Crush (2021)

Overrated.

I kept dodging this show, despite it being recommended to me all the time. My concerns were about the toxic things that happen in this drama & that it's the usual break + 3 year timeskip formula that I've never liked made me extremely weary. Now here we are, in a sort of drama drought I steeled myself & got through this over the course of 3 days.

First and foremost this is an extremely unique cdrama, the likes of which I have not really seen before. Disability romance made for Chinese audiences & it's -at least for a while- good too. I can totally see why it has gotten so much praise. Based on just the first 12 episodes I would have rated this at a 9. Sure there are some toxic things, but those did not really faze me in the first half. The acting is really strong too, Wan Peng especially blew my mind, having seen her only in stereotypical comedienne roles before It's incredible how much more authentic she is here. Of course the first part already has some problems. The second couple is quite flavorless & they lacked chemistry, plus their plot was uninteresting during the entire drama. What is bigger for me though is that the production team just couldn't commit to Su Nian Qin's blindness. To me it seems like the script had been revised multiple times in strange ways & the end result, specifically ML's eye condition makes no sense what so ever. He can see shapes & movement, but need to use a stick and needs explained why opening the blinds is a good thing, the sun etc.. Let's just say that his condition & the dialog related to it is extremely inconsistent and this is blatantly obvious while binge watching.

Unfortunately after the first half there are a few absolutely horrible episodes involving rather bad writing, momsters and some crazy makjang-ish stuff leading to a breakup & a 3 year timeskip. This is business as usual in cdramaland, at least compared to kdramas usually they don't do this before a 5 minute long rushed happy ending.

Even more unfortunately what follows after the timeskip is just mediocrity. In fact the last 5-6 episodes can only be described as boring. In Chinese society people with inborn disabilities are barely considered human, so of course Su Nian Qin HAD TO BE cured. So basically the last third of the drama is the most generic cdrama happy ending you will ever see, but worse, because there is a lot of weird toxicity that is difficult to digest for western audiences and there is nothing much happening in general. I like slow burn cdrama romances, but this is really far more boring than usual, there is barely any comedy to be found and the way they go through the motions(pursue>get approval>ring>wedding>kid) is really super bland, especially considering that they already lived together before the timeskip.

The drama has one "big" twist. I did not see this coming in advance, but in retrospect I should've, I may have underestimated the writer a little, so I did not even consider something like this happening. Still the reveal was underwhelming & made no impact to the plot, which is a shame because I really liked the character involved..

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Triangle haters can safely watch this. The secondary love interests are fleeting..

The OST is out of this world good, but after the timeskip the best parts are not used anymore, instead they keep repeating the same track that is kind of like elevator music, but more mysterious.
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As I said this is an extremely unique drama, but the closest one I can think of, especially in terms of vibe is Forever and Ever. That drama however is consistently good, it has some makjang-ish craziness as well -perhaps even more overall than here-, but things are dealt with more sensibly & it managed to keep me interested up to the closing credits. The dialog is just very good, nose to nose interactions are not the driving force of every second scene.
People that liked this drama should check Forever and Ever out, it does not have too many viewers on MDL..

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Cute/Sweet but a boring ending...

They are such a cute couple. Handsome male lead, for sure. Like many low-rating reviewers, the first half of the story was great. But, the last 7-8 episodes did not have much to offer. I literally fell asleep watching this drama at night. The writer/director tried so hard to make this couple cute/sweet but did not put enough effort to make the story meaningful. There just wasn't enough pain/tears/drama between the couple. I was keep waiting for something serious to happen like ...an accident, urgent care, life/death event, etc...but nothing...I fast-forwarded each episode to see if the story would go anywhere...nope! There were a couple of kisses here and there but not steamy enough for me to want to rewatch...This show really is more for the younger (teenagers) population... Again, cute couple but will not rewatch...

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I love the first half. It was so good. The other half is a bit different.

The story is so interesting. A seemingly perfect guy who is visually impaired, cold, and doesn't care about anything but himself fell in love with a cute and clumsy girl.

