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It’s the final episode so we bid farewell to our characters. The culprit to the serial murder case has been caught and arrested but there’s still some more work to be done. Just how will everything end for our characters and how have things in the 2021 world changed? Where do Hae-joon and Yoon-young go from here? What do they plan on doing next?

Note: I can’t believe this drama is ending :(. With this being the last recap, I’d like to just thank everyone who joined me in my recapping journey. Similar to other dramas, ‘My Perfect Stranger’ wasn’t perfect at all times, but it did consist of many many great, meaningful, and heartwarming moments that were so impactful. I’m glad that I gave this drama a try and recapped it. The next few weeks (and possibly months) of my life will be busy so I don’t plan on recapping any other dramas at the moment and I’m not sure how active I’ll be on my blog. So in the meantime, please stay safe and be happy everyone :]

My Perfect Stranger Episode 16: My Perfect Stranger

Yoon-young and Hae-joon come to terms with the fact that their time traveling attempt wasn’t successful. They didn’t make it back to 2021 like they wanted and they’re still stuck in 1987. But the couple try to be as optimistic as they can and Hae-joon vows to fix the car somehow. Principal Yoon stops by Soon-ae’s parents house to personally apologize to them for the actions of his son. He didn’t raise his son right and because of that, their daughter died as a result. He claims that he’ll live in suffering for the rest of his life as a way to repent for his choices and mistakes. On the way out, Grandpa has one last talk with Principal Yoon. He knows how difficult it must have been for Principal Yoon to admit his wrongdoings and turn his son in. He commends him for at least doing that part.

When Hae-joon and Yoon-young return back to their house, they change their minds and decide to grab some late night snacks and alcohol instead. They already accepted that they were going to travel forward in time to 2021 so it’s been difficult for them to realize that they won’t be able to leave like how they had planned. But there’s something else that Yoon-young is curious about and she asks Hae-joon for more information about the time-traveling car. How did he find it? So Hae-joon explains to Yoon-young about the night that he came across the vehicle as well as a strange phone call from a stranger who called him just minutes before about how he was the only one who could resolve everything from start to finish. Hae-joon is still uncertain as to who the caller was or what he was referring to but it’s something he hasn’t forgotten.

Yoon-young expresses her confidence and affection towards Hae-joon. Sure, staying longer in the 1987 world wasn’t really what she wanted but things do hurt a little less given that she has Hae-joon with her. But she’s just as eager to leave as Hae-joon is and she continually watches a confused Hae-joon attempt to fix the red car. It’s a little bit more complex than he thought.

While Yoon-young and Hae-joon attempt to figure out their situation, things are shaping up for Soon-ae. Hae-kyung, Eun-ha, and Yu-ri all purchase her new novel Small Door at a bookstore and they come across the novelist herself afterwards. The trio check in with Soon-ae and they’re delighted to see her again. It seems like things are getting better between Soon-ae and her classmates. Soon-ae shares the good news with Yoon-young later on that night and she gifts Yoon-young with a copy of the novel as well. She even wrote a special little message dedicated to Yoon-young who one of the characters in the books was named after. Yoon-young tears up upon reading the special dedication and she gives her mom a warm hug. Aww.

Detective Baek visits Hae-joon at his house and updates him on Yeon-woo. Principal Yoon has been encouraging Yeon-woo to admit to everything instead of trying to sweep everything under the rug. He also hasn’t been feeling all that great so Detective Baek suggests that Hae-joon spend some time with his grandpa. They are family after all. So Hae-joon heads over to Principal Yoon’s house and discovers a bunch of posters and writings written by angry villagers with words “murderer” on the outside entrance to the house. When Hae-joon enters the house to speak with Principal Yoon, his grandpa is relieved to see him again. He’s thankful for Hae-joon who gave him the opportunity to correct his own actions and mistakes. It’s a relief for him.

When Hae-joon returns home that night, he finds Yoon-young waiting outside on the stairs for him. Hae-joon’s chat with his grandpa made him realize a few things and Yoon-young suggests that they spend their extra time in the 1987 world to create some more memories with loved ones. So with that, Hae-joon visits his grandpa the next day and they go out on a fishing trip. Though Hae-joon originally didn’t get along with his grandpa and never harbored any affection or love for him, he slowly began to change. He talks a bit about his dreams to his grandpa and he also wishes that his grandpa would stay healthy. He also wishes that they can go on more fishing trips together. Principal Yoon agrees to all of Hae-joon’s wishes and favors and the grandpa-grandson pair continue to spend time together and create additional memories.

