Frost_edelweiss

The scene in ep.5, when Chen Jiahui and Han Junhao go watching an old movie in a half deserted art cinema (Rendezvous nach Ladenschluss ..... in German?!!) with the quaint old love song and James Stewart on screen with Margaret Sullavan was from the 1940 romantic comedy "The Shop around the corner" directed by Ernst Lubitsch; it can be watched (1h38) on Dailymotion or rented on Amazon Prime for the nostalgia hunters and old movie buffs. Movies from the 1940s seem to still have an influence?
I was amazed the two in the drama chose to sit watching such an old one, when there are also many interesting movies from the 1930s-1940s from China... Maybe for the pleasure of listening to a foreign (English) language?
Perhaps among the old crowd watching, some liked James Stewart movies too? For them, here's the link : https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8tcyu2 No subtitles but the dialogues are pretty clear to listen to, in English. The story is set in "Hungary"... Now, as an aside, I will watch it to end too 😂

I am only half way through the Begin Again drama, which should be totally released by tomorrow on kiss for those who watch there. Savoring the sightseeing in Macau, the views, the tasty looking food, the pink helmet kept in the boot of Wu Junle's motorcycle (designed for the pretty head of Mai Youge!) etc. Not going to look through comments for spoilers. But I noticed the mentions about old songs and the very funny mistranslation 😂 Added moment of levity. We do need to watch something relaxing, once in a while...

Here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEENlrp-dAE

account was terminated : not available there any longer :(

Now there is another drama of same name, but very different story and times, hardware... In the 2004 drama there were floppy disks; in the 2024 one there is a USB drive and Huang Jingyu plays alongside pretty Sun Qian.
The 2004 drama achieved an 8.2/8.4 Douban rating still fluctuating!

I started it yesterday evening while finishing two other ones and was interested by the sweet Macau sightseeing tour featured. Staying on, although I probably won't catch up with everyone soon finishing perhaps :)
Happy new year, Megumi-H and tintin92!

I was laughing as well !! Nice tongue-in-cheek end to remember the top dramas there.
The last episode was a bit "tacked on" but without it, some would still be complaining about not getting proper closure etc. All in all, I had a good time watching even after the top villain reveal and confirmed, despite some will of course find this part less thrilling when that villain so often slips through the net...
In the last episodes I was thinking about the unmentioned dramas hinted to, such as those where watching first snow was featured but not from iQiyi catalogue (Lighter and Princess...) and just admiring the looks of the Dongbei pair (she is from Harbin, he is from Dandong) who were being sweet despite not building a snowman or exchanging flying snowballs.
The snowflake necklace looked neat, I assume it has good success in the merchandising.
Sun Qian is very pretty and I will remember her name for future dramas ; I think she has another suspense one upcoming?

official authorization was for 6 months shooting from October/November 2024.
It mentions 40 episodes and a story that spans several years.
from the drama status pages it looks like it started shooting in Foshan, Guangdong, end of last year. The snippet with "Tan Songyun and her bestie, actress #DongQing " walking in 70s dresses in a mall has been posted on YouTube too : https://www.youtube.com/shorts/XmUnMJyG3_c More here : https://x.com/tansongyun26/status/1873624830265950327

Stop spreading that now toxic stroke rumor; Zhao Lusi would not already be home if it was one. Her medical assessment from hospital has been published and does not mention a stroke.
Actually from what I read in the documents written and now published with her authorization, neither of her friends, who spoke up about the past bullying, blame the present crew of Almost Lover. They pointed to the cyberbullying + a person and cowardly bystanders in 2019 as root causes of Rosy's pent-up anxiety that got into "conversion" (physical symptoms). But these past time persons have no hand in the current project.
Cyberbullying and trashing of her work contributed to cause Rosy's anxiety since she is not cold and dispassionate about it: that relentlessly abuse, accusations of lying, and all sorts of outlandish sins, were the true causes that triggered her breakdown. The company may also have been unable to address these threats and give Rosy enough time and room for recovering from stress due to work but also to these external factors, but they are not scrambling to look for "AI face swap" or recast.
I for one will support this drama if it goes through and she returns..... And I won't be the only one who won't agree sending it to trash wholesale only because of previous rumors and mistaken facts, toxic fans and cyberbullies. If Rosy, as I expect, weaves her magic there as she is used to, I am sure I will enjoy it, adding thoughts of admiring her pluck in filming it to end, even if her recovery causes a delay.
Don't get dragged into the net of those who wish to suppress the actress and her and team's work.

Well, it is clear that this drama is really enjoyed by its home target audience and is a hit for iQIYI!

Has anyone seen the opening douban rating yet if it has been released?
I think I saw an 8.4 which would be uncharacteristically high?
most dramas get around 7 or below on douban

Hi Twinty ; wishing you and all who like Zhao Lusi a 2025 starting with days getting brighter, happier and healthier.

