{"id":182549,"date":"2019-01-16T19:32:57","date_gmt":"2019-01-17T00:32:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/chinese-web-series\/"},"modified":"2025-06-02T12:04:05","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T16:04:05","slug":"chinese-web-series","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/chinese\/chinese-web-series\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Best Chinese Web Series for Learning Mandarin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Non-English web series are becoming hugely popular around the world. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/chinese\/best-chinese-movies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Netflix has quite the variety<\/a>\u00a0of foreign films and series, and Asian media streaming websites like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.polygon.com\/2017\/2\/10\/14567090\/crunchyroll-subscriber-count-2017\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Crunchyroll<\/a> now have millions of members worldwide.<\/p>\n<p>Chinese web series specifically are great resources to keep on hand through your language learning journey. And to make things even easier for you, we&#8217;ve put together a list of 10 awesome shows to get started.\u00a0<br \/>\n[fluentu-toc]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<h2>1. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/30705c-addicted?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u4e0a\u763e&#8221; (Addicted)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"l74SxoKWgbs\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>This intense and emotional romantic drama is a rare treat in Chinese media. The show explores a relationship between two young men who are soon to be brothers by marriage. Unfortunately, the show was not renewed for a second season. Regardless, this is a beautiful and heartwrenching series that shines a light on some aspects of LGBTQ+ life in China today.<\/p>\n<p>This series currently features English subtitles on Viki (according to commenters, Chinese subtitles are being worked on) and <strong>would benefit beginner or intermediate learners looking to improve their listening skills<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>2. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/32827c-nirvana-in-fire-2?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u7405\u740a\u699c\u4e4b\u98ce\u8d77\u957f\u6797&#8221; (Nirvana in Fire II)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"_kkgCxVLqP4\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>This historical drama web series follows the lives of various royals and nobles during the Liang Dynasty in China. It&#8217;s a series dense with betrayal, drama, romance, vengeance and action. Definitely something just about anybody would love to watch. Plus, you get a little dose of Chinese history in the mix as well.<\/p>\n<p>This series currently has English subtitles on Viki, but much of the dialogue is spoken quickly, so <strong>advanced or intermediate learners would likely benefit<\/strong> from &#8220;Nirvana in Fire II.&#8221; Try turning off the subtitles altogether and keeping up with the fast-paced dialogue.<\/p>\n<h2>3. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/35557c-the-eternal-love?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u53cc\u4e16\u5ba0\u5983&#8221; (Eternal Love)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"nNtQONmbJdc\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>The Chinese love their historical dramas and romances. And why not? Many of these historical features are incredibly visually stunning as well as educational. &#8220;The Eternal Love&#8221; is no different.<\/p>\n<p>This series is definitely on the fantasy side of things, as the main character Qu Tan Er is possessed by the spirit of another woman after she attempts suicide to avoid an arranged marriage to the man she doesn&#8217;t love. What ensues is a strange and dramatic story with an ending that no one can predict.<\/p>\n<p>This English-subtitled series features easy-to-follow dialogue, so <strong>beginners, check this one out!<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>4. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/31583c-my-amazing-boyfriend?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u6211\u7684\u5947\u5999\u7537\u53cb&#8221; (My Amazing Boyfriend)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"_wGQlvMVIXI\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>This slice-of-life fantasy series is a unique one. In &#8220;My Amazing Boyfriend,&#8221; a young actress must share her home with the otherworldly spirit she has accidentally awakened from a long slumber.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s definitely a cheesy romance series, but it&#8217;ll grow on you even if that&#8217;s not your cup of tea.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;My Amazing Boyfriend&#8221; is available on Viki with Chinese and English subtitles, so <strong>all levels of learner can benefit from watching this series<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>5. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/pk\/title\/81354739\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u81f4\u6211\u4eec\u5355\u7eaf\u7684\u5c0f\u7f8e\u597d&#8221; (A Love So Beautiful)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"ReRLQ9GN2iQ\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>This romance series follows the antics of Chen Xiaoxi, a young aloof woman obsessed with dating her apparently uninterested and kind of indifferent neighbor.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A Love So Beautiful&#8221; has both English and Chinese subtitles on Netflix and the dialogue is fairly easy to follow, so <strong>any learner could improve their language skills by watching<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>6. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/32025c-the-starry-night-the-starry-sea?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u90a3\u7247\u661f\u7a7a\u90a3\u7247\u6d77&#8221; (The Starry Night, The Starry Sea)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"srHdaEwFYCw\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;ve got quite a few fantasy series on this list, but China just keeps making great ones worthy of binge-watching!<\/p>\n<p>This fantasy series called &#8220;The Starry Night, The Starry Sea&#8221; is about a woman who decides to relocate to a small island town to care for her sick grandfather. Surprisingly enough, she encounters a merman prince looking to maintain his immortality.<\/p>\n<p>This series has simultaneous Chinese and English subtitles on YouTube, making it <strong>a great show to watch if you&#8217;re trying to improve your reading and live translating skills<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>7. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/30084c-the-mystic-nine\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u8001\u4e5d\u95e8&#8221; (The Mystic Nine)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"Ilfhu09Y36A\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>A group of families with mystical powers band together to protect their sacred and magical city. Think Chinese-style steampunk meets historical action-adventure.<\/p>\n<p>There are English subtitles, but the quickly spoken dialogue, often with more than one person speaking at once, makes this <strong>challenging enough for advanced learners to watch<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>8. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/31618c-princess-agents\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u695a\u55ac\u50b3&#8221; (Princess Agents)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"XQ9RJkru6T8\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>In the midst of a civil war, a young peasant begins training to essentially become a medieval secret agent. This show is super dramatic and packed with action. Plus, the English subtitles and simple dialogue make it <strong>accessible to all Mandarin students<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>9. <a href=\"https:\/\/mydramalist.com\/23674-tientsin-mystic\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u6cb3\u795e&#8221; (River God a.k.a. Tientsin Mystic)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"egtvJ8Gs3dg\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>This fantasy adventure series has a dark edge to it. In a bizarre river town, a cop tries to stay on the tail of an evil being, who appears to be some kind of ultra-powerful witch, in order to save his home and the people he cares for.<\/p>\n<p>With English and Chinese subtitles and easy-to-follow dialogue, this show is definitely <strong>for anybody wanting to learn Chinese<\/strong> and watch some spooky crime thrillers.<\/p>\n<h2>10. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.viki.com\/tv\/35663c-medical-examiner-dr-qin?locale=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">&#8220;\u6cd5\u533b\u79e6\u660e&#8221; (Medical Examiner Dr. Qin)<\/a><\/h2>\n<p><lite-youtube videoid=\"-0MF90jZaGg\"><\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n<p>Even China jumped on the hospital drama bandwagon. &#8220;Medical Examiner Dr. Qin&#8221; follows a forensic doctor and his fellow investigators as they attempt to solve violent crimes, usually murders with mysterious circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>This show has English subtitles. While it requires quite a bit of listening, it&#8217;s still <strong>simple enough for beginners to watch and benefit from.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Can I Learn Mandarin with Chinese Web Series?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Watching films and series in Chinese, with or without subtitles, can help improve fluency.<\/strong> Listening, comprehension and reading skills are all things that can be vastly improved by watching Chinese media. Advanced learners can benefit from watching Chinese shows without subtitles to improve listening skills and beginner or intermediate students can benefit from watching Chinese shows with subtitles.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Watching Chinese series can introduce Mandarin learners to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/chinese\/best-chinese-songs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">modern Chinese culture<\/a> or Chinese history.<\/strong> When one learns a new language, it&#8217;s important to try to understand the culture behind the language. Not only is this an ethical choice that shows respect for the complex nature of the real people connected to the language, but getting a grasp on a particular culture can improve one&#8217;s contextual skills and fluency in the respective language.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Adding some leisurely TV-watching time can help make learning the language fun.<\/strong> Sitting with your lessons, notes, lectures, courses and worksheets is vital to learning Chinese, but it also gets boring really fast. Adding something fun like an episode or two of a Chinese web series into your daily study routine is a great way to keep learning and relax at the same time. Even if you add some clips like the kind you&#8217;ll find on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/chinese\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FluentU<\/a>, you&#8217;ll be gaining a powerful learning tool. <p><strong>FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\n<p>You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download <a href=\"https:\/\/apps.apple.com\/us\/app\/fluentu-learn-language-videos\/id917892175\">the iOS app<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.fluentflix.fluentu&amp;hl=en&amp;gl=US\">Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n<p><i><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\r\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/NativeAd-Chinese.jpg\" alt=\"FluentU Ad\" \/>\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center\">\r\n    <button class=\"btn-blue\" style=\"border: none;font-size: 18px;text-align: center;padding: 0.75rem 1.5rem;cursor: pointer\">\r\n      Try FluentU for FREE!