I randomly picked this up, watched 15 episodes, and here's everything you need to know :')
I came in w/o context expecting a cute drama like Love is Sweet and kind of half-slept through all the episodes because there was not much going on, until I realized what the drama strived to focus on: the characters.Usually dramas take you on a rollercoaster - there are defined plot points. Right after they finish one plot point, they move on to the next, and the characters act within those boundaries. It's not quite like that here. It feels more like a character study, and the episodes revolve around the bonds formed from it.
They managed to nail organic interactions in an unrealistic premise (cohabitation from the most bizarre scenario, among other things)!
The characters are all flawed, but I think very rarely does modern cdrama attempt to tackle these types without playing it safe with slapstick comedy/tropes/perfect characters, or overdoing how deep it is/being pretentious, so it's a treat seeing something different.
Also I absolutely adore the casting. Many dramas tend to go for a certain appearance (ex. all cast members either have the mature look, or all look young), but this one showcases a variety of different people both in the workplace and outside. As someone who's more similar to Shen Yue than Bai Lu, I feel seen lol, especially in her scenes in her company where half embody the corporate look, while half look like interns even if they're not. This is what reality is like.
That's all you need to know unless you're like "okay so if it's not all about the plot, give me a rundown on these characters so I know what to expect??":
Gu Yi and Daiwen meet at the comedy club. He's there at his psych's suggestion to step out of his boundaries due to repressed trauma/emotions. Gu Yi moonlights as a comedian after her corporate job, as an outlet to her work stress. They get off on the wrong foot, but become friends once they sort it out.
They are youthful in appearance so it feels very pure/natural as Gu Yi treats him like a genuine person/friend, completely unbothered by his professional achievements and background. She's a very simple girl (** please don't be offended bc I too am a simple girl and can relate, literally life should be simple idk why ppl complicate things, anyway--) - she has genuine aspirations, works hard, isn't paid enough, yet doesn't see the point in bending to corporate expectations and pours her remaining time into stand-up comedy as self-medicated therapy. Very innocent, idealistic, and unapologetic.
Her friend Yu Le from the comedy club, though older, is also simple and their dynamic is great as they are similar at heart.
Daiwen, though young, is troubled, closed off, and upfront about it, but has a good heart. He's had trauma and is proactively seeking help for it. He actually understands things she doesn't - such as the intricacies of balancing relationship dynamics especially in the workplace, and he knows where the line exists when it comes to burdening someone, or reciprocating favors. However, he can't decipher his own emotions. Because he struggles to navigate anything deeper than surface-level relationships, he keeps everyone at arm's length because he sees himself as defective and doesn't want to trouble anyone.
Xing Xin, their mutual friend who is also Yu Le's love interest, is from a prominent background and is suffocated by expectations. She's chained to expectations and yearns to break free - as a result, she is stressed about the bigger picture and also contrasts Yu Le's character.
The characters are all very self-aware of their own traits. And in Gu Yi and Daiwen's case, blind to their shortcomings. This drama is primarily about two characters who are willing to step out of their boundaries to make something work, even if they have several missteps along the way.
Gu Yi seems self-serving, but because she's simple, curious, and just doesn't know when to knock it off, she's able to wake Daiwen from his suppressed emotions and memories, and pull him out of a dark place. She simply doesn't believe that things should be complicated.
This is something no one else in Daiwen's life has done for him. Because he's always been surrounded by peers similar in background, who are aware of the complexities of give and take, and see the line he's drawn, they leave him alone even though he's lonely. Most are careful to not overstep boundaries unless they see a return on investment (ex. Qingya, his boss/sponsor that he feels indebted to).
So far, it's been focusing on Daiwen's struggles with the support of his friends, but not so much Gu Yi's story. I'm guessing once he is able to reconcile his past, we'll see him able to help Gu Yi through her own.
Anyway I'm excited to see where it goes!! Instead of thinking "where is the plot headed??", I now am thinking "how will this character act/react? how have they changed from the beginning?". So if you head in with this mindset, it'll be a more interesting watch!
Was this review helpful to you?
Smile Code
The best modern drama EVER in 2024 and still rewatching it in 2025. I am addicted, the storyline and all the fantastic actors are great!The two main actors are, no words can describe their chemistry, captivating, believable, loving, emotional, caring, supporting and so on.
It's difficult for someone like me to do because I have a high standard and get bored easily
But watching this drama is a different ball game. Shen Yue has always been my Favourite and my best-loved actress in C drama, I know if I watch any of her dramas I will be satisfied, and she did not disappoint me. Good job everything who worked hard on delivering this masterpiece
Some drama you only watch once or a few times, but this, SC is on my playlist to watch every day and am still not bored 🏆🔥👏🏾
Was this review helpful to you?
LAUGH, CRY, LOVE
IT'S 2025 AND YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THIS DRAMA YET??? YOU ARE MISSING THIS GEM IN YOUR LIFE THEN.I am not lying when I say this gave me all the feels to the highest level.
