Jojo

My brain and heart have been playing tug of war over this drama. My rating for this is extremely subjective. 100% vibes, but I will try to keep my review objective and present through a split lens- one with rose-tinted glasses who saw flaws from miles away but still loved every second of this and will also try to balance it for the “facts over feelings” crowd. ("TRY" xD)

Revenged Love is an adaptation from the novel "Counter attack" by Chai Jidan. The source material was full of glorious mess and props to this adaptation for trimming out most of the toxic parts. There are still very questionable traits the characters displayed that would be ethically questionable in the real world. Still, in drama-land, I think they pulled off the adaptation from the source material quite well.
From start to finish, it delivered on all the big emotions for me...angst to laughter to comfort. It made it clear from the very start that we should expect the unexpected, exactly as expected. Imagine a revenge plan that was so over the top with fake coincidences everywhere and executed with the petty perfection that the mastermind didn’t even notice the exact moment he fell in love.

✨ Character descriptions (Based on the universe the drama was set in, not how I judge the actions in real life):

★ Wu Suo Wei, the chaos generator: For me, he was the walking definition of lovable chaos. He is the type of character who walks into a room and immediately changes the vibe... whether you want it or not. He starts out running a petty revenge plan after being dumped in a way that wounded his dignity, but there is more to him than just wild schemes. Now, while some of his plans were bad on paper, drama gods were on his side and all of them ended up working.
But under all that noise and deceit, there is a softer side of him that I couldn't help but root for. A side where he tries his best to change his bad luck with effort. He has been through things, and while his ways may not be "normal" and it might look like he thrives in mess, now and then, we see a side of him that somehow made his journey endearing even with all the imperfections.

★ Chi Cheng, the silk-tongued snake: He is the character that made me feel safe and somehow mildly concerned at the same time. He is confident, decisive and unfazed to make the first move... or the second or the third. He can be a step too pushy at times but then he will do something small but very thoughtful like being Weiwei's SPF (iykyk) or paying attention to even the smallest of the details.
Then there was his love for snakes and not just as pets but as his children, and if you ask me, there was this unspoken reflection of himself. This man was graceful, calculated, deceptive and knew when it was time to slither into the act. He wasn't just playing to win, but also making sure people don't forget how he won over (Both Weiwei and Us).

★ Cheng Yu, the charming gentleman: He is also a snake enthusiast, Chi Cheng's frenemy (more friend than enemy), also a flirt and always three steps ahead in whatever game he is playing( not that I say this in a bad way, more like street smart). I mean, technically and literally, he felt like the only green flag out of all 4 leads. He was playful but when it comes to consent, he has got it down to a T. He will prank, tease, but will stand by his close ones when it matters the most.

★ Jiang Xiao Shuai, the real grandmaster of chaos: If gossip were a career path, XiaoShuai would be the CEO. He somehow knows when to let things crash for character development and when to swoop in to stop the self-destruction. He is attentive, smart and has solutions for all the problems of Weiwei (At least that is what they both like to think)

★ The Wang Brothers, the conflict creators: Wang Shuo is the jealous ex and his jealousy isn't subtle, nor is his manipulation. One might argue that both Weiwei and he are manipulators, but we see a lot of times where Weiwei is conflicted and doesn't intentionally try to hurt. But I can't say the same about Wang Shuo. I was sympathetic to him to a point, but he just came off as delusional. Wang Zhen was more of an opportunist lurking in the background. The jury is still put on him, whether I like him or not.
Neither of them had a fleshed-out character arc. They just served to stir the pot and bring in the drama and angst for our leads and they did a darn good job at it.

✨ Relationship dynamics:
★ Wu Suo Wei & Chi Cheng: Their chemistry was like watching two magnets that keep pretending they don't stick but the harder they pull them away, the stronger they come closer. Suo Wei comes in hot with his petty schemes while Chi Cheng acts cool, like he has zero interest but lowkey cares more than he lets on. Their interactions were full of snark, shade and bickering that might make you roll your eyes into oblivion quite a few times, but under all that clowning and teasing, we had small moments of care and genuine fondness despite everything being a hoax. Weiwei's fiery spirit challenged Chi Cheng to break out of his shell, and Chi Cheng's sincerity towards him just softened his stubbornness, and somehow, the penny pincher turns his whole world upside down for him. Even though their relationship is far from perfect, but it felt real.
Wu Suo Wei's journey goes from spiteful schemer to conflicted pretender to cautious lover to being Xiaocuboa's dad.

