Reviews

It should have been a movie instead of a drama

This drama would’ve worked better as a movie! Not saying it’s bad, but it’s just one flat storyline with zero plot twists. Depressed PIO from start to finish, then sad JeongYo from mid to end 😩. Basic storyline, no thrills, and the chemistry is basically nonexistent. Fans only gag over it ‘cause it’s their fave actor, and the querrbaiting while the director keeps calling it a love story just to keep the hype alive 🙄. I got bored halfway, nothing major happened. Just another overhyped drama, period!!

Why was JunYoung moving like a grandpa with back pain toward the end? JaeIn’s character was pointless, and clinging to a depressed guy was just irritating. The acting is solid, but honestly this is one of the most overhyped dramas of 2026!

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One of the Best and Most Iconic Thai Dramas

Although many dramas that are arguably better in many aspects have come out after Bad Buddy, this series still stands as one of the best and most iconic Thai dramas. This was the first Thai drama I watched during that era in which I really felt a strong chemistry between the leads. Ohm and Nanon absolutely killed it. Their acting was spectacular, especially Nanons. Every scene felt so natural and realistic with him. The plot was super fun and their rivalry never got boring. They seamlessly transitioned into their dating era, without a complete personality/relationship dynamic change, which is the #1 thing that ruins many enemies to lovers stories for me. I loved the side couple, TOTALLY NOT BIASED HERE but MilkLove were EVERYTHING to me as InkPa. They were just so cute and I loved Ink's character specifically and her friendship with both Pat and Pran. I wish they did more with InkPa though. I felt like their story needed more development and I wish we could've seen more of them.

I also really appreciated how they addressed certain things like calling one of the guys in a gay relationship the "wife" and how that makes no sense and is clinging onto heteronormativity. Watching BL sometimes gets you too numb to hearing things like that and I was pleasantly surprised to see them addressing it.

The one thing that doesn't stand up to time is definitely the cinematography and production quality. It LOOKS like it's from 2021. Bad Buddy had its share of both funny goofy moments as well as serious heavy moments. I laughed and cried with the characters and I felt so connected with all of them. This is a MUST WATCH Thai drama.

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so close to being perfect

for a drama that came out in 2002, this is surprisingly well made. i’ve watched enough dramas from this period to know that good writing, good acting and good directing did not always come in the same package, but solitude feels much more polished than a lot of its contemporaries. the framing is thoughtful, the camera knows when to stay still and the drama is comfortable letting a small image or expression carry a scene without explaining every emotion through dialogue.

the story itself is very simple. two people who are in completely different places in life fall in love with each other.

youngwoo is almost aggressively optimistic. he is impulsive, emotionally direct and seems to genuinely believe that if he wants something badly enough, there has to be a way to make it work. kyungmin is cold, emotionally closed off and already looks exhausted by life before the story even properly begins. she has a teenage daughter, a past relationship that never completely disappeared and has basically convinced herself that the part of her life where she gets to want something for herself is already over.

youngwoo is attracted to her almost immediately. kyungmin takes much longer to even accept that his feelings could be real. she rejects him repeatedly, tells him he’s too young and keeps trying to create distance between them. somehow every rejection only makes him more certain.

the age difference is obviously a huge part of the relationship. youngwoo is young enough that he could almost be kyungmin’s son, and the drama never tries to soften that fact for the audience. they genuinely look like people from two different generations.

what makes it even more complicated is the way everyone around them reacts to it. youngwoo can mostly think in terms of what he feels. he loves her and wants to be with her, so everything seems fairly simple from his side. kyungmin carries much more awareness of how the relationship looks from the outside. she is a middle-aged single mother with a teenage daughter, while he is still young enough for people to assume that he simply does not understand what he is getting himself into.

that social embarrassment is always hanging over her. she knows exactly how people are going to look at them together, and at times she seems more disturbed by that than youngwoo is by the age difference itself.

i liked that the drama allowed all of this to remain uncomfortable. kyungmin never starts behaving twenty years younger just because she falls in love, and youngwoo remains impulsive and visibly young. their differences stay there throughout the relationship. that makes the romance much more interesting to me.

