Quiet, Heartfelt, Amazing Chemistry
There is nothing achingly original about the story line- a well-traveled BL fan has seen this sweet story of childhood friends turned awkward lovers countless times, but there is a freshness in the way the story unfolds. The use of flashback enhances the emotion of the present day story and it’s through those flashbacks, so well integrated into the present day story, that really brings the depth of the love story to your heart.And the chemistry between the male leads is a perfect balance of sweet, tender, romantic love, and a more primal, fierce, I need to possess you intensity.
now that the series has finished, I can see this becoming a comfort watch that I come back to time and time again, not unlike Time of Fever.
both actors bring such earnestness to their portrays of their characters that you are immediately enamored with them as individuals and as a couple.
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Speedrun lover.
When I first saw the trailer and everything surrounding the release, I was super hyped. I genuinely thought, “This is the series for me, I’m going to love it with my whole heart.” The premise is exactly the kind of story I enjoy: childhood friends slowly falling in love. Sounds great, right? Well... it only sounds great.The biggest issue that threw me off and made me lose interest was the pacing.
If I didn’t know the show was still ongoing, I would have honestly thought I accidentally skipped a few episodes, like I was watching episode 7 instead of episode 2. I understand that Tuo has been in love for a long time, but that still doesn’t justify everything happening so quickly, crammed into just the first five episodes.
That brings me to another issue: Tuo himself.
I find him overly jealous. To the point where it actually made me uncomfortable. Some scenes were genuinely hard to watch because of how intense and possessive his behavior was.
As for their chemistry, it’s really inconsistent. Sometimes it works well and feels natural, but other times it’s completely off or unconvincing.
Of course, the series isn’t fully out yet, which is the only reason I’m still a little intrigued and hopeful that it might improve over time.
UPDATE: Sadly, it didn't get better and my review is still accurate.
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Secret Lover lived up to her reputation as a charming, emotionally layered friends-to-lovers series. I’m totally in love with this series. Guno and Chance share strong chemistry with memorable romantic scenes. Unlike typical BL series, the female characters were well-developed and charismatic, especially You Mei. She won me over with her quirky vibe.
But the heart of the show, however, lies in Jun Xi’s parents. When Jun Xi’s dad proudly said, “They’re my sons,” I had a big smile on my face. They really embodied the kind of acceptance and love the world needs. This series is a must-watch and definitely worth revisiting.
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I’m not sold on their relationship
I love a good friend’s to lovers story, and this one had a lot of potential. *Spoilers Ahead* Junxi and Tuo have been best friends for 10 years. Apparently Tuo has had feelings for Junxi, while Junxi has not thought about him that way. Tuo makes several moves and Junxi is not into it. Tuo asks him to consider it and that’s where I feel like it went downhill. We had a great premise to watch Junxi slowly realize his feelings for Tuo. For Tuo to respect Junxi’s wishes and be patient. For both of them to grow as a person.Instead I feel like Junxi was pushed into the relationship because it’s what his friends (especially Tuo) wanted, Even when the show ended, I still felt like Junxi wasn’t that into it. It’s a shame because it could have been great.
A positive note: The actor that plays Tuo was great at the steamy scenes.
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Cute But Toxic
The show starts off with questionable (noncon) behaviour by Han Tao towards his childhood friend Junxi.The first half of the show was somewhat interesting but with lack of honesty and communication between the two. They also had a sweet friend Lin Xiao Yang who was supportive of them. Fortunately they did not create an evil woman trope which many BLs do. There are also some cute moments. This ends the positive aspect of the drama.
The couple are not really that well suited since Han Tao is extremely insecure and that impacts Junxi too. He lies to Junxi and uses very wrong methods to approach him instead of being direct about his feelings which is extremely problematic. They spend several episodes running from each other instead of communicating openly and honestly. When Junxi needs space romantically to figure out where his feelings are, Han Tao starts to completely ignore him which I found quite manipulative. It was also revealed that in the past, he actively blocked any women that tried to approach Junxi instead of confessing his own feelings. In real life, this couple will probably not last since they are insecure and jealous. To be honest Han Tao is not only a bad partner but also a terrible friend.
The writers also added so many misleading cliffhangers in the episodes which made it seem like they were purposely trying to create drama without there being any need for it. That led to even more annoyance while watching. This continued till the very end of the show where they introduce a big problem in the second last episode and it turns out to be a nothing burger in the end. Honestly it felt like cheap tricks to make viewers go through an emotional rolloercoaster if you are watching the drama on-going week to week.
It would have been better if they had put some focus on the two girls - Lin Xiao Yang and He You Mei or trying to get the main leads to work towards a healthier relationship. Instead they just added new issues each episode.
The drama is all right. Not really something to talk about other than the nonconsensual and toxic behaviour that wasn't really addressed. For me, it made me lose my intial interest and some episodes also felt boring. I also grew to dislike Han Tao.
The main OST called Sunshine, however, is pretty awesome. I love listening to it.
Since the episodes are around 20 - 25 mins long, it's okay to watch once. But if you skip, you're not missing much.
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Nice and cozy series
I can honestly say that I liked it from the first moment. It's a story about the love between these boys since childhood and you follow them into adulthood. You can see how good the passion is between these characters. It's good that the episodes aren't that long and that there aren't too many episodes.Will watch it again to remember the story now that there have been so many different series and we have missed many this summer.
I like these kinds of dramas and many Taiwanese series are very well made.
