I love this drama
I was waiting this drama to start but how fast it was get over . Hope it keep on going. But.....After watching 29th episode ,i was excited to see what would be the next because 29th episode was enough to show the happy ending . But it has 30th episode so I started imagine that it might have their friend's story male lead's friend confessed lead actress' friend to get married . So I thought drama would show their marriage or may be how lead's life move on after having child . Something like that but last episode reduced that excitement . Drama had shown their past ,how they met ,break up and finally met . So little upset with last part .
I love this drama . It was fabulous,
Really . Still I am watching it some scenes repeatedly in YouTube . Female lead is my favourite ,I hardly missed her any drama . In this drama both actors nailed it . Their chemistry was awesome and their friends's love story also cute.
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Doesn't get more natural/realistic than this
Whose filmography should I follow? Is it the actors? The writers? The directors? The intimacy coach? Because all of them did a phenomenal job. In cdrama land, we honestly don't get enough romance stories featuring MATURE, ADULT, REALISTIC characters that properly communicate and maintain a HEALTHY relationship. In addition, the level of intimacy is sometimes so awkward or forced or not how you'd imagine two lovers acting like in real life so it makes you less engrossed in their relationship. However, in Road Home that was not the case. No one could look at Gui Xiao and Lu Chen and say they weren't meant to be, that they weren't madly in love. There was not an iota of awkwardness to be found watching their chemistry on screen. Their relationship was so freaking beautiful to witness, it gave me all the feels and I was swooning left and right and smiling everytime they were on screen.For the most part, this drama makes you feel good all the time. The side characters were all positively written and it was so nice seeing the various friendships the leads had and how everyone was so loyal and helpful towards each other.
Overall, I highly enjoyed this for the amazing romance, the natural dialogues, realistically written characters and plot lines and beautiful scenery.
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Home is a Person.
Lu Chen and Gui Xiao's love story is beautiful; as beautiful as the drama's setting.You will feel the same love they are portraying. The story is about first love story, clingy type FL, with nice kiss scenes, long distance relationship, and swoon worthy.
I can feel the love, longing and heartbreak. I love the excitement they feel when they see each other. Since the ML and FL are in a long distance relationship, every time they see each other is always exciting and full of clinginess.
Not every person can handle this kind of relationship.
I love all the cast. I love the SWAT Squad.
The ML is everything you need in a man. His only flaw is his complicated family which is not his fault. The FL is strong, independent woman which makes her a perfect partner.
It is a slow burn drama and there are a bit boring scenes, but overall the drama is amazing.
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This review may contain spoilers
Slow but Beautiful
Road Home was a gentle love story between two people with nearly everyone against their relationship, especially family and friends. The pace was slow, but the actors kept this viewer's attention. The ML, especially, did a notable job with his stoic, quiet presence, mainly emoting from his eyes.The Good:
• The cinematography was outstanding. The snowscapes were spectacular. I was bundled up in my cozy red blanket while it snowed outside my window in real life, but my view wasn't nearly as magical as a night scene in Qining with the houses reflecting colored light on the wintery snow. The desert scenes were equally majestic with mountains, canyons, and gorges dominating the screen.
• Once the ML and FL were grown, they acted like adults in love. The FL was a refreshing departure from the 30-years-old-acting-like-a-12-year-old virginal damsel. She actively pursued the ML and admired his body openly.
The Bad:
• Unless you're a completionist, there's little need to watch the last episode, as it's a rehash of previous scenes which have already been viewed multiple times, and it felt anti-climatic. Good scenes were shown repeatedly in long flashbacks throughout the drama. Cutting or shortening those repetitive flashbacks could have trimmed at least four episodes (conservatively) and tightened up the story telling.
• Chinese dramas (and Korean ones, to a lesser extent) often like to rehabilitate, overlook, or forgive the villains. A violent, abusive, alcoholic man who cheated on his wife, beat his children, and actively tried to destroy their futures realized the error of his ways, stopped drinking, returned to his wife, and became a better man. If only life worked that way!
• There's more rah-rah propaganda than action.
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Stuck in traffic on a very long winded Road Home
My education in Chinese dramas continues apace with this romantic offering. This is 100% about relationship; every sigh, every tear, every regret, every breath, every tender touch, every long lingering look (and there are a glut of them to the point of nausea) is lovingly laid out for you. So if you’re a romance junkie, this one’s totally for you. And the leads make a very creditable job of the chemistry even though the script circumnavigated the globe rather than let them get skin on skin.Quite how they managed to act this well amidst the shambling, third rate budget production going on around them is to their credit, because once it strays into any other territory it’s like sailing through lumpy porridge. I recommend just scooting through and only watching the scenes between the leads in the first half, then skip to the end. You won’t miss anything and then the drama might seem quite good and you’ll be less likely to fall asleep at the wheel.
