Lighter & Princess (2022)

Amazing Chemistry Bewtween Lead Couple!!! [9/10]

Overall:
to be honest, in the beginning I wasn't expecting much. I don't usually watch these types of dramas, but I decided to give it a shot. There were some dumb plots in the beginning and some cliché moments. But I kept watching and at about ep 15 I was pretty interested in seeing this couple get together. I do think that the drama didn't have to be 36 episodes, and they could've shortened it, but I'm not really complaining. Zhu Yun's parents though (ucchh) especially her mom…
I was comparing this to other similiar dramas (I haven't seen, but seen clips of) and in a way it's similiar, but there's just something different this drama has.

Cast:
I haven't seen Chen Fei Yu before, but I think he was the right choice for Li Xun. I've seen Zhang Jing Yi in Fall in Love, and it's definitely nice to hear her actual voice here. These actors have such natural chemistry, that most of their romantic scenes don't feel acted. The supporting characters were well cast.

Music/OST:
I think the ending song sets the whole mood/vibe/feeling for this drama. I like the other OST too.

Rewatch Value:
I might rewatch the whole drama, but probably more likely that I'll just rewatch their scenes and FMVs.

Now on to the Story:
Where do I begin?...
Li Xun comes off as arrogant to some of the characters, but I didn't really think so. In the beginning of the drama he has blonde hair. He meets Zhu Yun who's also studying programming and at first they don't get along so well, but after going through things together, they start to fall in love. (also after he meets Zhu Yun, he dyes his hair brown, which I think was the best look for him tbh.)
They both join the same ''study group''? at college and he starts calling her princess. You find out why further on...
The get together in ep 18 or 19, and they're so cute together!!

Now the drama mostly hits, when her parents meet li xun and her mom doesn't like him (you find out why).
Li Xun starts pushing Zhu Yun away and Li Xun goes to take revenge on Fang Zi Jing for what he did to Zhu Yun's best friend and Li Xun gets put in Jail.

(after like a 3 year gap)

They meet eachother again and after a lot of drama and stuff..they get TOGETHER!!!

- sorry for this bad review, I just don't know what to write without spoiling too much, but I recommend this drama. -

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Interesting story, underwhelming cast

Before starting the review, I want to emphasize that while I do lean towards certain actors or actresses when I dramas to watch but I am not biased when it comes to good / bad acting.

This is a very real insight into the IT industry in today's world. When you're behind the trend, you lose. When you don't understand the audience (in different industries) well enough to cater your product to fulfil their needs, you lose. When you do not have connections, you don't get a head start. Sad, but that's true. I love the progression of this drama. They brought us back to where it all began - university. This is another true scenario. If you see yourself as a kid who is just attending university to get a degree and earn credits enough to get yourself into the job industry, that is a very old-fashioned thinking. University is where people should get themselves equipped with not just academics but connections and experiences enough to get yourself a good start in the job industry (or even get a job at all). I like how the scriptwriter perfectly categorised these different types of people in university.

The story just made sense to me. Whether or not you're a person with natural talent or just a person who is so-so, the decisions that you make will eventually lead you into different pathways. Li Xun and Gao Jian Hong are your perfect example. This is why the story deserves a solid 8.

However, there are parts where I don't quite like or think the drama is lacking.

1. The female lead. I don't dislike the character but this actress is honestly not portraying the character well enough. Is it just me or the female character has a problem showing expressions? She doesn't look angry when she's supposed to, she doesn't look sad when she's supposed to. When she makes eye contact with the male lead, she is just staring at the male lead, but there is no emotion to it. She is quite stiff overall and I don't know about you, but I can't connect with the female lead character at all. In fact, I think the actress playing Ren Di does better than her.

2. How the story ended with no conclusion on Zhu Yun's parents' approval. So do the parents approve the relationship or not? They highlighted the parents' disapproval multiple times throughout the drama, I am assuming that their approval is very important and if you're heading towards a happy ending for the couple, shouldn't there be a firm conclusion to what the parents actually think?

3. You know how there's one part where Li Xun went to jail because he blinded Fang Zhi Jing. First of all, for a villain like him, why is he only imprisoned in the end? Also, his eye looked perfectly fine to me. Small detail but it kind of bothered me during the drama.

Overall, it is a good story. I like the progression but there are too many areas that are lacking. The chemistry between the characters are not exactly off the charts either. Highly recommend to watch but this is definitely not the kind of drama you'd get withdrawals after it's over.

