Ni Ye You Jin Tian (2024)

What a Rom-Com should be!

I LOVED this drama! I think it's rating of 7.9 is far too low. It was a heart-warming, satisfying romance with plenty of amusement and very little of the things we hate about C-drama Rom-Coms. Here's my take on the characters:

ML - I absolutely loved him! He shot into my ML Hall of Fame, coming in at third place behind Min-Min of 'Strong Woman Bong Soon' and the Grand Tutor of 'Be My Princess'. He shares the spot with Gu Yanzhen of 'Arsenal Military Academy'. This is my favorite role that this particular actor has played (I wasn't crazy about him in 'Fall in Love' or 'The Starry Love'). He plays the bad-tempered, aloof/arrogant yet inwardly warm-hearted and emotionally bumbling ML to perfection. I think it's the best I've seen this actor look too - his hair style fit him perfectly. All he needed was glasses (which he got at the very, very end). He does an excellent job of switching from the aloof, scolding boss to the sweet, tender, smiling boyfriend. And gosh, what a boyfriend! He supports and believes in FL unconditionally and immediately gets justice for her when the obsessed chick frames her. Just an FYI - his heart has only and always belonged to FL. There's no ex-girlfriends, no childhood sweethearts, no fiancées. He's never been in love before until he meets FL so he clueless about what to do with his feelings. Once he finally confesses, his heart belongs 100% to FL - no wavering. He shows no mercy to the obsessed chick despite their past university acquaintance. Some might says he's controlling, but I see it as his desire to help FL achieve her dreams and potential.

FL - she's cute without being that annoyingly cutesy character that C-dramas tend to love (and I hate). A warning to the faint-hearted, FL goes through a lot of character development so if she seems far to apologetic and ditsy at first, hang in there! Remember that she's young and inexperienced and had a terrible boss prior to her coming to ML's law firm. She does mature as both a woman and a lawyer. Her influence in ML's life causes him to soften his hard-nose lawyer demeanor and philosophy. However, my goodwill toward her did cool when she sort of breaks up with ML following the obsessed chick's little framing trick. She has an inferiority complex throughout the drama - feeling that she's useless except as a sleep aid to ML, feeling she's not worthy of him loving her, etc. So, in the latter episodes, she's hell-bent to 'prove herself' and she's hypersensitive to everything ML says. I honestly don't know what her problem is. Should they work at different law firms? Yes, I think so, but she puts distance between them and ML doesn't have a clue why bc she doesn't really explain it. In my opinion, ML is wonderful and does everything he can to please her yet he's in the doghouse. It's like the writer suddenly decides their relationship is too perfect so she has to toss in some angst. What was all this angst about? Gaining ML's respect? I feel he already respected her - he's always praising her abilities. To change ML's view of marriage? I don't know how what she put him through did that, but his perspective did change. FL's behavior after the obsessed chick was sort of crazy and my warm feelings towards her cooled. My only other complaints about her was - 1) her hair when she had it down, it looked like she was wearing a fuzzy fur stole; and 2) sometimes she'd widen her eyes, making her look a little psycho.

FL's three co-workers - Absolutely loved them! Finally, Chinese supporting characters that are just as memorable and loveable as the Koreans! They were had good chemistry together and they didn't take over the scene. They were great supporting characters that added humor. I loved the glasses guy (Brother Bao) - he was amusing with his belief that ML's favored him and his constant chatter and drama. He was my favorite supporting character along with ML's mom. The other two coworkers formed the 'third couple' of this drama, and seriously, I liked them better than Wu Jun & FL's sister. Their romance was there without taking attention away from ML/FL (just like a Korean drama). Loved how the group protected FL from ML's scolding. So refreshing after watching so many drams with workplace bullying.

Parents - LOVED ML's mom! So glad that his parents weren't demanding he marry some rich girl or some childhood sweetheart. Mom was just happy that he liked someone, and she tried to help their romance along...although it backfired on her. We didn't see as much as FL's parents as ML's mom, but they were likeable as well. They only disapproved when FL made up lies about ML's profession, etc. So that tyrannical parent factor was not part of this drama. The writers/director used the parents to add humor instead of angst. Bravo! These are the type of parents I like!

Wu Jun & FL's sister - I liked Wu Jun's personality (and that adorable dimple & cool sunglasses), but he was kind of dumb. He recruited the scheming chick into their firm bc he thought ML liked her. Really? As far as I could tell, ML hadn't had any contact with this woman since university and SML thinks he likes her???? For someone who supposedly had people skills, he was pretty dumb when it came to discerning who ML liked. He thought the 'friend' ML talked about was this chick while most people know that when someone refers to a 'friend's problem', they're usually referring to themselves. If Wu Jun hadn't been such a dope and ML so clueless, we wouldn't have had to watch the scheming chick in the final half of this drama. That entire story arc was all Wu Jun's fault yet ML suffered the consequences. As for the sister, I liked her hair style, but as for her character, my reaction is - blah. I fast forwarded through Wu Jun & her scenes as well as her scenes with the ex.

