Always Home

树下有片红房子 ‧ Drama ‧ 2025
Completed
Shiroiwayagi
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 30, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers

Heart-fluttering, Heart-warming.. and all there is for the heart to feel

Dare i say this is my favorite c-drama yet compared to other higher-rated ones from this year. It is a slow-burn friends to lovers with irresistible butterflies from the leads chemistry.
I dont prefer love triangles, and didnt care much for the second lead's romance, but that didnt bother me since the main romance was as natural as it could be. There was an unspoken yet simply undeniable bond between the two leads, building up from just being neighbours, to inseparable your-problem-is-my-problem best friends. And as if i needed my standards to be any higher, xi chi is there to show us what it's really like to unconditionally care for someone with all your being.

I could mention the eye-opening commentary each episode brought, their families, friends, dreams.. but honestly, they werent anything extraordinary, and it's the first time i feel that the romance built from all these makes the drama whole as it is. i only wish they got together earlier or we saw more of their university years, but really, what a treat this drama was. brb while i rewatch it while waiting for my xi chi.

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Completed
Disha Ghosh
0 people found this review helpful
May 16, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 8.5

worth watch it ?

life is not the same as we grow older it change constantly. when we born we know nothing about world how to read people who is wrong for you or who is right. at first we learn to walk then speak and those days are magical because we don't get to compare with other everyone treat us nicely and adore us. and then start schooling but the most interesting thing is we know nothing about education but we study compare with everyone told us to study hard and score good but the fact's know one told us the score made my parents proud in real world know one actually care about it. and after done with school we enter a whole new different world college and seriously it was a whole different world here you everyone is was best and if you fail it make you fill like you are a loser I remember seeing a scene where song cong say that he get first place from elementary school to high school but as he enter college he can't take it when he don't get in first place that when he learn life is not always be the same may people love you now but don't take that hard or wrong way it may be you change Or they change



this drama is soo good just watch it

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Completed
MishDMal
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 18, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0

Friendship blossomed into love

It was cute and loved how their friendship blossomed into love.
If you watched “go ahead” then you will get a little bit of that with 2 boys liking the same girl. If you watch WIFTY, then you will get the “coming of age where they are in high school, university and then the real world. Having friends, romance….."
It showed how each character grew despite what they went through growing up.
All I can say is that ML loves the FL - they had great chemistry.
I am glad her character wasn’t childish or annoying. 
The ending was good but I wish they has shown more on how their lives progressed now they are living together.

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Completed
Stardew
0 people found this review helpful
Jul 18, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 9.0
This review may contain spoilers

From Classroom to Career: How Always Home Nailed the Realness of Growing Up!

I think Always Home is one of the most realistic and heartfelt youth dramas I have seen in a long time. The plot summary follows four friends, Chen Huan’er, Jing Xi Chi, Song Cong, and Qi Qi, who grow up together from high school in 2007 through university into early adulthood, all within a close-knit residential community. It traces everyday moments-family dinners, exam stress, part-time jobs, alongside major life events: injuries, bereavement, shattered dreams, shifting ambitions

What I love is how realistic the story feels. People break up, people change, friendships drift. Not everyone ends up with their high school sweetheart. The drama lets characters diverge naturally and it never sugarcoats it. When Song Cong ends things with Qi Qi or the others struggle with family expectations, it all reflects how life really unfolds, not a scripted fantasy .

Characters are well-written and grow in believable arcs. Jing Xi Chi is refreshingly bubbly and human, extroverted, goofy yet caring. Huan’er is resilient, quiet but determined. Song Cong is the golden student who becomes ordinary by choice, caring for his mother after tragedy. Qi Qi is the rich girl with literary dreams, grappling with parental pressure. Everyone feels flawed and vibrant

Relationships evolve naturally. The main pairing between Xi Chi and Huan’er grows out of friendship. There are teen crushes, misunderstanding built slowly, then support through grief and distance. I felt their bond deepen realistically: not instant, but layered. Some side couples drift apart; not every romance is meant to last, and the show embraces that . What I love is how realistic the story feels. People break up, people change, friendships drift. Not everyone ends up with their high school sweetheart. The drama lets characters diverge naturally, and it never sugarcoats it. When Song Cong ends things with Qi Qi or the others struggle with family expectations, it all reflects how life really unfolds; not a scripted fantasy .