The ML works as a bomb disposal expert (for once the job matched the personality) however, there’s a laughable lack of procedure around it. Although, it does do a good job of highlighting the stress to the family of people involved in such dangerous work. The FL is cast in the stay-cheerful-be-long-suffering-self-sacrifice-to-the-end part: “I am willing to donate half my husband for the country”. ’Nuff said. But at least she has a professional job and a life of her own. As with most Chinese stuff, it’s got an education emphasis, complete with nifty tips and tricks. This one centres on how to be grown ups and have a long-distance relationship.
The plot has the feel of the writer gets up in the morning and thinks, as they chomp their toast and gulp their coffee, okay I need to go shopping, get the kids to basketball, ring my mother, renew the car insurance, organise a Creatively Exhausted Writers support group meeting and, oh, script the next episode. Hmmm, not got a lot of time to be imaginative today so they can just chat aimlessly for half an hour, then I’ll use that idea I had lying around from the last drama I wrote.
The problem being, they think that every morning so there’s not a lot of forward planning going on with the result that there is very little flow or cohesion, just a random sequence of scenes. Some of the playing out of crises is — well—embarrassing. Obviously where research and experience are absent, fantasy has a ball. Actually there’s very little plot at all and it could all be over and done with in six episodes including plumbing some depth. The whole thing is a perfect definition for “filler episodes”.
Okay you have to have a little bit of sympathy when they obviously had the brief to talk up some barren desert and sell it like it’s prime Manhattan real estate. Not sure what Mandarin word they actually used, but “pretty” is not what springs to mind. Don’t get me wrong here, I genuinely love the outback, but my descriptive words and feelings might sound more like awe inspiring, powerful, unlimited and silent. And I wouldn’t go out there in a skirt and high heels.
As for the dialogue; banal and directionless come to mind with occasional sparks of insight between the leads, as though someone on the writing team had some time to think creatively that day. And the pacing? It’s a very, very long road home and expect to crawl along like you’re stuck in traffic.
There’s not a great deal of understanding about how to build tension using cinematography, editing and soundtrack. Oh, just do normal tracking shots with some random music over the top, then a couple of close-ups—that’ll work. Or continuing to film in an urban location where the wind was so hard into the microphone it almost drowned out the dialogue. At times the editing is really bad, with lots of scenes rammed together like shish kebab on a skewer. Even on HD streaming some of it looked out of focus and badly lit.
On a more serious note, there’s a storyline about a kid being educated away from home, who gets shunted around like a pass the parcel. Even when he was at home, he spent long periods on his own whilst his father worked away. Then we find out that his new main carer has 200 days of business trips a year. I found it profoundly sad and not least because the writing team thought that was a situation they didn’t really need to investigate much.
What my rating means: 4+ I forced myself to go through to the end of it, but only because I was committed to writing the review. It annoyed the hell out of me. Actively avoid.
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Love love love this drama
Let me start by saying I love both Jing Bo Ran and Tang Song Yun. Their acting and chemistry in this drama is top notch. I got hooked after watching the first episode.I like how this is not like those typical cliche drama but more like a slice of life sort of story. The love story between Lu (Yan) Cheng and Gui Xiao is relatable. What I meant by this is that some of the problems they faced are probably problems that some people have experienced in real life. Some of us probably still love someone we have broken up with ages ago but how many of us get a second chance with that person. So personally this story really warms my heart and makes me smile watching it. Of course having two good looking people as the main characters of the drama also helps :)
I could not finish writing this review without mentioning the beautiful snowy locations they shoot the drama at. It must be really cold for them but it looks really pretty on the screen.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this drama and recommend anyone looking for a new drama to check out this production. Although I am sad that this drama is over, I am looking forward to future works by Jing Bo Ran and Tang Song Yun. I will definitely rewatch this drama in the future :)
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A drama that stays in the heart
I was contemplating on making early review on this but decided to let all eps be aired first. This drama deserves review per episode to be honest coz each episode is so wonderfully presented.The drama started off with them meeting after years of separation. When they locked eyes on that first episode is a proof that everyone behind this drama are really gifted and the perfect actors were rightfully put to play the role respectively. From that moment it makes viewers hungry to know their past their present and look forward to their future.
The drama itself feels like a journey never ends and u really wouldnt want it to end. The story is really easy to follow with the flashbacks played once in a while in the right moment . What makes this perfect is really the chemistry of both leads. Not just the chemistry but how they played their roles wholeheartedly. They were like a match born to play this drama. They are destined to give life to this drama.
