Story of Yanxi Palace (2018)

Best FL & Worst ML

OVERALL
This binge-worthy drama brings epicness to the least epic historical setting: the Qing dynasty harem. Watch it if 1) you enjoy never-ending catfights, 2) you love strong, smart, complex female leads, 3) you dig Qing dynasty culture. If you 1) hate long dramas (this is SEVENTY episodes y'all!!), 2) can't stand unlikeable male leads, 3) need well-developed, emotional love stories, then think about it. Think hard...and then maybe still give it a try.

THE STORY
For the longest time I shunned this drama. Qing dynasty stories really aren't my style; the costumes, the customs, the fact that the world seems to be restricted to the Forbidden City and women don't seem to have anything else to do in their life than fight for the emperor's attention, well, I'm not a fan. But this drama is rated so high, I had to give it a try eventually...and I don't regret it!

The Good: Although this drama is essentially about women fighting for attention in the Forbidden City (which I dislike with a passion), the first half of the plot also involves a murder-mystery, which gives it a refreshing twist and makes the repetitive catfights quite bearable. Another thing that helps swallow them well is the fact that FL is just absolutely AMAZING, definitely one of the best I've seen, and the best C-drama FL hands down. What's great about her is that she isn't the typical "innocent, pure" FL that responds to evilness with kindness. She stands between good and evil and when she says she wants justice, she'll do just about anything to get it. As such, she's scheming like the bad girls, and it's super satisfying to see. The drama not only has a number of epic scenes (all linked to the FL - is my girl crush obvious?), but it also has several, really emotional scenes, and a few fun ones too. Finally, the end is a fairly good one (considering C-dramas, especially period dramas, don't typically have well-written endings, that's really a blessing!). It's not rushed and it wraps up everything nicely.

The Bad: Unfortunately, there are pretty massive flaws that keep me from rating this drama higher. The biggest one is the ML, who is absolutely despicable. The emperor is egocentric and tyrannical from beginning to end. He treats everybody like they are from an inferior race, can't empathize or sympathize with anyone and makes few attempts to try to understand others . This includes FL - even though he lets her get away with more "insubordination" than others. As a result, it's impossible to enjoy his relationship with FL. Not fully, anyway. I couldn't imagine why the FL would like him, and even the screenwriters probably couldn't, because it's never clear why (or how) FL falls for him. I almost wish there wasn't any reciprocated love between them (a first in my drama journey!!) and FL was just using him for her own personal goals. That would have made a lot more sense, especially considering she has a second ML - who also isn't that great, by the way, but much better than the emperor - dying for her. Also, while there are GREAT moments in Yanxi Palace, there are also chunks of the drama that are draggy and/or sloppy. About half of it (roughly eps 20-40 and 50-60) felt like a bit of a let down. There is too much coming and going of characters, too many evildoers, less coherent plots, not enough of the FL. There also isn't a big picture anymore (once the murder-mystery ends). I wouldn't say that these chunks are bad, but they're not as good as the other solid episodes.

THE ACTING
Since the drama is mostly about the women in the harem, it really relies a lot on the female cast, and they did great. The main women - FL, Consort Guo, Consort Chun, the first and the second empresses, they are all absolutely fantastic in their roles. Most of them can appear angelic one second and the devil incarnate the next. The makeup artists also did an amazing job; the makeup really helped in making them creepy at times! Male actors also are fine, they just don't stand out as much. There isn't much chemistry between FL and ML, but they got me smiling once or twice (even though I couldn't fully ship them), so it's okay.

THE MUSIC
I wasn't a huge fan of the violin background track that was played excessively in the drama to make you feel sad, but I LOVED the opening music. Although I'm not taking any song from the drama, overall, the OST was fitting and not too distracting from the story, so that's good.

REWATCH VALUE
High. For sure I'll rewatch the drama, there are too many epic scenes that deserve to be seen again. But I will definitely be skipping lots of parts too when I do.

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A Game of Concubines

This CDrama started as "Once upon a Time in the West" and then turned into Seasons 5-8 of Game of Thrones.

As you can see, I have not finished this CDrama. I watched it till Episode 38 and then basically "rage quit". Though I know the full Story since I have then read Spoilers of the Story of the remaining Episodes. It only served to justify my Reasons for quitting.

To be fair, from Episode 1 to 27, I was completely hooked and could not stop watching. It was basically like a Drug and I could hardly stop. Although it was nowhere near perfect and had some issues, the overall premise and the "Revenge Arc" were so well done and engaging, that I was more than willing to overlook small issues.

One such small issue was the waste of otherwise incredibly promising Characters, among which the Character of Consort Gao stood out the most. She was portrayed so much as a stereotypical and one dimensional "Evil" that it bordered on Cartoon Villain levels. The Actress and the Role could have offered so much more than that, that I felt it was a huge waste but as I said, I was willing to let this go and up to Ep. 27 would have given this Drama still a 9.5 out of 10 without thinking about it.

