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baifengxis · 1 year

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What are some of your fave cdramas that you would highly rec? I’m looking for something to watch and I would be grateful if you can share some. Thank you!!

Oh, thanks so much for this question, I love recommending cdramas haha!

LEGEND OF FEI [2020] Gotta start with the obvious, because I'll recommend this drama forever even to everyone who has started and can't get into it, I'll always be like, please try again lol It's feminist, fun, feel-good but with very nicely done heavy moments every few episodes, important messages about life and about becoming who you want to be, it has my, at this point, favorite cdrama ship ever, yunfei my beloved!! relationship goals! friendships, funny dynamics, siblings, AMAZING characters and...so much more, I won't continue because I'll never stop lmao

UNEXPECTED [2018] Such an underrated Drama! I don't know why it's so underrated, especially because it's made by the same writer as a very popular drama (The Romance of Tiger and Rose) and the stories are very similar, which I know can be boring but they also have differences that make each drama unique, there's just the same premise of a writer traveling into their own story.

I'VE FALLEN FOR YOU [2020] The perfect rom-com historical drama, with a very fun plot and with plot twists you don't expect, such good characters and two amazing ships! Comfort drama for sure!

THE LOVE BY HYPNOTIC [2019] If you love palace romance, arranged marriage turned true love, a few crazy (but very entertaining) villains and a love story for the ages! Even though it has some very heavy moments, it's one of my comfort dramas as well, because it also includes some VERY FUNNY moments, like I just love dramas that can somehow balance comedy, romance and serious moments so well!

THE QUEEN OF ATTACK [2021] There's so many short dramas nowadays and 80% of them have the same plot of someone traveling into a story lol and yes, this is one of them BUT it's such a good drama like it's insane, I'll wish forever it was a normal length one, but it's still so good, the episodes are 9-10 mins each but there are two seasons, and the episodes have been combined, so eventually it's like having a normal drama with 12 normal length episodes (6 for s1 and 6 for s2). It's so worth it and the two actors are so talented and have such good chemistry, plus the story is unique too, yes this premise has been done many times but I think they still made it so unique and different from others.

THE STARRY LOVE [2023] A recent drama and quite popular, but I'll still recommend it always. Other than the last episode that was a bit disappointing and rushed (still a happy-ish ending though), it's my favorite Xianxia and it was just so good, the story, the cinematography, THE OST, the actors, the ships, the friendships, the sisters, ALL THE WOMEN, youqin literally making all other MLs take notes from him on how to be the best ml out there, so many reasons to watch this drama, just ignore the last part and pretend we saw what they forgot to show us lol

LOVE LIKE THE GALAXY [2022] Where do I even begin??? (This is the first Zhao Lusi drama i recommend in this list, but I just wanna mention, I recommend almost all of them.) Anyway, LLTG is by far my favorite political drama, and non wuxia/xianxia historical cdrama. It's so different and unique, there's literally nothing like it. It's a slow paced drama, with very long scenes (you might only have 3-4 scenes in one episode for example) and it's the reason why It got me a while to get to it, but now I'M SO IN LOVE WITH IT!!! There is not an episode I don't enjoy, it's pure art. Cheng Shao Shang is one of my favorite girls ever and her and Ling Buyi???? I'D DIE FOR THEIR LOVE. Their chemistry is so so so good, now Zhao Lusi can have chemistry with a tree, it's true but still, one of the best cdrama ships out there. Even though I never truly watched classic cdramas like Nirvana on Fire and those "older" ones, I think LLTG somehow is the closest to those except it also loves its characters and focuses on romance more than any older political cdrama did but it works so so well.

LIGHTER AND PRINCESS [2022] Favorite modern drama! I gotta be honest I'm not verrrryyyy into modern cdramas, I like a few, even love some, but generally it's hard to find a modern cdrama I'll go crazy over...but L&P changed that. Or well, it's still hard, maybe even harder now, to find something that tops it, but L&P is just so so good. Again, a quite popular drama, maybe it doesn't need the recommendation, but I have to mention it anyway 'cause it's my baby and I just cannot make a favorite cdramas list without it! Some reasons to watch: One of the best love stories out there, with such good angst and just everything you need on a ship, two main characters so unique that you'll definitely relate to (at least in some aspects), one of the best OSTS ever, perfect cinematography, directing and writing and one of my favorite endings on any show ever!

