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Overall a very cute romance drama about a girl falling in love with her brother's friend.Although I really loved the show and their romance there are still some flaws. I feel like the beginning, where she was still in school was a bit long. Also there were some cringe moments, like when FL heard that ML has a girlfriend and flew all the way to his hometown at a ver young teenage age. A bit unrealistic.
Their romance really had me giggling all the time but after they got together I feel like it became a little dragged. There was very little story progress after that.
It could definitely be some episodes shorter but still very cute
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Left me with a quote distasteful end
This show started really well, it is cute and fun, and heart fluttering. We can see the progress on how Sang Zhi took interest in Jiaxu and started to have a crush on him, even visiting him alone to Yihe and made stories up about a boy he met online, to Sang Zhi trying to forget him because of misunderstanding, and rediscover her love for Jiaxu, and also Jiaxu who always takes care of primary school Sang Zhi to college student Sang Zhi and then falling for her. Up until then, I like it so much. The corny romance and playful flirt back and forth, but also with care and thoughtfulness.Until when they dated each other, things kinda started to ick me, when Jiaxu keeps "pushing" himself towards Sang Zhi. I don't know why, it feels rushed and it wasn't the innocent love anymore. I just don't like the sight of him "throwing" himself to Sang Zhi. I am starting to get the cringe on ep 20ish, and therefore I skimmed toward the last episode.
It's just very unfortunate that the drama left me with a not so quite good note. I like both actors but I think the problem is in the writing. It's kinda tacky. Really wish I could finish it with satisfaction.
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Gentle, Sweet, but Missing Spark
This is only my second C-Drama, and I couldn’t help comparing it to my first, Speed and Love (2025), which had quick pacing, intense emotions, and explicit romantic tension. So when I started Hidden Love, the contrast was immediate.In the beginning (up to around EP 7), I found many scenes quite cringe, partly because I was already visualizing Sang Zhi and Duan Jiaxu as a couple, and seeing her as a child and him as a teenager felt strange at first. Even though I think the actress playing Sang Zhi feels less immature than some other young leads, the early interactions were overly timid and didn’t draw me in.
As the story progresses, it slowly finds its rhythm. The plot covers different stages of their lives, from Duan Jiaxu as a young adult and Sang Zhi as a teenager to both as adults, which helps ease the initial age gap discomfort. That said, when both characters finally reach adulthood, I still felt the romance lacked the emotional intensity and impactful moments I was hoping for, especially after the slow build‑up.
One highlight for me was Sang Yan, Sang Zhi’s older brother. His playful dynamic with his sister, teasing her but genuinely protective, brought real warmth and humor to the story. His interactions with Duan Jiaxu also add depth and charisma to the overall narrative, and I wish he had appeared more often.
I also really enjoyed the portrayal of the parents, Sang Rong and Li Ping. Their relationship felt healthy and mature, something I don’t often see in dramas. They communicate openly and calmly, showing concern without yelling or drama, which was refreshing and comforting.
Another interesting aspect is how the drama handles Duan Jiaxu’s feelings. He doesn’t suddenly fall for Sang Zhi as a child; instead, the shift in his perception happens later, when they’re both adults, marked by a significant moment around the first snowfall they experience together, which is when he starts acknowledging his deeper emotions for her. That moment helped clarify his emotional transition and made their connection feel more believable.
However, something that bothered me throughout the series was how often the show reiterates that Sang Zhi has “grown up”. It felt repetitive, the audience already sees them as adults by the time the story reaches that point, so the constant reminders became unnecessary.
The ending, with a marriage proposal, felt a bit cliché and slightly rushed. On paper, it makes sense, both are adults, and culturally marriage is a natural step, but narratively it jumped too quickly for me after years of slow, gentle development. I was left thinking that spending more time on their emotional connection as adults before jumping to a proposal would have been more satisfying.
Overall, Hidden Love is a well‑made, wholesome drama with strong chemistry between the leads and meaningful family dynamics. I don’t have major issues with the acting, the performances are solid, but the story wasn’t as captivating for me as the hype suggested. It feels calm and comforting, but sometimes too quiet and contained for viewers looking for deeper emotional engagement.
Final rating: 7.5/10
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Job done !
