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Moonshine and Valentine chinese drama review
Completed
Moonshine and Valentine
0 people found this review helpful
by OdeK
Sep 14, 2021
25 of 25 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 8.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
This review may contain spoilers

Tears Galore!

Judging by some of the comments on this page, this may be an unpopular opinion, but I actually enjoyed the FL's performance and didn't really feel anything for the ML. Although this drama is far from perfect, it wasn't the worst drama I've seen - it was still watchable. I'm not going to talk about the plot as we all know how that went or about some questionable characters and their equally questionable actions (i.e. sexual assault that got the girl?!). I'll just talk about the protagonists.

When I first watched this, I didn't know Victoria or Johnny. I initially thought Victoria was younger than him, especially when she had her hair in a ponytail (when she was shopping for her boyfriend), she really looked like a woman in her early to mid-20s. When she had her hair down was when she looked more mature.
I don't really watch dramas for eye candy so I guess that's where I differ from the usual drama audience. From others' reactions, most people consider Johnny eye candy. Personally, he is handsome, but I wouldn't consider him one. I like to look at performances more than aesthetics. I especially love it when you can see an improvement in the actor/actress.
For a thousand-year-old fox who was in love with one woman for all her reincarnations...um...he didn't really express it (on his face). At all. Wouldn't have figured out why or IF he was even in love with her if they didn't keep repeating it in the opening sequence or have the ML himself repeat that fact. I haven't watched other shows that Johnny has acted in so I can't say much, but for this show at least, he was quite wooden with his expressions. He left me quite confused as to his intentions and/or his actions. Although, I'll be happy to change my opinion once I watch his other shows.

My yardstick for a good show is basically: can they make me cry and HOW HARD can they make me cry? And my gosh, Victoria made me cry...many times. It started with the famous breakup scene (ep 9) - it was more heartbreaking because she wasn't screaming. She was trying to hold it together and the betrayal and pain in her eyes? That was what broke me. I think I loved her character (as listless as she was written) because I saw my old self in her (albeit she's a more extreme version). I understood her and why she chose to handle situations a certain way. I liked that she grew as a person once she met Johnny's character and was able to stand on her own 2 feet at the end. I liked how Pipi's growth as a person was gradual. It was a natural progression which was realistic instead of the usual (and completely unrealistic) speed growth for characters that occur in 1 or 2 episodes (but I get it, since they're dramas).

Special mention: I laughed so hard when all those weird things began to happen to Pipi and she had to stay with Helan for a bit (cue Mary Sue). Johnny and Victoria were quite the dynamic comedic duo! That episode really lightened the otherwise gloomy mood that persisted throughout most of the drama.

For all the drama's flaws, I've also gained a newfound appreciation for the whole cast and crew considering the time constraints, scheduling issues, hospitalizations, and last minute changes.
Conclusion: A drama that was not bad, but not great. Became a fan of Victoria, loved the realistic growths of the characters. Would re-watch a few episodes, but maybe not the whole drama.
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