Some more dramas I recommend but I won't dig deeper (I talked a lot already):

Couple of Mirrors [2021]

Who Rules The World [2022]

Love Between Fairy and Devil [2022]

Young Blood [2019 - S2 starts tomorrow!]

Wait, My Youth [2019]

Zhaoyao/The Legends [2019]

Arsenal Military Academy [2019]

There's probably more but I think that's good for now, I hope I helped you find something to watch and I'm always here for more recs if you want :P <3

#anonymous #answered #anon #cdrama recs #cdrama recommendations #recs #drama recs

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salt-hag · 2 years

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in love like the galaxy, we got three dorky love interests (gotta have all the flavors: puppy, snob, and ruthless general), a plucky female lead who pulls pranks such as dunking a bunch of aristocratic ladies into a pond, war crimes, violence, trauma, bitchy ladies, a few really nice ladies to make up for the bitchy ones, family politics and bullying, a Cinderella plot line, and hella mommy issues. what more could you want

#my favorite cdrama is still romance of tiger and rose but if the ending of this one isn’t terrible it’ll be up there on my list too #other opinions (not at all unpopular): the mom is the woooooorst #every scene with the general that’s a romance cliche has me screaming #when the female lead pulled an arrow out of his chest!! icon!!#I’ve been feeling sick - weird tooth ache - and this kind of drama is exactly what I wanted #love like the galaxy #cdrama

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kuronekonerochan · 3 years

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Hi...how are you? If you don't mind me asking what are your top 5 favorite danmei novels (until now)? And why? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....

Hi, sorry for being slow at answering!

In no particular order:

Ok, so I liked the 3 from MXTX:

- Grandmaster of Diabolic Cultivation/ Mo Dao Zu Shi

This one I loved but it has a particular style that ppl might not like in that it feels jumpy, confusing and with information gaps while reading, even though eventually everything that matters does end up being explained...in other works this would probably be just lazy writing, but here it is clearly an intentional choice bc 1) she doesn’t do this in her other novels 2) this is in WWX’s pov and dude has heavy ptsd and adhd, plus he tends to pretend to take everything lightly as a coping mechanisms...all this put together and it’s easy to understand why the story has such an unreliable narrator that even the other characters constantly point it out. I ended up loving this extra layer of storytelling.

- Heaven Official’s Blessings/ Tian Guan Ci Fu

If you’re in the mood for a saga type long ass novel with a ton of interesting side stories and side characters with a main character who is a true cinnamon bun in sweet romance with a side dish of sweet sweet aaaangst.

- Scum Villains Self Saving System

The most entertaining out of all of them. It manages to be a parody of two genres, both danmeis and wuia/jianghu harem het novels (fighter of destiny style) with OP leads, while also being its own cute and funny story with a heart to it.

From other authors:

- Meatbun’s 2ha/ Dumb Husky and his White Cat Shizun

What if someone took a look at the parody that is SVSSS and said...”no, you know what? This really deserves to be an epic, long ass, and I mean, topping old classics’ length novel packed with angst, filled with pain and topped with despair...and then we’re sprinkling some funfetti on top to fool y’all”...and you know what? that’s some good cake. (If you’re into cdramas SVSSS is to 2ha what The Romance of Tiger and Rose is to Goodbye My Princess).

- Priest’s Sha Po Lang:

Steampunk China plus creepy voodoo tribal ritual magic, involved in internal and external wars over petrol (with a different name) and with our leads in Iron Man suits, fighting, among other enemies hot young(er) hands on, on the field, western troop General, the Pope, that I can only visualize in my head as Jude Law. I tell you all of this nonsense just to say that instead of the ridiculous fun this should be, it ends up being a very compelling romance with lots of scheming and heavy plot and some heartbreaking scenes.

