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Frost_edelweiss

Frost_edelweiss

Road Home chinese drama review
Completed
Road Home
6 people found this review helpful
by Frost_edelweiss
Mar 31, 2023
30 of 30 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 10
Story 10.0
Acting/Cast 10.0
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 9.5

Love and danger, pristine snow and downy willows in spring, triumph of persistence

Ep30 was a sweet coda to this very wholesome composition, which deserves full marks for acting, choice of shooting locations, no nonsense or over-sugary dialogues and plot. I also liked the realism and the messages of hope, endurance, faithfulness and mature understanding and support to partners. I actually liked the slow pace which showed how intuition and almost telepathic getting vibes and staying "in tune"without need for long conversation is one form of beautiful love.
For those who don't get or get impatient with first episodes, it could be viewed first, since it is the chronological reason for what happens in first episode, and an explanation of the "baffling" reply by ML to FL in the beginning.

The two separated "because they were too young", because Gui Xiao thought she needed comforting words to overcome the pain of her family turmoil, but these could not be conveyed over the phone, and because her great love was prevented from rushing back to hug and comfort her. Both felt hurt and regret but years went by and, not wanting to be intrusive, neither of them managed to make the needed step forward to get back in tune. Until they did, and this is the sweet and realistic story that unfolds in the drama. The radiance of their love not only make them stand out, but also touches those around them: their friends and "complicated families", and the little boy that Gui Xiao spontaneously agrees to foster to allow him get a more stable environment with trusted people and better schooling. Unconsciously or not, this first act of kindness and love brings her friend (and other foster "aunt" for the boy) together with Lu Chen's friend and Qin Xiaonan's dad.
LuChen and Xiao Nan are quickly aware of Captain Qin and Duan Rou's compatibility, which culminates in Ep22 where both couples radiantly and almost literally "walk on air". For once, we would not have minded seeing more about this secondary couple!
It also helps that Jing Boran has a special type of northern handsomeness, impervious to the cold weather, maybe due to his part-Russian ancestry. Sichuanese Seven Tan Songyun is delightfully petite and with an infectious warm smile that brought perfect balance to this "fire and ice" story where the apparently cold and detached ML was just yearning for spring to be back and enough fulfillment in a life half or more devoted to dangerous missions.
As for OST, it is nice, although as I mentioned in an earlier comment, what stood out for me was the old Zheng Jun Cinderella song (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xVtrob8Rto). Lyrics here : https://www.chinese-tools.com/songs/song/12/cinderella.html

I watched quite a few of Seven Tan's dramas before; always very satisfied. I had not watched much of Jing Boran's filmography, he seems to have been mostly involved with light movies, when I was following more heavyweight directors' filmography. Perhaps, if I have time, I will go back to check more of Jing Boran's filmography now, and perhaps even re-watch Road Home which despite its slow pace, was as enjoyable as a famous director's movie. Ah, spotting 2018 "Us And Them" in JB's filmography, which I think I must watch since I love Rene Liu's music and her acting in "A World Without Thieves".
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