Drama review: 喜歡 · 一個人 (Pleasantly Surprised)

I really like this drama. Enough said. This satistfied my craving towards taiwanese drama after my shipping last year Puff Guo-Aaron Yan in Just You. At first, the tv station wanted to reunite Puff and Aaron pairing again in another drama called Fall In Love With Me but Puff turned down the role because she was busy filming for We Got Married Global Edition with Heechul and later it was taken by her groupmate, Tia Li. I didnt follow that drama; pretty much because Tia Li cant act (in my opinion). Then Puff confirmed for this drama with Liu Yi Hao as the male lead. This is a 22-episode drama; previously it was known as Love Myself or You. The title itself will be literally translated as "Like To Be Alone". It cant be considered as romcom because the female lead herself has a bad personality and she portrayed a strong woman but still has a little comedy in it. Puff acts as Du Kai Qi, a second chef, a manga lover who likes being alone. It was because of her dark past where his father was an alcoholic and even borrowed money from her friends without her acknowledge. She prefers to be alone; she feels that through that way, she doesnt need to think and care about other's feeling. Liu Yi Hao is Fu Zi Jie, called as A Jie, a top chef who came back from France but prefers to be anonymous due to his promise to his older brother in the past. He has a bright personality; he always helps and takes care of others. This time his parents beg him to stay for a while in Taiwan to work at their family restaurant because A Jie has been living abroad since high school. At the same time the restaurant, Figaro Cuisine, is also the place where Kai Qi works. Both Kai Qi and A Jie are childhood friends but she didnt recognise him and her current personality confuses him because he knows in the past she was a cheerful and kind person. A Jie then agrees to work at the restaurant as a new assistant; at the same time he wants to know why she has changed. The story goes on with the development of their feelings towards each other. Usually I like a drama because of good storyline and casts but this time, I just like everything about it. Literally everything. Not only the leads are great, but also the team in the kitchen is synchronised really well. Never have I seen in a drama where the second lead is very kind and even sacrifice his own love. Puff has always been one of my favorite taiwanese actress and this time she also didnt disappoint me. She changed her style from bubbly and cheerful personality in Just You to a dark and introvert one in Pleasantly Surprised. I was quite surprised at first because I thought she would be portraying a similar character again but turned out I was wrong. Her pairing with Liu Yi Hao exceeds my expectation, even now I like this pairing more than Puff-Aaron. Every time I see Liu Yi Hao, he has that charisma that can make people feel happy and calm at the same time. Ahead from that, actually I dont like his style in this drama where most of the time he wears anything floral from shirts, pants, and even ties; luckily he can pull it off. I cant imagine if there is another actor using the same style it was just a big NO. Besides I had my eyes on Jolin Chien as Cheng Hao Wei, the second male lead. At first he was annoying but then he turned to be the sweetest guy friend ever. I felt sad for him because he sacrificed his own feeling and pretended to be okay with it. The team in the kitchen is also great. Usually a drama will just focus on main leads and second leads; this one is an exception. The only thing I hate about this drama is that it was a bit draggy (yes, only a bit) in the middle but I can still tolerate it because of the sweetness and creativity. If you cant bear sweet things or cute romance, this is probably not your cup of tea. If you are, you must watch this!

Rate: 8.5/10

Synopsis:
Du Kai Qi is an aspiring young chef, her only interests are cooking and reading manga comics. She doesn't have many friends and don't want anymore. After enjoying her most delicious full course meal prepared by a chef named Louis, she snaps a picture of his signature from the plate and request to meet him. However a family emergency forces her to leave before meeting Louis. She looks to Louis's signature as strength and inspiration for her upcoming sous chef promotion test. On the day of her test the new restaurant intern Ah Jie, who has to decide the winner, chooses Kai Qi's rival dish over hers. Losing out on her promotion, Kai Qi makes instant enemies with Ah Jie. What she doesn't know is Ah Jie is her boss's son, her new next door neighbor, the chef Louis that she admires so much and her long lost childhood friend Fu Zi Jie who she had a close bond with.

full team!

Cheng Hao Wei - Cheng Le Xuan - Du Kai Qi - Fu Zi Jie

15-minute long preview: