The White Olive Tree (2025)

Every step led them to each other and their final destination.

I finally finished The White Olive Tree and I’m still in shambles with red eyes. I knew it was going to be heavy after seeing the behind the scenes and some of Chen Zhe Yuan’s interviews but I never expected this sort of agony. The portrayal of these mental health issues, of the ugliness of war, and how life gives you beauty to give you pain is…all too realistic which makes it that much easier to cry and feel the pain. While I always want a happy ending, we don’t always get one in real life so I get why it all fell to this because sometimes we can’t be saved. Sometimes the only peace we can find is in the next journey, not in this life.

Another key theme is extremism. Extreme good is no better than extreme bad, both cause intense pain and unimaginable suffering. Li Zan is the “ultimate” good-gentle and selfless to the point of causing those who love him dearly agony. He says early on in the show “Having the right intention doesn’t always lead to the right outcome.” This sums up Li Zan’s character quite well. It’s also a reminder about extremism and intentions.

Finally, all of the main supporting actors along with Chen Zhe Yuan and Liang Jie were spectacular at portraying their respective points. The suffering from PTSD, anxiety, depression, and the way in which everyone can handle situations differently was so well done. We are all living on borrowed time and some of us are suffering silently even if we outwardly look okay. I recommend watching this only if you’re in a strong/good mental and emotional state as this can be extremely triggering, heavy, and draining. I do plan to rewatch this and would tell everyone to watch it. This drama beautifully highlights the importance of life and how each moment should be cherished and how each decision, no matter how minor, could be a catalyst for something major.

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A drama worth watching for the hearts, not the brains.

Trigger warnings for the drama: PTSD, depression, mental illness
(Please consider these tags carefully before watching)

As the title says, it's a drama that you should use your heart to feel the emotions through the cast's superb acting skills, not your brain to see the obvious flaws in the plot/production.

Pros:
- Excellent acting performance by the cast, especially the ML Chen Zhe Yuan. So if you're looking to watch this for CZY, it's worth to watch until the end.
- Beautiful and meaningful messages
- OST's quality are amazing and thoughtful
- ML and FL's acting is the best selling point of the drama

Cons:
- Due to the drama having 4 directors, filming's quality is inconsistent and sometimes questionable, uncomfortable with those close-up/slowmo shots
- Unprofessional/Bad screenwriting that doesn't understand the essence of the source materials, so you can't use logic while watching, looking down on viewers' IQ.
- Many bad editing's decisions were made
- Unnecessary queerbaiting plots that added nothing but downgraded the drama and its original characters
- Overall, the production team is obviously an amateur team without much film making experience/knowledge, an example of big ambition not matching the skillset.

Conclusion: A badly-made drama that got hard carried by lead actors' acting skills and excellent original novel

Side note:
- For people who are impatient or can't stand slow pace, it is recommended to watch from Ep 27-38 first then you can go back and watch the rest (slow pace) later if you're still interested
- For people that hate tragic ending, you can stop at Ep 35 and pretend the last 3 eps don't exist.

Hopefully this review helps!

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Urge to STOP watching midway

At first i skipped most of their professional 'working' scenes maybe because i was anticipating for their romance . but to my own surprise, I actually hate them.
-I irked and making faces every time ML and FL lovey dovey. IMO, they don't look good together or maybe i don't like how the actress portrayed the FL character.
-I actually stop at first 1/3 of the series but resume only because i want to know rest of the stories of other characters. still struggling
- If it's a good drama, I love to rewatch them but this drama i have veeeerrryyy hard time to finish. I had finished a few drama even with bad storylines or bad acting but this drama, i don't know what to say.. I even set to watch with 2x speed and fast foward most of the scenes

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Sadly, they butchered the original story

P.S. This is an updated review, and if you're a fan of the actors/actresses, it’s probably best not to read this. I won’t be entertaining any opinions or arguments against what I’ve said.

(Review up to Episode 12)
A little TMI: I had been waiting for this drama for so long. I read the novel, set my expectations sky-high, and, well… let’s just say those expectations took a nosedive—straight into the gutter, or somewhere equally disappointing.

