Maiden Holmes (2020)

My favorite trashy romance.

This is the drama version of the perfect trashy romance to curl up in bed with on a rainy day. It is not overly ambitious in terms of plot and will not satisfy hard core fans of the detective genre but overall it is an unpretentious hidden gem that will bring you on a delightful romantic journey.

Our titular character Su Ci is a brilliant young investigator with a hidden identity as the daughter of a traitor. Her reason for existence is to unravel the conspiracy that led to her family's downfall and murder. In the middle of a case, she runs into Prince Qi who is traveling incognito. He is also trying uncover the traitor behind his army's crushing defeat and his consequent demotion. They fall like a ton of bricks for each other well before they figure out each other's hidden identities. They form a fast friendship with another couple they meet on their first case and team up to solve a number of cases that lead to the ultimate unraveling of a bigger political conspiracy and redress old injustices.

The main issue with this drama is aside from some really steamy romantic scenes, the various plot threads lack intensity. The main characters only superficially interact with the characters in the cases and the investigations seem to largely involve the four friends solving the case by talking to each other. As a result there is no build up of suspense and excitement in the gradual reveal of the cases. The overarching plot and main antagonist is known from the get go but is still better written than the short cases and at least there is a small twist at the end. Oh you didn't notice? Yups... that's what I mean... The main villain is well acted and it is a shame they left the only heavy face to face clash between him and our leads until the end. The whole point of revealing the villain early in the game is to let them face off a few times.

So why watch this? Because it is a lot of fun and even though it shows that it is a young cast, there is great rapport between them and both romances are very good. The OTP have boatloads of chemistry, they look gorgeous and fitting together and deliver many squeal-worthy moments - I mean who cares that it makes no sense that they retreat into a cave after an ambush when help is just around the corner? You have to embrace drama logic - they go to the cave because they can wow us with more hot kisses there, don't worry about whether it is safer to reunite with their friends and guards instead. They are written to be smart characters and they generally are when they are outmaneuvering their enemies or busting criminals. But there are also many times when heavy suspension of disbelief is required.

Newcomer Zhang Linghe really impresses in his debut performance here as Prince Qi and my sense is he is an actor to watch. The main relationship is (outside of one short lapse) very well written - mature, mutually supportive and I just love how Prince Qi is very amorous he does not hesitate to pounce on Su Qi at any opportunity.

I really enjoyed this drama and if I were to rate it on fun factor and romance alone it would be a 9.0 for me but all things considered, I think an 8.0 is appropriate.

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Wuxia’s most pleasant leading maiden

Maiden Holmes is about romance (60%), solving cases (30%) and political intrigue (10%).
It has elements of light humour (50%), moderate seriousness (40%), thriller (9%) and angst (1%).
The one key quality that it has in abundance, in my humble opinion, is Wuxia’s most pleasant FL (100%).

What’s great:
The FL - She’s calm, level-headed, intelligent and smart. She demonstrates a certain quiet resolve and mental resilience, yet also displays tender affection and emotional vulnerability. The character is sensibly written to be relatable to the viewers, rather than an unrealistic Mary Sue or the usual insufferable whiny, clingy and ridiculously idiotic damsels in distress.

Chen Yao – Her portrayal of the character Su Ci, an individual who possesses much inner strength and insecurities, struggling with a heavy burden of her past, is nothing short of amazing. Her down-to-earth demeanour coupled with such low-key and soothing voice, adds emotional nuance to her depiction. This is in stark contrast to the helium-inhaled high pitched hysteria of the spoilt princess stereotypes. Being her second gender bender role of the year (the other being My Unicorn Girl), her version of the crossdresser is one of the best for the historical genre this year – realistic without being unnaturally pretty (In A Class of Her Own) or unusually weird (The Heiress).

Romance and OTP – This is not intense sacrificial love the likes of which most have observed in Love and Redemption. The romance is endearingly adorable and charming that warmly culminates in a near-perfect chemistry that is further enhanced by countless steamy kisses between the OTP.

The OST – I truly enjoyed the entire soundtrack of this drama, from the opening to the closing credits, and especially throughout the numerous MV scenes in between where the songs and the BGM added such beautiful layers ever so subtly into the emotional scenes. The playlist comprises the following songs:

斯琴高丽 (Si Qin Gao Li) – 倾城小时光 – Qing Cheng Xiao Shi Guang
崔子格 (Cui Zi Ge) – 镜花水月 – Jing Hua Shui Yue
叶炫清 (Ye Xuan Qing), 李行亮 (Li Xing Liang) – 望归人 – Wang Gui Ren
崔子格 (Cui Zi Ge) – 是我非我 – Shi Wo Fei Wo
陈瑶 (Chen Yao) – 生根落地 – Sheng Gen Luo Di

The ML – Played by the up-and-coming young star in his very first drama role, Zhang Ling He. He is extremely raw and lacks obvious experience yet he manages to imbue the character of Prince Qi with a charming enthusiasm and youthful exuberance that enlivened the exciting chemistry he shared with Chen Yao’s Su Ci throughout the show. It certainly helps that he exudes charismatic appeal to his boyish good looks and witty personality that serves to endear him to the viewers.

The support cast – Comprising the second couple and a sidekick, these lovable characters join the OTP to complete the band of loyal friends in their pursuit of justice and happiness through their adventures together.

What’s not so great:
The action choreography – There are many action sequences and much martial arts proficiency depicted throughout. However, the choreography is sub-par, in comparison with many of its peers in the genre. It’s certainly not the worst but it is painfully obvious especially to avid followers of the martial arts choreography.

Cases and investigations – Romance takes central stage at the expense of more compelling cases and mysteries, which in turn, diminished the attention on investigative prowess and case solving. Viewers who initially tuned in for this sub-genre would no doubt be left dissatisfied with the lack of captivating and thrilling investigative plot.

Comparisons:
This show is not as heavy and intense as Under the Power in terms of case solving and the villainy of the antagonist but the romance here holds its own against Tan Song Yun and Ren Jia Lun. It fares much better against Miss Truth in terms of storytelling, pacing, acting and overall plot which is straightforward and uncomplicated without the angsty love triangle. It doesn’t quite reach the lofty standards set by full-fledged detective dramas such as Ancient Detective, Detective Dee and The Four, but then again the romance there doesn’t match up to this drama.

Overall:
Maiden Holmes is a light hearted romance with the titular protagonist who is more Nancy Drew than Sherlock. This show is not meant to be taken too seriously. Just sit back, relax and have fun with this heartwarming series. I certainly did.

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