Some Day or One Day (2019)

"Only if you asked to see me, our meeting would be meaningful to me"

if you were to ask me which drama i'd like to watch for the very first time, this.... this is that drama. huang yu xuan and li zi wei's story is an endless loop of twists and turns and ups and downs yet whatever they do, their feelings for each other never faded away.

for a time travel drama, i'm not going to deny that it's quite complicated to understand at first watch. once you move away from your seat, you're bound to miss a whole lot of clues. the writer and director were sneaky to give hints in earlier episodes which foreshadows the later events of the drama. i'm sure that if i were to rewatch this a second time, a light bulb moment would catch me offguard more than once. personally, i found the pacing in this to be perfect. it was not too slow, not too fast but neutral. the way the story was unfolded was truly a delight to watch because not for once did I saw some of the scenes coming. this drama keeps you guessing.

all the people who were involved in this drama carefully crafted a story that not only talks about a love story but also portrays deep emotions such as loneliness and deep dives into important topics such as depression and suicide. wang quan sheng and chen yun ru may seem to be like background characters but they were both essential to what happened between huang yu xuan and li zi wei. while i would've loved to see wang quan sheng get his own closure and happy ending, it would change the whole timeline and story. i truly feel for this boy who wasn't accepted by society. then, there's chen yun ru who is at her lowest point. while it did seem like chen yun ru wasn't going to add any layer to the drama, the writer truly surprised me at the last few episodes.

even though the main elements in the drama are more of a serious tone, this does have its heart-fluttering moments as well as comedic moments. the funny scenes wasn't over the top so it blended well not making it seem out of place. the acting from the cast was well done and i can't say that the emotional scenes didn't tug at my heartstrings. the friendship of huang xu yuan, mo jun jie and li zi wei is so precious to the point that they kept sticking around for each other (no pun intended).

overall, this was a cluster of mindfuckery and then there are parts of it that makes you squeal. i think the reason i was keeping this drama for so long was because i was afraid to fall deeply yet here i am, planning to watch it over and over again.

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This series got such a high rating that I figured it has to be good but I will honestly say that this is the most complicated, weirdest creepiest series that I have watched in a long time. Don’t get me wrong it wasn’t extremely scary or creepy it was just not cool. First I cannot begin to explain what in the world was going on in the beginning, middle and part of the end. Near the end of the series was when somebodysomeone explained what 2as going on. that was just really too late in this series to explain to the viewers what was happening. The entire series was flip-flopping back-and-forth between past and present. I have no idea what was going on in episode one. I honestly just thought it was like a depressed person that was missing their love ones or something like that but it was way more complicated. I did not find the series romantic, heartfelt or thought-provoking. I honestly felt it was kind of dark. It is just a real no for me. The acting was great and that’s the only positive that I personally can give. I may just be a simple person but it was just to confusing and gloomy.

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I don't usually watch Taiwanese dramas, tbh, beside my 1st ever asian drama I never even tried another one.
in some ways I got attached to the characters, and the actors are actually pretty hot (not to sound shallow xD) but I have to say, the hair in their "interpretation" of age was actually horrible xD

the story lacked consistency. the first 6eps were really repetitive and unnecessary, I considered dropping it many times. they might've tried hard to make us "feel" or understand what they wanted to overall do. and sure, it is a great plot with a nice balance between the complicated time traveling and desperation of it all..

but it's like they tried to out clever the viewers while they still worried everyone would miss the point, and I could feel the hesitation of that.

they put alot of forced melodramatic feels between the 2 main couple just for the sake of a little angst..
I'd have preferred more time in the present, but I guess they wanted to complicatedness of the past more.

I really loved Huang Yu Xuan as a character, she was fun and outgoing but she was also sweet and mature. Li Zi Wei was also really sweet, but at times he just felt, naive? he was just too 1 minded, in some aspects. this might've been for the sake of the "melo" feel.

for some reason the ost by SHI SHI just touches my heart and makes me feel nestalgic, overall the full ost was really fit for the atmosphere of the drama.

