Pleasantly Surprised (2014)

Pleasantly surprised gets 3/5 stars.

After rewatching the series, I decided to come back and edit my review on one of my favorite Taiwanese dramas.
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Story: There's food, there's love and there's a slice of life. I loved that this drama had more than romance. I'm used to dramas focusing on one or the other, so it's nice that we get to see a healthy blend between Kai Qi's career goals and her chance encounter at love with Zi Jie. It's also a bonus that the food was also very well shot, so my recommend is to not watch on an empty stomach!

One thing that I was critical about was the addition of the drama that was unecessary to the plot and only served the purpose of dragging the show further. Towards the end of the drama, the conflict started becoming overboard. Although, I love longer dramas and I love the opportunity to see cute moments in a drama, at some point, a drama needs to come to a appropriate close. I would've preferred the show wrapping up with less episodes than prolonging the show with over-the-top drama.

Acting/Cast: I felt that the main cast did fairly well in playing the roles they were cast with the exception of a few (i.e. ah jie's brother, du kai's mother, hao wei's sister). I love how affectionate the main characters were and how natural they became with each other. While watching this, I got to see maturity with the main couple, they don't pry into each others business and then get mad about it, which typically happens in many dramas. In addition, I love that the characters have the ability to put two and two together, instead of a long wait for the character to discover the truth about something. Lastly, the great thing about this drama is that there aren't really any despicable secondary characters or multiple love lines.

Music: The music was fantastic, it fit perfectly with the mood and it fit perfectly with the scenes. It also gave you clues to what was about to happen which I found a little cheesy but, It was perfectly fine.

Rewatch Value: Yes, I would watch this drama again through clips because of the excessive dragging.

Overall: I think you should give this drama a chance because it is a unique drama and It will make you laugh and put a smile on your face. Although there are moments where you just feel like WTF, but after those WTF moments you actually enjoy it even more to see through to the end.

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One of the recent Taiwanese dramas that isn't as draggy as others. Totally enjoying myself when watching this drama till the end.
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THE DRAMA: The casts of course! Well, I won't really rate the actors and actresses a very high score because they don't really show their acting potential through the drama. But I was totally attracted by the male lead's smile throughout the show, as well as his personality. I don't think I will ever seen a guy like that in real life! I will definitely give a high rating for the plot. The story was really nicely plotted with no draggy parts (well maybe one or two episodes in between) and how they actually not go off the way like other dramas. Overall, it is really a drama that can make people smile all the time without any frustrations. (:
WHAT I DISLIKE ABOUT THE DRAMA: However, I was slightly disappointed with the ending even though it was a very happy one. I mean, they can show more progress between the two leads or maybe the relationship between Kaiqi and Ah Jie's family or even with Xiao Yi (haven't been seeing him for quite a few episodes though!).
In conclusion, it is one of the top recent dramas that is really worth watching, as Taiwan dramas nowadays are really getting boring or draggy with no new story plots. (: And and and, if you really want to watch a drama with cute male lead with an attractive smile with dimples. ;D

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The Story (7.5/10): While it's hard to come by a really original story these days, I felt that this is one of the nicer Taiwanese dramas to come out in recent years and definitely the one I liked most with Puff as the leading lady. Also, as with most dramas, regardless of country, it does drag a bit here and there but that may be more about my own opinion and how I want the majority of screen time devoted to the main couple as opposed to side characters even if they are important to the story. Though having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed all of the side romances and I think that was a real strength of this particular series. I really did adore each of the employees and while some of their antics were a bit over the top it made for some nice physical sight gag comedy. It's something that's just engrained in Taiwanese dramas, so while I may not be a big fan of it sometimes, when it's done right, it's hilarious. Something else known to Taiwanese dramas is the focus on conversation/involvement with family. Arguably, you get that in most Asian Dramas, but if someone's been watching T-Dramas for a while, you'll see that sometimes those family scenes can drag on and on.... we get it, you want what's best however misguided your actions may be, but that was kept to a minimum in this drama and it was a nice change. All of the scenes meant something and didn't feel like they were trying to force drama. Lastly, I really like dramas where the problems between the leads are less about interfering from secondary leads, and more about them resolving issues between themselves. While there are secondary leads that can get a bit annoying, there aren't any over the top stupid misunderstandings, most things are cleared up rather quickly.

