Love Is Sweet (2020)

The title does not lie at all

I have been watching C-dramas for almost a decade already, but I had yet to find a modern workplace romance drama with such an overflowing chemistry and superb acting from the leads. The last drama I watched of the same genre was a 2014 drama, Boss & Me. Right after that, any of the other dramas with the same genre just could not beat Boss & Me. My point is not to compare both dramas, but I just wanted to highlight how this drama is just one of the best that I have ever seen. Reading a lot of comments here saying about how it's overhyped, the ML is toxic, story is lame, and so on prompted me to write this review. Yes, at some point, those are all true but watching this without any expectations (just like for almost any drama) was what made this enjoyable.

The trailer instantly got me even though I never had plans to watch it before despite liking Luo Yunxi from Ashes of Love. It ended up to be one of the best C-dramas that I have ever watched and definitely my plot twist last year. Sundays to Tuesdays were its airing days and never have I looked forward to these days until this drama came out. Again, there was nothing spectacular about the plot and the secondary couples/leads were such a bore. It was the chemistry of the leads that really brought the house down. Every scene shared between the two of them was a delight that even in the most cringe-worthy moments, I could not help but grin like an idiot. To be honest, I never thought that I would see Luo Yunxi have such a great chemistry with a co-star because I was just neutral about his chemistry with his previous female leads. As for Bai Lu, it was my first time to know about her thanks to this drama and everyone is saying that she is the queen of chemistry which I could already see based on this drama alone. I could probably write an essay about their chemistry alone but let me just save it for next time.

My main point really is that it has been more than half a year since the drama finished its run yet I still find myself rewatching my favorite episodes again and again. It really is my comfort drama. My form of therapy when everything in the world does not seem to go right. Call me dramatic but I never felt sorry for feeling this way especially that the leads, especially Bai Lu called this her "healing drama" too. I know that others would probably think that I am exaggerating but this is how I have been feeling towards this drama. It put me into a severe slump that I just could not find other dramas that would make me exude the same feelings as Love is Sweet.

I also want to take this opportunity to praise this drama for its cinematography because the shots were just really well-thought of (I had like thousands of screenshots!) amidst the outbreak of the pandemic. It made me glare at the other dramas which were produced from the same year of 2019-2020 with choppy editing and mediocre shots. Moreover, the soundtrack is just superb that I am still listening to it as of this time writing this review. Overall, Love is Sweet is the sweetest mature romance drama I have ever seen. I have long accepted the fact that it will take me a long time to move on from it, and I guess that's okay. We all have dramas/films which we could never move on from anyway. Even if you did not like it, I wish you could all find your comfort drama if you haven't yet.

P.S. I am just out here waiting for another collaboration of Luo Yunxi and Bai Lu. Hope no production house would sleep on their superior chemistry and acting skills!

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Great drama but can we talk about the 2nd ML?

First off, I want to say this is a good drama, happy I watched it. The main couple made me laugh and "awe" many times. I love that they didn't waste time being together once they admitted their feelings. They skipped right over "I like you" and went right to "I love you" Although, Yuan is a bit over the top sometimes and not in a cute way, like tracking her phone without her knowledge. I'm sure he could have just asked her... That proposal was super cute though, also Yuan Shaui's reaction to her pregnancy was unbelievably adorable.

I skipped through most of the 2nd couple's story. They severely paled in comparison to the main couple.

Okay now on to what I think is the biggest take away from this drama, Du Lei. He seriously stole the show for me. (To be fair, it’s possible I’m biased because I’m a fan of Gao Hanyu (Kido).)
I have so many mixed feelings because I actually felt for Du Lei. I feel like his back story is worthy of a 1st ML. As if you could pick it up and place it in another drama with him as the protagonist. There’s more backstory for him than anyone else. When I look at his actions from that point of view I feel sympathy for him. As lovely as main couple is, I was watching and waiting for Du Lei to find happiness
This is all true until around ep32 is when the story turns for him. This evolution of his character seems unnecessary at this point. He had an opportunity to get rid of Yuan Shuai already and didn't take it. He could have but didn't. Then 2 years later Jiang Jun's relationship with Yuan Shaui is pretty well solidified and this is when Du Lei makes his play for Jun? In addition to that Du Lei now has shady business dealings which seems way out of character. Also, he's a clever guy, he would know making her friend resign would not be favorable in Jun's eyes. This storyline just doesn't track. It's poorly placed and unnecessary.

