I Watched This Twice. That Should Tell You Something. π
I absolutely love You Are My Glory. I watched the whole thing twice, which already says a lot because I have way too many dramas waiting for me to casually rewatch 32 episodes.
This one is just so easy to love.
The romance is sweet without being childish, mature without being boring, and once Yu Tu and Qiao Jingjing finally get together, they actually behave like two adults who like each other.
Imagine that. π
No endless cycle of breaking up, getting back together, misunderstanding something stupid, breaking up again, staring sadly out a window for three episodes, and then reconciling five minutes before the finale.
Instead, we actually get to watch them be a couple.
Apparently that is all I have ever wanted from a romance drama.
The Setup Is Cute Too
Qiao Jingjing is a huge celebrity who also happens to be the spokesperson for a video game.
Small problem:
She is terrible at the game. π
After her questionable gaming skills become a problem, she needs to improve before a public competition. Through the game, she reconnects with Yu Tu, her former high-school crush, who is now an aerospace engineer and happens to be ridiculously good at gaming.
So naturally, Yu Tu becomes her teacher.
And naturally, spending all that time together becomes something else.
I also like that Yu Tu has an actual life outside of being the male lead. He is struggling with whether to stay in aerospace or choose a more financially rewarding career, and his insecurity about what he thinks he can offer Jingjing becomes a real part of the story.
He is not just Handsome Man #487 whose occupation exists because the script needed him to wear a suit.
Although...
It is Yang Yang.
So the handsome part is doing considerable work here. π
Yu Tu + Qiao Jingjing β€οΈ
This is easily my favorite part of the drama.
They have such a healthy relationship.
Yu Tu is quiet, rational, and reserved, while Jingjing is playful, confident, and much more expressive. Their personalities are different without the drama trying to convince us that completely incompatible people are somehow romantic.
They tease each other.
They flirt.
They talk.
They support each other's careers.
They're proud of each other.
And once Yu Tu decides that he wants Jingjing, this man is DONE.
Completely gone.
There is angst before they officially become a couple. Jingjing liked him back in school, and when their feelings resurface as adults, Yu Tu's own insecurity gets in the way. But once they finally become a couple, the drama does not start manufacturing breakup after breakup just to keep them miserable.
That distinction matters to me.
Give me the emotional drama before the relationship. Then let me enjoy my couple in peace. π
AND THERE IS ACTUAL ROMANCE
One reason I love You Are My Glory so much is that the romance does not end when they confess.
That's when the fun starts.
We get kissing, flirting, dates, long-distance visits, sleepovers, domestic scenes, career support, meeting coworkers, marriage discussions, a proposal, a wedding, and married life.
THANK YOU.
I did not watch twenty-something episodes just to receive one dead-fish kiss and a fade-to-black finale.
Yang Yang and Dilraba have really good chemistry. They actually look like two people who want to be around each other.
There is physical affection.
There is flirting.
There are kisses.
There are hugs.
There is domestic couple behavior.
There is payoff.
This drama understands me. π
THE DESERT WI-FI SCENE π
I remembered this scene even when I forgot half the plot, which tells you everything.
Jingjing is filming out in the desert and has terrible internet.
Yu Tu is working nearby, comes to see her, realizes the connection is awful, and immediately starts fixing it. In Episode 26, he sets up equipment to improve the signal at her filming location.
So technically, yes, it is a signal-boosting setup.
But spiritually?
THIS MAN WENT INTO THE DESERT AND BUILT HIS GIRLFRIEND WI-FI.
He basically looked at the situation and said:
My girlfriend cannot get Wi-Fi. This is unacceptable.
Forget flowers.
Forget jewelry.
Forget candlelight dinners.
BUILD ME INFRASTRUCTURE.
That is romance. πππ
And honestly, it is such a perfect Yu Tu gesture because he is not some flashy romantic guy. He is an engineer.
Of course his love language is apparently telecommunications support.
I Love Jingjing Too
I really like that Qiao Jingjing is not written as some helpless celebrity who needs Yu Tu to handle her entire life.
She is successful.
She is confident.
She is funny.
She works hard.
And she genuinely respects Yu Tu's career even though the difference between their incomes and lifestyles is enormous.
Yu Tu worries that he is not enough for her.
Meanwhile Jingjing basically looks at this brilliant aerospace engineer and goes:
Are you stupid? I want YOU.
And I love that.
Neither person's career is treated as more important than the other's. Jingjing does not have to become smaller so Yu Tu can feel like a man, and Yu Tu does not have to become rich enough to "deserve" Jingjing.
They learn how to fit their very different lives together.
That is one of the reasons their relationship feels so mature.
The Long-Distance Part Doesn't Annoy Me
They do spend time apart because Jingjing is filming and Yu Tu has aerospace work.
Normally when a drama says long-distance relationship, I start preparing myself for nonsense.
Not here.
They miss each other.
They make time for each other.
They visit each other.
They continue being affectionate.
Nobody suddenly decides:
"I love you so much that obviously the only logical solution is for me to disappear without telling you."
Bless them. π
And We Get MARRIED LIFE
Another thing this drama does right is that it does not wait until the last sixty seconds to give us a happy ending.
Their relationship progresses.
Their careers progress.
They talk about marriage.
We get the proposal.
We get the wedding.
And then the story keeps going.
This is what I mean when I say I want romantic payoff.
Do not just tell me they will be happy.
SHOW ME THE HAPPY.
