Luar (2021)

This drama is about 50% sweet romance, which I would rate at about 9/10 and 50% is about working at a publishing house, which is at most a 5/10. I realize that the end result being 8/10 doesn't really compute, but ultimately it comes down to me enjoying the romcom parts a lot & tolerating the business related things.

The romcom part is close enough to realistic cdrama perfection, I guess I would have loved a bit more comedy and faster progress in the OTP's relationship. The production team did a good job maxing out fluff & sugar, no complaints there. It's really nice how the bromance/weak live triangle thing was handled.
The leads are a match made in heaven, I found them a pleasure to watch throughout the entire drama. Also their love story is nicely written and even their short mini breakup felt well executed & timely. I'm extremely happy they did not do that in the final episodes, I hate that!
I did not like the second couple's story very much, there was too much push-pulling. I liked the characters & the actors though..
The cast in this drama is very good overall, right now I cannot recall a single weakly cast supporting character.
Also there was a crazed bitch character trying to take away ML from FL, she appeared nearing the end of the drama. I think that plotline was completely unnecessary, but it was still tolerable, she was rebuffed at 100% efficiency every time.

As for the life at a publishing house, it's easy to criticize many work related happenings, the story is not all that interesting and there are all kinds of villainous, or semi villainous characters. If I look at this having seen many carrier oriented dramas before, then it's still pretty okay. Corporate scheming & infighting are almost always total garbage in other cdramas, here it's not so bad. The biggest issue is that the adversaries had weird & meaningless motivations and they have often done really arbitrary illogical things. The characters themselves are okay, we don't quite reach the cartoon villain territory. The largest annoyance I've had is the biggest crisis plot in the drama, involving ghost writing claims & lots of unreasonableness. I think it would not have been very difficult to come up with a better, more realistic plot involving Asian cancel culture.

I think people criticizing Esther Yu's voice are in the wrong. However around episode 9-11 perhaps there were too many scenes involving childish temper tantrums & fake baby talk :p I don't think it's fair to blame the actress for that though!

Leia Mais

Really good is u like a good cute drama

I loved this drama a lot it’s cute has a nice storyline and the actors as expected of Esther and Ding Yuxi are absolutely amazing they could not hv done a better job. The eps itself were just the right amount and perf to binge.
Only complaints would generally be with a few things in the plot this is spoiling so if u hvnt seen yet just letting u k
I hated the fact ml best friend liked fl eventually as well that really irritated me as not only did it put strain on their relationship the fl obvs seeing ml friend as an idol of hers didn’t see much about going to get coffee or stuff with him if it came to work stuff which sort of developed to normal life which I didn’t quite like as it made ml feel jealous and annoyed I think if they just didn’t put the best friend liking her and everything if would hv took out a lot of the aggravation I had during the drama. Another would be the annoyance that the ml did not tell fl that he is her online best friend it was so annoying and could hv been admitted much earlier which would hv cause much more cuteness and closeness between them.
I wish there were more cute scenes of them but not too much to like a sickening point since it did lack a bit of it however I truly loved this drama and would rewatch some eps defo hope u guyz enjoy ❤️

Leia Mais

Don't miss a masterpiece guys!!!

If You want to watch a drama that's perfect in everything, Just give it a try. I am pretty sure after watching this drama, You'll be craving for a boyfriend like Zhou Chuan. Our First Male lead Zhou chuan is perfect in everything, a little childish, very caring and a jealous boyfriend. Oh no! i fell in love with him. Though it is my second drama of Ryan ding, He is going ahead rapidly. He can be childish but and the same time he's very supportive for our lead girl. And there is an enthusiastic chemistry between them. Not only male lead, our female lead is also very cute and mature. Her character development will impress you.

Leia Mais

Cute rom-com with a slice of life about book publishing

This drama tells the story of a female lead who begins working at her dream job as an editor and a male lead who is a promising new author. Male lead decides to accept the female lead as his editor when he discovers that she is the online friend who he has been talking to for years.

