A Little Thing Called First Love (2019)

Sweet, Cute and fun to watch

A Little Thing Called First love, I enjoyed watching this drama. It was sweet, cute and the characters all seemed very innocent. The main Female and Male lead were so cute and I enjoyed how there friendship grew and how they felt about each other. The story is about the female lead moving into a new town. She see's the male lead go by on his bike and he is cute, but not only that he is very nice to everyone. He was willing to help others, and was nice to people. As the drama unfolds she develops feelings for him and it shows how these two become friends, and care for one another. The thing I liked about the drama is the female lead kept making changes to her appearance and actually tried to do better at things she didn't know. She was willing to put in the time and effort into doing whatever she was assigned or trying to accomplish.

When the drama first started her teeth were croaked, wore glasses and was suntan. As time goes on she eventually get braces, and wears contacts, and because she isn't in the sun as much starts taking better care of her skin. All of these to me is part of growing up. You see plenty of kids in middle and High school getting braces and wearing contacts. Each time she did it was because wanted to do better.

I also like that she changed her major in college even though she had the same major as the male lead you would of thought she would stay there but instead she went after what she likes to do which is fashion designer. It seems throughout the drama she was doing things to get closer to the male lead, but for each thing she did she actually did something better for herself.

The friendships between the female lead and her friends and the male lead and his friends was also nice. The girls especially tried to always be there for the other and I just loved when they were together. The 2nd leads(couple were also cute with the way they acted towards each other) :)

This drama had me smiling, and when I was watching and epside as soon as it was done I would watch another because it was so cute . Highly recommend this to someone that enjoys fluff and high school/college themed drama's, and enjoy friendships.

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Cute show

This was a cute show.

However... it is like a lot of other cdramas/kdramas... ok just about any drama. In most dramas (including in the US) there is always a reason for the main leads to break up close to the end of the show. Sometimes it is for stupid reasons and sometimes a valid reason (but not always?). It drives me nuts! And this show was no exception. Sometimes I just want to see people be realistic and learn to trust one another and work things through together. Just like the main lead said when she broke up with him. ??‍♀️

As for the story line, that was my main hang up. ?The acting was good. The music was good also.

Would I rewatch it? I would have to see.

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THE TITLE SAYS IT ALL!

Actually liked this one very much, one on my fave list! A little thing called first love, is practically what the title is. An adorable story about the female lead and her first crush. Everyone experiences that in their lifetime, right? It can make you think back on your own first crush, I know watching this made me reminisce a little bit (lol). It’s a sweet and innocent story of young love, that usually reels me in about these dramas. I liked the stages in life shown for both female and male leads, how they become good friends, how they mature in life and discover their own self growth. The high school and college setting is always a plus for me, too. One of my first C-Dramas on Netflix. Worth the watch! Enjoy!

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Simple and Sweet Slice-of-LIfe

For a drama in which very little happens, A Little Thing Called First Love is surprisingly refreshing in its simplicity. While this drama follows the overused story of an awkward girl whose love for the popular boy spans high school and college, it breaks the mold by keeping the plot and conflicts uncomplicated, deviating from the traditional cliches.

Instead of having an overnight transformation that sends the message that confidence is tied to outer appearances, the leading female goes from awkward, fashion-challenged high school junior to confident, attractive fashion student gradually, each step of her transformation having an explanation (e.g. gets braces after being made fun of for her teeth) and resulting in a slight increase in her confidence.

The leading male is stereotypically perfect at everything, but he has not been placed on a pedestal. He still has his many admirers, but gone are the ridiculous slow-motion entrances and swarms of fan girls who squee whenever he enters a room. He's also friendly, engaging, and down-to-earth, so the friendship he forms with the leading female, even in her awkward years, feels natural and believable, unlike the dramas where the leading male is aloof and seemingly out of reach.

Also absent from this drama is the b****y female rival whose sole purpose is to act excessively jealous and cause conflict between the leading couple. While there are a few fangirls who act poorly out of jealousy, their actions are not a major source of conflict, and their roles are so minor in the drama that it is not excessively annoying. Additionally, this drama challenges our expectations by introducing a woman who seems like the perfect rival to the leading female, but rather than scheming and chasing after the leading male, she admits defeat with grace and maintains her friendship with the leading lady.

The friendships in this drama are to be commended, too. The main group of woman are loyal to one another, and even when a boy comes between them, they maturely communicate that they do not place blame on their friends and request for time to themselves to think and process their emotions before returning to the friendship. The relationship among the men is a bit more complicated, but like the women, they remain loyal and supportive to each other, even when they are at odds.

