The Evil Face (2022)

Hidden gem of actors

I respect what the actors were able to accomplish with this mini drama. This was my first time seeing the ML and both female lead actors and they did such an incredible job. I'm looking forward to more from them in the future.

The plot was interesting but I didnt like how gullible FL (Shi Qi) was to the 'villain' FL (Shen Qi). I understand she couldn't help wanting to believe the villain for the sake of finding her sister but I kept wishing she'd be smart and know not to trust her. So even though it was a mini drama, it felt like the drama dragged too much for me sometimes.

Overall, I enjoyed the drama. It was so funny, and had a sweet romance with an interesting plot!

Leia Mais

Gorgeous mini drama

8 episodes x 20 min on Viki. Gorgeous costumes, excellent acting, riveting plot (with major plot twist), beautiful OST and vivid cinematography to grab your heart strings, and really interesting characters. Tightly edited, with just the right sumptuous scenes to flesh out the characters and their relationships, the drama kept me watching to the end. No fast forwarding.

The plot is basically Face Off (the movie starring Nicholas Cage) in ancient China, between two women.

After watching Butterflied Lovers (22 episodes x 20 min (I think) also on Viki), another drama by the same Director, I'm now a huge fan of his works. (I'd also like to watch The Killer Is Romantic, as the main couple cameo'd in Butterflied Lovers.)

Highly recommended, as is Butterflied Lovers.

Leia Mais

My first mini drama

Story was quite simple but unexpected satisfying. Never had patience with short dramas before because most of the time, the story would end too soon for me to love/know the characters.

The flaw(s) of the show, too many plot holes left wide open. Like where did the mystic face swapping power came from. Or what really happened with the crown prince. Or what happen to the FL's sister, why did she turn crazy bad.

The ML (the general) is like the unrealistic prince charming from fairytales. He's just the good general, respected and loved by many. But the story didn't include much about him so that's all.

Actors were ok. OST too.

Leia Mais

Shortly said good story, but lacked impact to truly shine

A Familiar Stranger 8/10 - short cdrama

historical cdrama 18eps - 10min per ep
this drama is good and bad in way. I got no problem with actors romance scenes are nice too.. sadly plot even though it got intriguing concept it wasnt well delivered and ending was on bland side too.

plot - FL is painter which paints erotica in hope finding her long lost sister which was sold into pleasure palace. She is abducted by prime minister daughter which thanks magician swaps their faces and makes her to get married to general[ML] in her stead.

genre -romance, historical

Leia Mais

This drama proves how much mini cdramas are improving

I have so much to say but don't know if I'll be coherent enough. If you've been keeping an eye on the Chinese drama entertainment world, you'll know that they've been venturing a lot into the short series world. Just in the past couple of years, the short series have grown tremendously and have ranged from being 2min-14min long and varied in production quality.

Usually, the 2min-per-episode kind of dramas are low in plot and acting, but hit all the fun clichés and tropes. The dramas that are longer in length are typically better in all areas: soundtrack, acting, characters, plot, and production. I put the dramas "Queen of Attack," "The Killer is also Romantic," and "Night of Love with You" on the list of better short cdramas. Now, I am also adding this drama to the list.

This drama is directed by the same person who did "The Killer is also Romantic" and that can already tell you a lot about the cinematography and quality of directing and editing. This person does a fantastic job and I trust them wholeheartedly. They understand how to tell the story VISUALLY and there are many memorable moments in this drama that I adore. (Fireflies! Scene!)

I love the soundtrack and listen to it weekly.

The acting for these fairly unknown actors are prett good, but I especially have to applaud Cheng Lei. I was one of his first fans since his first drama in "Queen of Attack" and he also did great in this drama. I suspect that he'll make it big in the future. He has the charisma for these kind of roles: the stoic or cold male leads who have a vulnerability to him. But overall, I think all the actors did a good job. Their characters, too, were intriguing and there was nobody that I found annoying or unnecessary. (It's a short drama so the plot is tightly woven throughout.) Best of all, the main couple was SO good. (The tension!? The kisses!?) The male lead was such a good kind of male lead where he was trusting despite otherwise and was protective and loving. The female lead was smart and always tried to do the right thing by the male lead. I loved her.

The only reason why I didn't give it a full 10 was because of 1 plot choice that was done near the end of the drama. I thought it was a strange decision, but it didn't ruin my overall enjoyment of the show.

