I dont like at all the Chinese parents. Why they control, they imposed what kind of relationship thei children…
Well, par for the course with Asian dramas, haha. If you plan on watching more, then avoid rom-coms or melodramaa. This is almost always a plot point.
Adjacent to your point: I find the trope in Asian dramas about the parent of a lead doing some despicable (or apparently despicable) thing and then angst amongst the children because they somehow feel responsible for what the parent did. Why couldn't the FL date the son of the guy responsible for her father's accident? He had nothing to do with it, so it shouldn't create this much of a hullabaloo. But such things always do create angst in dramas, and I guess it's just a bigger deal in Asian cultures (or made out to be a big deal in Asian dramas specifically, like the throwing water at people's faces trope which I'm sure REAL Koreans and Chinese never do, haha).
Omg I'm a twin too! But rather than a fraternal I'm an identical twin! Bc of being a twin this drama makes it…
I'm also identical! People usually use twins in entertainment as a plot device or for comedic relief, so I found this portrayal (i.e. built in bestie and confidant) to be really sweet and a more accurate portrayal of the special sweetness that comes with having a twin. ☺️
I really enjoyed this!Nice to see CXX in a drama that does well, as I really came to enjoy his acting in Fall…
When Hu Xiu snuck backstage and into the game to alert Zhi Yo about Pei Zhen, did anyone else notice she never had any VR gear on, but she could see and interact with everyone normally? I guess we were to assume she filched a VR headset somewhere before dashing on set?
Nice to see CXX in a drama that does well, as I really came to enjoy his acting in Fall In Love and Starry Love and I think he's really talented. He has kind of a goofy (but cute) grin when he smiles, but it worked here because he full-on smiles rarely. And LYX was lovely, too. She's obviously gorgeous but also a very good actress. I never once wondered why the ML would fall in love with her character. 😉 She's a lot less "young" feeling than the FL in Love Me, Love My Voice which was one of my biggest gripes with that drama, so I like that, too. (The actress really reminds me of two Korean actresses, Jung Chae Yeon (Family By Choice) and Kim Hye Yoon (Lovely Runner) who are really lovely).
The VR parts were kind of confusing to follow, but the setting, costumes and interpersonal dynamics were what made those parts fun for me. I liked seeing the leads' blossoming relationship shift each time they played the game and the way more and more of their real selves crept into their VR roles until it culminated in the second of the 27 kisses. 😅
It was a creative concept, and I was a little sad when it got featured less as the drama went on (e.g. I felt a little jipped never getting to see the dungeon that GHC kept teasing. 😭 I liked the post credits clip, though. And just know the mechanics of the VR world do not bear close scrutiny 😉).
The leads had fabulous chemistry (some of their banter and playing off of each other was exquisite, chemistry-wise) and while this was chock full of almost ALL the romance cliches and tropes (I saw the ML's plot points and beats for the discovery of his backgroumd coming a mile away--seen too many dramas!), it was still executed well and the characters were interesting, so it worked for me. As usual, the first half was the strongest, but they offset that by including a lot more lovey-dovey stuff in the second half (more like the last 1/3) so people here for romance probably won't mind the slower pacing later on one bit. 😉
All the VR sets/scenes were featured in Fall In Love and of course the era was the same or similar, so the costumes felt reminiscent, too. CXX basically wore his Fall In Love costume whenever he was Qin Xiao Yi. 😅 Actually, the old era sets worked better in this drama because it's 100% obvious they're sets (in Fall In Love it felt like the drama was shot as a massive stage play--I'm not sure if the Chinese production companies can't quite nail Western architecture as sets in a convincing manner or what (I assume Hengdian period Chinese sets feel more realistic?), but never once did it look realistic enough to be fully immersive, so having it be the backdrop of a VR game worked perfectly; the anachronistic hair and makeul worked better in this setting, too). I also thought it was weird that the longtang was a set; no actual longtangs they could use to film near/around? I thought her longtang apartment was really cozy (I preferred the scenes of them together there over his glitzy apartment), but the rest of the building and street was obviously not a real place. 🤷♀️
Overall, a fun watch! An interesting premise pretty well-executed as the backdrop of a meet-cute for our leads. It feels a lot more grounded than some other rom-coms, so while it has a fluffiness to it, it doesn't feel like it overpowers the story so much that it pulls you fully out of realism into fantasy.
I wish I knew how to add recommendations because if I could I would add Love Me, Love My Voice to this page (there are some similarities in the premise!). I'm preferring this already, though!
the ML is so mean.. is he getting better or.. im on ep 5 now.
I would have thought you'd say the FL is mean (espesially at the beginning). 😅 Mean is not how I'd describe the ML based on what I remember (at least not compared to the behavior he's facing from the FL early on).
Same! I liked it more this time than my first watch. I just adore dramas by this screenwriter.
