Reviews

A Golden Classic DRAMA from the 90s


Story :
Basically it's a love story between so many people. She love him, he love her, she love another, that another loves another.
It seems cliche but trust me, you would somehow be wrapped into the whole drama and you would find yourself getting into their conflict like as if you're experiencing it yourself. I dont know how the drama made it that way, maybe it's the way how 90s dramas present themselves. But it just works so magically well and you just want to watch it more, to satisfy your curiosities.
Though, one thing i love in this drama, is that it doesnt go out of the way and just stay realistic as it can be.

Acting:
Can i just say how much i love everyone in the cast?

I dont know any of them at first but I just want to fangirl suzuki Honami . She has done a good job in portraying the cheerful friendly girl in the whole story . From the start, she has already got me to like her. And probably 100% of the time, I continued watching because of Akana Rika (her character), She is so relatable in so many ways. Plus, that million-dollar smile she does when she is actually hurt.

And this is my bias opinion, but I believed many japanese actress have the same character with the same persona, but Suzuki Honami has this uniqueness in a way that I dont think others can beat. I can't seem to find the right words.

I would go on more about praising her, but really, the whole cast of this drama definitely had their own charms and has contributed to the drama which make the whole thing a success.

Music:
The soundtrack is the best. Even though it is old school, it touches the deep of my heart like no other songs in this generation can make. Such an up beat melody but the emotion it brings , really makes you like as if you yourself are experiencing the issues in the drama. The song definitely deserves the 9th most best single that has sold in Japan. I could just repeat that song forever.

Over all:

I love it so much ! I never thought i'd be this obsessed with a drama,especially a drama that is older than I am. Such a classic gem that everyone should try and watch . Tokyo love story made me wish I was experiencing the life style during the 90s , and the way how people love during that time. Totally worth watching, even in the midst of our busy real lives. And for a classic-oldschool drama lover like me , this has definitely over-meet my expectations and how I wished there's more dramas like this nowadays.

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"Unconsciously, and even consciously, you're all I can think about"

When was the last time a drama made you smile like an idiot?
I can only speak for myself, but it's been a long time. Sure, there are many romantic dramas that I have watched and loved in the last few years but the last time I held a pillow while watching a TV Show was when I was still into CW shows. But somehow I found myself squeezing a pillow a couple times thinking "damn, this is soo good!" while watching 'Fake It Till You Make It'.

Even as a somewhat drama veteran (thanks to excessive binge watching) I counted several "Firsts" and unique dialogue in this drama. The writing of the two leads, as their relationship grows as well as their individual character writing, is exceptionally good and ultimately what makes me rate this drama so highly.

A quote from Neil Blumenthal says "Details matter. They create depth, and depth creates authenticity."
I would say this, aside from superb acting and chemistry, makes it stand out.
These days many romantic dramas leave out details left and right.
It's all about Girl meets Boy in an awkward way, they go back and forth for a bit, she trips, he catches her - boom! They are in love (ofc there have to be some slo-mo shots too). - In the world of romantic tv dramas I would even go as far as to say it's acceptable because it's so cleary fiction.
However with FITYMI you get the realism of not just falling in love but also the uncertainty, the feeling of "what are we?" and the many details that ultimately lead a pair to decide to start a relationship together. The flirting in this drama is creme de la creme (hence the giggling I mentioned earlier) but also the daring moves are very exciting. Taking one step forward, which often is enough to become gf/bf in dramas, can be just a flirt in reality and here it's just that sometimes. A kiss is just a kiss as they say.

A few more things I loved about the couple:
- truly intellectual dialogue
- joking with each other a lot, without it being a plot device
- everyday talk and actions, laying on the couch playing some Nintendo switch - just people being people (4 dimensional characters)
- friendship rings, phone calls, texting - all the goodness of flirting!
- best confessions scenes ever

A little detail (among many) that I want to highlight so you get the idea of what I mean when I say it's a very real drama.
The ML scratches off his address from his mail and packages before throwing them away. This is just a normal scene, no explanation added nor does it spark any dialogue. Just something he does, like so many of us. THIS! That's how you create tangible characters.
Especially considering that the drama only has 14 episodes it's amazing how they fit so many details in that episode count. Thankfully that also meant there was no dragging. Yes, it's a slowburn love story but not in the way you are probably used to. Slowburn as in, we're actually going from encounter, flirting, friendship, some more flirting to testing each other, becoming more comfortable, many deep talks and then relationship. And even then, being in a relationship isn't the goal nor is it ever a goal in general. That's when the real work begins because you grow as a person and as pair. A relationship where everyone stays the same, is one doomed for failure.

