As Beautiful as You

Slow burn romance with awesome chemistry

ACTING: The first time I watched Tan Song Yun in anything was 'Go Ahead' and I really liked her character in that drama. I also really liked the character she played in this drama. She's a great actress and in both had amazing chemistry with her co-stars. However, this was my fourth attempt to watch a Xu Kai drama and this is the *FIRST TIME* I've seen him display romantic chemistry worth watching with a co-star. Certainly, he's a good actor. But his romances had always fallen flat for me in the past. But with Tan Song Yun, their chemistry together was the reason I actually finished this otherwise somewhat boring drama.

ROMANCE STORY: Their slow burn story was worth watching and I loved their conflict / 3rd act breakup. It all made sense.

OVERALL STORY: It was your typical modern CDrama with some intrigue. Nothing new, special, or interesting.

PRODUCTION VALUES: Great

DIRECTION: Fine

WRITING / DIALOGUE: Fine.

MUSIC: Fine.

Overall, definitely worth a watch for the romance storyline (if romance is your thing).

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Honestly to say I was very tempted to rate this 7/10 or 7.5/10 is such an understatement but I will give it an 8. The acting of the cast overall was actually so good, it came across so natural, I was very impressed, especially compared to alot of idol CDramas nowadays where most of them especially the MLs cant act worth a dime.
The romance took a while to start but that’s on par with how almost every CDrama with 40+eps go, so I kinda was not surprised about that, normally I’m against FLs forgiving MLs for lying to them, but I’m ok with how this went and it wasn’t an instant or fast forgiveness, it took time and reflection which I liked.
The reason why I wanted to reduce my rating was cos of the 2nd couple, I won’t even go into the 3rd couple cos I ⏩ all their scenes as I could care less about them, no offense 2 them (BTW I liked his mom), anyways I agree with LiLi not ending up with Xiao but her ending up with that man child (no matter how they tried to dress him up in the later part of the drama to look matured, it just wasn’t working cos he still looked like a kid) IMO is such an insult to her character, first cos she said no several times but apparently no ain’t no, 2ndly there was zero physical chemistry between them but they just made her settle for him cos they were so hell bent on going the nice guy don’t finish last route to make so kind of statement that IMO failed so miserably, I’m so pissed actually about how that storyline ended.
Anyways overall I do recommend.

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As boring as ...

--Positive Disclaimer--

If you are usually not impressed by idol and romance dramas, this one certainly isn't the canary in the coalmine that's going to surprise you‒you are better off checking out Fake It Till You Make It. But if you are the preferred audience, you may find this show to be above average in casting a FL that has a checklist of things such as career, independence, nonbitchiness, professional competence, smarts, a supportive boyfriend, non-toxic breakup, rich dude that's not annoying, blah blah blah. It's similar various other Tan Songyun professional dramas such as A Flight to You, Master of My Own, etc. So if you liked her in those, you'll probably like her here. The MDL viewership numbers and even its decent China viewership numbers clearly indicate that this was interesting for some people. Oh one more thing, the screenwriter managed to continue her creative ascent by topping her previous masterpiece 'Only For Love' ... who would have thought. That's all the good things I can possibly say, if want more positivity, stop reading and head elsewhere.

‒Short Review that ran long‒

As Beautiful As You was a drive-through lobotomy session that materialized when I got the crazy idea to watch airing dramas, even though the only thing airing were the putrid cadaver decompositions in the CDrama wasteland. I also held out the slim hope that Tang Sonyun isn't just going to waste her career making yet another cookie-cutter professional drama, and that this would at least be 'idol-drama good' (aka substandard in all sorts of ways, but with some creativity and redeeming features). Instead I came away as frustrated about her make-believe professional depiction on-screen as her actual career off-screen.

Immediately in the first episode, we are slammed with all sorts of predictable cliches that had my shit-show Geiger Counter going Chernobyl. With every scene, we are given all the telltale elements to predict the next scene, the next plot twist, and pretty much what the ending's going to look like. The plotline is so scandalously see-through that all the viewers should get the 'Angela Baby at a burlesque show' treatment and be permanently deplatformed.

