MimiTheReaper

Xiao Zhan has reached the status of Legends.

Up, imma need everyone to stand, so we can applaud this masterpiece. Y’all can’t even spell epic. Anyway, this is a review from an international fan who definitely, no lies, fingers crossed, watched this movie with their own two eyeballs. Source: dude trust me. I watched it. My words are as true and real as my auntie’s church wig. I super watched this movie. I swear on my ancestor’s goat.

Okay I lied, I didn't watch it before, but I finally got to see it with my own eyeballs after its online released and it was amazing. The whole production was so grand, the fight scenes with the martial arts had me on my seat. Xiao Zhan was amazing of in this role course, and I loved the two female characters. After Guo Jing I liked that venom villain character, he was so dramatic and funny. That final show down fight when he barrel through the Mongolian army was really cool.

The story was great, though I was sitting behind the screen going 'fight fight fight' in the final fight scene waiting to see a showdown between father and son and was disappointed, Sure, talking it out peacefully was nice, but I wanted to see Guo Jing do more martial arts stuff. In the romance department, I was so frustrated when the chief of the beggar's kept hiding from Guo Jing but I understood, cuz at least in the end they got their happy ending. That sword chicken lightning scene when they finally met was amazing, I was like awwww romance, love, hugging, rain, where is my kiss?

Overall, an amazing movie with lots of epic scenes, and really good plot. The actors played their characters well, and I wished it was longer.

***Below my review before I officially watched it***

Listen, Xiao Zhan as Guo Jing is hands down, the best decision a production team ever made. He was amazing in this movie. From the opening scene where he said that line about the…stuff with words, to the ending scene where he did that thing with the…the other thing in that one place, everything about this movie screamed masterpiece.

From the cast, music, location, cinematography, direction to the script, the team behind this movie understood the assignment, and the end result was an epic movie that is going down in China’s film industry as one of the best movies ever made. The movie have already broken so many records it’s in a league of its own.

I feel blessed just being able to watch this, and seeing how talented Xiao Zhan was. He embodied Guo Jing to perfection, and did great bringing him to life. Bare faced, yet not only did he serve face, he served talent. The way he delivered his lines, making us feel every emotion his character was going through. Those martial arts moves alone made every minute of his movie worth it. What a talented young man.

My favourite scene was the one where Guo Jing was at that place, you know the one with the sky and the earth, and he was wearing clothes, and there was definitely air, cuz he was breathing, and he said… words with his mouth. Yeah, that scene was amazing, I super loved it. And that scene with the bird and the horse, and the one with romance and the girl. Oh and the one with the soldiers and the fighting and the martial masters, and all the element wielding. Those were amazing. Hush your face, I’m not lying, I saw the movie with my own eyes in the cinema, in that one town in China, you know, the one with people and roads, and buildings. Yeah, that one. I had a seat at the back, and eat popcorn with fish sticks. Real stuff.

Anyway, don’t ask me the name of the cinema where I watched this, or the price of the ticket. Just trust me, I definitely watched it. I know haters gonna say I didn’t watch this, but they jealous, cuz guess what, I watched it.

One day, I will get to watch this movie and… (not that I have not watched it. I have. I’m just saying, I’ll watch it… one day. ^^ ) and my review would remain the same. Cuz, Xiao Zhan is in this drama and that dude is allergic to making subpar projects. Plus, I hear director Tsui Hark is a legend, so what do you get when you put two talents together? A masterpiece! You’re welcome.

I’m looking forward to XZ’s next work, Zang Hai Zhuan looks epic already. Real talk though, when would all international fans get a win? We couldn’t even get WM on streaming platforms when it dropped and had to listen to it illegally on the tube. I waited years for him to give us an album. I’m not complaining though, I love Xiao Zhan forever and a day, so imma still be here, but please throw us something… anything!

Anyway, yeah, so, from someone who definitely super watched this movie, I’ll highly recommend it to everyone. Rush to the cinema and watch it now. Take your family, your friends, that one uncle you don’t like, heck bring your ancestors too, everyone needs to watch this incredible adaptation. Also Xiao Zhan is in it… so, enough said.

Wishing everyone a healthy and prosperous new year. (that's when I wrote this review) May we all get to see Xiao Zhan in person one day.

AN: In case you didn’t get it, this is my place-holder review (not that I haven’t seen it already, I have, trust me.) until my eyeballs get bless as well. I’ll be back with a full review when that happens.