I rarely rewatch anything so it's always either a 1 or a 10 ;)

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What a let-down. I am deeply disappointed by how this story unfolded. The plot seriously has the potential and the suspense of the psycho killer was definitely something that I have been eager to know because it connects to why they are time traveling. Maybe this was about grief and loss but the story went out of hand with all the twists and turns, it became too misleading. When I ended the drama, I was in disbelief of why on earth this is one of the top lists on this site. The actors actually portrayed well but it's just that the storyline has too many revisions and it just keeps on going back and forth with time, making you lose the feelings and emotions that a viewer has invested in the characters.

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Overrated in my opinion

I watched this drama mainly because it was rated so highly on MyDramaList and I've enjoyed most of the top rated series listed on MyDramaList. It has also recently won an award so I wanted to see what it was about. I was quite disappointed. I honestly don't know why this series won an award, I feel like nowadays series/movies that are confusing and contain some element of "pyscho" are often highly rated and wins awards.
The love story is sweet but the characters didn't really tug at my heart. Like when they were sad, I didn't really feel anything. Some scenes I was just like "hurry up, we know this!". It is also rather depressing and the author seems to really understand depression and may have tried to bring this topic to light.
It had a good air of mystery and what made me carry on watching it was wanting to know what happened. Overall, I really think it is overrated and I just don't understand the high rating but obviously, this is just my view. My summary: it is a story of three guys obsessed with one girl resulting in everything that happened, with time-traveling element. I would definitely not rewatch. The sweet scenes just didn't have that 'awww, I'm totally into their relationship and want to relive it' kind of vibe.

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I haven't been watching Taiwanese Drama for years, I remembered the last few ones I watched were quite boring so after that I started shifting to Kdrama and Cdrama, but to be honest this is quite a good piece for a Taiwanese Drama.
Although the plot is quite confusing but it was unpredictable. I try not to crack my head to figure out the reasoning for each arranged plot and simply just enjoy whatever it was shown. So, at least for this drama, they arranged the scenes to make it easy for people to understand, instead of having the need to rewind and watch couple of times to understand.

But preference wise, this show is good but not perfect. A lot of parts can be done better to make it a 10/10, could be the chemistry between the leads or maybe the production... I personally don't really like the 'Last Dance' song, it appeared too frequently to the extent that it became a bit annoying hahahaha (no offense), but 'Miss You 3000' was great for the drama.

Overall, it is amazing for a one-time watch but maybe not so much for rewatching.

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Travel Brings Power and Love Back to Your Life

I have decided to add this headline as I think it fits well with the overall story. I can't describe how meaningful and beautiful this drama is. For 13 episodes, I don't expect much. High school and college love stories aren't my cups of tea. I've seen pretty mediocre ones where the romance is heavily focused on, and they can be easily forgotten after finishing it. However, Someday or One Day is excellent, and it's one of the most intriguing, complex, and best-executed dramas about time-travel I've seen. I also recommend checking out the timeline order here (https://mydramalist.com/discussions/some-day-or-one-day/55905-spoiler-time-line-order-from-beginning-to-end-from-li-zi-wei-pov) then you'll understand how the timeline works because since it confuses me at first. (major spoilers ahead)

What I love about this drama are the characters there. Each of them has a story to tell, and they are not plot props to the story. They are complex, relatable and fun to watch. I can't help but tear up on some of the characters there, especially for Chen Run Yu and Mo Jun Jie seeing their back story and why they reacted that way. The two main leads are adorable together and I've been rooting for them to stay together till the end. Huang Yu Xuan is one of my favourite female leads now, and Li Zi Wei has such a beautiful smile and entertaining to watch. He is definitely a husband material from the way he treats his girlfriend is very romantic and sweet.

I have to admit though; the first half is quite confusing. As someone who has planned to watch for the romance, I ended up being busy trying to analyze the mystery plot and being intellectually engaged in it instead of being emotionally engaged in the love story between the two main leads. Once the second half started, it all started to make sense now. Therefore, I do recommend you guys to rewatch it immediately once you guys are done to see what you have missed out. I think that's what makes the drama stands out from other high school or college love dramas I have seen before. It has done a perfect job of balancing both the romance and intriguing plot with a great plot twist ahead. No fillers are added in and the story is well-paced with great messages to touch on such as friendships, love, family, mental health and even a minor part of homosexuality. Yes, are you surprised by that word? Even I was surprised when watching it.

