IndigoNinja
South Africa
Feel good slice of life drama which I enjoyed
A feel good Slice of Life drama that is a good watch. It's an easy casual watch with a lot of cooking but is broken up in several parts, including start up business, family life, etc. It does get a bit boring though but as soon as you feel bored something is thrown into the mix that 'wakes you up' to continue watching. And this occurs until the very last episode. Don't want to say too much and will leave it at that.Story an 8.5 rating as it keeps the viewer engaged enough (for me at least) to finish the drama. Others might feel bored and won't stick around for 36 episodes.
Acting: 8 The lead actress did the best out of all the actors.
Production and Visual FX : 8 it was ok with good Cinematography for the preparation and cooking of the food.
Ost: 8
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BRILLIANT is all I can say!!!!!
This is really a brilliant Thriller Mystery drama series. A must watch as it is full of twists and turns as well as unexpected outcomes through out the series which keeps you guessing until the very last minutes in the final episode.The story was brilliantly laid out and brings the viewer into the world of The Tower's Occupants and the events that took place as well as the back story of what happened in the lives of the main cast. This is a gripping story that will keep you wanting to see what actually happened, how everything fits together and who the culprit is.
The actors did amazingly well in portraying their respective characters and Ican't really isolate specific actors, as all of them made their characters stand out the way they should and making the story believable.
The production and Visual FX were also done very well, including Cinematography, wardrobe, make-up, sets etc.
Ost was good and the main theme song You & I was beautiful. I immediately downloaded the song and added it to my playlist.
Rewatch value : Medium. Will rewatch to see if I can spot any clues (which I didn't in most instances) that I have missed in the initial watch.
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This review may contain spoilers
Story is a real mess
I only watched this for Xu Kai and the trailer looked ok, but this series was disappointing to say the least. The story had so many issues...... with so many stupid and unintelligent characters and stupid/unintelligent decisions by Council members, Masters/Teachers, etcetera. Way to many episodes which were filled with unnecessary re-runs of certain Arcs (just in a different way). CGI was also bad - expected better than this for a 2023 production.********SPOILER ALERT********
The story was all over the place, inconsistencies and contradicting at times with so many plot holes and issues. So many stupid and unintelligent characters and stupid/unintelligent decisions by Council members, Masters/Teachers, etcetera. Script writer and Producer really made a mess of the novel in my opinion.
There are actually too many issues to discuss so I'm just mentioning one that frustrated me the most. Some of the characters, specifically Ji Rong was basically forgiven for all her wrong doings, nobody truly suspected her of any wrong doing, both the uncles, Zong and Tang which were 'commanders' , or people around her didn't question any of her actions (can forgive Qingshi as he was in love with her and didn't want to believe she's bad), all other characters around her were portrayed as 'dumb or blind' to everything she did wrong, causing numerous deaths. Her death was not specifically shown in the the last encounter with QingShi but assume she died.
The acting of main leads were the best they could do with the script they had to work with. Some of the supporting actors didn't do that well, to mention a few Tong San played by Tong Hu, Zong Ling played by Zhou Zhong and Moyang Chen played by Geng Lee.
Production and Visual FX were ok but not great.
Sound effects: the sound the spear made when used by Xue Ying was too loud and distracting at times. Demon King voice sounded like a crazed cat or rat and was super annoying.
Sound tracks were great.
Rewatch value : Definitely won't rewatch.
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Definitely worth the watch!!
This was an excellent series. I usually don't watch this type of series - specifically mass shootings, as the stories covered in the news are so upsetting and makes me unsettled. But this is truly something that everyone should watch. So I highly recommend it.The story was well thought out by the writer to provide maximum impact within the 10 episodes. For one I think this was just right as more episodes would have taken away the crucial points and message for everyone, be it for the victims family/friends, the family/friends of the killer, the staff at news agencies, the lawyers and the doctors, etcetera etcetera. And of course more episodes would have been more emotionally draining with more crying etcetera etcetera...
A perspective from almost all parties involved which gives us a better understanding of what people go through in such difficult circumstances.
The acting was great and actually felt like a recording of actual events. Each character, in whatever situation was chosen perfectly in my opinion which includes the supporting cast.
The Production and Visual effects were also well done.
Ost and sound effects: Must be honest and say that the story and acting was so compelling that I can't even remember whether there were any songs:)
Rewatch value is actually very low, I learnt a lot but won't necessarily rewatch as I cried too much. But this shouldn't be detrimental in deciding whether to watch it or not. This is just my personal feelings regarding the emotionally draining content. Still a must watch.
