Be Passionately in Love (2025)

Beautiful Chemistry, Wasted Passion

Now that I’ve finished the drama, I can finally give a full review and I have to admit, my feelings are quite mixed.
At first, I was completely drawn in. The story had a peaceful, comforting tone, and the chemistry between the two leads was undeniable. I absolutely fell in love with Wang An Yu — his presence is magnetic, his acting sincere, and he truly carried the emotional weight of the show. The plot, while simple, was exactly what I needed: something romantic, light, and soothing.

However, there are a few things that really let me down. First and foremost, I’m very disappointed in the casting decision. Choosing a lead actress who doesn’t film kiss scenes for a romance drama — especially one that’s meant to *express passion*, was a huge mistake. She’s beautiful and talented, and I don’t blame her personally, but it honestly destroyed a lot of the emotional payoff the story was building toward. The chemistry was there, but without any real physical intimacy, the passion felt incomplete.

To make things worse, the final episode didn’t land the way I had hoped. The wedding was lovely, but the scenes *after* the marriage — while maybe realistic — left a bittersweet taste. I wanted a romantic high point, something fulfilling, but instead it felt a bit flat and even a little disappointing. It wasn't the satisfying ending this couple deserved.

This drama had all the elements to become one of my favorite c-dramas: a compelling love story, a visually stunning cast, and a strong emotional base. But the missed opportunities — especially the lack of any kiss scene — were frustrating. What could have easily been a 10/10 ends up as an 8.5/10 for me, saved mostly by how amazing Wang An Yu was and the overall enjoyable tone of the series.

I’m honestly a little angry that such a beautiful couple and passionate story were wasted like this.

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Be Passionately in Love was a drama with a good core storyline but ruined by lazy writing, poor dialogues and disconnected screenplay.. Even the dubbing was bad.. The one redeeming factor was Wang An Yu..

The first half was very disappointing.. It just didn’t connect with me.. Once again the issue was lazy writing.. This drama could have been salvaged easily if the writer had simply done his job with a bit more effort.. The no kiss issue only added to the drama’s problems.. I heard Liu Hao Cun had a no kiss clause in her contract.. But there is no official confirmation yet.. If that’s true she honestly shouldn’t have been cast in this role.. What is she doing in a drama literally titled Be Passionately in Love if she can’t kiss?? It just felt inauthentic. It’s true that passion doesn’t necessarily require kissing or intimate scenes.. But this drama was already lacking and abrubtly cutting those moments didn’t help its case at all..

The second half was definitely stronger than the first and the last few episodes were genuinely good..

All that said.. I still liked the drama.. Yes, it fails in execution.. But I appreciated it for what it tried to be.. A story about two teens dealing with realistic problems.. Family issues, uncertain futures and misunderstandings caused by a lack of maturity.. Another highlight for me was the absence of the usual annoying SMLs, Creepy characters hitting on people already in relationships, forced breakups and last minute patch ups.. It was clear they didn’t want to rely on the typical overused tropes and I genuinely appreciated that.. It even had strong, well written supporting characters..

“What I want might be a bit greedy..
It’s a passionate and unwavering love.. One of a kind.
It has to be just me.”

Wang Anyu really needs to consider changing his agency or start being more selective with scripts himself.. Because this isn’t the way to build a solid career.. His last few dramas haven’t been particularly impressive and that’s unfortunate given his potential.. Hopefully his upcoming roles will reflect the kind of actor he is capable of being..

Overall, Its a good drama if you can look past the shortcomings in the writing and screenplay.. Like I said earlier, the absence of the usual overused tropes was refreshing and that alone makes it worth a watch for those tired of overly familiar cliches..

P.S.. I totally respect her choice but I hope Liu Hao Cun stays away from dramas with romance as the main plot..

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