I would have rathered him admit his feelings for Jiang Jun, maybe there's still a fight but for Du Lei to admit to Jun that she gave him hope when he had none and that's why he feels so strongly about her. Maybe then they could have remained friends. It would be fun to see Yuan Shuai and Du Lei being friends and still carrying that competitive spirit between them. Maybe working together and competing to be the best.
I just feel like they did Du Lei so so dirty. Even his sister was at the proposal! Dude was just cut right out of the group picture. ??

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A realistic sexy mature romance

I’ve watched hundreds of dramas and I rarely comment on the music because I don’t really notice it. But I have to say the music for this drama really stood out. It was amazing! Another unusual aspect of this drama is how it starts. Most dramas start out kind of boring as they introduce the various characters and their background stories. But this drama starts out interesting right from the very first episode.

In the beginning the male lead makes the mistake of assuming that the female lead is still the same weak soft hearted girl he grew up with. When she was young her tendency to cry over everything put her life at risk because of her severe allergy to tears. But now she’s much stronger and tougher. So when he treats her just like he did when they were kids, their clash of wills is epic.

The main leads issues with each other goes back to their childhood. The male lead vowed to help the female lead overcome her problem. He wasn’t overprotective of her and he didn’t baby her. Instead he constantly pushed her limits and tested her to toughen her up. But his strategy to help her made him look like a cold unfeeling bully. Therefore, when their paths cross many years later, she’s distant from him and doesn’t trust him. Now he has to find a way to help her understand that he wasn’t bullying her back then and his feelings for her now are real.

What drives this drama and really makes it stand out is the romance of the main leads. Not only do they have amazing chemistry but their romance is a very mature realistic one. I love that we finally have a female lead that’s not afraid of intimacy. I’m so tired of female leads that are terrified of a kiss or some skinship. I also liked the second and third couples stories too.

What kept this drama from getting a perfect rating was the storyline. Unfortunately, since their work is in investment banking, most of the terms they use and the things they discuss are things most of us have never heard of. So the office talk is hard to follow and a bit confusing at times. I have to use English subs and I think a lot gets lost in the translation. And even though being allergic to tears is a real condition, it still isn't very believable. What saved the storyline was the twists and turns of the plot in the latter half of the show. No one is who they seem to be and I loved the unexpected surprises.

Overall, this is a great drama that focuses heavily on the romance of the main leads and has some great side characters. I like that even though there’s some angst and misunderstandings nothing gets dragged out for too long. And the office politics aren’t too upsetting like they are in some dramas. Plus the romance is refreshingly mature and realistic. I really enjoyed this drama.

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All Time Favorite

First of all Luo Yun Xi & Bai Lu chemistry is spot on. I started to watch the series 1st for Luo then and also after reading many many reviews and comments about their chemistry. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

It a perfect story of rom-com with office drama. Yuan Shuai is my favorite in the series. He a helpful, caring, loving, cute friend & boyfriend. The way he protected Jiang Jun in past & present was sweet. I must say I laughed a lot. Scenes between Yuan Shuai & Xu Li is quite funny. And the scene between Yuan Shuai, Jiang Jun & Li Xiao Chuan is hilarious. There are many laughable moments as well as adorable moments.

Didn't liked Du Lei at all.

The entire OST of the series is awesome.

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Childhood friends reunite and butt heads in office rom com

Motivated by the death of her father, Jiang Jun applies for a job at investment banking firm MH only to find that her childhood friend /frenemy Yuan Shuai is already working there. He initially doesn’t want her there and tries to sabotage her chances of working at MH, but later changes his mind. Will their relationship turn into something more?

Opinion:
Office drama with an investment banking investigative twist in that the two leads are often working on cases together, checking out companies on behalf of the firm and making decisions accordingly. Later, there is the tension of what happened to her father’s company. There is a second male lead who works at rival investment banking firm and a best female friend character with her own secondary romance plot (involving a handsome but bland Riley Wang).

