Revenged Love

RL gives me so much hope and excitement for the future of C-BL

I'm so happy to be alive to witness such greatness from the CHINESE!!! BL scene. We literally used to pray for times like this and those times seem to finally be upon us.

I'm just here thinking, if we're already getting this level of quality from China in the grand year of 2025, just what more greatness awaits us in the future? My fellow C-BL enthusiasts, 好好活着 keep on living!!

To bring this review back to a sense of normalcy, this was such a great series. Acting was great, no cringeyness, despite the low budget the quality did not take a hit. The plot and pacing was great, the romance development, the couple's struggles, loyal and tightknit friendships, navigating tough family dynamics and situations, all these plotlines were written with such detail I didn't have a chance to be bored. Romance wise, Wei Wei and Chi Cheng were so intimate, not just with kisses/NC scenes but also through their body language in general. I just loved sooo much how you could see Wei Wei, the self proclaimed "straight" man, slowly come to love CC and open up more and more to him physically. It was beautiful to watch.

There were apparently a ton of intimate scenes that ended up being cut from the series which I was really sad to hear about, and you can feel this a bit from the ending which comes across a bit rushed and not exactly matching the personalities of our MCs so I was a bit dissapointed with that, but I'm just glad we at least got a lot of intimacy from early on in the series to tide us through.

Here's to a future where Chinese BL is completely censor free!!

Overall, a great series for any BL fan to watch. Highly recommend.

Side note, is it just me or does the OST, which is extremely good btw, remind anyone of Adele's, 'Make You Feel My Love'? I'm guessing this OST samples that song? Cos I swear i thought I was just listening to the Chinese translated version at first. Kudos to the 2nd ML actor, I didn't realize he was the singer and he sounds so good!

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The plot had potential, the characters don't.

TW: SA, r*pe

After a almost year long break from bl, I picked up this series cause of a tweet with a still frame from this show. The plot summary seemed eh but I had hope that the couple would be worth it and that the snake plot would be interesting enough for me to keep watching for 24 episodes. Boy was I wrong!

