To Fly with You

Predictable But Well-Executed

To Fly With You is one of the better Chinese sports romance dramas out there in my books. I think it is also the type of drama that will resonate more with the younger viewers as it has a college romance element in it. So, don’t expect anything overly serious and melodramatic. It has a lot of light and fun moments to make you smile as well as some sweet scenes for the required sugary feel. Most of the serious stuff is reserved for the sport matters such as training and relationship among the team members.

Personally, I find this drama to be very predictable in terms of the plot. I guess if you have watched one or two sports dramas and rom-coms, you can more or less guess the issues that are going to crop up. I know most romance dramas are highly predictable anyway but To Fly With You is a bit better than the rest because the story is well-executed. It is told in a very coherent manner with the romance being developed at a realistic pace and the leads’ road to success is not dragged out unnecessarily.

Don’t Mind The Predictable Plot
Basically, most of the issues explored in this drama is nothing new. Quarrels with coaches and team mates, jealousy, injury, parental objection, and love triangle are all part and parcel of To Fly With You. Therefore, be aware that this drama doesn’t really have anything extraordinary to offer in terms of plot originality. If you have watched Skate Into Love and have a bit of common sense, you will be able to predict these issues that will arise as the drama progresses.

So, this drama is only good if you don’t care about cliche storylines. Otherwise, you might find it too predictable that it loses any kind of anticipation. What makes up for it though is the likable female lead in a well-executed story to cut down on the boredom level. So, although the issues are predictable, all of them share some limelight throughout the drama. They are told in a way that you can feel the drama is moving along rather than getting stuck in a rut. I think this offers a kind of variety to keep you interested as there is romance, family relationships, friendships, and team spirit being fleshed out in the story.

A Unique Female Character
Zheng Yi is a pretty interesting character to me. She is stubborn and persistent when it comes to her passion for speed skating. She is also not easily cowed by her seniors in the team. Yet, she also exhibits a kind of naivety with her trusting nature. Whatever it is, it is easy to root for her as she grows on you as the drama progresses. To me, Zheng Yi is definitely a more colorful character than Bei Sheng as her partner.

As for Le Le, she has a cheerful face and she is funny which is a good contrast to Zheng Yi. She takes up quite a bit of screen time together with Qu Zhi as the side couple but fortunately, they are not annoying unlike some secondary couples which are a waste of viewers’ time.

Growing Chemistry
The chemistry between Wang An Yu and Song Zu Er is not too obvious in the beginning but it gradually gets better and better as the story moves along. Personally, I still prefer his pairing with Xiang Han Zhi in Forever Love which is a really sweet college romance drama. But his partnership with Song Zu Er is not too bad either and way better than with Nina Wang in Go Go Squid 2.The sparks is definitely there with this couple and they look very natural with their touches and hugs. Hence, I feel that the chemistry is better once they started dating in the drama as they look very comfortable as lovers.

As for the acting, Song Zu Er shines as Zheng Yi. She managed to bring out the essence of the character which is both stubborn and determined but also kind and playful. She looks very natural in her role with every movement and expression being suited to the scenes enacted with no overacting and exaggeration. Wang An Yu is also good as Bei Sheng to give the character a kind of playfulness and optimism. While it is enjoyable watching him, it is not a performance that exceeded expectations. He delivered as required but without any nice surprises to the viewer.

My Verdict – Okay To Watch
Overall, To Fly With You would not be a waste of time but neither is it something really engaging. If you like college romance, then this might be your cup of tea. If you also like a sports theme especially ice skating, then it will be a bonus. There are racing scenes in the drama to give you some excitement as well as figure skating scenes for you to appreciate the choreography.

Frankly speaking, I watched this in a scan and skip manner because I could predict what would happen next. The story is easy to follow and thus, you don’t really miss much even if you skip some scenes. As mentioned, it is not an engaging tale like Fall In Love or a touching coming of age story like Be Yourself whereby every scene helps us to get deeper into the story. It is also not an overly sweet romantic drama like You Are My Glory. It is merely a simple sports-cum-romance drama with a little bit of everything from parental objection to love triangle to team camaraderie.

