When I Fly Towards You Review

When I Fly Towards You (当我飞奔向你) has such high ratings that I just have to give it a go. To be honest, I’m not particularly fond of youth dramas. That is why I have been putting it off and only started watching it after I have completed the other dramas on my watch list. If not for the highly positive reviews, I probably would have skipped it completely. The curiosity just got the better of me with so many people giving it a thumbs up. When I Fly Towards You review below will have my views on this drama.

My rating: 7.5/10
Episodes: 24
Type: Youth Romance
Aired: June 2023
Images Credit: Douban Movie

The Cast Of When I Fly Towards You

• Zhou Yi Ran as Zhang Lu Rang / Rang Rang
• Zhang Miao Yi as Su Zai Zai
• Bian Tian Yang as Gu Ran
• Jiang Zhi Nan as Jiang Jia
• Guo Zhe as Guan Fang
• Gao Wen Feng as Lin Mao / Teacher Lin
• Feng Xiang Kun as Shen Qian Yu
• Wang Jia Xuan as Zhang Lu Li

Main Characters

Zhang Lu Rang / Rang Rang

Rang Rang is one of the top science students in high school but only has an average result in English. He is a quiet boy who rarely smiles and takes his studies seriously. Although he is good in his studies, he still suffers from self-esteem issues due to constant comparison to his younger brother. His mother is always worried over his results and is openly bias towards her much smarter younger son.

Su Zai Zai

Zai Zai is a cute and cheerful schoolgirl. She has a positive mindset and doesn’t allow unhappy events to pull her down for long. She is expressive and dares to approach the guy that she likes. Zai Zai is also not one who can be easily bullied with her quick and sharp retorts. Her weakest subject is Maths and Physics while she excels in English. She is an only child to a set of loving and open-minded parents.

Supporting Characters

Gu Ran

Gu Ran is Rang Rang’s deskmate and best friend at school. He is a nice guy with lots of things to say compared to Rang Rang. While he appears as happy and carefree, he actually feels neglected by his busy parents who are doctors.

Jiang Jia

Jiang Jia is Zai Zai’s bestie and classmate at school. They know each other’s secrets and are open with their feelings. Jiang Jia is also expressive and tends to bicker with Gu Ran.

Guan Fang

Guan Fang is Rang Rang and Gu Ran’s classmate and best friend. He appears as an amiable guy with a tendency to be clueless at times. He lives with his grandmother who runs a small snack shop.

Lin Mao / Teacher Lin

Teacher Lin is Rang Rang’s maternal uncle. He is also Zai Zai’s class and Maths teacher. He is an understanding teacher and is also aware of the pressure Rang Rang faces from his mother.

Shen Qian Yu

Shen Qian Yu is Gu Ran’s friend and his senior at school. He is also the school’s drama club leader with an ability to play the piano and guitar. Shen Qian Yu is a courteous and warm type of guy and is Jiang Jia’s crush.

Zhang Lu Li

Lu Li is Rang Rang’s younger brother by a year. He is a very brainy boy who has skipped grades and exceeded Rang Rang in their studies. Lu Li is the favored son at home which leaves him feeling estranged from his brother.

Synopsis

Zai Zai and Jiang Jia are best friends and classmates at school. When they are 16 years old, they get to know Rang Rang, Gu Ran, and Guan Fang when they become schoolmates. Although there are not in the same class, the 5 of them develop a close friendship. Zai Zai also becomes attracted to Rang Rang the moment she laid eyes on him. She tries her best to get close to him with several embarrassments along the way but eventually succeeds despite his reserved and unsmiling personality.

The 5 friends encounter ups and downs together as they get through school and the pressure of exams. Zai Zai also brightens up Rang Rang’s world and helps him to become a happier person. They encourage each other to achieve their dreams to become a better version of themselves. Will the 5 friends stay together all the way and achieve their ambition?

When I Fly Towards You Ending & Recap (Spoilers Alert!)

When I Fly Towards You has a happy ending. Rang Rang is doing well in his job in the aero engineering field and has successfully completed a new product development project. He proposes to Zai Zai in Episode 24 by playing back the videos of them together. They have their wedding which is attended by their best friends and parents. Zai Zai is subsequently pregnant and the couple have a kid.

