Really getting into cdramas, need recs!

I've always been a kdrama lover, but my roommate got me hooked on cdramas. I'll give some of the dramas I've watched and my notes on them to hopefully aide in recommending. (Also I'm putting spoilers just because I talk vaguely about some of the endings.)

The Double: 10/10 ABSOLUTELY LOVED. Probably my favorite so far. Love the revenge trope and what I call the "baddie-enabling" ML. Also there is nothing hotter than a brooding general covered in blood for his wifey.

Love Game in Eastern Fantasy: 9.5/10 I'm not a huge fan of isekai because it can feel cheesy and repetitive, but let me tell you I WAS SOBBING by the last three episodes. The way they ended it was perfect, in my opinion. It got a bit slow in the middle, but I think that was a bit of the point. I also love Esther Yu, anything she's in is gonna be iconic.

Love in the Clouds: 9/10 My most recent completion. SO GOOD. Was not expecting those plot twists, and the whole production felt really high budget. Twenty-Seven was ADORABLE and definitely stole the show. I wanted to squish him every time he came on screen.

Falling Into Your Smile: 9/10 My favorite contemporary drama I've watched. Loved the gamer concept, and I actually liked the gameplay cutscenes. And the chemistry, PEAK. High rewatch value for sure. Ming is my favorite character; having Merxat as a ML in more stuff is a need, not a want.

Legend of the Female General: 8.5/10 Loved the chemistry and the concept. Thought some of it was unrealistic, like there was no way nobody realized that He Ru Fei went from being tiny to like six foot. Fight choreography was great, and the cast was exceptional.

Some others I've watched and what I rated them (I'm a conservative rater):

Love Between Fairy and Devil: 8/10

Wait, My Youth: 9/10

Meteor Garden: 7.5/10

Perfect Match: 7/10

Exclusive Fairytale: 8.5/10

Love Like The Galaxy: mid-watch, 10/10 so far

• Love of the Divine Tree - xianxia, ride or die couple
• When Destiny Brings the Demon - xianxia with a side of isekai, excellent chemistry, complex and interesting characters
• The Blossoming Love - xianxia, ride or die couple, unexpected twists
• Blossom - fantastic chemistry, good plot
• Jun Jiu Ling - swapped identity/revenge plot and general ML like The Double, intelligent FL and ML who respects that and worships the ground she walks upon
• Fated Hearts - general FL with amnesia like Legend of the Female General, enemies to lovers that makes sense, on fire chemistry
• Hidden Love - modern, sweet story, lovely chemistry and characters

All of these are more recent dramas I loved and rated a 10. I hope you find something you enjoy!

Based on your two 10s so far being The Double and Love Like the Galaxy, I'd say your next drama should be The Untamed. Like LLTG, it has abundant wire fu and an ML with secrets and layers. And like The Double, it has more than one character acting with hidden motives in pursuit of a secret long term goal. The Untamed satisfied my liking for romance with classy innuendo and what superficially seems to be a story of brotherhood among martial arts adepts. I haven't watched any dramas that fit squarely into the BL genre, probably because most of the BL dramas I've come across have lower budgets. And I'm a sucker for high end cinematography and pricey fight scenes. In these areas, as well as in writing quality, The Untamed succeeds.

In other news, since you like Falling Into Your Smile, I second Love O2O, and also will put a word in for both Go Go Squid! dramas. Yay neurospicy gamers!

These are some cdramas I really enjoyed

Destined 

The Long Ballad 

The Romance of Tiger and Rose

Guardians of the Dafeng