It was the first time I watched a Cdrama so no other Cdrama to compare to… And I have to say that enjoyed it most of the time.On one (negative) hand, it was for me a typical Romance drama with classic storyline, no surprise, no plot twist (« they lived happily ever after »).
And sometimes too slow and boring (I admit I sometimes used fast forward button).
One the other (positive) hand, you get what you expect from a Romance drama : a love story without (a lot of) troubles (there is the ML’s father story but it isn’t much compares to real life), a happy ending (again « they lived happily ever after »).
A sweet, adorable and heartwarming drama with a beautiful chemistry between lead characters, cute and tender moments of romance and a funny relationship between siblings.
About acting, I didn’t know Zhao Lu Si (FL) before and I liked her acting (made me want to see more cdramas she stars in).
I also liked Chen Zhe Yuan (ML) and Victor Ma (FL’s brother) acting, they were great too.
I really appreciated the directing that allow actors to portray characters in a very natural way !!
I liked the OST and it was a good surprise to find out that Zhao Lu Si is also a great singer. I’ve added 2 or 3 songs to my Drama playlist.
Finally, yes I understand some people could find this drama too cheesy, unrealistic and a bit boring. But from my point of view, it met expectations of « sweet & adorable » Romance drama (if I’d wanted to see real slice of life drama, I’d have prefer My mister, Lost, My liberation notes or similar dramas…)
To summary, if you need heartwarming feelings and butterflies in your life, this drama is made for you.
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Nice to live vicariously
It was the dream version of the childhood crush on an older sibling's friend. It was surreal and satisfying to live vicariously through the female lead as she actually gets acknowledged by her crush and eventually has her love reciprocated. Even when I didn't like the story and execution, CZY was so consistently dreamy that it was all forgiven!Was this review helpful to you?
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Packed with cuteness and yearning!
When I started watching this, I already had heard about it and was aware of the insane amount of hype it got. Curious, I binge watched the drama and honestly, it was one of my best decisions.Plot is about Sang Zhi (played by Zhao Lusi), who has a secret attraction towards her brother, Sang Yan's (played by Victor Ma) best friend, Duan Jiaxu (played by Chen Zheyuan). She tries to pursue him but he looks at her as a sister only. But eventually when Zhi grows up, Jiaxu realises his feelings towards her and goes on to pursue her.
Now, coming to the story. It was literally a breath of fresh air. I have seen a lot of C dramas where the FL falls first and its kinda repetitive, but here Sang Zhi's attraction doesn't have that madness. It's soft, it's youthful and it will surely make you root for her. Sang Zhi is a reserved girl, doesn't go around throwing tantrums (except with her brother) and doesn't do cute things forcefully just to appear attractive, and that's what I like about her. The flow of the story is also good, there are little to no plot holes and keeps you hooked till the very end.
Duan Jiaxu's character is complex yet extremely likable. He had a lot on his plate; but didn't end up making it his whole personality. He's not the typical cold hearted ML who had a dark past. He's cheerful, funny, loves to pull people's legs and also, a very hard working guy. I could never imagine someone else other than Zheyuan as Duan Jiaxu. He acted the character like his whole life depended on it, and nailed it as well.
As for Sang Zhi, she's one of the best FL I've seen. A total green flag. Doesn't talk much, is helpful and also, very passionate about what she wants. She doesn't go around the ML the whole day and doesn't end up making it her whole personality. Zhao Lusi breathed life into Sang Zhi. She has to be the perfect person for this role.
Sang Yan is there for you to cheer you up and make you laugh when things get too heavy. His and ZhiZhi's banters are funny and the sibling dynamic is so well portrayed. Victor Ma will always be the funny Sang Yan.
I would say, this show perfectly deserved the hype it got and is one of the best modern C Dramas in recent times. The OST is cute too, one is sung by Lusi herself and it's very wholesome. The other songs will make you nostalgic too.
It's worth watching. Like worth watching a 100 times!
