A little illogical and unrealistic but I still enjoyed it
If you’re looking for a show that you can binge-watch within a couple of days, this one will do the trick.As a pouty but highly sensible and emotionally sensitive teenager, Zongyi can be a little cringey at times. There is no shred of subtlety in this man. Remember when you were young and dumb and felt the need to proclaim your love as loudly as quickly as possible? That’s Bai Zongyi.
The love story between Chenyi and Aidi was slightly more interesting because of their backstory – both were orphans who grew up in a life of crime after being adopted by a gang leader – and had potential for some real emotional depth. They had good visuals but their acting was a little weak during the emotionally-charged scenes.
An interesting point that the show brings up: “Is this love or is this admiration?”
But overall, the storyline is a little cliched, there are some gaps in the storytelling, and the story is rather illogical and unrealistic. But is it still worth giving it a try? Yes, absolutely.
Full review: https://asianblreviews.wordpress.com/2023/11/30/kiseki-dear-to-me-2023-bl-review/
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Why Nobody is Questioning it's Ethical values
Kiseki: Dear to Me had many elements I truly appreciated — emotionally rich storytelling, intense chemistry between the leads, and an exploration of pain, loyalty, and connection that felt raw and deeply human.However, there was one part of the story that made me question series's popularity:
A key relationship in the series involves a younger character who is still in high school and portrayed as 17, and his dynamic with an older character develops into something physical. How such as important and sensitive factor was ignored?! Why nobody is questioning it!! Are you gonna tell me 16 is the age of consent so it's okay? No!! The other one is legally adult while the other one is not.
In many stories that walk the line between realism and fantasy, creators handle sensitive age gap dynamics with caution — often waiting for characters to reach legal adulthood before moving forward. That wasn’t the case here, and I feel the narrative missed an opportunity to show more thoughtfulness or responsibility in handling this development.
Despite the powerful emotions and otherwise well-executed storytelling, this aspect made my viewing experience complicated. Kiseki could have been a favorite, but this creative choice left me conflicted.
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It's decent but could be great. The angst feels shifted from mains to 2nd leads
I've put off watching this because I watched the promotional film for the novel first when it aired. It starred Benjamin Tsang and Stan Huan. Maybe because of the budget with the diff media types, but the script, directing, production, cinematography, music scoring were superior than this drama. Although it was 5 mins, it captured strong chemistry, tension, and angst between the leads even with just their gazes and little script.With the drama, it fell flat. The angst with the mains fared weaker than the 2nd leads. Also, with an angsty storyline, everything was glaringly bright and flat to convey such depth. The promotional film did well in utilizing lighting and optics to depict emotions.
Now that I've finally completed it, it was decent. I'd rate it higher if I hadn't watched the promo film. Also I've liked the 2nd leads better towards the end. It's a rewatchable drama for me
Promo film link: https://youtu.be/SfAavpwtTJw?si=8-gEVESmeglVtt8J
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Didn't expect this to be so romantic
The beginning of this drama is a little confusing, because there's a short opening scene in the present and then there's a long (!) flashback that lasts for more than half of the entire series. I recommend ignoring that and just focusing on the rest of the story, which luckily doesn't use flashbacks and flash-forwards as much as I feared.The story itself is good, but nothing exceptional: a fated encounter between a member of a gang and a high-school student leads to them having to live together for a while and slowly develop feelings for each other. The plot also follows the story of two other members of the gang and the love triangle between them and their boss. I feel like the organized crime aspect of the plot should have been explored more, especially in terms of who is aligned with whom and what do these gangs actually do other than fighting each other whenever they meet.
The romance can be good or not, it all depends on personal taste: it feels like the love stories don't have solid foundations and they're mostly based on the ideas of "fate", "soulmates", and more in general the will to give up on anything for a lover. The main characters seem to share this extreme sentiment when it comes to love, so if that's too much for you, I can't recommend watching. I personally found it very romantic - maybe a little too idealistic to feel real, but it's also nice to dream every now and then, isn't it?
I believe that the couples featured in the drama are the best part. The acting is not stellar, but they deliver their performances very well and their chemistry was enough to glue my eyes to the screen.
I can't say that this story was great, or that I'd recommend this drama for its plot. On the other hand, I had fun and the couples are very sweet and memorable to me. I believe you should give it a chance if you like romance with a good amount of angst.
