This review may contain spoilers
Decent Fanfiction - Atrocious "Adaptation"
I normally don’t write reviews and just give shows a rating. However, weeks after finishing the drama, I find myself constantly thinking about it and how disappointed I am. I was so excited when I heard Cheng Lei and Bai Lu were cast as the leads in this adaptation, and prayed they wouldn’t butcher it. My hopes were crushed to see 98% of the story changed. What is the point of obtaining rights to a story if you change EVERYTHING?
Every episode I had to fight the adaptation snob in me from raging and remind myself to watch it for what it was…FAN FICTION. I truly do not understand why they changed the entire plot. As an “original story” it is decent, touching on topics like trauma, and mental health. I commend the actors for doing a good job with this atrocity of a script called an "adaptation". The actors did a great job with what they were given, but overall, the romance fell flat, and the politics/schemes were not as engaging as the novel.
Yes, the novel is long. Yes, I understand that adaptations change things to suit the different mediums and I accept that. Pursuit of Jade also changed things from the novel, but those changes did not impact the essence of the plot and the overall story being told. What the screenwriters/adapters did with The First Jasmine is criminal. Let them work on original content, and be banned from adapting anything in the future.
Amazing characters were either completely cut out or changed to the point they were unrecognizable. They destroyed the essence of the ML turning him into a weak simp, and turned a strong intelligent FL into a traumatized victim. The romance, deep love & respect the two leads have in the novel as they navigate survival in a treacherous political war-torn world is nowhere to be found in the drama. I wanted to see their relationship built on trust and respect, where they didn’t hide anything from each other. I wanted to see them work together on military strategies to defeat their numerous enemies. I wanted to see Ye Li being the only person in the world who could put a leash on Mo Xiuyao. I wanted to see the Mo Xiuyao who was still feared and powerful even when confined to a wheelchair. I didn’t get any of it. All I got was broken characters with little to no resemblance to their written counterparts. I wish they properly adapted the story. There was so much content in the novel to make a great drama.
The whole Lishan plot DID NOT HAPPEN. There was no “Child Emperor” and Empress Dowager was not the main antagonist. Mo Jingli, the Emperor’s brother, was a better antagonist in the novel along with many others. Ye Li’s maternal family were her biggest supporters. They even had the audacity to cut out their son Mo Xiaobao. His scenes constantly bickering & plotting against his father to monopolize his mother's affection are some of the funniest scenes I have ever read.
FINAL VERDICT- DISAPPOINTING
Every episode I had to fight the adaptation snob in me from raging and remind myself to watch it for what it was…FAN FICTION. I truly do not understand why they changed the entire plot. As an “original story” it is decent, touching on topics like trauma, and mental health. I commend the actors for doing a good job with this atrocity of a script called an "adaptation". The actors did a great job with what they were given, but overall, the romance fell flat, and the politics/schemes were not as engaging as the novel.
Yes, the novel is long. Yes, I understand that adaptations change things to suit the different mediums and I accept that. Pursuit of Jade also changed things from the novel, but those changes did not impact the essence of the plot and the overall story being told. What the screenwriters/adapters did with The First Jasmine is criminal. Let them work on original content, and be banned from adapting anything in the future.
Amazing characters were either completely cut out or changed to the point they were unrecognizable. They destroyed the essence of the ML turning him into a weak simp, and turned a strong intelligent FL into a traumatized victim. The romance, deep love & respect the two leads have in the novel as they navigate survival in a treacherous political war-torn world is nowhere to be found in the drama. I wanted to see their relationship built on trust and respect, where they didn’t hide anything from each other. I wanted to see them work together on military strategies to defeat their numerous enemies. I wanted to see Ye Li being the only person in the world who could put a leash on Mo Xiuyao. I wanted to see the Mo Xiuyao who was still feared and powerful even when confined to a wheelchair. I didn’t get any of it. All I got was broken characters with little to no resemblance to their written counterparts. I wish they properly adapted the story. There was so much content in the novel to make a great drama.
The whole Lishan plot DID NOT HAPPEN. There was no “Child Emperor” and Empress Dowager was not the main antagonist. Mo Jingli, the Emperor’s brother, was a better antagonist in the novel along with many others. Ye Li’s maternal family were her biggest supporters. They even had the audacity to cut out their son Mo Xiaobao. His scenes constantly bickering & plotting against his father to monopolize his mother's affection are some of the funniest scenes I have ever read.
FINAL VERDICT- DISAPPOINTING
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