Then came the "Lightning Strike" moment, which I now define as the "Jumped the Shark" Moment of this Drama. Up to this point, the main Lead was basically this "Supermind" who could come up with all kinds of sneaky plans to get things done but suddenly she becomes a crazy lunatic who bets her life on the occurrence of something whose probability is possibly less than winning the Lottery. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

The main Lead was already bordering on "Mary Sue" with her abilities to fool basically the whole Court including the Emperor. However, I could live with that and excuse it as "superpowers granted by the goddess of Revenge". Since she had such a huge motivation driving her (finding the murderer of her Sister who was like a Mother to her), one could still suspend disbelief by thinking "yeah this is a little over the top but Revenge, like love, is a strong emotion that can enable People to exceed their Limits". However, after her Revenge Plot was basically completed and she got the Murderer, this motivation was gone and what remained was no longer feasible. What was her Reason to become Empress again? might just do that as well while I am here? very weak Motivation that no longer serves as a good Excuse for her ridiculous "superpowers".

Another Problem I have with the main Lead, she was quite fitting as the young Girl seeking Justice for her Sister but unfortunately she remained that "young Girl" up to the very end where she is supposed to have given birth to not one but FOUR Children. I have seen the End of the last Episode where she sits on the Throne in her magnificent Robes and it just looks like a Teenage Girl Cosplaying, hardly convincing.

Her Romances also took a wrong turn. The Guard was believable enough to some degree but the Emperor? complete nonsense! I saw little to no reason why the Emperor would fall for her. The reason given (because she has a big mouth and she cant stop insulting him) is so weak and nonsensical, that I take it as an insult to the Viewer honestly.

Then there is the "Court Schemes" of the Concubines. They are repetitive, little thought through and rely too much on tropes and accidents and conveniences. When I read in Spoilers that the Empress loses her second Child as well because of some scheming, I could only shake my head. This is what I like to call "generating Drama for Dramas sake". It feels forced, artificial and unnatural and it is really tiring after some point. Also, none of the Consorts/Concubines had the same screen impact of "evil" as Consort Gao did and they felt like cheap knockoffs.

Speaking of turning Evil, the amount of Bait and Switch in this Drama is sadly too much. "Look how nice and friendly this Lady is....oh no, she turned evil because of a good looking Palace Guard" is done one too many times. Twists dont work so well if they are overused.

This Drama is somewhat of a "Dr. Jekly and Mr. Hyde" kind of thing for me. The Revenge Arc is brilliant and kept me hooked but the "based on History" Arc is nonsensical and lacks a solid Motivation/Foundation.

I want to end this Review on a positive Note because I think this Drama overall deserves it and I dont like to cheapen the great Efforts that clearly went into this by many talented People.

This Drama was very near to perfection and shows what Chinese Movie Industry might be capable of in the Future. It has a lot going for it and although I was ultimately disappointed, the parts I enjoyed were true and deep Enjoyment. I look forward to more of this kind of Dramas where maybe lessons are learned and some of the more glaring mistakes corrected.

Disclaimer:

This is a personal Review by a private person and is therefore subject to personal bias or taste. I do not claim to be objectively perfect in any way and therefore implore you to keep this in mind when reading my Reviews. My main goal with this Review is not to harm or boost a series but to help Audiences by offering one particular Viewpoint since I am profiting from others who do the same as well. If you made it this far reading this humble amateur Reviewers "Opinion" than I thank you very much and hope there was something useful in it for you.

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Normally I don't watch dramas with so many episodes (I leave that for the anime series ha ha) but this one wasn't tiring to watch, fortunately. The leading lady was really good, clever, funny, and overall a delight to watch. The drama was centered around her and her life in the palace, reminding me of scarlet heart. However, the addition of so many characters got me confused more than once. It was difficult to keep track of all of them and who was who. Also, the romance with the prince was nice, but the other love story wasn't that good. Finally, the drama got a bit boring halfway through. But, overall, it was entertaining, so 7 out of 10.

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This is a very entertaining Chinese period drama about a lot of very beautiful people with anger management issues. The general treatment of women is pretty dreadful, although I assume it is more or less historically accurate. I love the strong and fierce heroine. Some people may not. When anybody, no matter how powerful, lies, cheats, and manipulates others to hurt her or those she loved, she, um, lies, cheats and manipulates to thwart them or exact revenge. There are two parallel love stories, both involving her. I liked the way one of them developed and was resolved. The other, well, let’s just say that repeatedly threatening to kill you is an interesting courtship technique. The costumes and sets are breathtaking and the music was well done.

I did have issues with a couple of things. In a drama full of great villains, the two biggest villains were too over the top for me. The only thing Consort Gao lacked was a mustache to twirl while hissing, “Curses, foiled again!,” and I got very very tired of the other major villain’s narrow-eyed plotting look, until he started overdoing the pop-eyed crazy look. I also thought that the way the teflon heroine keeps sliding free of consequences (even when others are on to her) sometimes stretches credulity. But I neverthless found myself cheering her on every time she won and had an adversary dragged away to be caned or executed. Because good people are shoved aside or die forlorn deaths in this drama, it's much better to be bad instead.