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Okay Storyline with Great Cast
I think I would have hated this show if the cast wasn't as great as they are. I am going to break this review down into partsRui/Zong Yi-- I hated Rui at first and thought that I would never be able to like his character, and to be fair I didn't for most of the show. I had a very big problem with the fact that Zong Yi was a minor and Rui was forcing Zong Yi to house him and was also being weird and flirty with him. I thought that they would at least age up Zong Yi before the actual romance/intimacy was happening but Nope. It was important to the story that he was 17 but I don't really like that there was a sex scene when one of them was a minor and the other was in his 20s. I thought the part where Rui was hidden in the house went on way too long and I was honestly getting bored of it, but then it ended. AND THEN HE WAS HIS TEACHER???? I also don't really understand where Zong Yi's feelings came from since all Rui has done for him was help him with homework (in exchange for cake may I add) but once they got together I didn't hate them. Towards the middle of the story, I started to like this couple more and was rooting for them to get back together when Rui was out of prison, but then they pulled the amnesia thing which didn't really make a lot of sense because he was injured from being punched in the body?? but whatever lol. Once Rui and Zong Yi were back together I liked the storyline with Zong Yi's dad having a problem with them because obviously he would his son went to jail because of this dudes gang/mafia/whatever it was. By the end, I was happy for them and thought their ending was very cute. This review seems like I hated their entire storyline and I wanna add on that I dont!! Just compared to the side couple I did not care all that much for their story. Im sure that many people probably loved their story!!
Chen Yi/Ai Di-- For me they carried this entire show and I think they should have been the main couple, to be honest. I'm kind of a slut for childhood friends to lovers and especially in a mafia show like this I was just bound to love them. Ai Di was my favorite character in the entire series. He was so cute but crazy at the same time and honestly very mature for his age, WHICH WAS 18 THANK GODDD why does every show have to have so many minors??? Chen Yi was also a favorite of mine. Him being in love with the boss at first (who was like wayy too old for him idk why nobody told him this) made the scenes between him and Ai Di even better because I never knew when he was just gonna realize that hes in love with Ai Di (which was so so obvious I literally thought they were dating when I started the show) . These characters had soooo much chemistry I was literally biting my nails wondering when they were gonna get together. I was sitting there so sad for AI Di when it showed him celebrating their birthday alone every year TT. I did not like the fact that the first time they slept together Chen Yi was drunk, and then they didn't see eachother for years. I also did not understand why Ai Di went to jail I dont think they ever explained it. After the time jump I loved this couple even more. Seeing straightfaced, always serious Chen Yi try to figure out how to get Ai Di back was so funny (I liked when he gave him the face pillow lmaooo). When they finally got together I was so much happier than when the main couple got together tbh.
I did not care about the two old dudes at all and everytime they were on screen I did not pay any attention to them at all Im sorry. Im sure their story is interesting but I have no interest in the love story of two old annoying awful dudes.
I would recommend watching this just for the awesome cast, and for Ai Di and Chen Yi. It also has some cameos from other Taiwanese bl actors! Overall I definitely enjoyed this series.
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Watch it If You Enjoy Action, Romance and Drama
This series has everything.Gangsters, drama, unrequited love, comedy, action. What's not to like?
This show literally had me in a choke hold until it was over, and when it ended my only thought was- Wait, there isn't more?
I wish this show had thirty episodes. I'd keep watching these characters for a good stretch longer.
I really like the world they set up (Who wouldn't like a world made up of impossibly hot gangsters who are all secretly in love with each other?) and both couples sold the romance for me. I even enjoyed the little cameos we got, and I thought they were tasteful and not over done.
That's it. My only critique is that I wish it were longer, because I did feel a little bit like they had to rush all of the flash forward scenes just a bit.
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It's been a while since I have been THIS invested in a show & couple!
I started watching Kiseki without too much expectations. I'm generally a sucker for mafia-setting BLs, so I was sure I'd enjoy it enough but I was not ready for just how much I ABSOLUTELY LOVED this show!!!!And the main reason is, as I guess for many others, the incredible chemistry of the side couple! Don't get me wrong: The main couple did a great job, too, but Chen Yi and Ai Di just instantly stole my heart and I rewatched all their scenes several times already despite the show just wrapping last night.
This couple's story is heartbreaking and beautiful and both characters are intresting and lovable despite their obvious flaws. It also helps that both actors are incredibly hot and very skilled in their acting.
Especially Louis, who plays Ai Di, did just such an amazing job at portaying his character! I have never seen him play in anything before Kiseki but I am definitely going to follow up with his career from hereon out as this man has some serious skills. He is able to portray pining & vulnerability in such a raw, open and realistic/subtle way to a level I don't think I've seen in any asian drama for a loooong long time! What a talent!!
The show definitely has its FLAWS - Sometimes pacing is a bit off (things moving too slow or too fast), some of the acting here and there is a bit wonky by main as well as side characters (in a sense of overacting. But overall, acting from everyone was decent enough to not pull me out of the immersion!), sometimes getting a bit heavy on tropes (especially the 'everyone is gay. do straight people exist??'-setup ^^; ) - but THE GOOD - the well written main 4 characters, HOT actors (I can't stress this enough!!), some really likeable and well-played side characters, great opening song and a storyline sending us on wonderful emotional rollercoaster in regards to all couples involved - definitely outweighs these by far!
