Wonderland of Love (2023)

Powerfully Beautiful Love Story

Blew my mind.. I love it so much ❤️ exactly like an epic love story. One, if not, the very best of Xu Kai's role. Can't move on from this beautiful story.. everything to me here is top-notch.
The fighting scenes are superbly well-done and some fight scenes I rewatch coz it was truly remarkable.
Ah..Xu Kai.. i am such a fan of his! He is just so so handsome.
And his role as the genius military man is perfect. I love watching intelligent ML and equally intelligent FL. Refreshing.
And side character stories only enhances the leads' love stories.
Watch it! ❤️

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=> Addictive, epic series, without length despite the 40 episodes.

PLOT: The ML, 3rd son (born of a concubine) disadvantaged by his father, uncle of the emperor, joins the daughter of a general, the FL, at the head of a large army. They have to fight against a coup upon the death of the emperor. There are many conflicts and intrigues. Eventually the ML's father proclaims himself emperor, but the plots continue for the succession.

PROS:
+ An excellent CL with Xu Kai & Jing Tian as a warrior, valiant, intelligent couple. Xu Kai shows here all of his talent, all of his emotions in a wide variety of micro-expressions. Handsome, yes, but also talented ☆✲ﾟ｡(((´♡‿♡`+)))｡ﾟ✲☆
+ endearing 2ary characters.
+ magnificent settings and costumes. Some scenes are superb (fight in the Throne Hall around the coffin, in particular)
+ a story written with finesse and intelligence. Everything is coherent and relatively credible.
+ A satisfiying Happy Ending.

CONS:
- Low quality CGI (green background too obvious during certain scenes).
- OST volume too high compared to the dialogues.
- Always the same actors who play the villains (it's sad for them), so the viewer knows from their appearance alone what will be their evolution ;)

=> A Great watch !!
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PLOT: Le ML, 3e fils (né d'une concubine) défavorisé par son père, oncle de l'empereur, se joint à la fille d'un général à la tête d'une grosse armée, la FL, pour lutter contre un coup d’État à la mort de l'empereur. Les conflits et intrigues sont multiples. Finalement le père du ML se proclame lui-même empereur, mais les complots se poursuivent pour la succession.

PROS:
+ Un excellent CL avec Xu Kai & Jing Tian en couple guerrier, valeureux., intelligent. Xu Kai montre ici tout son talent, toutes ses émotions dans une grande variété de micro-expressions. Beau, oui, mais aussi talentueux ☆✲ﾟ｡(((´♡‿♡`+)))｡ﾟ✲☆
+ des personnages 2aires attachants.
+ des décors et des costumes magnifiques. Quelques scènes sont superbes (fight dans la salle du Trône autour du cercueil, notamment)
+ une story écrite avec finesse et intelligence. Tout est cohérent et relativement crédible.

CONS:
- CGI low quality (fond vert trop trop évident sur certaines scènes).
- volume des OST trop fort par rapport aux dialogues.
- Toujours les mêmes acteurs qui jouent les villains (c'est désolant pour eux), donc le spectateur sait dès leur apparition qu'elle va être leur évolution ;)

=> Série addictive, épique, sans longueur malgré les 40 épisodes.

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I'm a Xu Kai's Fan but their drama is really good and deserve to be rated 10/10 for me it was one of my favorite now. They've done and put their best on this project and i hope some will definitely enjoy this drama too as i do . The ml and fl have a good chemistry and done their roles very well and i was also carried away by the emotions, feelings they were showing through their expressions have really reached me and i also cried when the seen were actually too sad to bear but they have done it well providing us good drama and so much satisfying up to the end of the episodes with twist and exciting part of the story the flow were good and done smoothly . I congratulate for all the cast because with them doing their best to give us very exciting drama and satisfying then they did successfully and for doing their job well and roles .

