Reset (2022)

Adrenalina e recitazione, zero noia

La continua ripetizione di un giorno è il massimo della noia, giusto? No, sbagliato. Perché in questo mini-drama di soli 15 episodi da circa 40 minuti non ce ne sono cinque di noia. Anche quando, verso la fine, pare che il ritmo per un paio di puntate rallenti fino a fermarsi, in realtà il coinvolgimento emotivo è tale che non si avverte alcun sintomo di stanchezza.

Si comincia dal primo episodio, decisamente straniante, in cui ci si ritrova su un bus. Una ragazza, seduta accanto ad un ragazzo, improvvisamente lo accusa falsamente di averla palpeggiata e fa una scenata per scendere dal bus con lui, per poi andarsene per la sua strada. Ma, poco dopo, lei viene investita da una moto e finisce all’ospedale mentre lui, che nel frattempo ha preso un taxi, rimane coinvolto nell’esplosione del mezzo da cui sono appena scesi. La polizia indaga, partendo dalla discesa dei due dall’automezzo, immortalata dalle telecamere di sorveglianza. E ben presto scopriamo che quel bus continua ad esplodere ripetutamente, in un continuo loop temporale, qualsiasi cosa la protagonista, e poi il ragazzo, e poi la polizia facciano…

In un crescendo di altissima tensione, con punte da cardiopalma, con pochissimi momenti di sollievo umoristico, ma con la perfetta descrizione dell’urgenza, della paura continua cui i protagonisti sono soggetti, scopriamo a mano a mano i meccanismi di questo circolo vizioso, e le dolorose storie personali degli ignari passeggeri dell’autobus che vi sono intrappolati. Oltre a lottare contro gli sconosciuti che fanno esplodere il mezzo, i due ragazzi devono anche guardarsi dalle onnipresenti telecamere, cercando nel contempo di ottenere l’aiuto della polizia. Lungi dall’essere ripetitivo o noioso, il continuo reiterarsi delle condizioni di partenza, ogni volta sviluppate in modo più o meno diverso, contribuisce a rendere l’atmosfera oppressiva e claustrofobica, lasciando lo spettatore senza fiato, come se stesse correndo con i protagonisti alla ricerca di risposte, soluzioni, vita. Perché il numero delle ripetizioni possibili non è infinito… Il canone in D di Pachelbel, che pure tanto mi affascinava già prima della visione di questo drama, sicuramente non mi uscirà più dalla mente.

Nel proseguire delle vicende l’affiatamento dei due protagonisti aumenta, partendo da una comprensibile sfiducia reciproca fino allo sbocciare di una credibile storia d’amore, con un’ottima chimica fra i due, supportata da una recitazione davvero verosimile, e mai esagerata. In verità l’intero cast recita in maniera ammirevole, senza mai eccedere, pur riuscendo a trasmettere una grande varietà di emozioni.

Non solo il protagonista maschile Bai Jing Ting che, nonostante non abbia ancora 30 anni ha già al suo attino decine di ruoli in altrettanti film, drama e show televisivi, ci consegna un ottimo ritratto di un giovane sviluppatore di giochi che cerca inutilmente di non farsi coinvolgere in una situazione letale, rimanendovi tuttavia immischiato fisicamente ed emotivamente.
Non solo Zhao Jin Mai, di appena vent’anni e con alle spalle già una sequela infinita di ruoli anche principali risalenti fin dalla tenera età, interpreta alla perfezione il ruolo di una studentessa appassionata e un po’ ingenua, decisa a salvare tutti i passeggeri del bus condannato, dibattendosi contro le infinite difficoltà generate dalla situazione improvvisa e estrema.
Il cast secondario è costellato di attori di fama, che aggiungono peso e spessore al drama. Tra tutti, citiamo Liu Tao, che interpreta la vice capo della stazione di polizia, e che in passato ebbe il ruolo da protagonista nientemeno che in Nirvana in fire, e Liu Yi Jun, capitano della stessa stazione, anche lui già visto in Nirvana in fire e in almeno una cinquantina di altri drama. Ma anche la maggior parte degli altri personaggi, eccetto forse la madre isterica del gattaro, un po’ troppo caricaturale, sono resi mirabilmente, contribuendo non poco alla riuscita della serie.