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Absolutely the best Family Melodrama Romance series I've watched!
Absolutely the best Family Melodrama Romance series I've watched! Really enjoyed and loved every moment even though I cried numerous times, as there were laughs and happy moments too.Many different life experiences seen through multiple families which just shows us that we, the viewer are not the only ones going through hardships, life, family 'drama', love experiences, friendship, work life, etcetera etcetera. So many things were covered in this series which also showed how wounds can heal or how life can become better if we work towards it or try to make things work and not just ignore the problems that do exist.
The story was really compelling and the writer clearly put in a lot of effort to bring everything together. Can't fault anything and also won't change anything as everything was necessary in each arc, which is interlinked in some way. The writer really did well with character building and all the intricate relationships which made everything so believable and let us, the viewer, be drawn in and routing for the character and be sad, happy, frustrated, depressed with them . I will definitely look for other series's with same writer, director and or scriptwriter.
The actors really did very well portraying their respective characters. I honestly enjoyed each and everyone's acting as they brought the characters to life. And that is exactly what actors should do as it really gets the viewer drawn into 'their' lives. I will miss all the actors but not all the characters!
Production and Visual FX were also great and all the more brought everything to life and brought everything together in the best possible way.
Ost was very good, not that good that I want to download each and every song but were played at the right time. Sound effects were not overly used and were appropriate at the right time.
Rewatch value is very high, will definitely Rewatch in future.
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This review may contain spoilers
Cheesy romance
Story contains almost every cheesy romantic trope there is and a lot is predictable. It was interesting in the first half and then became a bit boring. Don't even remember laughing at any stage even with genre including comedy.This is for someone that don't mind cheesy romance around every corner. There's isn't really much to this series other than romance, the rest is just things to fill the episodes and my rating therefore only 7 overall.
There's also no real chemistry between any of the couples. Some of the characters that were supposed to be seniors and older family acted childish and assume this was how the characters were written. Actors did ok but nobody really stood out for me personally. Acting therefore 7.5
Its a easy watch and you don't really need to concentrate too much.
Production and Visual FX : average with mainly campus setting. 7 rating
OST wasn't memorable at all. 7 rating
Rewatch value: very low
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Xiaobao made the show enjoyable in every aspect❤️
Good enough to watch! I do however suggest not to watch the 20min final episode because its very confusing especially due to episode 24 that was in my opinion the ending. I thought the last 20min were just cut scenes, etc but it wasn't. Very confusing to say the least.......The story had some plot holes therefore only a 7 rating for the story.
The main couple had great chemistry and I enjoyed their characters which were played well by the actors. Xiaobao was adorable and correct actor chosen for his role. He made the show enjoyable in every aspect. The other actors also did good in portraying their respective characters.
Production and Visual FX were good.
Ost was also good but not memorable for me to search the song and to add to my playlist.
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Thoroughly enjoyed this ❤️ It was 'original' and thought provoking.
This was an awesome Mystery Romance, which I thoroughly enjoyed.Its not the normal trope of 'being transported into a novel' etcetera etcetera. It was 'original' and thought provoking. I couldn't stop at the end of an episode unless I was extremely tired and had to go to sleep.
When I was thinking of the rating for this series, I couldn't think of anything that I would have changed if I was the script writer, so I give it a 10/10.
The main characters were portrayed very well by the respective actors and I will see if there's other series's in which they are also the main leads.
Rewatch: Very likely as I really enjoyed it.
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Enough of everything, enjoyed it❤️
A good historical romance series ❤️Everything was great, only reason for 8.5 rating is that the cheesy moments were so much that it was cringe at times. I understand that the main take away, which I feel the writer wanted to bring across, is of a New beginning, i.e. changes that are made for a better life.
All actors did a great job of portraying their respective characters and enjoyed the different personalities of the princes (the good ones). The angst and court policies were needed especially with the cheesy parts, but would have been better if there were a titbit more.
Enjoyed the OST.
Won't necessarily rewatch but perhaps my absolute favorite moments of Prince Yin Qi and princess Shan Guang Jing, really enjoyed the interactions between them and it would have been absolutely boring if it was not included along with Prince An's stupidness.
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A perfect 10 as there's truly nothing that can be improved on, great as it is❤️
This was an excellent Supernatural Mystery Drama with some comedic relief in between. My very first Taiwanese series!I took a bit longer to finish this 12 episode series because of the roller-coaster of emotions that were evoked.
