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Mars taiwanese drama review
Completed
Mars
0 people found this review helpful
by Owl-woman
Apr 15, 2021
21 of 13 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 7.5
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 5.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 2.5
This review may contain spoilers

Taiwanese Hansel and Gretel

...with the only difference that they are a couple, not siblings. All the rest is according to the mythos: they both are the abandoned kids who get attracted to each other for a very solid reason (rare in love dramas and adding value to this one) - their trauma patterns perfectly match. They literally smell each other's PTSDs and the whole drama is the process of mutual healing through the relationship. And it's worth a watch for this reason only. This is basically a great story. No silly funny scenes, so peculiar to other romantic shows. No fillers. However, a lot a things were overexplained which is quite annoying. The viewers are not stupid. They can understand the underlying dynamics. A nice description of psychopathological processes. I love the stories that can serve as demonstrations for med students. This is the case. Some of the things didn't overcome my cultural barrier though and this leaves a filthy aftertaste. Like, I can understand that some mothers betray their daughters for the sake of their own survival (or this is how the mothers explain it), but I cannot at all comprehend why the school violence and harrassment wasn't reported. If it was, however, the story would be quite different. And, nevertheless, I don't get it how someone who threatened to break your bones could eventually become your best friend. A misterious local culture with weird interpretations of shame and dignity. This blocked me from smooth rolling through the show.
One of the reasons I picked this show was to give Vic Chou a second chance after his, let's call it, "strange" acting in The Flame's Daughter. As I'd read the reviews I understood this was his best drama ever. So, he could not have possibly failed. BUT he did! Even though he was in his best shape and he fit this drama organically, and a few more descriptions like "gorgeous", "sexy", "terrific", "so damn good", "one of the best looking guys in that part of the world", etc., as soon as he opened his mouth the whole charm was gone. He was good in some of the scenes, but it felt cringey in the most. All the rest of the cast were great.
I recommend it for those, who are picky about love stories and require solid psychological assumptions behind the characters. It's all here.
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