- The Golden Stage:

This is a court drama type novel with friends-to-rivals-to-lovers that is just the right length and compelling with not too many plot twists but two main characters who are really great both individually and together and this is the one out of all in the list I feel like re reading the most. It really is a solid read and I feel like I’m selling it short, bc it really is good. It is similar to Sha Po Lang and To Rule in a Turbulent World, a simpler version of those but not worse for it.

(Since you said top 5 and I’ve said 6, I regretfully cut down Heaven Official’s Blessing bc even though I love it, unlike MDZS or SVSSS, it didn’t feel like a standalone novel because some of the several storylines of the side characters that I loved were left open ended (although the main characters had a complete story arc), as if this book was supposed to be the first of a series and those characters would have their own spinoff books where I’d know where their story took them...except this really is a standalone, and so the lack of resolution bothers me).

>> Honorable Mentions:

- To Rule in a Turbulent World

This one doesn’t go in the top 5 list yet bc it’s not fully translated, last time I checked (tho it’s very near the end). As an ongoing novel, I adore it. If the ending isn’t terrible it might be in my top 3. It’s similar to the two above in plotlines but it has a quality to it that it takes care to make every character in it multidimensional. There are no good and bad characters, even the ones on the opposite side are given something that makes them relatable and human. Plus, the characters all change throughout the novel, most of all the protagonists and the novel gives itself breathing time between events where you just chill with the characters and learn about random things like agricultural practices.

- The Wife Is First

This one is just that light fluff feel good one that is great to pick up from time to time since it’s on going. Dumb Jock husband did everything wrong in his first life, gets a re-do and from then on it’s adorable respect the spouse juice and awe of said spouse smarts. Cute. Also, there’s a baby pet tiger.

>> Others I did like, just not in the top 5:

-Faraway Wanderers and Lord Seventh/Qi Ye by Priest:

Qi Ye is similar to To Rule in A Turbulent World/The Golden Stage/Sha Po Lang. I really liked it still, just a tiny bit less than these. Since it’s the same author as SPL and I think it was written earlier, I have to say, the writing only got better.

Faraway Wanderers is a short read, but you’re only gonna like it if you’re ok with amoral main characters (I guess that is true for many on this list but it’s more obvious in this one bc the novel and the characters are unapologetic about it).

- YuWu by Meatbun - Still reading it, but is isn’t grabbing me like 2ha did.

>> I assumed you only wanted danmeis as in period fantasy bl novels, but if we go modern, fantasy or not:

- Silent Readings by Priest:

I love crime fiction novels (love Ding Mo’s novels) and this is that type of conspiracy, murder novel with smart criminals and smart investigators. Little romance, but still there.

- Guardian by Priest:

Priest is hilarious and except the last part that gets a bit heavy on the lore this is just a joy to read. Also pretty short.

- Advance Bravely:

I read it a long time ago and it’s okayish, with some cute and some weird, problematic characters.

- Addicted/ Heroin:

Also read it (this is 2 books) ages ago...and this one is NOT cute. It starts out as a pretty normal, but kind of toxic very typical oldschool drama/manga romance right down to the step brothers’ trope....and then it keeps escalating to new levels of WTF am I reading?!! All I have to say for this one is, that while I cannot recommend it per se, nor say it’s good, the title really is fitting, bc it is addictive as f.

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kateknowsdramas · 3 years

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What are your favorite cdramas??

Hi Nonnie!

I really do wish I watched more CDramas. There have been some really good ones but because they are longer and have more episodes per week, I tend to fall behind.

Anyway - here are some of my favorites:

The Rebel Princess/Monarch Industry

This show is gold. Absolutely amazing from start to finish. I wrote in detail about this masterpiece of a show here. We've got a couple who, once they get together, are absolutely ride or die the entire show. Our female lead is a certified badass. She's by far one of the best written female characters out there. Our male lead is the epitome of what a male lead character should be. Period. Gah. I could go on and on but I won't. Suffice to say, this is the gold standard for me. Just look at them!

