Still thinking about the Qiao family

[ spoilers only at end of post ]

I stumbled upon this drama by chance after seeing it pop up on my Douban app while looking for something new and I am so glad that I did! It's been about a week since I've finished watching this title and I am still thinking about the drama and wishing that it were just a little bit longer (can they please do a sequel of them in 2020 LOL)

Prefacing this by saying that I normally do not seek out dramas that aren't happening in the modern era but thought that this one would only be spending a little time in the 70s and fast forwarding to now but that wasn't the case at all. Within a span of 36 episodes, you really get to grow up with the Qiao siblings, watching them go through each phase of their life. I will say that the timeline of the drama is a bit confusing to me. There were moments where I thought maybe a few months had passed, but it was actually a few years. However, there is no real indication to when certain time skips might happen (particularly when all of the siblings are older and they are no longer being played by a different actor because of the age).

The acting of this drama blew me out of the water as they really brought me into the story that they were living. While I'm not a fluent Chinese speaker and was watching this without subtitles, I was still able to grasp onto most of what was happening simply with just watching the body language and listening to the tone of how they spoke.

My family and I sped through the first few episodes very quickly but my mom was also reading spoilers on Chinese sites while we were watching as we were behind and so she was tempted to stop when people started talking about how the drama was becoming nonsensical and stuff; however, we pressed on and I'm so glad we did. I do think the drama ended a tad bit abruptly as there was a LOT that happened in that last episode, but it at least tied everything together well and wasn't one of those endings that leaves you feeling unsatisfied (even if I do selfishly want more).

The side characters also add a wonderful touch to the storyline and didn't feel overbearing or unnecessary. However, nothing can beat the love and care that these siblings have for one another. An emotional roller coaster but a lot of fuzzy warm feelings that come from witnessing such a bond.

If you haven't watched yet, you might want to skip the below because ~SPOILERS~. And if you have watched it, I would love to know your thoughts on these random thoughts I had while watching the drama!

1) For the longest time, I had no idea what the point of Qi Qi's character was, though, now that I've finished the drama, I can certainly appreciate his character a bit more and the purpose of why he's necessary. However, I honestly still don't understand the plotline of having him knock a girl up and having a baby. Was it to force him to mature quicker? Didn't really understand the point of this but maybe there's a nuance I didn't understand.
2) I would love to better understand how these characters decided to get married because it felt like there was no chemistry that built up between the characters that would make me believe there was love between them. However, perhaps most of it is a marriage of convenience? And also maybe why those marriages ended up in divorce?

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I had originally showed the teaser of this drama to my parents to get them to watch it, but they were completely uninterested. It was only after a series of failed attempts at other dramas did they finally agree to give it a try. I would say that they liked aspects of it, but they were also fine missing large chunks of the drama which my sister and I sometimes just watched on our own. My personal agenda in watching this was because I really wanted to watch another Kim Bum drama, and I thought he did a great job in his role! The cast as a whole were really great, and it's also so fun to see their dynamics off-screen as well. The plot line isn't always the most exciting, as things can get a little technical with the law and all, but I did enjoy seeing them in action in the courtroom. There were at times that I thought the writing felt a little all over the place (trying to shove in sub-plots that diverged from the main plot), but everything thankfully ties together well in the end.

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Heartwarming Family Drama

My rating on this drama is probably a bit harsh but there were so many parts of the drama that just didn't capture my attention. Don't get me wrong. I was hooked on my seat over certain storylines within the drama, but as with any 100-episode drama, it just gets to be a bit too much at some point (at least for me ... it seems like others thought otherwise). This is why I typically avoid these long dramas because they tend to drag, in my opinion, but I really wanted to watch and see what happened with the main couple (Gyujin and Nahee).

Of course, as I watched, there were definitely parts of the storyline and characters that I grew to like more as the story progressed, but there were also other storylines I still couldn't get behind. As someone who doesn't watch these types of dramas frequently, though, perhaps this is all very normal for a drama of this length. It reminds me a bit of one of those shows that I could put in the background while doing something else, and it's certainly light-hearted and an easy watch. If you need something to fill your time, I would still definitely recommend giving this a try!

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Absolutely Love

Let me start off by saying that I do not like time travel dramas. They typically confuse me, and my "too realistic" brain can't often process how these things work.

Somehow, the time travel of Lovely Runner just works. The storyline is cute, heartwarming, and just overall enjoyable to watch. You'll go through a roller coaster of emotions, but none of it will be regrettable. The cast all did a superb job of capturing the essence of their characters, and the amazing reception that this drama received is full evidence of that. There were many "conspiracy" theories about various elements of the plot on Reddit, but honestly, a completely enjoyable read without needing to get into all that. A definite must watch!

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I honestly picked this drama up because I wanted to practice my Chinese listening skills. I've generally liked Tan Song Yun's dramas, so I figured I'd give this a go.

