Rhea
Malaysia
Engaging Story
Fall In Love is surprisingly an engaging drama for me. I didn’t expect it to be this good but the story execution is nicely done that the tale flows cohesively at a good pace to make me hooked. This is not a pure romance drama despite the title because the fluff kind of tapers off after the halfway mark as other more serious issues of feuds and schemings start to take precedence.
Hence, you can divide the drama into 3 arcs. The first concentrates on the female lead’s family issues as she battles a toxic stepmother and half-sister. This runs for 17 episodes and it includes the budding romance of the main couple. The next 10 episodes is about the schemes to bring down the villain while the last arc talks about the villain fighting back and the push factors to lead the protagonists to lean towards the Revolutionary Army.
It is easy to have the misconception that this is a rom-com or something lighthearted. It is not. While it isn’t depressing like One And Only or has a painful kind of love like Novoland: Pearl Eclipse, Fall In Love still can’t run away from the serious issues of that era that revolves around war and tussles over territory. The drama is engaging simply because the screenwriters have successfully interweave the romance into the power fight for control over a city especially in the first arc.
A Cohesive Plot
Basically, the drama is really about feuding warlords. The male lead wants to establish his presence in Shanghai while the warlord in control of the city wants him out. The female lead becomes the center of attention because of her rich father who could provide financial backing to the warlords. Thus, the story of all the characters is logically linked together. Each of the character has a reason to be there and the plot doesn’t go all over the place but stays tightly focused.
Included in the plot are the schemes strategized by the leads. They are cleverly written rather than being superficial. Therefore, rather than just concentrating on the romance and the fluff, Fall In Love has also taken the pains to intrigue viewers on how the protagonists outwitted their enemies. I find it rather entertaining and different from the usual. This is certainly not the kind of simple love story like Love At Night or Once We Get Married, but a more well-rounded drama that has romance, family, power tussle, and higher ideals being cohesively bundled together.
Intelligent Characters
What makes Fall In Love more interesting is that the main characters are depicted as smart people. Xuan Lin is shown as flirty and playful often but he does it with intelligence to throw his enemies off. He is the type of man who can see through other people’s plan and think a few steps ahead.
Wan Qing may look courteous and quiet but she is not one to be bullied. She has brains to counter Xuan Lin and knows what his schemes are about rather than being blindly taken advantage of. She doesn’t whine and knows how to fight back.
Therefore, if you like smart characters with a backbone, you should enjoy watching Xuan Lin and Wan Qing. Even the second male lead is an astute man but simply too kindhearted and noble to resort to underhanded tactics. Overall, the annoying characters are limited to Xuan Lin’s younger sister who lacks maturity and Wan Qing’s stepmother and half-sister with their exaggerated jealousy. But they don’t dominate the drama with their limited screen time which helps to keep things balanced.
Great Chemistry
The leads have great chemistry together as a couple. From the very beginning, you can already feel the sparks in their interactions. So, when the romance follows, you will get the feeling that they are meant for each other. They look matching as lovers and you will root for them. However, the sweet scenes are pretty limited in this drama. There are kisses but also nothing that will make you go wow unlike You Are My Glory and Love Scenery. So, if you want a fluffy kind of romance with lots of hugs and kisses, Fall In Love will not be in that category.
As for the acting, Oliver Chen really gives Xuan Lin very unique characteristics. He gives it a playful personality but at the same time, also portrays him to be a responsible man with deep emotions related to a tragic past. Hence, Xuan Lin doesn’t appear as one-dimensional as Oliver Chen also manages to bring out the other aspects of the character’s personality to the viewers.
Zhang Jing Yi also plays the role of Wan Qing rather well. She depicts her as someone with inner strength through a stoic face and quiet determination in her eyes which is consistent with the character’s background and life experience. As for Evan Lin, I last saw him in Crush. He has that similar serious face and brooding demeanor in both Crush and Fall In Love. He did okay as Guang Yao but I think he still lacks experience to effectively flesh out the conflict in the character who is torn between his father and doing the right thing.
My Verdict – Watch!
I know many people don’t really like watching Chinese Republican dramas. This is because the stories in that time setting tend to be associated with sufferings, war, and female oppression. But do make an exception for Fall In Love. It is not a distressing drama despite the turbulent period but one that has enough wittiness and interesting dialogues to get your attention.
Some may find the male lead to be a jerk in the beginning but do continue on as he gets better as the drama progresses. The story development is sound and there is strong foundation for the romance to flourish. However, the ending could be better. Although all loose ends are tied up, there are new villains being introduced in the last 3 episodes. Neither would you get a sweet ending scene for the couple after all the scare that they went through despite this being a romance drama.
For this Fall In Love 2021 review, I would give it a score of 8/10. It has a well-executed plot to give viewers an engaging story. Many romance dramas with over 30 episodes will feel draggy but not this one. It has enough happenings in other areas to push the story forward rather than relying on the main couple’s relationship alone to drive it.
