Private Notebook

It's crazy I tell you.

Heterosexuals ship non-canon ships almost everyday. What if the girl is a lesbian or the boy is gay, and the writers didn't emphasize on that? But you be out here shipping anyway.

So what's the problem with bl fans shipping two men together? It's not like they're hurting you or the actors, it's an unofficial ship still. (Netflix accounts are also shipping, so we're all in this boat together) But y'all hets be crashing out so bad you'd swear we killed someone.😭😭

Leave us with our yaoi. Our ships won't affect your life, I swear. Y'all are just ruining this show for everyone because instead of discussing the story itself, you're out here reprimanding us about ships.
Let people do what they want and lets simply appreciate this story without any superiority complex over another set of audience, huh?

Those heart eyes on episode 2, candle lit performance, them rebelling together, the soft smiles, the care about each other... and y'all wanna convince me that this is not enough proof of two people falling in love?
They have so much chemistry, I love it.

This drama has successfully drained me emotionally. The more was hard, and my heart cried out for both of these two people who went through so much suffering.
They're so flawed and so raw, that I actually rooted for their happy ending. What a spectacular experience watching this.

And can I take the time to appreciate the camera works? The angles were so well done. It literally made the whole drama perfect.😌😌♥️

I don't even care if it's queerbaiting (as everyone says) cause I'm queer and completely baited.
I'll be starting this as soon as possible.😌😌

You know the actor is killing his role when his eyes slowly changes in every stage of his life and he just shows it way too perfectly. I'm on episode 32 where he asks Tingyun if she regrets marrying him and oh my heart....😭😭😭😭

But I've enjoyed their journey so far (though there are draggy parts). They didn't sugarcoat their characters just because they are the main characters. They wrote every flaw as they slowly rise to power and turn to become people they hate. The more they get influence, the more they lose themselves. There's no communication. No mutual trust. And no honesty between them. But they didn't have this from the start, thus their foundation was always weak and easy to crumble.

I won't lie, I'm so emotionally drained because of this because I've only been watching it and nothing else. I just want them away from the palace and its politics, and live far away, healthy and safe.

This has made me applause the screenwriter for creating characters we can easily root for through thick and thin. From where they started, they actually gave us a reason on why we should care about them.

Most dramas start in a promising way and ends up going downhill. Too many cliches and unnecessary plot twists can ruin the show in one go.
And there are just too many scenes where the writers did not apply any logic and think viewers are stupid.

I was doing a rematch these past weeks. I can't get over how good this is and I'm still impatiently waiting for season 3.

I've already watched and reviewed that. It unfortunately didn't do it for me as much as it did you, but I enjoyed the character dynamic.

It is still a good watch.

It's a matter of a person. As I've said already, I like fiction. I read a lot and write a lot. And I'm always intrigued by the world building and the character build up in stories, so I like giving out reviews.

I might have had a little problem with it, but who knows, you might actually like it.😌😌

I think we all interpret things a lot different. But what you've written truly made sense and I understand your take.

As someone who loves fiction, I always want to (not to relate exatly) but to understand a character. So their background is always important so I can be able to question, find fault, and really love the character despite everything. I'm not talking about insta love or slow burn type of romance, I'm talking about a storyline where I can root for the characters in anything and through everything.

Here, I feel like we got a glimpse of their character. Not entirely everything. They're like 2 Dimensional characters instead of 3.

Alright, there are flaws.
The revenge arc disappointed me greatly.
But I loved watching this show. It was so beautiful to watch. I wished we were given more of their romance.
The actor who plays "Sun" is so pretty. He's so handsome that I just wanted to look at his face and do absolutely nothing else at all.

Sometimes here, they feel like empty suitcases where we get what is given, with nothing inside. Without character depth, we cannot easily care much about the character.

There's why, how, and where. Alright, they're trying to just love in quiet places. So WHY SHOULD I CARE as an audience.
I need a reason. Any reason. It can be to the relation of their family, occupation, or outside world. It doesn't have to be a conflict, just a build up around a character.

As a writer, that's the first question a literary agent asks and I assume it's the same for screenwriters.

I've watched all out 14 episodes.

The cimatology is beautiful. The acting is beautiful. The chemistry is beautiful.
But I think the story lacks enough depth. Something happens right now and it ends, then we forget about it. They don't build it up enough to make the audience care.
Like how I couldn't care about their courting, cause I feel like they just caught feelings, realized it and confessed in matter of seconds. It doesn't have to be a slow burn, but there's just something missing there.


But I feel like that with all the three couples. There's just different dynamics (Which are made well btw) but they all lacked depth. The story lacked flavor. I couldn’t care enough about the characters like that.

Unlike Secrets Happened on Litchi island, the storyline is bland. I only stayed watching because the dynamic between Qing Lang and Chang Yang is too good to miss. A bratty actor and a golden retriever farmer is just perfect!

With this kind of storyline, I hope they'll go all in and not sugarcoat anything for the sake of viewers. But I hope we'll get enough building and something I'll be able to watch despite the trope.
Regardless, I'm excited to see Kang Jun and Eun Jin together. They gave so much chemistry in that table read alone and the trailer was a bonus. I'm simply seated.

This drama had everything.
I'm glad I didn't expect much from it because it truly exceeded my expectations and instantly became one of the good dramas I've watched this year. From the storyline to the chemistry, insanely top notch. The love story from both the two couples were so cute, I loved them.
8.5/10 for me.

I'm withholding the remaining 1.5 because of the character depth. I think we could have received more from them to actually care. From Xihe's past life, Hua Yong's life outside the palace before he meets Xihe, Bai Shu Lin's after her run with Cui Jin Bai (They handled these two so messy and forgot about them until the last episodes)
We should have gotten more of Xiao Chang Qin's scenes with his late wife. The other princes are not even supporting characters here, they feel like objects included to fill the cast and be like "The Emperor has other kids"
So they feel 2 dimensional without any background of their own. Because we needed that to care more about the crown prince since his story slightly revolves around the Emperor's favoritism toward him.

And the mastermind behind the poisoning. After 34 episodes, looking for the culprit, the reveal was just too dull. It was "meh".

Overall. The acting, chemistry, directing, costumes, and the story itself made up for all the flaws this drama has. It's so memorable too. There are too many scenes I was captivated with that I will probably remember for a long time.

Still on my to watch list. I'll probably try it anyway to see for myself what the fuss is all about.

Damn 1 episode is pure torture.

The story was slow burn. It started more platonic until they realized they cared about each other. Reading the dynamic, it was just cute and beautiful. And the story was more raw, because Feng Tai was married so Shen Xi Rui was treated more like a mistress despite being loved. It was a long ago since I've read the novel.
They watered it down a lot in the adaptation, but the caring its still there.