Minalapinou

Basic revenge and rebirth story that transforms into a lovely romance

Can you have too much flirting in a romance ? I don't think so, and even if it was a bit cheesy at times, I found myself grinning stupidly from ear to ear in front of those two adorable fools in love. There is nothing new about the plot, it's the same old revenge story about a woman scorned by her husband and some green tea, being given a second chance to basically make them suffer her wrath, and finding love with Mr Perfect (who is alos her fake uncle) on the way, but there was something about it that was mesmerizing. The opening scene is arresting, we find our firecracker expert heroïne in red being branded and burned alive screaming bloody revenge on everybody, and then she wakes up in soft white sand, in a pavillion, in a meadow, far from the crowd in her young uncle's estate, meeting with a handsome and mysterious man in black who will become her ally and so much more. How to resist ? I adored the visual of the show, it feels very natural, with great use of warm colors and lighting. If I had to pick a word to describe the drama, it would be lovely. The actors were lovely, their story was lovely, the visuals were lovely. It can be a bit surprising to get a sweet romance after such a violent opening but it was fitting, because the drama is not purely about revenge, it's also (and mainly) about learning to trust and love again. A wonderful little find that deserves praise.

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The longest promise was not fullfilled.

Ooh boy this drama. I thought I was in for a delicious slow-burn romance between a fiery princess and a wounded prince who longs for love, but instead I got endless, boring conspiracies between kingdoms I did not care about and a tedious love rival who refused to go away. I did love it at first (hence the not so terrible 7/10 rating). I love the aesthetic of this drama, very poetic and fairy-tale like (the dancing !), and the combats are pretty cool. I fell for Ren Min's energy and I get the fuss about Xiao Zhan. As I love contrasts, I loved their couple visually (I'm in the minority apparently). A shame the show doesn't exploit their playful chemistry, they barely kiss and get together too late. This drama is weirdly paced, dragged by this overly complicated storyline about the war between merfolks and the kongsang clan. Most of it is a set-up for Mirror : A Tale of Twin Cities, and it doesn't fit. Usually in xianxia the big identity secret is about the leads. Here it was about the hero of another show, and it was difficult to care about the underlying plot as a result. The show is also marred by a slough of mediocre secondary characters, like the tepid second prince, his tepid lover, her scheming sister who can't decide if she wants to be good or bad, the lamest evil clan and an exhausting tragic rival, Yuan, who takes way too much place in the plot at the expense of our main couple's story. As Zhu Yan's caretaker and her ancestor's husband it's very hard to take him seriously as a candidate for her affections, and in the end he becomes a walking plot device. What a waste of Wang Chu Ran, Lu Yu Xiao and Alen Fang's talent. The show started very strong, but slowly became a borderline unwatchable mess. It feels like a prequel to a show I don't even want to watch.

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Straight to the point murder mystery with a delicious serving of romance

The plot is your über classic, you-killed-my-father-prepare-to-die (and let's solve a bunch of murder mysteries along the way) type of revenge story, with some trendy tweaks like the indentity switch, but this show wants to focus on the mystery, adventure and romance parts, rather than the gimmicks framing it. As a result it's very straight to the point, and more importantly, well-paced. The first mysteries are intricate enough to sustain our attention, and the tension escalates when our heroes reach the big city and get into the Prince's murder. I was not sure what to think of the main couple at first, their mutual crush was a bit on the nose, but after watching so many slow burns (some without payoff) I was very happy to see our leads get together faster than expected and all over each other (so many kisses, I was in romance heaven). They are so complementary, a true power couple : she will get sh*t done, and he will kick ass. It didn't hurt that the leads were played by two of my favs. Overall this drama is surprinsingly great at writing romances, and their sweetness balanced out the dire darkness of the cases. The production is not lavish whatsoever, it's a true case of strong writing, acting and directing covering for the smaller scaled budget.

