I also loved how long the series was. I would say the only problem I had with it but I would still watch it again anyway was that it ended so abruptly. I wanted some finalization if you know what I mean. No matter what though I would rewatch this show again and again.
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To be honest the only negative about this show is that it ended so early. The characters are well developed and each get proper story arcs which allows the audience connect with them and build a favourite character. If I could change anything than I would have changed the last episode as the sudden switch to animation was a little unsettling in terms of the show's tone however it was still such a great drama and I was sad when it finished. It had such funny side characters but the main couple also had their moments. My favourite couple being DaYu and Zhi Shui because they were so funny and Zhi Shui was constantly playing hard to get. I wish they had a spin-off show. The way they presented the struggle that Xia Yao went through due to his lack of sexual attraction to women was well done and the way they presented the trauma he went through was perfect even though to keep the light hearted tone it was made humourous it still showed his instability. The portrayal of Yuan Zhong feeling of responsibility for his sister due to the fact that he practically raised her like a father and yet had to leave her alone when he became a soilder was used as a more complex internal conflict that led to Zhong and Yao meeting for the first time. The way the properly explained Zhi Shui's dark past and yet didn't destroy the tone of the show was extremely well done and I think Xue Feng did a great job acting as Zhi Shui. I watched this is 2018 when and I still rewatch certain episodes and enjoy the drama especially episodes that focus on DaYu and Zhi Shui however overall I enjoy re-watching all episodes of the show and I really do wish each secondary couple could have had their own spin-offs. Overall the cast was brilliant and so was the story line, production and direction, Yang Long (the director) should be really proud of this work. Was this review helpful to you?
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PURE BL (NOT BROMANCE), THOROUGHLY ENJOYED
The moment I saw GONG JUN as one of the MLs I was like - "OMG ITS HIM!!!! YAY!!!" (Bcz he is one of my favourite actors since I watched Word of Honor). I love him...his acting , playfulness, hotness and cuteness.. everything is just so well blended and on point. And then, when I saw his co-star XU FENG I was like.. "OMFG HE'S SO HOT!!! WHAT A DADDY!" (LOL)Coming to the story, I liked the plot. I was so done with college and office romance. This was refreshing, an ex-armyman and a boxer. The chemistry they both had was so damn adorable!!!! I got hooked until the last. And what I like about C-BLs is how they show selfless love. BOTH MLs are ALWAYS DOES SOMETHING FOR THE OTHER, EVEN AT THEIR OWN RISK. ITS JUST SO SWEET! EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS NO INTIMATE SCENES, YOU'LL STILL GET BUTTERFLIES WATCHING THEM... THE STORY WASN'T COMPLICATED. IT WAS SIMPLE AND SWEET . BUT THE CASTS TOOK IT TO ANOTHER LEVEL. I liked the supporting casts too but the MLs are my favourite. Do watch!
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Simon Gong and Xu Feng. Their chemistry was on point. Even without the kissing or BL scenes they were able to keep you hooked. I understand the ban from China so Im not even going to rant about it. There are plenty of reviews that do. Im not sure if a Japanese or Thai crossover would be as popular. Im sure with the fact that it could show the BL scenes it would do fine, but only ONLY if the casting is as perfect as it is here. I wish we could have gotten an I love you/I like you scene. Im sure it was said in the manga, but it was lacking without it here. I will say this with the build of tension of many scenes where they were close and you wanted more, when Yuan Zong says, 'if you guys dare to lay another finger on my baby' there wasnt a person watching who didnt squeal. I woke my house up at 4am because I was so happy to finally get a confirmation on feelings. Thinking and knowing are two different things. All in all its an awesome show. There is so much potential for a sequel, or even it being turned into a movie where you could have more of the BL scenes.
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I would have liked it a bit more intimate in places, but after reading some of the other reviews I can understand why it wasn't. I was left wanting more when it finished.
The episodes on YouTube jumped a bit here and there, and the episodes were roughly only 20 mins long. I don't know if they are meant to be. Some scenes jumped in randomly leaving me confused as to how the characters got there.
