This is 100% my beloved drama of 2021! I am currently watching it for the second time! And so will you once you lay your eyes on this gem. I cannot express how much I love this plot, characters, and ost! This drama is so good I want them all to do another drama together!
Sweet Teeth is a romantic modern-day drama revolving around a group of friends in their mid 20’s. They all lead very different lives but are just like you and me. They went to college, made their careers, and are now trying to figure out their lives when love comes around unexpectedly. I love how mundane yet exciting this drama is with their friend group and all the different type of love that is found. It’s very versatile and everyone will relate to at least one relationship. What I love most about this drama is their inner monologue and ending thoughts in the drama. I found myself relating to what was said and maybe that is because I am also in my mid 20’s and experiencing this myself or already experienced it.
The story begins with Zeng Li (Wu Xuan Yi) a 26-year-old woman who is a librarian and owns a cute coffee shop with her two best friends. Wu Ying (Baby Zhang) is a doctor and Ma Yiyi (Wan Zi Lin) is an influencer. They met during college and became best friends who are always there for each other yet tease each other like siblings. Each one struggles internally with problems as they face life and love. And sometimes the pressure of society and oneself becomes an obstacle but ultimately they learn to live life and enjoy it as they realize life is not that serious and listening to ourselves is just as important as societal standards and norms.
Side note: I also got braces in my early 20s and it was rough for me. I felt insecure and embarrassed to have braces in college. I had Invisalign then my Dr. switched me to clear braces.
What do I love about this drama?
Zeng Li, I love her character so much. She represents me in a lot of ways. She is a normal girl who chose an average career and is very into normal things that others might find boring. She lives a very simple yet fun life. And a reason for her wanting such a stable life in my opinion is her upbringing and her family. Looking a Zeng li we would not expect her story to unfold the way it did. She is 26 years old and has never been in a relationship although her mom and friends set her up on blind dates. Again, I believe that her lack of experience in love comes from her seeing “love” as a young girl. So, for me, Zeng li is a very special character that is very relatable to an extent. And I love how naïve she is when it comes to her realization of love and being in a relationship. As we can see she tries and is very loving herself.
Three different types of love in the drama:
I love the three different types of love we see in this drama and how each girl chooses to love. Zeng li is an inexperienced lover who finds love at an older age when she is already stable. We can see her want to be loved and how she loves. It’s all very cute yet fitting to her age and partner. Wu Ying faced the internal hardship and pressure of loving a younger man. They are both in their 20s yet it is hard for some of her friends and family to accept such a young man who’s still in college. Wu Ying, is not very conventionally sweet and girly but does control who’s in her life and wants a very compatible love regardless of age. Ma Yiyi is a hopeless romantic but becomes very controlling and obsessed with love. However, when she finally receives a lover who loves her as much as she does, she finds it is not the type of love she wants if it is not meant to be truly hers. Essentially, they all find love at very unexpected times with very unexpected partners.
The male love interest:
Let’s start with our leading man Ai Jing Chu (Bi Wen Jun) a 28-year-old dentist. He is quiet and excels at his work. He sticks to his schedule and lives life very obliviously. Once he meets Zeng li, things start to change in his life. He notices her while trying to distract her from pain and begins to tell the story of a romance yet worries he bored her to death. But upon looking at her she reassures him she loves the story. At that moment, you can tell there is a shift in his eyes. And there begins a sweet new story of their own! I loved how this is a defining moment as it’s normal and natural yet very obvious. He goes from a cold-faced man to a warm person who respects Zeng li and is good about reading her actions. However, sometimes his self-doubt poses problems that he creates in a fit of confusion.
Secondly comes our youngest beau, Liu Yu-Cheng (Zhai Xiao Wen) a 21-year-old freshman in university who is studying traditional Chinese medicine. He is from Malaysia and very very clingy yet respectful. He shoots his shot and I love how brave he is when it comes to love. He has a clear idea of what he wants and never gives up. Although he is shut down quickly he only backed down when ah, I cannot reveal this part! Got you! Anyways he is very caring for his age and never shames anyone for what or who they like. Great character in my opinion.
