Speed and Love

You might suffer a little in the middle and dont trust those who says esther yu acted bad here

So i have finished this drama a long time ago i basically watched this during my exam it was so good that i risked my exam to watch this it became an addiction since the first episode the story the cast the main couple the bgm and the songs everything was so good before watching this drama esther yu's skii into love and when i fly towards you were first on my drama list now speed and love became my favorite of them all amd please dont trust those who says esther yu cant act they are just spreading hate towards her since i have watched this drama i wanna say that esther yu aka jiang mu acted a little childish during her story in thailand where she was 19-20 she acted comfortably infront of jinzhao but then after their separation and during her time in china where she was 27-28 she acted more maturely 🍬🍬

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In my opinion, this is an excellent drama! One of its biggest strengths is the atmosphere it delivers. After thinking it over, I feel like it makes up for the fact that, for most of the time, nothing particularly major happens — the focus is mainly on the relationship of the main couple, which flows smoothly and pleasantly for the most part, without major obstacles (with one exception) — but while watching, you don’t feel that at all. I never had a moment where I was bored or where an episode felt dragged out. It also makes up, to a large extent, for the fact that many plot points are introduced and then never developed, often simply forgotten. I also have to admit that I love the “bad boy” trope — someone who is tough on the outside but deeply loyal and caring toward those closest to him, especially that one person — and we definitely get that here.

I really enjoyed the pairing of the main couple — Jin Zhao and Jiang Mu — who were complete opposites. He was confident, mysterious, cold, and reserved, while she was chaotic, open, and a bit silly. On top of that, they had amazing chemistry and tension that was insanely palpable through the screen. I also loved his provocative personality, which she gradually started to adopt as well. Around each other, they became better versions of themselves, always wanting to be the best for one another, often putting the other person’s happiness and well-being above their own. Of course, they had their flaws too — for example, Jin Zhao sometimes made decisions for her, assuming he knew what was best.

I also loved many of the side characters and think that some of their stories could have been developed much more. The whole group of guys completely stole my heart — especially San Lai. He was a wonderful character. I loved him on his own, I loved him paired with Jin Zhao, and I loved him paired with Jiang Mu, so I’m really disappointed we didn’t get more of his story. The subplot with his father was introduced as something important and then just… left unfinished. A small personal downside for me is also that we didn’t get his relationship with Na Na, which I was hoping for. And there’s one thing about him that doesn’t sit right with his otherwise amazing character — why did he suggest to Jiang Mu that he could replace Jin Zhao someday if she wanted? Bro? I really hope he didn’t have feelings for her and that it was just a dumb comment — that’s how I choose to interpret it. Don’t ruin my friendship dynamic with lines like that. Another character I loved was Lin Sui — “Drunk.” I’m not even entirely sure why. He had a very specific personality and vibe that I really liked. I also enjoyed his interactions with Jin Zhao and that scene where he was the fifth wheel during their reunion after years.

On top of that, the whole racing storyline and everything related to cars was handled really well. Similarly — although obviously in a more condensed way — his journey back to full physical fitness after the accident was also portrayed well, especially the emotions tied to that process.

That said, there are also a few plotlines (aside from San Lai’s father) that I have some issues with — bigger, smaller, and minor ones.
Major issues:
→ Liang Yan Feng’s character. Out of nowhere, it suddenly turned out that he was “good” and part of the alliance. There was no prior setup for that, and it was never revisited later. On top of that, almost immediately everyone completely forgot that he spiked Jiang Mu’s drink — and he even ended up getting invited to their wedding.
→ Wan Qing — “Snakey” — and her father’s business. I don’t have an issue with her being at the wedding, since from early on she was shown not to be a bad person. My issue is that, first of all, I don’t understand why the subplot where she kidnapped his father even existed, since it was later completely ignored. Second, we never saw how she processed the situation involving her father or what she thought about it. Third, we never really found out what consequences her father and his employees faced — we only know they were arrested.
→ He Zhang. He was also forgotten, and we never found out what consequences he faced or what happened to him afterward. I’m especially disappointed because I was hoping for some development in his hinted relationship with Wan Qing.
→ We never got a deeper explanation of that darker period in Jin Zhao’s life, when he was apparently called “Brandy,” and I think that could have been really interesting.
Minor issues (things I missed, but that didn’t affect the story much):
→ The fighting subplot involving Jin Zhao. In reality, we only got one fight, even though it was implied that he fought regularly — at least that’s how I understood it. So first, I would have liked to see more fights (my “bad side” speaking :D), and second, a better explanation of why he fought and why he suddenly stopped (unless it was explained through the alliance and I just missed it — I had some long breaks while watching).
→ It also occurred to me that Jin Zhao and Jiang Mu told her mom about their relationship, but we never got a scene where they told her dad XD. The poor guy is still living in the dark while they’re off riding a motorcycle to get married.
→ We never learned Jin Zhao’s birthday :( — it was initially presented as a mystery they wanted to uncover, but I guess they just… stopped caring.