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Watching this is like having a crush again
This show is pure dopamine; it's like falling in love or going through your first crush again. Has you squealing every time there's ANY development or even interaction between the two leads, and reminds me of the feeling of watching Business Proposal (another show that's like a pure dopamine shot). And all this is thanks to the amazing acting by the two leads, Zhao Lusi and Chen Zheyuan. The two of them were just SO good together. Chen Zheyuan's character is so dreamy, help 🥺With that being said, I still skipped a lot of scenes. I'm not a fluff person and just find fluff, coming-of-age, student life, first love etc., to be a bit too low stakes to keep me 100% invested. The pacing is (imo) pretty slow and really drags. I also struggled with how cutesy ZLS's character acted in the first 4-6 episodes, I ended up skipping those.
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casual watch
I’ve read the manhua and I personally prefer the show, I think the age gap is weirder in the manhua because their friendship progressed further when she was still a kid. Sang zhi was a bit bratty especially at the beginning, but she was in the manhua as well. However j think the actors did a great job of portraying the characters, I especially liked the actor for Duan Jiaxu, he really fit role well. Overall it’s not the type of show that I’d stay up late to watch but I still really enjoyed watching it.Was this review helpful to you?
Pure fluff, cuteness and love.
As someone who stopped watching 'Girl x Boy loveteam' type of series (became a BL and GL fan for a long time), Hidden Love is a great comeback. Just pure fluff. A lot of very relatable scenes and also scenes that can make the viewers believe (somehow) in love again.Both Duan Jiaxu and Sang Zhi was written perfectly, "green flag couple" indeed. Now I understand why people are really hooked up by Zheyuan and Lusi's chemistry, they worked. Their chemistry is just top-tier. Love these two so much, really. But in this drama? I fell in love truly to Victor Ma, SANG YAN!! He is just an overall relatable character, I love him so much.
Story wise, tbh, nothing new. I guess what really made this drama stand out was everything inside this drama worked out so well. From casts to story, up to the execution, its really good. But yeah, when it comes to the story, I am not too stunned or what.
Overall, this is such a good watch. It will bring back lots of butterflies on your stomach. Watch this, its worth it, really! 💞
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Boring and underwhelming
I was 22 episodes in when I decided I just can't take it anymore. I dropped this drama. The only thing that really kept me watching was waiting for Sang Yan to show up on screen. He made everything more interesting and was the perfect big brother character. Loved him!!To be honest, I felt like CZY character was lacking. He seemed too perfect but with an unfortunate family situation. And the chemistry between ZLS and CZY was nonexistent. I didn't feel ANY spark between them. ZLS character had like 0 personality as well. She was just cute and whiny? The side characters were also lacking and to be quite honest - just straight up bad.
I kept watching thinking oh nah this will get good - how can it not? It has such high reviews! But episode after episode, I was just sitting there like okay? That's it? I don't have much to say right now other than I'm just really disappointed in this drama. If you like light and fluffy dramas though a better one to watch would be "When I Fly Towards You" - all the characters in there were so fun and enjoyable.
This show was just not doing it for me.
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The leads completely fit their roles
As expected from our queen of chemistry, Zhao Lusi, speaking not only as a fan from her but she is totally great and portrays every drama so perfectly. She excels in every act she plays. Even pairing her from any male lead, every pair she had with, they perfectly fit together.As for the storyline, it is a bit of cliche but you never get bored watching it, binge watching it to be exact, as the characters portraying each of their role did their best to make this modern drama exceptionally good for us viewers.
It is no doubt if this drama will garner awards at the end of the year . 🤍🤍🤍
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Overhyped C drama
As an avid c-drama fan of many years, I was so happy to see both hidden love and WIFTY trending on tiktok. While i absolutely loved WIFTY, Hidden love was honestly a hard watch for me. It's not new to see these types of "crush on sibling's friends" plot, the age gap in this drama was shocking and a tad too much for me to enjoy any sort of romance in this show. Whenever the FL shows aegyo towards the ML, the image of her as a child comes to mind and I just can't look past it TT However, I will say that the storyplot was great (with the exception of certain misunderstandings which dragged on for years and could've been easily resolved if they just communicated), so that's its only redeeming factor. I will give Zhao Lu Si props for her involvement in this drama's production from wardrobe, casting and even singing some of the songs in this show to save money when the original director ran off and delayed the filming. She has many other great drama such as The Long Ballad (2021) and Who Rules The World (2022) which I'll recommend everyone to watchWas this review helpful to you?
