A Love So Beautiful (2017)

Sweet and innocent about growing up

Very sweet story about growing up and loving someone.
The script is what I would call quite "mellow", as it does not contain many intrigues or big dramatic events, rather we participate in the characters' development and growth. It’s not super original, but it is kind of memorable, much thanks to the cast.

The cast does a good job, and the filmography is quite lovely. Some scenes might feel a bit unnecessary or dragged out, but not so much I skipped forward or felt annoying.
The group of friends works really well as a whole; the different characters complement and contrast each other.

I can see myself rewatching this show in the future, either with my daughter or if I'm in the need of something uncomplicated and sweet.

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This drama is said to be another adaptation of the "It Started With A Kiss" franchise. I personally haven't watched any of these except for this version thus I'm gonna base my review from this alone without any comparison :D.

Most of us have experienced studying in high school. Although not everyone had experiences of relationships in high school, most likely we have observed this happenings around us. "A Love So Beautiful" is that drama that highlights the  innocence of high school as well as the experiences of having a crush or falling in love with someone. This drama has a typical high school drama plot line which focuses on the lives of the main characters during high school. This is another instance wherein a drama doesn't appeal to be deep, but merely to be relatable. I'll delve deeper with this review by discussing each components for rating, from its story until the rewatch value.

The story of this drama is light. It's a story that is easy to digest since the story is told in a linear manner. The pacing was kind of steady but the ratio between the past and present was kind of unsatisfying. I believe that the story would've been more interesting if it was able to balance the two parts of the story since the character development can be highlighted more in a setting as such. Another characteristic of the story is that it's romantic. But this characteristic is a double edged sword. It was able to create a story that can be fantasized by many but it can create misconceptions in terms its main theme: love. It was my dilemma while watching the drama since at times it challenges my thoughts about relationships.

Next is the Acting and the Cast. Personally, this component is the one that made me continue watching the series. It might seem a bit contrary since I only gave it an 8.5 out of 10 but I considered many factors in rating this criteria. The casting for this drama is really great. The chemistry between them is really commendable.
Shen Yue and Hu Yi Tian's chemistry however, is what made this drama special. It can tug heartstrings and it can make you punch or slap the back of someone who is beside you. If the casting was the only thing to take into consideration in rating, I would've gave this a perfect rating, but there is a need to rate the acting, thus lowering my score. There are many times while watching that I felt sad because there were many opportunities to show more emotions, to give more adlibs but there wasn't anything. Character relationships aren't even an excuse because the acting could've been better and sometimes, you feel that the acting is a bit too calculated. The latter lines however, pertains to the acting for the two main actors, Shen Yue and Hu Yi Tian. The acting isn't perfect, nor excellent, but it's still commendable.

The music for this drama is actually good but the thing is, it can only be memorable if you don't skip the opening sequence. The theme songs are beautiful, but I the music lacked variety, thus lowering my score.

Lastly the rewatch value. I personally think that this drama has a really high rewatch value since it's a light watch and also because of the cast remarkable and memorable chemistry.

It has been a long time since I last watched a Chinese drama and I must day, watching this drama was a good and pleasant experience. I recommend that people to watch this if they want a light and a heartwarming drama :D.

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Watch it if you’re looking for lighthearted kind of drama

I watched this only for the plot. I'm a sucker for this kind of drama.

At first I was kinda irritated with Xiao Xi, she's one of those stupid love slave that would do anything for her love. But as the story goes, I am relieved to see how she grew into a well matured and well thought woman. Same thing as Jiang Chen. But what I'm trying to say is I'm really glad they showed how both leads maturing and face their own mistakes. I'm glad they showed how the leads changing into a better person.

I'm kinda disappointed though... Instead of wasting time to shows unimportant things, they should've took that time to make important scene better.

Overall it's a nice drama.
In the end, if you're looking for simple, lovey-dovey, cute kind of drama, watch it!

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Sorry if this is long. I rarely finish a drama so I want to write thoughtful reviews whenever I do from now on!

