Desire's Dance, Fate's Chance (2025)

Zhang Chi's begging eyes while saying "jiejie" is not for the weak

Zhang Chi and Yue Yuting are one of the CP's I can fully trust to deliver and they did it so brilliantly in this drama. I have only seen a few dramas of Zhang Chi's before and all of his characters I have seen were more of a restrained type. I knew he could act especially in his ancient drama where he was sick and sat in a wheelchair for the most of the story. He was very pitiful there especially when his sickness was acting up. But here, omg, the way his eyes change from a pitiful puppy to a predator was so exceptional. It's not a simple smiling then being blank face. There's something about his stare that really captivates you. . Before, I thought him and Yang Peng Cheng has a similar vibe but this drama definitely put him on a higher acting skills than Peng Cheng.

Yue Yuting's versatility is one of the reasons she's one of my favorite short drama actress. She can switch from fragile to scheming to fierce effortlessly. While she's very beautiful, it doesn't take away the fact that she's truly a great actress and her performance in this story is a proof of that.

Onto the story, I gotta say I haven't seen this trope before. I love the dominant woman and submissive man trope but I don't think I've seen it done literally in a short drama before. The camerawork did great at making the mature scenes hot without making it feel like p0rn. At first, you'd think Jiang Xu is taking advantage of Lu Zhi but once you see the true nature of Lu Zhi, you'll realize they're just two unhinged people who are obsessed and need each other. I absolutely love how supportive Jiang Xu's family was to her despite her sickness. It definitely parallels how Lu Zhi's family shunned him because of his dad even though he himself wasn't sick. Rather, he just became ruthless because of he went through after being abandoned.

I'm not sure if I completely dig the antagonist. I won't write who it is but I can say it's definitely a different perspective.

Nothing can be said more about their chemistry. I love Jiang Xu and Lu Zhi's unwavering support of each other. Sure, they had a dysfunctional relationship at first BUT !!SPOILER!! Lu Zhi is actually into it. It's not that he's into sadomachism but he's into Jiang Xu!!SPOILER!! And the kisses omg they didn't held back at all. I noticed that they did a scene of the two lying opposite on a bed with their heads close together. They did a similar scene in their previous work of historical drama (where Zhang Chi is the emperor and Yue Yuting is a cannon fodder concubine) and if it's gonna be their CP signature scene then I'm loving it.

And applause to whoever chose and edited the bgm. I think this is the first short Chinese drama I gave a high score to music because the music for the steamy scenes added more flavor to those parts. I finally didn't have to hear "See The Light" and that bolbangan 4 song repeatedly in a drama.

Favorite scenes:
- the wax, the ice and oh my gosh the wax (iykyk)
- everytime Zhang Chi acts like a puppy begging for affection. Yue Yuting definitely has a stronger will than me because I would have given him my entire being.

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Rewriting fate with whips and chains

When I saw the chains and whip, I knew I had to watch it.

But seriously, the tension between the leads is *chef's kiss*. The lines were so hot for my liking, and it got my toes curling most of the time like HMMM too spicy~ While the whole reason why they had a BDSM relationship is kinda... questionable... the storyline is actually nice! The whole 'FML is reborn and changes her fate' is already predictable, but it was the complexities of her relationship with the MML that made it exciting to watch. Both of them had their vulnerable moments, but I love how they are each other's damsel in distress. FML is brave and wise just to protect her loved ones, and I love her for that. I also found it interesting that even the MML had to 'rewrite' their fate despite not being reborn. And of course, the real villain and their motivations were a surprise; however, I found their quest to defeat the villain lacking. I just hoped their supposed fate of not being together was highlighted more, so the fruits of their labor would be sweeter hehe.

It's also a jiejie romance—which I super, duper enjoy—but it is not highlighted as much. Still, the dynamics of the leads were really good. I just love to see a submissive, coquettish MML who has his own dark tendencies as well, and a dominant, strong FML ready to risk it all just so her unfortunate fate won't happen again.

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Great acting in this BDSM tale of two people with complicated lives

I watched this drama as I was preparing for a reddit post on my favourite dark and dangerous female leads. I knew BDSM is an element of this drama so I wasn't shocked. I must say I enjoyed this drama a lot.

