A Very Fun Light Watch
Yes, the production value is low, low budget, random actors/actresses, mediocre acting, etc. But this drama is very fun to watch, and honestly none of those matters compared to plot/story. The director and screenwriter is the original author, so if you like the novel you will definitely like this. The main character here is probably the best and coolest ML ever. Very strong but hides his power until its needed, knows what he wants, definitely not naïve, and is not a lovesick puppy. Simple story, simple writing, but still manages to be very entertaining and funny, I can't wait for next episode every time, very suitable for binge watching, The pace starts out very fast but it does slow down a little at 20+ ep but it is still faster than the average dramas.And the best part? No angst, none of those annoying bullshit trope in all those xianxias and what not, no misunderstanding, no "losing powers," no toxic love rival, none of those usual annoying tropes in most other dramas. Most of the villains are comedic reliefs which is fun to watch, we know they are going to lose like immediately because the main character is overpowered and it feels great watching main character who is not hopeless. Yes, I'm aware that this trope is quite common in novel and manhua, BUT none of those gets live adaptation ever, so hey, this is the best thing to that in live action format! We barely got any xuanhuan adapted if any, but instead all we drama viewers got are all these endless angsty xianxias.
I wish there will be season 2 but it's very unlikely but who knows. It is unfortunate that the donghua also looks low budget, the manhua looks pretty bad, and novel is... just text.
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Great Educational Drama
First off I'd like to say that this is mainly an educational anti-fraud drama. Don't expect action packed drama, sizzling romance, thriller, or any of that sort. If you're here looking for action or romance you will be disappointed. Don't bother watching if you get bored easily at lectures, Reba's character and other characters will try to lecture you in various Chinese laws and saying it out loud many times! Watch this only if you want to learn about Chinese laws and how the people's procuratorate work with the public safety bureau in handling cases. If you like Chinese crime drama, this is worth a shot. This drama has a theme of female empowerment, and like what her character says in the end, there are not many female prosecutors in real life. The drama is mostly told from the FL's pov and she has much more screen time than the ML, her character is powerful, independent, and intelligent.Reba's acting in this drama is very good, she uses her own voice too. I am happy to see that she took this challenge and performed admirably, and I can't wait for her next upcoming realistic drama which is already announced. In general every actors and actresses perform their job well. The plot is quite interesting, grounded, and realistic, it is not as convoluted or epic like in some fictional detective drama because it is based on real cases after all. However it is not very predictable, and the show will make you keep guessing what each character is actually like. The topic is interesting, cyber crime fraud is a pretty recent phenomenon and there are not many shows that deals with that, compared to more traditional crime such as fighting illegal drugs. While not as epic and deep as those anti-corruption cdramas with high douban rating (eg. The Knockout, In The Name of The People), I think the story is good enough and most importantly, this drama serves its main purpose which is to educate the masses in the form that is more palatable. Unfortunately, this purpose also mean that there are a lot of lines in the script which serve to "educate" the viewer rather than being interesting or advancing the plot, which will bore some viewers.
Domestically this drama is well received, and they are considering a sequel. The MDL rating in this drama is very unfair, and best ignored if you like this genre. There are too many people who review bomb this for various reasons:
- People who only come here for Reba and they can't handle a serious non-romance drama. Serious drama in general is underrated on this site.
- People who watch dramas for handsome young actors. Dramas without good looking actors are also underrated here.
- People who get triggered by the positive portrayal of Chinese government.
- This drama starts slow, and many cases are introduced making it quite confusing in the beginning and therefore people don't have the patience for it. However it gets more interesting after the country F arc and eventually more and more things get clearer.
Overall this drama is not perfect but it definitely is not worse than many of those idol romance dramas with better rating here. Always keep in mind that the target audience for this are domestic audience, not foreign fans.
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