The drama ends with the couple preparing to attend their school reunion together. They are dressed in their school uniform. Rang Rang is nostalgic and recalls the first time he met Zai Zai on a rainy day at their neighborhood shop.

When Did The Leads Get Together?

Rang Rang and Zai Zai got together in Episode 19. This is after they have sat for their university entrance exams and just graduated from high school. Zai Zai has planned to confess her feelings to Rang Rang during their date. She goes about trying to express her feelings but fails. Rang Rang takes the initiative to confess instead. They start to hold hands after the confession.

Rang Rang’s and Zai Zai’s results also allow them to enter the same university as planned. They start their university life in Episode 20 and graduate in Episode 22. They move in together when they return to her hometown to work.

Is There Any Breakup And Love Triangle?

No, there is no breakup after Rang Rang and Zai Zai started dating. There is only one quarrel between them in Episode 15 and 16 before they become lovers. Zai Zai is angry because Rang Rang fails to tell her that he will be transferring back to his hometown to complete the final months of high school. Her anger dissipates after he explained that he didn’t know how to tell her because she is a special friend to him. They separated for a couple of months after his transfer in Episode 17 but keep in touch via letters.

There is also no love triangle although each has their own admirers. Rang Rang’s classmate also has feelings for him back in high school but he has never given her a chance. While in university, a senior admires Zai Zai but she makes it clear that she already has a boyfriend. Rang Rang also has a coursemate pursuing him in Episode 21 but Zai Zai confronts her to remind her that she is his girlfriend. He is also supportive of her stand that the other girl eventually gives up and seeks a new target.

In addition, there are no disapproving parents in their relationship. Zai Zai’s parents like Rang Rang a lot even when they first met him as a high school student. They are delighted when they find out that Zai Zai and Rang Rang are dating in Episode 21.

Second Couple

The second couple is Jiang Jia and Gu Ran. They start off as a bickering couple but Gu Ran starts feeling something for Jiang Jia in Episode 12 after she takes cares of him when he falls sick. However, Jiang Jia has a crush on their senior instead and Gu Ran encourages her to approach him despite having feelings for her. She tries to confess to the senior with a written letter in Episode 14 but takes it back when she realizes that he only sees her as a younger sister.

Jiang Jia suspects Gu Ran likes her when he buys her a gift in Episode 17 but he denies it. He confesses his feelings for her in Episode 19 when they bumped into each other. Gu Ran is with his mother’s colleague’s daughter then. Hence, Jiang Jia assumes Gu Ran is just using her as an excuse to get rid of the girl he is forced to entertain. He is also afraid to admit his feelings for her when he overhears her saying that she wouldn’t date a friend.

Gu Ran leaves abroad for further studies after high school. He writes Jiang Jia a letter before he left. He returns home in Episode 22 after graduating and starts working as a doctor while Jiang Jia has become a reporter. Gu Ran decides he should confess to her in Episode 23 after seeing her having a meal with another man. But he loses his courage until he finds out from an ex-schoolmate that Jiang Jia has liked him since high school. He confesses then and they become lovers.

When I Fly Towards You Review – A Very Young Feel

When I Fly Towards You is largely a high school drama. The bulk of the episodes are about 5 friends going through high school and this runs for 20 episodes. So, it is great for teenagers and those who have just left school not too long ago. I can understand perfectly why this drama will resonate with this younger age group. The first love feel is very strong with this one as well as the typical high school stuff that every student can relate to.

The shyness, embarrassment, and secret crush is a very teenage thing that most high school students would have experienced. But unlike Forever Love, When I Fly Towards You also has substantial time devoted to school life such as drama performance, exams, competitions, semester breaks, and friendship. So, it has a pretty well-rounded view of school life. In other words, it has a very young feel to it given the setting.

Therefore, this would be wonderful if you are into high school romances and youth dramas. Personally, I find it boring because I’m simply too old for this kind of story. Yes, it is nostalgic and we were all young once. It is relatable but that’s about it for me. It doesn’t make me crave for more. The drama doesn’t have the intensity of Lighter And Princess nor the emotional depth of Hidden Love for a youth romance. But it is a light, fluffy, and very positive story.

