Chi Dao (2022)

Never Give Up and Never Give In (In Sports and In Love)

There have been other good Noona romances in recent dramas, but Falling Into You tops the rewatch list for me.

The theme centered around track and field athletes and their passions, dreams, and doubts. However, it was the love story that was candy for me. Those looking for good romance will not be disappointed by the great mix of sweet yet flirtatious, innocent yet sexy, complex yet enduring love between an aspiring coach and her idealistic student.

This show was already off to an awesome start when it featured two gorgeous actors as the main CP, who also had fantastic chemistry with each other. Nothing could get in the way of sparks between these two, especially when the romance began to heat up. I love that the actors were not shy about the kiss and intimate scenes, and I have to say they did remarkably well in this aspect.

Perhaps part of the credit should go to the director, Yi Zheng, who also directed "Love Between a Fairy and Devil", in which he was able to draw out excellent emoting from the leads.

Fun fact: Gina Jin is 8 years older than Wang An Yu, the same age gap as the main characters that they portrayed. Despite the age difference, they did an excellent job as a couple whose journey of love was so organic and wholesome. It was so enjoyable to watch our CP grow from the natural conflict of their budding relationship and going through the challenges of other people's prejudices to becoming a couple that inspired relationship goals. Once committed, they were unwavering in their support of each other and their faith in one another.

I was not surprised by Gina Jin's wonderful performance as Luo Na, the older woman who resisted at first but eventually fell for the charms of her persistent student. She is definitely a talent and simply stunning, even in plain athletic gear. She has played a similar role in "Why Women Love" and I hope she will not be typecasted.

Our perfectly handsome male lead was no doubt an eye candy. Perfect face, flawless skin, great physique. However, Wang An Yu wasn't all looks. This pretty face can cry! I am impressed with his emotional scenes, and there were many of them. After all, our adorable Duan Yu Cheng was still a 20-year-old boy on a path of self-discovery and smitten with Luo Na while trying to achieve his dream of being a top high jumper. I also liked Duan Yu Cheng's sportswear and casual outfits. This guy looks good in everything.

Some other characters fell flat or were unnecessary, but the cast did well overall. Watching the interactions between team members and coaches was fun; there were many hilarious and heartwarming moments. The show could have done away with some filler episodes and given us less of a rushed feeling toward the end. Still, it was a satisfying ending.

The OST was memorable, and I particularly liked the various songs played throughout the episodes. The two leads also sang a song each, and for posterity, I have listed all the songs I could track down at the end of this review.

All in all, Falling Into You was refreshing, entertaining, and binge-able. I could not recommend it more!

OST list:
* Love Blinds (Kéren)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dneyEcIm0Hg
https://open.spotify.com/track/7iwGlPC4KxQ96CjYFD2YvU?si=bb90e03c45be43b4

* The Biggest Part of Me (The Home of Happy and Dane Etteridge)
https://open.spotify.com/track/29CBEod7xU7sVqpb7XaK5d?si=bbff9b8140134d2d
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YStkj_2m2Ko

* Everybody On Your Feet (Amphibious Zoo Music)
https://open.spotify.com/track/00vS1coaTZjwiA4MKQbCnR?si=53314df83ca84768
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87LdNYETuGI

* Standing in the Moonlight (Soul Mechanic)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ad91jxkTuak
https://open.spotify.com/track/0GVYSKXYMn4NzQC6DMnXNs?si=a4e5938621624d52

Call it What you Want (Antisocialites)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zRCUXKCkJM
https://open.spotify.com/track/0u60YRwLtd4HnaxkB7hmg9?si=2b820d94f7c04beb

* Girls Like You (Corban Shane Calhoun & Gabriel Canadian & Joshua Joseph Wilcutts)
No link

Brighter Days (Hanna Lynn Miller)
https://open.spotify.com/track/7ecwUJoCpwrfeN9tb5Vxgj?si=4857cadc31a14015

Uncorrupted (Julia Church)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5t_9ydDJm8
https://open.spotify.com/track/7tOu3piRvStm3BCk5CH7Q2?si=960e749f8cd94f8b

* 阳光 海浪 我和你 (Sunshine, waves, me and you) - 刘宇宁 (Liu Yu Ning)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk1o2AnIO_k

* 阴天转晴 (Cloudy and sunny) - 王安宇 (Wang Anyu)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLLr3K7aQDA
https://open.spotify.com/track/6OPvc0ghjjsXwG1Dh4xYzA?si=4b1a8b99e2234e29

* 度过此刻 (Spend This Moment) - 夏日入侵企画 (Summer Invasion Project)
https://open.spotify.com/track/5DmlNe79sX7LUHJrPZ9gSj?si=02df7f3e1e404ada
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jnj8v43ktdA

* 怦然心动 (Heartbroken) - 汪睿 (Wang Rui)
https://open.spotify.com/track/6UosPIGzBTMm3psQapq6ps?si=f0f989ec59994978
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y4MlP4H8jU

* 要不要留下来 (Do you want to stay) - 金晨 (Jin Chen)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjAE5v2pyQM
https://open.spotify.com/track/4jilfKy9z2tYwUN4jV57Pn?si=df0fc232693a4526

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High Jumping Comedic Romance

What drew me to this series was the sportiness with a side of romance and drama. Wanted something fun and easy while watching heavier stuff. Only know Gina Jin from a previous show this year which was also an older woman/younger man thing but this one actually had a plot and good acting.

Pros: I really liked the underdog kid ML who was always critiqued for being too short to do the high jump but nothing slowed him down. There was only an 8 year age difference between the leads and the ML was 20 when they got together. So to those who feel skeaved out by these kinds of scenarios; don't worry, everyone was an adult in this one. The chemistry between the leads was palpable from the get go. But it was the sportiness, comedy, and the ML's iron clad determination to continue to do what he loved that kept me watching. The FL was a great beginners coach and was very credible in her role.

The beginning and ending credits and OSTs were beautiful and all perfectly placed. I liked the pace of the story as it never dragged nor felt cliché. As a fan of track and field in the Olympics this peaked my interest and I was even more impressed that they cast an actual high jumper athlete to both help/encourage the lead in his role but also as one of the supporting characters; just made it feel more authentic. Was it 100% perfect in all of the sport parameters? No, but this was a drama, not a documentary, so it wasn't expected.

For a c-drama, this had very mature romance which was a nice added touch. There were no lips pressed together and wide eyed looks of confusion from whichever lead. Each kiss after the first and romantic first night together were very convincingly done.

Cons: This would have gotten a rare 10 from me had it not sent this great and light-hearted for the most part drama off the rails in the last 3 episodes with the crazy reporter and her unnecessary garbage plus all that other junk that then had to quickly spin a plot of ML going overseas to train with FL's dad. If this thing was to be included, it had to start way earlier. But honestly, it really was unnecessary because they could have had him enter into some competition and show him winning or something and build up to the last 3 minute proposal that was then quickly turned into a wedding in the last episode. It was very haphazardly thrown together and if not for that last out of left field portion, could have had a very satisfactory and strong ending. I also wish they spent more time on the sports then the romance; had it more 50-50 especially towards the end. Sadly, editing went out the window via a javelin throw and that portion missed the mark.

Would I recommend it? I absolutely would. Despite the last 3 episodes being just essentially fillers, it was a very funny, easy on the brain, natural, and great show to watch which I enjoyed very much and will totally rewatch my favorite parts.

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