Short review:
This drama is cute! If you want a cute fluff, this drama is definitely for you! Think: Itazura Na Kiss but less elaborate and a bit more variety in characters and instances.

The more elaborate review:
I RARELY finish a drama but for some reason, I breezed through this one pretty easily! I watched this in less than 24 hours (I skipped scenes that didn't interest me), it's on youtube too so that helped a lot! I think each ep is only 40 mns if u skip the intro song (it showed lots of spoilers so I recommend skipping it), preview (tip: skip to 160 secs on yt to go straight to the ep!) and the credits!

The story revolved mostly during their time in highschool. Lots of school dramas, as u can imagine: jealousy, love, family, friendship and ofc the infamous asian grade pressuring of parents to their children.

The story after they graduated felt VERY rushed. I wish they could've presented it in a more elaborate way. The story telling was pretty messy and everything was happening SO FAST. There was a time (I think around ep 17-18) where I was like, wait did i skip an ep??? bc everything was so sudden.

For the characters:
XiaoXi. Sigh. Girl, where's the self-respect?? She really didn't know when to distance herself from Jiang Chen. I guess he doesn't mind but it's frustrating for me, a girl viewer, to see someone submitting themselves so much to a guy who barely even shows his real feelings towards her. I get that she's like that at first but during the last legs of the highschool story arc, I was just fed up. She also didn't mature that much when they graduated. Not as annoying but she really does forgive him too easily and when she doesn't, she becomes annoying again by not even listening properly to him and what he has to say. She's cute though and I now stan Shen Yue (the actress). She so smol tho aw

Jiang Chen. Sigh again. BOI IF U DON'T-!!!!! Idk how to feel about his character, he's cold but not too cold. I relate to to him in a way tho, idk how to express feelings properly. I was so annoyed he kept on entertaining Lee Wei but I guess in the end, she really needed his help. He needed to learn to express his feelings and his motives for the things that he does for XX. I liked tho that he's become open about his feelings for her to his friend. Also, during the times XX and him were together, he was open to doing what she wants eventho he's not a fan of them. He's a tad bit possessive and selfish tho (not that much of a bad thing ;)). I also like his arc as a doctor bc he never neglected his duties. He's given a proper bg story for me to understand why he was the way that he was so I guess I didn't remember much of what annoyed me of his character.

Wu Bo Song. He's such a sweetheart. A generous, kind and loving sweetheart. I like his story arc as a swimmer. I don't have much to say about him as his character was the typical nice 2nd male lead. We're all used to that. He's the Kin-chan of this story, basically.

Second main couple: their characters were very well written from beginning to end and honestly, they might just be the reason you'll keep on watching.

OTP:
Chemistry was great! The height difference never fail to surprise me whenever I see it lol.

Some annoying things abt their relationship: misunderstandings. They literally got separated for a long time just bc there was a misunderstanding (also bc both of then are hardheaded). They never communicate properly (as u do in these stories) that's why they don't meet halfway. It git annoying so I definitely skipped some of those parts.

One thing I liked about their relationship is when he was having his internship/job at the hospital, XX never complained of how him being a doctor gets in the way of their relationship. Whenever he gets a call, she can get upset but still, she understands. That's why she's perfect for him. As for the sweet moments, it takes a while before we get there and there's not much but when there is, it's very very cute!! We should've gotten a bit more intimate moments, I remember having an ep where they were just acting SO CUTE and next ep was literally hell. One step forward, two step backwards (as u do ofc). It was even worse the second time around.

The ending felt VERY rushed so we didn't get to have enough otp moments. They were very cute tho! Love the scenes on her apartment. He's so into her, it's great. I'm getting Scorpio vibes from Jiang Chen, and XiaoXi is the Cancer to his obsessed Scorpio! Lol.

Final thoughts:
All in all, despite my rants above, this was an easy watch! I recommend it bc seems like lots of people liked it too. Many says this is the greatest drama they've ever watched (which confuses me bc it's pretty average), it's pretty good when you're looking for a lighthearted drama! The otp is so cute!!! I would love to watch them again (I've known about the "scandal" midway through the drama and it did kinda ruin the fantasy for me but i got over it eventually). I've became a fan of Shen Yue.