Many are likely to find this drama boring, which is understandable given the lack of drama and conflict, but the absence of those elements also make it the perfect drama for someone looking for a a light and fluffy romance.

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Don't wait! Go watch this drama right now!

Such a great cast! The chemistry between the characters was real and felt every moment. We all rooted for Xia MiaoMiao and Liang Younian from the start and their storyline didn’t disapoint. He Xin and Lin Kaituo had such a tumultuous journey that made their ending that much more satisfying. Throw in some of the best supporting characters in a school/coming of age drama, such as Lin Xia and Yichao with the steadfast friendship they shared with the others, and you’ve got yourself a near perfect drama.

I really appreciated the parental aspect and the side storyline of the teachers. So many pieces to a perfect puzzle. Excited to see the other works of these actors!

Btw, don't forget your box of tissues. Lai Kuan Lin comes through with the big emotions. And the soundtrack playing takes your feelings to a whole new level while watching. I could rewatch this drama over and over.

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A Joy to Watch

I love the character development of the FL. Yes, she started out as an ugly duckling, but her transformation took time which made it seem natural and not made it looked forced. The ML was her catalyst to change, but along the way she became independent and her own person. I love the pace of the drama allowing the main and supporting characters to have their stories told. This drama makes me feel all gooey reminiscing about first love. Whenever the ML looked at the the FL, especially secretly, my heart just melts. The ending reveal by the ML to the FL is just too darn cute! Also, I absolutely love Wang Bowen’s Can You Hear My Heart.

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Cliche but still good to watch just to kill time

Watching this because I want to see how Guanlin acts, haha. The plot itself is cliche, and based on the popular Thai movie hence I already know the story-line and all, but it was still good to watch, especially when you have nothing to do at home and just want to kill time... then you might give it a try. As you can tell, it wasn't heavy; the pace was slow so it got kind of boring halfway but it made their relationship development more natural. Thankfully, the chemistry between Angel and Guanlin was great so I forgive it, LOL. The acting was great. Guanlin did a good job! He was a bit awkward at first but as the drama progressed, I can see he managed to potray the character well. Overall, I'm giving this a 7,5 because it's just another rom-com drama with the same overused plot of a popular guy falling in love with an average girl yada yada. There's not much difference.

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Like every other wannable out there, I came because of Guanlin and stayed for the other actors/actresses. Honestly i was a it frustrated with the main character xiao miaomiao because she was so clueless and dumb in some scenes however she went through some character development but the actress I can't say is one of my favorites. He Xin's actress was incredibly great as well as her character. All the main characters in the drama played their part realistically, which was a huge bonus to the casting. Guanlin's acting is still a little stiff because this was one of his first dramas however I'm sure he'll become a great actor in the near future. Lin Kai Tuo's character ngl was my favorite in beginning (i'm too into tsundere type) but the ending was pretty satisfactory. Overall, I recommend this drama to those who are into light hearted and cute coming of age dramas.

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an OK romance for a weekend, but some aspects of it shouldve been altered

well at the end I came to like this one too but def not my fav C drama, bc some aspects really annoyed me. im used to the pace of C dramas but here it realllly annyoyed me that they got together really slowly and yup a real kiss couldnt kill them at all, I have no other idea than that the actors didnt want it (maybe they were in a relationship or sth). But HERE at the end at least they couldve kissed I mean c'monnnnn theyre f*ckin main leads... but whatever, but after these long and really slow steps I really think it wouldve fitted here at the end too if he proposes as well but showing her the project only? it wouldve been nice to propose there especially bc of the meaning... and also the ending, why WHYYYYY on earth put her high school face in the very first pic, it was so disturbing to see after we saw her 'university look' later in the eps and got used to it. and this was the other factor for me, her high school look i mean I really wasnt beauty at that time too, i was kinda an ugly duckling too but cmonnn this was way too much imo, it was my very first time with dramas where i seriously couldnt bear watching her look at the beginning, even tho I watch a lot really. so many 'ugly in the beginning' faces I have seen but I wasnt bothered by them at all except by this. I think this must tell something. ok to make girls 'ugly' or unpopular, average in the beg. but you should no where the line is. creators here didnt. sorry for my harsh criticism and thank you for reading it.

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This has been one of my favorite dramas I've watched so far this year (and I have been watching a surprising number of duds lately, so it was nice to actually watch something good), so I can't really offer any complaints. I'll go ahead and get through the quick and easy bits of my review first.