The Acting/Cast (7.5/10): This drama introduced me to male actors, Jasper Lui, Sean Lee, and Yorke Sun, who I'm looking forward to seeing in many more dramas. As previously mentioned, I really liked Puff the most in this of the three dramas I've seen her in so far. She plays a good strong female lead, it's nice to see a girl who stands up for herself and doesn't take any crap, but of course also has a sensitive compassionate side as well. It was also nice to see a male lead that was genuinely kind-hearted and a nice guy, not a huge jerk that later changes. Nice guys DO get the girl! Learn from this other dramas! The acting was pretty par for the course for me. I didn't feel anyone was lacking, in fact, I think the actors did a great job of making the characters their own and distinctive from one another when they could've easily just been part of the scenery.

The Music (6/10): The opening theme was nice, and nothing was really bad, but nothing I felt that stood out either or anything I felt compelled to go itunes to try and download. I think it's just a nice middle of the road soundtrack.

Re-watch Value (5.0/10): I think this is well worth watching at least once, but I don't know that I would go out of my way to recommend it or re-watch it personally. If someone asked me if they should watch, I wouldn't dissuade them. There were some cute romantic scenes that I felt could be re-watch, but as a whole not as much.

Overall (7.5/10): I gave this a 7.5 overall because it had some really great feed-good adorable moments in it. The leads and even supporting characters had great chemistry whether romantically or not and with such a large cast, that's pretty great. I loved that the side characters had their own stories but nothing that sucked away tons of screen time from our leads but when it did it was okay because it was interesting at the least and adorkably romantic at most. I didn't feel compelled to skip episodes and while I did skip some of the storyline here and there I didn't find myself doing it a lot, mainly because I felt invested in the side romances :P

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OVERALL
An entertaining Taiwanese rom-com that digs a little deeper than others. Watch if 1) you can watch food without eating (otherwise, you'll gain weight, trust me), 2) you've had an overdose of the typical sweet girl and douchy guy, 3) you like shows with children. Don't watch if 1) You have little patience for weird or irritating characters (you can always skip if they bore you, but...), 2) you're looking for a romance with lots of skinship (kisses sure are fine in this show, but there's little more, you're warned!), 3) you don't like when everything is just too happy (yes, there is such a thing as too much happiness).

THE STORY
After watching many many dramas, if there's one thing I'm particularly tired of, it's the cliched sweet, innocent and naive female protagonist. Granted, the main lead of this show is also a cliched character. The distrustful, cold and solitary female type. But I was pleasantly surprised (pun intended) with the character development of Kai Qi, who slowly opens up to people. It was not expected in such a light, comic romance, and that's just how to earn some points in my book. Another way is to have a male lead that slightly deviates from the norm - a patient cutie pie with a warm smile and personality, instead of the all-too-common barbie Ken - the overly-confident, masculine, smirky (or douchy) faced guy. And yet another way is to have a very cute little child actor. So this show was quite enjoyable for me. Predictable, yes, at times unbelievable or dragging too, with an ending that seems a bit too abrupt, but fun to watch and slightly different from the comedies I've seen so far. If that's where Taiwanese rom-coms are going, I'll be hopping onto their boat a lot more often in the future.

THE ACTING
Mmm...I don't know about that, and truthfully the main couple didn't have much chemistry, but I'll say the cast was selected well because they make the show visually appealing. Puff Guo looks great and makes an endearing cold girl. I had seen her before in a similar role (in Inborn Pair, though her character was more of a two-faced bully) and I also had had the I-want-to-be-your-friend feeling. Jasper Liu is cuuute. He's in my list of actors to watch out for. You just look at them and feel like watching the show. That's totally not a legitimate reason to watch a drama, but hey, all is fair in Dramaland.