Ps. Hu Yi Tian looks like Park Bo Gum + Sehun in some angles and Shen Yue looks like Mugi Kadowaki + Tsuchiya Tao!

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I really love this drama.
The story is really good and so is the acting.
I love both the main couple and the side couple.
I also love the character development, their characters developed so much after high school, especially Cheng Xiaoxi.
And OMG I love Wu Bosong, I think they found the perfect person for that role. He gave me major Second lead syndrome and till today I still ship him and Cheng Xaoxi.
The male lead too is pretty good, at first I was really angry that he was so mean to her, but later on they made us understand that he really cares for her. This was nice and pretty sweet so I'm not so mad that he ended up with Cheng Xiaoxi.

Overall this drama is really good and I would definitely rewatch some parts, especially for my Wu Busong... he's just so amazing.

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SUPERB CHEMISTRY OF Hu yitian and ShenYue

This is the first drama that i noticed c drama existed hahahaha. Im not a fan of c drama literally because i'm into kdrama most of the time.
The leads FL and ML is so matched with each other. I love the storyline, the OST and the story plot.
This is the first main role of Shenyue and for me she nailed it. Her character as chen xiaoxi will always marked on her image as an actress.
I love also the friendship on this drama, the rapport since they grew up and had a job.
Overall, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED C-DRAMA FOR ME.
Just like its title ' A LOVE SO BEAUTIFUL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I binged watched this drama over a course of three days and my only regret is that I wish it was longer. I usually do not watch C-dramas, but I saw the reviews for this drama series and decided to give it a shot and was not disappointed at all. It has honestly become one of my favourite dramas.

STORY: The story is simple and not too heavy and deals with real life problems, such as relationships, school and the future. As many other reviews have stated, the majority of the drama is set while they are in high school but that does not subtract away from the story. While it is mostly set at a good pace, towards the end there were a few large jumps between times, which was not always a bad thing, My only wish was that it lasted a bit longer. While I felt the last episode was rewarding, I just wish they could of added more onto their story. As for the romance, I loved it! It's exactly what I want from a drama. While some people may not like a tsundere character (someone who acts cold but is secretly a cinnamon roll), I personally found it very sweet, especially the secret smiles Jiang Chen gives Chen Xiaoxi and the way he cares for her in his own way. Though his affection for her is more obvious later on in the drama. If you like cute romances, a (sort of) realistic drama that is not too heavy and has a simple story, then I would definitely watch this drama.

ACTING: I really enjoyed the acting in this drama as well. Shen Yue did a great job portraying Chen Xiaoxi, who is a very cheerful and optimistic person. Hu Yitian also did a great job, especially in his expressions when he subtly shows his concern and affection for Chen Xiaoxi. All the other actors did a great job as well, I didn't feel like the acting was way over the top like it sometimes is for dramas. Overall, I thought everyone did a great job!

MUSIC: Ugh! The song at the beginning of each episodes gets me every time. It honestly fits so well with the drama and the side story that involves the song is so adorable. The song basically describes Chen Xiaoxi and Jiang Chen relationship and honestly just tugs at my heart strings. For that reason, I give it a high rating.

RE-WATCH VALUE: I will definitely re-watch this drama and I feel like its my ideal/ perfect drama. However, I can understand if other people do not feel the same way as the story was quite simple and other may find it tedious to watch again. For me personally, I defiantly want to re-watch it.

Overall, I loved this drama. If you prefer dramas that have a heavy story line and some action if you will, this may not be for you and that is completely understandable. While it is not all sunshine and roses in it, as there are parts that are quite sad, the majority of it does not have a heavy feel to it. I definitely experienced the drama hangover after finishing it, but I'm so glad I watched it and was a breath of fresh air from the other dramas that I usually watch. I would definitely recommend!

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