Solteiro Profissional (2020)

The Height Difference Champions League

Watching Professional Single is a guilty pleasure for people like me with a "height difference kink". I wish I could say extremely tall men like to date extra short women, but I'm afraid it's the other way around. Females have a thing for tall males, they stand out in the crowd, like a billboard for power and protection.

Enter Ireine Song and Aaron Deng and you're basically watching The Height Difference Champions League. They are beautiful, natural actors. It's a pleasure to watch those two in action, both in comedy and romance scenes.

Story
The focus on first love is both the strength and weakness of this series. Forget family drama, crimes, misdemeanors or other story arcs. The many clichés can also be annoying. I felt some irritation when I watched the heroine stumbling for the nth time into the arms of her lover. Why oh why can't it be him doing the stumbling for a change?

Acting/Cast
The entire cast is good. They are the same age as students in real life, and their acting is on point.

Rewatch Value
Like I said, the story isn't very original, but it has a nice flow in story telling. The Darcy and Elizabeth trope is strong in this one. I also laughed out loud sometimes, so I will definitely rewatch this series.

Overall
If you are a sucker for old fashioned romcom and campus life, this is for you. There are plenty of times to think, but also times to feel. This is one of those moments. Enjoy.

Leia Mais

Adorable Slice-of-life

I always feel like these more realistic slice-of-life stories are so underrated, but they're my favorite. It's just so relatable to watch normal teens and college students go through everyday issues like picking a major or dealing with family pressure.

And the main leads are adorable! As someone who loves slow burns and friends-to-lovers, the main leads got together in the perfect amount of time, with so many satisfying jealous moments and awkward tension. The FL is clumsy butDespite the male lead being described as "cold", it's plain as day that he went soft for the FL early — which is just so fun to watch. There's great chemistry and the leads are also pretty straightforwards with each other, so misunderstandings are cleared up pretty quickly and the ML never gives the mildly obsessive second female lead the time of day.

There are some sub-plots they kind of dropped the ball on, but for the most part, there was a good amount of continuity for even the side characters, who each had their own personality.

Ultimately, I'd definitely recommend this as a light-hearted, chill watch and there are definitely scenes I'll come back to. This is a rom-com in its PUREST form.

Leia Mais

This had potential, but there were some real problems for me

First, what I liked - the roommates of both the ML and FL. They brought a lot of heart and humor to their roles. I also always like a large height difference between the leads. However, this led to one of my problems with this drama...

The ML was borderline abusive to the FL. The first time he grabbed her by the face and kissed her, it really was rough. Plus, he was always dragging her toward him roughly, or grabbing her by the arm in an overly firm manner. This really bothered me. I don't think that behavior is ever acceptable, but I might have been more tolerant if she wasn't so tiny.

