This review may contain spoilers
An Interesting Mini-Drama.
SYNOPSIS: Back to Seventeen is a chinese mini-drama released in 2023 that explores themes of youth, love, and fantasy. The story follows Zhong Xiaoxiao, a 27-year-old woman living a normal life until she attends a reunion with her former school classmates. There, she tries to give a video recorded on her camcorder to her old crush, Xu Yang. However, upon discovering that Xu Yang is dating Meng Ran, she decides to leave. Still, when she realizes her camcorder was mistakenly placed on the gift table for the former class president’s birthday, she discreetly tries to retrieve it. While attempting to do so, she finds herself in an unexpected situation with her old classmates. In that moment, she mysteriously travels back to when she was 17 years old. From there, she begins to relive her teenage years, but in an intriguing twist, time only seems to stabilize when she’s near Xu Yang. In this new scenario, she ends up helping Xu Yang, and the two gradually grow closer.
POSITIVE POINTS:
1. Time Travel Theme: I must admit, I love dramas with time-related themes. I’m completely fascinated by stories involving time travel or time loops. After all, who hasn’t wished to go back in time, even just for a moment, to make different choices or relive those moments that touched our soul? This drama touched me for exactly that reason: it doesn’t portray time travel as a grand or scientific phenomenon, but rather as something personal, sensitive, and emotionally deep. Xiao Xiao doesn’t go back in time with the goal of winning over her high school crush, in fact, she never expected or asked for it. Her time travel happens unexpectedly, and what’s most beautiful is that by returning to her teenage years, she ends up helping Xu Yang with his family issues. From that connection, they build a real friendship, which gradually blossoms into love, making the premise engaging and heartfelt.
2. Character Interaction: The development of the interaction between the main characters was well-executed and convincing. From the beginning, the relationship between Xiao Xiao and Xu Yang was marked by subtle nuances due to their personality differences. However, both the acting and the script played a fundamental role in creating a natural chemistry between the two, allowing their bond to evolve from classmates to genuine friends, and eventually to love. Moreover, the interactions with the supporting characters were also satisfying, especially considering the short runtime and limited number of episodes.
3. Episode Dynamics: Many people assume that because it’s a minidrama, it’s easy to binge simply due to the low number of episodes and their short duration. But in my opinion, what truly allows a drama to flow well is not just the format, but the dynamic pacing and the storyline itself. In the case of Back to Seventeen, the drama stands out by maintaining an engaging rhythm between episodes, paired with a captivating theme, which, in my view, makes it easy and enjoyable to follow.
THINGS I WOULD ADJUST:
1. Romance Development: Although this isn’t a negative point, I believe the romance between the main characters could have been explored further after Xiao Xiao returned to her original timeline. The final reunion between her and Xu Yang is sweet, but I felt there was a lack of deeper development in that phase of their relationship. The romantic bond was built gradually and beautifully during the time travel arc, and it would have been nice to see how that connection evolved in the present day.
2. Format Structure: If I were part of the production team, I would’ve definitely turned this minidrama into a full-length drama with about 15 to 20 episodes. And I don’t say this because I disliked the minidrama format — quite the opposite! I actually loved how well-organized everything was, especially considering each episode is about 3 minutes long. But it was precisely because I enjoyed it so much that I found myself wishing there were more episodes, haha. With more time, the story could’ve further explored certain events, deepened both the internal and external conflicts of the characters, and better developed the impact of the time travel and the return to the present. All without losing the engaging rhythm the series already delivered so well.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
Back to Seventeen positively surprised me. For a drama with such short episodes, I feel it did a great job developing its premise. The storyline is captivating, and even though it doesn’t offer any scientific explanation for the time travel (how or why it happens), it’s clear that the story aims for a more nostalgic, emotional, and sensitive approach. It’s a sweet and light minidrama, with charming performances and convincing development. My rating is 8.5/10.
POSITIVE POINTS:
1. Time Travel Theme: I must admit, I love dramas with time-related themes. I’m completely fascinated by stories involving time travel or time loops. After all, who hasn’t wished to go back in time, even just for a moment, to make different choices or relive those moments that touched our soul? This drama touched me for exactly that reason: it doesn’t portray time travel as a grand or scientific phenomenon, but rather as something personal, sensitive, and emotionally deep. Xiao Xiao doesn’t go back in time with the goal of winning over her high school crush, in fact, she never expected or asked for it. Her time travel happens unexpectedly, and what’s most beautiful is that by returning to her teenage years, she ends up helping Xu Yang with his family issues. From that connection, they build a real friendship, which gradually blossoms into love, making the premise engaging and heartfelt.
2. Character Interaction: The development of the interaction between the main characters was well-executed and convincing. From the beginning, the relationship between Xiao Xiao and Xu Yang was marked by subtle nuances due to their personality differences. However, both the acting and the script played a fundamental role in creating a natural chemistry between the two, allowing their bond to evolve from classmates to genuine friends, and eventually to love. Moreover, the interactions with the supporting characters were also satisfying, especially considering the short runtime and limited number of episodes.
3. Episode Dynamics: Many people assume that because it’s a minidrama, it’s easy to binge simply due to the low number of episodes and their short duration. But in my opinion, what truly allows a drama to flow well is not just the format, but the dynamic pacing and the storyline itself. In the case of Back to Seventeen, the drama stands out by maintaining an engaging rhythm between episodes, paired with a captivating theme, which, in my view, makes it easy and enjoyable to follow.
THINGS I WOULD ADJUST:
1. Romance Development: Although this isn’t a negative point, I believe the romance between the main characters could have been explored further after Xiao Xiao returned to her original timeline. The final reunion between her and Xu Yang is sweet, but I felt there was a lack of deeper development in that phase of their relationship. The romantic bond was built gradually and beautifully during the time travel arc, and it would have been nice to see how that connection evolved in the present day.
2. Format Structure: If I were part of the production team, I would’ve definitely turned this minidrama into a full-length drama with about 15 to 20 episodes. And I don’t say this because I disliked the minidrama format — quite the opposite! I actually loved how well-organized everything was, especially considering each episode is about 3 minutes long. But it was precisely because I enjoyed it so much that I found myself wishing there were more episodes, haha. With more time, the story could’ve further explored certain events, deepened both the internal and external conflicts of the characters, and better developed the impact of the time travel and the return to the present. All without losing the engaging rhythm the series already delivered so well.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
Back to Seventeen positively surprised me. For a drama with such short episodes, I feel it did a great job developing its premise. The storyline is captivating, and even though it doesn’t offer any scientific explanation for the time travel (how or why it happens), it’s clear that the story aims for a more nostalgic, emotional, and sensitive approach. It’s a sweet and light minidrama, with charming performances and convincing development. My rating is 8.5/10.
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