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Woah shocking!
Honestly I wasn’t expecting much going into this short drama series but honestly it did blew my socks off!! Okay just a little spoiler! THIS AINT YOUR AVERAGE SHORT C DRAMA SERIES!!! I’m pretty sure there are some scenes where GL is implied!It is something I wasn’t expecting because Girl’s Love or anything that’s LGBTQ is banned in china even if there a slight implication. The story is a little bit more unique than the rest but they still include those nasty jealous adoptive sibling relationship and like people looking down on mc and their love one saving their ass. But honestly I don’t really mind, the chemistry of the characters main me giggle and kicking the air. It’s not as strong probably because they have to get around the censorship but honestly it is good enough.
I need a BL version… wink wink. Anyways if you like to watch GL this is definitely your cup of tea.
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School Trip: Joined a Group I’m Not Close To
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This review may contain spoilers
Spoilers ahead!This series is definitely made for those who like light-hearted bl series. I also do enjoy watching them but i feel like this series doesn't have much plot to work on. Like after they went on a school field trip, theres the beach trip then goes to a school event and they ended it off with the characters finishing their year. I just felt that theres a lot of time skip going on.
Moving on to comment on their characters, I do think their is some chemistry going on between the main character (Hioki) and the male lead (Watarai). Although, it's not that strong. It's not strong because I feel that there wasn't much in-depth explanation of their characters. Like I understand that Watarai is suppose to be the jealous, possessive type of male lead and Hioki is the innocent one but that's just it. There's not much seasoning for the characters, like if you were to make a pot of soup there would only be water, salt and one or two vegetable inside. It's not bland, but it's not good enough to the point you want to have a second serving.
I would also like to mentioned that the amount of time skips going on in this series is insane. Like what do you mean after one trip ended, suddenly its 1 to 3 months later, heck it can even be 5 months later. I would like to know what happened in between those months, I don't mind if they are undergoing their exams or having relationship issues, i'm just a curious little man. But i do understand that they probably don't have much screen time so they just have to deal with what they have.
Overall, I do find this series quite funny and enjoyable to watch. I don't really have anything else much to say because I have said what I've said. I do recommend people to give this a watch at least once, it's not because its a bad series, I do think that this is a decent series but it could be better. All i have written down is based on my experience so you don't have to agree with me. If you're reading this, thank you for reading my review hope you have a great day. Baii!
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Jack & Joker: U Steal My Heart! (Uncut Ver.)
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This review may contain spoilers
Spoilers ahead!!I did not expect that this Thai BL storyline would be that good and thank god I was wrong. The plot was so good, the characters were well written and the execution was flawless. Can I also just say that every music that they put into the drama is so good and pairs really well with the scenes that the characters were trying to portray?!
From the start to the end, I went through a rollercoaster of emotions, from small smiles to laughters to tears and depression. There were a lot of topics that felt relatable and meaningful which was portrayed throughout the series. Whether its family issues, relationship problems the way that they tackle every single situation was handled well.
The chemistry between the male lead and main character was there like you can feel it after one episode. One of my favorite scenes was the confession scene. When Joke (main character) asked Jack (male lead) who does he like? And Jack says “its you” to Joke. To me that was the sweetest moment and the perfect timing because they have went through a lot together and during that time Jack realized that he cannot be with a person who he doesn’t love. His heart wants to be with Joke because he cannot lie to himself anymore and wanted to accept the truth. Also! The first time they wanted to kiss he would always ask for consent from Joke. CONSENT IS HOT DARLING!
I don’t really have any critiques to write anymore except that they need to make a season 2 or smth. Like this cannot end here!! Thank you for listening to me rant. Just know i’ll be depressed for a few days because of the cliffhanger.
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Must watch, if you’re 18+
The cinematography feels really fresh to me. The way this series was filmed reminds me of movie-level cinematography like ‘Parasite’ and ‘No Other Choice’. I’ve been watching K-dramas for 10 years, and I honestly don’t recall seeing anything filmed quite like this. Some scenes also remind me of ‘The Office’ a little bit, you know how sitcoms play with the camera and use those random zooms? 😆The premise is also very intriguing. I immediately wanted to know more about what would happen to the two families. Multiple things just go wrong at the same time, which leads to one misunderstanding after another, and honestly, it’s quite funny.