Their journey from being young to young adults though played by same actors is just perfect.
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama is a moving romance set against the backdrop of sweeping majestic landscapes with soulful and emotive music playing. You cannot help but be swept along with the love between Lu Chen and Gu Xiao through their years of separation and through the angst that both unavoidably created for the other. I have read criticisms that the drama is slow but to me, the pace of the show, the words that are unspoken but conveyed through expressions are a powerful way to convey the story. The final episode, although initially a bit of a let-down but on further reflection, is a different way of ending a story by letting the ML tell his part of the story. I am definitely going to rewatch to breakdown the nuances that I missed the first time round! Was this review helpful to you?
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A draggy, at times boring drama but why did I finish all 30 episodes?
This is a slow-burn romance drama about first love and all about it, nothing else. The pace is like "no hurry at all" and I have to use the fast forward button on many scenes.Why I kept on watching:-
(1) I'd watch any drama with Tan Song Yun in it regardless of the male lead. She has the ability to form great chemistry with all male actors she has worked for - the latest was in Flight to You where she was incredible with Wang Kai and his grumpy/annoying character. Although in her early 30s, her baby face makes her able to act out schooling or teenage girls to a T.
(2) Great looking cast. Jing Boran looks good in this drama compared to his last contemporary drama I've watched (The Psychologist) and totally different from A League of Noblemen. It's always enjoyable to watch nice looking actors on screen.
(3) For the romance-so many kissing scenes, warm moments, romantic vibes, the list goes on...For the romance part, this drama scores 9/10! Plenty of sweetness and eye-candy indulgence!
(4) I'm glad those parts of those annoying family disputes and third party interference are kept to the minimum. No long winded melodramatic scenes, it just concentrates on the leads' love story and their lives.
(5) Good cinematography especially those scenes in Jining. Love the winter paradise. A beautiful love story and winter/snow flakes are great chemistry.
What I hope could be better:-
(1) Those irritating and tiring flashbacks-they are necessary to tell the background story but do they have to do it so many (and many) times and at irregular intervals. I'd prefer they do all the flashbacks in one go instead of having it in almost every episode and many are repeats too.
(2) 30 episodes is too long due to the flashbacks and repeated scenes. It's incredulous how they dedicate one full episode (episode 30) to flashback-just about the leads' school days. It's totally unnecessary and exceedingly boring.
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You Don't Know How to Love Your First Love
Many may find the drama adaptation as mundane or boring. However, I wish they continue watching.
It tells a story of a couple who broke up but is not over or has not moved on from each other. I like how the flashbacks explain how they met, fell in love, and broke up. I like the line Duan Rou said at episode 17 "its common that you don't know how to love the other in your first love" which is true that's why it's rare to end up with your first love in real life. The sweetness of their youthful love and the bitterness of breaking up because of circumstances uncontrollable
GX broke up with LC and when they met again it took another two years for her to find a reason, ahem, an excuse to reach out to LC. I think it was fair since she was the one who broke up with him. When they were younger GX wanted to rely on him but can't. She needed a pillar and the person she wanted to lean on the most is not around it broke her and she broke him. That scene where LC is crying secretly while on break from training nearly broke me. LC wanted to be there for her but can't he loves her and he feels guilty about it. LDR is a scary relationship. It really breaks or makes the relationship stronger.
I like that it took a decade for them to get together again because they had a lot of growing up to do. They grew up individually and it made the relationship better. Even with all the crap they have to deal with their families they have friends that they can rely on. The line where GX said she would have been fine withbher life without LC struck a chord. It's true for a woman who has grown up and well. Why should she settle for mediocre when she can have a fairy tale of her own.
other couples:
HD and MXS typical HS relationship. it didn't end up well for HD but MXS has a husband in QF that loves her much more than HD ever did.
QM and DR now this is a couple I like two individualists. I ship this CP. This is a mature relationship that we all need in real life. You are you. I am who I am. No changes made but there's a lot of understanding each others lifestyle. This is the ideal realistic couple for me. Both have issues and divorced but have no hang ups with their exes. The son was like a cupid of sorts for them.
What I liked most is that it followed the novel. Including the epilogue.I wished they included the letter GX wrote for LC too.
The osts are perfect for the series. The lyrics fit the story.
Rewatch value: I have been rewatching while waiting for upcoming eps when I watched.. need I say more?
