Rewriting amnesia genre but the male lead carries the whole show

I was first interested because I saw Kyulkung in it. And because I had so much free time, I gave this drama a try because why not, right? And the first ep totally caught me off guard! I mean, I don’t feel like there are many dramas (that I have watched) gave me the same euphoric feeling right off the first bat. It can sometimes took awhile to build off impression on the characters and the plot line but this drama really sets off with a great start with a simple but comprehensive character’s introduction.

Right off the bat, we see the ML, Mu Tingzhou is introduced as the Best Actor that has many awards. And his first impression is that he is cold and unapproachable. His first encounter with the female lead is very awkward due to his imposing gaze and manner as a famous person even though he actually has a good impression of her. Along the way, the viewer can actually see that he is very diligent, studying a lot for his upcoming drama up to the point that he is dreaming about it and even ‘create’ another persona from it. He is also warm on the inside as he takes care of Ming Wei in his own way. From the smallest matter such as teaching her during filming to changing his dubbing schedule impulsively because he wants to spend his time with her is very adorable. He is also kind of weird and sassy in a good way in front of his close people and it make him very much human. I mean, he looks cool on the outside with all the photoshoot and stuff. But he also likes to sit cross-legged while eating at the table like some uncle playing mahjong. And what makes him sassy is his expression! I am very satisfied with his expressive face and body language because come on guys, Cdramas usually like to have cold and 1 dimensional ML. But he is very much a 4D character and the actor basically carries the whole show in my opinion.

And because this drama is all centred around his amnesia and he appears as another ‘him’ for half the show, I would write another paragraph for it. So, when Mu Tingzhou ’change’ into Grand Tutor Mu Yun, he appears much more strict and stubborn, a product of his extensive research and practice for the play. His old fashioned manner and curiosity is hilariously good especially during the first time he wakes up as Mu Yun — epic. It is very nice to see him treats Ming Wei like a princess and stubbonly chases after her. Even when he is Mu Yun, we can see his unconscious behaviour that resembles Mu Tingzhou like the stubbornness and even his acting skill that he purposely uses to trick Ming Wei’s father and tick off the second ML.

So, enter the female lead, Ming Wei. She is very pretty and diligent. She works part time a lot like modelling and be an Italian interpreter. Unexpectedly, she got casted as a female lead for the drama that Mu Tingzhou acts in. As a total rookie, she is very diligent and honest. I think that’s why the ML likes her a lot. He first is interested in her due to their characters in the drama, but we can see that he eventually falls for her deeper as time passes by. She also has the same feeling for him and that’s probably why she accepts to accommodate him during his amnesiac period. But she is not expecting to fall in love with him during that time. We can see her struggles to differentiate both characters and keep the distance between them so she will not be hurt if ML does not remember her later on but eventually just let him do whatever he wants. To be honest, Ming Wei is not a very complex character and it did not give the same explosive impression as the ML did. But she is still fine. Her expression is also on point and I felt like crying with her when she is crying over Mu Yun.

And the side characters! Xiao Zhao, Mu Tingzhou’s entertainment agent and Ming Qiao, Ming Wei’s sister are solid! They are both very adorable as a couple with cute dynamics. Xiao Zhao is the gentle ones with playboy behaviour and Ming Qiao is the no-nonsense and straightforward type. They are a very strong support for the main characters and had a lot of comic relief together. Especially Xiao Zhao because he has a lot of bickering scenes with Mu Tingzhou/Mu Yun that gives out laugh every time. The second ML, Chen Zhang is pretty much a second lead type. He is kind and helpful until the end even though Ming Wei rejects him several times. The parents are okay, but Xu Lin? Fuh. I don’t consider her as the second female lead because she only appears like more than halfway through the drama but causes a lot of havoc later on. She is quite childish with all the jealousy outbursts because she thought ML and her family ignores her because of Ming Wei. I mean, I can understand her frustration but this is already 2022. We had enough of this kind of troupe already and it’s time to grow the hell up, young lady (sorry it came out of nowhere lol).

The OSTs deserve a spot in my heart. I truly and genuinely like them a lot. This drama does not have a bunch of OSTs like kdramas usually have but boy the impact they have! I like that they use different songs during the sad scene where ML and FL was acting in and the sad scene in the actual drama. Personally, I like the ending song the most just because. I also like that they include the entire play that Mu Tingzhou and Ming Wei acted in at the end. It feels like a different drama but with only 2 episodes and it perfectly tie up the entire series.

Other things that I was a little bummed about is that ML wakes up from the amnesia pretty late. I want to see him chases her more as Mu Tingzhou. I am also quite sad that the voice of ML is dubbed! When I heard the Jeremy Tsui’s real voice, I was like O_O so deep and manly! But I kind of understand why they dubbed his voice. The character is prince like and delicate while his voice is rough and VERY manly that I’m genuinely afraid it can affect me in the long run if I listen to it more lol so yeah. Thanks for saving my ovaries, dear producers.

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