For this To Fly With You review, I would give it a score of 7.5/10. Many viewers seem to like it a lot and I think you would too if you like the innocence of college romance and first love as well as chasing dreams. Watch it for the leads’ chemistry and the supportive nature of their relationship. It is a nicely executed story but it loses marks with its predictability where I’m concerned. It does not render it unwatchable as there are strengths to make up for the weakness but just don’t expect this Chinese drama to offer you a refreshing plot to give you something different from the usual.

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Skating fans will be delighted with this drama

This drama is a blessing since I love figure skating and I've been a fan of the likes of Yuzuru Hanyu, Nathan Chen, Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir, and Kim Yuna. After watching this, I also became interested in speed skating. I think this is a sports drama first and foremost but the romance part is portrayed well. Every character feels real to me. their stories and hardships as professional athletes and their relationship with one another. It's an easy watch and really heartwarming. Wang An Yu and Shen Zheng Yi are perfect in their roles. I've watched dramas with Miao Pu, this talented lady deserves the world I can never get tired of her. Fu Wei Lun and Du Yu are actors that I will keep an eye on.

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Sweet n spicy Ice cream

This was my kind of feel light and fluffy chilly ice cream drama with lots of feel good... but not without its chilli flakes to spice it up here and there.

The drama has a good pace, nice mix of friendship, working hard to achieve ones goals, conflicts and romance... There is however a light lack of umbrellas that stand out, but makes up for it with its ridiculous use of red product placed bags... Since I had just finished writing an article on the subject those bags cracked me up a lot!

I loved to see how they handled popular drama cliches, as well as kept me on my toes with both predictable and less predictable pace... I also loved the dynamics between the mane couple with bickering, growthe, and what may have started as a not so healthy relationship develop in to mutual respect and understanding. With lots of cringey, gooey fun scenes that just made me smile over and over again.

I also love how they used colors and clothing. It has a lot of great hoodies, you may want to try to count them all , but don´t you may miss something.

The amount of annoying characters was kept to a minimum and even the roles with least amount of time on screen got to show both strengths and weaknesses.

I did not like the work thru pain theme to it, it can be dangerous and is a bad message in my personal opinion... However the drama compensates with a good message of team spirit and working together that I really like, but can make some cringe, so this is for those who like cliches, like cringe, matching outfits and fluff and do not mind some hardship in between!

Also the Skating scenes are truly amazing!!!

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Everything I want from a sports romance

This was such a fun and light-hearted watch! The combination of seeing our underdogs follow their dreams, plus a really sweet romance — was done perfectly. The transition from rivals to friends to lovers is really believable, and I have to give props to our two leads for having such natural acting. The chemistry is really good, especially when they are just spending time with each other, doing nothing.

The sports scenes were choreographed quite well also. There are a few shots where you can tell it's acting, but overall, the competitions have the tension and anticipation that they need, making defeat feel as depressing and victories feel as cathartic as they each need to be.

Ultimately, I had such a great time watching this drama. There are frustrating misunderstandings, as well some common tropes, but they are actually used well and the character develops accordingly. I also admit — I cringed from secondhand embarrassment a few times, but still loved this drama overall.

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Falling in love on the rink + competitive friendships!

I've read comments that viewers enjoyed this skating drama more than Skate Into Love and My Unicorn Girl which says a lot about the standard of ice skating romances. Not to say To Fly With You wasn't good - it was! It featured a heartwarming story of perseverance, sportsmanship, hard work + diligence, forgiveness, and falling in love. But it still ultimately resorts to classic Cdrama cliches that lengthened the storyline for nonsensical reasons and tested my patience. The overall feeling from this drama is a positive one though, mainly because I thought the production value of the skating scenes was impressive, and it got me emotional with the main characters' dreams (I must say, gotta love a training montage, and To Fly With You had one every couple of episodes lmao).

