Give this drama a shot!
If you are wanting a love-romance plot then this drama is not for you. If you are here just for Shen-yue, this drama is not for you. Vivienne Tan is the narrator here so I believe she has a stronger role but who knows? I haven't watched it all.It has a bittersweet story to all characters. This drama is not focused on just a single character and truly brings out everyone's personality. It has covered many topics that we face in daily life. From family problems, mother-daughter relation, fear of not being enough, personal boundary, childhood crush to amazing friendship! You name it.
It does has many characters because the plot revolves around four girls but trust me, it does its job of not overshadowing but keeping it fun and exciting at the same time. I loved to see Leon Leong from METEOR GARDEN casted in this drama. His character is not that overpowering but sweet and subtle.
The thing I would like to see was a bit differences in the personality of girls rather than jumping into the same stereotype where one of them is nerdy, one is boyish, one is overly sensitive princess and the other one is sassy rich girl. But as the title says, BE YOURSELF.
I hope this drama lives upto its name and succeeds to convey its full potential.
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This review may contain spoilers
Between Realism and Clichés
Since this drama clearly tries to take a realistic approach from the start, I’ll also give my review in a realistic way.The good:
The show is quite detailed in setting up props that match the characters and their economic background.
The acting is solid and emotional.
The cinematography is also good.
The bad:
I feel like the drama doesn’t want to focus too much on romance and tries to highlight personal growth instead, but somehow every character’s main issue still ends up revolving around romance—as if people can only grow after finding or losing romantic love.
I also feel the messages are delivered way too directly. I’ve only watched 6 episodes, but there are already lots of cliché scenes that, based on my own college experience, don’t feel realistic at all.
For example, those intense personal talks with a thesis advisor. From my perspective, that feels unrealistic. An advisor isn’t the same as a homeroom teacher or school counselor. At least in my country (or maybe just at my university), professors only really care about GPA and their students’ courses.
This is actually the first drama I’ve seen where characters have non-academic interactions with their advisor, and honestly it feels awkward. Also, why is the professor always on campus? Apart from the head of department, I rarely see professors hanging around that much.
Lang Lang’s character growth also seems to come mainly from her advisor’s advice, which (to me) undermines her independence. At the end of the day, that’s still just personal opinion, but because it’s coming from a professor, it clouds her logic. That’s not the kind of development I’d expect in this genre.
The “tomboy girl” trope—no makeup, no dresses—feels pretty stale. At first I liked her strong personality, but little by little she’s made more dependent on her advisor, which I didn’t enjoy.
Then there’s the whole T-shirt distribution scene to stop campus gossip, and everyone just agrees to wear them. It looks like a “cool” plot idea, but it’s not realistic. In college, people usually don’t bother clarifying gossip—they just watch from the sidelines. Just because someone initiates something doesn’t mean the majority would instantly agree, especially since the drama never explains why they’d agree to wear the shirts.
Another example is Fan Xiao Yu. She was supposedly “cut off” financially by her dad and forced to live independently, but she still lives like she’s getting allowance every month. There’s no real struggle. Yes, she sells her belongings, but her lifestyle doesn’t match what she’s selling. And eventually, selling personal stuff will hit a wall—you can’t just keep selling forever.
And one scene that really bothered me was during the military training. Ma Yiran pulled Lang Lang’s zipper down to “show her how not to overheat,” then zipped it back up. To me, that’s problematic—it’s harassment, not romance, and it shouldn’t be romanticized.
I’ve only seen 6 episodes, but honestly it feels like watching a webinar where the speaker keeps making sure I catch the “lesson.” It’s too on-the-nose for my taste. But maybe other viewers can still enjoy it more than I did.
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Drama Persahabatan
Saya sangat merekomendasikan drama ini. Sangat seru untuk ditonton. Drama ini berfokus pada kisah persahabatan antar 4 wanita yang berada pada kamar yang sama di Universitas.Saya suka ketika mereka tumbuh dari masa muda mereka menjadi dewasa. Dewasa disini dalam hal perilaku, pikiran dan pilihan² yang mereka ambil. Mungkin berbeda pendapat dan pilihan dengan orang lain. Tapi mereka memilih sendiri bagaimana pilihan yang mereka ambil mendewasakan diri mereka.
Selain berisi kisah persahabatan, ini juga tentang impian, keluarga dan di bumbui dengan sedikit kisah romansa. Kisah ini benar-benar membuat kita teringat kembali masa-masa perkuliahan. Dengan kepolosan akan situasi sosial di masyarakat. Namun, perlahan kita juga akan menemukan bahwa ternyata kita telah tumbuh dewasa. Saya tidak merasa menyesal setelah menontonnya. Dan saya harap kalian juga sama.
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