The reviews and the comments here really put me off prior to me starting this drama. Regardless, I decided to watch it. First it was because of Lin Qin, I think she's a good actress and of course Johnny Huang, I liked him in Love Designer.
I was looking to be hugely disappointed and thought I would drop it half-way, but boy I was hooked. I have to agree with most people here that Mi Gu was the most annoying character. I skipped most of her scenes. I don't like dumb females.
The chemistry between Liang Mu Ze and Xia Chu was mature and lovable. I liked how they supported each other's dreams and healed one and other. I love the enemies-to-lovers trope, so it was cute to watch them bicker. Watching him bake and deliver those cakes to her was the sweetest thing.
Zhou Ran/ Pei Yu was unlikable the whole time but towards the end I did feel a bit bad for him. He did love Mi Gu.
I have no words left for Tian Yong as I've shed enough of tears. Jiang Yuan as Liang Shao Xue is BRILLIANT. She starts off as any annoying brat who you want to dislike, but boy, she stole my heart. I honestly, desperately wished Tian Yong survived not just because he deserved some happiness, but because she needed him. I hated how he died. Broke my heart.
I was pissed when they killed off Li Lie, they really didn't need to do that. It was the worst when Xia Chu plays the baby's voice to him. It killed me. I really really really really liked him. Argh. That was my biggest pain point with this show.
Another pain point was Long Yi. I hate his guts. Why wasn't he executed? Did I miss something? Did Officer Rao kill him on the boat?
Definitely want a season two - Liang Mu Ze and Xia Chu's wedding and hope Officer Rao and his wife reunite.
Overall a good programme apart from the propaganda.
Feels so much like Love in the Moonlight for me. Looks promising.
Well put. I, personally, am not the biggest fan of Bo Gum. I loved him in LITM, but nothing after that. AHS is a fantastic actor. Can't wait to watch him in this drama. Kim Yoon Jung too, she's such a heart stealer.
Watched all the top 10 and honestly agree with most of it. Can't believe Boys Over Flowers is on this list along with You Who Came From the Star. Hated these two shows. Lee Min Ho is my absolute favourite, but for me even his acting couldn't save BOF, same with YWCFTS, Kim Soo-hyun is such a fine actor. Not matter how much I tried to watch these two dramas I couldn't.
I'm hoping for Her Private Life and Crash Landing on You to make it to the top 10 someday. Heirs tops my personal list. Other favourites include Secret Garden, Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, Healer, K2, Weight Lifting Kim Bok Joo, Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, I Am Not A Robot, My ID is Gangnam Beauty, Touch Your Heart, Come And Hug Me, Just Between Lovers, Romantic Dr Kim Teacher, When My Love Blooms, True Beauty, etc.
Once upon a time I used to be in awe of Ji Chang Wook and his acting skills. His past two dramas have fallen flat for me. Can somebody please give this guy a good script? Please.
One of the first kDramas I've watched and it still remains my favourite until date. Seeing the negative comments makes me sad. What I really like about this drama is how Kim Tan never lets go of Chan Eun Sang. He fights for her every single step of the way.
No one is asking you to come to terms with Khatun. You don't have to. She belongs to the other end of the spectrum…
I guess you're right. There were a few cute moments between them. My favourite was when he tells he that he knows she's a girl :D When she asks him if she's using him, he says: "Yes, I'm using you. I'm using you to torture myself. I saved you in Chang'an. I saved you in Youzhou. I saved you in Suzhou, and now i'm in the Grasslands roasting lamb for you."
Weird that I never hated her. Just feel really sad for her.
@sakie, now see that's not all the truth. According to Sher his father truly loved her and wanted her to be happy. She didn't have to kill him. She could have let go of her hate and lived happily with her husband and son.
And if she truly loved her, he would want her happiness and let her visit her family and people regularly.
No one is asking you to come to terms with Khatun. You don't have to. She belongs to the other end of the spectrum…
@Linh, I guess you're right. Even I wished ASun would have the chance to meet him again, not because Yanli deserved it but because ASun would want it. Yes, you're right, its absolutely frustrating how ASun was so loyal to him till the end.
He even faked the death of the entire Eagle clan to not fight against Khan when he was told to go against Mobei.
What I really love about this drama is how they portrayed ASun's love and dedication to Li Changge, man it was so sweet, even though we didn't get many intimate scenes or lovely-dovey talks, he's actions did all the talking.
Thanks, nice to eMeet you too :) The Long Ballad is in my favourites list, all thought I would like if certain things ended differently. Alas, I'm not the screenwriter :D But yeah, just sharing my POVs.
