Please note, this is not a sequel to the Devil Beside You (惡魔在身邊).
Plot
Tong Jia Di’s father died leaving the family overburdened with debt. As a result Jia Di spends most of her waking hours thinking of ways to earn extra money and believing she has no time for dreams or for love. Her best friend Xiao Nan comes up with a plan to spark Jia Di’s love life—Jia Di will “exchange” services for charity. Fortunately for Jia Di, the handsome Huo Yan (Guy #10) gets the “Exchange Love” card, earning the chance to sweep Jia Di off her feet. The catch? Huo Da, his devilish younger brother gets the “Master/Servant” card—entitling him to one full week with Jia Di as his personal servant.
Main Characters
- Tong Jia Di (童嘉蒂) is the female lead. She’s extremely frugal and obsessed with making money. She has lot of nicknames that emphasize her hardworking and penny pinching nature. Played by Rainie Yang (楊丞琳).
- Huo Da (霍達) is the male lead. His nickname is “devil boy,” because of his rude outbursts, and pranks. He’s the second heir to the Huo Co. Empire, but he’s the unmotivated prodigal son. He enjoys the dangerous sport of motorcycle racing, but an injury keeps him from being able to race. Played by Mike He (賀軍翔).
- Huo Yan (霍彥) is the supporting male. He is perfect, filial, and hard-working. He’s the oldest heir to the Huo Co. and the CEO (General Manager). He plays his role obediently and perfectly. He and Huo Da are half brothers and don’t get along. Jia Di calls him Guy #10. Played by Kingone Wang (王傳一).
Favorite Minor Characters
- I loved the spunky personality of Jiang Xiao Nan (江小南). She’s incredibly impulsive, but a good friend: She’s understanding (pushes Jia Di to take care of her emotional needs), really straightforward (spares no feelings), and intimidating and loyal (willing to fight to protect her friend). Played by Michelle Chen (陳妍希).
- Yang Yan Shu (楊妍書) was probably the first “evil” minor character that I’ve ever (kind of) felt sorry for. Rotten, selfish, flaky, ambitious, and judgmental, but, of course that’s just because she’s misunderstood . Played by Judy Fukumoto (福本幸子).
Music (OST)
- Theme Songs: 我要的世界 (The World that I Want) – 王傳一 (Kingone Wang), 缺氧 (Breathless) – 楊丞琳 (Rainie Yang)
Opening Theme: 我要的世界
Closing Theme: 缺氧
- Other Featured Songs: 完美比例 (Perfect Ratio) – 楊丞琳 (Rainie Yang), Welcome to My Heart – 王傳一 (Kingone Wang), 換換愛 (Exchange Love) – 王傳一 (Kingone Wang)
完美比例
- Overall: Kingone does most of the songs for the OST. Not bad! A lot of these songs became popular, and they’re okay for the drama. (Some of the instrumental filler music reminded me of an American soap opera though.)
Entertainment Review
It’s hard not to compare this drama to “Devil Beside You” (惡魔在身邊), especially because all 3 main characters took on the exact same persona they had in their first drama. It felt like déjà vu. It’s not until half-way through that you can tell this drama has a unique (and potentially) interesting story line. The chemistry was less natural and more forced. The acting was comparatively worse.
On it’s own (not compared), there was a lot of potential, and there were some really cute scenes. But the ending was really confusing (a number of blogs even explain it incorrectly). In short, I probably wouldn’t watch it again.
Language
Level: Intermediate to Upper Intermediate
Topics: business, shopping, money (and saving), health
Note: There are some useful phrases in Taiwanese and a few interesting colloquial expressions and nicknames. Because the title is 換換愛 (which literally means: Exchange Exchange Love) the script makes a point to bring up the idea of exchanging/returning things. So, you’ll learn a lot of different contexts in which you can use the word return/exchange (換).