This was one my first dramas and while it was entertaining and very similar to Boys Over Flowers (just as toxic and problematic), it wasn't as endearing somehow. However, there are a lot of really amazing actors who did a great job in this.
As an American, though, I found the first several episodes very painful since the English was quite bad and the actors used to play Americans were... rough.
I also got a kick out of how they made Balboa Park in San Diego seem close to Los Angeles/Hollywood in one of the episodes. I got a good laugh out of the stretching of reality there. :)
This and WIFTY were my first Cdramas. I thought HL was very cozy and I appreciated its lack of over-the-top drama and cliches or tropes that traditionally contribute to the main characters' unnecessary suffering and anguish. The leads' chemistry was indeed amazing as everyone has been saying, though it took me some time to get used to adult Sang Zhi's voice and I wasn't super into her "puppy love" phase as it felt too all-consuming. The story got much more even and interesting when he could reciprocate her feelings and she got more mature in her interactions with him.
I personally didn't care for the leads' nonchalant attitude about informing her family about their relationship (the attempt to hide their "camping trip" was so painful to watch), and while he said he was a guy with "morals" I struggled reconciling that statement with his getting so serious with Sang Zhi before making sure her parents were on board, if indeed he valued their blessing (which it seems he did). Why get their approval so late when Sang Zhi would have been hurt MUCH worse by breaking up with him after months of dating rather than at the beginning of their relationship? Jiaxu eventually handled her parents' concerns (which were mostly quite valid; also, they were so chill about the lack of communication and very level-headed in the way they dealt with the situation) very maturely and he eventually showed them he deserved her.
Overall, a very lovely watch. Though it did have a overly pristine, unrealistic, escapist quality to it that felt... strange? I can't figure out how to capture the feeling I got from it. After so many Kdramas (which are not realistic either, but in a different way) it felt glaringly other-worldly, like a made-up modern world that doesn't exist in reality.
My favorite part which I'd never seen before in a rom-com/melodrama was the way Jiaxu started pursuing her after the friend pointed out Sang Zhi might have described Jiaxu himself in her flustered attempt to tell him about her "type." I loved watching him flirt with her and get to the bottom of her feelings and watch him confirm she had fallen for him. Masterfully written and acted and very entertaining to watch!
As an American, though, I found the first several episodes very painful since the English was quite bad and the actors used to play Americans were... rough.
I also got a kick out of how they made Balboa Park in San Diego seem close to Los Angeles/Hollywood in one of the episodes. I got a good laugh out of the stretching of reality there. :)
I personally didn't care for the leads' nonchalant attitude about informing her family about their relationship (the attempt to hide their "camping trip" was so painful to watch), and while he said he was a guy with "morals" I struggled reconciling that statement with his getting so serious with Sang Zhi before making sure her parents were on board, if indeed he valued their blessing (which it seems he did). Why get their approval so late when Sang Zhi would have been hurt MUCH worse by breaking up with him after months of dating rather than at the beginning of their relationship? Jiaxu eventually handled her parents' concerns (which were mostly quite valid; also, they were so chill about the lack of communication and very level-headed in the way they dealt with the situation) very maturely and he eventually showed them he deserved her.
Overall, a very lovely watch. Though it did have a overly pristine, unrealistic, escapist quality to it that felt... strange? I can't figure out how to capture the feeling I got from it. After so many Kdramas (which are not realistic either, but in a different way) it felt glaringly other-worldly, like a made-up modern world that doesn't exist in reality.
My favorite part which I'd never seen before in a rom-com/melodrama was the way Jiaxu started pursuing her after the friend pointed out Sang Zhi might have described Jiaxu himself in her flustered attempt to tell him about her "type." I loved watching him flirt with her and get to the bottom of her feelings and watch him confirm she had fallen for him. Masterfully written and acted and very entertaining to watch!