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A very basic School/Varsity but unique of its own way

As saying before it is a basic varsity life romance drama but is different from others.
Even common fight, romance scenes were not boring or skip able.

Firstly telling the bad part.
This is an IT based drama but as an IT person, I was often asking why they showing these are all so easy to work. Some college student can successfully build an IT company in short time but when a genius comes to picture they all just shake. a new game or software making was so easy because hero is genius, here they were showing. The expert will roll their eyes because of these.
The male lead is so arrogant person. He is terrible team player. Some will be coming in his defense that he was just telling others their true ability etc but even if you are Einstein still you need to respect your team member and tell them your plan. They may be can't contribute like you but can help you in small process.

The ending should have more scenes. Some scenes were shoot but didn't broadcast, don't know why.

Coming to the good part...
I had seen a clip of their romance scene which didn't grab me here but somehow saw a clip of their initial college days which made me curious.

An obedient female lead and a narcissist male lead which is very common in dramas. Later female lead fell in love and try to pursue the male lead, its all in here. Now why its different? Female lead was obsessed but wasn't price of her self respect. Time to time male lead needed to go after her. And the major plot began because male lead did something for the female lead's happiness when she wasn't even his girlfriend. She knows her priority even if the whole world is saying the opposite. She is intelligent, well aware, hard working person.

Male lead was genius programmer. He basically look down to everyone. He has backstory of how he was at disadvantages from childhood and that's why he couldn't afford any mistake. He had shown most of his good only to female lead. It was really surprising how sweet boyfriend he is throughout the drama. But terrible when he needed to push her away, he can hurt her to the core. He has some in his arrogance and you will root for him. He was truly a king like their osts saying. He can build an empire and can win over from scratch if anyone snatch it from him. All he need is his personal navigator. I was rooting for him most of the time because of female lead's believe in him. That strong impact she has on his character.

This drama keeps me confused what character should I like and what shouldn't. At some moment I hated a character and after some episodes I felt sympathy for him/her. At the end I couldn't hate anyone.
There were two more couple here. Their story closure were also very well written. Other support characters were also good. Everyone left impact, No unnecessary story or event was in this drama.

The drama beginning keeps the viewer curious which was good move from the script writer. And the ending was cherry on the top. You will find yourself smiling like the main two characters were without knowing.

It was journey of a boy who always think no one can help him to rise until a girl came to his life when he started to waver tough he wasn't distracted. He had gone to astray by his own choice and when he again started to rise he realized all the success would be in vain if the girl is not his side.

If you like college romance and revenge type drama, this is definitely for you.

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Excellent Cdrama Writing

Actually, I have watched a lot of Chinese dramas. I started with a light drama "A Love so Beautiful". I am quite a fanatic I could say. But I don't have particular favorites when it comes to actors and actresses. Once I read a good review, surely I would watch it. This one is amazing writing. Both artists played well in their roles. The actings are both standouts. With regards story, I will give it high quality with fewer flaws. After watching, I find myself shifting leads. It is quite heartbreaking that the ML who use to give outstanding performances here is facing huge controversy that gives negative feedback to this masterpiece work. I am hoping that he could work on a lot of projects that will make him shine more brightly. May he reflect and put by heart all the good qualities he played into this drama? He is an amazing actor after all. The female lead is also a great actress. This is worth watching a million times.

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Great chemistry but female lead deserves better...

I have such high hopes for this drama because of the high ratings and good feedback. It was also all over social media. So I went into this drama with high expectations, only to feel disappointed at the end.

The leads have such good chemistry but the character of the male lead was so poorly written that I wonder what the female lead sees in him to the point that she's willing to destroy herself for this man. Fast forward many years later and she is still madly and deeply in love with him even though he treats her like sht. Yes, the male lead is broken but it doesn't cost much for him to treat the female lead a little better. Literally the bare minimum. So many misunderstandings in this drama that I feel could have been resolved easily with proper communication. Also, I really don't get why many people glorify the male lead haha. I wouldn't be able to handle him in reality.

Despite these points, I still managed to finish the drama. Probably because I'm curious about how the revenge plot ends. It has some good points. But for a drama that has so much hype, it was definitely a letdown for me.

