Lovely Us (2020)

AN UNDERRATED GEM

I started this drama while i was waiting for a new episode of the on going drama i was watching , i thought this drama had the right amount of episode and also recieved a lot of positive reviews so i decided to give it a try and i ended up liking it! even more than the one i was currently watching lol. I started it without any expectations at all but i really loved it. I felt so empty after finishing it.

this drama is so underrated, almost everything about is good and the acting is really good! it really is a gem, you can't hate anything or anyone, there's no annoying or evil characters, no boring scenes and no misunderstandings, they resolved everything so quickly. It has hilarious and some sad moments that will make you smile, cry and laugh, they tackles issues and problems in light manner that it won't make you anxious at all, each episode has its own theme and each are also very meaningful. their friendship is something everyone would love to have! it's sooo pure. there is also something about this drama that will make you remember your past self and reminisce your own experiences! a really really fun and wholesome drama, i can relate to this drama in so many levels!

one of the things that i also really loved about this drama is how close their families are! lovely us is mostly centered around friendship and families but also has a hint of romance in it! you'll see so many wholesome and lovely moments between each and every characters. they had excellent chemistry to the point that everything feels so natural, it also has just the right and good amount of episode.


TAN SONG
Li Ming De is really the perfect actor to play Tan Song. he's mischievous and caring, he likes to tease and bicker with cheng zi but also protects her at the same time. he seems like the type to not take everything seriously but he's actually a really great friend. if I was in school again, it's actually not so impossible for me to fall for a guy like him...

CHENG ZI
Tian Xi Wei played this character really well! she's adorable. one of the things that i liked about cheng zi is that even though she's kinda childish, she's not annoying at all, infact i even found her adorable and cute. she fangirls over other ppl, her studies are not the best but her heart is pure and sincere. she knows what she likes.

CHEN ZIU
Li Ming Yuan really played Chen Zui really well. the very innocent guy, the one who has and can do almost everything but never know what he wants. the boy who expresses his love by purely wishing the girl he likes to be happy. he is sensitive and really cares about those who are important to him. i fell for his character the most! i just found him too precious TT

JIN XIAO
i just want to say that Li Ying Ying is so pretty! i straight up fell for her the first time i saw her.. i found her the most clueless when it comes to each other's emotion, not in a bad way she's just not good at figuring it out ig but she's really cool, she's clueless at such thing but she excels in her academics. her reactions at everything are cute and funny, her facial expressions speaks for everything lmao

JIN ZHAO
You Haoran did so well in portraying this character! Jin Zhao is an extrovert boy who knows exactly what he wants, he is most likely to be the mood maker in them.


the osts are so so good!!! i loved the songs, i don't really pay that much attention to the osts unless i really found it good and i found the osts of this drama really good!

i have no idea if this review help since it's kinda messy and late lol but i hope it did! 'lovely us' is such an underrated gem, glad i discovered this drama, you should give it a try! we all have different preferences, but for me personally, i loved and enjoyed it.. im not really the type of person who prefers this type of drama but for some reason, i found myself liking and enjoying it :>

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"I wish that the girl I like can honestly just be herself, bravely face challenges and realize her dreams. Then she can set off in the direction she likes, slowly make her way forward and live happily ever after"
I SERIOUSLY CANT BELIEVE A WISH CAN HURT ME THIS MUCH

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Short and Sweet Adolescent/Slice of Life Story

A short and sweet adolescent story that’s a really easy watch. If you’re like me and need a realistic slice of life drama, then you should watch this. It’s a good show to watch while taking a break from the fast-paced and intense dramas. It focuses on five childhood friends and their school lives, home lives, and their families. I like the friendships of these five, and their group is really endearing and will remind you of your childhood friends. The actors are no doubt young and inexperienced, but they do a good job and are endearing to watch. The couple that goes from friends to lovers is also sweet to watch and very natural. There’s nothing to dislike in this show except maybe the slight vague ending for one of the supposed couples, but that’s minor and doesn’t take away from the overall enjoyment of the show.

Also, the OST is mellow and upbeat and really suits the tone of the show.

Overall this is a good show to pick up on rainy days when you need a break from the usual and just want a simple story. It’s realistic, funny in parts, fluffy, and refreshing. It also has a good re-watch value on days you need a light-hearted pick-me-up drama.

OST pushes it to 8/10

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Warm and Nostalgic!

This drama is like stepping into a time capsule of warm, fuzzy feelings. It's packed with nostalgia that takes you back to those precious moments of friendship, school, and family. The casting is on point, with each actor perfectly fitting their characters and bringing them to life. It's hilarious too! Some scenes had me laughing so hard, I thought I'd burst. But don't be fooled, because it can tug at your heartstrings too. I mean, seriously, episode 11 hit me like a ton of bricks. Cue the ugly cry!