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May I Spoke Something?

Now, who and who’s youth were these people trying to imitate, cuz it sure as hell ain’t mine. Nothing vex me pass the title. Impression of Youth. Who’s youth? I feel like I aged just watching this drama. Between that annoying grown arse student who acted like he's 5½ , the boring love interest who's whole thing was drawing and having a cat, the horny homestay owner and the widower who thinks his dead wife brought the horny homestay owner to him so he could be happy, I feel like I’ve lost 4 hours of my life. Drama, you own me 4 hours, cough it up.

At the end of the drama, we are made aware the whole point was for them to capture their youth on their canvas, anything that left an impression on them. The problem is, this drama was so dull that I didn't connect with anything at all, and none of it left an impression. I had no emotional investment in this drama whatsoever. I didn’t buy/connect with the love/chemistry between the two leads. And it was like I blinked and they were smashing, sure I fell asleep a lot of times and had to rewatch at 2x to get through it, but still that felt fast, or was it long? Literally, during their love scene with all that sweating, I legit went, ‘are y'all done yet?’ Even that supposed spicy scene bored me.

Listen, I tried but I couldn’t find the charm of this drama. Sure they did some things some youths do in their youth, beach, arts, whining, finding love, but the whole thing was so bland and the only impression it managed to leave on me was that I’ve wasted some of my youth watching it. And no, it’s not that the drama is bad, it just that it's so… so… utterly boring.

Normally most of the Taiwanese dramas I've watched be cooking, and this one had a plot. But, it was dull, had nothing unique about it, and left me feeling disappointed. I rarely drop shows, so I stuck with this although it was going nowhere, but it took an insane amount of willpower to do so. I don’t know if there was lack of chemistry or connection between the cast, but it felt like they were going through the motion on the screen, the same way I was going through it behind it, watching and wondering when it was gonna end.

The Main Leads:
Boring, just boring. That student is whiny as hell, a grown child who overreacts to everything and acts like he's 5. And that love interest, literally the only thing interesting about him is that he owns a cat. Honestly, the only episode in this drama I felt was good and didn’t almost put me to sleep was that one episode where the main leads were not together cuz one left town. Oh and that scene when that whiny child kissed his friend to confirm his feelings. Other than that, bland.

And that child spent the finale throwing a tantrum because his boyfriend wanted to pursue his dreams, then they'd like for me to believe that, the couple of weeks they spent together was so strong that dude gave up his dream to stay with that whiny child. Yes, we all make stupid decisions in our youth, but really? Meh. And then they showed the whiny child has grown and he out there acting like the impression of his youth that he'd captured in his paintings were everything. Dude, you were whiny and annoying, why didn't you capture that?

No really, the two leads are so forgettable they could have been replaced by a houseplant and it wouldn’t have made a darn difference to me. Sure, sure, they needed to be in the drama, but did they really? The drama could have been about the widower and the brother and it would have been okay. Probably even less boring.

The Second Leads:
Already from the start we saw the brother was tasty for that man opening the cafe, and the getting them together should have been super fun, but it was so-so. By the time the husband was going ‘oh my dead wife might have brought this horny guy to me’ I’ve lost interest in them. And it’s not because their plot was bad, it’s just everything surrounding it was not motivating me to care one bit.

The Plot:
This had a plot, but I don't know how they could have make it more interesting then what they already gave us. Could a different cast had perhaps brought more charm to the roles? Was it the direction or the pace? I don't know, but everything about it was not keeping my interesting. Story wise, there was an artist, something about watermelons or another, someone’s wife died, and the second leads had ice cream and fell in love or something. Oh and there was a girl who didn’t get the guy, obviously, and there was a lot of sweating while having sex. And there was… you know what, never mind, it doesn’t make any difference. Forget about it. Oh, everyone had their happy endings in the end, so there's that.

Anyway. Meh. This needed charm and it had none. Give it a chance if you have nothing better to do. As for me, I'll probably never return to it again. It left no impression on me whatsoever.

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Never Thought I'd See a Potato Cry

Never have I ever had the urge to punch a crying person in the mouth. Nah, Aoey is now challenging for the most punch worthy bl character ever. His crying face just vex me. How you gon' look like a boiled potato and a fish at the same time while crying? Arrggg, I couldn't stand him for one second.