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Love and danger, pristine snow and downy willows in spring, triumph of persistence
Ep30 was a sweet coda to this very wholesome composition, which deserves full marks for acting, choice of shooting locations, no nonsense or over-sugary dialogues and plot. I also liked the realism and the messages of hope, endurance, faithfulness and mature understanding and support to partners. I actually liked the slow pace which showed how intuition and almost telepathic getting vibes and staying "in tune"without need for long conversation is one form of beautiful love.For those who don't get or get impatient with first episodes, it could be viewed first, since it is the chronological reason for what happens in first episode, and an explanation of the "baffling" reply by ML to FL in the beginning.
The two separated "because they were too young", because Gui Xiao thought she needed comforting words to overcome the pain of her family turmoil, but these could not be conveyed over the phone, and because her great love was prevented from rushing back to hug and comfort her. Both felt hurt and regret but years went by and, not wanting to be intrusive, neither of them managed to make the needed step forward to get back in tune. Until they did, and this is the sweet and realistic story that unfolds in the drama. The radiance of their love not only make them stand out, but also touches those around them: their friends and "complicated families", and the little boy that Gui Xiao spontaneously agrees to foster to allow him get a more stable environment with trusted people and better schooling. Unconsciously or not, this first act of kindness and love brings her friend (and other foster "aunt" for the boy) together with Lu Chen's friend and Qin Xiaonan's dad.
LuChen and Xiao Nan are quickly aware of Captain Qin and Duan Rou's compatibility, which culminates in Ep22 where both couples radiantly and almost literally "walk on air". For once, we would not have minded seeing more about this secondary couple!
It also helps that Jing Boran has a special type of northern handsomeness, impervious to the cold weather, maybe due to his part-Russian ancestry. Sichuanese Seven Tan Songyun is delightfully petite and with an infectious warm smile that brought perfect balance to this "fire and ice" story where the apparently cold and detached ML was just yearning for spring to be back and enough fulfillment in a life half or more devoted to dangerous missions.
As for OST, it is nice, although as I mentioned in an earlier comment, what stood out for me was the old Zheng Jun Cinderella song (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xVtrob8Rto). Lyrics here : https://www.chinese-tools.com/songs/song/12/cinderella.html
I watched quite a few of Seven Tan's dramas before; always very satisfied. I had not watched much of Jing Boran's filmography, he seems to have been mostly involved with light movies, when I was following more heavyweight directors' filmography. Perhaps, if I have time, I will go back to check more of Jing Boran's filmography now, and perhaps even re-watch Road Home which despite its slow pace, was as enjoyable as a famous director's movie. Ah, spotting 2018 "Us And Them" in JB's filmography, which I think I must watch since I love Rene Liu's music and her acting in "A World Without Thieves".
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This review may contain spoilers
I have 3 big problem with this drama
Seven Tan & Jing Bo Ran... Of course here I come...I have 3 big problem with this drama. Haha....
1) The duration.... OMG this is one f*cking long drama, without so much problem to solved. Make me quite bored watching this. For me this drama don't need to be this f*cking long duration or ep, maybe around 20s ep is actually enough.
But yeah like ChineseDramaFan wrote: "This is a lovely series which can be boring for some for its slow, everyday life story, but lovely for many for its quiet romance, a romance many can relate to - no fanfare, just love and devotion (if such elements still exist)." If that's what you looking for, this drama actually quite good. Drama filled with a little flashback, every day boring life with a little interruption about SWAT team mission.
2) I really have hard time to differentiate between the past & present time.... There's no much diff in the appearance of Lu Chen (LC) & Gui Xiao (GX) past & present, no diff color to differentiate the timeline, nothing to make us easier to differentiate past & present time. Maybe just the dialogue they said or little background. But hell I'm still sometimes have hard time to differentiate the timeline. Gonna be better if they choose diff actor to play the past, at least then we know for sure it's the past time...
3) After I read shiro review it make think, about the children, aka Qin Xiao Nan (XN). Yeah how pitty he is. He just moving from 1 house to another acting like it's a usual thing for him. But my problem it's not that... Haha.... The biggest question is where the h*ll is his mom.... Qin Ming Yu & his wife divorce, and at the beginning they tell us XN's mom always want to care for him. But she's really missing from the picture, not even care that her son is transfer to Beijing & his living condition. She can go to court to get custody, even at first the court side with the dad doesn't mean the circumstance can't change. But yeah of course they're not the main couple, so I think they don't need to think too much of this situation.
What I like about this drama:
+ The chemistry between Seven Tan & Jing Bo Ran. I love it... I can feel the attraction between them.
+ The solidarity between the SWAT team & friends
+ The adorable Qin Ming Yu & how he tries to chase Duan Rou.
Overall this quite good drama that you could watch.
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