This review may contain spoilers
this came as las minute show to watch
the show started a little boring but progressed as it went. the casting and acting was great.. loved the lead actors chemistry.the drama wasn't much which i enjoyed and the emotional aspect of the show was touching especially when the male lead mother dies.
I only wishes the second lead male and female either got together or had found an happy ending.
I loved the parents in the show because it gave character and enjoyment.
the show was overall a 9/10 for me . i would probably rewatch in the future.
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It reminds you of your youth
The story starts in 2002. In a neighborhood of Liuli Hutong there are 5 childhood friends who are enjoying their school life while trying to find their dreams and passions. As time passes, they face heartbreaking situations and reality which change the dynamics and make them grow. Separation can't be avoided as they step into real world. You will laugh and cry together with them. But in the end, they are still the people from Liuli Hutong neighborhood whose bond never cease.This drama is simple. It shows the realistic side of what people can experience in life and their journey to find happiness as they grow up. Each family has their own color. There's no annoying character, no violence involved, no bully, no overly dramatic situations. The kids face their own problems as they grow up into working adults. Each family has strong bond. The friendship is really strong and genuine, they're not friends with benefit. This drama will remind you of your youth when you were carefree, failed in your exams, argued with your parents, how you disliked going back to countryside, had to chose between dream or reality, experienced first love, separation, career, marriage.
Few people might not like Shao Xue at first, but you will see that she's more than just a tomboy and loud girl. Sunian is the popular boy but only Shao Xue can make him happy. Zhang Qi has a secret crush on Shao Xue, but chooses friendship instead. Shiyin might be annoying, but she dreams big and she's a loyal friend. Wu Huan is obedient and hard working. Don't forget the diversity of parents and the lovely elders who work at the restoration house. This drama is worth to watch especially if you like a daily life drama.
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Pleasing but full of clichés
I was eagerly waiting for this drama ever since its news reached my ears because of its cast line-up. I was excited for the collaboration of Chen Yu Qi and Lin Yi.However, this drama's plot rater disappointed me as it is full of clichés. Memory of Encaustic Tile is adapted from the novel "Glazed Tiles of the Past" (昔有琉璃瓦) by Bei Feng San Bai Li (北風三百里). This drama tells us the story of five youngsters from Luli Hutong street, who grew up together. They faced many heart-rending situations because of which they grew up from inside. Some fell in love while some remained friends eventhough they wanted a change in their relationship. When they started pursuing their dreams, seperation between the lovers and friends and became inevitable. The drama was very obvious and predictable all the way long and all this also constantly reminded me of A Love So Beautiful which too focuses of such a plot. Anyways, when some scenes were illogical, some were heart touching too.
The character arcs and developments were so sub-standard and so was the romance portrayal. The main characters were the worst except Zhang Qi (Yan Zi Dong)and Wu Huan. They had a decent character arc, which made them more likeable that the other characters. Shao Xue and Zheng Su Nian was supposed to be more supportive of eachother. At some instances, we could make an exception of Shao Xue. But, ZSN was a complete fool when it comes to reading a girls's mind and supporting her. Sometimes, these character may make us laugh but not like them. Anyways, the portrayal of the bond between parents and children as well as the neighbours were heart-warming.
The delivery of the character the main and supporting leads were decent but the plot is not worthy of their acting skills. I have been a fan of both Lin Yi and Yu Qi ever since they first caught my attention in Put Your Head On My Shoulder and Ashes of Love. We have seen how Lin Yi improved from PYHOMS to Love Scenery and I had confidence in him from the very start. This drama is my first modern drama of Yu Qi and I had high expectations, which were not broken except when she was acting cute where it was not needed. However, both the actors are still quite behind in handling emotional scenes. This was my first drama of Yang Zi Dong's. In this drama, I'm satisfied with his performance. Sun Kai really surprised me with his performance. Also, there were many other familiar faces among the cast and I enjoyed spotting them and their changes from their previous drama.
There music was good but not memorable but, I quite liked the opening song which captured the liveliness of life.
A summary for lazy reades:
WHAT I LIKED
# The portrayal of the bond between parents and children as well as neighbours
# Commendable acting
# The slice-of-life discription of relationships
# Quite good OSTs
WHAT I DISLIKED
# Bad character arc and development
# Bad romance portrayal between leads
# Side characters becoming more likeable than lead characters
# Poor excecution
# Wasted talent of the cast
# Cliché plot
# Some illogical scenes
Overall, this was a pretty decent yet not so good drama. I would recommend this to Chen Yu Qi or Lin Yi fans or someone searching for a light and heart warming drama, which focuses more on family bonds. But, if you are looking for one with a strong romance and trust between the leads, this is not for you.
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Romance with a spectrum of emotions, from light hearted to the most heart wrenching
Just finished it and I totally recommend for people who wish to watch a cute drama with some real story to it.The friends grow up together in a warm neighbourhood. It’s more than just romance- sweet family and friend interactions, characters have their own individuality and complicated relationships. There’s harsh realities of life and death and you will cry.
