Bromance (2015)

Longish review ahead!

I'd never watched a Taiwanese drama before this one, so I wasn't sure what to expect after only watching Korean/Japanese dramas. I have to say I was quite impressed. I definitely wanted to keep watching and I marathoned it in 2 days. For some reason Netflix has this drama as 30 episodes and not 18 so it felt like it took longer. Overall I give it an 8.5, mostly for it's characters and the chemistry between the main leads. The plot besides the whole gender-bending thing felt very flimsy, like it was tacked on AROUND the gender-bending and romance. But it honestly didn't matter so much in the grand scheme of things, because I truly do feel like this is a romance drama before anything and that SHOULD take priority. It's a story of two people overcoming so much for the sake of love.

One of the things that impressed me the most was how this drama did quite an amazing job at showcasing how gender doesn't really matter when it comes to love. You fall in love with who you fall in love with - everything else will fall into place with time. If you're worried about any homophobia - don't be, is all I have to say. Really, it's all handled very well, almost to the point where I wished Yanuo WAS male.

A small problem I had was how separated the characters felt from each other outside of their pairings. I would have liked for them to interact more. Like Nana and Yanuo confiding in each other, more interactions between Qingyang and Zifeng. It felt like their interactions became all too rare. You ARE allowed to have friends outside of a relationship.

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Characters
(I will only do the characters you see early on - the rest I may count as spoilers)

All the characters were portrayed very well and none felt the same.

Yanuo, one half of a pair the story centers around. Forced to dress as a boy because her asinine parents believed some fortune teller when he told them their daughter would die before the age of 26 if they didn't try to 'trick' the universe. It's flimsy, but if you try to believe this story takes place in an alternate universe where fortune tellers are actually a real, 100% factual thing then it makes it vaguely okay. Though the fact you have to jump through those hoops is rather silly. Yanuo is deeply empathetic and loyal. She believes in justice over everything and won't stand for it if the people she loves are hurt. The chemistry between her and Zifeng is almost instant. Honestly, Yanuo was quite a well-rounded character that I couldn't help but find charming in her own way. Lai Megan did such a good job emulating the mannerisms of a guy, they way she walked and her body language all made her seem like one, even her outfits were well chosen. I was pretty impressed with how boyish she actually looked. Usually with gender-bending drama's they still look quite girly, so it was a pleasant surprise. Overall, I had very few gripes with Yanuo.

Zifeng the other half of the main pair. He didn't have too many flaws if I'm completely honest. He's good at seemingly everything he tries. Even his personality is pretty strong, he's loyal almost to a fault, caring and compassionate. Not to mention he is an absolutely gorgeous man. I am forever grateful he wore suits almost all through the drama. Because Chen Baron is such a good actor, you really feel the pain, struggles and happiness he goes through. All in all, Zifeng, and Chen Baron himself, was the perfect match for this role.

Bii sold me on Qingyang completely. His quiet, caring and sensitivity were illustrated very well.To people not willing to look past the surface, they may never know how he truly is. He's not a very emotional character, but that works for him. Seriously, I am a huge Zifeng fan, but Qingyang stole my heart so many times. If you're not impressed and inspired by him as the story goes on, I'd be very shocked. I can't sing his praises enough.

As for Nana, I don't know if it was the acting or something else, but I couldn't quite enjoy many scenes with her in. She is absolutely stunning and her hair is gorgeous. Yet I found myself getting annoyed when scenes with her in dragged on. I do think her acting was maybe a little sub-par compared to the rest of the cast. It didn't feel as genuine.

Zihan was a not-so-secret favourite of mine. The first thing I want to address is how much she reminded me of Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl. I know that's kind of a weird comparison to make but she did. It was immediately obvious to me. She is so, so pretty and I really felt for her as the story progressed.

Xiaojing was an absolute breath of fresh air. Her bubbly personality and her willingness to do whatever she can to make Yanuo happy was a wonderful thing to see. There needs to be more characters like her in dramas because I really couldn't take my eyes off her whenever she appeared. It really brightened up the drama.

Guangchao is what I like to call a comic relief character. Maybe even the mascot character - though that might be reserved for something else. He constantly makes a fool of himself and appears a little girl crazy. But just because I say he's a comic relief character, that doesn't mean he isn't actually funny, because he is, if maybe a little over the top, but I think that's the point.