you also cannot really talk about youngwoo’s attraction to kyungmin without talking about his mother.

i wouldn’t reduce their entire relationship to mommy issues because that would flatten what the drama is doing, but the connection is clearly intentional. he takes kyungmin to his mother’s hometown and brings her to the river where they scattered her ashes. while talking about how cruel his mother was for leaving him, he looks directly at kyungmin. he tells her that his father used to whistle when he was trying to win his mother over and later repeats the same gesture with her. even his brother has noticed that youngwoo became interested in older women after their mother died.

there is obviously some kind of emotional transfer happening there.

at the same time, his attachment gradually becomes very specific to kyungmin herself. his unresolved grief may be part of what draws him toward her initially, but he keeps choosing the actual woman in front of him: older than him, emotionally difficult, already a mother and carrying years of history.

his relationship with jeongah helps a lot with that. some of the warmest scenes in the drama are between those two. he never treats her like baggage attached to the woman he wants. they argue, joke around and slowly become comfortable with each other. it makes his relationship with kyungmin feel much more convincing because he is willing to become part of the life she already has.

lee misook was probably my favorite part of the drama.

she was genuinely stunning here. i knew she was beautiful when she was younger but there is something especially elegant about her in this drama. i also appreciated that the styling makes no effort to disguise kyungmin’s age. she looks like a very beautiful woman in her 40s and the drama lets her be exactly that.

kyungmin is such a restrained character that most of lee misook’s performance is built around tiny changes. she barely smiles and rarely gives youngwoo the emotional response he wants from her, but you can always tell when he manages to get through to her.

ryu seungbeom works much better in the role than i expected too. his haircut is horrendous and somehow makes him look even younger than he already does, which actually works in the drama’s favor. there are moments where he looks almost ridiculously young next to lee misook and you completely understand why kyungmin keeps looking at him like he has lost his mind.

he gives youngwoo a restless energy that works really well against her. kyungmin feels like someone who has emotionally stopped moving while youngwoo spends most of the drama constantly moving towards her.

the directing is probably where the drama impressed me the most.

it relies a lot on framing, objects, empty spaces and recurring images. one small scene that stayed with me is eunseok staring at the lipstick mark kyungmin left on a white coffee cup after she leaves. it lasts barely any time, but it tells you more about what remains between them than a long conversation probably could.

the drama is full of little moments like that. houses, windows, the river and even the physical distance between characters are often allowed to do some of the emotional work.

even the music surprised me. this drama somehow introduced me to chava alberstein, an israeli folk singer i probably never would have come across otherwise. they used “the secret garden” as part of the soundtrack and it fits the mood almost too well. it has this worn-out melancholy that gets under your skin instead of trying to force an emotional reaction out of you.

i genuinely have no idea how someone working on a korean drama in 2002 even found that song, but whoever was choosing the music clearly knew what they were doing.

that same restraint carries over into the sadness of the drama.

it is obviously a melodrama, but for most of its runtime it never feels desperate to prove how tragic it is. these people already seem tired before anything especially dramatic happens. kyungmin has spent years shutting herself off. youngwoo is carrying grief he does not fully understand. eunseok returns to a past that continued existing without him. jinyoung is in love with someone whose feelings have already moved somewhere else.

the sadness is already sitting inside the characters.

that is probably where noh heekyung’s writing is most interesting to me. she is very good at writing lonely and emotionally difficult people whose behavior starts making more sense once you understand what happened to them. the plot itself is fairly simple, but the characters rarely are.

jinyoung frustrated me a lot though. she is extremely persistent with youngwoo even after it becomes obvious that his feelings are somewhere else, and there were definitely moments where i was tired of watching her continue to push herself into the situation.

still, i appreciated that she never turns into the standard evil second female lead. she genuinely respects kyungmin, which makes her jealousy more uncomfortable. she cannot simply decide that the other woman is awful and hate her.

seowon was very good in the role too and that pixie cut was one of the best styling choices in the entire drama.

and then, of course, the terminal illness plot happens.

this was easily my biggest problem with the drama because i genuinely don’t think it needed it.

