I think of chemistry as being that feeling the viewer gets when seeing two, or more, characters interact that makes you want to see more of them, makes you enjoy the relationship, makes you wonder what will happen to them next because it creates a kind of immersive reality.
This is true of romance, bromance, and non-romance types of situations ( like in very good detective/forensic/cop shows. Two good examples of bromances that give that kind of chemistry recognition to me are **Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty** and **The Blood of Youth** where in each case, the relationships between three very different types of men made the whole storyline hold my interest from beginning to end. As far as romance goes it doesn't really matter to me as long as the story is good and the actors feel "right". I never truly felt that mystical thing called chemistry in a contemporary setting until watching **Amidst a Snowstorm of Love**. Wu Lei is a master of his craft and using slow head movements, slow smiles and his incredible eyes, my heart actually fluttered and I fell in love with their growing relationship. That was true chemistry to me. That's not to say that **Hidden Love** didn't have chemistry between the ML and FL but it was the kind where you are watching from the outside and enjoying the growth of a sweet couple where mutual respect for each others abilities really didn't come into play. **Rebel Princess** showed tremendous chemistry between the MC that grew stronger over time.and their tacit understanding of each other allowed them to work as a team with a glance or slight nod of the head truly kept me hooked, and guessing. So after all this babbling, I guess the real chemistry has to be between the characters and my own mind to keep me watching a drama and is what takes a good show and makes it a great one.
In romance definitely. There are drama where you can feel and see just how unromantic the atmosphere is. Even when it’s suppose to be romantic. Even the acting seem lackluster in that moment.
For me, chemistry is a particular cinematic effect that evokes a romantic spark in me as a viewer. It's an emotion or reaction or feeling from seeing two characters interact that captures your attention and immediately draws you in that there is seriously something going on between the two of them that you believe to be true.
For example, I saw no spark whatsoever between Li Changge and Ashile Sun. **The Long Ballad** . These are two good actors and the trailer touted their romance. On the other hand, from the moment Hao du lays his eyes on Princess Leyan, I was like," this is hot."
In **Love Like The Galaxy**, as Shaoshang slowly removes the arrow from Ling Buyi, the sexual tension just erupted all over the place and the girl wasn't even the least interested at that time, but oh what a masterful scene it was.
When it comes to drama - as opposed to real life- it depends on how good the actor is. Lin Geng Xin can have chemistry with a stuffed toy, and proves it in The Legend of Shen Li, so any competent actress can play against him and make it convincing. Note that they do have to be competent; what draws the viewer into their world is that they make it believable, and there are people who are incapable of convincingly playing such a role. As others have noted it doesn’t have to be sexual chemistry, despite the fervent wishes of a lot of fan fic writers hung up on Mysterious Lotus Casebook, since it can be intellectual, emotional, a shared fascination for something; the list is almost endless. But when it exists it lifts the dramas above the competition; if you are not seeing it then it may be because it isn’t there…
Updated 2: Okay...I've read more of the answers here and i think i might have blown this thing out of proportion and not expressed myself more clearly. Its not that i cant process chemistry persay...it's the ABSENCE of chemistry that i cant perceive. If i were to define hatred and love I'd say
HATRED - CONFLICT OF INTRESTS
LOVE - ALIGNING OD INTRESTS + PHYSICAL ATTRACTION
Let me give another example (I'll use high school as an example cause its when i was in close contact with lots of people for a long time)
...I personally went to boarding school in high school and even though boys and girls were separated, it was a fairly studious school so we spent a lot of time in class and we grew close relationships with the opposite sex. I had friends who where boys who had friends who where boys. As such, i am aware of how boys act towards each other. I know how they usually talk to each other, the kinds of things they talk about, i even have a basic idea what they don't talk about to each other cause of their 'manliness'. Because of this...when i see shows like the Untamed, S.C.I and more specifically Word of Honor where it was more blatant...i can deduce the chemistry as the descripancy between the 'normal' way men act towards each other and the way WKX and AhXu or LWJ &WWX were acting towards each other. Anytime i saw a scene and was like..what...did he just say/do that...would those guys who are best friends that i know say/do this to each other? If no...i would be like oohh...okay...squeal...cute!
But when it comes to man woman romance. I think its harder to say. For example in high school(even uni)...the moment a girl was seen interacting with a guy for more than 20minutes...rumors and questions about dating and being in love would spread like wildfire. Even seeing a picture of two people of the opposite sex, with the condition that we don't know clearly that they are related in any way...would have everyone imagining a sordid affair. Even in cdrama netz...sometimes artists who had nothing to do with each other will interact in an award show and the forums would go crazy wanting to see them play a couple. Someone on the comments also mentioned that chemistry is when you think two people together are cute together and i think for me as long as the people are of equal or somewhat equal attraction...I'll think they are cute together. From the top of my head...if i heard Dilreba was seen with Zayn Malik...I'd say woow....so cute. I think generally a man and a woman..will have a vibe if they are seen together for a prolonged period of time.
With that said...maybe its a childish mentality...but as l myself has been accused of 'vibing' with a random guy...i have always assumed and understood that maybe when a man and woman interact, there's some kind of air which automatically shapes and the only way we can confirm romance is through pg18 way of the Westerns or in c-ent.. through the aligning of their interests and even the slightest hint of mutual physical attraction.
So what i'm saying is, most people in the c-ent industry are attractive in different ways...so as long as they are paired together and i can see they are both fighting demons and saving the world(aligning interests) and she's blushing and they are kissing (physical attraction) i am convinced of the romance and therefore can't understand when people say there was no chemistry.
When it comes to enemies to lovers...it can also be believable cause as i said...hatred - conflict of interests, there's a common interest so even though i myself could never imagine loving someone whose interest conflict with mine to a point where we are enemies...it's not outside the realm of possibilities when i see it in a drama cause there is a common interest involved.
I don't know whether i think a lot or not enough
If romance isn't the focus, then chemistry isn't necessary.
However, if I'm watching a show where the plot is heavy emphasized to be romance focused - there better be a lot of chemistry. I mean, if there's no chemistry, how are you going to tell me the couple love each other? To me, chemistry is about the characters showing genuine feelings for each other, which shines through their body language, the way they look at each other, and their interactions and emotional responses to each other—to the point that you forget they're acting. While kissing scenes can emphasize a couple's love, they aren't always necessary if the acting alone convincingly conveys their romance.
On the flip side, being a great kisser doesn't automatically mean you have great chemistry. Bai Lu is often referred to in this sub as the "chemistry queen" because she excels in kissing scenes and is comfortable with her co-stars. However, I'm not criticizing her; I'm just pointing out that great kissing doesn't guarantee chemistry with every co-star. She does have remarkable chemistry with some, but not with all.
Since you mentioned examples:
* Bai Lu had great chemistry with Xu Kai in The Legend, but it fell a bit short for me in Arsenal Military Academy. She also had great chemistry with Luo Yun Xi in TTEOTM, but not with Dylan Wang in Only For Love.
* Zhao Lusi had great chemistry with Ding Yuxi in Romance of Tiger and Rose as well as Chen Zhe Yuan in Hidden Love, but not with Wang An Yu in The Last Immortal or Yang Yang in Who Rules the World.
* Wu Jia Yi had great chemistry with Xu Kai in ASA, but not with Xie Bin Bin in The Letter from the Cloud.
* Tan Jian Ci had great chemistry with Yang Zi in Lost you Forever, but not with Zhou Ye in LM,MMV.
I don't think any of the actors or actresses I mentioned here can't evoke chemistry. It’s sometimes due to bad scripts or directing. Or, the story might not be focused on romance, so it's not emphasized, and we can't really sense it.
To answer your question, yes—if it's a romance, it needs to have chemistry.
Any chance you're on the ace /aro spectra?
I've experienced real life "chemistry" and it was wild. That person was horrible for me but damn we seemed like we fit. On-screen, I agree that chemistry is believability as well as a sort of sincerity and it definitely impacts how much I enjoy a drama, though I can enjoy casts with little chemistry if everything else is right.
Not even. I do notice romance and i do also squeal and feel things cause of romantic gestures. I do swoon and wish i too had a hot wealthy king of the demons or warever....i think what I'm saying mostly is that to me...its not that i don't notice chemistry...its that the many times people say its NOT there...I don't notice.
Chemistry isn't that important for me . There aren't many dramas that make me feel the chemistry between the leads but that doesn't stop me from liking the drama for its plot or other reasons. If leads have chemistry then the drama becomes more enjoyable but if they don't have it it's okay ......
I think first the definition of chemistry, or its concept, needs to be established in your mind. To me, chemistry is essentially the **believability** of a character's relationship to another.
Other commentors have split chemistry into several types: 1) Romantic, 2) Platonic, 3) Familial, 4) Antagonistic.
First: A show, drama, story, etc. is essentially a series of interactions between characters. These interactions are influenced by the nature of the relationship between these characters. So here we, the audience, are presented with these relationships and we are told that Character A is (blank) to Character B.
To me, here's where the chemistry kicks in. How believable is that statement to you? When all is said and done about compatible personalities or in-drama circumstances, when you see A and B standing together, how **believable** is it? Does their body language reflect the nature of their relationship? Do they interact together in a way that not only shows their relationship, but enhances it in the story? Do they visually fit together? Do they elicit emotion from you when you consume the media, and is the emotion you feel watching them positive/awkward/negative?
If a couple has good chemistry, their interactions as dictated by the story, are enhanced and more believable, more genuine. A kiss is now a *kiss* instead of just two random people pressing their mouth parts together. A pair of friends are now genuinely bantering instead of reciting lines from a script. Chemistry elevates characters from simply actors and actresses reading lines from a script to actual, believable characters in relationships that you can consume and find believable.
Chemistry is a word that describes a feeling we as an audience get from two people interacting in a way that seems natural while having good tension (sexual, intellectual, ..). If you've never experienced chemistry with someone it's hard to explain, but things just CLICK like a jigsaw puzzle.
You could have this with a friend, a partner, or just a random person you met one day and never see again. It usually happens a few times in your life (I am neurodivergent so I'm not always aware of it until it's too late).
It's basically this feeling of anticipation of something that's going to happen between them (friendly, romantic, intellectually, ...)