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Bromance because China
Like all my reviews regarding Chinese BL, I think it's important to remind people or to inform for those who don’t know, that the Chinese government is very strict against BL. They put so much red tape on many shows that most of them have being cancel. For those who are not cancel, they are restricted on what they can put on a show. So if you want that hot Thai style BL, you wont find it, unless it’s in a cancel show (because it has hot BL).Regarding this show; I wish they could have done a better job, but again, that red tape is scruples and for such, I do believe they did a great job. Good effects and acting. It’s obvious what is going on without showing sex scenes or kissing scenes. One of their techniques is using subtle but obvious clues of what is going to happen. In one episode, you can see Xia Yao throwing Yuan Zong to the couch and slightly loos his necktie (if you don’t know what is happening, then you are more innocent then me…lol). Then on another scene, you can see how they got to a point that they are just in bed enjoying each other’s company, on the same day that Yuan Zong was at Xia Yao making dinner, and the mom was there.
The ending was a little disappointing, they had to make it animated (the last 2 minutes) (don’t know why). I was waiting for them to just be at their place (either one) and just look at each other with the look of love and compassion as they move bravely to the future together.
Furthermore, you can see Xia Yao friend’s development in their own relationships as they struggle to admit to themselves what they really want.
In order to fully enjoy the show, you must remember 2 main things: 1) it’s a Chinese BL and in order to finish the show, they had to make it romantic but as well brolove and 2) The tile! It’s call “Advancing Bravely” for a reason! Meaning, the message of the story is; in order to move forward (no matter what), you have to be brave. I believe having this 2 main points, you will be able to fully enjoy this show.
Please let me know your opinion once you finish the show ^_^.
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Swiss Cheese
Let's start from the good things. I loved the actors. They created every character in a credible way - including the characters that weren't all that well written. This applies of course to the main leads, with their contrasting personalities, the sister, hysterical and bitchy, the rich friends, spoiled and vain, as well as the thief, smoothly manipulating his a** out of troubles. I would also like to mention the mother character: she is just there, looking elegant, watching soap operas, enjoying her son-in-law's cooking, and never causing unneeded drama. Way to live!The romance between the main leads was shown perfectly, taking the censorship into consideration. Watching those two mess with each other and care for each other all the time was pure pleasure. The way Gong Jun's character teases his bf, takes money out of his pocket because he knows he can, and simply moves in at some point is cute and hilarious at the same time.
Here the good things end and I need to talk about the plot. Starting from the premise, where a dude agrees to hit on another dude in the name of his younger sister, the whole story is absurd. The characters' actions are sometimes weird or stupid, or even plain criminal, but they don't get called out on this. And don't even get me started about the ending. Construction workers need a rich boy's help? Really? And then leave him in the well to freeze? Really, really? It's a pity, because with a story less offensive to reason, this could really be a great series.
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This drama will give you nosebleed !!!
I’m not kidding, this drama will give you nosebleeds. The ML and MC are both hot and great acting. There are many since you can imagine them papapa I been following their drama after the show ended.Simon been going great and he even going to starred in another bl drama called ‘faraway wanderers’ in 2021 both this and advance bravely were adapted from a novel so you guys should go read first on novelupdates. I found that reading the novel first then watch the drama makes me anticipated even more. The other male leads I haven’t since other drama he in since this one.
The story and the acting in this both male leads first big gig and they did an awesome-ness job. This is has a comedy feel to it sometimes because of the ML sister and the birds. The other characters are all cute and unique and have their own story. Lots of cute and dirty inside jokes. You won’t regret watching it. It action scenes are cool and will wow you!
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Though we never get any open talks about their relationship, the connection between the main characters is clear for all of us to see, a connection that spurred me through the hardships that they faced in this series. Despite anything that came to them, they would aim to protect and save the other, as shown in one of the last scenes, which I have to admit I was crying over.
Overall, this is one of my favourite Chinese BL's as, even though they rarely purvey the love between their gay characters through kissing etc., the feelings are shown between couples effectively, as experienced by me in this series and in 'Take Your Mark' (though less so'.
Certainly watch though, and be prepared to smile at the flourishing of a destined relationship!!!
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Out of my nutshell
I'm going to come out of my nutshell: I'm not the biggest fan of dubbing in productions. It bothers me a lot. It feels like there is "sand in the gears".Yes, dubbing has many resons. Some sound recordings are disturbed by airplanes, children playing in the vicinity, or engine noises. It is allowed to "trick" in those cases. But to dub through the whole movie/episode, it must be flawless, with real dubbing actors and real sound engineers who are specialized. Also, the voice must fit the character! For this purpose, there are special casting agencies that find type-appropriate voices for the actors.