Damn I am so in looove with the soundtrack.
It started with an overwhelming laughter and even ended with an overwhelming love.
This cdrama was the SWEETEST thing I have ever watched in my entire life as someone who is a fan of Cdrama.
RIP REPLAY BUTTON.
IT LITERALLY LEFT ME SCREAMING FOR MORE.
I AM SO FREAKING IN LOVE WITH THIS DRAMA.
THEIR CHEMISTRY WAS NEVER ABSENT!
This is just a very brief review but I hope you get the feeling I have right now and proceed to watching this drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Serving a toxic romance on steroids.
Gu Yi was Liang Dai Wen's personal little yoyo, when he was done playing with it, it would lie discarded in a pile of mess.I kept hoping that Gu Yi would at least get to experience some ounce of healthy relationship with Xu Guan Rui, who was way better companion for her, but alas writers never fully explored that. Instead they chose to stick with the absurd game of push and pull between Gu Yi.
Gu Yi was in dire need of some therapy here, she kept continuously going back for more trouble.
Liang Dai Wen was a better man when he felt no emotions compared to the one who treated like Gu Yi like shit when he had his emotions, kissing her one day, and brutally rejecting her next day. (Young Adult romance books are full of these stories and I wish they would read better more healing romances)
It started out well and I expected it to be more nuanced focused on treatment rather than the push and pull. There were so many different ways to make it a decent story. I am hoping angels falls sometime is better, if it isn't I am done with all of Lin Yi's dramas because despite him being a decent actor, the scripts he picks are not up to my tastes.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
probably underrated
This was too long, but not a bad watch. A few weeks later, I’m finally done ahaha- surprisingly, I wasn’t annoyed by the back and fourth, repetitive things, the issues between them, etc… maybe watching this over a few weeks help, none of this was really annoying to me like it would usually do.
- I love the ost so much (at this point it’s now even an argument 😂😂I say this for almost every drama)
- Both leads did good for the acting, I don’t really like ML’s actor for some unknown reasons ahah but I liked him here. FL’s actress is pretty good. I remember 2 dramas with her that I never finished, « Use for my talent » and « meteor garden ». the emotional scenes were well executed, the crying scenes also looked real to me
- I liked the romance between the leads, the development of their relationship. they both had their flaws and grow to be better. They helped, supported and loved each other very much. Their romance was pretty sweet, gave us good sweet moments through the drama. It took a while for officially getting together, but we got some good moments long before that. The kissing scenes weren’t bad and we got a few
- It was a lot focus on the leads which I liked (still a bit of filler with side characters though, I’ll get back to it)
- I loved FL’s mom so much. she was such a good character. Kind, sweet, understanding. I liked her conversations with ML and FL. Her advice too. Her scenes with the leads were really good, their sweet memories. She became close to ML almost like a mom, the portrait he painted of her and the like display with the pictures, I loved that. I cried when she died
- I liked the friendships
- the comedy show were not funny at all, maybe a few joke that actually weren’t bad, but very very few
- I was anticipating the second couple after few meetings with them and I was mad when I learned they didn’t even end up together (open ending) when I was what, maybe pass half way. But in the end, didn’t really felt anything. I was mad at her at some point. Anyway their story ended up being disappointing and annoying. we got almost nothing (think they didn’t get enough screentime to develop correctly their story or maybe it was how they wrote it). did we even get one good sweet scene of them while they were dating ? I remember nothing. we got a kiss, I think that was before becoming a couple ? The only thing I remember is that we only saw problems. The issues with her non biological parents, her job, her lying to him. I felt bad for him how he was trying to be more « suitable » for her (because her trash parents didn’t find him suitable for her, too low and wanted them to break up), working more jobs to get money, etc… She was suffering too, but at some point I was annoyed, she had no spine letting her parents control everything in her life, etc.. I never understand in drama when they have their trash controlling parents and in the end, « oh they are my parents, blah blah blah » nothing happens and they stay with them. Just like in Fireworks of my heart.
- FL’s boss and the guy (her ex that SFL worked with) : that was complete filler to me and wasn’t interesting at all in the end. It wasn’t written interesting. there was no point to give us that, it lead nowhere, except maybe them finally moving on ? That should have been removed from the story
- It was funny when ML came back and started to get better. He was like a changed man and we got some good funny scenes
- very minimal love triangle. At some point he annoyed me a bit because I was like « stop confessing bro, she doesn’t like you and you even know it », it tooked him what 2-3times before that was over. Still not really much happened, it was coworkers, friendship and seriously not much scenes just the 2 of them. Also FL only had eyes for ML since the beginning. here it was like love at first sight between the leads. His presence created some jealousy moments.
- no unnecessary problems between the leads in the last few eps that we get in some dramas. Their relationship was strong after they got together. No breakup, I think their was no problems between them (I forgot already ahah)
- I liked the last scene of the drama, the dialogue, love confession and proposal. that was a good speech from FL
Was this review helpful to you?
the vibe is different!