The first 20 episodes were fantastic and engaging but afterwards the drama got a little boring and draggy, mainly as they focused too much on the book publishing and not enough on the romance. The work conflicts felt very similar, the characters didn’t have much development and the romance died down. I feel like if the drama was shorter, these things wouldn't have been such an issue. Despite all that, I still enjoyed the storyline, characters and romance.

Many comments say the male lead is childish and I agree. In real life I would have been annoyed but in the drama it was the perfect comedy relief and I absolutely loved him (I might also be biassed because I love the actor and he is the reason I watched this).

The second couple was a nice watch but very typical and cliche storyline. I feel like it would have been a stronger storyline if they ended up with different people.

POSITIVE:
- Great insight into the book publishing world. As a book lover I loved seeing that and the plot felt very realistic regarding that.
- Cute romantic scenes between the leads and second leads.
- Good balance between comedy and slice of life maturity.
- Hard-working, career focused and independent female leads.
- Light-hearted for the most part.

NEGATIVE:
- Too much about the book publishing in the second half of the drama which made the romance die down.
- Not much character development.
- Female lead was a bit too focused on her career and sometimes I felt she didn’t care/love the male lead.
- Too long and draggy. Drama would have been better if it was shorter.

OVERALL:
If you are a big fan of the book publishing world and want a bit of romance thrown into the mix, you will definitely enjoy this light-hearted, slice of life drama.

Leia Mais

One of my favorite Rom-Coms!

This Rom-Com really struck a note with me because I'm a writer. I don't write professionally, just as a hobby, and I really found the relationship between writer/editor/publishing house interesting. I learned a lot about editors/publishing. So, first off, the subject matter really struck a chord, and then the lead characters kept my interest.

At first, I really found FL's voice/mannerism annoying, but I ended up really liking her as the drama progressed. She seems like a dingbat, but she was really quite smart, easily manipulating those around her with her charm and sincerity. The chemistry between her and ML was a delight to watch as they bickered and bantered with each other. They were one of those couples that just seemed 'fated'. For me, not all drama couples seem like they're meant to be, but this couple did. Even though I loved SML (so mature, so sweet, so sensitive), I was always on Team Mr. Fox/Zhou Chuan.

Now to my favorite character - Zhou Chuan or The Disappearing Mr. Fox. I simply adored this character! He is my 2nd favorite C-drama ML, just below the ML on 'Arsenal Military Academy'. I loved his grumpy obtuseness. I just found him so cute even though he had the unfortunate tendency to be childish and bad-tempered and completely clueless when it came to romance/relationships. I loved how FL could so easily control (or manipulate) this uncontrollable, demanding, prickly author. I loved how they were online 'best friends' before they became a real couple. I loved how ML was always calling SML for advice and then grumpily rejected the advice he got. The chemistry between ML and SML was nearly as good as the chemistry between ML/FL. It's probably not intentional, but ML's voice inflections reminded me of the puppet Reynardo on the old Leslie Caron movie 'Lili'. And oddly enough, Reynardo was a fox.

I didn't have much interest in the second couple's romance and fast forwarded through much of it. I just didn't care for SFL. I adored SML (too bad FL can't have both men!) but found SFL too chic. I just wanted SML to have someone better. But tell me, why does the second couple always seem to sleep together first and have hotter kisses in C-dramas?

I was pleased to see that both sets of parents were likeable although ML's dad was as bad-tempered, uncompromising and demanding as his son. BUT it was a lovely moment when dad presented the award to ML at the end. It brought tears to my eyes. So glad that neither set of parents were opposed to ML/FL's relationship.

The two scheming male bosses in the publisher house were super annoying - I guess this time the men got to be the villains. Usually, it's the women in C-dramas. But FL outcame both. We did have a psycho chick after ML few a few episodes, but she was more pathetic than threatening. ML was on to her antics way before FL and made sure he didn't spend any time alone with her - such a conscientious and shrewd ML (which was amazing considering how clueless he was concerning other matters). As I've said before - men, be careful with your random acts of kindness - you may end up with the a psycho chick obsessing on you.

