- Title: The Magical Women
- Also Known As: 灿烂的转身, Can Lan De Zhuan Shen, Sister’s Counterattack, Jie Jie De Fan Ji, The Magic Women
- Director: Chen Chang
- Casts: Qin Lan, Deng Jia Jia
- Genres: Romance, Drama
- Country: China
- Type: Drama
- Episodes: 20
- Year: 2023
- Original Network: iQiyi
- Where to Watch: iQiyi
Hola readers… This is a review article of The Magical Women, a 20-episode and one of new Chinese dramas released in April 2023. I watched this drama while I’m waiting for The Ingenious One drama and The Love You Give Me drama to end. The Magical Women was the kind of drama that I usually avoided. But not this time, wonder why? Let’s find out!
By the way, I wrote The Magical Women ending explained too, you can check it if you want to know how this drama ended.
So let’s jump to the review, but first, let me tell you about the synopsis. Happy reading! 😉
The Magical Women Synopsis
Every woman would envy Su Fei. She had everything that every woman would ask for, good looks, a good career, a good salary, a good family, a good daughter, and a very good husband. Yan Wei Lun could be considered as an ideal husband. He had good communication with Su Fei. He was passionate in bed and compassionate in daily life. Yan Wei Lun would cook for her, take care of all her needs, and most importantly, a father material. His bonding with Yan You Ran, their daughter was terrific.
Su Fei’s perfect world started to fall apart when her instinct told her that her perfect husband was cheating on her. The big question started to hover above her head. Did he really cheat on her? The universe seemed to respond to her question. In a fateful meeting, she met a woman who helped her see the truth.
An Ning was a single mother with a son named An Kang. In contrast to Su Fei, An Ning’s life was harder. She had to raise her son alone and at the same time run away from her son’s father. She used to work as a truck driver and in the end, got a job to work as Su Fei’s driver. At her son’s kindergarten, An Ning got to know Su Luo. He was An Kang’s teacher who turned out to be Su Fei’s younger brother.
Their friendship blossomed and in no time they had become supporters of each other. An Ning helped Su Fei to go through the hardest time of her life. Meanwhile, Su Fei helped An Ning to gather her life back. Through thick and thin, they learned what kind of men Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin were. Su Fei and An Ning worked together to show Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin that they were strong women who could not be stepped on easily.
The Magical Women Review
It was a sunny Saturday morning when I chose to watch Magical Women. I was browsing my iQiyi app, looking for something to watch that day. I did not recognize the actress’ name, but I remembered the director’s name. It hasn’t been long since I watched Nothing But You drama so I recognized Chen Chang right away.
Chen Chang was a Chinese director specializing in modern-day drama. Aside from Nothing But You, I also watched his other dramas such as Zhao Lu Si’s Dating in the Kitchen and Luo Yunxi’s Lie to Love. And I was enthralled by them.
So without even caring to check the synopsis, I clicked on Magical Women and my sunny Saturday turned gloomy. Why on earth did I choose a drama that tells a story about a cheating husband? On a beautiful sunny Saturday? I even made a cup of coffee to enjoy it. 😩 I do realize that I could drop this drama anytime I wanted. But, I could not do it because my eyes were glued to the screen.
This drama’s story was enticing. I wanted to know what would happen to those scumbag men and what would happen to the women. I felt this exact same feeling a few years ago when I watched Kdrama’s World of the Marriage. I hate the story but I watched it anyway. And now I feel like I have fallen into the same rabbit hole.
I rarely watch iQiyi’s original drama. But I just found two of its dramas were good. The last time was Echo drama, it was a mystery drama and the story was enthralling. I wondered whether the other iQiyi’s original dramas were as good as Echo and Magical Women. Do you have any title suggestions for me, dear readers?
Anyway, back to the drama. There was a line from Su Fei, one of our main leads in this drama that I need to quote here. She said, “We, women should be good to ourselves.” The women in this drama were suffering from either bad husbands or bad lovers.
They had traded their sincerity and love for a bunch of humiliation and broken hearts. And in Ding Man Man’s case, a lot of money. Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin were men with good looks, and good attitudes, but greedy hearts. Thankfully the antagonist was only them, or else I would run out of curses for them…😅
Everything comes in pairs like yin and yang. Although we saw Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin, there was also the cute Su Luo, the foodie Yang Kai, and the smart Shi Shang Fei. My favorite one was Shi Shang Fei, played by Zhang Tian Yang. You would remember him as Chen Shao Shang’s third uncle, Cheng Zhi.
