Too Long, Yet Too Sweet to Miss
You Are My Lover Friend is a sweet, warm-hearted take on the classic friends-to-lovers romance, and while it may not reinvent the wheel, it definitely polishes it with charm and sincerity.The main strength of this drama lies in its gentle storytelling. It doesn't rush through emotions or overuse drama for the sake of it. Instead, it allows the friendship between the leads to grow naturally into love. Zhang Xincheng and Wang Yuwen bring amazing chemistry to their roles, likely helped by their real-life friendship. Their bond feels genuine, playful, and deeply comfortable, just like real best friends slowly discovering something more.
The show also shines in its supporting relationships. Whether it’s the lead’s caring mother, relatable coworkers, or the secondary couple who actually have their own sweet arc, everyone contributes to a cozy slice-of-life feel. It's comforting, relaxing, and easy to enjoy at the end of a tiring day.
That said, the drama does suffer from its length. At 30 episodes, it starts to drag in the second half. Many subplots feel unnecessary, and some scenes appear to be filler. The pacing, which feels natural at first, begins to test your patience.
Still, for those who enjoy character-driven stories without heavy angst or dramatic twists, You Are My Lover Friend is a solid pick. It explores emotional transitions with care and subtlety, reminding us that sometimes, the best love stories begin with friendship.
While trimming down the length could have made it tighter and stronger, this drama succeeds in delivering what it sets out to: a heartfelt, comforting romance you can genuinely root for.
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This review may contain spoilers
An actual rollercoaster ride.
I've been mad at and in love with this show at the same time. First thing first, if you wanna skip 11-20, go ahead. It was such a waste of my time. But oh my god, Episode 22ish and beyond is fantastic. The story which was otherwise monotonous and stuck, finally starts moving - and I'm not talking only about the romance. Even otherwise, we finally see movement in various plots. Episode 22 onwards is a big redemption curve and I have loved this show for that.For the show to be so heavily involved in work, I'm rather disappointed with how the mystery ends. It is so abrupt and out of nowhere. They could've come to the point a little earlier and started this plot earlier instead of wasting some 15 episodes on utter nonsense and 'over the top bro-zone'. The story was solid around the work aspect, but the execution was pretty bad.
I also liked the unconventional approach taken on the two relationships. I liked the sweet story for Cheng Hui and Sheng Nina and I loved how different the wedding and relationship (as a whole) was for our leads. It's very well-written once they actually get together. I'm not even going to bother wasting my precious words on the before because it's just so ridiculous. My problem is not with the wait but with the fact that while we're waiting there's no progression in the story. It's so so so repetitive with nothing new happening for at least 15 episodes. BORING!
Lastly, this relationship shows two contrasts: a healthy relationship at its peak (our leads) and toxic as well, lol. Unlike many people here, I found the friends' relationship to be very toxic. The guy had literally no say in anything and looked like he was just following whatever she said. I also feel they had poor communication skills (considering they were literally forced to resolve their issue). I don't feel kicking someone out of their own house just because of a fight is healthy as well. Or making major financial decisions without discussion is healthy. Plus, they were being a nuisance to literally everyone around them (including their minor child) because of their personal issues. While people would say all relationships have problems, I feel like these are very big issues to be taken so lightly. But then it's just a drama, so who cares, lol. Other than the fact that by some miracle they suddenly made up (literally out of nowhere after a random talk that we didn't see in full so we don't really know), I didn't find anything healthy about their relationship whatsoever. It genuinely seemed to me like they were only in love because they don't talk about anything important, lol. I don't like the screen time given to them tbh. It could've easily gone to Nina and Cheng Hui. They deserved more!
I liked the bond between the friends, it was hilarious. Wish to be with my friends just like this till the end. Overall, it's only a decent watch. So, proceed with caution.
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Just an Ordinary Show with predictable story.
This drama starts nice , It tries to build a back story for main characters but fails drastically. It could have been better, if the story and and main leads were little complicated , That would give audience the happiness and excitement as an opportunity to imagine or guess the next scene and find something else. In my opinion both male lead and female lead are awesome but they are not compatible with each other in both aesthetically and physically. Second couple and side characters played their role very professionally which kept me to finish the whole drama. All the above feedback is with respect to my preferences which may differ from person to person.Was this review helpful to you?
=> Good Youth series - Friend to lover, if you have ( a lot of) patience.
Friend to lover with Zhang Xin ChengPLOT: 2 inseparable childhood friends (FL & ML) accompanied each other during 13 years, in their studies and their professional lives. Little by little, they discover that their attachment is more than "best friends". But friends & family find hard to believe that they're dating.
+++ Very cute CL (Steven Zhang & Uvin Wang) with great chemistry.
+++ Realistic story
+++ No Great Villain. Endearing 2dary characters and romances.
+++ pretty ending song
### VERY slow-burn [not even a couple before episode 22/30 :( ] => quite a lot of FF and skipping on these 2/3 of the series.
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Friend to lover avec Zhang Xin Cheng
PLOT: 2 inséparables amis d'enfance (FL & ML) s'accompagnent depuis 13 ans dans leurs études et leur vie professionnelle. Peu à peu, ils découvrent que leur attachement est plus que "meilleurs amis". Mais amis & famille a du mal à croire qu'ils datent.
+++ CL très cute (Steven Zhang & Uvin Wang) avec une belle alchimie.
+++ Story réaliste
+++ Pas de Great Villain. Personnages et romances 2daires attachants.
+++ jolie ending song
### TRES slow-burn (pas ensemble avant épisode 22 :( ) => pas mal de FF et de skipping sur ces 2/3 de la série.
=> Bonne série Youth- Friend to lover, si vous avez de la patience.
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Good onscreen chemistry between main CP, but nothing special with the plot.
