I can't believe I've been sleeping on this drama until now!!!
Not only was this the first drama I slowed down to actually 1x speed (I usually watch them in 1.25-2x speed), but it made me want to bump down my scores for other contemporary dramas. THIS is the gold standard I've been looking for in cdramaland, with characters that are logical and reasonable, dialogue that's open and consistent, and a VERY WELL-BALANCED romance that was naturally cultivated.
To be honest, I only picked this drama up because of the body-swapping plot. I'm a big fan of stories where the couple swaps bodies (Secret Garden, It's a Boy Girl Thing), and I was only expecting the funny comedy bits. BUT what I actually got was a story with well-developed characters and clever dialogue. Color me impressed!!! I've become a fan of this writer's work and I've seen amazing reviews for his other dramas too.

PROS
❀ I HAVE to start with the main leads, which were perfectly carried out by Steven Zhang and Liang Jie | Liang Jie played the exuberant entertainment reporter Sheng Sheng who's looking for an exclusive interview with Steven Zhang's character, Jiang Yi. The first episode starts off pretty slow, not going to lie, but the moment their body swaps (at the beginning of ep 2), hijinks ensue.
Both actors did a GREAT job in depicting masculine/feminine traits! I have to say though, Steven Zhang was HILARIOUS when he was acting as Sheng Sheng - his facial expressions turn from slightly indifferent to lively and his body language was also perfect. He's definitely made a fan out of me in this drama. Jiang Lie was also great, although acting out the colder Jiang Yi doesn't ask for much since he's pretty withdrawn to begin with. Either way, both characters had laugh out loud moments that had me cackling in bed.
Not everything is happy, though. We get into Jiang Yi's lonely childhood and how he grew up in a broken household. It was wonderful to follow his journey of reconciling with his past and learning to forgive - especially when it came to his relationship with his mom. While Sheng Sheng was there to support him and add her own thoughts to the situation as an outsider, serving as a catalyst, he decides to be pro-active and take the first step of leaving the past. It would have been easy to keep him as a cold idol that has a traumatic past, but the show goes in-depth by making him emotionally complex and more than just a caricature of an idol.
While Sheng Sheng grew up in a loving family (love her parents!!!), she deals with a nice high school friend who has feelings with her. I appreciated the mature way of dealing with him though: give him a chance, see where it goes, make a firm decision at the end of the day. Again, because of body swapping, Jiang Yi is there to support almost every step of the way. While I'm not the biggest fan of the leads dating other people during a drama, this show handled it very maturely as Sheng Sheng is honest about her feelings (or, lack of) from step 1 to 100. So it's not really a love triangle/hurdle.
❀ The individual characters were awesome, but put the couple together and they're FIRE | This couple is by far one of my favorite couples in the cdramas I've watched. They display a perfect balance of a healthy and passionate relationship. Usually for cdramas, it's either one or the other. In this case, we got awesome chemistry between the leads (+1 for steamy kisses) as well as the best dialogue and communication (+1 for almost no misunderstandings). When the characters act out of emotion, they take a step back to sincerely apologize to one another. They handle situations like adults, and even cliche plot points like evil paparazzi weren't drawn out because of the maturity of the characters. They act their age, look their age, and enter relationships befitting people their age. We stan!!
As for the relationship itself, it goes from mild inconvenience/annoyance -> supportive friendship -> endearing love. Body swapping is an amazing trope that makes it so the leads have to spend a LOT of time together to figure out what's happening. That is to say, there's not much plot otherwise. The whole story surrounds the couple, their relationship, and the body-swap issue. So don't go in thinking there's some big baddie that comes into play. Instead, we see loads of screen time with our two main characters and their hilarities, as well as their developing relationship.
❀ This drama isn't afraid to poke fun at its own tropes and surprise watchers | The way the dialogue points out classic drama tropes that it utilizes is super cute - there's a scene where the ML's like "thinking about this situation/script... shouldn't *I* be the ML?" when referencing the minor love triangle between the FL's high school friend and the CP. Some tropes that surprised me:
- Really nice 2ML: they actually delved into his character and past history with the FL (they were high school buds and he's the student of her mom), which adds a level of depth to their relationship. You can really tell the FL's emotions are pure platonic and the lines are clearly drawn. He respects those boundaries.
- Evil 2FL: show said "psyche!!" While I was wary of her at first, the show actually goes into her character and highlights her struggles as well, making her empathetic and three-dimensional. The fact that the writer gave some screentime to a female character that COULD'VE gone down the wayward path (see: evil 2FLs that are illogically obsessed over the ML) is super commendable and sadly not done enough in cdramas. (Are my standards too low? Maybe, maybe not.)
- Cold ML that treats FL badly when they first meet before reluctantly getting along: Nah, that doesn't happen. The ML is wary and apathetic at first meet, maybe, but he's not mean. There's a scene in the first couple eps where she calls him out for not keeping the elevator open for her (typical behavior for mean MLs) but right afterwards the elevator opens up again - lol! Homeboy actually kept the elevator open for her. After their body switch in ep 2, this trope kind of goes down the drain.
- Secondary couples: nada. There is a *tiny* hint of one but otherwise, the show is 100% occupied by the main couple, which was refreshing.
❀ The FL actress sang the opening song and the ML actor sang the ending song | The talent??? Maybe this is a psychological thing, but I always view a show better when I hear the main actors singing an OST. In this case, the soundtrack was already catchy (the songs, while limited, are sweet/melodic without being too sad and ballad-like, which I appreciated), but knowing that the main leads sang really elevates the soundtracks.
❀ PERFECT LENGTH | No drag; tight writing; every second is enjoyable. It's rare for me to find a drama where I won't skip/fast forward a few seconds, but this one fit the bill. In general my stamina is pretty low when it comes to episode count (ex: I couldn't finish Love O2O or You Are My Glory, classic contemporaries, bc they stall around the 20 ep mark, and had to force myself to push through You Are My Hero after ep 30), so this 26 episode show was the sweet spot *chefs kiss*.