That said, let’s start with the positives. There aren’t many (for now), but I’ll list them before I forget:
— The soundtrack: Out of the 12 songs I’ve heard so far, I love every single one of them. Enough said.
— The cast and acting: Especially Li Zan, Benjamin, and Jiang Lin. Some people find the English-speaking parts awkward, but considering their characters aren’t meant to be native speakers, it doesn’t really bother me. I think the actors and actresses did their best, and I appreciate the effort. Also, while I haven't seen much from the rest yet, Zheyuan and Liang Jie absolutely deliver when it comes to emotional scenes. Every expression, whether it’s joy, hesitation, or longing, is so raw and tangible. They're just so so so so good at it.
— The set: The production team went all out, building an entire fictional city and structures for this drama. Honestly, it feels like they poured all their resources into the set... and not so much into the story. Unfortunately.
— The tone: As someone with terrible eyesight, I prefer my dramas bright—not blindingly so, but at least bright enough that I don’t have to squint while watching.
— Unexpected but delightful dynamic between Benjamin and Saxin: This wasn’t something I saw coming, especially since it wasn’t in the novel, but it’s one of the highlights for me! Saxin is usually either frowning or scowling when he’s around Benjamin, while Benjamin can’t help but poke fun at him. Their interactions are always a joy to watch.

Now, onto the negatives. Honestly, writing this feels a bit heavy because what I have in mind is... anything but little.
— The execution of the story: I genuinely don’t know what happened here or where things went wrong, but this adaptation falls short of the novel I loved so much. Up until Episode 6 or 7, I think I unconsciously made up excuses in my head for the dissatisfaction I was feeling. I kept convincing myself to give it time, to wait for the so-called turning point in Episodes 11 and 12—but even then, it still didn’t quite hit the mark. It did improve compared to the previous episodes, but just not quite enough to make up for everything else. I know that having high expectations is a surefire way to set myself up for disappointment, but I couldn’t help it. I waited so long for this drama, and I wanted so badly for it to live up to what I had imagined.
— The dialogues: From the moment Li Zan and Song Ran met in Episode 1, it was clear that their conversation was lifted straight from the novel. While it brought back memories of reading the novel, it didn’t quite translate well to the screen. Some conversations came across as flat or even awkward. For instance, during the lunch scene, their quiet moments on the truck, and the gesture of Li Zan lending Song Ran a comb. Especially the lending-comb scene—it was meant to be swoon-worthy, much like it was in the novel, but in the drama, it completely lost that same charm.
— Too draggy: There were stretches of time when the pacing slowed to a crawl. Some scenes also dragged on unnecessarily, as if they were added simply to fill time, without actually serving the narrative. And, slow motion can be effective when used thoughtfully, but here, it often felt overdone.
— Song Ran: Honestly, the version of Song Ran in the novel was so much better. In the novel, she’s calm, composed, a bit shy, thoughtful—a young lady who might seem soft on the outside but is incredibly determined on the inside. To put it plainly, the novel’s Song Ran has a level of restraint that the drama’s version lacks. The novel version would never get drunk in a military base and write her crush’s name on the ground. That’s just not who she is. Unfortunately, the drama made her seem much more childish and less grounded than she should be. Also, in the drama, Song Ran seemed to follow Li Zan around everywhere, even secretly taking a picture of him on the first day. This behavior feels out of character for the Song Ran I love from the novel, who would never be so forward or intrusive. (But I get it—if we look at it purely from a romance perspective, it’s meant to be sweet, adorable, all that. Still, it could’ve been handled better without making her feel like a completely different person.)
— The flashback: Was it really necessary? I didn’t mind it at first, but then came that scene after the dance—Li Zan pulled Song Ran into his arms to keep her from bumping into someone, and barely ten seconds later, they turned it into a flashback. Like, come on?! My memory isn’t that short. It’s one thing to highlight key moments, but this felt almost comical.

Well yeah, for now, I’ll give this the benefit of the doubt—hoping that it only gets better from here on out. I’m ready for this drama to put me through the emotional wringer—I’ve got tissues on standby, anyway. But what I’m really dreading is walking away from it feeling utterly disappointed. PLEASE, be good until the end. Fingers crossed!

(Updated review.)
I went in expecting heartbreak and tears, and in a way, I guess I got that—just not in the way I had hoped. Instead, it was pure disappointment at how badly they butchered this story.

After this whole rollercoaster of a journey, here's how I'd sum it up:

— Romance: 1/10. Completely underdeveloped, rushed, and way too cringe for my taste. It almost feels like they downplayed the main lead’s PTSD.
— Dialogue: 3/10. Half of it was just nonsense. What was the screenwriter even doing?
— Acting: 8/10. Zheyuan was brilliant—one of the few saving graces.
— Characters: 5/10. They absolutely ruined Song Ran. I thought that by the end, I might at least understand her poor choices in the beginning, but nope. Nothing against the actress, but the way they wrote Song Ran made her completely unlikeable. Li Zan deserved better.
— Overall Story: 1/10. They butchered the original plot beyond recognition.

Just a complete waste of potential. Bye.

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Glad I decided to keep watching!

The cast’s performance was incredible. I wanted to stop watching this show as I did not enjoy the way they allowed both of the leads to go back to a war torn country. Both struggled with their mental health after experiencing traumatic events, they were in no way healthy enough to go back.