Non solo della coppia principale, ma anche di molti dei passeggeri del bus conosciamo via via le vicende, il che contribuisce non poco a dar loro spessore, evitando di relegarli a semplici figure di cartone destinate a bruciare nel prossimo loop.
E’ soprattutto apprezzabile che, oltre a mantenere alta la tensione praticamente per tutte le puntate, vengano delineate chiaramente, e seguite, le leggi che governano il susseguirsi dei vari loop e il modo per interromperli. L’unica mancanza in proposito è che non ci viene spiegato come e perché i protagonisti vi si siano ritrovati invischiati. Voglio credere e spero che sia perché intendono farne una seconda stagione, possibilmente con gli stessi attori, ma credo sarà difficile: la serie è un adattamento del romanzo [i]Kai Duan[/i] di Qi Dao Jun, che ha anche partecipato alla sceneggiatura.

Il tutto è aiutato da un’ottima cinematografia, attenta e non avara di momenti spettacolari. Pur non trattandosi di un colossal, non si tratta nemmeno di una produzione a budget completamente risicato. Quello che hanno risparmiato nei costumi (trattandosi di continue ripetizioni, i vestiti cambiano poco) lo hanno sicuramente investito in altri comparti. Il commento musicale è piacevole e attinente alle scene e, soprattutto, vanta [i] My Only [/i], una canzone cantata dal magnifico Zhou Shen: un nome, una garanzia.

In sunto, un drama adrenalinico che non pecca in coerenza, magnificamente interpretato, con un finale che non deluderà gli spettatori, lasciando un buon sapore in bocca e una distinta sensazione di vuoto allo stomaco, sintomo inequivocabile dell’inizio di una potente crisi di astinenza.

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Il primo film simile a Speed che ho mai visto

Da grande fan del film Speed con Keanu Reeves, sono stata felicissima di scoprire del tutto per caso questo drama cinese che ha una trama simile ma con in più l'elemento del loop temporale, che è un altro tema che adoro.. Certo è più lento di Speed, ma non troppo, numero di puntate giuste, ritmo giusto, personaggi simpatici. e non parte per la tangente ad un certo punto come fanno certi drama cinesi. Rimane coerente, e il tuutto si chiude con un senso logico. Certo alcune cose non vengono spiegate, ma ci si può sorvolare visto l'elemento soprannaturale e forse un paio di puntate in meno si potevano avere, ma è Veramente carino e fatto bene nel suo piccolo, e la ripettitività del loop non mi ha per nulla dato fastidio è gestita in modo egregio.

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Starting All Over

As dramaland resets itself with the beginning of another year, viewers get the opportunity to kickstart 2022 with an awesome C-drama right here. Reset doesn’t come with much fanfare where at the beginning of its run, the availability of (good) subs was somewhat hampered by a lack of involvement from major OTT streaming platforms for international markets. Fortunately as the weeks went by and more viewers started watching it, the fanbase for the drama gradually grew, affording it the recognition that it deserves.

Reset is a “time-loop” drama in the mould of Groundhog Day, Deja Vu, Happy Death Day and Source Code. The protagonists, a college girl and a young game designer, mysteriously find themselves reliving a bus explosion each day. Why this is happening to them and, more importantly, how they free themselves of this catastrophic cycle are central to the narrative.