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"Wonderland of Love: A Must-Watch Masterpiece of Romance, Strategy, and Intrigue"

"Wonderland of Love" is a captivating blend of romance, strategy, and political intrigue. Xu Kai's charismatic portrayal of Li Ni, the overlooked emperor's grandson, is a standout, while his chemistry with Jing Tian's ambitious and disguised Cui Lin adds a layer of electric tension. The narrative's depth is revealed through Li Ni's internal struggles and Cui Lin's empowering journey. The script masterfully weaves love and political turmoil, creating a compelling and unforgettable drama. With stellar performances and a beautifully written plot, "Wonderland of Love" is a must-watch, delivering a perfect mix of passion, suspense, and timeless romance. This drama is a true gem that shouldn't be missed by anyone seeking a captivating and emotionally resonant viewing experience.

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Too-Perfect Male Lead and a Morally Gray Female Lead

Wonderland of Love is a mix of political drama and romance, following the story of Li Ni, the Seventeenth Prince, and Cui Lin, a strong yet complicated woman. Li Ni is the unfavored son of an emperor who doesn’t respect him. Though Li Ni prefers to live far away from the drama of the royal family, he is forced to take action when his father is taken hostage. On his journey, he meets Lieutenant He—later revealed to be Cui Lin, the daughter of General Cui Yi—who disguises herself as a man to complete her mission. Their relationship starts with clashes and misunderstandings but eventually grows into a partnership and romance.

One thing I liked about this show is its pacing. There are no unnecessary episodes; every part of the story feels important. The fight scenes are exciting and well-shot, and the acting is great, especially from the leads. Even the secondary male characters, though annoying at times, give strong performances. The opening song is also very good and matches the tone of the show.

Now, let’s talk about the characters. Li Ni is a capable and noble character, but I feel like he avoids responsibility too much. He doesn’t want to fight for the Crown Prince position and prefers to stay out of royal politics. While that might seem honorable, it also feels like he is running away from his duties. The Cui family saw him as someone who could bring justice and strength to the kingdom, but his reluctance to act gave his enemies opportunities to strike. His refusal to see the danger in his own family led to the deaths of his soldiers, which could have been avoided if he had taken a stronger stand earlier.

Cui Lin, on the other hand, is a character who grows on you. At first, she seems cold and willing to do anything to complete her mission. But as the story goes on, you see that she’s a survivor, shaped by growing up in a military family that valued men over women. She works twice as hard to prove herself and doesn’t trust people easily. Some viewers think she’s unworthy of Li Ni because of her scheming ways in the beginning, but I think she’s much more realistic. She doesn’t rush into trusting or loving someone, but once she does, she’s all in. A great moment for her is when her father is poisoned, and she defends Li Ni from accusations even against her own people. This shows her fairness and loyalty, which some viewers overlook.

The biggest weakness of the show is the lack of a strong villain. Li Ni is written as such a powerful character that the enemies don’t feel like a real challenge. It makes some conflicts feel too easy and predictable. There are also some repetitive scenes, which can make parts of the story drag.

Overall, Wonderland of Love is a good drama with solid pacing, great performances, and strong action.

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Made me a fan of Xu Kai

Don’t get me wrong, I had nothing against him. This was the first time I really loved him in a role. He’s so expressive and does excellent fight scenes.

The series could have done with a few less “another obstacle” plot lines, eg, Liu Changfeng’s incessant hijinks, the entirety of Gu Wanniang, the apparently most gullible emperor to have ever hit a script.

Overall, though, a great series with some great action scenes. The scenes in ep. 30 (Old Bao, tears) were compelling and gritty. The series really ratcheted up a notch for me there.

Couple of nits - no costume changes pretty much ever. One dress and we’re good. And, the soundtrack was not my favorite by a long shot - but not horrendous.

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Nothing special

==Breakdown==
Background plot / palace intrigue - 65%
Romance - 25%
Random comedy - 10%

Background plot - Meh
Romantic chemistry - Pretty good
Misc comedy - Good
Production value and direction - Really good. The set for the palace was the best I've seen.

