A Love so Beautiful

Episodes: 23 (+1 special episode)

Synopsis:

The story follows a group of friends as they take on high school, college, and adulthood together. The main character, Chen Xiao Xi, is a warm and bubbly girl who doesn't like to study but has a passion for drawing and for chasing after her childhood friend and neighbor Jiang Chen. Jiang Chen is cold, intelligent, and structured and is often there for Chen Xiao Xi while appearing uninterested in her advances. As the two develop their relationship from friendship to love, they also make bonds with their friends who include competitive swimmer Wu Bo Song who actively pursues Chen Xiao Xi, Xiao Xi's best friend Lin Jing Xiao who is a beautiful, intelligent tomboy, and Lu Yang who is known for his boisterous personality and his undying love for Lin Jing Xiao. 

Review:

     This is a coming-of-age drama that reminds me a lot of It Started With A Kiss/Playful Kiss/Itazura Na Kiss as it revolves around an average girl who chases after a smart and highly popular boy. However, this drama was better in the sense that it was more realistic in how Chen Xiao Xi is more than just the standard "plain, below-average" girl and how Jiang Chen does have and can show emotions. Jiang Chen is definitely still distant and reserved but he shows his care, affection, and concern in a fairly noticeable way and it is often picked up on by the main character and their friends throughout the drama. Chen Xiao Xi does actively pursue after Jiang Chen but there were many scenes in this drama where she stands up to him if she feels upset, chases after her own dreams of being a cartoonist, and also maintains strong connections with her friends throughout the drama. This drama showed the importance of communication between lovers and friends regardless of how similar and different they are with each other. It also showed how it is okay to show emotions and to wear your heart on your sleeve. Showing emotions and being open about one's feelings is anything but a weakness. As a matter of fact, it was what allowed the story to progress and for the characters to grow individually and together. 

       I loved the simplicity in this drama. There are times I want to watch dramas that are intense and making me feel ten shades of emotions from happy to angry. However, there are also many times I come to watch dramas to destress, to remember simple times, and to also feel a bit hopeful about things working out and about life working out. This was the perfect drama to help me destress and also look at mundane experiences through a new lens. This drama world was basically a story of high school students growing up, taking exams, becoming better people, and falling in love. It is very standard in our day-to-day lives but this drama brings out the perfect blend of humor, nostalgia, and innocence.  

        Other than outstanding main leads that show both depth and character, the side characters also offer diversity to the cast and also help push the story along in positive ways. For starters, I want to talk about our second male lead, Wu Bo Song. He is genuinely a good person and a good friend and his complex character makes it easy to empathize and understand him. His love and support for Chen Xiao Xi is so wholesome and genuine. Likewise, he also shows how despite being in the same friend group as Chen Xiao Xi, the levels of friendship within the group differ and that they all work fairly hard to overcome individual differences. Her friends Lu Yang and Lin Jing Xiao also offered an interesting contrast in the way their relationships are, personality, and academic level. They were also genuinely good friends.
        Highly recommend if you want a drama that is positive, warm and breezy, lighthearted, and cute.