Athenian88

I really, really liked this drama.

What I loved most about The Early Spring is that, for once, I didn't feel like I was watching another perfect, unrealistic love story.

I'm honestly tired of watching dramas where everyone is beautiful, the male lead is basically the perfect man, the female lead is perfect for him, they have one or two misunderstandings and then... happily ever after.

Real life doesn't work like that.

People come with baggage. A LOT of baggage. 😂 We all have our own fears, insecurities, past experiences, expectations and ways of dealing with things. And when two people get into a relationship, they don't suddenly leave all of that at the door.

They bring it with them.

That's exactly what I liked about this drama.

The relationship is messy because the people are messy. They misunderstand each other. They get hurt. They react badly. They don't always communicate well. They make mistakes. And then they have to deal with the consequences and, hopefully, grow from them.

And I actually appreciated the male lead for this reason.

No, I am NOT saying that his harsh behaviour was good or that I approve of it.

But was it realistic?

Absolutely.

People can be difficult. They can be emotionally immature in some areas, defensive, stubborn, insensitive or simply bad at expressing what they actually feel. Loving someone doesn't automatically turn you into a perfectly emotionally intelligent human being.

I work with people around communication and relationships in my everyday life, so maybe that's why these things stood out to me so much. I see how often people bring their own "stuff" into relationships and how complicated it can be for two people to actually understand each other.

So for me, his behaviour wasn't necessarily good.

It was believable.

And I think that's an important difference.

Also, can we please stop pretending that the "perfect man" exists? 😂

He doesn't.

And neither does the perfect woman.

I actually think it's misleading when romance dramas constantly give us this fantasy of the flawless man who is handsome, successful, emotionally perfect, endlessly patient, always says the right thing and somehow knows exactly what the woman needs.

That's not real life.

I'd much rather watch two flawed people trying to figure each other out.

And the chemistry between these two was REALLY good.

Thank God. 😂

Because I have watched way too many dramas where the leads are supposed to be passionately in love and I feel absolutely nothing.

Flat acting. No tension. No spark. Nothing.

Here, I actually believed that these two people were attracted to each other. You could feel the tension, the affection, the frustration and all the things they weren't saying. Jing Boran and Sun Qian really worked together for me.

And I especially liked Zhitao's growth.

She doesn't just become "the woman who gets the man."

She changes.

She becomes stronger, more confident and, most importantly, she learns to set boundaries.

And I LOVED that.

Because understanding someone's reasons doesn't mean you have to accept their behaviour.

You can understand why someone is the way they are and still say: this is not okay for me.

That's growth.

I also really loved what they did with the final episode.

Showing the whole journey of their relationship and allowing us to look back at everything that happened made the ending so much more meaningful for me.

What I loved about the final episode was that they actually showed us that whole journey. Looking back at their relationship and seeing all those moments from a different perspective made his emotional growth even more powerful. He had always felt deeply for her; he simply didn't know how to express it. Watching him slowly understand himself and his feelings, and eventually learn how to express them, was honestly one of my favourite parts of the whole drama.

His emotional maturity and development were AMAZING to watch.

He didn't suddenly become a completely different person. He grew into someone who was finally able to understand what he felt and communicate it.

And I think that's much more satisfying than simply watching a cold male lead suddenly fall madly in love.

Were there moments when I wanted to scream at them, "JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER!"? 😂

Of course.

But honestly... that's also very real.

People who love each other don't automatically know how to communicate.

And that's probably why this drama worked for me.

It wasn't perfect.

The people weren't perfect either.

And that's exactly the point.

Give me real people with flaws, baggage, bad reactions, growth, boundaries and genuine chemistry over another fairytale romance where everyone behaves perfectly.

Honestly, this is by far the best modern romance I've watched this year.

If you're looking for a romantic drama that feels closer to real life than to a fairy tale, I would definitely recommend giving The Early Spring a try.