First and foremost, I think this drama's pacing and structure was very well-done. All of the different plotlines are compelling and heartfelt and moving, particularly the backstory with You Nian's mother and Kia Tuo struggle with accepting his new family. The romance is a slow-burn, and I don't typically go for those, but this is definitely slow-burn done right. There's a lot of focus on friendship between the leads as well as between all of the secondary and side characters, which I thoroughly enjoyed. And the secondary characters are all great, and I like all of the couples that end up together at the end. I would have loved to see Miao Miao's best friend, A Xia, have a romance (she is the funnest character and the only one of the main recurring secondary characters who Doesn't get a romance), but she does appear to be paired up with someone at the end (and he's a real cutie, to boot), so I guess that's somewhat nice. I think all of the elements of this drama come together in a very complimentary and easy to watch way.

But guys, I Adore Miao Miao. From start to finish, Miao Miao feels like the same person, the same personality and quirks and struggles, but who is consistently growing and maturing in confidence. She's a shy and awkward high school student, like many of us are or once were, with this adorable crush on an older classmate (who is very worthy of said crush). Then she's a University student, slowly working to shed that awkwardness and break out of her shell and come into her own. And then she's a young woman taking charge of her life and her future. You really have to respect her as you watch her work diligently towards her goals. For awhile, that's just being near You Nian, but over time, that goal begins to shift. She finds a purpose for herself, something to work toward that isn't just prolonging her crush but rather something that gives her deeper satisfaction. I mean, she does an entire years' worth of course-work within 6 months on top of her regular coursework in order to successfully switch her major. That's an impressive achievement that shows not only is she driven and determined, but she also has the patience and perseverance to pull something like that off. In a world where being a strong female lead now means being aggressive in a power suit or a superhero costume and pretending like you don't have emotions or ever need help from anyone and you may even be a pretty nasty person to the people around you, I honestly think I prefer Miao Miao. (This is not shade towards female superhero's or female lawyers or even women who are complicatedly mean, but I think the sooner we recognize that strength in a woman is something a lot deeper than the stereotypes we've created around it, the better.)

Some people are going to have problems with Miao Miao's makeover in this drama (because everybody hates makeovers now, apparently), but I'm in the minority on that one as I enjoy a good makeover. And the makeover here is one of the best. It's not a quick, one and done, kind of thing, but a gradual change from beginning of the drama to the end. I guess you really shouldn't even call it a makeover but a transformation. Her friends ultimately doomed attempt at fixing her hair, wearing sunscreen more often that has unintended benefits, refusing to get braces every time her mom tries to convince her only to turn around and do it after a comment by a classmate, going through an entire trial-and-error ordeal with contacts and glasses before eventually getting laser eye surgery. I was very impressed with how they handled her physical transformation as something gradual over time, and never treating it as something she Had to do to be pretty, but also not acting like personal appearance isn't important to young girls, and none of us ever do things to try and be prettier. For better or worse, these are things most of us go through, and as long as there are humans, there will be the desire to mold ourselves and change ourselves in an effort to fit in and be liked. I would much rather have a story like this then stories that pretend young girls have to just be confident no matter what. Talk about Not realistic.

(I think it's also worth noting here how accepting western culture is of plastic surgery and other procedures that permanently alter our bodies for the express purpose of achieving a specific look, often to fit in or deal with some sort of insecurity, yet we're deeply resistant to makeovers. I find this to be a strange disconnect. The same underlying issues that make us desire a magical makeover transformation are what make us desire to change our bodies in more permanent ways as well. Just some food for thought.)

A nice thing about this story is that there's never any real meanness or bullying directed at Miao Miao by the majority of characters. She has actual friends who are encouraging and loving and want the best for her. The two main guys both like her when she's 'awkward/gawky/unattractive,' and not for inexplicable reasons, but because they genuinely like her. Her parents don't talk her down or lament that she's not like their friends' kids. If anything, her younger sister is meaner to her than anyone else, and that just comes with the territory of siblings, lol. I don't think they necessarily had to go this route. They certainly could have created some bullies for Miao Miao to face, but I think the route they took ultimately aided in the messaging of the story. There's an overall focus with A Little Thing Called First Love on perception and how it can affect us. How we perceive ourselves, how we perceive others, how others perceive us. It's not necessarily explicitly discussed, but I think you can feel it as you watch.

