Now I'm a big fan of a good pygmalion story, but despite the great trailer this was anything but. Let's call this a time where expectations didn't align with actual product. I was anticipating a Cinderella and the Four Knights-Birth of a Beauty smash up. What I saw was an infomercial colliding with a B-grade movie. I'm sort of shocked that I actually watched the entire thing.

This felt like a formula gone wrong. All the elements were in place--an interesting premise, a setting with potential and beautiful actors, But all the good ingredients rendered was an extended and mildly confusing commercial. The storyline was a bit like a bumper car ride with each jolt spinning me in another direction. Transitions were non-existent. The characters were strange, wispy, and dreamlike...like Alice in Wonderland/Edward Scissorhands/Warehouse 13 odd with unfleshed motivations.

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I can't believe that I watched all 60 episodes of this. It had every single drama cliché (and several more than once). Think car accidents, near drownings, fatal illnesses, amnesia, dictatorial parents, "not good enough" syndrome in a couple, rich guy/poor girl, male lead in upper management (General Manager of hotel, CEO of company), attempted business coups, fake pregnancy, sibling rivalry, stalker obsession and then some...

So what was good about it?
(1) I really liked the female lead's role and her acting as Qing Ling. I loved her perseverance, her respect and filial care for elders, her passion for fragrance and the ways she used her gift to help others. Although her repeated gullibility was less appealing.
(2) The supporting actors Duan Tian Lang's sister, Xue Qing, and her husband Ding Hai were both really pleasing to watch/easy on the eye. Their characters were caricatured extremes that annoyed the heck out of me, but I did enjoy looking at the actors.
(3) the 'feel good' ending and the attempt at inserting a semi-serious message about mental illness.
(3) and yes, even though I mocked all the trite tropes, I still watched every single episode!

What was less good?
(1) The role of the male lead, Duan Tian Lang, drove me nuts. I'd oscillate between finding him and his dedication to Qing Ling attractive. Then in the next scene he would throw something like a temper tantrum when something didn't go his way. He wanted to be protective but his overly trusting nature left him looking like an idiot most of the time. I mean how can you not notice after 3 months that your wife isn't really pregnant?
(2) the insanely over-dramatic orchestral background music that amped up the emotion in every scene
(3) after watching so many ridiculously short-sighted and selfish people for 55+ episodes, I struggled with their "conversion" for the happily ending. Can enemies really become friends that quickly? And who moves so readily from treating people like tools to relating with them as fellow humans and respecting them?

If I watched this again it would be for the same reason I watch campy B-level movies. It's so painful it's good...

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