Note: I initially wrote this review after only 12 episodes and recently updated to reflect changing opinion after getting to ep 26.

Likes:
* Jiang Jun is a plucky female character who may be a little naive and sweet compared to her colleagues but still strong and deeply principled. You can’t help rooting for her as she tries to make it in a male dominated industry (only 20% of bankers are female).

* Gradual reveal of character personalities and backstories is well done. Even Bai Lu’s fellow trainees get a bit of development and second male lead has a backstory that makes you want to learn more. I also like that most of the characters in the investment banking world are edgy — characters that you’re not entirely sure you like but that feel real and complicated . Makes this different from your typical office drama with all fluffy characters

* Investigating different companies keeps the story fresh and brings in new mysteries to solve, which creates opportunities for the two main leads to cooperate and grow outside the romantic relationship. Two early cases involve a pharmaceutical company and an entertainment company, both with shady CEOs. In the second half of the drama there is a bigger case that gets personal for the characters and really hooks you in.

* Gorgeous cast. Seriously, everyone is ridiculously good looking (Leo Luo, Kido Gao, Riley Wang, Bai Lu, etc). I also like the chemistry between the two main leads. I initially couldn’t stand his jerky, controlling ways in ep 1 but he’d won me over by the time I finished watching the available episodes, in part because female lead stood her ground and he acknowledged her strength and began to change his ways. Both characters show signs of development which is a plus, and I really like how much the main lead obviously cares deeply for Jiang Jun even if he sucks at showing it directly to her

* the relationship between the ML and FL is amazing once it gets started. I like that the drama doesn’t end right when they get together and that there is a larger storyline than just their relationship to keep you hooked in.

Dislikes:
*The drama starts with many cliches: heroine has a tear allergy so her life is threatened if she cries; there is an accidental kiss with the main male lead in ep 1 that was about as contrived as it gets; etc. I know this is par for the course in Cdrama land and it does get better. The show also periodically makes fun of itself by acknowledging the cliche which helps

* the male lead is initially WAY too controlling (tries to keep Jiang Jun from working at MH because he’s worried she can’t hack it and will cry, manipulates her housing situation so she ends up living across the hall from him) but luckily our female lead is undeterred and quickly proves she is stronger than he thinks. (Update: Many episodes later I have completely changed my opinion and now completely love the main lead and his relationship with the female lead. 1000% won over).

*secondary romance is my least favorite kind of storyline, involving a female character who seems to have no aspirations of her own other than chasing a guy who may not be that into her. Currently do not care about this storyline AT ALL and end up watching it on 2x speed to get through it faster. (Update: My feelings about the secondary relationship remain unchanged, unfortunately).

Verdict: Wonderful office romance. My favorite show on the air right now.

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Love truly is sweet.

This drama was a bit slow and a bit draggy for me. I had to force myself to pay attention quite a bit.

I fell in love with Luo Yun Xi (Deng Lun too) while watching Ashes of Love and wanted to see Luo Yun Xi as Male lead.

The acting was excellent eventhough the story had a few irksome points (like the whole deathly allergic to tears plot) that annoyed me or had me rolling my eyes.

I like how the characters grew in maturity and chemistry. Overall I enjoyed this drama and I think the title is really fitting, especially after finishing the last episode. Love is Sweet ?

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watch it for the cast pls...

Well the cast is definitely to die for, and the chemistry between the lead couple as well as the side couple was also really strong and beautiful so make those the reasons to start the drama.
=
story- i enjoyed the story really well in the beginning, than towards the middle, the story became a wee bit less impressive but it was still good enough to keep me going on, their chemistry will definitely keep you going even when the writing becomes a little weak, there was some parts i didn't enjoy and skipped towards the end, but ultimately the last two episodes were well made and well written and i was satisfied
=
I liked almost all the main characters as well well as the supportive characters, but i didn't really like the second lead, his character should have been stronger. the side couple was also to die for, and their story was also written beautifully.
i like how the main fl and her best friend (xu li)'s friendship remained strong until the very end.

overall this drama was fun to watch and kept me entertained, i recommend it if your looking for something light and fluffy.