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The Adrenaline Rush of Precarious Street Racing and Love for a Toddler-Like Teenager

Welcome back to my review. As usual, I’m sorry for delaying “Speed and Love” review because I’m just too idle to write down my thoughts (FYI, my holiday will end in three days, so I’m making sure that I complete this review before getting back to school and being busy again). Without further ado, let’s just dive into the review.

“Speed and Love”, formerly named “Star Trails”, is a rom-com drama adapted from Shi Jiuyan’s novel with the same name (in Chinese), staged in the perilous world of street racing in Manshi, Thailand (supposed to be a remote area in China named Tong Gang). The series revolves around a pair of nonblood-related siblings, Jin Zhao and Jiang Mu. After a crushing divorce, their dad moved out from the house and took Jin Zhao with him to Thailand, where they struggled to make ends meet to the point that Jin Zhao needed to quit from high school and took up odd jobs instead, including establishing a self-independent garage and joining high-stake racings in the midnight to earn some cash for the family. FYI, Jin Qiang married another Chinese woman, Zhao Meijuan, at that time and bore a new daughter, Jin Xin (no doubt there will a lot of mouths to be fed).

Meanwhile, Jiang Mu stayed in China with her mom, Jiang Yinghan, at Nanjing. However, Jiang Yinghan soon found a new Canadian-Chinese boyfriend, Chris, and they decide to marry together and live in Canada from then on. Nevertheless, Jiang Mu didn’t agree on her mom’s remarriage and demanded to stay behind in China for she didn’t have a good impression on Chris. After having petty arguments back and forth, Jiang Yinghan finally agreed to let Jiang Mu stay at her father’s place and told her about the past of Jin Zhao as well. This piece of truth only fueled Jiang Mu’s personal desire to search for Jin Zhao and her hope to rekindle the old memories together.

After settling down in Thailand, Jiang Mu enrolls a language foundation course and a Thai high school too (though this is a heavy point stressed in the novel, it’s completely brushed aside in the drama since it’s going all out in the aspects of emotional tension and sexual interactions). Not only that, she also learns about Jin Zhao’s new life and finds that he’s beginning to look like a stranger in her eyes. To understand his world better, she also learns how to race since Jin Zhao always participates in illegal street racings. Soon, she falls in love with Jin Zhao and slowly peels away his thick fortress, ultimately gaining his heart. But an accident will occur in no time and the two are separated for a very long time, breaking each other’s heart while still yearning. Will they finally give in to their fates or fight against it to stage another fluffy love story?

To put it frankly, I do agree with most of the viewers that the plot is very cliché except the racing part. Firstly, the myriad numbers of tropes crammed into this drama is pretty outstanding, considering it only has 29 episodes. Nonblood-related siblings, spoiled girl x bad boy, accidental hugs, friends coming to disturb your peaceful moments of kissing, noble idiocy, ML decides what’s good for FL without asking for her consent. Those tropes have been utilized by other rom-com dramas and some even do better than this one. Honestly, if it hadn’t been for the electrifying chemistry of the main leads, most people would’ve dropped it long ago, and so do I.

However, I want to praise about how well the racing arc is done, especially Jin Qiang’s methods of how to adapt to tricky situations by relying on your neural instinct. The machinery of car is also explained in basic language so that viewers of non-physics background can grasp the foundation easily (one of them happens to be me, since I’m very awful in physics, but don’t get me wrong, I have deep fascination for mechanics and machinery stuffs).

Now, please welcome our high-and-mighty spoiled little queen Jiang Mu. Well, she does act like a spoiled 10-year-old little chick, as if she were a vexatious mosquito hovering around Jin Zhao’s orbit. No offence, but I’m also a picky eater and tend to pick out the vegetables that I dislike. However, there’s a little discrepancy between me and her. At least, I keep my tongue well shut while nitpicking the vegetables, unlike Jiang Mu, who keeps pouting and scowling interminably till I get irritated of her. Also, why does the designer love to dress Jiang Mu in conspicuous sexy clothing that apparently doesn’t fit her image as an ordinary high schooler at all? Even she only wears her uniform as a formality to conceal the black shirt and mini skirt beneath. And how does she know about cars just by having a single glance (the part where Xiao Yang and Tie Gongji are having a difficulty at)? And how does she manage to learn drifting after having seen Lin Sui performs it one time? And from when does she develop a feeling for Jin Zhao? I know it’s a taboo stuff for others when it comes to siblings falling for each other, but I think that’s fine for me. The thing that keeps troubling me is perhaps she had fallen for him since her childhood years and that feeling grows incessantly over years in the shape of the spoiled queen (don’t get me wrong, she initiates most of the intimate acts). Esther Yu’s acting and baby-ish voice don’t help much with Jiang Mu’s interpretation either. She’s trying hard to act like a toddler just because the script demands so, and she turns 180 degree into a mature woman in six years, but not that mature though. Check out the reason below after I finish blabbing about the ML.

