Should have been a 24 episode drama
The drama started out well and if it would have ended on 2/3 of its length - it would have been such a better watch. The story had way too many tropes for sub-plots which it could have easily done without.The good things were:
FL acted really well and had a great comic timing. She and the kid were the only characters who made the last 1/3 a little bearable.
ML is cute and definitely a treat to look at, but FL stole the show for sure.
The female friendship was a treat to watch. I kept expecting someone to backstab/plot and I was pleasantly surprised.
My issues with the drama:
I have a short attention span and the drama has to be really good to hold my attention. The last 10 episodes I had to see while fast forwarding. There was too much going on, a lot of open ends to be closed and there were some very unnecessary revenges, trauma and redemptions happening. I personally don't think that arc was required. All this unnecessary chaos took time away from showing growth of the characters. Second lead essentially woke up one day to realize he didn't treat the second FL right and got her back after minimal pursuing. There is also a 6 year leap which essentially solved all problems on its own without portraying any actual growth.
My recommendation
It's a decent watch with some fast forwading involved. However, it is definitely not rewatch worthy.
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SPICY SWEET ADULT RELATIONSHIP
Begin Again is one of the most adult drama ever watched, ever existed, a true masterpiece. Spicy, charming, passionate, intriguing, true to its heart. Everyone saying a nonsense "lack of logic", i think they are lacking empathy.Reversed clichè, well- developed clichès, reversed stereotypes and critic about stereotypes and sexism.
Every man should be like Ling Rui, every woman should be like Lu Fangning. They are both strong in their own way.
I liked Lu Yiyao and Cai Siyu story, but i can't stand Yiyao despite the good actor.
The second part of the story, yes, it's true that maybe it can lack logic, but think about it. A woman, or better a human being, can they act rationally when they are attacked and stabbed + backstabbed in their work and emotionally? I don't think so.
Spicy atmosphere and flirting is quite the routine in the drama, together with family dynamic and intrigues.
Every character is well developed throughout the whole drama.
Gong Jun and Zhou Yutong are really fit for the role and they act in a very comfortable and natural way, with a very strong and on-point chemistry.
This drama shows how destiny can wait if it's true love, that true love has no meaning if it's too easy to achieve. That sometimes we can be blinded by desire and will, not to be able to recognise what our cherished people can wish for us.
It's a very mature drama, not easy to understand, you have to use brain and understand it, with all its mature topic.
I suggest Begin Again to every person looking for a passionate love story.
10/10 hands down.
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One of the best in terms of Arranged Marriage Drama.
Yay finally finished this one and what a long ride!!!Here are the things that made me love this drama:
- The first ep is really catchy.
- Love their chemistry hehe and there's a lot of lovey dovey scenes.
- One of the dramas that made me cry.
- I love how Zhou Yu Tong nails her character as the bossy FL and funny at the same time.
- Simon Gong is handsome ♥
- The side couples are cute hehe.
- The ending was long and lovely.
- Lastly the OST are good (Both Leads also sang one of the OST which i found so lovely)
There are some point in the drama that it was quite slow but still its super worth to watch. If you're a fan of this kind of dramas then this is a must watch for you.
Special mention to my friend who suggested this to me haha i wouldn't discover this drama because of her :D.
Will definitely give it a rewatch hehe so i need to Begin Again xD.
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It started off strong
I really like this drama in the beginning. I really felt that Fangning's character was one of the most likeable characters in all the CDramas I have watched in the past. She will probably always be my favorite now. One thing I don't like about most female leads in CDramas is how weak their character is and how needy and childish. She was never any of that except when it came to get her husband's love. Still didn't mind it though.I really liked this drama until I was actually bored by episode 18. I was still watching it but not invested any longer. I realized I couldn't stand any of the support character at all. None of their storylines made any sense. Like, PingPing. Why was she still allowed to be so clingy. She had a stalker she was scared of but had did much worse to Dr. Ling. The stalker had only followed her around, she literally tried to sabotage his wedding, his marriage and his job. And their biggest enemy was right there. Why didn't they sue him and charge him with corporate espionage? Why didn't they accuse his company of underhanded tactics to bring them down? It just got to be too stupid by episode 24 because not only did I not understand some of the dumb choices people were making the story was just dragging on by that time.
