The Romance of Tiger and Rose (2020)

You guys. This drama was SO CUTE. I honestly had no idea what to expect when I first started watching. I read the summary and thought it seemed interesting, but really did not expect what ended up happening on this show. Literally it was the perfect web-drama. It knew that it was a low-budget, young actor filled drama - and it didn't let those things be its downfall, but actually used those downfalls to make the show even funnier and cuter.

This drama is the PERFECT CURE for such a terrible 2020. Absolutely recommend watching.

Story / Characters:
The basis of the story has a mix of traditional rom-com story lines, but it adds in its own twists that make it pretty interesting. I've heard that there's another C-drama that had a similar set up, but I hadn't watched it. The idea that the FL goes into her own story and becomes a side character who was meant to die, and ends up becoming the heroine of her story is a bit complex in theory, but it was fun to watch.

In all honestly, everyone can tell this is a low-budget production. The story honestly has a LOT of gaps and holes that don't make sense. (Particularly the ending that I'll get to later.) But I think the majority of the audience watching this drama was watching for the cute scenes and adorable moments between the leads, more than for a ridiculously complicated story line.


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I like the twist they added of the script's FL actually becoming the villain in the story, but I think by the end, it really got annoying for me personally. I always hate the types of stories where EVERYTHING bad that happens to the villain is "because of the lead." It's just overdone and ridiculous. I can't imagine how else they'd write this storyline though.

2FL Chen Qu Qu - But particularly with the 2nd princess, Chu Chu, I just don't understand her motives by the end. The whole time, she wanted to become the leader of the city and get the power. But she finds out about her actual birth and then gives up the city leader position to be in charge of the army? I guess for the purpose of power, it kind of makes sense, but eh. Also I feel like the 2nd princess' stories were really the most lacking for me. Why was she in love with Han Shuo? Just because. They never actually spent any time together and they had no special moments together for her to actually fall of him. By the end of the story, Chu Chu got angry anytime people mentioned Qian Qian, and yet she was the one that continued to bring Qian Qian into the mess. At this point, she had already left Hua Yuan and went to Xuan Hu. She could have just let her stay there and lived separate lives. BUT then the story wouldn't have an actual ending.

Main Leads (Chen Qian Qian and Han Shuo) - I think there's no secret that the biggest reason this show is so popular is because of the two leads. They have super cute chemistry and they played off of each others actings very well. There were a good amount of cute scenes, but honestly, I definitely got annoyed with the triangle plot with Pei Heng.

2ML Pei Heng - Ugh. Another character I really didn't care for. I honestly didn't like the 2nd leads for this relentless, yet illogical "love" they had for the lead characters. PH's character in the story originally hated CQQ and had no reason to fall in love with her. And yet, just because they wanted some drama in love land, they had PH become obsessed with being with CQQ. His actual character was just the standard "nice guy", but he did have his moments of essentially betraying CQQ and trying to kill HS. Meh.

OVERALL:

Even with all the negatives of this show, I'd definitely still recommend this. It's a short drama - only 24 episodes (super short for China) and I think that if you want to watch a cute, romantic comedy, that this is the perfect one to fill your time. I honestly skipped through a lot (mostly the Eldest Princess' scenes cause I just didn't care), but it was still a super cute drama that I think is worth a watch.

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Unapologetically a comedy, but a good one!

OVERALL
Although clearly targeted at a relatively young audience, this drama has fresh elements and a nice buildup that will keep you wanting more, whether you consider yourself young or not! Watch it if 1) extra comical dramas are what you live for, 2) you prefer your dramas short (24 episodes is short in Cdramaland!), and 3) you like it when the ML likes the FL first. If 1) you are looking for lots of (or smexy) couple scenes, 2) you hate discussions of gender, or 3) plot holes drive you crazy, then maybe skip.

THE STORY
I started this drama sometime ago and dropped it 15 minutes into the first episode because I thought it had everything I hate in a drama, especially blatant incoherence (eg. main girl dresses inappropriately for the setting at first) and bad humor (I absolutely feel too old for slapstick, in-your-face jokes). But I decided to give it another go last week and guess what? Binged it all in 2 days!