The Wolf

This one does not have a particularly happy ending. And they cut a lot out of the show which means there's some choppy story. However, I love the main couple. For as tropey as the show is (and blatantly ridiculous in parts), I love it. Mostly because you've got a male lead who looks like he does and is completely in love with the female lead so...kinda hard to pass up for me.

The Romance of Tiger and Rose

A totally adorable show. Female lead is a modern day writer who gets thrown into her own novel. Shenanigans and romance ensue. Funny, romantic and just a fun watch.

The Eternal Love 1&2

I wasn't a huge fan of 'season 3' but it's still cute. This one is unabashedly one of my guilty pleasures. It's not a huge budget and it's a shorter drama. Another time travel one with a modern real estate agent being transported into the body of a shy woman. Her brashness contrasts with the proper, noble prince and they have great chemistry.

Some others I really enjoyed:

Love 020

Go Go Squid

Le Coupe de Foudre

Ashes of Love

I hope you find something you like!

#cdrama #cdrama recommendations

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aylinaliens · 4 years

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hii! do you have any chinese drama recommendations? i'm desperately in need of some good cdramas, and you seem to have great taste! :-)

Of course :) here’s a somewhat lengthy list of my favorite cdramas that I would recommend you watch! Almost all of these are available on either Netflix, Youtube, Viki, or the IQIYI app. If you have trouble finding links let me know!

Go Ahead (40 episodes): Hands down my favorite modern cdrama of all time. It follows these three children to adulthood who all come from dysfunctional families. They end up becoming this big found family with a widowed father who runs a noodle shop + a police officer. It’s adorable, hilarious, and absolutely heartbreaking. I still can’t listen to the OST without bawling my eyes out. If you like the found family trope and slice-of-life dramas go ahead and check this out. (spoiler alert: it DOES have a happy ending!!)

The Untamed (50 episodes): I feel like I don’t need to explain this but in case you haven’t watched this I really recommend you do! The length is daunting (I’m still watching it right now) and it’s confusing but it’s worth it.

Lovely Us (16 episodes): This is a hidden little gem that I wish more people would talk about. It takes place in 2007 and it’s about this group of friends who navigate high school, first love, family problems, and life together. It reminds me so much of the Korean drama series Reply because of the bond between the friends, family, and the neighborhood. This drama gives me the feeling of being wrapped up in a big blanket while drinking hot chocolate. You will find it hard to dislike ANY of the characters.

The Bad Kids (12 episodes): Okay @ EVERYONE please go watch this masterpiece of a drama I’m begging you. This is a crime/thriller/mystery about these three kids who witness a murder and essentially blackmails the murderer. It’s one of the best dramas I have ever watched. The acting, especially from the children, is phenomenal. I don’t think many people have watched this and it sucks because it’s so so good. I don’t want to give a ton of info about this because of spoilers but if you like crime/thrillers or dramas that generally explore the human psyche check this out! It’s pretty dark though so be aware of that!

The Romance of the Tiger and Rose (24 episodes): This is about this modern day script writer who gets transported into her own story! Except plot twist: instead of being the FL she ends up playing the role of an insignificant character who dies early in the story. Obviously she ends up defying this early death and changes the storyline completely. Along the way she gains enemies, falls in love, and well...creates chaos. It’s incredibly adorable, hilarious, and refreshing! The main romance between the script writer + the prince is swoon worthy (and kind of ridiculous in the best of ways).

Put Your Head on My Shoulder (24 episodes): The best way to describe this drama is that it’s just pure fluff. There is zero angst which some would find boring because there isn’t that many conflicts but honestly? I loved every second of it. It’s about these two college students on the cusp of graduating who ends up moving in with each other. It follows the basic “bubbly FL and cold ML” formula but in reality the ML is never mean to her at all. Rather he’s just socially awkward and clueless about love. It’s my go to comfort show to watch and it always brings a smile on my face.

The Best of You In My Mind (24 episodes): Childhood friends to lovers gets me every time and this drama really delivers on that front. It’s about this veterinary student and this archery player who attempt to navigate the woes of young adulthood. The romance is super cute and so are the side characters! It does focus a lot on archery + the team the ML is on but I thought it was interesting.

