the last scene with them on the ice + sun above them + the relationship timer going to 0 as you hear the sound of ice cracking is insane actually like cinematography is giving
their early dating era is so fun and chaotic that it's breaking my heart at what's to come 😭😭 i can't explain it but the vibes feels warm and fresh and the back and forth between the past and present with the other couple is interesting too
on a completely unrelated but somewhat similar note
tang qi falling in love with cheng cheng's filters just reminds me of ye tan and you qin's shards 😭😭😭😭 as i've written "loving all three meant loving all the flaws of him"
when you have little to no expectations for a drama, it tends to make your viewing experience much more enjoyable as it was definitely the case for me. even with the plot summary, i didn't care for it. all i knew was i was going to watch it because of our leads. (real ones will remember me poking fun at the potential censorship in my early comments lol)
it was deeply profound and thoughtful in its messages and social commentary in regards to beauty/appearances; how it can influence our own image of ourselves and others, even subtly. for su cheng cheng who has grown up thinking she was the "lesser" sister; the "less pretty" sister, the girl who's not feminine enough, does sports and is physically strong, of course wouldn't those insecurities build up over time? while i think as a majority of us viewers are baffled at the fact li lan di is being called "simply average", it's important to note that beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. what matters is how the person views themselves but also when strangers have their own prejudices against you, what does it mean when even family members are telling you those things? it would absolutely feed into your already skewed perception of appearance. that's what made her realistic, not just as a character but as a human.
i think above all, that's what the drama really excelled at portraying. these characters don't feel one dimensional. they're flawed and complex with real human emotions. there were many instances where we questioned their actions but perhaps what’s interesting is that us viewers also had a preconceived notion about them as well. tang qi was presented to us to be this superficial jerk who only cared about appearance and the manner in which he chased those other filter versions of her was borderline obsessive and overbearing. it wasn’t a black or white situation where one party was more at fault, they both had their share. was it a great idea to kill off those filters right in front of him especially seeing how distress he was combined with the gaslighting and lies? no but when you see this guy who just can’t let go of these people who he seems to be unnecessarily (superficially) attached to, it’s not that crazy to in her point of view. extreme yes but i understood. sometimes things can spiral beyond your control. even from his own perspective, he was aware that made him a jerk. of course understanding doesn’t mean condoning.
the romance was of a slow burn nature which was much appreciated in terms of the story. although the idea of the male lead falling in love fast with everyone he meets is not exactly appealing, at the same time i also find the concept of recognising the soul of the person you like even in different forms extremely romantic and profound. su miao’s bravery, fang jin’s brain, quan sheng tang’s fitness, all those traits, they were in fact su cheng cheng herself. just like how he once thought she was a bully and she thought him of just the guy she had a crush back in high school, our misunderstandings slowly began to resolve just as theirs did and it was nothing short of satisfying. no matter how hurt he was from the initial lies, his understanding and love outweighed it. that she wasn’t deliberately trying to hurt him and the sense of relief that underneath they were all the same person he fell for; not for her appearance but because she was kind, cheerful, optimistic and hardworking. no matter who she changed into, her heart remained the same. their apology to each other was genuine. they recognised their mistakes and owned up to it. it was a long journey to their dating era but the (disgustingly cute) payoff was worth it.
it was wonderfully written, not only being able to convey the different messages of beauty but also managing to do so while blending a mix of genres effortlessly. the comedy was an unexpected treat as i initially thought this was more of a serious drama but it did it so well that it had me genuinely laughing out loud. the alpaca remains 2025’s scene stealer that’s for sure. it was good at subverting certain tropes as well as avoiding them - no annoying secondary characters, love triangles or unnecessary conflicts, secondary couple which you could actually root for rather than be a nuisance, with a supportive and loving group family and friends that surrounded our leads.
on the surface it may be another drama critiquing beauty standards but it also enforces that makeup and filters is not inherently bad. whether you use it for self confidence, to attract someone you like or to intimidate your enemies (as so eloquently portrayed through the animals shown in tang qi’s speech), it can be beneficial as long as one recognises the limits. thank you filter for teaching us that love transcends appearances and the importance of self acceptance just as the characters learnt to do so, being able to witness their growth was truly heartwarming. i’m really going to miss my dose of happiness. definitely a gem amidst thousands of dramas.