The university-to-job transition is also beautifully portrayed. We see Xi Chi chasing soccer, then dealing with injury and heartache. He pivots to app development. Huan’er shifts into environmental science and later research studies. The real life struggles of a student when entering a job field feel earned and emotionally grounded .

If you want a drama that shows realistic couples, real transitions, the pain of growth, and relationships that survive because they evolve, not because they are pre-written fate then this is definitely the one!

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Completed
HajareJoe
0 people found this review helpful
Oct 20, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0

Perfect Friends Growing Together and Apart

🖊 The story is good. The story explores a group of teenager who grew together and apart along with life. It starts with them in middle school and ends when they are working adult. The romance is not a focus really of the show but the relationship that binds these friends together. We see different types of friendships, heartache, and new relationships.Thanks to the cast's chemistry, you really feel like a group you might have been part of during those times of your life. The only imperfect thing about it is the pacing. When it can to university, it started dragging a bit.
👤 All characters were amazing. Every charcater had his or her own flaws and strength. I didnt really hate any character, not even QiQi. To me, they showed the different people we encounter and the different relationships we share with them. It also touched on how family background affects teenagers attitude and understandings of situations.
💕To me personally, the romance was background noise. The main couple are perfect. They slowly fall in love. The ML takes alot of tome to confess because the FL had both rejected people and is a friend. I understood his fears and hers. The second was also good in terms that they didnt finish together. QiQi needed to experience it to know he wasnt for her. I wished they paired the second lead with the smart girl because the way he acts with her is how I see love forming. Seeing him helps her, reminds me of the ML with FL in the beginning so I see it. I also liked Li Tian with the class representent.

Overall, It is a good drama of you want to feel nostalgic of your teenage years, the friends you had, the first relationships, the stress, and the heartache. The romance is worth it but is not a focus really.

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Completed
LauraOpper
0 people found this review helpful
Jul 23, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0
This review may contain spoilers

Enjoyable but slightly frustrating

This review may contain spoilers.

Always Home is a slice of life drama that follows the adventures of three teenaged characters as they grow up, go to high school and then attend college.

In the beginning the story reminded me of A River Runs Through It, because the two main male leads have similar personalities to the male main leads in that drama, but the female lead is very different than the female lead in that series...she has a stronger personality and seems more confident in herself. I think the actors that were cast as our 3 main protagonists were outstanding in their roles. It's hard to imagine someone else playing any of their parts.

I enjoyed the way the drama was written so that the lives of the parents were portrayed as being important to the development of our main characters. The parents were written fairly realistically, flaws and all. The parents suffered setbacks that affected their children, but also they demonstrated how to overcome adversities.

I also appreciated that our main characters were 'allowed' to fail from time to time. Often in dramas everything always works out and success is always achieved, but this drama was more realistic in the sense that the main characters experienced sadness and disappointment but still had to figure out how to carry on and move forward in life.

Of course, since this is a coming of age drama, there is some angst among friends and romantic situations that have to be addressed but I expected that. I think maybe some of that could've been condensed to make room for other things to be added to the drama (see spoilers below) but I didn't feel like it was too draggy most of the time.

Possible spoilers below!


As much as I enjoyed the drama, I was disappointed and frustrated with the ending...not the actual ending scene, but the way it left me wanting answers. I think it would've been a good thing to have an extra episode to answer the following questions:

Is Xi Chi still unemployed? Did Huan'er finish graduate school? Are Song Cong and Du Man really an item? When will Xi Chi and Huan'er get married?

As it was, I felt like I was given characters I cared about but I didn't get any closure...I didn't get to find out what happened between them after everything was said and done. However, in real life we don't always get answers, so maybe that's the point. In my opinion it would've been more satisfying to cut some of the length in the middle and add it to the end...or else add on an episode or produce a bonus episode.

Overall, though, I thought this was a good series, and I'll probably watch it at least once more.

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Completed
sayratial
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 12, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 7.0

THE best Friends to lovers with a great Friendship!