But if you prefer to be selective with your defenestration location, you can take the elevator up to the C-suite penthouse where where a whole boardroom of lazy tropes are stuffed into a Xu Kai you-are-too-skinny-for-that power suit. We have the 8-pack I-can't-believe-he's-virginal uber-rich genius charismatic CEO cum gourmet chef who's socially adept with high EQ, but is completely helpless in expressing his love for his pixie dream girl supersmart competent classmate innocent firstlove interest that slowly realizes they are meant for each other. It's the Chinese-American restaurant menu approach of character writing with the chicken-pork-beef-shrimp-veggie Lo Mein permutations of originality by addition. The only interesting thought that the plot inspired was wondering what glory would follow if the screenwriter instead opened up a school to teach career development and sex ed.

And unlike the value offering from hardworking immigrant restauranteurs, the show delivers little value for its budget or your time investment. The cinematography has all the richness of an Alibaba wholesaler product video. The derivative soundtrack creates the aural experience of being subjected to a discount elevator music playlist while you are trapped and the doors won't open. Even the titles, both English and Chinese, reads like the diary heading of some 12-year-old.

The main leads, being Tan Songyun and Xu Kai are at least serviceable in portraying the ridiculous characters they are given. But this is their comfort zone, where they've done so many similar characters and dramas that they can do it with their eyes closed, or in Xu Kai's case, wearing the same suit from his other CEO drama. We are spared the Wang Hedi CEO stylistic assault, but watching them has all the novelty of watching McDonald's open up another franchise.

And that's the only part that engenders some emotion in me that's not boredom or frustration. I haven't seen Xu Kai enough to care or be disappointed. But I sincerely hope that Tan Songyun showed enough acting chops, unique personality, and potential early on that she can be a stalwart in more interesting CDramas. She garnered pretty positive review from astute observers for her various school and other dramas. In an era where actresses have more surgeries than full-sized meals, she has kept her distinctive look, and not be swayed by the CDrama peanut gallery, whose unmatched ability to call someone ugly has never looked itself in the mirror. And off-screen, from as much one can really guess about a performer's true character, she seems to belong to that precious minority that are still able to prioritize integrity, professionalism, and decency over the trappings of acting fame.

Granted, that hope is born of a selfish desire to see less of Yu Shuxins of the world. But for as much as I mock the parasocial nature of drama fandoms, I can't help but hope for some real kernels of decency, inspiration, and feel-good story for the human beings off-screen. Perhaps she's a one-character wonder. And perhaps she's happy to stay that way. And perhaps success in the entertainment business is even more precarious than in startups where you only strike gold when all the stars align. Whatever the case, I will continue to wish Seven Tan and other similar actors success. If for nothing else than to chirp from the peanut gallery: "see, I always believed she had much greater potential."

--Category Ratings--

- Overall [5] - I give it a 5 for this being a very average show. I typically give popular or slightly different idol dramas that nevertheless inspire seppuku a 5.5. So the 5 rating is more of an indication of how much worse other shows are in dramaland than anything else. Based on subjective reaction or brain cells lost, I'd rate idol dramas even lower.

- Plot - 5
- Theme / Message / Impact - 6
- Acting - 7
- Visuals - 6.5
- Audio - 5
- Rewatch - 5
- Accessibility - 8
- Subtitle quality - 8

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Loving it!!

I read the novel like 5 times before the drama started! In all honesty, I have no idea why some people are hating the drama? Yes, sure, the writers changed Han Ting's character to be more approachable, more human vs the cold Han Ting in the novel. I think that by creating a new backstory of them knowing one another in college really makes Han Ting's love & pursuit of Ji Xing more realistic. I mean while I was reading the novel, I was wondering how would a successful and powerful COE like Han Ting who has invested in so many companies and who is so busy with his own battles have the time and energy to coach and pay special attention to Ji Xing? Like what he said, he has seen so many new start ups and they all have the same passion and drive. So what made Ji Xing so special in the novel? Just because she banged into his car in the beginning? But in the drama, it just plays out so well....this guy unexpectedly met his first love/crush after 10 years!!! And what do you know, she works in his company and in the same building. Squeal! So there he is, using all opportunity and chance to try to get closer to her. And guess what? Her passion and ideals are still the same as in college!!! I honestly believe that he loves her...but unfortunately, they didn't start on the right foot....it was a one-night stand (to her) and they are in a mentor-mentee relationship. They don't know one another on a personal level, like their likes/dislikes etc. So I think that's where the miscommunication started. But you know what, I am loving this and I can't wait for everyday to watch a new episode!

