ShortCircuit

I did tear up myself because I can put myself in Pete's place a few times in the episode.

Anyway - the most important part for me was that they stayed true to the characters they set up in the eps before. Pete is clueless but all heart and will try and try again and when he fails, he'll get up and try yet again to do something. Niran is (or maybe was, we'll see) a cynical observer, uninvolved in the world around him and with no set goal for his life other than existing. He IS the butterfly for most of his life.

So to see them bond even closer, close enough to save the both of them from the void, is emotional. Or it is to me anyway.

I mean, it doesn't need to induce tears in every watcher, LOL. But it does have depth. Particularly for these two characters. Both are stubborn, but while one is stubborn to do something, the other is stubborn NOT to do anything. And yet they manage to communicate and share a hope for the future.

It's truly poetic to me, particularly given the parable they used. ZhuangZi's parable of the butterfly is truly bothersome, just as much as Plato's allegory of the cave. Both deal with the nature of reality and our perception of it and if you try thinking too long about what's implied there, they're both kind of disturbing for one's peace of mind, LOL. And kind of different, though using some similar imagination twists - Plato argues that there are true and false states, and that one should strive for the absolute truth of reality and ZhuangZi aims to show that both sides of the same reality can be true in their own right - well, I hope I'm not twisting it too much and that this still makes sense, LOL. And THEN you throw in the Cartesian Doubt, and you get really mind-boggling results. (And THEN you get Descartes' Cogito Ergo Sum philosophy base hahaha~) okay enough philosophy for now.

Anyway, most of us get philosophical from time to time and go from (what am I doing in this world/life/time) through (who am I really, deep inside my own true self), (am I good, am I bad, am I virtuous or am I evil *according to one's own moral rules*), to (what do I want to do with my life) etc - and Niran's at a crossroads where he doesn't want to do anything anymore, had no goals and doesn't even want to survive any more. (Another dark place I suspect most of us went through at least once in our lifetimes.) So Pete goes to GIVE him a goal - Niran doesn't have to live for himself, if he doesn't have it in him for now, but he COULD live on for Pete's sake. Because Pete CARES.

So yeah. Everybody would love to see that kind of care in their dark time. Even if it's annoying, to actually realise someone else other than yourself does care and wants you in their lives, even if you're lost and despairing - that's an amazing setting and they did do it well.

But again, it's not an automatic reply-asking part, LOL. If it works, it works. If not... well, that's just how it is.

So I was right :D

No it isn't like that. SHE sees through him, she called him a noisy cicada (and he's exactly that, a cowardly noisy bug). HE thinks he's quite something and imagines she'll "understand" him when he becomes whatever he means to become - an Emperor, perhaps.

Paro and Dev were in love, even after he betrayed her and didn't get his courage in time to stop her marriage. Ye Li was never in love with MJL.

PS In a movie full of beautiful songs, it's Chalak Chalak that I always go to, LOL. Just reminded me to go listen to it again :)

A lot of noble titles were basically empty - of status, power or wealth. Just look at MJL, he's the former's CP's son, he has nothing in his hands but a title. Or MXY - he was condemned and supposed to die with his older brother but got ~forgiven~ at the last minute, why would he be able to hoard any wealth on his own power? Before she healed his legs, even as an ally to the Emperor, he didn't have a lot of chances to make something of himself on the power wielding side. The FL's family was not even noble before they married her mother - they had some petty wealth but it took the mother's dowry to make them rich. And they do have a quite large family to clothe, shelter and feed, LOL.

I felt like outside smaller reception chambers for the Emperor or Dowager Empress, there were one or two throne hall scenes (like when they tried appointing the guy who burst in flames later) BUT. This is a nameless Empire in the middle of nowhere, (was it Da Chu or did I caught it wrong?) - so maybe it's not that wealthy a state anyway LOL. They took decades and a lot of money to build some waterways that the FL and her pet assassin moved through in a matter of an hour or so, not very large.

As for the rest of the sets - they're big, even if the rooms themselves are not large. I mean, they have courtyards over courtyards, separate dwellings for basically anyone of some importance. You can recognise some very used Hengdian buildings, but then, MOST costume dramas use them to control costs.

