Diasporadic

I’m only still watching this drama for Ethan Ruan, without him, I’d have dropped as soon as it became clear how many meaningless sub-plots and irrelevant characters had been introduced just to drag the drama on to 40 eps. Who cares about Victor and the bicycle shop woman? Why does one-note Boris get so much screen time? Blu is sweet, but what does he contribute to the plot? Ethan and SJE have great chemistry; with better writing and editing this could have been a really fun show..

Thanks, that makes sense.

This was a satisfying finale with a surprise gathering of the Xu siblings to avenge the death of their mother/foster mother and an epic fight with the evil Eunuch Han. My one disappointment was the unexplained absences of Li Chun Gang and XFN’ s other trusted companions. I hope we meet them again in S2.

Uh, spoiler!

I came to this after the Red Sleeve and Wok of Love, looking for more Junho 🤩. The first six eps are weak; Junho takes a while to warm up his character, the chemistry between the four mains takes a while to build and the plot elements are not compelling until later eps. It’s worth hanging in there though as the build up in the last half is intense and satisfying.

The senior martial arts aces are a surprising and fun presence in the the drama. Li Chun Gang, the God of Blades, is hilarious.

I enjoyed all the shows you mention and also enjoyed The Red Sleeve. Give it a try.

Thanks for this information! But to my original point: The death of Doek-Im’s son was indeed tragic as was the execution of her friend soon after; these two losses broke her heart and plunged her into a deep depression. My unease with the writing comes from DI’s last scenes, which leave us with the impression that her whole life was tragic. She did become Hwabin’s target, but that was more than a decade after she first refused San. In the intervening years she lived safely in the palace as a court lady and outside, as a retainer in the home of San’s sister. The drama shows us that she faced challenges and difficulties that she overcame. When San gave her a choice between leaving the palace and staying with him , she was a grown woman at that point, not a romantic girl. Her decision to become his concubine was made in full awareness of the consequences. As she confesses with her last breath, she chose to be with him and would have found a way to escape if she had not wanted to stay with him.

Thank you!

This drama was a pleasure to watch - beautiful cinematography and great acting from the ML and FL. Their chemistry was intense and skillful writing made us feel for DI’s predicament as the court lady who loved her freedom as much as she loved San. I could totally get the writers’ portrayal of DI as an early feminist, with a strong will and an independent spirit but I wish they had not made her evolve into a tragic character. The palace imprisoned all the women inside it, but DI found heartfelt friendship as well as San’s love and protection there. She would not have met her three friends outside the palace as they came from different social circumstances. Even if they had met they could not have developed the close bonds they formed as palace maids living and working together. Also, as an orphan with no family, could DI have lived the free and independent life she dreamed of given the rigid social constraints imposed on women in that time period? This reality was overlooked by the writers and to me, it made DI a victim of her fantasies. Also, the leaps forward in time in ep 17 rushed to a conclusion and skipped some important parts of San’s story, such as, how did he live with his queen and new concubine after DI died? Did he have more children or did he die without an heir? Another episode could have filled in these gaps.

This drama deserves a higher rating than 8.2. Great acting - HX, VS and WYB fully inhabited their chapters - also beautiful set designs, exciting fight choreography and a plot requiring real detective work make it a standout drama. The drama does have flaws - the soundtrack is intrusive at times, the camera work is sometimes ineffectively flashy. Song Yi’s character is annoying and clingy but she plays her part in the unfolding of the plot and she is counterbalanced by virtually every other woman in the drama. In fact, I can’t recall a drama with so many competent and powerful women, as befitting the reign of Empress Wu Zetian. The strengths far outweigh the flaws. It’s a drama worth rewatching.

I agree with you! I felt uncomfortable during some of DI and San’s interactions because they were so intense and complicated by the power imbalance. Kudos to the writer, director and especially the actors for keeping us invested.

The writing is a mess of storylines that don’t go anywhere, but the lead characters are great and the only reason I kept watching… Jun Ho especially 🤩.

Drama Forest:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m1K_EsiS0g&list=PLiAEsUwL8vVJ1nlP1OIv5rQMCfJb-JPSv&ab_channel=%E4%BC%98%E4%BC%98%E7%8B%AC%E6%92%AD%E5%89%A7%E5%9C%BA%E2%80%94%E2%80%94YoYoTelevisionSeriesExclusive

It’s on YouTube with English subs.

This drama is underrated. It's epic, with breathtaking cinematography of vast and varied
landscapes, beautiful interiors and an excellent cast. Like others, I'm not satisfied with the ending but I've watched the whole drama twice and enjoyed it as much the second time. It's an immersive experience; probably not for those who want instant gratification.

I like the group of friends, the young men are believable and well-rounded for their age and and Shadi’s spirit is refreshing. But the way DS is written drives me crazy, her myopic doggedness just makes her seem more dense than devoted at times. Some folks are offended by the girls can’t do science moment but what about the girl doing everything in her power to follow a boy? How 2021 is that?

She definitely did lose weight..

Well said…I totally agree.

Seconded!