This review may contain spoilers
Absolute amazing, already watched it 5 times
Okay, Hidden Love totally caught me by surprise in the best way possible. It’s one of those dramas that creeps up on you, and before you know it, you're emotionally invested in every single little thing. The story revolves around the sweet and kind of forbidden love between a high school girl, and her older brother’s best friend. It’s the perfect mix of awkward, heartwarming, and totally swoon-worthy moments.The pacing is slow, but in a good way—like, you’re watching them fall in love step by step, which makes everything feel more real. Their chemistry is off the charts, especially the main couple. You can feel the tension between them, even in the smallest glances or the way they talk. It’s just so... natural. They start off with this really innocent connection, but watching them grow into something deeper, something more complicated, is what makes the whole thing so satisfying.
Also, there’s something about the supporting characters that I really liked. They add a nice balance to the main storyline and keep things from getting too heavy. It’s a drama that makes you root for love, and despite a few predictable moments, it’s totally worth the watch.
Overall, if you’re into cute, slow-burn romances with a bit of tension, Hidden Love is definitely worth checking out. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s heartwarming in all the right ways.
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a love that is gentle, light, and warm
the plot itself has been very risky for the viewers but i loved how it was executed well. the phasing is great, you can see how their relationship evolved thru time. every kind of relationship portrayed in this series was very healthy. from parents, siblings, friends, partner. duan jiaxu & sang zhi are the standard, definitely my ideal type for a partner. djx had a hard time in life but he never projected his anger nor had a negative trauma response on zhi. i love this show. highly recommended. someday, i hope i will experience a kind of love like them.Was this review helpful to you?
A beautiful surprise
I'm mostly leaning towards mature themed dramas recently but decided to give this a try because it had the actress(Zhao Lusi) of the 1st ever cdrama i watched in it. And I'm glad i did. The story is simple and fun but deals with real life situations and emotions. The age gap was done so well that there was no awkwardness. The sibling relationship of Sang Zhi & Sang Yan is one of the best I've seen in dramas. The chemistry of FL &ML was so good that it didn't feel like acting at all. One of the purest green flag couple. All actors/actresses were great especially, Zhao Lusi, Chen Zheyuan and Victor Ma. I'll be rewatching. Highly recommend this drama. 👏 👏 👌 ❤️Was this review helpful to you?
SOFT & ADORABLE LOVE STORY
My first ever Chinese drama and after this I'm addicted to C-dramas mainly Chen Zhe yuan's all kind of work. All his other series, TV shows, his other videos, etc. I'm watching again and again for him. All the other characters also acted nicely especially Lusi and his brother combo. Whenever we feel low, we can watch this and its just simple love story only but worth watch again.Was this review helpful to you?
This kind of drama is like enjoying a cup of hot chocolate and some smores... MUST WATCH!!!
As the title suggests "Hidden Love," it revolves around hidden affection for someone. I appreciate the natural acting and the overall mellowness of the drama, creating a cozy atmosphere like enjoying a cup of hot chocolate and some smores.Initially, I was hesitant about the love story, given that the female lead grew up with the male lead, starting at the age of 14. It felt a bit awkward, even though the male lead didn't romantically see her at that time. However, as the episodes progressed, I realized that the female lead also felt the same way. The one-sided love seemed hopeless and awkward, especially considering they had known each other since her adolescent years and he was in his early uni/college years
I won't give away too many spoilers, but it's worth watching as the drama unfolds and evokes genuine emotions (likeee GENUINE)
This drama struck a chord with me, particularly as someone with little to no romance in real life. It beautifully captures the essence of one-sided love, making it a must-watch for those who enjoy heartfelt stories.