The storyline revolving around a female pilot trying to make her way in the aviation industry was incredibly intriguing and not one that I've seen before. There's something about seeing a workplace setting portrayed in detail in a drama that adds additional interest for me. Both leads (Tan Song Yun and Wang Kai) do an excellent job in their roles. I'm also a Liu Chang fan so quite enjoyed having him on the screen as well.

At some point, the story did start to drag a bit, which I find to happen quite often in Chinese dramas. It probably could have finished in fewer episodes, but won't complain about the great actors on the screen.

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Mouse came highly recommended to me after I had finished Beyond Evil. Perhaps because of this (and its stellar cast), I had incredibly high expectations for this drama. Unfortunately, the drama failed to meet those expectations.

The premise of the drama is incredibly unique, and the acting throughout is absolutely stellar. However, there was just way too much going on and too many twists it tried to take that it ended up becoming tiring. My parents, who have a hard time keeping track of characters as it was, got even more lost than I did. I think the drama could have done just as well even if it had been simplified, but instead, the second half of the drama seemed extremely dragged out and almost boring. Honestly, the last episode was stellar and they probably could have cut out 5 episodes before it and just gone there (okay, not actually, but you get the point). There are also certain cuts that are really sudden, and I kept thinking there was something wrong with my stream but it seems like that's just how it's cut.

It's a drama that started off well and ended up well, but the middle was a bit of a mish mosh to me. I'm still giving it a decent star rating because the acting really was magnificent, but unfortunately, it won't be a drama that I immediately think to recommend to others.

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What a heartwarming drama! I'd passed by this drama on Netflix many times but seeing the high reviews on MDL made me decide to give it a go. The cast did such a wonderful job in portraying their characters, especially Park In Hwan (the scenes in which he forgets who he is are so believable that I had to remind myself he was acting!). I do wish they had Chaerok work on his anger management though. Even though he does usually mean well, his attitude would totally be unacceptable in my eyes, especially towards someone so much older. Overall, I loved the development of the plot and the characters, and appreciated that the ending really tied everything together rather than leaving things feel like they were unfinished.

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The drama started off strong and intriguing, but by the mid-10's, it started to drag. Honestly, was considering dropping it around then but other viewers noted that it got better as it continued on. As a whole, I think this drama could have finished in 20-25 episodes but at 41 episodes, it was way too long. I continued pushing through it because, well, I needed to see how it ended but also I won't complain about having Zhang Xincheng on my screen. Overall, the acting of most of the cast was absolutely superb (the acting by Gu Zi Cheng and Mao Yi were a bit questionable but unsure if it was because of the characters or the acting) and there was a lot of potential, but it fell flat for me. Also, didn't understand why there was a need for a narrator in the drama. He seemed to appear less frequently as the episodes continued on (thank goodness), but I would think that if a storyline progresses well, there's no need to have some sort of omniscient character speaking about things that can be interpreted by the acting.

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I will start off by saying that I typically do not opt to watch dramas with fantasy elements, yet despite the fact that the whole premise of the drama is our ML, Woo Yeo, trying to become a human, it surprisingly didn't bother me too much. I think it helped that our two leads are so pretty and had such wonderful chemistry on screen. I was instantly hooked from the start! Hyeri also does such a good job of evoking cuteness through her character that you can't help but love Lee Dam and want her to become your friend. However, my interest started fading a bit midway through the drama, and there were some elements of the main relationship that made me not necessarily want to root for them anymore. The ending did tie things up nicely, but overall felt that the second half lacked in comparison to the first half. However, overall a very cute and easy to watch drama!

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My family and I have been watching a lot more Chinese dramas lately as I've found them to be more interested in them since it is their native language and it's easier for them to watch than to watch with English subtitles. My dad originally started this one and didn't like it, mostly finding it to be too childish for his taste. However, as we continued on, it became a family favorite, an enjoyable nightly pastime to end the day with.

For me, the drama was highly entertaining, and I found a lot of comedic relief through a lot of it. With a good-looking (and talented) cast and a cute plot, I knew that it wouldn't be too much of a difficult drama to get through. I also liked that the premise of the drama focused on ice sports and didn't completely just focus on romance or university life. The music was also amazing and had me singing the OST for quite some time after finishing the drama!!!

[ spoilers below ]

However, there were, of course, things that I didn't think were necessary. The side couples seemed to start stealing the focus away from the main couple (particularly between Huan Huan and Liao Zhen Yu) and the dreaded "second lead" became also a "third lead", neither of whom seemed like even a potentially viable option for our main female. The dramatic fall of Yu Yan was dragged out for much too long, and it was a bit strange that suddenly, her spending time with him resolved all of his mental health issues. Finally, I had high expectations for the final time-skip, but that really failed to meet expectations! There was so much potential in a great wrap, but they really failed to conclude it well, in my opinion.

