You are My Destiny (2020)

Good story but draggy second half

My oversimplified review
STORY: The initial story line is good but the misunderstandings could have been cleared up way sooner than was shown in the drama. Great character development in Wang Xi Yi, Chen Jia Xin, Wang Zhen Ren, Leanne Liu, and Di Lun (Dylan). I applaud the story for emphasizing the loss of a child and its effects (emotionally) on parents, something I often don’t see talked about especially in Chinese media.
EXECUTION: Chemistry between the leads was perfect. Main couple gets together ep 19/36 (and later in ep36/36). Plenty of laughable moments, especially from Anson. Wang Zhen Zhu (grandmother/chairwoman) was one of the best characters from the drama. Music fit the scenes well (蜗牛的愿望-印子月 and 哎呀爱 Ai Ya Ai -李俊毅 were my favorites). My main gripe with the show is that the second half of the drama was a draggy and Shi Anna (possessive ex) drove me nuts. I rarely fast forward shows, but this one was an exception as I found myself putting the drama between 1 and 6x speed for some scenes.
OVERALL: Good story line involving a one night stand, love triangle, family, and the loss of a pregnancy but has an extremely draggy second half.

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Nice drama but draggy ending

This drama ‘You are my Destiny ‘ is a remake, The Drama You Are My Destiny has around 6 to 7 remake the Chinese version is also a remake the original version was a Japanese one.This drama had A really nice and funny beginning like a ugly girl who didn’t had confidence met a handsome and a confident man, the plot was also really and funny , it revolved around these two people who accidentally slept together in a cruse ship and the girl turns out pregnant and then there fake marriage was about to end with a divorce but all this fake marriage turn real but due to a misunderstanding about the divorce the female lead gets in a accident and her baby dies , the attack about her baby makes her so sad the she leaves her husband with a divorce for 3 years and when they finally meet there are lots of fights and all , they made the ending really long they could had ended it earlier.

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Should you drop or cop this series?

Watching this because I’ve watched the original Taiwanese series. I can say that I Love the cast! I watched 不说谎的恋人 ( Mr honesty) and immediately this was the next drama I binged on; so I can say that Liang Jie is a great actress. As for Xing Zhao Lin, have watched his earlier works way before and In this drama, his emotional scenes really get to me..

However, I felt that the ending was a little rushed and it made me want more; maybe then having a second child? Although I know it’s a remake but I can help but wish for a much more cliche ending.

So to answer the question, cop this drama if you have the time for one and drop if you have high expectations and hope for it to be as good as the original Taiwanese version.

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I have seen all the different dramas of this remake. I personally loved Fated to Love You the most. Also, one of the best things that have been done here are the cast, I love how they act and the way they can express emotions. They are my favorite actors and knowing that they made the remake I was encouraged to watch this drama. I watched all 10 released episodes in 1 day without skipping one bit. It was very interesting and I loved every second. I can't wait for the rest episodes to come!! Another topic is the plot, personally I didn't think it would be good since it kind of has the same idea as Fated to Love You. I believed it would be repetitive to a certain extent but I was surprised of how well they used this story line. Perfectly understandable and well done!

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Misleading summary and categorization ruined my mood after watching this story.

Beautiful story transforms into sadness after Ximi dye. one moment ruined the whole serie, in my opinion, What kind of monster implement unborn child death into a romantic series. And why is it categorised as comedy? There is no funny moments. Romance at first, then devastation.

I want to watch series to bust my mood, but this series gave me high hopes at beginning and then totally ran over it. This story really gives the "salt on the wound".

If you are like me and you watch series to escape everyday life and feel the joy and happiness while watching them. Then you probably shouldn't watch it because it would just make your mood go down really fast.

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I'm losing my interest

After watching a good episodes, I started to lose my interest because of Anna evil interference. That's not what I expect to happen and but I can totally accept that but the reaction of Jia Xin is unexpected. I thought he trusted Xiyi? Why all of a sudden, she just walk out and talk it over with him. She did not listen to Xi yi first and that's a natural reaction. This is not a good motivation to watch this drama. It's dragging the story and no longer as consistent and unrealistic. Better yet, don't watch the next episodes and just leave where you at now.