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This review may contain spoilers
Still trying to watch this... (updated after completing it)
Ongoing review (See final update after completing it at the end):It is overrated here. This does not compare to other good romcoms and definitely doesn't compare to Love Like the Galaxy or even Who Rules the World. I have watched up to ep 15 and it is below par with the top Chinese romcoms dramas. I like Lu Si and I have seen most of her dramas but her acting as a 17-year-old made me cringe, by skipping like a child in one scene, and constantly hugging a stuffed animal... Etc. which is appropriate for maybe a 12-year-old. The grade school SZ was more mature (played by Zhang Xi Wei who did absolutely wonderful, by the way). After episode 1, I was really looking forward to her character growth but it actually goes backward. Their actions and banter are still like 14 or 15-year-olds even in episode 15. It has been the same type of interaction. It is repetitive. Episodes 12 and 13 gave me hope to show some depth but it fell back to the same pattern in 14 and now 15. The best part about this drama is her interaction with her brother and their relationship but those scenes are far and few between.
It is extremely slow and uneventful for the majority of the episodes with most of the drama just interactions between the two leads. I am still sticking with it but I find myself struggling to keep interested because the script is way too simplistic with no wit, no humor, and no memorable lines... Etc. and pretty unrealistic for college-level romance. It feels tedious. I will update this review if I change my mind.
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Final Update: Even at Ep 17 there was still the same type of dialog "Do you really have no feelings for me?" "Maybe just a little bit." >.< There are countless scenes throughout this drama of making a big deal about this age gap of him being "old". Not sure why the director/writer emphasized it as much as they did. Again, I think the show should've had far more scenes with the brother and their relationship instead of the slowing moving repetitive interaction between the leads. It's cute and all but 25 episodes of that was just far too slow and tedious for me. I think most people would be far better off spending time watching the modern drama Reset, or if you are into romcoms Meet Yourself, The Love You Give Me, The Day of Becoming You, Skate to Love, and more. If you like costume dramas, then there are plenty that are worth your time.
Final words: Having said that, If you like this type of drama then try it. Everyone is different. For me, I just didn't care for it. Too simplistic for my taste. As I said, the best part is episode 1 with the child actress and the rare parts with the older brother. But then it goes downhill. I favor Wuxia like Nirvana in Fire, The Untamed, and Joy of Life (so I may not be the best judge for this type of drama) but I do enjoy romcoms from time to time but there has to be some comedy, and memorable lines, or wit, and more depth for me to really embrace it.
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It's a good watch if you're mindlessly bored
The drama was kind of dragged out in my opinion..... Like I didn't need 15+ episodes of the FL pining after the ML just for her to reject his advances when he was interested in her...... Also the FL was spoil and selfish and I didn't like how she was unconcerned about everything else in her life besides the ML. Also I thought the acting for the FL was terrible in regard to the intimate scenes between the male and female lead. You could tell that she was uncomfortable being physical with him from her hesitations and facial expressions. Anyways.... like I said if you have absolutely nothing to do you could watch it I guess.Was this review helpful to you?
You can feel the emotion so well
personally I never really watch dramas where the girl and the boy were like siblings and they grew up to fall for each other (ex.21,25. go ahead) but I started to watch this one and I don't regret it one bit!!!! The story is amazing and the way they show the emotions and how their story connects through the OST ,the objects used in the drama and their past is amazing they connect everything together so you know how special their relationship really is and how deep they are into each other's lives all the things the main lead gives to the girl all have a story behind it and how their relationship was at the moment and how it grew (ex.the dog when she was in HS to the bracelet when she was in uni) they show how their relationship grew with such good emotion that it feels like you're the one in their place it's amazing!!!Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
The hype is killing the enjoyment.
When one's expectations are set to perfection, the show fails to deliver. The show has a high rating, but it felt underwhelming to me. The story is mellow-stress-free, and I failed to feel the astonishment it promised.
I would first like to discuss what I enjoyed. Visually, the drama is enticing, and the cast is beautiful (and I emphasize BEAUTIFUL). The show has no actual conflict, and whatever minute disputes we see are either superficial or short-lived. I also liked that initially, it was strongly communicated that the feelings were one-sided (younger FL to older ML) and were not reciprocated until they were seemingly mature enough (they tend to focus on the age difference a lot, personally, I don't care much; I understand since maturity level changes drastically at this age it can be uncomfortable for many). Also, I would especially like to applaud the actress portraying young SJ's, Zhang Xi Wei; her performance stole my heart! The banter she had with her brother is among my favourite scenes.
