MangoTree

Don't worry! There is payoff!

I painfully give 7 stars (I want to give it way more, but that isn't fair)

Love the male and female leads from The Love You Give Me SO MUCH!!!
CHEMISTRY IS AMAZING!!!

The last 6 episodes are my favorite. All the episodes are my favorite excluding the meddling 2nd leads. Contract marriage was so good!

What took away the last 2 stars
-Just wish the love rivals can just go away for God's sake (no offense to the actual actors), like they took up way too much screen time
-Okay, I understand some people's reservations. The ml's personality in the beginning was a real turn off, but he does become more caring and drops his controlling nature.
-I just wish the fl could have some more agency over her life, I found her a tad too cute and passive for my liking (I like badass, strong, and/or smart fls)

Overall:
Although there are some odd parts, you should still give it ago!

Note:
If you watch this and don't feel satisfied, do not give up! Watch The Love You Give Me and you'll not regret it!

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Slow Burn with Little Pay Off

Past me: 4 stars

How we got 6 stars:
-nothing was wrong with acting, well casted
-Music was really nice, added them to my playlist (find on youtube)
-like crossdressing trope personally

How we did not get the rest of the stars:
Slow burn romance:
they get together in the last 2 episodes. The rest is just them flirting, which really isn't that satisfying. For me, a good ending should have a marriage or a proposal of marriage.

Actually the ~parents~ (trying not to spoil) tried separating them and it was really really painful. I actually took a break for a month and then skipped the painful part to the confession. It dragged so long.

Also, there was a lot of parts that just seemed plain dumb.

In general, I like Chen Yao. She was really good in Maiden Holmes. Hope to see more of her. Those stars are partly for her. I actually didn't like the ml that much. He was a little annoying at times.

If you like slow burn with little pay off, here you go!

3/2/2025
Maybe I watched this in the wrong mood. Small chance of rewatching just to see if past me was right...

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A Lovable Slice of Life Drama (but kinda slow)

8.25
Finished 29/40 episodes
(I tried to get a perfect 30/40, btu I couldn't get myself to watch one more episode. I feel like I should give this an 8.5, but 8.25 is more suitable I believe)

Note: I watched this drama with my parents in the room, so any flaws that this drama had was emphasized as my parents are quite critical of what I watch.

Disclaimer: The below opinions are mine and mine alone. If you don't agree then that is just fine. If you really loved this drama, I am happy for you. I'm genuinely glad that this drama was enjoyable and even lovable for you.

I feel really sad to drop this, but this drama has met its limit for me. I have come to a point where it's only bearable to watch at a fricken 2x speed. And if I'm watching a drama at such a speed, I feel like there is no need to force myself if I have ~~VERY~~ little motivation to watch. I mean, I am curious how it ends, but not curious enough to watch it all through. I think I'll just watch some Youtube shorts and read some episode guides, and I'll be satisfied.

However, for a dropped drama, this was pretty good. I definitely can believe that some people would love this drama.

Story:
-so many very well developed characters. This aspect was the highlight of the whole show. And that was wonderful because it wasn’t just the main leads who had complex inner makings, but also all the supporting leads. They had also made understandable decisions.

-I like how they showed dysfunctional mothers. In the media, we always hear about horrible fathers and angelic mothers. That’s the combination that everyone is obsessed with. As someone who’s biological mom wasn’t the most mentally stable in the least, I grew up where if I told people my relationship with her, they would think I’m either (or even all) lying, hallucinating, or going crazy. “No, ALL mothers care about their children and do what's best for them!” And it was so dehumanizing, because my mother wasn't all that great. But watching this drama, I really felt seen and acknowledged. (However, unlike Ling Xiao aka ML, I did not feel any sort to filial piety towards her but maybe that’s Chinese culture 🤷🏽‍♀️)

-liked how much they showed Li Hai Chao (the dad) cook. Made me hungry 🤣
-liked the fl's job
-ml and 2ml's jobs made me roll my eyes
-there are some really good, heart felt, meaningful dialogues in here
-we got to see the characters grow up

-What made me drop this was the speed at which everything was happening. I used to think I was the kind of person who liked "Slice of Life" dramas. Now I'm starting to doubt myself. This is genuinely a good story but its taking up too much of my time... And some of the flaws (in the romance) I just couldn't overlook.
If I had nothing better to do, I would finish this drama. But since I do, I've dropped.