PROS
❀ Do-gooder short track speed skater x goofy/lovable figure skater | I love how the main leads are both ice skaters, but interested in different sports. There are great scenes of them helping each other out in their respective fields, which I just *clenches fist* love. The synergy!!! Their romance was one of those "first love + innocent" ones where they quickly catch feelings but are ignorant of the others' feelings. They start off as a bickering pair, intrigued by each other, follow up as friends that help each other in the rink + random contractual relationship, and end up as a couple by ep 22. Did it take too long to reach there? Lowkey yes because of dense feelings going on. I would have accepted it if they were too busy with training/resolving conflicts in their respective sports/anything sports-related, but the fact that we had to sit through a disgusting, gnatty 2FL who the FL was too nice to... bruh, we deserved better.
The good news is that once the couple is together, they're good as gold. They continue supporting each other in their endeavors and even trust each other when family drama happens. The FL's unwavering confidence in the ML really bolstered him in his pursuit from pair figure skating to single figure skating, while the ML's enthusiasm for the FL in chasing her dream pushed her forward. She's the type to think well of people, no matter what, and he's a golden retriever who's spunky and energetic. Both actors are new to me (although I've seen the ML in some clips of Forever Love, and it seems he has a similar playful character), but they both portray a youth/college role really well and had great emotion in their scenes.
❀ Sismances and team bonding | While I was annoyed at some characters at first for their cattiness, they quickly grew on me as the shows explored their backgrounds. The whole "she's mean but there are underlying reasons why she acts this way and once you dig those out and psychoanalyze her she'll turn a new leaf" trope is just *chef's kiss* muah. Especially for sports dramas. I love the eventual progression of the speed skater team and seeing the FL rise from a self-taught skater to a professional who beat previous winners. Her diligence and passion for skating was well-portrayed by the actress! I also enjoyed the friendship she has with another skater, Zhu Lele (lmao which is my Chinese nickname). Lele was annoying at times, but their sismance was definitely A+.
❀ THE MOMS!!!!!!!! | Me during the mom scenes: "Mommy? Sorry. Mommy? Sorry. Mommy? Sorry."
One of the reasons why this show stuck with me is the story behind the main couple's moms. The blurb already hints at some undelying animosity, but I love how the moms were able to reconcile through their children and communication. Both actresses were SPECTACULAR. Great angry and crying scenes, great expressions of regret, great acting to gain our sympathy. I love how both moms' legacies on the ice were carried on by their children (who end up dating!! Sheeesh). They were both passionate and headstrong women that had moving scenes. Coach Zhuang Ye (the ML's mom and FL's coach) and the FL's relationship was also well-done and nicely developed. The moms were the heart of this show.
❀ Impressive visuals/production on the ice | I don't have many expectations for Cdrama effects, but To Fly With You had pretty good visuals. I never skipped the scenes on the ice and although the music was rather repetitive, they utilized it in a way that dramaticized the skating scenes. It really made you pumped!! I couldn't even tell if they used stunt actors for some of the scenes (I mean, they must have, right?), which added a realistic layer to everything. Also,,, the ML did an AMAZING job with his figure skating scenes. Honestly his last match made me so emotional and got me rewatching Yuri On Ice scenes (a figure skating anime that's phenomenal).

CONS
✕ I started fast-forwarding/skipping the secondary couple scenes | Don't get me wrong, the second couple consists of the best friends/roommates of the main couple and they cute af, but...,,, it's the typical secondary couple storyline. For some reason it's as much drama as the first couple, paired with misunderstandings, even a break up (whatt??), the FL's friend dating some other dude beforehand, among other things. Did I care about their theater club? Absolutely not. (I feel like they could have incorporated it better with the main leads and developed bonds through their scenes but it remained pretty separate from the main storyline.) Did I care about their romance? Not really either... the girl (Lele) was a mess half the time with indecisiveness and in general there was a lot of pushing/pulling that got me impatient. I think these characters are great as the silly foil/bffs of the main leads, but their romantic storyline was a no from me.
✕ THE MOST unnecessary sibling combo to ever exist | AKA the Xiao siblings. On the left, we have an immature male coach that, although he's an adult, uses young women's dreams of skating as a way to resolve his past trauma in seeing his best friend's death (btw, did this ever get resolved?? If it did, I must have fast forwarded past it. If it didn't... even more reason to dislike him). On the right, we see an immature younger sister who creates misunderstandings with every word out of her mouth because she's obsessed with the ML and can't take "no" for an answer. The left is a cockroach because despite all the shit he pulled, he survives it all and is still loved in the end by the team. The right is a gnat, because she be appearing EVERYWHERE and getting between the main couple for literally no reason. Their faces made me so annoyed I started watching their scenes at 2x speed, and even fast forwarded. For a sports drama, I didn't think there was TIME to put an annoying 2FL with evil intentions but I guess this is what happens with 33 eps. Tbh even skipping their scenes, ya ain't missing much from the show.
✕ Misunderstanding level: 4/10 | Definitely miscommunication between the second couple, and a slight misunderstanding between the primary couple when the ML confesses to the FL. Don't know why this misunderstanding was dragged on for a literal episode (he confesses at the end of ep 20 if I recall correctly, misunderstanding is the whole theme of ep 21, and they finally get together in ep 22). It was a juvenile situation (ML confessing to the wrong girl) and added screen time to the gnat, which was wholly unnecessary. I came in for a skating drama about teammates and chasing dreams - why did I have to sit through ~45 min of me yelling at the gnat for not telling the truth?!? ;__; alas.

