Great show portraying realistic approach to forming romantic relationships
Acting appeared natural and believable. Wonderful messaging on how to realistically form romantic relationships that are genuine and lasting. Modeled sharing of responsibilities for the health of the relationships. Portrayal of parents seemed genuine; I enjoyed that the MCs and supporting couples worked out how to communicate and increase the depth of the relationships and realistically engage with their respective parents.Was this review helpful to you?
This would be a 10 Manhua except ....
NO MEANS NO! HORRIBLE MIXED MESSAGES to young women about sexual consent. Cringey to watch the 2 scenes where the FMC pushes back during a forced kiss then relents/succumbs. The series would have been a 10/acceptable except for this deleterious message.NO MEANS NO! The "No means no" movement for women refers to the concept that a woman's verbal or nonverbal refusal to engage in sexual activity should be respected and that any further advances are considered sexual assault. It's a foundational principle in discussions about sexual consent and violence prevention, emphasizing that consent must be freely given and can be withdrawn at any time.
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Acting appears to be well done. Story or narrative disappointing
This series’ story started out in an interesting direction then collapsed. Trust is fragile. The series portrays the negative effects of dishonest communication and of toxic and exploitive parenting on adult children.
The MCs and a supporting character all came from dysfunctional families where parenting was toxic and in the case of one female character exploitative. The FMC and the MMC naively avoid honest communication: both characters made faulty assumptions leading to misunderstandings which created conflict in their relationship. The MMC was portrayed as an unsighted emotionally distant and cautious person. The FMC was portrayed as a petulant immature young woman who was inexperienced in dealing with the MMC. The acting appeared natural. The story was disappointing. It glossed over the exploitation of the mother of the supporting female character; she was given an invitation to her daughter’s wedding. Also ignored and not addressed was the explosive, manipulative and controlling behavior of the FMCs mother. She hid her husband’s serious condition from his daughter and more. Finally the narrative floundered in the last few episodes and the events were predictably trite and both MCs continue to behave immaturely even after they marry especially the FMC. Turning to alcohol to assuage pain or to openly reveal truth is an overused trope - isn’t there another way to express disappointment/sadness and an unwillingness to speak honestly about feelings?
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Authentic acting and themes
The acting was outstanding. The actors genuinely inhabited their characters and appeared to act so naturally and authenticly. Movements, gestures, posture, reactions all believable and appeared real.The story contained excellent messages portraying young adults learning to be honest in their communications, to trust each other and also to squarely own up to their mistakes. I was pleased that the story didn’t neglect the issue of poor and toxic parenting and the deleterious effects it had on these young adult characters.
I was pleased that the issue of toxic parenting were depicted honestly and that the mother of the MMC was confronted by her son and made to hear her son’s honest thoughts about how he was raised. This issue is often featured in these dramas but it is not usually dealt with honestly. Often unhealthy overbearing parents aren’t portrayed as taking responsibility for their behavior.
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