Cute Programmer (2021) [/]
Jul 24 2024
Cute Programmer is a Chinese romance/drama running 30 45-minute episodes.
Lu Li (Zhu Xudan) is a Computer Science major just graduated from university and desperate to work at a video game company owned and run by her crush Jiang Yi Cheng (Zing Zhaolin). But they never hire female programmers so with the help of her best friend Gu Xiaoqi (Guan Xin) she interviews disguised as a man and manages to get hired.
The first third of the series is Lu Li being a male computer programmer who just wants to be near Yi Cheng. Lots of comedic situations including using the wrong rest room, a team bonding trip to a hot spring (with separate male and female bathing areas), and Yi Cheng being strangely attracted to another man.
Eventually her secret comes out and we go into phase 2 where Yi Cheng's parents think he's finally found a girl he likes so they force them to get married. Yi Cheng makes it a secret marriage and she moves in with him and stays in a separate room. Enter a complication: Yi Cheng's first love Li Man (Joy Sheng) who also betrayed his company three years ago. Li Man wants to reconcile with Yi Cheng but he in return doesn't care and is even forced to reveal he's married to Li Man.
But because Yi Cheng and Li Man keep hanging out together and because she deviously puts doubts in Lu Li's mind, eventually Lu Li decides that her one-sided love and dedication to Yi Cheng will get her nowhere so she asks for a divorce and moves to another city (and she's pregnant with Yi Cheng's child but doesn't tell him).
In phase 3 Lu Li gets a job as network admin (making it hard for Yi Cheng to find her as he expects her to go into game programming like her old job). Lu Li is pursued by the owner Lu Zhengguo (Wang Weihua) who turns out was a classmate of Yi Cheng and their companies have a partnership for a movie so they eventually find each other again at a business dinner. Now Yi Cheng tries to win Lu Li back, who is hesitant because she wants to make sure he's not in love from regret, pity, or make up for being a bad husband.
Eventually he does win her back and they have a VR wedding. There are three other couples that form from various subplots. The End.
The first third is really good and the second third is fine. The last third is a bit weak because Yi Cheng pursing Lu Li does not come off as romantic. The other romantic subplots were kind of uninteresting. I feel let down by the last third of the series. Overall below average but the first third is quite good.
Lu Li (Zhu Xudan) is a Computer Science major just graduated from university and desperate to work at a video game company owned and run by her crush Jiang Yi Cheng (Zing Zhaolin). But they never hire female programmers so with the help of her best friend Gu Xiaoqi (Guan Xin) she interviews disguised as a man and manages to get hired.
The first third of the series is Lu Li being a male computer programmer who just wants to be near Yi Cheng. Lots of comedic situations including using the wrong rest room, a team bonding trip to a hot spring (with separate male and female bathing areas), and Yi Cheng being strangely attracted to another man.
Eventually her secret comes out and we go into phase 2 where Yi Cheng's parents think he's finally found a girl he likes so they force them to get married. Yi Cheng makes it a secret marriage and she moves in with him and stays in a separate room. Enter a complication: Yi Cheng's first love Li Man (Joy Sheng) who also betrayed his company three years ago. Li Man wants to reconcile with Yi Cheng but he in return doesn't care and is even forced to reveal he's married to Li Man.
But because Yi Cheng and Li Man keep hanging out together and because she deviously puts doubts in Lu Li's mind, eventually Lu Li decides that her one-sided love and dedication to Yi Cheng will get her nowhere so she asks for a divorce and moves to another city (and she's pregnant with Yi Cheng's child but doesn't tell him).
In phase 3 Lu Li gets a job as network admin (making it hard for Yi Cheng to find her as he expects her to go into game programming like her old job). Lu Li is pursued by the owner Lu Zhengguo (Wang Weihua) who turns out was a classmate of Yi Cheng and their companies have a partnership for a movie so they eventually find each other again at a business dinner. Now Yi Cheng tries to win Lu Li back, who is hesitant because she wants to make sure he's not in love from regret, pity, or make up for being a bad husband.
Eventually he does win her back and they have a VR wedding. There are three other couples that form from various subplots. The End.
The first third is really good and the second third is fine. The last third is a bit weak because Yi Cheng pursing Lu Li does not come off as romantic. The other romantic subplots were kind of uninteresting. I feel let down by the last third of the series. Overall below average but the first third is quite good.