A Little Thing Called First Love (36 episodes): This is one of the most wholesome and sweetest dramas I have every watched. It’s about this shy/awkward girl who falls in love with one of the most popular guys in schools. They end up at the same college and slowly shift from friends to lovers. But this is a slow burn so if that is not your style you might want to stay away. Still, the wait was worth it because the ML and FL are honestly just awkward little puppies :)

Winter Begonia (49 episodes): I’m still watching this so I have no clue how this ends but EVERYONE NEEDS TO STOP SLEEPING ON THIS!!! This is in the same boat as the Untamed and The Guardian in which it’s based on a BL novel but is censored. It’s about this Peking opera performer and a wealthy businessman in the 1930′s-1940′s. It explores the Japanese invasion in Beiping and how the ML’s + characters around them struggle with it. Even if it’s censored it’s pretty clear to tell that the ML’s are in love with the way they look at each other and their actions. Plus they call each other soulmates so like...yeah. But it is a quite heavy historical drama full of angst so it’s understandable why this would not be everyone’s cup of tea.

Take My Brother Away (30 episodes): Yet another gem that is not talked about that much. This is about a pair of siblings who become codependent on each other because their mother left + father is absent. It’s very comical and wacky but it’s also really heartwarming.

Other C-Dramas that I recommend (** are the ones that I high rec)

Dating in the Kitchen

Arsenal Military Academy **

You Are So Sweet

A Love So Beautiful

With You

My Huckleberry Friends **

Professional Single

Le Coup de Foudre **

Begin Again

Guardian

When We Were Young **

When a Snail Falls in Love

The Best of Us

#i hope this helps!#i'm always down to give recs/talk about my favorite shows #my favorite cdrama genre is youth/modern so i haven't watched any of the lengthy historical ones #but i heard that nirvana in fire/love and redemption/ashes in love is well liked #ashes of love **#cdrama recs

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tytangfei · 4 years

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jina’s dramas awards 2020!

hello! starting last year, I started watching Chinese dramas again after a long break but I wasn’t actively seeking new shows until earlier this year. I have now gone through a bunch of dramas and so this is just a fun way for me to talk and celebrate my favorites that I was able to finish.

before I start, I will clarify that this list will mostly be of 2020 historical (or faux historical) dramas, especially historical romantic comedies/detectives as that’s what I mainly watch. I do occasionally venture into political dramas or republican eras and modern dramas but still with a romance focus.

without further ado, I present my personal awards to these dramas!

best overall drama: under the power (ran from 2019 into 2020)

most delightful/fun drama: the romance of tiger & rose; runner up: maiden holmes

most impactful drama: the sleepless princess

most unexpected drama (aka the dark horse): oh! my sweet liar!

drama with the best soundtrack: the sweet girl (a republican era romcom); runner up: eternal love rain; 3rd: my dear destiny

best costume/design/set drama: oh! my sweet liar!

favorite modern drama: poisoned love

favorite drama aired from any year & watched in 2020: goodbye my princess (2019)

favorite currently-watching drama: unique lady season 2 (final episodes will spill into 2021)

drama with a soft spot in my heart: miss truth

what were your favorites of this year and why? feel free to hit me up and let me know! I’m always happy to check out new dramas! (especially if there are any historical romcoms that I haven’t seen/heard about yet!)

cut below here is my definition for the categories and also the explanation/reasoning for why each drama was placed in its specific category!

Here’s how I defined the categories for my purposes~

best overall drama: drama that I felt delivered on most/all front of what makes a good drama: production, characters, casting, story and plots, cinematography, soundtrack, etc. Or in general it gave a satisfactory experience.

most delightful/fun drama as the drama that delighted me the most, whether it’s the comedy or dynamic of characters or themes; whatever it is, whether it was objectively good or not, it brought me a lot of joy!)

most impactful drama: I think of this category as the drama that wrecked me emotionally and I’m still thinking about it weeks or months later; I still think back to specific scenes and can remember your exact emotions when a scene happened. basically, this drama haunts me in a good way!

