ML's character officially killed the drama 7 ep in
FL actress is quite good and the storyline started out interesting. There's mystery of why she went into another world or did she? Going from highly privileged life to a girl with nothing. Her character is believable. I like the transferable skillset from her art major to hair and makeup is not so farfetched. She shows how resilient she is proving herself over and over again.The ML's character initially is quite likeable. He's caring and helping her to survive in an unfamiliar environment.
However 7 ep in how the ML acted is so irrational making you think who write's this crap? That neck choke was way out of left field. It's not like she wants to stay here. Why go crazy serial killer on her? Doesn't help the ML isn't a great actor either. He's pretty much unwatchable after that.
I continued watching for the FL. Her emotions are on point and hits so I can see why she is such an upcoming actress. Her crying scenes are superb!
The story developed in a complete direction without things making much sense. Rushed ending to explain what happened and amend all relationships in one episode.....
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3 Strong MLs carrying the FL's acting
I've seen Sabrina Zhuang's prior works as she gets some interesting scripts. Its not that she can't act but it's just not amazing. Her expressions are pretty much the same in every character I've seen her in. The 3 MLs were all better. Huang Jun Jie's acting definitely gotten better over the years but the pairing didn't really spark any chemistry for me.The story itself is quite enjoyable if you like less serious ancient detective genre types. (i.e Miss Truth, The Imperial Coroner, Maiden Holmes)
What I enjoyed:
1. Actual story - smart (but not witty) female litigator with the unique name of Tumi defends the powerless and fights for equality.
2. Bromance worthy between Han Wu Wei & Kang Zheng Yuan
3. Fan Zhi Xin (Han Wu Wei) stand out acting. His face is very expressive. I can't believe I never seen his works!
4. Father / Daughter relationship - I am a sucker for those
5. Decent fight scenes. This is not big budget production but I thought the fight scenes were not too shabby
6. Actual cases - no dragged out cases, not overly complicated, easy watch if even if don't fully pay attention
Downside
1. I wish Tumi was a bit less serious. Hardly any humor compared to other similar dramas.
2. Lots & Lots of words. My Chinese is limited so I may need subtitles and story focuses on arguing cases = lots & lots of tiresome reading subtitles.
3. Ending with no ending .... yeah I watch dramas so there are endings but which would you rather have? Not an ending or bad endings? It's a toss up. Waiting for S2 could be forever painful.
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Don't miss the Epilogues
Starting ep 2 there's mini epilogues at the end for about ~10 ep.Underrated cute drama ruined by no subs but if you can understand Chinese and enjoys costume rom coms, this is a great pick.
Loved great cast & characters:
FL Shen Yu is super cute without over acting (which a lot of dramas tend to do). Her character is cute, witty & smart! I loved her expressions.
ML (Old Male Chicken) is a great looking actor and the young actor they picked is a perfect match too!
The back and forth dialogue between the leads is written pretty well. Of course with any rom com there will be the standard "catch & fall" moments but if its cutely done, its very enjoyable.
Zhou Yue - one of few females that can pass off as a male at least in a drama.
Gao Mo - Funny supporting character
If you enjoy dramas like:
Dr. Cutie
A love so Romantic
Chances are you'll like this one too but personally I thought the pairing & dialogue was better in this one.
The only down side is that like many C-drama ending's kind of a mess starting ep 20. There are also a few one dimensional bad characters that you can skip through.
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Lots of politics but must watch if you are a Zhang Ruo Yun fan
If you are a Zhang Ruo Yun fan this is a must watch and the fact that Wang Yang (the lawyer) is also a main character makes it that much better. They were my favorite pair in Joy of Life.The story is unique but you can't get away from the politics so if you can't stand political dramas then this may be hard to watch. In addition the dialogue is quite complicated so hopefully translation can fully capture the meaning.
Loved:
1. Casting. Stellar cast and interesting characters
Shuai Jia Mo - Mathematical genius played perfectly by Zhang Ruo Yun
Cheng Ren Qing - sharp tongue lawyer that will help anyone for money.