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A Lovely Slow Burn Romance
I went into this drama not expecting much. A CEO convincing a hot young Dr. to marry her isn't very compelling, but what made this work was the brilliant acting of Zhou Yu Tong and Gong Jun, who managed to show fresh, emotionally vulnerable characters navigating a crazy world. I loved the relationship between Fang Ning and Ling Rui, how it was a slow burn into a deep, understanding romance. There are a few cliché moments, but they're quickly overridden by fun, unexpected dialogue and emotional growth that is rare in dramas these days. I genuinely laughed for the majority their scenes and one argument scene took my breath away at how raw it was. The one major reason to watch: communication!!! I love two adults communicating even if it's not 100%. It gets there eventually!** Minor Spoilers **
Although the "villain" does come off a little too villainy, and the second half starts out promising a tired trope of separation and return, the second half turned out to be my favorite half with how natural Zhou Yu Tong and Gong Jun were with each other and You You. They convinced me they've been a family the whole time and we're just watching their home videos.
I knocked off stars for the repetitive songs, although I thought they were cute in the beginning. But I would have liked some variety. And also for second-leads who just didn't capture me the same way. This story felt very much like it could have been a solid 15-20 episodes and be super strong, but the second leads stories just dragged the story for me (sorry for any fans! I do enjoy the actors, just not their roles this time). I will definitely be re-watching this in the future.
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Enjoyable
A rather delightful watch, I would say.After having watched some more with similar premise, this is one of the better ones.
Brief synopsis:
Female CEO gets pressured by family, sets her eyes on succesfull doctor who agrees to enter a (contractual?) marriage with her. Living together is not easy, and they face challenges both privately and professionally, adding some real emotions into the mix. Can they manage to handle love, and be together? As the title suggests, there will be a "restart" of their relationship.
Some good story arcs and interesting character development.
ML was quite charming, and FL has a good screen presence.
I especially enjoyed the last part (the episodes after the "jump"), even if the reason for the jump was very cliché and stupid.
Yoyo was totally adorable!
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Started with a Nice Twist on Cold CEO as a Woman But Floundered in Cliches Afterward
Love triangles, misunderstandings galore that lasted too long and often didn't make sense, noble idiocy, freaking six-year skip in another country with no contact, rich CEO forcing a contract marriage, childhood friends turned adult romance, scheming stepmother, controlling father, skeevy adopted brother, evil board members, and childhood traumas. Other than amnesia, I think this drama had most of the tropes covered. The one twist was the CEO was a woman, and her forced partner was a man.The good: As the powerful CEO, FL's office wear was haute couture and sizzling, especially the black/white ensembles. And those handbags! Nice. Oddly, when she returned home, she'd change into frumpy housewife dresses in ghastly shades of muted corpse.
The bad: It was hard to believe the motivation of the bad guy. It was even harder to believe that after all his planning and scheming that he made peace at the end.
I liked the leads, but I found the love stories of the two other eventual couples (who were involved in multiple love triangles until the very end) were tedious, repetitive, and distracting.
*MAJOR SPOILER to follow*
I'm glad this is fiction, because if someone had stolen the first five years of my baby's life—something I could never get back—I'd find that unforgivable. I'd jettison 99.99% of drama relationships. I find myself mumbling, "I'd never put up with that!"
The time skip was atrocious, but the supernatural ending with dead sister was worse. Why didn't she show up 16 years earlier and save everyone all the trauma and destruction? I enjoy fantasy and supernatural elements if they're introduced early and follow the drama's parameters, but it's a cheap trick to inject them at the end of a long drama.
TL; DR: Started well and with sizzle, meandered in the middle, and fizzled out at the end. The leads were watchable, but the script failed them.
I added an extra half star for FL's styling as the CEO at the beginning of the drama.
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How to destroy an initially good idea...
Although many reviewers had fun, I thought the second half of the show was bad.This show is obviously an illustration of the old British saying, "It is said, that a woman's heart is like a needle in the bottom of the sea."
FL is completely out of character. Whoever has such a "loving woman" at his side no longer needs enemies. She has literally blown up the great love and the two families right along with it. Families, are in Asia still much more important, than with us in the west. This woman takes no prisoners.
Why does she destroy her families and ML without need? Yes, why?!
One can hardly believe her reason for separation. In order to relieve the ML she only had to go with him to Germany, her career as a businesswoman was over anyway. Happy holydays in Heidelberg!
