Cross Fire (2020)

A good drama enjoy it alot

A really good drama. I expected to be all about esports but there was sort of a sci-fi mystery and thriller to it as well. One thing that really hit me was all of the emotional scenes in this drama. I had tears in my eyes during many part of this drama. It was a good balance between bromance and romance too. I also like how each side character had a chance to tell their stories and we get to understand them as well. Glad they didn't went overboard with the romance so that was a plus too. The big brother little brother relationship was great. They both have their own female love interest though.

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Drama about dreams and youth

When I first watched the trailer of this drama, I didn't expect that this drama would be so different than what they promised, but in a good way

The trailer only show us that this drama is about esports with a little bit of time travel element in it. But what this drama never tell you is that it has a mystery element, strong friendship element, even with a bit a dash of romance which is so satisfying

You started the drama by meeting the two male leads, Xiao Feng and Lu Xiaobei, who seemed to live in different timeline. But you soon enough realize that they're connected through the game called Cross Fire, where it allows them to sort of communicate with each other. Their story started to unravel from there, which reveal the story about chasing dreams, being youths, and also about friendship

Good things about this drama:
1. Strong characters. There are many times I get mad at the drama because they just don't treat their characters right. But for Cross Fire, all the characters are strong in their own way. Xiao Feng's team and Xiaobei's team both have their own shortcomings and also their own problems, but you will definitely come to love them. I was prepared to roll my eyes if they treated their female characters like a trash, like many dramas usually do, but in this drama the female leads are very headstrong. They're capable of standing on their own two feet without having the support of the male leads. I fell in love with the 3 powerful female leads who are strong and capable in their own way. Even Xiaobei's mother is also very good
2. Mystery plotline. Like I said, this drama is not only about esports and time travel. There's also a mystery that's hinted since the beginning of the drama until the end. There's this one bad guy and you are led to hate him, but at the end, I felt some sympathy to him because his life ended in a way that's just so pathetic. And the mystery is actually very intriguing, even though a little predictable, and it will keep you on edge each episode
3. Engaging storyline and clever editing. The plot of this drama is very tight, very good, and also very engaging. Believe me that chasing this drama one episode per day almost make me go insane because my fragile heart can't handle all the cliffhanger they throw us. It feels like they're playing with our hearts with each episode and you would end up screaming in frustration because the drama is just so good that way
4. Realistic gaming sequence. This might be one of the things that make me stay watching this drama. It's so good that it prompted me to actually watch CF championship (it's so fun!) and wanted to try the game myself. But my laptop is too slow and not designed for gaming, so I have to forget this desire

Bad things about this drama:
1. This drama has the time travel element, so somehow, this part itself is not really realistic. I think there are many times when we have to fill in the blank ourselves since it's not explicitly being explained. The VR part is a bit ridiculous as well, and even though it brings the plot moving forward, I still think that it's a bit weird and a little bit of a stretch
2. Episode count. Of course, being 36eps, there are some parts that could be considered as filler, especially the love triangle that come out of nowhere. You might be confused with some of the storyline as it didn't even make sense (like how XIaobei could get better)

Overall, I think that this drama is worth to be watched and worth you wasting your time for it. I wish everyone would have the courage to actually pick it up and sit through it, and I'm sure you'll love the drama as much as I do. This drama will be my favorite in 2020. Even though the drama is not too logical and there are some parts that make you just feel that it's silly, I'm sure you'll end up loving all the characters and would cheer for their success at the end

Score: 8.5/10

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Best Modern Drama of 2020!

I normally don't watch modern dramas. Nor have I ever watched esport drama. In the case of Cross Fire, I made an exception: time travel, good CG between games and reality, and two good-looking youngsters as main characters. Who can resist?
Let's see how this drama do according to my criteria:

1. "Sleepness Night": 5/5 ★★★★★
I binged watched this drama from the very first episode to the end.
Cross Fire gives you the right kick for sure. It blends the right degree of suspense, drama with humor and romance. It's not only a esport drama but it is all the personal drama that makes this drama irresistible.
Especially, the 2008 timeline is one of the best-written storylines I have ever seen in C-drama land. 2008 is a year when playing the video game is being condemned as child play, a waste of time, worst, an evil addiction. Our ML Xiao Feng and his teammates overcame all kinds of difficulties and fight their way to the top of the first official competition in China. We have the honor to witness this struggle as if it is our own: fight for a dream only you, but no one else believes in. The endeavor is real, mixed with tears, sweat, and blood. No way, you can look away.

