MerryMerino
Taiwan
At first I was confused by why this didn’t receive a lot of attention and praise, but afterwards I kinda understand. I adored this drama. It’s absolutely wonderful. However it’s not a very traditional drama, so I can understand if you come into this drama expecting one thing and getting something else it would be disappointing and not meet expectations. I went into it pretty ignorant of what's going on, and I think I ended up liking a lot of the narrative choices more than others. Overall it’s really well done. Acting and plot are engaging without being overbearing. It’s the story of a family that will do anything for each other, and the consequences thereof, in a very turbulent time in Chinese history.
Plot:
It starts in media res. Which some don’t like, but I think it sets a very good framework for the story. Even if I was really confused in the beginning (I actually rewatched the first 4 episodes to take screenshots and make sure I understood what was happening), it does a good job of illustrating that this is a turning point in history and that what is about to unfold is that turning point. I don’t care how we got there. It doesn’t actually matter. If it started earlier in the story people would probably complain about how it didn’t get to the point till way later.
Do I care how LianKai and QinSang got together? No. It doesn’t matter. All we need to know is that they’re married and that there’s not a whole lot of love in that relationship to start. I admit, LianKai has a very physical way of “showing affection,” but it’s not unusual to anything we’ve ever seen in other dramas before. It’s just surprising cause most of the drama doesn’t carry that tone. Their love isn’t the primary driving vehicle of the story, so when their relationship stops being quite as sizzling (ie physical) people are disappointed. But I feel that their relationship was always like that. They are supporting and caring for the other, even if they didn’t necessarily like the other person. It’s not passionate love. It’s the good and lasting kind. They are incredibly ride or die for each other, even when they don’t even like each other very much, and that’s so much fun to see.
Plus, this drama is NOT about LianKai and QinSang’s relationship. It’s about the Yi family and these absolutely fantastic brothers that will do everything and anything for each other. They are beautifully supportive of each other from start to finish. The occasional fights get resolved quickly and we’re constantly reminded of their love for each other. In a time where I expect that brothers being seen in a drama at close age are gonna be vicious romantic and power rivals, this was a breath of fresh air. You’re constantly cheering for the Yi brothers and their relationship, even when everyone around them is determined to put them against each other.
The story also very clearly sets up that it’s not about the rise of something but the fall of something. This is the fall of the house of Yi. What’s next after this historically? Communism. Pan JianChi is clearly representing some sort of early communist mindset and the Yi family is the horrible previous regime. Did I find some of the military and politics stuff confusing at times? Definitely. But for the most part I still followed it well. I couldn’t do ANYTHING ELSE when I was watching this drama because if I looked away for one second something was being told and I’d be hella confused as to what was happening. Contrary to other reviews, I thought this was some VERY TIGHT writing for a military and politics drama. I could easily see it be broken up into 3 or 4 seasons like a western TV show, and I personally really liked that. There are nice cycles of what is happening and it resolves conflicts quickly and thoroughly before moving on to other conflicts. It reminds me of a high quality nordic crime noir (in that it's all about the talking over the action), or an FX show (The Americans comes to mind in it's relationship of supportive circumstance) in pacing and tone. I love that kind of thing, but it is definitely not for everyone.
Acting:
Superb all around from the smallest to the biggest characters. Everyone played their part really well, even if I wasn’t a fan of some of the characters. YanYun is definitely the most annoying and classically “drama” character of the bunch, but even she managed to be tampered at times. My one complaint is that some of the voice acting wasn’t quite as strong. The voice actor for Elvis Han (who does a fantastic job in this role and casting him was a fantastic decision) is clearly a bit older than he is, or his voice is significantly lower than his, and that does break the realism of the story sometimes. YanYun is also not the best voice actor, but her kinda annoying higher pitch does match the rather annoying traits of the character herself. I love Elvis Han and have seen a couple of his other works before (WuXin and CP5), and I was very pleased with his performance here as well. I'm a big fan of his, and he fits this period and role very well. Zhou Ting Wei I also have seen before (Ashes of Love) and he does a great job as the brother who never quite knows how he stands in the family and in love.
Costume Design & Sets:
These costumes. Holy hells these costumes. I restarted it after 4 episodes not because I couldn’t understand, but because I wanted to take screenshots of all these costumes. LianKai is by far the best dressed brother of the bunch (befitting his status as the wild partying one), but they’re all so superbly outfitted. This is a period which I enjoy watching, cause the juxtaposition of old and new is so interesting and fun to see, and the costume design does a great job with this. Embroidered suits. They gorgeous. The sets were mostly really well done, although some of the outside facades were questionable.
Music:
I wasn’t in love with the OST. I think I just enjoyed it at the end from sheer exposure. But it wasn’t so bad that I wanted to complain about it. Subtle and mostly understated music, which I appreciate.
Rewatch Value:
I’d totally rewatch this. Partly because not everything is very clear, so it would be interesting to rewatch knowing what I know and having a better understanding of the playing field. Not that I wanted it in the setup of the drama. Just that I was lazy and didn’t necessarily care to keep track of who was who in the beginning when I probably should have. But mostly I’d rewatch it because it was an enjoyable story that was well executed. I’d love to come back to these characters and this family and experience their trials all over again. Yes, it’s a lot of talking. It’s mostly talking about what is happening, but as a military strategy drama that makes sense and I’d much rather hear about most of these battles than watch them.