For the ML, I actually and truly love him very much that I also want him to be my boyfriend. Welp, who doesn’t want to? He can race, cook, dry your hair, repair the water heater, exceptionally outstanding in physics, draw, fetch you back from school as if his time had been reserved just for you, and many other things I can’t think of anymore. But, the noble idiocy really irks some people and I really don’t know why because noble idiocy is a rudimentary key point during their separation arc or it would’ve been less fulfilling (for me). Also, Jin Zhao’s character is also shaped from the harsh reality of the world and how he can overcome the trials and vicissitudes of life. I think He Yu has shone brighter than ever and it’s his outbreak role after several mediocre performances. He totally rocks Jin Zhao’s portrayal and embodies his essential point quite well.

For this paragraph, this is going to be a hell of a ride, so please bear with me. The show does convey dangerous moral impacts about how to selflessly sacrifice your dignity for someone you’re not supposed to love and how unrequited love soon blooms into a bold yet dangerous possessiveness. This is shown when Jiang Mu confronts Wan Qing in an unfriendly manner and keeps thinking that she has an affair with Jin Zhao, when he actually never reciprocates her feelings. If Jiang Mu had initiated a more proper and clearer communication instead, things wouldn’t have gone awry and the girls would’ve made such good friends from the get go (I tried really hard to suppress my urge to yell at Jiang Mu, seriously). Not only that, the show also romanticizes taboo stuffs such as how you ogle for that person to be your emotional anchor when things go wrong or unlike your expectation. If the person-in-demand doesn’t give you the respond that you desire, you’re going to start throwing tantrums here and there, in order to attract his attention back to you (which is not worth your time at all). I even have to restrain myself not to take any lessons from this show so as not be deluded into an astray path, given that this show is directed for young teenage girls like me, who will be self-deluded in your little fantasy bubble and have a great rage when your reality turns out to say no to you.

Now, to the OSTs. Yes, I love most of the OST in “Speed and Love” especially the upbeat hip hop track sung by Yan An (not Pentagon’s member). I also like the sultry song by Alyce Zhou (R.E.D) and the wistful memory in Zhang Bichen’s track. The other tracks are as pleasant as well. Backgrounds and settings are thumbs-up for me, while the costume can be toned down a little bit for our dear Jiang Mu.

Will I rewatch? That will be a 50/50 answer. If you’re looking for hot sexual tension and dozens of intimate scenes, then you’ll have a great fun here. However, if you’re into a coherent storyline, I’m sorry to say that this show doesn’t fulfill this requirement. It’s time to end my review now (since I have to go to sleep now), good luck and happy watching!!!

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Just go for it

If you don't wanna read you can jump into the drama..just go for it.
I don't usually write reviews but i definitely do read them before watching a drama and it really helps. That's why I'm writing one here..
For this drama you don't even need to read a review just go for it ..it was a whole rollercoaster journey for me as i watched it after all ep were dropped as i didn't knew about its airing schedule and just read the first review i saw and decided to start it.

I really loved the acting storyline and the leads were superb for their roles. Other than the leads the roles that really fascinated me and i really loved were ..Sanlai and Lin Sui i really liked their roles and others did an amazing job as well.

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Fork in the road

I totally ate this series up. The main leads had such crazy chemistry that it was just intense. I had to keep checking myself on why I am swooning over sibling love, but I just simply think they are two kids who grew up together and end up falling in love. I read fantasy romance so the plot isn't something I would consider weird or gross. I mean, once you get past that, it is a really cute and sweet drama. I enjoyed it so much. My 11 year old who watched with me sometimes kept asking why the girl aka Jiang Mu aka Esther Yu sounds like a kid, LOL. Well, this series was definitely trademark Esther Yu series. I don't hate her. She was in her element. As for Jian Zhao, He Yu really owned it. I just really had fun with this and such a good one to end the year.

