The Romance of Tiger and Rose (2020)

Must Watch - Perfect blend of Drama and Hilarious Comedy performed by a stellar cast

Normally I'm not a fan of "Historical" Period dramas as they tend to be overly dramatic, slow and with "cringe" acting. Romance of The Tiger and Rose is an exception. The FL Chen QianQian (Rosy Zhao) is a screenwriter whose drama about 2 different cities, one matriarchal and one patriarchal, has been panned as being illogical and nonsensical by her potential future show's lead actor Han / Han Shuo (Ryan Ding). It's contempt at first sight. Then somehow a supernatural event happens and she gets sucked into the world of a screenplay. Hilarious hi-jinks ensue as she becomes a no good, hated, bit character fated to die from poisoning according to her plot. How will she survive?

This series utilizes the tired old trope of getting sucked into another world but does it REALLY well. I commend the scriptwriter for turning in a fine screenplay, I was impressed by the political messages - sexism is bad, equality is good, people can overcome their shortcomings, parental love is no joke, people do things out of obligation for people they love, storytellers are smarter than you think, love makes you stupid and power is hell of a drug. All of these themes are seamlessly weaved into the story, and the FL at times "rants" about how stupid some of the characters are behaving while acknowledging that it's indirectly HER fault for writing them that way "damn, this is MY fault now how do I fix it?

Things happen as every SINGLE drama trope is explored. Assassination, poison, jail, slow motion scenes to get the leads to fall in love with each other slowly, the FL resisting the ML, who does the same, a 3rd party trying to mess things up, you name it. It's delicious self parody at the highest level, I cannot commend Nan Zhen (the screen writer) enough for creating this world and the situations enfolding within. The budget is well spent - costumes are gorgeous and sets are believable for the most part and the soundtrack and music could have been better.

The show's greatest strength is the acting of the cast. Everyone shines especially Ryan Ding / Han Shuo who is not just handsome he embodies the perfect balance of strength, love and comedy chops. This man can do any type of acting, on the strength of this show consider me a new fan! I've never liked Rosy Zhao, she falls into her pouting spoiled persona easily and she was by far the worst part of this show but the surrounding cast is so good it works.

I particularly want to highlight Zi Rui (Wu Yi Jia) and Bai Ji (Liu Shu Yuan) as those 2 were a HUGE delight in turning up the hilarity to a 11. I've never seen henchmen done so well I almost want another show just featuring those 2 characters but all the acting is great, both sets of parents are fantastic.

This show is a fun, engrossing watch and will be one of my top 5 C-dramas in 2020. It's been a while since film makers took a genre, turned it on its head with a great script and acting, and turned out the rom com hit of 2020 with minimal budget, almost inventing a "new" genre. It's fresh, funny and exciting. Just fantastic. People are going to want more shows like this. The ending leaves it open for a sequel and according to MDL one has been planned thanks to the runaway success of this must watch drama.

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Best non cringy chinese historical drama!!!

So.. this is my first chinese drama and I am very pleasantly surprised that I don’t hate it... in fact i love it! Here are the pros and cons

Pros:
Not boring (thank god) and funny! Their acting is good (unlike other c dramas). Reminds me of “scarlet heart” but a more light hearted version. Episodes not too many so doesn’t feel drawn out.

Cons:
Some inconsistencies with the plot, although this is a fantasy drama, I’m pretty sure there is still some “fantasy rule” to be followed. The ending feels forced. Although I said this drama is not that cringy, but I am used to watching kdramas so it is still a bit cringy for me (but definitely bearable)

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An important narrative about the importance of equality between the genders, the need to break out of stereotypes, and to not blame others for your problems. Also, this was just fun to watch.

As someone who doesn't like ridiculous comedy, I was a little wary to start with this, but it quickly had me laughing without reserve. The chemistry between the comedic relief characters was hilarious and pleasant to watch. The writing jokes were a nice added touch and hit the nail on the head. The story follows a young screenwriter who falls into her own story and must learn how to navigate the world she created. A world that is stubbornly not following her plot line no matter how hard she tries to get it back on track. It focus's on the animosity between two city's who respectively put one gender over the other. In her writing, she attempted to even out the power balance between men and women by putting women in charge of the main city.