Yoon-young herself is occupied with her parents on a fun adventure to the park. Butttt there’s just one small little thing: she doesn’t know how to ride a bike. So while Soon-ae goes off bike riding into the sunset, Hee-seob stays behind to teach Yoon-young how to ride a bike. Her dad in the 2021 world never taught her how to ride one so she’s not familiar with it but her dad in the 1987 world is different and he gives her instructions on how to do it. Riding a bike does take some practice though and Yoon-young falls down on her first try. Haha, you got this Yoon-young! You can do this! Afterwards, the family all sit down to snack on some tteokbokki. While Soon-ae and Hee-seob bicker about Yoon-young’s injury, all Yoon-young can think about is this special moment with her parents. It admittedly feels unfamiliar because she’s never experienced something this positive and heartwarming with her parents but she hopes to be able to change that and have a much brighter future with them. With that, Hee-seob feeds Yoon-young some of the spicy rice cakes and Yoon-young enjoys this sweet meaningful experience with her parents.

Later on that night, Yoon-young’s grandpa witnesses a young man walking around the neighborhood near Hae-joon’s house. He’s confused as to who the man is. Ooooh, I wonder who it could be. After returning to the village and bidding farewell to his grandpa, Hae-joon returns to his house. It doesn’t take long for the identity of the stranger to be revealed and we learn that the young man is Hae-joon’s son (WOOOOAH!!). He was the one who called Hae-joon on the phone on the night that Hae-joon discovered the red time-traveling car.

So the red time-traveling car gets fixed thanks to Hae-joon’s son and Hae-joon reconvenes with Yoon-young to share the news. They solidify their plans to leave so early the next morning, Hae-joon makes one last stop to visit one last person. It’s none other than Chung-Ah, his mom, and he uses the time to express his honest thoughts and feelings to her. Chung-Ah still plans on giving up her baby to Principal Yoon which Hae-joon isn’t upset or mad about. Instead, he remains encouraging and optimistic. He wishes that his mom would live a good life and not feel guilty for her decision. He’ll live a good life with his grandpa and not resent his mother for abandoning him. If anything, he’ll be grateful to his mom for giving birth to him. So with that, Hae-joon bids farewell to Chung-Ah and he’s able to get the rest of the weight off his chest. He reunites with Yoon-young and he’s confident that the time-traveling attempt will be successful this time. Someone special came to visit him and fix the car. And he also learned that he actually didn’t die in 2022 like how he thought. This was Hae-joon’s special future that he was destined for and he actually did what he was supposed to do in the end. Hae-joon keeps the man’s identity a secret from Yoon-young and they head out.

So the time they’ve been waiting for finally arrives and the couple attempt to travel forward in time to the year 2021 once again. They acknowledge that there were good moments in the 1987 world but that they weren’t meant to stay there and that rather it’s time to go back home. So Hae-joon drives through the time-traveling tunnel and sure enough, they come out on the other side alive and well. It’s a success. When Hae-joon and Yoon-young return to 2021, their phones begin to buzz with tons of notifications. Hae-joon receives a phone call from his grandpa who checks in with him while Yoon-young also receives a phone call from her mom. She tears up upon hearing her mother’s voice and it seems as if all is well. They’re finally back home.

In the present, a lot of things have changed for the better. Yoon-young returns to a new huge house where both of her parents live and they greet her upon seeing her in the house. She had been gone for a month so they’re relieved to see her again. Yoon-young also spots the pen that she gifted her mom back in the 1987 world. She’s glad that the gift made it through and that her mom is still using it to this day. Meanwhile, Hae-joon stops by his grandpa’s house to visit him and just like his grandpa promised, Principal Yoon waited for him for three decades. They went on plenty of fishing trips throughout the years and Hae-joon is happy to see his grandpa once again.