This drama is produced by Dongyang Noon Sunshine Film and Television Co., or more popularly and affectionately known as Daylight Entertainment which is famed for producing top quality dramas such as Nirvana in Fire, Battle of Changsha, The Story of Minglan and The Bond, among many others. It is co-directed by Sun Mo Long (Candle in the Tomb and Mining Town), Liu Hongyuan, and Lao Suan. The screenplay is adapted from the novel "Kai Duan" (开端) by Qi Dao Jun (祈祷君) who was also involved in the screenwriting process, alongside Qiu Yujie, Lao Suan, and Huang Kaiwen.

Principal photography took place from June to August 2021 in Xiamen. Reset is considered a short format production running at only 15 episodes of 42 minutes each. To date, viewership on Tencent Video platform for mainland China has exceeded 400 million views (at the time of writing), making it the most watched domestic production for the beginning of 2022.

What I Loved

The innovative concept of time loop in a contemporary C-drama setting. I don’t think this has been done before in a Chinese production, which usually focuses on time travels or alternate world fantasies as far as speculative fiction is concerned. The way this premise is established and conveyed via a rather absorbing and engaging approach to the storytelling is a major boon as well because my initial fears of confusion arising from inconsistent or illogical plot holes proved to be unfounded, for the most part. The parameters of when and how the time loop occurs are clearly defined for the viewers’ understanding as the story unfolds.

Along with the suspense and mystery of the overarching plot, the entire story has much depth to it with a balance of youth themes, slice-of-life human drama and even hints of a budding romance imbued into the development of the characterization and side stories. All of these elements are carefully laid out over the course of an eventful 15 episodes, where the second half in particular is filled with many surprising twists and turns.

The two leads may be central to the plot but the drama also carefully takes its time to explore the various side characters, namely the other passengers onboard the ill-fated bus ride and the police detectives assigned to the investigation. Most of these characters are realistically depicted as being extremely layered and fully fleshed out as the mystery gradually unravels.

The characters truly do come alive thanks in no small part to the superb performances of the cast. Bai Jing Ting delivers as the fresh-faced game designer Xiao He Yun, as he utterly embodies the conflicting emotions of someone who wants nothing to do with this calamity yet cannot extricate himself completely from caring about a total stranger. Zhao Jin Mai plays college girl Li Shi Qing in a somewhat more subdued role compared to her co-lead but no less convincing as a naive youngster inadvertently caught up in an incomprehensible and extreme situation.

To be perfectly honest, at the beginning I wasn’t really expecting romance in this drama. However, seeing both Bai Jing Ting and Zhao Jin Mai living dangerously throughout in attempting to survive this distressing time loop has sufficiently shifted my mindset to unequivocally root for them as a romantic couple. In addition to both their characters being adorably sweet and innocent, as well as the unintended comic relief and minor frustration at times from witnessing their numerous futile attempts at unravelling the mystery, the emotional connection they share that is borne of hardship and tragedy genuinely does tug at the heartstrings.

Of the supporting cast, as usual Liu Yi Jun impresses with his immense experience and mastery of his craft. Despite the limited screen presence, his character of police detective Zhang Cheng displays the necessary nuances that befits the characterisation and brings a touch of class to the drama. Likewise Liu Tao’s surprising appearance here as police inspector Du Ju, who elevates the cast list with some star power albeit while wearing a rather unsightly wig. That said, I would have loved to see more complexity from her character aside from delivering her now iconic line, “Perform drug test!”.

Special mention goes to the strong performances in the portrayal of certain other side characters who I shall not name to avoid spoiling the story. It's worth mentioning that You Jing Rou makes a rather brief but quite impactful appearance in the supporting role of Liu Yao.

This drama features music composed and arranged by South Korean composer Kim Hyun Do for 2 of the 3 tracks listed in the soundtrack. My personal favourite is the emotional theme song, the English-language love ballad My Only, performed exclusively by Zhou Shen.

My Only by Zhou Shen
Wake Up by Wang Xiaokun
Rebound by Chen Hui

Final Thoughts

Reset turned out to be a pleasant surprise indeed. It may not have the bearings of a big budget epic or colossal production headlined by an extensive cast list of star names. But it does the basics very well with a great script and storytelling approach, convincing acting with relatable characters and a hugely satisfying closure. I think this drama exceeded many viewers' expectations in the end, including mine.

