Although he's supposed to be playing someone in his late 20s, the ML looks precisely his age, 46. The most distracting part is he has the neck of a 60-year-old. It's pretty distracting. On a positive note, the drama is good at building emotional scenes.
I think it is a fair opinion! In a world where we get a lot of duds it was a good spring drama.
I think It's one of the better dramas this year. But the show suffers from the 40-episode limit and the shoehorned villain at the end. The next show I'm looking forward to is Liu Zhou Story.
Overall, this drama is good, though not great. 40 episodes were not enough. The ending felt rushed, with events unfolding abruptly and quickly to conclude the drama within the allotted episodes. The final villain was shoehorned without sufficient build-up or integration into the story. I think the chemistry between the main couple was ok. The pier explosion and YX's fight at the palace felt contrived and unearned. Overall, this drama is good, though not outstanding. It might have improved significantly if the writers had more episodes, perhaps 50, to flesh out the storyline, particularly the subplot involving the final villains (that lady and the prince).
Here's my unpopular opinion: the emotional development of the main couple was lacking. The narrative attempted to cram in all the dramatic tension towards the end but it often felt unearned. I would've enjoyed it more if:
1. HZ had been angry with YX for an episode or two for deceiving her initially, which would have forced YX to work to regain her trust. While he did assist her, his deception was significant, and her quick forgiveness was too lenient.
2. Shen Qi remained a legitimate contender for HZ's affection. I'm generally not a proponent of love triangles or overly obsessive secondary male leads, but SQ's involvement could have introduced more meaningful tension into HZ and YX's relationship.
3. YX should also have been required to earn the trust of the other women, considering he played a role in their partners' exile.
4. After overcoming these challenges, I think the angst introduced at the end would have felt more impactful.
It is not. They have different priorities/responsibilites. HZ is a food provider for her family, customers and…
"I am a parent and was in love several times in my life, remaining always the same person (obviously growing my knowledge and evolving through experiences, acquired with or without my love partners)."
Perhaps we're working with different interpretations of change. However, it seems clear you didn't stay the same. You acknowledge that your experiences have shaped and transformed you.
Love changes us, often in subtle ways. When a boy falls in love, he may adjust his habits to please the girl. He becomes willing to make sacrifices he wouldn't have considered before, growing more accommodating and protective.
To be clear, I'm not saying that you become an entirely different person when you fall in love. Of course, you're still you. But major life events, such as falling in love, having a child, moving to another country, etc... do change people. I guess we can agree to disagree on this.
The notion that significant life events don't change us suggests a lack of humanity—it's as if we were robots, programmed to always produce the same responses.
It is not. They have different priorities/responsibilites. HZ is a food provider for her family, customers and…
"Besides, why someone must change after falling in love?" Because loves changes people. It's like asking why must a person change after becoming a parent. If you love doesn't change you, then you're not in love.
And yes, Minglan did change. She stopped pretending. When she finally surrendered to love, she became less cautious.
I understand what you're saying, but I'm not convinced by this explanation. If that were true, she would have…
HZ not only carries a heavy burden, but she also had to end her relationship with the man she loves. Despite these challenges, she remains unchanged—pragmatic and emotionally constant. To me, this doesn't make her a compelling character. She comes across as a bland Mary Sue, seemingly impervious to the turmoil surrounding her.
If you like a female centric story, a Mary sue FL and a bland main romance, you'll love it.
She's perfectly rational in every situation and solves every problem effortlessly. She's basically perfect. The first 6 minutes of the show perfectly telegraphs how much of a Mary sue she is.
It is not. They have different priorities/responsibilites. HZ is a food provider for her family, customers and…
Minglan going from overly careful and somewhat indifferent wife to falling in love with her husband is what makes her character so much more compelling than HZ. HZ is the same person before and after she supposedly fell in love. That, to me, is an unrealistic portrayal of human relationship.
It is not. They have different priorities/responsibilites. HZ is a food provider for her family, customers and…
I hear you. But I still blame them. Good writing shouldn't be contingent on how some fans feel. A well-balanced love story is such a joy to watch. Sadly, for the reasons you've mentioned, we're getting superficial crap like this. But since it's popular, they'll keep making them.
I think HZ isn’t that sad about the breakup bc she knows it’s temporary. She’s just giving GYX space to…
I understand what you're saying, but I'm not convinced by this explanation. If that were true, she would have been straightforward with YX about her intentions. She's always been upfront about her feelings and intentions. So why resort to noble idiocy now? The more likely explanation to me is that she's written that way because the writers doesn't want their Mary sue FL to show emotional vulnerability. They don’t want her to seem weak just because she's in love, which is ridiculous because showing her emotional depth would actually make her character more compelling.
Here's my unpopular opinion: the emotional development of the main couple was lacking. The narrative attempted to cram in all the dramatic tension towards the end but it often felt unearned. I would've enjoyed it more if:
1. HZ had been angry with YX for an episode or two for deceiving her initially, which would have forced YX to work to regain her trust. While he did assist her, his deception was significant, and her quick forgiveness was too lenient.
2. Shen Qi remained a legitimate contender for HZ's affection. I'm generally not a proponent of love triangles or overly obsessive secondary male leads, but SQ's involvement could have introduced more meaningful tension into HZ and YX's relationship.
3. YX should also have been required to earn the trust of the other women, considering he played a role in their partners' exile.
4. After overcoming these challenges, I think the angst introduced at the end would have felt more impactful.
Perhaps we're working with different interpretations of change. However, it seems clear you didn't stay the same. You acknowledge that your experiences have shaped and transformed you.
Love changes us, often in subtle ways. When a boy falls in love, he may adjust his habits to please the girl. He becomes willing to make sacrifices he wouldn't have considered before, growing more accommodating and protective.
To be clear, I'm not saying that you become an entirely different person when you fall in love. Of course, you're still you. But major life events, such as falling in love, having a child, moving to another country, etc... do change people. I guess we can agree to disagree on this.
The notion that significant life events don't change us suggests a lack of humanity—it's as if we were robots, programmed to always produce the same responses.
And yes, Minglan did change. She stopped pretending. When she finally surrendered to love, she became less cautious.