Notable Actors/Actresses
He Luo Luo: Lu Xiao
Dai Lu Wa: Jiang Ke Le
Zhang Ling He: Xu Nian
Fan Shuai Qi: Guan Qian Ya
Director:
The Perfect Him
Feeling dejected, Jiang Ke Le takes the subway back and spots a picture of her virtual bf, Lu Xiao. She smooches the poster but then a man dressed in all black runs into her. He’s running away from men in suits. To hide himself as a regular person, he kisses Jiang Ke Le. This guy is the real Lu Xiao that the virtual Lu Xiao is based on.
Recap Grade: C
First Impression: 3.5/5
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First Impression: 3.5/5
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Mini Recaps
[Ep1] It’s New Years Eve. Jiang Ke Le has no family to celebrate with (her father is working abroad). She’s fired from her job at a convenience store by a tyrannic boss. To top it off, her boyfriend dumps her on New Years Eve for another girl. Her ex is a cameo by He Kai Lang and if anyone watched the variety Everybody Standby Season 2, you should remember him as the terrible actor who was hilariously awful, and I still laugh when I think about his skit. He actually improved on the show! However, the acting here is like he regressed back to being terrible again and I don’t know whether this is pre- or post-variety show. Fingers-crossed this was filmed pre-variety because I like him, lol. Jiang Ke Le has three wishes for New Years: to find a new job, to see her dad, and to get a new boyfriend who will love her forever.
At home, her father had sent her a present. It’s a pair of VR glasses that allows her to choose her ideal boyfriend among this virtual idol group, Y4. Not F4. Someone else will need to enlighten me on why it's "Y". Jiang Ke Le meets virtual Lu Xiao. He’s so caring. He tells her to look into his eyes and tada, there’s a convenience store with her name on it. She’s ecstatic he found her a job (her first wish). No, honey, the entire store is yours. Lmao. She gets the chance to fire the boss who fired her. Then Lu Xiao takes her back home to fulfill her second wish: her father is home! The very last wish will need her approval because she needs to accept him as her boyfriend. He’s like If you’re happy, why does it matter if it’s real or fake. Um... I have a lot to say about that. Jiang Ke Le is in love. She chooses virtual reality over reality.
Y4 has taken over the world. There’s a birthday event for Y4 and all the girls go frenzy for this event. Jiang Ke Le is almost late and runs across the intersection on a yellow light. A lady on a motorbike slams her break and ends up flying in the air and breaking her leg. Jiang Ke Le takes the lady to the hospital and misses the birthday event.
[Ep2] Guan Qian Ya, Jiang Ke Le’s best friend, owns a dating company – with real people – and her business is failing because all the single girls have left them for Y4. It’s affecting the nation as well: on the news it’s reported that Y4 is the reason for high divorce rates and low birth rates. Lol, I like this realistic spin. Shirking population is a very real problem in developed countries. There’s a town in Japan (Nagoro) that’s filled with dolls because there’s only about a dozen or so residents left and they’re too old to reproduce and so dolls it is to populate all the empty space. I digressed.
Jiang Ke Le visits the motorbike lady in the hospital and she gives Jiang Ke Le a part-time job: house cleaning this mysterious mansion. Jiang Ke Le will gets 5x the pay.
Also, we’ve moved on from glasses to contact lens which I like because the glasses had actual glass and so there was a reflection.
[Ep3] Guan Qian Ya tests out the competitor for herself. She tries on the VR contact lens and the first man up is Su Lei. He's this hot-blooded boy who rescues her. Guan Qian Ya is adeptly fine taking care of herself. Su Lei fails. Next up is Lu Xiao. He's sweet and caring and will fulfill all her wishes (the one who Jiang Ke Le chose).
Guan Qian Ya: I want you to disappearLu Xiao goes Okie dokie.
Third man up is Luo Ke. He's the warmth in the cold winter and he gives her cocoa. Guan Qian Ya has a severe case of insomnia. Cocoa is her enemy. Luo Ke bitterly fails.
Our last candidate is the man of the autumn. He’s Xu Nian. My type! Zhang Ling He!! These men are categorized by the four seasons: Xu Nian is autumn, Luo Ke is winter, Su Lie is summer, and Lu Xiao is spring.
Xu Nian invites Guan Qian Ya to play a beautiful duet on the piano. The mood is perfect; Xu Nian moves in to kiss, but alas, she slaps him. All of Y4 fail. Guan Qian Ya does not fall for “fake” men.
Oh, but they're real.
There’s a scene cut to their mansion and the boys are complaining that once their contract is up, they really need to go out and play. Jiang Ke Le has yet to figure out the mansion she’s cleaning actually belongs to the real Y4.
The CEO of the "Love Boys" company is Boss Xu. He’s a one of a kind narcissistic prick. The chef who gives him a special meal is fired. He hates it when people suck up to him like so. The employees who didn't greet him are fired. He hates it when he doesn’t get his respect. That’s not it. He hated the lipstick colour of his secretary (Lei Na) and so she assured him she won’t wear it tomorrow. No. Boss wanted that colour to disappear instantly and so Lei Na immediately removed it.
[Ep4] Jiang Ke Le finally finds out the house she’s cleaning belongs to Y4. In her black helmet, she touches Lu Xiao’s face and his immediate response is to flip her over. Her identity is exposed to the boys and they will report her. Jiang Ke Le makes her move on each guy. She acts pitiful on Xu Nian, bribes the other guys, and then when it comes to Lu Xiao, she threatens him. She will report him for kissing her. It somehow works. The boys will cover for her and she will bring them good food (because our boys are deprived). Did our boys sign a slave contract?