I also love how they retell the same story, or events from the same timeline, from different characters’ POVs. And they’re not dull or repetitive at all, because each POV adds more context to the story and gives the characters so much more personality.
Kim Hye Soo is so badass here! ❤️
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A Dark BL That Actually Understands Its Characters.
I made an MDL account just to write a review for this because, honestly, the overall rating does not do this series justice.I think a lot of people expect dark BLs to be purely about pain, trauma, and having some deep-rooted reason behind every toxic behavior. But this story is different. What I really appreciated was how each scene was crafted in a way that initially made you think the characters were simply acting according to the personalities the story had established for them. As the story progressed, however, it proved to be much more complicated than that.
I especially love how Bei Luqing’s character was developed, particularly in the latter parts of the series. A lot of BLs portray “red flags” as characters who simply hurt the weaker person in the relationship, but BLQ is written very differently. There is much more to his character than just being someone who causes pain.
Lu Xiaofan, on the other hand, was initially portrayed as weak and somewhat of a pushover. However, the writers did not stop there. They made sure Fanfan was not reduced to the stereotype that people might initially assume him to be. His character has much more depth than what his initial portrayal suggests.
The chemistry between the characters—both the main couple and the supporting characters—was also very clear. Even without a direct love confession, the series made sure that every interaction between them carried meaning and was portrayed in a way that not everyone might immediately understand. Sometimes, it was in the smallest details and interactions where their feelings became the most apparent.
This BL completely broke my expectations of what a dark BL should be. I think that is what captivated me the most. Not every red flag has to come purely from hatred, and not every toxic behavior needs to be explained in the most obvious way. Sometimes, the characters themselves are far more complicated than the labels we give them.
I really hope more dark-themed BLs are made with this kind of approach. This series deserves much more recognition than its current rating suggests.
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1This review may contain spoilers
Our Sticky Love — Do We Only Believe in Second Chances When They Are Fictional?
I saw quite a few harsh reviews of Our Sticky Love, particularly people saying that twelve episodes were too much, and I honestly don't agree with everything I read. I understand some of the criticism because the drama occasionally takes its time when a few scenes could have been shorter, but I think reducing it to an overlong romantic comedy misses what the story was actually trying to do. For me, this wasn't simply about an amnesiac prosecutor falling in love with the man pretending to be her boyfriend. It was about second chances, and almost every important character was given one. That is probably why the slower pace didn't bother me nearly as much as it bothered some viewers. One review even argued that the story had a natural stopping point around episode ten and that the final two episodes stretched things out, which I can understand. But binge-watching twelve hours in a weekend also changes how pacing feels. Something designed to let characters settle, reflect and slowly reconnect can feel repetitive when consumed without much distance between episodes.Not every romance needs to move like an American thriller. Sometimes watching a drama is supposed to be relaxing. French and other European television and cinema have long been comfortable allowing silence, ordinary conversations and apparently insignificant moments to remain on screen, and I don't automatically consider that bad pacing. I do think Our Sticky Love could have been tightened in places, but "slow" and "badly written" are not synonyms. The creators are interesting in that regard. Writer Mo Ji-hye still has a relatively short credited television portfolio, with You Raise Me Up being her other major drama credit, so I can understand why some transitions and secondary plots feel less polished. Director Kim Jang-han, however, is not really inexperienced: he previously directed Do You Like Brahms?, You Raise Me Up and My Demon. His preference for emotional atmosphere over constant momentum therefore feels more like a directing style than simply someone not knowing how to pace a series.
At the centre of everything are Jung Hae-in and Ha Young, and I thought they were fantastic together. Jung Hae-in has reached a point in his career where he can make a character appealing without constantly reminding us that he is acting. Tae-ha is funny, protective and sometimes painfully awkward, but underneath all of that is someone who has spent years believing certain parts of his life cannot be repaired. His relationship with Eun-sae gradually becomes another chance to imagine a future instead of simply surviving his past. I also laughed when I saw people comparing Jung Hae-in physically with Cha Eun-woo, because what exactly are we supposed to prove with that comparison? They are attractive in completely different ways and belong to different generations of actors. Anyone who has followed Jung Hae-in's career—and, yes, remembers some of those shirtless scenes—already knows the man has absolutely nothing to be envious of. More importantly, he is not here simply to look beautiful; Tae-ha needed warmth, physical credibility as a former boxer and enough vulnerability to make his devotion believable, and Jung Hae-in gave him all three.