From the start Chi Cheng irked me, it was established that he was some tough gangster from a rich family - pretty edgy but could make for a great, or at the very least, entertaining plot. Da Wei and Chi Chengs relationship is terrifyingly toxic, especially from the start. Honestly I didn't mind Da Wei getting roughed up by Chi Cheng at the start, before the whole revenge thing started, since Da Wei was troubling him (recording yourself pickpocketing other people? Really?) and also cause I'd get why a rich gangster boy like Chi Cheng would get ticked off easily. But then Da Wei finds out Chi Cheng is "dating" Da Weis ex gf (Yue Yue) and Da Wei starts trying to seduce him. First, I'd like to say how shallow Yue Yues character is. I suppose it's common in most romances, especially bl, that when there's a bad ex almost 100% expect them to be just that. They're bad for the sake of it and exist for the viewer to hate on while also pushing them to want the leads to get together to spite the ex. I feel like they could've fleshed out Yue Yues character a bit, a gold digger girlfriend isn't particularly new or special, and she only serves as motivation for Da Wei to keep trying to "seduce" Chi Cheng. Notice how I put seduce in speech marks because honestly no guy ever needs to try and seduce that man. It's implied and, might as well be proven with how he's treated Da Wei, that this man FORCES HIMSELF ON PEOPLE!!! HE'S JUST A STRAIGHT UP R*PIST I'M NOT EXAGGERATING. I'm gonna rant about this pos for a bit but when they start meeting regularly with no animosity between them Chi Cheng wastes no time harassing Da Wei. I'm not even joking Chi Cheng kept aggressively feeling this man up when he clearly didn't like it and wanted him to stop (literally yelling at him to and fighting his way out). The first time they have s*x, episode 10-11, it's because Chi Cheng THREATENED DA WEIS FRIEND, XIAO SHUAI, WITH R*PE. Literally came up to the roof of Xiao Shuais clinic and told him, despite already dating Da Wei at the time, that if Da Wei didn't have s*x with him within a set date, he would "force himself" on Xiao Shuai. I WOULD KILL SOMEONE, LET ALONE CONTINUE DATING THEM, IF THEY EVER SAID THAT TO MY BEST FRIEND? Even before this, a guy Chi Cheng was beefing with (over snakes I think) was begging for his life in front of other gang members. Chi Cheng asked the gang members what they thought of the guy and they said they like him. SO CHI CHENG LEFT THE ROOM AND LET THOSE GANGSTERS GANG R*PE THE POOR GUY? And after that, in a conversation with his gang assistant or whatever, the assistant asks why he didn't just force himself onto Da Wei by now. And this bastard Chi Cheng said that he can't bring himself to force himself onto Da Wei. YOU SHOULD NEVER EVER FORCE YOURSELF ON ANYONE WHAT??? I tried to ignore the harassment and creepy perverted stuff Chi Cheng said at first cause I assumed, or hoped, it was iffy translation. It probably isn't. I cannot state how the whole thing of Chi Cheng is that he forces himself onto men and how that's treated as normal, and in the case of Da Wei resisting, even comedic. Maybe its because you're expected to see any crime, any horridness, that a gangster does as normal. This is honestly a big problem in bl, so much so that with my experience in this genre, I wasn't even surprised. This character is taken to the extreme though because they acknowledge he forces himself onto guys and is depicted non consensually touching Da Wei in all ways. Even when they have s*x, it feels awful because Da Wei was pressured into doing it after Chi Cheng threatened his best friend. The only thing I appreciate is that for possibly the first time ever, Da Wei kissed first and started it, though I doubt it'd change much if he didn't. Da Wei irritates me as well, mostly because of his whole seduction thing. Revenge-seducing your exs current man is certainly an idea, but even looking past that he executes it not so well. Frankly his plan wouldn't have worked if Chi Cheng wasn't a pervert that got his thrill from harassing and r*ping men. For a guy who dated someone for ~3 years he sure doesn't know how attraction works. And don't tell me it's because he dated a girl and that gay relationships are different in regards to this. Da Weis made sure we all think that. Chi Cheng made it clear that he was interested, s*xually for the most part, in Da Wei. What I don't understand is why Da Wei would continue to do things to further advance their relationship when he clearly wasn't comfortable with any kind of s*xual acts with Chi Cheng. If someone kept forcing themselves on me I would try to create distance both physically and emotionally. Surely getting revenge on Yue Yue isn't worth being potentially r*ped for, right? Honestly he had Chi Cheng wrapped around his finger and didn't have to try to act smart or appeal to Chi Chengs other interests, though it was pretty funny to see him act like an academic on his date with Chi Cheng, like what are you doing bro? I understand the silly scheming is to be entertaining but it felt a bit immature compared to what happens in the show but maybe that's cause I expected a more serious plot. But even after they have s*x, when Chi Chengs harassment and uncalled touches are repackaged as consensual and attractive, I can't help but feel that Da Wei is uncomfortable. Maybe it's the acting of his or aggressive nature of Chi Cheng but it still felt like he was being harassed by Chi Cheng, just that he gave up and accepted his fate which made me upset, poor guy :( I also thought for a guy having s*x for the first time with another guy, Da Wei would need more help or even instructions but he jumped right into it. He was also having trouble walking after that, I'm not an expert on s*x especially man-to-man, so maybe it's expected because behind can be more sensitive, but I hope Chi Cheng went easy at the very least because with his aggressiveness he could've caused unnecessary pain to Da Wei which isn't the healthiest but this whole show is a red flag thanks to Chi Cheng so it's a small thing.

And bringing that up, I'd like to talk about the second couple, Xiao Shuai and Guo Cheng Yu. They were honestly a nice breather from the toxicity that is Chi Cheng. The issue is that thanks to him, the bar is so low that a fellow gangster like Guo Cheng Yu not laying his hands inappropriately and without consent makes him perfect.
I didn't like how he kept pestering Xiao Shuai even after eating a slap from him. He's always stalking this man, seen sitting somewhere behind him at a bar or anywhere else he goes honestly. I know it's all "aww he's keeping an eye on his crush even when the crush feels like he doesn't care about him" or that he's rich and well connected and it's normal for people like that to stalk their interests. Just text or call this guy when he clearly misses you or leave him alone entirely after that slap. But other than that I actually found them cute despite the slow burn compared to the other couple, my fav scene being when Xiao Shuai was drunk out of his mind over a horrible ex and contrary to what I expected Guo Cheng Yu took him back to his place and handled the drunkeness really well! He didn't try to correct or argue or take advantage of a drunk Xiao Shuai and instead adjusted to whatever reality Xiao Shuai was experiencing. I like how Guo Cheng Yu, albeit after he figured out Xiao Shuai liked him, never pushed it and at worst he'd do some cringy flirting. Chi Cheng take notes.
The weird thing about Guo Cheng Yu though is that at the start I think he "traded" a visibly scared boyfriend to Chi Cheng over some snake fighting bet. I'd rather die than meet a Chi Cheng in real life let alone be traded to one. How do you even trade a person without it being trafficking?