i’ve watched enough korean melodramas from roughly 2000 to 2006 to know that terminal illness was practically part of the genre grammar at that point. eventually you stop being surprised when somebody gets diagnosed with something fatal and start being surprised when everyone survives.

here it felt especially unnecessary because the story had already created more than enough conflict. there was the age gap, kyungmin being a single mother, the social judgment surrounding their relationship, youngwoo’s family opposing it, eunseok returning and youngwoo’s unresolved grief over his mother.

there was already an entire melodrama there.

i understand what the illness adds. it makes youngwoo’s decision to stay more absolute and forces kyungmin to confront the fact that pushing him away is not automatically an act of protection.

i just found the relationship more painful when its biggest obstacle was their actual lives. two people can be completely wrong for each other on paper, fully aware of how absurd their relationship looks to everyone else, and still want each other anyway. that was already enough for me. adding a countdown over the relationship almost made the conflict feel less interesting.

the final stretch falls into more of the melodrama conventions of its time because of that, but by then the drama had already done enough work with the characters that it never completely lost me.

overall, this was one of the better forgotten melodramas i’ve seen from the early 2000s. the story is not especially unusual, but the execution often is. it is patient, visually thoughtful and surprisingly comfortable with leaving emotions unresolved for a while.

watching one of noh heekyung’s earlier works was part of the appeal for me too. you can still see her working inside the conventions of early 2000s melodrama, while a lot of the things she would become more associated with later are already here: loneliness, emotional exhaustion and people finding small reasons to keep wanting things from life anyway.

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Part 1 is incomplete without Part 2

This is everything the 9/10 star say!

Gil Chae is a brat at first and Jung Hyun ‘held his cards close’ for good reason. Gil Chae needed to grow up before he was going to confess his heart to her. Their individual stories are equally interesting - putting others ahead of themselves. They were both extraordinary people in their own right ultimately becoming each other’s match.

Namkoong Min and Ahn Eun Jin were equally exceptional and perfectly cast in this drama. Neither outshined the other as they played their own roles - as well as into each other’s roles - perfectly. AEJ gave such believable intense emotions. I could feel what she was feeling. Sometimes I was even breathing like her, my heart wanting to leap out of my chest (last 15 minutes last episode the most recent example). NMK was a full basket of sides to his character and he delivered each side perfectly. You could feel his heart for the captives, his contempt for the dysfunctional king, his annoyance at the hypocrisy in the nobles, and his love for Gil Chae.

Lee Hak Joo as Yeon Jun and Lee Da In as Eun-Ae were also excellent as the second main leads. YJ was honorable to a fault - so blinded by his loyalty to an emotionally corrupt King. I wanted to write him off more than once. Eun-Ae was loving and loyal to both YJ and GC to the end. Such a wonderful character.

Ryang Eum was kind and wholly devoted to JH but in Part 1 a mixed bag of that love, loyalty, and deceit.

This is a beautiful story complete with all the feels! Watch if that appeals to you. You won’t be disappointed.

Did I mention the very handsome Namkoong Min has the most beautiful eyes????

Part 1 is incomplete without Part 2. See part 2 review for more thought.

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heartwarming show with good looking leads!

This drama had a nice and solid plot for a short vertical drama. Storyline about their friendship was really touching, and ending was unexpected that it made me cry!! For a vertical drama this was really well written from start to finish!

Jeno and Jaemin had so much chemistry, and acted really well on their roles! The characters really suited them especially since they are both active in working out and trying out sports. We can see Jaemin's acting experience and skills especially with his goofy expressions and more relaxed acting style. Meanwhile, Jeno did great in portraying quiet, and isolated Lee Woo Jin. Plus he has a great body of a baseball player! I'm screaming!! ♡♡♡

The other side characters they got are famous actors too!

OST was super great, it was sang by JNJM too! I just hoped they had recorded one more song so that the same OST doesn't have to play over and over again.

Overall this was a fun, and touching drama! Definitely worth watching if you have extra time to spare and you like school, friendship, and sport themed shows with good looking men in them.