And the Dafug was up with that ending? My arse expecting to see the aftermath of the twitter trends, what became of that annoying crying potato. Instead they spend it with ridiculous jabs. I did not laugh once, not even putting Gene in that snow white outfit and having him look like a blowfish got me to laugh. And to think they made me relive Until We Meet Again!!

I wanted to see if the public accepted them or they are still split. If they found out about Aoey being buttshit crazy. If he grew old and alone like he deserves. If Hin's book became popular, so he can finally shut up about being poor while living in an apartment with a view. Instead the director used the screen time to show us that one random woman. (It occurs to me she's might be the author of the novel this is based on) but so what? I wanted a satisfying ending not whatever the eff that was.

And LOL, why was their family in front of the TV watching that press conference holding hands, and acting like they were watching a competition show and waiting for the host to announce the winner? Like, peoples, breathe, you already know the answer to whether they were dating or not.

Up until the last 10 or so minutes, I was vibing with this show. But I felt so dissatisfied and disappointed with the ending. Yes, the leads got back together, sure, cute, good for them, love wins, unicorns. But what was the aftermath? Arrggg, I hate when I watch a show and the ending disappoints me. After Game of Thrones, I told myself to read reviews before starting any show, but I rushed into this one because of UP, and now here we are. Somehow, I blame this on Ming.

I wanted to write a full review and just rant about Aoey and how he deserves to be punch in the throat, but after that ending, I can't even be bothered. This show has wasted enough of my time, not going to give it more.

Anyway, I'll recommend it, it's a good watch, but personally, the ending did not deliver.

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Bow down to Her Majesty.

A motherless girl is about to go from being an escaped slave, to a gang leader, to a concubine, to the empress of Imperial China. And under her reign, her enemies will tremble before her.

I love this drama. It’s a masterpiece, and one of a few dramas I can truly say this about. From the breathtaking cinematography to the amazing script, everything about this incredible drama was perfectly done to make those 51 episodes run by way too quickly.

Ji Chang Wook’s character was the reason why I fell in love with this drama. This was what I knew, it’s what I believed, but as I sat down to write this review, I realised that it wasn’t the emperor, but rather the empress that made me fall in love with this drama, and so, I’ll focus on her for my review. Starting with her bravery.

Life threw lemons at this woman, and she not only made lemonade, she sowed the seeds and grew a whole damn lemon farm. As a little girl, when Seung-Nyang lost her mother while escaping from being offered as concubines, she didn’t give up. She fought for her right to remain alive in a country that didn’t seems to care much for her right to stay alive. And she did, because in the process, she became the leader of a surviving gang, and it was through it, that her destiny truly begun.

Empress Ki did not allow her pain and suffering define her. Throughout this drama, Ki went through a lot. From losing her mother, thinking she lost her child, losing her country, the love of her life, then losing her child just when she found him, and losing her second love. Seung-Nyang could have been a character that at some point would have just given up, but she didn’t, she fought through all these and more, and came out on top. I love how she handled her pain, as if to scream: no you don’t define me, no, I won’t let you win today.

I love how strong she was in every scene whenever she was faced with moments that will make everyone break down and cry or give up. One of these moment was when she found out about her dear son, but decided anyway to do whatever she could to get him to get away from the life she was forced to live. I was very angry at those scenes, after what both her and the crown prince decided to do after they found out that their son was alive. But, I understood her, it was the only way she could save him, and seeing her cover her pain to do the right thing, made me love her. Of course, the outcome of her decision, is another discussion for other time.

She made her enemies fear and remember her name: She never gave in to the court bullying her, she played her cards right, and showed them, through shear tactics that she’s a force to regaining with, and under her reign, they all learned to fear and respect her.

Romance:
When the relationship between the crowned prince and Seung-Nyang begun, I was super against it, because I wanted her to be with the scared little emperor who had no one in his corner. But I was grateful for it because it made the drama a lot more intense and which, to be honest, made it more interesting. Yes, I hated the triangle, but it was very entertaining and added to the plot. That being said, when it comes down to it:

The Emperor didn't win Empress Ki's heart, he earned it! As for Seung-Nyang, she didn’t win the king’s heart, she conquered it, and with it, his country. It wasn’t a moment, it wasn’t a favour, it wasn’t even in the way she saved him, it was a thousand moments that added up to one, to make Empress Ki return our dear emperor’s love. Poor guy. Yes, my favourite part of the romantic plot was how the emperor had to earned Ki’s love. I love how she never gave in, even when he tried everything and loved her with all his heart.

