i am not going to lie, at first i hated how the show ended as well, it was so unpredictable (even tho i knew what youngsoo would do); but as i sat down and thought about it more, i realised how and why the ending made perfect sense.

part 1 was an introduction to the story, to the war, to the spheres. an introduction to our characters. a way to show development and underdevelopment. we see them acting according to how the adults want them to act, having no right to choose what they wanted to do after signing that paper (which was also signed by their parents, some of them not even being allowed to say if they wanted to do the military training or not). our main characters are building up relationships, platonic or romantic, they are starting to love each other as more than just school colleagues. we see them being together 24/7 in a world that is could be destroyed.

while part 2 is the destroyed world. we get no adults introduced (other than the criminals in the prison, who aren't even humans to begin with), our main characters are able to vote, to communicate, to make decisions together with no adult telling them otherwise. we see betrayals, fights, and lastly, a massacre. youngsoo was the world character of them all, and not in a way that he was written badly, but in a way that he was a criminal. he did not care about no one in the classroom, from the first episode to the last. if someone says that i am wrong, please remember the time when younghoon died and he was happy he wasnt there anymore because he didn't have any more competition in the classroom. he was only thinking for himself, which until the end was, at most, understandable. but his actions were wrong. extremely wrong. not only did he try to sa soyeon, he killed the only witness (ilha), and then he killed almost all his friends. yes, he went crazy, but his reasoning for his mental stability going down was not it.
at the same time, tho, all the trauma they were going thru, plus the pressure from the adults who were using them, i can try to understand him (not what he did). his character had depth, that i don't really care about, but if i did, i could talk about him for hours. as the story was progressing, i hoped that, maybe, they won't keep the ending from the webtoon, i was wrong. it traumatised me in the worst way possible, but i am here writing this with a smile on my face.

we are seeing three wars in the series, one against spheres, one against adults, and one against each others. part 1 was all about the spheres, and the adults, it showed how the kids could fight against both of them and survive. with little sacrifices happening. in the second part, we see the war against each other, which showed us different sides of the kids. they were more mature, not whining that much when they had to do something or when things dont go their way. we see them getting tired, wanting to go home, but still sticking together. there is so much going on in 4 episodes, and ep 7/8 weren't even that long. it keeps you in a state where you can't wait to get to watch the next episode. i was scared the whole time, hoping all of them were going to be alive at the end, yet still knowing that wasn't happening. i was doubting them when they were doubting each other. i felt betrayed when they betrayed each other. i was hurt, i cried with them, i laughed with them, and at the end, something in me died with them as well. altho they didnt stick to the original plot of the story, the main line was still there. kids in war time. no matter what the war was. some of you are failing to see that. they went thru a lot of ups and downs together, they had hopes and their hope died, they were, at the end of the day, just kids.

watching this kdrama was a rollercoaster. i was happy, sad, crying, laughing, anxious, hopeful. but at the end of the day, it gave me comfort (with a lot of anxiety on top). all of my fav characters ended up dead. yes, i did like kimchi, hana, aeseol, and nara, but jangsoo, tae man, yujoong, ilha, soyeon, bora, soocheol, youngshin, all of them, ended up dead. and with ilha's death, followed immediately after by jangsoo, i was petrified. when jangsoo said he'll go find youngsoo, i knew what was going to happen. and when he opened that damned door, i couldnt breathe. he was the reason i was so excited about part 2, and even tho i knew how he ended up in the webtoon, i had a little hope. jangsoo, i miss you.

that 'in other universe' ending, with them graduating, i will take that as the actual ending, and im pretty sure they added that scene as a way for people to choose what ending they want to believe in. younghoon is there, and honestly i never believed he actually died, so thats a bonus. they all graduated guys, they did. and they ended up going to college, and having jobs and families, and happy. thats the real ending (source: trust me bro).

i didnt expect duty after school to be more all of us are dead than all of us are dead, but looks like that title fits them more. i will miss them a lot, somehow i hope for a season 2, even tho i know why they ended part 2 like that (for people to not ask for a season 2).

the actors did such an amazing job. imagine playing jangsoo and having to open that door like 7 times and filming your death in 2 different ways (first they thought it was a sphere that killed him, then they showed youngsoo killing him). i am so glad i started watching this and meeting this amazing, and beautiful cast. can't wait to meet them in a new kdrama.