I watched Double Love (墨白) on a whim as the leads looked familiar to me although I can’t really recall in which drama I have seen them before. I only did further research after watching a few episodes out of curiosity about their previous projects. Anyway, 24 episodes seemed short enough for me to take the risk to invest my time. Furthermore, I wasn’t expecting much out of this drama and I suspected there would be many filler scenes that I could skip. I think my suspicion is proven right to a certain extent and my Double Love review below will have more detailed explanations.
My rating: 6.5/10
Episodes: 24
Type: Romance
Aired: December 2022
Images Credit: iQIYI Taiwan Facebook
The Cast Of Double Love
- Sophie Zhang Xue Ying as Lu Wan Wan / Chu He
- Bi Wen Jun as Han Jing Mo / Mo Bai Zhi Jian
- Dylan Kuo as Lu Guang Han / Lu Jia Tou Pai
- Guo Xiao Tian as Gu Qiao Bei / Tai Bai San Jian
- Dai Si as Guan Yi Wei
- Mao Fang Yuan as Zhao Jing Xing
- Lin Yan Rou as Li Wei Qian
- Li Yu Yang as Yan Sheng Kai / Liu Nian Hua Kai
- Li Xin Ran as Lin Wei
- Chun Yu as Song Chi
Main Characters
Lu Wan Wan / Chu He
Wan Wan has just graduated from a drama academy with an ambition to be an actress. She is hardworking and willing to learn. Wan Wan also prefers to rely on her own skills and talent to land roles despite having an influential elder brother in the entertainment industry. She can be impulsive but upright and direct. Chu He is Wan Wan’s chosen character in an online game called Moonlight Blade.
Han Jing Mo / Mo Bai Zhi Jian
Jing Mo is an idol actor signed under an entertainment company called Ying Ge. He is a cool and handsome young man with lots of fans. He has a clean image and does what is right but doesn’t like explaining himself. His aim is to become a good actor. Jing Mo is raised by his grandfather, Han Xi Xing. Mo Bai is his online game persona in Moonlight Blade of which he is the brand endorser.
Supporting Characters
Lu Guang Han / Lu Jia Tou Pai
Guang Han is Wan Wan’s elder brother and the siblings share a loving relationship. He is also Ying Ge’s boss. Ying Ge is one of the top entertainment and artistes management companies. Guang Han is a fan of Qiao Bei and admires his talent with the hope of signing him on under his company. He also plays Moonlight Blade as Lu Jia Tou Pai.
Gu Qiao Bei / Tai Bai San Jian
Qiao Bei is an actor under a different management company. He is also Jing Mo’s best friend. Qiao Bei is friendly and approachable in contrast to Jing Mo. His game character in Moonlight Blade is Tai Bai San Jian.
Guan Yi Wei
Yi Wei is an actress with a certain status in the industry due to her seniority. She grew up with Jing Mo and hence, they share a close sibling-like relationship.
Zhao Jing Hang
Jing Hang is Ying Ge’s investor. He and Guang Han are like brothers as they grew up together. Jing Hang is also very protective of Wan Wan and has feelings for her.
Li Wei Qian
Wei Qian is an actress who likes to pretend in front of others. She is a typical hypocrite who is petty and spiteful. She is interested in Jing Mo and has worked with him in some projects. Hence, she is rumored to be his girlfriend.
Yan Sheng Kai / Liu Nian Hua Kai
Sheng Kai is an actress who has worked under Yi Wei. She appears as kind and noble. Hence, people find her likable and friendly. Her game persona in Moonlight Blade is Liu Nian Hua Kai and she is seen as Mo Bai’s partner before Chu He’s appearance.
Lin Wei
Lin Wei is Jing Mo’s agent and Guang Han’s subordinate.
Song Chi
Song Chi is Jing Mo’s personal assistant who runs errands for him.
Synopsis
Wan Wan is a fresh graduate from a leading drama academy. She is also a huge fan of Jing Mo who is an actor and idol. However, a chance encounter with Jing Mo at an audition appointment causes her to change her mind. She is splashed with water and assumes that he did it. But her demand for an apology is ignored. When Jing Mo’s personal assistant goes on leave, Jing Mo picks Wan Wan to be the temporary replacement. Wan Wan accepts the job as she wants to use the opportunity to get her revenge.
