I found this drama both wonderful and frustrating at the same time. I loved the overall message of 'if you have a dream, you remain young forever'. The fulfilment of broken dreams, even though it didn't happen the way the five SOLO players planned for it to happen, was a very satisfying journey.

HSY is a character that had to grow on me. His frowns and shortness seemed so overkill at the start, it was difficult to get behind. But TN, grandpa, his step-mom, the KK team brought out the warmth in him and one couldn't help but smile and laugh with him by the end of the drama.

TN was confusing to me. I kept being told she was this super intelligent girl, but I rarely got to see her high IQ at work. Most of the time, she was just the typical, dazed, female lead that you get in most Chinese dramas. It was disappointing to me that they didn't flesh out her character more and showed her to be more than this girl that keeps giving heart eyes to HSY. I did love her brightness and how she bought HSY out of his shell and wrapped him in her love. I just felt they could have done so much more with her character.

Yang Zi and Li Xian had such an awkward chemistry. Even though I could tell they gave it their best and in a way, it worked to the character's advantage, it felt like hard work to buy into them as a couple. But I did end up loving them as a couple and giggling like a little schoolgirl every time they were just cheeseballs to one another. They were very cute in an awkward way.

Wu Bai was just such an awkward character. It felt a little like HYT's management placed him in this role to punish him or something. He was too big of a star to be in this role that had no depth and his sole purpose is to be the best player on the team. And it was obvious at the end that they couldn't film him with a lot of the big group shots and so they just put in solo cuts of him. He felt completely out of place and as much as I wanted to like him, it was just frustrating to watch.

Mi Shao Fei has to be MY FAVOURITE CHARACTER of this entire drama. And I wish so bad that they spent more time on him and Yaya's story. Their storyline captivated me so much more than HSY and TN's storyline. I felt the chemistry was better between the two actors. When Mi Shao Fei was starving for encouragement, Yaya naturally poured out endless amounts of it for him. He held onto her like a lifeline when he had absolutely nothing.
----
Overall
Negatives: I felt that the drama itself is disjointed and inconsistent. It had these wonderful storylines that were rich and full of life, but then they would not be able to bring out its true potential. I also think the cutting of scenes/directing was a little off which was a bit distracting to watch.

Positives: I did end up loving each of the characters. I wanted more of each character and more of these romances in the story. I think the actors did a great job with the material and overall, I laughed, I cried, I cringed and I cheered. I would recommend this drama despite its shortcoming. Mi Xiao Fei and Yaya had my heart.

Lire davantage

A Good, Trashy Romance

If you're looking for a good, trashy romance, this is for you. Things don't make sense, there are plot holes everywhere, and overacting is a thing, but the chemistry between the leads is sizzling and that pretty much carries the entire drama.

I've watched Fan Zhi Xin in some of his support roles before, but he never really stood out to me. I was pleasantly surprised by him in this drama and will be looking forward to some of his future projects, hopefully, he will be able to land more lead roles after this drama. The ML is everything you want in a 'domineering boss' romance. He's introduced as cold, ruthless, and 'lethal'. They obviously took some inspiration from Vincenzo, he speaks Italian and improvises with his weapon of choice (instead of dangling villains off a building with a measuring tape, he uses his own tie).

The FL is slightly more vague. I can't say I connected with her the first few episodes, but as she grew in her confidence, she became more likable. I would have liked her character to be better defined, I felt like she was a side character to the ML.

But there is no denying the chemistry between the ML and FL. It sizzles. Those kiss scenes are fire. I could care less about all the plot holes and how many times I had to overlook things (like the fact that she's the doppelganger of his stepsister? Very weird) I really just wanted to see them be hot and sizzling on the screen together.

The drama is super tropey, and has some uncomfortable plot points but the main couple made this a thoroughly entertaining watch. If you're looking for a story where the plot makes sense, I recommend you to stay away from this web series, But if you're looking for an entertaining romance with all the typical tropes, I found this drama to be the perfect antidote for my current drama slump.

Lire davantage

I went into this drama after reading a lot of the comments and reviews fully expecting to be disappointed or frustrated. Instead, I got one of the most heartwarming dramas I've ever had the pleasure of watching.

My favourite aspect of this drama is although the premise is about revenge, the ultimate lesson is that forgiveness is what leads to happiness. Forgiveness does not mean the person who does wrong gets away from the consequences of their action, but it means they receive the courage to fully face their own mistakes. Time and time again, different characters in this drama choose to believe in people and despite their actions, believe that everyone is capable of change.

If you're looking for a drama where revenge is sweet, this is not the drama for you. Bok Soo definitely gets the short end of the stick, even at the end when everything gets resolved. But if you're looking for a drama about second chances, forgiveness, believing in people and an adorable romance with a decent dose of comedy, I highly recommend this drama.

Lire davantage

This writer knows how to do angst and do it well. Bloody Romance is an underrated masterpiece, one of the most well written and put together Chinese dramas I have watched.

Bloody Romance is a tale of life and death, love and loss, revenge and compassion. It is epic in every way possible. This is an intense drama, one I couldn't binge watch because every episode is packed with emotions. The cast is young but they manage to keep up with the intensity of the script. A real surprise for me was Puff Guo whom I could barely recognise.

I was really invested into the romance of Cha Ruo and Wan Mei. Without so much a kiss, their love story was absolutely beautiful and devastating. The woeful soundtrack matched this drama perfectly and intensified their scenes every time.

The antagonists in the drama were complicated characters, each had their reasons for why they turned out the way they did. They added to the plot rather than take away from it which I find is the case with a lot of Chinese dramas.

My favorite part of this drama is - WOMEN BADASSERY! The women are the ones fighting, kicking ass and protecting the ones they love. Of course, the men were heroes as well, but I loved that there were so many fight scenes featuring the women.

All in all, this is definitely a top 10 Chinese drama for me, ever. I think I would find it difficult to rewatch simply because it was so intense, I highly, highly recommend this drama - especially if you are looking for something directed at a more mature audience.

Lire davantage