The story of My Dear Boy is very simple. Our male lead, Ahn Qing Hui, encounters our female lead, Luo Xiao Fei by accident because of their messy love lives. Though these two are very different, an odd friendship blossoms between them. Though the story is simple, the best thing about this drama is watching the budding friendship between our leads and how they grow by being there for each other. This drama is more than just romance, but about growing up, dealing with the complications of love and falling in love with someone, dealing with your career choices and what you choose to do with your future. These are the great things about the drama, though it’s not all perfect and it does suffer from a few flaws and that’s mostly pacing. This drama could have benefited from having lesser episodes and 16 probably would have been better. Also, some things could have been a little more clearer in the narrative during the latter half.
The cast is really good. Both Ruby and Derek do great jobs with their roles, especially in their emotional scenes. I really did believe in the chemistry between them and when I talk about chemistry I’m not simply speaking on a romantic level, but that they work really well together, and they never felt awkward around each other. I really believed in their friendship which I think is the best thing about this drama. I thought both Qing Hui and Xiao Fei were well written, interesting characters and Ruby and Derek embodied them bringing their characters to life. Watching their story made you want to see them grow and get their happy ending. I also liked the other male leads and I thought they were great additions because they weren’t so one note and they never felt like they were there to solely cause problems between our leads. They were well written and well used. I do think some of the supporting cast could have been used better. Shampoo’s appearance at one point felt off. The same thing with the Qing Hui’s friends. And some of the characters, mostly the family members, fall prey to the common tropes of the ‘I’m against the relationship so I’ll do everything to ruin it’.
Overall, this drama was a fun watch. It’s not perfect and has some flaws here and there, but it’s enjoyable to watch and I loved tuning in every week. Ruby and Derek are great and it’s a joy watching them both.
I recommend this drama if you’re a fan of Ruby or Derek, or noona romances because this is a nice addition to the genre. Simple, sweet, fun, and heartfelt.
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The show started off very strong. Although Derek Chang's An Quinhui is very young and very immature, he has lovely chemistry with Ruby Lin's Xiaofei. The acting is very good and, at least in the beginning, the show has a nice vibe of verisimilitude: these people feel real, their lives feel real and the story feels real too. This is a classic slice of slice drama - or at least it is until the episode 14 mark where it starts to go horribly wrong.
At one point it became clear that Quinhui was far far too young and far too immature for Ruby Lin's character and the idea this relationship would progress to a romance was somewhat laughable. No mature professional woman her age would be genuinely interested in this child and yet the show pursued the relationship anyway. It's not surprising that it inevitably crashed and burned.
I am yet to see a Taiwanese drama that doesn't attempt to fill its long episode run with a touch of Makjang and unfortunately this was no exception. The last few episodes were a tough watch as An Quinhui responds to his feelings in the most immature way possible and the people around the main couple behave just as badly. In the end, what I had enjoyed about the show was slowly eroded until I was just left with frustration and second-hand embarrassment.
I only finished this show because I'd already devoted so much time to it. It's yet another Taiwanese drama that started off well but couldn't maintain it over so many episodes.
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STORY: I was actually pleasantly surprised at how down to earth the plot was and also, the dialogue was more or less realistically portrayed and delivered. I've noticed a bit of a fanciful trait that most Taiwanese romance/rom-com dramas tend to do/have, is being a bit over-dramatic with particular situations and the characters also immediately become these helpless and suppressed doe-eyed beauties. But this drama was actually not badly portrayed when it came to real-life situations and emotions. I at first really did not like the mother, but then a spotlight was lit on her, bringing forth her emotions/situation and life, in where you can relate and sympathize with her and not just see her for a one-dimension character. Everybody has flaws but those flaws also come with stories to why they're flaws in the first place. This drama did a pretty decent job at shedding light and realization that people are more complex then what the surface shows, no matter how simplistic they seem.
ACTING/CAST: Acting was also a pleasant surprise, especially from the lead male. The lead male character shows us the immature, young, and short-sighted person that he is and how naive and unaware someone at that age can sometimes be. But as time goes on, we see the growth and maturing of his character as he becomes more aware of his surroundings, himself and others around him. Derek Chang did a good job in performing the subtle nuance changes a person gains through growth, pain, sadness, and hardships that a person goes through in life that causes them to develop and mature. I also want to give a round of applause for An Qing Hui's mother because I thought she also did an exceptional job portraying the mother.
MUSIC: Don't really have a problem with music as long as it seems to fit and isn't overly bad in matching with the overall atmosphere and theme of the drama. I'm satisfied.
OVERALL: Overall, this was a really nice drama to watch if you are looking for a noona romance and a side of good slice of life. It has it's fair share of angst but not over done with melo in it. It also has a good amount of comedy and slice of life combination mixed in. I think this is a pretty wholesome drama to watch that just makes you feel good, relate and sympathize with the characters in it.