Trigger warning: BDSM, Mental health issue, Self-harm

What I liked:
1. Romance - One of the steamiest dramas with BDSM element to boot. I enjoyed watching dominant female & submissive male dynamics as they both consented to this dynamic.
2. FL characterisation - She had mental health issues but I liked her character because she wanted to be in a better place for herself and others that cared for her after being given a second chance.
3. ML characterisation - His motives confused me at times because the past version of him was vengeful. However I liked watching his struggles and character growth. It seemed to me that he knew the difference between love and gratitude.
4. Acting - Wonderful acting by Yue Yu Ting & Zhang Chi. They played off each other's energy & intensity.
5. Styling - Beautiful clothes worn by FL and ML.
6. Duration - Less than 2 hours which was perfect for me. Not draggy.

Disliked:
1. Confusion - Her life before rebirth & the sabotage confused me. I didn't quite understand the supporting character's insistence on pulling FL & ML apart. I knew the success would benefit the culprit but so what?

Favourite scene
When ML consoled FL who had harmed herself

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Bom, muito bom!

BDSM! Quando li essa descrição na resenha da emberzmars eu me lembrei que tinha iniciado um drama vertical há um tempo atrás que abordava o tema, mas como era de madrugada acabei pausando para ir dormir e ao acordar o link havia caído, então já fui ver pôster, página e links para ver e voilá, era este! (Mas demorei a ter certeza, ainda bem que eu tinha um print do YT)

Eu me incomoda muito quando usam BDSM para fazer dar um hype no drama e quando percebemos o que está sendo representado ali não é nada de BDSM, mas este drama vertical finalmente conseguiu mostrar um pouco do BDSM de maneira consistente. Mesmo que neste drama esteja atrelado aos transtornos mentais da FL que nos seus episódios de mania precisa se sentir no controle e usa o BDSM como válvula de escape, enquanto o ML, que tem problemas e traumas familiares se torna o submisso tanto pela dor, necessidade e amor para com a FL.

O casal de atores exala química, sintonia tanto nas cenas mais ousadas quanto nas dramáticas em que um acolhe o outro. O beijo mais quente deles é o do final, sem dúvidas, quando eles finalmente podem respirar aliviados e ser quem eles realmente são, seja com o amor convencional ou não, eles encontraram a dinâmica perfeita para eles e tá ótimo!

Apesar deles terem POUQUÍSSIMAS roupas, sério, ela tinha umas 5 (o vestido vermelho, o cinza, o roxo, 1 colorido e 1 conjunto branco com uns negócios rosas) e ele acho que era umas 3 peças (o todo black, o todo branco e a camisa branca/calça preta quando eles praticavam BDSM), eram bonitos, mas apareciam com tanta frequência que você pode pensar: Esse link tá fora de ordem os episódios ou tá certo mesmo? kkkkkkkk

A vilã é chataaaaaaa, insistente, se fosse eu no lugar, ficava no romance mesmo e tá tudo certo kkkkk depois de 10 tentativas ainda, supera kkkkkk E o grande vilão nem tchum né? Era só um pau mandado da vilã que tinha o sistema então?

Ps: a nota alta da OST é porque o link (4º link do Jwells - final: kmqils8ijeo - toca músicas do Fifty Shades of Grey)
Gostei e vi que tem + 2 versões, 1 eu já percebi que já tinha assistido tbm, então logo reassisto pra resenhar kkkkk

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Toda forma de amor

Amei esse drama curto. Uma atuação perfeita dos protagonistas, como uma química de milhões e um amor difícil de ser compreendido. Um aguenta qq coisa em nome da pessoa que ele considera a sua redenção e a outra só encontra sua cura no corpo dele. Apesar dos mal entendidos por conta de ser uma série curta e com poucos episódios,ainda deu pra ver o amadurecimento das emoções de ambos. A história, apesar de falar de renascimento, de uma estrategista que tenta separar o cada a qualquer custo e até de uma relação sadomasoquista entre os protagonistas, consegue entregar uma ótima aventura

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