[ spoilers end ]

Overall, I truly did enjoy this drama and it's why I still give it a fairly high score despite the issues that I had with it!

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The simple spoiler-free version of this review: Great cast, cute storyline. It's shorter than a typical 16-episode drama, which I actually thought was a good idea overall since it could definitely feel like things would drag if continued on.

Adding a small spoiler warning for the below!

I'd tried to give this drama a go a while back but somehow never got past the second episode. However, I love the entire cast so in hunting for a new drama, I decided to give this another chance. I thought the premise to be interesting (love an exes back to lover storyline ... I suppose you don't know when you start if they'll get back together, but honestly, when do they not?) and I really enjoyed how they shared snippets of what really happened in the past compared to what happened in the new version of the past.

While I don't know if such revelations about a relationship are as 'easy' in real life ( AKA if we were to go back in time, would we be able to see how we missed certain things in our relationships? Would redoing that past really be able to tie together a relationship again? ), it was nice to be able to see the main couple realize the circumstances that separated them and helped to make their relationship stronger the second time around. I would have liked to see more than just a half episode of their new present, but I guess that's not the point of the drama. Could easily make for a cute short series on what happens next, but I doubt that that'll happen.

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I knew this drama was super hyped but, for whatever reason, couldn't bring myself to watch it. However, after struggling to find something to watch (and also hearing from friends personally about how amazing it was), I decided to give it a go. Honestly, cannot complain when you have such beautiful leads on your screen. As this is no rom-com, each episode left me on edge as to what was going to happen next or how things would work out. Also, I could have sworn I read somewhere that people didn't think Taecyeon was a good actor, but watch this drama and you will 100% change your mind!

The one thing I didn't like about the drama was that things always seemed to work out for the protagonists even when they didn't make sense.

-- SPOILER --

The scene I hated the most was when Vincenzo was cornered by a group of men trying to kill him but somehow, he was miraculously saved because the pigeon that normally sits outside his window sent a swarm of other pigeons to attack those who were going against him. That literally ... makes no sense. If it was going to take such an impossible scenario to get our ML out of a bad situation, then perhaps it should have just been left out entirely.

-- END SPOILER --

There is also an element of comedy that may not be everyone's cup of tea, particularly around the residents of Geumga Plaza who give off the typical 'odd neighbors' kind of vibe. Personally, I did not mind it as it eased the tension of each episode, but my dad found it to be odd and he didn't really understand the necessity of it being included.

All in all, I found this to be an intriguing watch with a beautiful and talented cast as well as just overall gorgeous graphics. There's no mushy gushy romance but a plot that keeps you wondering what's next. For me personally, I rated the rewatch value lower since the drama is quite lengthy and knowing how things end, I'm not as inclined to watch it through once again.

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"Save Me" was another drama that I had tried to pick up once before and failed to get past the first episode but after watching Seo Yeji recently in "It's Ok to Not Be Ok", I decided to give it another try.

I was in for quite a rollercoaster. The first time I tried to watch it, I thought it was really bewildering how easily people could get sucked into believing the things that cults preach ( hence why I gave up because I was just ... wtf???? ); however, it makes a lot more sense the more you continue and progress through the show. The reason why I say that it makes more sense later is that you ( as the audience ) start to see how the cult is viewed from the lens of the main character ( who is more than ready to bolt from the cult ) but as well as through those who are devout followers of the cult. While that didn't mean that I felt sympathetic towards the cult members acting out in certain ways, I could also see how easily they could be brainwashed into believing certain things.

I would say that it started to drag at some points ( and honestly, I ended up watching it in 2x speed because things moved rather slowly ) and probably didn't require so many episodes, but I won't complain about getting to watch more Woo Dohwan and Taecyeon on my screen. Dohwan really did a fantastic job and I started seeking out his other dramas after I finished this one.

This isn't a drama I'd really watch again because, for me, those are usually more feel-good dramas, but if someone else wanted to watch it and asked me to watch with them, then that would probably be the only time I would give it another go. Would definitely recommend for the acting and intriguing storyline!

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Recently, I'd been watching a lot of heavier and darker dramas, but it seemed like I needed a break from it. I'd always scrolled past this drama on Netflix but never really thought anything of it but wow, what I've been missing!

This drama was sooooooo good. Perhaps because this story revolves around an age where I am in life right now, I felt very connected to each of the characters. The acting was amazing on all parts, and I was constantly rooting for each of the three couples. Strangely enough, my favorite duo was actually the Won Seok and Ho Rang couple as they made me laugh and cry ( the latter of which I NEVER do while watching TV ).

The drama touched on issues that are so real, but the way it was presented was elegant and not trivial. The storytelling was done in a way that allowed the audience to really get inside the head of each of the characters, often showing the backstory of why a character reacted in a certain way and the thought process behind it. Definitely a must-watch!

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