Ha Young surprised me even more because this is her first major romantic-comedy leading role after years spent largely in supporting parts. Eun-sae could easily have become unbearable: she is intelligent, privileged, suspicious and literally living inside a lie created by the man she will eventually love. Instead, Ha Young makes her funny without making her stupid and vulnerable without making her helpless. Critics who did enjoy the drama also singled out her comic timing, and I really hope this leads to more substantial leading roles because she proved she can carry one.
But the performance that affected me the most belonged to Heo Sung-tae. Gosh, he was scary. Baek Sang-gil initially appears to be exactly the kind of character Heo Sung-tae can play almost effortlessly: powerful, controlled and capable of horrifying violence without needing to scream every five minutes. Yet the final episodes ask much more from him. The monster slowly discovers that the young man he has manipulated, threatened and eventually prepared to destroy is actually his own son, the child he abandoned when he chose ambition and crime over the woman he loved. That revelation changes everything without magically making him a good person. His final moments were beautifully acted because several emotions existed at once. There was fear, regret, love and the horrifying realisation of what he had become. He finally understood that the cycle he created had reached his own child, but by then his chance to actually become Tae-ha's father had already disappeared. Watching an actor communicate that much while crying without turning the scene into exaggerated melodrama genuinely made me cry with him. And yes, Heo Sung-tae has received recognition for this kind of work. He won Best Supporting Actor at the 2022 APAN Star Awards for Squid Game and Insider, won a KBS supporting-actor award for Bloody Heart, and received major nominations including Baeksang recognition for Squid Game. His career is full of difficult, often unpleasant men, which makes the emotional vulnerability of Baek Sang-gil's ending even more impressive.
That ending is also where the entire drama finally came together for me, because second chances had been hiding everywhere from the beginning. Tae-ha gets another chance at love and at building a family after wasting part of his life inside a criminal organisation. Eun-sae gets another chance at life itself, but also an opportunity to discover who she is without her career, money and social position defining every decision. Other characters receive second chances in relationships, friendship, health and work. Even Jo Maeng-suk, the village shaman, fits the same idea. Her greed damages the gift she depended upon and disconnects her from the spiritual identity around which she built her life, yet the ending gives her another route back through tarot and the return of her intuition. It is funny, but it isn't meaningless. Even the comic side character is being told that losing something through your own mistakes does not necessarily mean you are condemned forever. What matters is what you do when the second chance appears. Some characters recognise it. Some almost miss it because of pride, fear or jealousy. Baek Sang-gil understands his too late, which is why his ending is so much sadder than a conventional villain simply receiving punishment. He could have had love, a son and another life, but every earlier decision gradually closed those doors until the only thing he could still do as a father was stop himself from destroying his child. That is why I think people concentrating only on the romance can miss quite a lot of what Our Sticky Love is doing. The love story is important, but family is everywhere too: biological family, chosen family, friendships that become family, and the possibility of creating something healthier than what you inherited. A second chance does not erase what happened before. It simply gives you one opportunity to decide whether the past will determine what happens next.
Unfortunately, discussion around Ha Young became complicated by something completely outside the drama. Shortly after release, historical records concerning her great-grandfather, physician Ahn Sang-ho, became the subject of controversy. Her agency initially called the allegations groundless, then apologised after confirming a 1916 record listing him as a council member of the Daejeong Chinmokhoe, and Ha Young subsequently apologised for having spoken proudly about family history without knowing the complete historical context. Planned promotional interviews involving both Ha Young and Jung Hae-in were cancelled as the controversy grew. I am not going to turn a drama review into a debate about Japanese colonial history, because it deserves a much more serious discussion than a paragraph attached to a Netflix romance. I also cannot prove that every negative review of Our Sticky Love was influenced by that controversy, and it would be unfair to dismiss legitimate criticism that way. The mixed reception existed for genuine reasons too, particularly around pacing and how the different plots were balanced.