THE MUSIC
Nothing that captured my attention, except maybe for the occasional instrumental track. The piano piece was cute and I wanted to play it.

REWATCH VALUE
Why not? But...in a while.

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Reasons to watch: FOOD and cuteness. I really liked this one despite the ups and downs. Although it got very melodramatic, each dramatic plot arc never carried on for too long and was also resolved within an episode or two. A great drama for those who like their food, cute couples, nice guys, and can tolerate some melodramatic tears.

The cast and characters are one of the main reasons why I kept watching. Our two leads are great: I loved Jasper Lin and Puff Kuo's bantering chemistry. Jasper Lin also has one of the greatest smiles in the world. My heart melts just seeing it. But other than our leads, our supporting character cast is full of characters who are quirky and likable. I don't think I disliked a single character at the end--even the worst of them have some sort of redemptive quality.

I am a huge fan of both Jasper Liu and Puff Kuo after this. They made Ah Jie and Kai Qi into lovable, multi-dimensional characters. I think it’s very easy for coldness in a character to come out flat and wooden on-screen (eg. Suzy’s performance in Dream High), but Puff Kuo added a lot nuance and personality to the coldness.

Jolin Chien's character Cheng Hao Wei also deserves a shout-out for being one of the greatest second male leads to grace dramaland. Also shout-out to Xiao Yi for being an adorable child.

Unfortunately, Pleasantly Surprised does suffer from a lot of melodramatics and one particularly unnecessary and random plot arc in the second half. The first half of the show is GREAT. I wish the drama had kept up the food aspect afterward, but seemed to abandon food in favor of drama (as dramas tend to do.) The second half is when all the crazy plot twists and melodramatics happen, but I think that it was handled well in that the drama never gets drawn out for too long (usually resolved within the next episode), and our dependable supporting characters who work at the restaurant are always around to provide some comedy to ease the tension.

I loved the characters enough to tolerate the plot twists, and would definitely rewatch for the food and cuteness!

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The romantic leads were mismatched from the start with Puff having to do most of the romantic heavy lifting though her character was very antisocial.
I thought there was more chemistry between Hao Wei and Kai Qi.
Jasper Liu's character was too childish at times, which made it difficult for me to believe that he was this badass chef and that he possessed the know-how to run his father's company when he wasn't stalking Kai Qi.
It's never a good idea to rely on children too much in a supporting role because the cuteness factor quickly wears off and you find yourself wishing them bodily harm. At least, I did.
The entire kidnap/rescue scenes were laughable and not in a good way.
I absolutely loved the supporting cast because they made this show tolerable and fun to watch.
I think I'll take a break from watching Taiwanese television shows for a while thanks in large part to Jasper Liu's performance.

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Starts great and completely falters during the second half. I wanted my 11 hours or so back haha.
Anyways the story is very cute but the acting of the supporting cast looks amateurish and quite silly maybe that was the point. The music is awesome. The leads also awesome. The second half was just bonkers, they ruined an almost perfection show, I was pretty angry and just finished it to fulfill all righteousness and because I wanted to see the male lead in something(Amour et Patisserie still isnt fully subbed someone please finish it :((( )

If it was possible I would make a virus that deletes the second half of the series from this world and give this show an 11 out of 10 :D

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I loved this drama! It was so adorable and the plot of a strong, stubborn lead, is definitely different from the norm.

I watched this drama after watching Just You, also with Puff Kuo, but with Aaron Yan. Therefore, I was a little skeptical of Puff's chemistry with Jasper Liu in this drama. I was completely blown away! Puff's chemistry with Jasper is amazing. Their interactions are so adorable, and after watching this drama I am Jasper's fan- his dimples! The supporting kitchen cast made the drama even better. I cared about their side stories, and rooted for their relationships. The supporting cast added to the drama.

