Sunshine of My Life

Overall well made, although a lot of familiar tropes

Overall this is a quite well made drama, and worth watching if you normally enjoy romantic dramas. It does have several familiar tropes though, so don't expect huge surprises or great amount of originality.

Personally I liked both of the main leads (Zhang Han and Xu Lu) – especially him grew on me as the series progressed.
I also liked the 2nd ML (Hong Yao) and the supporting role played by Wang Xuan.

From my point of view I believe the story could have benefited if they skipped the subplot schemed up by Bai (Man Man), as that just was a bit too much for my liking.

Sadly, the lightning work and sound was occasionally a bit poor in some of the later episodes.

The soundtrack was a bit different, I would say, but quite pleasant to listen to.

This series fall into the line of C-dramas promoting (high-lighting) a specific topic or field; in this case Chinese fashion and culture. I don't mind it, but it can become a bit too much every now and then (too blatantly "promotional").

I don't regret watching this, but I can't really remember much from this show either now that some time has passed.

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This is a cute story if you are not into martial arts, fantasy, and historic dramas. It is just simply a love story! I love the main actor, Zhang Han... I noticed he likes this kind of role. I also loved his acting in "Here to Heart". My second time watching Tang Ming Xuan who played the main female lead role, Mo Fei. I would love to see more of her in dynasty roles... Hong Yao in the main role has done plenty of dramas but only in support roles. I loved him in this drama. I hope to see more of him.

The storyline was ok, the actors and actresses that carried this story. They all did great! It did take me 10 episodes before I became focused. I think if it wasn't for Zhang Han, I would've passed it up. It may not be bad for others to watch.

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First series that made me wish for a two person only cast

First of all, most if not all of the grade goes to the two main actors. Excellent chemistry, very good acting. What absolutely did not work for my was everybody else that appeared on the screen. Be it the parents, the childhood friend that has been in love with the ML since the womb, the absolute pest that was the 2ML. Every single one of them got on my nerves in different ways, though the end result was the same for all of them: I could not, for the life of me, stand another 30 seconds watching them.

Right now I am on episode 42 and I won't drop it because I've come this far. What I want to say to someone that intends on watching this one: if you're a fan of the two leads, do it. If you want a romantic, sweet and very, very healthy and discerning relationship, do it, though please do bear in mind that the supporting cast ABSOLUTELY DESTROYS THIS and not in a good way. Every single rage moment that I had as a spectator was because some incredibly annoying and disposable character was pissing me the hell off. The female lead had the very refreshing approach of putting those snobbish rich people in their place. She had her annoying moments too, but they came and went fast.

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I wanted to watch this drama in its entirety because I really, really liked the leads and their romance. FL was independent, behaved maturely and was a sincere character. I liked ML's quiet, business-like attitude. Loved when he wore the glasses - he looked so scholarly. I also actually learned something about traditional Chinese fashion and embroidery. I like dramas that educate as well as entertain. HOWEVER, I made the decision to not finish this drama because of all the old, worn out tropes that were pulled out of the scriptwriter's back pocket and applied in order to drag this drama out to 40+ episodes.

Soon we had the typical meddlesome love rivals and the control freak parents start to cause trouble. I'm SO done with this formula!!! I want to watch a romance, not a soap opera, ok? First of all, it's really pathetic when the female love rival has to bypass ML and go to FL to try to scare/guilt her into dumping him. So, basically, the only way you're going to get this guy is to clear the field of any other competition? Pathetic. And all the boo-hooing about how she gave up this and that for ML, which somehow entitles her to his love. News flash, honey, you can't force someone to love you, and if you truly loved him, you wouldn't be expecting anything in return. He never asked you to give up this and that; it was your decision. You had how many years with him? If he hasn't married you by now, then he ain't interested. As Dirty Harry says: a man's (woman's) got to know his (her) limitations.

As for male love rival, I just wanted this arrogant, pushy brat with ugly clothes to go away! For a fashion designer, his own attire was terrible. Made my eyes want to bleed at times. His costume girl/guy needed to be fired from this drama.

Then we have the harpy, Bai, and her imaginary victimhood. Why do all these guys prefer FL to you? One word - genuineness. I understand the need to leave room for character development but does the starting character have to be so annoying and unlikeable?