This message is especially strong towards the end when Miao Miao and You Nian break up, and it's where I think the crux of the drama's message is. The circumstances of Miao Miao and You Nian's breakup are a bit silly, on their face, but there's something going on in the subtext that's important and that a lot of people have probably missed. Miao Miao has gone through this beautiful transformation throughout the story, not just physically but psychologically as well, and she's now at what would typically be considered the final stage in the transformation. She's now conventionally pretty by her culture's standards, dating a good looking and very talented young man, and she's on her way to pursuing a serious fashion career. She's also gained a lot of real confidence over the course of the story. At the beginning of the drama, she never would have approached You Nian herself, but now she's doing it all the time. By outward standards, she has emerged from the chrysalis and is a beautiful butterlfy. But the insecurity that always made her so unhappy with her appearance and too afraid of openly pursuing a friendship with You Nian is still there. It hasn't gone away just because she now has pale skin and straight teeth and pretty hair. It's why she followed You Nian around for so long but could never openly try and be his friend, it's why she avoided telling others about her and You Nian's relationship after they started dating, and it's the real reason she breaks up with him. She's never felt good enough to be around him, and she has doubts about their relationship. Maybe he doesn't really like her after all, and one day, he'll realize his mistake and break up with her. So she beats him to it, cuts him off at the pass, probably thinking she's saving herself from future disappointment. But it's really just that big, mean monster called insecurity holding the puppet strings. In that way, I think breaking up was good for her. Through breaking up, Miao Miao had to learn how to be alone, not constantly pining for someone but being okay with just being with herself. She'd never had to do that before, because she always had You Nian to pine after. I really don't advocate for final hour breakups/separations in dramas. I never see them work. But I fully understand and appreciate it here.

This part of the review is a side note, but everyone always wants to know about second lead feels, so I'll share my experience. I don't typically experience second lead feels. I go into every drama with the desire to support the story's OTP. Sometimes that means dropping a drama if I can't get behind the main couple. Other times, it means taking any possible feelings I might have for the second male lead and placing them in a locked box and throwing it into the ocean. Usually, it means wanting to throw any second leads trying to interfere in the main couple's relationship into said ocean, because meddling with true love should be a crime.

In what is part of a select group of extremely rare cases for me, I had some strong second lead feels in this drama for a portion of its run. Not in a 'I wish the second lead were the lead' kind of way, but definitely in a 'I am having a hard time choosing between these two characters' and also somewhat 'Can we have this version with this OTP and then the writers go back in time and make another version with the other OTP?' My second lead feels don't last the entire drama, and the writers ended up doing a pretty good job of killing those feels for me later on in the story, but it was a little touch and go there for awhile, lol. For me, both You Nian and Kai Tuo are really great romantic options for Miao Miao, each in their own way. You Nian is a thoughtful, gentle, conscientious, and considerate young man whereas Kai Tuo is more impetuous and brash but with a lot of underlying vulnerability and that perfect ability to tease his crush without it going way too far over the line into mean (they could just be my opinion though). He also outwardly shows (and develops) feelings for Miao Miao a lot sooner, while You Nian takes his sweet time recognizing his feelings and doing something about them, so you really you can't blame a girl for being swayed by that, can you? Either way though, University me definitely would have been swooning over both of them, lol.

In conclusion, I would say this drama did great justice to its source material while making the story its own. I love the original movie to pieces, and I can definitely see the inspiration peeking through, but I never felt like I was watching a reduction of something else or like I was watching a beloved story be butchered. This was a strongly written and portrayed remake that I will most definitely be re-watching in the future.

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There's a lot to love about this

I'm gonna have to review this drama in two parts: before the noble idiocy and after.

Before:
It's been a long time since I came across a drama that balanced romance and friendship so well, with so many fleshed out side-characters.

I loved seeing the progression of Miao Miao throughout the years — her glo-up was honestly so natural, both physically and mentally. He Xin was probably my favorite character; I've always hated female-chases-male-first because the girls are always portrayed as lacking independent thought and being so clingy, but He Xin wasn't like that at all and even when it came to matters of the heart, she kept her head and put herself first.

It felt like almost everyone had their own stories, and evil schemes / misunderstandings were never blown out of proportion — the characters believed each other, trusted each other, and even when love triangles happened the characters handled it very maturely, which was super refreshing to see. The same goes for the families — there were the typical parent-child/sibling-sibling fights of course, but it was still easy to see how everyone got along at the end.

The romance was definitely a slow-burn (my favorite) and there were so many jealous scenes (also my favorite, and Kuanlin's eyes are so EXPRESSIVE).

I also LOVED the fashion teacher!

I also wanna say that this drama was a lot funnier than I expected, and I laughed so hard my abs hurt. I gotta say though, that I also hella cried. A LOT.

After:
Look, I didn't hate the post-noble idiocy as much as I have in other dramas and I felt like they explained the reasoning behind it well, but ultimately noble idiocy is still one of my least favorite tropes and I felt like it was rushed.

There are some plot holes that were sort of left out — like how Miao Miao never asked Xiao Yue about the Doraemon flowers, but overall my rating for this is still quite high, and it's honestly because I loved the 'before' part THAT much.

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