Disappointed

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If you're looking for a fun romance or least good chemistry or even romantic angst, this show does not deliver. I have the seen 14 episodes which have aired and up till now, this is a disappointment.

I am a huge fan of the leading couple because of the 'The Eternal Love' series. Their chemistry was absolutely sizzling in both the seasons. However, I can barely force myself to watch them being roommates with such boring interactions that can only make me encourage their divorce. Maybe it is the characters who are so ridiculous, the FL being the biggest pushover history has ever seen and the ML is becoming a straight-up two-timing for months together without showing any concern or love for the FL. Its almost painful watching these two interact like guests at a funeral in the bedroom while the giant photograph of ML's gf hangs in the background. I cannot believe Liang Jie accepted this role because she does well as a more decisive, self-respecting character.

So I've watched the Korean version of this show which was more concise, and the ML offered some character and strength to the show. I didn't enjoy the story in that version either but due to it being shorter it was well-paced, it still held my attention.

Overall I'm not a fan. If you want to watch this story, the Korean version is better. Also, the leading couple was great in The Eternal Love which I strongly recommend.

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I have now seen (though not completed) every version of this story minus the Thai version. The original is the first drama I ever watched and was 100% a crack drama for me, so despite its flaws, it holds a special place in my heart. It also has one of the two best female lead portrayals of the four versions I've seen. Chen Xin Yi gives a deeply affecting performance as our resident post-it girl, moving you with her smiles and her tears. When she cried, You cried. I watched the Korean version next and consider it the best version as well as my favorite. The writers toned down all of the over-the-top and nonsensical bits from the original, grounding the characters and the story, without losing any comedy, and the OTP is definitely a fav. I also immediately adored Jang Na Ra's character with all of her softness and tenderness and fabulous fashion sense and consider her a tie with Chen Xin Yi for best portrayal. Next, I watched the Japanese version which is much shorter, much quicker, and ends exactly in the middle of the story with no likelihood of another season to give the story a conclusion. This version admittedly has poor pacing and very little build up before some of the major events of the story, but I still enjoyed it and will be forever disappointed that we didn't get a season 2. It's the perfect drama for turning off your brain and enjoying the ride.

Now we come to this version, the C-drama. This is the only version I have not finished and barring a future viewing of the Thai version (which I imagine will be every bit as dramatic as the original with probably a LOT of abuse thrown the female leads way based on my impression of what Thai dramas seem to be like), this version (c-drama) is my least favorite.

This version attempts to tell the story straight without much in the way of comedy, which could have been an interesting angle to tell the story from, but the more I watched, the more I found myself wishing the drama had more of a sense of humor. While the comedy of the original was outlandish and over-the-top (even sometimes grating), it still served as a well-deserved break from all of the melodrama. This version certainly is not as melodramatic as the original, but it was maybe something worse. Bland. It took all of the pertinent characters and events of the original, arranged the pieces in a similar fashion, and then did very little of interest with them. There's not much done to flesh out the characters or create compelling motivations, little to make the male lead a little more likable or sympathetic, and there's only light comedy which mostly centers around a few side characters. There's just no real personality with this version, except maybe to be a little more depressing.

They do start to switch things up a bit at one point in the story with the male lead deciding to stay with the female lead and come clean to Anna only for the female lead to start expressing uncertainty and fear at this reversal. I was hopeful that they would really lean into the male lead recognizing his feelings and the female lead panicking and pushing him away. It would have been great to explore the female leads insecurity and create some meaningful backstory for her character. They make an attempt at this, but it's half-hearted at best and is quickly followed by the expected shenanigans with the second female lead and 'the incident,' which cancels out the writers' efforts and leaves you dissatisfied.

