This review may contain spoilers
Unpopular Opinion: Don’t Hate Me, But This Was Mid
Umm… many fans of this drama might hate me for this, but this is just my personal take. As someone who has watched an abundance of K-dramas and C-dramas romance, Never Ending Summer felt pretty mid to me.
What can I say? It makes you smile, but not enough to give you that stomach-twisting butterfly feeling. For me, it lacked the angst, yearning, and emotional push-and-pull that make romance dramas memorable. The romantic scenes were cute, but rarely swept you off your feet. Some scenes were honestly illogical, but I guess this is the kind of drama where you’re meant to turn your brain off and just go with it. That said, if you’re already asking the audience to suspend logic, then I feel like the drama should have gone all in. For a story built on separation and resentment, the emotional weight felt surprisingly soft.
The story had so much potential. A classic “us against the world” romance, family disapproval, tangled interests of family drama, it should have been the perfect recipe for emotional chaos. But somehow, it stayed too safe. Some scenes didn’t even make much sense, but instead of leaning into the chaos and making it more dramatic, the drama lost the emotional intensity I expected. I had high expectations for Zhou Keyu because I liked him from variety shows, but I have to admit, he didn’t fully sell me on the rich bad-boy rebel image. Speaking fluent English alone doesn’t automatically create the character's star aura. I expected more of that rebellious tsundere edge, especially since Bao Shang'en was already giving exactly what she needed to give, the perfect smart, scheming top-student energy. On the other hand, supporting actors like Ke Chun also stood out more than expected. And visually, the adult versions of Zhao Yingbo and Xu Yuan Li Na brought an undeniable glow-up.
Maybe the real issue lies in my expectations. I wanted more yearning, more push-and-pull, more “I can’t let you go” tension. But when the story shifts into adulthood, their reconciliation feels way too easy for people who once hurt each other that deeply. I wanted more emotional resistance and longing, more hesitation before their romantic reunion. If they were truly that in love, it doesn’t make much sense that they spent ten years playing emotional hide-and-seek, only to let go of their resentment so quickly. That made the whole ten-year separation feel less convincing to me.
That being said, the leads shared enough decent chemistry to keep the romance watchable, and visually, they worked well together. And the thing I appreciated most was the ending. It gave us a nonconventional proposal and a small but meaningful surprise through the flashbacks, which was a nice refreshing touch.
What can I say? It makes you smile, but not enough to give you that stomach-twisting butterfly feeling. For me, it lacked the angst, yearning, and emotional push-and-pull that make romance dramas memorable. The romantic scenes were cute, but rarely swept you off your feet. Some scenes were honestly illogical, but I guess this is the kind of drama where you’re meant to turn your brain off and just go with it. That said, if you’re already asking the audience to suspend logic, then I feel like the drama should have gone all in. For a story built on separation and resentment, the emotional weight felt surprisingly soft.
The story had so much potential. A classic “us against the world” romance, family disapproval, tangled interests of family drama, it should have been the perfect recipe for emotional chaos. But somehow, it stayed too safe. Some scenes didn’t even make much sense, but instead of leaning into the chaos and making it more dramatic, the drama lost the emotional intensity I expected. I had high expectations for Zhou Keyu because I liked him from variety shows, but I have to admit, he didn’t fully sell me on the rich bad-boy rebel image. Speaking fluent English alone doesn’t automatically create the character's star aura. I expected more of that rebellious tsundere edge, especially since Bao Shang'en was already giving exactly what she needed to give, the perfect smart, scheming top-student energy. On the other hand, supporting actors like Ke Chun also stood out more than expected. And visually, the adult versions of Zhao Yingbo and Xu Yuan Li Na brought an undeniable glow-up.
Maybe the real issue lies in my expectations. I wanted more yearning, more push-and-pull, more “I can’t let you go” tension. But when the story shifts into adulthood, their reconciliation feels way too easy for people who once hurt each other that deeply. I wanted more emotional resistance and longing, more hesitation before their romantic reunion. If they were truly that in love, it doesn’t make much sense that they spent ten years playing emotional hide-and-seek, only to let go of their resentment so quickly. That made the whole ten-year separation feel less convincing to me.
That being said, the leads shared enough decent chemistry to keep the romance watchable, and visually, they worked well together. And the thing I appreciated most was the ending. It gave us a nonconventional proposal and a small but meaningful surprise through the flashbacks, which was a nice refreshing touch.
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