The Best Friend (2021)

Very Underrated!!! Best friends with REALLY subtle texts

Y'all this drama is really good... until the last 2 episodes (they really cut it short giving characters unsual behaviors and rushed AF). But watching 22 episodes is gonna give school youth romance and best friends vibes from the poster's 6 characters. I do not recommend watching the last 2 episodes. With a different ending would be a 9.5/10. It got potential for a great remake (not a season 2) and while the characters' developments are questionable, it is really cute to see their interactions with each other.
Side characters tho... not the best except the book couple and punk girl near the end.


Here are the obvious great things about the drama:
- main 6 characters have back stories that unravels reasonably with their journey with each other.
- relationships are not pushed together but smoothly recognizable.
- actors are really good because they make these quirky students fun and serious as the events meet the characters.
- one of the most "male best friends" a cdrama can get. I mean the subtexts are all over the place and even side characters know that Shao Nian and Lin Xiao are inseperable. Even Xie Ting Feng shares with her roomate character a common in reading "intensive guys relationship".
- best third wheel in Shao Nian btw in trying to make Xie Ting Feng and Wu Ming Hao works.
- Zhang Yang and Li Zan are the best backups/supportive friends.
- Some of the side characters are written so well that they could have been more.
- China trying to bring realistic problems, relationships, and behaviors into a drama? I have never seen that before. Could still work on those focuses but improvement.
- Toxic masculinity/femininity? not present. Characters have their problems and not "rough and tough" guys or "weak and gentle girls". No toxic jealousy/competition most of the times (at least between the main characters)


And now is the spoiler parts:

Here are the potentials they have missed (still great but is why it won't be 10/10 even if the last 2 eps are different):
- Where is my SpongeBob Shao Nian midway? writers left his inner child as fast as we are introduce to his unpresent parents. At the very least he is sometimes quirky with Lin Xiao by his side, but writers really put him as a mature guy many times. This is understandable as his family is a ship wreck - so rich that everyone lives in their own house with no connections between generations. No wonder the health issues his grandparents get and the closest person to him is his sister Xue Tong.

- Lin Xiao has a really difficult past. Dad got loans unpaid, mom divorced and pressure him into a good student, his grandmother loves him but suffers because of his dad, and got a 180 from his best friend in childhood. He never sees his dad - as is all of his family because dad was on the run left and right. No wonder he is sometimes selfish when Shao Nian is not going with him. He had to endure all those so he learned to tolerate others but never shared with anyone. This is why I hoped for a deeper connection with Shao Nian because the writers take off his anger as a subtle drunk sharing with Shao Nian taking care of him. I hope China can be open to portray these serious problems soon cuz it would make a great drama.

- Xie Ting Feng is a strong independent girl who got a crush for the first time and quietly approach Wu Ming Hao as real people does. She is friendly and outgoing so she makes friends with her roomates easily. She even helps setting up her friends with their crushes. But when it comes to her, she had to get Wu Ming Hao to pretend to be her boyfriend (it is complicated because she agreed to be Ding Tan - a side character's girlfriend because she thought her teacher was his girlfriend but then break up because she then knew the teacher was Wu Ming Hao's mom). She then overheard her mother's purpose to meet her boyfriend was because got a good background (thanks to Shao Nian best third wheel) and wanted to secure a job for her brother. Exposed China common values in boys rather than girls but never really got her character's growth afterward.

- Wu Ming Hao has no story. He is the unproblematic rich family boy and a normal student at school. Nonetheless, he is very mature while being the most gracefully handsome guy ever. He is really nice to everyone (even Shao Nian who hated him for stealing Lin Xiao from him) and he is considerate of everyone (even when he misunderstood that Shao Nian kissed him, but being the best third wheel, Ting Feng was really the one he kissed). It is okay to have a normal character to maintain the group relationships, but when side characters have some story, he could have got something with his "I want stable relationship" nature.

- Li Zai is the most wasted one since we are introduced to his unfortunate background only by words and his comedic nature was never explored (he got his twins came in but that did not add anything to his character).

- Zhang Yang comes with Li Zai because he got a normal family background but he dated a rich girl while being a nice boyfriend. He did not come to her for money, but it did not work out in the end. He isn't shy and sticks to his words (even if he would be embarassed). Barely sees him most of the times.

- Xue Tong is Shao Nian sister who has to mature like Shao Nian but takes care of his inner child. She is the most mature person in the drama but sadly we never got her pov or personality except being the mother of her brother's group.

- Book couple was the roomates of their dorm but really got no screen time (especially the guy) and only the girl got her family in an earthquake disaster. Needless to say that got brushed over really quick (in a few minutes).

- The girl who crushed on Shao Nian was cute and really not toxic or obsessed. She even went out of her way to help Ding Tan with Ting Feng so he doesn't end up liked her. Disappeared without reason.

- Ding Tan is a school bad guy who likes girls but he is quite decent actually. I mean he hits on girls without really reading the situations but that is his only bad quality. He listened to the boys, does not fight with anyone, and what is wrong with acting to his own benefit when he is not a person in the friend group. He got isolated because no one liked him btw. But side characters so no development at all.

- Jiang Nan is a tomboy girl who writes music under her artist name and got a great share of personality. She first appears as uncaring and straight forward with her crushes with commitment issue, but that is not all. She used to have a long crush and her backstory influences her songs. She is sad because she couldn't perform when she wanted to and hid away to express her regret. If she was introduced earlier, she might have got a better development.

- Other wasted potentials are Lin Xiao childhood friend (the girl), the school's student president, Zhang Yang rich ex-girlfriend, and maybe others who I forgot exist.


Overall, a great drama deserving of a remake and has potential to be 10/10 if they only fixed a few plot holes here and there. Cdrama has always had good plots, stories, characters but realistically, this is a hidden gem. Underrated as of this post.

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the cutest show ever !!

As someone who really enjoys school and youth dramas, this drama is definetly the one. Each character's story was enjoyable and although there was a couple plot holes or things that didn't quite have it's full potential used, it was really fun to watch. Majority of the characters were so cute (especially Shao Nian) and made this drama as silly and as cute as it could be. The actors did an amazing job on delivering this drama in such a fun way. I think this drama really captures the chaotic but also heartwarming friendship between not only all the characters, but also the few duos/relationships inside. I would particularly like to mention the main two guys and their friendship because as the main leads, I think their story was for sure the cutest and although they had their ups and downs, everyone knew they were meant for each other. I would definetly recommened this drama to anyone who enjoys slice of life/bromance dramas.

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