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Wong Kar-wai’s first series - a must watch unique drama
As one professional review described it in the trailer, Blossoms Shanghai is the spiritual sequel to Wong Kar-wai's films, in the format of a TV series. And it's quite an accurate description, because you'll find the filmmaker's distinctive signature throughout the whole drama, adapted to the series format and with a rhythm and tone that are somewhat more uplifting than in his films.If you like, enjoy or love Wong Kar-wai's portfolio, there's no doubt you'll like Blossoms Shanghai. The uniqueness of it all: the cinematography, movie-like quality, acting, incredible soundtrack, meticulous production, camera work, and storytelling, all worth the experience. On the contrary, if you like linear, very talkative and straightforward narratives, this might not be for you.
While in his movies the emotions linger with you long after they finish, the series format simply lets you dive into them throughout its 30 episodes, but ultimately lets you go at the end. Because if there's a difference between WKW's first series and his movies, it is not only the slightly faster pace but also the more positive overall tone and ending. The first 5 to 7 episodes set the premise, but then the drama finds its rhythm and keeps it up until the end; it all makes sense and wraps up nicely.
The technical aspects are, of course, magnificent and very personal in flavour, with the director's recurrent elements also present here: silences, looks and gestures that speak more than words, mirror frames, the role of lighting and soundtrack, slow-mo for certain takes, voice-over narration, you name it.
Acting is top notch and you wouldn´t expect less from this cast: Hu Ge, Xin Zhi Lei, Ma Li, Dong Yong, Wu Yue, Huang Jue and many more. Even my initial cavils with the monotone high-pitched voice of Tiffany Tang faded away and she grew on me eventually, although she never made it into my list of favourites.
Also, the fragmented storytelling that's one of Wong Kar-wai's signatures is here too. The story starts in the middle of the narrative told from the protagonist's perspective, and you'll only have the full picture by the end of the drama.
In that regard, the whole series is wrapped in a warm light that carries you to a world that no longer exists, as in a dream or a remembrance of things past that feels real, yet tamed by someone's lens. This is a love letter to Shanghai, to the blossoming side of the city and that era in the 90s, and the Shanghainese dialect adds to that atmosphere and to the overall flavour of the drama. There's no point in looking for the less positive side of that period here; WKW has no intention whatsoever of talking about it.
This is the story of the swag, savvy and handsome Ah Bao, who decided to surf the wave of China's financial and economic awakening in the late 80s and early 90s, and his journey from a fabric worker to a millionaire in the stock market and textile-retail industry in Shanghai during those years. Along the way, he crossed paths with business competitors and established several meaningful relationships, especially with three women – two of them involved in the restaurant industry – who were also striving to find not only love but their place in this new world.
This is told around WKW's common topics: unrequited love and longing, memory, nostalgia, the passage of time, loneliness, missed connections, the fleeting nature of happiness and human relationships. The difference this time is the addition of business aspects, and it's worth noting that Blossoms Shanghai leans heavily into them too.
All the characters in the drama, even the minor ones, are fleshed out. You have "antagonists", but there are no purely good or bad people; they're mostly multifaceted people with dreams, ambitions and struggles whose interests often merge or collide. You learn to cherish all of them, and every one has their moment of "glory".
Among them, I just want to give a special shout out to the female "laoban" restaurant gang and their leader Lu Mei Lin, and the three waitress-managers; while among the "main" ones my favourites were Mr. Jiang, Ling Zi and the precious Mr. Fan, besides, of course, Ah Bao.
And let me finish this review highlighting my favourite part among many favourite parts of Blossoms Shanghai: episode 14.
This feels like a Wong Kar-wai short film within the 30-episode series, something that only a creative mind like this director's could imagine and execute in such an exquisite way that you wish to rewatch it on loop for quite some time. It’s also a pivotal point in the story that gives meaning to the rest, but that you could also watch independently and still fall in love with it. Jackie Cheung and his "Broken Heart" – or "Stolen Heart" – adds to the magic.
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NOTE: The drama is now available worldwide on MUBI (plus Criterion on USA and Canada)
The drama is also available in Mandarin. I prefer the original Shanghainese version.