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Started plain, ended up sweet
To be honest, the first few EPs feel bland, but I’m happy that I stayed. After EP04, I slowly started liking the show. Jun Xi was the star of this show. His cuteness brings a happy mood and energy to the show. Han Tou, on the other hand, was serious and tended to be jealous most of the time. To the point that I kinda annoyed at him at first, but his character grew on me eventually.The entry of Jun Xi’s older brother, Yu Shu, adds more spice to the story. He is so handsome, hot, and adorable. Seeing him on screen just automatically makes me smile. I love how manly yet appealing his aura is. Jun Xi’s mother and father are also great parents.
Everyone performed pretty good. Even the emotional scenes were properly executed. The title itself may sound so serious, but the storyline was soft and pure. I liked it. The ending was a perfect conclusion to the show. Them talking about the wedding rings was my favorite part.
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Ahh I can't believe it's over! 😭 What else am I going to watch on Tuesday? Considering the source material (I haven't read the manga yet) this drama is so wholesome and cute. It makes my heart melt in the best way. I wish we had a bit more time with the second couple but I'm happy that we got to see their relationship begin to develop. I love the communication aspect and realistic representations of the real world. I didn't feel like the music was too much either, perfectly fit the show. Alas, I'm sad it's finished but I can't wait to see what the actors, lead and supporting, get up to next!
Recommend this drama for anyone just getting into bl dramas and anyone who wants a cozy, wholesome drama to watch when you're feeling down.
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Just finished the series. It was a light hearted series without much twists and turns. Really like the character of Junxi and Han tuo. Though at first I thought Han tuo was forcing himself on junxi, but good thing is later he himself realized it. And I never expected Junxi's parents to be so supportive. Overall it Was a good watch. And that guy chance, he is such a good kisser. Oh and I saw in their live video guno said they are dating. Is it true? Was this review helpful to you?
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Secret Lover: Blink and They’re Already Making Out
I was so excited waiting for this one to finish airing. A best friends-to-lovers trope from a Taiwan BL? That’s supposed to be my Roman Empire. I was ready for slow burn, tension, yearning — the kind of emotional suffering we live for. But instead of a slow burn, I got a speed run. The series jumped straight into Freakytown before I even had time to finish my popcorn. Episode 1? They’re making out. By episode 4? They’re already in bed. Like… can we breathe first? Can you yearn a little before we start undressing? BLs without a build-up feel so off, especially when these two were supposed to be best friends with zero preexisting feelings. Realistically, if your best friend suddenly confesses, you’d at least need a few days or even longer to emotionally spiral before kissing them. But nope — these two skipped the spiral and went straight to “we’re in love now.” Jun Xi said Han Tuo was moving too fast, and honestly for the audience that was even faster. The audience needed a seatbelt. The pacing was just insane — there was no room for character or relationship development, which sucks because the plot idea was actually good. It could’ve been a gem, but they rushed it like there was a prize for moving like the speed of light. Now, I’ll give credit where it’s due: the chemistry was good! Like, they looked great together. But chemistry can’t fix a broken plot. And I swear, the side characters were eating them up. I was way more invested in the two girls than the main couple because they actually felt real. The parents? Adorable. The brother? Supportive king. The funny moments? Lifesavers. Those are honestly the only reasons the rating isn’t lower. Also, Han Tuo being jealous of a literal child was wild behavior. Sir, be serious. You can tell that man wasn't ready for a relationship and honestly, probably neither was Jun Xi. I think if anything Han Tao needed therapy. Anyway, safe to say I’m disappointed once again. Taiwan BL used to have that magic — what’s going on lately? Someone bring back the yearning, please.Rating: 7.5/10 (for the acting, the side characters, and the comedy that unintentionally saved the show).
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It had it's moments
DisclaimerWhat I am writing here are my views and thoughts about this series. Some of you may not like it. That does not give you the right to try to come at me with your opinions on why this series should get a higher or lower score and why it is better/worse than I think it is. You have your own opinions, and I have mine. Kindly respect that.
So, I can safely say that there were some parts of this series that I totally enjoyed and some parts that I didn't (as well as some parts that just did not sit well with me). I would first like to say that I totally adore Jun Xi's parents. They are the best parents that I have seen for a long while in a Taiwan series. I am so grateful that they went that route for Jun Xi's parents and him with his sexuality. I also adore (even though it was not much shown but hinted at the end) the beginning of the cute relationship between Lin Xiao Yang and He You Mei.
The relationship between the main leads was cute, but it did leave me scratching my head sometimes, as we the viewers see the extent that Han Tuo went to so that no one would get close to Jun Xi and date him, as he had feelings for him. But if Jun Xi is able to get over that little red flag behaviour, who are we, the viewers, to complain about it?
Now, I felt that the flow of this series was actually okay, even up to a part in the last episode. But after that, with them basically trying to close up all loose ends (some that I didn't even know were loose as well), it felt a bit lost in transition, as these characters were not developed properly and just had me either meh or confused by it (like am I the only one who did not see that Han Tuo's boss liked him?! Because that was just so left field for me.
But, all in all, I did enjoy this series, and it did have its moments. I would recommend this to people who just want a quick series to watch.
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Not as good as the reviews said, the acting was super bad i had to skip
1) too fast paced, kinda makes no sense2) the acting was bad. Facial expressions and body language looked very "dont forget to do that".
3) the story itself is ok. It has a main point, good scenes and memorable ones.
4) The music wasnt anything new, just like most asian dramas it just wasnt not a wow factor like cutie pie the series.
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