This review may contain spoilers
A breath of fresh air
This drama is quite simple, and hence there's not much to say.
Both the main leads come from wealthy families, which is something to dig for: no "you're not worthy enough", no "I don't deserve you". They stand as equals, supporting each other through their hardships and dreams.
Nie Xi Guang's mother and grandparents are something else entirely, really: they're caring, down-to-earth, humble; but they still know their worth, remembering clearly how they got to where they are now. Her father... Well, he's on a different path (of redemption, at least). I've loved the dynamics between her aunt and uncle, especially since it's exactly what the ML wanted to create with her: a bossy wife and an understanding husband. Also, a special mention goes to her cousin, Jiang Rui, 'cause I believe everyone deserves a sibling like him. Every time he was on camera, I wished to have such a chemistry with my own sibling. Lin Yu Sen's family was nice, too (meaning the mother and the grandfather, even his step-father). Although both their families are quite important, they're hard-working and educated people.
The most annoying character, to me, wasn't even Qian Fang Ping or her daughter, but Zhuang Xu. He's a slow, useless person who lacks empathy and understanding of others; he expected the FL to always make the first step, to acknowledge his emotions even though he never spoke a word about them, to wait for him without actually talking with her first! He made a bunch of assumptions, even believed someone else over her and expected to be let in nonetheless?!
I hated how he continued to linger around her, not as a character, but whenever he was on camera you could see he was still into her. Too late, buddy. Next time man up and do something.
I appreciated how he was left alone at the end, though.
Now, this was a slow-burn light romance. In the first half, we get the foundation of Xi Guang's life, her "unreciprocated" feelings towards the man-child (Zhuang Xu), and the beginning of a new chapter of her life; one with Lin Yu Sen, her boss and GM of the company. We get some not-so-basic understanding of the business, and the blooming of their relationship. The second half is the developing of their relationship, the maturing of some characters, and the resolution.
The relationship is sweet, the chemistry is there. It's nothing overbearing at all, its pace is healthy, their communication is strong. Something that I greatly appreciated was the complete absence of a setbacks: the "misunderstandings" (it didn't feel like there were any in particular, apart from the car accident) get cleared up immediately, and no one interrupts the scene, which is weird since in cdramas you usually expect someone to pop up from the afterlife just to delay the conversation... No "I need to tell you something... But I won't for another five episodes because someone has just interrupted us", or "Let me keep this a secret from you because I don't want to worry you further".
The whole relationship stands on mutual understanding and support, the characters are mature enough to handle everything the right way. They clearly share a sort of intimacy that goes well beyond the physical aspect: they're relaxed around each other, and each other's relatives; they're secure, stable, and they always seem to be on the same page, whether regarding work, family, friendship, or their own relationship. They don't need many words to communicate the standards of their affinity, it comes natural to them: as if they were made for each other.
I loved the FL's personality: she's straightforward and can actually stand up for herself and for others. She states clearly her intentions, her reasons, her feelings, making it clear to whoever that she means business. She's still quite shy around the ML, though, but that's quite cute.
I appreciated the constant back and forth between her college and work friendships, and how they all realized time had done its magic: they hoped to stay the same, but at last didn't expect to change so much in less than a year after graduation. The drama makes it clear that time is a theme protagonist here, along with partnership, and innovation: just thinking about how the entire drama, except for the last episode, is set in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
About this point, I feel like the production has included quite a few clues that immediately made me think the drama itself was some kind of advertisement for the government: speeches about the power and capability of China were everywhere, but most importantly, it looked as if Xi Guang represented the hopes, dreams, and the hard work China has put in to better itself, to become pioneers, and to gradually stand higher in the global market; Zhuang Xu represented, on the other hand, the western world: scared, unsure, never fully able to take that step, and then remorseful because he didn't. As if the western societies were unable to find the courage and the discipline to be better. Might be overthinking, though.
Music was everything, here. The OSTs were simply amazing and perfectly accompanied the scenes. Even the title, "Shine On Me", has such a huge meaning retraced more than once during the second half of the drama. Another point of strength relies on the last episode: we were able to witness their domestic life years after their marriage, solidifying their relationship as secure and happy, while also giving a sense of truthfulness and realism.
Overall, this was such a breath of fresh air amidst all those "copy-and-paste" dramas, and although in its simplicity shared some common tropes, its approach to them was quite different from your usuals.