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A wuxia-ish Republican-era road trip with bold Tarantino vibes
It took me a while to organize my thoughts about this drama, just like it took me a while to watch it, despite despite being only 18 episodes long. But that doesn't mean the drama is bad, slow, or convoluted. On the contrary, maybe it's simply because Fearless Blood is an out-of-the-ordinary cdrama.It's packed with such intensity, violence, and absurdity, right in line with Tarantino's best films, but it's also firmly rooted in its own Chinese tradition of wuxia and Republican dramas, so trying to sum it up was quite a struggle.
What’s it about? It tells the story of Xu Tian, a young man from Southeast Asia who goes north to Shanghai to support the revolutionary cause and get married. Along the way, he is helped by five distinctive, larger than life characters who structure the chapters or stages of the road trip, while Xu Tian experiences his transition from a naive young man into a fully grown adult.
Built around a road-journey structure set in the Republican era, it explores wuxia themes such as personal growth, obsessions, injustice, corruption, ambition, greed, rebellion, and bonds. Through the parallelism of the journey, that uses every possible means of transportation - from trains to animal-drawn carts, bicycles, and cars - the drama unfolds all kinds of relationships: father and son, frenemies, friendship, romantic love, marital companionship, colleagues, comrades, and enemies.
From the very beginning, nothing is allowed to unfold neatly. Chaos and anarchy run through the narrative via unexpected decisions, sudden turns, and characters who seem to exist solely to complicate plans. The humor is dark and absurd and, together with the storytelling, constantly reminded me of the spirit of Tarantino's films.
It is directed and written by Xu Bing, who was already among my top directors and screenwriters, and this drama only consolidates that position. His work remains bold, creative, and intellectually engaged, supported by solid production values and a star-studded, seasoned cast. In Fearless Blood, my favorites were many: Liao Fan (Old Sun), Zhang Jing Wei (Ma Tian Fang), Song Han Huan (Wu Da or Seven), and especially Wu Xiao Lian as the melancholic gambler Yu Zhou, whom I absolutely loved.
For sure, this is not a drama made for binge-watching; you’ll need breaks, despite wanting to know what will happen next. It’s a story to be savored slowly, from the first scene to the ending credits — and the same goes for the soundtrack. As Yu Yi Xiu, played by Edward Zhan, says: “Let me enjoy a bit longer”
To sum up, this show is violent, absurd, reflective, unapologetically dense, and gripping all at the same time. It won’t be for everyone, but for those willing to sit with its chaos, it offers a uniquely unsettling and rewarding experience in C-dramaland.
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An unexpected realistic portrait of love and relationships in adult life
I had chosen Discovery of Romance in the first place because of the main male lead—an excellent actor, Qin Jun Jie—and although I already knew the female lead, Janice Wu, she hadn’t really stood out to me until now. Here, she’s really good and believable. Of the three main protagonists, the second male lead is the weakest. With a different casting choice, things might have been a bit more interesting and the overall score would´ve been higher. His acting isn't good.This is a story of second chances, growth, and life, told in an engaging way, with the three main protagonists breaking the fourth wall from time to time. The first 10 to 13 episodes are comedy gold. In the middle part, the tone begins to shift as we learn more about everyone involved, and the final stretch (episodes 20 to 26) ... well, be prepared, it’s touching.
That said, this show is not for everyone. It's a “kind of love triangle” without really being one, since that first encounter pushes the ex to fight for the girl to come back to him—a difficult task, considering the female lead is in a relationship that checks all the boxes, at least on paper. As I said, the first 10 to 13 episodes are gold—I have so many many many favorite hilarious moments. Then the tone slowly changes, and by the end, it becomes deeply emotional – although ends in a high note again.
The protagonists are entering their 30s, and that’s clearly the target audience: people in their 30s and older. You need to have lived a bit, to have experienced life's ups and downs, heartbreaks, failures, longings, and struggles beyond your 20s, to fully appreciate, understand, and reflect on what’s happening, both in general and within each character, and why they make the choices they do.