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A Splendid Match — An Underrated Gem

This drama has everything going for it: one heart-rending scene after another, intriguing subplots woven together seamlessly, and pacing so spot-on that there is barely a moment to catch your breath, let alone feel bored! 'A Splendid Match' begins with two very familiar ingredients of Chinese period dramas: a daughter sent away as a baby to be raised by her maternal grandmother, and the age-old business of match-making, where marriage is often less about love than family interests, status and advantageous connections.

I initially wondered whether I was heading down another well-trodden path. Would I be watching another 'Perfect Match' which I enjoyed tremendously but not quite motivated to watch another drama of similar trope. Fortunately, the drama soon takes these familiar tropes in an intriguing direction of its own.

In my opinion, this drama is seriously underrated on kisskh. A rating of 8.2 is low for this drama. I would have expected a rating somewhere around 8.5–8.8. I gave it 9.5 — although regular readers of my reviews will know that I am usually more generous than the ratings on this website. 😄

###More Than Another Arranged-Marriage Drama

Gu Jin Zhao was sent away as a newborn and raised by her maternal grandmother because her father believed a fortune-teller's prediction that her birth would damage his career. When she finally returns home, she has little intention of making life easy for the father who rejected her.

As she comes of age, another problem looms: marriage.

Arranged marriages and marriages for political or family advantage are hardly new territory in Chinese period dramas. Here, however, the romance is woven effectively into family conflict, court politics, revenge, warfare and personal ambition.

And Jin Zhao is certainly not short of choices. Her suitors include the eccentric Marquis heir Ye Xian, the formidable young cabinet minister Chen Yan Yun, and the promising imperial scholar Chen Xuan Qing.

But Jin Zhao has good reason to distrust marriage. Having witnessed the destructive relationship between her parents — and later suffering disappointment in her first love — she decides that remaining single might be the safest option.

The question is therefore not simply whom will she choose? It is whether anyone can persuade her that love and marriage are worth the risk.

### Romance Amidst Political Chaos

What makes *A Splendid Match* interesting is that romance never exists in isolation.

There is revenge, jealousy, family hatred, political scheming, court power struggles and eventually war. Lovers become rivals; allies become enemies; supposedly honourable people reveal rather less honourable faces.

And when a national crisis arrives, personal grudges suddenly have to compete with something much bigger.

The two unsuccessful men in love are particularly interesting. One reacts dramatically to rejection yet can still put his feelings aside and cooperate with his rival when circumstances demand it. Naturally, my heart aches for him.

The other maintains a calm, dignified façade while joining forces with his rival’s enemy to bring him down. So much for nobility! His transformation from a heartbroken lover into a devil in disguise is quite the character twist.

### Ci Sha — The Revelation of the Drama

For me, the standout is Ci Sha as Chen Yan Yun.

I had seen Ci Sha in supporting roles before without paying him much attention. Here, as the male lead, he completely captivated me.

He carries himself with charisma, authority and dignity, yet can switch effortlessly between powerful cabinet minister, tender lover, furious uncle, grieving comrade and man quietly suffering from heartbreak of a discovery.

His expressions are particularly good. He does not need exaggerated gestures to communicate what the character is feeling. And yes, it certainly does not hurt that he looks extremely handsome doing it. 😄 His confession of love is particularly memorable - honest, direct, confident and very amusing.

By the end of this drama, Ci Sha had firmly earned himself a place on my favourite-actors list.

### Ren Min — Much Improved

Ren Min, playing the rebellious Gu Jin Zhao, also surprised me.

I had watched a couple of her previous dramas and was never particularly impressed, but her acting here feels considerably more mature and assured. Jin Zhao can be stubborn, mischievous, vulnerable and fiercely independent, and Ren Min handles those shifts convincingly.

She also looks particularly good in this production. Whatever the reason — styling, make-up, camera work, simply maturity or a nose-job — the camera is much kinder to her here than in some of her earlier dramas.

### Winwin — Arrogant, Awkward and Very Entertaining

Winwin (Dong Si Cheng) is another highlight as the eccentric Ye Xian.

I remembered him as the playful and provocative Yang Xian in Perfect Match. Here he gives us a wonderfully awkward combination: an arrogant young aristocrat who has absolutely no idea how to express his feelings properly, yet can transform into a dignified and courageous general when duty calls.