You Are My Lover Friend is a RomCom drama that starts with Zhang Xin Cheng as Jiang Shi Yan and Wang Yu Wen as Tang Yang. The main CPs were friends and buddies in high school who lasted through their university days, as well as working professionals.No one believes they would turn into lovers, not even their besties and mothers.
Synopsis: Tang Yang and Jiang Shi Yan were high school classmates and have been close friends for ten years. After finishing school, they passionately pursued careers in bank credit review and new media communication. Tang Yang helped the families of military martyrs start businesses in her small loan job. Inspired by their perseverance, Jiang Shi Yan made a documentary about their stories, which gained widespread attention. Throughout this journey, the trust and understanding they developed during their teenage years endured various challenges. They blossomed into a sincere and beautiful love. They went from being classmates and friends to becoming partners, building a family, and facing life together.
My Reviews:
1. Nothing special in the story. It has been done so many times in Cdrama land.
2. I like the main CP because they are talented actors.
2nd CP is most adorable and funny, especially the 2nd ML
3. The third CP should not have been part of the story. There is no chemistry, and the actress must be younger than the guy.
4. The moms are funny, too.
5. Overall, it is okay. It took too long for the main CP to get together until the last 3 to 4 episodes. It was draggy, and I was annoyed to see it take so long.
6. It would be better with 24 episodes instead of 30, but their onscreen chemistry was good.
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High expectations. Low returns.
Coming from a Steven Zhang fan,I had high hopes from this drama and got pretty much disappointment. The drama, as a whole would be 8/10. Acting was perfect. Music was good, story was again good! However, they messed up with screenplay.
Because It felt so long !
And the ending...? It was like very fast and quick ! ! ! Every happened so quickly at the end. Either romance part should have started earlier or there should've been more episodes (35eps) to end it with slow and stable pace...
I have seen both Steven Zhang and Wang Yuwen's previous romance dramas and they were all perfect. With good plot, perfect romance and perfect screenplay with perfect ending... But this drama feels rushed! And somehow... It isn't as good as their previous work. (For me, in my opinion)
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walking the line between friendship and romance
I watched this while in the mood for the friend's to lovers trope, and it does deliver on that well, in a way that i haven't actually seen many other friends to lovers stories address, which is the transition is normally painfully awkward. I like how even though both leads do realize how they feel its very difficult for either of them to act on it, as seen by the constant almost kisses we got before they finally actually kissed.(Though the almost kisses were so painful to witness because of how many times it happened)But the major issue is that the episode length is far to long for this kind of melodrama, especially when the business plot was not extremely engaging. Had this story had a more developed supporting cast i wouldn't be as dissatisfied, but the other two couples were not interesting to me. If anything the streamer and tech guys relationship would have been better if they did something with it, but they kind of didn't.
Its interesting because the acting and gradual process of realization is the best part of the story, and had it been 24 episodes instead of 30 i think this would receive a higher rating from me.
The music wasn't especially memorable, but i did like the main opening theme.
Also i give extra points for not doing the standard men and women can't be friends, it was really refreshing to see that they had to convince the people around them that they were dating. the set up of their friendship being something that neither of them questioned was very well done, also the fact that neither of them regretted not acting on it, but instead felt fulfilled by their choice to start it now.
I wouldn't recommend this honestly unless you like really slow paced romance stories and the friends to lovers trope, but for what its worth i don't regret watching it, even though it took me a few weeks to actually finish the show.
Additionally the leads being actual childhood friends in real life is a sweet touch, really does make the dynamic believable.
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Boring
Honestly the show is pretty boring its very basic about childhood friends become lovers nothing very special about the characters the acting was ok just the plot and story was dragged too long I was lit so bored I legit fell asleep if you want to listen to something while doing work or just don't want silence this is perfect for you. Honestly I don't understand how people liked this drama no disrespect but its really hard to imagine well I tapped long enoughWas this review helpful to you?
nothing much
the plot felt like there's nothing going on,, predictable & focus on their work for half of the ep type of show. could have been better! was more interested in the 2nd cp but they did not have much progress throughout the whole show. i guess my expectations were too high. overall just a so-so drama, if you don't watch it, it's not like you're missing out on anythingWas this review helpful to you?
Green flag hero
My two sentence review:This will be my reference point for green flag drama boyfriends. Watch this for a lesson in everyday respect for females and how to do CONSENT!
Writing a third sentence to try to meet the 300 character minimum limit: It's pretty, it's charming, the support couples are not quite fully realised characters, but it works for me nonetheless.
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Once in a while type of drama... worthy to watch
Its a drama that will glue you till the last episode. Yes its light, but it is also relevant and realistic. You will not get bored. Its not perfect but it will make you feel good.Wang Yuwen (FL) again delivers a superb performance. To me, she carried the drama, although the 2ML/3ML and 2FL/3FL did well too. The ML seems off at times in acting especially when startled by the FL. His acting seems wanting or short of the desired action.
The two mothers? Wow! I like both. They help keep the drama lively....
I just indicate 10 in all rating category (in spite of the ML acting issue) as it ought to be more than 9.5; the music? I forgot how or what the music was. I was simply too immersed in the drama episode by episode...
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Expected WAY BETTER
I was expecting this show to be good but 1st it's way too slow, the drama has way too much episodes like i felt like most episodes were fillers plus the acting was mid like really mid, i couldn't watch more than 14 episodes i felt like it was way too slow like nothing was actually happening.I watched this drama because of the male actor but i was disappointed... could have been better. The story had potential but the result wasn't it, plus the flashbacks at the end of EVERY episodes started to get really heavy to watch like it would have been better if they uncluded that in the episode instead of doing it as an extra at every ending of an episode
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