The doctor Xiao Shuai is the only nice one besides some creepy comments he made about Da Wei cause he was shirtless. It was right after Da Wei found out Xiao Shuais gay but its pretty narrow minded to assume that a gay man's gonna get seduced or suddenly become attracted to another guy, let alone his best friend, just cause he was shirtless/showed some skin. If someone I had a strictly platonic relationship with took their shirt off I wouldn't really care. But that's all I have to say about the characters.

Now, the plot. To me it felt like it ended at episode 9 and from there it was petty, boring stuff. I do tend to like bls that focus more on plot than romance so forgive me but I did find the snake thing pretty interesting. I also liked the gang-ish aspect of Chi Cheng and Guo Cheng Yu when it came to snakes; I love some good dangerous and mysterious characters. That side that felt completely forgotten later on.
I liked the father's involvement in it especially because its simply someone Chi Cheng cannot afford to beat, and the fathers motivations, the need to put extreme pressure on a guy like his son, are somewhat interesting as well. The snake gangs were so cool honestly, I liked that snake den of Chi Chengs and the snake fight scene. Too bad that in a 24-episode show, that ends at episode 9. I was a bit confused with the snake trade, specifically how all sides were handling snake breeding, transportation and losses (snake deaths). Pair that with potential misunderstanding via translation and you've got me puzzled. I was so hyped to see what Da Weis money-making, Chi Cheng-attention-grabbing plan with snake breeding was but I couldn't wrap my head around it all. I was also confused with what and how Guo Cheng Yu planned to do what he wanted with Chi Chengs stolen snakes. I also couldn't make out how Da Wei would help Chi Cheng snake-wise and kept cursing him out when he decided to go into an active fight zone to pick up the post-crash, unsecured snake boxes for safe keeping. Honestly I was hoping he'd make an effort to hide his face/identity, doing all that so Chi Cheng wouldn't see him, cause maybe its my bad but I expected Chi Cheng to get mad at him for getting himself into all of that, especially when he's been shown as a gangster type who intimidates people even when he's worried about them.
I did stop watching at episode 14, but I skimmed through the rest of the eps and read a summary for each of them to see if anything plot relevant or interesting happens since I was losing interest and patience with Chi Chengs r*pey behaviour. It seems that Da Wei gets kidnapped possibly by Chi Chengs dad but it happens so later on I couldn't care to watch more fluff and more ex beef (Wang shuo) just to get to that. I know Da Weis mother dies (she also told Chi Cheng to not warn Da Wei of her cancer, because why wouldn't she?) which I expected since she's an older parental figure, single mom, extremely kind, rural and broke: all standard requirements to be The Family Member That Dies in bls and other shows. Reading that solidified in my head that I'm not finishing this show; for me to go through eventless s*xual teasing and general fluff - the thing I feared would happen once I finished episode 9 - just to be hit with another extremely common trope you'd see from miles away is a bit insulting.