Lastly, my personal favorite older brother in all dramas Deng Hao Ran (Terry Liu) is a 28-year-old man who is the brother of Zeng li through her mom’s second marriage. And although her mom divorced her dad, Zeng li cares greatly for her brother and Dad who no longer hold legal ties but emotional love. He treats Zeng li and her friends amazingly by taking them out, buying them dinner, and buying gifts for them. He is a casanova. He has different girlfriends all the time and is a terrible boyfriend although he is a great brother and shoulder for Ma Yiyi. And lines get blurred half the time. But it cannot be argued that he will drop everything to help out Yiyi. And knows how to handle her. When all the other guys seem to ignore her and dump her for said behavior.
The girls:
Okay, Zeng li is a complex character. She reveals a lot about herself in the middle of the series which is very unexpected. We see a completely new side of Zeng li. We see her true thoughts, and emotions regarding her life and family. Her fear and needs and struggles. However, it is apparent why Zeng li might feel this way. First, I want to discuss her friendship with Yiyi and Wu Ying. She is very playful with them and always is by their side when they are down. And they in return are her wing woman and shoulder to cry on. I admire their friendship a lot and for me displays a true friendship. She is a great friend to everyone including Dr. Ai. And that is where we start to see a shift in her personality. She becomes very cautious with her looks yet free when she is around him. You can tell she begins to feel something for him the more he allows her to be herself. And even when she is confused she is highly sensitive to his feeling which I have not seen in a drama before. She treats Dr. Ai very well after their misunderstanding is clear. I just really love what they have in terms of love and relationship.
Wu Ying, I love her yet I am frustrated with her. It is highly focused that she is a doctor and a video game addict. She receives a lot of external pressure from her parents and colleagues. They try to set her up with a man her age. She on the other hand is very uninterested. And that is apparent because she sneaks dates with her much younger beau. And it becomes confusing if she is interested or not because of her lack of affection and emotions. But it is soon revealed, that she is simply that way. She’s a little tomboyish and laidback. She seems to not care what people think and then suddenly changes that stance when her emotions and mind start to change. I think the more she likes her beau, the more scared and worried she becomes. She starts to think of the future and suddenly it becomes too much. I think when she almost loses what she had she begins to change and go after it without worrying about the future. You go, girl!
Oh my gosh, Ma Yiyi where do we begin with her? She is a problematic character in my eyes. She claims she is in love but does not seem to know what it means. She has a very deluded and childish view of what love is and what it looks like. It is hard to read her because there is not much background on her upbringing. We can conclude that she loves to be in the spotlight and has a need to be loved and love someone. I just think the way she loves is too much and would need to find someone who loves as crazy as she does. But in reality, it is too toxic and I cannot be here for it. Sorry! But, I am happy when she realizes the type of love she wants and is willing to have. I love that change in her, and I am glad she chose the right love interest in the end. I think they make up for each other’s shortcomings and understand each other well enough to be together for the long run. And I think it was just meant to be. A continued love. A sweet one too. But you know, she is one hell of a good friend and I love her for that.
Zeng Li’s background and past love:
“Yu Yi, thank you for lighting up the world for me during my darkest moments in life” I love this quote and think it sums up Zeng li’s pain and her growth from that period in her life. I found this to be a sweet scene. She bids farewell to her first love. Zeng li went through some brutal changes in her life. She grew up in a toxic environment where she witnessed a lot of mistrust, lack of communication, and violent outbursts. This made her family life very public and her living situation worse. When it recapped her past, Zeng li looked sad and lost. Out of place and needed stability. That became a trend in her upbringing since her mom remarried three times. I don’t think her mother was a bad person but maybe not the best fit to be a mother at that time. She put herself first and then Zeng li. However, it appears they have a solid relationship and Zeng li loves her mother very much. I am happy that she found happiness and a place of comfort during that hard time. And she also learned to let go and love the person who is there for her now. She was confused for a bit but I think it was just her memories of safety and love.