I love how the FL pursued the ML. If it was not because of her efforts, we will not have this beautiful love story. You just know she's sincere about her love to him because she doesn't care about his eyesight. She's just so nice and willing to take care of him. The ML is also reliable despite his problems. They're story is amazing.

Though this story changed direction after the fist half.

I love the first half. Evan Lin is so godamn handsome. Gosh! I'm so in love. 🤭

The 2nd half, was just okay. It's like watching another drama. There are a lot of cringy scenes but bearable.

Overall, it is enjoyable and meaningful.

It made me smile, laugh, and cry. I love it. Still worth watching.

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This drama will always have a special place in my heart <3

Just like When We Were Young 2018 (Wan Peng's other cdrama), CRUSH has a very special place in my heart. Wan Peng and Lin Yanjun's chemistry is off the charts. Yanjun is my most favorite leading man for Wan Peng now, next is Minghao.

The plot is very unique, not the typical cdrama, They tackled social/psychological issues here since it's tagged as an urban drama. It made us realized that people with disabilities don't need sympathy but they need empathy instead. And that's what Wu Yan did to Nian Qin.

Their romance is not cringed. It's so heartwarming to the point that it gave me goosebumps. I love how caring Nian Qin is to Wu Yan despite him being blind. He's just way too cute.

Lines are very meaningful, it will really touch your heart. The OSTs are aesthetically pleasing to ears (really good music). Yanjun even sang a song for his own drama.

Though this is Yanjun's debut drama, I'm really impressed with his acting skills. He's one of my favorite Chinese actors now. Wan Peng's acting is already great ever since WWWY2018. Btw, she's my most favorite Chinese actress. :)

To be honest, 24 episodes are not enough, I found that the last episode was rushed, some issues suddenly appeared at the very last minute, all squeezed in the last episode without getting proper closure. Nevertheless, I would still give this a 10/10 because it's a masterpiece.

I'm gonna miss them oh so much. Please give them another drama!

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The soundtrack made me binge watching the series

At first, I was skeptical about this drama because the storyline seems cliché. However, it kept popping up in my YouTube recommendation, so I try to watch one of the clips and fall in love with the soundtrack. Because of that reason, I gave a chance to watch the first episode that leads to binge-watching for a whole weekend.
I enjoyed the storyline until the 17th episode, after that I’m not sure if the writer changed or what, cause somehow it lost its charm from the story. It's a pity that the problems that arise in the 14-16th episode should be cooled down through a heart-to-heart conversation as suggested by Sang Wu Yan’s friends. I waited for the conversation because I knew both main roles were very good at showing their emotions.
The story concerning Cheng Yi is unnecessary; it simply adds to the problem without providing a clear solution, most likely due to the impending deadline for the ending. So, for me, it didn't end wonderfully since the series' purpose seemed to have gotten lost along the way.
Without Evan and Wan Peng's performance, I would not have made it through the last five episodes. I would not realise if this were the first drama of Evan Lin if I didn’t look up his profile. He succeeded in portraying the character without appearing awkward. Wang Pen's acting is heartfelt, especially when she was arguing with Evan Lin. I was like ‘don’t do that it hurts my heart’.
Aside from the acting, we can't ignore the cinematic setting and the soundtrack, which perfectly complete this series (thumbs up). The movie is similar to 'nothing but30,' which sets it apart from several Chinese dramas in general. All of the soundtracks fascinated me and were well suited to the setting.

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FL MAKES IT HARD TO STOMACH. ML MAKES IT WORTH IT.

I'm not sure what to say because I don't want to ruin this drama with the ML, singer Evan Lin, being so dang good in his role...well until the last few episodes. I blame the director. One thing is for sure...I hate the FLs character. The worst I've ever seen. And if I detest her so much, what does that say about the actress because I'm not sure why they had her acting the way she is. From beginning to end, one role after another makes her so cringy and hard to watch. If Evan Lin (really adorable and good singer) does another CDrama and I really hope he does (his sight impaired scenes were amazing), put him with a better Director and Female lead. He would learn a lot from more seasoned actresses who have a kind and patient nature such as Dilraba or Zhao LuSi. As for this drama, I am torn whether to recommend it because it may be my own critical nature that finds so many scenes with FL Wan Peng hard to stomach. Watch it at your risk and with an open mind. HOWEVER, Evan Lin does make it worth it.