Often mainland China BL productions have bigger budgets and for all the money they could produce better BL dramas compared to other countries. Well - this is my taste and means that there are exceptions:
I am a huge fan of "Addiction" (2016). I would almost say the mother of all BL productions! See my review of "Addiction" for more information.
Advance Bravelys production is good. The story is plain and it is dubbed. But I thought, be brave and watch the first 4 episodes. You will see very well trained bodies and if you love 6-packs, you will be happy here immediately!
:)
The cliché "Enemies to Lovers", "Rich meets Poor" is served here and the story is peppered with fight scenes. I can not judge whether this is really exciting for the target audience, but maybe you do it so that the boyfriends of the target audience are not too bored by BL dramas. ^^
And I liked Advance Bravely, so I watched all episodes.
What I do not like about the drama is that animals there are not kept species-appropriate. It is part of the script, that the cage incl. bird dropped on the floor. Someone sprayed an insecticide 1m below the cage. The cage of the bird was too narrow, hung on the balcony and exposed to the weather. Too much wind, sun and rain... how will the bird find protection? Never! The bird was carried back and forth for walks. This is absolute stress for a bird. If you really need to transpose a bird, then please carry it gently with both hands and a blanket over the cage so that the bird does not see what is happening around. It is best to use dummies for films or you can also use computer animation to incorporate an animal. Also that with the cock is not funny.
I think every production MUST be careful here. No matter if dog, cat, snake, hamster, fish or bird... it should be oriented after international knowledge.
A very long time ago in Taiwan and Thailand dogs were kept in very small steel cages on the balcony. Today, this is seen very very rarely. And the mortality rate from these animals dropped significantly. I wish there was a different awareness in this production. Who has no understanding for my demands, he can try it with pleasure. I'll put you in a cage and expose you to the weather day and night - and you get always the same food.
It is possible that you do not understand my concerns. It is only an animal and it may have no value for you. I am not writing this review through the eyes of every reader. It is in the nature of things to have different opinions. And I am writing from my point of view. Opinions are always just an offering to think about. In some countries, the value of an animal has no value. I am aware of that. Still, I think the film industry has a special responsibility here.
But I remain fair and do not disquality this production.
I think everyone acted well. The sister had a difficult role. She was the big pain in the butt - but a little less is more. Her role could also be a little less dorky.
A lot of relationships weren't fleshed out, there's an enormous amount of room for more depth. But I'm not sure why the series was stopped. If I compare it to "Addiction (2016)," it was the same problem, just a year earlier.
Thus, the story of the last episode and the ending of the drama is really bad. As a viewer, you feel very badly admonished, which is why I see the poor rating of the last episode as justified.
It is also a pity that the role of Xu He Ni is so small. I would have liked to see more of him.
The mother was a total surprise for me. Super played and had a really nice script. I would like to see more of Hu Cai Hong!
Aired Advance Bravely in 2017.... now it's 2023 and I assume we can no longer expect a well deserved 2nd season. Too bad.
Now that you know the story ends abruppt, it won't be so hard for you.
Enjoy the really nice minutes.
I wish you all the best!
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Best BL series ever!
This was the very first boy's love series that I ever saw. I knew very little about it but watched it on youtube. I was so hooked I've told my friends and sister about it. Main leads, Jason and Simon, have incredible chemistry. Jason is a former special ops veteran who opened up his own security company and made his fortune while caring for his younger sister. Simon is a "Cooler" by occupation in which he cools down situations and handles media. In the book, though, he is a police officer. Regardless, he is also an international MMA Fighter who has won awards and is a known celebrity. He has such a wonderful personality...funny, happy, charming smile. Jason is the opposite. He is reserved, authoritarian, a product of the military.Jason's sister is infatuated with Simon but when she is unable to catch the aloof Simon she asks her brother for help. Used to the hooligans his sister usually attracts, Jason finds himself admiring the handsome Simon who is also spunky and a fighting force.
Every episode has scenes that are just brilliant. My sister and I have seen it more than 20 times now and still love it as much as the first time. We've been trying to get a DVD copy of it but have been unable to find one. If you are a fan of bl than you will love it, too.
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