most unexpected drama (aka a dark horse drama) - a drama that exceeded my original expectations and impressed me a lot for a variety of reasons

drama with best soundtrack: I swear, a drama can elevate from like a 6/10 to like an 8/10 based on soundtrack alone. The music is so important to adding to the story and so it often elevates how much I like a drama.

best costume/design/set drama: straightforward category but thought it was important to recognize dramas that are doing so much to elevate the show through clothes and sets and settings!

favorite republican era/modern/genre drama: just a chance for me to talk about a favorite drama outside of the historical romcom genre I watch

favorite drama aired from any year & watched this year: of course, there are a lot of good dramas from previous years and I’m slowly watching some of them, but I’d like to watch them.

favorite currently-watching drama: there are dramas that airs at the end of 2020 and finishes in 2021. I still want to give them a chance to shine!

drama with a soft spot in my heart: a drama that’s important to me, no matter it’s quality whether it’s good or not.

Now here’s why I selected the dramas!

best overall drama: under the power: a historical detective drama with the slowest slow burn romance I’ve ever witnessed in a cdrama, the actors, story, and production overall was very satisfying. I was interested pretty much all through 55 episodes and cared about all the characters (except the villain, of course, and he did a wonderful job as well--I loved hating him because he was awful). I especially appreciated the story taking the time to give so much depth and focus too on the supporting characters and develop their characters and relationships. Also, all the actors really look like they’re in the time period rather than looking like actors playing dress-up.

most delightful/fun drama: the romance of tiger & rose ran during the summer and was a perfect timing of a summer lighthearted sweet faux historical romcom. It was one of the first romcoms I was highly invested in and watched every week because the story was hilarious, the characters lovable, with a strong soundtrack and great memorable scenes. the leads had great chemistry too. runner up: maiden holmes had a lot of tropes that I liked and may seemed cliché from that point, but it really made the best of those tropes with the a bunch of new actors (the only one who wasn’t new was Sabrina) and killed it. I loved the found family, I loved a good ending. this drama gave me some angst at times but warmed my heart overall. (my favorite scene is her dance. that broke me.)

most impactful drama: the sleepless princess: this drama ruined me in a good way. I still think about this drama all the time because of all the wonderful things about it: the actors with incredible chemistry--truly, I want them to do another historical romcom because they’re perfect together--the characters they brought to life, the comedy, the tenderness, the soundtrack that I’m addicted to, the story, the endearing supporting characters. Those who have seen the drama may hate the ending, but I think the director actually guided us enough to lead us to that bittersweet ending. I don’t hate it. Also, we do get an alternative ending too. One of my absolute favorite things about this drama is how they handled the second ML--who could’ve been made to be annoying, but wasn’t--and I don’t think I’ve seen another cdrama yet to handle it like this. Overall, the drama may not be perfect overall, but it left me the biggest impression with some great plot and character twists and the incredible sweet & angst scenes. Also, I now love the actors so much and am so deeply impressed with them. I have now started watching their older dramas because of this drama. That’s how much of an effect this drama and these actors had on me, lol.

most unexpected drama (aka the dark horse): oh! my sweet liar! one of the most divisive dramas I’ve seen from an audience, people either love or hate this show but I will defend it til the ends of times. I went into this drama expecting a standard historical romcom with the trope of fake marriage, etc., but got so much more. The beautiful cinematography, the moving soundtrack with great vocals, the surprisingly deep moral lessons--this show transcended my expectations in all the ways. The character growth, the building of the FL and ML’s trust with one another, the simple lie that becomes more complicated and heavy as the female lead starts to care deeply about the family she’s lying to--this drama did a great job overall. It was a rocky start, but quickly became a favorite.

