carry on with what is happening in your life.
I also liked how Yi Jin came to the rescue of Hee Do before the finals. I overall like his confident persona after coming back to Seoul. I am glad he managed to end his mourning / hiding period and show to the world what he is capable of. I believe we haven’t seen his golden times yet!
What I don’t like is: Yu Rim.
I think YR is so biased against Hee Do that she spits nonsense and hurts HD deliberately. I mean she has a distorted image and she is biased towards HD, just because she carries designer brands. She has this idea that Hee Do has an easy life going for her, that she is happy, when that is not the case.
Yu Rim is poor and has a problem with it, but still she has both of her parents rooting for her. Her inferiority complex is her shield and she should work on it.
Yes, she has worked hard on fencing, but she is not the only one who has done so.
So, she has to overcome her childish ways and learn from Hee Do’s example.
Hee Do might have materialistic goods, but her father has passed away and her mother is a reporter above everything. She has noone to root for her, but herself and Back Yi Jin, who is there for her not only emotionally, mentally, but as a whole.
Although, HeeDo was at odds with herself, mourning the absence of her father who was her emotional anchor, she managed to overcome it all and actualize her dream.
Her first dream was to continue fencing, because it was the only thing that connected her with her late father. It took her a while and Yi Jin’s presence into her life, but when she realized what she has to do, she went all the way for it. After her encounter with Coach Yang Chan-Mi, she was so focused and disciplined that her dream was evolved into showing her fencing to the world.
Although, as we have seen into the preview of Episode 7, Hee Do is not going to win Yu Rim. Na Hee Do is the real winner, because she came into the finals shortly after she started as number 26 in her fencing classification.
Six months, isn’t it a short period to conquer all these? I think it is not…
Hi @Cleo, great comment!! And you’re saying some of the same things that came to my mind as I rewatch and transcribe some scenes. Yes to how HD was able to get the better of her losses, her grief, etc and to rise above, even without her mother’s support. Yes, 6 months is an amazingly short time for HD to have risen as fast as she has.
Maybe it’s the hardship that she faced that has made her all the stronger, more resilient and more determined person. She also seems to lack the kind of fear that paralyses a person. Even YJ had that kind of fear that got him running.
I feel that YR has stymied herself by holding on to her fear of HD from when they were kids and she was beaten by HD. She continues to play the same old ‘recording’ in her mind that she worked harder or her hard work is more valuable, or that she’s entitled to the wins and that HD is an upstart that spoilt things for her. If instead of being stuck in this negative way of thinking she considers that she can beat HD by also learning how to anticipate her moves, she’d have a fighting chance. Her wins against HD will be more based on fortuitous circumstances than skill. YR has no one to blame but herself.
I have a question… I missed the part about how HD’s father was the one who got her into Fencing. Where is the reference to this? Was it a photo?
Hey @GB Unnie,
It is my conclusion. Since her mother is not rooting for her, I think her father did. After all her mother is a reporter first, then a wife, mother and friend.
That’s why Hee Do is at odds with her mother. She used to be a child protege, that after her father’s death lost her anchor. She was doing fencing because it is the only thing that connected her with her father. That’s why she was upset when Hee Do thought her mother gave away her father’s wedding gold ring, as a public persona.
Thank you for liking my comment. I was so frustrated with Yu Rim yesterday and I was thinking what to write today, this came into my mind.
Thanks @Cleo! That’s a plausible conclusion. I’d like a little bit of backstory as to HD’s father. But I want a lot more backstory as to Min Chae’s father! LOL.
@GB,
That is the mystery of the century!
Good morning, @Cleopatra. I agree with your comments. While we don’t actually have concrete knowledge of her father’s support of her fencing, I think he was her support overall compared to her mother.
@Moonstar512 mentioned the reunion in episode 6 of reporter YJ and HD. I noticed the colours: YJ was surrounded by red – the colours worn by the protesters. When the camera turned and focussed on HD, she was standing before a blue background – the colour of the inside of her sword grip. This reminds me of her lost bag at the competition; she wasn’t interested in all of her swords but only the one with the grip that YJ had coloured blue and on which he wrote her name and national athlete title.
