How Dare You!?

How are you? I'm fine, and you?

I was bored when I started watching the series and didn't watch it for a while. Then I started again and watched it with interest and curiosity. It was an interesting series. A different subject was chosen, and the events developed around it. I didn't like some parts. But I liked the idea. Its uniqueness intrigued me.

The cinematography was good, the direction was good, the actors were good, the costumes were good, and the makeup was good.

However, when it deviates from reality, the interest in the subject decreases. The fact that the same young actor played the king's son in his childhood created confusion. I had to struggle to understand whether these scenes were from the present or the past. It was confusing. I didn't like it.

Besides, these flashbacks, jumps to clarify certain issues, and long conversations became tiresome. Because there were too many, it reduced the effectiveness of the series. When the possibility of the king and queen dying at the same time came up, the queen said she would trade her life. How is that possible? There are such nonsensical and unrealistic things. Like becoming king with a face mask. Like a face transplant. Impossible things were made to happen. I didn't like it. The scenes of the mute little boy poisoning the queen felt contrived. It didn't work.

The queen finally disbands the harem. That is, she frees the king's concubines, setting them free to remarry and do whatever they want. Has there ever been a monogamous empire in Chinese imperial history that disbanded its harem like this? Or has there ever been one that disbanded its existing harem? I understand some people saying they should reduce the number of wives, or have only one or two wives. But this is the first time I've heard of one disbanding an existing one. It has no basis in reality.

I liked the actors. I especially liked Ryang Chang. She beautifully blended good and evil, sympathy and cruelty, imbuing them with meaning and portraying them successfully. She's a very comedic actress. She should be given more opportunities. Wang Chu Ran was very well-suited as the queen. She played the role well. I don't think Tang Xiao Tian was a suitable actress for this role. But she played it well, gave a different image, I'm not saying anything about her acting, but I didn't like her in this role. I didn't find her suitable for the role. I sensed tension in her scenes with Wang Chu Ran. I might be wrong, but they weren't compatible. They put on a performance with a "let's just get this over with" attitude. Hu Yi Xuan was very good. She was very successful in her role. I liked her. Cui Yi was very successful. I liked her. Louis Fan was also very successful. He was especially good in the action scenes. I also liked the other supporting roles, even the younger actors. They were all very good. I recommend it to anyone who wants to watch it.

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Enjoyable escapism

This drama is good cotton candy. If you are in for the plot, you'll be disappointed. There are some plot holes and loose ends nothing major and the drama makes up for it in bunches thanks to its great acting, comedy and visuals. Chu Ran was made for this role where she can be silly and showcase her comedic talent. She was giving off some young Julia Robert vibes. On top of that she looked so beautiful in those dresses. As the lead couple, Chu Ran and Ryan cannot be more photogenic. Their chemistry and banter is what also keeps you in the drama. I particularly enjoyed their lines where as transmigrators, they talked about pop culture and how to identify if someone is from the modern era or just a character who only exists in the book.

For the plot you have to be more forgiving, although it does have some twists and character reveals that were not telegraphed so it was not all completely predictable. The side characters, in particular the ML's bodyguard, were also fun to watch. With regard to the secondary leads, Yi Xuan from Unforgettable Love (2021) is lovely and radiant as always (I never get tired of her beaming smile) while Xiao Tian from My Little Happiness (2021) always does a great job even though the script didn't offer him much to chew on. The same goes for the Empress who was another antagonist that could have used more of a backstory to give her depth. Nevertheless, the shortcomings are not too significant when considering the drama for its visuals, the chemistry between the leads and its bright and colorful cinematography.

The ending is great, full of positive vibes, and it was beautifully shot. In sum, while the plot and character development are not top-notch (I did fast forward here and there), the selling point here is the beautiful and charming Chu Ran, along with the great casting, comedy and the visuals. These alone make the drama a good watch for carefree and enjoyable escapism.

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This is fine, but…

Having loved the Donghua S1 counterpart when I first watched it, I, by and large, enjoyed the live-action adaptation, which follows most of the iconic scenes faithfully. However, the humor and pacing of this adaptation somehow didn’t translate quite as well for me.

Look, I get it.

The live-action series and the Donghua can—and should—be viewed separately, and we shouldn’t compare them. So with that in mind, I’m setting those comparisons aside to focus purely on how this live-action adaptation stands up on its own.

First, the positives:

Wang Churan’s visuals. In terms of personality, I don’t think she carries the female lead’s bubbly energy all that well. But boy, is she easy on the eyes. I can accept this version of Yu Wan Yin / Wang Cui Hua, though—she’s a bit more reserved, but still very much an action-oriented lead who takes matters into her own hands.

The casting of Xie Yong Er. I quite like her character in this. A number of her scenes really captured my attention, whether it was due to the actress’s performance or the way the scenes were written in this live adaptation. I have a personal bias toward the characterization of Yu Wan Yin / Wang Cui Hua, so the fact that Xie Yong Er managed to steal my focus—at times even more than the female lead—is quite telling.

The changes for Bei Shu. It was a bit surprising to see their deviation and creativity here, but I have no major complaints; the humor they injected works for me.

