Jay

Viki has a fan channel for this here:
https://www.viki.com/tv/36358c-when-we-were-young

Please fill out the form below so that we can get subs for this:
http://vikiinc.wufoo.com/forms/title-request-form/

You may be in luck, it's back on Netflix for me. Hopefully it's there for you!

If you have Netflix, check to see if it's available in your region. It's available over here in Canada.

This is coming to Netflix on August 4th.

When I referred to the cartoony violence I was thinking of scenes like Shan Cai jumping through the air to deliver that flying kick or DMS' sister doing the same in this version.

However, I can say with confidence that you don't know me or what i'm thinking so I don't see how you can jump to the conclusion that just because I found those kicks exaggerated that I would also find a girl being dragged behind a car comparable in its extremity despite the fact that I already mentioned I had not watched the previous versions in their entirety and thus did not even know that occured in those versions.

You excused his actions and said that what she did was premeditated. In that scene in BOF I was referring to she didn't seem to be in any immediate danger but was clearly angered by his prior actions and had it in her mind to respond with violence in response to his actions and his lack of remorse.

I guess i'm the opposite, I hold no attachment to this story and tried watching the other adaptations and couldn't get into them. I guess it's great that there are enough adaptations out there to suit both of our tastes.

That sounds like an assumption to me. When he's walking up the stairs, his eyes definitely don't look like they're looking down at the steps.

Once again, since this is a manga adaptation and from what I know of the previous versions, the violence in some of the scenes is meant to be cartoony and is part of the source material. Since I haven't watched the entirety of the other versions, I'm just curious do you think she is justified in using violence in those versions? From the one scene I saw in BOF, she went there to confront him about his actions but was the first one to get physical in that scene.

She was upset about her phone being broken and grabbed the school's guest by his arm in anger but was quickly subdued. I doubt it caused any personal injury so I guess no harm, no foul. I guess it's comparable to DMS' actions with the takeout container. In that case, I guess neither should be held responsible for their actions.

While she may have asked him with an aggressive tone, it's not like she invaded his personal space, shoving her phone directly into his face asking for compensation right away. She tried to explain the situation and he walked away. Although the situation was chaotic, there were a lot of people, there could have been someone there to corroborate her story.

With the cake incident, he was walking towards them at that moment, he would've clearly saw that she tripped and accidentally hit him with the cake. She offered to help him clean it and there's a difference between evading someone's touch and shoving them to the ground.

With the basketball situation, the situation could've been easily explained if they just heard each other out instead of jumping to conclusions and walking off with the phone.

Well at least he shows remorse for his actions and has a conscience! She looked pretty shaken up to me after confiding in HZL.

Well since this is a manga adaptation, some things like acts of violence won't translate when we're watching a real life person get kicked in the face as opposed to seeing it happen to a character that is drawn. His sister also kicked him in the face and knocked him out. He has also been been forceful and physical with her. His actions also could have emotionally scarred her.

I guess everyone will view these situations differently. I can understand the reasoning behind their actions but I don't think showing sympathy for one character precludes you from doing so for another character.

I think Shan Cai was merely standing up for herself. He stepped on her phone, breaking it in the process, shoved her friend and then slammed that takeout container full of food in her face. In none of those instances did she go out her way to bully him. It's not like she went picking fights with the entire F4, her beef was solely with DMS.

Maybe some people found it harder to look past DMS' actions or didn't think he did enough to deserve to be forgiven by Shan Cai in the previous versions. The bullying still exists in some forms mainly gossip and through the use of technology (use of images posted online and rumors being spread online based on them)

Judging by the positive comments here, I guess a lot of people do want and prefer a version with these changes. Those other versions still exist for people who prefer a version with extreme bullying. Everyone wins.

Lol true. One of the worst feelings you can experience as a drama fan is when you're watching a drama that you're sure will be a new favorite and when you go to hit the "next episode" button and realize there is no such button. ;_;

Well in that case, it's up to the discretion of the viewer if they want to sit through and watch all of those episodes to witness that development. But that doesn't mean the development doesn't exist. Some people would prefer it if the development feels more natural and organic and earned as opposed to happening suddenly. I have't watched too many dramas with 45+ episodes but the ones I have for the most part have utilized that time well to develop a majority of the characters or at least have found ways to give each character a moment or two to make their mark on the story. Usually those dramas with huge episode counts have a large number of characters, just because one character isn't as fully developed doesn't mean the entire drama is pointless, At least for me it doesn't. I'm usually able to at least latch onto a number of the other characters in the drama. If not, I wouldn't bother wasting all of my time to watch the drama and it's onto the next one.

Agreed! I would prefer if more dramas did away with just focusing on the leads with little development if any for supporting characters and shift towards more ensemble casts. They should utilize the added benefits that dramas provide with their added runtime in comparison to movies to afford opportunities for development for all the characters involved in the story.

True, some people change and it might not be for the better just like in real life. But I also understand it's tough breaking old habits. But I also won't fault people if they're sincerely trying to improve themselves even if they struggle along the way.