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r/NICEGUYS

Fucking Kido Gao's acting was insane. He went from guy on r/niceguys to an actual nice guy so many times. I could never tell whose side he was on. THE ANXIETY when he had the documents for Lin Tai Mo. I loved his character in "The King's Avatar" and always wanted to watch more of his work. When I saw him appear in this show, I got super excited, although I didn't love his character (as a person) much. I guess you could call him... a SIMP.

Leo Luo grew on me like a leech. I actually fell in love with Yuan Shuai because, honest to god, he's just so lovable. And he looks so fucking hot in those suits. I know a lot of people didn't find him attractive (cdrama subreddit), but I thought he was a snack and a half.

This is only not a 9.5 because of Xu Li. Holy hell, the second-hand embarrassment was strong. The secondary couple scenes physically hurt me to watch through.

Bai Lu was perfect for this role. I watched "Lucky's First Love" after "Love Is Sweet", and it looked really clear to me that her playing a mature and elegant character definitely fit her more. I didn't like her character in LFL. I think she nailed this one.

I think the leads had good chemistry. And I say this knowing that I can never tell if leads have chemistry or not, as I always seem to be in the minority. I always think these people have chemistry, only to have the majority of people shit on me. Take this with a grain of salt.

The music jams. "The Things I Do For Love" is so chill. "Miracle" is so sweet and peaceful. "Sometimes" sounds sad, but you sway with it, and it worked so well with their confession in the snow scene. Let's just say... the music JAMS.

Although there's a breakup—I hate those—I didn't totally rip the show in half because of it. Dude totally could've told her his plan but...

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Chemistry on FIRE!!

I enjoyed the drama very much, it does have a love triangle(which I resent) but FL never really showed any interest to him other than being a normal friend BUT, I found one thing extremely weird which was main driving force for drama in the story, like the friendship of FL with SML, SML was CEO of the rival company in which she worked, firstly SML lied to her about his identity to befriend her and at first he wanted to use her as a pawn to trample on ML but soon due to the heavy plot armour of our FL he fell for her.
Also, I don't think any person in his mind would keep his friendship to a person whom you recently met and who lied to you about his identity...so, this friendship of SML and FL was really weird for me but it was necessary to flow the drama or how it will produce 36 eps?
Other than this the intimate scenes were really very hot! Hottest I ever seen in any kdrama or cdrama, the chemistry was over the top with very much fluff and light hearted moments, the leads trusted each other.
The actor acting for ML really did a great job, I started liking Bai Lu from 'One and Only' and 'Forever and Ever'...she really is a great actress and I personally find her much more attractive than the typical 'cute' actresses. Cause I rarely see much 'mature' type of FLs in Cdrama and Bai Lu is best in them.
I would recommend this to any Fluff romance fan with less angst...A great Drama!

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This was my first ever C drama and it made me start watching C drama.
I love this drama. The story is great, the acting is even better. The Chemistry between the leads is just amazing. And the OST is just the icing on the cake. Till today anywhere I hear the songs for this drama it just makes me smile. This one drama that really put effort into the OST. Love is Sweet is still my favorite C drama of all time.
I love the storyline and the love triangle...what can I say love triangles are really entertaining.

But story does begin to drag unnecessarily at a point but the chemistry between the leads just keeps you glued to the drama.

Overall this is a very good drama, till today I still like to watch the clips on YouTube. I'm definitely re watching this drama again.

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Yes it's sweet

Story: The point that I found uncommon as other recent popular drama is that in this drama the male lead character actually secretly love the female lead for such a long time. And the male lead is more romantic and nostalgic that his girlfriend. The office politic is also pretty intriguing though it's predictable.

Acting: I admit that the main reason I was so eager to watch this drama because of the two lead actor. And this drama is one of Leo Luo best drama for being lead character. Although I think Leo is more suitable in fantasy xianxia drama, but his acting as director of big company is convincing. Bai Lu always identic with badass female character, so her acting as independent office lady is definitely suit her. And I love the comedy side of this drama, it's really funny and silly but cute at the same time.

Music: Not much I want to explain but the soundtrack are amazing.

Rewatch value: I bet after rewatch this drama, I will still laugh at the funny scenes.

Overall: As mention on the title, this drama is sweet, romantic, funny and also thrilling in some episodes. Jiang Jun - Yuan Shuai is one of the best drama couple this year

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