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A fantastic drama - highly recommend

LIKED
====================
ACTING
The acting is magnificent; the leads can do more with a five-second look than many actors do with 16 episodes. The supporting cast is also quite good.
CHARACTERS
Him - he's an arrogant genius, a true genius. He's not Do-san; he's not just good at programming and weak elsewhere. His genius comes through in his ability to analyze business trends, in art, in philosophy, in predicting people's behavior. He's a slightly saner, slightly nicer Hannibal Lecter. And coupled with that genius is an absolute arrogant belief in himself and his superiority over others, it's both his greatest weakness and his greatest strength. Couple all of that with an iron will and you have a truly formidable and often downright frightening hero. Numerous times I found myself shaking my head at his behavior but fully understanding it.
Her - The extent to which she falls for him is frightening. She will forgive nearly anything he does and has an unshakeable trust in both his ability and his decisions, even though he makes numerous bad decisions throughout the show. You'd expect her scary love combined with his super arrogant, ultra genius to lead to an unequal relationship and there are certainly moments of inequality but overall this is one of the more equal screen partnerships you'll ever see. The directors walked a tightrope here and, for the most part, kept upright.
CHEMISTRY
Romance - these two... I'm not a big believer in chemistry as I often disagree with folks who say characters have it or don't have it but these two? This is the definition of chemistry. This show has some of the finest hugs, kisses, and conversations you'll ever see onscreen. There are several scenes between them that I've watched over and over and over. They are sooo gooood together!
MUSIC
I rarely notice soundtracks but as you're watching the captioned lyrics crawling across your screen - they become an element of the story, reinforcing the visuals. And catchy? I literally can't get Zhou Shen's fireworks out of my head.
OTHER
Cinematography - it's outstanding. It doesn't overpower the drama but every scene perfectly sets the mood.
The Plot - I was immediately hooked and despite some issues (we'll get to those) it worked for me.

DIDN'T LIKE
===================
First - let's be clear - I loved this drama so these are quibbles for me but for some folks they might be more problematic

Lack of growth - Our lead will make some mistakes. And he has some character flaws. And that's okay! But I didn't feel that he necessarily learned from those mistakes or fixed his flaws. There wasn't a lot of observable growth.

Time Jumps - The plot hooks you right from the beginning but... but then we take a LOOONG trip down memory lane to how their relationship started. Initially, I was frustrated as I wanted to get back to the present but this part of the story is interesting so once I got hooked on THAT part of the story I was okay. But it took a few episodes.

Love Denial - one of my pet peeves is when a character decides that their OTP would be better off without them so they sabotage their relationship, often in a way that is nearly guaranteed to turn their partner into a soulless, sobbing husk of a human. Unfortunately, there's a lot more of that going on here than I like to see. Having said that - it worked for me as much as this trope can ever work for me - I could understand the motivation even though I didn't agree with the decision.

School Setting - I'm not generally a fan of school settings and a good chunk of this show is set in school. But without being too spoilery, the ostensible school setting is better understood and more closely akin to a work setting.

Plot Holes - there are some glaring plot issues if you stare too long or look too closely. They didn't bother me too much but the story would have been better if they'd fixed them.

SOME PEOPLE MIGHT NOT LIKE

Work Setting - this entire drama is set around a series of work challenges. I enjoyed this but I've heard that some people are not fond of this kind of drama.

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Satisfying journey of naive teenager to the working adult

their journey may seems so long
Until they met and till everybody let go of their hatred and move on
i think this drama can show their character development
The ML seems arrogant at first but as epoisode go on you may feel he changed a lot
He let go of her ego of being the best or as known mr know it all due to some circumstances
Until the end you can see her character really changed to mature adult and he really think a lot before he going to make decision due to the past mistake
The ML even though he really young but eventually he really did well in this drama
He really have nice future if continue to impove her acting

The FL character is so naive at the beginning with her pure soul and heart that make the ML changes time by time. I think when he met the ML she feel joy and upgraded when he give her difficult task
That make she think she really enjoy the courses and how challeging is it. The parent is really typical educated parent that always save their image. Feel sad till the end they seems not approve their daughter wedding. In real life when a women married they may need their parent to blessing their marriage but at least ML and FL get support from their friend.

The story also teach us about forgiveness
When we get betray, we only think on how to get revenge and that will make our heart fee burdened by that revenge
In the end ML forgive the friend betrayal and start afresh.