The Strengths: The best thing about this drama is the setting - the FL lands in a city ruled by women, but the city where the ML comes from is ruled by men. At first, you don't think much of it, but the idea is absolute genius. It allows for a whole commentary on gender relations and the meaning of equality that is efficient but also fun because the drama can play around with the usual clichés. Another positive point is that the romance, which is pretty central to the story, starts quite fast and doesn't stagnate. A final but important strength is that although this is definitely meant to be a fluff comedy, the drama has several scenes that truly get you emotional; the love triangle isn't all that bad and the political intrigue, while not deep, is still gripping.

The Weaknesses: Strangely, they're all linked to the strengths. First, the drama leaves the setting hanging. There is no conclusion to the discussion on gender or to anything happening in the fictional world, actually - which is a HUGE plot hole (unless a season 2 is confirmed, but not sure it is). Also, while teasing some deeper themes like character agency (versus writer's decision), the drama never really dives into them and FL can be a bit incoherent at times. It feels like the writing could have been a bit tighter. Secondly, while the romance has a nice pace, there isn't much that happens between the leads; I'm not just talking skinship, even just normal "spending time as a couple in love" scenes barely take place. It almost feels like Romeo & Juliet: the ML and FL are ready to die for one another but barely do anything together. The last thing is the comedy. I'm not a fan of the recent "youthful" comedies that kind of feel a bit...immature? And this drama has LOADS of it (especially at the beginning, it settles down a bit later). It does have fun scenes though, and the comedy being extra didn't stop me from watching until the end, so it's not THAT bad, but still. The drama would have been 100 times better without it, in my opinion.

THE ACTING
In general, I would say it was fine. I first saw Zhao Lusi in The Long Ballad, and I found that I liked her more in this one (probably because her character has more spark). It was my first time seeing the ML so can't say much about him. I particularly liked the 2nd ML's acting. Although I loved the OTP he made me feel bad for him 85% of the time. About chemistry... It's hard for me to feel sizzles in the OTP when the overall mood of the drama is kind of childish, but there are a few scenes in which I felt that the lead actors had good chemistry. The only downside is that some characters felt too much like cartoon characters - not sure if it's acting or directorial choice.

THE MUSIC
Oh My General vibes, 100%. Too much background music, all the time. The actual songs weren't bad though.

REWATCH VALUE
I think I might rewatch this, because it was a fun ride overall. Definitely a good way to pass time. But with some dramas I get the urge as soon as they end, it was not the case with this one.

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UMA SOCIEDADE COM OS PAPEIS INVERTIDOS DE HOMENS E MULHERES DARIA CERTO?

Enquanto as mulheres governam, estudam, tem títulos e voz, os homens devem ser virtuosos, decentes, sem opinião e torcerem para serem bonitos e casarem bem... Fiquei encantada com a ideia, confesso (é incrível como somos tendenciosos e vingativos hahaha), mas fica claro que somente uma sociedade com direitos para TODOS é feliz. Nessa história vemos 2 cidades, uma onde os homens são soberanos e outra onde as mulheres são soberanas. E é obvio que vemos um casal entre as 2 cidades.

Nossa protagonista é uma roteirista e essa é a história que ela está escrevendo, com um desfecho sombrio e um final trágico, porém ela de repente se vê dentro de sua própria história, não como a protagonista do roteiro, mas como uma personagem que vai morrer em menos de 24 horas. Agora ela deve se desdobrar para sobreviver e fazer com que essa história chegue ao final e ela possa voltar ao nosso mundo.

Nessa jornada, damos muitas gargalhadas com nosso casal principal, ficamos revoltados com as injustiças das duas cidades. As ideias mirabolantes da protagonista para dar andamento na história dela, são hilárias (embora as vezes a gente fique com raiva de como ela engana os outros). Os secundários são demais, como eu gostei da dupla que ela fez com o ajudante pessoal dela, também gostei demais dos rebeldes da montanha. Ri demais na cena que eles raptam ela. Realmente gostei desse dorama, é do tipo que todos os episódios são envolventes. O final eu não esperava, mas gostei mesmo assim. Queria muito que tivesse um Spin-of para curtir mais um pouquinho dos dois.