I love his character in Love Like the Galaxy because Cheng Zhi was such a goofy husband. In The Magical Women, he played Fei Shang’s CTO who was a very good programmer but bad at human interaction much less in business negotiations. He was funny when he interacted with his love interest.😆
Our main roles, Qin Lan and Deng Jia Jia, were veteran actresses with impressive filmography. They played their characters well in this drama. However, in my opinion, the chemistry was a little lacking. Su Fei and An Ning were supposed to be very close friends, although at the office Su Fei was An Ning’s superior.
However, I did not feel the best friend aura between them. In my opinion, they should be amicable like Xu Hong Dou and Da Mai in the Meet Yourself drama. Or they should have a very close bonding just like Liu Jing, Fang Xin, and Xia Meng in the 2021 drama, Delicious Romance. However, Su Fei and An Ning were just like best friends at work, someone who would get a warm greeting from you and share a good laugh or hardships on weekdays.
But neither of you would hear from each other on weekends since both of you have a different circle of friends or different activities. But I feel a good chemistry between Su Fei and her boss, Shi Shang Fei. I thought that they would end up together, but then I had to swallow my disappointment. ☹️
The supporting role, on the contrary, was excellent. I hated how annoying Yang Kai was, but in the way he annoyed me showed that he portrayed his character in the right way. My favorite was the child actor, Lennon Sun who acted as An Kang, he was adorable, and Co Co Chen who acted as Yan You Ran who did a very, very good job. She used to act as Ran Dong Dong and Mu Da Fu’s daughter in Echo. Yet, she showed her power in this drama. This little girl was amazing!👍
Cdramaland has always impressed me. Recently I was overwhelmed with dramas that pictured a perfect partner as the one who had a good look, a good attitude, and a fat bank account. And suddenly, The Magical Women provided me with the foodie Yang Kai. He was nowhere near the ideal characters. Yang Kai was not a very handsome man and his habits were very annoying. Plus he was a cheapskate.
For example, he dictated to you about how to eat hot pots at a lunch meeting. When you had another meal with him, he would forcefully put the sauce in your bowl. Only because he said that would make the food more delicious. I, personally, hated those kinds of attitudes. But Yang Kai was sincere towards Su Fei. No matter how cruel she was to him, whenever Su Fei met with hardships, Yang Kai would always be there to help and support her. How could you not fall in love with that kind of person?
The Magical Women’s story gave me a good impression. A mother should be strong for their children. A lover should be loyal and sincere. A good friend should be there to support each other. When the world treats you with lemon, you should make lemonade out of it. There was always someone else who would happily drink it with you.
The Cinematography
Unlike Nothing But You which was full of small details, The Magical Women offered nothing special about the set. It is the same as other modern-day dramas. The offices were modern and tidy, the apartments were nicely decorated and homely, the mansions were luxurious, and the café looked cozy. I really have no special impression on this aspect ☹️.
Meanwhile, I like the way the directors shot the scene. The Magical Women might not seem like a high-budget drama. However, Cheng Chan provided us with good lighting, good angles, and good editing. I might not catch a lot of details in this drama, but so far The Magical Women was quite a good production.👍
The costumes were okay, nothing special about it. But the makeup was a bit irritating. I would love to see a no-make-up make-up look when the characters are at home. A slightly disheveled hair or crinkled clothes at home. But Su Fei and An Ning always had perfect hair and make-up, even An Ning did not have a crinkled t-shirt after she rode a motorcycle. I realized that this was a drama, everything was superficial but I like to see something that resembles normal life.😉
The Story
The story begins with the good life of Su Fei and she is the focus of the drama for the first half of the series. Meanwhile, An Ning’s life would slowly unfold and it became the focus of the second half of the drama. However, the screenwriter wrote the story in a very smooth way. You might realize that the focus was solely on one person, but underneath, they were prepared to introduce us to the next person.
Yan Wei Lun and his daughter Yan You Ran had a very good relationship and had a strong bond. That was a contrast with Su Fei and Yan You Ran’s relationship. Su Fei was always busy with work and she had little talent in cooking and housework. So everything in her house was arranged by Yan Wei Lun.
He would cook breakfast for them in the morning, drove Yan You Ran to school, and picked her up. He would also prepare dinner. And in the evening, provided a warm bed for his wife. Yan Wei Lun also treated Su Fei nicely so Yan You Ran always thought that she was blessed with a perfect family.
An Ning, on the other hand, used to be a mistress. She fell in love with Pang Xin but when she learned that he already had a family, she left with the baby in her womb. Years later, Pang Xin learned that An Kang was his son and he tried to make An Ning return to him so he could raise An Kang as his son. Pang Xin had done a lot of things to make An Ning change her mind. He paid ransom when An Kang was kidnapped and took a stab to protect An Ning. Nobody would say that Pang Xin did not love his son.
