Chinese Drama Recommendations
Hi, Friends! As promised when I posted my last drabble for "A Love So Beautiful," I am sharing some of my favorite Chinese dramas. As I went through my list, I also couldn't resist recommending some Taiwanese ones as well, and have included them below. For those who've not watched any of the ones I've mentioned below, I hope you'll give them a try and let me know what you think. If you have, I hope you'll chime in with your thoughts for others reading this blog post. And if you've watched something I didn't mention but would recommend, definitely let me know as I'm always on the prowl for something good to watch! :)
As Chen You Qing approaches her 30th birthday, she makes a bet with her best friend, Li Da Ren, to see who will marry first before they turn 35. Although it starts out as a bet, it turns out to be so much more when it has them examining their relationships with their respective love interests and each other.
One of my all-time favorite dramas. It’s a rare thing to be able to say that a drama is perfect in writing and execution, but “In Time With You” comes pretty close to perfection. There’s only one thing I wish the writer had done differently, but apart from that, I wouldn’t change a thing. The chemistry between the main leads (Ariel Lin and Chen Bolin) is off the charts, and if you like stories about best friends falling in love, I guarantee this will be your cup of tea.
What also makes “In Time With You” so wonderful is how true to life the story feels. I guarantee that when you watch, you will feel like you’re a part of the conversation because you’ve either had the same with your friends or your parents. I can’t say enough wonderful things about this drama, so just watch it!
In the real world, Bei Wei Wei is known for both her beauty and brains in the computer science department of her university. In the online world, she’s Lu Wei Wei, a top player of an online role-playing game. One day she gets noticed by a senior from her computer science department, and he pursues her first in the online world before revealing himself to her in the real world. Imagine her shock when she discovers that the top player in her online role-playing game is also the most famous (and utterly perfect) student at her university.
Adapted from the web novel, “One Smile Is Very Alluring,” by Gu Man, this is an adorable zero-conflicts type of drama. And if you think that a drama needs to have at least some conflict to be interesting, Love O2O (which stands for online to offline) will happily prove you wrong. In short, you can’t go wrong with “Love O2O.” Just beware, the actress (Zheng Shuang) is a terrible kisser, but the actor (Yang Yang) more than makes up for any lack with his amazingly good looks.
Seven years ago, Zhao Mo Sheng fell in love at first sight with He Yi Chen, a law student, on her first day of school. She proceeded to stalk him everywhere on campus and as a result, ended up winning him over with her sunny disposition even though he’d been determined to not date while in school. One day though, after an argument, she disappears leaving He Yi Chen hurt and angry that she would leave for America without any word. Now back in China, their paths cross, and their situations are completely reserved. Back then, Mo Sheng was the daughter of a rich family and Yi Chen was an orphaned child. Now he’s a successful lawyer and while he isn’t ready to forgive her, he can’t help but be drawn to her as well. Mo Sheng, for her own part, is more subdued with her own secrets and story to tell.
I actually read the web novel, “Silent Separation,” by Gu Man, and fell in love with that first before I watched the drama adaption. The book is a simpler and shorter story that the drama expands upon both in characters and in plot. If I had to choose between the two, I’d pick the book because it cuts down on a lot of the drama and gets straight to the point. But the drama is what (admittedly) makes the drama, so I love it too. For me, this is one of those dramas that engages all my emotions and brings out the feels. I love Mo Sheng’s goodness just as I love Yi Chen’s steadfastness. There is nothing more attractive than seeing a man utterly devoted to the woman he loves.
Tang Yi Bai is about to return to the competitive swimming stage when he meets Yun Duo, an intern sports reporter for an online newspaper. Three years ago, he was wrongfully accused of doping which is the reason for his hiatus, but even though the suspension has now been lifted, Yun Duo encourages and helps him to prove his innocence.
If you’re looking for a light and fluffy drama without a lot of conflict, then look no farther than “My Mr. Mermaid.” If you love those main couples where there is a massive height difference between the leads, then also look no farther than “My Mr. Mermaid.” I’ll admit there’s a middle part that kind of slogs (due to a heavy case of noble idiocy) but I promise if you get through that, the rewards will be great. “My Mr. Mermaid,” is super cute – and that includes the cast. I think I spent the majority of the drama saying, “I want to put Tang Yi Bai in my pocket and carry him around!” And don’t forget: there’s a whole swim team behind him to add to the attractiveness of the drama - *wink*.
My only historical drama on this list, probably because I don’t watch them often. I tend to love the few that I do though and that is especially the case with “Princess Weiyoung.” I tried to write a brief summary as to what the drama is about, but it proved too unwieldy for me – too many characters with too much going on – which is how I generally think of historicals (and why I don’t watch them often). So I thought I would instead explain why I love this one as much as I do.
