Hard to Find (2024)

Brutal, Logical, True to Itself.

Hard to Find, indeed. The only flaw I can point out right from the get go is the music which sometimes sounds too loud, and the rules of Lin Chuan's ancient tree, which I personally found unclear in some instances. This might have also taken the ‘impact’ away from the final episodes as I was trying to make sense of the character's actions and trying to link events and laws.

Alrighty, now that I've got out these *cold pricklies* away from my mind, I'll dive straight into why I think this drama is far better than many other throwaway idol dramas released per year.

Also - thank you to whoever selected the English title and designed the opening credits. If it was some big budget drama out there, we'd probably be stuck with some title such as ‘Love Lasts Forever/Forever Love’ or the word which is currently in vogue - ‘Blossom’.

When Master He Lian Xi of the divine Lin Chuan clan married Princess Feng Yuan, a marriage with a foreigner after almost a century, he expected to live a quiet life with his wife and the rest of his tribe away from the turbulent world as always. What he did not know was that Feng Yuan was purposefully sent to him with a motive far bigger than what his tribe could've handled. The fatal marriage results in an unprecedented bloodshed in which his entire tribe is wiped out and Lin Chuan falls into ruins, forgotten by all.
Three years later, he returns with vengeance to seek for answers and find the divine artifact that can bring back his clan, which belongs to Feng Yuan, the person who initiated the tragedy.

The drama runs for around 19 to 20 minutes and it does not dawdle around unnecessary plot points and ‘twirly’ swirly dramatics.
It's one of the most brutal ones I've seen in terms of CDramaland with plenty of knife cuts and torture. The entire aura of the story is dark right from the start. Not to mention, the very ominous all-black end credits.

The Characters in particular are given plenty of background and depth. I could see why they made the choices they did, their anger and despair. I felt particularly sad for the Lin Chuan clan – they were pure souls who did not deserve the fate that had befallen them. Props to Zhao Yi Qin in particular. He is definitely one of the best actors in CDramaland and it's a shame that he is not given an opportunity to showcase his talent in some full length drama. Or maybe it's safe that he is away from toxic fandoms.

Shen Yu Jie was not behind at all, but for some reason, I kept getting distracted by her well manicured nails, which seemed out of place in certain situations. [There were close up shots of her hand.]
Her emotional scenes were convincing enough, and I liked how strong her character was.
Also, two familiar faces: Feng Yin and Hua'e. Though, I have to tell that I liked Feng Yin better in A Familiar Stranger. His character was more challenging here, and kudos to the actor, particularly in the final episodes.

With supporting characters such as Shu Yin, Qing Sang and Xiu Jiu, the ultimate finale seemed more hopeful.

The costumes were beautiful without being overdone, leaning more towards darker shades without any splash of color for Feng Yuan and He Lian Xi.
Though, I have to say, the outfit designs for Xi Jiu were the most eye-catching to me.
Music was hauntingly beautiful. But, it was overpowering at times. Also, the background score was to die for, particularly the one in EP16 and EP27. I hope they release every single track.

I'd suggest this to anyone who wants a break from filler-stuffed long dramas and seek a solid plot with excellent performances and chemistry. This is the second time I was relieved that a drama was over, (the first being Goodbye, My Princess) both for myself and the leading couple. They deserved a break after all that mayhem.

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Beautiful cinematography & mystical love story

This drama is about the female lead who suffers from amnesia and cannot remember anything before the last three years. She draws a painting of a mystical tree in the hopes of discovering more about her past self. Before her wedding night, a man (the male lead) finds her, claiming she has stolen a twinned branch from the tree she has drawn.

POSITIVE:
- Beautiful cinematography that captures the beauty of soft romance and the cruelty of the dark world. The stunning cinematography here elevates each scene 10x more.
- Likeable and mature main leads that have great chemistry.
- Mix of angsty and soft romance.
- Simple and easy to understand plot with some unexpected twists.
- Lovely OST.

NEGATIVE:
- Some parts of the drama have ridiculous moments which not everyone will like. But I suppose as long as it's not taken to heart and seen as entertaining it's alright.
- The story couldn’t fully hold my attention and sometimes I’ll get sleepy while watching.
- The ending… that’s all I’ll say without spoiling.