Finally, the scheming chick. She wasn't able to interest ML all those years ago in university yet somehow she thinks he's hers and destroying FL will secure him. Because of her arrival, the pleasant workplace became toxic with a head b** and her gang of little b**. Didn't anyone notice that their formerly harmonious workplace was suddenly filled with nasty rumors and was directly related to this woman's arrival? Wu Jun knew what was going on and did nothing to prevent what happened except give the skank a weak warning. Fortunately, ML returned and obliterated the b**. He only relented from annihilating her completely bc of SML's pleading. I can't understand C-drama obsessed chick logic - just because you're stupid enough to like a guy for years, he's supposedly yours? And they always ask - why her and not me? Maybe because you're a vindictive, delusional, self-centered b**? Could that be the reason?

This drama was a great watch, and I highly recommend it. The angst is at the minimum and the romance at the maximum. It's took Asian dramas a while to understand that principle. Rom-Com stands to Romance | Comedy, and so few Asian drama focus on the comedy aspect. instead they fill it with angst. This drama, however, is what a Rom-Com should be!

P.S. the OST was good too, especially their love theme 'Loving You'. I liked the lullaby about the lazy cat too. It reminded me of Sheldon's Soft Kitty song.

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Charming Series!

Although My Boss is an understated RC, it is a solid series in its genre just the same. In my view, it is better for example than the current Our Interpreter or the recent Only For Love. Neither series are without appeal..but they are missing some element that would make them a stand out. This series by contrast has consistently delivered. It has a been a pleasure to watch for multiple reasons. There are thrills but without extreme angst. A fun and enjoyable watch ...but absent the frivolous fluff. The release schedule for this series has also added to the fun. Slow releases often negatively impact a drama...yet on this one...they chose to air one new episode almost every day. What is not to love about that? ❤️
Some have complained that it took too long for them to become a couple. I respectfully disagree. Half the fun of any trip is the planning and anticipation, right? So why the rush? Savoring suits an adult palate. Lol. Although the build up is relaxed...it has made this romance feel all the more legit. As if we have a window into a love affair from its conception to its maturity. Besides as viewers, we already know they love each other....even before they appear to know it themselves.

Things I Loved:
The ML, Chen Xing Xu:
The camera loves this guy, I swear he does not have a bad angle. His stylist played up his good looks with clothing that was interesting yet totally fit his quieter persona. And his hair...well, it is really, really nice. Lol.
But more importantly, I really liked his character in this series. He gave a much used stereotype a fresh new take, how that is possible given the many RC's out there I dunno......but he did it. And he did it in such an understated way that it felt authentic. And ummm...can we just take a detour to talk about his chest? Hey!! Don't laugh...his muscles are serious business. Don't believe me? Research it. Lol. But since I am a serious reviewer, you can take it from me darling...his chest muscles are for real. How do we know? Well, dang it...he has the pics to prove it...can you believe? And those pics have dealt a blow to his harshest critics who said that he wore chest pads. Grrr...the very idea! So life in China as a celebrity is tough business....evidently you gotta prove those abs are for real.

The FL, Zhang Ruo Nan:
She is adorable...and I am taking nothing away from her by saying that. She just is. She is not a bombshell, but the more you look at her.....she is gorgeous. She is also very adept at playing her role..it has never been plain vanilla or perky/silly...or one of those pushy females pursuing and being rejected, instead her role feels uncontrived and unusually fresh. She holds her own with a much more dynamic ML without losing a step. She is easily as interesting to watch as he is. I especially love it that despite his strong personality ...she has an equal confidence in herself. She is not led around by her emotions or by his moods. She appears to value her own life independent from his opinion of her. I liked that. I do love strong FL's.

The Setting: The Law Firm
Cheng Yao (Zhang Ruo Nan) is a young and talented lawyer who has bigger ambitions than she has connections. Her biggest problem? She has never tried a case before. So she is in desperate need of a quality mentor. She gets an unexpected chance to join an exceptional law firm, blissfully unaware that her new Boss, Qian Heng (Chen Xing Xu) accepts no one less excellent than himself. He is infuriated with his partner who has hired Cheng Yao. Qian Heng is one very determined guy. He has made a name for his law firm by sheer talent and hard work. His strong desire to succeed means that he will only hire the best, those who don't meet the grade...are fired on the spot. He has carefully built his reputation...as a top notch lawyer who never loses a case. So when he sees that his partner has hired Cheng Yao because he is in love with her sister...he dislikes her on principal. Things escalate further when they discover they will end up sharing an apartment. Both are wary, yet living together has unexpected side benefits. He finds that she is surprisingly good for his mental and physical well being and she benefits from having him to mentor her. So the law firm adds a cool element to the story, the cases and coworkers are interesting and the writers have sketched a mentor/mentee relationship that is turning into a toe-curling romance. For now it is a 10. I will be back to update you.

@20 This series is a gem and if romance is your thing, you will love this one.
@23 I have smiled my way through this series. If you've experienced the excitement of a love affair where all your senses are engaged...you will relate to this one. Watching them feeding each other pizza was such a legit moment that I felt the joy. This relationship has come full circle. He is now the vulnerable one and she appears to be the more mature one. She may not be experienced in love, but she has self-respect (I love that!) so she is no pushover. She is making him work for it and you gotta love that! Update at Final.

Happy Watching!

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