2023 Better Cdramas

One of the highest rated shows in years.  Mixes crime with SoL set in the China's Northeast rustbelt.  Excellent acting and production.  Serious and focused attention required for best enjoyment.

Modern Wuxia pioneer, one of the best manhua adaptations.  Hilarious, with tight pacing and solid acting from key characters.  Editing, camera work, music, CGI all show far higher level of intentionality and polish compared to most cdramas.

A realistic and profound examination of life and love for the urban professionals in modern China, one of the best romance cdramas.  Tight pacing and polished production.  While some may not appreciate the workplace segments, others will really appreciate these as they add to the realism and gravity of the drama.

Quirky, comedic, and heartwarming.  This show has plenty of mystery, heart, family, bromance, and laughs.

Highly rated school year SoL comedy

Hilarious wuxia sitcom featuring one of the godfathers of Chinese comedy.  Insightful parody and commentary of modern China through its wacky skits.

However the subs are terrible and it doesn't feature young attractive people of idol dramas.

Highly rated TW thriller

One of the best medical Cdramas in years.

Realistic and profound youth drama that's very different from the typical youth romance.

Another youth drama that doesn't focus on romance but provide an intriguing look at the studies and struggles of students in China.

Realistic SoL drama focused on the recent periods in the Chinese rustbelt.

Realistic SoL drama revolving around career women in their 30s.

Hidden gem.  Tight pacing, intriguing dialog, coherent screen logic, and terrific acting from start to finish.

Sequel to the whimsical and popular sitcom Lord of Losers.

Soothing, realistic, SoL drama with solid acting and production.

Early episodes were so good that it had the making of Breaking Bad.  But last 3rd of the show tanked hard under the weight of censorship.

Frontrunner for the 2023 NRTA Award

Hilarious Wuxia comedy that mostly retains a coherent central plot line.

Excellent cinematography in this historical mystery crime drama.

Solid Wuxia effort that delivers a steady diet of bromance, intrigue, and engaging characters.

Better than expected and faithful to the book.  Could have been stellar with more budget and less NRTA

One of the better manga/anime adaptations.  Pacing and CGI was commendable in the early segments.  Could have been an 8.0 if the plot and pacing was better in the latter segment of the show.  Also many of the younger cast have major room for improvement in their acting.

The more polished sequel to YB1 with much improved acting.  But just like YB1, suffers from the lack of focus created by a few plot twists too many.

Decent Scifi effort that benefits from the 'shorter is better' mantra.  Though compared to better scifi works, the concept, themes, and execution is rather derivative.  Both Song Weilong and Vicki Chen could have played their roles better, but were both serviceable.

Style and aesthetics over substance?

Highly rated comedy that's seriously undermined by its acting.