PrettyCarEye

Haha, you really have a diabolical mind! I had a good chuckle reading your ideas about the roles you think Angelababy should play. lol

I see the love triangle tag on this drama and I want to ask you how prominent it is in this drama? Is it constantly there? Is the female lead confused about who she loves and continuously jumping from ship to ship?

In the trailer I see what appears to be a wedding scene between the leads. Are they married in the drama?

You also said they are often a part. How often? Is this drama full of angst with only a few moments of sweet scenes?

Thanks for answering my questions! I love Wallace Chung and would be interested in watching this but with so many episodes I don't want to waste my time if it's too angsty and there's an annoying love triangle that never goes away.

I see. As a non-Chinese viewer, I was not aware of any of this ... but in some ways this is good news. I work in film and don't particularly like restrictions on creative liberties, but hopefully this move will help writers and showrunners be more creative and economic with their storylines/plots, while at the same time achieving their commercial interests. Anything over 30 is usually a trial for me due to my schedule, but I can live with a max of around 40 eps. Once dramas start getting over 40 eps I have to wait until I have a break from work to watch them. With such a huge market I'm surprised that there aren't enough viewers who are willing to pay per view or subscription.

It was a toss up between TMOPB and L&D. I had heard so much about the former, but I chose to watch L&D first because I am familiar with Chang Chen from the festival circuit. I have watched many of his films (The Blood Brother series, The Assassin etc), most recently his first film as an awkward 14 yr old - A Brighter Summer Day. I really like him as an actor. I had heard of NiNi before from some of my Chinese associates, but I've never seen anything with her. I have to say that she's a good actress. I really enjoyed her performance in L&D and will be looking out for more of her shows. Do you have any particular recs for both actors?

I haven't heard about this threat of episode limits by regulators. What's that about exactly? I love C-dramas and in certain aspects think they're a lot better than Korean ones, but I tend to watch way more K & J-dramas because as a busy working woman, I don't have the time to dedicate to 40-60+ ep dramas everyday, and I don't like taking long breaks in between eps. Since I took a break for Christmas I had time to binge watch a few dramas, including L&D, but I usually don't have time to watch dramas in general.

It would be great if C-dramas were more compact - tighter plots with less focus on repeating information the audience already knows (there was a lot of this in L&D!). Also it took forever before there was any progress in the stories of secondary characters. I experience this a lot with most C & T dramas I watch.

Anyway, I'm about to finish up L&D now, just 1 ep left! I was a little disappointed with the eps after she came back because while I understood her reaction, after going through so much to get her back ... I wanted a little reprieve, a little sweetness from all the angst & drama. The make up was hella cute, though. That kinda made up for those disappointing eps prior, but I was right there with Jiu Chen being frustrated as hell! LOL

Yeah, I'm about to wrap this up. In the second act, there are about 5 eps where the FL spends time with another man. Didn't like those scenes but I was able to stomach them. Then after that perhaps another 3 - 4 eps when the actual love triangle occurs because the ML reappears and compete with the 2nd to break that sh-t up. All these episodes either unnecessary filler or are mostly for comedic purposes and can totally be skipped.

I hate love triangles as much as you do. I was reluctant to continue watching when I heard a triangle was coming, but I muscled through the episodes & they weren't as painful as other triangles I've suffered through. I would've rec'ed you giving it a chance ... despite these episodes, but I was sad to see that the triangle returned in ep 50 - 55 (haven't watched the remaining 5 eps yet). This time the FL entertains it - not in she's interested in him, but she's being standoffish toward the ML for some silly reason (after everything he's sacrificed for her! smh) and now seeking out the company of the 2ML more. Man, this irritated me because we waited so long to get to this point (the leads went through a lot of trials & tribulations) and instead of finally coming together in love the writers throw in all kinds of unnecessary drama. Honestly the couple here is great - they have great chemistry & they are the type of characters you like. The story is also not bad, but you have to wade through a lot of filler to get to the good parts.

Here's what you can do: you can watch eps 1 - 24 (sweet, 1 - 20 in particular), skip eps 25 - 39, watch 40 - 49 (sweet & bittersweet), then finish it off with 58 - 60 (sweet ...? It's a happy ending, but still need to confirm how 'happy' it is). All these episodes focus more or less on the leads without all the other nonsense in between. And you literally don't miss out on anything from the skipped episodes. I just don't think you should deprive yourself of this great couple because of the drama's shortcomings.

I followed your advice and muscled through those eps and you're right, there are worse triangles. Nevertheless, it would have been so torturous for me if I had watched this airing because I can't imagine the hankering for more MoMo & Jiu Chen scenes, only to be disappointed week after week with this nonsense. These episodes made absolutely no sense at all! They could have used them to solidify the relationship between MoMo & Jiu Chen, instead of wasting them on Jing Xiu.

