Completely Mental
This is one of the craziest stories I have ever seen in my life.Don't expect logic, a coherent plot or normal behaviour from any character (or animal).
But if you can get past some red flags in relationships and don't take anything seriously, it's actually quite captivating. Try to guess when the next ridiculous thing will happen.
It's like a disaster you can't look away from and I kinda feel guilty for having watched this, but I also enjoyed every single second. 😂
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This review may contain spoilers
My goodness... What did I just watch....and most importantly... WHY DID I JUST WATCH???? If you take a hot obsessed toxic bad boy ml,sweet naive sometimes dumb fl,twists after twists,and plotholes after plotholes,some cliche villains,time travels,dream sequences,self sacrifices,good second ml,plastic surgery,a whole ahh dragon.......and some really hot kisses with lame af ending and mix them all with some mashrum drugs or hallucinogens.....the thing you get is this drama,Affinity!!!
The whole thing was so bizzarre,it became actually enjoyable at some point. They're really clever to put that Helium thing in the end,otherwise it would become a comedy sketch rather than a hot show.
Lead couple was good,especially the ml.His character development was really evident from the beginning towards the end. But storywriter was on crack most probably.
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What in the futuristic fever-dream is this?! lol
[Update: Btw, for what it's worth, this gave me a weird drama hangover. I had nightmares! I think it's because it was so fast paced and tended to be dark. So, while this IS great escapism, I don't recommend it if you're already in a bad head space. If you're in a dark place, watch something like the kdrama "Healer," or pop on "Love Between Lines."]Switch your brain off, and be impressed by the creative storytelling, world building, and OST. It's like Fast and the Furious, Hunger Games, a space Western, a trashy romance novel, and a zombie apocalypse had a lovechild with a XianXia. It's wacky and wild lol. I keep telling people I think this could inspire a subgenre, it's that creative and interesting.
But for all the strength of the storytelling and soundtrack, it has to lose points for excessive reliance on makeout scenes, dragging in the last ten episodes, and less than stellar acting. I really think it punches above its weight though - it's worth watching if you are in a drama drought and just want to be entertained.
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Oddly, Weirdly entertaining?
Firstly, this was oddly entertaining. I though i might not like it but ended up watching it all. So yeah this was weird drama with less expectations but unknowingly it was still a good watch. The best character is no doubt the ML Xie Xin Xu. Cui Yu Xin acted really well in portraying all the emotions of Xie Xin Xu. It was my first time watching his acting and he really portrayed it so well. I think from start till end i was able to connect with the drama because how strongly he portrays the character. We can easily see how he was angry, jealous, happy, sad, and how much it was difficult to control himself around FL when he needed her. At first i though he was a grey shade character but after completing the whole drama, Xie Xin Xu was purely a green flag character.Now the SML and FL both were similar in a way, both brother-sister duo made a hell of his life. SML first made him a controlling object and when he break free, the FL controlled his life. FL was actually a red flag for our ML as per me. She never understood the pain of our ML who gone through hell. She could not even understand his feelings despite telling him that she loves him cause his brother was the person she loves the most. Xie Xin Xu lost his parents, became a subject of test of her brother, had to hide his identify, even had to fight his inner self and made so many sacrifices but still FL never feel his sorrows. On top of that his brother, SML continue to ruin our ML life, and even after killing himself he ended up ruining his sister relationship with his husband. What a brother, i mean there could be another way of protecting his sister rather than killing himself. Moreover, he did not even fulfill the last wish of his partner Li Xiang, who wanted to see him alive. These instance made me feel that both brother-sister duo were selfish and only thinks about themselves first before anyone else, what they feel is what matter the most.
Personally, first 30 episodes were great but then last 10 episodes were not at that level. Despite knowing that ML has nothing to do with his brother killing, FL continue to blame him and ML continue to sacrifice himself for her. During the last 10 episodes, my inner self wanted the ML to leave FL and start afresh life without her cause he deserve much better. But sadly it is a drama and ML and FL had to end up in last, which they did.
Overall, this was surprisingly a good watch. The Cui Yu Xin portray of Xie Xin Xu what keep the drama entertaining and as a viewer we were keen to know his character development. The best part of this drama was its background ost which were so good. Those background songs keeps the drama engaging as every bgm placement was nicely done. I hope that i can get all the background ost that played cause i could not find it anywhere. I can rewatch this drama for its background songs. This was a great watch and yeah i wish we could have gotten more of those dragon scenes with ML 😂😂that dragon was unexpected but it was a sci-fiction drama so anything can happen. Good thing we did not got vampires or werewolves😅
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This review may contain spoilers
Wait a minute
“Affinity” is a senseless drama with no clear direction, but it still has something worth watching. If you enjoy intense love stories filled with romantic scenes that give you goosebumps, this drama might be for you. The story itself is illogical, but the acting is top-notch—especially the male lead. I watched it till the end mainly because of the intense love story and the chemistry between the leads.By “intense scenes,” I don’t mean bold scenes. It’s a deeply romantic love story with many kissing scenes that highlight emotional intensity rather than explicit content.
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Hooked on you
Mad respect for director Chen Jia Jie, who can create insanely entertaining shows with shoestrings. His Embrace in the Dark Night was already high on my "low-budget gem" list but Affinity is on a whole new level, pushing limits of what you can do with the short format on all fronts. Saying the plot is bonkers doesn't even start to describe the madness going on : it feels like the brainchild of someone who spent too much time consuming various popular genres like trashy supernatural smut, SF and horror video games and movies, and threw them in a blender without much care for logic. I won't lie, I basked in the nonsensical joy of it all, feeling like a kid at christmas gifted with the biggest, most colorful toy available.The spice level is insane, clearly the censors were asleep or bribed when this went through approvals. I don't know how I will tolerate basic skinship in shows after this, at the end they were fully tongue kissing, something I've only seen in naughty vertical dramas (before the crackdown, not sure it will happen again). The choreography was also insanely hot and creative, I think I've watched the train scene a dozen times and know I will come back a dozen more. On the writing front the plot might be crazy and twisty but it doesn't keep the emotional beats from working, far from it. I had to take a break around a certain time, I was so invested in the characters, their misfortunes made me too upset to continue. I came back to it a few months later and gobbled up the remaining episodes. Yes, it's brainless but it's not heartless, I teared up a few times and was invested in all characters, even the side ones. The year is not over but it might be my favorite thing 2026 has produced.