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An intense binge worthy drama!

I am so in love with this drama. I saw everyone praising it so I casually started it out of curiosity. I was just thinking about giving it a try for the hype. But now I am actually joining the crowd. I feel like praising everything about this drama.

Reset is an intense story that revolves around a few characters binded by a time loop. What I am happy about is that despite it being a time loop drama where certain things will keep on repeating it was executed in such a nice way that I couldn't even think of skipping anything. No matter how many times they repeat it, a right balance of new things came out that was interesting.

So the story starts with a university student named Li Shiqing (Zhao Jin Mai). She was on a bus and on her way to somewhere when the bus gets into an accident and she dies. But she wakes up the next second and just considers it as a bad dream but woah! this is the best part. Things seem to get repeated and she seems to die because of the same accident again and again. Once she realizes about this horrible time loop, her first instinct is to escape, she uses a boy sitting beside her who is Xiao Heyun (Bai Jing Ting), a game developer to get out of the bus but unexpectedly he enters into the same time loop with her. Oh my god! Just the first episode and I was hooked up. I couldn't wait to see how they would continue this story.

Afterwards there are just crazy things happening. They both try struggling in all ways possible to change this destinied accident. Not even a single second is irrelevant or like filler in the drama. Everything is there for a reason. Even the expressions of each actor and how should they react in a particular scene is so perfect.

Their bond. Like two people who are in a mess of time, fighting together and just like two teammates going through life and death together. You can observe how slowly and reasonably their bond develops. Romance is not the visible center of the drama but it's just present through those little moments between them. You can see the care in their eyes and just the will to accompany her/him in the trouble till the end.

I love how almost every character has their own story and stuff. It's short like 15 episodes of 45 minutes each but they do justice to every character present.

Favorite line — "Human is iron and rice is steel. You can only save the world when you are full"

So, in the end, I recommend this to everyone. To even those viewers who are like me and who hesitate to watch time loops… this was a great watch. A well organized plot, high quality production with actors who know their characters well. It's amazingly set with an interesting story which kept me on the edge of my seat and I was like always looking forward to watch more and more. Meanwhile I will be off to dig up some good behind the scenes videos to enjoy more of this :D

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Unexpected treat

I had my doubts about this show mainly cause of its premise/genre. It is very easy to butcher the plot and lose the audience. But I'm glad i watched it. The characters, plot and production is great. I was hooked from the first scene, having so many questions, nothing is simple. The characters have logic and smart in their own ways. Overall the execution has been great so far. It has been interesting and intriging with how everything is comes to play.

The acting is so good, the way they embodied their characters is unbelievable. The mains doing wonders, their chemistry is off the charts as well. It is pretty funny, which i didn't expect given the genre. Bai Jingting wonderful to watch on screen and I'm shocked by Zhao Jin Mai's acting. I knew she was good but damn every action and emotion regarding her character has been spot on. The supporting cast is great, everything done with precision. The story has some heart felt moments as well. The characters are realistic to an extent, with the way they view and react to the world. I like how almost every character story has been explored.

With every loop/reset something different happens that thickens the plot. Contantly left with so many questions after each episodes. Being more suspenseful than the previous episode. This utterly has me hooked and on the edge of my seat. The ending was nicely done but there were a few unanswered questions. Such as why they ended up in a loop. Other than that it was a really good watch. I like how they gave us a glimpse of their lives after this whole thing.