Now we get to the worse of the worse - ML's mom & her 'family background' snobbery disguised as 'what makes a good marriage partner'. For some reason, she seems to think ML is too young to chose his own spouse (even though he looks 35+ and can run a corporation in a competent manner) so she needs to do it for him, even though her first choice had disastrous results because he didn't love the girl. So, we have to spend nearly the entire drama with mom pushing her preferred choice at ML and then loudly caterwauling when he resists her efforts. Not only that but then she pouts and declares that she's not going to acknowledge his choice. So immature and yet this woman is supposed to be wise enough to choose the right wife for him? And what does dad do? He let's mom caterwaul rather than telling her to shut the hell up and stop meddling. Why are dads usually portrayed as wishy-washy?

So, although I loved the leads and really wanted to finish watching their romance, for the above reasons, I'm done with this drama. I'm just tired of this formula being used over and over again. Why not reduce the episodes and focus on the leads' relationship and romance instead of throwing the kitchen sink at them? Using the same formula over and over again is lazy and uncreative. Such a cookie cutter method. Really, this is just another frustrating C-Drama romance (soap opera) where the leads are unwllling to be transparent with each other, causing unnecessay misunderstandings.

I gave 7 stars because of the old, worn out formula of meddlesome love rivals and parents. I wouldn't recommend this drama unless you don't mind watching this kind of interference from outside sources. I, personally, didn't want to end up screeching at the TV like Mother Tang, but if you can handle it, go for it - there are romantic moments worth watching. Maybe the best thing to do is watch with your finger on the fast forward button so you can skip to the romance and leave out the angst.

Favorite scene - can't remember which episode but it's close to the beginning: ML is imaginarily dancing with FL as a slow, romantic jazz song is playing. So sweet and utterly romantic!

My objective in writing reviews is to save viewers like me the time and emotional roller coaster rides. With 40+ espisodes, that's a lot of time invested, and you ought to know the good, bad & ugly before going in. I KNOW the Chinese can tell a good story without using all these tropes. Go Ahead, My True Friend, Arsenal Miltary Academy, Be My Hero, Love Script, Coup de Foudre, Under the Power, My Little Happiness are good examples of entertaining plots that don't use love rivals & parents to cause endless angst

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Modern Day Love @ it’s Finest

A workaholic general manager of a fashion group company + a young woman about to study abroad. Can their connection survive the distance?

Okay, I’m just going to start by telling you that I am in no way a fashionista. Do I like pretty clothes? Yes. Are they a big focal point of my life? Not at all. I mention this for anyone who’s unsure about watching this drama since the plot line revolves around the world of fashion - that’s not an interest of mine but I still thoroughly enjoyed this drama thanks to the Leads’ stellar chemistry. Even though I didn’t understand all the fashion terminology or the business decisions or even the reverence & value certain design techniques hold, I still appreciated the hard work the characters were putting in to make their goals & dreams a success. You don’t have to understand someone’s visions to admire their heart. 💜

This show falls in the opposites attract trope. He’s from a wealthy & affluent family while she comes from a lower income, single parent home. He’s the head of a well-established company while she’s still in school. She’s quirky, optimistic, & a dreamer while he’s more serious, task-oriented, & focused. None of these things are marks against them, I’m simply stating some of their differences.

Despite these things, though, this duo forms a friendship after an initial misunderstanding at their first meeting. The ML is entranced by her from the start, but the FL isn’t quite so impressed. Nonetheless, after their paths keep crossings & their interactions increase, she finds her feelings for him morphing into something more than a general liking. Then the annoying female wannabe love rival gets in her head & makes her doubt him, leading her to leave for her studies abroad without letting him explain. That doesn’t deter the ML, though. As soon as he’s able, he’s following behind her to figure out what happened.

Oh, how I love his pursuit of her. While I think the FL acted somewhat childish & petty with her refusal to just hear him out & trust his side of the story, I do understand that she was operating out of a desire to protect her heart while believing he was involved with another woman. Let me tell you - I LOVE the scene where he finally puts those notions to rest, confesses she’s the one he wants, & kisses her for the first time. It’s a fan your face & melt your screen type of kiss, which I am such a fan of! 🔥🫠 I’m so glad that this drama didn’t have any lame, fish-kisses but instead gave us lotsssss of good smooches for us romance lovers to enjoy!

Like I mentioned earlier, the Leads have amazing chemistry & it never eases off. I know sometimes, once the Leads are finally a couple, their chemistry & flirting kind of fizzles out {{ PSA to the writers - we don’t want that!! Make their chemistry strong for the whole show! }}, but that’s not at all the case with this drama. This duo is affectionate & very clearly attracted to one another the whole way through. 🤗

Once they clear up the initial misunderstandings, both confess their feelings, & officially get together - that’s it. They don’t let anyone come between them (& boy do the love rivals try! 🤦🏻‍♀️😡) This couple actually t.a.l.k.s. to each other when crud happens which is super refreshing (thank you for no drama-trauma, Writers!) I know others have complained about the FL’s “baby-ness” when she’s with the ML, but I didn’t find it annoying at all. I actually quite enjoy their duality - both were cute & quirky with each other while being strong & no-one’s fool with the rest of the world.

