October 26, 2023

Mr. & Mrs. Chen | Open Thread + Reviews

Mr and Mrs Chen
A forced marriage between ex-lovers spies.
Notable Actors/Actresses
Han Dong Jun: Chen Jia Ping
Guan Xiao Tong: Zuo Shuang Tao
Producer: 
Chinese Title
梅花紅桃
Network: Tencent Video
Year: 2023
Episodes: 32

Jump to Remarks | Reviews | Recs | Comments

The Alternative Poster



Cast


Han Dong Jun:
Chen Jia Ping		 Guan Xiao Tong:
Zuo Shuang Tao
Tian Lei:
Zhao An		 Lu Zi Zhen:
Han Lu
Jiang Yi:
Luo Guan Qun		 Wang Xiu Zhu:
Lu Fang Fang
Liu Hai Kuan:
Liu Wu Chang		 Tan Kai:
Lao Lu

Zhao Yi Huan:
Zhang Shu Yun

Screencaps


[Ep1]
[Ep2]
[Ep3]
[Ep4]
[Ep5]
How cops enter the bank while a robbery is in progress... lol
That smile. *snort*
Creep. (Not an alien but...)
Another creep.
[Ep6]
[Ep7]
Lies...that home improvement can be romantic.
[Ep8]
[Ep9]
[Ep10]
[Ep11]
[Ep12]
[Ep13]
[Ep14]
[Ep15]
[Ep16]
[Ep17]
[Ep18]
[Ep19]
[Ep20]
[Ep21]
[Ep22]
[Ep23]
Their pantone color is brown.
[Ep24]
Finally discovered something that I don't like on Han Dong Jun. Please make it leave already. XD
He always gets the best spots.
[Ep25]
[Ep26]
[Ep27]
[Ep28]
His face. :D
[Ep29]
[Ep30]
[Ep31]
[Ep32]
Er Ba Dao

Liu Cheng
Gao Fang
This exit. 🙌
My actual favorite duo.👆👆👆




Remarks


by FanFanX



[First Impression (Ep1-)] I'm a bit burnt on Republican Era dramas but I'm always lured in by their costumes. And this series has so many fine people in lovely dresses and suits - and jaunty hats. 

[Actors/Actresses] Some of us may only be here to see Han Dong Jun in a suit. ;) 

[Behind the Scenes] 

→ Their photoshoot.
→ Ep4 & Ep11. (This is in reverse in the link.) Fight over Lu Fang Fang, and Han Dong Jun can’t stop laughing at Luo ge's pronunciation of yu. Ep11, the cafe scene with her hat. 
→ Ep6. The thousand roses. I love how Han Dong Jun is making fun of it. Heh. 
→ Ep12. The rooftop and Han Dong Jun gets beaten by her. 
→ Ep23. Bicycle scene.
→Hanging scene. 
→ Guan Xiao Tong struggling with her gun. Love how Han Dong Jun laughs at her when she struggles with his, too.
→  Feet washing duties. 
→ Cutting cucumbers. 
→ Their wedding day (he spins her around! lol (~0:23)) and🐎🐎.
→ More of their wedding plus Ep32 (final ep!)
→ Han Dong Jun enjoying his wheels.
→ Let's appreciate Han Dong Jun's arms.
→ The snappy lines of Liu Cheng. (Wish it was all of them.)
 
[OST] 

Reviews



Five (5/5)



Four (4/5)



Three (3/5)


Reviewer: Loving Cdrama
Date: October 2023
It was an easy drama to watch. I like how the leads trust each other. Lots of propaganda on how BIS/KMT were corrupt and bad, as well as the traitorous Chinese who worked for the Japanese. Though Zhao An and Lao Lou both were beautifully played by the actors to be very grey. In the end, I felt bad for Zhao An and how he died (loving a woman that couldn’t/didn’t know how to love back). I felt for Lao Lou when the janitor had him shot. Both were shown as vicious people but the actors humanized them.

Elvis is just so charismatic and charming! Love him in this but then again I don’t think it is a stretch for him. The FL actress was good. But the chemistry between the leads was a bit lacking…though the drama steered away from the romance after they got married.

Tons of plot holes if you look closely, but the actors all did a great job. Lu Fang Fang, Lou Tai Tai, Han Lu, Yamashita, Dual Blades, Zhao An’s serious right hand man…they all portrayed their characters very well.