I wish the dad took on a bigger role throughout the whole show, like the villain Yue Yue was made to be, but his reckless act of stealing his sons prized possessions, live animals, and the consequent death of them didn't even feel that bad. This whole gang thing was set up around snakes, its basically the thing Chi Cheng lives for, and for there to be no real consequences for the father and for everyone to move on hurts my soul. Chi Chengs most interesting trait was his ability to handle snakes and the shady stuff surrounding that type of work, but it really didn't get as developed as it should've been. One thing I will say though is that that fight scene at the snake van crash site was amazing, no doubt thanks to the budget and wonderful choreographers. Too bad we don't see that often or again.
I also quit watching once Wang Shuo, Chi Chengs ex, entered the picture. I thought the big beef between the main couple would be that Da Wei had ulterior movies when approaching Chi Cheng, even if I didn't think it mattered at all at this point because Chi Cheng outweighs any bad by Da Wei and also that Da Wei clearly loves him otherwise he wouldn't have gone as far as he did and be open to continue dating even after confessing his secret, but surprisingly it was yet another ex, just Chi Chengs ex instead.
I was thinking about how we started with a potentially super interesting plot surrounding snake gangs just for the base plot in the middle eps to be some petty ex drama and everyone and their mother getting mad about each others past relationships. Then apparently at the end Chi Cheng gets detained for tax evasion (he should be detained for much more) and Da Wei spends and devotes everything to getting his guy out of jail. Where was this kidnapping and tax evasion plot when I was dying of boredom for 5 eps straight post episode 9?

Anyway, didn't enjoy the show plot or relationship wise and I wouldn't recommend it. Chi Chengs actor would do a good job playing an evil, criminal character that isn't romanticised. Da Wei should've taken all of Chi Chengs money and run off with his mother. Xiao Shuai and Guo Cheng Yu should get their own lighthearted bl show.

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Did we all watch the same thing???like hello??

TOXIC & PROBLEMATIC STUFF PLAYED OFF AS COMEDY!! 100% agree with the negative reviews.
I'm not saying chinese-BLs we've got so far are masterpieces, but they were worth it (even with censorship). Even the bad ones had a minimum standard. This new kind of Chinese dramas that surpass mainland release are turning out to be so crappy.

Cringe acting, logic-less plot, sub-par editing, bad direction & shitty screenplay-- i would've let it all slide, because it was entertaining upto a point, but the ML is toooo shitty, not just to the MC but others as well. Like he literally threatens to r*pe the MC's friend & it's played off as comedy. At first I thought it was a translation mistake, but no. He can't bare to force himself on the MC but other people are free real estate, like what the f*ck? Why are we normalising/romanticising this shit? This is why BL's get such a bad rep. Everyone would be up in arms if this was a mlw drama.

The MC is annoying as hell too. I actually like the second couple more, but don't know how they turn out, because I dropped it.

I once again urge the audience to stop praising less than mediocre content & demand the makers for quality.

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Reasons why my blood is boiling right now

OK, this series as I already know y'all it ain't for the weak hearted, the acting and production is good, and the ratings is looking very pleasant, so I'm writing this review for the people who has problems with the SA scene that happened in the beginning, if you have a problem with it please just fucking drop the drama, no body Is forcing you to watch it, after all that's what you all say in your reviews "I have to force my self to get through the episodes", like, if your morals are really that much higher than ours cause we actually enjoy it, then stop watching it, don't force yourself through it, and I know half of y'all in the comments don't even watch bls but you still come prepared with your big @ss mug to yapp about stuff like that, Chi Cheng was way worse in the novel, and the casts and crews did put a lot of effort into censoring certain stuff, I don't excuse such behavior but ChiCheng's character was written like that, he was supposed to be a guy who cares about nothing but his snakes until he met SuWei, he ordered his man to 🍇 that man because he hates to be lied to the most, so he did that, and that was before he fell in love with Suwei, his character is a dynamic character, he's going to change, and if weak hearted people like you have a problem than stuck your foot in you d@mn mug, and don't come dropping the reviews here, anyone can tell half you a lot are jealous people who don't even watch bls, or just bots, I bet those reviews were written by three people with different accounts, so before coming to smear vile comments and reviews on a series please try to understand the characters build and structure and understand that fiction and is fiction, it's written based of someone's imagination, I don't mean to put down the victims to SA but we all have to understand that this series is for entertainment and that's why 60% of it is comedy, no one is trying to undermine the SA portrayed, just people with common sense who can distinguish fiction from real life, this series brought me comfort and joy, and seeing its reviews going down because of people who has nothing good to spute out of their mug, and people whith so little understanding is not matching well with me

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The magic that is CC & WSW

I honestly went into this series a little scared to get emotionally invested in something that was going to either A) Disappoint or B) Be ruined before it finished airing. And to be honest, I feel like both of those things could have been realized, maybe the second one a little too close for comfort, but somehow we narrowly escaped with all 24 eps intact and our fears relieved.