CONS - will have spoilers!! (But tbh this section is mostly pros as well)
✕ Misunderstanding level: 1/10 | Aight, I put a point because the most MINOR misunderstanding happens near the beginning that leads to Sheng Sheng trying out dates with the 2ML Po Qing. BUT the leads quickly recognize the miscommunication AND this whole shebang is neatly straightened out when SS indeed confirms her non-feelings for 2ML. Her intentions are clear cut (we stan FLs that get straight to the point!!) and nothing is overly dragged out. Other than that, like I said, the leads' communication is A+++.
The break-up that happens near the end (tbh a surprising trope that I didn't think this show would use), is VERY well-explained and reasonable. It's not a break-up for the sake of breaking up, but due to an external, legitimate concern that both leads had. The separation period is only a year and the resolution is, while quickly explained, not a bad one. Usually I'm annoyed at these last-minute break-ups (y'all this is why I can't with wuxias where the leads are always breaking up/getting back together...), but this one was necessary as part of wrapping up the story.

--SPOILER W/MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE ENDING (I also vaguely talk about other shows' endings lmao)--
It's one that's used in cdramas quite often (for censorship reasons, is my guess) and featured in many well-loved dramas. If you've seen The Romance of Tiger and Rose or General's Lady, it's exactly that kind of energy. But unlike those dramas where the indirect narrative is a small twist that's not even addressed (TROTAR) or acted as an impetus for the leads meeting each other (GL), the way The Day of Becoming You writes it in emphasizes the message of the entire story: to truly understand someone, you should put yourselves in their shoes. You never know what other people are going through, so try to look at the situation from their perspective - by doing so, you can strengthen your relationship. I thought the way this twist was written in was clever and holistic, bringing the drama to a full wrap and tying things together. The big picture is that it fit the overall narrative, which to me is rare in cdramas.

OVERALL
Wow, I can't gush enough about The Day of Becoming You. I feel like when it comes to Chinese dramas, I tend to get annoyed at common cliches that are overutilized and find them conservative. Not in the sense of wanting more raunchy scenes (LOL which sometimes I lowkey want but an Asian drama's charms are its rare skinship moments that make you appreciate it more), but in the sense that storylines like to play it safe and keep the plots rather traditional. No one will bat an eye at a cold CEO ML that's toeing the line of misogyny because he's good-looking and fits Asian drama convention. But a ML that learns to recognize his worth through meaningful conversations with the FL in a non-hyperdependent way? Hard to come by.
The Day of Becoming You's luring point is a playful body-swap premise that'll make you laugh out loud, but I ended up staying for the three dimensional characters and superb writing. I've never given a rewatch value over 5 (because to me, 5 is like maybe and straight in the middle), but this drama inherently deserves a rewatch from me. Highly recommended!