Tanky Toon

The drama opens with a spark that immediately pulls you in—the banter between Li Ni and Cui Lin is sharp, witty, and exhilarating. Their battle of wits sets the tone for a promising start, and I found myself leaning forward, eager to see who would outmaneuver the other. The dynamic between them is one of the strongest aspects of the show. And look, I’ll admit it — I was probably a little biased. I found myself rooting for Li Ni more than I should’ve, even though half the time I wanted to smack Cui Lin for torpedoing his plans. But to be fair, she wasn’t wrong. Their clash stems from different goals, and that tension is what makes their early interactions so compelling.

Unfortunately, about a third of the way in, the momentum falters. Li Ni’s choices start to feel questionable, driven more by emotion than strategy. I get it — he was never the “conquer the world” type and didn’t have that ruthless drive—but when you’ve got an entire faction depending on you, a little more grit would’ve been nice. His lackadaisical approach becomes frustrating. The fatigue set in for me here, as the narrative lost the sharp edge it had in the beginning.

What really pushed my patience, though, was his father, the ultimate poster child for ungrateful dead weight. Li Ni literally risks everything to save this useless man, only for dear old dad to turn around and shower affection on his incompetent, shameless sons instead. That was the moment my eyebrows permanently migrated north.

By the time the drama heavily leaned into its romantic subplot, I was done. The lovey-dovey couple moments were so cloying they felt like toothaches, and I couldn’t push through the cringe. Despite a strong start and flashes of brilliance in the character dynamics, Wonderland of Love ultimately lost me before the finish line.