A perfect 10 for me as there's truly nothing that can be improved on with this series, as it was great as is. Thought provoking and actually learnt something.
Truly impressed by the actors respectively male lead.
Everything from the story to the acting, Production, Visual effects and OST was ust right.
Rewatch is Medium, mainly due to the crying, etc. Will maybe Rewatch in a week or so ... Not any later though..
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This review may contain spoilers
Chemistry off the chart
I'm not entirely a fan of this trope, i.e where the audience is taken into a story written in modern times. This part however only had minimal screentime in the beginning and at the end of the actual story so I enjoyed this series ❤️*******SPOILER ALERT********
Story: I'm only giving this a 9 rating as the concept of Ning'er reliving her life to change her destiny was sometimes a bit 'unrealistic', what I mean by this is the fact that she's completely different to what she was in the previous life. Her being a scheming individual that only wanted to be the empress, which is a person with different values. This is my only gripe with the actual story.
Actors did a great job in portraying their respective characters. Special mention to the ML, Zhang Ling He who did an excellent job portraying Xie Wei, he really looked crazed at times, unhinged, obsessed and in love with the FL, Ning'er. Bai Lu did a good job as FL. They had great chemistry. I also enjoyed the acting of the following actors, Wang Xing Yue, Zhou Jun Wei, Liu Xie Ning, Jiang Xiao Lin (bodyguard of Xie Wei), also the other bodyguard of Xie Wei who's name I can't find under the supporting actors.
Other actors that also caught my attention is Zhou Da Wei, Melody Tang, Qin Tian Yu, Yu Zhong Li, Cui Shao Yang(really played the part of a playboy and fake Xue Dingfei well) and Yu Zong Li as 'sister' of Ning'er.
Production and Visual FX : 8.5
Ost: 8.5
Rewatch value : 8 will rewatch if there's nothing better to watch
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This series could have been so much better but was unfortunately disappointing
This series could have been so much better but was unfortunately disappointing. Very long, drawn out and slow paced...... I personally do not understand why it was produced this way but it must be due to the screenwriter, as the Producer has produced a number of very good shows such as Mysterious Lotus Casebook. It could have been done in at least 24 episodes to have a better flow and keep the viewer wanting more. I wanted to skip / fast forward at times but watched with eng subs so it wasn't doable.The actors did a good job and Bai Lu and Dylan Wang did not disappoint. Their chemistry was on point and affection believable. The side couples also did well and their storyline was better than the Main couple's. The main couple's storyline was at times clouded by clichés and downright childish misunderstandings and miscommunication.
Story had flaws and its too tedious to go through everything.
Ost wasn't memorable
Production and Visual FX : 8
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Evoked feel good emotions, so it was lovely to watch
A very good youth romance that evoked feel good emotions, so it was lovely to watch.Had light comedy which placed a smile on my face as well as some difficulties that brought on the tears.
A good story that wasn't too cheesy with every day life events taking place through out high school, college, internships, etc. The actors did really well in their respective roles and the love between main leads were believable.
Production and Visual FX as well as OST were great as well.
Rewatch : highly likely when I am in need of a feel good series.
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Slow at the beginning, but it grew on me with each episode
Very good series, enjoyed it!! For me it was 'slow' at the beginning, but it grew on me with each episode.I loved the characters and actors did a great job in portraying them. Character building / development, especially with Lu Lingfeng.
Everything felt just right and the cases were interesting with a fitting resolution to all of them. Taking into account that this is not based on a novel but on several folk tales, it is well scripted and produced, especially the illusions that features throughout the drama.
Ost and sound effects well placed and appropriate. Must honestly say that the cases, illusions and visuals took all my attention and can't really recall any particular song that caught my attention.
Can't wait for the second season to be aired. According to news filming was just completed and we will hopefully see the characters in action early in 2024.
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Expected more.....
This series was ok - expected more with the high douban rating as well as mdl rating of 8.5.The story didn't draw me in that much and I was not anxiously waiting to see the next episode. Also no slow burn romance as there was no chemistry between the couples.
The head eunoch serving the emperor was really annoying and didn't come across as a villain - maybe he wasn't supposed to be seen as a villain? Historically eunochs did usurp power and believed themselves to have as much power as the emperor but this character did not portray that - more of a delusional crazy person if anything.
Everything else was just so so. Finished the series just for the sake of seeing how everything would unfold. The Coroner findings and how it was reached was interesting though.
Rewatch value 0
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