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Once again, Xu Kai takes on a Potentially Good Story which Unfortunately Veers off into the Tedious

A woman who is the brains behind the design of a new medical technology is on the precipice of rising to a new level within her company and subsequently the medical technology industry. Not only that, she seems to be well rounded with a personal life full of friends and a loving boyfriend who wants to marry her. Of course her road to career success starts off rough with her male supervisor knowing her talent but deliberately blocking her growth for fear that she’d outshine him and the inevitable male pig or two who feels he can treat women like sexual objects whom he can harass at his leisure. The first few episodes entailed the FlL dealing with these obstacles in the office with no support from her male or female office leaders. It was infuriating to watch, but entertaining.

Ji Xing (FL) was a strong woman who stood up for herself. Reporting sexual harassment when others tried to deter her complaint and quitting her job when she realized they’d never reward the value she brought to the company. Many of us have been there. So I cheered her on when she made that wise decision to move on. Moreover, when friends, colleagues and even her boyfriend weren’t overly supportive of her starting her own business she pushed forward, making adjustments to the business plan where needed, to improve her chances of success. Loved this.

On a shallow note, the FL looked 35 rather than her character’s age. Good actress, but she looked too old to be in her early 20s. The styling of her hair didn't help and the ML though in real life in his late 20s, looked way older than his character's age. But at least he looked old enough to run a conglomerate unlike most of the MLs in C-dramas who look all of 21 years old. Lol.

That said, I liked the business interactions between the leads and was intrigued by how the romance would develop between them, but I also liked the potential that was the relationship between the FL and her boyfriend. The story started to lose my interest with the contrived breakup of the FL and her boyfriend. The reasons made no sense and was a mere plot device, not well written I might add, to make the FL easily available to the ML. It would've been more interesting had the ML had to fight for the FL's affections with her eventually realizing he was a better match for her than her boyfriend. Unfortunately, no such luck. I could predict where the story would go from here as the plot contrivances started almost immediately after the breakup with the ML showing up at the FL’s home for some ridiculous reason, and in turn, happened to meet her mom who loved him. And of course with him now having invested in her business, mind you he only invested so that he could continue to work closely with her in hopes of then dating SMH, the plot contrivances would undoubtedly continue. At this point, I stopped watching the show. It’s a shame because I really liked the set up of the story, but the writing kind of got lost within itself after about 10 episodes.

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Fill with small and big spoilers. So read at your own risk!

Xu Kai and Seven Tan of course here I came…. So far this is one the best mature business romance dramas this year. Mature ML & FL make the drama not so dramatic and problematic. But still it has unnecessary understanding & prolonged episodes… Haha…

Ok. Let’s talk about drama….

Story about Ji Xing (JX) & Han Ting (HT), university friends that separated & meet up later on. HT had feelings for JX since university days, but they were just acquaintances. On the day of their separation, HT had to go to Germany for study. He tried to reach out to JX to tell her about his situation, but because of the unfortunate turn of events, JX’s phone had been stolen so she never gets the info & always thinks HT just goes without saying goodbye.

Now, many years later, HT met JX again & all the feelings started to come back or should I say, never actually gone… HT & JX come across in their company, with HT as the investor in the company she works on. But like MDL told us, JX who was frustrated with unfair treatment in the company she works on decided to quit her job & start her own company together with her junior, Su Zhi Zhou. After circling around to look for investors for her company, JX finally accepted HT's offer to invest in her company.

Now, as usual, typical ML as investor & FL as the one he invests money in… HT teaches or ‘mentoring’ JX closely… And as MDL told us, with HT backing, JX’s entrepreneurial journey begins to gain momentum. And as HT & JX collaborate closely, their professional relationship starts to deepen, and of course in the end romance sparks fly.
But unfortunately even though HT has deep feelings for JX, he still can’t forget his identity as businessman & investor. One thing led to another, eventually that’s what caused misunderstandings between JX & HT. That in the end at one time made JX run away from HT & they broke up. Just to be reunited in the end… Haha…. Ok. That’s pretty much the story about JX & HT.

Now, the other side story…

JX has 3 best friends, Li Li, Tu Xiao Meng (XM) & Wei Qiu Zi (QZ). But in the drama it’s more about 2 of them, Lili & XM. Cause you can say QZ love story not crossed with HT & JX story.

1st Wei Qiu Zi (QZ). When JX separated from HT, she had a boyfriend, Shao Yi Chen (YC). When JX was about to start her company YC really saw the differences that cannot be crossed between JX & himself, so YC just broke up with JX. QZ, who turned out had long feelings for YC, began chasing & finally they ended up being together.

