Love Like the Galaxy: Part 2 (2022)

this just in: zhao lusi hospitalised with severe backpains from carrying the entire cdrama industry

I make it no secret that ZLS is my favourite actress and i always watch every drama that she's in; I find a lot with her dramas she will always be its main saving grace that will make watching anything bearable.

I did not have to worry about that in this case.

PREMISE:
Cheng Shaosheng has grown up without a mother or father - they aren't dead, they just kind of, accidentally, maybe on purpose abandoned her and left her in the care of her abusive aunt and grandmother. Now that her parents are back, her mother is adamant on teaching her daughter how to be a proper lady.

Not exactly easy when you suddenly walk into your daughter's life fifteen years after abandoning her and are like "yeah, i'm gonna be a mother now".

Intricately woven through the story is SS connections to other characters; first is the seemingly cold and meticulous Ling Buyi - a general who has made a name for himself both on and off the battlefield as a fierce warrior and cunning war hero. His morals trump his feelings and often acts on what he believes is right, not what the law or his emperor say. Then Yuan Shanjian - a scholar who is well known in the capital for his brilliance and also his snide personality. His intelligence gives him this lofty air, but also this disconnect from being able to connect with people and his own emotions. Finally, baby boy Lou Yao - gentle, sweet, gullible but kind and genuinely a good person. He isn't stupid by any means, but naive and led by his feelings and his heart in the face of all reason.

While there are many, /many/ storylines in this drama, its main focal point is SS and LBY and their romance, the trials and tribulations that come with it and eventually overcoming all hurdles to be together.

OVERARCHING THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS DRAMA:
As stated in the beginning, I started this drama knowing nothing save for ZLS being in it and that was enough to sell me on it. This drama does have a more "rom-com"-esque feel about it the first ten episodes, but it never fully drops the comedy entirely; there are still funny scenes and I find most of them surround the palace life which is SUCH a breath of fresh air considering palace life is always shown as being dark, cruel and unliveable. Many stories and characters are connected to one another; characters you think are gone are not actually gone and come back, backstories of forgotten encounters, you name it. There wasn't really one constant flow of a main storyline save for the romance, but rather different ones being picked up, carried out and finished with and i am glad that we didn't get a constant storyline dragged out for a total of 56 episodes.

I will state that the show really shone and bumped itself up into a 9 star rating with the last ten episodes; LBY's own storyline, now that i reflect on it, had been peppered in so silently and subtly throughout the show once it was revealed i had to pause and be like "HOW THE HELL DID I MISS THAT OH MY GOD?!". The last ten episodes are honestly the BEST episodes out of the entire drama; that isn't to say the remaining previous ones are bad or boring, they were a delight and i enjoyed them greatly, but episode 46 onwards really just sucks you into the drama in a way that it wasn't able to before.

But what really made the show, was its characters.

THE CHARACTERS:
Cheng Shaosheng is a beautifully tragic yet also someone who has an indomitable human spirit. She's quite innocent and naive to begin with, playful, wilful and has learned to look out for herself since her paternal grandmother and her aunt have been abusive to her since being abandoned by her parents as a baby when they went out to fight their emperor's wars. This is an extremely important part to both the story and to SS character; without having ever felt loved or experienced kindness, SS is incredibly insecure. She chases after love yet is also afraid of it too. She wants it, but is scared that once she has it, she'll be abandoned like how her parents abandoned her. It's not that she believes she doesn't deserve love, it's just she believes she is simply unlucky that love is something that will always be unattainable to her in this life - because if even her own parents could abandon her, how could anyone else decide to stick around?

Because of a lack of any parental love or guidance and a formal education, SS isn't exactly the typical noble lady. She's crass, rude, arrogant, stubborn, informal and acts on her own accord without regard for other people. I don't see these as bad qualities, in fact i would say that these traits are foundations for her own growth and therefore are impossible to hate because she never crosses that line of being detestable or selfish. She's learning her way around this new world that was previously closed off to her and she approaches it like an excited child, but learns as much as there is good in the world, most of it is off limits due to her gender.