Now, let's talk about Tan Song and Cheng Zi. Their love story is a slow burn that's totally worth the wait. I was rooting for them from the beginning, and their emotional journey had me hooked. But what I really crave is the story of the second lead. They have the same captivating personality, and their unresolved ending left me hanging. It's a total cliffhanger, and I can't help but wonder what happens next, especially with Tan Song's cousin making a comeback. A little hint in the end would have put my restless mind at ease.

I really appreciate the incredible cinematography. It's a visual feast, especially considering it's a Cattree creation. I was amazed by the stunning shots that perfectly captured the essence of each scene. The intro is cute, no doubt, but I secretly wished for an extra dose of nostalgia, just like "When I Fly Into You's" intro.

But overall, this drama is absolutely fantastic. It has that special something that lingers in your heart, making you miss the characters even before it's over. I might just find myself rewatching it someday, to relive those beautiful moments.

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Amazing story line

This series was the best honestly the story line was good and it had me laughing so much it was so much fun to watch. The actors and actresses did an amazing job portraying the characters.
The story line was very relatable in so many ways in terms of school and personal lives of teenagers. They touched on many issues like parents tryna get closer to their children to finding first love.
It's an absolute must watch. I wish there will be a season two showing their college lives and married lives.
I love tan song and chengzi relationship development..... They fight like cats and dogs but would always stand up for each other.
The writer really did an amazing job with this series

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Spoilers ahead, careful..

This is a great slice of life school drama, heavily inspired by the Reply series. Though if Reply 1988 is Empire Strikes Back, then Lovely Us is Lego Star Wars, if that makes sense. This drama doesn't take itself nearly as seriously as the Reply-s and there is quite a bit of of overemphasized juvenile humor too. Overall the drama is quite easygoing and wholesome & it has much fewer annoyances than 1994, but the immersion is not quite up to that level.

I have taken off two points due to the following reasons. Firstly I feel that a 16 episode long mini series shouldn't be this episodic. Whenever the characters had any significant progress in their relationships, the next episode sort of washed it away immediately, as if nothing has happened. As a direct consequence the last episode of this drama feels a little like episode 8 of a typical kdrama, sort of excluding the last 10 minutes. I mean sure, I can get onboard with the main couple only getting together in the last episode, but I cannot help but be wanting more. As for my biggest gripe, it's the second couple's story. At the midway point their impromptu appearance on that TV show was perhaps the best moment in the series, that really gave me the feels etc & then boom come the next episode and as if that never happened and in the finale the writers decided not only to not bring them together, but it's even heavily hinted that she flew straight into that Oyang's arms. I'm extremely displeased about that, to say the least.

The cinematographer overused background obliteration, so the rather well made sets had very little opportunity to shine. Though admittedly this did not bother me too much.

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My comfort characters

This is one of those cdramas I really wish were longer because from start to finish it was just so solid and I really wanted the side characters to have bigger subplots.

Overall, there's not that much about the characters dreams or career ambitions — it didn't bother me, but it surprised me because that's often a topic that youth cdramas really double down on. Instead, I really loved the emphasis on family and friendship throughout the show — this is slice-of-life as its best; the topics it covers are really relatable and moving, it's heart-wrenching sometimes but stays very realistic.

I also just really loved the relationship between the two leads; they had a few ups and downs but Tan Song and Cheng Zi really embody why my favorite trope is friends-to-lovers. The support they had for each other throughout everything, the way they understood each other's little quirks, the way they talked through little conflicts, and the teasing and joking around...it was just a really healthy and fun relationship and this is one of those couples that didn't at all at more boring after they got together.

There's not really much of a plot but I didn't need one. This is one of those coming-of-age dramas where you just grow to love spending time with the characters, no matter what they're doing.

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One of the best friendship dramas

This drama gives you everything; romance, friendship, bromance and family love. The story is simple, sweet and very heartwarming as 5 friends stick up together from their childhood days.

Story:
Its about 5 friends who grew up together in the same area and who are friends from their childhood. The two leads bicker alot from their childhood and fight alot but when someone does anything to one of them, they fight for them. The story is mainly set up in their school times in the year 2007/8. The bromance is also strong in this drama with all the cast showing genuine friendship with each other. The family of each friends are very close to one another and they all are like a big family. The main interesting thing about this drama is that there are no misunderstanding between anyone of them, no major fights but lots of cute jealousy that you will enjoy.

Acting:
Everyone played their part so good that you will be immersed in their roles. I loved everyone's acting as they seemed very real and heartwarming.

Music:
This is one of the few dramas where the music goes well along with the story. I enjoyed the music as well.

Lastly, I would 100 percent recommend you to watch this drama. I wish it was more than 16 episodes. The episodes didn't seemed rush but, it had its own pace. I hope you'll give this drama a try.

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Nailed the landing

I have tried MANY school C-Dramas, too many, tbh. I started this one wondering if it was time to admit that the genre and I just don't fit well together. That might indeed be true of the genre as a whole, but THIS school Drama blew me away!

