Background Show
Blandest couple award goes to the main characters, Wei Wei and Xiao Nai! This was basically the POV and world of the benefits of being pretty - the two main characters were beautiful, smart, and pretty much flawless in every way. The main girl is basically a Mary Sue (and same goes for the main guy too tbh).My other problems with this show:
- Internal monologues, where we could hear all their thoughts but their real conversation is only like 2 sentences between each other
- No real conflict to speak of, so if you want a background show that doesn't require much thought, this show would be perfect for you
- Wei Wei has no personality, and is basically only there as Xiao Nai's pretty sidekick girlfriend, and Xiao Nai is constantly calling after her like a dog (this sounds terrible, but the way he always tells her to 'come here' or do this, and not making it as a request really reminds me of someone calling for their dog lol)
- The acting for the two main leads were wooden and unnatural, I really couldn't get into it lol
I almost dropped this show but I really have an inability to drop shows unless they're absolutely terrible so I stuck with this until the end. Maybe if I was 10 years younger, I would have enjoyed this more.
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Low Emotional Payoff
This show was honestly one of the most anxiety-inducing and frustrating things to watch for me. While I enjoyed Chu Qiao's general badassery, the storyline was all over the place and the rage I felt towards the main couple (CQ & YWY) was almost unbearable.The main couple's chemistry was lacklustre and at times, very corny. To add to that, YWY always felt like he was morally superior to everyone else and power imbalance between YWY and CQ always felt ... not right to me, and not once did I think they were on equal footing. YWY always seemed intent on lowering and reminding CQ of her past position, namely NOT EVEN CALLING HER BY HER REAL NAME, and instead constantly insisting on calling her by the name he gave HER, while she was still a slave under him - as if reminding us that she was still his possession.
I'll be honest, the main thing that kept me watching was Yan Xun, whose whole character arc I was compelled to (and also, FYI, excellent acting by Shawn Dou) and who my heart definitely bled for. Unfortunately, as is common, they tried to push YX to be the main antagonist by throwing in YWY with his moral high ground, and ignored everything that YX went through. I also felt CQ had more chemistry with YX than YWY which is a damn shame, since we all know what happens to second male leads.
By the end of this cliffhanger drama, I just felt emotionally empty and vaguely insulted that this was the ending that I was left with after watching this many episodes. Only YX left an emotional impact on me, and this is definitely not one of the dramas I would rewatch - but hey, at least the OST was good!
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Great Chemistry, Enjoyable Plot
I've only watched two other e-sports dramas - one was where the FL didn't even game, was whiny, and stalked the ML; the other was one where the FL was portrayed as this godlike, beautiful, gaming machine who nobody could defeat.This drama definitely surprised me, and I'm definitely glad I took a chance on it. The plotline was kind of stereotypical, but the FL was competent and smart, and the ML was charming and not the usual tsundere types you usually see. Both of them had great chemistry together.
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Time Travel Romcom
Lovely Runner is a perfect mix of time travel, romcom, and angst. Every episode will have you rooting for the two main leads, and BWS and KHY will have you crying, smiling and laughing along with them. The chemistry was off the charts, and the OST was amazing and something I can imagine myself listening to over and over again outside of the drama.I do have to note though - this is time travel so there has to be a certain suspension of belief. While not everything made 100% logical sense, I feel like the writers have done a great job in executing the storyline to bring everything together. The back and forth between the different timelines felt seamless and natural, and the multiple flashbacks throughout the show never felt unnecessary.
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As for the romance, while it's clear it isn't the focus, both the FL and ML have a lot of sweet interactions interactions throughout the whole drama. The FL and ML clearly develop a very close bond and their relationship brings a lot of surprisingly hilarious scenes with lots of banter. A+ for chemistry and a great slow burn (which is, unfortunately, still burning by the end of this drama).
It's obvious this is just a part 1 and a prelude of what's to come as there's still many things that are left unresolved. However, I still this is a great drama as a standalone by itself.
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Underrated
This one flew under a lot of people's radars which is such a shame because it's honestly such a GOOD drama, whether it be the acting, plot, or production.FL and ML stand on equal ground and they have a very sweet and loving relationship with little to no misunderstandings. They get together fairly early on so the later half of the drama is more plot/political drama focused. The side characters all had their own unique characters and personalities, and I loved watching their personal growth throughout the series (and special shoutout to the FL's dad who made me tear up several times even though I was cursing him out in the beginning).
Would definitely recommend watching, and especially a good starter historical drama for those who are new to it.
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Unexpected Twists
I've seen the time loop trope done so many times that I wasn't really sure what to expect coming into this ... but wow, the story was unexpectedly thrilling, had a great storyline, and was filled with interesting characters that you could relate to and/or empathize with.Every episode I felt contributed to the overall story, and there wasn't any moment where it felt like they were filler scenes. Production, acting, story - all were high quality, and you could tell they really put a lot of thought into the making of this drama. I've watched so many cdramas with at least double the length of this, but this really did feel like the perfect length to me, because nothing dragged on - I personally wouldn't have even minded if it was extended to an episode or two more, but this felt like the perfect ending to a great drama.
Highly recommend giving this a watch!
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Decent Storyline, Interesting Premise
The storyline kind of dragged on for me near the end and I definitely wasn't as invested as in the beginning (it might have to do with how some the main antagonist didn't make me feel much ....) but overall, great relationship building between the side characters and FL/ML. If you're looking for a romance drama, this ain't it since it's pretty much 90% plot-driven.What I found hilarious about this was how the FL/ML kept roleplaying as the attacker/murdered victim in an attempt to figure out how they died. Lol.