I also loved the intimate scenes for both couples and the decent amount we got of them. I feel it's enough for people looking for some hot kisses but also little enough to not make people uncomfortable. And it definitely sparked my as well as other fan's creativity to extend their stories in fanworks - and I can't wait for so much more fanfiction and fanworks to come out until we hopefully, hopefully get a chance for a second season or spin-off series (fingers crossed!!)
Generally, if you haven't seen Kiseki yet I definitely DEFINITELY RECOMMEND you watch it!
One of my new absolute favorites that I, for a fact, will rewatch several times for sure!
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Taiwan BLs Strike Again
Time and again, Taiwanese BLs prove to be favorites. The acting and production just always seems to be a different level than what I am used to with most Thai BLs.It's totally unrealistic, but I was hoping for a story that was an escape, and this totally fit the bill. I know a lot of people talk about Chen Yi and Ai Di, and I totally adore them too, but I actually really enjoyed the main couple. Zongyi taking time to warm up and the cat analogy was adorable and fitting. I usually get annoyed by overly sweet tie ins with things like baking, because it often feels like it comes out of nowhere, but they actually layered in that element perfectly (I know it sounds like an odd thing to get bothered by, but I think it usually reminds me of Hallmark movies, which I'm not a fan of).
I was not very excited with the amnesia trope, but it made things a bit more interesting. The reunion scene had me tearing up, which is another rarity. To top it off, the twist in the final episode actually was a bit of a twist for me. I knew something was there, but it hadn't hit me until they revealed it quite what it was, and I'm glad they didn't end up killing anyone off.
Thoroughly enjoyable and one I wouldn't want to miss.
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thoroughly enjoyed this, and the cute appearance of the couple from Plus & Minus was cute. I noticed Yuki from the other couple, did he not get a happy ending in that show? (I never finished it lol)Anyway my thoughts, the main thing that bothered me was Zongyi being 17 and Ze Rui being 25, they could have had his birthday before them being intimate, which I know wouldn't have worked for the prison arc. Another thing that annoyed me is it felt like Zongyi lost a lot while Ze Rui gained. He gained a supportive brother, a good position in the family business, and freedom from the 'Fan' family. He gained a supportive secondary family while Zongyi not only spent 4 years in jail going through what we could only imagine but got injured which led to lifelong complications of short-term memory and his academic future. I know I should look at it this way but I hate when one partner in the relationship suffers more, especially considering the large age gap, you would think the older one would be the protector when it's the other way with the couple.
I am also new to all actors in this drama and feel like Hsu Kai's acting felt a bit off to me. Also when he was doing the kissing scenes and his eyes were open, I felt uncomfortable watching loool. Taro Lin did amazing considering this is the oly work that he's been in wow. In the second couple Nat Chen had the stronger acting for me. Overall i thing the acting wasn't the best for the drama, but the plot saved it for me as it was fresh.
That being said, I didn't skip any scenes, which is a major achievement as lately I have struggled with shows. it kept me engaged throughout, and I had sweat moments. The second couple was also a treat to watch, and I don't believe I've watched any one of Nat Chen's works before, but I am a fan now.
Also, the little twist towards the end was a great add tbh, and loved the shock value. lastly, I wish there was just a bit more about the relationship with the older couple.
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…well yes
It’s fun and addicting, I like it.The story overall ends up being a bit lackluster. However, the actors do a very solid job at making you forget about any flaws in the story with their performances. Especially Louis, he really sold me on his character.
There are some things I really didn’t like in this show like the massive age gap between the main couple or the sibling relationship the second couple have, but I guess you can’t have everything.
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Great Drama.
I really liked this drama, it's the best Taiwanese drama i have seen until now.The chemistry between both couples is amazing and their acting is so natural.
The story is nothing special, but that is not always necassary to make a drama great. When the actors deliver so good, the drama is already a win.
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Such hawt steamy story.
I simply adore their chemistry with each other. Love-Hate, Jealousy, Friendships! everything is there. Protecting your love ones till you're dying breath - how sweet! I love their soundtracks, especially MarryMe <3My ultimate favourite scene is when Fan Ze Rui climbs on Bai Zong Yi and straddle his lap; most definitely HOT! I repeated it many times :P Even just by looking at each other, can really see the sexual tension. Those soft yet steamy kisses is merely stairway to heaven.
ChenYi and Ai Di, well; these two naughty boys really can't lay off each other afterwards. Their relationship truly evolves throughout the series and their shirtless moments is.. MAIGAWD! What AiDi did to Zong Yi is true friendship!
Nevertheless, the story did have few shortcomings; the ending was too jumble up when the previous 12 series the managed to explain things. What's more, having the villain at the last minute and simply be bygones is just messy for me. Really feel like they should really focus more on the mafia sides of the story more; rather than the school life.
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