What a hot mess!
It sucked.The central love story:
The ML is an idiot and has zero reasoning skills. He decides to believe his gf time and again and just ghosts the FL and then pop's back up in her life without any explanations.
The FL gives in too easily and deserved a lot better. Her character proved how blind love can be, she kept loving despite the push and pull and didn't even stop to think that this was far too toxic for her.
They ending was confusing, claiming that they ended up together. Why? She deserved better and ML was honestly too in love with himself to ever trust anyone and went out of his way to prove that he didn't need her in his life.
When they packed up their bags and departed to home, I knew something messed up was coming.
Other characters:
My heart went out to Jiang Bai Li, FL's best friend. She just couldn't give up on a guy who was so toxic that he hit on FL the first time they met and Bai Li was right there. She deserved so much better.
Zhang Ming Rui, friend to both ML & FL was the only sane person in this entire show. I wished he would have ended up with Bail Li.
Fluffy Drama
I'm not really a fan of cats but this drama started out pretty good.Male Lead is quite adorable, however his face was so expressionless, it seemed to be made out of marble.
Even the Second lead was pretty much the same. Both were pretty likable but there range of emotions was clearly missing.
Since this is a fluff piece that works in their favor.
The drama was quite funny at times. The FL and ML's sister were more expressive. But all it all a decent watch, however I won't be coming back for seconds.
Amazing chemistry between leads
It is a joy to watch leads interact with each other no matter what they are doing.Watched all three seasons, season 1 and season 3 are comparatively better than the 2nd season. 2nd season was a bit boring for me.
The story would have been much more riveting had the flashback scenes played out simultaneously, because those scenes were really interesting compared to the whole criminal syndicate story.
All the characters are pretty great, it is the story that doesn't do justice to them. But it is certainly better written and quite memorable compared to lot of others dramas out there.
If you are into both crime and romance it might be your cup of tea. I just couldn't get into the crime part of this story.
First half is great, the second half falls short
The best part about this drama it that it constantly keeps you guessing. Just when you think that you have you figured out, it changed lanes and the transition was very smooth. Things went good till ep 18-19, after that the drama was just kinda of okay. The thrill was lost.The chemistry between the ML and FL was quite good so in the later episodes i just skipped to their parts till the end. It could be because this was an ongoing drama and I watched some other drams in between, but the second half just wasn't interesting enough in my books.
*Major Spoiler*
The time travel and dimensions was much more interesting than memory loss angle we got. That's where things went wrong for this drama.
But i would definitely rewatch it at least once, maybe then it would be better. I just want to give it one more try to convince me that the second half was not a waste of time.
Interesting Story
While the story was interesting the relationship between the two felt unbalanced. The Male lead held all the cards and made all the decisions and the FL just went with them. It worked out since the ML wasn't toxic but pretty nice and sweet. He treated her well.Once they get together they were a happy couple. The FL was so head over the heels that she didn't notice any other guys in the room when the ML entered it. ML lucked out here.
The second couple was a bit surprising but I liked them together. Since this drama is focused more on the psychology and hypnotism it was surprising to see such good couples come out of it.
Get ready to fall in love with Tonghao and dislike Shan Jun Hao (P.S they are both the same person)
I have too many problems with this drama.First things first, Shan Jun Hao (ML) looses his memory and is named Tonghao due to a case of mistaken identity.
Ye Qian Yu (FL) and her family hit the ML while driving in the dark and decide to not report it but to take him home. It just didn't sit right with me. However when Tonghao (name of the ML when he lost his memory due to the accident) found out about it later in their relationship, he forgave her and was okay with it.
Tonghao, who lost his memory, was much better fit for FL than Shan Jun Hao despite them being the same person. Once he got his memory back and became Shan Jun Hao again, he forgot all about his time as Tonghao, he became a jerk. He went out of his way to say the meanest and most hurtful things to Ye Qian Yu. The personality change was too drastic and it was too easy to miss Tonghao, who was so very adorable.
Tonghao's only fault was that he was a bit selfish with his love for Ye Qian Yu. Even when he found out about his identity as Shan Jun Hao who had a fiancé, mother, and adopted brother waiting for him, he decided to forget about them completely and he did so in a very cruel way. All he wanted was Ye Qian Yu.