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Great Acting, Decent Story
Okay, I'm not going to lie - I mainly watched this because of the hype, and the first maybe 14 episodes or so, I was bored to tears and wondering when something, ANYTHING, was going to happen and when I would stop finding the main character horrifically annoying.But it did get better! Much better, and actually became one of my favourite dramas. There were definite scenes that I would rewatch because I enjoyed them so much, and the chemistry between the two main leads was phenomenal, in addition to just great acting from the both of them - special shoutout to Ethan Juan as Wu Ji, who threw his soul and acted his heart out as his character. I truly do think his acting was what made me fall in love with his character (initially, I even had trouble distinguishing between him and Jing Chen).
One major peeve of mine, though, was the side couple who I really could not stand. The circumstances of how they got together was frankly insulting, and dubious. I really felt as if Zhuzhu's whole character was basically to be in love with Zhan Bei Ye, and that was it - their lesson as a couple was that if as long as you persist, if you really love that person and sacrifice an important part of yourself, you'll eventually get the guy and fall in love! Even if said guy ignored your existence for many, many, many, many years and basically tells you off every time. But remember, none of that matters because eventually the two of you will fall in love because he will realize you are willing to sacrifice your whole life for him!
Anyway, side couple aside, the plot was decent and while nothing to write home about, again, was greatly acted and added a lot to my enjoyment while watching this show. Would I watch again? Maybe! Definitely one of the more enjoyable dramas I've watched so far and fantastic music to go along with it.
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My main issue with the show is that the FL is basically a Mary Sue. This girl is perfect, can't do no wrong, no flaws, etc etc. After 30 eps (and a lot of fast forwarding), I was done with her lol.
The acting and storyline was decent, nothing t write home about. I didn't feel chemistry between her and any of the side characters, but ML and FL were okay.
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Had potential.. if only the storyline wasn't so terrible
I'm trying (read: struggling) to continue watching this but all I'm thinking about is how Crystal and Zheng Ye Cheng's chemistry is completed wasted on this drama lol. I'm literally so disappointed because the two of them definitely deserve a better script/story than ... whatever this is, because their chemistry is A+.I actually liked the FL lead at first, but then she got super annoying when she devolved into a clingy, lovesick puppy. I have no problems with a straight-forward FL who goes after what she wants (and in fact, this is what made it refreshing when I watched the beginning eps) but FL's whole personality is chasing after the ML and being in love with him. One of the things that also really grated me was the progression of their relationship. There was, what felt like, absolutely no buildup to their relationship, and I don't know if it's because they cut out a lot of scenes (seeing as this is only 22 eps), but their relationship went from 0 to 100 real quick. It's like one day the ML is telling her to bugger off and the next they're in love with each other and spilling their traumatic past to each other. Like... what LOL.
I don't know. Maybe I'm just not the target demographic? I wouldn't completely dismiss this drama if you're looking for a fun, romantic drama to watch (the two leads have a ton of great romantic scenes with each other) but not if you're looking for something with more substance.
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Visually stunning with fantastic supporting cast
When I first started watching this drama, I honestly thought a lot of it was a bit corny. It seemed to be a typical xianxia setting and plot, and whatever humour they had in it just seemed forced. However, as time went on and the episodes progressed, I realized how very wrong my first impressions were.This drama had so much heart - it wasn't so much that the plot was groundbreaking, but that every scene was crafted with care, and where every character had their own complex personality that made everything emotionally moving. It wasn't just about romantic love, but also about familial love and the theme of found family.
The chemistry between everyone was great, but special shoutout to the leads who played the intricacies of a couple so well. Sometimes it's the small things that make a drama, and the casual intimacies between the two of them as well as the persevering openness and trust between them, is what makes this a standout amongst the many xianxias that thrive on misunderstandings and miscommunication.
A big kudos to the whole cast and production because this was one of the most visually beautiful xianxia I have ever watched, from the costumes (well, okay, maybe not the Lanling sect), to the makeup, to the sets, to the cgi. The opening OST with the voiceovers was also maybe one of my favourite openings in any drama ever.
This truly has become one of my top xianxia. If you're a fan of the genre, this is, in my opinion, a must watch.
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Honestly... disappointing. I loved the first part so much that the disappointment with the second part just felt that much greater. A lot of scenes no longer seemed even close to being realistic, and the FL's character seemed to have become stagnated and overly saintly. The antagonists also seemed like cartoon versions of themselves with how ridiculous the plot was.The one thing that really stayed consistent was the chemistry between the two leads. However, this drama is NOT a romance-based drama, so I wouldn't recommend watching if that's what you're looking for. The romance is very much very, very, very slow burn and while I was fine with it in the first part because the plot just felt so much more engaging, I was less fine with it in the second part.
Overall, I think this was a decent watch as a whole but as this was unfortunately separated into two parts, this rating is for the latter part.
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Transmigration/Second Chance
FL gets a second chance at life! And also takes revenge on those that harmed her before.The definite standout for this drama was the actress for Soo Min. She was the perfect, most detestable villain, and honestly made Yoo Ra (the antagonist girlfriend that came in later episodes) seem like a normal person.
There were a couple of infuriating episodes (I'm looking at you, episodes 12 and 13) and also my gripe on how the ML seemed to have no personality outside of the FL, but overall, this was a good transmigration drama with a satisfying happy ending.
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