Plot:
It starts in media res. Which some don’t like, but I think it sets a very good framework for the story. Even if I was really confused in the beginning (I actually rewatched the first 4 episodes to take screenshots and make sure I understood what was happening), it does a good job of illustrating that this is a turning point in history and that what is about to unfold is that turning point. I don’t care how we got there. It doesn’t actually matter. If it started earlier in the story people would probably complain about how it didn’t get to the point till way later.
Do I care how LianKai and QinSang got together? No. It doesn’t matter. All we need to know is that they’re married and that there’s not a whole lot of love in that relationship to start. I admit, LianKai has a very physical way of “showing affection,” but it’s not unusual to anything we’ve ever seen in other dramas before. It’s just surprising cause most of the drama doesn’t carry that tone. Their love isn’t the primary driving vehicle of the story, so when their relationship stops being quite as sizzling (ie physical) people are disappointed. But I feel that their relationship was always like that. They are supporting and caring for the other, even if they didn’t necessarily like the other person. It’s not passionate love. It’s the good and lasting kind. They are incredibly ride or die for each other, even when they don’t even like each other very much, and that’s so much fun to see.
Plus, this drama is NOT about LianKai and QinSang’s relationship. It’s about the Yi family and these absolutely fantastic brothers that will do everything and anything for each other. They are beautifully supportive of each other from start to finish. The occasional fights get resolved quickly and we’re constantly reminded of their love for each other. In a time where I expect that brothers being seen in a drama at close age are gonna be vicious romantic and power rivals, this was a breath of fresh air. You’re constantly cheering for the Yi brothers and their relationship, even when everyone around them is determined to put them against each other.
The story also very clearly sets up that it’s not about the rise of something but the fall of something. This is the fall of the house of Yi. What’s next after this historically? Communism. Pan JianChi is clearly representing some sort of early communist mindset and the Yi family is the horrible previous regime. Did I find some of the military and politics stuff confusing at times? Definitely. But for the most part I still followed it well. I couldn’t do ANYTHING ELSE when I was watching this drama because if I looked away for one second something was being told and I’d be hella confused as to what was happening. Contrary to other reviews, I thought this was some VERY TIGHT writing for a military and politics drama. I could easily see it be broken up into 3 or 4 seasons like a western TV show, and I personally really liked that. There are nice cycles of what is happening and it resolves conflicts quickly and thoroughly before moving on to other conflicts. It reminds me of a high quality nordic crime noir (in that it's all about the talking over the action), or an FX show (The Americans comes to mind in it's relationship of supportive circumstance) in pacing and tone. I love that kind of thing, but it is definitely not for everyone.
Acting:
Superb all around from the smallest to the biggest characters. Everyone played their part really well, even if I wasn’t a fan of some of the characters. YanYun is definitely the most annoying and classically “drama” character of the bunch, but even she managed to be tampered at times. My one complaint is that some of the voice acting wasn’t quite as strong. The voice actor for Elvis Han (who does a fantastic job in this role and casting him was a fantastic decision) is clearly a bit older than he is, or his voice is significantly lower than his, and that does break the realism of the story sometimes. YanYun is also not the best voice actor, but her kinda annoying higher pitch does match the rather annoying traits of the character herself. I love Elvis Han and have seen a couple of his other works before (WuXin and CP5), and I was very pleased with his performance here as well. I'm a big fan of his, and he fits this period and role very well. Zhou Ting Wei I also have seen before (Ashes of Love) and he does a great job as the brother who never quite knows how he stands in the family and in love.
Costume Design & Sets:
These costumes. Holy hells these costumes. I restarted it after 4 episodes not because I couldn’t understand, but because I wanted to take screenshots of all these costumes. LianKai is by far the best dressed brother of the bunch (befitting his status as the wild partying one), but they’re all so superbly outfitted. This is a period which I enjoy watching, cause the juxtaposition of old and new is so interesting and fun to see, and the costume design does a great job with this. Embroidered suits. They gorgeous. The sets were mostly really well done, although some of the outside facades were questionable.
Music:
I wasn’t in love with the OST. I think I just enjoyed it at the end from sheer exposure. But it wasn’t so bad that I wanted to complain about it. Subtle and mostly understated music, which I appreciate.
Rewatch Value:
I’d totally rewatch this. Partly because not everything is very clear, so it would be interesting to rewatch knowing what I know and having a better understanding of the playing field. Not that I wanted it in the setup of the drama. Just that I was lazy and didn’t necessarily care to keep track of who was who in the beginning when I probably should have. But mostly I’d rewatch it because it was an enjoyable story that was well executed. I’d love to come back to these characters and this family and experience their trials all over again. Yes, it’s a lot of talking. It’s mostly talking about what is happening, but as a military strategy drama that makes sense and I’d much rather hear about most of these battles than watch them.
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