Kalimera @Fern!
I felt that too. She misses her father a lot and it shows! 😀
I wonder if her mother was jealous of the fond relationship that her husband had with HD? Yet, she seemed unwilling or unable to reach out to her daughter in the same way.
Sometimes Hee Do acts stroppy and contrary – what 17-18 year olds don’t? But it’s very telling that she notices that her mother only scolds her after getting on the national team, rather than congratulating her. And while coach Yang is problematic in her style, she at least does congratulate her, as someone else mentioned. More than coach Yan, I really dislike the National Team Coach who is blatantly unfair and more concerned with his winning bonus than coaching his team evenly.
If this were a melodrama, I would guess that Hee Do is not the natural child of Mrs Shin due to the coldness of the mother. But I think it’s consistent with the way she acted to her friend, possibly to her husband, why she didn’t attend his funeral, etc.
Another thought, if this were a melodrama, Coach Yang would not be so supportive of Hee Do, but would take her anger at her mother out on her.
I thought it shocking that HD brought up the bribes at the restaurant. I don’t recall it having been mentioned before? Coach Yang admitted to Shin Jae-Kyung that it was true. I think she wouldn’t have minded so much if the report of bribe had spread the blame more evenly rather than focused on her, especially since Ms Shin was a friend. At least we now have a reason for their estrangement.
@Fern, I so agree with you. I heartily dislike that coach as well. My notes:
HD overhears male coach haranguing YR on the staircase landing : “Next will be the Asian Games. Don’t you know that the entire country will be watching?” (Way to put too much pressure on a kid.) “If you don’t win the gold medal, your fame and reputation will crumble. You can’t do this when we’re throwing our weight behind you.” (Well he wants the prize money, doesn’t he.) “You can’t lose against her. Do you understand?
Please Yoo Rim, don’t let down those who believe in you. That does it. From tomorrow, you’ll train at night.”
The male coach is a lousy coach. He does not give YR the right kind of feedback that will help her, the way Coach Yang did for HD. His only recourse is to harangue YR, to add more pressure, and increase her training, without telling her how to improve. He should be fired. He can take no credit for any of the team members’ wins.
This was my favourite scene. It reminds me of those epic romances from of old. Poignant.
The red throng of protestors. Shouting slogans. The times. He weaves his way through the crowd. Desperate to find her. Drops Full House vol 15. He carried it with him all this time. For such a time as this. As his frustration grows, he hears her voice. And she wasn’t even shouting. So attune was he to her. He stops in his tracks. Was he dreaming? No. Because he hears it again. And time slows. The crowd fades. The sounds muffle. He turns. And there she is. Music swells. He makes his way back through the crowd towards her. She’s clutching Full House vol15. And the green bus witnesses their reunion. Just like the green phones linked them even though they were apart. Small talk. Reconnecting. Shy smiles of happiness. Bravo PD. Bravo. ❤️
@Growing Beautifully, I was very impressed that HD confronted that coach. But then, it’s her style to be that brave and outspoken.
@nrllee, Thank you for the clip. The colours in that scene are so vivid and the timing is spot on. Epic, as you say.
@Fern, I had to look it up in Ep 5… ah yes that bribe mention. It seems that HD must have listened to news read by her mum from many years back (how young/old might she have been???) because she might have known about the scandal.
When she was first tested by Coach Yang, Yang asked her if she had any money… and already at that 2nd meeting with Yang, HD said that she didn’t have money for a bribe… or something like that. I was unaware of the bribery scandal at that time and just thought that HD was misinterpreting the situation. Coach Yang only wanted to play the game of odds or evens to see if HD had good luck. But the fact that bribery cropped up so soon was a sign that HD knew what her mum had reported in the news.
But since she had said it so openly before, it was not shocking that HD mentions it casually in the restaurant as well. They both knew that they knew, that Coach had been in trouble over bribery before. Only in Ep 6 do we know how it affected Yang and her relationship with HD’s Mum/Reporter Shin.
From the respect that the male coach gave Coach Yang, I’m thinking that she was the one who was the national team coach before, until the bribery scandal got her sacked.