2nd Tu Xiao Meng (XM). XM is an online influencer & JX’s roommate. Lu Lin Jia (LJ) originally didn’t like XM, due to her bickering with LJ idol. But when they get closer, LJ finds out XM has her own charm & starts to fall for her. XM that thinks LJ as one of her friends never really thinks more about LJ as a man. But time goes by and so the friendship becomes closer & the feelings start to spark too… With the help of LJ’s mom, they finally end up together.

3rd Li Li. Lili is one of the top sales marketers. But because of one problem, she quit her job & later she decided to join JX’s company as their sales director. Su Zhi Zhou (ZZ) long admired Lili, but Lili is in a relationship with Xiao Yi Xiao (YX) & Lili thinks ZZ is still quite immature. So their relationship bloomed late.

Ok. That’s pretty much the story. Now let’s talk about what I like and don’t.

What I like:
+ The mature JX & HT. Although there’s some misunderstanding about HT’s intention for JX’s company, in the end JX understands about HT’s real intention for her company.
+ The communication between JX & HT. Once again, although there’s some misunderstanding between JX & HT, I really like how in the end JX communicates what she dislikes about HT’s behavior & intention. And how HT starts to fix what he lacks…
+ The growth of JX. We can watch how JX blooms to amazing women on our screen.
+ The growth of ZZ. At the beginning of the drama, ZZ was indeed not so ‘mature’, but when he took care of the business & when JX left he started his own maturity & till the end proved that he can be relied on.
+ Lili is a complex yet interesting woman. I really adore her when she can cut loose YX & later just treat him as a fellow businessman. She knows what she wants & she grabs it fully with her heart. & she proves herself as a worthy companion & true friend for JX.
+ Xiao Yi Xiao (YX). XY adores Lili & wants to be with her. But he is also a mature man that knows what he wants & not. & I really like him when he dares to tell Lili the truth about what he wants for their relationship.
+ Lu Lin Jia (LJ) is a childish man. But when he set his heart to the right place he bloomed & became a man that knew his responsibility. I love his relationship with his mom. His mom is also one adorable mom…
+ Shao Yi Chen (YC). Oh I adore him when he can let go of his ego, feeling & decided to break up with JX. He knows JX is not fit for his future & aside from how long his relationship & his own feelings with JX he dares to break up, that’s really adorable…
+ Wei Qiu Zi. She’s one good friend. Although she’s long crush on YC, she never really acts on it. Until YC & JX broke up. Although I’m sure many condemn her behavior. But for me, when you have a long crush (serious crush not just puppy love or admiration) with your best friend boyfriend & can wait calmly and not act anything harmful to your friend or their relationship. That’s something you have to admire.
+ Tang Song (TS) [Han Ting's assistant]. Oh this one very capable assistant. Not many in dramas have I seen an assistant as capable as TS. Usually, it’s either become friendly with ML or they just simply never told us the story. The assistant is sometimes just like an unimportant character in the background.

What I don’t like:
- JX is a childish woman sometimes. She ‘eats’ fully what Zeng Di (ZD) said & not trust HT in the end. But yeah I understand the manipulation that ZD did.
- ZD. UGH…. I hate that woman. She is one stupid woman that doesn't want to let her ambition & feelings for HT. She can’t even see one nice guy in front of her, although he already gives her his real intention.

Overall this is really one good business romance drama with many interesting characters to be told…

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“How to become an excellent business leader” courses

PLOT: Professional reunion in medical engineering of 2 former high school friends. He became CEO (& heir) of a huge group and investor, she is now a brilliant engineer and ends up creating a start-up. The ML guides her, helps her to become an entrepreneur. They face difficulties together, multiple rivalries, and their own mistakes too.

PROS:
+ A superb CL, with great chemistry. BUT they don't have enough screentime together :). The choice to focus on “how to become an excellent business leader” is certainly instructive, but quite boring.
+ The supporting cast is excellent, and some actors are really promising (particulary Zhou Da Wei & Tang Zhen Chao).
+ The story is well constructed, psychologically coherent. The parents are normal, reasonable (which is not always the case in dramas :). I really like the mother-son duo with the uncle and the great aunt.
+ Production is efficient, with no downtime. The images are beautiful and the framing is well done.
+ The OSTs are appropriate, without being memorable.

WHAT I LIKED LESS:
### There are too many characters and secondary stories which dilutes the narration => at times, the story loses its interest :(
### The FL3's character, streamer, is childish (including her outfits) and quite annoying.
### Seven's outfits correspond neither to her age nor to the minimum professional requirements (always in an ultra-short mini skirt or in shorts). This production's choice is very questionable!
### The scenes supposedly filmed in Germany are not very credible (pigeons, Bavarian waitress outfits and incomprehensible dialogues in German with a weird accent).