But I do have a problem when criticism of an actor's work becomes criticism of something an ancestor did generations before that actor was born. Ha Young can be judged for what Ha Young says and does, including how responsibly she discusses her own family history once new information becomes available. She cannot travel backwards in time and make decisions for her great-grandfather. That distinction actually connects strangely well with the drama itself. Our Sticky Love repeatedly asks whether people must remain trapped by the mistakes of the people who came before them. Tae-ha certainly does not become responsible for Baek Sang-gil's crimes because they share blood. Why should that principle suddenly disappear when we stop watching fiction and start looking at an actress? Being descended from somebody who made morally compromised choices does not create inherited guilt. Nor should Ha Young have to prove that she is "Korean enough" because of a man who lived generations earlier. If anything matters now, it is what she does with her own life and what she chooses after learning more about that history.
Final Thought
Our Sticky Love is not a perfect drama, and I don't need to pretend it is simply because I enjoyed it. Some scenes could have been shorter, the balance between romance, comedy and crime occasionally becomes uneven, and a more experienced scriptwriter might have given certain secondary stories greater momentum. But twelve episodes did not feel pointless to me because the story wasn't only waiting for Jung Hae-in and Ha Young to kiss. It was giving people chances. A chance to love someone again. A chance to become a family. A chance to rebuild a career. A chance to survive illness. A chance to repair a friendship. A chance to admit that you were wrong. Even a chance to become the father you should have been years earlier, although Baek Sang-gil discovers with devastating cruelty that some chances do eventually expire.
That is what stayed with me after the romance ended. Life occasionally gives us another opportunity to correct something we damaged, but there is absolutely no guarantee that it will offer a third. Maybe that is also why I find some of the reaction surrounding Ha Young so uncomfortable. If a drama spends twelve episodes reminding us that people should be judged by what they choose to do with the life they have been given, perhaps we should be capable of extending the same reasoning to the actors once the credits stop rolling.
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I can't get over Wave! Must-Watch
All I can say is the whole show is just so cute and adorable!I love the dedication of Duang and his unique approach to what giving up means. Qin's personality is such a great contrast to Duang's, which is probably why they fit together so well.
As for Jamie and Mavis, I actually like that they didn't get too much screen time—mostly because they totally deserve to headline their own series!
And then there's my Wave 🥺
Wave is my absolute favorite among the DMD actors, and my heart still can't quite get over him.
My heart completely broke when he couldn't find a partner on DMD Friendship, so seeing him here with a potential partner (and knowing he'll have a new series with them as a side couple, I think!) just makes my heart swell. I really hope things work out for him, but if not, I wish him all the absolute best.
Getting back to the review: I love the choice of songs—they fit the whole series and the characters so perfectly.
And the art?
💯
It was so refreshing to actually see real artistic elements, like having actual art scenes when the characters are studying art, rather than just focusing exclusively on the romance. Plus, the cinematography is simply to die for!
As for the NC scenes, they manage to be sweet and sensual at the exact same time without feeling over-the-top.
If you want a series that is light, sweet, and filled with cute-y vibes, this is definitely your best go!
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A start of something but....
This drama left me with a strange impression. I really enjoyed the beginning, and I absolutely loved the first 10 episodes because I really like stories about characters with hidden powers who join an academy and do a group of friends. But very quickly, we end up with several different storylines being introduced, and everything moves way too fast. The whole process of entering the academy is almost brushed aside.When I finished this drama, I felt like I had watched the beginnings of several different stories, but that was it. I was missing that sense of character development and accomplishment, as well as any real depth to the characters. Very quickly, the drama moves from one action sequence to another, jumping from one situation to the next without really taking the time to properly establish the story.
Yes, it’s true that the CGI is really well done. It’s beautiful to look at, but that’s not enough to carry the whole drama. The writing has some major issues. It’s quite frustrating because, as I’m writing this review, we’re in a period where there’s a real lack of good xianxia dramas, and I feel like this one is such a waste of potential. While the first 10 episodes had me completely captivated, the rest barely managed to hold my attention.
In the end, I’m going to try to focus mainly on the positives so I don’t feel too frustrated. Ju Jing Yi is still as beautiful as ever and a good actress, while Song Wei Long is, as always, very good. It’s a shame they weren’t given something better to work with.
Now I just need to find a xianxia drama I’ve somehow missed so I can satisfy my current craving.