One important aspect that is consistently hammered in is that SS has learned to put and love herself first, but she still feels empty; one of the most important things to SS character is her endless desire to gain her mother's approval. I never really understood WHY Yuanyi was so harsh on her daughter; i know it said it was because she wanted her daughter to become a proper lady, but... it just never made sense. Yuanyi is a general's wife and also fought alongside him on the battlefield; if anything, she goes against what a noble lady should be. She continuously shuts down her daughter's desperate attempts to form a bond with her, tears down her self esteem and self worth so much so that SS internalises all of this and it results in her reiterating her mother's cruel and harsh words time and time again every time someone praises her or is kind to her.

That is why I first want to talk about her relationship to Empress Xuan before I talk about any other relationship in the show.

Maybe it's my own personal projection, but I saw a lot of myself in SS throughout the entirety of their relationship. EX is a mother who is not close to her children, be it because of propriety and rules of palace life, or because she recognises that they are cruel and shallow and do not care for their mother as they should. EX suffers with the realisation that she is not truly loved by anyone, though care as they might and her predicament is exactly like SS, which results in honestly the most heart wrenching and beautiful depictions of a mother-daughter relationship I've ever seen.

In EX, SS finds the mother she should have gotten and always deserved; the empress always empathises with SS, she reminds her of her better qualities instead of her worse ones, she's kind and caring, understanding and always quick to help SS with problems she doesn't understand, such as marriage and being filial. You can really see how much SS yearns for EX to be her mother and even despite not being biologically related, EX actually DOES become her mother, just as SS becomes her daughter. For EX, SS is the daughter she always should have had; SS is kind and attentive, she tries to make the empress happy with even the smallest of things, she seeks her wisdom and her advice and cares for her above all others, even LBY. In the midst of everyone scheming and these two women having little control over their fate, they find comfort and love where they never found it before. It's honestly got me emotion writing this because as little time as they got, the fact they got any time at all was a blessing enough.

Personally, my interpretation, is that the rift between Yuanyi and SS never fully heals once YY realises that SS has chosen EX over her and she recognises that another woman has taken her place as SS's mother. SS might now accept her mother's affections as YY might now decide to give them to her, but there's this sense that they will never have that mother and daughter bond that SS always wanted and YY was too late to give.

The importance of family/found family is also shown through LBY and his own arc.

Ling Buyi is presented as this archetypical main male lead character who is feared, cold and calculating but he's never really actually cruel; he has his own ambitions and his own view of what justice is and should be, and he does a lot to achieve this and I never found myself really disagreeing with him or being against his actions because the show took great lengths to get the audience to understand and empathise with him, which I found impossible not to do so. Like SS, LBY is unsure of how to love and be loved, therefore he stumbles a lot when he's pursuing SS; for most of it, he keeps his feelings silent because of missed opportunities that arise that prevent him from telling her his feelings and also would not be beneficial for him to tell her his feelings for her. In my own interpretation, I don't think LBY fully understood the scope of his feelings until a sudden snap realisation; he knew he cared for her, but it wasn't an instant love at first sight for SS, but rather a curiosity that stemmed into caring for her before making way for love.

I want to talk about LBY character first before his relationship with SS; as I stated before, the last ten episodes of the show are honestly the peak of the show. Before episode 46, I wasn't sure how I felt Leo Wu/LBY as a main character; i definitely didn't dislike him by any means. I think he did perfectly with the role that he was given considering LBY characterisation - someone who was suffering with major trauma and PTSD who learned to shut his emotions off from the world and himself, therefore not leaving Leo Wu much to work with outside of the many heart fluttering moments he has w SS during their honeymoon period.

However, once episode 46 hit I honestly can say I was completely and utterly blown away by LBY character arc in a sense that I've not felt since I watched the red wedding in game of thrones.