ACTING: Ireine Song - I've only seen her in one other thing, and her character was pretty much the same, so it's hard to judge her acting prowess. Aaron Deng as Qin Shen - wooden and expressionless throughout. I've not seen him in anything else, so I'll reserve judgment on whether it was acting or the script. Which brings me to -
WRITING: I didn't care for the way the main characters were written. Qin Shen was a total Tsundere, but we never got to see the soft side of him. On the rare occasions that he smiled, it seemed somewhat forced. It would have been so nice to see him develop some warmth, especially as it related to his roommates. It always seemed there was only tolerance, I would have liked to see sincere friendships develop. The FL even used the statement about him not using his words. Throughout the drama, it was grunts or one-word answers. He was overbearing physically to the FL as mentioned before, as well as being possessive and jealous, and not in a cute way, telling her she couldn't talk to guys, following her around to monitor who she was talking to. This could have been portrayed in a way that was sweet and showed how he cared for her, but it didn't get portrayed that way. The FL character of Yuan Qian - when she stood up to the bully, I had high hopes for her, but she seemed like a "taker/user" to me, always asking others to do things/get things for her. She was also eavesdropping on every conversation he had with anyone. In every Asian drama, there always seems to be falling/tripping as it relates to the FL. This show took it to the extreme. She was ALWAYS falling, stumbling, tripping, or walking into things. I also didn't care for her attempts to be "cute". She was never willing to tell him how she felt, but was constantly asking him, "Isn't there something you want to say to me?" Each episode seemed to be a repeat of the previous episode, misunderstandings, him being mean, her trying to get him to tell her he liked her, and the friends giving both of them a hard time. As for the character of Ling Wei as the girl that liked Qin Shen - she seriously needed therapy! The writers also never really delved into why he was so mean to her, what had happened in their past, or anything like that.
RELATIONSHIP OF LEADS/CHEMISTRY: He was silent, bossy, possessive. She pouted, stomped around, was mad or employing the silent treatment A LOT. They spent a lot of time staring at each other, and not much time having actual mature conversations that would develop a relationship. This didn't feel like a healthy relationship to me at all. Granted, one of the reasons I enjoy romances is because it's not real life, but for me, this relationship never felt lovely, or something I wanted to see more of. Chemistry between them was severely lacking. In general, the relationship felt toxic.
MUSIC: I don't remember it.
REWATCH: There weren't even any scenes that I think I'd want to rewatch.

Leia Mais

I wanted fluff, and this show delivered!

This show was filled with all tropes and cliches possible, but it was also funny as heck. It is a simple college love story focused on the relationship between the ML and FL. I like that they were both mutually attracted at the same time, and I enjoyed watching the flirty teasing, cute jealousy, and growing love between them. The cast is a bunch of young, good-looking actors, and the rapport between them was really great. The roommates of the ML and FL were simply awesome and their interactions were entertaining. My rating is based mostly on how much I liked the characters, and I enjoyed the witty script.

Ireine Song looked liked like a twelve-year-old next to her fellow actors, but somehow she fitted the FL character of Yuan Qian. She's cute and is a good comedian actor. The actor who gets to be the male lead next to Ireine Song should be thankful because she highlights them, making them shine. They all look so tall and charming. Aaron Deng, despite playing the tsundere Qin Shen most of the show, was quite enigmatic. He looked so good in the Hanfu costume that I now want to see him in a period drama. I was also kind of rooting for the SML, Song Si Yi. Honestly, I would not have minded Yuan Qian ending up with Si Yi. He was handsome, charismatic, flirty, and was so into Yuan Qian. I first saw Wang Run Ze in "A Little Thing Called First Love" and thought that he did pretty well there and in this show.

Great OST - it's a fun selection and quite fitting for the scenes.

All in all, if you are in the mood for something sweet, funny, and light-hearted, you should enjoy this.

Leia Mais

Professional Single is the first C-Drama that I have watched and I must say that it was quite good. It had a few pacing issues regarding the plot. A few things could've been shorter such as the secondary plots as well as sealing the actual deal between Yuan Qian and Qin Shen quicker, which would've allowed more room to explore the parents of both characters disagreeing with their children on their choices. but this is a small piece of criticism that doesn’t take away from the overall show. Quin Shen and Yuan Qian are strong leads and have a strong bonding relationship throughout. You truly feel that they care for each other despite their stubbornness in admitting it. In fact, both being so stubborn actually reinforces that. Quin Shen is quite cold, but when it comes to Yuan Qian, his smile and eyes light up with emotion. He knows how to be humorous as well instead of just being a land cold character. Even when he’s being serious during a comedic situation. Yuan Qian is a positive influence on him, ringing him out of that shell and completing him as a character. Seeing how their relationship blossoms from an initial indifference to each other to a sweet, loing relationship was an engaging experience. Ling Wei was a character that got annoying at times due to her persistence but she was a fine character, still. And given the age of the characters, you can sorta understand the mentality of someone that age - . the unrelenting pursuit of someone who clearly doesn’t want to know. Song Si Yi was less possessive and actually had a sweet relationship with Yuan Qian himself. He was smart, kind and talented. A good second male lead. The supporting cast was all good whether it was supporting the main characters or shining during their own comedic scenes. Chen Qi Nan and Xin Xin left strong impressions on me, most definitely.