The story was so so, but what really brought it together was the chemistry between the characters, the humor, and obvious lessons throughout. There was little need for skipping (I skipped a little when characters were being unnecessarily mean for too long) and I thoroughly enjoyed the direction of the plot and the twists it brought. Hooray for character development, because this is chock full of it. The FL is a little ditsy at times, but I attributed it to her being thrown into a world where she knows she supposed to be killed off.

All in all, I would definitely recommend watching this if you're looking for a fun and romantic story, with a dash of seriousness for a propelled plot.

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A lighthearted journey full of laughter and romance.

This drama was overall a comedy and a cute romance involving a love hate relationship.
In my opinion, the drama was extremely fun watching because of the main leads. The acting, the relationship, the small humor in everything was really cute. This was my first time watching a Chinese Period drama and I enjoyed it a lot. I binged watched it and finished it in a day.
The storyline is also funny as it revolves around 2 cities which are matriarchal and patriarchal.
The chemistry between 2 leads were also wonderful and I even started to wonder if the main lead really liked the female lead in real life. This explains how professional the acting is. The way he played with his eyes were wonderful and mesmerizing.

I would definitely love to rewatch this drama and recommend it.

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A show worth binge watching

This show is one of my favorite shows of all time. I love the acting and the chemistry between the different characters. The only bad thing in my opinion was how rushed the ending was, but a second season could make that so much better. Unless it's with a different cast cause I ain't watching that shiz. The cast was what really brought the show together and having a different cast is not for me. I am completely fine with waiting longer if we get the same cast and let me tell you I am an extremely impatient person. Additionally, this show was worth my time. Usually, I spend my time resting my thumb on my screen so I can double-tap and skip boring moments but this show is so interesting. This is a very light watch and took me less than two days to finish and there are so many funny moments. Also, if you're looking for a more historical show that's more serious then I most definitely would not recommend this and go find something else to watch. But let me tell you I really enjoyed the development of each character too throughout the story. By far my favorite was Zi Rui (Qian Qian's helper/attendant) and his hilarious reactions to the lead couple. Too bad I'm not good at writing reviews but please watch this and we can talk about it :D

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WELL THAT WAS UNEXPECTEDLY FUN!!!

When I started to watch this drama, I had low expectations for it. I had in mind that it was a typical time travel type of c-drama. Yes, indeed it was a bit cliché and over the top, but yall it was so fun to watch! I spent late nights watching this Chinese drama, it was really comedic and the plot was not dragging. I love how they ended it at 24 episodes because if they decided to have it longer then I'm afraid it'll get boring. Not much plot holes but at some part i did wish they gave more highlight to FL's sacrifices, keke.

Definitely fun to watch, it has its drama moments but nothing eye-bawling. This series has more funny moments than sad ones, not too serious and perfect fit for a light-hearted series. I recommend y'all to watch this if you wanna do a binge watch or a marathon. Super Fun!

The cast definitely suited their characters, especially qian qian, she has this funny vibe around her which makes her most suitable with comedic chinese dramas. Han Shou, also acted really well, definitely made me believe that he is a dedicated husband in real life HAHAHAH!

Lastly I love how gender equality is portrayed in this drama, at the start (in FL's city), you might feel that misandry is portrayed, but as the plot progresses, you'll realize that it was intentionally created in order to create a development in the story. Also, definitely love the air in FL's city, satire at its finest! Lets just all remember that feminism doesn't mean that women are superior to men, but rather, it only highlights/intensifies that women should be given the same rights and opportunities that men enjoy.

That's all, Watch it everyone! You wont regret it! <3

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Overrated?

Frankly, I think this drama is over-rated on Mydramalist. Although the role reversal of men and women in 2 different cities is somewhat creative, the drama is quite cliche. The same old popular tricks in Chinese dramas are played - tripping and falling into the arms of the hero, damsel in distress, rivalry for the throne (in this case between sisters for city leadership). In this drama, the writer dreamed of herself as a character in a script she was writing - this is somewhat similar to being drawn into an earlier era as a different person. And the heroine is absolutely silly.

I didn't laugh; I didn't cry; I just endure to find out what would be the ending. Finally after watching episode 12, I skipped to the last 3 episodes and did not feel I missed much.

Also, I am beginning to doubt the rating on Mydramalist on the newly released dramas. Ratings had been quite 'accurate' on the qualities of dramas in the past. But in the recent few months, it has been a wreck. Dramas like Legend of Xiao Chuo was rated at 7.6 when I believe it should be between 8.6 to 9.1 in the same league as Nirvana in Fire 1&2 and Ten Mile Peach Blossom. And this drama is rated at 8.6 when I think it should be in the range of 7.6 to 7.9 - similar to Chang'an Youth, The Destiny of White Snake, Flame's Daughter and Bloody Romance.

