This review may contain spoilers
Light and Sweet
Starting out watching this drama, I thought it was going to be a your typical lighthearted romcom with the usual palace intrigue, brothers sabotaging brothers, etc. What I was not expecting in the slightest was the level of character development that occurred in nearly every character, touching on mental health particularly postpartum depression, and a focus on women's rights. While unexpected, they added an element of interest that helped to keep me invested in the story.Despite touching on some more serious topics, the story is overall fairly lighthearted. It is a romcom after all. There are certainly some darker moments, our main characters have their share of problems, some more serious than others, but the issue with romcoms is, you already know the outcome, so those problems seem fairly superficial when you know happily ever after is waiting at the end. That being said, it was still very enjoyable to watch, it just didn't feel like anything was truly at stake. In terms of pacing, while it did have a few episodes where it started to drag a bit, overall it maintained its momentum quite well. The general lack of sabotage and infighting between women in this drama was both surprising and welcoming. Instead, you had women cultivating friendships and banding together to start businesses and better themselves and other women. Similarly, while you often have brothers at each others throats in dramas like this, there was less of that here. All in all, it was quite refreshing.
The acting was superb all around, but Tian Xi Wei absolutely carried the drama. She was simply perfect as Li Wei. Bai Jing Ting was also phenomenal as Yin Zheng. They had such great chemistry together.
What I loved most about this drama was the characters and the fact that nearly every character, whether protagonist or antagonist, had some level of character development. I also appreciated that in the end, there really wasn't a villain per se. Yin Song and Yin Jun both filled that role temporarily, but in the end, neither was really evil. Yin Song was such an interesting, complex character, the "caged bird". He was a complete jerk, and he deserved everything he got, but at the same time, I also pitied him. I appreciated the change in him as he was exiled and respected his decision to live his own way. Yin Jun was greedy, but again, ultimately not evil. While I didn't like him or his wife, there was a part of me that thought their relationship was sweet, even if they were crappy people. I was glad that they also decided to turn over a new leaf though. Other characters I particularly enjoyed were Fangru, particularly seeing her relationship with Hao Jia develop from enemies to allies to friends, Hao Jia herself, seeing her come into her own and learn she didn't need a man, and Li Wei, of course, as she transformed from a country girl into a lady but never lost her sparkle. There really wasn't a character that I disliked in this drama, aside from the 10th prince who was incredibly annoying, and I truly enjoyed watching them all grow and change.
In terms of couples, Li Wei and Yin Zheng reign supreme, obviously. While their romance is definitely a slow burn, it is also very organic. And once they do figure out their feelings for each other, their love is just so sweet. SiSi and Yin Yan are my second favorite couple. Although they have significantly less screen time than most of the other couples and characters, they're just so cute together. I honestly would have liked to have seen more of them. Shanggu and Yin Qi are my least favorite. While on the one hand I do like them together, on the other hand, I don't necessarily love the abusive nature of their relationship. I also got a bit tired of their back and forth of will they, won't they get together.
While the focus on women's rights and mental health was both interesting and welcoming, it was also a bit jarring. Given the historical setting, fictional though it may be, the message itself is very much a contemporary one and there were times when it very much stood out as such. The intent was good, the execution needed some work. I also think the concept was rushed towards the end. Xin state went from not allowing women to do business to suddenly they're going to allow women to be officials? That was done far too abruptly and without enough context to make it believable. Again, the execution needed work.
The OST was overall quite good. The songs typically fit well the mood and scene. Costuming was gorgeous. I liked how each character had their own distinct style. The cinematography was also very well done.
Ultimately I found this drama to be quite enjoyable. It was sweet and it was lighthearted with just a sprinkling of seriousness to add some more interest. It's one that I would definitely recommend watching at least once and one that I will likely come back to in the future.
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Beautiful story
Rewatch this after a month with the same feeling as first time watch. Beautiful story and not your typical drama with power of sisterhood and brotherhood, matured relationship and not your typical female lead and second female lead.Maybe some cannot tolerate with this drama. Since the romance is minimal and not the main focus of this drama, but I still enjoyed it. New life begins really suit you, if you enjoy family type drama.
Really love the plot of story, the cinematography, ost, and most importanly love the character development in this drama. Specially for last episode, on how they seen their old self version.
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Light and fun feminist alternate reality
This drama exists in a fantasy version of history where everyone’s a feminist, the men are curiously timid and disinclined to exert their power, and women overcome patriarchal structures with laughable ease. You just have to accept that from the jump, and then you will have a great time with this show.It’s light all the way through with a lot of humor, and even when it touches on serious issues (such as intimate partner violence) they get resolved quickly and happily. Despite the marketing of this as a romance, the focal point of the narrative is the female empowerment arc and the sisterhood that develops between the women. The romance arcs are secondary (the main romance gets fully put on ice for about 20 episodes straight), but when the show does get to it, it’s done well. The couples are very rootable and there are some happy and thriving single women, as well. The cast is fantastic all around.
