Fighting For Garbage

LMAO, the screenwriter hoodwinked viewers into thinking that this garbage adaptation would still have the three important elements that drew people into the book which were the following:

1. No palace drama
2. Strong and capable female lead
3. Female lead centric drama

Yet somehow the story shifts focus and the male lead becomes the main character and the second male lead becomes a background character/afterthought.

The only redeeming quality this drama has is that the fight scenes are pretty decent and that the ending was somewhat satisfactory since she did not end up with anyone and refused to see the emperor. However, they including her running off into the sunset made no sense to me. Honestly, this drama wasted so much of my time and was a big disappointment. Giving this 5.5 out of 10 stars was me being kind.

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Choppy editing meets unfinished arcs

Wow, where do I begin?

This drama had so much potential, especially with all the veteran actors in this. But the way the editing was and the way the arcs were as well as character introductions is where this show falls very short.

There are several characters that are introduced and then we never see them again. There are important characters that the main character LQL has a relationship with that we barely see their ending/know what happens to them. It's like they disappear from thin air which makes no sense given the length of time they have spent with them.

Then we spend much of the show watching the prince have no faith or confidence in any of his son and their ability to help him keep the promise he made to the emperor only for him to now magically have faith in HL, who is the prince's 3rd son.

We watch the villains seemingly get away with everything despite the evidence against them simply because it would "break" the prince's heart to have to kill his evil children and because of one woman who is literally behind every single plot yet somehow she doesn't meet her compupence until the end.

It was just all very frustrating. Also, the random arc they threw in towards the end of ep 36 and we see the main characters standing together as if they are Avengers.

I'm sorry. But I'm just so disappointed because again, this is a stacked cast. Many of these actors and actresses I've seen elsewhere and they have proven their acting ability. Additionally, the ost was nice. So it just feels like their talent as well as the musical talent in the osts was wasted.

Would I recommend watching this? Maybe if you need something as background noise while you are doing some other task or if you just need something to pass the time but as a good stand-alone? No.

Side note, I will say this review is harsher than the reviews I typically give idol dramas but that's because the expectations were different.

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The chemistry between all the characters is amazing.

If you love angst and "fix-it" type of costume dramas then this is the show for you. I really liked the plot and how they didn't make her personality drastically change from what it was during her original timeline. The only thing that really changed was her realizing how fortunate she was and how many people in her life she had who truly cared about her. I liked that. I also liked how they didn't make the ML's personality do a 180 just because he fell in love and I liked her relationship with ZZ and YL in the second life. I kind of wish there was a part 2 where we could see the original timeline more but this was enjoyable. Lastly, I really liked how the villains were written especially XS who I loved to hate. She was very smart and calculative and didn't just sit around waiting for her doom. I can appreciate that. Although I was disappointed that her death was so light. As for FY...I wish they had shown JXN's grief more over her death. In the parts of the novel I read, she was truly devastated. All in all, this is a great drama and I 100% recommend watching it.

Although, slight warning, the ML is sometimes very aggressive and forceful so if that's not your thing or it makes you too uncomfortable, you might not enjoy the drama as much.

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100% rewatchable

Honestly, I don't know why this show has such low ratings. It's a fun, low-stress drama, and the leads have chemistry unlike what some people have said. If you are looking for something simple and fun to pass the time, this is the drama for you. I also like how there are two potential endings but in the end, LXX and ZSK end up together regardless of the path they take. But tbh I'm torn on which ending I prefer. I don't want LXX to have to give up cooking for a long time to be with ZSK but I don't want ZSK to give up being crown prince either.

Anyways, I 100% recommend this drama especially if you like drama's centered on food, friendship, and love.

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Captivating

Wow, what can I say? It's finally over. This show was very interesting to watch without too many over-the-top theatrics. I liked how everything tied in together in the end.

Things I wish would have happened/my only complaints (minor spoilers):

1. Development of YJJ and CSE's relationship. We got a lot of flashbacks but I still feel like more could have been done for the audience to grasp what led YJJ to want CSE back after he got divorced. Additionally, it would have been nice to have had more than 1 episode focused on them. They start getting closer and she becomes vulnerable and then bam, something happens towards the end of the episode that leads her to distrust him. Though the distrust is brief it is still unsatisfying.

2. The husband's obsession. It's not fully explained why he is so insistent on staying married to CSE. We can make assumptions based on what is seen so far but I somehow wish that was explained further. It did need a lot of episodes but just even a flashback maybe or something that shows what exactly it is he's clinging to. Is it her prestige and the benefits of being her husband alone, or does she have some hidden wealth or is it a combination of that and some lingering feelings? I feel like we the audience are left speculating.

Aside from that, I think everything was well done. I won't say anything else because it will lead to major spoilers but if you are debating watching this, I think you should give it a go. It's great with a great, strong, and complex female lead.

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Ending could have been better

I really loved this drama and I feel like more people will like it if they go into it focusing more on the female lead and her journey to coming to terms with her situation. It's less enjoyable if you are solely watching for romance as she really doesn't end up having much skinship with either the ML or 2ML. Secondly, the way the story is written...she technically ends up with both of them...sort of...but you mostly see her spend the most time with the 2ML. Also, for this review, in my opinion, the 2ML is the guard, not the man she is married to.

The only additional thing I wish was added to this drama was either a part 2 or a special episode where we got to see what happened after she accepted reality. That short cartoon wasn't enough for me. I would have liked to see what led to her building up her relationship with the ML in reality as well as his reaction to her pregnancy. Other than that, it's a fun drama. It's full of angst though so this isn't a relaxing low-stress romance. It's mainly about the female lead pursuing a potential redemption arc.

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The acting from the leads was amazing!

When I first started watching this drama I was wondering how the main leads would end up together because of the prejudice the male lead had against the female lead. Watching their relationship unfold was very heartwarming and the acting from both leads was amazing. Some of my favorite scenes in this drama are during ep 20 - 30 most of which involve the leads opening up to each other more. Some things that I did not like about this drama were some plot lines and the addition of some characters which I felt were not necessary to the plot. Also, some of the actions of certain characters toward the end made no sense to me based on what we had previously seen from them. I'm mainly talking about some redemption plots. They seemed a bit random towards the end. Other than that, I loved this drama. I was on the edge of my seat every week waiting for new episodes. It's been a while since I have felt like this about a drama. Definitely planning on rewatching and I recommend this drama to anyone who likes romance and adventure.

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Amazing acting and chemistry

This was a well-written story and the acting was amazing. The only reason I did not give this a 10/10 is because of the ending. I didn't like how in her 'heaven' she didn't get to meet her friends like she promised. She spent most of her life devoted to the King and had to spend her afterlife that way too which to me was sad especially because she asked him not to 'find her' again. For most people, this won't be an issue or something that made them sad as them being together in the afterlife is an ideal ending but for me it was sad because it signified her never being able to have the freedom she truly desired. Anyways, this is a great watch.

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