The early reviewers have always this unhealthy influence on subsequent reviews at the early stage and bias the rating. I think the reviews following each drama reviews should be listed in reverse chronological order with the latest first, so that the earliest reviewer does not monopolise the first position.

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Hilarious, romantic and thought-provoking story on genre roles.

I started watching this drama as a fun way to pass the time BUT without realising I found myself binge-watching it. It seriously blew my mind how clever, funny, eye-opening and thought provoking this drama is. At first glance it appeared that this is a typical historical rom-com which it is but it's way, way more than that. I've never seen a drama where the gender roles are executed so well - it actually portrayed important real world views and problems in our everyday society. It was very insightful watching this drama as a woman and seeing how this fictional world shows a city/society where women are in power and men below them. I found myself thinking "wow, so this is how it feels to be on the other side, to be a man with power in the real world".

I absolutely LOVED all the characters, and I mean all which is rare for a drama. ML and FL had an awesome enemies to lovers relationship development and many, many cute romantic scenes. The side characters were done so well. I loved the SML and he became my favourite character. There is also a second couple that is totally adorable and I wish we could have seen more of them but I was still very happy with their screen time. The ending of the drama is just the cherry on top. SO WELL DONE.

In short, WATCH THIS DRAMA NOW. IT'S WORTH IT.

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Not for everyone but 100% for me!

This drama is full on romantic comedy. While there are briefly, very briefly, some serious parts, for the most part, it’s romance + comedy.

I see that there are some who don’t like the drama and that was me in the beginning! I only started because of ZLS but oh my my, I fell into the drama like she did ?

I see why some might really dislike it - it’s silly, it’s ridiculous, there’s slapstick and seems so cheesy.

I loved it for all the above reasons plus the most important part is that it is intentional. The cheese, the silliness and the ridiculous scenes.

It is so intentional and so out there that you don’t feel like they are ‘trying too hard but failed’ because that is the essence of the drama. They poke fun at inequality, they make people fight in slow motion, they make men take on the role of women.

I recommend everyone to watch this with a light heart. Don’t over read it, don’t think too much of the underlying ‘inequality’ topic, don’t think of it as a drama that is ‘trying’ to change the world or highlight something. Maybe it is, maybe it did but while I watched the men get ridiculed for rolling up his pants, I ROFLed and while I watch the men in Xuanhu criticise their women and them revolting, I LMAOed.

Take it lightly, with a pinch of salt. Even the plot holes were fine for me, because I just enjoyed every part of it.

7 capture, 7 release. For haters, maybe try and the 7th time might be it for you.

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Spoilers!
I really liked nearly every aspect of the story, the characters are all interesting with sweet moments too. I especially liked the actors dynamics, and the cute little moments. The City owner was also one of my favourite parts, it refreshing to see a character like hers displayed in a nuanced and respectful way, instead of the mother in law is evil trope that happens so often. I may be biased but I also loved the Princess Royal, whos story was delicately handled and and relatable. The friendship Chen XianXian and Her servant was also very sweet! This whole drama could've been fantastic!
But Im afraid it was spoiled for me half way through.
I cannot accept how Han Shuo tired to r*pe her. That was so disgusting, and it was made worse by Bai Ji suggesting drugging her when he didn't go through with it. Come on, that was insanely messed up? And then they never address it and act like hes the good guy. Completely ruined two decent characters in one needless scene that didn't even add anything. If that wasn't included I would have given it a much higher score. I finished the series trying to forget what he did, and pretend it didn't happen, which I think a lot of other people did to. But even so it was always in the back of my head during their scenes together, from that point onward ,despite everything trying to convince us that Han Shuo wasn't bad, I always felt a edge of fear for Chen XianXian that I think wasn't intended.
I hear theres rumour of season 2 and I do plan on watching it. But yikes I cannot stop thinking about that moment.

