TheMoonEmpress

I read your blog (almost entirely 🫣) after reading this review. I noticed you don't always need romance in your dramas and put more stock on character growth. Hence, I would highly recommend the drama Faithful , starring Janice Wu and HYX. It has little to no romance and mostly focuses on forming a rag tag group to avenge a wrong doing. You will see HYX in a completely different role in it and her acting really shines in that drama. It has its flaws (almost all cdramas do) but maybe you'll find it worth watching.

https://mydramalist.com/739821-the-nine

TW: SA , attempted suicide

Costumes and styling of the ML and SML are okay ....the FL? I don't know, I'm not a fan of her costumes, hairstyles or makeup 😅 the aegyosal is so big it has its own coordinates.

Yes it will be difficult for sure. Hope she is able to get good offers and takes good decision. If it's a hidden gem like Word of Honour, then it's possible. The script and direction is of utmost importance, hence, we'll have to wait and see. It is unfortunate that we see the same faces again and again because of the traffic game. But even big companies like New Classics Media casted Tian Xi Wei when she was relatively unknown and New Life Begins did become sort of a hit. So I'm still hopeful.

I think Hu Yi Xuan is a good fit for the FL. She can play innocent parts as well as the serious, scheming parts very well.

Because in Mandarin proverb for both he and she sound the same and are not gendered. The English subs have translated it into he and she for our benefit.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AgmTajV1G/

https://youtu.be/mG-DRVK1H7w?si=JGGat3O7BH9zYD_j
Very nicely presented. 👌🏽

It kind of give rom com vibes from ep 10 onwards

Actually, I didn't find the pacing of this drama to be good from episode 10 itself. I guess I only really liked the first 5 episodes they'd put out, now that I think about it. The constant 'will he, won't he' of the ML made the plot meandering and looping on itself, to the point that I couldn't really sympathise with his struggle related to falling for the enemy's daughter. I don't mind emotionally depressed ML who have never been exposed to love and, hence, are obtuse and oblivious to overtures made by the FL. But it's repetitive and overdone in this drama I think. I mean how many times did we see the plot of him moving to the study to avoid facing his feelings.
I completely agree that there's something pre manufactured about the plot of this drama. It's almost like they're just systematically going through a checklist that they have to follow (aphrodisiac scene ✅, drunk FL ✅, jealous ML ✅, Cliff rescue scene✅, misunderstandings related to gifts and wishes ✅) It's formulaic, to say the least. When I saw the trailer, I thought it would be subversive like MJTY ( I don't particularly like that drama but at least it's something different than what we usually see) or the dream of splendor. But it turned out to be a generic love story which really suffers in execution. I have realised I'm not a fan of this director. Some scenes can be shot so much better for more emotional impact. (Like when they confess their admiration for each other or even during the rescue scene) Oh well, it is what it is.

This is getting too boring to continue for me so I'm going to put it on hold till all the episodes are out. I think these kinds of drama, wherein the pacing drags considerably in the middle, actually benefit from bingeing rather than chasing.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19xq647237/

OMG actually seeing all this for real makes me emotional. I still can't believe they were able to create a more than passable drama despite all these hardships.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AKLbX7epw/

Her interviews are so Frank and straightforward. She is actually so calm irl lol

It's worth checking out, the beginning is cute and fun and the chemistry between the leads is amazing!

Liang is supposed to be the imperial power. But the state lords have more or equal power as them

They applied the same plot device for the deaths at the end of ep 23. Those two characters were introduced on the screen for the first time and were killed literally 5 mins later. Even the justification for their death came as an exposition minutes before they died. It's weird, to say the least 🙈

💯agreed. I also believe that storytelling is way of connecting characters and their experiences with the audience. They can aid escapism while still being relatable, and most importantly, believable. For it to be convincing and believable, there needs to be a certain logic to hook the audience. The dramas start to suffer when they play fast and loose with the logic to further their narrative. This is what is happening with POB, imo. Sometimes even low budget dramas with some lacuna end up connecting with the audience because of the adherence to logic and smooth flow of the plot. The adaptation screenwriter of this drama has also worked on Romance of Tiger and Rose and I think her work was more believable and convincing in that drama. Even though that drama also has a sluggish middle, the desire to tell a good story and working hard to hook the audience is visible in that drama. Hence it was a hit even though it had less resources. Quantitatively speaking POB is also a hit in terms of popularity. But in terms of quality, it could've been better.

It was soo comical instead of dangerous

Let's hope today's episodes deliver because the plot has started to derail quite a bit since the last 7-8 episodes.
Even the fact that she got him the gift left a weird taste in my mouth. Like she was guilty tripped into it , felt pressured into giving him a gift exactly the way he described it even though it was difficult. Like giving in to a spoiled child. 🥲
After I'd given up on the laughable politics and faulty logic of the drama, I thought at least the romance would sustain me. 🥲

The uncle got killed in the most sudden and comical way possible. Lol I thought it was a dream sequence for a moment, especially with that funny bgm they had on while committing literal murder OMG. But the next scene confirms his death and I was like 😵‍💫

He did the same thing with the gift too. Like we wasted so much time unnecessarily on that gift point, it did nothing for the plot and was just a repetition of the same characteristics of the ML. Where is the ruthless, intense and charismatic WS that was promised to us? 😭