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Friendship turned to Love and life lessons- Must watch!
I'm a bit lazy writing reviews, however, at some point I think I owe it to this film/ series to have a high rating and for people who tumble on this to watch. Noona Romances are a trend nowadays, some would be on it or don't. But for me, I like it because it brings a lot of maturity to watch unlike those school-setting boys next door falling in love with a clingy school girl or crush theme. What's lovable about this series is it didn't focus on one topic only, it showed how fate would bring two people from opposite sides of the table to be awkwardly acquainted, be best friends, fall in love, handle society's pressure, make the best version of themselves and succeding in life having a happy ending. That's how the story goes.Now talking about the actors and characters. There is no single doubt that the lead actors did a fantastic job. Ruby Lin and Derek have great chemistry, thou there is a huge age gap in real life which is 17 years I guess..they both portrayed their roles with no awkwardness. Though Ruby Lin at 41 and had just given birth 4 months prior she started this role, how amazing this woman is and her passion for acting. I have been searching some of her works and mostly it is drama and historical roles. If you want to see her being light, goofy, smiling with her dimples on, laughing, funny, and stupidly childish lying drunk on the floor then you are lucky to see her on this. I wished she could have done more romantic comedy roles in the past or maybe in the future, who knows thou she is 47 now in 2023 she still looks young. Now talking about her character, I have all praises as said above the only thing I would comment about on the other side is that I hoped her character could have been vulnerable during the times that they were already a couple. The character was so fun to watch in the beginning as she was vulnerable. The character has always been a strong independent woman and would have been nice to see her being vulnerable in the relationship. Mentioning there was no time in the series that she said she loved the male lead "wo ay ni". I could have cried a lot if there was a moment in the story about confessing her love to the male lead. She did confess she had feelings and cried but was still in denial of it. Also, there was another comment I read here saying it did not show exactly what the female lead liked about the male lead. It would have been nice to see how she gets jealous of Shampoo who is the first love of the male lead. And with that, the support role of Shampoo could have been maximized.
Now Derek Chang, as a new actor is very good. No wonder he was nominated for this role. When he cried, there was so much sincerity that he didn't care that his saliva was dropping. Character-wise, the only thing to comment on is it just took a long time in the series for him to grow up. Yes, the story is that he is a boy who doesn't even know he is in love that is why he acts stupid. But it could have been nice if half of the series already showed that he grew up and that this time the female lead fell in love more. It could have been nice to see a little pride in the male lead character.
Overall both characters and actors did a fantastic job, and also just to add up the kissing scenes were done in a respectful, light, and kind-hearted way. The pecks and hugging were enough for the romantic vibes. This is the kind of chemistry that there is no need for a bed scene or hot kissing scene to make it sizzle.
To add up as well, I know most Chinese dramas though this is Taiwanese Drama, the story only focused on those two main lead characters. There are support characters but they just moved the story and main lead characters to where they should be. It is not like Chinese dramas which there are side stories aside from the main lead which is confusing. I became a fan of Ruby Lin and Derek Chang because of this. I am also glad that they are real friends following each other on IG even Derek having pictures of them together while filming. The story made an impact on me and I want to share it with all the people out there who want to just for a little while in their heavy lives escape and smile for 20 hours of watching. The last thing, you may also want to watch "Rational Life" on Netflix which is as great as this.
The final verdict is a 10/10!
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Taiwanese dramas are either a HIT or a MISS and this was a HIT
As an avid watcher of asian dramas,I always give each Major industry namely K-drama,C-drama,J-drama and TW-dramas alternate timing,for every K-drama.I watch a C-drama or a J-drama but I admit that I rarely find a good Taiwanese one and whenever that happens it becomes a priority and I keep my fingers crossed
that it is well done.And to be honest Taiwan has good productions and superb scren writers who develop a story that keeps you glued on the screen.
And just like japanese they make is short and Sweet.Taiwan pushes the envelop especially with subjects that China mainland avoids oe sensors so its a thin line.
My dear boy is not just like any ohter noona drama(older FL-younger Ml)Its a story about a woman and everything that connected to her.
Her life,her family,her career,her love life and her growth.Every character in the drama is connected to her directly or indirectly.One of her story
that take center stage is her heartbreak and betrayal from someone who mentored her in her career,being hurt by someone you look up to will give you
20 episodes of a very detailed journey of ups and downs as an intern in a commercial film industry to being a famous director who is respected by her peers.
I was thinking how hard is it to shoot a film crew inside a drama..its like having two productions in one.But the FL Ruby Lin is also a director in real life so
am sure she had a huge in put in the process.
I would like to give a big up to the screen writer of this drama,She really outdid herself.She covererd every big or small storyline and nothing was left hanging
or undeveloped.The characters were well put together and intertwined somehow and the actors did a good job in portraying whatever role they were given.