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Strong Start, Disappointing End

NO SPOILERS! This is my second ever series review, sorry if it's all over the place!

MY OPINION:
This drama fell down my rating scale very quickly. I'm seeing a pattern with the Chinese dramas I watch and that is that they always start off super strong and end off super weak that I can't even finish it. I loved the first half of this drama. I sat and binged the first half to the point where I couldn't remove myself from the couch from the morning to late at night. Then it got to around episode 20 where I couldn't bring myself to watch it anymore. There are so many plot holes, undeveloped characters/plotlines, stale characters that felt like filler, negative character development, and forgotten important messages. However, these issues were not present in the beginning, they were shown towards the ending half. This made it unbearable to watch. I absolutely adored this drama at first and now I'm sad to drop it cause I can't bring myself to continue this mess.

DIRECTING STYLE:
Some scenes were very well done. However, I feel as if there was a lot of hiccups. So many things left me in questions to the point I was looking in the reviews for answers as I felt like I missed something. Or things would be so poorly explained that I would be left confused. At parts, I wished they showed more instead of telling. Within the side couple, I wished they showed more instead of telling. Some parts I would think to myself, "why didn't they show more of this instead of a quick montage or flashback to something we have no prior knowledge of."

ACTING:
I always find C-Drama acting to be very hit or miss. But in this case I really enjoyed it. I don't think these characters were voiced dubbed by someone else. If they were, I couldn't tell unlike in other C-Dramas. I thought the male lead acted very well and I found the female lead character to be pretty well done. The side couple, I didn't like them at all but their story was so weak, so I don't blame the actors for working with a weak storyline and uninteresting characters

TLDR:
Watch the first half and then drop it. Or honestly just skip this drama overall. Nothing was groundbreaking since their initial message of the drama was lost as it continued.

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Roh

Drama lindo , mostrando superação através do amor e paciência …Sang Wu Yan e Su Nian Qin cresceram durante o desenvolver dos episódios de várias maneiras . O final foi emocionante e de uma sensibilidade extraordinária a China presenteando a audiência com mais uma obra prima em drama. (Lin Yanjun( interpretou com maestria Su Nian Qin) Wan Peng ( amei a garota Sang Wu travessa do início e a mulher forte que ela se tornou ) Eles foram sensacionais nos personagens , química perfeita , amei cada episódio e já estou com saudades desses dois . As osts são simplesmente lindas ✨

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Best C Drama minus NC scenes

One of the best Chinese dramas I have ever watched. The chemistry between the actors is off the charts. Plot is out of the world! The best part: The leads' chemistry and love is so pure minus any intimate scenes. No over acting by any of the actors and even support actors are amazing. Worth a re-watch and definitely binge worthy! Extremely unique storyline!
I recommend it to all those who love light romance.
P.S.: No villains too

Each episode has a beautiful beginning. There are no abrupt endings or overdramatic villains/vamps. Negative characters are really subtle in their roles. The time lapses shown are very natural. Evan Lin and Wan Peng look really natural!

Enjoy watching it!

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se perderam na história e acabaram com ela

O começo da história foi bom, mas a partir dos episódios finais teve seus defeitos mas não deixou de continuar sendo bom até umas partes

Além de deixar uns buracos da história e não desenvolverem bem algumas partes que foi confuso pra se jogar nos últimos episódios finais e o ciúmes possessivo do protagonista me deixou desanimada assistindo mas fora isso o começo foi tão lindo mostrando pequenas coisas que são importantes e especiais e os sentimentos nítidos entre eles...
mas a partir da segunda parte com o término repentino deles que eu não entendi muito bem? e os meus sentimentos pelos protagonistas recaíram, os secundários nem se fala, sempre foram chatos e desnecessários.

Tinha tudo pra ser um dos melhores c-dramas do ano mas os roteirista se perderam na história, e foi um péssimo desenvolvimento depois, sinto que perdi meu tempo assistindo

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