Many of the performances are forgettable as well. There are a handful of characters that are well acted, namely the male lead, both leads best friends (who have a far more interesting and enjoyable romance), and the female leads mother, but the story is so uninteresting that their performances are not very meaningful. (Apart from the mother, who seems to always be one of the best characters in this story, with exception to the J-drama.) The female lead is particularly uninspiring. First and foremost, they did very little to make her appear mousy and insecure, which goes a long way to believing a character. But she also had very little range when it came to her facial expressions and tone of voice. She always looked and sounded mildly sad and detached, which didn't benefit the story or her character..

Ultimately, all three other versions I've seen have had something unique to bring to the table, something to make you want to watch. The original is, well, the original, as well as a classic Taiwanese drama, and regardless of how over-the-top and dramatic it is, it has a female lead that pulls at your heartstrings. The Japanese version is weak in terms of pacing, and it ends in the middle of the story, so that's a bummer, but it's a quick and easy watch that won't make you tear your hair out. You can turn your brain off and enjoy it for what it is. And as I've already said, I think the Korean version is the best. It put meat on the bones of the story, elevating it and its characters to something more meaningful and resonant. Sadly, this version can offer nothing but blandness.

I imagine there are plenty of people who really like this version, even love it, and I'm not here to rain on their parade. I quit after episode 21, so maybe I missed where things got good. But from what I saw, I thought it was rather uninspired, and I didn't have any interest in finishing it.

Links to my reviews for the other versions:

https://mydramalist.com/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/review/22006

https://mydramalist.com/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/review/22004

https://mydramalist.com/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/reviews/75009

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Frustrating

Dropped at 21, skipped to the last 8 mins of the last episode, even then I couldn't finish it til the end.

I wasn't sure if I was going to go for this drama cause I knew that this was not my kind of story. The original drama I think was from 2007 when this kind of story was the trend - a lot of anguish, self sacrifice, major miscommunication urghh!

Wang Zi Yi - take away all the supposed cute moments he and Chen Jiaxin had, bottom line he was a selfish jerk for about half of the drama. He may have redeemed himself in the other half but dropped the show by then - another evil character appears - I really couldn't take it anymore!

Chen Jiaxin - an idiot for about half of the drama. She may also have redeemed herself in the other half but dropped the show by then. She was actually still a frustrating character in the last 8 minutes of the episode.

I did like Anson and Liu Si Qi.

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TBH i really loved the Taiwanese version of it. Saw reviews that said that the ML in this drama is less like a jerk? but to me i feel like he is the same old guy, still a jerk and immature. he doesn't show any love to FL and still together with ANNA for half the drama. dont see how "mature" he gets. lol. really dont see the love he has for FL and is still as immature as before, eg, getting jealous while he can still talk to anna. nothing much has changed. oh wellls.. started to get really boring at about 15ep. but i must say that some of the plot has changed and is a little different from the original story. love their acting though

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The Story was good but the execution is not

The Story was good and ML lead did an excellent job.I am too surprised that the FL is expecting yet her tummy is still flat and she is running and climbing stairs and wearing heels...weird .......
I guess the ML really did a good job and so did the 2nd supporting ML (Dylan) , it could have been really better but I lost the interest, might not watch it further.
There could have been some better moments captured , though I liked the fact that there are no eveil sister-in-laws and aunties but there could have been a way to show a Pregnant women Pregnant at least........ or was the herione not interested , just in case this will spoil her image.The Character Anna was played well by the 2nd ML and so was by the actress who was the grandma.
I guess it is the ML who pulled this show fully.

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This mainland China version is also a great rendition of the original “Fated To Love You” drama. Even though the drama has some minor differences that make the story a little bit distinctive, the main plot remains the same. This adaptation doesn’t have the farce characterization with absurd type comedy. The actors did a great job bringing their characters to life and the leading couple has very good and credible chemistry. The leading couple brought about a good range of emotions and really tugged at the heartstrings with their melodramatic rendition of a couple that went through immense loss and suffering. Overall, this drama is very entertaining. Enjoy it!

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