As usual there was the asian mother,who tend to be the show runner in every drama, sometimes i wonder what would happen to a project without a crazy,
psycho and manipulator mother from eith side.Either way this seems to be the fuel of asian dramas and i dont think we will avoid this part any time soon.
The ML,what can I say,it is always a good day when one discover a new talent and I found Derek Chang,I added him to the list of my favorite TW actors with
Wallace Huo and Jusper Liu.He took his role to heart and brought in all the emotions that are needed to chase after an older FL, I dont think i have seen any
other character go to this level,maybe He Yu as Lu Zhechang in "My fated boy" His character was well developed and his growth was visible,and for the first time
in Noona romance,the ML gave up at a certain point,knowing that he is going to need more than just a cute face and an innocence to be with a mature woman.
The woman who he met by accident when they were both going throught heir disastrous love lives and ended up becoming his life teacher and his colleague.
Everyone was against them and them taking a step back was heartbreaking and shocking to the viewers but later on i understood that he needed this in order to
have something to bring to the table..And when he did 5 years later,It was really good to see him accomplished and ready to parsue the FL,hoping that fate is in
his side..hoping she is still single..Finding her was going to be another mountain to climb,especially after the twist the writer gave us before the separation.
What i didnt like in this drama was the amount of flashbacks,OMG I understand its part of the story,but it almost felt like a time travel trope,so if you are extremely
allergic to flashbacks be warned that there will be many.
Overall this was a good watch,the quality was top,the visuals, the set, the production, the OST and the writting were all well executed.As an ID, I would give extra
points to the production and set designers,they did a stellar job,especially for the FL's industrial loft..I would live there in a heart beat.
This drama felt almost like a slice of life with normal problems for everyday people trying to get from point A to B.The writers took their time and i belive they had
good time writing.
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Most Realistic and noteworthy dramas I have seen in a long time
This drama has elements of comedy but the drama focuses on life and that everything is not rosy. The characters will allow you to really feel as if you are them. The number of serious life moments are too many to count.I will tell you all that you will fall in love with LO HHSIAO-FEI as well as the other Characters. This series is about growing up and all of the hardships that come with it. Also even when we are grown we do not have all the answers.
Especially once you get pass the first three episodes.
My advice is to pay attention carefully what is going on throughout this T-Drama and all of the answers will become clear.
The drama overall is well written and was not too long. Spoiler alert you will have moments that you will laugh, moments that you may shed a tear or perhaps more and moments that will relate to your own life. this drama is very realistic in the way it was put together and very believable.
AN CING-HUEI shows us how sometimes we must become stronger to ultimately get what we want.
The supporting cast was also good and you will see some life lessons as well with them if you pay attention.
Overall I give this series an 10 out of 10
The music went with the series and I can say that there was nothing outlandish or unbelievable like in other dramas.
This series will be hard to beat
Whatever AN CING-HUE and LO HHSIAO-FEI may face after the last episode I am now sure that they will be okay
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Ruby Lin is awesome
Just finished this. I love the Noona dramas, Something in the Rain still one of my all time favorites. Whereas that was a believable storyline, I found My Dear Boy to be utterly unrealistic. I love Ruby Lin, which is why I stayed with this till the end, she was great in Light the Night so it was nice to see her in an earlier drama. I thought she was great and carried the show throughout. My big problem was the male lead. Not once was I cheering for him to get the girl. I just never understood her attraction/connection to him. He really didn't offer anything for her, he just had this belief that he belong to her. Once he confessed to her, you would think that she would have put a quick end to it. It seems she tried to rebuff him, but did not do it with enough conviction to turn him away for good. Of course, that would have been the end of the drama, however it would have been more realistic and they could have taken it in a different direction. I thought her original relationship with the father of her child would have been better to explore more.I am from USA and have been watching A-dramas for 5 years now. It's funny how they are becoming so popular now due to Squid Games, which was great, but I would not put it in my top 5. I have always loved the dramas because they are a refreshing change from the heavy handed drivel that are USA TV shows dramas. And I love all the cultural differences and all the same themes you see in every one of them. Drinking and eating are a major theme in every one of these shows, they play a much bigger role than any USA show, outside of cooking shows. I think it is cool and enjoy it even though it is repeated in every single show. So even the silly ones (and by silly I mean unrealistic) like this one I enjoy because of how different it is from USA shows.
So, although not one of my favorites, I did enjoy this simply because of Ruby. I hope to watch some of her older shows and look forward to new ones.
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but from my point of view they dragged i bit too much the story I mean the story itself didn't had anything that much interesting the only think that made me want to continue watching it till the end was the main leading male actor
Usually taiwanese dramas most of times are a bit too slow pacing they don't give that adrenaline like kdramas bt when they makes a story they make a great one one the example is Bromance my all time favorite Tdrama
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