I've now watched enough Cdramas to know when a drama is recycled and just another retelling of the same story. This one was very similar to so many others. After episode 20, I fast forwarded most of the episodes looking for something interesting. Episodes 29-31 are quite good. The rest were sluggish / meh.

Xu Kai was fantastic as usual. He's an AMAZING actor. His group of friends were great and fun. This show made me realize he's a great crier and his performance makes me forget I'm watching a TV show. It really choked me up this time.

Jing Tian was very likable in her role when she was bantering or joking. The only issue is she's not a believable crier and that reduced the watchability of her more emotional scenes, making them quite boring. For example, the resolution with her father lacked any impact due to her subpar skills during the scene. I'm not sure I would've noticed if Xu Kai's performance hadn't been so much better in comparison.

Overall, it's a fine watch to pass the time, especially if you're a Xu Kai fan.

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Everyone in the world deserves peaceful life

Important if you have an patients you love this drama because it's not an fast derived story
For me this drama resemble some of [ Who Rules the World ] i felt impact in this drama
Xu Kai [Li Ni ] and Jing Tian [ Cui Lin ] are equal weightage character's & they are looks good in onscreen pair
As usual cinematography, costume Designer are done awesome work in this drama
Cons in this drama [ There is a space for improvising an after marriage life ]
Thus all thank you---/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
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cute historical romance

Wonderland of Love (2023) - 8,5 -cdrama

historical romance wuxia cdrama. With average story, but cute romance.

This drama got few very good characters. Main and some minor characters got quite good or unique personalities. At other hand at least for me this drama lacks in villain characters development. Almost all villains was one dimensional or at best two dimensional and overall lacklustre.

Romance part was playing big role here. I would even say its more like main story is that romance and fight for throne or wars between armies are just backround.

plot - Emperor is dead, killed by traitorous general together with all his direct successors. New traitorous emperor aint supported by all and :warlords: rise to fight for throne. ML is frontline border general without big ambitions, sadly for him he is former emperor grandson and as such got duty to quell rebellion. At his crusade he meets FL which is strategist lieutenant of Cu army. Cu army is one of strongest :warlord: armies competing for throne. ML and FL play cat and mouse mind games to compete, but slowly their clashes spark a fire between them.

genre - wuxia, romance

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while it’s a good show, something was lacking.

honestly don’t know what to expect after watching first 10 episodes of the show.

the plot is like moving from one “zhou” to another “zhou”. then there’s plot about the great imperial grandson which was there till mid way then it was forgotten until it popped up again after 3/4 of the show. then the rebellion between the sons, to be honest for them to come to this point, who started all this? if Cui Lin wasn’t so insistent of wanting Shiqi to be the CP, and wrote that request to the imperial court, these won’t escalate into such big tragedy.

shiqi’s life is hanging by the thread even if he didn’t become CP. and the worries he told Pei Yuan if he become one, it made sense. for Cui Lin, he’s the only one who can correct the weight from wrong and ensure peace. if she wants to be his Crown Princess, she jolly well know that her reputation can’t be as strong as Li family. and Cui Army’s disbandment is inevitable. this part could carry more emotional plot for both of them. but it just went off poof fast, and they reconciled. maybe I’m expecting too much.

I’m hoping for less angst for I started this show and while the show did less angst, overall, the show is not giving that punch.

I honestly don’t know what’s lacking in this show that prevented me enjoy it fully. I dozed off at some parts but I enjoy some parts too.

both main leads showcase their wits and intelligence, proving them to be equal. I’m glad that here their chemistry was quite strong. (having both equal characters can have issue showing chemistry)

ep30 was chaotic and escalated down fast and I broke down. it was one of best downfall scenes I’ve watched.

villains in this show aren’t worth mentioning.

acting wise, Jing tian was okay. Xu Kai was good. his crying scenes are good too. their banterings were entertaining.

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