OVERALL
I'm not sure if To Fly With You brings anything new to the drama game, but as a drama dedicated to the Beijing 2022 Olympics, it definitely makes a viewer emotional and pumped for the matches. The sismance, team camaraderie, and romance(s) make for a relationship-driven show that captures watchers' hearts as we follow the characters' dreams on the rink.

(Note: My rewatch value is set to 5.0 always as a default as I'm not the type to rewatch dramas EVER. Thus, I do not take it into account when calculating overall score.)

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Plot- This is very different from the other dramas that i hv watched so far. The plot is so light hearted that u will feel relaxed as u will be totally engrossed in it after watching few eps which happened with me :) the most important thing i liked about this drama that is it has the right amount of everything that includes romance,comedy,struggles and obstacles that an athlete has to face and their persistant nature to overcome it, the support of the pple whom each one of the athlete consider,as an important person in their life. The ending was good. It ended well on every matter. Acting- the acting of the cast was very good. The chemistry between the lead actors was potrayed so well enough to think that it may be real:) the supporting actors also did a very good acting. Music- the Music was very soothing and calming i liked it very much especially the one which is the bg music for pair skating. All the Music overall was very good. I wish Cdramas also had posted short bgms of each drama that r being played during the drama(for eg. For this drama eunkyang choi's theme, it sounded so good tho it was only a bgm for short time)on Spotify like Kdramas Rewatch value: i m not really into rewatching things. Anyways if i were to suddenly feel like rewatching dramas this drama will be definately on my list.

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wow,...... excellent piece of drama

actually first i watched my unicorn girl then skate into love... then i felt like skate into love is a masterpiece... but after seeing to fly with you i feel so great... that this is super piece of drama.... why ? becuase u see both skate into love and to fly with you are quite similar.... but i feel skate into love is a bit more dramatic.. [ both the dramas start with misunderstanding , have love , injury , but to fly with you has no breakup ] i feel even if to fly with you the love is so so so so so so so cute and innocent.. kiss scenes are so passionate and cute not awkward at all... love how they are so cute and also not too cheesy... i love how the female lead and male lead proved themeselves at their bad times.... i loved how their love started as first a fake relationship.. though this theme is very common.. it suits this drama very very well..... this is very recommanded drama... i love the songs in the drama... mainly ITS ALL ABOUT US this song is so so cute and i love .. mom and son love is also cute... even if it had a lot of problems same with mom and daughter relationship.. mainly i loved how male lead and female lead work together to help solve the problems between the male lead's mother and female lead's mother
overall this drama is a gem

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My Favorite type of C-drama

When I first started watching C-dramas I found myself not being able to finish them, simply put I dropped most at the half way point. I thought these habits would remain the same until I discovered sports themed C-dramas. There is something so enthralling about watching a protagonist physically fight for something they believe in. Of course there is adequate relationship and regular drama surrounding the main premise, but the sports parts are done so nicely it entices me to keep watching and root for the main leads. "To Fly with You," has quickly become my absolute FAVORITE sports C-drama for several reasons.


So, what's so good about it?

1. The cinematography is superb. Everything looks so clear and vibrant, it was a real treat to the eyes.
2. The ML and Fl have amazing chemistry and the progression of their relationship is not painfully slow. I liked how easily they became aquatinted, supported each other, and were clear in communicating. I couldn't have asked for a more adorable coupling. I had a ball watching them interact.
3. I love a good jealous SFL; although cliche I quite like this trope and it was done well here. It wasn't overbearing but just enough to push the story along.
4. I love that the Fl was a sort of under dog that had to climb through the ranks of her short track speed skating team. Watching her work hard towards her goals, learn to work with a team and compete had me cheering her on (lol Ik this is a drama, but it was so much fun to relate to the characters).
5. The FL and ML's acting was so well done, by the end I was really sad to learn that their list of works were quite limited. I wish to see both as leads in more dramas.


