A Familiar Stranger review

Shen Qin, the Prime Minister’s daughter, is about to marry General Xiao Han Sheng, but she wants to be with her true love, Prince Ning. Ning, on the other hand, is more than happy to bed her on the side and wants to use her to spy on the general.

To escape this fate, Shen Qin swaps faces with Shi Qi, a lowly painter. When she wakes up, Shi Qi discovers that she not only has to marry the general but becomes entangled in Shen Qin’s and Prince Ning’s schemes.

The powerful punch of mini-dramas

I avoided short dramas like these for the longest time because I thought they would be badly made and just wouldn’t be satisfying enough.

Eighteen episodes? Ten minutes per episode? Really? What can you absorb in a mere ten minutes? Turns out: more than you think!

However, after watching my first short web drama, What’s Wrong with My Princess?, which I really enjoyed, I became a short drama addict

This could be an unpopular opinion, but while the actors of these mini-dramas are unknown most of the time, their acting is often way better than the idols in blockbuster Chinese dramas.

I am glad these dramas exist because they could help some of these talented actors get noticed. It’s a sad thing that a lot of actors in China don’t get that chance because they don’t happen to have the right looks or fan base and most are forced to second lead roles just to make way for less talented actors.

Also, mini-dramas tend to be “braver” so we get edgier storylines.

If you’re thinking about trying Chinese Dramas but feel like 40-episode monoliths are just too much commitment, starting with mini-dramas like A Familiar Stranger is a great way to do this

Thoughts about the drama

What drew me to A Familiar Stranger was the premise, and the chatter around it being excellent even if it’s a short drama.

Once I started it, I was really impressed with the production quality and how well the two main actresses could play each other so convincingly.

But what shocked me was how sensual it was, especially since I’m used to (sigh) cold fish kisses in Chinese and Korean dramas. No, they actually showed bare legs and bed romps in this one! (Though not to the level of what you see in Game of Thrones, thank God.)

Apparently, some folks theorise that shorts like these can get away from the Chinese censors because they are too small and insignificant, which makes me a tad sad because it shows how much potential is currently being capped by the draconian Chinese censors.

I think the short format forces the writers to be more disciplined and the producers to be more creative with their filming. (As a writer of serial fiction on Substack, there’s a lot to learn from these short 10-minute-per-episode dramas.)

That said, due to the tight timeline, there were a lot of plot threads that were unexplored.

For example, why would our villainess give up her lofty position as a high-ranking Prime Minister’s daughter to exchange faces with a lowly painter? How could she sashay around the mansion, unimpeded after that? Although there’s some explanation at the end, I thought it was all very convenient, and not a smart move. But maybe it wasn’t supposed to be … love makes a fool of us all.

The romance between the general and Shi Qi is sensual and beautifully done. And the story comes together in a satisfying and beautiful way. Part of the satisfaction comes from having a quick payoff. Instead of slogging through 40 episodes, you can get the whole story in three hours, and with the same highs of episodic serial storytelling every 10 minutes.

Final Rating: 8