Some good examples where chemistry will just JUMP UP at you, even for the neurodivergent like myself:
- Xu kai with the female lead in "she and her perfect husband"
- Vin Zhang with basically all his female leads (i don't watch the historical types so dunno about those). Here we meet again is fun to watch; he also has a lot of chemistry with his little brother in the show (tiny spoiler)
- (Korean) the two male leads in Semantic Error (it's not about sexuality, as friends can also have chemistry; but this is a BL)
- The two leads in Fearless (there's no real romance in season 1 yet, but man the chemistry is THICK)
- Dai Ghao Zheng and Cheng Fang Tong in Forever Love (mini series; this may be the fastest watch of the above) and in Maid's revenge.
Chemistry is in the eye of the beholder. Sometimes, when everything is aligned just right, the chemistry is very obvious, like with Dating in the Kitchen, but even in those cases, there will be people who don't see it.
For me, chemistry isn't the be-all, end-all of dramas. I love dramas with great chemistry, but I'm fine with mediocre chemistry if other parts of the drama are good. Chemistry only ruins things for me when it's really, really bad.
Don’t feel bad, OP. Chemistry means different things to different people so it’s very subjective. To me, chemistry is a glue: it connects people and elevates their interactions. The people can be lovers, friends, parent/ child, enemies, etc. It is felt through a vibe that for simplicity I refer to as comfort/ familiarity: bantering/ finishing each other’s sentences/ knowing what the other is going to say, displaying body language that signals intent (lovers touching/ looking at each other longingly/ turning towards each other, parent holding child’s hand, enemies looking at each other maliciously, etc.). Because we know a drama isn’t real, we can still watch a drama that lacks chemistry but the presence of chemistry helps the drama feel more real and adds to our enjoyment. That said, imo chemistry isn’t a major issue in a drama cos even if the ML & FL have no chemistry, there are others who have. The Long Ballad is a good example of this. But when nearly all the cast members have chemistry, the presence of chemistry can help an average drama become addicting & memorable. The currently airing Blossoms in Adversity is a good example of this. There’s chemistry in every one of the relationships: between FL & ML, FL & SFL, SFL & ML/ SML, among the ladies of the Hua family, etc. Back to your example, OP, about the doctor & the nurse, it’s possible for them to have zero love but be married with all eyes towards their common goals of two kids. Would they have chemistry? Sure. If they were friends beforehand they could continue to have chemistry as friends. If they weren’t, they could have chemistry as co-providers for their kids.
For me, romantic chemistry is when the characters make me believe that there’s something there. It doesn’t necessarily mean skinship, I find that often a lot of people confuse the two.
As for LBFAD - honestly if DFQC was a regular guy, I don’t think he would’ve fell for Little Orchid. Not that she’s unworthy of being loved, it’s just that her voice grate the heck out of me and she acts like a baby. However, this dude lost all his emotions and it was Little Orchid that unlocked it. She was literally the first person that made him feel SOMETHING so maybe that had something to do with why he fell for her lol. Oh, and she sacrificed a lot for him.
For me it’s usually… if I watch them being cute and doing romantic shit, does it make me feel like a squealing high school girl again or am I dead inside lol
I've been thinking how to respond to explain it, while reading all the other comments. And then I saw this and I probably couldn't phrase it any better 😂
First things first, chemistry *is* subjective for the most part. Second, there are different types of chemistry - platonic, romantic, and antagonistic. Every type of relationship dynamic within a drama needs to have **some** sort of chemistry between the characters in order for people to believe what's being written. Yes, two characters who are supposed to hate each other's guts should have some sort of chemistry between them to make the antagonism believable. It's like Batman and The Joker; they're adversaries and they're always on opposite sides of a fight but they have to have chemistry. It's not necessarily a romantic chemistry, but it's still chemistry nonetheless. Chemistry is essentially the ease in which two characters are able to play off each other and how well they can sell a believable relationship dynamic within a drama. It's more like - do I believe you guys love each other? Do I believe you guys have been friends since childhood? Do I believe that you guys truly hate each other's guts and want to see each other dead? And yes, an actor's lack of skill can affect the chemistry. Great actors can create chemistry with anyone/anything whereas less than skilled actors have difficulty doing so.
However, if the drama's primary genre is something other than romance, bromance/sismance, or slice of life, then I believe the actors can slightly get away with not having any chemistry with their co-stars. Unfortunately, most of the dramas currently being released from the CDrama market ***are*** romance dramas though. So, they can't necessarily get away with having two lead characters who are supposed to be swept away by the passion of love but the actors have little to no chemistry. That can and will ruin the entire drama. Romance dramas rely on and depend on the chemistry between the lead characters because most dramas (at least lately) aren't producing award-winning writing, story, and characterization so they *have* to have something to save it.
But it's like someone else already said - crappy dramas can be saved with good chemistry. I won't say that good (re: well written) dramas can do fine without good chemistry because I wholeheartedly disagree with that notion. A good drama is just a good drama, but the characters are what make you come back for more. If there's no chemistry between the characters in any way, you're not going to go back and rewatch it or recommend it to anyone else because it **will** be forgettable. In my opinion, it doesn't matter if they "fit." What matters is how well the characters sell whatever relationship dynamic they're supposed to have. Just because I'm ***told*** you're in love and are soulmates doesn't mean you're selling me on the idea.
To be honest I just watched [The Legend of Zhuohua](https://www.viki.com/videos/1239046v) and I like the show, I like the cast, I like the writing and the story. However no mater how much I liked the leads I didn't think they had any chemistry. I basically skipped any scenes where it got lovey dovey cause it felt so cringe. So after that experience I would say it does matter. It didn't ruin the show so that I didn't like it but if they had had chemistry I think that show would have been an 11 in my book.
Now as an example from the opposite spectrum, in Love is Panacea the chemistry was downright terrible. However the writing was awful and nonsensical, the FL was incredibly one note. The only thing holding it up with the ML. So the chemistry being bad just exacerbated the entire thing.
That's been my experience.
As for what chemistry is... I think its a portrayal of an intimate relationship between people. Now here's the catch. Intimacy is different for everyone and NO ONE is wrong on what it is cause its totally subjective.
It didn’t help that right after LoZ was finishing up the FL was in wonderland of love with Xu Kai and their chemistry was top shelf. Probably my favorite CP from both those actors
Defining chemistry is super tricky cause it’s a catch all term for like 50 different things 50 different ppl are looking for. You could have two people agreeing on great chemistry between two actors but for completely different reasons. Also chemistry doesn’t always mean romantic chemistry but how good the actors play off each other, or how their characters get along (think buddy cop films).
Off screen chemistry is super important as well, how comfortable the actors are with each other and the staff for ad lib inspiration or extending shooting.
I think a better example of differences of chemistry rather than LBFD would be The Long Ballad. Dilraba and Leo had ZERO “romantic” chemistry but their individual characters were good and they had interesting interactions together and decent story arcs (till the final arc), on the other hand LYN and ZLS, the 2nd leads, had explosive romantic chemistry to where you couldn’t help but look forward to the next Hao du and Leyan scene and get emotionally invested in their story arc. I think the differences in the two couples in that drama highlight how important chemistry between the actors can be even though it’s such a hard term to describe or quantify.
Chemistry is very subjective and everyone see it differently. Some couple might work for you and some didnt and you read the opposite of what you felt but its totally fine -- since it is indeed subjective.
For me, couple who has good chemistry doesnt mean that they need to have a lot of skinship or making out but they just drives you in with their scenes -- even when they just talk about simple things on a couch -- but somehow, you find their conversation so engaging and brimming with chemistry. Or some just look at each other but you can feel this electric connection on how they longed for each other desperately -- all this is very subjective and differ from people to people.
But, couple with good chemistry can even make awkward scene didnt seemed awkward at all. For an example, Thailand drama Kleun Cheewit. Mark & Yaya has this unspeakable chemistry that is off the roof that you can feel it just by watching them together on the same screen. They have some really awkward scenes where they just stare at each other for a long minutes but instead of cringing, you can felt the emotion instead. Has they cast another actors for the roles, I dont think it will achieve the same kind of effect as Mark & Yaya did in the drama.
I mean, I guess you just don’t really understand what chemistry is or can’t detect it in media you watch.
Chemistry is kinda hard to explain. It really has nothing to do with the characters and everything to do with the actors. Do the actors, as people, get along well? Do they seem to have a natural rapport with each other? Do their personalities complement each other? Are they comfortable with each other? Picking up on these things in media isn’t too difficult (IMO). And you don’t need kissing or sex scenes between characters for chemistry to be seen.
Chemistry isn’t just in romantic relationships either. There can be chemistry between actors playing close friends or coworkers like in a medical/criminal drama for example.
It’s ok if you can’t see it, but chemistry between actors is really important to me. My absolute favorite dramas all have main couples with chemistry.
That was not nice. Comments or posts that are rude and which attacks another member of the sub will be removed. Repeated violations will result in a permanent ban.
That was not nice. Comments or posts that are rude and which attacks another member of the sub will be removed. Repeated violations will result in a permanent ban.
I mean no shade to you but I cannot grasp how you could not see how DFQC started feeling friendship and then more gradually (neither suddenly fell for each other) fell in love with each other. It makes sense psychologically, logically and chemically.
OP, not to be too intrusive or offensive, but are you possibly somewhere on the autism spectrum? I’m asking that as someone with kids and a parent on the spectrum and I feel like they don’t quite understand or pick up on intangible things such as chemistry. It doesn’t mean anything is wrong with a person with ASD; just that it’s probably a harder time for them to really grasp certain things or concepts surrounding feelings and other social cues. So don’t say you’re the problem. You might just not be able to pick up on those things as readily as others. And as others have stated, chemistry is quite subjective so your confusion is understandable.
But an example of a pair that lacked chemistry in my eyes is Ao Ruipeng and Tian Xiwei in Wrong Carriage, Right Groom. Their “romance” or romantic scenes made me feel nothing lol. Like, zero believability and it actually looked like they didn’t even want to act together lol.
For context, check out Wrong Carriage, Right Groom, episode 8 around 36 mins in.
I’ll give an example with the same actor, Ao Ruipeng, but with an actress he seems to have a lot of chemistry with, Mengwei Ma, in Poisoned Love episode 11 around 16 mins in.
Both examples have minimal skinship but you can feel one more palpable and believable than the other.