Romance:
-the romance makes one realize that, yes, this was made in 2020. It hasn't aged well.
-it was really toxic; they were romanticizing emotional blackmail
-the above really pissed me off and made me want to roll my eyes. Yes, he is pitiful, but that doesn't mean you owe him to be his girlfriend

Acting/Cast:
-Zhang Xin Cheng has blown me away. He might not be good at romance and might not have the most pretty face, but he sure can act. This dude is amazing
-Tan Song Yun also did very well, but Imo, I felt like she made the role fit her instead of her fit the role. I also don't really like her style of acting. Like, yes, act like a child while you're a teenager, but once your 26-27 or whatever, please act like an adult 🤷🏽‍♀️
-Song Wei Long was the weak link of the three. His acting was mediocre compared to the others. He brought some of the chemistry to the romance but it gave more predatory vibes than love vibes
-the chemistry between TSY and SWL was not great, but the kisses were good. Mostly because TSY brought no heat at all
-I also enjoyed watching Tu Song Yan

Music:
-I probably won't listen to the music in my own time
-but, it really suited the drama and the moments that it turned on
-this drama also managed to not overplay the ost, which is hard to achieve nowadays

Rewatch:
-no
-I wasn't even able to completely watch it in the first place 😅😅😅

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Power Couple, but not so great in later episodes

8.00

Y'all, the first episode or 2 is trash, but keep going. Everything unfolds......

Pros:
-lots of twists and turns
-love the scheming
-love the political intrigue
-love the dealing with of the 2ml
-side characters were mostly liked
-love how the main leads support each other (using power, finances, and emotionally)

Cons:
-some of the plot twists stab you
-one of the side couples are kinda annoying (skipped past them)
-the sister of the ml is troublesome
-not a huge amount of chemistry

(I will soon finish and give my final review)

Update at 3/28/2025: I finally dropped. This was on-hold for nearly half a year. At this point, I don't think I will pick this up. Zhang Jing Yi, yet again, found a powerful, admirable fl to play, and played her well. This drama was my first of hers (she is my fav actress btw). The reason I dropped this is because there was a conflict between the ml and fl that just didn't make sense, and caused the ml to make the fl lose face in front of everyone. I was so in pain that I couldn't watch. Days became weeks, and weeks became months. I feel really sad that I had to drop this, but here we are anyway. 😭

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I can't... hope others can enjoy

I really dislike dropping dramas, but I simply got too bored to continue. (take my words with a grain of salt because this is my 3rd xianxia so I'm not experienced at all)

Story
-at first, the balance of comedy, cheesyness, and seriousness was really good. Soon they dipped into plot hole territory with not enough romance (when this drama is literally focusing on their romance)
-I love this fl. She has common sense and is rational. Everything she did was understandable
-the ml couldn't stop stabbing people (joke) but at least he's nice and not toxic (can't believe I have to say that)
-I liked how the fl and ml communicated (mostly the fl initialized while the ml had to learn to do it)
-the beginning was good until the 2ml and fell in love with the fl, then it got annoying.
-other than than the ml, fl, and 2ml, the other characters felt shallow and useless. Wish we got more understanding of them
-Although the story (at first) moved fast to my liking, they added all these filler scenes which was annoying. Like, we're trying to find this dude's body parts, like shouldn't we be hurrying?
-by the early 20 episodes, the slowness really hit me. It just felt kind of stupid.
-the plot kept on being thrown off track. If you've ever studied writing books just a bit, you would learn that scenes and moments are used for the plot (character development must also push the plot), but here its kinda like they stuck the plot in the trunk and drove other places

Acting/Cast
-I loved Zhou Ye here. I watched her in Love me, Love my voice, and her personality here is so different (but she still loves to eat!) I felt like she really portrayed Yan Hui very well.
-Hou Ming Hao was what I expected. I watched him in A Girl like me, and he still only has 5 facial expressions. I feel like Zhou Ye deserved better...
-I didn't notice any chemistry. The fl had more chemistry with the 2ml than the ml. This was very disappointing because chemistry is what draws me back to a drama if the plot flops.
-the 2ml did very well

Music
-the soundtrack is gorgeous, like it's really good

Visuals
-the cgi was kinda tacky ngl
-the magic tho looked good
-but the clothes need mentioning. They were stunning
-the makeup also was very pretty

Overall, if you are patient and like the laughs, then watch!

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Melodrama: Watch at your own risk

Used to be: 6.5
Now is: 5

Pros:
-chemistry (10/10)
-ost is very very good (10/10)

Cons:
-they have a long break up period (broke my heart and they didn't even try fixing it fast enough)
-plot holes within plot holes (I know this is drama land, but like, this drama took it way too far)
-unrealistic actions (way too many)
-after watching this much, whenever I see the ml's face (the actor's face) when looking for dramas, my brain goes "nope" and turns to the opposite direction. Like dude actually scares me. The actor himself is probably a decent dude, but this drama has scarred me.

I had to stop because of the break up period. I did some research, and it says they won't get back together for a while. :( I would call this a melodrama, which I do not like.

So, like I said, watch at your own risk.

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Rise From the Ashes

Dropping! So sad, because I really like Zhang Jing Yi.