However, after spending much time together, Jing Mo and Wan Wan begin to develop feelings for each other. This is especially true for Jing Mo when he discovers that the person playing an online game with him as his partner is Wan Wan. Before he could express his love for her, Wan Wan’s childhood friend turns up and becomes Jing Mo’s love rival. At the same time, Wan Wan becomes a target of jealous actresses who take offense against her close relationship with Jing Mo.
Double Love Ending (Spoilers Alert!)
Double Love has a happy ending. 6 months after filming is wrapped up, Jing Mo and Wan Wan’s movie is released with positive reviews. Jing Mo proposes to Wan Wan. She says yes and wants to register their marriage immediately. She also learns from Jing Mo that she had once saved him from a group of bullies when they were school kids. The same thing happened 5 years before when they were in the US although Wan Wan couldn’t recognize him then.
Jing Mo and Wan Wan subsequently win the best actor and best new actress award respectively for their performance in the movie. 4 years later, the couple is happily married with a son and a daughter.
Qiao Bei switches from being an actor to a director in Episode 24. He is also present during the awards ceremony. Guang Han and Xia Lin Xi have got together as a couple.
When Did They Start Dating?
A drunken Wan Wan confesses to Jing Mo in Episode 16 and they get together then. Both of them already have feelings for each other early on but are afraid to express their love for each other. Jing Mo already asks Wan Wan to marry him in the game in Episode 6 when he knows she is the character playing alongside him. Their game characters get engaged in Episode 10 and have their wedding in Episode 12.
Wan Wan admits to her brother that she is dating Jing Mo in Episode 19. In Episode 21, Jing Mo publicly announces their relationship on stage when he won the best actor award.
Is There Any Breakup Or Love Triangle?
No, there is no breakup after Wan Wan and Jing Mo got together as a couple. There are 2 actresses who are interested in Jing Mo but they never have any chance with him at all. Wei Qian is exposed for framing Wan Wan in Episode 12 with Jing Mo’s help. Yan Sheng Kai is caught spreading rumors about Wan Wan and hurting her in Episode 19 also through Jing Mo’s effort.
Jing Hang who has known Wan Wan since they were kids is also interested in her but she only sees him as a friend and elder brother. His feelings for Wan Wan is also not fully explained and neither did he express how he feels towards her. Jing Hang is heartbroken when Jing Mo goes public with his relationship with Wan Wan in Episode 21. He feels that the girl he has always protected no longer needs his protection now. He is comforted by Yi Wei who has been pursuing him all along.
Game Identities Revealed
Jing Mo finds out that Wan Wan is playing as Chu He in Episode 5 when he borrows her phone. Qiao Bei finds out about it in Episode 10 when Jing Mo lets slip that he is interested in Wan Wan and she is Chu He in the game.
In Episode 20, Wan Wan wants to divorce Mo Bai in the game as she feels guilty flirting with someone online while dating Jing Mo at the same time. Hence, Jing Mo has no choice but to reveal himself as Mo Bai. Wan Wan is angry at first but Jing Mo manages to coax her back in Episode 21 when he publicly apologizes for angering her and announcing their relationship.
Since Jing Mo is playing as Mo Bai, Guang Han then correctly deduces that Qiao Bei must be controlling Tai Bai San Jian. In Episode 23, Wan Wan and Jing Mo expose Chu Qian Lan to be Liu Nian Hua Kai who has always been after Mo Bai in the game. This forces out the person controlling the characters and she is Yan Sheng Kai. After the incident, the regular players in the group decide to meet each other in real life via a video call. That is when Qiao Bei learns that the player behind his game partner, Lu Jia Tou Pai, is Guang Han.
Double Love Review – Better Editing Needed
Frankly speaking, I fell asleep a few times while watching the entire 24 episodes of Double Love. It is a pretty monotonous drama to me with nothing much going on at times. There is little angst to keep me awake as the villains are never really a threat to the couple. The drama will keep switching between the protagonists’ real life and game plays just like Love Scenery and Love 020. That change in scenery will help to alleviate part of the boredom but the story is also predictable all the way.