Overall, I loved this drama, especially the relationship between ML/FL. There was not a lot of angst (which I prefer). The only time ML/FL was separated was when FL found out about ML's online identity and was rightly angry, but their separation didn't last long. There was no bouts of noble idiocy or the 'I love you but I've got to chase my dreams' thing. No serious, scheming love rivals or past loves that suddenly come back from the dead to haunt the future. It was a simple story about an editor's sincere desire to help her writers succeed and the romance she has with one of those writers. Nice ending too! Everything wrapped up nicely.

Leia Mais

light and fluffy but skippable parts

Overall this was a fairly easy going show, no over dramatics that couldn’t be resolved despite the fact the writers attempted a few cliche efforts at this. When it happened it was pointless and added nothing to the overall development of the plot. The MLs are silly and childish for far too much of the show and often the 2nds just plain show them up - seemingly like the only adults actually acting like adults. The friendship between ML & 2ML is the most satisfying thing about this series and they are adorable and funny. Overall it ended satisfyingly, but I skipped so many scenes that dragged and felt boring to watch. Clean up the writing (needs a major edit, which is kind of funny when this show is about editors and authors 🤣) and we’d have something that trundled along at an engaging pace. Instead we have 36 draggy episodes. One to watch if you need something light and you aren’t irritated by baby voice from FL’s which happens far too often in Cdramas. Not a fan personally- I think strong female leads can ditch the baby voices, pouty faces and childish comments. The 2FL in this show shows how its done, classy, professional independent adult. That is how to portray strong female behavior.

Leia Mais

mature youth drama

Finally I've watched mature youth drama. Long time heard about this drama, finally decided to watch this. Really happy I can watch this drama.

Really like Chu Li (CL). She is energic, kind, pure but not naive & childish. CL is spoiled where she supposed to & mature enough to handle her problem. CL has her own principle that she hold that make her special & attract people to her. If using Zhou Chuan (ZC) word, yeah she's like sunlight but warm enough like moonlight too. If she is my friend, I can see her as one of the people I'll trust to handle my problem too... I also really like how at the end she handle Liang Chong Lang (director Liang), how mischievous she is....

I also really like ZC, even though sometimes he's quite childish. But he can and will learn how to be better himself, especially if it's about CL. Like how he try to communicate better with her, how he try to understand her & how he throwing his ego & apologize to her when he needed to.... And he can really separate himself with the one that he doesn't like, like with Song Xi. Really like ZC & CL relationship with each other. Yu Shu Xin & Ding Yu Xi chemistry with each other really good. Really funny to see ZC reaction when CL is mad at him...

I also like their second couple, Jiang Yu Cheng (YC) & Gu Bai Zhi. Yeah the old flame haven't died yet. A little bit frustrated at first to see their relationship. & because they're not the main couple so we a little bit have to guess what their actual problem at first, they not just tell us what their problem actually is, but finally they tell us. And yeah they have to fixed the main problem first before decided to continue or not, or the story will gonna repeat itself & yeah it did.... But it got fixed & everything smoothly go sail... Haha...

Really like the brotherhood between YC & ZC. It's like they put the phrase: 'bro before ho' into reality. Like when YC said he like CL, even though ZC quite jealous but he still ask for advice & they still brother like before. Yeah2 I know even we can sense that YC is not that serious with CL. But we sometimes see the writer will gonna write they have clash or overly jealous over that simple stupidity....

This is really one good youth drama. This even has the perfect ending... Looking for something romance, sweet but not too much, this is one drama for you...