2. Emotional Rollercoaster: 5/5 ★★★★★
For me, both the MLs Xiao Feng and Xiao Bei have done a fantastic job in terms of acting. Their acting feels natural and never over the top. I did not know both of them when I started watching the drama; now I cannot wait for future works from these two.
In terms of romance both MLs have their own love lines, plus another one between two supporting characters Su Jia Yi and Wang Kai. All of them are depicted uniquely different, so there is a couple for every kind of taste.
Personally, there is this only one romantic kiss scene in this drama (not going to spoil which couple), is THE BEST kiss scene I have ever seen in a Chinese drama, and I am not kidding!

3. Natural and Intelligent Story Telling: 3/5 ★★★☆☆
On this criterium, I am quite torn. I love the 2008 storyline. The 2019 storyline has certain gaps which could have been improved, but overall still convincing.
However, the biggest gap of all is probably the logicality of time travel. There are two types of time travel: one type at which you can do anything in the past, which does not affect your own present, i.e. your own past remain as well as your memory of your past. The other type is whatever you do in the past could also affect your own present, i.e. your own history is changed at the same time and you lose all memories of the previous past. Cross Fire clearly depicts the second type. But there are countless scenes at which the viewer is confused whether we are at type 1 or type 2; or more like something between. The writer jumps between both types as he pleases to create drama. One notices that it is clearly not the makers' focus to make the story logical from a time travel perspective. In my opinion, this did not affect the drama's overall quality negatively.

4. "Loveable supporting Role": 5/5 ★★★★★
One reason why I rate this drama this high is because of the great characters in this show. Both playing team of 2008 and 2019 bring their unique characters who are portraited by great actors. I would be sitting here until tomorrow if I let loose talking about what I love about each of them. Cheng Hao, Chang Sha, Qi Ling, and An Lan are my favorite supporting characters. Especially, the character growth of Qi Ling and An Lan between 2008 and 2019 is extremely convincing.
Another supporting character I have to talk about is Xu Wei, the anti-hero of the show. I don't think I have ever liked an anti-hero this much as how I like Xu Wei. The story of how Xu Wei slowly developed from Xiao Feng's best friend to the biggest antagonist of this show is probably the best "Hei Hua" (becoming bad) I have ever seen in any C-drama. Finally, there is a writer who managed to convince the audience why someone would turn from good to bad. I have shed so many tears for Xu Wei at the end of the drama because I sympathize with this character.

5. "Proper Pacing": 4/5 ★★★★☆
With 35 episodes, it is not a long drama, and after finishing it, I wished there are more episodes. However, certain scenes, especially in the 2019 plot, felt slow and draggy. Certain drama between team members seemed slightly artificial as they happened out of nowhere. Proportionally, I wish the author spent more time showing the 2008 storyline. There are many scenes in which the viewers are eager to find out what happened next in the 2008 story but suddenly got cut by the inferior 2019 plot. That wasn't very pleasant. But overall, it is still great pacing compared to many C-dramas I have seen.

6. Technicalities: 5/5 ★★★★★
Another great aspect of this drama is the realistic game sequence at which they use the actual actors and models of the gaming world to realize the battle scenes. The (head)shots, using the right amount of CG are both realistic and suspenseful. It makes me want to know about the actual Cross Fire championship, which is certainly what the makers wanted to achieve. Most action battle scenes in this show are very well shot, with the right amount of slow motions, special effects and sounds. I also really like the songs, a few sung by Lu Han (who plays Xiao Feng) himself.

7. Solid Finale: 4/5 ★★★★☆
I really enjoyed the final games. However, the personal drama bit felt a bit unnatural. And I had to roll my eyes when China had to play against Japan in the final game. What a surprise! There was also a lot of propaganda about China's strength in professional gaming compared to the rest of the world. If not because of, I woud have given the finale a 5/5.

My final verdict: this drama has won a solid 10/10 in my heart. But because of some more rational scores, I give it a 9.5/10. If you love Shonen Jump kind of manga/anime of which Deep Friendship, Give Effort and Winning are the main themes, you are at the right drama. Don't miss it!