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The path to revenge and glory of a merchant's daughter cursed with a terrible marriage

I'm not the biggest fan of Yang Zi and was starting to think I would never be able to connect to a character she played, until Mu Dan. I was bored, new dramas were not doing anything for me, and I was convinced by the buzz around the second season to give FP a try. And I'm so glad I did ! It made me think a lot of Dream of Splendor. The Tang era reconstitution is soo beautiful, they haven't spared efforts or money in order to have their frames look like elaborate paintings (down to small costume details : I was low-key obsessed with Li Xian's brocade garbs). The lighting is sorcery, the makeup is divine, the music soars. Plot wise, Mu Dan's story is a very classic Cinderella journey with unexpected comrades, slow-burn romance and mustache-twirling baddies, but it tackles story arcs in such an exquisite, detailed and lush manner that you can't help but get enchanted (very appropriate for a love story between a peony breeder and a flamboyant "flower and bird envoy"). It's also not pretending that the peony business is going to save the world or something (can't say the same about the second part tho). To notice, this is one of the very few dramas that refused to get cut to 40 episodes and choose to keep a 56 episodes length with two seasons (apparently only the most high profile shows can do this now, sadly). I finished and reviewed both parts.

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Sometimes you just need to watch a young chaos god raise a baby phoenix and the hijinks that ensue

So I think that a lot of xianxia enjoyers have their own favorite fluffy idol xianxia that doesn't have much depth, well, mine is this one. It's a very average sweet, funny and heart-warming drama. The visuals look a little too fake for my taste, but I do like the pastel tones, they fit the youthful, innocent characters perfectly. This is a pure coming of age story with immortals and demons going out on adventures in various realms. It has all the usual xianxia tropes, and as a sequel (spin-off ?) it does suffer from being a "what happens to the heroes' kid after the big war" kind of story, and the writing can be toothless, but it's super easy to watch, mainly thanks to the good rythm and the gentle charm of the actors. As is usual for xianxia, the show has a really sad climax, and the last part is focused on redemption. I have one regret : I wish they had given us more time with Ao Ge, his twin and the matchmaker, their story was rushed. Overall it's nothing new or innovative, but it's a well-rounded drama that stays engaging until the end.

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Everything you want from a thrilling revenge story, with a fun satirical edge to boot

Betrayed, Xue Fangfei swears she will get revenge, after a cruel princess kills her family, steals her husband and leaves her for dead. What an opener. After a very disappointing first half, 2024 started to deliver with this absolute banger. The Double is not reinventing the wheel, it's pulling a a lot from other shows, but in a very clever and tongue-in-cheek way. For example, the beginning feels very Kill Bill, and then it becomes budget Ming Lan, but in a fun, satirical way ? It is very enjoyable to see "Jiang Li" terrorizing her friend's family to avenge her, while keeping her own personal revenge goals. A double revenge ! I also appreciate the effort made to rewrite the story in order to avoid actual body switching, as I really do *not* like this trope. As for the romance, this was Wang Xing Yue's big time to shine, and he did a great job at such a young age. I felt like the building of the main romance was perfect, they did not meet that much at first but every encounter was intense, until they just couldn't stay away from each other and deny their mutual attraction. The pay-off of the slow burn was middling, but I didn't mind it that much. Also, great villains ! You can never go wrong if you have great villains. Princess Wan Ning and Shen Yurong made a big impression, what a fascinating couple of selfish bastards. I wached the show twice, something I never do, and it holds up very well.

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Fascinating original xianxia diminished by some weird tone choices and a missing final act

He is yin, she is yang, she's fire, he's ice, he's aloof and detached, she's passionnate and involved. When the balance is broken, one takes the advantage and rises while the other falls. This drama was NOT joking with its title, huh. This is not really an enemies-to-lovers story, it's way darker and more complicated than that, and it takes you on a RIDE, whether you want it or not. Bai Lu is back in her full glory, as fiery rebellious roles suit her so well, and Joseph Zeng made me feel things, a bunch of them. He might be my favorite version of this cold, heavenly emperor role (think Dijun in Eternal Love of Dream). I do think the drama was restrained from achieving its full vision, and noticed the editing and sound choices were dumbed down for some reason (what's up with all these stupid sound effects ?), which surprised me, as the promotion had me believe it was going to have a mature and serious vibe. For example, every scene with Bian felt like they were shaking a puppet for the kids falling asleep in the back and were superfluous, especially as the story is so tight with episodes (why not even 40 for such a big scale story ??). It was walso weirdly tame for a story about two gods using an entire human realm tribulation to explore love together. Finally, we were robbed of a true final redemption arc with more Joseph Zeng : Bai Lu's character took the upper hand, a shame for a romance about finding true balance. Why so many fantasy shows feel unfinished these days ? Appart from that, this is a fascinating, if a bit frustrating piece of philosophical fantasy, with several layers to unpack.