Recommended if you can just go along for the ride and not take it too seriously.
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Kindness Always Wins
This was less romance than I expected but a very calm slice of life. Very easy to watch with lovely visuals and rich, relaxing music.The overall theme of no matter male, female, high rank, or commoner kindness matters was nice. But a little overly hammered home with every story for every couple. Being respectful and having integrity is important but did make it feel like only females understand this and men need to be taught. I understand it was pseudo historical and trying to be a sign of the times but it was still a fictional setting so they didn't need to be quite so heavy handed.
People that complain the FL is childish, yes she is because she is practically a child and never had to have city life/rules. She definitely does learn, grow, and mature by the end. The growth of the women was mainly the focus of the story. It was nice to see how all the friendships unfolded.
P.S. I need someone to teach me how to cook everything in this show!
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i become fan of this drama for sure because it's amazing cast and a great story line.
this drama will give you everything in one go like romance , comedy, little politics , some good action scene , sisterhood ( WHICH WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE DRAMA) , business and many more things.
the cast has deliver their best performance ( FOR ME THE 3rd PRINCE AND HIS SOLAR GIRLS HAVE STOLE MY HEART)
every character have it's story to tell and it was really a great work . the drama is mostly based on the women empowerment (I GUESS) and it delivers different type of perspective of that .
ML and FL have a very beautiful journey in entire drama. they have good chemistry between them , the 4th prince and his wife was really mad for each other ( they should get together earlier) , and 7th prince and his wife was really a cute couple ( i want more of them ) .
i like the ML form the previous drama ( which was DESTINED that i saw before this ) and i like the FL too in this. she was not childish like other cdrama but here she was little playful and likeable by all.
the last minutes of the drama make me cry .....
IF YOU WANT TO WATCH A LIGHT-HEARTED DRAMA WITH NO 2 MALE LEAD OR ANNOYING 2 FL AND A BLIND OF COMEDY , ROMANCE , HISTORY THEN IT IS FOR YOU START WATCHING IT WITHOUT WASTING MORE TIME !!!!
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Came for the arranged marriage trope, stayed for the feminism
Initially I only started this show because I like Bai Jing Ting and the romantic pairing in this fall in love after getting arranged married. But as I watched this I realized that the focus of the show wasn't on romance but rather on showing the beauty of female friendships which I really loved.This show can somewhat be considered a harem drama because it focuses on the wives of princes. Many of them are married to the same man. harem dramas are synonymous with toxic relationships & women harming each other all in a bid to assert their position as the legitimate, head wife. But this is where new life begins flips the script.
Women in the show recognise that the system pits them against one another when really their circumstances are because of their husbands. They form strong bonds with each other, support and uplift one another. Their characters exist independently outside of the marriage. They're real people with personalities, thoughts, opinions, flaws, ambitions and with their female friends they achieve their dreams, they achieve the freedom they crave and live their lives as they please.
In these Palace dramas its common to see the princes be ambitious but their wives are often relegated to tertiary characters with no life of their own. But Li Wei, along with the other women have their own ambitions independent of their husband' political ambitions but ambitions that regardless impact the politics of the country in a meaningful way.
I really enjoyed the show and the characters and they will be dearly missed.
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Underrated
Its a beautiful n a fresh drama. Unlike lots of other c drama this one is unique coz of story line. No typical fights between the main wifes n concubines. Acting is amazing. But kudos to the screenplay.Worth a watch. I couldn't stop once I started. Will rewatch it for sure.
The drama is underrated definitely deserves more.
Special mention on the comic timing of the 3 rd price n his team of women.
This drama talks of women empowerment in a very good way. Women folk here were shown as independent thinkers which was definitely fresh ro see for ancient period dramas.
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This review may contain spoilers
Sincerity & Pureness of heart.
I plunged right into the drama without much thought and I’m glad that it turned out all right.What I liked:
- The FL and the ML have good chemistry. I really liked that ML was sincere in his affections and love for the FL right from the start. He wasn’t a player.
- The female characters in this drama are likable. No one is a full on bitch (other than 4th mistress) which is so great. The female characters support one another and help one another.
- I like that this drama focuses on overthrowing dated stereotypes and ridiculous ‘norms’. Eg: women should not show their faces outside. Women should stay home and be dutiful wives and mothers. Women should this. Women shouldn’t this. I, personally, don’t think it’s a woman or a man thing. It’s a person thing. Avoid gender stereotypes and look at a person as a person (not just as female or a male). Don’t have erroneous preconceived notions of what men / women should be like. No such thing! I like that the show tries to overthrow these unreasonable and outdated ‘norms’.