The motorbike lady is all healed but she will continue to laze around and so Jiang Ke Le continues to keep her high paying housekeeping job for her favourite man in the world. The dream job, however, isn’t a dream job. The real Lu Xiao is short-tempered with a douchey-face. Jiang Ke Le much prefers her fake Lu Xiao who’s always sweet and smiling and angelic.
[Ep5] Guan Qian Ya publicly shames Boss Xu’s company, including Y4. She's becoming a celebrity personnel herself and her views are gaining momentum. Lei Na tells Boss Xu there’s this user who’s supporting Guan Qian Ya. When he asks who, she tells him “You guess guess” A literal translation which just simply means "Guess". It sounds a little flirty in Chinese and he calls her out on it. In her deadpan manner and her lips that are forever pursed, she tells him the name of the user is “You Guess Guess”. She eyes him up and down thinking How dare you think I'm flirting with you? Ha, that's my guess at her thoughts. I'm starting to like these two.
Jiang Ke Le washes Lu Xiao's dirty looking teddy bear. Lu Xiao yells at her for touching his stuff without his permission. It seems like the teddy belongs to his brother who perhaps passed away...
[Ep6] Boss Xu gives Xu Nian a mission: seduce Guan Qian Ya. She puts on her contact lens but they happen to be the VR ones. Without knowing it, she enters the VR world and meets Xu Nian again. They’re stuck in the electrical room. Unbeknownst to her, he manages to hypnotize her to sleep as if her insomnia was never an issue.
Xu Nian is under the impression from Boss Xu that seducing Guan Qian Ya is an experiment for the game. As for Guan Qian Ya, putting on the VR contact lens wasn’t by accident: she was set up by her own employee who’s a fan of Y4 and is bribed by Lei Na.
[Ep7] Boss Xu catches Jiang Ke Le and she quickly blames everything on the motorbike lady. Turns out, the lady is Boss Xu’s biological aunt. Therefore she’s rich to begin with...so what is her motive for making Jiang Ke Le takeover her job?
Guan Qian Ya can’t sleep again. Tempted by the VR lens, she puts them on again and Xu Nian is summoned. She wants him to put her to sleep. He can’t, not when she's hostile towards him like this and not with her knowing he's hypnotizing her to sleep. It simply won't work. Instead, he asks her the real reason for her insomnia. She thinks back to her father who was hospitalized. He died when she fell asleep. With menace in his voice, Xu Nian blames her for her father’s death. If she stayed awake, her father wouldn’t have died. Xu Nian continues to pressure her until he makes her cry. Guan Qian Ya had never allowed herself to cry, not until now. This was Xu Nian’s plan: to let her cry. Next, our boy moves in to softly hug her. Oh man, she’s a goner.
[Ep8] Guan Qian Ya asks Xu Nian what does existence mean to him. Back at his own place, Xu Nian was reading a book: “Existence with Nothingness”. I guess he’s suffering an existential crisis.
Guan Qian Ya continues to gain supporters in destroying Y4 but she doesn’t really want to anymore. She's in love or at least she sees a little bit of value in Y4.
[Ep9] Guan Qian Ya continues to use the contact lens to meet with Xu Nian. She complains to him how she’s alone and her best friend doesn’t care. She drinks with him and playfully asks if he knows her secret that she keeps from Jiang Ke Le. He knows, “It’s me.” Ou. He moves in to kiss her again.
Boss Xu and Lei Na are watching on the big screen, both staring intently as they move closer to the screen and then I realize I’m doing the same thing too, haha. Too bad Guan Qian Ya turns away from the kiss. At least we get a smirk from Zhang Ling He. This boy is so good!! Still, Boss Xu hums it’s a success. Guan Qian Ya is in their palms
Boss Xu had thought Jiang Ke Le was Guan Qian Ya’s spy and fired her but when he realizes Jiang Ke Le never told Guan Qian Ya anything, he rehires Jiang Ke Le. She has another benefit for him: Jiang Ke Le improves Lu Xiao’s stats.
Boss Xu deliberately makes it difficult for the boys to rehire Jiang Ke Le. They have to row 1000x on the rowing machine. The last to voice his support is Lu Xiao and thus Boss Xu accumulates all the punishment on him because he was last. Jiang Ke Le tries to speak up and so Boss tells her to do the rows instead. Yeah, not happening. Lu Xiao takes it all. Jiang Ke Le feels bad and is at this side as he rows a thousand times. He insists he’s taking it for the team because they want her here. Nah, she knows he’s doing it for her. She feeds him candy to boost his physical energy. Oh but it's stirring something else in him (;.
Once again, Boss Xu and Lei Na are starting intently at the screen (at Jiang Ke Le and Lu Xiao). Lei Na pops a candy in her mouth, “Sweet”. I like Lei Na and her nuanced expressions. She meant the candy was sweet. Boss Xu stares up at her and so she offers a candy but Boss Xu's reaction to the candy is as if it's a foreign, unidentified object. Lei Na takes it back, whatever. I wonder if she actually likes her boss and is waiting for him to melt a little....
[Ep10] Guan Qian Ya is seriously addicted to Xu Nian. This time she summons him to relieve her stress. The two end up waltzing. Jiang Ke Le walks in and catches her using the VR lens red-handed. The simulation comes to an abrupt end. On Xu Nian's side, he looks disappointed. On Guan Qian Ya’s side, Jiang Ke Le claps her hand "Do you hear this? This is the sound of you slapping your own face." LOL.