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Kotori's drama review seven criteria definition:

After having watched many dramas and also written several reviews. I have detected that I rate dramas based on specific patterns. I formulated those into seven criteria.
1. "Sleepless Nights.": how much I have the urge to binge-watch this drama.
2. "Emotional Rollercoaster": the degree of how much my heart was moving from the acting, scenes, and story development (e.g., in pain, pounding, fluster etc.). The degree on how much I care about the fate of the main leads.
3. "Natural and intelligent Storytelling.": how logically the story was able to proceed and the roles are acting within their characters. I don't have a thousand question marks when watching the drama. The feeling that the makers take us viewers seriously and that we do not always think that this looks fake.
4. "Loveable supporting Roles.": how much I love and care about supporting characters. They are not merely tools to help the main characters but are 3-dimensional and have the proper motivation behind their actions.
5. "Proper Pacing.": how well the drama is pacing and not watered down to fill the number of episodes.
6. "Technicalities": professional camera works and shots, fight scenes, color grading, lighting, editing, music, sets, costumes, use of CGI etc. I try to grade this in relation to the drama budget, so a low-budget drama can equally get a high score when used at the right place
7. "Solid Finale": how properly the drama builds dramatic and finishes with a satisfactory ending. I have just watched too many dramas that start to lose their grip around half or 2/3rd of its way.

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Phenomenal

From the 7 years I have been on this site, I have written a total of 8 reviews. 8. Not that there was not other shows I absolutely enjoyed over the years...but nothing that made me stop and stare at my computer blankly after finishing just wondering what I was going to do next with my life. Trauma, death, friendship, betrayal. This contains all of it. Dreams, and growing up but never giving up. Action, brotherhood, teamwork, and discovering love. Working hard, becoming successful. Family. I don't really know what this show doesn't have. The cast was phenomenal, the soundtrack was amazing and the story was fresh. What really drew me in was the chemistry between the characters Xiao Feng and Lu Xiao Bei... Watching these characters together gave me the chills. There were things in this show I was unsatisfied with but not completely. Almost everything made up for the small things I disliked. This show is full of hope and working towards your dreams. I cried a lot of tears watching this because the emotions the characters showed were so real and raw. This show is a serious yet also feel good show that puts a huge focus on dreams, friendship and teamwork. I will be recommending this show to anyone and everyone!!

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EXTRAORDINARY

Actually I don't really like esport dramas, some of the esport dramas I tried to watch, but I only lasted the farthest until episode 8.
according to the esports genre, the story is certainly not far from games and matches, then it was added to the disputes of several members. Obviously quite boring for audiences who don't understand and don't like this genre (e-sports).

But!
I finished this drama in just 7 days. When I saw their poster, I was attracted to watch because of the main character, so I tried to watch, the first episode of the drama really caught my eye. this is really an exciting drama. since the drama is still ongoing I decided to wait.

What I got after watching this drama was unexpected. cast, music, story, action, emotional, is an extraordinary totality. If you think this drama is only about games, that's wrong. realizing dreams, struggles, never giving up, local wisdom, lifestyle in its time, friendship, kinship, betrayal, romance, mystery. This is what they describe perfectly. I really got carried away into it, so I'm always looking forward to the next story.

This is not a melodrama !!! but my tears suddenly came out very easily in some sad scenes even ordinary sad scenes. even the melodrama doesn't make me so emotional like this. Emotionalism actually entered my soul, so I really enjoyed this drama minute by minute, scene by scene. I always shed tears even for the small and emotional things in this drama. cry then laugh. they perfectly created this situation, even for small feelings. the excitement of the match is no less fun. I really feel brought into the story, their acting is good, the shooting is not inferior. I don't know what magic could make this drama so emotional.
Even because of the good story in Xiaofeng and Lu Xiaobei's life, I feel that esports is a sweetener in this drama. I really like the character Xiaofeng, Luhan's acting is really amazing. wulei is no less great. them and other players make esports fun and exciting.

That I need to emphasize
this drama is not all about games, their stories are more exciting than that, not boring at all. When you finish it you will understand that this drama is amazing, and I look forward to the next season, I even hope that the stories of the two main characters are made into their respective dramas.