ANYWAYS, I definitely got carried away here.. I could talk about what I think every move of the characters meant for hours (hit me up if you want to do the same, lol).

(big spoiler alert)
Moving on from the main couple, there is also a storyline earlier on that I think could have been easily dismissed but I want to mention it because it has, again, some very important context details that many other dramas lack. Lin Xin Zi and Xu Jia Bai's relationship and especially how it ended. Big city life dramas often have at least one pairing with an obviously toxic relationship that is bound to end. A guy that is slowly but surely getting more and more controlling. At some point (in dramas) they start to get physically violent and or verbally abusive. Sadly, this often serves as a plot device for the ML to swoop in and save the girl from the hands of her violent ex. Case closed. But is that what happens in reality? Rarely. Unfortunately being in a controlling relationship that start with things like, asking where you went (in a normal tone), to asking you not to wear revealing clothing is far more common. When the relationship ended, it was really heartbreaking because it was so obvious an unhealthy relationship, but on both sides. Someone that is deeply insecure and has a psychological problem needs treatment, not shaming and I liked that he was not painted as this "monster" but rather as someone with a problem, while still being responsible for his actions. That scene on the bridge was probably my favorite non-lead moment of the drama.
I wish other dramas could take a slice of this and at least stop portraying unhealthy relationships in one way only because the audience almost gets trained into black and white thinking. Either someone is good or bad, either they ship someone or not. Red Flag or Green Flag. Is that really how life works? I don't think so. We all have flaws, we learn to grow, we change, we mess up but we also take responsibility when it comes down it.

Now for the last part of this review / love letter, the more uncomfortable part. No drama is without flaw and although I want to state that the short comings of this drama did not negatively affect the main story of the leads, I still have to admit that it's not flawless. The business talk in the first half was somewhat too much for me, yes it was needed in a way and I liked the general writing too but it was just too much in my opinion.
The director, Li Mo, is also behind another MangoTV hit called "Remembrance of Past Things" and I can definitely see the similarities in realism, intellect and storytelling. But like with ROPT I wish he would focus a little less on the business side. I am patiently waiting for a drama of his, that is focused only on human connection and interpersonal relationships because I believe that would have massive potential. In case you have seen the 2021 Korean Drama "Lost", I believe he and the scriptwriters he works with could pull off something in that direction.

All in all this drama is just so FLIRTY and so good! And I loved every single bit of it! ... I was supposed to be on drama break while it was airing but I could not help but to sneak each episode in my full schedule and it was just like candy!
I also want to note that I left many things out my review (aka glorified long comment) but I decided to just focus on a few details :)

I will leave you with some quotes from the drama:

"Having you by my side is like having candy in my mouth.
No matter how bitter life gets, it always tastes sweet."

"if you can't solve something with a kiss,
try with more kisses."

"Tang Ying, you're not looking for someone out of your league,
You're waiting for a worthy rival."

"I've met many people in this city and they eventually taught me that
the word is big, too big to imagine, so walk your own path,
not according to the script.
Throw away the script and struggle to find your own life.
It's okay to fail, it's okay to take the wrong road.
Life freely.
Isn't that the most stylish thing?"

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This has a great plot, it's not something you haven't seen before but the way the story was told was just great. Painfully beautiful. I first used the term with A Beautiful Life (series) and this will just be the second time.
No matter how many times you go back in time to try to change things if it isn't meant to be that it will never be. Seems you really can't change what is bound to happen. You just have to accept the fact that whatever is meant to be will find its way eventually. Enjoy the moment and make the most put of it, keep those memories and make sure you tell those you love how much you love them.
Full review here: elijahmaliksmom.wordpress.com

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Why watch Bad Genius the series?

At first, I was very skeptical to watch the series mainly because I thought there was no way the original Lin and Bank could ever be replaced. However, I couldn't be more thankful that I chose to watch the series nonetheless.
If you love the movie, you'll definitely love the series. The writer added more depth to the story because obviously the duration of the whole series is way longer the movie.

Worthy to mention, the unsaid yet undeniable connection between Lin and Bank was even more defined in the series. Following are the friendship between Lin and Grace; the relationship between Grace and Pat; the cheating arrangements; but I need to stop here so as not to reveal any spoiler. The characters, no matter how evil they'd become, you cannot hate them because the reasons are logical enough that probably you'd do the same if you were in the same situation.

Every episode is more intense. You could literally hear your heart getting out your chest. Although, changes have been made from the movie but it's mainly because to justify more the actions done by the characters. The cast and the crew have done their respective parts incredibly. Lastly, the opening song is so good, you'd be having a hard time to skip it. To reiterate,the series has more depth than the movie!