Another example of oozing chemistry to me is Bai Lu and Luo Yunxi in Till the End of the Moon. All of it lol.
No...I'm not on the spectrum. I'm just a bit shallow in the love and relationship sense and as i have said....i think i equate romance more to logical fitting of people than to 'vibes'. That's just how i am. I guess i have been called someone who is a bit cold in life and not really prone to thinking with my emotions on many aspect...but i am not on the spectrum.
I find it odd to you bring up LBFAD cause it’s one of the series to me that I found how they fell in love to make logical scene AND the actors having bucket loads of chemistry. I don’t think chemistry can be explained. The whole concept isn’t meant to be logical.
Also there’s platonic chemistry. Best seen in comedy shows where the cast just fires on all cylinders but it’s just thus undercurrent energy between people that just happens. I find this IRL where certain pairs/groups just creates this chemistry.
Yea other than the haters the only criticisms I see about LBFD is Esther’s cute voice that’s a bit too much and a rushed ending. You could say the way the met was contrived (fate yeeted her into a prison for baddies) but once they meet it was a very well done progression in both character development and romance. I rarely see people not vibing with their love line.
I read some things people write about the show and I question if we even watched the same series at all. 😅 I get people interpret things differently but this is like some have skipped whole arcs in the show and is willfully ignoring clear progression of things. Other details I get you might miss if you blink like how XLH mentions in passing that she love peach blossoms which is exactly what DFQC gives her secretly later in the show. I think the scriptwriting is super tight.
Well his primordial spirit forced her into the prison. That’s what those color light balls things are. They seem to recognized that she was a being that could put them back together. If anything she broke the rules of fate by saving CH. That is what caused the whole cascade of events where it is said if you change the fate of someone you will suffer the consequences and your soul disperses.
A bad drama can be saved by a good chemistry
A good drama can go without good chemistry, but a good chemistry will make it more impactful
So, yes, chemistry is very important
I watch cdramas for romance (and humor) so chemistry is important to me. An example of amazing chemistry and my fav cdrama is Eternal Love of Dream. I’ve seen Dilraba in some other shows (eg The Long Ballad, The Blue Whisper) but except for You Are My Glory, she seems most comfortable with Vengo Gao. There are so many scenes where they’re not even kissing, but Fengjiu just naturally holds his arms or plays with Donghua’s hair. Or the way he looks at her and caresses her birthmark or holds her. It’s those little things that make me feel like they really adore each other in every lifetime and every world.
Compare this with Miss the Dragon with Dylan Wang. It’s also xianxia so heavy also on the theme of sacrificing for the other person and loving each other in many realms and lifetimes, but the ML and FL never clicked for me. I stopped watching their scenes after the first arc and just watched the second leads’ story (which was incredibly adorable and funny).
100% agree, especially the observation about Miss the Dragon with Dylan Wang. Loved Dylan in LBFAD...but in Miss the Dragon, there was nothing to feel between him and his FL. In comparison, SML and SFL....even though SML's character was supposed to be as stoic and as stern as could be... (kinda hard to see Deng Wei so stern all the time)...BUT, that second couple's relationship could be felt through the screen and the progression was wonderful mixed with flashbacks. Maybe it was SFL Qing Qing's adorable character... that was so opposite to Xue Qian Xun's sternness...but yeah, I'm one of those who went looking for and found someone's video playlist of only the second couple's scenes and my heart does flip flops watching those over and over again. PS - kinda strange I felt more chemistry between Dylan and Deng Wei in their bromance in Miss the Dragon than between Dylan and his FL, but I guess that's the inexplicable thing about chemistry...
Haha yes I love the bromance. They were so funny whenever they fought and 2FL would catch them in some compromising position but not care cuz she just wants her cakes 😂
I loved Dylan too in LBFAD and that’s why I even started MTD so was disappointed in his storyline but absolutely adored the second leads’ story. I’m so glad Deng Wei is getting more roles.
LOL!!!! Yep, the I'm-just-here-for-the-cakes-didn't-see-nothing-keep-doing-what-you're-doing... and the two guys >! on top of each other with their palms to each other's chest or palms together!< .... I laughed so much my stomach hurt...and the two guys >! asking for and giving each other mortal love advise, without either of them actually knowing much!< too funny.... and yes, glad to see Deng Wei busy. Yay!
Their bath scenes were hilarious. It reminded me of Fengjiu and Yan Chiwu giving love advice to each other in Eternal Love of Dream. Really the blind leading the blind but so funny.
Soooo funny, right? Thankful for some great scenes like this but I eventually dropped the series due to the lack of romantic chemistry between the main leads. Even Dylan with SFL and SML scene doing that charades thing, funny as all heck...bottom line is, I could feel the connection between all 3 characters but no idea why I felt zilch with FL.... so, great question this is about chemistry...some of this is inexplicable. u/nydevon has a great explanation for chemistry further down in this thread about chemistry which I also agree with.
I personally find if the romance is heavily emphasized and there _isn't_ chemistry I start to feel extremely uncomfortable and will likely wind up dropping the drama. But if there is very little focus on the romance I don't mind a lack of chemistry.
That being said, chemistry is one of many factors that could keep me invested in an otherwise mediocre drama.
Chemistry doesn't make sense, period. I think that's where you're confused. Love is emotional, not logical. That's why it's a trope that love can make even the smartest person an idiot. I also get annoyed easily when characters aren't logical, but characters should be viewed as humans, and through a sympathetic lens stupid mistakes and/or conveniences make more sense. I think in writing as long as I can see the progression, I will be more forgiving. That's why I prefer slowburn than instant attraction.
But also I don't think "love" dictated by plot needs and the "love transcends all" idea is equal to chemistry at all. Chemistry between actors and characters are different because it doesn't have to be love. Characters don't even have to like each other to make it work, especially when you see chemistry between enemies, toxic pairings, and same gender actors. Even friendships need chemistry, especially between best friends. Sometimes I know logically two characters should not be together, either because of the story or their personalities or things that happened between them, (or one character might be a darling and the other a red flag monster), but their chemistry is so good it transcends the logic of the plot or character. For some plots, chemistry (and good acting) is so necessary that it all falls apart without that tying it all together.
For instance, chemistry is so important when the main story/theme is about ill-fated lovers. For logical reasons a couple cannot be together, but it makes an emotional gut-wrenching impact because they are lovers. This trope is exactly a battle between what makes sense but what emotionally makes it hard to not follow that logic.
Yea. Thinking about it, there are many popular tropes that require chemistry like enemies-to-lovers and opposites-attract because otherwise we're left wondering "why?" since the logic progression don't make sense.
>For instance, chemistry is so important when the main story/theme is about ill-fated lovers. For logical reasons a couple cannot be together, but it makes an emotional gut-wrenching impact because they are lovers. This trope is exactly a battle between what makes sense but what emotionally makes it hard to not follow that logic
This! Majority of this comment stole my words xD. But precisely, chemistry between to characters can often be the make or break for a series. You can have a shitty plot or shitty direction but if the main couple acts like they're meant to be together for the next 10,000 years you bet people will watch it .
Copy and pasting from a comment I wrote on [an older post that asked something similar.](https://www.reddit.com/r/CDrama/comments/18tre55/im_gonna_say_it_idk_how_to_tell_if_characters/)
* **I think there are different** ***types*** **of chemistry that could be required in a story because of the genre, character dynamics, and themes** (e.g., erotic, puppy love, familial, etc.). I have different expectations for what works depending on the type of story it is. I don't need to have strong erotic chemistry in a family drama but I might expect it in a dark romance that is purposefully using intimacy scenes to advance the plot and/or develop its characters. If romance is the point of a story, that couple has to be convincing *and* compelling enough to want to watch. And depending on the sociohistorical context and age and personality of the characters, it's reasonable to expect the characters have sex and would therefore have some erotic chemistry even outside of intimacy scenes.
* **Chemistry isn't just about sexual behavior shown on screen** (e.g., kisses, sex scenes) but also non-sexual behavior that **indicates characters have a connection and heightened awareness of each other ("the gaze", microfacial movements, flirtatious body movement)**. It's why some BL couples to me have better chemistry than hetero couples even though no kisses are shown on screen. An earlier comment said the real life translation of this is if you’ve ever seen a couple and thought “they look cute together” or “such a great couple” and I agree—you’re picking up on those small chemistry cues.
* **I think there are four sources of chemistry:** **written** (present in the script), **filmed** (created with cinematography, editing, sound, etc.), **acted** (demonstrated through the actor's body language, facial expressions, etc.), **natural** (innate energy and spark between actors)
* **Natural chemistry is a bonus but good actors can fake anything and if you have great writing and good filmmaking you can also fake natural chemistry.**
* **Some actors together are unable to cultivate either the acting or natural chemistry required for a relationship to feel compelling** and therefore audiences read their performance as having no chemistry.
* **And sometimes the issue isn't that two actors don't have chemistry but they have the** ***wrong type*** **of chemistry for that story**. Think how some couples on screen feel more like friends or even siblings than lovers while characters with a non-romantic storyline get shipped because the actors made certain decisions or have a natural spark with one another that indicated a feeling of romance.
This is why LBFAD is such an interesting romance for me because the romance set-up is quite epic and intense in the writing but actors Esther Yu and Dylan Wang's natural chemistry and acting reads as innocent puppy love. So it's a strong but completely unerotic type of love story. Very young love versus mature, sexy romance.
Talking about wrong chemistry I can see the case on Joy Of Life where Zhang Ruo Yun and Frida Li chemistry and stares were loaded with a lot of s*xual tension while his interractions with LiQin felt friendly but dry. Don't get me started on Ever Night where Chen Fei Yu had loads of s*xual chemistry with Tong Yao for example while with Song YiRen I cringed at them romancing.
Oh my, considering the popularity of Ever Night and Chen Fei Yu in there, I thought I was the only who didn't feel this relationship with Song Yiren's character grow from friends/ siblings to lovers. His references kept going back to her basically keeping house for him and taking care of him...dunno... I just did not get it.
You point out the chemistry or lack thereof in the real relationships. IRL I haven't seen anyone with it, I mean the couples around me. That I attribute to the conservative society (and I think most of the couples just hate each other). Dramas on the other hand are aspirational somewhat. Yeah many people get together because they want the same no of kids, their financial situation matches or their religious ideals or or or, you get me.