＼(〇_ｏ)／ Even more, in all C Drams, when scenes are supposed to be set in foreign countries, they just assume that everyone speaks fluent chinese (teacher, advisors, a lot of students, every business person ever,...) without needing a specialised translator.

=> Nice series for fans of Seven & Xu Kai (and I am one of them) but full of flaws and not addictive.

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PLOT: Retrouvailles professionnelles dans l’ingénierie médicale de 2 anciens camarades de lycée. Il est devenu CEO d'un énorme groupe et investisseur, elle est ingénieur (génial) et finit par créer une start-up. Le ML la guide, l'aide à devenir une entrepreneuse digne de ce nom. Ils font face ensemble aux difficultés, à de multiples rivalités, à leurs propres erreurs aussi.

PROS:
+ Un great CL, avec une belle alchimie. MAIS ils n'ont pas assez de screentime together :) . Le focus sur "comment devenir une excellente dirigeante d'entreprise" est, certes instructif, mais assez lassant.
+ Les acteurs de soutien sont excellents, et certains sont très prometteurs (Zhou Da Wei & Tang Zhen Chao en particulier).
+ La story est bien construite, cohérente psychologiquement. Les parents sont normaux, raisonnables (ce qui n'est pas le cas dans toutes les séries :). J'aime beaucoup le duo mère-fils de l'oncle et de la grande tante.
+ La réalisation est efficace, sans temps mort. Les images sont belles et les cadrages bien travaillés.
+ Les OST sont adaptées, sans être mémorables.
+ Specail Episode très sympa.

WHAT I LIKED LESS:
### Trop trop de personnages et d'histoires secondaires ce qui délaye la narration => par moments, l'histoire perd de son intérêt :(
### Le personnage de la FL3, streameuse, est puéril (y compris ses tenues) et assez agaçant.
### Les outfits de Seven ne correspondent ni à son âge, ni aux exigences professionnelles minimales (tjs en mini jupe ultra courte ou en short). Ce choix du producteur est très discutable !
### Les parties supposées tournées en Allemagne, ne sont pas très crédibles (des pigeons, des tenues de serveuses bavaroises et des dialogues en allemand incompréhensibles).

=> Série sympa pour les fans de Seven & Xu Kai (dont je fais partie) mais bourrée de défauts et non addictive.

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The storyline is thoughtfully crafted, and the actors give strong performances

The details are carefully crafted and logical, capturing the characters' subtlety or innocence through even the smallest actions, which makes the overall structure quite coherent and well-aligned. Additionally, the character development is very reasonable and emotional, with the characters' maturity gradually and clearly shown through their later interactions.

The story is deeply moving, revolving around a pure love. The emotions while watching are largely positive, with very few moments that evoke negative feelings for the audience. The actors deliver strong performances, effectively portraying the characters' personalities. It’s a film worth watching again.

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Honesty, Perseverance and Reward

I have one complaint about this drama and that it is all of the screen time dedicated to the side couples. If more time had been spent with the ML and FL I would have given it more time. Not because of their relationship but because of their evolution of becoming stronger individually and in business.

While Seven’s character went from a tech position to entrepreneur in a relatively short time, her development as a business owner and then CEO was grossly underdone. They highlighted the difficulties others inflicted on her, but gave no insight on how she decided to make the decisions she did.

After a while, the ML and FL scenes became so short that it almost seemed like they were one of the side couples and not the leads.

Basically it is a story about knowing your worth, not giving up when things seem out of control, and learning that love doesn’t always come attached to a bouquet of flowers, with glittery clouds and happily ever after. It’s hard, requires swallowing your ‘right’ to demand your way is right, and learning to adapt and love your partner despite their imperfections while talking out issues rather than insisting you get your way.

Seven and Xu Kai had fire for chemistry. They were so natural and actually portray every aspect of their characters perfectly.

The villains were portrayed well and really showed what happens when you compromise good behavior and business practices in order to get what you want because someone else has what you want. There were instances finger pointing, blame transference and excuses in every misdeed the committed. But in the end, they were punished for their crimes.

Spoiler here - the bonus us episode will require tissues; have them close by. It was the sweetest, most beautiful way to end this drama.

This was my second watching, and I enjoyed much more this time around.

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