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often cute and funny, but certainly not very well written

cw: mentions of sexual assault

the premise of this show is exactly the kind of transmigration trash i look for- screenwriter transmigrates into her own tv show, but it's the body of the domineering evil slut who dies in episode 3??? YES PLS. the meta commentary!! references to all the stupid tropes and characters and plot holes in c drama!! having to figure out ways to make the plot work despite unexpected developments!! give it all to me!!! an example of where the show really shines is when qianqian has to get back han shuo's trust and also give a reasonable explanation for the loss of her kung fu, so she has to stage this overdramatic death scene. it's genuinely SO fun and funny! that said, there's not nearly enough fun meta moments like this, it's pretty few and far in between, and is mostly regular plot problems that keep arising.

i love the two main leads, this drama has definitely turned me into a fan of zhao lusi, she's absolutely adorable and charming. she plays the modern girl stuck in ancient times so well, with a refreshing and realistic air. a lot of her specific speech patterns and slurring of words are so funny and when she smiles w her whole face..... so cute. ding yuxi also..... i am not usually got by these idol pretty boys so idk why but... he has me by the throat.... wtf!!! he is so cute!!!?? why am i got by this?? the way that he is a cutesy lovesick puppy..... didn't think it would get me but it did. these two leads have excellent chemistry and their cute scenes are some of the sweetest i have seen in a good and not overbearing way.

that said..... the writing for their relationship truly falls into the gutter after they get together. none of the characters are like, well written, but thats okay because i'm watching trashy c drama for a reason. the problem is when the quality falls past a point of no return with the lying and hiding and misunderstandings. han shuo falls into absolute irredeemable territory when he goes evil, takes over huayuan, imprisons qianqian, threatens the lives of qianqian's entire family and the citizens of her city, and literally attempts to sexually assault her???? it's a horrifying scene and is not treated with any level of care. none of this is even a longterm plan of huan shuo's to take down chuchu. it's just him punishing qianqian for hurting him (even tho she did it for his own good which is just more stupid bad writing)and being like oh well im not ACTUALLY physically hurting her im just mentally tormenting and terrorizing her... threat of sexual assault is ALSO terrible and not okay in any circumstance??? we even saw earlier signs of it when she was trying to set him up w chuchu and he scared her by saying the mountain bandits were gonna rape her. like i'm all for bad main characters but like u don't easily come back from the attempted sexual assault as punishment. i'm sorry this is absolutely unforgivable, and they dont even like, talk about all of the bad stuff between them, they just have sex in the prison cell and then they're on the same side again?? it's a mess, the writing is an absolute mess, and maybe it can be explained as qianqian is the bad writer who made han shuo and chuchu like this- so EASILY falling down the slippery slope to evil but like.... also isnt the point of the show that qianqian doesnt actually have full control over the fate of her characters and that they make choices for themselves?? idk anyway, truly 乱成一锅粥了。。。

chuchu is actually not a horribly written character and shes still p sympathetic by the end imo, but it's still really really hamfisted, and i wish there was more nuance in her character arc. pei heng on the other hand is just an eyesore i fuckin hate that guy get him off screen, i watch all his scenes at 2x the speed. yuanyuan and su mu's relationship is also... okay..... i... find it questionable for sure. as an able bodied person im not entiiirely equipped to discuss their depiction of her disability, but i'm gonna go ahead and say that it was quite lacking and fell into some negative stereotypes for sure, although i am endeared to her as a character.

final notes.... the feminism....... oh my god......... it's just absolutely beyond clear that the screenwriters are completely ill equipped to talk about gender dynamics, but they think they are?? so much so that the entire setting is based around the subject of gender equality. like there is only a vague vision that everyone should be equal, but no understanding of the history of the feminist movement within China, and how gender dynamics historically and systemically work. frankly, it's just not the place to talk about gender equality if they can't do it well, instead it's just a poorly written distraction from everything. like qianqian wrote the story in the first place because she was interested in the issues between men and women, and wanted representation of women in power by setting it in a matriarchy. if the show is meant to be about gender equality then do that, it needs to fully be the focus and qianqian needs to seriously learn what systemic gender oppression looks like, it's not, 'oh shit it's bad if boys cant go to school either.' but most of the show just isn't about the rules of the setting, its about all the transmigration hijinks, regular plotting.... like ok so then just make the show that!!! dont bother w the gender equality stuff!!! if you want to ACTUALLY watch a show about patriarchy, gender equality and feminism, then watch zhen huan, ju zi hong le, or for something more casual- even the first half of yanxi palace where the issues are woven into the main cast and their character arcs.... this show is crap at it.

ANYWAY, all in all, fun transmigration show w charming leads that gets quite disappointing and is ultimately rough to get through by the end.

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