Although Boss Xu rehired Jiang Ke Le, he gives Lu Xiao a secret mission: to observe her. All these secret missions Boss Xu gives are plot devices to hook up our couples, xD. His real job is actually Cupid. Boss Xu’s reason is this: he doesn’t trust Jiang Ke Le and wants Lu Xiao to spy on her. He just wants Lu Xiao to stick to her for his stats. He gives Lu Xiao a notebook to log his observations but Lu Xiao doesn’t receive it. It’s not because he’s refusing, he cannot physically lift up his hand. They're sore from all the rowing xD
The next day at work, Jiang Ke Le visits Xu Nian in his room to ask him for his ideal type. He tells her it’s someone gentle, long hair, and clean. Therefore, not Guan Qian Ya. Jiang Ke Le asks him if wants to change his ideal, lol. The other boys overhear it and misunderstand that Jiang Ke Le has moved on from Lu Xiao to Xu Nian.
Jiang Ke Le hasn’t forgotten to treat Lu Xiao for all he did for her. She buys him cake and the poor boy’s hand is vigorously shaking from the rowing yesterday. The struggle is real, lol. Cute.
Randomly, Jiang Ke Le falls into the pool and she’s drowning. Since Lu Xiao is spying her, he sees her but he hesitates to save her. He has a fear of water? Perhaps his brother drowned in the past? Anyway. He eventually jumps into the pool to save her and gives her CPR. Jiang Ke Le wakes up and kisses him back. He’s stunned. She says it’s a thank you kiss for saving her.
Guan Qian Ya and Boss Xu have a debate broadcast. Guan Qian Ya has the advantage but is annihilated in one shot with a video of her falling in love with "virtual" Xu Nian.
[Ep11] Guan Qian Ya suspects Jiang Ke Le betrayed her because other than her, no one knows she played the game. However, as she recalls the memories of their past and how much Jiang Ke Le believed in her when she was accused of stealing, Guan Qian Ya feels guilty for not believing her best friend. But for Guan Qian Ya to unconditionally trust Jiang Ke Le is impossible, and for that, Guan Qian Ya sincerely apologizes to Ke Le. Aw. This argument/apology is so sweet.
For the first time in her life, Jiang Ke Le didn't sleep a wink the entire night. She finally understands what it feels like to have insomnia. Hearing that, Guan Qian Ya isn't exactly comforted. Jiang Ke Le also understands why Guan Qian Ya would suspect her. Hating this feeling, Jiang Ke Le takes Guan Qian Ya to the mansion via the hidden tunnel and lets her see Xu Nian.
After seeing the real Xu Nian, Guan Qian Ya wants to confirm whether all her interactions were with Xu Nian were with the real one or the virtual one. She puts on the lens but instead of seeing Xu Nian, it's Boss Xu. He's taunting her and telling her she's forever banned from his game. Lol!
Boss Xu informs Xu Nian his mission was a success. He no longer has to seduce Guan Qian Ya. Xu Nian appears disappointed.
Guan Qian Ya buys a new pair of contact lens to play the game to see Xu Nian but when she puts them on, it's Boss Xu again! Lol. He's got face recognition on the game so no matter how many lens Guan Qian Ya buys to log in with, the game will ban automatically her.
[Ep12] Jiang Ke Le is Guan Qian Ya's cupid. She'll help her meet Xu Nian. He wasn't inclined to go until he realizes it's Guan Qian Ya. The meeting will be in the tunnel after all the other boys sleep but Lu Xiao is proving to be a real obstacle. Jiang Ke Le resorts to distracting Lu Xiao with his precious teddybear. She runs to the pool with teddy to make Lu Xiao leave the living room, giving Xu Nian the chance to sneak out. Un/fortunately, Jiang Ke Le almost falls in the pool. Lu Xiao grabs her before she does and they kiss again for the third time. Jiang Ke Le shyly runs away. Lu Xiao smiles.
Guan Qian Ya and Xu Nian meet! He ran to her to make it on time but when she asks if the person she met online was the real him, he doesn't admit it. What, dude! You ran to see her to do this? As he walks away, still panting, he stops in his tracks. Yes! He turns around and admits, "It's me." It's the same answer back in Ep9 "It's me". Also, if I find an abandoned tunnel, will I get to see Zhang Ling He run to me like this too? I am seriously considering this.
Jiang Ke Le asks Guan Qian Ya how her meeting with Xu Nian was. Ke Le bets that all her fantasies of Xu Nian must have been shattered after seeing the real deal. She comforts Guan Qian Ya that she felt the same; it's okay, they can just live in their virtual reality. On the contrary, Guan Qian Ya is even more determined to destroy that virtual reality. Since she interacted with the real Xu Nian that means he teamed up with Boss Xu to oust her. It's war.
Also, our Boss Gu is a clean freak. Aaand, he's an orphan...? Hm. Motorbike Lady asks him when his goals will be fulfilled because she's tired of him extending her contract indefinitely. He smiles. It will be soon.
[Ep13] Jiang Ke Le and Lu Xiao. Ke Le brings beer for the boys to enjoy. Lu Xiao quibbles that won’t she feel bad again. She smirks that if she does feel awful, there’s always someone who would make her honey water. Lu Xiao casts his eyes down, afraid to be discovered that it was him but everyone already knows. It’s too obvious he cares about her.
Jiang Ke Le finds Lu Xiao's mother at the nursing home that Motorbike Lady recommended her to. She recognizes the young Lu Xiao from Auntie You Ya's picture. Auntie is diagnosed with brain tumour. Ke Le tells Lu Xiao about his mother. He seems to have known where his mother is but he wasn't aware she had a tumour.
Guan Qian Ya and Xu Nian: Guan Qian Ya stealthily enters Y4’s mansion with her heels loudly clicking around. She snaps pictures of their living quarters to use it as proof to expose Boss Xu slaving these boys but she vows to herself that she’ll take care of Xu Nian for life.