Leia Mais

two words: CHEF'S KISS. This drama is literally diabetes in media form, I love how trusting the lead couple were with each other and Chu Li persisting and persevering to prove everyone's assumptions about her wrong were very relatable and I wish this drama was a little longer. The storyline is a little cliche but the nuances within the plot enhanced the storyline and made it better than I originally expected. Also, PSA but I will not be moving on from this drama because one it's too good and two no other drama will ever be able to match up with what Moonlight gave the audience.

Leia Mais

Sweetest Romance of the Season

I don't usually write reviews, but this series was way too good to not write a review for it.
In short, this series is definitely one that you don't see often, and I truly hope that it makes a precedent for future series to come. It's definitely a sweet romance that brings a smile to your face every episode with how cute the main couple is.

-- MAIN COUPLE --
The only way I can explain this couple is having a healthy relationship, which is so rare to see that it's like a huge breath of fresh air. Of course, they have their own couple spats and issues, but it's so nice to see that they have mutual trust in each other and there are absolutely no unnecessary misunderstandings between them. There's also the fact that although they're editor and author - a sort of subordinate and boss situation - each side's power in the relationship is extremely balanced.
For Chu Li (Esther Yu), she's an extremely smart character and is generally able to stand up for herself and solve her own problems with minimal help from the male lead. There's no damsel in distress - it's clear that she's able to do things on her own. I truly truly applaud this series for this. It's really not every day where a female lead is able to persevere her strong personality till the end.
For Zhou Chuan (Ryan Ding), he's a narcissistic little boy who never got his dad's love, but his heart's softer than anyone's. He's like a little puppy in front of the female lead and his best friend, and it's absolutely adorable. He also knows that while he wants to help the female lead, she has her own way of doing things, and he can't do everything for her. There's also a comparison in the series with the husband of Yu Yao when it comes to how Zhou Chuan handles Chu Li's workaholic side. Where one tries to suppress the female to become a standard "wife", the other supports her, loves her for her loyalty to her work, and only steps in when needed to take care of her health.
Together, they're a stupid cute and funny couple that defies the odds together (key word: together). When problems do arise, there's no one side tries to solve it for the other, but rather they respect each other and take it head-on together.

--SIDE COUPLE (SPOILER)--
I'll keep this shorter because they do kind of irritate me. At first, they play it up so Jiang Yucheng has this hatred for his ex-girlfriend, Gu Baizhi, due to some misunderstanding. But then halfway through his heart softens because he still has lingering feelings, and starts wanting to try again out of nowhere? Nothing, absolutely nothing, was really cleared up about the past, and they just have misunderstandings after misunderstandings. I swear, if I were GBZ, I would've dumped his ass in the sewers already.
Not to mention that they completely ruined Jiang Yucheng's personality for the sake of his romance. As a writer, he's stubborn and sticks to his opinions - same as Zhou Chuan. It's also one of the reasons why he had a fallout with GBZ - because she kept trying to have him write this and that for the sake of gaining better sales. However, when they met with Maurer (a director), GBZ said that JYC would be willing to compromise for the sake of the film - resulting in his loss in the competition with Zhou Chuan - but they didn't address this AT ALL. And then, in trying to get GBZ back, he claims that anything he did wrong, he'll change for her. If this isn't a red flag, I don't know what is.
Overall, they had their cute moments, especially toward the end, but their process was just a mess.

--OVERALL--
[Music - 8.5/10] There's only a few songs in the soundtrack, including one sung by Esther Yu herself, but the ones that do exist are soft and sweet. Esther's voice has improved a lot since her trainee days!
[Rewatch value - 9/10] I don't have a tendency to rewatch dramas since I already know what will happen, but maybe in a few years when I forget details and want to rewatch something, this is definitely one of the dramas on the top of my list.
[Overall - 9.5/10] There's bias in the review of course, but I really didn't watch this series expecting anything. My opinion of Esther Yu has always been pretty neutral, but for the sake of my "May boyfriend" and after finding the trailer pretty funny, only then did I decide to watch this. I can't expect everyone to enjoy it as much as I did, but I do highly recommend watching at least a couple of episodes if you enjoy sweet rom-com series. Especially if you enjoyed Ryan DIng (Ding YuXi)'s The Romance of Tiger and Rose, this series has that romance and comedy feel but in a modern setting.