However, nothing was perfect in this world, far less in dramaland. Behind his perfect façade, Yan Wei Lun wanted a wife and a young and rich mistress at the same time. It was the same as Pang Xin who wanted a perfect life with his Ivy League wife and daughter but also wanted to have a beautiful mistress and a son. Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin were greedy scumbags. And when they could not have what they wanted, those men showed their true colors. 🤬
I cursed a lot when I watched this drama…I wondered whether the scriptwriter also cursed when he/she wrote about those scumbags?
The Magical Women emphasized the strength of a woman. Su Fei was strong because she dared to walk away from her marriage. While An Ning was strong because she chose to raise her son alone. Both of them had other options for themselves. Su Fei could pretend to not know about Yan Wei Lun’s affair for the sake of their daughter’s happiness.
An Ning could take Pang Xin’s offer so she could have enough money to send her son to the best school and provide him with a good home. But Su Fei and An Ning chose to ignore those options because they believed in themselves and at the same time respected their lives. They chose the hard way instead of the easy way. The strength to do that was something not every woman has. It was the magic thing that Su Fei and An Ning had.
The good men around Su Fei and An Ning were quite out of the box. They were the opposite of Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin’s persona. For example, Yan Wei Lun was a dashing man with perfect abs while Yang Kai was a mediocre man who thought that he was a handsome man. Pang Xin was a mature man but Su Luo was a childish and immature man. However, Yang Kai and Su Luo had something that Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin did not have: loyalty and sincerity.
Ding Man Man was the other woman in Su Fei’s marriage. She was An Ning’s best friend but they became estranged since An Ning found out that Ding Man Man had been Yan Wei Lun’s mistress. Ding Man Man was a self-absorbed person. She never paid attention to others and was a hot-tempered girl.
There was a funny scene when Yan Wei Lun and Ding Man Man met Su Fei and Yang Kai at the café. They wanted to show off their relationship to Su Fei but in the end, Yang Kai humiliated them by addressing them as ex-husband and ex-mistress. At that time, it was the first time Yang Kai met Su Fei to talk about their business. But at that time, he was willing to help Su Fei.
The children were also a big aspect on Su Fei and An Ning’s life. Yan You Ran was a spoiled little princess who always got what she wanted. She refused to accept her parents’ divorce and Su Fei could not explain the details of her divorce. Su Fei only vaguely said that Yan Wei Lun had done an unforgivable thing, so they had to divorce.
Yan You Ran believed that it was Su Fei who refused to forgive her father and blame her for it. She said many hurtful words to her mother while Su Fei also drowned in her sorrow. In this case, I really want to blame Su Fei. She could have a divorce, that was her choice and she knew exactly what were the consequences.
But how could she not think about her daughter? At least she could go to a child psychologist or family counselor. There were many options for seeking help so she could mend a relationship with her daughter, but Su Fei was too busy with her world. And I’m really disappointed with her in this aspect.
An Kang on the other hand, was too perfect for a 4-year-old boy. He was so considerate of his mother and their condition. And he rarely had a tantrum (this was a 20-episode drama and the only tantrum I could remember was because he refused to move out of Ding Man Man’s apartment). An Ning barely had a problem with her son while Su Fei barely had a peaceful time with her daughter. In this crazy world, I found the latter more familiar…🤨
I would not talk about the business aspect. Even though the story revolved around the business world, the way Yan Wei Lun and Pang Xin used their power to suppress Su Fei and An Ning seemed more like a scheming game. The scriptwriter did not tell specific details about the business world. Therefore, I found it was a bit lacking.
There were many loopholes in this area. Let me say when Fei Shang’s application Haidong was to collaborate with Gentleman Tribe, a dating platform belonged to Yang Kai’s company. It happened in a flash. Well, it shouldn’t be that quick, wasn’t it? However, Shi Shang Fei was amazingly good so he could write the program quickly and they were able to release the update in no time.
Or another example was when Pang Xin had to step out of his position and hand over his job to his wife. It was beyond my comprehension so I assumed that his wife was more powerful than him, probably because her family was a prominent one.
Well… Even though the story had many flaws, I was enjoying Yang Kai’s foodie moments. I was baffled by his red heart pot. Man, he was such a tacky person…😅 Although his hot pot lunch was a bit unacceptable since I prefer to eat hot pot at night. However, as a foodie myself, I could not resist the temptation.