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Realistic and Refreshing: A Break from the Usual C-dramas

Pros:
-Realism Over Cringe: Unlike many C-dramas, this series stands out for its realism, a refreshing departure from the usual cringe-worthy moments.
-Escape from Kdrama Tropes: For viewers tired of typical Kdrama romance, this series offers a welcome change, providing a unique storyline and character dynamics.
-Chemistry Between Leads: The chemistry between the main characters is exceptionally good, making it feel like you're watching a genuine couple evolve from their college days into adulthood.
-Subtle Acting and Expressions: The male lead's subtle acting, particularly through eye expressions, adds depth to the characters, enhancing the overall viewing experience.
-Natural and Smart Female Lead: The female lead's portrayal as a natural, smart, and adorable character is a highlight. The absence of exaggerated attempts at cuteness is a refreshing departure from typical character portrayals.

Cons:
-Prolonged Friend Talks: One downside of the series is its tendency to linger on friend-related conversations, which may make the pacing feel slower than necessary.
-Ideal Episode Count: The storyline could have been more effectively conveyed in a shorter format, perhaps condensed to 25 episodes. This would have maintained a tighter narrative without unnecessary stretches.

This C-drama provides a realistic and engaging storyline, a welcome escape from the clichés of both C-dramas and Kdramas. The outstanding chemistry between the leads, coupled with subtle and natural acting, makes it a must-watch for those seeking a genuinely enjoyable romantic series.

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If you are expecting a Prince Charming and a Cinderella-story from this drama, don’t count on it. I get it that not all heroes wear capes, because this one just flicks a lighter but doesn’t smoke. Yes, Li Xun is a genius in his own right, but he could be less cocky and I would have been fine with it. Right at his heels, Zhu Yun attempts to tame this golden retriever by chasing after him, like she’s herself a dog that won’t let go of a bone.

The pacing is choppy, but manageable to watch. Cinematography and choice of music are good. The cast is diverse, so are the secondary characters, but all these good points do not negate the fact that I struggled to finish the show due to various factors. For instance, the inconsistent re-introduction of some characters who show up at odd times in the drama. I feel some characters are even under utilized (ahem, Tian Xiu Zhu) and just serve as props to the main leads, which is a sad fact because other stories could have been more developed.

For example, I would have been interested in how Ren Di’s band went from obscurity to popularity, or how her relationship with Xiao Liu evolved. Or even how Shu Miao took a legal path in her career, when she was a major part of Zhu Yun’s college days. Instead, we see such as useless POS like Zhi Jing be part of L&P board of directors and living prosperously, as if he weren’t the one tormenting Li Xun and Zhu Yun in their early days. Instead, Li Xun and his group were prohibited from joining competitions for years, while Zhi Jing could still pull strings despite being exposed in public.

Another case in point is that both male and female protagonists are unfailingly stubborn, sometimes to the point of infuriating, hardly giving leeway to anybody except to each other. They do this awkward dance where they are hot/cold towards each other, but with other people, they are self-righteous, if not selfish. I get it that Li Xun had a tough childhood, and Zhu Yun an over-protected one, but I wasn’t buying the cool-aid that because of their backstory, they expect the world to owe them something.

Yes, tenacity is good, ambitions are even better, but there’s a limit to which these things are met where it doesn’t adversely affect other people. Good news is, both Li Xun and Zhu Yun learned their lessons, over the course of their journey, to be more forgiving of others. Whereas Jian Hong failed, and in a karmic joke, life serves him an eff you, but Li Na, to her credit, stood by his side despite being given a reason to run for the hills.

Another case that baffled me is the fact that, Zhu Yun’s helicoptering mother, for all her scrutiny and apparently above-exceptional monitoring skills, failed to learn how her daughter ditched to study/work abroad to be with Li Xun, not once but twice is beyond me. I am not saying that I agree that the mother should control a full-grown adult who has her own right to choose, but I find this comically inconsistent. And how Zhu Yun, who is normally pushy when it comes to her boyfriend’s welfare, is suddenly timid at the sight of her mother. Also, the way Zhu Yun manipulates Tian Xiu Zhu to cover her whereabouts, without the latter getting anything in return but a “thank you”, wasn’t really supposed to be how “an innocent young lady” behaves.

The ending for me was anti-climactic, especially in the case of Zhi Jing. Are we supposed to forget how his behavior drove his ex-girlfriend to suicide? How his deplorable actions indirectly caused the death of Li Xun’s sister? Though granted, he did not inflict the final blow, and her death was more a result of a string of coincidental events. Still, he had malicious intent and his lack of remorse didn’t justify the punishment he got, but fully deserved.

For all its flaws, the drama isn’t bad, but not that great either. I only finished this show because of the rave reviews, but I didn’t love it as much as I probably should have.