Xu Nian discovers Guan Qian Ya in the house. She lies that she’s here to visit him. Clearly, that affects his heart. He quickly hides her in his room. She looks around and learns everything he said about himself was true (his love for airplanes and his philosophy on existence). Although their meeting was virtual, he tells her it was the real him.
After meeting with Xu Nian, Guan Qian Ya hesitates on the grand reveal. She isn’t sure anymore if Xu Nian was working with Boss Xu to bring her down. The next day, Guan Qian Ya visits the mansion again and it’s too meet Xu Nian – not lying this time. He prepared a room to finish their waltz from last time. She also gets the confirmation she wanted from him that he didn’t have any ulterior motives.
Xu Nian: I think I have feelings for you.
[Ep14] After that confession, Guan Qian Ya is even more determined to show Xu Nian the outside world. She takes him to the tunnel but he’s reluctant. She holds his face in her hands, "There’s me. What are you afraid of?” Xu Nian really is afraid. The decision to leave is easy for her but not for him. He’s never seen the real world and it scares him. He asks her to give him time. He lets go of her hand and heads back into the house.
A few days later, Xu Nian ventures out into reality on his own. He experiences rain for the first time. All drenched, he shows up at Guan Qian Ya’s office.
[Ep15] Xu Nian missed Guan Qian Ya so much, he went out for her. He even has a rose. She gives him clothes to change into which prompts an immediate stripping moment but she stops him. She's shy. He's not. But then he does get shy – very shy to the point that it takes him full seconds to recover – when she's up to his face to snap a seat-belt for him. She drives him to dinner which is all sweet until it becomes a little ominous when a waitress spots them (I don't quite know if the waitress sees Xu Nian). Guan Qian Ya drops him off home safely but she tells him she won't visit him at the house again. She will, however, wait in the office for him whenever he wants to see her. Xu Nian is like Eve who picked up the forbidden fruit. Now he's tempted to venture into the real world.
Ke Le pities and worres about Lu Xiao and his mother. The virtual Lu Xiao massages her. I was surprised to see him massage her because I forgot a virtual Lu Xiao existed. He advises her to do what she wants (convince Real Lu Xiao to see his mother) and if that man yells at her, she can come and yell at him. Virtual Lu Xiao is like If I ever get to see him, I'll make sure to yell at him.
The reason why Lu Xiao resists hearing about his mother is because he's adopted and he believes it is because of him that her mother's biological son died from drowning (perhaps from saving Lu Xiao?). After a talk with Ke Le, Lu Xiao has renewed motivations to see his mother. A few nights later, Lu Xiao escapes from the mansion during a blackout. He fails. Xu Nian covers for him and Ke Le becomes the decoy. Coincidentally, they're wearing similar outfits.
[Ep16] Xu Nian and Lu Xiao made pact to keep the tunnel a secret. Xu Nian helps distract the other boys for Lu Xiao to escape. Ke Le guides Lu Xiao through the tunnel. They find his mother (Jiang Wen Yue) in the hospital but no visitors are allowed tonight. It's another fail but Lu Xiao is still grateful for Ke Le's help.
When Xu Nian sneaks out, Lu Xiao covers for him. Xu Nian only has one reason to leave: to see Guan Qian Ya. They have an outdoor date (he's got a cap and a pair of glasses that's apparently supposed to hide his beautiful features). He notices girls holding hands with nothing but air. Guan Qian Ya tells him this is their game: Love Boys. This virtual game is stealing youth from the girls. The more time, the more resources they spend in this game, the more they lose from reality. Xu Nian doesn't get it. These are the girls' choices. As long as the girls aren't harming anyone, who are we to judge where they choose to spend time on? Guan Qian Ya can't get through to him and stalks off angrily.
Xu Nian uses the visa card that Guan Qian Ya gave him to access the public computer. It's not a visa card but a transit card that you can load money inside to spend it on other compatible services. There must be a generic name for this. It's called Octopus Card in HK; octopus, because it's got eight legs, and imagine how convenient that would be because that is how convenient the card is. Anyway! Xu Nian reads the news and sees the video on Boss Xu humiliating Guan Qian Ya at the debate with the video of them dancing.
Motorbike Lady once again barges in Boss Xu's home even after he changed his lock combo. It turns out Boss Xu is devoted to creating a virtual boyband (Y4) because all his real talents (Qi Chuan being one of them) has left him. Boss Xu calls it betrayal.
[Ep17] Ke Le helps Lu Xiao sneak out again. It's successful and he gets to see mom. Mom tells him she never blamed him. Lu Xiao always felt guilty of his brother's death and it is why he ran away. When they were younger Lu Xiao (his name was originally Zhen Yu), lost the teddy his brother gave him in the lake. He went to retrieve it, his brother followed, and that is how his brother drowned. Lu Xiao reveals this secret to Ke Le who smiles that they no longer have secrets. However, Lu Xiao wants her to keep her distance. He has always been a death star to others. His mother died giving birth to him. His father died in a car accident when he wanted to go to an amusement park. Ke Le calls it bogus. Only idiots would think everything horrible is their fault. She hugs him that there's no way she would leave him. Lu Xiao hugs her back. He is in loooove.
Boss Xu admires the stats of his Y4 boys. Lei Na points out that Xu Nian is at 99.9%. He's close to perfect but how come? There's no other girl but Ke Le and it doesn't look like he's interested in her. Boss Xu starts brainstorming. If Xu Nian's stats aren't because of Ke Le, then there's only the possibility of it being because of Lu Xiao. "Is he perhaps...... gay? Psh.