There are no purely good or bad people here, just human beings being human: imperfect, selfish, immature, arrogant, insecure, caring, ambitious, sweet. They made choices, and they hurt themselves and others in the process. Some will grow more than others. That’s real life. They’re not perfect or always likable, but you won´t hate anyone. I think this is the drama’s strongest point together with the acting and the chemistry between Qin Jun Jie and Janice Wu. It feels real, with real people. And because of that, it's by no means perfect—but it’s solid and genuinely good.
I won’t spoil the ending. I was pleasently surprised, because I didn’t expect to find such a real and touching drama.
Side notes:
The friends/side characters follow the trend of early 2020s dramas, with a slightly cartoonish tone, but nothing you can’t handle. Overall, the acting is solid across the cast—except for two characters who are just boring to watch. I skipped some of their scenes (very personal preference, of course, as this review).
The English title is bad. The Chinese title is much more accurate—it plays with the name of the female lead and the ideas/situations of love. I guess in those years “Romance” and “Love” were trending, and “Blossom” wasn’t on anyone’s radar yet.
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Outstanding drama about an iconic and unprecedented decade – the 80s.
Like a Flowing River is a splendid drama depicting an iconic and unprecedented decade – the 80s - in a grounded and human way. It's difficult to portray all the changes that China went through during these first ten years of the Reform and Opening Up while capturing both the grand picture and the daily lives of ordinary people, but somehow this drama manages to do it.In 1978, after years of a centralized planned economy and being closed off to the world, China began an unprecedented transformation in history that has impacted the world beyond imagination, with changes still continuing into the 21st century. These first two decades lasting until 2000 are known as the Reform and Opening Up*.*
In Like a Flowing River we see the first part of this transformation - from 1978 until 1988 - , while the second and third seasons cover the following years. Set in eastern China, we experience what the Reform and Opening Up meant through the lives of the three main protagonists: a university graduate who will enter the production industry, a local Party leader in rural areas, and a private entrepreneur.
The Execution
Based on a novel, the adapted script is so well written that I took notes on many life lessons to remember, reflect on, and apply to my own life. The excellent performances from the whole cast, led by Wang Kai, Yang Shuo and Tong Yao, do full justice to the characters and the story, under the magnificent direction of Kong Sheng and Huang Wei. It was produced by Daylight Entertainment – and as always, if DE is involved, you can rest assured the final product will be of high quality, even if it's not necessarily your taste.
I love the storytelling. There’s no messy start, no reliance on flashbacks, no constant jumping between multiple characters and storylines from the beginning that prevent you from connecting with them or that make you struggle to follow each storyline. Instead, everything is presented in a clear and smooth way, without oversimplifying. Nothing feels fake or forced, also doesn’t shy away from hardship, whether from the previous or the current period.
The Story
I mean, a drama that can make you eagerly want to watch the next episode while dealing with seemingly dry themes, at least deserves a try.
Starting in 1978 with the restoration of the Gaokao, the National University Entrance Exams - which marked the ending of the Maoist-era recommendation system -, we see throughout 48 episodes how the collective farming, which had been pushing people into poverty, was replaced with a family-based land leasing system where farmers could sell the surplus on the open market, the legalization of private businesses – yes, they were forbidden before –, and the government promoting rural enterprises collectively owned by townships and villages.
The drama also depicts how state-owned enterprises gained autonomy in production, pricing, and profit retention, and even shows the introduction of the dual-track price system, allowing goods to be sold at both state-set plan prices and higher market prices, gradually shifting toward market mechanisms. And of course, we see how the quality of life was gradually improving.
Not only do we see the main transformations through the intertwined lives of the three protagonists and their relationships, but we also understand what they meant, the challenges they represented, and we also get invested emotionally in the characters’ struggles and achievements! Outstanding indeed.
Final thoughts
Two things to highlight: my love for a secondary character, Xun Jian Xiang (played by Zhao Da); and the overall positive feeling that runs through the story. The words from A Nai, the author of the novel on which the drama is based, sum it up perfectly:
"We are so fortunate to be able to catch up with the era of China's rising fortune. I don't want to fail this era. I'm blessed to be living in an unprecedented era of change."
Despite its length, I didn't want Like a Flowing River to end. This drama entered, without hesitation, my all-time favourites list and luckily, seasons 2 and 3 covering the remaining years until the end of the '90s are already out!
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