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Sound

The soundtrack was good, though one song was played a little too much and I don't know if it was just the Netflix version, but sometimes the music would just cut out halfway through and enter into a new song very suddenly. It kind of took me out of the moment because it was so jarring. Other than that, I really can't fault it. Even the one song they played a tad too much I ended up humming along to when it came up.

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Rewatch

It's a bit long, but I could see myself watching it again if the mood struck.

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Overall

I had a good time watching this drama. If I didn't, I wouldn't have watched it in such a short amount of time.There is something oddly addicting about it. Besides all the cheesy moments, thin plot and maybe a slightly sub-par side story, you won't find many flaws at all with the main concept. So I recommend you sit back with a nice drink and let yourself enjoy it for what it is.

--For the full thing WITH spoilers, go to my tumblr: kanawafu . tumblr . com --

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Utter nonsense you somehow love it ??

Utterly ridiculous and stupid but hilarious that it doesn’t even matter that this drama is packed full of cliches and drama tropes because you somehow tolerate it all. Between Baron’s hair(??) and smoldering gazes, the strange mix of silly and comedy don’t quite mix with the supposedly serious plots of mafia and murder and disappearance of characters- just make sure to leave the comments on and enjoy the watch with others! Its a must. I will say I skipped a good 7 episodes around the half way mark, it got a bit boring and draggy - and I had no care in the world for the whole nana plot - that could have been cut completely. One big plus for this show is the chemistry between the main leads - they were on fire, and the bts at the very end of ep 19 is fun to watch. The soundtrack is whack just like this drama, but if you need something to lift the spirits, this is perfect, just don’t take it too seriously and enjoy this nonsense ???

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This maybe the one of most cringey show I've ever watched.

A RomCom from top to bottom. If you can get over all the cringey mushy stuff, you'll appreciate it's entertainment value. Romance + Comedy + Fight Scenes, is a very good formula of a good show.

This shows how familial love/loyalty can be more than just about blood. How real love should be, or how it can overcome social status or even gender.

It was funny to see a straight guy fall for a man, how he struggled to understand his feelings.. ML and FL started as sworn brothers, from being each other's support system to falling in love. Luckily for him, it turns out that she's a girl after all.

The supporting characters were fun to watch too. The show gave a bit of a backstory for our characters really well.

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Great start but dragged end

I don't really like dramas where a woman pretends to be a man and then the man falls in love with the woman thinking she's a man. I've seen so many versions of this story but this was the first one that actually seemed to work.

The best thing about this drama was definitely the cast especially for the FL. She actually made a very handsome man, and she also made a really pretty woman. She was gorgeous at the end as a woman, I didn't like the wigs. This was the fist cross dressing drama I've seen where the woman makes a handsome man and is actually hit on, a lot, by women rather then sexually confused men.

I really liked the relationship between the ML and FL, their dynamic was great and you just know they'd make a great power couple, if only their story didn't drag so much. I hated how long the secret was kept and found it unnecessary especially when the ML was very confused about his sexuality. This is the one cross dressing drama where it actually delves into the sexuality of the leads. The FL is heterosexual as she said many times and the ML was more pansexual (the ending was confusing about this point).

After around 11 episodes I stopped caring about the main lead couple and became more interested in the second lead couple: Qing yang and Nana. I loved the second lead couple, they had such a sweet slow burn romance that had a very weird start. I didn't like Nana at first, found it weird how she was chasing Qing Yang, but then you find out that she actually wasn't lying and she wasn't actually chasing him but the memories he reminded her of. The more you see their relationship grow, the more heart warming it gets and by the end, they were the only couple and characters I cared about.

I don't understand how such a short drama could drag so much. The only thing that dragged was the main plot of the FL secret that she is a woman and not a man. I thought that they would at least, at some point make the fact that she had to be a man for such a stupid reason, an actual. That something actually does happen saving her life simply because she is a "man". But nothing happens, it was pointless and stupid and I don't understand how no one read any of her documents, her passport or even her plane ticket and found out the truth.

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This drama is great and it’s a lot of fun. Probably the best gender bender I've seen and interesting that the drama chose to ignore some of the usual capitalised aspects of gender benders. e.g. like when people find out that the man is actually a woman....