OVERALL:
If you want a mystical love story with beautiful cinematography AND you don’t have a faint heart, watch this short drama.

FUN FACT:
I’m mesmerised by the cinematography!!! The director is the same that also did the short dramas A Familiar Stranger, Provoke and Butterflied Lover (you should check them out). He has an upcoming full length drama Blossom with Li Yun Rui which I’m sure will again be a visual feast.

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Angsty, fast paced plot with enemies to lovers vibe.

Thankfully, I started this drama when I had symptoms of drama slump. Turned out it was because I did not find that one drama that suit my mood at the moment. So when I finally found it, I can't stop watching.

So here is my review:

✅️ Very engaging, angsty & fast paced from beginning to end. I liked that the plot was unpredictable at times and every minute details have significance to the story like you would think they're unimportant but later they did have a meaning to it.
✅️ Excellent acting from all cast. I enjoyed FL's acting. She can acts in emotional scenes so well despite only have less than 3 years of experience as an actress. This was my second drama of Zhao Yi Qin and he did not disappoint too. He was perfect as Helian Xi . His character tugged at my heartstrings. I feel for his anger, anguish ,loneliness and sadness so much.
✅️ Romance & chemistry between leads was excellent. Enjoyed enemies to lovers concept in the early episodes. We could feel a lover vibe in their skinship scenes. Just wishh.... we get more than just one steamy intimate scene in the story ( ok now I sound like a pervert lol).
✅️ About the ending , I found it to be well suited to the story. After so much that happened to both main leads, they are free now from all the suffering.
✅️ Cinematography & costumes : 10/10 . I have no complaints. Many beautiful setting (my favourite were the house adjacent to waterfall and all snowy scenes ). Loved the costume details too .
☑️ Motive of the villains here were nothing new I speed through most of their scenes and still able to understand the story.
☑️ OST just good enough and well fitted.

Easily become one of the best short length C-Drama of 2024 and all-time favourite for me. If your soul need some fast paced, angsty & not so cliche plot with great chemistry between leads, try Hard to Find you might love this like I did.

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What A Hidden Gem

I've always loved watching Mini Dramas inbetween waiting for a new full length dramas. I stubbled on this drama because of l Zhao Yi Qin (ML) ive seen many if not all of his dramas. This drama also had 2 of my favourite up and coming actors Shen Yu Jie (FL) and Fang Xiao Dong and they did not disappoint.
For a small Budget drama it was well produce, with good writting, excellent acting from all actors and good pacing. With the whole plot of this drama mainly regarding a tree, the writter made sure each character was introduce well making sure there were nothing missed and audiance understood them well. Excellet visuals and appealing characters, this drama had it all.
A little disappoint about how it ended however i will recomend this drama to anyone. !!

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Dark, heart wrenching, visual treat

✅️ Fast-paced
✅️ Aesthetics
✅️ Historical
✅️ Wuxia with fantasy elements
✅️ Intrique
✅️ Revenge and Retribution

This drama checked all the above. So if thats the genre and plots you prefer, this is the drama to watch.

Zhao Yi Qin continues his streak as a dark hero, this time equipped with S-tier level of sword fighting. Post betrayal and near death, the ML is also the antagonist. Seething with anger, the first few episodes are of him looking at the FL with thinly vieled disgust. Spoiler alert is some physical and verbal threats made to FL, that can be a red flag for some viewers.

As is part of the main plot, ML comes to know that the past happening was not as straightforward as he thought. FL who had amnesia also slowly faced with the happenings of the past. It can only be said that fate and the evil people are the reason to their suffering. Its starkly harsh and cruel.

If preference for sweet or vanilla romance, proceed with caution. This might not be for you.

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Perfec perfect perfect

I just love this drama.