His defiance towards his superiors is especially entertaining to watch — although I certainly would not recommend it as a career strategy in imperial China. 😄

### When the Battle Scenes Actually Hurt

The battle sequences deserve special mention. They are well choreographed, dramatic and, more importantly, emotionally effective.

One heroic death in particular genuinely moved me.

I am a hardened drama viewer. After years of watching writers deploy every tear-jerking trick imaginable, I normally sit through tragic deaths remarkably dry-eyed.

This one extracted a tear. That deserves credit.

### Another Heart-rending Scene

The wedding procession crossing paths with the funeral procession was absolutely heartbreaking. The grieving son’s sorrowful gaze into the sedan chair carrying away the woman he loves was enough to break anyone’s heart. The beautifully chosen sad music only twisted the knife further!

### Characters You Will Love to Hate

The drama also provides several characters who are wonderfully infuriating.

There is a truly horrible husband who never seems to consider the possibility that he might be mistaken, and finally drives his wife to suicide. Here is the hypocrite who presents himself as a gentleman while behaving like a complete scumbag. On top of this, he is an awful father who shirks all responsibility for his daughter, yet is perfectly willing to use her marriage to advance his political career. Honestly, I wanted to punch him. He succeeded magnificently in making me angry, so credit to the actor.

And there is the truly wicked nanny, who expertly manipulates the feather-headed concubine into doing her bidding — all under the guise of acting for her daughter’s good.

Then there is the brainless cousin, a walking catalogue of every nasty trait imaginable: jealous, narcissistic, self-important, arrogant, spiteful, bullying, and a malicious gossip to boot.

The drama repeatedly explores the double faces people present to society — respectable on the outside, calculating underneath. Perhaps that is not particularly ancient Chinese after all. Every era has its share.

### The Grand Secretary — Power and Character

The obsessive Grand Secretary, whose ambitions lie behind much of the turmoil, provides one of the drama's more interesting lessons.

Ability alone is not enough when selecting people for positions of enormous power. Intelligence and competence matter, but so do integrity, character and values.

The drama also illustrates another danger: people may begin their careers with admirable intentions, only to lose sight of them once ambition and power take over.

That is hardly a lesson confined to imperial China.

### Marriage, Divorce and Family Honour

Another interesting aspect is the enormous importance placed on marriage, divorce and family reputation.

Chinese and English cultures may historically have been worlds apart, yet old English novels show something remarkably similar. Think of 'Pride and Prejudice': one person's romantic scandal can threaten the reputation and marriage prospects of an entire family.

Unfortunately, women usually paid the heavier price in both cultures.

### My Nitpicks

No drama escapes completely. 😄

My biggest distraction was the young emperor. The actor is excellent and remarkably eloquent, but after a three-year time jump he still appears to be exactly the same little boy. His Majesty is said to be growing up but does look the part.

A dead person should look pale, grey, and suitably ghastly! The make-up artist should be aiming for a corpse, not a beauty pageant contestant.

I was also disappointed that the Marquis heir did not receive the recognition I thought he deserved. After what he contributed, I would have liked at least some acknowledgement — a promotion to Marquis would have been fitting - this could be done so dramatically if the screenwriter knows how.

And anyone trying to identify the historical dynasty can save themselves the trouble.

The setting and Dayan are clearly fictional. The technology — including telescopes and firearms — gives it something of a Ming flavour, while the imperial family's surname 'Li' immediately evokes the Tang dynasty. Best not to consult the history books too closely.

### Final Verdict

*A Splendid Match* surprised me.

What begins like another familiar arranged-marriage period romance develops into something much richer: romance, family dysfunction, political intrigue, jealousy, revenge, friendship, warfare and questions about loyalty, character and the corrupting influence of power.

The cast is strong, the political storyline gives the romance substance, the battle sequences carry genuine emotional weight, and Ci Sha's performance alone made the drama memorable for me.

It has flaws, but I enjoyed it far more than its current kisskh rating led me to expect.

Overall: all thumbs up from me. 😄

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Amazing drama??