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A limited production that made the most of what ressources it had

Julia Xiang is bubbly and charming, but still convincing as a sect master, and Deng Wei has improved. They are a tad green for their roles and I do think this cool story deserved better actors, but they still make a cute duo of underdogs, taking turn at subduing each other. As usual with recent ambitious xianxia the format forces the writer to cram a lot in their allowed number of episodes, but she still tries to get everything to fit, and it does pay off, even if you have to take in a LOT of information (I don't recommend this as a first dive into xianxia, you're going to get a headache). Once you get past all the magic rules, proper nouns, and a slightly underwhelming introduction, the show becomes super addictive, and every new arc is better than the one before. On the visual and budget side, it's not a huge production but it's beautifully shot by Yin Tao, makes a great use of outdoor scenery, and gave me exactly what I wanted from some disappointing better financed projects with similar premises (The Longest Promise, to name one). The secondary cast is also charming, I had a crush on Deng Kai who makes an adorably tsundere demon lord with his own cute love story to boot (yay for a righthand lady who won't settle for scraps !). Finally the drama takes time to deliver an awesome ending AND conclusion true to its spirit and ambitions, something many xianxia fail to do. If you're a xianxia fan, don't sleep on this one.

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Witty comedy of manners with a great ensemble cast

This show was exactly what I was hoping for : a blend of screwball comedy and matchmaking goodness. It's very witty, I laughed a lot, the ensemble cast is so, so good, I had a grand time. So glad I didn't sleep on it or listened too much to the early bad reviews. It's a clever comedy of manners about very human men and women treading the muddy waters of seduction and love in dangerous times. First couple is your classic her pride against his prejudice affair with a business war setting, second couple are sweet but stubborn scholars down on luck who overcome tragedy, third couple (my fav) is a mix between romantic comedy and legal drama with a side of amnesia, and fourth couple is a more shakespearian taming of the shrew with a twist and lots of adventure. It's varied, very well paced and they let talented lesser known actors shine. My only gripe is that I feel the last romance's third act was unfairly hijacked by their need to wrap up the story, and I also feel second sis was neglected (the lack of commentary in the conclusion for her couple was sooo awkward) and it did end the drama on a slightly sour note, but overall it was a very fun show that I enjoyed tremendously.

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Often cited as the best mini ever and with reason, it's lightening in a bottle

My first mini drama. Before trying it I was very skeptical of these soapy chinese shorts, I saw them as cheap cash grabs with superficial plots, but after finishing Familiar Stranger (and some other recs like Maid's Revenge), not only was I completely hooked but I realized they are kinda genius : the format allows them to be cheaper to produce overall, but it doesn't mean they can't be gorgeous, sharp, and well played by talented but lesser known actors, giving them an edge. Also they are less affected by censorship, and can be more daring (read : smuttier) than longer shows. Familiar Stranger is one of the best. As is the case for many shorts the plot is very far-fetched (a painter in search of her long lost sister gets cursed and wakes up in the body of the fiancee of her one true love) but it works. It's wonderfully directed by talented Zeng Qing Jie, Ryan Cheng's hotness is next-level, him and Ke Ying's scenes have a memorable sensuality. It also has a very chaotic secondary couple that I found at times even more compelling than the leads, but their ending was frustrating. That's the only shadow in an otherwise perfect picture that I will revisit.

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Polished prod, lovely actors, but the weak writing doesn't manage to maintain the initial tension

Yeah so there is no hiding, it's a big guilty pleasure, there is zero excuse for the very toxic plot at the beginning beside fulfulling some dark fantasies (I'm the target, can't complain). It starts with the hero going straight to the brothel to assault his ex instead of deflowering his bride, before throwing the heroïne in a snowstorm, literally putting her in ice and fire trials. I can't deny it, I really enjoyed the first part of this when it's very f*cked up and all "I will get my revenge on you but I'm also still very attracted to you, so my revenge will be agressively sexual with lots of angry kisses and biting". I also enjoyed the crazy ménage à trois with Bao Bao (Teng Ze Wen is delightful as a childish and vain first wife), but lost interest once it became more classic as the dynamic between the characters changes. It stays beautiful though, thanks to strong production values and direction. Deng Zhan Neng is known for churning some really polished short romances like this one, and I'm very excited to see what he does next. Plot wise, I really like this kind of dark romance where the revenge is personal (it's a whole subplot in Kunning Palace), but ultimately I found the writing not strong enough to sustain the tension until the end.