I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if they had focused on healing first… are there really no other volunteers? other journalists? As humans, we can’t help others if we do not help ourselves first.

Not the perfect script, but I enjoyed it until the end mostly due to the female and male lead. They ate up the story and their acting was truly a work of art.

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Trauma evaluation... Stressful and dragged probably but overall it's a yes

From an average third person pov, this plot might seem dragged, unflattering and disorganised but from me, a person who has experienced and witnessed trauma first hand, This had me seated till the very end. Trauma and it's effects is something that should be understood on a deeper level

First of all, the main characters first meeting albeit cliche was cute and expected. The chemistry between them was teenage like which might be annoying to others but personally I feel like that made them more endearing. Life is not all roses and flowers but having a beautiful relationship where you're happy with eachother and comfortable brings about a fairytale in your life.

Moving on to the development of the plot, I have to say Chen Zheyuan and Liang Jie really put their all into the acting, there might have been some awkward scenes but at the same time, it was easy to push down whenever the leads especially Chen Zheyuan appeared on the screen stealing with audience with his acting and charisma. The evaluation of PTSD and Depression in this series had me on chokehold. PTSD is not a trauma that goes away completely, it's like a tumor in your brain, even though it's removed and treated, there's a 1-4% chance of relapsing which takes the treatment back to stage one.

Although at a point, I was pissed at the ML and the FL for talking about everything except the state of their physical and mental health which indeed is an important aspect to the growth and sustainability of a relationship. The lies were annoying and unnecessary; for example the FL getting eye surgery without letting the ML know, the ML lying about the training process because he didn't want to "bother" the FL, and many more. I understand where they are coming from but please that shouldn't have happened. Going back to the Eastern country was important for both of them but at the same time, it was rushed. By the time I got to ep 30 and I saw the war wasn't over, I knew we weren't going to get a typical happy ending. Ep 36-38 had tears dropping from my eyes because I could feel the pain both leads were going through to pretend they were fine even if they weren't. Chen Zheyuan and Liang Jie's tears in ep 38 had me crying with them. Pain is sometimes undermined and overlooked as far as the person is smiling, it takes an empathetic person to genuinely understand where the pain is coming from. The ending they got though was perfect for them, the fact they they chose to elope and just live their remaining days in seclusion was the best discussion for them I guess. I don't believe in complete happy endings so at least that was okay for me.

Talking about the other characters, watching the character development of the FL's mother, Shen Bei, Benjamin and Sasin was my favourite. Their growth, acceptance, fight and every other thing made the plot more wholesome especially the bickerings between Ben and Sasin. I knew Ben was going to die when I saw him, I just never expected that I was going to grow to love him the way I did.

To others, the series might have been boring and stressful but to me it's a lesson. I'll agree some parts pissed me off but I'll still stick to my heart and say, the white olive tree was a success. I hope to see more representation about mental illness and it's effects on one's life.

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Start Off 2025 with a Rollercoaster

First of all, I would like to say this is the first review I write for a drama here on mydramalist. The White Olive Tree did a deep-dive into my emotions and I had to share this with everyone.

*Below contains some spoilers please read at your own risk*

The first quarter of the drama started off strong with both of the leads meeting in 'Eastern Country' as the main lead saves the female lead. The actors all portray the characters in an amazing way and all the emotions felt very real. The middle quarter of the drama focused more on the mental health issues, self-recovery, and the romance in which both Chen Zhe Yuan and Liang Jie portrayed really well, and it felt like you were actually intruding on them in some of the scenes. Also, the side characters portrayed the roles very well and made you want to know the storyline of each and every one of them. The last quarter of the drama took a really heavy toll on me, with their return to 'Eastern Country' and the several attacks that took place. The ending has another story to tell..

The soundtrack was of amazing quality and has really nice songs which I actually enjoyed and added to my playlist.

If you are planning to watch this drama, be prepared mentally for a rollercoaster of emotions. It will hit you but it is worthwhile.

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Déception

Le thème de cette série m'intéressait beaucoup : suivre un correspondant de guerre et un démineur volontaire sur le terrain d'un conflit, c'était original...
Sauf que le scénario est pauvre et poussif par moment (on sens que l'on a chercher à faire durer la série : il y a au moins dix épisodes de trop). Et le personnage de la journaliste est vraiment décevant et que ça gâche toute la série ! Il n'y a pas d'autre mot.
Le rôle est très mal écrit : une femme qui passe autant de temps à avoir peur et à pleurer ne tiendrait pas une seule journée dans un conflit.
En plus, l'actrice Liang Jie est franchement mauvaise. Non seulement le rôle est mal écrit mais en plus elle l’interprète mal !
Ce qui est dommage, parce que Chen Zhe Yuan, lui joue remarquablement bien. J'ai particulièrement été bluffée par son interprétation du traumatisme : convainquant et très émouvant. C'est d'ailleurs pour ce personnage que j'ai tenu jusqu'à la fin de la série.
Bref. À voire sir vous aimez Chen Zhe Yuan. Mais ne perdez pas votre temps si vous voulez visionner une bonne série...