LBY is a deeply traumatised person who never got the chance to heal and recover and internalised all that he suffered until he met his breaking point. Episode 48 of this show is one of the best pieces of media that I have ever watched and Leo Wu put his entire Wussy into it. You could see every single thought and feeling coursing through LBY - the realisation that he finally achieved all that he wanted, and how empty it felt now that he had it. Watching him break into tears before laughing, switching from completely breaking down to an empty realisation that all that he did meant nothing, brokenly laughing at how many years he wasted and that it didn't fill that void as he thought it would. I remember watching that entire episode completely stunned by the performance given by Leo Wu, showing how LBY was simply an act to cover up the man he truly was - a man who lost everything and now the only thing keeping him going left him more empty than ever before. All his suffering and he received no solace in the end and ended up ruining his own chance at happiness and at a normal life. I literally cannot encapsulate the emotions that ran through me watching that scene of LBY finally confronting his demons, his past and the reason behind it all because there are no words to fathom my thoughts into writing at it all.

From that point on, LBY becomes this ghost of the man he was; you can sense the difference in his demeanour from who he was before and who he became, how empty he is once he realised that vengeance did not put old ghosts to rest and now he has to live the rest of his life with regrets, compared to before where it was only fuelled with rage. He becomes despondent, unattached, a shell who cares not if he lives or dies. It's truly heartbreaking because at the same time you can understand WHY he did it, you can empathise with him while also wondering why he couldn't just move on.

This leads to the problem that I have with SS and LBY relationship.

Before I talk about anything else, I want to talk about my problem with how SS, as much as she says she understands, isn't really capable of it, and it's down to her own trauma that prevents her from doing so. Considering what LBY was forced to go through especially at a young age, a lot of the time it's SS asking him to forget the past and choose the future with her while not understanding the immense amount of suffering and trauma that he has been struggling with since being forced to witness a genocide as a child. This stems from the difference in their traumas: SS begs LBY to let go of the past not because she knows it hurts him, but because she wants him to choose her, to love her, to not abandon her as her parents did, whereas LBY is unable to fulfil that because of the trauma he was forced to undergo and believing that only when he achieves justice that he will be able to give himself to SS wholeheartedly without forcing the burden of his own demons onto her. As much as SS states she does understand, I don't think she truly does because her own trauma makes her incapable of it since she is still stuck in that mindset that if she isn't number one in someone's heart, it means that she is not in their heart at all.

But I truly feel like their relationship was all the better for all that they went through; learning to trust one another and be open with one another, accepting the parts of each other that they believed unacceptable before. SS is terrified that once married, she will lose her identity as her own being and simply become LBY's wife, but he constantly reiterates to her that it will never happen and that he would never want to take away her freedom and her identity. SS constantly tries to make sure LBY understands she will not leave his side (until breaking point but let's ignore that) and she accepts every part of him, going with him to see his mother, comforting him when he feels helpless, defending him when everyone keeps saying he's cold and cruel. LBY fell first and he fell harder, but that doesn't diminish the scope of SS's own feelings - she loves him truly and deeply, to the point she would join him in the afterlife than be without him, but she never lets her love erase her own self of being and identity and LBY never makes her do so. The respect that they have for one another goes beyond what I've seen in other drama couples, and it was slowly built up over time and I have a feeling will last forever.

One other important aspect I want to talk about is the palace life and the relationship between Empress Xuan, Emperor Wen and Consort Yue Fei. Whereas other dramas might pit the two women against one another (the latter is the childhood sweetheart and first wife of the Emperor and the former is his official wife), there's nothing like that in this show. In fact, I honestly have to say all three people were the least toxic characters in the entire show. While EW and YF are childhood sweethearts, they are never cruel or callous the EX; EW is kind and caring to EX, but we know he does not love her in the way she wants, while YF continuously sees EX as a friend and even as a sister. True, EX is an outlier, watching YF and EW be in love and act like teenagers, but they actively never exclude her. They both deeply respect EX and care for her, even if they are unaware that their actions make EX feel alienated.

