Popular C-drama My Sunshine Gets Condensed TV-movie Cut with Another Version of the Cute College Romance
I’m way addicted to the currently airing C-drama My Sunshine based on the Gu Man novel Silent Separation (He Yi Sheng Xiao Mo 何以笙箫默), one of those rare beasts where is the drama is good as the novel. That’s saying a lot even though I have to qualify that both are merely okay as far as storytelling quality, but producing a consistent okay yet satisfying output is no easy feat. Even better is the director acknowledging all the flaws with the story and the adaptation – the drama is too bloated with supporting character stories but sticking with just the OTP of Mo Sheng and Yi Chen would be done in six episode, and the romance is devoid of any real obstacles once the major misunderstanding is overcome early on but the story’s satisfaction is of watching two people who really love each other making it work finally.
Another funny bit is the director double filming the critical college era romance, without which the entire adult romance and reunion would fall flat because no one would give a fug whether those two love idiots get back together. With the cutest sweetest college era romance I’ve watched in ages, the audience is madly rooting for the grown ups to fix their youthful follies. The director initially cast youngsters Wu Qian to play Mo Sheng and Luo Yun Xi as Yi Chen and filmed the entire portion only to nix the idea and had adult leads Wallace Chung and Tang Yan also play their own college counterparts. When it came time to air the drama, the director when went back to the teenage leads cut which turned out fantastic, but now the director has revealed he’s planning to repackage the drama into a 90-minute cut and in that version he’ll use the Wallace-Tang Tang college version. That’s like getting two different versions of the same tasty cake! YUMMY!
I think it’ll be fun to watch the condensed cut and compare which college era version worked better. Youngsters Wu Qian and Luo Yun Xi were absolutely perfect but the audience really needed a major suspension of disbelief that in 7 short years they would grow up into Wallace and Tang Tang, LOL. I loved their adorable chemistry and Wu Qian is basically a young Yang Mi in terms of having the ability to sell the aegyo without ever once coming across as syrupy or fake. Not to say Luo Yun Xi didn’t do a solid job as Yi Chen but he’s required to be mostly facially paralyzed since Yi Chen rarely ever twitches and emotion, in that respect he also delivered spot on.
I have also been enjoying Wallace as adult Yi Chen, less so Tang Tang but mostly because adult Mo Sheng had all her college personality sucked out of her for the early half of the drama. It makes me want to watch them act out their own college era romance and make the two segments transition even more seamlessly. I’m super pleased with the director’s decision to keep milking this cow since there are lots of fans clamoring to watch the already filmed footage of the adult leads in their college romance. Checking out the two version stills above and below, any preferences from other folks also watching My Sunshine?
Wow thats cute im pumpe for this
I am also following the drama daily and I really like it. I read the novel after reading ‘Shan Shan Lai Chi’ right before ‘Boss & Me’ aired back in July last year.
I think this production company is very good at remaking Gu Man’s novels into dramas, reproducing the classic scenes in live action. They also seem to make good casting choices, especially for the male leads (Wallace and Hans).
I was really glad when I found out about the drama adaptation and was surprised it managed to hit the airwaves so quickly.
I like the young actors’ version of the college romance but I am also looking forward to Wallace and Tang Yan’s version the college scenes. Because they played the adult version, there might be more consistency in character if when they play college scenes. I’m glad that the director did not scrap those scenes and decided to make a 90-minute video of it. Can’t wait to watch it!
Tang Tang should just stick with wuxia and ancient dramas. She looks so unhealthily skinny in modern outfit. And seriously not good with silent acting. She’s watchable when she acts cute or crying a la perfect couple. Only WC rocks in whole drama. I hate they made Yi Mei and Ying Hui such obsessed characters but it’s nice to have Xiao Xiao and Xiao Hong.
Yaaaaassssssss, My Sunshine!! <3 BTW, where are people watching this because there are different cuts on different sites.
I love the youngsters version a lot. They are really cute. But maybe the adults can make it work too.
Please tell me where people are watching this with English subs. I’ve been so desperate that I am reading recaps just to see screenshots of Wallace.
Hana and Hye Sung are subbing it on http://koreandramaonair2014.blogspot.com. They are up to ep 9.
This is such good news. Thanks for sharing ockoala.
Thank you so much!!! I am in heaven now.