Guan Qian Ya drives to Xu Nian to apologize for their argument last time. At the same time, he's running to her. When they see each other, he grabs her for a kiss when she was in the middle of her apology. He clarifies that he's the one who should be apologizing. It's because of him she went bankrupt. Guan Qian Ya takes him for a drive and also gives him a phone. It's a Xu Nian special edition phone. She giggles at how cheesy the phone is: the wallpaper is him, the case is him, even the alerts are his voice.
[Ep18] Guan Qian Ya says Lu Xiao is a new man. He won't turn angry over the smallest things anymore. She proves it by pinching his cheeks. The boys are even more scared of this version of Lu Xiao. Only Xu Nian is brave enough to test his cheeks. Soft and plushy, indeed.
Lei Na finds Xu Nian's clothes that Guan Qian Ya gave him. Ke Le covers for him that the over-sized sweater that obviously doesn't fit her is hers. Lei Na smiles. She thinks Xu Nian likes Ke Le and that is the reason for his near perfect stats.
Xu Nian tells Guan Qian Ya he's an orphan. She asks him has she ever realized that Boss Xu has been using them, slaving them, and illegally confining them. She also tells him she had planned to expose Boss Xu but because of Xu Nian she didn't. Xu Nian asks for time to ponder on what to do.
Ke Le asks Guan Qian Ya for advice: how to confess. Ke Le wants to profess her love to Lu Xiao – real Lu Xiao – but Guan Qian Ya has no advice to give. Her and Xu Nian just naturally got together.
[Ep19] Jiang Ke Le breaks up with virtual Lu Xiao. She apologizes. He disagrees, if she's breaking up with him, then he's the one who should be apologizing. Ha, lol. Yup, sounds like a virtual boyfriend. She tells him she needs to face reality. Although virtual Lu Xiao gives her happiness, once she opens her eyes to her life, her problems are still there.
Ke Le plans to confess today. She's all dressed up for it but she gets a message that Lu Xiao's mother passed away
Xu Nian tells Guan Qian Ya about what he knows of his mother. Not much. According to Boss Xu, she dumped him in the hospital after she gave birth to him. Guan Qian Ya thinks Boss Xu might be lying to him. He thought of that too. He wants to look into his own parents but not now. He can't leave Boss Xu all of a sudden. It will put the other three boys in danger.
[Ep20] Ke Le was at Lu Xiao's side the whole time he was grieving for his mother. He has come to the decision to confess to Ke Le and recruits the help of everyone to plan a surprise event for her.
Guan Qian Ya makes sure Ke Le understands that real Lu Xiao is very different from virtual Lu Xiao. Ke Le assures her best friend she can tell reality apart from virtual reality. She won't have unrealistic expectations of Lu Xiao.
[Ep21] Xu Nian is busted! The waitress who took the picture was the employee who betrayed Guan Qian Ya and she has now sent the picture of Xu Nian and Guan Qian Ya at the restaurant to Boss Xu. Xu Nian is strapped to his seat. Xu Nian has questions for Boss Xu: why lie to them, why cage them, etc. Boss Xu tells him his grand plan. He was betrayed by his talents (Qi Chuang and Ge Yi Lan). Thus he created virtual idols who are obedient and can't betray. However, they lacked human emotions and thus the creation of Y4 – real humans behind virtual beings. He also used his own son in his grand plans. Then he found three other boys to join his son: Lu Xiao, Luo Ke and Su Lei. Omg. His son is Xu Nian! Xu Nian's real name is Xu Jin.
Xu Nian's mother (Ge Yi Lan) was a celebrity. Ah the girl who betrayed him and quit celebrity life to start a family in the States. Boss Xu was her manager. At the peak of her career, she was pregnant with Boss Xu's child but Boss Xu wanted her to focus on her career. He wanted an abortion (he calls his child a "thing" that needs to eliminated.......). Ge Yi Lan disappeared to secretly give birth. When he found her, he lied to her their baby died! Oh my. He's turning worse. He deserves no love.
[Ep22] The heartlessness of Boss Xu made Ge Yi Lan determined to leave him. Ge Yi Lan never knew of Xu Nian's existence.
Xu Nian wants Boss Xu to free the other boys. Boss Xu argues that he is the saint. He adopted the boys when no one wanted them: Lu Xiao had no where to go; Luo Ke was abandoned by his parents; Su Lie was kidnapped. Currently, Xu Nian is released from Boss Xu's confinement. He agrees to work with his father which means he is to break up with Guan Qian Ya.
The next day (after the breakup), Guan Qian Ya thinks she lost her phone. She didn't. Xu Nian stole it but he stole it to protect her. If Boss Xu knew that Guan Qian Ya had evidence in her phone, she'd be in danger.
[Ep23] Our smart Guan Qian Ya realizes Xu Nian is protecting her.
Guan Qian Ya meets Motorbike Lady. Motorbike Lady's motives are clear: she gave Ke Le the job to influence Lu Xiao so he can convince the boys to leave. Xu Nian being seduced by Guan Qian Ya was out of her calculation but a pleasant surprise. Motorbike Lady is also very happy to have Guan Qian Ya on the team; Ke Le was too dumb of a teammate.
[Ep24] Luo Ke and Su Lei get in trouble. Luo Ke is beat up for touching some thug's girl. Su Lei is afraid of women with red lipsticks (he was kidnapped by one). They both return home. Xu Nian and Lu Xiao go back for the boys but now they're against leaving their paradise. Real world is too scary.
Boss Xu is planning something nefarious. First, he'll need to fire Ke Le.
Guan Qian Ya has a theory about Su Lei: the red lipstick lady sold him to Boss Xu. It wasn’t as Boss Xu said that he saved Su Lei. Hm. If that’s true, Boss Xu needs to go to jail for this.
