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Not Your Ordinary Romance
I started this drama thinking that it would be your usual fluffy romance drama, much like Put Your Head On My Shoulder or Love O2O. I needed something light after finishing The King's Woman's tragic story. But this drama turns out to be much more than just romance.The story is about a somelier or wine critic with excellent tastebuds that can detect taste to the very detail. However, he ended up loosing it to a girl who coincidentally has no sense of taste due to an accident when she was a little girl by way of accidental kissing. If he wants to get his taste buds back, he needs to kiss the girl, He Bu Zui (whose name in Chinese pronounciation sounds like drink but not getting drunk - I thought the name reference is kinda cute :)). Bu Zui was then offered a job as Wei Xun's assistant where he can keep her close just in case he needs his tastebud back. And as they get closer they started to develop feelings for each other.
Well, the story goes beyond Wei Xun and Bu Zui's relationship. There is a murder mystery involve and business competition. The second half of the show gets more interesting as Yi Nan Ke (Bu Zui's school crush's twin brother) tries to find out the mystery of his missing father. I like the mystery flair of this drama. The second couple starts to grow on me. I didn't like Yi Nan Ke at first because he seemed like a villain, but as the drama reveals more of his background, I started to symphatize with him and the second female lead is one of the coolest characters in the drama that I've watched. I really like her.
What I like about this drama are cute scenes between Lu Wei Xun and He Bu Zui and their chemistry, the kissing scenes, the world of wine tasting and of course Simon Gong :) The mystery element kept it going although not excellent, but quite good. However, there are some inconsistencies in the story, like if the dad has been missing for 20 years, how come he was using iPhone 4 or 4s when he was murdered and fast forward 20 years, the characters are all using iPhone 6 or 6s. Those two phone types are maybe 2-3 years apart, 5-6 years at most if they're using second or used phones. I also didn't like how over the top the competition is between Lu Wei Xun and Mu Chun Feng, as well as the introduction of his "claimed fiance" in the middle of the drama, which I thought didn't add much to the story.
Overall, this is quite a good drama. If you are just looking for fluffy romance drama and don't like mystery, i wouldn't recommend you to watch this. But if you do, you can definitely give this a try.
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This is not your typical fluffy romance. This is a more mature romance. The drama deals with a more mature subject that is maybe not to everyone's liking. I liked Li Yi Tong's acting in Royal Nirvana plus I wanted to watch something different and this one has an interesting story. However there is just too many side characters and none of them are likeable. The drama could do with less episode and actually cut those second, third, fourth, fifth storyline and I would give it a higher score. Those other storylines and characters other than the two main leads are a pain to watch, especially Bu Quo Jiang with his never-ending chase of women even though he already has a girlfriend who adores him and his way of testing their love by cheating on the girlfriend is a super weird concept to me and I really hate his character. After all that, he still dare to ask his girlfriend to marry him? He is despicable with no redeeming quality! I also do not like Zhao Wenbo character, who cheats on his wife and very arrogant and selfish. Mo Heng, although quite okay is very weird, the way he treats his relationship with a woman with a contract, like business dealings. I thought that's very weird, although I do understand where he's coming from. But in the end, he is quite sweet to his girlfriend. Now, on to the good part. I really enjoyed the main leads, I like how their relationship and character develops. I like their bickering and despite all their bickering, I can tell that Lao Li slowly really cares about Ke Ke and he can be so sweet at times. Overall, it's a good watch, especially the first 7 episodes before it focus more on those other sideline characters. Was this review helpful to you?
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A Hidden Gem
I grew up watching Taiwanese and HongKong drama. But recent Taiwanese dramas are not as good as the Mainland Chinese ones and they are too few to watch too. So they kinda slipped my mind these past few years and watch mostly Mainland C-Drama. I stumbled upon this one by accident while looking for a new drama to watch. I saw that iQiyi has a section on Taiwanese drama and that got me curious and Arc of Life stars Roy Chiu and Ruby Lin, so I gave it a try.The first episode was not that interesting, but I'm so glad that I continued watching to the next episode, because from episode 2 onwards, I really enjoyed this drama. This is one of the best recent Taiwanese dramas that I watched. I did not regret staying past the first episode.