Thus, if you are craving for something very sugary, look for something else to watch. But if you don’t mind using your brains a little to follow the protagonists’ schemes, then this would be pretty interesting and different from the usual.
Hence, you can divide the drama into 3 arcs. The first concentrates on the female lead’s family issues as she battles a toxic stepmother and half-sister. This runs for 17 episodes and it includes the budding romance of the main couple. The next 10 episodes is about the schemes to bring down the villain while the last arc talks about the villain fighting back and the push factors to lead the protagonists to lean towards the Revolutionary Army.
It is easy to have the misconception that this is a rom-com or something lighthearted. It is not. While it isn’t depressing like One And Only or has a painful kind of love like Novoland: Pearl Eclipse, Fall In Love still can’t run away from the serious issues of that era that revolves around war and tussles over territory. The drama is engaging simply because the screenwriters have successfully interweave the romance into the power fight for control over a city especially in the first arc.
A Cohesive Plot
Basically, the drama is really about feuding warlords. The male lead wants to establish his presence in Shanghai while the warlord in control of the city wants him out. The female lead becomes the center of attention because of her rich father who could provide financial backing to the warlords. Thus, the story of all the characters is logically linked together. Each of the character has a reason to be there and the plot doesn’t go all over the place but stays tightly focused.
Included in the plot are the schemes strategized by the leads. They are cleverly written rather than being superficial. Therefore, rather than just concentrating on the romance and the fluff, Fall In Love has also taken the pains to intrigue viewers on how the protagonists outwitted their enemies. I find it rather entertaining and different from the usual. This is certainly not the kind of simple love story like Love At Night or Once We Get Married, but a more well-rounded drama that has romance, family, power tussle, and higher ideals being cohesively bundled together.
Intelligent Characters
What makes Fall In Love more interesting is that the main characters are depicted as smart people. Xuan Lin is shown as flirty and playful often but he does it with intelligence to throw his enemies off. He is the type of man who can see through other people’s plan and think a few steps ahead.
Wan Qing may look courteous and quiet but she is not one to be bullied. She has brains to counter Xuan Lin and knows what his schemes are about rather than being blindly taken advantage of. She doesn’t whine and knows how to fight back.
Therefore, if you like smart characters with a backbone, you should enjoy watching Xuan Lin and Wan Qing. Even the second male lead is an astute man but simply too kindhearted and noble to resort to underhanded tactics. Overall, the annoying characters are limited to Xuan Lin’s younger sister who lacks maturity and Wan Qing’s stepmother and half-sister with their exaggerated jealousy. But they don’t dominate the drama with their limited screen time which helps to keep things balanced.
Great Chemistry
The leads have great chemistry together as a couple. From the very beginning, you can already feel the sparks in their interactions. So, when the romance follows, you will get the feeling that they are meant for each other. They look matching as lovers and you will root for them. However, the sweet scenes are pretty limited in this drama. There are kisses but also nothing that will make you go wow unlike You Are My Glory and Love Scenery. So, if you want a fluffy kind of romance with lots of hugs and kisses, Fall In Love will not be in that category.
As for the acting, Oliver Chen really gives Xuan Lin very unique characteristics. He gives it a playful personality but at the same time, also portrays him to be a responsible man with deep emotions related to a tragic past. Hence, Xuan Lin doesn’t appear as one-dimensional as Oliver Chen also manages to bring out the other aspects of the character’s personality to the viewers.
Zhang Jing Yi also plays the role of Wan Qing rather well. She depicts her as someone with inner strength through a stoic face and quiet determination in her eyes which is consistent with the character’s background and life experience. As for Evan Lin, I last saw him in Crush. He has that similar serious face and brooding demeanor in both Crush and Fall In Love. He did okay as Guang Yao but I think he still lacks experience to effectively flesh out the conflict in the character who is torn between his father and doing the right thing.
My Verdict – Watch!
I know many people don’t really like watching Chinese Republican dramas. This is because the stories in that time setting tend to be associated with sufferings, war, and female oppression. But do make an exception for Fall In Love. It is not a distressing drama despite the turbulent period but one that has enough wittiness and interesting dialogues to get your attention.
Some may find the male lead to be a jerk in the beginning but do continue on as he gets better as the drama progresses. The story development is sound and there is strong foundation for the romance to flourish. However, the ending could be better. Although all loose ends are tied up, there are new villains being introduced in the last 3 episodes. Neither would you get a sweet ending scene for the couple after all the scare that they went through despite this being a romance drama.
For this Fall In Love 2021 review, I would give it a score of 8/10. It has a well-executed plot to give viewers an engaging story. Many romance dramas with over 30 episodes will feel draggy but not this one. It has enough happenings in other areas to push the story forward rather than relying on the main couple’s relationship alone to drive it.
Thus, if you are craving for something very sugary, look for something else to watch. But if you don’t mind using your brains a little to follow the protagonists’ schemes, then this would be pretty interesting and different from the usual.
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