This drama isn’t just a show—it’s an experience, a journey that wraps around your heart like a familiar melody, gentle yet profound. It feels like coming home, like finding a space where every emotion, every moment, belongs. The beauty of this drama lies in its simplicity, in its quiet ability to reflect life as it is—sometimes tender, sometimes painful, but always real.
At the heart of it all is the Xichi-Huaner couple, whose story is a masterpiece of transformation from friendship to love. Their connection is so beautifully crafted, so natural, that it feels like watching a bond unfold in real time. The male lead, playful yet effortlessly intelligent, is a rarity in the world of dramas—his wit and charm are refreshing, and beneath the surface lies a depth that makes him unforgettable. He’s not just a pretty face; he’s a complex soul, layered and nuanced. And then there’s Huaner, a character whose sweetness feels like a breath of fresh air. Her kindness and vulnerability draw you in, making her someone you want to protect, someone you want to see flourish. Together, they create a dynamic that is impossible to look away from.
But what makes this drama truly remarkable is how it portrays life, not just love. It’s not merely the story of two people—it’s the story of everyone around them. In this world, no one is just a side character. Each person has their own life, their own story, their own struggles. The drama weaves them all together, and in doing so, it reflects the way we all live our lives: interwoven, interconnected, with moments of joy and sorrow that we all share. There are no clear villains or heroes; there are only people—each navigating their own complex journey. This honesty makes the drama feel more like a mirror than a fictional world.
The parents’ storyline is an especially beautiful touch. It adds another layer of depth, showing the quiet power of friendship and how relationships evolve with time. The way their lives unfold—sometimes tender, sometimes bittersweet—adds richness to the world, reminding us that every life is full of stories, some of which are untold but equally important. It’s a testament to how relationships, whether between friends, lovers, or family, are the threads that hold everything together.
Visually, this drama is nothing short of breathtaking. The cinematography is an art form in itself, with each scene feeling like a painting come to life. The colors—soft, warm, and comforting—reflect the emotional tone of the story perfectly. The music, subtle yet striking, enhances every moment, elevating the emotions without overwhelming them. It’s as if every note is in perfect harmony with the characters’ lives, amplifying the beauty of their experiences.
But it’s not just the visuals and music that make this drama unforgettable. It’s the authenticity of each character. Every person in this world has their own set of dreams, flaws, fears, and hopes. They are not perfect, and that’s what makes them so relatable. Each character’s journey feels like a reflection of our own, reminding us that we, too, are all figuring things out as we go. The struggles they face, the lessons they learn, and the growth they experience are all so deeply human, and that’s where the magic lies.
This drama is not just a love story; it’s a life story. It’s a reminder that every day we live, we are both the main character and the side character in someone else’s world. It’s about the delicate balance of joy and sorrow, about learning to grow and letting go, about the fleeting moments that shape who we are and who we become.
In the end, this drama teaches us that life doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful. It’s about the connections we make, the people we meet, and the love we give, even when it feels uncertain. Every character is a reflection of the life we live, in all its beautiful, messy, and unexpected forms. This drama is a celebration of that—of life, in all its tender, flawed, and exquisite glory.

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Completed
Emalactic
0 people found this review helpful
May 5, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 7.0

Great show for people who like highschool dramas

I first found the show through a friend since i had just finished WIFTY and Time and Him are Just right! Overall i think its a pretty good show! It has a good blend of emotional, comical, and sweet scenes between characters. The 30 episodes were quite long, but it was definitely worth it. The characters relationships were very confusing and i often had to go back to see who liked who.
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Completed
Dramafan
0 people found this review helpful
Jun 29, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 7.0
This review may contain spoilers

THIS DRAMA OH MY GOODNESSS???!!!!

This drama is another piece of a masterpiece! FR like this kinda reminds me of when i fly towards you just a little bit. I am so excited to tell you about this one. Let's review it.

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

There is this girl who just shifted in a society and there are two other boys who are first lesd and second lead. They also live in her society and their parents are good friends,all three of them go into the same school. There is second female lead also but she doesn't live in their society. Four of them are really good friends.

The ML likes the SFL(SECOND FEMALE LEAD) SFL likes SML, the SML likes the FL, the FL likes ML. It is really confusing it confused me too. Love triangle❌️love square ✅️. There is a case that SHE FELL FIRST HE FELL HARDER. The ML likes the SFL but after sometime he started to like FL. Their chemistry is crazyyyy like literallyy.

After 10th class the SML,ML and FL chose same stream and SFL chose different one. So one friend got seperated from them but they were still talking to each other and all. After sometime the ML started to fall for FL and confessed her after sometime and the second lead also but she didn't accept his proposal. Their friendship is the biggest thing in this drama like they support each other soo well FRR.