PS I thought the Dowager's boudoir isn't a grand receiving hall but more of an intimate room for herself and her close friends. I mean, Emperors and Empresses were people too, Maybe some would have liked less grandeur and more intimacy from time to time.

I have a bad feeling about Qin Cang's fate. I hope he deals with his step-bro and his father and gets free of them, but he's already been involved in some shady deals for them so maybe his fate is already sealed...

I thought he was the younger brother to the assassins' gang leader that was involved in some shady dealings related to the Huaixi matter (the almost capture of the Imperial inspector who was later killed). That leader doesn't seem to be ML's friend...

Oh, it looks like our little assassin isn't as useless as he appeared to be. I hope they both make it out of the conundrum.

On third rewatch of the ep, it hit me - that ending LOL. They are 9 people there. And he gets Niran a ring. And that hospital scene, with Pete coming in last and that knowing look they exchanged...

So, let's fit characters to the rest of them. We know who Frodo and Sam are already, LOL.

I mean
Soulmates (check)
Rings exchanged (check)

What else is there? :D

Pete (indirectly): Do you...?
Niran (very clearly): I DO!
Pete (nonplussed): No, not like that!!

I think the part that got devoured, if any, was the defeated part of his soul.

The kid used to have DREAMS. He wanted to DO things. Older Niran had lost that spark.

So the kid soul came back - that means Niran has his flame back and will find a goal in life, not just simply drift wherever the wind takes him.

I thought they made it pretty clear what the symbolism meant, particularly with revisiting their original talk about the meaning of life in the beginning of the episode.

The music is SUPERB. I want this soundtrack - not just the songs, I want the BGM. It's amazing.

In true Pete fashion, he dragged Niran back by following him relentlessly and nagging at him to come back, and when that failed, he turned on the tears. I mean, I couldn't resist those tears, could you? So I totally get why Niran would fold and come back.

Also, Niran looked so young in that hospital bed, I was afraid he'd only come back as his child self and not the world-weary Wu we all came to love. I'm glad they didn't go that way.

...So. They're married LOL. Now for their honeymoon, they get to kill Qi Rong. Good for them! :D

This is one amazing drama. I'm glad I stumbled upon it.

Pete: With this ring, I thee wed...

LOL. When they both realised how it looked. And then immediately pretending it doesn't MEAN anything. Like, nothing to see here folks, move along.

Meanwhile, Pete: If there's any power in it, I want it to protect you.

Man, you already married him, save some for the wedding night LOL. (Kidding. Though TBH by this point I don't think even they know where they're going with it hahaha~)

ETA Wait I forgot!!! This ep started with the parable of ZhuangZi and the butterfly and I realised I knew that parable already. (For context, I'm an European who only came in contact with Chinese culture through dramas, music and danmei novels LOL). And THEN they followed up with the butterfly Niran tried to follow all his life. I loved that. Extra points to the team!!

Do NOT tell me this ends in tragedy - novel readers... will SHE heal, too? I don't want to see her die. Either of them.

Soooo~ Now he's well on his way to being healed, could he remember he's her husband?~

Just sayin'.

He's not their enemy, but he is Prince Li's enemy - he's Ye Li's husband. He won't forgive him for that even if they would do well to work together.

Thank you :)

I hope you like (at least some of) them :)

Neither, TBH. PoJ's FL is sweet and cheerful but a bit naive (WWX was never naive, just way too optimistic and also oblivious when it came to LWJ) - she is cute in love. BUT the trope of hot and cold is there. As for Ashes of Love - it's mostly the same as PoJ in a different way - FL is a ditzy fruit-turned-human, he is the cold princely Phoenix, LOL, so yeah, the trope exists but it doesn't come close to TU's dynamic. Partly it's because men relate to each other a whole lot differently than they relate to women, even women they like or are liked by.

A bit of the mystery (though not really in the same register) of that kind of push-and-pull you can find in The Spirealm, which IS danmei, but also censored the hell out, and modern too, so...