Overall, the series deserved attention just as the movie, and personally, even more.
Check it out guys.

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Let me start by saying the synopsis here is absolutely not true! the synopsis is what made me set this drama aside for years, lead character being so evil to attain her ambitions? I guess the person who made the synopsis in this site never watched it. The main character is very beautiful, it can display innocence and it can show a scary look. She never killed or schemed someone because of her ambitions, she does not have ambitions to be an empress or empress dowager for her own interest. her evilness as the synopsis says is not even 1/5 of the other villains in the drama. All that prompted her to do what she did is a reaction to what the villains were doing to her, to protect herself, to avenge her lost love, to protect her children and herself, watch this, and even if you're fond of any drama genre, you will never put this down!


i've been watching so much asian dramas for the past 5 years or so to the point that I never have tot urn on the TV to watch anything else and I must tell you, this drama has been one of the most well made drama I have seen.

the plot is simple, very simple:

It's just some story of concubines and empress scheming, 76 episodes and the story only revolves within the harem. You have your emperor, empress and the concubines. Oh and it does have a love story

If you think of it, it does not deserve 76 episodes for such a simple plot. You might start wondering what they have done that it has to be 76 episodes, must be dragging, repetitive, boring.

let me tell you, I watched ten miles of peach blossom , SFD, Nirvana 1 & 2 , they're top notch when it comes to story line, plot and execution. since i watched these dramas, it has always been my standard if i should watch or drop a drama. I wqtched countless chinese historical, fanstasy cdrama, and many more kdramas, even thai dramas. I never had plan to watch Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan thou i've seen it many times when i search here what to watch next. I was watching Lgend of fuyao and i have to find somethign to kill the time while waiting for the next eps to be uploaded online. well guess what, I can stand not watching fuyaos eps till end of the week when all weekly eps were uploaded since i watched Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan.
must I say more?

let me compare it to top rated cdramas like TMOPB, ten miles has a very nice storyline + yang mi of course but it lacked luster when it comes to the most anticipated scenes like the fight scenes and the leads' supposedly moment of stardom. Fuyao has a great great storyline + yang mi, great costumes etc, name it, but let's admit it, it's toooooo draggy, too much reminiscing, crying scenes, in short, it has too much fillers it made the drama so bad that there are episodes that you ca skip entirely and still be on the loop. SFD, you can skip few mins. The only drama i can say that is at par with Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan is Nirvana 1, but Nirvana has it's advantage over Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan, its story revolves around so many people while Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan is only about the harem. while I was watching this drama, I thought about the talents of the writers and scriptwriters of this drama, the director, stage manager, idk but all that made it so beautifully executed I don't dare skip a scene,.. well i tried once but i ended up going back to what i skipped.


Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan is not your typical drama that follows every scene, it always conclude it. what i mean is, if a character asks her servent to get her a cup of tea, it no longer shows unnecessary scenes like servant bringing in the tea, if you know what i mean. this made the Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan one of its kind, fast paced but you'll not be left wondering unless you skip a scene. there's absolutely no boring moment and just like the other reviews and feedbacks, after you finish it, you will learn, you will learn how to be articulate with words, it grows in you while watching.

Nirvana has a very good rating here. I must say and Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan is very much at par it does not deserve 8.6 !!

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When I went to go see this film, I didn't know what to expect from it. I thought it might be a Burn The Stage type of documentary. It's not, but that's not a bad thing. This is 100% a concert film. You get to see BTS performing a bunch of songs from their Love Yourself series (and even a few others). The solos were one of my absolute favorite parts (especially seeing Yoongi dancing around to Seesaw in a sparkly red suit!) I personally really enjoyed this because I wasn't one of the lucky ones who were able to go to their concert, and while this wasn't the exact same, it's about as close as one can get. Overall it was really great and so much fun, I highly recommend it to all Armys. ^^

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Although they say this is a spin off from fated to love you it really isn't. Drunken to Love You is hilarious and there are funny moments almost all the time. Sometimes Taiwanese dramas seem to have a lot of melodrama in them, but this one didn't. However, there are some awful characters, occasional bad acting, and cliché moments but overall Fated to Love You is really likeable.

Now Rainie was awesome ! she seemed so very grown up and not like a kid anymore. Her crying scenes were really tear jearkers, and she really conveyed what the character meant. She is a really good actress. Joe Chang was really good as well but he did have a bit of an overacting bug, still you could really connect with him too. Tiffany Hsu was awful. Not only did it seem like the character was written poorly but her acting skills were the pits and she had no chemistry with Tom Price. (Plus she was annnnoying!!) The mother started out evil for like 1 episode but you will come to love her. You will see all kinds of reoccurring characters and if you watch it on Viki your friends will help pick those folks out!