I was devastated when it ended. I didn't know what to do after finishing an artistic masterpiece. The OST is a bop and I've been listening to their songs right after it ended. The directing and production are great and the actors/actresses played their role well. I was very impressed by the female lead actress Alice Ke. I didn't even notice that she plays the two characters of Chen Run Yu and Huang Yu Xuan as these two characters are completely different. All in all, I would 10/10 recommend this show to anyone to watch it because it's just that good. Have fun watching, prepare tissues and enjoy the remarkable journey ahead.

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This is the best time-travel show I've ever seen. Not because the time-travel is particularly unique itself or because it produces some truly jaw-dropping plot twists, but because it is used in such a meaningful and thoughtful way. The time travel is a plot device, sure, but it also builds the relationships and creates levels of depth and meaning to events. That's probably an aspect of why this show feels so grounded and real in the midst of a very sci-fi/fantasy premise. What matters is not just how the time travel works, but the effects it produces and how it affects the characters.

Everything matters in this story. Not just because of how it relates to the plot and mysteries, but because everything affects the characters. And the characters, in turn, have varying interpretations and reactions to events. The characters are complicated, but not in a conventional TV show way where they have complicated backstories that explain their present actions. They're complicated because real people are complicated. We all accidentally say stupid things, let our emotions get the best of us and cloud our judgement, we fear rejection, we lie not with evil intent but because we don't want to hurt people's feelings. The premise itself is pure fantasy, but the characters themselves feel real, so the story itself becomes that much more potent and powerful. Your heart hurts for the characters not only because of the situation that they're in, but because they feel like real people so their emotions feel that much more authentic.

This show subverted my expectations, not by throwing unexpected plot twists in but by surprising me with how meaningful and thoughtful everything was. Don't get me wrong, the plot does twist and turn, but ultimately what makes this show great is the way it impresses you with how well-crafted the story is, how interesting the characters are, how thoughtfully the time-travel is used, and how perfect the ending is. This is very justifiably being called one of the best dramas of 2020, and despite how early in the year it is, I do think this title will last.

What on earth am I supposed to watch after this?!?! I feel like ruined for watching any other show, my expectations are too high now.

Also I wrote a silly summary of this show on my blog: https://kdramakitty.tumblr.com/post/612309126870106112

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Sometimes Less is More

Firstly, the editing is very professional, the filming locations and rooms were perfectly chosen and the special effects are well-done. The female lead acted perfectly like two different people. The plot is gripping and well-written, it's obvious that a lot of effort was put into it.

On the other hand, the worst thing is the over-complication of the plot. There is one twist too many in this drama, everytime I started getting invested in the characters and their overall situation, it suddenly switched to another dynamic. In consequence, I lost the attachement I formed and ended up not caring about the characters as much as I could have done. Particularly the two main leads, whom I disliked more than I liked.

The main leads, especially Li Zi Wei, came off as selfish at some points and some of their actions and words didn't sit well with me. Huang Yu Xuan's explosiveness(also the comparisons between a 17yo girl and a 27yo woman irked me) , Li Zi Zei's childishness, his inaction (he should've contacted her in the future) and the exaggerated way he treated Chen Yun Ru when he found out Huang Yu Xuan's gone (Chen Yun Ru wasn't perfect but he didn't need to be so rude especially knowing that she was in a fragile state, besides, it's her own body after all).
At first I didn't like Mo Jun Jie, it seemed that he would be the typical second lead in dramas, but in the end I felt that he was the most humane. His actions were level-headed even though they weren't always right. Aditionally, he also told off Li Zi Wei when the damn well needed to be told off.

All in all I feel like the emotional pay-off wasn't really there, I lost the emotional connection. There was this constant feeling of uncertainty about who is who or what they did or what they will do, the crazy serial killer plot felt unecessary, Li Zi Wei died and came back so often it lost its impact...