Also, I just want to say i love Emperor Wen. Like, i think he might be my favourite character. While he does provide the bulk of the comic relief towards the latter half of the show, he's not a comedic character; he sees LBY as his own son, only wants what's best for him and to live a happy and normal life, protecting him as much as he can without making him untouchable, acting as a doting father to LBY without letting LBY walk all over him. we stan Emperor Wen in this household.

There are a lot more characters I could write about such as the other two male love interests, but I don't really have many thoughts on them that are important in this review.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
This show took me the better part of a week to finish and I have no regrets. Everything about this show was simply sublime, the pacing, the romance, everything. I don't know if I will rewatch it simply because I have the attention span of a goldfish and 56 episodes was a LOT to watch for me to begin with, hence why it took me so long to finish (hence the 8.5 rewatch value).

OTHER COMMENTS:
- the cinematography, acting and soundtrack in this show was fantastic and once again I round back to episode 48 which is where this show really, and I mean really, became a masterpiece. That episode is one of the best episodes of any show that I have ever watched. The acting from Leo Wu was PHENOMENAL, I am expecting that man to win a lot of awards for this episode alone. The music score and switching the scenes back from LBY and SS trying on her wedding dress honestly tore my heart into pieces. Even if the show was terrible (which is absolutely wasnt) this episode and the following episodes would have entirely made up for the rest of the show.
- personally, I'm glad they dropped most of the comedic element of the show after the first ten episodes. It was nice to have it peppered in throughout, but not have it constantly.
- The editing and VFX for this show was AMAZING; there are so many beautiful shots in this show that doesn't look cheap and tacky with the use of CGI. It's honestly the best use of CGI and VFX that I've seen any drama, but specifically a cdrama, ever use.
- The production and sets were also so aesthetically beautiful, god everything about this show was BEAUTIFUL to look at.
- episode 48? episode 48.

CONCLUSION:
The cast better invest in massive bags because they're all going to be walking away with all of the awards this season.

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Best series of 2022! Watch at your discretion

Viewers please beware, don’t let anyone insult your intelligence. As with any Asian dramas, to be invested is to watch with positive mindset. This series plot is not geared mainly to same old fluffy romance. The plot is deep, therefore the first 4 episodes depicts characterization of further character developments not just for the leads but the side characters as well. As a quick summary this is about 2 ppl who had broken youth, met by fate and cos of love as deep as the galaxy became whole again.
This is a dream team ensemble, great acting by everyone, genius director, excellent cinematography, writing, musical score, the best novel adaptation and so on. It depicts one of the greatest romance, revenge, thrilling action scenes, redemption and second chances! And serious tone complemented by great humor. You get to experience mix emotions of pain, sadness, joy, laughter almost simultaneously.
Here I guarantee you will not be disappointed..enjoy!
The best of WL and ZLS I’ve seen …

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I love everything about this drama!

It's been a while since I've seen a good drama. Usually, every drama I've seen is pretty much the same storyline and plot. I'm glad I've found this drama. It maybe a slow burn type but it has its own style to it that makes it a masterpiece. Male lead is a really handsome man, he's not pretty flower boy type that I've seen in most chinese dramas. I seen the bts clips this man has pour his heart out to bring his character to life. I seen so many dramas in the past years and I'm very impressed with this actor work. I love everything about this drama, the actors, actresses, and crew team. They all poured their hearts out to make such a wonderful series.

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Rapid Regression in Character Development and Overworshipping of Certain Characters

Edited my rating and changed it from 2 to 1 because I'm fed up with insane fans who keep harassing me when they can't deal with difference in opinions. If you guys think that bullying people just because they dislike something you idolise so they would give in to you and cushion your fannies, you're in for a rude shock. Grow up and talk like a proper and decent person instead of lashing out. Raise your damn emotional quotient too while you're at it, if it's at all possible at your age.

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I wrote a review for Part 1 where I mentioned that, while I wasn't too enamoured with the story, I didn't think it was too bad. So I started Part 2 with the anticipation of growth and development across the main characters. However, I'm already halfway through Part 2 with just 14 episodes left and what I'm feeling right now is a ball of rage in the pit of my stomach.