I’m going to try Yang Kai’s advice when he taught Su Fei how to eat hot pot. Yang Kai said that the first slice of meat should not be dipped in the sauce because you should try the freshness of the meat. But the second slice of meat has to be dipped into the sauce. As a person who dipped every slice of meat I had, I think it’s worth trying. 😉
The Characters
Su Fei
Su Fei (played by Qin Lan) was a clear-headed person. She was able to distinguish between right and wrong. Su Fei was also a decisive woman who did not hesitate to find a cruel way to have a clean break with her husband. She was very good at concealing her emotions. Although some minor expressions could be seen sometimes, the poker face was impeccable.
But Su Fei’s character was too rigid. But after she met Yang Kai, she was like a melting snow. She was annoyed by him, obviously, but she had more smiles on her face and she learned how to bend her will to cater to others, especially her daughter.
In her family, it was clear as day that Su Fei was the breadwinner. She worked very hard at Fei Shang as Shi Shang Fei’s subordinate/partner. Su Fei was a skilled communicator and businesswoman. Fei Shang’s business depended on her since she was the only one who handled all the negotiations with investors.
However, when it came to Yan You Ran, she seemed to have lost all her ability to communicate. Her guilt towards her daughter was crystal clear. Su Fei could not explain clearly about her divorce so it left a huge question mark in Yan You Ran’s heart.
An Ning
An Ning (played by Deng Jia Jia) was a very strong person. Not only physically but mentally too. An Ning was young and talented at sports. Yet, she had to drop out of her university because she was pregnant out of wedlock. She did not come from a well-off family. Therefore, she had to work hard to provide for her son, An Kang.
As a mother An Ning had done her part very well. Her bonding with An Kang was superb. She always made sure of his safety and well-being. Although she was often late to pick him up due to work, An Kang did not seem to mind. He knew exactly that his mother did not do it intentionally. His trust in An Ning was unshakable.
Even though she seemed strong from the outside. An Ning was tired of her life. Her situation has always put her on guard against the world. When a nice and kind person like Su Luo came into her life, she was attracted to him. However, An Ning knew that her life was too complicated for the simple Su Luo. So she used the cruelest way to make him leave. But, unfortunately, she was late to realize that he already occupied a part of her heart.
Yan Wei Lun
Yan Wei Lun (played by Johnny Zhang) was a terrible lover but a good father. He was a two-faced greedy man who wanted his family and mistress at the same time. Yan Wei Lun was a proud man. Even though he cheated on Su Fei, Yan Wei Lun believed that Su Fei would not divorce him. Yan Wei Lun thought that Su Fei relied on him for household chores and she knew how strong his bond with Yan You Ran was.
When Su Fei disclosed his unfaithfulness and humiliated him in front of his friends and colleagues, he got angry and held a grudge against Su Fei. He used all his means to drag her down but never realized that he had never moved on from her. And I believe that what he felt towards Ding Man Man was not real love.
Pang Xin
Pang Xin (played by Bao Jian Feng) was a wealthy businessman. His company was the main investor in the Haidong app. He had a gentle appearance, but in reality, he was a cunning man.
He did not hesitate to use all his power to put pressure on An Ning because he wanted to take over An Kang’s custody. Pang Xin had a wife and daughter who spent most of their time abroad.
Su Luo
Su Luo (played by Sun Ning) was Su Fei’s younger brother. He worked at a kindergarten where An Kang went to school. He was fond of children and immediately fell in love with An Kang and his mother, An Ning.
Su Luo was a simple man who loved motorcycles. Although he seemed gentle and meek, he was as stubborn as Su Fei. He never let go of something he liked, no matter what it took.
Yang Kai
Yang Kai (played by Wu Xiao Liang), the foodie, was the CEO next door. He worked on a dating platform named Gentlemen Tribe (seriously???😱). Although he looked foolish, Yang Kai was a good strategist. He was good with words and combined with his shamelessness, no one could beat him including Su Fei.
Yang Kai was an efficient and detailed person. He moved fast toward Su Fei so that she could not reject him because he did not fear being scolded when he was pestering her. Yang Kai was not a handsome person and his body might not be as good as Yan Wei Lun, but he had two things that Yan Wei Lun never had: loyalty and sincerity
The Conclusions
If I think for a second time, The Magical Women’s story was quite cliché. There was nothing special about the sets or the costumes. However, I was impressed by the visuals and the way they stitched the story was captivating. I could not tear my eyes from the screen because I wanted to know what would happen next.
The Magical Women drama is not a story that would make your weekend happy. So I would not recommend this story when you need a good laugh. But if you need to vent your anger or amplify the fury, go for it.
Bring the food from the fridge, as much as you can, to your bed/couch/whatever. Close the door, don’t let the children in. This was not a good example to let them hear you curse. And when you are finish, you will feel some satisfaction and also feel a little bit stronger than before. Trust me, because that’s what I feel… 😉
Happy watching, dear readers!