- The drama also talks about post partum depression and about how to take care of an expectant mother. Women don’t have easy lives and it’ll be so much better if women had supportive partners/ men/ family members etc. People should support people. Lift one another up with love and courage and compassion.
- Yuan Ying turned out to be so cute. I loved how she was so capable and so by-the-book. She was so cute!
- I liked the relationship which formed between Yuan Ying and Li Wei. So cute! There was no fighting over the same husband. They became sisters.
- The butler Su Shen and the maids were so cute too. I especially love to see Su Shen fussing over Yin Zheng. He’s earnest and comedic.
What I didn’t like:
- Insecure and crazy and incompetent second master.
- Vicious fourth mistress.
Overall, I enjoyed this ‘feel good’ drama with a happy ending. This moved quickly and issues were resolved pretty fast. The first 20-25 episodes were very interesting but it sort of watered down afterwards. Still a good watch. I loved that Yin Zheng was powerful in terms of his martial arts and he loved his wife so much. Pls watch!
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Good balance of humor and the serious things in life, full of focus on female friendship and family
I love the beginning and ending quarters for sure (the preciousness and wholesomeness and chaos and fun All on Overload and I'm here for it).It's pretty quiet/laid-back/domestic/slice of life, not too intense, and I honestly would have been happier if Li Wei (FL) and Yin Zheng (ML) had more screen time together (yup, especially in that middle section, which felt a bit slower without them ^-^). But, as it is, this is a very female-friendships-centered plot, and not as much on the main couple's romance for most the show.
LOVE the delicacies and foods and aesthetics (so cozy and healing), very cute and sweet main ship, all the side ships are also either sweet or bickery spicy sweet. As far as romances go, it's a bit rare as it focuses on both parties in the relationship pretty much equally, which is lovely to witness.
As far as HEA happy endings go, this deserves a 10/10 for that.
Appreciate the story's main thematic (essentially) commentary on the whole harem/concubines situation - which also enabled me to feel and understand the inner court's women of historical times more. However, the plot felt a bit dragged on as it didn't offer quite as many twists or interesting things as I would have preferred in the middle section especially (who am I kidding though, I was likely suffering from pretty bad hangover from lack of Li Wei+Yin Zheng dose lol).
Also love the VERY diverse set of personalities and ships/couples, as well as their respective developments. I liked all of the (good :D) main AND supporting characters by the end!
Needless to say, all the acting's top notch. I've put more of Tian Xi Wei's and Bai Jing Ting's cdramas on my To Watch list because they're each such great main leads.
Good balance of humor and the serious things in life for sure. =) If you want a comfort watch full of (esp female, but also the brothers/princes/young lords) friendships and family, this is for you.
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Refreshing drama
This drama is really good, very refreshing. It's different than your typical drama with lots of scheming and unnecessary misunderstandings.The characters are all so unique and interesting, even the villains has good sides to them.
The actors portrayed the characters really well, with differing personalities and traits being shown in the drama.
I also feel like the side stories are all meaningful, no boring filler subplots.
They also made it so we are able to savour the happy ending, unlike other dramas where the happy ending is only for the last 15mins of the last episode. The last 3 episodes are making me sooo happy.
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Sincere, Sweet, and Irresistibly Likeable
This drama is like eating a holiday meal of favorite comfort foods. There are no big surprises, but you thoroughly enjoy each dish, and afterwards you feel warm and happy for having eaten well of good foods.That being said, "New Life Begins" was itself a delightful surprise. Given how young the leads looked in promos, I confess to not having expected much from this C-drama. Maybe something light & fun. Which this is! But there's also enough substance to keep it interesting, & the characters are all likeable enough (or insanely hateable enough) that you're invested in their outcomes.
The drama focuses on relationships. Even the political questions or conflicts are really just another way of illustrating the relationships between characters involved. It's slice-of-life set against a fictional, 9-region political backdrop, with the central mechanism being that women are often used to keep the peace via interregional marriages. The questions many of these women come back to asking is: Their lives are used to barter for peace, but *should* they be? Isn't there a better way, one that doesn't sacrifice their own futures & dreams on the altar of politics?
**Mild, baby-sized spoilers below - nothing earth-shattering**
CHARACTERS
I liked pretty much every single character by the end. (The abusive as*h*** of an Eldest Prince excepted...may he meet with misfortune every 30 minutes.) There's growth on everyone's part throughout the story, & the relationships that unfold are a pleasure to observe. You end up rooting for all the couples & most of the characters, as even the annoying ones learn from their mistakes & evolve. The couples (or princes & their harems) are all well-matched. I laughed so hard when the extreme-introvert couple decided to send out gifts instead of hosting a housewarming party for their new home, so that they wouldn't have to converse with anyone. #relateable Even the ML’s second marriage partner in addition to the FL—a woman who, by all the laws of drama-watching, should be loathed—is brilliant & thoughtful & so absolutely cool that she navigates a 3-way marriage with the 2 leads without much conflict at all, & you end up wanting to cheer for her, too. I’ve never admired a forced love “triangle” before, but this…worked, somehow (temporarily).