Leia Mais

ALL CASTS TOOK MY HEART.

At first i did not really liked FL but after some episodes i literally started liking her.. i liked her but she is so thin and short. her acting and cuteness took my heart. ML has a cold side but its just his nature and its sweetly bearable. i loved FL and ML friends, there casting and bonding literally took my heart. every cast was perfect.. Ling wei did a great job in her acting too. some scenes were literally heart touching and omo all the jealousy scenes were a blast. loved it. This drama is worth watching and i am already missing this drama. it was such a lovely drama. ♡♡ must watch . hope you'll watch this drama else will regret.

Leia Mais

Such an awesome series ??

I don't justify anything in this web series.. because I just loved it, there is nothing to point out in this story, but ending might be incomplete.. so that we can expect season 2.. we want to know how their parents reacted to their relationship, and to their graduation of sculpture like that.. all were acted well..

moreover it was a wonderful series as we are not experienced that type of education in our country.. we don't have that much of skilling courses in our colleges, Universities. We are living in a full restricted hostels, colleges and schools. We don't have that pleasent atmosphere here, we don't have that much of freedom from parents and schools.. all are narrow minded peoples and narrow minded authorities.. after seeing this series I felt in love with china💚.. after seeing the relationship of these guys, awaiting for a right partner in life.. so many people thought to go china for higher studies to fulfill their dreams❤️.. this is proper type of education to shape our minds in which we have passion.. I wish I were there, but my graduation also completed in 2020..

Leia Mais

Entertain

I love this drama.
Feels refreshing and very entertaining although there are a few minus point but over all its quite good.
Female lead is cute. Male lead ( like always ) is handsome.
One thing that bothers me, I just don't get when the ML fall in love with the FL....
The other cast ( their friends ) are funny.... I laugh very hard when their friends rap at the train station.....
I love the friendship
Plus the antagonists do not make me tired watching their evil scheme...
Also I learn about making the sculpture.... the mud....

And I like the song.... it's so good!!!

Leia Mais

What started out as sweet, cute ended up being slightly disturbing

This drama has no major angst. It's a relatively light, feel-good romantic drama. It is nothing new or different from a typical college romance.
The reason I watched this drama is because I loved Song Yiren in 'The best of you in my mind'.
Okay, so there's a taciturn, serious guy who is passionate about sculpting. He is attracted to his classmate who wants to change to oil painting. The budding romance is sweet and interesting. The female lead is not the typical doe-eyed left-footed clutz who is always in a daze. She's quite independent and cheerful. Despite being tiny, she's quite cute.
The main antagonist is the ML's stalkerish sort-of ex but not really ex (because they never dated) girl schoolmate. The drama becomes slightly disturbing because:
1. After they get together, the ML is very dominating. He orders around the FL : everything is brushed over as his 'concern'
2. He is insanely jealous. Not in an endearing way, but borderline possessive and controlling. Yeesh.
3. The first kiss-- I've read comments about people swooning. Frankly, it looks like assault-- he literally grabs her jaws, turns her face and kisses her forcefully. Dude.
4. He makes a motel guy lie about the number of rooms available, manipulates the situation to share a room with the FL, literally pounces on her that night. Yeesh dude. She's willing. Ask and ye shall get laid.
5. The ML pouts all the time. Communication between the leads is poor. They sort of take revenge on eachother for every small slight and misunderstanding.

Overall, the drama started out to be a cute, sweet quite run-of-the-mill, predictable college romance. But it quickly mutated to being boring, slightly disturbing and bland. I had to force myself to finish watching it.
I like the leads. I'd love to see the ML in a better role in a better drama. Watch it if you want.