drama with the best soundtrack: the sweet girl (a republican era romcom): now this is a standard romcom with wacky situations and sweet scenes, with not too much at stakes here, but nevertheless able to deliver strong scenes--half of it thanks to the great soundtrack. I literally still remember scenes from this show thanks to the memorable soundtrack. I still listen to it months later. runner up: eternal love rain: I cheated a little here; I haven’t finished this drama yet, but I mean, I can tell I love the soundtrack because of how much it elevates the drama and the scenes already, making my impression of this drama pretty good so far. I also adore the main actors’ real voices in a cover of one of the main songs. 3rd: my dear destiny: sorry, I also cheated here--I’m not done watching it, mostly because it’s not done subbing! But! I am also addicted to the soundtrack and listen to it almost every day while I’m working. But yes, again, a good soundtrack can really elevate a drama, and this soundtrack really makes this drama so much better.

best costume/design/set drama: oh! my sweet liar! I am most impressed with the settings and places on this show. It looks like it was shot at actual locations. It’s very pretty and at the same time has natural looks. Probably just good camera work, but it really brought out the quality of the physical settings. I also put this drama here because the wedding scene--which was the most unique wedding I’d ever seen before and I absolutely love it. And, last of all, the ML’s look. The little square clip thing on top of his head is so simple yet distinguishing. Something about this show, I swear. It exceeds what I expected from a typical historical romcom, thus, I am deeply impressed with it.

favorite modern drama: poisoned love: I rarely venture into modern dramas because they can get super ridiculous really quickly and it’s harder for me to suspend my disbelief in a modern setting. However, I really appreciate the care put into this show and the acting, especially the female lead. She had to act so many hilarious expressions and made me laugh so much. I also appreciate that the drama didn’t simply gloss over the FL’s illness. I always get super worried when dramas address illnesses, so I’m glad that it was handled decently. A second thing I appreciated was the pure domesticity of the main couple when they finally got together. They were very sweet in simple ways. A third thing I liked was the second ML’s growth. There was a moment where I really disliked him but his growth made me feel better.

favorite drama aired from any year & watched this year: goodbye my princess (2019) I heard of this drama for a while and had even accidentally listened to the soundtrack (thanks to YouTube autoplay suggestions). At long last, I finally watched it during early summer and, wow, truly, it is as the reviews rave. It’s complex, it’s beautiful, it’s heartbreaking, it’s haunting. Nothing but applause for the production crew and actors--especially the director and the main leads. This drama showed me how great a chinese drama can be. Like, yes, wuxia dramas are impressive with their actions, their magic, and god characters, but what’s great about this drama is human flaws. Characters who are flawed and doing what they can under their circumstances. I love this drama so much because they were able to convey such nuance, such depth, such grey morality within the realistic world.

favorite currently-watching drama: unique lady season 2 (final episodes will spill into 2021) I am just full of giddiness for this drama. I watched the whole first season way earlier this year (during my phase of watching VR-game, faux historical romcom) and liked a lot of things, especially the comedy, the soundtrack, and the main leads, but I didn’t expect it would get a second season! The second season so far is starting out so well with so much fun, comedy, and sweet scenes. It’s just a lot of fun so far and I’m so glad for it.

drama with a soft spot in my heart: miss truth: I still can’t believe this drama only aired this year. It felt like a lifetime ago when I saw a fmv for it and immediately went ‘yes, i’m going to find and watch this drama now.’ this drama was the one that started my deep spiral into cdramas. a historical detective romance, I loved the dynamic of the two leads so much--that dislike/distrust-to-love dynamic with bickering and pining. I liked the soundtrack, I was impressed with the main actors--especially Zhou Jie Qiong as this was her first drama and first main role, and also Li Chengbin who is a pretty versatile actor. There are many little things I loved about this show. It’s unfortunate that c*onsorsh*p has caused the drama to be written hugely different than the novel.

If you got this far, thank you so much for reading! <3 feel free to message/ask me about any of these shows!

#under the power #the romance of tiger and rose #maiden holmes #the sleepless princess #oh! my sweet liar!#the sweet girl #eternal love rain #my dear destiny #goodbye my princess #unique lady s2 #unique lady #miss truth #chinese dramas #cdramas #jina drama list 2020

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dangermousie · 4 years

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‘They can’t do transmigration properly due to censors’ what do you mean by that?

I have just answered it in a previous ask, but a little more detail.