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Reborn sisters swap story with strong acting and visuals, but weak, uncreative writing

Somebody surely saw the sucess of the prolific "reborn sisters switch fates" plot device in verticals and wanted to do it in mini format. The result is mostly made of inner court antics, complete with scheming concubines, sad orphans, bitch slaps, the whole shebang. The main draw of the first part is that we don't know whatever happened to the first daughter in her seemingly perfect first life to make her jump into the prince's bride sedan with no hesitation. Once it's revealed and that Jueying is in charge of the household after thwarting various schemes, the drama becomes less interesting. Still, the main romance made up for it (for a while).

Casting is great, Zhu Li Lan and Mu Le En are strong picks for the feuding sisters, Qin Tian Yu is adorable (you might have seen him as the cute dog prince in Starry Love or the psycho emperor in Fated Hearts), and I loved his version of the deceptively aloof husband who discovers what a treasure his own wife is. Unfortunately, the main plot itself is not that great, and looses momentum after a while.

I tried some period verticals with the same plot, and I like that they get creative with it since it has been done to death (there's one where FL marries an eunuch, one where she becomes a peace-making bride, one where she marries a snake demon, etc.). Threads of Destiny was a tad too classic for my taste, and the heroes lacked dimension. After a while I didn't enjoy watching the jealous sister getting owned over and over by the too-perfect heroïne anymore, the kinky/chaotic secondary couple was starting to become more interesting than the leads (never a good sign) and I didn't care enough about the prince's schemes to keep watching.

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Hooked on you

Mad respect for director Chen Jia Jie, who can create insanely entertaining shows with shoestrings. His Embrace in the Dark Night was already high on my "low-budget gem" list but Affinity is on a whole new level, pushing limits of what you can do with the short format on all fronts. Saying the plot is bonkers doesn't even start to describe the madness going on : it feels like the brainchild of someone who spent too much time consuming various popular genres like trashy supernatural smut, SF and horror video games and movies, and threw them in a blender without much care for logic. I won't lie, I basked in the nonsensical joy of it all, feeling like a kid at christmas gifted with the biggest, most colorful toy available.
The spice level is insane, clearly the censors were asleep or bribed when this went through approvals. I don't know how I will tolerate basic skinship in shows after this, at the end they were fully tongue kissing, something I've only seen in naughty vertical dramas (before the crackdown, not sure it will happen again). The choreography was also insanely hot and creative, I think I've watched the train scene a dozen times and know I will come back a dozen more. On the writing front the plot might be crazy and twisty but it doesn't keep the emotional beats from working, far from it. I had to take a break around a certain time, I was so invested in the characters, their misfortunes made me too upset to continue. I came back to it a few months later and gobbled up the remaining episodes. Yes, it's brainless but it's not heartless, I teared up a few times and was invested in all characters, even the side ones. The year is not over but it might be my favorite thing 2026 has produced.

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He's a red flag, but he's MY red flag

Author FL gets into her own trashy edgy melo webnovel as a doomed villain, wants to change the genre to a cliche romance so she can live, but woops, too late, she wrote her ML to be an unhinged hoodlum barely surviving in seedy neighborhoods, and he misreads her protection for sexual advances, because why else this rich girl would hover around him, pick up his hearing aids, find him a place to stay ? ML is totally a red flag, but I like that author FL takes responsibility : she created him, he's her little toxic monster, so she's not going to run from him but instead is going to take care of her own mess. This was a pleasant surprise, I expected a very gimmicky, light meta comedy and instead got serious thinking about the consequences of the FL playing God, and her slowly accepting that she can't control everything, including her own heart. This was overall well produced and written, right until the lovely ending.

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Dangerous gateway drug to a whole new world of epic romantic fantasy

This is one of the most popular xianxia, with reasons. Plot is so well written, art direction is top notch (so many frames look like paintings), OST is killer, costumes are legendary, there is tons of alchemy between the actors. It manages to be sweet, funny, heartbreaking. It's very well-paced and has no filler, which is rare. I even love Esther Yu's voice. It was my first xianxia and it hooked me hard on the genre, making me desperate to find other shows like it (and thrilled when I discovered that there was an entire catalogue of it waiting for me). What to say that hasen't been said about it already, just watch it.

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