# Smile Code (失笑)
**Smile Code** (失笑) is a 2024 Chinese urban romantic comedy television series directed by Che Liangyi (车亮逸) and starring [Lin Yi](https://www.edgepedia.org/lin-yi) and Shen Yue, adapted from Zu Le's (祖乐) novel of the same name, also translated as *Lost Laughter*. It follows Gu Yi, a part-time stand-up comedian in Shanghai, and Liang Daiwen, an audience member who cannot laugh because he has alexithymia, a difficulty processing and expressing emotions.[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) • [2](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/smile-code/umc.cmc.3wfs0wh20k8clvciy6kl9gr6s)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 失笑, also released as Smile Code[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) |
| Premiere | 8 November 2024 on Tencent Video, with five episodes released at launch[4](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2024/1110/392824.shtml) |
| Format | 34 episodes of about 45 minutes each; drama and comedy genres, Mandarin Chinese[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) |
| Source | Adapted from the novel 失笑 by Zu Le[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) |
| Leads | Shen Yue as Gu Yi, Lin Yi as Liang Daiwen[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) |
| Central premise | A comedian tries to make an audience member with alexithymia, or "emotional blindness", smile[2](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/smile-code/umc.cmc.3wfs0wh20k8clvciy6kl9gr6s) |
| Douban score | 6.8 from 32,915 user ratings[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Gu Yi (顾逸, played by Shen Yue) is a migrant worker in Shanghai who holds a day job and performs stand-up comedy at night. She has no grand ambitions; her stated goal is simply to make every member of her audience laugh. One night a man named Liang Daiwen (梁代文, played by Lin Yi) sits in the front row, and neither her jokes nor her audience interaction can make him smile. Frustrated, she vows to win his laughter, and the two gradually get to know each other and fall in love.[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) • [5](https://wetv.vip/zh-cn/play/3nqij2xfc6qfcvb/b4100t25sc9-Smile_Code_5%ED%9A%8C)
The obstacle is deeper than a mismatched sense of humor. As Gu Yi comes to know Daiwen, she learns that he has alexithymia, a condition that makes it difficult for him to process or express any emotions despite his best efforts.[2](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/smile-code/umc.cmc.3wfs0wh20k8clvciy6kl9gr6s) The series frames their relationship as mutual healing: the two characters help each other recover from emotional wounds while navigating work pressures in Shanghai, and a supporting group of young professionals gathers at Ounce Bar, where stand-up routines about urban working life provide comic relief.[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
### Cast and characters
- Shen Yue as Gu Yi, the stand-up comedian[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
- Lin Yi as Liang Daiwen, the audience member with alexithymia[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
- Ye Xiaowei as Xu Guanrui[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
- Tian Ai as Guan Xingxin[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
- Zou Tingwei as Yu Dule[1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
- Supporting cast including Zhao Haiyan, Yang Ziyan, Fang Zibin, Han Ye, and Sun Kai[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) • [1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
## Production and release
The series was directed by Che Liangyi from screenplays by Li Peisheng, Liu Qian, and [Xu Jie](https://www.edgepedia.org/xu-jie), and produced in mainland China.[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) • [1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) It premiered on [Tencent Video](https://www.edgepedia.org/tencent-video) on the evening of 8 November 2024, with five episodes uploaded at launch, and ran for 34 episodes.[4](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2024/1110/392824.shtml) • [3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8) International distribution followed on WeTV, Viki, Viu, Netflix, Apple TV, and Prime Video, among other services.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/ph/tv-show/smile-code) On Rakuten Viki the show carries English, Hungarian, German, and other subtitles, and holds a 9.1 viewer score from 13,384 ratings on that platform.[7](https://www.viki.com/tv/40772c-smile-code?locale=zt)
## Reception
On Douban the series holds a 6.8 rating from 32,915 users, with 33.2 percent of raters giving three stars, 24.6 percent four stars, and 21.4 percent five stars; the site places it above 67 percent of drama titles and 65 percent of comedy titles by its rating comparison.[3](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8)
Chinese critics were less favorable. A review published two days after the premiere argued that the plot was formulaic, describing the male lead as a familiar cold, successful CEO-type figure and the female lead as a stock office-worker character, and contending that the stand-up material itself, the element that should have been the show's highlight, was weakly written.[4](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2024/1110/392824.shtml) A commentary in The Paper (澎湃新闻) similarly judged that the script used stand-up comedy mainly as a decorative device linking the two leads rather than as the substance of the story, with the main plot consisting of what it called childish sweet-romance plotting.[8](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_29482402)
## Context
Smile Code belongs to a wave of mainland Chinese urban romance dramas that build their premise around a specific psychological trait, in this case a male lead with alexithymia, and around contemporary work life, with stand-up comedy as the female lead's profession and the setting for the couple's first encounters.[2](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/smile-code/umc.cmc.3wfs0wh20k8clvciy6kl9gr6s) • [1](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/) Its reception illustrates the split that such premises can produce: strong engagement from international streaming audiences, and criticism from domestic commentators who judged the execution against the novelty of the setup.[7](https://www.viki.com/tv/40772c-smile-code?locale=zt) • [4](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2024/1110/392824.shtml)
## References
1. [Smile Code – Chinese Drama 2024, CPOP HOME](https://www.cpophome.com/smile-code-lin-yi-shen-yue/)
2. [Smile Code, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/smile-code/umc.cmc.3wfs0wh20k8clvciy6kl9gr6s)
3. [失笑 (2024), Douban](https://movie.douban.com/subject/36217889/?tag=%E7%83%AD%E9%97%A8)
4. [《失笑》首播，剧情老套内容有硬伤, 电影界 (2024-11-10)](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2024/1110/392824.shtml)
5. [失笑 第5集, WeTV](https://wetv.vip/zh-cn/play/3nqij2xfc6qfcvb/b4100t25sc9-Smile_Code_5%ED%9A%8C)
6. [Smile Code – watch tv show streaming online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/ph/tv-show/smile-code)
7. [失笑, Rakuten Viki](https://www.viki.com/tv/40772c-smile-code?locale=zt)
8. [脱口秀很火，但脱口秀电视剧慎拍, 澎湃新闻](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_29482402)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › East Asian drama series › East Asian web and streaming serials › Titles My to So*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license