This review may contain spoilers
A Dream of A Drama
A Dream Within A Dream is what a transmigration story should be, a completely self-aware meta-fiction drama that pokes fun at C-drama tropes, magnifying them tenfold and flipping them over their heads. It boasts of a stellar cast led by Liu Yuning and Li Yitong, both formidable actors in their own right, and coupled with a recipe for a chaotic yet charming and hilarious series that'll keep you entertained, engaged, and amused. I've lost count of the number of times I chuckled and laughed out loud at the sidesplitting antics of the characters and comedic vibe of the drama. It is simply a dream of a drama. Pun intended. It's a welcoming change from the usual tropey and highly melodramatic romances.
The story centers around Song Yimeng (Song Xiaoyu), a struggling B-lister actress who finally gets a long overdue break to work with a superstar actor in a big production drama. After a night of poring over the drama's screenplay and complaining about the absurdity of the plot and writing, she wakes up in ancient China in the body of the character she was supposed to play. She doesn't waste time lamenting over that fact, though. She immediately tries to adapt to her surroundings, a testament to her resourcefulness and decisiveness, which will come into play later on. But her spunk and wit are also her major flaws. I must admit, she was exasperating and unlikable to a certain degree at times. Her stubborness and narrow-mindedness brought so much grief to those around her, especially to Nan Heng. However, I believe she is designed to be frustrating as she is a dialed up version of the annoying female lead archetype. Li Yitong is a great fit for this role, she certainly has the comedic timing and charm for it.
Nan Heng, the male lead, is the long suffering misunderstood ML who is often abused, abandoned, betrayed, and would do anything for the woman he is pining for but amplified by a hundred. lol Liu Yuning plays this role to a tee, with a nuanced performance full of gravitas that I didn't expect to see from him. He's so good as Nan Heng and his alter ego, Li Shiliu, that he is now my favorite C-drama ML of all time, edging out Cheng Yi's Li Lianhua by just a small margin.
Similarly, Chu Guihong played by Wang You Shuo is the very representation of all the irritating love sick second MLs who are obsessed with the FLs and just can't accept defeat. I hated him with every bone of my body! lol The second FL, however, is a refreshing change from the usual trope. I did like Zhu Xu Dan in this. She was cute and amusing. Of course her tandem with Riley Wang adds to the charm of this series for me. The rest of the cast are equally good from Yimeng's family to Nan Heng's subordinates. Nan Rui also became a favorite of mine later on after showing much character growth as the series progressed.
One of the standouts to me is the musical score and soundtrack. The songs were not just chosen for the drama, they were made for it! Each song represents key moments in the story, helping tell the tale through their lyrics and melody, and making the drama even more immersive. I thought that was a nice touch, making it seem like they were breaking the fourth wall, “see what we did there?” *wink wink* The soundtrack also includes one of the best songs from Liu Yuning imho, and a catchy pop rock track from Tiger Hu that I will forever associate with this drama.
Sadly, this drama isn't without flaws. There are some storylines that were presented in the beginning but then dropped and never picked up again. Not to mention, there are parts when it dragged, leading me to believe that the series should've been shorter. There are plenty of suspend your disbelief moments as well, but I can forgive them as the drama itself is ridiculous and doesn't really take itself too seriously. After all, it is meta-fiction. None of it is real and the drama heavily leans on this. Fortunately, they wrapped things up quite nicely and the explanation behind the transmigration was cleverly executed.
All in all, I loved this so much! I laughed, cried, got upset, and became all giddy watching this. It's definitely the kind of drama that I would want to rewatch again and again. Nan Heng is now engraved in my mind as one of the most complex, sympathetic, and best written male characters in C-drama land, and Liu Yuning is now one of my top actors because of this drama. Until we meet again, Seventh Prince!
The story centers around Song Yimeng (Song Xiaoyu), a struggling B-lister actress who finally gets a long overdue break to work with a superstar actor in a big production drama. After a night of poring over the drama's screenplay and complaining about the absurdity of the plot and writing, she wakes up in ancient China in the body of the character she was supposed to play. She doesn't waste time lamenting over that fact, though. She immediately tries to adapt to her surroundings, a testament to her resourcefulness and decisiveness, which will come into play later on. But her spunk and wit are also her major flaws. I must admit, she was exasperating and unlikable to a certain degree at times. Her stubborness and narrow-mindedness brought so much grief to those around her, especially to Nan Heng. However, I believe she is designed to be frustrating as she is a dialed up version of the annoying female lead archetype. Li Yitong is a great fit for this role, she certainly has the comedic timing and charm for it.
Nan Heng, the male lead, is the long suffering misunderstood ML who is often abused, abandoned, betrayed, and would do anything for the woman he is pining for but amplified by a hundred. lol Liu Yuning plays this role to a tee, with a nuanced performance full of gravitas that I didn't expect to see from him. He's so good as Nan Heng and his alter ego, Li Shiliu, that he is now my favorite C-drama ML of all time, edging out Cheng Yi's Li Lianhua by just a small margin.
Similarly, Chu Guihong played by Wang You Shuo is the very representation of all the irritating love sick second MLs who are obsessed with the FLs and just can't accept defeat. I hated him with every bone of my body! lol The second FL, however, is a refreshing change from the usual trope. I did like Zhu Xu Dan in this. She was cute and amusing. Of course her tandem with Riley Wang adds to the charm of this series for me. The rest of the cast are equally good from Yimeng's family to Nan Heng's subordinates. Nan Rui also became a favorite of mine later on after showing much character growth as the series progressed.
One of the standouts to me is the musical score and soundtrack. The songs were not just chosen for the drama, they were made for it! Each song represents key moments in the story, helping tell the tale through their lyrics and melody, and making the drama even more immersive. I thought that was a nice touch, making it seem like they were breaking the fourth wall, “see what we did there?” *wink wink* The soundtrack also includes one of the best songs from Liu Yuning imho, and a catchy pop rock track from Tiger Hu that I will forever associate with this drama.
Sadly, this drama isn't without flaws. There are some storylines that were presented in the beginning but then dropped and never picked up again. Not to mention, there are parts when it dragged, leading me to believe that the series should've been shorter. There are plenty of suspend your disbelief moments as well, but I can forgive them as the drama itself is ridiculous and doesn't really take itself too seriously. After all, it is meta-fiction. None of it is real and the drama heavily leans on this. Fortunately, they wrapped things up quite nicely and the explanation behind the transmigration was cleverly executed.
All in all, I loved this so much! I laughed, cried, got upset, and became all giddy watching this. It's definitely the kind of drama that I would want to rewatch again and again. Nan Heng is now engraved in my mind as one of the most complex, sympathetic, and best written male characters in C-drama land, and Liu Yuning is now one of my top actors because of this drama. Until we meet again, Seventh Prince!
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