I think the actress, Zhao Lu Si, is decent. Fresh from watching Who Rules The World, I was eager to watch her perform on screen again. However, it's the character of Niao Niao that I have problems with. Yes, it was repeatedly drilled into us, the viewers - that Niao Niao had been a much neglected child. She wasn't taught proper courtesy, she couldn't read at the level most girls of her social standing and family background could, and at her age, her penmanship was non-existent. Her code of conduct and sheer disrespect towards all the elders was abysmal. And because of this, we should be lenient with our judgement of her at all times. The elders were all terrible people anyways! I was fine with this -- at first. I get it completely. But to have her shortcomings in education define her character each and every time she has done something wrong, it became exhausting, and too much of a convenient excuse to dismiss her unlikable flaws. She was constantly portrayed as a martyr who could do no wrong. All of that is not just ridiculous, it's bad writing. And this was exactly what happened in Part 2 of this series.

I hate that the writing exerts that a 15-year old girl, with so much potential in her, does not need to change in any capacity, and that she doesn't need to grow or make herself better. She's just the way she is. She could just resort to petty tricks each time she was bullied - and this bullying happens A LOT. She's bullied for no other reason other than the fact that she received less education, and everyone else was jealous of her - even though he received less education. Make it make sense. In the meantime, she just wanted to get married! Even though she's immature, she should just do what she wants! So, just sit around and wait for someone like Zi Sheng to come and love her fully and unconditionally. All I can say is, it's a terrible story that sends horrible messages to all adolescent girls everywhere.

Part 2 is basically a continuation of the victimisation and martyrism of Niao Niao's character. This time, the victimisation continued not at her family home, but at the Imperial Palace, where Zi Sheng lived. The princesses were portrayed as dumb, uncultured, jealous broads next to Niao Niao. They targeted and bullied her relentlessly, yet when the opportunity came for Niao Niao to speak up about her grievances to Zi Sheng, she didn't say anything. It was beyond my comprehension that an outspoken girl like her who had constantly reminded everyone how blunt and outspoken she was, couldn't tell him what happened. She was perfectly alright with verbalising the injustices she suffered at home to her parents, but she couldn't do it now. The only reason I could come up with is that the author loved to victimise Niao Niao and took away her agency at that moment so that Zi Sheng could find out for himself just how much suffering she was going through and love her even more! So what's the point of all that suffering? It's all short-term and provided no basis for character growth. It's all a pity-party so that Zi Sheng could give her doeful looks when he realised just how much of a martyr his gurl was. LMAO. There was no personal growth and character development coming from the pain. Your prince will gallop to you on his stallion and show those bitches who is boss!

Seriously. Niao Niao repeatedly insisted she couldn't change her personality. She is who she is. "I was like this when you met me, I'm Cheng Shao Shang!" she declared to Zi Sheng. And yet when the Empress chided her for the very same mistake Zi Sheng got mad at her for, when the Empress told her that not confiding in the people close to her and taking matters into her own hands could end up distancing them, her response was, "I wish someone told me about this earlier."

My reaction to that was, LOL what?! Blaming others again instead of taking responsibility for once, aren't we? Would she have listened if someone told her "earlier"? She wouldn't. She would just say indignantly, "You keep telling me this and that, you keep telling me not to do this and that, you keep lecturing me, but is this really for my own good? I'm Cheng Shao Shang and I can't change!" She was unreceptive to advice. And yet she says this now.

I'll say this - Cheng Shao Shang is an unlikable, immature brat and an unlikable self-insert "Mary Sue" of the author.

I have been super patient and waited to see how the palace conspiracy would unfold since Episode 3 in Part 1, and now we're almost at the end of this dreadful drama, Niao Niao's family was suddenly implicated in the conspiracy and branded as rebels. I'm thoroughly amazed that the author had managed to victimise her main female character to such an extent. And yet again the suffering the author inflicted on Niao Niao up until now brought little to no character development. This overt martyrism is honestly disgusting and makes me retch.