Leia Mais

Cookie cutter college rom-com that set a low bar

I think your mileage with this drama will depend a great deal on how high a bar you set. I can understand that a college romance drama is unlikely to push many boundaries but sometimes you need more than just having the OTP being good looking to get a pass mark.
If there is a god for this genre then she must be smiling upon them as this show was so heavy with tropes and clichés that it will be a chore to keep score. Yes, both ML and FL were right for their roles and they looked good but they were not asked to do much. The cold, aloof ML persona was on full display from start to near finish. There was a bit of softening up by the end but there was not a lot of character development (except for some negative aspect which I shall discuss later). The cutesy, clumsy FL was also straight out of the genre's playbook. It was honestly a bit overused as time and time again, the FL managed to trip, slip, fall, etc onto the ML's chest, his arms or just ended up in the classic dip pose. If all that egregious set up didn't scream OTP I don't know what will. The odd thing for me was that if I look beyond the tells and manipulations, I'm not 100% sure why the ML fell for the FL. There was chemistry and sweet moments but was it as simple as the knight and the damsel?
This bring on the topic of the 2FL and 2ML. I have to say that I really feel bad for them, not that they did a bad job but their roles were just so meh. The 2FL was literally being rejected on a daily basis by the ML (not sure why he disliked her so much) yet she just kept coming back for more. The 2ML didn't stand much of a chance with the FL but at least the FL was a bit ambiguous about their relationship for a while (they even played the fate card) but in the end, they were just pitiful. It is nice to play good and even good to be bad but the no-man's land in the middle is death for an actor.
The rest of the story was cliché filled with little dramatic development. There were hints of family dramas but barely explored. Just a couple of phone calls and vague comments about disapprovals or "family troubles". The ML's grandmother would have been a lovely diversion but she only popped up once or twice and had little to do. What was left were typical petty college shenanigans built upon the venerable tropes of rivalries, bullying and jealousy but they had little dramatic impact. Wrongs were righted before the episode was over and the angst meter barely moved. I suppose it is better than having the ill feelings and misunderstanding fester for multiple episodes as per the standard trope. The problem here was that you just don't feel invested. A lot were caused by lies told constantly by OTP to cover their budding/secret relationship. It just got a bit old.
The support cast was standard fare. The FL's roommates was the classic set, one tough girl, one shy one and the chubby BFF. The ML's roommates were straight out of central casting and forgettable. The more mature cast members had very little to do. Their professor was meant to be their guiding light and he was a nice man but I can't sense the burning passion when his role demanded it.
Now for the things that really bothered me. For the first half of the show, the ML was nice and sweet while chasing the FL. Sure, the cold exterior melted over time and when he smiles, the sun did shine brighter. However, once they became a couple, he became possessive and was a green-eyed monster. That type of behaviour is not new to dramaland but it felt jarring with his earlier persona. Coupled this with his manhandling of the FL, made me felt uncomfortable with their relationship. Hence, the real elephant in the room, the FL (Ireine Song) is a popular actor and she knows her craft but I fear that she is being type casted whenever she pops up in this type of drama. I'm sure she could have sleep walked through this drama. Often it is just a variation of the archetype. Dial up the cuteness, tone down the street smart or be more clumsy. She is almost always paired with a tall ML. In this case, she is barely up to his shoulder (and half his width). Some finds this pairing attractive but when it was played out more like a dominant (D/S) relationship then I feel the positive note is muted. I sincerely hope that she will find projects in the future that will allow her to break out of these roles.
Ultimately, is this a bad show, not quite. It was a mostly harmless (once only) binge but that was a low bar to pass.