Both leads (ML & FL) act more maturely than most C-drama protagonists, despite their youthful appearance. They make *good* assumptions about each other & ask questions instead of jumping to the worst conclusion. (Also, the ML’s voice is lovely deep.) The leads are great about communicating with each other & having the other's back. (They do start out a bit rocky & grow into this...please wait for it. :) The ML's manservant is my favorite side character. (I officially petition the Drama Overlords for MORE servants who overshare in order to quickly clear up misunderstandings between protagonists.) Their (ML & FL) relationship progression from strangers in a political "business" marriage, to allies & friends, to lovers at last, is slow, sweet, & natural, so that you actually believe the ML & FL genuinely *like* one another by the time they're confessing. Forget grand, first-sight, "destined" love—give me more couples who sincerely enjoy spending time together day-to-day, who communicate well, who help & support each other, who can tease each other & laugh together, & have all of this seem natural. (That’s far better than “soulmates” who can’t go a 5 minutes without arguing or misunderstanding—you wonder how they’ll survive with each other day-to-day in their “happily ever after.”)
Strong, ambitious, clever women are everywhere. Held down by outdated traditions & pompous men? Yes. But they don't let that stop them from dreaming & scheming anyways. Does their behavior sometimes stretch the bounds of belief around what would actually be allowable in a society such as theirs? Eh, maybe. Just ignore that—enjoy them changing their world single-handedly.
PLOT
There manage to be serious moments throughout the drama without it being very heavy. The two caveats to this lightness are the abusive Crown Prince (who can walk off a cliff already) & the side storyline about his concubine's postpartum depression (with that husband, is there any wonder?!), but these don’t get massive chunks of screen time & are thankfully resolved faster than you'd expect—no dragging it out into the last 5 minutes of the show.
There aren't any massive twists to the plot; its predictability is offset by the character growth you didn't expect, the healthy relationships, & the variety of situations the characters face together. The story could have been a bit more compact, but it still makes you want to keep watching to the end.
Are there tropes & clichés included? Yes—‘twouldn't be a “drama” without them.
--->The FL can be immature sometimes, esp. in the beginning.
--->There's a pouty, childish SFL who is desperate for the ML’s attention for a while.
--->The ML has idiot brothers with hearts of gold & wives who are clearly too good for them, but who they eventually become better men for.
--->Etc.
HOWEVER, these tropes aren't executed annoyingly (for the most part), misunderstandings get resolved quickly, & the overall effect is enjoyable.
This isn't a perfect drama. I could pick apart & criticize a number of details, especially around character idiosyncrasies. For example, the "strong" princess married to her idiot "weak" prince—their relationship, while believable by the end, is borderline abusive for the first 2/3 of the show. Like...ANY effort to show some of the playful warmth that she claims with people in her home province would have helped. But I digress. Main point – it’s imperfect, yet these few irritating details don't detract from the overall enjoyment of the story.
TL;DR - If you want something that isn't too heavy, that holds your attention, & that makes you feel good for watching it—less like you've eaten cotton candy or sweets, more like you've eaten a several-course holiday dinner—then I highly recommend this drama.
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This review may contain spoilers
BEAUTIFUL AND UPLIFTING - Nothing Cliche!
This drama was so enjoyable with multiple groundbreaking topics I have not seen in historical dramas. Started light and funny, this drama has humor, romance, warm brotherly relationships, warm friendships, conspiracies, etc. Groundbreaking topics include post-partum depression, domestic violence, and women's rights.What I love:
- the main couple's relationship evolution was gradual but made sense. Not love at first sight and you can see how they slowly fall in love with each other (ok, he fell in love first and much faster, but still).
- loving brotherly relationships between the 3rd, the 5th, and the 6th princes.
- loving friendship and really sisterly between the wives/concubines.
- the topic of domestic violence was uncomfortable but reasonable. Especially when HJ couldn't leave because she was pregnant. That was heartbreaking.
- the topic of post-partum depression was amazing. I only wish they took it further beyond just recognizing it since it wasn't addressed on how women overcome post-partum depression.
- the topic of women's rights in terms of education and working was very well addressed and concluded beautifully though the end was a bit rushed. I wish they would show how the women showed their talents which would then enable them to be selected for particular ministries. It was rushed that made it look like they were selected simply because they were there.
Overall, this was a beautiful drama with a unique storyline and I highly recommend it.
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