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All Fun and Games, and Seo Kang Joon's Visuals Are DEFINEEEED
I got a heart attack every time Seo Kang Joon was on the screen. His visuals don't make sense. Even wearing a school uniform just looks right on him. And his eyes... I got lost in his eyes.I was in a reading slump and in need of a light, fun K-drama that could lift my mood. While browsing Viki, I stumbled across this one and was curious to see how the story would turn out. On top of that, I had watched Teach You a Lesson not long ago and really liked Jin Ki Joo's acting (although she screamed a lot in that drama, which I wasn't a fan of). And of course, it had been a while since I last watched Seo Kang Joon in a drama, so that was another reason for me to give this one a try.
And honestly, this drama delivered exactly what I was looking for. It was fun! The comedy hit the spot, and I especially loved the NIS team. They were such a great addition to the comedy and made the whole thing even more entertaining. The acting was also great, and the antagonist really did look crazy and psychologically unstable.
That said, I wasn't really here for the plot. At the end of the day, this was never intended to be a serious drama anyway, so I didn't take the story too seriously. I even kinda guessed how things would end, including where all the gold was hidden. But honestly, it didn't really matter because the drama achieved what it set out to do: entertain me and lift my mood.
And surprisingly, the school ghost stories were also quite scary, haha.
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Help! My Online Love Partner Is My Boss
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WHEN YOUR ONLINE SWEETHEART SIGNS YOUR PAYCHECK
OVERALL IMPRESSION🌟This was an excellent, funny, and delightfully cheesy workplace romance. Although predictable, its humor, sweetness, and charming leads made it thoroughly entertaining and addictive.
WHAT I LIKED💖
• I love, love, love Xiang Yun Jie! She was absolutely adorable and perfectly suited to this role.
• The FL was sharp-tongued, witty, and quick on her feet. Although she appeared confident, she was also sensitive and simply hid her hurt very well.
• The ML’s contrasting personalities were hilarious. As her boss, he was demanding and full of nonsense, but as her boyfriend, he was affectionate, caring, lovable, and wonderfully doting.
• The FL’s tangled web of lies created one amusing situation after another.
• The leads shared charming chemistry, and their expressive reactions made the workplace enemies-to-lovers dynamic even more entertaining.
WHAT I DISLIKED⚠️
• The FL’s dishonesty about her past created unnecessary misunderstandings.
• The lack of communication became frustrating, particularly because it slowed the romance considerably.
PRODUCTION AND PERFORMANCES🎭
• Xiang Yun Jie and Zeng Hui delivered top-notch performances.
• Their facial expressions and excellent comic timing elevated the humor throughout the drama.
• The brisk pacing, short runtime, and continuous comedy made this easy to binge.
FINAL THOUGHTS💭
A funny, romantic, and wonderfully lighthearted drama with delightful comic chemistry. I gladly recommend it to viewers who enjoy online romance, workplace comedy, and familiar short-drama tropes. My rating: 8/10.
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This review may contain spoilers
My bad for comparing it to 'The Day of the Jackal'
The premise is quite intriguing. How does a sniper live her daily life as a wife and mother? And that too, while being married to a journalist who is basically chasing her.When I heard this involves a sniper, my mind immediately went to 'The Day of the Jackal' series. It was a pretty good series, and it actually shows that even a legendary sniper can fail, get busted, and end up being chased, wounded, and hurt. So, I had my expectations.
This drama was going fine until episode 6, where it started to go south, I would say. Yoo Bo Na started acting alone, being very stubborn and basically ditching her teammates. She thinks she is unstoppable and unbeatable. To me, it was such a stupid move for her to expose herself in the casino without any proper undercover disguise. She was looking all suspicious in all-black clothing and a black hat, and oddly enough, in such a high-profile, well-guarded place, no one seemed to notice her. I know this is just a drama, but this kind of thing is annoying once you notice it.
What bothers me more is that, on top of being a good sniper, she is also a good fighter? Now it’s becoming a classic superhero story.
OH, and her mother-in-law is shit! Good thing she has a good husband who stands up for her.
Anyway, I am still going to continue watching this drama because I want to see her husband’s reaction when he finally finds out that she is Kingfisher.