Let's be real. What's the point of Niao Niao's stay at the palace? She was supposed to take lessons from the Empress, so she could learn about becoming a proper wife for Zi Sheng - kind of like a finishing school for noble ladies. That was the premise given to us. But as I continued to watch this whole mess, I realised that going to the palace and learning from the Empress is a fake out. The author's real intention was so that Niao Niao could be hurled into the royal family's politics and drama, so she could be bullied by everyone who automatically is jealous of her. These evil little bitches jealous of her would be dished back their own deserts, of course, and the three guys would just fall more in love with her. Tadaa, perfect setup to be made into a lovable victim. Let the martyring commence!

Why do I say there are no character improvement? Because it's a fact. There are very few scenes of Niao Niao achieving self-improvement. You get scenes of the Empress and the Emperor automatically loving whatever she cooked and baked, and automatically loving whatever BS that came tumbling out of her mouth. It doesn't matter how childish her lines were, everyone falls over themselves to praise her for her "insight" and "purity of mind". Give me a break. Niao Niao also thought she had the duty and holy right for some reason. She lectures everyone on life's grand lessons, including the emperor! And they should listen to her! (Refer to Crown Prince and Crown Princess Arc) but Niao Niao is born perfect in every way, you see, despite ~some~ flaws. Zi Sheng so said this. She's the best!! Despite never taking the time to understand what she's really like as a person. Nevermind, she doesn't need to listen to anyone. Everyone else is wrong to lecture her. She should just be ~~~~herself~~~~

What about Zi Sheng, the male lead of this show? Zi Sheng's characterisation also irritated me to high heavens. He was made out to be the perfect guy in every way. He's an accomplished general at the tender age of 21. He gives commands to guys triple his age, and he tortures and kills them because they deserved it. No one complained how he killed a guy in prison and used an excuse to cover up the crime.

His flaws were characterised as endearing by the author. For example? He laughed like a strangled duck. He couldn't tell a joke. He yelled at Niao Niao every single time she did something he didn't like - and the reason? He's only yelling because he loves her! He doesn't want her to get in danger! Every single time. Also, he gave in to his wild impulses to punish others in acts of transgression, angering the Emperor - usually because of his desire to avenge Niao Niao. All these traits weren't even flaws. Is he a Gary Stu? Zi Sheng is depicted as the perfect fantasy boyfriend who is all around handsome and could do no wrong. He's such an obvious fantasy of the author for her self-insert. He's boring.

There is also something I need to say about the characterisation of Niao Niao's mother. At the start of Part 2, it looked as if Yuan Yi and Niao Niao were on the road to reconciliation. Her mother was displaying a change of heart in some scenes, like when she started to show motherly care for Niao Niao by bringing her a blanket on a cold night, and when she defended Niao Niao at Lou Yao's family residence to break off the unfavourable engagement (end of Part 1). She was also feeling lonely after Niao Niao moved to the palace, and looked distinctively sad when the bridal jewellery she picked for Niao Niao were overlooked in favour of the Empress' choices. Then the accusation of rebellion happened. Mother Niao Niao was carted off to prison, and Niao Niao declared she wanted to follow suit, as well. The reaction was a swift slap to Niao Niao's face. Like, was that even necessary!? Couldn't she have communicated with her daughter properly?! What was that slap for? I was flabbergasted. No doubt, the slap was most likely used to arouse further sympathy from the viewers for Niao Niao.

I have no more hopes for the rest of this drama. That was the last straw of victimization I could take. An accusation of rebellion against the crown is the biggest stroke the author could deal and victimise Niao Niao. Love Like the Galaxy is not revolutionary. It's been quite a while since I've seen such an archetypal writing that portrays a martyr-like, annoying, "mary-sue" heroine with her equally annoying, boring, cardboard cut-out fiance. Easily the worst drama I've watched in 2022. In fact, it's the worst drama I've watched in a few years.