Did the slow burn annoyed me at some point? Very, very, but thinking about it now, I love how she never gave into him because of his position, and fought until her heart was ready to accept him, and she herself knew he finally deserved her love. This in itself made their love story one of the most romantic plot I'd seen in one of these dramas. Annoying as eff, but realistic and romantic nonetheless.

Other Characters.
Empress Ki is only but one of the characters I loved in this drama. Tal Tal was the next one and both of them added so much to this drama but as I said, I thought I'd focus on this brave woman instead, as it was because of her that this drama has now become one of my all time favourites, which I'll definitely be rewatching.

The side characters all played their parts well, and made sacrifices that left me broken, and respecting their characters more. The bad guys annoyed the heck out of me, as they should. Jesus I was this close to throwing my shoe at their friend turned traitor. Yeah, that guy. Getting stoned to death was merciful. However, I got where he was coming from, and him having depth as a character was one of the reason why this drama had some of the best character development out there.

Now Ta Hwan:
There is nothing wrong with being hopelessly in-love, but it’s a crime to be a desperate dumbass in love. Yes, Ji Chang Wook is a blessing sent from the heavens, and everything he does is GREAT by default. He’s so great if I were him, I’ll wake up every morning like: I'm so perfect it hurts.

Like most of you, I love him! I’ve been an obsessed and loyal stalker since forever. Therefore, I’ve made a vow, to never criticise anything he does. Which is why, I’ll never admit that, I fell asleep, like 10mins into into Healer, and I will die denying this truth before I tell anyone that I gave that Melting My Stuff? drama half episode and gave up, cuz, Ji Chang can do no wrong. Well, even if he does, I won’t talk about it. Just like I won’t talk about that ridiculous wig they put on Lee Min Ho in Boys Over Flowers. Yes, I will never criticize anything he does, but I’m a nitpicking SOB, and if I had to sit through 51 episodes of Empress Ki with the character he played constantly being a punchable son of a beach, you can bet your arse I’ll rant about it.

Ta Hwan as an emperor was hopelessly, useless. He was the epitome of collateral damage. Not only was he a dumbass, he was also a liability to everyone around him, and it bugged me to no end how utterly weak he was as an ruler! He was constantly being saved or being scared. Sometimes he was both at the same time, which was unfortunate.

I waited so many times for him to get off this royal arse and do something for himself... and I’m still waiting. There were moments where I thought his hopelessness was an act, but boy was I wrong! What made me what to slap him was how he was happy being emperor only by name. Ki offered to teach and help him take back his nation, and he whines about how vengeance was a big no-no and he wanted to run away with her to la la land.
Me:
“Dude, surely you wanna... like, hmm... I don’t know, take revenge on the people who:
• Forbid you from learning.
• Exiled you to another country.
• Tried to kill you like a gazillion time.
• Forced you to marry his evil daughter.
• Humiliated you in front of your servants.
• Made you a puppet, and stole your crown
• Oh, and killed your father.?”
Ta Hwan:
“Nope. I just wanna run away with Seung Nyang and chase rainbows and ride unicorns.“
Me: *Grabs my rubber chicken*

As a character, all he had going for him was that he loved Ki. Other than that, he was just there for people to plan their evil plans around. He never stood up for himself, he was useless, a drunk and a sad excuse for a ruler. While everyone was busy trying to keep him alive, he was busy being a jealous lovesick fool.

Yes, I felt for him. He’s my favourite character in Empress Ki, second only to Tal Tal. Because of the emperor, I hated Wang Yoo for no effing reason, but even so, I have to admit that he was so weak and useless as a character I wanted to slap him 99.9% of the time. The only time I didn’t want to slap him was when he up and died and made me cry buckets like: God, I want a donut. He changed a little towards the ending, but never really lived up to his potential, which was sad for an emperor who held two nations in the palm of his hand.

Anyway, I won't even mention that second lead, nope. Overall, I love this drama, of course there were things I wasn’t so keen on, but none of them outweighed my love for it. And at the end of the day, when all’s said and done, it's one of the best k-dramas out there, and I highly recommend it to everyone and their mama.

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