In A Class of Her Own is so very charming. Where it lacks in plot and character development, it excels in its comedic hijinks and in showcasing the tight camaraderie between the Above Clouds Quartet.
I'll first focus on the items that had me boiling:
- The show never gave me a reason to really root for Wenxi and Chengjun to be together. In fact, they never really dove into either of the characters' psyches. We knew Wenxi's motivation to enter into the school - to provide for her mother and brother - but we weren't given any deep glimpses into her relationships with them. Chengjun is even more of a mystery. I felt like I didn't know anything about him beyond the surface level until the last ten episodes.
- The romance. Where did it come from??? The bromance on the show was so high - between Wenxi and Chengjun, and Wenxi and Zexin. Both men were putting their necks out on the line, promising themselves to protect Wenxi until their dying breaths, but it was only until it was revealed that she was a woman, that that affection turned into love? I can assume Chinese censors were at play in sanitizing the romance, but c'mon. Wenxi is literally the same exact person, her personality never changed. There was absolutely no whiff of romance until her gender was revealed.
- The politics were dreadfully boring. I've seen worse, but I don't think the show was able to weave the politics into the story well. I often felt like I was watching two different shows.
Now the things that had me smiling:
- I love that the show didn't dwell on the typical cross-dressing hijinks in the early parts of the show, like the FL trying to take a bath and almost getting caught. While important in showing how out-of-place the FL can be in a men's-only situation, those jokes are tired and boring and don't really add much to the plot. Thankfully, if I recall correctly, there's only a handful of scenes, if any, where the FL is in this type of sticky situation, and they usually resolve it very quickly. Typically by using an excuse that she's frail and weak lol.
- The camaraderie between the Above Clouds Quartet was an absolute blast to watch. All four characters have distinct personalities and relationships with one another. They all bring value to the group and any hardships that one of them face, they are all willing to sacrifice themselves to save each other. Very heartwarming and lovable.
- Zexin and Lexuan are the most interesting characters in the show. The flashbacks to Zexin and Lexuan's past is what they should have done to Wenxi and Chengjun. We knew what was driving each of their characters, we knew their end goals, we could relate to them. Because the show did a fantastic job developing their characters, we could feel what was at stake when they ran into trouble. I wish I could say the same about Wenxi, especially considering she had the most to lose if her identity were ever to be revealed!
All in all, I did enjoy the show. It's been quite some time since I watched Sungkyunkwan Scandal, so I can't recall a lot about it but I do feel like In A Class of Her Own did a good job of capturing its essence. In A Class of Her Own is a very easy watch, definitely a good show to watch mindlessly with no expectations. The interactions between the Above Clouds Quartet are easily the best part of the show.
I'll first focus on the items that had me boiling:
- The show never gave me a reason to really root for Wenxi and Chengjun to be together. In fact, they never really dove into either of the characters' psyches. We knew Wenxi's motivation to enter into the school - to provide for her mother and brother - but we weren't given any deep glimpses into her relationships with them. Chengjun is even more of a mystery. I felt like I didn't know anything about him beyond the surface level until the last ten episodes.
- The romance. Where did it come from??? The bromance on the show was so high - between Wenxi and Chengjun, and Wenxi and Zexin. Both men were putting their necks out on the line, promising themselves to protect Wenxi until their dying breaths, but it was only until it was revealed that she was a woman, that that affection turned into love? I can assume Chinese censors were at play in sanitizing the romance, but c'mon. Wenxi is literally the same exact person, her personality never changed. There was absolutely no whiff of romance until her gender was revealed.
- The politics were dreadfully boring. I've seen worse, but I don't think the show was able to weave the politics into the story well. I often felt like I was watching two different shows.
Now the things that had me smiling:
- I love that the show didn't dwell on the typical cross-dressing hijinks in the early parts of the show, like the FL trying to take a bath and almost getting caught. While important in showing how out-of-place the FL can be in a men's-only situation, those jokes are tired and boring and don't really add much to the plot. Thankfully, if I recall correctly, there's only a handful of scenes, if any, where the FL is in this type of sticky situation, and they usually resolve it very quickly. Typically by using an excuse that she's frail and weak lol.
- The camaraderie between the Above Clouds Quartet was an absolute blast to watch. All four characters have distinct personalities and relationships with one another. They all bring value to the group and any hardships that one of them face, they are all willing to sacrifice themselves to save each other. Very heartwarming and lovable.
- Zexin and Lexuan are the most interesting characters in the show. The flashbacks to Zexin and Lexuan's past is what they should have done to Wenxi and Chengjun. We knew what was driving each of their characters, we knew their end goals, we could relate to them. Because the show did a fantastic job developing their characters, we could feel what was at stake when they ran into trouble. I wish I could say the same about Wenxi, especially considering she had the most to lose if her identity were ever to be revealed!
All in all, I did enjoy the show. It's been quite some time since I watched Sungkyunkwan Scandal, so I can't recall a lot about it but I do feel like In A Class of Her Own did a good job of capturing its essence. In A Class of Her Own is a very easy watch, definitely a good show to watch mindlessly with no expectations. The interactions between the Above Clouds Quartet are easily the best part of the show.
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