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Compelling story with a major fault: The FL.
Things I adored
1 Lumi. Well, I said below because I wrote that first that there was nothing I adored in this drama. I stand corrected. There is Lumi. One of my favorite characters ever. The actress is luminous and the character was great one. Such a goof friend and a good employee without losing her uniqueness. I wish I had a good friend like her and a colleague like her. I loved her relationship with the FL, but also the ML. Actually even more with him She was funny and you could see they appreciated each other.
Things I loved
1 It's funny now that I think of it but although I rate this high there's nothing I adored. I think I watched this story to see the ML rather than anything else so the story itself didn't have the elements that would make me say I adore something. Nevertheless, I loved the story. To me that is a simple plot that appeals to me. Friends with benefits and a slow romance especially with a handsome man, sign me in. So I loved that it was about work and friendship and love. Work related dramas are amongst my favorites.
2 The ML. Yes, he was handsome although I didn't get the hype at first- I thought he's okay, nothing special. But then he acted and, oh well, he was more than handsome. He was addictive. I can't find another word and even though I love many many actors, I don't think I've used the word addictive before. He was great as CEO and as friend and as romantic interest. Now I want to give my opinion bout the red flag thing that was all over the comments. If you think this man was a red flag it means you were never in a relationship. What did he do that everyone called him red flag? I'm 30 years with my partner and we love each other to pieces and although we could have walked away a million times it never even crossed our minds. Why? Because we can argue, we can fight, we can exchange some hard truths but we are there for each other and we know we can be ourselves with each other. That is a gift not everyone can have and I can tell you by seeing numerous couples explode around me that this man is nowhere near a red flag.
Why is he a red flag? Because he's honest about her shortcomings? Please! He helps her overcoming these and yes, maybe he doesn't use the best words, but he's still with her all the way and does everything he can to protect her, to help her and to make her advance. When my partner lost his job, we had a rough patch. I was with him all the way but when it came to talk about why he lost his job, I didn't sugarcoated because that wouldn't help him.
Same for him. I want a partner who talks to me like I'm an adult, not someone to coddle me. I want tenderness and love like everyone else, but I would never consider my partner a red flag because he's being honest and yes sometimes he doesn't use the right words. I would consider him a red lag if was abusive, if he cheated, it he looked down on me. Not when he says I love you every time we talk on the phone even after 30 years.
Not when he supports financially my dreams when we have no guarantee it'll work. It's the same thing the ML did. I'm known to use the right words always and never hurt people, so I understand in some capacity what bothers people, but let's be real. Other than having a communication problem he never gave her a reason to doubt him.
If she didn't want that relationship she could walk away. He was the one that was more open to disclose their relationship, who was more honest. Maybe at first things were complicated but soon he showed more feelings than she ever did. So if you look for a red flag look at someone else. Rant over, but I needed to say this because people love label other people and forget that a relationship is never that simple.
2 Sun Yu. The actress was wonderful. She did a great job at her role. I loved her and wish she ended up happy instead alone. It was heartbreaking to watch her suffer and stay such a good friend to their roommate and to the FL. One of my favorite characters and my heart still aches when I think of her and her trajectory. At least she succeeded in her job.
3 Sun Yuan Zhu. He was also a great actor who nailed the role. I wish for him another ending. This is what made me mad more about this drama. He was a compelling character but I think the writer and the director didn't manage to convey well what the character felt. Sometimes it was like pulling teeth to get deeper in his psyche. They should have done a better job.
4 The friends of the ML. I think they were great friends. I won't differentiate them except one, Zhang Lei who was the one who was more honest and who cared most for the ML. They all did what they could to give him some perspective, but he did a bit more. I loved the relationship between them. Even the female friend.
5 That the relationship was a little more realistic. I'm 30 years with my first love but that doesn't mean I think this is the only way to be happy. I loved how the relationship started and how it evolved. I'd love it to be more romantic but this wasn't exactly a rom com, so it worked for me.
