As my first Wuxia this series blew me away. I bombed through 54 episodes without skipping forward one single minute in just under 5 days. I was intrigued by episode 2 and I was hooked by episode 6.

The BRILLIANT cinematography and dramaturgy is breathtaking and really pulls you in. There is an atmosphere that is overwhelming and is still with me days after I finished this series. The emotions and feelings came across so well, with a lovely original sound track. There were moments in this drama that were so brilliant that I had to remember to breath. I felt so moved and invested by the end that I cried because I won’t ever get to watch this for the first time ever again.

The actors were fantastic and the directing was wonderful. These characters are not all easy to portrait but they came across so well. The whole ensemble worked very well together. The actors and director set a tone that was intriguing and appealing. How they moved and the mannerism they used were perfect and it was very satisfying to watch how it reflected the way royal court worked in the old days. The costumes are lovely and beautiful. The setting locations, the backdrops and the props were just magnificent!

The main story is very touching and not a straight up revenge story, but instead about fairness, truth and justice. I found that so appealing. Shades of grey of good versus evil. I was so invested in the friendship between the two main male leads, it was beautifully portrayed and involved elements like loyalty and trust. They were perfect together. As the story unfolded I rooted for them, cried with them and cheered them on.

One of the things that made me really interested in this story was the fact that our hero is very sick and weak. His power is not brute strength but his brilliant mind. For me this is the first of watching a drama where the main character is truly dying and very weak, at no time does he pull any superhero stunts. Except when his mind solved problems with impossible odds!

The romance is almost none existent in this drama. It is sweet but chaste and not at all any main focus. I actually quite enjoyed it being so on the low and not in the way for the more important events. You won’t be seeing the hero rescuing the princess from the castle, because she can take care of herself. I do actually think this drama is labelled wrong when the tag says romance.

The story pacing is excellent! The side stories spanned two or three episodes, often overlapping, and were all linked to the main story. The plotting and planning was exciting. I was worried going into this that I would not enjoy or be able to follow the politics, but it was more like watching the detective case of the week and before I knew it I suddenly knew all the characters and was perfectly following along how everything unfolded. Not getting it the first couple of episodes was not frustrating an everything was presented so naturally that I was never confused or frustrated. There was never really any effort.

I am having problems with coming up with downsides of this series. What did I not like, what were the mistakes. But I seriously can’t. It was like it was made for me.

My views on this is as a total beginner of this type of drama (Wuxia drama that is, though I am a fantasy lover and watch loads of Korean drama). I usually avoid fantasy with too much “flying” fighting, because it breaks my immersion, and go for the more realistic (haha…) fighting style productions. But before I watched this I stumbled upon a short description of the typical standard Wuxia world building and I suddenly understood that things did not work as they do in our “world”. As a nerd I filed some of the information away as totally legit and comparable to a D&D rule set.

Shallow as I am I also need to address the two male leads again and their "bromance". Hu Ge who is playing Mei Chang Su/Su Zhe took on a role I think is very difficult to portrait without coming across as fake. He is supposed to be very sick and that is easy to overdo. With just his body language and demeanor he made me feel his pain. There was no room for overacting. Still he was very sexy. Because a brilliant mind is something extremely attractive.

Wang Kai who plays Prince Jing played a more rough cut type of role. Even so when he broke into emotions it was heart achingly good. I could feel his sorrow and believed the emotions he displayed. Also, the very dark voice he has is something of the sexiest I have ever heard. I am just that shallow I guess. :)

These two together were amazing!

I loved this! I can’t recommend it enough.

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A super cute drama with loads of feel good and laughter. Based on a book called My Wonderful Boyfriend, the storyline reminds me a bit about My Girlfriend is a Gumiho. (The style and atmosphere is nothing like My Boyfriend from the Star. Don't listen to the false advertisement.) It's upbeat, sweet and cartoony. The acting is funny and the production value feels good. The love story is a bit muted and not really engaging, however the leads chemistry is nice. FemLead is very good at acting this type of char and style. The MaleLead is a novice actor but his character is easy to portrait (silent broody type) and once he starts smiling the dimples make me forgive everything.

The usual Cdrama issues applies like low audio quality and annoying dubbing.

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Should you take a gamble and watch this? Here are the odds that you will like it: The twists and turns this goes through had me cheering and stomping my feet. Long term plotting and scheming that spans decades and life/death choices made instantly by the flip of the coin. Everything is a gamble or can be staked. Everyone has a secret and an agenda except the two brothers who are in the middle of a Cold War.