Feng Bi Yu - Out spoken female character
2. Supporting cast. I love that many were not written as one dimensional good or bad characters
3. Few twists but not overwhelming
4. Overall story with a gratifying ending
There were no romances or side character's story lines so 14 episode felt pretty short. I wish the story could've been longer as I think many of the characters are interesting.
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Light hearted historical drama
Same category as:Dr. Cutie
Romance of Tiger & Rose
Romance of Hua Rong
A Girl like me
If you enjoy this kind of silly historical dramas then you will enjoy this one. Started off strong with so many funny moments. I loved the nickname ML called her. "Xiao Jian Shang" Drama also had more than average cuddly kissing playful couple scenes which is quite refreshing. The best friend couple was also a good pairing providing some comedic moments.
Of course the overall plot didn't flow & some of the characters just randomly popped in & out with no rhyme or reason.
The downfall came around ep 20. After so many of the SAME character introduction trying to pull them apart, it got tired out. Previous rivals all were likeable somewhere along the way except the last one was unbearable. They should've just ended at ep 20.
It was still quite enjoyable overall.
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Only worth watching if you love the Leads
The only reason to watch this is because you saw the ML/FL in Love Better Than Immortality.The story goes from mediocre to worse
The character development goes from bad to intolerable
The few good supporting characters goes from few to zero
Zhao Lusi's lovely voice gets dubbed & subpar at that
after ~20 the story just gets worse and worse. Obsessed people all turns evil over unattainable love as that's an excuse for bad drama
It could've been a great drama w/ the frame work. Magical land with CGI, fun magic powers, powerful healer with mysteries to be solved. Instead they focused entirely on evil obsession love.
Chu Tian Yao lives to be one the worst written characters ever in c-drama history. Completely unnecessary.
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Obviously not a thriller
It started out promising with the serial killer mystery then it was poorly executed on so many levels.1. Plot was predictable and there was no mystery even before midway.
2. "Romance" Why bother with the romance if you are not even go build the connection . That "I like you" came out of left field
3. No stand out likeable characters .... well there was 1 and he was killed.
4. Excessive yelling - ML cop character's yelling didn't make the drama feel more intense but rather it was just noise.
5. Mounting evidence ..... That's how they wrapped the obvious crime.
Do you admit your crime? no? here is a recording
Do you admit your crime? no? here is a video
Do you admit your crime? no? here is a witness
Do you admit your crime? no? here is a video of you ... in the act .............................
Just watch "Children of Nobody" instead
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One of the best of 2023!
This is not your typical idol drama but it's definitely an eye candy fest. You'll see many so many familiar good looking actors/actresses all gathered in 1 drama.This is a quality production in a very dark setting. Ep 1 instantly got me hooked with the female assassin concept which remotely reminded me of Bloody Romance. The cinematography, CGI & fight scenes are all really good.
Make up on the MLs are a bit overwhelming but it works well on the FLs with the dark costumes. Costume designs are very beautiful with lots of black and fine gold detailing. Even the plain monk costumes you can see the fabric texture detailing. Quite impressive.
Storytelling & dialogue is engaging to where full attention is required at least the first 1/2. Story revolves some power struggles , murder mysteries, assassin frenemies making me wish this series is longer than just 24 eps.
Only parts I don't care for is the sister of ML. OTP forced humor feels out of place for this drama. A few lines were funny I admit but most I can do without. 2nd half though she did grow on me to my surprise. It's been a while since I loved almost every character and every fight scene!
Overall:
2nd FL & 2ML out acted the ML & FL
2ML's brother makes a great trio dynamic
Ending is.... tragically messy to the land of no where. Hoping S2 will magically appear one day and answer all unanswered questions.........................
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Face change revenge drama. Insta Bro is great!
I kind of lost count of how many FL wronged and gets a chance at revenge dramas in the past 2 years now. I wasn't expecting much especially with the poster of ML Wei Zhe Ming in really bad hair.Production isn't the greatest like these fake horseback riding scenes with hair not moving (at all) makes me laugh.
But if you disregard:
1. ML's bad hair days all day everyday
2. Typical female revenge drama storyline
3. Insta face change, Insta Kungfu
4. Mid way change dubbed voice of the evil sister
You can enjoy this.