Lovely recap of that iconic ‘couple-meet’ again scene @nrllee. Yes, now that you mention it, once again we have the red and the green. The colours of HD and YJ respectively. She’s hot and he’s cool and they complement each other beautifully.
He looked for her in a sea of red, and they found each other and peace in a quiet line of green buses.
Yes kudos to the PD, art director and etc directors. They really know how to ‘make’ the romance in the least likely romantic situations. Bravo!
@nrllee – the best reunion scene indeed. Thank you for breaking it down. When I watched it the first time, I held my breath, heart pounding with the rhythm of the chants. They were going against a throng of people just like going against the times and what it has thrown on their path. Their connection was palpable though – Full House, she saying his name twice. What a sensory treat – the colors, the movement, the sounds, and the happy smiles in the end. Release breath… And it’s probably an advantage that YJ is a head taller than most people so it was easy to spot him. LOL! BTW, YJ is being called “Mr Green light” from the fencing episode
@PM3 In ep6, we see another tunnel symbolism (counting 3 now) when YJ gets back to Seoul and decided to stop hiding. Since the 2 main leads will go through many more trials and tribulations and success, I am counting on seeing tunnels in upcoming episodes.
@Cleo – totally agree with your posts on Yurim. I hope YJ and chat mate situation be able to bridge the gap. It’s also telling how YR’s reaction to YJ leaving is so different from HD’s reaction – she was being childish on all of this, almost not giving an interview to YK. Sigh…
I’m still wondering when the beach trip for the squad will happen. Will that be just a dream or reality? In that time, YR and HD seem to be friends.
@GB – I guess we will see several “meet cute reunions” in this show as the leads will be thrown multiple curveballs by the times. Their discussion about what if they are not in each other’s lives were poignant and then became funny with the imagined scenario of YJ meeting HD on the train. LOL! Hmm.. they seem to meet when some rights are not given (right to pee, right to jobs and not be hungry). Let’s keep an eye on further ones.
It may look like a filler but the scenes with the dogs and YJ doing a voice reporting on a landline was so funny and endearing. Did NJH use one of his dogs here?
Cell service was still spotty and landline/tethered telecommunications was more stable. We’ve come a long way on technology. Someone mentioned before lining up for payphones and waiting their turn. And of course, always having a stash of coins!
@Growing Beautifully, I also thought the first mention (at the test) of minor bribery was just sort of a ‘normal’ panicky reaction by HD. Bribery for things may have just been that common, like leaving a tip? That’s why I was so amazed that HD mentioned it again, casually, and in public.
I think you may have the right idea that Coach Yang may have been the National Fencing Coach – Shin JK said that she was the face of fencing in Korea. Unless she was more known as a famous International/Olympic athlete? I wondered why Yang didn’t still compete if she was still strong and agile enough to beat HD, but I suppose she was banned?
I like how Min-chae is getting to know her mother better and better. Rather than just being intimidated or bothered by her mother’s popularity, she is starting to appreciate her hard work by seeing the record of it in the diary.
Hi, @Janey. I liked the train tunnel image going from Pochang back to Seoul. The entrance of the tunnel was set into a snowy mountain side, but the exit scenery looked positively balmy.
Haha, I had been so sure that those tapes of YJ would lead to his job; that HD would leave them somewhere where her mom could find them, but we have to assume that he got the job all by himself.
A thought: there are 2 moments in this Episode that we get Cringey Scenes. Besides the scene with Choi Tae Joon’s cameo… Cringe factor at 9/10 because it was so unlike Hee Do … (Yi Jin was trying so hard not to laugh. I wonder where our Hee Do picked up all that aegyo. So glad that relationship only lasted 2 weeks.)
There was the cringey scene of YJ’s Mother/Oma messaging hubby in the Internet Café. Cringe factor is 8/10 because of what she made poor YJ type out for her and the noise she made in public! I was embarrassed for her and laughing all the way at the same time.
YJ’s Mother/Oma is from seaside town of Pohang and seems to be somewhat dim. She has no clue what being bankrupt is. She thinks that with YJ’s part-time work, he could have saved up enough for an apartment in Apgujeong (a fashion district?). There’s some great disconnect with her where financial matters are concerned.