Adding to that, I would have appreciated, it if there were more scenes with the brother and slightly more focus on other relationships. If such scenes would have replaced the everyday interactions, which were monotonous at times, between the ML and FL it would have added a bit more to the comedic parts. All the characters are well rounded, but not all characters go through a proper development arc or are even given the screentime for us to discover a bit about them. ML and FL, are both shown to have friends and coworkers. Still, we never learn anything more about these side characters apart from the caricature they are supposed to portray. Generally, I do not mind seeing characters as just 'the smart one, 'the hopeless romantic one', but when all the characters are just that, the scenes without the ML and the FL feel too bland and tedious. I did end up skipping a lot of these scenes.
Now, speaking a bit about the story and direction. As I said before, it is a stress-free drama. I generally watch such dramas to escape my stressful real life, and on this account, the show delivers. It is enjoyable for viewers, especially the younger audience. My 19yo niece is in absolute awe of this show. I would think it is a mature story for people below 25 and a cute fluff for people above 25 (although I could be wrong, it is just my opinion). Either way, one cannot go wrong. For me, though, the alacrity was disjointed, and the main reason for this was the way the FL in her high school years kept talking and acting like a baby. This infantilizing of the character is especially unconvincing after seeing her as a child. She is a witty and funny character, but all of it is lost too suddenly; I would have loved it if some of these personality traits were carried into her adulthood. Her university personality is still better and she does start acting like an actual human adult eventually, but one has to go on till ep7 with an unpleasant babyish acting. But the actor is not to blame here; it is solely the fault of the direction and the production.
If I had seen the show before reading the reviews and comments, I would have given it an 8/10. But the way the reviews make it sound brought my anticipations way too high, and then the drama failed. The storyline is not new but rather an updated version of what most fluffy romances are, albeit with better visuals. The acting is above average, and the worry-free storyline does leave much to desire. So, is it a trailblazing perfection? No. But is it worth watching? Yes, and it is enjoyable for what it is, a simplistic warmhearted easy-going-romantic drama!
PS: I had been watching this drama for a while now, so please excuse my grammar. :)
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She's 17, and acting like a baby
Am I the only one who finds the girl's acting in the series as off??! She's 17 but acts like a 3 year old child, making it hard to buy into the on-screen relationship between the main leads. It feels like the guy is dating a kid, and her immature acting messes with the credibility of the show. She could do better by showing a more grown-up side that matches her character's age, which would have made the series more believable and enjoyable to watch!It's such a pity because the story and concept of the series is awesome, and also all cred to the rest of the actors who did an amazing job!
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What to expect from c dramas lol?
First of all I don’t watch Cdrama , cause it’s always silly kiddos , but about hidden love, everyone was taking about it , so I wanted to give it a try but what the heck?? I think the people who are planning to watch it based on it’s rating please don’t waste your time and ruin your mood , the people who are giving rating are 90% Chinese and all kids , it’s a drama for 13,14 years old kids literally, even when I was 14 I didn’t even watch this kinda silly things but its an another Chinese drama with 00 story , female leads acting is 00 ,the male leads acting was good but what’s the use?? The total drama is 00 🤦🏼♀️Was this review helpful to you?
Zhao Lusi being the FL is the only thing that has credibility in this drama
You already see a teenager in early age of 17th being so child? The directors appeal to this relationship to be weird is impressive. Disgusting to the point where only a pedophile drama can be. I'm not discrediting the actors I was sweetly impressed about the young actress, ML have their charm too, they could have gone a less problematic path but they decided to stick with the disgusting content of the novel, when you look at the whole context is just have no way may this be acceptable, come onWas this review helpful to you?