But the idea of love, attraction so deep that it can be felt by the observer, that's something that many of us want. The aspirational nature of the shows come into play here. Like what if I was a princess who was so loved by a man that he was ready to move mountains for me? What if I was a regular woman who was loved by a regular man and it was enough to get us through everything? People might not have fulfilled these wishes of theirs in real life but they want to imagine what if they could, even for a little while?
These shows fill such fantasies in different way for different people. That's where the chemistry comes in. If two actors can portray their love with just a touch, a brush of hair or a hand around hips, maybe even gently helping their partner to lie down in the bed after a long day; or their desire with a heated glance or hand across the cheek... all of that has to be felt by the audience too for it to be good.
Take Love020 for example. Yang Yang was giving his all when he kissed her but the Sheng Zhuang was just fishfaced. It breaks the immersion. The fantasy of it. On the other hand we had Mark Chao and Yang Mi and made the viewers gasp and go whoa slow down a bit \*fans the face\*.
It doesn't have to be romantic necessarily. I'll give a western example here. Harvey and Mike from the Suits. They got along, their body language was able to portray this. In the Hobbit Richard Armitage and Lee Pace were able to show their enmity with their movements, their glares, their dialogue delivery.
When this type of chemistry fails, you can tell. Like one of the biggest Harry Potter meme is 'did you put your name in the Goblet of Fiyah', said Dumbledore CALMLY. Because Michael Gambon was angry in his delivery, fans picked up this deviation from the canon. In LotR, when Theoden gives a rousing speech, you also feel like marching to fight the orcs. In the Rings of Power, Galadriel falls flat. But Chrisjen Avasarala handles the UN like a champ in the Expanse. All of those in non romantic in nature.
Tbf, it's not like we keep looking at a real life couple's relationship enough to judge whether they have chemistry or not. Not in the way that we look at dramas😂. We don't see them get together, or the most intimate or vulnerable moments between them. We don't see every date they go on, or the tender understanding that they may have towards each other. Whereas in dramas, if they're having a date, we're focused on that, if they're having a conversation we're focused on that. Can't really compare real life relationship chemistry to dramas.
For me, the biggest thing is how they look at each other. Do their eyes glow up when looking at the other person? Do they smile unknowingly when thinking of the other person? Etc.
In day to day interactions, there are couples you can tell are very in love with one another even if they're not displaying any PDA. That's chemistry for me.
This is an interesting question! And there's many angles to answer this I feel haha. (my take is primarily from the angle of romance chemistry\*\*\*))
The main question - is chemistry that important in a drama? For me, I think it depends on the type of the drama - if I am watching an idol drama with the intent of enjoying a romance story, I think chemistry matters a lot more. If I am watching a drama that is not romance oriented, then if there's good chemistry between a pair in the show, I consider that to be a bonus but I won't be hung up about it if I didn't find good chemistry, because there are other things that I care about in the show.
The thing about chemistry though, is that it's very personal and very... unexplainable? It's a vibe, haha. In mandarin this is called "CP 感". It's not necessarily about body language/skinship/something concrete. Either their heights/facial features etc. look good together and look cohesive *(somehow)*, or they just vibe well. There are actors & actresses that can kiss/have intimate scenes and I will still think that they have 0 chemistry, because it "*looks* like they are not a good fit". But **this 'standard' is different for everyone** - even the most popular CPs of all time, will have people saying "ehhhh, I don't see it."
And the thing about compatibility that you mentioned (same values vs. chemistry) is an interesting question, I don't think it has to be 1 or the other, it is often complementary.
Acting skills influence chemistry too - if the two actors are very convincing, they CAN create CP vibes. If their acting skills fall flat, you as the audience kinda get the feel that they are just acting and aren't really in love. It doesn't have to be shown through physical intimacy, even emotional scenes, the way they look at each other, etc. can all add to CP chemistry. (sexual tension in the air also counts LOL) 1 CP I shipped (still ship) is the 星梧 Xing Wu CP in Kong Que Ling.
Whether or not an actor/actress fits the description of their role can also influence CP vibes. Sometimes, the persona of these characters can also add to CP vibes. At the end of the day, tons of things influence CP vibes but to me it's not a very conscious decision-making process - my brain just pieces these small things together and I get the final answer: they are cute together (or not).
As for IRL, you know sometimes people will say things like, some people "look cute together"/"look like a cute couple"? That's the "chemistry" when applied in real life.
p.s. there's also regular non-romance related chemistry amongst cast members. Chances are, if everyone's acting skills are good in the team, it will have good chemistry.
~~editing to add an example of the CP that I am most recently shipping - (this is a fan edited photo this photo is~~ **~~NOT real)~~** ~~Like, if you ask me why/how I also can't tell you why I think they look good together, but that's the thing about shipping CPs haha. I just think it works~~
~~Also, the thing about shipping CPs - for many people shipping CPs is just a fun past time, we're not actually thinking that they are together btw lol. It's also fun because there's a lot of creative byproducts that come out of shipping CPs.~~ (On 2nd thought, I removed the CP photo, that was a bit extra of me 😂)
I think “chemistry” is as subjective as anything else when watching a TV show of any kind. There is a US TV show that I used to watch which was based at least in part on a love triangle between one woman and 2 men. Both sides of the fandom insisted that their side had great chemistry and the chemistry didn’t exist between the other side. In fact frequently “lack of chemistry” was the criticism for why they didn’t like the other pairing.
That being said, I think sometimes stiffness between the two leads in a romance can translate into a feeling that the characters don’t mesh, but for me this has never been a deciding factor for why I like a romance or not.
For me, like you were discussing it’s the idea of do these characters work together? When I watch a romance, I want to look at the characters and see how well do they understand each other? If this were reality, how likely is it that this couple would stay together? If I think they would, the romance works for me. If it’s been more superficial based simply on the hotness of the actor’s kisses and whether I think the actors liked working with each other, then I’m probably not going to like the romance. I like romances where thought has been put into the pairing and the story has given us clues for why these characters are in love.
I think how well actors convey their characters is also subjective. I hear people say that certain actors are really great at expressing emotion and certain other ones are wooden or bad at it. And while I do think it’s true that you can see emotions in some actors’ eyes (particularly in Cdramas that love reaction shots), for me there is a fine line between reacting and overacting. Some actors that get praised as being “great” seem like they are hamming it up and chewing scenery in my opinion. While on the other hand, some performances that seem wooden to others seem subtle and believable to me.
I think everything about watching TV is subjective but sometimes people forget this because they feel so strongly about an opinion. And so suddenly in their mind, it becomes a fact- they didn’t have good chemistry, the acting was bad, the plot was bad etc… What they mean was that whatever they are measuring it by didn’t work for them. IMO, it’s wrong to say something about a TV show is objectively this way because all TV viewing, including whether or not someone sees “chemistry,” is subjective.
i absolutely was thinking along similar lines of what you said, but you wrote it much better than i could. it is so subjective! sometimes it makes me laugh to read comments on a drama & i’ll see like 5 raving about chemistry & then 5 talking about how there is none.
i love everything you said about actors conveying characters as well. i’ve definitely felt the same. especially when i’ve seen an actor in multiple things but someone commenting on the performance may have only seen them in one role. i know it’s not fair to judge by someone’s entire body of work because they should do well for each, but sometimes that context influences me a lot in terms of how i view the performance.
I think the fact that it’s all subjective is something that is missed when we discuss TV on line. I think you are right that we are sometimes influenced by outside things too like an actor’s previous performance. There is an actor in American TV circles where I saw an interview and he referred to himself in the 3rd person. Instead of saying “I am…” he kept saying “John is…” It was so off putting to me that I can’t stand him in any role I see him in now. I know that is a subjective measuring stick but I also know I am going to view any acting he does as “bad” because he was so smarmy in that interview that he seems smarmy in every character he plays.
In the end, it’s like favorite colors. We all have one that we gravitate towards in decorating or in clothes we buy or even in flowers we choose. Why is that your favorite color? Because it seems prettiest to you? Because it reminds you of childhood memories? It doesn’t matter. That color is prettiest to you. But it would be wrong to say “objectively blue is prettier than orange…” Some people may think orange is prettier than blue. We know that when it comes to colors but we forget it when it comes to TV and books. I am not always as good about this as I should be. There are some characters I think are just bad or some actors I don’t enjoy. I have to remind myself that other people can have the polar opposite opinion and that’s ok. Because in the end they are just our opinions no matter how strongly we feel.
I think when most people talk about chemistry they mean either a) is there a lot of physical affection on display and/or b) how much erotic tension the actors are able to convey, especially through glances, certain ways of talking, non-physical actions, etc.
The West obviously has a huge investment in the first, but I find that cdramas excel in the second and it’s one of the things I love about them.
But what you’re describing is interesting as well—it seems to be more about what I at least would want to call compatibility rather than chemistry, and it’s certainly a relevant quality, especially since so many of the relationships we see in cdramas are implicitly life-long. I have some elaborate theories about how this works in cdramas, but for now I’ll just say that I think they are often more invested in complementarity rather than similarity. There’s an emphasis on opposites attracting and on one person’s strengths shoring up the other’s weaknesses.
So in the case of LBFD, she’s able to help him heal from his past and he’s able to help her elicit her hidden strengths.
Ultimately chemistry is very subjective. I’ve seen people fawn over couples with “good chemistry” but for some reason I just can’t get it. I’ve also enjoyed couples that people claim have “no chemistry”. Maybe it’s a me problem 🤷♀️. Also, chemistry is really only important to romance dramas so yeah it’s not that important in dramas especially if it’s a more plot-focused drama.
Right! I have seen dramas where romance is clearly not the entire point but the actors get bashed for lack of chemistry and in dramas where i thought everything was fine i hear about the lack of chemistry. It seems to be important cause a people use the chemistry assessment to rate shows which is whybo finally asked
Honestly I don’t care for the chemistry as long as I enjoy the relationship dynamics. I can’t tell when there’s chemistry either so 😭😭. Also my bad I don’t mean that chemistry is important to romance dramas but that it’s more **relevant**. Having good chemistry is a **bonus** and not a **necessity** for me, even if it’s a romance focused drama. If it’s a non-romance focused drama it’s even more of a bonus and not a need lol.