\r\n    <\/button>\r\n  <\/p>\r\n<\/a>\r\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So the short answer is&#8230; yes, watching Chinese web series can help you learn Chinese!<\/p>\n<p>Are you ready to binge-watch some of these seriously addicting Chinese web series?<\/p>\n<p>We suggest taking notes along the way, especially if you encounter unfamiliar or difficult words in any of these shows&#8217; dialogues.<\/p>\n<p>Good luck, and don&#8217;t forget to give your eyes a break here and there.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><span data-sheets-root=\"1\"><h2>And One More Thing...<\/h2>\r\n<p>\r\nIf you want to continue learning Chinese with interactive and authentic Chinese content, <a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">then you'll love FluentU<\/a>.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<p>\r\nFluentU naturally eases you into learning Chinese language. Native Chinese content comes within reach, and you'll learn Chinese as it's spoken in real life.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<p>\r\nFluentU has a wide range of contemporary videos\u2014like dramas, TV shows, commercials and music videos.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<div id=\"attachment_12840\" style=\"width: 330px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12840\" class=\" wp-image-12840 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Chinese-5.png\" alt=\"learn-mandarin-chinese-with-videos\" width=\"320\" height=\"568\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-12840\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/chinese\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FluentU App Browse Screen<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n<p>\r\n<strong>FluentU brings these native Chinese videos within reach via interactive captions.<\/strong> You can tap on any word to instantly look it up. All words have carefully written definitions and examples that will help you understand how a word is used. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<div id=\"attachment_12843\" style=\"width: 330px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12843\" class=\"wp-image-12843 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Chinese-6.png\" alt=\"learn-mandarin-chinese-with-subtitled-song-and-music-videos\" width=\"320\" height=\"568\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-12843\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/chinese\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Interactive Transcripts on FluentU<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n<p>\r\nFluentU's <strong>Learn Mode<\/strong> turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you're learning.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<div id=\"attachment_12844\" style=\"width: 330px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12844\" class=\"wp-image-12844 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Chinese-7.png\" alt=\"practice-mandarin-chinese-with-adaptive-quizzes\" width=\"320\" height=\"568\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-12844\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/chinese\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FluentU Has Quizzes for Every Video<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n<p>\r\nThe best part is that FluentU always keeps track of your vocabulary. It customizes quizzes to focus on areas that need attention and reminds you when it\u2019s time to review what you\u2019ve learned. <strong> You have a 100% personalized experience. <\/strong>\r\n<\/p>\r\n<p>\r\nStart using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. <a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a>\r\n<\/p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Non-English web series are becoming hugely popular around the world. Netflix has quite the variety\u00a0of foreign films and series, and Asian media streaming websites like Crunchyroll now have millions of&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":558,"featured_media":182550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"10 Best Chinese Web Series for Learning Mandarin | FluentU Chinese Blog","description":"Chinese web series can break your heart, entertain your eyes and teach you Mandarin, too! Some of these shows originally aired on Chinese cable television, with a big enough following online that we consider them worthy of this web series list. Start streaming one of these 10 series today."},"footnotes":""},"categories":[724,732,734],"tags":[],"coauthors":[218],"class_list":["post-182549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chinese","category-chinese-resources","category-video-chinese-resources"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/182549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/558"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=182549"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/182549\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":254165,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/182549\/revisions\/254165"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/182550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=182549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=182549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=182549"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=182549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}