She only knows about being in love LOL. She says she had no regrets about marrying her husband.
Oma to YJ : “We loved and respected each other all our lives. And we still do. You should also meet someone like that. Someone who inspires you to improve just by being together. That is what a truly successful life is, you silly.” Oma seems to think they can live on love, fresh air and respect alone… sheesh.
However, what she says gets YJ thinking. After a few steps he’s made up his mind.
YJ : “Oma, I want to go to Seoul. I’m done with running away. I’m going to start over.”
Oma : “Alright. I believe in you.” And Oma and YJ share a nice hug.
In the area of being accessible and somewhat emotionally supportive, Oma is so much better than HD’s Mum, at least. 😉 So we may have cringey Oma to thank for bringing YJ back into HD’s orbit, sooner rather than later.
I don’t know whether it’s been mentioned here but isn’t it interesting that HD’s mother and YJ are both in broadcasting. Do we have a Yin-Yang moment. There are definitely parallels.
The other thing that struck me was the conversation HD and YJ had in the car about her short term “romance” with her teammate. HD confessed that she wanted to experience a break up based on what she knew from reading, media. However, it did not leave her bereft. YJ told her that 19, her age, was good time to have a first .ove but said that she would have to have been in love to be moved by a break up. We know that they both have feelings for each other, but YJ, the adult before his time, does not allow himself to take it further because she is still a minor. S. Korean customs regarding age are deeply ingrained and YJ is a gentleman. So far, he has confined his dealings with HD to platonic friendship, support and encouragement. Note that he is not afraid to laugh at her follies. That probably would not be what a boyfriend would do. So it is good that HD is concentrating on her fencing at this juncture. Right now, I am not looking for premature heartbreak. The beauty part is that we get the tease if the romance that we hope will happen as discussed here with their beautiful reunion during the demonstration.
I also thought that the sequences of her “lost” swords and their recovery were so tense, with her phone battery running out, her rush to catch trains, the traffic jams and the serendipity of the wrestler being on HD’s train. My initial thought was that YR was somehow involved with the lost swords. But so far, it seems that YR is innocent…
Lots of thoughts but this drama that speak volumes. We also see the ever present IMF crisis overwhelming so many. This makes this drama so much more important because, for S. Koreans who were not born or who were too young at the time actually feel the imp a CT of the crisis viscerally through the drama. We foreigners also gain an understanding of the trauma that has so colored S. Korean culture and history.
@GB I thought that too about the parallel scenes where YJ is witness to cringey couple moments. 😂. I think parents acting all lovey-dovey takes the cake though? 😂😂😂
Actually that reunion scene during the protest cast my mind to that iconic moment in Forrest Gump where Forrest and Jenny reunite during the Vietnam protest. This drama actually has a lot of elements that make me think of FG. The nostalgia, the unlikely OTP, the times, their connection, and there’s a child. I wonder if that’s why HD kept the identity of the child from YJ. He was off chasing his dreams offshore and she didn’t want the responsibilities of being the father hinder that. So she kept the child’s father a secret from YJ and MC (and maybe even her mom). And they reunite at the end…but please no death of one of them like in FG. 😢.
@nrllee, I know that @pm3 is looking at this as a coming of age drama, but I can’t help speculating on the child and whether they will reunite at the end. I never saw Forest Gump, but I hope it doesn’t work out as you say that did.
I wonder if Mrs Shin in the present time is aware of the relationship between HD and YJ? Her reaction to the old photo was quite hard to read.
@Fern I think you will enjoy Forrest Gump. It is one of those movies I don’t mind watching over again whenever the reruns come round. Lots of quirky funny moments woven into confronting historical times.