Thanks for this news, Ms. Koala. I liked the young actors playing the youngsters but would be keen to watch the Wallace & Tang Yan’s cuts too. I have been staying up late every night the past fortnight to watch two episodes at a time – the drama is strangely addictive despite the meandering plot and ever repeating flashbacks. I always wondered how they were going to find enough material from the novel to fill 35 episodes and now I know. 🙂
I actually loved the younger versions of Mosheng & Yichen. I think getting two different and younger actor and actress to play the parts gives it a much more truthful college youth feeling, and I’m glad the director chose to keep the younger versions. I’m rather skeptical about the adults acting way younger than they look, I don’t hunk they can pull off the same youthful feeling. I absolutely adore the young Yichen, and just thinking about WC playing a college student makes me cringe! Hahah… And the young Mosheng is so deliciously bubbly and bright, makes me want to just slap awake the soooo dull and gloomy adult Mosheng for the first half of the drama!!!! I also liked the new addition of Xiao Xiao and Yuan feng, I find them hilarious and entertaining. Their story can totally b a rom-com on its own, bickering their way into love! How adorable 🙂 oh, and I hate how Ying Hui has been turned into a sleazy businessman! He totally does NOT fit the image of a self-made techie billionaire from Silicon Valley, he’s way too banker-looking and beefy…. Most nerdy techies are quite skinny (see Mark Z, Larry Page, Steve Jobs). Haha
I love love the younger actors who play mo sheng and yi chen but i wouldn’t object to watch the version of WC and tang tang. this drama is really nice to watch. not so heavy but i love the feeling it delivers. too bad the eng subs is a little slow for this and although i studied chinese for 2 years i can’t understand what they are saying so i’m waiting for the subs. i’m still on the first episodes but loving it.
I found it recapped in English if you want to read ahead~
yeap i know but i still prefer to watch the episodes subbed 🙂 that’s ok though, i still have shan shan last episodes to finish and k-dramas to pass the time till the subs are up so i don’t have a problem to wait.
Ms Koala,
Is there any news when we will see the 90min boardcast of the Wallance and Tang Yan version?
Oh, I LOVE this story and am also currently watching. There’s a darling Chinese fangirl site that recaps the episodes. Thanks so mch for posting about this!
Is this show being subbed anywhere? I want to try watching it but I can’t find it online with english subs.
I CANT WAIT FOR THE 90MINS CUT! Wallace and Tang tang are going to nail it! I can see so much chemistry happening between them in the previews and photos.
When I saw that the young actors flashback were used, part of me just died. Hated all the flashback scenes with the young actors! It’s not their acting, it’s just that they seems to be in their own drama, acting out another story. It’s like watching 2 dramas!! The overuse of flashbacks killed the dramas momentum, I’ve been watching the same flashback for like 3 times and every time the screen signals a flashback, I’ll be like “OMG NOT AGAIN!”.
I’ll gladly watch a drama with the young actors in it, but not have them fitted into “My Sunshine” to add on to screen time and as a stepping stone to stardom. And honestly, the young Yi Chen don’t look stone face, he look…with that straight haircut and shirt buttoned up…like he’s from the jap occupation era, ready to sign up for army anything to protect his nation…bleh…
Drama god! Please give me back my complete “My Sunshine”!!
I think I enjoy the college romance a lot more in My Sunshine than the adult plotline… Wu Qian is so adorbs and likable, and the dude is cute too 😀
I personally find the younger actors far more engaging and interesting to watch, especially the actress who plays Mo Sheng, but it’d be interesting to see how different the feel of the college romance would turn out with different actors.
I agreed with you too! I wondered why the director choose the new actor and actress at first but their chemistry convinced me. They were so cute together. I can’t wait for Wallace x Tang Yan cut because they are so adorable as a married couple now.
There’s an official bts uploaded with Wallace’s and Yang Yan’s college version here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmXEdhmeK3k
I love this drama.
Sorry for the late comments. I just saw the series over the weekend and did a marathon. First off, I watch the series because of Wallace Chung. While I like his portrayal of YiChen, I would agree with your comments about Tang Yan’s portrayal of Mo Sheng…. I didn’t like it in comparison to the younger version…
That being said, I am so into Wu Qian and Luo Yunxi’s chemistry. Their portrayal was so spot on for me that I repeated Eps . 3-5 like 4 times in a span of 2 days… Now, I’m researching their filmography to view their other works… I hope that they get to work together again where they are the main lead…. Think that their chemistry will still be there
I love my Sunshine but I didn’t like the way protray after she came back,he lead everyone to believe she dumped him when he was the one that I wish I had never met you and he broke her heart, she came to see him to ask was eyimem his real sister and he drop that boomshell on her