I agree with your review. I believe for me the female lead height and weight was a factor. Perhaps, if the female lead was over 5'8, and gained 15lbs of muscle for this role, it would have persuaded us that she was a male crowned prince (not to stay tall women are masculine, I am tall myself). Standing next to the male leads who are all over 5'11, pretty much reminded me that she's not a male crowned prince. However, her acting was top notch.
Also, I think before 2019, K-dramas blurred out scenes with blood, and weapons. If I am not mistaken, showing bloody murder scenes without it being blurred out is pretty much a recent change.
"Unconditional, self-less love." Yes, That's it exactly. And I think it's something so rare to see in cdramaland.
I agree, and I think it's also rare to see in Kdramas and American movies/tv. The last movie that reminded me of this was Romeo & Juliet with Leonardo DiCaprio back in the mid 90s, and oh yeah..in the bible lol.
I agree with your review, both Leo Luo, and Jing Chao deserve an award for their characters in this drama. OUTSTANDING ACTORS! Leo's character in this drama is the definition of unconditional, self-less love. My review: https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews
"Liu Qing Yang is a rich, spoiled playboy. Chen Yi Fan is the icy, aloof vice president of a real estate corporation. Despite their differences, they both happen to be motorcycle racing enthusiasts. They find their lives intersecting after Liu Qing Yang saves Chen Yi Fan during a race, where Yi Fan notices that he resembles her former lover, Mei Heng, who passed away. Soon, Qing Yang and his mother suffer some mishaps and fall into debt. Yi Fan helps him out by offering him a job at her company.
When her company is pushed into a corner by its competitors, Liu Qing Yang attempts to save it by seeking guidance from its founder Mei Dao Yuan, who was a genius entrepreneur and Chen Yi Fan's former professor. Mei Dao Yuan teaches Qing Yang how to apply the principles of the Chinese Taichi known as "pushing hands (tui shou)" in the business world."
My top 10 Chinese dramas are: 1. Story of Ming Lan 2. Joy of Life 3. Princess Silver 4. Good Bye My Princess 5. Legend of Fu Yao (just disliked the mystical) 6, The Sword and The Brocade 7. The Other Half of Me and You 8. Story of Yanxi Palace 9. Princess Agents 10. The Rise of Phoenixes (ehhhhh, I'm debating whether I should choose this drama or Weaving a Tale of Love) ______________________________________ My review for the list that you've provided: 1. Nirvana in Fire (2015) - Waiting to watch 2. The Untamed (2019) - Disliked, like a lot [https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?page=4]. 3. Go Ahead (2020) - Waiting to watch 4. Joy of Life (2019) - Loved, minus the damsel in distress princess. 5. Eternal Love (2017) - Dropped, because I am not into mystical dramas. 6. The Story of Ming Lan (2018) - Loved, this was the first drama that I rated a 10 on MDL [see review, on page 1]. 7. You Are My Glory (2021) - Good mainly because the female lead is strong, which is uncommon in Chinese romcoms, and the storyline is realistic [https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?page=2]. 8. Love and Redemption (2020) - Dropped, because I am not into mystical dramas. 9. Hikaru no Go (2020) - Hadn't seen, probably will not watch! 10. Story of Yanxi Palace (2018) - Loved, minus one part... [see review, on page 1].
Additionally, I believe Falling Into Your Smile is overrated. It shouldn't have an overall rating above an 8.0. The drama is basic from the acting to the storyline. The same thing goes for My LIttle Happiness. However, The Princess Wei Young is a really good drama, and it def. deserves a rating over 8.5. The same with The Long Ballad, but the end is horrible, and confusing (referring to the last 10 minutes of the drama). Last but not least, Pushing Hands is an actually really good drama for adults over the age of 25. It's a realistic romance and has a very good storyline.
Thank you for your comment, I love how you put it in to easy to read main points 👌 I really enjoyed both You…
You're welcome!
I am also 30+. I will check out your review for You Are My Glory & My Fated Boy. I also wrote reviews for both of those dramas, including a C-drama titled The Other Half of You and Me that I think you'd enjoy, it actually shines the light on everything that you've written about on this post. https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?sort=helpful
The emperor is one of my favorite characters too, the actor who played him did a fantastic job. I also like the second female lead, the warrior character who appears around episode 30. My least favorite character is the damsel in distress princess (both the character and actress). She tends to play the same types of roles, and I just don't like those kinds of characters. I think the drama would have been better if they allowed the male lead love interest to be a snobby princess, instead of sickly and distressed princess.
I like C-historical/period dramas, and almost always dislike C-romcoms. I am not into most C-romcoms that aired before 2021, because they lack realism within the romance genre. You Are My Glory and My Fated Boy changed my mind about C-romcoms. I think both of those dramas were created for older viewers (28+) who actually want to watch a romance in which we can relate to.
BTW, nicely written article. Thank you for shining the light on toxic scriptwriting in C-romcoms.