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Best E-sports drama! Great combo of Friendship > E-Sports > Mystery > Romance.

Completed - 5/24/2021 (late review from my notes)

This drama is not talked about as much as "Go Go Squid" or "Gank Your Heart", however it was a great drama. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The pacing is good and the two timelines were not that confusing. The acting was great for all leads and supporting characters. The two MLs are great and charismatic in their own ways. I find the 2008 storyline and character development better than in 2019. However, I enjoy watching them simultaneously and when they merge into 2019.

This drama's romance plays a much smaller part than in "Gank Your Heart" and "Go Go Squid". I would have loved to see just a little more of it for the main leads in the 2019 storyline, since it's such a slow burn, first love romance. Everyone talks about that passionate kiss and it was indeed good and you feel all the passion and longing after 11 years.

The world of e-sports and gaming are very well done. I enjoyed watching the CGI game play and also when the real actors are fighting. The switch back and forth didn't seem confusing but add to the story. Apparently, a lot of research was done on the game and they also invited popular real-life game players to have cameo appearances. The mystery/crime part is a surprise as I didn't expect to see that in an e-sport drama. The villain was well-acted and you can see how he turned from a best friend to an enemy.

The best part of the drama is the friendship between team members in both storylines. You feel that bond, the struggle to keep the bond going, and all the hard work that they went through. Each supporting member was given their own story and I enjoyed them all. The 2008 team members have better fleshed out characters though. The music is great. All the songs add to the feel of the drama and you feel sad and motivated and excited. There are definitely plot holes as time traveling could create that problem. I overlooked them and really enjoy this drama. I think this drama is more Friendship > E-Sports > Mystery > Romance.

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BEST E-SPORTS DRAMA! RECOMMEND!!!!

This drama is one of my favorites of 2020!! The focus is mostly on e-sports to be specific the FPS game, Crossfire. It focuses on two separate timelines and two male leads. No, it is not boy love, but it is bromance.
Crossfire is not your typical e-sports/game romance drama, it goes deeper than that which is why I love this drama so much! It understands what a gamer goes through or why they choose this path as a professional career. If you're a gamer then you would enjoy this tremendously! If not, I warn you if you're not use to FPS games, you may or may not get motion sickness or may not like the editing at all. The editing of the camera in-game makes it seem like the audience is also "playing" the game with the characters.
CrossFire is set in two different time lines due to a glitch on both male leads' game: 2008 with Xiaofeng (Luhan) where e-sports was just starting and not recognized as a professional career. This is where Xiao Feng struggle with keeping his parents proud by working in your typical office company or doing what he loves. Gamers were looked down upon, however Xiaofeng didn't care and wanted to do what he loves. There was a quote that I really love from XIaofeng where he said he didn't steal or hurt anyone, all he wanted to do was play games, what's wrong with that? Honestly, I can resonate with that as gaming is not always bad, it can be therapeutic. Hence another reason why I like this drama, it showcases how much gaming can mean to people of all ages.
In 2019 is where e-sports is widely recognized and fancier than Xiao Feng's era. We have Xiao Bei who is the leader of the team, Continue. He originally wanted to continue his brother's last project of winning championships. However, it eventually became his own goal as well. Xiao Bei was paralyzed due to an accident in the past but no matter what happens he would still play games. His struggle was different from Xiao Feng's because his father didn't want him to play and he's also paralyzed from the waist down. Xiao Feng's father is a police who originally supported his boys in playing games until the accident and he refuse to let Xiao Bei continue playing. Until he notices how happy Xiao Bei was and that was all that mattered to him.
Both Xiao Feng and Xiao Bei's lives intertwined in reality when an accident happened while Xiao Bei was young kid. Both leads communicate through the game to either meet or fix history. In some ways, history was changed. Later on, both leads meet in real time and work together towards both the world championship competition and a murder case.