Edit: Nevermind, just read a summary of the novel and the actual full novel seems to be far worse and more convoluted (yet managed to maximise its use of all available tropes) than the drama itself.

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Best historical drama 2022

The social issues brought up in this drama is very relatable. Aside from the rushed final 5 episodes, I find the pacing, and story building from the start, very comfortable. The details in background sound and arrangement of music score are very nice. Most cast are perfect for their character. I love the senior casts, and very delighted by the performance of the younger generation, and especially the leads. This might be the best portrayal by Wu Lei and Zhao Lusi as of now. I love the dynamic of the emperor and both wives, the empress and Shaoshang and emperor and Zisheng. I find the flaws of the characters compliment their strength. I just wish they could release a director's cut version, so that we get a smoother ending.

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The journey of a strong FL

My thoughts on both Part 1&2 (*minor spoilers*):

This is probably the best written cdramas I have ever watched. Usually no matter the genre (except thrillers maybe) cdramas tend to follow a formula, and that's not bad- it just depends on whether the writer can pull it off or not. But this- this is so different from most other dramas with so much meaning infused into it. It's very character driven but at the same time has an overarching plot and sub plots that grab the viewers.

First of all the FL is intelligent, self reliant and witty. With these 3 traits alone she is written better than most cdrama FLs who are always tripping over themselves. But (and despite being bubbly) she is not an overly positive person- and this is truly what set her apart and also made her so relatable. Even though as an audience member you can see she's overly cynical and very bitter despite things not always being as bad as they seem . But you can still completely relate to her. And then the character development she goes through is so perfectly written you literally see her growing into this graceful intelligent but still wilful lady on screen. And honestly no one could have pulled off so many character traits and still be loveable throughout apart from Lu Si.

And then there's the ML who Leo has played so incredibly well. I mean he just was phenomenal- being both a scary (at times psycho) general to a soft spoken love fool. His character's story arc into becoming a more understanding person was also written very well. I would only complain that the kiss scenes were a little too stiff but the main leads have so much chemistry anyway that it doesn't matter too much.

The rest of the cast was incredible. I both was annoyed with and understood the mom, I could see her pov esp after the bridge incident. When the bridge incident happened even I thought this could have had someone killed all because of her recklessness. Then there was the Emperor and his two Empresses - incredibly written again. I have never seen a relationship like that portrayed between two women married to the same man. Both were so different but strong in their own way. And then the emperor himself being the biggest shipper of the main leads - comedic gold. Even the grandmother developed as a character. That's how well written the side characters were.

I would say most of the villains in the drama were a little one dimensional but there were so many there was understandably little time really to flesh each one out. Plus most of them got swift retribution so it was satisfying to watch nonetheless.

The overall plot was great and I was hooked from the beginning - I never wanted to stop watching. Until the last 5 eps there was not a single frame wasted. It was shot and directed so well. The cinematography was so great. The fights scenes were really well choreographed and actually interesting to watch because they didn't drag on for ages. Everything was so well balanced from the director and editors it was a joy to watch.

But the last 5 episodes did disappoint me and made me drop this from a perfect 10 to a 9. After all that incredible writing, and being so different from the usual drama tropes, it felt like the writers copped out. I actually felt a little betrayed by what happens to the story in the last 5 eps. Which is such a shame because the 5 episodes before that, the previous 5 eps were probably the best episodes in this drama. I wish the writers had gone a different route or just not dragged things on for so long. I went from never wanting the drama to end to skipping parts to let it end. So imo they really messed up the ending.

Overall though- this is still an incredible watch, highly recommend it. It deserves all the praise and high ratings its gotten.

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Waited months for this to air only to finish it in days

First!! Review! Of 2022!! I started writing this as I inched closer to the finale, determined to keep the show alive even after it ends. Reviews serve as a constant reminder (to myself) of these masterpieces. I might be biased towards the main leads - love them both! but LLTG truly burst into 2022 and stole the show with it’s well paced storyline, character development and casting. It’s so hard to find a cdrama of such caliber.