I am giving this show a full 10/10, not because I think it was perfect, but because I think overall the cast and story melded together beautifully enough to deem it worth of it. There are things I wish could have been a little different, but that's my personal preference (ex: Wang Shou (needed less screen time) and The Finale (needed to be so much longer than 33 mins)). All in all, this little series became our Monday & Tuesday routine that warmed our hearts and continuously left us wanting more. This last stretch seemed to go by so fast that I don't think I've even properly realized that it's truly over.

Thank you to Ziyu and Tian Xuning for stepping into these shoes and for becoming the most beautiful versions of Wu Su Wei and Chi Cheng. Their story and their love will remain with us for a long time.

I also hope that the road ahead for both of you is kind and welcoming. I hope that you always look back fondly on this time and that you always carry it with you. You both deserve all of the success this series brings and while I know it's challenging, I hope you always find more reasons to smile than to cry.

<3

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This was the most unexpected outcome you could imagen...

First of all I think the director did relat good with the casting part. I find that all the actors really show all the sides of the character they are playing. Each actor is trying his/her best to make the character look real.

I also realy like how the snakes of chi cheng represent his mood and different sides. This is probably one most over looked part of the series.

I also really like the 2nd leads especially the doctor. I fins him very funny and helpful at the same time. He is just there for support for dou bo. I hope in the upcoming episodes we will see his love life grow with the other 2nd lead (forget his name). I like that 2nd lead to because even tho he is sort of enemy's with chi cheng he tries his best to help him behind the scenes I think he views chi cheng as some sort of friend one way or another.

for dou bo. I love his funny and goofy character... and how he finely realized he was in love with chi cheng but one way just made it funny again by saying "I don't wanna be something with him bc I will surely be bottom then" that made me laugh. Dou bo is also realy caring. Not much to say about him further tho...

Now for chi cheng. He has this bad ass vibe he had with almost everyone else but the second he is with his baby (dou bo) he shows his soft and caring side. Realy love his energie.

Now for the last and most shocking part for me. Where is the concent. I love the love life of dou bo and chi cheng but where is the concent...? It just looks like chi cheng is r#ping dou bo each time. I know dou bo pretended to be into chi cheng at first but that does not give you the right to do anything you want with him. Dou bo clearly set some boundaries but chi cheng just keep crossing them.

Further love to this series. The actors are ready well and the story is viking.

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Circumventing Censorship: Daring Approach in Love

What seems to be another frantic attempt to enter the rising game of elite LGBTQIA+ series, turns out to be a complete game-changer. Not only does it leave my chinese studies brain - who also just came back from studying in China for one year - completely scattered with questions of how can a series this vivid be produced in nowadays China; but also the (voice) acting and superior editing left me without doubt that this will be one, if not THE game-changer of the year 2025.

Bringing such a series to life, given all the circumstances and hidden legal pathways, is kind of like a modern wonder. It´s creating visibility for possibilities that many had long given up on, me included. It´s mind altering to be proven otherwise.

STORY 7.5 >> 8.0
While it´s arguable that the story in itself has a very fresh humorous and catchy general vibe, I think in parts it´s still too sophiasticated to be exceeding story-wise. It´s like the series does an excellent job in themathizing the morally questioable - slightly diabolical - fantasies; and maybe THAT exactly could be the argument why the story is good: It´s great in conveying this genre, but the genre itself doesn´t have as much depth in writing than other series of the same orientation.

However, as someone who´s studied Chinese for years REVENGED LOVE can be a hilarious, yet breathtaking experience.

ACTING / CAST 9.0
Now we´re talking game-changing: The production crew of this series has made many right decisions, of which two make the series particularly unique: the AUDIO and the CINEMATOGRAPHY. Holy Lord.

Casting Zi Yu and Tian Xu Ning as the main cast is a great foundation for a succesful project. These two were able to act out exactly those little details and exaggerations which make the show exciting to watch. You can argue that they could have made this series equally successful without adding any explicity. From the main cast to the guest cast, each one seems to fullfill their duty well of portraying their character, let alone the chemistry that keeps you hooked to your seat. Combined with the visual effects created by the cinematography and editing teams, this series well deserves the hype.