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best of cdramas

this was a great cdrama, and before the buts I'll talk about the good points:
1- the fl was the main hero, she woke up 1st and she "solved" most of the problems, though at points they did seem to always praise the ml (once the cop even praised him for remembering "something" but at that timeline the fl did all the work)
2- each passenger had their own lives, as the leads suspected them all, each one of them revealed their own struggles and hardships (I do think they glossed over them too fast, but in the end they were all "heroes" eventhough most time lines they didn't want to intervene)
3- the cat guy UWU
4- the different interpretations of how each action resulted in a different reaction (though they were a little too repetitive at times)
5- I'm glad the final showdown was done by the fl

now for the buts~
1- I think one pervert one time was not enough for her meltdown. if someone touches you, SCREAM right away. there were many people there, her story felt like a simple "backstory" on why 2 people wanted to blow up a bus..
2- going to prison for terrorism and mass murder attempt probably has a higher jail time than sexual harassment, which is sad cuz that dude deserved worse...
3- I thought this was like that ep of "Mystery to Iunakare" where the kidnappers took the bus with all the suspects of that event, though indeed it'd have been harder to track down the pervert which results in my "solution"
4- this should've been revenge. like they did find the pervert but he got out easy and they wanted more..
5- at one point the ml was too controlling, the fl was the hero that did most of the job while the ml always nagged her
6- this needed half the ep counts, they had too many repetitions
7- I'm not into cdrama osts

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Intriguing plot, fantastic acting and high quality production

I generally reserve my thoughts and write a review after watching all the episodes however I just couldn't wait this time to share my initial impression so that people who discover this drama and come here will be interested in watching it.

Dramas that play with the element of time (time travel or time loop) are tricky to get right. There are more chances of plot holes and incoherent storytelling than other dramas. Also, it's important to grab viewers attention in the first episode itself without perplexing the audience. Reset excels in this and the first episode sets up the drama nicely and kept me on the edge of my seat. I am hooked!

Moving onto actors, most of us know Bai Jing Ting after his stellar performance in You Are My Hero and he certainly lives up to good standard in this as well but the real show stealer for me is Zhao Jin Mai. The actress from 'A Little Thing Called First Love' fame delivers impressive performance as Li Shi Qing. I was mesmerized by her. She is pulling off difficult to show emotions such as anxiety, fright and delirium with ease.

Cinematography and edits are also crucial for such a drama and they have nailed those aspects of filmmaking along with good background score. You can feel the tension. The overall production quality is top notch as is the script and you can see that they have paid attention to the details. Additionally, no voice dubbing which is a rarity in C-drama world.

Ending felt a bit forced but it doesn't take away anything. This drama is sheer quality.

Start watching, it's well worth your time and only 15 episodes long. Enjoy!

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Time Loop: Curse or Blessing?

A time loop drama with lots of suspense and interesting turns of events.

As the synopsis already states, the drama is about FL whose life was about to end when the bus she was on had an accident. But instead she woke up again on this very bus, a few minutes prior to the accident. Soon she realizes she is caught in a time loop, doomed to relive this horrible experience over and over again. In her attempt to change her fate, she accidentally pulls ML into the loop with her. Together they need to find out how to stop the loop.

Since the Main Leads were caught in a time loop, the same event was repeated over and over again, through the entire drama. And yet they managed to never let the story become boring or repetitive. Every loop was different in a way. Be it the plan of the Main Leads to avoid the accident, or the outcome of it. There was always something new in each loop, making the drama interesting, exciting and less predictable. It was quite thrilling to sit and watch whether their next plan is gonna succeed or not. Some scenes really had me at the edge of my seat.

I was pleasantly surprised with the characters and acting. I loved both main leads a lot, and I also really loved their chemistry! It was interesting to see their differences and how they complemented each other. While our game creator MLs first thought was to save himself, our student FL wanted to also save all other people on the bus. It was very interesting how the incident slowly made them become closer to each other. Great performance by both of them!

I also enjoyed the stories of all the other characters on the bus. They provided lots of beautiful and emotional scenes. The acting of the whole cast was top-notch.