@OAL I actually went to take a look at IMF and how it affected South Korea. And the history behind it is interesting. The government at that time had allowed all these big companies (Kia, Samsung etc) to take on too much debt. They were so intent on expansion that they overstretched themselves. And the money pot dried up. So suddenly all these massive companies who provided jobs to thousands were seriously strapped and in danger of collapsing. And a large number of them did collapse. The IMF needed to step in to give the country a massive loan to bail them out of the bind. I don’t think it helped that it was election season and the government was trying to cover up this massive loss of face and delayed action till it couldn’t be hidden anymore.
https://www.hofstra.edu/pdf/biz_mlc_lee1.pdf
I like the character Nam Joo Hyuk plays in Twenty-Five Twenty One: Baek Yi Jin has more emotional range than his character in Start-Up, Nam Do-San, who was more emotionally repressed, almost zen. One of his more nuanced scenes so far in 2521 was when BYJ confronted his younger brother about pretending to not know him in the market. BYJ displayed a mix of hurt, frustration, concern, and love.
The younger brother, played by Choi Min Young, made me feel a bit uncomfortable as I watched him, and I couldn’t figure out why at first. Was it his unusual facial features, with wide set eyes and a sharp nose? Then it dawned on me: he played the teenage (SPOILER) twins in You Are My Spring. So I think the creepiness and tragedy of that show’s roles stuck in my mind, causing foreboding as I watched him play a new character. Now that I’m aware of it, I’ll try to shake that predisposition and judge this new character on his own merits.
The ending minutes of episode 6 had me dropping my jaw in amazement at the cinematic storytelling. Seeing Heedo alone on the piste (where the fencing match takes place), all else darkened, just her and the long strip stretching in front and behind her, beautifully depicted her concentration, her loneliness, the solitary nature of her pursuit of fencing, the road she’s on, and more. Well done, PDnim.
The high school fencing coach, Yang Chan Mi, tells Hee Do’s mother what we’re all thinking: “Your daughter joined the National Team a while ago. The timing of your visit seems a little off.” This could be a jab at Shin Jae Kyung for being an uncaring mother; it could also be double barbed as an allusion to the bribery scandal that damaged Coach Yang’s career and reputation. It was Shin Jae Kyung who publicly disclosed, in her role as a reporter, that Yang Chan Mi accepted bribes from athletes’ parents. SJK seems to catch that allusion, because her immediate response is, “I’m here today not as a parent…” Coach Yang characterizes her relationship with SJK as ill fated. She’s furious that SJK basically says, Get over it! (“That happened eight years ago. Everyone has forgotten about it. So should you.”) Coach Yang has been living the past eight years with the consequences of that story broken on national news by her supposed friend, and those consequences won’t suddenly disappear if she chooses to wipe the matter from her mind.
The conversation between HeeDo’s mom and Coach Yang circles back to Coach’s harsh opinion of SJK’s rigid, uncaring character.
SJK: I was a reporter before being a friend.
YCM [in a judgmental tone]: Of course. I know that very well. You’ve already proved that yourself.
[SJK blinks several times, her eyes shift back and forth rapidly, and she blinks again, all without making eye contact with YCM. These show SJK’s inner struggle, stress, nervousness, uncertainty.] “Let’s not talk about this…”
I suspect we’re going to learn there’s more conflict between YCM and SJK beyond, perhaps predating, the bribery scandal reveal.
It is interesting that despite the ill-fated relationship between Coach Yang and HeeDo’s mother, and despite trying to discourage HeeDo from pursuing fencing, SJK made the phone call to Coach Yang and asked her to give HeeDo a chance to try out. Without that phone call, it would have been much more difficult for HeeDo to begin her trajectory toward success.
This drama is a work of fiction, I know, but I thought it would be interesting to look up the fencing medals won in the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. I was surprised to see that in 1992 women only competed in foil. In 1996 women only competed in épée and foil. Men competed in épée, foil, and sabre at both the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. The fictional female fencers we’re following in this show both compete in sabre. South Korea has competed in fencing (men/women) in the following Olympics: 64, 84, 88, 92, 96, 00, 04, 08, 12, 16, 20/21. Total of Olympic medals for South Korea in fencing (men/women): 5 gold, 3 silver, 8 bronze. At the recent Tokyo Olympics, South Korea won the following medals: men’s team épée – bronze; men’s individual sabre – bronze; men’s team sabre – gold; women’s team épée – silver; women’s team sabre – bronze.