No one is asking you to come to terms with Khatun. You don't have to. She belongs to the other end of the spectrum…
@TLBJunkie you're right. She probably had several chances of happiness. She had a son and a loving husband as She'r pointed out at the end. He wanted her happiness, but she killed him too. Khatun was a miserable person and wanted to make everyone miserable. Unlike our princess, in spite of the death of her parents and (supposed) betray by the closest person to her, she never let it get in the way of people and saving lives.
So yeah, even though Khatun was passed down from husband to husband, she did have a chance to settle down happily in the Grasslands.
No one is asking you to come to terms with Khatun. You don't have to. She belongs to the other end of the spectrum…
Khatun and Yanli I guess for me. I never really felt very sorry for him, as he never really redeemed himself. Yes, he ended up being paralysed for life, but did he pay for what he did? How do you think he would react to the circumstances if he was not disabled?
He was a fraud. In my opinion, he was a very dislikable character, his biggest flaws were: 1. Pitting Ashile Sun against Sher - very nasty. Killing Sher's wolf and putting the blame on Sun. 2. Keeping the boys away from their mothers. That is just below the belt stuff. Who does that to babies? 3. Sending away Mimi Guli because Sher was getting to close to her. 4. Making a treaty with Li Shi Min and then asking his army to kill him. (this was really bad). 5. He never really loved Sun (so sad). He was just using him. When Sun takes the decision to leave the Eagle division, Yanli throws a fit, saying that now he can't control him any longer. Such a pity, Sun really loved him. 6. Abusing Khatun (not that she was a saint, but he didn't respect women). So I never really felt bad for him when she began poisoning him. He tore up her map and you know treated her so badly.
When we compare her situation to Changge, we must remember that Khatun was never really loved. Sun showered Changge with so much love and protected every step of the way. While circumstances and her upbringing had a large role to play in how she reacted to situations. We mustn't forget the impact Sun had in her life. He taught her so much without actually saying much.
Only in this drama. Elsewhere, really hard to find. He is indeed a rare guy. Whether in Cdramas or in real life
Nicely put :) PS. What is Ashile Sun's background? Was he from Sui or Tang? Cause in one scene Yanli tells Sher that he doesn't want a person from the Central Plains to be Great Khan. It would be nice to know who his real parents were.
Excellent summary of the entire drama. Are you the kind who loves a nice healthy discussion, or are you the kind…
Yes, yes, and yes. You're right. There were no completely black characters, lots of greys. That's what I really love about this drama. Having said that, I did skip quite a few scenes :). But overall, a great drama.
Character development is something in this series has thoroughly impressed me. Each one of them went through so much and they had a choice to chose which side of history they wanted to be on.
Wanna see a drama with Hao Du now :D He's acting was awesome.
Excellent summary of the entire drama. Are you the kind who loves a nice healthy discussion, or are you the kind…
Very valid points raised. You're right, she did play an important role is helping Chang Ge and Ashile Sun.
With regards to Sher Khan and her relationship, I think she valued him as her friend or probably she realised that he truly loved her. You see when he took the blame for her during the poisoning, she went to him and asked him why. She was quite surprised that he would go against Katun for her.
Also, when he decided to help her with Ashile Sun's release, she asked him if he really wanted to be involved and go against his mother. I was quite pleased with how the writers portrayed his character. From a naughty, spoilt and immature kid, he evolved into a responsible person.
In my opinion, Sun meant a lot to him. After Alir's death, he realised his folly and made up for his mistakes very gracefully, including going against his mother, the person he wanted to be with all his life.
He went back just to sit with Sun in jail. I think he truly loved Sun, he even wanted to sacrifice his life to him.
I also like the character developments of Hao Du, from hating him I went to 'aww he's so sweet'. Li Shi Min too. I think I'm going to forever cherish this series.
Wish they gave us a little more of a happier ending with Sun and Chang Ge thought. I would cry with joy if they gave us a season two <3
I was looking to be hugely disappointed and thought I would drop it half-way, but boy I was hooked. I have to agree with most people here that Mi Gu was the most annoying character. I skipped most of her scenes. I don't like dumb females.
The chemistry between Liang Mu Ze and Xia Chu was mature and lovable. I liked how they supported each other's dreams and healed one and other. I love the enemies-to-lovers trope, so it was cute to watch them bicker. Watching him bake and deliver those cakes to her was the sweetest thing.
Zhou Ran/ Pei Yu was unlikable the whole time but towards the end I did feel a bit bad for him. He did love Mi Gu.