Now comes the not so positives part and why I dropped it:

The lack of chemistry for the main couple. While they follow the key scenes and script faithfully, I just don’t feel engaged in the romance between Xia Hou Dun and Yu Wan Yin. I think Ryan did a good enough job—especially compared to his work in other series— but chemistry is either there or it isn’t, and I’m just not feeling it here. In a romance idol period drama, that lack of chemistry is a major sticking point.

There’s a specific key scene they changed (right before I ultimately dropped the show) that was clearly intended to highlight Yu Wan Yin’s "virtue." In doing so, they completely bypassed her agency —the very trait that actually makes her interesting —in favor of making her look saintly.

Even setting aside any comparison to the Donghua counterpart, I’ve never been a fan of main characters written to be overly virtuous. It feels forced, and more importantly, it strips away the nuance of their actual personality. When you choose "saintliness" over a character’s own calculated actions, the story loses the exact thing that makes a lead worth watching.

They also added unnecessary humor scenes for the side characters that didn’t land well. It feels like a cheap writing trick to rely on making other characters the butt of a joke just to prop up the lead. This doesn't make me like the protagonist more, it just makes the character dynamics feel unbalanced. Ultimately, these filler scenes only served to highlight the pacing issues.

I went into this hoping to see the story stand on its own, but the pacing issues and the neutered character development made it hard to stick with. To me, it doesn’t actually matter whether a series chooses to adapt the source material faithfully or strike out in a new direction. What matters is whether the result works. Unfortunately, in this case, the lack of chemistry and a lead who lacks some agency made it impossible for me to stay invested. It’s a visual treat, sure, but it just isn't the show for me.

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A breath of fresh air

I just finished watching the 10th episode. I have to say that this show is honestly a breath of fresh air. I feel like most Chinese historical dramas these days always focus on the revenge plot line or just a super serious plot, and while I do like those storylines as well, it does get old. For instance, the drama that is currently airing alongside this one is called Jade wind. And that one seems to follow along the same type of plot that we have just seen over and over so I'm not really very into that show much even though I do love the actors. However, this show is very fresh and fun. I know the whole (falling into the book)has been done before, but somehow this is being done in a fresh way and I love how the leads were together from literally the first episode and we didn't have to build up to it. There's just a mutual trust between them which I think is beautiful. It's not too heavy and depressing like a lot of the Chinese dramas these days. There's humor in there. It's kept very light-hearted, most of the time, and I don't know there's just something about it that is really fresh. Not to mention the costumes are beautiful.Especially the female leads costumes.They are 10 out of 10 for me.You can tell this was a big budget drama and I am loving it. The male lead I have seen in many other dramas and always loved him. But I really think that after my journey to you, this is his next best performance. I love how he is basically playing 2 characters. The serious king and then the goofy partner of the female lead, he switches up so well and I love that. Yeah, I just really have nothing bad to say about this drama at all. Every episode has me hooked and Honestly, it's rare for me to feel happy when watching a Chinese drama because like I said, usually they are more revenge plot based, so I'm like so invested in the characters getting their revenge and killing the bad guys, etc. So I wouldn't say that I feel happy while watching those dramas while I do love them, but with this one i feel happy while watching and then waiting for the next episode. The last show that mademe feel like that was "yummy yummy yummy" that was my comfort drama while it aired lol But yeah , this drama just feels lighthearted, fun and fresh , and I can already tell this will be one of my top favorite dramas of all time. 😊

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Huge Thank you for How dare you! this drama

First of all i would like to say i started to like Cheng lei’s acting skills so much, he is really cute when he is acting little bit playful and also he is good for playing role of Emperor and shouting etc. This is my first impression seeing Wang churan acting, i love her too, her beauty, acting skills too. Second of all i haven’t watching Hu yixuan acting in dramas for quiet long time which i saw her playing in “unforgettable love” and “river runs through it” and this time i felt like she become skinnier than i remember and became prettier. I just love seeing her cute smiles. Xie yong’er this role fits her so well, her makeup style was stunning too. Also i want to say Tang xiaotian acting skills making me surprised because i only saw him playing kind support roles before, this time i can feel that he literally proved that he can act really well. Applause for acting the villian Xiahou Bo. Finally my main point is that this drama healed me from “my page in 90s” because even tho its ending was relieving but still left a huge trauma of transmigrating dramas, but then right after watching MPI90s, HWDY! drama was released and today i finished it, i am fully satisfied by the ending, i want to thank the screenwriter, director👍👍👍

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From Chaos to Complexity: An Unexpectedly Deep Journey

* [My rewritten review after completing the drama]

After watching the trailer of How Dare You a few months ago, I was waiting so impatiently for this drama to air. 😭✨ From the very first glimpse, I felt like it was going to be hilarious. Even though comedy is not really my cup of tea, I was extremely curious to see how Chang Lei and Wang Churan would handle funny characters — and most importantly, how their chemistry would burn on screen. 🔥

I just completed the drama and honestly, it has not disappointed me. 🙌 I haven’t read the original novel or watched the donghua adaptation, so I’m experiencing the story purely through the drama itself. That actually helps me enjoy it without comparisons.

