Alice_01

Okay, I thought I could let this marinate a bit more but I ran out of patience and started it!! ><
Currently on ep 2 and I am already loving it!! Unlike some other faves of mine that were a bit slow/boring in the beginning, this one hits off right from the start!! I am so excited honestly!! I just hope they can keep this up until the end & don't start going down after we reach near end...

I see thank you!! ><

Hmm...Tho there are quite a few angst scenes they didn't feel too heavy except from maybe 2-3 scenes that made me cry...The have paced the story well & have balanced the sad/happy scenes nicely so that you don't stay sad for too long? At least that was my experience!^^ Also another part I enjoyed & saved us from some extra clishe angst was the deep undertanding & trust between the leading couple!

I'm coming here after Xia Zhi Guang's stunning performance in The Spirealm & I would like to ask a few things before diving in!! ><
1. Does this series have bromance between the 2 ML?
2. Is the FL of this series involved romantically with any of the 2 MLs and if yes do they have lots of romance scenes? ( I ask cause usually I prefer my crime/mystery series romance free or at least kept to a minimum)
3. How have the cases been so far? Are they immersing & interesting?

Just a correction as to avoid further misinfo, they are not blood-related or half brothers and not even step-brothers since their parents are not legally married, but just dating (at least in the novel, idk how the series will play that part) , they didn't grow up together and just met when they were in high school after being forced to live under the same roof, due to their parents decision...
As for the storyline....It's a coming of age, slice of life type of story with a slow burn romance! In the beginning it will focus more on their individual family issues, their school life/friends & then get to their romance gradually! After they naturally go from enemies to friends first! Other than that, it doesn't have too dramatic moments tho 2nd half is pretty angsty! But I wouldn't call it boring^^ The novel was very engaging for me~

Umm actually stay with me's novel also has a happy ending TT It's just that they only managed to cover half of the storyline in the adaptation & 2nd season sadly wasn't able to go through...So we were left hanging...

oh okay, thanks!

Did eps 1-2 already drop on gagaoolala?? Even tho it says "not available in your region" TT
Btw it says that ep duration is 49 min...And there are 12 eps in total!! The production is big for sure!! I am so excited!!

Tho it's been a few years since I have read the book, as someone who tends to avoid sad endings with few exceptions, I can tell you with certainty that it was a happy ending! That much I can remember...But I also remember myself crying on the 2nd half of the novel so it is packed with angst & also before their happy ending i think there will be a few years of separation between them if my memory is accurate!

Mu Su Li is truly a great author with a very versatile writing and that's one of the things I like most about her works! ^^ Be it historical/fantasy, sci-fi or modern time she has done it all!! I def reccomend this one & two other novels would be 1.Global examination, 2. Copper coins.

Nah I am not the fetishizer you want me to be...I don't support them & their relationship just because "all i care about is to see two guys get together".Mind you I am part of the community myself... It's just that If you read the novel like the other's said you would realize the complexity of their situation...And by that I mean their relationship with their parents too and also the way the two started... They are not blood-related, didn't grow up together and just met when they were in hs after being forced to live under the same roof, due to their parents decision... Mind you, their parents decided to cohabitate / not even get officially married, which makes the guys "step siblings" only in name not even legally....If the parents can be selfish enough and get together without even asking their kids' opinion on it, then why can't they follow their own feelings too? Especially when eventually it was proved their connection was much deeper and heartfelt than their parents,...Their parents got together more out of convenience and less for love...

It kinda is is the sense of the peudo-incest/ forced to be a family cause of parents...But this one if far less toxic than addicted, as sm you has read both ^^

Basically it's a collab between the two! Cause novel & some of the cast are Chinese while the production and filming location are from Taiwan (obv to not be bound by censorship) I really hope we can get more projects like this one in the future!^^

Brave words said by someone who hasn't even read the novel...If anything it's the least stepbrothers/peudo-incest trope ever actually...Cause as a novel reader let me tell you, they were strangers until High School, were forced to leave under the same roof cause of parents sudden decision to get together, they basically went from strangers to enemies to to friends and finally lovers... And in the end of the day this is one of the best written novels cause it cuts way deeper than your average novel... It embodies the hardships of high schoolers, broken families and finally youthfull love so well...Also it's one of the slowest slow burns ever and until the later half of the novel, their romantic feelings are not even the main focus...It's one of the best coming of age stories and if you refuse to watch it cause of your close-mindness it will be you missing out, not the other way around!^^

Is it really a hot topic on weibo rn?? Why exactly tho? Because the gov pulled it out or cause it's the 1st CBL in a while?

The thing is...It's all about the money...Cause releasing all eps at once will give them far less capital...BUT the risk is big if they go with weekly realeses since they might never end up airing until the end....I mean even with spirealm, they did drop all eps at once but it was taken down some hours later and that left the production & writer (who invested in it) with debts...Hopefully the releasing on int platforms like Viu/Viki helped them make some money but I doubt it was a lot...

But the quality of their series are always so good...Be it acting or storyline, they deliver...Imagine what we could have with a leanier gov system... TT

They should have just followed the Spirealm approach and released all eps at once...So fans can download it and later have it even uploaded on international platforms...Now this will be probably another Justice in the dark case where only half airs and we are left without the rest...

"All of us are standing on the border between normal and abnormal"
This drama spoke to me on a personal level...The way I could relate to many occurring situations made this drama a "heavy" watch but also sort of therapeutic and gave me the courage to start thinking of what I could do to help myself move forward...Honestly, with how stressful things are nowadays, especially for people living in the city it's hard to preserve one's mind from harm...Be it feelings of stress, social anxiety, or mild depression... I loved all the cases and how everyone's lives evolved...
What I couldn't get into tho and possibly the only shortcoming for me while watching would be the romantic scenes...Both couples were way too awkward with one another and their chemistry was non-existent...Our FL had more scenes and sparks with the childhood friend rather than the ML...So it all felt forced to me...Thankfully romance was not the central part of this series and was kept to a minimum so I wasn't all that annoyed by it...

So as it was mentioned in the drama "One has to be happy & okay with themselves first, in order to be able to make others happy" and yes it's surely not the first time to hear it...And personally even as I say it I have little will to follow it because it's just that hard...Having faith in yourself, complimenting yourself, loving ur whole being as it is...But what this drama taught me is that I can at least try to make it better! Only then can one come to terms with themself and with the people around them!

Calling this drama boring, is certainly a choice lmao More than boring I think it was just not the type of drama you were going for...Might have to avoid politically heavy dramas next time to save yourself from boredom!^^