Le Coup de Foudre Review

After trying to watch Royal Nirvana and giving up halfway, I’m glad to jump to something more uplifting with Le Coup de Foudre (我只喜欢你). This has been released for quite some time but I kept putting it on the back-burner because youth dramas are not particularly my cup of tea. However, this one is a little different from the usual coming of age stories. I will give you my take on this with the Le Coup de Foudre review below. If you are short of time, my recommendation is simply to watch it. It does pack a nice surprise.

My rating: 7.5/10
Episodes: 35
Type: Romance, Family
Aired: April 2019
Images Credit: IJQ TV, iQiyi

The Main Cast Of Le Coup de Foudre

Janice Wu Qian as Zhao Qiao Yi

Qiao Yi is a kind-hearted high school student who is weak in her studies. She comes from a working class family with a stepfather who works as a police officer. Her mother left her biological father due to domestic abuse when she was very young and then remarried. Qiao Yi also has a twin brother and enjoys love and support from her family. In school, she befriends Yan Mo who sits next to her.

Zhang Yu Jian as Yan Mo

Yan Mo is a very quiet and serious person. Although he seems cold and unsociable, he does care for people close to him in his own way. His parents are divorced but keep the news from him for a number of years. They are rarely home due to work. However, Yan Mo is a very hardworking and smart student who never fails to top the class. Gradually, he develops feelings for Qiao Yi.

Eden Zhao Zhi Wei as Zhao Guan Chao

Guan Chao is Qiao Yi’s twin brother. He adores his sister and is protective towards her. Being good-looking and sociable, he is popular with the girls and is always looking for a fling. Guan Chao is also a smart student in school, second only to Yan Mo.

Ma Li as Hao Wu Yi

Wu Yi is Qiao Yi’s best friend and classmate. She is also weak in her studies but is a good writer. Wu Yi is tomboyish with a loud and forthright personality. Her father passed away when she was still young while her mother is a successful and rich businesswoman. But Wu Yi has a rocky relationship with her mother as they rarely spend time together. Wu Yi’s love interest is Guan Chao.

Supporting Cast

An Ge as Fei Da Chuan

Da Chuan is Qiao Yi’s classmate and good friend. Yan Mo’s mother and Da Chuan are siblings which makes him Yan Mo’s uncle although they are around the same age. Da Chuan has the appearance of a thug and can be impulsive, but he is a good guy at heart.

Zhang Yue Ying as Cheng You Mei (Alicia)

You Mei comes from a wealthy family and is Yan Mo’s childhood friend. She has feelings for Yan Mo and regards him as her fiancee. You Mei can be snobbish and overbearing.

Yan Qing Yu as Zhao Su Ying

Su Ying is Qiao Yi and Guan Chao’s mother. She divorced her husband when the twins were still very young due to domestic abuse. Her husband hit Qiao Yi when he was drunk until she needed surgery. Su Ying had a tough life after the divorce until she met her current husband.

Yang Chao Ran as Tian Wei Min

Wei Min is Qiao Yi and Guan Chao’s stepfather. He treats them like his own children and they also love him in return. Wei Min works as a police officer.

Jampa Tseten as Gao Fei

Gao Fei is Qiao Yi, Wu Yi, Yan Mo, and Guan Chao’s class teacher. He cares about his students and they remain friends with him after graduation.

Cao Yan Yan as Lin Shu

Lin Shu is Yan Mo’s mother. She is a dancer who is always traveling. Hence, she often has to leave Yan Mo alone at home although she does love him very much. She is divorced from Yan Mo’s father but they have never told him the truth.

Xie Yu Tong as Ding Sheng Nan

Sheng Nan is Wu Yi’s mother. She is a busy businesswoman and doesn’t have a close relationship with her daughter. They often argue as they do not see eye to eye on many issues. She is also against Wu Yi’s ambition to be a writer.

Synopsis

Qiao Yi and Yan Mo are classmates and they sit next to each other in class. Gradually, they start to develop feelings for each other when Yan Mo tutors Qiao Yi who is weak in her studies. Yan Mo, who is a bright student, already has plans to study in the UK and he encourages Qiao Yi to follow him. Although her family isn’t rich, her parents agree to support her. However, when her stepfather is hit by a car while on duty and becomes severely injured, Qiao Yi abandons her plans to study abroad. She rejects Yan Mo’s help and stays away from him because she doesn’t want to hold him back from fulfilling his dream. This results in a 6-year separation between them.