This is better than other revenge dramas in that:
1. FL is smart & strong w/ her "insta" Kung Fu. Actress Xu Lu is doing a pretty good job.
2. Her insta Bro is a pretty darn good character.
3. Pacing is not bad. There are plenty of bad characters, but so far % of screen time is tolerable.
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FL is amazing! OTP silly humor worked!
Best watching this drama when on wine.This is one of those dramas took me by surprise. I only watched this because someone posted on a feed with a specific funny scene of the FL catching an arrow then pretending to stab herself & die. The poster definitely was NOT appealing. Her expressions are so funny that I had to try out this drama.
These types of dramas are typical OTP stupid humor with paper thin plot so I can only watch these once in a while. The best part of the drama is the FL. Not that she looks like a guy at all but her gestures, her forced man voice & her manly expressions are exceptional. ML was ok but he was nowhere near the FL.
Strong supporting silly characters!
- 1st greatest assassin & the lovely princess who "never" lies
- Dad & the fake brothers
- 2nd ML
The stupid humor is not for everyone. If you want plot to totally work this is not it. If you want light humor, this is a good choice.
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The teacher that brings hope to the special 5
The end of ep 1 reminds me of this video I saw many years ago: Social Inequalities Explained in a $100 Race. Where you start in life may be out of your control but how hard you race in life is up to you.Since I don't particular like heavy content so I wouldn't have started this if weren't for the cast.
Zhang Ruo Yun is always a solid actor in all his roles. In recent years he took on more serious roles. Here he plays someone who looks a lot older than his actual age with a painful past he tried to escape from.
The students: played by actors Zhang Cheng and Wang Qiang did a great job in the drama "Cross Fire" (One of my unexpected favorites) Here they are part of that special 5 students and play completely different characters.
Story starts with Lei Ming (ML) returning to be a teacher. He wants to assemble a special class of 5 out to prove his unconventional teaching methods can help these kids make it to the top college.
The special 5 + the troubled Shen Yao:
1. Li Ran, an orphan living in the basement where his grandma works as a housekeeper. The son of the owner is the top student (Shen Yao) in the same grade but with a sick twisted mind. Li Ran fix electronics on the side to help with the bills.
2. Cheng Yu Shan, her mom remarries to a guy who only cares or his biological son. On the outside she's fearless and fends off all the unwanted boy's attention. One day she finds hidden cameras, she trembles in fear. She sits in her small room looking outside of her small window feeling completely trapped. The camera work was so well done for that scene.
3. Yu Yang, he's the bully target of many kids including the twisted top student.
4. Zeng You Zhen, she may not be living in poverty but she's constantly trying to please the girls pretending to be accepted. She has a secret she's trying to hide.
5. Jiang Qing Lang, he comes from successful parents in an unhealthy relationship, clearly not happy despite all that success. The overbearing mom character clearly that you'll want to skip through is his ultimate source of torment.
6. Shen Yao, he is not part of the 5 but he is such an interesting character. Outside he is the perfect student, but you see his anger brewing inside expressed in self-harm and doing bad things to others. His story finally unfolds in ep 23. This is the 1st time I've seen Li Ming De in a serious emotional scene, and he did a great job.
The content is not overly heavy but definitely meaningful. It touches upon self-harm, parental abuse, suicide, depression, teacher student dynamics & so on....
Only thing I don't like is ep 30 with the older version of the kids. Not relatable at all. They used the same actors for the teachers might as well use the same actors for the students. But they didn't and it was just not good.
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13 years of no progress
The story line goes back and forth way too much that failed to deliver any kind of development. Everything happened in ep 22-24. As much as I am a fan of crime dramas this lacked the mystery and the progression that any good script requires. Burning Ice (2017) to me is still the gold standard for mystery with captivating characters.The only outstanding character to me was actually the wife of the young cop, a supporting character. The MLs:
1. The old cop's character was all around frustrating. He lacked any sensibility, discriminating against a suspect that should've clearly been ruled out ultimately indirectly caused the tragedy that followed.
