That Love Comes (2010)

Once upon a time in dramaland there was a little pond, very shallow and very smooth. Suddenly bubbles rose from the bottom, but they subsided even as you watched. And you walked on, while your memory of the little puddle faded.

That Love Comes isn't awful, nor bothersome or irritating, it's also not badly written, it's just plain.
Equation: Normal handsome, rich, young man versus courageous, but poor girl story minus dramatic scenes minus cuteness minus fluffy Taiwanese/Chinese craziness equals That Love Comes.
The usual up and downs occur, but so far beneath the surface of our pond that the surface is not even disturbed.

Joe Cheng's performance and likely (plus only) attraction of the drama is not one to start screaming in ecstasy, but it's not bad either. Li Fei Er, our little see rose swimming on the little pond with her comrades, stands out as she is the palest among all of them.

The Music flushes by like the light raining outdoors which helps you fall asleep and makes you feel comfortable - but the next day it's forgotten.

A rewatch value is basically non-existent. (Although it might be a good alternative for a sleeping pill.)

A drama, which is not bad, but not outstanding either, it will keep you entertained, but there is no depth and there are better versions of the same material.

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Positive sides, good acting, Joe Cheng, the story line itself was a good one.I watched it all, and marked it as average on my list.
It was only a half hour show. Each episode had 4 or 5 minutes, of flashbacks. Without all the flashbacks, more of the story could have been told, characters could have been more developed.
With all the flashbacks, we are being told a few things; Possibly the writers, were too lazy to finish the story, and only went with the synopsis of each episode. Could it be the stars had other schedules and could complete all the scenes? Or did the writers and producers really not have enough confidence in the actors to fill 6 hours? If not it should not have been written.

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This drama has many weak points that would lead you to an unavoidable disappointment. Starting for a typical romantic plot (smart and handsome guy / poor and clumsy girl in love with him), which we have seen many times already. Although the worst is not the lack of originality, which is not essential for a success in a drama, but the non-existent excitement neither twists that keep you interested in the storyline. I also agree with those people who qualify this drama as superficial and missing deep in the development of the characters. The male lead seems to start liking the girl without any evident reason in my opinion, so it does not feel real. The role of the female lead also seems so artificial sometimes - which is her real interest, photography or the guy?. Her courage to confess is for real? I still do not understand how someone who has never been in love before and without confidence about the other person's feelings, is so straightforward to say what she feel in such overdone way.

However, there are also positive things about the drama that might make you watch it and enjoy. The best strength lies in the photography. I do not know if the reason had something to do with the theme of the story, but the stills through all drama are really well done. My first impression was that this drama served as an excuse of some fanatic director with photography. Some sequences looked much like a MV with nice angles and colours. The make-up stands out for its perfectionism and actors enhancement on the screening. The acting of Cheng Joe and Li Fei Er was as remarkable as it could be with the poor and awful dialogues the writer lazily wrote. At the end, the whole thing was barely saved by the two lead actors and beautifully filmed sequences.

I would recommend anyway for fans of Cheng Joe. He is incredibly attractive and handsome in this drama and you feel in the main actress' shoes, stupidly dumb looking at how gorgeous and sexy he is in every shot. This bring me memories from my dear Hiroshi in "Heavenly forest", who also portrayed a photographer.

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Some nice songs of the time, but not by Z.Tao - where was he ?

The drama was an average rom com about a hard working Cinderella from a township in the backwards interior country, gone to earn money in a Qingdao convenience store. Her purpose in giving up her freedom as a sort of indentured worker was to support her brother's studies. We barely see the brother in the beginning and he does not reappear, but she falls in love with a handsome customer who came back to hand over the excess change he had got on a purchase. It turns out that this "shuai gege" was a famous photographer on the brink of separating from a long time lover who never acknowledged publicly their ties, because of her contracts prohibiting relationships... Could little "leaf" (Ye Zi) grow to stand beside her crush, who was more overshadowing her, than letting her break free and grow from her family's expectations?

Joe Cheng played quite well in my opinion, Li Fei'er and PeiPei (Ye Zi and Flora) were projecting the expected contrast of the poor (but not destitute) girl and the glam starlet. Some half annoying accompanying characters made up most of the rest of cast, : Ye Zi's childhood friend, her mother, her nosy colleague and her over-enthusiastic clownish boss, with exception for a shortly seen adorable old couple whose dearest wish is easy to fulfill : a wedding picture! That's perhaps the first time Z.Tao appeared in the background (ep.7), for his "silent cameo" : otherwise, perhaps a glimpse in ep11 too, although the Ke Chuan name of his character eluded me. Baidu only listed Z.Tao as 客串 (cameo), with a further note (歌手，演员) : singer, actor, but he does not appear to be singing in the drama, be it in front of camera or as bgm.

The theme song is played over and over again : Qin Ai Mo Sheng Ren (亲爱陌生人) Beloved Stranger by Della Ding (丁当). This was at the time a hit song, produced by Mayday's Ashin and was the latest creation of MP Magic Power lead singer Tingting (廷廷) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhFBCtysub4

The ending song was also a hit one, title song of Yen-J ( 严爵 ) Taiwanese lyrics and tune composer and singer's first album : Thanks for Your Beautifulness (謝謝你的美好) released 2010-04 (and also used as end theme for another TW drama that did not make much waves and is not included on MDL) -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LioVy6CQfxc (with lyrics)

Some other songs are strewn in, including two Rene Liu ones : Chang Yi (长椅) Bench and Zhi Jie (直接) Straightforward

I was looking for Z.Tao, since the drama was listed in his filmography as first appearance in such type of work, but came away frustrated, unsure I recognized him ; unless he disguised as singer Yen-J lookalike then... (That singer is not supposed to be included in cast, except for OST).

As a drama, this one is marred by repetitiousness, overuse of flashbacks, and sudden cuts (perhaps for inserting ads). Also, by a terribly low picture quality, border to blurry, in the only accessible online version; it may be better on other type of recording, but it is not really going to appeal to present day audiences, because much there is so outdated now (use of cash in stores...), and the story was already too cliché unrealistic. It is not unwatchable, but requires patience and interest in the past, although a past not far enough in time to make it into a document.

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