This drama is well written and the actors and actresses played their part well. Lin Mei Ji is a character that I hate in the first few episodes, but she grew on me and she turned out to be my favorite character. She has integrity despite her "cheap" look and is a really loyal and good friend to Xiao Niao and Xia Zhi. Mei ji has the strongest character. She can overlook being rejected by Yi Nan and soldier on and has no issues working with Yi Nan. She is one character that surprised me. She is kinda the epitome of "don't judge the book by its cover". She may dress cheaply, tramp-y and shows cleavage all the time, but she has a heart of gold.
I love how the drama shows the ups and downs of starting and building your own business. It's not always smooth sailing, there are many problems that you have to face that can make you want to just give up and close the business. This drama shows how perseverance and hard work are the key to success.
I really really really love this drama and would recommend you to watch this hidden gem. One of the best that I've seen this year.
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This review may contain spoilers
Alright, this is quite a difficult review to make. This is a very very very long drama. I don't think i've seen any modern drama with that many episodes. Historical or period drama is a different matter, if it's too short there are many background story that didn't get to be developed. But for modern drama with this many episode, everyone's background story is over developed LoL. Don't get me wrong. I think this is a good drama and i got emotionally invested with the main characters, especially Cheng Tian You. I really like his character and really like Wallace Chung as CTY. I thought he played his part well. I like the family and friendship bond in this drama. The bond that you create since childhood and carry them into adulthood and help you get through many milestones in your life. Jin Ling and Bei Xiao Wu are two really amazing friends that one would wish to have in their life. There are times when I start to get bored watching this drama (because it's soooooo long...) but some scenes managed to pull me back in again and I was finally able to finish this.
My criticism for this drama, despite the fact that it is LONG........., is that there are way too many hospital scenes. Seems like each and every one of the characters fell sick at one time or another. This is confusing and feels forced and I got sick of looking at the same hospital and its rooms LoL. Another criticism is the flashbacks; there are too many flashbacks that is unnecessary given that audience already saw those in the first place and know it when it was referred to in later episodes and this makes the drama draggy in parts.
I really like the songs in this drama and the songs that played are fitting to the scene and characters that when I listen to it, i immediately associated it with a character.
As for rewatch value, maybe no because it's such a long drama.
Overall, the fact that I manage to finish watching this drama means that I did enjoy it. Wallace Chung's character in this drama makes it all worthwhile :)
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Love the way he looks at her!
Okay, the title can be misleading LoLI've been on a Zhang Zhe Han binge lately because of the whole boycott scandal and if i delay any longer, his dramas might be taken down from iQiyi. That might be the wrong reason to start watching this drama, but hey, I like Zhang Zhe Han :) It turns out that he is actually the only good thing about this drama. The story is nothing special and I felt like watching an old melodrama from before 2010 era if not for the cinematography. The first part of the drama (until about episode 18ish) is good and moves in the right pace and I like the growing relationship between ZZH and the female lead. ZZH's character is a cool, arrogant guy..... but the way he looks at the FL completely charms and melts my heart and it's like he suddenly transformed to the most warmhearted and caring man in the world! I thought it's worth spending hours of my time watching this drama just to see the romantic ways he looks at her! However, as we get to the middle part of the drama where the identity of the real Zhang Min is revealed, it starts to get draggy and the slightly annoying characters become irritating, like the father, the uncle, and even Tao Min. This drama is not pure romance focus, so there is the business story with inheritance and revenge angle, which I don't particularly enjoy because it's not done properly especially towards the end.
I love the songs in this drama that I added them to my playlist on Apple Music. As for rewatch value, once is enough!
Overall, other than looking at Zhang Zhe Han and unless you're a fan of Zhang Zhe Han, I would not recommend this drama.
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Enjoyable Family Story
Despite its length (73 episode long!), I thoroughly enjoyed this drama. If you like family drama, I would recommend this one. The chemistry between the Papi, Daddy and the Daughter is right. I love watching their relationship and how they tackle daily life issues with a growing child without a mother. There is romance story in this drama, but it's not the main storyline. The story focuses more on family relationship. This drama is also fun to watch. There are funny moments, especially involving the Daddy and the teacher. OST is just so-so, no memorable songs that I want to play on my Apple music. As for rewatch value: I wouldn't rewatch this because it's just too long and I have so many more chinese drama on my list to watch... Oh well, maybe I would re-watch some funny scenes :) They really do make me laugh..Was this review helpful to you?