I really didn't know what to expect. I took a long time to finally start watching it coz i couldn't make time to watch

The plot twists really blew my mind. The narratives changed so drastically after every revelation

The story was so well written. Hats off.

The actors were top notch. Each and every character delivered their role so well. It was so amazing

I personally fell for Cha Sun Hyung who played the role of Seonghyeon. He was such a cutie, energetic character. I loved this character so so much. I'd smile just by seeing his cute smile.

The episodes where he was sad broke my heart.

Anyway. This drama exceeded my expectations. I really really loved this drama

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Cute, clever, funny - who could ask for anything more.

This was just so fun. Jiakai is a very sweet, slightly hapless psychic determined to always help people through his unusual power -- though his interventions are not always appreciated. Only Jiakai would think that stripping naked on a rooftop is the best way to prevent a person from 'final jumping'. During the rooftop episode he meets police officer Dawei who dubs him, considering his state of undress, 'Student Pervert.' Then their paths keep crossing during Jiakai's "rescue missions." where he uses his rather different psychic power.
Both characters were well developed and fun - the romance was delightfully bumbling at first and very sweet when it got going.
This series just left me with a happy smile on my face

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Nice to Not See You Again

This series lives up to its title. Indeed, this drama is the embodiment of a nightmare where walking out of a room just leads right back into it. A social version of claustrophobia.

The main character is Lim Hyun-jun, an actor frustrated by being perceived solely through the role he plays: the police detective Kang Pil-gu.

Every single interaction he has leads him to endlessly cross paths with the love interest, Wi Jeong-sin.

At first, it feels like repetitive comedy, but very quickly you realize the core problem of this show: these characters are completely illogical, indecisive, and inconstant.

Despite a few flashes of brilliance, LHJ is a total weather vane, both in his interactions and his own thinking. Most episodes end in complete inaction on his part.

WJS is rigid and egocentric. The show tries to give her a bit of humanity by pulling the sad past card and moments of naive contrast.

Yet, the series brushes over interesting subjects: journalistic ethics, his mother's reputation, panic attacks...
But nothing comes of it. In the end, it is just a pair of fake investigators tracking down the cliché rich villain.

Having watched Squid Game and The Glory, seeing these two actors in this drama remains a total mystery to me.

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MASTERPIECE

Pursuit of Jade is simply a masterpiece. Everything comes together beautifully—the story, acting, romance, action, cinematography, and character development. The leads have incredible chemistry, and their relationship feels genuine, emotional, and earned. I especially loved how capable and strong they both are, while still allowing their bond to grow naturally. The political intrigue and action keep the story exciting, but it’s the characters and their emotional journey that make it unforgettable. Every episode feels like it has something meaningful to offer. Beautifully made, emotionally satisfying

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Touching

Before I watched Dear You, I was puzzled by its Chinese title, 《给阿嬷的情书》. At first, I thought it was about a grandchild writing heartwarming letters to their grandmother, just as the title seemed to suggest. But it turned out to be something completely different—and much more unexpected.

I suspect many viewers, especially non-Chinese audiences, may find it difficult to fully connect with this story. But for Chinese people, particularly those in the diaspora or those whose families have relatives who went overseas, this movie can hit very close to the heart.

The movie was originally spoken in Teochew, a Chinese dialect that is quite different from Mandarin. Many Mandarin speakers cannot understand Teochew at all. The movie has since been dubbed into Mandarin, making it more accessible to a wider Chinese audience.

At its heart, this is a story about a man, Zheng Musheng (played by Wang Yan Tong), who leaves his wife and three young children during the Chinese Civil War and goes to Thailand to make a living. He works hard, saves whatever money he can, and sends it back to his family in China. Along with the money, he always sends a love letter telling his wife how much he loves and misses her.

There is one important detail: Zheng Musheng is illiterate, and so is his wife, Ye Shurou (played by Wang Xiao Hui). So both of them have to rely on other people to write their letters. And when the letters arrive, someone else has to read them aloud.

Some of these letters are incredibly intimate and romantic, which makes the scenes surprisingly funny when someone has to sit there and read these very personal love letters out loud. At the same time, those scenes are incredibly tender. There is something very beautiful about two people who cannot read or write still finding a way to express their love across thousands of miles.