Let's start by saying that for a short drama, it's better than a lot of longer dramas I watched.
The production, photography and camera angles are just to die for. Really, it's difficult to find something this beautiful and cool. Add to that amazing fight scenes!
I love the cast, omg, I really love the cast. They are such good actors and the characters are amazing. Zhao Yi Qin is ideal for his role.
About the OST, it's so cool, gives everything you need to feel the depth of the scenes.
Now, the whole vibe is amazing, mystery with dark elements, angst, anger and then some sweet and warm moments.
It's definitely a roller coaster for your heart, you get so evolved with the story and find good plot twists within. I really like the story and complexity of it all. Just one thing wrong here: I got a bit confuse by the whole branch and heart thing for some time, but ok, I think I understood it later.
This whole drama is very similar to Butterflied lover, but it's not the same director, so I got confuse about it, I could sewer it was the same.

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Interesting Plot but Annoyed with all the slow-motion scenes

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75


“Hard to Find” is a mid-length drama that actually has a very interesting and attractive plot. With 28 episodes and about 20 minutes each, I would not consider this as a mini-drama, like most of the dramas that male lead, Zhao Yi Qin, is known for. There’s a lot to like, yet quite a few areas that annoy me.


What I Like:

General Plot - I really do find the general plot/story of this drama interesting. I especially enjoyed the first half of the drama when the leads reunited, up until she regained her memory. The story is easy to follow, yet not overly simple. It has a good mix of romance, fantasy plot, mystery, revenge and a little bit of palace politics.

Shen Yu Jie (FL) - Shen Yu Jie plays the female lead, Feng Yuan. The costume designer and hairstylist got brownie points from me for dressing her up so beautifully. Her acting is also the best of the cast. Checking out her profile, I realized she’s only 22 years old but has been in quite a few bigger budget dramas. I thought she is also one of those mini-dramas actresses. I see a lot of potential in her.

Great visuals & production - For a lower budget drama, “Hard to Find” is beautiful to watch. Not only is the whole cast good-looking, but some of the scenes are shot beautifully. Costumes, hair accessories, set designs and props, all look pretty good and not cheap. I also enjoy the songs played, even though they are overplayed.

Wang Ze Xuan - Without spoiling too much, I just have to say I enjoyed his acting in the last 5 episodes of the drama. He looks so ‘pretty’ and portrays the character in a dramatic fashion, but not over-the-top. I’ve seen him in “A Familiar Stranger” and I guess he’s got a knack for playing the bad guys convincingly.


What Bothers Me:

Slow Motion Everything - This is very personal, but I generally dislike the use of slow-motion in dramas for extra dramatic effects. I especially detest fight scenes that are sloooow moving and have actors posing during a fight. The first comment I wrote down in my notes is slow mo fighting (yuck!). There aren’t even that many fight scenes, so to not be able to enjoy a few good ones is disappointing. Not only the fight scenes slow, there are sooo many scenes that are shot like that. I get more and more annoyed towards the second half of the drama. It also drags down the pace as well, and I lose my focus slightly in the second half because of that. Additionally, they also change the voiceover to this slow echoey voice, and add in non-stop background music during these slow scenes.

Zhao Yi Qin (ML) - I have seen Zhao Yi Qin in quite a few mini dramas and have generally enjoyed them. For some reason, he seems to be trying very hard in this drama and appears overly dramatic. When he’s acting angry, he looks exaggerated. He frowns more than I’ve seen in his other dramas. For some reason, his acting is just not clicking with him. He’s a good-looking guy, but if I have to compare what he looks like in his MDL profile picture and him in this drama, he looks a little gaunt and exhausted, even during the honeymoon phase of the romance. Is he overworked?

Over-the-top Dramatics - Not only is Zhao Yi Qin’s acting a little over dramatic, there are many elements in this drama that are like this. The drama is trying too hard to stand out, yet comes across as trying too hard. I think the drama would be so much better if it is a little more grounded and tones down on all the dramatics (constant background music playing, shining light on faces, wind blowing at hair, etc.) The drama has a solid script but lacks perfect execution.



“Hard to Find” has such a strong start and I was willing to give it an 8.5 rating, until all the slow motion scenes accumulated and annoyed the heck out of me. The second half also loses some steam and the pace slows down. Unfortunately, in the end, I will have to give a lower rating of 7.75. I might rate this lower if this is a bigger budget production. “Hard to Find” is still a decent drama if you want something short with an interesting plot. But this is definitely not a must-see.



Completed: 5/5/2024 - Review #436

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