Dr. Ai and his love dilemma:
Dr. Ai, I am going to cry! The way he gave up on Zeng li after reading the book and seeing her interactions with her first love is heartbreaking. He never made it a choice to be first. He always accepted what he saw and never tried to change anything. He truly loves her even though he does not know how to show it. He would rather her be happy even when he is in pain. I cannot with his pure love. I think a lot of that came from his lack of confidence in love. He may have felt he was not good enough or did not trust his ability to make her happy. He was not willing to fight for his love if he did not think Zeng li has any feelings for him. That scene broke my heart when Zeng li decided to visit him at his office after their trip. Which months had passed by at that point, he completely shut himself off from her. It was a very interesting yet different take from what I have seen in C-dramas. I personally thought it reflected his personality of being gentle and reserved yet sad.
Abortion is discussed in the drama:
I do not want to name the expecting couple so I will mention it vaguely. That was a wild ride! Okay, I didn’t expect to see that in a C-drama however, considering its target audience is younger viewers perhaps it aligns more with the current time, or perhaps it’s trying to normalize the decisions women make as their own? I am not sure but it’s a controversial topic and I did not expect it to pass censorship. Maybe I am too outdated in this topic regarding Chinese youth and young adults. I love how the women stood behind each other when the decision was made. However, I also understood how that did not seem fair as both of them should have known before any decision was made. Again, I also understand how this is more concerning for women as they have to carry the child and it becomes more complicated with the age dynamics and life cycle they are currently in. I found it interesting that the men sided with each other and opposed their girlfriends. It was a good perspective to see however, I also felt it diminished the idea of women taking control of their own bodies only because, in the end, the decision did fall on the choices the men made. Although it was morally correct for her partner to know before deciding. I am glad it was discussed.
And now with the resolution. I love it. I love how in the end everyone respected each other’s decisions. And out of that respect came love and understanding. It was great. No one forced anyone. It was all love and understanding and deciding to keep supporting and loving each other.
I want to add that it made it clear how important friendship is between the leads. We saw the girls stick with each other and guys with one another. Although there was trust and betrayal and lots of fights it was a good fight to have. It made boundaries clear and some blurred. It was a lot. I found it funny how they mentioned that’s why you don’t make your partners become friends with each other otherwise there are no secrets. And that is so true but also such a healthy dynamic even though it can be complicated since the lines of talking about each other’s partners get blurred by your commitment to either your partner or your friend. I hope that makes sense.
Bed scene:
um, that bed scene was too literal. I found it very interesting that it was omitted for a couple. I did not expect that especially since it is a modern drama. But the scene we did get is very sweet and filled my soul. I did not realize this until my second time watching the drama. That is how good it is or maybe it was my sobbing?
Best OST (original soundtrack):
I love the ost it is everything! It is sweet and romantic. All the songs in this drama played out beautifully and made the scenes shine. Just listening to them now makes me tear up. There are also really happy Osts so it is such a nice balance. And cast members sing some songs so it makes it 100x sweeter.
The happiness and emotions this drama has brought me are unexplainable. It is a universal experience in the aspect that we all find love and it can be unconventional or against the norms and societal standards. Sweet teeth revolve around mundane lives but make the most out of it through their friendships, family, and love. I feel this drama has really connected to me and the various love that has been portrayed has been almost a replica of what I experienced in my early 20s. In real life, we do not always get a happy ending and things do not always work out regardless of much love there is. Societal problems and stigmas can be difficult. There are a lot of taboo topics covered in this drama. I respect they chose to talk about problems and issues we see and have seen in relationships. I am glad this drama is saying to just fall in love and let it be. If it works and no one is hurt why is that love bad? Why does love have to be complicated because of outside sources? Life is short and when you find someone that clicks and that love works…I say go for it. I wish I was this brave when I was younger. I will be 28 this year and I find that I still have a lot to learn professionally and personally. It’s just a very touching and lovely drama that I love a lot. I hope everyone gives this drama a try when you’re feeling like a good romance drama is needed. This drama made me cry so much yet it made me feel so good! I love every second of it! I hope this brings you warmth and comfort as it did for me.
From one drama lover to another take care
xxx Joei
CinemaDeJoei 