I’m a BIG fan of them not being weak in the face of the rivals or giving those people undue attention. They both put boundaries in place with those pesky “friends” who kept trying to pursue them & break them up. I think this shows that the Leads have respect for themselves & for their significant other. There’s no need to cater to & entertain toxic people. Buh-bye, delusional people! (Although they didn’t actually go away in this drama, this just finally clued in that they didn’t stand a chance & eventually moved on. 🤷🏻‍♀️)

One thing I didn’t like was the ML’s mother. Um, lady - who do you think you are that you deem yourself so high & mighty that the FL isn’t worthy of your family name? Like, really?? We’re all human beings, equal in value. I’m glad the ML NEVER gave into her selfish demands, though I wish she would’ve had a harsher wake up call instead of them just going about their lives & waiting for her to get with the program. BUT I understand it’s his mom & outside of this annoyance of hers, they had a good relationship. I loooooved the way the FL handled her - kudos, girl! She stood up for herself while remaining respectful of her position as an elder.

I could rave longer, but I’d rather you stop reading this & just push play to experience this drama’s beauty for yourself. 💕

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.15💋
- Together : ep.16 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp : Nope 💍

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If you liked Boss & Me you’ll love this

Watching this drama brought back so many memories of Boss & Me. It’s like an upgraded modern version of it. I like that the female lead is a lot smarter and more confident in this one. She’s not shy or unsure of herself. And the romance has a lot more spice to it. The male lead is very similar to his character in Boss & Me which is fine with me because I loved him in that drama. It’s very similar in that it had your typical cliche second leads that were obsessed with the main leads and caused a lot of problems. And there was a big gap in the leads ages and social status which caused problems for them. So, just like Boss & Me, the basic setting of the drama isn’t fresh or new. But the dialogue and how they interacted with each other was very touching. I also appreciated that there were no tripping into the male leads arms, no drunk confessions, no noble sacrifice, no unnecessary breakups, and no accidental kisses. There was some angst and tension but it was never overboard or too much. And most conflicts were resolved pretty quickly which I prefer.

The romance was refreshing because it grew slowly over time and seemed very realistic. It was surprisingly mature and had a natural feel to it too. There’s lots of steamy kisses and skinship. If you haven’t seen this male lead kiss before you’re in for a treat. He is very passionate and tends to dive right in enthusiastically, especially after she gives him a brief peck on the lips which he always claims isn’t enough. I really liked the romance in this drama. The leads were very comfortable and flirty together and had amazing chemistry.

I loved the female leads character. Not only is she smart, confident, and talented, but she is also a gifted clothing designer. Her clever creations fusing Eastern and Western styles catches the fashion industry’s attention. But her goal of getting Chinese embroidery and fabrics into mainstream fashion throughout Europe is a lofty one most consider unattainable. She has an uphill battle ahead of her in the fashion industry. Unfortunately, at the same time she also has to deal with several jealous females that constantly cause problems for her. One is jealous of her successful career, another is jealous of her boyfriend, and the other is jealous of her popularity. I see a lot of this at my job so I could definitely relate to it. There’s way too many women being jealous of each other instead of empowering each other nowadays. But the way the female lead stands up for herself and shuts down her haters with clever responses made me admire her so much. I really enjoyed watching her character learn and grow.

The male lead reminded me a lot of the character he portrayed in Boss & Me. He’s rich, smart, talented, and a super romantic boyfriend. He is put into a difficult situation by the second female lead. Despite his clear lack of interest in her romantically, she sacrifices everything to be by his side and help him. She gives up her dreams of being an artist and switches to his college to learn business management. Then she becomes a constant and indispensable fixture in both his family’s business and in his families personal lives. Her actions puts tremendous pressure on him to be with her. Everyone, especially his mother, thinks that he is obligated to marry her despite his lack of romantic feelings for her. Since she’s sacrificed so much it seems like the most honorable thing to do. So many look down on him when he rejects the second female lead. He ends up having to fight for his right to choose who he dates and marries. I admired him for never wavering in his firm stance to be with the woman he loved. He made it clear he would marry her or not marry at all. Yet he was still honorable and respectful to his family. You just can’t help but love him.