Thanks for the info about fencing in South Korea. I had no idea they were so successful? To win 5 gold 3 silver and 8 bronze is impressive. I always thought it was a sport that Europeans would excel at. Guess I was wrong.
According to my older daughter, who was on her college’s fencing team a few years and competed in sabre, of the three weapons used in fencing–épée, foil, sabre–sabre is considered the fastest paced and most aggressive, because it is attack focused.
@nrllee, this article from last year talks about South Korea’s rising position in the fencing world. https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/fencing-resurgent-south-korea-fencers-aim-gold-2021-06-28/
These are the top ten Olympic medal totals for fencing in the the modern Games. (The Olympic Games were cancelled in 1916 [World War I], 1940 and 1944 [WWII)
1. Italy: G=49, S=46, B=35, Total=130 (28 Summer Olympics, 1896-2020, except 1904)
2. France: G=44, S=43, B=36, T=123 (29 Summer Olympics, 1896-2020)
3. Hungary: G=38, S=24, B=28, T=90 (29 Summer Olympics, 1896-2020)
4. Soviet Union: G=18, S=15, B=16, T=49 (9 Summer Olympics: 1952-1988, except 1984)
5. Russia: G=13, S=5, B=8, T=26 (6 Summer Olympics: 1996-2016)
6. West Germany: G=7, S=8, B=1, T=16 (5 Summer Olympics: 1968-1988, except 1980)
7. Germany: G=5, S=7, B=9, T=21 (17 Summer Olympics: 1896-1912, 1928-1936, 1952, 1992-2020)
8. China: G=5, S=7, B=3, T=15 (11 Summer Olympics: 1952, 1984-2020)
9. South Korea: G=5, S=3, B=8, T=16 (18 Summer Olympics: 1948-2020, except 1980)
10. United States: G=4, S=11, B=18, T=33 (28 Summer Olympics: 1896-2020, except 1980)
The top medal winner in fencing at the 2020 Olympics wasn’t a country, but the Russian Olympic Committee athletes. In December 2019 the World Anti-Doping Agency banned Russia from all international sport for four years because of its state-sponsored doping scheme. That ruling was appealed, and a new ruling was issued December 2020 by the Court of Arbitration for Sport allowing “Russia to participate at the Olympics and other international events, but for a period of two years, the team cannot use the Russian name, flag, or anthem and must present themselves as ‘Neutral Athlete’ or ‘Neutral Team’. The ruling does allow for team uniforms to display ‘Russia’ on the uniform as well as the use of the Russian flag colors within the uniform’s design, although the name should be up to equal predominance as the ‘Neutral Athlete/Team’ designation.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Olympic_Committee_athletes_at_the_2020_Summer_Olympics
Thanks @Welmaris for the fencing stats of Korea, they even rank better than US on medals. Nice! I find fencing a good mix of strength and grace and now knowing a bit more- of speed and reading the opponent well. It’s a very individualistic sport though. I am loving the fencing bouts and the way they are shot. For their Asian finals, Yurim is shown with all the flags in the background, maybe symbolic of the support she has, while Heedo’s side is blank.
@Nrllee – I can see your Forest Gump parallelism and possibilities on the storyline. But I am just happy with the solid and close friendship of Heedo and Yijin. Anything after that is all icing on the cake and cherry on top.
Kalimera Ladies!
@Nrllee, what a nice execution on explaining that meeting again scene! Bravo!
@Welmaris Thank you for explaning to us about fencing. I didn’t know there were three types!
@Welmaris, Thanks for the information about fencing. A million years ago I had to take gym classes in college. Fencing was offered and I took it. As a klutz(clumsy person in Yiddish), I bombed at it. There is so much coordination required from the footwork to the various sword positions and to the fact that the fencers field of vision is impeded by the mask. Additionally competitive fencers are wired (maybe now they use Bluetooth) and the pace of the sport is quick. This drama is so good, strictly from a sports story point of view(it does for fencing what Racket Boys did for badminton). There is a deep dive into training, misbehavior by officials, politics, sports coverage and so much more. There is something about K Dramas that shos the great research done by the writers. There always seems to be something new to learn(the new Forecasting Love and Weather does that for weather forecasting). 2521 does this for the IMF crisis as well. So @Welmaris, kudos to you for the research you’ve done on fencing, and primarily Korean fencing that adds to our viewing pleasure.