I like that the characters weren’t unnecessarily mean to each other just to create some tension.
There were some truly beautiful moments of trust and friendship in this drama.

Zifeng – male lead
Everyone thinks he’s some kind of gangsta. He seems to like Yanuo straight away.

I really came to love Zifeng’s expressions especially when he was unimpressed or didn’t like something. He expresses a lot with his eyes.

That motorcycle bit was so hilarious when he thought Yanuo was asking him for something completely different.

Pi Yanuo – heroine

“I don’t think I have the courage to look into your eyes and tell you, we are no longer bros.”

Megan Lai is one hell of an actress. She is so generous with her emotions. Her excitement was always so cute.
I think Yanuo’s expressions and behaviour are very masculine. There’s a roughness to her that is pretty convincing.
I like whenever anyone confesses to her, she has this appalled look on her face.
She doesn’t have that over fussy personality that is often depicted in gender benders. She doesn’t overreact to things. But her responses are also very genuine.
I like her steady gaze and her brooding nature. It’s kind of fun.
She’s very cool. I loved her.
She doesn’t have any airs of a girly girl. And it was awesome. Even her facial expressions are so perfect when she sneers or when she’s angry.
I also love that she didn’t have bravado, she really did have confidence in herself.
Unlike other cross dressers in dramas, she’s really comfortable in her own skin. She’s not pretending to be anything.

Honestly, this actress has chemistry with everyone.

It’s great that she’s so tall.

Romance
For a while it gets a bit boring with Yanuo being all girly and ditzy, but then she jumps back in charge again and it was great.
I like that Yanuo and Zifeng communicate their jokes with a glance. I like how they teased their friends that way too. The drama really shows how well they know each other. And I find that very unusual the friendship they had.

Even though Zifeng sometimes takes his frustrations out on Yanuo, he is quick to amend his ways when he realises what he’s doing.

I like how the drama showed how openly Zifeng loved Yanuo and how Yanuo was always a little little bit closed off because of the secret she kept from him. Zifeng was so relaxed and affectionate but Yanuo always had this invisible line drawn in the sand that she had to keep from him.

Side Characters

The side characters are also quirky and interesting. The poor English made me crack up.
Xiao Jing is so cute and Zifeng’s mother is not overbearing at all. She has her opinions but she absolutely doesn’t strong arm her children. And I really loved what a beautiful character she is as the show goes on. She really has her own personality and story.

I appreciated Zifeng’s functional relationships with his family. They supported each other. They might get in each other’s way sometimes but they knew how to be united and they trusted each other.

The parental roles are surprisingly self-sacrificing. They at first looked like typical elders but the way they backed their children was very dignified.

Also, the themes of the bro-ship extend to the older generation as well and I like how they explored that.

In a way, it’s a bit hilarious how well the family get along.

Dr Chu
Just when I was getting into the swing of this drama. In comes Dr. Chu to liven things up. Sure it’s an age old trope of introducing a guy that knows the girl is a girl but come on, it’s hilarious. And the drama does it well. That hot springs moment...OMG.

Qing Ying

“The onlooker sees most of the game”

For some reason I really connected with Qing Ying’s character. He’s a bit too serious but that’s what makes him fun. Qing Ying is really cute and kind and sexy with his earrings and I know that’s what the drama is trying to shove down our throats, but I couldn’t help but fall for him anyway. He seems really real and he’s probably the first character that I had this impression that I could smell him. Isn’t that bizarre?
His role is a bit funny because he’s often observing but he generally has this look that says, “You guys are so weird/up to something”.
I also like his dress style.
He’s the kind of guy that doesn’t care about people until they are slightly in trouble or concerned and then he has the most gentlest and sweet attitude towards them.

And I really loved seeing Qing Yang’s role in the dramatic stand offs.
His secondary romance is surprisingly engaging.

Korean vs. Chinese Drama Notes
It’s funny how I also feel that in Chinese dramas it’s rude to call someone by their name with no -ssi or anything.

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Cross Dressed ...

Okay so this drama, took me awhile to get through it, mainly because there were really some frustating episodes where you like really!! I had no idea what to expect going into it. And the little things I did expect were completely shut down.

There’s just something about it that kept me watching.