wow i’m very surprised that it wasn’t the usual censorship of “everything that happened was part of a novel” like yes you can argue that red text implies it but since it was at the last second you could pretty much ignore it 🙂↔️
girly kissed her man, pushed him off, ran to stop a robbery, pulled hella moves on the thief and came back in 2.5 seconds to get more smooches while snow falls down
luo ren mu dai my precious babies
their early dating era is so fun and chaotic that it's breaking my heart at what's to come 😭😭 i can't explain it but the vibes feels warm and fresh and the back and forth between the past and present with the other couple is interesting too
tang qi falling in love with cheng cheng's filters just reminds me of ye tan and you qin's shards 😭😭😭😭 as i've written "loving all three meant loving all the flaws of him"
my beloved starry love you'll always be missed
it was deeply profound and thoughtful in its messages and social commentary in regards to beauty/appearances; how it can influence our own image of ourselves and others, even subtly. for su cheng cheng who has grown up thinking she was the "lesser" sister; the "less pretty" sister, the girl who's not feminine enough, does sports and is physically strong, of course wouldn't those insecurities build up over time? while i think as a majority of us viewers are baffled at the fact li lan di is being called "simply average", it's important to note that beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. what matters is how the person views themselves but also when strangers have their own prejudices against you, what does it mean when even family members are telling you those things? it would absolutely feed into your already skewed perception of appearance. that's what made her realistic, not just as a character but as a human.
i think above all, that's what the drama really excelled at portraying. these characters don't feel one dimensional. they're flawed and complex with real human emotions. there were many instances where we questioned their actions but perhaps what’s interesting is that us viewers also had a preconceived notion about them as well. tang qi was presented to us to be this superficial jerk who only cared about appearance and the manner in which he chased those other filter versions of her was borderline obsessive and overbearing. it wasn’t a black or white situation where one party was more at fault, they both had their share. was it a great idea to kill off those filters right in front of him especially seeing how distress he was combined with the gaslighting and lies? no but when you see this guy who just can’t let go of these people who he seems to be unnecessarily (superficially) attached to, it’s not that crazy to in her point of view. extreme yes but i understood. sometimes things can spiral beyond your control. even from his own perspective, he was aware that made him a jerk. of course understanding doesn’t mean condoning.
the romance was of a slow burn nature which was much appreciated in terms of the story. although the idea of the male lead falling in love fast with everyone he meets is not exactly appealing, at the same time i also find the concept of recognising the soul of the person you like even in different forms extremely romantic and profound. su miao’s bravery, fang jin’s brain, quan sheng tang’s fitness, all those traits, they were in fact su cheng cheng herself. just like how he once thought she was a bully and she thought him of just the guy she had a crush back in high school, our misunderstandings slowly began to resolve just as theirs did and it was nothing short of satisfying. no matter how hurt he was from the initial lies, his understanding and love outweighed it. that she wasn’t deliberately trying to hurt him and the sense of relief that underneath they were all the same person he fell for; not for her appearance but because she was kind, cheerful, optimistic and hardworking. no matter who she changed into, her heart remained the same. their apology to each other was genuine. they recognised their mistakes and owned up to it. it was a long journey to their dating era but the (disgustingly cute) payoff was worth it.
it was wonderfully written, not only being able to convey the different messages of beauty but also managing to do so while blending a mix of genres effortlessly. the comedy was an unexpected treat as i initially thought this was more of a serious drama but it did it so well that it had me genuinely laughing out loud. the alpaca remains 2025’s scene stealer that’s for sure. it was good at subverting certain tropes as well as avoiding them - no annoying secondary characters, love triangles or unnecessary conflicts, secondary couple which you could actually root for rather than be a nuisance, with a supportive and loving group family and friends that surrounded our leads.
on the surface it may be another drama critiquing beauty standards but it also enforces that makeup and filters is not inherently bad. whether you use it for self confidence, to attract someone you like or to intimidate your enemies (as so eloquently portrayed through the animals shown in tang qi’s speech), it can be beneficial as long as one recognises the limits. thank you filter for teaching us that love transcends appearances and the importance of self acceptance just as the characters learnt to do so, being able to witness their growth was truly heartwarming. i’m really going to miss my dose of happiness. definitely a gem amidst thousands of dramas.
we love a multitasking queen