If you're looking for a good short Chinese drama, this is it. Tip: watch it on Viki. The channel mgtv on youtube generally sucks with subtitles so I wouldn't trust that. Happy watching!

Leia Mais

One of the best mini dramas out there

I have just finished it and i loveeee ittt!!! This is no regular mini drama.

A round of applause for the plot: I will let go the fact that they can swap face without any harm. Other than that, the story is logical and consistent. The love between the main couple is natural and convincing. I love how the ML is so smart he figured it out what is happening on his own. How he recognises the FL is also logical with him stitching all the clues together.

I'm not a big fan of a weak FL. But with this drama, I'm ok with Shi Qi. It makes sense for her when other main characters already have strong personality. Han Sheng is my favorite and together they have great chemistry throughout the series. The 2nd couple is depicted quite clearly without being overshadowed by the main couples. I secretly hope for the 2nd couple to be together.

Another great character is Yuan Bao. I rarely see a good child character. Most of the times, the kid in a movie or series is quite annoying and is there to piss off the main characters. Yuan Bao is just adorable and a great addition to build the love story between her mom and dad.

Leia Mais

A Familiar Stranger is a great miniseries fantasy romance drama with a touch of comedy and mystery nicely intertwined with a perfect amount of each one of the genres that it covered. Ryan Cheng (as Xiao Han Sheng) and Kay Son (as Shen Quin) did a fantastic job delivering their characters and have great chemistry. The supporting cast and the secondary main couple did a great job also. Ke Ying (as Shi Qi) and Wang Ze Xuan (as Prince Ning) did very well portraying psychotic characters that, due to past traumas, have lost some connection with reality, providing the path to the antagonist characters in the story. This is a well done and delivered short drama that is really entertaining. Enjoy it!

Leia Mais

This was a very cute short series. The way how this story was told and how the directing of this story went reminds of me a short web series. The details that went into this short series were amazing. This series is basically about FL looking for her sister but was tricked by the prime minister's daughter. She wakes up with her face the next day and is wedded to a powerful general. She later realizes this is the general she had been crushing on the entire time. Even though her face may have changed, her personality and body are still the same. ML later realized his wife was the familiar stranger he had encountered before. I didn't expect much with the cast but it was surprisingly cute and fun to watch. I only wish the side stories for the side character, particularly the sister was a bit longer.

I look forward to seeing more short series like these. Cheesy but cute and fun!

Leia Mais

This series managed to pack a decent plot in such a short length. I was dubious at first how the face-swapping could be achieved in this scenario, fearing that it would lead to much confusion, but surprisingly it did not. Although I would have liked the reverse happened, with Kay Song portraying Shi Qi and Ke Ying to be Shen Qin, the current casting also worked well in this case. I became more intrigued the more that I watched, especially wanting the ML's to discover the switch. But I was mildly disappointed towards the end when Shi Qi did not get her face back. The plot twist was not nearly as unexpected but it was definitely a good effort.

Leia Mais

This drama was just too short. I don't understand why this wasn't a movie instead of a drama. Watching it on Viki, it was only 8 episodes but on MDL it is listed for 18 episodes. I waited and waited for almost 2 weeks to see if another episode would appear. I had to research to find out what happened to the 8 episodes. Had me all confused. I loved the storyline but it was too short. This should've been a movie instead of a drama series. Yes, I am kind of upset but will easily move on to the next drama. The storyline is a good idea, swapping faces... that was different.

Leia Mais

An Alluring Dark Fairy Tale

The drama is a hidden wonder - in a short time it manages to completely captivate with its premise and characters and tells the story concisely but satisfyingly. "A Familiar Stranger" could compete with a lot of full-length dramas, that are given the time and the budget to execute a concept but often fall short.

This is primarily a fated romance story, and the drama delivers on the chemistry between characters and supplies an adequate mixture of warm feelings, tension and angst. Performances by both actresses are astoundingly good - they wonderfully emulated the two different characters and looked perfectly on screen, especially together.

Since there are some magical elements in the drama, it doesn't shy away from the darker turns of the story - it is tragic, melancholy and a little erotic, giving it a hazy fairy tale like atmosphere. I would definitely give this a go if you're looking for something bite-sized but still high-quality in between the longer dramas.

Leia Mais