Even later, FL has many absurd reasons to maintain the separation and withhold the son from the father, Ling Rui. With poor, pretextual excuses. From this we can conclude: the FL was doing quite well, there was no pressure of suffering that would have motivated her to return. Only her business interest finally causes her to return home.
From episode 25 on, the fun was over! But it was clear that FL and ML had to be brought together again. That's what the writers are there for, they'll do it, even if the rind cracks.
It is clear that the authors would not shy away from any kind of remorse kitsch. This is absolutely necessary to make the unpleasant aftertaste of breaking the infamous FL forgotten. The word "sorry," for example, is now on the index in my book.
I guess any relationship would be over after such experiences and after 6 long nasty years. The injuries caused by FL's lack of character and baseness should damage any trust forever. Who wouldn't break up with her? But then the embracing forgiveness by the authors takes hold.
Still, the mood - at least mine - is gone. The lovey-dovey talk, the professions of love in the rest of the event now seem unbelievable. Really a pity , because the tough business woman of the first half was believable and sympathetic in her straightforwardness.
During the second half, you just wait for FL's lapses, even a Love Afair with the childish Shen Zhuo would be believable for her. And let's keep quiet about the finale with Gao Er Fan, the ghost sister and all the sugar coating and marriage proposal the second. Let's hope she doesn't sneak away again, secretly.
But OK, don't panic, it's just show and a lot was nice too. The actors are much better than the plot of the drama, the second half of which really belongs in the trash bin. And of course: the FL is very attractive! (ML too).
Sorry for the harsh review. English subs could be better!
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a whole meal
This could've easily been a normal 24 episode drama, but no...they extended the timeline and gave it a complete ending. love it. The chemistry and acting is soo on point. Even the casting is on point (I'd believe if FL and her sister are blood related irl..but what are the chances). Also the character development is pretty great as well...nothing exaggerated or unreasonable. I don't know what else to say. I would recommend this to everyone.Music and production is on point too. The only reason why rewatch isn't as high as the other stars is because I don't rewatch things that often. And like I said before, this could've easily been a 24 episode drama that I'd still recommend, but the last few episodes after the time skip really bring everything together.
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Enjoyable and Worth Watching
This is a nice easy to watch romcom about a contract marriage. I've seen a few Simon Gong dramas to notice that his acting has improved a lot and he has shown versatility in tackling a more mature role as Dr. Ling Rui in this drama. My first time watching the FL, I think she did a good job playing the role of successful domineering CEO Lu Fang Ning. A strong female lead is very encouraging. Another surprise here is Garvey Jin's good comedic performance as Simon. I liked how some of the second leads started as antagonists then ended up as good guys. It was fun to see how Lu Fang Ning and Tang Ping Ping evolved from being enemies to close friends and how straight-faced cold Simon loosened up to pursue Cai Si Yu. The other supporting cast were also likable and who can forget the adorable Lu You You! I admit there were some draggy parts, for me it was somewhere in the middle before leading up to the time skip. I quite enjoyed the rest of the episodes post time skip, they were more light hearted. I liked the cinematography, editing, locations, wardrobes though I deducted some rating points for little things like make up style which I'm not a fan of and few forgivable plot holes. I found this drama refreshing having some unique spin on common storylines and tropes. Overall, enjoyable and worth watching.Was this review helpful to you?
The type of cliche drama that you'd want to rewatch all over again
A 10/10 for me. Some parts were cliche, but they did it so well I can't complain. FL really did a great job in acting. I really love the actress' speaking voice and her acting. ML was a bit lacking in the acting aspect, but I think it's because of the character he's portraying. Plot twist was a bit predictable, but I'm glad everything was resolved. And I so loved episode 26 onwards.But honestly, the number 1 reason why I stayed and why I loved this so much is because of Gong Jun. Man's handsome as hell. That's also why rewatch value is a 10, but I'd only rewatch from episodes 25 onwards.
Again, eye candy Gong Jun is worth it.
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I hate the female lead with a passion
All I will say about this show is that she left for six years finding out she was pregnant and not letting the ML know and then turns up and despite an apology I never fully feel satisfied at the gravity of her unforgivable actions in robbing her son and his father of five years of his life because she was just selfish and immature. It’s quite disgusting actually that this has scored so high because he forgave her so quickly that iy just made me think this is common place in China for a parent to be separated from their kid for many years and it regarded as being not a big deal because I’ve seen it in many dramas..Was this review helpful to you?