I have no words left for Tian Yong as I've shed enough of tears. Jiang Yuan as Liang Shao Xue is BRILLIANT. She starts off as any annoying brat who you want to dislike, but boy, she stole my heart. I honestly, desperately wished Tian Yong survived not just because he deserved some happiness, but because she needed him. I hated how he died. Broke my heart.
I was pissed when they killed off Li Lie, they really didn't need to do that. It was the worst when Xia Chu plays the baby's voice to him. It killed me. I really really really really liked him. Argh. That was my biggest pain point with this show.
Another pain point was Long Yi. I hate his guts. Why wasn't he executed? Did I miss something? Did Officer Rao kill him on the boat?
Definitely want a season two - Liang Mu Ze and Xia Chu's wedding and hope Officer Rao and his wife reunite.
Overall a good programme apart from the propaganda.
Yup, CLOY will get up there soon. Vincenzo too I guess.
I'm hoping for Her Private Life and Crash Landing on You to make it to the top 10 someday. Heirs tops my personal list. Other favourites include Secret Garden, Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, Healer, K2, Weight Lifting Kim Bok Joo, Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, I Am Not A Robot, My ID is Gangnam Beauty, Touch Your Heart, Come And Hug Me, Just Between Lovers, Romantic Dr Kim Teacher, When My Love Blooms, True Beauty, etc.
"Yes, I'm using you. I'm using you to torture myself. I saved you in Chang'an. I saved you in Youzhou. I saved you in Suzhou, and now i'm in the Grasslands roasting lamb for you."
Ufff... My heart <3
And if she truly loved her, he would want her happiness and let her visit her family and people regularly.
He even faked the death of the entire Eagle clan to not fight against Khan when he was told to go against Mobei.
What I really love about this drama is how they portrayed ASun's love and dedication to Li Changge, man it was so sweet, even though we didn't get many intimate scenes or lovely-dovey talks, he's actions did all the talking.
Thanks, nice to eMeet you too :) The Long Ballad is in my favourites list, all thought I would like if certain things ended differently. Alas, I'm not the screenwriter :D But yeah, just sharing my POVs.
So yeah, even though Khatun was passed down from husband to husband, she did have a chance to settle down happily in the Grasslands.
He was a fraud. In my opinion, he was a very dislikable character, his biggest flaws were:
1. Pitting Ashile Sun against Sher - very nasty. Killing Sher's wolf and putting the blame on Sun.
2. Keeping the boys away from their mothers. That is just below the belt stuff. Who does that to babies?
3. Sending away Mimi Guli because Sher was getting to close to her.
4. Making a treaty with Li Shi Min and then asking his army to kill him. (this was really bad).
5. He never really loved Sun (so sad). He was just using him. When Sun takes the decision to leave the Eagle division, Yanli throws a fit, saying that now he can't control him any longer. Such a pity, Sun really loved him.
6. Abusing Khatun (not that she was a saint, but he didn't respect women). So I never really felt bad for him when she began poisoning him. He tore up her map and you know treated her so badly.
When we compare her situation to Changge, we must remember that Khatun was never really loved. Sun showered Changge with so much love and protected every step of the way. While circumstances and her upbringing had a large role to play in how she reacted to situations. We mustn't forget the impact Sun had in her life. He taught her so much without actually saying much.
Character development is something in this series has thoroughly impressed me. Each one of them went through so much and they had a choice to chose which side of history they wanted to be on.
Wanna see a drama with Hao Du now :D He's acting was awesome.
With regards to Sher Khan and her relationship, I think she valued him as her friend or probably she realised that he truly loved her. You see when he took the blame for her during the poisoning, she went to him and asked him why. She was quite surprised that he would go against Katun for her.
Also, when he decided to help her with Ashile Sun's release, she asked him if he really wanted to be involved and go against his mother. I was quite pleased with how the writers portrayed his character. From a naughty, spoilt and immature kid, he evolved into a responsible person.
In my opinion, Sun meant a lot to him. After Alir's death, he realised his folly and made up for his mistakes very gracefully, including going against his mother, the person he wanted to be with all his life.
He went back just to sit with Sun in jail. I think he truly loved Sun, he even wanted to sacrifice his life to him.
I also like the character developments of Hao Du, from hating him I went to 'aww he's so sweet'. Li Shi Min too. I think I'm going to forever cherish this series.
Wish they gave us a little more of a happier ending with Sun and Chang Ge thought. I would cry with joy if they gave us a season two <3