At the heart of it, it’s a revenge drama – Princess Weiyoung seeks to avenge her family and her people, but along the way, she falls in love with the Prince from the opposing side (so to speak). Tuoba Jun is utterly devoted to Princess Weiyoung. He is smart and capable and has a good head on his shoulders. He never wanted to be involved in palace politics, and would have preferred to live a quiet life with his mother, except that he was drawn into it by others and in the end finds himself angling for the throne if only to save the life of those he loves. What I loved best was how Princess Weiyoung and Tuoba Jun worked hand in hand through everything. Nothing drives me nuttier in historicals than when, because of the way the palace is set up, the male lead is clueless about how the female lead is actually being treated behind his back. Here, he always knows what’s going on with her and is hip and savvy to the evil doings of the second female lead, which means that even though Princess Weiyoung smart and has no problem handling herself (another thing to love about the drama), he’s available to help her when she needs it. In actuality, it’s probably more accurate to say they help each other because, as mentioned, what they have is a partnership in every sense.
The only thing I have to warn about the drama is that it does have a bittersweet ending. I think if you watch the drama from start to finish, you’ll see though how the ending fits the overall tenor of the show and is appropriate. (It’s also nothing you won’t predict just from watching the opening credits, so it’s not exactly a shocking surprise.) But if you believe in nothing less than 100% happiness after watching a drama, then you’ll want to steer clear of this one. I would encourage you to give it a try though!
Also bonus: The leads started dating while filming this drama (after having worked together on several other dramas previously).
Master Devil Do Not Kiss Me (Seasons 1 & 2) (China)
After An Chu Xia loses her mother, she moves in with the Han Family, a very wealthy family, and starts to attend the same school as their son, Han Qi Lu, who never wastes an opportunity to bully or remind An Chu Xia where she comes from.
“Master Devil” is based on a web novel by the same name, and if you like the Meteor Garden/Hana Yori Dango/Boys Over Flowers type of stories, you’ll definitely enjoy this one as well. The only drawback is that this drama was produced as a web series so episodes are super short. This is probably one of those rare times where I actually wished a drama was longer just so the story could be fleshed out more. There was so much potential, just not enough time. Still, the drama did a great job with what it had and I definitely found myself addicted and eagerly awaiting the next episode.
The Fox’s Summer (Seasons 1 & 2) (China)
Gu Cheng Ze is the adopted son of the Gu family and CEO of their family business. The real heir, however, is Gu Jin Yu, the Gu family’s biological grandson, and Gu Cheng Ze’s real job is to tame the former’s playboy ways and bring him back into the fold. That’s why when he meets Li Yan Shu, a fashion designer, and discovers she is Gu Jin Yu’s first love, he sets out to her to bring on aboard in the hopes that her presence will bring Gu Jin Yu to heel. What he doesn’t expect is that Li Yan Shu will also move into his home, disrupting his carefully ordered world. One likes everything neat and clean, while the other can’t help but cause a path of destruction everywhere she walks. But even more problematic is Li Yan Shu has no problems telling a white lie if it suits her purpose, and Gu Cheng Ze has a physical allergy to lies.
Based on the web novel, “When the President Falls in Love,” this drama will especially appeal if you like those forced roommate types of scenarios. It’s both cute and funny, and I found it adorable. First season was definitely better than the second, in my opinion, but of course both should be watched for the complete story.
According to the fortune teller her parents consulted after her birth, Pi Ya Nuo must live as a male until her 26th birthday or else bad things will happen to her. Her parents took this warning seriously and as a result, Pi Ya Nuo has lived her entire life as a male, without even her closest friends knowing her secret. Just a few months shy of her 26th birthday, Pi Ya Nuo becomes entangled with Du Zi Feng, a successful businessman and the son of a former mob boss, and struggles to hold onto her secret.
If you like gender bender stories, then you definitely won’t want to miss out on “Bromance.” In all the gender benders I’ve ever watched, Megan Lai is the most convincing male I’ve ever seen. It was to the point where I couldn’t actually envision her as a female, and thus had to go watch another drama with her in it! My only caveat to “Bromance” is that despite what I thought was a strong and entertaining beginning, towards the end, the story started to lag and so too did my interest.
Xia Tian is the bane of her mother’s existence. She’s in her thirties, doesn’t dress prettily, isn’t the least bit feminine, and worst of all, she’s still single. One day Xiao Tian overhears a conversation between her mother and little sister, who’s about to be married. Her mother tells the sister that if Xia Tian comes to the wedding with a boyfriend, she’ll pay for the entire thing. This spurs Xia Tian to find a man, just to prove her mother wrong. Fortunately she works for a radio station, and as her story becomes known across the air waves, she soon finds herself never lacking for a marriage prospect. The harder part is weeding through all those blind dates, especially when there’s a very eligible male co-worker who just moved into the apartment below hers.
“Blind Date” is one of those slow burn type of stories where I’d say half the drama is about the leads (who are often clueless or in denial about their feelings – her more so than him) and the other half is about their friends/coworkers and family. It worked for me, but I thought I’d be upfront about that in case it doesn’t for you. Some of the drama is zany, I’ll admit, but there were also those moments that just felt so relatable and true to life. Those were the moments, along with the lovely main couple, that kept me invested and looking forward to each new episode. Unfortunately, I don’t think this drama is subbed so it is currently only available to those who understand Mandarin. According to MDL, it is also an adaptation of “Ciega a Citas,” a popular Argentinian drama.
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