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The Boy and I Who Will Break Up in 100 Days
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This review may contain spoilers
An unflinching portrait of 2 flawed humans
This is one of the most raw explorations of love I've ever seen. It doesn't sugarcoat it, but it doesn't try to be dramatic either. It's just an unflinching peek into the human psyche. I'm amazed at how deep this was, considering it's just six 20-minute episodes.If you're like me, you start out feeling closer to Kasuga. Although he's the one pushing the lie, it feels like he's doing it for good reasons. It's only at the end, when each person opens up, that we realize the lie wasn't just the documentary; it was the whole relationship.
Kasuga's monologue in the final episode had me reflecting on my life quite a bit, noticing where I sometimes have the same unhealthy traits. But Itsuki's final words just blew me away. They were sharp but honest - exactly what we've come to expect from his character.
I think it's an interesting social experiment for the viewers as well: if by the end, knowing what we know, we still wish that Kasuga & Itsuki could have found their way back to each other, what does that say about us? We see the truth about their incompatibility but a part of us still hopes that all those problems can be wished away, just like Kasuga. Or maybe we just choose to ignore the problems and lie to ourselves about what we know will happen. This is why I resonated with Kasuga's speech about doing it all over again, even if he knew it won't work. It's not smart, but it is human.
The cinematography was PEAK. The shots were beautiful. You can see the thought put into the composition in certain scenes. It was quiet but grounded.
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Big disappointment
I love historical dramas and I can't believe this drama is rated so highly. Almost 17 hours of practically nothing. The romance was mediocre, the secret organization and conspiracy plotline even worse, and there weren't even any decent fight scenes. The first few episodes were great, but things started going downhill around the halfway mark; by the last 3 or 4 episodes, I really regretted that Viki doesn't have a playback speed-up option.Was this review helpful to you?
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—March 25, 2025 [Sunny] Happy Birthday to You.
I was all hyped about this drama even before it started airing because of two reasons, one being their height difference and second being a post on twitter saying how the ML begs for the FL to come back. I thought, "oh! a cute rom-com." Boy, was i wrong.ZHOU WAN : I love this girl immensely. She's the embodiment of someone who suffers silently with a smile on their face. One thing that became very apparent to me by the time i finished watching episode three, is that she's very hard to read. As for me as an audience i couldn't really anticipate or figure out what she was going to do. And, it became even more evident in that one episode where Zhou Wan lost to Lu Xixiao and he told her to beg him if she wants to make it to the team. And, i'm sitting there thinking what she's going to do? Is she really gonna beg him? And, then BOOM that power move master card she pulled made me instantly fall for her. And, i'm really emphasizing on her being very hard to read because during the first episode we see her shyly smiling when Lu Xixiao is running around, naturally i thought that she liked him but the next moment she treats him so coldly and rejects him so quickly that i started questioning myself if i was wrong about her. Still, i kept a firm albeit fleeting belief that she liked him first though that belief grew precarious with each episode. But, then the last episode hits my screen as hard as it hits my heart. And, that's when i further cement my view that Zhou Wan was truly an unreadable protagonist. I couldn't figure her out even though i'm watching everything from her point of view.
I've seen a lot of people misunderstand her character and it truly pains me. This is just an eighteen year old girl, A CHILD that is bearing the burden all alone on her tiny shoulders. She saw her father getting trampled and beaten, the factory being destroyed and eventually saw him passing away at such an tender age. She didn't even properly come to terms with his death, when her mother abandons her. She takes this abandonment to heart blaming herself, that she might've done something to make her mother leave. Then, just at fifteen she gets to know that the only person who loved and care for her might die. How can you expect her to make mature decisions when she has no one to turn to or guide her through the big shambles of her life. One might question, that she shouldn't have used Lu Xixiao like that—she wouldn't have if she didn't see her mother repeatedly ignore her calls after she swallowed her pride to contact her after years. What choice did she have? And, even then, she repeatedly asks others if she's a bad person or that she has become a bad person because inside the guilt was gnawing her.
