faithless510

I haven't met a Xianxia that I've been able to finish until I met Love Between Fairy and Devil. This blew me away completely. I started it on a whim, became immediately addicted, and watched with only breaks to nap for 2 days straight. Sometimes I get bored with a drama and bounce from show to show looking for that hit of sweet sweet dopamine... this show was like being hooked to an IV drip of pure pleasure. I got full-body chills from multiple scenes and experienced complete devastation from others. This is joining my list of all-time favourite shows ever.

At first I really disliked the chef because he reminded me of a couple men from "situationships" I had been in myself. The last few episodes have changed my opinion about him drastically. I'm so glad that he had some personal growth.

I actually didn’t mind Kang Hae Jin from Love in Contract. He started out obsessive but once the FL made herself completely clear about loving and wanting to be with the ML he stepped back and took on the protecting role. He wished the best for her and did things to help without expecting a relationship in return. He’s not a “green flag” SML, but he’s a nuanced character due do his terrible family relationships, high pressure career, expectations forced into him, and general lack of control over the direction of his own life. Consider how damaging his life is and take into account he still manages to be a kind and caring person, although a little misguided at times. Maybe I’m soft for the beaten but not broken characters since I don’t consider him a “red flag” at all. I could see his potential to be “green flag” material after he finds his own FL and continues on his personal growth journey.

Very much so! Especially the "at war" stage where they messed with each others life.

-A bit of romance, but not overt. Mostly longing glances mixed in with high school activities. You knew they were in love but Chinese censorship laws make it so that young relationships can't be expressed.
-No love triangles, just some supporting role classmates with crushes on the main leads. They come and go quickly and don't get overly drug out.
-Happy ending kinda? The last episode is adorable in the extreme, but the last 10 minutes are a bit of a surprise with a fairly open ending.

I was fine throughout that scene, but the scene immediately after where he was following her home made me completely come apart.

I'm half way in and I don't HATE it, but the chemistry is horribly lacking, and I don't find Gun to be attractive enough to warrant all the talk of him being the "hottest guy in school". It's only 4 episodes though, so I'll finish it for sure.

I can't get over that love letter she never got to read. She never got to know just how long he had been watching her while she watched his friend. ahhhhhh my heart hurts again and I watched this movie days ago...

The look on his face when he was watching her eat the pasta dinner and he said he wanted to date her was adorable. I really liked him after that, especially when he kept teasing her about farting along to children's songs.

I had the ending of this movie spoiled by memes in Facebook groups. I really wish I had gone into it with no expectations. Despite the spoilers I found this to be a very enjoyable watch, with a cute story, great acting, and stunning cinematography. I was born in 1985 so this reminded me of those teenage years where friends, crushes, and school were the most complicated things in your life. When emotions felt 100 times more intense and life-ending. The time before the way life changed due to social media and the advent of technology.

The ML is actually 30, but I think he can pull off a good youth drama. Similar to Hwang In Youp (he's 31) in True Beauty, these boys are ageless.

YES. OMG. This breaks my heart.

This story has provided a couple "firsts" for me. The Chinese version (Meteor Garden) was my first ever Asian drama and is what drug me down this rabbit hole. It's been 3 years since I finished that series, and now I'm over 4000 episodes deep into a love affair with Korean and Chinese dramas. F4 Thailand was my first Thai drama and now I feel like I need to have a more thorough look at their drama offerings as well. I've also seen the Korean version but dropped it mid-way through. This version was definitely the most well-told story with the least amount of needless filler. The boys of F4 were all very beautiful in their own ways, both inside and out. Watching their characters develop into multi-faceted adults was a treat.

I wish there was a pill I could take or a machine I could use to wipe my mind clean of this drama and re-watch it like it's the first time. This was an absolute work of art that chewed up my soul and spat it out... and I enjoyed every second of it. Now to start the 3rd re-watch.

Why would I skip scenes!? I'm not saying Second Lead Syndrome is a bad thing, just that I'm in love with the second lead as much as the main lead. Skipping scenes is considered sacrilege to a true drama lover lol

I just turned 37 myself, and I relate to the FL 100%. How she feels about herself and about love had me tearing up because I knew EXACTLY how she felt. I'm definitely not a teenager and don't act like one at all. I've been married, been in a few long term relationships, and experienced all the nuances of love, but I still get the nerves, anxiety, hope, and expectations when I date or flirt with someone new. Then if it flops or the guy is cruel like the chef was I get the bitter sadness and defeat she also experiences. Age has NOTHING to do with how we act in love. Personality and life experiences have a much stronger influence on our behaviour, and someone fun and passionate like the FL may give "teenager" vibes to you, but others might see it as a zest for life and an unfettered way of speaking with those she trusts. If you watch how she acts at work with co-workers and clients where there are expectations of her behaviour you'll notice she's completely professional.

We're only 37, don't try to dig a hole and bury us quite yet. We still have another 50 years to figure things out.

My Second Lead Syndrome is SCREAMING right now.

China has more than 100 regional dialects (7 main ones), that's why so much stuff is dubbed if it's filmed on the mainland. There is even a difference of speech between Shanghai and Beijing. The differences you hear from show to show is because Mandarin has 4 tones, Cantonese has between 6 and 9 (it depends who you ask) and Taiwanese has 7 tones. My Taiwanese friend said that it's similar to listening to people from somewhere like Georgia or Alabama talk to people from England, Scotland, Ireland, and Australia. The language is technically English, but the sounds of the language are VERY different. For instance, Taiwanese Mandarin is the older version of Mandarin not touched by the language reform that took place in China during the 1950s (which is mostly about simplifying the formalities in the speech as well as simplifying the writing of Chinese characters. To date, Taiwanese continue to use the traditional characters, whereas in China, unless you consult very old books or dictionaries, you will only see simplified characters). Also, Taiwanese Mandarin wasn't influenced by the impact of the cultural and political reforms of China during the 60s and 70s, which helped shape the Mainland version of Mandarin to today's form. Today's Mainland Mandarin tends also be a lot more direct (some may say blunt) than the older Mandarin.

So, those other shows you mentioned were all "Chinese" dramas rather than "Taiwanese", which means they could be filmed anywhere in Mainland China, and then dubbed in putonghua, the standard Mandarin dialect. Taiwan doesn't dub their shows into Mainland dialect because their broadcast focus is Taiwan.

Hope this explained what you were looking for!

I'm guilty of avoiding long dramas. I've tried a few and I always stall around the 30-40 episode mark. I just get bored with it around that point and my brain commands that I move on to something new and exciting. I have Arsenal Military Academy sitting there waiting for me to return to it... I'm on episode 36 of 48 and I just can't seem to force myself to go finish it. :(

My biggest hope for this drama is that they don't turn Shin Dae Ryuk into a villain. They're building up a bit of an obsession arc with him it seems, so I really hope that it's resolved without hurting him or making him into a stalker or add some kidnapping plot twist. That would break my heart.