Today, we’ll be discussing Episode 16 of 25, 21, the hit K Drama on Netflix starring Kim Tae-ri as Na Hee-do and Nam Joo-hyuk as Baek Yi-jin. Ernabel Demillo is back as our special guest! She was a reporter and news anchor in New York, AND a reporter in New York during 9/11. This is a long episode, so we hope you stick with us and enjoy this long discussion. We promise some laugh-out-loud moments! We discuss:

• The beautiful songs we hear in this episode: Starlight by O Dong Jun and New Beginnings by Jin Myoung Yong
• Baek Yi-jin’s applying for, and accepting, the correspondent job in New York. What was his motivation for going to New York and staying?
• Ernabel’s experience during 9/11. She was trapped in Italy at first. When she got back to New York, it was chaos and Ernabel and her co-workers worked really long days.
• The crushingly sad scenes between Na Hee-do and Baek Yi-jin: outside Na Hee-do’s house after the luggage mix-up, at the cell phone store, at the tunnel, and then at the bus stop.
• How Na Hee-do and Baek Yi-jin had numerous opportunities to get back together, but they just could not bridge the gap between them; they just could not understand each other.
• How the creators of K Dramas often give us clues to the show’s ending early in the show. For example, in Episode 2, we learn that Baek Yi-jin is not able to share his sadness and despair; Na Hee-do tells Baek Yi-jin that when they’re together, they should always be happy; Baek Yi-jin tells his father’s creditors that he would never be happy again.
• How Ko Yu-rim and Moon Ji-woong stay strong, despite Ko Yu-rim living in Russia. We cheer when Moon Ji-woong proposes to Ko Yu-rim.
• Ernie’s perspective on being a reporter and news anchor. How reporters are super heroes because they are often running toward danger.
• When Baek Yi-jin asks, “Did I screw this up?” we say YES!
• The amazing friendship between Na Hee-do and Ko Yu-rim, how being each other’s rival was the proudest moment of their careers.
• How Baek Yi-jin is selected by Shin Jae-kyung to be the news anchor for UBS because he represented youth and innovation.
• How Na Hee-do and Baek Yi-jin contributed to each other’s success. Despite their sad breakup, they each are now living pretty good lives.
• How Na Hee-do’s diary has been so central in Na Hee-do’s life and how, in the end, it reconnected Na Hee-do and Baek Yi-jin, and Na Hee-do and Min-chae.
• We speculate about what Na Hee-do would have done after receiving the diary after all these years. Would she call Baek Yi-jin, or do nothing?
• How Na Hee-do and Baek Yi-jin, through the diary, got to say what they really meant to say to each other at the tunnel that day.
• The show that we will recap and analyze in Season 5 of K Drama Chat.

References

• Things you should know about dating in Korea
• 25, 21 Alternate Ending