For the most part this drama was way above average. The acting was phenomenal which is not surprising since the leads are well known veteran actors. And the set design and wardrobe were gorgeous. It was obviously a big budget drama. The biggest negative about it was the very cliche setting of the drama. And there were a lot of annoying jealous females that go a bit too far. The other negative is the female leads hairstyle. Why do Chinese dramas make the young female leads have childish hairstyles? Seeing the female lead run around in braided pigtails or a braided ponytail for the first half of the drama was annoying. Then in the second half she often has the “Apple hair” where a small portion of her hair is pulled up into a small ponytail on top of her head. It isn’t attractive and looks far too childish for a graduating college student in her mid 20’s starting a career as a designer. Fortunately she is very pretty and her wardrobe was gorgeous so the pigtails and Apple hair didn’t look too bad. It’s just sad that we didn’t get to see her long beautiful hair down in a more mature hairstyle very much.

In conclusion, if you can get past the cliche setting of this drama you’ll love it. It’s cliche but cliche done right. I don’t mind a cliche drama if the acting is good, the leads are likable, and the chemistry is on fire. And this drama has all of that and more. These talented actors bring their characters to life and make you love and admire them. I loved all of the characters, even the trouble makers (well except for maybe one of them). There’s also a couple of side romances that were cute and fun to watch too. This is a very sweet light fluffy romance drama with just the right amount of angst and tension. If you’re looking for a riveting action packed thriller or a melodrama with lots of angst then this isn’t for you. But if you like sweet romantic dramas where the leads communicate well, have great chemistry, and have a healthy relationship, then you should watch this drama. Personally I loved it and will definitely watch again in the future.

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Another Domineering CEO Romance with some redeeming qualities . . .

Buy-in to this drama is easy - the romantic chemistry is excellent. All the characters are believably in the fashion industry, talk intelligently about it, and there's a lot of interesting tidbits about fabrics, embroidery etc. On top of that, all the clothes and fashion the characters are wearing are really stylish and a joy. . . . so then why drop it?

It is a very retro drama, is the reason - with many irrational and emotional women characters. The domineering CEO is truly old-fashioned. He is of course more important than anyone else, and thus he should have the power and control over the relationship. Everyone must trust his priorities and his judgment, those who do not (mostly women) are foolish.

As it drags along, the mysteries resolve in the same lacklustre way. Our domineering CEO solves everything, and if he can't, his plucky romantic interest will solve it for him. There's no real crisis or point where he loses his cool, and without any sophisticated themes, it all just drags . . .

Worth a try if domineering CEOs are your thing but it lost my interest .

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Learned lots about Chinese embroidery and cloth

Things I liked:

1) Features a lot of Chinese embroidery and fabric. And not just one region's techniques, but various people groups, styles and eras. A lot of these techniques are thousands of years old. It's a bit of a history lesson, but I love it.
2) Leads. I like the actors and I think they portrayed their roles well. I especially liked how they wrote the FL's character. She's confident but not arrogant, stands her ground but is kind. Lovable, and definitely not annoying.
3) Beautiful framing. From scenery to the runway, I thought the shots and framing were beautiful.
4) Music fit the drama. Although nothing stood out, the music was fitting.

Things I didn't like:
1) Pacing. History and fashion lessons aside, the pacing of the whole drama was slow. Very slow. I felt like watching the drama at 1.5 speed was more fitting. A lot of slow walking down the street or staring off into space shots.
2) I thought the "bad guys" could have had more dimension to them. Perhaps more character development? I don't know, they seemed kind of flat.

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If only the amazing chemistry was the focus

The OTP had amazing chemistry! ML really went after FL and tried to fix his shortcomings when she was hesitant and tried to reassure her that they could have a good ship. FL not getting it at first (as usual) was annoying but her hesitation once she understood was realistic. Then comes all the side story and SLs to make a big mess and drag the whole show. The usual jealousy shtick - although warranted this time as SFL and especially SML were obsessive. The antagonists justification were absurd and they really needed therapy for their made up issues with FL. It really could have been 24 eps and an amazing story with a great cast. I’m only giving it 7 because of the chemistry and Zhang Han doing a phenomenal job of showing he really had the hots for his gal.

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Brings me back to 2000s drama vibes

Here are just some of the tropes you'll see: overbearing CEO, determined and upbeat female lead, business politics/change of control, serious hospital scenes, disapproving parent, light-hearted second couple, misunderstandings and revenge, betrayal, and incredibly annoying/clingy second leads. Combined with the relatively long 45 eps for a modern drama, the dragginess accentuates the full experience of watching a drama that feels like it was written in 2007.

