C-Drama Recommendation : Lightning! (Attack It! Lightning!)

Attack it! Lightning!

What the drama is about:

This inspirational story tells the journey of a group of young men and women who love fencing. After a bumpy road of challenges, they grow beyond themselves to eventually stand on the world stage to gain glory for their country.

It has 31 episodes and has finished airing. 

Main Cast:

• Jian Jin Fu as Leng Zhi Feng aka Lightning: The main main lead (there are two leads but he is the most important) of the story. Zhi Feng is a fighter, both in his personal and professional life. He fights "professionally" to earn money for his family, especially his younger sister who is sick. Zhi Feng is brash and impulsive but has a warm and giving heart. He jokes around but you can see that he hides a lot of himself behind laughters. He discovers the sport of fencing and after some training realizes he is naturally talented at it. His pursuit of fencing is what changes his life forever and brings to his life new friends and truth to secrets he didn't know existed. Zhi Feng faces various setbacks on his road to glory but the way he responds to them shows a lot about his character.

• George Hu as Deng Er Hao: The other main lead in the story. Deng Er Hao is the golden boy in fencing for China and has studied abroad for some time. After some years, he returns to China to help his mentor train the men's sabre team of his mentor's sports university. At first glance, you see a character who is dedicated to his sport and wishes to become the greatest fencer in China. As the drama goes on we see his more human side when he faces challenges in love and in fencing. Er Hao and Zhi Feng have a push and pull relationship. Er Hao doesn't feel like Zhi Feng is dedicated enough and pushes him to do better. He helps Zhi Feng and the other fencers improve but at the same time Zhi Feng becomes his rival in the fencing world.

• Chen Koala as Zhao Yi Hong: The first of the female leads is a happy go lucky girl who is the daughter of one of the greatest fencers China has seen. Although she is his daughter, Yi Hong struggles with fencing and is under pressure to be as great as her father. Yi Hong  may appear like a spoiled child, and she is, but she's also a very gifted fencing analyst. She's intelligent, childish, determined and supportive. Her snarky attitude makes for amusing scenes and her big heart makes her an amazing friend and sister.

• Feng Joyce as Bai Wu Shuang: The second female lead and the complete opposite of Yi Hong. Wu Shuang is the adopted daughter of the Zhao family and Yi Hong's older sister. Wu Shuang is also one of the best fencers at the university and in China. She is stubborn and strong but she is also caring, supportive and compassionate. Wu Shuang is a fan of Zhi Feng and helps him and her sister Yi Hong navigate training at the elite sport university. She sacrifices her dream for her sister's and feels burdened to carry the Zhao's family reputation. 

Plot:

The plot  is fairly simple but keeps you interested throughout the whole drama (I didn't skip a single episode!). It follows our four main characters as they grow both in the sport of fencing and in their personal lives. We see the ups and downs of what it means to be an athlete. Family and friendship relationships are also focused on which makes the drama interesting for those who don't like sports. For those hesitant to watch because of the sport aspect I can assure that while the drama revolves around it, it isn't centered in the actual sport, but in the lives of the characters. There is romance, secrets, envy, controversy and rivalry. These make the drama a success in my opinion. 

Sport:

As I said above the sport of fencing is predominately present throughout the drama but is not the sole focus of it. The sport is presented in a way that makes it exciting and interesting. They explain the sport sufficiently well so as to give viewers who don't know the sport some general knowledge. This keeps them from being lost and losing interest in the drama. There are aspects of the sport that are over-dramatized but again it's for the enjoyment of the drama. I actually loved what they did with CGI for the fencing matches; it made it more exciting.

Romance:

Although romance isn't central in the plot of the drama, there is quite a lot of it. There is a love square between our four main characters and one other couple with secondary characters. The love square is not annoying or over drawn out. Things get settled with only a little drama which is a plus in my book. The two main couples have good chemistry which will make you root for them. They aren't childish or annoying but very supportive and sensible.

Secondary Characters:

• The Fathers: Zhi Feng's father, Yan Yang or Leng Tian Qi, and Yi Hong and Wu Shaung's father, Zhao Zhen Yu (Wen James), are at the center of the controversy in the drama. There is a mystery surrounding their falling out and the eventual ruin of Zhi Feng's father. The answers are slowly revealed throughout the drama but there are some things you can guess before they are revealed. Yi Hong's father isn't the most likable character but he also isn't the villain.

• Shao Kang played by Wu Hao Ze: Shao Kang is another top fencer. He is cocky and arrogant but as the drama continues we see different sides to him and eventually grow to like him. His rivalry with both Zhi Feng and Er Hao is seen throughout the drama but as it progresses they become friends and make each other better. He often makes you laugh with his arrogant ways.

• Lu Hi (Gao Yu Xi) and Leng Zhi Chen (Ma De Ya): Lu Hi is Zhi Feng's best friend and partner in crime. They've grown up together and have a sibling relationship. Li Hu is funny and lighthearted but is also extremely supportive. Zhi Chen is Zhi Feng's younger sister; she is supportive of her big brother but feels like a burden to him because of her sickness. She encourages Zhi Feng in any endeavor and is also motherly towards him as they lost their mother. Zhi Chen and Lu Hi are also the third couple in the drama. There romance is cute and is used to lighten the mood.

Overall I think this drama deserves more recognition and love. It's different than most Chinese dramas and I think it has a lot of different elements that makes its target audience broader. I highly recommend this drama for anyone who loves romance and youth dramas.

This drama is available with English Subtitles on Viki.

XO, Mila