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A Chinese Historical BL worth checking out
Is “Journey with You” as good as its historical C-BL predecessor, “Kill to Love”? I think I like “Journey with You” just a little bit more. It’s still a small budget production but the plot is good. I could see a big budget production using the same plot, but giving it more time to expand certain storylines and execute better.
It’s unfortunate that this drama didn’t get a lot of hype, due to its airing schedule in competition with the likes of “Sammy’s Children Day” and “Double Helix”. Moreover, it’s only available on Gagaoolala and not other more popular platforms.
Acting:
Most of the actors are pretty new to the industry. The most experienced would be Colin Duan, who played the villain. And you know what, it shows his experience especially in his last scenes. That was quite an emotional and teary performance with snot coming out of his nose. LOL But the other newbies aren’t bad either, and better than I expected. There’s definitely room for improvement, and I wasn’t cringing. Wang Jing Han, playing one of the main leads Pei Yan Zhi, has a lot of potential. I quite enjoy his acting. Tang Bi De (5th Prince) and the rest of the supporting cast did fine.
Main Romance:
The main leads have great chemistry together. I believe in their brotherhood, their brewing (or already brewed) romance, and how they can’t deny their feelings for each other anymore. There are definitely some frustrating moments when Pei Yan Zhi was doing his noble idiocy act. But I forgive him, as I understood where he’s coming from. The biggest surprise is how bold they went in with the intimate scene and the kisses. That kiss sequence before their NC scene was perfect. Passionate and hungry, and showing all the pent up emotions. The occasional kisses here and there in the latter half of the drama are not fish kisses either.
Secondary Romance:
The secondary toxic romance was interesting. The flashbacks showed us enough of how they met and became close. The NC scenes were suggestive but not quite daring enough to go all out and show us more. I would think their special relationship NC scene should be as daring as the main leads, if not more. But for a short drama, I was happy that they were given just enough screen time.
Plot:
The political plot was not hard to follow though I think the writing for Yin Qi’s way to change the past could have been better. But I have to say, Pei Yan Zhi’s scheme is a little crazy and farfetched. MDL didn’t say this drama is an adaptation of anything, so I guess the original scriptwriter really went all out to create this unrealistic way to save Yin Qi. I think I enjoyed the first two-thirds of the drama, more than the last few episodes. As for the ending, I wish we could have gotten something a little more definite. Is that real, or a dream/imagination? I guess it’s up to the viewer to decide.
Overall, I had a good time watching “Journey with You”. It’s a rare Chinese historical BL, and I hope to see more in the future. We know having a big budget would be difficult, but I wish the creators continue to find ways to make high quality content, whether it’s newbies’ acting, fight scenes, makeup, costumes, sets, or the use of different camera angles.
Drama Completed: 6/20/2026 Review #697
It’s unfortunate that this drama didn’t get a lot of hype, due to its airing schedule in competition with the likes of “Sammy’s Children Day” and “Double Helix”. Moreover, it’s only available on Gagaoolala and not other more popular platforms.
Acting:
Most of the actors are pretty new to the industry. The most experienced would be Colin Duan, who played the villain. And you know what, it shows his experience especially in his last scenes. That was quite an emotional and teary performance with snot coming out of his nose. LOL But the other newbies aren’t bad either, and better than I expected. There’s definitely room for improvement, and I wasn’t cringing. Wang Jing Han, playing one of the main leads Pei Yan Zhi, has a lot of potential. I quite enjoy his acting. Tang Bi De (5th Prince) and the rest of the supporting cast did fine.
Main Romance:
The main leads have great chemistry together. I believe in their brotherhood, their brewing (or already brewed) romance, and how they can’t deny their feelings for each other anymore. There are definitely some frustrating moments when Pei Yan Zhi was doing his noble idiocy act. But I forgive him, as I understood where he’s coming from. The biggest surprise is how bold they went in with the intimate scene and the kisses. That kiss sequence before their NC scene was perfect. Passionate and hungry, and showing all the pent up emotions. The occasional kisses here and there in the latter half of the drama are not fish kisses either.
Secondary Romance:
The secondary toxic romance was interesting. The flashbacks showed us enough of how they met and became close. The NC scenes were suggestive but not quite daring enough to go all out and show us more. I would think their special relationship NC scene should be as daring as the main leads, if not more. But for a short drama, I was happy that they were given just enough screen time.
Plot:
The political plot was not hard to follow though I think the writing for Yin Qi’s way to change the past could have been better. But I have to say, Pei Yan Zhi’s scheme is a little crazy and farfetched. MDL didn’t say this drama is an adaptation of anything, so I guess the original scriptwriter really went all out to create this unrealistic way to save Yin Qi. I think I enjoyed the first two-thirds of the drama, more than the last few episodes. As for the ending, I wish we could have gotten something a little more definite. Is that real, or a dream/imagination? I guess it’s up to the viewer to decide.
Overall, I had a good time watching “Journey with You”. It’s a rare Chinese historical BL, and I hope to see more in the future. We know having a big budget would be difficult, but I wish the creators continue to find ways to make high quality content, whether it’s newbies’ acting, fight scenes, makeup, costumes, sets, or the use of different camera angles.
Drama Completed: 6/20/2026 Review #697
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