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Didn’t Want It To End

I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this one. Going in, the synopsis is somewhat questionable but over time it’s easy to forget. The main cast, particularly He Yu and Esther Yu had incredible chemistry that their relationship felt real. Each of them also delivered layered performances and had me tearing up many times. I haven’t seen either of them before (I mostly watch K Dramas) so I’m not familiar with their usual acting styles, but the amount of emotions they conveyed with just their eyes (especially He Yu) was insane.

The plot was interesting, though the pacing felt off in some places. The editing could be odd too, but I’ve found that to be the case for a lot of C Dramas I’ve seen. That being said, I was hooked and it all ended too fast! This story and this couple left me wanting more. I heard certain plot points/scenes were left out of the final cut, but it would’ve been nice to see even more of their relationship.

Visually, this show was stunning (both the camera work/lighting and actors). It set a perfect tone. The music was also really good and used well. I would definitely stream the full OST.

I’ll definitely have to come back to this again sometime; I can’t seem to let go of these characters! Just a beautiful story of yearning, devotion, heartbreak, and destiny.

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Truly loved it ?✨ This drama has my ??

After Amidst a Snowstorm of Love, Lighter and Princess, and The First Frost, Speed and Love has officially been added to my list of most-favorite C-dramas.
The love standard in this drama is on another level. Honestly, in today’s time, where do we even find love stories like this? The patience, the deep love, and the care they show for each other—even after separation—just touched my heart. Uff… I absolutely loved it.
This drama is a must-watch if you truly understand and appreciate meaningful love stories.
I especially loved Brandy and Mu’s Thailand scenes—his house, his garage, and that soft, sweet background music. Everything felt so calm, intimate, and cozy.
Those moments melt my heart every time and make me fall in love with the scenes all over again.
Brandy was just so cool, handsome, and effortlessly charming.

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Post Drama Withdrawal! Updated.

Emotions

I love Esther Yu, and this was not my first time watching He Yu. I truly enjoyed the character he played. I’m a big fan of boxing, martial arts, and race cars—especially Funny Car racing—so this story stirred up a lot of memories for me right away.

The one thing that frustrated me was the way the writer shaped the character Esther Yu played. The character she played is she always asked question and tested him. I genuinely disliked that part when she found him towards the end, making him walk.

However, Esther Yu brought the role to the screen so convincingly that I kept watching because of her. Her performance was so strong that I almost stopped watching out of frustration with the writing alone—which only proves how excellent she is as an actress. Even when I didn’t like the script, her talent held my attention.

I kept going, though, and when Zhao was injured, it hit me hard. It brought back painful emotions about my own son’s motorcycle accident, and that really struck home.

In the end, I still gave this drama a 10. If a storyline can make me want to stop watching because my emotions are all over the place, then the writers and actors did their job. That kind of impact isn’t easy to pull off.

I only wish Esther Yu had been written as a stronger, more physically powerful female character—seeing her do martial arts or real fighting scenes would have been incredible.

Update: I’ve now watched it 9 times. I genuinely cried during the accident scene and felt how deeply the two characters love each other. I couldn’t get it out of my head, so I kept going back to rewatch — not wanting to miss a single detail, especially the way Esther Yu and He Yu kept looking at each other. It made me wish we all knew love like that. It felt real… deeply real. That kiss though... several kisses where He Yu engulfed Esther lips... I never viewed that in Chinese Dramas. I was like... whoa there buddy... so cute, I too, blushed and hid my face. All I know this wasn't a regular Chinese Drama for me... This was some real stuff right here (little slang used).

2nd Update: I hope this doesn’t stop me from watching either of them in future dramas, given how strongly I feel right now. I went through something similar with Yang Zi and Deng Lun in Ashes of Love — my mind simply couldn’t separate them from those characters. Seeing them in other roles felt like it would break something precious. It took time, but I eventually snapped out of it. That’s what happens when you stay true to a drama you absolutely love — it settles into your heart and refuses to let go right away. It's called "post-drama withdrawal".

3rd Update: Lawdamercy, this is the only drama that calms me down and makes me smile. I know this is a story but dang, I wish all men were like Zhao Zhao!

4th Update: 7/18/2026 After watching it three more times, I realized something. It wasn't fair to He Yu or Esther Yu—our beloved "Yu Yu"—to only associate them with one drama. So I decided to watch other series where they are the lead actors.

The funny part? I started watching Blossom, and before I knew it, I caught myself thinking, "Unt uh... that's supposed to be Esther Yu!" I had to laugh because it was such a childish reaction.