Both the main leads come from wealthy families, which is something to dig for: no "you're not worthy enough", no "I don't deserve you". They stand as equals, supporting each other through their hardships and dreams.
Nie Xi Guang's mother and grandparents are something else entirely, really: they're caring, down-to-earth, humble; but they still know their worth, remembering clearly how they got to where they are now. Her father... Well, he's on a different path (of redemption, at least). I've loved the dynamics between her aunt and uncle, especially since it's exactly what the ML wanted to create with her: a bossy wife and an understanding husband. Also, a special mention goes to her cousin, Jiang Rui, 'cause I believe everyone deserves a sibling like him. Every time he was on camera, I wished to have such a chemistry with my own sibling. Lin Yu Sen's family was nice, too (meaning the mother and the grandfather, even his step-father). Although both their families are quite important, they're hard-working and educated people.
The most annoying character, to me, wasn't even Qian Fang Ping or her daughter, but Zhuang Xu. He's a slow, useless person who lacks empathy and understanding of others; he expected the FL to always make the first step, to acknowledge his emotions even though he never spoke a word about them, to wait for him without actually talking with her first! He made a bunch of assumptions, even believed someone else over her and expected to be let in nonetheless?!
I hated how he continued to linger around her, not as a character, but whenever he was on camera you could see he was still into her. Too late, buddy. Next time man up and do something.
I appreciated how he was left alone at the end, though.
Now, this was a slow-burn light romance. In the first half, we get the foundation of Xi Guang's life, her "unreciprocated" feelings towards the man-child (Zhuang Xu), and the beginning of a new chapter of her life; one with Lin Yu Sen, her boss and GM of the company. We get some not-so-basic understanding of the business, and the blooming of their relationship. The second half is the developing of their relationship, the maturing of some characters, and the resolution.
The relationship is sweet, the chemistry is there. It's nothing overbearing at all, its pace is healthy, their communication is strong. Something that I greatly appreciated was the complete absence of a setbacks: the "misunderstandings" (it didn't feel like there were any in particular, apart from the car accident) get cleared up immediately, and no one interrupts the scene, which is weird since in cdramas you usually expect someone to pop up from the afterlife just to delay the conversation... No "I need to tell you something... But I won't for another five episodes because someone has just interrupted us", or "Let me keep this a secret from you because I don't want to worry you further".
The whole relationship stands on mutual understanding and support, the characters are mature enough to handle everything the right way. They clearly share a sort of intimacy that goes well beyond the physical aspect: they're relaxed around each other, and each other's relatives; they're secure, stable, and they always seem to be on the same page, whether regarding work, family, friendship, or their own relationship. They don't need many words to communicate the standards of their affinity, it comes natural to them: as if they were made for each other.
I loved the FL's personality: she's straightforward and can actually stand up for herself and for others. She states clearly her intentions, her reasons, her feelings, making it clear to whoever that she means business. She's still quite shy around the ML, though, but that's quite cute.
I appreciated the constant back and forth between her college and work friendships, and how they all realized time had done its magic: they hoped to stay the same, but at last didn't expect to change so much in less than a year after graduation. The drama makes it clear that time is a theme protagonist here, along with partnership, and innovation: just thinking about how the entire drama, except for the last episode, is set in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
About this point, I feel like the production has included quite a few clues that immediately made me think the drama itself was some kind of advertisement for the government: speeches about the power and capability of China were everywhere, but most importantly, it looked as if Xi Guang represented the hopes, dreams, and the hard work China has put in to better itself, to become pioneers, and to gradually stand higher in the global market; Zhuang Xu represented, on the other hand, the western world: scared, unsure, never fully able to take that step, and then remorseful because he didn't. As if the western societies were unable to find the courage and the discipline to be better. Might be overthinking, though.
Music was everything, here. The OSTs were simply amazing and perfectly accompanied the scenes. Even the title, "Shine On Me", has such a huge meaning retraced more than once during the second half of the drama. Another point of strength relies on the last episode: we were able to witness their domestic life years after their marriage, solidifying their relationship as secure and happy, while also giving a sense of truthfulness and realism.
Overall, this was such a breath of fresh air amidst all those "copy-and-paste" dramas, and although in its simplicity shared some common tropes, its approach to them was quite different from your usuals.
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