In the newly changed 2021 world, Yoon-young is no longer an editor for Mi-sook. Since her mother is now a successful novelist, she works as an editor for her mother but the mother-daughter pair don’t always get along. They bicker over some of the content in her mom’s draft for an upcoming novel so her parents suggest that Yoon-young start writing her own novel if she has such great ideas instead. And that’s what Yoon-young does while hanging out at Dad’s bar. She prepares her draft for her first novel about a man and a woman who get stuck in the year 1987 after time-traveling together and it doesn’t take long for this so-called man to make an appearance. Yoon-young turns on the TV to watch the news and sure enough, her man Hae-joon appears on the channel to report the news as an anchor. While Yoon-young is busy watching Hae-joon do his job on the TV, Hee-seob reunites with his brother Yoo-seob who also shows up to the bar.

Yoon-young goes to pick up Hae-joon later that night after work and the couple go on a sweet stroll by the river. Yoon-young admits that her parents have been a little suspicious about her since her return. It doesn’t help that the suspicion came about when the family went to a tteokbokki shop and Mom was reminded of the tteokbokki that she, Hee-seob, and (1987) Yoon-young ate on that one day in the park. Yoon-young feigns ignorance and plays it off as if Yoon-young was just Mom’s great friend and that Mom must have been reminded of her special Yoon-young friend but of course, only Yoon-young knows the truth (psttt Mom, it was the same person! Haha).

But things don’t end there. Yoon-young also bumped into Mi-sook at a bookstore in the present. Though Yoon-young obviously recognized Mi-sook and they saw each other, neither of them said a word. Seeing Mi-sook in the present reminds Yoon-young of a conversation she had with Mi-sook back in 1987. Though Mi-sook can’t change what she did, she can change her future and live a more honest life. Upon seeing Mi-sook again in 2021, Yoon-young hopes that Mi-sook changed for the better.

Whether in the 1987 or 2021 world, Hae-joon and Yoon-young’s love for each other remains strong and consistent. While at the beach one day, Hae-joon gifts Yoon-young with a piece of flower which is enough to impress her. As Hae-joon’s son would tell him when they were still back in 1987, Yoon-young liked Hae-joon the most. She didn’t care for anything else. Hae-joon also didn’t let their son interact with Yoon-young for he didn’t want the special surprise to be ruined, haha. So Hae-joon and Yoon-young go on a walk at the beach and they discuss the red time-traveling car again. It’s good for one more round trip to anywhere so Yoon-young suggests that they use that one last opportunity to travel back to 1987 again. This time, they’ll do a proper job to make things right. So the couple agrees to the plan and they head out in the red time-traveling car to the year 1987. If something unexpected were to happen, they shouldn’t worry because their future selves will find them. They’ll always be together and they were meant to run into each other. So with that, Yoon-young and Hae-joon drive in the time-traveling machine back to 1987. This time, they know what to expect and what to do. Lives will be saved, relationships will be strengthened, and more memories will be created.

My Thoughts:

And it’s finally doneeee! Wow, just wow. I actually wasn’t so sure how I felt about the ending to episode 15 but after watching the episodes back-to-back and finishing this episode, I realized that I liked how the drama wrapped things up. Hae-joon and Yoon-young were able to spend more time with their loved ones and in Hae-joon’s case, he was able to forgive his grandpa and mom for their actions and build a stronger bond and connection with his grandpa. Yoon-young and Hae-joon were able to be liberated from all the things that weighed on their chest or felt heavy on their minds. They achieved so much more than they thought when they initially traveled back in time to the 1987 world and they both came out of the mission so much stronger and happier.

When I reflect on ‘My Perfect Stranger,’ I think there were two primary components to the show: the serial murder case and then the stories of Yoon-young and Hae-joon’s characters. The serial murder case served as the catalyst that united our two characters together and led them to each other but I’ll admit that I cared more about Yoon-young and Hae-joon’s stories rather than the serial murder case itself. Sure, the investigation was a bit thrilling and interesting at times but there were too many misleading and confusing moments purposely thrown in there to throw viewers off. The drama dragged things out too long for me to stay completely invested the entire time. You had your original list of suspects which included Min-soo, Hee-seob, and Beom-ryong. Then there was the possibility of Mi-sook and Yoo-seob also being the culprits. The serial murder case felt never-ending and it didn’t help that the drama continued to drag things out until the end of episode 14. In that regard, the drama did so many other things better including the characterization of Hae-joon and Yoon-young which was my favorite part about the drama.