I stopped after the second episode, not because the drama wasn't good, but because I needed to regroup. These are incredibly talented actors and actresses, and I don't want to cheat myself out of experiencing their amazing performances in other roles.

I also have to remind myself that dramas are works of fiction. The characters they portray are not real life—they're stories brought to life by gifted performers.

Most importantly, I need to stop reading all the online controversy every time they are paired with a different lead. It only distracts me from appreciating their talent. I'd rather enjoy the performances, celebrate their hard work, and let each story stand on its own.

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Compelled to write a review because it's that good.

For me this drama is on a whole different level. So as a regular CDrama watcher, I didn't have much expectation, just a few romantic scenes, a change of heart, and a little bit of action, but damn. I was flabbergasted by SAL—the plot, the cast, the OSTs, everything.

About the cast:

Esther Yu—I see people hating on her unnecessarily. She is the perfect cast for SAL. She can do both—a mature grown woman and an immature teenager. I think the director knew exactly what the story needed.

He Yu—Imagine anyone other than him playing Jin Zhao, CAN YOU? That's it. He is irreplaceable. He is the whole package, and as the director said, heaven decided on Jin Zhao.

Ignore the negative PR. Just go and watch it. It's that good.

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I Don’t Think This Is Overrated If You’re Here for the Forbidden Sparks

This drama definitely won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. For some, it might feel too cringey, almost like one of those over-the-top Chinese vertical dramas. But honestly? That’s part of the charm. I only picked it up because I’m familiar with Yu Xu Shin (Esther Yu), and knowing her filmography, I’d say Speed and Love is actually pretty tame by her standards of exaggerated cutesy acting. If a drama is going to lean into cringe, I’d rather it fully commit and this one does, while still staying within the limits of being watchable.

What surprised me most was how well it sold the forbidden-love tension. The forbidden-love tension here was intense, and it kept building in a way that felt addictive. And for my first time watching He Yu, I have to say he fit the “hot rebel” role effortlessly. He had the looks, the energy, and enough attitude to make the cold bad-boy image work.

That said, I wasn’t a fan of the premise at first. I won’t lie though, the whole unrelated siblings-turn-lovers premise still felt weird to me at first. Especially because Jiang Mu was very upfront with her feelings from the start, her aggressive feelings made it even harder to digest. But as their relationship evolved, the chemistry between them became impossible to ignore. The forbidden-love trope was executed so well. The tension, the push-and-pull, and the taboo element all worked together in a way that made the romance far more compelling than I expected. Their chemistry eventually became so undeniable that the fact they once saw each other as siblings barely mattered anymore.

The speed part of racing scenes, foreign country underground setting, and rebellious atmosphere are mostly there to build the vibe rather than the plot, but it works. If you’re looking for a simple, no-brainer drama with sizzling chemistry of forbidden tension, and don’t mind a bit of cringe, this is definitely worth a watch.

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First time watching a racing based drama and I’m hooked

First, I’m into cars so when I saw the trailer and synopsis about the drama I set a reminder to watch this and it’s better than what I’ve expected (in all c-dramas that I’ve watch, I really set my expectations low so I will not be disappointed).

What I really wanted to point out is that the setting was in Thailand, but its like, doesn’t say much about it. It’s like all of the people in Thailand were chinese-speaking and didn’t integrate much of it —they tried speaking in Thai but please, can the actors and the extras match the lips and the audio huhuhuhu it was so awkward while watching it 😭 I know they dubbed it because of the noise and all but yeah just my few pieces hehe

Another thing is that when Zhao and Mu were like in the driving scene, when MuMu was the navigator? (the one with emotional talk) I’m no race car driver but when they were talking, it’s like ZhaoZhao is not driving, the hands doesn’t move 😭 I know these are just little things but when little things are piled up, it becomes big.

But the actors tho? Especially, San Lai & Jin Zhao, they are damn great!!! The fighting scenes of He Yu? It was amazing! ✨

The cinematography when there’s like a racing competition was excellent, too!!! I was not expecting that level of production cos girl I am hooked every race scene AND THE SOUNDTRACK??? I LOVEEEE 💗

Lastly, I’ve been reading the novel and there’s some changes that I liked is that when MuMu and Snakey had the heart to heart talk? I AM WEAK WITH GIRL FRIENDSHIP I DEF LOVE THAT THEY MADE SNAKEY THE ONE WHO REVEALED SOMETHING NOT THE CRAZY FRIEND. The other scenes should not have been changed but oh well, censorship and all I think. It’s still a good watch tho.

and I think that’s all hehe will continue to watch tho because it really exceeded my expectations but probably will not rewatch it, but can watch some clips tho when it appears to my fyp.

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