The theme of this series interested me a lot: following a war correspondent and a volunteer mine clearer in the field of a conflict, it was original...
Except that the script is poor and laborious at times (we feel that they tried to make the series last: there are at least ten episodes too many). And the character of the journalist is really disappointing and that ruins the whole series! There is no other word.
The role is very poorly written: a woman who spends so much time being afraid and crying would not last a single day in a conflict.
In addition, the actress Liang Jie is frankly bad. Not only is the role poorly written but she also plays it badly!
Which is a shame, because Chen Zhe Yuan plays it remarkably well. I was particularly impressed by her interpretation of the trauma: convincing and very moving. It is also for this character that I held on until the end of the series.
In short. Worth seeing if you like Chen Zhe Yuan. But don't waste your time if you want to watch a good series...

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Captivating, beautiful and tragic story. Beautifully acted.

I was really looking forward to this drama, especially as a huge fan of Chen Zheyuan. I knew how invested he was in the project, and it was clear that he adored his character and was genuinely excited about the drama.

The first six episodes were a slight disappointment because Chen Zheyuan was barely in them, and his character didn’t feel fully fleshed out. However, I really started to enjoy the drama when the two leads returned to China after the cataclysmic event. The romance building up between them, along with the scenes involving Li Zan’s dad and Ran Ran’s mum, were particularly touching. I also liked Li Zan's strange engineering boss.

When they returned to East Country, I felt the direction and pacing improved significantly—I’m not sure why. Was it a different director? The bromance/BL subplot between Ben and Sasin, however, felt a bit forced. I wish they had kept it as light, jokey humor, like in the early scenes where Ben was getting stitches from Dr. Pei and being scared of needles. The thinly disguised BL element felt contrived and boring, especially since I heard it wasn’t in the original novel. The "felt star" thing also wore thin for me after a while. I wish we had more scenes with Li zan's dad instead!

That said, the acting was absolutely top-tier. Chen Zheyuan is my favorite actor, and his crying scenes were so believable and heart-wrenching. Unlike other actors where you can see the effort to squeeze out tears, Chen Zheyuan’s performances felt raw and real, as if he were truly immersed in emotional pain. His crying varied depending on the emotion—sadness, trauma, fear, regret—and each felt distinct and powerful. His last two scenes, where he was a shadow of his former self due to his mental health struggles, were particularly accurate, haunting, and heartbreaking.

Liang Jie was phenomenal too. I don’t think Chen Zheyuan could have delivered such a flawless performance without her, as they both acted from a very deep, emotional place. They were both truly brilliant, and it’s such a shame that other aspects of the drama let it down and prevented it from becoming a mega-hit.

Many of us knew the story would take a traumatic turn, and towards the end, it almost felt like a horror movie. Because we all knew that events would go bad and quickly! We were sharing the lightness and celebration with the two characters who were about to embark on a beautiful new life together, and when things went horribly wrong, it was as devastating as expected! I thought the fact that Li zan experienced such irreversible mental damage and trauma, it almost felt like he would have been better off dying in the battle field because he was subjected to such damaging abuse which stayed with him. For the final scene, I noticed they were at the tree in his father’s yard, dressed in their wedding outfits. The way they spoke made it feel like they had committed suicide after eloping but returned as spirits to check on the tree which had grown. That was maybe a way to keep it ambiguous but it was heartbreaking.

Negatives: The editing and shots were overly sentimental and dated, which was a bit distracting. The English dialogue from the extras were jarring and cringey—sorry! It felt like they just recruited any foreigners to play extras. That said, the guy who played Ran Ran’s driver was very good, so shoutout to him!While the drama was flawed due to elements beyond the actors’ control (production, direction, and screenwriting), this drama definitely left me pondering and thinking about the tragic effects of war and how poor Li Zan and Ran Ran were so close to happiness. Most viewers couldn’t help but feel affected by it.

All in all, this drama had such high expectations, and it’s frustrating because it was almost there—you could feel it. But too many things conspired against it becoming a mega-hit. That said, I know the drama has done pretty well overseas, and reading comments on Douyin and Weibo, it’s clear that this story has deeply affected many people. I'm certainly still dwelling it on. I will defintely rewatch because I loved the quality of acting from the main leads.

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