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Of piercing gazes and steadfast love.

I was hesitant to watch this drama despite the good reviews that I read as, TBH, the title was a little odd. However, now that I have watched it, the title makes perfect sense and is apt!

What I enjoyed:
- ML and FL had chemistry and they carried the drama well.
- Plot was quite intriguing on the whole. I was riveted and I kept wanting to know what would happen next. Plot moved along quite fast. Some lines of the drama were "da bomb" and meaningful.
- This was my first time watching the ML and I must say that he has charisma. He had a brooding and yet, piercing gaze. I liked his role as a super confident dude simply because he knew his own capabilities and he knew that he was remarkably talented and smart. He also had the work ethics to boot.
- I liked that the two leads only had eyes and feelings for each other. They were true to each other.
- I liked the whole bunch of people from Flying Heart Company. They were funny enough. I liked how they ended up supporting ML and FL.
- I liked the supportive female friends in the form of Ren Di and Fang Shu Miao. I liked that there was no b*tch in this drama and that Xu Li Na turned out to be endearing.
- I liked that the drama was pretty realistic on the whole. For instance, I liked how FL's parents were portrayed because it added realism.
- The starting track was dramatic and well-composed. I have been listening to it! The other songs as part of the OST were nice too. The songs fitted the different parts of the drama.
- I liked that the story had a happy enough ending and that everything wrapped up quite nicely.

What I didn't enjoy:
- Oh, I hated Gao Jian Hong and Fang Zhi Jing. They were total scumbags. I hated them to the core. I hated how they were so insecure and instead of using proper and ethical ways to better themselves, they chose to step on others to climb up.
- It was heartbreaking to see how ML lost his loved ones - parents and sister. I hated his brother-in-law.

Overall, this drama is pretty excellent and I highly recommend it! :o)
<3

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College sweethearts against the world

I had been a little nervous going into this as I very rarely enjoy dramas with two timelines — usually the huge trigger event just feels so unnecessary and avoidable with some communication, and the part that comes after is so chock full of angst and uneven knowledge.

That wasn't the case for this drama at all; of course there were things that happened but I felt like all the development was very in line with who the characters were and I especially loved the female lead, who was perfectly written as someone who grew up pretty sheltered and protected but started to come out of her bubble and have her own opinions and dreams. Even when she was left out of plans there was this element of trust and insightfulness that she had that prevented the sort of frustrating misunderstanding I usually hate seeing.

The chemistry between the leads was top-notch and was hands down one of the best part of the show; the banter was hilarious, the tension before they got together was great, and overall they were just so natural with each other they were one of the few couples that I didn't lose interest in after they got together.

The OST fits the scenes perfectly and I think this has quickly become one of my favorite dramas of 2022.

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A marking unconditional love story - You'll either like or dislike it (I LOVED it)

Let me start by saying I'm generally picky with what I watch, and I drop dramas as soon as I feel the story hasn't much going on for itself anymore. I naturally take scores and reviews into account when I'm searching for stuff to binge, lighter and princess included. All of this to say I didn't pick this up with no expectations, I wanted it to be good, and oh my god! It was!

After watching you are my glory, I was looking for another nice modern c-drama with good romance, and while a very different type of dynamics, LP didn't disappoint me on that. This drama is superb. Admittedly, it has several flaws (which some reviews already pointed out here) but I can only think of about 3 dramas with a picture perfect storyline anyway.

A few reasons why I liked this despite the bad boy/good girl trope that I often can't stand to watch :

- Li xun is cocky and rude yes, but not because he is popular, rich, spoiled or something like that. He has a heavy past which has closed him off from social relationships and his confidence comes from his exceptional skills. I'm not excusing that though! Those are FLAWS, which made me want to pull out my hair sometimes but I'd rather take that than male leads who manhandle, BULLY FL's at the beginning of some shows just because they were an "eyesore" to their distinguished sockets only to magically change because du-du-dum *LOVE*. Li xun here isn't the nicest guy, he has trouble with empathy and emotions in general, but he doesn't brag, just does things on his own and others feel bothered because of that. He won't abruptly change, yet he does show signs of wanting to improve by the end of the drama for Zhu yun. He never bullies her, they BOTH bother e/o at the beginning and if anything it feels like they're flirting and in denial the whole time.
- Zhu Yun is never helpless. It is her who comes from a rich family, who has the power. They are quarreling but it feels like she could get out of those situations at any time if she *really* wanted to (she actually did once!). Tbh their relationships of cats and dogs even start with her always coming back to interact with him despite his rudeness.
- They are complementary. The two characters have apparent flaws, especially li xun, but she brings him something just as he brings her something. They are both the person who makes the other better.