Apart from the initial hit and kidnap, Qian Yu was a happy character, a bit shady when it came to making money, but we see her grow. Even when Tonghao insisted that he wanted nothing to do with his old memories, she went out of her way ensure he met with his family. But she got delt a crappy hand, Shan Jun Hao family were so damn crappy to her, everyone of them despite her giving him up when he was Tonghao. She just had to keep taking shit from these guys including Shan Jun Hao and not once did he apologize for it. It was sad to watch and she just kept being so understanding. The whole situation was crappy for everyone, what made it worse was Qian Yu became the punching bag for Shan Jun Hao's family.
They did have a happy ending but I wished he had gotten his memories back of being Tonghao.
Slow burn romance
Ding Xiao Rou (FL): Pretty soul. Often said nonsensical things but she seemed magical. Add to that the actress playing the role is gorgeous and looks like a princess out of Taylor swift's official music videos.Xiao Rou (ML): He was honestly a sweet guy. Despite all the things that went wrong because of the FL he always remained nice, even when they were bickering. Apart from that one scene where he said some harsh things (happens to all of us) he is quite adorable. He did need a little push to get FL back but they weren't really together at the time.
Nan Sa Sa [ Xiao Rou's bestfriend]: We all wish we had a bestfriend like that. Another gorgeous woman with a heart of gold. So, i'm very glad that she ended up with the Second Male Lead.
These three pretty much carried the show for me. I might rewatch it sometime again in the future.
Aww. The Chemistry is bomb. (A possible breakup on the horizon (Just a guess))
I'm definitely in this to watch these two light up the screen with their passion. They have had about 3 accidental weird kisses when they weren't in a relationship. First two when she drank the drugged wine for him, which was some sort of ecstasy. The third one when he fell on top of her as fainted due to low blood sugar. However, the first kiss they had when sober and aware was kinda a miss for me. The ML was good at it the FL not so much. But that's just a one time thing, she later made up for it and more so and I'm never doubting her skills.The 2ML is pretty decent. Hope he doesn't end up too heartbroken.
The story seems to be progressing like normal Cdramas, so, I'm sure we are in for a breakup somewhere down the road, especially with so many people out to get the FL & ML.
Slow paced. Not living up to its potential. I used the fast forward button far too many times.
I am here because I found out we finally have Wi Ha joon as the male lead. The story didn't sound that interesting to me & I feel like this is one of the drama's where you are not sure if they will end up together or not.Ep 1: The beginning is very slow paced, the characters seemed boring in the beginning. It was somewhere around the 20 minutes mark that things finally started to get interesting. The interactions between the FL & the school teacher was so charged with friction. I liked the way the FL approached it rationally, not a fan of how the school teacher reacted. Have seen that reaction from a few men while having rational conversation. You feel as if you'll get hit for sticking to your convictions. The romance part is a bit slow. But I could see the potential in the final minutes of the episode. They have known each other for a while so there's no instant spark or meet cute that we usually see with other romances. The acting is okay, the story lacks.
Ep 2: The pacing was pretty much the same as the first episode. 20 minutes in and I wanted to drop it, but for some reason I continued. I got to see Wi Ha Joon's pretty smile at the end. I'm sad to say I'm not looking forward to watching the next episodes.
Ep 3: It seems that my patience has been rewarded with some witty communication between the leads. I love the witch and her hairstyle, she looks amazing! Her all black outfit was such a stark contrast to her greyish white hair. She is a character that has made things interesting. This episode has made me look forward to the drama now.
Ep 4: Kinda saw it coming. At least the FL was open to a different style of teaching that would benefit the student the in the long run. Here's to hoping that they'll do better in their next round against the witch. The witch clearly won this round.
Ep 5: It was okay episode with some enjoyable moments. I can't believe they are just going to let the FL go for one mistake. They aren't even giving her the chance to rectify it or work together so that they can come up with a plan. At the same time, I also like the idea of FL working with the white witch! They'll make such a powerful team (Not a fun one like our leads but at least an interesting one)
Ep 6: Finally the romance is here. Even without reading the description of the drama, you are aware that the ML has feelings for the FL. It's not clear whether she pretends to not know about his feelings but she isn't all that surprised when he confesses. The rest of the story was okay, as expected. The white witch didn't get much screen time, I wanted to see more of her.
Ep 7: The problem with the drama is that, it is unable to create that curiosity that has people waiting for the next episodes. I'm sticking around for the two main characters, they are very low key adorable and comfortable to watch. I like that the main characters will be getting together, I am not sure who is against their relationship as shown in the preview. Right now, even the white witch is not enough to keep the storyline from getting boring.