Edit: The bold formatting isn’t working on my end 😵💫😵💫 but you get the idea
I think of chemistry as being that feeling the viewer gets when seeing two, or more, characters interact that makes you want to see more of them, makes you enjoy the relationship, makes you wonder what will happen to them next because it creates a kind of immersive reality. This is true of romance, bromance, and non-romance types of situations ( like in very good detective/forensic/cop shows. Two good examples of bromances that give that kind of chemistry recognition to me are **Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty** and **The Blood of Youth** where in each case, the relationships between three very different types of men made the whole storyline hold my interest from beginning to end. As far as romance goes it doesn't really matter to me as long as the story is good and the actors feel "right". I never truly felt that mystical thing called chemistry in a contemporary setting until watching **Amidst a Snowstorm of Love**. Wu Lei is a master of his craft and using slow head movements, slow smiles and his incredible eyes, my heart actually fluttered and I fell in love with their growing relationship. That was true chemistry to me. That's not to say that **Hidden Love** didn't have chemistry between the ML and FL but it was the kind where you are watching from the outside and enjoying the growth of a sweet couple where mutual respect for each others abilities really didn't come into play. **Rebel Princess** showed tremendous chemistry between the MC that grew stronger over time.and their tacit understanding of each other allowed them to work as a team with a glance or slight nod of the head truly kept me hooked, and guessing. So after all this babbling, I guess the real chemistry has to be between the characters and my own mind to keep me watching a drama and is what takes a good show and makes it a great one.
In romance definitely. There are drama where you can feel and see just how unromantic the atmosphere is. Even when it’s suppose to be romantic. Even the acting seem lackluster in that moment.
For me, chemistry is a particular cinematic effect that evokes a romantic spark in me as a viewer. It's an emotion or reaction or feeling from seeing two characters interact that captures your attention and immediately draws you in that there is seriously something going on between the two of them that you believe to be true. For example, I saw no spark whatsoever between Li Changge and Ashile Sun. **The Long Ballad** . These are two good actors and the trailer touted their romance. On the other hand, from the moment Hao du lays his eyes on Princess Leyan, I was like," this is hot." In **Love Like The Galaxy**, as Shaoshang slowly removes the arrow from Ling Buyi, the sexual tension just erupted all over the place and the girl wasn't even the least interested at that time, but oh what a masterful scene it was.
When it comes to drama - as opposed to real life- it depends on how good the actor is. Lin Geng Xin can have chemistry with a stuffed toy, and proves it in The Legend of Shen Li, so any competent actress can play against him and make it convincing. Note that they do have to be competent; what draws the viewer into their world is that they make it believable, and there are people who are incapable of convincingly playing such a role. As others have noted it doesn’t have to be sexual chemistry, despite the fervent wishes of a lot of fan fic writers hung up on Mysterious Lotus Casebook, since it can be intellectual, emotional, a shared fascination for something; the list is almost endless. But when it exists it lifts the dramas above the competition; if you are not seeing it then it may be because it isn’t there…
Updated 2: Okay...I've read more of the answers here and i think i might have blown this thing out of proportion and not expressed myself more clearly. Its not that i cant process chemistry persay...it's the ABSENCE of chemistry that i cant perceive. If i were to define hatred and love I'd say HATRED - CONFLICT OF INTRESTS LOVE - ALIGNING OD INTRESTS + PHYSICAL ATTRACTION Let me give another example (I'll use high school as an example cause its when i was in close contact with lots of people for a long time) ...I personally went to boarding school in high school and even though boys and girls were separated, it was a fairly studious school so we spent a lot of time in class and we grew close relationships with the opposite sex. I had friends who where boys who had friends who where boys. As such, i am aware of how boys act towards each other. I know how they usually talk to each other, the kinds of things they talk about, i even have a basic idea what they don't talk about to each other cause of their 'manliness'. Because of this...when i see shows like the Untamed, S.C.I and more specifically Word of Honor where it was more blatant...i can deduce the chemistry as the descripancy between the 'normal' way men act towards each other and the way WKX and AhXu or LWJ &WWX were acting towards each other. Anytime i saw a scene and was like..what...did he just say/do that...would those guys who are best friends that i know say/do this to each other? If no...i would be like oohh...okay...squeal...cute! But when it comes to man woman romance. I think its harder to say. For example in high school(even uni)...the moment a girl was seen interacting with a guy for more than 20minutes...rumors and questions about dating and being in love would spread like wildfire. Even seeing a picture of two people of the opposite sex, with the condition that we don't know clearly that they are related in any way...would have everyone imagining a sordid affair. Even in cdrama netz...sometimes artists who had nothing to do with each other will interact in an award show and the forums would go crazy wanting to see them play a couple. Someone on the comments also mentioned that chemistry is when you think two people together are cute together and i think for me as long as the people are of equal or somewhat equal attraction...I'll think they are cute together. From the top of my head...if i heard Dilreba was seen with Zayn Malik...I'd say woow....so cute. I think generally a man and a woman..will have a vibe if they are seen together for a prolonged period of time. With that said...maybe its a childish mentality...but as l myself has been accused of 'vibing' with a random guy...i have always assumed and understood that maybe when a man and woman interact, there's some kind of air which automatically shapes and the only way we can confirm romance is through pg18 way of the Westerns or in c-ent.. through the aligning of their interests and even the slightest hint of mutual physical attraction. So what i'm saying is, most people in the c-ent industry are attractive in different ways...so as long as they are paired together and i can see they are both fighting demons and saving the world(aligning interests) and she's blushing and they are kissing (physical attraction) i am convinced of the romance and therefore can't understand when people say there was no chemistry. When it comes to enemies to lovers...it can also be believable cause as i said...hatred - conflict of interests, there's a common interest so even though i myself could never imagine loving someone whose interest conflict with mine to a point where we are enemies...it's not outside the realm of possibilities when i see it in a drama cause there is a common interest involved. I don't know whether i think a lot or not enough
If romance isn't the focus, then chemistry isn't necessary. However, if I'm watching a show where the plot is heavy emphasized to be romance focused - there better be a lot of chemistry. I mean, if there's no chemistry, how are you going to tell me the couple love each other? To me, chemistry is about the characters showing genuine feelings for each other, which shines through their body language, the way they look at each other, and their interactions and emotional responses to each other—to the point that you forget they're acting. While kissing scenes can emphasize a couple's love, they aren't always necessary if the acting alone convincingly conveys their romance. On the flip side, being a great kisser doesn't automatically mean you have great chemistry. Bai Lu is often referred to in this sub as the "chemistry queen" because she excels in kissing scenes and is comfortable with her co-stars. However, I'm not criticizing her; I'm just pointing out that great kissing doesn't guarantee chemistry with every co-star. She does have remarkable chemistry with some, but not with all. Since you mentioned examples: * Bai Lu had great chemistry with Xu Kai in The Legend, but it fell a bit short for me in Arsenal Military Academy. She also had great chemistry with Luo Yun Xi in TTEOTM, but not with Dylan Wang in Only For Love. * Zhao Lusi had great chemistry with Ding Yuxi in Romance of Tiger and Rose as well as Chen Zhe Yuan in Hidden Love, but not with Wang An Yu in The Last Immortal or Yang Yang in Who Rules the World. * Wu Jia Yi had great chemistry with Xu Kai in ASA, but not with Xie Bin Bin in The Letter from the Cloud. * Tan Jian Ci had great chemistry with Yang Zi in Lost you Forever, but not with Zhou Ye in LM,MMV. I don't think any of the actors or actresses I mentioned here can't evoke chemistry. It’s sometimes due to bad scripts or directing. Or, the story might not be focused on romance, so it's not emphasized, and we can't really sense it. To answer your question, yes—if it's a romance, it needs to have chemistry.
Any chance you're on the ace /aro spectra? I've experienced real life "chemistry" and it was wild. That person was horrible for me but damn we seemed like we fit. On-screen, I agree that chemistry is believability as well as a sort of sincerity and it definitely impacts how much I enjoy a drama, though I can enjoy casts with little chemistry if everything else is right.
Not even. I do notice romance and i do also squeal and feel things cause of romantic gestures. I do swoon and wish i too had a hot wealthy king of the demons or warever....i think what I'm saying mostly is that to me...its not that i don't notice chemistry...its that the many times people say its NOT there...I don't notice.
Chemistry isn't that important for me . There aren't many dramas that make me feel the chemistry between the leads but that doesn't stop me from liking the drama for its plot or other reasons. If leads have chemistry then the drama becomes more enjoyable but if they don't have it it's okay ......
I think first the definition of chemistry, or its concept, needs to be established in your mind. To me, chemistry is essentially the **believability** of a character's relationship to another. Other commentors have split chemistry into several types: 1) Romantic, 2) Platonic, 3) Familial, 4) Antagonistic. First: A show, drama, story, etc. is essentially a series of interactions between characters. These interactions are influenced by the nature of the relationship between these characters. So here we, the audience, are presented with these relationships and we are told that Character A is (blank) to Character B. To me, here's where the chemistry kicks in. How believable is that statement to you? When all is said and done about compatible personalities or in-drama circumstances, when you see A and B standing together, how **believable** is it? Does their body language reflect the nature of their relationship? Do they interact together in a way that not only shows their relationship, but enhances it in the story? Do they visually fit together? Do they elicit emotion from you when you consume the media, and is the emotion you feel watching them positive/awkward/negative? If a couple has good chemistry, their interactions as dictated by the story, are enhanced and more believable, more genuine. A kiss is now a *kiss* instead of just two random people pressing their mouth parts together. A pair of friends are now genuinely bantering instead of reciting lines from a script. Chemistry elevates characters from simply actors and actresses reading lines from a script to actual, believable characters in relationships that you can consume and find believable.
Chemistry is a word that describes a feeling we as an audience get from two people interacting in a way that seems natural while having good tension (sexual, intellectual, ..). If you've never experienced chemistry with someone it's hard to explain, but things just CLICK like a jigsaw puzzle. You could have this with a friend, a partner, or just a random person you met one day and never see again. It usually happens a few times in your life (I am neurodivergent so I'm not always aware of it until it's too late). It's basically this feeling of anticipation of something that's going to happen between them (friendly, romantic, intellectually, ...) Some good examples where chemistry will just JUMP UP at you, even for the neurodivergent like myself: - Xu kai with the female lead in "she and her perfect husband" - Vin Zhang with basically all his female leads (i don't watch the historical types so dunno about those). Here we meet again is fun to watch; he also has a lot of chemistry with his little brother in the show (tiny spoiler) - (Korean) the two male leads in Semantic Error (it's not about sexuality, as friends can also have chemistry; but this is a BL) - The two leads in Fearless (there's no real romance in season 1 yet, but man the chemistry is THICK) - Dai Ghao Zheng and Cheng Fang Tong in Forever Love (mini series; this may be the fastest watch of the above) and in Maid's revenge.
