4
1
1
2
Seasoned Actors, Mature Roles, Meaningful Stories
I remember watching Dear Enemy and telling my friends that this drama represents what almost every woman is going through in 2025. The dialogues felt painfully familiar, like conversations we have already had in real life. That is what made it so funny and also why it hit home for me. I genuinely appreciated the writing.
At the center of it all is Luo Ma, a woman trying to survive modern life, relationships, friendships, career pressure, and societal expectations without losing her mind. The drama is shot in a refreshing way, very similar to the K drama "Lovestruck in the City", with the main lead occasionally breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the audience. That choice made everything feel more intimate and personal, like Luo Ma was confiding in us rather than performing for us.
What I liked:
First, the writing. Let us be honest, good writing has become a rare feast lately with what creators have been feeding us. Perfect writing is a whole different level, and while nothing is flawless, this drama is confidently well written. The conversations flow naturally, the conflicts make sense, and the characters actually sound like adults who have lived.
Second, mature actors playing mature roles and tackling mature topics. No pretending. No sugarcoating. Just people dealing with life as it is.
If you know me or have seen me in these streets, you already know how much I dread dramas that rely on pretty faces with zero substance. In my refusal to consume low nutrition content just because mass demand says so, I have shifted my focus to slice of life gems that somehow escaped the cutting room and made it to our screens. Dear Enemy is one of those gems.
The women look like women. Not twelve year olds with baby voices or bodies trapped between unrealistic beauty standards and starvation aesthetics. These are women with flesh, presence, exhaustion, ambition, and emotional weight. Women who are going through it and then some.
The male leads are also refreshingly real. Not your typical symmetrical pretty boys with one recycled facial expression. These men are messy, flawed, and hardworking. They actually look like people who have burned the midnight oil for years to get where they are.
The female lead alone had at least a thousand facial expressions, and my favorite was her eye roll whenever something did not make sense, which happened a lot. She was us. We are her. Luo Ma embodied the struggle of an everyday single working woman. She defended herself, defended her friends, and called out anyone who thought they were above reproach. Watching her felt validating.
Now, what I did not like;
The actress storyline played by Wan Peng (3FL) was underdeveloped and unexplored, which was disappointing because it had the potential to expose the darker side of trying to survive the film industry. That arc could have been powerful but was barely scratched.
I liked the ML as an actor, You can't get any more seasoned than Yuan Hong, but his character summed up exactly what is out there with men his age, and yes this is a personal vendetta. I could see that relationship failing from a mile away and It gave me the reason to cheer for his competition Fang Chi.It's been awhile since I rooted for someone other than the ML to get the girl.
Do I wish Luo Ma(FL) and Fang Chi were given more time? Absolutely. The time and budget spent shooting the documentary could have been redirected into building their encounters and emotional connection. But am also not complaining,the end was deserving.
The marriage storyline was messy in a very realistic way but honestly gave me flashbacks I did not ask for.
Overall, in my books, this drama deserves a solid 8.6. This is a story written for women in 2025, and it knows exactly who it is speaking to.
At the center of it all is Luo Ma, a woman trying to survive modern life, relationships, friendships, career pressure, and societal expectations without losing her mind. The drama is shot in a refreshing way, very similar to the K drama "Lovestruck in the City", with the main lead occasionally breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the audience. That choice made everything feel more intimate and personal, like Luo Ma was confiding in us rather than performing for us.
What I liked:
First, the writing. Let us be honest, good writing has become a rare feast lately with what creators have been feeding us. Perfect writing is a whole different level, and while nothing is flawless, this drama is confidently well written. The conversations flow naturally, the conflicts make sense, and the characters actually sound like adults who have lived.
Second, mature actors playing mature roles and tackling mature topics. No pretending. No sugarcoating. Just people dealing with life as it is.
If you know me or have seen me in these streets, you already know how much I dread dramas that rely on pretty faces with zero substance. In my refusal to consume low nutrition content just because mass demand says so, I have shifted my focus to slice of life gems that somehow escaped the cutting room and made it to our screens. Dear Enemy is one of those gems.
The women look like women. Not twelve year olds with baby voices or bodies trapped between unrealistic beauty standards and starvation aesthetics. These are women with flesh, presence, exhaustion, ambition, and emotional weight. Women who are going through it and then some.
The male leads are also refreshingly real. Not your typical symmetrical pretty boys with one recycled facial expression. These men are messy, flawed, and hardworking. They actually look like people who have burned the midnight oil for years to get where they are.
The female lead alone had at least a thousand facial expressions, and my favorite was her eye roll whenever something did not make sense, which happened a lot. She was us. We are her. Luo Ma embodied the struggle of an everyday single working woman. She defended herself, defended her friends, and called out anyone who thought they were above reproach. Watching her felt validating.
Now, what I did not like;
The actress storyline played by Wan Peng (3FL) was underdeveloped and unexplored, which was disappointing because it had the potential to expose the darker side of trying to survive the film industry. That arc could have been powerful but was barely scratched.
I liked the ML as an actor, You can't get any more seasoned than Yuan Hong, but his character summed up exactly what is out there with men his age, and yes this is a personal vendetta. I could see that relationship failing from a mile away and It gave me the reason to cheer for his competition Fang Chi.It's been awhile since I rooted for someone other than the ML to get the girl.
Do I wish Luo Ma(FL) and Fang Chi were given more time? Absolutely. The time and budget spent shooting the documentary could have been redirected into building their encounters and emotional connection. But am also not complaining,the end was deserving.
The marriage storyline was messy in a very realistic way but honestly gave me flashbacks I did not ask for.
Overall, in my books, this drama deserves a solid 8.6. This is a story written for women in 2025, and it knows exactly who it is speaking to.
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