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I'm not a big C-Drama watcher myself, but I've probably watched at least a few hundred episodes just from my mum. From all the episodes I've watched with her on other shows, I never really considered going out of my way to watch it. Until on day, she found a new show being broadcast - Yanxi Gonglue. Just watching a few minutes of a random episode, I realized that this drama was differen from others. Then I watched more and more. But I had not watched from the beginning. So I went from episode 1, and watched episode by episode, up to 54 (currently too busy to finish). I was captivated by the logic that went into all the character's actions, I was amazed about how the littlest details made an entire plot point fit together. Yanxi Gonglue has great storywriting and smart character development, and adding the final top quality music is the cherry on top. Truly a pleasant show to watch, very easy to enjoy.

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Great Production

This is my first harem drama. I did not read the synopsis and I dived right in.

What I liked about the drama:

• Sets - Wonderfully done. They are very beautiful and felt realistic.
• Costumes - I was curious about the fashion so I researched it. Even the make up was historically accurate - the partial lipstick and thin eyebrows were the fashion.
• Acting - My favourite acting was Charmaine Sheh (Consort Xian). She played a vulnerable, yet strong character so well. Her expressions were amazing. She was also my favourite character. I emphasize with her so well. She wanted to be the kind, and good but circumstances had to make her tough.
• Empress Xiaoxianchun – she was a very kind empress.
• Fu Heng. He’s perfect.

What I didn’t like

• Length. I wish it was 10 episodes less. I think the Chenbi story arc wasn’t necessary. At that time, I felt it start to drag. The last 2 episodes were good though.
• Emperor – he is smart, but I didn’t like his lack of love towards his harem. He was so petty over Wei Ling Luo. He’s so damn cold.
• Sometimes, things just felt too convenient for Wei Ying Luo.

It was entertaining. I wouldn’t watch it for the romance, because I really disliked the romance. I started it thinking the romance was going one direction and it went another direction. This is more of a political drama and it’s about a strong female lead outwitting her opponents. The sets and costumes were well done. I just thought it dragged a little towards the end, and wished they kept it around 60 episodes.

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Watched this drama in under a week during COVID 19 quarantine, and I could not put this down. The creation was mesmerising, acting from each actor and actress were superb, story is very believable, and the dialogue was never boring. There were plots and scheme all the way until the end.
It made me laugh, cry, mad with anger, frustrated, felt the love and the let downs. Amazing director where each scenes were choreographed perfectly.
It is a happy ending for me, although FH died, She knew when she embarked in this journey into the forbidden city, there will not be things going her way. She is a lady on a mission to avenge her sister’s death that lasted 70 episodes, spanning years. Her character although set in the 1700 is more like a lady in the modern times. She demonstrated that women can stand up to men and can do whatever sets her mind into doing.
My only gripe is the OST, not a fan.

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I read this was one of the best dramas that would come out in 2018, was it the team-up with HK's Charmaine? Maybe? I'm not familiar with many of the actors in this drama, as it's the first time I've seen most of them. But I thought it was an interesting story, and the ending was not what I expected.

I liked the build-up and character development on this drama. The palace intrigue is very dramatic and will rank high up there in terms of killing each other's babies and poisoning each other.

One of the reasons I didn't think the ending would turn out the way it did, was that Ying Luo actually loved the emperor. I always felt their age difference and acting didn't really emit that there was love between them (but that's just me). Sadly, I was hoping she'd realize her love for Fu Heng, but I guess not.

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Well at first I didn't think that I will ever watch this drama because the synopsis was confusing me at FIRST!!
BUT before the school holiday I just wasting my time with this drama ONLY!! AND UNFORTUNATELY I become more addicted to this drama! In the morning,evening,night..I was thinking too wake overnight BUT I'M SCARED OF SOMEONE( hahaha just ignore it)
But here I just want to say it's really worthhh yoouurr timmeee eveeerrr!!
I will never get enough of it!
i REALLY HOPE that this story will make for season 2 this time i want xu kai as the main character :3

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My first C-Drama

This lovely series introduced me to C-Drama and since then I love watching Chinese dramas.

The episodes are all wonderfully made, and the characters were well portrayed by the actors and actresses. I love how the love story of Fuca Fu Heng and Ying Luo developed. I just wished there will be a sequel to their love story. After all, Ying Luo made a promise to Fu Heng that she will take care of him in the next life! Hopefully, the next life is a modern one which will also connect the story of reincarnation that happens after a hundred years. Then, we can watch Xu Kai fo a modern series. That would be interesting. Oh my, I can not wait if there will be a sequel to this. Please make it possible , Yu Zheng.

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