Guan Chao is a playboy who likes flirting with different girls. Wu Yi eventually falls in love with him but knows Guan Chao is never serious. After graduation, they meet again a few years later in Beijing when, coincidentally, they end up as neighbors.

What will happen to these 2 couples after meeting up again? Will love finally bloom? What other obstacles will they face in life as they become adults?

Le Coup de Foudre Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

Viewers would know right at the beginning that this drama would have a happy ending. This is because flashbacks are used and Qiao Yi and Yan Mo are shown as a married couple talking about the past at the start of some episodes. There is a wedding scene in the last episode and then viewers are given glimpses of their married life that stretches over a 2-year period. They are just like any other married couple with fights and tender moments. There is no baby in the picture though. The last scene has Qiao Yi and Yan Mo having sweet talk on the bed about the past.

Guan Chao and Wu Yi end up as a married couple as well. They put aside their differences and reconcile when Wu Yi’s mother is diagnosed with cancer. Guan Chao goes back to be with Wu Yi during her most difficult moments. Her mother passed away eventually but Wu Yi did manage to mend their relationship before her death. After their marriage, Wu Yi and Guan Chao end up having twins. Da Chuan and You Mei also become a couple after his relentless pursuit finally melts her heart.

Le Coup de Foudre Review – Something Different And Refreshing

Most youth dramas are made to be cute and sweet. But Le Coup de Foudre goes one step further. It is also heartwarming with more touching relationships that encompass friendship, parent-child, and sibling relationships. In that sense, it is definitely better than Put Your Head On My Shoulder which is another popular youth drama. The main couple may not be as sweet as Bei Wei Wei and Xiao Nai in Love 020 but they have their own unique dynamics with their flaws. This makes the couple more down to earth rather than unbelievably perfect.

Le Coup de Foudre is adapted from a novel and based on the author’s true story. That is why the plot of the drama always feel very real as if it could happen to anyone of us. As such, it is also easy to get sucked into the story as you follow the progress of the characters from their student days through to their adult lives. You can relate to the characters’ happiness and heartaches as they go through all the ups and downs. At times, you will be reaching for a tissue and crying while at others, you will feel warm all over watching the love they have for one another whether it is between lovers, friends or family members.

I think everyone did very well playing their roles to give viewers a highly watchable drama. Janice Wu and Zhang Yu Jian have pretty good chemistry to portray a very unique couple. Of all the characters in Le Coup de Foudre, I think Yan Mo is the most difficult one to play due to his expressionless nature. But Zhang Yu Jian nailed it with his eyes and furtive smiles. If you like to watch more of him, you can also check out his other drama called Find Yourself.

My Verdict

Le Coup de Foudre is no rom-com like Go Go Squid! Neither is it too melodramatic like Here To Heart. Instead, it has a similar vibe to Go Ahead. It is just a simple story of a group of high school students journeying through life but told in a heartwarming and refreshing way. This is what sets it apart from other dramas of similar genres. Apart from the romance, the other types of relationships are also worth our attention. In fact, I find the sibling relationship between Qiao Yi and Guan Chao as well as Qiao Yi’s relationship with her stepfather to be more satisfying to watch than the main couple.

Therefore, it is indeed great that the drama’s focus is not always on the romance alone. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been as heartwarming especially when Yan Mo is not your typical hero that you would find in a pure romance story. I do find 35 episodes to be a tad too long as well because their high school days seem to stretch on and on with more than 10 episodes. I understand that it helps to build the background to the story but it could have been made shorter to me. If you find the first half to be boring like I do, then you can always skip some parts to move along quicker. You would still be able to follow the story as there is nothing complicated about the plot in any way.

Overall, I would give this a 7.5/10 rating with a watch recommendation for this Le Coup de Foudre review. I have deducted marks for the slow pace of the first 12 episodes. But don’t let that stop you from watching. It is a great drama that makes us value friendship and family ties apart from romantic love and not many coming of age drama can do that successfully.