Fake It Till You Make It (2023)

A journey which everyone goes thru

This was not a typical Cdrama. it pleasantly surprised me that there can be such cdramas too.

FL was strong, independent woman but was not perfect. she had her own share of insecurities but learnt to deal with it. what i liked is she stood for herself without bowing down too much. she also expressed and communicated her insecurities in a matured way

ML was a typical non committal playboy. Deep down even he was scared and insecured but did not display it. His actions did when he was faced with it. He also overcame it through the journey

the second lead, sister also learnt her lessons thru her journey and realised nothing is forever and take it as it comes.

overall a beautiful story, worth watching as it touches the real aspects of people and life. the star cast was amazing. the chemistry was fabulous and made of each other.

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The best contemporary romance you'll ever come across

' Fake it till you make it '
The title piqued me instantly.
The poster was compelling.
The start was catchy and intimidating.
I'm not an avid watcher of Chinese dramas, coz they lack depth more often than not and are quite superficial, but this drama blew me away.
It was so compelling, the script is adapted from a novel.
The characters were so well written, and so unique.
The plot was so engrossing, it's one of the best dramas of 2023 and certainly the best contemporary romance drama.
The actors are outstanding.
It's like everything this director wanted to do, happened with this drama.

The versatility of characters was surprising, it made you wonder often what's their purpose, each of them served and left and some people in life normally do .
The biggest plus point is that the whole drama rotates around both the leads .
Mesmerizing chemistry b/w the leads followed by modern takes on how things proceed, the dating ploy, the urban constraint, the pretentiousness of humans and how it isn't necessary.
The struggles of the workplace, the toxicity of corporate culture, and how at the end of the day everybody is still struggling despite all the cunning tactics.

With the conclusion that life is more than work.
You might think that struggle and hard work will lead you to something but it can never fulfil the void it leaves in your life.

Most dramas lose their ploy by the time they end, this one never did, infact it develops as the episodes progress to a newer perspective, it does get slow after episode 10, which I found to be the problem.
But it still deserves a 10 for bringing something new to the table.

It was a lovely experience, I hope you watch this drama and enjoy it too.
Till then ^^

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Couple Chemistry Saved This One!

The drama was just ok. Too much business-speak and meaningless interactions between characters who didn't have a lot to contribute to the main story. Just a lot of fillers. Still, the acting was pretty good - no silly, overly dramatic characters, no villains to seek revenge, just overall a fair characterization of ambitious, overworked professionals in the big city. The episodes tended to drag in places where there really was no importance to the storyline, and that time could have been better spent on the lead and side couples' relationship development and wrap up. The last episode was quite underwhelming with a lot of repetitious babble, but we still got the happy ending we deserved.

The real star of this drama was the chemistry between Elvis & Elvira. While too much time was wasted on the bantering back and forth and the ambiguous exchanges at times, there is absolutely no doubt about the electricity between these two. Those soulful stares from Elvis and Elvira's response to him just sizzled. I liked the sister and her young boyfriend, but really felt sorry for the first guy with the psychological problems. He really played his part well, my heart bled for him even when I tried to see him as creepy. I also liked the love story of the pretentious client and her childhood friend, and the second boss and her guy. All-in-all, while I could have used a little more PDA all-around, the romance part scored.

OST was beautiful and added to the story.

Worth a re-watch on a lazy weekend with nothing to do and kill time. I'm a fan of Elvis Han now. I liked him in Three Kingdoms - but not near as much as in this modern-day role. Will also take a look at Elvira's work as well.

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An excellent series, realistic, romantic, modern (with a very hot CL :)

PLOT: the storyline tfollows the professional and emotional journey (50-50) of 2 senior executives, hard workers each in their field, 1 lawyer & 1 banker investment . They meet by chance on a plane, then find themselves working on the same cases.