Drunken to Love You has way less drama going on than Fated to Love you. However, with that said it seemed that Rainie cried just as much.lol. If you loved Fated to love you, if you keep in mind that this is a completely different drama you will like this too. I think both dramas had an innumerous amount of flashbacks and it seemed like there were new characters just coming out with no real purpose. Drunken had a lot of nice sub plots going on but none of them were as developed as the sub plots seemed to be in Fated.

This was a good watch it wasn't heavy with the drama, but it was funny and mainly cheery and had a really sweet ending. That you may not even see coming!

p.s loved the soundtrack.

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I want to vomit blood

Brace for the most annoying second male lead (2ML) and second female lead (2FL) characters. This drama practically has the most annoying supporting characters and yet they are very prominent in the story. The story started off pretty decent with an unconventional princess and a great male lead played by an actor I have come to love. To watch, viewers need to have a lot of patience. If not, you would want to strangle many characters here, maybe even including our FL and ML at times.

The acting by the two main character is actually not too bad - Ju Jingyi is her usual self with pretty the same kind of demeanor and unconventional costumes and head ornaments, and Zeng Shunxi (Joseph Zeng) is very lovable and convincing. But poor writing has made them look very bad at times, and resulted in their inconsistent acting and dialogues.

Both the 2FL and 2ML are super super annoying with a lot of screen time. The 2FL is obsessive with no dignity and the 2ML is also obsessive, super annoying and dumb. Though there are multiple lovable second couples, they are mostly one-dimensional and have rather poor acting skills.

My Verdict

Everything seems to have gone wrong with this drama, starting with a baffling English title, Rebirth For You (what the heck does it even mean?) The writing is so bad, lazy and inconsistent. The directing is haphazard and continuing angering me as the director doesn’t seem to care how viewers feel. The dialogues are boring and predictable. The war scenes are lazy and unconvincing with repeated scenes. For the supposedly final “big” battle for the finale, there are only a few people standing around. Plot holes everywhere with flaws that the editing team doesn't even bother to hide. The whole thing is like a non-serious, half-baked, kiddie costume drama that makes me roll my eyes until they hurt.

Watch it for Zeng Shunxi and Ju Jingyi if you’re their fans, just be prepared to protect your computer/TV screen so that you don’t accidentally smash it.

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A lot of laughter after a lot of crying

Like many other people, I cried my eyes out when IFYLITA ended and was anticipating this special episode like crazy. I was one of the lucky people who attended the IFYLITA screening at the Berlinale where the special episode was also shown. I really liked Scent of Memory because it made me laugh A LOT. It's completely separate from the original story and feels more like a side quest. It's hilarious to see Yai in our current time! I especially liked to see Yai and Jom back together and going on dates like people nowadays do. It's a nice change to see Jom taking the lead and explaining everything to Yai. I feared that I would need to cry at the end again, but this episode managed to keep everything light and happy. It was a really enjoyable watch and I hope that now after the first screening in Europe they'll make it available for other international fans as well.

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It has been such a long time since I have watched a drama that could make me tear up soo many times.

This is a very good family drama that had me in tears throughout the show. I loved the story and all the actors/actresses who portrayed the characters. Although I was originally led to this drama because of Deng Lun and a YouTube FMV (fan made video), once I started the first episode I was immediately hooked in. I completely disregarded romance, and was actually watching it because it had a meaningful and engaging story line.

Because of Meeting You is a story of how powerful family and love can lead to both selflessness and selfishness. Everything the majority of the characters ever do in this drama is because they care for someone, but in the process, their actions end up harming other people. There are definitely just as many heart-wrenching scenes as there are heartwarming scenes.

At times, Yuxin (the sister) really got on my nerves because of how extremely selfish she was, and all the lies on top of other lies to cover a background she should not have hidden or been ashamed of in the first place. Other than that, the development of the characters were very significant. I liked that I saw growth in each and every character. The ones that touched me the most was the character development of the Yunzhe (older brother) and Hui Jie (head embroiderer). I also found He Juan (Yunzhe's mother) quite funny, and Le Tong (daughter) very cute. Overall, the acting was excellent.

This drama is most definitely re-watchable, but one teeny factor keeping me from giving it a rewatch value of 10/10 is because I am not sure I want to suffer through Yuxin's lies again (it triggered me so much...).

Finally, I absolutely loved how the ending came full circle and ended with a little insight on how the title: Because of Meeting You came to be. It was ultimately about two lovers tied by fate meeting again and because of each other they are able to overcome much greater obstacles (as presented by the story line).

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