I look at her character and see a woman who had to sacrifice her childhood in order to grow up quickly to take care of the person who mattered to her the most. That particular scene after grandma dies, she's facing the ocean and then she turns back with a smile was very powerful because in that moment Zhou Wan reveals what kind of person she is—someone who'd repeatedly assure others that she is fine with a smile on her face so as to not burden them with her worries. And, it saddened me to see how an eighteen year old girl has gone through so much that she has internalised this firm belife system that being vulnerable or being honest with one's feeling is wrong. Which is why, i was so glad to see her having a mental breakdown at the hospital because she needed that.
"I'm only eighteen." Yes, inject that poisonous pain in my veins again.
Realistically, she has been through a lot. I don't want to repeat everything again but with her father and grandmother dying, her mother abandoning her, getting hit by the truth that her father could've lived for few more months, having to go against her morals to use and hurt the boy she loved the most and then watching that said boy nearly die because of you!! I have no idea how she remained sane for so many years which is where my theory comes that if it weren't for the revenge she was planning and the sheer will of destroying everything that Lu Xixiao's father had built for himself, Zhou Wan would’ve truly gone maniacal. That one montage where she was casually aura farming under the rain while glaring at him is etched it my memory forever. Zhou Wan's mother was cunning and a very shrewd lady albeit being one of the most gorgeous woman on earth and truly they'd made an undefeated pair if her mother's head were in the right place. Instead, Zhou Wan was clever, manipulative, observant with a hint of cunning nature. 2016 Zhou Wan was cute but 2026 Zhou Wan was so cool and so, so, gorgeous. I get why Lu Xixiao couldn't move on even after 10 years because i wouldn't too.
LU XIXIAO: My boy only wanted love and that was his tragedy. Lu Xixiao is introduced to us as a carefree guy with an air of arrogance around him. He portrays himself as a nonchalant bad boy but in reality he can't stay one second without being chalant. He's has big heart inside his chest that thumps and bleeds rapidly for people he considers dear to him. It grieves me that no one actually cares for him in his family expect for his aunt and his nanny. His father is a piece of absolute shit who locks him up in his room and controls his phone stopping any form of communication time to time whenever he needs him to behave. His grandfather never truly cared for him but only wanted him because of the LU name, like you're telling me your grandson ran away and the only person visited him was his aunt. Then, there was Zhou Wan's mother who feigned that she cared for him but only wanted him to get away from the family so she could peacefully marry his fatger without any protest.
When his phobia of heights was intriduced, i thought it was comical and kind of quirky because you're telling me a guy who's close to 190 cm is actually scared of heights. But, as we progressed and the answer slowly revealed itself that's when it hit me how much of trauma this boy must've been carrying after seeing his mother jump right infront of him and not being able to do anything about it. He must've beaten himself up for it. Her suicide to him felt like an abandonment. The only person whom he thought loved him and was truly by his side was suddenly jumping off right infront of him with a tear streaked eyes. He must've resented her for it especially since he was a child and couldn't really formulate what led to that fateful moment and yet, he loved her in his own way. Although, he felt his mother left him, he couldn't bring himself to leave her which is why he grasped at every little thing his mother left behind starting from the big house to the paintings. He picked up the paint brush and stroked the canvas with colours in the same way his mother had trying to get a closure, trying to find her remnants.
So, it was especially endearing to see this boy risking it all to save a random girl who was trying to kill herself like his mother. Even though he was so, so, scared he couldn't just stand by and watch and i think it was one of those moments when Lu Xixiao shone bright as a character, so contrary to the notion of him being introduced as a typical bad boy trouble maker. He was much more than that, far more beyond than what is present at the surface level. He was trembling yet he still reached out without knowing if she'd ever grasp it or not.
Lu Xixiao as a character wears his heart on his sleeves. He is just so honest and that it actually hurts seeing him go through whatever he went through in the show because at the end of the day he was also a child. The confusion he must've been going through after witnessing Zhou Wan's hot and cold behavior. He suffered so much and was truly being used as a pawn by everyone around him. When Zhou Wan came to his life, he thought he finally found someone who understood him and was willing to stay by his side only to get betrayed. Many people disliked him for going on a few dates with Li Na but i actually liked it that they added it to his character. He was boy who was going through the worst period in his life. He took a knife for the girl he loved without hesitation and she left him behind. He made that choice of dating her out of pure anger. As a woman, i hated how he used Li Na who had genuine feelings for him but as a audience i understanding why he did it. 2016 Lu Xixiao was reckless and would pick a fight but 2026 Lu Xixiao was rational and this character development was noticeable during that one scene when Zhou Wan recounted her near sexual assault. Like any other typical ML i expected him to be angry and bang on something then go beat up the guy but he was extremely calm and logically dealt with the matter, first by telling her to take the day off and then exposing that said person. I liked this development a lot.