Right? It's not like a 2ML has ever ended up with the FL, haha.
Pinocchio was added to Netflix recently so that might get it more traffic (as was I Hear Your Voice!). I never thought I'd see the day they were on Netflix. Now they just need to add While You Were Sleeping!
Same! I liked it more this time than my first watch. I just adore dramas by this screenwriter.
It's also old, so that's probably part of it. Ratings always trend down over time, and this drama's had way more time for people to rate it than more recent dramas. Also, a number of people don't like this screenwriter's love triangles, and that seems to be a small but mighty subset of people who've seen her dramas.
😂😂😂 This drama sent half the characters crazy, including me. Good show. Could've been 16 eps, though.…
Yes, baby Yoon Kyun Sang is right! My most vivid memories of his acting are from Rebel: Thief Who Stole The People, where he's big and beefy. He's heavier in that drama, so it augments his height so looks extra gigantic, which makes him look very different in this, almost like a totally different guy--did he grow in his adulthood, I wonder? 😅
Found the male lead character quite annoying for most parts
He has some great moments, but he's my least favorite ML by this screenwriter. I still liked him, though. His behavior often made sense even though it still frustrated me. 😅
Adjacent to your point: I find the trope in Asian dramas about the parent of a lead doing some despicable (or apparently despicable) thing and then angst amongst the children because they somehow feel responsible for what the parent did. Why couldn't the FL date the son of the guy responsible for her father's accident? He had nothing to do with it, so it shouldn't create this much of a hullabaloo. But such things always do create angst in dramas, and I guess it's just a bigger deal in Asian cultures (or made out to be a big deal in Asian dramas specifically, like the throwing water at people's faces trope which I'm sure REAL Koreans and Chinese never do, haha).
I would love that, too!
Nice to see CXX in a drama that does well, as I really came to enjoy his acting in Fall In Love and Starry Love and I think he's really talented. He has kind of a goofy (but cute) grin when he smiles, but it worked here because he full-on smiles rarely. And LYX was lovely, too. She's obviously gorgeous but also a very good actress. I never once wondered why the ML would fall in love with her character. 😉 She's a lot less "young" feeling than the FL in Love Me, Love My Voice which was one of my biggest gripes with that drama, so I like that, too. (The actress really reminds me of two Korean actresses, Jung Chae Yeon (Family By Choice) and Kim Hye Yoon (Lovely Runner) who are really lovely).
The VR parts were kind of confusing to follow, but the setting, costumes and interpersonal dynamics were what made those parts fun for me. I liked seeing the leads' blossoming relationship shift each time they played the game and the way more and more of their real selves crept into their VR roles until it culminated in the second of the 27 kisses. 😅
It was a creative concept, and I was a little sad when it got featured less as the drama went on (e.g. I felt a little jipped never getting to see the dungeon that GHC kept teasing. 😭 I liked the post credits clip, though. And just know the mechanics of the VR world do not bear close scrutiny 😉).
The leads had fabulous chemistry (some of their banter and playing off of each other was exquisite, chemistry-wise) and while this was chock full of almost ALL the romance cliches and tropes (I saw the ML's plot points and beats for the discovery of his backgroumd coming a mile away--seen too many dramas!), it was still executed well and the characters were interesting, so it worked for me. As usual, the first half was the strongest, but they offset that by including a lot more lovey-dovey stuff in the second half (more like the last 1/3) so people here for romance probably won't mind the slower pacing later on one bit. 😉
All the VR sets/scenes were featured in Fall In Love and of course the era was the same or similar, so the costumes felt reminiscent, too. CXX basically wore his Fall In Love costume whenever he was Qin Xiao Yi. 😅 Actually, the old era sets worked better in this drama because it's 100% obvious they're sets (in Fall In Love it felt like the drama was shot as a massive stage play--I'm not sure if the Chinese production companies can't quite nail Western architecture as sets in a convincing manner or what (I assume Hengdian period Chinese sets feel more realistic?), but never once did it look realistic enough to be fully immersive, so having it be the backdrop of a VR game worked perfectly; the anachronistic hair and makeul worked better in this setting, too). I also thought it was weird that the longtang was a set; no actual longtangs they could use to film near/around? I thought her longtang apartment was really cozy (I preferred the scenes of them together there over his glitzy apartment), but the rest of the building and street was obviously not a real place. 🤷♀️
Overall, a fun watch! An interesting premise pretty well-executed as the backdrop of a meet-cute for our leads. It feels a lot more grounded than some other rom-coms, so while it has a fluffiness to it, it doesn't feel like it overpowers the story so much that it pulls you fully out of realism into fantasy.
I did have one question:
Pinocchio was added to Netflix recently so that might get it more traffic (as was I Hear Your Voice!). I never thought I'd see the day they were on Netflix. Now they just need to add While You Were Sleeping!
They're also drawing out the mystery of "that woman," aren't they? 🧐