SHOCK AND SURPRISE! This one was an unexpected find that delivered everything I wanted and more. It had a solid storyline that had two timelines sophisticatedly interwoven with each other and that intersected at perfect moments. The mini climaxes spaced throughout the drama were tense, suspenseful and full of thrill. I felt invested in the characters and their vendettas and dreams. The overall story arched well intermixing sci-fi elements, space and time dimensions, tad bit of horror and major dark/evil vibes. But it also had the clever humour between characters, a really motivational and inspiring message of never giving up on one’s dreams and friendship that perseveres through the tests. I came in not expecting much, only being a big fan of e-sports dramas, and was pleasantly surprised with this hidden gem. Worth the watch, 36 episodes will fly by!

STORY
I will flag I am not a sci-fi fan, but this drama had the perfect dose of it. It was founded on the sci-fi element of being able to communicate across time. But beside that, it told two distinct (yet very cleverly interlinked) stories, following the lives of two e-sport gamers Xiao Feng in 2009 and Lu Xiao Bei in 2019. I loved seeing the two get to know each other initially from disbelief to genuine friendship and camaraderie, by the end they had such a precious and trusting friendship I loved seeing that progress through the storyline. The two stories though set in different time periods with different challenges, they both floated messages of never giving up in the face of hardship and failure. I loved seeing them pursue their dreams regardless of the never ending spew of obstacles e.g. age, money, pressures from family, disability.

The story was tightly crafted. The mystery was woven through and wasn’t fully revealed until the final moments though hinted at continuously throughout the story. The romances were a nice side dish and rounded up the character development and interaction. And I loved the range of the supporting character cast. Surrounding each protagonist, we had a bunch of lovable distinct side characters who accompanied the protagonist through thick and thin.

I loved being immersed into the gaming world of Cross Fire. I would have love more explanation on the game rules though, and how exactly the point system works. That was never fully explained so I was left unsure during the competitions on who was winning/how many points they needed to win. The live role play of the game worked really well and felt realistic. Loved the costumes and effects and general cinematography of the gaming world.

Overall, very well crafted storyline that delivered on what was promised. Contained elements of everything you want in a good drama, with nothing too overly cliché or predictable. I feel like a lot of thought was given to the storyline and how they wanted the two characters to intersect and at what moments.

ACTING/CAST
Both new actors for me, I had never seen them in anything before. But I liked the casting and thought they did really well in their roles. Lu Han really sold the role for me and I thought really encapsulated the character of Xiao Feng, a determined and headstrong yet kind and supportive leader. He had very strong morals and that reflected throughout the whole drama in his actions and speech. The only thing I would say is the whole time I was begging him to get a hair cut hahah, you'll know what I mean when you see him. I felt Leo Wu was still fleshing out his character and lacked the emotional side that I was craving, but he did the humour and banter very well and I liked seeing his gaming face.

Our whole supporting character cast was amazing and did their job. Love interests were different, yet displayed similar characteristics. Our Big Bad did really well and gave off amazing dark and evil vibes, that I loved seeing how they progressed to that stage.

Music was subpar, fit the moments, but nothing too special. Pure heart of Chasing Dream by Gala Band was a great song, slightly alternative, but really helped build up important moments and just worked in that weird way.

Definitely worth rewatching again from beginning to end. I think I would skip the darker scenes, they did get a bit intense at times.

Cross Fire definitely hit harder than I thought it would and left an impression I was not expecting to find in this drama. I purely picked it up because I am fascinated/obsessed with e-sports dramas and have literally watched every e-sport Chinese drama there is. The way the story was crafted and the two timelines working so well together makes the drama's selling point. Majorly recommend if you're looking for something new and fresh. This definitely strayed away from your typical Chinese drama. Though be warned, it does get dark and they do deal with some serious topics and themes, but of course it's interlayered with light-hearted and really laugh out loud moments. Keen to hear your thoughts as always!! xx