So? How to get out of the time loop? Is there a way to even stop the accident, and hope for everyone to survive? What's the reason behind the accident? How many loops are there gonna be until their destiny is final? Lots of questions to ask, and answers to discover. ;)

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It's the same but different at the same time

Wrap up the drama in one sentence: A university student and a video game maker were stuck in a loop to survive in a bus explosion tragedy.

THIS IS NOT YOUR TYPICAL C-DRAMA
There is no unnecessary love triangles, misunderstandings and golden fingers.

WHY SHOULD YOU WATCH THIS DRAMA?
If you like mystery and thriller stories. Who is the culprit? At the first glance, everyone seems to be the culprit. However, when the drama unfolds, the background story of each character in the bus is unfolded. Suddenly, you understand the reason behind their seemingly out-of-place action.

The repetitive scenes. They're the same, yet they're not. Every time the same scene is played, it adds subtle changes, for instance, minor details, if you're a mystery geek, you can actually try to deduce the plot. The producers have made it possible throughout the drama.

Every character is this drama is the main character of their own story. They are living their own life, in real bone and flesh. The drama tells their story so articulately and beautifully that I can put myself in their shoes and feel their happiness and sorrow alongside with them.

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shut up, dont think about it and GO WATCH

it has been a hot minute since im done with the drama
THIS. THIS IS BETTER THAN AT LEAST 40% OF K DRAMAS AND THE BEST C DRAMA IVE EVER WATCHED
1. GET YOU ON THE EDGE OF YOUR SEAT
2. THERES ROMANCE
3. ITS JUST SO GOOD

the synopsis helps explain everything without much spoilers and i tell you, no synopsis will do true justice to the drama. its just 15 episodes, 45 minutes each, even if you dont think its good at the end which i dont know why you would think that way, at least not much of your time is 'wasted'

OST not my type
chemistry is RIGHT THERE
super heartwarming. every character in the bus has a story behind, except for the internet celeb and the macho guy who was honestly useless :/

i just wish wang meng meng was able to tell her parents a thing or two in a way or another. i wished that her truth would have come out earlier so all these ordeal wouldnt happen. but legit a 100/10 drama, i will surely rewatch it. this drama is the first drama to make me scream and shout out of thrill and suspense. real good. im buying the novel like RIGHT NOW

fyi i watched without eng subs because chinese is my mother tongue, i dont think english subs would do that much of justice to the show as well. BTW there are like SHIT SHIT ton of easter eggs in the show! leave a comment on this review and i will perhaps share more that i know.

one that everyone should know is that wang meng meng and the FL are almost identical
1. they are wearing blue tops/outfits
2. have almost identical if not the same bag with the same keychains and pins
3. they both go to the same school
4. wang meng meng's mother taught at FL's high school
there are more similarities i just cant remember!

please go watch the show, it made me cried out of suspense and relief, no show has ever done that!
<3

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Same same but different over and over again with a dash of sweetness...

The wheels on the bus go round and round, bomb on the bus goes boom, boom, booom... And the people on the bus they die, come back, die, come back....

This drama was mostly interesting and fun to watch keeping me on my toes from start to finish and making me completely fall in love with the leads.

This drama did a pretty decent job combining suspense with slice of life and the whole person behind the deed... The drama shows some of the troubles facing mostly women in today's society , fear, double standards as well as shows us that you never can tell how a person is just by looking at them. But what I liked most was the concept of trial and error... doing, failing, adjusting, doing again... over and over again without becoming boring.

this drama made my heart flutter, laugh and brought out some of my inner anger, it also got me annoyed at a few characters in a ohhh what an annoying kind of way and not that emotional anger I otherwise appreciate, thus bringing down the score. Other things that brought down the score where things like a magic pill that instantly fix a persons heart and some people's reactions that seem a bit off and out of proportion... Still the issues this drama seems to want to convey do make their way (some overly obvious) thru the scene.


But other than that the chemistry between the leads is great and both are highly lovable so I would like to see more of them, there are sweet pets and the PPL is not too overwhelming ether. There are also a bunch of pretty explosions...

