Hidden Love

One of my first cdramas that I will never forget and also one of the first series that I allowed myself to rewatch. When I found out that I didn't have a review for this gem yet, I had to fix it right away and now. Jiaxu and Sang Zhi won my heart in the first episode without having to try, the same with Sang Yan (who also managed to do it in First Frost Imao). I don't regret the day I watched the series, but I regret finishing it and then drowning in tears that this masterpiece ended. As I already wrote, it's one of the dramas that I've watched for the second time, which is a miracle because I don't normally do something like that haha and I laughed, cried and cursed again. I love Hidden Love and all the spin offs connected to it. I love the main characters and the supporting ones, played by actors on the 1st. I love the story itself and the OST, which added a touch of spice to it. I love the whole Hidden Love thing and applaud those who put so much work into it because this masterpiece is worth watching. I said it in 2023, I'm still saying it in 2025.

Read More

Nothing special

I heard so much about it so thought to watch
Drop after forest twenty min
The young girl who played Zhao lusi is v young May be 9 or ten. And it becomes creepy to see her fall in love

When Zhao lusi is 17 why she talks in whining voice. , have the director been to ny high school girls in grade ten and 11 don’t talk like this , ny one seen going for high jump with cap?
She hurt her leg and they carry her on back what happened to wheel chair?
so far male lead is the only saving grace I might watch till they grow up but if it’s still same I might drop

Read More

Another show rated highly because the actors are pretty?

I watched about 5 episodes and dropped it.

It's a decent show with decent acting, but I found it borderline unbearable for the following reasons:

1. It's PAINFULLY slow and uneventful. If you're looking for a fun, nice pacing, eventful show that will stir your emotions to really get hooked on, to me, this definitely isn't it. I can definitely see this show being compressed into a 10-15 episode show.

2. The demeanor, especially the main girl, is almost annoyingly reserved, quiet and shy. Basically, the poster girl that they want to portray in China. This is their ideal girlfriend / wife material, very different IMO from how it actually is.

3. I follow the news of how China actually is now, just makes it harder to stomach. They basically want to pretend to the rest of the world that their lives are filled with beautiful houses, an extremely peaceful and secure existence, with beautiful people. It's made to be visually pleasing for the rest of the world to view, but there's not much going on. A big facade to the chaos and mayhem that's actually over there, especially for regular people. If you watch the news, it's anything but that. I know a lot of these Asian dramas kinda do the same, but I think it's ESPECIALLY true due to how horribly they're actually treated over there now and in the last few years.

Read More

Boring and hyped

I honestly don’t understand the hype around Hidden Love. This drama is painfully slow, predictable, and lacks any real emotional depth.

Zhao Lusi’s character, Sang Zhi, is frustratingly boring and weak. Meanwhile, Duan Jiaxu (Chen Zheyuan) is bland and lacks depth—his only personality trait is being the “nice guy.” The supposed “slow-burn” romance feels forced rather than natural, and their chemistry is nothing special.

On top of that, the pacing is atrociously slow. Episodes drag on with unnecessary scenes that add nothing to the story. The drama romanticizes unhealthy relationship dynamics, making it even harder to enjoy. If you’re looking for a well-written, engaging romance, this is NOT it.

Read More

I love this movie !!

This movie is so beautifully made and so many talented actors & actresses.
The two main leads are so talented and the chemistry between the two works so well its so believable and realistic!!
After I watched this movie I had to purchase the DVD and I even fell in love with the music so I just had to buy the CD as well. The soundtrack to the movie I also highly recommend.
I can say that I have watched this movie at least ten times already and I love it so much that I know I will be watching it many..many more times again!!
💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏💐👏

Read More

sweet, warm, and realistic, just right, but not 10/10

In comparison to all other Chinese dramas I've watched, this drama offered an unmatched sense of realism. I felt like I was watching a natural love story unfold. Like I watched a real relationship develop from an outside friend's perspective: starting as a harmless one-sided crush on an older brother's friend and realizing a genuine affection and support for each other as they got older.

I think the key to this wasn't the acting, I felt like the acting itself was acceptable and good, but nothing jaw dropping. The main player to this real-feel was the story and writing. Having watched many Chinese dramas, I'm no stranger to the crazy schemes, plot holes, dramatic side characters, and unrealistic "has it all" leads. This drama still has a ML with a devastating and traumatic childhood, it still has a sort of crazy ex, still has a ML as a top new-face in the tech field, all of these are cliches, but this drama does it right. It adds just enough cliche to keep the viewers engaged and the story going, but never too much that it becomes unreal. The stories they presented us with, how the characters acted at their respective ages, and how the characters reacted to serious situations, were all very possible in the real world. We see the characters face adversity in their careers, family, finances, balancing the many parts of their lives, and etc. However, when we are shown these struggles, we don't see big schemes, dragged-on arcs, and the introduction of meaningless filler side-character stories. We get scenes about a character's emotions, conversations between the leads, and unspoken thoughts. This drama nailed showing, not telling. I think 95% of Chinese dramas fail at this. Things happen, but everything remains fairly calm. Just like in our real lives. I was able to appreciate how the leads built a relationship from support and trust only because I felt their problems were real. Their relationship, their conversations, their moments were all so entirely heart-warming because I felt touched for them.

The cinematography was also much higher quality than any other contemporary drama I've watched. Every scene felt intentional and just right for the moment.

My only qualm with this drama was the age-gap. True, a five-year age gap is really nothing. However, I will always have a problem with this part of the story because of one reason: the leads had an established brother-sister dynamic since the FL was young, to the point that the FL had the ML saved as older brother 2 on her phone. The drama doesn't emphasize much about the ML's change in perspective on the FL. It starts off as the ML seeing the FL as a naive little "kiddo", his words exactly. This is kinda set for a while, and as an audience we don't really know when he started seeing her as an adult. This distinction was never made clear. And I fear it's because he still partly saw her as a child even while he was pursuing her....this is where I think it's a little weird. Once they get into a relationship, they settle really well into it and I don't see their age gap as a problem anymore. It's the transition that was hazy. How can a grown man go from seeing a girl as a silly naive young kid to seeing her as a potential romantic interest that fast? The drama lacks here.

Read More