Boss Xu will release them and give them each a condo but in reality he’s detaining them to threaten Xu Nian to work for him. The plan is to have Xu Nian hide for two years abroad and then make a comeback as a human being. Xu Nian pretends to oblige.
Once Boss Xu leaves, the boys quickly runaway. Lu Xiao had to incite fear in Su Lie and Luo Ke to get their butts moving. I don’t blame them. They're leaving paradise, or what they think is paradise. It’s too late. Boss Xu has discovered the tunnel and everyone is caught, even Ke Le and Manager Cui (Guan Qian Ya’s trusty aide).
Lu Xiao and Xu Nian break free from the ropes and help everyone else. They look around the mansion for another exit. Isn’t it too suspicious to have them roam around so freely? Our team split up when Boss Xu’s men are after them. Guan Qian Ya can put up quite the fight. The team scrambles to get in the car to flee. Lu Xiao falls unconscious because he fell off the roof to protect Ke Le. They are now in Motorbike Lady’s care.
[Ep26] Guan Qian Ya finds a reporter but the latter thinks the story isn’t juicy enough. She needs to spice it up. How is confining boys who are virtual idols loved by millions for 10+ years not news worthy? But it’s too late. Boss Xu does the interview first. In there he paints himself like an angel. He is the one who saved the boys. Now that the contract is up, he frees them. A hero!
On the other hand, Guan Qian Ya files for bankruptcy. She had mortgaged her house and car into the company. She’s completely broke.
[Ep27] Xu Nian cheers up Guan Qian Ya. He lets her sing and dance all she wants. These two look so good together.
Lu Xiao interviews for a job but he’s being hired for his visuals. There’s disappointment in his expression.
Su Lei and and Luo Ke are in trouble. They don’t understand they need to pay for their food. Thus when people are willing to pay for all their expenses, they sign any contracts the men want.
Guan Qian Ya quizzically stares at the Newton's cradle in her room. Then Xu Nian comes in to her room and offers to help her sleep by mediating her to sleep ofc. Don’t think elsewhere, this is a Cdrama. Xu Nian’s mediation inspires Qian Ya to create an app to help others with insomnia, after all, she is an expert. However, no one is willing to invest in them.
Lu Xiao quits work because he's sexually harassed. The manager doesn't think it's a problem. She’s like Welcome to the real world. No one will pamper him. Then the manager adds, Oh wait, there was one person who would: Boss Xu.
[Ep29] Xu Nian is remorseful that Guan Qian Ya has fallen to such a state for him. When Lei Na contacts him, he meets her to ask about investors. Lei Na works her black magic on Xu Nian that if he truly loves Guan Qian Ya then he can at the very least zip up that pride of his and ask Boss Xu for help.
Elsewhere, Qi Chuan taunts Guan Qian Ya that everyone around her will suffer. No one actually likes her.
Then Ke Le learns that Lu Xiao is washing dishes.
Guan Qian Ya comes to learn Xu Nian asked Boss Xu for help. She's utterly disappointed. To him, her happiness is worth more than his pride. This is his love towards her. He asks her to understand. Guan Qian Ya shakes her head. She doesn’t need this kind of love.
Guan Qian Ya cries: Today you’re asking him for investors. Tomorrow for another reason, you'll ask him for help again. Step by step, day by day, you’ll return to him. At that time you’ll still think you don’t have a choice and that your sacrifice is worthy because in your heart you think your sacrifices are for me.
She leaves. Then she gets in a car accident!
She wakes up! But she’s in a VR room!! We were in virtual reality all this time. The team never escaped from Boss Xu. Cool plot twist.
Boss Xu plans to end their life in virtual reality. I don't know how that works.
Back in the VR world. The doctor pronounces Guan Qian Ya dead. Xu Nian cries. Then Guan Qian Ya rises from the bed – actually, she returned to the virtual world – and tells them this is all fake. Everyone thinks she’s crazy. When she’s alone with Ke Le, Guan Qian Ya tells her she has proof.
[Ep30] The proof is Newton's Cradle. It doesn't slow down. It's a bug in the VR. Guan Qian Ya convinces Ke Le and soon everyone is on board. The way out of this VR game is dying in it. But they can't just die without bringing Su Lei and Luo Ke. The boys actually realize they're in a VR system. Their gaming skills are too good to be true. They also don't find a problem living in VR. This is paradise. Our team is having none of that. They force the boys to commit suicide with them. Oh, Boss Xu's plan to kill them is to forever torment them in VR until their real bodies die of old age. I think.
Our team all jump off the roof together aaand we're back in reality. But where is Manager Cui? He's late because he fell onto a tree and had to climb up the stairs to die again, lol.
Our team runs to the secret tunnel but Boss Xu had sealed it with a brick wall. Suddenly, it starts to crumble. Motorbike Lady is actually Thor and is hammering down the wall brick by brick. Our team escapes. Motorbike Lady stays behind to stall Boss Xu's men. She's looking pretty cool fighting all the men until someone hits her on the neck, and with that one move, she's down.
The rest of our team was going to report Boss Xu but he's already got it covered. There's news that there are four impostors pretending to be Y4 (i.e. do not believe the impostors). Where can our team go now? Then comes a parcel delivered to Ke Le at her part-time job. It's from Motorbike Lady. Our team departs to her place and finds a similar piggybank, They insert a coin and a virtual Motorbike Lady appears.
[Ep31] Virtual Motorbike Lady has incriminating evidence against Boss Xu. It’s a set of numbers which are map coordinates. Meanwhile, our Real Motorbike Lady is unconscious. Boss Xu is looking apologetic(?). However, his dream has yet to come true and since there’s no method to erase his aunt’s memory, he will keep her asleep. He’s also using her to bait the team because he knows they’ll want to save her.
