We all have read the story of the Princess and the Frog when we were small. Here is another version of the beloved fairy tale with an Asian twist. To me it is a more real and hilarious way of telling this story. Also, at first glance, it has similarities to Cinderella - the traditional rags to riches tale. What makes this drama adorable is the humor and the excellent acting of the main characters. It is believable enough at times to make us hate the "bad guys/gals" for what they do to the "hero/heroine". Without further ado -
" The Prince who turned into a Frog".
Ye Tianyu lives in the small fishing village of Guan Mei, with her step mother and step brother. They are a tight knit family with only one aim - to get rich in life. They own a small provisions store called " Money Come" and Ye Tianyu works as delivery girl and general handyman oops!.. handygirl around Guan Mei. She wants to meet and get married to a rich man so she and her family can leave behind their tough life and have all luxuries. She seems to be a greedy and money grabbing girl at first glance but is also a kind, compassionate and very loyal person. This last trait leads her to 'Senwell' hotel to find and save Tang Shun Ming, the owner of 'Guan Mei Motel' and her step-mom's ex-husband. There she hears about the ruthless GM Shan JunHao of 'Senwell' who is taking over Guan Mei Motel (before the stipulated time for debt return is over ) and takes an instant dislike to him. She also meets Xu Ziqian, the creative director of Senwell who is kind, compassionate and rich. In short, Tianyu's dream prince!
But the old jester Fate has something more interesting in store for all of them. Shan Junhao happens to visit Guan Mei and butts heads with Tianyu. She dislikes his ruthless and blunt manner whereas he loathes her lying money grabbing ways. He returns home to plan for his engagement with childhood love 'Fan YunXi' which leaves their other friend Ziqian, heart-broken. At this juncture, things go haywire. Of course, things can't go smoothly in a drama. After all, it is drama !
An accident leaves JunHao with no memories and at Tianyu's door step. He is named Dang-ou and starts his new life as helper at Money Come. And thus begins their journey down love lane. Fate must be a romantic at heart! sighs! A series of mishaps and sweet courtship follows. But then Fate becomes bored with this storyline and boom! JunHao has another accident and forgets everything again! Tianyu and Guan Mei are wiped clean off his mind.
The rest of the drama deals with how each of them (Tianyu, JunHao, Yunxi and Ziqian) handle what fate brings forth and how love sneaks in and out of their lives. The humor, as in most taiwanese dramas, is a highlight, light and clean. The chemistry between the lead pair will satisfy even the toughest romantic. They made me smile and cry quite a few times. Ming Dao who portrays JunHao does an excellent job. He changes from the ruthless prince into the cute frog effortlessly. My personal thought is that the adorable frog Dang-ou is the real prince and the ruthless prince JunHao is the real frog. And he does a good job with the crying scenes too.
Chen QiaoEn who plays the role of TianYu is very believable and her huge eyes convey her feelings so beautifully. Sam Wang and Joyce Zhao do a decent job as Ziqian and Yunxi respecively. The rest of the crew who play the friendly neighbours of Guan Mei receive special kudos for doing their over the top funny roles so convincingly. The sometimes unbelievably cheesy scenes only add to the fun and feel good effect of the show.
This is essentially a romantic/comedy drama. When you feel down and need a pick me up, especially love-wise, this can be one of your go-tos. The kisses are very sweet and tender. The dates are dreamy and romantic. The hero is handsome (swoons!) and the heroine good (emphasis on inner beauty). On the whole, this is a good drama for beginners in love and simple romantics.
Good place to catch this drama: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjR6T-FRTX0
youtube.com, uploader mingdaoqiaoen4ever
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