OBS.: Nunca tinha visto a Zhao Lusi com short curto hahahaha, estou tão acostumada em ver ela com roupas de época que vê-la vestida casualmente, me fez pensar "Isso parece errado, nunca vi tanta pele dessa atriz" hahahahah...


Então por que 8,5? Faltaram apenas 2 coisas: Plot e choro (Acho importante para uma série ser completa, ela te fazer rir e chorar).

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Go in with low expectations and you'll be pleasantly surprised

I started with low expectations and came out pleasantly surprised.

It's a relatively low budget drama, so there wasn't much to expect in the first place, but this show is consistent.

The random injection of humour here and there makes the almost absurd plot easier to stomach, and everyone stays in character. The premise of the plot is the typical time travel/rebirth troupe, but with its own unique spin towards it. One great thing about this drama is that it was wrapped up nicely and neatly, unlike some other dramas that throw some bat-crazy sh*t at you near the end!

Overall, not great, but not terrible. At least this isn't a drama that'll you'll be itching to drop after a certain point. Watch this if want to watch a light but decent drama.

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Not sure what it was

I'm not sure why this show has such high ratings. The story had no direction and the characters were unlikable. FL was spineless, whiny, had no motivation, and made incomprehensible choices over and over. ML just keept following her and trusting her after she repeatedly disappointed him and broke his heart, cuz reasons.

The first half was funny and even interesting. By episode 15, it became a directionless mess. Nobody communicated anything. Characters didn't stand up for themselves or their convictions. Qianqian just ran around doing random crap without any clear motivation. She obviously liked Han Shuo, but she tried to set him up with someone else. And then, everyone was suddenly in love with her. Pei Heng showed up 20 times to "save" her, without her actually needing saving, and repeatedly got his ass kicked by Han Shuo. Chuchu became a villain for no reason and started doing absolutely obnoxious schit. It's ok for shows to be funny and have a simple plot. Not everything has to be deep. But, this was just painful. Thank god the show only had 24 episodes.

I did like the ending. It was very sweet, reminded me of Fushigi Yugi.

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I enjoyed the first third of this drama, with its intriguing premise about a scriptwriter (played by Zhao Lu Si) waking up in the very story she wrote, in the fictional city ruled by women as the second princess Chen Qian Qian. I had just dropped Ding Yu Xi's other drama that was airing at the same time, Intense Love, and was pleased to see him in a more interesting character here as the male lead Han Shuo. I was also glad to initially see a second female lead, Chen Chu Chu, with a pleasant, supportive relationship with the female lead! (Sigh, it didn't last.) Unfortunately, I lost interest in the middle third, and then things became extremely messy in the last third.

Although it's one of the most intriguing aspects of the story, the drama doesn't explore the city ruled by women vs city ruled by men until the end. Instead, the story mostly centers around who will become the next City Master, and the contenders are Chen Qian Qian and Chen Chu Chu. Chu Chu is adopted and feels like despite being more skilled and working harder, their mother will always favor Qian Qian, who is always getting into trouble. Meanwhile, the oldest sister Chen Yuan Yuan is disregarded in the running entirely because she is disabled. I really dislike Yuan Yuan's storyline, and wanted to see other characters acknowledge that her disability didn't make her useless, that she still had her strengths and could be the next City Master.

Han Shuo and Qian Qian were fun to watch for most of the drama. Han Shuo trying to win Qian Qian over was cute, and the dynamic between their two right hand men was also hilarious. But in the end, Qian Qian falls for the same old tired drama cliche and hurts him to save him. Come on! As a drama writer, she should know that always backfires. The worst part is when Han Shuo attempts to sexually assault Qian Qian. This is never addressed afterwards, Han Shuo never apologizes and it's like this terrible, traumatic incident never happened??? I'm so disturbed by this.

I had planned to rate this higher because overall it's creative, funny, and original, but I just can't overlook the red flags.

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Oh my god. So cute. I came in for a cute rom com, what I got was not only that, but also 1) deep social commentary and 2) beautiful literature.