Story:
-we see the cast grow up
-the main leads were very mature, especially fl
-fl is sensible and smart
-healthy relationships
-the sister of the ml was really cute (so is her ship)

-I found all the many, many side couples and ships cute (but time consuming when it was overdone)
-got a tad slow at times

Acting:
-the romance didn't have much chemistry, but the show isn't focusing on that
-I feel sad that Zhang Jing Yi got paired with Hu Yi Tian. Like, Hu Yi Tian is good at fight scenes, but that's kinda it.
-Zhang Jing Yi's acting outshined Hu Yi Tian's a lot.

Music:
-Really good.
-added to my playlist

Why I dropped:
It started feeling too slow and draggy. I couldn't get myself to finish it.
What I mean is, the drama is very good, but, like many dramas, had a draggy middle. Other cdramas caught my interest, and this one was just silently forgotten. However, it is worth rating and watching.

Overall. This drama is meant for people who like to see the main character rise from the ashes. Don't watch this if you want romance, which isn't emphasized here.

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Like the Style but Not the Plot Developlment

7.75

Story:
-gangsters
-the synopsis spoils more than half the drama
-we were promised a badass fl and we didn’t get one
-the romance had cute scene but we don’t understand why the met
-it is filmed like a full length drama. It felt less like 24 ep of 10 minutes, and more like 6 ep of 40 minutes.
-I don’t like how the ml was involved with someone else… but it’s also understandable so…
-very good fight and fun scenes
-ending was weird, but ultimately happy

Acting/Cast:
-Leo Yang (ml) acted pretty well. He made miniscule movements with his face, which I thought was cool.
-Han Le Yao (fl). Decent cryer. tbh, Idk whether she acted well or not. She didn't get too many scenes and her face didn't change that much...
-main leads had good chemistry (though we did get to see too much of them)
-Kun 哥 (random male character --hard to explain) Qi Hang has gorgeous eyes.
-2fl was entertaining to watch
-Tai 哥 was also interesting...

-there were so many great sets. Some of the scenery is cooler than full length dramas.

Music:
-I hate YouKu. I was watching this free on YouTube, but the sound kept going out
-however, when the songs did come on, I did like them

Rewatch Value:
-probably not. Nice drama to watch just for visuals

Overall:
I liked this . Come for the vibe and not story

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A new view of Love in a different kind of romcom

8.25

I was really cautious coming into this drama. I saw the 7.7, but it was Xu Ruo Han that made me want to watch this drama. More on that later.

Story:
-most of the character development are of the fls (in the mcp, 2cp, 3cp, old couple)
-cute sismance
-pretty funny in places, but could also bring you close to tears as well
-taught many lessons
-many over arching themes (I wish they would send it home just a bit more)
-surprisingly very good dialogues
-slight pacing issues. First 10 ep weren't that interesting
-not too easy to binge, but still watchable
-gotta a tad boring at times

Main CP:
-they were together for half the drama (which I like)
-no break up (during our point in the time line) as of 2024 drama time
-plenty of skinship
-not afraid of getting into bed

Shen Xing Ruo
-surprising well written
-some people said she was being irrational when it comes to breaking up. I was kinda offended by that statement. Maybe because I have divorced biological parents, or maybe because I also have trust issues, or maybe because I also have a mentally ill parent (but she has 2), I feel like she was completely rational.
-she follows her brain, not her heart because she doesn’t trust her heart (similar to myself)

Lu Xing Yan
-has a funny mom and dad 😂
-hopeless romantic but tries to hide it
-slightly 2 dimensional

2cp:
-hilarious
-I didn’t have much hope for them in the beginning, but a lot of dramas only show the part they fall in love, not 7 years later, so I found it really interesting
-they ended up being adorable

3cp:
-2 socially awkward people together!
-they are soooo cute
-surprisingly a lot of drama in their relationship
-grew and learned together

Shi Qin (Female in 3cp)
-talked a bit about divorced women and their struggle
-found her ex-husband scary, liked how they showed that

2nd lead people who wanted to get with people who they weren't supposed to be with
-I'll try not to spoil, but...
-"villains" were humanized. They had issues and common sense. One of them was actually going to therapy (you don't see that in Dramas too much. One of them, as soon as they realized that the CP was happy together only when they can actually be a couple, they backed off because they have common sense.