---
Notes:
- I know there's a bit of dislike for Esther's voice (I completely understand - it's one of the reasons I'm not a huge fan of hers), but for the sake of this amazing series, it is 100% overlookable and you get used to it. Regardless, her voice sounds more natural here than it ever did on Youth With You.
- "May boyfriend" is a joke in the Chinese community. Because Ding YuXi (Ryan Ding) became popular after two romance dramas starring him both aired at the same time last year (May 2020) - respectively The Romance of Tiger and Rose//Intense Love - he became dubbed as 五月男友 (May boyfriend).

Leia Mais

ML is such a MANCHILD!!!!!

This is a rant review so if you like this drama please move on and don't ruin your day.

I started watching this drama while waiting for Love Game in Eastern Fantasy´s next episodes to drop because, unlike this drama, that one is actually giving what it is supposed to give, and I literally cannot wait for the next episode huhu😊.

That being said, I obviously watched this drama for the CP, but oh boy were they the worst couple in this one.

Where do I even start with this one? The ML Zhou Chuan character is just so insufferable. he is rude, man-child, obsessive, and an entitled prick. The drama makes you wonder how he even stayed alive before meeting the FL because he can't do anything without her. He can't even feed himself or his dog. All he does is sit in his study and sulk all day and wait for Chu Li to return from work and cook and clean for him. On top of that, he is always casually fat-shaming her, getting jealous if she talks to any other man even if it is for work. like wtf bro?????!!!

Am I supposed to root for this a-hole??😑 Zhou Chuan has to be one of the worst love interests. He is always fighting and screaming at her. I can't I just can´t. I do not like these types of toxic love interests. I hate that this drama is romanticizing his behavior. They want it to be seen as cute. Every time he makes a mistake he thinks he has done nothing wrong and when he knows he is wrong he still gets angry at Chu Li for not forgiving him immediately.

There is one scene where Chu Li has broken up with him and stays with her friend because he lied about his identity as Mr. Fox, who is Chu Li´s online best friend. he basically hides from her that he is Mr. Fox and manipulates her feelings for him. When she finds out the truth and feels betrayed rightfully so…she breaks up with him. And instead of sincerely apologizing to her and explaining his reasons to her, he SCREAMS AT HER…that because she has not returned home for a while he and his dog have become thin because she is not feeding them. and he said sorry what more can he do?

aww poor guy! must be so difficult for him *(eye roll)*

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!????????? that's what you've got? seriously???? 😶 Why is she even dating him? She literally forgives him after this. like gurlll please have some self-respect.

it's crazy how I didn't get annoyed by Esther Yu´s baby voice and over-the-top child-like acting in this drama because of ML's insufferable character. It´s a miracle.

The whole drama is a miscommunication trope on steroids. OMG please, just talk!!!!!!!
It did not need to be 36 episodes. It's just 36 episodes of nothingness. Unless you are a big fan of the cast I don't see any reason why must you torture yourself with this drama.

Leia Mais

A new heartwarming story

It has been a while since I saw such a lighthearted drama. It is a slow burn. Before you realize it you are already addicted to it. This kind of story was a first time for me. Originally I wanted to see it because the 1st main leads were my favorites. But later on I liked the story and how it was very well depicted. Everyone acted as their character very well. I did not fell like it was boring but maybe the no. of episodes could have been reduced a little. All the cast chemistry is so good. For the first time I am seeing a drama in which there are lot of females in the cast and are very strong. I liked how they depicted the story with so much reality. It is in my top 5 Chinese drama lit now. I wanted a light drama as there have been lot of dark dramas or boring dramas recently. I can't wait for the actors' next projects. The ending given to everyone was also very well written. Maybe after a while I might re-watch it again if my mood is down.

Leia Mais