Crashing and burning

I really enjoyed the drama initially, but a few moments stole it's essence, making it a huge disappointment instead.

While the portrayal of friendship throughout the years warmed my heart, the depiction of the romantic relationship between our main protagonists left it somewhat broken. There were two aspects that I found particularly disappointing:

1) The part where the older Na Hee Do (NHD) doesn't seem to remember going to the beach with her friends, which is such a core memory of her adolescence. I understand they wanted to convey how nothing lasts forever and how, at some point, we may desire to capture a moment and freeze it in time. However, most people remember the pinnacle moments in their lives.

2) Although I understand that this drama wasn't primarily about the main protagonists getting together at the end and was meant to showcase NHD's first love and subsequent breakup, I felt that the reasoning behind their breakup wasn't strong enough. It's hard for me to get over how easily they gave up on such a profound "love." Baek Yi Jin was going through a challenging period, striving for change, and was understandably not available for NHD. She, on the other hand, was busy with her training, and the two had little time to spend together. NHD's rationale for breaking up with Baek Yi Jin, citing that she didn't want to live her life waiting for him and then getting disappointed, made sense, given her mother's career-driven choices. However, her other reason for the breakup, which was that he didn't share what he was going through, seemed a bit harsh. Baek Yi Jin likely didn't want her to suffer alongside him, as some people find it difficult to express their emotions to their partners. Their was a lack of understanding on NHD's part and her behavior was insensitive towards Baek Yi Jin work struggles.
I felt that if they truly loved each other, they could have taken a break, given each other space as they settled into their new beginnings, and then attempted to rekindle their relationship. Even Yu Rim and Ji Woong managed a long-distance relationship because they didn't give up on each other. Yu Rim's father wasn't around all the time due to work, but her parents still made their relationship work. So, Na Hee Do and Baek Yi Jin could have ended up together if they had put in a bit more effort, which was almost negligible - a disappointing fact considering all they had been through together.

This drama held so much promise, but unfortunately, the last few episodes left me disappointed. It was in the final 4-5 episodes that the charm seemed to fade. While the humor remained entertaining, the overall atmosphere took on a more somber and gloomy tone.

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