Special credits should be given to the voice of Chi Cheng, Wang Bao Shun 王保顺 . I´m convinced his voice - especially the sound effects of his breathing and little giggles - are playing into a significant part of why REVENGED LOVE has reached such a wide degree of attention. The audio and sound effects, which are vivid and game changing, are precisely utilized to keep the viewers hooked. And. it. works.

MUSIC 9.0
Inarguably one of the best choices of music we could´ve asked for. Not too over the top, but melodical and suitable enough to not lift the attention, but intensivy the entire experience.

OVERALL 8.5 >> 9.0
Daring. Full of Courage. Unique. Fresh and Catchy. Revenged Love. Enjoyed it while it lasted.

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Fantastic job by the main leads !!

Series watched out of curiosity, due to its popularity.

PLOT: A young, poor, and lost ML (morality rather grey) is dumped by his (idiotic and greedy) girlfriend. He repeatedly crosses paths with ML2 (rich, gay/bisexual?, sploided, a snake lover, and with toxic behavior). Disheartened to see his ex-GF now flaunting herself with ML2, the ML decides to seduce him.

+++ The two main characters are fantastic and give their everything to make us believe in this story.
+++ The second romance is very cute and more mature.
+++ The budget is clearly limited, but the directors make good use of it. Excellent OSTs.

WOW (‡▼益▼) (‡▼益▼)
### Silly, poorly constructed storyline. The misogyny (ex GF is a pest) and homophobia are blatant!!
### The characters have inconsistent, illogical reasoning. They want us to believe that gay people don't think like everyone else...
### In this type of drama, all the men (or almost all) are gay. I'm aware that people mostly hang out with their own community, but here, it's too obvious. IRL, sexual orientation is more varied :)

+++ The storyline improves once the two couples are established. We return to the usual twists we can watch in heterosexual dramas, with consistent behavior, and then, we become attached to the characters.

=> I don't know how this drama got past the censorship, but kudos to the actors who are fantastic!!
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N'étant pas une fan de BL, j'ai regardée cette série par curiosité, en raison de sa popularité

PLOT: 1 jeune ML, pauvre et paumé (moralité plutôt grey) est plaqué par sa petite amie (idiote et cupide). Il croise à plusieurs reprises le chemin du ML2 (riche, gay / bisexuel ?, sploided, aimant les serpents, au comportement toxique). Le ML, dépité de voir que son ex GF s'affiche désormais avec le ML2, décide de séduire celui-ci.

+++ Les 2 ML sont fantastiques et donnent tout pour nous faire croire à cette histoire.
+++ La 2e romance est très cute et plus mature.
+++ Le budget est visiblement limité, mais les réalisateurs en font un bon usage. Les OSTs sont excellentes.

WAHOUUUU (‡▼益▼) (‡▼益▼)
### Storyline idiote, mal construite. La misogynie (ex GF est 1 peste) et l'homophobie sont évidentes !!
### Les personnages ont des raisonnements incohérents, illogiques. On veut nous faire croire que les gays ne réfléchissent pas comme tout le monde ...
### Dans ce type de dramas, tous les hommes (ou presque) sont gays. Je suis consciente que les gens fréquentent surtout leur communauté, mais ici, c'est trop flagrant. IRL, l'orientation sexuelle est plus variée :)

+++ La storyline s'améliore quand les 2 couples sont établis. On en revient aux twists habituels dans les séries hétéro et à des comportements cohérents et on s'attache aux personnages.

=> Je ne sais pas comment ce drama a surmonté la censure, mais Kudos aux acteurs qui sont fantastiques !!

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I watched it without expectations but turns out it's so good?
I dont get the snake plot, but the romance is romancing 🤣🤣

Red flag perverted male lead top, Chi Cheng, and naive crybaby bottom, Wu Suo Wei, is such a delight. Their journey to be a couple isn't smooth but it's such a bittersweet story.
Chi Cheng and Wu Suo Wei relationship with their bestfriend is a good addition to the whole story.
The bestfriends, Chengyu and Xiaoshuai, is the second couple and worth to watch too. The dynamics is so interesting.

Alsoooo, the bts. Damn. Watch the bts, people! The BTS is funny, more spicy in some scenes and feel like a fan-service to the fans😂😂😂

All in all, RL deserved the hype. Who would have thought a low budgeted series would blow up and up to this day, fans still can't move on?

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