China, like many dictatorships, has a censorship office that ensures that whatever media comes out does not say anything those in power dislike for whatever reason (from completely understandable the government will ban it - no criticism of the Communist Party or the ruling President, to bizarre as hell - no time travel or zombies.)

Because of this, every show released in China must be entirely filmed and then submitted to censors for approval. Censors will then either clear it or state what changes need to be made (or say it’s unsalvageable.) That is a reason some shows sit on the shelf for a while. Two of my most anticipated dramas, The Wolf and The Fated General, have been on the shelf since 2017. The former, due to episode count and violence. The latter, due to episode count - which censorship also limits, and because it’s about a historical person and the rules there are super strict, is likely to never see the light of day. There is also Love of Hypnosis, for example, which ran afoul of censorship, because one of secondary actors made comments about the Massacre of Nanking that were not good. There are many other examples.

Sometimes the censors can yank a show bare minutes before airing - happened to my second most favorite cdrama, Novoland Eagle Flag, which literally got yanked 20 minutes before it was set to air and didn’t premiere for months and had to be edited. Sometimes they will yank it mid airing - as happened with Luo Jin’s Gods. Sometimes the show is released but the censors messed with the storyline to its detriment. The recent near-masterpieces Rise of the Phoenixes and Royal Nirvana missed the masterpiece status due the storyline cuts and changes mandated by censors.

The rules are somewhat looser for web-only dramas than those that air on TV but the bulk of them apply to both. And censors have been getting extra zealous recently. It gets especially tricky for period dramas because they are too popular.

Anyway, censorship rules are arcane and change from month to month and sometimes are completely arbitrary. They also seem to vary from drama to drama (I have no idea how Love and Redemption or The Untamed were able to get away with half of what they got away with.)

But nonetheless, there are also a number of topics that are explicitly prohibited. If you don’t have them, the drama might still run into issues. If you have them, you certainly will. Everyone knows those rules and tap dances around them.

Transmigration (ie a person waking up in a body of some fictional or real person in another world/era/setting) has been banned since 2011, when Bu Bu Jing Xin and Jade Person Lock Heart became monster hits - the heroines of both of them transmigrate into a body of a Qing person. Ostensibly, the reason was because some deeply disturbed person tried to transmigrate and died. What the real reason was who knows, though censors and rules don’t seem to like things that are popular and too fantastical (with exception for things in traditional Chinese folklore, like fox demons and similar.) Until recently, they weren’t even big on science fiction.

So, you can not have a character transmigrate on screen. This is a sure way to have your drama banned. However, transmigration is one of the most popular set-ups in web novels many dramas are based on. So the makers have to come with work arounds.

They include:

1. Completely ignoring transmigration and just making the transmigrator a person of that period/country. Some of my favorite dramas do this - The Story of Minglan, Ever Night, The Princess Agents, Singing All Along, General and I. Those are usually stories where the fact that the person transmigrated is relatively easy to deal with by just making them a normal very smart/tough person.

2. Making that person somehow magical/twin/double instead of a transmigrator into the original body - Princess Silver, Legend of Fuyao, Untouchable Lovers.

3. Wink wink nudge nudge. In Love Better than Immortality, the heroine supposedly enters a game simulator. In Joy of Love, they really did an eff you and the set-up is the student telling his professor story the main character of which transmigrates, heh. The Untamed is a great example - in the novel, the protagonist’s soul gets summoned from the dead and put into another body. In the drama they play coy and make damn muddy as to whether he even died in the first place and magic just somehow revived him in his original body.

4. Shared dream or coma until it’s time to wake up. Go Princess Go - sort of (as an older web drama they got away with a lot more than a drama could nowadays), The Romance of Tiger and Rose. Though even there, they usually make sure to have the person wake up in the end and it was somehow a shared dream or similar.

So, basically, they could not have the heroine of Renascence transmigrate her soul into her sister’s per se. Having her soul merge with her sister’s is skirting a millimeter away from what is forbidden, but as someone who comes from another country with censorship, there is a talent in knowing exactly how far you can push without breaking the rules and how to have things between the lines.

#asks #cdrama #censorship

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