The FL and ML got into the same college they were together they romancing and all. When the four of them got jobs then the things were becoming tough for the ML and FL. The second leads fell for each other dated for a long time but broke up and this happened because of second female lead. But then second male lead fell for girl who was their friend who was FL deskmate in class 11th they were all in contact.
In the end episodes they showed that the FL and ML moved in together but ML has to go somewhere away because of his job things were getting tough for them they were fighting also but then they sort out everything.

WHY DID I CUT MARKS IN WHICH THINGS?
LET'S TALK ABOUT IT.

1. STORY: This is my final review. This is my new comfort drama because it shows friendship,family and a beautiful relationship. But i gave it a 9/10 because i feel like the second leads chemistry was really really good they could've been better pair rather than song cang being ends up with du man. But it's finee.

2. ACTING/CASTING: The acting of every actor was really good they nailed it and the fact is chinese visuals are no joke. The casting was also really the pairs was really goodddd.

3. OST: This drama's music was really good with perfect scenes and moments that's why I gave it a 10/10.

4. REWATCH VALUE: This drama is my new comfort drama and my top 2 fvrt cdrama so i would watch it again and again but watching it more than 4 to 5 i will get bored that's why i gave it a perfect score according to my mood 7/10.

You should go and watch it now. This cdrama took mh heart away and a highschool cdrama oh my god!!! You can discover drama as your new fvrt cdrama or as your comfort zone maybe? So to find out go watch it on Youtube!

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Completed
irrevocably_me
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 27, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0

Another High School C-Drama For the Win.

The ending was full of nostalgia and the bittersweetness of growing up so of course, I was crying, lol.
A very sweet drama with a refreshing male and female leads that are extroverted & full of personality.
I saw some comparing it to WIFTY and although it is a drama that I did enjoy, it didn't quite reach that high. I dislike even comparing them but since it is one of the reasons I picked this one up, I thought I'd mention it. Overall, I'm glad I picked this up & once again the beauty with which C-dramas are able to depict youth & leaving childhoods behind ALWAYS gets me. The last episode had me sobbing. I was able to feel like I watched these characters grow up & find happiness for themselves. 😭😭😭

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Ongoing 17/30
may
2 people found this review helpful
Feb 22, 2025
17 of 30 episodes seen
Ongoing 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 8.0
This review may contain spoilers

A Sweet, Underrated Youth Story

If you are someone who enjoys youth stories, I highly recommend this one! I cried and laughed many times while watching this. The main trio of friends are very sweet together and have a lot of genuine care for each other. They went through a lot of fun times but also a lot of tough times together and stuck together through out.

Although others might find it harder to watch considering the multiple love lines, none of them are actually an issue. I think that if you are watching this purely for romance, even though it is a large plot point, you will not give justice to enjoying this fully. It is not only about the sweet innocence of their romance, but how to deal with the loss of a loved one, the loss of a friendship, how to be there for others, how to stand up for yourself, and many other great subplots.

If you enjoyed dramas such as 'Time and Him are Just Right' and 'A River Runs Through It', please give this a shot!

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Completed
bellebemybelle
0 people found this review helpful
Feb 28, 2025
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

BEST HIGHSCHOOL DRAMA SERIES

The headline says it all, and you're missing out if you haven't watched it yet. I'm a fan of high school/college dramas, especially the ones produced in China. WIFTY? ALSB? TAHAJR? Our Secret? I've watched them all, but this one hits differently (take it from someone who didn't expect anything from the drama, lol). All characters surprisingly have insane chemistry, especially the lead characters!!! If you've watched the trailer, you'll know that the three leads are childhood friends; their parents are friends back in college too. The male lead is the extrovert, soft-hearted guy that's rare for dramas. The female lead is a ball of sunshine (I miss you, Huan'er!). Also, a bit of a spoiler that the kids have love polygon, lol, but it was too entertaining and somehow lie down at ep 7 or 8. They used the best friends to lovers trope perfectly. The storyline is realistic; from their personalities to their nuances, you'll realize how their emotions are reasonable. This drama is so underrated, and tbh, this deserves to have the same popularity as WIFTY and other mainstream drama. I even subscribed to WeTV Express to watch it in advance and wrote this review right after finishing it. I'm still hoping it will reach many people.

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Always Home poster

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  • Score: 8.6 (scored by 6,692 users)
  • Ranked: #364
  • Popularity: #1390
  • Watchers: 17,323

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