Things I disliked
1 I hesitate where to put the FL but now that a few weeks have gone by since I watched it I think I didn't like her, I may not disliked her but I sure didn't' like her. To be honest, I've seen the actress in another drama and thought she wasn't great so I have a bit of a bias regarding her acting. I didn't change my opinion though. I thought she wasn't the best actress for this role. I didn't sympathize with her and that is a major problem. Maybe that I don't find her pretty plays a role as well. In that kind of drama I want a truly pretty, universally pretty woman or at least someone who can play with her expressions. She was too bland for my liking and she wasn't in his league., That is also problematic. In real life you don't care about someone's physique, you care if he's a decent person, but in my dramas I want the couples to be in the same league unless the story demands otherwise.
That wasn't my only grief though. Her character was lackluster. She wasn't especially smart and what they gave her to make her appear as smart wasn't enough. She was an average employee and that was proved when she created her own company. She wasn't good enough, period. That bothers me more than her looks or her acting. I needed a smart dynamic woman not someone who doesn't know what she wants years after she started working and is in a relationship. Her young age excuses her for a while but after that she's accountable for everything she does.
I'd love her if she was presented as a romantic, funny person who searches her path in life, but she was none of these. Don't even get me started with the marriage thing. That alone should make him go far away. Where did this come from? She talked with someone and suddenly she asks if he would marry her? Sure, great move. I'm happy he didn't. She never was a real girlfriend and we could say it was his fault at first, but not after six years. She wanted to keep the relationship secret and he accommodated her.
All in all, I didn't care much about her although I'm happy about the happy ending. After all, if he likes stupid women it's his choice. I wish another actress had the role. It'd be a 10.
2 Alex. What an idiot. I wouldn't trust him about anything. I didn't like him and it's funny since I liked the actor in two other dramas I've seen him. Anyway I don't consider him a major part of the story, although he was there for a while and helped the FL understand herself a bit better.
Things I hated
1 Dony. What a despicable human being. I'm gad the story didn't last. I wanted him to go to prison for the rest of his life. I'm glad he had some retribution, although not enough in my opinion.
2 That they decided, well the writer I guess, to kill Sun Yuan Zhu. That was a cheap thing to do because there was no need to do that. Why did the writer write him like this? Maybe it would work in another drama, a healing drama or something. But in this one it felt out of place and honestly if the FL needs such a tragedy to deal with her priorities and her life she's a moron. For now the moron is the author. Know your audience is the first rule in writing.
1 Lumi. Well, I said below because I wrote that first that there was nothing I adored in this drama. I stand corrected. There is Lumi. One of my favorite characters ever. The actress is luminous and the character was great one. Such a goof friend and a good employee without losing her uniqueness. I wish I had a good friend like her and a colleague like her. I loved her relationship with the FL, but also the ML. Actually even more with him She was funny and you could see they appreciated each other.
Things I loved
1 It's funny now that I think of it but although I rate this high there's nothing I adored. I think I watched this story to see the ML rather than anything else so the story itself didn't have the elements that would make me say I adore something. Nevertheless, I loved the story. To me that is a simple plot that appeals to me. Friends with benefits and a slow romance especially with a handsome man, sign me in. So I loved that it was about work and friendship and love. Work related dramas are amongst my favorites.
2 The ML. Yes, he was handsome although I didn't get the hype at first- I thought he's okay, nothing special. But then he acted and, oh well, he was more than handsome. He was addictive. I can't find another word and even though I love many many actors, I don't think I've used the word addictive before. He was great as CEO and as friend and as romantic interest. Now I want to give my opinion bout the red flag thing that was all over the comments. If you think this man was a red flag it means you were never in a relationship. What did he do that everyone called him red flag? I'm 30 years with my partner and we love each other to pieces and although we could have walked away a million times it never even crossed our minds. Why? Because we can argue, we can fight, we can exchange some hard truths but we are there for each other and we know we can be ourselves with each other. That is a gift not everyone can have and I can tell you by seeing numerous couples explode around me that this man is nowhere near a red flag.
Why is he a red flag? Because he's honest about her shortcomings? Please! He helps her overcoming these and yes, maybe he doesn't use the best words, but he's still with her all the way and does everything he can to protect her, to help her and to make her advance. When my partner lost his job, we had a rough patch. I was with him all the way but when it came to talk about why he lost his job, I didn't sugarcoated because that wouldn't help him.