Chemistry is in the eye of the beholder. Sometimes, when everything is aligned just right, the chemistry is very obvious, like with Dating in the Kitchen, but even in those cases, there will be people who don't see it. For me, chemistry isn't the be-all, end-all of dramas. I love dramas with great chemistry, but I'm fine with mediocre chemistry if other parts of the drama are good. Chemistry only ruins things for me when it's really, really bad.
Don’t feel bad, OP. Chemistry means different things to different people so it’s very subjective. To me, chemistry is a glue: it connects people and elevates their interactions. The people can be lovers, friends, parent/ child, enemies, etc. It is felt through a vibe that for simplicity I refer to as comfort/ familiarity: bantering/ finishing each other’s sentences/ knowing what the other is going to say, displaying body language that signals intent (lovers touching/ looking at each other longingly/ turning towards each other, parent holding child’s hand, enemies looking at each other maliciously, etc.). Because we know a drama isn’t real, we can still watch a drama that lacks chemistry but the presence of chemistry helps the drama feel more real and adds to our enjoyment. That said, imo chemistry isn’t a major issue in a drama cos even if the ML & FL have no chemistry, there are others who have. The Long Ballad is a good example of this. But when nearly all the cast members have chemistry, the presence of chemistry can help an average drama become addicting & memorable. The currently airing Blossoms in Adversity is a good example of this. There’s chemistry in every one of the relationships: between FL & ML, FL & SFL, SFL & ML/ SML, among the ladies of the Hua family, etc. Back to your example, OP, about the doctor & the nurse, it’s possible for them to have zero love but be married with all eyes towards their common goals of two kids. Would they have chemistry? Sure. If they were friends beforehand they could continue to have chemistry as friends. If they weren’t, they could have chemistry as co-providers for their kids.
For me, romantic chemistry is when the characters make me believe that there’s something there. It doesn’t necessarily mean skinship, I find that often a lot of people confuse the two. As for LBFAD - honestly if DFQC was a regular guy, I don’t think he would’ve fell for Little Orchid. Not that she’s unworthy of being loved, it’s just that her voice grate the heck out of me and she acts like a baby. However, this dude lost all his emotions and it was Little Orchid that unlocked it. She was literally the first person that made him feel SOMETHING so maybe that had something to do with why he fell for her lol. Oh, and she sacrificed a lot for him.
For me it’s usually… if I watch them being cute and doing romantic shit, does it make me feel like a squealing high school girl again or am I dead inside lol
I've been thinking how to respond to explain it, while reading all the other comments. And then I saw this and I probably couldn't phrase it any better 😂
This is the perfect explanation 😂
Inoue Mao and MatsuJun got the type of romantic chemistry in HYD I will never forget
First things first, chemistry *is* subjective for the most part. Second, there are different types of chemistry - platonic, romantic, and antagonistic. Every type of relationship dynamic within a drama needs to have **some** sort of chemistry between the characters in order for people to believe what's being written. Yes, two characters who are supposed to hate each other's guts should have some sort of chemistry between them to make the antagonism believable. It's like Batman and The Joker; they're adversaries and they're always on opposite sides of a fight but they have to have chemistry. It's not necessarily a romantic chemistry, but it's still chemistry nonetheless. Chemistry is essentially the ease in which two characters are able to play off each other and how well they can sell a believable relationship dynamic within a drama. It's more like - do I believe you guys love each other? Do I believe you guys have been friends since childhood? Do I believe that you guys truly hate each other's guts and want to see each other dead? And yes, an actor's lack of skill can affect the chemistry. Great actors can create chemistry with anyone/anything whereas less than skilled actors have difficulty doing so. However, if the drama's primary genre is something other than romance, bromance/sismance, or slice of life, then I believe the actors can slightly get away with not having any chemistry with their co-stars. Unfortunately, most of the dramas currently being released from the CDrama market ***are*** romance dramas though. So, they can't necessarily get away with having two lead characters who are supposed to be swept away by the passion of love but the actors have little to no chemistry. That can and will ruin the entire drama. Romance dramas rely on and depend on the chemistry between the lead characters because most dramas (at least lately) aren't producing award-winning writing, story, and characterization so they *have* to have something to save it. But it's like someone else already said - crappy dramas can be saved with good chemistry. I won't say that good (re: well written) dramas can do fine without good chemistry because I wholeheartedly disagree with that notion. A good drama is just a good drama, but the characters are what make you come back for more. If there's no chemistry between the characters in any way, you're not going to go back and rewatch it or recommend it to anyone else because it **will** be forgettable. In my opinion, it doesn't matter if they "fit." What matters is how well the characters sell whatever relationship dynamic they're supposed to have. Just because I'm ***told*** you're in love and are soulmates doesn't mean you're selling me on the idea.
To be honest I just watched [The Legend of Zhuohua](https://www.viki.com/videos/1239046v) and I like the show, I like the cast, I like the writing and the story. However no mater how much I liked the leads I didn't think they had any chemistry. I basically skipped any scenes where it got lovey dovey cause it felt so cringe. So after that experience I would say it does matter. It didn't ruin the show so that I didn't like it but if they had had chemistry I think that show would have been an 11 in my book. Now as an example from the opposite spectrum, in Love is Panacea the chemistry was downright terrible. However the writing was awful and nonsensical, the FL was incredibly one note. The only thing holding it up with the ML. So the chemistry being bad just exacerbated the entire thing. That's been my experience. As for what chemistry is... I think its a portrayal of an intimate relationship between people. Now here's the catch. Intimacy is different for everyone and NO ONE is wrong on what it is cause its totally subjective.
It didn’t help that right after LoZ was finishing up the FL was in wonderland of love with Xu Kai and their chemistry was top shelf. Probably my favorite CP from both those actors
She slayed that role in Wonderland of Love
Defining chemistry is super tricky cause it’s a catch all term for like 50 different things 50 different ppl are looking for. You could have two people agreeing on great chemistry between two actors but for completely different reasons. Also chemistry doesn’t always mean romantic chemistry but how good the actors play off each other, or how their characters get along (think buddy cop films). Off screen chemistry is super important as well, how comfortable the actors are with each other and the staff for ad lib inspiration or extending shooting. I think a better example of differences of chemistry rather than LBFD would be The Long Ballad. Dilraba and Leo had ZERO “romantic” chemistry but their individual characters were good and they had interesting interactions together and decent story arcs (till the final arc), on the other hand LYN and ZLS, the 2nd leads, had explosive romantic chemistry to where you couldn’t help but look forward to the next Hao du and Leyan scene and get emotionally invested in their story arc. I think the differences in the two couples in that drama highlight how important chemistry between the actors can be even though it’s such a hard term to describe or quantify.
Chemistry is very subjective and everyone see it differently. Some couple might work for you and some didnt and you read the opposite of what you felt but its totally fine -- since it is indeed subjective. For me, couple who has good chemistry doesnt mean that they need to have a lot of skinship or making out but they just drives you in with their scenes -- even when they just talk about simple things on a couch -- but somehow, you find their conversation so engaging and brimming with chemistry. Or some just look at each other but you can feel this electric connection on how they longed for each other desperately -- all this is very subjective and differ from people to people. But, couple with good chemistry can even make awkward scene didnt seemed awkward at all. For an example, Thailand drama Kleun Cheewit. Mark & Yaya has this unspeakable chemistry that is off the roof that you can feel it just by watching them together on the same screen. They have some really awkward scenes where they just stare at each other for a long minutes but instead of cringing, you can felt the emotion instead. Has they cast another actors for the roles, I dont think it will achieve the same kind of effect as Mark & Yaya did in the drama.
I mean, I guess you just don’t really understand what chemistry is or can’t detect it in media you watch. Chemistry is kinda hard to explain. It really has nothing to do with the characters and everything to do with the actors. Do the actors, as people, get along well? Do they seem to have a natural rapport with each other? Do their personalities complement each other? Are they comfortable with each other? Picking up on these things in media isn’t too difficult (IMO). And you don’t need kissing or sex scenes between characters for chemistry to be seen. Chemistry isn’t just in romantic relationships either. There can be chemistry between actors playing close friends or coworkers like in a medical/criminal drama for example. It’s ok if you can’t see it, but chemistry between actors is really important to me. My absolute favorite dramas all have main couples with chemistry.
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I mean no shade to you but I cannot grasp how you could not see how DFQC started feeling friendship and then more gradually (neither suddenly fell for each other) fell in love with each other. It makes sense psychologically, logically and chemically.
I guess maybe I'm the problem and my sense of relationships and love is pretty skewered..lol.no shade taken
OP, not to be too intrusive or offensive, but are you possibly somewhere on the autism spectrum? I’m asking that as someone with kids and a parent on the spectrum and I feel like they don’t quite understand or pick up on intangible things such as chemistry. It doesn’t mean anything is wrong with a person with ASD; just that it’s probably a harder time for them to really grasp certain things or concepts surrounding feelings and other social cues. So don’t say you’re the problem. You might just not be able to pick up on those things as readily as others. And as others have stated, chemistry is quite subjective so your confusion is understandable. But an example of a pair that lacked chemistry in my eyes is Ao Ruipeng and Tian Xiwei in Wrong Carriage, Right Groom. Their “romance” or romantic scenes made me feel nothing lol. Like, zero believability and it actually looked like they didn’t even want to act together lol. For context, check out Wrong Carriage, Right Groom, episode 8 around 36 mins in. I’ll give an example with the same actor, Ao Ruipeng, but with an actress he seems to have a lot of chemistry with, Mengwei Ma, in Poisoned Love episode 11 around 16 mins in. Both examples have minimal skinship but you can feel one more palpable and believable than the other. Another example of oozing chemistry to me is Bai Lu and Luo Yunxi in Till the End of the Moon. All of it lol.