In short a pretty decent watch!

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The Drama That Will ‘ Reset’ Your Expectations…

Time loops and time travel in drama screenplays can often be a tricky subject to execute and director Sun Mo Long and co-director and screenwriter Lao Suan’s ‘ Reset’ was no different. Nevertheless whilst the series did fall victim at times to its own loose pacing and some tediously dragged out plot points, ‘ Reset’ offered viewers with a fairly suspenseful and intuitive take upon the niche of time loops.

The series revolved around Li Shi Qing ( Zhao Jin Mai) and Xiao He Yun ( Bai Jing Ting); two young bus passengers who find themselves involved in a fatal accident. However rather than perishing to their seemingly predestined fates, Shi Qing and He Yun find themselves trapped in a “ Groundhog Day”-style time loop. As Shi Qing and He Yun attempt to go to great lengths in order to avoid being involved in the accident, the main leads discover that fate has an odd way of catching up with them even when they least expect it..

‘ Reset’ notably incorporated multiple genres into its storyline. Suspense and mystery greatly dominated the events of the narrative , whilst elements of potential romantic chemistry lingered on the sidelines. However surprisingly even during lighthearted moments of the storyline, screenwriter Lao Suan did offer certain opportunities to flesh-out and explore its side characters and antagonists with some surprising heartfelt and tour de force moments also.

As for the pacing ‘ Reset’ was admittedly a slight mixed-bag. Whilst the series could be very quick-paced as well as knowing when to offer respite, the beginning did suffer slightly under the weight of tedious scenes, dialogue exchanges and tension. Admittedly whilst certain elements were necessary for building up the events of the storyline , this did bring about a somewhat laissez-faire structure with pacing often feeling slightly tedious or loose. The finale of the series was admittedly filled with some unexpected turns, but did lack an element of regimented structure by instead feeling somewhat dragged-out.

The acting of the series was admittedly fairly good. Whilst there were some less impactful deliverances of dialogue and interactions onscreen, the main leads did arguably offer brilliant performances. Bai Jing Ting delivered a loveable charm to his onscreen persona as game designer He Yun, whilst Zhao Jin Mai notably had a sweet and charismatic air onscreen as Li Shi Qing.

The chemistry between the duo onscreen could often feel somewhat stunted in parts. Whilst there were some surprisingly heartfelt exchanges between their onscreen personas, the questionable kiss exchanges and affectionate moments between both main leads at tones could admittedly feel insipid at times.

As for their characters, ‘ Reset’ was a strange amalgamation of dynamic writing opportunities for its side characters and antagonists , whilst its main leads could often lack opportunities for being truly fleshed-out. In particular, this became noteworthy with main female lead Li Shi Wing; naive, seemingly fractious and somewhat altruistic but lacking any greater sense of depth or character development throughout. Arguably whilst viewers did see some greater writing opportunities with He Yun and his own personal drives, the main lead did suffer a somewhat similar fate with being underdeveloped.

The cinematography of the series arguably remained one of the drama’s most stunning attributes. Through the directing reigns of Sun Mo Long and co-director Lao Suan, ‘ Reset’ did offer viewers with a notably stunning array of slick and professionally cut editing and scenes. The OST was admittedly just as pleasing with scores and tracks that whilst slightly generic in parts, did help to reflect the mindset and set the tone for the events of the storyline.

Sun Mo Long and Lao Suan’s ‘ Reset’ offered viewers with an intuitive and surprisingly suspenseful take upon the old trope of time loops and time travel. In execution, the series is admittedly weaker with lacking character development for its main leads and somewhat inconsistent pacing, but the slick cinematography and opportunities to see unlike side and antagonistic characters grow did offer some great takeaways from the drama also. Overall whilst ‘ Reset’ was not a drama without some prominent flaws , the series was admittedly a fairly good watch and engaging with its audience.

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