It looks like Rosy is on the mend after her return home for rest and continued care not requiring further hospital stay.
Reading the medical documents now disclosed, this seems more like burnout, nervous breakdown, and mercifully not as severe as a real stroke with brain hemorrhage as the rumor went : she should recover, now that the psychological abscess was pierced and the mental weight due to bullying and pent-up anxiety has been unloaded. Her health is at last being taken seriously (as any production should instead of doing bootcamp routines like the shooting scenes shivering in snow I read about and too long hours clocked in)
If she takes care of her physical health and gets proper psychological support, she could be back if she wishes to, not too far in the future to warrant replacement in the series. But her workload will certainly need to be adjusted. And yes, she should refuse to give in to those who manipulated her into becoming anime- thin even if some weirdos think it looks "more mature" than her real self. Excessive weight loss is not something admirable nor should be promoted : it can indeed be life threatening! Those who shamed her for being "fat"when she was just healthy, and cyberbullied her relentlessly, accusing her of all sorts of outlandish sins, even doubting her illness (these "netizens" would only be convinced if she had died and next would certainly have added insults like she suicided or died of drug abuse), these guys bear a heavy responsibility in making her so ill. Cyberbullying is as criminal as physical violence.
I hope that Rosy will recover soon her cheerful self, loving to sing, dance, move and play with that spark that made me smile when I saw her on screen!
Happy new year to her and to all those who like her!
But indeed she should not be urged to resume work before she is really ready for it. We'll just be patient?

canceling a finished filmed drama because of ZLS health trouble? Not sure she would be happy about it. I don't really like the story line as described nor the pairing, but i would watch for her and other cast members' efforts.
Rosy is on the mend apparently ; it was a serious scare, that collapse on set, and her being ordered by hospital to get serious care and time off to mend + the harsh hurdles she went through coming to light, but let's continue sending warm well wishes like for any actor or actress who get injured on set (many do, although few get as relentlessly mentally bullied as she was) and let's hope the haters will crawl back into their tiny hideouts, find themselves banned from social media and keyboard bullying, and just shrivel there, dry out as turds - or reform after reflecting on themselves. Cyberbullying is as much a crime as physical abuse and violence against women.

you are welcome ; it's an old and long one, but enjoy for Zhao Liying or the others since it is difficult to find it elsewhere after dramacool was shut down in late 2024.
Shirley Dai had a support role recently in October 2024 The Rise of Ning where there were no mermaids nor fantasy, but an obsessed duke played very well by actor Ci Sha and some pretty sets.
The others are still active too although I did not follow their work, lol

Seven Tan /Tan Songyun . Who is Li Sun? Did you mean 孙俪 Sun Li /Betty Sun ?
aargh it's not easy to get correct names even with MDL to help ?

But I see you are primarily an SK drama fan, although you liked Tao's Legally Romance.
If you like the actresses you mentioned, why not include their work in your watch list, and have a look at Zhao Lusi's dramas too?

Rosy had taken a "long rest" before filming The Story of Pearl Girl. Although she had an agenda still packed full with other events and promotional assignments... Vacations in the sun and relaxing on a beach never was her style even when she went to study in Taiwan. >We can't project on her and advise what "should" be done.

But not accepting the hate speech directed at her is in order. Difficult though to react; I did a few times but the "water army" opponents were very vicious, attacking me in turn... So, I just hope the accounts got picked up by competent authority and handled as they should. There are several on MDL who have multiple accounts only to target Zhao Lusi, have been signaled even by me among many, but are still around... Shen Li etc. They demean other entertainers names and work as well, sowing hatred at every step.

Anyway, let's continue wishing Rosy to speedily get on the mend. Not forgetting her, still watching her past and recent dramas and other work, and liking. That's all we can do...

Wishing you a happy new year nonetheless.

Btw who are you, netizen? "Tom Miller" female, no data on personal page...

Zhao Lusi was still beautiful not long ago, for instance when she ran as torch bearer for the 2024 Olympics. https://weibo.com/tv/show/1034:5035415267377172?from=old_pc_videoshow (May 18, 2024) and during her cook-in with Liu Yuning and Daddi Tang, around promotion of The Story of Pearl Girl. And more recently.
What I now hear (blogger report) is that she got physically beaten on set of Almost Lover, which sounds unimaginable. Her parents are suing to have everything clarified. Some people are indeed using her trouble to put themselves in limelight and even rejoice that her career may be over! SO callous.

I have explored some fandom groups although preferring to stay as unregistered sympathizer. Not wanting to own anything but to know more about some and the industry they work in. Rosy's is one I examined from start of her career. Weeding out "water army" fans creeping in from outside is like sifting sand in the dunes to clean them ; information can be handed over to those who can do something about it within the legal framework. Dodgy post writers can and have been sued. Trouble is there are many delusional people in the world and in China. Guarding Rosy's personal space is of course important for respectful fans and her close crew. Sometimes, like in the tsunami like assaults against her in second half of 2024, it is not enough. Unless it was recorded, the beating allegation is difficult to prove too, probably.

Some pose as fans and write or video about her, when they aren't, and have a vicious agenda to announce her downfall and promote one over the other...

Stopping here, I'll follow her news privately from now on, and continue wishing her well. Will rewatch her past work and listen to her songs, not forgetting her, however long it takes for her comeback.

Yes, I agree and I like it, although not through with it yet :)
Happy New Year to you !

thank for warning not to leave too early :)
I had started not too tardily, but been side tracked by real life and other seasonal festivals on screen, lol (yes, Dongzhi, the other champion of last weeks' viewing according to Marcus)

I quite liked The First Shot... Although there was no really cute and pretty actress except the one who played Johnny Huang's police officer's sister there. That said, I was vastly amused by Xie Kewen as kick-ass policewoman in that other drama.
Same, am also watching (almost) simultaneously some other dramas (3-4 total including a re-watch for fluff). Tentatively starting on We Are Criminal Police which also has a bloody case to solve, while continuing the pig-headed (literally) murder case in Riverside, in Song dynasty - lol