😂 From Comedy Chaos to Political Depth

At the beginning, I expected pure comedy — chaotic humor, exaggerated situations, lighthearted fun. The first episodes even had moments that made me laugh awkwardly (yes, that “how are you” line caught me off guard 😭).

But after episode three, the tone gradually shifted. What started as a seemingly light transmigration drama slowly unfolded into something much deeper.

The second half? It became a real palace political drama.

Transmigration itself isn’t new in historical dramas, but this drama brought novelty in execution. The plot development, the layered foreshadowing, and the structural payoff were surprisingly solid. Some moments felt slightly strange in pacing, but when the foreshadowing was revealed, everything clicked. That “ohhh” realization feeling was rare and satisfying.

For example, small details like Xie Yong’er and the jasmine motif didn’t feel random. They were carefully planted hints. Even minor characters — from Xu Yao to the scholars — had clear ambitions and narrative completeness. Their motivations were expressed with clarity. I haven’t seen such passionate, era-consistent dialogue in a long time.

One of the most satisfying parts for me is the dynamic between the male lead and female lead. 🥹 They work together. They plan together. They survive together. There’s a mutual understanding between them that feels very refreshing. They are not plotting against each other — they are plotting side by side to protect themselves and improve the kingdom. That partnership feels mature and balanced.

💖✨The Couple - Partnership and Romance

The ML–FL dynamic was honestly one of the most satisfying parts for me. 🥹 They don’t scheme against each other — they strategize side by side. They plan together, survive together, and genuinely try to improve the kingdom together. That partnership feels mature, balanced, and so refreshing for a C-drama couple.

The FL is incredibly sharp and strategic. 🧠✨ She observes, calculates, and acts — she doesn’t wait to be saved. I love that energy.

And the ML… he lived through years of loneliness and manipulation after transmigrating so young. When he met her, everything changed. 😭 Even while hiding his true situation, he loved her wholeheartedly. He barely worried about himself — her safety always came first. That kind of quiet, selfless love really hits. 💔

At first, their chemistry felt more like allies than lovers. But as the story progressed? It started to burn. 🔥 Watching them grow from survival partners into something deeper — through subtle glances and unspoken protection — was lovely.

🌸 Wang Churan — Unexpectedly Perfect

I had watched her some dramas before. But her acting there wasn't that special to me.

But here? She is stunning. Absolutely stunning.

Her beauty is almost unreal — especially in the male disguise scene in the tavern. How can she look that good even dressed as a man? And when she pouts slightly? Too cute.

But beyond visuals, she brought brightness and warmth to the role. She felt lively, intelligent, and emotionally sincere. I genuinely couldn’t imagine anyone else playing this character.

👁️ Chang Lei — The Eyes That Act

Now my favorite part.

After watching My Journey to You in 2024, I waited more than a year to see Chang Lei portray a character whose eyes carry that same raw emotional depth again.

And finally, I saw it.

His eyes in this drama do the acting on their own.

Sometimes they are filled with laughter.
Sometimes they are terrifying in tyrant mode.
Sometimes they are full of loneliness and pain.
Sometimes they soften with love.

I don’t even need to categorize the emotion — it just reaches me. It hits directly.

Dan lived in loneliness for years. Manipulated. Poisoned. Used like a puppet. And yet when he met her, his world shifted. Even when he couldn’t let her go, even when he hid truths from her, his concern was always about her safety. That silent, restrained affection hurt in the best way.

At first, I didn’t see intense romantic chemistry. It felt more like allies. But as the story progressed, their chemistry slowly ignited. That slow burn made it even more satisfying.

His performance here proves again that he can be comedic, dark, vulnerable, and authoritative — all through subtle control. I truly missed seeing that depth.

💔 The Ending… and My Regret

Now, about the ending. honestly… I wanted more. Where was CEO Zhang? I wanted modern company scenes, not just reunion-on-the-subway vibes. The emotional build-up was so high, and suddenly it cut. I felt like some aftermath scenes were missing.

It’s not about comparing or dragging anything down. I just genuinely feel that if the production had slightly more episodes — maybe four or six more — the pacing in the final stretch wouldn’t have felt rushed.

Still, despite some regrets, it remains a very faithful adaptation with impressive acting and detailed presentation. Knowing the novel beforehand actually made me more critical, but it also allowed me to appreciate how certain textual descriptions were transformed into visual storytelling.

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From Low Expectations to Completely Hooked: A Surprisingly Brilliant Drama

I went into this drama with pretty modest expectations, but it completely caught me off guard—in the best way. The very first episode pulled me in and never really let go. The writing is sharp and witty, and the leads deliver their lines with such natural charm that every exchange feels engaging.

What really stood out to me is how layered the characters are. No one feels flat or one-note. Even the antagonists are portrayed with so much nuance that it’s hard to truly hate them—you end up appreciating the performances instead. And the chemistry between the male and female leads? Absolutely delightful. Their dynamic is playful and genuinely funny, their growth feels organic, and the romance unfolds in a way that feels earned rather than forced. It’s the kind of love story you can actually root for.

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