Same for him. I want a partner who talks to me like I'm an adult, not someone to coddle me. I want tenderness and love like everyone else, but I would never consider my partner a red flag because he's being honest and yes sometimes he doesn't use the right words. I would consider him a red lag if was abusive, if he cheated, it he looked down on me. Not when he says I love you every time we talk on the phone even after 30 years.
Not when he supports financially my dreams when we have no guarantee it'll work. It's the same thing the ML did. I'm known to use the right words always and never hurt people, so I understand in some capacity what bothers people, but let's be real. Other than having a communication problem he never gave her a reason to doubt him.
If she didn't want that relationship she could walk away. He was the one that was more open to disclose their relationship, who was more honest. Maybe at first things were complicated but soon he showed more feelings than she ever did. So if you look for a red flag look at someone else. Rant over, but I needed to say this because people love label other people and forget that a relationship is never that simple.
2 Sun Yu. The actress was wonderful. She did a great job at her role. I loved her and wish she ended up happy instead alone. It was heartbreaking to watch her suffer and stay such a good friend to their roommate and to the FL. One of my favorite characters and my heart still aches when I think of her and her trajectory. At least she succeeded in her job.
3 Sun Yuan Zhu. He was also a great actor who nailed the role. I wish for him another ending. This is what made me mad more about this drama. He was a compelling character but I think the writer and the director didn't manage to convey well what the character felt. Sometimes it was like pulling teeth to get deeper in his psyche. They should have done a better job.
4 The friends of the ML. I think they were great friends. I won't differentiate them except one, Zhang Lei who was the one who was more honest and who cared most for the ML. They all did what they could to give him some perspective, but he did a bit more. I loved the relationship between them. Even the female friend.
5 That the relationship was a little more realistic. I'm 30 years with my first love but that doesn't mean I think this is the only way to be happy. I loved how the relationship started and how it evolved. I'd love it to be more romantic but this wasn't exactly a rom com, so it worked for me.
Things I disliked
1 I hesitate where to put the FL but now that a few weeks have gone by since I watched it I think I didn't like her, I may not disliked her but I sure didn't' like her. To be honest, I've seen the actress in another drama and thought she wasn't great so I have a bit of a bias regarding her acting. I didn't change my opinion though. I thought she wasn't the best actress for this role. I didn't sympathize with her and that is a major problem. Maybe that I don't find her pretty plays a role as well. In that kind of drama I want a truly pretty, universally pretty woman or at least someone who can play with her expressions. She was too bland for my liking and she wasn't in his league., That is also problematic. In real life you don't care about someone's physique, you care if he's a decent person, but in my dramas I want the couples to be in the same league unless the story demands otherwise.
That wasn't my only grief though. Her character was lackluster. She wasn't especially smart and what they gave her to make her appear as smart wasn't enough. She was an average employee and that was proved when she created her own company. She wasn't good enough, period. That bothers me more than her looks or her acting. I needed a smart dynamic woman not someone who doesn't know what she wants years after she started working and is in a relationship. Her young age excuses her for a while but after that she's accountable for everything she does.
I'd love her if she was presented as a romantic, funny person who searches her path in life, but she was none of these. Don't even get me started with the marriage thing. That alone should make him go far away. Where did this come from? She talked with someone and suddenly she asks if he would marry her? Sure, great move. I'm happy he didn't. She never was a real girlfriend and we could say it was his fault at first, but not after six years. She wanted to keep the relationship secret and he accommodated her.
All in all, I didn't care much about her although I'm happy about the happy ending. After all, if he likes stupid women it's his choice. I wish another actress had the role. It'd be a 10.
2 Alex. What an idiot. I wouldn't trust him about anything. I didn't like him and it's funny since I liked the actor in two other dramas I've seen him. Anyway I don't consider him a major part of the story, although he was there for a while and helped the FL understand herself a bit better.
Things I hated
1 Dony. What a despicable human being. I'm gad the story didn't last. I wanted him to go to prison for the rest of his life. I'm glad he had some retribution, although not enough in my opinion.
2 That they decided, well the writer I guess, to kill Sun Yuan Zhu. That was a cheap thing to do because there was no need to do that. Why did the writer write him like this? Maybe it would work in another drama, a healing drama or something. But in this one it felt out of place and honestly if the FL needs such a tragedy to deal with her priorities and her life she's a moron. For now the moron is the author. Know your audience is the first rule in writing.
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