CHEMISTRY: i believe that there are three kind of chemistry—𝘰𝘯𝘦>when there is no chemistry between the actors but they're forcing it on us to think that they have, 𝘵𝘸𝘰> when there is a lot of chemistry between the characters and the actors but you could feel that they're acting at certain junctions, 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦>when the chemistry is so good that you feel like an invisible omnipresent entity watching two people fall in love. The chemistry between Zhou Wan and Lu Xixiao or Baobao and Zhou Keyu falls into the third category. It was effortless and natural that it didn't even feel like they're acting.
2016 WanXioa were new to the feeling, hesitantly trespassing each other's emotional threshold yet they're so strong and understood each other so well that it didn't feel like they've known each other only over the summer. Lu Xixiao jumped from the terrace despite his fear if heights only for her and Zhou Wan after waking up in the hospital, the first thing she assured him is that she didn't try to kill herself knowing how much his mother's death has cost. They're so sweet together even though there was always a hint of bittersweetness around their relationship. The parallel image of them blowing the dandelion and him removing his hair from her palm that was very profound in my opinion.
Lu Xixiao knew that Zhou Wan loved him even though she left him, afterall which girlfriend would hide a keep safe where she wrote prayers for him to have a peaceful and happy life that was the last thing given to her by her late grandmother—which is why he was so adamant in making her say that she loved and when she didn't, in that moment he resented her.
2026 Lu Xixiao is such a loser in love because what do you mean "Zhou Wan, don't let me see your face again or else i'll make you beg and cry for me." he says and then begs and cries for her two days later. Literally, falling down from the sofa while clinging and begging her not to leave. And, the way i laughed when he nonchalantly slinged his jacket over his shoulder and strided to HER HOUSE to repeat the exact same words like a messenger pigeon during a war. Brother that's her house, you'd definitely see her there. And, what makes this scene even more comical is that he completely ignores Jiang Yan out of pure jealousy but the first thing he says, "Is that not a lot of food. Are you sure you can finish it?" Were you expecting to get invited for dinner A'xiao. Not a single rigid nonchalant bone in his body stand stalls the moment Zhou Wan appears, he becomes like child in need of her constant attention and coaxing.
Jokes apart, but the damage episode 20 did to my psyche is unrepairable. I love my girl Zhou Wan. I'm ready to take a bullet for her but girl you're supposed to only traumatise your husband not us innocent bystanders. Someone said people usually plays hide and seek for a while but Lu Xixiao has been playing it for years, 10 YEARS. And, then that schizophrenic episode of him hallucinating her and dancing with actually no one completely broke me. I heart was hearting so bad that i had to stop and take a long break before i could continue watching it. 2016 WanXioa had chemistry but 2026 WanXiao was full of sexual tension. That one episode where he wanted to paint her had so much heat that it was practically radiating off my screen. I felt like i shouldn't watch because the scenes were so intimate. And, just when i thought that they couldn't get any hotter BOOM episode 26 dropped. The confession, the slow reasoning and the intimate kisses were top notch. I've never felt so my butterflies explode in my stomach before. The way this scene was so viral that you couldn't escape it even if you tried to. And, whoever decided to put Baobao in that backless dress needs their hands to kissed because it made the scene even more hotter.
Lu Xixiao was such a freak. He never let my girl rest like on the bed, on the sofa, on the table, while showering and then ON THE CHAIRS?? Brother, consider the size difference between the two. I just wish that the last interview was shot on a Saturday because after knowing that girl he loved and yearned for ten years had secretly loved him for thirteen years, i don't think Lu Xixiao is letting her slip out of the bed.
This is once in a lifetime chemistry and shouldn't be wasted on single project, give me fifteen more of them right now.
I love, love, love Never Ending Summer. I've never felt so empty after watching a show. I couldn't move past them for more than a month. Everything about them was holding me down from their cinematography to the music.
Sunburn by Brian Cheng, you deserve a grammy.
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