I can understand not responding positively to a character if they exhibited those traits and qualities you mentioned especially consistently from the start of a drama to the end but I guess we'll have to disagree with the fact about not being able to see beyond that initial impression.

If at the start of the drama, a character has those traits and qualities but grows, matures and evolves throughout the drama, I don't understand why they can't escape that initial impression if they're shown earnestly trying to better themselves. As humans we're constantly changing and learning, if we're following a lead character, we'll see them be put through many different situations and scenarios. They won't always make the decision we think is right or act the way we think is right but for me they should at least be afforded the opportunity to learn from these experiences without casting judgment and writing them off right from the jump.

As far as I know there isn't one yet.

Okay, sounds good! Happy watching :-)

I can understand Mandarin but I can't read it lol so I can't definitively say they subbed all the messages.

Yeah, here's a link for the trailer, more like a short teaser:
https://twitter.com/dramapotatoe/status/981518389263790082

Likewise, unfortunately on this site, both With You and MHF are kind of overlooked so it's nice to find someone else that likes them! I'm sure you'll like MHF as well. Yeah, most of my friends watch KDramas if they do watch dramas so it's nice to see another person that will at least give CDramas a chance!

A lot of the things you brought up in this article, I've had similar thoughts while watching dramas too. But more shockingly, I noticed a lot of drama watchers are extremely harsh towards women characters if they don't fit their criteria of what they believe is a "strong" woman.

I don't want to speak over anyone on this matter. I just wish people could be more understanding and accepting.

Bottom line, I hope we get more complex women characters in dramas and other works of fiction and also more women characters that support and uplift one another. Thanks again for the article!

Yeah, I completely agree about GG. Do you mean for the very last 5 minutes? Because if so, I remember when I was watching this initially there was a voiceover for those text messages but now when I checked that scene it just has background music while he's reading those text messages. Unless my memory is all foggy..but i'm pretty sure the subbed dialogue corresponds directly with the text messages.

Thanks for this site too! I should see if any of my favorite dramas have been adapted from novels and have been translated.

Yeah, for whatever reason they're not handling Unrequited Love which sucks since they did a great job with With You and MHF. The production company is working a college set drama next called "My One and Only Love" and possibly a Gossip Girl remake.

Thanks for accepting my friend request btw! :-)

Yeah, good catch on all those hints. Timing was definitely an issue for Yu Huai and Geng Geng. As she suggested in the narration, Yu Huai was focused on his academics and excelling while GG was still finding herself and figuring what she wanted to do in their high school days. But in the future, GG is the one who has had more success post high school at least up to that point. But just like how Yu Huai helped GG through high school, GG said she was willing to help and be by his side as he was sorting his stuff out. Even though they wasted 10 years I believe they'll have a new beginning with one another so don't be too heartbroken!

Same! And Beta, somewhere trekking though Europe. .Yu Huai definitely has a lot of qualities that are admirable but also made some decisions that I don't agree with even if I can understand why he made them.

Thanks for the link for those translations! Unfortunately, I read that another production company is handling the Unrequited Love adaptation but it still looks good!

Great article!

I'm a guy so I hope my opinion doesn't come off as mansplaining. But from what I gathered from your article, I agree with the fact that we should do away with all those labels and view these characters as human beings and as women who are all unique in their own ways. As human beings, that means we all have our own flaws. But just because we have certain flaws that doesn't mean we should be viewed as either strong or weak but as multi-dimensional and complex individuals. From my observations, I notice more drama viewers will put down Character A but champion Character B. Some dramas tend to provide these thin characterizations but as you said we should view these characters not just as archetypes but try to identify with and understand their situation and see them for who they are. There's room in dramas for women of all types (rather than types, I should say women with a variety of different traits and qualities) and they all should be afforded the time to develop and grow so that we don't have to put down a woman like Character A just to uplift Character B.

Lol I don't want to spoil the ending for you, I'll just say that it feels more "complete" and less ambiguous. I too think 10 years is a bit long for the separation but I think they wanted to show the gap between Geng Geng and Yu Huai after they were past their post-secondary years (well atleast for GG) and how she was settled in her career but he was still pursuing his education. And of course they wanted to break our hearts further by telling us that GG waited 10 years for Yu Huai and wouldn't mind waiting another 10 for him!

I gave With You a 9.5 but it's closer to a 9.75 for me only because since they decided to wrap everything up in 2 episodes, I feel like we didn't get to know much about the other students in the future beyond some vague mentions. I would have loved to see a reunion or something. Just a minor nitpick though, it's one of my favorite dramas.

Yeah, I would love to read these novels too, I grew attached to so many of the characters but unfortunately don't think they have been translated. These books are part of a trilogy I believe and they're going to adapt the other novel too. It's called Unrequited Love which focuses on Huai Nan and Luo Zhi's characters from With You. But they'll be portrayed by different actors. It Looks good as well though.