The worst part though is the horrible editing that stands out throughout the drama. While She And Her Perfect Husband also suffers from noticeable cuts, Double Love takes it a step further by chopping off the important scenes. This includes the confession scene which makes no sense to be taken out given that this is a romance drama after all. As a result, you can’t really enjoy watching this to the fullest because the scene transitions become disjointed and the cuts are screaming at you when they happen.
Relationships That Get Nowhere
The other peeve that I have with Double Love is the presence of 2 other relationships in the drama that get nowhere. There is a whiff of a BL pairing that doesn’t get explored as it should. The signs all point to such a relationship but they have to mask it as good friends and at times, even as brothers. To make things worse, all notions of gay love is extinguished when you reach the end which gives you the feeling that that is the censorship taking over.
The other side couple is even more pointless. There is a hint that they know each other from an earlier encounter but we are not told exactly what happened. Then, the girl is seen chasing the guy all over during the few scenes that they have together. Why she actually likes him and expects him to reciprocate is anybody’s guess since we don’t know how they knew each other in the first place.
Basically, these 2 relationships have not been given proper planning and writeup. To me, they are thrown in to lengthen the drama rather than to make the story more meaningful. Hence, the screenwriting leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to the secondary relationships.
Easygoing Romance
If you can ignore the bad editing and secondary relationships, the main couple’s romance itself is an easygoing one. Double Love is a light-hearted watch with no tears, little angst, and non-toxic bickering. That is why it is a little boring to me. It does have its moments of sweetness and fluff but I don’t see it as particularly romantic. It is better than Warm Meet You which has mediocre acting and chemistry but it is definitely not a highly entertaining romance drama either.
The couple bickers a lot at the start with the guy seemingly irritating the girl to get her attention. The flirting actually goes on in the game before the couple get together. So, if you don’t mind the blurring of reality and the gaming world, then this drama will be enjoyable. Otherwise, the whole story will feel superficial.
As the drama moves towards the conclusion, the filler scenes start to pile up due to the simplistic plot execution. Although there are villains, they are not the focus of the drama and hardly a threat to the couple’s relationship. Characters are introduced at a late stage when they are hardly necessary and not an integral part of the story. In other words, you might be attracted to the romance but the whole story-telling itself is pretty mediocre.
Acting And Chemistry
The last time I watched Bi Wen Jun is in Sweet Teeth. After watching him again in Double Love, I think he still needs to buck up his acting skills. To me, he did slightly better in Sweet Teeth while he is too stiff in Double Love. The aura of an idol isn’t there in his portrayal of Jing Mo. He tries to act cool to be consistent with the character’s personality and stature but it comes across as stiff and unnatural instead.
It has been a while since I caught Sophie Zhang in a drama with the last being Princess Silver. She has been in the acting field for a long time as she started as a child actress about 20 years ago. Her performance is better than Bi Wen Jun in Double Love as she could emote confidently to convey the character’s thinking and feelings.
However, this couple’s chemistry feels pretty average when sharing the same screen. Maybe I’m still having a hangover from Lighter And Princess but if you have watched enough of Chinese dramas, you would know when a pairing truly makes sparks fly. The chemistry between Bi Wen Jun and Sophie Zhang is sufficient to make it passable for a lighthearted romance drama but nothing that will make you go gaga all over.
My Verdict – Nothing Special
In my opinion, Double Love is really nothing special. It is watchable if you don’t have high expectations and not looking for something unique and/or meaningful. The plot is predictable and the main couple’s romance is light and easy to digest. This is not a serious love story like Almost Lover. You won’t get a fulfilling or intense romance but one that is relaxing with some flirting and fluff. It is good for those times when you are not in the mood for anything heavy.
The other consideration is the substantial screen time allotted to the gaming world. I would say about 40% to 50% of the story takes place in the game mode which has a historical setting. Personally, I’m not really a big fan of this kind of story-telling because of the disconnect from reality with online battles and missions. So, it is really a matter of personal preference. Having said that though, the game mode in the drama is quite nicely done with beautiful computer graphic sceneries and some comedic elements.
For this Double Love review, I would rate it 6.5/10. The substandard editing mars the overall drama. While I understand that they may have to comply with the censorship rules, they can certainly do better with the planning and screenwriting. It is not a complicated drama after all. You can watch it if there is no other more interesting titles on the table but I doubt you will find it absorbing in any way.
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