School 2017 (2017)

Title: School 2017
Hangul: 학교 2017
Writer: Jung Chan-mi
Director: Song Min-yeop, Park Jin-suk
Network:  KBS2
Episodes: 16

School 2017 Cast and Characters

Kim Se-jeong as Ra Eun-ho
Kim Jung-hyun as Hyun Tae-woon
Jang Dong-yoon as Song Dae-hwi
Han Sun-hwa as Han Soo-ji
Han Joo-wan as Shim Kang-myung
Seol In-ah as Hong Nam-joo
Park Se-wan as Oh Sa-rang
Seo Ji-hoon as Yoon Kyung-woo
Rowoon as Issue

School 2017 Ending Explained

Does School 2017 Have a Happy Ending?

School 2017 ends with the main leads Eun-ho and Tae-woon happily dating. Second lead Dae-hwi also gets his happy ending with his girlfriend, Nam-joo.

Eun-ho, Tae-woon, and their friends successfully expose the corruption of their school leading to the removal of the principal, vice principal, and director.

Tae-woon also repairs his tense relationship with his father.

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What Happened to Tae-woon?

At the end of School 2017 episode 15, Tae-woon reveals that he’s Student X in front of the entire school. He plays a video showing the corruption of the principal and vice principal.

Because of everything he did as X, Tae-woon (along with Eun-ho) is expelled from school by his father, the high school director.

Soon after, Tae-woon confronts his father and threatens to expose more of the corruption at his school if he doesn’t allow Eun-ho to return to school.

Tae-woon’s father agrees to let Eun-ho return to school but only if Tae-woon agrees to study abroad.

Tae-woon goes to the police with a USB full of evidence to try and get his father to change. Tae-woon expresses his fear of losing his father to Officer Han. But there is no evidence in the USB showing Tae-woon’s father doing anything illegal.

After speaking with Officer Han and hearing about Tae-woon’s fear of losing him, Tae-woon’s father drastically changes. He takes responsibility for his actions and turns himself in. He steps down as director of Geumdo and decides to accept a job in the countryside as a high school principal.

Tae-woon decides to move to the countryside with his father because he’s the only family he has left.

One year later, Tae-woon is a senior at his new school in the countryside.

He now has a good relationship with his father and even has some admirers at school.

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What Happened to Eun-ho?

Eun-ho has a disciplinary hearing in front of the entire school for her X’s pranks/vigilantism.

After Tae-woon reveals himself as X, she stands by him and announces that she is X’s accomplice. She refuses to let Tae-woon take the fall alone.

Eun-ho is expelled from school along with Tae-woon for their X shenanigans. But later, she is allowed to return after Tae-woon threatens to expose the school’s corruption to his father.

One year later, Eun-ho is a senior and continues to draw webtoons. She is enjoying success with her webtoon series getting more views.

But her dream of attending Hanguk University is seemingly out of reach as she still sits near the bottom of the school rankings.

School 2017 ends with Eun Ho still working to overcome her bus-related trauma with the help of Tae-woon.

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Do Eun-ho and Tae-woon kiss?

No, Eun-ho and Tae-woon do not kiss in School 2017. At least, not on the lips.

Tae-woon only kisses Eun-ho’s cheek during their first official date.

Do Eun-ho and Tae-woon End Up Together?

Yes, Eun-ho and Tae-woon end up together in School 2017.

Despite Tae-woon transferring to a school in the countryside in episode 16, their relationship is still going strong at the end of School 2017.

What Happened to Dae-hwi?

At the end of School 2017, Dae Hwi’s role is mostly acting as a supportive friend to Tae-woon and Eun-ho.

After Tae-woon is expelled, he tries several times to convince him to return to school to no avail. He also goes to the cafe with Bo-ra and Sa-rang to cheer up Eun-ho.

At school, Dae-hwi now has the courage to stand up and speak up not only for himself but also for Nam-joo. He passionately defends Nam-joo when bullies harass her when she returns to school.

Sadly, the ending of School 2017 does not show if Dae-hwi is still pursuing his goal of getting into his dream college. He probably is though considering how hard he was studying throughout the entire drama.

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What Happened to Sa-rang?

One year later, Eun-Ho’s bestie Sa-rang is no longer interested in becoming a civil servant. Instead, she plans to just be a normal citizen.

Who Does Sarang End Up With?

Sarang does not end up with anyone.

She remains just friends with both Kyung-woo and her bias, Issue.

Sa-rang’s boys are now a musical duo performing songs together at school.

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What Happened to Bo-ra?

Bora remains good friends with Eun-ho, Sa-rang, Dae-hwi, and Tae-woon.

Bora mends her friendship with her former friend Youn-gun. One year later, Bo-ra is supporting her as she trains for her police exam.

Do Teacher Shim and Officer Han End Up Together?

Yes, Teacher Shim and Officer Han both remain employed at Geumdo High School and are happily dating at the end of the series.

What Happened to the Rich Kid Bullies?

Sadly, the bullies like Bit-na and Hee-chan face no accountability for their bullying. Hee-chan’s abuse of Bo-ra is swept under the rug.

The bullies don’t get any redemption arcs either.

Do Dae-hwi and Nam-joo End Up Together?

One year later, Dae-hwi and Nam-joo are seniors and still very much in love, making everyone in their school feel very single.

My Thoughts on the Ending of School 2017

Overall, I like the ending of School 2017 and where all our main characters end up.

But there was too much focus on Tae-woon’s relationship with his father. Tae-woon repairing his relationship with his father was important to him but his father’s redemption felt forced.

It was also annoying that their reconciliation led to Tae-woon transferring schools. I wanted more scenes with Tae-woon and Eun-ho being happy and cute at school with their friends. Those are the relationships I’m emotionally invested in.

I was also sad that there wasn’t really any progress when it came to Eun-ho’s dream of going to Hanguk University. Her grades are still awful and it appears she has closed the door on that dream.

I wish that wasn’t the case and Eun-ho was instead shown exploring alternate paths to achieving her dream.

Dae-hwi tutoring her to improve her grades so she can get into Hanguk?

Looking into other schools other than Hanguk?

Entering more art contests?

There’s a whole world of possibilities School 2017 didn’t bother exploring and it’s a shame.

What did you think of School 2017?

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