Note: from reviews, people say there was a lot of scheming in this drama. To be honest, I didn't mind it (and I'm the kind of person that really hates that sort of thing). Like the scheming made sense and were eventually dealt with in an extremely good way. They were also plot pushers, so without those bumps in the road, the cps might not have gotten together,

Acting/Casting
-Xu Ruo Han's acting has improved a lot. Since Perfect and Casual, instead of just sweet and cute, she can now act a far bigger and complex range of emotions
-Li Yun Rui didn't impress me. Like his gazes were nice, but I felt like I didn't get to see much emotion.
-there chemistry was acceptable, but it wasn't that fiery. When you'd see them, you'd just think of how cute they are (which isn't a bad thing)
-rest of the cast did pretty well
-3cp can't really kiss tho...
-decent chemistry in 2cp

-the mcp's styling is fire. They looked so good!
-wish they drew the eyebrows a bit darker tho
-flashbacks were done really well. They did it at the start of each episode, so it didn't feel random. There was also a little interview (as part of the TV show) at the end of each episode, so you were able to understand what was going through the character's mind

Music:
-ost was pretty good, but it just by itself would be an 8.5.
-I don't really like English music in Dramas, but they were seriously good
-the instrumental music throughout the drama was really good, which was piano -says the pianist aka me
-the ending theme song was so good.

-You and Falling in Love (especially the latter) gave serious Taylor Swift vibes. As a retired swifty, I thought that was pretty cool and brought on such a mood.
-Stupid Us is really emotional and just a really good song
-从开始到最后 was really cute and emotional. "习惯你的习惯！"

Rewatch:
-this drama is the kind that you watch once
-but if I had time 6 months to a year from now, I'd still watch it

Overall:
Pretty good drama. I recommend you watch this drama as if it was made in 2022 or 2023 (it gives those time's vibe). If you're used to 2024-2025 dramas and dislike dramas from 2019-2023, I would watch this if I were you. I feel like this drama could have gotten at least 8.3 if it was released in 2022 or 2023. So, don't trust the 7.7 and watch!

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Details: Pretty Cool. Big Picture: Extremely Underwhelming

8.00

I started watching this in November. It is now nearly April, and I've finally finished it. This drama taught me something: Good chemistry doesn't make up for a dull plot. This is a special drama, so I'll be reviewing this differently to how I usually do. This is because I watched in December-January, but then put it on hold until recently. I'll be writing this differently then to how I usually write reveiws.

First half: 8.50
Second half: 7.50
Overall drama: 8.00
(yes, the beginning was really good, but if the end is subpar, that means that they didn't make a good overall story and that is more significant to me)

Details (akaActing/Cast/Visuals/Scenes et):
-very cute "married couple chemistry"
-lots of cute romance scenes, especially in the beginning, but less near end
-individual acting of both Wu Lei and Zhao Jin Mai fit their characters really well
-styling was really good
-sets were great
- there were some really well shot sport scenes, also quite visually pleasing
-a few cute bromance scenes
-***extremely*** green flag ml
-ending was anti climatic, but happy nonetheless

-for the kisses, they either avoided doing them or used weird camera tricks which makes me feel cheated
-side characters were under developed. (e.g. fl's best friend gets virtually no screentime, and she ~supposedly~ matters)
-time skips was just too much. Like, I just lost track after the third one...
-some people said they found this drama realistic. Well, read the first point in Big Picture.

Big picture:
-This drama is labeled as a sports drama. If you come expecting a ~good~ sports drama, you ~will~ be disappointed. They do a lot of "tell", instead of "show" when it came to, especially the ml (Lin Yi Yang/ LYY)'s, progress in his sport. And the fl (Yin Guo/ YG) didn't seem to make any progress. She was great in the beginning and she was great in the end. These showcase how little importance the sports had to the overall plot and what the director/screen writer wanted to show us.

-It also seemed that LYY had a complicated past with the group of sports people. It was really confusing and hard to follow. They needed more flashbacks. Heck, they just needed more screentime and effort to really showcase this struggle and past, but they simply neglected that plotline.

-pacing really makes want to face palm. Like, we don't need to see every action play out. It's more important to spend screentime on developing the characters. Personally, after watching this, I feel like we went only ankle-deep when understanding both leads. (Though Wu Lei did a great job with trying to show depth, but we need actual stuff to show that, not just good acting). They both don't have any deep side to them. Yes, they have a personality, but thats kinda it...

-things were to happy. Like, there were no actual obstacles. Like we are a 100% sure that everything will be the most happy. There is no real struggle when it came to anything. You know, when I was first watching this, I compared it a lot to Love Me, Love My Voice, but this drama is even more low stakes than that one...

Music:
-some of the songs were ok
-but they repeated them wayyy too much
-I don't like English songs in dramas....

Rewatch:
-some scenes were really cute, so if I was feeling down, I'd definitely rewatch a few ep in the first half

Overall:
I didn't hate this drama. By all means, there were many scenes that made me smile. It just wasn't interesting enough to really devote one's time on. Like, there are plenty of dramas out there to watch. This one, I'd recommend to watch if you want something slow between other dramas. Very low angst. Yeah, I'd call this a filler drama. Hope others enjoy!

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