The chemistry between Xiaoqian and Han Shuo is wild. Both very talented young actors playing very believable roles. The plotline is also very unique, and the whole "stuck in her own script" discussion with fellow storytellers thing added so much fun to the story. My most hated drama trope -- where people lie to each other to be considerate of each other but end up hurting each other -- is used but also thoroughly made fun of. I also love how the fruit analogies stuck til the end and really made me laugh (you'll see what I mean).

I accidentally spoiled myself watching a Taiwanese critique of the drama before finishing the drama, so I was on the lookout for the points the YouTuber discussed -- the social commentary. It's very obvious what the scriptwriter wanted to tell us regarding gender equality in the last few episodes. And I think that the element worked very well in this drama, not only because it makes the audience think, but because it was also a point of consideration for Xiaoqian's own scriptwriting (hence served an important role in the plotline).

I would totally go rewatch all those cute scenes again. Including the ending oh my god it's the best. Looking forward to season 2.

PS: heart rate monitor best cameo.

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Heavily Recommended For A Light Watch!!!!

This show has literally EVERYTHING that you'd be looking for in a fluffy cute romcom!! I was hooked from the start and will be definitely rewatching it in the future once the second season is released :)

Story; Although the plot is somewhat generic with the modern/historical mixed storyline, the writers managed to put their own twist to it which makes it both enjoyable, touching and comedic. Forget the dragging and slow-paced historical dramas that some of us are used to, this romcom is both fast-paced and direct - getting straight to the point and focusing solely on the relationship between the main leads with no unnecessary conflict nor complicated love triangles (i won't forget to mention all the kissing and affectionate scenes that were thrown in almost every episode). One thing that I LOVE about this show was that it constantly pushed the idea that women are in charge, allowing the female lead to constantly be in the spotlight with the male lead persistently supporting her the whole way with no questions asked

Acting; Honestly, there is no critique that I can think of about the acting/casting of this show; IT WAS PERFECT!! With Zhao Lusi, the boss of historical romcoms who never fails to put a smile on our faces, and Ryan Ding, who is both charming and adorably mischevious in the romance genre. These two put together combines for almost the most insane and crazy main character chemistry that I have ever witnessed. Also it's impossible to not mention how hilarious this couple are!! I don't want to go too much into it so you guys can see for yourselves :)

Overall, this has to be one of my favourite dramas now. The production quality of this show is insane, and the variety of OSTs used throughout are beautiful and sucessfully convey each and every emotion as you watch.

Anyways, time to fall into a slump for the next few days :l

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A pleasant easy to watch romcom

When I read the reviews I expected this to be kind of silly and funny with a little bit of romance. And it did start out that way in the first few episodes. But as the drama progressed it got deeper and there were more conflicts. So I was worried that this would be one of those typical cdramas that starts out as a romcom and turns into a melodrama. But I was pleasantly surprised that it didn’t do that. Even though there were conflicts they weren’t overdone and didn’t last long. And the great comedy was sprinkled throughout each episode. What a pleasant surprise to have a romcom stay true to its genre right down to the end.

As for the comedy, it was perfect. It was a little silly but not overly silly. And there wasn’t too much of it either. It was scattered about here and there to relieve the stress and make you giggle which I did quite often. And that’s saying a lot because it’s not easy to make me laugh and I hate goofy silly slapstick style comedy. But this comedy was perfect.

The romance was sweet with lots of skinship and several kisses and cuddles. One minute it would be cute and fluffy romance. Then the next minute it would be all sexy romance. (In one scene he sweeps everything off of the table and kisses her on it.) The romance was very nice.

The story taught a valuable lesson about equality between the sexes. It was an original storyline that was much more believable than I expected it to be. The characters had growth and depth. And I liked how they answered all of the questions and tied up the loose ends. My only complaint would be is that it gets just a little draggy in the middle of the drama. You get tired of the conflicts with the second female lead and her antics as it focuses on her a little too much. But it does get better if you hang in there. The whole equality of the sexes theme starts to kick in then it gets much more interesting.

Overall I would highly recommend this drama to those that like light sweet romantic comedies with a decent storyline and not too much angst.

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