PROS:
+ 2 great actors (Elvis Han in ML -- a pure eye-candy ---- & Elvira Cai in FL) with a chemistry that sparks. This duo, which becomes later a couple, is adorable, mature, super endearing.
+ the view of employees in Beijing is fairly realistic, pessimistic even, even if they are executives, graduates and hard workers (ultra competition, overtime, weight of the hierarchy, various harassments,...).
+ This is an intelligent series, where the protagonists question their lives in depth: meaning of life, place of love, work/life balance, analysis of interpersonal relationships, ... in an almost philosophical way.
+ Very pleasant OST, perfectly adapted to the atmosphere of each scene.
+ Search for the ideal husband by the little sister is quite funny : a so-called "super beautiful", to whom no man can resist, (undoubtedly she has the cute side which fits with Asian beauty standards?) , but for me, she is less attractive than the FL .
+ The description and evolution of a toxic relationship is coherent (with a narcissistic pervert in hyper control)... We can feel the experience from the screenwriters :)

CONS:
- Lots of legal or financial jargon.

=> Really not many flaws for this drama, almost perfect in its genre! To watch and rewatch with great pleasure.
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Excellente série, réaliste, romantique, actuelle

PLOT : la storyline retrace le parcours professionnel et sentimental (50-50) de 2 cadres supérieurs, travailleurs acharnés chacun dans son domaine, 1 avocate & 1 conseiller en investissement. Ils se rencontrent par hasard dans un avion, puis se retrouvent ensuite à travailler sur les mêmes affaires.

PROS:
+ 2 super acteurs (Elvis Han en ML & Elvira Cai en FL) avec une alchimie qui fait des étincelles. Ce duo, qui devient couple, est adorable, mature, super attachant.
+ Vue grise assez réaliste des salariés à Pékin, mm cadres, diplômés et travailleurs acharnés (ultra compétition, heures supplémentaires, poids de la hiérarchie, harcèlements divers,...).
+ Série intelligente, où les protagonistes s'interrogent sur leur vie en profondeur : sens de la vie, place de l'amour, quel équilibre travail / vie perso, analyse des relations interpersonnelles, ... de manière presque philosophique.
+ OST très soignés, parfaitement adaptés à l'ambiance de chaque scène.
+ Recherche du mari idéal par la petite sœur [soit disant "super belle", à laquelle aucun homme ne résiste, sans doute qu'elle a le côté mignon qui colle aux canons de beauté asiatiques ?, mais qui n'est pas plus attirante que la FL] assez drôle.
+ Bonne description et évolution d'une relation toxique (avec un pervers narcissique dans l'hyper contrôle)... On sent le vécu de la part des scénaristes :)

CONS:
- Beaucoup de jargon juridique ou financier.

=> Vraiment pas beaucoup de défauts pour ce drama, quasi parfait dans son genre ! A voir et à revoir avec beaucoup de plaisir.

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It encompassed everything I wish all romance dramas could offer

“Maybe I think love is not a noun but a verb.” – Xu Ziquan

I cannot believe I found this hidden gem two months after it was initially released.

This is a very good slice-of-life middle-aged modern C-Drama.
The chemistry of the main leads was sufficient to keep me engaged throughout the 14-episode series. Their mature and engaging dialogues held my attention and left little room for me to focus on the other supporting couples or characters in the show. To be honest, I even skipped a few of the supporting scenes just to catch more moments with the main leads. This drama predominantly delves into the professional lives of an investor and lawyer, which might make it feel a bit sluggish for those who aren't fans of this genre.

It encompassed everything I wish all romance dramas could offer. Here are few reasons:
1) A mature romance with actors in their 30s, which is a departure from the usual Chinese dramas with mature romance involving older actors.
2) Mature characters. One of the primary reasons I usually don't enjoy Chinese dramas is their tendency to feature immature characters, which I find hard to tolerate.
3) It consisted of 14 episodes, each lasting an hour, following the format more akin to K-Dramas. This format, unlike other Chinese romance dramas with a minimum of 24 episodes, avoids unnecessary filler episodes, tedious family melodrama, and annoying secondary character subplots.