The story was intelligent, and the characters given real depth. The OTP were genuinely funny together, never cloying in what I think of as "aegyo", and the journey each character took was well-plotted and credible.

As VERY satisfying as the OTP arc was, and the two leads did a wonderful job with their well-written characters, my favourite role and performance was by Li Ying Ying as Zhu Jn Xiao. High IQ and low EQ, but portrayed with wit and wonderfully restrained expressive facial gestures. I hope to see more of this fine actor in future, and espcially hope she gets roles as good as this one, albeit with a character arc that runs more to what I wish for her :)

I headed my review "Nailed the Landing" because way, way too often East Asian Dramas just don't. But this one really did. By the time Ep 16 started I had scored it 9/10 on my personal Dramalist, but by the time it ended, I had changed that to 9.5. Dramas this good are rare - of the 280 East Asian Dramas I've finished, this only the 24th to score at least 9.5, and only the 2nd C Drama out of 31 finished. It's probably completely ruined me for any further C school dramas, but that's OK, because it was a stunner.

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BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL DRAMA

Where do I start this review. I don't write reviews often unless i really love a drama and want everyone to watch it

This drama is one of the most beautiful, heartwarming, touching dramas I have watched. Friendship to me is very important. And the friendship between the 5 leads is just the sweetest thing ever and I will always remember it. Honestly I am a rom-com person and I don't usually like dramas with slow romance. But for this drama, it didn't matter. Because everything else just made up for it. The chemistry between the ML and FL is perfect as well as the 5 friends themselves. THEY ARE FRIENDSHIP GOALS!!! They may tease each other, argue with each other but they ALWAYS have each others backs. They support each other and guide each other.

And honestly their friendship is not the only pleasing part about this drama. The families. The families where like each other friends. Every parent/guardian adored each of the 5 friends. Honestly it was just the most beautiful thing ever.

However if there was one thing I would have to say sort of left me with mixed feelings is the ending for Chen zui. He was legit the kindest, sweetest soul in this drama. He always put everyone else and their happiness before him. I wish he had got the happy ending that he wanted and well deserved really. But its just a minor thing so don’t let this compel you from watching the drama. I don't want to spoil anything so I won’t say more.

Anyways overall its an amazing drama and I strongly recommend it. If you are looking for something light hearted which will make you laugh and cry but also feel the love that is hard to find these days, has romance and great chemistry between the leads, you should definitely watch it. There is no complicated plot, no evil characters its just a group of friends and five different families growing up together supporting each other and loving each other and caring for each other. Honestly guys you won’t regret watching.

The episodes go by so quick honestly 16 episodes was not enough. I want a season 2 which shows us their college life!!!!!!
Also really want Li Ming Yuan and Silvery Li in a drama together where we get to see their couple moments too!!

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After reading a lot of good reviews and comments on MDL about this drama, I decided to watch this. I am so glad I gave it a go because it is one of nicest youth/school dramas I have ever watched.

PLOT:
The plot is basic. It is inspired by Reply series and revolves around 5 childhood friends who grew up in the same neighbourhood block. They all attend school, are all unique in their ways and it follows their adventures during high school. I honestly loved all five of them - they were unique, loyal and funny as heck. Arguing with families, struggling with studies and finances, the interactions between parent-child, the hope of youth, fangirling, skipping class, falling in love - they do all of this in the drama. There is no negativity anywhere and it showed how real people are. I am sure everyone can find something relatable in this drama. As for me - this resonated a lot with my own childhood. It reminded me of some of my stupid classmates and my own school crushes. This drama couldn't have done it better.

CHARACTERS:
Tan Song and Cheng Zi are cute as eff. Tan Song is a playful, jealous boy that the actor did an amazing job of. Cheng Zi took some time to grow on me but she was very cute and innocent. Their friends Jinxiao and Jinzhaoa re hilariously opposite and Zui(? - i forgot his name) was too cute for words. They reminded me of Reply characters and the way Song and Cheng Zi bicker was very similar to Shi Won and Yoon Jae's bickering in Reply 1997. Their parents are also portrayed as hard-working and supportive which I terribly liked. The romance was lacking but I wasn't missing out on that since their friendship made up for any lack of it.

REWATCH VALUE:
Surely, I'd love to watch this again a few months or year from now on. Maybe I'll see more sides to the characters which I might have missed the first time around. This drama is very re-watchable.

OVERALL:
I highly recommend this. It's not a fancy drama nor does it portray glam lives like Gossip Girl. However, it perfectly captures the innocence of teenage years and will leave you highly nostalgic. It's a bit slow - so if you don't like the characters then you won't enjoy it all. However, if you stick around - I promise it would be an enjoyable one. Every friend is unique and have strong personalities. I am up for a 2nd Season if they ever got around to making one.

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