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Silver

In front of my computer screen.

Silver

In front of my computer screen.
In Time with You taiwanese drama review
Completed
In Time with You
13 people found this review helpful
by Silver
Jan 15, 2012
13 of 13 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 10
Story 10.0
Acting/Cast 10.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 8.0
-Please keep in mind that this is all based on personal opinion.- There are two HUGE reasons why this drama stood out so much in my mind: 1. The script - I don't mean the storyline, but rather the things that they say and the meaning behind WHAT they say. Personally, I jot down quotes of lines I like while I watch my dramas and I am 100% sure that "In Time with You" will be holding the record of Most-"Memorable Quotes" for a very, VERY long time. 2. The character setup (I'm not sure what it's actually supposed to be called, or if there is even a name for it.) - Out of all the dramas I've seen (not that I can be a fair judge of them all because I have not watched all the dramas in the world), not once do I ever remember seeing the lead-male act almost like the second-lead-male. Partway through, I started to really doubt whether Chen Bo Lin/Li Da Ren really WAS the lead-male, or if he was just some sort of secondary character. In all the other dramas that I've watched/can think of, the lead-female always ends up with the lead-male, and we (I) pretty much expect it to happen. But if she ends up with the second-lead-male instead, then it's almost considered a "sad ending". So in my opinion, kudos to the actors and actresses for making the second-lead-male stand out so much that I just didn't know HOW it was going to end until it finally ended. First off, the storyline. I would have to describe it as an in-depth look at a (seemingly) classic situation. Friends-turned-lovers, nothing special, right? But somehow, I felt that the way their whole relationship was portrayed was just simply...perfect. While some might say that their "just friends" relationship dragged on for far too long, I actually felt that they were "practically lovers" to begin with. They had their “break-up” and “get-together” moments too, even if they were “just friends”. Seeing so much of their "friendship" for so long, I also feel like I got a taste of what it felt like to be Cheng You Qing - I'd always expect Li Da Ren to be there for her no matter what, being the "best friend" that he is. So for me, even though I was hoping for change while watching from a third-person point of view (the way their friends and family members felt), their friendship was so solid that even I was convinced that there really WAS the possibility that nothing would ever change (the way Cheng You Qing and Li Da Ren felt). In addition to their own 'big issue', there was just enough everyone-else-drama so that the whole drama wasn't "just about them", but also about work, family, etc. As for the Acting/Cast - I was actually really REALLY impressed. For starters, the cast included newbie actors/actresses to play the roles of Ding Li Wei and Maggie, which were pretty big roles. Despite it being their first drama, their characters were portrayed very solidly and never once did I think "oh, they're just acting." I never got the impression that this was just another one of those “fake, jokester dramas”. Nope, this one was serious- serious all the way. Nothing, their words nor actions, were out of character, and I probably would've believed you if you'd told me that they've actually been acting for years. I think credit also goes to the director - from watching the "behind the scenes", I feel like he played a big part in getting their characters to come out as well. There is one actress in particular that I must praise as well, and that is Ariel Lin. I must confess that I was never a real fan of Ariel Lin. Watching her in ISWAK, Love Contract, and Tokyo Juliet, I continuously got the impression that her characters were all the same - just simply, dumb when in love. While I'm sure it's not her fault because that's just how the script was written, I had always been under the impression that she was simply just suited for "childish roles", and I told myself that I wouldn't be too surprised if she turned out to be a childish character in this drama as well. Sure, she had her cool and composed "I don't need love" moments in Love Contract, and her serious work-focused moments in Tokyo Juliet, but once she 'fell for the guy', all of that was kicked aside and tossed down the drain, and all the serious-attitude that she’d worked to build up before was just…gone. She'd just be in silly “lovey-dovey mode” for the rest of the drama. Up until I watched "In Time with You", that was my impression of Ariel Lin. (I don't mean to offend any Ariel Lin fans or anyone who is a fan of those dramas.) I was just so shocked, impressed, and GLAD all at the same time that I finally got to see her play a "mature" role. I loved being able to watch her act as an ALWAYS-work-focused, consistently hard-working, "I'll take on work and play all at the same time" kind of character. I'm glad that I got to see this "different side" of her - a mature side that was able to control her feelings all the time, regardless of whether she was with her boyfriend or not (minus the few zone-out moments she occasionally had, but come now, we all have SOME moments). Despite her previous dramas, she wasn't too-cute, too-dumb, or too-air-headed; she was mature and sophisticated the majority of the time, "broken down" when she needed to be, and just naturally relaxing during her chill-time with Li Da Ren. For anyone that may have had the same impression of Ariel Lin as I did before I watched this drama - I would recommend giving this drama a shot to see if your opinion of her might change. The music itself was not necessarily "amazing" or "simply grand" in any way, but it was still nice. The most important part was that suitable songs were played in suitable situations. I also really liked the addition of Chen Bo Lin/Li Da Ren's own song - it really gave certain scenes a deeper "feel" at those critical moments. While this drama seems really typical, I think...there's just something about it that can't really be described by just "words". It incorporates a lot of different aspects of just "life", namely friendship, work, love, marriage, family, justification of self, and probably others as well. But in a sense, it’s a story that just kind of shows “Life” – it might not be your life or my life exactly, but for me, it was still close enough to hit home. -Please keep in mind that this review was all based on personal opinion.-
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