Ep 8: Another sweet episode with the leads exploring their newfound relationship.
The relationship between the leads is pretty mature. Rao Jing & Zhao are also cute together.
I like watching office romances because they mix fiction with the realities of the office dynamics. But I'm not a fan of tropes where they have to hide their relationship from everyone. Here they are doing it because of office policies and so I can be okay with it. I like the relationship between Tu Xiao Ning & Ji Yu Heng, especially how both are understanding of each other. Ji Yu Heng has clearly been in love with her for years but Xiao Ning has just started to develop feelings for him.Things are going to get complicated as they plan to keep their relationship a secret. Adding characters like Tang Yu Hui to the mix is a disaster waiting to happen. I am okay with a romantic rival as long as they don't use any underhanded techniques to drive a wedge between the main leads. The way Yu Hui has started doesn't look promising and is bound to create misunderstanding. I do hope she goes the other way and turns out a better character that what I have seen.
Between Tu Xiao Ning and Lu Si Jing, it is easy to see that they weren't meant for each other.
Her friend Ling Wei Yi on the other hand seems to have easily forgiven Qi Yu. They did break up mutually but the breakup seems to have been instigated by Qi Yu, so I thought Wei Yi would take her sweet time forgiving him. Wei Yi was kinda tone deaf about the money thing and Qi Yu didn't want to give in even a little bit. They needed to find a middle ground, but there were so many times they could have done that. Maybe they'll grow up in the future and realise that it doesn't really matter who earns the money or how much of it is to be earned. Unless you are willing to work together, there's no hope. Qi Yu's first instinct is to breakup whereas Wei Yi's is to patch up. Here's to hoping they don't get together again.
Since the beginning I have thought that Rao Jing and Zhao Fang Gang have great chemistry. ( This could be the delulu me who likes couple that start out bickering) So I hope to see them turn into a couple.
How tacky can Tang Yu Hui get? Confessing her feelings for Ji Heng on his girlfriend's birthday during her birthday bash. She even has the audacity to call out Xiao Ning for things that aren't even happening. Her delulu ass is jealous and doesn't realize she is the only one who has been doing shady thing that she is blaming on Xiao Ning. This girl has gotta go. I'm tired of her meaningless chatter. Well they listened and she is finally gone!
I love that they are all working together for their future and how they are all focused on their careers. What I liked about out two main couples is that they are very mature about the decisions they make.
I was just about to stop binge watching & here comes temptation!
Okay, I have been binge-watching cdramas for a while now & I was about to break out of this habit, but they have done such a good job with characters & finding the right cast, that I gave into this temptation. Here's to hoping that this drama continues being so intriguing & I won't regret spending my time on it.Ep 1 to Ep 5: The beginning of the ep 1 starts with betrayal, the guts of the guy to do her so wrong and still have the balls to pretend like he cares about her! I care about you but I don't have a choice so I'll frame you parent, get your brother killed, & one more, kill you myself. The tears are the worst, how meaningless. Man the kindness at that Zhenvv Hall, here's to hoping the head of the hall receives the same kindness. Poor Jiang Li, Fang Fei is so right, the wicked go unpunished & take pleasure in punishing the kind. I'm of two minds about Fang Fei taking over Jiang Li's identity. One one hand I can see her conviction about making Jiang Li's family suffer for the neglect & abuse she received at the hall. At the same time, it also feels like Fang Fei did it not because of Jiang Li but because she want to get her own revenge. Ep 4 clears that up, she is doing it for both and man is she brilliant! She told the Duke to scold her back for calling him brainless & he come back with her original identity.
Ep 6 to Ep 10: I get that the stepmother is evil, but the father is worse. His daughter is dead because of the both of them. She died without having her name cleared. This is the time, I wish this was a horror story & she would haunt their ass. Still not sure what's going on between princess & the murderer, but I don't feel sorry for the guy at all. Every time he is confronted with what he did to his loyal wife, he has tears in his eyes. Honestly, what good are those tears? That guy had no care for her. I don't know if the romance between the Duke & Li will go anywhere or if they will even get to be together without any issues. I hope it works out well for both of them though.