I wholeheartedly recommend this to all romance enthusiasts. The chemistry between the main characters is truly exceptional. 👍🏻

P. S. This drama has turned me into a fan of Elvis Han. I'm eagerly looking forward to his future works!

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Quality over Quantity

Wow. Such a good series with matured cast and matured acting. The cast did such a good job portraying their characters. Oh and that chemistry was definitely chemistrying…. I can’t honestly say which was better, their conversations/banters or the way they look at each other, both were simply magic.
I honestly wish CDramas will transition away from the baby/childlike talking FLs and ridiculous cliched/tropey filled plots and give us more matured like dramas like this. I doubt that will happen as it seems the mature plots is not popular with their targeted audiences, which is such a shame as the minority are constantly subjected to a regurgitated load of mess.
I highly recommend this drama

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Straight forward romance

This drama gives us something most dramas do not, which is grown ups acting it grown ups. I for one get tired of mostly female leads acting like high school girls. Not knowing what they want, and being to needy. The female in this drama is independent and knows exactly who is is, does not need constant assurance from the male lead.

This drama has no clingyness at all, and the romance story is completely realistic. Also, this drama has a sexyness overload. The male lead is drop dead handsome and super sexy. He does give off a lot of play boy vibes. But not too much, that it will make you lose interest.

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A Gem, don't miss it!

The story was so engaging , it was a little bit classic towards the end but nevertheless enjoyable.

The characters: every character was well developed, so you kind of understand where they come from and maybe from there you can somehow understand their behaviour, it was nice to watch them have a proper closure, there were not just mere fillers.

THE MAIN LEADS GUYSSSS!!! THE CHEMISTRY WAS WAOUH! THE KISSES !!!! like it has been two years or maybe three that i watched a drama that gave me so much butterflies.

For me it's a 9,5/10, and yes i did rewatch some episodes . I really enjoyed the process of them falling for each other, i liked the chemistry, the way they were flirting, it was just beautiful. If you are looking for a realistic drama, with a mature and beautiful romance this drama is for you. I recommend it!

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Mask On/Mask Off

This is a sweet little contemporary romance. It is relatively short at 14 episodes, so the pacing is tight. It is also angst light in the sense that there are no nasty parents nor psycho second leads. There are plenty of angst from a different quarter though and this forms the underlying message of the show. So, let’s talk about the love lines first.

The ML is handsome, and the FL is attractive. They are well matched and have good chemistry. They are sweet, loving and there is a decent amount of skinship, but nothing more than hugs and kisses. It is great to see that they understand the need to communicate. They talk through issues, and they trust each other. They act like mature adults and don't yo-yo between love-hate like some other dramas. It did take them a while to sort out their feelings but once they are a couple, there is no going back and no self-sabotage. They form an united front against anyone who try to come between them.

Interestingly, relationship issues are not completely off the table. The show touches on issues like jealousy, ghosting, gaslighting and some serious obsessive behaviours. It does feel a little tropey when you take it all in. It works out in the end, but it is hardly a joyride for all concerned, especially the FL’s sister.

Now, let’s talk about the rest. As the title implies, “faking it” is now such a part of modern culture that you will find it everywhere. Whether it is being pretentious or just to disguise one’s background, it is like a mask that people puts on or risk being unfairly judged and labelled.

If you think this is a great opportunity for satire then you’d be right. However, while this show is willing to poke fun at some common tropes (luxury handbags at 3 paces, anyone?), they are hardly cutting. We might get a chuckle out of it, but this is common fodder for Chinese comedies nowadays. I would almost call it a missed opportunity.

In that sense, the main theme of the show is not about fakes. Yes, there are plenty on display, but they are just props. The show is really a cautionary tale about achieving a good work life balance. This is significant because our leads certainly face that challenge and they also have to take off their masks before they can truly love each other. This is the real message of this show.

I’m glad that the show highlights such plights, but it does feel a little hollow. Nobody want their health or relationship to suffer because of excessive workload/work pressure but I have a sinking feeling that the positive messages are going to fall on deaf ears when you consider the current 996 work schedule in China and that is often the bare minimum. The pressure to conform is just too great. It is a noble sentiment, to be sure, but how many Chinese workers can achieve a healthy balance?

Putting this aside, the show is quite enjoyable. Production value is good, acting is solid and the OST is pleasant. If you are not in the thick of the rat race then this would be a very agreeable distraction while it last. Peace out.

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