There is not many eye candies in this drama, which shouldn't take away from the drama because all the actors and actresses did an amazing job! Pan Mei Ye who plays Su Jia Ying (S+1 in Xiao Bei's team) and Dai Lu Wa (Chu Ge) respectively wow'd me. Both their characters is different from another drama I watched before and they really showcased their abilities here! :) Ofc, Luhan and Wu Lei improved a lot as well! Overall, no complaints on the acting in this drama!! ^_^

However, I do dislike..or rather loathe a character and that's Xu Wei. The best friend of Xiao Feng, honestly he's the worse antagonist ever. I can only say that he betrayed his best friend and that did not sit well with me. His ending did not do it justice at all, I wished for him to rot in prison. >.> Of course, this was not the only friendship betrayals, however the others were resolved between the members. Xu Wei on the other hand, god I wish he would rot. =.=

The romance in this drama is obviously not the main focus, however there is some kissing and relationship problems here and there. Both female leads are not your typical females, they are strong in their own ways. Especially Chu Ge, she may be cold on the outside but she cares for those around her. It wasn't easy for her to open up to people but eventually she did because of Xiao Bei. An Ran, on the other hand, though she's more of an awkward female lead, she was there for Xiao Feng through his tough times and tried to mitigate problems between the teammates as best as she could.

Friendship is the key in this drama because it revolves around friends, fights, betrayals, bonding, and working together towards one goal. Its heartwarming yet can hurt one another.

If you like e-sports, playing or watching games, less romance, more bromance and friendships then you would like Crossfire. Furthermore, if you want to dive deeper into what this drama have to offer on life experiences, and life in general then I would definitely recommend CrossFire. ^_^

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Crying right now!!!

Hello everybody!!

I have just finished CF and it's just WOW!!!
So this review will hopefully very short and I will only tell about, why you should watch this drama. And honestly, there aren't bad points. You have to watch it, promise? If you watched the first episode and you can't watch more, try to watch till the 7th or 8th episode.
Before I am gonna start, English isn't my first language, I'm pretty bad.
I'm gonna list the points, why you should watch this:

1. I'm really not into E-Sports, but I think this drama it's mainly not about that topic. It's more about pursuing your dreams. The drama is really motivating, I can't explain it, but hopefully, you get it. And the E-Sports scenes were so interesting, you have the feeling as you are in the audience or as if you are watching it live.

2. The acting was superb. As a Luhan fan, I can tell, his acting was the best in his drama, he really improved. The whole cast was so amazing, I have no words.

3. Like I told you, this drama is not only about E-Sport, is much more. There are romantic, comedy, dark scenes and sad scenes. The whole drama was a rollercoaster. You even have to cry and laugh at the same time.

There are more points but I can't recall them, but it's really worth it. If you have a hard time and you need motivation, watch it. I guarantee, that you can do everything you want to.
So this was my review, if you read it, thank you for taking the time. And yes, FIGHTING GUYS. YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU WANT, I KNOW THIS.

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It's a story about Achieving dreams the hardest way while making Best friends for life

At first I was hesitant to watch E-sports drama as I don't know anything about this genera
but what got me interested was the First male lead
I was just finishing lost tomb of the sea and he was brilliant in it acting wise so I said I will give this a try just for him
and OH MY Surprise of How good this drama is
I loved the actors playing their avatars in the game
sometimes I wish it was real for them to actually interact with each other like that in reality but that was the beauty of very good CGI to have them friends in the game first
also really loved the story How real it was life like not exaggerated or made up magical world ,, it was real to every ordinary person can relate
The friendship was the best and it wasn't only the friendship between the two male leads also the other friendships between the characters ,, it was like a friendship group that took my heart by storm
I hope I had friends like that care for me and try to achieve our dreams together like that
the growth of the characters was the best ,, you feel like watching the character grow in front of your eyes
starting this drama from average teenagers with different timelines to Best young men and women who achieved everything they fought so hard for in the same timeline
It's a story about Achieving dreams the hardest way possible not the easy way that is handed to you as a gift
I kept spoiling some scene on my feed and on facebook just to get everyone I know interested in watching it
that's How good and recommended this drama is

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the best e-sports drama so far

first of all, this drama is like 200% better than expectation. i was deeply touched by all the amazing casts and crew. ep 11, ep 18 and ep 28-36 are so treasury. i cried, i laughed i was so inspired by the youthful 2019 cast at the same time emotional and amazed by the 2008 cast. luhan has that long hair and shabby clothes and no idol image .. luhan really is goodddd.. out of leo wu's roles in dramas, this lu xiao bei is my favorite. this is a must watch and u wont regret it!!leo wu's no make up face and that shaved hair .. not an ounce of idol image and he is 100% lu xiao bei.. the producer zhang meng's efforts in making him accept this role weren't in vain.. he acts with his eyes and quite good despite being young..