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Wow. This was something..lol
This is a drama that embodies the catch phrase- So bad its good. This is something to be watched when you just want to turn your brain off and relax, and be entertained by laughing at what you're watching. Its great if there's a watch party, in fact I think that's what the makers of this show had in mind when they made it. Atleast I hope so.I did have fun on this journey, but not sure if I'd like to repeat it. This is just something you should experience once in your life and then move on. I won't rate this above 7, as that'd be an insult to all the average AND great shows I've watched, as this falls under none of those categories. Its still unique, even after having a thousand clichés, and that's the reason why I felt the need to start my very first review on MDL with this one.
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Review about Affinity
THE TENSION BETWEEN fml and ml gggooosh, it’s smth else, the chemistry😻🔥🔥 maybe yes the stroy can be a little bit cringy but God, they have so much chemistry, they are not even a slow burn, they are gaaas, like, definitely will watch it again and again. It is short cdrama which make it easy to watch, but only 2 episodes a day and only with 18 minutes, it is sooo unfair, It is not enough. Every day iam waiting for 2 episodes and this is sooo hard. I hope we will have happy ending and all of these sweet moments will not be just sweet moments and we will get hot scenes very soonWas this review helpful to you?
Craziest shit I’ve ever seen (I. LOVE. IT!!!).
I’ve watched a lot of dramas, but this one takes the top spot. It’s like watching a car crash —you can’t look away. The story feels like it’s high on crack, but the acting, the pacing, and the atmosphere are so different and addicting compared to everything I’ve seen before. The kiss scenes, the yearning, the craving… amazing!Is the story logical? No.
Is the communication the best? No.
Do I still think I’ll ever find a better drama? No.
This is a mix of dark romance, forced love, and the craving of the omegaverse, all in one. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but it has something really special that I’ve never seen before.
It has left an empty hole in my heart. If anyone in the future finds something just as crazy and amazing as this show, I’d love to hear about it.
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Perfect Guilty Pleasure
Affinity was genuinely a mess, but a good mess. It’s a guilty pleasure of mine now, I keep rewatching scenes.I really cannot explain it well but I definitely recommend watching. Switch off your brain and let your eyes openly feast! (not on the cgi though..) I saw people raving about the kiss scenes and I thought to myself, “They can’t be that good.” WOW, I was wrong. First episode, it’s nothing special but you keep on going and it’s like you’ve hit the lottery of steamy and spicy dramas. Fang Jin and Cui Yu Xin have absolutely electric chemistry. It’s impossible to take your eyes away from the screen when they’re both on. Please, the kiss scenes are so intense and so good.
I’ll be honest, the storyline is interesting towards the start but it does derail about half way through. Still, you’ll keep watching because it’s addicting. 40 episodes at 18 mins, sizzling chemistry between the leads, it’s easy dopamine!
The main leads can definitely act though, both of them really surprised me. Fang Jin especially deserves more recognition and I hope to see her do more dark romance roles, she suits them. Again, I’ll say it again, but they can definitely kiss!
ML is extremely toxic and honestly consent and boundaries aren’t really a thing towards the start. (They are later). FL isn’t completely against him though, considering their relationship dynamic. She’s more unsure. But you can see their chemistry. In the end it’s fiction, none of this is real and I hope no one would condone this irl. But for a fictitious guilty pleasure after a long day, it is perfect!
Character development is obviously not 10/10, but it is quite good for a drama with this type of production. The OSTS are super catchy and addicting, I hear one playing in my head.
Overall, a 8.5 from me. Rated based on my enjoyment of the romance aspect! 6.5-7.5 purely based on storytelling because the ending was rushed, and there were plot holes. But this type of story is definitely strange and once in a while type thing, still worth expediting.
Obviously, it’s not the best drama you’ll ever see. It’s far from it, but it’s definitely worth watching (at least trying)
Try a few episodes, not much to lose considering they’re short. DON’T involve logic, otherwise you won’t enjoy the ride, and be prepared to rewind to get a better view a LOT.
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Nuclear Chemistry with a Plot Dumpster Fire
This drama is the most steamiest French kissing, lip biting, butt grabbing CD I have ever watched! Can't believe it passed Chinese censorship! The leads had to have had some lip balm and mints in their pockets because every episode is full of kissing. The actors must have attracted to each other, because it did not look like acting to me!! Beware that the ML is 100% red flag... manipulative, calculating, possessive, pushy, obsessive and absolute crazy about the FL. The ML's only soft spot is FL and the FL is strong minded in her own way and refuses to be left behind on adventures and falls for the ML on her own terms.Now on to the dumpster-fire of a plot. It is one of those dramas that you walk away wondering "What the heck did I just watch"? One episode could be fantasy with a dragon and then the next car chases/gun fights, the next adventure quests and the next sci-fi, but romance is the central them in all episodes. It has a vertical drama feel, so expect shorter episodes with chopping episode integrations. The nuclear chemistry between the leads made this drama extremely watchable, but without them, the plot would have made me question the writers sanity. I have never watched anything like this drama and can 100% recommend it for drama fans of steamy red-flag romance.
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