The puppy love, excitement and anxiety of teenage is portrayed wonderfully. The cuteness becoming passion over time is too wholesome!
Many people might hate FML and deem her to be childish and annoying, which she is a little bit but I promise she will grow on you, the actress did a great job bringing the character to life.
TBH I am one of 'those' Lin Yi fangirls who only watched because of him but Yukee Chen won me over. Well, the ML and FL are cute and all but the talented support roles, esp Zhang Qi- who did a phenomenal job of expressing complex emotions of SML, made it interesting.
The end episodes felt too hasty and I wish the reunion had more to it. It would have been super cool if they had done 2 more episodes, elaborating some more. The plot is illogical but just keep your brain aside and go with the flow. I enjoyed it regardless and would love to revisit certain moments from time to time.
ps- "Old Song" by Ma Di (the end credits song) deserves more appreciation, the lyrics are so beautiful- I'm emotionally attached to it. Gives me chills every time :,)
pps- back to Lin Yi- his acting skills have improved so so much, till now he was only roles in which he had to act cute but this one has him more mature and deep, a treat to watch honestly. It amazed me how swift he was in changing moods from a concerned older guy to a cute boy who is confused about his crush and feelings! 100 % go for it if you like him BUT this doesn't beat PYHoMS haha, sorry to be that person!
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GREAT WORK!
I love how the drama flows not boring at all. I had fun watching it from the start till the end. The casts really did an amazing job especially the main leads Yukee and Linyi actually everyone from the drama.Its heartwarming I would say. It shows how the young generation behaves at home and in school too. Also, shows different situations of different families and how the kids are brought up such a great resource of moral values.
The actors or elders also played their role truthfully such a smooth drama they seem to really put their heart and mind in the story.
Yukee and Linyi and others acted well as young generation. The role suits the ML and FL. They never fail to amaze me.
I love how their love of friendship turns into a mature love. It doesnt only shows good feelings but heartbreaks too. But what I like about is faith, trust, hope and love is expressed so much in the drama.
Every episode is worth to watch. Its my stress reliever actually.
Keep up the good work!
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the real star is the friendship
I wasn't exactly intrigued by the first episode it wasn't anything too special but from the second i had a feeling this wasnt exactly something overly different but something i currently neededthe friendship and family plot in the first half is the true winner to this drama, the main essence i might say it provided warmth and comfort every episode as i went through the journey of the youth of teenagers and the stories of their parents too here and there. The drama beautifully portrayed a loving group of people adults and children alike who just relied on each other and lived day by day.
The acting was good, better than expected Chen Yu Qi did a good job in the first half playing a bubbly teen, lin yi too, including the supporting cast i loved their characters and how it was bought to real life.
second half
while the latter part of the drama doesn't compare to the first and the romance could have been executed better. The leads practically had no character development which was a miss on their behalf I found the side characters had their development but not the two main leads, the writers should have handled the romance better but it ended up being cliches with a little bit of change to keep going, being attached to the characters, of course, was the only reason I could find good sides to the later half
i would recommend this for the first half and if you can watch cliches watch the whole thing
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Slow start worth watching
As a diehard fan of Linyi I was waiting for a long time for this drama to Be aired This drama deserves to be a higher rating Though it is a slow start it improves as it progresses it tells the relationship of the neighborhood who lived in the same alley story revolves around 5 families They have beautiful portrayed the relationship between their parents too both ml and fl parents love story Was really heartwarming coming to their childrens our ml and fl are childhood sweethearts the friendship between suninan xioyue xiqi heshiyin and huannan are really amazing ml and fl get together only during their clg times The moments where suninan mom died was really heartwrenching i almost cried in those episodes which proves every one's acting mainly linyi acting is awesome in this finally the marriage scene is really amazing the one thing I felt sry for second atleast he must had a happy ending it beautifully portrayed the life in early 90s and 2000s the music and osts are awesome I started watching this drama for linyi but become a fan of fl and their friends This drama definitely is worth watching and it deserves to be a higher rating don't miss this gemWas this review helpful to you?
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Heartwarming Drama
This drama tells the story of 5 children who are friends and live in a hutong alley (next to the red wall/palace).+ This drama is the first Chinese drama with the theme of reconstructing historical objects such as paintings, traditional clothes, antique clocks, etc. The two main characters will work in the field of tourism and history (this is my favorite part because there are rarely dramas that discuss this)
+ If you came here for a passionate romance, this drama is not the place. But if you need a daily life drama with a slow pace, this drama is the right choice.
+ I will tell you a drama that is similar to this drama so that you don't have wrong expectations. This drama is similar to the drama: - Go Ahead - Reply 1988
- This is a period drama, starting from their teenage years in the 90s, it is a drama of family, friendship, reality, life, dreams and love. This drama even highlights cases of outbreaks in the late 90s such as the corona outbreak, they wore masks and closed themselves off from the outside world.