You're more likely to find the censored bromance trope of stoic-and-klutz pairing in a danmei drama, LOL, if you're going to watch The Sleuth of Ming Dynasty. Plus - it's a costume drama and the MC is cute as heck. Minus. it's still censored. (A lot more than usual, though, and it's based on a danmei novel too, so there was some interaction there to base it on). From what I've watched of Guardian, there might be something similar there, too, but it didn't click with me and I don't like Priest's novels so I didn't read it's OG novel. Word of Honor (based on another of her novels) has a bit of stand-offish/a lot of crazy dynamic. But they're gold together. If you haven't watched that, pick it up!

From straight romances... cold ML, smart and sweet FL - Prisoner of Beauty fits the bill (and it's also enemies-to-lovers). Also, A Dream of Splendor might also suit the trope - though he's not really that cold, just a calculated-risk-taking almost-madman. And she's smart and not really needing him to succeed LOL.

Fated Hearts also started with an enemies-to-lovers, cold ML/hot FL trope, and it went kind of well for a long while then they decided to put an atomic bomb through it or something. But it's still good if you get caught in it LOL. They don't support each other like WWX and LWJ though, where each knows the other has their back. There's a lot of angst and suspicion going through this drama so...

Fate Chooses You also has the cold ML/hot FL (or not so hot at all times, LOL), through most of its run, with an outside reason - he's got a curse that basically strips all emotions so he can't be way too expressive anyway. But he is impressed with her at all times. I'd recc this one, even if - again - the emotional payout isn't in the range of TU.

Love and Redemption has a secretive ML and a ditzy FL who basically swindles his feelings - I'd say one does tend to like it... if they're a bit sadistic (I am). The FL is kind of very very very extremely dumb a lot of times and the ML suffers for it. Then again, that's a Cheng Yi staple drama LOL (did I mention yet they spit a lot of blood in this one? I think it had the record for blood spitting before TTEOTM came along).

One Thai BL might be in the range - that is, Reset. It's a rebirth story where the ML falls for the MC and helps him in hidden and not-so-hidden ways. Technically it would be a lot like LWJ does, but actually, not really. (But the MC is gorgeous anyway, give it a try).

The Glory (the one with Chen DuLing) also fits a lot - she's cold and calculated, he's cold and secretive (and ill). It's a female-centric drama though, even if there's some romance, be warned.

From the currently airing dramas (so I can't vouch for how they end), I'd rec at least two with this trope - Ashes to Crown (she's sweet, smart and calculated, he's cold - so far. TBH, this is the second Zhou YiRan drama I'm watching, the other being Generation to Generation and in both he's playing cold, hard-to-get characters. They fit him like a glove, though, so whatever. And he has the perfect cold voice for it. I like his voice a lot).

The other is the Thai mystery/supernatural (NOT BL) Wu. I'd rec this one the highest over all the others - 1. it's actually very like the TU dynamic, minus the implied BL part and 2. one of the main leads is cold as ice, calculated as heck and PROFESSIONAL, while the other is a messy, happy-go-lucky, sometimes really not-smart guy who has all the heart. And the plot, music, effects, and pace are just perfect so far (6/9 eps out).

If you're okay with JUST bromance (no hint of anything more), then you might take a look at Oh No! Here Comes Trouble, which is a Taiwanese supernatural story that pulls all the stops. It's amazing. I can't praise it enough. Still, it's more of a cast-of-heroes type, outside the bromance.

And then Under the Skin - also not danmei, but a Chinese bromance of enemies-to-friends involving a very cold (and antagonistic, originally) detective and a small kitten, no, wait, a very talented painter who joins the team and just happens to be the detective's mortal enemy. Originally, at least. Watch that, it has Tan JianCi, it's worth it, LOL.

Ehh, I hope it's enough for now. There are more, though, cold/hot, enemies-to-lovers, sweet butterfly vs. deadly assassin get around as tropes. (Like she's cold, he's cute- The Legends, they're both mercurial - Wonderland of Love, he's cold, she's cute - Love Game in Eastern Fantasy, Love Between Fairy and Devil, they're both idiots, well, he's more of an idiot than her - Shadow Love.) We could be here all night LOL.

Which is why I qualified my answer, LOL.

Anyway - the short answer is that there is nothing close to TU yet. There are some who might come in the same range, but nowhere near as emotionally engaging.

Unless we're talking novels - where there are plenty more of the kind. *shrugging* Such is life.