Reset

Sometimes you encounter a show and it feels like you hit jackpot

Similar to many others who probably got hooked due to the plot about time loop and enjoy a story about solving mysteries. I was intrigued and started on the journey about a timeloop that happens on a bus.

What I didn't expect was how much more depth than it just being a time loop story full of suspense. It delivered in so many ways. Each character brought the story to live with so many emotions left for the viewer to deal with in the end. The protagonists, the antagonist, every minor character left such a inpact as each episode followed.

For an author to write such a dynamic and deep story for it to then be translated to a script for a TV series and executed so wonderfully is something that is rare and hard to come by. Having watched hundreds of shows over the years. There's only been a handful I'd give a 10 star rating to and even less shows I feel incline to leave a stellar review.

However reset ticked so many boxes that many dramas have missed a couple of pros in my books.
The story though may come of as repetitive draws you enough to stay. It's like slowly opening a Christmas present thinking it's one thing but the. being suprised with something even better than you thought. There were funny, frustrating, sad, happy and all the other emotions one can feel in this drama.

You love the characters you're supposed to love and hate the one's you're supposed to hate and feel frustrated at the right moments because everyone played their role amazingly that you were invested and solely focused on the story and what it tries to convey beyond the surface level plot.

I feel like I can't stop singing praises about it and feel grateful to be able to have come across such a worthy series. Definitely would rematch. There was so much character growth and great pacing, I feel so awed, this one will definitely stay in my memory.

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Annoying at times but redeems itself

I chose Reset to be the last of 2022 and first of 2023 - so rang in the New Year with Bai Jing Ting. I saw it was highly rated and was a short watch. I am giving it a 7.5 - a decent, interesting and original drama but with a few complaints.

This first arc of the show cultivates anti-police sentiment. It was frustrating to see the powerless protagonists go through the same cycles of questioning. I was not sure how much more I wanted to see them being badgered or accused of lying or how many manhunts I'd have to watch or how many sneers I'd have to see from the detective.

When the culprit for the explosions is finally revealed, I thought to myself, "Please don't tell me they are going to try to redeem or cast this person in a positive light."

But once the culprit's backstory was ultimately played out, I cried. Heartbreaking. I didn't expect their story to affect me so much, but it explained the descent into madness and I felt for them. The performance is what salvaged the drama for me to rate Reset at 7.5 instead of lower because when I was watching the first half, I was already writing a scathing review in my head.

I will say that I felt the romance addition was completely unnecessary. I was rolling my eyes. The story would've been fine being a pure thriller mystery.

Also... there ends up being no clear explanation for any of the time jumping or looping or why Bai Jing Ting's character's health suffers when the girl's doesn't. Things just happen and you accept it.

I think this can be good entertainment if you can survive what annoyed me. Shout out to Cat Boy - he was a highlight as well.

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the most important thing to know is that I would die without regrets since I've watched this drama.

I rated everything 10 stars
Acting
music
rewatch value
story

I couldn't stress my endorphin/dopamine-pumped brain thinking for flaws
Ahhh


please, watch this drama.
this is 2024 and I'm telling you to drop what you're doing and see this drama to the very end

Aghhhhhh!!!!

and the ML is so fine!
I wish there were more kissing scenes so I could observe his kissing skills more comprehensively.
*thinking* "can I give 9 stars instead of 10 stars for that?"

hmm
nahhhhh!

this drama is the best!!!!!
aghhhh!!!

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very bingeworthy tv show!

ok so this is my first drama of both main leads and i mainly watched for the plot that many had raved to me about. this drama is definitely worth my time binge watching it! i've been a fan of this particular genre with relations to mystery and time travelling related stuff so this is def one drama i would enjoy. for the casting, i think it's pretty okay. however, im not sure if its because i watched this drama when its already finished but i kept skipping many scenes that i found "boring/unneccessary" as i was more intrigued with the ending lol. if you enjoyed this drama, i would def recommend to you "derailment"which is a drama related to time travelling but it isn't recurring time travel like this drama.

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You have to watch this drama - you won't regret it

My all-time favorite chinese drama

Very underrated drama - If this show was released today in all international platforms, it would have the same recognition as nowadays most famous Kdramas (e.g. Squid Game)

I rewatched recently and I still find myself enjoying it so much, (which is rare because I usually get bored when I watch it for the 2nd / 3rd time), and this will typically be the type of drama that I can watch over and over again without feeling a tiny sense of boredom

Everything in this drama is great : the storyline, the filming, the actors, the chemistry, the characters, like everything is so cohesive and coherent as a a whole and I find it rare in dramaland today.