What was kind 'ehhhh,' about it?

1. I did not get the mom of the FL, AT ALL. I feel like she was taking her opposition to the FL skating too far. I get that she got hurt, but all sports pose the risk of injury its was unfair to hold that over her daughter's head. She was quite dislikable before finally agreeing to letting the FL participate in the sport. Annoying really, glad it got better towards the later half of the drama tho.
2. Several times within the drama characters would refer to the college/school that the leads were attending and where they were participating in these sports at as like "low caliber," or would allude to it not being a renowned academic institution. This just made everything seem lousy, because it would suddenly feel like they were working towards insignificant goals. Honestly it was discouraging to hear and briefly broke the cute fantasy of it all.
3. Luo Xiao Yi and Coach Han!!!! Talk about rude and annoying. One was a brat practically until the and the other was corrupted; from favoritism to tricking the FL. Had me pulling at the hair on my head seriously!!!


All in all, it was a great sports drama. I loved almost everything, but hey every drama needs a little bit of a villain right? I highly recommend this drama to anyone that likes sports or school themes like I do. I especially encourage watching it to anyone looking to get into or having a tough time expanding their asian drama watching into C-dramas. This drama was easy to follow, had a great paring for main leads, was pretty to look at and overall adorable.

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Little gem of romance, sport and team spirit ❤❤❤

It's a fairly classic rom-sport drama (progression, injury, coach, competitions, rivalries, team,...) but served by excellent actors. and an almost perfect realization.

The FL character is quite childish (but she's supposed to be 18 :) and the ML (❤❤❤ Wang An Yu ❤❤❤ ) is handsome and particularly talented. This couple is too too cute, and their chemistry is on the screen. I would love to see more dramas with this couple in the future. Maybe a season 2?

The secondary couple is also very endearing, and their progression is finely managed.

Not to spoil anything, all this is accompanied by excellent OST !!

Don't miss this cheerful little gem.

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Love on the ice rink

This is one of the best sports drama of 2021!!!
It reminded me of Skate into love in the beginning as both are similar but the storylines are so different. My favorite thing about this drama is the story progression. The way the actors are able to make feel their journey, their pains, struggles, breakdowns, issues and the inspiration and drive to strive for you dream to achieve what you want to achieve!!! The romance is very addictive!!!! This drama had me smiling, crying at some point and sometimes i just laughed hard. It is really a rare gem of 2021 in chinese dramaland!!!!

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one of the best dramas i've seen in a while

I hardly write reviews but I had to write one for TFWY. These 3 days I have spent watching the drama have truly been a delight. The acting, the story, the pacing are all perfect. I typically avoid dramas where the leads are in the same field and even though SBS and SZY are both skaters they specialize in different events. Our ML Shao Bei Sheng as an absolute delight on screen; He's funny, caring, and isn't an absolute rock, he's not afraid to cry and show emotion during the angst and cry when he's happy. He's so funny and his character development his so well paced and planned out. Hats off to Wang Anyu for making him come to life. Our FL Sheng Zheng Yi is an absolute cutie, she's a really inspirational character who has to work for what she achieves. She Joins the Speed skating team with a disadvantage because she has had no professional training, because of her mom opposing her dream, because of an incident that happened to her and as the drama progresses you'll understand why her reasoning isn't unreasonable. SZY is a very raw and flesh-out character who isn't naive like other FL's in dramaland Song Zuer really did well. ALSO THE CHEMISTRY OMG the chemistry was so good??? Our main couple has a tom&jerry dynamic but are equally supportive of each other, they understand that they don't have a lot of time together, because of training and so they really cherish that. The secondary couple are also really cute and a little more cliché but are cute nevertheless. The team dynamic is also a really cute part of the drama. It takes a couple of episodes for the Speed skating team to accept SZY but once they do you really see the friendship between them!! They're some side characters that are annoying but they finish the plot-lines in a couple of episodes. I'd recommend the drama if you are looking for a light&fluffy watch with cute CP and inspirational characters. This drama deserves so much more than what it's getting. very very very underrated soo please do yourself a favor and watch it if it sounds interesting to you.

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