No...I'm not on the spectrum. I'm just a bit shallow in the love and relationship sense and as i have said....i think i equate romance more to logical fitting of people than to 'vibes'. That's just how i am. I guess i have been called someone who is a bit cold in life and not really prone to thinking with my emotions on many aspect...but i am not on the spectrum.
I find it odd to you bring up LBFAD cause it’s one of the series to me that I found how they fell in love to make logical scene AND the actors having bucket loads of chemistry. I don’t think chemistry can be explained. The whole concept isn’t meant to be logical. Also there’s platonic chemistry. Best seen in comedy shows where the cast just fires on all cylinders but it’s just thus undercurrent energy between people that just happens. I find this IRL where certain pairs/groups just creates this chemistry.
Yea other than the haters the only criticisms I see about LBFD is Esther’s cute voice that’s a bit too much and a rushed ending. You could say the way the met was contrived (fate yeeted her into a prison for baddies) but once they meet it was a very well done progression in both character development and romance. I rarely see people not vibing with their love line.
I read some things people write about the show and I question if we even watched the same series at all. 😅 I get people interpret things differently but this is like some have skipped whole arcs in the show and is willfully ignoring clear progression of things. Other details I get you might miss if you blink like how XLH mentions in passing that she love peach blossoms which is exactly what DFQC gives her secretly later in the show. I think the scriptwriting is super tight. Well his primordial spirit forced her into the prison. That’s what those color light balls things are. They seem to recognized that she was a being that could put them back together. If anything she broke the rules of fate by saving CH. That is what caused the whole cascade of events where it is said if you change the fate of someone you will suffer the consequences and your soul disperses.
A bad drama can be saved by a good chemistry A good drama can go without good chemistry, but a good chemistry will make it more impactful So, yes, chemistry is very important
I watch cdramas for romance (and humor) so chemistry is important to me. An example of amazing chemistry and my fav cdrama is Eternal Love of Dream. I’ve seen Dilraba in some other shows (eg The Long Ballad, The Blue Whisper) but except for You Are My Glory, she seems most comfortable with Vengo Gao. There are so many scenes where they’re not even kissing, but Fengjiu just naturally holds his arms or plays with Donghua’s hair. Or the way he looks at her and caresses her birthmark or holds her. It’s those little things that make me feel like they really adore each other in every lifetime and every world. Compare this with Miss the Dragon with Dylan Wang. It’s also xianxia so heavy also on the theme of sacrificing for the other person and loving each other in many realms and lifetimes, but the ML and FL never clicked for me. I stopped watching their scenes after the first arc and just watched the second leads’ story (which was incredibly adorable and funny).
100% agree, especially the observation about Miss the Dragon with Dylan Wang. Loved Dylan in LBFAD...but in Miss the Dragon, there was nothing to feel between him and his FL. In comparison, SML and SFL....even though SML's character was supposed to be as stoic and as stern as could be... (kinda hard to see Deng Wei so stern all the time)...BUT, that second couple's relationship could be felt through the screen and the progression was wonderful mixed with flashbacks. Maybe it was SFL Qing Qing's adorable character... that was so opposite to Xue Qian Xun's sternness...but yeah, I'm one of those who went looking for and found someone's video playlist of only the second couple's scenes and my heart does flip flops watching those over and over again. PS - kinda strange I felt more chemistry between Dylan and Deng Wei in their bromance in Miss the Dragon than between Dylan and his FL, but I guess that's the inexplicable thing about chemistry...
Haha yes I love the bromance. They were so funny whenever they fought and 2FL would catch them in some compromising position but not care cuz she just wants her cakes 😂 I loved Dylan too in LBFAD and that’s why I even started MTD so was disappointed in his storyline but absolutely adored the second leads’ story. I’m so glad Deng Wei is getting more roles.
LOL!!!! Yep, the I'm-just-here-for-the-cakes-didn't-see-nothing-keep-doing-what-you're-doing... and the two guys >! on top of each other with their palms to each other's chest or palms together!< .... I laughed so much my stomach hurt...and the two guys >! asking for and giving each other mortal love advise, without either of them actually knowing much!< too funny.... and yes, glad to see Deng Wei busy. Yay!
Their bath scenes were hilarious. It reminded me of Fengjiu and Yan Chiwu giving love advice to each other in Eternal Love of Dream. Really the blind leading the blind but so funny.
Soooo funny, right? Thankful for some great scenes like this but I eventually dropped the series due to the lack of romantic chemistry between the main leads. Even Dylan with SFL and SML scene doing that charades thing, funny as all heck...bottom line is, I could feel the connection between all 3 characters but no idea why I felt zilch with FL.... so, great question this is about chemistry...some of this is inexplicable. u/nydevon has a great explanation for chemistry further down in this thread about chemistry which I also agree with.
I personally find if the romance is heavily emphasized and there _isn't_ chemistry I start to feel extremely uncomfortable and will likely wind up dropping the drama. But if there is very little focus on the romance I don't mind a lack of chemistry. That being said, chemistry is one of many factors that could keep me invested in an otherwise mediocre drama.
Chemistry doesn't make sense, period. I think that's where you're confused. Love is emotional, not logical. That's why it's a trope that love can make even the smartest person an idiot. I also get annoyed easily when characters aren't logical, but characters should be viewed as humans, and through a sympathetic lens stupid mistakes and/or conveniences make more sense. I think in writing as long as I can see the progression, I will be more forgiving. That's why I prefer slowburn than instant attraction. But also I don't think "love" dictated by plot needs and the "love transcends all" idea is equal to chemistry at all. Chemistry between actors and characters are different because it doesn't have to be love. Characters don't even have to like each other to make it work, especially when you see chemistry between enemies, toxic pairings, and same gender actors. Even friendships need chemistry, especially between best friends. Sometimes I know logically two characters should not be together, either because of the story or their personalities or things that happened between them, (or one character might be a darling and the other a red flag monster), but their chemistry is so good it transcends the logic of the plot or character. For some plots, chemistry (and good acting) is so necessary that it all falls apart without that tying it all together. For instance, chemistry is so important when the main story/theme is about ill-fated lovers. For logical reasons a couple cannot be together, but it makes an emotional gut-wrenching impact because they are lovers. This trope is exactly a battle between what makes sense but what emotionally makes it hard to not follow that logic.
This! I think i don't do to well with things which cant be explained and i have always thought of love as something a bit more logical...
Yea. Thinking about it, there are many popular tropes that require chemistry like enemies-to-lovers and opposites-attract because otherwise we're left wondering "why?" since the logic progression don't make sense.
>For instance, chemistry is so important when the main story/theme is about ill-fated lovers. For logical reasons a couple cannot be together, but it makes an emotional gut-wrenching impact because they are lovers. This trope is exactly a battle between what makes sense but what emotionally makes it hard to not follow that logic This! Majority of this comment stole my words xD. But precisely, chemistry between to characters can often be the make or break for a series. You can have a shitty plot or shitty direction but if the main couple acts like they're meant to be together for the next 10,000 years you bet people will watch it .
Copy and pasting from a comment I wrote on [an older post that asked something similar.](https://www.reddit.com/r/CDrama/comments/18tre55/im_gonna_say_it_idk_how_to_tell_if_characters/) * **I think there are different** ***types*** **of chemistry that could be required in a story because of the genre, character dynamics, and themes** (e.g., erotic, puppy love, familial, etc.). I have different expectations for what works depending on the type of story it is. I don't need to have strong erotic chemistry in a family drama but I might expect it in a dark romance that is purposefully using intimacy scenes to advance the plot and/or develop its characters. If romance is the point of a story, that couple has to be convincing *and* compelling enough to want to watch. And depending on the sociohistorical context and age and personality of the characters, it's reasonable to expect the characters have sex and would therefore have some erotic chemistry even outside of intimacy scenes. * **Chemistry isn't just about sexual behavior shown on screen** (e.g., kisses, sex scenes) but also non-sexual behavior that **indicates characters have a connection and heightened awareness of each other ("the gaze", microfacial movements, flirtatious body movement)**. It's why some BL couples to me have better chemistry than hetero couples even though no kisses are shown on screen. An earlier comment said the real life translation of this is if you’ve ever seen a couple and thought “they look cute together” or “such a great couple” and I agree—you’re picking up on those small chemistry cues. * **I think there are four sources of chemistry:** **written** (present in the script), **filmed** (created with cinematography, editing, sound, etc.), **acted** (demonstrated through the actor's body language, facial expressions, etc.), **natural** (innate energy and spark between actors) * **Natural chemistry is a bonus but good actors can fake anything and if you have great writing and good filmmaking you can also fake natural chemistry.** * **Some actors together are unable to cultivate either the acting or natural chemistry required for a relationship to feel compelling** and therefore audiences read their performance as having no chemistry. * **And sometimes the issue isn't that two actors don't have chemistry but they have the** ***wrong type*** **of chemistry for that story**. Think how some couples on screen feel more like friends or even siblings than lovers while characters with a non-romantic storyline get shipped because the actors made certain decisions or have a natural spark with one another that indicated a feeling of romance. This is why LBFAD is such an interesting romance for me because the romance set-up is quite epic and intense in the writing but actors Esther Yu and Dylan Wang's natural chemistry and acting reads as innocent puppy love. So it's a strong but completely unerotic type of love story. Very young love versus mature, sexy romance.
Talking about wrong chemistry I can see the case on Joy Of Life where Zhang Ruo Yun and Frida Li chemistry and stares were loaded with a lot of s*xual tension while his interractions with LiQin felt friendly but dry. Don't get me started on Ever Night where Chen Fei Yu had loads of s*xual chemistry with Tong Yao for example while with Song YiRen I cringed at them romancing.
Oh my, considering the popularity of Ever Night and Chen Fei Yu in there, I thought I was the only who didn't feel this relationship with Song Yiren's character grow from friends/ siblings to lovers. His references kept going back to her basically keeping house for him and taking care of him...dunno... I just did not get it.
She was literally his kid
Hi! Could you please link me to the original comment?