Ep 10 to Ep 15: I was so excited to see the competition between the two sisters, knowing that our double would win. But I must say that Rua Yao gave a terrific performance, I didn't think that Jiang Li would have been able to top that. But she won for a reason, the emotions she put in her song made it seem so real. I didn't much care for the graphics because for some reason they didn't properly convey her feelings. They were good but I wish they have come up with a better idea. We finally have a little hint of romance popping up, with Li being jealous about the Duke being at the brothel. I like the drama as it is, but I wish the leads had more screentime together, they are beautiful to watch. The Jiang family is so messed up, Jing Rui is the only person I like so far. Ruo Yao & Yu'e deserve each other, but I can see that being married to Yan Ban will not meet Yu'e expectation. What's more, it looks like both the cousins might end up being married to the same guy and none of them are his first choice. He has such a wandering eye.
Ep 16 to 27: I can't believe how good this show is. I messed up my sleep schedule again to catch up on all the episodes! I don't want to wait so long for the rest to come out. I love the progression of relationship between Duke & Li. It is so good to see such well-written characters with minds that gel well. I also feel a certain level of dread that either the Duke or Li might not make it till the end. That would be heartbreaking, but it wouldn't negate the bond they shared. Yu'e marriage ended up as predicted, I'm surprised that Ruo Yao actually did something right for once. I'm sure Jian Li's father suspects Jian Li's identity. I wonder how everyone is going to react once they find out that Jiang Li was murdered by the members of the Hall where she was supposed to be well cared for. I want them to be devastated! Jiang Li deserves that at least. Here's the hoping both Fang Fie & Jang Li get to clear their names & people who murdered them & plotted against them suffer. For a main character, Ye Shi Ji has very little screen time & I wonder how his feelings for Jiang Li will change things. I saw video on Youkou's international page which included a scene that suggested that Li & Duke might have happy ending. However, they were both standing in front of two graves, if one of them was Jiang Li's whose was the other? Here's to hoping Tong Er survives.
Ep 28 to 31: I had hoped that Tong Er would make it! But now she is gone to go be with her lady. I wonder what's gonna happen to Ji Shu Ran now. Was glad to see her maid being dragged away. I do not like waiting for each episode. It was soo good to watch the first 26 one after the other. I must say, this drama is gonna be one more addition to my favs list. For a moment their Fang Fie had me worried that she had really forgiven Jiang Yuan Bai on behalf of Jiang Li. Thank goodness, Jiang Li deserves better. There should be no redemption of any kind for Ji Shu Ran, for all her claims of she was forced to do things, she is the one who reveled in being cruel. She caused the death of little Yue and covered it up. I don't know if she was really pregnant at the time, but if she was, she killed her own unborn baby to frame a little girl who loved her. Framing that little girl led to her death as well. She is the reason so many people have died. I do think the diviner arc was a bit pointless. They sacrificed Tong Er for that arc. Here's to hoping that the Shen Yu Rong meets the same fate as Fang Fie who was buried alive. Okay this drama just makes me scared for everyone's life in there. I kept wondering who's gonna die next, will it be Fang Fie's father, the poison princess, or Wen Ji. Now, I wonder if Zhao prince might ask Duke to marry his sister. Then where would our Fang Fie be? Living Tong Er's dream probably. Poor Shi Jie probably wondering what's happening around him.
Ep 32 to Ep 35: Wow, the brains on Wanning! She thought she might be able to use Xue Zhao in some way so she kept him alive without anyone knowing. Fang Fie's whole plan centered around exposing Wanning & Shen Yu Rong's relationship. Recanting the testimony might again put Jiang Li in the way of rumors. And it looks like Duke Su will be coming to the rescue. (Maybe their marriage begins with this) Well, it is hard not to like Duke Su & Fang Fie being together, especially since both have such a keen understanding of each other. And the trust in each other is so overwhelming, you rarely get to see such a couple in dramas. I can't wait to see the moment where Fang Fie gives him the jade pendant. Shen Yu Rong has gone mad for sure but he clearly has different goals from the wanning & he is willing to even sacrifice his own child.