@OAL, I’m also watching Forecasting Love and Weather and find the KMA strategic center scenes exciting to watch. Then again, I’m a card-carrying member of the Cloud Appreciation Society and follow a weather blogger.
@Janey I listed the stats of the top ten Olympic fencing medal winning countries to show that it’s almost like comparing apples to oranges when talking about totals. Some countries have accumulated their medals over 29 Games (France, Hungary), and one in only 5 Games (West Germany). South Korea is ranked higher than the United States after participating in 18 Games, compared to the USA’s 28.
I think my favorite part in these two episodes was during their reunion and he asked if she’d already read 15 and she responded with now I can. The relief and reassurance in his expression was 💯
Comparing his reunion with HD to his with YR, really magnifies how different and special the relationship HD and Yj have is and neither hints at romance which must’ve been hard to write and perform.
I’m still scratching my head trying to figure out why there’s the need for present timeline. A simple girl going to stay with grandmother for the summer and finding mom’s diary would have sufficed for me. Why the mystery? And why the odd foreigner scene?
@Welmaris – that even makes SK feat in fencing medals haul more admirable. Thanks for the research! I was just thinking of the Forecasting kdrama and how it is doing since we don’t have a thread here. Looks like you and @AOL are enjoying it. I had to Google Cloud Appreciation Society – wow, I did not know about that!
@Birdie – Heedo really waited for Yijin even in reading Full House vol 15!!! That speaks volumes. I also wonder about that foreigner, it’s not a random filler to show Yijin’s English skills. Is he there for Asian games, is he a judge?
@Janey I thought he was a foreign correspondent/reporter covering the Asian Games. I agree that he’s not just a random filler. It will probably open up doors career wise for YJ in the future? And it could explain why he disappeared out of HD’s life and they “lost touch”. He went overseas in pursuit of his dreams.
Speaking of foreigners, there was the scene when HD got her sword case back from the Japanese fencer. The fencer tried various languages until she finally found French as a common language.
Regarding the scene with the foreign correspondent, staff member or whatever he was: Did YJ spend time abroad previously or am I getting confused with another drama? Is that why he could speak English? I’ll agree with @nrllee that they meet up again. I was a bit surprised that they didn’t share a table, since they both ate in the same restaurant, and given Korean hospitality to strangers.
@Welmaris, Yaya! Another weather fan. I’m recommending
it toMmy son, who likes meteorology and took some college courses in the subject.
@Fern I don’t think YJ spent time abroad. Or at least it didn’t seem so. I believe English is part of the Korean curriculum? Which is why whenever I read travel books about Korea they always say that Koreans (the younger ones) will probably understand you (if you speak to them in English) but will struggle to reply. So I think there are some who will know how to speak it. And YJ is one of them. One of my daughter’s friends went to Seoul for exchange in the University (Engineering) and he said the most of the lessons were in English? YJ spent some time in University but didn’t finish it because of the IMF crisis.
Thanks for answering my question, @nrllee. I must be remembering something from another drama. The curriculum requiring English as well as the teaching in English would explain his abilities.
@Welmaris, thank you for sharing more about Korean in Olympics. I love how these sports dramas inspire us to learn more about their culture and history. Their stories are likely inspired from what happened in that era and age.
@OAL, watching Forecasting Love and Weather here and it is really interesting to learn more about the metrological industry. It is hard to imagine such a niche industry and in my tiny country, it does not go to the level warning where industries gets severely affected. I believe in a larger land mass where the weather is more varied. I love the metaphorical references.
Back to 2521, I think the story will conclude in the present day and hopefully a closure. Though I’m sad it will not be TaeRi acting that part. We are waiting with bated breath about what HeeDo’s mother meeting with YJ a month or was it weeks back about. Why are they no longer together or were they even together? And it seems like her daughter knew nothing about her own father and who he is.