//SPOILER WARNING, this section will mainly be me discussing the main characters and the negative takes on them in detail//
Lighter and Princess is above all a captivating love story. Some said and will say that the FL runs after the ML too much and I won't argue with that. However, despite it all it is definitely one of the reasons why this drama touched me so much.
YES when they meet again, it is Zhuyun who still pursues him despite what the break-up did to her, and I can totally see how it may not please some who waited for the opposite to happen, but instead of being angry at that, I was agreably surprised.
She does not pursue Li xun because she has no respect for herself like many people say or because she is incompetent without him, she wants to help him professionally because she values his skills a lot and she herself is every bit qualified to do so. She acknowledges his pioneering dream, relates to it and want to be a part of it. She also feels the most alive and in control of her life thanks to him (his presence gives her strength to follow what she wants, as opposed to her parents who dug a path for her). As much as I love my girl bosses with their own dreams and objectives, I feel it's a bit unfair to label her as dependent just because she wants a man to be part of her projects. Li xun himself doesn't force her to do anything, if she wanted to quit working with him he'd 100% support it as he believes she can change the world (YES HE SAID THAT). Also, Zhuyun only mentions mending their relationship post-time skip when she confirms that he still thinks of her, never before that. She knows what she wants, they've already wasted a lot of time so she doesn't hesitate. She knows Li xun more than anyone, as well as his wounded past, so she sees through his indifference and hurtful words.
NOW don't misunderstand me! I was mad pissed at what he did, and I'd have slapped him across the face more than once. But everyone has different ways of internalizing things, and while I did think she should've been angrier and he more apologetic after he trampled on her feelings in the office (that scene UGH), I think it's one of the rare cases where I was convinced by the sheer determination of a character despite the criticism I might have had. I'm not ignoring the depression she went through at all but she succeeded in bouncing back, and is very resolute in pursuing what she wants. It's her choice at the end of the day so my thoughts became more of a "damn girl, you sure like your man I hope you tamed him by the time you have children" and that's all lol. He clearly starts to open up again, and you feel like she can do it! Both characters stay faithful to their personality whether it be the good or bad points and it diverges from the standard relationship development of clear cut redemption ; it was fresh in an unexpected way.
//End of the section//

The ending could've been longer (I wanted more) and the revenge aspect could indeed have been better. But hey, I came for the romance and I was completely touched by the unconditional love she has for him and vice-versa. I'm not the type of person who looks for 100% mellow, healthy and perfect relationships at all costs in tv shows (those don't pique my interest in the long-term fiction-wise actually) so I quickly accepted the lows of their relationship, which despite everything was so beautiful to me.
If you have experienced temporarily unbalanced (not related to love because he loves her just as much, it's more of a communication problem) relationships irl and can't separate it from fiction, maybe you won't like this. It's what most negative opinions of this drama are about tbh. And that's totally valid, but I don't agree at all with people who claim only teenagers will like this or that all mature people will find it tasteless. I, in fact, experienced rocky relationships but as I said, this drama is not about my life, so I had no problem enjoying the story. It all depends on what type of dynamics you like to watch.

Their chemistry was natural and pleasant to see, both actors convey their attraction through their eyes and they're pretty what can I say? (eye-candy + eye contact is THE combo). They managed not to make me cringe (quite the contrary) at interactions that would have made me roll my eyes (like that leaning in thing Li xun was obssessed with?? if not for his beguiling side-profile and charming eyes that would've been a no no) in other dramas and for that I congratulate them. I like relationships which start with bickering so I feel like I'm in the minority that didn't feel bored at all in the first episodes + it was very nice to see them gradually act like a couple before they even made things official.

Also the kisses and intimacy are GREAT yall! Thank the lord.

As for the osts, they are perfect for the drama and quite a few are in my playlist (I'm looking at you hugs in the snow). The cinematography was really good as well!
A con : the quality of the translation wasn't that good, it's a shame because knowing mandarin will make you appreciate this more.

All in all, a memorable drama with more to offer than the cute and simple high-school/uni romance, which made me pick up editing again after years of inactivity. I say if you like the enemies to lovers genre, flirting hidden by bickering, a relationship that develops seamlessly, and characters that are everything for each others, give this drama a chance !

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