They actually contributed nothing to advancing the plot; they just felt like filler to me. Like they were used only as a device to separate the lovers. Perhaps a reprieve for the actors who get to take a break from acting all lovey dovey all the time, but bummer for us viewers!

Then suddenly Jiu Chen reappears after 5 episodes of not showing up and she goes from living & acting all husband & wifey (and falling in love) with Jing Xiu to doing the same with Jiu Chen. That transition felt so awkward and unnecessary! Well, I'm glad that mess is over now! :)

Thanks for the quick reply! Grrr ... unfortunately that's the type of love triangle that irritates me the most. The one where the 2nd is an annoying pest and the FL - even though she's not into him - doesn't tell him in no uncertain terms to F off. I can tolerate the ones where she completely shuts him down every time & doesn't entertain him. But I don't imagine she'll do that because of his vulnerable condition & because she's so kind and doesn't know she actually loves another man. Darn it! I have a decision to make ... I really love Jiu Chen & Ling Xi (they are so good together ... why do we need a 3rd wheel? We don't). They haven't even shared a kiss yet, so I'd hate to give up now but love triangles really, really, really piss me off and I hate having to skip scenes because of it because I'm really liking the story itself & don't want to miss any detail.

I'm watching this now & I loved it up until she had to die & reborn to get rid of the demon spirit. I'm at the episode where she's taking care of Jing Xiu (because he's blind) ... and I feel like a major love triangle between him, Ling Xiu & Jiu Chen is about to ensue. I hate love triangles (esp when the main leads are so adorable together). Can you tell me how strong is the love triangle and how long will it last? Being that I absolutely hate LTs ... do you think I should drop it now and not waste my time?

I'm watching this now & I loved it up until she had to die & reborn to get rid of the demon spirit. I'm at the episode where she's taking care of Jing Xiu (because he's blind) ... and I feel like a major love triangle between him, Ling Xiu & Jiu Chen is about to ensue. I hate love triangles (esp when the main leads are so adorable together). Can you tell me how strong is the love triangle and how long will it last? Being that I absolutely hate LTs ... do you think I should drop it now and not waste my time?

What different dynamics are those?
And are you suggesting that men in ow/ym relationships never these abuse their women?

Why is she trying to be a fake white girl?

Can you elaborate on what cliches you're talking about?

Hmm, so we have spoken before! I knew I recognized your name ... was trying to remember when and what I had previously spoken to you about but couldn't place any of it. Now I remember.

Anyway, yeah, I noticed your rating of Aishiteru when I checked out your list. I thought 'Interesting!' and had intended ask to you about it, but you beat me to the punch! haha

Being terribly boy crazy (even though I'm waaay too grown to be boy crazy really) and a romantic at heart, I just loved how the romance unfolded between the leads. It was sentimental and sweet, and made you want to fall in love or remember a time when you did fall in love. At least that was how I experienced it. The ending, though, was just cruel and like I wrote in my comment above, I will never forgive the writer for ruining such a beautiful love story with unnecessary drama & angst.

Honestly, he could not have been my husband because I would've slapped the daylights out of him so hard ... LOL!

Anyway, I don't want to say too much since I don't want to spoil things for you, but I will say this: I think they both - equally - contributed to the break down of the marriage. You know, a husband's shortcomings are always easier to spot, but when you look a bit deeper you see that wives aren't just helpless victims. They have the power to influence their outcomes.

I felt bad for her, that she got sick & that she felt neglected & unloved by her husband (the irony is that he *does* love her but is unable to show her with actions because the concept of work/life balance just never computed for him). I don't blame her for getting sick in any way. However, objectively speaking, her illness is a direct result of actions she did or did not take throughout the marriage.

Furthermore, in my perspective, they aren't opposites. I think when they got married they were a perfect match. They were on the same page and wanted the same things. Somewhere along the line, though, something changed for the wife and she failed to effectively communicate that shift in values to her husband. She left a lot up to his interpretation & his interpretation of the situation (as is typical of men because they can never take a hint!) was totally incongruent to what was actually going on.

XQ really loves her ... you'll see the more you watch (it is one of the reasons why he remained a sympathetic figure for me even during those times I wanted to strangle him). I do really believe that had he known she was so deeply unhappy (to the point where her mental health was deteriorating rapidly) he would've tried his best for her because one thing for sure is that he did not want to lose his family. He loves them & has only ever wanted the best for them.