The story really got to me. The gambling was what drove everything and extremely well displayed story wise and cinematically, making the drama super exciting. This is not a romance! At all! So don't expect anything, no matter how it starts. Be prepared to loose everything and everyone or don't hit that play button. However, you might want to know that this drama is well produced from start to finish and everything is wrapped up nicely and satisfyingly at the end.

Fantastic photo! So incredibly cool. The OST was also suitably dramatic. Brilliant acting by full cast, especially by Lee Moon Shik and Jang Geun Suk.

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My first HK drama left me very satisfied. The main story has a good pacing and is nicely intertwined with subplots, and as soon as one problem is solved another crops up keeping me interested. I especially enjoyed that the lead kept up her disguise through the whole drama (with some lovely makeover scenes sprinkled through). Also the main male lead didn't figure out she was a female until well halfway (yet still didn't know who she really was, so trusting the sweet thing.) As a bonus he felt a bit conflicted about his feelings for "him" for a short while, which really suprized and delighted me.

The three main actors were all very good. In fact I enjoyed the whole ensemble. I find it lovely the way they moved, fought and talked. Good directing and choreography. Great backdrops, costumes and props. Very beautiful and immersive.

It reminded me a bit of My Bratty Princess, however, I actually enjoyed this one more. This might not be the best drama EVER, pretty stingy on skinship (didn't expect anything raunchy from HK to be fair), the dubbing can drive me insane (until I get used to it) and so on with the same problems as Chinese dramas. But if you are looking for something feel good, funny and a genderbender you might enjoy this.

Also: YAY for a strong independent female lead who can kick arse!

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The characters make me empathize so much. I've been crying at least once almost every episode for them. Happy when something good happens and despairing when they are unhappy. Very, very well written and directed ensemble. Nice pacing of what is essentially a none story. The supernatural elements are just a spice to make the story move along and catalyst for emotional development. The visions are few and far between, so you tend to forget that this show has supernatural sides.

What should be a "nothing special" TV series, is in fact a very well done drama about people in love, personal relationships and emotional development. Excellent acting, brilliant directing and good paced script. The final episode has the BEST END CREDIT SCENE EVER! ??

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The story kicks of without much fuss and the time travel happens within the first 20 min of the first episode. After that the story is engaging and has a good pacing and build up of relations and friendships all the way through. The actors are really good and their characters have a nice depth and dynamic. Around episode 10 the story gets a kick and plots start to speed up making it exciting to watch.

The main couple has really good chemistry. They suit each other well and their scenes are good. The angst in this romance is about them actually not supposed to be together, it was never meant to be. The butterfly effect has consequences. The second couple are also sweet and the romance plot is a tad angsty, I found myself worrying about the future I knew and wishing for a new future for them.

I have not noticed any big inconsistencies with this taking place in 1989. Even though the brands shown are of later date, I don't look at the brand names but rather the fashion style. I remember well all these horrible clothes, old technology and I feel myself being immersed. I am sure that if you really want to you can rip this show to bits finding loads of errors. I'm just not that kind of viewer. So far it feels like the 1989 that I remember.

All in all a well done drama, with the usual Taiwanese issues (low audio quality and at least one clown character). The extremely cheesy moments didn't bother me at all, I enjoyed them, squealed and cried my way through this very sweet story.

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I truly enjoyed this all the way through. I found it witty and charming. Strong character personalities for both lead roles, with well balanced second leads. The scenes with the two pairs together were so much fun. Loads of amazing and fleshed out supporting chars with great Korean actors and "so so" international cast.

Not a story about finding love and the struggle of getting together, but a story about how to make it work to stay together. Also, a military drama disguised as a medical... Nah, this was straight up a romantic comedy with some sprinkles of action and suspense. Nonetheless extremely engaging and entertaining. A must watch!

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This show had me hooked. Not in a "crack drama" type of way (but it sure cracks me up all the time). It's mature and has a well balanced cast. Great fleshed out side characters and exciting plots. It's really funny and engaging with nice plot pacing. I'm old enough so I would want to compare the type of clever slapstick like humor to Faulty Towers with John Cleese. Situations occur that have me wriggling around on the sofa, covering my eyes screaming NONONONO while roaring with laughter.

But there's a serious undertone to some plot elements. They have handled these well, kept up momentum of the show without spoiling the mood, or not dealing with serious issues with the respect and tact they deserve.

I was rooting for love, but that is definitely NOT the focus in this show. However, I was still looking forward to several pares hooking up eventually, because it would feel like a great reward and satisfy me immensely. I really recommend this drama if you're a mature Ahjumma who is looking for something light and fun. ;)

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