The essence of human bonds

Oh out of all Kdramas I had to come across twenty-five twenty-one when I was just starting out on the genre. As an avid anime fan who had delved slightly into Jdramas, I started out with twenty-five twenty-one, fresh out of a fallout with someone I deeply cared for over three years, looking for a change from anime. I had picked it up because I have always enjoyed sports dramas when it came to anime and saw an essence of work similar to the mangaka Mitsuru Adachi. The first episode had me hooked, particularly because my impression of kdrama before was that they generally develop female protagonists in a very narrow way. Kim Tae Ri nailed Na Hee Do, who genuinely gave out a shonen protagonist energy, with her deeply expressive acting, the story revolving and developing through her. Over the course of catching up week to week, I had the opportunity to watch dozens of other kdramas, which in hindsight make me appreciate how masterful this work was.

I think one of the most wonderful thing about this drama is that it is very human, The interactions and energy between the characters is very human and the idea of really really close individually growing completely distant is a very relatable and human facet of reality. In fact I loved the split they did with the episodes spending over 10 episodes developing the foundational facet of their bond, 3-4 episodes on the bloom, and 1-1.5 episodes on the fallout, particularly because in real life, the bitter fallout is only a small and temporary facet of a human relationship, even though it may be very impactful for the tiome being. The most important parts are the happy memories you make with an individual over the course of your relationship is what should be the point of focus which is what was wonderfully done. I was emotionally shaken at the end of the last episode because the themes hit too close to home. While in some ways it intensified the emotions I was going through, being in a similar place in life, I think it also helped me overcome the resentment which had built up for the other person, making me realize that I have had too many happy memories and have deeply cared for the other individual which is what i would want to remember them by.

And oh the music, don't even get me started. Jaurim's piece just feels like a jigsaw fit with the show (which makes sense since it probably inspired the show in the first place). And of course, Wonstein, Bibi, and all the other pieces fit perfectly with different stages of the story.

All and all I think this drama probably lies in the top cream of the things I have watched with one piece, sakamichi no appollon, and sangatsu no lion. I definitely think this show has definitely helped me get back to my original perspective on how to remember human relationships at a very hard time in my life and I am thankful for it!

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