2. The young cop (who I actually watched the drama for) was the only character that had any crime solving brains. He made connections where as the old cop to me made zero progress. I didn't even see the point why they needed the old cop other than he was on the case 13 years ago and provided flash back minutes. Still I felt the character was rather bland until last 2 ep.
If you think about the critical developments were:
1. (NOT a cop) that provided the origins of a painting
2. DNA technology improvement
3. Key Witness (memory coming back)
Not much to do with actual detective work.
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If you want to be reminded of classic cliches
This drama is definitely a good K drama classic cliche reminder. Once in a while I remines the dramas I grew up watching.The ones that you have to ignore all logic like:
Kid hits girl in rain. next scene:
Boy in court room over the incident. Girl runs into the courtroom soaking wet "from that rain"
Like did you NOT go to the hospital first? Did you just got dragged straight to the court room w/o any due process?
So just enjoy the classic cliches:
Poor orphan girl <-- check
Piggie back rides <-- a must
Accident losing memory <-- always
Everyone lies to you when you have no memory as if that's good for you <-- yup
Obsessive girl on the side wishing nothing but the worst <--- essential
Stalker Obsessive behaviors - Ok if you are a cute ML
First love = Fated eternal love <-- check. I mean who wants to watch the 98% failed first relationships anyhow like in real life.
Now whether you enjoy those or not, there are lovely things about this drama:
1. Young versions (which I thought should've lasted longer) are the most adorable parts of the drama
ML in the teens <-- I watched his later works first and wanted to watch his earlier works. He's definitely my favorite part of the drama
2. 20s ML - I watched his supporting roles and he's one of my favorite supporting actors.
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Enjoyable if you are into Ancient detective dramas
I think below are still better:The sleuth of the Ming Dynasty <-- still the best
Ancient Detective
The Imperial Coroner
But if you enjoy this kind of niche drama then you'll like the storyline of this as well despite being a low budget drama.
The story has multiple cases and gets solved pretty quick, but every case tied to a bigger mystery surrounding the ML.
Acting was ok, no one really stood out but at least none were terrible.
Chemistry wasn't strong between the ML and the FL, but the focus wasn't on the romance. I actually preferred that being the episodes were short and I wasn't looking for cheesy romance in this kind of the genre.
Each episode ended with some random rambling, some were quite silly and funny.
The ending suggested season 2 so I hope that it will happen!
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Nice Detective storyline but ignore the acting
This is one of those underrated dramas that less people will get to watch. If you enjoy Ancient detective story lines you will enjoy the story but don't expect a big budget production or strong acting.FL - Acting started out ok but later episodes got worse & worse as she can't portray the array of emotions needed. "love, anger, sad" all end up with this blank stare reciting lines.
ML 1 - I think he carried the show in terms of acting
ML 2 as Su Fu - I've enjoyed some of his other works and obviously he's manly hot but his lack of expression didn't do the role justice
What I enjoyed:
Mysteries that connected to the bigger mystery of the missing mom
The love triangle was well written, better than most actually. Instead of the standard 2nd lead syndrome she had real feelings for both although with Su Fu it's more because he saved her. A mysterious badass assassin that random shows up and rescues you is obviously appealing.
Xiao Song started off as a like/hate relationship. As the story continued they grew to love each other while she's trying to forget Su Fu for his betrayal (but which she didn't try to understand why? and she's "Miss Truth" WHAT WHAT??)
Nicknames for each other: Fish & Fox very cute.
Pace of the drama didn't feel slow. Not so many "filler" moments
Sidekick Sang Chen was a fun character
What's lacking
Obviously needed better acting
Story was a bit too fast, they founded clues super speed
Lack of character development, No depth to the characters. How they started out is how they ended
I really wished there was more story to the ML
Su Fu : Initially not too much background on him. Too many questions of why later episodes. Total downfall of a great character potential
What you will need to ignore:
Standard jumping out of water scenes and "insta dry" moments
The cheesy freeze flying fight scenes (low budget) not very well choreographed
The countless moments of she being knocked out, pass out and randomly wake up on a bed
The cheesy props
Last 2 ep. very rushed. Didn't make a lot of sense to me
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