Below are some indirect messages shown in many C-romcoms which needs correcting: • Rape is not okay, nor is manipulating a person into doing something for you (e.g. lying and deceiving). • Love is not staying in an abusive relationship, whether it's verbal, mentally or physically abusive. Just because someone repents and changes (whether a year or two, or 10 years later) doesn't mean that you have to accept them back into your life. It's okay to forgive them, say no to being their romantic partner again, and move on! • Love is not a boyfriend/husband telling his wife/girlfriend what to do, when to do it, and how to do it...that's not a romantic relationship between two humans but rather a dog-human relationship. • Most importantly, love at first sight doesn't exist within human romantic relationships. Love is a decision to continuously do what's right, even when the other person isn't. When C-romcoms portray two people "falling in love," at first sight, it's not love but lust or infatuation.
I would like for scriptwriters to differentiate the difference between • Agape love = unconditional love • Philia love = platonic committment within a friendship • Eros love = lust and infatuation • Storge love = familial love
Also, I think before 2019, K-dramas blurred out scenes with blood, and weapons. If I am not mistaken, showing bloody murder scenes without it being blurred out is pretty much a recent change.
"Liu Qing Yang is a rich, spoiled playboy. Chen Yi Fan is the icy, aloof vice president of a real estate corporation. Despite their differences, they both happen to be motorcycle racing enthusiasts. They find their lives intersecting after Liu Qing Yang saves Chen Yi Fan during a race, where Yi Fan notices that he resembles her former lover, Mei Heng, who passed away. Soon, Qing Yang and his mother suffer some mishaps and fall into debt. Yi Fan helps him out by offering him a job at her company.
When her company is pushed into a corner by its competitors, Liu Qing Yang attempts to save it by seeking guidance from its founder Mei Dao Yuan, who was a genius entrepreneur and Chen Yi Fan's former professor. Mei Dao Yuan teaches Qing Yang how to apply the principles of the Chinese Taichi known as "pushing hands (tui shou)" in the business world."
1. Story of Ming Lan
2. Joy of Life
3. Princess Silver
4. Good Bye My Princess
5. Legend of Fu Yao (just disliked the mystical)
6, The Sword and The Brocade
7. The Other Half of Me and You
8. Story of Yanxi Palace
9. Princess Agents
10. The Rise of Phoenixes (ehhhhh, I'm debating whether I should choose this drama or Weaving a Tale of Love)
______________________________________
My review for the list that you've provided:
1. Nirvana in Fire (2015) - Waiting to watch
2. The Untamed (2019) - Disliked, like a lot [https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?page=4].
3. Go Ahead (2020) - Waiting to watch
4. Joy of Life (2019) - Loved, minus the damsel in distress princess.
5. Eternal Love (2017) - Dropped, because I am not into mystical dramas.
6. The Story of Ming Lan (2018) - Loved, this was the first drama that I rated a 10 on MDL [see review, on page 1].
7. You Are My Glory (2021) - Good mainly because the female lead is strong, which is uncommon in Chinese romcoms, and the storyline is realistic [https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?page=2].
8. Love and Redemption (2020) - Dropped, because I am not into mystical dramas.
9. Hikaru no Go (2020) - Hadn't seen, probably will not watch!
10. Story of Yanxi Palace (2018) - Loved, minus one part... [see review, on page 1].
Additionally, I believe Falling Into Your Smile is overrated. It shouldn't have an overall rating above an 8.0. The drama is basic from the acting to the storyline. The same thing goes for My LIttle Happiness. However, The Princess Wei Young is a really good drama, and it def. deserves a rating over 8.5. The same with The Long Ballad, but the end is horrible, and confusing (referring to the last 10 minutes of the drama). Last but not least, Pushing Hands is an actually really good drama for adults over the age of 25. It's a realistic romance and has a very good storyline.
I am also 30+. I will check out your review for You Are My Glory & My Fated Boy. I also wrote reviews for both of those dramas, including a C-drama titled The Other Half of You and Me that I think you'd enjoy, it actually shines the light on everything that you've written about on this post. https://kisskh.at/profile/TalkingWithYou/reviews?sort=helpful
Well written review!
BTW, nicely written article. Thank you for shining the light on toxic scriptwriting in C-romcoms.
Below are some indirect messages shown in many C-romcoms which needs correcting:
• Rape is not okay, nor is manipulating a person into doing something for you (e.g. lying and deceiving).
• Love is not staying in an abusive relationship, whether it's verbal, mentally or physically abusive. Just because someone repents and changes (whether a year or two, or 10 years later) doesn't mean that you have to accept them back into your life. It's okay to forgive them, say no to being their romantic partner again, and move on!
• Love is not a boyfriend/husband telling his wife/girlfriend what to do, when to do it, and how to do it...that's not a romantic relationship between two humans but rather a dog-human relationship.
• Most importantly, love at first sight doesn't exist within human romantic relationships. Love is a decision to continuously do what's right, even when the other person isn't. When C-romcoms portray two people "falling in love," at first sight, it's not love but lust or infatuation.
I would like for scriptwriters to differentiate the difference between
• Agape love = unconditional love
• Philia love = platonic committment within a friendship
• Eros love = lust and infatuation
• Storge love = familial love