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The best E-sport related drama i have seen

This drama is most interesting e-sport drama I have ever seen. Because game is easy to understand and plot is really interesting. It's not just about playing the game but also the struggle of early e-sport players and struggle of new e-sport scene which is now popular but it became more like a business. it also has some a little romance that is not too much. Writers used game very well and kept it in the series and did not shift the focus to power struggle between rich man and others. Lastly I have to mention the fact that they showed their respect towards real life pro player by showing them and their achievements nad what they did to make their game and e-sports industry popular.

The cast did an amazing job portraying their characters and their feelings. Their chemistry was good too especially Lu Han and
Song Yan Fei. I did not expect any less from Leo Wu, Lu Han, Dai Lu Wa but everyone else played their characters so well.

In conclusion I recommend watching this series very strongly but I believe that it is not something you should rewatch. Because this drama needs to be watched with the feeling of "I am watching this for the first time"

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There are no gains without pains, but if you continue fighting sooner or later you'll be rewarded.

I never expected to have a drama of this genre in the list of my all-time favorite dramas, but here we are - after 36 episodes and bad English subs that occasionally made my brain bleed, I can say that I don't regret watching it. Since I rate dramas based on my personal enjoyment, Cross Fire easily deserves the highest rating I can give. It's a beautiful and wholesome story about youth, chasing dreams, friendship and love, set in the world of gaming and professional e-sports, but combined with some sci-fi elements that make it all the more interesting.

The story is set in two timelines and follows two main characters and their teammates, Xiao Feng, who lives in 2008, and Lu Xiao Bei, who lives in 2019. Due to an unexplained glitch in the game they're both playing, they manage to meet, start communicating and slowly form friendship with each other. Their storylines later converge in real life, but saying anything more would be a spoiler so I'll leave it at that.

What I love the most about this drama is the story, the way it flowed perfectly, the way they portrayed friendships, character developments and betrayals. There was a healthy balance of humor and emotional scenes. After all, life consists of both tragedies and happy moments. Humor was on point, it made me laugh out lout, and the emotional scenes managed to make me cry. It was not all about gaming. Yes, the frame in which they operated was mostly centered around the world of e-sports, but they managed to naturally squeeze in the stories about families and friendships & they managed to make all the characters likable. They weren't perfect but none of them were annoying & most of them had good backstories which made it easier to understand their actions.

Another thing I liked was the portrayal of the game itself. It's a shooting game, and they mixed the scenes of characters playing on their computers and characters being IN the game. The whole 'in the game' segment was really well choreographed and interesting to watch, and the parts in which they competed against other teams were actually suspenseful and exciting to watch.

I would also like to praise the MLs. I'm familiar with Wu Lei's works and he was the reason why I started watching this in the first place. I never watched Lu Han tho. I knew of him, but this was the first time I saw him acting and all I can say is - the man can act! Both of them were really good, their characters were likable and their bromance and friendship was really heartwarming. Wu Lei's emotional scenes were some of my favourite moments of the drama. They all just felt very natural & were heartbreaking. The show doesn't let you linger on heartbreak too much tho. After every loss comes the gain, and in the end it becomes a beautiful story about life.

The unexplained sci-fi part may be something that bothered some watchers, but I didn't really need to know how the 2008-2019 communication worked to be able to enjoy the main point of the story. There was also another sci-fi subplot that wasn't that well explained (it happens in 2008 and is completely unrealistic in regards to the rest of the story) but again, I didn't care about the explanation. It worked as a good plot device that moved the story forward and that's all that I really cared about. Other than those points, I really have no other complaints. It's a really well thought out and executed drama.

10/10 from me and it goes straight to the list of my favorite dramas.

[Fun fact: I watched it together with my 60+ years old aunt who doesn't like sci-fi or any type of unrealistic plots and she loved it as much as I did. We watched dozens of dramas together and this is the only one she openly praised. I was dumbfounded but extremely pleased. If she could like it, anyone can ?]

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