I started watching when there were already eleven episodes out. I kept telling myself, “This is a good place to stop. I’ll do something else, I’ll go to sleep, and I’ll finish tomorrow” and then I’d finish the episode and hit the next button and the process would continue until I was caught up with the lives. It was so freaking cheesy. Like every possible cliche happened within the first episode. The entire drama was like this, but it didn’t bother me because I thought it was hilarious. I know some people get annoyed with cliches though, so I’m letting everyone know now.

I really love gender bend stories. I know it's cheesy but when a man is questioning his sexuality, because he seems to like him/her in a special way, first of all it is hilarious and secondly it just holds the truth that love is blind, it has no boundaries.

Overall This drama was a 50 / 50 watch, for me, mainly because of the cheey cliche and them trying to make it thorugh to her birthday, which by the way literally took up the whole drama.

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Very Satisfying Gender Bender Romance Balances Sillyness Of Screenplay

The bromance to romance between the lead couple gave me basically everything I want and hope for in a gender-bender relationship. It was so very satisfying in that regard that I'm rating this higher than I technically would otherwise. I've listed the main points of why I found the romance so satisfying under the "general spoilers" section further down in this review. Overall there's mutual respect and trust, giving support and working together as equals, great chemistry, romantic and sexual tension, a ton of skinship, some passionate kisses, flirting, and sweet words delivered in a heart-felt way. The set-up of the friendship is super fast and unrealistic, but then the progression of their relationship flows well and Yanuo is in male form for most of it.

There were things with the screenplay and direction that would usually annoy the heck out of me yet the production somehow kept things fun. The main romance is the focus throughout and the connection between the lead characters was believable and touching enough to balance out the other shenanigans in the show.

There was melodrama and many unrealistic and silly situations that the show leaned into (didn't take itself too seriously) so the cheesy, ridiculous, and low-budget-feeling moments had me laughing out loud along with it instead of feeling outright disdain. It did require a lot of suspension of disbelief, but the show's approach was consistent so I found myself mostly able to roll with it. Things in plot, settings, and characters come and go purely based on what's needed at the time. For example, except for one scene at the beginning the leads never practice their martial arts, yet when they need to fight they are always in top form. And the head of the triad doesn't seem to have much power or any access to bodyguards or underlings for protection. Those kinds of things.

The side couples were not interesting to me so I fast-forwarded all those parts. However, I did like the ML's Mother's story, she was a loveable character.

Ep 19 is a special episode. It recaps the lead's long romantic story, has an exaggerated yet still hot rough and playful heavy make-out scene, and some behind the scenes footage.

Why I found the bromance to romance so satisfying:

General Spoilers Below.

- The actress playing Yanuo actually has, not just the face, but the body and physicality to believably have been raised as a male who practices martial arts. She is tall, has broad shoulders, some stockiness to her arms, and large strong hands. She looks more like a grown man (with slightly softer features) than the 'cute boy' look that many other gender benders rely on.

- There's lots of time (many episodes) with the ML falling for Yanuo as a person who happens to be in male form, and many moments of both romantic and sexual tension.

- Zi Feng experiences and works through the confusion of his growing feelings and attraction, reaches acceptance, and makes the decision to act on his love *before he learns Yanuo's secret. There's no disgust or gay panic.

- When the Zi Feng overhears Yanuo's secret, he respects it, trusts there's a reason for it, and waits for Yanou to tell him.

- Once Zi Feng knows the secret, his approach towards wooing Yanou becomes more direct. There's a lot of time with them becoming romantic and quite a few passionate kissing scenes while Yanuo is still in male form (not knowing that Zi Feng has learned the truth).

- Zi Feng's family can tell his bond with Yanuo starts looking more like lovers than bros and ultimately show signs of acceptance through their actions *before the last episode.


While I was watching, I wanted to know the exact point that Zi Feng learned Yanuo's secret so I looked it up. If you're like me and want to know, the basic info is below; episode numbers are given but no other details.

... ... ...

SPECIFIC SPOILER BELOW.

In Ep 18 the audience and FL learn when the ML found out she was female (he overhears it in the eleventh episode).