I felt that the first couple of episodes were slow but I now look back on those eps with much fondness. After all, you can only show character development by contrasting the before/after and I get that the initial build up in part 1 was necessary but it’s part 2 > 1 for me. The plot really only thickens in part 2.

LLTG is one of those rare historical pieces that prove a show can still be good with a harmonious harem and strong familial bonds. None of that scheming bs, the revenge plot was clear cut but still threw in some surprises here and there. Antagonists were kept to a minimum which was much appreciated, that allowed us viewers to properly focus on the characters that matter.

The only qualm I have is that the show lacks an iconic song. Why can’t we get a liang liang equivalent?

I liked Leo Wu in Long Ballad but I love him here. I’ve come to the conclusion he suits historical pieces (ZLS as well) can’t wait to see more of his works!

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ALL TIME FAVORITE CHINESE DRAMA

I don’t even know where to start!!!!!

The story line was amazing! I loved how they are able to incorporate the seriousness of the plot and also add some little funny scenes that wasn’t cheesy at all. The amount of romance scenes was perfect and I for once was more interested in the story line than just the romance. By the end of this story, we were able to see everything come to an end and a new beginning for everyone. After watching how much Chong Shao Shang and Ling BuYi have gone through, I totally understand their choices and understand how bloodshed could not have been forsaken in the end. Their choices were justified and in the end they learned to trust one another and once again reunite and figure out their love for each other.

The acting and the cast was phenomenal!!! First of all, I watched this because of Wu Lei and Zhao Lu Si. They are young actors with so much talent and potential it was just amazing! They portrayed their characters so well, especially Wu Lei. His character has gone through so much and it takes a LOT to be able to portray such a dark and vengeful character but also be able to show his soft and loving side to those he love. His portrayal was truly a masterpiece and really shows his potential. Alongside with the main characters, I LOVED the king, he was soooo funny and serious. He was truly a great king and his love for Zi Sheng was shown so well and I loved the fact that he would not let his court side people tell him not to let Zi Sheng and Shao Shang marry. The queen was another loved character of mine, she has such a beautiful soul and is so caring to Shao Shang. She was able to provide some motherly warmth to Shao Shang, which she never got when she was young. I also need to give credit to consort Yue, she was spectacular. She was unlike all those jealous consorts in other dramas. She considered the whole picture and was not greedy. She wasn’t selfish for her daughter instead she was equal and played fair. She was such a strong character and one of my top favorites in this drama. I could continue even more about the cast, they all deserve praise for their amazing performances and hard work they put in to produce such an amazing 2022 film.

The music in this drama was 100/10, it fit the mood and tone perfectly. I loved how it was more instrumental because that really made this drama different compared to all the other historical costume dramas I have seen in the past.

I will definitely be rewatching this and I recommend this to those who love Chinese historical costume dramas. You also must be okay with a lot of action, bloodshed, and back stabbing scenes. This drama Carrie’s both seriousness and lovely romantic scenes. I DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!!!!

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Best Emperor ever

I started watching the drama because of the high reviews. Now i am grouping part 1 and part 2 together. Part one dragged. We got to episode 10 and I persevered. We got to episode 16 and I deceided to drop, how can we be halfway through and the female lead still doesnt like the male ( yes I am mainly here for the romance. At this point I did not know there was a part two). I came back after a few weeks simply because I wasnt ready to invest in another drama and at this point I knew the characters in this one. Got to 19 and decided to drop again. Came back to the reviews and found out there was a part two and a lot of comments that things pick up in part two. Skipped to episode 27 so I could jump to part two. Things between the leads finaly picked up. The drama was still dragging. Decided to give up for good at episodes 40. I would not have bothered to write i review but I wanted to give kudos to the emperor's character. He was hilarious and honestly what kept me watching. I also liked the relationship between the empress and consort. It was refreshing to see a portrayal of two women married ro the same man and not scheming against each other. So yes, my review is to praise the side characters.

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