- Their teenage stories are filled with reality scenes that teenagers often do, such as truancy, makeup, hiding exam results and problems with views between a mother and child.
- I really like how this drama depicts our daily lives as middle teenagers and the inner conflicts between parents and children.
- The parents' stories are presented so sweetly and touchingly, this is my favorite. With this drama I can understand how parents think and the things they worry about as well as their words which sometimes we (children) think are hurtful but are actually for our good.
- Apart from the warm story, this drama OST is very warm, very suitable for describing the whole story, especially the cheerful opening song typical of young people and the ending song which has deep meaning as an adult. The whole ost is very touching.
- For acting, everyone has their own assessment, I think all actors/actresses are suitable for their roles. For Lin Yi, I think he has developed, ZSN's character is like a transition from the characters he played before, acting deeper and more mature. For Yuqi, there are some that are not very relevant and are not suitable or are considered excessive, but I think she has tried her best because she dares to try new roles that are different from the ones she usually plays. Don't think too negatively that the SX character will mature in time.
Believe me, after finishing this drama, you will miss the friendship of this hutong gang, because after they grow up there will be many changes that will make you miss the early episodes and miss the other additional actors.
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Something you know is okay but will tire you out!
Somehow FL has a serious look typecasted on her. I couldn't feel her genuinity in her role. Some scenes felt so plastic.Main drawbacks are cliche plot and poor production. Why did the FL had to suffer such ordeal in order to be united with ML? FL and ML could have been better as characters if they were shown atleast trying to move on with new relations. The reconciliation plots are a disaster. Some relations don't even make any sense.
The only episodes that could connect with audience is around early 20's(episodes). That too are pity scenarios where they did stretch everything and anything as much as they could. If I could delete one character from this drama that would be ML. Not FL. Even with all the flaws FL was far better convincing than the ML.
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Memory of youth, friendship, and family all within the walls of Liuli Hutong
Memory of Encaustic Tile is a good enough show for you to try, it contains almost all positives that I've been looking for in cdramas. cute love story, friendship and family. having a good community is a + too.I've watched this drama on and off because I kept feeling sad vibes due to the ending OST (hence the low music rating) and I don't want to spoil myself if there are annoying arcs in the drama.
And when I finally decided to finish the drama, I'm surprised that the (annoying parts I was expecting) wasn't that bad.
Sure, there could be some improvements, but we take these types of dramas as long as there are not a lot of annoying arcs.
This drama has a shade of Reply Series but with a lighter overall story since most of the story revolved around Zheng Sunian and Shao Xue.
I give this drama a solid 8/10!
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This review may contain spoilers
This is a great slice of life drama for the first 21 episodes which depicted family, high school, and neighborhood interactions; a group of kids growing together and supporting each other while highlighting family and friendship connections as well as outlining cultural and social issues. The parents are excellent on this drama, their mutual friendship, love, and care was genuinely portrayed and it was wonderful to watch. Episodes 22-25 are about college and choices. Then finally, the very slow burned romance forms into a relationship and the drama suffers a decline as it was full of clichés, misunderstandings, and even bad advice and cover ups from their shared friends. The love story works better as friends that love and deeply care about each other than friends to lovers’ plot line. The lack of proper communication from the main leads makes the rest of the episodes, and their romance, overwhelming to watch. The drama has a happy ending but it is rushed and unamusing! Was this review helpful to you?
Slow burner drama
Memories of the encaustic tiles story is about the lives of the people living in hutong housing area somewhere in beijing. In my recollection of the knowledge about hutong this is a densely packed slum where most of the lower income people lives. The scene depicted in drama is actually a studio set which i seen far too clean and far too organised. Well this is a drama of cause things had to be tidy a bit to represent a good image to the viewers.One thing i felt pretty amused is chen yu qi and lin yi. Both of them had a 7 years gap with yu qi coming to near 30 while lin yi just passing 23 years old. Still I need to praise yu qi for her professional acting skill depicting a teenage girl ( in my brain i still set her as nearing 30) sometimes i felt she was too overact herself by making those children's walk and act. I just could not digest the age reality versus the act. Meanwhile for lin yi due to his giant stature he shows a very mature looking man's complexion.
One thing which troubles me is during audio dubbed to English. It is not only focus to this drama but for every Chinese drama I watched before. In my point of view the Chinese had a unique way of speaking English. I sincerely much more happy for them to preserve this unique accent. When they perform dubbing a multiple of strange sounds happens which I felt the tone had become alien to the original speech. sometimes I can hear American English, British English, Australian English and most funny of all an autogenerate speech anywhere from google translate or a robotic tone. I felt it is not necessary to imitate others but try more effort to promote the own Chinese identity. In other words, BE YOURSELF
Regarding on the drama genre, i would label thjs drama as a slow burning storyline with not much suspense. The storyline depicts the normal daily life in hutong area where the population closely knit with each other at the central city of Beijing. This kind of city life with village feel hardly found elsewhere nowadays.
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