Nevertheless, I don't fully not recommend this drama. There even were moments, even though that sentiment was eventually proved wrong, where I felt it had the potential to become a 10/10 drama to me. It has a good premise, is aesthetically pleasing, interesting and kept me watching until the end. It was still worth watching.

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Confusing??? Really!!

This website has a bad habit of hyping up drama with no reason (rating wise). The newest example i found was this drama.
To tell everyone upfront i have not watch many Taiwanese drama, but for me whatever language of the drama may be story and execution of a drama is most important for me.
This was a drama that was average at best. I felt the chemistry of lead pair was just so and so nothing special which encapsulates the core of this drama.It was not that hard to follow (even thought it might not seem that way seeing the comments section).

Time traveling aspect of the drama is what infuriates me the most
First of all they set no ground rules for it, whatever they need whenever they need (they, refrensing the writer of this drama)when there is no structure or rules for time travel people can assume whatever they want and everything can make sense and anything will be possible. That is lazy writing!!
Additionally i dont get the sense of humour of this drama. Since the intial few episodes the drama relies on its humour to keep viewers interested (before the time travel aspect really kicks in) it was a boring and overdramatic. I never once laughed or even smiled (too childish for my sensability a personal preference i guess).
Its has its moments at times but it was too far and between

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I don’t usually write reviews, but this drama was simply just too good to not. The plot is one of the most interesting that I have watched from any Asian drama. Although time travel is not a new concept, the way the writers incorporated plot twist after plot twist and multiple time lines is not only seamless and well thought out, but is laid out in a way that each episode is full of suspense.

Interestingly, the story was tight and moved fast but each scene was paced beautifully slow. The cinematography was beautiful and captured the essence of each time period.

I LOVED the actors. Greg and Alice did a wonderful job. Greg’s lovable and cheeky energy combined with Alice’s amazing acting skills (easily switching to and from two different characters) accentuated the plot. Greg was never on my radar, but after watching this, I have become a huge fan. :) Patrick was also quite charming. The high school trio is super cute and college Greg and Alice is so fluffy I could not even haha.

Although I do not listen to the time traveling song’s genre, it was stuck in my head days after watching. haha

This was truly a masterpiece, I’m glad I discovered it :)

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Story: SO GOOD. The plot was very tightly constructed and clearly well-thought out and the plot twists were surprising but convincing. Everything felt like it had a purpose and there was no filler at all! The pacing was absolutely perfect, with each episode packed with developments, although never unearned or overwhelmingly so.

Acting: Although the plot is one of the best I've seen from dramas in general (not just c-dramas), I felt like my favorite part of the show was actually the acting. They all pulled off their characters so well, especially the actors who had to play multiple characters. Greg Hsu and Alice Ke really managed to capture the different subtleties and mannerisms between their many roles so well! Even when they were playing the same role but older or younger, you could feel that age difference/maturity. I did think that they looked a little too old to play high school characters, especially Alice Ke, but their acting still managed to immerse me in the story.

Characters: I felt like all the characters and their relationships were all very realized. I especially liked that in the montages of Wang Quan Sheng and Huang Yu Xuan's relationship, they included argument scenes and chose to portray a more realistic relationship, since I felt like many TV show romances tend to gloss over that aspect of relationships. Even the side characters were well-developed, such as Chen Yun Ru's mother and brother. I especially liked the drama's treatment of Chen Yun Ru and how it allowed the audience to understand her inner struggles, especially since she didn't come off as a sympathetic character initially. Small gripe: Mo Jun Jie's ability to lip read seemed a bit exaggerated.

OST: Overall the OST was good (I can't stop listening to the theme song). Wu Bai's "Last Dance" is rather overplayed though since it also serves as a plot device. By the time the drama ended, I was a little tired of the song, although I wasn't a big fan of it to begin with.

Rewatch value: Part of the power in the story were the twists and how deftly the story leads you in different directions so that you never know where you're going. Although that power is lost in rewatching, I think that the acting and character interactions still hold up.

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