Our team has split up: one to rescue Motorbike Lady and another to find the evidence.
[Ep32] Boss Xu finds Virtual Motorbike Lady’s message. Now he knows about the evidence but he doesn’t have the coordinates.
Su Lie finds love in this girl called Lan Lan.
Qi Chuan offers help to Guan Qian Ya. She was separated from Xu Nian when they tried to save Motorbike Lady. Without a phone, she doesn’t know how to contact him. In Qi Chuan’s car, she sees fireworks and then remembers she told Xu Nian that fireworks are their love signal. She runs to their old spot and indeed, Xu Nian is there waiting for her.
Qi Chuan is helping because he wants to bring down Boss Xu.
[Ep33] The girl with Su Lie takes pictures of the gang. She’s not a good one! Why! Su Lie is going to be burned by another girl! Su Lie isn’t that devastated about being fooled, though. He counter-fools her except he’s counter-counter-fooled. But hold up. Everyone misunderstood. Lan Lan wasn't updating Boss Xu. She was texting her friend, thinking that this Su Lie was an impostor and then thought maybe she could influence him to change for the better. She's a good one!
There is a scene of Qi Chuan and Ke Le chatting. Why do I feel more chemistry between these two?
There is a scene of Qi Chuan and Ke Le chatting. Why do I feel more chemistry between these two?
Lu Xiao finds Qi Chuan a threat. Lu Xiao thinks he’s dubiously partitioning the team. He’d rather search for the evidence than to confirm if Lan Lan is a spy. It's wasting their time. Is Qi Chuan really not a good one?
[Ep34] Lu Xiao wants to search for the evidence but Qi Chuan shakes his head. Even if they find the evidence, if there’s still a spy among them, the evidence will fall into Boss Xu’s hands. So…everyone agrees to sit and wait until the spy acts. Okay.
The next morning, Lu Xiao disappears with the coordinates. The team suspects him as the spy. Ke Le refuses to believe it. Su Lie murmurs that no one believed him like Ke Le did for Lu Xiao. Aw.
Using the coordinates, Lu Xiao finds Janitor Zhang. The set of numbers led to his work ID. However, Boss Xu’s men were tailing Lu Xiao and once the evidence (in this yellow envelope) is handed to him, the men dispatch to catch Lu Xiao.
Our team searches for Lu Xiao at the library too. Guan Qian Ya is caught by the men. Lu Xiao saves her. Ke Le runs after them. The girls believe him now. They take a look at the evidence. It’s a single piece of paper: "See you next time". Janitor Zhang figured Lu Xiao was followed and withheld the evidence.
Lu Xiao is convinced there is a spy or else he wouldn’t have been caught so fast with the evidence. It can’t be Qi Chuan because he’s eager to find the spy. Then who could it be? He hesitantly looks over at Guan Qian Ya. He thinks it’s Xu Nian.
The four people eliminated from suspicion (Guan Qian Ya, Ke Le, Lu Xiao, and Qi Chuan) test the remaining three: Xu Nian, Su Lie, and Luo Ke. The three are given different locations to find the evidence. Only Luo Ke’s location has Boss Xu’s men.
It’s confirmed. Luo Ke is the spy. The team ditches him.
The next morning, Lu Xiao disappears with the coordinates. The team suspects him as the spy. Ke Le refuses to believe it. Su Lie murmurs that no one believed him like Ke Le did for Lu Xiao. Aw.
Using the coordinates, Lu Xiao finds Janitor Zhang. The set of numbers led to his work ID. However, Boss Xu’s men were tailing Lu Xiao and once the evidence (in this yellow envelope) is handed to him, the men dispatch to catch Lu Xiao.
Our team searches for Lu Xiao at the library too. Guan Qian Ya is caught by the men. Lu Xiao saves her. Ke Le runs after them. The girls believe him now. They take a look at the evidence. It’s a single piece of paper: "See you next time". Janitor Zhang figured Lu Xiao was followed and withheld the evidence.
Lu Xiao is convinced there is a spy or else he wouldn’t have been caught so fast with the evidence. It can’t be Qi Chuan because he’s eager to find the spy. Then who could it be? He hesitantly looks over at Guan Qian Ya. He thinks it’s Xu Nian.
The four people eliminated from suspicion (Guan Qian Ya, Ke Le, Lu Xiao, and Qi Chuan) test the remaining three: Xu Nian, Su Lie, and Luo Ke. The three are given different locations to find the evidence. Only Luo Ke’s location has Boss Xu’s men.
It’s confirmed. Luo Ke is the spy. The team ditches him.
Our team needs to find Janitor Zhang again. Ke Le has an idea: Let’s find Lan Lan. She knows Janitor Zhang. Su Lie sulks again. It was them who told him not to contact her and now, it is them again who’s telling him to contact her. Su Lie is kinda cute sulking all the time, ha.
An abandoned Luo Ke looks for work at an outdoor snack-bar. He sees Ke Le’s coworker (Wang Jia Qi) and falls in love at first sight. He adds her on WeChat but doesn’t give her his real name. He’s traumatized from the last time he was beaten for picking up a girl.
Janitor Zhang has all the evidence of Boss Xu abducting the boys in a USB. Suddenly, motorbikes roar. They’re surrounded. Xu Nian is the spy! And he’s totally chill about betraying his friends. What the heck! Luo Ke was innocent all along! Sorry Luo Ke, I really thought it was you.
Xu Nian will even run over Guan Qian Ya with his motorbike. He accelerates towards her!
Kaboom.
Ke Le drives a motorbike into him. The girls quickly retrieve the USB. Should Guan Qian Ya not check on her boyfriend first? Then they notice this Xu Nian is a robot. The real Xu Nian was caught before the night of the fireworks.