Not a pro nor a con but this drama really does feel like those "stereotypical" Chinese dramas from the 2000s - when a drama is overloaded with tropes. Although the plot is filled with it, it's still enjoyable with great acting, solid chemistry between leads, and an intriguing plot. I wouldn't write home about it but it combines the 2000s drama plot atmosphere with a 2020s polish. I'll start with the pros.

Pros: Acting is on point. The leads were great and very limited dubbing which is great. Although there's very serious parts, the couple's relationship is never really in turmoil which is always refreshing to see (no dumb breakups!!!). OST is solid and I particularly liked the more traditional music influence. The business side is about fashion which is a breath of fresh air as well.

Cons: A bit too typical and predictable. Although it was great that the couple's relationship was healthy for once (in a CEO drama!!), the rest of the plot isn't anything to write home about. Although at times, it hooks viewers to see how the leads are going to pull something off with satisfying gratification moments sprinkled throughout, it's still too draggy. 45 episodes is a tad too long -- cutting 10-15 episodes would have helped.

The biggest complaint (other than being too predictable) are the second leads. The second leads are too madly in love with the leads, and their behavior spans essentially 40 of the 45 episodes. This adds to the predictability, drag, and angst. It makes even less sense considering the main couple is such a healthy one; having such obsessive second leads was hard to bear. The second male lead had it worst - stalkerish, doesn't take no for an answer, stubborn.

The parts of the plot that are more character-driven were great. But the parts with external plot points were bad. The villains and second leads were very disappointing.

Overall, not a bad watch. I thoroughly enjoyed it but it's not without flaws. Too long and tropey are my main concerns, with one dimensional second leads. If you watch it for the main couple, fashion, or if you want a show with a little bit of "every type of plot", you won't be disappointed.

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Realistic, romantic, intelligent drama (just one spoiler)

First, let me say that Sunshine of My Life is one of my go-to dramas to re-watch as it is a relatively rare type - the couple, once together stays together, despite difficulties and challenges.

The ML (Zhang Han is one of my favorite actors) and FL (Xu Lu now one of my favorite actresses) have such wonderful chemistry. Their acting skills make Mingxuan and Mo Fei seem like a real couple, with affectionate little touches & looks from each of them. And I love that, thought a confident CEO, Mingxuan isn't cold and/or mean. He knows how to laugh, has fun lightly teasing his assistant, Yang Guang (played terrifically by Li Xin Zhe!) and is a little innocent in love, allowing Yang Guang to teach him a bit. But I really love that he isn't afraid of hard work. His intelligence & hard work ethic helps to keep his company flourishing .

Mo Fei is just a fantastic character; strong, capable, independent , talented woman without being whiney or the typical "crying excessively" type. She never feels sorry for herself and always pushes forwarded to fulfill her own dreams, not relying on anyone but using her own "smarts" and talents. Mo Fei and Minxuan were so REAL & handled problems as adults, being willing to forgive each other and understand each other's views with time & thought. AND THEY NEVER BROKE UP! OUTSTANDING! :) And I loved that they WAITED to sleep together until they knew that they were truly in love, not just in lust!

Also, Mo Fei can sure dish out to others what others dish out to her -- the SFL in particular. Mo Fei is the epitome of the word "sassy" and takes down the SFL with words, with eloquence and style, rather than the tricks the bitchy SFL uses. Wang Rui Zi played Xueling exactly right! Why are so many SFL characters so self absorbed that they can't tell that the ML isn't in love with them? If the ML is only being friendly, the SFL ALWAYS thinks that means that he loves her and wants to marry only her!

All of the actors played their parts beautifully, especially the SML. Hong Yao plays him as so arrogant that even when the ML and FML are together, he continues to think he can change her mind (which is why he moved into the apartment beside her in France). I also love the character of his sister, Fang Qian (played so well by Wang Xuan). She is a little TOO sweet for my taste, but the character calls for that and Wang Xuan delivers it beautifully.
Mo Fei's relationship with her brother Mo Fan (played terrifically by Jerron Wu) portrays a real brother-sister dynamic and it's hilarious and heartwarming.

The other characters: Minxuan's parents, Mo Fei's mother, Mingxuan's cousin, and all of the others (especially Cheng Yang the new designer at Mingyuan for whom Mo Fei is his assistant (played with such class by Xu Ge), as well Master Li, the owner of the embroidery workshop, Suzhou. (played gently & beautifully by Qian Jie)

The only problem I had, and why I gave the music a 9.5, was the song "Falling for You" which played throughout the drama. It very quickly became annoying for me.

The clothing in this drama were outstanding! You really felt they worked in the FASHION industry!

Over all this drama is a solid 10, in my opinion. VERY rewatchable, VERY realistic and intelligent. Highly recommended!

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