36
148
6
1
1
6
1
4
3
2
6
1
1
1
1
3
5
6
Mature JieJie/DiDi romance with Excellent leads acting and chemistry.
Subjective Gut Rating: 8.25
Another pleasant surprise I found in “Sniper Butterfly”. I usually avoid JieJie/DiDi romance but due to liking the leads, Michelin Chen and Daniel Zhou, I decided to give this a shot for my challenge. Surprisingly, the big age gap did not bother me as much. I think this is due to the fact that ML, Li Wu, is such a mature character. Compared to the more cutesy rom-com drama such as “My Fated Boy”, this romance is more challenging, slow-burn and mature. This is not to say “My Fated Boy” is a bad drama as I liked it fine. They gave very different vibes and I’m glad “Sniper Butterfly” offers a different type of JieJie/DiDi romance.
My main criticism of this drama is not the plot, but the execution and the time spent during the high school days. I understand the need to have shown us a strong foundation of their beginning, so that we can believe in the loyalty and undying love Li Wu has for Cen Jin. However, as the drama switches back and forth between the present and past timelines, viewers already have a pretty good idea of what happened in the past due to what we’ve seen in the present. Because of this, I feel impatient when the past is still slowly revealed. I want to know what is happening to our leads in the present after they reconnected and reconciled. “Sniper Butterfly" might benefit from cutting a couple episodes to make the pacing and the plot a little tighter.
I’ve also seen other criticisms of how Li Wu behaved in the first few episodes and many viewers dropped the drama because of that. It actually didn’t bother me much. Given the history of the leads, I could understand why Li Wu behaved a certain way. He actually turned around his ways pretty quickly and I’m glad the drama didn’t drag on his ‘meanness’.
On the other hand, I really like the acting of the leads, especially young Daniel Zhou. I started liking him in “A Moment but Forever” even though he only had a supporting role. He was great in “Always Home” but here in this drama, he was excellent. One of the reasons why I like this drama so much is because of Daniel, and the character development of Li Mu. From being a shy, timid yet stubborn 19 year-old, to a gradually maturing, passion-finding college student, to a confident professional yet still vulnerable adult… Daniel did a fabulous job. It’s hard to outshine a veteran such as Michelle Chen. I recently watched Michelle in “Dear Enemy”. Though I like her, I don't like her character. But here in “Sniper Butterfly”, I enjoy her acting and her character, Cen Jin. Cen Jin is independent, feisty, protective yet smart and professional. Daniel and Michelle have great chemistry as siblings, family and lovers. Their kisses definitely do not disappoint and I’m so glad especially due to their real-life 19-year old age gap.
The secondary romance is cute too. And they definitely show us how opposites attract. But I felt that their romance abruptly stopped once they got together. There’s another pair in the drama, but they also felt like an afterthought. They’re married, but we skipped the courtship and everything in between. What exactly happened? Is it really necessary to show us this young couple?
There’s some business plot in the drama, though not overwhelming. In the end, “Sniper Butterfly” is a romance drama and not a business or business romance drama. The business plot features AI and Advertising, but luckily it doesn’t bombard you with “China is the best” propaganda.
“Sniper Butterfly” is a romance drama at heart. If you enjoy JieJie/DiDi aka Older Woman/Younger Man romance, you might enjoy this. The romance is slow burn and not in a romantic-comedy way. Witnessing the character development of Li Wu and Daniel Zhou’s acting are highlights for me. I wish they didn't dub Michelle Chen due to her Taiwanese accent, but at least all other actors seem to be using their own voices. In the end, I’m really glad I gave this drama a chance.
Completed: 2/3/2026 Review #664
P.s. Drama #3 - Self-Imposed Dropped List Challenge from @Anhua’s dropped list.
Another pleasant surprise I found in “Sniper Butterfly”. I usually avoid JieJie/DiDi romance but due to liking the leads, Michelin Chen and Daniel Zhou, I decided to give this a shot for my challenge. Surprisingly, the big age gap did not bother me as much. I think this is due to the fact that ML, Li Wu, is such a mature character. Compared to the more cutesy rom-com drama such as “My Fated Boy”, this romance is more challenging, slow-burn and mature. This is not to say “My Fated Boy” is a bad drama as I liked it fine. They gave very different vibes and I’m glad “Sniper Butterfly” offers a different type of JieJie/DiDi romance.
My main criticism of this drama is not the plot, but the execution and the time spent during the high school days. I understand the need to have shown us a strong foundation of their beginning, so that we can believe in the loyalty and undying love Li Wu has for Cen Jin. However, as the drama switches back and forth between the present and past timelines, viewers already have a pretty good idea of what happened in the past due to what we’ve seen in the present. Because of this, I feel impatient when the past is still slowly revealed. I want to know what is happening to our leads in the present after they reconnected and reconciled. “Sniper Butterfly" might benefit from cutting a couple episodes to make the pacing and the plot a little tighter.
I’ve also seen other criticisms of how Li Wu behaved in the first few episodes and many viewers dropped the drama because of that. It actually didn’t bother me much. Given the history of the leads, I could understand why Li Wu behaved a certain way. He actually turned around his ways pretty quickly and I’m glad the drama didn’t drag on his ‘meanness’.
On the other hand, I really like the acting of the leads, especially young Daniel Zhou. I started liking him in “A Moment but Forever” even though he only had a supporting role. He was great in “Always Home” but here in this drama, he was excellent. One of the reasons why I like this drama so much is because of Daniel, and the character development of Li Mu. From being a shy, timid yet stubborn 19 year-old, to a gradually maturing, passion-finding college student, to a confident professional yet still vulnerable adult… Daniel did a fabulous job. It’s hard to outshine a veteran such as Michelle Chen. I recently watched Michelle in “Dear Enemy”. Though I like her, I don't like her character. But here in “Sniper Butterfly”, I enjoy her acting and her character, Cen Jin. Cen Jin is independent, feisty, protective yet smart and professional. Daniel and Michelle have great chemistry as siblings, family and lovers. Their kisses definitely do not disappoint and I’m so glad especially due to their real-life 19-year old age gap.
The secondary romance is cute too. And they definitely show us how opposites attract. But I felt that their romance abruptly stopped once they got together. There’s another pair in the drama, but they also felt like an afterthought. They’re married, but we skipped the courtship and everything in between. What exactly happened? Is it really necessary to show us this young couple?
There’s some business plot in the drama, though not overwhelming. In the end, “Sniper Butterfly” is a romance drama and not a business or business romance drama. The business plot features AI and Advertising, but luckily it doesn’t bombard you with “China is the best” propaganda.
“Sniper Butterfly” is a romance drama at heart. If you enjoy JieJie/DiDi aka Older Woman/Younger Man romance, you might enjoy this. The romance is slow burn and not in a romantic-comedy way. Witnessing the character development of Li Wu and Daniel Zhou’s acting are highlights for me. I wish they didn't dub Michelle Chen due to her Taiwanese accent, but at least all other actors seem to be using their own voices. In the end, I’m really glad I gave this drama a chance.
Completed: 2/3/2026 Review #664
P.s. Drama #3 - Self-Imposed Dropped List Challenge from @Anhua’s dropped list.
Was this review helpful to you?