Leia Mais

How each stand for another like u have my back

Simple story with big message to any society. How one stand for each other. Like when the male actor stood for the female inspite of rumours that she is with the sports guy. How frds support and how students support their department and Prof its gives a big message
Read reviews like story was preditable just wish to ask those intelectual people that how u derive to that conclusion when one character is childhood frd and famous at same time and totally falling for the female character how u derive to that .... Anyways ......
Although this was one of the initial role of Mr. Deng would like to appreciate his work with Ms. Song who is having good exp in the industry. Yes this drama is not like any other drama not having baseless fiction or facts. Reality is potrated which is ok
Mr. Deng is skilled and will proof himself with his work
Professional Single grew the interest to watch Chinese drama

Leia Mais

A funny and cute romance with disturbing behaviors from secondary characters.

2020 has been a good year in terms of cute and nice drama.
This one is funny, cute with a cool storyline, although it's not perfect but we don't ask too much of a college drama.

[No spoilers here]

The two leads have personality and are endearing.
The male lead seemed to me at first the type of cold, perfect and domineering guy that we too often see. However, he is not. Yes he can be cold, he is talented and has a strong personality which makes him domineering at times. But he's not only that. He's cute, funny, loving, teasing, responsible, and flawed. He makes mistakes and the show points it out by making him apologize or struggle.
The female lead is an adorable little creature. She is optimistic, cheerful, kind, loyal and reckless. But she's also very clumsy and unlucky, all that more accentuated for the sake of comedy.


Romance is very cute and takes its time.
When the story begins, the characters are already classmates but the events of the first episode will cause them to pay attention to each other. I find it interesting to see a male lead realize his feelings first and admire the FL for his personality. This makes the dynamic more interesting and captivating than love at first sight or a girl chasing a boy too blind to realize her potential.
Even if the protagonists take a long time to start dating, their alchemy, attraction, feelings and closeness begin from the start. It was funny and moving to see them bicker, get to know each other, try to understand their feelings and what the other is thinking and so on.


Friendship is also a big plus in the story.
Their group of friends were interesting and funny. This created several interesting and hilarious scenes. I get bored sometimes in front of the dormitory scenes but I admit that during this drama, I didn't skip any of that.
It should also be noted that this is a drama without parental presence (5min of screen throughout the drama) which leaves more time to focus on the students rather than adding more intrigue or drama.


Obviously, like a lot of drama, there are a few flaws.
I would say that the biggest flaw, and what exasperated me the most, is the attitude of the 2 supporting roles which serve as love rivals to the protagonists. The secondary characters are not vicious, but they are toxic by their harassing and obsessive behavior, emotional manipulation, and disrespect for the words, opinions and feelings of the loved one.
However, I would point out that this does not spoil the drama at all and that this kind of attitude is not "rewarded" (they don't get what they want) even if a more severe criticism from the drama would have pleased me.

[Slighty spoilers from here]

The second male lead is the female lead's childhood friend (whom she hasn't seen in years). He becomes obsessive as soon as he meets her and it's problematic because he doesn't just act as a friend but flirts with her and sometimes even behaves like a boyfriend.

The second female lead is a former classmate of the ML. She too has become obsessive, harassing and stalking the male lead whom nevertheless makes it clear that he does not like her, even that he hates her. This character is depressive, annoying and pathetic.


The lead's attitude towards these characters is in my opinion more normal, healthy and interesting (although I have seen people criticize him).
Given the attitude of the SML and the fact that the female lead is unable to really put boundaries between them, I understand that he wants her far away from a man openly in love with her who doesn't take "no" for an answer.
Male lead has a problematic attitude sometimes, it's true. But it's normal not to want your girlfriend being so close to another man, especially one who hasn't stopped showing his love for her and had an inappropriate attitude.


Conclusion:
This is a good drama about first love in college. The two protagonists are endearing, funny and interesting to follow. Their circle of friends is also worth watching. It's fun: there is humor, love, friendship, art. And there's bad: The 2 supporting roles show disturbing behavior. And the script should definitely shows the FL criticizes this kind of attitude rather than letting her encourage or condone it. But that doesn't spoil the experience.

Leia Mais