Cykodramaqueen
This review may contain spoilers
A tragic love story
This won’t be your typical romance drama, and there’s not a lot of skin-ship. There were many times I would scream at my screen and say, “Kiss her you fool!” ;) But alas, Zhousheng Chen is too noble and honourable for that.
It’s a slow burn, melodrama with a tragic ending, so make sure you have the stomach for that. The storyline can be confusing, as the timeline goes across years in just one episode and next thing you know, ten years have passed! Also there’s a lot of families and clans so the names will be difficult to remember. It starts off a little meh, and the first half is lighter but as it progresses the conspiracy, power struggle, betrayal etc makes it darker and definitely more interesting.
I DO LOVE the cinematography! The settings are all so realistic and beautiful. The battle scenes are epic, very similar to LOTR (in fact one scene really looked like the battle at Rohan) and the orchestral music soundtrack is very very well done! It really moves the audience for the particular scene. Bravo to the composers!
Now as for the love story, it’s slow- but their affections run deep and although nothing was really laid out in the open, their love for each other was very real. From the happy glances to the intense looks; the gestures and gifts that he gave Cui Shiyi over the years; from how he is so protective of her etc... I only wish, really wished there was SOME skin-ship and some sort of utterance of love etc. Even if it was just one scene... sigh. Allen Ren was good, a little stiff I felt with not much variation in portraying his emotions. Bai Lu I loved!! Very beautiful and talented actress but I don’t know why her voice was dubbed. :(
The supporting casts were fantastic! Each had their own story and character development which were fundamental to the plot and storyline. I DO FEEL SORRY for Liu Zi Xing- as a kid he was being used as a scapegoat and took all the punishments for the emperor; he was promised the title Crown Prince but was denied it later; the woman he loved felt nothing for him; his health was poorly and in the end, he lost everything. Really sad :(:(
The ending [skip this part if you don’t want to read SPOILERS] :
1) Zhousheng Chen should have never trusted the word of a mad rebellious general like Jin Rong. When he was set up, he had enough manpower to fight back.
2) Cui Shiyi - ending your life also was not the right choice. You could have helped regain the armies and power to fight back and bring honour back to the kingdom.
3) I thought there would at least be an epic battle scene where the Nanchen Royal Army would fight back, but in the end it was just a brief summary. the last 15-20mins was kind of a let down.
Tbh, I didn’t cry at the end. Not like Scarlet Heart Ryeo and Youth of May- I was crying till I couldn’t breathe :( The next drama Forever and Ever- is a continuation of this story, where they meet again in modern times and Cui Shiyi has memories of her past life. One and Only is one of the better historical Wuxia dramas, definitely recommended. :)
It’s a slow burn, melodrama with a tragic ending, so make sure you have the stomach for that. The storyline can be confusing, as the timeline goes across years in just one episode and next thing you know, ten years have passed! Also there’s a lot of families and clans so the names will be difficult to remember. It starts off a little meh, and the first half is lighter but as it progresses the conspiracy, power struggle, betrayal etc makes it darker and definitely more interesting.
I DO LOVE the cinematography! The settings are all so realistic and beautiful. The battle scenes are epic, very similar to LOTR (in fact one scene really looked like the battle at Rohan) and the orchestral music soundtrack is very very well done! It really moves the audience for the particular scene. Bravo to the composers!
Now as for the love story, it’s slow- but their affections run deep and although nothing was really laid out in the open, their love for each other was very real. From the happy glances to the intense looks; the gestures and gifts that he gave Cui Shiyi over the years; from how he is so protective of her etc... I only wish, really wished there was SOME skin-ship and some sort of utterance of love etc. Even if it was just one scene... sigh. Allen Ren was good, a little stiff I felt with not much variation in portraying his emotions. Bai Lu I loved!! Very beautiful and talented actress but I don’t know why her voice was dubbed. :(
The supporting casts were fantastic! Each had their own story and character development which were fundamental to the plot and storyline. I DO FEEL SORRY for Liu Zi Xing- as a kid he was being used as a scapegoat and took all the punishments for the emperor; he was promised the title Crown Prince but was denied it later; the woman he loved felt nothing for him; his health was poorly and in the end, he lost everything. Really sad :(:(
The ending [skip this part if you don’t want to read SPOILERS] :
1) Zhousheng Chen should have never trusted the word of a mad rebellious general like Jin Rong. When he was set up, he had enough manpower to fight back.
2) Cui Shiyi - ending your life also was not the right choice. You could have helped regain the armies and power to fight back and bring honour back to the kingdom.
3) I thought there would at least be an epic battle scene where the Nanchen Royal Army would fight back, but in the end it was just a brief summary. the last 15-20mins was kind of a let down.
Tbh, I didn’t cry at the end. Not like Scarlet Heart Ryeo and Youth of May- I was crying till I couldn’t breathe :( The next drama Forever and Ever- is a continuation of this story, where they meet again in modern times and Cui Shiyi has memories of her past life. One and Only is one of the better historical Wuxia dramas, definitely recommended. :)
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