Xie Nanzhi (played by Li Si Tong) is Zheng Musheng's landlady. From time to time, he asks her to help him read letters from his wife. Quietly, she becomes deeply moved by his unwavering love and devotion to his family. After Zheng Musheng dies, she continues, for decades, to send money and love letters to his wife in China under his name.

That part really touched me.

I have known people who lost contact with loved ones after they left for the "South Seas" (南洋). Likewise, when some migrants returned to China, their families in the South Seas sometimes completely lost contact with them, not even knowing whether they were still alive.

Many of these migrants lived incredibly difficult lives. They worked under harsh conditions, lived in poverty and uncertainty, and yet they persevered. What makes their stories especially heartbreaking is the longing—not just for their homeland, but for the people they left behind.

For me, this is what makes Dear You so powerful. It isn't simply a love story between a husband and wife. It is also a story about migration, separation, family, sacrifice, and the enormous emotional price paid by generations of Chinese migrants.

There are no big-name actors here. In fact, most of the main cast are making their screen debut. Yet their performances are remarkably convincing. Their characters feel warm, genuine, and lovable rather than like polished movie stars.

The attention to detail is another thing I really appreciated. The settings feel authentic, from the letters and the way money was remitted, to the old furniture, dilapidated buildings, clothing, and everyday objects of the period. Nothing feels overly glamorous or artificial. It feels like a glimpse into another time.

And perhaps that's why this movie affected me so deeply.

For Chinese viewers, especially those whose families have some connection to migration, this isn't just someone else's story. It is part of the history of where many came from. Our parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents may have lived through similar separations, hardships, and uncertainties.

I think this is a movie that Chinese audiences, young and old, especially the Chinese diaspora around the world, should watch.

It is a reminder that behind the prosperity and lives many have today are generations of people who crossed oceans, endured hardship, missed their families, and carried their love for home with them.

Dear You is, in many ways, a love letter—not just to one grandmother, one family, or one generation, but to the millions of Chinese who left home and carried their memories with them across the seas.

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Weak in almost every aspect

This project had nice opportunities and didn't use any of them; it started promising but lost its way in the middle and ended in an absurdly weak note.

I could say that the failure is the main couple's fault and call it a day, but surprisingly, they weren't the culprits. Although I'm yet to be blown away by any of Xu Kai's work, his portrait was one of the highlights here: crazy eyes, questionable actions, and a lot of lust for the FL. He and Zhou Ye had a lot of chemistry, and with a better script, they could've challenged other good couples we had this year.

Zhou Ye is the main character here, but she can't do much beyond the first episodes; she delivers naivety in a sweet way, and it's surprising how cunning she can be, but after a while the revenge doesn't land well enough, and it feels like QingYuan is beating a dead horse until the last episode.

There are some buzzy scenes, and they can fool you into thinking this will go somewhere; it doesn't. The FL run laps around 'her family' with an accidental mistake here and there for all 30 episodes, but the ending is very "what the hell, sure" for both the revenge and the romance, so it's double meh.

In the end, there are lots of other shows with the same premise and better execution.

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Adequate enough to maintain a fairly entertaining story…

But probably nowhere near as good as it could’ve been. The cases of the week that sometimes spanned over several episodes was somewhat interesting. It was ironic that the FL was a princess but had managed to secure a life of relative independence unlike her counterparts - princesses and friends who were trapped in lives they had no desire to live. Thus it was very fitting that she was able to use her freedom to try and get justice for those women who’d been wronged.

Though the cases could be interesting, at times the story dragged and became tedious. The main point that was supposed to be driving the story was that the FL wanted to find out who framed her father causing his and her mother’s death and clear his name. Unfortunately this was hardly explored until the latter part of the series. There is a romance in this but it’s the D or E story. The focus remains heavily on the crimes and mysteries that need to be solved rather than a love match.

The chemistry between the leads was passable. I’ve seen both actors have significantly better chemistry with others. That’s not to say the acting wasn’t good. It worked for this series. Overall the show wasn’t bad, but not good either, just okay. Is it worth watching? It depends on the viewer. Is it worth rewatching. Not IMO.

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