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Seriously, when I found this, I didn't really know what should I expect. I like cross-dressing, and I like a little BL, but I was afraid that it may involve the LGBTQ stuff and all.
After I watched the first episode, I was in. Trapped, never being able to go out. This show didn't let me escape.
Well... not like I wanted to.
This was such a perfectly done show, there wasn't too much drama, the characters were reasonable, they were realistic, yet all of them were strong in their own ways.
The main characters knew that he/she had a secret, yet they didn't force her to tell them, they reespected each other, they were all kind and beautiful people.
Even the antagonist was a perfectly made character. He had reasons, he had ways, he had everything needed to be realistic, yet loveable. I was seriously in love with him.
All the "couples" got together, as expected, but I think that even if I could predict most of the show, I was always surprised by how smooth they dealt with all their problems.

There were some negative things for me, although these are nothing compared to how perfectly great it was.
First... when Zifeng "found out" that his other half is a girl... I wish we could have seen his face when he realised just why exactly was Yanuo so shy. I wanted to see him realise everything. I wanted a flashback, then a cute blush from him...
But I'm perfectly fine with the way it became. I really wanted that scene, but I guess I have to deal with this.
Second problem... I don't know how to say this, but this show ruined all the other normal romance dramas. After this, my expectations are just too high. This was so much better than all my previous shows, and I seriously feel like that this can never be surpassed.
It's just... too perfect.

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One of the best couples + main actors I've seen

heads up: my reviews are all over the place and usually make no sense. you've been warned.

started this on a whim last week and immediately fell in love! the first few episodes were really fast paced and set up all the characters really nicely. it had such a lighthearted feel and that's exactly what i love. fan xiaojing is the ultimate shipper and i thank her so much for pushing ya nuo into zi feng at feng jie's party ahhh that was so cute!! i think i was really hooked in after ya nuo was locked up on the rooftop and zi feng basically risked his life just to be next to her. what can i say, i'm a sucker for near death experiences that bring our main leads closer together. i was so so impressed by the acting and chemistry between megan and baron and am so sad to know they're not dating irl lol. megan definitely 100% deserved best actress at the sanlih drama awards!! their development as a couple kept me on my seat anxiously waiting for them to freaking get together. i actually had audible gasps during some of their scenes because they were just so good. they're such a healthy couple that really go through thick and thin without having any problems. they're there for each other no matter what and had so many damn cute scenes (thank u writers!!).

when i first started watching, i thought ya nuo's 26th would be like the halfway point of the drama and cause some sort of misunderstanding between the main leads, yadda yadda yadda but i was so glad that wasn't the case. i do have to say that 100 days of knowing someone (and dating for even less) is kinda rushing marriage but ya nuo and zi feng are honestly meant to be together so it's okay.

like some other people touched on, there really isn't a plot going on lol, which i didn't really mind tbh. there were a lot of sideplots, but none of them really interested me besides maybe nana and her sickness + nana and her dad, i really only cared for the fluff and cuteness from our couples + jiu bi. i didn't care for the mafia thing at all, literally how could there be any other suspects asides from hansheng lol he was just a horrible antagonist and i skipped most of his scenes whoops. same goes for the missing dad + amnesia storyline. it was kinda pointless to me. tho again, the actors were so amazing for their roles, especially since baron's dad was actually a mafia gang leader????!?!?!?

du zi feng is one of the best male leads i've seen in awhile. he's not a jerk, he values friends and family, is honest with his SO, and they handled him liking a "guy" really well. he really didn't try to deny feelings for pi ya nuo even tho he thought she was a guy at the time, and just accepted his feelings. he's also so so handsome ahhhh.

even tho only four songs really played in the background, they were all bops and i have them all on spotify (except for this one upbeat bii song that i need to hunt down). speaking of bii, where was qing yang sleeping during the camping trip? he was supposed to share a tent with zi feng but he wasn't there at all? also i wasn't a big fan of the main leads knowing each other from before with the hairclip and stuff but this is SETTV so i shoulda expected it.

having more mature actors also meant amazing kissing scenes!

zhe rui's character was honestly so bland and a disappointing and he doesn't really deserve to be on the main cover photo lol someone replace him with nana. i love sean lee and jiu bi but there was no second lead syndrome at all.

overall, objectively, it really wasn't the most interesting drama and there wasn't really a plot lol, but to me, especially after watching all the behind the scenes, i'm so in love with (most of) the characters and i already miss ya nuo x zi feng.

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