This is a drama unlike any other. There is so much focus by the director and cinematographer. They came with a purpose and never lost sight of it. Despite the actors who are known for their romantic comedy, the title Smile Code, and the fact that the FL is a comedian - don't expect laughs. I don't think I laughed even once and the writer made sure to wring a few tears from me instead. It's heartwarming, heartbreaking, sweet, and bittersweet. Happy ending, so no worries there. Go ahead and watch, you won't regret it.Was this review helpful to you?
Feel Good Drama About Personal Journey
Don't get me wrong, I find this drama quite okay since they've touched topics about life, hardships, love, and the journey that comes with it. The strongest point in the story for me was Liang Dai Wen's personal road to recover his buried emotions and reconnect with the world once again, and Da Meixia's unvawering love for her daughter Gu Yi. I also loved the OST' so much that I added it to my playlist.My rating, however, was based on the following reasons:
1. It was too much of a drag to have a 34-episode drama, when it could have been more compact in 24 episodes instead with
much more meat to the story.
2. Guan Xing Xing and Yu Dule's story was weak, and it didn't even made the slightest impact on the drama. Instead, they took
up more screentime with a shallow backstory of their lives . Character development was dull for me.
3. I noticed Shen Yue's character in several of her dramas were always similar in nature. Even her wardrobe team still haven't
improved. They always dress her in tacky clothes. This is why I'm always hesitant to watch more of her dramas. There was
nothing new to explore and see. I hope this changes, so she could make her craft somewhat challenging.
As for Lin Yi, well, I think he continues to improve in terms of acting. I've seen his other dramas, and he can make me giggle and swoon somehow. (well duh, the guy's so tall and extremely good-looking). I just hope he chooses projects in the future that catapults him into a new light as an actor. I wish to see him in a xanxia or wuxia, but with a carefully selected role.
Was this review helpful to you?
Beautiful cinematography with solid acting!
Ready to review. Finished it last weekend.Coming from me (not a Linyi and Shenyue's fan).
They both served. The chemistry and micro expressions 🤌🏻. I meant to portray sadness and anger without tears is very difficult, I suppose.
The premise is great. But, but but...in 20ish episodes I guess they dragged the story too much. And I saw their relationship progression is quite weird, it gets back on track after 27th episode (partly bcs I am looking for steamy scenes but they got none-"you are welcome" is my response if you are like me).
The second couple story is also great. Realistic approach. To handle their own self and problem, "If we meet again in the end of this road,we never know what's going to happen".
Hats off, to the aesthetic scenes also. This urban drama deserves recognition for its cinematography. The lighting, the shoot, transition, rawness...everything. Simply saying, I am in love.
And, because the drama is so beautiful, they give a beautiful ending too. No unnecessary life after wedding or the moment they married.
They ended it just with a kiss. And it was enough.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Smile Code (2024): A Heartwarming Drama with Amazing Friendship and a Perfect Ending!
Smile Code (2024) quickly became my favorite drama! The character was incredibly sweet, and I loved them so much. The happy ending was perfect. The friendship between the actors was amazing. I was a little sad that the two couples' stories were left incomplete, but overall, I truly adored the cast :)Was this review helpful to you?
A cup of refreshment each morning
minor spoilers below.This show is just... so good! I was excited for it even before it aired, but honestly, I didn't have high hopes since I usually find modern Chinese dramas a bit dull and hard to engage with. I was really hoping this one would keep my attention, and let me tell you—it absolutely has!
Right now, I’m also watching other dramas like Fangs of Fortune, Love Eastern Game Fantasy, and Story of Pearl Girl. They’re released around the same time each morning, but I always find myself watching Smile Code first.
What I really love about this show is how unique it feels compared to others. The male lead (ML) is emotionless due to a mental condition, so he’s cold and blunt, especially at first with the female lead (FL). In most dramas, the ML is cold without any real reason, but here, his struggle to understand emotions is central to who he is. He can feel things; he just doesn’t know how to express them. This is where the FL, who’s all warmth and sunshine, comes in to "heal" him.
From the very first episode, their chemistry is so strong, and by episode twoo or three, she’s already moved in with him, which I love because it means they’ll get even closer. I’m already picturing their dating phase, getting butterflies just thinking about it!
I highly recommend watching Smile Code—you won’t regret it!
Was this review helpful to you?
Good movie
Throughout the episodes that I watched, the storyline was very interesting, each actor had a very unique character, the filming was also very good, and the acting of the cast was no less good, they played their characters very well, so that the audience who sees it can feel their feelings.So, I highly recommend you guys to watch the movie. 🥰🥰🥰
Enjoy watching this amazing movie guys
Was this review helpful to you?
Fun to watch, great casting
I finished it already and it’s funny and they really have a great chemistry. The story is interesting and the t helped me understand that there is thing called Alexithymia which i am not aware of. I’m just not that satisfied with the plot but i like the casting, Guyi and liang dai wen’s chemistry is no joke it really feels like butterflies in your stomach.Was this review helpful to you?