There's so many things to talk about but I think I will focus on the storyline and the actors
It's a Sci-Fi drama but I still find it coherent and realistic if we follow the logic behind (aka time loop), which make the overall very enjoyable and it somehow shows how good the writing is (I can imagine how tricky is to be to fall into something in this genre that does not make any sense). And what makes it great is that this drama also shows a very "human" side to a all the characters which make them very touching - and in that sense I think the drama has also a "slice of life" aspect.

I was touched by every characters storylines - their background, their struggles, and it shows how every individual we meet in our daily life (e.g the bus), there is a story beneath it, and society and life isn't about who is bad and who is good. As a chinese myself I can relate to all the characters storyline as I understand how chinese society can be harsh to individuals.
I enjoy how in the first episodes, we were focused on getting to know what's going on, the logic behind the loop, and then later on how the attention switch to getting to know all the backstory from the characters - which later will help the leads to get out from the time loop.

It also underlines how harassment, in general, could be devastating to families and how words can hurt people. People please be careful with your words, words are powerful : it could heal or destroy someone

Okay now I will talk about our leads : they're AMAZING. like really. The characters are surely not easy to play, but I find their acting very convincing. The chemistry is also there, their relationship doesn't feel rushed or anything but rather very natural (the story is not focused on the romantic plot tough - but towards the end we clearly understand that they're a couple haha.) The characters are very well written, kudos to the writers : all have their own personality traits, their on fears but as a duo their energy match perfectly.

And what a change to see that everyone in this drama is logical, not overly-dramatic, and how all think efficiently. Not useless drama or waste of time with potential characters that could drag the overall plot.

I also want to underline how well the side characters performed (special mention to the one playing the police chief and the one plauing meng meng's mom) - whoever casted those actors you did a great job and you deserve everything in the world

10/10 - Give it a try you won't regret it

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Time loop dealt in detail

I binged it for past few days and I really liked it. The time loop stuff is dealt in a very detailed manner here unlike other such time loop dramas. Like every possibility is explored and every outcome is shown to us in different loops. Makes you think a lot. It was a very interesting watch.

Only thing which was a negative point for me is that they made the FL have a saviour complex asusual! Like I don't mind her wanting to save others but always putting the ML and herself in harms way for saving others just didn't sit right with me in few loops. But either way like they say alls well that ends well, so in the big scheme of things I guess it's all ok.

Acting was really good. Leads especially ML was very good. But the star of the show is the main villain .... SPOILER ALERT....
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The lady was just fantastic! My God her acting gave me goosebumps, so crazy (literally) good!

Anyway the whole bus scene made me realise that cheap dirty perverts roam in buses in all countries and do the same dirty things everywhere! Ughh...
Another thing that this show made me realise is that it is really scary to go and report some crime to the police! My God the way they were interrogated gave me heebiejeebies! It felt so real and scary!

Anyway, a really good show! If you love scifi time loop stuff, definitely give it a go!

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Fun Premise With Little Character Development

Reset was a quick and fun psychological mystery thriller. I typically shy away from the time loop genre as the “what ifs” tend to drive me crazy, but I couldn’t pass up a premise so similar to the movie Speed. The show layers intense action sequences with an intriguing “who done it” mystery, and, at fifteen episodes, the story is a quick and entertaining binge. It had some plot holes and pacing issues, but it was overall a fun and frenetic ride.

While the plot kept me entertained, I found myself frustrated with the characters. Secondary characters, such as the suspects of the bombing and the police officers, are given more character development that the main protagonists. Ziao He Yun is by far the more developed character as he actually has character-driven interactions outside of the main plot. Li Shi Qing is given little to no backstory other than broke college student. These two had loads of chemistry and excelled at the emotional beats of the story so it was disappointing to not know them as well as the secondary characters at the end of the show. More time fleshing out their backstory would have made for an impactful, not just interesting, story.

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Exhilarating watch!

Reset is exhilarating Chinese drama that introduces me to Zhao Jin Mai & Bai Jinting. Great combination of action, thriller, sci-fi and a touch of romance.

What I liked:
1) Acting - Brilliant performances by main & supporting cast.
2) Writing - The drama reminds me of Source Code and Speed. I like the multiple scenarios faced by the main characters. The emotional scenes really packed a punch!
3) Shi Qing characterisation - She is not a damsel in distress. I love her character development. I was impressed by how Zhao Jin Mai portrayed this role considering how young she was during this drama.
4) Ending - I like the ending especially the part which Shi Qing has to lead the mission.
5) Bai Jin Ting - His facial expressions. I like the fact that he is a normal, everyday man (not a muscular hero). He was boyish, nerdy adorable.

What I disliked:
1) There was an episode which my attention was lost. Sometime in the middle of the series.

Favourite scene:
Bai Jinting's emotional scenes.

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