This review may contain spoilers
Truly Beautiful Bones!
My goodness, I cannot believe how beautifully this tragic story was told. I put off watching this because I’d heard that there wasn’t a happy ending and I’d have to watch a modern drama to get their HEA. I hate I waited so long to watch this because as much as I love a HEA I do love a good love story. And this drama is a labor of love whether it be blood relatives, found family, or romantic love it’s all there and it’s hard to watch their bittersweet end but it’s worth it.
Bai Lu and Ren Jia Lin were perfect choices to lead this cast, honestly I don’t have any complaints about anyone’s performance here. Liu Weiwei, the actress who plays Shiyi’s mother puts on a masterclass of feminine strength and motherly devotion that kind stole the show for me - loved her scenes as much as I loved the main couple’s scenes.
This is my first CDrama starring Ren Jia Lin and it won’t be my last. The man is an actor and I truly enjoyed his portrayal of the general as goes from unsure to embracing his feelings for Shiyi! His inability to compromise in the face of guilt and familial duty meant that he ultimately failed his found family and faithful companions in the end. But loved that in a tragic way Shiyi was the “hero” in the end and does her duty in service of those she loves.
Even the characters that felt outlandish in their portrayal were perfect for the overly villainous characterizations. The best “villain” was definitely Yang Zhou, I could never truly understand his motivations and how he was written was how they should’ve written Liu Zixing, the Crown Prince. I’m loathed to blame the lackluster feel of the Liu Zixing on Wang Xingyue because I KNOW that young man can act. The character had no gravitas and was outshined by every villain he shared a scene with. And what made him so obsessed with Shiyi? They didn’t explore his character’s motivations at all beyond his complex about being demoted to the spare. And to make her a concubine after all that?! Honestly, it’s a small victory for me that she didn’t even up being his legal wife.
If I could change one thing about this it would be how easy the dumb villains brought down the mighty general, Chen Zhousheng. I cried and felt soo much heartache leading up to episodes 22-23 that how quickly it all ended felt like a huge disappointment. The pacing up to the final episodes felt perfect but those two episodes felt rushed and it’s why I couldn’t rate this a perfect 10. The final 20 minutes of episode 24 the show regained it’s emotional edge. That nostalgic yet poignantly heartbreaking flash forward at the end kept this a top-tier viewing experience.
I plan to read the book’s translation after I watch Forever and Ever. I loved every minute of this even when I was sobbing like someone I loved passed. I gave this a rewatch value of 10 but like the 2007 film Atonement this is too emotionally devastating to ever watch again. 😭
Bai Lu and Ren Jia Lin were perfect choices to lead this cast, honestly I don’t have any complaints about anyone’s performance here. Liu Weiwei, the actress who plays Shiyi’s mother puts on a masterclass of feminine strength and motherly devotion that kind stole the show for me - loved her scenes as much as I loved the main couple’s scenes.
This is my first CDrama starring Ren Jia Lin and it won’t be my last. The man is an actor and I truly enjoyed his portrayal of the general as goes from unsure to embracing his feelings for Shiyi! His inability to compromise in the face of guilt and familial duty meant that he ultimately failed his found family and faithful companions in the end. But loved that in a tragic way Shiyi was the “hero” in the end and does her duty in service of those she loves.
Even the characters that felt outlandish in their portrayal were perfect for the overly villainous characterizations. The best “villain” was definitely Yang Zhou, I could never truly understand his motivations and how he was written was how they should’ve written Liu Zixing, the Crown Prince. I’m loathed to blame the lackluster feel of the Liu Zixing on Wang Xingyue because I KNOW that young man can act. The character had no gravitas and was outshined by every villain he shared a scene with. And what made him so obsessed with Shiyi? They didn’t explore his character’s motivations at all beyond his complex about being demoted to the spare. And to make her a concubine after all that?! Honestly, it’s a small victory for me that she didn’t even up being his legal wife.
If I could change one thing about this it would be how easy the dumb villains brought down the mighty general, Chen Zhousheng. I cried and felt soo much heartache leading up to episodes 22-23 that how quickly it all ended felt like a huge disappointment. The pacing up to the final episodes felt perfect but those two episodes felt rushed and it’s why I couldn’t rate this a perfect 10. The final 20 minutes of episode 24 the show regained it’s emotional edge. That nostalgic yet poignantly heartbreaking flash forward at the end kept this a top-tier viewing experience.
I plan to read the book’s translation after I watch Forever and Ever. I loved every minute of this even when I was sobbing like someone I loved passed. I gave this a rewatch value of 10 but like the 2007 film Atonement this is too emotionally devastating to ever watch again. 😭
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