Okay, so story wise, the first 5 episodes set the foundation very well, we see Puff (Du Kai Qi) slowly falling for Jasper (Fu Zi Jie). Who said nice guys can't get the girl? ;) The second half, without spoiling it, got a bit draggy, but that's normal for tdramas. I do wish the ending was longer, but oh well.

The songs played were a bit repetitive but I personally really liked the songs because they were played appropriately and added the the scenes.

I would rewatch it again because of the chemistry between the leads and also the food aspect of this drama. All the food looked delicious!! A must watch.

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First half > Second half

So in the first half of this drama, I would have flat-out rated it a 10/10. Considering it's from 2014, the production quality might be a little low and the humor and timing a little awkward, but I was willing to overlook all that because I really loved, above all things, the main female lead. She was independent, strong-willed, confident, work-focused, and walled off romantically — everything I felt I could personally relate to. Kai Qi is precisely how I want strong female characters to be written, flaws and all. And I felt like the male lead was the perfect counter-balance. His personality was softer, quieter, more caring, and compromising, having grown up as the bullied younger sibling. They meshed perfectly and the storyline was stressful in all the best parts (I had no idea that a cooking show could stress me out so much!). The childhood friends backstory was integrated well too, as was the second lead's history with the FL.

Even after they got together, I really liked the romantic dynamic that was still fun and allowed the better parts of their personalities to shine through.

It was about an episode after that, that things started to go downhill. The plot started inputting random tropes (spoiler: a kidnapping plot) and character decision-making (the FL especially, who had always been straight to the point), started to make no sense. Of course, there was an obligatory break-up, and for two characters that had begun communicating so well before, it all just felt very dramatic and forced. The sudden extreme of the plot really felt like they just pulled random tropes and inputted them into the story.

It got worse because they just dragged this out so long, until the end of the drama, where it felt like there were no obstacles for them being together, other than the female lead just saying no for no good reason, for reasons that they had discussed multiple times.

The female lead had always been a straightforward character, and a lot of that was lost. This isn't limited to the main ship either, but also to the second couple — but I was wondering why there were so many episodes dedicated to coming up with elaborate schemes to get people to meet coincidentally or be part of random competitions to trick them into getting together when they could just sit down and talk things out like normal people. There was basically no plot, just the ML chasing after the FL again.

While all this was happening, the second lead's personality started to shine through more, but there really wasn't time dedicated to his character or a full plot for him at all. There were a few side plots for supporting characters and while I don't really have a problem with that, I felt as though the acting was mediocre and the writing was not really fleshed out enough for me to even care about them or see how they were relevant.

All in all, there's still a sort of nostalgia when I watch something like this, especially because there's some over-acting and it made me cringe, as old dramas often do. All that aside, I still do like the set-up of the female lead. The second half, however, is probably something I'll purposely overlook.

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I mean honestly, this show is a gamble, I don’t know what else there is to say. It’s actually a really good show, cheesy, funny, lame but all in all entertaining. It does drag but honestly they tossed in random parts to make a show; that’s literally what makes a show. The romance and chemistry is wonderful, the competitiveness I liked as well. Those of you that are mad because of certain scenes and random stuff happening, IT’S A DRAMA FOR A REASON. Honestly. I really throughly enjoyed this show and I’m pretty excited I watched it. Low quality lame but cheesy goodness is what it was. It was like trying to compare a Big Mac to a gourmet burger. It did its thang though. Worth a watch. If not, drop it, it’s up to you.

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Full of irritating characters

There were quite a few irritating characters in this drama. It went a little bit deeper than the typical rom com, but I felt like the acting was bad, or maybe it was just the writing. I had a hard time relating to any of them. Jasper Liu is so cute, but he always smiles at inappropriate times. Puff Guo has pouting down to a science, and not in a good way. The characters had a lot of immature traits to add to the unlikability factor. This was a show that I "watched" and was not able to invest myself into at all, which is a shame. I did love the cooking scenes, however.

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