Hearts in Play (2025)

A short youth drama without much substance

To start it off, I want to say that I believe most people won't enjoy this even if it's not a bad drama per se. For me I found it an okay watch, if you want something where you don't need to think. But the only reason why I watched is because I am a fan of Jin Zixuan.

The story revolves around a few teenagers, all different from each other. We have a energetic, loud, female lead who's main goal is to recruit the new student to their ping pong club. This new student, a former champion, quit playing after a previous event. The other students in the ping pong club consists of a foodie girl, who tends to eat food almost every time she is on screen and a guy who loves earning money. They are also joined by a "rival" of the ml, who hangs around in their school despite not being a student there.
The end goal driving the drama plot is that the ping pong club will win the school championship.

I know one reason why people enjoy school dramas is because of the romance, but there is basically nothing of that. There is a hint of a crush, but that's about it. The focus is on their friendship and playing ping pong.

In terms of acting most of the young actors are so so. For me the dubbing didn't help, it instead made the characters feel even more over the top. I have only seen Jin Zixuan before, and she does what she usually do, which is to say she plays a happy girl with a bright smile.

I gave the drama a 7, which is probably too generous, but I don't like giving lower ratings.

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