The Dragon King's Bride (2022)

The sparknotes version of a drama.

The fight scenes that bookend this miniseries are pretty cool despite the effects being a little distracting in places, but that has nothing on the absurd number of times the main couple swoons and falls into each other's arms while gasping in the span of just 5 minutes. After a point, I started to wonder if this had originally been filmed scene by scene for upload throughout production and then later compiled into 3 episodes for binge-watching.

Due to the short runtime, some transitions of minor importance are skipped in order to speed run directly into the next piece of plot exposition, which was a little confusing even for a web series like this. The romantic turnaround from "get away from me" to "actually I love you now" was way too rushed, but it's at least easy to understand the progression they were trying to set up. It would have been far more effective in a longer series where the plot could have been properly developed and their relationship properly established.

Overall, the costumes and set are nice to look at, and the story is an interesting watch if you're looking for something to whet your palate. While the ending doesn't exactly feel abrupt, it does feel like it's missing something. Usually with a scene like that, it doesn't end in the middle of the shot; it tends to linger a bit longer and we get to see the aftermath. So, if anything, it feels unsatisfying.

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Mini-show with great potential but ......

This is an ok mini-show. It’s rather low-budget and the special effects are not that great. It doesn’t ruin the show but the overall quality is affected by that - and the short format doesn’t help either. I can’t help thinking that this could have been epic if time and money was spent creating a “normal” show - or at least one with longer episodes - and better character building.
The storyline is interesting since it’s about the love between the Dragon King and Mo Yue Rong. They are trapped in a reincarnation cycle because the Dragon King has placed his Dragon Pearl in Mo Yue Rong. Every time she reincarnates he tries to save her from those who want the Dragon Pearl for themselves and create a future for the two of them to be together. I wish the storyline could have been better developed in a longer show where we could see more of the reincarnations she goes through.
Acting wise this isn’t impressive but the chemistry between the leads is good.
So, if you are in the mood for something fast and short, this is an ok watch.

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