Sure, he has a chip on his shoulder about his background because he's this country boy who grew up with nothing ... and he wants to be successful to show that he's worthy of her. That her family did not make a mistake by giving them their blessings to marry. But that's not the only reason why he worked himself to the bone trying to provide a certain lifestyle for them. He also did it because he truly believed he was fulfilling a dream they *both* wanted. You have to wonder if that wasn't the case, why wasn't he made to be aware of this at some point during the course of his marriage?

https://kissasian.sh/Drama/Better-Days/Movie?id=52566

I see, makes sense. I was not aware overwork & exhaustion could have that effect. I am aware of someone being too tired to perform, but not ... you know, getting it up. Maybe those pills was to give him energy to stay awake & alert and in the mood, rather than performance enhancing. I wish we knew exactly what was on that box.
Anyway, don't you think he had some nerve though coming home at that ungodly hour of the night ( was it after hearing that his wife attempted suicide & choosing to go to work before going to her ...?) and expecting to have sex? Or did he think he had to fulfill some sort of husbandly duty since he's never around & when he is he's too exhausted to do anything ...? I don't know what in the world he could have been thinking. In those first few episodes, I found him to be rather obtuse, but he does get better. It was hard for me to dislike him even though it was clear that he made some very big mistakes as far as his marriage was concerned. You might end up disagreeing with me overall, but I don't think his wife is blameless either.

Btw ... I see you're on ep 8 of Hope All Is Well and something I couldn't quite figure out because it wasn't translated is what kind of pills XQ was taking at the beginning of the drama, do you know?
I tried video translating the characters on the box but my phone camera couldn't capture them well enough to give a good translation. Based on what Xun Zhao said when she discovered that he was taking these pills, it seemed like some sort of libido enhancing drug? In the drama they said both he and Xun Zhao are in their 30s ... it was revealed in one episode that she is 34, so he can't be much older than her. So why would such a young man need libido enhancing pills??? He sure didn't look like he'd have any problems standing at attention ... if you get my drift...

Right ... ??? I'm sure that rasp in his voice is due to smoking but ... who cares! *swoons*

By the way, I'd like to recommend you watch the movie The Third Way of Love. Now everything about this movie is very very nice indeed ... except the ending. But I still think you should watch it.

I would reeally love to hear him sweet talk one of his leading ladies in that deep, raspy voice of his before kissing her for real (not by surprise or any of that nonsense)! That would be soooo amazing! Hopefully one day we'll get such a scene ... ;)

If there's motivation enough for me to watch a drama with makjang, I will ... but it's not my favourite type of drama. I can suspend belief on a lot of things but at same time I become way too left-brained if things start going over into the absurd. Usually the motivation would have to be a good romance with kisses & or bed scenes between the leads, and gladly between second leads too. If that's missing then I tend to be reluctant about starting the drama.

You mention that there are a few almost kisses, but are there any actual kisses toward the end?

Content censors in China (including Taiwan & Hong Kong) are something else. On the one hand they're way more liberal in depicting modern relationships compared to Korean shows but at the same time aaaaa lot of their dramas (to me, way more than Korean ones) don't have any kissing scenes. Smh ... lol
In movies, the guy can take of his shirt in make out scenes, but the woman must remain fully clothed and no kissing beyond the neckline. Maybe because they're so restricted with what they can show, kisses in many - tho probably not most - Chinese movies are often really good. Anyway, sorry for going off on a tangent! I just find the whole thing interesting & a bit ironic.

I would love to watch another Yang Shuo drama. So far I like him a lot but I'm not 100% in love yet. I need to see more of him. Good thing is that he has a lot of dramas, bad thing is that 1) many aren't subbed & 2) some seem incompatible with my tastes. But I'll keep looking out for his stuff! Btw, the links you posted are inaccessible. Says 'The requested page was not found'.

I literally did nothing else for 2 days. I'm still on Christmas break in a cabin up in the mountains but still ... I can't believe I did that.

Haha, I did have a look see at that drama and I decided to pass because it had makjang written all over it. I seriously hate makjang! lol

One thing I loved about Hope All Is Well ... is that it's a perfectly sober drama. The craziness was kept to a bare minimum. Return The World To You gave me the opposite impression. But I'll think about it. Maybe I'll change my mind. Ode To Love ... not really my kind of drama - btw, a bit of fun info: Yang Shuo as Xiang Qian in Hope All Is Well makes a funny comment about that drama (listen out for it in one of the later episodes ... I found it funny as hell!).

Back to Return The World ... is there a real development of the romance in the drama? Do the characters actually fall in love & have an intimate relationship? I'm always disappointed with no-kiss, no intimacy type romances where you can hardly tell if the characters are truly lovers or just friends. To me it's not proper romance without those elements.