Simple & Warm

When I Fly Towards You has a very simple plot with a slice-of-life kind of storytelling. The light and fluffy feel is already apparent at the start with a cute female lead. So, it is a breezy watch for the most part. Some scenes will amuse you while others will make you cringe from second hand embarrassment as the female lead goes about trying to pursue the guy. It is a kind of drama that you can just relax and watch without having to worry about it being too angsty. There are some emotional scenes but they are not that type that will weigh you down heavily like Go Ahead.

The female protagonist has a very warm and sunshine-like personality. She is cheerful and cute which should endear her to many. The only problem for me though is that cuteness carries on all the way to the end. You would expect her to grow and display greater maturity as she leaves school, enters university and subsequently, the workforce. But character growth is really not very apparent in this drama or perhaps, it is not meant to be part of the plot. Whatever it is, the cuteness gets stale to me towards the end. It is fun to watch when she is still a schoolgirl but tiring when she is a grown woman.

Positive Romance

One of the things that I do like about When I Fly Towards You is the positive feel to the romance. Toxicity is kept to a bare minimum here. So, no prolong and toxic love triangles with lots of jealousies and misunderstandings. The lovers trust each other and know clearly they love one another. They have a very supportive relationship and wise enough to avoid other admirers before it becomes an issue between them.

In short, it is a romance without a lot of drama. The progress may have one or two bumps along the way but just like Hi Venus, it is nothing overly dramatic. So, if you are looking for more happenings, this isn’t it. In fact, the couple doesn’t get together until very late in the drama as there is no way high school dating will pass Chinese censorship. Thus, the relationship is kind of ambiguous until the last few episodes whereby the protagonists are not lovers but “special” friends.

Nevertheless, it is a very healthy relationship between the two students and it should be every schoolgirl’s dream to have such a boy in their school life. I guess this is probably one of the reasons why this drama resonates so much with the younger crowd.

Acting & Chemistry

Kudos to Zhang Miao Yi for a job well done in her portrayal of Zai Zai. It is not easy to play a cute schoolgirl because it can end up backfiring at times. Cute can become annoying and irritating fast. But Zhang Miao Yi is able to grasp what is required of the character and act it out accordingly. So, she is cute and sweet to me in the drama as how Zai Zai should be.

Zhou Yi Ran was also in Falling Into Your Smile but he did not leave a big impression on me then. In When I Fly Towards You, he plays an unsmiling and unhappy teenager and I think he managed to immerse himself completely into the role. Some actors are not that convincing portraying high school students but Zhou Yi Ran is able to do that naturally. He gives the character depth with that brooding look that immediately makes you feel for him.

The two leads are great as a couple with their amazing chemistry. It is not the passionate kind of chemistry but one that is laced with sweetness and teenage innocence which fits the story well.

My Verdict – Great For The Young

When I Fly Towards You should be engaging for the young or young at heart. It is certainly one of the better high school romance dramas with likable characters and a very positive romance as well as friendship. Basically, it is a relatable drama that everyone who has gone through high school should be able to feel a sense of nostalgia and familiarity. And if you like a cute female lead, that would be the icing on the cake.

It is a very simple story that just depicts a bunch of students going through their daily school life. The girl falls in love with the boy at first sight and the fun begins with her attempts to get close to him. There are no complicated considerations that tend to plague adult romances like Fireworks Of My Heart and Meet Yourself. So, if you like mature romances with their complexities, this would not be your cup of tea with its simplicity. That is why I’m not too sure if this would resonate with the older viewers as much as the younger ones. If you have left school many years back and have seen a bit more of life, this would seem a little too perfect and perhaps, boring.

Nevertheless, a drama with a youthful feel doesn’t mean it is bad. It is just that it will appeal more to a certain age group. For this When I Fly Towards You review, I think a fair score would be 7.5/10. It doesn’t have enough emotional depth to make me give it any higher and everyone remains largely unchanged by the end of it except for the male lead who just becomes happier because of the female lead. The focus is mainly on the common happenings of student life and first love feels that the lack of character growth bugs me for a youth drama. But it should still be enjoyable for those who prefer the simplicity and innocence of it all.