Ep 36 to Ep 40: I admit like everyone else, I felt for wanning. Had she only taken revenge on people who did her wrong, I would have liked her as a character her, but she forgot that there was a line she wasn't supposed to cross. I wonder if she ever knew that such a line exist. What she did to Fang Fie and countless other innocent people stops me from feeling anything for her now. I felt for the princess who was treated as an object & violated, but not for the one who decided to the same in return and not to the people who deserved it. You gotta hand it to Duke Su, even with the tempting made by Zhao he still rejected the marriage proposal because in his heart he has already made a commitment. So, that's how Wanning & Shen Yu Rong met their end. I'm sad about Wen Ji & Lu Ji, when I first saw them on screen I had a thought that one of them is gonna die. I didn't expect that both would. I think the ending needed to be better planned. It is a happy ending but still it does not do justice to the entire drama.
I did see Ep 40.5: It was kinda okay. It would have been better if there were other characters in it.
One of the weirdest parts about the drama were the closeups when the characters were supposed to be looking at each other, but it seemed as if they were looking at a camera. It especially happened when the communication was supposed to be between Xiao Heng and Jiang Li. This happened far too many times with this drama and never with other dramas.
Even with the weird curse it was a fun and intriguing.
When the show first came out, I didn't know it would turn out to be so good. Even though I'm not someone crazy about dogs, this was so sweet. It started out fun, became a bit intriguing, and ended on a good note. I had hoped that the low-key third couple whose fate the show revolved around would also end up together but that didn't happen.I have watched two drams featuring Cha Eun Woo, one is this one and the other is True Beauty. While he did okay in True Beauty, this character suited him even better. The gentle non-toxic green flag of a guy. Park Gyu Young was so fun to watch, especially when she continued inviting him for soju. Cha Eun Woo tried to imitate it but sadly couldn't match it, but it was fun to watch. The chemistry between the 2 was bomb! The kissing scenes, one of the best I have seen in Kdrama so far.
All characters were great, well-written. I do wonder if Choi Yool was Jin Ah's husband in the past life. Since she said good bye to the mountain spirit maybe they'll get together. I like both Lee Bo Gyum and Choi Yool for her, no doubt they would be good to her, but they have some growing up to do.
It is worth the watch.
Worth a watch! In the first arc the leads have strong supporting characters.
Ep 1 to Ep 9: Okay, what I like so far is that the leads are kinda cute and there have been no silly misunderstanding. I mean apart from the one where he thought she was a spy at the beginning. The ML doesn't seem so bright in the beginning and later on he grows on you. The FL's sister is kind of a badass, I'm only hoping that she isn't the one behind all of their problems, because they seem to have such a good bond. The ML's mom is one of the nicest mom's I have seen in the history of Cdramas. Another hope that they don't change her character in the final arc and turn her into a character who stands in the way of their children's happiness.A little slow in the beginning but catches up pace midway.
I have been putting this off for a while because of the description of the drama didn't interest me that much. But a few days ago, I came across a edit on YouTube that made me change my mind. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1qk0lN1gaYSomeone in the comments said that Cui Shi Yi gave more to the relationship compared to Zhou Sheng Chen. I thought it would be very one-sided like the comment said, but until episode 16 it has been anything but that. They have this special connection since the moment of their first meeting. He has always treated her gently, there's no toxicity in their romance at all. They care for each other and it is plain for a person to see. These two had such good chemistry.
The only issue is that not a single person in this drama fights for their relationship. They all just give up & marry whoever they are being forced to marry. None of them have any choice in it. Even the so called Imperial Decree doesn't seem to be all that powerful. I mean how come he rejected the decree to adopt her as his daughter. So he is willing to fight for that notion but not for the actual relationship. Since they were all gonna die, they might as well have done what they wanted. Gotten married. Rebelled!
I wish Zhou Sheng Chen was a smarter and bigger picture kind of guy. I think I have been spoiled watching characters that can have it all or at least are capable enough of thinking that far ahead so many of his choices don't make sense to me.
Wang Xing Yue's character for a pitiful for a moment and then hateful for most of his story arc and he presented the essence of the character so well. He is one of the underrated gems.
Some people's cringe is fun for others
I read the reviews before I started watching the drama, the first episode seemed fine to me, but the second episode onwards it was very cringey. There's no story. Its just sloppily put together moments. They have taken a concept and decided to do whatever they want with it.The actor portraying the ML is handsome but his clothing makes him look like a cheap rent-a-cop. His stylist in this drama failed so bad. In the latter episodes he did seem to have some good suits but that's about it.
The plot is not coherent enough for me to sit through more than 10 episodes. As I was watching it, I kept thinking that things would get better now but no, it just was never interesting. The lead couple had chemistry that was not properly utilised by the story.