Wow. Just Wow
Wow. This drama series is brilliant. Just wow. Amazing. This is not your typical c-drama with romance or historical wu xia costume drama. This is psychological thriller. It's dark and gripping and keeps you on your toes while watching. The episodes are only 12 but I wished it were a bit longer. There are still a couple of questions that I have that haven't been answered but I thought it ended quite well. Maybe I have to read the novel to find those questions.But this drama is just great. A must watch if you like the thriller and mystery genre. What blew me away was also the acting of the main leads, particularly Qin Hao. He can play the character really well I thought. My kudos goes to the kid actors that played Zhu Chao Yang and Yue Pu. For a very young actors, they can display the emotion of the characters really well. I thought they deserved special recognition. The other kid that played Yan Liang is good also, but I thought the other two kids are better. But they all played their character well.
Music is not good. not memorable or ones that make you click shazam because you want to know the title and add them to your library, but I thought it adds to the suspense well.
This is one of the best that I've watched. It deserves a rewatch just to see the brilliant acting of the actors.
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Good story, bad casting
A friend of mine recommended to me, and the premise of the story seemed good, so i tried it and after almost halfway I sort of struggle in finishing the drama. The drama started out pretty good and interesting, and the story between the ML and FL seemed cute. Towards halfway, the story seemed dragging and the female casts' acting is below par especially compared with newer c-dramas that I've watched. The second female lead that appears halfway is super annoying and honestly the drama started going downhill since her appearance and I thought the ending was a bit rushed as well. I don't think I will recommend this drama. There are much better c-dramas to occupy your time with.Was this review helpful to you?
The first 1/3 of the series are a bit okay for me, but after that it's too difficult to digest. This is not because of any gory scenes. I'm used to it with CSI & Criminal Minds. Didn't bother me at all. Gory scenes came hand in hand with mystery detective stories, it's to be expected. But the story for me is a bit confusing and all over the place. What irritates me the most is how they can communicate with each other using two different languages! That is to me just doesn't makes sense and that alone takes my rating down to 1 (or maybe -1 LoL). The handsome-ness of Wallace Huo is not even enough to justify this part and kept me focus on watching this series. I did finish it, but i did not wholeheartedly watch it.
With character in the series who supposedly studied and lived in the US but unable to speak English just doesn't make sense to me.
The turtle is cute though :)
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This review may contain spoilers
I really enjoyed watching the first half of this drama. The chemistry between Deng Lun and Dilraba in the first half is very good and it continues to be good throughout the drama. Dilraba's character here is so cute and funny and I like how she adores and loves Bo Hai (although in real life, stalking someone like that is never cute, but hey.. this is a drama series). I also like the dreams part in the first half (it sort of disappeared as their relationship progresses). Fast forward to the second half..... I literally watched it with 1,5 speed so it goes faster. The story starts to drag. I don't like the Mo Nan story, the revenge part is not watchable and the cute and fluffy elements that I like is not there anymore. The ending is also confusing for me. It felt rushed and no explanation on how recovery can be flawless and felt like there's holes in the story on that part.
I would have given this a higher rating had it stop at a fewer episode. If you are a huge fan of Deng Lun and/or Dilraba, I would recommend you watch it, just for them (I might re-watch in the future but only the cute and fluffy scenes). Otherwise, just skip this one and find another drama to watch (or only watch the first half and skip to the end)
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A Tragic Love Story
I'm not someone who watches currently airing drama and I made the right the decision to wait until both seasons aired to watch this (well, on Netflix it's not divided into seasons. My expectation when I started this series was a bit low, but it exceeded my expectation. It's rare to find a "tragic" but memorable love story. My favorite has to be Tan Jian Ci's Xiang Liu. TJC portrayed his character very well that I can feel and sense his pain and emotion. My heart aches for Xiang Liu. Depending on who you're rooting for, the drama can be a happy or sad ending. For me, it's more a sad ending. But I'm not one who minds sad ending and it's usually the most memorable ones. Overall, I really like this drama. And I also really love the OST.Was this review helpful to you?
