Full Review:
Generally, I don't get into Taiwanese dramas as much as I do Korean dramas. The length of most well known Taiwanese dramas is too long for me. The use of multiple romances going on as at once is interesting, but also distracting. I have my favorite Taiwanese dramas but not many.
What is Love changed that. I fell so hard for this show. I watched it day and night, squeezing it in between work and sleep. I wanted the drama to never end. It is now one of my all time favorites. Funny that for the first two episodes I felt like barfing.
In the beginning I thought all the people in the show were either on happy mushrooms or so desperately lonely that they would fall for ANYTHING. The main lead was a 32 year old Wholesome Woman (Li Yi Hau) surrounded by loving family and friends, whose one goal in life is to get married (ugh). She then falls for the Big Bad Wolf (Bai Zong You), a dashing playboy, whose one goal in life is to play the game of love and win- with multiple women. Love was battlefield. For Li Yi Hau the game of love is won when she stands at the altar. For Bai Zong You, the game of love is won when he gets laid. Li Yi Hau finds out the truth of her relationship with Bai Zong You fairly quickly (Thank God) And things get much more interesting. She gets revenge for her broken heart and the hundred's of girl's before her. That should have been the end of their ill fated relationship. Of course, Bai Zong You has to have revenge for what Li Yi Hau did to him. He makes a bet that she will fall in love with him first and when she does she has to admit that she is a loser in love.
The premise of this drama sounds horribly cliche. It's been done a hundred times before. For me, this drama is the best bad boy gets the good girl story I have ever seen. The strength of this show is in it's execution. The acting was phenomenal. The balance between breezy romance, heartbreak, growth, family, and love appeared effortlessly. The writers answered sincerely, without plot devices and evil second leads, what love is. In this case, love not only changed the "bad boy" but also the "good girl". You can see a progressive growth in all the characters of this drama. Chris Wu (who plays Bai Zong You) is a FANTASTIC actor. I have to watch all the dramas he is in because of the raw emotion that sizzles on the screen.
The moment I knew I would love this drama for life was during the finale. Most dramas tapper off towards the end, wrapping things up in a pretty bow with a cute happily ever after. This show did not. It was grounded in realism. There is a happy ending, but it was so much sweeter because of the final conflict.
Show, I love you.
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The story begins were we meet your typical playboy aka Chris Wu although he does not like to refer to himself as that (No one does) that is what he is. He enjoys "targeting" women and philandering with them as much as possible.
We also meet Li Yi Hua a hardworking,32 year old women who dreams of having a monogamous marriage (Having one partner for life.)...she becomes the target of the Chris Wu character.
It becomes a battle of wits between the two of them. Both trying to prove the other is wrong.
In the end I really enjoyed this drama. The first two episodes are hard to get into but if you are patient and wait until the third episode you will see all of the fun within this show.
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The side characters' romances were also adorable, and I enjoyed the office cast as well as the parents, since there were no very vindictive characters per usual drama cliches. The music was enjoyable to listen to and it was played at the right emotional times. The music really gets stuck in your head for days and I found myself humming along to it often.
All that said, I would rewatch it if I want to experience the immense love portrayed in this drama, whether it be love between lovers, love between family, or love between friends. I don't usually cry when I watch dramas but I teared up when watching this drama, mainly because of Chris Wu and Jade Chou's fantastic acting. Thus, give this drama a chance- the first few episodes might be hard to swallow, but it's really worth it- especially if you love Chris Wu! (8.75/8.5)
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Once again, I am treated to a wonderful (but simple) story of a male lead who is relentless in his pursue of the female lead. After Yi Hua found out about Zong You's nature and his distorted view of 'love', her opinion of him soured and she became uninterested in him. In fact, she started to get interested in Zhang Shao Qian (the second male lead) who is a responsible man with very practical views on love and marriage (the exact opposite of Zong You). This presented a problem to Zong You who is determined to woo Yi Hua to prove his point on 'love'. What I like about this drama is how there is character growth for both Yi Hua and Zong You. I liked the parts where they both spoke to their ex-es and learned how wrong they were on their respective views on 'love'. They both eventually learn 'What is Love'. Be warned though! This drama is an emotional roller-coaster ride! You'll laugh yourself silly in one moment and the next going through your tissue box like there's no tomorrow!
Acting/Cast: All of the cast are seasoned actors and actresses. Even the supporting actors and actresses did really well. The reason for my 1 mark short of perfect score for acting is because of the second male lead. His acting is the worst of the lot. His facial expressions looked fake and forced. There is no emotion conveyed in his eyes and body language at all. It is obvious that he should not be an actor. Period. A better choice for second male lead would have increased the quality and enjoyment of this drama.
Music: I love the OSTs in this drama, especially Bii's "You Give Me Love".
Rewatch value: There are many cute and funny moments between the leads as well as emotional moments that tear at your heart that you may want to re-watch again and again. The leads have a very good chemistry. Noticeably, Chris Wu shone in his role as Bai Zong You. I only wish they make romantic TDramas like these now. In my opinion, the years 2008 to 2012 are the best years for romantic TDramas. Post-2012, things started to go downhill.
Overall: Good enjoyment and highly recommended to all you romantics at heart! I scored this drama an overall 8.5/10.
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Next, the music for this drama was fresh, crisp, and nice on the ears. I usually don't enjoy slow or mid-paced music, but the songs from this drama were stuck in my head for a couple of days. The opening by Claire Kuo is so peaceful and warm while the ending by Andrew Tan was sentimental and a great fit to the drama. I could see why they used those songs. Since, I am always harsh on my rewatch values, this one got a 7 for me. Although this is a sprightly drama, I don't think I could rewatch it a lot. I might go back and watch some of the scenes just because they are just so adorable. Lastly, I would like to compliment on the colors, design, and the camerawork of the show. They were so light, fluffy, and aesthetic. In the end, you should give this drama a chance because it might be one of the freshest rom-coms you will ever watch.
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This is all i have to say.
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