Oh and Boss Xu has robot versions of all four boys.
Currently, the real Xu Nian is held as hostage, dangling from a crane to threaten the team to hand over the USB. Omg Boss Xu, Xu Nian is your son! Guan Qian Ya is submissive. Once the USB is out of her hands, the crane loosens and Xu Nian is about to plummet to death had it not been for Guan Qian Ya diving at the rope to keep him from falling. The rest of the team arrive to pull Xu Nian back up.
Boss Xu has the USB. He asks Lei Na why she is loyal. Her eyes turn emotional but as she answers he cuts her off. He thinks she’s with him because his mission is that glorious. Lei Na swallows back her original answer and nods.
As scheduled, the Love Boys concert is held with the robotic Y4 boys. Everything is perfectly within Boss Xu’s plans.
[Ep36] Correction: As scheduled, Love Boys concert is held with the real boys. Luo Ke was the last to be convinced to join the rest. The real Lu Xiao, Xu Nian, Luo Ke, and Su Lie make their announcement to the world that they are the real deal and not AI robotic impostors or whatever.
Boss Xu is arrested by the police. Guan Qian Ya and Ke Le team up to take down Lei Na with some high kicks. It’s all over.
The boys find love on the stage as each of their girls go to hug them. Four couples are hugging on the stage. Is that not awkward…? xD
After some time.
Luo Ke is in professional e-sports. Su Lie teaches martial arts. Xu Nian is Guan Qian Ya’s business partner and now they’re about to buyout a company (the company that intended to buyout Guan Qian Ya’s). Last but not least, Lu Xiao is an actor (and his manager is Ke Le). Every boy has their career and their one true love.
Motorbike Lady is here too! Everyone has dinner together. Qi Chuan is part of the crew. There’s another guest: Ke Le’s dad. He’s back for good. Lu Xiao calls him “Dad” too. Ke Le thinks life is too wonderful to be true. She wonders if she’s back in the game. Everyone’s smile flattens. From under the table, a handful of them bring out a Newton’s cradle to confirm. It slows. The world is real! Amen. All bless the Newton's cradle. Our couples kiss to celebrate.
The end.
Remarks
[First Impression (Ep1-10)] I was ready to skim the first episode just for Zhang Ling He and be done with this. I did not like this setup: it has girls indulging in VR fantasies, neglecting reality all for these pretty boys who don’t exist (I hope everyone picks up on how meta this is). I also get that I watch plenty of these pretty-boy dramas and indulge in fantasies, but Drama need not be so blatant about it.
And then the drama redeems itself with Guan Qian Ya!
Guan Qian Ya owns a dating company and her business is affected by these virtual boyfriends. Girls just don’t want real men anymore (lol). She’s pro-reality and fights against these giant tech companies to restore what love should be. However, [Spoiler (Ep6)] she’s seduced by one of the virtual boyfriends (who actually isn’t virtual!). I'm looking forward to see how that works out [/Sp]. I really like that the drama uses her character to pit reality against virtual reality. I hope Guan Qian Ya can re-establish real dating by the end of the drama. I'm waiting for a wholesome message.
Couple-wise, there’s three. Jiang Ke Le and Lu Xiao are the main couple. He’s a little prickly and she’s like a jokester and will take initiative whenever she can. They get really cute around Ep9. The second couple is my favourite: Guan Qian Ya and Xu Nian. He’s this understanding and perceptive guy who sees through the tough exterior Guan Qian Ya surrounds herself with. He tears her down, exposes her vulnerability and then builds her back up stronger and healthier. I can’t wait until it’s her turn to address his existential crisis. It’s so hard to resist the charm in this couple. They’re the mature ones compared to the main couple. Lastly there’s the “third couple” that I’m not sure will end up together: Boss Xu and Lei Na. I see them more as a comedic relief and am slowly being addicted to their scenes.
As for the R1SE idol, He Luo Luo, I've never seen him (I don’t know Chinese idols) but I do like him here. As the virtual Lu Xiao, he gets to be angelic, and as the real Lu Xiao, he gets to be a little demonic (at least in the beginning).
Lastly Ming Dao is the final boss of this drama as Boss Xu (Xu Guang Han). His character is so narcissistic and egoistical that I’d imagine only Lei Na can handle him. I love how he keeps this blank, sour face on while saying some of the most ridiculous lines. I love it even more when Lei Na takes soft jabs at him.
[Behind the Scenes]
[Behind the Scenes]
[Ending] Happy. Boys are free and not single.
Final Review
[Review] I’d like to delete my first impression if I can. It’s so off. What’s up with dramas faking me out these days (à la Court Lady)? I thought I was watching a romcom but this is actually an adventurous sci-fi. Once the romances settle, the story is focused on our boys' escape to reality. Fortunately, it’s innovative enough to keep me watching despite the novice attempt at sci-fi. There’s unexpected and remarkable twists that fit well into the story.
The romance flattens relatively quickly but when the couples were at their peak, I liked Xu Nian and Guan Qian Ya the best. Their romance was mature and calming. Guan Qian Ya is my favourite character; she’s sensible and sophisticated. Her and Xu Nian felt more like the main characters than Ke Le and Lu Xiao.
Overall, I wasn’t emotionally engaged with this drama. Rather than lightly dabbing into different genres, I would have preferred it doing one genre really well. The merit of this is the intriguing story. It would be cool to see the same/similar story with an upgraded sci-fi approach.
P.S. I don't think I watched this for any idols unless Zhang Ling He is considered one, which in that case, yes, I probably did watch this for an idol.
Random Recommendation: Consummation
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