★ Cheng Yu & Xiao Shuai: In contrast to the main couple, they were less chaotic and the pace of their love story felt much more grounded. They were on the sweeter side and had more of a cute than messy dynamics. I was less invested in them compared to the mains, but they were like comforting vanilla ice cream. Very familiar and reliable but still vanilla.

★ Not only did I enjoy the romantic part of the drama, but also the friendship between Doc and Weiwei & in the latter half, our very own long-lost friends. They all share 1 brain cell but somehow both friendships were iconic, sometimes stupid, endearing and memorable in their own ways. Even throwaway interactions were ridiculously watchable. Somehow, I got attached to everyone.

But but but...the drama isn't without flaws. If one starts looking at it objectively, one sees them from 1000 miles away. While the below didn't hinder my watching experience at all, it needs to be acknowledged for the fairness of it all.

★ The Dubbing and the editing: It gave 2005 vibes and not 2025. I am not a native Chinese speaker and I don't understand the concept of different accents, but dubbing in a few scenes just fell off, especially in the emotional ones. And a few fades to black transitions felt too awkward and disconnected sometimes.

★ Last-minute conflict: I am not a fan of keeping issues till the very last episode or introducing new ones in the final stretch. I felt the pacing did suffer because of that and it also kind of gave the whole thing a bit of tonal whiplash.

★ The infamous miscommunication trope: The title is self-explanatory. Yes, they could have talked earlier, but if that were the case, we wouldn't be where we are. xD

★ While I do can separate fiction from reality and don't mind red flags on screen, there was this one tone deaf scene in the first episode that literally didn't serve any purpose and doesn't even come up again. It was an odd choice and in my humble opinion, could have been just omitted.

★ The entire snake business math was very difficult for me to comprehend. I just suspended my disbelief and just went with the flow.
Now, while I did notice them all, I acknowledged them but it never tainted my viewing experience.

✨ Acting: I was seeing all the leads for the first time, and I feel everyone did a good job. Tian Xuning as Chi Cheng was most impressive for me. He nailed that hopeless lover look and seeing how his character is so different from how he is in real life is definitely praiseworthy. Ziyu, as Wu Suo wei also surprised me in the best way, pulling that bratty defiance but balancing it with genuineness. I read somewhere that the director asked 3 times to TXN to play the role, and now I understand why they chose them.

Coming to the second couple, Zhan Xuan as Chengyu, there was an undeniable charm he brought to his role. He played it with such ease. And honestly, his smile could light up any room. Liu Xuan Cheng as Xiaoshuai
would pass the bar when it came to being cute and nosy but in the emotional scenes, especially his confrontation scene he was lacking the intensity. The rest of the supporting cast performed decently. I don't have any specific comment. It wasn't bad but nothing out of the ordinary.

✨ Production value: It is definitely on a modest budget at its best and on a smaller scale, but I found the direction and performance making up for it. I can go on and objectively describe how visuals could have better but with the limited resources they had and the sword of censorship looming over their heads, they did a decent job in my eyes.

The color grading was nice and nature shots were beautiful. I have seen dramas with a better budget and still underwhelming visuals. This was made with a lot of heart, and it showed.
While I also didn't like the choice of cutting the intimate scene, it's understandable. I would rather have those scenes in BTS or in my imagination (lol), if it safe keeps the actors.

Overall, while the drama is far from flawless but for me, everything was part of its charm. I thrived on the ridiculousness of the plot and all the leads were flawed and messy enough to keep things interesting. I would 100% recommend it!
I can see why some might rate it lower, though. :)

Thank you for reading my novel-length review! <3 Honestly, I didn’t plan on writing an essay but once I started, there was no stopping me. If you have made it this far without running away, I hope you end up loving the drama as much as I did with all the chaos, flaws and everything!
And if you didn't like the drama, I hope you find something better to binge and I hope my review at least addressed a few points objectively.