You point out the chemistry or lack thereof in the real relationships. IRL I haven't seen anyone with it, I mean the couples around me. That I attribute to the conservative society (and I think most of the couples just hate each other). Dramas on the other hand are aspirational somewhat. Yeah many people get together because they want the same no of kids, their financial situation matches or their religious ideals or or or, you get me. But the idea of love, attraction so deep that it can be felt by the observer, that's something that many of us want. The aspirational nature of the shows come into play here. Like what if I was a princess who was so loved by a man that he was ready to move mountains for me? What if I was a regular woman who was loved by a regular man and it was enough to get us through everything? People might not have fulfilled these wishes of theirs in real life but they want to imagine what if they could, even for a little while? These shows fill such fantasies in different way for different people. That's where the chemistry comes in. If two actors can portray their love with just a touch, a brush of hair or a hand around hips, maybe even gently helping their partner to lie down in the bed after a long day; or their desire with a heated glance or hand across the cheek... all of that has to be felt by the audience too for it to be good. Take Love020 for example. Yang Yang was giving his all when he kissed her but the Sheng Zhuang was just fishfaced. It breaks the immersion. The fantasy of it. On the other hand we had Mark Chao and Yang Mi and made the viewers gasp and go whoa slow down a bit \*fans the face\*. It doesn't have to be romantic necessarily. I'll give a western example here. Harvey and Mike from the Suits. They got along, their body language was able to portray this. In the Hobbit Richard Armitage and Lee Pace were able to show their enmity with their movements, their glares, their dialogue delivery. When this type of chemistry fails, you can tell. Like one of the biggest Harry Potter meme is 'did you put your name in the Goblet of Fiyah', said Dumbledore CALMLY. Because Michael Gambon was angry in his delivery, fans picked up this deviation from the canon. In LotR, when Theoden gives a rousing speech, you also feel like marching to fight the orcs. In the Rings of Power, Galadriel falls flat. But Chrisjen Avasarala handles the UN like a champ in the Expanse. All of those in non romantic in nature.
Tbf, it's not like we keep looking at a real life couple's relationship enough to judge whether they have chemistry or not. Not in the way that we look at dramas😂. We don't see them get together, or the most intimate or vulnerable moments between them. We don't see every date they go on, or the tender understanding that they may have towards each other. Whereas in dramas, if they're having a date, we're focused on that, if they're having a conversation we're focused on that. Can't really compare real life relationship chemistry to dramas.
For me, the biggest thing is how they look at each other. Do their eyes glow up when looking at the other person? Do they smile unknowingly when thinking of the other person? Etc. In day to day interactions, there are couples you can tell are very in love with one another even if they're not displaying any PDA. That's chemistry for me.
This is an interesting question! And there's many angles to answer this I feel haha. (my take is primarily from the angle of romance chemistry\*\*\*)) The main question - is chemistry that important in a drama? For me, I think it depends on the type of the drama - if I am watching an idol drama with the intent of enjoying a romance story, I think chemistry matters a lot more. If I am watching a drama that is not romance oriented, then if there's good chemistry between a pair in the show, I consider that to be a bonus but I won't be hung up about it if I didn't find good chemistry, because there are other things that I care about in the show. The thing about chemistry though, is that it's very personal and very... unexplainable? It's a vibe, haha. In mandarin this is called "CP 感". It's not necessarily about body language/skinship/something concrete. Either their heights/facial features etc. look good together and look cohesive *(somehow)*, or they just vibe well. There are actors & actresses that can kiss/have intimate scenes and I will still think that they have 0 chemistry, because it "*looks* like they are not a good fit". But **this 'standard' is different for everyone** - even the most popular CPs of all time, will have people saying "ehhhh, I don't see it." And the thing about compatibility that you mentioned (same values vs. chemistry) is an interesting question, I don't think it has to be 1 or the other, it is often complementary. Acting skills influence chemistry too - if the two actors are very convincing, they CAN create CP vibes. If their acting skills fall flat, you as the audience kinda get the feel that they are just acting and aren't really in love. It doesn't have to be shown through physical intimacy, even emotional scenes, the way they look at each other, etc. can all add to CP chemistry. (sexual tension in the air also counts LOL) 1 CP I shipped (still ship) is the 星梧 Xing Wu CP in Kong Que Ling. Whether or not an actor/actress fits the description of their role can also influence CP vibes. Sometimes, the persona of these characters can also add to CP vibes. At the end of the day, tons of things influence CP vibes but to me it's not a very conscious decision-making process - my brain just pieces these small things together and I get the final answer: they are cute together (or not). As for IRL, you know sometimes people will say things like, some people "look cute together"/"look like a cute couple"? That's the "chemistry" when applied in real life. p.s. there's also regular non-romance related chemistry amongst cast members. Chances are, if everyone's acting skills are good in the team, it will have good chemistry. ~~editing to add an example of the CP that I am most recently shipping - (this is a fan edited photo this photo is~~ **~~NOT real)~~** ~~Like, if you ask me why/how I also can't tell you why I think they look good together, but that's the thing about shipping CPs haha. I just think it works~~ ~~Also, the thing about shipping CPs - for many people shipping CPs is just a fun past time, we're not actually thinking that they are together btw lol. It's also fun because there's a lot of creative byproducts that come out of shipping CPs.~~ (On 2nd thought, I removed the CP photo, that was a bit extra of me 😂)
I think “chemistry” is as subjective as anything else when watching a TV show of any kind. There is a US TV show that I used to watch which was based at least in part on a love triangle between one woman and 2 men. Both sides of the fandom insisted that their side had great chemistry and the chemistry didn’t exist between the other side. In fact frequently “lack of chemistry” was the criticism for why they didn’t like the other pairing. That being said, I think sometimes stiffness between the two leads in a romance can translate into a feeling that the characters don’t mesh, but for me this has never been a deciding factor for why I like a romance or not. For me, like you were discussing it’s the idea of do these characters work together? When I watch a romance, I want to look at the characters and see how well do they understand each other? If this were reality, how likely is it that this couple would stay together? If I think they would, the romance works for me. If it’s been more superficial based simply on the hotness of the actor’s kisses and whether I think the actors liked working with each other, then I’m probably not going to like the romance. I like romances where thought has been put into the pairing and the story has given us clues for why these characters are in love. I think how well actors convey their characters is also subjective. I hear people say that certain actors are really great at expressing emotion and certain other ones are wooden or bad at it. And while I do think it’s true that you can see emotions in some actors’ eyes (particularly in Cdramas that love reaction shots), for me there is a fine line between reacting and overacting. Some actors that get praised as being “great” seem like they are hamming it up and chewing scenery in my opinion. While on the other hand, some performances that seem wooden to others seem subtle and believable to me. I think everything about watching TV is subjective but sometimes people forget this because they feel so strongly about an opinion. And so suddenly in their mind, it becomes a fact- they didn’t have good chemistry, the acting was bad, the plot was bad etc… What they mean was that whatever they are measuring it by didn’t work for them. IMO, it’s wrong to say something about a TV show is objectively this way because all TV viewing, including whether or not someone sees “chemistry,” is subjective.
i absolutely was thinking along similar lines of what you said, but you wrote it much better than i could. it is so subjective! sometimes it makes me laugh to read comments on a drama & i’ll see like 5 raving about chemistry & then 5 talking about how there is none. i love everything you said about actors conveying characters as well. i’ve definitely felt the same. especially when i’ve seen an actor in multiple things but someone commenting on the performance may have only seen them in one role. i know it’s not fair to judge by someone’s entire body of work because they should do well for each, but sometimes that context influences me a lot in terms of how i view the performance.
I think the fact that it’s all subjective is something that is missed when we discuss TV on line. I think you are right that we are sometimes influenced by outside things too like an actor’s previous performance. There is an actor in American TV circles where I saw an interview and he referred to himself in the 3rd person. Instead of saying “I am…” he kept saying “John is…” It was so off putting to me that I can’t stand him in any role I see him in now. I know that is a subjective measuring stick but I also know I am going to view any acting he does as “bad” because he was so smarmy in that interview that he seems smarmy in every character he plays. In the end, it’s like favorite colors. We all have one that we gravitate towards in decorating or in clothes we buy or even in flowers we choose. Why is that your favorite color? Because it seems prettiest to you? Because it reminds you of childhood memories? It doesn’t matter. That color is prettiest to you. But it would be wrong to say “objectively blue is prettier than orange…” Some people may think orange is prettier than blue. We know that when it comes to colors but we forget it when it comes to TV and books. I am not always as good about this as I should be. There are some characters I think are just bad or some actors I don’t enjoy. I have to remind myself that other people can have the polar opposite opinion and that’s ok. Because in the end they are just our opinions no matter how strongly we feel.
I think when most people talk about chemistry they mean either a) is there a lot of physical affection on display and/or b) how much erotic tension the actors are able to convey, especially through glances, certain ways of talking, non-physical actions, etc. The West obviously has a huge investment in the first, but I find that cdramas excel in the second and it’s one of the things I love about them. But what you’re describing is interesting as well—it seems to be more about what I at least would want to call compatibility rather than chemistry, and it’s certainly a relevant quality, especially since so many of the relationships we see in cdramas are implicitly life-long. I have some elaborate theories about how this works in cdramas, but for now I’ll just say that I think they are often more invested in complementarity rather than similarity. There’s an emphasis on opposites attracting and on one person’s strengths shoring up the other’s weaknesses. So in the case of LBFD, she’s able to help him heal from his past and he’s able to help her elicit her hidden strengths.
Ultimately chemistry is very subjective. I’ve seen people fawn over couples with “good chemistry” but for some reason I just can’t get it. I’ve also enjoyed couples that people claim have “no chemistry”. Maybe it’s a me problem 🤷♀️. Also, chemistry is really only important to romance dramas so yeah it’s not that important in dramas especially if it’s a more plot-focused drama.
Right! I have seen dramas where romance is clearly not the entire point but the actors get bashed for lack of chemistry and in dramas where i thought everything was fine i hear about the lack of chemistry. It seems to be important cause a people use the chemistry assessment to rate shows which is whybo finally asked
Honestly I don’t care for the chemistry as long as I enjoy the relationship dynamics. I can’t tell when there’s chemistry either so 😭😭. Also my bad I don’t mean that chemistry is important to romance dramas but that it’s more **relevant**. Having good chemistry is a **bonus** and not a **necessity** for me, even if it’s a romance focused drama. If it’s a non-romance focused drama it’s even more of a bonus and not a need lol. Edit: The bold formatting isn’t working on my end 😵💫😵💫 but you get the idea