Two (2/5)


Reviewer: FanFanX 
Date: November 2023
Aesthetics: A
Acting: A- Plot: D+ Chemistry between our leads – dead in the water from the get-go. The romance is so flat, that I am not sure how this is even classified as a romance. The sparks fly the most when they’re fighting in public, ergo putting on a very believable show to get whatever each one wants at that moment. Han Dong Jun is surrounded by an amazing supporting cast. Some of my favorites: snarky Liu Cheng, gorgeous Lu Fang Fang, and child-like Er Ba Dao. Yes, I am excluding Guan Xiao Tong as FL from this statement as she’s the weakest link in this cast. And then we get the biggest problem with this series – the plot. So they’re both spies and he knows she’s one well before she knows about him. And it doesn’t make any sense what happens when she finally does find out… The finals eps and the actual ending are less than satisfactory as it makes one wonder why they bothered to watch 32 eps. Wait, I digress – I know exactly why who I watched this for – Han Dong Jun. (Have you ever wanted to be someone's jacket before?) I’m also all for the bromance between Chen Jia Ping and Liu Cheng. This is a Republican Era drama - so grin and bear it with the CCP propaganda, or just skip it.
Random Recommendation:  The Killer Is Also Romantic - a mini with a better secret spy couple. 

Rating: 2/5

Reviewer: Potato Chip
Date: November 2023
This drama was depressing and I was fooled by the bright and happy filter. With a name that mimics Mr/Mrs Smith, I was expecting a fun passionate romance with clever leads. CJP was smart with his protagonist aura protecting him even though everyone except his "smart" wife suspected him of being 4 ♣. Suspended disbelief that the Japanese would let a peon like him live despite those suspicions. ZST is supposed to be awesome, but besides the 1st wedding assassination and the bad-ass nun moment, she was completely dense. She never suspected his identity until her handler spelt it out.

Spoiiler How could she believe that CJP killed him? I am still upset with her for causing Lu Fang Fang's death.

CJP would have also died if he weren't ML.

This story hinged on the main couple having chemistry. They didn't. The teasing end scene with Liu Cheng suggested that they were a fake marriage. They weren't fake, but they weren't real either. We needed a heart felt wedding night scene to set their relationship but it was ambiguous and not in the fun, flirty way.

Darn HDJ, his suits and emojis, and the interesting side characters prevented me from dropping this. I did like watching them get out of tense situations, some of those moments were well done. Not the moss growing on CJP's chin and ZST's laughable male get up.

Zhao An and Luo Quan Gun were intriguing because of their charismatic actors. They were definitely villains, and I can't excuse it as being forced by the times, but their layered personalities made watching them fun. Zhao An's love for Shu Yun, his funny bumbling horse scenes with Dual Blades, and his pathetic Japanese groveling made him relatable. He had the worst, most terrifying ending. Luo Quan Gun was more despicable, but surprisingly, he actually loved Shu Yun too. But in the most toxic way possible. Did Kimura not kill him because Shu Yun is too kind or to prevent our ML from indirectly killing him? Cynical Spud. Drama should have written CJP as seething with hate for LQG after Lao Lu's death. But there was no emotional resonance.

Except for ZST, the women in this drama were great. Lu Fang Fang was intelligent, diligent and practical. If they expanded her role, I would have shipped her with CJP. Han Lu was resilient despite all the abuse she suffered. I hope she got to HK and kicked Jiang into the pier. How is he alive? Didn't CJP say his injuries would kill him? She was gorgeous in the red wedding dress, BTW. Shu Yun's actress was good for not turning her into a caricature. She didn't deserve her tragic ending. Ultimate cruelty to punish the "immoral" woman. 🙄

Wish we saw more of Liu Cheng. Was he CCP all along? At first, he just seemed to be a friend. Liu Wu Chang's ideal shift was sudden, but whatever, the actor is pretty. Gao Fang, unnecessary.

Once their identities were officially known, how were they able to be out and about like nothing? The last wedding mission was planned well. The suitcase was predictable, but having the drama explain everything right before it happened undermined any surprise factor and momentum.

Favorite CP: Dual Blades and Little Bean 😭, CJP and Liu Cheng.


One (1/5)





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