MyLangyaList

Fingers crossed

Can someone tell me whether the show maintains the quality to the end. Since it's possible to destroy the entire show with a bad/nonsensical ending to a spy drama, I'm waiting for this to finish.

It's a budding field, but it's still taking off like a rocket ship from virtually nothing a few years back. Yes, they stir clear of Chinese politics, but that's the unfortunate red line in China. Though from the clips I've seen, some performers like Li Xueqin has sets that are up there with the best in the US, including her delivery and storytelling style.

That's pretty impressive considering she's only been doing it for a few years.

2015 was when the first comedy club opened in China, it was a cozy comedy bar called Kung Fu Komedy in Shanghai.
https://www.smartshanghai.com/articles/community/shanghai-famous-kung-fu-komedys-andy-curtain

Around that time, very few people who didn't haven't been abroad in China knew what stand-up was. And actually the Chinese translation mixed up talk-show and standup comedy. KFK was founded by an Irish man and a local Shanghainese. The performers and open-mic entrants were mostly expats (esp Americans) for a long time, simply because there's greater familiarity with it. There were also mandarin performers and comedy nights. But localized standups really took off the last few years as there were TV shows and competitions about it.

Like a lot of things in China, things can go from nothing to exploding seemingly over night.
It happened with hip-hop a few years ago, and now with stand-up. Now you have a crop of very strong Mandarin performers. I watched some TV show performances, and some of them are very funny and talented, including a well known female comedian Li Xueqin.

There should be some, though it's not focus, it's much more about her personal growth. It's probably going to a realistic slow burn in the 2nd half.

This show is so good! There are literally dozens of screencap worthy moments in every episode. There are no fillers and the messages are delivered intelligently and stylistically. And so many frames are worth a thousand words in referencing and lampooning people, workplace, and society.

Yeah I was already planning to drop it after the ZGL arc based on your review. Then the above mentioned shenanigans happened and it was the nail in the coffin. It's a pity because now I will only remember the ridiculousness instead of the ensuing scene of a geriatric SMY picking up and carrying a dead Cao Rui on his back once again.

I couldn't get fully immersed in the characterization and poignant scenes because the director was like an enemy mole, constantly running sabotage on his own camp.

Link Click and Bureau of Transformers are two other similar supernatural with a good balance of comedy, action, and heart. Unfortunately BoT's subs are rough and often doesn't convey the proper meaning and humor.

You should check out Joy of Life, very similar vibes and shares many of the cast.

A lot of the crime thrillers have that noir look. I personally liked 'Interlaced Scenes' the best this year. And Blossom Shanghai should have very unique visuals as people are calling it a 20-hr Wong Kar-Wai film. Though I'm not sure if there's an official subbed version yet.

There are a lot of quality realistic dramas, like dozens a year. Though the selection is more limited if you need romance: Alliance, Be Your Own Light, There Will Be Ample Time, The Ideal City, Delicious Romance, Nothing But Thirty, Meet Yourself

If Smile Code is along the lines of a typical idol drama, then it's not in the same league as this, even if they share stand-up as a topic.

This would actually be a pretty good A/B comparison between idol and non-idol dramas.

China actually has many great coming-of-age dramas. Other great shows in the genre: Go Ahead, The Bond, Once and Forever: The Sun Rises, Romance in the Alley (70s China, so a bit of cultural barrier to get used to)

Yeah, I spoke too soon, he got worse from ep1. Even though he thinks he's taking care of her, he essentially takes her for granted and doesn't understand/appreciate her personality, talent, or needs.

Yeah you could do a lot worse than the boyfriend, and plenty of women do select this type. But he's clearly not a good fit for the FL, who's struggling with her own repressed independence and spunkiness. One sign of a decent drama are that nobody's fully good/bad.

Edit: spoke too soon, the bf does have a lot of problems with his mindset and how he's treating her.

Asian work culture tends to be more toxic compared to the West in general, and the issues depicted in the drama are not unusual. This and Fake It Till You Make It have very realistic work depictions unlike the typical idol CEO romance dramas, even if there's some dramatization as with all shows.

Yep, loving this drama. More people need to check this one out.

Link Click

🤣🤣🤣

It's pretty realistic unfortunately.